Chapter 2

Alexander Sinclair sunk into his desk chair at the DMLE and unfolded a copy of the Daily Record across his desk before slipping his wand from the sleeve of his robe and using it to refill his cup of coffee. It was unusual for a wizard to spend as much time reading Muggle newspapers as Alexander did, but he had his reasons. All Aurors were taught to use as many resources as they could get their hands on when carrying out an investigation, and despite their ignorance of the magical world, Muggles often provided better tip-offs than many members of the Wizarding Community. After flicking through the myriad of agony aunt style drivel, political nonsense, and non-stories that populated every tabloid newspaper, and silently seething at Aberdeen's Scottish Cup victory over Rangers, Alexander found the kind of tip-off he was looking for.

Police Scotland remain baffled by a series of warehouse break-ins at Queenslie Industrial Estate. Chief Constable Cameron Miekelson said to BBC News on Thursday 'these break-ins represent the work of highly intelligent, highly motivated, and exceptionally skilled criminals. No trace of their arrival can be found on CCTV footage, and no signs of forced entry were found in four warehouses that reported having goods stolen, suggesting there may be an insider helping to facilitate these break ins. Police Scotland are launching a public appeal for any information, no matter how insignificant it may seem, that could lead to the capture of these robbers.

A small line in a newspaper that would go unnoticed by the general public, but lit the boiler in Alexanders train of thought. With the technology that Muggles possessed, there was no hope of a Muggle man or woman slipping into a building unnoticed, but a Wizard could still manage it fairly easily. Disillusionment charms, invisibility cloaks, apparation; there were several methods a skilled Wizard could use to enter a building unnoticed in the dead of night. The question playing on Alexander's mind was why? Wizard warehouses and storage sheds were broken into fairly regularly by the unscrupulous types who stole ingredients for illicit potions, or wanted to make away with a stock of new broomsticks to sell on the black market. It caused a small headache for the Auror department, but usually the goods were tracked down within the week and returned to their rightful owner. Alexander couldn't remember the last time he'd seen a report of a Wizard breaking into a muggle warehouse.

He could think of two reasons why a wizard would steal from a Muggle; something in those warehouses was very valuable to this group, or those Wizards were stealing the goods for someone else. Before he could brainstorm any further though, Alexander was interrupted by the Head Auror, Iain Livingstone. 'Sinclair,' he said in a thick Highland accent, 'you've been assigned a JA to take care of.'

Alexander let out a frustrated sigh. At various points in their career, every Senior Auror was assigned a Junior Auror to take under their wing as they looked to finish their training. The idea was that the JAs would shadow the seniors at work and learn from them. What usually happened was an over-eager twenty-something tried too hard to be helpful which resulted in them becoming a constant source of annoyance until they could be certified as a fully qualified Auror. 'This really isn't the best time boss, I'm at the start of a big investigation into those Forgotten Dukes in Glasgow.'

'Well, at least he'll see something exciting.'

'Or get himself hurt and drop out of the program,' Alexander growled.

'Oh Alex,' Livingstone sighed, thumping a gnarled hand onto Alexander's shoulder, 'was there ever a time when you weren't so jaded? He's a good kid, name's Robert Mark. Top grades at Hogwarts, good reports from the academy too. He beat James Potter in the passing out trial, and you can imagine how that one stung the boss. He'll be arriving this afternoon from Manchester, and he'll be with you for two months. Best of luck with your Misplaced Earls or whatever they're calling themselves.'

With that, the Head Auror departed with swish of his scarlet robes, leaving Alexander to ponder how he was supposed to hunt dangerous wizards in Glasgow with a trainee clinging to the back of his cloak.

Author's Note:

There's been a little interest so far, especially from Germany. Vielen Dank fur die Lekture! I'll post up a couple more chapters and see how it goes.

Thanks for Reading,

IronManRidingaFirebolt.