Spinel led them to a pillar that looked just like the others in King's Cross. Chiharu was still so amazed that the plushies like Kero, as Sakura and Li called him, and Spinel were able to fly, talk, and even eat in these forms. She was still getting used to the idea that magic was real. Yesterday, when they were in the magic shops, she was amazed to see so many tools for working magic.

Sakura and Li had stood out among the crowd. It was like the others had seen their power and were respecting it.

"Chiharu, why don't you go through first." Nakuru encouraged and she gulped as she stepped up.

She had seen a kid with a large overladen trolly go through just a moment before, but she was still scared. At least she didn't need to run up with the large object pulling her along.

She walked up to the pillar and looked around. No one seemed to be paying her any attention. She put her hand on the pillar and was shocked to see it pass through. She jumped back, nearly falling on Sakura. She was so panicked she switched back to Japanese without realizing it.

"Sakura-chan…" She gasped. "It's so weird…"

Sakura chuckled and hugged her friend before responding in Japanese as well. When did Sakura learn English?

"Chiharu-chan, it's alright. I was scared the first time I saw magic too. You will get used to the strange happenings after a while."

"Which is why you are completely fine with ghosts, right Sakura-chan?" Tomoyo teased her and Sakura looked nervous.

"Ghosts are another matter entirely." She looked away from the others.

They passed through the barrier without further issues. Takashi was still very quiet, but she took that as a sign that he too was in shock from the sudden change. They did swap back to English so they would get used to talking in it at Hogwarts.

"Are you excited to be a witch, Tomoyo?" Chiharu asked as they approached the train.

She nodded. "I love watching Sakura use her powers, so yes I am interested to try them for myself. Though being able to go with Sakura is more than enough for me."
Chiharu smiled at Sakura's best friend. She wondered if Sakura understood just what she meant to Tomoyo.

"Time to get on board," Nakuru spoke up. "I'll be riding with the driver, so if you need me, I'll be at the front of the train. Do try to not get in trouble on what is technically day zero."

Sakura, Li, and Tomoyo stopped as if to wait on them. Chiharu started to speak up but Tomoyo gave her an understanding look.

"Sakura, Li, let's give them some space. It's a lot to process after all."

Sakura looked at Chiharu and nodded. "I understand. It's one thing to know magic is real and the other to be going off to do it. It took me awhile to accept my role as a Cardcaptor."

Chiharu felt gratitude for Tomoyo and Sakura's understanding. "Thank you. It's just a big adjustment."

"Take the time you need," Li gave them a rare smile. "If you need us, we'll be in a compartment together."

She nodded and she and Takashi went off to find a compartment where they could be alone for a little while.

*CCSXHP*

As they entered their own carriage, Syaoran detected a subtle change in Sakura's magic. Her color was usually a bright pink, the color of the Sakura cards. But now there was traces of blue in the energy.

"What's wrong, Sakura?" He asked her. She flashed him a soft smile.

"I was just wondering if Chiharu was scared of me is all."

Spinel landed on her lap and looked up at her. "No, that is not it. She is just overwhelmed by everything like she said. However, for the three of you, magic has become as commonplace as electricity is to the two of them. They need time to adapt and have their own magic adventures too."

Syaoran knew Spinel was right, still knowing Chiharu was so close but not by Skaura's side would sting her more than a little.

The carriage door opened, and two girls entered. One had red hair and brown eyes, Syaoran recognized her as the girl introduced as Ginny. The other had bushy brown hair and a badge that read 'Head Girl'.

"Hello, just wanted to introduce myself to the first years." She smiled warmly at them. "My name is Hermoine Granger and I will be the Head Girl for the year at Hogwarts. If you need anything, please feel free to ask me."

Ginny waved. "I saw you before, miss. Outside Olivanders." She nodded at Sakura.

"Yes, my name is…" She had to mentally correct her name, Syaoran knew. "Sakura Kinomoto. Sorry, I'm Japanese so I usually introduce myself with my family name first."

"It's quite alright, Kinomoto." Ginny said softly. "If you are not housemates or close, witches and wizards do tend to default to the surname of the other person. My name is Ginny Weasley, I'll be captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team."

"Thank you, Weasley." Syaoran said. "It was a pleasure to meet both of you. My name is Syaoran Li."

They turned to look at him. "Li? As in Sue Li?"

He nodded. "You know my distant cousin. Her mother was of our clan before she fell in love with a muggle in London. I've only met her twice in my life though, her family doesn't come around for functions often."

Sakura gave him a knowing look. "Was it your sisters?"

He nodded again. "Oh, yes. They do love getting their hands on pretty girls."

Tomoyo patted Sakura as she sighed, knowing only too well what his siblings were like.

"Did any of you start reading your books yet?" Syaoran thought there was a hopeful tone to the Head Girl's voice.

"Sorry, we just got them yesterday." Tomoyo bowed her head. "I peeked in mine, but I wanted to wait and get to school before I started digging into them."

"I can't wait to see you do magic, Tomoyo." Sakura smiled at her best friend. "You've seen me do it so often it must be boring by now."

Hermonie and Ginny exchanged looks and Syaoran mentally cursed. Sakura wasn't supposed to reveal the full extent of her magic abilities.

"Do you mean accidentally magic?" Ginny threw them a lifeline and Syaoran sighed. As much as he wanted to grab ahold of that, he could not.

One of the prices of having such powerful magic was the inability to tell a direct lie. You could omit facts or tell a half-truth, but your magic would hold you accountable if you told a complete lie. He knew Sakura would have to be as truthful as possible.

"No, it was not done by accident." That was all Sakura said and crossed her arms.

"I see. Well, if you don't want to elaborate, I understand. Just remember that when you are not in school you cannot use magic until you are 17. You have something called the Trace on you that will tell the ministry if you do magic. My boyfriend Harry got in trouble a few years ago for that. Had a trial and everything."

Syaoran could see the panic in Sakura's eyes and started to speak up when Hermonie snorted. "Oh please. Harry's trial was a one-off occurrence. The worst-case scenario would be a hearing at the Ministry. But still, you could be expelled depending on the circumstances."

Syaoran nodded and leaned back. He would love to see the Ministry try and take his and Sakura's magical tools away from them.

"But you have years before you know any magic that would be helpful outside school anyway." Ginny smiled at them. "We better go and check on more of the kids. And Sakura, if you need anything, you just let me know."

The two girls turned and left. Syaoran watched them go as Sakura and Tomoyo engaged in conversation.

*CCSXHP*

Hermonie stopped Ginny in the hall a short way down the line. "Got a soft spot for eyes as green as a fresh pickled toad, Ginny?" She teased.

Ginny snorted. "Careful, Granger, or I'll tell Ron about the poem you made for him in the sixth year before he started snogging Lav Lav."

She ran as Hermoine tried to grab her.

*CCSXHP*

The ride on the train was a lot longer than she had expected it to be. Sakura had long since told Syaoran and Tomoyo about her new card and staff, though she did not summon the latter as she was supposed to avoid openly revealing her powers. Syaoran looked concerned.

"When we get to Hogwarts, we should talk with the spirits of the Sakura cards in Eriol's office."

"Yeah, I was thinking the same thing." Sakura agreed. "There really wasn't time last night to go over this change."

As she said this, the compartment door opened and two wizards around their age came in. One had blonde hair and blue eyes while the other looked Japanese like they did.

"Sorry to disturb you, but we had to quickly change compartments." The blonde-haired boy bowed his head. "My friend here picked a fight with some older students."

Sakura took a look over the black-haired boy, who did look like the kind of person her Onii-chan had always warned her to avoid.

The black-haired kid focused on Tomoyo, who looked way more Japanese than Sakura. "Where in the homeland do you hail from?" He asked in Japanese.

Sakura replied in the same language. "My cousin and I come from Tomeda."

He looked in surprise at her. "I'm sorry, I thought you were English from your looks. I'm from Kyoto, by the way."

She gestured down to her very Japanese-style school uniform. "I never got told that before, though the green eyes are a bit strange I suppose."

Syaoran smirked from beside her. "He would be even more confused if he saw you in Chinese clothing. The first time I saw you dressed in our garments, I almost forgot you were Japanese, Sakura."

The boy was giving Syaoran a strange look. The blonde boy was as well. "Does it feel like we've met before?" The blonde boy asked Syaoran in English.

Syaoran switched back and nodded. "I agree. You two feel familiar to me. Or perhaps it's to my soul. My name is Li Syaoran."

The blonde boy bowed. "My name is Fai Flourite. My friend introduced himself as Kurogane."

The other boy huffed. "My dad always told me to never tell anyone my real name. He's a real samurai enthusiast. He was born way too late if you ask me."

"So, Flourite and Kurogane. My name is Kinomoto Sakura and this is Daidouji Tomoyo-chan.

"Please, call me Fai." Fai bowed again. "I so do dislike being called by my surname. Li, Kinomoto, and Diadouji, may we join you?"
They saw no reason to say no and allowed the two boys to sit near them.

"Have you known each other long?" Tomoyo asked, switching back to Japanese.

"My parents split up," Kurogane huffed. "My mother decided to move far away from anything have to do with katana and samurai. So, we moved here to England three years ago. I met Fai that first day and he has followed me around since."

Fai smiled. "I sensed we both had magic powers and knew you were going to be invited to Hogwarts. So I kept near you in case you needed a familiar face to help you get through it all."

Kurogane smiled for a moment before wiping it off his face. "I almost appreciate that, wizard."

Sakura could not keep herself from laughing. "But you're a wizard too, Kurogane-kun."

She felt safe with these two. Her magic often taught her who she could trust. She felt like these two were long-lost friends they had finally reunited with.

"Maybe, but I feel the call of the Katana way stronger than a wand. I hope to one day return to Japan and study the Samurai, like my father."

"Hence a name like Black Steel," Syaoran noted. "I've studied how to wield the swords of my homeland, but that hardly helps if you want to master katana. I'm from Hong Kong."

"Well, no one is perfect." Kurogane quipped and they all shared a laugh together.

Fai was looking between her, Syaoran, and Tomoyo as if trying to puzzle something out. Sakura sighed and dismissed it as her being paranoid.

*CCSXHP*

All too soon, the train was slowing down to a stop. Sakura and Tomoyo pulled on their robes over their uniforms before leaving to give the boys some time to change on their own.

"You're not ready to see Syaoran change yet, Sakura." Kero teased as he popped out of her robe pocket where he had been napping all day.

"For that comment, no dessert tonight." Sakura huffed.

"No! Please, mercy Master Sakura. I'll be good…"

"Well see…"

Tomoyo laughed as the train came to a full stop and witches and wizards started to flock out of the train and onto the station beyond.

"Ready, Sakura-chan?" Tomoyo asked her in Japanese.

Sakura took her best friend's hand in hers. She found she was holding it quite often lately.

"Yes, let's go!"

*CCSXHP*

A/N: And we officially made it to Hogwarts. February's update will include the sorting. I'm writing this early in December, so I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas if you celebrate, and will have a happy New Year, again if you celebrate. See you next month!
Also, I hope you will check out my other works on this site as well as my original novel over on Royal Road. I've also been streaming and uploading videos to Youtube. If your interested, my novel link is below, you can find my Twitch at .tv/stormermiaand my Youtube channel is Stormermia Plays. See you later!

Link to Novel: fiction/55565/song-of-phoenix-ordeal-part-1