Honestly, I'm really all that surprised to see that one of my updates failed to elicit any response. After all, this is a pretty long ongoing story, with an rather unconventional plot, with lots OCs, so I get that it wouldn't appeal to everyone... Still, that said, there's discussions of gender politics, multiple attempted assassinations, the return of Grimmjow, and the total WTF scene of Dario approaching Orihime as Earth, Wind, & Fire plays!

All that said, I can only hope that this chapter will manage to engender more of a response from you guys. ...I mean, I'm not saying all this like I'm just begging for reviews. The truth is, how can I know if I doing things right if I don't get ANY kind of feedback.

TO FORGE A
BETTER TOMORROW

Chapter LXV:
"Ce Monde Creux"

"What are you doing?" Orihime asked, of no one in particular, only to suddenly find herself confused and standing in an unfamiliar place, at a total loss.

"W-where am I?" She asked herself, her heart racing and her mind abuzz as she looked around.

Frantically, she scanned her surrounds. There was high ceiling above her, and a glass door looking out into a vibrant backyard. She realized that she was standing in the living room area of a house. The next thing that drew her attention was a large cabinet with a reflective back. The levels of it were filled with books, random knickknacks and other objects, as well as numerous framed photographs.

However, rather than the contents decorating the shelves of the cabinet, what had caught her eyes was the image of herself, reflected in the mirrored surface just behind them. "What's going on...?" Orihime muttered to herself, eyes wide in disbelief as she moved aside the objects to better see herself.

She looked different... She looked older. The age difference was subtle, perhaps ten years at the most, maybe less. But what really struck Orihime was more so the way she looked. The redhead looked more elegant, more mature. She wasn't sure how. It wasn't a matter of the fact that she was wearing makeup, or the different way that she was wearing her hair. The 'how' wasn't important, just that she did.

This was also reflected in the clothing she found herself in: a fancy cream colored knee-length dress, with lots of intricate stitching and fine lacework. Taking a moment to look herself over, Orihime was at a loss upon seeing herself dressed in such an immaculate piece of clothing.

And then, then she noticed something else, something even more significant...

She was wearing a ring. To be more specific, Orihime was wearing a golden band on the ring finger of her right hand. The redhead felt her breath catch in her throat. "It... it can't be." She spoke aloud, as she looked intently at the ring on her finger. "...Can it be?" The woman spoke softly.

It was an Engagement Ring... No, it was a wedding ring!

She and Ulquiorra, the two of them, they were married!

Breathless, she moved to look at the pictures. Her eyes went wide as saucers when she came across a particular photograph. It depicted her and Ulquiorra, standing in what she guessed to be the very same backyard she could see through the glass door. Standing with them, was...

"Oh my god!" She thought silently to herself, covering her mouth.

It was her brother, Sora!

Like her, he looked the same, only older than she remembered him, before he...

"Orihime?" An eerily familiar voice spoke.

Setting the picture down, she turned to Sora- alive and well, and smiling at her!

His collar-length medium-brown hair was parted in the middle and neatly trimmed, perfectly framing the features of his angular clean-shaven face. He was dressed in a white polo-shirt and a pair of khaki slacks, looking as impeccable as ever, just as she remembered him.

"Sora!" She exclaimed, overcome with emotion as threw her arms around him.

Orihime clung to him tightly, her eyes tearing up. While he was initially surprised by the outburst, the brown-haired man was quick to return the embrace in-kind. After a moment of this, he drew back from her in order to look her in the eyes. "Orihime," he started softly. "My dear sister, as glad as I am to see you, and to evoke such a reaction," her older sibling went on. "Is something wrong?"

She gave a confused look, not speaking and only regarding her brother for a moment, as he stood before her, his hands resting gently on her arms.

The truth was, that she wanted to tell him that she felt as if she had had a terrible nightmare, one that chilled her heart to the very core, in which he was suddenly and terribly taken from her. Yet, in spite of this fear, at the moment, all she wanted was to be with her beloved elder brother.

"I... I don't know, I'm not really sure." Orihime replied finally, before wiping her eyes.

She stepped back, smiling happily at him. "It's just- no, the truth is, nothing's wrong." Orihime went on to say, taking his hands in hers. "I don't know what came over me. But, I suddenly felt an overpowering urge to tell you how much I love you... as silly and out-of-nowhere that might seem."

Sora was taken aback, but smiled. "It's not silly at all, Hime." He replied. "Truthfully, I agree, what you're saying now, it's perfectly normal." The man replied warmly. "In fact, I feel the same way... That while I don't always say it, the fact is that I too love you." He finished, leaning to kiss her forehead.

The redhead blushed faintly at the contact, but smiled brilliantly. "Thank you, nii-san."

Orihime smiled softly, as she sat demurely at one end of the couch, her back to the sliding glass door looking out into the backyard. A cup of tea rested atop a coaster on the coffee table.

"Are you sure everything's alright, Orihime?" Sora asked gently, pausing to take a sip of tea, before he set it down on it's own coaster, next to his younger sister's cup.

She gave a thoughtful look. "Don't worry, Sora nii-san." Orihime replied with a genuine smile. "I'm not sure what came over me... In fact, I can't even remember it now." The sunset-haired woman continued, as she picked up her cup of tea to take a drink. "What matters at the moment is that you're here."

"Well, that's good to hear." Her older sibling replied, his brown eyes mirroring her own as he took a drink from his cup and set it back down on the table. "I was worried that I might be imposing on you and Ulquiorra." Sora resumed. "So, how are things going for you at work?"

For a brief moment, Orihime was at loss, before something 'clicked'. "Oh, great." She replied with a slight wave of her hand. "I've been teaching for a few years now, so I'd like to think that I have a pretty good handle on things when it comes to dealing with the kids." The redhead added.

Sora nodded, chuckling softly. "It wasn't always that way, sis," he countered. "I can still remember how flustered you were when you first started out as a full-fledged teacher, back in '21."

Orihime paused, glancing to the calendar as she set her cup down. "Yes, it's hard to imagine sometimes that it's been three years since that day." She replied. "And in that time, a lot's happened."

"It certainly has." The brown-haired man spoke in agreement. "Looking back now, it's hard to believe that's it's been almost a decade since you first introduced me to Ulquiorra." Sora went on. "Or, the fact that its been- what, five years now?- since you two revealed that you were getting married."

She blushed at this. "I know you had serious doubts about Ulquiorra... considering the circumstances that brought us together." Orihime admitted. "Still," she turned to him. "That you would be so willing to accept him, to accept us, and our relationship..." The fiery-haired woman continued paused, placing a hand upon his. "Having your approval... that meant more than anything to me."

He was once again taken aback by the woman's admission. "Orihime," he began gently. "While I may never be able to fully understand this world of spirits and ghosts you were thrust into..." Sora paused, clearing his throat. "What I am able to fully understand is the fact that my little sister- who I've been struggling to protect- was able to find someone she could truly love."

"Sora..." Orihime spoke, at a loss as to how to respond.

"Orihime," he took her hands and looked into her warm brown eyes. "I would be a poor excuse for an older brother if I ever tried to stand between you and your happiness."

"Sora, I... I love you so much." Orihime replied, wrapping her arms around him.

He nodded, returning the embrace. "My dearest sister, my Hime-chan." Sora spoke. "Knowing you're happy, is enough to make me happy." Sora went on. "I'll never turn my back to you, I'll always be with you- be it moments happy or sad- because I'm your brother, and I love you."

Just then, the two of them turned to look as they heard a noise from the front door...

. . . ...o.o.o... . . .

The Living Realm, Karakura City...

Ulquiorra snapped to attention, a chill running through his simulation spine of his Gigai. "S-something is wrong..." He started, a pale hand on his chest as he looked around. "Orihime's in danger!"

The raven-haired Arrancar turned to grasp his phone. He frowned, inspecting it and finding nothing on the screen- no alerts, no texts, nothing! For Ulquiorra, this- combined with his own instincts- was more than enough motivation for the disguised Espada to rush out and do something.

He moved to retrieve Murcielago from its hiding place, then Ulquiorra paused...

After all, his own experience had taught him- on more than one occasion- that simply madly rushing out into the fray wasn't the best choice when it came to handling problems. Despite his Hollow instincts compelling him to rush out and rescue his mate by sheer brute force, he knew this wasn't the way.

He knew he had to keep a clear head if he was going to save Orihime...

Composing himself as best he could, he dialed the phone number provided to him by the ex-Shinigami, turned Shopkeeper and businessman, and waited as the phone rang...

Next was the sound of someone picking up on the other line. "This is Ulquiorra," the Arrancar spoke over the line, his voice strained. "Something is wrong..."

. . . ...o.o.o... . . .

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the city...

"I really wish I could say that you're going to be okay," Szayel started, as he took a moment to look Yumichika over. "But the simple truth of things..." He paused. "Is that I can't even begin to fathom the real extent of what these animals have done to you." The Arrancar admitted grimly.

With his fingers extended and his thumb flat against his palm, his left hand began to glow with reiki...

Saying that, he first severed the rope coiled across his torso. The purple-haired Shinigami gasped, able to properly breath for the first time in longer than he cared to remember, followed by him going slack, his hair falling down across his violet eyes as he watched the Hollow go about freeing him.

Once Szayel cut through all of the duct tape binding the other man's wrists to the arms of the chair, Yumichika promptly and unceremonious tipped forward. "Just a few years ago, it would have been perfectly reasonable that I- as a Hollow- would be unable to empathize with your predicament..."

He paused. "And yet... here we both are." Szayel added, before returning to his work. "Life's funny like that, you know, considering that the two of us were once bitter enemies."

"Szayel..." He murmured weakly, looking to him.

The Octavio Espada glanced up, regarding him briefly, then nodded and continued.

The pink-haired Arrancar then moved downward to slice through the layers of duct-tape that served to bind his ankles, before he then positioning himself to capture the falling figure of the battered officer in his waiting arms. The injured man grunted, but offered no protest.

"Don't worry, Officer Ayasegawa," Szayel offered the man. "For you, at least, this nightmare is over."

Activating his com-link, the Espada spoke. "This Captain Szayel Grantz of the Twelfth Division," he started calmly. "Does anybody read me?" Szayel continued. "I repeat: this is Captain Szayel Grantz of the Twelfth Division- is there any one out there who reads me?"

. . . ...o.o.o... . . .

Orihime looked to the front door...

There was a clicking sound, followed by the door opening. She watched as Ulquiorra appeared in the doorway, then as he shut it behind him. "Orihime," he started with a smile.

"Sora-san." The Arrancar added with a polite nod, setting his briefcase down.

"Please, just Sora is fine." He brother replied, smiling. "We're family after all."

The fiery-haired woman was taken back somewhat at the sight of him. Ulquiorra was dressed in a pair of navy-blue slacks and a gray sports-coat, over a white dress-shirt and black tie. His lustrous dark hair was just as it was when she first laid eyes on him- even as a Hollow. His full black main reached down to his collar, and framed his face, with a dark lock falling between his dark brows and green eyes.

There was also, she noted, the slightest hints of faint 'lines' visible around his eyes, tells that he was indeed aging, just as she was. Aside from that, Orihime noted that the hair in front of his ears, on either side of his face, seemed to project slight further down- to the point of almost giving him sideburns.

"I'll go get another cup." Orihime volunteered, quickly getting to her feet.

"Wait," he started, reaching out to catch her arm. As soon as she turned to meet his gaze, he leaned in and planted a quick kiss on her lips. "There, now you can go." He drew back, facing the woman's wide-eyed gaze. "Please, don't let me hold you up any further than necessary." Ulquiorra added teasingly, flashing her small smile before he then let go of her arm.

Orihime's face flushed red, while Sora only chuckled.

The woman then gave an adorably indignant look in response, before heading to the kitchen. Without any comment, Ulquiorra assumed the spot on the couch his wife had previously occupied. He smirked as he reached up to loosen his tie and undid the top button of his collar.

"So then," Sora started. "How's work?" He asked his brother-in-law.

"Stable." He replied simple, before then elaborating. "Surprisingly, as I've come to realize over the years, translating and reviewing international copyright documents suits me rather well."

Just then, a tray was deposited on the coffee table. The two men watched as Orihime handed a cup of tea to the Arrancar, then as she refilled hers and her brother's cups. That done, she placed the kettle onto the tray and sat down right next Ulquiorra, resting against his side.

Sora smiled at their closeness. "I'm glad to see the two you are as close as ever."

Orihime blushed again, but smiled, while Ulquiorra only nodded. "But of course." The green-eyed man replied effortlessly with a smile, taking a sip from his cup of tea.

"Tell me, Orihime, how are your birds these days?" Sora inquired coolly.

"Well..." Orihime began thoughtfully. "Ulqui-kun the Third- that is, the first Ulqui-kun's grandson- is doing well." The buxom woman explained. "And his cousin, Sora-chan is thriving."

"Sora, you have no idea how much energy your sister put into those little birds," Ulquiorra remarked with a slight smirk, taking a sip of tea. "I'll never forget just how much she cried when we woke up that one fateful mourning..." He trailed off, taking another sip.

"I loved those birds!" Orihime protested, looking to her husband. "And so did you! I mean, you took so much interest in the success of the clutch of babies we kept to continue the family line."

"So then, somewhat along the same line of thought," Sora interjected. "Should I be expecting a niece of nephew some time down the line in the future?" He asked slyly.

. . . ...o.o.o... . . .

Yoruichi heard the phone ringing in the back of the shop. Urahara was away at the moment, over at the Twelfth Division, helping the pink-haired Arrancar Captain and his Lieutenant with their work.

The dark-skinned woman picked up the phone. "Hello?"

"This is Ulquiorra... Something is wrong."

"Ulquiorra?" She asked first, confused to hear the voice of the black-haired disguised Espada over the shop's land-line. "Wait, what do you mean, what's happened?"

Almost as soon as she had asked the question, she realized something: Almost certainly, the Arrancar wasn't intending to call the shop, but rather Kisuke himself. However, the scruffy Shopkeeper's phone wasn't presently equipped to receive calls while out of the Living Realm. So, whenever someone tried to call him while he was away, they were rerouted to the shop.

"I can sense something..." Ulquiorra started, sounding audibly pained as he spoke. "I can feel it, in the air, in my blood... Orihime is in danger." He went on to say emphatically.

She was tempted to ask if he was certain. However, based on what Yoruichi had learned- mainly from the accounts of others- during both of the attacks on the City, was that the Arrancar seemed to have an uncanny sense when it came to the young woman. And so, the Noblewoman kept quiet.

"I... I understand." The shape-shifter replied. "As soon as we have some idea of where she is, I'll head out and meet up with you." Yoruichi continued. "Ulquiorra," she started. "Listen, right now, it's crucial that you have to keep a cool head, so that nothing untimely happens- to either of you."

. . . ...o.o.o... . . .

Soul Society, Division Two HQ...

Soifon looked up from her desk as her door slid open, only to reveal the figure of none other than the Captain of the Fourth Division, standing before her.

The ever-serene woman fixed her with one her warm mothering smiles that, a sight that gave the other Captain pause in that moment, so much so that she failed at first to respond to the taller woman's arrival in her office in the heart of the Second Division. "C-Captain Una- I mean, Lady Ukitake."

Retsu gave gentle nod. "Please, Captain Ukitake is fine."

The shorter, slender woman nodded. "Yes, of course, Captain Ukitake, please sit down." Soifon replied, rallying as she motioned towards the cushion on the tatami floor, before her desk.

"Adjusting her black robes and Captain's haori, the Ukitake Matriarch took her seat. "I suppose you must be wondering why I'm here- and so suddenly, no less?"

Soifon nodded. "I must admit... I am curious as to the nature of your visit." She admitted.

"Yes, well, the truth is, that I sought you out." The dark-haired woman answered. "That is, to say, as one mother to another." Retsu elaborated. "Tell me, Soifon-san, how goes the pregnancy?"

The black-ops Captain hesitated, suddenly more aware of the growing bulge of her stomach, such that had necessitated her to change her backless uniform top to a more conventional one.

. . . ...o.o.o... . . .

Orihime had been startled at first by Sora's question, only to then became bashful, and yet she neither confirmed or offered anything in the way of a firm denial either.

He hadn't responded to the question, Ulquiorra did seem to be pleased with Orihime's response. And all the while, her brother had only laughed at their respective reactions.

"I expect the two of you will soon have something in common with Ichigo and Rukia-san." The brown-haired man remarked. "Considering that he Kurosaki family is open to a 'new addition' to its ranks."

"Ichigo and Rukia...?" Orihime murmured, concerning the two men. "Oh yes, of course! After all, we were all there, at their wedding, when they got married!" She amended.

"Ichigo Kurosaki and Rukia Kuchiki..." Ulquiorra commented. "To think that those two would end up together, it's almost as unlikely as you and I." The Espada continued.

At the moment, Orihime was feeling oddly nostalgic, and so had gone over to look at the pictures. The redhead smiled as she looked at one of herself and Tatsuki. "This one of Tatsuki and me," she started as she looked at it. "I can't believe how long her hair was by the end of high school."

"Isn't that from when you two graduated?" Sora spoke up, sipping his tea.

Orihime looked to him momentarily, then nodded. "Of course." She replied. "That was quite a day."

"Don't forget, I was there, as well." Ulquiorra pointed out coolly. "It was the long-awaited capstone to the elaborate charade I went through to stay by your side in this realm." The Arrancar added smugly, as he set his cup of tea back down on the nearby coffee table.

Looking back to the picture of herself and Tatsuki, she smiled. "I really am lucky to have such a good friend as Tatsuki." Orihime remarked. "I don't think I could imagine a better best friend."

"Yes, she's always been there for you." Her brother chimed in.

Orihime nodded. "Yes, she's always been a big help to me, especially after I lost..." She trailed off, an odd look on her face as she struggled to put her thoughts together. "When I lost... something."

Sora set his cup down. "Orihime," he started. "Is something wrong?"

Setting the picture down, she turned and looked to him. "Yes, er, no... I'm not sure." Orihime answered, her mind awash with a torrent of frenzied thoughts. "I don't know... I can't help but feel as if something is wrong- it's just, I'm not sure what it is." The curvy woman answered back.

"What do you mean?" Ulquiorra at last spoke up, setting his cup down.

Turning back toward her brother and husband, the two men being- alongside Tatsuki and a few others- counted amongst the most important people in her life. "Tatsuki helped me through... a difficult time in my life... No, not just that, it was the worst time in my life." Orihime continued. "And yet... for some reason or another, I can't remember for what or why." She explained.

Her brother stood up. "Orihime, are you alright?" He asked, visibly concerned.

She was silent for a moment, then shook her head. "Something's not right... It's like, the more I think about it all, the more I get this feeling that things are somehow wrong."

"What are talking about, Orihime?" Sora asked, giving a quizzical expression.

"All of this is wrong." She replied. "What Tatsuki helped me through..." Orihime paused, looking to the man standing across from her. "It had to do with you... I- I'm sure of it, now."

"Orihime," Ulquiorra began. "What's wrong, what's troubling you?"

Her brown eyes went wide. "Oh my god!" Orihime exclaimed. "Sora, you, you-"

Ulquiorra froze as a 'shadow' seemed to fall over everything, the only illumination in the darkness now falling upon the two of them. "How unfortunate..." Sora lamented, shaking his head as he got to his feat and looked the woman in the eyes. "This is hardly an exact science, you know." He spoke, his posture changing as he went on. "What we, I, have given you is happiness- and yet, you persist."

"You, you're not my brother, are you?" Orihime responded.

"That, my dear, is a loaded question." He fired back. "I am Sora, just as you remember him, I'm born of your feelings and memories of him, so I can't help but be him, and yet..." The being wearing the visage of 'Sora' paused. "The plain and simple truth is that, yes, in reality I died."

"Then what are you?" The redhead asked cautiously.

"You're brother." The brown-haired man fired back. "In books and other fictions, people don't ask the characters to prove or justify themselves to them, rather they are content to accept them as real- in the context of the narrative, as least." He continued. "Isn't it enough that I am Sora?"

"Here, you can live out a dream," he went on. "I am Sora, and I am alive and well, and you're happier than you've been isn't this enough?" 'Sora' asked of her. "Hime, you can no more ask me to stop being Sora Inoue, than you can ask me to stop loving as your brother."

Orihime felt a tug at her heartstrings as the man before her as he spoke. "And in the end, when faced with so much loss and heartache, shouldn't that be what matters most?" The being taking the form of her brother Sora offered, both his smile and tone unnervingly genuine.

"Hearing you speak like this..." She hesitated. "How, how can an illusion speak so genuinely?"

"Because, in every way that really matters, I am Sora." He replied. "Being your brother is all that I know how to be, so how could I be anything other than your brother Sora, how could I not love you as your brother?"

"Despite everything you say, you're still not really my brother, merely a dream- a happy memory." She countered. "My brother would never ask me to accept living trapped in a memory, no matter how happy it might seem." Orihime countered pointedly, before turning away from him. "Sora would want me to live my life the way I was meant to live it, to face it head-on."

"Orihime-" He started.

"No." Orihime cut him off, still not looking. "I love my brother, and nothing will ever change that..." She spoke with effort. "And while part of me would give anything to have him back, the truth is... that at the end of the day, I have to face reality, and go forward."

"Listen to you," he spoke. "Tell me, what is is so noble about suffering?"

At last, she rallied and was able to look him in the eyes. "I don't see moving forward as suffering, I see it as accepting the wound to my heart and soul, and being able to move on with my life." The redhaired woman spoke. "And as much as part of me might wish for it... I can't live in this... fiction."

"There it is, that 'spark', that indefinable part of what makes us human beings." The man remarked, his tone becoming more caustic and upfront. "Orihime Inoue, you are a credit to humanity, unshakable in the face of temptation- you, you are the one who would choose to take the path less traveled!"

"So be it, then." 'Sora' finished with a smile. "We've lingered long enough in this dreamworld..." He remarked somberly. "It's time we returned to the world of the living."

(- End of Chapter LXV... -)

This chapter has interesting history. Originally, the dreamworld portion was split across chapters. But as I returned to it, I realized that it could serve as the focal point for its own chapter, thus how two chapters became into three. I believe that both this chapter and the next one will of particular interest to reviewers like RG-Guest and OnceUponABlueMoonDream, along with the others I mentioned in my previos author's notes.