So, here's the latest chapter of Bleached Hallows. We hope you enjoy it, and I hope everyone here in the States will have a safe and Happy Thanksgiving.
As always, Arei and I do not own either Bleach or HP.
Chapter 10
"Dumbledore left Potter a second bequest."
"What?" Harry asked curiously
The Minister did not read from the will. "The Sword of Gryffindor."
...
Hermione and Ron stiffened in shock and Harry blinked with surprise, half-turning to look at Ichigo with raised brow. The older boy simply shrugged at him in response, letting Harry know that he hadn't had a clue that this was coming. Honestly though, Harry thought to himself, if anyone should have been given the Sword... Harry turned back to the Minister and frowned as he looked at the older man and saw that he wasn't reaching back into the bag that had held the other items.
"Where is it?" Harry asked with a bit of bite to his tone.
"The Sword was not Dumbledore's to give away," the Minister replied with a hint of derision, he even sniffed slightly as he turned to look at Harry with a not-quite glare, "It is an important historical artifact and belongs to the school. Thus; I do not have it."
The trio shifted uncomfortably and this time it was Ron who glanced at Ichigo, who sighed internally at the attention the two were bringing to him. Really, they needed to learn a little more subtly.
"You keep looking at Mr. Kurosaki. Why?" the Minister demanded to know as his not-quite glare passed over each of the teens.
The three reacted guiltily to this query, looking at each other before turning apologetic looks to Ichigo. Ichigo shifted his weight slightly, weighing the merits of letting Scrimgeour in on the secret and then barely nodded to them in response to their silent query. Really, it was best that the Minister believe Ichigo was Gryffindor's heir alone than for him to find out the truth of the Kurosaki ties to all four founders.
"Um..." Ron shrugged, unsure of how to say it.
Hermione looked pained, and the boys could tell that she most likely felt as if she'd betrayed Ichigo's trust without meaning to. Ron noticed the look and reached over to pat her hand comfortingly, if a bit awkwardly.
"It's because... Ichigo's a descendant of Godric Gryffindor. The Sword should rightfully go to him," Harry finally admitted weakly, shooting his older friend another apologetic look. Damn, Harry thought to himself, so much for not revealing anything to the Minister!
"Impossible!" Scrimgeour all but shouted, his face starting to turn red as his not-quite glare turned into a true glare at what he perceived to be an outright lie. "He had no heirs!"
"The Goblins at Gringott's can verify it," Ichigo said calmly as he shrugged. He hoped to defuse the man's anger caused by an honest lack of information, "And they had no problem giving me access to the vault. Especially since I had the key."
"Having the key helps," Ron agreed with a grin. Mostly the red-headed boy was relieved that Ichigo wasn't angry with them.
Scrimgeour stared at Ichigo with some surprise for several long moments before he leaned back. This was news to him. Very important news. It took him a moment to rally his thoughts.
"Why did Dumbledore want Potter to have the Sword, then? Did he believe that only the Sword of Gryffindor could defeat the Heir of Slytherin? Did he wish to give you that Sword, Potter, because he believed, as many do, that you are the one destined to destroy You Know Who?"
"Interesting theory," Ichigo drawled, a note of derision in his tone of voice.
"Hmm, you're right Ichigo," Harry nodded, trying to sound serious as he tilted his head and tapped a finger against his chin in a thoughtful manner, "Has anyone ever tried sticking a sword in him? Maybe you should put some people on that, instead of wasting time with Deluminators or covering up mass breakouts from Azkaban. People are dying –"
"You go too far!" Scrimgeour shouted, standing and clenching his hands in bloodless fists. Ichigo noted with surprise that somehow the Minister hadn't snapped his wand in such a grip. Harry also jumped to his feet and the Minister, glaring at him, shoved his wand hard into Harry's chest, where it singed a hole into his shirt as it sparked, and echoing its Wizards anger.
"Oi!" Ron jumped to his feet and went for his own wand, but Harry reached out to stop him, knowing the Minister was looking for any excuse to arrest them at this point. Though Harry had to admit he wasn't sure if Scrimgeour wanted the excuse in order to hide them away and train them as a controlled weapon of the ministry (which Harry did admit to himself sounded a bit paranoid but honestly if they knew about the Prophecy...) or just to keep them out of the fight.
The next moment Harry felt himself being pushed back and Ichigo was in between the three of them and Scrimgeour. Harry glanced down at his chest and frowned for a moment at the hole in his shirt before looking back up at the confrontation happening.
"I think that's enough," Ichigo said icily, scowling angrily at the older man, "Now are we all done here, or is there more?"
The Minister took a deep breath, composing himself. After a few long moments he slipped his wand away and straightened his robes.
"There are two more," he sat down again and picked up the will. He flicked the paper lightly with the tips of two fingers. "'To Ichigo Kurosaki, I bequeath the set of books that were given to me by his grandfather, Rin Kurosaki. It is past time for them to be returned to his family.'" The Minister looked at him. "Unfortunately, we did not find any books in the Head Master's office with your family crest. Professor McGonagall could not locate them, either."
Ichigo knew which books they were referring to; his mother had made a list and written down the important facts in a journal at one point. They had found the journal last year in the Kurosaki Mansion... and at the end of the year Hermione had summoned all of them and packed them away in her trunk. Hence the pile of books she'd been sorting through earlier. But Scrimgeour didn't need to know where exactly they were.
"That's okay," Ichigo smirked, "I know the books in question, and I know where they are. I can easily put my hands on them." They were currently tucked away in Hermione's purse. "I can get them later." When Harry didn't need them anymore.
Scrimgeour eyed him for several long moments before turning back to the will in his hands.
"'I also wish to return to my good friend Yamamoto the two books he loaned to me. These can be given to his grandson Ichigo for safe keeping.'"
The Minister used his wand to raise two books out of his bag; the books were wrapped in a pulsing, glowing light.
"We can't touch them," he admitted, "without receiving a shock. Not exactly painful, but it is enough to force anyone's hands away from the book. And we can't get through the magic defenses on them. I hope you can."
Ichigo raised a brow as the books floated towards him. Professor Dumbledore had taken great pains to protect these books from prying eyes he could tell by the energies surrounding them that they were extremely powerful wards and that those in the Ministry were lucky that Dumbledore had chosen the counter that he did. The magic could well have been made to do physical harm, instead of a jolt. The moment he put his hands around them, the light vanished with a loud pop.
Ichigo looked down at the books and froze momentarily in shock when saw the titles written in familiar hand writing that he was now used to seeing on official documents, he then opened one of the books to read within. He uttered a string of epithets under his breath, both in English and Japanese that sent everyone's brows past their hairline in shock. Ichigo knew now why Dumbledore had protected the books the way he had.
They were about the Soul Society. In detail. An accounting of all the politics and previous battles that had helped in the formation of the Seireitei. Division duties, Ranks of those within, details about Central 46, details about Hollows and their differences and even the Quincy... All of it in Yamamoto's hand writing and thankfully written in Kanji. In the wrong hands, especially if it was translated... these two books alone could be a disaster waiting to happen.
"Rukia," he called out softly, knowing she and the others were still hovering at the doorway after the pressure he'd released earlier, listening. She was in front of him in less than a second.
He wordlessly handed the books to her and when she saw the titles, and the familiar writing, her eyes widened and she paled. Her eyes darted in the Minister's direction. ||Does he know?|| she asked softly.
Ichigo shook his head. ||No. They couldn't get them open. Take these to Seireitei, will you? And give them directly to Gramps.||
Rukia nodded and vanished with the books. He sensed the Gate opening, and then closing, less than a minute later.
Ichigo slanted a look at the Minister, to find the man staring intently at him with a great deal of suspicion. Harry and Ron were looking at each other, curiosity eating at them, while Hermione was looking at him with a worried look. The expression on her face told him that she had rightly guessed the books' subject matter and was as concerned as Ichigo that the wrong someone could have seen them.
"It grieves me," the Minister said suddenly, "that you all seem to think that the Ministry does not desire what you – what Dumbledore – desired. We ought to be working together in this time of troubles."
"I don't like your methods," Harry reminded him suddenly, pulling the Minister's attention back to him, "or have you forgotten?"
Scrimgeour's expression hardened and the eye contact between the two remained fierce. Ichigo raised a brow at the sight, actually expecting sparks to start shooting at any moment. Finally though, being the first to break eye-contact, the Minister turned to limp from the room without another word. A moment later they heard Mrs. Weasley call out in a relieved, yet still confused, tone, "He's gone!"
Mr. Weasley entered the room at that point, nervously straightening his robes. "What did he want?" he asked as he looked back and forth between Harry and Ichigo.
"To go over Dumbledore's will," Harry replied, "They'd just released it and he was here to deliver the items we inherited."
The items in question were then examined and exclaimed over by the rest of the people at his party. Rukia returned shortly after the Minister left, minus the books, at which point Molly served dinner to the subdued gathering. As much as it was an exciting day, being Harry's seventeenth birth-day, they had been reminded quite rudely about a great man's death.
After supper the younger group met in Ron's room and found places to sit, though most were precarious immediately wanted to see the Deluminator Ron had gotten.
"We could have achieved the same thing with Instant Darkness Powder; or even Nox," she mused as she flicked it open and shut, targeting the candle on his dresser.
"Well, it's still cool," Ron replied defensively as he swiped the item from her hand.
"It seems odd that he would single you out just to help you turn out the lights," Tatsuki admitted as she looked at the little lighter-like object over Ron's shoulder. "It has to do something else, but what?"
"Dumbledore probably knew the Ministry would confiscate his will," Rukia said, "I doubt he'd put everything down on it."
"True," Hermione said softly. "I have a feeling that Deluminator does more than put out the lights. We'll just have to wait and see what it is."
"I have a question," Orihime said, her expression puzzled, "Why did Professor Dumbledore want to give you the Sword of Gryffindor?"
"That's another good question," Hermione agreed with a firm nod, "The Minister was very evasive about it – like he was hiding something."
"Do you think something happened to it?" Tatsuki asked, glaring out the window in what she thought was the direction the Minister had taken.
"We can't know – until I speak with Professor McGonagall at least," Ichigo replied, frowning. "He must have known that they wouldn't give you the Sword, or even me, for that matter – so I think he was trying to send you a message. Simply put, you're going to need the sword, for whatever reason."
"What possible reason could he need it for?" Ron asked, "I don't think it's for killing Moldy – do you? I mean, it's not like he's going to just let Harry waltz up to him and stab him."
"Maybe... in a way," Rukia said slowly, staring down at the ground, and to Ichigo it appeared as if she was trying to find a way to lead the conversation in a certain direction, "We know how hard it is to destroy Horcruxes... what if..."
"The sword? But..." Harry started to protest, but stopped, wondering if that could actually be the case.
Harry stopped when Hermione exclaimed, "Oh!" as if she realized something. To Ichigo – it was as if she caught on. She knew the secret of the Sword. She was one of the few who'd been told.
"What?" several voices echoed at once as multiple heads turned to face the suddenly excited girl.
"The Sword – it's goblin-made," she said, staring at them wide-eyed and grinning.
"So?" Ichigo asked with a raised brow to egg her on. "We know this already." Because his mother had figured it out last year, that the Sword had taken in the Basilisk venom. They just couldn't tell anyone that it was his mother…
"The magic in the Sword –" she dove for a book, opening it and flipping to a specific page to point out one line, "the Sword only takes in what will make it stronger."
"Again – so?" Ichigo said, letting her take the lead.
"Harry killed the Basilisk with it!" She said with a crowing lilt.
"Basilisk venom... the Sword was probably coated with it when he stabbed in the mouth into the brain. It may have hit the venom sacks in the process," Tatsuki said slowly, following Hermione's reasoning and catching on that Ichigo did not want to be the one to reveal that the Sword could kill Horcruxes. "And Basilisk venom can destroy a Horcrux."
Hermione nodded, still grinning, but Ron just moaned. "Great, something else we have to get our hands on."
"I wish he could have given us more details," Harry said, looking at the Snitch he still held with a faintly forlorn expression.
"Well, like Rukia said - he probably knew the will – and the content listed within – would be confiscated," Orihime said.
"It's a good thing you summoned the books before leaving school," Ichigo sighed, "or I might never have seen them again, regardless of if they were private property on loan."
Hermione nodded and looked at the Snitch. "I thought for sure something was going to happen when he gave that to you."
"Well," Harry said, turning it over in his hands and then looked up with a faint smile, "I didn't try very hard."
He blinked at the curious looks he was getting and then laughed softly to himself when he realized most within the room had no idea what he meant by that comment.
"The Snitch I caught in my first-ever Quidditch match – don't you remember how I caught it?" Harry said with a grin as he looked at his two oldest friends.
Hermione looked bemused, while the Japanese just shrugged in their confusion. It was Ron who reacted with excitement.
"That was the one you nearly swallowed!" Ron shouted out with a laugh.
"Swallowed?" Ichigo echoed with a blink of confusion. How had he nearly managed to swallow a Snitch?
Harry nodded and with a look at all of them, he pressed his lips against the Snitch. To his disappointment, it did not open. He lowered the sphere and it was then Tatsuki cried out,
"Writing! Look, there's writing on it!"
Harry almost dropped it in surprise; but she was right – engraved on the smooth, golden surface were now five words that everyone crowded around to look at.
'I open at the close'
"What's that supposed to mean?" Ron asked, frowning.
No one had an answer, not even the Japanese, who all wanted to descend on Soul Society and demand an answer of Professor Dumbledore. Who was still keeping things close to the vest, even after death.
The words were not visible for long; they vanished shortly after they had appeared.
"This makes no sense," Harry mused, staring at the now plain Snitch.
"And this book," Hermione said, "why this? I've never heard of it?"
"You've never heard of the Tales of Beedle the Bard?" Ron asked incredulously. Everyone except Ichigo gave him a blank look.
"Ron," Ichigo said, "everyone else here was raised in the Mundane world, more or less. The only reason I know about it is because Mom had a copy in with all of her stuff, and I gave it to Yuzu."
The sudden image of Ichigo being forced to read, or listen to Yuzu read, the book of wizarding children's story was enough to cause most of those within the room to suddenly cover their mouths to hide a smile or turn their heads to the side. Everyone knew that the Kurosaki sisters, Yuzu especially, had Ichigo wrapped around their little fingers and he would indulge them in almost anything.
"Oh, right – forgot," Ron admitted after a moment, needing to contain his own laughter, "well, these are all children's stories – old ones: 'The Fountain of Fair Fortune,' 'The Wizard and the Hopping Pot,'…don't know if they're the original versions or not. The stories have actually been dumbed down over the years. Mum said once that the versions she knew were a lot more violent than the ones she read to us."
"Like Aesop's Fables, or Grimm's Fairy Tales. Disney has been doing that too, making the stories more 'kid friendly,'" Hermione murmured, staring down at the book. "But what purpose would he have in giving this to me…?"
"There's a reason – you'll just have to read every word and study every picture to find it," Rukia sighed and shrugged to herself as she started for the door.
"We should get to bed; it wouldn't be good for us to oversleep tomorrow," Tatsuki pointed out also standing and moving after Rukia.
"No," Ron agreed as he started to shoo everyone out of the room, "Mass murder by the groom's mother would put a definite damper on the festivities."
#
Cedric wasn't all that happy.
He'd gotten orders to find Mad-eye Moody but was having no luck finding the man despite having at least a dozen Shinigami from each division trying to help him find the older man.
The reason they were having the problem?
There was no guarantee that Mad-eye Moody still looked like the Mad-eye Moody they knew.
Death had the peculiar ability to allow someone to look the same as they did on death or restore them to a previous state in their life, up to and including (depending on how someone died) childhood. And that's not even taking into account the fact that if someone was restored to an earlier state they might well not remember anything beyond how to read and write (or not even that if they got restored to early into childhood). Really, the mechanics behind this particular facet of the Soul Society made Cedric's head hurt.
Thus far they were having no luck finding an 'up-to-date' version of Moody and with the descriptions he had for a younger version from Dumbledore they still weren't having luck finding the man. Then again, from what Cedric knew about the man from his older and higher ranked associates, Moody'd been paranoid from a very early age and might well have started avoiding them as soon as he saw one of the notices for him to make his way to one of the Division buildings or the Wizarding school.
Honestly, if that last one was the case then they might never find the man. Wouldn't Ichigo be happy with him then?
Cedric let out a sigh and started for the new Wizarding school to see if anyone had come in. As he entered the school a woman's scream echoed through the building. Drawing his Zanpakuto he rushed for the source of the scream and came across a class room of people clustered together.
"Let me through!" Cedric shouted with a small pulse of reiatsu.
The crowd separated to let him through and the sight froze his breath in his throat.
Lily Potter was slumped and crying over the still twitching form of James Potter. She looked up at him fearfully.
"He just collapsed," she said with a shaky voice, "I don't know what's wrong with him!"
"You!" Cedric quickly grabbed one of the students whose clothing bore the symbol of the Fourth Division. "Get Unohana! Now!"
The student nodded and rushed out of the room as Cedric moved to Lily's side to help try to keep James from flailing as he twitched about.
"I don't dare cast a Petrificus spell," Lily said as she pinned one of James' arms, "Not when I don't know if it will make things worse. A diagnosis spell isn't revealing anything either!"
"Might not be something magic can detect," Cedric said with a frown, "He didn't drink or eat anything strange?"
"No, nothing," Lily shook her head with a frown, "He's been a little – absent-minded lately, but nothing…"
James stilled suddenly and Lily leaned forward to pat his cheek lightly.
"James? Sweetie? Can you hear me?"
"Urm...?" James blinked his eyes open slowly before jerking up and pointing his wand around. "Lily! Where's Harry!? Where's Voldemort?!"
Lily grabbed his arm to keep him from firing off a curse as James looked around desperately for a moment before going still again and blinking at the surrounding crowd of students.
"Um... who are all these people? Lily?" James turned to look back at his now pale wife. "Lily? What's going on? Where are we? Where's Harry?"
Cedric shared a look of confusion with Lily and gulped.
Things had just gone from bad to worse.
#
Ambassador Watanabe watched nervously as the last of the official documents went up in smoke.
They had spent the last several days destroying everything in the Embassy, in preparation for a quick getaway. Copies of documents, video surveillance tapes that were deemed unnecessary, even magical items that could be spared were destroyed to avoid the chance of the residue allowing for some sort of tracking spell. Everything of true importance had already been sent back to Japan with his staff. The only ones left in residence were himself and the three Imperial Guards that the Emperor had sent to his side for his protection.
And of course the four Soul Reapers from the Stealth Force that were currently looking over their shoulders. However, they were but dim shadows as they patrolled the area and insured there was no sign of impending attack. Paranoid lot, even more so then the Imperial Guards.
To their credit, the Guards did not question the presence of the Stealth Force. Only Watanabe and the Emperor himself knew about them, and what they were – Captains Ukitake and Kuchiki had paid the Emperor a visit and they'd had a very long talk. The Ambassador was unsure how much – or even what – he had told the three guards when they had been sent.
So Watanabe remained silent on the matter and so did they.
"Watanabe-sama," one of the Konoe Shidan approached and bowed low. "One of them is here."
Raising a brow curiously Watanabe turned to see a member of the Stealth Force bowing behind him, mirror his living counterpart perfectly.
"Yes?" he asked, "What is it?"
"It is time to leave Ambassador. Death Eaters are currently moving fast to surround the Embassy," the Soul Reaper replied, solemnly.
"How many?" he asked with alarm.
"Half a dozen that we see. We can easily handle that many while you escape. I have already alerted my Captain. She is holding the Gate herself on the other end; I need only to open if for you."
As he finished speaking, a spell impacted on a kido shield outside causing a visible rippling shimmer in the shield.
They all turned in that direction and Watanabe frowned at the sight of a second ripple.
"You must go now!" the Soul Reaper said, drawing his sword and thrusting it into open air.
A Shoji Gate shimmered into view and opened for them swiftly. Watanabe bowed to the Soul Reaper, whose name he did not know, and stepped into the Gate, followed closely by the three Imperial Guards who had all drawn their weapons. Two of them stepped backwards through the gate in order to defend against any potential attack that might slip through, only turning back around when the doors closed.
They hurried down the dark passageway the doors opened up into and rushed towards the distant light of a second open door. He knew that the lit doorway opened up in a room in His Majesty's personal wing. The Emperor had designated that room for meeting with the Soul Reapers and for their Gates allowing for easy access when needed; it would, of course, be under heavy guard, both Imperial and Stealth Force.
As the Stealth Force operative had said, Soifon was waiting for them on the other side.
"Have they attacked yet?" she asked by way of greeting when they exited.
Watanabe bowed to her. "The first volley, Captain. Your men were certain they could hold it."
Soifon harrumphed grumpily, and barely a moment later, she had vanished into the Gate, allowing it to close behind her. The doors closed behind them with an almost grim finality. Watanabe found himself wondering if he should be more concerned for her men, or for the Death Eaters who dared to attack the Embassy. In truth, considering her nature, it would be best to be concerned for both parties.
She's so personable, he thought with a sigh and a shake of his head, so unlike her predecessor in the position…He gave another shake of his head as he left to report to the Emperor of the success of their evacuation, and the final destruction of all paperwork. There should be nothing left in the Embassy that the Death Eaters could use.
He hoped.
Author's Notes:
Konoe Shidan – Japanese Imperial Guard – the organization dedicated to the protection of the Emperor and his family, palaces, and other Imperial properties. Formed as a unit within the Imperial Japanese Army, it was dissolved at the conclusion of World War 2 and the formal surrender of Japan. In 1947 a civil Imperial Guard was formed. It became a formal part of the Japanese National Police Agency in 1957. The agency consists of over 900 security police personnel who provide personal security for the Emperor, Crown Prince and other members of the Imperial Family of Japan. The agency is also responsible for protecting imperial properties, such as the Tokyo Imperial Palace, Kyoto Imperial Palace, and Shosoin Imperial Repository at Nara and the Imperial Villas of Katsura and Shugakuin in Kyoto, Hayama, Kanagawa and Nasu, Tochigi. The Imperial Guard also maintains a 14-horse mounted police unit for use by guards of honor at state ceremonies. In addition the Imperial Guard is also responsible for fire-fighting within the grounds of the Palace, and maintains fire engines and trained staff of this purpose. The NPA Imperial Guards wear a dark blue or a blue-grey police uniform with white gloves while on duty. They also wear white pistol belts, lanyards, helmets, boot laces or leggings.
en. wikipedia wiki/ Imperial_Guard_ %28Japan%29