Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! or Harry Potter.
/Blah/ Yugi talking to Yami Yugi //Blah// Yami Yugi talking to Yugi
:Blah: Ryou talking to Yami Bakura ::Blah:: Yami Bakura talking to Ryou
*~*~*~*~*~*
Their stay at the Leaky Cauldron for the rest of the month was pleasant. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley greeted Yugi, Ryou, and Malik warmly (Mr. Weasley immediately started questioning them about Muggle appliances). They also met Ginny, Ron's younger sister. Harry, Ron, and Hermione told them all about their previous years at Hogwarts and their encounters with Lord Voldemort. They also filled them in on the magical world. Luckily, they didn't notice too much whenever a yami took over, which, surprisingly, wasn't that much at all.
They usually appeared in spirit form outside of their rooms, and only came out when they were alone.
Ryou had gotten a kitten. It was an early birthday present from Yami Bakura and himself. She was pure white with crystal blue eyes. He called her Sanura. "It means kitten in Egyptian," Ryou had explained. They had decided to get an owl to share, as they probably wouldn't be writing that many letters. It was a dark, almost black, tawny owl, and they named her Keket, which was Egyptian for 'Goddess of Darkness'.
Every day they strolled along Diagon Alley, until they could memorize all of the shops. Finally, September 1st arrived.
"How're we going to get to King's Cross, Dad?" Ron asked during breakfast.
Mr. Weasley looked uncomfortable. "Ah, well, I'm not really sure," he admitted. "Dumbledore mentioned something about notifying me today, but I haven't gotten the message yet." They stared at him in disbelief.
::Now he tells us:: Yami Bakura snorted from his soul room. ::What're we going to do now?:: Then, quite suddenly, a roll of parchment appeared out of thin air, along with a few blue sparks and a single blue feather, and fell onto the toast.
"I think that's what Dumbledore told me about," Mr. Weasley said, sounding relieved. He picked it up. "I believe it's addressed to you, Yugi."
Yugi took the parchment, and looked at it. There, on the front, was his name, written in neat handwriting that he didn't recognize. He read:
Yugi,
I have arranged for someone to pick you and your
friends up. It will take you to King's Cross Station.
Go outside, your ride should be waiting for you right
now. I'll see you on the Hogwarts Express.
Seto Kaiba
"Seto's arranged for someone to take us to King's Cross, and it's waiting outside right now," he informed them. They all scrambled upstairs to get their suitcases and met at the entrance.
"You know, I don't think that one car is going to fit nine people, seven trunks, and five animals," said Hermione, once they had all come down. They stepped outside. And saw a black Kaiba Corp. limo waiting. "But then again..."
"Wow, is this Kaiba guy rich?" Ron asked.
"That just about sums him up," said Malik. "Anyway, come on! We're going to be late if you continue to stand there." Once they got inside, it was evident that someone had magically expanded the car's interior.
"Yes! No Kaiba breathing down our necks. Want a drink, Yugi?" Malik had already begun to fix himself something from the snack bar.
They were just settling in to enjoy the luxury of the limo when they got to King's Cross. Mr. Weasley had been fascinated with all of the technology on the limo, although it wasn't one of Seto's best models. The chauffeur helped them put their luggage onto trolleys, and then departed. Ryou looked at his ticket for the first time.
"Wait a second, this ticket says to go to platform nine and three quarters! There's no such thing, is there?"
Harry grinned. "That's the secret."
They had now arrived at the junction between platforms nine and ten.
"Okay, here's what you do. Walk straight towards that barrier, and keep on going, no matter what. Best do it at a bit of a run if you're nervous," Ron told Ryou.
Ryou looked like he didn't even want to try. Malik rolled his eyes.
"Here, I'll go first," he said. He walked casually towards the barrier, and disappeared.
Ron turned to Yugi. "Has he done that before? He seemed really sure of himself."
"That's Malik for you."
*~*~*~*~*~*
Five minutes later they were all standing in a circle around Mr. Weasley. A scarlet train engine was bellowing steam behind them.
"Now, always keep an eye out for danger," Mr. Weasley warned. "This year's going to be a difficult one. Contact members of the Order immediately if you suspect something." He raised his voice, so that the people around them could hear. "I'll see you all during the holidays. Have a good term!"
Mrs. Weasley hugged and kissed them all, and they dragged their heavy trunks onto the train, looking for an empty compartment. They opened a compartment door near the end of the train to find-
"Seto?" Seto Kaiba was typing away on his laptop, with Mokuba sitting next to him.
"Hi, Yugi!" the little boy chirped. He bounced over to where they were standing.
"Can we sit here?" Yugi asked. "Everywhere else is full."
"Sure! Come in!"
Once they had all gotten seated, Mokuba asked curiously, "Who are they, Yugi?"
"Oh, sorry, I'm Hermione Granger." Blue eyes looked up from the screen.
"Ron Weasley."
"Ginny Weasley."
"Harry Potter." At this, Kaiba raised an eyebrow.
"Harry Potter, you've conquered Voldemort, helped resurrect him, and fought him four times, am I not correct?"
"Uh, yeah. How did you know all of that?" he asked. Only a few people knew about his records with Lord Voldemort.
"I have my sources," Kaiba replied.
"Big brother, you didn't even introduce yourself!" the eleven year old said. "I'm Mokuba, by the way." He nudged his brother.
"Seto Kaiba," said Kaiba. Then there was a strange glow on his shoulder, and with a flurry of blue and silver sparks, a beautiful blue phoenix appeared, crooning in his ear. Every shade of blue was on it, from the deepest indigo to a light shade of cerulean. It had a few gold and silver streaks in her feathers. "Oh, and this is Nefertari," he added, allowing himself a slight smile. "I almost forgot about her. She disappeared right before you came in."
"She's the one who sent that letter this morning!" Yugi realized. He remembered the single blue feather that had accompanied the roll of parchment that morning. Kaiba nodded, stroking her head affectionately. Yugi noticed that he had loosened up a little bit when Nefertari appeared. He seemed more relaxed than usual.
"Wow, where did you get a phoenix?" Harry asked. "A blue one, too! I've never seen one with that kind of plumage."
"Actually, I don't really know. She just turned up when we got back from Diagon Alley. My theory is that the phoenix feather that's in my wand is hers, and for some reason, she came to the owner. But that would mean that she's waited for nearly a thousand years. And a dragon should have come, too, because I also have a dragon heartstring in my wand. By the way Mr. Ollivander described it, I think it was something like the Blue Eyes White Dragon!"
"And that's your favorite card, isn't it?" Hermione asked. "You're in the news a couple of times a month, & your company is on the top of the charts. You've received awards for your holographic technology and other products, and you're the number one duelist in the world with Yugi." Seto was looking at her with a strange expression on his face.
"Yeah, I think I remember my cousin reading a magazine with you in it. You had dueled Yugi Motou again and tied with him twice, making the two of you tied for first place. And my uncle's mentioned you a few times, too," Harry added.
"Yup, that's Seto," Mokuba said proudly. "But I haven't been able to get him to stop working lately."
"You know your laptop won't work near Hogwarts, right, Seto?" Hermione asked.
He answered her in his normal tone. "In normal circumstances, yes, but I don't think this one's going to stop working anytime this year." Hermione frowned.
"And what makes you think that?" she asked.
"I have my reasons," he replied.
"I'll bet ten galleons that it'll break down once we arrive at Hogwarts," Harry said. Of course it was going to stop working, Hogwarts had too much magic around it. Electronic muggle devices simply didn't work.
Kaiba shrugged. "Fine." He didn't look worried at all.
*~*~*~*~*~*
Since Hermione and Ron were sixth year prefects, they weren't required to patrol the corridors again. They started chatting, preparing to enjoy the long ride in the company of their new friends. Sanura had fallen asleep on Ryou's lap, Crookshanks was dozing in his wickerwork basket, and the owl cages had been covered. Then, about an hour into the ride, Nefertari stiffened, and disappeared, leaving a few sparkles in the air.
"Someone's coming," said Kaiba.
Sure enough, a moment later, the compartment door slid open.
You guessed it-it was Draco Malfoy. But for once, he didn't have his cronies, Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle with him. He looked slightly disconcerted and didn't seem to realize that they were there at all.
I glanced at all of them and said carelessly, "Oh, hey Harry, Ron, Hermione." Then he slid the compartment door shut quietly and then they heard fading footsteps striding down the corridor.
"That was...strange..." Harry said. Ron's mouth was hanging open.
"Who was that?" asked Ryou.
"Draco Malfoy," said Ron, once he had gained the power of speech back. "He's in Slytherin. Seeker for their Quidditch team. Why was he acting like that? He's usually a big prick. And where were Crabbe and Goyle?"
"There must have been some reason for him to look so unnerved. He looked like he was thinking about something before he came into our compartment," said Hermione.
"What's Quidditch?" Yugi interrupted. "It sounds like a game."
"Oh, it is! It's the best sport ever!"
/Hey, Yami! Come on out and listen too!/
And Ron was off, explaining what Quidditch was, how to play, the House teams, rules, and tactics...
The lady with the food cart came later. "Anything off the trolley, dears?" she asked. Harry and Mokuba went to get the food. They came back with armloads of Pumpkin Pasties, Chocolate Frogs, Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans, Drooble's Best Blowing Gum, Cauldron Cakes, Licorice Wands, and a number of strange things that Yugi'd seen in his life.
The rest of the train ride was uneventful. Almost all of the food had gone. Mokuba had eaten too much sugar, had bounced off the walls for a few hours, and then fallen asleep.
Seto had abandoned his laptop at his brother's pleading and was now talking with Hermione about the classes at Hogwarts, and the books that they would be using this year. She seemed very pleased that someone else had read Hogwarts, A History. Ron overheard a bit of their conversation.
"What!? You can't just read Hogwarts, a History, in four hours! That book's about a thousand pages long!" he exclaimed loudly. Nefertari quivered and disappeared, leaving behind a few blue sparkles in the air.
Kaiba glared at him. "Your point?" he asked. Ron was unable to answer. Nefertari appeared later, and Kaiba returned to his relaxed state. A few hours later, a voice rang out throughout the train.
"We will be arriving at Hogsmeade station shortly. Please get ready to leave. Your luggage will be brought up to the castle separately." They woke up Mokuba, all pulled on their black robes and left the train.
Harry smiled as he heard a familiar voice calling, "Firs' years! Firs' years over here! Firs' years over here, please!"
Mokuba was comforted by Seto and with a pat on the head, got mixed in with the crowd of first years around Hagrid. Seto had sent Nefertari along to protect him from potential danger. She was invisible, and looking very closely, all they could see were a few blue sparkles in the air.
They headed for the carriages that took all of the other students to Hogwarts.
"Are those thestrals?" Seto suddenly asked. He had frozen and was staring at a spot right in front of the carriage. Yugi looked, too, but he couldn't see anything.
"Yeah, can you see them?" Harry asked. He only knew a few people who could see the leathery, dragon-like horse creatures.
Kaiba only had time to nod once, and then they rushed to get a carriage to themselves. It was a bit of a tight squeeze, but somehow Yugi, Ryou, Malik, Kaiba, Harry, Ron, and Hermione all managed to fit in one carriage. Sanura, Keket, Hedwig, Crookshanks, and Pig were going to be brought up to the castle with their other stuff.
It was only when the carriage started moving that someone finally spoke up.
"What were those creatures? You said thestrals, right?" Malik asked.
::Ryou, let me take over.:: Only Malik, Yugi, and Seto noticed the slight change in Ryou.
"Hey! What're you doing?!?!" yelped Ron in surprise, as Yami Bakura leaned out the window to peer at the place where horses would have been.
"Hmm, I can see them, too," he said quietly, sitting back down.
"Well, obviously. You must have killed about a dozen people in the past," remarked Seto sarcastically.
"Actually, multiply that by fifteen and you'll get a little closer," Malik told him.
"It's not like you haven't killed anybody in your lifetime," Yami Bakura retorted.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione chose to ignore these unnerving statements.
"Anyway, only people who've seen death can see them. There's a whole flock in the Forbidden Forest," said Harry.
"Forbidden Forest?" It seemed like Malik had forgotten the thestrals. "Wait, don't tell me...it's a place that's forbidden, right?" He had a kind of mischievous gleam in his eyes. Yugi, Ryou, and Seto groaned.
"Don't even think about it," Seto growled. "You're going to give us a bad reputation."
*~*~*~*~*~*
Yugi, Ryou, Malik, and Seto were asked to see Professor Dumbledore the instant they stepped in the huge Entrance Hall. Harry, Ron, and Hermione went on into the Great Hall without them, passing a group a terrified looking first years. They waved at Mokuba, who waved back. Unlike the other first years, he didn't look scared at all, but happy and cheerful.
"Must have been all the sugar," whispered Ron.
They took their places at the Gryffindor table, Ron looking at the golden plates with longing. Harry noticed that the seat where the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher usually sat was empty. Soon, Professor McGonagall carried in a battered looking hat and a stool. The first years filed in after her, gazing in awe at the bewitched ceiling, which currently showed a clear night sky, with stars twinkling everywhere and a yellow full moon.
Everyone fell silent as she placed the hat on the stool. A wide rip near the brim opened, and the hat broke into song. It was traditional each year for the hat to open the Sorting Ceremony with a new song.
Harry was only half listening. His mind was wandering somewhere else. Why had the new foreign students been accepted this year? Did it have something to do with Voldemort? He was brought back to reality when Hermione poked him and whispered, "There's Mokuba!"
Indeed, Mokuba had stepped up and pulled the hat on. Many of the muggle- borns had recognized his last name and were whispering to each other. The hat covered his eyes completely and would have covered his whole head if it weren't for his bushy hair. They waited a whole minute before the hat shouted "GRYFFINDOR!" The Gryffindor table erupted with cheers and clapping. Professor McGonagall pulled the hat off his head and he ran to sit with Harry, Hermione, and Ron. They congratulated him and settled back to watch the rest of the Sorting.
Soon after the last first year, "Young, Jessica," was sorted, the doors leading to the Entrance Hall opened. Dumbledore strode over to the teacher's table and was followed by Yugi, Ryou, Malik, and Kaiba. Whispers followed them all the way up to the front of the Great Hall.
"I am very pleased to announce, that this year, we'll be accepting four exchange students. Please treat them as you would anyone else. Now, they will be sorted into houses."
Professor McGonagall stepped forward again, reading from the top of a shorter list. "Bakura, Ryou."
"Look at that guy!" Whispered conversations followed them all the way up the aisles.
"Yeah, like, he has, like, white hair!"
"But he looks like he's the same age as us..."
"And he's pretty cute, too," a girl whispered to her friend.
::Idiots, I'll kill them all. Nobody can take my Ryou. Let me out, Ryou!::
:No.: was the firm reply. :And try not to mess this up too much.:
Ryou walked up to the stool and put the hat on. He was startled to hear another voice in his head.
"Hmm, now this is strange," the hat said. "There are two souls in this mind. Each is very different from the other. One is submissive but courageous, and the other is shrewd and the dominant one. Now, where to put you..." The hat was on for a good five minutes, and the rest of the students were watching with baited breath.
Finally, it shouted "GRYFFINDOR!" And Ryou hurried to the Gryffindor table. The girls only stayed away from him because his yami had momentarily taken over and was glaring at them.
Malik went next.
"That guy has, like, weird hair too!"
"Yah, but look at his tan! He's really hot!"
"Look at his eyes! Aren't they strange?"
"And he looks so....exotic!"
"SLYTHERIN!" came the hat's decision.
Yugi and Ryou groaned. Malik didn't want to be in Slytherin. He was probably going to do something drastic.
"You can't put me in Slytherin!" Malik shouted at the hat. He had ripped it off his head and thrown it too the floor. The students were watching interestedly. Nobody had ever denied the hat's decisions. "I'll send you to the Shadow Realm if you don't put me with the Tomb Robber! And then I'll get my Yami to destroy you forever!" He shoved his hand into the pocket of his cargo pants, where they knew his Millennium Rod was hidden.
"Uh oh," said Yugi.
"Double uh oh," added Seto.
"That'll be quite enough, young man!" Professor McGonagall said, her spectacles flashing. "The hat chose to place you in Slytherin, and that will be your House! Now go to the Slytherin table and let the others get sorted!" Malik scowled at her, looking like he didn't want to listen.
Yami Bakura, who had taken over again, started laughing. Now everyone's attention was focused on him. He didn't seem to care. "Malik, listen to what the nice teacher says!" he said in a mock babyish voice. Malik threw him a look that clearly said, 'Traitor' and reluctantly walked over to the Slytherin table and seated himself away from all the other Slytherins.
This time the girls stayed far away. It didn't matter how hot he was-that guy was someone to stay away from.
Yami Bakura had let Ryou take control again. "Okay, what'd he do this time?" he asked Mokuba.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione were listening, looking very confused. Mokuba noticed them, and just said, "Nothing too bad, don't worry."
When Seto's name was called, the whisperings started again. Many of the girls were looking at him dreamily.
"Seto Kaiba? Why is he here?" asked Dean Thomas.
"Why, d'you know him?" asked Seamus, totally oblivious to how popular Seto was. Some of the girls in Gryffindor that had heard him gasped in indignation.
"Of course! Nearly everyone in the muggle world does! He's not even 16, and he's already the CEO of his own company and a multibillionaire, not to mention something like the world's most eligible bachelor."
One of the Ravenclaw girls that had heard Dean said, "Yah, he's like, so hot!"
Her friend said, "I love his eyes!"
Another girl said, "No, the way his hair falls makes him so cute!"
"And his clothes are, like, so awesome!"
"I just think he's really cool!"
Dean turned back to Seamus. "See?"
Meanwhile, in Seto's head, the hat was talking to him and thoroughly annoying him.
"One of those intellectuals, are you? You have a lot of potential... And wait, there's also courage in here, a lot of courage. Yes, you had to go through a lot, didn't you? Let's see, mother died, father died, got sent to an orphanage, adopted by a cruel man, trained for inheriting the company... And you're still always there for your little brother. Well, then you'd better be in GRYFFINDOR!"
Let's just say that there were many disappointed fans and a lot of happy ones from Gryffindor. Most of the girls tried to get closer to Seto, but was sitting between Ryou and Mokuba, with Harry, Ron, and Hermione right in front of him.
"Motou, Yugi!" There were hushed "wow!"s from the people who had heard of Yugi.
"Okay, these new peoples have, like, weird hair," said the same person who had commented on Ryou and Malik. "This one's, like, the weirdest."
"He's cute, too!" squealed the same girl.
Yugi couldn't even get the hat on his head. There were a lot of sniggers from the students as he struggled to pull it on properly. In the end, the hat just grew larger to fit all of his hair.
"Aha! It's another one! Two minds sharing a vessel, and yet both very different. One is innocent, with a lot of bravery, while the other is dark, mysterious, but equally courageous. I think that it'd better be GRYFFINDOR!"
Yugi, relieved, sat himself down next to Ryou. The Gryffindor table once again broke into applause.
The headmaster stood up.
"There are a few start-of-term notices that I would give we eat. First years and new students should note that the forest on the grounds is forbidden to all pupils. I have also been reminded by Mr. Filch, the caretaker, to tell you that the list of items not allowed inside the castle has grown to four hundred and fifty-three. They can, as always, be viewed in Mr. Filch's office.
"Quidditch trials will be held in November, due to special circumstances."
There were indignant (and violent) reactions from all students at this.
Dumbledore went on:
"Anyone interested in playing for their house teams should contact Madam Hooch. Our Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher will be arriving tomorrow, he's having some difficulties getting here."
Nobody noticed his brief glance up at the enchanted ceiling. A second later, he was looking over the students waiting expectantly.
"And now, let the feast begin!" Dumbledore said, and with a wave of his arms, the golden plates became laden with all kinds of foods. They dug in. (Okay, so Seto didn't, so what?)
During the middle of the meal, the ghosts made their appearance. Surprisingly, Yami Bakura had become acquainted with the Bloody Baron. Let's just say that their interests were sort of the same.
Afterwards, filled up with all kinds of food, they went up several staircases and stopped in front of the Fat Lady. Yugi and Ryou were a bit freaked out at first by the moving paintings. The password was, to their surprise, 'Dark Magician.' They trudged up to the boys' dormitory, which now had two circular rooms, a small one with Dean, Seamus, and Neville, and a bigger one with Harry, Ron, Yugi, Ryou, and Seto. There was a door separating the two rooms and it was already closed. Their guess was that the other three had taken the other staircase and were already asleep.
Keket was in the owlery, Sanura was already asleep on Ryou's bed, and their luggage had been brought up already.
Everything seemed perfect.
/You know, this might not be so bad after all./ Yugi decided, as he climbed into bed. /Goodnight, Yami./ He closed his eyes.
The spirit-unbeknownst to Yugi-was sitting on the bed, looking at Yugi's face. The moonlight shining through his transparent form onto the other made him seem perfectly angelic. The bed showed no indication that a second person was sitting there. It was as if he was weightless.
//Goodnight, aibou.// He reached out to brush a bang out of Yugi's eyes. The hand was transparent as well.
Yugi smiled in his sleep. A hand, solid this time, reached out and closed the hangings around the bed, and the spirit vanished.
*~*~*~*~*~*
I added a bit more at the end-did you like it better than the previous version?
I also need your opinion on Sanura and Keket. I don't think that they're going to be playing that big of a role in this. And I'll just forget to add them into each chapter. Should I take the kitty and the owl out? Please tell me!
I am now starting to worship t.a.g.0! She's given me so many great suggestions!
/Blah/ Yugi talking to Yami Yugi //Blah// Yami Yugi talking to Yugi
:Blah: Ryou talking to Yami Bakura ::Blah:: Yami Bakura talking to Ryou
*~*~*~*~*~*
Their stay at the Leaky Cauldron for the rest of the month was pleasant. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley greeted Yugi, Ryou, and Malik warmly (Mr. Weasley immediately started questioning them about Muggle appliances). They also met Ginny, Ron's younger sister. Harry, Ron, and Hermione told them all about their previous years at Hogwarts and their encounters with Lord Voldemort. They also filled them in on the magical world. Luckily, they didn't notice too much whenever a yami took over, which, surprisingly, wasn't that much at all.
They usually appeared in spirit form outside of their rooms, and only came out when they were alone.
Ryou had gotten a kitten. It was an early birthday present from Yami Bakura and himself. She was pure white with crystal blue eyes. He called her Sanura. "It means kitten in Egyptian," Ryou had explained. They had decided to get an owl to share, as they probably wouldn't be writing that many letters. It was a dark, almost black, tawny owl, and they named her Keket, which was Egyptian for 'Goddess of Darkness'.
Every day they strolled along Diagon Alley, until they could memorize all of the shops. Finally, September 1st arrived.
"How're we going to get to King's Cross, Dad?" Ron asked during breakfast.
Mr. Weasley looked uncomfortable. "Ah, well, I'm not really sure," he admitted. "Dumbledore mentioned something about notifying me today, but I haven't gotten the message yet." They stared at him in disbelief.
::Now he tells us:: Yami Bakura snorted from his soul room. ::What're we going to do now?:: Then, quite suddenly, a roll of parchment appeared out of thin air, along with a few blue sparks and a single blue feather, and fell onto the toast.
"I think that's what Dumbledore told me about," Mr. Weasley said, sounding relieved. He picked it up. "I believe it's addressed to you, Yugi."
Yugi took the parchment, and looked at it. There, on the front, was his name, written in neat handwriting that he didn't recognize. He read:
Yugi,
I have arranged for someone to pick you and your
friends up. It will take you to King's Cross Station.
Go outside, your ride should be waiting for you right
now. I'll see you on the Hogwarts Express.
Seto Kaiba
"Seto's arranged for someone to take us to King's Cross, and it's waiting outside right now," he informed them. They all scrambled upstairs to get their suitcases and met at the entrance.
"You know, I don't think that one car is going to fit nine people, seven trunks, and five animals," said Hermione, once they had all come down. They stepped outside. And saw a black Kaiba Corp. limo waiting. "But then again..."
"Wow, is this Kaiba guy rich?" Ron asked.
"That just about sums him up," said Malik. "Anyway, come on! We're going to be late if you continue to stand there." Once they got inside, it was evident that someone had magically expanded the car's interior.
"Yes! No Kaiba breathing down our necks. Want a drink, Yugi?" Malik had already begun to fix himself something from the snack bar.
They were just settling in to enjoy the luxury of the limo when they got to King's Cross. Mr. Weasley had been fascinated with all of the technology on the limo, although it wasn't one of Seto's best models. The chauffeur helped them put their luggage onto trolleys, and then departed. Ryou looked at his ticket for the first time.
"Wait a second, this ticket says to go to platform nine and three quarters! There's no such thing, is there?"
Harry grinned. "That's the secret."
They had now arrived at the junction between platforms nine and ten.
"Okay, here's what you do. Walk straight towards that barrier, and keep on going, no matter what. Best do it at a bit of a run if you're nervous," Ron told Ryou.
Ryou looked like he didn't even want to try. Malik rolled his eyes.
"Here, I'll go first," he said. He walked casually towards the barrier, and disappeared.
Ron turned to Yugi. "Has he done that before? He seemed really sure of himself."
"That's Malik for you."
*~*~*~*~*~*
Five minutes later they were all standing in a circle around Mr. Weasley. A scarlet train engine was bellowing steam behind them.
"Now, always keep an eye out for danger," Mr. Weasley warned. "This year's going to be a difficult one. Contact members of the Order immediately if you suspect something." He raised his voice, so that the people around them could hear. "I'll see you all during the holidays. Have a good term!"
Mrs. Weasley hugged and kissed them all, and they dragged their heavy trunks onto the train, looking for an empty compartment. They opened a compartment door near the end of the train to find-
"Seto?" Seto Kaiba was typing away on his laptop, with Mokuba sitting next to him.
"Hi, Yugi!" the little boy chirped. He bounced over to where they were standing.
"Can we sit here?" Yugi asked. "Everywhere else is full."
"Sure! Come in!"
Once they had all gotten seated, Mokuba asked curiously, "Who are they, Yugi?"
"Oh, sorry, I'm Hermione Granger." Blue eyes looked up from the screen.
"Ron Weasley."
"Ginny Weasley."
"Harry Potter." At this, Kaiba raised an eyebrow.
"Harry Potter, you've conquered Voldemort, helped resurrect him, and fought him four times, am I not correct?"
"Uh, yeah. How did you know all of that?" he asked. Only a few people knew about his records with Lord Voldemort.
"I have my sources," Kaiba replied.
"Big brother, you didn't even introduce yourself!" the eleven year old said. "I'm Mokuba, by the way." He nudged his brother.
"Seto Kaiba," said Kaiba. Then there was a strange glow on his shoulder, and with a flurry of blue and silver sparks, a beautiful blue phoenix appeared, crooning in his ear. Every shade of blue was on it, from the deepest indigo to a light shade of cerulean. It had a few gold and silver streaks in her feathers. "Oh, and this is Nefertari," he added, allowing himself a slight smile. "I almost forgot about her. She disappeared right before you came in."
"She's the one who sent that letter this morning!" Yugi realized. He remembered the single blue feather that had accompanied the roll of parchment that morning. Kaiba nodded, stroking her head affectionately. Yugi noticed that he had loosened up a little bit when Nefertari appeared. He seemed more relaxed than usual.
"Wow, where did you get a phoenix?" Harry asked. "A blue one, too! I've never seen one with that kind of plumage."
"Actually, I don't really know. She just turned up when we got back from Diagon Alley. My theory is that the phoenix feather that's in my wand is hers, and for some reason, she came to the owner. But that would mean that she's waited for nearly a thousand years. And a dragon should have come, too, because I also have a dragon heartstring in my wand. By the way Mr. Ollivander described it, I think it was something like the Blue Eyes White Dragon!"
"And that's your favorite card, isn't it?" Hermione asked. "You're in the news a couple of times a month, & your company is on the top of the charts. You've received awards for your holographic technology and other products, and you're the number one duelist in the world with Yugi." Seto was looking at her with a strange expression on his face.
"Yeah, I think I remember my cousin reading a magazine with you in it. You had dueled Yugi Motou again and tied with him twice, making the two of you tied for first place. And my uncle's mentioned you a few times, too," Harry added.
"Yup, that's Seto," Mokuba said proudly. "But I haven't been able to get him to stop working lately."
"You know your laptop won't work near Hogwarts, right, Seto?" Hermione asked.
He answered her in his normal tone. "In normal circumstances, yes, but I don't think this one's going to stop working anytime this year." Hermione frowned.
"And what makes you think that?" she asked.
"I have my reasons," he replied.
"I'll bet ten galleons that it'll break down once we arrive at Hogwarts," Harry said. Of course it was going to stop working, Hogwarts had too much magic around it. Electronic muggle devices simply didn't work.
Kaiba shrugged. "Fine." He didn't look worried at all.
*~*~*~*~*~*
Since Hermione and Ron were sixth year prefects, they weren't required to patrol the corridors again. They started chatting, preparing to enjoy the long ride in the company of their new friends. Sanura had fallen asleep on Ryou's lap, Crookshanks was dozing in his wickerwork basket, and the owl cages had been covered. Then, about an hour into the ride, Nefertari stiffened, and disappeared, leaving a few sparkles in the air.
"Someone's coming," said Kaiba.
Sure enough, a moment later, the compartment door slid open.
You guessed it-it was Draco Malfoy. But for once, he didn't have his cronies, Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle with him. He looked slightly disconcerted and didn't seem to realize that they were there at all.
I glanced at all of them and said carelessly, "Oh, hey Harry, Ron, Hermione." Then he slid the compartment door shut quietly and then they heard fading footsteps striding down the corridor.
"That was...strange..." Harry said. Ron's mouth was hanging open.
"Who was that?" asked Ryou.
"Draco Malfoy," said Ron, once he had gained the power of speech back. "He's in Slytherin. Seeker for their Quidditch team. Why was he acting like that? He's usually a big prick. And where were Crabbe and Goyle?"
"There must have been some reason for him to look so unnerved. He looked like he was thinking about something before he came into our compartment," said Hermione.
"What's Quidditch?" Yugi interrupted. "It sounds like a game."
"Oh, it is! It's the best sport ever!"
/Hey, Yami! Come on out and listen too!/
And Ron was off, explaining what Quidditch was, how to play, the House teams, rules, and tactics...
The lady with the food cart came later. "Anything off the trolley, dears?" she asked. Harry and Mokuba went to get the food. They came back with armloads of Pumpkin Pasties, Chocolate Frogs, Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans, Drooble's Best Blowing Gum, Cauldron Cakes, Licorice Wands, and a number of strange things that Yugi'd seen in his life.
The rest of the train ride was uneventful. Almost all of the food had gone. Mokuba had eaten too much sugar, had bounced off the walls for a few hours, and then fallen asleep.
Seto had abandoned his laptop at his brother's pleading and was now talking with Hermione about the classes at Hogwarts, and the books that they would be using this year. She seemed very pleased that someone else had read Hogwarts, A History. Ron overheard a bit of their conversation.
"What!? You can't just read Hogwarts, a History, in four hours! That book's about a thousand pages long!" he exclaimed loudly. Nefertari quivered and disappeared, leaving behind a few blue sparkles in the air.
Kaiba glared at him. "Your point?" he asked. Ron was unable to answer. Nefertari appeared later, and Kaiba returned to his relaxed state. A few hours later, a voice rang out throughout the train.
"We will be arriving at Hogsmeade station shortly. Please get ready to leave. Your luggage will be brought up to the castle separately." They woke up Mokuba, all pulled on their black robes and left the train.
Harry smiled as he heard a familiar voice calling, "Firs' years! Firs' years over here! Firs' years over here, please!"
Mokuba was comforted by Seto and with a pat on the head, got mixed in with the crowd of first years around Hagrid. Seto had sent Nefertari along to protect him from potential danger. She was invisible, and looking very closely, all they could see were a few blue sparkles in the air.
They headed for the carriages that took all of the other students to Hogwarts.
"Are those thestrals?" Seto suddenly asked. He had frozen and was staring at a spot right in front of the carriage. Yugi looked, too, but he couldn't see anything.
"Yeah, can you see them?" Harry asked. He only knew a few people who could see the leathery, dragon-like horse creatures.
Kaiba only had time to nod once, and then they rushed to get a carriage to themselves. It was a bit of a tight squeeze, but somehow Yugi, Ryou, Malik, Kaiba, Harry, Ron, and Hermione all managed to fit in one carriage. Sanura, Keket, Hedwig, Crookshanks, and Pig were going to be brought up to the castle with their other stuff.
It was only when the carriage started moving that someone finally spoke up.
"What were those creatures? You said thestrals, right?" Malik asked.
::Ryou, let me take over.:: Only Malik, Yugi, and Seto noticed the slight change in Ryou.
"Hey! What're you doing?!?!" yelped Ron in surprise, as Yami Bakura leaned out the window to peer at the place where horses would have been.
"Hmm, I can see them, too," he said quietly, sitting back down.
"Well, obviously. You must have killed about a dozen people in the past," remarked Seto sarcastically.
"Actually, multiply that by fifteen and you'll get a little closer," Malik told him.
"It's not like you haven't killed anybody in your lifetime," Yami Bakura retorted.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione chose to ignore these unnerving statements.
"Anyway, only people who've seen death can see them. There's a whole flock in the Forbidden Forest," said Harry.
"Forbidden Forest?" It seemed like Malik had forgotten the thestrals. "Wait, don't tell me...it's a place that's forbidden, right?" He had a kind of mischievous gleam in his eyes. Yugi, Ryou, and Seto groaned.
"Don't even think about it," Seto growled. "You're going to give us a bad reputation."
*~*~*~*~*~*
Yugi, Ryou, Malik, and Seto were asked to see Professor Dumbledore the instant they stepped in the huge Entrance Hall. Harry, Ron, and Hermione went on into the Great Hall without them, passing a group a terrified looking first years. They waved at Mokuba, who waved back. Unlike the other first years, he didn't look scared at all, but happy and cheerful.
"Must have been all the sugar," whispered Ron.
They took their places at the Gryffindor table, Ron looking at the golden plates with longing. Harry noticed that the seat where the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher usually sat was empty. Soon, Professor McGonagall carried in a battered looking hat and a stool. The first years filed in after her, gazing in awe at the bewitched ceiling, which currently showed a clear night sky, with stars twinkling everywhere and a yellow full moon.
Everyone fell silent as she placed the hat on the stool. A wide rip near the brim opened, and the hat broke into song. It was traditional each year for the hat to open the Sorting Ceremony with a new song.
Harry was only half listening. His mind was wandering somewhere else. Why had the new foreign students been accepted this year? Did it have something to do with Voldemort? He was brought back to reality when Hermione poked him and whispered, "There's Mokuba!"
Indeed, Mokuba had stepped up and pulled the hat on. Many of the muggle- borns had recognized his last name and were whispering to each other. The hat covered his eyes completely and would have covered his whole head if it weren't for his bushy hair. They waited a whole minute before the hat shouted "GRYFFINDOR!" The Gryffindor table erupted with cheers and clapping. Professor McGonagall pulled the hat off his head and he ran to sit with Harry, Hermione, and Ron. They congratulated him and settled back to watch the rest of the Sorting.
Soon after the last first year, "Young, Jessica," was sorted, the doors leading to the Entrance Hall opened. Dumbledore strode over to the teacher's table and was followed by Yugi, Ryou, Malik, and Kaiba. Whispers followed them all the way up to the front of the Great Hall.
"I am very pleased to announce, that this year, we'll be accepting four exchange students. Please treat them as you would anyone else. Now, they will be sorted into houses."
Professor McGonagall stepped forward again, reading from the top of a shorter list. "Bakura, Ryou."
"Look at that guy!" Whispered conversations followed them all the way up the aisles.
"Yeah, like, he has, like, white hair!"
"But he looks like he's the same age as us..."
"And he's pretty cute, too," a girl whispered to her friend.
::Idiots, I'll kill them all. Nobody can take my Ryou. Let me out, Ryou!::
:No.: was the firm reply. :And try not to mess this up too much.:
Ryou walked up to the stool and put the hat on. He was startled to hear another voice in his head.
"Hmm, now this is strange," the hat said. "There are two souls in this mind. Each is very different from the other. One is submissive but courageous, and the other is shrewd and the dominant one. Now, where to put you..." The hat was on for a good five minutes, and the rest of the students were watching with baited breath.
Finally, it shouted "GRYFFINDOR!" And Ryou hurried to the Gryffindor table. The girls only stayed away from him because his yami had momentarily taken over and was glaring at them.
Malik went next.
"That guy has, like, weird hair too!"
"Yah, but look at his tan! He's really hot!"
"Look at his eyes! Aren't they strange?"
"And he looks so....exotic!"
"SLYTHERIN!" came the hat's decision.
Yugi and Ryou groaned. Malik didn't want to be in Slytherin. He was probably going to do something drastic.
"You can't put me in Slytherin!" Malik shouted at the hat. He had ripped it off his head and thrown it too the floor. The students were watching interestedly. Nobody had ever denied the hat's decisions. "I'll send you to the Shadow Realm if you don't put me with the Tomb Robber! And then I'll get my Yami to destroy you forever!" He shoved his hand into the pocket of his cargo pants, where they knew his Millennium Rod was hidden.
"Uh oh," said Yugi.
"Double uh oh," added Seto.
"That'll be quite enough, young man!" Professor McGonagall said, her spectacles flashing. "The hat chose to place you in Slytherin, and that will be your House! Now go to the Slytherin table and let the others get sorted!" Malik scowled at her, looking like he didn't want to listen.
Yami Bakura, who had taken over again, started laughing. Now everyone's attention was focused on him. He didn't seem to care. "Malik, listen to what the nice teacher says!" he said in a mock babyish voice. Malik threw him a look that clearly said, 'Traitor' and reluctantly walked over to the Slytherin table and seated himself away from all the other Slytherins.
This time the girls stayed far away. It didn't matter how hot he was-that guy was someone to stay away from.
Yami Bakura had let Ryou take control again. "Okay, what'd he do this time?" he asked Mokuba.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione were listening, looking very confused. Mokuba noticed them, and just said, "Nothing too bad, don't worry."
When Seto's name was called, the whisperings started again. Many of the girls were looking at him dreamily.
"Seto Kaiba? Why is he here?" asked Dean Thomas.
"Why, d'you know him?" asked Seamus, totally oblivious to how popular Seto was. Some of the girls in Gryffindor that had heard him gasped in indignation.
"Of course! Nearly everyone in the muggle world does! He's not even 16, and he's already the CEO of his own company and a multibillionaire, not to mention something like the world's most eligible bachelor."
One of the Ravenclaw girls that had heard Dean said, "Yah, he's like, so hot!"
Her friend said, "I love his eyes!"
Another girl said, "No, the way his hair falls makes him so cute!"
"And his clothes are, like, so awesome!"
"I just think he's really cool!"
Dean turned back to Seamus. "See?"
Meanwhile, in Seto's head, the hat was talking to him and thoroughly annoying him.
"One of those intellectuals, are you? You have a lot of potential... And wait, there's also courage in here, a lot of courage. Yes, you had to go through a lot, didn't you? Let's see, mother died, father died, got sent to an orphanage, adopted by a cruel man, trained for inheriting the company... And you're still always there for your little brother. Well, then you'd better be in GRYFFINDOR!"
Let's just say that there were many disappointed fans and a lot of happy ones from Gryffindor. Most of the girls tried to get closer to Seto, but was sitting between Ryou and Mokuba, with Harry, Ron, and Hermione right in front of him.
"Motou, Yugi!" There were hushed "wow!"s from the people who had heard of Yugi.
"Okay, these new peoples have, like, weird hair," said the same person who had commented on Ryou and Malik. "This one's, like, the weirdest."
"He's cute, too!" squealed the same girl.
Yugi couldn't even get the hat on his head. There were a lot of sniggers from the students as he struggled to pull it on properly. In the end, the hat just grew larger to fit all of his hair.
"Aha! It's another one! Two minds sharing a vessel, and yet both very different. One is innocent, with a lot of bravery, while the other is dark, mysterious, but equally courageous. I think that it'd better be GRYFFINDOR!"
Yugi, relieved, sat himself down next to Ryou. The Gryffindor table once again broke into applause.
The headmaster stood up.
"There are a few start-of-term notices that I would give we eat. First years and new students should note that the forest on the grounds is forbidden to all pupils. I have also been reminded by Mr. Filch, the caretaker, to tell you that the list of items not allowed inside the castle has grown to four hundred and fifty-three. They can, as always, be viewed in Mr. Filch's office.
"Quidditch trials will be held in November, due to special circumstances."
There were indignant (and violent) reactions from all students at this.
Dumbledore went on:
"Anyone interested in playing for their house teams should contact Madam Hooch. Our Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher will be arriving tomorrow, he's having some difficulties getting here."
Nobody noticed his brief glance up at the enchanted ceiling. A second later, he was looking over the students waiting expectantly.
"And now, let the feast begin!" Dumbledore said, and with a wave of his arms, the golden plates became laden with all kinds of foods. They dug in. (Okay, so Seto didn't, so what?)
During the middle of the meal, the ghosts made their appearance. Surprisingly, Yami Bakura had become acquainted with the Bloody Baron. Let's just say that their interests were sort of the same.
Afterwards, filled up with all kinds of food, they went up several staircases and stopped in front of the Fat Lady. Yugi and Ryou were a bit freaked out at first by the moving paintings. The password was, to their surprise, 'Dark Magician.' They trudged up to the boys' dormitory, which now had two circular rooms, a small one with Dean, Seamus, and Neville, and a bigger one with Harry, Ron, Yugi, Ryou, and Seto. There was a door separating the two rooms and it was already closed. Their guess was that the other three had taken the other staircase and were already asleep.
Keket was in the owlery, Sanura was already asleep on Ryou's bed, and their luggage had been brought up already.
Everything seemed perfect.
/You know, this might not be so bad after all./ Yugi decided, as he climbed into bed. /Goodnight, Yami./ He closed his eyes.
The spirit-unbeknownst to Yugi-was sitting on the bed, looking at Yugi's face. The moonlight shining through his transparent form onto the other made him seem perfectly angelic. The bed showed no indication that a second person was sitting there. It was as if he was weightless.
//Goodnight, aibou.// He reached out to brush a bang out of Yugi's eyes. The hand was transparent as well.
Yugi smiled in his sleep. A hand, solid this time, reached out and closed the hangings around the bed, and the spirit vanished.
*~*~*~*~*~*
I added a bit more at the end-did you like it better than the previous version?
I also need your opinion on Sanura and Keket. I don't think that they're going to be playing that big of a role in this. And I'll just forget to add them into each chapter. Should I take the kitty and the owl out? Please tell me!
I am now starting to worship t.a.g.0! She's given me so many great suggestions!