The Next Adventure

Staircases and portals

"Achiou!"
Harry sneezed. He opened his eyes and saw the woman from before holding a weird smoking piece of an unknown to him plant under his nose.

"Ugh, what is that?" Harry complained, but he soon realised that they weren't at his hotel anymore.
He looked around and asked.
"Were are we? Who are you? Why did you bring me here?"

The woman ignored him. She got up, threw the plant down and stepped with her one shoe on it, scrubbing it down to put out the fire. After thet she layed her hand to Harry. He didn't know if he could trust her but finally he took her hand and she helped him get up.

"Um...thank you...I guess." Harry said still looking suspicious about his newest acquaintance.

The woman nodded, than turned around waving her hand at Harry in a way that meant "follow me" and started walking. Harry rubbed his neck while bitting his lips, sighted, realising he didn't have a better idea, and followd the young woman.

The soon arrived at a subway station. There weren't any people waiting for the... whatever train was scheduled to pass from there. Harry turned around and looked at the placard all stations have for their name to be written. But it was so old, the only letters that could be seen were : "_L_ Y_ _K"
Harry closed his eyes just a bit so he could focalize at the placard and maybe he could read their destination. But there was no use. So he turned to his companion, took a deep breath and said with a serious look:

" Excuse me, but I believe you didn't answered my previous questions. So let me ask you again. WHERE are we? WHO are you? And WHY are you doing this? And perhaps you could also tell me WHERE the heck are we going?"

The woman sighted, or at least that's what Harry understood by her movement because the sound of the train filled the atmosphere with noise. Only a few seconds later, five big train cabins where slowing down in front of them until they stopped. The doors opened and a grass smell suddenly filled their noses.

"Ugh, why do scavengers use public trains to transport their bags of cutten grass and fallen leaves?" The woman said annoyed while waving her palm in front of her nose. Her voice sounded like she had a shore throat and it was clear that she had a russian accend

"Aha! So you do talk!" Harry shouted victoriously.

"Well, yes I do, but if you don't mind step inside the cabin. I'll explain everything."

"No, explain now, because there's no way I'm getting in there if you don't tell me..."

Harry didn't manage to finish his sentence. The woman grabbed his arm and ran inside the cabin. The doors closed right behind them and the train started to move.

" what's going on." Harry said slowing down his talking spees.

" Seems to me you're not gonna be less annoying until I tell you, and because of you we barely made it. So you want answers? Here they are:
We are in the underground subway that is about to transport us to the wizardly side of this city. I am Natasha Leonov and I work for the ministry of Magic. I am the secretary of state but I am also the head of special oppressions. I've been task to bring you to the Minister as soon and as much distictively as possible mr Potter." the woman responded with the most unexpretioned face she could put on.

Harry looked at her with curiosity.
"And what's the reason of this urgent meeting?" He said, trying to mimitate the woman's serious tone in her voice.

"I'm afraid I cannot do that just yet mr Potter."

Harry frounded. Why couldn't she tell him? He was technically abducted.

"Why not?"
"Huh?" The woman didn't expect much resistance. She always thought that young men and women were still very naive. Maybe not as naive as a kid, but still naive.

"Why can't you tell me?" Harry repeated his question a little more specifically.

The woman sighted and rolled her eyes over.
"Because, mr Potter, even walls have ears."

"Well, we're in an underground train. Technically these aren't usual walls."

"FINE." the woman turned to Harry when she lost her temper for a second. She looked again outside the window, returning to her soldier-like pose and said "Alright, because even aluminum underground train walls have ears."

They didn't speak for the rest of their ride. Harry examinated carefully his environment. There was nothing out of the ordinary, really. Two lines of metal sheats covered in red fabric, some metal blue pipes for people to hang on, if the train full, an tickets auto-mashine...Harry paused his look there. He walked to the auto-mashine, carefully so he wouldn't fall in case the train stoped (he did not want his experience if his first ride on the knight Bus repeated), checking every third second if the woman has moved from her place.

"Let's see if she' telling the truth about the heading of this train." he thought trying to find were the tickets' prices were written on. The mashine was old, with no-touch screen. Only big industrial buttons with the ticket's name on the side. Harry looked bellow, at the edge of the mashine and he found a piece of plastic covered paper.
"24-hour ticket--- 1 gallon
48-hour ticket---2 gallons
72-hour ticket---3 gallons"

"Here" said the woman, holding a plastic card near to Harry.

"What is that?" he asked.

" Your transportation card.With it you will be able to take any public transport vehicle or train without validating different tickets. You can use the card for one month." Natasha responded.

"I don't think I'm going to stick around for as long as one month." Harry said.

The woman gave him a cold look.
"We'll see" she said.

In that moment the train stopped. The doors opened and the woman got off the train nodding to Harry to do the same.

They climbed many marble stairs and arrived in an empty room with a red door without doorknob in the middle of the other side's wall. Natasha took of her wand and said quietly:

"Chalkus edgeos".

In that moment her wand's edge sparkled and turned completely white. She touched the door with it and drew a white handle at the door. She put away her wand and touched the handle. Mesteriously the drawn handle had become three dimensional and so Natasha grabbed it and turned it.

The door opened and a bright light surrounded both of them.