I hadn't intended for the star pairing, UlquiHime, to take as much of a back seat to the other characters and pairing as they have. Trust me when I say there's definitely going to be plenty of content with these two as the story progresses. In the mean time, after reading some of your comments, I whipped up this Interlude to provide some much-needed UlquiHime fluff for those of you craving it as of late.
Thanks to taity, darkmachine, RG-Guest, and Kain101 for their reviews and feedback.
Interlude 03:
"A Day in the Life Of"
The Living Realm, Karakura City...
Early 2013 (Spring Trimester)...
With a few (understandable) exceptions, Orihime had always been a cheerful upbeat girl. And with a bit of initial help in her youth- made friends easily, as there was a lot to like about her. She was pretty, considerate of others, smart (if a bit eccentric), caring and outgoing with others.
By comparison, Ulquiorra was often dry and withdrawn (by choice), and found socializing more of a hassle than anything else. For the most part, he tolerated being in the presence of others for sake of the woman, because he knew this would make her happy. Tragically, this meant that most of his positive qualities- such as his intelligence and impressive memory- were lost on most people.
At present, Ulquiorra was working in Urahara's shop, restocking the shelves. He would have preferred something a bit less menial, but Urahara seemed to like having him around, and he wasn't about to turn down the chance to earn some extra money to help with the household expenses.
Some might have expected that his pride as a high-ranking Espada and warrior would have prevented him from assuming such a mundane position in the Living Realm. However, the truth was anything but this, as Ulquiorra was intelligent enough to fully appreciate the benefits of living in a realm that wasn't dominated by a kill or be killed mentality, where possible treachery waited at every turn.
Still, in spite of the many advantages- one of which being that his mate wasn't in constant danger- was the somewhat tedious nature, especially compared to what he'd come from, and the intrusiveness of the humans (and Shinigami disguised as humans) that he worked with.
He was thankfully unaware that the other employees were observing him...
It was common knowledge that the disguised Hollow had taken up residence with Orihime Inoue, and that the two were involved in a (surprisingly innocent) relationship. Well, innocent was a relative term, given that they were living together. And yet, neither of them- not the man or the woman- had seemed to be in any particular hurry when it came to their relationship, so it seemed that the young woman's virtue, as it were, wasn't in any immediate danger.
Both Orihime and Ulquiorra worked part-time, after finishing their school day, with the former working at a local bakery and the latter in Kisuke Urahara's shop. It was hardly surprising that the young woman had secured such a job, especially given her impressive figure and looks. By comparison, the work that Ulquiorra did was well-suited to his demeanor- being both consistent and steadily paced.
However, the downside to everyone spying on Ulquiorra was that there was no one manning the front counter when Yuzu Kurosaki entered the shop. The green-eyed Arrancar looked away from the shelves and took notice of her arrival, just as Urahara and Tessei restrained and muffled Ginta, to prevent him from blowing their cover by giving their position away.
Ulquiorra took note of the girls presence: recalling that she was Ichigo Kurosaki's younger sisters, one of a pair of fraternal twins. While her counterpart Karen- like Ichigo- took after their father in terms of features and latent abilities, this girl (according to what he'd heard) took after the late mother. The twins would have entered junior high this year, meaning she was likely about twelve years old.
The next thing he noted, as the girl picked up her items with a familiar ease, was that neither the bratty young man or the sad-eyed girl was manning the register. This struck him as unusual, especially when it came to the former and his adolescent fixation with the more feminine of the two sisters.
Shrugging off these thoughts, he moved to occupy the counter, calmly watching as the girl arrived to deposit her items in order for them to be rung up. "Schiffer-san?" She seemed surprised.
He nodded, and she continued. "I wasn't expecting to see you behind the counter." The young blonde girl commented as he scanned her items and bagged them.
"It seems the boy has wondered off his post." Ulquiorra replied idly. "I am, however, familiarized with the promotional prices of this particular collection of items." He casually explained, as he typed a code into the register. The Espada might not like the elder Kurosaki, but he had no cause to take issue with either of the two younger siblings. He gave her the total without prompting.
Yuzu retrieved a folded up ¥1000 bill (featuring a portrait of Doctor Hideo Noguchi and his gloriously quaffed hair) from her pocket and handed it too him. Ulquiorra accepted it with a neutral expression as he entered the amount into the register. It chimed and the drawer popped out, and he deposited the bill inside, then handed over her change along with the bagged items.
"Have a good day." He offered, managing to give a slight (though genuine) smile.
She blushed faintly at the simple gesture, but quickly returned the smile. "Thank you, Schiffer-san." The girl replied politely as she exited the shop.
. . . ...o.o.o... . . .
Orihime knew perfectly well that one of the reasons she'd secured her part-time job at the bakery was because customers (particularly the males) were more likely to spend money while in the presence of an "attractive young woman" (these were Tatsuki's words, not her's).
Still, it wasn't like the redhead hadn't sought this out this job with that knowledge in mind- to use her figure to pander to men. No, the truth was she had been far more attracted to the idea of working in the bakery because it meant that in addition to her pay, she also had access to the array of delicious baked goods that were made in the shop everyday. And as an employee, the young woman was often able to take the leftovers back home with her at the end of the work day.
Thanks to her popularity amongst the costumers- Orihime being something of an unofficial 'attraction' for the shop- the owners, a husband and wife duo (the Màedas), were eager to keep her in their employ. The former handled the book-keeping, while the latter was responsible for managing it- and was more than happy to let her bring unsold baked goods home with her (often for free).
At the moment, the pretty redhead was dressed in a simple white button-up blouse (which hugged her chest without being gratuitous) and a pair of black pants, complete with an apron tied around her waist and a pair of anti-slip shoes. Orihime had her fiery main trimmed so that it stopped about 3" above her waistline in the back (making it a bit easier to braid), while her trusty Shun Shun Rikka hairpins kept her bangs in the front neatly in place and out of her eyes.
She'd checked her phone on the way to work, and discovered she'd received a text message, sent from Rangiku-san (and on behalf of Toshiro-kun) from Nagano. Orihime smiled as she read the text:
From: Rangiku-san.
Hi Hime. Just wanted to say that me and the Captain are having a great time in Nagano. I included a pic of us in front of Castle Matsumoto (lol). Don't let the look on his face fool you, we're both having a lot of fun here, no matter what he says.
Any way, can't wait to see you when we get back. We should go out and do something fun together the next time we come to check on you and your boyfriend. ;)
Orihime had blushed initially after coming across the casual use of "boyfriend" by her friend in regard to Ulquiorra. However, she found the overall tone of the message far more interesting. And the attached photo only further confirmed her growing suspicions about Rangiku and Toshiro.
Rangiku was smiling gorgeously in the shot, one arm wrapped around (a blushing) Toshiro, while the other arm was outstretched- holding the cellphone as she snapped the picture of them. The Captain and Lieutenant were looked not unlike a couple in the photograph, standing in the courtyard, with the large black fortress behind them as a backdrop... Where they together?
Obviously, for Shinigami, 'age' was a pretty relative concept. So aside from their outward appearances, there really wasn't anything that unusual about the two of them being in a relationship. And it wasn't as if Orihime herself didn't have personal first-hand experience when it came to unusual relationships!
After all, Ulquiorra was a member of a race of creatures that fed on the souls of her kind, so the idea that they could develop romantic feelings for one another was far more of a hurdle than the idea of two consenting "adults" in a relationship with only an age gap as an obstacle. Still, Orihime wondered how much of a role their circumstances had played in Rangiku and Toshiro getting together...
She sometimes wondered just how much circumstances had influenced her and Ulquiorra. After all, it's said that necessity makes for strange bedfellows...
And couples arguably didn't come any stranger than the two of them!
"You seem to be a good mood, Inoue-san."
The comment snapped Orihime out of her musings. She turned to smile at her coworker- a girl named Miki Ueno, who was a year older than her, with blue eyes and short black hair worn in a bobcut.
"Oh, sorry, was I zoning out?" Orihime asked, embarrassed.
"No more than usual." Miki replied with a grin. "But then, judging from how your always smiling to yourself like that, I wish I had a hot boyfriend waiting for me after work."
Orihime's entire face flushed bright red!
. . . ...o.o.o... . . .
The woman had called him after work, saying that she needed to run a few errands and that she would be a little late getting home, about a half hour or so. And so, Ulquiorra had returned to their apartment, which was quiet, save for the chattering and little chirps of the two finches.
He frowned as he removed his tennis shoes and put them away. He wished that he could simply ignore the little things. However, the birds were important to the woman, and so had become a regular fixture of their shared home life. And, as much as Ulquiorra hated to admit it, he'd grown accustomed to their presence in the living room. The little sounds they were always making throughout the course of the day had long since gone from annoying racket to harmless background noise.
He then ventured into the apartment, quietly tucking away a book about cabinet making, still dressed in the pair of jeans and shop t-shirt he'd worn while working. As always, Ulquiorra spotted the cage in the corner of the room, it's two occupants chirping happily and going on about their business. He shook his head, then walked over to check on them and the state of their cage.
"Ulqui-kun, Hime-chan..." He spoke, to no one in particular, as he peered into the cage. Sure enough, the water was in need of changing and they were running low on fresh birdseed. "I hope the two of you appreciate your circumstances, and that the woman happens to care so much for you." He lectured the two of them as he went about unclasping the water bottle and the feed cup from their holders.
"And you, 'Ulqui-kun', as the woman insists on calling you," Ulquiorra continued, seemingly without even realizing he was doing so. "I expect you to comport yourself in a manor that is befitting of one who happens to share my namesake." He spoke evenly as she arrived in the kitchen.
He made his way to the sink and set about emptying and refilling their bottle up with fresh water, then dumped the largely empty husks into the nearby trash bin and, and filled it with fresh seeds. With those task finished, he returned to the cage and replaced the bottle and cup.
He paused at the cage, frowning mildly as the birds looked up at him. "I suppose you two also expect me to change the lining of your cage as well?" Ulquiorra asked them with a sigh. "Very well, consider yourselves lucky that I happen to be in a generous mood myself." He answered as he removed the tray from the bottom of the cage and emptied the sullied newspaper into the trash.
Ulquiorra retrieved fresh newspaper from a drawer under the counter and used it to line the tray, which he then returned and reinserted into the base of the cage.
He stepped back, inspecting his handiwork, then turned around, only to be met by the smiling figure of Orihime at the entrance to the living room, still in her uniform, with her cellphone in hand and aimed at him. The look he shot her, a mixture of annoyance and resignation, only succeeded in eliciting a volley of laughter from the young woman as she brought her phone down.
"How long have you observing me, woman?" He asked pointedly, if not somewhat defeatedly.
"Long enough to record some great video of you." Orihime replied proudly, holding the phone aloft to punctuate the point. "And just who are you calling woman?"
Ulquiorra shook his head, but said nothing else. "On that note," Orihime resume, quickly seizing the verbal ground he had yielded. "I believe it's my turn to cook dinner." She declared, prompting his green eyes to widen slightly as she left the living room to change out of her uniform.
. . . ...o.o.o... . . .
Ulquiorra had retreated back to the kitchen to set the water to boil. It may have been the woman's turn to cook, but he still intended to have some input in their dinner...
Just then, the Cuatro Espada felt a pare of arms encircling him around his waist, along with a familiar soft warmth body melding to his own at the same time (including a certain weight against his back that he associated with his companion and mate). "Wo- Orihime, what are you doing?"
He heard a muffled chuckle. "See, was that so hard?" Orihime purred into his ear, running her hands up his chest, feeling a slight involuntary shiver from his pectorals through his shirt at the contact.
His mouth was inexplicably dry in that moment, which suited the situation perfectly as the woman had more to say. "I'll tell you something important, Ulquiorra." She continued. "Seeing you just now, taking care of Ulqui-kun and Hime-chan, and even talking to them while doing that..." Orihime paused as she nuzzled his neck. "It means a lot to me, knowing I can rely on you to look after our little ones."
Ulquiorra shifted in her affectionate embrace, to meet her warm honey-brown eyes with his own deep emerald orbs. "Any male who helps around the house without needing to be asked, who cooks a proper dinner every other night, and looks after his mate's pets because he knows they're important to her..."
Mate. It was just one word. And yet, spoken from Orihime, there was something in the way she said it that both excited and set him on edge at the same time. She was good at that...
Orihime paused, running a hand up into his lush raven locks, gently cupping his pale cheek in her hand as she continued to hold his gaze. "In my book, that makes you a very desirable mate." She declared as she leaned in to capture his lips in a soft kiss, enjoying the fact that she'd taken the initiative.
The contact sparked something within him, and he returned the gesture in kind, stepping things up as he deepened the kiss... As always, he lips tasted so sweet to him. Orihime gave a small moan as she felt his tongue brushing against her lips, parting them to grant him access to her mouth.
It was Orihime who broke contact, drawing back from his breathlessly. "I hope I cleared a few things up for you, Ulquiorra." She commented with a sly smile.
"Perfectly, Orihime." He replied softly as he gave her a smile of his own.
(- End of Interlude 03 -)
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