Regardless of his relationship with Orihime, Ulquiorra would never trust Soul Society. Not because he was a Hollow, and Hollows naturally disliked Shinigamis. But because those with high power in Soul Society were corrupt. Surprisingly enough, Aizen was not the first Shinigami to escape and take refuge in Hueco Mundo. And while Ulquiorra didn't care where these shinigamis took refuge, it did make him wonder about the politics and corruption that would drive these shinigamis to leave.

Unless it was a direct order from Aizen, Ulquiorra cared less about the Soul Reapers. He wouldn't bother with fighting them.

Nonetheless, Lieutenant Sasakibe was one Soul Reaper he wanted to kill. He knew that the Shinigami had something to do with the hunter's will for killing Orihime. His hand went to the hilt of Murcielago, ready to slain the Shinigami, but Urahara's voice stopped him.

"Don't do it, Ulquiorra. He is Yamamoto's lieutenant, and if you kill him, you will have all of Soul Society coming after you,"

He knew that Urahara was right, even though a big part of him wanted to rip the vice captain to shreds and show him despair.

"What are you doing here?" Ulquiorra asked, his arm still wrapped around Orihime. The spell she had performed to kill the hunter had drained her tremendously, and he could feel her shaking. She needed rest as soon as possible.

"I want to speak to her," the lieutenant said, nodding towards Orihime.

Orihime placed a hand on Ulquiorra's chest and looked up at him, "I want to speak with him too. I want to know what he knows about my mother,"

"Very well,"

Turning around fully, she looked at the shinigami directly. "What do you know about my mother?"

The lieutenant gave her a smile, staring into the night sky of Hueco Mundo as if reliving a past life, "She is the only woman I have fallen in love with. Her beauty alone captivated me the moment I first met her. She had a gorgeous smile, and always visited me. Eventually, she became my sun. We almost became...inseparable…"

Orihime noticed how the Shinigami's eyes sparkled upon describing her mother. It left her speechless.

He really was in love with her...probably still is…

"Even though she was different...she was something else… I was planning on marrying her. I wanted a future with her, even if it meant resigning as Captain Yamamoto's right hand man,"

The Shinigami then released a dismal sight, and his gaze went back to her. The sparkle in his eyes left, replaced with hatred and jealousy.

"But then one day, while on patrol and she had come along, we had saved a man from a Hollow. The man, a mere human, was a fighter despite knowing that the Hollow would've shred him to pieces had we not been there. I saw the man as foolish, and weak. She, however, fell in love with him. I refused to take notice at first… Her visits became less frequent and less intimate right away… And it wasn't long enough before her visits stopped completely.

It was during one of my missions that I became aware of what was going on. I had a suspicion, and sought the man we had saved months prior. Just as I got closer, I instantly felt her. She was there with him, showing him spectacular tricks and spells… I could see from his face that he was in love with her, not scared of her. I suddenly became jealous of your father, and did everything I could to have him killed,"

Orihime's eyes widened at the revelation, her body almost slumping to the ground had it not been for Ulquiorra's support.

"I learned quickly though," Chōjirō continued, "that it wasn't possible. Your mother had placed a spell on him that guards him from any threats. The spell was strong, and it just goes to show what an incredible woman she is. Surprisingly, I wasn't upset. If anything, it made me love her even more...and pray that one day she would return to me. But I knew that day would never come when I found out that she was pregnant...with you… The news had affected me to the point that Captain Yamamoto had threatened to remove me from my position… and I knew that I had to do something in order to move on…"

The shinigami stopped talking, which raised sudden suspicion of the events that took place afterwards. Ulquiorra felt a slight spike in Orihime's spiritual pressure, and he looked down at her. She stepped away from him as her shoulders squared, and he felt the sudden anger rising within her. Despite being low in energy, she raised a finger towards the shinigami.

"Y-You...were responsible for my parents' disappearance!" she accused, and the shinigami gave a slow nod.

"Witches are constantly targeted by hunters, angels who serve under a God. It's parallel to how we target Hollows… I reached out to this organization for help. But things didn't go as planned-"

"You had them killed!" Orihime finally screamed, her tears rolling down her face.

Her fists shook, the spell she had previously performed swirling through her mind. The shinigami's jealousy trickled a cascading of unfortunate events in her life: her being adopted by her abusive uncle and his wife. How they would beat her, and if it hadn't been for Sora, she would have been dead. Even after being rescued by her cousin and the two of them living together, the two of them struggled. Sora, although older than her, wasn't qualified enough for many of the vacant jobs. For months, they relied on limited income from other family members. After he got his job, things became better for the two of them, until his death.

The pentagram appeared beneath Chōjirō, shocking the Soul Reaper. He watched as her skin turned green, eyes as black as night, and she started to chant something. His eyes widened, and for a second he thought he saw Misaki.

She looks...just like her mother…

"Orihime, don't!" came Rukia's voice, but the half-witch didn't want to stop.

"Orihime," it was Ulquiorra this time, and his hands were on her arms, "You need to stop. You will injure yourself further,"

Her legs trembled, causing the spell to weaken and the pentagram to disappear. She suddenly felt her body shutting down, her vision turning blurry. Ulquiorra's left arm was on her back as his other were under her knees, picking her up as she felt herself lose consciousness.

"You should leave," Urahara finally spoke up, directing his message to the vice captain before them.

Chōjirō nodded, re-opening his garganta. But as he was about to exit, he looked back at the Espada carrying the unconscious girl. "Before I leave, I do not want to clarify one thing. One thing that will ease her mind. I did not order those men to kill her mother. When her mother gave birth, something happened… I think she knew that they were after her and she did...something…"

"You're implying that her mother is still alive," Ulquiorra stated.

The shinigami sighed, "It's been many years since I last saw her. But if there's one thing I know about Misaki, it's her strong ability in casting complex spells to move through worlds within minutes. So far, her body has not been found,"

Four months later…

Tomorrow was the last day of school before the start of a two-month summer break, and Orihime couldn't be more excited. She planned this moment shortly after coming back from Hueco Mundo. After waking up from a near twenty-hour deep sleep (the spell she had performed impacted her body and mind to that degree), Ulquiorra had told her everything from the moment she lost consciousness. She remembered Chojiro telling her about his relationship with her mother, and his jealousy towards her father. From that moment, after attempting to perform the spell again, she had lost consciousness.

"He believes your mother is still alive, somehow," Ulquiorra said, twirling her long orange locks with his fingers.

She sat on his lap with the back of her head leaning against his shoulder. She had woken up a few hours ago, her mind dizzy. After drinking some hot tea and eating a well balanced meal, she had regained her energy.

"He was in love with her," she mumbled, "Still is…"

Her eyes landed on the mirror lying next to them. The white face wasn't present, but she knew that he was still there. A sudden thought came to her mind, and she grabbed it.

"Mirror…"

"Yes, girl?"

"What truly happened to my parents the day I was born?"

"Your mother had performed powerful spells that day. There were two hunters present. Although a mere human, your father's belief in the Catholic church stalled them. They were reluctant to kill a human who spoke the same language as them, who prayed to the same God. And although your father's belief in the Church was genuine, his love for your mother was even more. By the time the hunters realized what had happened, it was too late for them. Your mother's magic not only killed them, but allowed her to shield you from them until you reached near adulthood. Unfortunately, she was weak from giving birth and lost consciousness as her last spell began to take place. Your father's brother, the man who you initially thought was your father, witnessed it all, and the experience was too much for his human mind to comprehend."

Orihime and Ulquiorra gave a surprised look.

"Wait," she said, "My uncle knew about this? But he didn't say anything when he spoke to me days ago."

"Girl," the mirror said seriously, "The man was a simple human who had witnessed a witch slaughter two powerful hunters shortly after giving birth. Before then, he had no idea witches even existed, or what magic was. The spells took a toll on her, and as she and your father disappeared, the man was left confused and alone with a newborn halfwitch,"

Orihime thought about her uncle, wondering if seeing all of that had caused the man to rely on alcohol as a coping mechanism. Especially if there was no one who would listen to him in regards to magic, hunters, witches and how his brother disappeared due to all of that. And all of the sudden, Orihime felt sadder for the man. In a way, she could relate. She also used alcohol as a coping mechanism after coming back from Hueco Mundo, remembering how Ulquiorra had turned to dust. At that time, there was no one she could have talked to about it, and the taste of alcohol allowed her to forget, even if it was temporarily.

"You said my mother disappeared, along with my father. Does that mean they aren't dead?"

"It's hard to explain," the mirror said, "Your mother is a very skilled woman. If she was truly dead, I would have known. But right now….I am unable to locate her."

"Where would we start?" she asked, "If we were to look?"

"If I had to guess, the place where she was born,"

As soon as school had finished and summer vacation officially started, Orihime waved goodbye to her friends and rushed home. She wanted to start her journey as soon as possible. She had spent last night packing some items for both her and Ulquiorra, with the intention of them being away for at most two months.

Her friends were not fond of the idea of her going away for that much time, yet understood why she had to do it. The events from four months ago left more questions than answers, especially regarding the whereabouts of her parents. The location in which they were heading to worried them, and they begged her to bring them along. She had kindly refused, and reassured them that Ulquiorra would be there. After all, this was her story, her journey.

"I'm home!" Orihime announced, taking off her shoes and dropping her school bag to the floor.

Ulquiorra, who was leaning against the wall, watched her as she disappeared into the bathroom. Thirty minutes later, she came back out wearing a t-shirt and jeans. Her hair was braided, hair pins hidden underneath her bangs. She grabbed the small packed backpack, mentally ensuring that she had everything she needed, especially the mirror and the photograph of her mother.

"Ready?" Ulquiorra, who was in a stronger gigai, asked.

"Yes," she replied, placing her hand in his.

The softness in his eyes almost made her melt, and she suddenly realized that this was the first time they would be taking a journey together.

"Ulquiorra?"

"Yes,"

"Are you...sure that you want to come? I mean, I don't want to force you to do something you don't like… If you rather go back to Hueco Mundo, then it's OK with me! I have the mirror, he can help me-"

"Orihime," he interrupted, grabbing her chin with his fingers, "What led you to the conclusion that I do not wish to come along?"

She opened her mouth, but closed it immediately.

"You are assuming things which aren't there," he continued, pulling her closer to him, "I would be a fool to let you do this alone. No matter where you choose to go, I will be there by your side,"

He gave her a long kiss, feeling her body melt against his as she deepened it. He wanted to punish her for having the audacity to even think that he would let her do this alone. He knew that expressing his feelings was still new to him, and it would take time for him to tell her how each day, his heart wanted her more. That little by little, he was finally understanding the concept of love. And his love for her is the driver for protecting her against all foes.

She broke the kiss and gave him a wide smile, her cheeks tinted her. "Thank you, Ulquiorra,"

She took a deep sigh, "I guess it's time we get going,"

The Espada nodded, and she began to chant the spell the mirror had taught her months ago. It was a transportation spell, one that her mother used whenever visiting Soul Society and the human world.

A small white sphere appeared in her living room, and it suddenly grew. Hand in hand, the two entered it and watched as there was nothing but white space around them. For a moment as nothing else happened, Orihime became nervous and was ready to call the mirror for help. Nonetheless, the whiteness disappeared, and they both looked around as nothing but trees surrounded them. By just sensing the type of energy around, she knew that they were here: the location populated with witches and warlocks. The home of Lucifer's followers.

Remembering what the mirror had told her about blending in with the other magical beings, Orihime performed a simple spell as her and Ulquiorra's attire changed.

His changed to black slacks with a long sleeve black button-down shirt, a long black coat draping around his shoulders.

Hers changed to a long black strapless dress, a small cape by the back as a pointy black witch hat appeared on her head.

Wrapping her arm around his, the pair walked towards the nearest town as their quest officially began.

Author's note: And this is the end! Thank you so much for reading! I purposely chose to end the story here since the whole point of the fic was about the hunter coming after her. Now that that's been dealt with, it's time for her next journey as a half-witch with Ulquiorra! I didn't want to make Orihime this super strong witch right away in just 2 - 3 chapters. I want her journey to continue on becoming a stronger witch, with Ulqui by her side ;)

Hope you guys liked this story, overall! I have thought about a sequel, but will think about it more before writing it out. One thing's for sure, it'll include even more witches ;)

Anyway, thank you for reading & let me know what you guys thought