Author Note: I only got one review last chapter and I'll admit though it was a very nice review, I was hoping for more but then again maybe I haven't given you guys enough time to review. Oh well.

Disclaimer: Bleach and its characters belong to Tite Kubo

Chapter 6: Changes

Past:

Ulquiorra was a reader. He could always be found in the library with a book in hand whenever Aizen had no missions for him. Naturally, I was found there as well. However, the seat he always occupied was the one in the corner that had no other chairs near it. I didn't want to alter his corner by bringing another chair over for myself so I sat on the floor and leaned back against the side of his armchair. It wasn't comfortable but being so close to him made up for any cricks in my neck or back.

I often found myself dozing off there during the many hours spent in the library. The reason for this was that I often had trouble sleeping during the night. I was so used to being so close to him during our days before joining Aizen that I needed to sense him nearby in order to really sleep. I didn't want to bother or inconvenience Ulquiorra by seeking him out during the night or mentioning my trouble so I endured the sleepless nights and got whatever hours I could in the library.

I was never worried that he would wander off without me while I slept, as I was positive he was told to stay with me by Aizen and I usually woke up the moment he rose from the chair. This arrangement went on for several years and then one day I woke up in a very interesting position that I knew I hadn't gone to sleep in.

I had gone to sleep leaning against the side of the chair as usual but woke up with my head and arms in Ulquiorra's lap. The position was undoubtedly more comfortable but it still made me tense, as I was not only invading his personal space but also touching him.

I glanced up without moving to look for any hints about how he felt about this. His eyes were still glued to the book in his hands but the slight rigidness of his posture revealed that he wasn't entirely comfortable with our position. However, he wasn't making any move to remove me even though he had to have noticed that I was awake. That little fact made the whole situation clear to me; he had moved me himself, hoping to make me more comfortable without putting much thought into it, and his stubbornness, which most were unaware of, made him endure the slight discomfort he felt.

I was shocked he cared enough about me to do such a thing but said nothing. I couldn't wipe the smile from my face though as I relaxed into my new position. The next day I was surprised and happy to see that there was a chair beside his for me to curl up in, which only he would have put there.

Ulquiorra started to slowly change after that day in the library. The changes seemed so small but they spoke volumes about our relationship. He started to wait a bit longer for me to follow before walking off when I was stuck in an argument with Grimmjow and even gave me a nod whenever I quietly greeted him in the morning or wished him good night. There was even a couple times when he walked me to my room before we separated for the night.

All these little things he did for me always made my heart soar, even more so when I started to see a slight warmth in his eyes when he looked at me. We eventually reached the point where we would hold conversations. It wasn't often and I did most of the talking but the fact that he even responded meant a lot to me. I didn't know it then but my feelings for him started to change along with him; they went beyond wanting to spend every moment with him and truly became what humans call love.

Present:

Orihime didn't mention the position we found ourselves in when she woke up though she was clearly embarrassed by it. I decided to spare her further embarrassment by not bringing it up; I didn't need her to say thank you in order to tell that she was grateful. She was a little disoriented by the fact that it was still night outside, which was something she was going to have to get used to since it was always night there.

Ulquiorra soon brought us food and also brought tailors to measure us for outfits much like the arrancars wore. He stayed to make sure Orihime ate every bite and that there was no trouble with the tailors. Orihime was resistant towards eating at first but I managed to convince her before Ulquiorra could threaten her in anyway.

Orihime was led away by Ulquiorra to speak with Aizen after the tailors were done. I was left alone to contemplate how things were going with her.

"Woman." I was surprised to suddenly see Ulquiorra staring at me from the doorway.

"Yes?" I replied, curious about what he could want from me.

I frowned though as he seemed to hesitate with a slight look of uncertainty that only I could really notice. He got over his hesitation quickly though and started walking towards me. I could feel my heart start beating faster in my chest but tried to not show any reaction.

"What was that tune?" His abrupt, vague question completely threw me off.

"You mean the one I hummed last night?" He glared, silently urging me to answer.

I was completely swamped by my own questions though. Did he somehow understand the significance of it? Did it get some sort of response from him? Was that even possible? If it was, how would I explain it?

"It was a song I had composed for someone very dear to me." I finally explained, resisting the urge to give him a pointed look.

My answer didn't seem to ease his concerns; in fact it seemed to trouble him further. He seemed at a loss of what to ask next though. I knew I was pushing it but I still opened my mouth.

"You seem troubled by something. Is there anything I can do to help?" I asked, genuinely worried.

My sincere offer to help clearly caught him off guard but his shock at being read so easily by me and his refusal to admit something was wrong had him storming out of the room without a response.

I winced at his reaction then sighed. I regretted my words more so when Orihime was later escorted back to the room by another arrancar instead of Ulquiorra. Clearly, I had struck a chord in him and that scared him off.

He did return when the outfits we were meant to wear were brought to us, though he naturally didn't bring up our conversation. I didn't know whether to cry or laugh when I saw my new clothes; they were exactly like the ones I wore when I was an espada.

Orihime had asked if I was okay when she saw the slightly pained look on my face but I waved her concern off without explaining.

I put on the white hakama pants, noting but ignoring Ulquiorra's presence, and long-sleeved, form fitting top that left my shoulders and collarbone bare. The sleeves, unlike the form-fitting top, flowed down freely around my arms but thankfully didn't fall too far past my waist. The end openings of the sleeves weren't tight around my wrist, which allowed for a lot of arm movement, and the sleeves themselves started about mid-upper arm. I had to stop myself from checking for my zanpakuto and hollow hole; the situation was suddenly so similar to my past that I was a bit lost in the moment.

"That outfit suits you."

I had heard Ulquiorra say that to Orihime in my timeline so it took me a moment to realize he was in fact speaking to me. I politely thanked him, ignoring how warm my face suddenly felt.

I stared into his eyes, wondering what was going through his mind right then. He held my gaze for a moment then looked away a little too quickly for him. Now I was even more eager to know what he was thinking but knew I couldn't just ask; that certainly didn't go very well earlier.

He left soon after that, leaving Orihime and me alone. I could finally ask Orihime what had shaken her up so much. She had tried to hide it but I could clearly see that Aizen had said or done something to her. I carefully gripped her shoulders to get her to look me in the eye.

"What's wrong?" I asked, completely serious.

She was quiet for a moment, clearly unsure whether she should reveal what had happened. I'll admit it hurt a bit that she didn't trust me but then I reminded myself that she didn't really know me quite yet.

"Aizen showed me the hogyoku." She eventually admitted.

I released her, shocked. I didn't expect Aizen to do such a thing. What purpose would that serve?

"He said he trusted me." Orihime continued as she if could hear my thoughts. Trusted her? Does he honestly think she'd fall for such an obvious ruse?

"I have to destroy it." Her sudden words broke me out of my thoughts. I looked into her suddenly determined eyes. "I have to reverse the hogyoku's existence." I couldn't contain my sigh. If only it were that easy.

"You'll never get the chance to try." I told her as I made my way over to the couch. I slumped down onto it as I waited for her protests and attempts at persuading me.

"I've got to do something." She insisted and I agreed that she had to do something instead of just wait around to be rescued.

"You don't want to be useless." I bluntly asked. She shook her head with a sad face.

"Unfortunately, there's not much you can do, as you can't train with your powers here." I knew my words weren't very reassuring to her but I didn't stop there.

"That doesn't mean you are useless though." I said, prompting her to look up at me instead of at the ground.

"It's that attitude of yours that's really holding you back." I informed her, steeling my words so she'll know how serious I was.

"If you see yourself as useless and think there is nothing you can do to change that then, yeah, you'll never change but determination and effort will help immensely in your attempt to be useful. True you will eventually reach a limit but, until then, keep working at it." The look of slight awe and respect in her eyes told me that my words had the desired effect.

"You're right. I shouldn't give up so easily." She spoke confidently, standing straight with her fists out in front of her as if she was about to brawl.

"There you go." I muttered quietly, smiling proudly.

I watched as she started to talk excitedly about how she was going to train herself once she got out of there. She didn't even seem to notice that she now believed she was going to get out of here whereas before she thought her situation was entirely hopeless.

A sudden burst of spiritual pressure far out in the desert of Hueco Mundo silenced her rant and rocked the palace; no doubt everyone had sensed it.

Author Note: I want to emphasize that the Ulquiorra from Akira's timeline is slightly different than the one in the canon universe. He is more likely to treat Akira kindly like in the past section of the chapter but even then it took years for him to get to that point and it is all due to Akira's presence in his life and her kindness towards him.

Now we know that Akira had composed that song for Ulquiorra.

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