The next few days following the man's disappearance were quiet. Kagome would almost call it boring. She had half-expected him to come back and kidnap her or kill her orsomething.That's normally how it went for her. Yet it was radio silent. She could not even pick up on a hint of his presence, even as she began stalking the nights for a sign of him.

Boo.

Another day came to a close and Kagome switched to a pair of sweats and a t-shirt, holstering her bow and quiver of arrows on her back. She'd informed her family of his departure that day and, while she didn't confirm or deny he was a threat, they were smart enough to understand that they had to be on guard in the case anything happened. She'd been hesitant to leave them alone that first night, but her anxiety over him causing trouble in the city won out her concern for her family. So she'd begun patrolling when it was dark and less people would be out and about and questioning why a teenage girl was prowling the streets with a weapon.

Kagome wasn't used to being the one to do the hunting, at least when it came to people. Her expertise lied in sensing the jewel shards of the Shikon no Tama after all, not humans and demons who were just a little too good at hiding their auras from her.

Every now and then, something would tickle at her senses. The one time she was able to catch the offender, she was met with the familiar sight of the Soul Piper and a small group of children jovially dancing after it, it's eyes barely open and assuring her there was no need to interfere. Mayu was not among the deceased children and, considering it had been months since she had last seen the little girl, Kagome had concluded she must have finally passed on. She only wished she had been there on that day, so she could have given her a proper send off. Though she was sure her mother more than made up for it, as the two had repaired their damaged relationship and were even closer now than when she'd first met them.

Kagome hummed, pulling her jacket closer to herself as the chilly autumn wind blew around her. Winter would approach soon and with it snow. She had not forgotten her original wish to return to the past, but now at least she had the distraction she wanted until the well would once more open itself up to her.

Once more, she felt something tickling at her senses. After the past few days, she had grown familiar with what a ghost felt like. Though this time, she couldn't sense the Soul Piper with it. Curious, she changed direction to where she felt the source coming from. Perhaps one of the children had separated from the demon. Hopefully, it wasn't another case of acting out that would turn into another near-trip to Hell.

It was a few blocks down from where she'd been that she caught sight of the person. She could barely make the figure out through the poorly lit streets and their semi-transparent body. While she was expecting a child, instead she got something bigger.

Huh.

Kagome wondered the last time she'd encountered an adult ghost. Not that she encountered many child ghosts. Still. "Uh, sir? Are you alright?"

A pointless question, she knew. He was dead, after all. She'd only wanted to get his attention.

He didn't turn, however.

Maybe he didn't hear her? Or he was simply ignoring her. She got closer.

"I'm sorry to bother you sir, but could you spare a moment of your time?" she asked.

He stopped, took a long look at her, and then continued on while mumbling something under his breath. She sighed, so he was ignoring her then. She would have thought it unexpected, but then she had no idea what she was expecting in the first place. She reached out to him, placing a hand on his shoulder. An ear-piercing screech split through the otherwise quiet street and Kagome let go of him, covering her ears. The man mimicked her actions.

Behind her, another signature suddenly popped up, startling her. She quickly pulled her bow off her shoulder and readied a shot in the direction of the sound. Like that fateful night she'd first met the strange bat-man, a monster similar to the one she purified appeared out of seemingly nowhere. Unlike that monster though, this one had a body similar to that of a horse but with a tail like that of a platypus. Covering it's face was a mask made of bone and through the center of it's chest, she found a hole.

Like that man's,she thought.

No time to think.

The ghost man behind her screamed in fright and ran from the scene. Kagome didn't bother to call out to him or stop him. Pouring her miko ki into her arrow, she fired. A second later, the monster was reduced to ash. She waited for a moment, just in case she hadn't completely gotten him or another monster suddenly popped up, but there was nothing. Relieved, she hung her bow back over her shoulder and turned to where the ghost man had run off.

Right, now to play chase. She doubted it was a good idea to just let a ghost run around unattended. The Soul Piper only cared for children, after all.

Kagome took a step forward, only to pause. Was it just her, or was there a strangely familiar energy signature nearby? It didn't scream killer-intent, so she decided to let it be for the moment. She'd come back to it once she was done with the current problem.

By the time that Kagome found the ghost man, he had gotten a good number of blocks away. She came to a walk, calling out to him. A drop of water hit her nose and she realized it was beginning to rain.

Great.

He shook violently, sniveling and mumbling to himself behind a street pole. She could barely make out the name of a woman between his choked sobs. "Where are you, my Risa-san...?"

Another tickle at her senses and Kagome knew that earlier signature had followed after her. She would have smiled if not for the situation as she realized who this mystery person was. She'd make sure to talk to him this time. Kagome focused back on the ghost in front of her. "Sir, you're okay now. I got rid of the monster."

He paused in his sobbing to look at her, and she smiled back. "Are... are you talking to me?" he questioned.

She nodded. "That's right. Can you tell me what happened to you? I'd like to help, if I can."

He stared.

Then lunged for her, tears and snot following behind. Out of instinct, she slapped him right before he could hug her, startled.

There was silence.

Then the man wailed, clutching at his sore cheek and crying out for this "Risa" once more.

"I'm sorry," Kagome apologized. He flinched when she tried to step closer, so she decided against it. "You startled me and I slapped you without thinking. I really am sorry. Please believe me. I won't do it again, I promise."

The man continued to wail.

Kagome sighed. Lovely. This was gonna be awhile. She wasn't sure what to do to calm the man down and she doubted anything she said would work. Not until he stopped crying and shaking.

Another signature entered her radar, this one also foreign. She turned behind her to check, only to be met with the bat-man dressed in white. His hands were pocketed and he looked much too stoic for her to read his face.

"Leave him. The Shinigami will take care of it," he said in monotone.

Kagome blinked, confused. What Shinigami?

Before she could ask, she found her vision blurring. When it cleared, she realized she was being carried. She wasn't sure where she was, but she knew he had taken her away. Why, she didn't know. Kagome struggled, pushing against him. "What do you think you're doing? Let me go!" she demanded.

He didn't.

Kagome fought harder. His hold on her stomach didn't waver, despite her efforts. He was much too strong.

"You will fall," he stated.

"I don't care!" she yelled.

He stared at her, as if sizing her up. Then, after a moment, he did as she wished. It was only then that she realized just exactly how far up in the sky they were.

Kagome shrieked.

Ulquiorra observed silently as the strange human woman stomped up the long flight of stairs, all the while a string of ranting and cursing escaping her lips. He could faintly make out something about "stupid demons" and her "terrible luck" and threats to his wellbeing. It was somewhat amusing, he decided. Perhaps he was beginning to tolerate humans now more than he had before. He supposed it was thanks to those two, though that thought he refused to entertain.

Why she was mad at him though, he wasn't sure.

When he'd sensed the Shinigami had gotten close, he'd carried her away from the scene and close to her home, where he wouldn't have to deal with the nuisance that was the Shinigami racing close while questioning her. The ghost would be fine, her concern for it utterly pointless. He supposed she would have a fright at the height he'd settle, seeing as she was a human, yet she seemed unperturbed. She was no ordinary human, he reminded himself. Her intense struggling to wriggle herself out of his grasp proved fruitless on her end, his grip never wavering in the weak attempt. He was patient enough to wait for her to tire on her own once she realized it was all pointless, yet his curiosity in her abilities won after a moment and convinced him to humor her request. That was when he learned two things.

One, that the girl did in fact not have some hidden ability to keep her from falling to her death.

Two, that she had not even been aware of the height.

He couldn't conclude yet whether she was simply an idiot or severely lacking in self-awareness.

He was tempted to settle with the former.

The thought of simply letting her plummet to her death crossed his mind, but he told himself that doing so would only make her anger worse.

So he had caught her right before impact, saving her a meeting with the Shinigami she had wondered about. She attempted to latch onto him once realizing he had caught her, to which he dropped her again. The fall was short. She wouldn't die from this one.

He did not care to have her tears dirtying his uniform, let alone have her hanging off him.

Wrong response, it had seemed, for something set off in her. After gathering herself off the ground, she turned her fury onto him. A jerk, was what she described him as, among other colorful things. Though really, had he not just done what she'd asked?

What a confusing woman.

The moment he set foot atop the final stair and entered the grounds of the shrine, he felt something wash over him. A feeling like that of stepping into a different space. He hadn't felt this the first time he awoke here. No, hadn't registered it. He was too busy figuring out his thoughts and situation to properly take in the area. A mistake on his end. Now, with the world outside the shrine grounds muted to his senses, he realized why he had troubles sensing in here before.

They passed a warded off tree in the courtyard and he paused, looking to it as if it had called out to him. In the pattering of the rain, he recalled a time when he had yet broken his mask, before he had met Aizen. He had also come across a tree, one that had matched his own bleak form at that time. He'd nestled himself inside it, finding peace within the walls of it's trunk. For a moment, it was as if he was back in front of that same tree, overcome by an emotion that brought his mind clarity and peace. Yet that was impossible. The tree was just in front of him, simply a few steps from his reach and welcoming him back. Then he felt a drop of rain hit his eye, following by another, and the image dispersed, pulling him back to the present. The lull of this colored tree hugged him close, blanketing him in a barely perceptible aura, and he realized that no. He had been mistaken. The sensation was not quite the same, just similar.

Though he was good at identifying emotions, he was never one to be able to understand them. This new emotion that gripped him was foreign. He could not classify it as good or bad. For that reason, the thought of tearing this tree open and examining it's contents briefly played at his mind, which he quickly tossed aside.

It was just a tree. Peculiar, yet not sentient. There were no answers to be found by doing so. He had only himself to look for the answer, thus dooming him from the start.

There was a tug at his sleeve and he looked down, his emerald eyes meeting with cerulean. Confusion was the first thing he noticed, followed by concern. Why, he wasn't sure. Was she not angry with him a moment ago?

"You were staring into space and wouldn't answer when I called, so I thought something happened," she answered his unspoken question. "You okay?"

"Fine," he responded.

Kagome nodded. There was a brief pause, her eyes searching his for something, but that would prove futile. His eyes never betrayed his feelings. So instead, she slipped her fingers around his sleeve and gripped his bicep, pulling him towards the house.

"Come on, let's go inside. We'll catch a cold otherwise," she said.

A simple drizzle like this would not be enough to get him "sick", but he didn't argue. Instead, he allowed her to lead the way forward into the house and up the stairs, muttering a small request to keep quiet on the way. She opened a door and gestured for him to enter, where his eyes were bombarded with pinks and whites. Her room, if he recalled correctly.

"Stay here," she ordered.

He hadn't planned on leaving.

Kagome turned to the door and whispered over her shoulder that she would get some towels to dry themselves off. He walked further inside, noting the various items scattered around the room. It was faint, but he could feel traces of her reiatsu all around the room. If he didn't know better, he would have thought she barely lived here.

Why she maintained the suppression of her reiatsu even in her living quarters, he didn't know. Perhaps, he thought, she wasn't aware herself. The only point during the night where he felt her unleash a chunk of her reiatsu was during the shot she'd made for the Hollow. Once the arrow left her fingers, she was back to suppressing it. Even when he'd dropped her from the sky, it did not peak back out. Surely in the panic, she would have let it slip. That is unless, it wasn't a conscious action on her part?

Kagome returned with two towels and handed one to him. He took it, noting how she had her eyes averted the whole time, cheeks tinted red as she refused to look at him. She was embarrassed, perhaps. And made a point to look at the wall as she started at her hair. Was the act of drying one's self off in the presence of another too immodest for humans? Or it was general discomfort at his presence so close to hers. Perhaps she was finally registering how much stronger he was compared to her. That didn't quite seem right to him, either.

He was once again reminded of how little he understood of humans.

"So," she began. "What exactly was that back there?"

Ulquiorra had no idea what she was referring to.

She noticed.

"That ghost guy, I mean. Why did you take me away from him? I could have helped him pass on," she clarified.

Ah, so she was talking about that. "Why would you do something so pointless?" He was genuinely curious. Was this also a result of having a "heart"? There was nothing in it for her, so why waste the time and energy in such an act.

She looked confused. "Isn't it the right thing to do?"

He didn't respond.

Kagome changed the subject, sensing it would lead nowhere. "Okay, then how about that 'Shinigami' you mentioned? You said to leave it to them."

"It's a Shinigami's job to perform Konsos."

She still didn't get it.

"A soul burial," he explained. "They are sent to Soul Society once passing, where their souls will reside and live out the rest of their lives. Some souls with the potential may become Shinigami themselves and continue the cycle."

Right.

She still didn't understand.

Being a Hollow, he only had a basic knowledge of Shinigami and the Soul Society. If she wanted further answers, she would have look to someone more knowledge. Or cared.

"So..." she hesitated. "What kind of youkai are you?"

"I am a Hollow," he stated. "More specifically, an Arrancar."

"Was that monster I purified earlier also a 'Hollow'?" she asked.

She really was clueless.

He nodded. "That's right. When a human soul loses itself to despair or regret, or remains too long within the Living World without a proper soul burial from a Shinigami, they turn into the creature you saw earlier. They are mindless creatures who know nothing but hunger and are driven by the insatiable desire to feast on other souls."

She hummed. "Then how about you?"

He didn't answer. She could come to her own conclusions.

"Why do you hide your abilities?" It was his turn to ask questions.

Finished drying her hair as much as she could with the towel, she curled it up and set it on her nightstand, taking a seat at her bed with a huff. "What do you mean?" she asked. He could see no flicker of deceit in her cerulean eyes.

"I can hardly sense your reiryoku. It was only when you fired your arrow that I was able to momentarily see it," he said.

A wry smile. Kagome recalled something.

"Someone once told me something similar a long time ago," she said. Her expression morphed to one of contemplation. "I'm not sure why you can't sense it, though. They should have been unsealed a while ago and I'm not really suppressing anything."

Ah, so his assumption was right. She wasn't consciously suppressing it. What she meant by unsealed though, he wasn't sure. Had she or someone else sealed her powers at some point in her life? No, it didn't matter now. He wondered how someone could go about life unknowingly suppressing themselves. So she had neither self-awareness nor control.

"Or maybe you're just not as at sensing people's powers as you think," she teased.

He didn't take her bait.

Kagome sighed.

"By the way, you're not gonna dry yourself off?" she asked.

He looked to the towel still unused in his hand. Kagome got up and walked over to him, motioning for him to give her the towel. He gave it back to her, yet she did not walk away from him like he'd expected. Instead, she motioned for him to lean down. When he didn't move, she threw the towel at his face and pulled his head down. If this had been any other Hollow, her head would be rolling. He allowed her to massage the towel through his hair and over his mask, finishing with his face. Once done, she used it to quickly wipe up the trail of water they had left in their wake.

"You are quite the strange human, woman-"

"Kagome," she interjected. "Call me Kagome."

He paused for but a moment, his mouth twitching ever the slightly. For a moment, he was reminded of two certain humans. "Do you not fear me?"

At this, she snorted. He didn't understand what was so amusing. So she enlightened him, "I've run into my fair share of weird situations and deadly beings. Trust me when I say that you're not the first - or even the scariest. You can only run into the 'Killing Perfection' and an obsessive near immortal spider so many times before the charm of fear wears off."

Right, now he was truly curious. He had an inkling that neither of those beings she alluded to were either human or hollow. How peculiar, indeed. "You appear human and I do not sense any peculiarities in your spiritual energy. Yet, your abilities and mannerisms contradict this. What manner of being are you?"

"I'm just a miko," she answered with a smile. He didn't quite believe her, which only amused her. "Really, I swear. Honestly, I'm not so terrible that it's that hard to believe, is it? Geez."

He decided against retorting. Though he was never well acquainted with other mikos, he has had his fair share of brushings with holy men and women throughout the centuries he's been a hollow. She did appear to possess the same qualities as them, yet that was not the full truth. She was not like Inoue Orihime or Kurosaki Ichigo, either. Without prior encounter with a similar type of being, he could only speculate as to her nature.

An enigma.

Ulquiorra watched her leave after she excused herself with the now dirty towels. His eyes trailed to her bow, which lay innocently on the bed where she had set it down before she'd gone to get the clothes. He recalled the intense purity that had radiated at the moment of her arrow's released, noting that like Kagome it was now also without that energy he'd sensed. He was not so stupid as to write it off as an ordinary bow. His instincts told him there was danger to it and his logic backed it up. If he were to ever meet a holy being on the level of a god, he expected that same intensity to from them.

Then was it the bow Kagome drew power from?

No.

He knew better.

Kagome's powers were her own, and the bow was an entirely separate thing. His hand hovered over the weapon, feeling resistance. If he were to touch it, he was sure it would reject him. Injure him. He pulled back. Kagome walked back into the room at that moment and he noticed her clothes had changed. She was dressed in matching pink baggy long-sleeved shirt and pants, with some sort of pattern covering it.

"I wouldn't touch that, if I were you," she warned.

He wouldn't either.

Ulquiorra walked back to his original spot by her desk. "How did you heal me?" he asked.

Kagome shrugged. "I don't really know, honestly. I'm surprised I didn't purify you in the process. I only recently learned how to heal and it's definitely the first time I've ever had to heal a disintegrating man. Sorry, by the way. If I hurt you."

Despite her words, he realized she had some ideas of what had happened back then. He could see it in her eyes and the way she didn't quite look at him when she'd answered. There was still something she was hiding.

Should he force the answer out of her?

As if sensing his thoughts, she waved her hands in front of her, stuttering out an apology. "I really don't know how I did it. I had to ask the Goshinboku for help, so that's probably how. Even though I'm not sure how that works, either..."

"Goshinboku?"

"The tree you were frozen at earlier," she said.

He couldn't comprehend how that was possible, though he did realize that there was something odd with the tree. He would have to investigate further.

Kagome yawned in that instance.

Ulquiorra noted the time, noticing through the window that the rain was mostly gone now. The conversation bore little result, much to his annoyance. There were still questions he had. Kagome, learned, had little - if any - answers. Further discussion could continue another time.

Time to say goodbye.

AUTHOR'S NOTE

I'm gonna be honest with you guys, I kinda thought this site was mostly dead. I didn't expect many people to read this or take time out of their day to review. Thank you to the two who did. I feel a little embarrassed for not putting more effort into writing this now. Can't promise I'll write anything too interesting, but I'm happy to know people have taken time out of their lives to give story a read. I do have a question to those reading this.

Are you here as Ulquiorra fans or Kagome fans?

Or neither and simply just reading whatever crosses pops up to pass the time?

Anyway, thank you for reading this story. I'll try not to take too long in putting up the next chapter.

Edited: 20/10/24 - Just merged chapters 5 and 6 together.