Karin woke with a stretch and a yawn before shivering and pulling her arms back into the relative warmth of her cocoon. In hind sight, cutting the legs off her pants had been a foolish idea, but asking Grimmjow to give up his bedding might have been even more foolish, especially considering the fact that it would have been forever damaged if she'd had to use the cloth for pads in the end. As it was, the rags worked well for giving them each sponge baths occasionally, but such baths only went so far.

Let's face it, my clothes are really starting to stink, she thought sourly. They were also damaged from her scuffles and the small rips and holes were starting to spread. It might not hurt to change into her 'bedding' for a few days and let her clothes air out a bit, maybe even use some water to give them a light soaking to try and wash out the dried sweat that clung to them.

Karin rose to her feet and gave another stretch, going up onto her tiptoes and raising her arms as high up as they could reach, which was a several feet from the ceiling. It warmed up rather quickly once the lights were turned on, although she never could find a specific source of heat. Grimmjow let out a yawn and stretch as well, the perfect image of a cat leisurely doing so because he wanted to, before going still and staring at her intently.

"What?" she demanded as he continued to stare at her and give odd sniffs of the air.

"Nothing," he grunted, before moving over to sit near the bars leading into the pit.

Karin just shrugged her shoulders and accepted the three bowls from Hana. Rice, meat and water, the same as every day. She ate the rice, left the meat in the bowl, took care of business, then joined Grimmjow by the bars. A single lick brought the meat scraps to his mouth. Today would be a rest day again and she watched as the first hollow was released into the pit to take care of his business. It was the jackal that had nearly taken her throat out. He ranged about very much like a dog would, coming closer to their cell. The closer he got, the more he lifted his nose up to scent the air. It took her a moment to realize that Grimmjow was letting out a low, feline growl of warning as the adjucus moved closer.

Jackal let out a growl of his own and urinated as close to their cell as he dared to get before moving off to return to his own cell. At first she thought he was just being a dick and marking his territory over the events from the other day, but one by one, most of the others continued the trend, some daring to come closer, many shying away at the warning growl coming from her companion. Finally, it was his turn.

"Stay close to Starrk's cell," he ordered as he stepped out into the sands.

"Don't I always," she rolled her eyes at him.

He didn't respond. She stepped out and moved to lean against the section of wall separating their cell from Starrk and Nanao's. She raised an eye at the image the two presented. Starrk had his head in Nanao's lap, but his eyes and ears were up and alert. Nanao had a hand resting on his neck, absently stroking him with her eyes closed and a look of concentration on her face. He glanced her way and let out a sigh of annoyance.

"Not working so well?" she asked.

"It is coming along rather well actually," he answered.

Grimmjow seemed to be taking his time, going about the pit and spraying all over the place before finding a spot to actually pee. She'd never seen him do that before. Maybe he's getting annoyed at all the attention we have been getting, she mused as she watched him spray a few more times before returning to their cell.

"Nanao, it is time for a break," Starrk yawned.

Nanao give a little start as she came out of her trance and the two women shared a forced smile before Karin followed Grimmjow into their cell. Like Grimmjow, Starrk also ranged all over the place, marking half the pit before finding a spot to finish his business. It cemented the idea in her mind that the two were firmly reminding the others who the top predators here were, and to back off their prowling.

"Starrk says it's going well," she commented as they watched the coyote mark another spot in the sand.

"Painful, but well," Nanao winced. "Every time I try to touch his pool of power, it feels like my hands, both spiritually and reality, are burned." Nanao flexed her fingers and stared at her unmarred hands. "I fear his power may be too great for me to safely handle."

"Could be," Karin agreed. "Any chance of conjuring spiritual gloves?" she asked without much hope.

"If I could use my own reiatsu, that would be one possibility," Nanao mused. "As it stands, our best hope may lie with you and Grimmjow. You are much closer in strength than Starrk and I are, assuming he is willing to let you try. I honestly wouldn't blame him if he says no."

They glanced at him out of the corner of their eyes, but Grimmjow ignored them, if he even heard them. All his attention was on Starrk, watching the coyote go about marking territory like he had.

I bet if Nanao or I could scent it, we would discover that no spot was marked twice. At least Grimmjow doesn't seem upset with Starrk for following in his paws and marking everything, but he is still watching him like a hawk. Dear Kami, I hope the rest don't decide to. Human nose or not, the place will quickly reek if they all mark it up. There is a reason every alley smells, and it's not all because of garbage and drunk humans. Male cats are the worse, I swear.

Starrk finished his ranging and returned to his cell.

"Well, looks like it's back to meditation and spiritual burns for me," Nanao sighed.

"I have no doubt you can do it," Karin smiled at her encouragingly.

Nanao followed Starrk back into their own cell and the next hollow was released. Karin noticed that the ones released afterwards, while still exhibiting that strange behaviour from earlier, did so at a much further distance from their cell. Grimmjow spent the entire day watching them sharply, lips pulled back slightly from his fangs.

Karin decided it would be best to let him be and not irritate the already irritated feline. She would broach the idea of practicing with him when he looked less likely to murder the next person to even suggest glancing in his direction. Somehow, she almost suspected that the other hollows were keeping their distance less because of the markings, and more because of the look in his eyes and the flash of his fangs.

What crawled up his ass anyhow? He's been acting all grumpy since he woke up this morning. I think the only reason he's not pacing right now is because he has his claws buried so deep into the sand, he's probably turning it into glass.

She settled into her own spot and closed her eyes to meditate. She spent the time focusing on the reiatsu all about them, the particles in the very air itself. Shinigami and hollows couldn't draw on it any more than a fish could breathe in the rain, or so she'd been told. Hollows could apparently absorb it, but not actively draw on it. It was kind of like they were a sponge on a puddle of water, or at least that was how Sado had tried to explain it when he talked about what it was like to be in Hueco Mundo. Quincy, on the other hand, were a damn super powered vacuum cleaner, able to suck in reiatsu from good distances and even manipulate it outside of their own bodies to change the very environment. They could even strip power from inanimate objects, removing them from existence. Karin feared that the most powerful of the Quincy could probably do this to lesser powered souls. It was a terrifying thought.

Well, Mama was a Quincy, and there is a hell of a lot more reiatsu here than there is at home. Just because you haven't tried something doesn't mean it's not possible. I've never really had a chance to just sit about and do nothing, so maybe I can manipulate what is down here. Although, if that were possible, you would think their own dead would still be able to fight.

She'd only seen one Quincy tossed into the pit so far, and Starrk had killed him so fast the man hadn't had a chance to even think about defending himself.

"Starrk?" she called softly so as not to bring Grimmjow's temper her way.

"Yes Karin?"

"The Quincy they toss down here to be consumed. Have any of them ever fought back with their abilities?"

Starrk was silent, no doubt pondering the question and checking his memories. If the others treated Quincy prisoners like Starrk had, there might never have been a chance for any of them to try and fight back before being murdered. Starrk had said hollows were poisonous to the Quincy. One bite and it was pretty much game over for them.

"I think," Starrk said slowly, "that I recall one woman who was able to begin summoning her weapon before she was killed. I thought it might have been a trick of the light, for she died quickly, and it still might be just that."

But it was still a chance.

"Why do you ask?"

"Mother was a Quincy," Grimmjow grunted, turning his gaze her way. He still looked pissy, but she didn't think it was entirely directed her way.

"Really?" Starrk asked curiously. "And you are thinking you might be able to manipulate the very air, perhaps even undo the reishi that holds these walls and bars in existence?"

"I've never tried," she shrugged. "Could be I don't have an ounce of Quincy ability in me, and even if I did, I have never tried to access it or train it. Still, it's not like I have anything else to do sitting in these cages."

"I would suggest working on the sand. Holes in the wall and bars they would notice, but missing sand is likely to be overlooked," Starrk suggested.

"I'll try that," she promised.

She closed her eyes and set back doing just that, pausing only for dinner, and then stopping to go to bed. She didn't make any progress, but she was trying to exercise muscles that she didn't know existed, or even what they would feel like if they were there. It was rather like a deaf man trying to give verbal directions to a blind man.

(POV)

The next three days were going to be very irritating. He had spent most of the day laying down and making sure most of his bulk was between Karin and the very real problem between his legs.

Damn instincts, he huffed to himself in annoyance. And damn humans for going into heat every bloody month. Maybe I should have just killed her and been done with it. If I must put up with this every month, I just may end up mating her to get it to stop!

Getting to go out and spray everywhere helped a little to curb his instincts. She was only in the starting day of heat, so they were not going completely insane just yet. Tomorrow… oh yes, tomorrow was going to be a nightmare. It was a good thing humans had such short heat cycles. Hollows lasted for a week, and even then, giving the size of Hueco Mundo, you would be lucky to reach the female before her heat ended, especially if she was avoiding you.

Karin, at least, seemed to realize something had him annoyed and she gave him some distance, for which he was thankful for. Ichigo would have been pestering him insistently to confess what was bothering him until he either broke or sank his claws and fangs into his former patrolling partner. Or, at least tried to do so as Ichigo was far stronger than he was trapped in this accursed adjucus shape once more.

He snarled at another adjucus who came sniffing their way. Her scent would be traveling quickly and soon the entire arena would know there was a female in heat amongst them. Those that couldn't scent her yet would be marking the behaviour of those that could. That had been a definite bonus to being an arrancar; their instincts, while still there, had been curbed a little. While he was in no danger of losing himself in a mating frenzy, the scent was still very enticing. Because he was laying down, he could see some of the balcony above them where the Quincy sat to watch their 'games.'

He bared his fangs a bit more and glared hatefully at Hashwald. The second in command was starting down into the pit with a look of contemplation on his face Grimmjow didn't like and liked it even less when those cold eyes finally roved to settle on him. His lips peeled back a bit further and if he'd had fur, his hackles would have been fully up. Hashwald hardly seemed threatened and didn't move a single hair as the Quincy regarded him. Finally, the man turned sharply and walked away.

Yeah, you better run jackass, he thought violently.

Finally, the last one was permitted to go pee and returned to his cell. It helped his instincts a little more and he turned his attention towards Karin, who was meditating. Ichigo could wield Quincy powers, so there was a chance that Karin might be able to. If she could use the Quincy ability to absorb the very stone around them, for everything in the realms of the dead were made of reishi, she could remove all the locks, even sections of wall, and they might be able to escape. If they did it in the dark, they might even be able to get a good distance before anyone noticed.

I am almost done here anyhow. The meals they are feeding me are barely enough to keep me from regressing at this point, let alone push me forward. Time to blow this place. He moved over to his nest and settled down with his back to Karin and his nose curled against him. It helped to mitigate her scent a little and hide his growing need.

(Time)

Morning came all too quickly, and two bowls of water were delivered with breakfast. Hollows didn't require as much water as humans and shinigami did, a good thing considering the fact they lived in a dessert where rain was so rare, let alone pools of water. A bowl of water once a month was more than enough for them, so long as they received a good amount of fresh meat, or more importantly, blood and organs. Karin had been sharing her water with him, so he was hardly parched.

"Wow, we might actually be able to get cleaned up a little," Karin mused as she regarded both bowls. "I plan on having a good wipe down, maybe even try and wash my hair a little. Want me to rub you down too?" she asked.

"Yes," he responded before realizing that would be a seriously stupid idea. He wasn't about to take the request back though, that would have been suspicious. Her scent was strong today and he could hear the other unmated hollows, and even a few of the mated ones, shuffling energetically in their cells.

He moved from his nest and laid down quickly before she could see that, not only was he aroused, but he was damn near dripping. It was all he could do not to grind against the sand. A wet rag started to rub him down and he closed his eyes despite himself. Little content growls escaped his throat as her fingers worked his hide. His ego swelled as the unmated female courted him! He was large enough her body frequently had to rub against his own, including her rather well shaped breasts. He found himself leaning into her rubbings, hardly even noticing the cloth was damp.

"You seem to be enjoying this," she chuckled.

He stilled and his eyes snapped open to realize he was on his back as she rubbed down his stomach. Her eyes regarded his length with amusement, and thankfully no horror that he was turned on. Her eyes did narrow as she regarded the part of his shaft that had slipped out of its sheath.

"Yep, those look like barbs. I knew it. Do you want to clean yourself or should I do it?" she asked easily.

"Uh, what?" he asked intelligently.

She rolled her eyes at him and held up the rag.

"Me have hands, you don't," she said in an odd voice with some sort of accent he couldn't name. "You were in a human form once, and I can't imagine the thought of licking your own balls is a pleasant one. You are covered in sand."

"Go for it," he smirked, positive she would try to backpedal the offer, or at least blush. His entire body shivered as the damp cloth ran over the heated flesh with a few firm strokes. She hardly seemed uncomfortable and went back to cleaning the rest of him without any change in the pressure she exerted on his body.

Shit, that was good, he couldn't help but to moan. When was the last time he'd had the pleasurable company of a female? Sometime before the Winter War. There had been more than enough willing partners to explore their new bodies and the things they could do with them. With fighting mostly forbidden, the only other thing to do had been to sleep, eat and mate. You could only do so much of the first two. Starrk and Yammy more than made up for the rest of us in those two departments.

He turned his attention back to Karin, who had stripped down to her underwear and bra and was giving herself a good rubbing down. His eyes drifted to her breasts, finally able to get a good idea of their size now that her shirt wasn't in the way. They were considerably smaller than pretty much every other pair he'd ever seen, hollow females were well endowed, no doubt to make sure there would be plenty of milk for their multiple offspring now that they had been reduced to two milk factories, but he'd found large breast not very sexy. Too much flesh to fit in his hands. Karin's looked like they would have fit in his palms perfectly and he cursed his nonhuman body.

With them both sponged down, she used the rest of the water in the large bowl, the one originally intended to be his no doubt, to try and wash out her hair. It was a tangled mess and she cursed as her fingers kept getting stuck in it.

"We should cut your hair, make it short like your brother's," he commented.

Karin let out a sigh and glared at the tangled, damp strands that dangled before her face. "You are probably right," she agreed. "How good are you with those claws of yours?"

"Good enough, if you trust me." She was going to have to let his claws and fangs get awfully close to her neck and skull, something real mates were even a little leery of doing.

"Might as well go ahead. It's not like there is a mirror here to lament if it ends up uneven or something. Honestly, I am tired of this rat's nest. I swear I can feel it like a weight on the back of my skull trying to pull my head down, and god knows what kind of things are starting to live in there."

"By the main gate, so we can shove the hair out."

Karin moved over to him, bringing the uniform he offered her on her first night with her. She still didn't share his nest, which while odd, he was thankful for right now with her heat and his problem. She laid it out before him, then settled down and rested her head on his paws trustingly. Her eyes closed and he swore she dozed as he used his claws and fangs to crop her hair until it was barely longer than her brother's. It wasn't perfectly even, but he didn't think he did a bad job either considering the tools he had to work with.

When he was done, she lingered before finally getting up with a barely audible sigh. She rinsed her hair out with some of what was left of the water before using the rest to clean her pants and shirt, hanging them up to dry, and pulling on her 'blanket' while she waited. She let out a yawn and stretch, but hardly seemed awake.

"Here," he offered, rising to pull another piece of clothing from his nest. "You look like you can use a nap."

"Tell me about it," she smiled, smothering another yawn. She was barely curled up on the new piece of clothing before her breathing evened out. He was feeling rather languid himself and stretched out on his nest.

(Time)

His breathing was suddenly slightly constricted, and he snapped awake in shock and fear. He didn't recall falling asleep and, even now that he was awake, he still felt like his mind was trying to fight its way through sludge. He tried to dig his claws in, but he was dragged from his cell with far too much ease for his liking. Karin wasn't moving and he realized that they had both been drugged for there was no way she would have been able to sleep through the noise.

"Damn it, I thought you said he wouldn't wake up," the man on his left snapped irritable as they slowly dragged him from his cell towards the centre of the arena.

"I drugged their damn water. He should have been down for at least six hours," the one on his right snapped.

They obviously didn't know that Karin shared her water with him, or that they had used his own monthly allowance to clean themselves instead of him drinking it like he normally did.

He tried to lunge at lefty, and while he did manage to pull the ropes that way a little, they had him firm between them. Waiting for him in the middle of the pit was Hashwald, who watched everything with that usual calm expression of his. It made him want to claw the bastard's face off. Two more men ran up to help, grabbing a rope each as they dragged him to stand just before Yhwach's second in command. He was wearing himself out quickly, but he sure as hell was not going down without a fight. The ropes were hooked into two sockets on the ground and pulled tight, dragging his head down to the ground. He clawed frantically at the lines, but whatever they were made of seemed to be stronger than his claws. No amount of twisting would get the damn things from around his neck either.

He snarled and stared up hatefully at Hashwald, who was slowly raising a sword made of pure energy.

"You have evolved as far as we can afford to feed you. Now, it is time to make sure you won't regress, and save ourselves on the meat. Did you think us so foolish Grimmjow?"

Damn it, the idiots had noticed he had been using them to eat and grow in power in peace. He felt terror grip him as he realized just what the man intended. His eyes stared fearfully at the energy blade as it reached the top of its arc, and slowly started to come down towards his face.