Adult-FanFiction.org : Bleach

Prize of Victory 2
By : NovaAlexandria
Category: Bleach > General
Views: 56251 -:- Recommendations : 2 -:- Currently Reading : 5
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach nor make a profit from this story
Chapter List
- 59
- 60
- 61
Butterfly Collection

Tatsuki and Rangiku eyed the nearly empty refrigerator in annoyance. Aizen�s order for Tesra to accompany Nnoitra north hadn�t pleased the Espada, but after witnessing Szayel�s outburst at the meeting, he hadn�t contested Kami�s decision. No one with half a brain argued with Aizen. Tesra had stocked the pantry and the refrigerator the night before he and Nnoitra had left and both men had taken the opportunity to partake of their woman and saturate the two with their scent, to remind anyone and everyone who saw them that the two were taken. Recasting their Claims was out of the question, for the sake of the unborn children, much to Tatsuki�s disappointment. She would have to make sure that Tesra refreshed it, preferably every other night, after their child was born. It had been too long, in her mind at least, since he�d reduced her to a breathless puddle of goo beneath him.

The men had purchased enough food for two weeks, maybe two-and-a-half if they ate sparingly. Unfortunately, they hadn�t taken into account the voracious appetites of two women carrying Arrancar hybrids. Tatsuki had thought Orihime was utterly ravenous when she�d been pregnant with Diaemus. It turned out that her childhood friend had nothing on Rangiku. The blonde-haired woman was eating for three after all.

�I think we need to go shopping.�

Tatsuki sighed as they surveyed the pantry, with its nearly bare shelves. �Too bad there are no restaurants that deliver in the Seireitei. There was this awesome place near our school that had the best yakisoba,� she said wistfully.

�Well, we have permission,� Rangiku said the word sarcastically, �to leave the house tomorrow to go for our checkups with Unohana-Taichou. We could grab some things on the way back.�

Being pregnant had made Rangiku exceedingly moody and Nnoitra�s absence allowed her to speak her mind without fear of receiving a spanking. A beating was out of the question, but he had reddened her behind when she�d slipped up and talked back to him in a fit of hormonally driven pique. Neither one of them would put it past him to paddle her again if he felt she was being deliberately disrespectful.

�True. Tesra did leave me his card. I really don�t want to leave you alone either. Nnoitra might get upset about me leaving you unguarded, especially with those two prowling around the house. Although, I do find it ironic that, for all of his chauvinistic ways, he expects a pregnant woman to watch your back,� Tatsuki snorted irritably. Rangiku echoed it.

�I suspect he ordered a few of the Numeros to keep an eye on this place� like those morons lounging around out there, who apparently think they�re invisible. I think the number of �passersby� in the last week has increased too. This street doesn�t normally get this much foot traffic.� Rangiku pouted and scowled out the window at the two Numeros standing across the street, pretending to converse with one another. �Trouble is, we don�t actually know if he did or not. I wish he would just tell us things, instead of leaving us in the dark!�

Tatsuki made a noise that she meant as a sign of agreement and pulled the last package of pork from the freezer. The refrigerator boasted a handful of vegetables, a pot of white rice and two fish, which she decided that they had best deal with quickly before they went bad.

�Here, take this,� she told Rangiku and passed the pork back to the other woman before diving back in for the pot containing the remainder of the pre-cooked rice. They�d have pork-fried rice tonight, minus the egg as they�d run out of those yesterday, and fish soup. Then the larder would truly be bare. Tatsuki hoped that there was enough credit on Tesra�s card to fill both the fridge and the pantry for another week, as there was no telling when their men would return.

�At least I hope they are just keeping an eye on us. If they were here to try and �steal� us away, they�d have done it by now. Still, they are making me a little nervous. I don�t like being watched by people I don�t know.�

Tatsuki suddenly froze as she felt something odd. Over the years, Tatsuki had developed a sort of sixth sense when it came to Orihime. She could tell where her childhood friend was, able to sense the other woman�s reiatsu. She wasn�t certain exactly when she�d developed the ability to track her friend. It was simply there. That sixth sense had just snapped at her, the effect much like an elastic band stretched too tight and then released. One second Orihime was far to the north, almost too far for her to detect. The next second, her friend was just to the south of the house. The sensation of rapid movement disoriented her and Tatsuki swooned slightly.

�Morning sickness?� Rangiku asked concerned, reaching for Tatsuki�s elbow to steady her. The dark-haired human shook her head and frowned, bracing herself on the counter.

�No. Orihime just� moved a huge distance, from far to the North back to� I think Aizen�s Palace, if my sense of direction isn�t off. How is that possible?�

She stared out the kitchen window, past the Numeros and the houses beyond, to look in the direction of the Palace. Yes, she realized, Orihime was definitely there, though she had no explanation for it. Luckily, Rangiku provided one.

�Aizen must have teleported them all back,� the blonde-haired woman noted, checking for other, familiar reiatsu signatures and made a face. �Yeah, they are back,� she sighed.

�Wow,� Tatsuki exclaimed, sending love through her Claim to her mate. �Aizen can teleport?�

Rangiku pressed her lips together and her brows knit. Then she shrugged.

�It�s a high level Kido spell. Not many can do it, and I definitely don�t know anyone that can do so from such a distance with so many people riding along. It�s also forbidden Kido.�

�Forbidden?�

Rangiku nodded sagely �Yes. The old rules forbid the use of any Kido spell that messed with time and space, for obvious reasons. I shouldn�t be surprised that Aizen knows it, or would be willing to use something like that.�

Tatsuki wondered, briefly, what those �obvious reasons� were. The spell sounded like it could be quite handy, but then, she wasn�t a Shinigami. Her friend made a �huh� sound and her frown deepened.

�That�s odd. Grimmjow and Szayel�s reiatsu signatures aren�t there. Renji, Diaemus, Hana, Nemu, Karin� I don�t feel any of them.�

Tatsuki concentrated and realized that her friend was correct and that the returning war party was short a few members. �I don�t sense them either.� A bit of fear crept into Tatsuki�s reply. �Do you think they may have remained up North?�

�It�s possible, especially if Aizen wants to establish a sentry post of some sort. I am sure Szayel would be able to get a communications tower up and the others may be remaining behind as lookouts. You know, to make sure the Swarm doesn�t come back like an annoying cockroach.�

�Or an annoying mantis,� Tatsuki silently filled in the unspoken comparison, then went back to the �why� of the others� absence.

�If he wanted Szayel to create a relay tower, why leave Nemu behind?�

Rangiku pulled a face, already unhappy that her �break� from Nnoitra�s demands was over.

�I am sure Abisara-kun, or any other member of the freak show that is the Science Division, could sync it up from here. Aizen probably made them stay behind as punishment for that outburst during the meeting before they left.�

�That I could see,� Tatsuki chuckled. �Can you imagine, poor Szayel with no running water or bathing amenities? Nothing more than a tent to sleep in and dirty clothes to wear. I bet it was one hell of a battle to get Renji to stay behind though. He loves those twins as if they were his own.�

Rangiku nodded, conceding her fellow former Fukutaichou�s seemingly single-minded attachment to his charges. Then her face fell and her eyes filled with resignation.

�It looks like �Nnoitra-sama� is on his way home. Should we bother making a meal or should we see if we can weasel our way into take out?�

�Let�s wait, just in case he wants to take us to a restaurant,� Tatsuki suggested. �They should be here shortly. Oh, and you better put the chain back on.�

Tatsuki pointed towards the end of the golden chain hanging on the wall by the doorway.

Rangiku glared hatefully at the thing, but reluctantly made her way over so she could reattach it to her anklet. Her pregnancy hadn�t spared her from the indignation of wearing the thing. The last several days without it dragging behind her as a reminder of her �pet� status had been a relief. Nnoitra hadn�t actually given her permission to take it off, but the only person who could tattle on Rangiku was Tatsuki and Tatsuki certainly wasn�t going to say anything. The floor wouldn�t be visible to anyone looking in through the windows, so even if their two stalkers were watching over them on Nnoitra�s orders, there was no way they could report the chain�s absence.

Both women made their way to the door as they felt the men get close. The spring sun was warm as they stood on the small porch, looking down the street expectantly. Then Nnoitra and Tesra were through the gate, still battle-stained. The nasty goop on their clothing was still fresh in spots and Tesra looked exhausted. Tatsuki raced down the two steps and flung herself into her mate�s arms. Tesra swung her around, despite his obvious fatigue and pulled her into a fierce hug. She returned it and upped it with an aggressive kiss while her hands roamed his body, reassuring herself that he was here and that he was injury free. He happily returned it and his hands moved down to the bump in her stomach, roaming over it.

Rangiku had a less exuberant reunion with her Master. She simply bowed her head and murmured a greeting for his return. Nnoitra pulled her into his arms, mindful of her growing belly and squeezed her ass. The move resulted in a surprised squeak from her that brought a satisfied grin to his face.

�Did you obey all of my commands while we were gone?� he questioned with a wide smirk.

Tatsuki froze, as did Rangiku. They should have thought about such a scenario, and she cursed herself for not thinking about it. They should have thought of something as basic as Nnoitra asking them a question that Rangiku would have to answer truthfully. Fortunately, her time as a captive had made her quick on her feet when it came to answering such probing questions.

�I removed the chain Nnoitra-sama. There were several Arrancar we didn�t recognize loitering about the house in the last few days, and we did not want to risk the extra time it would take to remove it if we had to defend ourselves,� Rangiku answered hesitantly, then added. �It would not be the first time lesser trash dared to try and touch what isn�t theirs.�

Nnoitra�s expression went from �humored� to� peeved� in seconds, and Tatsuki braced herself for violence. Then her mate coughed discreetly into his fist, and glanced up at his Espada with a somewhat chagrined expression.

�We didn�t tell them that we had ordered a few of the Numeros to stand guard on the house while we were gone, did we?� he inquired. Tatsuki could have kissed him at that point, but held off. There would be plenty of time for that later. When she felt just the slightest tug on her Claim, she knew it for what it was: a request to play along.

�No, you failed to mention that,� Tatsuki retorted with enough exaggeration to make it sound as if the men�s oversight was the root cause of Rangiku�s disobedience. There was truth to both Rangiku�s statement, and Tatsuki�s as well. Those first two days alone, knowing there were strange Numeros outside had been a little nerve-racking to the two pregnant women before they�d deduced the hovering Arrancars� real purpose.

�Che!� Nnoitra snorted and rolled his eyes in disgust. �Useless guards can�t even keep their presence hidden.� With that, the tense atmosphere on the porch completely drained away. �Kami-sama wants us to attend some celebration tonight at the Palace. Come on.� He grasped Rangiku by the wrist and pulled her towards the front door, giving her a leer. �He said to clean up and take pleasure in our pets. Gotta obey orders after all!�

�So you took care of the Swarm base?� Rangiku asked.

�Nothing more than ice dust now,� Nnoitra boasted. �It was invigorating to be able to let loose without needing to worry about hurting the small fry. Their numbers made it interesting at least!�

�Are we going to this dinner too?� Tatsuki asked Tesra as Nnoitra paused in the doorway, impatient to get to the �taking pleasure� part.

�Yes,� Tesra replied and Tatsuki groaned in relief.

�Excellent, we are starving! This little one is a ravenous monster! We haven�t stopped eating since you two left! We were actually starting to run out of food,� she chuckled, then asked curiously, �So, what did Szayel-sama and Grimmjow-sama do to get stuck guarding the North?�

At that, Nnoitra let out a loud laugh and then kept on laughing. It had to have been something good if Nnoitra found it this funny.

�Aizen declared them traitors, and their property forfeit. Something about trying to take his Throne away. I always knew Szayel was a couple of cards short of a full deck, but he fucked up big this time,� Nnoitra told them. �He�ll be lucky if Aizen just decides to kill him, giving how much we all learned Kami likes to fuck him.�

Tatsuki felt horror run through her. Hell, she didn�t even hear the rest of Nnoitra�s sentence after �property forfeit,� although a small part of her registered the fact that Szayel had apparently spent time under Aizen. Her real concern was not for the doomed scientist or the aggressive Espada, but for the twins.

�What about Vindula-chan and Abisara-kun?� Rangiku asked, equally horrified, before Tatsuki could recover enough to do so herself.

�What about them?� Nnoitra shot back, clearly not the least bit concerned.

For a second, Tatsuki was furious with his response, but had to remind herself that this was Nnoitra. Why would he care about the Seventh�s children? They were not his cubs and he had never shown much interest in any of the hybrid children. He tolerated them when they were around, but he didn�t actively seek them out or talk to them first. He hardly showed much interest in his own impending twins, other than bragging to the other Arrancar about siring them. Tatsuki hoped he had the patience to deal with late night crying without getting pissed about the resulting sleep loss and taking his frustrations out on Rangiku, or worse, his own offspring.

Others had already tried to Claim little Vindula-chan. Harribel, Toshiro and Renji had dealt with that ill-fated duo, but now the little girl had no protectors to fend off any like-minded Numeros. Renji had to be ripping his red hair out in clumps. She wouldn�t be surprised to see him bald the next time they meet, assuming they ever meet again. The order to run and leave the twins behind must have been Claim-enforced, she realized. That told her that something fishier than the two aging mackerel in the refrigerator had happened, because Tatsuki couldn�t see Szayel or Nemu willingly abandoning their children.

�Quit with the panic. Starrk has �em,� Nnoitra snarked when it was clear neither woman had recovered from their shock. If his irritation was any indication of Rangiku�s emotional state, Rangiku had to be hammering him with waves of fear and dread. She felt Tesra squeeze her shoulder, and knew that he felt her turmoil as well.

Tatsuki suddenly felt foolish. Nnoitra was right, which was a frightening thought all on its own. No one would mess with Starrk and Lilinette, and the First Espada had proclaimed that his pets would watch over the two, which put the children under his protection. Relief flooded her, followed by another round of concern for the others. She would have to interrogate Tesra later about what, exactly, had happened up north, because Nnoitra dropped the conversation. There was only one thing the Espada was interested in right now and he herded Rangiku through the doorway towards the stairs, presumably for a shower and for some �welcome home� sex.

Knowing there was little she could do about that for Rangiku, Tatsuki turned towards her own mate as the door abruptly shut. A beleaguered, filthy Tesra reached out and leaned against her, once he no longer had to appear �with it� for his superior.

�Come on, you need a shower as well. You smell like five-day-old sweat and you are covered in what had better be bug guts, considering you are getting them all over me, and nothing else.� She leaned in and gave him another kiss, which he tiredly returned.

�Bug guts,� he assured her when the kiss broke. �With your permission Nnoitra-sama?� he called out to the now closed door. They hadn�t combined their dens yet, so even though Nnoitra had �hinted� it would be best for Tesra and his mate to stick around, they still had a claim on the old place.

�Go clean up,� Nnoitra�s muffled voice called out. �We will meet you at the Palace later.�

Tesra needed no further prompting. He scooped Tatsuki up, making her gasp, before he used his Sonido to get them back to their house, despite how weary he seemed. It was a bit of a relief to be home after a week away, and the shower was just as she remembered it, sex, love and all.

With Aizen�s announcement, Ulquiorra had braced himself for a cascade of grief and despair to come rushing towards him from Orihime. He even tried to fortify his psyche to weather a storm of negative emotions. He�d had plenty of practice doing just that over the last two-and-a-half weeks. They had just gotten their son back, and now they had lost him again.

Such preparation on his part proved unnecessary, much to his surprise. In fact, the only thing he received from Orihime was an overwhelming amount of pride with just a touch of concern. It was like expecting a blow from a powerful Cero that one could not avoid and instead, encountering a pleasantly soft �thump� from a pillow. As such, her reaction left him confused and at a complete loss.

He thought he�d at least have a hysterical woman on his hands. In reality, she hummed as they entered their house, checking on the windows and doors to see that everything was as they�d left it nearly a week ago, before she started up the stairs. His Claim told Ulquiorra that the foremost thing on her mind involved cleaning off the accumulated grime that covered them both after five days travel, one day of waiting and a half-day of intense battle. He couldn�t argue with the logic of her actions; he disliked smelling �ripe� and a hot bath was in order. What he lacked was a �why� behind the absence of fear for Diaemus. He was certainly heading in the direction of �perturbed� about what had reportedly happened to their boy.

�Orihime?�

�Yes?� she replied serenely as she turning the taps on to get the shower started.

�You are not concerned for our son?� he asked.

�Of course not!� she exclaimed. �He is with Grimmjow-san and Szayel-san and he had the heart to stand beside his friends, even though he could get into trouble. I am so proud of him!�

Her answer took him aback.

�Aizen said he pursued them, not that he joined them,� Ulquiorra reminded her.

She gave him a �you know better than that� look and tested the water with her hand, making sure it wasn�t too cold or too hot. She�d mentioned over the winter that, now that they�d have to re-landscape the back yard of the property thanks to the kids� poorly aimed Cero, putting in a proper soaking bath might not be a bad investment. Ulquiorra wasn�t keen on wholesale immersion, but the idea of watching his mate slipping naked into steaming water appealed to him. Then he wrenched his focus back to the matter at hand and to what Orihime was saying.

��of course he did. He obviously doesn�t know Diaemus-kun at all. That and he probably didn�t want to upset you. He just lost two of his Espada. Now there are only six of you out of the original ten. I don�t think he wants to lose any more enforcers.�

He had to admit she was correct, and that he hadn�t thought about it in those terms. While �enforcer� wasn�t exactly the term that he would pick, it was accurate, as was her assessment of their son. Diaemus did take after his mother in a few significant ways, mainly in his loyalty, to his own detriment at times, to his friends. If he had gone with them, rather than after them, Ulquiorra also had to conclude that his son was as safe as he could be giving the circumstances. If Diaemus had opposed Grimmjow and Szayel, Ulquiorra knew that the Sixth would never raise a hand to the boy, or at least, wouldn�t kill him. It was more likely that Grimmjow would have left Diaemus unconscious while in the Royal Realm if that was the case and even that was a stretch. He didn�t see Ajuga, who was supposedly conspiring with her father and Szayel, allowing her father to harm one of her friends.

None of what he�d heard coming from Aizen�s mouth today added up, given what he knew of those involved. Therefore, either the supposed conspirators had done something completely out of character, which Ulquiorra found absurd considering Grimmjow�s mindset on the trip north, or�

�Kami had lied to them all.

�If I�m worried about anyone, it�s poor Ise-san. We didn�t hear what happened to Hana-chan!� Orihime�s tone dipped for a short minute into sadness, before bouncing back. �But I am sure she is fine. You know those three, always getting into trouble and nigh inseparable. Now� am I going to take this shower alone?� she asked innocently, standing before him wearing nothing more than her hair.

He�d apparently zoned out while pondering the reasoning behind the purported betrayal, because he hadn�t seen her remove her clothing. Yet there it was, in a pile on the floor, waiting for his garb to join it.

�Orihime now,� he told himself, faced with two choices. �The rest can wait.�

Ulquiorra could hardly say no to an offer like that, and she was right. Diaemus was safe for the time being, wherever that might be, and there was no use fretting about things over which he had no control. Orihime favoured him with a sultry smile and stepped into the shower, steam and hot water wreathing her body. He quickly removed his own soiled uniform and joined her. She tilted her head to the side as he pulled her flush against him, letting her feel what she did to him as his semi-hard length settled between her ass cheeks. His teeth nibbled her neck over the scar that had formed from years of frequent re-Claimings, making her shiver in delight. Those shivers excited him even further as their bodies rubbed together tantalizingly. His hands ran up her sides before moving around her to grasp a breast each. He squeezed each gently and she moaned as he rolled her nipples between his thumbs and fingers.

�Ulquiorra��

He made an inquisitive noise against the skin in his mouth while he ran his tongue over it.

�I love you,� she breathed.

�Orihime.�

He pulled away from her, amused as she pouted at him over her shoulder, but she didn�t remain upset for long when he came back to her with a soap-covered cloth. Aizen had ordered them to clean up and return later for a feast and he saw no reason not to combine their ablutions with some much needed, private lovemaking. Having a tent of their own had been all fine and good, but hot water and four, somewhat soundproof walls were even better.

He started with her neck, massaging her cold, sore muscles as he worked his way down her body. Unlike him, she didn�t have his tough Heirro and the frigid temperatures on the trip had been very unpleasant for her. His mate was not used to �roughing it,� but she hadn�t complained either. In addition, she had fought well today. He saw her use Tsubaki to slice cleanly through the joint between the heads and the thoraxes of at least a dozen beetles, killing them. Normally only the Arrancar and Taichou-classed Shinigami could claim such a feat, thanks to the creatures� incredibly thick armour, but her weapon was small and agile enough to slide between the insects� protective plates. He�d chosen well when he�d Claimed her, even if he could have gone about it in a different manner.

Orihime gasped as his left hand started to work its way between the folds of her sex, skillfully teasing her with his fingers. In response, she rubbed her soapy rear against him, stimulating his shaft in the rift between her bottom cheeks. That part of his anatomy didn�t need much encouragement. Just having her naked flesh pressed against his was enough. The addition of the high brought about by the battle that morning made his libido burn all the hotter and soon heat was all he knew: her wet, warm skin, the hot water from their shower and the scorching, tight slickness around his fingers as he plunged them within her.

When her channel clamped down on Ulquiorra�s hand, he decided that he needed to be inside of her. Nudging her legs apart a little further and getting her to brace her hands against the shower wall, he used his other hand to guide himself to her entrance while the fingers preparing her parted her folds.

Their voices mingled as he slowly sheathed himself within her moist, scalding core. When the base of his cock was flush with her folds and her hands became half-clenched fists against the tile on the wall, Ulquiorra leaned forward and began gently circling the swollen bud just above where their bodies came together. Sliding into her soft, constricting depths, from the first time he�d ever had her to this moment, left him reeling with a flurry of emotions. He hadn�t had names for them back then but he knew what they were now: love, desire, joy, gratitude� he sighed into her ear as her overwhelming love for him surged through the Claim towards him, warming and filling his once empty centre. Taking her as his own had been the best thing he had ever done and the thought of losing his connection to such a wellspring of passion terrified him.

�To think there was a time when I thought such emotions were a sign of weakness. How pathetic is it that Grimmjow was the one to point me towards a truer path? Emotions can make one weak, but��

Orihime abruptly cut off his musings as her lovely, gripping muscles tightened once, then twice. His attention snapped back to the woman before him, who looked over her shoulder at him with lusty, if accusing eyes. Then the minx deliberately clenched him a third time. She�d caught him drifting, and he felt a moment of embarrassment before brushing it aside. He leaned forward and the two shared a deep kiss before both hands grabbed her hips. Soon he gave up on doing anything but thrusting into her wildly. He also abandoned trying to keep the maelstrom of emotions whirling through his brain in check. Instead, he let them run rampant, heightening the experience. Ulquiorra wasn�t certain which feelings were hers, shared with him via their connection and which were his, but found he simply didn�t care to try to tell the difference.

Orihime began to pant heavily beneath him and shoved her lower body back to meet him, all while bearing down on him each time he snapped his hips. Finally, unable to postpone his orgasm any longer, he buried himself as deep as he could and reached around to let his fingers press hard against the center of her pleasure, feeling it throb under his sword-calloused fingertips. Ulquiorra barely recognized his own voice as he shouted and came hard. Orihime let out a shrill cry as his twitching fingers and the thick pulsing length inside of her drove her over the edge after him. His mate�s sex quivered around him for what felt like hours as his mind emptied of everything save for dual sensations of their combined climaxes, one feeding off the other.

Afterwards, she clung to the wall, her legs trembling and her breath ragged. He rested his forehead between her shoulder blades, savouring the aftermath and the odd squeeze her fluttering insides gave him, though as he calmed and his erection ebbed, it became harder to feel her. He felt as if he�d just run another five days to the north, non-stop, only with a much better ending than a bedroll under a tarp.

�I love you,� she purred at him as he pressed closer, both hands moving up to cover hers where they splayed against the tiles.

�I love you as well,� he told her.

She gasped in surprise and he didn�t need to see her face to know she was pleased with what he�d said. She knew he loved her, but he still felt a moment of vulnerability as he said the words. It was worth it though, as she responded to his declaration with the very thing he had once foolishly thought of as a weakness. Never again would he be able to go back to such a nihilistic life, to feel nothing for anyone.

He slowly pulled out of her as that that thought sent his mind down a darker alley, and he recalled the conversation he�d had with Diaemus the night before the Swarm had taken his son. Ulquiorra had been unable to answer the boy�s question then, but he certainly could now. Perhaps it was fitting that a human woman, a boy and that irritating panther had been able to teach him the correct solution to such a query.

If Aizen where to raise a hand to either Orihime or Diaemus, he would fight. He would draw Murciélago against the man he had once held in the highest esteem and worshiped like the god he aspired to become. The Fourth would cut him down in a heartbeat should such an event happen.

�I need to speak to Starrk,� he murmured, mouthing this against the back of her neck as he stepped away from her.

Orihime said nothing, nor did she ask why he wanted to speak to the First. She just gave him one of her smiles as she turned around and kissed him soundly, and then helped him scrub the rest of the dirt from their journey away and rinsed her long, coppery hair until it gleamed. It did not escape his notice that she chose to wrap herself in the many silk layers of her Claiming Kimono, occasionally glancing at him from beneath her lashes with those silvery eyes of hers, while he dug out his spare uniform. Her gaze promised that the joining they�d just had would not be the last one this evening if she had anything to say about it.

By the time they were presentable it was time to go to Aizen�s feast, where he would have the opportunity to engage Starrk in a meaningful conversation. The First, in his experience, saw much and said little, both qualities he hoped he could use to help him interpret Aizen�s after-battle announcement.

It was an interpretation that he wasn�t certain that he wanted to hear. However, if what Starrk had to say meant peril for his son, he couldn�t afford to discount it.

Vindula skipped down the street towards the 2^nd Division, her wings fluttering behind her as she did so. With some effort, she managed to get airborne and glided forward a few feet before she touched down, before she went back to skipping. The sunshine was warm on her cheeks, the air smelled of plum blossoms and she could hear songbirds calling to one another from the tops of trees that were already leafing out. Ukitake-san had taught her a song last night, when they had been drawing pictures at the kitchen table. He said it was something his mother had sung to him when he was her age, and the tune was so pretty that even Abisara had stopped tinkering with the project her Papa had given him to keep him busy while everyone was gone, in order to listen. She sang it now, trying to commit it to memory. With Ajuga missing, Vindula had taken it upon herself to make sure Ukitake-san got his tea and she thought that she could sing it to him as a surprise when she got to his office. Ajuga had let her help with Ukitake�s noontime medicine before, so she knew the correct ratio of tea to water as well as how long to let it steep. All she had to do was make sure he drank the stuff, instead of forgetting under the crush of paperwork on his desk. Of course, there was also the bag of candy she knew he kept hidden in the lower drawer of his desk�

Soi Fon accompanied her as a silent protector. Vindula would have felt better if �Ji-ji was with her, since the woman�s pregnancy kept her from walking as fast as Vindula could skip and it was also the reason that she�d had to slow down and not fly the entire way. Soi Fon had to be getting close to having her baby. The birth might be as close as three weeks away, from what her Papa had told �Ji-ji. Abisara would probably remember the exact day if she bothered to ask her brother.

The only clouds in her personal blue sky were the absences of her parents and �Ji-ji, and an odd tingling in her fingertips that had started two days ago. It didn�t hurt, exactly, and it came and went at random. She�d been weeding out one of the flowerbeds in the Estate�s main garden on that day when she�d first noticed the sensation. Her Hierro kept her from having to wear gardening gloves, like Nanao. Vindula had plunged her hands into the dirt, as she always had when the prickling began. At first, she thought she�d dragged her fingers across something sharp enough to cut through her skin. However, when she�d pulled her hand back, with an �Ow!� and stared at it, she was shocked to discover that there was nothing there. The sharp feeling didn�t last long, but it had been real. She thought about telling her brother, but he�d been so distracted of late that she didn�t want to bother him. The initial, itchy pain had subsided anyway, only flickering briefly to life every so often, so it was most likely something that would pass on its own. There was no reason to trouble anyone about something so minor, especially when everyone was working so hard.

Soi Fon suddenly placed one of her hands on Vindula�s shoulder, bringing her back down to the pavement. The girl came to a stop, looking quizzically up at her temporary guardian. The pregnant woman�s eyes narrowed hatefully as she looked straight ahead. Following the woman�s gaze, Vindula saw someone she hadn�t expected to see. He walked calmly up to the two of them, a charming smile on his face and his hands clasped behind his back, as if he�d decided on going for a stroll in the sunshine too.

If he was here, she realized, that meant that everyone was back, that her parents and �Ji-ji were back and that she and Abisara would probably be going home tonight. Her eyes lit up at the thought as he strolled up.

�Kami-sama!� She greeted him cheerfully and curtsied in the way that all of the princesses she�d ever read about did when they met powerful people, or kings and queens. She even made sure to hold her dress out to either side, just like in the pictures.

�Vindula-chan,� Aizen replied, and smiled down at her, before his gaze flickered upwards towards the woman next to her.

Soi Fon�s hand tightened briefly, and Vindula frowned. Her entire posture said she was afraid, and the little girl could feel the woman�s pulse speed up through the palm she still had on Vindula�s shoulder. She had no idea why Soi Fon ought to be afraid. Kami was smiling after all.

�Soi Fon, you�re quite round these days,� Aizen began and then asked, �Your child is due soon, I presume?�

Soi Fon gave a sharp nod of her head, before pausing and with a look of thinly disguised look of disgust, pulled her chalkboard out and hesitantly began to write. Her fingers trembled slightly as she did so, and she stopped several times. Vindula couldn�t see what her guardian was writing, nor did she manage to get a peek of it as Soi Fon, with a great amount of obvious reluctance, passed the writing surface over to Aizen.

Aizen accepted the slate and read it. One of his eyebrows went up as she saw his eyes go back and forth across its width. Now Vindula really wanted to know what it said. She knew her hiragana and katakana, and she could recognize plenty of kanji, but she hadn�t learned them all yet. It was another thing Ajuga-chan had shown her on occasion and something her mother and �Ji-ji spent time teaching her, just like her numbers.

�I believe something can be worked out,� Aizen spoke directly to Soi Fon, a faint smile on his lips. �Why don�t the two of you meet me for tea at my Palace and we will talk about it?� Aizen suggested warmly.

Soi Fon hesitated and then looked down and rested a hand on her stomach before indicating she agreed with a nod of her head.

�Very good. I have one more stop before I join you. Why don�t you both go there and inform the guard at the gate that I will receive you in my private garden.�

�But I have to give Ukitake-san his tea!� Vindula frowned, looking at the supplies in her hands. He seemed to consider her dilemma, because he held his hand out, indicating she should give him the basket.

�The 2^nd Division is on my way to my last errand. I will deliver it to its Taichou personally,� Aizen offered and smiled down at her. �It will be no trouble at all.�

�Okay,� she agreed, handing the supplies over. She wanted to make Ajuga-chan proud of her, but Aizen was Kami, and the thought of getting to see the Royal Gardens again was just too tempting. �Thank you, Kami-sama!� She curtsied again, doing her best to do it elegantly. The most beautiful person she�d ever seen had taught her the proper way to say goodbye and she didn�t want to disappoint her Silk Prince by doing a clumsy job of it.

�I will see you two there shortly,� Aizen told them and disappeared, taking the basket with him. She�d wanted to ask him if she could see her parents, and what had happened that he was back early, but he was already gone. Then she told herself that �Ji-ji had always come to pick them up before and he would probably come and get them from the Estate later. If the battle had gone well, her Papa would likely have a bunch of new specimens and he�d be busy with those for a while, with Mama helping him. She could wait and be patient to see them.

She and Soi Fon looked at one another and then changed course for the Palace. Her somber guardian tucked the chalkboard back into her robes. Vindula wanted to ask what Soi Fon had written, but the woman didn�t seem like she really wanted to discuss it. Deciding it might be better not to bother her companion, Vindula�s chose to think about the Royal Gardens instead, and the treat of getting to have a tea party. The trees and shrubs had to be blooming by now, just like the many gardens at the Ukitake Estate, and she couldn�t wait to see what effect the early spring had had on Kami�s personal garden.

It, she decided, had to be gorgeous!

Abisara sat on the floor leaning against the wall behind him as he watched Mushi eat her daily dung. He kept one eye on the insect while he went over the schematics for his latest invention with the other, using the pen that came with the small, thin toolkit his father had presented to him for his birthday last fall. With his parents gone, he had taken it upon himself to care for their live specimens. He had been nervous the first time he had entered Mushi�s habitat. After all, the Swarm clearly hated Hollows and they didn�t seem thrilled with Shinigami either. He had introduced himself to the Scarab and carefully explained that he would be the one caring for her while Karin-san and his father were away for a mission. To his surprise and relief, Mushi readily accepted the change in caregivers. She�d given him no trouble at all. In fact, he found himself spending more and more time in the Scarab�s terrarium, despite the pungent air during feeding time. He felt safer in his family�s building and no one would think to look for him here. Only a few of his father�s staff, aside from his parents and Karin, even had the access codes to get into this place.

Mushi seemed agitated today, which he found odd. It was probably time to head back to Ukitake-san�s estate and help Vindula-chan prepare dinner. His sister wasn�t necessarily a bad cook, but she was easily distracted and when that happened, things caught fire or ended up over-seasoned. At least the Estate gardens looked less like overgrown weed piles as his twin got to work on them, to keep from getting bored. She truly was a butterfly, he thought. Now if only she�d stop going on and on about princes and etiquette and tea parties. Abisara usually snuck off when she started talking, leaving her to bug Ukitake-san. The older Shinigami was far more patient than he was about those kinds of silly things. He usually made sure he stuck around long enough, though, to snag a lollipop or two from the dish Ukitake-san kept in his library�

Standing up, Abisara placed his notes in his pocket and slid the toolkit into the pocked of his hakama before stretching, wincing as his back popped. Mushi looked his way and he offered the scarab a smile and a bow, although the gestures might be lost on the insect since bugs generally didn�t have lips.

�Well, I have to go,� he announced. �I�ll swing by again tomorrow.�

Mushi scuttled her way over to him. He placed a hand on her forehead, like he�d seen Karin-sama do every time she came to see the Scarab and she made several clicks and buzzes that sounded like a �farewell for now.� He gave her head a brief rub and turned to go when Mushi suddenly wrapped her front leg around him and moved him out of the way, aggressive noises flowing out of her. Before Abisara even finished moving, let alone think about giving a reprimand, he felt a familiar and terrifying reiatsu flood the room. He couldn�t hold back his fear, and ducked behind Mushi, silently praying the scarab�s body would hide him from the monster in the room with them.

�Ah, Karin and Szayel�s pet. You seem quite upset. Did you feel your companions� deaths as I sliced them down with my Zanpakuto?� Aizen asked the insect in an overly sweet voice.

Mushi let out a loud screech, but did not move. Instead, her wings bristled in a display that said �stay back� and filled the room with a steady, angry buzz. Aizen gave her a sardonic grin.

�A pity you lack speech. I would like confirmation of the Swarm�s current state of disarray, as we�ve destroyed your base and scattered those left. Those few who escaped will soon die of oxygen depletion and from the cold, like the vermin you are. Since you lack a proper throat, beast, you are beneath my notice.�

Aizen�s grin grew even wider as he took his eyes from Mushi�s head and stared at her body.

�Now then, why don�t you come out, Abisara-kun? I know you are back there.�

Abisara slowly peeked out from behind Mushi, knowing there was no point in hiding when Aizen had clearly found him. He hesitated, not really wanting to leave his dubious cover.

�Ah, there you are boy. Come forward now.�

Gulping nervously, and trembling in apprehension, he obeyed, at least enough that he was standing by one of Mushi�s front legs and in clear sight of the man that terrified him beyond reason.

�Where is my father?� Abisara asked. There was no way Szayel would have let Aizen into the labs on his own.

The look that crossed Aizen�s face at the mention of Szayel nearly caused him to run back behind Mushi. Something terrible had happened, and he was about to learn what it was. Aizen laughed as he informed the boy of his family�s fate, as if the idea of Szayel attempting to take the Throne was some grand joke. Hearing about the betrayal, and his parents� desertion surprised Abisara, though Mushi tittered at Aizen�s story for some reason. That gave him pause. Did Mushi know something he didn�t, and if so, how? If she did, then what Aizen had just told him was suspect, if not a complete fallacy.

The idea of Aizen lying to him was much easier for him to believe than the idea that his parents would do something so� final without taking him and Vindula with them or that �Ji-ji wouldn�t try to get to them first.

In addition, his father was far too smart to have failed any coup that he attempted and the Seventh Espada had plenty of good reasons to lead one. Nonetheless, he knew it didn�t matter if his father had actually committed a crime against Aizen or not. A sentence like that could only have one outcome.

Gulping nervously, he once more backed behind Mushi�s leg. If Aizen had declared his father a traitor, his property no longer had any rights or protection, and that included both himself and his sister.

Abisara tried not to show Aizen how frightened he really was at the implication. He had to find Vindula-chan and get them both out of there, though he wasn�t certain where they might go. He had no idea where his father had gone and going to Hueco Mundo might be worse than trying to hide in the Seireitei or the Living World.

�You will come with me now, Abisara-kun. Your father and your mongrel of a guardian will not suffer your loss for long. When they come for you, I will be waiting.�

At least that sharply worded declaration rang true. His father wouldn�t want his children anywhere near Aizen if he could help it and neither would �Ji-ji. He certainly didn�t want Kami to use him as bait in a snare, not if he could help it. His father had shown him how to use the Garganta gate in the basement. He just had to figure out where his sister was and get the both of them down there.

Unfortunately for him, the first obstacle, getting past Aizen, was possibly the most insurmountable thing in existence. Kami�s expression had taken a turn for the stern and he didn�t know what would happen to him if he got within arm�s reach, let alone if he tried to bypass him and make a run for it.

�My patience grows thin Abisara-kun.�

His fear of the man rooted him to the spot, cowering behind Mushi�s leg. When Aizen�s eyes narrowed and he took a step forward, the creature shielding him reacted.

�No! Mushi, wait!� Abisara cried out as the Scarab threw herself at Aizen, screeching and clicking in fury.

There was a loud noise, one Abisara had never heard before. It would haunt his dreams for some time to come, however. Blinding white light flashed throughout the cell. Abisara cringed back and covered his eyes, but he still saw it hit the insect. When the brightness vanished, the Scarab fell over� in two different directions. With no effort on his part, Aizen had sliced Mushi cleanly in half, ending her life in less than a second.

Abisara stared at the insect�s remains in horror as green ichor and guts pooled on the floor and slowly soaked his boots. Aizen�s strike had been precise, fast and unexpected. He was too stunned to make a sound as he took in the death of a creature that, just minutes before, he�d been conversing with, feeding and patting on the head. The only thing that Mushi had been guilty of was trying to protect him.

�Worthless pest,� Aizen said derisively before turning his piercing gaze towards Abisara. �I will not tell you again. Your sister awaits you at the Palace and I am a busy man. I only need one of you alive to lure your father back to the Seireitei and your sister isn�t the one I�d prefer to keep, as I find her inane prattle tiresome.�

Terror turned to anger at the threat against Vindula, but it didn�t last long before his fear returned, stronger than before. Any doubts that Aizen wouldn�t follow through on killing his twin died along with the Scarab.

Shivering, he forced himself to walk over towards Aizen, walking through the valley created by Mushi�s bisected corpse and through a river of the poor scarabs insides. He couldn�t help trembling as one of Aizen�s hands rested on his shoulder when he finally reached the man. His parents and Renji had done their best to hide Aizen�s monstrous actions from him and his sister, but he was not a fool. Abisara spent a great deal of time in the Division�s labs; he certainly knew blood for what it was when he smelled it and he�d only recently understood what the second scent that clung to his sire�s injured frame really was. Kami had hurt his father many times before, and the last time his father hadn�t come home, it had been because Abisara had failed to create what Kami wanted. Now that his father wasn�t here for Kami to hurt�

Aizen�s hand trailed up from his shoulder and Abisara found his chin between the ex-Shinigami�s finger and thumb, though thankfully, Aizen didn�t force him to look up at him.

�Good boy. You have your father�s potential, without his insufferable attitude. Perhaps you will serve me well in time with a bit of training as far as showing respect to one�s superiors. With some diligence on your part, you could even replace him. I don�t subscribe to the philosophy that the son should suffer for his father�s iniquities. Do you not agree?�

�Yes, Kami-sama,� Abisara whispered, refusing to look at the man. He settled on staring at Aizen�s obi, having no desire to see his gore-stained feet. The thumb on his chin moved to brush his cheek and it was all he could do not to duck away from that hand and run away as fast as he could.

�Very good. Let�s go see your sister. I haven�t told her about your parents� betrayal. Such a revelation would break her delicate heart, and we couldn�t have that now, could we?�

Abisara nodded weakly. Aizen was right about that. Vindula would be devastated if she thought their parents and �Ji-ji were traitors and had left them to fend for themselves.

�I will inform her that the others remained in the north to do some work for me. Neither half of the Primera has the time to look after you, nor do his pets. As such, I took up the responsibility. I hope we have an understanding, Abisara Grantz.�

Abisara nodded his head again, unable to find his voice. So Aizen had already figured out how to keep Starrk and Lilinette from helping them the way he�d helped their father. That wasn�t good.

�Good lad. Take me to your family�s quarters. I want you to clean up, and pack a bag for yourself and your sister. You�ll not drag any trace of that thing into my Palace.�

Aizen thankfully released his chin and put his hand back on Abisara�s shoulder, putting some pressure on it. Then the monster led him from the room. The boy couldn�t help looking back at Mushi�s corpse, biting his lip to keep the tears that wanted to form out of his eyes. She hadn�t deserved to die like that. Maybe Orihime could revive her if she got here fast enough, but there was no way Aizen would let him detour to get to her and asked for her assistance. He was still stunned that the Scarab had even tried to defend him. Then again, maybe Mushi had wanted to die. After all, life in a cage was no way to live, not for any sentient creature and there was no way they could risk letting her go.

With a sinking heart, Abisara wondered how long he would be able to live in whatever cage Aizen crafted for him before he tried to kill himself. He could only pray that Aizen�s eyes would never look at Vindula the way they looked at his father� and at him.
- 59
- 60
- 61
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 2	By : NovaAlexandria Category: Bleach > General Views: 56251 -:- Recommendations : 2 -:- Currently Reading : 5
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach nor make a profit from this story

Prize of Victory 2