Author's note: To all five of you reading my other Bleach fic, Sol Reaper, it still lives. I've been on kind of an Ulquihime kick lately, so I decided to start a fic devoted to that. Hope you all enjoy.

As he sat in the lightless chamber, bound in numerous chains designed to suppress spirit energy, Ulquiorra contemplated the events that lead him here.

"Do I frighten you?"

"No, you don't."

He shouldn't be alive.

He still was grappling with just how he was alive.

Something spurred her into motion. A fire had been kindled in her heart.

She would not let him die.

Ulquiorra may have looked completely stone faced, but inside his mind spun round in a storm, trying to iron out the events of that fateful day.

He woke to find the woman standing over him, clearly just holding herself together. She had clearly yet to notice he was awake. He still felt so weary… he could feel his lungs under construction, feel the tissue being reconstructed. Weakly, he reached out, placing a hand on her leg. She jumped with a start at the contact, looking at him. As he felt one lung finish, he managed to whisper a single word.

"Why?"

The door to his cell opened, light flooding into the room. The chains rattled as he turned slightly to get a look at who was entering, returning to his former position when he saw it was just an ordinary guard. Ulqiorra didn't bother to speak up. After a quick inspection, the guard waved a few others in, before turning to the Arrancar. "You have been summoned to stand before the Central 46 for judgment." Ulquiorra nodded, choosing to remain silent. The guards each took on of the chains, marching him through the dark halls.

An advantage of his regeneration abilities was that Ulqiorra knew just how healthy he was most of the time. "Woman, I am stable. Finish your work with the Quincy." Orihime simply nodded, moving over to Uryu, who sat glaring at him. She hadn't answered his question, nor had she spoken a single word to him, and he had chosen not to press. She didn't owe him anything.

Loathsome as it might be, he was in her debt.

Ulquiorra sat in the center of the massive chamber. He had not spoken a single word during transit, and it seemed he would keep such behavior up. The Central 46 sat behind their paper walls, faces hidden by numbers. One of the more influential ones spoke first. "Ulquiorra Cifer, you stand before us to answer for your involvement in the crimes committed against the Soul Society by Sosuke Aizen. That you, a hollow, even warrant a trial, and not an immediate execution, speaks volumes. Many here would see you dead, the matter dealt with quickly. However, it would seem someone has convinced many influential members of the 13 Court Guard Squads to vouch for you."

At that, Ulquiorra finally looked up at the man, speaking in that same tone as always. "Who?"

Ulquiorra stood on the rooftop in silence, doing simple stretches to break in his freshly healed limbs.

"I couldn't let you die."

Ulquiorra turned to face Orihime, those being the first words he heard since waking up. "Why not? I have done you no favors. What worth could I possibly have in your eyes?"

"It's nothing like that." She didn't move much, her voice soft and tired. "I couldn't let you die, because I could see, in that moment, that you had only just started to live." Looking up at him, Ulquiorra could see the faintest sign of tears in her eyes. "What kind of person would I be if I didn't give you that chance?"

So, it had been her. Of course it had. Her voice may have travelled through many, but she had been the first. The man continued to speak. "Of course, the request alone would be insufficient, but considering your actions as events neared their conclusion, we are inclined to grant… leniency."

With a gesture, Ulquiorra opened a Garganta. While he doubted he could maintain Segunda Etapa, he could still fight.

Orihime had simply been staring into space, lost in thought, but turned upon hearing the gateway open. "Where are you going?"

"You asked what kind of person you would be if you didn't give me a chance to live." He turned to face her, his face emotionless as ever, but something in his eyes seemed to have changed, and they shone just a little brighter. "Right now, there is someone planning to take the lives of countless people. If I am truly alive, if I am a person… then I must give them a chance to live." As he stepped through the Garganta, he stole one last glance at her. "I have thought about what you spoke of during our time together." Reaching out in her direction, a small glimmer of emotion flew over his face, disappearing in an instant. "I know now, that this thing I hold in my hand, this is a heart."

The gate shut behind him.

"What was witnessed that day was… unexpected, and has led to a renewed interest in the nature of Arrancar. For your help against Aizen, this court has decided to let you live. However, you will remain within an energy limiting Gigai, and are to remain in a locale of our choosing where you can be monitored. These terms are subject to change in response to your behavior. Is the nature of your sentence clear?"

"Almost. Where will I be sent?"

Even with the thin wall between them, Ulquiorra could tell the man was smiling.

Orihime was happily cooking some dinner, the contents best left unnamed, when she heard a knock at the door. Skipping over, she pulled open the door to find a rather unexpected guest.

Ulquiorra stood in the doorway, a duffle bag slung over his shoulder. "I don't suppose you have room for a guest?"