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As he was pulling down the last placard from the wall to which he'd pasted it, a flash of red caught his eye. He leaned over to have a better look- yes, he was right. Skinny, pale, red hair, old robes, and hurrying towards the Hog's Head. "Oi! Ginger!"

The other wizard stopped abruptly, glancing uncertainly in John's direction. Then he smiled- or beamed, rather; John had never known the redheaded fellow to be anything but enthusiastic in his presence. It was a little weird. "Ah, there you are, John!" he said, veering from his course. "Excellent, excellent, I was just on my way to see you."

"Yeah?" John pulled the last scrap of paper from the wall and debated scouring away the torn bits that remained. Aaah, not like anyone would notice. "What've you got this time?"

"Not sure, really, but it runs on batteries. About-" The man's face screwed up in concentration. "This long?" he hazarded, indicating an object some nine or ten inches long. "Blue, squishy to the touch. Shaped a bit like a wand, but a good deal thicker, and bulgy at the end that hasn't got batteries in. Got a switch towards the bottom, says 'off, low, medium, high'."

John whistled. It was easier than trying to keep a straight face. "All right," he said. "I . . . think I can tell you what that is."

"Really? Just like that?"

"Oh, yeah, pretty sure. They're dead common- only I'm not going to talk about it here." He nodded towards a couple of older witches, who were staring at his Muggle clothes with a distinctly disapproving look. "Gimme a bit, will you? I've got to go pick up an order at Gladrags. I'll be along to the Head just after."

Hellblazer: Hogwarts, Chapter 7