CHAPTER 22: THE ROAD AHEAD
A sliver of light pierced the darkness. It flickered and grew. Before long the darkness vanished. Shapes took form. Jimmy O'Bannon noticed blankets covering him, walls surrounding him and a window with sunlight pouring through.
Where am I?
He groaned and slowly sat up. A leaden feeling gripped his muscles. He fought through it, lifting his shoulders off the mattress. He winced and glanced at his left shoulder. It felt tender and sore.
Favoring his right side, O'Bannon managed to rise to a sitting position. He gazed around the room. The bookcase to his right contained more family photos and knick knacks than books. To his left was a nightstand with an alarm clock and a dark-colored stick.
His wand.
O'Bannon rubbed his forehead. His face scrunched as he searched his memory. What had he been doing before he came to this place?
Hogwarts! His chest tightened at the sudden realization. He'd been at Hogwarts. Actually, he'd been fleeing the school. Him and Rosa and Jared and Artimus and Tonks.
Aurors! They'd had aurors chasing them. And he did something. What was it? Oh yeah. He popped the brake on his broom, a move right out of . . . what was that movie? The one with Tom . . . Tom Cruise, and the fighter planes?
He grunted and shook his head. He had enough trouble remembering the events of the last few minutes, nevermind the name of some old movie.
What happened? What happened?
He'd hit the aurors, broke their formation. Then he spiraled to the ground out of control and struck something hard. A tree? Pain followed, pain on a level he couldn't imagine. Then . . . then what?
O'Bannon glanced at his wand on the nightstand. The aurors certainly didn't capture. They wouldn't leave his wand lying beside him. Plus, they wouldn't put him in a room like this.
Slowly, he slid his legs over the edge of the bed and lowered his bare feet to the floor. It took several seconds for him to straighten up, after which he shuffled toward the door. He opened it halfway and peered out. A deserted, carpeted hallway greeted him. It led to some stairs to his right. He padded toward them, gripped the banister tightly and gingerly descended the winding staircase. A tidy living room with overstuffed chairs and sofas appeared below him.
Before he reached the bottom, a voice called out, "Jimmy?"
He turned. A familiar figure shot off one of the sofas, staring wide-eyed at him.
"Yo, guys!" Jared Diaz yelled over his shoulder. "Jimmy's up!"
Pounding feet echoed from the next room. Rosa Infante and Artimus Rand barreled out of the entryway and halted next to Jared.
"Jimmy!" Artimus beamed.
"Hey, guys. You all okay?"
Rosa's jaw tightened. She stomped over to him, eyes narrowed. "If you weren't on the mend I'd knock your stupid head off your stupid shoulders. I can't believe you pulled a stunt like that. Do you know how worried I was?"
"I love you too, Rosa." He managed a weak grin.
Rosa shook her head, then gently hugged him. "How are you feeling?"
"Sore, stiff, but at least I'm still breathing. Where are we, anyway?"
"Our house."
O'Bannon released Rosa and looked toward the kitchen. A tall, patrician woman with brown hair and a fair-haired man with a big belly entered the living room.
"Glad to see you're up and about." The woman smiled at him. "Especially considering the frightful state you were in when our daughter brought you here."
"Your daughter?" O'Bannon furrowed his brow.
"Oh, sorry. I should introduce myself, shouldn't I?" The woman approached him, the man right behind her. "I'm Andromeda Tonks. This is my husband, Ted."
"Tonks?" He shook hands first with Andromeda, then Ted. "You're Tonks' parents? I mean, Nymph . . ." He winced a bit at using her first name. "Nymphadora's parents."
"That's right," said Andromeda.
"She brought me here? How?"
"She went back and got you after you crashed into those aurors," Jared answered. "And regardless of what Rosa said, that was totally bad-ass. Crazy, but still bad-ass."
"Yeah, thanks."
"Anyway," Artimus picked up the story. "We all wanted to go back for you, but Tonks ordered us to come here. She said she'd go back and get you. A few minutes after we arrived here, Tonks showed up with you."
"You were a mess, man." Jared shook his head in disbelief. "You pretty much shattered your left arm and shoulder. Hell, you had a bone sticking out of your shoulder."
O'Bannon grimaced, memories of the crushing pain returning.
Jared continued. "That wasn't all. You had internal bleeding, broken ribs, a ruptured spleen, a busted knee. The healer who treated you said Tonks was lucky to find you when she did since you'd gone into shock."
"You took me to a healer?"
"Actually, we brought one here," Ted answered. "Don't worry. She's a friend of the Order of the Phoenix, like us. Honestly, it was touch and go with you for a while. Luckily she did a remarkable job fixing you up."
"Us, too," Artimus chimed in. "My knee is good as new. So is Rosa's nose."
"Glad to hear it." O'Bannon checked over his friends. Artimus no longer had an eternal grimace of pain on his face. Rosa's face was devoid of blood and her nose looked absolutely perfect.
His eyes shifted to his shoulder. It just felt sore, like those times he lifted weights too much.
Thank God for magical medicine. Had he been an ordinary Muggle, he'd still be laid up in bed and facing months of rehab.
"Sounds like I owe Tonks again for saving my ass." O'Bannon's gaze settled on Andromeda and Ted. "You guys have a hell of a daughter, you know?"
"Oh, she's all right." Ted grinned and softly chuckled. Andromeda backhanded his ample stomach, but laughed right along with him.
O'Bannon started to smile when another memory of Tonks surfaced. The one with them in bed together. He shuddered and looked away from the Tonkses.
"Are you shivering, dear? Are you cold?"
"Um, no, Ma'am. I'm fine."
"Oh quit being so brave. Come to the kitchen. I'll make you a nice bowl of soup."
Andromeda put an arm around his shoulders and guided him to the kitchen. O'Bannon's eyes flickered all over the house. He wanted to look anywhere but at Mrs. Tonks. The irrational fear gripped him that if he made eye contact with her, she would somehow know every single thing he had done with her daughter in the Room of Requirement.
And God help him if Mr. Tonks found out.
O'Bannon took a seat at the table, where his friends joined him. Minutes later Andromeda appeared with a bowl of leeks and potato soup and a cup of tea.
"Um, what about you guys?" he asked his friends after a few mouthfuls of soup, which was delicious. "Aren't you gonna have something?"
"No." Rosa shook her head. "We had lunch about an hour ago."
"Oh." O'Bannon downed another spoonful of soup. He thought back to their flight from Hogwarts. Let's see, that had taken place after breakfast. And now it was past lunch.
"Weird." He twisted the corner of his mouth.
"What's weird?" Artimus canted his head.
"It just feels like I was asleep a lot longer." He spooned more soup into his mouth.
Rosa and Jared turned to one another.
"Um, Jimmy?" Rosa sounded hesitant. "You've been asleep for two days."
O'Bannon spat the soup from his mouth. He hacked a few times and looked to Rosa, his eyes wide. "Two . . . two days!"
"Jimmy, you were in bad shape when Tonks brought you here. After the healer fixed you up, she gave you a sleeping draught. A really strong one. She said you needed to sleep for a while, give your body the chance to recover from all that trauma."
O'Bannon slumped back in his chair. Two days! He'd slept for two whole days? What had happened during that . . .
"Oh my God." He sat up and gazed at his three friends. "The Longathian Tunnel. The Death Eaters. What happened with th-"
A knock at the front door cut him off.
"I got it," Ted announced.
O'Bannon turned around in his chair and looked through the square entryway into the living room, as did Rosa, Jared and Artimus. Who was at the door? Tonks? What if it was someone from the Ministry of Magic? O'Bannon swallowed. His stomach churned at the thought of Tonks' parents being hauled off to Azkaban for sheltering them.
"Afternoon, Professor. We've been expecting you. Oh good, you brought Dora, too. Hello, sweetheart."
A tingle went through O'Bannon's chest. Tonks is here? He gripped the back of his chair and slowly pushed himself to his feet. His mind exploded with images of Tonks' beautiful face and trim body and the sunset-colored hair she had the night they made love. Amidst all that came a flicker of curiosity. Who was the person Ted addressed as "Professor?"
That curiosity vanished when Tonks entered the room, her hair spiky and lime green.
"Jimmy!" She strode over to him and wrapped her arms tightly around him. He closed his eyes and breathed in her scent, relishing the feel of her body against his.
"How are you feeling?" She leaned back, hands still on his shoulders.
"Obviously better than when you brought me here." He cranked an eyebrow. "Hey. Didn't I tell you not to come back for me?"
"You did. But just ask my parents. I've always had trouble following orders."
A smile grew across O'Bannon's face. More than anything he wanted to kiss her, kiss her long and deep. He would have, had it not been for the fact Tonks' father stood in the entryway. Him and someone else. A tall man in red and silver robes with a long white beard and half-moon glasses.
"Headmaster Dumbledore?" He released Tonks and gaped at the headmaster of the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
"Holy crap!" Jared jumped out of his seat. "That's Albus Dumbledore?"
The old wizard swiveled his head in Jared's direction.
"Oh. Um, I mean, h-hello, Sir. Um, I'm Jared Diaz. Salem Witches Institute in America. This is my cousin, Rosa Infante, and our friend Artimus Rand."
Rosa and Artimus both stood, staring in awe at one of the most famous wizards of the past century.
"It's a pleasure to meet you all." Dumbledore smiled and bowed slightly. His twinkling eyes fixed on Artimus. "Rand? You wouldn't have anything to do with Rand's Realm of Magical Necessities, would you?"
Artimus' mouth opened and closed soundlessly. He appeared on the verge of fainting. "Uh, uh, yes, Sir. My-my family owns it."
"Ah. I actually bought a pair of magical snow shoes from that shop many years ago during a trip to The States. They were supposed to clear a path in the snow ahead of you. Instead they drew the snow onto me. A couple passing children mistook me for a snowman and wanted to place rocks where my eyes were. It's all rather amusing when I look back on it."
Artimus lowered his head, looking ashamed.
"What are you doing here, Headmaster?" asked O'Bannon.
"I stopped by after our healer finished working on you. She did an outstanding job considering the state you were in. Before I left, I placed a charm on you to let me know when you awoke."
"What about the Longathian Tunnel?" He leaned toward Dumbledore. "What about the Death Eaters and all those monsters? Did you stop them?"
"Tut, tut, Jimmy." Dumbledore waved a hand in front of him. "All your questions shall be answered. Please, sit. All of you. Oh, Andromeda. If it's not an imposition, I was wondering if I could have a spot of tea."
"No imposition at all, Professor. Coming right up."
O'Bannon, Rosa, Jared, Artimus, Tonks and Ted all took their seats, with Dumbledore sitting at the head of the table. All eyes locked on the old wizard as he spoke.
"To start, yes, Jimmy, we did find the Longathian Tunnel."
O'Bannon sighed in relief, his shoulders sagging.
Tension suddenly crept up his back. Dumbledore only said they found the Longathian Tunnel. Had they also stopped You-Know-Who's reinforcements?
Dumbledore continued. "Kingsley Shacklebolt alerted me to the tunnel's existence while I was in another interminable meeting with Cornelius Fudge. Something about the increased number of detentions this term and how it shows a breakdown of discipline or something to that effect. Honestly, at the time I was thinking about last week's dreadful match the Chudley Cannons had with Puddlemere. Another season of futility for the Cannons, I fear."
O'Bannon shifted in his seat, his hands clenching the edge of the table. Dumbledore seemed to notice, as he frowned slightly and continued. "Anyway, Kingsley came into Cornelius' office and reported a riot at Hogwarts. He turned his back to Cornelius and silently mouthed to me, 'Order.' I assumed it was something serious, so I told the Minister I needed to return to Hogwarts immediately. He accused me of being in league with you, Jimmy, in staging a disturbance at Hogwarts to embarrass him and force him from office so I could take over. I maintained, as I had in all our previous meetings, that I had no knowledge of your presence at Hogwarts, or why you would return, which at the time, was true. It came as a bit of a surprise when I learned you and your friends really were at Hogwarts.
"Anyway, I stated that if I didn't return and stop this riot, the school could suffer massive damage and many students could be hurt, badly. I reminded Cornelius that would certainly reflect negatively on him, and since he had no proof of a conspiracy between me and you, he could not prevent me from returning to Hogwarts to restore order. Cornelius relented, rather reluctantly. Once we exited the Minister's office, Kingsley told me about the Longathian Tunnel. I sent Professor McGonagall back to Hogwarts to take care of matters there, while we searched for the Longathian Tunnel. Arthur Weasley managed to track down a supposed reformed Death Eater by the name of Moseby Montague."
O'Bannon's eyes widened. There was a Devlin Montague who played for Slytherin when the Triad hockey team took them on. Could the two be related?
"Montague allegedly helped construct a Longathian tunnel for Voldemort's forces during the first war. He was brought to trial, but not convicted due to a lack of evidence. Remus Lupin and Emmeline Vance paid him a visit, and in a conversation that included just a drop of Veritaserum, learned that he had come up with the spells needed to create a new tunnel, this one located along the Solway Firth. We dispatched every available Order member there, and arrived just as the first group of reinforcements emerged."
O'Bannon leaned across the table, as did everyone else.
Dumbledore continued. "A pitched battle resulted. It took quite an effort, but the reinforcements we didn't kill were pushed back into the tunnel. Then, to my astonishment, a patronus burst out of the tunnel. A patronus in the form of a hawk."
"A hawk?" Jared blurted as Andromeda appeared with Dumbledore's tea. "Wait a minute. That's Headmistress Esmeralda's patronus. She got in touch with you?"
"Yes." Dumbledore sipped his tea. "Athena's patronus reported the Guild of the Light located the other end of the tunnel along the coast of Maine. When the Guild attacked, several of Voldemort's reinforcements scattered. Others were killed, but most entered the tunnel."
"So what happened?" Rosa slid forward in her seat.
Dumbledore slowly traced a finger along the edge of his tea cup. The usual twinkle in his eyes faded. O'Bannon cranked an eyebrow. What's wrong with him?
"We were outnumbered." The old wizard said in a much lower voice. "We would never be able to defeat them in a direct confrontation. So I coordinated with Athena and took the only course of action available to us."
Dumbledore sighed. "We conjured some very powerful spells and moved the access points of the Longathian Tunnel. Athena relocated her end into the Atlantic, I sent my end into the Irish Sea, thus flooding the tunnel."
"And-And the Death Eaters?" Artimus asked hesitantly. "All those dark creatures?"
"Drowned. All of them."
"Good." Jared slammed his palm on the table. "The less Death Eaters in the world the better."
Rosa nodded emphatically. O'Bannon was about to do the same when Dumbledore spoke again.
"The killing of people is not something to celebrate."
"But Headmaster," Jared replied. "They're Death Eaters. They were gonna invade your country. Kill a ton of people."
"I know that. But the killing of any living being is tragic, and something not to be taken lightly. Unfortunately, we are in a war with nothing less than the fate of both the Wizarding and Muggle Worlds at stake. Sides must be chosen. The Death Eaters and their followers chose theirs. The side of hate, of greed, of corruption, of wanton killing. They wish to spread those things like a disease. So we sometimes must resort to extreme measures to prevent that from happening. Hence, we had no choice but to drown those American Death Eaters and the creatures they brought with them. Evil as they were, they were still living beings. And if you have a conscience like we in this room do, if you cherish life, then when you kill, even in the name of a just cause, you lose a little piece of your soul. During my long life, I have regrettably lost many little pieces of my soul. But that is the price we must pay in order to preserve the freedoms we enjoy."
Silence hung over the kitchen. O'Bannon's eyes fell to his soup bowl. Dumbledore's words rolled through his mind. He couldn't believe the headmaster actually felt any sort of remorse for a bunch of Death Eaters. He'd heard enough stories about those bastards from Rosa's and Jared's parents to completely agree with Jared's statement. The less Death Eaters in the world, the better.
Then he thought back to that night in Ovenderburg, the battle with the Death Eaters. One image in particular was forever burned into his brain.
The body of Serinta Sejant.
He grinded his teeth as he thought of the Slytherin girl lying on the ground after being hit by that Killing Curse, her wide eyes staring into oblivion. Part of him actually felt bad that she died, even though the bitch tried to kill him. But she'd been the same age as him. And just like that, she was dead. He remembered Tonks' words to him after the battle, how Serinta no doubt had family who would mourn her. How she might still be alive if she had made vastly different choices. How she would never get the chance to redeem herself.
Did those Death Eaters have families who mourned them? Did they leave behind sons and daughters? Could some of them have reformed if they had lived?
Like Dumbledore said. This is war. It was either kill them or let Voldemort win.
He looked back at Dumbledore, who stared into his tea cup. O'Bannon bit his lip, trying to imagine the burden this man carried. So many deaths. Not just in the Longathian Tunnel, but during the first war as well. How does a good man like Dumbledore cope with so much blood on his hands?
Now he began to wonder. Could he deal with it if he was forced to kill someone? O'Bannon prayed he never found out. But with a wider war looming, he doubted that would be possible.
"Anyway . . ." Dumbledore took a long sip of his tea. "We have achieved a major victory against Voldemort and his forces. He shouldn't be able to move against the Ministry for quite some time."
"What about Hogwarts?" asked O'Bannon. "Is everything okay there? I mean, no one got hurt bad in all that commotion, did they?"
"Oh, just a lot of bumps and bruises and a few sprained ankles. Nothing that Madam Pomfrey couldn't handle. Though Mister Filch was in a fouler mood than usual at all the extra cleaning he had to do. Your little 'distraction' left quite a mess."
O'Bannon couldn't help but smile at the thought of that asshole Filch pissed off because of his actions.
Another concern struck him. "What about Hagrid? We heard he got arrested."
"Ah yes." Dumbledore leaned back in his chair. "I managed to convince Cornelius to release him. We wouldn't want word getting out that he was arresting groundskeepers for simply wandering off school grounds without informing their superiors. That is rather excessive, wouldn't you say? I doubt many would look favorably on the Minister of Magic for condoning such an action. And for Cornelius Fudge, image is everything."
Dumbledore took another sip of tea. "Now, onto our next order of business. Getting you four back to America."
Artimus slowly raised his hand.
"Yes, Mister Rand?" Dumbledore nodded to him.
"Um, sir. I, uh, just have this concern."
"Go on."
"Well, it's just, I mean, what's to stop Minister Fudge from pursuing us to America? We did attack a bunch of aurors. He's probably already alerted our Department of Magic. They can send aurors to Salem to arrest us and bring us back to England."
O'Bannon's insides tightened. He never even considered that. He just assumed if they got back to America all would be well. But just as Muggle America and Britain were strong allies, so were Wizarding America and Britain. The Department of Magic would have no trouble handing over four teenagers who'd assaulted countless aurors to the Brits.
"Ah yes." Dumbledore folded his hands. "I spoke with Cornelius after the tunnel business had been resolved. And no, I did not tell him about it. He would have refused to believe it anyway. Now Cornelius did say that the Ministry would pursue you all to America and bring you back here to stand trial. And that is when my little plan went into motion."
"Your plan?" Rosa gave him a quizzical look.
"Yes. After I learned of Jimmy's presence at Hogwarts, I knew I had to create some sort of cover story for the Ministry. I had a few Order members get an owl and cast spells on it to make it seem it hailed from The States. The Ministry, as they do with all international owls these days, intercepted it. And what did they find? A message dated over a week ago from Headmistress Athena Esmeralda of Salem addressed to me. Forged brilliantly by Sirius Black, I must add. The letter explained that a while ago I had mentioned how I wished some of Athena's students to fly on a Muggle airplane to England, and give a detailed presentation of their trip to our Muggle Studies class. The students chosen for this were Jimmy O'Bannon, Jared Diaz, Rosa Infante and Artimus Rand. However, it appeared the owl got lost during its trip over the Atlantic and never arrived by the time you landed here. So, since I had previously given permission for Salem students to fly into this country and come to Hogwarts, you were not in this country illegally. Therefore, it was the aurors who assaulted you without provocation, leaving you no choice but to defend yourselves. I told Cornelius how would it look if word got out, which I told him it eventually would, that the Ministry could not apprehend four American teenagers? How could anyone have faith in him as the leader of the British Wizarding World?"
Dumbledore sipped some tea before continuing. "Cornelius thought on it. I could tell he was thinking from the strained look on his face. Ultimately, he decided not to pursue the matter further."
"He's not coming after us?" Artimus gaped. "He bought your story? He bought that phony letter?"
"Well, Sirius is a talented forger. You should have seen his work when he attended Hogwarts. Usually it was a note purportedly from our school nurse claiming he couldn't attend class due to one ailment or another. Funny, it always occurred on days when he had a big test. And as for Cornelius, remember, he is obsessed with holding on to his office, with making sure people see him as firmly in charge. And the entire Auror's Office being outfought and outwitted by a quartet of American teenagers would be contrary to that image. So yes, Mister Rand. Cornelius Fudge is willing to drop the matter rather than risk looking inept."
"But all the aurors and Dementors he had at Hogwarts," Rosa noted. "How can he explain all that away?"
"According to today's Daily Prophet, Cornelius said it was part of a major exercise to show the Ministry can adequately protect Hogwarts in the event of an emergency."
"That guy is something else." O'Bannon snorted and shook his head. "Dumbass."
"Quite." Dumbledore gave him a wry grin. "Well, it appears all your problems have been resolved save one. How to get you home? Actually, that's not true. We have solution to that."
"It doesn't involve a Muggle airplane, does it?" Rosa grimaced.
"No, Miss Infante, it does not. You'll be going home by normal means."
"Our allies in France are setting up a port key for you," Ted announced.
O'Bannon held his breath. The mention of France made him think of a certain tall blonde woman who played on the Triad hockey team. Mireet Miradeaux. He wondered what the gorgeous witch was doing right now.
"We've arranged for a boat to take you across the Channel tomorrow night. You'll be met by a contact from Force d'Vigilant, France's version of the Order of the Phoenix, who'll take you to the port key. Actually, the man who'll be taking you across the Channel is my cousin."
"Your cousin?" Rosa furrowed her brow. "But you're Muggle-born. You don't have any magical relatives."
"You're right. Nathan's a Muggle. In fact, he's in the Royal Navy."
Dumbledore followed Ted's revelation. "Some of the Muggle-borns in the Order of the Phoenix suggested using select relatives to aid our cause. Chances are neither the Ministry or Voldemort will pay any attention to them. After all, to them, what threat are mere Muggles? We mainly use them to run errands or relay messages, and we make certain they have a background in law enforcement or the military, so they are used to dangerous situations."
"Well thanks for doing all this." O'Bannon looked from Dumbledore to the Tonks family. "We really appreciate it."
"It's you we need to thank, Jimmy. You and your friends. You risked much to come here and warn us about the Longathian Tunnel. Everything I had hoped for when you formed the Triad hockey team last year has come to pass. The bonds created among you and your teammates have remained strong. It is what led you to return here, and for your friends at Hogwarts to trust you implicitly. Had you not formed that team, had they not become so close, Headmistress Esmeralda may not have had anyone to send to England, and we would not be having this pleasant conversation and enjoying the Tonkses hospitality. One of the goals of last year's Tri-Wizard Tournament was to foster international magical cooperation. You were more successful at that than I could have ever imagined. Because of that, you may have saved both our countries."
O'Bannon froze, staring with unblinking eyes at Dumbledore. Headmaster Albus Dumbledore, one of the greatest wizards ever, just heaped about two tons of praise on him, claiming he'd saved the Wizarding World. Him! Jimmy Friggin' O'Bannon, a Muggle-born hockey player from Boston.
Me? A hero? When he looked back on everything that had happened this past week, he didn't feel like a hero. How many times had he screwed up? How many of his plans turned to crap?
But we did alert the Order of the Phoenix, and they took care of the Longathian Tunnel. You-Know-Who didn't get his reinforcements.
It still didn't make him feel like a hero. The best he could say was he had been given a job to do, and he did it. The real heroes were the members of the Guild and the Order who fought the Death Eaters and those dark creatures and kept them from invading England.
And he sure as hell couldn't believe that this victory had its roots in a hockey game played over a year ago.
"Well," Jared broke the silence. "Next time anyone says hockey is a stupid Muggle game, you can really set them straight, Jimmy."
O'Bannon managed a smile.
"This country is forever in your debt." Dumbledore's eyes swept over the quartet. "I can't tell you how proud I am to know that four outstanding people such as yourselves are with us in this fight. But heed my words. This was just one battle in a bigger war. The road ahead will be a difficult one. You will face dangers you could never imagine. You will have to make very hard choices, do things you would normally never dream of doing, endure hardships, make sacrifices, and regrettably, mourn the loss of friends and loved ones. But through it all, you must persevere. You must, otherwise all that we cherish, freedom, compassion, love, will vanish from this Earth. To you four I say this. Trust in each other. Look into your hearts, your souls, and call upon every ounce of strength, courage, determination and love to see you through the darkest of times. In doing so, I have no doubt that you, all of us, will emerge from this struggle triumphant."
No one spoke as Dumbledore rose from his chair. Again he gazed at the quartet. "Take care, all of you. And should you ever find yourselves in England again, remember, you will always be welcome at Hogwarts."
With a slow nod to them, Dumbledore turned and strode out of the house.
A very silent minute passed before O'Bannon turned back to the others. Rosa, Jared and Artimus all stared at him. He studied their eyes, and could tell they were still absorbing Dumbledore's words. After another minute, looks of resolve passed over their faces. Rosa took a deep breath and stretched out her hand, placing it in the center of the table. Jared did the same, putting his hand on top of his cousin's. Moments later both O'Bannon and Artimus added their hands. The quartet stared at one another. No words were spoken. None needed to be. Their eyes, their expressions, made their intentions clear.
They would see this war through to the end. Together.
NEXT: CHAPTER 23 – CROSSING THE SEA OF TIME
AUTHOR'S NOTE: The story of the Triad hockey team is chronicled in Jimmy O'Bannon's first adventure, "The Puck Drops Here."