Okaaay.. another Bloody Banquet update…

Chapter 7

Knowing

"Students," Aizen Shinryuuji announced at the start of the classes. "I am here to announce that the annual school Foundation Day Ball is tomorrow."

Waves of excited murmurs and suppressed laughter swept over the vampire class. This ball was the most anticipated ball every year and everyone looked forward to the wondrous food and dazzling aura the event emanates.

"As you all know, one family from the Lilith hosts the said event," Shinryuuji continued. "And this year, the family who shall sponsor the ball is the Kuchiki family."

Orihime's eyes widened. She did not see this coming. She wasn't even notified in any way by her parents.

"From your expression, I see that you didn't see this coming," Ichigo, who was a seat apart from her, commented.

"No, I did not," Orihime replied. "So, I should lead the preparations?"

"No, Orihime-chan," Hinamori answered. "The school will take care of the ball, your family will just be on the financial side of things."

"Oh," Orihime said. "That's a relief. The balls I organize back at home then were a disaster."

"How was it a disaster?" Ichigo asked, mildly enthralled by this frank creature that spoke.

Orihime reddened at this and said, "Well, I personally oversaw the food of a party once. You see, I like wasabi with bean paste and on it - "

"What?!" Renji said, shocked. "Wasabi with bean paste?! How does that taste?"

Orihime laughed. "I got the same reaction from Aunt Rukia. Same statement in fact!"

"Well, she was damn right," Renji mused. "If I were her, I would have also thought you were trying to poison the guests."

"Yeah," Orihime agreed. "When the food was served, nobody touched a single dish there. They only resorted to drinking and I was glad that was enough. My father never let me touch the kitchen ever since."

Ichigo stared at her with growing interest. She was completely unlike all of them. The change of aura amongst the Lilith was strange but welcoming.

Orihime was aware that Aizen Ichigo was observing her. Strangely, she felt a warm sensation in her chest. She quickly suppressed the feeling and waited for it to subside.

"As you all know," Shinryuuji was saying. "This event is a formal gathering so, better put your finest selves forward, not that you all need a reminder, and find yourselves a partner."

A partner? Orihime's thoughts echoed in shock. How could I possibly find one?! I'm a newbie!

Ichigo noticed that Orihime's cheerful expression changed to anxiety.

Good, he thought. Her worries are like those of normal vampire girls.

The class ended excruciatingly fast for Orihime. The Lilith walked back together towards their dormitory.

Hinamori looked at Orihime with amusement.

"Don't worry, Orihime-chan," Hinamori said. "You'll find a partner."

"Yes, but – " she started, but just then, a young man who was a part of their class approached Orihime with grace, bowed and kissed her hand.

At Orihime's surprise, she blushed.

"You see, Orihime-chan?" Hinamori said, in fits of giggles.

"I see someone has broken the President's record," Renji said, amused. He was silenced when Jen accidentally stepped on his foot.

"Greetings, Kuchiki Orihime-sama," the boy with jet black hair said. "I am Yamamoto Ryuu of your class. Can you do me the honor of being your partner for tomorrow night's ball?"

In Orihime's shock she hastily responded, "Oh… I'm sorry. I'm already going with someone else."

The entire Lilith froze in surprise. Only Ichigo remained passive, as if he was thinking of something deeply as he looked at the boy in question.

"Oh," Ryuu said, saddened. "Alright then. I'll just see you there."

He left Orihime, who in turn nodded mechanically.

"Why did you do that?" Renj asked. "I thought you had no date!"

Orihime looked at him in her eyes that seemed like it was still in a trance.

"I'm sorry. It's just that I don't know what to say," she said. "I ended up saying what my father told me back then to say to men who were making advances in balls or events."

"Kuchiki-san," Ishida said. "Yamamoto Ryuu wasn't making advances to you. He was asking you out."

Orihime's eyes widened while Hinamori patted Orihime's shoulder.

"Don't worry. I'm sure there will be plenty ore who would ask," Hinamori said.

Orihime sobered from her trance and said, "But I don't know how to say 'yes'."

"Haven't you had parties back then?" Jen asked mockingly.

"We had. But my father always arranged someone to be my partner. No one has really asked me."

"AIZEN-SAMAAA!" a girl's voice yelled from afar.

The members of the Lilith turned. It was a sophomore student with auburn hair and a beautifully youthful face.

"Will you be my partner, Aizen-sama?" the girl said in haste, reddening greatly as she said it.

Renji snickered. Toushirou closed his eyes in impatience. Ishida adjusted his glasses to hide his amused eyes. Jen looked at the girl with murder in her eyes. Hinamori sighed and Orihime observed the girl with concern.

Ichigo approached the girl and smiled.

"I'm truly sorry," Ichigo said. "But I already made a commitment to someone else."

At this, Ichigo started walking to the entrance of their dorm, leaving his companions stunned and curious.

In Hinamori's room…

Orihime stared at Hinamori as she prepared a cup of tea.

"What did Renji-san mean by breaking the president's record?" Orihime asked out of the blue.

Hinamori laughed slightly. "You see, Ichigo-sama is always the first one amongst the Lilith who asked by people. Normally, tons of students would ask, but they always get turned down."

"Then, who would be his partner?" Orihime asked.

"Jen," Hinamori replied. "She always has."

"Is she his fiancée?"

Hinamori smiled. "No. You must know the Bloody Diamond Rose."

"Oh yeah, I forgot," the auburn-haired beauty said. The Rose was the means of selecting the Aizen heir's spouse. "A pretty special way of picking a wife."

Hinamori nodded. "Yes," she said. "We all bet Jen would be the pick anyway."

Orihime nodded in agreement. But for some reason, she didn't want Aizen Ichigo to be wedded to Xiao Yu Jen. The feeling puzzled her.

The two girls went out together to find that the whole school has already found out that Aizen Ichigo and Kuchiki Orihime already had partners. They also saw Renji observing the students, his eyes with a twinkle of amusement.

Orihime sighed in exasperation. "Now no one will ask me to be their partner. They already know I have some invisible man to go out with."

"Your fault," Renji said, laughing. "I have never seen anyone quite like you."

"Who is your partner, Renji?" Hinamori asked.

"Jen," he answered.

"What?" Orihime asked. "I thought she was Aizen-sama's partner."

"She's not," Renji said. "She's also wondering who Ichigo-sama's partner is. She's distraught."

Morning came and surprisingly, all the students were wandering about. Hinamori explained to Orihime that this was because they have to spend all hours finding a partner or getting themselves ready.

Orihime laughed at this.

"So, who's your partner?" Orihime asked.

"Toushirou-kun," Hinamori answered with a blush.

They decided to leave the dormitory for a while and stretch their legs for a bit. The two waked along the corridors when a girl with blonder hair and her red-haired companion approached them.

"Kuchiki-sama," the blonde said. "Is it true that you're Ichigo-sama's partner?"

Orihime was taken aback. "What?"

"So, it's not you," the redhead said after observing Orihime's shocked expression. "Then who is?"

"I can assure you, we have absolutely no idea," Hinamori said, moving away with Orihime.

"I hope Jen doesn't find out about these rumors," Hinamori whispered.

"What?" Orihime said. "I didn't even do anything, I – "

"So," a voice said from behind them, "you're Ichigo-sama's partner?"

Jen was the one behind them, looking at Orihime with something that bordered on menace and jealousy.

Orihime faced her squarely. "You believe these rumors?" she said.

The students around them were backing off. No one wanted to be caught in between a fight of purebloods.

"The evidence supports the rumors," Jen said. "No one knows who both of you are with. And even though you said your ploy last night was a mistake caused by panic, I still don't believe you."

Orihime suddenly felt a stinging sensation on her hand. She looked at it and saw a cut bleeding freely.

Xiao Yu Jen has lost control.

"Stop this," a voice said, cutting off the tension sparking in the air.

It was Aizen Ichigo.

"What are you doing, Jen?" Ichigo asked in a hushed manner.

Jen did not answer but simply stared malevolently at Orihime and her bleeding hand.

Ichigo followed Jen's stare and his eyes widened.

"What did you do?" Ichigo said, his tone more silenced.

"Don't worry!" Orihime said, smiling a quite childish smile. "I'm fine."

Just then, out of nowhere, two vampires that were clearly of the Upir Likhyi class jumped at Orihime. Ichigo started to react but almost instantly, the vampires turned to stone and crumbled into nothing.

It was Orihime who took care of the vampires. It seemed obvious since her eyes turned red. She stared hard at her wounded hand. An orange glow erupted and healed the wound.

Ichigo was surprised at how near the Upir Likhyi seemed to be to the school let alone how fast they reacted to the smell of a Lilith's blood.

The smell of a Lilith's blood and its taste – the most sought after and the most delicious. When an Upir Likhyi tastes the vampire race's purest blood, they gain their sanity. But it takes a huge toll on the pureblood's part because the law prohibits that they give away their blood for someone who is not a part of their class.

(A/N: You guys will soon find out why there's a law like this. In future chapters. :D)

Orihime's expression was somehow blank. Ichigo stared at her as she made her way out of the fray.

Ichigo was also somewhat surprised at how Orihime could heal herself – an ability he has never heard of. He knew of regeneration, but that was when a vampire drinks blood. It wasn't even a complete healing process depending on the extent of the damage and the amount or value of blood drunk.

But Orihime healed her wound without drinking anything.

Another mystery.


"I am sorry about that," Orihime said, bowing to the people around her in apology.

Ichigo's eyes turned to Jen, who was somewhat shocked by what she saw.

Kuchiki Orihime had tremendous powers, from what Ichigo saw. She also had amazing reflexes. It was very much unlike the usual ever-smiling and cheery self. It was like another person comes into her body.

But Ichigo did remember her acting defiantly in the first night they were in school.

Then again, things aren't always what they seem in the vampire world.

He had to do a closer watch on Kuchiki Orihime.

"Hinamori, Orihime, Jen," Ichigo called. "Come with me."

The three followed Ichigo as they made their way back to the Gehenna dormitory.

When they arrived, Toushirou, Renji and Ishida were already there.

Ichigo turned to all of them, his eyes unfathomable.

"Jen," Ichigo started in an eerily soft voice. "Kindly explain yourself."

Jen's dark eyes lowered in reluctance. Then, they turned hard, as she faced all of them with held-back tears.

"Forgive me, Ichigo-sama," Jen said. "But I cannot stand those rumors that you will be going to the ball with her!"

She gazed at Orihime with utmost loathing.

"I heard of that rumor," Ichigo said. "Isn't that a very shallow thing to get upset over? Moreover, don't I have the option of choosing my partner, Jen?"

The girl in question froze, as if she had been slapped by an icy hand.

"Aizen-sama," Orihime finally spoke out, her face back to its usual, caring self.

"Yes, Kuchiki-san?" Ichigo inquired.

"Is it not normal if a vampire, more importantly, Xiao Yu-san, feel offended or hurt that you have someone else as a partner?" Orihime asked. "From what I have heard from Hinamori-chan, she has been your partner for social occasions. I guess this reaction to the sudden change is expected."

The others looked at Orihime in surprise. She was defending her attacker, an unusual thing to do. Especially standing up for your offender at the face of Aizen Ichigo.

"Even though those words compel me to understand more of Jen's side, it still does not excuse her from the fact that she acted out of reason," Ichigo said. "May I remind you all that we are the model vampires of the society? We are the Lilith. Any action we take can affect the vampires around us. Imagine how the others will react, Jen, when they saw you lose control and attack Orihime-san. That behavior was low and disgraceful."

Jen's eyes filled with tears again as she lowered her head in pain. Orihime, on the other hand, stared at Ichigo hard. This boy was acting like the leader of this group. And everyone listened to him. According to her father, since she has already undergone full maturity over her powers, she was more powerful than the Aizen heir now. Even the others who had reached maturation can compete against him. But, they still followed him, which shows the extent of power and influence the Aizen heir has.

"Now I will see no one from this group who shall commit an act like that again," Ichigo said. They all nodded in obedience.

"As for that rumor," he continued. "I intend to turn it into a fact."

"WHAT?!" Orihime said loudly, almost instantly.

They were all staring at Ichigo as if he had gone mad.

"After last night's incident, Kuchiki-sa is left with no partner," Ichigo added, as if what he was saying was the most natural thing. "So, when I was asked, I told the vampire girl similar words as Kuchiki-san haphazardly answered – to help her have a partner."

"Please explain this further," Orihime said in annoyance, shaking slightly. "Why wasn't I even informed about this scheme of yours from the beginning?"

"This was to help you," Ichigo answered, unfazed. "And as the student council president, I feel that it is my duty to assist the new student and the newest member of the Lilith in every way I can."

Orihime rolled her eyes in exasperation. The others were looking at the two of them in surprise.

"Don't go deciding for people, Aizen-san," Orihime said, the change in addressing Ichigo eliciting a shocked gasp from Hinamori. "You can't lead other around, and you can't make people follow you just because you feel like it."

Ichigo regarded Orihime with surprise. No one has ever questioned his decision before. He only did this because he was helping her.

"What is going on, Ichigo-sama?" Jen said in a broken voice.

"I ask to be forgiven, Jen," Ichigo said, approaching her. "But I intend to keep my promise to Kuchiki-san's father, that I shall take care of her during her stay here."

"I am doing very well on my own!" Orihime said indignantly. This was just like her overprotective father to ask someone to look after her.

Ichigo chuckled, as if putting her outburst behind him and moving on. "I see that," he said. "That's why you managed to reject a partner with a nervous fit."

Orihime blushed and walked away, going to her room and slamming the door.

That's it! For now… Imma bit tired. LOL. XD

Thanks to all those who reviewed! :D