"No way…This must be some kind of dream," uttered a very doubtful Orihime. "This can't possibly be real."

Oh, but it wasn't a dream. This was real. One minute Orihime Inoue was walking through the dark depths of the garganta, and the next she was standing in her old bedroom, eyes wide and mouth slightly agape.

"Is this…really my home, Ulquiorra?" the redhead asked as her pale, gray eyes fell upon the white-skinned Espada with messy black hair.

"You are correct. I have temporarily brought you back to the human realm. And yes, this is your house," the one by the name of Ulquiorra replied, his hands casually shoved in his pockets as usual.

Orihime tore her eyes away from the Espada as she took a step further into her old bedroom, a wave of nostalgia slamming against her with each passing second. Her eyes fell upon her neatly made-up bed with various stuffed bears arranged neatly atop of it. A wooden desk sat in the corner—the same desk where she had written that note to Hitsugaya Toushiro and Matsumoto Rangiku the night she left to Hueco Mundo. A few of her clothes were scattered on the floor, probably from where Rangiku had been digging through her closets while looking for something to wear.

It looked exactly the same as it did before she left.

"I don't understand…Why did you take me here?" the girl whispered quietly as she approached her wooden dresser, fingers tracing along the top of it as if making sure it was indeed real and that all of this wasn't just some hallucination.

"This used to be your home before you pledged your allegiance to Lord Aizen. It is important to you, is it not?" Ulquiorra answered in his usual beak tone. His vivid green eyes glanced around his surroundings, a grunt of disapproval forming in his throat. This room was just too colorful for his tastes…

Orihime reached for one of her stuffed teddy bears atop of her dresser as she embraced it tightly, fighting back the tears that so desperately yearned to fall. She was home. Ulquiorra had actually taken her back home.

Ulquiorra watched the girl intensely, his eyes never leaving her form, "Do not take off that bracelet I have given you. Right now, not even the Soul Society can detect your presence."

Orihime continued to cradle the soft, stuffed animal in her arms as she turned around to face him, "Ulquiorra…I still don't get it…I still don't get why you took me here of all places."

Did he have to spell it out for her? He had already told her he wanted to bring her somewhere as a gift of apology for the cruel words he had told her earlier. It was Aizen-sama's order to make amends with her; however, Ulquiorra brought her here of all places by his own will. Surely this wouldn't displease Aizen-sama…But frankly, there was no need for the man to find out.

The girl seemed puzzled by it all. The look in her eyes gave off the vibe that she believed this was some kind of sick joke or even a trap. Maybe she believed he took her here so he could murder her or something without Aizen-sama finding out? Either way, the girl looked skeptical or frightened over his ulterior motives.

"Don't give me that look, woman," Ulquiorra ordered softly as he took a step towards her. He removed a single hand from his pocket as he reached towards the stuffed bear in the girl's arms. He pulled it away from her and tossed it over his shoulder casually as he carefully swiped up her hand in his.

The startled Orihime tried to yank her hand from his as she backed away from him slowly, "W-what is the meaning of this, Ulquiorra?! Are you planning to blow up my house in front of my very eyes as punishment for something? Did Aizen-sama take you here to dispose of me!? It doesn't make sense!"

As if she could hold it no more, tears began to stream down her cheeks freely. This caught Ulquiorra by surprise a little, yet he shed no emotion upon his face. His white hand continued to grip on the girl's hand tightly yet tenderly. "Do not jerk away from me," he told her calmly, "I did not take you here to kill you. If I had any plans of killing you, don't you think I would have done it already?"

That wasn't reassuring at all. In fact, it made the tears fall from Orihime's eyes even faster as she sniffled quietly, not daring to say anything in return.

He wasn't good with words—especially comforting words. "What I mean is that I have no cruel intentions of killing you in your own home. In fact, unless Aizen-sama orders me to do so, harming you is not on my list of things-to-do. I assure you."

His thumb rubbed against the palm of the girl's hand gently, causing her to relax a little bit. "But nothing makes sense…I thought you hated me. If you hate me so badly, then why would you take me home? Why would you take me the one place I dream of going every night?"

The girl had him there. Why did he take her here of all places? Aizen-sama had simply ordered him to treat her kindly. He had made no such order as to go out of his way to take her to her favorite place.

Ulquiorra peeled his eyes away from her as he stared up at the ceiling, wondering how he should answer her. "I do not hate you, woman. I am incapable of feeling hatred towards anyone. Furthermore, my words greatly hurt you today. I refuse to lie to you so I will tell you this much—Aizen-sama told me to apologize to you for the cruel things I said."

This surprised Orihime greatly even to the point where her tears stopped flowing for a moment. "He said…what?" she blinked in amazement as she couldn't pull her eyes off the Espada. Were they in kindergarten or something? Was Aizen-sama the teacher that ordered his students to play nicely with one another?

How else could Ulquiorra put this? He hated having to apologize for things. He hated having to make amends with anyone and admit that he was in the wrong. "Aizen-sama calls you our princess. He wants me to treat you with kindness and respect during your stay in Hueco Mundo. However, don't believe for a second that he will feel sympathy and compassion towards you when the time comes."

"Princess? Eh? What do you mean when the time comes?" Orihime asked, a flabbergasted expression completely taking over her.

The girl was so very troublesome. "Never mind, woman. Aizen-sama told me to make amends with you so that is why I brought you here. I brought you here…to make you smile." Ulquiorra managed to mutter out as he continued to look away from her. He had the strangest urge to spit into a trashcan or something for having said those mushy words. He released his hold on her hand as it returned to his pocket once again, turning his back to her in the process.

Orihime's cheeks flared with the brightest shade of red as she stared at his back, her heart feeling like it was pounding a thousand beats per second. "Aizen-sama…told you to take me to my house to make me smile?" she whispered quietly. She wasn't blushing over the fact that Lord Aizen wanted her to be happy but by the fact that Ulquiorra actually carried out those orders. And he seemed embarrassed by it!

"No, woman. Aizen-sama simply ordered me to make amends with you. It was I who decided to take you to your previous home in order to make you smile," Ulquiorra admitted regrettably. He didn't feel emotions for a reason—he loathed being sappy.

And then something crashed against him like a full-blown force. In seconds, Orihime had nearly tackled him to the floor in a ferocious hug, squeezing the life out of him.

The massive embrace by the girl left Ulquiorra astonished in every means possible. Her hug had caught him completely off guard to the point where he nearly cried out as she tackled him.

"W-W-Woman! What are you doing?!" He managed to spit out through gritted teeth. Damn, the girl had a tight grip.

"Ulquiorra-sama…I can't believe it…You did this out of the goodness of your own heart. You brought me home." Orihime mumbled out as she buried her cheek into Ulquiorra's back, tightening her embrace as she did so.

The girl had him in a death lock, it felt like. Nonetheless, Ulquiorra was an Arrancar—removing himself from her could be done in one simple motion.

Even so, he felt he didn't want to pull away. Not yet.

"Don't flatter yourself, woman," Ulquiorra told her as he straightened himself up. He had finally managed to catch his breath from her deadly squeezing tactics as he stared at the floor, "I have no heart to perform goodness."

"That's not true!" Orihime cried out as she loosened her clutch on him, "You could have done anything to make up with me! You could have simply said 'Sorry' or even brought me rice that's actually heated! Or you could have even let me go for a stroll through Las Noches to get some fresh air or something. But no—you took me back home because you know how important it is to me. You wanted to do something really special. People without hearts don't do really special things for others."

Once again, she left him speechless. What could he say in his defense? For her to not misunderstand his intentions? Honestly, Ulquiorra didn't even know what his actual intentions were. All he wanted to do was make her smile…

"Stop this nonsense," he told her, completely ignoring her previous statement, "for your time here is indeed temporary. I didn't take you here just so you could look at it and cry over how much you will miss it later. I grant you permission to take one item—just one—back with you to Las Noches."

Like the bursting of the sunshine through the clouds on a dreary day, Orihime's face lit up entirely as she embraced him tighter. Ulquiorra instantly regretted telling her that while she still had him in her clutches. "Woman, release me this instant," he demanded monotonously as he wrapped his hands around her fingers to pry her off of him.

"Oh, sorry!" the girl piped out as she instantly withdrew from him, a discomfited blush creeping along her cheeks. "I didn't mean to hug you like that all of a sudden. It's just that…you made me so happy! Thank you so much!" Orihime beamed as brightly as she could with a smile that held nothing but the purest gratitude towards Ulquiorra.

As Ulquiorra stood there in her bedroom watching her smile, he could have sworn that the entire world stopped for that single moment. All the negative thoughts he had bottled up inside him dispersed for that single moment, leaving nothing but a warm, tingling feeling swelling up in his abdomen.

The Espada watched her as she turned his back to him, her eyes scanning the room for something valuable that she could take back with her to her lonely, prison cell. What did she own that could give her comfort when she needed it most?

Her sparkly eyes fell upon the various plushies upon her dresser. Stuffed toys always gave her comfort when she held onto them but she needed something else…Something far more precious.

A blanket would be a wise thing, she thought to herself as she wandered over to her bed. It would keep her warm and provide her with comfort. She reached out her slender fingers to knead the soft fabric of her quilt, a gentle expression playing on her face. With another pondering thought, Orihime decided against taking the quilt. She had Ulquiorra's cloak to keep her warm and placated each night anyways…

Ulquiorra watched her as she scurried through the room desperately looking for a piece of her previous life that she could take with her. She talked to herself quietly as she orally announced her thought process, "Should I take a frying pan? No, they probably wouldn't let me cook in Las Noches anyways…Should I take a book? No, I can just ask Ulquiorra to bring some more for me if I want them. Oh, I know! I could bring my handheld gaming system! Eh, but the batteries would run out eventually and then I'd just be depressed…"

The girl was getting frustrated over the fact she couldn't make up her mind. With a groan, Orihime fell back onto her bed, staring up at the ceiling. "If only I could just pack up my friends…They are so much more important than any materialistic item," Orihime mumbled to herself as she stretched her arms above her head.

"I cannot permit you to take anyone back to Las Noches," Ulquiorra said to her, forcing her to remember that she wasn't alone in the room. "Unless, that is, you wish death upon them."

Orihime cringed lightly from his words as she sat up straight on her bed. "Then what should I bring? Hmm…"

And then it hit her like a smack to the head as an imaginary light bulb flickered on inside her mind. "I GOT IT!" She exclaimed animatedly as she threw her arms in the air in excitement, "I know how to take my friends with me to Las Noches without actually taking them there!"

In seconds, the girl raced out of the room, the sound of her pitter-pattering feet echoing behind her. With a tiny, muted groan, Ulquiorra followed her into the living the time he walked into the other room, the girl was excavating through one of her shelves, franticly searching for something.

The girl was a handful; that was for sure. He had planned to just drop by her home, let her grab a toy or something to entertain herself and then head back to Las Noches without Lord Aizen ever noticing. Even so, the girl's presence in the room would only further stimulate Soul Society's suspicion of her betrayal against them should they find she could pass through the dimensions.

His olive green eyes glanced around the room as he stood there stiffly. Sunlight peered through the windows, illuminating the room in an affectionate manner. The room was so colorful, so full of life, with its brightly painted walls and its use of comfortable looking furniture. No wonder the girl was so miserable in her secluded, empty room in Las Noches.

"Ah, here it is!" Orihime called out as she pulled out an enormous book from one of her shelves. She cradled the massive book in her arms as she skipped over to her couch, plopping down on it happily. "Ulquiorra-sama! Come over here! You have to look at this!" Orihime giggled enthusiastically as she flipped open the book.

Ulquiorra made his way over to the couch as he sat down on it eloquently, curious as to what the girl was so giddy about all of a sudden.

"Look! It's a photo album of my friends!" Orihime exclaimed as she pointed to various photos scattered neatly across the pages. "I can't believe I didn't think of bringing this immediately!"

Ulquiorra's deep eyes scanned the page as he held back a scowl, "I'm not sure if I should allow you to take this with you, woman. It's about time you forgot about your previous life in the human realm."

As if all the life drained out of her face, Orihime's shoulders sank forward as she shut the book slowly. "Yeah…I guess you're right…" A solemn frown stole the happiness right out of her eyes as she nimbly stood up from the couch and placed the album back on the shelf.

The girl sure did enjoy making things difficult for him, Ulquiorra figured as he stood up from the couch as well. He brought her here to smile, not make her more depressed. "However, I shall permit you to take that item. Just promise me that you will no longer cause a fuss when I order you to eat. You shall follow my every command, whatever it may be. Furthermore, you must promise to always—"

"OH, THANK YOU, ULQUIORRA-SAMA!" Orihime cried out, flinging her arms around the stiff Espada. Once again, her tackling hug caught him off guard. Her arms were wrapped tightly around his neck as she pressed herself firmly against him, practically nuzzling her face into his chest. "Oh, thank you! Thank you! Thank you!"

Ulquiorra was too stunned to do anything as he simply stood there, a dumbfounded expression on his face. Had anyone from Hueco Mundo seen his face, they would have surely laughed and mocked him.

"E-Enough woman…" he grumbled lowly, not even mentally capable to peel the girl off of him.

Orihime quickly jumped back away from him, a sheepish grin planted upon her face, "S-Sorry, Ulquiorra-sama! It's just…No one has ever been this nice to me in my entire life! Thank you so much!" Her smile widened from ear-to-ear, causing the warm sensation in the pits of Ulquiorra's stomach to increase drastically.

Just what was it about this woman's smile that drove his body insane? He had recently come to the realization that he was indeed sexually attracted to the girl—just like several other Espada who also lusted for her. But just because the thought of her bare body caused his groins to become erect had nothing to do with the quivering feeling rising from his stomach up to his chest.

None of the textbooks he had read from the library explained anything about a fiery sensation in his chest.

Orihime had already scooped back up the book, embracing it against her chest. "Don't worry, Ulquiorra-sama! I promise to do everything you say from now on without putting up a fight! I'll eat everything on my plate—even if it's uncooked rice with a side order of gruel! I promise I'll do anything!" She nodded once in reassurance as she pressed the photo album against her even tighter, as if she was afraid that it'd disappear from her forever if she were to let go of it.

"Anything?" Ulquiorra repeated, a look of curiosity glinting in his usually empty eyes.

"Yes! Anything! Absolutely anything at all!" Orihime chirped out, that ever jolly smile playing upon her lips.

With a nod, Ulquiorra opened up the garganta once more, the dark, empty vortex appearing through thin air once again. He held out his hand to her once again as Orihime took it happily, her other arm still cradling the precious book.

"Anything…" The Espada repeated to himself once more in a hushed tone. Aizen-sama's order could be given to him at any moment. When the time came, would the girl really be eager to do anything Ulquiorra commanded her to do? Or would she stop smiling forever?

Ulquiorra felt a gentle squeeze against his palm, causing him to look down at their interlocked hands as they walked through the gloomy pits of the garganta. Even through the darkness, Ulquiorra could detect her lighthearted smile.

As he had done so a few days earlier, he felt something tugging at his own lips. Something he would never admit to doing.

A smile.

Author's Note:: Yes, Ulquiorra smiled again :) Sorry for the OOC-ness but if I kept everything completely in character then we wouldn't have much to go on, now would we? ;) I hope you liked the fluffyness in this chapter!! As usual, your reviews mean the world to me! I want to know what YOU think and YOUR opinion matters :D Oh, and the more reviews I get, the faster I update ^.^ WARNING:: there will be some lemon in the next chapter so prepare yourself ;) So please stick with me and this fic and I promise to do my best as a writer :D Let me know if I made any mistakes or anything but please no flames...(I received some hate mail via PM earlier this week from a person who shall remain anonymous. I DON'T APPRECIATE YOU SENDING ME VIOLENTAL THREATS BECAUSE UQLUIORRA IS A LITTLE OOC!) Now that that is said, thanks again for reading ^^