Ha ha ha! New chapter! I think I'm finally through this stupid case of writer's block! Took long enough!

So the majority of this chapter is the annoying-but-necessary filler-ish chapter where I have to eat up time before a part I want to write while taking care of some necessary explanations to his friends. It was very irritating to write but I got through it. Took too long... Such a pain...

Oh well, you all get a new chapter and I get to write about more interesting things continuing on from this chapter! To tell you the truth, I think I'm just gonna skim through this book/movie and just touch on the more important events, I REALLY want to write during the fifth book, gonna make Ichi teach Umbridge a thing or two. Sorry if you don't like this but if you review with a request for a specific event to happen or a particular interaction between characters I might make it happen. I got nothin so far so any help would be appreciated.

Disclaimer: What do you think? I own NOTHING. Just my irritating distracted brain and hands that seem to want to have spazz attacks whenever I try to type.

"Did you know Ichigo's back?"

The group of teenagers stared at the speaker, Chad. Ichigo's friends had kept together when their former leader had left the country suddenly without an explanation of any kind. They tried to find some way to keep in contact with him, but since they had no idea where he even was it was hard. The fact that Ichigo had been steadily distancing himself from everyone didn't help them at all. But they still wanted to think that their fiery haired leader was still the same person, or still very similar to how he had been when he was still in possession of his powers.

They knew full well it had been a heavy blow to Ichigo to lose his powers. The fact that he had been so powerful had only made it harder on him. they tried to make it easier on him, but the fact that Chad, Ishida, and Orihime would leave to fight hollows only acted as a painful reminder.

The day he lost his powers completely had started a shift in Ichigo. The day he lost his sight was the day he changed. His personality was different starting in subtle ways, but then it was more obvious. First it was his expression, no longer the scowl that had resided on his face for the last few years, now it was a look of disinterest, something he had rarely ever shown. Then it was his temperament, he was colder, more reserved, would watch people closer, as if he was assessing them. He was less temperamental than before, would just look at whoever was trying to rile him up with a look of smug pity, but then would erupt into an even more violent temper than he had ever shown, and someone would have to drag him off whoever he was whaling into before he killed them. He didn't smile anymore, he smirked. Any sort of laughter was limited to an almost silent chuckle, a snicker, or a high pitched cackle that made your hair stand on end.

The changes in their friend were discouraging, almost as if they were trying to befriend a whole new person. His physical changes were even more subtle, his skin paled from the lack of exercise outside, his eyes, previously chocolate brown, now dark brown with gold flecks, he was thinner from the lack of fighting but still muscular but leaner, as if he wasn't eating well.

They were worried about their friend, worried that he would be uneasy alone in a foreign country surrounded by strangers. They hadn't seen him since school let out last June; it was August, over a year since they had last talked to their friend.

"Seriously?" Keigo was the first to blurt out, missing his friend and being far more obvious than the others. He would admit that Ichigo did scare him a bit now, but he was still a friend, and he was sure Ichigo was still a good person even if he was even more intimidating than before.

Chad just nodded, he had crossed roads with Karin and she told him her brother was home before she started complaining about him being holed up in his room the whole time. He told his friends as much.

"We should go see him!" Orihime put in enthusiastically, more energized by the thought of seeing her friend again. Tatsuki just nodded from her spot beside her best friend, she was going to give Ichigo a piece of her mind from being out of touch for so long.

"Yes, I am curious as to where he has been all this time…" Ishida added, failing to hide the mixed anger and curiosity in his voice, it was eating him alive not knowing where the flame haired boy had been, he couldn't have gotten some educational study program since Ishida had much better grades so he was dying to find out what the circumstances were for Ichigo's school change.

They all agreed to drop in and visit him and made straight for his house.

His sister Yuzu opened the door for them, a small smile on her face at seeing them, "Ah, hello. Ichi-nii is studying in his room if you'd like to see him. Be sure to knock so he knows you're there before you try and enter. I'm not sure if he's locked the door again, Dad was bothering him earlier so it might still be closed."

They nodded at her instructions, though were a bit confused at the content. Since when did Ichigo lock his door? Or care if people knocked for that matter? Why did they need to make sure he knew they were there? And what the heck was he doing studying when it was only August?

They knocked loudly on the door painted with a dark green 15 and waited. There was no sound from the other side of the door but the lock suddenly clicked and the door swung open smoothly.

They were expecting to see their friend right inside the door and so were shocked when he was seated at his desk, facing them from across the room.

"How…. Did you open the door from over there?" Keigo murmured, speaking what they were all thinking.

One corner of Ichigo's mouth twitched upwards, but his face remained otherwise blank, "That is for me to know and you to find out."

He seemed very amused when they stared at him for a moment before turning their gazes on his room. They thought they heard him chuckle when Keigo looked at the jars by his desk with a frightened look. His room was so much different than the last time they had been in it. They were surprised that it had changed so much, since Ichigo wasn't one to care too much about his surroundings, but the room was restyled and the furniture adjusted so that there was more open space. The room was neat and clean, save for the tall stacks of old looking books placed in a group by his desk.

They didn't notice the owl until it shrieked at them, startling Keigo into jumping back and almost falling. They stared at the bird, marveling at how large it was, before they thought to ask what their leader was doing with an owl in his room.

"What the heck is that?" Keigo squawked next to Chad, whose shirt he had grabbed in order not to fall, the large teen just stared at the bird, mentally comparing it to the bird a young boy's soul had resided in, and deciding he liked the parakeet better, this bird looked too vicious. As if it knew what he was thinking the caged bird swiveled its head towards him and shrieked again, making the visitors wince.

"A bird," was Ichigo's bored answer, which just made Keigo flush as he realized how stupid his question was.

"I know that! What is it doing in your room?"

Ichigo turned to the bird and almost looked like he was confused, as if he had no idea why it was there either, "She's my pet. Her name is Tsuki."

They startled at his answer while their eyes softened at the name of the bird. He obviously had needed a reminder of his previous power because the bird did not resemble the moon at all, being light and dark brown, though it did have white and black streaks on its feathers.

"Where did you get an owl? And is it okay for you to have one as a pet?" Mizuiro questioned competently, he actually thought out his questions before speaking.

"England. And at the school I go to, I'm required to have one, for messages."

"Messages?"

"People in the community at school train them to deliver letters. They're basically the postal service in England. Tsuki's very smart and could even make it all the way here when I needed to send a letter to Oyaji." He gazed at his bird with calm eyes, just for the bird to swivel its head back to face him, making his eyes soften.

"What kind is it?" Orihime randomly chirps, making some of the others look at her strangely.

"A Blakiston's Fish Owl. One of, if not the, largest breed of owls," He answers without even looking away from the bird. He made a subtle movement with the hand resting on his lap and the cage door swung open silently.

The others retreated back a bit as the bird hopped out of the cage and flew the short distance to the desk, where Ichigo began absently running his fingers through its feathers, making it coo softly. Then they realized that the cage had opened by itself and looked closer at the metal cage, looking for some sort of mechanism that would open the cage without aid. There was nothing out of the ordinary on the cage, making them frown in confusion. Ichigo seemed to be ignoring them, or didn't notice their looks as he scratched at the base of Tsuki's head.

"So why are you guys here?"

They startled at the unexpected question, along with the guarded look in his eyes and cautious tone in his voice. They never thought he would question their visiting.

"We heard you were back and wanted to see you," Chad rumbled honestly.

Dark brown eyes weighed him before their bearer closed them and nodded, "Alright. Not that there's much to talk about, other than your graduation."

A few of the group flushed, having forgotten the fact that Ichigo had left the year he would have been a senior, but then they caught the fact that Ichigo had said 'your,' not 'our.' Even if he had changed schools, he still would have stayed in the same grade. Tatsuki brought this up, "What do you mean 'your?' You graduated too didn't you?"

"No. My new school is run differently. You don't graduate until you've proven that you have sufficient grasp of the knowledge. I transferred in later than others so I'm not set to graduate for a few more years."

"What kind of school does that? You should be in a senior class!" Ishida seemed to have the most problems with this, strangely enough.

The orange haired boy just shrugged, "A specialty school. I don't know as much as the others my age so I'm in classes with younger kids. They require different material than our school so it'll take me a bit longer to graduate."

Ishida did notice that Ichigo did not answer his question about what sort of school he did attend but was still trying to wrap his head around the idea that Ichigo was put in with younger students, "So you are in classes with those younger than you?"

"My school runs on a seven year program, I entered the third year last fall, with children around thirteen years old, so I am two years older than my classmates. I'm studying to skip grades and attend classes with students closer to my age and the Headmaster has given permission for me to do so as long as I complete the work."

"Headmaster?"

"Same thing as a principal."

"What's with all the weird things near your desk? And the huge books?"

"They are materials I need for my studies. Is that all? Because I'd like to get back to work, I was just about to finish an essay when you all stopped by." Ichigo rose an eyebrow at them with a cold expression on his face, which his friends didn't like, Ichigo never showed such unpleasantness towards people, especially those he cared about.

They couldn't say anything since they didn't have anything else to talk to him about and bid him a hesitant goodbye, the sound of a lock clicking following them down the stairs.

Yuzu met them as they made their way towards the door with a hesitant smile, "Sorry about Ichi-nii, he's been really busy studying. He says he needs to skip at least a year of school to do more interesting things. It's why he's studying from home this year."

"He's studying at home?" They hadn't heard anything about it.

Yuzu seemed surprised as well, "He didn't tell you? Well I suppose he just doesn't want to trouble you, or he wants it quieter so he can work. He keeps his door locked almost all the time, and Dad can't open it no matter how hard he kicks at it, you can't hear anything through the door either."

"Why would he be studying so hard just to jump grades?"

"Ichi-nii says it's to get away from annoyances and he wants to be in classes with more mature people. He says all his classmates are really childish," The small girl answered honestly, some disbelief in her voice.

The others were surprised; they knew Ichigo thought of some people as bothers, but to go to such an extent to avoid them? They guessed the childish behavior of his classmates was most likely them being biased and accusatory, not like the immature hyper behavior of Keigo and Ichigo's own father, since he tolerated them. But still, for people to act insufferably enough for Ichigo to avoid them it must be pretty bad.

"What sort of school does he go to? He didn't tell us."

Yuzu paled slightly before looking very uncomfortable, "H-he didn't tell you? I don't think it'd be alright for me to… Ichi-nii says that he's not allowed to tell people about it, he only told us because we're his family. You'll have to talk to Ichi-nii if you want to know but he's very busy now and he gets irritated when he's interrupted. Dad broke down Ichi-nii's door before he started locking it and he made him disappear for a while. I'm not sure what he did but he didn't show up for a few hours, and he was soaking wet and shaking when he came back. Dad won't tell us where he was and Ichi-nii only says 'a lesson' when we ask. He was smiling when he said it, I wonder why…"

The older teens gulped, the smiles Ichigo made nowadays didn't mean anything good. They actually felt sorry for the adult Kurosaki for once in their lives, who knows what Ichigo had done to his father. Making him disappear was a new one, the last time they had seen Ichigo smile, he had beaten the poor bastard who provoked him into the ground, and that was without his shinigami powers!

They came to the decision that they would leave their former leader alone, unless it had been too long since he left his house, then they were going to drag him out, no one should spend that much time indoors, studying or not. They would wait until Ichigo told them about his school, knowing that nothing was surer to make Ichigo clam up about a subject than to bother him about it.

"Where is Ichigo? I don't see him anywhere." Harry questioned as he took his seat across from Hermione on the first day of school. There wasn't any sign of the strange transfer anywhere and they just knew it wasn't a matter of overlooking him, that hair gave him right away and even if he was wearing a hood, there weren't any Slytherin's wearing hoods at the table.

"Hmm, that is odd. I haven't seen him at all. I wonder where he is?" She immediately looked around the room, searching for the curious transfer student.

"Who cares where he is? Not like it matters where he's at, nasty bugger." Ron obviously didn't share his friends concern, considering he had a rather large distaste of the new student and wasn't likely to be pleasant with anything to do with him.

His two friends looked at him before Harry rolled his eyes and Hermione scoffed, they really didn't know what Ron's problem with the Japanese student was, it wasn't like he'd done anything to Ron. Ron would just spout the same thing he always did if they asked, that he was 'Slytherin and can't be trusted.' Sometimes Ron's prejudices were irritating, especially when they were unreasonable, Ichigo hadn't actually done anything mean to anyone unless they really deserved it. Heck, he even fought Malfoy! One of his own Housemates! They figured he'd eventually get over it but found themselves hoping it would happen soon.

They gave up their search for the boy once the first years were being sorted, figuring if he didn't show up before now he wasn't likely to show up at all. It wasn't until the meal was over and they were heading out till they paused, over hearing Professor Snape explain something to one of his students.

"Mr. Kurosaki will not be attending this year. He is currently studying at home in order to skip grades. He will be coming to school every now and then but do not wait up for him; his visits will be rather unannounced."

Snape's voice made it obvious how much he liked the idea of a student being able to pop in to school at any time, not one bit. His words were even slower and meticulous than usual, showing how hard he was trying to remain composed.

"Merlin, studying at home? Skipping grades? I didn't think that was even allowed." Harry whispered as he and his friends walked towards their dorm.

"It's not; at least I don't think it is. There's no record of anyone studying outside of school or skipping grades." Hermione insisted, most likely from one of her many trips to the library.

"How the bloody hell is he able to just come to school whenever he wants? Probably some stupid pureblood privilege." Was all Ron apparently had to put in, expressed in a foul tempered mutter.

Harry shook his head; sure of something since he had seen it with his own eyes, "He took apparition lessons last year. He can just apparate to Hogsmeade and walk over. Must be nice…"

Hermione was quick to back him up, "Yes, apparently he succeeded on his fourth try. After that he could do it no problem. I hear he was one of the fastest learners the Professor has had in years, I wonder if I'll be able to do it as well…."

She wasn't so sure of herself, apparition took a lot of concentration and she had trouble with that. This was one thing just books weren't going to help her with. She still had two years before she was allowed to take the class but it still bothered her, this was one thing the transfer was surely better than her at. The transfer was almost impossible to unnerve, he stayed perfectly calm and controlled no matter the situation. She vaguely wondered how he could be so focused but passed it off as a part of his personality, not that she knew much about his personality since she had never talked to him.

Not for a lack of trying, but whenever she had caught sight of the older boy he would disappear in seconds as if he was avoiding her. He really didn't seem to like contact with anyone, seeming pleased with studying in the library or writing in several small journals. She highly doubted they were diaries but he was fiercely protective them, shutting them closed quickly if anyone came too close or even leaving the area if someone was becoming too interested in what he was doing. Hermione had been frustrated last school year all the times the boy avoided her, all she wanted to do was ask him about what he was doing, it interested her to see that extremely focused look on his face, all of his attention on the pages in front of him. He seemed very focused on making sure she didn't get so much as a peek at his books.

And now he wasn't even at school. She really wanted to know what he was doing at home, was he trying out things from different years? Or trying things that weren't even part of the curriculum? It was eating at her not knowing what he was up to; he was just too mysterious for her not to take an interest. She figured she would just need to find something else to occupy her until she could confront the older teen.

She had no idea that she would be able to do just that when Dumbledore announced that they would be holding the Triwizard Tournament at Hogwarts. She was in shock for a bit, until the Weasley twins started talking about entering to win the prize money, that is, until the Headmaster told them about the age line. Hermione was a bit thankful for it, it wouldn't even be very safe for the sixth and seventh years, who knows what would happen if younger students participated? She doubted she would have entered even if there wasn't an age line, reckless leaps into danger were more Harry's thing, she just got dragged along for the ride. She had enough life-risking adventures just going to school normally; she didn't need the extra drama of being in a tournament.

The gossips of the school jumped into action during the month before the guest schools arrived, going on about who would enter the tournament and who would win. There was a fair amount of gossip about the other schools as well, but not as much, since no one knew much about them. Durmstrang especially, no one even knew where it was located other than it was somewhere north, possibly in Norway, and it was stricter than Hogwarts.

The day in the first week of October was the worst, all the students impatiently waiting for the Professor to release them so they could watch the other Wizarding schools arrive. Hermione gave up on trying to make Harry and Ron calm down and just finished writing her notes for the Potions assignment that was due next class. The Snape did what all the students had been waiting for since they walked in the classroom door that day, he dismissed them. Hermione stayed seated, not wanting to be caught up in the stampede towards the front doors, she would find Harry and Ron when she got out at her own pace.

She easily found her friends once she walked through the barely inhabited hall, most all the students having gone outside in the initial rush. The two boys were standing near the front towards one side so they could see. Neither school had arrived yet but it didn't stop the students from chatting animatedly to their friends, about the tournament naturally.

They didn't have to wait long as Dumbledore announced that the schools were getting close, right before a student yelled out and pointed at a spot in the sky. It turned out to be a powder blue carriage the size of a house pulled by flying golden horses. The Headmistress, a giant of a woman, greeted Dumbledore as another shout broke out, this time a student point at the lake, which was now producing a strange squelching sound.

Students and staff alike turned to see the ship rising up out of the water, water running down the face of the skeleton figurehead, giving it a macabre look, as if it were weeping. Water continued to run off the ship as it approached shore.

Hermione was distracted by a soft murmur from Dumbledore, "Now all we are waiting for is Mr. Kurosaki… where is that boy? I told him to be here…."

She glanced around the area, searching the paths for the orange haired boy but there was no sign of him. She glanced up as she was turning back to the lake to watch the Durmstrang students arrive but stopped half-way, her eyes locked on a small dark figure approaching the crowd from the sky.

She stared at the figure while she heard the crowd whisper about something very exciting, she stopped listening once she found out it was Quidditch related, having no interest in the sport, and waited for the figure to get closer.

It wasn't until the figure was about a hundred feet away that she realized the person, for it was human shaped, wasn't using a broom. She feared it was a Dementor for a moment before realizing that the person did not wear tattered robes and had legs. She was stunned silent by the impossible fact that the person seemed to be walking through the air. That isn't possible! There are no spells to make it possible! The closest thing to doing that is the Leviosa spell, but it isn't nearly strong enough to hold a person!

Dumbledore's loud voice distracted her from her thoughts long enough to tear her eyes from the levitating figure to face her Headmaster, just to see he was looking at the same thing she was, "Ah, I see he's arrived. I was afraid that he wouldn't make it. I suppose the time difference may have caused an issue but he's here now." Despite his words the eldest Headmaster looked slightly amazed as he stared at the figure with faint disbelief.

Exclamations came from members of all three schools as the rest of the crowd spotted the person still approaching. The person didn't seem to notice the commotion they were causing simply by their presence, they just continued on towards the doors to the castle, only stopping when they were around ten feet in front of Dumbledore and as many feet straight up. A breeze rustled the person's robes, displaying the green lining and crest of Slytherin on the left breast, but did not dislodge the hood shadowing the person's face. The students began whispering this to their neighbors though most still did not realize the identity of the mystery Slytherin. It wasn't until Dumbledore shouted, "Would you come down please Mr. Kurosaki?" over the wind that the rest of the students understood.

The figure threw back his hood, revealing orange hair falling into dark brown eyes and reaching the tops of his shoulders. He raised the black and red wand held loosely in his right hand and flicked it upwards before putting it away in a hidden sheath in his sleeve. He dropped straight down the second the wand was raised, causing students and teachers to call out in warning, concerned that a fall so far would injure him. His expression did not change; it remained perfectly blank even as he bent his legs and landed smoothly, barely making a sound. He straightened and looked straight at Dumbledore, even as everyone else in the crowd was staring at him with their mouths hanging open, "So why did you want me to come to school today? I was busy."

There. It's done. Now review. More than just a few words please. I do like when people just say they like it, but I would like a little more detail. And suggestions, suggestions are what encourage me. I need suggestions for what to put in the next chapter if I am to update soon. Unless you all want another month plus long period where I don't update at all? No? So update please. I need them.

Kay, I'm done now. Time to bum around the site looking for things to read. Seeya.