There was a gasp, a pant, and a moan that broke through the silence of the girl's room.

"Succumb to me, my dear," he purred out in a seductive tone as he flickered out his tongue to slide across her earlobe gently yet tauntingly. "You're the only one I've ever desired."

"But this isn't right…We shouldn't do this…" the feeble girl mumbled out, trying her best to resist the male's attempts to seduce her.

"And why shouldn't we? You have placed me under your spell—the spell of love! Never before have I loved anyone as much as you!" The male pleaded as he pulled her towards him placing yet another possessive kiss upon her sweet lips.

The young woman was unable to resist anymore as she leaned into the kiss, intensifying it as she ran her fingers along his bare chest.

The young male pulled away only to breathe out three enchanting words.

"You are mine."

In an instant, he was upon the young woman, pressing her down against the bed and showering her with kisses.

…….

"Oh! It feels so good!" the redhead cried out as her lover pounded into her as if there were no tomorrow. "Please, more! I beg of you! Give me more!" She panted as he thrust into her deeper. His fingers massaged her breasts lovingly as he continued to delve in and out of her with vigorous speed.

"I love you, woman," he told her as he moved one hand away from her perfectly round breast to stroke her cheek amorously. Sweat began to trickle down from his forehead yet he never tore his eyes away from her beautiful, adoring expression.

"I love you, too," the young woman replied back, a sincere twinkle forming in her eyes.

The man then continued to pound into her roughly, feeling himself getting closer and closer to his climax with each thrust. The woman's moans filled the entire room, causing the beastly male to grow hornier with every second that passed.

"I'm going to cum," the male grunted out, finding himself unable to hold back anymore.

"Oh, darling! Me too!" the woman alluringly cried out as she wrapped her arms tightly around his neck, digging her fingers through his long, thick, black hair.

They were both reaching their climax at a rapid speed. Suddenly, a strange sensation exploded deep inside both them as they—

"What the hell are you reading?" grunted out a raspy voice from behind Ulquiorra.

Ulquiorra flinched lightly in his seat as he slammed the book in hands hastily. "That is none of your concern, Grimmjow," he replied softly, trying to regain his composure. It was not often that anyone could take Ulquiorra Schiffer by surprise… Ulquiorra glanced around the room and realized that the eyes of each of the Espada were upon him, skeptical glances insinuating each of their thoughts towards him.

Just an hour before, Aizen-sama had sent out a message that there would be another Espada meeting to further discuss the intruders that had invaded Las Noches. Ulquiorra had been the first arrive at precisely fifty-minutes before the meeting was to begin. Punctuality had always been his expertise but even sitting in an empty room for close to an hour waiting for the meeting to begin seemed to be a bit tedious.

It was at that moment that he had remembered the book he had retrieved from the library—My Master's Voice. He had originally scooped it up for research material but had completely forgotten all about it due to the past week's events.

He reached into his pocket and pulled it out, eyeing it with incredulous interest. Since no one would be in the meeting room for awhile, he had decided to attempt to read the trashy-looking book. What harm could it do? If it was complete nonsense then he would put it down and forget everything he ever read in it…

Little did he know that this simple book would catch his interest more so than any other book he had ever read. The plot had been pretty simple and straightforward while the imagery and descriptive words left something to be desired. However, the situation was so enticing.

The story had been about a young woman who was kidnapped by a dark, evil creature known as a vampire. Ulquiorra had never heard of a vampire before but it seemed to share certain characteristics as Hollows. That had instantly intrigued him…

The vampire had kidnapped the woman in order to drink her delicious blood. Instead of killing her like he had intended to, the vampire fell in love with her bubbly and cheerful personality. And after just three chapters, they engaged in sexual activity.

Ulquiorra had been so curious about the sensual scenes in the story. His mind was so indulged in the book that he didn't even realize that the other Espada members had all piled in. He had never been so consumed by something to the point where he didn't even detect his comrades' presence. If he could feel, he would have been greatly embarrassed over the fact that he had been so deeply distracted by the book.

"Tch, I didn't think you were into that stuff! Wait 'til Aizen-sama finds out that his precious "stone-wall" Ulquiorra likes romance novels!" Grimmjow teased, bringing Ulquiorra roughly back to reality.

The fourth Espada straightened himself up, completely purging all thoughts of the book out of his mind. "There is no need for that, Numero Sexta. I was simply reading that book for research; however, it was so unruly and tasteless to the point where I was disgusted beyond all reason. That is the only reason why I was so focused on it," Ulquiorra denied calmly, trying to mask all forms of suspicion in his face. "It's a shame you don't understand what I am talking about since your pitiful brain can't even comprehend such a simple act as reading."

Grimmjow forgot all about his comments to Ulquiorra as he bawled up his fist in rage, "What did you say, you pale-faced twit?!" He shouted as he reared back his arm in hopes of bashing the white fleshed Espada in the face.

"Now, now, Grimmjow—there is no need to fight," rang out a familiar, ingratiating voice just in the nick of time.

Grimmjow's knuckles were a mere three centimeters from Ulquiorra's nose as the blue haired Espada slowly craned his neck to look behind him, "Yes, Aizen-sama." Ulquiorra didn't even so much as blink by the swift movement of Grimmjow's arm—he had planned on dodging at the last moment but knew it wouldn't be necessary when Lord Aizen had walked into the room.

Grimmjow dropped his arm to his side as he went to take his seat, "'Ya got lucky, Emospada," he grunted out. Ulquiorra simply shot a blank stare in response at Grimmjow's attempt to insult him.

"Now that everyone is here, shall we get started?" Sousuke Aizen asked out in a suave voice as he sat down in a chair at the head of the table. "A servant will come to bring us tea shortly while we have our meeting. Now, about those impudent intruders…"

How long had it been since Orihime felt such a buoyant, light-hearted feeling that made her believe that she was constantly floating on a cloud of bliss?

Four days had passed since Ulquiorra Schiffer had taken her back to her home for a provisional visit. Oh, how she had missed lying on her bed or skipping through her living room! And to actually have the opportunity to embrace one of her cherished teddy bears…

It was like a dream. And to think Ulquiorra had been the cause of that dream—how mind-boggling!

Orihime lay down on the couch on her stomach as she flipped through her photo album elatedly, her feet merrily kicking back and forth in the air. She propped her chin in the palm of her hand as her elbow neatly rested upon her pillow in a comfortable position.

The redhead grinned at herself as she reminisced various moments in her life when some of those photos had been taken. There was a photo of Orihime happily eating an ice cream cone while riding on the back of her best friend, Tatsuki. "I remember this was the day when Tatsuki took me out for ice cream after I fell down the stairs and sprained my ankle! I didn't have any crutches so Tatsuki carried me on her back—it was so much fun!" the girl giggled to herself, voicing her thoughts as she continued to recollect her memories.

"Oh, and this is when we all went as a huge group to the tanabata festival! Even Kurosaki-kun and Kuchiki-san attended that!" Orihime exclaimed to herself jovially as she stared at a photo of she, Tatsuki, and Ichigo in their summer kimonos. She stared solely at the image of Ichigo, a look of nostalgia shadowing over her eyes. "I remember that I got ready for hours, trying to my best to make my hair and make-up look perfect for him so he'd find me pretty. He barely said a few words to me that night but I remember thinking how handsome he looked…" The girl's voice dropped to a reticent tone as she never pulled her eyes away from the picture. In the photo, Orihime had been standing in between Tatsuki and Ichigo, all three of them smiling as if they didn't have a care in the world.

"Kurosaki-kun…" the girl sighed out softly as she closed her book. She got up off the couch and sauntered back over to the window as she gazed outside of it dreamily. Something didn't feel right…Why wasn't her heart beating rapidly at the thought of her beloved Kurosaki-kun? Usually, every time she murmured his name, her heart would begin to palpitate lightly or her cheeks would begin to blush. Sometimes, she would even get a tingling sensation in her stomach at the very thought of him.

So why did her heart not thump the moment she looked at his picture? Why did her cheeks not flush at the sound of his name?

"Kurosaki-kun…" Orihime tested out his name again, trying to detect any form of emotion that normally swelled up in her heart. "Kurosaki-kun. Kurosaki-kun. Kurosaki-kun!" She began to repeat his name over and over, desperately wanting to feel her heart briskly pound at the calling of his name.

Much to her dismay, she displayed no reaction to the very thought of him. With a small sigh, Orihime brought up her arms to embrace herself tightly, "What does this mean? Is my heart not being faithful to Kurosaki-kun?"

Suddenly, an image of a lean figure with skin as white as snow and hair as dark as the midnight sky flashed across her mind. "No…this can't be…" Orihime muttered to herself as she closed her eyes firmly. "I can't have a crush on him. This isn't possible…The one I love is Kurosaki-kun! And he's coming to rescue me!"

There was only one way to know for sure. The girl bit her lower lip lightly before inhaling a deep breath. "Ulquiorra-sama," she uttered out quietly. Instantly, her heart began to thump loudly as her cheeks flushed with the brightest tinge of pink. Her eyes remained closed as she visually imagined him embracing her tightly and planting a small yet tender kiss upon her lips. The very thought caused her mind to swirl and her chest to pound even harder.

"But he doesn't smile…" Orihime mumbled to herself, "I can't be in love with somebody that doesn't smile. I can't be in love with someone who works for Lord Aizen. I can't be in love with some one that kidnapped me. I absolutely can't be in love with somebody who could never love me back…"

But it was too late. Despite her previous proclamation about how she wouldn't be able to help falling in love with Ulquiorra Schiffer should he ever smile, she realized there was no stopping it—she was falling in love with him no matter what he did.

"I'm sorry, Kurosaki-kun," Orihime whispered, eyes flittering open to stare out the window once again. "But I'm no longer in love with you. I'm falling in love with Ulquiorra—whether I like it or not."

"So, do you all understand what you must do?" Aizen-sama said to his minions before taking a sip of his tea gracefully.

A few affirmative nods and confident stares let Sousuke Aizen know that his servants understood very well—should any of them cross paths with the intruders, they must immediately dispose of them. No questions asked.

Moments later, the ten Espada began to exit the room, grumbling and mumbling amongst themselves as they did so.

Regrettably, Ulquiorra was unable to pay attention during the entire meeting. His mind had been elsewhere, often drifting towards the girl. Daydreaming wasn't something Ulquiorra Schiffer did often, if at all. During every meeting Aizen had held for the Espada, Ulquiorra always listened with the most intent of hearing. He would analyze every word Aizen spoke and would focus on every minor detail.

So why was this time different? Why was it that no matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't focus? Images of the girl kept dancing on his mind while his imagination often lead him to think back on the novel he had previously been reading. As shameful as it was, the male couldn't help but picture he and Orihime in the same position as the couple in the book. The woman in the story had fiery, red hair just as Orihime did—how ironic. Who wouldn't picture that woman as Orihime?

Even so, his behavior was inexcusable. Ulquiorra was slowly becoming less like himself and more like a fantasizing, little child. It was repulsing and nauseating…Should anyone ever hear of what was going on through his mind, hell would be sure to ensue.

Ulquiorra then realized that it was about time for the girl's meal. The young male stood up from his seat as he made his way towards the door, all the while pondering on what surprises he should bring her for her meal.

Suddenly, his master's voice called out to him, stopping him dead in his tracks. "Ulquiorra, may I speak to you a moment?" Aizen said sternly as he gestured his hand in a beckoning manner.

"Yes, my Lord," Ulquiorra replied as he bowed courteously to his king, making his way back over to him.

Aizen-sama smirked in satisfaction at his minion's politeness. "We can discuss it in here. Please, have a seat."

With a small nod, Ulquiorra sat down in a seat directly next to his master, eagerly awaiting what the man had to say. Had the time finally come? Was Lord Aizen finally going to give the order? Or perhaps he was angry for taking the girl to her home…But how could he have found out? There were video cameras all over Las Noches but surely there was no way that even Lord Aizen's eyes could follow him into the human realm…

"I'm assuming you already know what this is about, Ulquiorra," Aizen began in a sophisticated tone as he grinned his debonair smile. "Do you not?"

Ulquiorra tried his best to keep up his usual poker-face as he nodded nonchalantly, "It is about the woman. You have further instructions for me, my Lord?"

Aizen sipped his tea once again before placing it down neatly on the table, "For the time being, I want to be informed of your progress. Tell me—has she fallen in love with you yet?"

The question caught Ulquiorra by surprise; however, he let on no signs of being startled. "I apologize greatly of my ignorance; however, I know nothing of the girl's feelings towards me," he calmly replied as he folded his hands neatly in his lap.

"Is that a fact?" the slick haired man asked as he eyed Ulquiorra with great suspicion. Ulquiorra simply sat as still as a log as he locked gazes with his boss.

"I will just have to ask her myself, then. Keep up the good work, though. If she isn't already, I want her to be completely in love with you by the end of the week. Do whatever is necessary—failure is not an option at this point," Aizen said in an almost frustrated tone as he sipped his tea eloquently. "Feed the girl, get her showered, and then bring her to me in a few hours."

Ulquiorra opened his mouth to say something, anxiously wanting to know why it was such an urgent matter to have the girl fall head over heels for him. If Aizen's only plan was for him to impregnate the girl, then what was the point in her actually loving him?

Although the boy had an expression as empty as a shell, Aizen could see right through him. "Is there something you wanted to ask me, Ulquiorra?" he asked, amber eyes piercing through the other male's soul.

The fourth Espada stood up from his seat before bowing politely in respect, "No, my Lord. Nothing at all."

"Ehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh?! YOU REALLY MEAN IT?!"

The girl's high-pitched squeals were so loud and overbearing that many Arrancar could hear her from all the way down the hallway.

"Of course I mean it, woman. I wouldn't have said it if I didn't mean it," the impassive Espada told the wide-eyed girl.

"But what if this gets you in trouble? I don't want you to put yourself out for me…I feel like I'm always a burden to you," Orihime mumbled, looking away from him shyly.

With a sigh, Ulquiorra patted her shoulder gently, "Do not worry yourself over trivial things. I wouldn't have offered to take you to the kitchen if I thought you were a burden."

The redhead perked up by his words instantly with a cheerful smile that immediately brightened up her dark prison cell. In the beginning, Ulquiorra had never dared to touch her. Nowadays, he seemed to be showing a lot more affectionate gestures towards her such as patting her shoulder, squeezing her hand in a comforting manner, and even occasionally tucking her hair behind her ears when it was in her way. It was very odd behavior for the Espada but Orihime wasn't complaining in the least. He was beginning to treat her like she was more of a human than his caged pet these days.

With a brisk movement, Ulquiorra turned his back towards her and opened the door, "I expect you to be on your best behavior while in the corridors of the kitchen. You may use whatever tools you deem necessary to prepare your own meal; however, you must clear it by me first."

With an enthusiastic grin, Orihime bounced up and down exuberantly, "Yes, Ulquiorra-sama! Oh, thank you so much! I can't believe you're actually going to take me to the Las Noches kitchen to cook!" This was more than anything she could have ever hoped for! One of her favorite pastimes that she had experienced in the human realm was cooking. Oh, how she missed cooking dearly…Mixing up recipes with ingredients that usually didn't belong together was her most favorite hobby. To have the opportunity to do so while a prisoner in Las Noches was unimaginable!

With every kind deed he performed, Orihime found herself falling deeper and deeper into the pits of love with Ulquiorra. She didn't like admitting that to herself but it was true—he had indeed taken her heart captive.

Ulquiorra lead the overly high-spirited girl down the hallway, his long coat-tails flapping behind him as he strode with much elegance. He kept his chin high up while his hands were hidden his pockets as usual.

They were nearly to the door when a tall, slender figure suddenly stepped out from behind a pillar in the long, narrow hallway. "Hello, Pet-sama. Remember me?"

Orihime nearly jumped at the sight of the unexpected Espada, a gasp escaping her lips. Nnoitra Jiruga. Ulquiorra simply stepped in front of Orihime completely, blocking off any access to the girl.

"Stand aside, Nnoitra. You have already seen what damage I shall inflict upon you should you ever touch the girl," the fourth Espada noted sharply as he placed one of his smooth hands atop of his sword.

Nnoitra Jiruga just simply grinned at Ulquiorra's threat, his smile literally reaching from one ear to the other. His long, slick black hair fell over his shoulders as he chuckled darkly while his long arms crossed over his scrawny chest. Although one of his eyes was hidden beneath an eye patch, the other one glinted with the highest peak of interest towards the two before him.

"No need to get so touchy, Ulquiorra. This isn't like you. Besides, it isn't fair for you to keep such an adorable pet all to yourself," the fifth Espada replied slyly as he proceeded with his chuckling.

"Step aside, Numero Quinto…" Ulquiorra threatened, paying no heed to his vulgar comments.

Nnoitra ceased his chortling for a moment to grimace at the other male. "'Tch, stop being an ass. I never said I was here to touch her. It's just that," he said, reaching into his pocket to pull out that same novel Ulquiorra had been reading during the meeting, "you happened to forget this. You left it lying neatly on the table for all of us to see."

Ulquiorra's eyes widened considerably as he stared at the book in Nnoitra's hand. His hands flew to his pockets where he could have sworn he had placed it. Instantly, Ulquiorra shot a glare in Nnoitra's direction, causing the other male to grin even broader.

"Okay, so I lied—I snatched it out of your pocket when you weren't looking. Tsk, tsk, tsk, that's so unlike you, Ulquiorra; letting yourself get so distracted to the point where you don't even notice you're being pick pocketed. I'm stunned!" Nnoitra sniggered, as he waved the book mindlessly in the air.

The pale Espada stared at the other man in disbelief. How could he have not noticed Nnoitra reaching into his pocket like that? Was he really so lost in thought that he couldn't even detect something as significant as Nnoitra's hand sliding in his pocket?

There was no denying it—he hadn't paid attention at all during the meeting. The only thing that had been on his mind was the girl. He had actually been daydreaming about how the girl's hair seemed to glow in the sunlight as how her sparkling, gray eyes were as stunning as the stars in the sky.

He was losing his mind because of the woman. More importantly, he was losing himself.

Even so, he was certain that not even Aizen-sama himself would have been able to detect that his mind was far off into the clouds during the entire meeting. He vaguely remembered what they discussed…He even remembered nodding a few times during the meeting to reassure Aizen that he understood was his orders were (even though he didn't). But for him to not even notice Nnoitra reaching his hand into his pocket…

It was inconceivable.

"Hey, Pet-sama! Did you know that your sweet Emospada likes girly porn stories? It's true! I saw it with my own eyes!" the beanstalk man said with an impish smirk.

Orihime stood on her toes to peek over Ulquiorra shoulders at the elongated male, "Ehhhh? He likes romance novels?" She gasped in incredulity before looking at the back of Ulquiorra's head.

There was that damned nickname again—Emospada. What did it mean, anyway? And why was he getting Orihime involved? It's not like he was reading the book for pleasure. It was simply research—nothing more. Ulquiorra had the strangest urge to punch Nnoitra square in the face, yet he decided against it.

"You are not worth my time, you filthy trash," the fourth Espada grunted before grabbing Orihime's wrist, tugging her along as he walked past the annoying Espada.

"And you're not worth Pet-sama's time," Nnoitra scoffed as he tossed the book in Orihime's direction. It smacked her directly in the back of the head, causing her to stumble lightly. Luckily, it was a paperback book and Orihime had a head as tough as steel.

"Oomph!" Orihime uttered out as she turned around to look at Nnoitra, wondering why he threw it at her so carelessly.

Nnoitra simply waved a hand at her once he got her attention, "Whenever you decide you're in the mood for a real man, I'll be here. I'll give you a night you could only dream about, babe. It'll make Ulquiorra's porn books seem G-rated."

Orihime's cheeks flushed darkly as she took a step closer to Ulquiorra, hoping he would protect her should Nnoitra try anything right then and there.

"Ignore him, woman," Ulquiorra told her quietly as he continued to pull her down the hallway towards a large, white door a few feet away from them. "If you acknowledge him, it will only cause him to mock you even more."

Nnoitra tittered once again, shaking his head as he called out, "She can't ignore me! Besides, Aizen-sama already told me that I'm the next in line should you fail your next mission!"

Ulquiorra froze dead in his tracks as he sharply turned around to glare at Nnoitra. Much to his consternation, the man was nowhere to be found. He had completely vanished. He released his grip on the girl's wrist as he let his arm droop to his side.

…Should you fail your next mission.

So even Nnoitra Jiruga was aware of Aizen-sama's sinister plan. How did Nnoitra find out?! Either Aizen-sama was telling everyone but Ulquiorra himself of his plan or Ichimaru Gin was getting everybody involved for simple laughs. The dark haired Espada clenched his fist tightly, tightening his knuckles as he did so.

This was getting out of hand. Did Aizen-sama actually tell him that he would be the "next in line" for the assignment? That could only mean one thing…

Nnoitra would be the one engaging in sexual activity with Orihime should he fail in doing so.

"Ulquiorra…Are you all right? You look a little pale," Orihime's soft voice rang out as she gently placed a hand upon his quivering fist. She then realized what she said and grinned sheepishly, "Eh, I mean you always look pale…But what I meant to say is that you look a little shaken up. Is something bothering you?"

The Espada snapped back into reality as he glanced at the girl out of the corner of his eye, "That is none of your concern. Now, Lord Aizen will be summoning you to his quarters in a little while. Let's hurry up and let you fix yourself something to eat so you may bathe and prepare yourself for your meeting with your master."

Orihime sighed lightly as she withdrew her hand from his, taking a step away from him. She should have known better than to think he would actually open up to her. Sure, he would allow her to vent her feelings of frustration towards him all the time. He would let her babble on and on for extended periods of time as he calmly stood there, soaking in everything she had to say. Even so, he would probably never bear his soul to her no matter how often she did to him…

"Yes, Ulquiorra-sama…" the girl replied softly as she looked down.

Author's Note: So I said there would lemon in this chapter…APRIL FOOLZ!! xD Well, there was /some/ lemon. It just wasn't between Ulquiorra and Orihime but simply characters in the book that Ulqui-kun was reading XD I had this planned from the start but I felt I should have warned you guys that there would be some form of sexual activity (for those that don't like that stuff…). Anyways, sorry this chapter was a little uneventful concerning Ulquiorra and Orihime's direct relationship. Now that Orihime admits to herself she's falling for Ulquiorra, will he do the same? Or will he continue to push her away? You'll have to keep reading to find out ^.^ As usual, I am extremely grateful for every review I get! Let me know if you find any grammatical mistakes or if anything is "off" about this story. I hope you all have a great Easter :D