Errand Easy Coins Solo Finished

Landon’s first year had been one of much trial and tribulations. He had made a decent amount of friends, some of which were not in his Slytherin house. This was intentional of course. He came to Hogwarts all those months ago and had already felt the prevailing competitiveness, and sometimes rudeness, between his house and the other three. He was proud of himself that he didn’t succumb to such trivial rivalry.

For too many years, as he had learned in his History of Magic class, there had been tension and flat out war between wizards and witches. It was through those lessons that Landon began to wonder that perhaps those differing opinions had been rooted in many ways that magical schools had separated individuals. Though Hogwarts did a fine job in making it as inclusive as possible, especially when students were able to engage with other peers in classes and outside events, there was still an underlying sense of house affiliations and many people took that seriously.

But as the year closed out and the summer heat waved through the Hogwarts grounds, many people began going back home to their muggle families, wizardy families, or even bi-blood ones. Landon wasn’t one of those students. He had decided to stay behind for a few more weeks to enjoy the school and what it had to offer without the pressure of collecting house points, being top boy, or even the stress that many classes had put upon him, Transfiguration, especially.

Staying behind also granted him another opportunity that he wasn’t permitted back home: to practice magic. There was a strict rule against performing it and with the way his parents had reacted when he first performed it on his eleventh birthday, accidentally of course, he thought they could do with some additional time away from their magical son.

It was this thought that had brought Landon to the campgrounds were a row of buckets laid before him. Though their numbers didn’t compare to the piles upon stacks of dishes, pots, forks, knives, goblets, and so much more that students (and staff) had left behind after breakfast. He knew he was on a strict time-restrain, needing to get as much of the work done before the lunch rush would stream through the Great Hall. And with Elves going back to their families, someone had to get the job done. Landon was however grateful that other students were working on some of the piles down the line, some of which had been so consumed with their work that they hadn’t even noticed the additional help that had arrived.

He did acknowledge those that had decided to perform the task the muggle way, scrubbing away grime by hand, and the beads of sweat that glistening off of their bare arms or forehead was a testimony of their hard work and dedication. Landon however was muggle-born and he had had his share of nightly chores by hand and he didn’t find any pleasure in following in their steps. He was curious though why Hogwarts didn’t invest in a dishwasher. It would of saved everyone a lot of time and effort. But like the architectural desire behind the castle, in many ways, Hogwarts preferred to keep it medieval. Landon admitted though that it was a part of what had been so appealing during his time at the school.

There was of course the fact that nearly everyone in the school could perform magic and having learned a handy charm in his first year, Landon was ready to exercise his magical abilities. Scourgify was such a handy spell that he could imagine why Hogwarts didn’t bother, or Wizard households, to purchase a dishwasher. Plus, it saved a whole bunch on water bills, he was sure.

Arriving at a pair of buckets, one with soap and another with clear water, he looked at its contents and realized he didn’t actually need them. Instead he began separating the dishes and pots into a neater pile on the long wooden table that had been provided. The mid-morning sunrays barely able to reflect upon them due to the thick layer of grime that coated them.

Pulling out his wand, Landon stretched his fingers around its handle until he felt comfortable with his hold. Magic could be tricky sometimes and if he learned anything about the Soap Blizzard that had occurred decades ago, he was intent on staying focused on the task and spell in hand, despite the obscene curses he heard down the cleaning line from those that were getting frustrated by doing the errand by hand.

He pointed his wand to the first pile of dishes in front of him. Concentrating on the spells intent and pronunciation, he waved the wand in the shape of an ‘S’ and said with conviction, “Scourgify!" And within seconds, a small eruption of bubbles appeared above and in between each plate within that first pile. Landon watched as it moved rapidly along each of its surfaces, scouring away the bits of food that was left behind, the gravy stains, and any other grime that had once lived upon it. Just as soon as the first pile appeared shiny, the bubbles jumped upon the next pile of pots and then the cutlery as it cleaned between each crevice and cranny.

Minutes passed and as soon as his pile had been adequately cleaned, Landon cut the flow of magic and pocketed his wand again. He moved closer to the pile and picked up one of the spoons that had once been dirty beyond belief. He saw his reflected upon its face and he smiled at his effortless work.

Satisfied with his work, he placed the item back on the table and looked down the line at the other students still hard at work. There was a pang of guilt that washed over him until he remembered that it was their own prerogative on how they wanted to complete the errand.

Shrugging, he turned and made his way back to the castle and began pondering what to do with the rest of his day as the satisfaction of making some easy coins made him feel content. He gave the other students a backward wave and whistled his way along the path to the castle’s front entrance. The errand had said nothing about bringing the dishes back inside and he was sure that it would just teleport itself away and upon the tables in the Great Hall when they were needed by hungry students and staff. The last day of June awaited the young wizard and he wasn’t going to waste it away.