*Page's P.O.V.*

I couldn't tell where I was. Heck, I don't even know how I got here. One moment I was in Ichigo's room, and the next I ended up in a huge expanse of land covered in snow. I looked around me and saw large snowflakes slowly dancing through the skies as they made their slow descent towards the ground. I reached out and caught one in the palm of my hand, and watched it curiously. It didn't melt, but instead it formed into a small pile of snow as more snowflakes piled on top of the bottom one. I looked up towards the sky and squinted.

Though this place seemed cool and all, I still had no clue where I was. I spun in a full circle, looking for some sign of life, but found none. I suddenly realized I was still just wearing my nightdress and I wasn't cold at all. And, now that I think about it, aren't snowflakes supposed to melt in your hand? I lay down in the oddly warm snow, and wondered what to do. Lying there, I started to doze off before a harsh wind picked up around me, throwing the snow everywhere.

I threw up my arms to ward off the snow from my eyes as the wind howled around me. The snowflakes were flying around in every direction, and I couldn't see more than an inch in front of me. I heard a loud, ferocious roar above the wind but couldn't tell which direction it came from as it echoed all around me. As fast as the wind picked up, it died down and the snow settled down on the ground once more as I saw the large shape glide over to me.

The air cleared and a huge tiger that was around eight feet tall stood before me. Icy, piercing blue eyes with white whiskers framed its face. It had a bulky, white body with black stripes that ran in all directions across its fur in patterns. I stared at it, fear grabbing my heart and holding it in its tight grip. It looked down at me and stood there quietly, as if expecting me to act.

My legs seemed to have a mind of their own as I walked forward towards the beast, the fear I felt for it slowly dissolving the closer I came to it. I stood before the tiger and reached out to pet its fur. It didn't move as I stroked its chest, the soft fur moving beneath my fingertips as it breathed. A voice echoed through the air and reached my ears. "We meet at last." I blinked and looked around in confusion, but my mind already knew that it was the tiger that spoke.

I stared up at the animal, still petting it, and spoke as I tried to figure out how it talked. "Who…are you?"

Its mouth twitched and the same voice echoed around. "I am a part of your soul."

"So…you are…me?"

Its crystal-like eyes flashed in surprise and then in annoyance. "No…I am my own self, we are just connected by your soul."

"I see…" I didn't really see though, I was confused.

The tiger lie down upon the snow and put its head down, eyes still locked on mine. "I am your zanpakuto, young one."

"Do you have a name?"

"Yes, my name is…" Its words became muffled, and I couldn't hear what it said.

"What? I can't hear you!" I tried to catch what it said again, but as soon as it tried to say its name, it came out muffled and unclear.

"I see…" the tiger purred, its eyes closing, "we are not fully connected yet."

"What is a zanpakuto?" I felt like I was asking too many questions, but curiosity got the better of me and I had to ask. "And, not to be rude, but are you a male or a female?"

The tiger growled; its voice was deep as its tail batted the ground. "I am a male, of course!" he went on, eyes opening slowly as he took me in his gaze once again, "zanpakuto are the weapons shinigami use, each zanpakuto is unique with its own powers and are separate entities from the wielder, though the zanpakuto and its wielder work together in battles. A zanpakuto is generally used to slay hollows, send pluses to Soul Society, and each zanpakuto can transform itself into more powerful forms." Seeing me throw him a confused look, he explained further. "A plus is the spirit of a person who died. Normally when a plus dies, they leave the Real world without any regrets and go to Soul Society, a place where most souls and shinigami dwell. However, before pluses can go to Soul Society, a soul burial must be performed. Zanpakuto are needed in soul burials, for their powers are used to send the plus to Soul Society. If a plus has regrets it becomes an Earth-bound Spirit, which is harder to perform soul burial on. Each plus has a Chain of Fate, which is what binds them to their physical body. If the chain of fate is broken, corrosion will take place at the end of it causing a gradual process of Hollow transformation. Hollows are former pluses that lose their hearts to despair or remain in the Real world for too long. A shinigami's job is to slay Hollows; their zanpakuto can purify the soul of the Hollow and send them to Soul Society as normal souls once the Hollow is slain."

"I don't think I'll be able to remember all of that."

The tiger chuckled, causing the earth beneath them to slightly tremor. "You'll understand in time, cub."

"My name's Page, you know…"

The tiger's eyes sparkled in humor. "I shall refer to you as I please."

I sighed as I gave in, looking to sky again. "Whatever…" I looked back over to him, "when will I learn your name?"

He stood up and stretched, letting out a loud yawn as he exposed his fangs. "When the time is right, we will become fully connected and be able to converse more." He looked down at me, his eyes becoming serious. "I can feel that the time for you to learn my name is fast approaching." Flicking his tail again, he turned around and walked away, calling back over his shoulder. "Until we meet again, cub!"

"Wait! I don't know how to get back–" As soon as I said that, the world around me disappeared and I was thrust into darkness again.