Hello? [Levi]

“Well isn’t that adorable?” Levi chuckled to himself as he watched the child staring at the tracks. She looked just like a little kid that had made a great discovery. Levi wasn’t buying it of course. This “kid” was an arrancar. One did not become an arrancar and retain their childish innocence. Although, if she was trying to fake childishness, that fall was a pretty good act.

Levi was sitting on the side of one of the taller sand dunes, which blended in perfectly with his Las-Noches-white khakis and polo shirt. Between that and his suppression, he was confident he wouldn’t be seen until he wanted to. He had been out hunting when he happened upon the child after all, and surprise was his best advantage.

Of course, it wouldn’t matter much if they were running straight at him. With a quick buzz of static, Levi hopped to the other side of another sand-dune and let them run past. It was a tricky thing, tracking them with Pesquisa while keeping his own hidden, but that was half the reason he was doing this. Practice. The other half was that he wasn’t sure what to make of this situation, or what to do about it. The child and the hollow both acted how they looked, like a skittish deer and a curious child. Neither of those images fit within a hollow mask however, and Levi was curious to see how things played out.

After a moment, Levi realized that the deer was running in a straight line, when any intelligent creature fleeing for it’s life would be making alterations to make itself harder to track. This was the running patterns of an animal running toward a goal. Perhaps, a trap?

The desert buzzed with three quick hums as Levi shot forward to test his theory. If the deer did decide to deviate its course now, Levi would probably lose them both, but he was confident in his theory. Sure enough, after the fifth sand-dune, there stood a pack of hollows. They were all identical to the one the child was chasing, and they were all watching that direction with obvious anticipation. Now, Levi could have just left it at that, in fact one could argue that it would be the smart thing to do. But he was intrigued by the existence of such an immature arrancar. And besides that, he was hungry.

When the deer topped the sand-dune a moment later, if found Levi standing in a circle of corpses that looked just like it did, an omen of what was to come. “Looking for someone?” Levi asked with a wicked smirk as his thirteen phantom limbs shot out and grabbed hold of the hollows legs and antlers. Only a second later, the child arrived.

“You should be more careful kid.” He looked at he with faux-compassion as he spoke, like a parent or perhaps an older sibling chastising her for doing something dangerous. “You know what happens to hollows that don’t watch out for traps? In answer to the question, he tore the last hollow apart.

WC: 516

Coming to the top of the dune, Ai stopped in her tracks thankfully avoiding another embarrassing fall; spread out before her was one of the more bizarre scenes she had seen in her short time on the surface. The hollow she had been chasing struggled against near-invisible bonds and the remains of what could only be its fellow hollows lay strewn across the white sand like empty black husks. However, Ai’s gaze only lingered on these images for a second or two and instead came to rest on something, or rather someone, else that she had to blink a few times to believe. It was someone like her and he was talking, he was talking to her!

Wait…

As the beast she had once chased joined its fallen brethren with an anguished cry, her face hardened into a pout, she was being scolded. Worse yet she had lost her plaything. No, that wasn’t quite right. She hadn’t lost it; it had been taken from her.

“I am being careful,” she shot back, crossing her arms tightly across her chest. “And, I’m not a kid.”

Accenting her final words, she stomped a defiant foot into the uneven sand and for the briefest of moments there was silence.

That ought to show him~

The hiss of sand on sand broke the silence as one grain became two and two cascaded into four until the very ground beneath Ai’s feet gave way. Unfortunately, the hasty shuffling of her feet in a vain attempt to regain her footing only served to lend speed to the inevitable sending more sand out from under her as she succumbed to gravity. Punctuated by involuntary ‘oohs and ahhs’, her unceremonious tumble to the foot of the dune left her on her back and on level ground with the other arrancar.

Pushing herself up from the ground she avoided meeting the gaze of her would-be discipliner and instead set to work preening herself of sand. A shake of her kimono sent a light rain of white sand back down around her though one could still easily see specks of white on the red insides of her sleeves and around her neck. Afterward, she ran her hands through her hair a few times until she was satisfied that she had rid herself of a majority of the sand. The last detail, naturally, was to readjust the bone-white sword on her side and make sure the mask shard atop her brow was still there—she couldn’t go losing that, now could she?

Then, and only then, did she incline her head to meet the gaze of the other arrancar as if nothing of consequence had happened.

“Either way,” A mischievous light flickered in her eyes as she jabbed a finger at what was left of the other hollows. “You owe me.”

---------------
WC: 470
TWC: 1033
Total GP: 20

“Oh, so I guess you were carefully running straight into that trap, eh?” Levi chuckled more than talked. Despite himself he kind of liked the little brat. She managed to be entertaining if nothing else. Even her little pouting face was kind of cute. In a pathetic immature way, of course.

And that was all before she fell on her butt. Levi roared with laughter. He couldn’t help himself. “Oh yes! Clearly you are very careful, and extremely mature!” She took it like a trooper though, Levi could give her that. His sides were throbbing with pain when she got back to her feet, and actually declared that he owed her for saving her life. He laughed again, but this time it already hurt too much to keep it up for long.

“I owe you? I OWE you? You really are a child.” The laughter was gone now, and even Levi’s smile was quickly decaying into the condescending, bitter smirk he usually displayed to fools and enemies. “A foolish, naïve little child, who clearly has no idea how things work in this world.” His voice got lower and darker with every word. It was the kind of voice one might use to tell scary stories around a campfire. Except there was no campfire, and this was no fable. “First of all kid, I saved your life. If I hadn’t been here you would have run right into that pack of hollows, and they would have eaten you alive. Bitten you all at once, and torn your flesh from your bones piece by piece.” He stepped closer to her as he spoke, and bent over so that they were eye to eye, and pupils inches away from each other, staring.

“YOU owe ME. And even if I did owe you. It wouldn’t matter.” He unleashed his reiatsu’s full weight. He wanted to make sure she understood the position she was really in. Like a mouse facing a lion. An ant facing a spider. A child facing a monster. “Because I have power, and you don’t. If I wanted to take them from you, I could. If I wanted to eat them and make you watch, I could. If I wanted to rip you apart and eat you myself, I could. And no debt would stop me.” Confident that he had made his point, Levi closed off his reiatsu and stood up straight.

“But, I don’t want to do any of that.” He said with a grin. “You’ve managed to peek my interest, kid. So I’ll indulge you. What do you want in return for your pets?”

WC: 436
TWC: 952

Did he not hear what she had just said?

She was not careless.

And, she was certainly not a child.

Yes, that must be it, he must not have heard her properly. Her voice had probably been swallowed by that pesky silence from before. Or…or…the man was hard of hearing, that made sense! It wasn’t that he didn’t hear her, but rather that he couldn’t. That was forgivable.

“Actuall—” Her attempt at correcting the understandable mistake died in her throat as the other arrancar’s tone shifted to thinly veiled contempt.

Each word spoken against her worked to contort her small face into an uncomfortable grimace as if she had eaten something a bit too sour. The man had taken his own ignorance too far. If only he would stop and listen to her. She, of all arrancar, didn’t need a lecture.

No way he saved me; I can save myself.

Lost in her own indignation, she failed to register the slow deliberate approach of the other arrancar until she found herself looking into unyielding eyes of hazel. As animals are apt to do, the two remained stock-still daring the other to move. Moving, of course, meant weakness and the little arrancar was not about to yield without a fight.

Then he spoke, and Ai broke.

Eyes noticeably widening, she convulsed into a series of uncontrollable shivers as the sheer weight of the other arrancar's presence weighed down on her. Her whole world shook and it took all her willpower to not crumple to the ground into a small heap. No matter how she tried her body would simply not listen to her. An attempt to move her legs sent another quake through her body—there was no escape. 

While she struggled the other arrancar’s mouth moved, but she couldn’t make out any distinct words. Instead, her ears filled with the chorus of an immutable buzzing and her own rapid heartbeat.

Stop. Stop! Stop!! She thought over and over again trying to will her thoughts into words. Her mouth, however, would not comply; it opened and closed to no avail leaving her gaping inarticulately like an outlandish two-legged fish. All she could do was wait, wait and hope that she would not meet the same fate as the pack of hollows before her.

“STOP!!!”

Her porcelain face reddened at the desperation in her own voice and she shifted her gaze down to the sand at her feet. The weight had lifted and she could once again move under her own free will, but she could not bear to look at the other arrancar. Maybe if she remained silent he’d just leave? Or, better yet, she’d disappear.

“Tag,” She whispered barely breaking the silence following the man’s final question.

“Tag, let’s play tag,” She repeated more confidently, pulling her gaze from the ground and stepping to the side of the other arrancar.

“You’re it!” She squealed gleefully, slapping at the man’s forearm.

Not waiting for a response she kicked off the ground with static whir leaving a plume of sand in her wake. After all, if he wouldn’t leave and she couldn’t disappear then she’d be damned if she couldn’t run away.

---------------
WC: 532
TWC: 1565

Levi smiled in amusement as his power started to crush the child’s spirit. A twinge of guilt pierced through his fun though. He really was a sick little bully, wasn’t he? Just like the people that he hated so much. But then that was normal, right? Some hid it, but everyone with power lived to lord it over others.

She took it quite well, all things considered. At least she didn’t collapse, or run away in fear.

“Tag?” He repeated with a slight tilt of his head. That was what she wanted? Not protection? Training? Replacement food? “You want to play a game?” She really was a child.

She was quick too. Before Levi could get over the utter foolishness of the situation, he had already been tagged. He laughed. “You’re on, kid!” And like that the game began.

Levi was just barely faster, but in the end, it didn’t really matter. Static filled the desert as their game of tag became a sonido competition. It started with Levi dashing to right in front of the kid, poking her in the forehead and then disappearing to the left, only to have his shoulder slapped by her tiny hand before he could correct his path. This pattern continued for several minutes, and the two competitors proved to be dead even. Levi tried moving the chase to the sky, hoping she wouldn’t be skilled enough to chase him using reishi platforms. She was.

The two zigzagged through the sand and sky for hours, slowly losing track of both time and place. Levi had to admit he was really enjoying himself. He had a lot of fun in the human world, drinking, partying and dancing. But he was always forced to hold back or risk exposure. Hunting, while exciting, always had either the risk of death, or a lack of a challenge. Often, it was more of a sadistic pleasure than actual fun. This game was different though. Other than keeping his claws in, Levi could really let loose and simply compete with the kid. It wasn’t the same level of intense excitement as a fight to the death with a strong opponent, but it was simply, fun.

In the end, however the competition of speed was decided by stamina. After a few hours, Levi realized he wasn’t being chased anymore. Backtracking a bit, he found himself standing over his exhausted opponent. Both were panting, but Levi was standing and the kid was lying on her back. “I guess... this mean... I win.” Levi panted out between breaths. “I gotta... admit... I’m impressed, kid.” Now it was Levi’s turn to plop down in the sand. He had already claimed his victory, he could sit down now, right?

He rested his arm on a knee, and on a whim looked to the left. He hadn’t even realized they had been going in the direction of Las Noches, until he saw the castle looming over then in the distance. “Well, would you look at that? Las Noches, in all its glory. I didn’t realize we had gone that far.” He stared at if for a moment. His home. The domineering oasis of civilization and power in this desert of chaos. Right now, a simple dome of white stone with the moonlight reflecting off the roof. It was a beautiful sight, he had to admit.

“I didn’t catch your name.” He offered with a smile. “Mine’s Levi. Levi Grisha.”

WC: 573
TWC: 1,525

Swallowed up by the staccato of sandal on sand the arrancar’s final words never reached Ai, which, of course, didn’t worry her in the slightest. Worst case scenario she’d leave him in the dust. Best case? Well, he’d be chasing her and she’d have someone to play with, it really was a win-win situation. Interestingly, the thought of the other arrancar making good on his threat to rip her apart never once entered her mind.

Hazarding a backward glance after her initial sonido the little arrancar’s head whipped back around upon seeing that the male had disappeared. Unfortunately, her reaction came far too late; she turned directly into the man, or rather his outstretched hand. Thankfully, he only ended up poking her in the head. So much for situational awareness.

Not to be outdone, and to avenge the red mark fast forming on her forehead, Ai dug a foot into the sand to stop her forward momentum. Pivoting off the same foot she executed a hairpin turn and transitioned into another sonido. More by luck than cold calculation such a movement allowed her to exact her timely revenge by tagging her opponent on the shoulder in passing.

Similar exchanges repeated themselves over the next few minutes as maintaining the symphony of two sonido began to wear on Ai. For every perfect step in which she moved across the sands with ease, there were two steps that felt as if her body were strapped to an out of control rocket. More often than not her lack of control caused her to abort the sonido in question and play right into the hands of her freshly minted playmate who did not hesitate to pass the prestigious title of 'it' onto her.

At some point, she couldn’t quite remember when the two danced about into the dark sky and the tone of the game shifted. No longer did her temper rise upon getting caught. No, her scowls had long since melted into devilish smiles. And, for the first time in quite a while, she laughed a light airy laugh that jumped up, down, and over the dunes of Hueco Mundo in sheer delight.

Seconds turned to minutes and minutes to hours before exhaustion finally caught up with Ai. Her chest heaved up and down with increasing frequency and she found her role as being ‘it’ had become longer and longer each time she was caught. Even her sonido suffered as her legs trembled and burned sometimes sending her off in haphazard zigzags.

I’m not giving up just yet!

Then, as if to spite her thoughts, her body gave out. Unable to go a step further, she did the only thing she could at this point and dropped to the ground. More than a few times she attempted to stand, but her body did not want to comply in the slightest. Simply put, she had lost.

“You got lucky,” She sputtered out defiantly, not even convincing herself.

Las Noches, what's a Las Noches?

With considerable effort, the little arrancar propped herself up on her forearms and cast her gaze towards the alien structure Levi spoke of. It looked like nothing the girl had seen before in the desert of Hueco Mundo. Unlike the sloping sands or uneven quartz trees, the dome of what could only be the Las Noches looked abnormally smooth and caught the moonlight in a most peculiar way as if to make it glow. Perhaps there was some beauty in it, but to Ai, it just looked like another rock. A large unusual rock, but a rock nonetheless.

Levi Grisha, that’s a nice name.

“You can call me Ai,” She furrowed her brow in thought; she didn’t have a second name, did she? “Just Ai.”

A brief silence followed only broken by the pair’s asynchronous breaths.

“Levi?” She asked, trying out the name as if it were some foreign food. “Are there others…others like us in Las Noches?”

Unconsciously, a small hand again slipped to the mask shard atop her forehead to both check that it was still there and to emphasize who she meant by ‘us’.
---------------
WC: 687
TWC: 2252

“Just Ai, huh? Well nice to meet you Just Ai.” With the introductions finished, Levi went back to staring at his home and contemplating its meaning. He wanted to say it had none, but that would be a lie. It was his home. It was where he slept when he chose too, where he worked, where he was safe from surprise attack. It was also the source of his troubles and responsibilities that weighed him down. It was at once an anchor and a shackle.

And there were definitely lots of arrancar there.

“Oh yeah.” He answered Ai. “It’s basically a kingdom for people like us. Once upon a time virtually every arrancar and civilized hollow would be found at Las Noches. Most still are, but a lot are still scattered because of the old king’s betrayal.” Levi took out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket. He let his words sink in as he took one from the pack and put it in his mouth. “No one really knows why he did it, or at least nobody still willing and able to talk about it.” He charged an extremely small cero on his finger and touched the edge of the cancer stick. When he had taken his first puff, he continued. “But one day he just announces that we all suck, blows half the castle away with a cero, and charges into Soul Society.” He took another drag of the calming menthol. This memory still infuriated him, and the tobacco helped. “The worst part? He hypnotized a lot of us, myself included, to force us to charge in with him so that we could be a distraction. He never came back.”

It wasn’t like Levi had believed they were anything more than canon fodder to begin with, but having his mind twisted around on him was just wrong. Levi would have done the same if he was able of course, but that wasn’t the point. If he had the chance, and the ability, he would kill Erasmus for what he had done. Too bad he would probably never have either one.

“We have a new queen now though. She’s strong, and smart. The castle is basically repaired, and most of the arrancar have returned. Of course, there will always be stragglers like yourself, and there are those who will never trust a vaizard to lead them.”

He took another breath of tobacco as he considered how to continue. Ai seemed to be very young to their world, and the queen was a touchy subject to most. If Ai was going to live in Las Noches, and Levi had very little doubt that that was her intent, she would need to fully understand.

“Judging from your demeanor, I’m guessing you haven’t been an arrancar long. If you don’t even know about Las Noches, I’m guessing you don’t know much of anything about shinigami, do you? When a mortal dies their souls become ghosts, or plus souls. I’m sure you’ve eaten hundreds of them, but if they’re left alone they have two possible futures. The first is that they will become hollows themselves. Shinigami exist to make sure that doesn’t happen. If they find the plus before it turns they will use their special swords, zanpakuto, to purify it and send it to the Soul Society. There the strong plus souls will become shinigami themselves, and the weak will live in slums, growing food for the shinigami. They will be little more than slaves.” It was a bit of an exaggeration of course, but Ai would never find out. Besides, she needed to hate the shinigami like all other hollows, and he couldn’t risk her childish naivety getting in the way of that.

“However, they have another purpose. They want all souls to be “purified” as they call it, and go to their soul society. When they purify a plus soul they tap them with the pommel of their zanpakuto. If they find one of us they use the blade. The shinigami are our mortal enemies. If they could, they would cut down every last one of us.” He finished his cigarettes and flicked it to the side. He was finally getting to his point.

“However, there is a very rare method by which a shinigami can be infected with an “inner hollow” giving them a taste of our power. They are called Vaizards. That is what the queen is, and she has chosen to reject the shinigami and rule over Las Noches instead. Naturally, there are those who suspect it is all a ploy to help the shinigami subjugate, and purify us all. I personally find that somewhat hard to believe, but the fact remains that us hollows are being ruled by a woman who is not a true hollow. Many hate her out of sheer principle.”

Levi himself had no such feelings. He didn’t care about racial purity, or natural enemies, or any such nonsense. He was watching the queen for any signs of betrayal, and if he saw any he would leave. If he didn’t, he would serve her for as long as it benefitted him. But before he told Ai that, he needed to know how she felt about it. If he was going to take her to Las Noches, he needed to know that she wouldn’t cause him any problems.

WC: 894
TWC: 2,419

Not Just Ai. Ai, just Ai, she thought, narrowing her eyes ever so slightly. On one hand, she did consider correcting the man; she couldn’t very well go by ‘Just Ai’ as it simply didn’t roll off the tongue the same as ‘Ai’. But, on the other hand, she had the sneaking suspicion that Levi enjoyed antagonizing her. Maybe it was how he laughed at her every misstep or seemed to enjoy crushing her under his spiritual presence, either way, she wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of a response. No sir, he wouldn’t get the best of her.

A kingdom for arrancar? An old king and a new queen? Glancing back at the dome of Las Noches, her indignation at the botching of her name gave way to an overactive imagination. Indeed, even as Levi talked of history and hypnotism, Ai dreamed of fantasy. A kingdom with kings and queens must have knights, ballrooms, and even the odd dragon. Oh yes, every good kingdom had a dragon or two with scaled hide and breath of fire—she’d find one. Next stop the magical kingdom of Las Noches; maybe Levi could show her around?

Snapping her gaze back to Levi at the mention of shinigami, the little arrancar could only shake her head ever so slightly, she didn’t really know much about the reapers. Sure, she knew they had a proclivity for butchering her fellow hollow; she had seen it with her own eyes and tasted Seireitei steel on more than one occasion in the past. However, this was the first time she heard of the Shinigami having a home, soul society, and a purpose, to purify souls. It all sounded rather silly as she liked her soul just the way it was.

Moreover, she had never before thought of the Shinigami as her enemies. Rather she had always figured that they were predators, like herself, hunting for their next meal. It only made sense, right? Everyone needed to eat souls. Yet, the way Levi described them, the shinigami didn’t sound all that nice. No, forcing souls into service for the so-called soul society and cutting down innocent hollow did not rank highly on Ai’s friendliness scale. Maybe they really were the sworn enemies of anyone and anything with the label 'hollow'?

Levi then droned on and on about something called a Vaizard, but Ai wasn’t paying much attention as her thoughts drifted back to the fantastical narrative developing in her head. The shinigami shrouded in black and wielding wicked swords versus the righteous kingdom of Las Noches filled with her kin. It all fit together quite nicely in her head like one big puzzle and, better yet, she could see herself being one of those pieces among a body of her peers, other arrancar—it was a dream come true, a place to belong. She simply had to go.

“How can people hate a queen?” She asked with a tilt of her head, it didn’t make sense. Perhaps she should have listened closer. “Does she wear a crown? Sit on a throne? Or have a king?”

She had so many questions and none of them had the slightest bearing on the historical or political state of Las Noches. Such things were boring and complicated; what did the little arrancar care if the queen were a half breed or not, did it make her any less of a queen? She wouldn’t know. Besides, there were far more important questions that needed answering.

“Oh, is she pretty?”
---------------
WC: 586
TWC: 2838

Levi narrowed his eyes at the child who clearly had not been listening. She clearly had her priorities straight. The explanation for political tension that could cause a civil war at some point? Whatever. The important question was “is she pretty?” She really was a child.

“Well I just told you why hollows hate her, so let’s move on to the more important questions.” He said with just a hint of condescendence. Maybe Levi could learn something from her childish innocence anyway. Stressing about politics, hatred, risk of betrayal, it tended to strain the mind and soul. Of course Levi didn’t really worry about it much anyway, other than looking out for the best faction to join, but if the kid wanted to focus on the simpler things in life he would humor her.

“I suppose you could say she wears her mask in place of a crown.” Although she hadn’t worn it when Levi had met her, he had heard that she tended to keep it on during official business. It made her seem more hollow, which probably helped a lot with her dumber, but still important, subjects. Of course she had the power to put them down anyway, but she was too clever to rule by force alone. “She does indeed have a throne, but no king. Rumor has it, she’s never found a man worthy of her.” He said with a crooked little smirk. He had made that last part up just to fuel her imagination a bit. Besides, it could very well be true. “She is in fact, quite beautiful. If she had not chosen to be queen of Las Noches, she could probably have any man she wanted, from soul society or even earth. Hollows however, are not generally the romantic types. And of course, there’s the little issue of finding someone who could actually rule by her side.” Everything he was saying by that point was either hearsay, pure imagination, or some combination of the two. But it was probably making a wonderful world of fantasy and romance in the young arrancar’s mind. A world she would be willing to fight for. That could be useful one day. Besides, it was kind of fun.

“Perhaps you would like to see it?” he offered, knowing full well that she would jump at the chance. “I could take you there you know, but you have to promise to behave yourself.” At best, she could become a useful asset; a spy, an errand girl, perhaps even a warrior. At worst, she would get herself killed and wouldn’t be his problem any more.

WC: 435
TWC: 2,854

Pushing herself up into a seated position, Ai crossed her arms and stuck out her tongue at Levi. Had he actually told her why the Queen was hated? She couldn't recall, though his tone was none too welcome either way. After all, it really was the other arrancar's fault for having such a boring explanation—not hers, never hers. What did he expect?

Any annoyance she had with her new found companion, however, melted away when he shifted back to talk of royalty. Of course, she nodded along energetically with Levi's description of the Queen, but in her head, and for a third time, Ai wandered down the fantastical path created by her imagination filling in the blanks of Las Noches' power structure...

The Queen of Las Noches, instead of a crown she wore a mask and sat atop a throne ruling over all hollows with a kind and caring hand—Ai liked to think that the Queen was a benevolent ruler. Yet, despite her beauty, she didn't have a king at her side. No, no...she didn't want one! Yes, that was it. No one could match her and her strong will, that made sense. Or maybe she was so dedicated to the hollow race and its well being that she didn't want one? Kind, considerate, and powerful, everything one could want in a leader. Oh, the possibilities seemed endless to the little arrancar and her thoughts danced through each one painting her idealized image of Las Noches' ruler; suffice to say her expectations were sky high.

Thus, there was only ever a single answer to Levi's question.

"Yes! Yes! Yes!" She chirped perhaps a bit too eagerly. "I mean..."

Her prior fatigue long forgotten, Ai stood up and gave Levi a shallow bow; now wasn't the time for her normally unbridled enthusiasm. Indeed, she hoped to show some degree of self-control and maybe even a glint of maturity. She could behave! Or rather she would behave if it meant being allowed into to explore a new place. That was basically the same thing, right?

"Yes, I'd very much like to see Las Noches," she rose from her bow wearing a stern expression. "I will be good and won't cause trouble, I promise."

Affirming her statement she flashed a quick thumbs up and toothy grin, so much for that glint of maturity. 
---------------
WC: 392
TWC: 3230

Oh yeah, this kid was gonna be fun. He could probably get her to do anything if he dressed it up as a fantastical adventure. She could also provide some much needed comic relief to Las Noches.

“Alright then.” Levi said as he stood to his own feet. “Some ground rules. Stay with me, and stay respectful. Don’t pick a fight with anyone stronger than you, but don’t back down if anyone tries to pick a fight with you. Be extremely respectful to the queen, any Espada, and anyone who feels stronger than me, but don’t kiss anyone’s ass. Lastly, if I say anything, go with it. To clarify, if I lie, you lie with me. We clear on all that?”

Hopefully if the girl wasn’t ready to follow his instructions she was at least smart enough to lie to him about it.

“Good, now let’s go.” He snapped his fingers and opened a garganta. “One last thing I want to make clear.” He said as they stepped through the portal. “If you embarrass me in front of anyone important, I will kill you. Anyway, welcome to Las Noches!”

WC: 189
TWC: 3,046
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