Grasp

- Bleach; Orihime, Ulquiorra

- . . . Are you afraid of me? Girl.

----------

It is the easiest question ever posed to her, only slightly shocked, and even that's gone by now, and she thinks that if every test in school were like it, maybe she could be as smart as Kurosaki-kun, and they could go to a REALLY BIG university together, and fall in love, and raise smart orange headed children that have weird powers, and live happily ever after --

Only, someone else's story is coming to an end, and she doesn't know why she thinks there should be tears, to be valiantly fought back, but they aren't there, and she feels so drained, she thinks she might not get up if she sat down. She can't sit down, she can't fall down, yet. This chapter isn't over, yet...

She remembers this, there is a cycle to this, and the test is fill-in-the-blank.

Step one: A person is born. Step two: A person dies. Step three a: A person's soul goes to Seireitei. Step three b: A person's soul transforms into a Hollow. Note: At any point after Step three b, it is still possible for a soul to go to theSeireitei after being purified by a Shinigami, see Step four a...

But there it gets fuzzy and she starts to wish she had taken better notes or not traded letters with Tatsuki-chan or stared at the teacher and not out the window, because this is the Really Important Part, and all she can remember is...

All of the Espada are of the Great Hollows -- they are the culmination of many souls, with one controlling the combined power.

Each Espada is a collection of souls.

Ulquiorra is a collection of souls.

Ulquiorra is -- was -- started out as just... a person...

She does not like him. She knows this with as stark a clarity as she knows that given the chance, she will unmake the Houguoku and ruin all that Aizen plans to do with it. She knows it like she knows that Kurosaki-kun will fight Aizen until one of them is dead, and that soon Tatsuki-chan will find out about everything, because Tatsuki-chan just doesn't let nakama go. She knows it like she knows that under different circumstances...

I'm finally starting to find you guys a little interesting.

She could have.

And anyone that is a friend of hers, or could be...

He deserves the truth, even if, a part of her is laughing hysterically, it isn't what he wants her to say.

"I'm not scared." Her voice does not shake, and tears do not fall, and the page has not yet turned, don't make the page turn, please.

He's so very, very still, and bits of him are still -- drifting away --

"I see."

Of course he does, she thinks; she had always suspected, that those eyes could see right through her. She reaches out --

It isn't fair, she thinks, as she grasps only the slightest bit of ash.

----------

"Somehow our devils are never quite what we expect when we meet them face to face." --Nelson DeMille

Push

- Bleach; Ulquiorra, Ichigo

- Careful and precise, all that one has ever had, one has taken

----------

The human's head snaps up and back -- and away from the sword coming towards him -- and Aizen's Fourth Sword is... curious.

"Inoue!"

A fool to leave an enemy to his back, especially one as dangerous as himself, and yet, there! Ulquiorra thinks.

A small thing, to intercept him. Even smaller, to block him... yet more than what it had taken before. Something floods him.

The shock from the two arrancer would have bowled him over, had he any care for it.

"Don't get the wrong idea; I'm not helping you."

"Outta my way." Bitten. Growled. Forced from jaw and tongue and...

"Make me." Slow for the moment. "If you want to fight anyone else, you'll have to kill me first."

"SHUT UP! Get outta my way!" ...screamed, as though throat and mouth could no longer contain the wild energy already etched in face and muscles.

He couldn't care less about the two arrancar. The same for the human girl... but this one; this not-Shinigami: like this, with rage flowing in eyes and words and that extra power behind sword...

Yes.

Ulquiorra would have the fight from this human.

THE ARCHIVE LIST!

Iiiiiiit's Author Intrusion!!!

You're ecstatic, I know.

In any case, I suppose that this is somewhat selfexplanitory...

This will be updated on the first of the month, every month that I post something, and will have everything that I've posted prior to said month. Simple, ne?



Harry Potter
--
One Shots
Feels like the End (Alice Longbottom is floating)
--
Cross Overs
Hobby (Harry Potter, meet Botan Hakagishi)(Yuu Yuu Hakusho)

Inuyasha
--
Cross Overs
Catharsis (Note to self: The future is weird too)(Yuu Yuu Hakusho)

Kekkaishi
--One Shots
Turn (Tokine will not allow this)

Original
--
One Shots
Stranger (really weeeird)


Shaman King
--
One Shots
Learned Reflex (Asakura Yoh in ch 36)


Yuu Yuu Hakusho
--
One Shots
Sight (Kuwabara Shizuru and getting the ball rolling)
Vanishing Point (Rui is standing on the precipice of what-will-be)
Intermittent (Uremeshi Yuusuke and small eternities)
On the Never Ending Battle (Shiori knows when she's beat)
Shadow, through Smoke (Possibilites weave the future to the present)
Way of Clarity (Going beyond This and into That)
--
rev er ie
-re al is tic ("I believe that you should know...")
-re deem (Because this was due)
--
Cross Overs
Hobby (Hakagishi Botan, meet Potter Harry)(Harry Potter)
Catharsis (Kuwabara is not amused)(Inuyasha)

Catharsis

- Yuu Yuu Hakusho; Inuyasha; Kuwabara Kazuma, Kurama, Yukina

- By some quirk, the Inuyasha gang crashes a modern day festival. Kuwabara is Not Amused.

----------

"Wait," Kuwabara held up a hand, whether to forestall further explanations from the group of five trussed up in front of him, or a headache, was anyone's guess, "let me get this straight...

"You," he said while pointing to one of the two girls, "are the reincarnation of some miko who was the guardian of that," now pointing to the sparkling jewels held in Kurama's hand, "which is apparently not only powerful, but then you went and broke it, around the time when you met him," the boy with golden eyes snarled again and tried to break the vines. (Off to the side, Kurama poured more energy into them. Honestly. This was the third time...) "And then it turns out that there's some other youkai--" ("Actually, he's a hanyou..." the first girl said, weakly. She was duly ignored.) "--after the thing, and you pick up these other people who've got beef with him, and you're all on some kinda quest to defeat him. Oh yeah, wait, what was that other thing...?"

"The time-portal posing as a well?" Kurama piped up helpfully. It wasn't the way he had imagined they all would be spending the festival, but he could admit that it was much more entertaining.

"Oh, yeah, how could I forget that all of this had been happening in the Sengoku Jidai until some dried well magic went crazy and pulled you all here." Kuwabara's eyes narrowed, his jaw clenched, and then he started to explain, loudly, clearly, and with small words as though the group were a bunch of five-year olds, exactly why it was Not Okay to chase your Demonic Enemy through a heavily populated festival grounds, even if it does have something that you want and can more than double it's power. There are people there, ignorant people, who probably wouldn't know a demon if it ate them, and definitely wouldn't be able to defend themselves from said demon. Why didn't they try to redirect it to, oh, the other side of town, you know, without all the lights and stalls and kids running around in masks and yukata?...

"How long do you think he'll continue with this?" Kurama absently asked the others, disinterestedly poking a shard.

"I'm guessing right about when Ear Boy hits the color puce."

Keiko cast a quick look at Shizuru, then at the unfamiliar demon (What had that girl said he was? A dog hanyou?), and started fiddling with her fan. "Oh dear..."

"Well, I'm not going to let this ruin my night. C'mon girls. I want to see if that comb is still there..." Shizuru grabbed Keiko's arm and began leading her away, but Yukina lingered, casting an... appraising? look towards the (still) ranting Kuwabara.

"Something wrong, Yukina?" Kurama asked, pocketing the shards. He would deal with them later. As it was, Yukina had been even quieter than usual, fading into the background so well that even he had forgotten about her for a few moments.

"Oh," she said, looking at him with wide eyes, "I was just wondering how long it would take for him to start repeating himself. Kazuma has been going for quite some time..." trailing off, she checked to see where the other girls were, then continued observing.

"This was not exactly how I'd envisioned spending Momo Sekku. This was supposed to be relaxing..." He eyed Kuwabara again. He didn't look very relaxed, and yet...

"Well..." Yukina got an odd look on her face. "You must admit, this must be very cathartic for him."

----------

Momo Sekku -- the Peach Festival; held in early March
Cannon: Kuwabara really wants to get into Gai Tech High School
HeadCannon: Kuwabara burns himself out studying for the entrance exams
Real Life Fact: Japanese school systems start the year in April

Turn

- Kekkaishi 198

- Tokine will not allow this

----------

It's the same old thing, she thinks, furiously, uselessly. It's the same. Stupid. Thing. But this isn't like the other times, this isn't like anything before. This is a GOD, and it's mad, and it's going to destroy Karasumori and kill us along the way and this IDIOT is going to do something stupid AGAIN but this time it's really going to kill him and us and (I wish Grandmother was here and) --

"Ketsu."

-- he's still just a kid. A stupid, stupid, stupid kid that's always getting into trouble and I'm always the one pulling him out of it. Only now he thinks he has to take it all on himself. But he won't. He can't.

Not this time.

"Metsu."

It's my turn.