Chapter 8: The Deluge

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"Welcome aboard the Knight Bus—emergency transport for stranded witches and wizards.

"Simply raise your wand hand, step aboard, and we'll take you wherever you wish to go.

"My name is Todd Shunpike, your conductor."

After handing over eleven Sickles to Todd, Severus Snape boarded the garish purple triple-decker Knight Bus.

Moments after the bus lurched into motion, a torrent of rain, sharp as bullets, began hammering against the windows.

"Ern!" Snape shouted over the din, "how long until we reach Diagon Alley?"

But the roaring wind and rain drowned out his voice.

Ern, gripping the steering wheel, leaned forward, straining to see the blurred road ahead.

"You know Ern's name? I thought this was your first ride," Todd called out, descending from the second deck toward Snape.

"You're our last passenger. I'm clocking off early today. Once we drop you off, we're done and heading home!"

"How many others are ahead of me?" Snape asked.

"Oh, we've got to drop Mrs. Coppet off in Glasgow first, then the McKinnons are headed to Dundee."

"McKinnons?"

The familiar surname sparked a memory, and Snape's curiosity flared. "Is Marlene McKinnon among them?"

Todd answered without hesitation. "If you mean a brown-haired girl about your age, I reckon so. Her family's on the second deck. You know them?"

"Yeah, we're—"

A piercing screech of brakes cut him off. Snape grabbed the railing just in time to keep from tumbling forward.

"Are you mad?!"

Ern, heedless of the storm, poked his head out of the driver's compartment, yelling at a black-robed figure standing in the middle of the road.

"We're done for the—"

His words were severed by a searing red light hurtling toward him.

Ern froze, mouth still agape, before his body tipped forward and plummeted out the window into the rain.

"Oi!"

Todd shot up from his armchair, wand drawn, pointing at the figure ahead.

A whooshing sound followed, and a vivid green light flashed in the wake of the red.

In an instant, the windows shattered. An eerie green glow enveloped Todd as he was flung backward, crashing into a brass bedframe and collapsing, motionless.

The bus door slammed open with a bang, and amidst the howling wind, a figure drenched from head to toe stepped aboard.

Under the dim interior lights, a metal mask gleamed menacingly beneath the figure's hood.

Death Eater.

Snape recognized the intruder instantly.

"Lower your wand. We have no quarrel with innocent wizards," a low, chilling voice rasped from behind the mask.

Taking a deep breath, Snape tightened his grip on his wand, concealed beneath his robes.

"McKinnon, come out. We need your… assistance."

No sooner had the words left the Death Eater's mouth than a series of loud bangs and the sounds of a fierce struggle erupted from the upper deck, followed by a woman's piercing scream.

A minute later, the clatter of footsteps descended the stairs. A middle-aged man in a green floral dress sidled down, awkwardly tugging at a yellow silk scarf knotted around his neck before tossing it aside.

As he descended, he leveled his wand at the McKinnon family—three figures bound tightly together, hovering a few inches above the floor, floating behind him.

"This disguise is bloody disgusting. You're doing it next time," the cross-dressed Death Eater grumbled to his companion.

"Enough. We've got them. Let's move," the masked one replied.

"Wait. There's someone else."

The disguised Death Eater pointed at Snape, standing by the window.

"He saw my face."

Just as Snape braced himself to fight, the masked Death Eater spoke casually. "Oh, Mulciber, I know him.

"Severus Snape. My son's classmate. And a member of the Knights of Walpurgis."

"Why'd you say my name, Avery?!" Mulciber snapped, irritated.

"Hello, Severus," old Avery said with a jovial tone, stepping closer.

"I've heard some amusing stories about you from my son.

"And since you're soon to be a loyal servant of the Master, I'm giving you a chance to prove your allegiance early."

He gestured with his wand toward the McKinnons.

"Kill the girl. Use the curse Bellatrix taught you."

Snape's eyes flicked to the side.

Mr. McKinnon's head slumped against his chest, blood still seeping from a gash on his forehead. Mrs. McKinnon and Marlene were gagged with coarse rope, their muffled whimpers barely audible.

"Mm…" Marlene's tear-filled eyes locked onto Snape's, pleading.

"K-kill her?"

Snape's hand trembled as he drew his wand from his robes, his face a mask of panic and fear as he looked at Avery.

"But I… I've never cast that curse successfully before. Can I even do it?"

"Tell me your choice. Do it, or don't," Avery said coldly, ignoring the question.

"Alright…"

Snape's voice quivered with dread as he slowly raised his wand.

"Sectumsempra!"

The spell burst from his lips as he slashed his wand wildly at Avery's throat, diving toward the base of a brass bedframe.

Blood sprayed from Avery's neck, a dark crimson arc splattering across the bus. His eyes bulged in shock and terror, his mouth opening to scream but producing only a faint gurgle.

Avery's body swayed for a moment before collapsing with a dull thud onto the floor.

"Avery!"

Mulciber roared, redirecting his wand from the McKinnons. A barrage of spellfire streaked toward Snape.

Snape rolled out from under the bed, firing spells blindly behind him.

The windows shattered under the onslaught, glass fragments raining down like hail. Wind and rain poured into the bus, sending objects tumbling in all directions.

Crouched behind the armchair where Ern had sat, Snape panted heavily. Mulciber's relentless curses pinned him down, leaving him little room to maneuver.

As his mind raced for an escape, a loud, echoing crack split the air.

Snape cautiously peered out and saw a tall figure with graying hair materialize in the bus.

Before Mulciber could react, the newcomer trained his wand on him.

"Petrificus Totalus!"

Mulciber's arms and legs snapped together, and his body went rigid, toppling backward like a plank onto the floor.

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