Chapter 14: Reunited
Hi everyone!
I thought I would do a quick recap because someone asked a couple of questions in a guest review. I thought it best to add it up here since these things are crucial to understanding the story.
Orihime went back to Aizen unintentionally, because she followed Ichigo so that she could right her actions and ease her guilt for abandoning Sora. Instead of relying on her own capabilities, she followed someone else out of convenience and that lead to folly.
Aizen was pulling the strings entirely and manipulated the situation so that instead of Ichigo taking her to Sora, he would bring her to him. Ichigo did this out of good intentions, but did not know or expect that there were ulterior motives in the works.
Just as Orihime followed Ichigo when it became convenient, she also followed the words of Aizen and gave her memories to Urahara when Aizen put the suggestion in her mind that they were valuable. This was a cycle that happened over and over again, with Ulquiorra choosing to use the valuable time spent with Orihime to make her fall in love with him again until she eventually ritualistically leaves.
Each time, Orihime gave her memories of Ulquiorra so that she could see him once again. The problem is that the thing you trade in the present must also be traded in the past, therefore each time she went back with her memories as her sacrifice, she also forgot the time they spent together in the past after her time with him was done.
The only reason this cycle broke was because Tatsuki was there to divert Aizen's suggestion and because of that, Orihime gave her hair instead of her memories.
I hope that clears things up!
I want to add personally to the reviewer and basically anyone who was confused – you are not simple-minded at all and please don't ever think that way about yourself. If something is confusing, it is not your fault, it is MINE because I haven't properly portrayed the plot in a way that is palatable and I apologise for that.
Please don't worry and if you have any more questions, don't be afraid to ask!
….
A gentle paw pressed against Orihime's cheek, alternating between soft and hard ministrations to coax her awake. The first thing she registered when she opened her eyes were a pair of golden orbs staring straight back at her while a pink tongue licked her nose, like coarse sand rubbing against her face.
"Time to wake up," A masculine voice cajoled.
She recognised the voice as the voice within the tunnel when she followed the small black cat to Urahara's shop. It was not a far stretch of the imagination by any means to think that Yoruichi's cat form was masculine, given the vast variety of odd things she had seen so far.
Pushing herself up into a sitting position, Orihime scratched her head and yawned. It came as a surprise to the princess that her hair was again back to its normal long, silky length and her body had regained the supple, full form that she was attuned to. The shock was so painful that it roused her from her sleepy state and grounded her within reality.
Yoruichi transformed from her cat-like visage into the beautiful woman Orihime recognised her to be. Quickly, she dressed herself in tight, black pants and covered herself in a short, loosely tied robe. Her legs were on full display and Orihime noticed how much her chocolate skin tone highlighted the lean muscles in her form. She wanted to have something akin to that strength, but the effort was too much for her to even consider trying.
Finally, Yoruichi tied her long hair up and flicks of black locks framed her face. It reminded Orihime vaguely of whiskers, but it did not seem appropriate at the time to mention this as the woman seemed restless.
Cautiously, Yoruichi threw a knife at Orihime's feet and set to kindling a fire restlessly.
"Cut your hair." Yoruichi whispered, clacking flint together. "Hurry up."
Orihime took the knife into her palms and carefully roped her hair together with her fist. She felt a tinge of regret but those feelings meant nothing in the grand scheme of things.
As Yoruichi blew life into the kindling fire, Orihime fed the heat her hair progressively. The smell was no better than the first time she had burned her hair, and definitely was not something she ever hoped to repeat again.
While she fed the last strands, Orihime hummed a sad song. The snowy leaves rustled in the trees, the whites and greys more ominous now that there were no souls bobbing in the sky. The fire seemed to bring colour to the colourless world, as it remained perpetually between dusk and dawn.
The darkness seemed ever looming, but never quite came.
Yoruichi was too preoccupied on the potential danger this world possessed, listening and pacing restlessly for any sign of incoming life to listen to Orihime's song. It was unlikely Yoruichi had ever been in this world before, let alone know fully of its existence. This was the den of her adversaries and naturally, she would be afraid – however Orihime did not like to think of what a being so great would be afraid of. It did not inspire confidence, especially since Yoruichi was there solely to protect her.
Hearing a rustling in the bushes, Yoruichi set her sights on the direction of the noise. She crouched, a knife in her hands as she readied for an onslaught from whatever came towards them.
At first, Orihime was terribly frightened and hopped onto her feet clumsily. Her first instinct was to run before whatever came had a chance of catching up to her, but doing so would cause more problems for Yoruichi than good.
As her eyes adjusted to the silhouette that appeared from the corner of the clearing, instead of wanting to run away, she wanted to do the exact opposite. Her eyes filled with tears and her heart ached immensely as she saw someone she had not seen in a very long time.
Instinctively, Orihime shot forward in a sprint as she leaped over the fire with grace.
She wanted to leap into his arms, but Yoruichi tackled her down and rolled so that she would take the brunt of the impact as they twisted together on the grass. Orihime cried out in anguish, but Yoruichi brought her up gently by the arm and hushed her. "If you run at him like that, he will kill you."
Looking over towards where he stood, reserved and silent, the first thing Orihime noticed was how much longer his hair was. It trailed down his neck and she loved how youthful he looked, unlike the sophisticated shorter hair that she was used to seeing.
The next thing she observed stilled her elated spirit and renewed the impulse to run that had inspired her earlier. Instead of the stoic and gentle maturity that made up all the noble goodness in his qualities that earned him her love, he was murderous, uncaring and above all else exuded nothing but absolute killing intent.
At that moment, he was the man she loved only in appearance and nothing else.
"Ulquiorra." Yoruichi greeted stiffly.
"Get out of here before I kill you."
He turned to leave but Yoruichi called for him again, more sternly this time. "Ulquiorra."
If it were anyone else, Yoruichi may have held them down and restrained them by force if that was what it took to listen, but with Ulquiorra she was much more reserved. She did not move towards him, and in fact kept her distance entirely. Her eyes focused on a child that dangled from his grip.
Orihime's confidence renewed when she saw the curly head of green hair and recognition dawned on her. Nelliel was absolutely beautiful, her arms soft and chubby and her body wrapped in rags.
Clutching her chest empathetically, Orihime noticed the badly scarred features that stretched across her face. Her wound ran under her eyes and over her nose, ending finally at her ears. It was coated with pus and blackened dried blood that seeped like mud over her features.
Nelliel was sick and barely lucid as she hung by her arm in his grip.
The princess so badly wanted to do something – anything, for both of them but the moment was slipping away like water through her fingers.
"Please." Orihime called after him. "I need your help."
Ulquiorra regarded her as though she were trash discarded on the ground.
The beautiful green eyes that looked upon her with such tenderness were void of anything but loathing. It was as though he debated whether she was even worth his time or energy even to kill. Even though he detested her so, something in the way he looked at her changed and Orihime almost sensed hesitation in his demeaner.
Despite the potential of causing his maliciousness to waver, Orihime did not feel that this meeting was promising in the slightest. He was not the man she fell in love with and even entertaining the thought of coming to love this person as he was at that very moment seemed just as a betrayal as considering Aizen or even Ichigo as potential lovers.
As he turned and walked towards her, Orihime instinctively recoiled and stepped back. Nothing was lost to him and he registered every move and every emotion that filtered through her mind. The problem was the closer he came, the more she could see of his face and his likeness to the person he came to be.
Orihime loved Ulquiorra so very much that it clouded her judgement and made her second-guess every impression of him so far.
"Are you afraid of me, woman?" Ulquiorra's voice was level and calm.
"I'm not afraid." Orihime said.
He was close enough now to reach out and touch her.
Orihime had craved this very moment more than she ever thought she could wish for anything, but at the same time her heart was full of dread. All she could see was the confusion on his face when he tried so urgently to understand what her expression represented as it ate away at his thoughts, spurning him on to learn so that his interest would be sated.
The princess knew deep down that he did not love her and that this was simply his nature when it came to things he did not yet comprehend. Orihime knew how this would play out if she acted impulsively. She would spill her ardent feelings of him and the secret of the puzzle would come before any catharsis he may feel of uncovering something new and then Ulquiorra would then most definitely lose interest and kill her.
His hand reached out and came close to her cheek, and Orihime knew that the experiments had already begun. He would try to gauge the emotional response to physical attentions to try to pinpoint what brought on her different attitudes towards him. She tried her very best to calm her nerves, resisting giving him the information that he sought, but when she could feel the heat of his hand close to her cheek, her heart burst into flames and she smiled with radiance.
Ulquiorra was shocked.
Such an expression was utterly alien to him and he was at a loss of what to think. Before they could really explore those unresolved feelings, Yoruichi pulled her away from his reach.
"Kisuke asked me to bring her to you." Yoruichi explained coolly. "He wants you to take care of her."
Yoruichi may have seemed composed, but Orihime could sense how terrified she was. Her grip on Orihime's arm was firm, but that was not enough to stop the quivering.
It was as though they were in two different realities, Orihime finally at peace and Yoruichi frightened to her core.
"Well, he must think that you are disposable if he had the gall to bring you here as a messenger, you filthy moggie." Ulquiorra said, rousing Nelliel from her feverish slumber with a shake. "Or perhaps instead of a cat you are better suited as a guinea pig."
Orihime as a reflex wanted to laugh, and did so behind her hand quietly. A moggie was a cat without any pedigree or breeding – much like a mixed breed or a stray. To put things best into perspective, it was the cat equivalent of calling a dog a 'mutt', but the deconstruction was beside the point – Ulquiorra could have called Yoruichi any level of filthy expression of nastiness. There were enough words in language to accommodate him, however he chose something so mundane and so specific to Yoruichi's character that it almost seemed benign.
Yoruichi was not nearly as amused by his words as Orihime was, and probably took them to heart. She was, from what Orihime understood, a very great, very noble creature. To be compared to something so base was damaging to her pride. Orihime doubted there were many people willing to talk so badly of Yoruichi, especially not directly in front of her.
The princess's amusement died down and was replaced with shock when Nelliel was roused awake and charged at Yoruichi like a crazed beast. Yoruichi transformed into her cat form and tried to dash away, but Orihime could not help but gather the child in her arms before any harm was done.
Nelliel struggled savagely, foamy drool spilling from her lips as though she were rabid. It was hard to keep hold of her, but Orihime managed to embrace her tightly enough that she would not move and cause further harm herself while delirious.
Nelliel growled and sank her teeth into Orihime's shoulder while she struggled roughly and Orihime cried out in pain. It came as a shock, but Orihime managed to rock the child back and forth while soothing her.
"Nelliel, everything is okay." Orihime murmured tenderly. "Shh… relax, my darling."
As though the child had never experienced affection before, Nelliel elicited little cries of confusion until she slipped back into feverish sleep. There was absolutely no doubt in Orihime's mind that Ulquiorra's cheap trick to frighten Yoruichi was at the cost of Nelliel's health and she could not bear to look at him from sheer anger that he would be so spitefully immature.
At the heart of her being, Nelliel was a Nephilim and atavistically carried a lust for chaotic miasma that would no doubt be emanating from Yoruichi's being in powerful doses. Of course, she would seek to obtain that nourishment, especially when she was so ill and weakened. The problem was, Ulquiorra knew better than to manipulate her animalistic urges and use her as a weapon against someone he did not like. This was not principled and it came off as irrationally vindictive, which was on par with the awful way Aizen had treated Orihime when he imprisoned her.
Ulquiorra watched her pragmatically and Orihime wished that there was a tiny hint of her husband in that cold exterior. She wanted to find at least a ray of the man he would eventually become within him at that very moment. Most of all, she wanted to find some deep-rooted love or affection, but sadly all she received was mild interest.
It was as though he were calculating the overall purpose or intent of having her in his company, like a risk assessment.
"You will come with me, woman." Ulquiorra decided. "Not because you asked me, but because she will be useful."
Ulquiorra's vindictive gaze left Orihime's and focused on Yoruichi, the poor woman incapable of hiding her fear when her tail bristled with each hair standing on end. Even when Ulquiorra was her loving husband, he was not ever very expressive, but the hatred that was evident on his features each time he looked at the small black cat made Orihime's blood run cold.
What did Yoruichi do to make him hate her so much?
There had to be a reason behind it.
"Ulquiorra, there is something important that you must know about her." Yoruichi said, before Orihime followed him. "If Orihime falls asleep, you need to stay with her until she wakes up. She will not wake up, even if you rouse her and you need to keep her safe especially while she is sleeping."
Ulquiorra did not answer and instead, walked away without any concern. Orihime followed him closely with Nelliel in her arms. Her eyes filled with tears as she thought of how beautiful and cherub-like the child was. She was beautiful in every way Orihime had imagined.
Orihime turned to say goodbye to Yoruichi, but cringed as she turned her neck. A little bit of blood ran down her shoulder and the bite marks looked as though they were going to seriously hurt soon. Nelliel did not hold back when she bit down and if Orihime didn't catch her off guard, she may have even ripped off the flesh.
There were a lot of things that justified feelings of resentment towards Nelliel. Orihime knew that especially with goddesses, if their husbands chose to lay with other women, the goddess would not hesitate to murder or torture the other woman.
That was not the case at all for Orihime.
Even if Nelliel did betray her trust, which Orihime believed less and less each passing day, she could not help but care and love the girl. Especially now that she was just an innocent child. The bite mark did not matter a single bit, because she was ill and confused and surrounded by new faces.
"If we all found probable excuses every time someone unintentionally caused hurt to us, maybe we would be more forgiving towards others and ourselves." Orihime whispered her words of wisdom into Nelliel's crown of hair and kissed her forehead.
Orihime felt very clever and her mind was finally at ease.
Now she could focus on the severe wound on Nelliel's face without any lingering feelings interrupting her thoughts. The wound stretched from ear to ear and ran across her cheeks and over her nose. It was deep and the skin was cracked and blistered. What troubled Orihime most was that she could not accurately see the damage under the dried pus and blood surrounding the flesh wound.
From what she believed, the damage was immense and now Orihime understood why Nelliel had a large scar even in adulthood.
"We need to do something about this wound before it becomes even more infected." Orihime said urgently.
When Ulquiorra did not respond, Orihime reached out to touch his hands as a way to somehow connect with him and make him listen. Before her fingers could feel his touch, he pulled away as though he had been burned.
"Don't ever touch me." He warned. "Take the child and go."
"I'm not going to leave you." Orihime said firmly.
She didn't want to leave him ever again.
As he turned, she reminded herself that he was not the person that she fell in love with. He simply looked like that person. This man with the likeness of her husband was nothing but a stranger, and this land that she once called her home was no longer safe or accommodating especially when her survival skills were lacking.
"Why are you still here?" Ulquiorra asked, his tone cruel. "Go away from me."
"Do you think I like being around someone as rude and conceited as you?" Orihime countered. "Stop pushing me away. I don't want to be around you when you act like this. If you find me such a nuisance, well – you should look inwards!"
Orihime wasn't quite sure what she was saying. Truthfully, she had cleared her resentment of Nelliel but it still reared back full force at Ulquiorra. It was not rational, but it made her somehow angry and disappointed that he still had not found her in the present time. That was not the sin of the man she was yelling at though – at least not yet.
"I should kill you for being so insolent!" Ulquiorra roared, his composure shaken.
"Well then kill me!" Orihime yelled back, holding Nelliel closer so that she wouldn't awaken to their arguing. "That way you can make a start at being decent and at least follow through with your promises!"
"Absolutely infuriating woman…" Ulquiorra muttered to himself as he stormed off on his own.
Orihime sniffed, immediately regretting her words.
She knew that deep down, Ulquiorra had always been lonely. There was no-one in the world that would treat him as an equal, and he surrounded himself with people that could never really truly get to know him, at the risk of regarding him differently. Without Urahara he was most likely left entirely alone, especially when Aizen was so self-important that he would make terrible company.
It was painful knowing that she was so mean to someone who genuinely deserved all the kindness and care in the world, especially when she knew that personally he had not received a single drop of kindness in a very long time.
"I should have treated this as an opportunity to start afresh…" Orihime said to herself regretfully.
To stop herself from falling into depression, she focused on the things she needed to do at that very moment. Firstly, she needed to treat Nelliel's wound and then she needed to build a shelter for the both of them. One of those things she could do relatively well, however she had absolutely no idea how to build a shelter.
"Everything is going to be okay." She whispered to the feverish child.
…
Orihime walked around aimlessly with the small child in her arms until she could hear the sounds of water. She raced towards the direction of the noise and sighed with relief at finding an open area in the woods. A stream bubbled and a big tree had dipped its roots into the water.
The clearing was open and she would be able to scout for danger in each direction.
Racing to the stream, she kept Nelliel in her arms as she stepped gingerly into the water. If she was not careful, she could slip on some rocks and lose her footing, which was incredibly dangerous when there was an unconscious toddler in her arms.
Orihime kept Nelliel's head upright so that she could breathe easily, but she needed to submerge as much of her small body as possible to lower her fevered temperature before her body suffered significant damage.
The next step was to boil some water and clean her wound, but there was no possible way that she could find a vessel to boil water in, let alone kindle a fire. Carefully, Orihime used the end of her dress to scrub away at the blackened blood and pus that dried on Nelliel's cheeks. It would have been very painful considering how cracked and pained the skin looked, but the girl was too feverish to notice.
Every so often, Nelliel babbled slurred, feral words that Orihime could not understand. She doubted the poor child had learned how to speak yet and she hated Ulquiorra for neglecting the sick infant when she needed society, teaching and relief.
It was wrong of her to judge Ulquiorra in such a way because she knew that eventually he would do all those things immaculately, and that him in his current state was not of the high grade and maturity of who he eventually would become.
Again, Orihime felt regret that she was so cruel to him and quivered, her body so cold and the world so dark.
"It's so easy to laugh, so easy to hate," Orihime whispered into Nelliel's tiny crown of hair. "It takes strength to be gentle and kind."
When Nelliel's tiny fist pressed against her neck and her big brown eyes stared up into her own, Orihime's heart melted. "You will grow to be a wonderful woman."
Before Orihime could cherish the moment, Nelliel sunk her teeth into Orihime's shoulder once more and she nearly dropped Nelliel into the stream from the shock. Still, she endured the vicious biting and would allow herself to feel the pain later.
"I guess that means you're hungry." Orihime smiled as best she could, wading out of the water and setting the savage child down.
When Nelliel's feet hit the ground, she began to jabber like a monkey and climbed up the tree with newfound strength. When Orihime noticed that she was looking for fruit, she yelled scoldingly, "Let me try that first in case it might be poison!"
Instead, she felt fruit splatter across her face and she rubbed it off with a swipe of her arm. Ulquiorra looked down at her with a red fruit in his hand. He was perched comfortably on a thick branch and she wondered when he had got there.
"Let her figure out herself whether or not certain foods are harmful." Ulquiorra said, taking another bite. "If she poisons herself and dies, that is simply the laws of nature taking place."
"She is only a child and doesn't know any better. You, as an adult, should take better care of her and shield her from harm." Orihime said, as she tried to climb up the tree with no avail.
Little yellow eyes watched her from a distance and she became suddenly afraid of what the darkness would bring. Predators were now waking up and hungry, and she was an easy target when she had zero fighting experience.
A pale hard reached out to her and she couldn't help but study those long, elegant fingers and perfectly groomed nails. Without much thought, she pressed her hand against his and he lifted her with ease. Truthfully it hurt a bit to have all your weight relied upon by your one hand, but he was quick and fluid and soon she was atop the thick branch, eye to eye with the man she loved.
"Thank you." Orihime blushed, averting her gaze.
Ulquiorra reached out and pulled her onto his lap so that her legs were wrapped around his waist and their bodies were touching. As though he could sense her apprehension, he sighed and looked away.
"Woman, I have no interest in raping you." Ulquiorra's breath warmed her neck. "It is simply a precaution in case you fall from the tree while sleeping and die."
She was soaking wet from the river and dampened his clothes, but the feeling of his heat against the entire front of her body ignited an insatiable lust within the core of her being. Her nipples hardened at the feeling of friction between his chest and hers and she wondered if he noticed. Her heart faltered, knowing that Ulquiorra was so observant that he never missed a thing.
Orihime had missed him so much while they were separated that all she could think about was the feeling of his body against hers. One of her regrets was that she did not make love to him before she left, but she felt as though it was not the right time. Now that he was there in the flesh, she knew that the man beneath her did not deserve her deepest affections as much as her husband did, but her body betrayed her.
As he moved his leg slightly beneath her, a moan escaped Orihime's lips and she covered her mouth with embarrassment.
Ulquiorra hummed with interest, and she hated him so much in those moments that she had to stop herself from smacking him. Her breath was shaky and her entire body felt hot and hyper sensitive. She could make out his countenance through the darkness and see the amusement in his features and it drove her insane.
"I trust you." Orihime whispered.
"Why am I in charge of taking care of you, woman?" Ulquiorra asked. "What makes you think that you are safe and that you can trust me? I could take you at any time I wanted."
His words made her heart beat faster and if he intended to make her afraid, he had failed. Fantasies of his hands gripping her waist and the thought of how he would look and sound if she teased him made her go crazy.
A rustling was heard above them, and Orihime could vaguely recognise Nelliel's animalistic jabbering. The presence of the Nephilim child soothed her urges and created an excuse as to why this wasn't a good idea. She wanted to voice her concerns, but before she could mention anything, she saw the tiny body hop down and land fluidly with a roll on the grass.
Nelliel sprinted out from the clearing and into the unknown forest ahead and that terrified Orihime at the thought of what could happen to her.
"Before you go down and try to look for that creature," Ulquiorra began, looking over her with amusement. "I should probably explain that she is simply hunting and that she has a much more likely chance at survival than you certainly will if you leave this tree."
That was one line of defence shattered.
The only other thing that stopped her from acting stupidly was that she was angry at him for being so horrible and unkind to her. She felt nervous and high strung and it was impossible to calm down, but at the same time she did not want to fall asleep at the risk of not being able to see him for a while. Orihime did not want to look at him, but when she heard Ulquiorra sigh, she could not help but do so.
Although his youth stayed the same, he was a lot mentally younger than her clever husband and still had not mastered hiding the expressions that played across his face. Ulquiorra stared at her unashamedly, and from the way his jaw clenched, she could tell that there was something bothering him.
Orihime smiled sweetly, knowing that it was a blessing that she would get to know him during his younger years. He was leagues ahead of her in intelligence and her empathetic perceptive talents were nothing compared to his observational abilities, but he lacked optimism and did not understand motives unless they were seeded with morbid intentions. The idea of being loved and cared about was so entirely alien to him that even though she could not hide her feelings, not one bit, she still had the opportunity to feel them privately without him knowing.
Put simply, it was like hiding in plain sight.
Roused from her thoughts, Orihime felt his fingers sliding up her thighs in tantalising, slow motions. She straightened her back and let out a breathy sigh, her whole body aching and flooding with sensitivity.
She knew why Ulquiorra was doing this, and it wasn't out of any particular love or romantic interest. He wanted to rule out the foreign element of love and instead associate her feelings and intentions with lust, a feeling that he could understand because it was centred around empty selfishness. The hurtful part was that he wasn't wrong – she was lustful and a part of her wanted to overwrite the way Aizen had touched her.
Orihime reached out to touch his cheek, but his words stopped her.
"Don't."
The princess knew that if she touched him, he would stop.
A part of her knew that she should stop him because the situation was spiralling more and more out of her control. Then his hands rose under her gown to her hips and all inhibitions gave way to immense pleasure.
Before rational thought could sway her mind, Orihime started grinding against him, trying to satisfy the urges that dominated her thoughts. She wished that he would push her away, but instead his hands moved further down and cupped her aching mound as though knowing exactly what she wished to suppress.
His thumb drew circles around her sensitive bud and it was as if her body ignited despite being soaking wet. Orihime rocked her hips over his hand and cried and moaned, the feelings so new that she wasn't quite sure what overcame her.
As much as Orihime hated herself for it, she gripped his shoulders and pressed her lips against his.
Ulquiorra was surprised at first, momentarily frozen from the shock of how forward she was after he had firmly told her not to touch him. His restraint ceased when she nibbled on his bottom lip and he hummed with approval. The taste of him was so sweet and reminiscent that she wanted to cry, but Orihime could see the cracks in his harsh demeaner when she looked down upon him and seeing the softness in his heated gaze drove her to the edge.
Orihime wailed as she climaxed into his hand, her body rocking and convulsing as waves of pleasure flooded through her. The release was liberating and she did not know it was possible to feel so uncontrollably good. Her whole body tingled and every muscle relaxed as she shivered from oversensitivity and Ulquiorra gripped onto her quickly before she swayed and fell from their perch in the tree.
Closing her eyes, Orihime wrapped her arms around his shoulders and kissed him lazily while her lust simpered down. She could feel how hard he was between her thighs and only the fabric of his pants separated their flesh. Ulquiorra responded to her fervently as his tongue flicked against her own, reigniting her passions as though she was not just recently satiated by his dextrous fingertips.
The feeling reminded her vaguely of the time when Ulquiorra had kissed her before she fell into the fountain and the mere thought of it drove her to tears. Her husband had been with her from the very beginning and pursued her with courteousness and never once tried to force her into doing something she wasn't ready for, and now she was just going to give away all his efforts to someone who did not love her.
It did not matter that the person she would give herself to was still him, because the past version was lacking in something fundamental, and that aspect was love. Her morals and virtues restrained her from giving herself to someone who did not love her, even though she physically yearned to do so.
"I am so sorry." Orihime whispered, panicking. "I love someone else. I'm sorry that I led you on."
…
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