Happy New Year everyone! I hope everyone had fun celebrating it. To ring in the new year, here's the next chapter of TBBU. Woo-hoo, we're officially in the second half of the story and we broke 300 reviews! You people are amazing, and oodles of love and hugs to Sleeplessxb3eauty, Aline, cmcwiki, himelove22, Lady Nazo, Rachel, morbidly-funny, uzamaki898, ombre nocturne, Racholasj, Somerlia, nypsy, p17oyDONju9n, b4ndg33k, T-Biggz, songsparrw1, Idztec, TwistedVines, chuchootrain, and war90 and to everyone who favorited and alerted. Double love, glomps and thanks to Star (aka le_etoile on here) and CrystalDawn for beta-reading this.

As usual, I'll shut up here and just let you read.

Chapter 19

Nel's decision

Keigo let loose a huge yawn as he stretched his arms to the sky. His back made an audible crack, and he winced at the sound more than the feeling. "That feels better though," he murmured as he relaxed his posture and continued walking alongside Mizuiro.

"I'm glad you managed to make your back crack, Asano-san," Mizuiro said in a monotone voice as he texted away on his cell phone.

"Still in the formal, I see," Keigo said with a dramatic sigh. "But I suppose things are back to normal. At least it seems like they are."

Mizuiro cast a glance over his shoulder at the couple walking a few paces behind them. "That's why," he murmured.

Keigo nodded in agreement as he joined Mizuiro. The heavy atmosphere that had surrounded Ichigo for the past few days was finally gone, and the unbearable unhappiness he had been carrying around was replaced with assurance and peace. He could see it in the way Ichigo smiled softly at something Orihime was talking about, and he could see it reflected in Orihime's own bright smile and the way she flushed when Ichigo began chuckling at her.

Suddenly, Ichigo turned his head towards his friends. "Oi. Why are you staring?"

"Reassurance" was Mizuiro's cryptic answer before he turned back to his phone.

Keigo scratched his head and shrugged at Ichigo. "Just making sure everything's good. You really had us worried there."

"And if you do it again," Tatsuki said from her spot next to Orihime, "I will do worse." Her crossed arms and her warning glare were fine indicators that she was not kidding about her threat.

"Guys," Orihime protested softly.

"I think Ichigo is well aware of the consequences," Rukia said. "Let's just put the past few days behind us and see what Urahara wants."

"We're almost there," Hitsugaya noted with a nod of his head towards the shop, which was just on the corner ahead.

However, before they got much closer to Urahara's shop, Momo stopped in her tracks and said, "Wait, everyone."

The group paused and turned towards the small vice-captain. Her hands were clasped tightly in front of her as she leaned her head forward. "There's one last thing I want to resolve before we go into the store." Her gaze lifted until it met Ichigo's. "About what I said after the battle…"

Ichigo shook his head. "Hey, it's fine-"

"No it's not." Momo's lips tightened into a thin line of determination. She sighed softly and continued, "It was not fine. Ichigo-chan, a lot of what I had to say was already said, but I do owe you an apology. I called you a monster because I judged you based on your appearance and how you acted. I failed to take into consideration what was underneath the mask and why you acted."

She bowed to him, her head hung in apology. "You saved my life and everyone else's, and you protected Orihime-chan. Please forgive me for judging you so harshly."

A few of them, including Ichigo, turned towards Hitsugaya expectantly, waiting for a reaction from him. Instead, he ignored them and continued to keep his stare focused on Hinamori. His expression said nothing of his thoughts, or whether or not he was upset with her apology. With no clear answer from him, everyone else then turned to Ichigo, waiting to see what he would say.

Orihime gave Ichigo's hand a gentle squeeze, and he returned the gesture, thankful for her support. "It's kind of hard for me to say you're forgiven since I didn't hold anything against you in the first place," Ichigo said. "But I accept your apology."

Momo straightened up, this time with a smile on her face. "Thank you, Ichigo-chan. No hard feelings?"

"Like I said, there weren't any to begin with," he said with a shrug.

Rangiku clapped her hands together to gather everyone's attention. "All right. If all the apologies are said and done with, we better get moving."

"I hope Urahara doesn't believe in the 'eye for an eye' policy," Mizuiro said to Ichigo as they began to walk towards the shop again. "For your sake."

"Eh? Why?" Ichigo asked. "I just took his cloak."

"In parts of the Middle East, stealing is punishable by chopping off someone's hand," Orihime explained. "So it'd just be like in those old Arabian movies where the shopkeeper takes out a huge scimitar and swings down and WHAM!" She demonstrated her free hand, pretending to hold a scimitar and swinging it down through the air with significant force. "The thief's hand rolls away and there's, uh, lots of blood."

Ichigo blinked, unsure as to what he should be more disturbed by: the image of him losing his hand or the fact that his girlfriend didn't seem to be taking that into consideration. "Uh…" He looked down at his free hand forlornly, as if it really was about to be chopped off.

"D – Don't worry!" Orihime flailed a bit, worried that she might have come across as inconsiderate. "Even if he does, I can just reject it and you'd have your hand back!"

"Good point, but I think I'd rather not lose it to begin with."

"Maybe he'll just hang you upside down by your toes instead," Keigo suggested.

"Or maybe it'll be Chinese water torture," Tatsuki said.

Hitsugaya slapped his forehead as more suggestions as to Ichigo's punishment were made, ranging from castration (which Rangiku pointed out would be cruel since that would also be punishing Orihime, and her remark made the aforementioned girl blush furiously) to flaying. "Am I the only one disturbed by this conversation?"

"I am," Ichigo muttered darkly.

Rangiku grinned at her captain. "We're just joking, taichou. You need a more morbid sense of humor."

"Shut up, Matsumoto."

Urahara and the Shouten gang were waiting for them at the bottom of the shop, along with the Vizards, to Ichigo's chagrin.

"Welcome back, Kurosaki-san," Urahara said in a sing-song voice. "I trust you have my cloak?"

"I got it," Renji said. The cloak was draped over his arm. "It's in tact from what I can tell." He walked over to Urahara and handed him the cloak.

"Thank you, Abarai-san." Urahara dusted off the cloak with his hand. He then lifted a stern gaze to Ichigo, accented by the shadow of his hat and making it more frightening. "I trust you won't make it a habit to keep stealing from me, Kurosaki-san."

The threat was inherent in his tone and hidden beneath his words. Ichigo shook his head, his gaze cast downward. "No. I'm really sorry about this, Urahara-san."

"Very well." Urahara tucked the cloak under his arm. "Then I'll let it slide this time."

"But he stole from us!" Jinta protested. "You oughta kick his ass or something!"

"Someone already did that for us," Yoruichi said. "I can see the beginnings of a bruise," she added, pointing to Ichigo's cheek.

Ichigo rubbed his aching cheek. "Yeah. Tatsuki did it for you."

The martial artist smirked triumphantly, even as Ichigo shot her a mild glare.

"And a very thorough job she did," Urahara said. "But we are not here to talk about how much Kurosaki-san deserves a beating-"

"You missed that discussion," Tatsuki said with a chuckle, earning her an even sharper glare from Ichigo.

"-but instead to help out someone. Someone I believe Kurosaki-san and Inoue-san are very familiar with, which is why I asked them to come." Urahara stepped to the side. Both Ichigo and Orihime's eyes widened when, standing a few yards behind Urahara, was a familiar little Arrancar.

"Nel?"

"Itsygo!" Nel, who was standing somewhat behind a large rock, walked out into the open. Her smile widened as she walked over to her friends. "Owahime!"

"What are you doing here?" Ichigo asked.

"We wanted to thee yoo, and-"

"Wait." Ichigo held up a hand to silence her for a moment. "We?"

Nel frowned and turned around. She put her chubby hands on her hips and said, "Come on yoo guys! Come out! Yoo know Itsygo and his fwiends!"

Immediately two heads popped out from behind the rock Nel had been hiding behind. When she smiled, they leapt out and stood in dramatic poses. "We have returned! The biggest two-thirds of the Desert Brothers!"

"Dondochakka and Pesshe are here too!" Nel said with a giggle.

Pesshe turned his head towards the rock. "And we're here with our newest member-"

"I am not," an irritated and familiar voice snapped from behind the rock, "the fourth member of your stupid little group."

"Grimmjow," Ichigo said in surprise.

"Way to be observant, Kurosaki. You should get a medal," Grimmjow replied sarcastically. Most likely he was wearing his usual condescending smirk, but it was impossible to tell with him still sitting behind the rock.

"If I recall," Nel said, her expression going deadpan, "yoo're the one who got his butt kicked by the 'obthervant' one."

That remark finally made Grimmjow stand up abruptly from his spot and glare at Nel. "What the fuck? It wasn't like I asked for it!"

"Yoo were the one thupid enough to make a deal so yoo could fight Itsygo in that form!" She rolled her eyes. "Yoo got yoor fight. Yoo just failed to conthider that Itsygo managed to beat thomeone thwonger than yoo and therefore-"

"You little shit," Grimmjow growled. "Come over here and say that to my face."

Nel lifted her brow. "I will in about five minutes, if yoo want."

While Grimmjow tried to process what exactly she meant by that, Nel turned around and sighed. "He's impothible, Itsygo. I had to dwag him here-"

"I didn't want to fucking come!"

"-and then he gets that attitude with me. It's disheartening."

Orihime smiled and bent down next to Nel. "It's okay," she said as she petted her hair. "But why did you all come here?"

"Nel explained her condition to me," Urahara explained as he twirled his cane in his hand. "And I decided that it would be in our interest to help her. We have a common problem."

"What problem?" Ichigo asked.

"Tousen and Ichimaru, dumbass," Grimmjow said, though his smirk was replaced with a pensive frown. "We don't want them in Hueco Mundo."

"And we want them in jail," Urahara said, "which requires removing them from Hueco Mundo. A common enemy and a common goal make common allies. Nel and Grimmjow agreed to help us with Tousen and Ichimaru in exchange for aiding Nel and perhaps working out some kind of arrangement with the shinigami."

"What kind of arrangement?" Hitsugaya asked, glancing back and forth between Nel and Grimmjow.

"We just want peace," Nel said with a sad frown. "The west of us Awancarr don't want to meddle with the shinigami. I don't want those two dwagging more Awancar into battle and getting them killed."

Hitsugaya put a hand to his chin, furrowing his brow in concentration. "That's not something I can decide on my own, but I think the other captains would be willing to consider, especially if you help us capture Ichimaru and Tousen. It'll certainly make the other captains more sympathetic."

"Then we'll help!" Nel waved her arms enthusiastically. "Nel will help!"

"How?" Grimmjow asked with a sneer. "By drooling on them?"

Nel stuck her tongue out at him. "Yoo'll see. Nel can do more than drool." She turned to Urahara, her gaze expectant. "Yoo can help, wight?"

"I will certainly try." He kneeled in front of her and tapped his cane lightly against the crack in her mask. "I think this is the source of your problem."

That was what tipped Ichigo and Orihime off as to what Nel's "problem" was. "Are you sure about this?" Orihime asked Nel with a concerned frown.

"I want to help." She interlaced her little fingers together as she stared down at them thoughtfully. "I barewy can as I am now, and I don't want to sthay this way fowever."

Although Ichigo and Orihime nodded in understanding, several of the others were completely lost as to what Nel was referring to. Grimmjow certainly was bemused. His usual smirk was replaced with a glower; he didn't like being left in the dark. "The hell, Nel?"

"Yoo'll see," she said to him again, though sans the raspberry this time. She rubbed a hand over the crack in her Hollow mask. "This is what's doing it?" she asked Urahara.

"I believe so. There's only one way of finding out."

"Wight. I should try doing what I did before?"

"That's my suggestion."

"Okay." Nel began to back away, her head leaning forward as she thought back to that battle almost two months ago, when Ichigo had been in trouble and was facing a painful death. It had all been a big blur to her. One moment Ichigo was on the ground, his arm breaking as Nnoitora beat on him, and the next she was screaming and then…

I have to remember how I did it, she thought as she closed her eyes. Everything that she had done had been out of desperation and fear. She had been desperate to save the young man who had risked his life for her, and afraid that he would die in front of her. The scene from that day became vividly clear as the yells and pleas echoed in her mind. She could practically hear Ichigo's arm snap as Nnoitora stepped on it, and she could still see the panic in Orihime's eyes.

"Itsygo…" She had repeated his name, over and over again like a mantra. She had just been so afraid, and she didn't know what to do to help him. "Itsygo…" Over and over again…

Then, just like that day, she suddenly felt something swell within her. Perhaps it was her reiatsu, she didn't know. Whatever it was, it rose and swelled until it burst from her. Nel gasped slightly as the dust around her picked up and her reiatsu shook the air around her as it skyrocketed. The transformation was weird: it wasn't painful, but just disconcerting and it made her limbs tingle. Fortunately, it didn't take long until everything settled down and the world around her stopped shaking.

Slowly, Neliel opened her eyes. The first thing she noticed was that she was a lot farther up from the ground than before. She leaned her head forward, and her long green hair fell in front of her and hung by her face. She held out her hands in front of her, flexing her long graceful fingers that were no longer chubby. "Ah, I'm back."

The dust around her cleared, and she lifted her head. She was met with several wide-eyed stares and slacked jaws. Even the stalwart Hitsugaya seemed taken aback as he repeatedly blinked his eyes, making sure he was seeing her correctly.

"Impressive," Urahara murmured to himself. He whipped out his fan and held it in front of his mouth. "Yes, very much so."

"Nel-sama!"

She turned and laughed as Dondochakka and Pesshe leapt at her in joy. She did her best to hug them at once as they tackled her and hugged her. "You're back!" they screamed as they bawled in happiness.

"Oh come now, you two," she chided lightly. The smile never left her face as she sat back up, with her old Fraccion sitting on either side of her. "It's not like I haven't been with you the entire time!"

"We – We know," Dondochakka said sheepishly. "But it wasn't quite the same. It's good to see you like this again, dontcha know?"

She patted his head gently and gave him a nod. "I know. I'm sorry about everything."

"What the…"

Nel's gaze spun towards Grimmjow, who was the most shocked out of everyone. With a sheepish smile she stood up, clasping her hands behind her back, doing her best to look innocent. It wasn't like he looked angry or anything, but with Grimmjow that could change quickly. "Ah, Grimmjow, I apologize about this. I would have liked to have told you but… I don't think you would have believed me."

His eye twitched, but his slacked jaw and wide eyes remained unchanged as he continued to stare, unsure of what to make of this. Finally, after a tense moment, he blurted, "What the fuck Nel?"

"Would you have?" she countered, crossing her arms as his expression turned livid.

He snarled, but he seemed resigned to her logic as he glanced away. "How does something like this even happen?" He gestured to her. "I'd never even seen a fucking Hollow kid before you."

"Well that's just it, isn't it?" Neliel said. "That fact didn't stop and make you think?" She shrugged off her question as she smiled and waved her hand. "But it's no matter. This is what I really look like. Nnoitora broke my mask here years ago," She pointed to the crack in her Hollow mask. "and I turned into a child. I temporarily reverted back into this form when Ichigo was in Hueco Mundo, but I couldn't retain it."

"And that's why Neliel-san came to me for help," Urahara said. "I believe it's because your reiatsu keeps leaking from that crack. That leads me to why I also requested for Inoue-san to be here." The shopkeeper glanced over at Orihime. "Would you repair that crack for Neliel-san?"

"Oh, sure." Orihime smiled and summoned Ayame and Shun-o.

"But a warning to you, Neliel-san." Urahara aimed a stern glance in the Arrancar's direction. "If my hypothesis is correct, once Inoue-san repairs that crack you won't be able to revert back to your child form. This will be a permanent transition. It's your choice."

Nel had had her doubts about returning to her adult form permanently. She loved being a child in some ways and all the fun it brought. The Desert Brothers wouldn't be quite the same with her as an adult; it'd feel more like old times, when she was an Espada. A part of her didn't want things to be like that again. However, the current situation demanded that she be an adult, and who knew? Perhaps things would change for the better. She'd certainly be more adept at helping Ichigo and his friends, along with keeping Grimmjow in line.

"I'm sure," she said with a nod.

Orihime formed the Soten Kisshun over Nel's crack and her brow creased in concentration as she began to reject the damage Nnoitora had wrought. Nel stood still as her eyes looked up, watching what she could of the repair. Slowly, her mask began to reform where it had been broken. The pieces that had long been lost returned and helped to fill in the crack. The one tooth in her mask came back as the shield did its work, and within minutes the crack was gone and her mask was restored to its original form.

Her old Fraccion broke out into cheers as Orihime called back her Rikka, leaving Neliel with a refurbished mask. The Arrancar gently touched where the crack had once been, almost surprised to feel nothing but smooth bone. "It's fixed."

"Your reiatsu seems normal now," Yoruichi noted. "I think it worked."

"Thank you very much," Nel said, bowing to Urahara and Orihime.

From behind her, Grimmjow slowly approached, his expression a little put off as he slowly neared her. Neliel turned and tilted her head at him. "I don't bite."

"It's just so damn weird," he muttered. "You're supposed to be small and annoying."

"Well…" Nel put a finger to her lips in thought. "I'm not small anymore, no, but I'm sure I'll still wind up annoying you. And please don't worry. Just because I look different doesn't mean I am on the inside. I'm still your little shit."

"Aren't you two cute?" Shinji said with a grin. "Do we have another couple to make fun of?"

"WHAT?" Grimmjow roared. "Who the fuck are you calling a couple?"

"Yer certainly actin' like one," the Vizard said with a roll of his eyes. "Yeesh, don't act so offended." He motioned to his comrades and began to head towards the exit. He stopped next to Ichigo, peering over at the younger Vizard with narrowed eyes.

Ichigo tensed and said, "If you're gonna hit me, all I ask is that you don't touch my head. I'm already losing brain cells."

"You lost enough a long time ago," Shinji said, "but I'm not gonna beat you up. Yet. You and Orihime-chan get a few days to recuperate, then we're back in training and no holds barred. That's when we'll kick yer ass. Until then, you better spoil Orihime-chan rotten for the shit ya pulled."

He waved a good-bye to everyone, followed by his friends as they began to climb up the ladder leading out of the basement.

"We should get back," Hitsugaya said. "It's been a trying day. I have to contact Soul Society as well and talk about your offer of help," he added with a glance at the Arrancar. "We'll certainly discuss it."

Orihime nudged Ichigo with her elbow. "Would you like to come over for a little while, Kurosaki-kun?"

Before Ichigo could answer, Rukia piped up, "Tonight might not work."

Ichigo glared at the tiny shinigami. "Since when the hell did you arrange my plans?"

"Since you started acting like an idiot. It's not that I don't want you to go over," she said with a sigh, "it's just that I told your father we'd be back for dinner. You owe your family an explanation, Ichigo. They've been worried as well."

"Go then," Orihime said with a smile. "We'll meet up tomorrow. I don't want your family to worry any longer."

"Thanks." Ichigo bent down and kissed her forehead. "Tomorrow I'll spoil you, okay?"

She flushed. "I think he was just kidding. It's not necessary."

"Yes it is." He gave her another kiss, this time on the lips. He almost considered deepening it, but remembering that they weren't alone, he pulled back. "It'll be fine. Come on, I'll walk you home."

"We're more than capable of doing that, Kurosaki," Hitsugaya reminded him.

Ignoring the captain, Ichigo took Orihime's hand and began to walk with her out of the training grounds. He paused suddenly, and he glanced over his shoulder at Nel and Grimmjow. "See you later, guys."

Grimmjow snorted as Neliel waved a good-bye.

"I'm glad to see he listens to me," Hitsugaya said darkly.

"He wants to walk her home, taichou," Rangiku said. "It's not a matter of practicality." She patted him on the head, further fueling his irritation. "You have a lot to learn about relationships."

"I'm not interested in them," he said as he walked towards the hatch with Rangiku. "I have much-" He came to a stop when he realized they were short one shinigami. His eyes scanned the area until they found Momo, who was staring thoughtfully at Grimmjow and Neliel. "Hinamori, we're leaving."

She turned and smiled at him. "I know. I actually have something I need to discuss here. I'll catch up with you, I promise."

"You sure?" Rangiku asked with a frown.

"Yes, really." She tried waving off their concern. "I'll be back soon. It's just something I want cleared up."

She and Hitsugaya stared at each other for a long moment. Nothing was said between the two childhood friends, but there was some kind of understanding reached. Hitsugaya nodded and turned away. "Let's go, Matsumoto."

Reluctantly, Rangiku followed her captain out of the basement. The others trailed behind them, bidding farewell to those still in the basement before they climbed the ladder.

As people began leaving the basement, Momo turned to the Arrancar and said, "Um, Neliel and Grimmjow, right? And Dondochakka and Pesshe?"

"Yes?" Nel said.

"Do you mind if I talk with you for a bit?" She folded her hands in front of her nervously, but her voice was resolute. "There's just something I need to know, and I believe the four of you can help me with it."

Grimmjow opened his mouth, likely to make some kind of smart remark. Nel quickly backhanded him and silenced him. "If you'd like. What do you want to talk to us about?"

She walked up to them, her steps even despite her fidgeting. Lifting her head, she said, "It's about Aizen."

Urahara and Yoruichi raised their brows in surprise. "Hinamori-san," the shopkeeper said.

"Let's leave them alone," Yoruichi said. "This is private. We'll be upstairs if you need us."

As the former second division captain herded Urahara, Tessai and the kids out of the basement, Momo exhaled a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. "Right. Aizen. I'd like to talk to you about him, if you don't mind."

Grimmjow and Neliel exchanged a cautious, hesitant glance, unsure as to where she was going with this. The latter nodded and said, "What about him?"

"Where to start…" Momo chewed on her lip for half a minute in thought before beginning, "You see, he was my captain before he left Soul Society. I thought – well, I still do in some ways – very highly of him. It's been hard for me to accept what he did and who he really was."

"I see." Nel bent down until she was eye to eye with Momo. "I do not know what Aizen was like when he pretended to be your captain, but I assure you that's not who he really was."

"Aizen was a good leader," Pesshe said, "but there wasn't really any respect for him among the Arrancar. We followed him purely out of fear and in hopes that he would better our lives."

"Everyone thought he would give our lives meaning, to give us a direction, dontcha know?" Dondochakka added.

"He was terribly powerful. Everyone knew that. He could be fair when he wanted to be and he knew a strong Hollow when he saw one," Neliel said with a thoughtful frown. "His ability to see potential was unmatched."

"He was an asshole," Grimmjow butted in suddenly. "Fair, hardly. At least I rarely saw it. He was a scheming, devious bastard."

"Grimmjow-"

"She wants to hear the truth about him," Grimmjow said with a wave at the shinigami, "then she's gonna hear it like it is."

"It's fine," Momo said, trying to keep her voice from shaking. "I want to hear the truth. Please, I need to know."

He looked down at her and with his usual scowl continued, "Nel's right. Whatever Aizen was when he was your captain was an act. The bastard had everyone in Las Noches fooled. You and the other shinigami were no different." With a snort, he lifted up his left arm. "See this? This was cut off by that Tousen bastard and he let him do it, just because he could. When I stood up another time to confront Kurosaki and his friends, he brought me to my knees with his reiatsu. Even though he fucking knew I would confront them anyway. He did just because he wanted to exert his power. That's what he always goddamn did: remind everyone he was in charge."

Nel offered Momo a consoling but sad smile. "I'm afraid the Aizen we knew was a cruel, merciless man. I'm sorry he tricked you."

Momo stared at Grimmjow's left arm, as if she was picturing it when it was missing. With a frown, she said, "You know what? I could picture him doing that. The Aizen that tried to kill me right before he defected… he would do that. That's the real Aizen, isn't it?"

All Nel and Grimmjow offered were nods, but it was enough for Momo. "Thank you," she said to them. "It's certainly given me a lot to think about."

She started to turn, but from the corner of her eye she spotted someone leaning against a boulder. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear as she said, "Uryuu-kun?"

The Quincy straightened from his position and turned towards Momo. "I apologize. I wasn't eavesdropping on your conversation."

"Then why the fuck are you here?" Grimmjow asked.

Pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose, Ishida walked over towards them. "I came here to ask a favor of you Arrancar."

"We're popular today," Nel murmured with a smile.

"Should I leave?" Momo said to Ishida.

"Feel free to stay," he answered politely, "especially since I stayed during your conversation. It's something I think you should hear anyway."

Nel straightened her back, wincing when it made an audible crack. "It's been too long since I was this tall," she said. "But anyway, what favor do you need from us?"

"This is fucking ridiculous," Grimmjow said with a growl. "We're not Kurosaki's or anyone's goddamn friends. The only help we're offering is to the shinigami, and that's to kick Tousen and Ichimaru out of Hueco Mundo. That's it."

Ishida raised an eyebrow, but merely said, "I see. However, I'm not asking for your assistance because I assume you're friends with him. I could care less about your relationship with him." He crossed his arms and continued, "I am asking for your help because I need your expertise."

"Expertise?" Nel said.

Ishida's eyes briefly rested on the prominent hole in Grimmjow's chest. "I have an idea as to how to help Kurosaki with his Hollow, but I need some information first. The best source is from a Hollow, and you four fit the bill. So I need your expertise on Hollows. Are you willing to help?"

"Sure!" Nel said before Grimmjow could protest. "Just let us know what we need to do and we'll do it!"

"Aw hell," Grimmjow muttered under his breath. "The damn shit I get dragged into." He sighed, but it was a sigh of resignation. "Fine. What the fuck do you want us to do?"

A/N: I have a predilection for torturing Grimmjow, it seems. Poor bastard. Anyway, sorry for the lack of IchiHime in this chapter. I know there are some post-angst bucket issues and whatnot to be resolved, but those will be dealt with in the next two chapters. I wanted to get some more development for Nel and Grimmjow and take a break from the drama XD;

As a side note, I am actually going abroad this coming semester. I'll be going to England. Exciting, yes, but the reason I mention it is because it'll delay the next chapter. Between all the packing and stuff I have to do before I leave (which is on the 10th of this month) and then adjusting to time zone differences and settling in... yeah, can you see why my muse might go boink for a bit? But I'll hopefully update by the end of this month or the beginning of the next. So hang tight and hope you enjoyed!