Disclaimer: Various concepts and characters have been retrieved from Dragonball Z and Bleach for this story; they belong to Akira Toriyama and Tite Kubo. Please note, however, that the plot, which is an original plot, is unrelated to the events that take place in DBZ and Bleach, meaning this is an AU fic. The OC's and plot belong to myself, and KRenee.
VI
Movie's not scary at all.
Grimmjow snorted at Juritsu's text. She'd been keeping him more or less regularly posted with how lame the movie was. Don't scare easily?
You could say that.
He pondered briefly at whatever that meant, though he suspected it probably had something to do with that ridiculous well of power he was constantly sensing within her. With how attuned she seemed to be into her surroundings, he wouldn't have been surprised whatsoever if he came to find out she was some sort of fighter.
Lame movie. Now we're chatting.
He replied with an about what, ghosts and reclined in his lounge seat, stretching lithely and taking a deep breath. This wasn't what he had in mind when it came to keeping tabs on the brunette, but he didn't want to raise any suspicion and let on how much he was relatively aware of. But surely they wouldn't make a move now, would they? There was still another year and change before that day, but...
It was when she hadn't replied after ten minutes that he began to grow worried. She was generally very punctual about responding, with the exception being that she was preoccupied for some reason or another. Normally, that was when she was in class, clinicals, or doing homework. But she wasn't doing any of those things, and a pit of dread settled in his stomach. His gut was telling him something seriously bad was happening.
Juritsu...
He was beginning to wonder whether calling her now would seem too stalker-like when a crash closely followed by two distinct thumps startled him out of his seat - literally. He turned to the source of the sound in time to see Ulquiorra, back against the wall and hunched over in pain.
The small table that had held a lamp by the foot of Grimmjow's bed had been knocked over in the messy landing, but that wasn't really an issue at that moment. He could barely sense any form of reiatsu coming off the Cuarta Espada, and the violent spasms that were wracking his body weren't being caused by any physical injury. But even as he noticed that, Ulquiorra's reiatsu seemed to flicker as he slid down to the floor, eyes beginning to roll back into his head.
The blue-haired Espada all but scrambled to his feet, tripping as he rushed over to his fellow Hollow. Sweet fucking Jesus, was the guy even alive?
"Oi! What the hell happened?!"
He didn't know if it was the sound of his voice or the volume of it that had managed to pull Ulquiorra back from what looked like the brink of death. A pale hand shot up and grabbed the front of Grimmjow's shirt, cold fingers brushing against bare skin. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up and he had to put in effort not to recoil.
The quantity and quality of the dark energy that was wrapped around the Cuarta was so strong; he'd never felt anything like it. Was it Chris? The Devil himself? He could feel a chilling, stinging kind of pain where that scrawny hand was touching him, and he could almost see the raw energy that was curled around Ulquiorra tightly enough to suffocate him.
"Th's..." his words were almost inaudible, even for Grimmjow's acute hearing, "S'comi... coming..."
What? What? "What the hell do you me-...!" All at once, there was a rumbling, causing the room to quake. It was about that moment that Grimmjow felt the foulest, blackest energy he'd ever felt before in his life. If there was any point in his existence that he'd felt such a thing, it was too rare of a moment to remember. All he knew was, whatever it was, it was dark and evil.
And it was headed right for them.
"Shit!" He carefully pried loose Ulquiorra's fingers and dashed over to his closet, grabbing Pantera without hesitation. He knew this was breaking the rules, but at this point, it was survival. He wouldn't be able to take them all on without his Resurrección
He glanced out the window just in time to see murky shadows completely obscure the outside world, the room suddenly doused in dimness and flickering light as seemingly every electronic device around them went haywire.
Ulquiorra, despite being barely conscious, seemed to be aware enough to know that the evil he had been running from had caught up to them. Grimmjow wasn't sure if he was listening to rambling prayers to a God who didn't care or an attempt to recall an exorcism. His palms were beginning to sweat with apprehension as he watched the distorted images of demonic spirits clawing at the windows. He could hear them shrieking curses and clawing just on the other side of the walls... but for whatever reason, they couldn't get in.
He wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth. He thanked whoever happened to be smiling down on them and stepped away from the windows, moving to stand in front of Ulquiorra. If the demons happened to get in, he wasn't about to just hand over the only other Espada left, not over his dead body. As much as he hated to admit it, they were kin after all, and at this point, they were the only ones left. Ulquiorra was doing his bit by protecting him from behind the scenes. The least he could do was protect him now.
Suddenly, the blue-haired Espada heard a deep, guttural growl from the depths of his mind. His heart climbed into his throat and choked him at the sound of a hungry Devil coming to town, the feeling of the King's presence breezing by his house. It was nearly overwhelming to sense as he swallowed the various organs that had risen into his throat, trying to get a feel for where Lucifer was headed.
He's more interested in feeding her to the Devil
Just as he was ready to debate the chances of survival if he were to make a run for Juritsu, those black shadows ripped themselves away from the windows, and leaving behind a final, lasting threat of eternal pain and torment before disappearing from his senses altogether.
Grimmjow stepped forward, instinct now screaming at him to GET TO JURITSU! But a soft, almost whimper-like sound stopped him in his tracks, and he glanced over at the pale Espada.
He approached him, kneeling down and checking him over. Cuarta wasn't responding to anything in real time. His entire body was wracked with tremors, and his expression was indicative of excruciating pain.
"Ulquiorra... oi, come on, you're tougher than this, asshole," he shook the Espada in question, trying to rouse him, figure out what was wrong. That tingling pain returned, this time in his hands from clutching Ulquiorra's jacket. It was very clear that the Fourth was under attack.
And it was very clear that, short of stabbing him, Grimmjow wasn't going to elicit any sort of reaction. Ulquiorra looked like he'd practically fallen into a coma. A quick check for a pulse revealed one, to the Sexta's relief, but he had no idea how long he'd last.
"Jesus Christ, Ulquiorra, if anyone's supposed to be killing you, it's me." The half-hearted joke did nothing to alleviate his mood, and Grimmjow cursed. How long had it been since he felt the King float by? Was Juritsu okay?
And where the hell was Ralph when you needed him?! The med student knew a hell of a lot more than he was letting on. How else would he have been able to help Grimmjow recover from Lillith's attack? His blonde room mate refused to answer any questions - yea, no way the guy wasn't somehow involved - and Grimmjow hadn't been attacked since, thank god. He had half a mind to suspect that Ralph had somehow demon-proofed the house while he was at class or something. Not that he was complaining, but still. This was probably the only time he'd ever admit it, but he was willing to ask for help at this point, because he was perfectly stumped.
Ralph, could really use your magic powers right about now.
He wasn't sure whether to expect a text or not. Last he'd heard, Ralph had mentioned something about rotations at the hospital and overnight shifts and who fucking cared Ulquiorra was practically dead and only Ralph could bloody save him—
A desperate pounding on the front door all but gave him a heart attack. With how loud the sound was, Grimmjow was surprised the damned thing wasn't flying off the hinges. But with how frantic the noise was, it was as if the person was trying to outrun a serial killer.
He glanced over at Ulquiorra. Still unresponsive, and somehow looking even worse for wear. Shit.
There was no ignoring that pounding on the door though. "Don't fucking move," he growled, and headed out into the hall towards the stairs, one hand still gripping Pantera as it rested in its sheath. He could only guess as to how desperate a demon would've been to try and get into the house-...
Juritsu.
He paused only for a second as her reiatsu suddenly hit his senses, before he abandoned all caution and sprinted to the door. Juritsu it was Juritsu is she safe is she okay...-
He opened the door, and before he could even get a word out, she slammed into him as if she was running from the legions of Hell. And for all he knew, she was. She nearly knocked him off his feet - as it was, the force of her flying into him sent him stumbling backwards into the wall, breath leaving his lungs in a hiss as she found a death cling and seemed to hold on for dear life.
What the hell...? "Juritsu? Hey... what happ-..." he began, but was quickly cut off by her whisper.
"Help me."
He didn't think he'd ever heard so much fear, so much terror, in such a simple phrase. Shifting slightly in her hold, he got a better look at her.
The majority of her face was buried into his shirt, but he saw enough. Juritsu was normally a rather gorgeous tan, he personally thought, but she was currently as white as a sheet. Her eyes were wide, so very wide, and her expression told him pretty much all he needed to know.
His rage exploded, almost consumed him. He could feel his reiatsu pulsing, itching to release. THAT FUCKING BASTARD I'LL TEAR HIM APART!
No, no, no. Had to calm down. Juritsu came first. Juritsu was a mess. She needed him.
He slowly, almost tentatively, wrapped his arms around his in a snug embrace, slightly unsure if the contact would cause her to freak out. Her hands clutched tightly on to his shirt in response, as if she was drowning and he was her anchor, her rope to reality. Making sure she could sense his intentions, he slid down the wall until the two of them sat on the floor, Juritsu curled up into a ball, and Grimmjow providing her with the hiding spot she seemed to desperately seek.
"Hey, it'll be alright," the Espada soothed, wondering if he was being even remotely reassuring. Verbal comfort wasn't exactly a strong point of his. "I'm here now."
She shuddered, and he thought he heard her choke on a sob. That anger welled yet again, though he quickly quenched it, and instead tightened his embrace, running a hand through her hair, silently reveling in how silky it felt between his fingers.
"It's okay… Juritsu…?" She had suddenly stiffened in his arms. Her breathing was coming out in fast, shallow gasps, "O-oi, what is…"
"We need to leave," her words came out rushed, urgent, and the next thing he knew, Juritsu was pulling back and trying to drag him to his feet, "Oh god, he's here, he's here Grimmjow!"
"Wh… what?"
She grabbed his hand, whining frantically. "You don't understand, he's gonna kill us! Grimmjow, he's gonna kill us please I'm begging you please just come with me we're not safe here!"
What the hell was she talking about…? Ulquiorra?
He reached out in search of his brother's reiatsu, trying to resist Juritsu's ridiculously strong attempts to move him, and for a good ten seconds he couldn't find it. All he felt was that ink-black energy in the approximate location that he knew Ulquiorra was.
Just as he was thinking that the only other Espada left besides himself had just died, he felt a small, helpless flicker. If there was a sound that souls made when they were in excruciating, unimaginable pain, Grimmjow heard it then. It couldn't have been described in words and the sound of it likely drained the color from his face. Juritsu seemed to notice the change; perhaps he was turning green. He certainly felt like he was about to vomit.
"Grimmjow, please, we need to-..." her voice was growing in volume. Likely, she was on the verge of a panic attack.
"I need to..." what could he even say? That the demonic-feeling entity upstairs was a friend?
"Don't go up there!" She was pulling harder now, her strength long since passing superhuman, "Please, trust me!"
"It's just...!"
There was a loud bang that startled both of them out of their separate trances, followed by a series of softer, insistent knocks on the front door. The duo could feel the unfamiliar energy signatures just outside the door, one in particular feeling horribly similar to that of Lucifer himself... though it wasn't him.
The knocking stopped abruptly, muffled voices filling in the gaps of what was going on - at least, some of the less important gaps.
"Oh for fuck's sake, get outta my way!"
"Khrai, we shouldn't enter without-..."
"The time for proper manners and all that bullshit has long since passed. 'Scuse me, honey-nan."
There wasn't a moment to react to the ominous phrasing before the door was abruptly kicked open, nearly coming off its hinges. Three women walked in, each with startlingly different levels and types of reiatsu.
The expression on the blonde evidently leading this excursion was familiar, but Grimmjow couldn't place it. That wasn't exactly important. Who the hell where these people?! One of them – a scrawny young girl with talons for fingers – was staring at Juritsu with a look somewhere between enraged and sympathetic. What the hell kind of combination was that?! And, he noted, this little girl was the one with a nearly identical reiatsu to Lucifer; who the hell was she?
Juritsu was staring at this scrawny young girl. He hasn't thought it possible, but she paled to an ashen color.
He decided it best to break the silence. "... And you would be...?" he asked slowly, free hand resting on the hilt of Pantera while the other pushed Juritsu behind him protectively. His eyes narrowed in a suspicious glare
The blonde's expression didn't offer any sense that she was concerned about his presence. Her gaze skirted towards the staircase, bright blue eyes narrowing. Apparently, she wasn't planned on answering Grimmjow's question.
"Isolde-nan," She suddenly said, turning towards a green eyed woman to her right, "Kid-nen's upstairs." She didn't respond to the blonde's command at first, looking to Grimmjow for a moment before turning back to the blonde.
"Khrai, shouldn't we-..." Isolde, began slowly, only to be cut off by the woman she was addressing.
"Go. Now." Her eyes were set on Grimmjow, daring him to make a move as Isolde started towards the stairs.
Grimmjow scowled at her furiously. "And just what are you planning on doing to Ulquiorra?" He demanded, "And I'd really appreciate you telling me who the hell you are!"
Khrai was about to retort, but the youngest of the group - the one with Lucifer's energy signature, took a slight step forward to remind them of her presence.
"Khrai-san," Her voice was light, but held a darker undertone - not necessarily malevolent, though, "We agreed that you wouldn't pick a fight with Grimmjow-san just because he is of the opposite gender."
The blonde snorted irritably, "Yea, I friggen' remember. And you're not going to accidentally turn Juritsu into a vegetable, devochka."
The girl sighed in exasperation, a devious smirk of amusement gracing her ghastly pale features, highlighting a large scar that crossed over her face, "My name is Saeka. We're here to help."
There was a slight tugging on the back of his shirt. Juritsu had grasped it, perhaps as a means to hide herself, or perhaps a reassurance that he was still there and she wasn't imagining it. He could feel her trembling.
"What did you have in mind when you said help?" he wasn't about to drop his suspicions just because one of them said something about helping them. The blonde was a total bitch - even if she had the hottest body he'd ever seen - and the smaller girl gave off sort of a serial killer vibe. Either way, he wasn't about to hand over Juritsu so easily.
"Ulquiorra-san is being killed by a demonic lesion, which is kind of like an infection that attacks your energy and spirit," Saeka explained, "Isolde is going to try to excise it and banish it back to Hell. But the lesion was left by the Devil himself, so-…"
"So he'll be one lucky fucker if he lives through it," Khrai stated bluntly, glancing back towards the stairs, "She's gettin' started... Saeka-nan, deal with Juritsu-nan so you can help her out; she's gonna need it."
Juritsu whimpered from behind him, and he glanced over his shoulder at her. The fear was still there, but he could also see her distrust. Only question now was, what to do?
"What do you want?" she whispered, and surprised him altogether. He didn't think she'd speak at all.
Khrai's expression softened in a heartbeat. She tilted her head, as if to get a better look at Juritsu, "Not sure if this'll make you feel any better... but we're here in Kaisuki-nan's place. She's… not readily available at this time."
"Lucifer still has a hold on you, Juritsu-san," Saeka spoke again, "If we leave things as is, he'll destroy you. He won't even have to be there in person. I can drive him out... if anyone else could do it, I probably wouldn't even be here, giving you the willies. But there isn't anyone else."
Surprisingly him yet again, she came around from behind him, stopping at his side, still grasping onto his shirt. He wrapped a comforting arm around her shoulders for support.
"How do you know Kaisuki?" her voice was stronger now, apparently finding something familiar in all this in the form of a mentioned name. Kaisuki was... her room mate, right? "Who are you? Where is she?"
Khrai and Saeka exchanged an uncertain glance before turning back to Juritsu and Grimmjow. The blonde lifted a hand to scratch the back of her neck awkwardly, "It's... kind of really hard to explain. Uh..."
"Grimmjow-san," Saeka addressed him directly, "You know what a Yurei is, right?"
Grimmjow stiffened. Clearly this group wasn't normal either if she expected him to know that. No, I haven't been trying to stay on the down low, not at all. "A person that harbors multiple spirits," he slowly replied, feeling Juritsu's eyes on him.
"Kaisuki-san is a Yurei," she stated simply, "The three of us are the spirits she hosts. She's been under attack almost since she arrived here. It wasn't anything that she couldn't handle, but another has been... sucking the life out of her, you might say."
Saeka then lifted a hand (Jesus, those talons had to be at least ten inches long), indicating Khrai with a lazy gesture, "In order to protect her, Khrai-san made the executive decision to lock Kaisuki-san in the furthest corners of our shared mind until we've handled things. You haven't actually spoken to Kaisuki-san in two months."
Khrai cleared her throat loudly, officially deciding that this conversation was getting to be too lengthy, "Ladies, I hate to interrupt our exchange of all things private and personal," she shot a harsh look at Saeka for a moment before returning her attention to Grimmjow and Juritsu, "But devochka needs to throw Satan'en out of Juritsu-nan's head. Now would be preferable."
"Ah," Saeka blinked, "They're coming back."
Grimmjow blinked. "They're..." he trailed off as that familiar murkiness began to move towards him. He quickly realized exactly what Saeka was talking about. He pushed Juritsu behind him tightened his grip on Pantera. If it was a fight the demons wanted, then he was more than willing to oblige. "Shit! Why'd you have to kick the damn door off?! They'll get in!"
"Ralph-nen already has a barrier up to ward off demonic entities," Khrai said it as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, "Whether there's a door or not is irrelevant. However," she paused, glancing towards the window with a thoughtful expression, "If they're coming with one of Lucifer-nen's best... like the Four Horsemen, or the Plagues of Egypt, or the Seven Angels of Death or something, then there's no way this barrier will hold."
Saeka glanced over at Juritsu, "If we can get Lucifer's presence out of you and Ulquiorra, the lower-level demons won't be able to maintain themselves on this plain with so many Holy Spirits running around. And no upper-level demon, no matter how egomaniacal, would think of pitting themselves against Lucifer's daughter."
At "Lucifer's daughter," Grimmjow gave pause. Things were starting to fall into place. It certainly explained her reiatsu. Of course, it did little to lessen the confusion. If anything, a thousand more questions popped up instead.
"So... you're Lucifer's daughter..." he deadpanned, still feeling slightly incredulous, and perhaps even a tad bit overwhelmed. For god's sake, what else didn't he freakin' know?!
"We can delve into the details later. Juritsu-san, either you choose to trust me with this, or I can try to fend them off," Khrai turned to the girl at that, about to step in incredulously, but she stopped her with a smile, "I was bred for battle, Khrai-san. You'd do well to stay with them and hold a caim."
"Saeka-nan, you little-..." before she could continue her rant, a sound like a shotgun going off shook the house. The outdoors were obscured by the smoky, black shadows clawing at the warding spell. The lights flickered, and then went out entirely. Grimmjow's eyes adjusted faster and easier than most being of any kind - it was a trait of his catlike nature - but the sight he saw didn't make him feel any better.
A black ink was oozing around the cracks in the windows, under the broken door... not actual demons, but a kind of blood-like plasma that came with superior strength. They had, as Khrai had warned, brought extra manpower. The house trembled violently, nearly causing him to lose his footing as he pulled Juritsu closer.
"I can't get a spell for light going, devochka," Khrai's voice cut through the darkness, "You'll have to-..."
There was a guttural growl, loud enough to sound through the entire house, following by a piercing, animal-like shriek. The glass in the windows began to crack, and Grimmjow suddenly recognized Ulquiorra's voice, laced with pure evil and speaking Latin.
"Saeka-nan!" Khrai barked, and Grimmjow was about to tear off the hand that had grabbed Juritsu and ripped her out of his grasp when he realized it was the blonde, who gripped a fistful of Saeka's and Juritsu's hair and rather roughly forced their foreheads together. The din around them was overwhelming, the amount of power and evil swirling around them beginning to make his head spin violently.
He felt a tug on his sleeve; a tug that turned into dragging. It was Khrai again, pulling him towards Saeka and Juritsu. A white light surrounded the four of them in a circle, reaching the floor and wrapping a warm light around them.
"Grimmjow-nen!" Somehow Khrai's voice carried over the deafening roar that had suddenly fallen upon them, "Stay here! Don't let either of them out of this circle when they come back!"
"The hell do you mean, come back?!" No response, just noise. Why he thought he'd be heard at all was a mystery in and of itself.
He was able to make out a dusty image of Khrai taking the stairs two at a time. Grimmjow glanced over to Juritsu and Saeka, entirely unsure of what he was supposed to do in this situation. Ulquiorra's voice was still roaring through the house, echoing as if they were in a cave or something, and he heard a loud, piercing crack that seemed to come from every direction, echoing into the far reaches of his mind. He looked over to a window, seeing fractures in some kind of pale gold light. Was that the barrier? Why was it cracking?!
It had to be whatever energies were possessing Ulquiorra... he must've been chanting a spell to take down the barrier, and if he had even a grape-sized slice of Lucifer's power in him, Ralph's spell wouldn't stand a chance.
His throat was impossibly dry as he drew Pantera from its sheath, cursing his luck and bracing himself for battle. He didn't even know where he could stand to keep Juritsu and Saeka out of the fray. There were three main points of entry that he could see from his current spot; a reading nook in a window behind them, the front door to their left, and the window he could see across the room in the kitchen. They'd be coming from every angle, and honestly, Grimmjow wasn't entirely sure if his Zanpakuto would work on these particular demons; they didn't have what could be considered a physical form. Would his Zanpakuto do any damage? Would he be better off nuking the entire apartment complex with a cero?
He turned to the incapacitated duo again, suddenly feeling completely hopeless. He knew that the sensation might've simply been caused by the amount of purely negative energy all around him, but that wasn't likely. There was another piercing crack, this one making his ears ring, and he assumed his stance. On the one hand, he wanted to use his Resurrección to maximize the chances of him being able to do any real damage, but he was hesitating because he knew that Seireitei would take any excuse to hunt him down and kill him. For all he knew, drawing his zanpakuto had already sealed his fate.
There was a wave of energy that shook the very foundation of the apartment, and he recognized the feeling of Lucifer's energy. Khrai had must have been able to get him out of Ulquiorra, but would the barrier hold despite being cracked?
The white light from the caim was flickering, and the barrier was beginning to crack even more. Before he could finish throwing caution to the winds and use his Resurrección, the caim vanished and the barrier broke. Any light that had been in the room was completely obscured. The air around him seemed to freeze; he could even see frost beginning to form on his hands and blade, his chest was tight and he could hardly breathe. He brought Pantera up just as the mass of demons cascaded into him, and everything faded aside from the task at hand. Cut to the right, parry, then thrust, drive an elbow here while kicking this one away. He normally lived for these kinds of battles, where he could just mindlessly throw himself into the fray and indiscriminately kill his opponents. He thrived off the rush of combat; hell, he'd always wanted to go out swinging. It just fit for him to die in the heat of battle. But he didn't want to die like this. Not when he had someone to protect, someone depending on him.
It was then that he felt it... he turned back to Juritsu and Saeka; they were still locked together. He couldn't sense Khrai past the thickness around them, the demons swirling around them like a tornado with wide, taunting grins.
Lucifer was coming.
This was it. There was absolutely no way he was going to be able to hold off The Devil. This was the end. They were going to die here, and there was absolutely nothing he could do but try and prolong the inevitable. Maybe Juritsu and Saeka would snap out of their trance at an opportune moment. He could suddenly feel the multitude of lacerations he had sustained, every drop of blood that was oozing out of his gigai, the sting of every wound, the ache of every bruise. It was like his life was flashing before his eyes, though that wasn't entirely possible because he'd been dead so long he couldn't even remember his life.
The demons pulled further back, and there was a sudden break in their formation, a heat stronger, darker, and blacker than anything he'd ever thought he could experience. But he didn't back down. One could say it wasn't in his nature to succumb to any survival instinct unless it involved fighting. He raised his blade, ready to take as many of Lucifer's blows as he could, so long as he kept him away from Juritsu. At the moment, her life was the only thing that mattered. Maybe he'd die and go to a better afterlife than friggen' Hueco Mundo. It was always best to think positive, right?
He didn't know where it came from, or even what happened exactly. He felt a growing energy behind him, a pulse of power perhaps greater than that of the Devil that now stood over him, clawed hand raised and ready to rip him apart in a single blow.
He recognized the energy as Juritsu's seconds before the world around him was saturated in a pure white light. When Grimmjow opened his eyes again, there wasn't so much as a trace of that dark energy remaining. It felt like his reiatsu had been burned, leaving a throbbing kind of pain in the very core of his being. That light... whatever it did, it hadn't felt good on his end. He hoped that it had felt a thousand times worse for Lucifer. But the fantasizing would have to wait. He had to make sure that Juritsu was alright.
The blue-haired Espada whirled around, dropping his sword without a second thought as he rushed over to Juritsu's motionless form. Saeka had literally vanished into thin air, and a sliver of him hoped that she hadn't been taken out in the blast, since she seemed to come with good intentions and all. But that was even pushed aside as he knelt down and cradled Juritsu in his arms.
"Oi... Juritsu, can you hear me...?"
His hands were shaky, and the new wave of anxiousness didn't help. The brunette hadn't so much as stirred. Don't let her be dead don't let all of that be for nothing...
Gingerly, he pressed two fingers to her carotid, checking for a pulse, and nearly sagged with relief when he founds hers, strong and healthy. Thank god.
There was a soft creak from the stairs, and he vaguely recognized Kaisuki's voice, "She's okay?"
Grimmjow's head snapped up to look at the pale girl; slightly startled that it was her. That was before he registered her question. Instinctively, his hold on his brunette friend tightened – perhaps to reassure himself that she was still there. "Y-yea... she's alright."
He took a moment to take in Ulquiorra's lifeless form, his heart rate not relenting one bit as an all-new wave of panic set in. There were no physical injuries that could be seen, but that didn't change the fact that the Fourth's reiatsu was barely there and Grimmjow couldn't seem to get a clear sense of a life force.
"Ulquiorra... is he...?"
Kaisuki gave him an apologetic look, "I don't know. He has a pulse, but that's about all I can tell you. When Isolde recovers, she'll be able to figure out what can be done." She continued down the stairs carefully, apparently spending a lot of strength to not drop the man.
Before Grimmjow could open his mouth to say even a word, the front door (or what was left of it, at least) promptly exploded, startling to wits out of all conscious parties. The dust cleared to reveal two very, very, powerful-looking men. And the power that he could sense from within the two of them... while they felt immensely similar to Juritsu's, and one of them felt even more similar compared to the other, their level of power was astronomical.
The shorter man (though his impressive standing-up hair tried to make up for his stature - god only knew what kind of hair products he used regularly) seemed to be the more intimidating one of the two, his posture and presence commanding respect, like a natural-born leader. His dark eyes flickered to Kaisuki, then to Grimmjow, before scanning the wrecked apartment. He looked furious.
"What the hell happened here?" he demanded.
"H... honestly," Grimmjow quietly responded, know sure how to react, "I'm not sure you'd believe me if I even began to try and explain."
The man scowled in response. "Try me. The countless things I've seen would make your pathetic excuse of a life pale in comparison."
The Espada glared at the shorter male, and was about to snap back when suddenly, the taller one - his hair pointed in all sorts of crazy directions - took a step forward, eyes focusing on Juritsu, and Grimmjow bristled at first. Whoever the hell these guys were, he swore to god, if they were about to try and take Juritsu away too...-
The man's eyes widened, and Grimmjow froze at the amount of concern abruptly spilling from his expression.
"Juritsu..." he muttered, voice tense with worry as he strode over and crouched down in front of them, large hand gingerly checking for a pulse. He apparently found hers, because like Grimmjow, he visibly relaxed.
"She's alright," Kaisuki spoke up as she was gingerly laying Ulquiorra down on the floor nearby, "But she'll probably be out for at least a couple hours. Well, maybe... she's surprised me with stranger things before."
The taller man glanced up at Kaisuki, a grateful smile gracing his lips, before he glanced back down at Grimmjow. Unlike the shorter man, this one was not as hard-edged, more approachable.
"Were any of your hurt badly?" he asked, catching Grimmjow off-guard with the question.
"Um... I don't think so... who are you, again?" The man's eyes blinked, before brightening in realization.
"Right! I guess it would make sense to introduce ourselves since we barged in like this! I'm Goku, and this is Vegeta. You'll have to forgive him - he's always a bit grumpy."
"That's enough, Kakarott," Vegeta snapped suddenly, and Goku rolled his eyes, "We didn't come here for a meet and greet." He glanced back down at Grimmjow, "Explain what happened here."
"Would 'we were attacked by demons' work for you?" he shot back hotly, and Vegeta's eyes narrowed at his tone, though at the moment he was too sore, and tired, and frazzled to care, "Because I doubt anything else would've wrecked my place like this."
"I don't appreciate that impudent tongue of yours, boy," Vegeta had straightened to full height, and somehow even with his short stature, he towered over him.
"Alright Vegeta, no need to pick fights," Goku cut in before things got out of hand, and he smiled at Grimmjow, "You protected Juritsu, right? Thank you."
The Sexta Espada blinked at the sudden change in topic. "Uh, yea, sure... why are you thanking me?"
Goku looked slightly bewildered. "Why wouldn't I thank you? She's my daughter."
... What?
"Folks, I hate to interrupt the happy moment when Grimmjow asks for Juritsu's hand in marriage," Kaisuki spoke up, her eyes glancing around the room wearily, "But I can hear sirens. We can head back to my and Juritsu's apartment... though I'm not sure how we're going to do that without someone stopping us. I mean, Grimmjow's covered in blood and we'd be carrying two unconscious persons, one of whom has the appearance of a corpse."
Goku's grin widened. "Not a problem! Everyone just gather around me and place a hand on me. Make sure everyone's in contact."
Vegeta let out an exasperated sigh, but nonetheless stalked forward and placed his hand on Goku's shoulder. Grimmjow glanced questioningly at Kaisuki before shrugging and, once he had a secure hold on Juritsu, pressed a hand to Goku's free arm.
Kaisuki reached over, her other arm wrapped around Ulquiorra's shoulders. A split second later, they were in the living room of the girls' shared apartment.
"That..." Kaisuki began as she looked around incredulously, "... That works, too."
A/N: Yea I'm super lame for taking so long to post this. Actually the past 3 weeks I've been all across the country, literally. Right now I'm actually back in NY, after spending a week in Vegas. Fun times.
I'm about to post a crap ton of chapters though, so you all will have plenty of reading to catch up on while KRenee and I continue to write in this!
- G