PLEASE FORGIVE ME FOR THE LONG WAIT! I didn't realize it was going to take this long even when I gave you guys the heads up to expect a delay. I really hope you enjoy the new chapter
Chapter 17: Exposed
When Grimmjow woke up he was on a tatami floor and covered in a blanket. He pushed himself up with a yawn and looked over at the woman sleeping under her window. She had turned her futon sideways so that it only cushioned her torso and some of her legs then folded it over herself so that it could also be her blanket. To Grimmjow's only slight disappointment after they spent a bit of time kissing the previous night Yukiko started to fall in and out of sleep so they simply stopped and went to bed. Initially they tried to both sleep on the futon but the woman couldn't relax with him there and he didn't really fit on it anyways so the Arrancar took the blanket and slept on the floor while she took the cushioned blanket.
If he remembered correctly, when she used her power in any way she would need to sleep for 13 hours, give or take an hour. Just to see what would happen though he got up and crouched over her sleeping form. She seemed very peaceful and content in her dreams. "YUKIKO!" Grimmjow yelled.
Her brows knitted together slightly and she turned on her side but otherwise didn't show any signs of life. He pushed his finger against her forehead and rocked her face back and forth with a frown. "You are a disturbingly heavy sleeper."
Grimmjow took hold of her and lifted the woman out from her casing then used his foot to unfold it before putting her back down. He tossed the blanket back over her then turned his back to the virtually comatose woman, opened a garganta and left. He returned to Las Noches and looked around the grand hall, where he stepped through. One person was in the room, the rainbow haired Arrancar and she simply stared at him for a moment. "Welcome back."
He gave her a glance as acknowledgment of her greeting but nothing else. The male Arrancar settled to wander around the halls of Las Noches and think about his previous night. Yukiko wasn't completely how she had been when she was sent away, but she was overall well. The woman was wary around him and that was more than vaguely annoying though he could clearly see that she didn't want to be so he'll give her some time to adjust. She hadn't said much about what she had been doing in those past days but that didn't really surprise him, she had always been vague when it came to something that had happened to her. Grimmjow suspected that she didn't want to talk about the hospital because she just wanted to forget about it, especially since they clearly didn't take good care of her. He was exaggerating when he called her a skeleton but she was skinnier than when they had last been together and it wasn't a good thing. Despite all the food that woman ate she didn't have any noticeable fat; he had literally stood on her stomach and there was no pudge to speak of. Now her bones showed definition in her arms and face, a sign that usually meant someone was starved. Not only had the hospital starved his human but they cut off all of her hair. He did not like the change and considering her expression when it came up, she didn't either.
While he was on the subject of her physical appearance, she was a little shorter than he expected. He was well aware that his perception of size was skewed due to being a small lap animal but he wasn't expecting her to only be his shoulder level, though admittedly that's probably average height for human women.
*Her smile was as nice as I remember…* The thought crossed his mind without his permission and he frowned with an uncomfortable warmth in his cheeks when he did catch it. Grimmjow walked outside since that was where his best chance for a distraction would be; and he was right.
In the large open field of sand Nel and Achiim were sparring. Nel was going ridiculously easy on the boy, feigning acts of offense with weak and sloppy punches and slow kicks while also pretending to just barely be able to avoid or block his attacks. She stopped when she saw Grimmjow come a little closer and the kid stopped to follow her gaze. For some reason he smiled brightly at the sight of Grimmjow and approached him. "You're back! Why were you gone for so long?"
"None of your business." He responded, not missing the way Nel covered her smile with the tips of her fingers and looked like she might have been laughing. "What?"
She stepped close to him and walked in a circle around him, then crossed her arms with a slightly confused look on her face. "What happened?"
"You didn't answer me." The man grunted.
Nel glanced to Achiim then walked behind him and covered his ears. The kid started complaining and flailing around but Nel didn't let up. "With how fast you ran off with that woman I was expecting you to come back looking a little less like you slept in your clothes."
Grimmjow smirked. "So, little Ms. Righteous really is as nosey as they come."
Nel turned red in a mix of embarrassment and anger at his comment and started shouting in her child-tone that came out whenever she wasn't paying attention. "I'm just trying to be friendly!"
"By the way the kid's head looks like it might pop." He added in a lazy tone.
The woman looked down and realized she was crushing child's skull along with blocking his ears. "Achiim-chan, I'm sorry!"
"I'm fine." He responded though he sounded a bit dizzy.
"What were you two doing anyways?" Grimmjow asked.
"Training. I know working to improve others is a new concept to you but that's what it looks like." Nel answered.
"Looked more like you were playing with the kid to me. I know for a fact that you would never be anywhere close to his attacks in a fight."
"I don't want to hurt him." She argued.
"Umm…" The child spoke up. "Nel-san, I kind of like the way Grimmjow-san teaches me better."
Nel frowned in shock, Grimmjow was surprised too.
Their faces must have made him nervous about his opinion because he spoke much faster. "It's just that Grimmjow-san works me much harder and I know I'm doing a lot better because of it."
Nel's expression descended from shock to despair and the woman-child began to cry. "You mean, you don't like me?"
Achiim exploded into a panic. "Of course I like you! I… I just think Grimmjow-san is a good teacher!"
Now the woman glared at the Grimmjow. He looked back at her with crossed arms. "You're seriously mad at me? I think you're forgetting the part where I didn't want anything to do with the kid in the first place."
"Have you reported to Tier-san yet?" Nelliel growled out.
"Why? You did already didn't you? She doesn't need to hear everything twice." Grimmjow absentmindedly scratched at his throat while he spoke.
"It's a formality that you need to get used to. Now GO!" To further emphasis the force of her command Nel roared out one of her own pink Cero. Grimmjow reinforced his Hierro around his hands and shot forward; he threw the attack out of his way and shot his right fist forward. Nel crossed her right hand across her chest to catch it and then hammered her left at Grimmjow's face. He craned his neck to avoid it with a savage smile and held his open hand just over her face, his palm glowing with a blue Cero of his own. Before he could fire the woman released his hand and used Sonido to escape the blast.
Grimmjow was a bit disappointed that she didn't inhale it to use her Doble Cero but at least she was finally fighting. Or at least she was. Now she was just standing with her hands held up. "STOP!"
"Why?!" He was rather irritated.
"I don't want to fight. You shouldn't either."
"Say's the person who attacked first." He taunted.
"She's right, you shouldn't want to fight." Harribel's calm voice carried out across the area.
Grimmjow looked back at her with a frown. "Is your head so far up your ass that you don't even know who you're talking to?"
"Welcome back Grimmjow. Iris told me that you had returned so I was curious as to why I hadn't heard from you." Said the dark skinned Arrancar.
"Because I don't have to tell you anything. I'll come and go whenever I feel like."
Harribel never seemed to change in her composure. "There is a chain of command here Grimmjow and you report to me."
"Or you can knock that shit off and get over yourself. We're Hollows. Stop trying to act like Shinigami."
Nel stepped towards him with her arms crossed. "We are not. We are simply acting like beings of intelligence. You should try it sometime."
Grimmjow had reached the point of having enough of these two and their opinions. He used Sonido to get in close to Nelliel and when she tried to step away he shot off a small Bala to disrupt her footing. The woman glanced down at her feet as she stumbled; Grimmjow used the chance to successfully punch her face. Unfortunately her Hierro was nothing to look down on and his strike did very little to actually hurt her but it didn't stop him from continuing his punches and on the third he could see that she was going to catch his fist so as it made contact he also released a Cero into her palm. The man felt the release from her hand but it was also accompanied by a sharp kick to his torso. The strike pushed him off of her slightly but as he coiled his legs to launch back at her he had to contain the energy as he found his neck between two swords: Nel at his front and Harribel at his back. Nel was glaring as menacingly as her bloodied yet still childish features could and while Grimmjow couldn't see the blond he was certain she was still maintaining her calmed expression. "We said you shouldn't want to fight."
"I say you should." He growled back.
Harribel removed her blade from the base of his skull. "Nelliel-san, let's leave him be."
The older woman looked past Grimmjow and at her king. Whatever it was that she saw was enough to convince her to obey and she lowered her blade. "Work with Achiim while you're here, since he likes you better." She said with a sour tone but walked away from him and back towards the stone palace together with Harribel.
Grimmjow watched as Nel's steps fell into sync with Harribel's almost instantly and walked closely behind her but a little to the right. Between her uncharacteristically submissive behavior and her insistence to always be close to Harribel Grimmjow was struck again with how stupid everyone must be to not see that the green haired woman was pining for the current Hollow King.
When he looked away from the women and at Achiim he could see a slight tremor run through the boy and there was still a shadow of fear in his face. "What? When the fighting started did you piss yourself or something?"
The question clearly upset the boy. "No!"
"Are you sure, 'cause you look like you need a diaper change." He teased while he put his hands in his pockets.
Achiim growled slightly and screamed angrily as he charged Grimmjow. The boy jumped and tried to punch him across the jaw but the older man kicked him away, sending him a good distance. "Pass out or land a hit. You have to do one or those if you want to be done for the day."
"Fine!" He yelled out like he was still angry but Grimmjow suspected that the boy was happy. He did admit to preferring the man as his teacher over Nel.
After about two hours of sparring Achiim finally passed out without managing to land a single hit on Grimmjow so he took the boy back into the palace and tossed him into his bed before returning to his room. In there, he dropped himself onto his bed and yawned. Las Noches was a boring as always, except for the part when he almost got a proper fight with one of the former Tres Espada.
With his head on his pillow he could feel the faint outline of the sketch book that he had stolen from Yukiko's previous apartment. "Is she awake yet?"
There was nothing else for him to bother with and he managed to pass some time so Grimmjow returned to the World of the Living and landed directly in Yukiko's apartment, her previous apartment that was. There was a man there who seemed to be unpacking a box, apparently someone was already moving in. He opened the room's door, uncaring of the man's sudden jump at it, and went down the hall to the proper room. He unlocked the door with a spare key that was kept in the on the name plate just as her previous arrangement.
The woman was there and she looked up at his entrance. "Going somewhere?" He asked since she was in a coat.
{"Just a walk."} She said with a little smile.
He rolled his eyes as he walked the three steps to get deeper into the room. "Damn it. You're being boring too."
Now it was her turn to roll her eyes. {"You can come. It would give us a-"} She stopped abruptly then just stared at him with a disgusted look.
"What now?"
{"You're filthy and you reek! When was your last bath?"} She looked like she was yelling.
Grimmjow glanced down at himself and saw that he was smudged all the way down with dirt. He unconsciously hid one of his hands in his pocket and the other by scratching the back of his head. "Why is it suddenly an issue? You didn't care last night."
She frowned. {"A lot was happening last night. Go wash up."}
He put both of his hands in his pockets and leaned down a little so the he was eye level with the woman. "Why are you suddenly getting bossy?"
{"Why do you have to be told to bathe?"} She challenged back.
He got a sly grin on his face and reached out to wipe his dirty hands on her cheeks. She scampered backwards with an unhappy frown but didn't seem overly upset. {"Go wash yourself."}
"For all your panic towards men you sure are quick to demand I get naked." He teased.
She slackened her jaw slightly and flinched at the accusation. Her frown deepened and she seemed to turn a little red but then her expression changed, looking like she realized something. {"Actually you can wait a little first. I'll go and pick up clean clothes for you too."}
It wasn't noticeable since he was wearing nearly all black but his clothes were probably completely dirty too. "Do whatever you want, I don't care."
She left him all alone now, alone in her room. For half a moment he considered looking around only to remember that he already knew everything that was there. Rather than sit around he went ahead and took his bath.
()
Yukiko had never shopped for men's clothes before and she wasn't really sure where a good place to do so would be but assumed any clothing store would be fine. She walked to the first one that she could find since it felt a bit more important that she be fast rather than picky, gently rubbing her tender forehead as she went. The woman felt uncomfortable and out of place in the men's department at the store but she was fairly certain it was in her own mind. As quickly as she could, Yukiko skimmed through the racks of clothing and picked a pair of jean pants that looked like they'll fit and a dark navy tee shirt. She nearly went to the check out right then but realized he would probably need socks as well and of course right next to the socks was underwear. Yukiko's mouth pulled into a tight line and her cheeks reddened. {"If it was me I would want clean underwear too."} She mumbled to herself.
She whined silently and was certain her awkwardness was no longer in her own head and she reached out and grabbed whatever underwear was directly in front of her then rushed immediately to the check out. "Picking out clothes for a boyfriend?" The middle-aged woman behind the cash register asked with a smile.
Yukiko didn't quite know how to answer that.
"Umm… You do realize the underwear size that you picked out is twice as large as the pant size right?"
Yukiko looked at the embarrassing garment and finally saw that she had grabbed a pair that was possibly large enough for Yukiko hide the pants in them. She glanced back at the underwear section with displeasure. She'll have to go back…
The woman behind the counter laughed slightly then leaned across with a whisper. "How about I go grab a replacement pair?"
Yukiko looked at the woman like she was a God sent and put her hands together like she was praying and bowed her head slightly in a begging gesture. The employee stepped away and casually looked through the shelves of men's underwear and found a pair that seemed to match the pant size then returned to Yukiko to ring everything up. When she did Yukiko's jaw nearly dropped. "What the hell?! Why are men's clothes so cheap?" It was probably about half the amount it would have cost her to purchase a new outfit.
The young woman took the bags and smiled to the cashier then gestured with her hands. *Thank you.*
The sign language seemed to catch the stranger off guard and needed a moment to understand what she was doing but when she did a look of pity filled her eyes and Yukiko felt like she was just slapped in the face. "Take special care on your way home."
Yukiko's smile fell away and she left the store frowning. That was the problem with people: they always wanted to pity and look down on her because of her lack of a voice like she was something broken. "Well aren't you?" A voice that sounded suspiciously like Rin spoke in the back of her head. She could just see the monster of a woman now, reclining on an ornate day bed and smoking a long pipe. She could see the cold and detached eyes that looked at her, like Yukiko was little more than a pawn on a shogi board. Or perhaps a sword that no longer had any blade.
She wondered for a moment if that was part of what she liked about being with Grimmjow. When he was a cat he had even less means of communication than she and even now that he's in his real body he doesn't treat her as anything less than anyone else.
She felt a bit happier with the knowledge that she was returning to an apartment room that has Grimmjow inside, assuming he stuck around. When she reached her room and opened the door she silently announced that she was home but she wasn't ready for what she saw. Grimmjow was at the little table, sitting with a towel loosely wrapped around his waist and nothing else. He was looking through one of her sketch books and allowing water to drip from his hair and soak into the pages. {"What are you doing?!"}
He hadn't bothered to look up right away when she came in, instead apparently preferring to finish looking at the picture he currently had his eyes on. When he did finally acknowledge her presence in the room and reclined backwards on his hands, completely exposing his Hollow hole and muscular torso. "Took you long enough to get back."
{"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"} She screamed this time.
"I have no clue what you just said. If you're going to try talking do it slower idiot."
Yukiko finally managed to look away from the naked man and held out the bag of clothes. She heard a soft hum that sounded a little too amused for the situation. There was a shuffle sound as Grimmjow stood and stepped towards her but rather than take the clothes he walked well into her personal space and leaned down to her level. "What are you acting embarrassed for? You were the one who told me to get naked remember."
She kept her eyes shut and tried her best to ignore him since she was well past bothered and was currently feeling entirely uncomfortable. She shoved the bag in his face and completely turned around, holding herself in a tight ball.
He didn't say anything else. He just pulled out the clothes from the bag and she could hear the rustle of cloth. After about a minute he spoke up again. "Are you going to sit like that forever or are going somewhere?"
Yukiko sat up and risked a look at him. He was dressed and sliding his belt through the loops of the pants which seemed loose on him, surprisingly he didn't comment on it.
"The pants are too big." He said unhappily.
There it was.
He wasn't looking her way so she wrote on the white board that kept on her refrigerator and tapped on it to pull his eyes. "Deal with it."
Grimmjow huffed a bit but didn't really say anything in return.
Yukiko stifled a yawn and rubbed her face slightly to push it way.
"How the hell are you still tired?" Apparently Grimmjow noticed.
She shrugged. {"I could always sleep more."}
"With how heavy of a sleeper you are that's just asking for someone to attack you."
{"I'm not a heavy sleeper."} She corrected.
He looked at her like she was stupid. "Who are you trying fool? I stood over you and yelled then played with your face this morning and barely got a response."
Yukiko had a realization when he said that. {"Is that why I woke up with a bruise on my forehead?!"}
Grimmjow smirked. "I don't know." He pushed he finger against the center of her forehead. "Does it feel this size?"
She swatted his hand away at the wrist and attempted to shove him but he wouldn't budge and she went back slightly. None the less, she frowned at him. {"Yeah it does asshole!"}
"Well then, don't be such a deep sleeper." He was talking to her like it's her fault.
{"Of course, because you being nicer is out of the question."} She said with a neutral expression.
He crossed his arms and continued to smirk at her. "Glad we have an understanding."
Yukiko rolled her eyes and took her completed job application and sketch book off the table then opened the door. {"Do you want to come?"}
"If I wanted to sit around and do nothing I would've stayed in Hueco Mundo." She took that, and the fact that he was already through the doorway, as a yes.
She locked the door behind them and they walked side by side out of the building. "Where are we going anyways?"
Yukiko looked up and answered. {"I have to drop off a job application."}
He looked at her with an eyebrow raised and a bit of an annoyed expression. "What's that?"
Yukiko sighed with a frown as she held up her application. {"I have to give this piece of paper to someone so they can maybe hire me for a job. Then I work some days and make money then I can buy food."}
"Poor little human has to eat." He said in a teasing tone.
She pointed at him slightly. {"You eat my food too you know."}
Then he looked a bit smug. "You should be proud that I consider your food worth eating."
Yukiko narrowed her eyes but otherwise held a neutral expression. {"Keep up the haughty attitude and you'll lose your meals until I think you deserve it."}
Grimmjow started drilling his fist into the top of her head; it hurt Yukiko quite a bit but she also suspected that he was holding back most of his strength. She bent forward and tried to escape and turned to face him so that she could call him whatever word happened to make it to her lips first, highly expecting dick to be the winner but never got that far.
"Mommy what's that lady doing?" The young boy spoke up from further down the sidewalk.
"Shh!" The mother hurriedly hushed the child as she picked him to walk around Yukiko and purposely avoided eye contact.
Grimmjow laughed at Yukiko as her face burned red.
{"Shut up asshole!"} She yelled quickly knowing that he wasn't going to be able understand.
He just continued to grin. "Keep it up and you'll be the town's crazy lady."
She wanted to respond but held it in with a disgruntled frown; she didn't say anything else to Grimmjow in fact. He didn't seem to care though and interlocked his fingers behind his head and continued next to her at a leisurely pace.
They made it to the grocery store and the pair went inside and found the manager. She handed him her application and he took it with a smile. "I have time now, let's do the interview."
It caught her off guard and she glanced back at Grimmjow who was already walking away with a grumble, though it probably looked like she was looking at the doorway to the human man.
"Is now not a good time?" He asked.
"Not really but the damage is already done…" She thought with a sigh. Yukiko sat down in the nearest chair motioned for the man to continue, mentally cringing at the uncomfortable situation that was about to come as this man gave her a string of questions.
After the interview the woman rushed out of the building as quickly as she could without making it too obvious that she didn't want to be there. She didn't notice any opening in the world so she was confident that Grimmjow hadn't left the World of the Living. Yukiko closed her eyes and searched for the familiar fiery Reiatsu, it was only a couple of blocks away so she made a beeline for him.
To her surprise the Arrancar was in the shopping district staring into a window of one of the buildings. His face was pulled into a snarl and his fists were raised up to almost shoulder height though he did seem to be in a fighting stance of any kind. "What's this psycho doing now?" She thought with an amused smirk.
"COME ON! WHERE THE FUCK ARE YOU LOOKING?!" He shouted suddenly.
When she got to his side she looked into the window and saw that it was an electronic store with TVs on display. The one just in front of the man was showing a boxing match. She wrote on the back page of her sketch book again the tapped his side. He looked down at her then at the paper where she was pointing with her pencil. "Are you seriously entertained by this?"
"Is that even a question? There's nothing better than a good fight." He answered with a savage smile.
She kept a neutral expression when she wrote a response. "I can think of five things that are better than a good fight."
"…Doubt that."
She rolled her eyes as she started listing. "A good meal, painting, festivals, going for walks, a hot bath." Actually she could think of more so she kept going. "Napping, window shopping, listening to music-"
Grimmjow cut her off. "Your opinions are wrong." He said in an obnoxious voice as he looked away from her and back to the fight. "WATCH YOUR FEET DUMBASS!"
Just after he said that one of the boxer's stepped on his opponent's foot to trap him.
"Block your right!" He yelled again, though less energetically.
Yukiko leaned away slightly but smiled appreciatively at his entertainment, the man was clearly enjoying the show. She waited so that Grimmjow could watch the fight to the end even though he didn't seem to feel any sort of investment in which person won. While she waited something caught her attention but she didn't want to jump to conclusions so she tried to ignore it. Yukiko tapped Grimmjow to get his attention again. "Why do you like fighting so much?"
"Because I do. Fighting is living." He answered as they started walking away.
She frowned. "It's barbaric."
Grimmjow groaned. "You sound like the boring women back in Las Noches."
Yukiko couldn't help but roll her eyes. "I'm sorry to disappoint you."
"You shouldn't act so innocent. You've hit me remember and you definitely hit like someone who knows what they're doing." He argued.
Yukiko made a sour face. "I was taught self-defense and hated every second of it."
Grimmjow gave a short, singular laugh. "Ha! There's your problem! Self-defense is what you do when you let other people tell you what's acceptable. Fighting is something you do for yourself! It's for you and you alone. It's proof that you're alive!"
The woman watched him as she tried to understand. A proof of life…
"Can you honestly say you've never hurt someone for a reason that only mattered to you and loved the feeling?" He challenged.
Against her better judgment she did think about for a second and the memory of Kukai came up. While it wasn't a fight in any sense of the word, it did give her a nice feeling when she broke his nose against the table.
That she could think of a time to support Grimmjow's statement must have been on her face because he smirked in victory. Yukiko did a quick glance around for people and saw that no one was looking her way so she took a few steps ahead of her companion then turned herself to flip him off and rushed forward to the turn the upcoming corner. Of course by the time she did Grimmjow was already on its other side and trapped her in between his arms. He leaned his face down to her level with a slightly maniacal smile. "Wanna try that again?"
Yukiko's eyes darted around her in a slight panic then focused forward, into Grimmjow's dangerously breathtaking blue ones. She felt the annoyance that came up bristle and in her peripheral vision she noticed that people passing them were staring at her, making her redden. She ducked under one of his arms, doing her best to make it look like she had stumbled while walking and rushed forward to the nearest public building. To her surprise it was a movie theatre, she didn't know there was one around.
Yukiko approached the clerk in the window with a message written on a fresh page. "One ticket please."
The male clerk looked at her with a brow raised but quickly recovered. "What would you like to see?"
She had no clue what was playing nor did she care. "Whatever is playing now."
"Um… We have a movie that just started but I don't know if you'd like to watch it. It's a very highly rated horror about vengeful spirits." The man said doubtfully.
"What?!" Grimmjow half laughed, half shouted from beside her. She smiled as she pulled out her wallet.
"Alright, 1410 yen please."
Yukiko gave him the money and received her ticket.
"This oughta be good." Her spirit based companion still had some humor to his voice about seeing a ghost horror. Yukiko couldn't deny that she was smiling in agreement. She wasn't in any kind of rush since she had no particular interest in movies so she stopped for popcorn and coke.
The screening room was moderately filled and since they were late and her companion couldn't actually be seen Yukiko sat in the back corner and Grimmjow sat down beside her, immediately shoving his hand in the popcorn putting stuffing his mouth. He chewed with a bad expression. "Why'd you buy this shit?"
{"I like it."} She said since it was too dark to bother with writing.
"What?" He asked.
She chanced the hope that he retained some of the sign language she practiced on him in his cat days. *I like it.*
"Why? It doesn't taste like anything?" Apparently he did.
She put the bag of popcorn on her other side and held up the carbonated drink for him to wash it down with. He sipped, looked like he was considering it for a moment, took another sip then put it down in the cup holder on his far side from Yukiko. She frowned at him hoarding the coke but accepted it since she gets all of the popcorn. They finally settled enough to try and watch the movie and found it just as laughable as they imagined. Perhaps the blood writings, shadowy images and miscellaneous screams were scary to regular humans but when you actually knew spirits and how they behaved and what a "vengeful" spirit actually acted like… The horror seemed more like a bad comedy that didn't know it.
As the other spectators jumped and screamed Yukiko and Grimmjow would laugh at them. This continued for the first forty minutes of the movie but it did become a bit boring. "Alright, time to make this more interesting." The Arrancar spoke as he rose from his seat.
Yukiko watched him with interest as he jumped over a couple of seated people and stopped at an empty chair next to a couple that looked like they were holding onto each other for dear life. When the movie showed a door slam shut Grimmjow slammed down the fold down seat bottom, making the couple look at it in absolute terror. Yukiko tried to hold in a laugh for some reason, as if she would be heard and give away what was happening.
He yanked on the chair again while nothing jumpscare-like was occurring in the movie and then flipped up their bag of popcorn, sending them running and screaming and pulling the attention of nearly all of the movie goers. Grimmjow started walking across the chairs, purposely rattling them and stomping on them to ensure that they make as much noise as possible. When he apparently felt that he built up their fear enough the Arrancar repeatedly used Sonido across the room, knocking food and drinks out of people's hands and seats, slamming hard against the cement walls to cause them to crack and make a terrifying noise. Yukiko could no longer sit upright in her seat from laughing uncontrollably as people ran out of the theater screaming. Within seconds the only noise in the room was the audio from the movie and the maniacal laughter of Grimmjow.
The projection of the movie was ended and the audio came to an abrupt and distorted stop when the lights turned on and an employee rushed into the room. He looked at Yukiko since she was the sole human left then around at the rest of the screening room. While he looked away she spoke to Grimmjow. {"We should get going now."}
"Too bad, I was really starting to have some fun." He said, actually sounding a bit disappointed but his performance was pointless without an audience anyways.
Yukiko made sure to grab her popcorn and Grimmjow's drink while he made sure to rip the broom that the attendant brought for protection and throw it across the room. The poor boy ran away looking like he was about to piss himself.
Inside the lobby and outside the building were people huddled together in fear, trying to make sense of what happened. Unfortunately the annoyance was waiting for them outside too.
"What do you want Kurosaki?" Grimmjow spoke first.
"I wonder how this will go…" Yukiko thought as she put some popcorn in her mouth. She remembered what the Arrancar told her about the young man, he was righteous to a fault and a goody-two-shoe, so she was curious as to how he would treat a Hollow walking around his city.
"What is happening here?" He questioned in a harsh tone though Grimmjow didn't even blink to it.
"I'm just having a little fun. I didn't hurt anyone so what's the big deal?" Yukiko's friend was starting to sound bored again.
"Terrorizing people is hurting them." The ginger boy argued.
Yukiko looked at him in disbelief. He really is a goody-two-shoe…
"Urahara's instructions were clear: if you want to be here you need to be supervised or a gigai. I tried giving you space but if you can't-"
Grimmjow cut him off. "Can't what? Behave? I'm a Hollow, not a ass-picking brat! I'll do whatever the fuck I want and I don't need anyone's permission!"
The two continued to argue back and forth like that and Yukiko could smell the testosterone in the air emitting between them.
"Hey you!" It took a moment to realize it but this new and angry voice was actually directed at Yukiko and the three of them looked as a young man-boy approached her with another at his side.
"I recognize you! You're that freak who talks but no sound comes out! You had something to do with all that crazy stuff didn't ya!"
While his logic was wrong his conclusion was right. Naturally she wouldn't admit to it though and shook her head no.
The aggressive boy approached her hostilely causing Grimmjow to snarl slightly and Kurosaki looked troubled, like he wanted to do something but no one could see him so he must have felt like he couldn't.
Yukiko's eyes sharpened, she didn't like the way they were coming at her.
"Huh?! Answer me freak! What the fuck did ya do?!" He was nearly in her face now and that was far too close.
She stepped back to try and put some space between them before things got out of hand. The punk stepped forward and so did the Hollow.
"Grimmjow don't!" Kurosaki yelled.
At this rate her companion was going to get into trouble, whatever that entailed, and it left Yukiko feeling like she didn't have many choices at the moment. She dropped her food and drink and punched straight at the aggressor's face, which he protected with both his forearms so without wasting a fraction of a second she punched his diaphragm with her secondary hand. With him temporarily hunched over Yukiko quickly turned to his friend and while he tried to punch she stepped into him and slammed her elbow up through his jaw. She turned to kick the first boy in the face and sent him to the ground then slipped her foot behind the seconds' ankle and pulled it forward while punching him square in the forehead. It hurt her fist but completely unbalanced the boy and he quickly fell to the ground too.
Both the spirit men looked at her: Kurosaki in disbelief and Grimmjow in pride. She walked away and felt them follow, not stopping until they were somewhat secluded to address them; more specifically, Kurosaki. "Did you actually come here for something or were you just wanting to piss Grimmjow off?"
It took the man-boy a moment to read the message, probably reading it multiple times. "Uh… Well… The Gotei 13, that is the sort of law enforcement of spirits-"
"She knows what they are and what the Soul Society is so get to the point!" Grimmjow interjected.
Kurosaki glared slightly at the Arrancar before resuming. "Grimmjow murdered a human so they don't want him running around totally unrestricted here. If he were a normal Hollow he'd be killed on the spot but we kind of owe him and there are some diplomatic things going on so he's on a sort of probation."
She watched as behind the Shinigami the subject of the conversation rolled his eyes so hard it looked like he might hurt something. Admittedly, Yukiko rolled her eyes too. "Yeah, he killed Shimata. What's the problem?"
"What's the problem? He killed a living person, that the problem!"
Yukiko frowned with a very irritated look. "How many times will I have to have this conversation?"
"Tell the Gotei 13 to pull their heads out of their self-righteous asses and join the real world where being alive doesn't mean you deserve it." She didn't really feel like adding anything else to the comment and instead walked up to Grimmjow. {"Want to go home? At least there we can have some privacy."}
He smiled savagely at her. "You go ahead. I'm going to see if I can have some 'barbaric' fun here first."
She looked back at Kurosaki who was watch their exchange with a very rigid stance, then back at Grimmjow. {"I'll take a nap then. Don't wake me up when you get back."}
"Yeah, I doubt I could even if I wanted to." He teased as she walked away.
()
Grimmjow watched for about a second as Yukiko left him to his own devices then immediately looked to Kurosaki. The boy's eyes were both bulging and darting back and forth while he sweated buckets and his jaw hung open. He looked incredibly confused and it was distracting. "What?" The Arrancar asked to pull his attention.
"What do you mean what? What the hell is going on here?! Who is that woman? Why were you at the movies? How does she know what the Soul Society? What do you think you couldn't do even if you wanted to?" The Shinigami looked as panicked as he did when he first found out that Grimmjow was still alive after the Winter War.
"ONE! ASK ONE QUESTION AT A TIME DIPSHIT!" Grimmjow roared.
Kurosaki seemed to calm slightly then looked at him suspiciously. "Why do I get the feeling that even if I did ask only one question you won't answer?"
"Because I won't." Grimmjow knew what he said was a contradiction but that was beside the point.
Kurosaki sighed like he was exhausted from the conversation. "You know I have to report to the Soul Society that you've been running around on your own right?"
A single word crossed the Arrancar's mind. "Snitch." Then his frown turned into a smile. "I'd rather just go with my plan."
"You're plan?" Even as he asked the Shinigami readied himself for an attack.
Grimmjow used Sonido to close the distance between the two and then some. He caught him with an extended arm and rocketed them upwards until his momentum slowed. At that point the Arrancar let his body fall to be horizontal and kicked Kurosaki but was blocked with a sword. Grimmjow created a Reiryoku platform at an angle beneath him so that he could pivot and turn his body quickly and tried an uppercut that could only clip Kurosaki's chin.
The Shinigami went on the offensive and tried launched a straight stab at his shoulder, probably hoping the close quarters would make it too difficult for a dodge. For some reason the boy seemed to consistently forget that Grimmjow was his match in speed and used his Sonido again to avoid the strike which caused Kurosaki to use his Flash Step to get past his guard and slashed down across his chest. Grimmjow focused his Reiatsu on his forearm and used it to block the blade, but even with his thickest Hierro he could no longer stop the Zanpakuto from breaking his skin as he had in the past.
Grimmjow smiled at the blood that ran down his arm and dripped from his fingers. The stronger Kurosaki became the sweeter his victory over the boy will be. "You're definitely different from last time." The boy said randomly.
Grimmjow cocked his head backwards slightly with a frown. "What are you babbling about now?"
Kurosaki was actually smiling a bit. "Last time you attacked me you were out of your mind and acting like an animal. This time you're actually fighting like you usually do. Taking your time to get the most enjoyment out of it…"
Blue eyes narrowed a bit. Was his mood really that obvious in his fighting? Suddenly he smiled. "You know what? I really don't care!"
Grimmjow launched himself forward with his hand on Pantera, drawing it to strike Kurosaki. The orange haired boy moved forward to meet his challenge and their swords clashed, ringing out in a metallic shriek. They pushed each other away and lunged for one another again. Before the two warriors could clash a blur of purple and orange appeared before Grimmjow and grabbed his face. Yoruichi threw Grimmjow back to towards the ground but he quickly righted himself up to glare at her and coiled his legs to shot back at her but he was grabbed with tentacles of energy and they pulled him back to the ground and he felt a very uncomfortable enclosing sensation. "Good work Yoruichi!" The annoying voice of Urahara Kisuke shouted.
Grimmjow turned to yell a string of curses at the man but instead heard a sound that haunted his sleep: a cat shriek. He was back in a cat body!
Urahara knelt down above him with a cheeky smile. "As you can see we modified your old gigai so that we can forcibly put you back in it."
Grimmjow puffed his whole body out and spat hatefully.
"Relax we'll let you out. This was just to make sure we had your attention." The dark skinned woman landed on the ground behind him with Kurosaki in a head lock with a large and painfully looking lump on top of his skull.
"Yes." The male Shinigami spoke again. "While we realize the restrictions put on you are absurd and you'll just do whatever you want we are here to encourage you to at least keep a low profile. No more bursts of energy for no reason. Is that doable?"
Grimmjow glared with a low growl in his throat and his tail whipping against his sides. "Oh right!" He said with mock innocence and rammed his cane down on the cat skull, slamming Grimmjow's real face into the concrete and the dummy animal body just collapsed on his back. "Now you can answer."
Since he actually couldn't with his face being continuously being pushed in the concrete by a cane the Arrancar raised a middle finger.
"Alright, alright! No need for that~!" The blond man said playfully as he finally lifted the Zanpakuto-cane off.
Grimmjow glared at the man with a singular thought running through his mind. "I want to kill…"
Yoruichi sighed. "Kisuke's bad joking aside, we are serious. We may not be able to talk down the Gotei 13 from sending a Captain out here next time."
"What in the hell makes you think I care who they send at me?" Grimmjow said defiantly.
"You might not care but what about that woman you were with? Do you also not care about dragging her into your mess?" Kurosaki had apparently been released from the woman's hold and joined in on the discussion.
"Oh yes~! Your little human! Ichigo told us about her." Urahara truly had a way about him that made Grimmjow want to punch him in the face.
He no longer cared about his fight; he just wanted to get away from these annoying people and uncaringly used Sonido to leave them and headed back in the direction of the apartment. When he was some distance from them he actually stopped and walked the rest of the way to minimize his Reiatsu output.
No, he doesn't care about any Shinigami coming after him; that one-eyed Captain-Commander of theirs could come for all he cared. But Yukiko was a rarity. If a Shinigami found out about her weird and vague predictions they would definitely lock her up. Even if their meanings aren't clear they are always spot on and only the dumbest of imbeciles wouldn't see the tactical value of her. She was his human and he'll keep her off their radar.
It took a painfully long time for him to get to the apartment just walking but he eventually made it back. It was tempting to just go back to Hueco Mundo since she was probably already asleep but if he did then he would have to deal with the potential of one of the numerous annoying females that run around Las Noches, or more likely the kid. Staying at the apartment was far more preferable. He walked into the building and down the hall but stopped just short of the room door. "What are you doing?"
Yukiko was sitting next to her door, hugging her knees. When he spoke she looked up at him. It took a second but her face switched from expressionless to embarrassed all at once. She started stammering incomprehensibly so he cut her off. "I have no clue what you're saying."
Her expression twitched nervously and she looked away rather than try and speak again. Grimmjow looked at the door then back at her. The last time she returned to an apartment before him she had been attacked. She insisted that the apartment itself wasn't an issue, to which he declared bullshit and clearly he was right. It was doubtful that she was going to go in first so he went ahead and grabbed the key and opened the door. The apartment was empty, naturally, since the attacker was long dead. He entered and called behind. "Get in here already."
It took a few moments but the woman rose from the ground and entered to room, attempting to hide how cautious she was being about it. Grimmjow let himself drop heavily to the floor and sat against the dresser. "What happened to your nap?"
She looked back at him and he finally saw some fire back in her expression. {"What happened to your fight?"}
Grimmjow clicked his tongue. "It started but was cut short." His arm was now throbbing and inflamed in pain to prove it.
Yukiko now seemed to notice his injury and rushed in front of him, she knelt and yanked his arm extending it to look at his injury. It was caked over in blood so the wound itself was hidden; all that could be seen was a small curtain of scabbing blood that trailed out at his hand and down his fingers.
He pulled his arm back. "I'm fine."
She stood and tugged him to come. He stayed where he was and actually shifted himself to get more comfortable. Yukiko's expression became a bit more stubborn and tugged him again. It was starting to annoy him. "Woman…" He only said that one word but his tone was a clear warning.
She tugged again so he glared.
{"Please let me help you."}
Her words wiped the glare clear from his face and the arm in her grasp released all of its tension. He hadn't expected something like that and it made him really look at her and the situation they were currently in. It wasn't by choice but his expression softened slightly. "I don't need treatment. I'll heal in a few days."
She tugged again. {"You'll heal even faster if you actually take care of it then."}
She barely seemed to speak and it was probably a murmur but he more or less could figure out her words. "You have five minutes then you need to leave me alone."
She nodded vigorously and pulled him back to his feet and led him the six steps to the bathroom and began rinsing his arm. She dug out a clean rag from the towel pile and the bathing soap then started scrubbing his arm. When she scrubbed directly over the slash it felt a little sensitive but he otherwise didn't actually feel her ministrations because of his constantly active Hierro which was good since Yukiko scrubbed ruthlessly rough and when all of his old blood was cleared away and he was left with an actively bleeding injury. {"Stay."} She ordered just before she raced to a kitchen cabinet then returned with a small white box with a red cross on it.
The woman wiped the blood off and started wiping some ointment over the injury. When she placed a thick bandage pad over it then started wrapping it Grimmjow was certain she passed the five minute mark but said nothing. She was mostly done.
She finished and in a much calmer manner, put the first aid kit away. Grimmjow lazily walked out of the bathroom and watched her out of the corner of his eye. She turned to him and looked like she wanted to say something so he turned so that she could tell that he was paying attention. {"Sorry I was ruff."}
"I don't care. It's not like I felt it." He dismissed her words.
Her brows knitted together and her head tilted very slightly in confusion. {"You didn't feel it?"}
"Nope." Grimmjow said as he laid back down on the floor. "My Hierro is so thick I couldn't feel a thing except when you were actually on the wound and even then it was barely anything."
{"Is that why your skin is so hard?"} She asked.
Hierro makes skin feel hard? It made sense but the connection never occurred to him. "Probably."
{"Do you always use it?"}
"Yeah. You never know when someone will attack." He spoke and it was only after the words left his mouth that it occurred to him how thoughtless they actually were. Obviously she understood that. She had been sitting outside of her home because she was too afraid to walk in.
Grimmjow felt a little uncomfortable with his own words but did his best to hide it. "I don't expect anything dangerous to happen here but I use it so much it's what's normal for me."
She smiled a little and there seemed to be a little glint in her eyes. {"But you can turn it off?"}
"Sure. Why? Looking to defeat me when my guard is down?" He sat back up and challenged.
{"Every second."} She answered, playing along.
"Alright." It took a conscious effort but Grimmjow deactivated his Hierro. "My armor is gone. How much damage do you think you can do?"
She reached out for his injured arm. Her touch was so gentle he still could barely feel it but she gradually put more pressure in the contact the further she moved her hand away from his injury. His skin now had some give to it as skin is supposed to and he truly felt the softness of her finger on him for the first time.
Yukiko watched her hand and how it moved along his arm and into his palm then fingers. She watched her hand but he watched her face. He saw how there was a weird sense of curiosity and wonder in her expression, as if it was her first time touching another person at all. When he felt her fingers curl around inside his he closed his hand on them, anchoring her to him and getting her to look at his face.
He pulled her in and kissed her. Her lips were soft and rather than form around his as they did the previous night both hers and his molded to each others. The kiss may have started soft but it didn't stay that way. He slipped his free hand against the back of her head and he felt how soft her hair was despite its shortness. He pushed further into her until she fell backwards, she still had a hand in his but her other wrapped around the bottom of his neck to pull him in. Without his Hierro he felt everything much more intensely and kissing her was a hundred times more stimulating than before. He removed his hand from her hair and slipped it down her side and under her shirt; he started pushing it up as he felt more of her soft skin. Yukiko let go of his hand and pulled it away. Almost like a reflex he recaptured it by her wrist and pinned it down as he moved his mouth off of hers and began lightly gnawing on her throat. He was hungry and it had been a long time since he last had this kind of meal. Grimmjow's left hand went back down her abdomen and began tugging the waist of her pants down.
Then everything came to a screeching halt when a sharp pain filled his right arm. Yukiko was clawing into his injury and it made him stop. He lifted his head to glare at her and call her a bitch but all angry thoughts left him. The woman was shaking and grimacing. She looked absolutely terrified.
"Fuck." It was about the only thought that was able to pass through his mind. He took things at his own pace as he has always done but it clearly wasn't going right. Grimmjow pulled himself up and off of her and she sat up. He couldn't stick around anymore, that much was obvious. The Arrancar opened a Garganta and left her there on the floor.
Even though he wanted to spend as little time in Las Noches as he needed to he was there again. Bored and frustrated. Very frustrated. Nel had a point: he had a strong appetite. As if she could hear his thoughts the green haired woman turned a corner and came into view. She looked at him with an eyebrow raised. "When did you get back?"
"Just now." He said as he approached her.
"There's a look I haven't seen in a while." She said a little surprised. His frustration must be showing on his face.
He looked her up and down, considering just pulling her into another room and getting all of his frustrations out. Without saying anything he took hold of her arm but didn't go anywhere. He still hadn't reactivated his Hierro and when he felt her arm it felt like he had take hold of stone. "Grimmjow, what are you doing?"
His frown deepened and he let go. He shoved his hands in his pockets and realized he was still wearing the jeans and dark blue shirt that Yukiko had bought him.
Since he still hadn't said anything Nel continued to talk. "Where'd the clothes come from? Your human woman?"
He didn't reply and instead turned and walked away from her. "Grimmjow, did something happen?"
"No." He lied and, not escaped, he simply left the conversation. Then he left the palace of artificial sunlight behind to spend some time in the eternally moonlit desert. Out in the emptiness of the desert he could be alone and if he did encounter anyone it was just some Hollow so he would beat them down until they became dust. He eventually found a petrified and twisted tree so he sat down against it and just looked up at the moon and stars.
He was alone and that was how he liked it. Right?
Grimmjow could still perfectly picture Yukiko's face, it was terrified and looking right at him. Terror was usually what he usually liked to see in people but when she looked like that it made him… unhappy? He knew she would be scared if he pushed too fast but it wasn't even a thought in his mind. There were no thoughts in his mind, only sensation. It was rare for him to ever release his Hierro; he was serious when he said he couldn't remember the last time he had. That Reiatsu armor was practically his skin to him. He had forgotten what skin really felt like and the sensation of her hands, her hair, her lips… It had pushed past his guard and directly into his instincts.
He felt better with his head cleared. He left her alone. Alone and scared in a place that looks just like the last place she had been attacked and hurt. "Damn it…"
He opened his Garganta and returned to the apartment with more haste than he would admit to. She was sitting at the table in different clothes drawing and looked at him as he crossed over. She looked away but waved. He didn't say anything, just stood and watched her. He wasn't sure how to go about asking if she was okay. She flipped to a new page and scribbled for a few seconds then held up the book. "Good evening. You can sit down."
It shocked him to realize that a whole day had passed since he left. Grimmjow scratched his chin but did sit across from her. "What are you drawing?"
She looked at him a little confused but showed him. It was a portrait of a young boy, probably around eleven or twelve. He had almond shaped eyes, a small nose and a wide smile. "Who's that?"
{"No one…"} She answered but he was doubtful. More than her words, Grimmjow was paying attention to how bruised her lips were and the red marks on her throat. He had been very gentle, for him, and still marked up her body.
She must have noticed where he was looking because she reached over the table and kissed him with a peck. {"I know I'm human but I'm not that fragile. I can take a few marks."}
"I can crush you by accident so yes, you are that fragile." He said back.
She rolled her eyes but then looked a bit somber. {"I'm sorry I freaked out. I just couldn't help it."}
"Just don't bring it up." He dismissed any further conversation of the topic.
She nodded in agreement and resumed her drawing. Grimmjow leaned back on his hands and looked around himself. "I call the futon for tonight."
She smiled to herself and shook her head slightly. He was getting the futon tonight.
They ate dinner and slept together separated, he on the futon and she on the blanket. In the morning Grimmjow left the apartment and returned to Hueco Mundo. It was a long boring day of working on Achiim and avoiding Nelliel and her boring questions before he returned to the apartment. Yukiko was painting this time. "What are you doing?"
She didn't answer so he tapped her on the top of her head, causing her to look up. "What are you doing?"
She showed him the painting. It was a skeleton facing a butterfly in a city setting. "Vision?" He guessed.
She nodded her head yes and returned to it to give the buildings a finishing touches while he sat down and sniffed the air. It smelled like carrots and pork roast. She stood up to put the painting off to the side then looked at Grimmjow. {"Dinner is almost ready by the way?"}
"I can tell." He said happily.
Then she looked very excited. {"I got something for you today!"}
"What?"
She walked excited into the bathroom then dragged out a large and cushiony blanket with a thinner blanket and pillow all folded into a stack. {"Your own futon! I got one that was 195 cm long so you should fit."}
Grimmjow smiled mischievously and took the pile away from her and unfolded it a few times, then sat on it like a sitting cushion. "Alright, let's eat!"
Yukiko frowned deeply. {"I'm not cleaning that if you get food on it."} She said then began to put together their cooked meal.
I will not make any promises but I highly doubt it will take as long to get the next chapter out. See you all later!
Yay Comments! (´｡• ω •｡`) :
jemstone6259: Yeah, and they kissed some more ;)
ookawa: There is always room for more development! Our couple still have some growing to do with each other.
Silent Songstress Sorceress: I have to admit finally getting them together was a relief. And thank you for the praise :)
Blacklightningwolf: Thank you and welcome to the story!
XD-Kaycee: I'm going to try and keep their relationship pace interesting but we'll see if I can pull it off. Nel was just doing what she considered her duty so don't be too upset with her. Yep, Rin is Yukiko's mother, she'll come up more later. Yukiko is human and is not… It's hard to explain without going into details for later plot points. I'm sorry.
Neko Chan: Thank you so much for the compliment on Yukiko! I tried to make it clear in this chapter but couldn't explicitly say since it would be awkward from a story telling point but Nel left Grimmjow to himself after the fighting because she knows he was with a woman and is giving him his space. Plus their mission was finished with finding the Gillian Hollows so all that was left was to report to Tier. Thank you for the patience.
Guest: I'm sorry it wasn't "soon" but it was as quickly as I could do without losing quality.
M. S. Hackett: Thank you for the all the love! I have every intention of finishing the story, I just can't always update on a regular basis.
Guest: Yes… No… Sort of… No… ? I realize that didn't clear anything up but you will find out in detail eventually :)