Sudden Wind

Although the man who had suddenly appeared had ordinary eyes and an intact nose,

Snape recognized him at once from the long walking stick and the thudding sound it made as he moved.

Alastor Moody.

"I'm a Hogwarts student!"

Snape hurriedly shouted at him.

With both hands raised, he slowly stood up and stepped out from behind the armchair.

Moody did not lower his Wand. In a hoarse voice, he ordered:

"Throw your Wand over yourself, or I'll do it for you."

After hesitating for a few seconds, Snape slowly reversed his grip on the Wand under Moody's piercing gaze and tossed it at Moody's feet.

"Binding Charm!"

A rope as thick as a snake flew through the air and tightly bound Snape's body, leaving his arms unable to move.

"Hey, I've already put down my Wand!"

Snape stood where he was and complained helplessly.

Of course, he had no intention of taking any action.

He certainly did not think he could stand up to Moody while unarmed and tied up.

Moody ignored Snape's objections.

Seeing that Snape made no further moves, he turned with a shuffle and used magic to undo the ropes binding the McKinnons.

He raised his Wand, pointed it at Mr. McKinnon's chest, and murmured:

"Revival Charm!"

As the spell took effect, Mr. McKinnon moved weakly a few times.

Mrs. McKinnon and Marlene covered their mouths in excitement.

Mr. McKinnon's slightly puffy eyelids opened.

He blinked hard, his expression utterly blank. Then his eyes widened in terror as he looked around.

When he saw Mrs. McKinnon and Marlene crouching unharmed before him, he let out a long breath.

Mrs. McKinnon carefully helped Mr. McKinnon sit on a crooked bed.

"McKinnon, what happened?" Moody asked. "I came as soon as I received your signal."

"Someone stopped the bus and said they needed my help," Mr. McKinnon said, still shaken. "Mrs. Coppett—no, McNeil. He used Polyjuice Potion to disguise himself as an old woman.

"I saw McNeil's long gray hair shortening and his body growing taller and bigger. Then he knocked me out with a spell."

"What did they need your help with?" Moody continued. "And who was the one who stopped the bus?"

Mr. McKinnon muttered, "I don't know."

"The man who stopped the bus was Avery. He's a Death Eater too," Snape added from the side. "He wanted me to kill Marlene."

"Severus!" Marlene seemed to have only just noticed Snape's predicament. She screamed, "He saved me!"

"Well... I just didn't kill you..." Snape said slowly.

"Er—you mean him?"

Hearing Marlene's words, Moody pointed at Snape and asked.

When Marlene nodded, Moody leaned on his walking stick and limped a few steps forward. He came to Avery, bent down, and removed his mask.

Moody coldly examined the wound on Avery's neck.

Then he frowned as he studied Snape, turned to Marlene, and asked, "He saved you?"

"Yes, that Death Eater forced him to kill me, but he didn't!" Marlene hurriedly explained.

Moody picked up Snape's Wand and trudged over to him. He stared into Snape's eyes for a long while.

After a while, he undid the Binding Charm on Snape.

"Here. Take it."

The expression on Moody's face seemed to soften slightly as he held out the Wand to Snape.

"Sorry. I have to stay vigilant at all times."

"Yes, I know. Constant vigilance."

Snape took the Wand and tucked it into his robes.

He rubbed his arms, sore from the bindings, and muttered:

"What do we do next?"

"Let's get out of here first."

Moody looked out at the pitch-black night beyond the window and replied.

As he spoke, he reached into his bulging travel cloak, pulled out a curved flask, uncapped it, and took a large gulp.

Noticing Moody's actions, Snape narrowed his eyes at him a few times before asking despite himself:

"Can I have a sip?"

"Don't drink from the bottle!"

Moody glared at Snape and roughly shoved the flask into his hand.

"Kid, that's a pretty disgusting request."

"Ah..."

Moody's action caught Snape off guard, so he quickly pretended to be careless and gave the flask in his hand a shake.

A few drops of clear, colorless liquid splashed onto the back of his hand.

"Oh... thanks, but no. I was joking."

"Enough."

Moody took back the flask, rapped his walking stick twice against the floor of the bus, and asked gruffly:

"Is the driver still alive? We need to get to Hogsmeade."

"Ernie was attacked right at the start and fell out of the bus," Snape said.

"I'll go take a look."

Moody limped off the bus.

As Snape watched Moody disappear into the wind and rain, a mad thought suddenly flashed through his mind.

McNeil had seen his face and knew his name.

He might be locked in Azkaban, but perhaps one day Voldemort would free all his servants.

When that day came, what would they do? What would happen to Eileen and him...

Snape quietly drew his Wand from his robes again.

He lowered his head and stared at McNeil, who lay motionless in the bus.

At last, he murmured, "Sectumsempra—"

"Pfft—"

Mr. McKinnon heard the soft sound.

"What are you doing?! Petrificus Totalus!"

Snape's Wand fell to the floor with a clatter.

He crashed down like a statue, unable to move.

"What happened?"

Moody returned to the Knight Bus supporting Ernie, his voice full of surprise.

"What happened now?"

"This child... he... he attacked McNeil."

Mr. McKinnon knelt beside McNeil, his Wand pointed at the wound.

"Mending Charm! Mending Charm... Finite Incantatem... None of them are working..."

"Let me see."

Moody pushed Mr. McKinnon aside. However, his healing magic had no effect either.

He walked up to Snape, looked down into his eyes, and said:

"That wound was caused by Dark Magic. Leave him here for now."

Moody then turned to Ernie.

"Are you all right? Can you still drive?"

Ernie did not answer.

He was soaked through, his clothes plastered to his skin, and even his breathing trembled uncontrollably.

"Todd..."

Ernie called out in a tearful voice.

"Todd... sob... sob..."

He was already sobbing his heart out.

"Todd... what do I do... today is Stan's birthday... he's only one year old..."

The howling wind swept into the bus as Ernie wept uncontrollably.