A/N: Hey, sorry everyone but I just haven't been able to get anywhere with internet access, so I haven't been able to post. The good news about that is that I've almost finished the next chapter and it should be posted in a few days. Don't worry; the day for the Soul Reapers to go to Hogwarts will be coming up soon. Remember, this is starting with their mission for the summer of protecting Harry from Black, Voldemort and the Dementors. I have a set schedule written out for what happens in each chapter and I assure you, Hogwarts will be coming up soon. Also, thanks for everyone who let me know the correct way to spell Rangiku. I couldn't remember which way it was and spell check couldn't help, obviously.

For those interested, I have decided to start Hollow Ichigo in this chapter. When he speaks, it will be like this, including the bolding. And when Ichigo and the others think, it will be like this, including when Ichigo responds to his hollow self. Hollow Ichigo may seem a bit OOC, but that's because I'm not that good with him. Hopefully it will be acceptable.

Disclaimers: I don't own any of the characters. Anything I do own, I will let you know when the time comes, if it does. Get it? Got it? Good.

Chapter Eight: School Shopping Part 1

After letting them take a few minutes to take in their surroundings, Tom turned to Toshiro, who he figured to be the spokesperson of the group. "If you need to get gold, Gringotts is where you aught to go first." He pointed ahead a ways, where they could see the top of a marbled white building surrounded by other buildings. "That there is Gringotts Wizarding Bank, one of the safest places in the wizarding world for anything valuable."

Toshiro nodded to Tom. "Thank you for your help. I believe we can figure it out from here."

Tom nodded and headed back to the Leaky Cauldron. They watched as the brick archway sealed itself shut, becoming a solid brick wall once more. Ichigo turned to the rest of his group and folded his arms behind his head. "So where to first?" he asked.

Toshiro turned back to the white building. "We go to the bank first. Then we get wands and textbooks."

The group headed down the street, passing a shop with a display of cauldrons in a window, a shop with a broomstick over the door with a sign that read Quality Quidditch Supplies, and a shop filled with books of every shape and size before they finally stopped in front of a large white marble building with the words Gringotts Wizarding Bank etched into the white marble.

Toshiro paused outside the double doors and turned to the rest of the group. "You guys wait out here. I'll go in and get a handful of each coin and bring it back. There's really no need for all of us to go in when we're not even going to get that much. While I'm gone, stay here. Don't wander off. I swear, if I come back and someone is missing, they won't be returning to the house in one piece." And with that he turned and headed through the first set of double doors before going through the second pair of double doors and over to an available teller.

While Toshiro went to get their money, Ichigo turned and eyed the other shops surrounding them until his gaze drifted to another alley that he noticed most people were avoiding, giving it a wide berth as they went from one shop to another. The alley looked dark and damp and quite foreboding. Ichigo narrowed his eyes at the odd feeling he got as he continued to stare into the alley.

'That place looks inviting, doesn't it, King?'

Ichigo stiffened and quickly turned to his companions before inching away a few paces. What the hell are you doing? He thought furiously. I told you not to speak to me!

'Relax, King. No one can hear me except you, remember? So are you going to go over there? It looks promising.'

No, I'm not. I've got a bad feeling about that alley. Besides, if I leave, Toshiro will have my ass. Ichigo glanced at the double doors of the bank, expecting Toshiro to emerge any minute.

Since when did you start listening to half-pint, pipsqueak captains? Let's go.

No. Ichigo started to turn away from the alley but froze.

'If you won't go, then I will.' Ichigo felt it before it started. His hollow was trying to force it's way out of him, trying to take control. Ichigo immediately began to fight against his hollow self, determined to keep him at bay. 'Don't fight it, King. It'll only get worse if you do.'

Back off! Ichigo mentally shouted. He placed his hand against the wall of the building to steady himself as he struggled with his hollow. I'm in charge, not you! So stay back! Ichigo struggled for a few more minutes before he finally felt his hollow self receding back into the depths of his mind. He leaned against the wall for a few more seconds, panting, before straightening up.

'Eventually, I will take over, King. I will show you who's really in control.'

Ichigo didn't respond but turned and headed back to the rest of his group. Rukia turned to him as Renji and Rangiku spoke about where they should go first after Toshiro got back. She looked up at him, her eyes full of concern. "Are you alright?"

Ichigo nodded and kept his eyes on the ground. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just a little restless."

Rukia looked like she wanted to comment but before she could, Toshiro emerged from the building and approached them all, holding his money sack. "Hold out your sacks so I can put the coins in. Urahara said that we won't need much to get the sacks familiar with the Wizarding currency before it can produce its own." Everyone held out their sacks and he placed two of each coin into each sack before sticking his own into his pocket.

After eyeing the coins curiously, Rangiku looked down at her captain. "So where to first?"

Toshiro pulled out the map and studied it for a moment before putting it away. "We'll go to the wand place first, Ollivander's, it's called. It's at the end of the street. We'll go there first and then work out way back down to the bookstore on our way back to the Leaky Cauldron. And maybe we'll eat there before we head back to the house."

The others nodded and they headed down the street to Ollivander's, taking in as many of the shops as they could as they walked. They gave the passersby odd stares, which they received in turn at the sight of Toshiro's, Renji's, and Ichigo's hair colors and styles.

Renji glared at a couple of witches as they passed him, eyeing the black marks visible under his white bandana covering his tattoos. They quickly scurried passed and Renji scowled. "Nosy gaijin." He muttered in disdain.

"Technically, we're the gaijin, but I know what you mean." Toshiro said, giving a young couple an icy stare as they headed into a shop while constantly glancing over their shoulders at his snow white hair. "Let them stare; we won't be here long anyway. Just today and then the last week or so before the start of term. Once the year is over, we'll be long gone."

"That's true." Rangiku flipped her hair as a group of teenaged boys turned from a shop window to goggle at her. She smirked and pointedly turned away from them. "Human boys are so easy to amuse, even wizard boys. It's actually quite funny."

"Just don't offend anyone before we even move here." Toshiro said as he stopped in front of a shop with a wand in the window resting on a cushion. "This is it." Toshiro pushed the door open and entered, noting the soft sounds of a bell dinging somewhere overhead. The shop was cramped and dusty, shelves full of small rectangular boxes scattered around the room. A small stool stood next to a rather dusty looking counter and the Soul Reapers huddled together in the center of the room.

"This place is dusty with a capital D." Rangiku said, flinching away from one of the dusty shelves. "Not even bacteria would live here."

"I suppose that would be a good thing."

The Soul Reapers jumped at the voice and turned to see a tall, pale man standing on the other side of the counter, his white hair tousled and his misty white eyes that seemed to be able to look well beyond the surface. Toshiro suddenly had a horrifying feeling that this man knew what they were, or at least he could tell something was off about his new customers. However, if he did, he showed no signs as he walked around the counter and stood in front of Toshiro.

"I believe it is safe to assume that you are here for wands?" he asked in a soft voice.

Toshiro nodded. "Yes."

Ollivander nodded and turned before Toshiro could say more. "Yes, of course you are. Now why don't we see what I have for you, shall we? But first we must measure you. Which arm is your wand arm?"

Toshiro lifted up his right arm. "I can use both but my right arm is my dominant."

Ollivander pulled a small tape measure out of his pocket and started measuring Toshiro's arm, going from fingertip to shoulder before turning around to go through the rectangular boxes as the tape measure continued its job.

Ollivander shifted through the boxes on the shelves before pulling one out and over to Toshiro. "That's quite enough." He said and the tape measure slumped to the floor. "Here we are, let's try this one. Maple and unicorn hair. Seven and a half inches. Go one, give it a wave."

Feeling slightly skeptical, Toshiro raised the wand above his head and brought it swishing down in front of him. Immediately the counter in front of him collapsed, seeming to have been sliced in two and Toshiro raised an eyebrow before Ollivander yanked the wand away.

"Nope, not it at all." He placed the wand on the stool and turned to grab another. "Here, this one. Yew and phoenix feather, ten inches. Try."

Toshiro mimicked his earlier action and the shelf to his immediate left exploded, sending boxes of wands soaring around the room. Ichigo snickered.

"You're going to tear this place apart." He teased.

Toshiro scowled and raised the wand towards Ichigo, who tried unsuccessfully to duck behind Rukia, but before he could bring it back down, Ollivander pulled it out of his hand and placed another one in its place. "This one might be the one. Ebony and phoenix feather, eleven inches. Let's see."

Toshiro barely had time to raise the wand before it was suddenly snatched back from him. He turned and gave the man an exasperated glare.

"Not to worry, we will find one for you. I haven't had this tricky of a customer in quite a while." Ollivander seemed to be having the time of his life as he placed wand after wand into Toshiro's hand, only to snatch it back again with a shake of his head. "The wand chooses the wizard, you know."

Finally he placed one last wand into Toshiro's hand. "Cherry and dragon heartstring. Seven inches. Go on."

Toshiro raised the wand and immediately the room began to fill with the scent of cherry blossoms, even as a winter breeze blew around the room, carrying frosted snowflakes in a whirl around its caster.

Ollivander clapped his hands delightfully. "Oh, well done! I knew I would have the wand for you." He turned to the rest of the group. "Now, who's next?"

Rangiku shoved everyone out of the way and stepped up to Ollivander. "I am." She said. She turned to the others as they started to complain. "I'm Toshiro's second, so its only right that I go next." Toshiro sent her a warning look, which she missed but Ollivander didn't.

"Not to worry, everyone will get a turn. No one will be left out and I assure you, whatever happens in Ollivander's, stays in Ollivander's." he looked pointedly at Toshiro, who narrowed his eyes suspiciously, before proceeding with Rangiku.

When almost everyone had received a wand, Rangiku's being yew and phoenix feather, eleven inches, Rukia's birch and unicorn hair, eight and a half inches, and Renji's redwood and phoenix feather, eleven and a half inches, Ollivander turned to Ichigo. "It seems you are the only one left."

"Yeah." Ichigo said.

Ollivander nodded and handed him a wand. "Beechwood and phoenix feather, nine inches. That's it."

Ichigo raised the wand and suddenly stepped back with a yell as the ceiling shattered, sending bits of wood scattering around where he had stood.

Ollivander took the wand back. "Obviously not. Here, maple and unicorn hair. Six inches." Ollivander barely placed the wand in Ichigo's hand before in sprang right back out again and fell to the ground, where it rolled under one of the shelves, as if hiding. "Oh, apparently not. Another tricky customer, eh? It must not be easy with two hosts." Ichigo shot Ollivander a startled look, and Toshiro gave Ichigo a questioning stare, both of which Ollivander dismissed and handed him a wand he had pulled from near the back of one of the shelves. "Try this one; mahogany and dragon heartstring, thirteen inches."

As soon as Ichigo's skin made contact with the wand, a sudden feeling that Ichigo could only describe as a power surge, coursed through his body as a silver lighting filled the room and surrounded Ichigo with a silvery aura-like fog.

Ollivander nodded solemnly. "Yes, this is definitely your wand. I am sure you will use it well." He gave Ichigo a piercing look, which Ichigo immediately didn't like, before turning to the group at large. "Now that everyone is sorted out, let us wrap this up, shall we?"

The group each paid seven gold galleons, with Ollivander's help with identifying which coin was which, and scrambled out of the small shop and back onto the street, where the warm sun and soft breeze seemed inviting after being inside for so long. Toshiro placed his new wand in one of the inner pockets of his jacket before turning to the others. "Now we just need to get the books from the shop Flourish & Blott's and we'll be all set for now."

"Didn't I see an ice cream shop on that map?" Rangiku asked. "Why don't we go there first?"

"Yeah, I could use an ice cream." Ichigo said enthusiastically. "It's on the way, right?"

"How would you know?" Renji asked. "You didn't see the map, did you?"

Ichigo shrugged. "No, but I figured since this shop was at the end, and we would have to go back the way we came to get to the book store and the Leaky Cauldron, I would assume that the ice cream shop would be in that direction as well. So technically it's on the way to the bookstore."

Renji and Rukia stared at him but Toshiro shrugged. "I guess we can take a short break. We are moving a lot quicker than I had expected, so we have time."

"All right!" Rangiku started heading down the street and the others scrambled to keep up with her.

After spending fifteen minutes eating their ice creams at a table outside Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor and looking around at all the shops and people surrounding them, the Soul Reapers finally got to their feet and head across the road to Flourish & Blott's. They entered the shop and turned to Toshiro.

"What were we looking for again?" Renji asked.

Toshiro pulled the list of supplies out of his pocket and scanned over the booklist. "We need Intermediate Transfiguration, The Standard Book of Spells Grade 3 by Miranda Goshawk, The Monster Book of Monsters, and Unfogging the Future by Cassandra Vablatsky."

He pulled another sheet of paper from his pocket. "We will also need The Standard Book of Spells Grades 1 and 2, A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration, A History of Magic by Bathilda Bagshot, Magical Theory by Adalbert Waffling, One Thousand Magical Herb and Fungi by Phyllida Spore, Magical Drafts and Potions by Arsenius Jigger, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by Newt Scamander, and The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection by Quentin Trimble."

"That's a crap load of books!" Ichigo complained. "What the hell are we going to do with all of these books when we're done with them? It's not like we'll need them for next year."

"That's a lot of reading." Rangiku pouted, glancing around at all of the books on the shelves. "I wouldn't be able to finish even one of them. This is worse than paperwork back at the office." She glanced down at Toshiro. "Is it too late to change my mind?"

"Yes, it is." Toshiro said. "Relax, all of you. We'll only get one copy of grades 1 and 2 of the standard spells book, the beginning transfiguration book, the fantastic beasts book, and the guide to self-protection book. Those we will share and learn from at home. The history book, potions book, herbs and fungi book, and magical theory book are the only ones we will each need to get one of. Those are used throughout the entire seven years at Hogwarts, which is why the first list was shorter than the second. They're successive."

"That's still about eight books each." Ichigo grumbled with a scowl. "Thirteen for whoever is buying those other ones. That's more than what I use for each of my normal classes."

"I know, but like I said, those other books are successive. Most of the students already bought their copies of those books in their first years, so it probably doesn't seem like much to them." Toshiro shrugged, looking up and down the isles of bookshelves for any signs of where they should start. "We're new, so we need everything. We need to catch up to them before the term starts."

"Excuse me, may I help you?"

Toshiro turned to a tall thin man who had come striding over to the group. He gave their appearances a curious look but didn't comment. "Yes." Toshiro said with a nod. He handed the man the first list. "We need five copies of each book on this list, as well as five copies of every book circled on this one." He handed the man the second sheet of paper. "And one copy of every book that's not circled."

The man looked back and forth between the two sheets of paper, clearly at a loss. Then he looked at Toshiro and winced as he pointed at one of the titles. "You want five copies of the Monster Book of Monsters?" he asked in a trembling voice.

Toshiro raised an eyebrow. "Yes. Is that a problem?"

The man whimpered but shook his head. "N-no, not at all. Just a moment, then." With a look as if he was walking to his death, the man grabbed a cane from beside the door and approached a large cage filled with books that were currently snapping at each other and ripping pages out of each other.

"Stop that, right now!" The man said as he prodded the books with the cane. "We just got these the day before yesterday." He pulled on a pair of thick leather gloves and reached into the cage and grabbed one of the books. Immediately the book attacked his covered hand, snapping ferociously. "Stop it, let go! Let go, I say!"

Toshiro grabbed the book from the man's hand, pulling the glove with the book. He clamped the covers shut with one hand and placed his fingers on the spine as it shook angrily. "Enough." He told it. The book froze and sat motionless in his hands.

"H-how…how did you do that?" the man asked, his eyes wide in shock as he looked at the book wearily, as if expecting it to start snapping any moment. "I have been trying to find some way to calm them ever since we got them. They already tore one book completely in half."

Toshiro shrugged and handed the glove back. "Perhaps they recognize authority. I've dealt with much worse, I assure you."

The man looked as if he wanted to question Toshiro but thought better of it and shrugged. "Well, in that case, would you be willing to get the others?"

The man looked so hopeful that Toshiro nodded piteously. The man sighed in relief and stepped back to allow Toshiro access to the cage. Toshiro reached in and grabbed one of the books, repeating his earlier action with the first one. When the book calmed, he handed it to Rangiku before repeating the action three more times and then closing the cage door and turning to the man. "Done."

The man shook Toshiro's hand gratefully. "Oh, thank you very much. For your help, each monster book will be half off for you." He glanced back down at the booklists. "Now let's get the other books you need, shall we?"

Thirty minutes and forty-five books later, the five Shinigami left Flourish & Blott's, each carrying a single bag full of the books that the shop keeper had shrank for them, free of charge. Toshiro glanced at his watch and then at his surroundings. "We have plenty of time now, so I think it's safe enough to look around and get a feel for where everything is for when we come back for everything else."

"Why don't we just get everything now?" Ichigo asked. "One of the books we got was for potions. I think in order to practice potion making, we'd need a cauldron and ingredients, right? Plus whatever else that's needed, like plants for the herbs class and whatever else there is."

Toshiro paused and glanced down to read the rest of supplies list. "'Other equipment: 1 wand, 1 cauldron (pewter, standard size 2), 1 set glass or crystal phials, 1 telescope, and 1 set brass scales. Students may also bring an owl OR a cat OR a toad.' I suppose you're right. We'll also need to visit that stationary shop because they don't use regular paper. They use something called parchment. And quills and ink."

"And we need robes and the rest of the uniforms." Rangiku said. "Why not just use our uniforms? They look the same, don't they?"

"Not really." Toshiro said. He glanced at a wizard sitting at an umbrella-covered table in front of a small café. "Their robes are quite different from our uniforms. I doubt it would be tolerable for us to wear them; plus I don't think it would be a good idea. We can't draw too much attention to ourselves."

"But their robes are horrible looking." Rangiku complained. Then her eyes brightened. "I know. When we get our robes, I'll fix them up so that they look much better and classier. Honestly, these wizards don't know the first thing about fashion."

Toshiro rolled his eyes. "We're trying not to offend anyone. Keep that in mind."

"Yeah, yeah." Rangiku said absently, thoughts of how to modify their school uniforms already running through her head.

"We'll do robes and potions and anything else when we come back." Toshiro said. "For now, we need to worry about practicing these spells."

"But first, we can look around, right?" Renji asked. "I saw a joke shop down the street a ways. I want to check it out real quick."

Toshiro glanced at his watch again. "Fine, everyone meet back in front of Gringotts in exactly one hour. Anyone who is late will be left behind."

"Got it." Rangiku said. The others agreed and everyone split up to explore.

"Don't buy anything without letting me know first!" Toshiro called to their receding backs. Several backwards waves were his answers.

An hour later, Ichigo sat on the steps in front of the wizarding bank, waiting for the others to show up. He glanced up and down the street, eating another ice cream while sifting through the bag of tricks he had bought from Gambol & Japes joke shop. As he shifted through his bag, he couldn't help overhearing the conversation take place of a group of witches and wizards in front of the shop Magical Menagerie.

"Did you hear?"

"Yes, escaped, he did."

"But how-"

"-Supposed to be impossible."

"Can't believe that murderer is loose again."

"What are they doing over there?"

"Supposed to be guarding those prisoners."

"Some guards."

Ichigo turned his head in the direction of the voices. The group was staring at a picture taped to one of the windows of the shop, pointing and muttering, shaking their heads in disbelief and horror. Gathering his things, Ichigo stood up and headed over to stand behind the group and look at the picture. It was a wanted poster and Ichigo noted, with a bit of surprise, not that it was Sirius Black, but that his picture was moving, turning it's head from side to side and seeming to be shouting silently at the camera. The man was shaggy, rumpled and haggard, with a scraggly mane of shoulder length black hair and wild eyes.

This is Sirius Black? He thought. The guy looks like he belongs in a loony bin. How could he have escaped from a prison that was supposed to be guarded by soul sucking freaks?

"Excuse me." Ichigo said, trying to catch the attention of one of the group members. "How was he able to escape? Wasn't he heavily guarded or something?"

"He was." A witch said, nodding vigorously. "Those Dementors were supposed to be all over his cell. But he was still able to escape and no one knows how."

"He's insane, is what he is." Said one of the wizards. "Killed a dozen muggles and one wizard with one shot."

"Was a big supporter of You-Know-Who." Another added.

"Perhaps he escaped to bring him back." Said a second witch. "He could be looking for You-Know-Who; wanting to bring him back."

"But he's dead." Said the first wizard. "Young Harry Potter killed him, remember?"

"Yes, he did." Said a third wizard to the first.

The group continued to chatter, their conversation slowly traveling from Sirius Black to Harry Potter to their days at Hogwarts. Ichigo walked away from the poster, deep in thought, when Toshiro tapped him on the arm.

"All right, Kurosaki?" Toshiro asked.

Ichigo nodded. "Yeah, I was just thinking about Sirius Black. They've got a wanted poster on that window over there with his picture on it." He pointed over his shoulder at the shop. "There was a group over there a few minutes ago and I was talking to them, trying to find out more about this guy."

"And?" Toshiro asked as the others came up around them. "Anything new?"

Ichigo shook his head. "Nothing we don't already know. He was a supporter of You-Know-Who; I'm assuming that's Voldemort. And he escaped from that wizard prison and no one knows how. Some of them think he is trying to bring back Voldemort, and they're all believing that he's completely gone."

"Figures." Renji said, rolling his eyes. He walked over to the window, the others following, and stared at the man on the poster. "He doesn't really look like a murderer. Just crazy."

"Did you notice his eyes?" Ichigo asked.

"What about them?" Renji asked, squinting his own eyes up at the poster.

"I'm not sure, but his eyes just don't look like someone on a murderer." Ichigo glanced at the poster again. "Something about them just doesn't scream 'killer' and I've seen plenty."

"You're right." Toshiro said softly. He glanced at the others, making eye contact with each of them in turn. "Perhaps there's more to this story that we thought. But don't say anything to anyone else. We don't want to raise suspicion or insult anyone about their beliefs. Let's keep this between us until we can figure more out."

"How cute!"

Toshiro and the others turned their attention to Rangiku, who was peering past the poster to a group of different colored puffballs in a cage on the other side of the window. Rangiku glanced at the others with a grin before running into the shop. Toshiro sighed and shrugged before he and the others followed her inside. The shop was crammed with an odd assortment of animals in cages and terrariums. Birds hopped around in their cages on one side of the shop and other animals roamed around in their cages on the other side.

Toshiro strolled around the shop, glancing wearily at the animals as they watched him pass curiously. He stopped in front of a long rectangular cage sitting on a table, full of tiny kittens, each one a different color, and stared down at them as they mewled and crawled over each other. A single kitten, the only white one of the group, sat separated from the others, looking at its companions in what Toshiro could only guess as scorn. Seemingly feeling eyes on itself, the kitten turned its head to look in Toshiro's direction, the light of the store gleaming gently off a small teal jewel shaped like a crescent moon embedded in its forehead between its eyes.

Blinking its large bright purple eyes slowly, the kitten stood up, stretched, and sauntered over to him with its tail held high in a dignified way. Toshiro watched in amusement as it sat on its haunches in front of him and turned its head to look at its companions before looking up at Toshiro with a look that clearly said 'Get me out of here.' With a small smile tugging at the corner of his mouth, Toshiro reached his hand down into the cage, palm up, and waited until the kitten had stepped on and sat comfortably in the middle before gently lifting his hand out.

"She's got an attitude, that one." Toshiro turned to the store keeper as she eyed the kitten with a slight frown. "She hasn't let a single person pick her up or touch her or anything since she was old enough to leave her mother. Seems to think no one is good enough. You're the first." She sniffed and glanced down into the cage and then back up to the kitten sitting comfortably in Toshiro's cupped hand, held gently against his chest as a sort of backrest for the kitten. "She tends to look down on the others, as if they are too childish for her to associate with. But she has spunk. She's tried a total of thirty-seven times to jump out of the cage, no matter how many times she misses or gets stuck or hurt. She really wants out."

Toshiro looked at the witch as she said the last bit and, as he had assumed by her tone, noticed that she was looking at him expectantly. "Are you suggesting something?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

The witch smiled. "Would you like to have her? She's extremely intelligent and very independent. She's got a sort of classy air about her and carries herself with the utmost dignity. But at the same time, if given the chance, she can be quite playful."

"Wow, she described you to a 'T', Toshiro." Toshiro and the witch turned to see Rangiku standing on the other side of the cage of kittens. She walked around to stand beside Toshiro and glanced down at his hand. "She's so cute. But she's an odd color."

Toshiro glanced back down at the curled up kitten and gave a small start as the once white kitten in his hand was now a soft shade of blue, like that of a robin's egg. "She's blue." He muttered softly.

"Of course." The witch said simply. She gave them a curious look. "You don't know what she is, do you? She's called a Persona Felinus, a personality cat, roughly. She's the only one of the rest of her litter that has been able to change her color at such a young age. She was just born a little under a month ago, yet she's already able to change her color. Normally their color changing abilities don't kick in until they are six to eight months. Basically, when she's content or peaceful, like she is now, she will be a soft blue, like you see here. When she's neutral, she's white, which is the color she usually is. When she's angry, she turns red, and so on and so on. I have a small slip of paper that goes with her that defines what each color means." She hesitated before repeating her earlier question. "Will you take her?"

Toshiro glanced down at the kitten in his hand again, contemplating. As if sensing his thoughts, the kitten raised its head and gave him an almost pleading look, gazing up at him with its round purple eyes and teal jewel. Finally, Toshiro nodded. "Alright, I'll take her. How much?"

The witch smiled at him and began walking back to the counter in the front of the shop. "She's 17 galleons, and that's including a months worth of feeding and a bed. If you plan on her being an indoor cat, she'll need a kitty box, which will cost another 6 galleons. And don't worry, she has all her shots and any other medical necessities."

Toshiro nodded and shifted the kitten to his other hand in order to reach into his pocket for his money bag. He pulled it out and produced 23 galleons, which he traded the witch for a bag of kitten food, a small kitty bed and a small kitty box, all stuffed into a single bag. Once he was finished, he and Rangiku exited the shop and approached the rest of their group standing in front of the poster once more.

"You bought a kitten?" Ichigo asked incredulously. "You, a kitten? Now I've seen it all."

Toshiro rolled his eyes but before he could respond, the kitten picked its little head up and a low growl emanated from deep within its throat as it glared up at Ichigo through eyes narrowed into slits. Its fur melted from the soft blue to a light pink to a deep red before finally settling back to blue and the kitten placed its head back down, resuming its peaceful nap. Toshiro smirked and Rangiku giggled.

"The kitten has the same personality as Toshiro." She said. "The shop keeper described the kitten's personality and it fit him perfectly. Right down to the mood swings." Toshiro glared at her. "So what are you going to name her? You can't call her 'the kitten' the whole time."

Toshiro glanced down at the ball of soft blue fluff in his hand before a name came to him. "Setsuna*, but Suna for short."

"Setsuna." Rangiku said thoughtfully. "I like it. Suna it is."

"We better get going." Toshiro said. The others nodded and slowly made their way through the crowds back towards the Leaky Cauldron, where they spent nearly an hour eating and talking about where they had gone during their exploring and what they had seen or wanted to buy when they returned. After they had finished, the five of them left the Leaky Cauldron into Muggle London, where Toshiro used a payphone to call a cab. Then the five of them squeezed into the cab, keeping their unusually-shaped parcels in their laps until they reached their home in Little Whinging. As the others headed into the house, Toshiro turned and looked behind him at number four, where a certain thirteen year old, glasses-wearing young boy stood at the bathroom window of his home, waving a hand in Toshiro's direction. Toshiro lifted the hand that wasn't holding Suna or his bags and waved back before heading inside.

A/N: So what did you think? Again, sorry for the long update. Hope you'll forgive me with this long chapter. It took me forever to come up with a story for the kitten that would make sense with how I wanted to describe her and her abilities. Like a mood ring in the form of a cat! Haha. Hope I did okay. And yes, I'm planning on letting the others have pets too, maybe not as significant as Suna but not entirely sure yet. But yes, I will let them have pets. Just to be fair.

*Setsuna – Japanese name meaning "calm snow"