The four of them barely mao csp each other's hands seds befee's free hand closed in on the broomstick.

  Magnus felt a sudden lurch, and for a few seds, everything was lost in a swirl.

  When they made tact with the ground, Magnus would have fated were it not for the fact that he had been holding Lee's hands.

  "You alright? It isn't your first time using a Portkey, is it?"

  Magnus did not answer. He was fighting hard to keep himself from spilling out all the food he had just ied. He was, however, aware that the three were now scrutinizing him keenly.

  "He 't be a Muggle, he?" one of the twins was asking. "I mean, he is dressed like one."

  "Don't be a dud, Fred. Muggles 't walk into the Leaky Cauldron for a meal, they? I mean, they aren't supposed to eve," Lee answered.

  "Yeah… but he doesn't look like he’s used to all this, does he?" Fred insisted.

  Their sileold Magnus that they might be expeg him to offer some expnation, but another voice saved him the trouble.

  "Your tickets, please."

  Magnus straightened up to see another wizard approag them.

  They were standing just in front of the entrao what looked like a gigantic arena.

  Surprisingly, no sound was ing from inside, even though he khere should be. He could see the lines of people making their way in.

  Then again maybe they had masked the sound so you could only hear it once you were inside.

  The four of them took turns showing their tickets to the guy, who eventually stepped aside to usher them in.

  He must have been right because the moment his feet crossed the threshold of the gates, his ears were almost deafened by the sudden noise.

  "Whoa… look at that... the betting booth is packed!"

  "You mean Charizard's line is packed?" Gee asked his brother.

  And true enough, when Magnus looked at the shiny ented board ahead of the line, he could see the green glowiers indig it was for Charizard. Beh the name was the odds, which were currently at 1.9. But even as he looked, the st figure dropped to a.

  There was a thunderous, disgruntled moan from the people in the line. Apparently, the gamblers were pining about the slow pace, despite the fact that Magnus could see the line was moving pretty fast. He, however, khe feeling—most wao pce their bets before the odds dropped even further.

  "Looks like your line is free, mate," Fred said to Magnus as he poio the opposite booth.

  It was just a meter apart from the Charizard booth. Magnus stared at the red letters indig Gyarados beh it.

  He was even more surprised to see that, instead of the four the three had predicted, it had a o it. It, however, wasy as Fred insihere were three people in the line, whom the others from the Charizard queue stared at as if they were the dumbest people alive.

  "Blimey, Gee, I think he finally sees what we meant... I think he’s ged his mind," Fred smiled, patting Magnus’s shoulder.

  "That’s what I thought," answered Gee, as yet another furious roar of protest came from the Charizard queue.

  The odds had fallen once more—now it was at 1.5.

  Without pausing to give more room to the doubts f inside him, Magnus drew out the three Galleons from his pocket and rushed just behind the st guy being served at the Gyarados queue.

  He could hear the three friends rushing after him.

  "All on Gyarados to win the first round," he said, pg his Galleons on the ter.

  The guy behind it took a sed, scrutinizing Magnus like he was pting whether to send him away. But Magnus khere was no Ministry regution barring him from betting.

  The guy then turned his attention to the gold. Maybe he thought it was lepre gold, Magnus thought.

  "You sure, kid? I mean, most folks are rooting for the Manticores," the man said, nodding over to the long queue o them.

  "I’m sure," Magnus answered firmly.

  "Brave choice, d… Let me see," the man said, pig up a quill and scribbling on a piece of part. "That shall be 24 Galleons should Lady Luck smile on you."

  'Scratch luck' , he wao say... type advantage was already on his side.

  Turning the part so that he could see it, the man expined something Magnus had been preparing to ask.

  "See these two bnk lines here? Well, that’s because the Pokémons pying the other two rounds haven’t been revealed yet. But when they are, their names will appear there with odds o them. If you win the first round—which you’ll know because the 24 Galleons written in red will turn gold with ‘WOo them—you may use a portion of that or the whole amount to py the other two rounds. Just scribble the betting amouo the odds here," he said, indig another bnk space beh the eight.

  "Here," he plucked out a quill from a stad ha to Magnus.

  "Use this wheime is right. Be quite sure because whatever you write ot be undone. And don’t bother writing anything you haven’t won—it won’t work. Uood?"

  Magnus nodded.

  "Alright, best of luck, chap."

  And with that, the ma his three Galleons with a beaming smile, as if the ticket was already lost.

  Magnus turo leave, and the three friends, who had been watg everything, fell in step with him in awe.

  "Tell you what, mate," said Fred, "whatever else you are… you definitely have balls. That was three freaking Galleons you just gave away! You saw the guy’s face; he thought you were a git."

  "Well, let’s see the same face when he pays up," Magnus answered as he carefully folded the part and pced it in his pocket.

  "Oh, they alay up, alright. That’s what keeps them in business," Lee affirmed.

  The four had to show their tickets to two more officials before they were eventually directed to their designated seats, which were adjat to each other. They were, however, quite low oands, bringing them very o the floor of the arena.

  Magnus hat the floor of the arena was made of pih—no lush forest here like in the a looked more like an a gdiator arena.

  "Oh crap… I told you guys we should’ve hurried," Fred yelled above the noise of the crowd. "Now, by the end of the first round, our necks shall be stiff as rock!"

  Magnus knew Fred was right.

  Both Charizard and Gyarados could fly, though the former did not prefer it much. But ohey both took the a into the air, ing their necks upward would require extra energy.

  On the plus side, though, they would enjoy every ground duel without a problem.

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