Chapter 20: Public Execution

Chapter 20: Public Execution

Harry bit his lip as he ran down the corridor, in what Hermione revealed, was the Shrieking Shack, which Harry could see why everyone in Hogsmeade thought it was haunted. Musty furniture clouded the floor as dust collected over every surface, the wallpaper in every room Harry passed was yellowed with age as the boy ran, following the sound of his best friend's screams, the drapes moth-eaten, and the portraits empty.

"Ron!" He, Neville, and Hermione shouted in a mixture of worry and desperation, racing down the rooms as they followed the paw prints of the apparent Grim and the signs of dragging which where obviously and worriedly, Ron.

Coming to the room where the prints led, the threesome nearly fell forward in relief to find their friend, not unharmed but that the worse had not come.

"Ron." Harry sighed firmly as he addressed another issue as he gazed around the room, oblivious as Hermione scanned her friend for injury with Neville doing the same beside her.

"Ron, you're okay." She sighed in relief as Harry spoke.

"The dog." Harry pressed. "Where is it?"

Ron, clutching Scabbers, his blue eyes wild with fear and appearance disheveled, pointed behind his friends as he shouted. "It's a trap! He's the dog! The one who ripped up my curtains! He's an Animagus!"

Turning to the direction that their friend had pointed, Harry and Hermione followed the paw prints of the supposed Grim, Neville whimpering beside Hermione, as they slowly turned ending at a figure, who closed the door that they entered only a few moments prior. With a creak of the door, revealed a gaunt Sirius Black, who walked toward them as if he was a possessed man.

Pushing her spectacled friend behind her, Hermione shouted with fear. "If you want to kill Harry, you have to kill us too!"

"No." Black spat. "Only one will die tonight."

With a burst of anger and adrenaline, Harry shoved his friend aside, as he bellowed. "Then it'll be you!"

Making a mad grab for the wanted criminal, Harry managed to get his hands around the former's neck, using his larger stature against him, pinning him to the musty floorboards, as he held him by the scruff of the neck with one hand, his wand on the other, pointed to his parents' murderer. A dark and ironic chuckle echoed from Black's lips as he took in his friend's son.

"Are you going to kill me, Harry?"

Before the boy could answer, Lupin burst open through the doors, his wand at the ready as he, to the Trio's surprise —plus Neville—, incanted the spell at Harry.

"Expelliarmus!" At Lupin's spell, the wand was sparked from the young Potter's hand as the four children turned to look at their Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor with confusion, and with slight realization in Hermione's case.

Gesturing for Harry to move aside, the boy obliged, as he joined Hermione and Neville, who stood as far as possible from the chaos, with Ron frozen at the bed.

"Well, well, Sirius." Lupin drawled as he took in his old friend. "Looking rather ragged, aren't we?"

"Finally," Lupin continued, with his wand still pointed at the criminal. "The flesh reflects the madness within."

Sirius smirked from his splayed state. "Well, you'd know all about the madness within, wouldn't you?"

Exchanging smiles, the four children watched with shocked expressions as Lupin lowered his wand and held out a hand to assist the criminal to get up before embracing one another in a hug. Before any of the children recovered, an icy voice from the doors sounded, shocking the children even more so.

"Yes." Toshiro scoffed as he made his appearance known. "The three of us are well aware of the madness within, now aren't we?"

Toshiro scanned the reactions of the five —or should he say, six? — within the room as he made his appearance. The Trio and Neville appeared stunned at his appearance, with Lupin and Black slightly relieved, as the captain eyed the rat in Ron's hands.

It appears that the rat has taken to the cheese. Toshiro thought. And therefore, to the dog.

And straight into the dragon's jaws. Sephiroth added frostily, as Hyorinmaru growled in anticipation. Right where we want him to be. For now.

"Hitsugaya! You're — With Lupin and Black?" Harry accused right out as the captain narrowed his orbs over the boy, teal orbs cold.

"I-I," Hermione stuttered as she appeared as shocked as Ron and Harry were accusing, with Neville just shocked in the tow. "I-I even defended you and said that you were innocent! But all this time you were with Sirius Black and Professor Lupin?!"

"You knew Lupin was in on this?" Harry questioned incredulously, turning to the girl with widened orbs.

"He's a werewolf!" Hermione accused as she dispersed Lupin's secret, who scowled and froze in his expression. "That's why he's been missing classes throughout the year, and Hitsugaya has been brewing potions for him!"

With a bitter smile, Lupin looked toward his student.

"Hermione, you really are one of the brightest of your age I have ever met." Lupin praised bitterly as he shot her a pointed look. "How long have you known?"

"Ever since Professor Snape had assigned the essay." She stated as Lupin nodded almost in silent scolding. "And when Professor Snape and Hitsugaya had delivered what Harry described as the Wolfsbane Potion!"

"How observant of you, Granger." Toshiro cut in as he shunpoed to Ron, who flinched away, Scabbers held protectively in his hands. With a sudden grab for Hermione's wand from her back pocket, Harry pointed it toward Hitsugaya who regarded the wand for what it was, a stick.

Turning his teal orbs to the boy, Toshiro nearly scoffed at the display.

However, before the captain could say anything, Black had beaten him to the punch.

"Enough talk, Remus! Hitsugaya!" Black bellowed. "Let's just kill him!"

"Wait." Lupin said firmly, but Black was having none of it.

"I did my waiting!" Black spat with ferocity. "Twelve years of it! In Azkaban!"

"Enough, Black." Toshiro ordered as if he were speaking to a subordinate; which silenced Black to all's surprise but the captain. "Potter needs to know the true story. You are not going to do any good jumping into killing Pettigrew without explanation."

"Pettigrew?" Harry echoed, as he looked toward Black, then at the transfer. "But Peter Pettigrew is dead! He killed him and my parents! He's the reason why they're dead!"

"Wrong, Potter." Toshiro retorted darkly. With a swift shunpo that was too quick for the wizards and witch to see, the wand was sparked away from the Boy Who Lived's hand, to find the captain's yew wand at his neck, it's point grazing the pulsing flesh.

"In the contrary, Pettigrew is very much alive." Toshiro said as everyone froze. "He is the one who has been responsible for your parents' death and the murders that Black was accused of, along with the factor of framing your godfather for it. Black was merely at the wrong place at the wrong time as Pettigrew was your family's Secret Keeper. The four of them were friends; Pettigrew, Black, Lupin, and your father."

"P-Prove it." Neville spoke up, all eyes on the poor boy as he steeled himself to speak. "P-Prove that Pettigrew is alive."

Before anyone could, the wizards and witch blinked to find the captain gone, having shunpoed out of sight for the time being, only to have Snape enter through the halls of the Shrieking Shack. Black robes billowing and ebony wand in hand, a gruesome smile covered the Potions Master's lips, sneered with mocking.

"Vengeance is sweet." Snape sneered his tongue clicking, as he absorbed the chaos as he continued with his wand pointed at Black who wrinkled in his nose in distaste. "How I hoped I'd be the one to catch you."

"Severus…" Lupin tried to intervene, only to cower as Snape pointed his wand in the werewolf's direction in warning.

"I informed Dumbledore that you were helping a friend into the castle and here's the proof." Snape accused, his voice scathing as Lupin and Black neared one another, Black in front and Lupin behind, none noting the movement in the shadows behind Snape.

"Brilliant, Snape." Black snapped just as fiercely. "Once again, you've put your keen and penetrating mind to the task and as usual, have come to the wrong conclusion."

"Now then, if you'll excuse us," Black continued, his tone snobbish and snappy, catching himself before mentioning the captain. "Hit-Remus and I have some unfinished business to attend to!"

Obviously enough, the words merely added fuel to the tension, resulting Snape pointing the end of his wand at the gaunt fugitive; as the students watched quietly, deciding whether or not to intervene.

"Give me a reason." Snape spoke as if he were speaking to a disobedient student, the point of his wand at the former school enemy's throat. "I beg of you."

"Now, Severus; don't be a fool." Lupin tried to consolidate, only for Sirius to snap.

"He can't help it. It's a habit."

"Sirius, be quiet!"

"You be quiet, yourself; Remus!"

"As much it amuses me to see you two, quarreling like an old married couple —," Snape sneered only to be cut off by Black who only aggravated the situation further, pestering Snape to jam the wand into the gaunt throat. "Why don't you run along and play with your chemistry set!"

"I could do it, you know." Snape threatened, promise in his onyx orbs; only to soften with mirth at his followed words. "But why deny the Dementors?"

"They are so longing to see you." Snape spoke as a flash of fear flashed over the fugitive's face, Snape catching it. "Do I detect a fear of fear? Oh, yes. A Dementor's Kiss. One can only imagine what that must be like to endure. It's said to be nearly unbearable to witness, but I'll do my best."

"I cannot allow that, unfortunately; Professor Snape." Hitsugaya said before he lifted a hand over the Potions Master's surprised orbs, unable to see the captain other than a thin outline of an invisible being. "Way of Binding: No. 65: Forced Slumber."

True to the incantation, the professor's onyx orbs dilated several times before falling over face first, limp as Toshiro appeared once more carrying the man who was double his stature with ease as Lupin tended to the Potions Master, shocked eyes on the ice captain whose own narrowed on Neville.

"Now then, Longbottom, you wish to see proof?" Toshiro questioned darkly, as Neville nodded.

"Black." Toshiro waved as if he were giving permission to a subordinate; only to have Harry pull out Hermione's wand, pointed at the captain, werewolf, and fugitive; freezing them at their steps.

"Tell me more about Peter Pettigrew." Harry said as the wand stopped at Toshiro, who was unfazed.

"He went to school with us." Lupin explained quickly. "We thought he was our friend!"

"No." Harry denied. "Pettigrew's dead. He killed him!"

"No, he didn't." Lupin debunked. "I thought so too, until you mentioned seeing Pettigrew on the Map which Hitsugaya had pointed out that Pettigrew was alive."

"The Map was lying, then." Harry brushed aside.

"The Map never lies!" Black snapped as he pointed with a finger. "Pettigrew's alive! And he's right there!"

Eyes following the fugitive's hand, the students recoiled in confusion as the accused was none other than Ron, who clutched his pet with surprise and panic.

"Me?!" The red-head cried in surprise as he began to vehemently deny it. "He's mental!"

"Not you!" Sirius shook his head darkly. "Your rat!"

Then streamed in the denial.

"Scabbers has been in my family for…"

"Twelve years?" Sirius nodded, his eyes maddening. "Curiously long life for a common house rat! He's missing a toe, isn't he?"

"So what?" Ron retorted, not noticing how his friends began to put the pieces together, the captain standing aside as he watched the scene unfold. Emerald green orbs flashed to the icy teal, asking a silent question as the boy pulled and picked them into place.

"All they could find of Pettigrew was his…" Harry trailed off as the captain merely rose an eyebrow, confirming the boy's thoughts.

"Finger!" Black spat, as he neared the boy and rat, hovering over them darkly. "The dirty coward cut it off so everyone would think he was dead! And then he transformed into a rat!"

"Prove it then." Harry said finally, gesturing to Neville who shivered beside Hermione. "Like Neville said, prove it. Prove that Pettigrew's alive."

"Gladly." Black snarled almost contentedly that he was able to do away with that nuisance. With a gnarled hand, the criminal tore the rat from his twelve-year owner, the creature squeaking and squirming much to Ron's distress.

"What are you tryin' to do to him?!" Ron yelled, struggling to save his pet as the framed killer tore the rat from him. "Scabbers!"

"Leave him alone!" Ron protested loudly, as Black ripped the creature from his owner's arms, Hermione and Neville holding him back with pitied looks. "Get off of him! What are you doing?!"

With a flick of his fingers, Black released the rat, the fugitive and the werewolf waving their respective wands as the creature tried to flee, missing until the rat came to a stop before the hallway, standing before an ice captain. With an icier than usual glare pointed at him, the rat recoiled, giving the two friends sufficient time to make their spell connect. Transfigured on his knees, was Peter Pettigrew.

Short in stature but taller than the captain, the man had grubby skin; small, watery eyes and a pointed nose, from what the captain presumed due to being in his Animagus form for so long. He had a disgusting mop of mousy brown hair with a balding circle on the very top and on his right hand, an index finger was missing.

Ignoring the stupefied looks on the children, the ice captain kept his stoic mask, with Black and Lupin bounding on either side of the captain, three wands pointed as the man curled within himself before looking to his former friends.

"Remus?" The squeaky voice of Pettigrew rang as he looked at the werewolf before turning to the fugitive. "Sirius. My old friends!"

Meeting with the captain's cold teal orbs, the man found only irritation and annoyance in those orbs, unsympathetic to him. Turning to the rest of the room for an exit, the man spotted the children.

"Harry! Look at you." Pettigrew exclaimed in mock happiness. "You look so much like your father. Like James. We were the best of friends…"

Angrily, Black stepped up, his voice so angry he could have been frothing from the mouth and the ice captain made no move to stop him.

Master, will you allow this to continue? Hyorinmaru questioned silently.

As of now. Toshiro replied. Black has waited a while for it. I would be cruel to be hindering him from his vengeance. But I will cut in soon enough.

Very well. Sephiroth ended as they all turned to back to the scene.

"How dare you speak to Harry! How dare you talk about James in front of him!" Black spat as Pettigrew fled to the piano, Lupin surrounding him on one side, Black on the other.

"You sold James and Lily to Voldemort!" Lupin accused, wands pointed. "Didn't you?!"

"I didn't mean to!" Pettigrew denied with a squeal, a maddening look on his face. "The Dark Lord. You have no idea the weapons he possesses! Ask yourself, Sirius! What would you have done?"

"What would you have done?!" The former rat demanded as the fugitive looked at him with disbelief that he had to even consider the question.

"I would've died!" Sirius retorted immediately. "I would've died rather than to have betrayed my friends!"

Seeing as reasoning with his former friends was futile, the man turned to the ice captain, only to have Harry intercept them, the man breaking to a malicious smile as he grabbed the boy. "Harry! James wouldn't have me killed! Your dad! Your dad would have spared me! He would've shown me mercy!"

"Enough of your groveling." Toshiro growled as he pushed Harry behind him, Black and Lupin rejoining him each pointing their respective wands. "You have caused me a great nuisance, Pettigrew; and for that you pay dearly."

"Stop!" Harry cried as the ice captain turned to the boy, wand still pointed at the true fugitive. "Hitsugaya! Don't kill him!"

"Harry." Lupin breathed with a sigh. "This is the man who killed —."

"I know who he is." The Boy Who Lived interjected.

"My father would not like that his remaining best friends would become killers. And I will not have Hitsugaya become a murderer. We will take him to the castle." Harry decided as he stood by the captain. "Then we'll let the Dementors have him."

"That is not an option." Was the ice captain's rebuttal, his teal orbs cold.

"Why not?" Harry questioned as he turned to the captain, ignoring the groveling traitor who went to the captain's feet, thanking the captain for his apparent salvation.

"Bless you, boy! Bless you, stranger!" Pettigrew groveled, when he found himself rebuffed, looking up with watery eyes to meet icy teal ones that were the coldest he had ever seen. There was no mercy in those eyes.

"You are mistaken, Pettigrew." Toshiro spoke, voice sharp and cold. "Just because I cannot allow you to have your soul taken from you, it does not mean that I have a problem in severing it from your mortal existence."

The short man froze and began to shiver in fear as the wizards and children surrounding him snapped their heads in surprise, eyes widened.

"Hitsugaya, I told you, no one is killing anyone tonight." Harry growled when the ice captain stopped him with a glare.

"You are overruled, Potter." Hitsugaya glared, annoyed with all the interruptions and time they were wasting. "We should kill him."

"Hitsugaya's got the right idea!" Sirius nodded.

"Why?" Harry demanded, green eyes filled with pent fury from the past year at the transfer, before turning to his godfather. "No! We are not killing him! Do you really want to be the murderer, the world already believes you to be?"

Black recoiled at his godson's words as the ice captain spoke.

"The reason I had transferred here, Potter; is under the orders of my grandfather, and I was to investigate the disturbance and imbalance of souls along with attend Hogwarts for my education." Toshiro explained, as planned. "Dumbledore is aware of them and that is why we cannot give Pettigrew to the Dementors. My orders were to disallow the consumption of souls to those beings, by any means necessary."

"And I never indicated that Black had to do it, Potter." Toshiro pointed out. "If you are uncomfortable with Lupin or Black doing it, then I'll take care of it."

All turned to stare at the child-appearing captain with horror.

"Y-You'd kill someone?" Neville squeaked softly as the ice captain merely shrugged, his teal orbs cold. "J-Just like that?"

"It would not be the first time I had to just for the sake of orders, Longbottom." The icy words rang, as chills crawled over each of their spines. Just how many had this child killed? To be fine with adding another to his list just like that?

Shaking the thoughts aside, Harry refused when Sirius spoke up. "Harry, he killed your parents and deserves this, it is his fault that they are not here to take care of you. Allow Hitsugaya to follow his orders and be done with him."

A silence enveloped, other than Pettigrew's whimpering as the Boy Who Lived finally nodded. The ice captain turned to Black with a nod, before with a whisper and a snap of his fingers, golden chains bound the true criminal, a squeak sounding from him before the captain spoke.

"I will do away with Pettigrew elsewhere for several reasons." Toshiro said, with a pointed look towards the children. "Professor Lupin. Black. I leave them and Snape to you."

And with a shunpo, that could have been mistaken for Apparition, the ice captain was gone.

Black foliage of the forest colored the traitor's vision as he found his surroundings, the child who had Apparated him strangely changed. Instead of his prior Japanese robes with his white one over it, the boy donned an ebony v-neck hoodie under a black leather jacket, his clothing intimidating despite the child's small stature. Rugged navy jeans wrapped over his legs as combat boots hid his feet from view, a star-like chain across his chest as it held up a four-pointed blade on his back. As if to light the child like a beacon, his bone-white locks were tousled messily, slightly obscuring his teal orbs.

"Matsumoto." The child said, as the traitor looked at his captor confusedly, not understanding the language as another figure appeared.

This one was dressed similarly to what the child donned before, only lacking in the white robe. It was a woman of tall stature about the height of Black, as she donned the same robes as the child only with a pink scarf over her shoulders loosely. She had a curvaceous body and large endowments, her pale blue orbs framed on her small face as her strawberry locks were cut short at her jawline.

Knelt on one knee, the woman bowed to the child who nodded in approval.

"Taicho." The woman said to the child before sending a glance to him as he shivered at the similar iciness that the child had given off in the woman's eyes. "Is this him?"

"Yes." The child replied, the sound sending shivers to him as he shook involuntarily. "Are the squads in position?"

"Yes, sir."

"Very well." The child nodded as he turned to him. Pettigrew froze before he began to beg.

"P-Please! Please, boy! I have done you no wrong! Please spare me! Mercy, please!" He groveled, grabbing the boy's boots, face in the dirt as he begged, tears streaming down his face as he looked to the boy, hoping to find a spark of sympathy that he could use. Or in the woman, maybe. Looking up, he found only an icy teal tempest of annoyance and irritation as an indifferent gaze of pale blue glaring over him beside it. There was no mercy or sympathy in those eyes. They were eyes that had seen this over and over again that his death would just add a tally to the count and nothing more.

Changing tactics, Pettigrew grew in confidence.

"The Dark Lord will kill you all! He shall avenge my death as a loyal servant of the Lord! You shall burn and feel humiliation for what you have done to me! I promise you, you —!"

And with a swift arc that severed the talking head from the body, the ice captain flicked the blood from his blade as the beheaded body fell back in a heap, the head rolling to a stop in a expression of mid-speech. With a soft groan that only the captain and his lieutenant could hear, they watched as Pettigrew emerged from his corpse, the familiar soul chain and grey hexagon on his chest.

"Wha—?" Was all Pettigrew managed to get out before the hollowfication began, a bone-white mask covering the soul when, with an encore of the captain's zanpakuto across the white, appeared the doors of Hell.

Once sealed and gone once more, Peter Pettigrew was no more.

A silence overcame the forest after the captain sent a silent Confringo to the carcass, the small fire curling into wisps of smoke as the two watched, the windows of their souls unmoved.

"Taicho, —." The lieutenant began, only to be interrupted.

"They're not here."

The strawberry blonde glanced around her before turning back to her superior with a confused look. Not turning to his lieutenant, the ice captain gestured to the body. "You are in your soul form and I just performed Konso on Pettigrew, yet no Dementors are here. With Black gone, this would be —."

Before the captain could finish a howl echoed into the night as Hitsugaya glanced at the sky, the full moon glowing in mockery as the lieutenant heard a rare and small curse on her captain's lips, her pale orbs widening in surprise. Before she could say anything, her captain was already speaking.

"Regroup the squads to the edge of the forest, Matsumoto." Toshiro ordered, sheathing Hyorinmaru as he pulled out his wand. "And prepare the squads for my signal, we have some Hollows to dispose of; Matsumoto."

"Yes, sir."

And with a swift shunpo, the captain and his lieutenant disappeared, leaving burnt ashes at their feet.

"They can't do anything without me." Toshiro snarled as he shunpoed to a clearing, to where he found Black in his Animagus form snarling at a transformed Lupin, leaving Snape shielding his students. Wasting none, the captain appeared before the werewolf, pointing his wand with a slight frown.

"Confundo." The ice captain hissed, the effects of his charm taking on the werewolf, as the creature backed off in obvious confusion as a diversion. Turning to the Potions Master and students, the ice captain spoke an order as if he were speaking to a subordinate.

"Flee, Professor! Take them with you!"

Heeding his student's words, the professor had one slip from his grasp as Black tackled Lupin, the wolves barring fangs and claws at one another, snarling and tearing as they rolled on the dirt. Black feinted growls and claws at the werewolf as Lupin made no hesitation, scratching and barring tooth and nail for blood.

"Hitsugaya! Come back here, Potter! Hitsugaya!" Snape's yells were ignored.

Potter. The captain growled as he followed the beasts, the boy a distance away as howls paused the scuffle between their Defence Against the Dark Arts professor and the wanted fugitive. Ignoring the Boy Who Lived running towards his godfather in concern, the ice captain was concerned with other things. Like who distracted Lupin, or what for that matter?

Master, perhaps, this is not the first time we have been here. Sephiroth nodded, as the dragons turned to the howls. Teal orbs narrowed at the source of the howls before the ice captain connected the two and two, sending a glance to the golden hourglass on his neck. I see.

Turning away from the howls, the ice captain disappeared.

Only to appear before a freezing over lake, with an unconscious human form Black and a petrified Harry behind him. Rested on the rocky shore, Black sported a wound on his shoulder, bleeding but not fatal, no doubt from Lupin. Potter had several mild wounds and scratches, but otherwise, unharmed as he turned to the captain in almost a panic, pointing in the horizon. "Hitsugaya!"

Glaring above them, the ice captain found what he wanted.

Disfigured, hooded ebony figures floated over eerily, as the temperature dropped drastically, the ragged robes of the Dementors swaying with ominous rattles, the Dark beings hungrily calling for others to join them in the feast. Encircling them like the eye of an ebony storm, the Dementors grew bold as one neared the three, sucking away the happiness from Black, seeing as the fugitive was their main course.

Lifting his wand, the only living boy trialed and toiled over as he practiced, only to fail with no avail as a Dementor neared the boy for a morsel, as if to mock him for his futile attempts. Taking the advantage, a Dementor neared the captain, only to be blown off, with a snarl; as the captain shot a silent spell.

"Expecto Patronum." Toshiro whispered, his voice cold.

Harry recoiled as he fell on his bum, eyes wide at the sight of the captain's Corporeal Patronus. It was a large serpentine dragon, white and wisps in color as the beast bared it's rows of dagger-like fangs at the Dementors, hovering over the captain as if he were protecting him from all the evil of the world, the black Dark Beings swarming the dragon like flies to a jar honey.

"Now, Matsumoto!" The ice captain yelled into the forest as Harry looked at the ice captain confusedly, when ebony beings caught his eye.

Thinking they were more Dementors, the boy ducked his face into his godfather's shoulder, shielding him them from their impending doom. Only for an odd series of cries take him from his shielded form, realizing that he was not dead and neither was his godfather. Looking up, Harry found himself silenced, whether it was shock or awe; he didn't know.

The dark beings, were in actuality, men and women donned in ebony robes, much like he had seen Hitsugaya don, blades by their waists as they leaped from the treetops with fluidity as they each incanted with multicolored wandless magic, firing with deadly accuracy at the Dementors, the Boy Who Lived marveling at the sight as each every Dementor was sent into a dissipating pile of grey smoke. Eyes catching something white, the boy found the ice captain several feet away on the frozen lake, teal orbs cold and blade unsheathed as the captain did the opposite with his wand, the white dragon disappearing like the Dementors.

"Regroup behind me!" Toshiro ordered his subordinates, following as their superior demanded, each one having taken on the same serious look their captain was famous for; all ignoring the boy who watched them. With the disappearance of the Dementors, the boy found something more horrifying, take their place. From the tens of Dementors that surrounded them moments ago, stood nearly a hundred of tall beings differing in size and expressions, only having a bone-white mask in common with one another.

With a swift shunpo, the ice captain stood in mid-air, his hands folded outward, as a large orange box encircled the Hollows, entrapping them for the time being.

"Taicho!" Harry heard a woman cry, not understanding a word they said, as she stood beside Toshiro, a concerned look at him as Harry could have sworn that the white-haired boy was sporting a ghost of a smirk.

"Matsumoto." Hitsugaya nodded, before he turned to glance at his subordinates. "Lead the squads to the Senkaimon and report to Ukitake, he will report to the Head Captain for you. I will deal with this. I cannot allow you the squad to be here when I use Shikai."

"Yes, taicho." The Lieutenant bowed, sending a glance to Harry. "But what about the boy? Wouldn't he be crushed in the reiatsu?"

"I need him unconscious anyway." Hitsugaya responded, as all eyes turned on the boy, who suddenly felt like he was being judged. "He is irrelevant."

"Not to mention useless." A voice muttered behind him, as the ice captain bit back a snort. Instead, he turned to his lieutenant, orbs cold yet silently speaking to her. "Enough. Matsumoto, go. I'm counting on you and the rest of you as well. Now, go!"

"Yes, sir!" His squad roared in unison as they shunpoed away, following their lieutenant; leaving their captain with a glance. Once his subordinates were far enough, the captain held the blade parallel to the ground as he tilted his head almost mockingly, as if he were trying to decide whether to rid of them slowly or quickly; not minding with the fact that the orange kido was beginning to crack.

Harry stared, too many thoughts in his head, making the boy reeling, his godfather nearly forgotten if he had not moaned every once in a while to indicate that he was still alive. Who were those people? They were able to do the same magic as Hitsugaya, and all seemed to obey whatever Hitsugaya told them to do. And then they just Apparated out of there! What happened to the Dementors? What the bloody hell was those things that were in that orange box Hitsugaya conjured? Just what the bloody hell is going on?

"Stop thinking, Potter." Toshiro snapped, as the boy found the captain glancing at him with a risen eyebrow. "You'll hurt yourself from thinking too much. This will make you feel a bit uncomfortable, but don't worry; you'll survive…"

"…Probably." The ice captain added as an afterthought as the living boy sent him an incredulous look.

"Probably?!" Harry cried. "What the bloody —?"

"Here." Toshiro interjected, throwing his Kikanshinki, disguised as a pen, at the boy. "Hold that to Black's face and press the button on top."

"What's this do?" Harry inquired, but doing as the captain instructed nonetheless. "Like this?"

"No." Toshiro said before disappearing, and then appearing before the boy. "It's more like this."

"Wait! What are you —?!" Harry bellowed, as the pen was dissipated from his hands, the ice captain clicking the pen before him, then his godfather.

Harry cut himself off a second time, as he felt a great pressure come over his body, as if a weight was placed on his chest; inhaling that large cloud of a purple powder that the pen released. Crumpling beside his godfather as the weight grew with every agonizing second, Harry merely watched with a combination of anticipation and awe as the ice captain soared into the air once more with a swift shunpo before falling unconscious with his godfather.

Breaking his own barrier, shattering only one wall, with just enough room for several Hollows to escape at a time; the ice captain began to glow a light blue light, nearly white as he lifted his zanpakuto, after slicing the first wave. "Reign over the Heavens, Hyorinmaru."

At the release of his zanpakuto, the blade was grew in length as the captain lifted the blade perpendicular to the ground, a crescent shaped blade attached to the end with a long chain. Rising from the waters of the frozen lake to Harry's horror and sheer amazement, came a life-size ice dragon made of water and ice, jaws of icicles and eyes a cold ruby. With an almost lazy swipe of his blade, the captain directed his blade toward the onslaught of Hollow, the ice dragon obeying, as the Hollows were frozen before the captain.

And with a final overarching arc, the Hollows dissipated into Soul Society or Hell, leaving half of the Hollows. Roaring at the defeat of their kind, the Hollows charged as the captain readied his stance, sealing his Shikai as he did so; decidedly not needing to overexert himself.

Let's see if my hakuda is improved, like Shihoin said. Toshiro thought as he backflipped, sending a powerful kick to his left; cracking open the mask. One down, forty-nine to go.

After forty-four more kicks, punches, and Kido spells; the ice captain faced a mere five Hollows left before him, sporting a minor wound on his gigai, four in number and thin in size, as the ice captain reached to seal them with ice as a temporary fix when Hyorinmaru spoke.

Master, perhaps we should allow this injury to be untouched. The elder ice dragon said as the master and wand guardian rose an eyebrow at that. You would need to be incapacitated as well with Potter and Black, seeing as how Snape has seen you along with the other children. It would be odd and raise suspicion if you were found unscathed.

Very well. Toshiro receded, as he turned to back to the Hollows, doing away with them quickly as the captain came before the unconscious duo, sensing the reiatsus of the professors a near fourth of a mile away.

Damn. Toshiro winced as he looked himself over. This is why I hate not sealing them up immediately. Curse this, how the bloody hell did I get myself into this anyway?

Two pointed looks shot to him, the ice captain rolled his eyes. I know.

Due to his small stature and the fact that he was, even begrudgingly — it was what he was —, a child; blood loss was a problem in concern that the captain was did not have much too lose until he grew woozy, unlike his cohorts. Covered in light grime and several cuts from his finished brawl with the hollows and the wounds on his back, the captain deemed himself, believable in appearance for discovery by the wizards, all the while ignoring the chuckles of the two ice dragons in the background at his expense.

Slumping himself against the trees slightly away from the wanted fugitive and his godson, the ice captain leaned back, closing his teal orbs as he left his bloodied zanpakuto and wand off to the side. And then, he knew nothing more.