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Prize of Victory 1.5
By : NovaAlexandria
Category: Bleach > General
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The Third

Tia Harribel faced a dilemma after she and her girls delivered the young woman and the two children she�d found in Karakura to the appointed place. Or rather, her dilemma glared defiantly at her while she stood over his recently-healed body.

He was probably wondering what she wanted with him.

That, she thought wryly, made two of them.

The smart thing would have been to let him bleed to death, but Aizen�s orders to capture and bring any survivors back alive were absolute. At least now she knew why he�d spared them, as her fellow Espada set about divvying up the defeated Shinigami officers. That knowledge didn�t make her decision regarding the boy any easier.

Acquiring a pet had been the last thing on Harribel�s agenda, but now that the opportunity presented itself, she found herself weighing the pros and cons of giving Hitsugaya Toshiro a place in her little pack. She could walk away and let another have him, but that felt wrong. Admittedly, the whole reason he was here at all was because she�d failed to kill him, as she had his braided companion, the one with the glasses and the lance. Saving the female Vizard would have been preferable, but by the end of the battle, only the young Captain remained. From the look of things, he wasn�t pleased about the development either.

However much his existence represented a stain on Harribel�s martial prowess, it also served as testament to his durability. She hadn�t achieved her current status by overlooking such qualities, even if they belonged to a male. Allowing someone like Yammy or, Kami forbid, Barragan to take him would be a huge error on her part.

�Mila Rose, Sung Sun, Apachi...� she said quietly and pointed with her chin towards the haggard youth. Three sets of eyes regarded the boy. As amusing as it was to see identical expressions of incredulity on their faces, Harribel detected no outright hostility at the suggestion, though Apachi sidled close and muttered what was likely going through all of the Trés Bestias� heads.

�Mistress, are you certain about this? He�s so young!�

�He has a Bankai. He�s powerful. He�ll be an asset to our pack,� she pointed out. Apachi didn�t seem convinced.

�I think he wants to bite us.�

That was also true, though it wasn�t a serious deterrent. His attitude was a bigger problem, but the more Harribel studied him, the stronger her interest in taking him grew. Their battle had already revealed an intriguing fact: she could utilize his Bankai to augment her Resurrección, amplifying Cascada�s range and taking it to deadly new heights. Such an increase might also silence some of the misogynistic fools she dealt with on a regular basis. The idea of turning Barragan Louisenbairn into a freezer-burned lump of meat held real appeal.

The biggest attractant was also a product of their fight, or rather, something she�d sensed the moment they�d crossed weapons. Harribel had acquired her rank as a Vasto Lorde over many centuries, accumulating power with each evolutionary milestone she passed. She knew the extent of her strength in the same way she knew each inch of the mask that covered her face and torso. In contrast, the young man at her feet, for all of his outer displays of accomplishment, still hadn�t tapped fully into his vast reservoir of power. It was there, waiting for him and he either didn�t realize it was there, or lacked the ability to access it.

She wanted to know why. Taking the steps necessary to stand directly before him, she crossed her arms beneath her chest and peered at him over her collar.

�Come� I Claim you as mine.�

The frosty look Toshiro gave her spoke volumes about what he thought of that, and of her, but when she wouldn�t back away, his sharp eyes wandered over the others in the courtyard, as if calculating what his chances might be with one of the other Espada. When his face fell, she guessed that he�d reached the right conclusion, which was �not very well.� Then he sat up and gasped, �Wait! My Fukutaichou! Where�?�

Harribel glanced over to where the busty woman stood, still red-eyed from crying. To her dismay, Nnoitra Gilga was already looming over the blonde, which meant it was too late for the Third to interfere. Aizen had informed them that he�d be displeased if they bickered over Claiming rights. Harribel had gotten to where she was today by knowing which battles to fight and which ones to avoid. As much as she loathed the idea of leaving any woman in that despicable man�s hands, she decided to steer clear of this particular scuffle. Disobeying Aizen�s edicts was a sure way to bring his wrath down on her head.

�Nnoitra wants her. There is nothing I can do about it now.�

At first she thought that he might disregard her, or try to confront the Fifth Espada himself. Then Nnoitra grabbed the long-haired beauty and swept her out of the hall. Second later everyone heard an explosion go off outside. The boy was on his feet, reaching for a weapon that was no longer at his hip and cursed loudly when his hand met with empty hair.

�She�s still trying to fight? Who would have thought the cow still had it in her?�

Tact wasn�t Mila Rose�s strong suit, even if her poorly-worded observation was correct. Harribel placed one hand on Toshiro�s shoulder. She then sighed and leaned down until her mouth was level with his ear.

�If she can outrun him, she will have earned her freedom. He can only Claim what he can catch and subdue,� she murmured. Harribel didn�t really believe the young man�s subordinate had much of a chance of evading Nnoitra and she didn�t want to give him any false hope, but it prevented him from picking a fight that in his current state might prove fatal. There were too many potential opponents in the room, too many obstacles, and without his weapon he was at a distinct disadvantage. His anger inevitably gave way to despair as he realized just how hopeless the situation was and how few options lay before him.

�Focus on saving the lives you can,� she added softly. �Right girls?�

She gently steered him from the room, her fraccion following behind her. Aside from Mila Rose�s earlier exclamation, they remained quiet and nodded at their Mistress. Each of them had had unpleasant experiences with males like Nnoitra, and they could tell that Toshiro was obviously close to the woman. In a way, his concern for her helped mitigate their earlier objections.

�Before we go, do any of you want to Claim one of the vanquished?� Her question hung in the air as the three exited the building behind Harribel. The three traded dubious looks with one another and then responded as one, �No, Harribel-sama.�

She suspected as much, but it was polite to ask. The Trés Bestias� primary joy came from fighting itself, not in subjugation. Hence the constant arguments. Upon hearing this, Toshiro�s shoulders sagged in relief. With that out of the way, the Third gestured towards the south and issued her next command.

�Then let us find a defendable den while we wait for further instructions from Kami-sama.�

Aizen had made certain his Espada knew the basics of Soul Society�s geography, including the city beyond the Seireitei. She would start with the inner, better Districts and work her way outward until she found the right sort of place. Twenty minutes after leaving the 1st Division, they encountered their first hurdle when they made it to the southernmost gate. Toshiro balked at going through the great portal, pausing just before the threshold. When he refused to budge, she looked down at him, only to find a similarly puzzled look on his face.

�The door is closed. Why are you trying to walk through solid seki-seki stone? That won�t work!�

He genuinely believed that the way was barred and it didn�t take long for Harribel to work out why. Aizen had to have cast an illusion with his Shikai, one that apparently only affected the Shinigami. Her fraccion had no trouble seeing the open gate. Other Shinigami began to congregate, all wearing equally confused expressions and for a moment, the Espada wondered at Aizen�s purpose. The most powerful of the officers had been killed and neutralized. She�d assumed that once their leaders were gone, any resistance would be feeble at best.

A screeching sound overhead interrupted her thoughts and she stared up at the sky. Multiple Garganta opened and Harribel frowned as she put together the rest of Aizen�s plan for herself.

�Close your eyes,� she told Toshiro. �It�s either that, or I�ll blindfold you.�

He looked back and forth suspiciously between her, the gate and the widening tear in the heavens, but closed his eyes. Grasping his wrist, she led him through the gate and the illusion, not stopping until they were at least four streets and two squares away from the walls.

Harribel didn�t approve of what was about to happen. However, there was nothing she could do to stop it. Letting the youth in on what she knew would likely occur would only make him want to go back, to try to help the troops trapped within the Seireitei. Therefore, she made sure that her girls kept going and that her grip on Toshiro�s wrist was tight.

Not every Arrancar that came through from Hueco Mundo would take a Claim. Unlike the Espada, they would have to personally overpower their prey. That helped assuage some of the regret that she felt, and even that was short-lived. The strong ruled the weak and did what they wanted to them. That had been the law of Hueco Mundo for far longer than she�d existed and it applied now. Aizen-Kami, being the strongest, would have won the war with or without her help; it wasn�t as if her participation was directly linked to the consequences of Aizen�s Victory. That was the result of a century of careful planning and strategy, as well as superior firepower. Hollows did not dwell too long on the past, nor did they worry overly long about the fate of the weak. To do so was to risk one�s sanity. It wasn�t her place to question Aizen�s methods with regard to the vanquished.

There was also loyalty to consider. The former Shinigami had given her enough power to protect what was important to her, and had done so under much better terms than she would have had under Barragan. Aizen had proven to be a man of his word in that regard, which boded well for the promises he�d made to her about her other� problem.

It was easier to breathe outside of the walls. Toshiro�s pulse raced beneath her fingers, and she pressed her thumb against it. It was too high for her liking. Harribel came to a short stop and indicated to the others that they could proceed on foot. She and her fraccion garnered several odd looks from the citizens they passed, but no one tried to stop them. Perhaps they recognized her as an apex predator, or perhaps they felt she was no danger to them since she was in the presence of a Taichou. Whatever the reason, it allowed her pack to put some distance between themselves and the gate.

In time, the commercial real estate gave way to stately homes in the Japanese style, with gates that were meant to be ornamental, rather than defensive. The buildings blended into the lush vegetation and because of the season, were sometimes hard to pick out from the scarlet and orange maple leaves of the trees that surrounded them. She called a halt in a nearby area dominated by a lake that reflected the bright colors of the sunset to the west. The view was magnificent and she caught Sung Sun �ooh-ing� over the vista. Ordering her girls to start looking for a suitable den in the neighborhood, Harribel walked to the water�s edge, towing Toshiro behind her. The sight of so much liquid, unguarded and free for the drinking or bathing, made her eyes widen in awe. They widened further when she realized the boy next to her didn�t have the same reaction. Was he used to such an extravagant display of riches? Did he not understand the value of water?

�In Hueco Mundo this would be a priceless treasure. Aizen was right� the Soul Society truly is a land of plenty and now it�s ours!�

Half-an-hour after she�d sent her fraccion to scout the area, the three returned, bright-eyed and excited.

�Harribel-sama, we found the perfect den! Wait until you see it!� Mila Rose exclaimed.

�What do you mean, we? I found it!� Apachi snorted, putting her hands on her hips. Harribel intervened before yet another argument could take root.

�Show me.�

�Right this way, Mistress!� Sung Sun pointed down the road with one sleeve-covered hand. �You�ll love it! It�s bigger than it looks on the outside and it has the most exquisite bath!�

They escorted her to a house on a very shady street, surrounded by overgrown greenery that seemed just a little too grand for a family home. Someone had painted the double gate an inviting scarlet and once inside, Harribel had to agree with Sung Sun. It was much larger than she�d initially thought, since the trees helped hide the size. The fact that it lacked a second story made it seem smaller than the other homes on the street. The layout made her think that it might have once been an inn, or an onsen, since the bath�s luxurious sunken tub could easily accommodate eight bathers at a time. The idea of soaking in that much hot water, whenever she wanted, was the very definition of decadence.

Most of it was lost on Toshiro, who barely glanced at all of the amenities her fraccion eagerly pointed out. His only comment turned out to be a sneeze, brought on when Mila Rose opened the pantry, stirring up a cloud of dust.

�It was like this when we found it,� Apachi explained when Harribel ran her finger along the kitchen table. The Espada waved away the apology. Undisturbed dust meant the place had been uninhabited for some time and that meant there was no need to get rid of any occupants, a bonus in the Third�s opinion. Other than a decent cleaning, their discovery far exceeded her expectations.

�This will do nicely. Good work.�

Her fraccion beamed at the praise and she didn�t miss the hopeful looks the three shared between them. Harribel supposed that she owed some personal attention for their diligence. They more than deserved a reward for their efforts today, doubly so for finding such a splendid home. However, that could wait until she�d seen to her new pet. She led Toshiro to one of the smaller bedrooms and opened the door. Like the kitchen, dust covered all within, including a rolled futon and two trunks stacked beneath a large window that she hoped contained clean bedding. Motioning him inside, the blonde gave him a warning.

�This will be your room for now. I recommend you get some rest. Aizen-Kami has assumed the Spirit King�s powers. He can see all and I cannot guarantee your safety, or the safety of those you care about, should you try to leave.�

He didn�t respond, though the tense set to his shoulders betrayed his unhappiness. Instead, he moved to the opposite side of the room and stared out of the window. It overlooked the backyard but she didn�t think he had it in him to run. The sky was dark, save for an eerie orange glow emanating from the direction of the Seireitei. It had been a long day for all of them and sleep would come easily for her pack tonight. Tomorrow might be a different story, but her girls were smart enough to take advantage of the calm while it lasted.

Closing the door behind her, Harribel walked back down the hall. There were enough rooms for her fraccion not to have to share a space, which was fortunate. They were, by nature, energetic, a trait that she very much enjoyed. Nevertheless, all she wanted to do was find a quiet spot to drink some tea. She found several sealed boxes of loose leaf tea on the pantry�s second highest shelf. That lent some weight to her theory that this place had been an inn at some point, catering to Plusses who appreciated the drink. She�d have to send the girls out for food when she deemed it safe. Arrancar might not have to eat on a regular basis, but that wasn�t true of Shinigami. Restocking the pantry on a regular basis would be a priority.

Where there was tea, there would be a teapot and she wasn�t disappointed. A quick search through the cupboards yielded several tea sets. Harribel found a kettle to heat the water beneath the sink. To her delight, she also uncovered three bottles of unopened saké in a lower cupboard. Tea was soothing, but today�s events called for a more fortifying drink.

Turning on the tap, Harribel made sure that the pipes that supplied the house with water were still functional. The faucet sputtered for several minutes and at one point, splattered some evil-smelling gunk into the sink�s basin. Thankfully, cold, clear water soon poured forth and while it flushed any long-standing sediment down the drain, she rinsed the kettle. Then she filled it, turned on the stove and hunted up a few rags she hoped were clean enough to wipe the grime from the table.

To her surprise, her fraccion didn�t join her in the kitchen. Normally, after such a critical battle, they would be interested in cuddling, which often lead to sex, but tonight they�d chosen sleep over other comforts. Harribel thought that was just as well and smiled to herself. They had done their best today, fought hard and they deserved a respite. As high as her instincts had run, she wasn�t particularly interested in sex either and indulging in it now would have distracted her from the task of keeping other Arrancar away from her new holdings.

It didn�t take long for the kettle to boil and she spent most of the night gazing out of the kitchen window, drinking her saké-spiked tea. The street just outside the front gate had slowly filled with people, all of them curious about what was going on in the Seireitei and concerned about the smoke. Soon Harribel heard the rhythm of hammers on wood. Some of the locals had started the process of barricading their doors and windows. Others had decided to cut their losses. They carried baskets and bundles of possessions with them as they fled to more distant, poorer Districts seeking safety.

Neither course of action would help them if Aizen allowed the Numeros to pillage beyond the Seireitei�s barracks and Division compounds. If they had any reiatsu to their names, they�d be targets.

�No, that is not quite right. He will let us hunt wherever we please, but he won�t let the carnage itself spread too far. Most of these people are so weak I can barely sense them. Apart from taking dens, there is little point in running the weak to ground.�

Den-taking would account for most of the civilian casualties. Expanding her senses, Harribel noticed that at least sixteen Arrancar, all of the Espada save for Szayelapporo Grantz and several of the Numeros, had moved into the 1st District, though in different directions. Most of the other Hollows were still inside the walls, still laying waste to any resistance the leaderless Shinigami might put up.

Harribel pursed her lips and poured another cup of tea, adding a little more saké to it than she�d added to the last cup. The slaughter and subjugation wouldn�t last forever. Maybe, she reasoned, only a day or two and it would be over. Surely Aizen would call an end to things before too long. Her leader had made it clear to his Espada that they were not to exterminate the lesser Shinigami once they�d declawed the top officers and removed the Soutaichou. Even a newly-made god needed people to keep the Realms balanced.

At some point in the early hours of the morning she must have dozed off in her chair. When she woke, she was still sitting at the kitchen table and resting her head on her folded forearms. Outside, the sky had gone from black to a grayish blue as dawn approached, though some of the haziness she could see was probably due to the smoke. She�d been roused from slumber by a telepathic communication from Aizen and she frowned, certain that she much have misheard him.

�All Taichou-class Shinigami are to be Claimed by noon, or executed. No exceptions.�

Had he been spying on his Espada with his newfound abilities? Harribel found that idea disturbing, but did her best to dismiss her misgivings about the possibility. If so, there was nothing she could do about this new form of surveillance. He hadn�t addressed her by name, or called her out, so there might be other Espada who had yet to Claim their pets, especially if their chosen Taichou had been less than healthy.

Orders were orders, however. Harribel rubbed her forehead, picked up the half-empty bottle of alcohol and conducted an inner debate with her better judgment about whether or not to finish it. The thought of having sex with a male wasn�t the problem, despite her preference for female companionship. It was his age that left her cold.

�Alive is better than dead,� she thought tiredly. Rising from the chair, the blonde picked up the bottle and went in search of the bathroom. The application of soap and hot water, if there was any to be had, would help clear her head and strengthen her resolve as far as saving her pet. It would also be best to do the deed before her girls woke up and tried to join them. Harribel suspected springing something like that on the boy without warning would break the youthful Taichou, given what she�d seen of his prickly personality.

Toshiro was awake, and she was newly scrubbed when she entered his room. The saké bottle dangling from her fingers. He�d unrolled the futon into the far corner and sat with his back facing the door. A blanket, likely taken from one of the trunks, covered his shoulders, but the shadows beneath his too bright eyes spoke of little sleep. They were fixed on the window and on the smudgy trails of smoke wafting skyward. It wasn�t quite daybreak yet, but there was enough light to mitigate the glow from the still-raging fires. Those turquoise orbs darted to her and his shoulders stiffened.

�How many of my Division are dead?� he said flatly. The question was understandable � he�d been a high-ranking leader, after all � but off-putting. It was also one she couldn�t answer.

�There�s no way of knowing. As I said, if you�d tried to help them or tried to run, Aizen would have cut you down. There is nothing under the sun he cannot see.�

Toshiro eyed her with disdain. He also said words that told her he�d come to the same conclusion she had about Aizen�s motives.

�He can�t kill all of us, unless he wants the Realms to collapse. Not even he will be able to stop it,� he said darkly. Harribel�s next steps took her to the futon, where she regarded the top of his head before speaking.

�I�ve received an order, along those lines��

She held out the saké and twirled it in an invitation for him to take it. He stared at it as if it were a vial of poison. Then he reluctantly plucked it from her hand, though he did not open it.

�A last drink? So he does want us dead. Stupid of him.�

This, as well as the sullenness with which he spoke, took her aback. She held up one hand in denial, making certain that it was nowhere near Tiburon�s hilt.

�He wants all Taichou-class Shinigami Claimed before noon, or put to death.�

Confusion and irritation battled for control of his features at this announcement.

�Wait� didn�t you already �Claim� me?� he asked through clenched teeth. She let out a long breath and folded her arms beneath her breasts.

�In word only. I had planned on waiting until you were older...�

�Older?� Toshiro seemed to find this particularly vexing, because she thought she saw one of his pale brows twitch. �Why the hell would I need to be older?�

Harribel suddenly wanted the saké back, to take a swig of some liquid courage.

�Do you understand what a Claim is, why we cast them and how?�

He shook his head and she closed her eyes, lest he see the frustration in them.

�I thought not. You�d best take a drink, Toshiro. It will help.�

He gave her a dubious look, but finally pulled the stopper on the bottle. By the time she was done explaining exactly what a Claim entailed, he had polished off what was left in it. It was clear the thought of having sex with her unnerved him, and that he definitely wasn�t interested, but she didn�t get the impression it had anything to do with her personally.

�You said you wanted to wait to do this.�

�True. Taking a child in such a way is��

�I�m nearly fifty-eight years old! I attained my Bankai nearly twenty years ago!� he snapped, fingers tightening on the bottle.

Toshiro seemed to be angrier at her assumptions about his age, and his short stature, than he was at Aizen�s looming death sentence. That he wasn�t technically a cub didn�t make it any less off-putting. She was aware that Shinigami aged slowly, but even if he was �legal� by Living World standards, it was still disturbing.

�So, it�s either that� or you�ll kill me?�

He stared bleakly at the smoke in the distance as he said this and she didn�t bother answering what was obviously a rhetorical question. They both knew the answer. After one last swig of the sake, he leaned over and placed the bottle on the floor. Then he removed his uniform and lay back, tight-lipped and with his eyes squarely on the ceiling, displaying all of the enthusiasm of a dead fish.

�Laying back and thinking of the Soul Society. It�s as if he�s decided he�s a sacrificial lamb.�

In a way, he was. Harribel could accept that, even understand it. Perhaps if she tried to think of him as man of short stature, with a baby face? There had been plenty of diminutive male Adjuchas who would have been ecstatic to bed her over the centuries and power, not age, was the primary consideration. The shadowy memories of her long-ago mortal life reminded her that she�d been in a similar spot once, though for different reasons. Drawing Tiburon, she uttered the phrase for its release � she would need to be in this form, with her mouth free, to complete the Claim.

It was like making love to a wooden doll. Toshiro remained impassively still beneath her, though he opened his mouth in response to her swiping her tongue across his lips. The kiss-in-name-only let her pour her reiatsu into him, which at least started the process. Her left hand helped it along. Between the pleasure derived from the infusion of reiatsu and her skilled fingers, he was soon hard enough for her to mount.

It occurred to her that she could try to use the Claim as a way to accelerate his development. If and when he was able to come into his full power, he�d be a sight to behold. She would have a truly terrifying pack, able to take on Barragan and his rot. She never understood why some souls wore youthful guises for centuries while others aged quickly. Perhaps Szayel might have an answer, but Harribel didn�t fancy dealing with the Eighth�s slippery double-speak.

For her part, the only attractive things about him was his power. It helped to think of him as a man of short stature, more so when she finally joined with him, moving her hips in a way and deliberately clenching to speed up the process. He barely returned the kiss, though she could tell he swallowed voluntarily. His other choice was to choke on her reiatsu.

The second she felt he�d absorbed enough of her power, she finished the Claim, swallowing a cold draught of his power as she retracted hers. Only now did she get a response from Toshiro as he was forced to climax. The reluctant grunt of pleasure through gritted teeth was hardly an endorsement of her efforts, but it wasn�t as if she�d wanted to put him through it. Her release was just as half-hearted. As soon as the loop was complete, she pulled away from him, drawing her legs up beneath her. He was quick to sit up too. They young Taichou stared at his hands, in horror and fascination as her power settled over him like a net.

If there was any benefit to what they�d just done, it was distinctly one-sided. Despair, loss, a smaller amount of disgust and much more hopelessness bombarded her. So did his fatigue, though that at least she could alleviate.

�Get some rest,� she said quietly, the new Claim forcing his eyes closed. Harribel sheathed Tiburon immediately, resealing her power. Without dressing, she gathered the combined clothing scattered across the floor and slipped out of the room. Toshiro was asleep before she closed the door.

Was it normal, she wondered, for a male to be so negative about sex? If her dim memories of the Living World and her time there, in the harem of a powerful man were right, the answer was no. The current circumstances notwithstanding, maybe she wasn�t his �type�. If that was the case, any future Claiming might prove easier if he had someone more to his liking to watch. Perhaps one of her fraccion would fit the bill. Maybe if she involved them, to whet his appetite? It was an idea that warranted further thought.

�Good morning, Harribel-sama!�

�I have a task for you, if you are up to it��

Toshiro awoke later in the day, around noon judging by the position of the sun. He felt rested, but not necessarily better. Confusion set in when he failed to recognize his surroundings, but soon enough the horrible memories came rushing back. He doubled over, his chest tightening, making it difficult to draw in enough oxygen. When he finally got a decent lungful, it made him cough. Even though the windows were still tightly closed, he could taste the smoke that had drifted out in thick clouds to blanket the inner Districts.

The door opened and he turned to see Harribel, thankfully fully clothed, carrying a spare shihakusho tossed over her arm and a wooden box. When she stepped into the room, a breeze accompanied her. Its chill reminded him that he was still naked. On reflex, he pulled the blanket up to his chin. The despondent thought that doing so was a waste of time, that she�d already seen everything, made him drop it a minute later, the fabric pooling around his hips. Harribel cleared her throat and her eyes caught his. It was hard to read her with her collar concealing everything, but that steady green gaze didn�t seem angry.

�There is food and tea in the dining room. Get dressed and join us. I sent my girls to see what they could salvage from your office, but the building was already on fire and I am afraid this was all they could find,� she told him, sounding almost apologetic. When he didn�t answer, Harribel moved quietly to his side and placed the items on the futon. She then turned on her heel and left.

He didn�t recognize the box, so they must have found it elsewhere. Forgoing the clothing, he reached for it and lifted the lid. Only two of the things, out of all of the inconsequential knickknacks inside meant anything to him. The first was a picture of Hinamori he�d kept hidden in his top desk drawer. Deep grief stabbed him in the gut as he recalled exactly how she�d died, how he�d unwittingly pierced her heart with Hyorinmaru while under Kyoka Suigetsu�s influence. Kira, Hisagi and Komamura had followed shortly, their lives ending on Aizen�s blade. He�d been unable to save any of them.

The other item was a green scarf. It had been a gift from his grandmother. The old woman had sent a new one to him every year, as a New Year�s present. This had been the last one he�d received before she�d passed on to a new life in the Living World. He�d kept it tucked away for its sentimental value. Maybe it was fitting that this was the only one of that collection to survive the fires.

Apart from those two things, there was nothing else worth keeping. At the bottom of the box he found another scarf, this one made of pink silk. This he recognized as one of Rangiku�s accessories. She�d probably left it in his office after one of her frequent drinking binges. The object was enough to remind him he�d let her down. For all of her faults, she was still his Fukutaichou and he cared for her, for she had done much for him over the years as well, in her own, unique way.

Briefly, Toshiro wondered whom he�d failed the most, Hinamori or Rangiku. He�d seen the look on Nnoitra�s sneering face and had no doubt that the man had less than honourable intentions towards her. He worried about Ichigo�s sisters as well. Both were far too young to be a part of this nightmare and the thought of either girl being raped by the man that had taken them was horrific and sickening. They were eleven, maybe twelve years old at most. Worse, the creature that had them was the one leading the Arrancar who had invaded Karakura the first time and nearly killed Kurosaki Ichigo. He didn�t think that boded well for them.

He felt a gentle pull on his Claim, subtle, but insistent. Sighing, he set everything aside and picked up the shihakusho. Then he pulled the blanket around his shoulders, turning it into a makeshift robe and did his best to remember where the bath was located. One shower and a clean uniform later and he felt marginally better, which wasn�t saying very much.

Toshiro followed the scent of tea and steaming rice to what he assumed was the right room, a much larger chamber attached to the kitchen. Harribel presided at the head of a western-style table, while her fraccion bantered with one another. Someone had set out white sticky rice for five people. Bowls of pork broth, vegetables and a plate of pickled plums made up the rest of the odd meal.

�Sit, eat,� Harribel directed, gesturing at the chair placed before the lone, unused setting. With no other option, Toshiro did so, but did his best to discreetly inch his chair and his dinnerware away from them, reluctantly picking up his chopsticks. He also did his best to ignore the squabbling, a task made easier by his hunger. The first bite prompted another, and then another. He hadn�t realized how famished he was until he looked down at his plate, then at what was once a full bowl of rice and found both completely empty. That didn�t last long; Sung Sun reached over, whisked his bowl away and filled it with another helping of rice, rounding off the top with the serving spoon. He used the opportunity to ask Harribel a question.

�The Espada who took Kurosaki�s sisters� Grim-something��

Harribel raised one golden eyebrow, but went ahead and supplied a name for him.

�Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez. He�s the Sixth. What of him?�

�How will he treat them?�

The Third laced her fingers together and Toshiro regretted how anxious he sounded about his one-time soccer partner.

�He won�t Claim them, at least, not until they are older,� Harribel assured him gently, her gaze softening. �We do not have many taboos, but raping a child is one of them.�

Sung Sun nodded sagely, though her next words did nothing to ease his worries for them.

�I think I heard the word �bait� mentioned.�

Apachi reached over the table and patted his forearm, grinning at him when he snatched his arm away. She also ignored his affronted expression.

�Don�t worry. Grimmjow will sleep with anything that moves, if he thinks it�s interested, but to my knowledge, he�s not one to force himself on another. He�d rather fight them!�

�They should be safe enough,� Harribel said and from her tone, he gleaned that she considered the matter closed.

Toshiro ducked his head and after a moment�s deliberation, began to eat as if his life depended on it and demanding a third helping. Her earlier advice, to save the ones he could, rang true, which he found odd, coming from a Hollow. To do that, he�d need to become stronger� much stronger, to defy his currently sordid fate and break free of the encircling energy that bound him.

If� no, when he managed to do that, and took back Hyorinmaru, he�d make certain to serve up his revenge not just cold, but with all of the wintry rage he could muster. Nothing, not this Espada, nor her minions or Aizen himself would stop him.

As usual, that you to the few who took the time to review. Next chapter we got to number four, which is actually, shockingly, a sexless chapter. Stay tuned.
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Prize of Victory 1.5	By : NovaAlexandria Category: Bleach > General Views: 14938 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach nor profit from my works.

Prize of Victory 1.5