Begin Chapter Three
Chapter Three: Saying Goodbye Is Never Easy
Professor Richardson moved swiftly about the room. No time could be wasted. He felt danger was near… so dangerously near. He knew someone close to him was leaking information to Voldemort, but he didn't know whom. That's why the girls had to leave. Now.
"Make sure all your things are packed. You leave in a few minutes." He turned to face his two daughters. The two people who meant the most to him. It pained him to see his girls like this. The eldest, Dinah, sat silently on the bed with tears streaming down her face. But that was Dinah, the quiet one. Quite like him actually. The younger one, on the other hand, was quite feisty. More like her mother, God rest her soul. Looked like her mother too. She had the same straight brown hair and those almond shaped hazel eyes. Dinah looked like both of her parents, wavy black hair like her father and the same eyes that her mother had. They both had tanned skin like their father. Ava was standing with her arms crossed and a mixture of anger, sadness and sheer terror played their way across her face. Professor Richardson knew what was coming…
"I'm not leaving you Dad! Maybe Dinah is willing to go along with this stupid idea but I'm not! We're supposed to have more time to say goodbye!"
"You WILL do as I say Ava. No arguments this time. You're sixteen, you have no say in this. I know what I'm talking about. There is danger around and I WILL NOT put my two girls in the middle of it!" He hated to send his girls to the other side of the world but he was in danger and that meant they were in danger. He couldn't have that. He never fathomed that the spell he created would put them in this kind of predicament.
"Get ready, you have five minutes left," he said as he turned to walk out of the room. Ava ran at him at started pounding his back with her fists. He turned around to look at her and try to stop the blows.
"I'm not going! You can't leave us over there. What if we never see you again? What if he gets to you and…"Her steam turned into tears as her father grabbed her in a warm embrace and held her tight. Dinah walked over quietly and he put his arm around her as well.
"We don't want to lose you like we lost Mom," said Dinah. They were the first words that she had spoken since they found out that they were going to Hogwarts.
"You won't lose me. I promise," Professor Richardson said. They stood silent because they all knew this might be the one promise he might not be able to keep.
"Well you girls look fabulous. Just go easy on the boys" the Professor said. Dinah smiled weakly. But the Professor's smile faded when he looked at the clock. "It's time," he said simply.
"Now you guys will be traveling by Portkey to Diagon Alley where a man named Rubeus Hagrid will meet you. He will take you to get robes, books, quills and I'm treating you guys to new wands and a pet for each of you. You will then catch the Hogwarts Express though it will be empty and you will arrive tonight at Hogwarts tonight. Now, I'm sending your larger luggage by Floo Powder to the Leaky Cauldron where an old friend of mine, Tom, will hold it for you. If you need money, you have access to your accounts at Gringott's Bank. Got it?" He said all of this as he hustled them out of their loft on the Upper East Side. They crossed the street into Central Park where their Portkey would be a rolled up edition of the New York Post. "Now I know you've never traveled by Portkey but it's quick and efficient." He went silent for a moment. This is what had to be done. "I love you girls and I always will, I hope you know that," he said. They both nodded. He gave them each a tight hug and a kiss. "If you get scared, just hold on to each other's hands," he said. As soon as he said that they both clasped each other's hands. "It should only take five minutes considering the distance." He checked his watch. He looked at their faces and his heart broke. "Now, now. No tears. Just think of this as a vacation of sorts," he said, almost choking on the lump in his throat. "Pick the Portkey up, the both of you. In a couple of seconds it'll take effect. I just want you guys to know, I love you." All of a sudden, they felt a jerking sensation behind their navel that pulled them forward. They were soaring at a speed that made them dizzy. All around them was a mass of blue. It was exhilarating. They didn't know what would lie ahead, only that they would face it head on.
End Chapter Three