Partners in Crime || PJOxHP || Marauders' Era

A Rental Car and a Minotaur

"Okay," the driver said, "this bus is not leaving the city!"

"What?" Tobias yelled. "We're supposed to reach Long Island!"

"Well, no," the driver said. "You saw the bus's condition, kid. Now, scoot."

Tobias groaned. "Please, no," he muttered. "Gods, no."

"Gods?" Jessica asked.

"Shh," Euphemia said, looking at the boards. "The next bus isn't till evening."

"That'll be too late," Tobias said. "Is there anything we can do?"

"I.. I can't think of anything," Euphemia confessed. "I am not used to this Muggle transportation-"

"We can rent a car," Jessica piped up. 

"Actually," Tobias said, "I've got a better idea." 

He ran from the bus terminal with the mother and daughter on his heels... cloven hoofs. "Have you got lots of cash?" he asked Euphemia. 

"I could, maybe," Euphemia replied. "I mean, yes, probably."

"Great, then this could work," he said, standing by a red Mustang. The owner was sitting inside, talking to someone on his phone. "Hey!"

The man looked up. "What?" he asked. "I'm not giving any lifts."

"We aren't asking for one," Euphemia said, finally catching onto the idea. "You get sixty thousand dollars," she waved a card at the man, "and we get the car."

The man's eyes went wide. He switched off his cell phone, and looked at the card. "How do I know it's genuine?"

"You can try it out," Euphemia said. "But make it quick."

The man got down from his car, "What's the PIN?"

"Four zeroes," Euphemia replied. "Get all your cash."

The man entered a nearby ATM. When he came back, his pockets seemed rather stuffed, and Jessica didn't need to know what they had been stuffed with. 

"Alright," the man said. "The car's yours."

"Fantastic," Euphemia's eyes gleamed. "Get in, you two."

"I'd be careful," the man said. "The weather's only getting worse around here."

"I know!" Euphemia glared. 

The man frowned. "Jeez, just trying to be a helpful American."

"Thank you," Jessica said as she pulled into the vehicle. "But I think we're still gonna go."

***

Evening passed into nighttime as they drove through the darkness, with Tobias navigating for them. They had stopped by a supermarket to grab some supplies and a map, but that was all they had. 

Some crisps, a few biscuits, chocolate milk and a map.

They tore through the night along dark country roads. Wind slammed against the car. Rain lashed the windshield. 

A loud bellowing sound echoed through the road. Euphemia stopped the car. "What was that?"

Tobias was silent for a while. And then, his eyes went wide. "Drive! Go! Now!"

The car roared to life immediately, and Euphemia seemed to be driving at a speed so fast that the car might just have jumped out of the road had there been a speed breaker in between.

Every time there was a flash of lightning, Jessica looked at Tobias sitting next to her in the backseat and wondered if she'd gone insane, or if he was wearing some kind of shag-carpet pants. All she could think to say was, "So, you and my mum... know each other?"