Aurelian didn't really know how, but he had managed to endure every single one of those endless hours behind the wheel until he finally reached Virginia.
The drive from Massachusetts had been a real test of his patience—not only because of the boredom he felt when the radio stopped working, but also because of the mechanical failure that, as luck would have it, struck the car right at that moment. Halfway there, the Ford Mustang's glorious, roaring engine could no longer withstand Aurelian's constant heavy foot on the gas and ended up overheating, forcing them to pull over to the side of the road for an hour to let the engine cool down.
That mandatory pit stop was something Hestia and Flora were extremely grateful for. The twins practically fled the vehicle, stretching their numb legs with a deep sigh of relief, happy to breathe fresh air instead of the smell of gasoline.
Seeing them massage their ankles and shoot hateful glances at the car, Aurelian began to seriously wonder whether continuing the road trip was still a good idea. Judging by the icy, irritated glances his wives were giving him, it was more than obvious that they no longer liked that idea one bit.
When they finally arrived in Arlington and found a hotel luxurious enough to meet the twins' exacting standards, all three of them collapsed from exhaustion. Without bothering to unpack, they flopped down on the huge king-size bed and slept soundly all that night and the entire following day, regaining the energy drained by the trip and the tension at the cemetery.
Back to the present: after resting, the three of them were in the hotel restaurant, enjoying a sumptuous breakfast at the buffet.
Aurelian, dressed casually, smiled amusedly from his table. He watched from a distance as Hestia and Flora walked along the food line, demanding that the servers give them a portion of absolutely everything that was available. They didn't care if it was sweet, salty, hot, or cold; they wanted to try everything, piling their plates high until they formed little mountains of food.
When they returned to the table and sat down next to him, Aurelian took a long sip of his orange juice and looked down at his own plate.
He wasn't far behind either. His plate was filled with very peculiar and unorthodox food combinations for a typical breakfast. He'd mixed bacon with maple syrup, scrambled eggs with a spicy sauce he'd found, and some strange, brightly colored pastries. But that was exactly what was so great and "magical" about buffets: no matter how bizarre, massive, or ridiculous your plate of food looked, no one said anything or judged you.
They ate amid laughter. When they finally finished polishing off their plates, Hestia leaned back in her chair and let out a sigh of satisfaction.
"By Merlin… I'm so full I feel like I'm going to burst any minute now," Hestia remarked, rubbing her belly over the fabric of her dress with a lazy smile.
Flora, sitting next to her, hadn't been able to finish the entire enormous portion she'd ordered, but she was smiling anyway, wiping her lips with a napkin.
"Everything was so, so delicious. Muggles may have their flaws, but they sure know how to cook a good meal," Flora admitted.
Aurelian looked at them tenderly, set his glass of juice down on the table, and decided to share the best news of the week with them.
"My darlings, I've made a decision," Aurelian announced with a calm smile. "From now on, you won't have to travel by car anymore."
The twins sat up straight instantly, staring at him with wide eyes.
"Really?" asked Hestia, almost not daring to believe it.
Aurelian nodded.
"Yes. It seemed like a good idea at first to get to know the country, but it turns out to be a ridiculously slow way to do what I really want to accomplish on this vacation. Besides, I'd rather see you enjoying yourselves than being bored in the back seat."
Hestia and Flora looked at him with immense gratitude, as if he'd just given them the whole world.
"Oh, Aurelian, that's so much better," Hestia replied, letting out a sigh of relief. "At first it was an interesting novelty and kind of fun, but after a few hours…"
"It wasn't as good as it was at first," Flora added, making a face. "In fact, it got very, very boring. We weren't meant to travel cooped up in metal boxes, my love."
After a hearty breakfast and celebrating the official demise of the "road trip," the three of them returned to the suite to rest a little longer, lulled by the tranquility of the morning.
When noon arrived, Aurelian slowly opened his eyes.
The room was dimly lit thanks to the thick curtains that blocked out the sun. Beside him, Hestia and Flora slept peacefully. Hestia had one leg tangled with his, and Flora rested her head on his shoulder.
Aurelian smiled to himself. Gently and with pinpoint precision—aided by a light levitation spell so as not to disturb the mattresses—he got out of bed with extreme care so as not to wake them.
He tucked the sheets around them, kissed each one on the forehead, and quietly made his way to the bathroom to get dressed.
The honeymoon and the rest were all well and good, but it was time to put his master plan into action. While his wives slept safely at the hotel, he would go fulfill his true mission here. It was time to step into the shadows and uncover the secrets the human government was keeping about magic.
He was going to infiltrate the Pentagon.
And as he adjusted his tie in front of the mirror, Aurelian tilted his head, his eyes sparkling with amusement. Since he was passing through the neighborhood and had the afternoon free, he thought it would also be an excellent idea to pay an unannounced visit to the White House.
Aurelian walked through the busy streets of Arlington, perfectly concealed by a powerful Disillusionment Charm that granted him invisibility. His dark eyes closely followed the monotonous figure of an office worker he'd seen leave the Pentagon minutes earlier, presumably to take his lunch break.
The idea in the young man's mind was brilliant—and above all, simple to execute. His plan was to take advantage of the moment when this office worker entered the restroom to silently knock him out, take his clothes, pluck a couple of strands of hair from his head, and—with the help of the Multijuice Potion he'd been carrying since the start of his journey—infiltrate the most heavily guarded military fortress in the human world. He didn't need his victim to be a five-star general or a high-ranking government official; in fact, it was much better if he wasn't. An ordinary bureaucrat was invisible within the machinery of a place like the Pentagon. The only thing that really mattered to him was getting past the security checkpoint at the entrance. Once inside the building, he would take care of the rest.
The man he was following crossed the street and entered a crowded chain hamburger restaurant. Making not a sound and easily weaving past the customers, Aurelian slipped in behind him, taking a seat at an empty table in the corner, folding his arms as he waited patiently for the man to decide to use the restroom.
Luckily for his tight schedule, he didn't have to wait too long. Just a few minutes after placing his order, the official got up from his table and headed toward the restroom door.
Still under the cover of his spell, Aurelian slipped in behind him. As it happened, the restroom was empty except for his target. The very moment the man turned on the faucet and began washing his hands, his fate was sealed. Aurelian leaned close to his ear and cast a precise Stupefy.
The official collapsed instantly, falling to the tiled floor completely unconscious; Aurelian caught him before his face could hit the sink and alert the employees.
About twenty minutes later, the restaurant door opened, and Aurelian stepped out onto the street completely relaxed, now under the mundane and forgettable guise of an office worker. He wore his cheap suit, his security badge hanging from his neck, and walked calmly. While the Polyjuice Potion took effect, Aurelian had cast a deep Legilimens spell on the unconscious man's mind, confirming to his satisfaction what he had suspected from the start: that he was just an ordinary employee in the logistics department. No one important, no one they would be watching closely.
He walked a few blocks until he reached a nearby park, where he found a spot with more trees and bushes. With a slight flick of his wrist, he made the body of the real office worker—who was fast asleep—levitate, carefully setting it down in the middle of the underbrush and instantly covering it with a powerful Disillusionment Charm.
It never hurt to be cautious. Once he had finished plundering the Pentagon's secrets and concluded his visit to the White House, he would return for him, alter his memory with a "bathroom accident," and let him get on with his life. Someone like him left no loose ends that might alert the American authorities—magical or non-magical.
Satisfied, Aurelian continued on his way. He returned to the vast military complex and passed through the rigorous security checks with an ease that bordered on the absurd. The guards checked his ID without much attention, scanned the stolen badge, and granted him access without even giving him a second glance.
Once inside the bowels of the Pentagon, walking through the hallways, surrounded by uniformed military personnel, analysts, and agents, Aurelian couldn't help but be a little fascinated by the place. The level of organization and secrecy made him feel like Agent 007 in the middle of a spy movie.
As he made his way toward the section corresponding to his new identity, some of the man's colleagues crossed his path and greeted him.
"How was the burger, Frank?" asked an older man holding a cup of coffee.
Aurelian replied casually, mimicking the weary tone of voice he'd gleaned from his victim's memories.
"Full of grease, as always, Bob. You know how it is—just another day at the office."
The man laughed and went on his way. Fooling them was child's play.
To keep up the facade and avoid arousing the slightest suspicion, Aurelian sat down at Frank's cubicle. He organized a couple of documents and carried out the tedious tasks of logistics work for nearly an hour. He maintained a relaxed posture and typed on the office computer until he noticed that his coworkers were completely absorbed in their own duties and had stopped paying him any attention at all.
That was his moment.
He stood up from his chair with a folder in hand as an excuse and walked through the hallways until he found what he was looking for: a maintenance junction. During the hour he spent doing Frank's work, he'd kept an eye out for the locations of the cameras until he found that corner—it was the closest blind spot he had access to.
He slipped into the darkness of the hallway marked "Maintenance," and his unparalleled Cloak of Invisibility materialized in his hands with a single thought; he threw it over his shoulders, erasing his physical presence from the face of the earth.
Under the protection of the Deathly Hallow, Aurelian flashed a cold smile. His act as a bored office worker was over; now the real investigation began.
----------------------------
I have a Patreon account. If you would like to support me, I would greatly appreciate it. You will be able to read up to 15 more chapters, listen to all chapters as audiobooks, and view images of the characters in the story for free. Thank you very much for reading my story :D
patreon.com/Daoistrg