Chapter 126: Topic: The West Family (1/2)
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The link is also in the synopsis.
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Quinn stood in the hotel lobby of the hotel with his suitcase in his hands. He tapped his foot against the floor as he absentmindedly gazed around the hotel lobby to pass the time. The hall was silent because it was just before seven in the morning. The lobby would regain its activity when the breakfast time down in the hotel restaurant would start, and people would start their day.
He retrieved his trusty pocket watch from its pocket and checked on the time. There were only a few seconds till the minute-hand struck twelve, and the hour-hand arrived at seven on the watch dial. Quinn watched the second hand smoothly travel clockwise and arrive at number twelve, marking the time seven in the morning.
The clock's interface shifted as the dial background shifted from the indigo shade of the sixth hour to the gold of the seventh hour. A faint yet visible outline of the number six also changed to seven, and some other changes magically appeared on the watch front to signify the change of hours.
When the clock turned seven, Quinn looked up, and like clockwork, the man he was waiting for walked into the lobby and walked towards Quinn with a steady stride and semi-brisk pace. Aksel Thorn, his Danish bodyguard/guide who he had evaded many a time in his stay.
”Good morning, Mr. Thorn,” greeted Quinn. ”I hope my portkey is ready to be deployed?”
Aksel nodded and took out a small wooden cube with blunt edges which rested on his palm. Quinn picked up the dark wood cube from Aksel's palm and observed it. The wooden cube was larger than a cuboidal die, but it wasn't big enough to cover the entire palm. Quinn could comfortably close his first around the cube, and it would be completely enveloped.
”It will activate at five past seven. The portkey will trigger on its own; there is no activation phrase,” answered Aksel.
Quinn nodded in response and wrapped his fist around the cube. As there was no activation phrase, Quinn needed to hold the cube because, at five past seven, the portkey would trigger and take him to the destination with no delay.
”It was a fun week, Mr. Thorn. Thank you for your services; you were an excellent guide,” praised Quinn.
”... And yet you sneaked away without me,” commented Aksel. The fact that a teen could sneak away from him under his nose was embarrassing for someone from his line of occupation and his position, and Aksel wasn't taking it lightly. His partners and subordinates were having fun at his expense. And from what he knew about his company, they weren't going to let it go anytime soon.
”Now, now, don't beat yourself up that much up. It happens to the best of people,” chuckled Quinn. He could see that it bothered Aksel, so he tried to soothe the wound before returning home. ”It was simply a little too motivated to go out on my own, so it's not your fault that you missed out on my escapes. I'm good at magic, after all.”
Quinn took out a card from his pockets and handed it to Aksel. ”This is my personal contact details. If you ever come to England, do contact me, and I will be your guide just as you were mine.”
Aksel looked at the deep royal blue card. On the royal blue background was a monogram logo in the shape of QW, and beside the logo was Quinn's name full name, also written in gold. He turned the card to see a WMF-id printed on the back.
”That's my personal WMF-id. Not many people have that number, so please don't share it. I like this id I have and don't want to change it,” pointed Quinn.
This card differed from his AID cards, which were for promotion and availability, as the cards changed when Quinn or Luna was inside the office for a consultation. This card held his very personal WMF-id, which not a lot of people were aware of. Other than his family, only Luna knew of his WMF-id because her father had purchased an office version MagiFax and put it in his home as Xenophilius Lovegood worked as a reporter/writer from his own.
Quinn hoped he could give a few others his contact details as the MagiFax personal home models were launched just before Quinn left for Denmark. Quinn was sure that as the year passed, his friends would have a MagiFax unit at their respective homes.
”Do you have a personal WMF-id?” asked Quinn.
Aksel shook his head in reply. ”I don't have a personal machine, but our office has one.” Saying that, Aksel took out a white business card with black text reading contact information of the Limax group, such as their WMF-ids, address, and Aksel's name in the top-left corner on the card.
Every West business subsidiary had made MagiFax a part of their office culture. And because the West business empire spanned across continents, the MagiFax had bridged the gaps in communication that existed before the invention of MagiFax. Quinn's invention had transformed the way communication was handled between and within different organizations.
Quinn pocketed the card, and as he did, the cube started to faintly glow. Within ten seconds, the portkey would trigger, and he would be whisked away.
”It seems time's up,” noted Quinn and then said the last words to Aksel. ”Once again, Mr. Thorn. It was a nice week. Thank you for keeping it time; let's meet someday. Maybe it will be you coming to England, or I return here to Denmark. Until then, it's a farewell.”
Quinn made a small wave before the portkey glowed up, and he was gone.
But Quinn missed the look that came over Aksel's face when he left with the portkey.
”... Quinn West, huh. I wonder what they would say if I told them about him,” muttered Aksel as he stared at the card in his hand.
Quinn's time in Denmark had come to an end.
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- (Scene Break) -
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”We got a reply to the invitation.”
The rest of the Potter family, who were sitting in the living room of the Potter home, looked up at their mother/wife. They saw the lady of the house waving a letter in her hand with a smile on her face.
”West family sent back a reply to our invitation,” announced Lily.
James, Ivy, and Harry Potter all became attentive for different reasons. James Potter wanted to know if George West would be visiting because then he would need to prepare. And the twins wondered what reply their one year senior, the mysterious Ravenclaw Quinn West, had sent.
”Only one member, Quinn, would be coming for dinner,” revealed Lily and passed the letter written in Quinn's handwriting down to her family. ”The rest of the family, unfortunately, is busy or unavailable, and he would be visiting this Saturday.”
James Potter read the reply twice before breathing a relieved sigh that George West wasn't visiting. Sitting with George West for an evening was something he wasn't prepared to do, not after what had transpired.
Ivy and Harry received the letter from their father and read the reply together. They both noticed the handwriting and recognized that it was Quinn who had written the letter. They had seen Quinn's writing, and even though the lettering on the reply was fancier, they could tell that it was Quinn who wrote it.
”Alright, everybody. Sit down,” said James.
The twins glanced at each other, wondering what their father wanted to talk about. They communicated with their eyes if they knew what this was about. But none of the two had any idea what this was about. Lily also sat down beside her children to listen to what her husband wanted to say.
”Ivy, Harry, what can you tell me about Quinn West,” asked James. ”I've only talked to him for a few minutes, so I don't know how he is? Can you tell me about him? I know you aren't in the same year, but words travel; how is he seen in the school?”
Ivy and Harry exchanged glances once more, again initiating a round of twin-eye-talk discussing what to reveal and hide. In the end, they decided to tell what they thought about Quinn without revealing their interactions with him.
”Well, he is smart: scores at the top of his class. Runs a... club? Yeah, let's go with a club. He runs a club to help out students,” started Ivy to sum up how others who didn't have much interaction with Quinn saw the Ravenclaw.
”He is pretty popular,” continued Harry. ”I think almost everyone likes him. No matter what the house or year, he's friendly with everyone. I think even professors like him, especially professor Flitwick. He likes him a lot.”
”That's true,” nodded Lily in agreement. ”Except for the fact that he's known for breaking curfew, Quinn West is the perfect student.”
”What about his personality?”
”A diligent and hard-working child,” answered Lily with an earnest smile. From the times she had interacted with Quinn, she had a great impression of Quinn and genuinely thought that he was a charming child. ”He's also so kind. Not only he helped me out with the Monopoly game, but his notes are also always on discount. I think he made it so everyone could buy his notes.”
Ivy's brows twitched when she heard her mother's impression of Quinn. On the outside, Quinn did seem like Lily's description. But then she thought about her first few interactions with Quinn.
”Likes to act all mysterious,” shared Ivy. When they were looking for the Philosopher's Stone, Quinn had acted all cryptic and had shut the door in their face after giving them a sudden warning.
Harry thought about his experience with Quinn, and him going to Quinn was the only time he could draw upon him.
”A know-it-all, but not in an annoying way. It's more like a guy who has answers to your every question,” spoke Harry, nodding as he felt satisfied with his answer.
”Control freak,” added Ivy, reaching deep into her bag of adjectives for Quinn.
”You don't want to play tag with the guy,” said Harry, looking very serious. ”One of the Hufflepuffs said that it took five guys ten minutes to chase him down and trap him into being tagged.”