odd requests | nell

[Deleted]

real elegance is in the mind.

3RD JANUARY 2025

SMOKING WASN’T EXACTLY permitted in the Ollivander’s Wand store. But with recent events being as stressful as they can be, it was a rule Veronica allowed herself to break. In the open, not too far from the windows of the shop the eldest Ollivander sat, the muggle item sitting comfortably between her middle and index finger. The days that passed were filled with chaos, Hogsmeade had been attacked with dragons and Azkaban had fallen, allowing many dangerous prisoners to escape. In the midst of worrying as her son enjoyed the festivities of the Winter Festival, it was safe to say he was perfectly fine. He gained a small battle scar (or so he loved to call it, it was truthfully a cut on his left cheek), but all was well…Except Veronica’s stress levels.

From it, Ollivanders’ in terms of a store had gained more customers. And while it was usually a good thing, the main and only wand-maker was Veronica herself. Eleanor provided help…As an apprentice, considering she refused to promote Eleanor and ultimately challenge her status as the owner. Veronica always believed it would benefit her in the long run, even then, maybe one day she wouldn’t be so cruel. Maybe. As she sat, the brunette let out a sigh, looking down at the carvings she had begun for the new wand. She knew how she wanted to complete this wand, but the line of ten or so bothered her mind. It would take hours to even finish three.

”Eleanor!” Veronica called, knowing her sister would be somewhere within the store. She knew what she was about to request was probably…Insane, words that had never left her lips before, but it was necessary. Needed now more than ever. ”Merlin, where is that girl?” She questioned, swivelling in her seat, the smoke coming from the cigarette following too. ”Eleanor!”

eleanor gwendolen ollivander & hopefully this works!

NEVERLAND at ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0!

[eleanor gwendolen ollivander]

veronica giselle ollivander

01.03.2025

Hell was the only appropriate descriptor for how the last week at the shop had been. The only other time of year that came even close to this was when all the first years got their Hogwarts letters, and that was to be expected. The dragon attack in Hogsmeade had left more than just a few wands in shambles; decades of wandmaking had been crushed, snapped, and eviscerated from existence by the flying lizards and their ensuing destruction of the magical community. Any normal day in Hogsmeade wouldn’t have been all that bad, but apparently there had been a winter festival of sorts going on, which meant the town was bursting at the seams with witches and wizards from all over. A Hogsmeade weekend from Hogwarts would even pale in comparison to that crowd.

The stress levels in the shop would have been lower if Veronica let her work on wands more than normally did. This was one of those moments where it should have been absolutely necessary for them to try and recoup as much of their stock as possible, putting all hands on deck. Instead, Nell was taking inventory in the back, trying to calculate how many core materials they actually had. She was sure Veronica wasn’t going to sleep for the next few weeks, essentially killing herself because she refused to let Nell handle the wandmaking. The thing was, Nell knew how to do all of it. She had for the last seven years. Her sister’s unwillingness to promote her to a full-time wandmaker (officially) was asinine and driven purely by her own pettiness. It was getting to a point now where all of her savings as an ‘apprentice’ were going to a fund where she could open her own shop. The private wandmaking was going well enough, and a small storefront in Horizon Alley wasn’t completely out of reach. She had a certain kind of clientele that liked the Ollivander quality of wand but diverged from their classic three core philosophy. People wanted unique wands these days, and for centuries they either had dragon heartstring, phoenix feather, or unicorn hair. Those were boring, and quite honestly, weren’t as potent of magical cores as some others were.

Nell wouldn’t dare utter that opinion in front of her sister or older relatives, since they basically lived and died by that philosophy, but it didn’t keep her from slowing down on her side hustle. Veronica wasn’t going to sabotage her career for the rest of her life because of her insecurities, and being disowned wasn’t exactly something she was scared of either. They had already basically done that to Frankie, and Gabriel was allowed to pursue his acting or whatever. If anything, providing competition for the family business would only prove that Ollivanders always had superior wands.

The thought had placed a smug expression on her face as she sorted through their wand supplies, causing her to completely miss the first time her name was called. The second ‘Eleanor!’ ripped her back into reality. Using her full name was Veronica’s way of exerting control, or at least that was what Nell had convinced herself. She had always done it and didn’t look like she was anywhere close to stopping. At some point she even managed to get her son and Gabriel to do it as well, and hearing such an old-fashioned name come out of their mouths was equivalent to being stabbed in the ears over and over again. The name was grating and she disliked the formality it brought on, especially when there were plenty of nicknames to replace it.

Veronica’s summon was the sort that required Nell to walk to the front of the shop; she wouldn’t settle for a yelling conversation back and forth. Especially not right now. “Coming!” she hollered back, unsure if her sister had heard her or not. Marking an opened box of unicorn hair with a pen and setting her inventory list down on top, she straightened out her shirt and headed towards where her sister had been puffing away on cigarettes all day. “Yes?” she said as she came to a stop a few feet away from her. She felt like a child, being hailed in such a manner and then capitulating to whatever her sister wanted her to do. But work was work.

[Deleted]

real elegance is in the mind.

ELEANOR WAS THE type to wander off and remain lost. And all the Ollivander’s knew it. As a whole, Veronica was quite strict with punctuality and the actual capability to listen to others, but Eleanor seemed to break those rules too. In her regular state, the eldest would’ve been furious, threatening her to use all of Merlin’s spells under the bloody sun. But with a busy mind and a lack of sleep, Veronica waved the thought of even yelling about it. Turning back to how she originally sat, the eldest straightened herself against her chair, the slouch she had developed when she worked taking a toll on her back as the hours passed on. Dark eyes wandered down to where the wand laid, the secondary carving on the under-side of the wand half-completed. The brunette knew she had no motivation to finish it, especially with a million other things to do.

The holler she heard in return was met with an eye-roll, leading to the Ollivander to push the muggle item into her lips. With the bitterness of the nicotine entering her system, Veronica exhaled the excess, her thumb flicking to discard the ashes before going again. The process of smoking was somewhat natural for the Ollivander…Inhale…Hold…Breathe a little deeper…Exhale, the common things. When she was younger, smoking was out of the picture — the idea of it being rather disgusting back then. Now, without at least three of the small little things scattered around her home or even work, she would go absolutely insane. When Eleanor made her presence known, standing in front of Veronica, dark eyes trailed up to where her younger sister stood. The Ollivander had always been rarely interested in Eleanor’s affairs, but if the two were ever close, the first she would change is Eleanor’s attire. Her nose scrunched up in disgust, while her teeth nibbled on the cigarette, blowing smoke out of the other side of her mouth.

”I called you twice.” She muttered, the palm of her hand resting against her head, the smoke trail of the cigarette in her fingers lingering to the ajar windows. ”One time should’ve been enough.” She added, dropping the cigarette into the ash tray. The request Veronica had lined up for the younger Ollivander was one she never imagined herself to ask, especially since Veronica was the one to never seek out a favour of any sorts. ”I need…Your help.” The pause between the two sentences left Veronica’s throat dry, but she swallowed her pride. Just for this moment anyway. ”The carvings. There’s too many wands for me to focus on all at once. And the cores. Each wand I’ve completed the carving for needs to be sectioned with the appropriate core.” Pushing herself back from the desk to stand from her seat, eyes crossed over to her sister. ”Can you do that?”

eleanor gwendolen ollivander

NEVERLAND at ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0!

[eleanor gwendolen ollivander]

veronica giselle ollivander

01.03.2025

Smoking was a nasty habit, and the sort that clung to Veronica as far back as Nell could remember. Being almost ten years her senior, the older Ollivander always seemed to be twirling the death sticks somewhere between her fingers or dangling one out of her mouth; especially in times of stress. Nell could always smell her sister’s stress before she saw it, because the wafting cloud of cigarette smoke hit her nose first. She wasn’t a saint when it came to the things though – Nell had her share of them right out of school, but had gone cold turkey the second she saw herself starting to turn into a mini-me of her sister. The last thing she needed was to be compared to Veronica even more, considering she was trying to break out of the family store and strike out on her own.

Nonetheless, the ever present irritation that Veronica had for Nell refused to cease, even when she was apparently needed to help with the store. The inventory detail she had been placed on earlier in the day apparently didn’t matter anymore, and being talked down to was the sign that her next task was at hand. Nell bit down on her tongue and tightened her jaw to keep herself from snapping back like she was known to do on occasion. This was a battle she had never won, after all.

Thankfully keeping her mouth shut was the right choice today, and her eyes widened as her sister asked her for help. On wands. With the cores. Nell knew her mouth opened, jaw suddenly slack and probably looking stupid with her sister’s sudden request. “Uh, yeah…of course I can,” she responded, her surprise being pushed aside to make more room for her confidence. As far as she knew, Veronica hadn’t the foggiest about the side projects she had been taking on over the last few years. Her own personal supply of wands was growing, at her own expense of course, and a few buyers had taken interest in the last couple of months. Placing cores inside the wands was simple work, especially since the family business only revolved around three of them. In her personal experience, there were more volatile ones out there, unicorn hair being a cake walk.

“Are you leaving it up to my discretion which cores go in which wand, or do you have it all worked out already and just want me to place them in?” There was a huge difference in the two, and in the past it had only ever been the later. Realistically speaking, these were Veronica Ollivander’s wands at the end of the day, and Nell was simply her apprentice. Her apprentice that was moonlighting as a private wandmaker. It didn’t hurt to ask which Veronica wanted though, and if it ended up being the former, that would be a step closer to striking out on her own officially.

[Deleted]

real elegance is in the mind.

THE STRONG SMELL OF nicotine was one that bugged Veronica for a few months when smoking became her play-thing, the muggle-diseased, cancerous thing to rely on when stress took over her mind. With the years passing and stress swallowing the Ollivander whole, packs were bought almost daily and gone through almost entirely depending on how the day went by. Ollivanders as a store was rather quiet throughout the term, their peak times being for when the young witches and wizards required new wands, only leaving Veronica wallowing in the depressing feeling of boredom. A time of silence where she was dazed from her mind, thinking of past events and only ridding more stress and anger out of herself. Her divorce was the worst thing yet the thirty-four year old faced, an event in time she still refused to talk with, not even to her son.

Clearing her throat, Veronica nodded. Once, twice, and continuous as she moved away from her chair, her nicotine smothered hands smoothing down the skirt of her dress, even though it didn’t need to be done. After all, she did subconsciously iron the damn thing twice. ”Okay…Okay.” She repeated to herself in a mumble, continuing to nod. The eldest Ollivander then looked up, forcing a smile upon her lips as the heavy weight — asking her sister for a favour; (she would rather be struck dead than ask another) — left her shoulders, her right hand raising, fingers twirling to their side for the wandless and non-verbal magic to tie in with one another, wooden drawers opening to reveal the wands she had completed carving, the ones she had begun and the cores that were sectioned. At her sister’s next question, Veronica felt her eyes roll. This is exactly why Eleanor would always be her apprentice. Unlike her son, Gideon would bat an eyelash, yelping out a ’Yes Mother!’, before getting his hands on the wands and the cores — wasting no time at all.

”For the ones that have their carvings complete, the cores have already been chosen. The ones that are…Half complete…” Veronica stopped, her arms folding in front of her, while her head cocked to the side, eyes narrowing and crossing back and forth between the wands themselves and her sister. ”Go ahead with those ones. Surprise me the same way Gideon would.” While Veronica was a stubborn and mean boss to her sister most of the time, creative freedom was always…Valid in an Ollivander store.

eleanor gwendolen ollivander

NEVERLAND at ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0!

[eleanor gwendolen ollivander]

veronica giselle ollivander

01.03.2025

There had to be judgement somewhere in there. It was impossible to get through a conversation with Veronica without it oozing out. If it wasn’t in her words, it was shown in her actions; a flick of her wrist during a command, or a tilt of her head when she didn’t like the way Nell asked a question. Today, it was the eye-roll. Sometimes Nell wondered if her sister even knew she was doing those things, because consciously doing them had to take a considerable amount of energy and thought. At this point in her life, it had to be subconscious. She did have a whole nine years to perfect it before Nell popped into the world, and four of those were spent practicing on a defunct Frankie. She always supposed it could be worse, her older brother bearing the brunt of the eldest Ollivander’s wrath in virtually every aspect of life. Gideon didn’t even know of his oldest uncle, and Nell felt like she was forbidden from ever bringing it up. An eye-roll would have been the least of her worries at that point.

Veronica apparently decided that she was going to entertain the idea of allowing Nell to do what she wished on half of the wands, and that had the younger Ollivander shifting uncomfortably on her feet. Even if what she did was fine – the correct cores in the wands and combinations that made sense – Veronica was certainly going to criticize them like they were useless and unsellable. If they were junk to her though, Nell was sure she could repurpose them for her growing collection. She would need all the wands she could get in the coming months, because moonlighting as a private seller would eventually become more lucrative. For now, doing the grunt work as a yes-man would have to do. “Shouldn’t take too long then,” she said cheerfully, though there was a distinct lack of enthusiasm in her words. Rolling up her sleeves, she went to work.

---

The shop was closed for the day, but that only meant now was the time to get the rest of the day’s work finished. Nell had already completed filling in the finished wands with their proper cores. It was an easy enough task, something even her nephew was seen doing during his breaks from school. In her opinion, he wasn’t the most delicate he could be when it came to wiring the cores in; that was a skill that came with years of experience. Years that he didn’t have, and years that Veronica seemed to think Nell lacked. Her sister often forgot that they were both taught the basics by their father, who, for all intents and purposes, was a fantastic craftsman during his short stint in the shop. Just because Veronica learned from him first didn’t necessarily make her the better wandmaker. She only had more experience at the end of the day.

With the first task aside, Nell had started on the other set of wands, the ones that required their own carvings and in which she was allowed to pick the core she wanted to place inside. She finished her first of the group rather quickly, deciding that the ebony wood was better suited for a rather basic hilt and a unicorn hair core. It was the sort of wand that, if she was held at knife point to pick one single wand from the family’s store and no other, she would pick something like this one. The ebony wood was suited for those with a need for autonomy and control over themselves, and the unicorn hair was a solid all around core to place in it. Nell was sure her sister would make the argument that a wand of this personality would be better suited for a phoenix feather, but she was more than positive that a combination like that would end up being a fight for whichever young witch or wizard acquired it. “Thoughts?” she called across the store to Veronica, floating the newly finished wand directly in front of her sister’s face so that she couldn’t miss it.

[Deleted]

real elegance is in the mind.

PRIDE, FIRST IMPRESSIONS AND ENVY were all things the eldest Ollivander learned as a child to wean into her growing lifestyle. Pride was the only emotion one felt when something was truly accomplished, not when a mistake was changed, fixed, or a second option was provided, but simply when it was done correctly the first time. First impressions weaved into the first, if dressed improperly, how could anyone take Veronica seriously? How could her son see her as an independent mother, stern but loving, or even her siblings! The fear they exude kept the eldest at bay, but it also showed just how much control Veronica really had. And how she simply had nothing to worry for. Maybe additional details of her divorce popping out of no where would seem to be a problem but aside from it…All was well. So using her control to decrease the pile she had created for herself was…intriguing. Especially since the busy body was Eleanor, over Veronica herself. The cheer she sent the owner’s way was met with a distinctive thin line of her lips, watching briefly as the younger Ollivander rolled her sleeves before heading back to her own hidey-hole, consumed by the fumes of cigarettes.

Given the day, it was only fair that the store remained closed, allowing the two women to catch up on the bundles of orders for the students who were to receive new wands as late Christmas gifts, or even gifts in general. Not paying attention to the time, Veronica rustled her newspaper at the sound of her sister calling out. As the Ollivander looked up, the wand floated before her, but it only left her a little…confused. ”Explain the craft.” She called back, putting the newspaper down to reach out for the wand, feeling the ridges her sister had created. ”A little odd to go for Unicorn’s hair…A phoenix feather would have been a wiser choice.” She added in, turning the wand to peer upon all angles, waiting to hear her sister’s description of the wand.

eleanor gwendolen ollivander

NEVERLAND at ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0!

[eleanor gwendolen ollivander]

veronica giselle ollivander

01.03.2025

The way the newspaper Veronica was reading ended up being folded and set to the side was all Nell needed to know that she was about to enter the judgmental part of the job. Her years of ‘experience’ had taught her as much, and her sister had a number of warning signs to indicate that she was ruffled or perturbed. Of course the first thing she would notice was that the core wasn’t a phoenix feather; Nell had expected as much. Breaking into explanations was at least seventy percent of her job as it was: explaining why she made wands a certain way or why she took inventory at the end of the week instead of the beginning or why she lacked a spine to pack her tools up and open her own store. She was already halfway there with a decent stock, all made from the scraps and leftovers that Veronica refused to use, the rest paid for out of her own pocket. If this wand ended up being rejected as well, in the sense that her sister refused to sell it in the store, she would probably also take it and add it to her growing collection. All the workings and love of an Ollivander but just a bit different. That was the best way she could explain her wands.

“I was thinking it would be better suited as a starter wand. Obviously phoenix feather cores have a lot of power on their own and paired with ebony can be a powerful combination, but a student wouldn’t be able to handle something like that. Unicorn hair allows an even balance across everything, and lets the witch or wizard still have the freedom they want. Last thing we need are more complaints of first years accidentally blowing up their cauldrons because their phoenix feather wands are too touchy,” Nell explained at length. It was possible Veronica wouldn’t buy it – because that was always a possibility with her – but she gave her reasoning nonetheless, just as her sister asked her to.

[Deleted]

real elegance is in the mind.

IN ALL FAIRNESS, FROM HER developing time as a wand-maker, Veronica had taken up the same persona as her father. Stressed out about the bundles of orders, requesting help from those he didn’t want help from and becoming ultimately judgemental. Wands, cores, woods and happiness were the only thing the Ollivander breathed in and out on a day-to-day basis and resorting to help from Eleanor had been the last thing on her mind. Eleanor was an…odd apprentice, filled with ideas to potentially change the ideals — the very values that the Ollivanders stood by…And she was disturbingly close with Francis. Sure, they were all siblings at the end of the day, but that Squib proved to be a disappointment in the family.

Veronica listened to her sister’s explanation with a close ear, eyes still squinting down at the craftsmanship of the wand. A starter wand seemed to be a valid point for this craft, especially since Unicorn hairs proved to have a balance in the flow of magic. It was simply a good thing a small section of today’s orders were for first year students anyway. ”Valid…” The eldest sister murmured as she trailed off, letting her hand drop behind her back so the wand continued to hover in front of her. ”Though a seventh student may be able to hold that kind of power. I was able to.” She retorted, brow raising. ”I like this one.” She concluded, looking down at the wand once more.

”A little surprising at the changes from the usual cores and woods but…I suppose an exception is needed every now and then.” In all fairness, if a wand that was made differently could sway the mind of upcoming first years and take in their interest, maybe a switch of cores with compatible woods would be…good to use or have every now and then. ”Though. How many of these did you make? We don’t have many first year orders today.” Most of the orders for the young witches who lost their wands in the crumbling debris and fires that arose in Hogsmeade. ”Please do tell that you actually made some wands father would have done. Phoenix Feather cores and all.”

eleanor gwendolen ollivander

NEVERLAND at ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0!

[eleanor gwendolen ollivander]

veronica giselle ollivander

01.03.2025

There was a compliment somewhere in the midst of Veronica’s observations. Nell had heard it, despite the veil that was quickly being cast over it as her sister continued talking. Of course Veronica would have been fine with a phoenix core wand as a seventh year. Most seventh years would have been by that point, bar any issues they might have with magic. An Ollivander knew that the wand was only half of the equation when it came down to it, and the core and wood used was not the end all be all for most witches and wizards. A second or even third wand was starting to become more common place these days, at least from her own observations in the store, and the starter wands weren’t necessarily fit for use in professional fields all of the time. There were the diamonds in the rough – the ones that the famous used and excelled with. But she was perfectly content with crafting a batch of wands for beginners so that learning magic was fun and easy. Then customers would be more apt to come back to the store if they needed something more complex to suit their needs.

But Veronica liked it, and apparently the explanation was good enough for her today. The warning not to make too many like that was responded to by a nod of her head, but Nell knew that she could easily make a few more with varying characteristics and they would all sell in a heartbeat when it came to first years. “The rest have their phoenix feathers…” she said, a little downtrodden that Veronica was so obsessed with using the core. Mass production of such similar wands was going to bring ruin to the shop one day. Maybe not during their time, or even Gideon when he eventually took over in his mother’s stead, but decades down the line. Where having an Ollivander wand was like going to a name brand muggle supermarket instead of buying from the local grocer. “I know you’re not a huge fan of dragon heartstring cores…” Nell shuffled in her workstation, producing the bright reddish-brown cherry wood wand which maintained a swirl design around the hilt. “It’s cherry wood. The combination probably works a lot better for that seventh year you.”

[Deleted]

real elegance is in the mind.

COMPLIMENTING ELEANOR WAS RARE IN any sort of circumstance for Veronica Ollivander. In the thirty-four years that she lived and the twenty-five that the younger woman had lived, Veronica was sure she could count all the compliments she fished out to her younger sister with just one hand. It was proof at how the family truly was and how little Veronica truly cared for her younger siblings. Except Gabriel. She loved Gabriel. In fairness, while the wand didn’t seem suit most people, everyone was unique in their own way and eventually a young wizard would choose it. Thus, it was an exception in Veronica’s eyes. It was glad to hear the other wands had Phoenix Feather cores, the way Veronica liked it considering the core was powerful in its means but great for range and even occasionally had a mind of its own. That core was what made wands unpredictable, whether it would take the route of respectfulness or chaos havoc and Veronica liked the unknown. Life on the edge if you may.

When Veronica began her reign on the store’s ownership, her preferences were clear from the start. Her father shared equal love for the three cores, but if Veronica could, she would have rid Dragon heartstring in an instant. Sure, she put out a few wands here and there with that core, and even took in some requests that would result with her using the core, but it didn’t mean she hated it. It drew too much power for the Ollivander’s likings and always had the tendency to fall onto the side of Dark Arts or just sheer accidents. Overall, it was messy. So when Eleanor presented another different wand, one she had seemed to experiment with, Veronica’s brows furrowed. The wand was a sort of…bright maroon colour, with a swirl design. It was easy to tell the wood was cherry, and while the wood and core would…suit one wizard, the other — i.e. Veronica — was nowhere near happy. She reached forward for the wand, curious of it. When Eleanor spoke up once more, Veronica’s gaze lifted from the wand, to stare down her sister with no amusement in her face.

”Seventh year me obtained a Phoenix Feather wand with Cedar wood. Crafted solely by Father as he believed that was right for me. The same way I, and only I would craft Gideon’s wands and allow him to follow that tradition with his own children in the future.” Veronica paused, placing Eleanor’s craft down on her work station again. ”Seventh year me knew a lot more about wands, cores and woods than nine year old you. Seventh year me knew that while Dragon Heartstrings draw the most power out of the three cores Father loved, Dragon Heartstrings are supposedly the worst of them all. But clearly, you still don’t seem to know that. Even sixteen years later. Then again. You were only nine while I was in Hogwarts. After all, all you seemed to focus on was the sheer stupid joy most children face when they play with dolls. So no. This combination doesn’t work.” It was a statement layered with a bundle of insults. ”Please tell me that this wand isn’t a part of one of the requests from the orders we have.” Because if it did…That poor child would be dealing with accidents until they gave up on the wand.

eleanor gwendolen ollivander

NEVERLAND at ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0!

[eleanor gwendolen ollivander]

veronica giselle ollivander

01.03.2025

Nell knew what was coming before her sister even opened her mouth. It was the way she looked at the wand that had been handed over. The cherry wand stuck out as it was handled by Veronica. Not observed with professional scrutiny, but plucked and set aside as if it was an abomination. She could feel the sense of victory she had achieved with the previous wand get sucked out of her by her sister’s Dementor-like glare. She should have known better than to experiment on a shop wand, especially with a dragon heartstring core, but they had to have some sort of variety for Merlin’s sake! Everything in the shop was so boring and grayscale. Wandmaking was supposed to be a beautiful craft reserved for the most delicate touch and observant eyes. By a maker that had a grasp on the intricacies of what made magic, magic. How the combination of imbued wood with parts of magical creatures or objects could infuse a witch or wizard with more power than they were inherently capable of. Ollivander’s deserved to have a couple wands that were out of the ordinary – that popped, that required a higher propensity for magic, and that weren’t jammed full of phoenix feathers. That core was a cop out and held back capable youngsters, teaching them how to rely on a wand far beyond their years versus ones that provided control or personality. Veronica was the perfect recipient of a phoenix feather wand, in her opinion, and it made so much sense.

The sting of Veronica’s words was met with a clenched jaw and crossed arms as Nell started to feel very, very small inside her family’s shop. This place was supposed to be where she was the most comfortable. Where she could further her career and provide witches and wizards with the perfect tool for them. Instead she hated every second of it. Every moment over the last seven years had been antagonizing, with Veronica being as demeaning as humanely possible all because she was afraid of losing the shop to Nell. To the same Nell that didn’t even want it in the first place. Why would she want a shop that had so many bad memories in it? Maybe at one point in time she wanted it, but not anymore. Not after the very walls had been tainted with her sister’s malice and vitriol. Gideon could inherit this hellhole, because Nell was done with it. And it had nothing to do with the fact that this wand combination ‘didn’t work’. That was simply the last nail in the coffin for her.

“Yeah, it actually is,” she finally said after a moment, silence having filtered into the shop when Veronica finished her spiel. “And it’s the last wand I’m going to be making for you.” While her voice was direct and even, her hands fumbled at removing her work apron, the strap that locked behind her back slipping through her fingers as she tried to undo it. She didn’t need anything that belonged to Veronica anymore. Her sister’s ‘gracious help’ wasn’t going to be held over her head anymore. Finally finding the loop to take the apron off, Nell slipped it off of her and hung it up next to her workstation. Or not her workstation since she was quitting. She supposed this would become Gideon’s, now that he was going to be his mum’s little work slave. Collecting up her personal tools, she folded them up into her kit and headed for the door, stopping briefly so she could say one last thing to her sister, “I never wanted the damn shop from you, Veronica. So treat Gideon with respect when he ultimately surpasses you in talent. Or else he’ll end up working for me.” Readjusting her tool kit under her arm, she left the shop for the last time as an employee.

[Deleted]

END!