After a long and exhausting flight, we finally landed in Heathrow. Yokoshima finally decided to behave himself and we removed the restraints. Most of us were suffering from jet lag. I had never liked flying, while Sukina had not flown for three years. Hiei looked as though he was about to kiss the ground. Kurama, was as ever, cool and calm, but I noticed that he was checking his hearing discreetly quite often. Gon was busy looking around, exclaiming at all the things he saw, while Kirua was shaking his head. Clapika had immediately ran to the toilet. Botan, used to long-haul flights, was humming away, while Yokoshima glared at her. Peter was getting some information for us at the counter. All of us had cleared Customs and were trying to figure out how we were going to get to Hogwarts. Someone was supposed to meet us, but whether at Diagon Alley* or here was open to debate.
"The train station is in the city, Naoko-chan, but they have no idea where Diagonally (he did speak rather fast after all) is. We'll have to find our own lodgings for the night I guess," he said.
"Well, blimey, are you the chaps that are supposed to be in Hogwarts?" a Scottish-type accent came from behind us.
Su and I jumped, as did Botan. The rest all looked ready to fight. "Hagrid? You're Hagrid the Groundskeeper from Hogwarts, right?" I asked, after we'd all been standing and gaping at one another. The guys didn't hesitate because he was huge, they hesitated because he did not emanate any malicious chi. "Wow, yer'all the jumpiest bunch I've ever seen. Professor Kurama, Professor Hiei and Professor Karen, welcome to Hogwarts. Welcome to, to all of you," he said courteously.
"Thank... you," Kurama said, a little confused. I didn't really think that Dumbledore would send Hagrid, although he was the obvious choice.
"We've just landed here, and we'd like to get some rest before tomorrow. Is there a place nearby...?" I left it hanging, hoping Hagrid would get the idea.
"Of course!" he said good-naturedly. "We'll sleep at the inn in Diagon Alley," he continued.
"Um... we haven't seen much of London yet, so could we instead stay at one of the hotels here and do a little sight-seeing before we leave tomorrow?" Peter interjected as soon as he saw their faces.
"Well," Hagrid replied, "It's a little hard ya know, lugging all those trunks..." he began when the rest of us looked at him with an even bigger puzzled look on our faces.
"What trunks?" Sukina asked.
"Well, didn't ya all brought trunks to Hogwarts? Yer know, for yer books, clothings and all...?" he said when he saw that there weren't any trunks at all.
"We were going to buy our books and all other related materials in Diagon Alley. We do have several other bags to include all those, but they won't be much, ne, Onee-chan?" Sukina said, looking at me.
"As far as we know. Let's see... Textbooks, the Ceremonial Robes... We don't need wands, no, definately not wands..." I began muttering to myself, losing myself in one of my mental lists. (Yes, I am mental, thank you very much).
"Well, she'll have it all in the morning. Um... would you mind if we stayed at one of the," Sukina bristled at the word, "Muggle hotels here tonight? We'll meet you at Diagon Alley later, if you'll tell us how to get there," he said.
"Well," he began, clearly undecided when Kurama jumped in smoothly. There was not a hint of an accent in his speech, which pretty much shocked my little sister.
"I'll make sure that they won't stray. We're supposed to be leving at four, right? We'll meet you at Diagon Alley at Twelve. That should give us enough time," he said.
"If you put it like that, Professor..." Hagrid began to say when Peter joined in. "I'll follow you, Professor Hagrid. I've seen London before, but I've never been to Diagon Alley. Besides, I miss Magical Accomodations," he said.
Hagrid immediately brightened up. He took us all to the nearest hotel, which happened to be the Jewels. (I have no idea if such a hotel exists, and at this stage, I frankly don't care :p). The Jewels were owned by a trio of sisters who were close friends of ours. Futhermore, it was one of the most expensive and luxurious hotels in the vicinity. Just entering the lobby alone was enough to evoke a sense of luxury, sensuality and decadence. Su checked us all in except Peter and Killua, who was going to follow Peter to Diagon Alley. He told us that he had had enough of luxury to last a lifetime.
Once we were in the rooms, Sukina handed me a piece of paper and a pen. I immediately began to scribble and when it was done, only then did I realise that we were no longer in the airport. She told me what had happened after taking and putting the list in a secure place.
Part Two
"Did you manage to reach them?" she asked me.
"Yes. They all said the same thing. Not one of them can get Voldie's scent, but that's not unusual. After all, they've never meet him and neither have we. What is unusual is that they have sensed BKRG here. He's not one of our favourites, and they decided that they might as well follow him. They think he might lead them to Voldie. At the very least, we have an eye on one of his henchmen," I told her.
"That was a good call. Does BKRG know we're here?' she asked.
"Nope. As far as I can ascertain, I don't think he even cares if we're here. I just wish I could figure out who was it that was following us," I was slightly worried.
"The others told me about it too, but I couldn't even get a tracker on him. Either he's damn good, or I'm blind to him," she replied.
"You're kidding."
"Any more than birds could fly. If I am blind to him, it must mean..."
"He's a member of the Dead and beyond our reach," I completed.
Someone knocked on our door. Sukina and I immediately reached for our weapons. She called out, "Who's there?" It was the others. She cautiously opened the door. The others seemed to be quite surprised at the weapons we held, particularly Botan, Kurama, and Clapika. Sukina held a pair of sickles, joined by a long cord, while I had a double-bladed staff in my hands. "Gomen," Botan said, "We did not mean to startle you." Her English accent was abominable, but at least she had the grammer right. It was a little too formal for my taste though.
"It's okay," Sukina said.
"Are you okay, Naoko-san?" Gon asked me. I nodded.
"Why are you guys here?" I asked.
"Where's Hiei?" Sukina asked.
Kurama sighed. "Where else?"
Sukina and I looked at Kurama incredulously. "He's sleeping in a tree?" we asked. He nodded.
"What are our plans for tomorrow, Naoko-san?" Clapika asked me politely. He's such a nice boy! ^_^
"Well, we have to buy our school supplies. That's the most important thing. Did you guys remember to bring money?" I asked.
Surprisingly, or maybe not so, Kurama, Yokoshima, Botan and Shuura all held up coins of antique make. Shuura's, in particular, were rather ancient. My sister's eyes glimmered. We've both been trained as thieves when we were taken into Celeste's PriestessHood, and the training was reinforced when we were 'recruited' into the Interpol. We were under the Special Divisions, and it did not only consist of supernatural happenings, but also thievery, assassination (which was extremely rare) and other not-quite-so-legitimate activities. I loved those days! ^_^ My sister was an excellent thief, and she specialised in ancient stuff. I knew what she was going to say the moment Shuura took out the coins.
"May I have a look at them?" she said. When he gave it to her, she sat herself in one corner, happily counting them while humming. From time to time, we could hear her making small squeals of delight.
"Looks like I'll be paying for you, Shuura. She won't give those coins back, ever," I sighed.
The cute, wide-eyed demon merely looked at me in puzzlement. I was not really surprised to see him sitting on Kurama's lap, as though he was six years old, though he looked 17. I knew for a fact that he was far younger than Gon, who's ten. I resisted the urge to ruffle his hair.
"We'll be going to Diagon Alley. Then what?" asked Gon.
"Well, if I'm not wrong, we'll have to get textbooks, robes, Pets for all of you and also your things for Spells and Potions..." Sukina interrupted me.
"The list is here, Onee-chan. I think we can safely split into two groups after we change the money at Gringotts. One group can get the ingredients for Spells and Potions. The other can get the textbooks. We can meet during lunch and get the wands and pets after that," she said.
"Kurama and Hiei can go with one group, Su and me with another. We can get things done faster that way," I concurred.
"Fine, then we'll take Botan, Gon, Shuura and Clapika?" Kurama was uncertain about the last addition.
"If you take Gon, you'll have to take Kirua as well. Kirua's not the most rational of people," I disagreed.
"Compared to Hiei, he is," Sukina said, making us giggle.
"Well... Tell you what, you take Clapika and Peter, we'll take Gon, Kirua, and Yokoshima," I said.
"Is that such a good idea?" my sister asked me in our private language when Kurama agreed.
"Kirua's fine, just only short-tempered when it comes to Hiei," I reassured her.
"We'll get the textbooks then. You and Botan know more about herbs than anyone else," I said.
"Agreed," he said. Sukina nodded. After that, they all left to sleep. Botan gave my sister a sleep medicine as she could not sleep when she was in a new place.
*****
"'Nee-chan, aren't you going to sleep?" my sister asked. She was ready for bed.
"Iya. I need to finish off this letter to Barbara first. Oyasumi," I told her good night.
"Oyasumi," she replied.
"The train station is in the city, Naoko-chan, but they have no idea where Diagonally (he did speak rather fast after all) is. We'll have to find our own lodgings for the night I guess," he said.
"Well, blimey, are you the chaps that are supposed to be in Hogwarts?" a Scottish-type accent came from behind us.
Su and I jumped, as did Botan. The rest all looked ready to fight. "Hagrid? You're Hagrid the Groundskeeper from Hogwarts, right?" I asked, after we'd all been standing and gaping at one another. The guys didn't hesitate because he was huge, they hesitated because he did not emanate any malicious chi. "Wow, yer'all the jumpiest bunch I've ever seen. Professor Kurama, Professor Hiei and Professor Karen, welcome to Hogwarts. Welcome to, to all of you," he said courteously.
"Thank... you," Kurama said, a little confused. I didn't really think that Dumbledore would send Hagrid, although he was the obvious choice.
"We've just landed here, and we'd like to get some rest before tomorrow. Is there a place nearby...?" I left it hanging, hoping Hagrid would get the idea.
"Of course!" he said good-naturedly. "We'll sleep at the inn in Diagon Alley," he continued.
"Um... we haven't seen much of London yet, so could we instead stay at one of the hotels here and do a little sight-seeing before we leave tomorrow?" Peter interjected as soon as he saw their faces.
"Well," Hagrid replied, "It's a little hard ya know, lugging all those trunks..." he began when the rest of us looked at him with an even bigger puzzled look on our faces.
"What trunks?" Sukina asked.
"Well, didn't ya all brought trunks to Hogwarts? Yer know, for yer books, clothings and all...?" he said when he saw that there weren't any trunks at all.
"We were going to buy our books and all other related materials in Diagon Alley. We do have several other bags to include all those, but they won't be much, ne, Onee-chan?" Sukina said, looking at me.
"As far as we know. Let's see... Textbooks, the Ceremonial Robes... We don't need wands, no, definately not wands..." I began muttering to myself, losing myself in one of my mental lists. (Yes, I am mental, thank you very much).
"Well, she'll have it all in the morning. Um... would you mind if we stayed at one of the," Sukina bristled at the word, "Muggle hotels here tonight? We'll meet you at Diagon Alley later, if you'll tell us how to get there," he said.
"Well," he began, clearly undecided when Kurama jumped in smoothly. There was not a hint of an accent in his speech, which pretty much shocked my little sister.
"I'll make sure that they won't stray. We're supposed to be leving at four, right? We'll meet you at Diagon Alley at Twelve. That should give us enough time," he said.
"If you put it like that, Professor..." Hagrid began to say when Peter joined in. "I'll follow you, Professor Hagrid. I've seen London before, but I've never been to Diagon Alley. Besides, I miss Magical Accomodations," he said.
Hagrid immediately brightened up. He took us all to the nearest hotel, which happened to be the Jewels. (I have no idea if such a hotel exists, and at this stage, I frankly don't care :p). The Jewels were owned by a trio of sisters who were close friends of ours. Futhermore, it was one of the most expensive and luxurious hotels in the vicinity. Just entering the lobby alone was enough to evoke a sense of luxury, sensuality and decadence. Su checked us all in except Peter and Killua, who was going to follow Peter to Diagon Alley. He told us that he had had enough of luxury to last a lifetime.
Once we were in the rooms, Sukina handed me a piece of paper and a pen. I immediately began to scribble and when it was done, only then did I realise that we were no longer in the airport. She told me what had happened after taking and putting the list in a secure place.
Part Two
"Did you manage to reach them?" she asked me.
"Yes. They all said the same thing. Not one of them can get Voldie's scent, but that's not unusual. After all, they've never meet him and neither have we. What is unusual is that they have sensed BKRG here. He's not one of our favourites, and they decided that they might as well follow him. They think he might lead them to Voldie. At the very least, we have an eye on one of his henchmen," I told her.
"That was a good call. Does BKRG know we're here?' she asked.
"Nope. As far as I can ascertain, I don't think he even cares if we're here. I just wish I could figure out who was it that was following us," I was slightly worried.
"The others told me about it too, but I couldn't even get a tracker on him. Either he's damn good, or I'm blind to him," she replied.
"You're kidding."
"Any more than birds could fly. If I am blind to him, it must mean..."
"He's a member of the Dead and beyond our reach," I completed.
Someone knocked on our door. Sukina and I immediately reached for our weapons. She called out, "Who's there?" It was the others. She cautiously opened the door. The others seemed to be quite surprised at the weapons we held, particularly Botan, Kurama, and Clapika. Sukina held a pair of sickles, joined by a long cord, while I had a double-bladed staff in my hands. "Gomen," Botan said, "We did not mean to startle you." Her English accent was abominable, but at least she had the grammer right. It was a little too formal for my taste though.
"It's okay," Sukina said.
"Are you okay, Naoko-san?" Gon asked me. I nodded.
"Why are you guys here?" I asked.
"Where's Hiei?" Sukina asked.
Kurama sighed. "Where else?"
Sukina and I looked at Kurama incredulously. "He's sleeping in a tree?" we asked. He nodded.
"What are our plans for tomorrow, Naoko-san?" Clapika asked me politely. He's such a nice boy! ^_^
"Well, we have to buy our school supplies. That's the most important thing. Did you guys remember to bring money?" I asked.
Surprisingly, or maybe not so, Kurama, Yokoshima, Botan and Shuura all held up coins of antique make. Shuura's, in particular, were rather ancient. My sister's eyes glimmered. We've both been trained as thieves when we were taken into Celeste's PriestessHood, and the training was reinforced when we were 'recruited' into the Interpol. We were under the Special Divisions, and it did not only consist of supernatural happenings, but also thievery, assassination (which was extremely rare) and other not-quite-so-legitimate activities. I loved those days! ^_^ My sister was an excellent thief, and she specialised in ancient stuff. I knew what she was going to say the moment Shuura took out the coins.
"May I have a look at them?" she said. When he gave it to her, she sat herself in one corner, happily counting them while humming. From time to time, we could hear her making small squeals of delight.
"Looks like I'll be paying for you, Shuura. She won't give those coins back, ever," I sighed.
The cute, wide-eyed demon merely looked at me in puzzlement. I was not really surprised to see him sitting on Kurama's lap, as though he was six years old, though he looked 17. I knew for a fact that he was far younger than Gon, who's ten. I resisted the urge to ruffle his hair.
"We'll be going to Diagon Alley. Then what?" asked Gon.
"Well, if I'm not wrong, we'll have to get textbooks, robes, Pets for all of you and also your things for Spells and Potions..." Sukina interrupted me.
"The list is here, Onee-chan. I think we can safely split into two groups after we change the money at Gringotts. One group can get the ingredients for Spells and Potions. The other can get the textbooks. We can meet during lunch and get the wands and pets after that," she said.
"Kurama and Hiei can go with one group, Su and me with another. We can get things done faster that way," I concurred.
"Fine, then we'll take Botan, Gon, Shuura and Clapika?" Kurama was uncertain about the last addition.
"If you take Gon, you'll have to take Kirua as well. Kirua's not the most rational of people," I disagreed.
"Compared to Hiei, he is," Sukina said, making us giggle.
"Well... Tell you what, you take Clapika and Peter, we'll take Gon, Kirua, and Yokoshima," I said.
"Is that such a good idea?" my sister asked me in our private language when Kurama agreed.
"Kirua's fine, just only short-tempered when it comes to Hiei," I reassured her.
"We'll get the textbooks then. You and Botan know more about herbs than anyone else," I said.
"Agreed," he said. Sukina nodded. After that, they all left to sleep. Botan gave my sister a sleep medicine as she could not sleep when she was in a new place.
*****
"'Nee-chan, aren't you going to sleep?" my sister asked. She was ready for bed.
"Iya. I need to finish off this letter to Barbara first. Oyasumi," I told her good night.
"Oyasumi," she replied.
