Apologies for how confusing this is. I promise everything (almost) will be explained in Chapter1.

Please do not review until you've read the first actual chapter, since this is essentially the prose equivalent of a trailer :P

Warning: Spoliers! This is set towards the end of the Hueco Mundo arc of the Bleach anime, so if you have not seen up to there you might miss some aspects of it. However, you should be okay if you've seen up to the start of the Hueco Mundo arc (after Ichigo decides to go to Las Noches). Also, you will need to have read the whole Harry Potter series, or at least up to book five.

One more thing: It's rated T. That is subject to change, but only due to violence, etc.

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or Harry Potter. Evidently.

Preface

SCENE ONE

Kurosaki Ichigo sighed as he followed Professor McGonagall into the Entrance Hall. This was all far too surreal. Nonetheless, he couldn't help but admire, along with his fellow first years, the glorious flagstones upon the floor and the exquisite marble staircases which loomed over him. The place was filled with noise from the surrounding rooms, however, which put him ill at ease. Why'd he have to be here in the first place, dammit? His old school was fine – what was this place, anyway? Such questions floated about in his head incessantly, but were pushed to the back of his mind in the face of more pressing matters. He was here now, and there was nothing he could do about it. Might as well make the most of it, I guess...

Ichigo snapped out of his pensive state to find himself in a completely different room. This looked very much akin to a waiting room, albeit a medieval one. Unfortunately, though, it was far too small to accommodate its present occupants. Furthermore, the stern-looking woman was nowhere to be seen, and he couldn't shake the feeling that he had missed something important. There were mutterings all around him of something called a "Sorting Hat", and "Houses" of some description, but he couldn't listen properly because of the incessant jostling... Frustrated, Ichigo released a little of his Reiatsu, causing his immediate neighbours to shy away. People always kept their distance when he released his power; as though they were afraid of being burned by it. One person, though, did not move an inch. This girl... Who is she? I-

"How exactly do they sort us into houses?"

Ichigo's thoughts were disturbed by an outburst from the kid standing next to him. He watched silently as a ginger-haired boy replied

"Some sort of test, I think. Fred said it hurts a lot, but..."

The boy's voice was cut off as someone stepped in between him and Ichigo. He cursed under his breath, then decided he probably shouldn't have been listening in on their conversation anyway. He tried once more to recall exactly what it was he was supposed to be doing in this place, but yet again he could remember nothing. Nothing at all, it's like my mind has been wiped clean – what the hell is going on here? He sighed again, and turned once more to the girl who had not moved when he released his power, but she had disappeared. Suddenly, something happened which made his blood run cold.

Behind him, people began to scream.

Ichigo snapped his head around, releasing as much of his Reiatsu as he dared, in preparation for an attack. What he saw, though, was not the carnage he had been expecting, but something quite different.

Ghosts.

Dozens of them had come, flowing through the wall as if it were made of air. One of them addressed the children, but Ichigo said nothing. He didn't hear what was being said, anyway. He was doing everything he could to restrain himself...

Trying desperately to keep from burying them. Something... Something inside him wanted with every fibre of its being to banish these unnatural beings to where they belonged, and it was all Ichigo could do to remain where he was. Nonetheless, he could not keep from trembling.

People quickly noticed this, and began to ask if he was all right. There were one or two who made jokes about people being afraid of ghosts. Ichigo ignored them all, and waited for the ghosts to leave. Amid the chaos, only one person truly understood what was going on in Ichigo's mind. She sighed to herself, and gently shook her head. Kurosaki-kun...

The ensuing moments felt like a blur to Ichigo. Later, he would say that he vaguely remembered being led into a vast hall, grander even than the one which he had admired previously, and a song, sung bizarrely by a talking hat. Then began the aforementioned "Sorting". Ichigo felt a cold sweat come over him as this happened, but once more he shook it off. There's nothing here I can't handle. The thought came and went in a fraction of a second, but it still shocked him greatly. Where had such confidence come from? Why did he, who had no idea whatsoever what was going on, feel so damned confident? However, his instincts appeared to be correct, as the process seemed to entail nothing more than trying on the talking hat, and it subsequently yelling out the name of one of the houses. The only trouble, Ichigo decided, would be in ascertaining which of the great tables he would have to make his way to when the hat chose a house for him. However, he decided that that could wait, as the first name was called out.

"Abbott, Hannah!"

A slightly shy, yet paradoxically broadly confident smile began to lift the edges of his mouth. It had begun.

It didn't take long for Ichigo to work out which table was which, and so by the time the hat had reached the D's, he was quietly enjoying the show, and indeed the Hall itself. However, the entire process was very long and rather tedious, so by the time "Granger, Hermione" had been sorted into Gryffindor house, he was starting to zone out a little. However, amidst the I's, one name struck a chord in his mind. That name... Ichigo suddenly felt the edges of reality peel away, leaving him floating in nothingness. Then, out of the darkness, a vision appeared.

He was floating in a room, facing a window. He noticed two small, sleeping figures on the floor, but they did not hold his interest for long. There was also a bed, in which resided... Him? But an older version of him. He appeared heavily bandaged ,and was evidently injured. Ichigo walked closer, trying to take in as much as he could, but was interrupted as a figure phased in through the glass of the window. Her hair was light auburn, a little like his, but far longer and more voluminous. It shimmered in the twilight, almost lighting up the room. Is she a ghost? Or an angel? Or...? Ichigo wondered as she stepped into the room., and began to speak, so softly that he could not fully hear her. He began to open his mouth, but realised that she could neither see nor hear him. He was a spectre, a phantom in another world. He kept silent, and watched as she knelt down beside his sleeping older self, and took his bandaged hand in hers. She leaned closer to his face, closer... Closer... He noticed once more her eyes, as she drew ever nearer. Ichigo watched silently as a single tear rolled down her elegant cheek, followed by another. She began to whisper inaudibly. Ichigo glided closer, trying desperately to catch some of what she was saying, but he caught only the last few words:

"Thank you, Kurosaki-kun... Sayonara."

Ichigo felt a prickling on the side of his face, and as he began to slip back into consciousness, he realised he was crying...

"Kurosaki, Ichigo!"

Murmuring around him. People turned to face one another, trying to work out whose name was being called out.

"Kurosaki, Ichigo! Please come up and be sorted!"

Ichigo snapped awake, raising a hand to his face. It was dry. In a flash, the reality of what was happening struck him, and he sprinted up towards the stool, shaking his head in an attempt to rid himself of the dream - almost tripping on his robes as he did so. Apologising fervently to the stern-looking woman, he placed the hat upon his head. Immediately, he felt it begin to invade his mind. However, it found little of use there.

"Hmm, now that's odd. Yes, yes, very odd indeed. I can see that this is going to be tricky. You see, boy, I usually judge these things on your personality, but that's a problem when I haven't any memories to judge you by... Still, I'm sure there is enough here for me to work with. A sharp enough mind. Plenty of courage, I see... It seems as though you are quite set on protecting those close to you, yet I can find no recollection of anyone who is close to you. And yet, such power... I have never in all my time... Well. I suppose I could stay here all day poring over you, but the answer seems clear. With a courage and strength such as yours, I can think of nowhere which could possibly suit you better than GRYFFINDOR!"

With this booming announcement came much applause and gesticulation from Ichigo's new house-mates, as they welcomed him to their table. Upon arrival, he was placed opposite a ruff-attired ghost, who introduced himself immediately and genially.

"Sir Nicholas de Mimsy, at your service."

He offered his hand, but Ichigo dared not take it. He began to feel as he had earlier on. However, the boy sat next to him told him to humour the pale spectre, adding in a whisper,

"It feels really cold – Like putting your hand in a bucket of ice – but it's not too bad and it doesn't last. Don't worry about it."

Ichigo took a moment to assess the boy – wild brown hair, broken glasses, and what appeared to be a lighting-bolt shaped scar on his forehead... Furthermore, the people around them appeared to be staring at him, as though he were some kind of celebrity. Ichigo shrugged and, tentatively, held out his hand. However, the closer the two hands got to each other, the worse an idea this felt... Ichigo really wanted to pull away, but he couldn't... Something deep within wouldn't let him...

Contact.

The blast of Reiatsu must have been felt by everyone in the hall, but none more so than the ghost, who gasped silently as if he were being burned. However, Ichigo could not move. He was frozen in place, doomed to simply wait as whatever was inside him tore its way out and devoured the entity before him. Onlookers gasped with surprise as his eyes turned from a warm, chestnut brown to a cold, electric silver. His hair began to dance wildly, as though in a gale, and his form shimmered, his black boots appearing to become interchangeable with wooden sandals, his cloak turning into a strange, heavy black kimono. He felt bandages appear on his arms, legs and torso, and – most of all, he noticed a great weight appear on his back. One which he would have been unable to carry if it weren't for this sudden jump in strength. One which he could only attribute to a sword...

That was all dispelled, though, by the appearance of a hand on his shoulder. The event had lasted only a fraction of a second, but had felt like an eternity. The people in the hall had not stopped talking, their noise drowning out everything else. Evidently, They were used to strange happenings. Ichigo hurriedly apologised to the ghost, who simple bowed.

"My dear boy, I have no idea whatsoever what just took place, but I can assure you, I do not hold any contempt for you because of it. Strange things happen in this school, from time to time. I can see that you are simply another one to add to the list."

With that, the ghost bowed once more and left. Ichigo turned his attentions to the hand upon his shoulder, and followed the gaze of everyone at his end of the table to its owner... The girl from his dream. She simply gave a nervous laugh and sat back down next to Ichigo, turning to face him.

Inoue Orihime...

Okay; well, that's all for the preface. I hope you liked it and will continue reading. For updates on when later chapters are coming or for details on other upcoming stories, check out my profile page or shoot me a pm and I'll get back to you ASAP.