A/N: I'd like to express my special thanks to all reviewers of the first chapter. Even though the story doesn't get much traffic and my GrimmUlqui mojo seems to be missing, your words make me feel confident enough to continue writing the story. Now on a not so unrelated matter, I'm about to move to a new place, so it might take a while until everything is settled and I can begin writing again. I promise, however, that I'll do my best to update as soon as possible. In the meantime, I'll leave you with this chapter and hope it'll keep you satisfied until the next installment is available.
II
Ulquiorra was not quite sure what had got into him as of late. First, he allowed the human girl to convince him that it would be a good idea to try making friends out of a person who openly disliked him and let her choose Grimmjow as the primary target, and if that alone was not bad enough already, he also permitted her to make a card to the aforementioned Espada, asking to be friends, in his behalf. Then he had to go on with it and actually deliver it to the Sexta Espada's room when he should have just called it quit. And after that, instead of denying it like he should have, he went on and revealed to Grimmjow about that little experiment.
Of course, all of that wouldn't have mattered to him at all if he just decided to drop that experiment and rule it impossible. However, Grimmjow had to say that he was interested to see what kind of method Ulquiorra would use to make him like him. He didn't really know if the Sexta Espada really meant it as a challenge or not, but a competitive side of him just acted up and took on the challenge by replying that Grimmjow would have to wait and see.
And because of that, there was no way for him to pull back without being mocked by said blue-haired Arrancar even though it made him feel like he had just become a pathetic lovesick woman who refused to give up even after the man she loved had turned down her confession. And he didn't even have any idea how those lovesick people actually felt.
He wasn't very happy about his situation, but since he couldn't take back what had already been said and done, Ulquiorra decided he would just try to make the best out of it. And that was the reason why he returned to Inoue Orihime's captive cell earlier than he should have.
Since he returned there earlier than he had informed the woman, he had expected that she would still be struggling to eat her breakfast; however, he had to be surprised to see that she had already done with her meal and was pacing around in the room while humming a strange tune.
Ulquiorra was not sure if the woman actually enjoyed the Hollow-styled meal or simply ate it out of fear that he would carry out the threat he had posed since the first day she was taken there and actually force feed her if she refused to eat. However, as his job was only to make sure she did not starve herself to death, Ulquiorra didn't really care to find out about her reason for finishing the food so fast. Thus the first thing he said when he entered the room was, "What do human usually do in order to make friends?"
"Huh?" was her initial response. However, since Inoue wasn't stupid despite how wild her imagination could be at times, she managed to understand what Ulquiorra was talking about after a few seconds. "Oh, so you mean, Grimmjow-san agreed to be your friends? See? I told you it'd work!"
"He didn't agree to anything," Ulquiorra said, correcting Inoue's misunderstanding. "He simply said he was interested to see what kind of method I would use to befriend him."
"Oh," the ginger-haired girl cried, disappointment evident in her tone. However, her expression turned hopeful when she continued, "But that's still a start, right? I mean, it could have gone so much worse."
"Worse?" Ulquiorra repeated after the girl in surprise. "I thought you said it was possible to befriend anyone, including one's enemies, should one put one's mind to it."
The girl gave her guard a sheepish smile.
"Well, I did," she noted in a meek tone, "but I never said it'd be easy."
Frowning slightly, the green-eyed Espada replied, "I figured as much. Now what is your answer?"
Inoue blinked for a couple of times as she tried to recall what Ulquiorra's question really was. It was a good thing that her memory was quite good despite how many people saw her as an airhead, so she didn't have to take long to answer.
"What do people do to make friends?" Inoue repeated the question. "Well, I guess we start by breaking the ice."
"Break the ice?"
The woman nodded in earnest.
"I see."
The well-endowed teen expected more questions to come from her stoic warden, yet the Espada did not speak another word about that subject. Instead, he glanced over to the food trolley and changed the subject.
"I see you've finished eating, so I will tell someone to bring that out," Ulquiorra noted. "I'll come back to check on you again later."
Somehow feeling a little brave, Orihime decided to speak as Ulquiorra headed for the door, "Well, then, Ulquiorra-san, if you want to know more about how people make friends, please feel free to come by and ask."
Seeing how the emotionless Espada stopped walking, Inoue flinched as she realized she might have offended him by offering him an advice on such a basic matter. She was certain that Ulquiorra was smart and only asked that question because he wanted to compare the differences between how people made friends and how Hollows did it, not because he didn't really know how to make friends.
"Umm... not that I think you actually need my help or anything," she added quickly.
Ignoring what the woman said, Ulquiorra continued walking. However, instead of leaving, the ebony-haired Arrancar paused by the threshold.
"By the way, woman," he stated, "you misspelled my name."
And with that, he left and closed the door behind in a loud bang.
Ulquiorra had a thoughtful look on his face as he walked away from Inoue's room. He always hated it when there was something that he did not understand, and that "breaking the ice" thing was one of them. However, since it was supposed to be something very simple, he couldn't bear to sound stupid in front of the woman who was nothing more than just a hostage and ask her how he was supposed to do that.
It was probably very simple to break some ices in the human world, since that world contained a lot of water. However, they were in Hueco Mundo, and it was almost impossible to find a drop of water in the endless desert of the realm, let alone an ice. And how could breaking some ices be of any help in starting a friendship anyway? Was it some kind of strange human ritual that a Hollow would never understand? But no matter what it was supposed to mean for humans, it was still very hot in Las Noches during the time the artificial sun rose above the dome, so breaking some ices might not be too bad an idea, which meant that it would not hurt to try it out.
Now all he needed to do was finding a source of water, making some ices and then breaking them.
The thought of water brought Ulquiorra to the private quarters where the sole female Espada, Tia Harribel, shared with her three Fraccións. After he knocked on the door and waited for a moment, he was greeted by a dark-skinned female with thick wavy brown hair and green eyes, Mila Rose.
The amazonian seemed surprised to see the Espada at the door, but she got over it quickly and asked, "What's your business?"
While the question sounded somewhat rude coming from a lower ranking Arrancar, Ulquiorra chose to ignore it since he had a favor to ask from the Tercera Espada, and things could go ugly if he were to do something to her Fracción.
"I have something to discuss with Harribel," he replied.
"I'll inform Harribel-sama. Just wait there."
And with that, Mila Rose closed the door in Ulquiorra face, knowing that the Cuarta Espada wouldn't do anything to her as long as she was still under her master's protection.
It didn't take long until the door was opened again, and this time the woman led him to the terrace where Harribel sat and had her breakfast while watching the view of the desert inside Las Noches.
"Good morning, Ulquiorra," the woman with blond hair greeted. Unlike how she usually appeared in public, Harribel's coat was unzipped to reveal the gruesome jaw and the bone bras that were the remnants of her Hollow mask. It was a rare sight, since the lady preferred to cover half of her face and her top with that coat, but Ulquiorra knew better than to comment on it or even look anywhere lower than her eyes. "Mila Rose said you had some business with me?"
"Yes, but perhaps I should come back after you finish your breakfast."
"That's alright, I don't mind. Just take a seat." The woman gestured to an unoccupied chair across the table to the one she was seated. Once she saw that Ulquiorra did, she asked, "So what's your business, Ulquiorra?"
"I heard that your Resurrección, Tiburón, had a power to create and manipulate water."
"Yes, that is correct. What about it?"
"I'm in need for ices, so I'm wondering if you can provide me with some," Ulquiorra replied.
"Sorry, Ulquiorra. I'd love to help, but I'm afraid I can't create ice with my power," Harribel remarked. "But if it's just water that you want, we have quite a lot of that in store since Aizen-sama usually sends someone over to get water to make his afternoon tea. Is one bucket enough?"
"More than enough."
Hearing the answer from the man who was one rank below hers, Harribel nodded and beckoned the nearest Fracción to come in. "Sung-sun, please get one bucket of water for Ulquiorra, and tell me when it's ready."
"Yes, Harribel-sama."
After Sung-sun had left to do as she was ordered, Harribel turned her attention back to Ulquiorra and asked, "By the way, if you don't mind me asking, why are you in need for some ices?"
Since he believed he owed the lady at least an explanation, he replied, "I'm going to break them."
"Break them? Does it mean you are making kakigōri?" Harribel wondered. "I never knew you like eating dessert."
Once the wielder of Tiburón mentioned the word kakigōri, things began to make a little more sense to Ulquiorra. Said desert was made from shaved ice, flavored with syrup and some condensed milked. As far as he was concerned, it was popular in the human world. Therefore, it was possible that when Inoue Orihime spoke of breaking ice, she meant making the dessert and share it those you wanted to befriend, which might not be a bad start, except that it was a little inconvenient to do so in Hueco Mundo.
How Ulquiorra planned to finish the rest of his task remained mystery until Aizen woke up with a start in the next day. Living with a bunch of savage Arrancars was definitely not the most quiet and peaceful lifestyle, but he had managed to keep orders in Las Noches so far, so it was very rare that someone would just cause a commotion, especially by that time of the day.
Since he would like to portray himself as a calm and forgiving leader, the rogue Shinigami waited for a moment to see if the noise would stop without his interference. However, the sound kept repeating itself afterward, so Aizen abandoned the idea of going back to sleep and decided to get out of his bed and see if the palace was invaded by Thor.
It wasn't long until the master of Las Noches followed the sound to the main kitchen and saw exactly what happened. What he saw made him believe that he was, in fact, still asleep and everything was just one of the weirdest dreams he had ever had, for he refused to believe that he actually saw his most obedient Espada, Ulquiorra Cifer, in a kitchen, smashing a huge chunk of ice with his zanpakutō.
After having stood at the threshold and watched the Cuarta Espada's actions for a moment, Aizen cleared his throat to announce his presence.
Anyone else would have been embarrassed to be caught doing something completely out of character, but to Ulquiorra's credit, he simply turned to where his master was and bowed gracefully at the man.
"Good morning, Aizen-sama. It is rare for you to come and get breakfast for yourself."
"Good morning, Ulquiorra," Aizen replied, suppressing his curiosity well. "May I inquire what you are doing?"
Ulquiorra turned his attention back to the huge block of ice in his hand for a moment before he turned his eyes back to his master.
"I am breaking the ice."
Although Aizen loved to think that nothing in all realms was beyond his understanding, it still escaped him what Ulquiorra was really planning.
"Breaking the ice?"
"Yes, Aizen-sama," Ulquiorra replied. "The human girl suggested that it was a human's first step in befriending others."
Even though the former captain of the Gotei 13's Fifth Division believed that Inoue Orihime didn't mean it in a literal way, he chose not to mention that fact to his faithful subordinate and simply asked, "And who is it that you are trying to befriend, Ulquiorra?"
"Grimmjow."
The answer made Aizen come to realize how very little he knew about his subordinates; however, since he couldn't afford to show that he was surprised by anything, he simply observed, "Hmm... and I thought you find him bothersome at the very least."
"I can assure you that you not wrong about that assumption, Aizen-sama," Ulquiorra stated. "However, I am doing this so I can prove whether we can really be friends with those we hate and hate us in return as that woman claimed."
Once he heard the explanation, Aizen believed it was either his subordinate was very bored and had to find something to do before the war began or Ulquiorra was actually a tsundere type and chose to act hostile toward everyone to cover up his lovey-dovey side. Either way, it sounded like it would be interesting to watch.
"I see," Aizen nodded. "And what exactly are you planning to do with that ice you are breaking? Making an ice sculpture?"
Ulquiorra thought about it for a moment. An ice sculpture would also be nice as a gift, but it would melt very soon under Las Noches's sun. Besides, it required some artistic skill to create such a thing, and even if he did possess such a skill, he doubted someone like Grimmjow would understand, let alone appreciate, fine arts.
"Actually I'm planning to make kakigōri," Ulquiorra replied.
"Shaved ice? Well, I suppose nothing can go wrong with food," Aizen noted. "Keep going then, Ulquiorra."
"Thank you for your encouragement, Aizen-sama."
"Don't mention it," the Shinigami replied. "By the way, have you decided what flavor to use for your dessert?"
"Ichimaru-sama suggested that I use Blue Hawaii syrup and green apple syrup, so the color would be blue and green, representing Grimmjow and I," Ulquiorra stated. From his expression, Aizen believed the Arrancar didn't quite get how those colors represented them. "Since I don't have a better idea, I think I will follow his advice."
Aizen tried his best not to laugh. Knowing Gin, he wasn't sure if the man meant well when he made that suggestion. He, for one, believed that Grimmjow would more likely be crept out by the gesture than to be grateful. The thought made him eager to see the Sexta Espada's reaction, but instead of showing his interest, Aizen decided it would be best to retreat to his room and watch everything through one of many monitors in the surveillance system. Once again those secret cameras he planted all around the palace proved to be very handy.
"Well then I won't disturb you any longer, Ulquiorra," Aizen noted. "Good luck with your plan."
And with that Aizen left Ulquiorra to his own device once again.
It seemed the last person who had a clue about Ulquiorra's little scheme in "breaking the ice" was Grimmjow himself. Unlike the day before when he got all flustered over a simple card, that day the Sexta Espada had taken his time in the morning for his grooming. Since he didn't see Ulquiorra again after he ambushed the guy in front of Inoue Orihime's room, he thought Ulquiorra might have already come to his senses and stopped with his ridiculous plan to befriend him.
Therefore, Grimmjow didn't expect that Ulquiorra would be in the kitchen, waiting for his arrival. For some reasons, the chef could not be seen anywhere in that room, and all other Arrancar that usually gathered there for breakfast at that time were also nowhere in sight. Therefore, there were only he, the Cuarta Espada and that suspicious-looking blue and green shaved ice in the kitchen.
Anyone else would have turned and greeted the person whom they wanted to befriend with a smile, but that would be too much to expect from the apathetic Espada (not that Grimmjow would actually expect anything from Ulquiorra to begin with). However, Grimmjow still had to note that it was the first time that Ulquiorra actually turned around and greeted him when the guy usually just ignored his presence even though they always sat opposite one another in an Espada meeting table.
"Grimmjow," Ulquiorra greeted in his usual emotionless tone. "I've been waiting for you."
"Why?" was his most natural response.
"I believe you are not a goldfish, so you should be able to remember what I told you yesterday."
A grimace appeared on the blue-haired man's face. "And here I thought you've already given up on that stupid thought."
"I am not a type to give up without a fight, Sexta," Ulquiorra noted. "Now back on the topic, I've made this for you."
By saying "this," Ulquiorra motioned to the big bowl of shaved ice on the kitchen table.
"And that's supposed to make me want to be your friend because...?"
Ulquiorra knitted his thick black brows. "The woman said it was a human's first step in making friends."
"Well, in case you didn't notice, Ulquiorra, we ain't human," Grimmjow remarked. "That aside, why is that thing in blue and green?"
"Because Ichimaru-sama said it would give a nice message," the Cuarta Espada explained.
Now Grimmjow turned to stare at the smaller Espada in disbelief.
"You told Ichimaru about this stupid plan of yours?"
"And also Aizen-sama," Ulquiorra added. "Why, Grimmjow? Were you under an impression that I was going to keep this project a secret?"
Grimmjow felt like banging his head into the nearest wall, but since he was a sadist, not a masochist, he decided against doing so.
"Who else knows about this?"
"Does it matter?" Ulquiorra replied as if he couldn't care less about it, which in fact, he really could not. "It is not as if we have an illicit affair or anything."
Since he didn't really know what would be a perfect comeback to that, the Sexta Espada only growled in frustration.
Seeing so, Ulquiorra frowned again before he eyed the shaved ice that already began to melt. It looked like the plan really did not work, which meant that he would have to find a new one.
"Very well then, if you're not going to eat it, then I'll just throw it away," Ulquiorra concluded. "It's just trash anyway."
Also eyeing the dessert, Grimmjow couldn't help thinking that it wouldn't be too bad to eat it, especially when it was really hot that day in Hueco Mundo. However, he would never actually say it to Ulquiorra and give that man a satisfaction that he had done something right.
"What the fuck is with you and calling everything trash?" the Sexta Espada wondered.
"And why can't I call it trash?" Ulquiorra returned, dubious. "I made that dessert for you, so if you refused to eat it, then it serves no purpose. When something has no purpose, it is worthless, and worthless things are trash."
If the line was spoken by anyone else in that kind of situation, it would have been dripped with sarcasm. However, since it was said by Ulquiorra, the Sexta Espada could tell that the man was simply being honest and rational, which somehow gave him another urge to bang his head against the wall.
With an exasperated sigh, Grimmjow asked, "When the hell did I say I'm not going to eat it?"
"Oh?" Ulquiorra said, lifting an eyebrow.
That cocky reaction made Grimmjow regret having said anything at all. He might want to eat that dessert, but he would rather die than to let Ulquiorra think even for a second that he won and Grimmjow actually wanted something that he made. Therefore, he had to add, "Let's clear something up first, Ulquiorra."
"What is it?"
"I'm only gonna eat it because I hate it when you treat everything like trash and because it's a waste to throw away food, not because I want anything that comes from you."
"Fair enough."
"Good! So we have an understanding."
Ulquiorra shrugged as if he didn't care either way and then left the kitchen without parting words. It wasn't long after the Cuarta Espada had left the kitchen that the chef returned to his post and other Arrancars began walking in.
Staring at the absurdly huge bowl of blue and green shaved ice, Grimmjow once again wondered if Ulquiorra really did try to be friendly. Although the gesture was kind of nice, the guy could be trying to mess with his head, or worse, put some poison in the dessert.
The last thought made Grimmjow hesitate to dig in, so he looked around the kitchen to find someone or something that could serve as a guinea pig. Hearing a bark, he looked down and saw the small Hollow mutt that Yammy kept as a pet. He didn't know when it got inside the kitchen or what it was doing so far away from where it should be, but since he and that dog were never fond of each other to begin with, he decided it would be the best test subject.
With that thought, the Sexta Espada grinned evilly and scooped a spoonful of ice up and placed it on the floor before the dog, which didn't seem to question the blue-haired Espada's intention at all when it happily licked the ice and then wagged its tail as if to ask for more.
After he waited for a moment and saw that the dog didn't roll over and die, Grimmjow decided it was safe enough to eat. It didn't taste too bad. However, he had to say it would be much better if the dessert was made by someone who actually put a heart into it instead of by someone who couldn't care less if it would be liked or thrown away.
End of Chapter II