Chapter Thirteen
The doors of the Knight Bus opened and Hermione saw a bored Stan Shunpike on the steps of the bus.
"Welcome to the Knight Bus assistance for your stranded-" but Stan didn't finish his monologue because at that point he looked down to the people standing on the pavement.
"Merlin it's-" in a second Draco speed over to Stan and pressed his wand to his neck. "You say her name or mine for that matter and I will curse you with as many things as I think are unpleasant." Draco said in a low voice. "We want to go to London and this should cover it." Draco dropped three galleons into Stan's hand. Draco let go of Stan's neck that he had been holding rather tightly. Stan gasped for air and stumbled back.
"Very good Mr.-" Draco raised an eyebrow threateningly at him "Smith."
"Can I read this?" Hermione asked Stan pointing to his copy of the Daily Prophet which she had been staring at for the last few minutes.
"Yeah course take it." Stan said quickly whilst keeping one eye on Draco.
"Where do you wanna go?" Stan asked the pair.
"I said London." Draco replied his voice still tinged with malice.
"No I know that." Stan said still talking quickly "but where in London it's a bloody big city an there's alota places."
"Errr... the Ministry," Hermione replied "visitor's entrance."
"Ok good shudn't take too long its a quiet morning see." Hermione looked around the bus and noticed that it was indeed quieter than she had first though. Just one other person sat on the ground floor, a little plump witch with bushy grey hair and her nose buried in a book labelled 'knitting magic" and a smily woman with a 1960's style bouffant hair. The witch had not appeared to look up during the commotion. Hermione climbed the stairs to the second floor which was completely empty. Sitting at the front of the bus on a large armchair she began to read the newspaper.
"What did you want that for anyway?" Draco asked.
"Look," Hermione passed him the newspaper. Draco looked down to the newspaper and printed on the front page was a picture of Hermione accompanied with the headline. 'War hero disappears'. Draco continued to read the article.
War hero Hermione Granger one of the key figures in the fall of Voldemort has disappeared. Miss. Granger was last seen at the Ministry of Magic as she left work. She failed return to her home in West London that evening. Work by the Magical Law enforcement office began late last night into Miss Granger's disappearance. Her boyfriend and fellow hero of the war Ronald Weasley was unavailable for comment last night but her parents Mr. and Mrs. Granger, muggles living in West Oxfordshire, stated that "we don't know where Hermione has gone but we are trusting the magical authorities to find her and we will assist them in any way we can". Anyone with information is asked to contact the magical law enforcement office at the Ministry of Magic in the mean time one can only hope Miss. Granger is found safely. Reported by Fern Pockleton.
"Well at least your parents gave a nice comment."
"They contacted my parents?" Hermione sounded annoyed. "I didn't need them to be worried." Hermione sighed she had just convinced her parents that the magical world was a safe place of her to be after the war that she knew this event had probably scared her parents back into fearing the magical world for their daughter. Hermione also knew part of the reason that she was annoyed was that during the kidnapping she hadn't once through about her parents and the impact it would have on them.
"Do you want to read it?" Draco asked holding out the newspaper which Hermione took from him. The pair sat in silence. Draco watched the window outside as the landscape changed from Derbyshire to low flat fields of wheat blowing in the wind to a rough costal path that seemed to take the bus precariously close to the sea below the cliffs and on to a beautiful semi-circle of georgian houses. Draco looked back inside the bus as they arrived beside a large modern building made of glass and steel. Draco looked at Hermione reading the newspaper she was biting her lip as she read on and looked as though the weight of the world was on her shoulders. Draco was surprised thinking back to Hermione when she thought she was captured, she had more life in her, more power yet the woman in front of him looked tired and upset as though she was going back to captivity rather than escaping from it. Draco was leaned forward as though he was going to ask something when Stan popped his head up the stairs.
"Come on you two were 'ere ministry o magic." Hermione left the newspaper and rushed down the stairs.
"Thanks Stan." She smiled at the man Draco simply glared as his left the bus. True enough the bus had dropped them at the solitary red telephone box that marked the entrance to the Ministry of Magic. Out of the corner of her eye Hermione saw the Knight bus disappear with a loud bang. "I'm leaving you here." Hermione said solemnly.
"What?" Draco asked confused.
"I'm not going in there to explain myself and where I have been I just want to go home."
"Of course." Draco nodded "I understand." "Home." He thought darkly "I don't have one of those now. Of course Hermione will want to go back home to Weasley."
"Goodbye Draco." Hermione said seriously. She was unsure what the correct form of goodbye was. A kiss was inappropriate. A hug would feel odd. Hermione saved him she held out her right hand. Draco took it in a polite handshake.
"Goodbye Hermione." Without another word he entered the battered telephone box and turned his back to Hermione. She in turn walked down the London street without a single glance backwards.
