Disclaimer - I do not own Bleach

Chapter Three - Snow

Ukitake noticed that the sight of the snow seemed to have unlocked something in the boy's mind but he wasn't sure what. However, judging by the look in his eyes, it wasn't good. Toushirou's muscles had tensed the moment he had laid eyes on the falling snow and he had yet to relax. Something was definitely freaking him out, this fact was painfully obvious, and it made Ukitake want to do something to ease the boy's tension.

Reaching out, Ukitake placed what was meant to be a comforting hand on the white haired youth's shoulder. Unfortunately the touch caused Toushirou to jump as though he had been burned.

Whirling around the boy gazed at Ukitake, fear evident in his large teal eyes. The blank expression had faded, possibly by the touch, and now the kid was shaking. This could be due to the rapidly falling temperature or, more likely, it could have something to do with whatever trauma had caused the young boy to lose all of his memories.

Either way it was evident that the white haired youth was suffering.

"Come Toushirou," Ukitake said, his voice kind as he once again reached out toward the boy. "I'm sure you're exhausted. We should head back to the Squad One barracks."

Toushirou nodded, his mind still occupied by thoughts that he didn't understand. He felt completely chilled to the bone but instinctively he knew that this had nothing to do with the cold outside.

He wasn't certain as to the reason why but he seemed completely unaffected by the chill in the air.

No, it was something internal that was causing his blood to run cold. It was as though the snow was whispering to him, trying to tell him why he couldn't remember.

And it was as though his mind was fighting that knowledge.

"Calm down little one… Don't push yourself so hard. You'll remember everything in time."

There was that strange voice again; Toushirou was still confused about it but for some reason the sound of the voice gave him comfort.

Thoughts still focused on his lack of memories, as well as the strange voice, Toushirou followed along behind Ukitake. The white haired man led the way back to the Squad One barracks but, instead of returning to the office, Ukitake led the way up a flight of stairs. He came to a stop in front of a closed door and turned his attention back to the child who was following him.

"Toushirou…"

Snapping out of his thoughts the boy gazed up at Ukitake, a questioning look in his teal eyes. "Yes?"

"You may use this room for the time being," the Head Captain said, offering Toushirou a kind smile. "You should probably go and get some rest."

"Thank you," Toushirou said in a quiet voice, bowing politely to Ukitake.

"Don't mention it," Ukitake said, reaching out and placing his hand on the boy's shoulder. "I'll see you tomorrow."

Toushirou nodded and, reaching out, slid the door open. The room was sparsely furnished, with only a small desk and chair, as well as a lamp. There was a futon and a blanket in the open closet and that was all.

But it was clean and it was comfortable. And Toushirou was fairly certain that it would be better than sleeping outside.

Walking over to the closet Toushirou pulled out the futon, which he placed in one corner of the room. With a sigh the young boy placed his sword beside the futon and then crawled under the blanket. He was exhausted but his mind wouldn't allow him to sleep. There were simply too many things running through his mind for him to be able to drift off to the desired state of blissful unconsciousness.

His thoughts kept returning to the sight of the falling snow and the horror that it had brought him.

"What could this mean?"

Having done an exhaustive amount of research on the strange youth that he had discovered out in the Rukongai, Urahara decided that he needed to meet with the Head Captain and report his findings. Or, to be more precise, his lack of findings.

Making his way across the Seireitei once more, Urahara soon arrived at the Squad One barracks. He quickly made his way to Ukitake's office, where he knocked politely on the door.

All the while getting the distinct feeling that he'd done this before.

"Enter."

Sliding the door open the Squad Twelve Captain once again entered the Head Captain's office. His gaze shifted around the room and he saw that Ukitake was seated at a low table in the center of the office.

"Welcome Kisuke," Ukitake said, offering Urahara a welcoming smile. He gestured toward the tea pot and a couple of extra cups that were sitting beside it. It looked as though he had been expecting guests. "You've arrived just in time for tea."

Urahara made his way across the office and sat down at the table, accepting the tea that was offered to him by the Head Captain. "Thank you." He took a sip of the tea and then focused his gaze once more on Ukitake. "So where's the boy?"

"Upstairs," Ukitake replied after taking a sip of his own tea. "I took him to Squad Four, to make sure that he was healthy, and when we left the snowfall seemed to scare him for some reason. I thought that he might want some time alone, to think, so I showed him to the room where he'll be staying."

"I see," Urahara said, thinking about the snow that was still falling. It was odd that it was snowing now, when it hadn't in centuries, but this wasn't the most unusual thing. He had been surprised when he had seen the flecks of white falling from the sky but the reason behind it wasn't high up on his list of priorities at this given moment.

"So did you find out anything?" Ukitake asked, a hopeful expression on his face.

"Nothing," Urahara said, slightly annoyed with his lack of information. He prided himself on the fact that he knew virtually everything that went on in Soul Society and yet he couldn't unravel the mystery that surrounded the white haired child. "There are absolutely no records of him anywhere. He's not recorded in the Rukongai, the Shinigami Academy, nowhere. It seems that this boy arrived in Soul Society without the aid of Konso and completely off the radar."

Ukitake's eyes widened upon hearing this news. To his knowledge this had never happened before and he found himself wondering just what kind of powers Toushirou possessed.

"So he arrived without the aid of a Shinigami," Ukitake said. "And in possession of a zanpaktou. What can this mean?"

Urahara shook his head. "I think it means that we should train him in how to use his powers. After all, I don't need to tell you just how powerful the boy is."

"No," Ukitake said, shaking his head. "You don't. I suppose I'll evaluate his powers and determine whether or not he should be sent to the Academy."

"Good idea," Urahara said, finishing his tea and getting to his feet. "For my part, I'm going to continue to look into this. I know there's an answer out there somewhere and I'm going to find it."

Ukitake nodded, knowing that if anyone could figure things out then it would be Urahara. "Let me know what you find out."

"Right," Urahara said.

Ukitake watched as the Squad Twelve Captain departed and then his gaze shifted back to the cup of tea that he held in his hands. His thoughts once again returned to the white haired boy whom he had left upstairs. The boy's powers were immense but the fact that he had arrived in Soul Society unassisted was strange.

He had thought it impossible and wouldn't have believed it had the words not came from Urahara.

"We'll just have to take things one day at a time," Ukitake said, thinking about himself as much as the child.

A/N - and there's chapter three of this story. Hope that you're enjoying, please leave a review and tell me what you thought.