NOTE TO ALL READERS: Once again, this chapter was also edited, though not by much. A tiny bit more dialogue, and I tried not to make it seem as corny as it once was. Err, I think I failed that, but at least I tried.

Hellooo~ to everyone! First of all, I would to extremely thank my faithful reviewers who have inspired me to go up and beyond! Thank you all for your encouragement and suggestions! I can't wait to hear your future feedback!

Answers to Reviews:

Bl: Thank you for the compliment on my story! And yes, the name IS going to be quite similar to Ryu, but not exactly. I pretty much just copied a specific someone's name from Bleach, though he doesn't show up very often. But I personally think the name fits! XD But anyways (I added the s on purpose) thank you so much for the review!

Needstowork: Thank you SO much for your review! I really enjoy writing these chapters, though sometimes I get frustrated and paranoid that I didn't write enough. I'll try my best to improve as we go on! Also, thank you for your seconding a suggestion! It helped me change my mind and actually really think about it! So thank you for the awesome review! I hope I'll hear from you again soon! X)

Lazyslacker: I am so glad that you enjoy my story so much! Thank you for lifting my spirits! Eheh. I thought that chapter wasn't too shabby, but I think I could've done better…maybe. XD Yeah, I didn't really think that Toshiro really wants to act childish in the inside, though many of the stories about him being childish are great! –laugh- and you aren't the only one who thinks that he was kind of like Shunsui. I didn't even think about that until you pointed it out! :D But anyways, thank you for finally bringing me out of the dark about Momo's inner self. I seriously think that her being stronger fits her perfectly. But I thought that she wouldn't really want to fully support Toshiro and the others. I mean like, she pretty much tried to attack them while ignoring their reasoning, you know? I'm not speaking ill about her or anything though. I still think she's pretty awesome. But thank you for your awesome review and suggestions! ^o^

Ice Night: Thank you soooooo much and you're welcome~! But I'm sorry it took so long. I spent a long time to do it, but it wasn't even over ten pages! I'm gonna die when that comes! XD But anyways, thank you for your awesome review!

Riley Lupin-Black: XD Sorry to burst your bubble, but I was just doing it from the most recent review to the oldest reviews. But I guess you could always think that way when you're the most recent reviewer! X) Thank you so much for your words and mini-stories! They seriously made me crack up…a lot. LOVE your reviews! Hope to hear your side-stories and reviews again soon!

LunaAsh: Thank you so much! I always worried about how my stories were and what the readers thought about it, but now I finally know! Again, thank you so much! I also thought that there shouldn't really be pairs in this story. Doesn't feel right at all, I guess. But thanks for that comment~! And thanks so much for your encouragement and suggestions! Many of your suggestions just made me crack up at the thought of it, so I'll DEFINITELY add those to the stories. –giggles evilly- Beware Toshiro… Beware….

Disclaimer: Forgive me for not saying this often enough in my chapters... but I do not own Bleach OR Shugo Chara or else...the shows would be doomed. -.-

Chapter 6

"They should be coming here by now," Tadase said, knowingly, to Nadeshiko who nodded with an amused smile.

"Who is?" Amu asked, telling Yaya to pause with her antics by holding up her hand.

"'Cool and Icy'-Kun!" Yaya cheered. "'Cool and Icy'-Kun's coming!"

Amu alternated between looking at the three Guardians and sighed. "Why am I always left out?" she muttered with a sweat-drop. She suddenly realized something was missing, so she looked around, noticing that a certain Jack was nowhere to be found. "Where's Kukai?"

"Bringing Hitsugaya-kun here forcefully," Nadeshiko closed her eyes and drank her tea nonchalantly.

Amu stared. "Come again?"

"We knew that Hitsugaya-kun wouldn't want to come here if he was invited, so we asked Kukai to bring him here," Tadase said with a smile, as if he didn't just cause someone's doom.

So cruel, Amu thought.

Just then, they felt the ground shake, the signal that someone was coming towards them at a hysterical speed.

"They're here!" Yaya exclaimed in delight.

"Kukai's really doing his best to drag Toshiro-kun here, isn't he?" Amu mused out loud.

"But something feels different," Nadeshiko observed.

"Different?" Tadase asked, turning questioningly towards Nadeshiko.

His question was answered when the door of the Royal Garden banged open and in came a blur of white and brown.

"Looks like our plan was turned the other way around," Tadase laughed quietly.

Flashback

Toshiro walked halfway down the path in front of the school, already twitching in annoyance. Ever since that night, when his Guardian Character was discovered, that small 'fairy' has been constantly trying to talk to him so that he could open up. Personally, Toshiro liked him better when he was still inside of him. The guardians have finally left him alone, but he knew it wasn't the end. The hollows have mysteriously subsided the past few days, and Matsumoto came back. He was somewhat pleased to find that while she was out, she managed to kill off many rampaging hollows while sending Plus Spirits to Soul Society, but only after he gave her a piece of his mind. All that was left was his mini-me- his extremely maddening mini-me.

Said guardian flew in front of his face, waving his hand. "Hello~? Is anyone there?" he asked. When he didn't get an answer, he then knocked his fist on Toshiro's temple. "Yo, brain! You okay? Hello? … Heeelloooo~? … OH MY GOD, SOMEONE HELP! HE'S NOT RESPONDING!"

Remembering that he couldn't lash out on the offender without looking like he was mental, he inwardly cursed fate that he got this guardian character out of many others.

His guardian character suddenly stopped and stared off into the distance. That was the only warning he got before it shot into his school bag. He would've been startled if he hadn't already known that his guardian character only did that when a guardian was nearby, which he had just found out a few days ago.

Toshiro looked over to an incoming reiatsu signature- a very familiar reiatsu. Oh grea-. He didn't get to finish his thought. A shape shot by him, but before it could fully pass Toshiro, it stuck a hand out and grabbed his arm, pulling him along with it.

Students and teachers alike were surprised when a two-figured blur weaved passed them, causing a gust of wind in its wake. If some students had keen eyes, they would've been able to make out the first shape as an over-excited guardian pulling along the second figure like a rag doll without letting it touch the ground.

After his brain quickly caught up to the situation at hand, Toshiro started trying to jerk out of the practically hyperactive Soma's grasp. "Soma, let go of me this instant!" Toshiro tried yelling over the wind caused by said boy.

It was hard to hear, but his voice still managed to reach Kukai's ears. With a huge grin plastered on his face, he didn't even bother to turn his head towards his hostage. "No can do, Toshiro!" he answered back. "Unless you've gotten weak after avoiding us for days, you should be able to get out by yourself!" Having too much fun, he didn't notice when Toshiro suddenly went limp. Nor did he notice the necklace that made its appearance onto his neck once more. No, he only noticed when the weight he was dragging suddenly got heavier, and in a blink of an eye, he was staring back at the direction they just came from, trees and students flashing past him in blurs with his whole body being dragged through the air by a hand on his Royal Cape's collar. Feeling the adrenaline from going too fast and forgetting a specific important fact, he grinned and actually whooped.

Soon, however, his surroundings started to speed up, causing him to feel a bit nauseous. Just when he remembered that he didn't know who was pulling him, an almost maniacal laugh answered his question.

With huge effort, he managed to look over his shoulder, seeing a tuft of white hair and a face unnaturally adorned with a huge, beaming smile.

His expression turned into thunderstruck. "TOSHIRO?!" Kukai exclaimed.

His response was an extremely elated laugh from the transformed boy. "I DARE YOU TO GO FASTER THAN I AM NOW!" he yelled out. "TRY TO BEAT THIS!"

He sped up, Kukai yelling along the way until he felt like he was going to black out. Tears comically flowed down his face in streams as he wondered what the heck was going on.

Flashback Ends

The white and brown blur screeched to a complete stop in front of the platform, showing a strangely pleased and exhilarated Hitsugaya with a half-dead Kukai in one hand. Hitsugaya pumped his fist in the air with a flashy grin. "I WIN!" He yelled in a victorious voice. "I BEAT YOU, SOMA - " He stopped when he finally saw the state the older-looking boy was in. "Soma-kun? Soma-kun?" He shook the limp boy. Unable to get a response, he turned slightly panicky. "Oy. Wake up! This is not funny! Cut it out!"

Meanwhile, the guardians all stared in shock at the uncharacteristic behavior the usually calm white-haired youth is showing. Nadeshiko, Tadase, and Yaya all broke out of their stupor first. "Ano, Hitsugaya-kun, I think you should let us help," Tadase said, walking up to the pair. Least to say, he was surprised when Hitsugaya shot a suspicious look at him, and protectively turned Kukai away from public viewing.

"No," he stubbornly said.

"Hitsugaya-kun," Tadase pleaded, sweat-dropping at the defensive behavior.

"No."

A strange sound erupted from behind him, so Tadase looked back at the watching Guardians. Before he could look completely, a hazy, red figure darted past him. He noticed that Amu had recovered and Nadeshiko was smiling good-naturedly. That meant…

Tadase looked back and came upon an amusing sight. Kukai, fully awake and alert, was being pulled back and forth between two bantering Toshiro and Yaya.

"No! He's not yours!" Toshiro was yelling.

"He's mine! He's mine!" Yaya was also yelling.

"HELP ME!" Kukai was screaming.

Amu and Nadeshiko started laughing in the background and Tadase started smiling in sympathy for Kukai.

This was extremely a sight to behold.

~XoX~

After many minutes of shouting and screaming, the necklace (the Guardians noticed it a small while before), disappeared, and Toshiro was back to his old self. He dropped the Kukai's arm that he was holding, causing Yaya and Kukai to fall at the sudden loss of weight. A few moments passed as he remembered what he had just done unwillingly. Suddenly, he scowled fiercely, stalking angrily towards his fallen bag on the ground.

As if sensing the incoming danger, a certain occupant inside the bag started trying to move its protection along with him away, though it was a complete fail.

"Is that…" Nadeshiko realized.

Sure enough, Toshiro grabbed his bag, stuffed his hand inside (a barely audible yelp emitting from inside the bag), and pulled out a struggling and scared wit-less Guardian Character. "Ryuken," Toshiro growled out menacingly, revealing the Guardian Character's name (1).

"Y-yes?" Ryuken tentatively squeaked out.

"If you do that again-" he started, but was interrupted by the 'person' he was scolding.

"I didn't do it," he blurted out. Seeing Toshiro's puzzlement, he explained with a little more confidence. "You did it yourself."

It was evident that he was still in the dark.

"Like…Tadase-kun?" Yaya cogitated out loud, her pointer finger on her lip and her eyes looking upwards in a thoughtful expression.

Both look-alikes turned their attention questioningly towards the guardians. Noticing this, Nadeshiko explained. "When anyone says a certain word in Hotori-kun's presence, he undergoes something we call a 'Character Change'," she said, smiling when said King looked a little sheepish. "It doesn't happen to everyone, though."

Toshiro stored this information in his mind. If it was completely automatic… he suddenly felt a sense of foreboding washing over him. He could act that way anytime. If Ryuken follows him to Soul Society, he'll be doomed.

"There has to be a word that triggers the Character Change…" Tadase trailed off, everyone looked at Kukai who raised his hands in a 'stop' gesture, closing his eyes as he thought back.

"Let's see, when I snatched him," Kukai started, earning a glare from said victim.

Realization soon dawned upon Toshiro about what exactly they were doing. "Don't say it!" he commanded more than protested.

If Kukai heard him, he didn't give any indication that he did so. "I said that he was avoiding us for days," he continued.

Knowing that yelling at Soma would get him nowhere, Toshiro took disgruntled steps towards him, but was stopped by Hotori and Nadeshiko blocking his path. "Fujisake, Hotori, move aside," Toshiro said in a calm voice that hid his inner irritation.

Tadase shook his head. "We're sorry, Hitsugaya-kun, but we have to know," he tried to reason. He knew he failed when he was shot an extremely pissed-off glower.

"I said that he should be able to get out by himself," Kukai continued, watching Toshiro for any signs of changing.

"No, you don't," Toshiro grounded out. "And I would very much appreciate it if I could remain the same."

"If you really want to remain the same, then Ryuken wouldn't be here, would he?" Nadeshiko pointed out.

"Remember, if you don't believe in your Guardian Characters, then we will disappear," Kiseki reminded, floating next to Toshiro.

Toshiro turned his head sharply towards Kiseki, seeing, for the first time, a different Guardian Character than his own.

Tadase smiled. "Right, we almost forgot to introduce our guardians," he said while Kiseki moved above his shoulder.

The mini-Tadase crossed his arms in an authority manner. "I am Kiseki, Tadase's Guardian Character, and the King of all Guardian Characters," he stated, closing his eyes with a proud frown. Expecting the attention to still be on him, he opened his eyes, but instead, Toshiro's attention was focused on all the Guardian Characters gathered all around him. No one noticed when he started yelling at them for taking the attention away from him.

"I am Temari, Nadeshiko's Guardian Character," Temari said simply.

"Pepe, here~! Yaya's Guardian Character, desu~!" Pepe yelled cheerfully through the pacifier.

"There was one last one, but I can't remember," Kukai muttered in the background, already forgotten.

"I'm Ran; this is Miki, and Su! We are Guardian Characters of Amu-chan!" Ran said, pointing at each person in turn when she said their name.

"I'm Daichi, Kukai's Guardian Character," Daichi said with a grin and a thumbs-up.

"I am Ryuken, Toshiro's Guardian Character," Ryuken stated, making himself known as he was still stuck in said person's grasp a few feet below the other Guardian Characters.

"Hi Ryuken! What were you born of?" Ran asked, floating down to his level.

"I -," Ryuken was about to answer, but was interrupted by Kukai yelling loudly.

"I got it!" he yelled excitedly towards the Guardians and Guardian Characters.

Toshiro's eyes widen and cursed inwardly. He forgot his main objective! Looking at the other Guardians smiling 'innocently', he knew that it was their plan all along.

"Weak! His word is 'weak'!" Kukai explained.

Toshiro jolted as if he was struck by lightning, stepping back with a shocked expression. Just then, the necklace appeared, causing him to lose complete control over his own body. "WHAT?!" he yelled out incredulously. He was sure his throat was going to be sore by the end of the day. "Look here, boy, I am much stronger than you think!" he exclaimed, pointing at Kukai.

Kukai looked like he was in a state of shock as he cocked his head to the side with a dumbfounded expression on his face, once again. "Boy? Hold on, I am one grade above you, so I am older!"

"So Hitsugaya-kun's word is 'weak', right?" Amu spoke for the first time.

Tadase nodded. "That's what it seems," he confirmed. He walked up to the changed Toshiro, clearing his throat when Toshiro didn't notice him. "Hitsugaya-kun," Tadase said, trying to get his attention.

Said Shinigami stopped and lazily turned his head towards his confronter. He stared so emotionlessly that Tadase almost thought that he was back to his old self if it wasn't for the necklace. "What?" he asked, eying Tadase. "Who are you supposed to be? The prince of the family?"

All guardians froze and stared at Tadase. Oh god, not again, Amu thought with a sweat-drop.

"Prince?" Tadase repeated, just before his signature crown appeared on top of his head. His face shadowed with darkness and fire practically burning around him, he smirked evilly. "You dare call me a prince, you peasant?!" he yelled, pointing at Toshiro with fire burning in his eyes. "You dare call me such a low title?! You and your friends will pay for your insolence!"

Toshiro stopped to think about this sudden change for a second. And then… "What?!" he shouted out. "You have no right!" He banged his head against Tadase, snarling fiercely.

"I have the right! I am King, and not even you can do anything about it!" He pushed forward, causing Toshiro to move his upper torso backwards.

"I can and I will do something about it! I'll shield them from your filthy desires; I'll defeat you myself if I have to!" Toshiro responded with a strong push, causing Tadase to also move himself backwards, though more than Toshiro had to. Sparks flew in a straight line between the pair's eyes. "Just you wait! We'll see who the low-life is when that's over!"

And so, the all-out verbal war began- neither side willing to allow the other to have the dominant win. As of yet, none of the Guardians or their would-be selves have succeeded in breaking up the quarrel between the challenge-driven males. As a result, Nadeshiko, Amu, and Yaya have already begun drinking their second serving of tea elegantly. Most of their guardian characters joined them with their own mini-cups while the rest watched the ever-lasting dispute wearily. Kukai continued to stand with his hands on his hips and watched with amusement clearly written across his face. "They will never give up, will they?" Kukai jokingly said to no-one. He was surprised when someone answered.

"Toshiro-kun won't," a voice answered over his shoulder, startling Kukai.

Kukai turned his head, seeing Toshiro's Guardian Character. "Why's that?" he asked, curiously.

"I was born from Toshiro-kun's wish to be strong enough to protect the people he cares about," he revealed to Kukai.

Kukai blinked in surprise, but soon turned back to the still quarrelling students. It fits him perfectly, he thought. His wish isn't selfish. He just wants to keep his friends away from danger. He stared at said boy who was currently shouting about locking Tadase away in a closet after throwing away the key.

"He will never give up until he knows that his friends and family are safe and free," Ryuken continued, his tiny face solemn.

Kukai noticed. "But that's...that's a good thing, right? He's going to be like the town savior! That can't be as bad!"

The strange Guardian Character seemed to hesitate as sadness clouded his eyes. "...Yeah..."

Kukai watched him and then turned to watch the the Guardian Character's look-alike. Toshiro had grabbed Tadase by the front of his cape and had started shaking him rigorously, yelling words that Kukai couldn't understand because all he could hear was the quiet tone of Ryuken's voice, trying to make him understand its hidden meaning.

He watched...and he wondered.

~XoX~

"Let me go!"

"Not until you agree that you won't try to control them!"

"I will never!"

"Fine, it's your funeral."

"I- what?"

"What?"

"You said something."

"I said nothing."

"You said something."

"I said nothing, idiot."

"Fine then… wait - WHAT?! GET OVER HERE SO I COULD KILL YOU!"

"I prefer my last moments to be at peace, thank you very much."

"Oh you stupid - "

Amu glanced wearily at the time. "It's almost dark and they still haven't stopped arguing!" She exclaimed, exasperated. She looked back at the two still arguing males. Well, at least one had finally calmed down… sort of.

Toshiro sat on the platform, contentedly drinking tea while calmly replying to Tadase's responses, no matter how rude they may be. Tadase is a bit way over the head. Literally. He was magically hanging upside down, about half a foot above their heads, tied to the pillar with a rope that appeared out of nowhere. Honestly, none of the guardians paid attention long enough to find out how he got up there-although it was pretty amusing to watch.

"Ne, Nadeshiko," Amu said distractedly.

Said guardian turned towards her. "What is it?" she asked.

"Shouldn't their transformation be over already?

Nadeshiko blinked as she realized this. "You're right," she said in wonder, turning back and looking at Toshiro (who was still talking and drinking tea). She continued to eye him thoughtfully for a a few short moments before she spoke. "It may be because of Hitsugaya-kun."

"Toshiro-kun?" Amu asked, finally tearing her gaze off of the tied up Tadase to stare at Nadeshiko in confusion. "Why?"

She smiled. "I don't know for sure, but it seems like Hitsugaya-kun's character change affects the changes of people around him," she theorized. "Remember- all of our character changes last for less than an hour, but Hotori-kun's and Hitsugaya-kun's has lasted for several hours. Also," she paused to look at a very noticeable crack in the floor. "Hotori-kun's strength has increased to the point where he could crack the pavement."

"Eh?" Amu cocked her head. "Nadeshiko, I thought Toshiro-kun did that!"

Nadeshiko shook her head. "Iie, it was Hotori-kun," she said. She looked at Amu straight in the eye. "Hinamori-chan, if this is how strong Hotori-kun is in his Character Change, do you know how strong we would be if we were in a Character Transformation?"

Amu didn't need to think to find the answer. She stared at Nadeshiko. "If Toshiro is in a Character Change, we will become over two times as strong?"

Nadeshiko looked back at the crack in the pavement. She nodded slowly.

Little did they know a certain blue-haired teenager with cat ears and a tail had listened in on their little conversation hidden a few feet away.

"'His Character Change'… was it," he said in a low voice. He looked sideways at the indifferent Toshiro. "I found you."

To be continued…

1) Heh, so yeah, I stole Ishida's father's name because it seemed pretty good. Though their personalities are so different.

Dun, dun, duuuuun~! Well, there you have it folks! I believe it's not what you exactly wanted for the Toshiro and Tadase Character Change Showdown, but I hope it'll do. Also, Easter Company is now about ready to go after Toshiro, so you better be ready Toshiro because here they come! Also, thank you for everyone who reviewed to this story! I really enjoy reading every single review! Our internet is pretty much back to normal so that's why I replaced the AN chapter. Sorry that the chapter is pretty much shorter than the last one. Though it's kind of hard to guess with because the page(s) are pretty long, but it's only because there was a lot of spaces. I'm disappointed in myself, but I wanted to get this idea out. PLUS I wanted that cliff-hanger to be in there. AND I didn't want you guys to wait so long… even though it was only for a few days. XD So anyways, comments and suggestions are completely welcome! See you all next week!

Oh yes, and please review! That's NOT an order! X)

-ShiraChan-Desu