Just like most of us that day, Grimmjow couldn't believe his eyes. But unlike many of us, he drew closer to where Ulquiorra was to assert the reality he thought he was seeing. It might have been his idea of a joke, to ignore most of us at a time like this but with the way he showed up just like that, like some vagrant Knight in shining armor, he was kinda funny.
And so along with his sudden presence, I had to remember that which I would've seen coming had I been self-respecting enough to secure my innocence, which I didn't have, by the way. In the moments that followed, panic, or what felt like doomsday, came dawning on me. Grimmjow, if memory served, was supposed to be under my watch. I comforted myself with the fact that he was in many ways what one might call insufferably insubordinate to whatever rules you might wanna impose on him, so perhaps I could be excused for delegating my responsibility to someone else. I just hoped to hell that that someone else had done her job neatly. Instead, here was Grimmjow, mightily disposed to subject my day to a flagrant meltdown.
But, setting aside my personal concerns in the matter, what the fuck was happening?
"Advance no further, Arrancar." Byakuya warned the disinterested Sexta Espada.
Grimmjow looked as though he could stand there to listen only for too long before he was dozing, waiting for a more palpable threat, or to be shaken off this dreary pit of boredom.
"Sheesh. You bunch of dictators conquering Hueco Mundo now?
"Very well. Abarai, cuff this ruffian."
Renji produced an odd-looking equipment with his free hand and his sword with the other, which basically meant that, handcuffs or no, Grimmjow was a dead man.
As for me, I only wished for Sexta to behave accordingly just this once for his sake, and perhaps mine. And if that should prove too hard, I seriously wished to disappear right then and there.
But Grimmjow Jaggerjack would do what any reasonable man would do in his position; he drew his Zanpakotou. Against his better judgments, he really believed he could take on Renji Abarai… who wasn't the real problem at hand. The problem was, mentioned fukutaicho happened to be standing just a few feet from his captain. Without a question, this was suicide.
"Grind, Pantera."
Gosh.
If I had known things were to turn out messier than what I could fix, like exactly what was taking place now, I wouldn't have entrusted Grimmjow's care to Kusajishi Yachiru, of all people, believe me. But to find someone who was willing to do the job without bothering with logical questions was pretty much the same as leaving the trouble-making Arrancar to spend the day at his leisure. So, you see, I had no other choice than to seek the generosity of the eleventh division vice captain… which made me wonder, where was Yachiru at this hour and why was Grimmjow roaming as free as fucking flies? In any case, I highly doubted Grimmjow had murdered her.
The officers were now wielding their magnificent weapons, bringing about a sight not entirely promising. Why, all this would have to be scripted for the outnumbered party to stand a chance. Nevertheless, the saying went like, where you find a force to be reckoned with, you find a counterforce just as reckonable. Jesus. That was stupid, possibly even made up by some drunkard on a pub somewhere, besides being inapplicable to anything. Come on. If I could give my two cents on the matter, they should-
Well, in all appearances, Grimmjow wasn't doing half bad. In fact, this could drag on for an hour or so because, somehow, 'cuffing the ruffian' wasn't quite as easy as how Byakuya made it sound. As long as Soi Fon and Byakuya and Komamura remain on their spots, this might turn out to be worth the audience. But, of course, not any of it were to be, because the sixth division captain drew himself forward, asked everyone to step aside and, well, the rest needed no narration.
Fifteen or so minutes later, the two captured Espada were being marshaled toward the Gargantua. The sight of them introduced me to a whole new set of thoughts. These two, naturally, were less the sort of characters we were used to manipulating, and more the sort we were used to fearing. And yet now, they were somehow subdued, contented for the meantime with being reunited. What is happening here? Was the word 'brother' merely a substitute reference to a comrade, for a lack of better words to choose from?
"Halt, Hisagi-san, if I may ask Sexta Espada a thing or two." I heard myself say. I swear I wouldn't have appealed if I could avoid to say these things but, as was always the case, there were lots of things I couldn't quite avoid; shutting up, for instance.
To my annoyance, Soi fon answered. "Ryoka, if you had been more accomplished, or should I say trustworthy, none of these would have happened. From here on, I am assigning Hisagi Shuuhei to look after any such prisoners who are given more liberty than what the ones in the dungeons are granted. You are relieved of your duties. Go back to Karakura this minute."
Being the prick that I was, I was swift to argue my point, at least initially, but thought better of it. After all, I should at least be thankful for everyone else's lack of awareness of the whole matter, that Inoue and I were in fact the ones who resuscitated Cuatro Espada, out of what you might call whim. Geez, somehow I wished it were deeper than that. Moving on, it wasn't like I could win a verbal combat against someone like Soi Foin even if lying were permitted.
Thus I pitched myself behind the long line of shinigami officers under the pretext of wanting to get away from the two Espada, when I was just about begging to be granted an interview with Grimmjow some two minutes ago. I was lucky these people were stupid or were otherwise suffering from short-term memory loss. So, after determining that Soi Fon had proceeded to her post at the head of the line, and that my coast was clear of Byakuya and Komamura, I bounced back to where I previously was just within five seconds of proclaiming I would stay away from said spot. Shuuhei, for his part, gave me a stern look which seemed to say I had about four minutes to get my nosing-around done, for which I was truly grateful. Wasting no time to perform my deed as quickly as necessary, I told Sexta Espada out of everyone's earshot,
"You shouldn't have come. I would have delivered Ulquiorra at your doorstep, without the commotion, of course."
He stared at me, smiled the most devious smile I ever had the pleasure of seeing, and hissed through clenched teeth,
"You miss the point, shinigami. I need no assistance from your lot or from anyone. In fact if there's one thing I ask of you, it's that you fuck off."
"Really, Arrancar? May I inform you of the gravity your situation? Among other things, Commander is at the present most likely arranging all the necessary procedures, gallows, axes, executioners and all, for the grand separation of that goddamn neck from your beautiful head. Same goes for Ulquiorra here. Now, unless you decide my 'fucking off' shouldn't be carried out, neither of you is in deep shit."
Upon mention of his name, Cuatro made a sudden movement. Before Grimmjow could retaliate, Ulquiorra spoke,
"Let me and my brother go. Ask anything I have in my power to grant in exchange. Please."
There was no time to be astonished at his pleading tone, because Shuuhei was beginning to cast suspicious glances at our directions. Hastily, I assured the pale Arrancar,
"I ask nothing, except your word. Do I have it?"
"Name it."
"I want you and Grimmjow to sit tight and not to attempt any recklessness which may jeopardize your lives. Think of it as the next logical step, like the calm before the storm. In no time flat, you'll be skipping steps to sweet freedom. Patience." I was saying barely above a whisper.
"Do not believe a word this prick says-" Grimmjow was protesting, just in time to get interjected by his fellow Espada,
"You have my word."
"Done." So, having been satisfied with successfully thrusting to them my assurance without even bothering with the specifics, I was determined to walk away with an accomplished grin across my face, no more no less. But then something held me back.
"Brother, you call this man beside you. Why?" I asked. I did realize I'd been far too direct for my own good to uncovering the mystery, but I had to ask it now or never. After all, wrenching the answer might just require little to no strategy.
Grimmjow was suppressing a fit of anger, looking as though he had more than the required annoyance to stuff his fist in Ulquiorra's mouth, or mine for that matter. Luckily, this new Ulquiorra was more than willing to exhaust a portion of his seldom-used eloquence, perplexed though he was with a question whose answer seemed to him a general truth.
"He is my brother. In accordance to that, I address him with due intimacy. We are fraternal twins, with me getting introduced to the world fifteen minutes ahead of him. Our parents are U- and M-. Their whereabouts now remain clouded to me. We wish to seek them."
Hearing this was like getting ready for or receiving some sobering truths about some long kept mystery. While this revelation didn't significantly, or rather necessarily, alter an established order of things, the scale of it imposed on me an impact so hard to deconstruct. Why hadn't all this been made classified information before now? More importantly, was Ulquiorra relating to me the whole truth, that one truth, and nothing but the truth?
I was all set up to comment a thing or two when Shuuhei pulled me away from them, but not before I managed to catch the sincerity on Ulquiorra's face.
TBC