"Welcome to the Knight Bus—emergency transportation for stranded witches and wizards.
"All you need to do is stick out your wand arm, hop on, and we'll take you wherever you want to go.
"Name's Todd Thumpack, I'll be your conductor today."
After handing over eleven Sickles to Todd, Zayn climbed aboard the violently purple, triple-decker Knight Bus.
The moment the bus lurched into motion, bullets of rain began pelting the windows, roaring like a storm of curses.
"Ernie—" Zayn shouted, clutching a bedpost. "How long till we reach Diagon Alley?"
But the howling wind swallowed his voice whole.
At the front, Ernie Prang hunched over the wheel, eyes squinted as he tried to make sense of the blurred road.
"You know Ernie's name? Thought it was your first ride," Todd called from the staircase, descending from the upper deck with a grin.
"You're our last pickup for the night. Soon as you're off, we're clocking out."
"How many more stops before mine?" Zayn asked.
"Oh, just Mrs. Coppett up to Glasgow, then the MacKinnons—headed to Dundee."
"MacKinnon?"
That name snapped something in Zayn's mind. A face came with it.
"Is—Marlene MacKinnon—with them?"
"If you mean the brown-haired girl about your age—yep. Whole family's upstairs. You know her?"
"Yeah, we're cla—"
SCREEEECH!
The bus braked violently. Zayn barely caught hold of a brass rail to avoid being thrown across the aisle.
"ARE YOU MAD?!"
Ernie shouted, head out the window, yelling at a figure standing in the road—a dark silhouette in a sodden cloak.
"We're done for the nigh—"
He never finished the sentence.
A red spell burst through the storm.
It struck Ernie mid-shout. His mouth froze open, limbs went limp, and he toppled sideways—crashing out the window.
"Oi!"
Todd leapt from his seat, wand drawn, just as another flash of green light tore through the night.
Glass exploded.
Todd's body lit up like a cursed lantern. He flew backwards, struck a brass bedframe, and crumpled, lifeless.
The door burst open.
A dripping figure stepped inside, rain sluicing from their cloak. The dim lights gleamed off the grotesque contours of a metal mask.
A Death Eater.
Zayn knew the look. Too well.
"Drop your wand. We won't harm any innocent witches or wizards."
The voice was calm. Chillingly cold.
Zayn took a breath, hand slipping under his robe, fingers curling around his wand.
"Mackinnon," the Death Eater called. "Come out. We have a little… business."
Upstairs, the scuffle began—shouts, spellfire, the sound of chairs tumbling. Then a scream, raw and terrified.
Footsteps thundered down the stairs.
A man in a long, floral green dress stumbled into view—removing a yellow scarf from his neck as he went. His wand was aimed behind him, levitating the bound, gagged forms of Marlene MacKinnon and her parents.
They floated down the stairs, helpless, suspended in air like dolls.
"This disguise was revolting," the cross-dressed Death Eater grumbled. "Next time, it's your turn."
"Shut it. We've got them. Let's go."
"Wait," the one in the mask said. He pointed at Zayn.
"He saw my face."
Zayn's grip on his wand tightened.
"Ah, relax," said the masked Death Eater, waving a hand. "I know him. That's Severus Snape. My son's classmate. A fellow member of the Walpurgis Society."
"You didn't have to use my bloody name," McNair hissed.
"Pleasure to see you again, Severus," said old Avery with a wide grin, approaching.
"Heard some amusing stories from my boy. But this is perfect. Let's see if you're ready to serve the Dark Lord for real."
He turned his wand on the MacKinnon family.
"Kill the girl," he said. "Use the curse Bellatrix taught you."
Zayn's eyes darted sideways.
Mr. MacKinnon hung limp, blood trickling down from his temple.
Mrs. MacKinnon and Marlene were gagged with thick rope, whimpering against the fabric.
Tears welled in Marlene's eyes as she looked directly at him. Pleading.
"Kill… kill her?"
Zayn's voice quivered. He drew his wand slowly, hands shaking.
"I—I haven't ever actually cast that curse… I mean—what if I mess it up?"
Avery's voice dropped into ice.
"You either do it, or you don't. Make your choice."
"…Alright."
Zayn raised his wand, face pale with fear.
Then—
"Sectumsempra!"
The curse exploded from his wand like a blade of shadow. He aimed not at Marlene—but at Avery's throat.
A crimson spray burst from the gash.
Avery staggered, eyes wide with shock and horror, trying to speak—only to produce wet, gargling sounds.
Then he dropped.
A heavy thud echoed through the bus as his body hit the floor.
"Avery!"
McNair roared, wand slashing through the air. He turned his spells on Zayn, releasing the MacKinnons in the process.
Bolts of green and red light shot in every direction.
Zayn rolled under a brass bed, flinging wild hexes behind him.
The windows shattered, raining shards of glass into the aisle.
Wind and rain surged into the bus, whipping through like a storm demon.
Sheltered behind a seat, Zayn panted, pinned down by the sheer force of McNair's magic.
He had no cover left. No time.
And then—
CRACK!
A blast rocked the air. Echoing.
Zayn peeked out.
A tall figure had Apparated into the aisle—silver hair, robes billowing, wand drawn.
McNair turned, mouth open—
"Petrificus Totalus!"
His limbs snapped together with a crack, and he fell flat, rigid as stone.
Zayn didn't need to ask who it was.
He already knew.