Why did the temperature in Las Noches always feel that it was below zero degrees? Orihime Inoue often found herself shivering uncontrollably in her cold, dark room. The Arrancar must've been immune to the feelings of temperature, the healer suspected, or perhaps it was because they all had to wear those heavy white cloaks…Maybe they kept their thermostat low because of that? Did Las Noches even have a thermostat? Either way, the girl was freezing. Her long white robes just weren't enough.

Orihime sat in her chair with her knees pressed against her chest. She embraced her knees tightly, burying her face into the fabric that clung to her legs. Her body had been continuously shaking for hours. If one had entered the room, they might have believed she was seizing due to how fierce her tremors were.

"You're pathetic," hissed out a cold voice—a voice even colder than ice. And for just a moment, Orihime seized shaking.

"I didn't hear you come in, Ulquiorra-sama," the girl whispered as she pulled her face up from her fetal position, slowly looking up at him.

"I told you that I was coming in. You were too busy sulking to even notice," the Cuatro Espada said flatly. His hands were shoved in the pockets of his white coat as he stared down at her, his eyes unwavering.

Orihime straightened out her legs and sat up properly, folding her hands neatly in her lap. "I wasn't sulking…" the human meekly replied, turning away from him as to not meet his gaze. "It's just that it's so unbearably cold in here all the time..I have to do whatever I can to stay warm."

"As I said: pathetic," Ulquiorra simply stated, turning his back to her. "You humans are so weak..And here, we've even provided you with warm clothing yet you still complain about the cold."

"I'm not complaining," Orihime mumbled, glaring at his back. At least he wasn't facing her…She wasn't in the mood to be scolded for the nasty looks she gave him.

Orihime always thought of herself as an optimist until she arrived in Hueco Mundo. Back in the human world, she got along with most people she met. Even when she and her nakama arrived in Soul Society to rescue Rukia Kuchiki from her execution, she always remained cheerful and determined. Not once did she believe that Rukia would not be rescued…

Yet, these days, the once lively and ever optimistic Orihime had grown bitter. A constant haze of negative thoughts continuously swirled through her mind, replacing the once happy thoughts she had possessed long ago. Never before had the girl experienced feelings of hatred towards anyone…

…yet, she hated Ulquiorra.

Well, perhaps hate was too strong of a word. Orihime silently cursed herself for being so full of bitterness and anger towards him all the time. It wasn't Ulquiorra's fault she was in this position…He was just simply following orders.

"It's time to eat," the Espada's cold voice once again found a way to interrupt her thoughts. And now it was her time to follow orders.

"I'm too cold to eat," the girl simply replied. It was true—she was too cold to feel hunger at the moment. She was also too cold to even feel like giving in to Ulquiorra's demands. Her eyes slid from Ulquiorra towards the window that hung high above the wall on her room as she tried to pretend he wasn't even there.

"Did I ask if you wanted to eat? I don't believe I did," the pale man simply replied as he headed towards the door. For a moment, Orihime believed he was leaving. Unfortunately, she wasn't that lucky. Ulquiorra simply approached the servant Arrancar whom was waiting for further instruction at the door.

"You may leave. I will take it from here," the espada said calmly. The servant wasted no time in politely bowing and scurrying away. He wasn't foolish enough to stick around…

The redhead simply sighed, combing her hair with her fingers slowly as her pale grey eyes avoided Ulquiorra at all costs by staring out the window. The moon was the only source of light the girl had in her cold, dark room. The moon gave her a sense of peace at times, occasionally making her tranquil enough to the point where her imprisonment didn't appear to be so unbearable. Other times, it felt as if the moon was mocking her. As if it were boasting over the fact that it remained free while she was securely locked behind bars.

Her view of the moon was instantly replaced by a view of Ulquiorra's chest.

"I do believe you're supposed to look at some one when they are talking to you," the espada said calmly, hovering over her and obscuring her view of the moon.

The girl's eyes slowly moved up from his chest, up to his gloomy green eyes and she suddenly found herself shivering even more so than she had been before.

"I'm sorry, Ulquiorra-sama," Orihime whispered quietly, feeling extremely uncomfortable while looking into his emerald orbs.

"Now, cease your senseless daydreaming and eat," Ulquiorra demanded. Although he tried to hide it, Orihime could detect a hint of annoyance. But she knew for a fact that Ulquiorra never allowed himself to feel or show any emotion…but was irritation even considered an emotion? Surely even the fourth espada could be annoyed at one point.

Curiosity got the best of the human as she couldn't help but voice her own question, "Ulquiorra-sama, are you annoyed with me?"

The question caught the male completely off guard. A flicker of confusion passed through his eyes momentarily but instantly disappeared as he regained his composure and replied to her, "Over the fact that you do not do as I say, yes."

It was not uncommon for Orihime Inoue to annoy her friends with her overly energetic personality and her insane taste in food mixtures. She couldn't help but feel it to be an accomplishment to annoy a man with no heart, so to speak of.

"I'm sorry, Ulquiorra-sama. I have no control over how my body reacts to the cold. But until I feel some form of warmth, I won't be able to eat anyth-"

The girl's words were instantly cut off as a cold hand gripped tightly around her tender throat. Orihime gasped for air as her hands flung up to wrap around his wrists, desperately trying to pry his hand away from her.

"When will you realize that I do not give requests? These orders are not from me but from Lord Aizen himself. You can either choose to obey and eat everything I tell you to quietly, or we can have a repeat of yesterday. Only far worse," the man stated, his grip tightening around her throat causing her to turn slightly blue in the face.

What was it about this girl that angered him so much? Not even the bastard Grimmjow caused him to seethe this much. The Cuatro Espada never showed this emotion in front of anyone, let alone worthless trash like the girl cowering before him. It was not often that he would lose his cool…

Yet this girl was provoking his anger with each passing second. If it wasn't the fact that she constantly tried to defy his orders, it was the looks she gave him every time he entered the room.

Just before the girl was about to lose consciousness, he released her. She fell limply to the ground, landing on her fragile knees. Orihime coughed and wheezed for a moment, trying her best to catch her breath. She wanted to scream at him, yet her vocal chords felt like they were about to burst.

"You're wasting my time, woman," Ulquiorra said in a hushed tone as he walked back towards the cart that the servant left, "I have more important duties as an Espada than babysitting a worthless human."

Orihime continued to gasp for breath until she decided she was able to stand up slowly. His grip had been so tight…it would surely leave a bruise from where his fingers grasped it. She managed to sit back down on the couch, finally regulating her breaths.

"You can't…break me…" Orihime murmured under her breath as she ran her fingers lightly over her throat, "I'm…stronger than you think.."

Ulquiorra sauntered back over to her, reaching out his hand towards her throat once again. Orihime recoiled, sliding away from him as much as she could. Much to her surprise, instead of snatching for her throat once again, the man grabbed her chin gently. He bent down on one of his knees until he was eye-level with her.

Why were his hands so cold? She felt that she could get frostbite just by having them grace her skin lightly. Everything about Ulquiorra was frozen: his touch, his gaze, his soul.

"My intentions are not to break you, woman," Ulquiorra assured, bringing her face closer to his. His breath mingled on her skin, causing another hoard of shivers to dance along her spine. "Lord Aizen is the one who wishes to break you, not I. I am simply to keep you alive. If you make such a simple task complicated, there will be punishment."

It was hard to keep his voice calm and collected as his patience began to dwindle. If he lost any more of it, he could not promise that his actions would not become fatal. Aizen had made a mistake in trusting this girl to him…

"I'm just..so cold.." Orihime replied, fighting back against the tears that franticly wished to pour out.

"If a form of warmth is given to you, then you will eat," Ulquiorra stated. It was not a question but it seemed like a pretty good bargain to Orihime. The redhead simply nodded, biting her lower lip to further prevent the tears from falling. She was stronger than this—she would not let this man see her cry anymore!

"Then warmth will be given to you," the man replied, releasing his grip on her chin as he stood up. His hands moved towards the zipper of his coat, pulling it down slowly.

Instantly, Orihime shrieked lightly, causing a sharp pain to form in her sensitive vocal chords, "N-NO! THAT'S NOT WHAT I MEANT!" Was he planning on pressing his naked body against her?! Was that the way she was going to receive some warmth?! That's not what she had intended to happen! She had been hoping for a blanket or even a warm drink!

"You said you would eat if I gave you a form of warmth. This isn't what I had hoped for either but no further questions will be asked. Understand, woman?" Ulquiorra's voice was growing a bit more impatient with the girl as he unzipped his coat completely, exposing his bare chest.

Orihime had seen shirtless men before. Even her precious Kurosaki-kun had been shirtless in her view before. Even so, her cheeks burned brightly as she placed the palms of her hands over her eyes. Ulquiorra was one of the last people she would have liked to see shirtless…Even if he was one of the more attractive Arrancar.

Ulquiorra ignored her reaction as he fully removed his coat. He threw it on her lap and turned away, reaching for the plate full of disgusting gruel. "You will eat now," he simply said.

Orihime felt the heavy coat land in her lap. She stared at it in confusion for a moment, wondering why he had given this to her. Suddenly it hit her…He wasn't stripping in order to pass on body heat. He was…giving her his jacket?!

"U-Ulquiorra-sama," the startled girl blinked a few times before she ran her fingers along the coat that lay in her lap, "Is this for me?"

The espada didn't say anything as he thrust the plate in front of her. Orihime brought her eyes up to his face but was instantly drawn to the black hole near his sternum. A sinking feeling rose in Orihime's chest as her eyes remained on the empty hole. When he had given her his jacket, she had wondered for a moment if he had done so out of the goodness of his heart.

But there was no heart-just a gaping hole where one should have been.

"Eat," Ulquiorra said as Orihime nodded slowly. She began to put her arms through the jacket before tightly wrapping it around herself. She had half expected the coat to be cold, just as Ulquiorra's skin was, yet surprisingly she could feel heat radiating off of it. Her chills were already beginning to disperse as she zipped it up.

Her shaky hands reached out to grip the plate lightly as her eyes never left the hole in his chest. Ulquiorra turned his back towards her as he once again headed for the door, "I will return shortly. The plate had better be empty by the time I get back. Just in case you have disobeyed me once again, I will obtain ropes to restrain you."

Orihime looked down at the plate, a small sigh escaping her lips. Ulquiorra really wasn't kind after all…

"If you choose to not finish the food I have provided you with, I will be taking back my coat and I will strip you of your clothes. Do not misunderstand—I will simply strip you of every ounce of warmth you could ever hope to obtain." With that said, Ulquiorra took his exit.

"Thank you!" Orihime cried out once the door was shut. The words just kind of slipped out…yet, she was glad they did. Ulquiorra may not have a heart but he still performed an act of kindness—whether he was kind himself or not. Her neck ached from where his hands had clutched on tightly to her throat but it was starting to subside more and more every moment. His jacket had already brought a form of heat against her and for that, she was extremely grateful.

With out another thought, the girl began quietly eating her food. The taste of the meat was foul and the rice was bland but it relieved the burning feeling she had in the pits of her stomach. She hadn't even realized how hungry she was before due to her constant chills. Although the food was wretched, it was somehow satisfying.

Her meal, however, was interrupted by a sudden knock on the door. Orihime looked up, expecting to see the fourth espada once again. Instantly, her eyes grew wide as saucers as the plate slipped completely from her hands and onto the hard floor, shattering into a million pieces.

A dark chuckle filled the whole room as a snakelike voice hissed out, "Hello there, pet-sama."

Author's Note: I hope you guys liked the second chapter! Thanks to all who reviewed and I hope to have a new chapter up later this week Also, I'm the only one who proofreads this so I am extremely sorry for any weird spelling or grammar mistakes.