Title: temporarily unnamed series, Chapter 1- A New Assignment
Pairing/Characters: Ulqiorra/Orihime, Aizen, others to come later
Rating: PG so far
Warnings: my own AU, beware the strangeness.
Summary: Aizen, overlord of a major crime syndicate, orders his most faithful servant, Ulqiorra, to guard his daughter, Orihime. I won't give away the rest...

A/N: so,this was partly inspired by watching too much cowboy bebop lately, w00t. i want to point out that it takes place in some unidentified city and time, and is not meant to reflect any real criminal syndicate. nope, im not pro-mafia, i just like to play with dramatic scenarios.
this is my first Ulqi/Hime fic, as well as my first AU, and my first multi-chapter! woohoo! so concrit would be most helpful!
this is mostly just an intro to the storyline, more details and characters will come into play later on.
A/N 2: i have not beta, but could probably use one for the rest of the chapters. if you'd like to volunteer, or know someone who's awesome, let me know!

remeber, people, reviews are love.

without further ado...




“Ulquiorra, I have a new task for you.”

The voice was soft as silk but with a hard edge that dared anyone to challenge its authority. The voice matched its owner, Aizen Sousuke, perfectly. Aizen was a man of 50 or so, but time had been kinder to him than most. His exterior was suave and well groomed, his suit expensive, his face naturally handsome and confident.

On either side of him stood a bulky, muscular man, dressed all in black and wearing an imposing frown. Their eyes darted around the room like skittish rabbits, following any sound or movement. Aizen sat between them behind a great mahogany desk, its front and legs carved with intricate symbols, the most prominent being a great winged bird with sharp talons in the center. This was the great Aizen-sama, overlord of the city’s most powerful crime syndicate. His name alone was enough to strike fear into most men.

But the young man to whom he spoke was unperturbed by his imposing presence. After five years under Aizen’s service, including the past two spent as his right-hand man, Ulquiorra Schiffer was used to it all: the guards, the formalities, the aura of power. He was at ease, awaiting what was to come next.

“Anything you wish of me,” Ulquiorra replied smoothly, giving a small deferential bow. His voice was much softer than Aizen’s, but more like steel than silk, imposing in its own way. Ulquiorra was Aizen’s undisputed favorite among the syndicate members, and everyone knew it, including Ulquiorra himself. He was much younger than Aizen, almost young enough to be his son, but he made up for that youth with cunning and dedication. He had risen in the ranks in just a few short years, and he was universally respected within the syndicate.

He wore the simple black suit worn by most members, and yet his appearance was immediately striking. Perhaps it was the shocking contrast of his raven hair with his nearly opaque skin, or his large eyes, impossibly green, and hard to read.

Ulquiorra stood, waiting patiently for instructions, and Aizen carefully pulled a photograph out of a desk drawer. He beckoned Ulquiorra closer and handed it to him. The photo showed a beautiful young woman, delicate and fair, with orange hair flowing down her back. She smiled out of the photograph, blushing self consciously. Ulquiorra noticed silently that the expression suited her, giving her cheeks a flattering glow. But he made no comment, and waited silently for clarification.

“This is my daughter, Orihime.”

Ulquiorra searched his memories. He had never met this girl, but he had heard the other men talk about Aizen’s beautiful daughter. While they talked wistfully of her, it was silently understood that she was off limits to all, under the harshest of penalties.

“Your assignment is to look after her. I want you with her 24 hours a day, prepared for anything. Our…disagreement… with Yamamoto has been escalating recently, and I wouldn’t put it past those dogs to stoop to kidnapping or worse.” He looked intensely angry for a moment, and his fists clenched involuntarily. But when he turned his eyes back to Ulquiorra he was in control once again.

“As my most loyal member, I am trusting you with my most prized possession. I do not need to tell you how important this task is. What do you say?”

They both knew it wasn’t really a question. There was no possibility of turning it down, but Aizen hated to give Ulquiorra simple orders like he was just another rank and file member. Ulquiorra looked back at the picture for a moment, then up at Aizen’s placid face. It was not the most exciting or agreeable task, but he had to admit, this showed a great amount of faith and trust in him. It was an honor he could not refuse.

“You have my word, I will do everything in my power to keep her safe.” At Aizen’s satisfied smile he bowed again and turned to leave the grand office, when Aizen’s voice stopped him short.

“One last thing—as you’ve probably heard, my daughter is not allowed to associate with any of the members. I do not want them getting close to her. Understand?”

Ulquiorra bowed his assent once again, and exited through the great oak doors as they were opened for him by two more anonymous guards.

*********************************

Aizen sent him instructions later that evening, telling him to report to Orihime’s apartment in the morning, where he would relieve the regular bodyguard. He now walked towards the address he had memorized, along one of the city’s main streets. It was a clear day, yet even in the sunlight the city still appeared gloomy. It was always this way now, full of trash and decay. Most residents had left long ago, when the syndicates took over and life got tough. They left behind apartments, now dilapidated and uninhabited, piles of trash rotting in the streets, cars rusting where they sat. Only a few buildings remained in habitable shape, and those belonged to the overlords and their crews.

The building Ulquiorra stopped in front of was one such building. It still looked fairly new among the others crumbling at its sides. It was a high rise, with floor upon floor of large windows and balconies. Not a bad place to live, he thought.

Outside the door of the specified apartment he found another nondescript bodyguard. The guard recognized Ulquiorra quickly, and stepped aside courteously. Ulquiorra informed him that he was relieved of his duty, and watched him round the corner before he knocked on the door. He heard rustling on the other side, folowed by quick light foot steps. The door opened a crack, and a sleep-filled face peeked out apprehensively. When the girl’s gaze settled on Ulquiorra she nearly jumped with surprise, but quickly caught herself. Wiping the sleep from her eyes she opened the door wide, and glanced Ulquiorra over quizzically. Her fascination and lack of propriety annoyed him slightly, and he cleared his throat pointedly.

“Your father sent me to keep guard over you for the time being. My name is Ulquiorra Schiffer.”

The girl’s quizzical look changed to a smile of understanding.

“My father told me all about you. I just forgot that you were coming today. My name is Orihime.”

She held out her hand to him with a warm smile. He looked at it warily and decided on a deferential bow instead. It was best not to get too friendly. Orihime gave a small sigh, as if disappointed, and turned back into the apartment, motioning for Ulquiorra to follow her.

He entered and shut the door behind him, but stayed standing in the doorway, surveying the apartment. It was lavishly furnished, with a leather couch and chairs facing the massive windows, which looked out over the ruins of the city and the polluted river to the east. All around were gilded decorations and trinkets, no doubt gifts from her father.

Orihime disappeared into the kitchen, and when she returned a few minutes later and found him still in the doorway she gave a small start.

“Um, Ulquiorra-san, you can sit on the sofa if you’d like. I’m making tea for us, would you like anything to eat?”
“No” he replied stiffly, but added a quiet “thank you” when he saw her disheartened look.

Reluctantly, he moved to the sofa and sat stiffly on the edge. He looked around the apartment, taking stock of everything for future reference. Orihime returned with a tray of tea, and sat down in a chair opposite Ulquiorra, placing the tray on a coffee table between them. She poured him a cup and handed it to him, but aside from his thanks, he was silent.

His silence made Orihime a little uncomfortable. She had always been surrounded by serious, silent bodyguards, but most of them would exchange at least a kind word or two with her. She won them all over instantly. But this man sat and looked so deep in thought that she dared not disturb him. He was much younger than her other guards, almost her own age, which added to her awkwardness. She didn’t spend much time with people her own age. In fact, she didn’t spend much time with anyone. Here was a man she had heard so much about that she felt she knew him already, yet she could not bring herself to even chat with him.

He noticed her discomfort and spoke briefly, to put her at ease about what was going on.

“I am to keep watch on you 24 hours a day, for as long as is necessary. You shouldn’t worry, there is no real threat to you, this is just a precaution. You will still be allowed to go about your daily life, but you will not be allowed to leave my supervision.”

Orihime nearly scoffed at his words. What daily life? She was not allowed out often, and even if she was, there was nowhere to go. Sometimes she visited her father’s headquarters, but he did not like for her to stay long, or to associate with the members there. She was virtually a prisoner in her own home, and here was her new dungeon guard, completely unaware of the situation. But Orihime did see one bright point: if they were to be together all the time from now on, they would grow accustomed to each other soon enough, and then perhaps she would have someone to talk to and enjoy herself with. Ulquiorra seemed cold and gruff at first glance, but a small glimmer in his eye told Orihime she may be able to win him over.

For his part, Ulquiorra was wondering just what he had gotten himself into, sitting here having tea with this admittedly beautiful girl, who also happened to be completely off limits. If he was to be around her all the time, the only way to keep his distance would be to put up his strongest wall around himself. He was well practiced at keeping others out, and he quickly assured himself that this would be no different.

Then again, it was only day one.

-End Chapter One-