Chapter 10

Her arms lowered slowly and her favorite weapon came to rest by her left side. A fury now shone in her hard amber eyes, her lips contorted in a snarl. A low, menacing growl came from behind her sharp teeth as her eyes now rested on the two intruders.

"Grimmjow, Ulquiorra…" she voiced gutturally, tilting her head to the side, as if in regret.

"There's no where left to run, slut. You're coming with us," the Daemlin called Grimmjow said, lifting his clawed right hand threateningly. "I will get the bounty that's on your pretty head!" he cried, shooting forward towards her.

"Orihime!" both Yuzu and Ichigo cried from their respective positions on the ground where their attackers had left them.

Ulquiorra remained quiet, his large green eyes squinting in distrust when he observed how calm their mark was. "Grimmjow, stop, something is not right."

"She's mine!" Grimmjow exclaimed, about to land his blow on her and then hitting nothing but air when she disappeared in a purple dome of darkness, warping out of his reach.

They all gasped at her disappearance and looked around for her, not seeing the brown haired Tra'aklin anywhere.

"How did she do that?!" Grimmjow yelled in frustration, turning around and scanning his immediate surroundings frantically. "She was not supposed to be able to do that!"

Ulquiorra remained silent while a calculating stare grew on his pale features, his gaze soon resting on Ichigo and his sister who had come to her brother's side. "No, we were assured her Magicks had been bound by Sakumtir…" he murmured pensively, still looking at the young hunter and his sister.

"Then how?!" Grimmjow growled angrily.

"There doesn't seem to be a logical explanation to this," the black haired Daemlin replied before his eyes went wide when he saw Orihime appear behind the Kurosaki siblings and quickly kneeling behind them. He hurried to them, but he was too late; by the time he struck his lance forward, they had already disappeared in one of her warp teleportation domes and his attack hit the ground where they'd been a fraction of a second before.

"No!" Grimmjow hollered, taking on his full Daemlin form in his rage.

Ulquiorra straightened and sent his lance back into the void. "Smart," he mused quietly. "Can you track her?" he then asked the panther-like creature with the dark blue fur that now landed on all fours next to him and sniffed the air. Its midnight blue-feathered wings unfolded and it nodded.

"We'll find her. She's in for a little surprise if she's going where I think she is," Grimmjow snarled, taking for the skies, closely followed by his partner.

The air around them carried the scent of smoke when they appeared miles away from Nesba again.

Yuzu fell down onto the grass when they appeared on the oceanside hills of the Nakarian heights.

"By the Gods…!" she gasped, landing on her hands and knees, her hair flailing around her in the strong wind. The unexpected warped teleportation and the reveal of Orihime's true form hadn't left her unshaken and she couldn't dismiss the sudden queasiness that took over; resulting in her vomiting onto the grass.

Ichigo kneeled next to her and held on to her shoulders comfortingly, fighting against his own nausea while looking around their surroundings to find his bearings.

Something felt wrong.

"This is-?"

Horribly wrong.

Orihime stumbled a bit when she tried to take a step, her impressive display of high level Magick having drained her of the little energy she had left from the night before. Her face had drawn together in dread and worry when she smelled the smoke the moment they warped onto the sea-side cliff, her hair whipping about her frame in the violent wind as she hurried to the top of the hill.

"No…"

Ichigo watched her go and felt his own heart constrict with dread when he too noticed the large column of black smoke that rose up from behind the high ground and into the cloudy skies. "Orihime…?" he whispered apprehensively, his intuition telling him what he didn't want to be true.

"No…! No!"

Yuzu scrambled onto her feet as well now and went up the hillside with her brother supporting her and her shaky legs, the tears already running down her face empathically. "It's gone…" she whispered quietly before they ever even made it to the top.

The tranquil village of Nakar was no more.

"Ma Sola!" Orihime cried, now running down towards the main road that led straight to the village, her tears running down her face as she hoped to find someone, anyone alive in the burnt down settlement. "Master Joni!"

"My Gods…" Ichigo breathed, his eyes wide in horror. "My Gods, no…" he gasped, following Orihime down the hill and running after her. "Orihime, wait!"

Yuzu's wide brown eyes briefly flickered golden when she focused her gaze on what was once the village, the wind blowing away the quiet tears that rolled down her cheeks while she slumped back down onto the floor, her legs having given away on her again. "I can still feel them… All of them! Merciful Gods…!"

"Orihime! Wait!" Ichigo called, stumbling through the thick smoke that stung his eyes and filled up his lungs, making him cough. He entered through what was left of the wooden front gate, his gaze going frantically over his unrecognisable surroundings before it finally landed on her.

And his heart broke a thousand times over.

She was weeping on the ground in the middle of the central market place, on her knees and cradling a lifeless body in her lap.

"I'm so sorry…" he heard her sob over and over as he approached her gingerly and kneeled next to her. "Ma Sola… I'm so sorry… Oblivium Tra'ak, why…? Why…?"

"Ner'amal…" he murmured desolatedly, passing a hand over the unseeing eyes of the dead woman, closing them forever.

"Even the children…" she whimpered, lifting her head and gritting her teeth when she saw the bodies littering the village, the beach and floating in the nearby water, her face scrunched together in inconsolable regret, her lips trembling as thick drops of bereavement rolled down her beautiful face. "They murdered everyone… everyone...! The children- why would they do this! They were innocent!"

Ichigo shook his head consolingly and took her in his arms, sheltering her head against his chest, closing his eyes against the scene of massacre that took place in what was once a peaceful village while she wailed.

"From water we are born and to water we shall return," Orihime whispered solemnly in the words of Nakar's religion, squeezing her eyes shut against the overwhelming grief that took her, her lips still trembling when she pressed a tender kiss on the passed woman's forehead. "May you and yours find peace in Eyru's watery embrace…"

"We can't stay here," Ichigo murmured after a while, his senses standing on alert now. "If they came here and tracked you all the way to Nesba..."

She was shaking her head in vivid protest while he was talking. "We can't just leave them like this-?"

"Orihime," he told her sternly, taking her face in his hands and staring at her intently, wanting for her to understand the urgency of their current situation."There's nothing we can do for them now. We need to get my sister away from here or they will find us and kill us," the hunter said knowingly; having borrowed the knowledge from his clairvoyance. "I've seen it. They've probably been tracking us ever since we left the cabin in the Waking Woods."

The young Tra'aklin sobbed and closed her eyes. She never should've let herself be lulled into this false sense of security she'd felt for the past few days... she should've left when she had the chance. Now these innocent people had paid the price. Why did she even think that she'd be safe here? There was no place she would be safe; especially not in this world because the Vritri Tra'ak would never stop coming after her, never stop burning down every haven of peace she'd deem safe enough to stay at. Isshin had been right. "It's all my fault, I never should've dragged you into this..."

"I dragged myself into this," he replied gently, urging her to stand and let go of Ma Sola. "But if we don't leave, my sister will be in trouble. We need to find someplace we can-"

"Your dad," she interrupted him, having discerned where his mind had wanted to go. He nodded and she gave him a determined look, before following him through the smoke. "We need to find your dad. Nesba isn't safe for your family anymore."

"How will you find him?" Ichigo wondered when they walked back through the burned down gate and found Yuzu walking up to them, panting heavily. "Can you just appear next to him without knowing where he is?" He reached for his sister who was still feeling overwhelmed by the lingering emotions of those who had lost their lives here.

"Your dad and I shared blood last night," Orihime explained, placing a gentle hand against Yuzu's face. Her exhausted disposition hadn't gone unnoticed to the Tra'aklin. She willed for the onslaught of emotions that crippled her mind and body to stop. "Sakumtir. We're bound by the Blood Magick he used to expose me."

Yuzu sighed in relief against her brother's chest and opened surprised, yet grateful eyes when she suddenly found back control over her Magick. "Thank you, Orihime…"

Orihime smiled warmly at the younger girl and looked at Ichigo again. "I can find your father by tapping into the Magick you two have. His Magick is in your blood as well."

"What about Karin?" Yuzu asked softly, eyes at half mast. "And the rest of our village?"

"I'll go look for her once we're sure your dad and you are safe," Orihime answered, taking the hand Ichigo was holding out for her and immediately feeling her strength return to her as she glowed. "They're looking for me and they will stop at nothing to capture me… I can't give them more reasons to hurt the people I have come to care about," she explained, the tears welling up in her eyes again when she locked them with Ichigo's. The young human male had a look of silent disquiet on his face that mirrored her inner turmoil. "I need to go back and take all of this mess with me... I don't belong here…"

"Our father welcomed you in our home, my brother took you under his protection. You belong with us. You belong with my brother, I can feel it," Yuzu said, her eyes going soft as she watched the beautiful and kind woman radiate light and warmth in front of her. "We chose for you to be with us, we don't blame you for what is happening. Those monsters killed those good people, not you."

"Stop blaming yourself," Ichigo said, pulling both his loved ones against his chest and hugging both of them tenderly. "We're not having it."

Orihime looked up at him, a single tear rolling down her surprised face as she met his compassionate smile. "Ner'amal…"

"That's right," he said consolingly with a nod.

Yuzu grinned at her and they shared a sisterly giggle before hugging each other in Ichigo's embrace.

Orihime cast a last, disconsolate look on Nakar and then squeezed her eyes shut, burying her face in Ichigo's chest.

"Let's go."

And they disappeared again in a dome of purple light, teleport-warping away from the destroyed landscape that was once Nakar.

Not a moment too soon, it would later be revealed.

Nenya's ears lifted at attention towards the small stream beneath the high stone bridge she and Isshin were currently herding the sheep over.

Isshin pressed his lips together when he felt his Magick stirr within him and hurried over to the other side of the bridge so he could follow the dog and descend the slopes of the valley towards the rivulet, where a sphere of dark purple materialized into existence, soon revealing the silhouettes of three people when they stepped out of it.

"Ki'ina!" he exclaimed when he saw her, lowering his head respectfully.

"Isshin!" Orihime called, opting to float towards him over the slippery rocks because of her naked feet . "You must take your family to safety! The Vritri Tra'ak have come."

"Dad, the shack by the lake! You and the girls can hole up there for a while until it's safe!" Ichigo said, walking up to his father while holding on to his sister supportingly.

"By the Gods…" Isshin whispered numbly with an overwhelmed look on his features when he took his daughter in his arms gratefully. "Where is Karin?"

"We're going to get her now, we didn't have the time before…" Orihime answered, casting her gaze to the watery ground as her voice died out.

"Dad, stay off the main roads, especially those leading to Nakar…" Ichigo told him with a grave expression, lowering his head with a shake at the shocked countenance of his father. "Master Joni and Ma Sola… are no more. They raised the village to the ground. We barely managed to get away from the Vritri Tra'ak when they came to the farmstead. I think they followed us to Nakar… We bought ourselves some time for Karin and the village, but we need to get going and get her out of there, so not to give them any reason to harm the village."

Orihime squeezed her eyes shut and gritted her teeth from the crushing guilt she felt, fighting the tears once more."Tharak'ar, Isshin…"

"Good Gods…" the Kurosaki patriarch lamented, squeezing his eyes shut as his eyebrows drew together. Yuzu tightened her hold on him and he did the same, biting back his tears. "You saw this?" he demanded his oldest, referring to his clairvoyant abilities. Ichigo nodded solemnly.

Isshin sighed and resigned to accept these hard truths. "Please go find my daughter, Ki'ina and please be careful," he then begged Orihime, his glistening eyes burning with determination and heartfelt worry. "We can't lose you, not now."

Ichigo took Orihime by a hand again and looked at her encouragingly, quietly preparing himself for the next warp.

"I will find Karin and bring her to you," Orihime promised, placing her other hand against the older man's cheek consolingly, willing for his heart to be at ease. "Make sure your other daughter is safe."

Isshin smiled at the sense of reassuring peace that washed over him and nodded thankfully at her again. "Yes, my Queen. Thank you." He then directed his eyes to his son with a proud smile. "The day when I'll explain everything to you will come," he told Ichigo, still smiling appreciatively at him. "Right now, focus on the bond you two share; you're more powerful than you think. And together, you're unstoppable. Never forget this."

Both Ichigo and Orihime nodded in a courtly manner at the older Karti before turning to each other and holding both their hands together, getting ready to teleport again.

The excited barking of Nenya kept them from leaving though and they both watched with amused chuckles how the snow-white wolfdog hurried towards them and placed herself in between them, stating her intentions loud and clear.

"Are you sure?" Isshin asked her, smiling warmly at the determined bark he received in response. "Protect them the best you can, Nenya. I'm counting on you."

Nenya barked again and everyone shared a soft laugh.

"May the Selit Tra'ak watch over you," Isshin prayed, lifting a hand in goodbye.

"And you, good man," Orihime whispered back, turning to lock eyes with Ichigo and letting their shared Magicks flow through her again.

"Is this what you meant when you said that mom would glow with love for you?" Yuzu wondered as they watched the couple and the dog disappear.

"She was most beautiful when she did," Isshin admitted, briefly letting his memories of his wife play before his mind's eye and smiling at her. "Come on, we need to get going too. We have preparations to make."

She nodded and followed her father back up the slope towards the bridge.

The loft above the barn was abandoned when they appeared back there.

Orihime watched Nenya go down the ladder after Ichigo whispered an order to her. "You're certain it's safe here?"

Ichigo carefully looked out of the window above the bed, but couldn't see their perpetrators anywhere. "For now, yeah… Nenya will warn us if someone comes."

Orihime legged over to the table with the food they hadn't touched and commanded a warp-dome to engulf the food so she could store the aliments in a separate dimension for the time being. "Ner'amal, what else will you need?" she inquired, picking the remainders of her human outfit that were left behind earlier that morning.

"My hunting belt," Ichigo answered, getting off the bed and approaching her. "Wait, do you think we can do it like this, too?"

She moved her head up to him when he came to stand behind her and placed his hands on her naked shoulders. "Oh."

Their minds touched again and as he mentally guided her tracking ability through the places he needed for her to find the things he wished to take with him on their journey, he wondered how it was that he seemed to know exactly how he was supposed to mimic her power and as the question came to him, he felt her answer back.

"You and I are one now, what you see, I see. What you feel, I feel. Where you go, I can go too; warp there in a blink of an eye. What I can do, you may learn how to do as well."

"How…?"

He felt her smile and all of a sudden his consciousness was back in the barn. Ichigo stumbled back a bit; feeling woozy. "What was that?"

Orihime turned to him with an asserting gaze. "You instinctively knew that you'd be able to guide my Tracking Magicks to the things you would need." She waved a hand and all the domes she had summoned for the food, the clothes and the gear all disappeared.

"I just knew it would work," he disclosed with a shrug. "I didn't see it, I just knew-" He then paused and frowned at her. "You told me I could learn what you can do…?"

"Magicks," she explained, reaching her hands out to him for him to take. He slid his into hers and his discomfort immediately ceased. "You've already started to awaken. I've felt it."

Realization dawned on him when memory offered assistance. "I can feel things that haven't happened yet in a waking state and act upon them... Events at a much shorter distance in time."

"Yes," she agreed, smiling warmly. "That's called Intuitive precognition. You and I share a telepathic and emotional bond, you augment my powers, you have premonitions…" She paused and shook her head excitedly. "There's much, much more that you can do, I'm certain. I sense a great potential in you, Ichigo."

Ichigo's eyes went soft and he took her right hand in his to kiss its palm lovingly. "You'll teach me?"

"Of course," she reassured, framing his face in her hands now, her eyes returning the affection she saw in his. "I will teach you everything I can."

Just as he was about to kiss her, Nenya returned with another basket filled with food from the kitchen between her teeth. Ichigo grinned at her and Orihime lowered herself on one knee and took the item from the canine gratefully, kissing the dog on her head. "Thank you, Nenya."

Nenya barked happily at her whilst she made the basket with food disappear and rose to hold hands with Ichigo again, who moved in to reprise his approach and kissed her scant seconds before another sphere of purple enveloped them and they departed for the center of the village.

"Nenya?"

Karin frowned at the sight of Ichigo's white wolfdog approaching her stand calmly with an upbeat tempo in her step.

"Hey girl," she greeted her with a frown. "What are you doing here? Didn't you go with dad-?"

"Karin."

The Kurosaki twin lifted her head in attention. "Ichigo?" She looked around the crowded market place for her brother, but couldn't see him anywhere in her vicinity. "How are you talking straight into my head?"

Ichigo looked back over his shoulder at Orihime as they sat on their haunches with joined hands by the corner of a dead end, abandoned back alley situated in a side street that led onto the central marketplace. "Orihime is helping me. Karin, we came to get you. We need to get going right now. The farmstead was attacked this morning."

"What?!" Karin thought, standing up in alert, her eyes now looking around more frantically for her brother. "Where are Dad and Yuzu? Are you alright? What happened?"

"Two grilled rabbits, please."

Karin smiled at the large man and the smaller woman who stopped in front of her stand. "Yes, one silver please," she answered, reaching for the demanded food. "Ichigo…?" she thought worriedly.

"Finish up with those customers and then meet us in the first street on your left. We're in the alley."

"Okay." She handed over the warm meat to the man and accepted his payment with a polite smile. "Thank you."

"Excuse us, miss." The woman with the long black hair stepped closer to the stand, catching Karin's attention again. "My partner and I were wondering if you knew where we could find the owner of the farmstead by the cobblestone bridge?"

A shiver went down Karin's spine and she squinted her eyes in suspicion, glancing at the dog. Nenya didn't seem to find anything suspicious about the couple. "I wouldn't know," she answered truthfully, shrugging. "Why?"

"Ichigo! This man and woman here are asking about dad!"

"Stay calm, Karin."

Orihime dared to look around the corner to have a better look at who was talking to Karin. She couldn't see their faces, but from their postures and appearance it was obvious that they weren't their pursuers. "Those are not the ones who came to your farmstead this morning, Karin."

"We're looking for a friend who might have passed through here," the giant male answered Karin, taking off the hood that covered his face, revealing his strong facial features with his full lips, his unruly mass of chocolate brown curls and his kind moss green eyes.

The black haired woman pulled down her hood as well to inspire trust and smiled at the young woman. "She's petite in stature, with bright amber eyes and long, golden brown hair."

"They're looking for you, Orihime… A woman with big dark blue eyes and shoulder length black hair and a big, muscular guy-"

"With deep green eyes and soft brown hair…."

Ichigo turned to look at her and found her staring at the scene in the distance with big tears rolling down her cheeks now. "Orihime…?"

"You fools!" she whimpered, smiling nonetheless. "Why are you here?"

He felt the wave of affection coming from her and smirked back at the scene. "Karin, those are friends. Could you please bring them to us?"

Locking up her stand and putting away the money she'd made in a purse on her body, she gestured for the man and the woman to follow her to the abandoned street, with Nenya walking behind them cautiously.

"We finally caught up with you."

All three of them watched how the cloaked figures knelt respectfully onto the cobblestones of the street.

"Ki'ina!"

"Tatsu! Sado!" Orihime whined tearfully, jumping into their awaiting arms. "Selit be praised! You're safe! But how? I was certain that I would never see you again after-"

The large Daemlin placed a loving hand against her face and smiled wryly at her. "Many of your court did perish, Ki'ina," he started, eyes going sad when more tears rolled down Orihime's face. "The Vritri Tra'ak were ordered not to spare anyone who they thought had something to do with your escape."

"I was set up; I never wanted to escape!" Orihime sobbed, bringing her hands to her face as she relived the horror she'd been put through. "They dragged me out of the dungeons and chased me through the woods like an animal for days…"

The black haired woman took her in her consoling arms and closed her eyes in sympathy. "By Oblivium, your Grace! But praise be to the Twins for keeping you alive!" she whispered shakily with held back tears. She took a moment to look at her friend, using her thumbs to wipe away the tears from her pale face before hugging her again. "They were planning on pinning your death on the fact that you supposedly tried to escape…!"

"Seen as how they couldn't bring back proof that you were dead, they used your supporters as a scapegoat by blaming them for your escape," Sado further explained, now looking at the Kurosaki siblings. "We had to wait until the coast was clear to come out of hiding and attempt the crossing."

Tatsuki looked up from where her head had rested against Orihime's and smiled thankfully at the other two. "We feared to be too late, that she would've been captured again, but we're grateful that she found Hemen she could trust in."

Karin looked up at her brother, feeling confused. "What's going on?"

Orihime straightened and wiped away her tears hastily before turning around and facing the siblings again. "These are my Karti, or rather, the most trusted members of what's left of my court."

"Your… court? As in… a royal one?" the young woman asked, eyes gone wide.

Tatsuki stepped up to her and bowed proudly. "I'm our Queen's Lady-in-waiting, Tatsuki."

She lifted her head and gestured to her companion. "He's our Grace's Spiritual Counselor, Chaplain of the Court and Minister of the Faith of the Selith Tra'ak. Sado."

Ichigo lifted his head up the imposing figure of the man when he approached him, now towering above him intimidatingly. "Nice to meet you…"

Sado never said anything as the corners of his lips curled down disapprovingly. He instead turned his attention on Karin. "Her holiness Orihime Var Tra'aklin is the rightful ruler of all Daemonkin. She is the Queen of our race."

"Holy crap, that explains a lot," Karin mused, smiling nervously. She turned her attention to her brother and grinned slyly. "Damn, brother."

Ichigo chuckled apprehensively when Sado switched his accusing gaze on him again. "Uhm…"

"We don't have time for this," Orihime intervened, stepping in between the two men. She turned to Karin. "We need to get you to safety, to where your father and your sister are."

Tatsuki walked up to her urgently. "Your Grace, the Vritri Tra'ak…?"

"They've come for me this morning and have hurt and killed people I came to trust," she replied, voice hard and eyes darkening with cold determination. "I won't let them hurt anyone else."

"Where did you want for us to meet you and your guests, Ki'ina?" Sado asked, pulling his hood over his head again.

Ichigo reached out a hand for her and she took it with a smile that lit up her features. "I'll be taking all of us at once."

"But the Sakumtir-" Tatsuki started before falling silent when they all saw Orihime's skin glow and felt the warm waves of hers and Ichigo's Magicks wash over them. "Oblivium Tra'ak!" she exclaimed, falling onto one knee again in veneration. "Ki'ina set'amal! Selit Amal!"

Karin closed her eyes when a sensation of peace took her over. "Whoa…!"

A big smile grew on Sado's features now and he nodded in understanding. "Vivium's blessing," he stated, sharing a joyful grin with her. "This is meant to be. The absolute joining of Light and Dark."

"You don't see this everyday," Karin commented at the luminescent spectacle taking place before her, a cherishing smile creeping on her features.

"Orihime," Ichigo whispered, averting his eyes a bit from hers, having felt his attention being abruptly taken over by a tremor that went through his entire being. "We need to go, right now."

She felt his trepidation flow through her in turn. "Gather around everyone, please. Quickly."

Everyone did as told, just as they heard panicked cries coming from the market place.

In the split second it took for the warp sphere to engulf all of them, Ichigo saw one of their pursuers fly around the corner of their alley and throw his lance at them, scant seconds before their teleportation was complete.

The dome disappeared into nothing once again.

But so did the lance.

This. Took. Forever. To write... I'm so sorry, but I sincerely hope you liked it!

Thank you, thank, thank you for all of you who liked, followed and reviewed this piece! I have so much more in store for this story, so please bear with me!

By the way, my partner BrokenAngelwings83 and I have started a new blog on tumblr dedicated to NSFW IchiHime; TastefullyIchiHime. Come take a look; we have commissioned IchiHime artworks of the NSFW variety, dirty confessions, discussions and a smut writing contest! The link is in my bio, so come have a taste!

Lessons in Love - chapter 22 - Ashes to Ashes pt5 is up next in my main stories update list!

Until then,

Take care everyone!

-MistressBlaque-