Success in love and magic had eluded our friend Claude, who had received a paean in neither.
Blessed with his silver trousers and black shirt with flames etched down the back, he was more catered for wizardry than romance.
His Houdini rope trick had gone disastrously awry in his 20s, so bad in fact he was left alone in his flat for five whole days.
Claude’s moniker was “Claude the Great”, although in wizardry circles he was cruelly dubbed “Claude the Fraud”.
His vanishing skills were equally slap-dash and miserable.
Deirdre took the dubious role of his assistant, but Claude was falling for her. He longed to be loved, and so did Deirdre.
Together, their dove from cage routine worked well. Claude grew cavalier, much like his dress code, and was determined to master the art of vanishing.
He’d met the his first love, and Deirdre had experienced vanishing before with a stint with Mr Muggle’s All Star Celebrity XI.
Claude spun the box, and Deirdre stepped inside. A huge puff of smoke careered to the ceiling, and he’d done it. He opened the door and Deidre was not there.
The problem was Claude didn’t know how to bring her back, which was why he failed his Magic Circle exams.
By Al Dudman
Comments