sins of the fathers [cameron]

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It was Sunday, and Aras was second-guessing his decision to keep the shop open. It was pouring outside, as was typical for March in London, and it seemed like not a single soul had wanted to venture into Diagon Alley that day. He couldn't blame them - he had barely dragged himself out of bed and down the stairs to get to the shop, and that was definitely less work than walking through the endless deluge. Aras had already put a plethora of door mats just inside the door of the store, not wanting the wood floors to get too wet and warp when people stepped inside. Since no one seemed to be coming inside anytime soon, it seemed like a waste of effort. Eventually, Aras had just ducked into the back of the store to continue working on a new wand. He knew that if anyone came into the store, he'd hear the ring of the bell, or the whoosh of the wind and the rain - likely both. Even though he told himself he was working, Aras was just sitting at his work bench, staring at a slab of mahogany wood and trying to decide if he ought to close the shop and have a bit of a lie-in on this rainy weekend.

@cameron

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tagged @aras words 216 notes sorry it took so long.

It was raining outside but sadly that wouldn’t stop Cameron. He accidently broke his wand and needed a new one. He had sent an owl to his parents the previous night explaining what had happened. Thankfully they sent him the money for it. Now he broke it Friday night and he was thankful it was the weekend so he didn’t have any classes after he broke it. Cameron had wanted to show off in front of girls, like he had seen older boys, but Cameron’s idea backfired on him. So, as he got up and dressed that morning he decided to go to Ollivander’s early. He had homework to do, and other things that he wanted to get done that day. It wouldn’t be a good idea to what till the afternoon to go. He used the fireplace in the common room, with permission of course, to floo to the Leaky Cauldron and then went to Ollivander’s from there. He opened the door slowly and walked inside. He had on a jacket but forgot his umbrella so he was soaked. He took his jacket off and set it so he wouldn’t drip but so much water on the floor. He shook his head getting some of the water off before he stepped further into the shop.

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Aras heard the bell chime to signal the entrance of a customer, and he deflated a lot. So much for having a lie-in – now that someone was here, he couldn’t well close the shop. Well, at least this meant that it had been worth waking up, since he was getting some business. When he emerged from the workshop, Aras was faced with a young boy that looked like more of a drowned rat than a person. He looked like he was too young to be anything other than a Hogwarts student, and if he didn’t have a wand (and why else would he be in the shop?) the boy probably would have a hell of a time trying to dry himself off. Aras cast a quick drying spell on the boy’s drenched robes so that he wouldn’t drip all over the floors, and then gestured for the boy to approach the front counter instead of standing on the island of rugs that was near the door. “How can I help you today?” Aras asked, voice a little gentler than normal since it was just a kid. Normally they came with their parents, but it seemed this boy was alone.

@cameron

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tagged @aras words 132 notes sorry for the wait.

Cameron hated that he had broken his wand. He had it for five years, five good years. He excelled in charms and transfiguration with that wand. What would his new wand be like? Would he still excel in those classes with this new wand? He knew he couldn’t request that kind of wand because it wasn’t up for him to decide what his new wand was. His internal rambling could get exhausting sometimes. When the man who owned the shop came out and took one look at him. He immediately dried Cameron and his clothes. Cameron went over to the counter upon the man’s silent request. He asked him how he could help him today. He sighed holding up his broken wand. I just need a new wand sir he said sadly.

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Aras winced a little when he saw the broken wand that the boy held up. He absolutely hated it when people came in with broken wands. It was like a piece of his heart – or his father’s heart, or his grandfather’s heart, all the way up to the first Ollivander who had made wands (since some of them still remained unsold, waiting for their wizard) – had broken, too. Nevertheless, he waved his hand so that the measuring tapes could begin taking stock of the boy’s body. Aras bit his lip as he looked at the boy, trying to ascertain what length would be best. “What house are you in at Hogwarts?” He asked. It could pass as small talk, but really Aras was interested in figuring out a bit more about the boy’s personality and what woods and cores would work best for him. The old, broken wand appeared to be apple wood and unicorn hair, but Aras doubted the new one would be the same, since wizards changes as they grew, and so too would their wands.

@cameron

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tagged @aras words 000 notes anything here.

Cameron hated that he had broken his wand. He felt bad because for five years this wand had been with him. The guy there had measuring tape getting Cameron’s measurements so he could get his new wand. He stood there as still as possible so they could take the measurements. He sighed as his eyes roamed around the room. It was hard for him to stay completely still. His nose started twitching. The man asked him what house he was in. He wondered what that had to do with getting his new wand. That wasn’t something that was needed when he first got it, but then again, he didn’t know his house at that point. What did Cameron know anyway? This guy made wands for a living. Ravenclaw sir he said.

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The boy seemed rather twitchy, and Aras wondered if it was because the wand store disturbed him. Most children, upon entering Ollivander’s for the first time, were too excited about what was to come – that was, getting a wand and learning magic – to think about how strange the entire experience could be, with a virtual stranger poking and prodding them to figure out what wand would be the best match for their personality and for their magic. Aras finished scratching the last of the measurements onto a piece of parchment, scanning them over. He’d start with a slightly shorter wand, since the boy was fairly short for his age. “Ah. I was in Ravenclaw house when I was at Hogwarts.” Aras said, attempting to make small talk as he began pulling down wands for the boy to try, all nine inches or a little bit under. “What do you think of that eagle knocker? I both loved and hated it when I couldn’t answer a riddle.” It frustrated Aras to no end when he couldn’t get in because of a tricky riddle, but at the same time, being stuck outside was a learning experience, as was learning the answer to the elusive puzzle.

@cameron

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tagged @aras words 000 notes anything here.

Getting measurements was not Cameron’s cup of tea. He hated this process. He didn’t mind getting a wand or being in here. He loved this shop, he just didn’t want to have to replace his wand. He had tried to fix it with spells and even tape. Nothing worked. As he was being measured he looked where his old wand was laying. Do you think I will get one just like my old one he said with a hint of sadness in his voice. He had loved his wand and the idea of having any other kind broke his heart. He knew he needed a new one though. When Aras said he was in Ravenclaw Cameron looked at him and smiled. Really that’s cool he said. Cameron loved his house and was proud to be in Ravenclaw, plus that was how he got to meet Kinsey Bainbridge. He smiled and said yeah the riddles are great except when you are coming from the library or kitchens close to bed time and beyond exhausted and you can’t really think straight to answer the riddle. That had happened to Cameron a few times.

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The kid asked if he was going to get another wand just like his old one, and the corners of Aras’s lips turned into a frown. If he wanted a wand like his old one, he shouldn’t have broken the old one, and then they’d both be saved a lot of trouble. “No, probably not.” Aras answered instead. “People change and grow, and what fit you at eleven might not fit you now.” Aras couldn’t peg the kid’s age exactly, but he was definitely older than eleven – probably mid-teens, if the wandmaker had to hazard a guess. “And we don’t really make identical wands here, either.” They had wands with twin cores, but even those were rare. The art of wandlore involved anticipating the needs of anyone and everyone, which meant making a wide variety of wands that would eventually be paired with their proper wizard. “Cool, indeed.” Aras said, trying to bite back a smirk at the word. When was the last time he had been called cool? “Part of being wise, instead of just intelligent, is being able to think even under duress.” The wandmaker said. That was why he didn’t consider himself particularly wise. When things had started going south, Aras hadn’t taken the time to step back and regroup and think. He had just bullied his way through his problems, which hadn’t ended well.

@cameron

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tagged @aras words 000 notes anything here.

Cameron was disappointed when Aras told him that he wasn’t going to get a wand just like his old one. He knew he probably wouldn’t, but he had hoped that he could. As Aras kept telling him about wands, and how exactly making them work and everything Camerons heart dropped. All he wanted was a wand just like his old one. He didn’t mean to break it, a spell just backfired on him and things just kind of happened. I just…I loved my old wand. I didn’t mean to break it honestly. There were these girls in the hallway and I like trying to come up with new spells sometimes so I was going to show off with one of them and it backfired on me he said finally admitting the truth out loud. He knew it was going to sound stupid to other people, it was a stupid thing to do. Cameron wished he could take it back. He smiled a little when Aras said cool indeed. Cameron thought on the next part of what Aras said about being in Ravenclaw. Guess I am not that great of a Ravenclaw then. I don’t think a lot of times before I do something he said with a shrug of his shoulders.

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Aras arched an eyebrow when the kid said that he had loved his old wand, and didn’t mean to break it. He highly doubted anyone snapped their wand purposefully (not with how expensive they could be) but the point still stood that there was normally carelessness at hand when wands broke. The kid’s story just confirmed Aras’s prejudice – showing off for girls definitely wasn’t an acceptable excuse in his book. Then again, Aras also didn’t find others all that interesting, so who knew what sort of hormones were driving the kid to his recklessness. Making up new spells was more interesting, but if one backfired Aras assumed that the young Ravenclaw hadn’t done his proper research beforehand. Again with the stupid choices, he thought with a sigh. At least there was one thing positive that he could say when the boy lamented that he wasn’t a very good Ravenclaw. “You’re young.” Aras assured the kid. “You still have time to grow.” No one expected a teenager to be able to do everything perfectly – except for probably the teenager themselves. Aras wasn’t meaning to make the younger Ravenclaw feel bad, but he was worried that was all he had achieved with his comment, so he decided not to say anything else.

@cameron

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tagged @aras words 000 notes sorry its short doing this at work

Cameron had a feeling that Aras wasn’t happy about the wand breaking, even though it was his job to sell them. Cameron didn’t like that he broke it either, and neither was his parents. Cameron stood there as he continued to work only looking up at him for brief moments. Aras said to him that he was young and that Cameron still had time to grow. Cameron knew he was right he just wished that meant in height and not mind. Maybe I will get taller he said but he doubted that. Cameron would love to be a little taller, like most other boys his age. He had always been shorter than the average boy his age. It was a reason he constantly got picked on since he started Hogwarts.

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Getting taller hadn’t exactly been what Aras was talking about when he mentioned growing, and he was a bit perturbed that that was all the kid had gotten out of his statement. His whole shtick of being the wise old wandmaker didn’t work that well if people weren’t willing to look deeper into his statements than just the surface-level stuff. Maybe, Aras thought, he should just give up on trying to be his father or his grandfather with their wisdom and everything. “Yeah, if you eat your vegetables.” Aras said, cracking a joke. He hoped that the kid’s parents appreciated his plug for healthy eating, because that was about the only thing he didn’t feel hypocritical about. Aras managed to finish taking the kid’s measurements, and pulled a couple of wands from the shelves. “Why don’t you try these out?”

@cameron