I'm back.. Finally!

&&&&

Lord Voldemort was furious.

"That old fool," he murmured to himself. His slit eyes were red and flashing dangerously. He raised his wand, ready to do some damage to his surroundings, but stopped himself just in time. No, it would be better if…

He smiled to himself as he thought. There was no way an old man and a magical school could stop him from getting what he wanted.

"If that's how you want to play the game, Albus Dumbledore…"

Voldemort twirled his wand in intricate patterns in the air, murmuring as he did so. Smoky trails appeared from the tip of his wand, slowly becoming more solid, shaping and moulding itself into a solid form…

"You can be sure that I'll be fast to make my own move…"

&&&&

"Oy, wake up."

Takuya groaned sleepily as someone wrenched open the curtains around his bed. He muttered a few swear words to himself. The someone turned out to be Kouji, who casually threw a pillow at him. Somehow, when the normally placid Kouji acted this way (he was more relaxed ever since he got closer to Kouichi) it never seemed ridiculous or childish. But when Takuya was the one doing those sort of things, Zoe would instantly be after his blood for 'mortally embarrasing her.'

"You know, a simple 'Good morning' would do," Takuya muttered blearily.

"Fine. Good morning. Happy?"

Takuya shook his head. "Too late. Where is this place? Are we back in the digi-" He never finished his sentence, as something white flashed across his face. Takuya struggled for a while before realising that Kouji was smothering him with a pillow, a frown on his face.

"With you shooting your mouth off when you're not thinking, it's a miracle no one else has found out," Kouji hissed before letting Takuya go.

"Oh gosh! I'm sorry, it nearly slipped out!" Takuya put a hand to his mouth as he realised that he had almost blurted out the word 'digiworld.' He quickly remembered where he was.

"Oh, that's it! I'm in Hogwarts! We're in Hogwarts!"

"Glad you noticed," Kouji said drily. "Hurry up, will you? I don't want to be late on the first day."

"Fine! Fine!" Takuya jumped out of bed in a huff, surprising TK and Davis who were across the dorm bickering slightly as they got ready. Kouji sighed, wondering how on earth they were going to get through an entire year here.

&&&&

Kouichi finished adjusting his new uniform and stared at himself in the mirror. His hair was getting long, but at least it wasn't as long as Kouji's. He impulsively bunched it up into a ponytail, but didn't like how it looked. His hair was so unlike his twin's, wild and messy. Kouji had been the one who had encouraged him to let his hair grow out…

"Hey."

Kouichi turned to see Draco Malfoy coming towards him. Draco was lazily running his hand through his hair, apparently not bothering to comb it properly.

"Can you find your way up to the Great Hall?" Draco questioned edgily.

Kouichi smiled. "I'm sure I can."

Draco shrugged. "Okay then." He looked as if he wanted to say something else, but didn't. "See you at breakfast. Don't be late."

"Er… Okay then."

Kouichi stared as Draco left the dorm with Crabbe and Goyle. He suspected something amiss. Ken was fully dressed, rechecking the contents of his bag with an anxious look on his face. Blaise was yawning as he carelessly threw in several rolls of parchment into his bag. He considered asking Blaise if anyone would be coming in to clean up the place, but thought the better of it.

Ken slung a bag over his shoulder, took up yet another, and quickly walked out. Kouichi stared after him, wondering for what seemed like the thousandth time what was the matter with him. He smiled slightly as he realised what Ken's attitude reminded him of – Kouji's apparently indifferent and detached attitude. Should be an interesting year here.

He was stopped smiling when he reached under his pillow and retrieved the box containing his D-Tector. He had been puzzling over it the previous night until the image of the device even appeared in his dreams, but was still unable to figure out why it had returned to him. Did it mean the Digiworld was in danger? He had considered telling Kouji, but it would mean admitting he worked in a Dark objects shop, something Kouji would disapprove of. He could very well figure this out himself; after all, he was a former Legendary Warrior, wasn't he?

"Coming?"

Blaise was standing at the door. Kouichi nodded.

"Sure."

Stuffing the box back under the pillow, Kouichi grabbed his bag and hurried out after Blaise.

&&&&

The Japanese exchange students received their timetables after breakfast, from the Heads of the Houses. The subjects they were taking were nearly the same as the ones they had been studying back in Japan. The Japanese subject, Basic Magic, was taken over by Transfiguration and Charms; then there were Defence Against the Dark Arts and Potions, and a subject specially designed for them – Ancient Magic and Mythology. Their standard had been adjusted, so they would be taking the classes with other students their own age.

Kouji examined his timetable. The first subject was Potions, which meant that he would be meeting Kouichi. Good, he thought grimly, feeling rather annoyed that Kouichi hadn't explained anything to him about his recent odd behaviour. Kouichi had been more secretive than usual lately, and it was bothering him that Kouichi wasn't telling him stuff. And he knew that Kouichi could be too intense in his thoughts until it was destructive.

"Hey! Why so glum, dude?" Takuya pounced on him from the back, knocking Kouji to his feet. "Come on, look happier, it's the first day here!"

"You know, that's the first time you look so happy about school," Kouji said irritatably. Takuya still had yet a lot to learn about tact. He got up, rubbing his knee. "If you get me injured I swear I will personally make sure that you suffer for it."

Takuya raised his eyebrows. "Wow, wow, wow… Seriously, Kouji, you need to lighten up a bit. It won't hurt to at least look happy, you know. Did you know that since this morning you've got this look on your face that practically screams out 'murder'?"

Kouji scowled. "Well then I guess that's your cue to leave me alone. Not very good at understanding signals, are you, Takuya?"

"What's up with him?" Takuya wondered aloud, as Kouji snatched up his books and stalked off after the other Gryffindor students. He scratched his head through his cap. "Weird as usual I guess…"

"You know, I think he's a bit upset over something," TK observed from opposite the table, standing up and rearranging the books in his bag. "I have to say that I think you were a bit tactless, knocking him over like that."

"Tactless? Me?" Takuya looked as if he had never heard the word being associated with him before. "At any rate, Kouji has always been like that, he'll never be cheerful even if he won a trillion dollars in a lottery. I've known him for about five years already, at up till now he has yet to curse me for knocking him over." He adjusted his cap indecisively.

"Hey guys." Zoe appeared at the Gryffindor table, followed by the other Japanese exchange students who weren't in Gryffindor – J.P, Tommy, Cody and Yolei. "What's up with Kouji? He bumped into me earlier but didn't even seem to notice me."

"What's up with him?" Takuya rolled his eyes exaggeratedly. "Nothing's up, you know that if Kouji ever acts that way he's being normal…" He shrugged. "So, what classes do you have?"

"Same as yours, right?" Zoe sat down on the table. "We're with the other sixth-years… Tommy and Cody's going to be with the fourth-years, and JP and Yolei with the seventh-years."

"Professor Sprout told us that our results in the subjects we're taking here will give us added credit for the graduation exams," J.P said with a grin. "Cool, eh? And the credit will be a lot more than what we can expect back in Japan."

"Man, wish I was in final year," Takuya said longingly. "Imagine… Less work, but more to gain…"

"Dream on," Zoe said, slapping him on the back as she got up. "Want to go for Potions now?"

"Isn't Potions an elemental subject for the Water element students?" Takuya picked up his schoolbag, then stuffed the leftovers of his breakfast into his mouth.

Zoe stared at him in disgust. "Yeah… Which means that you'll have a lot to learn. Anyway everyone's got the simplest basics from Basic Magic, remember?"

"Well, yeah, I think there was a chapter on that…" Takuya frowned a little. "At least I think. Where's the class, anyway?"

"Down in the dungeons," Davis said helpfully. "Professor McGonagall told us earlier, remember?"

"No, I don't," Takuya said, still frowning. "So… Where's the dungeons?"

"Er…"

T.K sighed. "Professor McGonagall mentioned that to us too, remember? She already gave us the directions, come on… We don't want to be late for our very first class."

"No, I don't remember," Takuya and Davis said simultaneously.

"Hopeless," Zoe muttered.

T.K and Kari led the way down to the dungeons, where the rest of the class were waiting outside the classroom door. Most of the Hogwarts students fell silent when they appeared. Kouji was leaning against the wall, far along the corridor from the other students, his eyes narrowed and a closed expression on his face.

Takuya went up to Kouji, putting on an exaggerated look of innocent childishness on his face. "What's wrong with you? Car ran over your dog?"

Kouji glared at him, before muttering something and turning away. Takuya stared intensely at him. "Sorry, didn't get that… Hey, hang on…" Takuya frowned. Could have sworn that he said 'Kouichi.' Kouichi? Where is he anyway?

He looked around, and instantly got his answer. And his jaw dropped…

&&&&

Kouichi was starting to feel worried about Kouji. He had heard Takuya complaining about Kouji's attitude that morning, and he had a bad feeling that he was the one at fault. Have to go talk to him later, he thought, stealing a glance at his twin. Kouji was still sulking away by himself, and this time Takuya was dancing around him – he better watch out, Kouichi thought, sighing inwardly. However, at the moment, he was involved in a more troubling matter…

"So, Kimura, why don't you just show them what you can do?" the sixth-year Slytherin boy said. "Remember, you're a Slytherin now, it doesn't matter what Houses your Japanese friends are in.

"Don't involve him in this, this is just between us, Malfoy," Harry Potter snarled. "Don't drag him into what nonsense you're doing with your beloved Dark Lord…"

"That's a very dangerous accusation to make, Potter," Draco said quietly. "Wouldn't want to get into trouble for that, would you? You and all the blood traitors and Mudbloods.."

"Take that back!" Harry pulled out his wand. "Right now I don't give a damn about the rules, I just know you're up to something fishy, and I'll make sure I'll find out!"

"Well then, you're welcome to find out what you can." Draco sneered, pulling out his own wand, his eyes flashing. "I can assure you that you won't get very far."

"Come on, stop it." Kouichi grabbed Draco's arm, forcing him to lower his wand. "It's not worth it getting into trouble over a small matter…"

"It's not a small matter! HE PUT MY FATHER IN AZKABAN!"

"Well, that's where he deserves to be," Harry growled angrily. "And that's where I'm going to make sure you end up, Malfoy!"

Malfoy lunged madly at Harry, and the two of them fell to the floor, grappling with each other, wands forgotten. Everyone around them started shouting, and Kouichi bent down to try to pry them apart. In the end he managed to pull Malfoy away, but both Malfoy and Harry had such livid looks on their faces that no one else dared to try to stop them.

"Now, now, what's all this about?"

The Potions teacher came out of the classroom, frowning very slightly at the commotion. Slughorn keenly observed the students, and guessing what happened, he shook his head. Apparently he did not want to get involved in anything, so he faked a very false look of cheerfulness on his face. "So, now, what are you all waiting for? Your first Potions class of the year! Come on in!"

Kouichi grabbed hold of Malfoy's arm and steered him into the front seat, where he figured he wouldn't dare to do anything when being observed by a teacher. Glancing back to check on Harry, he almost immediately caught his twin's dark intense eyes and felt a pang of guilt at the way he was ignoring Kouji. Kouji noticed him looking, and quickly looked away. Kouichi watched as Kouji, Takuya settled at one table together with the three Gryffindors, while Zoe, Kari, TK and Ken took the table right next to his. Kouichi offered Zoe a small, rather sheepish smile which she returned with a puzzled look.

"So now!" Slughorn clapped his hands together, looking quite bouncy and excited. "So now! This will be the first class for our Japanese guests, and I hope that you will enjoy yourself here while having a taste of Western education! And now, for our first lesson, I want something special… Turn to your books, page hundred and thirty one, and split up into groups of two! The group who manages to make the best attempt at the Healing Solution will win a special prize!"

In other circumstances, Kouichi would have partnered Kouji, but since he noticed that Draco was sullenly making no movement while the other students bustled around finding their partners, he quietly assumed that he would just partner the silent boy. Glancing over his shoulder, he saw Kouji partnering Takuya at a table. Well, at least Takuya can manage him…

Kouichi consulted the page. The Healing Solution was incredibly hard to make, but its uses were equally remarkable – useful for curing almost every single kind of injury, sickness, poison and restoring energy. He scanned through the list of the ingredients, before realising that Draco was still glaring fixedly at the table, not doing anything at all.

"Um… Draco?"

Draco slammed a fist on the table. "I'll kill him," he muttered. Then, as if with a great effort, he looked up at Kouichi. "What do we need?"

"Huh?"

"What ingredients do we need?"

"Oh… Um… Paste of pine leaves… Essence of dragon blood-"

"Fine, I'll get the first… six ingredients first, you get the last six later, set up the cauldron first, 'kay? And hurry up, won't up?"

Kouichi stared as Draco sprang up and joined the crowd of students at the ingredients cupboard. He sighed, guessing that Kouji wasn't the only one feeling agitated that morning. Kouichi took out the cauldron and pointed his wand at the bottom. A moment later, a black fog surrounded the base of the cauldron, heating up the cauldron as effectively as a real fire would.

Draco returned with a handful of leaves and various vials of coloured fluid. He stared at the black mist. "What's that? Something that you Japs do with potions?"

"It's called Black Mist." Kouichi consulted his book again. He lowered his voice. "Well, it's a bit of Dark Magic but it's better for brewing potions meant for healing."

"If you say so…" Malfoy stared suspiciously at Kouichi for a while, then relented. "What do we do first?"

"Boil the essence of dragon blood until it turns colourless, then add in paste of five sprigs of pine leaves, one spoonful at a time…"

"Here's the blood," Draco interrupted, handing Kouichi a jar of bright yellow fluid that was bubbling gently. "I'll do the paste."

Kouichi quickly obeyed, guessing that Draco was feeling really agitated at the moment; he certainly was acting oddly and it was better to just follow whatever Draco said. Pouring the yellow essence into the cauldron, he stared at the surface of the bubbling liquid…

"Ouch!"

Draco stared at him. Kouichi quickly recovered, blinking his eyes.

"Are you okay?"

"Huh? Oh… Yeah, I'm okay, sorry about that…"

"Okay." Draco resumed his pounding of the leaves with force that was quite unnecessary. Kouichi stared at him, but quickly shifted his attention back to the slowly boiling essence.

What was that? Kouichi rubbed the back of his head. Just then, he had felt something hard hit side of his head, and momentarily he had been blinded by a bright, white light. Then, he had seen something familiar in a white fog, something that he hadn't seen in five years. He had been so shocked that he had just shouted out without thinking. As he stirred the bubbling essence in the cauldron, his thoughts drifted away.

I know it's crazy, but I'm positive… I saw Lowemon…

&&&&

The Forbidden Forest.

Kouichi stared at the dark trees. Something about them already seemed quite forbidden enough. Maybe it was just the darkness, or the ominous look of the tall, silently swaying trees. Yet there was something about the forest that seemed to attract him…

It was lunchtime. No one would miss him… Except maybe for his twin brother, Takuya and Draco…

As if in a dream, Kouichi made for the forest. There was no one around, so no one stopped him as he approached the trees. He could see a narrow dirt path, but he decided not to follow it. There was just something so remarkably interesting about the forest… Taking out his wand, he blasted some bushes down with a hard gust of wind. Using the same spell, he made his way through the trees easily enough.

The trees grew thickly together, and soon he was in near total darkness. He blinked once, and instantly he could see the clear outlines of the shrubs around him, as though something bright was illuminating the forest – it was something that every Darkness element student was able to do. He walked in a bit more, only vaguely aware that he was breaking the rules.

Something rustled behind him, making him start. He turned around on the spot, and his vision combined with his heightened senses in the dark told him that there was someone just a few metres away. He frowned, and slowly made his way towards the figure…

"Draco?"

Draco Malfoy jumped up, staring at Kouichi. "What are you doing here?"

"I thought I could be asking you that too," Kouichi said, picking his way towards the agitated boy. "Funny place to meditate, if you ask me."

"I'm not…" Draco glared at him. "Is wandering about in forests your hobby?"

"No, but it's my nature." Kouichi gestured around him. "It's natural for students of the Darkness element to be attracted to the dark. We're trained to survive comfortably in these conditions and we can adapt to the darkness."

"Whatever you say." Draco settled back on the boulder he had been sitting on. Kouichi sat down next to him, and for a few minutes, the two of them sat there in silence. Kouichi nudged a stone at his feet, uncovering a particularly large beetle with bright green stripes. Poisonous.The beetle waved its feelers about, but the next moment, was flattened when Kouichi smashed it with the stone.

Draco stared at him. "What was that for?"

"It's poisonous."

"Fine. Just thought that you were…"

"Cruel?"

"I guess…"

"'Kay…" Kouichi got up. "Do you want me to leave? I think I'm bothering you…"

"No!"

"What?"

Draco looked slightly embarrassed. "I mean, no, you aren't bothering me… You can stay if you want."

Feeling more relieved, Kouichi sat back down. Suddenly he was smiling to himself, and he quickly looked down to the forest floor.

&&&&

Kind of a lame ending, I know... I'm out of ideas...

R&R

Ken