Split Life Of War DISCONTINUED

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Chapter 38

I smiled as the street faded into existence before my eyes. Artemis left the moment I let go of her hand. The door of my house suddenly opened, and Hermione walked out with tears in her eyes and a small bag in her hand. I raced up to her, and she gave a cry of surprise.

"The war has begun," The words came out of her mouth raspy before she took off running. I tried to get her to come back, but she disapparated with the blink of an eye. I turned back to my house, and slowly entered. Mum and dad were sitting on the couch eating a TV dinner. At the sound of the door closing, they both whipped around to face me. Dad stood up and began creeping towards the kitchen. Mum slowly stood up and backed away from me.

"Hey mum, hello dad." I smiled hastily, unsure what was going on. Their expressions of surprise changed to confusion. Mum and Dad both looked at each other for a moment. I took the chance to look at the photos on the mantle. Some did not have any people in them, and looked rather bland. Others had mum or dad posing as if there was either one or two other people by them. Right where the family photo usually sat was a large photo with mum and dad sitting on a bench. There was an empty spot between them, and they both had their arms up as if they were hugging two other people.

"Um," mum started, "We have no children..." My mouth hung open, and I ran out of the house. Where did I have to go now? Did I even have any other place to go? I walked down the lane slowly. At the end of the street, there was a map of London. I walked up to it to try to see if I could walk to the Leaky Cauldron. The street it was located on was ten miles away though. I heard a twig crack, and went to extract my throwing knives, when I remembered I was no longer a hunter. My charm bracelet was in my pack, so I just turned around with my wand out.

In the bushes of the house across the street sat two figures, one with black hair. Obsidian black eyes flashed before the figures sunk into the bush. I started to walk towards the bush, when suddenly I was blasted backwards into the sign behind me. A large purple triple-decker bus sat in front of me. Written on its side in golden ink was The Knight Bus. I blinked and rubbed my eyes. That was not there before, was it? It did not disappear. A young man about the age of eighteen climbed out of the bus. I vaguely remembered him as a Hufflepuff that had been in the year above Hermione, Ron, and Harry.

He looked around for a bit before clearing his throat and speaking. "I am Adrian Bones, and I am the conductor of the Knight Bus." He looked down where I lay below the sign. "What are you doing down there pip?" He stared at me while I just stared at him in confusion and awe. I blinked several times, trying to put the pieces together. Adrian continued to look at me, as if trying to figure out everything about me. A few more minutes passed before I started to get up.

"Um, I just fell. How much would it be for you to take me to Leaky Cauldron?" He took out some kind of tool and punched in a few buttons. A receipt popped out, and he handed it to me. I extracted the specific amount of wizard coins and handed them to him. He led me on and gave me a place to sit on the first level towards the front. He sat down next to me, and knocked on the glass by the driver's compartment. The bus jerked forward, drove for about a second, and jerked to a stop. My hand flew up to my mouth. Just great, motion sickness is back.

Adrian noticed and pulled a pill bottle out of his pocket. "I am guessing you get motion sick as well. Here, take these. They are muggle medicine. They help a lot." I nodded and smiled, taking one of the little pills. Adrian then pocketed the bottle and walked back to the door. After a little bit he came back on with two short hooded figures following him. The figures sat down near the doors, and Adrian rejoined me.

"So," I started. "I have been out of the wizarding world for the entire summer. What is going on with the war with Vold-"

He cut me off. "Do not say his name. It is on taboo."

I frowned, "What does that mean?"

"If anyone says his name all defensive charms will disappear, and snatchers will know exactly where the name was spoken." I frowned, and leaned back. A few minutes later, we arrived at Leaky Cauldron. I got off, and walked into the pub.

The Tom, owner, rushed up to me. "Would you like a room? I am afraid that we have one last remaining room, and if anymore guests would come calling, we would have to put them with someone."

I smiled kindly at him. "Yes, I would like a room to stay in until the first. I am also fine with sharing with someone if the need arises." He nodded, and led me up several floors. Even when I had passed through when I was younger for Hermione, I did not think there was more than two floors. Once we arrived to the top floor, and the room at the end of the hall, we stopped. He handed me the key, and I gave him his payment. I watched him scurry off, and walked into my room. There were three twin beds, one on one side of the room, and the other two on the other side. There was a sudden knock on the door.

I went to open it, and Tom was standing there with the two cloaked figures from the Knight Bus. "My apologies Granger, but these two young boys need a place to stay, would you mind?" I shoke my head, and stood to the side to let them in. Tom handed them each a key to the room, and they swept past him. They claimed the two beds next to each other, and each had only a small satchel with them. I sat my bed, and watched them. They pulled out a pair of sheets from both their bags. The taller one had black sheets, and the other had sky blue sheets. They replaced the moth-bitten sheets on the bed with theirs, and pulled out their own pillows. They must have had an unidentifiable extension charm on their bags, because there is no way all of that could have fit.

"So," I started, "what brings you to the Leaky Cauldron? I am-" a voice in my head cut me off. I could tell it was the taller boy, because he faced directly towards me. We know exactly who you are Catherine Granger. Not many demigods our age do not. I stared at him in surprise. Who are you? How do you know my secret? Someone very very close to you told me. You should keep your secrets hidden better, or someone unfortunate may find out. Who are you? Our names are not important. To me they are. He did not respond, but turned away and continued to unpack.

I sighed, and decided to go for a walk in Diagon Alley. Once I grabbed my small handbag, I headed out. Most of the shops in the Alley were closed. Even Flourish and Blotts was closed temporarily. There was a sign on the door telling people that they would open for a week once Hogwarts letters were sent out. I decided to go see if the Weasley twins' store was open. Once I reached the shop, I saw a sign saying that they were closed for some family business. I sighed, and headed back to the Leaky Cauldron.

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October 3, 2015

I am trying to now have chapters 1,250-1,750 words each. Slowly but surely the chapters will get longer and longer. Some may be shorter though. It all depends. This book will be done around chapter 48 or 64. I do not know. Then the third book will start.

*BAM* wut

_CT