Hello! Sorry if it took too long for me to update. Anyways, bold is Japanese, and italics is a flashback. Also, I've noticed that the tent thing in my backyard seriously reminds me of Urahara's hat. It has that same green and white stripes, although the green stripes are thicker than the white. But it still reminds me of Urahara and his hat. I love Urahara...

The students stood in a group in the classroom, staring at the closet shaking before them. Hitsugaya could sense a strange reiatsu coming from inside, one similar to the creatures in the woods. The two of them stood in the back, as Lupin began his lesson, apparently having come to a compromise. Shouta perked up slightly as the boggart was mentioned, bristling slightly when Hermione explained its abilities. He gave Hitsugaya a wary glance, the other nodding in agreement. Neither of them would want to do this in front of others.

"Wand at the ready! 1… 2… 3." Lupin called out calmly, and the door to the closet swung open. Snape climbed out of the closet, and the DADA Professor muttered something into the ear of the terrified Neville.

Snape stalked closer to the boy, the round-faced boy suddenly shouting, "Riddikulus!" Snape staggered back as he was suddenly dressed up in an old hag's clothing, the class laughing. Shouta swiftly took a picture with his phone. The class, excluding the 2 foreigners, formed a line, Ron ending up in the front. The redhead stepped up, whimpering slightly when the boggart turned into an acromantula. He pulled out his wand as the thing crept ever closer, suddenly shouting out the spell.

"Riddikulus!" The acromantula was suddenly wearing roller skates, stumbling as it tried to keep its balance. Another girl went soon after, turning a giant snake into a clown in a box. Harry stepped up next, Shouta amused to see what the boggart would become. It transformed, Harry's smile disappearing as the dementor came towards him. Lupin's smile disappeared as well, rushing towards Harry. Hitsugaya got there first, standing in front of Harry, the spell on the tip of his tongue.

The boggart transformed again, Hitsugaya dropping his wand in shock and fear. He fell back, eyes wide at the sight before him. Mutilated bodies were piled one on top of the other, several girls and even some boys screaming and backing away. Shouta could pick out a few familiar faces such as Momo, Rangiku, Ukitake, and even himself. He bolted into action, racing towards the other's curled up body. "No… I didn't… I didn't mean…" Hitsugaya muttered, his breathing picking up.

"Snap out of it! It's not real, Hitsugaya! I'm not dead, and neither is anyone else! You didn't kill anyone! Hitsugaya!" Shouta shouted, making sure to keep a slight distance from the boggart. Hitsugaya didn't hear him. "Goddammit. Toshiro!" Hitsugaya's head snapped up, life returning to his eyes as he blinked, looking back at the brunette.

"Wha… Izukai…" He muttered, earning a suspicious glance from Harry. Luckily, no one else heard it. Sighing in relief, Shouta stood up walking to stand in front of the other. Hitsugaya's eyes widened as he saw the boggart change, warning Shouta not to look. The brunette looked anyways.

A single girl lay on the ground in a pool of blood, her lifeless gray eyes staring into nothingness. Her long, dark brown hair was pulled up in a ponytail, stained red with blood. In her chest was a bullet wound, where blood continued to pour out of. Standing above the corpse, was Shouta himself, blood splattering his clothes as he gripped the gun in his hand. His glowing green eyes flashed as he looked up towards his mirror image watching in horror, a wide, mad grin spreading on the bloodied boy's face. Hitsugaya reached up and pulled Shouta away from the boggart, as the Professor stepped in front of the beast himself.

The boggart turned into what looked suspiciously like a full moon, shouting "Riddikulus!" The white orb turned into a balloon that went flying around the room, before going back into the closet. Nobody laughed, the bloody scenes the 2 boys had conjured up still stuck in their minds. "Class is over for today! Everyone please leave!" Lupin called out, ushering the class out. Well, everyone except for Shouta and Hitsugaya. Once everyone left, he turned to the last 2, sympathy flashing briefly through his eyes. "Why don't you 2 go see the headmaster? There are many things I want to ask, but I believe he should hear it first."

McGonagall led the foreign students up to the headmaster's office, neither of them speaking as they dwelled on what the boggart had shown them. Hitsugaya glanced at the silent brunette, wanting to ask but at the same time afraid to. Why had the boggart shown Shouta a mirror image of himself? He knew that Shouta was still suffering from the memory of murdering that girl, but what was with that scene? And that grin? What exactly is he afraid of?

Hitsugaya blinked, snapping out of his thoughts when the professor knocked on a wooden door, before opening it and walking in. The shinigami followed, Shouta not far behind. McGonagall gestured towards the desk nearby, before leaving, closing the door behind her. As he slowly walked towards the desk, he looked around at all the books and strange knick-knacks littering the room and desk, wondering how he hadn't noticed the stuff before. What the hell is this stuff?

"Mr. Hitsugaya, Mr. Watanabe." Came a kind voice from above them. The captain's head snapped up to see an old man with a long white beard, looking very similar to the Head Captain. Dumbledore calmly walked down the stairs, his eyes twinkling and a kind smile painted on his old features. "And what do I owe this pleasure?" He stood next to the desk, where Hitsugaya noticed some bird that he believed to be a phoenix.

"Sir… I think you should know about-" Hitsugaya started, before Shouta cut him off abruptly.

"There's something you need to know. Last time we were here, we told you about the 3 defected teachers, right?" Dumbledore nodded, the conversation peaking his interest. "Well, to be honest, we hadn't told you everything. To start off, I guess, we're dead." Dumbledore raised any eyebrow, Shouta taking a deep breath. "You already know that I'm Shouta Izukai, and yes, I did die. Hitsugaya is a shinigami, or a soul reaper in English. I take it you have heard of them?" Shouta inquired, ignoring the glare from his white-haired companion.

"A reaper? Yes, I've heard of them, but what would one be doing here?"

"We were originally sent here to learn magic to prepare for an upcoming war, but last year, problems arose. You already know about the 3 Captains, but I haven't told you that they have an army of… monsters backing them up."

"Hollows?" Dumbldore inquired, Shouta nodding in slight surprise.

"Not only that, but last year we found out that Voldemort and Aizen have reincarnated my worst enemy, Raynaulski." Dumbledore raised an eyebrow, Shouta struggling to keep calm. "So… we have a proposal for you." Hitsugaya shot a glance towards the brunette, remembering the conversation they had the other day.

"I still think we should tell Dumbledore." Shouta protested, glaring at the Captain.

"Like I said, it's too risky. We can't trust him because your father did." Hitsugaya retorted.

"But if we come to an agreement with him, he can help us. Besides, he has connections." The brunette pointed out.

"You have connections too."

"I used to. Considering how I'm supposed to be dead, I can't just go up to someone and say, 'I'm Shouta Izukai, tell me what you know if you don't want to die.'" Hitsugaya grimaced. He had a good point, but it was still too risky, not to mention that they were supposed to be undercover. Telling someone would defeat the purpose.

"I'm still saying no."

"But what if we agree to help protect the students in exchange for permission to look around and get information? Plus, he could always provide an excuse for us. Snape already knows anyway."

"Yes, but…"

"Proposal?" Dumbledore's voice snapped Hitsugaya out of his thoughts, turning his attention back to the situation at hand.

"Yes. We can provide protection against hollows, dementors, Sirius Black, and a variety of other things, in exchange for information and the right to act should we need to. And probably a plausible cover story too." Dumbledore thought about this for a minute, before nodding in agreement.

"And I'm assuming you'll want to keep your identity a secret?"

"Well, the dead stuff definitely. Although there are already several students suspicious about my identity as Watanabe. They'll figure out who I am sooner or later anyways, so you don't have to bother with that." Shouta replied, relief flooding into his features, Hitsugaya glared at him again, giving the other a warning.

"Well, I don't think I can refuse a noble." Dumbledore smiled, Shouta smirking in reply. "As for your cover story… you could be distant relatives of mine, in case anyone asks. Oh, and is there anyone who already knows?"

"Um… Snape knows, and a Ravenclaw named Manabu Hara. He's a bit of a… an enemy of mine, I guess. Although I don't think he'll just tell anyone. If anything, he'll personally try to find a way to make me suffer." The brunette replied, scratching the back of his head.

"He probably found it by now. I'm pretty sure the boggart incident has circulated around the whole school now. You better watch your back."

"You too."