One Tin Soldier

Chapter 6: The Valley People

The flight was as long and boring as Ichigo had warned him, but each minute in the air meant he was one step closer to a month of true freedom! At least, that was what he kept telling himself.

The translation spell worked very well so far, allowing Harry to speak and understand fluent Japanese with the same regional accent as Ichigo; the only thing he could do was write or read it. That he had to learn the hard way.

Thankfully, he didn't have to worry about it as he was only going to be in Japan for a month. He would miss his birthday, but it was well worth it.

During the flight, Ichigo told Harry what he could expect upon arrival. He informed Harry that their home was very small. The teen also told him that he would be sleeping in Ichigo's room as they had no guest bedroom. Ichigo's closet could hold Harry's futon and his trunk nicely.

Harry paled at the thought and almost panicked. Ichigo, however, assured Harry that space was at a premium in Japan and many people slept in very small spaces; it would be alright.

Then Harry remembered – the goblin had assured him that the Statute of Secrecy didn't apply in Japan, as long as he was careful who he used magic around. He didn't have a trace on his wand anymore as his emancipation saw to that.

So he could use his magic. He could enlarge the closet to a full size bed space -with a niche to house his things! That would work.

With the help of a small book the goblins had given him, Harry knew what spells he needed to change Ichigo's closet into a second bedroom and not change the structure of the house.

Thank Merlin for magic!

They arrived at Karakura Town mid-afternoon. Their taxi pulled up in front of a small clinic attached to a small townhouse.

Two girls stood on the front step with a large sign. Harry couldn't read it, but Ichigo leaned closer and said that they were his sisters Karin and Yuzu. So those were Ichigo's twin sisters? They were cute, and they didn't even look alike! One had black hair and a scowl on her face, while the other had light brown hair and a soft smile.

"Uh Runt, don't be surprised what Goat Face does next or what I do to him. He's been behaving himself reasonably well so far, but now that we are home...Trust me, he won't hurt you," the teen warned. "He's been doing this since mum died."

That was another thing Harry couldn't understand. Why Ichigo had to insult his father like that. During his time with the goblin healers, Isshin would act goofy and loud much to Ichigo's embarrassment.

However, Harry grew up with such insults and of course it had carried over to the Wizarding World. He shuddered wondering if he would survive this month.

Suddenly, the calm easy man that Harry had come to know turned into this loud, crazy person.

"DDAAAAAADDDDDIESSSSSS.....HOMMMMMEEEE!" Isshin did a running dive towards the two girls coming down the sidewalk.

Harry blinked. 'Okay, this is different.'

Isshin Kurosaki was indeed acting crazy, as Ichigo had warned. It made no sense! Who was the real man? The one that has sat with him when he'd had a nightmare the night before, or the one that was shouting and acting crazy?

"Ichigo, did you have to bring Goat Face back?" asked the dark haired girl as she flipped her father head over arse against the closed door. The other girl tried to calm everyone down so they could enter the house.

As Ichigo paid for the taxi, Harry helped pull out the stack of suitcases from the boot. He also tried to stay as far from the crazy person as possible. The dark haired twin helped with the luggage as she berated Ichigo for bringing back their dad.