Chapter 473: The Irritable Tonks
Early the next morning, everyone gathered in front of The Burrow, ready to head to King's Cross Station.
Soon, a blue Ministry car approached. Normally, these cars were hard to come by, but when Fudge heard Harry was staying with the Weasleys, he ensured they got the best one. It was his way of returning a favor. Since Harry had kept silent about the assassination attempt after leaving the Ministry, it saved them significant trouble. Lending a car to get to the station seemed like a fair trade—and besides, it was safer this way.
The Ministry had confirmed that the employee who tried to kill Harry had indeed been under the Imperius Curse. To prevent any further incidents before Harry returned to Hogwarts, Fudge even assigned an Auror to drive them. However, the chosen Auror, Tonks, didn't inspire much confidence.
With her fiery red hair and clearly foul mood, Tonks spent the entire drive muttering or outright cursing. She even berated Bill for not helping her shout at a driver who cut them off. Ginny, sitting right behind her, hugged her arms and shivered, barely daring to breathe for fear that Tonks might turn on her next.
No one spoke much on the way—starting school again was bittersweet enough without a grumpy driver. The car remained eerily silent until, at last, they pulled up at King's Cross Station.
Tonks was the first to hop out, and the moment she opened the door, her hair shifted from red to a bright bubblegum pink. "We're here," she said, smiling as she tapped the car door. "Everyone out—don't forget your luggage."
Without a word, they all climbed out, retrieved their trunks from the boot, and made their way toward the station. Not a single person spoke, not even Fred and George, usually the loudest of the bunch. It wasn't until they'd passed through the barrier and were safely on Platform 9¾ that Fred let out a deep breath of relief.
"By Merlin's beard, I swear I'm never riding with Tonks again!" he exclaimed.
"If it happens again, I'll walk from home!" George agreed.
The others nodded in emphatic agreement.
"Alright, let's go," Mrs. Weasley said, laughing lightly. "Tonks is a good person... provided she's not driving," she muttered under her breath. Mrs. Weasley had never realized how fierce Tonks could be behind the wheel. She'd tried several times to remind Tonks to keep her temper in check, but whenever she spoke up, Tonks was too caught up in her irritation to hear her. In the end, Mrs. Weasley had just sighed and let it go.