Started: 17th June, 2004 4:02pm

The Shadow Wizards

Disclaimer: see chapter one

Summary: see chapter one

Chapter Two: Home At Last

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Yuugi sighed as he collapsed on his double bed. The arrival feast had been as extravagant as always, but there had been a few things out of place… like the fact that the Headmistress had been missing. The first years weren't sorted. The new students, Hermione and Harry among them, had not been properly welcomed.

He frowned as he bashed his pillow with his fist, trying to reaccustom himself to the feel of it after spending them summer with his head on his own pillow at the Kame Game Shop.

Hearing the door to his room open, Yuugi opened his eyes, blinking. The bed-light of the other bed in the room flickered on to the lowest setting. A murmur of voices could be heard.

"Here is where you'll be staying while you're here, Harry. Your roommate I believe you have already met." The voice was low and feminine – Yuugi knew it to be the Headmistress'. Obviously Harry was to be rooming with him – which was just fine, in Yuugi's opinion. It was far too lonely in this room for one person.

Everyone at Akira's shared a room with another person. Usually the person they shared it with was from their own house, but this was not always the case, so Yuugi really had no indication if Harry had already been sorted.

The room was fairly large, with a large window overlooking the forest outside. It had a window seat, with Yuugi's desk next to it. Yuugi often did his work while sitting on the window seat, leaning against the walls on either side. Another desk was set up next to it, but there were no quills littering the space, parchment rolls half scribbled on and blotched from ink spills or photo frames.

Apart from the desk, there was a double bed for each person, a large closet standing against the wall farthest from the door, only half of it occupied. A bookcase was on either side of a mini-potions area. One was crammed with books on magic, Ancient Egypt, Duel Monsters, photo albums and the occasional replica of an artefact or an antique here and there. The other was empty.

After the Headmistress left, Yuugi sat up. Harry was still sitting on his bed, fully clothed, with his glasses perched precariously on the tip of his nose. He was staring vacantly into space.

"Harry?" Yuugi whispered. The other boy blinked suddenly as his eyes refocussed, landing on the one who had interrupted his reverie.

"Who're you?" he asked, confused. "Oh that's right; I met you on the train. Yuugi Motou, right?"

"Hai." Harry raised an eyebrow – he had not bothered polishing up on a bit of elementary Japanese like Hermione had, then. "It means 'yes'."

"Ah. So… do we get class schedules tomorrow morning?" Harry asked, getting changed into the pyjamas the house elves had laid out on the bed for him.

"Iie… uh, I mean no – they get sent to our alert systems. You ido/i have one of those, don't you?" Yuugi frowned. If the Headmistress had forgotten to tell the two English wizards what they would need at Akira's, then something was wrong. Lady Akira barely ever forgot anything! She even remembered each and every student (and teacher) birthday.

"Do you mean this thing?" Harry grinned, holding up a small, silvery coloured alert system.

"You have a silver one? That's not fair… mine's green." Yuugi pouted adorably. "Oh well… want me to show you how it works?" asked the Japanese Game King. Harry nodded, and Yuugi came over to sit next to him on the other bed.

"See, you push this button here, and it shows you your timetable." Yuugi demonstrated (though no timetable was there yet), then continued. "Press this one, and you see anything else you need to know at that particular time." Again, Yuugi demonstrated. "But this button was just installed in all of them last year – we can send messages to each other!" he exclaimed.

"Cool. Is it just between people who live together, or anyone?" Harry asked, fiddling with the different buttons.

"Anyone, as long as you have their ID number programmed into the system. Here, I'll put mine, Dom's, Justin's, and Cam's into it." Harry surrendered the little silver miracle of technology, and watched with wide eyes as Yuugi's fingers flew across the 13 buttons. Each was a different colour, and stood for a number, a symbol, and two letters each. Eventually he handed it back.

"Now I'll put my number in yours. Can you show me how?" Harry enquired. Yuugi nodded, and made his way over to his own desk, opening a drawer. An alert system covered in stickers of different monsters (what were they, Harry wondered) emerged. You could tell that it had a green cover, but only barely. A lot of it was covered up.

Yuugi handed him the AS (AN – that's what I'll call it now), and told him exactly what to do. Harry memorised what he was saying, filing it for later use. Yuugi wondered at this: the other boy seemed more awake now that it was night-time than he had on the train. Maybe the waking-sleep was a façade, set up to protect his emotions – but now he was getting poetic, and a poetic, tired Yuugi is never a good thing.

"Thanks," Harry grinned.

"You know, you should learn a little Japanese for general use about the castle, Harry." Yuugi murmured, bouncing back across the room to his own bed.

"Alright then."

"We'll start with the basics… in the morning."

"Why in the morning?"

"I'm too tired to think straight."

"But not too tired to bounce across the room?"

"You're never too tired to bounce."

"Whatever. 'Night." Harry laughed, and clapped. The light went out, and Yuugi cursed as he hit his toe on the bedside table. Harry just laughed again, and settled down into his bed.

"Goodnight, Harry," came Yuugi's voice, before all went dark.

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Hermione groaned as Harry and Yuugi entered the hall; both were morning people. She, on the other hand, was not. Hermione, who was hardly ever without a smile on her face, hid behind her bacon, sausages and coffee. A truly Japanese breakfast… not.

Dominique, sitting next to her, had a similar reaction to the two boys. The French girl had had ba-a-ad experiences with Yuugi's morning-person-itis. She rubbed her head as the coffee sitting next to her was knocked over – by none other than her clumsy-as-hell-but-still-adorably-cute boyfriend, Justin.

Yuugi and Harry settled themselves down next to Cameron, Harry immediately reassuming his vacant-face. Yuugi frowned (yet again) as he noticed this – it had to be a façade, as Harry had been fully alert this morning during the elementary Japanese 'lesson'.

Cam glanced at Yuugi, then looked away, his gaze roaming over everyone at the small table. The Hall was separated into little tables all over the place, where students could converse with anyone they chose to. There were people from every House scattered about the place – hardly any table consisted of those of only one house.

Akira's Houses were unified, and very close. There had been barely any competitiveness, as Hermione had noted the night before. Except during Quidditch weekends, there was almost no hostility between Houses. It was quite the opposite of Hogwarts. But getting back to the table where Yuugi and co. are seated.

The six had varying reactions to the small –beep- of the AS'. Yuugi dived into his bag, slung over the back of his chair. Cam mirrored him. Hermione and Dom were more dignified in their retrieval of their respective AS', and Harry already had his out. Justin didn't get his at all – just looked over Dom's shoulder.

"Typical," Dom giggled, as Justin took the opportunity to blow on her neck; it was singularly the most sensitive place on her body.

"What've you guys got first? I've got Charms," Yuugi started.

"Potions," Cam groaned.

"Muggle Studies," cheered Dom, accompanied by Hermione (who had been sorted in Hokariu, with the former Beauxbatons girl).

"Herbology, in GH2," Harry and Justin chorused. Both seemed to be in Shinami. All six gathered their bags, seeing as the first class was right then. Dom kissed Justin goodbye – after all, they would not see each other for another three lessons! – and accompanied Hermione out of the hall.

Justin rose from the table, grinning stupidly after his good-morning kiss combined with the caffeine dose of his coffee gave him a rush. "C'mon Harry. I'll show you the way to the Greenhouses." Harry followed the English boy out of the hall.

Cam sighed as he shoved the AS into his pocket. "I hate Potions!" he complained. "I'm not any good at it!"

"Just go and get it over with," Yuugi advised, placing his own AS out of sight. "See you at lunch." Cam sighed, and headed out of the door at the far end of the hall, opposite to the one the others had exited out of. It led down to the potions labs underground.

Yuugi watched him go with a familiar peace in his mind. 'It's good to be home at last,' he thought, and left the Hall in the rush of students also heading to Charms, among other indoor classes.

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Finished: 17th June, 2004 5:32pm.

Another chapter completed… I feel good about myself.

Reviewers Corner

ruth 4 kai: thanking you for the present! sorry it's been so long since an update!

DragonMaiden: thanks for the advice! I changed it a little, if you want to go back and have a look.

Curtis Zidane Ziraa: I actually discontinued QOG until I can rework it a little, but thanks for the concern. Again, sorry for the long while between updates. I also changed the part at the end a little... the one that made you suspect it's Yuugi's friend. See what you think now!

Thanks in advance to all who will review!! hinthint, nudgenudge, winkwink