Chapter 5
The Portkey
KIARA
I felt as though I had barely laid down to sleep in my room when I was being shaken awake by Sian.
"Time to get up, Kiara," she said. "Now, don't go back to sleep. Breakfast's being prepared as we speak, and - oh, for God's sake, RICKERS!" she said, raising her voice and marching to my door. "IF I FIND THAT YOU'VE GONE BACK TO SLEEP, I AM GOING TO BE VERY CROSS WITH YOU!" She then left to wake the others as I just lay there, stunned.
I sat up slowly, got out of bed, switched on my lamp and opened the curtains. It was still dark outside. Yawning and stretching I got dressed and, still yawning and stretching, I headed downstairs to the kitchen.
Sian was stirring the contents of a large pot on the stove, whilst Crighton was sorting out the cutlery and bowls and Mr Dawson was sat at the table, checking a large sheaf of parchment tickets. He looked up as myself, Chrissie, Beth, Kestrel, Merida, Tanya and Geri - who I didn't see behind me - and spread his arms wide so that we could see what he was wearing more clearly. What he wore was a plain black t-shirt with a denim jacket over it and a pair of new jeans, which fitted him perfectly.
"What d'you think?" he asked anxiously. "We're supposed to go incognito and Sian helped me with the clothes - do I look like a Muggle, Kiara?"
"Yeah," I said smiling, "very good."
Mr Dawson smiled, relieved, and gave a sigh that emanated that.
"Where're Sam and Kat and Per-Per-Perdy?" said Tanya, failing to stifle a yawn.
"Well, they're Apparating, aren't they?" said Sian, heaving the large pot over to the table and starting to ladle porridge into the bowls. "So they can have a bit of a lie-in."
I knew that Apparating was very difficult; it meant disappearing from one place and reappearing almost instantly in another.
"So they're still in bed?" said Tanya grumpily, as she pulled her bowl of porridge towards her. "Why can't we Apparate, too?"
"Because you are not of age and you have not had your test yet, dear," said Crighton gently. She then looked at the door to the kitchen and frowned. "I bet those boys have gone back to sleep. I'll just go and - "
"It's all right, Mother," said Sian, as she filled the pot with water and put it back on the stove after she filled the last bowl with porridge. "Since I'm already standing, I'll go and check the boys whilst you all eat up." A mischievous look then came over her face, and she asked her mother slyly, "Mother, may I use the - "
"Yes you may. Thank you, magi," said Crighton warmly to Sian.
"No problem, Ma," said Sian, smiling just as warmly back at her mother before she bustled out of the kitchen with a wicked smile on her face. I was confused about what was going on, but apparently I was the only one, for the others all hid their smiles of mirth and glee.
"What's going on?" I asked cluelessly.
"You'll see in a few moments, Kiara," said Mr Dawson, with a twinkle in his eye. He and Crighton shared a look and everyone around me tried to stifle their laughter. I was confused but decided to turn my attention to the subject of Apparition.
"So, you have to pass a test to Apparate?" I asked Mr Dawson.
"Oh, yes," said Crighton, as she poured honey onto her porridge. "I heard from my husband here that the Department of Magical Transportation had to fine a couple of people the other day for Apparating without a licence. It's not easy, Apparition, and when it's not done properly it can lead to nasty complications. The pair I'm talking about went and splinched themselves."
Everyone around the table except me winced.
"Er - splinched?"
"They left half of themselves behind," said Mr Dawson, as he tucked the tickets safely into the back pocket of his jeans. "So, of course, they were stuck. Couldn't move either way. Had to wait for the Accidental Magical Reversal Squad to sort it all out. Meant a fair old bit of paperwork, I can tell you, what with the Muggles who spotted the body parts they left behind ..."
I remember having a sudden vision of a pair of legs and an eyeball lying abandoned outside my grandmothers' cottage, and I inwardly giggled. This was, of course, the time before I realised just how dangerous splinching is ...
There was then the sound of something like a fog horn that sounded from the other side of the house that made us all jump, the sound of screaming and many thumps. Chrissie, Beth, Kestrel, Merida, Tanya, Geri, Mr Dawson and Crighton all laughed.
"Looks like Sian's woke the boys up, then?" smirked Geri. Everyone laughed again.
"I don't understand ... what's she done?" I asked.
Once the laughter had subsided, Crighton said, "She's used an air horn, Kiara. An ingenious little Muggle invention which Sian uses when she can't get her brothers and sisters up on time. She only uses it here, though. Nowhere else. True, it is quite cruel, but believe me the results are very satisfying." Crighton ended on a laugh, and the whole room rang with laughter again, and this time I joined in. When it had stopped, I turned back to Mr Dawson.
"Were they OK? The two that splinched themselves, I mean?"
"Oh yes," said Mr Dawson matter-of-factly. "But they got a heavy fine, and I don't think they'll be trying it again any time soon. You don't mess around with Apparition. There are plenty of adult wizards who don't bother with it. Prefer brooms - slower, but safer."
"But Sam, Kat and Perdy can all do it?"
"Kat had to take the test twice," said Geri, grinning. "She failed the first time, Apparated five miles south of where she meant to, right on top of some poor old dear doing her shopping, remember?"
"Yes, well she passed the second time," said Sian, marching back into the kitchen amid heavy sniggers, wearing a satisfied smile on her face.
"I take it that it worked well, Siany?" said Mr Dawson to his eldest child, smiling cheekily.
"Like a dream, Dad," Sian said, smirking into her bowl of porridge. Mr Dawson and Crighton chuckled.
"Perdy passed two weeks ago," said Tanya. "She's been Apparating downstairs every morning since, just to prove she can."
There were footsteps down the passageway and Chris, Joe, Jack, Ben and Dave came into the kitchen, the five of them looking pale and drowsy.
"Why do we have to get up so early?" said Chris, rubbing his eyes and sitting down at the table.
"We've got a bit of a walk ahead of us," said Mr Dawson.
"Walk?" I said. "What, are we walking to the Friendly?"
"No, no, that's miles away," said Mr Dawson, smiling. "We only need to walk a short way. It's just that it's very difficult for a large number of wizards to congregate without attracting Muggle attention. We have to be very careful about how we travel at the best of times, and for an event like this - "
"Tanya!" said Sian sharply, and we all jumped.
"What?" said Tanya, in an innocent tone that fooled none of us.
Sian got up from her seat and moved around the table and faced Tanya.
"What is that bag in your pocket full of?"
"Nothing!"
"Don't you lie to me!"
And before Tanya could move so much as an inch, Sian reached into the inside pocket of Tanya's jacket, and pulled out a small leather bag, which was full to the brim of plum-coloured objects.
"Look at these, Ma! After you and Aunt Pam told these two to destroy them, they're still making more!" said Sian furiously, as she moved around the table to show her mother, which was full of what I could clearly see were Shrivelled-Skin Sweets. Crighton sighed and shook her head.
"I thought your mother told you to destroy the lot," said Crighton, in a disappointed voice. "Empty your pockets, both of you. Now, please."
It was an unpleasant scene to say the least; the twins had evidently been trying to smuggle as many sweets out of the house as possible, and it was only by using a Summoning Charm that Crighton was able to get them all. Of course, seeing as nothing escapes Sian's and - indeed - Crighton's eyes, there was no possible way that Tanya and Geri could have gotten away with it.
"Accio! Accio! Accio!" said Crighton, and sweets zoomed from all sorts of places, including the lining of Tanya's jacket and the turn-ups of Geri's jeans.
"We spent six months developing and ordering those!" Ger shouted, as Crighton threw the sweets onto the fire (and to my eyes, it seemed like she was reluctantly doing it).
"What a fine way to spend six months!" Sian shrieked. "No wonder you didn't get more OWLs!"
All in all, the atmosphere was not very friendly as we made our departure. Crighton was still frowning as she said goodbye to us and hugged and kissed her children and husband, though not as much as the twins, who had each hoisted their rucksacks onto their backs and walked out without a word to her.
"Well, have a lovely time," said Crighton, "and behave yourselves." she called after the twins' retreating backs, but they did not look back or answer her. "I'll send Sam, Kat and Perdy along around midday," Crighton said to Mr Dawson, as he, Sian, Chrissie, Beth, Kestrel, Merida, Chris, Joe, Jack, Ben, Dave and myself set off across the dark yard after Tanya and Geri, out the gate and off into the woods.
It was chilly and the moon was still out. Only a dull, green-ish tinge along the horizon to our right showed us that daybreak was drawing closer. I had been thinking about thousands of wizards speeding towards the Quidditch Friendly, so I sped up to walk with Mr Dawson.
"So how does everyone get there without all the Muggles noticing?" I asked.
"It's been a massive organisational problem," sighed Mr Dawson. "The trouble is, about a hundred thousand wizards turn up to huge Quidditch matches like this one, and of course we just haven't got a magical sight big enough to accommodate them all. There are places Muggles can't penetrate, but imagine trying to pack a hundred thousand wizards into Brickabon Alley or the Sub House. So we've had to find a nice deserted moor, and set up as many anti-Muggle precautions as possible. The whole Ministry's been working on this for months. Firstly, of course, we have to stagger the arrivals. People with cheaper tickets arrive two weeks beforehand. A limited number use Muggle transport, but we can't have too many clogging up their buses and trains - remember, wizards are coming from all over the world. Some Apparate, of course, but we have to set up safe points for them to appear well away from Muggles. I believe there's a handy wood they're using as the Apparition point. For those who don't want to Apparate, or can't, we use Portkeys. They're objects that are used to transport wizards from one spot to another at a prearranged time. You can do large groups at a time if you need to. There have been two hundred Portkeys placed at strategic points around Britain, and the nearest one to us is at the top of the hill ahead of us, and that's where we're headed."
Mr Dawson pointed ahead of us, where the trees started to become thinner and a large black bumpy mound rose.
"What sort of objects are Portkeys?" I asked curiously.
"Well, they can be anything," said Mr Dawson. "Unobtrusive things, obviously, so Muggles don't go picking them up and playing with them ... stuff they'll just think is litter ..."
We trudged along the dark, dark path through the wood, the silence only broken by our footsteps. The sky lightened very slowly as we made our way towards the hill, it's inky blackness diluting to deepest blue. My hands and feet were freezing. Mr Dawson kept checking his watch.
We didn't have breath to spare for talking as we began to climb the hill, stumbling occasionally on hidden tree roots, slipping in hidden rabbit holes, slipping on thick black tuffets of grass. Each breath I took felt sharp in my chest, and my legs were starting to seize up when at last my feet found level ground.
"Whew," Mr Dawson panted, wiping sweat from his forehead. "Well, we've made a good time - we've got ten minutes ..."
Chris came over the crest of the hill last, clutching a stitch in his side.
"Now we just need the Portkey," said Mr Dawson, squinting around at the ground. "It won't be big ... come on ..."
We spread out, searching. We had only been at it for a couple of minutes, however, when a shout rent the still air.
"Over here, Matt! Over here, son, we've got it!"
Two tall figures were silhouetted against the starry sky on the other side of the hilltop.
"Alesha!" said Mr Dawson, smiling as he strode over to the woman who had shouted. The rest of us followed.
Mr Dawson was shaking hands with a rosy-cheeked woman with shoulder-length, oak-brown hair, who was holding a very worn Frisbee in her other hand.
"This is Alesha Diggs, everyone," said Mr Dawson. "Works for the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. And I think you know her daughter, Georgia?"
Georgia Diggs was an extremely beautiful girl of around seventeen. She was Captain and Seeker of Badger-Stripes house Quidditch team at Dragon Mort.
"Hi," said Georgia, looking around at us.
Everyone said "Hi" back except Tanya and Geri, who merely nodded at her. They had never quite forgiven Georgia for beating our team, Lion-Heart, in the first match in my third year.
"Long walk, Matt?" Georgia's mother asked.
"Not too bad," said Mr Dawson. "We live on the other side of the wood there. You?"
"Had to get up at two, didn't we, Georgie? I tell you, I'll be glad when she's got her Appartition test. Still ... not complaining ... biggest Quidditch Friendly yet, this one. Wouldn't miss it for a sackful of Galleons - and the tickets cost about that. Mind you, looks like I got off easy ..." Alesha Diggs peered good-naturedly around at the Dawson clan, the two Fangs, Chris, Ben, Dave and me. "All yours, Matt?"
"Oh no, the two girls at the back are my nieces and the dark brunettes are my biological children," said Mr Dawson, pointing them out. "The light haired brunette is my adopted son, Chris. Ben and Dave here are my foster sons - and Kiara Pride-Lander, well, she's a friend of - "
"Merlin's beard," said Alesha Diggs, her eyes widening. "Kiara? Kiara Pride-Lander?"
"Er - yeah," I said.
I was used to people looking at me curiously by this point in my life. I was used to the way their eyes moved at once to the scar on my forehead, but it always made me feel uncomfortable.
"Georgie's talked about you, of course," said Alesha Diggs. "Told us all about playing you last year ... I said to her, I said - Georgie, that'll be something to tell your grandchildren, that will ... you beat Kiara Pride-Lander!"
I couldn't think of any reply to this, so I remained silent. Tanya and Geri both scowled again. Georgia looked slightly embarrassed.
"Kiara fell off her broom, Mum," she muttered. "I told you ... it was an accident ..."
"Yes, but you didn't fall off your broom, did you?" roared Alesha genially, gripping her daughter's shoulder tightly. "Always modest, our Georgie, always the lady ... but the best woman won, I'm sure Kiara'd say the same, wouldn't you, eh? One falls off her broom, one stays on, you don't need to be a genius to tell which one's the better flyer!"
"Must be nearly time," said Mr Dawson quickly, pulling out his watch again. "Do you know whether we're waiting for any more, Alesha?"
"No, the Lovedreams have been there for a week already, and the Falcons couldn't get tickets," said Mrs Diggs. "There aren't any more of us in this area, are there?"
"Not that I know of," said Mr Dawson. "Yes, it's a minute off ... we'd better get ready ..."
He looked round at me. "You just need to touch the Portkey, that's all, a finger will do - "
With difficulty, owing to the bulky backpacks, the sixteen of us crowded around the worn Frisbee held out by Alesha Diggs.
We all stood there, in a tight circle, as a chilly breeze swept over the hilltop. Nobody spoke. It suddenly occurred to me how odd this would look if a Muggle were to approach ... sixteen people, a grown man and a woman, clutching this Frisbee in the semi-darkness, waiting ...
"Three ..." muttered Mr Dawson, one eye still on his watch, "two ... one ..."
It happened immediately: I felt as though a hook just behind my navel had been suddenly jerked irresistibly forwards. My feet left the ground; I felt Sian and Chrissie on either side of me, their shoulders banging into mine; we were all speeding forwards in a how of wind and whirling colour; my forefinger was stuck to the Frisbee as though it were pulling me magnetically onwards, and then -
I slammed into the ground; Chrissie staggered into me and I fell over; the Portkey hit the ground near my head with a soft thud.
I looked up. Mr Dawson, Mrs Diggs and Georgia were still standing, though they looked very windswept; the rest of us were on the ground.
"Seven past five from Forest Hill," said a voice.
