Seven Devils ★ T.M.R ★

Chapter Seventeen

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MUGGLES VERSUS MAGIC
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MARINA STEPPED OFF the bus and stretched her arms up to the sky, bending backwards to try to work the stiffness off her spine. She let out a primal groan as her vertebrae strained against the motion and pain erupted in her lower back.

"Explain to me again why a plane was off the table? How hard is it to fake a passport when you have magic wands?" she grumbled as Moody passed her, looking haggard.

"Not about the passports," he barked. "Muggles these days, airports have more and more security. Can't take a wand through one of those scanners without the whole thing lighting up like fireworks ..."

Remus heaved their bags out of the luggage hold and placed them heavily on the bricked pavement. Marina limped over, working her stiff legs clumsily.

"Can't you just memory wipe them?" Marina said desperately, leaning to one side as her leg cramped.

"Not easily, not with that many cameras," scowled Moody, seizing his bag from the pile. "You Muggles get more and more paranoid."

"Huh," Marina said, shooting Riddle a look as he lifted his bag onto his shoulder beside her. "Are you saying that Muggle security measures are superior –"

"Don't start," Riddle said flatly.

She smirked and followed Remus and Moody off down the road away from the small gaggle of passengers swarming around the bus. It was a clear evening, the cold air giving everything a sharp edge and the stars twinkled in the ink black sheet of the sky above. Marina wasn't sure where they were headed but she was too tired to care – they hadn't eaten properly in nearly ten hours and hadn't slept properly in three days. In silence they trekked down the quiet cobbled city street.

Finally, they came to a halt in front of a long expanse of yellowy stone brick wall that looked to form the side of a large hall. Moody looked around darkly before withdrawing his wand and placing his opposite hand flat on the wall. He muttered a muffled phrase in Albanian that Marina didn't understand and then pushed hard on the wall – with ease, a rectangular door-shaped section of the brick swung backwards without hinge or support. Moody immediately stepped through and Remus quickly guided both Marina and Riddle through the hole to allow the strange door to seal shut behind them seamlessly.

Inside was a cacophony of light and sound. Marina stared around the bar, unable to fathom how she had neither seen nor heard any of the commotion from just outside on the street. Hordes of drunken witches and wizards littered the bar with flagons of foaming golden drinks. They sat on tables, stools, bookcases, and the bar itself, yelling and singing under the warm glow of three ginormous swaying chandeliers that hung from a high stucco ceiling that was stretched with dark wooden beams. The noise was inescapable, and it took Marina a second to realise that Remus was trying to talk to her. She leaned towards him, trying to focus on his voice as a group nearby erupted into a raucous chorus of some drinking ballad.

"Alastor's getting the room keys!" Remus bellowed into her ear, still barely audible. "We're staying here tonight!"

He turned towards Riddle, evidently to tell him the same thing as Marina looked back around the bar in amusement. She wasn't sure they'd get much sleep, but it was certainly the liveliest leg of their journey so far. As she surveyed the crowd, a particular individual stood out in the worst way possible – an angry, roughened man with a broad chest and greasy clothes was making his way towards them with a determined, unpleasant look twisting his heavily moustached mouth. Behind him followed Moody with an equally ugly expression. Marina patted at Remus' arm, trying to catch his attention as the man grew closer. Remus turned and immediately took a step in front of Marina, shooting a questioning look at Moody whose scowl deepened in response.