Tree Quest

Whoever came up with the stupid idea of artificial trees that had to be assembled branch by branch had just found his way to the top of Grimmjow's "To Kill" list.

He sat in the dining room floor of Burger World, surrounded by dozens of fake green braches of all sizes, staring hatefully at the base of the tree and the long pole in the center that held notches for each branch, wondering why the hell it fell on him to assemble and decorate the stupid "holiday tree."

Holiday tree… That was something else that annoyed him; if the stupid holiday was called Christmas, why did so many people get their panties in a wad when the "holiday tree" was called a "Christmas tree?"

Scowling, he slid a branch into one of the notches at the bottom of the pole, not caring whether or not it was the right length; if Ulquiorra didn't like it then the scrawny bastard could come do it himself!

He bit his tongue as he felt the eyes of the other three on his back, watching him work, trying to fight down the urge to turn around and yell at them all to mind their own goddamned business before he tore their heads off and shoved them into the soda fountain. He could hear them talking, too, but mercifully they weren't talking about him…yet, anyway.

"She's going out with that stupid guy again this week," whined Tyn and Grimmjow could only smirk at the other male's misery as he continued working. "This will be three weeks now! Three!"

"Tell me you're not going to spend all night staring at the door again," asked Starrk and the sexta chuckled darkly to himself at how pathetic the redhead was.

"No… I'm done sulking," declared Tyn. "I'm going to buy a couple of cases of beer, and see if it's possible for us to get drunk."

"That sounds like a horribly self-destructive plan…" observed Ulquiorra.

"Don't care, not changing it."

Grimmjow pushed himself away from the tree for a moment, pausing to examine his work; the bottom set of branches were all set into the supporting pole and they all looked to be mostly the right length.

"I still don't see why I can't just go get a real tree, or buy one from a store that's already assembled…" he grumbled to himself.

"Because this is the tree corporate provided," stated Ulquiorra flatly, showing that he was still observing the sexta closely. "Besides that, if you were allowed to go find a tree by yourself, you would likely steal one from someone's house or yard."

"So? It's the season for giving and shit; they can give me a fucking tree that's already finished!"

"I think we should get Orihime to explain that 'Christmas Spirit' thing to him…" suggested Starrk, ducking as Grimmjow whirled around and hurled the top section of the tree at him like a javelin.

"And I think you should mind your own goddamn business!" roared the blue-haired Espada as the tip of the tree narrowly missed Starrk's head and landed in the deep fryer.

Ulquiorra opted to retrieve the tree instead of berating the sexta but it was too late; the top of the tree had already begun to melt and warp, looking hideously deformed.

"We can't put this up in the dining room…" said Ulquiorra. "It will undoubtedly offend customers."

"Fuck 'em!" said Grimmjow. "I ain't taking this thing down after spending this much time trying to get it assembled!"

"We cannot display this mangled monstrosity," Ulquiorra repeated, holding up the partially melted top for emphasis. "Take it down, Grimmjow, and I will go purchase another tree."

"Not a chance in hell, Four!" snarled Grimmjow, "If I have to put the goddamned thing up and decorate it, then I'm going to go find a new tree while you take this shit down!"

"We can't trust you to go shopping without adult supervision," said Starrk, reaching up and catching the small branch that came hurtling towards his face.

"We kinda need Ulquiorra to run the register and not kill people, though," said Tyn, "We don't have much choice but to send Grimmjow."

"Not accurate; we can have Grimmjow run the grill while—" began Ulquiorra, but Grimmjow didn't wait to hear the rest of the cuarto's comment before walking and the front door and down the sidewalk. Fuck him, anyway; it wasn't like buying a tree was hard or anything.

The only problem would be finding one that suited his purposes, preferably already-finished and decorated with no assembly required.

He generally didn't like to wear his bright red Burger World employee shirt out in public and would change into it at work and out of it before leaving, but Grimmjow knew that if he had taken the time to try and change before leaving for his tree quest, Ulquiorra would have stopped him.

Stupid number four.

And number one.

And number five.

And fuck it, number three, too.

"And that pint-sized, loud-mouthed brat, too," he growled, shoving his hands in his pockets as he marched along the sidewalk, wishing he had at least taken the time to grab his coat.

He passed several stores with trees on display in the window, pausing each time to consider them all: too big, too skinny, too small, too ugly, too bright… On the plus side, they were already decorated, but he knew that was just for display; any tree he purchased would have to be assembled and decorated later and no store would sell him their display model.

Briefly, Grimmjow considered bursting into WacDonald's and hijacking their already-assembled tree; after all, they stole most of Burger World's customers, so it would have been justified.

Not that the police would see it that way, though.

Fuck them, too.

What asshat came up with the idea of decorating fake trees for a holiday, anyway? And all the red and green decorations and stupid lights! In the long list of human behaviors he would classify as being completely idiotic, this "Christmas" thing had to be in the top five.

Still, Burger World had to have a tree, and Ulquiorra wouldn't get off his case until there was a tree in the dining room, as per corporate wishes.

Maybe a real tree would work; go to the park and take one, maybe 'borrow' one from someone's front yard…

Oh good lord, what was this crap up ahead of him? Had some stupid human actually gone so far as to dye their hair green for this godforsaken holiday? Was there no end to human stupidity? Sure, his hair was blue, but that was natural and he refused to have his gigai's hair be a different, more normal color. But green, that was just…

…was just…

"Neliel?" he asked aloud, surprised.

Indeed, the woman up ahead had turned to go into a store and there was no mistaking that face and those hazel eyes; both her mask and the crimson line across her nose were missing, but there was no mistaking that it was indeed Nel in a gigai.

"Son of a bitch…" Grimmjow breathed, wondering what he should do for a split-second before he saw Neliel reach out and grab a dark-headed man that had been walking with her and pull him into the store. The man protested some, but given how easily he surrendered and how Neliel affectionately looked at him…

The sexta felt his non-existent heart breaking.

He ducked into an alleyway, watching the storefront carefully for Nel to re-emerge, reflecting on what he had told the others months ago.

She was cute, okay? And it wasn't like I was asking her for a date, you know! I was just seeing if she wanted to be fuck-buddies!

Only two-thirds of the statement had been true; she was cute and he hadn't asked her for a date, but he hadn't really asked her about casual sex, either.

He had asked her to be his mate.

Grimmjow growled to himself as he saw Neliel exit the store with the man that he could only assume to be her chosen mate in tow and he fell into step a few paces behind them as they continued on their shopping trip, oblivious to the Espada stalking them. He remembered shouting that Nel should be executed as a traitorous bitch when he'd first learned of her joining the Soul Society, but he hadn't meant it; it was misdirection, intended to keep the others from realizing the truth, a truth that had very nearly come out just a short while later when he had revealed that he had approached her once.

Neliel had been kind enough not to laugh at him or mock him, as such cruel behavior wasn't in her nature.

It was in Grimmjow's, however, and therein had been the problem.

"I'm sorry, Grimmy…" she had told him apologetically. "You're cute, Grimmy, but I don't love you, at least, not like that…and I can't as long as you remain obsessed with fighting and chaos."

And now, she was apparently with a Soul Reaper…

"I could take that little bastard…" he muttered aloud, images of the shinigami's bloodied, broken corpse lying twisted on the ground flashing through his mind.

But it was those kind of dark thoughts that had turned Neliel away from him in the first place…

God damn it all.

He watched as the male went into a coffee shop as Neliel waited outside, and while he knew the smart move was to stay away from her, Grimmjow just couldn't help himself.

"Hello, Neliel…" he purred into her ear from behind, just as he had done in Hueco Mundo when no one else was present to see.

The ex-Espada yelped in surprised and whirled around, taking a step backwards as she did so and reaching for a zanpaktou that wasn't there. That hurt, but he refused to let it show; besides, after so long, he supposed that she couldn't be blamed for feeling a bit defensive.

"Grimmy?" she asked slowly, clearly not believing her eyes. "What are you doing here? I thought you were dead!"

"Well—" he began, but he shut up as she hugged him excitedly.

"It's so good to see you!" she gushed. "I thought I was the last one left!"

"Ulquiorra's still around. Starrk and the brat, too, and Tyn and Tia," he blurted without thinking as she released him. Neliel's eye's brightened for a moment at the news, clearly happy to know that at least some of her old friends had survived the war.

"That's great!" she exclaimed, her face lighting up. "That's wonderful! Where are…"

She trailed off suddenly and took a step backwards, her expression becoming more serious as she regarded Grimmjow once more.

"What are you all doing in Karakura?" she asked warily as she remembered her current position as a shinigami, reaching a hand in her pocket for her Soul Candy. "If you and the others are still trying to carry out Aizen's wishes, I will—"

"Fuck Aizen!" snapped Grimmjow bitterly. "We don't serve him anymore or anyone else! We live for us now, everyone else be damned! Been here for almost a year now, since we 'died' in the war."

"And you haven't killed anyone? Haven't eaten any souls?" she asked suspiciously.

"If we had, wouldn't your stupid monitor stations in the Seireitei have picked us up by now?"

"I suppose so…" said Nel, relaxing once more and smiling at her old friend. "How did you all survive?"

"Long story and I don't think there's time to tell it," said Grimmjow, jerking his head towards the coffee shop door. "I saw that you have…company."

"An won't do anything too rash," Nel promised. "He's a good man, despite Captain Zaraki's insane influence."

"Yeah, well, I don't want nothing to do with Soul Reapers, anyway," said Grimmjow sourly and Neliel looked away, seeming hurt by his words.

"Technically, I guess I'm a Soul Reaper now…" she said slowly, "I'm the Lieutenant of Squad 13, after all."

"You're different," said Grimmjow hastily and he knew he had just betrayed too much of himself to the former Tres Espada, but he couldn't make himself care. "You're one of us first…hell, you belong with us."

"You mean with you, don't you?" she asked quietly.

"Don't flatter yourself, woman!" snarled Grimmjow but his voice lacked its usual venom and they both recognized it.

"Grimmy…" she said, smiling affectionately as she raked her fingers through his hair as if she were petting him, just like she used to in Hueco Mundo, "I belong with them more than I ever did the Espada. All the things we did under Aizen…they were wrong, immoral, and often evil. Every night before I went to bed, I would look back at the day and feel either ashamed, or on a good day, empty."

"We don't serve Aizen anymore!" Grimmjow protested, but Neliel put a finger to his lips to silence him.

"With the Soul Reapers, it's the complete opposite; every night when I look back at the day, I feel proud of what I've accomplished. I've saved lives and souls, I've helped train the squad to save lives and souls… Grimmjow, I'm doing good with the Soul Society, and I like it. It's so much more fulfilling than what we did under Aizen."

"But—"

"And I know you said you don't serve Aizen or his ideals anymore… I'm so happy that you're all doing well and I understand that you just want to live for yourselves now…but that's not me. Grimmy, I want to keep helping people."

"God damn your conscience," he growled bitterly as she finally removed her finger, but Neliel only laughed lightly.

"An says I'm the only hollow with a heart…" she smiled, "that I'm one of a kind."

"I can take him, you know," blurted Grimmjow again and Nel just chuckled.

"In a lot of ways, you're still the same cutey-kitty you were in Los Noches…I've actually missed that about you," she admitted before adding, "But no, you couldn't; I sincerely doubt Tyn would be able to, either."

"Fuck that! I could kick both their asses!" bellowed Grimmjow.

"Kick whose asses?" asked a voice and Grimmjow turned his head slightly to see the dark-haired stranger now standing beside Nel once more and handing her a cup of what smelled like hot chocolate.

"It's nothing, An…" said Nel, smiling at him and thanking him for the warm drink.

"Friend of yours?" he asked her, eyeing Grimmjow carefully.

"Yeah…" she admitted slowly, unwilling to lie. "An old friend."

"I see…" he said, his blue eyes darkening as he realized that 'old friend' translated to arrancar. "Blue hair… If I remember correctly, that makes this Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez, Aizen's number six Espada."

"What of it, shinigami?" sneered Grimmjow defiantly. "If you want a fight, I'll—"

"Hush, Grimmy," said Nel quickly before turning back to her mate. "An, please, forget about this; he's trying to live in Karakura in peace, he's not one of the Espada anymore…he's changed, just like me."

"You know we're supposed to take him in and let Central 46 and the Head-Captain decide that, Lieutenant…" said the man slowly and Grimmjow gathered by his tone that he wasn't just Neliel's mate, but also her superior.

Great, just what he didn't need; a shinigami captain.

"An, please…for me," she pleaded, and Grimmjow reached back into his pockets for his Soul Candy just in case worse came to worst as the Soul Reaper was clearly torn between doing his duty and honoring Neliel's request.

"This never happened," he said finally, "I never saw him. Far as I know, the Espada known as Grimmjow is dead."

"Thanks, honey!" sang Nel cheerfully as she kissed him, and Grimmjow bit back another jealous growl.

"Thanks, I guess…" he managed to mumble aloud and Nel smiled brightly at him as the Soul Reaper merely nodded before taking a drink from his own cup, coffee strong and black by the smell of it.

"You should go, Grimmy; we're supposed to meet up with a few other friends today and I don't know that they'll keep quiet about you…" said Nel, hugging him goodbye. "Maybe one day I can come back and catch up with you and the others."

"Others?" echoed the Soul Reaper, looking suspicious once more.

"An…" Nel said, pushing her lower lip out and pouting.

"I heard nothing…" he sighed in defeat.

Nel grinned and wrapped her arms around the man affectionately as Grimmjow turned to leave.

"Yeah, maybe…" said Grimmjow to her over his shoulder. "Take care of yourself Nel."

"I will! Tell Ulqui-kun, Feathers, and everyone else that I said hello! Oh, but don't tell him I called him Ulqui-kun; he never liked that name!"

Grimmjow gave a non-committal grunt as he kept walking, refusing to turn around and watch Neliel walk off with another guy. Stupid shinigami always ruined everything!

He tried to focus his mind back on find a replacement tree for Burger World but his thoughts kept drifting back to Hueco Mundo and Neliel. It was one of the precious few times he'd ever given up without a fight and now the regret from that was gnawing away at him.

If only…

"She wouldn't have been happy with me, anyway…" he admitted to himself angrily. "Not her type…never was."

Didn't make it hurt any less, though.

He gave up on consciously walking and opted to let his feet carry him wherever they wanted as he lost himself in his thoughts, realizing that he now had something very important to do when he got back to Burger World, something more important than the damnedable tree.

The tree…god damn it, he still hadn't found a tree!

Grimmjow looked up and realized that he was in a residential district full of small homes, and one of the homes across the street had left the blinds open on the window, revealing a beautifully decorated tree standing in the middle of the living room.

Drawn to the window, Grimmjow crossed the street and pressed his hands against the glass as he peered inside, examining the tree.

It was perfect; the right size, shape, color, and it was already assembled and decorated. The only problem was that it belonged to someone else.

He glanced around, making sure that no one was present; not a soul stirred, and he assumed that meant most everyone in the neighborhood had already left for their jobs and school. A vicious grin crossed his face as he walked over to the front door and using his still-inhuman strength despite the gigai's limitations, kicked the door open, shattering the frame around the lock.

He paused, listening for an alarm or movement inside the house, but there was nothing.

Grimmjow sauntered into the living room, rubbing his chin appraisingly as he looked over the tree once more; it was perfect now, yes, but how was he going to transport it without taking it apart or losing any ornaments?

Time to check the house.

He nosed through a few closets, stumbling upon a black leather jacket. He pulled it out and looked it over, noting that while it wouldn't help move the tree, it would help keep him warm.

Shrugging, Grimmjow slid the jacket on and headed out into the small garage, where he found a blue tarp thrown over a lawnmower.

"Yeah, this'll work…" he said to himself as he removed the tarp and grabbed a small roll of twine from a shelf before heading back inside to secure his prize.

He laid the tarp out on the living room floor, and unplugged the tree's lights before carefully laying it down and rolling it up in the tarp, cinching it closed with the twine. The lumpy mess looked more like it was concealing a corpse than a tree, but so long as it got the job done, he didn't care; it was the perfect tree, no assembly required.

And he'd even gotten a new jacket out of the deal.

Hell, maybe this wasn't such a bad day after all.

Whistling to himself, Grimmjow carefully pulled the tree out through the front door and shut the door behind him as best he could before shouldering the blue tarp-covered tree and marching back to Burger World proudly. There were a few stares as he walked through town, but he ignored them; fuck 'em! Hadn't these morons ever seen someone go tree shopping before?

"Grimmjow, what is that?" asked Ulquiorra suspiciously as soon as he walked in, and Grimmjow's almost-good mood evaporated instantly.

"It's a tree, asshole!" he snapped. "What the fuck else would it be?"

"A body, knowing you," said Starrk from the window, and Grimmjow had to stop himself before he hurled the tree at the primera again.

"What about the jacket?" asked Tyn, looking out from the kitchen.

"Got cold, so I stopped by my apartment and grabbed it," he lied as he began to unwrap the disheveled tree, sitting it up in the corner and straightening the branches out some before replacing the ornaments that had come loose in the tarp.

"I am not aware of any stores that sell pre-assembled and decorated trees…" observed Ulquiorra.

"Hey, most of them will sell you the display model if you offer a little extra," said Grimmjow. "The hard part was finding one that wasn't too goddamned gay-looking."

He had a feeling Ulquiorra wasn't convinced of his story but so long as the cuarto didn't push the issue, he didn't care.

Finished straightening up the tree, Grimmjow plugged in the lights and stepped back, grinning smugly as the few customers in the restaurant began to 'ooh' and 'ahh' over it.

"It is…acceptable," said Ulquiorra finally, going back to working the register without another word on the subject and Grimmjow shot him the finger bitterly. Stupid, stuck-up pasty-faced son of a bitch…

He marched into the back and deposited his new jacket in the manager's office along with his other jacket before coming back out to the kitchen, going over to the grill to take care of that one last, important piece of business. He stepped up beside the quinto and looked around conspiratorially, making sure the other two Espada weren't listening to them.

"Listen up and listen good, jackass, cause I'm only going to say this once…" he hissed at the raptor, "Don't make the same mistake I did; don't give up on her without a fight."

"What the hell are you babbling about?" asked Tyn, blinking in confusion.

"Nel…Tia… It's almost the same goddamned thing all over again! Don't give up on her without a fight and for fuck's sake, tell her!"

"Grimmjow—"

"And if you breathe a word of this to anyone, I'll rip your fucking lungs out!"