Free Talk- Here's the newest chapter. As I've mentioned before, I'm not very experienced writing this kind of story (with less action), so please continue to bear with me as I develop. Thank you to everyone who has read up to this point, especially those who have left comments. Your support means so much to me. I am also quite relieved to see that there are other fans of Sousuke x Momo out there. I really love this pairing, but I also like Izuru x Momo and Toushirou x Momo, so I hope this story won't be too predictable. I don't intend for it to be a simple "pairing" story, anyways. Please comment and tell me what you think. And if anyone recognizes where the chapter headings come from they get extra double Angel Points!
Sympathy
For the Devil
By Miss
Angel Maxwell
third chapter
IF YOU'RE CONSIDERED USELESS NO ONE WILL FEED YOU ANYMORE
He was The Emperor, the fourth card in that game humans used to tell the future. That was Momo's first impression as she beheld her Captain, perched regally on his gilded throne and clothed in fine linen of the purest white and deepest black. Stationed on either side of his thrown were the shinigami Ichimaru and Tousen, like royal attendants prepared to act on their master's every whim. The chocolate-brown hair that used to hang casually across Captain's forehead was now slicked back severely, save for a single truant strand. His coppery eyes, unshielded by glasses, stared at her with a controlled intensity that sent cold liquid shooting through her veins. The Captain Aizen of her memories was never capable of such a concentrated gaze.
"I really thought you would have arrived here weeks ago," he said with a cool grin. "It couldn't have taken you too long to find a way. After all, you always did have a special talent for Demon Arts. Perhaps your recovery took more time than I estimated? You know, I really didn't mean to leave you so close to death."
Momo was cemented in place, transfixed by Aizen's words, and eyes, and smile. Had she not been so completely entranced by his mere presence, she might have stopped to consider the possibility that Aizen was lying to cover up his failure to kill her as planned. But in her current state, she truly believed that her miraculous survival was all a part of his plan and that he had been patiently awaiting her arrival.
"Now… now that I'm here… what are you going to do to me?" she asked in a small voice.
Aizen Sousuke stroked his handsome chin thoughtfully. His voice was like velvet gliding over steel. "Ah, the looming question now is not what I am going to do to you, but rather, what you are going to do for me. Hueco Mundo is, after all, my domain. And all those who dwell herein serve me and me alone. Any creature who is not completely loyal to me… Well, I need not tell you the details unless you chose to be one of them. So, Miss Hinamori, have you come here to serve me… or for other reasons?"
The young girl felt her throat tighten as she was faced with the frightening realization that she had no plan. She hadn't thought ahead to what she would actually do or say when she got to Hueco Mundo. And she certainly hadn't prepared herself for coming face-to-face with the Captain who had left her. Now, she was being put on the spot. Now was the time that she had to think fast or suffer consequences that were apparently too gruesome to mention. Momo knew that her only hope of getting back the Captain she once served depended on her staying alive long enough to reach his soul. In order to save him she needed to live. In order to live she needed to convince Aizen that she was 100 percent loyal to him. With a tiny, nervous whimper, she dropped humbly to one knee and averted her eyes to the marble floor.
"I've come for no other reason then to serve you, my Captain," she said. "Your will is my command and your ideals are my purpose." She bit her lip and kept her face towards the ground, hoping desperately that her fear would go undetected. For several minutes there was silence and all Momo could hear was her own resounding heartbeat.
"I smell a lie," Gin's voice finally hissed. "Me thinks the girl is trying to deceive you, Master. She's probably a spy sent by Soul Society. Let's just kill her now and get it over with."
"Ichimaru speaks too hastily, Master," said another voice, that of Captain Tousen. "I believe we should give the young woman a chance to prove her loyalty before we jump to conclusions and execute her. Blood should not be shed unless it is absolutely necessary."
There was another brief pause before Aizen spoke once again. "Stand up, Miss Hinamori. Stand up and look me in the eyes." She complied quietly but couldn't disguise a tiny shudder that seized her spine when her eyes locked with Aizen's. "Miss Hinamori, do I frighten you?" he asked.
Momo closed her eyes and took in a slow, cleansing breath. From the deepest part of her heart she conjured up an image of the Captain Aizen she used to know, with his warm smile and kind eyes framed by black glasses, and kept that image in the front of her mind. She had come here to get that Aizen back and she wasn't going to back down now. She steeled herself and replied with open eyes. "You don't frighten me, Captain. Tell me what you would have me do and I will prove my loyalty to you."
Aizen smiled. "I like your attitude,' he purred regally. "Yes, there is potential shining in your eyes." He stopped and sighed. "Very well then. I will heed Mr. Tousen's advice and allow you to prove yourself."
"Whatever you want me to do, Captain, I'll do it," she said, placing her hand over her heart.
"Indeed you will," he replied smoothly. "And I do indeed have just the task for you to perform to demonstrate your allegiance. Ah, but it will not be carried out tonight. Tonight I will remand you to Mr. Tousen's custody, as he seems to be your chief advocate. I will summon you first thing in the morning to give you your assignment."
She nodded obediently. "Yes, Captain."
The man on the throne raised an eyebrow. "Keep in mind, Miss Hinamori, that this will not be an easy task. If your entire being is not wholly devoted to me, completion of the assignment will be impossible. Do you understand?"
"I understand," she replied softly.
"Splendid," he said, grinning deviously and drumming his long fingers on the arm of his throne. "Now, Mr. Tousen will show you to your room. And I will see you in the morning. Sweet dreams, Miss Hinamori."
With a dutiful nod, Tousen Kaname stepped down from his master's altar and extended a hand towards Momo. "Come with me," he said placidly.
Momo couldn't help staring for a few moments. She had seen the captain of 9th division many times before, but it was always from a distance, never this close. Behind his orange-tinted visor she could see the glassy white orbs of his sightless eyes shining peacefully under half-closed lids. In every other respect he was completely normal and actually quite handsome, with flawless bronze skin and black hair, tightly braided in perfect little rows. How could a blind man maintain such an immaculate appearance? Without a word she took his hand. It was comfortingly warm.
As Tousen led her away, Momo found herself fighting the urge to turn her neck and watch Aizen's form getting smaller and smaller behind her. But why did she fight it? Why did she want to avoid looking back at him? She pondered this question fruitlessly through what felt like miles of palatial hallway until her escort brought the two of them to a halt in front of a plain wooden door. She could not even fathom how he was able to navigate the place. Even to her seeing eyes it seemed like a maze.
"Here is where you will be staying," he said. "It is not particularly opulent, but there is a bed and a bath. It will get you through the night. For your own good, I recommend that you stay within this room until the Master summons you in the morning. Now, I must leave you, as I have duties to attend to. Good night, Miss Hinamori. And good luck."
"Thank you, Mr. Tousen," Momo replied, but when the words left her mouth, he had already vanished down some corridor.
Upon pushing open the heavy wood door, Momo discovered that Tousen was not being modest when he described the room. It really was just a small, windowless compartment with a futon on the floor for sleeping and little lamp next to it. In the corner was a small door that led to the tiny bathroom. Momo didn't mind, however. She had come here without any expectations, so she couldn't be disappointed. The simplicity of the place was actually rather comforting, and there were no excess trappings to distract her from the seriousness of the situation. Tomorrow morning Captain Aizen would send for her. And no matter what he asked of her, she would have to do it. She put on the simple white yukata that had been laid out for her to wear to bed and went to wash up.
Almost as soon as she curled up on the futon and crawled under the blanket, the young woman was back in that dark empty space. Standing in front of her once again was Tobiume in her gold and purple robes, smiling serenely. "Whoa," Momo breathed. "With everything that's happened, I can't believe I fell asleep so quickly. I should be tossing and turning right now."
"Your body has finally won out over your mind," Tobiume replied. "You still haven't fully recovered from your injuries, Momo. And it's been weeks since you got a full night of quality sleep."
"That's true," the shinigami sighed. "And I will probably need all the rest I can get to carry out whatever test Captain has prepared for me."
Tobiume touched her master's cheek. "Are you sure that you can go through with this? You are a good and caring woman, Momo. I couldn't bear to see you sell your soul to the devil."
Momo's reply was adamant. "I am not selling my soul!" She stopped and her tone softened. "But I must go through with this. I have no other choice. The books I used to get here said nothing about how to leave. And besides, I would probably be caught and killed if I even tried to escape. Nobody from Soul Society can follow me here, either, because I destroyed my research sources before I left."
"But that isn't all, is it?" the Zanpakutou asked knowingly.
"If I don't complete this task…" the girl continued seriously, her eyes looking down at her small hands. "If I can't gain Captain's trust… I'll be killed… or banished. And then… then nobody will save him. Nobody else cares about saving him but me. I… I can't fail!"
The arms of the sword wrapped around the shinigami. "As I said before, I will stay by your side no matter what. I will give myself entirely to this test of faith and I will see to it that you pass."
"Tobiume," the girl whimpered into her blade's shoulder. "I'm scared. I'm scared that even with you by my side I still won't be strong enough. I mean… this task will be a fight, I'm almost certain of that… and I'm pretty good at Demon Arts… but that's all. I'm no great fighter like Shiro or Renji. I'm not even as talented as Izuru when it comes to swordplay. There's a pretty good chance I'll lose my life on this test."
Upon hearing Momo's words, Tobiume pushed her back a bit and directed her chin upward so that their eyes met, brown and gold. "I will not let that happen to you," she said. "I will not let you die. If you have to fight tomorrow, I will reveal to you my true strength."
The young girl's enormous eyes immediately widened and her jaw visibly slackened. "You mean…" she breathed.
Her zanpakutou nodded. "That's right, Momo. I think the time has come for you to know my bankai. The next time you are in danger, whether it is tomorrow or a hundred years from now, just say the word and I will release my power for you. And if you should hesitate and your life becomes endangered, I will use the bankai of my own volition. After all, the only reason I exist is for you."
By the time Tobiume had finished her speech, Momo's big brown eyes were rimmed with grateful tears. "I… I couldn't ask for a better partner than you," she said with a sniff. "I'm going to be brave tomorrow. I won't fail. Together you and I will get back the good, kind Captain that I know is behind those cold eyes. He's very different now, but I have to believe that he can be saved… That's the reason I exist… I think that's the reason he didn't kill me… So I could save him."
With a small hum of agreement, Tobiume pulled Momo back into a warm embrace and kissed her silky black hair. It seemed to last forever until she moved her lips towards her master's ear and whispered softly. "Morning approaches."
A loud knock rang through the air and Momo shot up in bed with a gasp. Because there was no window, all around her was dark and it took her a minute to shake off the lingering haze of sleep and remember exactly where she was. The banging noise repeated, this time accompanied by a firm voice.
"Miss Hinamori, it is time to rise. Master Aizen has requested your presence in twenty minutes, though I suggest that you arrive early. I have come to escort you and have brought you fresh clothing to wear."
It was Tousen.
Fifteen minutes later, the blind shinigami was once again leading young Momo through the serpentine hallways of Aizen's palace. The clothes he had brought her were quite lovely, standard black and white fare, but much more finely tailored and form fitting so that what little figure she had clearly showed. She wondered if Captain Aizen had picked it out himself.
When she stepped out into marble chamber, it seemed smaller somehow than it had the night before. Aizen's throne, however, looked no less remarkable. If anything, it was more imposing now, for a sizable crowd of Menos Grande and other strange creatures were assembled around him. Their presence was an ominous sign. Gin was there too, closest to Captain, glaring towards the young woman disdainfully though his smile remained in place.
Aizen himself was sitting imperially on his throne, drumming his finger on the arm. "Good morning, Miss Hinamori," he greeted slickly as she approached his feet. "I hope you slept well." She could feel his eyes sweeping over her body from her head to her feet, like a cold breeze, as he gave her the once over. When his gaze settled back on her face, she noticed that his pupils had dilated ever so slightly. "I must say, you are looking lovely today," he continued. Then he gestured to his entourage. "You remember the Menos, of course. And these fine fellows here are Ulquiorra and Grimmjow. Should you succeed today, they will be amongst your esteemed colleagues. So, shall we begin?"
Momo swallowed nervously and then nodded. "I'm ready for anything, Captain," she replied, trying her hardest to convince herself that it was true.
Aizen tented his fingers. "Splendid," he drawled. "The mission I have prepared for you, to prove that you are my loyal servant, is quite simple. All you have to do is go to the Living World and kill Hitsugaya Toushirou."
To be continued…
