“You don't understand man, the Aurors are after me!” Jerry says, watching his friend packing his stuff into a bag. The small apartment they were in was a mess. Time shuffles through things trying to find something.
The lights in the room flicker as Tim stops and steps up to Jerry. “Exactly. They're after 'You',” He points a finger towards Jerry's chest. “So that means as long as I get out of here before they arrive I'm good.” He then goes back to packing some small stuff and picks up his wand. He stands still for a few moments before his face pales. “Did you tell anyone about this place?”
Jerry looks hurt and betrayed, but stands his ground. “No! You think I'm stupid?”
“Yes I do!” Tim begins to run for the window, but a sudden explosion destroys the front door as two figures run into the room holding wands.
“Freeze! You are under arrest!” One of the two scream out as a third man silently and calmly walks through the carnage that is what used to be the front door. A flurry of spells suddenly fly through the room, one directly toward the third figure. Before the spell connects he quickly reaches into a holster and pulls a wand, deflecting the blast.
“My name is Joe and I warn you this one time to drop your wands.” Joe states amidst the confusion and blasts happening around him. The ratty haired Jerry drops his wand and puts his hands up. However, Tim continues to cast spells as he heads closer to the window.
Joe suddenly takes on an angry appearance and casts a spell that hits the window that Tim is going for. A split second later, Joe casts a second spell towards a second window in the kitchen. Seeing that he was not hit and the two larger men have stopped firing upon him, Tim decides to flee through the window. As he climbs through the window he turns and notices that he had just climbed back into the apartment through the kitchen window. Before he can grasp what had just happened, Joe points his wand towards Tim and says, “Exciant.”
All of a sudden Tim feels as if his body is slowly drifting backwards and notices that he is melding with the cabinets. “Hey wait I.....” Before he can finish Joe motioned his wand in a tearing manner and Tim's mouth disappeared.
Jerry stands there watching as his friend stops halfway into the cabinet and stays stuck like that as Joe walks over. Joe's demeanor had completely changed in the seconds of attacking Tim and now. He has a gentle smile plastered on his face and his entire demeanor felt calming. “Since your associate wanted to disobey me, it looks like you'll be the one to be questioned.”
As Joe pulls up a chair and sits in it, his two coworkers walk over to Tim, whose hands were trapped in the perfect manner to put on handcuffs. Joe snaps his fingers to grab Jerry's attention. “He will be fine. For now please answer some questions. It would be easier if you complied.” He pulls out a notebook and a quill.
Jerry shudders softly as he thinks back to the spells that he has never seen before performed on his friend. “Of course. I'm sorry.”
“Good, now where is your main hideout?”
Jerry shrugs and stutters, “I-I don't honestly know man. I'm a low time crook I swear!”
Joe writes something down and smiles up at Jerry. “No need to be nervous. My associates are off helping your friend, so it's just me and you here. I'm on your side even though it may not seem like it.” He lifts the quill and looks into Jerry's eyes. “So no hideout, but what about names? You have to know at least some of the people you have worked for right?”
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“Y-Yeah. I can give you a list of names, but none of them would be of the big timers. They don't like dealing with us.” Jerry spent the next ten minutes giving a long list of names. Some of which he wasn't too sure of. Once the chat ended one of the two Aurors who accompanied Joe walked in and put cuffs on Jerry, escorting him outside. The second guy walked in and put on a pair of leather gloves.
“Make sure you search every inch of this apartment. This bust could make or break both yours and Kevin's career.” Joe smiles and leaves the building. After walking exactly twenty feet from the building he disapparates and apparates outside of the Lansing Aurors office. He walks in and heads to his desk. He happily greets anyone who he comes across and steps in front of his secretary's desk.
“Hello sir!” The cute girl says as she lets a quill continue to write on a piece of parchment in front of her.
“Hello Marry. Any new cases?”
Marry shakes her head and states, “None that need your attention.”
Joe scoffs at the Idea that any case was below him. “Can you do me two favors? One is to write to that private investigator I hired and ask for a progress report. The second, give me any case that isn't currently being worked. No need to overwork the others.”
After a quick nod and confirmation from Marry, Joe walks into his office and sits at his desk. The wand box that he was handed by the wand maker laying on the table to the right. For a few moments he sits there ignoring the box, but just like anyone else, his curiosity got the better of him. He grabbed the box and looked it over.
The box seemed to have no lid or hinge, but at a closer inspection the top did have a seam. As he opened the box he noticed a set of inlayed hinges that when closed disappeared. This contraption was based on a mechanics design and not a magic one. Once opened, a foam bed helps the wand. The wand was a dark gray color, almost black, with a hint of red. The handle has a small bend in it, but was otherwise straight along the shaft. The wand was adorned with a metal leaf emblem embedded in the wood going from the handle to the wand's tip. They started out clustered, but got more scarce as they moved along the wand. A note came along with the box and Joe set the wand back down to read the note.
“Clearview Wand Shop
This is a 10 inch red Oakwood wand, with a Runespoor fang core. This particular wand has an Unyielding flexibility for those adamant in their mission. The leaves emblazoned across the wand are those of the Monstera plant. Made from pure silver by the help of some of the greatest goblin craftsmen on the market.
Thank you for shopping with the Clearview Wand Shop! We hope to see great things accomplished with your wand.
Yours kindly,
Matthew Clearview”
For a moment, Joe froze when he read what the core of this wand was. “So, you may be someone worth their mettle after all.” He says talking aloud. A smile came across his lips while looking at his new wand. He did notice that even though the wand was very professionally polished the silver leaves did not reflect any light from the candles floating around him.
While he was trying to polish the silver leaves a paper airplane landed on his desk and unfolded itself. The message read, “Unfortunately nothing in his workshop indicates who he is dealing with. Everything has been labeled by him personally. I'll say this though, the kid does know how to craft wands and stay highly organized while doing it. Everything is spotless. I did find something in his house though.” A picture of a creature in a particular style was drawn on the parchment. “This symbol was on a series of colored flags. I traced it down to a family who used to hunt beasts. The daughter is the only one working now. That's all I have for now. Will send another note when I have found more.”
Joe's smile widened as a realization came across him. The predominant Durham family was providing rare materials to the Clearview shop. How Matthew paid for the parts was still questionable, he thought.
“Time to make another visit.” Joe put down the wand back into the wooden box and began to leave. He stopped at the door and turned around walking back to his desk. The wand was very beautiful and might come in handy later on, he thought as he grabbed it from the box. In his coat was another pocket in which he stashed the wand before walking out of the door and building.