Journey to Hogwarts

September 1st, Morning

Natsu woke up early to catch her train to the Shinkansen station. Dressed in her witch’s robes, she prepared her luggage and equipment, placed Yuki in a cage and headed to the front door of her house.

“I’ll go, goodbye and take care!” Natsu said.

“Bye! Take care too!” Aunt said to her.

Natsu gently closed the door. She farewell her home, the library and her family’s apple farm. She headed to Aomori station and looked out the window to the green forest. She farewell her hometown and slowly walked to the ticket gate.

The ticket gate had no issues with her ticket, which gave her a small sense of relief. Finding a moment when the crowds were thin, she phased through the pillar at Platform 9 and instantly emerged in England.

At Platform 9 ¾, Natsu checked the time from a clock at King’s Cross station. It was currently 10:30 AM in Japan.

"Oh my goodness! No way! It’s really only 1:30 AM here? There’s nobody around," Natsu muttered. She realized she would have to wait a long time before the train departed, having forgotten to account for the time difference in England.

However, two girls around her age walked in and headed toward a capsule hotel*. Before they could turn in for the night, Natsu went over to talk to them.

"Ah… why are you guys here so early?"

"Oh, we took a connecting train from Northern Ireland, so we have to stay here," one of the girls replied.

"Well, we’ll see each other at Hogwarts, right? Just so you know, my name is Iris, and my twin is Irene. What’s yours?" Iris asked.

"I’m from Japan. My name is Natsu. I hope we end up in the same house at Hogwarts," Natsu told them.

"Oh! What a cute bird," Iris remarked.

"Mm-hmm. She’s a bird I rescued from near my home. A Shima Enaga," she replied.

"A what-now?" Iris asked, puzzled.

"A Shima Enaga. It can do everything an owl does," Natsu answered.

"Mmm... we’re going to sleep now," Irene said sleepily, heading to capsule hotel with Iris.

The next morning at 11:00 AM, the station became bustling with people.

The train pulled into the station exactly on time, and everyone boarded. Natsu, Iris, and Irene chose to sit together. There was one seat left empty, which was soon taken by Ginny.

"Last year was so chaotic," Ginny told the three of them. "The Dark Lord was on the rampage, but luckily, he was defeated."

"Then we’re lucky we didn't arrive while Lord Voldemort was causing all that trouble," Natsu said.

"Shh! Don't call him Lord Voldemort," Irene warned. "People call him 'You-Know-Who,' 'He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named,' or 'The Dark Lord.'"

"I hope you all get into Gryffindor, our house," Ginny said warmly. "I heard Hogwarts is being renovated to make the dorms and school buildings look a bit more modern. They’re going to separate the professors' quarters, split the dorms into three-person rooms, and even add room numbers."

"That sounds great! Our school is going to look so much better," Iris said.

The conversation continued until the train gradually slowed to a halt at Hogwarts Station. They headed into Hogwarts, excited for the sorting ceremony.

To be continued.

Notes: King’s Cross station had been renovated after the year of Harry Potter, so a capsule hotel had been added.

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