Expected disclaimer is expected!

Yeah… not mine.

Listening to: Interpol – 'The New'. I had to work in at least one song from my favourite band now, didn't I?

Chapter 13

Life in the small two-bedroom apartment had settled into a sort of routine over the two weeks they had been there. At six every morning, without fail, Ulquiorra would wake, dress and slip into the kitchen to start the coffee maker before grabbing something to eat and sitting out on the balcony, taking in the city as it slowly came to life. About ten minutes later, also without fail, Neliel would stumble into the kitchen half asleep and pick up the freshly made cup of coffee while mumbling something that sounded suitably grateful to Ulquiorra as she joined him out on the balcony, alternately talking and then drinking her delicious caffeine as she tried to shake off her sleepiness. After an hour or two, one of them would go to the Urahara Shoten to pick up more supplies and check with Jinta or Ururu to see if any further orders had come in.

So far no additions had been made to their original mission, with the exception of a few requests from Lieutenant Matsumoto, which she had wisely addressed solely to Nel. Nel had furiously written back on that occasion saying that she was not going to visit an adult store on Rangiku's behalf, she was certainly not going to visit one with Ulquiorra in tow for 'ideas' and that Ran had better keep her perverted mind on other topics or she would personally ensure the aforementioned mind was made a test subject for the Twelfth. This threat might not have had the same sting as it would have back when Mayuri Kurotsuchi was in charge, but Captain Urahara still had enough mad scientist in him to worry people. Nel incinerated the offending letter and desperately tried not to have the sort of 'ideas' Ran had insinuated. As much as she might have liked to blame Ran for what she was thinking, Nel knew all too well that she'd been having 'ideas' for some time now.

It was worse now that they were actually living together, even if it was entirely for work purposes. Everywhere she turned he was there, out on the balcony with her, in the kitchen attempting to put something together for dinner (she was a disaster when it came to cooking, so she left that part of the housework entirely to him), sitting beside her on the couch as she watched some inane daytime program (he would predict what was going to happen next in a very sarcastic tone and was nearly always right) and fighting by her side. And they fought well together, playing off each other's strengths and covering the weaknesses, the friendly competition spurring them on.

Their mission had so far been a success, with the two adjuchas who were preying on Karakura now destroyed and various menos and countless hollows dispatched. There was, however, no sign or rumour of the vasto lorde, which meant that they had to continue to keep an eye on things here. As far as Nel was concerned, she could stay here living with Ulquiorra forever. Having him this close was a form of torture and it only served to remind her that no matter how close they were he would still continue to hold her at arms length, considering her his captain and, at most, his friend, but she wouldn't give it up for anything.

Which is just depressing, especially given how far my feelings for him are from 'friendly'.

With a sigh, Nel got up from the couch she had curled up on, and walked out to the balcony to stare at the night sky, trying not to fall asleep. Ulquiorra had left about half an hour before to take care of what Nel had started calling 'a disturbance in the force', as something with a reasonably strong reiatsu had emerged over the city. A faint smile crept across her face as she recalled his reaction to that line, an almost roll of his eyes and a request that she stop quoting the idiotic films she watched while they were in the human world. There was no need for her to still be up, just as there was no need for her to accompany him; he was more than capable. She could already feel the hostile creature's spirit energy fading as Ulquiorra's reiatsu slowly retreated, recognising victory. She just couldn't seem to stop herself waiting up for him, from missing him whenever he was out of her sight.

I'm a fuckwit. Or a masochist. Or the mutant half-breed child of both… What would that be? A fuckwitist? Gah, I really should sleep.

With one final look at the stars she sighed and ran a hand through her hair, before returning inside to settle down on the couch and continue to wait for the owner of the now approaching reiatsu to arrive home, her eyes slipping shut for what she assured herself would be only a minute.

xXx

Ulquiorra slipped back into the apartment, with the intention of settling back into his gigai, and was greeted with the sight of Neliel huddled under a blanket on the couch indicating that she had, once again, waited up for him to return. It always seemed to strike him as strange, the way she did this. He knew that she was aware of how strong he was, so it wasn't as though she was worried about him. Of course, for him to be questioning her motives for depriving herself of sleep seemed to be a little hypocritical, as he had found himself doing the exact same thing. He may have been slightly too proud to hang about the door awaiting her return, but he did find the he had trouble sleeping until she was safely home and would often listen out as he lay in his bed, only able to finally fall asleep when he was assured she had come back unharmed.

And yet, he no longer minded the hold she had on him. Ulquiorra considered himself nothing if not a creature of reason, and knew that he had no one to blame but himself for how he felt, as much as it would have been nice to point the finger at someone else. Especially if that someone else were Grimmjow. On the other hand, when Ulquiorra had last spoken to the arrancar he refused to call friend, Grimmjow had been shooting very inaccurate cero at training targets and muttering something that sounded suspiciously like "Insolent, arrogant man-child, huh? I'll show her, the frigid little ninja bitch". After ten more minutes of hearing what was shaping up to be an epic monologue about "Captain Evil Fucking Midget", Ulquiorra had excused himself. Grimmjow was clearly having enough of his own captain/women troubles. As petty as it was, Ulquiorra had to admit that this was slightly comforting.

Shaking his head he walked forward to check on his slumbering captain, contemplating whether he should move her somewhere more comfortable like her own bed. He couldn't help but recall another night, one back in the Soul Society, where he had tried to do the same thing, a tiny smile on his face as he remembered how horrified he had been when he caught himself wanting to kiss her.

It is interesting. What I want hasn't changed in the slightest, only strengthened, but I am no longer bothered by it. Instead, what bothers me now is that I will never get what I want. Neliel is beautiful, charming and vivacious. I… I am none of these things. There is no reason for her to even look twice at me, except for the fact that she is kind and goes out of her way to be a friend to all.

I suppose I just have to learn to be content with that, and hope that eventually this feeling fades.

His smile turned sad as he regarded her, reaching forward to pull her blanket up further before her hand shot out and she blearily opened her eyes and groaned, "Fuck. I fell asleep, didn't I?"

He smirked a little. "At least this time it is not in a bar. If you want, I can give the official version as 'resting your eyes'."

She sat up, shaking the hair out of her face. "Hilarious. You and Maiko should form a stand-up comedy duo, take the show on the road." Throwing the blanket off she caught herself as she spotted a tear in the uniform he wore, a long rip at his side, revealing a bloody but shallow gash. "Shit, you're hurt!"

He looked down, taking in his injury. "Oh. Yes, I was going to see to that. There is no need to panic Neliel, it is not particularly bad."

She separated from her gigai. "C'mon, into the kitchen."

"Worried that I'll drip blood on the carpet? I assure you, it is not that concerning." He attempted to reassure Neliel as he followed her into their tiny kitchen. "Why have you assumed your normal form?"

She grimaced. "Because I can heal you this way."

He raised an eyebrow. "I wasn't aware you had healing abilities. How do they work?"

She had turned a very vivid shade of red and mumbled something inaudible. "Sorry Neliel, I didn't catch that."

She growled, and turned an even deeper shade of red. "You could at least try not to sound like you're about to laugh."

"True, I could." The quizzical expression on his face was quickly being tempered by a smirk. "Do go on."

"Fine. My spit has healing properties. This was so much less creepy when I was in child form. At least people kind of expected me to drool."

This was far too amusing to leave alone. "I see. So you plan to spit on me."

"At this rate, I'm planning to leave you to bleed to death", she grumbled, "but my better nature prevails. Unfortunately. Do you want to be healed or not?"

"Of course I do." His reply positively dripped sarcasm. "Doesn't everyone just wait for the day they get licked by their captain?" He stopped, a faint blush spreading over his cheeks. "That came out wrong."

Trying to ignore the directions her imagination was taking and how good he looked when he blushed, Nel managed to stutter out, "Obviously."

They both avoided each other's gaze, until Nel cleared her throat. "Uh, I should probably get back to healing that."

He was jolted out of his own thoughts by her words. Well, wasn't that just the perfect time for a Freudian slip? I do not need to be thinking about her and her tongue, damn it. He uttered an absent minded 'yes', and started to slip off the top of his uniform.

Nel tried not to stare. I really should have thought this through before I suggested healing him myself. Biting her lip, she focused on his injury, inspecting it to ensure it wasn't more serious than she had initially thought. Ulquiorra gritted his teeth as he felt her hands trail carefully and clinically over his skin, reminding himself to breathe. All thought of respiration fled his mind as he felt Nel remove her hands from his side before delicately licking the palm of her hand and placing it over his wound. He could feel the strange sensation of skin stretching that accompanied the healing of most battle wounds, and let out a small hiss as it stung. Nel grimaced. "Sorry."

He shook his head in response. "It's fine. In fact, it seems to be done."

She nodded and drew her hand back to reveal only a small scar that faded as they watched. "That's a relief." She had an expression on her face that caught his attention, one that he remembered from his disastrous drinking attempt. His heart seemed to stop as she leaned forward once more to gently trace her fingertips over the numeral tattooed on the side of his chest.

Nel heard the sharp intake of breath from the man in front of her and realised her mistake. Shit! What the hell am I doing? About to remove her hand and desperately trying to think up an excuse that would get her out of this without completely humiliating herself, she was stopped when he placed his own hand on top of hers, all the while staring at her intently.

It was like that night in his kitchen, only so much more. She couldn't think as she stared at him in shock, surprised at her own actions and that he'd actually welcomed them. All she could do was return his gaze, and try to read the myriad of emotions in his eyes. They were both breathing unevenly as they watched each other intently, neither of them moving a muscle. Then, at exactly the same moment, they both snapped.

Lips collided, and Nel found herself being pushed back against the doorframe, her hands coiling around Ulquiorra and tracing smooth planes of his back as she met his kiss with her own, six months of concealed longing coming to the fore. Teasing, she bit his lower lip gently only to be rewarded with a growl as his arm snaked around her waist and he pulled her in closer, deepening the kiss and curling his other hand around the back of her neck. She moaned softly into the kiss as both their lips parted and they finally tasted each other. Suddenly they both broke apart, as if realising what it was they were actually doing for the first time.

Ulquiorra was panting, his eyes wide as he processed just what had happened, his arms still wrapped around Neliel. Neliel was bracing herself against the doorway, her fingertips pressed to her lips as they returned to watching each other. He leaned forward, brushing her bangs further away from her face and whispering softly, "This is probably not a good idea." After all, he could hardly be what she really wanted… Could he?

Nel brought her hand up to his chest, and returned to tracing his tattoo. "Right… a really, really… terrible idea…" Her hand slipped upward to cautiously trace the edge of the hollow hole on his throat, leaving him to gasp at the sudden rush of pleasure. She notices this and smiled wickedly, her eyes silver as she carefully raked her nails across the rim causing him to draw in shuddering breaths. "I think you like that." This got her another growl as Ulquiorra grabbed her hand and removed it from his skin, only to reach out and slide his own thumb around the opening at her throat, smirking as he felt her tremble. His voice was strangely breathless and huskier than usual as he replied, "I think you like that too, Neliel." She shivered at the way he said her name, drawing it out and savouring it. With a wicked smile that matched her own, he leaned into her throat and gently bit the edge of her hollow, grazing the inside with his teeth.

Her head tipped back to allow him access to her neck as she moaned and dug her nails into his back, shaking in his hold. She couldn't think, couldn't believe that this was real, that everything she'd been dreaming of for the last six months was finally happening. She could feel his hands on her body drawing her toward him, one on the small of her back carefully tracing the contours of her spine and the other reaching up to untie the sash of her uniform. She slid her own hands into his hair, pulled him away from her neck and kissed him fiercely once more.

Ulquiorra's head was spinning. It reminded him of being intoxicated, but even though his senses were strange and unfocused, somehow everything seemed more real, more potent. It was too much to wrap his mind around; he was kissing Neliel, touching her, listening to her make the noises that were driving him insane – hell – even undressing her. And she was right there with him, as her hands toyed with the waist of his hakama and he finally figured out how to remove the top of her uniform. It was definitely time to stop thinking.

Still smiling, Nel pulled away, slipping off her shirt as she did so and watching Ulquiorra's eyes widen slightly before surprise and shock was replaced by lust. He reached for her again, only to have her dart out of his way. Trying to get her breathing back under control, Nel shook her head. "Bed. Now."

A slow smile spread across his face as he caught hold of her, and with a flash of sonido they were in someone's bedroom (she didn't give a fuck whose) and he was on top of her, running his hands over her breasts as she arched up into him and closed her eyes, unable to prevent herself from letting out a low moan as his hands were followed with his mouth. Suddenly he stopped.

Terrified that this was going to end, Nel's eyes snapped open, only to take in a curious looking Ulquiorra.

"Neliel, where is your tattoo?"

Relieved, she laughed and sat up, piling the hair on her head to give him a full view of her back. She didn't expect what he did next.

Nel had no idea what she was doing, where this was going after tonight or anything that she probably would have considered relevant any other time. But the delicate way he kissed a path along the lines of her tattoo made her gasp as she considered that some of what she felt could be mutual. The second he reached the end of the giant gothic numeral, she turned on him and pushed him down, straddling him as he fell back onto the bed and kissing him as she slipped her hand down between them to stroke his clothed erection. He groaned softly, digging his fingers into her hips as she smirked and said, "The pants need to go."

He smirked right back. "Yours too. It's only fair, Neliel."

He drew her name out again and it sent shivers down her spine as they parted to undress completely only to collide once more, seconds later, revelling in the feeling of skin on skin as their lips met, Ulquiorra having reclaimed his place on top. Nel pushed him up and took him in, his pale skin gleaming in the moonlight, dark hair mussed under his mask and bright green eyes staring at her with a look of pure lust as he took in the view she had presented him with. Pulling further away he trailed his fingers over her breasts, her stomach, her hips and then –

The effect as his fingertips brushed her clit was electric. Nel cried out, her hands fisted in the bed sheets as she arched up, trying to take in the sheer pleasure of such a touch. Ulquiorra watched her reaction with wide eyes, before a slow, sensual smile crossed his lips. Before Nel could even think to ask him what he was doing, he had leaned forward and drawn his tongue carefully and deliberately across her sex.

She managed to untangle her hands from the sheets to fist them in his hair, but all other higher thoughts and functions were impossible as she lay there trembling and moaning while he teased her with his tongue and slipped a finger inside her. It was only a matter of a minute or two before her moans and gasps became more urgent and she felt her whole body shudder. Crying out his name, she felt her toes curl as she became blind to everything but Ulquiorra and what he was doing to her.

He could feel her trembling as he drew away, pulling himself up to stroke her hair. She looked… sated, there really was no other word for it, and all he wanted to do was keep making her feel that way. She, on the other hand, had decided to turn her attention to him. Reaching down, she carefully began to stroke him, her smile widening as his breathing became more erratic. Her other hand crept toward his hollow hole, but before it made contact he grabbed it and smiled at her, before shifting and settling himself between her legs. He leaned forward and kissed her, before whispering, "Is this what you want?"

Her answer was to take hold of him and guide him into her, gasping as she adjusted to his length. All Ulquiorra could do was go along with it, trying to control himself as he took in the feeling of being inside her. After a few moments of getting used to such a blissful feeling, she made a noise that clearly indicated she wanted more. Happy to oblige, Ulquiorra started to thrust into her, carefully at first, and then with less control as he started to lose himself.

This, Nel decided, was heaven. The intense feeling of being alternately filled and emptied was driving her toward a second orgasm, but it was the way that their limbs had entangled and she couldn't tell one from the other that was making her crazy. They were joined, they were one, and she loved every second of it. She could hear him whispering something softly as they moved together and it was only when she felt the beginning of her second orgasm that she realised it was her name on his lips.

He could feel her tremble around him, and as much as he had enjoyed giving her an orgasm with his tongue, nothing in any of the three worlds he had seen compared to feeling her come while he was inside her. All he could do was brace himself as his world went white and he felt himself come, shuddering and whispering her name to himself all the while.

They stayed still for a while, as Ulquiorra leaned forward to press his forehead against Neliel's, their eyes locked on one another. It was Ulquiorra who broke the silence, for once, whispering, "We should get some sleep", before sliding out of her and leaving the bed. For a moment, Nel was afraid that he thought the whole thing a mistake and that he was about to bolt, but before she could sit up she felt him return, drawing a blanket over the two of them as he lay down beside her, tentatively reaching an arm out to drape over her waist. A wide smile on her face, Nel curled up beside him and snuggled into his arms as his other hand came to rest on her cheek before brushing the hair out of her face. It was in that position that they drifted off into a deep and easy sleep, a smile of contentment lingering on both their faces.

xXx

Wow. First lemon ever, so I hope I did ok. Do let me know if there's anything that needs correcting in that sense. Unless corrections involve too much information, in which case you can keep them to yourselves… *shudders*

Anyway, I hope I got what I was aiming for, which was the middle ground between 'awww' and 'bow chika wow wow'. Anyway, stay tuned kiddies, 'coz it ain't over 'til the fat lady sings.

Except there are no fat ladies in Bleach.

Well, Mayuri's bankai in twenty years time, maybe… And now I am disturbed. Good night, interwebs!