Post by Luke Baxter on Dec 27, 2014 23:57:27 GMT
Luke Baxter had been standing at the entrance to Gringotts for all of Monday morning. Exactly twenty eight people had entered, mostly made up of elderly witches and wizards who would exit with a tiny bag of coins clutched in their hands. It was always slow at the start of the week, and his job seemed almost completely pointless. What trouble would they cause in the secure and intimidating bank? Most of them ignored him, but occasionally he would recieve a polite greeting. It was cold, but not enough that he was able to stand inside where the Goblins kept the hall warm all year round. Luke glanced up at the skies and sighed at the blue blanket, wishing a cloud of snow would fall already.
A hand tapped his shoulder and he glanced at his temproary replacement, meaning he could go and eat. Luke nodded once to the wizard before striding down the stone steps, heading directly for a tearoom he visted every day. It was small and quiet, without the noise of the Leaky Cauldron where people felt the need to make idle conversation. He liked it, knowing that for a while he wouldn't have to worry about coming up with questions to ask strangers.
Luke walked with purpose, eyes skimming the shop windows as he passed, despite seeing them every day. He was almost at the tearoom, when something caught his eye and made him slow. Red. It had been auburn red, and printed in his mind like a photograph in a split second. He was still walking, but visions of the street flitted through his head. Flourish and Blotts, he was sure that the shop had been the famous bookstore. He could picture the window display clearly, the stacks of tomes, some open and some closed, an array of black and white, with muted colours for covers. Never, had anything in that display stolen his attention before, and it irritated him that he hadn't seen it properly.
Luke had an excellent memory, and once he'd seen something, he would be able to recall it for a long time after. He didn't need to make the decision before his steps slowed until he came to a complete stop. Luke had to know what the red had been, something deep in his gut wouldn't let it rest. He exhaled sharply before glancing behind him at the shop, its wooden sign hanging out into the air. He walked back, ignoring the frustrated groan of his empty stomach. He paused outside and peered into the store, searching for some hint of orange streaked red, but there was none. Luke knew he should leave, and continue to have his lunch before he ran out of time...but he couldn't. It would bother him, such was the nature of his curiosity.
The wizard scratched his face, feeling the resistance from his slight stubble before grasping the door handle and pushing it open. A bell chimed and he glanced up automatically as he stepped into the shop. Letting the door shut behind him, Luke skimmed the quiet room quickly. Footsteps alerted him to another presence and his focus darted onto a girl who appeared to work there. "Good morning," he greeted stiffly, ignoring the mixture of satisfaction and intrigue at her flow of red hair.
