An Old Friend

Luke's shift was an hour from ending, and it was becoming the longest sixty minutes of his life. He checked his watch in time to see the hand tick another minute away. Luke always wore it, yet in a lot of ways it was his own personal torture. Rarely did he look at it and be happy with what it displayed.

Gringotts was quite busy, and with the cold he had been permitted to stand inside the entrance rather than out in the sharp wind. It was orange inside the hall, from the large hanging lanterns which threw light onto crystal chandeliers. The place poured wealth and sophistication, yet the goblins were far from hospitable. They scowled as if every person was an inconvenience, and Luke often wondered if they believed the gold in the vaults was theirs, and they were simply lending it to the witches and wizards.

He refocused on the people, occasionally some would nod politely and smile at him, others would fidget guiltily just because he was a guard, and others ignored him completely. He clasped his hands behind his back and stretched his shoulders, easing the stiffness acquired from hours in one position. Glancing to the left he spotted a familiar face, and did a double take to check who it had been. The name escaped him for a moment, but as the man caught his eye it rushed back. Calvin Fawcett, he'd been at Hogwarts the same time as Luke, although was a little younger. Gryffindor, if Luke remembered correctly, and although they hadn't been close friends the wizard always seemed decent.

Luke gave him a small smile and nodded, waiting to see if Calvin would greet him. They hadn't spoken in a while and from the quick walk he'd guess the man was heading somewhere important. People were always in a rush going to the bank, in and out like debt collectors were on their heels. He may not even know who he was, and if he did there was no guarantee Calvin would want to engage in conversation, he may prefer to make a quick getaway.