A/N: Hey everyone! It's a bit late but I figured you wouldn't mind the update all the same. And well, I read all of your reviews and even replied to a few. I was vaguely surprised with the explosion of comments about the pairings that I didn't even want to put in here in the first place. However I eventually decide to do this, remember that the decision is up to me. If I decide in no pairings at all, then that is what I'll do. If I decide to pair so-and-so with so-and-so, that is also up to me. If you don't agree, no one is forcing you to keep reading. And I greatly appreciate one of my readers/reviewers who encouraged me to keep writing at my style and not trying to please everyone. You know the saying: "You can please some of the people some of the time, but you can't please all of the people all of the time." So true. To start with, I am not putting anyone in Slytherin. Mostly because I can't stand them. And I don't think Draco Malfoy will survive with Renji or Ichigo in the same dorm as him. And I already have plans for Toshiro. Don't like, don't read.
On a lighter note, I want to thank everyone for their suggestions about the boggarts for the shinigami. Your suggestions were very helpful. They gave me several ideas which nearly overloaded my brain. But hopefully I managed to create a decent chapter. I'll let you guys be the judges. Happy reading!
Also, a reader has told me that their birthday is November 2nd. They have requested that I try to update at least two more chapters by then. Well, I'll do my best. Here's one and the other should be posted before October ends. Happy early birthday to Curious reader8044.
Disclaimers: Again, I own nothing but the extras. Harry Potter storyline not mine. Bleach storyline that is real, not mine. Made up explanations and overactive imagination? All mine!
Over 200 Reviews! You guys rock!
Chapter Fourteen: Lessons Learned
The shinigami followed the rest of the students up the stone steps and into the castle. A large open space greeted them beyond the large double doors. A door stood to one side with a rather chilling breeze flowing lightly through its cracks; a large spiral stone staircase stood in front of them to the same side as the cold doorway, swirling up and fanning out to other staircases, some of which seemed to be moving on their own; a large door stood directly in front of them on the other end of the room and another large pair of double doors stood on their other side, to which the students seemed to be slowly making their way towards.
Toshiro was just able to make out a couple of long tables and lit floating candlesticks above each one in rows before a voice overtook his attention. "Potter! Granger! I want to see you both!" Toshiro looked towards the foot of the staircase, where an aged woman with a stern facial expression and spectacles stood, wearing emerald green robes and her gray hair in a tight bun. She turned her no-nonsense gaze towards him. "You Japanese students need to come as well."
Toshiro nodded silently and led the way towards the staircase and the stern woman. He stole a glance at Harry and noticed the fearful look on his face, making him seem like a child who had just been caught doing something naughty and knew it. Toshiro frowned. Did they do something wrong already?
"There's no need to be nervous." The woman said, as though reading his mind as she led the way up the stairs. "I would just like to speak with you in my office." She led the way down several halls until she stopped at a door, which she held open for them, allowing them to enter ahead of her. Once they were inside, she shut the door with an audible click and took the seat behind the desk. She pulled her wand out and waved it in the air. Several chairs appeared, settling down around the two chairs already present in front of her desk. "Sit."
Everyone sat, with Harry and Hermione directly in front of the desk and the shinigami fanned out in a semicircle behind the two. Once they were seated, the woman gazed at the shinigami. "For those of you who don't know me, I am Professor McGonagall, Head of Gryffindor House. I'm assuming that by now you know about the houses?" The shinigami nodded swiftly. "I am also Deputy Headmistress at this school, which is why I am speaking to you instead of the headmaster. He will speak with you another time. I will explain more for you five in a moment. Before that, I must say that Professor Lupin sent an owl ahead to say that you five and Potter had fallen ill on the train from the Dementors."
"So it's wrong to feel sick around those things?" Ichigo muttered under his breath. Fortunately, no one other than the shinigami heard him as another woman, dressed a bit differently than McGonagall, bustled into the room.
"Who is it? Who is sick?" She asked hastily. "Who's hurt?"
"I'm fine." Harry muttered, obviously embarrassed by all the attention. "I'm not sick."
"Oh, it's you, eh?" she said with a tone that obviously said that she should have known. "What have you done to yourself this time? Fell off the train? Misused a spell? Ate too many sweets in one sitting from that cart?"
"No, it was nothing like that." Harry cried desperately, going red in the face at the wild accusations of what he would be expected to do to hurt himself. Did he really seem that accidental?
"It was the Dementors, Poppy." McGonagall said. The woman scowled. "And Potter wasn't the only one taken ill at the time. I'm afraid that our new transfer students were greatly affected as well." She turned to the mentioned students. "This is Madam Pomfrey, the school's nurse. If you ever need her, you can find her in the school infirmary in the Hospital Wing."
Madam Pomfrey looked to the shinigami, who were all obviously still recovering, though Ichigo seemed to be doing a bit better than the others. "And who do we have here? New transfers, you say?" She bustled over and began checking Rukia's pulse, who was closest. "Yes, she's clammy. Her pulse is quite rapid. And she's pale."
"Nah, that's normal." Ichigo said from Rukia's left on the other side of Renji. "She's supposed to be as white as a sheet."
Rukia scowled as he and Renji snickered and yanked her hand away from the woman to quickly whack both boys on the head. "*Baka." She muttered as she sat back in her seat and crossed her arms over her chest.
Madam Pomfrey stood momentarily shocked before shaking her head. "Well, you certainly seem to be on the mend."
"I already explained all this on the damn train!" Ichigo complained as he rubbed the tender spot on his head. "You people don't listen."
"I will advise you to refrain from using swear words at this school, Mr…?" McGonagall said.
"Kurosaki." Ichigo muttered with a scowl. "Ichigo Kurosaki. And I didn't swear."
"You just did." McGonagall snapped. "When you described the train."
"What, 'damn'?" Ichigo asked incredulously. "That's not a swear word."
"It may not be one where you're from, but I assure you that it is here." McGonagall said coolly. "And you will refrain from using it or any other similar word while you are at this school. Since the school year has just started and you have not yet been placed into a house, I will give you all one warning right now. Any further swear words will be punished with minus points for your house and detention. Am I clear?"
Ichigo scowled deeper and crossed his arms over his chest. "Fine. Sure. Whatever."
McGonagall gave him a stern look before asking. "Now, what were you saying about explaining all this on the train?"
Ichigo glared at her for a moment before answering her. "As I said on the train to that other teacher, we've never had to deal with these Dementor-freaks. Our ministry wasn't that stupid. Our spiritual awareness is more acute than normal people. So, excuse us if we suddenly feel ill around soul suckers."
"Exactly." Rangiku said with a nod. "Who the hell puts soul-eating, happiness-sucking demons around a school full of happy-go-lucky children?"
"Language!" snapped McGonagall.
"I mean really, what are these people thinking?" demanded Rangiku as she continued her rant, not hearing McGonagall. "This has to be the dumbest thing I've ever heard. You call this safety? Well, I think it's ridiculous. Whoever decided to create an alliance of any kind with these creatures must be a complete – "
"Matsumoto." Toshiro warned, casting a weary glance at her before refocusing on McGonagall. "I'm sure that subject will become clear later?"
McGonagall nodded. "It will." Then she turned to Madam Pomfrey. "What about Potter, Poppy? Does he need to go to the hospital wing?"
"What, no!" Harry exclaimed, jumping to his feet. He almost forgot the reason he was there, what with the odd rants Ichigo and Rangiku made and the even odder comment Toshiro said to McGonagall. Almost as if they were sharing an inside secret. But now that the subject was back to him again, his mind was reeling horrifyingly, imagining Malfoy's gleeful face when he heard that Harry had to go to the hospital wing because of the Dementors.
"Well, perhaps they all should have some chocolate, at least." Madam Pomfrey said.
"I already had some." Harry said. "Professor Lupin gave us all some on the train."
"Oh, he did, did he?" Madam Pomfrey said approvingly. "Finally, a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher who knows his remedies. Very well. But the slightest sign of a weakened state and it's straight to the hospital wing for you. Ms. Granger, you and Mr. Weasley one keep an eye on him." Hermione, who had remained remarkably silent the entire time, smirked at the command to babysit the Boy Who Lived as he slumped back in his seat and buried his red face in his hands.
"Are you sure you're alright, Potter?" McGonagall asked.
Harry looked up and nodded. "Yes." He said desperately.
McGonagall nodded and turned to the rest of the room as Madam Pomfrey bustled out, ranting silently to herself about the wizarding world losing its mind by hiring dangerous creatures. "Very well. Then I want you and the other transfer students to wait outside for a moment. I need to speak with Ms. Granger. And you, Mr. …?"
"Hitsugaya." Toshiro said as he and the others stood up. He gave a small bow of respect, as was the Japanese custom. "Toshiro Hitsugaya. And if you don't mind my asking, what are we talking about?"
"Your classes." McGonagall said abruptly, a bit taken aback at the show of politeness in one so young, though she didn't show it.
Toshiro nodded and sat in the seat Harry had previously occupied as everyone else exited the room. Once the door was shut once again, McGonagall raised her wand and casted a quick silencing charm on the door before standing up and walking around her desk to stand in front of them.
"I know you two are taking several more classes than the rest of the students." McGonagall began. She reached into her robes and pulled out a letter and handed it to Toshiro. "This arrived for you moments before you arrived inside the castle. I haven't read it but the letter that came with it was addressed to me. Your main Headmaster would like you to take another class called Arithmancy. I'm sure the details of this decision will be explained in the letter but for now, those were your instructions." She gave him a meaningful look at the mention of his headmaster, almost unnoticeable to all except Toshiro. And Hermione. She frowned but said nothing.
Toshiro nodded swiftly and stuck the unread letter into his pocket. "What exactly is Arithmancy? I'm afraid I didn't purchase any books for this class while in Diagon Alley."
"That's alright." McGonagall said. "I'm sure Ms. Granger, who is also taking Arithmancy, will be willing to share her copy until you can order one?" Hermione nodded enthusiastically. "Good. I will give you a form you can use to mail-order your textbooks tomorrow morning. Now, your extra classes consist of Arithmancy, Divination, Ancient Runes, and Muggle Studies, correct?"
"You're taking those classes, too?" Hermione asked in excitement. "That's wonderful. I think I'm the only one out of my house who's taking Arithmancy and I'm not sure about Ancient Runes and the rest of the class is taking Divination but at least I'll know someone in Arithmancy. You seem really smart, so maybe we can compare notes and – "
Toshiro held up a hand, silencing her mid-sentence. "Remember when I told you that if you're going to ask a question or inquire information in any way, that you need to give the questioned time to answer? This is one of those times."
Hermione's eyes widened and she quickly clamped her hands over her mouth. "I'm sorry. I forgot. It's a habit."
"We'll work on it." Toshiro said, though Hermione couldn't tell if that was a threat or a promise.
McGonagall sat in silence, slightly amused with the way Toshiro handled Hermione's endless babbling. "May I continue?" Toshiro gave a slight nod for her to proceed. "Now, as I said, you two are taking much more classes than the rest of the students. Because of this, many of your classes, namely the ones I just listed, overlap with one another. However, the headmaster and I have agreed to allow you two a bit of leeway." She looked at Toshiro. "Your headmaster has agreed that you are responsible enough for this as well. We had to ask him since we do not know you enough."
Toshiro nodded in understanding at the extra precautions these people were taking towards them. McGonagall stood up and went to a locked cabinet. She opened it and pulled out an odd hourglass shaped instrument attached to a thin gold chain. She returned to her spot between them and the desk and held the device up for them to see. "This is called a Time-Turner. Professor Dumbledore had to have special permission from the ministry in order to let two students use this. However, he has assured them that you two are quite responsible and I hope he has not lied them." She eyed them individually before continuing. "Now, it works like this…"
BREAK
Once she had finished instructing Toshiro and Hermione on how to use the Time-Turner, the three of them stood and headed towards the door. "Now, remember." She said as they paused in front of it. "Drape the chain around both of your necks at the same time before turning it. Then you two can get to all of your classes with no problems. But be careful. I can't tell you how many times people have misused the Time-Turner and messed up a crucial part of the past and the ministry had to fix it. Change nothing. This is for your classes only. Understand?"
Toshiro and Hermione nodded mutely while Hermione slid the Time-Turner down the front of her robes. McGonagall undid the silencing spell and opened the door to find Harry running back and forth between Ichigo, Renji, Rangiku and Rukia, all of whom were laughing and throwing something small and shiny back and forth between them.
"Come on, you guys! I'm serious!" Harry whined as he chased the flying object towards Renji, only to about-face and head towards Rukia. "Give them back! I can't see!"
"You started it." Ichigo said as he held the object above Harry's head for a taunting moment before sending them sailing in the air towards Rangiku.
"I didn't mean to trip you!" Harry said as he tried to catch the object as it soared over his head.
Rangiku laughed as she caught the object, which Toshiro, who was closest to her, was able to make out as Harry's glasses. She laughed even harder when Harry tried to grab them out of her hand. "Jump for them." She taunted as she dangled them above his head. "Come on, jump! You can do it!"
Harry pouted. "No fair. You guys are a lot taller than me!" He tried to jump for his glasses again, only for Rangiku to hitch them higher.
Rangiku laughed as Harry made another wild grab and tripped, causing him to fall forward and land face first into Rangiku's massive bosom and causing them both to fall to the ground. She laughed even harder at the violent shade of magenta spreading over Harry's face as he hastily pulled away from her.
Harry quickly grabbed his glasses from her limp hand, feeling the heat spreading throughout his body as Renji and Ichigo hooted and howled with hysterical laughter, both of them slumped on the ground, clutching their sides. Even though he couldn't hear her, he knew Rukia was laughing at him too.
"Are you quite finished?" Toshiro snapped. Harry looked up and was relieved to see that Toshiro was scowling at them all instead of laughing. Hermione, however, looked like she was trying hard not to laugh. Professor McGonagall was just as impassive as always. "Need I remind you that this isn't a playground and you are not five years old?"
"You're closer to it than we are." Ichigo smirked as he regained his breath.
Toshiro glowered at him, the air in the hall turning chilly. Ichigo coughed nervously and looked away as he and Renji picked themselves off the floor and the group composed themselves.
Toshiro rolled his eyes and turned back to McGonagall. "Shall we?" he asked.
McGonagall raised an amused eyebrow and nodded before turning and leading them back down the corridor to the stone staircase. "By the way, what have you all done to your uniforms?" she asked as they went down.
"I did it." Rangiku said cheerfully. "Do you like them? I thought they gave them more of a personality, don't you? I do all of our clothes. I could do yours too, if you'd like. What do you like? Cats? Dogs? Birds? A lion, perhaps? I did one for Harry's, did you see? Show her, Harry."
Harry looked at her for a moment as they reached the Entrance Hall before looking up at his head of house and showing her his uniform under his robes. Several gold and scarlet mini-griffins lined Harry's tie in a striped pattern and the letters 'HP' were etched over his right breast pocket in the shape of silver lightning bolts.
"Cool, huh?" Rangiku asked proudly. "I checked the rules myself at the bookstore and I asked everyone at the Leaky Cauldron. There is no rule that says I can't do things like this as long as they stay proper. They are. They just have a bit of a personality with them."
"Yet you can't do your homework when you're supposed to." Toshiro muttered dryly. Rangiku winked at him cheekily.
McGonagall stopped them in front of the double doors leading to the Great Hall and gestured for Harry and Hermione to go in ahead of them. Then she turned to the shinigami. "Now, you five will need to be sorted into your houses. The other new students have already been sorted. Professor Dumbledore is going to make a quick announcement of your arrival and then I will lead you in." She pulled a small scroll out of her robes. "When I call your name, you will sit on the stool placed before the room and I will place the Sorting Hat on your head. It will sort you into the house it deems appropriate for you. Understand?" They all nodded and she turned and listened for a moment before pushing the doors open and leading them past the curious stares to the front of the room.
"I will now start the sorting for the transfer students." McGonagall announced to the school. She unrolled the scroll and called her first name. "Abarai, Renji."
"At least she pronounced it right." Renji mumbled as he stepped forward and sat on the stool. A battered old cloth hat was placed on his head. There was silence for a moment before a voice suddenly spoke in his head.
"Ah, what have we here?" said the voice. Renji suddenly realized that the voice was coming from the hat. "You're not human, are you? Let's see. Ah, yes. You're a spirit. A soul in a human disguise."
Renji tensed up and tried to reach up and yank the hat off his head. Unfortunately, he might as well have had heavy weights attached to his wrists for all the movement his arms made. You better not tell anyone about this, Hat. Renji thought furiously. That's classified information.
"Don't worry, I won't tell." The hat said. "I never tell anyone of my conversations with those I sort, not even the headmaster. Though I believe he already knows what you are, doesn't he?"
Yeah, he does. He's the one who called us.
"I see. Well, then. Let's get you sorted, shall we?" the hat said. "Now, you definitely have an urge to prove yourself, especially to your superior. You wish to be strong enough to beat him in a fair fight one day, right? Yes, thirst for strength and power are fine traits of Slytherin. You might not do so well in Ravenclaw, however. You're intelligent, yes, but you're more interested in brawn than brains, aren't you?"
Did you just call me stupid? Renji demanded incredulously.
"Of course not. But would you be comfortable living with a bunch of brainiacs?" Renji hesitated. "Exactly. I know you almost as well as you know yourself at the moment. Now, let's see. You do have qualities of Hufflepuff. Honesty, loyalty, yes, you definitely have that. And you have a tremendous amount of bravery, perfect for Gryffindor. But where to put you?"
Not Slytherin. Renji thought automatically.
"Oh? Why not? You would do well."
Those self-righteous pricks piss me off. You send me there and I'll tear you to pieces and feed you to those skeletal horses I saw pulling the carriages. Capiche?
"Oh, alright. No Slytherin. But your immense bravery and great urge to protect your friends would probably serve better somewhere other than Hufflepuff. You'll go to GRYFFINDOR!"
Suddenly the hat was pulled off his head and Renji stood up, scowling at the hat. "Next time don't shout in my ear, stupid!" he told it.
Several students snorted or snickered as he stomped passed towards the Gryffindor table and sat down opposite Fred and George, who high-fived him. Then the hall fell silent again as McGonagall called Toshiro to the stool.
Toshiro sat on the stool, ignoring the muttered comments about his height and hair color as the hat was placed on his head. Then a voice filled his thoughts and Toshiro quickly pushed it out.
"My, you're a strong one. Relax, I'm not going to hurt you. I just want to do my job and sort you into the house you'll be living in for the rest of the year. Since, if you're like your friend, you won't be staying longer than that either, eh, Soul Reaper?"
How much did you see? Toshiro demanded suspiciously.
"Not much before you pushed me out. And like I told your friend, I never repeat my conversations with others to anyone, not even the headmaster."
Toshiro hesitated for a moment before allowing the hat part way into his mind.
"Well, it's not much to work with. Let me in a little further. I need to be able to read you." Toshiro lightened up a little more. "That's a little better. Now, let's see. Hufflepuff is out, that much is obvious. You have a thirst to prove yourself. Except your thirst goes out to the whole world. You don't want to be thought of as a mere child. You're too tense, much too rigid. You need to loosen up. Slytherin would be great for you in your thirst but will, in no way, help you in the long run. Ravenclaw would normally be my first choice for you, since you are a genius. A real child prodigy, eh? But I have a feeling you would be better suited for GRYFFINDOR!"
Toshiro, regaining the use of his limbs, tore the hat off his head and placed it on the stool before heading to the table Renji was at and headed towards Hermione and a frantically-waving Neville. Once he had taken a seat, and Neville had pat him on the back for a fourth time, the great hall fell silent again as Rukia sat on the stool and waited for the hat to be placed on her head.
"Another one. Well, let's see. You definitely don't belong in Slytherin. Hufflepuff won't do. Gryffindor would be nice but your intelligence would be much better suited for RAVENCLAW!"
Rukia hopped off the stool and headed towards the table with the most clapping students, whom she figured were Ravenclaw. Several girls and a few boys greeted her enthusiastically before settling back down to watch as Ichigo picked up the hat and sat on the stool, scowling at it. McGonagall cleared her throat and Ichigo plopped it on his head.
"Well, well. What have we here?" said the hat. "You're not like the others. You have something else in you. Something dark. Something evil."
Ichigo tensed and resisted the urge to growl. Mind your own damn business! I'm working on it!
"Yes, I see that. You're trying to control this other creature inside you. But you're struggling. I can see it. If you don't work harder, it will consume you. I'm not sure if I should risk the lives of these students by putting you in any of these houses."
You have to! I'm a part of this mission! I can do it, I know I can! I'm trying my best, damn it!
"Well, you definitely won't belong in Hufflepuff. You'll scare away all the other first years I just sorted there. You're quite intelligent, not enough to be deemed a genius but you're not stupid either. But I don't think Ravenclaw will do for you. Slytherin would be nice."
Don't you dare! Ichigo snapped. Those kids seriously piss me off. If you're worried about me scaring the Hufflepuffs, then put me in Slytherin and see what happens. If there's anarchy, it'll be your fault. Do you really want that on your conscience?
"Oh, yes. You are definitely intelligent. And quite amusing. Your evil side will excel greatly in Slytherin. But you're trying to control your other half, aren't you? I'm afraid the way Slytherins are right now won't help matters any."
Put me in Slytherin! I promise I won't eat the little kiddies! I will most definitely be on my best behavior.
Like hell you will! Ichigo snapped to his hollow. Get back! I've already told you to stay away! You're not coming out!
I will eventually, King. You know it as well as I do…
"Hmm. Interesting. You'll work hard to suppress that?"
Yes!
"I believe you. Especially since you're afraid of what it'll do to your friends and loved ones if it gets out. It will turn you into a monster and causing harm to your loved ones is not something you would ever want to do, would it? No, you'll definitely do well without Slytherin. Gryffindor seems the best option. Besides, you're a natural born leader. And you're brave. You have a strong desire to protect everyone, whether you want to or not. I see you've been helping lost souls find peace for a while now. You would risk your life for others without a second thought. That's mighty admirable. You belong in GRYFFINDOR!"
Ichigo pulled the hat off of his head and gave it a quick nod before placing it on the stool and heading towards the Gryffindor table. As he passed the Slytherins, he spotted Malfoy, who glared at him, and stuck his tongue back at him before taking a seat beside Renji.
Rangiku walked up to the stool, smirking to herself as the student body broke into whispers over her physique. She picked up the hat and sat on the stool. "Ew!" she exclaimed as she examined it. "Talk about a fashion disaster." She frowned at it, ignoring the chuckles skittering around the room, and then tentatively put it on top of her head.
"Now, that was very rude." The hat told her. "I'll have you know that I was at the prime of my youth when I first started working here."
When was that, 3000 BC? You need a major makeover. I can give you one when we're finished. Did you see the robes the others were wearing? I did those.
"No, I'm afraid I didn't. But I am a hat, after all. I don't have eyes. I just see what you see or have seen. I see through your minds."
That's too bad.
"Yes. Now where should we put you? You certainly don't belong in Slytherin. You are quite intelligent, more so than you seem to let on. Why is that?"
Because it makes it easier for people to underestimate me. That makes gathering information that much easier as well.
"I see. Well, you certainly are cunning. And intelligence like that would do well in Ravenclaw but you don't like to work, do you? So I think we can put you in a place other than Ravenclaw. You are brave, yes. But you also have a great amount of loyalty, especially to your little ice friend. Your captain. You care about him, don't you? Not romantically, but more as family, right?"
Right. I've been with my captain for years. I think Sou-taicho placed us together on purpose. He's all scowl-y and serious and all paperwork. And I'm all about the parties and the sake and having fun. But that's not to say I can't back my captain when he needs me. Even if he doesn't admit it. We've grown attached to each other; grown used to having each other around. We understand each other. We know what the other can tolerate and what the other can bring to the table. We can tell if the other is amused or angry enough to tear your head off. We know when the other is about to snap. Taicho tells me a lot because he knows he can trust me. We're tight. We're like this. She pictured a strand of string with a tight, complex knot in the center.
"Oh, yes. I see. But you don't want to go to Gryffindor, do you?"
No. I would like to be with my taicho but we have a job to do. And that is protecting the students from those freaks they call guards. We can't protect them if we're all bunched up. So put me somewhere that doesn't already have one of us.
"Yes, definitely loyal. Very well, then you belong in HUFFLEPUFF!"
"Yahoo!" Rangiku cried as she pulled the hat of and handed it to McGonagall before ambling over to the Hufflepuff table. Within moments, she was surrounded by boys and girls, all of them speaking to her at once. The hall broke into noise as McGonagall took the stool and hat away but immediately fell silent as Dumbledore, a tall old man with long silver hair, a silver beard and a silver mustache, stood up and gazed warmly around the Hall.
"Welcome, students. New students, welcome to Hogwarts, your new home for the years to come. And old students, welcome back. Before we tuck in to the wondrous feast we traditionally have at the beginning of each year, I would like to announce that, for our new guests, the kitchens have prepared several dishes that would seem unfamiliar to you but I assure you that they are quite edible. These dishes were made to make our guests feel more at home. Our accustomed food will, of course, be provided as well. Now, before we begin, I have a very important announcement to make. As you all are aware by now, Hogwarts is currently playing host to the Dementors, the guards to the prison Azkaban. I know they are unpleasant but they are here on Ministry business. And while they are here, I would ask that you not leave the school grounds for any reason. They are stationed at every entrance to this school and they are not easily fooled by tricks or disguises or even Invisibility Cloaks."
Harry and Ron exchanged looks. Toshiro narrowed his eyes suspiciously. Something else to look out for, apparently. He looked up as Dumbledore continued. "Dementors neither understand nor care about pleadings or excuses and I ask that you not give them a reason to harm you. I ask that the prefects and the new Head Boy and Girl help in making sure no student runs afoul of the Dementors." He paused and waited a moment before speaking again. "On a lighter note, I am pleased to announce that we have three new teachers, though one will not be introduced until tomorrow morning, as he is still traveling to get here. I will explain momentarily. But first, I'd like to introduce Professor Lupin, who has kindly accepted the position of Defense Against the Dark Arts!" There was a scattered amount of applause, mostly from those who had been with Lupin while the Dementors were on the train. Ichigo and Renji frowned at the lukewarm greeting and stood up, both clapping and whistling loudly, followed closely by Rangiku and Rukia from the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw tables.
Once they had settled down, for the rest of the applauders had already stopped, Dumbledore spoke again. "And to our second teacher. I'm afraid to say that Professor Kettleburn has retired since the end of last year. But I am pleased to announce that his place will be filled by none other than Rubeus Hagrid, who has agreed to take on this teaching position as well as his gamekeeping duties."
There was a roar of cheering and applause, mostly centered around the Gryffindor table and three students in particular. Harry could see Hagrid's reddening, beaming face and knew how much this meant to the large man. Once the cheering had finally quieted down, Dumbledore spoke once more before the feast. "Our last new professor, whom I will be introducing before breakfast, is a teacher straight from Japan, following our new transfer students. He is the sole professor to a separate group from our new students and has agreed to teach a class here at Hogwarts. This class is a one time only and will run throughout the duration of the year. He will be teaching a special class that will be offered to all years. This class will be run Friday and Saturday nights and is not mandatory. When you receive your schedules tomorrow morning, you will also receive parchment asking whether or not you would like to attend these classes. The offer will be valid for the first three weeks of term. You will have until then to decide. Just fill in yes or no on the parchment and give it back to your head of house and you will be enrolled. I'm sure it will be a great learning experience to see and learn magic the Japanese way. Now that those announcements have been made, tuck in!"
As soon as Dumbledore sat down, excited whispers broke out through the hall about the mysterious new teacher and the new class. Toshiro shot Hermione a warning glare and told her to wait until after they had all eaten before bombarding him with questions that were going to be answered in several hours anyway. Several platters appeared up and down each table, each filled with food of various types and styles. Harry glanced at the familiar bits of food he remembered helping make back on Privet Drive and was glad he had tasted these beforehand. He was sure his face would look just as apprehensive as the rest of his fellow housemates as they scrutinized the odd dishes. Neville appeared to be tinting green as he picked up one of the white flowers and examined it.
"What is this?" Neville asked Toshiro as said boy ladled soup into his bowl.
Toshiro hesitated before answering. "I would suggest eating it first. You might not want to if I tell you what it is first."
Neville looked at him, wide eyed, before taking a tentative nibble at the edge of one of the petals. After a few seconds of chewing, he swallowed and shrugged. "It doesn't taste that bad. Kind of rubbery and a bit chewy. What is it?"
"Do you really want to know?" Toshiro asked dubiously.
"No." Ron said hastily. He and several others had been watching Neville taste-testing the flower. "If it's that bad, I don't think I want to know what it is he just ate."
Neville turned to Toshiro. "What is it?"
"Squid." Toshiro said.
Neville paled, turning to stare in horror at the innocent looking flower. Ron squeaked and flinched away from the flower still on Neville's fork. Several of the other students shrank away as well. Harry, however, picked up one of the flowers with a pair of chopsticks, clumsily, since he was still learning how to use them, and popped it into his mouth. Ron looked revolted and Hermione stared in fascination.
"How is it?" she asked eagerly as Harry chewed and swallowed.
"It's not so bad. I've eaten this during the summer, so I've gotten used to it." Harry shrugged. "I guess the best thing to do at first is pretend you don't know what you're eating." He turned to Neville. "You didn't think it was so bad until you knew what it was, right?"
Neville nodded slowly, thoughtfully. "Yeah. That's why Toshiro told me to taste it first." He looked at Toshiro. "It's not raw, is it?" Toshiro shook his head. "Then I guess it's not so bad." Neville looked at the flower for a moment and then popped the rest into his mouth. "It almost tastes like something gummy. But with a different flavor other than candy."
Harry nodded. "That's what I thought too. At first I didn't want to eat it or anything else made with fish but once I started eating it without knowing it, I realized that they're right. Our minds automatically decide that we won't like something because of what it looks like, smells like, or made out of. So I ate a lot of food without knowing what it was and then when we were done eating, they would tell me all the stuff I ate."
"That's actually not a bad idea." Hermione said wondrously. She glanced down at a platter containing golden-brown square-ish slices of meat with three sticks sticking out of one end of each piece. Some of the squared slices of meat looked more like thick strips of bacon and others looked like small grilled ribs. She picked up one of the square slices of meat by its sticks and glanced up at Toshiro. "Don't tell me what it is, okay?" Toshiro nodded with a shrug and continued eating his own food. Hermione looked at the meat before taking a small bite out of a corner. After chewing thoughtfully and swallowing, she turned back to him and smiled. "That wasn't bad at all. So what was it I just ate?"
"*Unagi-no-kabayaki." Toshiro answered curtly. Hermione looked puzzled.
"Eel." Harry answered. He smirked at the shocked look on her face. "Grilled eel, to be exact."
"Eel?" Ron exclaimed. He glanced at Hermione in horror. "And you liked it?"
Hermione nodded and took another larger bite. "It's quite good. Almost like chicken."
Harry nodded again. "I thought that too."
"You're both mental." Ron whispered. He shook his head and glanced at a large bowl of soup with chunks of square-ish white blocks and an odd assortment of vegetables. "Is this safe?"
"Yes." Ichigo answered as he glanced at what Ron was pointing to. "Its just miso soup."
"W-what's miso soup?" Ron asked nervously as even Harry wrinkled his nose.
"I don't think you will like it, Ron." Harry told him. "It's a type of soup made with a bunch of different ingredients. Each miso soup is different and it looks like that one is made with both negi, which is an onion, right?" Ichigo nodded as he sipped at his own soup bowl. "And also made with tofu."
"Tofu?" Ron asked in disgust. "Isn't that a bean?"
"Um, how did you describe it?" Harry asked Toshiro.
Toshiro sighed and set his chopsticks down beside his rice bowl. "Tofu, or bean curd, is made by coagulating soy milk and pressing the curds into little soft squares, like you see there. Tofu is made out of soy beans. Most people use it as a substitute for meat. It has no flavor or smell. People season it how they want it and treat it like the real thing of which they are substituting."
"Yeah." Ichigo jumped in. "Have you ever heard of tofu dogs? Or tofu burgers?" Ron shook his head slowly. "Well, what they do is get the tofu and mold it into the shape of a burger patty or hot dog, and then cook it like one. They season it and do a bunch of stuff to make it taste like the real thing but without real meat. I wouldn't really know; I've never made tofu dogs or burgers. But it's supposed to be healthier."
"No real meat?" Ron asked incredulously. "That's insane."
"You really shouldn't judge." Toshiro told him as he resumed eating his rice. "I told you that already. Besides, I've eaten foods with tofu and so have the majority of the Asian populations. We don't comment on any odd foods you eat. To you it's odd. To us it's as normal as water. Same for you if it was vice versa, I'm sure. It's called culture."
Ron looked at him oddly. "You are so weird."
"Ron!" Hermione scolded.
Ron huffed and grabbed a plate of 'normal' chicken, pointedly plopping three large chicken legs on his plate with a defiant look before reaching for other meaty foods. Hermione rolled her eyes and looked to Toshiro as he helped Neville work the chopsticks and then she glanced at Harry as he clumsily tried picking up grains of rice with his.
"I hate using chopsticks for rice." Harry complained as the rice grains slipped from between the sticks for the third time.
Toshiro reached across the table and grabbed Harry's hand. "Relax your grip. You're trying to pick them up, not squish them to mush between your chopsticks. It takes practice. Try going for the bigger clumps but don't squeeze too hard or you'll break the clump."
Harry tried again and successfully picked up a clump of rice, only to drop it before it reached his mouth. He scowled and slammed his chopsticks onto a napkin and picked up a fork. Toshiro sighed and shook his head as Harry shoved a large amount of rice into his mouth with a defiant look towards the chopsticks.
"Like this?" Neville asked, showing his chopsticks to Toshiro with another flower caught between the ends. Toshiro nodded.
"Sort of. But your fingers aren't supposed to be so close to the food." He made Neville drop the squid and repositioned his fingers. "Your fingers go back here, near the thicker end of the sticks. It doesn't have to be all the way to the back but further away from the food at least. And you only need four fingers, including your thumb. Pinky stays under your ring finger. Only use your two first fingers for the top stick and your ring finger for the bottom. And your top stick is the only one that moves up and down, using your thumb."
"I can't do it like that." Neville said, pointing towards Ichigo's hand with his chopsticks.
Toshiro smacked his hand. "Don't point with your chopsticks. It's rude. And you just started, so obviously you can't do it right away. You'll get used to it eventually if you keep practicing."
"I've been practicing for a while and I can pick up almost anything except rice." Harry said as he used his chopsticks for vegetables. "They're the hardest for me."
"Is it really rude to point with chopsticks?" Hermione asked. She picked up a pair of chopsticks and tried to position them in her hand the way Neville, Harry and the Japanese students were holding theirs.
"Yes." Renji said from beside Ichigo. "There are a bunch of things you shouldn't do as a sort of mannerism. Such as passing food between chopsticks!" he said as he glared at the twins, who had just used their chopsticks clumsily to jokingly pass a kipper from one set of chopsticks to the other. They paused mid-pass and dropped the kipper, which landed on the table with a plop.
"And letting food hit the table." Ichigo said. "And sticking your chopsticks straight up in your food dish."
Seamus glanced up as he let go of his chopsticks, leaving them pointing straight up in a bowl of rice next to his goblet of pumpkin juice. Toshiro frowned and quickly reached over, reaching past Neville and Dean, and yanked the chopsticks out of the rice and slammed them on the tabletop with a glare at the boy. "Don't. Do. That." he hissed at him.
"Why not?" Hermione asked from his other side as he sat back down. "Why can't you let food hit the table and leave your chopsticks sticking straight up and passing food between chopsticks?"
"Everything." Ichigo answered as if this were obvious. "First of all, it's disgusting and unsanitary to let food hit the table. Second, during funerals, they pass bones between each other with chopsticks. And thirdly, leaving your chopsticks sticking straight up in your food is a sign that you're giving it as an offering to your dead ancestors."
"But they can't eat." Ron said incredulously.
"Duh!" Renji snapped irritably. "But it's the thought that counts. Geez, don't you have any feelings towards the dead despite the fact that they're dead?"
"It's extremely insensitive." Toshiro muttered as he sipped at his tea contently.
"I wasn't trying to be insensitive." Ron muttered as his ears turned red.
"Then maybe you should learn to think before speaking." Ichigo muttered sarcastically.
"We've all seen someone die at some point or another." Toshiro sighed as Neville jumped and whirled around to find Rangiku leaning down behind him and Toshiro. She winked at him and glanced at Ron across the table. "Don't feel bad if we all seem a bit harsh when it comes to the dead. If you think about it, it's not a pleasant thing to think or talk about. But that doesn't mean it doesn't happen. There's a difference to being accepting to it and being insensitive. I'm sure you'd feel the same, right?"
Ron nodded. "Yeah, I guess you're right." The other offending boys nodded.
"What are you doing here, Rangiku?" Toshiro muttered.
Rangiku smiled and shoved herself between him and Neville, causing them both to push against those on the other side of them. She laughed and slung her arms over his and Neville's shoulders as Toshiro glowered at her. "I just came to see how my group was doing. Don't you like my company, taicho?"
"No." Toshiro grumbled. "I get enough of you at home."
"Aw, I feel so neglected, taicho." Rangiku whined. "Where's the love? I thought we were friends?" Toshiro snorted. Rangiku pouted and then wrapped both arms around Neville, squeezing him tightly to her, his body pinned between her breasts. "Fine. Neville will be my friend, right Neville?"
"Um." Neville flushed beet red, his arms pinned to his sides by her massive hug. "Uh, well, I – "
Rangiku squeezed him tighter, her hands snaking around to his side that was pressed against her body. "Riiight, Nee-villle?" she teased as her fingers prodded and kneaded his side.
Neville shrieked and tensed before dissolving into soft giggles, squirming in her arms. "S-stop!" he cried between giggles. "Okay! Okay! I'll be your friend! I'll be your friend!"
Rangiku laughed as she let him go and patted his back. "That's better. See, taicho. Neville will be my friend." Neville blushed harder as he regained his breath.
"Are you planning on tormenting the whole school?" Toshiro demanded.
"Of course not." Rangiku said affronted. "I wouldn't want to touch any to the Slytherins. And of course I wouldn't bother the professors. Speaking of which, where's ours?"
"So your professor is really coming here?" Hermione asked excitedly, glad to finally be able to talk about the subject without having to bring it up first.
"One of our professors." Toshiro answered. "Though we don't yet know which one."
"Who? It better not be that psycho killer Kenpachi." Ichigo grumbled.
Toshiro rolled his eyes. "I just told you I didn't know yet. And I doubt it would be him because of Yachiru."
"The little pink haired girl?" Ichigo asked.
"Yes." Toshiro answered.
"Wait, you mean that crazy looking guy with that little girl on his shoulder that I saw when you guys first got to Privet Drive? He's a teacher?" Harry asked incredulously.
"One of them." Toshiro said with a nod. "He mostly studies battle tactics. But he's not coming; that much I know for a fact." There was no way Soul Society would risk Kenpachi loose on a school of children.
Harry visibly relaxed. "So what class is this?" he asked.
"You'll find out in a little while." Toshiro said with a smirk. "Your headmaster should announce that part to everyone either today or tomorrow before classes. Most likely when he introduces him."
"This is that thing you and Rangiku were talking about that other day, isn't it?" Harry asked with a frown. "Which you just said 'you'll see'."
"You'll see." Toshiro teased with a smirk.
BREAK
The rest of dinner past and soon dessert had passed as well, with the Hogwarts students being introduced to chocolate covered rice balls, regular Onigiri, Green tea ice cream, melon bread, and different flavors of *Imagawayaki, all of which Toshiro refused to touch except for a few small spoonfuls of the green tea ice cream.
"I still can't believe you don't like sweets." Neville said as he finished off his third melon bread and licked the left over cookie crumbs from his fingers. "This stuff is really good."
"It's not that I don't like sweets." Toshiro said as he set his spoon in his small ice cream dish. "I just don't like a lot of sweets. It's just something I grew up not being fond of."
"If you say so." Neville picked up a spoon and pulled Toshiro's half eaten bowl of ice cream towards himself and finished it off.
"You should probably brush your teeth really well before bed." Toshiro advised, watching in disdain as Neville licked the spoon.
Neville chuckled and set the spoon down in the empty bowl. "You are so weird. But yeah, I usually do that anyways. Gran always made sure I did."
Before Toshiro could respond, Dumbledore rose from his seat and the hall silenced almost immediately. He looked warmly around the hall. "Well, now that we are all well fed and watered with a wonderfully unique and different style of food as well as our own, I'd like to take this time to go over a few school rules." Dumbledore proceeded to go over all the school rules, from the Forbidden Forest to magic using in the corridors to Quidditch tryouts. "Now that that is settled, it is time for bed. Also, would the transfer students please stay behind? Off to bed with the rest of you."
The students slowly rose to their feet, first years scrambling to the prefects to be guided to their dorms, and others making haste to their dorms and beds. Harry, Ron and Hermione headed up to the teachers' table and quickly congratulated Hagrid on gaining a teaching position before leaving the Great Hall and heading up to Gryffindor Tower. Neville left the Great Hall as well and waited by the foot of the marble staircase, sitting down on the steps once they were cleared.
"What are you doing here, Longbottom?" Neville looked up to see McGonagall staring at him from the doorway of the Great Hall. Neville stood up. "The headmaster told you it was time for bed."
"Uh, I was just waiting for T-toshiro and the others, Professor." Neville stuttered nervously. "So they don't get lost or anything."
McGonagall stared at him for a moment, causing him to shift uncomfortably under the scrutiny, before taking pity on the overly shy boy and nodding. "Very well. But stay here on the stairs. Understood?" Neville nodded hastily. McGonagall gave a curt nod and headed back into the Great Hall, closing the doors behind her with a bang.
BREAK
The shinigami stood in a line in front of the teachers' table, Toshiro in the center, flanked on either side by Rangiku and Renji, with Ichigo and Rukia on the ends. Several teachers stood in a line in front of them, Dumbledore in the center with McGonagall and Snape on either side, followed by Flitwick, Sprout, Lupin and Hagrid. They each sent a silencing charm or another on the double doors, with the exception of Hagrid, and turned back to the shinigami. Everyone seemed rather tense until Dumbledore bowed respectfully to the disguised Soul Reapers. "I believe Japanese customs include bowing respectfully to one's elders? And seeing as how you five are several hundred years older than myself and the rest of the staff, I believe a bow is in order?"
"It's not necessary." Toshiro said calmly, though none of them lowered their guard by much and he noted that the teachers hadn't either. "We don't expect traditional customs to carry beyond our own country and so will try not to be offended by too much."
"Except for the chopstick bit earlier." Ichigo commented. "But that was mostly because of what the actions symbolized."
Toshiro nodded. "Exactly. And actually, Ichigo isn't completely one of us. He's a special case, since he's in our line of work but is still alive. It's complicated, at best."
"Yes, well, before we get into that, I think we should take the time to fill in the details to the staff members I have chosen for this little meeting." Dumbledore said, sweeping his hands out to either side of him. He gestured to his right. "I believe you already know Professor McGonagall, head of Gryffindor. We also have Professor Sprout, head of Hufflepuff, and Professor Lupin, who also happens to be a mythical magical creature of some sort as well."
"Werewolf." Toshiro said with a nod. The other teachers, including Lupin, looked slightly taken aback at the news that the shinigami already knew what Lupin was. "I figured it out when I saw the signs on the train. It wasn't hard to figure it out just from his appearance, but mostly because we've had to deal with one after he died. Once I figured it out, I informed my colleagues, just in case no one else knew."
Dumbledore nodded, eyes flashing briefly. "I see. You certainly are perceptive. However, I would ask that you not reveal this to any of the students. Werewolves aren't very highly thought of, unfortunately." He gestured to his left. "Now, on my left we have Professor Snape, head of Slytherin; Professor Flitwick, head of Ravenclaw; and Professor Hagrid, whom I'd just introduced before the feast. I noticed that the Sorting Hat has placed each of you into almost every house, though I must admit that I am a bit surprised that none of you were placed in Slytherin. I suppose the hat has its reasons. However, if ever there is a problem, I ask that you speak to one of these professors, and they, in turn, will report it back to me. Unless the situation calls for immediate action, in which case you should report to me directly."
Dumbledore gestured to the closest table before taking a seat, the other teachers following suit and the shinigami seating themselves on the other side, all of them keeping their positions. "Now, would you please explain who you are and your mission briefly for the benefit of the professors? Just so that we are all on the same page, more or less."
Toshiro nodded and gestured to himself and then to his right. "I am Captain Toshiro Hitsugaya, captain of Tenth Company of the Thirteen Court Guards of Soul Society. On my right is my subordinate, Lieutenant Rangiku Matsumoto of Tenth Company; and beside her is Rukia Kuchiki of Thirteenth Company, and part of the royal Kuchiki Family." He indicated to his left. "On my left is Lieutenant Renji Abarai of Sixth Company; and beside him is Ichigo Kurosaki, Substitute Soul Reaper, better known as a Deputy Soul Reaper. And as I said, his situation is complicated and irrelevant to the current case. As for what we are, I believe it is first appropriate to make sure you are all aware of a few key components. First, is everyone here familiar with Soul Society?"
"I'm afraid not." Dumbledore amended. "Not much has been revealed except that you are not really students, nor are you even human, and that you were sent here at my request to an old friend, your Head Captain, am I right?"
Toshiro nodded. "Yes, that would be Yamamoto-taicho. He also goes by Sou-taicho, Yamamoto-taicho, Head-Captain Yamamoto, Captain-General Yamamoto, or just Head Captain."
"And 'taicho' means?" Snape asked coolly.
"Captain." Toshiro answered.
"Yes, I believe your lieutenant called you that on the train earlier." Lupin said more pleasantly than Snape. "I wondered what it meant."
Toshiro glared at his sheepish lieutenant. "Yes, I know. Unfortunately, too many have heard her call me that already. So we've decided to use it as a sort of – " he grimaced. " – nickname."
Rangiku nodded enthusiastically. "Yep. Since taicho means captain, we've decided to use it as a nickname for him because he acts so much like a captain and a leader. It fits his outward personality."
Dumbledore smiled gently. "That it does. Now, these teachers already know what you aren't. Please enlighten them on what you are."
Toshiro picked up his narrating. "We live in a place called Soul Society, where the souls of the dead go. We, as Soul Reapers, head down to different parts of the world, unseen by most humans, and bring the wayward spirits back to Soul Society. Soul Society itself is difficult to explain and will take much too long. Just know that our jobs are to bring souls to Soul Society, protect them from evil on the way there, and keep them from turning into creatures called Hollows." Rukia pulled out a notebook and pen from inside her robes and began illustrating for the teachers as Toshiro continued.
"It may happen a bit differently here, but the basics are the same. When a person dies, their soul separates from their body, attached only by a thick chain. This chain is attached to the chest and once it has been severed, if it hasn't already, the soul will no longer be able to go back into the body. However, if the chain is severed and no Soul Reaper is around to take them to Soul Society, the chain will start to eat itself until all that is left is an empty hole in the center of that person's chest. Which is how they got the name Hollow. A hollow is a soul that has gone bad. Evil. Once a hollow is formed, our job is to kill it before it kills humans and eats their souls. The more souls they eat, the stronger they become. Souls that were bad before they became hollows go to hell. Those that were innocent but became hollows because of another hollow and killed, are still innocent. After the hollow has been eliminated, the soul is purified and sent to Soul Society."
Toshiro paused and allowed them a chance to comprehend this before continuing. "We, specifically, are types of Soul Reapers. As I told you, I am one of thirteen Captains in Soul Society. Each squad has its own specialty, ranging from ninja guards to medics to mechanics, and so on. And each squad has a captain. Each captain has its own lieutenant and lower subordinates. Rangiku is mine, belonging to Squad Ten. Renji is the lieutenant to the captain of Squad Six. And Rukia is neither a captain nor a lieutenant but a regular subordinate to the captain of Squad Thirteen. And I already told you about Ichigo. That is not to say that Rukia and Ichigo are weak; they are almost as strong as we are, but again those details are irrelevant.
Our mission was given to us by the head captain and main ruler of Soul Society. He is also Captain of Squad One. He presented us with letters informing us of the mission we were to undertake. That mission is to protect the school, and Harry Potter, from Dementors, Sirius Black, and Voldemort." Several of the teachers flinched or jumped at the name. Dumbledore sat calmly, appearing to not have noticed their reactions. Toshiro ignored them and continued. "We don't care too much about Black and the other one. Our main concern, as Soul Reapers, is the Dementors. These creatures resemble Hollows too much to be allowed to run loosely the way they have been. We're slightly weary of anything that eats souls, I'm sure you understand."
"Naturally." Dumbledore acknowledged.
"Black and the other one are human." Toshiro said. "Even though the other one was dumb enough to make himself close to nothing, he's still human and can be defended against as one. The Dementors are our main priority. Soul-less is worse than death."
"I agree." Dumbledore said, a hard edge to his voice.
"Then what the hell are you people doing with things like those freaks for 'protection'?" Ichigo demanded.
"What did I say about language?" snapped McGonagall.
"Sorry." Ichigo snapped irritably, obviously not meaning it one bit. "But seriously. You people are afraid of this big, bad Moldy-wart guy, who, might I add, had his ass handed to him more than once by a human kid, and yet you hire soul-sucking monsters for protection. Talk about ironic stupidity. So I repeat; what the hell are you people thinking?"
Dumbledore raise a hand as McGonagall and Snape both made to reprimand Ichigo for his language and attitude, signaling them to be quiet. "I quite agree and I am, in no way, happy with them that you are. Unfortunately, it is not my call to make. However, I am well within my rights to ask for outside help if I deem the situation calls for it. And it does. Hence your appearance at this school, though under disguise for all our sakes, I imagine. But this is why I have asked for your help."
"So this is mostly because of the Dementors?" Lupin asked.
Toshiro nodded. "Yes, but we will still be keeping an eye out for Black and the other one."
"Moldywart." Ichigo agreed with a nod.
"I thought it was Voldywart." Rangiku said in confusion.
"No, it's Voldymort." Rukia said.
"Let's just call him Bob." Renji said sarcastically.
"That works." Ichigo said.
Renji narrowed his eyes at him. "I was kidding."
"Be quiet!" snapped Toshiro. "I am not babysitting you like this all year. Shape up or go home."
"Yes, Mom." Ichigo muttered. Renji snorted and quickly tried to cover it up with a coughing fit.
Before Toshiro could respond, Rukia stood up and bashed their heads together. "Show some respect to the Captain!" she reprimanded.
"Oh, hush!" Ichigo said with a scowl as he rubbed his head. "Why don't you go back to your bunny drawings, Ms Chappy."
"Enough, dammit!" Toshiro yelled, slamming his fists on the table top. The temperature in the air plummeted several degrees as he stood and glared ice daggers at the others. "You're giving me a migraine and I hate migraines. I get enough of those from Rangiku alone and I don't need them from you lot. Don't think just because we're at a school that I won't reprimand you my way! Now sit down and shut up!" He pointed a finger at all four of them in turn, emphasizing his next words. "Not. Another. Single. Word."
Once they had all retaken their seats, Toshiro sat back down and pulled his power back in, letting the temperature return to normal. Then he sighed wearily, rubbing his temples, and looked back to the startled teachers and amused Dumbledore. "That pretty much sums up who we are, what we are, and why we're here. Anything else?"
Dumbledore shook his head, hiding his amusement. "No. You may go up to bed. I believe Mr. Longbottom is waiting for you three by the stairs." He gestured to Toshiro, Renji, and Ichigo. "And I believe Professor Sprout and Professor Flitwick would be more than happy to escort you two to your houses and dorms." He glanced at Rangiku and Rukia. Flitwick and Sprout nodded kindly. "If any of you or these professors have any more questions, I ask that they be asked discreetly and answered only if need be. You may go."
The shinigami rose from their seats, Rukia and Rangiku following Flitwick and Sprout out of the Great Hall. McGonagall reached Toshiro, Renji and Ichigo as they headed towards the doors. "Longbottom has a habit of forgetting the password for the dorms. The password is 'Fortuna Major'. If you forget it, ask someone in your house, preferably a prefect. They change occasionally but you're usually warned ahead of time. Good night, gentlemen."
Toshiro nodded and led the way out, spotting Neville slumped against the bars of the banister to the stairs, fast asleep. Toshiro headed over and gently nudged the boy awake. Neville woke with a start and took a moment to realize where he was before he stood up. "Sorry. I guess I fell asleep." He stretched and yawned widely.
"You didn't have to wait for us." Toshiro said as he and the other two followed Neville up the stairs.
"I know. But I thought I'd lend you a hand. I didn't expect you guys to take so long, though." Neville tried and failed to stifle another yawn as he led them down corridors, up staircases and through a few trap doors before stopping at a painting of a fat woman in a pink dressy gown.
"Password?" she asked in what she probably thought was an elegant tone.
Neville paused and turned pink. "Um…"
"'Fortuna Major'" Toshiro said. The portrait swung open, revealing a large hole in the wall, to which Neville led them through, casting a sheepish look back at Toshiro.
"Sorry. I forgot the passwords change and I forgot to ask a prefect." He blushed harder. "And I'm actually not very good with remembering the passwords. I get locked out a few times because I forget."
"Don't worry about it." Toshiro said. He paused to take in the empty common room, not feeling too fond of the stuffy warmth coming from the fireplace. "It's kind of hot in here."
"Where's the rest of the crew? All of those other students that were at the table earlier?" Ichigo asked.
"Oh, they all went to bed, I imagine." Neville said as he headed towards a spiral staircase. He pointed to it and the other one on the other side of the room. "There are two sides; these stairs lead to all of the boys' dorms and the other one leads to the girls'. Ours is up here. We should probably head up. It is late and we do have classes in the morning, you know."
The four boys headed up the stairs and stopped at a landing part way up. Neville opened the door and led them inside, where eight four-poster beds seemed to be spread out across the room in a large line, a trunk sitting at the foot of all but three. Neville blinked. "Um, I'm not sure we're in the right room." He said softly.
There was a rustle of cloth and Harry stuck his head out through the drawn scarlet curtains of his four-poster, near the window. "You are." He said. "I think they redecorated the room to make it more spacious or something. They moved the furnace over there." He nodded to Neville's right, where, on the other side of the door, was a long, metal furnace, completely different from the previous one, a long metal grill standing a few inches in front of it. "And they spread out the beds."
Neville raised an eyebrow. "Oh. Weird." He glanced around the magically renovated dorm room until he spotted the three new beds at the end of the row, next to his own. "I guess those are yours. Since you have your trunks in your pocket, I can't tell which is whose. I guess you can just pick."
"I got the end." Ichigo said automatically.
Renji shrugged. "I guess I'll take the next one." He turned to Toshiro. "I guess that leaves the one next to that one yours, taicho." He said, indicating to the bed beside Neville's.
The four of them headed towards the beds, Harry retreating back behind his curtains, and the shinigami pulled out their trunks from their pockets. They returned them to their normal size and the four of them began getting ready for bed. Once they were settled and in bed, Neville rolled over onto his side and faced Toshiro's bed. "Hey, Toshiro. Don't forget that we get up around 8 ish on Saturdays for breakfast at 9. If you don't have an alarm, you want me to wake you?"
Toshiro shrugged. "Sure."
Neville nodded and yawned again, flopping back onto his pillow. "'Night, then."
"'Night." Toshiro muttered. Curse this Gigai for requiring sleep. was Toshiro's last thought before drifting off to sleep.
A/N: Well, here you are. This was a bit slower but I added in a lot more detail to some things and a bit more humor, since it's the best medicine during dire situations, which there may be throughout the story. Hope you don't mind a bit of silliness from everyone. And I hope I did okay with the details of the Soul Reapers' explanations and stuff to the teachers. And hopefully I got Dumbledore right; I'm not very good with him. Also, I just want to warn you all that 1) I'm not going to be following the Harry Potter arc to a T, since it would be difficult squeezing the shinigami into everything and plus I need to put some of my own ideas into this, so I don't feel like I'm copying JKR too much. Twists and turns, people. 2) If you haven't already noticed, I keep bouncing from one person's point-of-view to another at random. That is completely intentional. I'm doing this based on the student's point of views. Plus let's just say it's because I want to. And I hope no one is bothered by the quick explanation to the teachers about what the shinigami really are. It makes it sound more real, you know?
I am currently studying all I can about Japan and Japanese customs, mainly because I plan on traveling there in a few years, once I get my schooling straightened out and over with. So a lot of the information I put throughout this chapter, and maybe others to come, are things I just learned. I've realized that by teaching what I learned to someone else, it makes the lesson stick better. So that's what I'm doing. I will also try remembering to type in any Japanese words I use so that you can learn them too. If I miss one, please let me know. well, that's all for now. Please review and let me know how I did. Chapter fifteen should be up before Halloween. Look for it. Thanks!
*Baka – idiot (roughly)
*Unagi-no-kabayaki – grilled eel
*Negi – type of onion (Whelsh onion, green onion, etcetera)
*Imagawayaki – sort of like mini-cakes filled with different fillings. Japanese dessert usually found at festivals.
*Taicho – obviously by now you know it means captain (roughly)