Try to land on your feet

As I return to consciousness, I am almost disappointed that no one tried to eat me in my sleep.

-I guess Soul Reapers don't do that...

I look to my side and I see that the captain is still asleep.

-Did I ever get his name?

-I kind of want to ask, but I'm worried it'd be rude. I'm still not overly familiar with Japanese culture. Maybe asking him would insult him or something.

-Wait, do I really care that mu-

Suddenly, the Captain stirs, and, somewhat surprisingly, he's managed to sneak a bottle into his bed.

He slowly pushes himself off of the ground, and as he stands, I notice that his eyes are as dull and listless as ever.

"Well, we should probably get going, I think you're already late for your scheduled transfer."

'Late?! I don't want to be late for my first day, I need to wait at least a week before starting to slack off.'

I run out the door, but before I can make it even a step outside, I am pulled back.

"Do you even know where you're going?"

'Uh...'

"Look, just let me handle this, and if anyone asks, this took all day."

Suddenly, I am flying through the air draped over the shoulder of the captain. I sniff the air, and to my surprise, I smell something under the scent of strawberries and alcohol. Is that... a faint perfume?

I try to follow our movements, but before I can even realize it, we've already arrived. A huge building stands before us, and as I marvel at the sheer architectural marvel, I find myself falling to the ground at an alarming speed.

"Remember, this took ALL DAY, oh, and try to land on your feet. It'd be embarrassing to face-plant on your first day. "

I twist my body in the air and barely manage to avoid landing on my face. I still tumbled to the ground, but I like to imagine that I had at least some grace as I rolled around on the ground.

Standing before me is a massive door, and I have no idea what to do with this information. Hesitantly, I try knocking on the door, and to my surprise, the door begins to open.

"A new student? You know that the next exam isn't until 6 months from now, right?"

'No, I'm'

"Wait... that unusually short stature, that brown hair, and that mirror at your side... you're Banks, Tom, aren't you?"

'I wouldn't say that I'm unusually sho-'

"Yeah, you're him." "Alright, come inside."

The woman tosses me a pair of trousers and a shirt before telling me

"Oh, and you'll need to change, students need to be in uniform."

'Where can I?'

"There's a changing room to your right. Although you'll need to hurry, your first class has already started. "

I dash into the room and throw the rags I called clothing onto the ground. It's strange, I don't remember wearing clothes as a hollow, and as an Arrancar I just sort of had them. I guess they were formed from my fur or something.

As I questioned the origin of my clothes, I threw on my new outfit and looked at myself in the mirror.

-I was....

-I was....

-I was...

-I was short. Okay?! I'm short. I barely make it up to 1.4 meters tall, and my hair, while messy, is also short. My only redeeming quality is that I at least look sort of handsome in my spiffy new uniform. In a moment of curiosity, I pull my hand mirror in front of the mirror, and to my surprise, it doesn't seem to have a reflection. It's just a solid disk as far as this mirror is concerned. Taking a moment, I try to look into my mirror, but disappointingly, all I see is myself. Shaking the annoying thoughts out of my head, I stroll back out to where the woman is standing before she quickly grabs my hand and drags me along.

"I told you, you're going to be late."

She pulls me through various hallways until, finally, we arrive at a pair of doors. I haven't been to school in years, and quite frankly, I'm terrified. Will the people here be older than me? Will they be younger than m-

Without wasting a single second, the woman pulls open the door with a swift creaking sound.

"Today we will be focusing on your Hakuda training. While a Soul Reaper's primary weapon is their Zanpakuto, it is absolutely essential that one learns to fight without it. For those who ma-"

Suddenly, the man's eyes are drawn towards the door, and, by extension, towards me and the woman who brought me here.

"Oh, so you've finally arrived. I was worried you weren't going to show. "

Suddenly, the attention of the class is focused on me, and for a moment I feel the terrifying pressure of expectation crushing me to the floor. The woman takes this moment to swiftly leave the room, leaving me alone with the silent mob. Then, almost by instinct, the girls begin to screech.

"HE'S ADORABLE!"

-That's... unexpected.

Like a wave crashing into the shore, the chattering of the students begins to overwhelm me.

"Is he your son?"

"How old is he?"

"Is he a new student?"

"Is he-"

"That's enough."

"Everyone, this is your new classmate, Banks, Tom."

"Classmate?!"

"But he's so small!"

"He's smaller than Hitsugaya."

'ehhhhhhhhhhhhhhh'

"He's so cute"

I can tell that the only thing stopping me from being swarmed is their respect for their teacher. For a brief moment, I stood there in terror, before looking down and seeing that there were still a few empty seats. For another moment, I hesitate, and then I decide to sit next to the shortest person in the room other than myself.

He seems slightly bothered by my presence, but then his eyes look over the top of my head, and I swear for a moment I can sense a certain smugness coming from him.

"Normally I'd scold you for being late, but I know for a fact that it was Shunsui's responsibility to get you here, so I'll let you off the hook for now."

'Yes sir,'

"Oh, I appreciate the attitude. Let's see if you can keep it up during your Hakuda training."

'Hakuda?'

"Hakuda is the art of unarmed combat. You'd know this if Shinsui had bothered to tell you anything."

In unison, the class stands up and begins to file through the door. I quickly jump up and join the back of the line, and just in front of me is the shorty I had been sitting next to. His hair was white and rather spiky, but despite his audacious hairstyle, his face seemed as though it were frozen in ice.

Everyone walked through the hallway in silence and taking the cue, I decided to hold my questions for later. We made our way through various hallways until eventually, we reached the outside. The sun shone directly into my eyes, and as I raised my hand to block it, I noticed that my skin was ever so slightly paler than before. We soon came across a small circular field, and soon everyone spread out into an even formation.

"Alright, pick a partner and start fighting. The rules are simple, you cannot use Kido or your Zanpakotu, anything else is free game."

I turn to my right and I see the ever so slightly taller spiky-haired kid standing next to me. I lay my mirror down on the ground and settle my body into a lower stance. I sniff the air, and before my eyes can even register it, I notice something behind me. I duck down and his fist sails over my head.

'Jeez, not even a warning?'

He doesn't respond, and I can sense an attack coming from my right. This time it's a kick that I try to block, but quickly find myself pushed back. I swing my arms to maintain my balance and manage to center myself back on the ground. Once again I smell something behind me, but this time rather than dodging I kick out my leg in an attempt to trip him up. He easily dodges, but I can tell that he's starting to get tired.

This time the attack is coming from my right. No wait. I sniff the air and I notice that while something is coming from the right, it is far weaker than what's coming from my left. I turn around to my left and swing out my arm. He catches it, but he's starting to pant.

"I guess you weren't transferred in as some sort of joke."

'I guess no-'

from my right. I pull up my arms to block as his fist slams into me. Thankfully, I'm able to take most of the impact on my arms, but I'm still pushed back. This kid, while he's far slower than my friends were, he's somewhat stronger.

-Just a little bit more and he'll start to flag, right?

This time, taking the initiative, I charge toward him, but he quickly ducks to the side and slashes out with the side of his arm. I catch it, and this time I'm able to hold my ground.

'You're starting to get tired, aren't you?'

"The only reason to talk during a fight is if you're trying to distract your enem-"

He appears behind me,

-I wish I knew how he was able to do that.

This time he goes in for a kick

I grab his leg and pull him up, throwing off his balance. Just as he's about to fall to the ground, the instructor appears behind him and gives him a small push, restoring his balance.

"Your strongest weapon is your balance. Just keeping it is the basics. Now try again, but this time try to use your height to your advantage. "

Suddenly, his style of attack changes. Rather than charging in as soon as possible in an attempt to get past my defenses, he keeps his distance. If only his arms were a little bit shorter, this wouldn't have worked.

While he's able to more easily avoid my attacks, I can tell that his fatigue is starting to reach its limit. He appears behind me, but this time my eyes are able to keep up with him. While the strength is reduced by the distance, his blow leaves his body just far away enough to avoid any counterattack. I cough and something warm hits the ground. He pauses for a moment, concerned.

'It's just a cold; there's no need to worry about it.'

"A cold, huh."

For the first time since I've met him, his face shifts. He seems.... sad?

"That's enough, we'll take a break here."

Suddenly, the fatigue hits me. I shouldn't be this tired, I hardly moved, but for some reason, I am finding it just a bit hard to move. I sit down on the ground and attempt to catch my breath.

"It's Hitsugaya, Hitsugaya Toshiro."

'?'

"That's my name, I figured that since you're new to this class, you probably didn't know."

"Remember, while Hakuda is called the art of unarmed combat, you don't have to be unarmed to use it. "The fundamentals of maintaining your balance and distance, as well as remaining aware of your surroundings, are vital to a Soul Reaper."

The students chant out in unison.

"Yes, Sir!"

I can see that I'm not the only one sitting on the ground, but I do seem to be one of the few lacking any notable bruises. It would seem that a few students were rather unlucky with their pick of partners. Although this late in the year, they should already have at least some understanding of the strength of their opponent-

"It's because "by fighting someone stronger than yourself, you will be able to grow much faster than if you bullied the weak."

'How did you'

"I've been a teacher for centuries, I know how to read an expression or two. In fact, I can even tell that our little Hoshiro is happy. "

"Don't push it."

"Hehehehe alright little Shiro, I'll let you hold onto your dignity in front of this new kid for just a little while longer."