Chapter 69 Chapter 69
Harry took a half step back, immediately collided with his suitcase, and stumbled.
He had a kitten in one arm and balanced himself with the other.
But it was futile; he fell to the ground.
He quickly sat down, the black cat leaped onto his shoulders, with a strange smile that reminded him of Evan.
He shook his head, he must be going crazy, how could a cat have Evan's expression? But it really seemed like his smile. However, before he could ponder further on it, he saw a large shadow in the distance with barely illuminated eyes.
It was as big as a dog, Harry raised his wand.
As soon as he raised his wand, there was a deafening roar and he was blinded by a bright light.
Harry shouted and leaped backward while Evan clung to Harry's shoulder.
It was very timely, a pair of huge wheels and headlights appeared exactly where Harry had just been.
Evan looked up and saw a three-story bus with golden letters that read: The Knight Bus.
"Welcome to the Knight Bus, this is a bus that assists stranded individuals from the magical community through public transport, you just need to wave your wand to stop the bus, we'll take you wherever you want to go. My name is Stan Shunpike, I'll be your driver tonight!"
Shunpike would be eighteen or nineteen years old at most, with some pimples on his face and prominent ears.
"A strange passenger with a black kitten, where do you want to go?" asked Stan.
"There was a big black thing right there, did you see it?" Harry asked, but upon looking back, he saw nothing.
"No, what's that on your forehead?" Stan seemed to notice the scar on Harry's forehead.
"It's nothing!" said Harry as he hid the scar on his forehead; if the ministry is looking for him, he doesn't want to make things easier for them.
"Well, what's your name?" Stan asked.
"Longbottom," whispered Harry, his gaze shifting to the bus, "So, this bus can go anywhere, right?"
"Yes, wherever you want, but it can't go underwater," Stan looked at Harry suspiciously, "Didn't you signal us to stop? Didn't you wave your wand?"
"Yes!" Harry quickly said, "How much to go to Diagon Alley?"
"Eleven sickles, but if you have a pet, it's five sickles more; if you pay three additional sickles, you can get chocolate and one more to get a thermos and a toothbrush, you can even choose the color."
"Wait, this is not my pet!" Harry then remembered the black cat on his shoulder, "It hopped on me just a second before you arrived."
"Alright, it's up to you if you want to bring it, but I'll tell you it's a very rare breed."
Harry thought for a moment and then quickly reached into his pocket, took out some sickles, and gave them to Stan.
Then he and Stan carried his suitcase and Hedwig's cage onto the Knight Bus.
"You get to sleep in this bed," Stan introduced Harry to the driver and then led him to the bed where Evan was sitting, Stan pulled out a large piece of chocolate from his pocket and handed it to him, "Here, I'll get some food for your pet."
He rummaged under a bed, retrieved a bowl of rice, placed it in front of Evan, then poured a bunch of cat food into it.
Evan refused to eat the cat food.
If only Sirius Black wasn't out there, Evan wouldn't have joined Harry.
There were many things to do at home; he didn't know what to worry about most.
Evan had no choice but to wait for his mana to recover; he estimates he'll be able to regain his mana by morning.
If he doesn't want to be torn to shreds by Sirius Black, he needs to stay with Harry since the other side won't approach Harry for the time being.
The bus started to move, and with a tremendous roar, Harry fell onto the bed, the Knight Bus threw him backwards, pressing Evan on the bed.
Evan struggled to get out, he noticed that Harry wasn't interested in eating the chocolate, so he gently jumped and put the chocolate in his mouth. Stan and Harry had a look of astonishment, they were amazed at how skillfully a cat could unwrap the chocolate and eat it. Who in their right mind would eat cat food, anyway?
Evan was exhausted, having been chased by Sirius Black and having spent too much energy, he quickly swallowed a whole piece of chocolate.
"Your cat is amazing, my sister has a cat but it only knows how to scratch the furniture," said Stan as he looked at Evan with interest.
"Yes!" Watching the black cat eat chocolate made Harry feel like he was becoming more like Evan every moment.
Harry lay down on the bed, lifted the black cat over his chest, and observed it carefully.
Evan weakly waved his paw.
The cat was so quirky, thought Harry.
A sudden jolt, Harry unconsciously let go of his hand.
Evan ran to the pillow and sat down, gazing out the bus window, the Knight Bus always hitting the curb but managing to avoid lampposts, mailboxes, and trash cans. When cars approached, it returned to its original position.
Harry left Evan alone for the moment.
It had been a strange night, a peculiar bus, a large dog, and a black cat; he didn't know what to do next.
Then, as he rubbed his stomach, he wondered if the Dursleys had managed to get Aunt Marge off the roof.