Out of the Books

Chapter 15 - A Means of Transport

Liz, Jack and the twins stuck their heads together over the little piece of paper, trying to figure out the riddle on it.

After some time, Liz looked up. "Excuse me, but why can't you just tell us where we can find the entrance to the wizarding world?" she asked Rowling.

"I -" Joanne Rowling blinked. She seemed to be at a different place with her thoughts, as Liz's question registered so slowly with her.

"I don't know where the entrance is," she admitted with a flat voice.

Jack, Liz and the twins stared at her disbelievingly.

"Really, I have no idea. Only those three lines just popped into my mind out of nowhere - the same way Harry Potter and the whole wizarding world came to me six years ago."

Jack was about to object that this was impossible, that she must have at least some clue, that she couldn't just send them on a wild goose chase with that stupid riddle. But Liz put a hand on his arm to interrupt him, as she remembered the phoenix song she had heard seconds before Rowling had written the little text.

"Jack, I believe her," she said softly. "I trust that the solution of the riddle will actually lead us back to the wizarding world."

Doubting her words, Jack looked intensively at his wife, but when he saw the calm reassurance in her bright green eyes, he nodded reluctantly.

Liz stood up, indicating to Jack and the twins that the conversation was finished.

"Joanne." She shook Rowling's hand warmly. "Thank you for your help and don't worry. We will figure out how to return to our world."

Rowling nodded dazedly, as if the last hour didn't seem quite real to her.

"Bye Joanne," said Jack, standing as well. "Good luck with your future books about our son. He's definitely experiencing enough adventures to fill several of them," he added with a half proud, half playful smile.

When the Pearsons left Nicholson's Cafe, Joanne Rowling stayed at their table, completely motionless, and stared at their retreating backs.

It was already late in the afternoon and so Jack and Liz decided to head directly to their hotel in the outskirts of Edinburgh.

After a short dinner in the hotel restaurant, the whole family met in Liz and Jack's room, all five of them eager to discuss the afternoon with Joanne Rowling and most of all her riddle.

A mark on an old man leads to a marked young boy.

A means of transport leads to another world.

The entrance lies in the Temple

Jack had the slightly crumpled piece of paper in his hand and read it out softly under his breath again and again.

"Well, the young boy is Harry, of course," Amy interrupted her father's chanting. "He is marked with this lightning bolt scar, so this part is quite obvious, isn't it?"

"And the other world is the wizarding world," said Leo, who didn't want to stand back behind his sister. "But what does she want to tell us with this means of transport? Of course you need some means of transport to reach other places. Why mention it in the riddle?"

"No idea, maybe she's talking about spaceships. You can access other worlds with them," Amy said thoughtfully and looked up at her parents to see what they thought of this idea.

Jack shook his head slightly, a frown on his face. "I don't think wizards have too much to do with spaceships, Amy. I would rather say she's talking about broomsticks or Floo powder or something like that."

"What's Floo powder?"

While Jack told his daughter everything about travelling by fire, Leo was more interested in what his mother was thinking about all that.

Liz had apparently not heard a single word of anything her husband and children were discussing. She was sitting quietly on the bed and had started reading "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" again.

"Mum, what do you think?" asked Leo, a bit annoyed that she wasn't paying attention to their speculations at all.

Liz waved her hand at him distractedly, while she continued scanning the pages with her eyes. "I thought there was...didn't she write...no, it must have been before that..." she muttered under her breath and turned several pages back.

Jack sat down next to his wife, looking curiously over her shoulder at the book. "Do you think the answer is in there?" he asked.

Liz ignored him and the room lay in taut silence while Jack, the twins and Sirius were waiting for Liz to find what she was looking for.

"Hah!" Liz's triumphant cry came so suddenly that Jack, who was still sitting close to her, trying to read along, jumped slightly and Amy cricked her neck looking over to her mother so fast. Sirius echoed Liz's shout with a loud and excited bark.

"'Yes, he'll have that scar forever.' - 'Couldn't you do something about that, Dumbledore?' - 'Even if I could, I wouldn't. Scars can come in useful. I have one myself above my left knee, which is a perfect map of the London Underground.'" Liz read the passage breathlessly and when she had finished, she looked expectantly around the room.

"A mark on an old man..." Leo thought loudly. "Well, now we know that Dumbledore has a scar, but really, couldn't it be any - "

"Leo!" Jack interrupted his son half laughing, half exasperated. "A means of transport - the London Underground! And the entrance must be somewhere in Temple Station, mustn't it?"

He kissed Liz excitedly on the lips. When he withdrew, he grinned broadly at her and his hazel eyes shone with a fire, Liz hadn't ever seen in Jack Pearson's eyes, only in James Potter's. "We will really return to the wizarding world, won't we? We will finally see Harry again."

***

"But it's not fair! We could help!" Amy exclaimed. Her brother nodded moodily in agreement, but otherwise he wouldn't move out of his sulking position, leaning against the living room wall, his arms crossed before his chest.

"No, you couldn't," Liz responded with forced patience. "Don't you think it would look a bit odd to have a man, a dog and two teenagers lurking around in a tube station day after day?"

"Oh, and nobody would notice if it was just a man and a dog lurking around," grumbled Leo sarcastically.

"That's enough, Leo and Amy! Your complaining will not get you anywhere. Go and get your gear packed. We're running late for your exams."

Reluctantly, Amy and Leo went up to their rooms to pack their doboks and fighting gear. If they passed the exam this afternoon, they would achieve their red belts with black stripes today - the last one before the black belt. Their parents and Sirius would watch the exam, but while Liz was going to take the twins home after the exam, Jack and Sirius would go right on to London, where they wanted to find the hidden entrance to the wizarding world in Temple Station.

After having figured out the riddle and the opportunity to travel to the wizarding world suddenly seeming to be a real possibility rather than a nice dream, the Pearsons had been sitting together many evenings, discussing whether they really should give up their live here. Sirius was of course the one who was most anxious to return. Even though being a pet to the Pearsons was not exactly a bad life, he longed to be a man again, and to see his godson and his friends again. For him the pain of loosing them was still the freshest and there had been enough days when the worry for Harry was almost driving him crazy. He had been the last person who had come close to being somewhat like a parent for him and he didn't much like the thought of Harry grieving for him.

The twins were also quite eager to enter this strange and exciting world, and most of all they wanted to get to know their older brother of course. Liz and Jack were uncertain about their children's attitude. After all, they didn't know the wizarding world and were at home in this world.

For Liz and Jack themselves, the decision to actually travel back to the wizarding world, was not an easy one, either. They were happy in this world after all. They had a house, they were more or less popular in the community and they both had secure jobs - but they didn't have their eldest son. But if they really returned, would Harry accept his family? Or wasn't it just better to leave everything as it was?

However, in the end it seemed quite plain that no one seriously thought staying in this world was the better option. So they decided that Jack and Sirius should go to London to check out how this entrance to the other world worked. The twins and Liz, who didn't want to give up her job until everything was clear, would wait for the men to find the entrance, before they joined them in London.

So, after the twins had successfully passed their exams and had been congratulated by their father and Padfoot, the family parted, with Liz and the twins returning home and the two men heading for London.

The ride to London passed in happy reminiscence of Jack's and Padfoot's times as Marauders. Jack recounted anecdote after anecdote and even though Padfoot was limited to laughing barkingly and not telling any of his memories himself, the two old Marauders entertained themselves just fine. After a while Jack didn't even feel as Jack Pearson anymore, but as James Potter.

Somewhere along the way they were "discussing" how to best find the gateway to the wizarding world without attracting too much attention.

"We should look around the main station and all the places which are in more or less plain view first. We could do that during day time. There are so many passengers then that nobody will care what we are doing." James glanced over to Padfoot, who was sitting next to him, his fur rippling in the breeze from the open window. The dog nodded, waiting for James to go on.

"Well, we probably won't find anything in plain view, will we? So, we will have to check the places which are harder accessible, too. The tracks, the unused tunnels, the areas for the personnel. Too bad that we don't have an invisibility cloak with all those security cameras in the tunnels."

James and Padfoot checked in into a hotel just outside the City of London. As it didn't make sense to start their investigations that evening, James and Padfoot strolled around the city, trying to find a pub or a party where dogs were allowed. They didn't find any and finally settled for listening to a street concert.

The next morning, they got up early and didn't waste any time to come to Temple Station to let their search begin.

As they had expected, there wasn't anything more than modernly lit halls, crowded with commuters in the areas accessible to all. So soon they were starting to explore the less public parts. It wasn't easy trying to find a gateway of which they didn't even know how it would look like, and at the same time trying to avoid attention of the tube personnel, the cameras and most of all, the fast trains rumbling through the dark every few minutes.

James was feeling giddy. With the adrenaline rushing through his veins, he only had to close his eyes and he could pretend that Padfoot and he were sixteen again, that the Underground tunnels were some dark and secret passages of Hogwarts, waiting to be explored by the Marauders.

In the sixth night of crouching through the dank tunnels, Padfoot and James came across a opening, which seemed darker than all the others they had walked by so far. Feeling that they had finally found something of importance, Padfoot and James turned into the passage. It definitely was different. The darkness was so dense that it had an almost substantial feeling to it.

Carefully, James and Padfoot felt their way along the walls, the thin beams of light spilling from their flashlights, penetrating the dark for only a few meters ahead.

After barely a few steps into the tunnel, the sounds of the rest of the Underground network were cut off. A sudden feeling of total isolation and helplessness pulled on James's nerves and the absolute silence pressed like pillows on his ears. He cleared his throat and stepped down a bit more forcefully, giving in to the urge to test, whether his ears were still working at all. However, the noises he produced echoed so unnaturally and alien through the dark that they didn't reassure him at all.

James drew in a deep, steadying breath and automatically stretched out his right hand to find Padfoot before moving on. But even with the dog's warm fur curling underneath his fingers, the indefinite fear, which had grasped his heart, didn't ease.

Looking down at his friend, James noticed that Padfoot wasn't comfortable with this place either. The dog's shoulders were stiff and his ears were twitching nervously as if trying to pick up any sound at all and his tail was tugged between his hind legs.

James returned his attention to the way ahead. This tunnel could be hundreds of kilometres long or merely a few meters, it was impossible to tell.

James turned his head sharply and gasped at the sensation of something cool and slimy touching his left cheek. He raised his hand, trying to identify what had grazed him. There was nothing. But now there was clearly something walking up his neck, something with more legs than he would care for. His left hand shot over to where it was needed - but again he found nothing.

He was breathing heavily now, a hardly controllable panic having settled in the pit of his stomach. It was almost impossible for him to have any clear thought at all. Every single part of his body urged him to leave this place.

James threw a glance at Padfoot, who was eyeing him worriedly. He forced himself to nod bravely at the dog and move on.

An ice cold gust of wind hit James in the face, causing all the hairs on his neck to stand on end.

"Let's leave," he croaked with barely concealed panic.

Padfoot whined in agreement and he and James hastened out of the tunnel. After a surprisingly short time they had reached the track where they had come from. James leaned with his back against the wall, panting heavily. His face looked like ash in the grey light of the Underground and beads of sweat covered his forehead.

"That was quite creepy, wasn't it?" Padfoot could tell that the question was supposed to sound casual but it was impossible not to notice the shaking in James's voice.

The sun was already rising when James and Padfoot returned to their hotel room. Totally exhausted, they collapsed - James in his bed and Padfoot in front of it.

James lay like this for some minutes, his body tired enough to sleep, but his mind reeling with the memory of the unnatural fear he had experienced in this Underground tunnel. The anger that he had just given in to his fear and fled didn't make falling asleep any easier.

Determinedly, he rolled over and rested his chin on his right fist, facing Padfoot.

"I'm sure we were on to something," he said rather loudly. "The tunnel must have led to the gateway."

Padfoot blinked at him. Seemingly, he had already dozed off. But then he nodded grimly.

James got up and started pacing the room. "I've never been afraid of the dark, you know that, don't you?" He didn't await an answer, but talked right on. "And I never had problems with insects or spiders or something like that. This tunnel shouldn't have freaked me out like this!"

James stopped abruptly and stared at Padfoot determinedly. "Listen, there was a reason why we felt such strong fear in this tunnel. It must have been a defence mechanism or something that enhanced the normal fear one feels in a strange and dark environment. Maybe it was a protection for the gate. Tonight we will go down there again and this time, we will follow the tunnel to the end!"

Padfoot barked forcefully in agreement.

The following evening, it took the two Marauders more than an hour to find their way back to the opening of the tunnel in question. It almost seemed as if the location of the entrance had moved. Finally though, they were slowly walking through the tense darkness again, trying to ignore the leaden fear that was creeping through their veins, whispering urgently, telling them to return. Walking very closely together, the two friends advanced stubbornly. The way seemed to take forever and though the scare didn't get worse after a while, it was still nothing to get used to.

The end of the tunnel came upon them so abruptly that they hardly managed to stumble to a halt before it. Barely three feet in front of them, there was a tattered piece of fabric hanging, rippling in a non-existent breeze.

All fear forgotten, Padfoot barked excitedly. The sound echoed hollowly through the dark tunnel and James jumped with fright.

"Don't do that to me!" he panted half scared, half angry. But then he looked more closely at the veil hanging there in the middle of the tunnel. It was made of dirty and extremely old material with many small holes in it, looking as if it would resolve into dust as soon as anyone touched it.

"Padfoot, is that..." James whispered in awe. "Is that a Veil of Death? Like the one in the Ministry?"

Padfoot nodded absently, his eyes fixed on the veil. He was sure that he and James had indeed found the entrance to the wizarding world.

Somehow, the tunnel had lost a huge part of its scariness when James and Padfoot returned to the main network of the Underground. The anticipation of really returning to their world basically carried them back to their hotel. As soon as they entered the room, James reached for the phone to call Liz.

"We've found it!" he exclaimed happily into the receiver, not even realizing how late it was until he heard Liz's sleepy voice answering from the other end of the line.

After a scatterbrained apology for waking her, James excitedly explained everything about the tunnel and he and Liz agreed that she would come to London with the twins the day after tomorrow, so that she could quit her job and pack.

Jack reminded her not to pack more than she could carry and after telling Liz that he loved her, he hung up, grinning broadly at Padfoot.

"We really did it, mate, we are gonna go back."

Liz and the twins arrived in London in the afternoon of August fourth, the twins' birthday. Liz had asked her children whether they would rather wait for a few days to go to the wizarding world in order to have a proper birthday party.

"Mum! That's the best birthday present you could ever wish for - going into another world! Of course we don't want to wait!" was the twins' exasperated reply to this suggestion.

The plan was to enter Temple Station around eleven o'clock at night, when there were only very few passengers. So to pass the time, the family went into town to have a large dinner and James had to tell Liz and the twins everything about finding the Veil. When he came to the part of him and Padfoot stumbling across the tunnel and leaving it for the next day to explore, as he expressed it, Leo rumbled his father immediately and sniggered.

He nudged Amy in the side and whispered. "It's a bit like Shaggy and Scooby Doo running away from a dark and evil place, isn't it?" Amy did her best to refrain from bursting into laughter, but couldn't help to let out some amused snorts.

Padfoot growled at the twins and James glared at them. "Hope you can still joke about it tonight," he grumbled, but his lips were twitching. The comparison with Scooby Doo did fit.

When they descended the stairs to the tube station that night, they were each carrying a backpack with some books, pictures and other personal stuff they didn't want to leave behind in this world.

The most difficult part of their journey was the beginning. Once they had reached the network of tunnels unnoticed, it was no problem to get to the Veil. So while Padfoot led Liz and the twins along a way avoiding the security cameras, James ensured that no tube personnel would notice them.

For James and Padfoot, who already knew that nothing dangerous was waiting ahead of them, moving through the tunnel was a lot easier than for the other three. Together, Padfoot and James did what they could to reassure Liz and the twins to heighten their courage. Finally though, the whole family stood in front of the Veil.

For Liz, it seemed almost unreal that such a little piece of cloth was the only thing separating them from her home world.

Taking a deep breath, she looked around at her husband, her children and Padfoot. They all nodded solemnly back at her, indicating that they were ready to go.

Taking each other by the hand and Leo touching Padfoot on the back, all five of them stepped forward and tumbled through the cold darkness.