KNOW SOMETHING TODAY

[Captain Darcy Potter]

• "Bowtruckles."
  
  Darcy very much doubted the word had ever been said with such venom before and, in fairness, the creatures in question were not the sole cause for his displeasure with the entire situation. Matthew Poole, ministry employee extraordinaireùif you, like Darcy, thought that hiring the most incapable brownnoser known to wizard kind made for good company hiring practiceùhad been the worker leading the case and, as such, was in that moment the bane of Potter's existence. The entire case had been so shabbily constructed that the intern now wished he'd stayed behind the desk all day; this was a wish that had never before graced his thoughts. Darcy was well aware, too, that the report would be less than stellar with regards to his own career, which did not exactly endear Poole to him.
  
  It took a moment for the wizard to realize that one word probably was not as detailed as the healer might require. "I was working," Darcy elaborated, keeping his explanation as impartial and to-the-point as he could muster. "My superior instructed that I should obtain some particular trees and, well, bowtruckles." He strongly doubted he would ever desire to retell the story again; for the lack of real detail the question required, he was grateful. It was nothing like the interrogation the forms at the Ministry would have required of him, and given the severityùor lack thereofùof his condition, the quicker he was tended to and sent home, the happier he suspected he would be. "It's not a bad injuryù" æas I imagine you could tell as soon as you walked in, so I am not certain why I feel the need to inform you' "ùbut stings a bit. My supervisor insisted I have a healer see to it; I suppose he thinks that it might kill me if I do not." Only a deaf infant trying to eavesdrop on their conversation from the Americas might have missed the sarcasm in the intern's tone.
  
  He extended his arm to the other wizard, wincing slightly as his wound protested the movement of his flesh. It was not even one of the more exciting injuries he had obtained over the yearsùpaper cuts had probably caused more lasting irritation. Still, workplace injuries were something of an embarrassment: yes, the bowtruckle had had a go with his arm and won the round, but the little bastard had also given a quick kick to his pride and pleasant mood as well.