Cursed To Forget Chapter 15, a bleach fanfic

It has been far too long...

DISCLAIMER: nope

Orihime states at the arrancar that seemed to materialize out of thin air, ripping through space as he pulls himself out of the Caja negacion. Her eyes lock onto a shard of space near his hand that breaks off, tumbling to the floor.

A heart... She thinks, mind beginning to reel, as he mouths a word at her. It sounds like a heart breaking...

"Orihime Inoue."

Orihime jumps at the sound of his voice saying her name. The way he says her name. He says her name in the way she used to hear Ichigo say the dark haired girl's name. Like the way you say the name of someone who's reshaped your world

He takes a step closer to her, his expression unreadable, but in his viridian eyes, (Deep, vibrant, pools of liquid emeralds) swirl so many emotions that Orihime's head spins as she tries to identify them all. "Do you…know who I am?"

There's a pregnant silence and Orihime's mind whirls as the brief flashbacks replay in her mind, as well as the letters she had received. Twice she opens her mouth to respond, and twice she finds her tongue too confused to respond.

"Do you recognize my face?"

He took another step towards her, bigger than the one before it. Orihime flinches. It's not his question, or his expression that is making her uneasy, but his tone. Again, it's that of a victim of the art of heart-breaking...and she shudders at the memory of her most hurtful letter she had written in the heat of the moment...

"Do you know my name?"

The dark haired arrancar was still some distance away, but he stopped walking towards her. She sees his eyebrows coming closer by a fraction as her eyes flick from his face to the floor and back again.

"Do you remember me?"

Orihime screws up her courage, and inhales deeply, not breaking eye contact, even though she feels like her heart it beating at a mile a minute. "Your name…" she says hesitantly, choosing her words as delicately as possible. "Your name is…Ulquiorra."

His expression remained unchanged, but the light in his eyes became drastically brighter for an instant. And for that instant, Orihime found herself drowning in their colour.

He nods once, and Orihime takes that as a sign for her to continue. His eyes not waver from her's.

"You…you were the one who wrote me those letters," she adds, recalling the one about the rose. Always the rose. Because who was given roses on wedding days? Who's lips were compared to roses? Princesses. Hime.

Once again, she gets a nod in response. She blinks once, and a feeling of bliss fills her body for some unknown reason, her eyes tracing his face-from his sculpted cheekbones, to his reflectively sorrowful estigma.

"You…you are the fourth Espada," She continues, the words spilling from her mouth on their own accord. "Not Grimmjow-nii's Fracción…"

Ulquiorra shakes his head slowly.

Remembering her present from the time in the lab, she smiles cautiously. "…Thank you for the red bean paste. And Enraku. I really missed him. And the jacket. But, eto, I suppose I should be thanking your friend for it. Mure-chan?"

"Onna."

Orihime jumps, as he interrupts her though, and to her horror, she realizes she was babbling.

"You don't remember me." he states bluntly.

Orihime's eyes lock onto the floor as shame fills her. "…No," she admits, cringing. She wrings hands. "No, I'm not."

"Onna, are you afraid?"

Her eyes flick to his, and she stares at the fourth Espada.

"Lord Aizen doesn't need you anymore," he says, taking a step closer. "There is nothing protecting you now. You could die here…alone, with no one by your side. I want to know if that frightens you."

She doesn't break his gaze as he walks forwards, his boots clicking on the floor. Only a few feet separated them now.

Orihime internally debates what she should say, when she recalls the content of one of the very first letters she received. "I'm not afraid," she finally says. "I don't believe you would kill me."

"…You don't know that for sure," Ulquiorra notes softly, voice neutral. "I could do it. I could tear open this chest of yours, I could tear open your skull."

"You will not," she says with as much conviction as possible, but even to herself she sounds unsure. "I don't think you could do that."

"What makes you believe that?" he asks quietly. "All the memories of me that you have? All the knowledge of me that you have gained?"

"I read your letters," she reminds him, the obvious fact irking her slightly, but another part of her beats the feeling down violently, not wanting to cause the bliss to dissipate.

"Orihime," he says, and suddenly there's a shift. "You…you know nothing about me."

He whirls around, tail coat billowing out behind him as he walks away from her. He pivots suddenly to ace her again. "You have no idea," he says. His voice is slightly louder, but still neutral. "You have no idea what I've had to deal with since you've left me." Yanking a hand from his pocket, he holds it out, palm up, curling his fingers inwards, as of he was holding something. "Do you see this?" he asked her. Orihime's gaze travels from his face-tracing the viridian tears spilling from his eyes-down his arm, and to the hand clutching at air. "This, in my hand. The heart you gave me." he says, moving closer.

"You may not have noticed it was gone. The empty cavity in your chest may have stilled without your note. But I have held it here these long weeks. Waiting until the day when I could return it to its rightful place."

One step led to another, and before she could register it, they were standing chest to chest. He lifts her hand and turns her palm up, fingers as gentle as if her were handling something as fragile as glass . "This, another thing you may not have known," he continues. "You have held my heart. And while you may not have noticed yours' absence, I noticed mine. I miss that feeling of life and love. While you have held my heart, Onna, holding it so innocently, so obliviously, it has been trampled. It has been kicked, stomped on. Mistreated. Not by you. By Nnoitra. By Loly and Menoly. By Szayelaporro, by Grimmjow, by Anómino and Ggio. Most of all, though, my heart has been mistreated by Aizen. Look at it, look at your hand. Don't you see how it shudders and thumps so unevenly? Look into my eyes now. Do you think my heart needs to be fixed, Orihime?"

The human girl bites her lip, recalling the memory of the last letter she never gave him, written before all this had happened. 'Forever'. She nods.

He raises a hand to her cheek, caressing her jaw with his thumb. He inhales deeply, and again, she feels like she is drowning in the deep colour of his eyes. "Will you help me?" he asks softly. "Will you help me heal my heart?"

Orihime feels her head bob on its own accord, and her eyes began to flutter closed. She feels his hand ghost across the skin of her chin, teasing it upwards before a light pressure lights across her lip, and leaves her in ecstasy.

BOOM

A strangled cry escapes Orihime's lips as the explosion and sudden rush of rieatsu engulfs the area. Orihime feels Ulquiorra leap away from her, an shortly after, the familiar ring of a sword being drawn. When the dust dies down, Orihime's eyes widen as she takes in the intruder. "Kurosaki-kun!"

"Step away from Orihime." He says in a low and powerful voice, killing intent and determination rolling off of him in waves.

"I intended to." Ulquiorra's eyes harden and his face becomes completely stoic again. "My duty is to guard Las Noches until Lord Aizen returns. I wasn't ordered to kill the girl. I'll let her live until otherwise ordered. But not you. Protecting Las Noches means killing you. I'll cut you down right now." He says, drawing his zanpakuto.

"I'm surprised," Ichigo comments, a small grin causing the corners of his mouth to twitch upwards slightly. "I didn't think you'd draw your sword so easily. I thought I'd have to make you draw it. Does this mean you recognize me as an equal?"

Ulquiorra frowns slightly, and Orihime can't help but notice how his eyes flick from him to her, almost too quickly for her to notice. "It means I recognize you as someone who must be destroyed."

"Works for me."

The human girl bites her lip, recalling the memory of the last letter she never gave him, written before all this had happened. 'Forever'. She nods.

BOOM

"Get away from her." he snarls dangerously, eyes narrowed angrily. "Get away from her, and stay away from her, because I've got a bone to pick with you Ulquiorra, and not just because you've targeted my nakama anymore."

Ulquiorra's eyes harden and his face becomes completely stoic again. "What ever could you mean? A bone to pick you say? So be it. Your eradication coincides with my orders either way." he says, drawing his zanpakuto.

"Keh. I didn't think you'd draw your sword from the get-go." Ichigo comments, a small grin causing the corners of his mouth to twitch upwards slightly. "Is it safe to say you finally recognize me as an opponent?"

Ulquiorra frowns slightly, and Orihime can't help but notice how his eyes flick from him to her, almost too quickly for her to notice. "I recognize you are an opponent that must be destroyed."

"Works for me,"

:-:-:-:-:

Orihime bites down onto her tongue to stop herself from crying out. She spaces out for a moment, and turns instead inwards to the battling emotions inside her. On one hand, she feels a strong feeling of distress as a member of her nakama was fighting for her life, and she's doing nothing to help him, but on the other hand, she feels an unbearable…something causing her to choke. To feel weak in the knees. And she has no idea why, but all she knows is that if something happens to him, she just might vomit.

However, she doesn't flinch as the eerily lit green cero blasts through the room. Ulquiorra stares at Ichigo with a touch of grudging respect in his eyes. Or...perhaps she was imagining it "I see," he said, "So you can withstand my Cero even without your mask. You've gotten stronger. Is it because you defeated Grimmjow? Or…is it because of her?"

Ichigo glares at him with a steely determination as he wipes his mouth with his hands, not responding, even as Ulquiorra's hand points at her in an accusing manner.

Ulquiorra seems to be antagonizing him, but Orihime can't tell for sure. His stoic expression betrays nothing. "Or maybe because of your friends fighting down below?"

Blinking, Orihime automatically reaches outward with her mind, and with a jolt identifies four rieatsu signatures. Three are fighting together at the base of the tower, and the fourth is somewhere below them. One of them is the same one she had felt vanish earlier, and a wave of relief sweeps through her. "Rukia-chan!" she breathed. However, shortly after a wave of bitterness washes over her. Rukia-chan. The dark haired girl, whose name is uttered by Ichigo the same way he murmurs her.

"I? More human?"

Ulquiorra's outraged demand jerks her back into the present, and she sees the arrancar and shinigami standing across from each other.

"I see. So you're actually feeling good about being able to fight at this level?" he demanded, and then leapt into the air. Faster than her eyes can follow, the two leap together and apart again, the ringing of metal, or shattering stone the only indication of parried or dodged blows.

A strangled cry escapes Orihime as she sees Ulquiorra's sword swinging downward into a deadly arc towards Ichigo's neck. Instinctively, her arms fly upwards, a second after, her trusty golden shield materializing in between them. Both of the combatant's eyes are wide with disbelief as they whirl around to stare at her. Even as the shield cracks, then shatters they do not move, and Orihime's resolve wavers for a moment.

Jolting back to reality thanks to an exceptionally loud ring of metal, and she looks up in time to see Ulquiorra leaping into the air, his posture screaming 'final blow'. A strangled cry escapes Orihime as she sees Ulquiorra's sword swinging downward into a deadly arc towards Ichigo's neck. Instinctively, her arms fly upwards, a second after, her trusty golden shield materializing in between them. Both of the combatant's eyes are wide with disbelief as they whirl around to stare at her. Even as the shield cracks, then shatters they do not move, and Orihime's resolve wavers for a moment.

"What are you doing?"

Orihime blinks in confusion, her eyebrows knitting together as Ulquiorra's accusing gaze rakes across her. "…What?" She asks.

"I'm asking you why you helped him." He says, and Orihime looks down at the floor as shame ripples through her body.

Orihime opens her mouth to protest, but no sound comes from her. "…I...why?"

Orihime struggles not to cower under his gaze as he continues pressing for answers. "Because he's your friend? then why didn't you protect him from the first blow? Why did you hesitate?"

"I…I don't…" She continues struggling to form words. Why didn't she? Why did she? Ichigo was a fighter, he didn't need her. Not like that. That was someone else's job, wasn't it. Obligation? No. It was because…because…

You don't forget

"Shut up." Ichigo says, irritation quite clear in his voice "I don't need to hear you go on about hesitation or whatever, none of that matters." He meets her gaze and Orihime smiles weakly as she sees the barely disguised hurt in his eyes. "Thank you for protecting me Inoue. But it's dangerous, so stay back."

Looking down at the floor, then back up to him she feels the uncertainty that seems to be constantly rippling through her body as of late rear its' head again. "Kurosaki-kun…"

Ichigo returns his attention to the stoic Espada, "Ulquiorra. You're pretty chatty today. I'm surprised. I though you were more of the silent type." Lowering his center of gravity, the trademark red and black reiatsu swirls around Zangetsu. Ulquiorra looks on with an unimpressed look on his face.

"Getsuga, eh? Don't you realize yet that doesn't work on me?"

Orihime watches as Ichigo leaps forwards, the Getsuga Tensho still wrapped around his zanpakuto, adding that much more force to his blow. The resulting explosion rips through the air, and Orihime's ears ring slightly. Unable to do anything else, she simply dons her mask of calm as best as she can as they continue to fight.

Behind her, a soft 'shk' noise causes her to flinch and look down…revealing two pairs of hands reaching out to grab her.

Without any time to even scream, they grab her, and yank her backwards, a hand clasped tightly to her mouth.

"Gotcha." Snarls the dark haired arrancar whose harassed her since the first time she's seen her. "Remember me? Maybe you don't. Why should a monster like you, remember an ordinary person like me?" Loly giggles, and with growing horror, Orihime registers insanity in her voice. "But, your time on the top is over. Aizen-sama told me, you're no longer of any use to him. Do you know what that means?" Her grip around Orihime's mouth tightens, her fingernails digging into the flesh of her face, and even though Orihime tries to writhe free their grip is like iron. "I can do whatever I want with you now, without fear of Aizen-sama's wrath."

Tossing her head backwards, Orihime grunts and bites down on Loly's hand as hard as she can, but the arrancar just smile sadistically at her. "You're finished." She whispers venomously into her ear. "I'm going to take back everything you took from me!" and with that, she grabs her sleeve and tears the fabric away, and before she can run, Melony punches her to the ground.

"Let. Me. Go!" Orihime bites out, and tries to aim a kick at her legs, but she dances out of the way, and Loly grabs her head.

"Inoue!"

Fingers clutching her cheek, Orihime feels herself being shoved forwards as Loly hisses angrily, "Stay back!, or I'll pluck out her eyeball!"

Ichigo raises his sword, and black spiritual pressure swirls around it, "Getsuga…!"

There is a flash of white and Orihime's eyes widen as she sees the white back that is facing her, and surprise choruses through her body. It's evident that Loly feels this way as well, as her grip slackens considerably. "Ulquiorra…?" She says hesitantly.

"Don't get the wrong idea," He says in the same monotone that he has been using for the whole fight, but there is a small undertone of disgust in his voice that Orihime can somehow detect. "I'm not helping you."

Ichigo's face contorts with rage, "Outta my way!" He snarls angrily.

Ulquiorra returns his attention to the shinigami, a bored and unimpressed look on his face. "Make me," he says, "If you want to fight anyone else, you'll have to kill me first."

'Kill me'

Orihime barely registers the crumbling floor and shocked faces at surround her as a new arrancar appears out of nowhere.

'Kill me'

Legs giving out from underneath her, Orihime feels herself begin to hyperventilate. "No. No, no, no, no, no…!" She whimpers frantically. No. NO! He can't. He won't! He's strong enough, he won't di-

Her train of though is cut off as she feels herself being dumped on the floor. Gasping for breath, she looks up to see Loly standing in front of her with a small dagger drawn that is dripping with blood. A panicked and desperate look must be on her face, judging by how she shakes, and her anxious breaths.

"Inoue!"

Turning towards his voice, she sees the two rivals together, blades locked in battle as Loly shrieks, "Poison, Escolopendra!"

Getting knocked back by the ensuing release, Orihime's head smashes against the floor and she see's stars for a moment. Shaking her head to clear is as quickly as possible, she looks up in time to see Yammy dropping Loly down out of the hole had had punched through the wall using her body. "Wai-!" She burst out, but then clamps her mouth shut as Yammy gives her a disapproving look.

"You say something?" the big man asks, and as Orihime searches his face, her heart sinks as she sees no sign of the 'Yammy-nii' who let her braid his hair, or play with Pero, or walk her back to her quarters. "Hey Ulquiorra, can I kill her now?"

Orihime's eyes flick to Ichigo's and she sees desperation and panic in them as Yammy readies his zanpakuto. "Wait!" An instant later, Yammy pitches forwards, an arrow in the back of his shoulder. Orihime scuttles away as quickly as possible, and stumbles over to a fallen pillar. "Ishida!" Ichigo shouts as the Quincy lights down onto the floor.

"Where did you come from?!"Yammy demands, whirling onto him.

Uryu straightens his glasses and brushes some dust off of his clothes. "That much force and it still didn't pierce you?" He says nonchalantly, "You're pretty tough…but I'd watch where I'm stepping if I were you."

As if on cue, the ground around the arrancar explodes violently, the air making Orihime's hair whip around her. Covering her head with her arms, she winches as scatter debris falls on her.

"Damnit…you little brat!" Yammy's disembodied voice wheezes from somewhere in front of the Quincy. Seeing a hand gripping the edge of the floor, Orihime realizes with a jolt that he is still hanging for life by the tips of his fingers.

"I could hear you down below," He comments, and Orihime knows that with his values, Uryu is appalled by the way Yammy treats his opponents. "You're the 'Yammy' Szayelapporo told me about aren't you?"

"So what if I am?" Yammy's infuriated answer echoes through the room.

" Too bad for you. If I hadn't shown up, you would have gotten to fight a little longer." He says, with false apology as the floor breaks away, sending Yammy crashing down to the ground. "Mala suerte," he continues, even as his enraged scream fades as he continues to fall, "I pity you. I broke all the pillars on every floor on the way up, so you'll probably fall all the way to the bottom." He then turns away from the hole and walks towards Ichigo and Ulquiorra.

"…Ishida?" Ichigo asks, as Orihime looks on from her place at the side.

"What?" he asks, "Questions during battle? Seems reckless to me. What do you want to ask? Kurotsuchi Mayuri healed me. He healed Abarai first, which is what took me so long. He's the one who gave me the mine too. If an Arrancar comes within its spirit energy sensors, it will explode. I hid it in the ceiling of the level below us. Any other questions?" Uryu adds after finishing his explanation.

Grinning, Ichigo seems to relax slightly. "I never had any in the first place, you're the one who wouldn't shut up…what a pain." Blinking another of Orihime's 'lost' memories flickers into the forefront of her mind, of the two of them sitting together at lunch for the first time. "Take care of Inoue." He says, turning back to face Ulquiorra. "If her Rikka can't shield her from my energy, protect her with your own body."

Glancing at Ulquiorra, Orihime sees an irked look flicker through his eyes, just as her own mild indignation does. I may not be able to protect myself all the time…but I can withstand reiatsu. I'm not weak like that.

"I would even if you hadn't asked."

"…Sorry to keep you waiting, Ulquiorra," Ichigo says, returning his full attention to the Arrancar. "Here I go. The Hollowfication you wanted to see." His hands curl in a claw like manner, just before her tears them down through the air in front of his face, as the white and red mask adorns his face once again. The lines seem to be thicker and angrier in colour than the fight with Grimmjow, and judging by the way he throws himself at the Cuatro Espada, and the Espada's stunned expression, he is stronger as well.

Ulquiorra flips through the air, and blasts through the wall. Eyes barely able to follow their movements, Orihime watches as he fires a cero at him before leaping upwards into the sky, with the shinigami in hot persuit.

Hesitantly, and with growing dread filling her chest, Orihime watches the two become tiny specks in the sky. There is a small dust explosion at the top of the canopy, and with a sudden wave of horror, she realizes what Ulquiorra is planning to do.

'Kill me first'

Biting on the inside of her cheek, she looks at Uryu out of the corner of her eye. She knows what she needs to do. But the real reason why isn't going make the Quincy happy….

'Kill me first'

Alright. So, I would give you an explaination on why it took so insultingly long to get this out but 1: I don't even know if people remember this story anymore, and 2: It will take an excessively long time to explain. Let us just say that life has decided to be a snake, and the lack of updates is the result -.-"

Also exams are coming up for me next week (JOY. NOT) and I am already feeling the stress of final projects and exams. Life is sucking quite a bit for me at the moment. So if I vanish again, I sincerely apoligize...

anyways, hoped you liked that chapter, and don't forget to review!

-moony