A/N: Okay, so I really wanted to post this yesterday, but what do you know it somehow got deleted, so now I have to re-type the whole damn thing. So yeah, I'm pretty pissed off right now. I can't even remember what I wrote last time, so this time I'm pretty much just winging it, and it might be kinda short. I'm just gonna get started before my brain quits all together. Oh, and sorry for any spelling errors, I'm in a hurry and didn't edit this.
Disclaimer: Still own nothing.
Six months later...
"Noelle? Neil? Where are you two?" Nelliel called, wandering around the halls of Las Noches, searching for her two wild children. In the short six months since they were born, they've grown much faster than expected, and already looked as if they were four year olds. At this age, they could walk, talk, and cause a whole lot of trouble. Nelliel made the mistake of showing them how to play eternal tag, which wouldn't be so bad if they didn't learn sonido so quickly, making it nearly impossible to catch them.
"Oh, where did you get off to this time? And where on Earth is Nnoitra?" She asked, suddenly remembering that her mate had also been looking for them. A sudden blur flew by, making Nelliel spin around.
"Daddy can't catch me! Daddy can't catch me!" The child sang, rounding the corner and disappearing. Nelliel almost ran after her, but thought better of it. After all, where there was one, the other was sure to follow.
"Noelle, wait for—" Neil was abruptly cut off as he ran face first into Nelliel's hand, squealing as she lifted him off the ground.
"Caught you" She said triumphantly, glaring at her child. Neil looked back at her with his one visible eye, the other being hidden by straight turquoise hair.
"You caught Neil! Neil was running as fast as he could, but you still caught him!" He yelled happily, beaming and showing his teeth, showing his one fang on the bottom. Nelliel was surprised at how similar he is to her child self, even talking in third person.
"Yes, I caught you, now help me find your sister and daddy" Nelliel said, setting her son down.
"Daddy? He's right there!" Neil exclaimed, pointing behind Nelliel. Sure enough, Nnoitra was walking sluggishly down the hall, looking exhausted and gasping for air. After reaching Nelliel and Neil, he promptly fell on the floor.
"Oh...thank god...you caught him..." He panted, rolling onto his back.
"You're awfully tired. What, to old for a little tag?" Nelliel teased, earning a glare.
"Shut up, it's not that easy! Let's see you chase them around for three hours!"
"I have been, and I'm perfectly fine" Nelliel replied smugly, and before Nnoitra could say anything, Hallibel emerged around the corner holding the missing child.
"Looking for something?" She asked, holding Noelle up higher. Being the strongest espada, catching them wasn't a problem. In fact, she rather enjoyed it, though she would never say that.
"Oh, thank you Hallibel. I don't think we would have ever found her" Nelliel said, feeling relieved she didn't have to run more. Hallibel let Noelle down, watching as she tackled Nnoitra. While they didn't pick favorites, Noelle seemed to hang around Nnoitra more, while Neil clung to Nelliel. That doesn't mean they disliked the opposite parent, of course.
"Daddy, I'm faster than you!" She exclaimed happily, hugging Nnoitra tighter.
"Yeah yeah, sure you are" Nnoitra grumbled, ruffling his daughters hair.
"Oi, what's going on over here?" A voice suddenly asked, and Grimmjow appeared with Ulquiorra. Both kids rushed over to them, hugging their legs tightly.
"Uncle Grimmjow! Uncle Ulquiorra!" They yelled, smiling widely. Grimmjow grinned, and even Ulquiorra smiled, though it was hardly noticeable.
"Heh, I see you beat your old man in tag again. Poor spoon" Grimmjow taunted, earning a few giggles from the young ones and a glare from Nnoitra.
"Oi, why don't you kids play with Grimmjow again?" Nnoitra said, watching as his children jumped around in excitement and Grimmjow's face morphed into one of fear.
"Oh no, Not after last time! Never again!" He yelled, flinching at the memory. Of all their victims, Grimmjow was their favorite.
"Aw, is the pussy cat scared of a little tag? Tch, how sad"
"Shut the—"
"Grimmjow," Ulquiorra said, interrupting Grimmjow before he said something that the children shouldn't hear, "Do you even remember why we came here?" He asked, giving the sexta his usual detached stare.
"Huh? Oh yeah...no, no I don't" Grimmjow said flatly, making Ulquiorra roll his eyes.
"We came to tell you that dinner is ready" Ulquiorra said to the others. Noelle and Neil immediately disappeared, running to the kitchen. Nnoitra soon followed, muttering something about being starving. The others soon followed him.
...
Nelliel watched as her children played with the Fraccion, running freely in the desert sand. She couldn't help but wonder what her future would be like now, and how her children would grow up. She planned on teaching them about Shinigami and Aizen, and about how Nnoitra once hated her. She would tell them about getting turned into a child, and about Ichigo, and the other espada who died in war. She would teach them how to use ceros and balas, and once they got their swords they would learn resureccion. She was curious how they would look, fully released. The future looked bright, and she was looking forward to spending it with Nnoitra and the children. Nelliel also knew the others were looking forward to it as well, especially Hallibel.
"Well, I'm gonna go take a nap" Nnoitra said, yawning to prove his point of being tired. Ulquiorra left as well, not saying where he was going. Grimmjow followed, probably wanting to annoy him, and Nelliel decided to go rest with Nnoitra. Hallibel stayed, smiling as Noelle tackled Apacci. A hand suddenly rested on her shoulder, and she already knew who it was.
"I thought you left" She said, not surprised at all that he stayed.
"I did, but then decided to watch them with you. It's nice, finally having them, isn't it?" He said, wrapping an arm around her waist.
"It really is. I'm grateful for Nelliel and Nnoitra giving us this opportunity" She said, smiling underneath her mask. Noelle and Neil suddenly spotted them, and ran towards them.
"Auntie Hallibel! Uncle Grimmjow! Come play with us!" They shouted, dragging the two by the hands to go play.
"No, not again!" Grimmjow yelled.
...
"Here are the kids, they got worn out playing" Grimmjow said, entering Nnoitra's and Nelliel's room and placing them in the small bed that he and Ulquiorra made for them.
"You look terrible" Nnoitra commented sleepily, noticing the scratches and bruises on Grimmjow's face.
"Shut up and go back to sleep" He muttered, walking out of the room. Hallibel followed him, saying a brief goodnight. Just as Nnoitra was about to drift off, he took one last glance at his children, and then at his hand entwined in Nelliel's and her peaceful face, before smiling genuinely and falling back asleep.
This is what happiness feels like...
Thank you, Nelliel.
I love you...
A/N: I know, it's short, but you get the point. They're all one happy family now. This was originally longer, but it just had to get erased! -.- I hate technology. Anyways, this concludes Aftermath! I thank you all for reviewing, giving me suggestions (nicaneko) and just reading this. I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. Now I can move on to my number one favorite pairing, GrimmIchi! Woo! Please leave one last review, it makes me happy!
Rainb0wNinja out!