CHapTER 3
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Fred and George's alarm clock woke them up at 6:30 am. They quickly dressed then ran downstairs to get an early breakfast. Today was THE day they got to work at Zonko's. They gobbled up their large meal, went to get some of their pranking items, then headed out into Diagon Alley. They were to meet their boss at 7:50.
There were a few rumours going around the pranksters at Hogwarts that the boss of Zonko's was a bit odd to say the least. Stories were told about his strange habits and the weird people he spent his time with. Fred and George never took the tales too seriously because if you don't have talent as a joker, you'd have to be a bit crazy. All the same, they were a bit nervous.
They swapped prank ideas as they walked, and soon they found themselves standing in front of Zonko's. They entered the place, a few minutes before they were to meet their boss. They took full advantage of the minutes they had by stockpiling on the necessary items for successful pranking. Just as they were leaving money to pay for the items, a man walked inside. He was sticklike, with crazed grey black hair shooting out of his head.
His eyes were piercing. They seemed to laugh at you and see right through you at the same time. The robes he was wearing were traditional black, with frayed edges and one sleeve shorter than the other. A snake skeleton earring hung from his ear precariously, which gave him a shifty, dangerous look. The peg leg on his left leg clunked as he walked, so it was impossible for him to sneak up on you.
Then the most unexpected thing happened: he started to laugh.
What he was laughing about was hard to guess. He could've been laughing at Fred and George, but the way he laughed and how he wasn't looking pointedly at the twins gave the idea he was laughing about something else. It was more like he was laughing for the sake of laughing, and he appeared to have done that many times. Once his chortling subsided, he grinningly introduced himself, shaking Fred and George's hands.
"I assume you are two brothers coming here for work experience, I'm your boss, Klaphus Zonko, great-great-great grandson of the original prankster, Orion Zonko."
Fred and George didn't know what to make of him. He appeared to be half-insane. They didn't know if they should like him or hate him. They would soon find out…
'Ummm... hi Mr Zonko. I'm Fred Weasley and this is George', said Fred, stunned for the first time in his life.
"Weasley... Weasley...hmmm, I seem to know that name.' Klaphus seemed to snap out of his reminiscing. 'Oh well, I'll remember later. Right now, you two are going to have to start working. The rest of the staff arrives at 8:45, but I've got something for you to do until then.'
A twinkle in his eye, Klaphus scurried to the back of the shop.
'Now, I'm sure you will be familiar with this device, or at least, you will be when you've finished.'
He fished out a mouldy, cobweb-covered toilet scrubbing brush and some of 'Mrs Skower's All Purpose Magical Mess Remover'
Fred and George stared at the items in horror. For once (this day held many first times.) they were speechless.
The twins were unceremoniously shoved into the stinking, bashed up toilets. Klaphus shut the door and locked it. They heard his voice float in from the other side of the door.
"I'll be back at 8:45. By then I'll expect not only the toilets to be cleaned but the sink, mirrors and floor too." He walked away until his footsteps couldn't be heard.
Fred and George were both seething with rage at the unfairness of it all. George plucked out his wand and attempted to unlock the door with the spell Alohomora but it didn't work. They were stuck. They sighed and got work, trying to think up ways to get Klaphus back. The idea struck Fred as he half-heartedly scrubbed a toilet. He explained it to George but he disagreed.
'Not worth it, mate.' said George. "We'll get him back later. We need to make a good impression.'
So both guys slaved away, thinking up the most horrific punishments for their insane boss.
By 8:30, the bathroom and toilet were spotless and the boys, despite themselves, were proud of their work. Just as they sat down, they heard the unmistakable clunk of Klaphus's peg leg.
They heard the lock unlock. The door creaked open, revealing Klaphus with a huge, demented grin on his thin face.
"Ah, you've finished in good time. I'm glad I employed you, you are very helpful. Now you're finished I'll introduce you to my other employees. Follow me!", he commanded, leading the twins to a room at the back of the shop. There sat four people, obviously his employees. Klaphus seemed to be good at picking out interesting people, or was it that interesting people were good at picking out him?
There was a very short man with bright green, twinkling eyes and a bright auburn beard. He looked about 25 and had a long crooked nose. His jumper was made of yak wool with the phrase Save a tree - eat a beaver on it. He kind of look like he might eat a beaver for a dare. In his muscular hand was a sphere that was obviously enchanted because it rolled around his arms and shoulders with a freakishly fluid motion.
Sitting next to him was girl, who looked to be not much older then the twins. She was dressed in a sensible colour coordinated outfit. Her dirty blonde hair was tied back in a long ponytail. The kind of person you'd NEVER expect to work in a joke shop. The thing that stood out about her was a long evil scar running down her right arm, strangely, it was very dark coloured, almost black. It was the kind of scar that made you think twice about her. Even more curious was why she left it uncovered, like she wasn't bothered about people staring at it.
The next guy, well, he looked strangely familiar. He had spiky blonde hair and electric blue eyes that pierce right through you if they wanted, but at the moment they looked tired and worn. He was wearing a brown dragonskin coat that was almost in tatters and thick mountain boots. His left hand had a tattoo of 2 thick lines, one above the other and an eyebrow ring decorated his forehead.
The last person was a girl. She looked about 20 and had jet-black hair tied in a ponytail, except for a few long bits at the front, which were white blonde. Her ears were pierced 3 times in each ear and every earring was different to the others. You could see her muggle clothes underneath her black robes.
"People, this is Fred and George Weasley." announced Klaphus." They will be working with us for the summer."
They were then introduced. The first guy turned out to be 24 year old half-leprechaun and named Cadhlon Ryan. Of course, he was a proud Irishman and let the boys know it in no uncertain terms.
The girl with the scar was Sophia Williams. When George heard the name he remembered she had been a prefect at Hogwarts, several years ahead of the twins. She smiled at them politely.
The blonde boy was 18 and called Nat Vukasin. He had a very laid back attitude. He was playing around with what seemed to be a new prank item they were inventing.
"And this," said Klaphus proudly, "is my daughter. Senka Zonko."
She held out her black fingernailed hand to shake Fred's.
"Pleased to meet you," She said politely.
They shook hands. They could tell they were going to like it here.
This is the end of the chapter (obviously)! Hope you enjoyed it and tell us what you think in a review…
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