Two days later…
The image within the picture was grotesque. The witch's eyes were wide open, blood trickling from her opened mouth. The floor beneath her was stained in blood, and the hunter could see why. Right in her chest, where the heart would be, was a large hole. The inside of the hole was black, making the hunter believe that if one were to look within it, they would be sucked in. His eyes finally noticed the organ lying underneath her bent arm.
"He's a monster," the hunter grunted, throwing the picture onto the priest's desk, "How did you get this information?"
"I have my spies amongst them," replied the priest, putting the photograph away. "Did you receive the information needed from the Soul Reaper?"
"Yes. The witch's companion is referred to as an Espada, a type Hollow species. Stronger. Very strong. He warned me to be careful. This man served directly under Soul Society's biggest traitor,"
"Remember your mission," the priest said as he stood. He opened the doors of a wooden closet, and pulled a long sword out, "Do not let your desire for revenge on him blind you from exterminating the witch. This Espada will go through great lengths to kill anyone who harms her. If we do not stop this and they were to conceive, that child would be impossible for us to contain. The human race would be in grave danger,"
The hunter grabbed the sword and nodded, reading the Latin words engraved in it. They were the words of God. He could feel the Lord's magic within it.
"One swing, and the witch will be gone. That sword has been blessed by God himself when he punished Lucifer for his heinous crimes,"
One day later...
"Do not overthink it, girl," the mirror said.
Orihime nodded, her eyes narrowing as she tried again. She chanted the foreign words a third time, hearing the sound of the glass vase moving against the wooden floor.
"H-How far was that?"
Ulquiorra glanced at the vase, "Two inches,"
She frowned before smiling widely and punching the air in triumph, "I got it to move two inches!"
"Witches younger than you can accomplish more," the mirror said, "You still need to practice, girl."
"I know," Orihime yawned, "But I need a break. I'm hungry,"
"Be ready in an hour, girl. I must also teach you about potions,"
She nodded before sitting on the floor in front of her coffee table. Ever since coming back from the witch's home, the mirror had started teaching her everything she needed to know about becoming a witch.
It started with basic spells - turning the lights on and off, changing the color of her clothes, closing the door, moving an item…
The first couple of spells weren't difficult, and the mirror explained that it was due to her mother's blood running through her veins. That despite being a half-witch, using magic would not be an impossible feat for her. All she needed was the determination and right words.
The last piece of her learnings though, which was moving items, was more difficult. The mirror instructed her to move the sofa; but upon seeing her failure, told her to move the vase instead. The smaller the object, the easier.
Chanting the words carefully, it barely moved. The third time she chanted the words, it moved slightly. Ulquiorra had stood near it, his eyes calculating its distance and telling her after each attempt. As her attempts continued on making the vase move even further, Ulquiorra instructed the mirror to teach her darker magic. Spells that would help her against strong enemies.
"That is soon to follow," the mirror had agreed.
Studying witchcraft while attending school wasn't easy. Instead of listening to her instructor, she would write down some of the spells she wanted to practice and chant them in her mind. Unbeknownst to her, one of the spells worked very effectively. As her instructor lectured on about various topics in physics, the classroom door had closed loudly, causing the majority of the students to scream. Ichigo and Uryuu had stood up in alarm, as if ready to fight, as Chad simply looked at her. She gave him a shy smile, mouthing an "oops" before he smiled in return.
After class, she had told Ulquiorra the incident. The Espada, who would stay nearby the school in case the hunter showed up, gave her a surprised look before taking her hand in his and using sonido to take them to her home.
"I think I'm ready for my next lesson!" she exclaimed, putting her completed homework to the side and grabbing the mirror.
"What are you going to teach me now?"
"I am going to show you how to create a wellness potion. It will help whenever another witch has placed a curse on you. One drink and it will go away,"
"OK," Orihime said with a slight nod, "What do I need to do?"
"Here is a list of items you must acquire," the mirror said as it displayed a list of numerous items.
Tapping the bottom of her chin, Orihime began to read them out-loud. Many of them she had at home: onion, garlic, mushrooms, salt…
But as she landed on the last couple of items in the list, her eyebrows furrowed in both confusion and disgust. "Monkey's brain? Rat feet? A-And a pig's heart? Do I really need these things?"
"The potion won't be effective without them, girl,"
"But, how do I get those items?"
"Use a manifestation spell and summon these items," the mirror said tiredly, and she giggled nervously.
"Ha ha, that's right. OK, I got this…"
Remembering the numerous spells the mirror taught her, she closed her eyes and began to chant. As usual whenever chanting a spell, her hands felt some pressure as she tried to level her breathing. There was a sudden noise and she opened her eyes, gasping as the animal parts fell onto her kitchen countertop, blooding the area.
"What do I do now?"
"Start boiling the items for ten minutes," the mirror instructed.
Grabbing her oldest pot, she placed it on the stove and started the fire. She placed four cups of water inside and waited for it to begin boiling. As she waited, Orihime walked over to Ulquiorra. For the last three days, he had been non-stop reading the book Chad had given him, as well as the book he took from the dead witch's home.
"What are you reading?" she asked, sitting next to him.
His eyes remained on the pages as he replied, "Understanding more about you. To say that I am surprised is an understatement. You are much stronger,"
"I don't feel stronger,"
He finally looked at her, eyes narrowing. "You have become stronger, Orihime. You may not be able to hold a zanpakuto, but you have something else."
"What if...I don't become strong enough? What if that man...hurts us-"
"I will not allow him near you," Ulquiorra stated firmly before pointing towards the kitchen, "The water is boiling,"
Stumbling off the couch, she jogged towards the kitchen and began to add the initial ingredients. Nothing happened as she did, though she figured that would be expected as the animal parts hadn't been added yet. Turning around, she looked at them and frowned. She could wear gloves, but then she would have to wash them.
"What's wrong?" he asked, and she pointed towards the bloody items.
"I...am scared of picking them up,"
He gave her an incredulous look before sighing, "You weren't afraid of me, yet you're afraid of dead animal pieces,"
"It grosses me out," she mumbled, "Can you...put them in for me?"
Orihime almost giggled as she noticed the slight eye roll he gave. He threw the animal parts in the pot before watching his hands, and she watched carefully as nothing happened.
"You need to say the chant, girl," the mirror reminded.
Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and began to say the foreign words. The pressure was felt again, and suddenly she heard the boiling of the content slow down. Opening her eyes, she noticed the content had turned into an orange thick liquid.
"Stir it a couple of times, and let it bowl for ten minutes,"
"What do I do afterwards?"
"Pour the content into containers easy for you to carry, and have them with you at all times,"
She nodded while fetching old plastic water bottles. It was the only thing she could think of.
"Grimmjow and Nel are here," Ulquiorra said, just as a soft knock was heard.
Orihime opened the door and smiled as Nel ran inside and hugged her tightly.
"'Hime! It's been a while! How's everything going!? Oh, what are you cooking? Can Nel taste?"
"Looks disgusting," Grimmjow, who had sauntered towards the kitchen, said while looking at the pot with disgust, "Yet again, not surprised since this is the Princess's cooking anyway,"
"It's not food," Orihime said defensively, "I am learning how to make potions! The mirror has been teaching me a lot for the last few days,"
"The mirror?" Grimmjow asked with a raised eyebrow, staring at the blank mirror before looking at Ulquiorra, "Did she drink or something?"
"No, she is sober," Ulquiorra said in a serious tone, "And the mirror holds a spirit that served her mother. It is teaching her everything she needs to know to strengthen her powers,"
"I still see no spirit," Grimmjow said, picking up the mirror and moving it around carelessly.
"Oh no, Grimmjow please be careful!"
"Or what, princess? The mirror is going to punch me in the face?"
"No, but I can chant some strong spells and bring you down, Hollow,"
Grimmjow and Nel stared at the mirror with wide eyes, intrigued at the ghostly white face which suddenly appeared.
"Shit, the mirror does talk. Did it threaten you too? He doesn't seem too fond of us," Grimmjow asked Ulquiorra with a smirk.
"No, but it took some time for him to appear to me. It was only when Orihime was injured by the witch that he appeared and summoned her Shun Shun Rikka,"
"Interesting," Nel said as she turned towards the sun-haired girl, "Orihime, what can you do as a witch? Or...half a witch… Can you show us!? Nel would like to see,"
"Of course! Hm, let's see… Oh! I know what to do!"
Raising her hands towards Grimmjow, she closed her eyes and began to chant. Thanks to the endless practice, she felt more comfortable with her powers. And even though she wasn't nearly as strong as her mother, she was becoming content with her accomplishments.
As she finished, she heard a small gasp coming from Nel before hearing the sound of barking. Opening her eyes, she stared at the blue-furred puppy barking and growling at her. Uh oh, this wasn't supposed to happen...
"Oh no! I turned Grimmjow into a dog! Mirror, what did I do wrong?"
"You messed up some of the words, and turned your friend into a canine,"
"Oh no! I am so sorry Grimmjow! I am so sorry Nel! I will turn him back to normal immediately!"
"He's actually cuter like this," Nel said, giggling as the puppy growled at her.
"Although I do not agree with the statement, I do not see the problem with leaving him in this state. It suits him," Ulquiorra added, staring down at the dog as it growled at him.
"Well, he is cute… But I should turn him back to normal. Mirror, what's the spell for-"
Orihime turned her head as the phone rang. Rushing to her living room, she glanced at the screen and saw her aunt's name. Not a great timing...
"Hello?"
"Hi Darling, how are you?"
"I'm good! Just...making some dinner with friends,"
"That's good. Say hi to Tatsuki for me if she's there. Listen, your father is getting buried tomorrow at nine in the morning. I will send you the location once I confirm,"
"I see. Are you...coming?"
"To be frank with you sweetie, no. I never liked the man. I thought about it, but he is a scum. I know I shouldn't be speaking ill of the dead, especially since he's your father. But I am just unable to go,"
Orihime nodded against the phone, "I understand. I will go...briefly,"
She wanted to tell the woman everything - how the man wasn't truly her father, but an uncle instead. How her real father was gone, as well as her real mother. But considering the circumstances and the hunter who was after her, she didn't want the older woman getting involved.
"That's good. Well, I'll let you go so you can go back to your friends. Good night, Orihime,"
"Goodnight,"
The hunter watched as the two angels appeared in front of him. They both had red eyes, and carried the symbol of God around their necks. They stood at nearly six-feet tall, their heads shaved clean. The white wings behind their backs retracted.
"My brothers," the hunter said, "Tomorrow, we kill the witch."
Author's Note: Thank you for those who read, and special thanks to those who left a review! Please let me know what you thought about this chapter!