Chapter 12 ::::For the Greater Good::::
Soul Society Victory (DAY 1):
The Ordinance made by the Squad One Captain of the 13 Court Guard was very clear and concise with little room for interpretation. "Any Hollows or Soul Reapers found to be in league with the traitor, Sosuke Aizen, were to be terminated upon site." The hunt for the enemy and any remaining Arrancar in Karakura Town began. Gin, Tousen, and Aizen's bodies were never found, therefore, it was assumed they could amass a new attack at any time. For the greater good, it was necessary for certain precautionary measures to be put in place.
Soul Society Victory (DAY 4):
Karakura Town has been eradicated of all known hostiles. The announcement is distributed to all persons living within the vicinity of, and emanating a certain degree of spiritual pressure or sensitivity. Soul Society recruits are stationed throughout the town to ensure the area known as zone:1 remains "clean," or Hollow-free. Celebrations and festivities begin preparation, however, care of the wounded remains a top priority.
Soul Society Victory (DAY 8):
An amendment is added to the standing ordinance. "Should any hollows be found in any zones on Earth deemed "Clean," they are to be eradicated on site. No quarter will be given to any being and/or persons aiding or abetting any spiritual enemy to Soul Society," *exception will be taken to entities assessed as having "hole" status, and therefore, privy to the right of konso.*
Soul Society Victory (DAY 10):
The ordinance is extended to include "Hueco Mundo: This is for the greater good and deemed necessary and permissible during time of war. However, due to heavy casualties sustained by Soul Society, the deadline for eradication will be extended to 3 months in order to recoup said losses and form a capable battalion. Our Offensive will be headed by Squad Two's Captain Soifon along with the Stealth force, as well as any volunteers from remaining squads who wish to help aid the war effort. Volunteers must sign a roster for leave with permission from their designated Captains, respectively."
Soul Society Victory (DAY 11):
…After many sleepless nights and three positive over-the-counter pregnancy tests, …Orihime Inoue discovers, she is with child. Due to her fear of discovery from Soul Society, damnation from her closest friends, and her deep sense of loss, …Orihime becomes a recluse, never straying far from the confines of her home...
:::::A Profound Truth:::::
It had been several weeks since the battle between Aizen's army and Soul Society. Orihime did not participate in the celebrations that preceded the war. She had remained in her apartment, still in mourning for the loss of her once-captor. Although she'd been in her home for several weeks, she felt most of her soul stayed behind and remained in Hueco Mundo.
She thought back to Ulquiorra's final moments, realizing only now how beautiful he truly was. It was only when he reached out to her that many of his inner hopes and fears were disclosed. For it was in his final moments that many of his thoughts had been unknowingly exposed to her.
She wasn't sure how it was possible, but she knew through and through, she had shared a bond with him on a cerebral level that humans were still unfamiliar with. That, or she was mad. But if she were crazy, how did she now know everything about him? She, somehow, knew his reasons for collaborating with Aizen, the true condition of his rapidly deteriorating health (which he'd kept hidden from her to save her sanity), and his feelings of admiration and…love. Love that he'd had for her from almost the very beginning.
She had finally grasped how hard he had fought for his own kind. Ulquiorra was devout in his belief that hollows had the right to exist without persecution from the Soul Society and the right to seek respite from eternal suffering. This had been his only reason for existing and he gave everything he gave everything he had to try and ensure a better world for Hollows. She now saw him for the unsung hero that he was.
And with this new knowledge, she was no longer innocent to the cruel ways of men. She knew just how far down the rabbit hole went, the extent to which Aizen had gone to achieve his goals. He'd taken advantage of and betrayed desperate hollow creatures who admired Aizen's fearlessness, his technology, and his brazen contempt of the Soul Society. Hollows bought into his false promises which cost them their lives.
Orihime had heard through rumor the fate of the remaining Espada who stood beside Aizen. He did nothing to protect or spare them from slaughter. In fact, it was even said that he'd aided in their demise, one by one until none remained. The Hollows, not unlike the Soul Society, had become Aizen's latest victims …buying into the dreams of a torment-free existence that he had sold them.
Yes, this new information was both comforting and tragic. Although her heart swelled with pride regarding Ulquiorra, it also made her feel isolated and a need to remain alone. No one would sympathize or understand, she would only be viewed as a traitor. She was carrying around a secret which was becoming more profound by the week. She would be nothing but a liability to her friends who, despite their heroic efforts in the fight against Aizen, would also fall under the severe punishment and judgment of the Soul Society.
Having no one else to turn to, she began writing in a journal and began honing her abilities to try and bolster what little power she possessed. She would often pray in front of what remained of Ulquiorra's ashes, as well as the pictures of her Brother. Both, placed lovingly on her mantle.
Although her shield summoning ability had strengthened, her attempts at rejecting the ashes back to a living state proved futile. Every attempt left her foggy-headed and sleepy. …Still, the effort consumed her. She prayed every night and day for a breakthrough of some kind, a miracle…hope.
:::::A Man with a Plan:::::
Kisuke Urahara was an imaginative man of science and an observer of politics, though his past attempts at either had proven to be a travesty, career-wise. Still, he took his vast knowledge and past failures and sought to help impose reason and order to the current state of things. There were none in the Soul Society or the human world who could predict the patterns and the dangers that would soon follow should events continue along their current trajectory. It began with him being blamed for Aizen's hollowfication experiments and ended with an inner warning regarding the Soul Society's current unprecedented ordinances and steady rise in power. If someone didn't intervene soon, total chaos would ensue. He knew it would be a dangerous undertaking, ...and it would be solely dependent upon her.
Kisuke was the only one who seemed to notice the slight change in spiritual pressure surrounding the town. It was subtle. He could only sense it on particularly windy days, yet its very presense haunted his every thought. And he had felt it the very day that Orihime had returned home from her imprisonment in Hueco Mundo. Everyday since, Kisuke began taking note of any mention Ichigo or Rukia made regarding Orihime. His unease escalated when they became concerned that she wasn't acting like herself, her deep sadness, despondence, and now, ...isolation. Was she was avoiding them? To him, it certainly appeared so.
After a few brisk walks around her home, Kisuke was certain. Orihime was manifesting spiritual distress on a high dimensional level that very few beings would even notice. He had only witnessed such an occurrence once during his long lifetime. Back in his soul reaper days, he'd been helpless to stop the hollowfication devastation. However, today, he was older and wiser. If his suspicions proved true, it would be providence. …But he was getting ahead of himself. He needed more proof than a feeling of familiarity from an event that took place over 100 years past.
"Come in my friend. It has been a very long time since you visited me here. Am I correct in asumming this is not a social visit? Tell me, what troubles you, Kisuke?"
"Ishouda Hachigan, my-my, it has been a long time. As time is crucial, let me come straight to the point. I need information about a former acquaintance of yours," the man in the green striped hat continued, "...a girl you once helped just before she was captured by Aizen."
"My dear Orihime, yes. …Such a tragedy to befall one so young. And the poor girl is still human, and barely a woman, at that! I shudder to think of what she may have suffered at Aizen's hands."
"If what I've concluded is, in fact, accurate, ...then what she has suffered in the past may be just the tip of the iceberg compared to what's coming. ...Haven't you felt it? The air has an odd spiritual residue, typically associated, with a hollowfying Shinigami in its mask-forming stage."
"Hmm…yes, I too, have felt a strangeness in the air. And now that you mention it, it does seem to be coming from the part of town that she resides in. I'm getting older, Kisuke. I never put it together."
"I'm not certain of anything, and I suspect her home is being shielded. I need more proof and you know her abilities far better than I do. Is there some way we can get more information without alerting her? It's been my experience that young and foolish go hand in hand. In her fragile state, I don't want to drive her further away from everyone."
"I fear for her as well. Even from this distance I can now sense the strong shield she has placed around her home, poor thing, it must be terribly draining on her. Still, if there was anyone who could slip through such a creation, it would be me."
"I was hoping you would say that, Hacchi. It would be best to keep this between you and me until we have all of facts straight."
"And given the lethal nature of the Soul Society Ordinances, I couldn't agree with you more."
…..One stolen Diary and Two days later….
A visitor knocked on her door in the middle of the night, rousing her from her usual torrent of nightmares. She initially ignored the banging on her door. After all, it was a weekend and people drank…her home was very similar to many others. It was probably just a confused neighbor. If she remained quiet, her would-be intruder would eventually realize their mistake, and stumble their way back home. However, tonight was different, the knocking only increased in intensity. …And then a moment of silence before a loud *bang.* And then she felt a breeze waft its way from the other side of her living room. She slowly left her bedroom, threw on a bathrobe, and peered slowly around the corner to see her front door off its hinges and several strangers now standing in her home.
"We knew you were home," Uryu Ishida said in his typical matter-of-fact voice, "…and nobody has seen or heard from you in weeks. It took us awhile to figure it all out, as each one of us assumed you'd been in contact with the others."
She looked around the room and recognized all of them, although she was quite surprised by the motley crew currently tripping over her furniture. She recognized Shinji, Hacchi, Hiyori, Uryu, Rukia, and blushed (of course) when she saw Ichigo. She knew she looked completely disheveled, a veritable train-wreck, and turned away slightly when she realized it had been days since her last shower. She nervously fidgeted with the terry-cloth belt on her pink, egg-stained bathrobe.
"W-Why are you here?" she asked timidly, looking away from them and towards the floor.
Orihime's voice was weak and raspy, very unlike her typically bubbly self that all her friends were used to. Everyone gasped as they saw her fuller form come into the glow of the nightlight that illuminated the sparsely decorated living room. She was at least 3 months along and her choice of nighttime attire did little to hide her distended figure.
"Orihime, we thought something had happened to you. We…uh, we were worried…" Rukia finished lamely.
After that, the silence in the room became deafening. Finally, Shinji looked sideways at the rest of them and said through gritted teeth,
"So, uh…who's the Daddy?"
"Shinji, you're an idiot," said Hiyori as she hit him hard on the head with her yellow flip-flop.
Rukia rushed to Orihime's side, placed her palms over her friends' hands, and explained:
"Listen, we're going to help get you through this. Everything is going to be ok, understand?"
"I don't need help. I'm fine, really." Inoue stated in a soft monotone voice as tears formed in her eyes and ran down her cheeks.
"You're obviously not fine. Look at yourself and this place! You're way over your head here and nobody is leaving until you agree to let us help you!" Ichigo said determinedly.
"You don't understand," Orihime stuttered over her words, "…none of you know. If you knew, your lives would be in danger. You have to leave here!"
"We know all about the father of this baby, Orihime, " said Kisuke Urahara stepping into the living room through an open window. Orihime sees her Diary within his grasp and gasped in horror! (Shinji looks at the others..."Did any of you know? ...cause' I didn't know."...Hiyori, once again, smacks him.) Kisuke tips his green-striped hat and continues,
"There's a good chance the fetus will probably have similar abilities. We also know that if the wrong people find out about this, you and your baby's lives are forfeit. I didn't come here to help you, as a matter of fact, I need your help, Orihime."
"How could I possibly…I can't even help mysel-"
"-You may or may not be aware of this, but the war between the Soul Society and Hueco Mundo was long in coming, longer than any of you know... And now, there has been a serious error in judgment. The invasion of Hueco Mundo by Soul Society is a fools errand. I don't believe genocide is the answer…countless Innocent lives will be lost on both sides, and eventually spill into the world of the living…unless we find an alternative solution quickly. But I do believe there is hope. My hope falls on you, Orihime Inoue. I need your help to avoid a bloodbath that will take place within 3 months. Our plan needs you and your baby-"
"-And if we are to be successful," Hacchi quickly interjected, "We, most especially, need Ulquiorra…Aizen's Fourth and only remaining Espada."
"But, but he isn't. He can't be…I've tried.." she sobbed uncontrollably.
"Well, that's where things get interesting. I have a theory…," and Kisuke Urahara continued his explanation with a slight grin.
…It seemed impossible, she'd never even thought…and yet, it was so simply really. She only hesitated for a heartbeat before giving Kisuke Urahara her reply.
…And down the rabbit hole she went…
continue to Chapter 13 -