Lost and Found || Oliver Wood [2]

Chapter 12: Rift

The skies were clear with barely any clouds in sight, allowing the sun to shine perfectly. The air was salty, but the gentle winds were quite relaxing. On that summer day, three newly-graduated girls of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry hung around by the shore of a relatively empty beach, their minds free from any worries of homework or tests. This time, though, it was career concerns that lingered in their heads as they sunbathed.

"I hate being unemployed," Bethany was saying. "I feel so unaccomplished."

"I think we've been doing plenty," Alista countered.

"We're literally doing nothing on the beach right now."

"Wrong. We're drinking firewhisky in the daytime at the beach," the blonde corrected her, taking a sip of her drink. "Come on, it's our last summer before we're really gonna be shoved into the real world. Don't be a killjoy."

Jessica had to agree with her on that. It was early into their break after leaving Hogwarts, and Alista had invited her and Bethany to her family's summer home for a quick little vacation. They owned a quaint cottage on the western edge of Pembrokeshire, Wales, with with a view of stunning seascapes and landscapes and not too many tourists. It was a hidden gem, and the past few days there had been like a beautiful dream.

"Fine. Give me more," said Bethany, extending her glass so that Alista could pour more of Blishen's Firewhisky into it.

"That's the spirit. Besides, haven't you looked into some positions in the Ministry already?"

"I have, but there's so many to choose from. And who knows if I'll even get accepted into the ones that appeal to me?"

"If you don't, you can always work for my mum's company."

"The one that produces cauldrons?" Jessica clarified.

"That's the one," Alista nodded.

"No offense, but I don't want to be stuck making cauldrons my entire life," said Bethany with a wince.

"Well, me too," Alista admitted.

"Wait, so you don't want to take after your mum's company?" Jessica raised her eyebrows. It turned out that Alista didn't even need to job hunt — to put it bluntly, her mother could just hand one to her on a silver platter. Days after they left Hogwarts, the blonde had explained to them through letters that her mother offered her a position in her own company, which was pretty convenient.

"I don't know yet," she whined. "It's the easy route, but it sounds... not me."

"Maybe you could take on apprenticeships in different fields," Jessica suggested. "Experiment with them a little."

"Yeah, like Potions or Charms," said Bethany. "The stuff you could do after that are really diverse — producing medicines, cosmetics, household essentials, even prank items like from Zonko's..."

"Maybe," Alista said thoughtfully. She sighed, taking another big gulp of her firewhisky. "I'll look into it before Jess leaves so that I have some sort of internal deadline."

"When's that, again?" asked Bethany.

"End of August," Jessica replied, her stomach turning at the thought of actually moving to another country without anyone familiar by her side.

"And how's Wood taking it? Did he make any plans for you two like this?" Bethany nudged her.

"He needs to go the extra mile if he wants to top off this beach trip," Alista said teasingly.

"Er, about that... I haven't told him," said Jessica.

"What?" Bethany and Alista exclaimed.

"Jess, are you serious?" Bethany gaped at her.