Title: The Digital Meets the Magical

Chapter One: Representing with a Handicap

Author: Dragon Starbo

Beta Reader: Jude « JD » Dillingham

Rating: PG, will change

Genre: Parody/Adventure

Disclaimer: Don't and will never own Digimon or Harry Potter.

Author's Notes: Thank JD for helping me keep the facts straight and getting the spelling correct.

Chapter One: Representing with a Handicap

It was the Monday of the first week of summer vacation for Hogwarts students and the sun shone brightly down upon them, as if telling them to enjoy what little time there was before they went back to school. In the wizard home of the Weasleys, that's exactly what the boys and their only sister, Ginny, planned on doing. Around the kitchen table, which was actually the size of a formal dinning room table so they could all fit, the children were clamoring about what they had planned for their first week of the summer holidays, while Mrs. Weasley ran around the kitchen, preparing food and keeping them in check.

"Ron, don't shout - we're all right here! Percy, how many sausages do you want? Fred, for the last time, don't bring tricks to the table!"

"I'm not Fred! He is!" The boy pointed to the mirror image of himself, who sat right next to him at the large table in his usual seat.

"Don't pull that one on me. I know my boys –"

"Morning, boys." Mr. Weasley came into the kitchen, tucking his tie into a knot and looking just like a muggle. With one free hand, he rustled one of his boys' hair and said, "George, put that away before your mom takes it away."

"I told you I wasn't Fred, Mum! I'm George!" George took his bag of stink bombs and put it back in his room.

"You can call me George if you like, Mum," Fred smiled up in fake innocence, gaining a scowl from his mother. The one thing she dreaded about this summer vacation was the fact that her twin boys were home. She loved them as much as all of her children, but those two rivaled April Fool himself when it came to playing pranks.

"Well, how do I look?" Mr. Weasley asked his family, spinning around with his arms spread. He was dressed in a muggle business suit, one that he kept stowed safely away in the closet. It was gray with very dull, thin white stripes running vertically along his pants and coat. The shoes were black, matching the tie that stood out from the white shirt under his coat. He even had his red hair, which clashed with his gray outfit, gelled back in a muggle professional manner and was holding a black briefcase.

Ron, who had been concentrating on his toast after being snapped at by his mother, looked up and gaped. "WHO LET IN THE MUGGLE?"

"Ah-ha! Just the expression I was looking for!" Mr. Weasley beamed.

"Ron, how many time do I have to tell you not to shout?" Mrs. Weasley glared.

"I CAN'T HELP IT, MUM! FRED GAVE ME A SCREAMING SPROUT IN THE FORM OF A BERNIE BOTT'S EVERY FLAVORED JELLY BEAN!"

"FRED!"

"I thought you didn't want anyone shouting, Mum," Fred grinned. However, with one look from his mother, he put his napkin on the table and stood up. "Well, I guess I better see what's taking George so long. Lovely meal, Mum. See you in a few weeks!"

With Fred out of the kitchen as fast as he could manage, Mr. Weasley sat down at the head of the table. "So boys, tell me how your year at Hogwarts was?"

"IT WAS –"

Mrs. Weasley said, "Ron, don't talk until that Screaming Sprout wears off."

"BUT HOW CAN I TELL WHEN IT WEARS OFF IF I DON'T TALK?"

"We'll test it every half hour. For now, keep your mouth shut!" She said with a thump as she sat down for her breakfast. The spells were taking care of everything and she could finally enjoy her food.

So everyone but Ron got to tell their father about their year at Hogwarts. It was mostly repeating what was written in the letters they had sent home, but Mr. Weasley always pretended to have forgotten what they wrote so he could "bond" with his sons and daughter.

After about three pokes, she finally turned her head and saw that Ron wanted her attention. "Yes, Ron?"

He didn't say anything, just pointed. Ginny looked in the general direction but was confused. "What is it, Ron? What do you want?"

Ron pointed harder, jutting his finger out as if that would make her understand. Ginny looked again. "You want the sausages? You already have four on your plate."

Ron grunted and pointed again. Ginny looked even more baffled so Ron just gave up. Leaning over his plate, he reached for the butter.

"Ron!" Mrs. Weasley snapped. No matter where her attention seemed to be, she always shocked the boys by knowing exactly what was happening in the room. "Don't just grab for things like that. Ask for someone to pass it to you!"

The littlest boy gave her a desperate look and then glared at his sister, who was blushing and trying to melt into the chair. How was she supposed to know he wanted the butter? It was right next to the sausages and the salt and pepper.

"Why are you dressed like a muggle this morning, Father?" Percy asked at the proper time. He already knew the answer, but it was agreed to put on a show for the others.

"Well, my son," Mr. Weasley sat straight up. "I am going on important Ministry assignment. I am going to Muggle Japan."

"Japan?" Mrs. Weasley shot him an expression of shock. She knew of this as well, but went along with the little act for the sake of her children. "Why would they send you to Japan?"

"I am –" Mr. Weasley puffed out his chest – "going to represent Hogwarts to a group of students there to see if they would like to attend the fine school."

"Really?" Ginny perked up. "That's cool! We'll get to find out how they teach magic in Japan!"

"Actually, no," Mr. Weasley corrected gently. "They've never been to a Japanese magic school in their lives."

"What? But, you said they were students," Ginny looked as though she was trying to find the butter again.

"Well, yes, I did," he fumbled for the right words. "Technically, they were supposed to be at school for a year at least now. However, Japan has this very strict age limit on their schools. You have to turn ten before the start of school in April –"

"They start in April?" Mrs. Weasley gasped.

"Yes, dear, just like the Muggle School in Japan. I guess they prefer it that way. Anyway, you have to be ten before April, and if you don't receive and accept your letter when you're ten, then you can't go to school."

"What? That doesn't make any sense!" Percy spoke up. He only knew that they were going to Japan, not about Japan itself. "How can they deny someone the chance at a magical education just because of their age?"

"Our European schools agree with you. They set up TOFS – Teaching of Foreign Students – so those that got left behind by their local education system can come here and learn magic."

"WE DON'T HAVE ANYTHING LIKE TOFS AT HOGWARTS!"

"Ron, be quiet!" Mrs. Weasley snapped.

"Ah, that's because the other schools have had no problem taking in the foreign students and teaching them. However, as of late, the population has been nearly spilt in half – half English students, half Japanese students. Since the Japanese students have a few other classes that only they take, things like Japanese Magical History, this has caused the students to . . . drift. The Japanese students only socialize with other Japanese students and the English, with the English. It has caused some tensions and the schools would like to deal with that before taking in any more students from Japan. They've asked Hogwarts to take on the next few years of students from Japan until they get their students to mingle with each other."

"Makes sense," Percy nodded his head. "But, why did they pick you, Dad, to represent Hogwarts? Surely there's someone in the Ministry who knows more about Japan than you?"

"Dumbledore recommended me personally," Mr. Weasley beamed. "Seems my love of the Muggle World and having all of my children attending – or already attended – Hogwarts has finally paid off!"

"Yeah, we're just here for you to climb the working ladder," Ginny grinned. That usually wasn't her brand of humor, but the twins had infected her this morning.

Mr. Weasley coughed and grinned. "Well, I guess I should be going now."

Percy nearly choked on his orange juice. "B-but, Father, don't you think it would be wise to take along one of your children to help represent Hogwarts? It's been a long time since you've been there and maybe the students will relate more to another student?"

Mr. Weasley slapped the back of his son's chair. "What a great idea, Percy! Why don't you come with me?"

"I'd be honored," Percy downed his juice and got up. Before walking out, he called over his shoulder, "Just give me a few minutes to change into some muggle clothing."

Ron opened his mouth to say something, but Mrs. Weasley glared at him. "Don't even dare, Ron. You're in no condition to be representing Hogwarts, screaming like a banshee." Her gaze softened as she looked at her only daughter. "I'm sorry, Ginny, but you can't go either."

"It's okay, I guess," Ginny looked down. "What about Fred or George?"

"It might do good to bring one of them along," Mr. Weasley mused. "Separate the gruesome twosome, even for a day."

"No, Arthur. Those boys don't get any special treatment just because they like to run amuck. They need to learn some self control and taking them to a foreign country will not do that!"

"I guess you're right, dear," he leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. At that moment, Percy walked into the room wearing his muggle clothes: a white tee-shirt, deep blue jeans so well taken care of and fitting that they could almost pass for slacks, and black shoes much like his father's. "Ah, good, Percy. Let's get going then, shall we?"

The two left the room and soon the three remaining Weasleys heard the front door open and close.

"He got into his muggle clothing too fast, if you ask me," Ginny mumbled to Ron. "I think they had this planned . . ."

"Amazing. Simply amazing!" Mr. Weasley said, staring at a teenager with an iPod. They were in Odaiba, Japan and hadn't taken five steps before Percy's father stopped to gawk at some muggle toy. Percy had hoped that the rain would keep nearly everyone indoors, but he didn't know that for a few months every year during this time it would rain almost non-stop – from light drizzles to heavy downpours. It was something the Japanese coped with and they couldn't let it affect their daily lives.

"Father!" Percy grabbed his arm. He nearly lost his umbrella in the wind and rain, but somehow managed to stay dry. He called over his shoulder to the bemused Japanese teenager, "Gomen nasi."

As Percy pulled Mr. Weasley away, he regained a little bit of composure. "Percy, I didn't know you spoke Japanese."

"I don't," Percy sighed. "I picked up this little handbook on common Japanese phrases at the train station, just in case you tried to mingle with the muggles."

"Oh. Well, what did you say to him? Whatever it was, it sounds like you've practiced it a lot."

"I said, 'I'm very sorry.'"

Mr. Weasley really didn't have a reply to that, so he just took out the directions again. Since Mr. Weasley couldn't read the Japanese street signs, he had very detailed directions to the apartment where he was to meet the children. It mostly consisted of "walk three blocks until you get to this landmark. Turn left and walk this amount of blocks."

Percy held his head high and tried not to notice how many people were staring at his red head peaking underneath his umbrella. Most of the people here had black, straight hair. Only a few Japanese people had brown or blonde hair and it was clear that they had dyed it. Once or twice, he saw a kid with really strange hair, like he had just jumped out of a muggle comic book. Other than that, the only hair difference he saw was in the foreigners and tourist, like himself, who weren't seen very much in the residential areas of this city. What was there for them?

"Okay, five blocks this way," Mr. Weasley turned. "Are you hungry, Son? I didn't have much breakfast. Maybe we can go for an early lunch."

"Dad, it's already past seven!" Percy griped.

"It is? Oh, I guess it is! I forgot about the time change! Eleven hours, wasn't it? Oh, Percy, look at what that man has there! A portable telephone!"

"I'm so glad they can't understand us," Percy said under his breath.

"Ah, for that we'll need a Speech Potion," Fred said.

"We can do that right now, if you like," George finished.

"No, you're underage wizards and can't use magic outside of Hogwarts. Father will do it when we get to the apartment. Ministry's orders."

"Ah, that's a shame."

"Yeah, I'm sure he'd love to talk to the locals."

"Of course, that'll make it harder to actually get to the apartment."

"You're right, Fred. Could take all day."

"Or night, what with the time change."

"WAIT!" Percy whipped around and saw his two younger brothers standing behind him with umbrellas of their own, grinning with the same grins on their identical faces. "What are you DOING here?!"

"How could we pass up a chance to go to Japan?" George grinned.

"I'm surprised you didn't notice us earlier."

"You're NOT supposed to be here!"

"Why's that, Mr. Percy? Needed some one-on-one time with Daddy?"

"NO! The Ministry didn't want any more than two of us coming because we might attract unnecessary attention!"

"Don't worry about it."

"Yeah, the muggles will just think we're tourist."

"In a way –"

"– we are."

"It's not the muggles they're worried about," Percy hissed. "Look, you two are to go back to the station and take the next International Floo Powder home!"

"What?! No way!"

"We paid good money to use it –"

"– and we're not going to spend more money to just be sent home!"

Mr. Weasley turned around to see what the commotion was about. (At this point the freaked out muggle ran off. Mr. Weasley can be a bit overbearing if he gets really excited). Upon seeing the twins, he went white. "Oh, no . . . does – does your mother know you're here?"

"We took care of it," Fred and George said at the same time.

"Fred, George, where are you two? You'd better not be causing more mischief!" Mrs. Weasley opened the door to the twins' bedroom.

They were nowhere in the house and it had been about half an hour since they had both disappeared from breakfast. They should have been spotted again, planning something that'll give their mother another headache.

Their bedroom was littered with harmless pranks (like they would leave the good stuff out for their mother to find), and their wizardry clothes. Mrs. Weasley mumbled about their lack of cleanliness when she noticed a note on Fred's bed.

Dear Mum,

Gone to Japan with Dad and Percy.

See you when we get back.

George and Fred

Down in the garden, Ginny and Ron were spread out on the grass, relaxing in the morning sun before they had to do their chores. They heard a high-pitched scream from the house.

"Either the ghost in the attic is really acting up or Mom's going to go on a killing spree," Ginny said. "Shall we make ourselves scarce, Ron?"

Ron just nodded and the two headed out to the field that was just beyond their property lines.

It was twenty minutes later before they found the apartment complex they were searching for. They clamored into a small elevator as the directions instructed, then Mr. Weasley pulled out two medium-sized bottles containing a murky green liquid from his briefcase.

"Dad, that's enough Speech Potion for six men!" Percy said, alarmed.

"I know. I just wanted to make sure. Professor Snape made enough for twelve, anyway. He couldn't get the potion any smaller."

"Professor Snape made that!?" Fred pointed.

"I'm not drinking it!" George protested.

"It could kill us!"

"He's never been fond of our family, especially now that Ron's Harry's friend."

"And everyone at school knows how much Snape hates Harry."

"You two will drink without question because you'll realize that Professor Snape would not be so foolish as to kill us with something that can easily be traced back to him," Percy shoved one of the bottles into Fred's hands. "Don't forget to shake it well, it only takes a gulp or two swallows."

Fred gave it a weary look but shook it and took a gulp. "Oh, gross! It tastes like Professor Snape wrung out his greasy hair over the potion! Here, George."

George plugged his nose and downed his portion of the potion, nearly gagging it back up. "Nasty," was all he choked out before passing it along to his father.

Mr. Weasley and Percy took the drink with less of a dramatic production, though Mr. Weasley did comment that it tasted as though Fred wasn't too far from the truth. Lucky for them, no one else had need of the elevator, so the potion went unseen aside from the four Weasleys.

"Dad," Percy whispered to his father. "Are you sure we couldn't find some place for Fred and George to play while we represented Hogwarts?"

"Oh, don't worry, Percy. Your brothers aren't that bad!" Mr. Weasley chuckled.

"Yeah, Perc', we can behave like gentlemen!" Fred adopted a snobbish tone. "Cup o' tea! Cup o' tea! What a lovely day! Wouldn't you agree, Old Chap?"

"Indeed, I would!" George mimicked him. "Shall we talk about the most boring subject we can think of?"

"Capital idea! I do believe Percy's love life is ranked between 'bored to tears' and 'extremely boring.'"

"Daaaad!" Percy moaned. "Having these two along is like playing Quidditch with a cursed broom!"

"Hey, we play Quidditch!" Fred and George dropped their snobbish acts.

"That's not the point," Percy growled, but their level arrived (thankfully they were numbered in English) and the four got out. Under his breath he mumbled, "With you two along, we're representing Hogwarts with a handicap."

Mr. Weasley pointed to the doors, counting, "One . . . two . . . three . . . four . . . five . . . six . . . seven! Here we are, Boys!"

"Wait, how do we know if the Speech Potion worked?" Fred asked.

"Only one way to find out." Mr. Weasley knocked on the door.

A lady with soft black hair and matching eyes came to the door. She was short compared to the Weasleys, whose secondary trait was being tall. Her eyes seemed a little scared, as if not knowing what to expect, but she bowed a little.

"Ah – hello." Mr. Weasley bowed a little, unsure of himself. "Is – is this the Ichijouji residence?"

"Yes, it is. I'm Mrs. Ichijouji."

"Ah, good. I'm Mr. Arthur Weasley, and these are my boys, Percy, Fred, and George. We're the representatives from Hogwarts."

"Please, come in." She stepped aside but halted Mr. Weasley after he took only three steps. "Please remove your shoes, Mr. Weasley."

"Oh, yes, of course!" Mr. Weasley and his boys took off their shoes. Mrs. Ichijouji would have offered the spare slippers they wear to walk around the house, but they only had one pair and it looked like it wouldn't fit any of them.

Instead, she didn't say anything but led them to the crowded living room. All six children had come over since this was where the second flock of letters from McGonagall said to meet. However, the children's parents were in the living room as well. Adding the four that had just walked in, there were twenty people in total. Most were standing, the children sitting on the floor. Hikari and Daisuke's parents moved off the couch so the Weasleys could sit.

"Thank you," Mr. Weasley said, glad that the Speech Potion was working just fine.

"Would you and your boys care for something to drink, Mr. Weasley?" Mrs. Ichijouji said from the short entryway. She didn't want to have to push her way through the crowd more than necessary.

"Oh, some water, please."

George and Fred looked around. Most of these people had black or brown hair. Only three people, two boys who were clearly brothers and their mother, had blonde hair. They were all looking at them, unsure as much as they were about how to start the conversation.

"So," Percy tried to break the ice. "Um, how about we each introduce ourselves so we know everyone's name?"

A round of introductions was made. The Weasleys forgot most of the last names, as they didn't think they could pronounce them without taking an actual class in Japanese. The Speech Potion was made so people could speak and understand a foreign language for a certain amount of time; however it had its limits, such as names. There are so many ways to say a single name that it was too complicated to figure out a potion for it, so the long-forgotten creator of the Speech Potion left the names alone. By the time it was done, Mrs. Ichijouji had returned with the waters. The air in the room was less tense by a notch, but still thick with unformed questions and anxiety.

Mr. Weasley placed his glass down on the coaster. He had been planning a little speech for a few weeks now, ever since he found out about this. "I am Arthur Weasley; I'm head of the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office in the Ministry of Magic. These are my boys who are attending Hogwarts. Percy will be starting his seventh year in September. Fred and George will be starting their fifth year. What do you know about Hogwarts?"

"Only that they think we have magic and want to teach us," Hikari piped up. "Did you say you start school in September?"

"Yes, that's when you start school in Europe," Mr. Weasley answered.

"Ah, you mean we have to go in the beginning of winter?" Daisuke moaned.

"Well, actually we were hoping that you would come . . . um, tomorrow."

Like an echo magnified and mingled with disbelief, nearly every parent in the room said, "Tomorrow?!"

"You can't be serious!"

"You expect our children to be ready to go half way across the world by tomorrow!?"

"That's not even enough time to think about it!"

"Why do you need to take our children so fast, anyway?"

"Please, please, settle down!" Mr. Weasley waved his hands pleadingly. "There's a very good reason as to why your children need to come to Europe as soon as possible. The reason is that Ken, Die-suke-kay, Hikadli, and Takedlu skipped a year of Hogwarts. Yamato has missed four years of Hogwarts –"

"Then why even bother?" Yamato asked.

"Excuse me?"

"Why even bother with me if I've already missed four years of Hogwarts? How many years do you go to Hogwarts, anyway?"

"Oh, um, seven. Bu-but don't worry! We want to actually hold you back a year, because there's no way that you could learn four years worth of material in a summer."

"Are you saying I might have a chance at three years?"

"Well, if you work hard enough. And you'll have tutoring throughout the year at Hogwarts to help you keep up with your studies and fill any gaps in your education."

"But three years worth in about two months?" Mr. Ishida sighed. "Even I couldn't do that."

"Oh, it won't be as bad you think," Percy spoke up. "We're planning to teach them basics in Potions, Spells, highlights in Magical History, Herbology, Defense Against the Dark Arts, and Care of Magical Creatures. It does sound like a lot, but they'll be taught by the best professors and, as I said earlier, it'll just be the basics so they won't have to start off in a lower grade level than they should – aside from Yamato. And, truthfully, there's some fifteen year olds in their Fourth Year of Hogwarts, it just depends on when their birthdays are."

"Yeah, and if anyone gives you guff about it, we'll take care of them," Fred spoke up for the first time since the conversation started.

"It's not like they'll really care. I think they'll be too interested in the fact that you guys are foreign."

"Why are we going to a foreign school?" Ken spoke up. "Aren't there Japanese magic schools?"

"Yes, there are," Mr. Weasley sighed. "Unfortunately, they have a very strict age policy. You have to be ten years old and receive your letter on time for them to accept you.

"Unlike Japanese muggle schools, where you need to pass an entrance exam, magic schools have implemented an Age Limit as a substitute. I won't pretend it's fair or makes sense to me, but this is why the European Magic Schools have been offering an education to Japanese students who don't meet the Age Limit. You kids will be the first six foreign children to attend Hogwarts. Previously, all the other schools were able to handle the students, but now they're getting a bit crowded and have asked Dumbledore to share our school, which he was more than willing to."

"Wait! I'm ten. How come I didn't get an invitation to go to a Japanese magic school?" Iori blurted out. He could hardly believe that they were having this conversation about magic as if it were commonplace. Just yesterday they were thinking this was a hoax, but that thought kind of left their minds when the owls returned with replies.

"For whatever reason, you didn't receive your letter in January and the Japanese schools won't accept you now." Mr. Weasley shrugged.

Iori bit his lower lip, afraid that he'd let it slip that he was a Chosen Child. He was still in the Digital World in January, so the letter most likely came on a day he wasn't in this world. The six had already decided that they were not going to bring it up unless the representatives said something about the Digital World. If they didn't know about it, there was no harm in not telling them. This would also finally put to rest their suspicions of this being the plot of an evil, twisted Digimon.

However, Takeru spoke up, "How come you guys didn't come years earlier? If my brother does have magic, then wouldn't it make sense to have invited him to Hogwarts when he was ten, not now at the age of fifteen?"

"I can't answer that, unfortunately," Mr. Weasley sighed. "The best I can offer is that the European magic schools have always been prideful at how well their foreign students do. Perhaps they haven't contacted Yamato because they thought he wasn't 'magically strong enough.' It would have happened over a dozen times in the past if the Ministry hadn't caught wind. I'm sorry, Yamato, but we seemed to have overlooked you. We try not to do those kinds of things."

Mr. Weasley coughed and continued with his little speech, "At Hogwarts, your children will be among the finest professors, with the best Headmaster that Hogwarts has ever seen, Albus Dumbledore. They will stay in dorms with other children in their year, be sorted into Houses and become like a family there."

"I hope you guys get into Gryffindor!" George piped up.

"Yeah, they're the best!" Fred added.

"All of our family has been in Gryffindor."

"We think they plan for our beds even before we get to Hogwarts."

"Just hope you don't get into Slytherin. Those guys are nasty."

"Evil blokes you don't want to mess with."

"A-hem," Percy silenced his brothers. "Are there any other questions we can answer?"

"Yeah, I have one," Daisuke raised his hand as if he were in class but didn't wait to be called upon. "Why are we even going to a magic school? As cool as it sounds, we have never done magic in our lives."

"You can't be serious!" Mr. Weasley was taken back. "Well, maybe you just don't know how to recognize magic. Have you ever done anything in your life that you couldn't explain? Anything unusual?"

"Well, I got an A on a math test."

"Dai', that's not magical," Hikari sighed.

"But it's unusual and I can't explain it."

"Sorry, but Hikadli is correct. Don't worry, I'm sure you have magic; you just don't know it. All magic schools have a foolproof way of sniffing out wizards and witches from muggles."

"Sorry – muggles?" Ken asked.

"Non-magical people," Percy replied.

"So, the only thing left to decide is –"

"How much is this going to cost?" Daisuke's father asked.

"Nothing at all!" Mr. Weasley beamed. "The Ministry has given Hogwarts a special grant to use just for your children! All of their school supplies, robes, and everything will be paid for by the school. All you have to do is decide whether or not you wish to send your children to Hogwarts."

"This is a once in a lifetime opportunity," Percy leaned forward. He had been cooking up a little speech as well. "Your children have the chance to learn something most people in this world view as 'fictional.' They have the chance to experience a whole other world –"

"Quidditch!"

"Diagon Alley!"

"Hogsmeade!"

" – And it would seem unjust to deny them of that," Percy finished by talking over his brothers.

There was a bit of silence, and then Mr. Ishida spoke up. "Well, Yamato, TK, what do you think?"

"I want to go," Takeru said right away, not noticing that his mother had winced just the slightest.

"Yeah, sounds like fun." Yamato grinned.

"I would like to go, too." Cody spoke up, but quickly turned around to face his mother and grandfather. "If that's all right with you."

"Of course it is, Honey. You follow your heart wherever it takes you," his mother hugged him while his grandfather patted his shoulder.

"I don't know –" Daisuke started.

"I'm going!" Hikari interrupted.

"– why we waited this long to decide! Let's go!"

Ken looked at his parents. They both had tears in their eyes. He had put them through so much . . . running away to be an evil emperor, having amnesia when he returned . . . and now this. He wanted to go with this friends but he didn't want to hurt his parents any more.

"Ken, Honey, if you want to go, we understand," his mother spoke up.

"Yes, we can't deny you your future," his father said. "We tried to push you in a direction once before and we hurt you more than we helped. Only you know what's best for you."

"Don't hear a parent say that everyday," Fred whispered to George, who nodded.

Ken didn't say anything, just grinned brightly at his mom and dad, grateful to have such loving parents.

"You're going to call to us every chance you get, though!"

"Err, he can't 'call' you," Mr. Weasley spoke up. "There's no electricity in the Magical World. He can write, though."

"Okay, write to us as often as possible!"

That seemed to be the end of the conversation and everyone wanted to get out of the stuffy, crowded room. They were all covered with a thin coat of sweat when they emerged from the apartment. Only the Ichijoujis stayed, as it was their apartment.

"So we'll meet back here at eight in the morning," Mr. Weasley stated before they had left the room. "Your children don't need to pack anything, really. Maybe a few extra sets of clothes they like and a few non-electrical things. Everything else will be provided for them at Hogwarts."

Outside in the warm, June night air, Takeru took out his digivice. The rain was taking a break, thankfully, and the night was clear. It had been two hours since they had started the conversation and even at ten at night, the city was still busy, as it would remain until the early morning hours when it dwindled to the slowest point of traffic.

"Mr. Weasley?" Takeru asked. "Is there no electricity in the Magical World because it's not permitted or is there another reason?"

"There's no electronics because they don't work properly with all the magic around. Things can be enchanted to work, but it's against –"

"Could you enchant this?" Takeru held it up before Mr. Weasley could say anything that would quash his hopes. "Please, this is very important to me. If it doesn't work in the Magical World, I'll feel so . . . I've carried it with me for years and . . . it's comforting."

Whether it was the sweet words of Takeru, his pleading look, or the fact that Mr. Weasley had little self-control when it came to toying with Muggle things, Mr. Weasley looked about. Percy hadn't overheard the conversation, but he was just like his mother when it came to . . . bending the rules.

"Fred, George," Mr. Weasley waved them up. Whispering to them he said, "Keep Percy busy until I signal you and I'll see if I can't reduce your sentences when we get home."

"Deal!" the two said at once and ran up to Percy, dodging the other children and adults.

"Hey, Perc'!" Fred ruffled his hair.

"Don't do that!"

"Do what?" George asked. "This?" He ruffled his brother's hair.

"Yes!"

"Yes, do it? Okay." Fred ruffled it again.

"STOP!" Percy snapped. "Why don't you go give the children a preview of what Hogwarts is like with you two?"

"We thought we'd use you as the demonstration."

"Yeah, it's all in good fun!"

"So, tell us, Perc', did we meet your approval in the meeting?"

"We hardly talked at all."

Percy snorted. "When you did, it was out of terms and blabbering. I'm surprised the children agreed to go."

"Not everyone is as uptight as you, Perc'," said Fred.

"Yeah, leave the world to you and we'd be filling out forms just to fill out forms!" said George.

"I think they already wanted to go, even though they weren't sure about it."

"Yeah, did you see how quickly they agreed after they found out all the details?"

"The Japanese are just like that. They're quick and efficient."

Both the twins burst out laughing. At the same time they rubbed Percy's hair and said, "Yeah, right! Sure thing, Perc'!"

"AURGH! STOP RUBBING MY HAIR AND DON'T CALL ME PERC'!!"

The twins bolted for the stairs right by the elevator, an enraged Percy right on their tail. This would keep him busy for a while, long enough for their dad to do whatever he wanted to do, which he had already started. As soon as Percy was absorbed in the conversation, Mr. Weasley took Takeru's little device and performed a few spells on it with his wand.

"Thank you very much." Takeru bowed.

"Hey, can you do mine, too, please?" Daisuke held his out.

Mr. Weasley dotted his eyes back to Percy, who was getting his hair rubbed. "Lemme guess, you all have these little toys?"

Daisuke nodded and Iori, Hikari, and Yamato took their digivices. The children's parents were waiting patiently, knowing what those were and what they really meant. All of them had a small glow of pride on their faces. They had such gifted children and they always made the right choices. If only they could brag about how their children were Chosen Children and now will become wizards and witches. They had gotten the feeling that the Magical World liked to remain hidden from the masses – and who would believe them?

There was a twinkle in Mr. Weasley's eyes. He did all of theirs, including Ken's when Daisuke ran back to the apartment and got him. He kept asking questions between spells, but the best he could get out of them was that their devices were able to maintain contact between them and had aided them many times.

"How will we know if they work?" Hikari asked, putting hers back into her pocket.

"You won't until tomorrow when we go to the Magical World. But you have to keep them hidden and let no one know they work," his voice became low and warning. "I'm taking a big risk enchanting them – and handing them over to underage wizards and witches to boot."

"We'll be careful. Thank you again," the children said at once, which kind of took Mr. Weasley off guard. He was used to the twins switching between sentences, even fishing them for each other, but these were six kids with no blood or birth bond.

"Ah, yes, well, see you tomorrow then. Get a good night's rest. You'll need it."

With that he went down the stairs to call off George and Fred. What a beautiful night this had turned out to be! And to think, just on the other side of the planet, it was only eleven in the morning.

End of Chapter One: Representing With a Handicap