The Monkey and the Wolf-2

Bikou left Starrk to wander the desert of Hueco Mundo. Searching for new ways to get stronger. His usual routine was to search out for strong Spiritual energies and would consume them, adding their power to his own. 

However, after amassing more and more power, Bikou would then seek out Starrk once more, intending to use the Hollow as a barometer to measure his own strength. 

Starrk and Lilynette sat together in the middle of their ever-growing mountain of Hollow's, each body stacking up higher and higher towards the sky, as unfortunate Hollows ventured upon the duo. 

Starrk, sensed Bikou the moment he stepped foot within his Pesquisa. 

" You're back." Starrk spoke. 

" Yeah. I told you; I'd be back." Bikou told the man. He was still feeling a bit weighed down by how heavy Starrk's spiritual pressure was. But Bikou could definitely tell, he was moving better than he was before. " So, what's new today, Starrk? You feel like fighting yet?"

" Nah." Starrk groaned.

" Well, you're no fun." Bikou groaned. He leaned down next to Starrk. " You're no fun, you know that?" He said.

" Whatever." Starrk groaned. He rolled his eyes and shifted in the sand onto his side.

Annoyed with Starrk, Bikou turned to the little girl next to him. " Hey, what about you little lady? You wanna fight?" He asked.

Lilynette, ignored Bikou and pulled herself closer to Starrk.

That irritated Bikou, who continued pestering the young woman. 

" Hey. Wanna fight?" He asked again. " Hey, wanna fight? Hey, wanna fight?" 

Slowly, Lilynette began getting more and more irritated. 

Bikou was going to ask her one more time, however, before he could get the words out of his mouth, Lilynette punched him in the nose. 

" Hey? What the hell's wrong with you?!" Bikou shouted as he held his bleeding nose. 

" Leave me alone, ya jerk!" Lilynette shouted. " I was just sitting here, trying to rest, and you come out of nowhere trying to pick a fight!" 

" If you didn't want to fight, you could have just said no. Ya didn't have to hit my nose, ya little brat!" Bikou exclaimed. He stuck his hand out to grab her, and Lilynette shifted. " Come here, ya little runt." 

Lilynette jumped to her feet, and quickly started running, as Bikou chased after her. 

" Hey, get away from me, ya jerk!"

" No get back over here, ya little shit!"

Bikou chased, Lilynette around the mountains of bodies, swinging at her with his staff, in an attempt to strike her back for hitting him. 

The loud noise the two were making as they ran greatly annoyed Starrk, who shifted over onto his side in an attempt to try and block out the loud noise.

When that didn't work, Starrk sat back up and groaned. " Will you two knock it off, already? I'm trying to sleep here." Starrk muttered.

" I can't help it!" Lilynette yelled. " He won't leave me alone!" 

" Then stop running, so I can smack ya back!" Bikou exclaimed. 

" AHhhhhhh! Starrk, help me!" Lilynette screamed. 

Bikou's staff hit the ground behind her, making Lilynette jump as Bikou was getting closer and closer. 

Eventually he managed to get within reach of the young girl and swung at her.

However, before the staff made contact, Starrk appeared from thin air and blocked the staff with his forearm.

" That's enough, knock it off already..." Starrk muttered. 

" Oh? Starrk, did I make you mad?" Bikou asked. Hey eyed starrk carefully, searching through his calm demeanor for any signs of emotion. 

" I'm tired and you two yelling isn't making me feel any better." Starrk told the man. 

" Well, I hate to tell ya Starrk, my man. But blocking my attack is just about the worst thing you can do." Bikou told the man. 

Seeing Starrk block his staff, even if he wasn't swinging it at full power, with just his forearm intrigued Bikou greatly. He started charging up a cero right where the two met. Nothing powerful, just enough to see where Starrk compared with him.

However.

" Is that right?" Starrk.

Bikou's eyes widened as a small wolf bit down on Bikou's leg, making him wonder where it had come from.

The little wolf started to glow and exploded simultaneously with Bikou's cero. 

The explosion sent poor Lilynette tumbling through the sand, landing her on her face. 

When the smoke from the explosion settled, Starrk and Bikou were still standing in front of each other. Starrk's arm was slightly burned from the blast of Bikou's cero. Bikou, on the other hand, was bleeding from his calf up to his left hip. 

A clear sign that Starrk's attack was stronger. 

" Damn." Bikou cursed.

" I told you to knock it off, didn't I?" Starrk muttered.

" That's a pretty damn lethal attack. Where'd it even come from?" Bikou asked. " I couldn't even sense it approaching." He said.

" It's a part of my ability." Starrk stated. " I can rip my soul into pieces and use those pieces as attacks." 

" Damn. That's crazy!" Bikou exclaimed. He reeled back and placed his long staff on his shoulder, and then he laughed. He laughed as though he hadn't just been injured. " So, you mean you can do that whenever you want? And make them explode like a Cero?"

" No." Starrk replied. " It's not like a Cero. I highly doubt a Cero would actually be able to hurt a tough guy like you. Like I said, it's my soul. My soul is so powerful that being near me can cause others to die. If I were to take that soul and harmonize it into an attack that explodes, even strong guys like us would be hurt by it."

" Oh? You think I'm strong?" 

" Of course, you are." Starrk groaned. " Are you kidding me? Anyone else would have died, just from being near me. But you... You're different. You're... Like us." Starrk muttered softly.

Bikou looked deeply into Starrk's eyes, peering into his soul. He could feel it. A strong sense of isolation. Starrk was lonely. 

" You know, Starrk, you could always travel with me."

Starrk looked up at Bikou. " What?" He asked.

" Yeah. Staying around here, doing nothing forever sounds boring." Bikou told the man. " Just imagine it, Starrk. You, me, the brat over there-"

" HEY!"

" All of us travelling together." Bikou spoke. " Just think about how strong we could get together, Starrk."

" No way." Starrk replied, rather dryly, crushing Bikou's excitement in two short words. 

[Soundscape to ardor]

" Why not, Starrk? There's no point in just staying here."

" Maybe not to you. But we don't actually like fighting like other Hollows, Bikou. And we don't like unnecessarily killing. We just... We want to be able to interact with other people. And so far, you're the only person we've ever been able to be around without threatening their existence, and even then, you still suffer from our presence." Starrk explained. He turned around and walked over to Lilynette and then took a seat next to her. " It's better this way." 

Bikou grit his teeth in frustration. 

He couldn't understand why someone as powerful as Starrk, refused to see more. To do more. To be more. 

Bikou looked at Starrk with great envy. He longed to evolve. To become more than he was yesterday, and the day before. But perhaps even more than. Perhaps even more than being stronger. What Bikou wanted, was a friend. A person who could stand on even footing with him and face him as a rival. Someone, who could understand him and his way of life. 

And though that's what he wanted most, Bikou himself still couldn't quite understand it. 

" Starrk." Bikou spoke his name and then sighed in frustration, before smiling again. " Alright." He muttered. " I get it. I won't force you to come along, but that doesn't mean I've given up trying to reach you, either." He said. " There are so many different wonders in this desert. And so many powerful adversaries to face. You'd be surprised on what's out there. I'm going to continue travelling Starrk. Until the day comes where I can reach you and surpass you. When that happens, you and me... We will see who is stronger, my friend. Until then, just you wait."

Starrk watched closely as Bikou 's eyes ignited with fire. Without realizing it, a small spark began to grow within the cold and lonely pit of Starrk's own being. 

" I'll see ya around, Starrk!"

Starrk watched as Bikou left, his body growing smaller and smaller as he crossed the distance, and in a surprising twist that stunned even Lilynette, herself, Starrk's lips twisted upwards into a small but gentle smile. 

" Starrk? What is it?"

" Did you see it, Lilynette?"

" Did I see what, Starrk?"

" That look in his eyes." Starrk spoke softly. " He's just like us."

" What do you mean?" Lilynette asked.

" I wonder." Starrk muttered softly. " He called us friends."

" He did... That Jerk."

.........................