Adult-FanFiction.org : Bleach

Prize of Victory 1.5
By : NovaAlexandria
Category: Bleach > General
Views: 14934 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach nor profit from my works.
Chapter List
- 3
- 4
- 5
The Fourth

When he�d taken Inoue Orihime as his, he had no idea that she would have so much baggage.

At present, that baggage had her arms around his pet and between the tears, the dripping noses and more tears, they�d made a mess of their clothing. Watching his property wipe away snot with what was left of her dress, only to have the other, dark-haired human offer her sleeve in lieu of a handkerchief was� disquieting.

Negativity was something with which he was intimately familiar. This was quite different and he had little idea of how to process it. She didn�t give him much time to sit back and analyze it before it slammed into him. The heady mix of feelings that bombarded him as Orihime connected with someone she�d feared dead was quite intoxicating. Yes, he considered, �intoxicating� was a good label. Ulquiorra hesitated to call it �pleasure� but he did not dislike it, nor would he be adverse if she kept at it. Not that he would ever admit it to anyone, least of all himself. This �Tatsuki� seemed to care deeply for Orihime and he�d already seen what the isolation of Hueco Mundo had done to his pet�s spirit.

Unfortunately, he didn�t have time to ponder the mystery of Orihime�s confounding psyche. The Soul Society had yet to be fully subdued and Ulquiorra expected Aizen-kami would command him to help cement the ex-Shinigami�s hold on the Realm in the days to come. That meant he�d be away from his pet for long periods. Taking the other human woman as a companion for Orihime seemed not only like a good idea, but also an inevitability. Watching them interact, he suspected that the only way to dispose of Arisawa Tatsuki would involve killing her. Such an action would only upset Orihime further, so he discarded the notion.

Of course, he had other motives. If he truly wanted to investigate this �heart� thing she kept going on and on about, he would need to find new ways to stimulate it, which was best achieved by stimulating her. Some he knew, such as despair and anger, but others, such as joy and grief, made little sense to him. His pet experienced them under circumstances during which a Hollow would have shrugged and moved on. The concept of �heart� seemed inexplicably intertwined with her positive emotions and their outward expression. If proximity to a cherished friend helped kindle those, the other human was a necessary annoyance. Thus, when he ordered Orihime to come with him, he did not discourage Tatsuki from tagging along.

Starrk had already left the hall with the officers he�d chosen and Ulquiorra didn�t linger too long after the First. He ordered them to follow him. Orihime fell in step behind him, still holding Tatsuki�s hand. In this manner he got them out of the 1st Division and eventually, past the Seireitei�s gate. The girls talked quietly the entire way, interspersed with some snuffling and tears. Orihime�s embarrassment-laden emotions indicated that her friend had initiated a thorough interrogation, a process that also incurred more than a small amount of guilt on his pet�s part. He didn�t understand why she would feel that way; Aizen had given her leave to tell one person of her departure from the Living World and she�d chosen Kurosaki instead of Arisawa. She�d violated some sort of protocol in doing so � hence the guilt. Ulquiorra thought worrying over what was the equivalent of spilled milk a waste of her time.

That being said, he had some immediate decisions to make. His first priority was to obtain a den here. It would be best to avoid any too-large or too-fancy dwellings. Ostentatiousness encouraged raids and competition from other Arrancar. A place that blended into the landscape and could camouflage what he�d stored within it would be a much better choice.

It took a bit of searching, but eventually he discovered a section of streets in the 1st District where all the houses looked like carbon copies of each other. The only differences were small, personal touches to the exteriors, such as the paint color or the type of shrubbery in the landscaping. This was exactly the sort of neighborhood Ulquiorra had envisioned. He picked a house at random and ordered Orihime to stay where she was until he called for her. She looked worriedly at him, but in the end nodded. Such a gesture on her part had little meaning � it wasn�t as if she could disobey him. Tatsuki frowned, but remained by Orihime�s side and attempted to keep her talking about some trivial thing that held no interest to him.

The eviction of the den�s occupants was quite easy. Ulquiorra walked through the front door, not bothering to knock. The startled inhabitants, a middle-aged man and woman, stared at him as he entered their abode, and then tried to rise as they realized they were under attack. The Espada sent quick Bala at them. The blast ensured they never had a chance to scream, though a few of the furnishings suffered from the fallout.

He wasn�t going to take any chances; leaving rivals for his living space would have been foolish. The displaced had a tendency to try to retake dens and he had no interest in bickering with trash. A quick trip out the back door with the bodies and another Bala solved the matter. Leaving them to rot would have drawn unwanted attention and their carcasses were not worth consuming. Thankfully there were no other claimants to the property and once he was satisfied the place was safe, he retrieved his humans.

�This is our new den. You will not leave the property unless I give you permission.�

Tatsuki promptly glared at him the moment he uttered the mandate.

�Why?� she demanded and put her hands on her hips. Orihime drew back in alarm, though he sensed she was afraid her friend might attack him. If Tatsuki had been a Shinigami, or if she had enough power for Ulquiorra to consider her dangerous, he would have disciplined her on principle. As it was, he needed her intact, so he fixed his green eyes on the scowling girl and swept a hand towards the Seireitei and the mess going on inside the walls.

�Do you want others to hunt you?� he asked, speaking to her as if she had a mental deficiency. For all he knew, her inability to understand what was happening around them qualified as such. �You aren�t strong enough for me to Claim, so I won�t bother expending the energy. Without a Claim on you, you will be considered fair game. Secondly the Numeros aren�t picky. I�ve not yet put out word that you belong to me and they might mistake you for a meal.�

�That�s okay, Tatsuki-chan,� Orihime placed a hand on the woman�s upper arm before the woman could think up a retort. �I haven�t eaten in a while. Let�s check out the kitchen,� she suggested. Her friend�s eyes narrowed, but eventually she reached up and covered Orihime�s fingers with hers. Ulquiorra took the grudging concession she spat at him as a sign she�d only shelved her anger with him, rather than letting it go.

�Fine. I�m starving too. Let�s see if there�s anything to eat.�

That was one nice thing about a stocked den. It made feeding those who needed to eat much easier. Orihime had complained once about the blandness of the food he�d brought to her in Hueco Mundo. Hopefully, with a female companion and the ability to cook for herself, unappetizing fare and her accompanying lack of interest in eating would be a thing of the past. He could, of course, force her to eat, but that would get tedious and might unbalance her mind again. That was not his goal here.

He melded into the shadows as he watched the two girls ransack the kitchen to see what supplies they had to work with and decide what to prepare for dinner. He felt the tension slowly fade from Orihime as her and her childhood friend talked about mundane things while pulling cookware from a lower cabinet and filling the tea kettle. It was replaced by a feeling he�d never experienced before, one so strange he had no word for it. He almost broke his �cover� by asking her about her state of mind at that precise moment, for this feeling was quickly becoming addicting.

The girls finished cooking their meal and went about setting the table. He felt a moment of confusion as Orihime set out three settings instead of two, followed by surprise as she called out to him that �dinner was ready.� He toyed with the idea of ignoring her, for he had no desire to consume anything, but in the end curiosity got the better of him and he joined them. Tatsuki bristled when he sat down, but Orihime tentatively smiled as he reached for his napkin, pleased that he had done what she�d asked of him.

�How very odd.�

�We never got the chance for real introductions,� Orihime declared as she placed scoops of sticky white rice in the first bowl. �Tatsuki-chan, this is Ulquiorra Cifer, Quarto Espada. Ulquiorra-san, this is Arisawa Tatsuki. We have been friends ever since we were little kids. We went to elementary school together too!�

Ulquiorra wondered if that was where the brunette had learned to scowl, since she did so every time she looked at him. Faced with hostility radiating from the other side of the table, he concentrated on his meal. This turned out to be a less-than-stellar idea. He recognized the rice below the riot of colourful ingredients, but picking out the individual ingredients in the repellent dish was more than he wanted to take on at present. A glance at Tatsuki told him that she wasn�t exactly happy with what was on her plate either. Orihime obviously relished her meal, shovelling bites into her mouth with her chopsticks. She only paused when she tried to get some sort of table-wide conversation going, but aside from a shared interest in her, there was just nothing that either he or Tatsuki had in common that would warrant a detailed discussion. He had little desire to indulge in pointless chatter and after ten minutes of such attempts, he finally put a stop to it.

�Onna, cease trying to get your friend and me to communicate. Your attempts will fail. Instead, you may speak exclusively with your companion.�

�Oh, okay.� Orihime�s face fell and he felt a small flash of hurt come from her, but she did as instructed. He used the distraction to slip away from the table. After discreetly emptying the noxiousness on his plate into the waste bin beneath the sink, he decided to conduct a closer inspection of the rooms on the far side of the house.

One was clearly a bedroom and the other looked as if it was a bedroom-turned-storage room. Rummaging through the latter chamber, he came upon a spare futon and blankets. They were a bit musty-smelling, but undamaged. The previous owners had probably reserved those for guests. Tatsuki could have this room. When he returned to the kitchen, the girls had finished eating. Orihime had decided to scrub dishes and Tatsuki had her arms full of condiment bottles, placing them in various spots in the refrigerator.

�It is late. We will adjourn for the evening.�

His announcement made his pet stop in mid-scrub.

�I would like to stay up a bit later with Tatsuki-chan,� Orihime protested meekly, and he started to feel the first stirrings of fear from her.

�It is late,� he said once more, �and you will have all of tomorrow, and many more days to come, to indulge in gossip.�

Once the kitchen was clean, he pointed Tatsuki to the guest room and turned to usher Orihime into the room that he had chosen for their personal use. For a moment it looked as if there would be an argument over the sleeping arrangements, but Orihime diffused the situation by smiling warmly at her friend, presenting her with one of those clingy hugs and promising that they would talk the �very first thing tomorrow�. Ulquiorra could tell from Tatsuki�s expression that the human girl wasn�t fooled or mollified, but she did nothing more than huff and take her leave, sliding the spare room�s door shut a little harder than the Espada thought necessary.

Orihime hesitated as he walked into their room and began preparations for bed. There was no sword rack, so he leaned Murciélago against the wall and propped it up with a low chest he dragged from beneath the window. It was only for one night and he could easily fix the issue in the morning. He felt Orihime�s apprehension grow as he began to remove his uniform.

�You are not undressing, Onna,� he noted as he folded his shirt before going to the belt holding up his hakama.

�Are�� She swallowed nervously and obviously forced herself to continue. �Are you going to rape me again?� she asked in a tremulous voice.

He frowned at her question and finished removing his hakama before turning to face her.

�I did not rape you,� he stated, correcting her. �I Claimed you, as is my right as the Victor.�

�Did you force me to have sex against my will?�

�Your willingness in the act is not important. I won, so I took what I earned.�

�You didn�t answer the question.�

�If you were unwilling, that was your own prerogative. Most females would be pleased to be Claimed by one as powerful as I am.�

He could feel frustration start to come through now, but he wasn�t positive if it was from him or her. Why was this simple concept so difficult for her to understand? He fought Kurosaki. He won and had beaten Kurosaki to a pulp. They�d fought over her and his win entitled him to take her as the spoils. Why was such a basic concept so difficult for her to grasp?

�To humans, it is a crime to force someone to have sex with them when they don�t want it.�

�I am not human,� he pointed out as if it should be obvious. �Human laws do not apply to my kind.�

Her mouth opened, then closed and a few minutes later, she sighed. She chose not to meet his eyes, and wrapped her arms around her upper body.

�Why did you Claim me?� she asked in a whisper. There was the unhappiness again.

�It was my right,� he responded, idly wondering if he would have to spell this out for her every night. He was tired and had no wish to debate what should have been plain to her. �We will speak no further on this matter. Undress and come to bed.�

His order, issued in tandem with his shrugging off the final piece of his uniform, did a number on her nerves. While she was mortified at watching him disrobe, her fingers rose to undo the hidden buttons on the side of her tattered clothing. Ulquiorra had no idea why she felt embarrassed, unless it was because she was still wearing the long white jacket given to her by Aizen. The sleeves were as torn as they were yesterday, when he�d Claimed her. She didn�t seem the vain sort, so the state of her clothes wasn�t the problem. There were no visible blemishes on her body and he�d seen almost all of her at this point. In the end, he chalked her reaction up to �human insecurity and weakness� and crawled beneath the sheets. He could still smell the house�s former occupants on them and decided that he�d order Arisawa to launder the bedding tomorrow.

When Orihime continued to dither, he used the Claim to speed things up and her join him. He even gave her the side of the bed facing the wall. If anything came through the door, they would have to go through him to get to her.

She repaid his thoughtful gesture with a healthy dollop of fear. Her breathing changed, becoming erratic. Clutching as much of the blankets against her as possible, she scooted to the corner of the bed farthest from him and curled up. The girl�s eyes remained stubbornly open, as if she expected him to attack her.

Ulquiorra was far too tired for this nonsense, tired of her skittishness and tired of trying to keep his eyes open.

�Go to sleep,� he snapped after ten minutes of her fear rubbing a hole in his psyche and her trembling shaking the mattress. He felt a stab of surprise, which faded slowly into a drowsy peace as her eyelids closed. Her vigilance crumbled under the weight of impending slumber and he sighed in relief when her head fell against the closest pillow. Once she was no longer a stressor, he let his reiatsu expand to encompass the house, the yard and all within it. His subconscious could maintain it while he took some well-deserved time to recharge.

He deliberately ignored the distant sound of mayhem, of Ceros and fire and explosions. None of the other Espada, based on their temperament, would want to settle in such a pedestrian place, and the Numeros weren�t stupid enough to try to dislodge him. Sleep, however, proved elusive. How could a human�s moods swing from one extreme to another, from overwhelming happiness to the depths of sorrow and back again, all in the space of a few seconds?

It was dizzying, simply dizzying and yet�

�She is as intriguing as she is exasperating,� he thought. His study of her might not prove as simple and straightforward as he�d hoped, but tomorrow would afford another opportunity to experience those unfamiliar sensations. Surely, Orihime and the baggage she�d dragged with her would provide them.

According to Orihime, hearts were real. They were things, nouns as substantial as persons or places. They were quantifiable, measurable. One could weigh them and get an exact reading and once he did, he could dissect, analyze and render a verdict.

He only needed to wait and observe.

Next up, the fifth, obviously. Thank you to the few who took the time to review. I know this chapter was a little short, but I didn�t want to miss anyone out and Orihime already had her Claiming scene. Also, every chapter with rape in it does get a bit tedious to read. That was the only down side to doing all the Claiming chapters first, but I want to try and keep a somewhat consistent timeline with this.
- 3
- 4
- 5
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

Prize of Victory 1.5	By : NovaAlexandria Category: Bleach > General Views: 14934 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach nor profit from my works.

Prize of Victory 1.5