Disclaimerx2(because last chapter I forgot): I once knew a girl, whose name was Boats and Birds, who wrote out a disclaimer, like this one, for every chapter of her story. Do you know what happened to her? She went mad. Not mine. Don't really want it, getting sick of saying that I don't want it.

A/N: Well, this is chapter three, and from Orihime's point of view. Kinda. The last one was from Ichigo, so I figured it was about time for another bout of angst. A chapter from Mr. Dragon- I mean Ulquiorra's point of view is up next, so fear not my fellow cuatro lovers! Although depending on how today goes, I don't know If I shall be able to update until tomorrow. To my awesome reviewers; There are no words out there for how awesome you are. Anne the fire, HaloteveCV, summerrayah, and blackwingsgreeneyes, I love you all! If you review for this chapter, I will literally jump through the computer and give you all hugs. Except I don't think that's possible... Oh well! Enjoy!

3:

Flames

The loneliness destroyed her after a while. The Espada would visit her occasionally, and though unable to harm her physically as Aizen had commanded, the powerful Arrancars would abuse her verbally. They taunted Orihime, making cruel comments about the weakness of her friends. "If they come to save you, little Princess, we'll kill them all. One by one. And we'll make you watch. Maybe we'll save Kurosaki for last, eh?" The tall one, Nnoitra, she thought his name was, has told her that. Orihime didn't like the way he looked at her, didn't like it at all, and the things he told her... they made her shudder inside.

And though she tried not to show it, the "little Princess" was afraid. Terrified. Terrified that what the Arrancar said was true. Terrified that her friends would come, and try to save her, and be killed. The poisonous lies they whispered tore her apart, and she sank. Slowly, but surely, Orihime was sinking, and nothing, no one, could save her. She didn't want them to.

The only thing that kept her sane, was the thought of her- no. She would not think of Ichigo as her love, he was not hers. He never had been, and he never would be. Ichigo, who was now safe. It did not occur to her even for an instant to feel resentment towards her friends for not rescuing her, to feel anger at being forced to give up her freedom, her resentment was saved for other things. The only coherent wish that pierced her deadened stupor, was the fervent prayer that her friends would not come to save her. Because if they arrived to rescue her, to take her away from this hopeless place, they would die.

Orihime supposed that she had always lived in a fairytale. Even now, here she was, the Princess, locked away in a tower waiting for her Prince to come and save her. But it wasn't the same. This wasn't a fairytale any more. Because she didn't want the Prince to come and save her. He couldn't. And Orihime, the Princess, would fade away here in this cell, but at least her friends would be safe.

The Espada had immense strength and skill, the children of this Hollow World. She had seen it. They were creatures born of the darkest of nightmares, which not even Ichigo, the strongest person she knew, could overcome. He would be destroyed, and there was no question that it would be her fault. After all, was that not the purpose of her captivity? To protect him, and all her friends? Chad, and Renji, and Uryu, dear Uryu, and Rukia... well, Rukia would be happy with Ichigo, wouldn't she? They would be happy together. And they would forget, slowly but surely, that Orihime had ever been their friend in the first place. Maybe that was for the best.

Surprisingly, the one thing that Orihime looked forward to here in this colorless place were the visits from her caretaker, Ulquiorra. Unlike the other Espada that called Hueco Mundo home, he was not monstrous, nor needlessly cruel. Rather, he was stoic and emotionless. She knew that he was loyal to Aizen only, she knew that he would kill Ichigo if he was given the chance, she knew that if Aizen ordered him to kill her, he would. But... he was different from the others, and though he had kidnapped her, she felt pity for him. She couldn't hate him. This was a surprising revelation, but it was true. Alone in her room, she had tried many times to be angry, to be cold, to hate Ulquiorra for ripping her viciously out of her fairytale world and bringing her here, but she couldn't. She didn't know what to think of that. Did it mean that her fairytale life hadn't been as perfect as she had always thought? It confused her, this feeling of not-knowing, and she sensed somehow that it all came from him. Ulquiorra.

One day, as he had strolled into her room, pale face completely blank as usual, pushing the cart of food with him, she had looked up from her scratchy, lumpy couch, and met his eyes. And she had frozen. Because they were beautiful, his eyes. She didn't know how she hadn't noticed it before. Such a vivid color of green, they reminded her of springtime, or perhaps life. She had held his gaze as minutes slid by, entranced, unable to look away, because it was so long since she had seen color. It was so long since she had seen beauty. Even her own bright hair seemed to dim in this place. But his eyes, his eyes were full of color, startling in such a white face. And then, the strangest thing had happened. Ulquiorra had looked away.

From that time on, the fear she had once had of her silent captor had slid away and left her completely. Even if he were to tie her down and force food down her throat, as he so often threatened to do, she did not think she would be afraid of him, and she could not explain why. Perhaps it was because he looked so human.

But deep down, Orihime knew, that his eyes were her core reason. Though she tried to convince herself otherwise, she firmly believed; the cuatro Espada had a heart.

As she sat quietly in her cell, hour after hour, she quickly lost track of time. How many days had passed, she did not know. She spent most of her time gazing out at the roof of the world, trapped in perpetual night and dotted with faint stars like holes in black velvet, and wondering if her friends were gazing at the same sky. She hated herself at times, because she secretly wished that Ichigo would come and take her away from this living death.

But that was selfish, and wrong. He needed to stay away from here, stay where it was safe. More and more now, the Princess would close her empty eyes and try to call to mind the memories of the life she had once known, her friends, what color looked like; Ichigo. More and more often, the memories eluded her. She could not recall what blue looked like, or green, and the only red was her hair, now limp and dull. Ichigo's face, too, escaped her, and there were days when the despair of this weighed her down like stones had been placed on her shoulders. She wanted to remember him, she loved him still, but something inside her was broken now; and somehow Orihime thought that even if she returned home, she could never be fixed. Never again.

If I were the rain,

That connects the earth and sky,

Could I connect the hearts of people as well?

End

Done! Yay! Please review and tell me how I did. I think Orihime's slowly spiraling into despair. And least our favorite Dragon Boy is there to give her some comfort. Except that Ulquiorra doesn't do comfort. Well, at least his eyes are pretty. Review pwetty please! Kisses to all!