Nightmares of the Past

Grimmjow was a pretty sound sleeper, but the smallest of noises usually caught his attention and would wake him up considering he was used to sleeping in pure silence not to mention his animalistic senses were always alert whether he was awake or not. Although he had slept a good seven to eight hours, plenty of rest that he would normally get before another day of fighting, he was woken by something rather unsettling. At first irritated by disturbed sleep, he then became bewildered as he slowly sat up in bed, rubbing his feline like eyes as his hearing focused on the noise.

Just what the hell was making those sounds?

It sounded like…whimpering.

"Kein," he stated the hybrid Shinigami's name as he slid over the edge of the bed and then stood as a few of his joints cracked from long positioned sleep. Letting out an annoyed exhale through his nostrils, he simply put on his jacket and shoes, placed his hands in his pockets, and then started down the hallway as he followed the low pitched whimpers. It took quite a few rooms down the hallway before he finally stumbled upon the one she was occupying. Out of all the rooms she could have picked, strangely enough it used to be Aaroniero's room; the Espada that used to occupy the body of the Shinigami Lieutenant, Shiba Kaien.

…of all the rooms to pick…

"…n-n-no…please…s-stop…"

His thoughts were cut short as he watched her from the doorway. She was shifting back and forth, sweating, and looked rather uncomfortable as her sheets and pillow was tossed about.

"…stop….NO!"

It almost sounded like panic in her tone as she muttered about from her nightmare. "Tch, must be one hell of a damn dream," he stated almost interested by the scene as he walked over to her bedside. He had never watched someone sleep before let alone watch a sleeping person's reaction to a nightmare. His shadow loomed over her as he simply stated out loud, but not loud enough to startle her, "Hey…wake up."

She showed no response to the stimulus as she continued to murmur and pant. His eyebrows furrowed as he tried again, "Kein, come on, wake up." Still no response.

sigh

Sitting himself on the edge of the bed he was going to try for a third time, but then he noticed that the appearance of a few tears had crept out from her tightly shut eyes and streamed down the sides of her face. His breathing flinched at the sight. She was sweating profusely. Must have been worst then he thought. Taking his right hand out of its pocket, he firmly and yet gently placed it upon her left shoulder area as he carefully shook her a little.

"Kein," he stated her name more audibly as she struggled slightly under his hand. He could feel the intensity in the flinching of her muscles.

"Wake up damn it," then suddenly her eyes shot open as she inhaled in a deep crying gasp "STOP!"

Grimmjow almost jumped from her sudden loud reaction as he took in a gulp from her rather daunting expression. Her hands were gripped tightly upon his hand and forearm as her mind tried to comprehend the difference from the nightmare she had just had versus the reality she had just awoken to as Grimmjow's features became clear to her. She wasn't expecting to be woken up let alone to the image of Grimmjow at her bedside and under his touch. They stared at each other in a locked gaze; Kein's eyes rather exasperated; his rather shocked, but silent.

"G-Gri—"

"…you picked a weird room to sleep in," he interrupted her as his expression calmed, his tone low and quiet as he tried to steer her thoughts away from her dream since it was obviously unsettling. Her grip on his hand and forearm lightened as he casually slipped it back into his pocket, standing up from the edge of the bed as his back faced her. Tears were still fresh in her eyes and he found it a tad unnerving to look at. He wasn't used to locking gazes with someone that wasn't during a battle of some kind.

And he was most certainly not used to locking gazes with a woman that was teary eyed. He began to take footsteps to the door as she stopped him in place, "Wait!" But she wasn't sure what to say beyond that as he turned his head, looking over his shoulder at her. "Take a minute to regain your composure. When you're ready, meet me out in the fields." And then he just simply left.

That was it? No rough commands, no barking or biting? Just a simple take time to gain your composure?

This was odd to Kein and almost a bit refreshing as this was the first time he had shown a little compassion to her even if it didn't last long. She could still feel the impression of his hand upon her shoulder as she touched it lightly, but this comfort soon easily faded as images of her nightmare flashed through her mind. She really needed to get a grip as she didn't want to make Grimmjow wait too long, but her heart was so wrenched and she felt so violated, like poison running through her veins.

Taking a moment to ease herself out of bed she quickly ran back down the hall to Grimmjow's room as she immediately took in his scent that emitted from the doorway. It brought a little relief, but it wasn't enough for what she was looking for to clear her head. A chill ran up her spine as she held herself for a few seconds, not being able to rid the dream from her mind. It was so penetrating.

Thinking maybe washing her face would help distract her mind, she went to the bathroom as she bent over the sink, running luke cool water and then splashed it upon her face. She took in a deep breath as the temperature cooled down her skin, her racing heart beginning to beat more slowly to the still silence.

Reaching behind her she groped for a towel as she stood upright and gently wiped her face off, feeling the softness of the towel's fibers as they gently wiped away the water and sweat. Placing the towel down she then gripped the sides of the countertop, bowing her head as she starred down into the hole of the sink, watching the remaining water slink down inside it. She chuckled lightly as the little black hole suddenly reminder her of Grimmjow's stomach hole. She then smiled as she was finally calming down.

"I can't believe I dreamt about my death," she spoke aloud to herself. "But why…now? Is today…the day I think it is?" She wondered, not able to help but feel that for some reason it felt close to the anniversary of her death when in the living world. Her smile then frowned as the elevated discomfort began to rise more within her heart. No matter what she did, she just couldn't shake it away. Finally lifting her head she then peered into the mirror, but the reflection she saw was not her own as she was gazing into the green eyes of a man with red hair, the green eyes of Masaki Ichiron.

Her heart…stopped.

She let out a cry that echoed throughout the halls and chambers as she quickly as possible bolted out of that room and down the hallways, anything to escape that image. She felt for a moment that maybe she was going crazy as she ran as fast as she could until she finally made it onto the sandy grounds. And from the sandy grounds she had stepped foot upon the area caped over with the fake sky. Hunched over with her hands placed upon her knees, she panted for air as her heart raced faster than the speed of light.

Normally at a moment like this, she would be desperate to see Shiba Kaien; her lieutenant and closest friend, but having been dead for so many years this desperation soon switched over Ichigo. He was her shoulder to cry on, her embrace when she needed one, her sight of a calm and endearing face. However, with neither one around to be that piece of comfort, she soon desired something new, something bolder and headstrong, not so refined.

She wanted Grimmjow.

Having caught her breath, she stood upright and looked around, walking ahead a couple of feet as Pantera came into view, it jabbed into the ground so she figured he had to be nearby. "Grimmjow?" She audibly spoke out, trying to spot out that familiar shade of blue, but he was nowhere to be seen. "Ready to fight now?" His voice sounded suddenly behind her, sending a chill up her spine as she quickly turned around to face him as he stood quite a few feet away, his hands in his pockets as always and his hair in its usual morning-after style.

Normally she would answer back with a fiery perked up reply, but instead she just simply answered in a mellow tone, "Yeah." His eyebrows arched further inward as he barked, "What's with that pathetic look on your face, Marasuna?" Although he spoke with his usual gruff tone, it was more of his personal funny way of trying to snap her out of her funk since it was clearly printed all over her face. Tossing her gaze to the side with a sigh she merely answered, "Nevermind that. Let's just go ahead and fight," as she tossed her gaze back at him, but he wasn't convinced.

"There's no way I'm fighting you since its obvious you're bothered by that damn dream of yours. Consider it a day off, you won't get another one."

"No," she refused firmly "What did you just say?" he asked back in a low growl.

"I'll be damned if I'm going back in there. I want to fight you here and now! So let's get this started damn it!" She commanded in a more fiery attitude. He almost smirked as he replied, "That's more like it."

As much as he liked her talking with attitude, something about her was heavily askew. The look of determination in her eyes is different than it was before, like she was trying to distract herself more than trying to better herself. Something told him deep inside his gut instincts that this fight was probably a bad idea, but he decided to ignore the feeling just this once. How could he turn that opportunity down? She wanted to fight. He always wanted to fight. Enough said.

Quick starting a lunge, he came at her with forceful fists as she returned the favor, putting up her hands and ready to pounce. They simultaneously blocked each other as her punch met his palm and his thrusting knee met her forearm. Pushing his knee away, she tried to hit his side with a swinging kick, but he blocked it with his free hand, the other still gripped tightly upon her fist. Using his gripping hand as leverage, she flipped her body vertically upside down as it twisted her hand out of his grasp as she then came down upon him with a spinning kick, but to her surprise he was quick to cross his forearms and block upwards, keeping him from plummeting to the ground.

Pushing her leg out of the way, he shot upwards into the air above her, curling his legs upward and then thrusting them down as his feet planted into her chest, a wad of spit flying from her mouth, her body plummeting towards the ground. He flashed stepped from behind her, ready to kick her directly in the back. She was quick to retaliate, but something held her back as an image flashed through her mind, an ever familiar voice haunting her in the back of her subconscious.

"What's the matter you little bitch? Isn't this what you've been wanting for so long? HUH?"

She gasped out loud as Grimmjow's kick planted against her back, touching mostly upon her indentation as she was sent flying upwards, an audible grunt sounding from her mouth as she was shot up into the sky. Grimmjow blinked in a bit of confusion. He knew she could have easily blocked that. Did she take the kick on purpose like she did before with his Ceros? No…this wasn't on purpose or because she didn't see it coming. She missed the chance to block because of distraction. Something for a small instant had taken her attention away from the fight.

"Damn it!" He cursed in irritation as he flashed up to her level, Kein catching herself as she stopped finally and floated about, arching her back, her mind now occupied with the freshly drawn pain. He waited for her as she regained her composure, finding the fact that he wasn't attacking rather surprising not to mention his body language. He wasn't in a fighting stance of any kind as he simply floated with his hands in his pockets and the look on his face not at all amused. She frowned as she barked in question, "What?" almost irritated that he simply stopped in mid action.

"What do you mean what? You're the one acting all damned depressed."

Her eyes widened as her eyebrows furrowed. "Punch the air, blast a building, do whatever the hell you feel like, but we are done." His words made her choke as he floated himself casually back to the ground as he went over to Pantera to place it back in its sheath while Kein floated in the air by herself, a bit dumbfounded. Since when did Grimmjow ever walk away from a fight with her? Normally under right set of mind, she probably would have stepped back and did as told, but she argued the logic with the fact that she always found some form of peace when fighting, even if she was bothered by something. It was her way of getting it all out of her system, a way to let loose and let it all go. And she was damned if she was going to go back into his room with the image she saw in the mirror's reflection.

It haunted her.

Not wanting to back down, she flash stepped in front of Grimmjow just before he touched his hand upon Pantera's hilt, taking him by surprise as he wasn't used to her being so defiant and stubborn. His gaze narrowed as the look upon his face was unchanged.

"Look, sometimes warriors have to fight when a bit emotionally stretched. What difference does it make? You're always talking about how I have to hold my own when in crippling pain so how is being a little bothered any different of a circumstance?"

His face was just as stubborn looking as hers was, not really in the mood to listen to her whining or argue with her. However, she did have a point. Warriors have to survive regardless of the circumstance. An opponent is not going to back down just because the individual they're fighting is a little depressed.

"We gonna continue this or what?" She further barked as he reluctantly gave in and answered, "Don't make me regret this."

Ah, there it was; his usual smirk as it creased across his face in satisfaction. His smirk was met with hers, "Tch, alright…" as he got in a battle stance "…let's finish this." A short moment passed before they came at each other again, fists flying and intercepting each other's moves. He threw an upper cut, but she blocked as it impact her hands, sending her back up into the sky as he quickly followed after her. She flash stepped behind him with a spinning kick and he quickly flash stepped above her, locking his fists together and then violently swinging them down to hit her head, but she flash stepped yet again as their pace quickened.

She was actually keeping up with him, which he found rather odd considering that on normal circumstances on days when she was in a calmer mood, she found it more difficult to keep paces with him without the help of her mask. Maybe this wasn't such a bad idea after all if she was indeed improving. What better way to fight than to create a habit of learning how to focus on your emotions as leverage to enhance your abilities? But something still felt off, unbalanced, and unrestrained like a ticking bomb.

His thought was interrupted as she blasted a Cero his way, Grimmjow barely dodging it at the last second, laughing aggressively, "HA! You sure you want to play this game again?"

She grinned wildly in response, "First one to get burned loses!"

She fired another one, but he suddenly flash stepped behind her, a Cero waiting to blast off from his hand as she was engulfed in a red glow. She gasped as she rapidly turned around in response, instantly reading a counter Cero. He gasped, flash stepping away just as she fired it off. She was definitely more riled then he realized, but at the same time he found it refreshing.

With her attention taken by the fact he dodged at the last second, he came up behind her as she anticipated he would, turning around rapidly once again with a round housing kick to his face. He caught her foot, pulling her inward as he threw a left punch into her stomach. She coughed up a bit of blood as he rained a slew of punches into her before he finished off the combo with an elbow to her chest, launching her to the ground as she hit it with an unforgiving thud.

The pain surged through her body, struggling to stand, a red glow appearing from the sky as she shot her gaze upwards to see Grimmjow preparing a rather large Cero. She threw up a tired arm as she was determined to counter it, but just before he fired it off he quickly flash stepped to the ground, quite a few feet from her as he blasted a very strong quick shot Ceros towards her way. However, it was not Grimmjow that she saw blasting the Cero, it was Masaki with a crazy snide grin, laughing manically as another memory flashed through her mind.

"Stop? You want me to STOP? YOU FUCKING CUNT! I'LL KILL YOU!"

She was stiff…and wasn't doing anything about the oncoming Ceros. Grimmjow gasped as he realized something had frozen her still as he yelled, "MOVE DAMNIT!"

Seeing as there wasn't any second left to figure out what to do, he flash stepped to her as fast as he could, just before the Ceros hit as he clasped his arms around her, pulling them both to the ground as the Ceros blazed by, hitting a building in the distance with exploding impacts. Had he not got to her at the last remaining second, the Ceros could have severely damaged her or lopped off a few limbs, let alone possibly killing her. Held in his arms, Grimmjow slowly lifted his head up from Kein as he watched the Ceros finally disperse from the atmosphere as the sky faded back to its faked blue color. When all was cleared and quiet he stood up from the ground as he looked down at Kein who was sitting upright, looking in the direction where the Ceros hit.

She was simply shocked from the moment just as much as Grimmjow was infuriated that she simply stood still and almost got hit. "What the HELL'S THE MATTER WITH YOU?" He clenched his fists in bitter anger. "YOU COULD HAVE GOTTEN KI—" his yelling cut short as she slowly tossed her gaze at him, her eyes shooting a stare that could pierce through souls as they began to fill with tears. She then simply got up from the ground ran inside.

"HEY! Son of a…fucking HELL!"

He was so angry that he was beside himself. Truthfully though he was glad she left from his sight as he felt rather implored to beat the living daylights out of her for being so stupid let alone kicking himself for ignoring his gut instinct to not fight with her to begin with. He should have just followed his hunch. Running down the many corridors of Los Noches, her quickly moving feet slowly stilled to quiet tired footsteps as she took her time making it back to Grimmjow's room. It used to feel inviting to her as she stared at the calmness of the room, but now she felt like an alien within it that badly needed to be dispersed. Not wanting to touch the bed or the couch, she sat at the desk that sat idly against the wall at the head of the bed as she folded her arms and dug her face within them, hunched over in the chair as she tried to contain herself. She felt like her insides were going to explode as silent tears seeped out from her eyes.

Minutes passed, possibly an hour as she sat there by herself until the sounds of footsteps echoed from the hallway. Just from the essence of the spiritual pressure alone, she knew it was Grimmjow. Part of her wanted to look up from the desk and check, but she didn't dare look him in the eyes, afraid that he was still infuriated. The footsteps stopped at the door as Grimmjow looked into the room, seeing Kein at the desk. He watched her for a few seconds as she didn't make a response, assuming that maybe she had fallen asleep. It was irritating just to see her, but he wasn't nearly as mad as one could imagine. He was actually pretty calmed down. There was something he wanted to discuss with her, but now was not the time.

Keeping to himself for the time being, he plopped upon the bed, kicking off his boots as particles of sand landed upon the floor as he stretched himself out with his hands behind his head and his eyes closed. Moments passed before Kein finally lifted up her head, urged to ask Grimmjow a question that she's been wanting to ask for a long time now.

"Grimmjow, can I ask you something?"

The Espada didn't move or flinch in the bed, but he was indeed awake merely with closed eyes as he answered, "Yeah, what?" His tone was rough, but he didn't mean much by it although he was a bit irritated that their training session was cut so short, however it's just how he always talked and with Aizen and the other Arrancar's gone and out of the way, he was free to truly be himself as Kein was glad for and she did everything she could to make sure he never felt like he had to hold back, but in turn it greatly intimidated her.

"Do you remember anything about your past, when you were in the living world? I know you were there at one point just like me and just like all the other Shinigami's and Hollows."

Grimmjow let the question sit on his mind for a second as it indeed was an intriguing question no doubt, but there wasn't much of an answer he could give. "No, not that it matters. Arrancars are born from the combination of over 1000 Hollows and under that layer is combined Gillians and even under that layer is lower ranking Hollows and then of course Human souls. With all those lives and memories combined, it all gets jumbled together and lost until it forms one final being. So no…don't remember a damn thing and could care less."

Kein sighed further as she wanted to open up to Grimmjow, but was too afraid to annoy him since he wasn't exactly an emotional guy of any kind and not as softer edged like Ichigo. She loved everything about Grimmjow, the good and the bad, but she missed being able to talk to someone that would gladly listen without retort. She missed talking to Ichigo and hearing his input or just feeling the warmth of his smile and presence. The more she thought about all of this, the more intense her insides became. If she was going to get out any relief, then it was best for her to leave. Getting up from the desk she walked to the side of the bed where the jawboned masked Espada could see her face to face. His eyes were closed of course, but he was listening even if it didn't seem like he was.

"I've been wanting to tell you something for a while now, but I didn't feel it was necessary to discuss as it feels completely irrelevant to training, but now…I can't run from it anymore since its caught up with me because of the nightmare I had last night, a nightmare about my past."

"Yeah, I figured. You'll get over it by tomorrow." Kein sighed even further as she turned her back and walked to the doorway as she stopped at its entrance. "I remember everything about my past, every detail and moment. I don't normally think about it, but it comes back to haunt me every now and again. I guess you're lucky in that regard. You don't have to worry about your past or really your future either. You make it however you want it without anything to affect you."

"Yep, that's pretty much how things should be. Can't do anything about the past and can't predict the future. All there is is the now." Despite the truth in Grimmjow's words, it didn't stop how she felt, how she was exploding on the inside.

"I wish I could say the same. The nightmare I had last night? It was about the day I died…the day I was beaten…the day I was raped savagely without mercy."

The word rung through the Espada's mind. "Raped?" It was one of many words he wasn't accustomed to or used to hearing. He was perfectly aware of the many horrible lives that some Hollows had to live, but he never expected to hear it from a Shinigami's mouth. He didn't gasp, but in pure silence one could hear a flinch in his breathing as he opened his eyes and looked at Kein who was still standing with her back turned. He could not see with his own eyes, but tears began to stream down Kein's face.

"It was because of that nightmare that I wasn't able to train with you properly. My body can heal itself within a 72 hour period, but it can't regenerate limbs and Orihime isn't here to reverse any damage we both sustain while training, even if I can heal you myself. So you had every right to be angry with me for nearly getting killed. Please forgive me. I'm sorry Grimmjow."

Her words nearly choked on a sob as she had to bite her tongue to hold back, running away from the bedroom and down the halls of Los Noches. Grimmjow quickly sat up as he leaned back on his arms, a bit taken back by her words. He didn't know how to react or what to say and he assumed that if she ran away that she just needed time to be alone and recollect her composure, but what was he really to say to something like that with it being so brief and so lacking in detail? It was the first time she had opened up to him about her past. Sighing, he laid back down upon his back, crossing a leg as it rested upon the other's knee, closing his eyes as he tried to set aside in his mind what just happened, but once again something hit his gut with an uneasy bearing.

He grumbled at the feeling as it didn't seem to go away. He ignored a gut hunch before their fight, which he now regretted, but he felt it detrimental if he ignored a gut feeling a second time so he decided to go after her, keeping his distance in a quiet following manner. She had already made it a good distance away as he took quiet steps down the hallway following her spiritual pressure. It wasn't long before he had reached the area she entered as it was outside of Los Noches and upon the sandy grounds within the region of the sleeping white giant they occupied. He stood just behind the entrance in shadow as he cast a watching gaze upon her. She was a good feet away, but close enough to take notice of anything specific.

She stood like a ghost as many thoughts and images crossed her mind, remembering the last time she had a horrible emotional outbreak when she had taken Urahara's memory serum. She almost regretted the decision, but it was a necessary evil to uncover the depths of her personal issues. That was such a hellish night, having almost lost control. If Ichigo had not shown up when he did, and comforted her in his arms, she wasn't sure what would have happened. It could have easily been a repeat of when Ernesto took over her body for the first time, just before the incident with Rukia giving Ichigo her powers.

Having died so young in her youth, and not having the chance to truly come to terms with what happened to her and her parents, it was an inner demon that always lingered with her, rarely touched upon or bothered her, but when it did…it becomes mentally devastating.

Of all the memories she wished she could have forgotten was the details of how she died. It was so brutal and unforgiving, so merciless and unfair. It felt like a volcano was about to erupt inside her heart as she paced heavily back and forth upon the sand, gritting her teeth and clenching her fists. Every negative emotion imaginable raced through her as she fell to her knees, clutching her head. She trembled and let out crying sobs, her head lowered almost touching the ground as she slammed her fist upon it as it dug into the rough grains. Her sobs soon turned to enraged yells as they echoed throughout Hueco Mundo like the cries of a distant Hollow trying to find its way back to rational understanding, but would never find contentment.

Clutching her head again she continued to yell in distraught rage as she sat upright with her head slung back as her Vizard mask suddenly appeared, hollowing the sound of her cries, her spiritual pressure significantly increasing as it began to alter and morph the atmosphere around her, a dark aura surrounding her body. What was at first uncomfortable just to watch from the sidelines, suddenly brought about a sense of worry as Grimmjow gritted his teeth. He had witnessed emotional sides to Kein, but nothing like this. And he was beginning to get a much clearer picture of just how in depth she was and how unbalanced and different from the others, but in the midst of this thought it was then images of Ichigo transforming into his Vasto Lorde form flashed through his mind like a blasting bullet.

It was a daunting transformation and he began to fear that at this point Kein could likely let loose her own Vasto Lorde form. He wasn't quite sure if it was possible for her to, but it was a risk he did not want to take.

Kein's hollowed cries engulfed the air as she was still kneeling with her arms flexed out and to the sides with fists clenching so tightly that it drew blood, but just when she thought no comfort was in sight, no sense of being or rational, she was suddenly wrapped by hardened strong arms as the strange yet familiar warmth surrounded her and immediately the dark aura around her body faded just from the shock of being in an unexpected embrace, but it was not the same feeling she got from Ichigo when he hugged her.

No, this was a much different embrace; not in the essence of loving or friendship, sympathy or pity but an embrace of simple understanding and stability that she could rely on and rest her pains on without fear of the repercussions.

It was…a stronghold.

Tears streamed out from her mask as her cries were replaced with a heavy silence, uttering but a single name.

"G-Gr…Grimmjow?"

Her heart raced as he kept his embrace on her until the storm of emotions calmed.

"It's not your fault."

She gasped audibly as her mask shattered off, revealing her wrenched, but shocked expression. She never thought that she would ever hear those words from him. She wasn't sure if he meant that it wasn't her fault for being raped, or that it wasn't her fault for what happened during their fight, but she simply didn't care. Straightforward words of understanding that didn't come in a harsh tone from the Sexta Espada himself were all she needed.

Loosening his embrace on her, their gaze was now met face to face as he kept his hands upon her arms. She hadn't seen this soft type of expression since she held Grimmjow in her arms to protect him after Nnoitra's sneak attack on him, but now the roles were switched. It created a connection between the two that neither could really rationalize nor understand, but it didn't matter. Her face cringed again as the sentiment from Grimmjow meant so much to her that she couldn't hold herself back anymore as she flung her arms around his midriff, digging her face into his chest as her tears slid down her face and upon his skin.

The move was unexpected as his arms were still out to the side, trying to comprehend this moment…this…feeling, but for the first time he just didn't give a shit anymore to over think it or to wonder why it was so strange to him so instead he simply rested his chin upon her head, placing a hand behind it as he used his other hand to lay upon her back, feeling her tremble. He thought the moment would irritate him, but it felt nice; to be able to interact with someone that didn't involve flying fists or bloody knuckles.

It's just pure and simple and…innocent.

He stayed silent as her sobs quieted to murmuring whimpers and the murmuring whimpers to exhausted and exasperated exhales as her body leaned into him, her weight heavier as she was succumbing to just wanting to close her eyes and sleep. Without hesitation Grimmjow simply picked her up in his arms and carried her back to Los Noches. His pace was neither quick nor slow as he walked down the corridors, Kein's arm laid limp upon her stomach as she had a hand upon his chest, feeling his scar left over from her attack during the war. It felt rippled and yet strangely soft. It was the first time she ever got to feel upon it personally, but being carried soon put her at an ease as she silently fell asleep.

He soon made it back to his room as he gently laid her down upon his bed. He was tired from the day's ordeal as he was sure she was even more so bushed. Sitting at the bedside he just simply watched her, sound asleep. Emotions began to surface inside him and he didn't know how to explain them except but with one word; endearing. He felt a bit closer to her and for once in his life he didn't feel so much like a loner anymore. Not only did he have someone he could train himself and mold into his own shape, but someone he could equally test his powers against. Not only did he have someone that understands the passion for battle, but also understands the much darker struggles in life that not many would comprehend; situations and bad comings that he didn't think many could relate to, but somehow Kein did and maybe one day he would open up to her as well.

However, it would be a very long time before he ever acted upon such a notion. For now he would just deal with the present like he always has.

The couch didn't even come to mind this time around as he purposely but unconsciously had left enough room on the bed for a second person. Kicking off his boots and striping down to his jacket, he got under the covers and laid next to her for a first time without feeling repelled away.

That night the two warriors slept as kindred spirits.