Hehe, thanks all for reviewing, I'm glad you like my story. I'm sorry if I get this wrong, but I read somewhere in one of the books that the train doesn't actually take them to the school, instead, it takes them to a station in Hogsmeade. So that's where they're going in my story. I have a little problem that I'll need your help with, but I won't mention that until the end of the chapter.
So continue your reading and please review. ^.^ Thanks!
And I own NOTHING. 'Cept the poi I'm eating right now. Anybody want some?
~*~*~*~
Two weeks passed rapidly, and in no time, our little group was standing between the barriers for platforms nine and ten. Sakura looked down at her ticket and up in confusion. "Eriol-kun, this says platform 9 and ¾. But I don't see it anywhere around.
Eriol (what else) smiled. "That's because, to get onto platform 9 and ¾, you have to walk through the barrier between these two platforms." Touya, Fujitaka and Tomoyo looked at the wall skeptically. It looked very firm.
"Hoe?" Sakura gasped. "Demo, Eriol-kun, the wall looks very solid. I don't think-" Sakura was cut off as Eriol grabbed Tomoyo's hand and dragged her at a run straight into the wall calling "Don't think, just run!" And suddenly, they weren't there anymore. "Hoe!"
Touya shrugged and ran after them. He too disappeared. Fujitaka looked at his daughter and motioned for her to go first. Sakura nodded and backed up. She took off at a high speed run, closing her eyes and thinking I will not hit the wall, I will not hit the wall. She kept running until she hit something rather hard, and waited for the laughing to begin. It didn't come however, and she wondered what exactly her so-called friends were doing. She cracked open an eye, then another, and gazed up at the something that she hit.
She was surprised to see that it wasn't a something, but rather a someone, that she hit. She was even more surprised, stunned to silence to be exact, to see the vivid amber staring back at her beneath a mop of messy chocolate brown hair. She took a shaky breath, staring back into those beautiful amber eyes that she dreamt about every night; then another, and another, and-
"SYAORAN-KUN!!!" She cried in utter happiness, jumping up and launching herself at him, wrapping her arms around his neck. He stood, too stunned to move, for a moment before it finally dawned on him that his long lost love was hanging on to his neck for dear life. Slowly he wrapped his arms around her waist, and closed his eyes in an attempt to keep the happy tears from his eyes.
He breathed in the scent of her hair, and smiled that rare, only-for-Sakura-smile. "Ohayo, Sakura-chan." He whispered softly in her ear. Oblivious to the stares they gathered, the couple stood for countless seconds, minutes, hours, days-time seemed to stand still around them. Then, as soon as the lovely moment had begun, yet it felt like an eternity after, it was interrupted by the mingled shouts and screeches of "KAWAII!" and "GAKI GET OFF MY SISTER NOW!"
Sakura and Syaoran jumped apart, faces glowing red, to see three calm, smiling faces, one not so calm or smiley face with a really smiley face on its back, one video-camera, and one smirk (a.n.:if you were counting, you'd notice something different). Though the smirk went unnoticed by Sakura, the face it was plastered on didn't.
"Oh! Meiling-chan, you're here too!" She ran over to the Chinese girl and embraced her tightly. After the reunion was out of the way, Sakura noticed, at last, that she was standing in the midst of a fairly large crowd, all dressed in robes, and in front of a large scarlet red steam engine.
Eriol reminded them all that they had a limited amount of time, and told them that he would see to getting Sakura's things on the train, while they said their goodbyes. Syaoran, Meiling, Tomoyo, Yukito, and Nakuru went with him, leaving the three Kinomoto's to themselves.
Sakura looked at her father with tears in her eyes and gave him a fond embrace which he returned. "Arigatou, Otou-san. I'll miss you."
"I'll miss you both very much." Fujitaka said hugging Touya as well. "Take care of yourselves. Have fun, and Good luck."
"Sayonara, Otou-san, I'll write to you about what happens." Touya said. They said their last goodbyes, and Fujitaka watched in both happiness and sadness as his two children boarded the train for Hogwarts. He sighed and told himself that it was all for the best. They would be safer at Hogwarts than anywhere else. Looking at his own train ticket, he decided that it was time to let them be. Hopefully, he would be seeing them later. He had no doubt that they would survive; after all, his daughter was the most powerful sorceress in the world. And she was once again with the Li boy, which he knew would make her happy. Yes, Li would protect her; with his life if necessary. So he was not all that worried about them. No, it was himself he was worried about. What if he didn't come out of this alive? He knew the risks when Albus Dumbledore sent him the letter explaining everything. He knew what could happen to him at any moment. But for now, the only thing that mattered to him was the lives of his children. So young, so innocent. They would have to be strong. For themselves, and for the world. He prayed to Nadeshiko to stay with them, help them cope with the changes. And stepping out of the barrier, her turned to platform eight, and waited.
~*~Meanwhile~*~
On the train, the companions had settled into a compartment of their own, near the back, waiting for the train to leave. Yukito and Nakuru had to haul Touya up to the front of the train, where, being a teacher's aide, he was supposed to be. This left Sakura, Syaoran, Meiling, Tomoyo, and Eriol alone in the compartment. (A.n.: I have no idea what a train compartment looks like, the closest thing to a train I've been in is the one that takes you to Fantasyland in Disneyland, so if I get the number of seats wrong or something like that, I'm sorry.) Syaoran sat next to the window, Sakura next to him, and Meiling next to her with an empty seat at the end. Across from Syaoran was Eriol with Tomoyo at his side.
They spent the time waiting for the train, catching up on each others lives. Then talk turned to acceptance into Hogwarts. Sakura and Tomoyo told the others about the strange letters that they received and how Eriol was a teacher and Tomoyo was his assistant. Syaoran told them that much the same thing had happened.
"Demo, Meiling-chan, you don't have any magic either." Sakura said, trying her best not to insult her.
Meiling only shrugged. "Eh. Aunty Yelan didn't tell us anything. Just packed us up and sent us here a couple of days ago." She explained.
Just then, the door opened and a boy with messy black hair and glasses that looked like Eriol's stood there. He smiled oddly. "Hello. Is it alright if me and my friends sit here with you?" He asked. "Everywhere else is full."
Sakura nodded and smiled cheerfully. "Of course you can." The boy smiled gratefully and sank into the seat next to Meiling who (of course) smiled at him. Two more kids their age came in, one girl with bushy brown hair and one boy with bright red, and sat next to Tomoyo.
"Hi, I'm Meiling Li. What's your name?" She asked, looking at the first boy that walked in. He stared at her in shock, as did the other boy with red hair.
"You-you don't know?" He asked looking around at all the new faces. They all wore similar looks of confusion and boredom (except for Eriol who, of course, knows everything and was, how'd you guess!?! smiling). The girl sitting across from him snorted.
"I can't believe you don't know who he is." She said sarcastically, acting smarter then them.
Meiling looked angry. "Wouldn't ask if I knew. You should've been able to figure that out if you're so smart." She said with equal sarcasm. The girl looked taken aback.
Sakura sensed the tension and cleared her throat. "Um, I'm Sakura Kinomoto. This is Syaoran Li, Tomoyo Daidouji, and Eriol Hiragizawa. What are your names?"
"I'm Ron Weasley. This here is Hermione Granger," said the boy with red hair, motioning to himself and the girl next to him.
"And I'm Harry Potter." The first boy said, waiting for the gasps of shock and surprise. All her got in return was a "Nice to meet you all" from Sakura. He decided instantly that he liked these people. Especially that pretty girl with black hair sitting next to him. . . .
"So, where are you all from? I mean, not knowing about Harry Potter and all." Ron asked tentatively.
This time, Tomoyo answered. "Sakura and I are from Japan. Syaoran and Meiling are cousins from China, and Eriol is originally from England, though he moved to Japan a few years ago."
"Besides, what's so special about him that we should know who he is?" Meiling asked, looking haughtily at Hermione who snorted in return.
"He only defeated the most powerful dark wizard in the world when he was just a baby." Harry glared at Hermione. He finally found some people that wouldn't judge him based on past doings, and she had to go and ruin it. In a second that girl would probably be drooling over his mantle of celebrity status. But once again, he was surprised.
"So?" Was all she said.
Sakura, on the other hand was looking at him with wide emerald eyes. "You did all that?"
Harry nodded. "Yeah. I supposedly defeated Voldemort." He said, voice full of bitterness and sarcasm. His friends flinched at the name. But Sakura only looked confused.
"Eriol-kun, isn't Voldemort that wizard you were telling me about?" All eyes turned to Eriol who (duh) smiled and nodded. "But, he's still alive, isn't he? If Harry-kun defeated him, shouldn't he be dead?"
Hermione sputtered and Meiling smirked. Even Harry felt like laughing. Finally someone could put up a good comeback for his supposed fame. Although, he wasn't sure Sakura meant it as a comeback, but was genuinely confused by this. He was about to say that he wasn't all powerful like everyone thought him to be, and was in fact just a normal wizard, when the door once again slid open to reveal a tall boy with slicked back blonde hair and piercing blue eyes flanked by two larger boys that looked as ugly as they did stupid..
"What do you want, Malfoy?" Ron asked bitterly.
"Well, well, well. What do we have here?" Malfoy asked. His eyes fell to Meiling and he smirked.
"What are you smirking at?" She asked. Her crimson eyes blazed at the thought of a new challenge.
Malfoy leaned onto the door frame and crossed his arms in front of his chest. "Just wondering how such a beautiful girl wound up sitting next to such a pitiful excuse for a wizard."
Now, as much as Meiling loves a challenge, she loves her friends even more. Needless to say, near-pandemonium ensued. Before Harry, Ron, or Hermione could even blink, let alone get a good comeback out, Meiling was standing in front of Malfoy, fire in her eyes. "Funny, I was just about to ask you the same thing. You know, you're friends could stand to do some studying. Not to mention a bath."
Malfoy's eyes narrowed. "Are you implying that I'm a girl?"
Meiling laughed. "You're just about as smart as she is," she said, motioning to Hermione who fumed. "Really, you two should get together sometime." She laughed again as both Hermione and Malfoy glared at her.
"Why I never-" Hermione began
"You little-" Malfoy said at the same time, bringing out his wand. He aimed at Meiling and shouted "Barba!" (a.n.: Latin word for beard, he meant to give her a beard.) A ray of purple light shot out of the end of the wand and headed straight for Meiling. When it was about six inches in front of her, a winged thing (a.n.: I don't know what it's called, the symbol for the Shield) appeared and absorbed the light. In the corner of the booth behind Meiling, a light pink aura disappeared as well.
Meiling, who had been scared but wasn't about to show it smirked again and watched not only this "Malfoy"'s glare, but Harry, Hermione, and Ron's fearful stare turn into looks of awe and alarm. She walked closer to Malfoy, until she was about two inches from his face, and whispered in a deadly quiet voice, "What were you saying?"
Malfoy backed up a little and his eyes narrowed. "This isn't over. Not by a long shot." Then he left with his two friends staring stupidly at his back, following. Meiling turned back to her seat and sent Sakura an appreciative smile. She sat back down and smiled mischievously. "Well, that was fun." She said sarcastically, causing Tomoyo and Sakura to giggle, Eriol to (duh) smile, and Syaoran to shake his head and turn back to the window he was staring out of.
Harry, on the other hand, looked dumbfounded. "How-how did you-?" He began. Just then, the door slid open again to reveal two tall, lanky (uh. . .) men and a bubbly young woman.
Sakura's smile broadened. "Yukito!" She cried, happy for the distraction. Behind Yukito, Touya stood glaring at Syaoran, who glared back, with Nakuru hanging on his arm. The three previous Hogwarts students looked at the three newcomers in confusion.
"Hello, everyone." Yukito said. "I just came by to check on Sakura-chan, and tell you all to put on your robes; we'll be arriving at the station soon." Everyone nodded and donned their robes as the three older (uh. . . ) people left; Sakura's robes looking a little more fashionable. The sides were brought in just a little, giving an extra accent to her curves. The neckline went down in a little V-neck, and the sleeves fit her arms at first, then flared slightly at the elbow. The changes were noticeable, but not so much as to get her in trouble.
This, of course, didn't go unnoticed by Hermione. "Where did you get those robes? The only place to have them made in England is Madam Malkin's. And she certainly doesn't make robes like that."
Sakura blushed, which sent Tomoyo into a frenzy of whipping out her video camera and shouting "Kawaii!" "Actually, Tomoyo-chan made them for me. Do you like them? I'm sure she could make you some too." Sakura ventured, attempting to make a new friend.
Hermione made a low sound in her throat that sounded like a cross between a snort and a growl. "Hogwarts has standards, you know. There's a reason for the dress-code, did you ever think about that." Sakura now looked hurt and quite taken aback. From behind her, Syaoran glared at Hermione, feeling the disturbance in Sakura's usually cheerful aura.
"Geeze, Hermione, why don't you lighten up?" Harry asked, feeling his old and long buried dislike for her know-it-all-superior attitude rise again. It wasn't that he was beginning to not like her again, but she didn't have to be so mean. "They are new, after all." He reminded her. She simply glared at him, as if angry, and she probably was, that he was taking their side.
"Yeah, what he said." Meiling added as the train pulled into the station. She opened the door and led the way out of the compartment, surprisingly enough with Harry right behind her. Tomoyo and Eriol followed, Sakura with her head down next, and lastly, Syaoran who walked protectively close to Sakura with his death-glare pinned on Hermione.
Ron was about to follow when he suddenly stopped and faced Hermione. "You know, Hermione, Harry's right. They are new, and they're from Japan as well. They don't understand what it's like to be in a wizarding school. I bet they've never even been out of Japan or China. I don't know what's gotten into you, Hermy, but I wouldn't mind if you would tell me."
Hermione's scowl softened into a frown, then a sad smile. "Honestly, I don't know either, Ron. I just- I don't know. It feels like they're different. Not just from a different country half-way around the world, but different. I sense something about them, something strong. I'm not sure if it's evil, but it may very well be. I mean, Voldemort suddenly comes out from hiding and regains his former strength, and suddenly, eight new kids from Japan show up. Do you really think it's a coincidence?" She argued.
"They could be here to help." Ron pointed out. "Besides, they're our age. They can't be much more powerful. They've never even been in a proper school. And we've got Dumbledore and all the other professors as well."
"Help out who?" she asked. "For all you know, they may be here to get Harry. There are more ways to kill than magic. I mean, did you see the way that girl was looking at him?"
"Yes, Hermione, I did. I also saw the way he was looking at her. And as much as I hate to say this, I think you're jealous." Ron said sadly, turning and walking out of the now empty train, leaving a stunned Hermione behind.
"Maybe I am jealous," she said to no one in particular. "But it's not because of Harry. I just wish I had that type of body and looks. Maybe then you'd look at me that way too."
~*~*~*~
Yay!!! Nother chappie finished ^.^ Anyway, about that problem I had. See, I have a role for everyone BUT Meiling. S&S are students, E&T are professors, Touya's a T.A. Yukito and Nakuru are doing something else (it's a secret), but NOTHING FOR MEILING. I wanted it to be original, but alas, I might be forced to be (dun dun duuuuuuuuuun) not-original. So just put a suggestion or something in your review, or e-mail me at djsilverangel@yahoo.com. Couple of things first, I will NOT make her a student; S&S are the ONLY students of the bunch and it's going to stay that way. Also, I will NOT send her home. She is one of my favourite characters, and Harry's future girlfriend, and therefore will remain at Hogwarts.
I think that's about it. If you were wondering about Kero and Suppi and where they were for this whole chapter, I locked them in my closet. Don't worry, they'll be coming back for the next chapter cause it's the feast. And don't get me wrong about all the sarcastic comments about Eriol. I love Eriol. He's SOOO CUTE ^.^ but if you haven't noticed, he seems to smile a lot. That get's kind of annoying. Hmm, gives me an idea though.
Yup yup, that's it people. I hope you had a merry Christmas. So, Hauoli Makahikihou!!! ^.^
