Act IV Scene II: Venus im Pelz
For the most part, Uryuu believed that he had the appropriate, if not generally subdued reactions to the events that transpired throughout his lifetime. When his grandfather had been brutally murdered before his eyes, the young Quincy believed that he had developed a perfectly reasonable need for revenge and healthy dislike of shinigami. When Orihime, one of the most innocent humans Uryuu knew and also his friend to boot, had been kidnapped, he had very understandably accompanied everyone on the quest to get her back. These were only isolated examples, but they came from a much larger sample size of Uryuu having the entirely proper attitude regarding his circumstances as he tried his utmost best to Do The Right Thing.
Having said that, the Quincy would very much appreciate it if someone could explain to him why he was enjoying kissing another man to a scandalously inappropriate extent. Actually, even more improper was that he was kissing a Hollow. Not just any Hollow, but an arrancar. Who was an Espada. So, one of the worst Hollows in existence. Aforementioned Espada was also the bastard that was holding him captive, experimenting on him, had vivisected him, hurt people because of Uryuu, had nearly killed him several times, and (less importantly) constantly invaded his privacy. Coincidentally, Szayelaporro was currently also invading Uryuu's mouth with his tongue.
Uryuu customarily avoided killing if he could, but if a few months ago someone had told him that he would enjoy having a sadistically psychotic Hollow's tongue trying to shove its way down his throat, he would have imploded them with a Gert Sprenger faster than they could even begin weeping for their life to be spared. It was probably much too late to even begin to consider whether some of his life choices might have been less than optimal. Uryuu was pretty sure he'd failed in every way possible.
Knowing all of this, Uryuu wasn't certain why he hadn't stopped the kissing yet. Rather slowly, he realized that at some point in time, Szayelaporro had taken it upon himself to straddle him, trying to get a better angle, and the brunet now had a lapful of pervert. Every time Uryuu thought about pushing the scientist off, he would get distracted by the man's tongue running softly along his teeth or sliding softly against his own. Even with the pleasured haze, the teen realized that things were more out of focus than they should have been. How had his glasses been removed without his even noticing? A gentle nip on his lower lip had Uryuu sighing softly as his eyes slid closed, the long fingers buried in his raven hair massaging his scalp softy. Oh. That was how.
The blood pounded in Uryuu's ears, rushing through his body at breakneck speed. His skin tingled oddly, electricity sparking everywhere Szayelaporro touched like a live wire. If he spent much longer like this, Uryuu was certain that he might lose himself. He'd already almost forgotten why they were kissing in the first place. Fuck, he was so confused, and the intermingling coils of heat merging with the dark snake of wrong solidly settling in the pit of his stomach wasn't helping. He had to end this, and fast.
Bringing tremulous hands up to the pink-haired man's shoulders, Uryuu pushed weakly. Szayelaporro didn't seem to take the hint, instead pressing even closer and brushing against the growing evidence of the teen's arousal. That shocked an embarrassing moan from Uryuu and he could feel the other's smirk against his own lips. Gathering up all of the remaining strength he had, the brunet jerked away, shoving the taller man. The Octava didn't go far, but at least there was distance between their bodies as Uryuu held the scientist at arm's length. Panting for air, he studiously avoided looking at Szayelaporro. "That's more than enough. Now tell me about your dream."
The Octava started creeping a hand towards Uryuu's thigh. "But it would be rude of me to leave you frustrated after working you into such a state." The Quincy was tired of Szayelaporro constantly dodging the question and he wasn't about to be distracted again. Additionally and much to his own shame, Uryuu wasn't certain if he'd be able to stop if things continued. However, he'd have to file that away to agonize over later.
"No, I'd much rather you stopped." Uryuu drew one of his legs up protectively, shielding his groin. Szayelaporro sighed slowly and ran a hand through his hair. Nonetheless, he pulled away, sitting up perfectly straight and folding his hands over a knee. "Now, hold up your end of the deal. What were you dreaming about?"
"Very well. I'm almost certain I've told you this before, but you really aren't any fun at all." Groaning softly in capitulation, the Octava's golden eyes took on a distant look. "I wasn't dreaming about anything at all. I was simply remembering something marginally unpleasant that occurred a very long time ago. That's all there is to it."
Uryuu wasn't remotely satisfied by this vague non-answer. If there was one thing he knew about Szayelaporro, it was that the man was evasive at the best of times, sitting complacently atop a complexly woven throne of half-truths. "What was this memory of?" he pressed.
The scientist's eyes gained a hard edge, and Uryuu could practically feel the seething cholera emanating off of him in waves. It looked like the brunet had touched a nerve. Szayelaporro only seemed to let any anger show when he felt that he was losing control of the situation, and Uryuu took note of this with interest. "Oh, nothing much," the Espada gritted out, "among other things, I was only reliving my death." Szayelaporro laughed bitterly. "While it was probably the best thing to ever happen to me, seeing as how it made me the whatever that I am today, it wasn't too enjoyable in the moment; and experiencing that phantasmagoria wasn't very appealing either. I wasn't exactly ripped from the human plane of existence in a peaceful manner. Happy now?"
Looking at the Octava's unhinged smile, Uryuu was nearly sorry that he had asked. While he didn't have any great sympathy for the Hollow, it was very easy to forget that he had once been human. Regardless of what he had chosen to do after death, Szayelaporro hadn't always been the Octava Espada, the scientist of Hueco Mundo. Additionally, while dying was rarely a pleasant experience, it sounded like it had been even less so for the arrancar before him. Szayelaporro was very good at keeping up all appearances of being "perfect," but Uryuu was starting to see the cracks in his carefully constructed façade. "I wouldn't say that I'm happy," the teen said seriously. "It bothers me that something so horrible happened to you, even if you are a bastard." Uryuu silently added that he was also glad to have received a vital piece of the puzzle that was Szayelaporro.
The Octava shook his head incredulously, laughing semi-hysterically. "You really are one of a kind, Uryuu-kun. That ridiculously illogical compassion of yours is going to get you killed, just you wait." Szayelaporro stood, nervous tension vibrating in the taut lines of his body. "I think I've upheld my end of the bargain. If you'd be so kind as to excuse me, I have things that must be attended to." The scientist left, movements lacking their customary relaxed grace. Uryuu didn't think that he'd seen the Espada look so far out of his element since he'd been surprised by Sprenger in their fight. Uryuu needed to find out more.
Yylfordt was terribly annoyed. Was that even the right word for it? After the injuries he'd sustained from the fight with that stupid pineapple-headed shinigami had finally healed, he'd quickly exited from the disgusting underground of Las Noches, ready to get his well deserved revenge. His defeat had been an absolute fluke, and he couldn't wait to gouge every last shinigami on his horns. In retrospect, Yylfordt figured that he should have found it odd that his insufferable little brother hadn't been there to taunt him when he'd woken up. However, the blond had been eager to leap back into the fray of combat, so he hadn't given it much thought.
Imagine Yylfordt's disgust when he'd discovered that the entire war had already ended. The arrancar hadn't even won, some help Lord Aizen had been. The blond had sneered in distaste as he'd surveyed the wreckage that had been Las Noches. If he had only healed a few days earlier, he'd have been able to fight alongside his comrades. Finding Grimmjow had proved to be none too useful as well. Yylfordt had come across the Sexta in some unpleasant corner of the desert licking his wounds and the Espada only seemed interested in ranting about some shinigami with a stupid name like "Strawberry."
In the months that followed, there really hadn't been much to do. Things in Hueco Mundo seemed to have fallen back into their original order, albeit with a good many of the arrancar dead. Yylfordt hadn't cared for too many of his associates, particularly D-Roy, but Shawlong had been sensible at the very least. With so many dead and the intermittent stream of shinigami coming and going, Yylfordt felt that Hueco Mundo was simultaneously too empty and too full. To his knowledge, his little brother was among the casualty count. The blond hadn't quite cared for Szayel, but family was still family, and he couldn't help but feel slightly put out. Leave it to his dumb little brother to get himself killed. Again.
Left to his own devices, Yylfordt probably would have left it at that. However, Grimmjow had ordered him to "go see if yer dead, creepy-ass brother had any shit in that fuckin' lab that'll help kick the fuckin' shit outta Ichigo's fuckin' ass." His leader was as eloquent as ever. Sighing exasperatedly, Yylfordt used one of Szayel's "absolutely off limits, that means you darling idiot brother" secret entrances to the Octava's nasty laboratory. The blond had never liked it down there, and he could never understand why his little brother enjoyed holing himself up in the dark underground.
The main room of the lab seemed suspiciously not uninhabited. There weren't any signs of life in the eerie half-light, but the bay of computer monitors was up and running. Somebody had been there, but Yylfordt couldn't sense any spiritual pressures aside from his own, and even that was somewhat subdued. It was creepy and he didn't like it. Poking around, he scowled, finding nothing remotely useful. Even in death, his little brother was a pain in the ass. He might as well try the door opposite the endless hallway of rooms at the other end of the lab. If Yylfordt remembered correctly, he'd encounter Szayel's room.
He stepped into the bedroom, doing a double take when he saw someone that was decidedly not his brother sitting on the bed and reading. Yylfordt's lip curled as he regarded the person as if he were something dead he'd found on the bottom of his new shoes. The kid looked like he couldn't be over sixteen, though appearance wasn't a definite indicator of age in Hueco Mundo by any means. He was dressed like an arrancar, but his Hollow hole wasn't immediately obvious and Yylfordt couldn't see the remnants of his mask. Maybe it was the glasses, like Szayel's? Still, arrancar or no, that didn't explain what the kid was doing in his little brother's bed.
Yylfordt cleared his throat and the black-haired arrancar jumped slightly, looking up with wide blue eyes. There was an awkward moment where they just stared at each other, the kid completely frozen. "Look, brother," Yylfordt began, "I haven't seen you around before, but I'm looking for Szayel. Are you part of his Fracción?" He stepped further into the room, finally stopping about a meter from the uneasy arrancar.
The kid fidgeted. Yylfordt tapped his foot impatiently, he was getting annoyed, but he couldn't really blame the boy. Anyone would get a little anxiety prone after being around his little brother. Speaking of, Yylfordt himself really didn't want to run into Szayel. "I, uh, I'm not part of Szayelaporro's Fracción. I'm not quite sure where he is either. He left a few hours ago. Said something about having things to attend to. Sorry. Um, who are you by the way?"
Yylfordt's eyes narrowed. That wasn't the answer that he'd been looking for. And if the kid wasn't Fracción, then who the hell was he? Well, at least he'd found out that his brother was alive and was operating business as usual in his labs. Scowling, Yylfordt flipped his hair over his shoulder. "I'm Yylfordt. Yylfordt Granz. Now, would you care to tell me who you are and what it is you're doing in my little brother's bedroom?"
The young arrancar looked pretty taken aback. "I'm Ishida Uryuu. I didn't know Szayelaporro had an older brother, but I guess you guys do look very similar even if your coloring is different and..." The kid cut himself off from his rambling. "I'm just really surprised. Anyway, Szayelaporro and I've been sharing the bed for a while." Yylfordt could feel the surprised revulsion register on his face and Ishida blushed furiously, hands coming up. "I didn't mean it like that!"
"Whatever. I've found that it's best to just not ask when it comes to anything involving that insufferable prick. It is interesting that he's kept you around for more than a day, he does get bored so quickly. Still, he'll probably lose interest in you too soon enough, brother. Do me a favor and don't tell him that I was here." Yylfordt turned to leave, deciding that he'd gotten all that he could out of his little visit. Ugh. He'd wasted so much time and risked his little brother's wrath on top of it. Never again. Grimmjow'd be displeased too.
"Wait!" With a put upon sigh, Yylfordt turned to face Ishida once again, irritation obvious. His sneer practically screamed "what the fuck do you want now?" and the teen obviously got the message. "Before you go. Since your his older brother and all. Do you think you could tell me about Szayelaporro. How he died and all that." The kid's expression was full of poorly hidden hope, and Yylfordt rolled his eyes. He really hadn't signed up for this.
Yylfordt was fully ready to just walk out the door, but then something occurred to him. A malicious smirk made itself known. Szayel would probably hate for this Ishida arrancar to get his hot little hands on the Octava's past vulnerability. It would certainly be the beginning of cosmic payback so that his little brother would feel just ad much annoyance as Yylfordt was currently feeling himself. When suffering, it's best to take everyone else down with you. "Alright, brother. I'll tell you all about my asshole younger sibling."
A/N: Once again, thank you to all my reviewers, particularly my three favorites (you're all trash, and I love you for it.) I've always liked Yylfordt, mostly because he's such a bitch, so it was nice bringing him in. I keep writing all the cliffhangers, huh? I managed to get my hands on a copy of the MASKED character book, so that's been fun. I would have updated sooner, but apparently Gay Detective is a genre of movie, so I've been binge watching that. Oops. Until next time~