Shinigami Potter

Author's Notes: Before we get into the business of actually reading the story, I'll need to explain about certain terms and expressions; due to my extreme respect for the animation, I retained most of the Japanese names and terms used in Bleach. Dedicated to all HP and Bleach fans in the universe. All Bleach characters, names and related indicia are owned by Kubo Tite; Harry Potter and related indicia are owned by JK Rowling.

Shinigami – Death God; spiritual entities who can cross the threshold between the world of the living and the world of the spirits, which they call Soul Society. They have the main task of harvesting souls (or judging them, really) if they are fit to live in Soul Society or banished to Hell. Their only weapon is their Soul Slayer.

Zanpaku-toh (zan-pak-toh) – Soul Slayer; normally looks like a katana (Japanese sword), but is imbued with a powerful spiritual entity, and can change form to become more powerful. Wielded only by Shinigamis. A zanpaku-to is the direct reflection of the power of its wielder, a Shinigami's spiritual force given physical form.

Hollows – These were once earth-bound human souls that were either consumed by other Hollows or were consumed by their own pain, hate, or suffering. They are mutilated, hideous creatures who have no other instinct but to consume the souls of humans who have high spiritual energies. They cannot be seen by normal humans. Shinigamis, for that matter, can't be seen by normal people, either.

Soul Society – A version of Heaven where all the souls harvested by Shinigamis reside in relative peace. The Shinigamis also reside here, in the very center of Soul Society.

"Baka!" – "Idiot!"

"Nigero!" – "Run!"

"Hai." – "Yes."

Enjoy. And please review after reading. :)

"It cannot be helped, it seems." Rukia Kuchiki sighed as she flicked her cellphone closed. The Hollow she had been tracking for the past month had eluded her again, but not before she could find out where it was going to go next. She looked out over the expanse of Tokyo; at the top of the Tokyo Tower, on its very tip, everything looked small, and the world so wide. The sky was a clear, azure blue. Would the sky in England look like this, she wondered?

The moment Harry woke up to the pounding and muffled shrieks of Aunt Petunia on his door, he knew his day was not going to be fine at all. He had another bad dream again, although thankfully he could not remember what it was about. Probably something about Horcruxes; he had dreams of those before. His jaw creaked as he broke out into a yawn. He still felt tired, even after sleeping. Harry could not remember the last time he had had a decent night's sleep.

Harry picked his way around the mounds of clothes, crumpled sheets of paper, owl droppings, and stacks of books scattered in his small room. Hedwig hooted her greeting from her perch above Harry's small wardrobe. Harry grunted in reply, his mood dampened by the fact that he had forgotten to pack his belongings again. He had meant to do it yesterday, really, but Mrs. Figgs came with a message. It seems that Lupin has found some information about one of the Horcruxes.

With a yelp Harry skidded to the door when he accidentally stepped on one sheet of parchment lying on the floor. He promptly picked up the offending paper and flung in into the bin nearby before heading down the stairs.

Normally Aunt Petunia woke Harry up to make breakfast, but ever since he came back from Hogwarts after his sixth term she had been waking him up after the Dursleys had finished eating. Dudley was avoiding him, too. Uncle Vernon never spoke to him, not even to yell that his hair was messy. Harry was too worried about other things to care, but he was thankful for the relative solitude they were giving him.

Harry stopped at the bottom of the stairs to find Uncle Vernon in front of the television, watching the morning news while drinking his coffee. Aunt Petunia was right beside him. Dudley was there, too, but his eyes were glaring at the television and his arms were folded.

"I was watching that show," he said pettily.

His parents ignored him; Harry was piqued. The Dursleys never ignored Dudley. They usually did that to him, but not to their "Duddleykins". He stepped forward to hear the newscast better.

"…buildings suddenly collapsed in an unexplainable explosion earlier this morning. The police are still investigating the source of this explosion, while witnesses who had been nearby during the incident claim they had been thrown off their feet by some unseen force even before they saw the building collapse. Speculations have pointed out that a leak in a gas pipe might have been—"

"There you are. There's food on the table. Make sure you weed the garden and clean the kitchen before lunch." Aunt Petunia frowned at Harry. "And your room. You might be moving out soon, but that doesn't excuse you from making a mess in this house."

Harry felt a tinge of conscience. "Yes, Aunt Petunia." He went into the kitchen and ate a breakfast of bacon and eggs before going out to do his chores. Only Aunt Petunia talked to him nowadays, and to his relief she had abandoned the scornful, disgusted tones with which she normally used with him. Ever since Dumbledore came to pick Harry up the year before, Aunt Petunia had changed.

Thinking of Dumbledore gave Harry a sickly, hollow feeling in his stomach. Even now he couldn't really believe that the headmaster was truly dead; somehow he still thought that maybe it was not Dumbledore who got hit by a Killing Curse and thrown over the tower, that it was someone else who looked like him. But Fawkes had cried his song, and everyone had seen Albus Dumbledore being laid to rest. Even him.

Uncle Vernon's voice carried through to the kitchen where Harry was washing dishes. He was talking to Aunt Petunia about the news on TV.

"What is the world coming to, I ask you?" He sounded angry. "That street's not far from here, and they haven't even noticed a gas pipe leaking? What if it happened here, eh? Who'd we be blaming for something like that? If I didn't know any better, I'd say it was one of them."

"Quiet, Vernon," Aunt Petunia hissed, but Harry heard. "You've read the letter; that…that Dark Lord Voldemort wouldn't be able to come here before Harry turns seventeen and—"

"I have not believed a word that old fool has been telling us, Petunia, and I won't be starting now." There were a few shuffling noises. "In any case, I'll be late for work if I don't go now. I'll be picking up Dudley from the Polkisses this afternoon." There was the sound of footsteps and the door slowly opening and closing. Harry heard Aunt Petunia sigh and saw a glimpse of her climbing up the staircase, calling for Dudley to change his clothes.

Harry absently worked as he pondered on what Uncle Vernon said. Could this be the work of dark wizards? Had they finally known where he, Harry, was? He suppressed a cold shiver; that was impossible. They couldn't have found him; Dumbledore himself told him that he was safe in the Dursleys' house so long as he could call it home, and before he became seventeen.

A huge noise, like twisting metal, shook Harry from his thoughts.

"What the—!"

Harry dashed out the kitchen and ran through the front door, wand at the ready. But the street outside number Four was empty. Harry froze, his ears straining; he was sure he didn't imagine that noise. So what—

Suddenly a loud explosion shook the ground; Harry could see a large pillar of dust to his left. He ran out the street, thinking that the Death Eaters had brought a giant with them, or that they were destroying each house as they looked for him. When he rounded the corner he gasped. It wasn't a giant; it was not Death Eaters.

It was a monster.

And it was a really big monster; it stood two houses tall, with a white mask covering its face. The place where the eyes should be was replaced by wide, gaping black holes. Its whole body was covered in thick, dark green skin, his hands ending in five, long, needle-like fingers. The human-like body had a tail as long as it was tall, and it ended with a sharp, metal-tipped needle. The monster had punched a hole in one of the houses. Harry hoped it was empty; the entire wall facing the monster was gone, reduced to so much rubble. The beast opened its mouth and howled so loudly that Harry crouched down and pressed his hands against his ears.

Even while crouching down Harry was thinking furiously. Where did that monster come from? An uneasy feeling began to spread through him, and he could not understand it until it finally hit him: there was nobody on the street aside from him and the monster. In broad daylight. He was expecting to see people coming out of their houses, curious of the noise, or running and screaming in terror. But there was nobody there.

And then from behind the monster, Harry saw a little girl on her bicycle. Coming in his direction, and directly into the path of the monster. The little girl, oddly enough, did not seem to see the huge creature in front of her, who was already staring down at its new prey. Harry watched in horror as the creature slowly lowered one hand, ready to grab the child—

"STOP!" Harry shouted at the top of his lungs, running towards the girl. The little child stopped, looking at Harry, half afraid. Harry had his wand in his hands, but he did not care if a Muggle saw it. "Turn back, now! Run! Get away from here!"

The little girl looked terrified of Harry, who was waving his arms at her as he came running. She turned her bike around and fled, but the monster was quick. Amazingly, it leaped up from its position and landed in front of the child's path. But the little girl kept pedaling towards the monster. Harry had a funny feeling she could not see or hear the beast at all.

Harry watched in horror as the monster swooped down its great arm, intending to fling the child off her bike.

The Ministry of Magic strictly forbade under-aged wizards to cast spells outside school, except for emergency situations. Harry did not even hesitate; this is an emergency situation. "Impedimenta!" he shouted and pointed at the monster.

The monster's hand stopped, encountering the magical spell. The little girl stopped too. Harry ran towards her; they didn't have much time. He could feel the monster straining against his spell. But before he could run ten steps there was a flash of black in front of him, and then the girl was gone.

He stopped. The Impedimenta spell was wearing off quickly. Harry looked around, trying to find the little girl. He did not notice that the monster had already targeted him, his other arm raised and ready to aim.

"Get down!"

By instinct Harry crouched down hard, just in time to dodge the swing of the monster's arm. He could feel the air being sliced above him. Then something lifted him from where he was and set him down again. Harry looked up to see that he was standing at the corner where he just came from, a good five meters from where he crouched down.

And a young woman was standing in front of him, wielding a Japanese sword.

"Who the bloody hell are you?"

The young woman turned so quickly that Harry took a step backwards. She had a hard, deep purple gaze, and she was frowning at him. "Oi…you can see me?"

"Of course I can," Harry answered, feeling himself frown, too. She didn't need to get angry, did she? "Who are you?"

The monster let out another shriek, and the young woman tsked loudly, turning her back to Harry. "We don't have time for this. The Hollow is going to attack again."

"Hollow?"

"Hai. That large monster you can see is a Hollow. An evil spirit."

"Evil spirit?"

The young woman tensed, holding her sword tightly. "You have to run now. And take the girl with you; I gave her a weak sleeping drug, so she'll be alright."

"Run?"

The woman turned to Harry, furious now. "Baka! Why do you have to keep repeating whatever I say? Get away from here if you don't want to get eaten!" Then she turned and ran, straight towards the monster—the Hollow.

Harry watched, fascinated, as she swung her slim blade right across the oncoming claw. The young woman leaped back, readying herself for another attack. The Hollow shrieked again, this time in pain, his wounded arm cradled against its chest. It turned its masked face towards the woman. It took a slow step towards her.

"What are you still doing here?!?" The young woman screamed at Harry. "Nigero!"

Harry needed no further urging, although he could not understand that last bit. He ran, carrying the little girl with him. He ran all the way to the front of Number Four. He laid down the girl beside the door and looked up. He could see the Hollow clearly from here. It was standing straight up, swiping its great claws in mid-air, trying to swipe at something. Harry knew it was the young woman. At the back of his mind he was wondering why nobody else could see or hear the Hollow, but right now he had to help that girl.

But how? Harry looked down at his wand and considered the options. Owling for help from the Order would take too long; he did not know how to Apparate yet, and only Mrs. Figgs, his neighbor, could have some other means of contacting wizards. Of course! Harry sprinted towards the front door of Mrs. Figgs and pounded on the door.

"Mrs. Figgs! Mrs. Figgs!"

The old woman opened the door at Harry's second banging. The room beyond smelled of cats and cabbages, but Harry was in no time to focus on the smell. "Mrs. Figgs! You have to contact the Order!" Harry pointed up towards the towering Hollow behind him. "We've got to kill that Hollow!"

"What in Merlin's…Harry! Harry m'boy, what's the matter? The what?" Mrs. Figgs looked confused, peering up at the direction Harry was pointing. She frowned. "What are you talking about, Harry? There's nothing there."

The Hollow shrieked again, so loud and piercing that Harry's ears throbbed and the ground hummed. He searched Mrs. Figgs's face for any reaction. Nothing. "You can't…"

"Can't what, Harry, dear?" Mrs. Figgs was smiling gently at him now, and looked slightly worried. "Are you feeling all right?"

"I…" Harry blinked several times before regaining his composure. His time was running out. Her time was running out. "Yes I'm fine. I'll be back later." And then he ran towards the Hollow without another word.

When he rounded the corner, it seemed the young woman was winning. The Hollow could not advance on her; it concentrated all its efforts into blocking all the woman's attacks. She was slashing left and right, nimbly leaping off the ground, turning this way and that as she parried the Hollow's counterattacks and slashed again. But Harry could see she was tiring; her attacks could only scratch the creature; its hide was too thick to cut through.

The girl seemed to notice this too, and jumped back, glaring at the monster. She sheathed her sword and stretched her arms forward, palms facing the Hollow. "Destructive Art # 31: Red Flame Cannon!" she yelled, and a large ball of red-hot light formed in front of air and shot straight at the Hollow's face.

Harry instinctively shielded his face as the ball blew up at the Hollow, creating a large noise and copious amounts of smoke that hid the Hollow's upper body from view. Harry thought it was done for, but the young woman with the sword was frowning. She quickly unsheathed her sword again.

When the smoke cleared, the Hollow was still standing, its arms covering its face protectively. The flame cannon did not even wound it in the slightest.

The young woman cursed loudly. She gathered up her legs and leaped straight up, swinging her sword down mightily. She did not see the Hollow's tail lashing behind, readying to strike her at the right moment. But Harry saw it. And he screamed at the top of his lungs, running towards the young woman.

"Look out!" he yelled, waving his wand. "Behind you!"

The girl heard him a second too late; she saw the tail coming, but had no time to dodge it. Quick as lightning it pierced the young woman right through, then lashed out into the air, throwing her like a rag doll. Harry was just in time to catch her, and they landed on the road in a loud thud.

The impact sent the breath out of Harry's lungs, but he held onto the girl and laid her down. He went white at the sight of her wound; it was a hole as large as his closed fist, blood quickly pooling around her. Miraculously, she was still conscious, wincing as Harry laid her out on the asphalt.

While Harry struggled to remember the spell to stop bleeding, the woman grabbed Harry's wrist in her bloodied hand. Her grip was so strong Harry almost winced. "You must…must kill it…"

Harry tried to reassure her, but he just had no idea how to kill a Hollow. "How?"

"You must attack…the…face." She was gasping for breath, struggling to remain awake.

Harry looked up at the Hollow, already taking one slow step at a time towards them. It was taking its time, knowing that they could not escape. Harry looked up at the white mask two houses above and cursed himself for not even thinking of bringing his broomstick. But he could just use a Summoning Spell and—

The girl seemed to know what was on his mind. "You can't kill it with your magic," she gritted her teeth at the pain before continuing. "Hollows can only be killed with weapons that use spiritual energy. That," she said, pointedly looking at the wand in Harry's hand, "will be useless."

"But I have to do something!"

The girl looked directly into Harry's eyes, silent for a few moments. Then she sighed. With her free hand she grabbed the hilt of her katana and raised it before Harry. "If I told you there was a way for you to use spiritual energy and kill the Hollow, will you do it?"

Harry did not even hesitate. He nodded. The girl gave him a smile. "A brave human. Rare these days," she mumbled almost to herself. The Hollow above them shrieked, and she frowned. Not much time to explain. There's only one way for you to kill the Hollow," she said firmly. "You have to become a Shinigami."

Harry blinked. "A what?"

"A Shinigami. I'm a Shinigami, you baka." She sounded annoyed. "To become one I'll have to transfer some amount of my powers to you through my zanpaku-toh. I mean this sword." She pointed the tip at Harry's chest. "And to do that, you have to pierce your heart with this while I hold the hilt."

Harry swallowed hard, a sudden wave of fear hitting him like a sledgehammer. Pierce himself? With a bloody sword?! But the Hollow was coming nearer, its footsteps pounding through the road. Harry had to steel himself before he nodded, and gripped the blade halfway with cold hands, feeling the edge cut through his skin.

The young woman gave him a small smile. "By the way, my name's Rukia Kuchiki."

Harry nodded again. "My name is Harry Potter," he said, and pulled the sword towards his body hard.

There was a sudden burst of bright blue light, and Harry was quite surprised to feel nothing at all. There was no pain. Odd, that. But now he could feel the Hollow's approach like a palpable current of dark electricity coming nearer. He could sense it, somehow. And his body felt…more comfortable.

He looked down. He was now wearing the same type of clothes as Rukia was. He was wearing black, loose clothes, and there was a scabbard strapped to his waist. He was now holding the zanpaku-toh in his hand, but it looked different.

Harry had no time to looked more closely though, because the Hollow was upon them, one hand falling down to flatten them to the ground.

Without thinking Harry's body moved. He grabbed Rukia in one swoop and leaped away. Rukia bit her lower lip in pain but did not complain. Harry gave her an apologetic look before turning around to face the monster. With Rukia's power coursing through him, Harry somewhat understood what Rukia meant when she said spiritual energy. He could see the Hollow's own spiritual aura, a deep red outlining its form, and he could see his as well, a light blue shimmering above his skin. He took the sword in his hands and shifted his stance.

When the Hollow raised his hand to swipe, Harry made his move.

With a load roar he leaped up into the air and swung down his blade, too quickly for the Hollow to dodge. He slashed straight down, across the white mask of the Hollow. Harry landed on his feet and raised his sword again, ready for the counterattack that never came. The Hollow shrieked its last, the mask split perfectly in half along with its entire head. It deteriorated into a million pieces before vanishing into thin air.

Harry stared at the place where the Hollow stood, unable to believe that he had just killed it with one blow. Then he heard Rukia gasp in pain. Sheathing the sword, he ran towards her, a silly grin on his face.

"I did it!" he said jubilantly. He knelt down beside Rukia. "I killed the monster, I mean the Hollow."

"Great," Rukia grunted, trying to sit up. "Now give me back my powers so I can heal myself."

"Can't you just teach me to do that to you? I mean, before I give your powers back," he added hurriedly, seeing her eyes narrow. "I have no intention of not returning your powers, of course."

Rukia snorted. Then she winced as pain shot through her abdomen. "Baka. You'll need to train before you can use any spell that I know." She placed one hand on Harry's chest, muttered something, and the bluish light spread around them again.

When Harry opened his eyes, he was back in his normal clothes again, his wand around his enclosed fist. Rukia was nowhere in sight. He looked around, trying to see where she was. There was no one there except him. Voices were coming from around the corner across the street; if they found him here, with a torn-down wall…

When he was back at number Four, the little girl wasn't there either. But there was a note on the ground. Harry picked it up and read it. A grin spread across his face as he pocketed the note and walked back to the house, debating whether he'd send an owl to Ron and Hermione about what happened.

Harry Potter:

Thank you for your assistance in killing the Hollow. I'll take care of the girl. Rukia Kuchiki, 13th division Shinigami.

PS: I'll be back sometime soon. You have to teach me that Shield Spell.#

HPHPHP

End of Story.