Silent Secrets

Chapter XIII

Dedication to MarauderLover1 for making me laugh and cry in the same comment. Like, seriously. Thank you thank you thank you *deep breath*

THANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOU SOSOSOSOSOSOSOSOSOSOSOSOSOSOSOSOSO MUCH!!! :D

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I sat on the front steps of our house, my hair hanging in sodden ropes around me. McGonagall had insisted I take a quick shower before she would take me to Diagon Alley, which neither my father nor I contested. At first I’d been shocked that he’d agreed so readily, then I realized he was likely attempting to gather whatever scraps of dignity he had left and preserve his public image—not that he really had one in the first place. Maybe it was simply to make a better impression on McGonagall, the formidable witch who had just turned our lives upside-down.

Now, I was simply waiting for her and my father to work out what time I needed to be back. He probably was arguing for some ridiculous time like ‘in five minutes’—that or he frankly didn’t care.

For once, I realized that I didn’t care, either.

The door creaked open and swung shut behind me. I quickly stood, wiping my hands on the  ratty jeans I'd pulled on.  McGonagall pursed her lips, checking her watch briefly before snapping it shut.  "It's eleven now, and we need you back by four. Come along, no time to waste." 

* * *

"So, where is Diagon Alley?" I asked anxiously, as we walked along the sidewalks I had so recently been walking with Remus. So much had changed since then. I wondered what he would think if he knew I was a witch--would he hate me? Label me a freak? Would he be jealous?

"In London."

I laughed nervously. "Um...London? As in...you know...London?"

"I don't believe I stuttered, Miss Peters."

"But...that's...that's like 500 kilometers!" I protested, my heart sinking.

"407, to be precise."

"Okay, but still. We wouldn't even get there in time if we took an aeroplane!"

"That is why we won't be using muggle transport."

"Muggle?"

"Non-magic folk," McGonagall explained. "The ordinary, everyday people who have no idea of the world to which we belong."

Muggle. Until this morning, I would have counted myself as one of them, had I heard the term and understood its meaning. Questions still swirled in my mind, but I tried to suppress them, fear clouding me like a black shadow. What if I overstepped my bounds? Weren't children meant to be seen and not heard?

She hasn't scolded you yet, I reminded myself.

She shouldn't need to, my mind countered.

Taking a deep breath, I resolutely ignored my own advice. "So, if we aren't taking...muggle transport, how are we going to get there?"

"We are going to apparate."

I blinked. "Uh...gesundheit?"

McGonagall smiled, the corners of her mouth turning upward. "Apparating is the most popular method of wizard travel. It is the art of disappearing at one location and reappearing in another."

I nodded, digesting the information. Then panic began to set in. Did she expect me to apparate? Were all wizards and witches supposed to know how to do this? What if I couldn't? What was I supposed to do?