You woke up slowly, sleep clinging to the edge of your consciousness as you started to stir. You were warm and comfortable, the scorching late morning sun had broken through the window, basking you in its healing light. You cracked an eye open, vision sharpening into focus on the hard chest you were currently using as a pillow. Memories of last night came floating through your mind, explaining why you were currently wrapped up in the Espada's arms.
Closing your eyes you sighed in disbelief , hardly believing that you had slept with the abrupt creature, again. Thankfully you didn't feel too sore today, just a little mortified at the reality you were facing. Though you had to admit, it wasn't as awful as you had imagined, waking up in Grimmjow's arms. They wrapped around you, caging him to his chest as he slept, light snores blowing against the hair at the top of your head. It was rhythmic, soothing, feeling the rise and fall of his warm, smooth chest, breathing as easily as if you weren't laying all your weight on him.
You tried to sit up, attempt halted by the tightening of those muscled arms squeezing you tighter to his chest. Clingy bastard. You attempted to wriggle from under those arms when a light growl stopped your escape attempt. Peering up through your lashes, you could see that he was still asleep, eye brows furrowing unhappily . The last thing you wanted was for Grimmjow to wake with you cuddled in his arms, but the idea of him lashing out because you startled him awake was even less appealing.
"Grimmjow" you whisper softly, so not to startle the sleeping beast. His arms tightened in response, softly muttering something you couldn't decipher "Grimmjow". You repeated a little louder, poking him in the side. You winced as he jerked awake, nails digging into your back in response. The hardened look had already replaced the peaceful mask he wore when sleeping, eyes scanning over your face confused. There was a moment of silence as you stared at eachother, naked bodies pressed together at his unbreakable hold
"Get the hell off me" he spat, voice rough with sleep, shoving you off him unceremoniously. Unfortunately for you, he didn't throw you to the left where you would've landed on the unoccupied side of the soft bed. Instead you tumbled heavily to the cold wooden floor, hip breaking your rough fall. You had given an undignified yelp as the world rushed up to meet you in your rapid decent, groaning softly at the pain shooting through your hip.
Rage bubbled in your veins as you glared at Grimmjow, roughly pushing himself from the bed in search of his clothes. You couldn't wait to be rid of him. He was an uncivilised pig, brutish and with zero manners. Why had you agreed to sleep with him again? Should have let the asshole suffer. Everytime you feel you've gotten some sort of truce between you, he goes and does something like this. Grimmjow hastily pulled on his clothes, ignoring the burning death stare you sent his way from the floor.
Grimmjow was pissed. Again?! He had mounted that damn woman again?! What the hell was wrong with him, he had never succumb to his rutting seasons desires before. What the hell had this demon woman done to him? He didn't know much about Shinigami, but he knew they could use magic. Strange words that could heal you, bind you, attack you. Had she done something to him?
That must be it. She had somehow cursed him, it was the only explanation. She was weak, annoying, not someone he would willingly choose to sire his pups. The sooner they parted ways the better. A soft groan from the floor had his eyes snapping to you in an instant. You were naked, pitiful look on your face as you tentatively rubbed the forming bruise appearing on your hip. His anger was immediately extinguished, another feeling twisting in his stomach making him feel sick. A feeling he couldn't name, a feeling he hadn't felt before
Grimmjow rushed to your side, prompting you to grip hold of the blanket and rip it down off the bed, covering yourself with it. You watch on amazed as he crouched down in front of you, eyes fixated on the darkening bruise at your hip. Grimmjow tenderly brushed away the blanket hiding the spot from his view, eyes softening as he took in the mark blemishing your skin. A mark he hadn't intended on leaving on you.
When his hand reached out to rub against the bruise, you slapped his hand away. The warning look flashed in his eyes as he reached out again, growling when you repeated the action and stopping him from making contact "woman" he forced through clenched teeth, attempting to get at your hip once again.
You scrambled back on the floor, definitely refusing to let him touch you. He couldn't be an asshole and throw you to the ground then expect you to let him touch you. He was going to learn one way or another that you were done playing his games. The scurrying movements intrigued his hunting instinct, encouraging him to stalk you, hunt down his prey. His eyes darkened at the prospect of the chase, the thrill of a predator capturing its prey.
Your foot shooting out to kick him in the jaw, however, quickly snapped him out of that predatory game. He leaped on top of you, pinning you to the ground with a murderous look "the fuck you kicking me for" he snarled at you. You had hit him too many times without any repercussions, he had no such morals to not hit a woman, and you were pushing your luck
"don't fucking touch me" you snapped back at him, temper reaching your boiling point. You were getting whiplash with his explosive temper and strange unnecessary bouts of concern. You felt like for every step you took forward, Grimmjow angrily pushed you back five more "It's fine Grimmjow, just fucking get off me so we can leave" Grimmjow stared down at you, reading the annoyance on your face. You didn't look hurt, just pissed. That, he knew how to deal with. With a rough shove he pushed himself off you, scoffing as he turned his back on you. "What ever" he grumbled, as he stormed over to the door, slamming it shut behind him for good measure.
You let out a shaky breath, heavy weight leaving your shoulders as he left you in the room alone. You took your time getting changed, making sure you packed all your belongings before tidying up the room. The bedding was folded neatly, cushions arranged around the table to look athletically pleasing. You gave the outside tub a last longing glance before closing the patio door. Room looking presentable, you left, stopping briefly to speak to the woman at the front desk, thanking her for your stay.
Stepping outside you spotted Grimmjow, arms crossed over his chest, leaning heavily on an old tree. Rolling your eyes you made your way down the path, setting off towards Seireitei without a backwards glance, not caring if he chose to follow you back or not. He was a big boy, if he wanted to sulk in the woods then so be it. You were already a day late in reporting in, desperately missed your bed and the company of less psychotic beings. This walk couldn't pass by fast enough for you
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You smiled softly as the west gate came into view, welcoming you home. Grimmjow had followed you back, grumpily stomping a good distance behind you the entire way. You could feel his burning gaze at the back of your head, anger coming off him in waves. You had forced yourself to ignore him, keeping your eyes straight ahead, you weren't about to pander to his sulking. You warmly greeted the keeper of the gate , Jidanbō, sending him a friendly wave as he unnecessarily side stepped to let you pass. Hopefully Grimmjow took notice, he could learn a thing or two about decorum
The further you walked into the eleventh's territory, the busier it became. Burly men getting on with their days work, talking amongst themselves and a few lighthearted scuffles breaking out. You enjoyed being back in this atmosphere, taking your time to people watch and not rushing your way through the division. You glanced over your shoulder, a flash of blue letting you know Grimmjow was still trailing after you. Which had surprised you some what, you had thought he would disappear the moment you arrived back. Surly he wasn't going to go see the captain commander with you?
A side street came into view, a shortcut that took you from the Eleventh to the ninth. You ducked down the alley, following the quiet road, mapping out your route to the first in your head. If you cut through the ninth to the third, you could get the the first without passing through the sixth, which was your division. You weren't sure you had the willpower to be so close to your home and not go there. Better to get your report done and out of the way.
In the distance you spotted two captains, casually standing around having a chat. From their hair and stature, you easily deduced Captan Hirako had come to pay his friend a visit in the ninth. Captain Muguruma had his back to you, hands crossed over his chest as he humoured Captain Hirako in his animated story telling. As you neared you caught a few words being carried by the breeze, smiling at the whine in the Captains voice when speaking about his former lieutenant.
The breeze shifted directions, whipping your hair over your face, momentarily blocking your vision. You gathered all of your flailing hair, holding it tight over one shoulder waiting for the strong gust of wind to pass. . Your steps faltered to a stop when the two captains whipped around to stare at you, all evidence of humour gone from their face. Their eyes seemed to darken, jet black encroaching the whites of their eyes. It was terrifying
Captain Muguruma let out a low hiss, fists tightening as his sides as he stared at you unblinking. A chill ran up your spine, a sudden urge to run away dominating your bodily response. You saw Captain Muguruma take a deliberate step forward before being stopped by Captain Hirako, blocking his advance with his body. Your blood went cold at the look the Captain was giving you over his comrades shoulder. Every hair on your body stood up in fear, every cell in your body surging with the urgency to run. Your feet wouldn't listen to your silent commands, rooted on the spot, caught in the sights of the unexplainably angry captain
Your breathing turned shallow, feeling cold under that Icy glare. You were unable to tear your eyes away until your vision was suddenly blocked by a wide back and electric blue hair. Grimmjow had appeared in front of you, arms spread wide to block your path, hide you from view. You let out a shuddering breath, freed from the hypnotic connection holding you in place. Grimmjow growled loudly, manic feline yell screamed out in warning.
The sound snapped you out of your fight or flight response, startled by the threatening noise You peered around his arm, shocked to see Captain Hirako keeping captain Muguruma in place with a hand to his chest, muttering something you couldn't hear. Captain Muguruma was emitting a strange, demonic warbling sound from between his clenched teeth, eyes had gone completely black, glowing yellow irises shining through.
"try it asshole!" Grimmjow snapped at the man, challenging grin plastered on his face. This prat was going to get you killed! . Honestly, could he not go anywhere without causing havoc?! You ducked under his arm, pushing against his chest to get him to back up. "What the hell are you doing?" You whisper shouted at him, pushing with all your strength to get him to back up " they're captains, idiot!"
Grimmjow growled at your interference, not taking his eyes off the Captains. Without breaking the challenging stare down between himself and Captain Muguruma, his arm darted out to push you back behind him roughly, accidentally shoving you to the floor. You huffed as your ass broke your fall, about ready to give Grimmjow a piece of your mind .
He crouched in an offensive position, like a lion reading to pounce at their chosen meal. At the loss of height you scrambled to your knees to watch in complete bewilderment as Captain Hirako pushed against his friend, snapping at him to move his ass. With a backwards glance, he focused on you, look of disgust on his face before he wrapped his arms around a growling Kensei and flash stepping them away.
You were breathing hard, shaking from the sudden surge of adrenaline. What the fuck just happened? More importantly, what the hell did Grimmjow do to get such a reaction? He was still crouched in front of you, staring in the direction the captains had disappeared to, considering going after them . With an annoyed huff you pushed yourself to your feet, roughly shoving past him, bumping roughly into his arm as you passed. You didn't even want to know, what ever fights Grimmjow wanted to start, fine, just leave you the hell out of it.
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You we're still shaking slightly by the time you had made it to the first. You couldn't get the scene out of your head, the animalistic snarls still echoing through your mind. You shuddered at the memory, taking a deep breath to calm your nerves before you knocked on the large wooden door of the Captain Commanders office. You didn't need to wait long before it opened, the narrow elegant face of Lieutenant Ise appearing.
"YN, you were expected back yesterday" she greeted you Cooly, opening the door further to allow you access to the large office. You bow low before entering, muttering your apologies as you entered. She pushed her glasses further up her nose before indicating that you should follow. She led you through the first room of the office, changed into a relaxed seating area more suited to the Captain than the barren space his successor had.
As you entered the arched open doorway separating tithe area, you spotted Captain Kyoraku sat behind his desk, seemingly doing paperwork. He looked up at the sound of footsteps, handsome face splitting into a toothy grin at seeing you. Because he was actually glad to see you or happy for an excuse to not get on with his paperwork was anyone's guess.
"YN" he greeted in his deep drawl, standing up to welcome you into his office. A large hand presented a seat opposite him, offering the space to you. You send him a warm smile, while he had stepped up and was proving to be an amazing leader, one worth following, he still held on to his core traits. He was charming and friendly, flirted with every woman he saw. He held himself with lazy confidence, something you enjoyed witnessing.
"so, tell me how the mission went" he asked with a crooked smile, sitting back at the desk once you were seated, leaning his elbows on the desk and supporting his head with his hands.
"The mission went well, sir. We located and cleansed the hollow attacking the village. Came across a few more on our travels which we also delt with"
Kyoraku nodded along with your explanation, singular grey eye focusing all his attention on you. He had lost the other at the beginning of the war along with half of his ear. The disfigurement did nothing to effect his good looks, nor his self esteem, you secretly believed he quite enjoyed the dangerous look the eyepatch gave him "and Grimmjow? Did he behave?"
Grimmjow. He was a nuisance. He didn't follow orders, blatantly ignored every strategy you tried to deploy. He ran off on his own, claiming he could handle it, didn't need any help from shinigami. He was gruff, rude, infuriating, hot, arrogant... wait.. what? You shook your head to clear your thoughts, meeting the head captains amused look
"Grimmjow is..." you trailed off weakly. You didn't know what to say. He was a good fighter, definitely someone you would want on your side. His attitude however didn't suit team work, it would be likely someone could get hurt, or worse die, with the lack of communication and respect to authority. You didn't want to sing his praises nor badmouth him. He still had a lot to learn, but you felt he could be taught, if you weren't the teacher
"He is an interesting character, wouldn't you agree?" Kyoraku prompted you with an aloof hand wave. He's had the pleasure of Grimmjows company on more than one occasion, much to his delight. He was incredibly amusing to watch. Especially in the company of Urahara or Ichigo, both of whom seem specially skilled at enraging the Espada faster than anyone he had ever seen. Urahara knew full well what buttons to press to send him flying into a rage, which he did for his own twisted amusement. And poor Ichigo need only walk into the vicinity to get the Espada attempting to end his life
"That's one way to describe him sir" you agree weakly. There were many words you had to describe Grimmjow, "interesting" was far down on that list, and not nearly as colourful as the others. Kyoraku chuckled, scratching his beard at your reply. His eye flicked down to something red catching his attention. On your neck partially hidden by your collar was a red mark, bruising on the edges. If the old man was correct, which he so often was, that was a mark you wouldn't appreciate him pointing out. Seems you and Grimmjow had gotten a little closer that he had anticipated
He tried to hide his sly grin, reaching into his desk to pull out a bottle of sake and placing it on the desk "Don't tell my Nanao chan" he grinned at you, before materialising two sake dishes seemingly out of thin air "join me, won't you?" He voiced the request, pouring two generous cups without waiting for your agreement. One of the perks of being the captain commander, it was much easier to get people to agree to share a friendly drink, usually too scared to tell him no.
Normally you would have kindly declined, or at the very least only take a few respectful sips before abandoning the drink. Drinking during the work day wasn't something your captain would accept from any of his subordinates, at the head captains request or not. However, after that strange altercation with the captains and Grimmjow.. and the week spent with him, you couldn't find it in you to resist. You took the offered cup, raising it in thanks to the man opposite you before taking a much needed drink.
"I know Grimmjow is...difficult" Kyoraku prompted the conversation back to where it needed to be "but I would like your honest opinion about him. If you think he could fit in here?"
You resist the rude sigh threatening to come out. Really, you just wanted to forget about him and go home. Then goeti was huge, you probably wouldn't run into him again. He definitely wouldn't willingly wonder into the sixth division, not when Ichigo visited often to see Lieutenant Abari and Captain Kuchiki. Not to mention the other Captain Kuchiki spending time there to visit her brother and friend, Ichigo tended to spend a lot of time with her when he visited. He certainly wouldn't seek out your company willingly.
"Grimmjow is a good fighter. Really good. He's strong and fast, he had no problem with any hollow we encountered." Kyoraku looked at you expectantly, waiting for you to elaborate. He already knew Grimmjow was an excellent fighter. "But he's defiant, stubborn, short tempered. He's reactive, he Doesn't follow directions nor listen to authority." And the rest, you scoffed mentally. Psychotic, unhinged, nasty little asshole. "But, I think he's better as an ally than an enemy, as proven in the war. I think he'll struggle to fit in to most divisions, there's so much he doesn't know about our way of life, like how to read"
Kyoraku raised an eye brow at that, he wasn't aware Grimmjow couldn't read. That would make paperwork problematic. "He can't use chopsticks either. I'm sure there's more I've not yet seen. He is intelligent though, and a quick learner. I think he could be taught our ways, how to be a team member "
"is that something you think you could do? Teach him?" Kyoraku asked with a slight teasing tone you didn't pick up, too astonished by the question
"No!" You all but shouted at the Captain, quickly lowering your tone at his raised eyebrows, not having give quite the reaction he was expecting. Clearly there was more to the story "no, sir. We didn't exactly get on during our mission. Argued for most of it if I'm being honest. I'm actually confident in saying he would rather never see me again". The feelings mutual. You didn't want to be lumbered with the task of civilising him, you'd go crazy. Someone else can take on the responsibility, anyone else. The memory of thinking Grimmjow could go the the fourth crossed your mind, joking with yourself that Captain Unohana could train him
"Actually sir, were you aware of Grimmjows more.. animalistic skills?"
The captain had just been taking a drink from his cup when you asked, the question seemed to have startled him since he started choking on his drink. He coughed roughly, thumping his chest as he started at you confused. "excuse me?" He rasped out, clearing his throat as he waited for your reply to make sense of the question you had asked, which he had taken in a very filthy way. You couldn't be referring to the mark on your neck, and what had led to it
"His sense of smell for example? He can smell hollows from a really far distance. He can also smell infection. His eyesight is better than our own and can see very clearly in the dark. His hearing also seemed to be heightened. He could hear things I couldn't, hear hollows screams far before I could. I think he would be beneficial in a scouting team? I had even had the thought that he could be helpful within the fourth, sniffing out infections long before the lab results would come back"
Kyoraku was pleased you had cleared up his misunderstandings, though he wasn't aware of his superior senses. He pondered it for a moment, humming softly. As helpful as detecting infection was, he couldn't imagine a reality in which Grimmjow would go to the fourth. Joining a scouting team however, didn't seem half bad. Though he had to take in Grimmjows preference into consideration. He was aware Grimmjow wanted to join the eleventh. Arguably filled with the strongest fighters, each and every one with a love for fighting. It was a good fit for him, if he could control his anger. If he would stop trying to fight to the death with everyone who angered him, Ichigo in particular.
"I wasn't aware, no. That's very helpful information. Thank you." He offered you a small smile, praise for doing well on the task he gave you, even knowing you didn't want it. "Have you reported back to Byakuya yet?" Kyoraku knew how much Captain Kuchiki hated being addressed so informally, especially at work. Kyoraku being his superior, and having known him since he was a child, had always called him by his given name, much to his dismay. Now that he was the head captain, Byakuya really couldn't voice his dislike, and it amused Kyoraku to no end.
"not yet, I came straight to you..". You trailed off, remembering the altercation you had with the two captains on your way here. You didn't know if you should tell anyone about it. Nothing really happened, nothing you could report anyway. Feeling scared wouldn't mean much, not with captains like Kenpachi and Kurotsuchi running about, striking fear into the hearts of all they had met. You weren't even sure what had happened. In any case, that was between Grimmjow and the Captains, you were going to stay out of it
"is there anything you wish to tell me?" The Captain commander looked at you gently, comfortingly. Clearly your face gave away your thoughts. As it usually did, you had the worst poker face, always showing your emotions as clear as day on your face. "I'm a good listener"
"No, sir. Nothing I need to speak about" you deny, trying to make your face neutral. Captain Kyoraku nodded, clearly not believing you but allowing you the choice to deny it, hopefully if it were a problem you would seek council elsewhere. You finished the last of the sake, putting the bowl on the desk before standing
"I'll make sure to write up the report detailing the mission and get it sent over straight away". You bow low to your superior.
"At your leisure, there is no rush" he waved a dismissive hand, having heard the verbal report, he was in no rush for additional paperwork. You couldn't help but grin at that, you knew your Captain would have a very different idea about how quickly you filled out the paperwork. You had the honour of the 6th to uphold after all.
He rose to see you out, guiding you to the door with a gentle hand in the middle of your back. "Thank you for taking on this task for me, I hope Grimmjow didn't give you too much trouble"
"my pleasure" your chest swelled with pride. You've always sought out approval from your superiors, had been that way since you were a kid. Having such lovely praise from the head captain no less, you were ecstatically happy.
"Oh, actually, there's one more thing" guilt crept on your face as you turned in the door way to face him. "The night before last, we were caught in a storm, had to seek shelter in this particularly unstable shack" you started to confess, feeling heat rush your cheeks at the memory. Your feet started to shuffle under you uncomfortably "I had gotten hurt, so last night we stayed at the Lotus inn, I had them send the bill directly to you, sir."
"as you should". He grinned at your uncomfortableness, patting your shoulder good-naturedly.
"we kinda went overboard with the room service. When the bill arrives, if you let me know, I'll reimburse you" you added, dreading the size of the bill when it arrived. The hearty chuckle you got in return had you meeting his eye, failing to see the joke
"You'll do no such thing. It's the least you deserve for doing me this favour."
"but"
"no buts" he interrupted you, shaking his head fondly. "Have a lovely day, YN chan"
"you too, sir"