THANK YOU - To Viewtiful John, for sending me the information on Japanese Quidditch!

To answer a question: Harry, Ron, Hermione, Takuya, Kouji, Izumi and Kouichi are in 6th year, Tommy is in 4th, and Junpei is in 7th year.

I'm trying to give all the Digi-People and the Wizards a fair share of page-time, but it may be hard…especially since I can't write Ron or Junpei to save my life. So just hold on for a while, and it should even out in the end…

Oh, and no one has yet guessed the true identify of the Defense against the Dark Arts teacher! I'll give you hint: They have been in the books before, but never as a teacher. It won't be reveled for a while, so keep guessing! I may have a prize for the winner!

Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon or Harry Potter. I just like writing this stuff.

Chapter 3: Taking A Few Trips

Mrs. Weasly was late. Really late.

Of course, Harry really couldn't tell, seeing as Ron hadn't given a specific time in his letter, nor in the note that followed his quick reply. But 9:30 at night did seam a tad late for her to be picking him up.

He sat on his fully-packed trunk, in his still-locked bedroom, waiting patiently. He hadn't seen any reason to tell the Dursleys he was leaving, they really wouldn't care if he disappeared three weeks early. He was now starting to wonder if he'd gotten the date wrong…maybe Mrs. Weasly wasn't coming at all…

There was a shrieking sound from somewhere outside. He snapped his head around, but saw nothing directly outside his window. He stood up, getting of his locked trunk to put a hand against the window. The glass was just cooling off from the humid night air…but there was nothing in sight.

He turned back towards the trunk to sit and wait some more, when suddenly a tongue of flame appeared in the center of the room.

Harry leapt backwards, crying out in surprise, and nearly knocked over Hedwig's cage in his haste to get out of the way. The snowy owl let out a reproachful hoot, obviously startled as well as the fire rose to the height of a human…

And then folded away to reveal Mrs. Molly Weasly, standing calmly in the center of the room with a rather large, rather beautiful red-and-gold bird perched on her shoulder.

"Ah…here we are." she sighed, looking around the room. "Nice work, Fawkes."

Harry gaped at her, open-mouthed. "M-Mrs. Weasley?"

The woman turned to him, a pleasant smile on her face amongst the burning red hair. "Hello, Harry. Good to see you. I trust you're all packed?"

He nodded dumbly, standing up to pulled the trunk over. His eyes never left the bird. "Is that…Fawkes?"

"Of course." the woman smiled, running a hand down the bird's back. "Dumbledore lent him to us to come get you. He agreed it was the safest way for you to travel, not being able to Aparate and all…Of course, it took a while for the owl to get to him, what with all the arrangements…"

Ron's words about something happening at Hogwarts rang again in Harry's mind. "What arrangements?" he immediately asked.

"Never you mind." Darn. Mrs. Weasley never missed a beat.

There was a tremendous bang at the door. "WHAT'S GOING ON IN THERE?!" his Uncle roared.

Mrs. Weasley clicked her tongue as the sound of locks being thrown open echoed through the wood. "Better hurry, Harry, before that great lot of a muggle gets in here. I'll take Hedwig…"

She gripped the top of the owl's cage with her right hand, keeping Fawkes balanced on her left shoulder. "Get a good hold on your trunk now, Harry." Harry gripped the handle tight, pulling it over. "There we go. Now just grab on to Fawkes's leg…"

Harry reached up and grabbed the scaly appendage, just as the door was flung open. For a moment, he got a glimpse of Uncle Vernon, Aunt Petunia and Dudley standing aghast, then Fawkes let out a great cry and the room disappeared in a swirl of flame.

For a moment, the only thing around him was flames. He gripped Fawkes tightly with one hand, his trunk with the other. Then the fire cleared, revealing the familiar living room in the middle of the Burrow.

Harry blinked, slightly confused, before being faced by Ron's smiling, freckly face. "Hey Harry." he said cheerily. "Having a good summer?"

. . . . . .

After three excruciating weeks of waiting, it was the day of departure had finally arrived.

The plan was to leave four days before the start of the term, on August 28th. It was a Sunday, so school was out, it was easier to pull off for the six transfers to change location.

At the moment, they were gathered in the courtyard of Shibuya shrine, each armed with a trunk and a back-pack, talking excitedly about the journey ahead.

"How do you think they're gonna get us there?" Izumi asked, fingering the silver kanji on the handle of her treasured Inazuma 300 racing broom. "Think we'll fly?"

"Maybe." Junpei nodded. "But I doubt that a broom'll carry us all the way to England. You'd better save that thing for Quidditch, Izumi."

"That's what I'm looking forward to!" Takuya exclaimed, punching the air from his perch on the edge of his trunk. "A real Quidditch team, like the Toyohashi Tengu! It won't be anything like our practice games, hiding in the woods and stuff…"

Kouichi was flipping through a copy of The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 6, running his finger down the pages periodically in interest. "It was nice of them to send our spell books in Katakana." he said, his voice barely louder than a whisper, but carrying across the room. "I don't know about you guys, but my English is only so-so."

The group stopped at that comment. Obviously, the twins were the only ones who had thought about it at all.

Tomoki shifted nervously on top of his trunk. "At least you know some. I don't know any English at all."

"Well…It's a magic school, isn't it?" Takuya muttered. "I'm sure there's some way we can learn…"

"Of course there is."

All six of the students jumped a foot, except for Kouji, who had been facing in the direction of the door and knew that their senseis had entered from behind them. Kenkyo-sensei was the one who had spoken, a kind smile on her face and a large wooden box in her hands. Hakaishi-sensei was behind her, empty-handed.

"Kenkyo-sensei…" Izumi sighed, putting a hand over her heart to still the beating a bit. "What do you mean?"

The teacher smiled, opening the box and holding it out so that they could see the contents. Several small, blue-and-brown devices lay nestled in a red pillow. They looked almost mechanical, but gave off a slight aura of metal-based magic.

"…They look like hearing aids." Kouji said bluntly.

"They're Hon'yakusha Translator Charms." Hakaishi said calmly.

Kenkyo picked one up, slipping it into her right ear. "Just put them in like so, and it should translate both what you hear, and your own speech. These models only go from English to Japanese and vice-versa, but that's all you're going to need."

She handed one to each of the kids, helping them get them set in the right way. Kouichi turned his over in his hands a moment, then reached up to slide it in, when Hakaishi placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Hold on a moment." he said quietly. "I'd like to speak with you, Kouichi."

The boy blinked, but followed his teacher to the other side of the room. The rest of them didn't notice, they were too busy getting their charms properly attached. Hakaishi tapped his wand on the edge of the wall, drawing a slight semi-circle around the two of them. A slight whisper, and it started to glow a pale yellow.

"Just an anti-eavesdropper spell." he assured Kouichi when the boy looked up at him. "I just want to make sure this stays between us, alright?"

Kouichi nodded, understanding. Hakaishi sighed, glancing back at Kenkyo and the others before he spoke. "Kouichi…I'm sure you've noticed that there's a slight difference between you and the other transfers…"

"I'm the only Yin going." the boy muttered quietly, not quite looking distressed, but nervous.

"Exactly. And there's a reason for that." Hakaishi moved to the side, blocking the view of the others so that he had the student's full attention. "Yin students are very rare in Britain, even rarer than around here. Most of their teaching isn't meant for your kind of magic, so it might be rather difficult for you to adjust. Especially since you probably won't find another Yin student to compare with."

Kouichi shifted a bit, anxious. It had been nerve-racking enough to be the only Yin out of their group of six, but out of an entire school? Holy cow…

"Kouichi." Hakaishi brought his mind back to the present subject. "It would probably be wise to keep your Yin status a secret while at Hogwarts."

Kouichi gaped. "But…sensei, why?" he asked. "It's…who I am…"

"I know that." Hakaishi smiled. "It's who I am, too, and I understand that it's uncomfortable to hide something that's so much a part of your life. But I must stress that, while wizards in this country understand that the Yin are necessary to maintain proper balance, our brothers in the West do not. They will hear the literal translation of the word…and 'Dark' Wizards are not the same thing…not at all. They are the Kegareru"

Kouichi went rigid. The Kegareru were the corrupted wizards, those who used their magic for their own gain, at the pain of sake of others. The Kegareru were not just dark, they were pure evil. The Kegareru included Motarasu-no-konton…

To be associated with that kind of wickedness again…He wouldn't be able to handle it.

Hakaishi nodded seriously, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Now you see what I mean." he whispered quietly. "I don't think it will be possible to hide it forever…but you should keep it quiet as long as humanly possible. Western Wizards are rather prejudice…I don't know many who would listen to our kind of reason."

He gazed over at the others. "Usually, we wouldn't even consider sending a Yin along for a trip like this, especially at such a critical time against Kegareru. But…" he turned back to smile at him. "…The point is to send the very best, and you're our utmost spell-caster. Besides, I know your brother wouldn't leave you behind for the world."

He took the translator charm from the boy's hand, putting into his ear for him. "You're very clever, Kouichi. Possibly the best student I've had." he said quietly, eyes reminiscent of a mother hen as he ran his other hand through the boy's bangs. "I just want you to be careful, alright?"

"Yes, sensei." he nodded obediently.

"Good boy." the teacher pressed a button on the Hon'yakusha. A small buzzing noise filled Kouichi's ears, then faded away. Hakaishi pulled out his wand, tapping the edge of the glowing yellow line. "Now let's get back to the others."

. . . . . .

Kouji shifted a bit nervously, fingering the translator as if making sure it was in right. Actually, he was staring over where his brother and Hakaishi-sensei had gone.

They'd been over there several minutes, and his 'Nii-san hadn't even put his charm in. He couldn't hear a word because of the teacher's spell, but he couldn't help thinking that Kouichi looked…frightened, almost terrified. What on earth was Hakaishi telling him?

After a moment, though, the fear faded away. Hakaishi put the charm on for him, running a hand through his hair like a small child. He felt an annoyed prickle on the back of his neck…Usually, Kouichi only let family touch his hair.

"They're very close, aren't they?"

Kouji jumped, not realizing that Izumi had been watching beside him. She smiled at him, looking back at his brother and the teacher. "It must be nice for him." she continued. "Kouichi, I mean. Hakaishi-sensei's always been very kind to him."

Kouji frowned a bit, looking away. "I guess…"

Izumi gave him a level look. "You don't have to get all defensive about it, you know."

"I'm not being defensive." he muttered, feeling a bit of heat under the ears.

Izumi looked at him a moment, then shrugged. "Fine…Whatever you say, Kouji."

Kouji 'humph'ed and glanced back at his brother. Hakaishi had undone the spell, they were coming back over. He quickly wiped his face into an impassive smirk, hiding his not-so-nice thoughts from his brother.

"Well then." Kenkyo-sensei smiled. "Is everyone just about ready?"

"I believe so." Hakaishi-sensei nodded. "Of course, Kenkyo, there is the matter of the luggage…" He waved a hand to the six gathered trunks.

"Oh, of course…Stand aside please." Kenkyo pulled her wand out of the sash around her waist, flicking it momentarily towards Takuya's trunk as the students scattered out of the way. "Chijimu."

The red-leathered trunk shuttered a moment, then shrank down to the size of a chalkboard eraser. Five more flicks and the rest of them were the same size, although they were, luckily, each a different color so it was easy to identify them. "I'll change them back once we get to London." Kenkyo assured them, handing each one out. "Just slip them in your pockets, and we'll be on our way."

Junpei turned his blue trunk over in his hands before placing it in, then turned to the teacher. "How're we supposed to get there, anyway?" he queried. "A Portkey or something?"

"From this distance? Of course not." Kenkyo laughed. "You'd all be sick before we were even half-way there. No, we'll be taking this…"

She waved her wand once, summoning something from the closet across the courtyard. The door sprung open, a large, colorful object came soaring out to stop at Kenkyo's feet. A carpet…A flying carpet, easily big enough to seat ten.

"Neat!" Takuya exclaimed.

Kouji took a closer look at it. "Yeah, it's neat alright. But I thought they didn't allow these in England."

"Special permission for long-range travel." Kenkyo said, sounding a little too smug with herself. She checked her watch momentarily. "It's nearly three…We better get going, it's a five-hour flight. Hope you all remembered to take a nap before going."

The kids grumbled, Tomoki laughed, and Hakaishi just grinned in amusement. Kenkyo smiled knowingly, motioning towards the carpet with her right hand. She helped Tomoki and Izumi on before looking back at the other teacher.

"I trust you can handle everything here, Hakaishi?"

"Naturally." the man nodded.

Kouichi snapped his head up from where he was about to sit next to his brother. "Hakaishi-sensei, you're not coming with us?"

The older man smiled at him. "Someone does have to stay to hold down the fort while you're gone. Besides, Kenkyo-sensei is just going to get you settled in, from there you'll be on your own."

Kenkyo glanced at the boy with a slight smile. "Kimura-san, we do have a few minutes…"

Kouichi climbed slowly off the carpet, coming to face his teacher respectfully. He gave a slight bow at the waist, a seriously look in his eyes. "…Thank you for your lessons, sensei." he muttered traditionally, knowing that the others were listening in.

Hakaishi bowed back. "Thank you, Kouichi Kimura. It's been an honor."

Kouichi straightened, then moved forward very suddenly to throw his arms around his teacher's shoulders. (Kouji felt that annoyed prickle on the back of his neck once again…) Hakaishi was surprised at first, but smiled just a bit and patted his student on the back.

"Thank you…for everything." Kouichi whispered in his ear, low enough that the others couldn't hear. "I'm gonna miss you…"

Hakaishi smiled as they released. Kouichi hurried back to the carpet, taking his place on the carpet once again. Kenkyo nodded to her associate, then tapped the edge of the carpet with her wand. "Let's get going now." she said. "Jido Igirisu. Next stop, London."

TBC…

Notes:

- Inazuma = Lightening

- There really isn't a lot of difference between 'The Standard Book of Spells' and 'The Standard Spell Scroll' from Chapter 1. They have the same basic spells in them, only the former has the Latin-based, and the later has the Oriental versions.

- I'll explain more about Yin and Yang students in the later chapters, as well as the elemental magics.

- A little back-story here: Kouichi has actually known Hakaishi-sensei for several years prior to being initiated into the wizard training. When you're tutored in something as personal and complex as magic, you do tend to get close to a singular teacher. (This is also true in Hogwarts: Harry liked Prof. Lupin, Hermione admires Prof. McGonagall, Neville is close to Prof. Sprout…) This is especially true for Kouichi, who's gone most of his life without a father figure, having an older man who accepts him is important, so they're almost like family. This is, naturally, a bit annoying to Kouji, who actually is Kouichi's family. I might elaborate later, but it isn't really planned.

PS - I should be updating about once a week from now on, because school starts next Monday. However, I may be just a bit off, 'cause I'm getting my wisdom teeth out the Wednesday before…