Once the Knight Bus officially started moving, Granger truly witnessed the marvel of magical creations.
He stared intently at the buildings outside the window, and whether they were mailboxes, streetlights, or houses, none of them posed an obstacle to this bus. When the vehicle charged straight toward them, they would move aside on their own, clearing a path.
After the bus passed, they would jump back into place, returning to their original forms!
The sight left Granger feeling as though he were in a dream. He could hardly believe that just yesterday, he had been on vacation with his wife and daughter, and today, he was venturing into the Wizarding World alongside two wizards.
Having finished his hot chocolate and not yet fallen asleep, Severus noticed Granger's sense of unreality.
He didn't say anything. It was only natural for ordinary people to feel that the world had beco surreal after witnessing the wonders of magic.
The scenery outside the window kept shifting. It was said that the Knight Bus could leap forward 100 miles with each jump, though Severus had no way to verify that. He simply lay down on the soft bed, and as drowsiness washed over him, he fell asleep.
When he woke again and drew back the curtains, the sky outside was already bright. The conductor Polk was waking the three of them one by one.
"Gentlen! Eastbourne's here! But there was so trouble here last night!"
Severus sat up in bed, took the wet towel handed to him by Polk and wiped his face.
"What happened here?"
"The Daily Prophet says a group of dark wizards gathered here last night, killed three Muggles, and cast a forbidden curse! But Mr. Dawes, who boarded here, said soone used Morsmordre last night!"
Polk's voice was visibly shaking.
Hearing this, Severus paused mid-motion, slowly lowering the towel.
Not only him, but Lyall, who had just gotten out of bed, froze in place as well. His face turned pale, his eyes filled with disbelief.
Aside from the clueless Granger, even Ghost Snape held his breath at that mont.
[Did you feel your arm burning?] He couldn't help but ask.
Severus answered definitively.
'No, I'm certain. Voldemort couldn't have returned this quickly. That Morsmordre couldn't possibly have been cast by him to summon his followers.'
[Don't say that na!] Ghost Snape snapped.
'What should I call him, then? The Dark Lord? I'm not that obsequious.'
After leaving Ghost Snape speechless once again, Severus didn't hesitate in reality. He put on his robes and stood up.
"Can you introduce to this Mr. Dawes?"
Polk naturally didn't refuse Severus's request. Soon, they t the newly boarded Mr. Dawes on the lower level of the bus.
He was a short, thin wizard wearing glasses.
"Where did you see the Dark Mark?" Severus asked straight to the point.
"On the cliffs near the coast! rlin's beard, the people at The Daily Prophet have gone mad! They're calling it just another minor attack! That was the Dark Mark… the symbol of those people!"
Mr. Dawes was obviously frightened, as he was still shaking now.
"If you're here for a vacation in Eastbourne, I'd advise you to leave as soon as possible! Those people are capable of anything, and now that they're gathering again, who knows what they're planning!"
Severus simply thanked him, then disembarked from the bus with Lyall and Granger.
"It's definitely related to those werewolves." Severus said with certainty, "Ten years ago, they were the You-Know-Who's rcenaries, though they were always looked down upon by the Death Eaters. Greyback was even called a scavenger. They wouldn't suddenly cast the Dark Mark for no reason now."
Lyall frowned and said, "Could there be Death Eaters working with them?"
"Of the Death Eaters who managed to evade the mass trials and avoid being sentenced to Azkaban, how many would step forward and do sothing like this now?"
Severus shook his head. Just as Lucius knew him well, he also understood Lucius and his ilk perfectly.
They were a bunch of opportunists who wouldn't act unless they saw tangible benefits. As long as Voldemort hadn't officially announced his return, they would never switch sides again.
As for the hardcore Death Eaters, nearly all of them had been locked up in Azkaban, serving as fodder for the Dentors.
However, just as Severus thought of this, he suddenly froze, rembering sothing from the original work!
Both Lyall and Granger noticed his abrupt change in deanor and turned to look at him.
"What did you think of?"
"Before we ca to investigate these werewolves, Minister Bagnold ntioned to that the werewolves seem to have a mole inside the Auror Office. No matter what operations the Aurors plan, the werewolves always know in advance."
Severus's expression was unreadable and then, a sneer appeared at the corner of his mouth.
"It just occurred to … there's a high-ranking Ministry official whose ho is likely hiding an old acquaintance of mine. A Death Eater who was supposed to have died in Azkaban… in na only!"
This revelation didn't an much to Granger, as he had no idea what kind of people Death Eaters truly were.
But Lyall was horrified.
'A high-ranking Ministry official… hiding a Death Eater?'
"Still, we can't handle this alone." Severus had already thought of the next step. "Before heading to the cliffs that Mr. Dawes ntioned, we'll need to send an owl. Kingsley will want to hear from ."
…
Werewolf camp.
After the Dark Mark appeared the previous night, Greyback had led a portion of his pack to relocate to the seaside cave where the Portkey had landed.
The place was exceptionally well-hidden, and the entrance was enchanted, so ordinary wizards wouldn't even notice anything amiss if they passed by.
Among those brought here were the kidnapped children, along with Lupin, who had been relegated to playing babysitter.
At first, with other werewolves nearby, Lupin had kept his suspicions about Harry's identity to himself, maintaining a neutral façade.
But by the next morning, when he was tasked with delivering breakfast to the children, he finally got a brief mont alone with Harry and the others.
Except for the boy nad Jimmy, who still had a fever, the other children were in a depressed ntal state. They had been frightened for so many days and had not been able to rest well.
Harry and Hermione, who had just arrived later, were in relatively better spirits, judging by their appetites as they ate.
Lupin joined them for breakfast, casually chatting with Jimmy and the others who had grown familiar with him.
"There'll be beef for lunch."
"Is it roasted?" One of the boys asked with a flicker of hope in his voice.
"Probably. Not much else we can do under these conditions." Lupin replied. Then, as if it were nothing, he added, "Harry, could you pass the apple jam?"
Harry, who was originally thinking about how to find a chance to escape, or at least a way to leave a clue for Severus if he couldn't escape, instinctively reached for the jar beside him.
But the next second, he froze, his entire body tensing as his head snapped up to stare at the man who had just spoken his na!
Lupin just remained silent, looking into his eyes.
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