Starrk's golden eyes flutter open slowly, the morning light filtering through the large windows of his chambers in Las Noches. The cool air carries the faint scent of clean linen and the distant sounds of Hueco Mundo's eternal twilight. He feels the warmth beside him begin to shift, and his arm tightens instinctively around the waist of the woman lying next to him.

He had always been alone - from the time when he was merely a Hollow until recently, it was him against the world. Sure, he had Lilynette... but does she really count when she's part of him? Starrk craved connection, even if he didn't always admit to it. He finally had somewhere he felt like he belonged once Aizen brought him to Las Noches... Even more so when he met her.

Now, as she tries to slip from his embrace, he pulls her back against his chest, the softness of her skin against his own a comforting reminder that he's no longer that lonely Hollow wandering the desert. "Now where do you think you're going?" he murmurs, his voice still rough with sleep as he nuzzles against her neck, placing a tender kiss right above her pulse point. He can feel the rapid thump of her heart beneath his lips, and it brings a small smile to his face.

"Darling, please... just five more minutes, yes?" he whispers, his warm breath tickling her ear. "Let me enjoy your warmth a while longer..."