The Dream Trilogy Book One: To Dwell On Dreams (A Harry Potter FanFiction)

Chapter Twenty Two

Harry stepped away from the road, and pulled Hermione with him. "You might want to stand back," he said. 

"Why, what's hap-"  

Hermione's question was cut short by a triple-decker, violently purple bus exploding from thin air and screeching to a halt in front of them.  

"Hang on, hang on!" cried Malfoy, turning away from the bus and pointing his wand at his head. "Novo Etcapillus." Within a blink of an eye, his hair changed from its usual snowy blond to black just as dark as Harry's. The contrast was astonishing.  

"It just..." spluttered Hermione, almost swooning in shock at the bus' sudden appearance. "Came out of...where did it come from!" 

The doors opened with the hiss of pistons and a familiar figure hopped out to greet the group. "Welcome to the Knight Bus!" said Stan Shunpike, the conductor of the bus in Harry's own reality too. "Emergency transport for the stranded witch or wizard. My name is Stan Shunpike and I will be your conductor this evening." He looked at the five teenagers dubiously. "'Ere," he said, his accent slipping now his spiel was done. "Ain't choo lot a bit young bein' out so late?" 

"They're with me," said Malfoy with authority, producing some sort of identity card that Harry assumed to be fake if he was trying to prove he was old enough to be travelling after curfew. But it must have been a good one, because the lanky bus conductor shrugged and stepped aside.  

"Fair 'nough, fair 'nough," he said, letting Draco on the bus. 

"Come on," said Harry to Hermione, worrying she might give them away with her horrified expression. 

But she swallowed and managed to keep her composure as she and Harry stepped up into the purple vehicle. "Single to London," said Malfoy. "Leicester Square." 

"Right you are," said the driver, who was not the man Harry had met before, an Ernie Prang, but a rather large black man with salt and pepper hair and rectangular glasses clinging to the end of his nose by a millimetre. "Eleven Sickles." 

Malfoy stormed off once he had paid for his ticket and immediately headed for the steps that would take him up a level. 

"Er, two more for London," said Harry, very glad he had picked up his wallet. He waited as Seamus and Parvati boarded and paid as well, then followed Malfoy as the bus gave a loud bang and went on its way again. He really hoped he was doing the right thing.  

"Where are the seats?"asked Parvati, looking around the first deck of the bus in confusion. She was quite right, there weren't any seats for passengers, but rather two rows of single beds, readymade and laid end to end, though unfortunately not bolted down lamented Harry as the bus veered round a corner and sent everything scooting along several inches.  

"You've not been on the night bus before?" he whispered as the couple of passengers tucked under the sheets scowled at them from under their night caps. Malfoy wasn't anywhere to be seen, so Harry lead the group up to the second level on the narrow spiralling staircase. 

"No," said Parvati, taken aback. "I didn't realise you had?" 

Harry really needed to watch himself or he was going to put his foot in it; another reason to encourage Parvati and Seamus to leave. He had hardly any clue about their Harry's life, and it seemed they were going to be quick to spot any slip ups. But the thought of sitting alone on the bus with Malfoy for who knew how long made him glad they were still with him, if at least only for now. 

"Er, yeah, once," he said, hoping to keep it vague. Malfoy wasn't on the second level, and there was only one other passenger who appeared to be asleep under his basset hound. "Let's go up again."