Against the Tide

Prologue

Sakura looked out the window of her hotel room at the fog covering the street below. She sighed and glanced at the clock on the table near by. 6 o'clock, two more hours of time to kill before she had to meet with Eriol.

Eriol had called her about a week ago, saying that it was important that he meet with Sakura in person soon. It was a coincidence that her father had to go to London for some workshop he signed up for, so Sakura came with him.

She tapped her fingers impatiently on the desk and glanced at the clock again. 6:02. Damn. Time seemed to be slowing down. She grabbed her coat and headed out to see if a walk would help to pass the time.

Her stroll brought her to a street crowded with people. Most of the people looked normal, but some of them stood out like sore thumb. Long black cloaks and tall pointed hats adorned these people's features and some of them entered a pub called the Leaky Cauldron.

Curious, Sakura walked up to the pub's window and peered in. Inside it looked like something out of medieval times. Someone saw her and shot her a look and she gasped and ducked out of sight.

She knew she wasn't really supposed to use the cards for spying, but she couldn't help herself. She walked into an empty building across the street and pulled out the Star Key from her pocket. "Oh key of the star with powers burning bright. Reveal the staff and shine your light. Release!"

She thought for a minute on which card to use that wouldn't get her noticed. She laughed noting that if she had on one of Tomoyo's costumes she would blend in with the crowd, but Tomoyo was back in Japan, so that wouldn't work. The Create and Illusion Cards were going to have to do.

The Create Card was released first and Sakura grabbed the book that appeared and fished a pen out of her pocket. She flipped to a blank page and quickly scribbled something down and instantly a cloak and hat like the people in the pub had appeared in her hand. She recalled the card and took off her coat, putting the cloak on in place of it and the hat on her head.

"Illusion Card," she said as the card was tossed into the air, "I command you to make me appear invisible. Release and dispel! Illusion!" Her staff touched the card and her appearance vanished. She smiled and walked back to the Leaky Cauldron and followed a young couple inside.

People around her smiled and cheered, telling one another how happy they were that

'You-Know-Who', whoever that was, hasn't showed his ugly face in nearly 3 years. She shrugged and followed the couple the back door and into a small alley.

Confused, Sakura watched as the man raised his hand and tapped a couple bricks on the back wall. The bricks sprang to life and began shifting and turning until there was a passageway for the couple and Sakura to go through.

The couple stepped through and Sakura hurried after them before the bricks came back together and the wall closed behind her. She crouched down behind an abandoned cart and recalled the Illusion Card and her staff, slipping the key back onto the necklace around her neck.

She emerged and starred with amazement at the place before her. Strange shops and buildings all around her; it was as if she stepped back in time to the 17th century! Wait until she told Tomoyo and Kero-chan about this place!

She walked down the alley and stopped at a place called Gringotts. Shrugging, she walked in and walked along beside the counter, staring at the strange little people, if they were people, behind them.

One of them tapped her shoulder and she slowly turned to face him. "I see you have your key ma'am," he said, pointing to the Star Key around her neck.

"Uh, yes," Sakura said, unsure of what to say.

"Griphook!" he shouted and another one of them came running forward.

"This way," Griphook said and Sakura, confused as ever, followed.

He held a door open and Sakura stepped through into a narrow passageway with torches lighting the way. There were railway tracks and Griphook climbed into a car set on them, and motioned for her to get in also. She hesitated at first, but shrugged and jumped in.

Her stomach churned the whole way. It was like some amusement park ride gone haywire. She sighed with relief as the car came to a stop and followed Griphook's lead and climbed out.

"Key," he said, holding out his hand.

Sakura blinked and looked down at her Star Key and gave him a confused look. What did he want with it?

"Well, if you don't want me to open your vault--"

"Oh," Sakura said with a small laugh to cover up the fact that she didn't know what was going on like they thought she did, "my vault. Sorry, forgot there for a minute. Bad long-term memory." She took the key off and handed it to Griphook.

He took it and slipped in into the lock of the large door, which Sakura just now noticed, behind them. It opened and he stepped aside.

She stepped through the doorway and her jaw dropped. Inside the room, pilled high to the ceiling, were hundreds of piles of stacked coins. A tap on her back forced her back into this world and she turned to Griphook who handed her a bag and motioned for her to collect her money.

Gulping, she began shoving handful after handful of coins into the bag and exited, getting back into the car. When they returned to the place where she entered, she nervously climbed out of the car and walked quickly out of Gringotts.

She sighed and put the bag of coins into the pocket of her cloak and found that there was some sort of paper in there. She pulled the paper out and found it to be an envelope with her name on the front.

Curiously, she opened it and read it silently to herself.

Dear Miss Kinomoto,

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all-necessary books and equipment...

~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~

Disclaimer: I do not own Cardcaptor Sakura or Harry Potter, I am simply a fan.