Chapter 22
Cerca del Castillo ("Near the Castle")
Seeing another man's hands on Orihime struck an irritated nerve inside of Ulquiorra, and before he could stop himself, he reacted by stepping in between them. "Remove your hand." He could feel the jealousy well up inside of his chest, but he didn't care. All that he wanted was for the trash to relinquish his hold on Orihime, even if that hold was one out of concern. Quickly, the atmosphere around them changed, Masahiro dropping his hand and peering at Ulquiorra with an air of hostility.
Ulquiorra returned it, aware of the tension mounting between them like the beginnings of a battle. In his experience, backing down meant exposing one's weakness. Though he wasn't certain how everything worked in the Living World, Ulquiorra understood that the moment he intervened, a silent battle that raged without physical contact would start.
It seemed that the other man comprehended the situation, and like a warrior, he stood his ground. Glaring at him with his brown eyes, Ulquiorra noted the simmering strength that resided in his mahogany orbs.
"Ulquiorra." Orihime's voice brought him back to reality, back to himself. With her free hand, she grasped his in a silent plea to shake him away from the battle. Her voice brightened, hoping to alleviate the raised tension. "I'm ok. Let's just go to the room, ok?"
Ulquiorra peered at Orihime from over his shoulder to find her staring at him with a concerned expression that implored him to stop. Her fingers squeezed his hand as if to affirm her request. Though Ulquiorra wasn't accustomed to backing down, Orihime's contact could convince him to do things he was reluctant to do.
Returning his eyes to the trash in front of him, Ulquiorra pinned him with an intense glare, one that could stop the most venomous Espada in their tracks. The trash's eyes wavered, a reaction that Ulquiorra noticed immediately. "I will only say this once," Ulquiorra stated curtly, his voice set on nails. He lifted his hand and showed Orihime's hand in his. "This woman is unavailable to trash." Returning their joined hands to his side, Ulquiorra briskly walked towards the entrance with Orihime in tow.
"Ulquiorra!" Orihime cried out. Ignoring her protests, Ulquiorra marched through the sliding glass doors and out onto the sidewalk. Several heads turned as they made their way down the street, Orihime reluctantly following him.
He heard the sound of bells chiming, and quickly realized that Orihime's phone was ringing. "Hello?" Ulquiorra pulled Orihime to the side and faced her, the phone stuck to her ear. Her grey eyes rested on him while she spoke, a distant look settling in her eyes. "Ah, yes, he's right here, too." She paused to listen to the other person. "Ok, I got it." Lowering the phone, Orihime's eyes sprang to life with a determined glint.
"We have to go to Urahara's Shop."
Ulquiorra pinned her with a knowing glare. "I do not take orders from that Soul Reaper," he declared, venom at the edge of his words. Controlling his feelings at the moment felt more laborious than he imagined, and he couldn't help showing his disdain towards an authoritative figure, especially one from Soul Society.
Orihime frowned, her pretty face appearing older than before. "He said that he knows how you got here and whose spiritual energy was attached to my bag."
Ulquiorra scowled. He knew they needed to go there, even if he didn't want to. The mystery of everything—everything that surrounded his human life—was finally going to be set neatly in front of them. No more questions or doubt. But he felt himself wonder about his situation. If the mystery was solved, would his life change? He wasn't accustomed to changes. Previously, he had adapted to every kind of circumstance, most of which were born out of survival. However, he couldn't see himself adapting to situations that weren't necessary for him to continue living.
He felt a tug on his hand, earning his attention. Orihime's puppy-like eyes pleaded with him as her hand held his gently. "Let's go, Ulquiorra," her words barely a whisper. Though Ulquiorra knew her response wasn't a ploy but innocent honesty, he wanted to resist her. Not just her imploring eyes or her soft hands, but just what it meant to remain as he was.
But he understood the power of her will. His will was strong, but hers was beyond belief. Even in Hueco Mundo, he found this a respectable quality, and few souls had it. Ulquiorra couldn't refuse anymore.
Instead of answering, Ulquiorra began to walk in the direction they came, pulling Orihime along with him. In the beginning, she struggled against him, tugging at his hand, but as they walked, Orihime relaxed, allowing Ulquiorra to take the lead. The sounds around them seemed to wash away with the deep silence between him and her. Even as the wind swept through the streets, sweeping their hair into their eyes, Ulquiorra couldn't peel away the peculiar atmosphere that suddenly engulfed them. It wasn't a bad feeling, only a strange one. The more that Uqluiorra tried to identify it, the more confused he became.
What was this feeling?
It was a pull on their joined hands that brought Ulquiorra out of his thoughts. His green eyes met Orihime's eyes, and a flash of concern flickered through the greyness. She gave him a feeble smile. "It's this way, Ulquiorra." His eyes widened slightly. The tone in her voice was soft and comforting, like a warm breath on his cold hands. The prior apprehension was gone. Even her usually cool hands were heated as if to drive away his senses. She was trying to comfort him in the only ways she knew how.
This time, she led the way, walking past buildings and people. He was accustomed to being led by her or him just going ahead of her, but it wasn't too often that they walked side by side. It seemed to be a custom to walk at different paces. But as a couple, he noticed that the two people walked close to each other, their shoulders touching lightly.
Were they a couple?
Ulquiorra shook the thought out of his head immediately. That was an impossible idea. Even if he dreamed up her as his significant other, it would only be his doing. From what he understood, it took two people to be in a relationship.
But the way they talked, how protective he was becoming of her, and the growing desire to be near her was too much to ignore. If she was truly nobody special to her, Ulquiorra would had left the moment she came into his life again. Why did he care? Why was holding her hand so perfect to him?
And why did he feel the sudden urge to destroy the perfection before him?
All emotion drained from his body at that point. Orihime was creeping into his heart, into a place that forbade the emotional nature of humans. He didn't ask to feel things. He never wanted to lose control over himself as he had done at the karaoke lounge, at school, at every place that Orihime occupied. He was starting to become someone else, someone he despised.
That's because you're falling, whispered a voice from within him. Like someone with immense strength striking him across the face, the words stung his flesh. He didn't comprehend those words, but they still punished him.
"We're almost there." He heard Orihime from next to him, but her voice seemed miles away. They rounded a corner and walked down a wide alleyway. Slowly, Orihime slipped her hand away from his as they neared their destination. Though Ulquiorra wanted to push down the feeling, dread filled his stomach. In a few steps, the mystery of his abrupt rebirth in the Living World would become unveiled. In a few steps, Ulquiorra would find himself up against a wall, awaiting the reality of his situation.
Sitting at the coffee table, Urahara avoided the issue until everyone was settled into their seat. Everyone consisted of more people than Orihime imagined. Kisuke Urahara, Renji Aburai, Rukia Kuchiki, Ishida Uryuu, Chad Sado, and Ichigo Kurosaki sat around the table while Ulquiorra leaned against a nearby wall and Tessai Tsukabishi sat near the room's entrance. There was a tense energy in the air, one that made Orihime feel more nervous that before entering the shop. She could feel a headache coming on as they waited. To calm her nerves, she took a generous sip of her warm tea. Thankfully, Urahara broke the silence by clearing his throat before launching into his speech.
"I've analyzed the spiritual energy around Inoue's bag," he began, moving his green-striped hat on his head. "I will have to admit, the energy was strange, but I found something interesting about it." His eyes scanned everyone. "The spiritual energy belongs to someone in this room."
His words caused everyone to shift uncomfortably. Kurosaki was the first to voice her troublesome thoughts. "Are you sure?" he bellowed, his brown eyes wide with disbelief.
"Why would someone want to hurt Inoue?" Kuchiki inquired, her tone less aggressive than Kurosaki's.
Urahara's eyes moved over them. "The spiritual energy belongs to…" Time seemed to stop as his voice drifted off into a lengthy pause. Orihime felt herself leaning towards him, anxiously wanting to hear his words. Slowly, Urahara lifted his right arm before closing all of his fingers except his index finger into a fist. He pointed in her direction. "Orihime Inoue."
Her eyes widened in surprise, heat attacking her skin. Her head ached even more as she watched the scene unfold.
"Inoue?" Kurosaki and Kuchiki cried out in unison with bewilderment.
"But we were there!" Kurosaki declared hotly, jumping to his feet in defense. "She couldn't have cut that bag with her own energy!"
Orihime stared at Kurosaki's enraged face. Was he right? She recalled the memory, and quickly realized that she wasn't paying attention when the straps broke. She was too busy thinking about Ulquiorra to notice anything strange.
"If Inoue had cut the bag, you wouldn't have to analyze the spiritual energy more, right, Urahara?" Ishida's voice was calm, unlike Kurosaki's outburst.
Urahara nodded, a small smile appearing on his lips. "That's right! As usual, Ishida's deduction skills are impressive," he noted before he composed himself seriously. "The spiritual energy is Inoue's, but there was something different about it. I'll show you an example." Urahara picked up a red ball from the table and held it in front of everyone. "This ball is the spiritual energy I found on Inoue's bag. What you see isn't Inoue's spiritual energy. It's a separate energy."
"But you said it was Inoue's spiritual energy," Kuchiki pointed out, looking at the ball with confusion. Even Orihime was confused by Urahara's explanation.
He simply shook his head, and with a swift movement, the ball cut in half. "On the outside is a different spiritual energy, but on the inside is Inoue's energy." He revealed the ball's pink center. "This shows that the energy first belonged to Inoue."
"What is the other spiritual energy?" Ishida questioned.
Urahara set down the broken ball onto the coffee table, his face becoming more serious. Orihime felt a dreadful feeling well up inside of her. "The spiritual energy is from the Hougyoku."
Orihime's grey eyes widened, astonishment paralyzing her body. Wasn't the Hougyoku inside of Aizen?
"The origin of Inoue's power was influenced by the Hougyoku, but Inoue's soul shaped and fueled her powers," Urahara continued, sitting back in thought. "This shows that Inoue's soul is sensitive to the Hougyoku, and many of Inoue's desires are realized by the Hougyoku."
"My…desires?" Orihime could feel the dread deepening inside of her, like someone had punched her in the temple. Even her vision seemed to waver at the news. Although she didn't fully grasp Urahara's words, she knew something big was coming. A train wreck was about to happen before her eyes.
"Since Inoue was exposed to the Hougyoku for a long period of time in Hueco Mundo, I believe that another power emerged, one that Inoue isn't aware of."
Orihime brought her grey eyes to Ulquiorra across the room. The whole time he stood silently at the wall, appearing detached, Orihime knew he was concerned. They weren't talking about dinner; they were discussing how he came to life.
A flash of his released form—black horns and wings—suddenly assaulted her senses. Hueco Mundo and Aizen flashed before her eyes, the unkind smile of Gin settling on her as vivid as the day she met them. Her eyesight narrowed like tunnel vision, and the sound of someone near her ear abruptly reached her mind.
This eye of mine perceives all.
Ulquiorra's voice filled her ears.
There is nothing that it overlooks.
She fought to realize the meaning of the words, but she couldn't think clearly. Her body felt separated from her mind, like someone had split her half. The thread keeping her attached to her physical body seemed ready to unravel.
If I tear open that chest of yours, will you see it? If I smash open that skull of yours, will you see it?
As the thread snapped, Orihime's last thought stumbled across her mind until her eyes closed.
See what?
Next chapter: Explicacion del Alquimista
Urahara reveals the nature of Ulquiorra's rebirth along with some daunting news.
A/N: This chapter is a minor turning point for Ulquiorra, and a window for people to see what's it like for someone to be more nihilistic than optimistic. Personally, I don't see Ulquiorra as the type to be happy unless he loses himself in that feeling. Instead, he's more likely to distance himself or sabotage himself because he feels like he's going against his nature. Naturally, he gravitates towards Orihime, which is really just his human side, even without knowing it.
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