Looking around, Ted saw no seats inside the Knight Bus. Instead, a few copper-framed beds lined the base floor, standing near the curtained windows. Candles set near each bed cast a warm, steady glow over the wooden walls, creating a surprisingly cozy atmosphere.
On the bed closest to the entrance, an old man was sitting, peeking out from behind the curtain, muttering to himself in a voice too low for Ted to catch. The rest of the beds were empty, neatly made with crisp white sheets.
Ted moved forward, making his way to the front of the bus, where he sat down on a bed positioned just behind the driver's seat. Cedric passed by, pulling out a small leather sack and a steaming bottle of water, its vapors curling faintly in the cold night air.
"What color for the toothbrush?" Cedric asked, rummaging through the bag. "We've got light blue, blue, dark blue, indigo blue... and orange."
Ted gave him a side glance that said more than words before turning back toward the front. "Blue."
At the wheel sat an old man in very thick glasses.
"This here's Ernie, our driver. Ern, this is—" Cedric paused, realizing he hadn't asked.
"Ted," Ted finished for him, evenly. "Nice to meet you."
Ernie gave a small nod, turning back to the road — and then, with a deafening Bang, the bus shot forward like a slingshot down the dark streets of London.
Ted gripped the brass frame of the bed. He'd expected the speed — even braced for it — but the sheer force still threw him backwards, knocking the bottle from his hand.
Once the pace steadied, Ted turned to look outside. The scenery blurred past in streaks of colour and light, the bus weaving through crowded streets without slowing — phasing through cars, cutting corners and ignoring every rule of reality.
From the corner of his eye, Ted caught Cedric watching him — disappointed.
Most kids, thrown onto the Knight Bus for the first time, wore expressions of terror or wild shock. Ted, on the other hand... looked fascinated.
As he watched the road, he couldn't help but imagine the enchantments that might have been used to make the magical bus.
'Is it a spell that makes it invisible, or just hard to notice? And that speed, there must be a ton of speed charms and the like, maybe even safety charms in case of a crash...' He couldn't help but think of all the magic-related books he had ever read, trying to make sense of how what he was seeing was made into reality.
He considered asking Cedric. Or Ernie. But he didn't like Cedric. The man had been staring at him ever since he'd mentioned his address — and Ted had little patience for people like that.
As for Ernie — Ted wasn't about to interrupt the man while he was busy keeping a three-story magical missile from ploughing into a wall.
After a while, Cedric wandered off upstairs, leaving Ted to his thoughts. Which made him feel relieved, the stares had been getting quite disturbing. Through the window, the city had faded into a stretch of open fields. No roads in sight.
Then, without warning, the Knight Bus screeched to a stop in the middle of nowhere.
An old man in an emerald robe made his way down the stairs, with Cedric following close behind. He gave Ernie a brief wave on his way out — which the driver returned with a small lift of his right hand, never once taking his eyes off the road ahead.
Without a word, Cedric hefted a large trunk from beside the stairs and carried it after the man.
Ted, seeing his chance, quietly retrieved his dropped bottle of water.
Moments later, the bus rocketed off again — a new direction, a new destination — Just as advertised, they really could take you anywhere.
With the bottle at hand he now leaned back, finally pulling himself together. There was time now. Time to clean up, think, prepare.
He brushed his teeth, washed his face, straightened his clothes.
Then came the harder part.
Figuring out exactly what he was going to tell his father.
<================>
It was already hours later when the Knight Bus returned to London. Ted, who had spent the journey reading the potions book he'd bought earlier that day, was pulled from the text by Cedric's voice, now right beside him, muttering over a folded newspaper.
"Next stop's yours, kid," he said gruffly. He sounded worn out — and no wonder. What had started as a long night had now crept well past midnight, and he'd spent the last several hours hauling bags up and down stairs.
Apparently, even during nighttime runs, the upper deck remained fitted with seats instead of beds, allowing far more passengers than the base floor. Most passengers clearly avoided the lower level — its unanchored, squeaky brass beds didn't exactly scream comfort.
Ted stood, steady now. He had already learned how to keep his balance on the Knight Bus, even through its sharp turns and violent stops. Holding a nearby bedpost, he waited calmly as the triple-decker thundered through a heavily reinforced gate — one of the main security barriers at the entrance to his street.
The bus finally halted in front of a towering Victorian mansion, framed by elegant silver fencing. Ted exhaled a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. Only now did he feel the full weight of the day pressing on his shoulders.
He stepped down from the Knight Bus and gave it one last glance. Cedric stood in the doorway, staring after him with a complicated look — something between curiosity, confusion, and maybe even envy.
He said nothing more, just turned and walked toward the gate, giving a small wave to the guard. The guard blinked, seemingly stunned, before he muttered something into his radio, and opened the gate.
Behind him, Ted heard a familiar Bang as the Knight Bus vanished into the night.
A few minutes later, standing Inside the house, the marble floors of the entrance hall gleamed as always. Somehow, seeing them again brought mixed feelings. It meant the adventure was over — at least for now.
"Welcome back, Master Theodor. I shall inform Lord Cassius of your return," Nigel, the head butler, said with a formal nod.
Ted returned the nod politely, then caught sight of Lora, his personal maid.
"Please prepare me a bath," he said evenly. "I'll be there shortly."
She nodded silently and walked off toward the servants' corridor.
Ted moved toward the grand staircase, his gaze drifting to a large portrait that hung at the bend in the stairs. It showed a couple, smiling — the man with raven-black hair and sharp features, dressed in a formal maroon suit. His dark eyes held a noble calm.
Beside him stood a woman in a flowing crimson dress. Her hair was pale silver, shining like frost, and her eyes were silver too, with a faint trace of blue — identical to Ted's — yet even through the picture, he could feel the warmth in them.
Around her neck rested a brilliant ruby pendant, its colour vivid against her pale skin, making the small smile on her lips seem all the more beautiful — and mysterious.
'Mum…' Ted's gaze lingered, sharpening.
'I finally know what happened. I'll make them pay — worse than they ever made you suffer…'
The screams echoed in his memory once more.
<================>
The next day, during dinner, Ted's father had actually shown himself, asking — in his usual brief, indifferent tone — where he had been.
Ted, already prepared, didn't bother covering for Jessie. He calmly explained how he'd ended up alone in the first place and how he'd spotted a suspicious-looking man following him by catching his reflection in the shop windows.
From there, he spun his cover story: Using the cover of a passing bus, he'd slipped into a second-hand bookstore just before it closed, choosing to stay hidden near the back behind the tall shelves until the coast was clear.
Once the shop was locked up, he claimed he decided to wait things out — and ended up reading to pass the time. Eventually, he lost track of it completely and didn't even realize how much time had passed until the next afternoon, when the shopkeeper was about to close the store again.
When he emerged, he didn't know how to get home and had no spare change. From there, he fabricated a believable tale about a stranger snatching his wallet, leaving him stranded — until a kind young woman gave him a spare Underground ticket.
He'd taken the train to Kensington and walked from there.
Cassius had no reason to doubt it — and even if he had, Ted knew one thing for certain: his father had never cared enough to pay attention to the details of his life.
The wallet itself had been dealt with on the Knight Bus. With Cedric's help (in exchange for the last of his Sickles), he'd conjured a small flame and burned the contents to ash — a far better option than letting someone get a hold of his credit card.
Now, the story was airtight.
<================>
Past midnight, a chill breeze drifted in through Ted's open window. He sat at his desk, eyes focused as he leafed through one of the books taken from his mother's private collection.
He had already finished the beginner's potions book and was now working his way through volumes on charms and enchantments — books he'd once dismissed as full of pretend statistics and fictional nonsense and had thought of as dull.
That was no longer the case.
He cracked the window open a little wider, expecting the owls to arrive with his deliveries at any moment. He could only imagine the maids' reactions — a great owl swooping into some random hallway and dropping a bag of sweets onto the floor.
Taking a slow sip of tea, Ted finally decided it was time to sleep.
A lot had happened those last few days.
And he needed rest.
<================>
Meanwhile, in the study, Cassius was glaring at two people like a hawk, his black eyes seeming to stare straight into their souls.
Standing before him were Jessie, the maid, and Aron, the bodyguard assigned to follow Ted.
"Not only did you fail to follow him, but you also neglected to inform me that he was alone." Cassius's voice wasn't loud, but it cut like an unsheathed sword.
"You two will leave this mansion tonight — and you will never show your face to me again," he said slowly, his tone commanding as he turned toward the window behind him, which offered a majestic view of Kensington Gardens. His back, broad and still, seemed like a mountain to the two siblings. "And if I ever see you again..."
Cassius didn't finish the sentence, letting their imagination do the rest.
"Now leave." This time, his voice rose slightly — just enough to make them jump. They hurried out, clearly shaken.
Once they were gone, Cassius turned to his left.
"Find replacements. Run background checks on all staff. I don't want any similar incidents in the future. And make our little guest comfortable."
"Understood, sir." From the shadows, almost invisible until now, stepped Nigel, the butler.
He left the study and descended into the basement, where a woman in her mid-thirties sat tied to a chair — her mouth gagged, legs bound. If Ted were present, he would have recognised her.
It was the shopkeeper from the second-hand bookstore.
Nigel removed the gag, eyeing her with open disgust.
"You will tell us who your employer is — even if it takes time," he said, driving a fist into her stomach. She gave only a faint whimper in response.
The woman was an assassin sent after Ted.
Nigel had found her sniping post two nights earlier, while searching for the boy — a rooftop just a few blocks from where Ted had vanished. So far, they'd only managed to confirm her target. Her employer remained a mystery.
"I hope it hurts," Nigel said calmly. "Even though you'll never leave this place. The price for threatening the lord's family isn't cheap. All I can promise is this — eventually, you will speak. Everything in between... is just how long you prolong your suffering."
He struck her a few more times, then turned and left.
Behind him, the woman stared at his back, eyes burning with hate.
She hadn't lost hope.
But that, too, was only a matter of time.
<==========================>
(a/n) Next chap will be a time skip, I have an important birthday party coming up so next chap will only be next week.
Hope you enjoy the story so far, If you do, please VOTE and give me some POWER STONES.