The Furthest Planet From The Sun

by Mahi-Mahi

He took her away...far from the warmth of the sun.

18. Chapter 18

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CHAPTER 18

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Atop a massive bluff in Hueco Mundo the angry sound of a garganta tearing open disturbed the once quiet atmosphere. The mouth-like breach in space gaped wide, preparing to spit out its fare. Moments later, three shadowed figures began to emerge from the murky depths of swirling reishi.

Instead of sand coming up to meet their boots, solid rock was their only welcome.

Ulquiorra stepped forward to the edge of the cliff he'd taken them to. The stone structure was tall and gray, and at its face was a sheer vertical drop off that led straight down to the desert floor below.

From behind him the bulky forms of Grimmjow and Yammy came up to flank his sides, completely eclipsing his smaller presence. Staring out over the precipice, a gentle gust of wind brought forth the scent of the desert. It swept up the rocky face of the bluff, tugging at their hair and playing with the hems of their uniforms.

Off in the distance Las Noches stood like a beacon on the horizon.

"So, what's next?" Grimmjow asked. "It's going to take a while to catch up with them." In order to remain undetected, the garganta they had used to travel there had to be opened a long distance away from the intruders' position. "Do we just stalk them or something?"

"No."

Grimmjow gritted his teeth.

"Don't tell me you're going to ignore Aizen's orders again."

"That is not your concern."

"Then what the hell are we supposed to do?" Grimmjow had to fight hard to hold back his temper.

"Hey! Why don't you just shut up, already?" Yammy said, his muscles growing large and tense. Looking at him from the other side of Ulquiorra, his gigantic size utterly dwarfed the smaller man. "Didn't you hear what he told you? It's none of your concern, so just shut your mouth and do what you're told!"

Grimmjow chuckled at him, not even remotely intimidated. "Some of us actually have brains, Yammy," he scoffed. "I don't need to be told what to do. Unlike you, I can actually think for myself."

Yammy's face turned red with rage. Just as he was about to snap back with a retort, Ulquiorra lifted his hand, effectively muzzling him.

"Enough." Ulquiorra's green eyes slid to the corners of their sockets to pin Grimmjow with a rather flat glare. There was a long moment of silence that passed before he finally turned away and spoke. "At the base of this cliff is a small colony of Hollows. Tell them they are to join Lord Aizen's forces or face death. Yammy and I will move ahead. You will catch up to us when you're done."

"What?!" Grimmjow barked in outrage, not understanding what he was talking about. "Are you daft? What the fuck does that have to do with anything?!" Like hell he was staying behind. He wanted to see Kurosaki, perhaps even get lucky enough to fight him. "You just want Kurosaki all to yourself! You're trying to keep me away from him, aren't you?"

"I have no intention of engaging the human boy," Ulquiorra explained levelly. "I have been instructed to summon Runuganga. By the time you reach us, we will both be arriving at their campsite. You have your orders. I suggest you follow them." He turned his head to stare at Grimmjow directly. "Do you understand this, Grimmjow?"

Grimmjow was about to shoot him a nasty response when he finally grasped what Ulquiorra was giving him.

"If they offer any resistance, kill them immediately."

It was a chance to blow off some steam.

Slowly, a wicked grin spread across his face.

"Aye," Grimmjow growled darkly.

That was one thing Ulquiorra was able to understand better than Aizen. Ulquiorra was a Hollow himself. Unlike a Soul Reaper, he could appreciate the compulsions and cravings. Even though he was nihilistic as hell and about as unfeeling as the desert itself, he was still just as depraved as the rest of them. He was nothing but a filthy monster who knew nothing but sin. Violence was a language Ulquiorra could empathize with. Simply disciplining Grimmjow with agonizing bursts of reiatsu wasn't going to cut it. It would only bottle up his anger more until it exploded. To keep the worst of them in line they had to be given bloodshed and fed destruction like wild animals. He knew that if Grimmjow didn't get the chance to vent all of his pent up frustrations he would probably do something incredibly reckless. Not only that, but it would also put a damper on his urges to sneak out of the castle and track the boy down.

Without another word, both Ulquiorra and Yammy turned and disappeared in a flash of sonido.

Grimmjow had to give him credit, because, frankly, he was going to enjoy this mission immensely.

---

"Who're those guys?" Yammy asked as he stared down at the unknown group of Hollows below them. "I don't recognize them at all."

Lurking high above the desert, Ulquiorra observed the way the small company of humans and Hollows interacted.

"But that kid…doesn't she kinda look like…" Yammy trailed off, trying to dredge up a name to attach to the face.

"The Tres Espada," Ulquiorra finished smoothly.

"Yeah! That's it." Yammy snapped his fingers. "What was her name? Nes…Ned, no…Ne-"

"Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck," Ulquiorra corrected him. Down below, the child suddenly leapt forward and stole away the boy's Zanpakuto with sickening ease.

Ulquiorra frowned.

The useless human couldn't even keep his own weapon safe.

"I thought Nnoitra killed her ages ago." Yammy shook his head. "I never thought I'd see her like this, though. Talk about pathetic."

"Only Nnoitra would stoop low enough to disgrace a female in such a way," Ulquiorra noted aloud, not particularly caring. "It is not surprising in the least to see her in such a state."

"Hey!" Grimmjow's indignant voice shouted from behind them. "I thought you said you weren't gonna get to him before me!" Moving closer to the pair, the blue haired man came to stand beside Ulquiorra. His clothes were torn in a few places and blood was splattered on his face and arms, despite lacking any real injuries on his body. In his eyes, however, there was a distinct glint of satisfaction, as if a great need had finally been slaked.

"The fuck is going on down there?" Grimmjow sneered when he caught sight of the ridiculous scene playing out before his eyes.

There, barreling through the sand in a procession of imbeciles, was his arch rival. A small girl took up the lead, dragging Ichigo's blade along behind her as if it were some toy and not a priceless part of his soul. Behind her the human boy was gracelessly stumbling over himself, screeching out curses as he tried to catch up. With two more Hollow's hot on his tail, Ichigo Kurosaki looked more like a bumbling idiot than a warrior. For a long, long moment, Grimmjow had to wonder if this was really the same powerful man he'd faced off with in battle.

"Disgusting," he finally said, having to look away.

"That's the Tres Espada," Yammy supplied, his chin gesturing towards the tiny girl. "Or rather, used to be."

"Eh? No way," Grimmjow breathed, doing a double take of the child. His eyes narrowed. If she really was the Tres, then that might explain why the fool was able to get his sword stolen so easily. Then again, it was likely the boy was just careless. After all, the girl he was seeing was certainly no intimidating Espada. She was just a toddler. "What the fuck happened to her?"

"Nnoitra," Yammy answered simply. Whilst they talked they watched as both the human and the Quincy were drawn into the chaos, chased by a monstrous worm-like beast.

"Why is that not surprising." His lips curled into a grimace. "Hell, that bitch used to be terrifying." Even he couldn't bring himself to laugh at the shame of it. It was hard to believe the worthless little weak creature before him used to be the mighty Tres.

"Silence," Ulquiorra said, his eyes glued to the scene below. "We're not here to discuss the Tres Espada."

Grimmjow scoffed. "Figures you wouldn't give a shit about comradery."

"Didn't you used to have fraccion, Grimmjow?"

Grimmjow instantly tensed as Ulquiorra slowly turned to fix him with another dangerous stare.

"Are they not dead because you-"

"Finish that sentence," Grimmjow cut him off with a hiss, his eyes wide and his breath suddenly ragged. "I fucking dare you."

Apparently dismissing the threat, Ulquiorra looked back down to their targets.

"Be quiet and don't give away our position," he said, his face completely unchanged. "We're here to observe. Nothing more."

"Observe what?" Grimmjow snapped.

Just as he asked this a deep, booming voice rumbled through the air. It rattled the trees and vibrated the hair on the back of Grimmjow's neck. Blinking in curiosity, he focused his attention back to the ground where he could see the desert floor beginning to shiver and shake eerily. When he sensed the huge burst of reiatsu roaring to life, he couldn't be bothered to hide his smirk.

Maybe he'd get to see Kurosaki fight, after all.

"If you asked for death…I shall grant you your wish." The low, bellowing voice seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere all at once.

In one huge eruption, a massive wall of sand exploded up from the ground. It burst into the sky, creating a cloud of dust nearly impossible to see through. From that sand a form began to take shape. Each of the tiny grains almost seemed controlled by some supernatural force as they were pulled together, fluidly fashioning into a body with arms and a head. A crown was molded atop its head and a Hollow hole rested in its chest. Imprinted on his mask was a static likeness, a mere unmoving imitation of a face that never changed or altered.

"I was informed only just moments ago by Las Noches that we had intruders…to think a couple of measly humans and a bunch of garbage bugs were the culprits."

The guardian of the white sands, Runuganga, stood before them. His impressive height reached high into the night sky, blocking out all the light of the moon.

For once, Grimmjow leaned back and did as he was told. From the looks of things this might actually get interesting and he was more than willing to watch the show.

---

Getsuga Tensho slashed through the enormous monster for a fourth time. Just like all the times before, the creature split apart with great ease. The cut was clean and ran straight down the middle of its body. However, as its severed halves began to sag to the ground, it suddenly stopped.

Ichigo watched in frustration as its sandy body began to mend itself back together, again. Before long, the Hollow was standing in front of them, totally regenerated. It almost seemed impossible. He'd never seen anything regenerate as fast as that thing had.

"Idiots! It's useless!" Runuganga laughed. His thunderous voice cracked through the air, nearly making Ichigo wince when his ears protested the loud noise. "Fools! Did you think you could defeat me with such a weak attack?"

The Hollow had summoned several twisters earlier in the fight and when they began to close in on their group they were forced to jump back to avoid being sucked in. But the young, teal haired Arrancar had not been quick enough. Her small form was quickly flying towards the hazardous wall of cyclones, threatening to be torn to shreds inside the raging sands. Snatching her up mid-air, Ichigo pulled her to his side and leapt away, making sure to keep a healthy distance between himself and their seemingly unstoppable enemy.

"Ichigo!" Ishida yelled. "Let's combine attacks."

"We'll wipe this guy out without a trace," Chad added.

"Right." Ichigo nodded. It was a good idea. If his Getsuga Tensho alone wasn't enough then maybe all of their strength put together would make a dent.

"Getsuga Tensho!" Ichigo shouted above the howling winds. Beside him Ishida and Chad called forth their spiritual energy. When Chad's El Directo and Ishida's Ginrei Kojaku arrow was sent forth, they were able to cut straight through the turbulent wall of twisters. As the sand dispersed, their attacks swirled together and barreled towards their foe.

With a mighty roar, Runuganga was struck down, his body disintegrating in a huge shower of sand.

During the aftermath, an apprehensive silence fell over their group.

"Did we do it?" Ichigo asked hesitantly. All of them were on high alert and still trying to catch their breath.

"I'm not really sure," Ishida answered.

Just when they all began to relax again Ichigo felt a tug on his hakama.

"He…he's coming!" the child stuttered. She was shivering and shaking in terror, not even daring to move out from behind his leg.

It wasn't seconds later that her prediction came true. The sand in front of them began to tremble slightly. With each passing moment the vibrations became stronger and stronger, until it appeared as if the ground were bubbling up from under them.

Suddenly, a small round hole appeared in the sand. Without warning it expanded outwards, swallowing everything in its wake as it grew. Taken off guard, Ichigo cursed when he felt the ground beneath him begin to sink. Acting as a funnel, it pulled his legs down and trapped him within the large basin. No matter how hard he pulled he simply couldn't get his feet free.

"An antlion's pit!" Ishida exclaimed as they were gradually pulled deeper and closer to the bottom of the crater.

"Shit!" Ichigo spat above the rumble of the flowing sands. It was nearly loud enough to sound like a waterfall. "How do we get outta this thing?"

On the other side of the pit the Hollows he had encountered were crying out in panic and trying to reach for one another. They were calling each other's names and desperately searching for their young female companion.

"Help!" came her short, high-pitched scream. Glancing down, Ichigo saw the small Arrancar girl struggling beside him. The frightened look on her face spoke volumes to the fear she was feeling as she fought just to keep her head above the sand. Her stubby arms were flailing and her legs were kicking against the inevitable flow of gravity, all to no avail.

Chad, Ishida and himself had come upon the child when they'd been exploring the area around their campsite. It had been peaceful and quiet until she'd come along, running right through their camp as if they hadn't even been there. The girl had been screaming her head off and pushing her short legs to their limits. Soon after, not twenty paces behind her, came a small group of what was quite possibly the most unsightly trio of Hollows Ichigo had ever seen. Tears were raining from her eyes and, at first, he and his friends had mistaken her for a human child.

Imagine their surprise when they found out she was actually an Arrancar.

The kid was a total brat and had a terribly loud mouth, not to mention she'd taken off with his Zanpakuto earlier, claiming she wanted to play a game of tag. However, even though she was beyond annoying, seeing her small form writhing in the sand for dear life pulled at that part of him that simply couldn't turn away from a being in need of help.

He disliked the sight of her chubby, tearstained cheeks and the look of terror in her eyes. Reaching out, he extended his arm towards the girl.

"Grab my hand!" he ordered, just barely able to catch her tiny fingers before she slipped away. "Don't let go of me, you got that?"

She nodded once.

"Nel won't let go!" she promised, bringing her other arm around to grasp onto him with both hands.

"Damn it. Isn't there something we can do about this?" he called out to Ishida.

"It seems impossible," he replied.

"I just can't find a way to attack this guy." Chad was next to him and even though he was putting in a great deal of effort not to be sucked down to his doom, he was the closest to the bottom, making Ichigo begin to worry himself into a panic.

"Hey, Nel, does this guy have any weaknesses I should know about?" He turned to the girl, desperate for a solution to their problem.

"Well, he does have one weakness…" she muttered. "But Nel can't tell a bad guy like you what it is," she added in a small voice.

Ichigo was quite certain a vein exploded in his brain just then.

The kid was definitely annoying.

"You little-!" Yanking her closer, he snatched up her ear and began tugging on it harshly. "Don't you realize you're being sucked in, too?!" He started pulling harder and faster, earning him several girly squeals of protest. "Come on, tell me!"

"It's water!" she finally ceded. Her ear was red and throbbing by the time he released it and she rubbed at it indignantly.

"Water?"

"Water in a desert, huh?" Chad met Ichigo's worried eyes. They could both already tell where things were going. It didn't look good.

"Where are we going to find water around here?" he almost said it sarcastically, as if he knew it was pointless to ask.

"There isn't any. It's impossible. There's no water anywhere in Hueco Mundo. That's why Runuganga is invincible. That's why he guards the palace," Nel explained pitifully.

As she finished, the sand guardian's diabolical laughter rang out over the land, announcing his reemergence. His impressive form rose up once again, overshadowing all in his presence.

"I'm going to swallow you all up in one fell swoop!" he announced gleefully.

Then, like something out of a nightmare, his mask opened into a huge, gaping maw lined with rows of hideously sharp and terrifying teeth. His bottom jaw dropped clear down to his waist and the corners of his mouth expanded nearly all the way to the back of his neck.

"Sh-shit!" Ichigo's eyes widened when the guardian began to descend upon them, his large, cavernous gullet filled with nothing but blackness and death.

For a brief moment, time seemed to stand still. He really thought that was it, that they were done for. He'd led his friends to their demise in Hueco Mundo and he failed Inoue before they could even reach her. She'd never know they came for her. She'd just be stuck in there forever with no hope of seeing her home ever again, believing they never cared, believing they never tried.

He'd failed her…

"Tsugi no mai, Harkuren!"

A cold chill filled the air just as a burst of ice went flying over them. Lightning quick, Runuganga was encased in a beautiful crystalline sheath. Unable to move, he howled inside his frosty coffin.

His wintry prison cracked and popped for a few tense seconds before it suddenly toppled over. Hitting the ground, he shattered into a million pieces and, just like that, it was over.

Ichigo stared in amazement at the numerous shards and splintered remnants of the defeated sand guardian. When he turned to see who had been so gracious enough to rescue them, he felt his heart literally stop beating.

Everything inside him began to tingle to life again, and all of the darkness was abruptly chased away. For the first time in a long time, Ichigo found himself experiencing the long lost sensations of anticipation, confidence, and happiness.

"Rukia…" he breathed softly, as if the very name was sacred.

Ichigo's stalled heart suddenly kicked back to life, beating so hard it hurt.

Perched high above them on the smooth slope of a sandy dune stood the cloaked figures of Rukia and Renji.

In the moonlight, the petite woman's eyes shone like dark orbs of lavender. The pale beams only served to enhance her ethereal beauty and illuminate her porcelain skin. Her jet black hair danced in the breeze, playing around the soft edges of her round, heart shaped face. The small smile she wore had him trying to gulp down the lump in his throat. Beside her, Renji's own smile mirrored hers.

Then, like desert winds sweeping away footprints in the sand, Ichigo completely forgot all of his resentment.

It was like it had never existed.

"Rukia! Renji!" Ichigo leapt out from the antlion's pit and ran to them, a big, dopey smile plastered on his face.

Seeing his approach, the pair jumped down from the large sandbank and gracefully landed on the soft ground below. Behind him, the rest of the group gradually freed themselves from Runuganga's death trap, but he didn't even bother to notice.

Ichigo's smile widened, hardly able to believe his eyes.

He was so happy to see them that he totally missed the warning signs glinting in Rukia's eyes.

"Rukia-!" The moment he reached the small woman, she belted him right under the chin.

With a calmness that was almost scary, she turned to Renji and tagged out. Stepping forward, the tattooed Shinigami proceeded to clock the dense human upside his head, getting in a clean blow to the cheek.

Sufficiently stunned, an unmoving Ichigo lay face down in the sand, his entire skull throbbing in agony.

"Are you alright, Ichigo?" Ishida asked cautiously. He didn't dare help the young man lest he be dealt the same punishment.

"No…I'm not…" he wheezed pathetically.

"You idiot!" Rukia exclaimed before he could even pull his face out of the dirt. "Why did you go off on your own to Hueco Mundo? Did you seriously expect to do this all by yourself?"

Ichigo was just barely able to drag his body up into a sitting position. Rubbing his aching head, he narrowed his eyes at the raging woman. "Because…" he began sharply, not liking the fact that he was the one being chewed out. "I had no idea if you were actually gonna come back or not." His terse tone spoke to how obvious it should have been for her to understand that.

"Of course we were! No matter what!"

Ichigo froze. His eyes were wide and his mouth was parted in an open expression of shock. Unsure of what to say, he opted to say nothing at all.

Monopolizing on his speechlessness, Rukia leaned forward, kneeling in front of him. "Renji and I were planning on coming back from the very beginning. When we found out you weren't able to get to Kisuke, we decided to wait for you so we could go to Hueco Mundo together." Her voice softened slightly and with her so close it was impossible for Ichigo to miss the flashes of emotion in her dark violet eyes. "We kept waiting to receive word from you…when Kisuke finally told us your plan to leave, we were going to go with you. But, you left early and…when we got to the world of the living…you were already gone."

Ichigo's chest constricted and he sucked in a slow breath.

"Rukia…" He paused, unable to find the words.

He'd been so hurt by her departure.

He'd thought she'd abandoned him and Inoue when, in reality, she'd been the one waiting for him all along. Both her and Renji.

"Why didn't you wait for us? Why couldn't you trust us? I thought we were supposed to be your friends…Ichigo."

How could he have ever thought he didn't need Rukia?

How could he have thought he didn't need either of them?

True to fashion, they'd been quick to correct him for his mistake.

With an ironic chuckle, Ichigo lowered his head in shame.

"Yeah…you're right." His smile was small, but it was still a happy one.

When he lifted his head again he couldn't help but be relieved to see forgiveness in her eyes.

"Well, as long as you understand now…" Rukia grinned, always so perceptive to his every thought. As she stood, she cast him a rather stern look over her shoulder. "Please don't make me confirm something as silly as this ever again." Her eyes were glaring at him seriously, but they were soft and full of warmth and fondness.

Standing up, Ichigo began furiously rubbing at his bruised cheek, desperately trying to work some feeling back into his face.

"That aside…" Rukia turned to the motley crew of Hollows gathered behind him. Deciding they could wait to be addressed later, she immediately turned to the rest of the group with a sober look, shifting from soft to cold in an instant. "We need to get moving as soon as possible. It's dangerous to be out in the open like this right now."

"What are you talking about?" Ichigo asked.

"On our way out here we sensed a presence lingering not far off," Renji explained. "It was just for a brief moment, but I don't think it was by accident."

"What do you mean?" Ishida stepped forward, his lips turned down into a firm frown.

"I think we're being watched."

Several hours later…

After a rather interesting round of introductions and some tense and very ill-mannered staring from the Hollows, their group found themselves traveling through the desert atop the large back of Bawabawa.

"Are you sure there was someone watching us?" Ishida asked. Closing his eyes for a moment, he took the opportunity to enjoy the breeze blowing through his hair. "I wasn't under the impression that anyone in Hueco Mundo was even aware of our presence."

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure," Renji answered. "It was way too strong to just be any regular Hollow, but it wasn't there long enough for either one of us to get a good reading on it, so it's hard to tell."

"Do you think it could have been an Arrancar?" Chad asked. "After all, the sand guardian mentioned something about being alerted by 'Las Noches' just before he attacked us. It could have been the same person that gave him the order."

"If that's the case, then Aizen already knows we're here." Rukia's brow furrowed in concern as she turned her gaze outwards to the small, rolling sand ridges and flat planes that passed them by. "Besides, just think about it. If you guys really did blow up one of their underground bases, then I highly doubt someone wouldn't know you're here."

"We'll need to be extremely attentive now," Ishida began. "We no longer have the advantage of surprise. It'll be impossible to catch them off guard. He knows where we are and why we're here. I have a feeling he's not going to let us just march right up to that structure and knock on his door."

"I just hope Orihime is holding up okay," Chad interjected.

At the mention of their beautiful young comrade, the atmosphere saddened. For a creature as bright and cheerful as she to be locked up in such a dark and nightmarish place drove all of their imaginations to the extreme. They didn't want to think about any of the atrocities she might be experiencing. Yet, at the same time, they would have willingly exchanged places with her in a heartbeat.

As they all fell silent in a moment of sober contemplation, Ichigo, who sat at the head of Bawabawa, turned to stare at the group.

"Hey…where did you guys get those cloaks? Did you pick them up from somewhere?" he asked, completely shattering the gloomy atmosphere.

"Really, Ichigo?" Ishida sighed. "You couldn't have picked a better time to ask about that?"

"They're pretty cool, aren't they?" Renji grinned broadly, wholly unaffected by the drastic change in topic.

"Yeah, I wish I would've thought to bring one."

"They're gifts," Rukia supplied quietly. Quite out of the blue, the tiny Shinigami grew considerably shy and looked down to stare at her lap. "I was told Hueco Mundo has pretty tough terrain and you need protection."

"Who said that?"

Blushing prettily, Rukia reached up to tug on the neckline of her cloak. Her teeth lightly bit into her lip and her lashes fluttered softly as she hesitated to tell.

"My brother did."

"What?!" Chad, Ichigo and even Ishida called out all at once, effectively freaked out.

Byakuya was the last person they'd have expected to actually consent to what they were doing there.

"Then…does that mean Byakuya sent you guys all the way here to find me?" Ichigo asked. His eyes were still large and bulbous from such shocking news.

"Well, actually it was Kisuke who opened up the garganta for us, but it was my Captain who got us to the world of the living," Renji explained.

"Whoa…I never would've thought," Ichigo's voice wavered in amazement. "He sure has gotten rather soft lately…"

"Actually, when Inoue-san was taken, my brother, Captain Hitsugaya, Captain Ukitake and several other Squad leaders were sending volunteers to Hueco Mundo to try and recover her discreetly. Several troupes got close to reaching that structure, but after that…they were never heard from again." Rukia's voice trailed off quietly. She had known some of those men personally. One of them had even been a member of her squad. "We got reports weeks later. All of them had died." Rukia's lashes slid closed in a moment of respectful mourning.

"What?" Ichigo swiftly turned to get a more direct view of her, nearly waking up the sleeping Arrancar child in his lap. His expression had gone from relaxed to serious in a flash. "What do you mean? They actually sent squads out here to bring her home?"

"Didn't your Commander find out about any of this?" Ishida asked. "I can't believe he'd let something like that happen right under his nose. He's the one who signed her over to Aizen in the first place."

"He never would have sanctioned it officially." Suddenly feeling the need to defend his Commander, Renji's shoulders straightened as he stared the Quincy down in a display of Shinigami pride. "While he knew what was happening, he chose to look the other way."

"They were trying to get her back all along…" Ichigo uttered and Rukia nodded.

"For a while Renji and I were trying to get our names on the volunteers list, particularly after we realized you weren't going to contact us," she explained further. "But every time we offered to go, my brother forbade it. He said it was too dangerous at the time." In reality, she had a feeling Byakuya hadn't trusted anyone with her life other than Ichigo, though she knew he would never admit it. He wasn't going to allow her to go until he knew Ichigo would be there to watch over her. "After so many failures, they had to stop. With war looming just around the corner, Soul Society couldn't afford to keep sending our forces to their deaths."

When Ichigo sighed deeply and then turned back around to stare ahead of them without another word, Rukia narrowed her eyes in concern. He became very quiet after their conversation, causing her to worry about him.

Knowing how Ichigo was, Rukia already knew exactly what was going through his mind. He was feeling guilty. He had probably been beating himself up believing it was his fault for not being able to protect Orihime. That none of this would have happened if he'd properly taken care of her in the first place. Not only that, but she also knew he had been holding a grudge against her, Renji, and the rest of Soul Society. He'd assumed everyone had abandoned both he and Orihime in their time of need.

Releasing a sigh of her own, a tender smile touched her lips.

She'd have to talk to him later and kick his brooding ass into gear.

After all, it just wouldn't do to have him traipsing through Hueco Mundo with his head up his hind end. It could get the idiot killed.

And then she'd really be upset with him.

---

Ulquiorra observed the assembly of intermingled youths as they piled onto the large serpentine Hollow. He could hear their voices carried on the wind as total disorder ensued. They were arguing like a group of incompetent children over whom should sit 'up front' while the former Tres glared at the female Reaper and glued herself to Kurosaki, openly laying claim to him.

They were loud, boisterous, unreasonable, and irrational…but most of all they were unwise for even coming to Hueco Mundo in the first place.

They were exactly like the woman.

Ulquiorra's eyes followed Kurosaki closely as he leapt onto the back of the beast. Reaching out his hand, he helped up the petite Shinigami woman that had arrived on the scene only moments earlier. Ever since she had appeared the boy had been acting strange. He kept sending the woman quick, darting looks, only to turn away just as quickly.

If the boy thought he was being inconspicuous about it, he was wrong.

Was this female important to him, possibly more so than the woman?

Ulquiorra mentally stored away the bit of information, keeping it to be used and evaluated at a later date and time.

In the end Kurosaki hadn't even been capable of defeating Runuganga. The Shinigami had interfered just in time. Had she arrived any later the boy would be dead. Bathed in ignorance, none of them realized that Runuganga had yet to be destroyed, or rather, could not be destroyed. They foolishly let their guard down, not taking into account the danger they still faced.

It was pure naïvety. And arrogance.

Their group was clearly inexperienced.

Kurosaki Ichigo had proven even less interesting now than ever. Even so, Ulquiorra couldn't bring himself to completely write him off. There was just something about the boy…

"All the things you would do for him, the sacrifices you have made…you'd rip your own heart out from your chest and serve it on a silver platter for the boy, would you not?"

This was what the woman had given everything up for. Shouldn't Kurosaki Ichigo be more impressive than this?

Those people had her heart…yet he could not see it. Where were the ties that were so deep and profound that the woman would shatter into a million pieces should he dare to cut them?

"Y-you're wrong. I…I would give my heart to you."

For a brief moment, Ulquiorra narrowed his eyes, straining to look closer.

The small group, who just moments ago had been arguing, was now sitting together, smiling, laughing, and exchanging lively words of merriment.

"If…if I knew you would take it!"

He had a suspicion it was right in front of him but he was completely missing it. Perhaps if he could see it, then he might be able to understand her better. Yet, the contradiction remained in the point of the matter that nothing was there to see, thus there was nothing to be understood. She could not give away something that did not exist, something that could not even be held in his hand.

Hearts were nothing but flesh and blood organs. They were simplistic, in every way. She claimed it was impossible to live without a 'heart', while he and every other Hollow in existence had been doing so for centuries. To do something as complex and pointless as to try and grasp the perspective of someone who believed in fanciful notions was a waste of time. It would only lead him in circles.

"Way to go, idiot!" a loud voice erupted behind him. "Look what you did! Now they're leaving!"

"Stop calling me an idiot, damn it!" Yammy yelled back. In a burst of anger he practically shoved his face down into Grimmjow's. "Don't you fucking boss me around. I'll smash your ugly face in if you even think of callin' me dumb again."

"Yeah?" Grimmjow growled and leaned forward, unwilling to be intimidated. "Well I say anyone who's brainless enough to let their reiatsu alert our prey to our presence is an IDIOT!"

"That's it!"

"Yammy." Ulquiorra's cool voice stopped the large man just in time. "Control yourself." He didn't even bother to take his green eyes off the unusual collection of humans, Hollows and Shinigami as they disappeared over a distant sand dune. Once they were gone, Ulquiorra turned back to the fuming pair of Espada. Both of them were glaring at each other as they grudgingly waited for their next instructions. "It's time to leave," he ordered.

Sending a nasty scowl to one another, Grimmjow and Yammy reluctantly turned away from the scene. As they retreated back to the cliff, Ulquiorra lingered and spared one last look to the place where the boy had vanished.

Those people were her supposed heart. She was theirs. Control them, control the woman. Control the woman, control them.

Even if hearts were real, what a weakness they were.

---

"Tha…thu…thurteen." Wonderweiss sat on the floor amongst a messy array of papers, struggling to properly enunciate all the tricky syllables of the number thirteen.

"That's close, but it's pronounced 'thirteen', Wonderweiss-san." Orihime dragged the word out and smiled at him patiently. Holding up one of his papers, the young boy presented her with a messy depiction of the number written in black ink. "Yes, that's correct." She applauded his efforts encouragingly.

Looking up, Orihime turned her attention to the quiet servant Arrancar sitting across from her on the couch.

"How about you?"

He glanced at her briefly before he held up a sloppily written thirteen spelled out next to its corresponding number. Chuckling quietly, Orihime nodded to convey her praise. Though he wasn't illiterate like Wonderweiss, he still had trouble composing difficult words. She could only imagine how humiliating it had been for him, trying to write out words that he couldn't even spell. It was hard for her to think about the ridicule he must have faced in his life.

"Okay, how about 'fourteen'?" she asked.

The servant promptly lowered his head and began determinately scribbling away, while Wonderweiss merely stared at her with a clueless look upon his face. Taking her own pen and paper, Orihime proceeded to instruct the boy on all the intricacies of the word. He'd been learning his numbers and letters very fast for someone who'd been incapable of speech when she'd first met him. He'd gone from single letters and numbers to double digits and full words very quickly.

She was actually quite impressed.

As the lesson continued Orihime couldn't help but wonder if the Arrancar sitting on her couch even had a name. She never knew how to address him. He'd never told her and he never seemed to respond to any title that she was aware of. Getting up from her seat with determination, Orihime navigated around the messy carpet and came to stand before the mute servant who was concentrating on a particularly difficult word.

"Excuse me, Arrancar-san," she said when he lifted his head to her. "Don't you have a name?" she asked curiously.

Visibly stunned, he seemed to think for a moment before slowly shaking his head.

"Do you want a name?"

This time he contemplated her question even longer. She watched his throat bob once as he swallowed nervously. Once again he moved his head slowly, this time nodding 'yes'.

Smiling brightly, Orihime plopped down beside him. "Would you like me to give you one?" she asked earnestly. His eyes widened and she heard his breathing sputter in surprise as if she were about to bestow some magnificent gift upon him. Placing a finger to her chin, Orihime puckered her lips out in thought.

A name was a very important thing, so it must be very special.

"Oh, I know!" she exclaimed after a moment of deep deliberation. "K-chan!" She slammed her fist down into her palm like she'd just had a stroke of genius. At her announcement the Arrancar's eyes narrowed in skepticism, his head threatening to shake in denial. "Oh…no good?" Orihime giggled nervously. "I guess I'm not very good at this, huh?" She had wanted to give him a good one, and Kurosaki was one of the best people she knew so she wanted to honor that. But it seemed she was off the mark.

Dropping his gaze, the Arrancar stared at his lap in deep thought. Seconds later, he reached for the new pen and notepad that Orihime had gifted him. After quickly jotting something down he held it out for her to read.

'K-chan,' it said.

Blinking in surprise, Orihime lifted her questioning eyes to his.

"You…like it?" She smiled hopefully.

With a defeated sigh, he nodded once.

"Oh, how marvelous!" She happily clapped her hands together and intertwined her fingers. "I'm so glad you like it, K-chan!"

'K-chan' tried not to let her see him wince at the name, but accepted it regardless. He was just happy to have a name. She had given it to him, and because of that it was an important belonging to him.

When he suddenly stiffened beside her, all Orihime had to do was expand her senses outside the room to understand what had upset him.

Ulquiorra had returned to the tower.

Judging from the direction he was heading, he was going straight to his chambers and completely bypassing her room altogether.

The lively expression on her face slowly faded away, causing her brow to furrow in concern. She glanced to the Arrancar beside her and had to bite her lip to keep herself from asking the one question running through her mind. However, it didn't take a genius to figure out his sudden bouts of terror always correlated with Ulquiorra's presence. It was possible her warden had threatened the weaker Arrancar after he'd been the one to serve her poisoned tea.

Rising up from the couch, he bowed to her once in a show of gratitude and quickly headed for the door. Before long there was only her and Wonderweiss left in the room.

"Goodbye, K-chan," she whispered to the empty doorway, wondering if she was going to see him again anytime soon.

When Orihime felt a tug at the bottom of her skirt, she flinched back, startled. Blinking back to awareness, she suddenly realized that she'd been blindly staring out the window for an unknown amount of time.

"Hime," his young voice called.

Turning toward the sound, she couldn't help but smile at the pair of large violet eyes staring up at her expectantly.

"I'm sorry, Wonderweiss-san," she apologized. "I spaced out for a bit, didn't I?"

Releasing her skirt, the blonde haired boy began shuffling through his papers. Having found the one he wanted, Wonderweiss presented it to her. As Orihime took the wrinkled sheet from his ink stained fingers she couldn't stop the genuine grin that spread across her lips.

There, written in giant letters, was her poorly spelled name.

"Thank you, Wonderweiss-san," she said as she bent down and pressed a kiss to the top of his mask. Before she could pull away, he wrapped his arms tight around her waist and leaned into her. Burying his face between her breasts, the young Arrancar's eyes grew heavy as he settled into her warmth, his upper body sagging between her legs. His vacant expression was completely unchanging as he stared up into her smiling face, trying to siphon out the Cuatro's lingering scent and focus on hers alone.

Relaxing back against the couch, Orihime let him snooze there for a while as she ran her fingers through his hair and glanced back to the window. She couldn't bring herself to remove him until her stomach suddenly started to growl.

She was famished.

She did feel a little guilty about waking him up and pushing him away, but she hadn't eaten for two days.

Getting up to store the paper away in her desk, Orihime couldn't possibly ignore the hunger pains ailing her stomach any longer. "I think we should go get something to eat." She held her hand out to him and he immediately took it. "Ulquiorra told me he'd take me to the kitchens this morning after the meeting, but I guess he got sidetracked…" She sighed. "I'm starving!"

When they got to the kitchens Orihime ate nearly everything within the cabinets before she could even get anything cooked. She hadn't eaten like that in a long time. Then again, she doubted she'd ever worked up an appetite like the kind she had in the past couple of days.

---

The woman was either extremely naïve or she had a death wish.

To permit into her own room the very creature that had served her a cart full of poison pastries was sheer lunacy. The Arrancar had been coerced into Loly and Menoly's attempt to eliminate her, most likely at the threat to his own life. In order to save his own hide he'd knowingly allowed her to be poisoned.

Beings of such low personal conviction were below any point of value. They were useless and would prove to be nothing but unwanted trouble unless eliminated. She could not possibly be so innocent to believe otherwise. Neither could he believe her to be gullible enough not to realize the servant had played an active part in her poisoning. She was perfectly aware of what he had done and she still allowed the lowly Hollow near her, just as she allowed himself close even after everything he'd put her through. One would almost assume she enjoyed surrounding herself with people who hurt her. She would accept their torture and instantly forgive them without an ounce of anger or retribution in her body. That, or she simply enjoyed the self-righteous gratification that came with the act of refusing to strike back and defend herself, along with her constant need to heal others even when they didn't want her to.

What idiocy.

It was only a matter of time before another scheming enemy of the woman came along. All it would take was one threat to the Arrancar's life and he would jump right into their insidious plot to be rid of Las Noches' resident human. Such was the nature of the Hollow; self-preservation.

Ulquiorra had no qualms with this credence. It was logical and sound, despite how it reeked of weakness. It was something he could understand. However, what Ulquiorra did not understand was the direct contradiction this placed on the Hollow's actions.

Ulquiorra had threatened to kill him should he set foot near the woman again, yet…he continued to do so, regardless. Was Ulquiorra not a present risk to the Arrancar's life? It was quite the paradox - an anomaly that was beginning to become a frustratingly common occurrence around the woman. His actions were not the actions of a Hollow. A Hollow would not willingly place himself in a jeopardizing situation for the sake of another. A Hollow's only concern was conservation.

It was behaving more like…a human.

Either way, he would not allow him a second chance to endanger what belonged to Aizen.

If the girl was going to be difficult about it, then he would simply have to remain extra vigilant.

He'd intentionally stopped by the tower before reporting just to drive him away. By the time Ulquiorra had left, he had sensed the servant was already gone. However, so was the woman, along with the numeros Wonderweiss that had been in her quarters. He would have to track her down later. He wasn't available to go searching for her at the moment, though he already had an idea where she went.

Now that the duty of feeding her fell solely on Ulquiorra's shoulders, he often forgot to do so. Either he'd become engrossed in work or just lose track of her feeding schedule altogether. Such menial tasks were previously performed by the servant, and frequently failed to even pass through his mind.

"Do I really have to be here for this?" Grimmjow complained as Ulquiorra entered the lobby outside the throne room. Numerous hallways opened up into the area from various angles, creating a spacious vestibule that led to a pair of large double doors. "We already had to go to a meeting this morning. Is this really necessary?"

"Shut up!" Yammy shoved his shoulder hard. "Why do you always gotta cause a problem?"

"Don't shove me!" Grimmjow retorted, pushing Yammy's own shoulder in retaliation.

"I'll do what I want!"

"Fuck you!"

"No, fuck you!"

Ignoring the dispute, Ulquiorra walked calmly by the arguing men and pushed open the doors to the throne room. The heavy grating of the stone scraping across the marble flooring pulled their attention up.

"Compose yourselves," he ordered quietly. "Lord Aizen has no interest in listening to your meaningless chatter." When Ulquiorra turned without another word, Yammy shrugged off Grimmjow's tight grip on his jacket and followed after him.

"Keh," Grimmjow scoffed. "Annoying bastard," he muttered under his breath. Skulking forward, Grimmjow came to stand beside his two fellow Espada at the base of Aizen's towering podium. After Ulquiorra's usual pretentious bow, he craned his neck back a little to stare up at their master's lofty position and waited to be addressed.

If Grimmjow didn't know any better, he'd say Aizen actually looked eager to hear their report.

"So?" Aizen leaned forward in his chair expectantly, completely skipping his usual formal greetings. His eyes were absolutely alight with a dark curiosity. "How did our guests fare?"

"Poorly," Ulquiorra answered unwaveringly. Grimmjow nearly flinched. He had to give it to the pale bastard, he had balls. Telling the truth so bluntly like that when it was clearly not what Aizen was wanting to hear…even he wasn't sure he could have done such a thing.

Aizen's expression dropped fractionally. "Oh? How so?" He reclined back into his seat, clearly losing some of his enthusiasm.

"Neither Kurosaki, the Quincy, or the human were capable of defeating Runuganga, let alone escaping him."

"Are they still alive?"

"Yes, in the end they were saved by more of the woman's friends," Ulquiorra explained. "Two more have now joined their group. Both are Shinigami."

Aizen's brow arched at this.

"Shinigami?"

"Yeah," Grimmjow said. "One of them was that ice bitch that was with Kurosaki back when I fought him. I'd recognize her anywhere; titless and weak as hell." He didn't bother to mind his rather colorful vocabulary. "Don't ask me who the other bastard was, though. I couldn't recognize him."

"They are Renji Abarai and Rukia Kuchiki," Ulquiorra elaborated.

"Ah, yes…" Aizen drawled. "The little Shinigami that Urahara hid the Hogyoku inside. How surprising."

"There is also another development," Ulquiorra said. "While observing Ichigo Kurosaki's group, they inadvertently came upon a small pack of Hollows who seem to have taken an interest in their presence here in Hueco Mundo. Amongst their group was a female child…her name is Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck, the former Tres Espada."

"Explain." Aizen's eyes immediately narrowed, his expression suddenly looking hard and very displeased.

"She is, in all appearances, a younger version of the Tres. However, it does not seem she has any memories concerning what happened to her, nor can she recall her time as an Espada. Despite having her original fraccion with her, she is completely unaware of her past."

"Her spiritual power?"

"Minimum…at best."

"I see." Aizen tapped his chin thoughtfully. He needed all the fighters he could get, especially one as powerful as she. "Do you see any potential in retrieving her?"

"No," Ulquiorra answered candidly. "Her mask has suffered an impressive amount of damage. I doubt there is anything that can be done to repair it. While the woman's powers may offer a solution, there is no guarantee that she would also regain her memories. Her body and her powers may be restored, but she also may be left with the intellect of an infant. To keep a child's mind in such a powerful body could be potentially disastrous. The result would be undesirable."

Grimmjow laughed loudly. "Undesirable? Now that's hilarious!" he guffawed. "Look at that idiot." He abruptly jabbed his thumb towards Yammy. "A child's mind in an adult body? And what's he supposed to be?" Grimmjow continued to cackle.

"You asshole!" Yammy shouted. "Why don't you say that to my face when Lord Aizen ain't around, huh? You're only sayin' that now 'cause you know he'd stop me from grinding your brains into the floor!"

"Is that so?" Grimmjow smirked. "How's about we step outside for a private conversation, then? I'll fight you anywhere, anytime."

"Grimmjow. Yammy," Aizen's exasperated voice broke through their argument. "Thank you for your hard work, but that will be all for now. You're dismissed." He waved them off. While Yammy was a little stunned, Grimmjow turned to Ulquiorra with a resentful glare.

As Yammy reluctantly began to head for the door, Grimmjow stuffed his hands into his pockets and trailed after him, only pausing for a split second to offer a contemptuously growled, "Dick sucker," just quiet enough for Ulquiorra's ears alone.

He made sure to slam the door shut behind him, nearly causing the room to quake.

Sighing at his subordinates' rowdy spirit, Aizen closed his eyes and leaned his chin heavily upon his palm. "Children…" He glanced down at Ulquiorra. "Though, I suppose not all of them are terrible." The Espada's stare remained fixed in place, unmoving and unblinking. He didn't even bother to remark on Aizen's comment even though Aizen was certain he'd heard it - and likely disagreed with it, as well. They both knew Ulquiorra wasn't a product of Aizen's Hogyoku like the rest of his creations.

"What are your wishes concerning the Tres?" Ulquiorra asked.

"I suppose I'll leave her be for now. If it's not going to be worth the effort needed to recover and repair her, then she is nothing more than a lost cause." Aizen paused shortly to think. "Still…I want you to keep an eye on her. I have a feeling she's not as powerless as she appears. If something arises, take care of it. Otherwise, leave her to the fates."

"Yes, My Lord," Ulquiorra replied. "And Nnoitra's involvement?" he added. After all, Nnoitra had robbed Aizen of one of his most powerful soldiers in the war against Soul Society.

Aizen merely gave another lazy wave. "There is no point in doing anything about it now. Nnoitra's intellect is rather like a young pet. You must discipline him immediately following the act, elsewise he will fail to understand the reason why he is even being punished at all."

"Yes, My Lord," Ulquiorra repeated.

"Before you leave, tell me how our lovely Orihime is doing."

"She is well. However, she is still exhibiting rebellious behavior towards certain matters."

"Oh? She is, is she?" Aizen smiled amusedly. "And what might these certain matters be?"

"She is unwilling to cooperate with the order to only eat food that has been properly tested."

"Why is that?" Aizen's brow quirked. "Is she not satisfied with what she has been given? Is there something more that she wants? Whatever it is, give it to her so long as it quiets her protests."

"She wants…equal treatment." When Aizen chuckled Ulquiorra frowned, resisting the urge to resent the woman for making him have this ridiculous conversation with his master. Indeed, she had been far too spoiled.

"Does she?"

"She believes no life is below her own," he explained plainly. "She claims all life is equal and that hers should not be held above another."

"Is it life in general she is concerned about…or just you?" Aizen watched his soldier closely for any reaction. He was unsurprised when he saw none, only a perfectly empty expression fixed upon a pale, flawless face. "Do you think she would have the same reaction should I place someone else in charge of testing her food?" He smirked, and then sighed when he still received nothing. Ulquiorra had known exactly where that line of questioning was headed and he was more than smart enough not to involve himself in it. "Very well." Aizen said dismissively. "I will set aside one of the kitchens for her to use as she pleases. Make sure to keep it under strict lock. Only she and you may have access. Will this suffice?"

"Yes." Ulquiorra bowed his head respectfully.

"Do not make the same mistake as last time. I will not be pleased if something happens to her again."

"I understand."

"Oh, and Ulquiorra?" Aizen's voice halted him just as he turned. "You've been doing a wonderful job lately." The slow, sinister smile that spread across his mouth suddenly darkened the entire room. "Thank you for all your hard work."

Ulquiorra's eyes narrowed ominously.

"Of course, My Lord," he answered unflinchingly. "I am at your service."

Aizen's smile only spread. "I'm glad I left her in your care then, Ulquiorra. She is certainly in good hands. How can I ever show my gratitude?"

"I assure you," Ulquiorra began as he turned. "There is no need…"

---

Orihime's foot tapped a fast, incessant tempo on the floor. She was beginning to get impatient. After dinner with Wonderweiss she'd gone straight back to her room. She had expected Ulquiorra to drop by at some point to check up on her like usual. She knew he was back from his mission, she'd sensed him in the tower earlier.

Now after showering, changing into her night clothes, braiding her hair, staring at herself in the mirror for a very long, boring hour and writing in her journal to pass the time, there was still no sign of her elusive warden.

She'd been looking forward to seeing him because she wanted to learn more about her friends. If he'd gone out to observe them then she wanted to know everything he saw. She needed to make sure they were still okay. They were just so far away from Las Noches that it was downright impossible to feel their reiatsu, though she had certainly tried many times throughout the day.

She couldn't even count on one hand how many times she'd closed her eyes and stretched her senses as far out as they could go. She would even send a little strand of her reiatsu along with it, hoping it would touch one of their own.

Each attempt had ended in failure. Because of this her impatience was starting to bubble over.

Finally having had enough, Orihime abruptly stood from the couch and left her room. She was glad that she'd remembered to wear socks, because by the time she had wound her way through the halls, up the stairs and reached Ulquiorra's room the cold had already soaked clear through the fabric and chilled her toes. Her feet would've undoubtedly been numbed to the bone without them.

"Ulquiorra?" Orihime called, rapping a few times on the large stone door. Mouthing a silent 'ow', she shook her hand once and promptly lifted it to her mouth to suck on her sore knuckles, trying to ease the sting in her cold fingers from knocking on such a hard surface. Ignoring the uncomfortable bite of the stone, she raised her hand again. "Ulquiorra, it's me. Can I come in?" She knocked once more. When she received no answer she began to debate with herself whether she should let herself in or just turn around and return to her own quarters. She knew he'd been in there for a good three hours now and it was a little irking to think he might be deliberately ignoring her.

She didn't want to think it had to do with the previous night's activities. He hadn't seemed to exhibit any awkward, post-sex avoidance of her. If anything, the thick tension between them seemed to have finally ebbed considerably since that morning, allowing them to converse and communicate more freely.

Somehow, he seemed far more open to her and even participated in "meaningless banter", as he often described her chatter.

"I…I'm coming in!" she announced loudly, hoping she didn't walk in on him doing anything weird.

Orihime managed to push one of the massive doors open a small crack and she stepped into the room. Her nose caught a lingering but fresh scent and she guessed he must have just gotten out of the shower, judging from the feeling of moisture hovering in the air along with the smell of soap.

"Ul…Ulquiorra?" Her knuckles lightly tapped on the back of the door as her dark eyes searched the area. It was well lit, suggesting he was indeed inside somewhere. "Um…is…is it okay if I come in?" she asked lamely.

Orihime's steps suddenly halted when she caught sight of him across the room.

With his back to her, Ulquiorra sat upon a large pile of cushions on the floor. One of his arms rested atop a bent knee while the other held the beautiful, glinting blade of his unsheathed Zanpakuto.

Orihime stared, momentarily transfixed, as he ran a pure white cloth down the length of the blade in one long, perfect motion.

Fascinated, Orihime immediately forgot what it was she had come there for. She stayed rooted to the spot for a moment, until her feet soon began to guide her over to the bed. She was half way there before she even realized she had moved. Without breaking her stare she automatically sank down onto the edge of the mattress, watching his smooth, polished movements with a vigilant eye. She had never known Zanpakutos needed cleaning and sharpening. She had always assumed that since they were an extension of their wielder's soul, it just sort of magically took care of itself. Though, the more she thought about it, the more such an idea sounded silly. It made sense to maintain such an important part of one's spirit. The weapon was literally a part of them. To leave it in a state of disrepair seemed almost criminal. She herself always made sure her Rikka were in the best shape; never leaving them around water where they could rust, always being extra careful not to bend them, keeping them clean.

Now, Orihime simply couldn't tear her eyes away from the way his hand floated over the curve of his blade or the precise way he smoothed it over a water stone using nothing but uniform, even strokes every time. It was like watching art in motion. Wholly mesmerized, she found her breath catching at times when she would notice the way the muscles in his back would ripple in slow, perfect sync with his movements. Each sinewy stretch of tendon flexed in gentle waves, causing her fingers to tingle with the need to touch. Around his Hollow hole, every line of muscle moved like that fathomless void of emptiness wasn't even there. It never disrupted their flow, like a piece of him had never been cut away. Her tongue slipped out to lightly trace the outline of her bottom lip before she suddenly pulled it between her teeth to nibble on.

Every so often he'd stop and hold the sword in front of him at a slanted angle, inspecting the work he'd done. But her eyes kept deviating from his blade to focus on his body, no matter how hard she tried to resist.

From what she could see he was wearing the same type of pants that he'd changed into the night before, leaving his upper body completely exposed. His hair was damp and she felt something throb deep inside her as she noticed a drop of water fall to his shoulder where it proceeded to carve a glistening wet trail down his back. It rushed down his left shoulder blade, only to quickly lose its momentum as it navigated along all the many rigid contours and somehow managed to reach the center of his back. For a moment she stopped breathing as what little was remaining of the droplet coasted down his spine and disappeared into the hem of his pants.

Riveted to her spot, Orihime suddenly found all her impatience to speak to him about her friends dissipating. She was more than willing to simply sit and wait for him to finish. Just watching the way his biceps flexed and the graceful motion of his arms and shoulders, she was quite intrigued by the sight.

Though she had never paid much attention to the male body until her past few years of life, Orihime had never come to appreciate it as much as she had until this moment.

He was perfect.

A shiver ran up her spine and exploded throughout her body once it reached the back of her neck. As a result, her breasts swelled, her nipples tingled, and a hot wave of arousal invaded her belly. When she shifted in her seat in an effort to compose herself she was mortified to feel a slick wetness between her legs.

"Is there a reason you left your room again?" His voice snapped her out of her thoughts.

Blinking hard to clear her head of the spellbinding fog that had overtaken it, Orihime tore her eyes from his pale flesh and lifted them to the back of his head. He hadn't stopped his hypnotizing movements or even bothered to turn to address her. She was kind of glad, for she wasn't certain she could hide her emotions were he to look her in the eye.

"I wanted to see how your mission went," she answered quietly. For some reason she felt any word spoken above a whisper would break the calm atmosphere that had settled in the air. She really would have preferred not to speak at all, which was a bit unusual in itself.

"You mean you want to know about your friends?" he replied, seeing right through her.

"Y-yes." She licked her lips again when he held the blade out before him and ran his thumb down its length, scrutinizing its sharpness and shine almost to the point of obsession. She couldn't help but wonder what it would be like if it was her he was touching instead. "I was worried about them."

"You should be." His answer did not help to ease her fears in the least. "To come to a place like Hueco Mundo unprepared is suicide." He didn't even pause as he slid the handle back onto the blade and locked it in place with one strong jerk.

"They're stronger than that." Orihime swallowed and glanced off to the side, hoping she at least sounded convincing. "They'll be okay."

When he didn't answer they lapsed into silence.

"Because of your heart?"

Surprised, Orihime looked up to see he'd paused in his ministrations. He was just sitting there, quiet and unmoving.

"Yeah." She smiled softly.

"Nonsense," he uttered. "To believe in their strength simply for the sake of believing is foolish."

"But…that's just how it works." Orihime stared off into the blinding white walls of his room as she searched for the words. Unable to stop the blush that spread over her cheeks, her socked toes began lazily swinging back and forth over the floor. "No matter where they are, no matter how far, I just know. It doesn't matter how much distance there is between us, I know they can feel my heart beating with theirs, communicating our thoughts and emotions. It tells me all I need to know. Even when it's impossible for all of us to feel exactly the same, and there are times when our bonds are stronger than others, it's still there. Nothing can ever sever it, not in this world or any other. That alone is more than enough to get me through…it'll keep all of us strong."

"Your words are irrelevant," he stated as he gazed down at the gleaming blade of Murcielago. From the swayed curve of its guard, to the length of its hilt, to the precision in its braided grip, all of it was as sleek and elegant as its wielder. Murcielago was cold, perfect beauty, and Ulquiorra turned it ever so slightly until his large green eyes were reflected back at him. "My eyes have seen everything. If I have not seen it…then it does not exist." The cross guard, fashioned in the shape of the all-seeing eye, silently glinted back at him in the light. "I have seen your friends for myself…there is no heart."

Orihime felt her chest twist painfully.

She was unsure what to say to him, but she didn't want to give up, either. She wanted him to understand. She also wanted to protect him along with her friends, as well as all of her other friends in Las Noches. But how could she ever make him see what she saw? She'd come to learn over time that she was wrong about most of the people living in this world. They were mostly just victims of circumstance, living the life that had been dealt to them. But she was still at a loss as to what to do about Ulquiorra.

Should she tell him she loved him? Would it make it easier for him to grasp the concept of her heart? She just wasn't sure the type of 'love' she felt for him was strong enough for that yet. Not to mention, she hadn't exactly had much time to acclimate to the feeling, let alone to decide whether or not she actually wanted to love Ulquiorra Cifer. After all, just because she did, didn't mean it had been voluntary or even welcome. Her heart was often prone to strange and fanciful things.

"Rukia Kuchiki is with him."

Orihime's head jerked up at this. She was startled to find him staring back at her from over his shoulder, watching her closely. His eyes were hard and narrowed and she felt chills erupt on her skin from the darkness lingering in their depths.

He was expecting a reaction from her. He was deliberately trying to get a rise from her.

But, for the first time in as long as she could remember, Orihime felt none. It was…strange, to say the least. She'd always hated to label that feeling Kuchiki-san gave her as being jealousy, for it was never so depraved. At least, that's what she kept telling herself. However, Orihime was stunned to find that achy, sour feeling the petite Shinigami provoked in her heart every time she was around Ichigo was gone.

Had…had she fallen out of love with Ichigo?

She couldn't have!

Orihime's heart began hammering in her chest at the mere thought, very nearly panicked.

She had always loved Ichigo because…because…he was just Ichigo. Wasn't that a good enough reason to love someone?

She knew his favorite color, favorite food, his blood type, what kind of movies he liked, his GPA, his birthday…everything. That meant she loved him, didn't it? She knew all those interesting and wonderfully amazing and…silly, childish things that had absolutely nothing to do with who Ichigo Kurosaki really was. Because that's all they really were; silly. Because, once she thought about it, she really didn't know him at all. With Ulquiorra, she didn't have the slightest clue about things like his age, his favorite hobbies, his taste preferences - nothing. But she knew his beliefs, what grated on his nerves, and how to push his buttons. She knew his personality and that he wasn't always as good of a person as he let her believe. She knew that he secretly really, really disliked Gin Ichimaru. She knew how beautiful his eyes were in sunlight and she knew the taste of his kiss.

She knew he was waiting to collect upon a debt from Aizen Sosuke that even he, himself, didn't know what it was.

She had thought she had known everything about Ichigo. It was an 'everything' that she had spent half her lifetime obsessing over and accumulating through bits of gossip and knowledge and the rare instances that he spoke to her outside their group of friends…and it all amounted to the fact that Orihime Inoue had known Ichigo Kurosaki for years and she knew absolutely nothing of value about him.

He was strong and good hearted and protected his friends. He was the perfect fairytale prince to all her childhood fantasies, but he never opened up to her, never told her why he was always so brooding and sad when no one was looking. Those admirable qualities drew her to him, and she certainly refused to trivialize the strength of what she felt for him. But she wasn't a child anymore, and the more she considered her love for the young man, the more she came to the troublesome realization that she didn't really love him at all. A small, very dark part of the reason she'd come to Las Noches was because she knew he'd come for her. The truth of the matter was, Ichigo Kurosaki would have come for anybody, but she wanted to imagine he was doing it for love. She had wanted to see nothing but love in every single one of his actions. He'd fight for her, he'd draw blood for her, he'd run himself ragged just trying to reach her.

She'd been trying to superimpose a fairytale on his sacrifices, and it made her feel terribly guilty for ever clinging to her young fantasies in the first place.

She even remembered the day when she had first met Rukia. She and Tatsuki and their friends were all sitting under a tree during their lunch hour, talking about nonsensical things like girls usually do. It had been bright and sunny out and she'd packed a delicious bento. She'd asked Rukia if she also loved Ichigo. She even remarked how wonderful it would be if they happened to have a crush on the same person.

It had been so childish. It seemed like ages ago…

Ichigo had been at the very forefront of her mind when she'd first come to Hueco Mundo. Little by little, he'd faded away.

When had such a thing happened? Why hadn't she been aware of it? She knew she had feelings for Ulquiorra, but a woman couldn't love two men, could she?

Orihime thought of all the things she'd done with Ulquiorra and tried to imagine herself doing the same with Ichigo.

Swallowing hard, she glanced away, suddenly uncomfortable at the thought. She could recall a time when simply thinking of kissing a boy, let alone Ichigo, nearly caused her to hyperventilate. But the longer she was with Ulquiorra, the less she felt childish and insecure. She felt confident around him, even if she still got embarrassed and shy at times. She felt she could stand up to him, something she never did before. It was a part of herself she'd never explored until she met him. Perhaps because he displayed none of the blushing, apprehensive and immature behavior of her peers that she was familiar with in the human world. He was always in control, always a master of himself and his environment. He never treated her like an invalid child, even though he often called her one when she first arrived. Even as her warden, he fully expected her to take care of herself and only intervened when necessary.

He was a man…and he made her feel like a woman.

She had blossomed under the confidence he gave her.

For some reason she'd latched onto that, weeding through all the disagreements they had and all the times he was particularly cruel to her.

Orihime turned back to meet his deep green gaze.

Looking at him now, she had to wonder if Ulquiorra had bleached out all her love for Ichigo.

He didn't treat her like a prisoner, nor did he belittle her weaknesses, merely made her face and acknowledge them. He brought out a side of her she'd never known existed and made her want to get stronger just to prove his words wrong. He made her want to protect him. He may have been her enemy, but somewhere deep inside, she didn't believe he was as bad as he seemed.

Then there were times when her heart felt like it was going to leap right out of her chest when he looked at her.

Times like this.

Though she was keenly aware there were still many problems between them, the feelings she had for him were still very delicate and it was difficult to bridge the gap between their worlds. They were different, of course, so it was hard to get along at times. Still, she wanted to explore whatever was between them. If not for the sake of the upcoming hardships of war, then at least for the sake of simply knowing each other; even if their flame was destined to be brief.

However, the real question in all her jumbled thoughts was: would he ever love her back?

A slow smile touched her lips.

She may not have an answer for that right now, but she'd certainly try to find out. After all, they were in the middle of a war. It's not like she had time to lose.

"I'm glad," she said genuinely. "If Kuchiki-san is with him then I know he'll be alright. It puts my heart at ease." Orihime closed her eyes and sighed at the pure, blissful peace those words brought her. Strange how she hadn't even been able to acknowledge that what she'd felt for Rukia was indeed jealously until after she'd fallen in love with another man. After all, wishing Rukia would stay away from Ichigo, even while deliberately knowing her presence clearly made him happy and kept him safe, just to make herself feel better certainly couldn't have been anything healthy.

It was time for Orihime to grow up, forget her unrealistic fantasies and start taking care of herself.

Ulquiorra scrutinized her face carefully before he finally turned away, apparently not finding whatever it was he was looking for - most likely some weakness he wanted to use against her.

When he resumed his work she leaned back onto her palms, powerless to keep her gaze from following the lines of his body. The fringe of his dark hair grazed his shoulders, teasing her as it glided over his pale skin. She charted out every curve of his spine with her curious eyes and dared to steal a peek of the dip in his lower back.

It was becoming increasingly frustrating how the longer she watched him the more she wanted to touch him. All of her previous thoughts and revelations had left her feeling a little agitated and edgy. Her body was itching for some kind of release and she was still throbbing and empty from the night before. Everything between her legs felt hollow, like she needed to be filled. Running her tongue over her teeth, Orihime squirmed a bit in her seat. Her memories kept playing back the feel of his chest under her hands, the firmness of his tight, slender muscles, the cute little mark on his ab. He felt so perfect against her and she kept trying to relive the hardness of his muscles pressing into every soft crevice of her body.

Orihime felt another shiver rake over her. The pull he had on her was like gravity. There was simply no resisting it.

Before she could stop herself, Orihime was sliding off the bed and making her way closer to him. Her steps wavered for a brief moment when she got close enough to actually catch the scent of his soap. Gathering up all the nerve she could manage, she sank down behind him onto the large pile of cushions. Trembling softly, her fingers lightly swept across one of his shoulders. At her touch, Ulquiorra paused. His head turned slightly to the side, silently gauging her actions.

Orihime hesitated, her breath lodged in her throat.

Her heart thumped like something wild and untamed, beating against her ribs and trying to break free of the cage of her chest. She didn't quite know how to initiate the kind of intimacy she was looking for. All the times before were merely happy accidents. Now, she was going out of her way for it.

With just the tip of her nail, she traced a single finger over the outline of his shoulder blades and spine, only stopping when she reached the ring of emptiness between them. In a bold move her thighs shifted closer around his sides as she leaned her breasts into his back. Exhaling softly over his skin, she pressed a chaste kiss to the outside of his shoulder. Her eyes watched him closely, observing him with a hungry but nervous stare as her lips slowly glided up the curve of his shoulder to his neck. Her hand slid up his arm, skimming up his bicep to shadow the path her lips had made.

When her teeth gently bit into his ear, she smirked at the way his head turned further back to her. Encouraged and unable to stop herself, Orihime ran her palms down the entire length of his back, arching her body into his as she pressed her teeth harder into his flesh. She could feel her heart beating faster in her chest, causing her breathing to accelerate into a quicker and harsher pace.

On impulse Orihime wrapped a leg tight around his waist and pulled herself smoothly into his lap until she was fully straddling him. Resting her hands on his chest, she leaned back against his bent leg. His eyes lifted to hers and Orihime felt shivers run through her blood. The sharp green orbs created an aftermath of nothing but burning, devastating heat as they traveled up her torso, over her breasts and lingered on her lips.

She froze with a gasp when she felt something cold and sharp following that searing path. Careful not to move, Orihime's eyes dropped to take in the sight of his blade sliding over her hip, etching a terrifying path up her torso. Blunt side down, it forged a slow, deliberate trail, traveling higher and higher up her stomach and ribs. Deathly sharp, his steady hand guided the shining metal between her breasts.

A quiet whimper wavered in the back of Orihime's throat, only growing louder when he pressed the cool, dangerous steel over a nipple.

With an edge so sharp she was certain it could cut through her as easily as butter, he merely glided it effortlessly over her night shirt, not once catching or tearing the sheer fabric.

Orihime clenched her lashes shut to escape the look in his eyes. They were dark and cold and glued to the course of his blade as it inched up the column of her throat. The gentle but frigid press of steel on her jugular sent an unusual thrill through Orihime's veins, particularly when it slipped up the soft, round slope of her cheek.

When she felt his knuckles on her skin, Orihime peeked an eye open and watched as he drew the sheath down the length of his sword with such an unhurried, purposeful motion that she nearly shuddered. The backs of his fingers brushed along her neck and breasts, edging lower and lower…and lower. As he moved past her belly and grazed down her abdomen, Orihime's hips flexed forward at the sensation. Her nails contracted against his chest, trying to release some of the tension building up in her body.

The second his Zanpakuto was safely sheathed Orihime bent down and dragged her lips hungrily up the length of his neck, pressing small kisses into his flesh along the way. She wasn't sure when he'd set the sword aside, but the moment she felt his hands smooth up her legs - his thumbs pressing into the inside of her thighs as they went - she moaned into his shoulder.

Sinking down into his lap, Orihime buried a hand in his hair and pulled his face closer to hers. Light as a feather, her fingers ghosted over his jaw and traced the downturned corners of his mouth. Dipping her head, her lips teased over his like a whisper. The moment he leaned up to meet her, Orihime pulled back just out of reach. His eyes snapped up to hers, clearly annoyed.

She had to suck her bottom lip between her teeth and bite down on it just to hide her smile. He always pulled away from her kisses. It was time he got a taste of his own medicine. Though, judging from the look in his eyes, he didn't find it amusing.

Her face lit up with a blush as she inclined her head back down to his. This time, Orihime felt his hand lock in her hair, forcing her into him as his mouth opened over hers and instantly demanded access. His tongue pried its way into her, both insistent and unyielding. He drank her in and she opened herself wider as their tongues grew more and more hungry with each passing second.

His hand closed over her backside, squeezing it firmly as he suddenly dragged her further down into his lap. Orihime gasped into his mouth, her breath momentarily stolen at the feel of him against her. Their tongues met in a heady mixture of hot and cool caresses, entwining in a sensual dance that had jolt after jolt of desire shooting straight to her loins. Shifting slightly, Orihime squirmed around until she could feel his hardness nestled directly against the heat between her legs. She pressed into it once and, like an uncontrollable tidal wave, every muscle inside her clenched in response.

When Ulquiorra suddenly turned them and pressed her back into the cushions below, Orihime moaned hard against his lips. Her legs automatically drew him close as their kiss became tangled and furious. Her hands were digging into his back and his were pulling up her shirt. Lifting her arms, she reluctantly broke away from him as he drew the fabric over her head. She was quick to pull him back down to her afterwards, tugging his hair and boldly sucking his upper lip between her teeth.

"Ulquiorra," she called impatiently, urging him to hurry. Her thighs locked around his waist, squeezing the hard lines of his body as she rolled her hips up into him.

The cold touch of his hands on her backside pulled her closer, holding her to him as he pressed down in return. It excited her and caused her heart to race in anticipation.

When Orihime found the semi-hard shaft under the fabric of his pants, she wasted no time and began grinding into it. Ulquiorra grunted quietly and tightened his grip on her backside, lifting her hips to guide her motions more fully against his fast hardening member.

Her innards were still sore from the night before, but when his palm slid up her thigh and pressed into her soaking wet femininity all Orihime could think about was getting him inside her again. His fingers pushed aside her underwear and slid through her slick dampness with deft ease, narrowing straight in on her clit.

Ulquiorra didn't even pause when, as he applied pressure onto her tiny bundle of nerves, she tore her lips from his with a ragged gasp. She may have still been too tender, but that didn't mean she couldn't be manipulated until she fell apart in his hands. Everything was overly sensitive and each gentle touch drove her crazy. He circled the hypersensitive bud slowly, softly and agonizingly, and she pressed her face into his chest, desperately trying to allay her shaky whimpers. Her nails dug into his shoulder blades and her back arched as she gradually came undone by his slow torture.

Biting into his skin, Orihime's legs tightened around him. "Ul-Ulquiorra!" she cried out when he began pressing a finger into her.

Ulquiorra ran his lips down her neck, causing her to shudder and quake as he nibbled on that one sensitive spot below her ear. Her walls tensed around his finger and Ulquiorra nearly frowned into her soft skin as he gauged her tightness. His eyes narrowed, hardly able to believe how tight she still felt after all he'd done to her the night before. With a few openmouthed kisses to distract her, she shivered and shook under him as he pulled his finger back and gradually inserted another in with the first.

"W-wait…" she panted, her warm breath wafting across his hair as she tried to adjust. "Please, don't do it hard…" she whispered against his shoulder, embarrassed beyond redemption for having to ask him to be gentle. Though, it seemed her embarrassment was quickly forgotten when he began moving inside her with sure, even strokes, causing her blush to rapidly spread from her cheeks clear down to her chest.

As Ulquiorra started edging his way down her body, nipping and pecking at all the little sweet spots of her flesh, Orihime's entire being began to quake with anticipation and anxiety. She was both afraid and excited to see if he would do the same things he'd done before. Every centimeter of her erupted in flames at the mere prospect of it, making her feel hot and claustrophobic inside her own skin.

His lips stalked down the inside of her thigh, lurking closer and closer to tasting her. He lazily sucked on each tiny blemish he'd previously left, making them even darker than before. Nudging her underwear further aside, he pressed his mouth directly over her clit, sucking on it hard.

Orihime's hands flew down to grab him. Her nails raked over his mask, trying to keep him at bay as his tongue began a slow, torturous sweep around her tender bundle of nerves. He laved at her, licking and bathing her femininity in a cruel, sweet torture.

With just a few gentle pushes of his fingers Orihime's whole abdomen rippled with an orgasm. Crying out, her nails dug into his scalp as she suddenly began tugging his head closer. Her inner walls wrapped around him, pulling him deeper with each contraction. She spread her legs and pushed her body down into his face, rocking and grinding against him as she came. When he pulled his fingers back Orihime nearly protested the loss, only to lose all her breath at the sensation of his tongue thrusting deep into her still throbbing sex. He lapped the warm juices that rushed out of her. She could feel his hands on the back of her thighs, keeping her spread wide. His thumbs parted her folds as his mouth closed over her, sucking her completely dry.

Reaching down his body, Ulquiorra pushed the front of his pants down and gripped his member. He very nearly cursed when he realized how hard he already was. Swollen to the point of pain, he wrapped his fingers around its base and squeezed hard to ease the pressure, all the while his tongue continued to invade her moist depths. He never stopped tasting her. He devoured and explored her fully, and she writhed as if she were suffering an excruciating torment.

When he began mindlessly thrusting into his own hand, Ulquiorra pulled away and hooked his fingers around her panties. He'd barely gotten them halfway down her thighs when he dragged her close, threw her legs together and tossed them over his shoulder. Without wasting another second, his hips drove forward, burying himself only a single frustratingly tight inch inside her.

Orihime cried out at the sudden feel of him pressing into her. Her back arched off the cushions hard and her fingers began digging into the fabric above her head. The thick, hard, and wet pressure was like nothing she'd ever felt before. Somehow, having her legs closed only served to emphasize the width of his girth, stressing the feel of his size that much more. With his arm wrapped around her legs and the backs of her thighs held tight against his chest, she was utterly powerless to move. Her entire body trembled as he entered her with slow, insistent thrusts. Each push sank him further into her, each stroke inching deeper and deeper into her swollen sex.

"W-wait…no!" she whimpered brokenly when he leaned forward and braced his palm against the pillows beside her head. It gave him a better angle to push down into her and he took full advantage of it. His hips rocked into her over and over, driving her to press the back of her hand to her mouth to quell her growing need to cry out. "Oh god…" she uttered to herself, hardly able to bear the bliss of it. Her pleads had lowered to little more than weak whispers. Tears began to fill her eyes as that hot, tight sensation began to wind in her gut. It escalated with each movement, with each small inch he gained inside her. The feeling radiated through her and filled her chest with a strange emotion, making her feel completely helpless. Not wanting him to see her weakness, Orihime turned her head away. Trying to hide her face behind her wrist, she pressed her lips tight and refused to let him see the moisture brimming on her lashes. The nails of her other hand dug into the flesh of his hip, torn between pushing him away and pulling him deeper. "Please wait," Orihime begged breathlessly, her eyes daring to peek up at him. "I…I'm gonna-!"

She nearly came at the sight of him; his dark hair hanging about his face, his exotic and unearthly pale skin, his green eyes glaring into her intensely as he dragged his lips down the outside of her thigh.

"Ul…Ulquiorra…wait. I-I wanna cum with y-you-ah!" Her neck arched back, her teeth nearly piercing the back of her hand at the feel of his thickness thrusting into her. If he didn't stop she was going to-

Orihime suddenly clamped down on his length, her vaginal walls contracting hard. When he only continued thrusting through her orgasm, the hand that had been pushing him away abruptly began shoving his hips closer. Her nails raked down his obliques, scraping over every rigid piece of solid muscle, before latching onto his hip and urging him deeper.

"Ulquiorra! Oh god, it's so good!" she breathed, letting him freely grind into her. "More! Please more!"

When Orihime was met with the sensation of his engorged length settling fully inside her, Ulquiorra dropped down onto his elbow and immediately started thrusting vigorously. The position contorted her body and trapped her legs tight between their chests, leaving her unable to even move. She moaned loudly as Ulquiorra filled her again and again, silently trying to endure as he slaked his need before she'd had a chance to acclimate his size, even before her orgasm had properly faded. Sinking her teeth down into her knuckle, Orihime began freely sobbing as he took her without restraint, making her pussy feel as if it were about to liquefy and explode into raw fire. For a moment she feared she may black out again like she had done the night before. She was hardly able to tell her own body from his anymore, such was the level of pleasure he elevated her to.

"I'm going to cum again," she tried to warn, but nothing but choked cries and shattered syllables left her mouth. She wasn't even sure anymore if she'd stopped cumming from the last one. No matter how hard she fought to wait for him, his forceful thrusting only negated all her efforts.

Then the arm around her legs dropped lower and tightened its hold. Seemingly without any effort, he began hauling her hips up to meet each plunge of his length inside her tight body, forcing her participation when she couldn't even move under him. When her walls gave him another hard clamp, Ulquiorra groaned and pressed his forehead against her knee. Slowing his pace, he pushed down until she took him clear to the hilt. Leaning his weight into her, he rocked in time to the ravenous suckling of her tight, wet sex. She nursed his dick repeatedly, her muscles massaging him and drawing him deeper with each mind numbing squeeze.

Grunting quietly, Ulquiorra couldn't stop himself from grinding into her mindlessly. Her legs curled around his shoulder, bringing him closer as he rutted against her last convulsion.

Each quivering breath that passed her lips swept over his neck, heating his flesh. The feel of her nails raking down his back had him rolling his hips into her slower, surging down into her with deep, unhurried thrusts.

"Ulqui," she gasped at the sensation of taking him so deep inside her in such a scrunched position, making her abdomen feel stuffed and swollen. When he touched a spot that almost felt forbidden, both her hands darted down to his lower back, frantically pressing him closer to keep him from pulling out. "There," she whispered breathlessly, tears falling from her eyes as he proceeded to grind long and hard exactly where she wanted. Her toes curled in rapturous delight and her legs flexed around his shoulder, digging her heels into his back.

"Is this what you like…?" His quiet, velvety voice played at her ear just as she felt him bump her cervix. "And this…?" Orihime whimpered, hardly able to stop herself from breaking into sobs when his hand reached down, grabbed her hip and pulled her up into him just as he forced himself in, bearing down against her womb. In such a position, it was easy for him to reach it. "Is this all it takes to make you cum for me?" His hips strained against the fleshy cushion of her rear and his abs flexed against the backs of her soft thighs, never offering respite, always striving to reach further.

Her inner walls twitched around him once. He was pushing her to the very brink of one too many orgasms. She didn't even know if she'd came a third time, or if the second was just so long and drawn out it blurred together. He was splitting her apart in the most wonderful of ways, every muscle stretched to full capacity. It felt good enough to be shameful.

Her lips parted, but nothing came out. He was too deep; too deep to speak, too deep to even breathe. The feel of his girth filling her so completely left her unable to form proper words. Instead, she was left with nothing more than grunts and gasps, and useless, muttering, high-pitched whines to communicate her pleasure.

One of her hands tangled in his hair, holding to him as she blindly nestled her face into the crook of his neck. Her lips pressed burning kisses along his skin, tracing the lines of his jaw and cheek as their urgency grew. With her legs still pinned against her chest, she used his shoulder as leverage to push herself up into him. Locking her ankles and lifting herself, she met each roll of his hips with a small one of her own.

"Ulquiorra," she gasped, her lips hovering next to his. She could feel his breath fan across her cheek, brisk and heavy. Wrapping an arm around his neck, Orihime pulled him closer. "It's…it's so deep," she managed to whisper against the corner of his mouth, her voice thick with awe.

When Ulquiorra felt the gentle brush of her reiatsu reaching out to him, he grunted quietly and smothered her lips in a suffocating kiss, trying to make her stop. In a bid to ignore the feel of her energy attempting to connect with his, he buried himself inside her and, without pulling out, began pumping hard. Muscles quivering, the arm anchored over her head shifted to snatch up a handful of her hair. Wrenching her neck back, he forced her mouth open, demanding submission. His tongue invaded her cruelly, tangling with her own in an effort to shut out the delicate feel of her reiatsu surrounding him. It was everywhere; soft and warm and caressing his skin like the gossamer stroke of a feather, making it impossible to escape. It thrummed gently, singing in time with the beat of her pulse…it was the closest thing he'd ever felt to a heartbeat. Strong, bright…alive.

He didn't like it. It crawled over his skin, foreign and new and much too close for comfort, causing his hips to jerk and twitch out of his control.

His upper lip nearly pulled back into a sneer as he suddenly pushed into her with one powerful thrust, earning him another sweet cry. With it, her walls finally tightened around his shaft and Ulquiorra promptly quickened his pace. When she released a tremulous sob against his mouth he had to drop his forehead to her shoulder just to get air into his lungs. His breath was coming harder and faster and he felt his cock beginning to ache and swell. Reaching the brink, he continued through each narrowing of her velvety walls. Each slick entry created a delicious friction that had his loins tightening and burning for release.

Lifting himself back onto his palm for leverage, Ulquiorra gave a few short thrusts and spilled himself into her.

Stilling briefly inside her, Ulquiorra let her milk his length as it emptied and Orihime moaned loudly in fervent appreciation, calling out his name in an impassioned cry as he gave her flesh a moment to really get ahold of him. With his hips locked to hers and his member embedded deep within her throbbing sex, he rocked into her hard, obliging her to take everything he spilt. His forearm constricted around her legs, elevating her hips and opening her up.

Orihime covered her face with her hands, whimpering uselessly when the motion drew his seed deep into her womb. Groaning through his teeth, Ulquiorra pressed his lips to her knee and fucked her through her orgasm, only stopping when he'd spent himself entirely.

For Orihime, everything was spinning. Even with her body contorted under his, she reveled in the few short seconds of serenity brought on by her climax. She basked in the way it made her feel as if she were literally glowing.

Lying completely spent, Orihime could do little more than sigh as he pulled out of her. Her chest heaved as she tried to inhale all the air her lungs desperately needed. She hadn't even realized her vision had turned black until it gradually began to fade back to normal.

In the back of her mind she was only vaguely aware of being rolled over onto her belly and having her hips propped up high. Her panties were still halfway down her thighs, causing them to dig into her skin as her legs were spread wide. Her cheek was pressed into the warm cushions below and her arms lay limply about her head. Blearily blinking her eyes open, Orihime was just able to turn her head enough to glance back.

Her lashes widened at the sight of Ulquiorra leaning back on his knees behind her. His gaze was fixed on her dripping sex, his hand stroking his cock back to life as he intently watched his cum leak out of her and drip to the pillows.

Orihime's heart nearly exploded from the adrenaline rush she received as he mesmerized her with the motion of his hand running up and down his long, thick shaft. She was stunned to realize it was the first time she had fully seen him and her hands pawed the cushions anxiously, wanting to touch him…to taste him. She couldn't help but wonder what he would feel like in her mouth, to wrap her tongue around his engorged cock.

Her core clenched at the mere thought and his hand simultaneously squeezed the base of his length in response, his eyes not missing a thing. Curling her hips back shyly, Orihime offered up her rear, silently communicating that she was willing to take him again.

When Ulquiorra slowly drove two fingers into her and began pushing his cum back inside, she knew it was going to be another long night. The feel of his long, slender digits sliding in and out of her, coupled with the sight of his hand moving in concert to each thrust, was nearly too much.

However, as she mewled delightfully and began rocking back into his hand, Orihime found she really didn't mind at all.

..

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TBC

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