I do intend on having Nel and Grimmjow get more screen time in this alternate plot aside from Bleach. They were awesome characters. But, I don't really know about relationships…I might do what Tite Kubo does and just leave it to your imagination while feeding you some nice scenes between the characters, but I won't make it too obvious.

This is Ulquihime, so I want to stay focused on them.

THERE IS ORIHIME IN THIS CHAPPIE~ it gets a little confusing, but she thinks back on why/how she healed Ulquiorra. Sort of a flashback.

And we get to see some Grimmjow+Ulquiorra tag team action! I always thought on how epic they'd be as a fighting duo…

I do not own Bleach, Tite Kubo does. I just own the fabric whitener… T-T

Chapter Three: Incomprehensive

It was a good plan.

If it had been any other foe besides Aizen, it probably would work without a problem.

But…Ulquiorra knew better than to be optimistic. Something still tugged at his chest, however, at the thoughts and reminders that he was nearly marching back to his death right after being revived by that foolish woman.

This caused another tug in his chest—more harsh and painful. Throbbing, actually…

Why did she save him?

Did she know that he'd aid her friends if she did?

Did she notice that understanding in his fleeting last moments and decide to let him live due to his new revelation?

It confused Ulquiorra to no end and the fact that she had walked away, eyes wide but void—as if she was in a trance—right after she saved him hurt even more. It was like she was in denial of something, or was finally scared to face him. Perhaps she hadn't meant to revive him, or maybe she didn't even know why she did it. She did do a lot of stupid things; Ulquiorra had to admit, so he was beginning to wonder what her thought process was like. Maybe her ignoring him immediately after was the proof that she had no thought process at all. She thought of nothing except "save everyone". Even with this new light, Ulquiorra doubted he would ever understand the vastness of that woman's kindness.

Even though she was kind and her actions made him very grateful towards her, he still felt slightly betrayed that she left without a word. Heck, he felt even worse over the fact that he even FELT these feelings. But somehow he finally understood them all. Somehow, it was all because of that reach he made for her. She reached back, and then he saw it. He saw it clearly and it rushed right through him. He felt it in his hand…

So here he was, scowling at nothing as Grimmjow waited for a message from Nel. They had spoken of their strategy. Now, he didn't want to think about his duties. All he had to make sure of before he charged in was if Nel had done what was requested of her. It was Nel's job to ensure that no one was nearby to get caught in the blast. All three of them would then commence in fighting Aizen. Both the 4th and the 6th Espada would focus more on getting the Hōgyoku, while Nel would just focus on attacking. Hopefully this would shake the spectators to jump in and help as well, but Ulquiorra didn't want to count on that.

::

Uryu was a gentleman, Orihime had to admit.

He hadn't dared to say or ask a word after she was guided back down into the sunny Hueco Mundo. The artificial sky hid away the deed she just performed. If the Soul Society heard that she had revived an Espada…

Both of them seemed to understand the situation. Uryu kept his mouth shut and his eyes hard, while Ichigo merely marched off to fight another battle, dismissal present in his aura as he flew out of her sight.

…

Orihime didn't know why she healed Ulquiorra.

The moment she had reached out for him, seeing that look in his piercing green eyes, she felt something tug at her heart. The fact that her hand only met dust only amplified the fact that she shouldn't let him disappear. There was a long moment where she stared in shock at the empty spot he once stood, but then she kicked herself into gear. She had spared and healed every other enemy that crossed her path or that got hurt in front of her, so why did she have to exclude Ulquiorra from that? She hurriedly ignored the shouts of protest against her actions, nudging Uryu away as he put a hand on her shoulder, and quickly used her powers to collect some of the dust of Ulquiorra before it blew away. She hadn't been able to catch all of it, but she hoped that only some would be enough…she hoped so much that it would be enough.

Ever since her powers failed to heal Ichigo when his chest was blown away, Orihime was shaky about using her healing abilities.

Would they work?

Would they do it this time?

What if she failed?

What if he was gone now?

She watched the contents under her warm glow anxiously—hungrily—waiting for some sign of progress. Minutes felt like hours as nothing moved or grew underneath her sun-like rays of orange light. Her fairies working hard, Orihime could feel more tears streak down the dried and crusted trails from before. Her eyes burned, puffed and blurred. Her entire body began to shake, and her throat clenched tight with a sore choking gasp.

He wasn't coming back.

She was sure…his regeneration abilities should have done the trick—they should have been enough with the help of her powers. More than enough, actually. But he was not coming back. Was it because she didn't catch enough dust? Quickly, she spread the length of her orange shield across the entire pillar, extending it far past the edge and into the air above. This was the largest she had ever made her fairies stretch, but she knew she had to push it. She had to catch more dust particles.

Uryu made a step towards her, but she moved closer to her shield in response. Clearly screaming from her actions and body language for him to stay out of this, Uryu lowered his outstretched hand and looked away. Ichigo was silent and still.

And then suddenly, with a flourishing black swirl of energy, something began to reform within Orihime's rays—suspended in the sky. A black leathery wing extended from a torso, curled as if protecting the body from harm. His arms mirrored the same protective stance that his one wing did. The head was bowed and limp, an expression of exhaustion creased across his lips—or what could be seen beyond his wing and unruly hair. It was like a dream; the way the regeneration sped up so suddenly and so quickly, like all she had to do was give him a little push. A whipping tail flicked and swayed in the air, and soon, Orihime found her powers dwindling. She had pushed it too far. The worst part was that he wasn't even fully healed yet. His left leg was nearly non-existent, and he was still missing one wing. His entire left side was in the same state as it was before he disappeared, that side being the most injured and destroyed during the fight.

Orihime gasped as her powers finally trembled then gave out, letting go of the creature mid-air. He fell like a doll, so Orihime ran, barely making it in time to catch the crippled Ulquiorra. It was a messy catch that caused her to buckle her knees in the end, but she had broken the fall considerably. Shakily, she eased him into her lap.

Ichigo whispered something before slowly approaching her, the chains linked to his Bankai-version of his sword announcing his movement. Orihime tensed before looking over her shoulder.

"Inoue…that's enough. You'll exhaust yourself if you keep trying to heal him," sadness shimmered in the boys' eyes, as it was guilt from causing this entire mess.

She ignored him, however, and turned to continue healing. Ichigo moved to stop her, but Uryu suddenly appeared in front of the shinigami, mutedly shaking his head. Ichigo promptly left after that…not saying a single word as he charged off to confront Aizen.

And so she continued unhindered. It was a relief to see that her healing had only broken under the stress of such a long range of rejection. Now, up close and in smaller bouts, Orihime was able to work on fully healing Ulquiorra.

But not before he awoke, piercing eyes looking up at her with a mixture of confusion and awe.

"W…what are you doing, woman?"

It had struck her so suddenly that she had no words to say. Only a choked out…rather predictable reply formed on her lips.

"Saving you."

Her mind was racing with her heart.

She supposed that it was all an adrenaline rush, but now as she thought about it—looking back—it was much more than that.

It was much more than saving him.

Orihime sighed, gray eyes straying to the ground as she walked with Uryu to meet with the captains. They were all trapped inside Hueco Mundo, apparently, until Aizen either released the seal that closed off all portals out or if he died. She supposed that it was safer for her to stay here until the fight was done… After all, Ichigo had managed to slip out thanks to the strange scientist-like captain she and Uryu had met during their adventure in the soul society long ago. He would definitely help the remaining captains and lieutenants in fighting off the ex-shinigami.

And that was that.

::

A cracked voice rung through the empty corridor of Las Noches, both Ulquiorra and Grimmjow—though mainly Grimmjow—jumped at the sound of a frantic Nel's voice whispering with urgency. Ulquiorra took no time to decipher the entire message. All he needed to hear was 'now' and 'hurry'. With a flick of his wrist, since Espada were still able to go freely in and out of Hueco Mundo, Ulquiorra opened a gargantua and leapt into it, drawing his sword as he ran. Grimmjow followed, cackling and swatting Panthera out into the air with glee.

"Fuck yeah!"

Ulquiorra did not share Grimmjow's enthusiasm; however they both released their swords simultaneously before reaching the end of the tunnel inside the gargantua. The human world—flipped and distorted as if being inside a water droplet—appeared before the two creatures. Grimmjow zipped out first, heading straight for the ex-Shinigami who was currently fighting the captain commander.

Explosions set off as Grimmjow fired several small but deadly missile-like objects from his forearm at Aizen's form before literally tackling into the man. Ulquiorra followed, wings beating hard to give him an extra boost as he dove into the smoke cloud. A large confusion burst through the wounded crowd of shinigami, who all flew back at the explosion. It wasn't until the smoke cleared that the group—including Ichigo—stared with disbelief.

They had stabbed Aizen.

Well, to be specific, Ulquiorra had pierced Aizen with a green glowing lance as Grimmjow held the man steady.

"Hah! That was eas—"

Grimmjow was cut off abruptly as it quickly registered—the pain searing in his chest. Blood poured from his wound and his mouth as he doubled over. Ulquiorra narrowed his eyes and pulled the lance he thought he drove into Aizen out of Grimmjow, cursing under his breath. He knew Aizen's illusions would be hard to combat, but to fall victim to his tricks so soon… Grimmjow struggled to stand and his stubbornness showed through. Even after being hit directly by one of Ulquiorra's attacks, he refused to fall. Green eyes flew through the sky before landing on a perfectly untouched Aizen.

"My, what a sight this is…I thought you both were killed. It was a miscalculation on my part, then…"

Aizen spoke casually, eyeing Ulquiorra with an amused glance. He was interrupted when a figure lashed across his chest, trotting to a stop behind him with her weapon in hand. Nel had managed to transform without a hitch, but now Grimmjow was too wounded to make his move. Aizen chuckled, lowering his blade that had blocked Nel's strike.

"And I see you're still able to release."

Nel turned in time to block a lazy but still deadly fast strike from Aizen, and Ulquiorra took that moment to fire a healthy black cero at the ex-leader. Aizen moved to the side amused at his creations' efforts. The cero fell upon Nel, obscuring her form with smoke. Aizen brushed off some dirt from his shoulders.

"I never thought you'd become so impulsive, Ulquio—"

Nel breathed in deeply, chest bloated and her body trembling, before firing back her double cero technique, using Ulquiorra's cero to amplify her own. It connected with Aizen, but the two Espada knew better than to lower their guard.

"You really shouldn't interrupt. It's rude," Aizen said as he walked out of the billowing smoke. He lifted his right sleeve and arm, noticing it was tattered and burnt. Annoyed, his eyes turned to the 4th Espada.

"I assume you're the master-mind behind this pathetic rebellion, Ulquiorra."

The 4th Espada frowned at his previous master, eyeing him sharply. If only his left eye were a little more sharp. He boasted of being able to see all—only that which existed. However, here he was, getting tricked by stupid little illusions. Ulquiorra knew Aizen was better than to create a warrior that could outsmart his techniques to work at his disposal, but he still wished that he had been given just a little more.

To all the Espada's surprise—including the severely hurt Grimmjow—Ichigo finally leapt forward. Ulquiorra, who had been hovering a distance away from Aizen, had to fly back a bit to avoid being consumed by the Lunar Fang attack.

He didn't miss a beat and quickly threw his lance forward at Aizen. Ichigo recognized the explosive power flying his way and quickly cleared the area, appearing next to the bat-like hollow as the explosion spread, lighting the entire area with a green glow.

"Why are you helping us?"

Ulquiorra twitched, eyes narrowing at the shinigami representative next to him.

"Do not misunderstand, Kurosaki Ichigo. I am not helping you. I merely decided that Aizen is not worth following. It would become more troublesome to not follow him if he became the new King."

There was a grunt of agreement from Grimmjow, and a small nod from Nel as she pawed at the ground with her hooves.

Ichigo chuckled, raising his sword out in front of him.

"Good enough for me."

GRRR I wish this chapter was longer. But I didn't want to drone on.

If the fighting got weird or comfusing or hard to read/too fast or rushed, it's sorta supposed to be a strange thing. I mean, Ulquiorra and Grimmjow aren't the type to dwell on a fight for too much. So during it, I kinda left their thoughts and feelings up to your imagination. They're completely focused. It'd be idiotic to not be while fighting against Aizen.

I plan on pulling a huge stunt with these three Espada in order to outsmart and kill Aizen, so I hope the stalling they're doing doesn't bore you all to death.

Review please~

You have no idea how hard it is to write Aizen's character. He's just so...grrr. I hate him. And, the top that hatred, he's like OVER 9000 god-like. It'll be a feat to pull off a convincing trick on him while keeping him true to his character.

Ulqy-chan~