Just outside the office of the Senior Undersecretary is the office of the current Junior Underscretary (dan_arjay), a very busy man. If you wish to speak with the Junior Undersecretary you must first check in at the front desk and wait to be given the persmission to be able to do so. It wouldn't do to have you just walking in as you have a mind to.

The office is simple but efficient with a chair for Mr. McMillan and two on the other side of his desk for those who would like to have a sit down meeting with him. Though he is very keen on helping, do remember he has other tasks he must get back to and for that reason you should save chit chat for the break room, during an actual break.

Since the beginning of the year, all the Zach did was run around the Ministry and not having anytime to sit and so some normal work.

He looked around and remembered the time when there are a lot of things going on. Like when they are locked out of the Offices because of some infestation.

But now it died down slowly and Zach can finally sit down and start with the mountain of paperwork beside, not on top, besides his desk. Why do people do this he can never tell.

Though she passed through the Junior Undersecretary's office to get to Gavin's she didn't often have the pleasure of stopping for any particular purpose. The man often had a great enough workload that she preferred to skip the middleman and simply insist Gavin do her bidding.. but at McMillan's request, she was here.

"Zach, you wanted to see me?" she asked casually, pausing in front of his desk. Despite it having said he'd come to her, she frequented the level often enough to return the courtesy. This way, she could kill two birds with one stone. The Undersecretaries were in for a treat today. "Figured since I was here..." it would save him the trip to level two.

Zach was waiting for anything that resembles any message system anytime now from the Department Heads. He managed to make his schedule for the whole very movable in case he needs to meet with any of them. But for now he needs to make this paperwork disappear, and not in the magical way.

He was deep in his reading about this paper regarding goblin union when he heard a voice, an very familiar one. He looked up and expected a patronus, but no. In front of his was the Department Head of Law Enforcement. He put down the paper and stood up.

"Ms. Browne, what a pleasant surprise." he said as he extends his arm. He wasn't really expecting visitors, so there are paper everywhere. He waved his hand in the direction of the chair and made the pile move to a different spot. "Please, have a seat."

"I would just like to have a little catch up and talk about a few things." he said to answer the question trying to be casual. "Maybe you have heard about it from Gavin as well." since they see each other very frequently.

A crane made of parchment and bearing the name of the addressee, Mr Zachary McMillan, on it made its way towards the Junior Undersecretary's Office. It came to a rest on the desk. The letter inside reads:

Quote:

Mr McMillan:

I'm very well, thank you. I hope the same can be said for you as well.

My office is free and open for you to pop into at any time that suits you in the afternoon. I'll be in there after lunch and until the evening so simply pop in whenever you feel the need to. I'll let my Personal Assistant know to let you through straight away as soon as you come by.

Thank you and I look forward to your visit.

Yours sincerely,
Bryce Howell
Department Head

The standard Ministry memo in paper airplane form zigzagged through the air and just barely grazed the head of Emily Browne before settling on the Junior Undersecretary's desk. From the outside, the purple memo could have been from anyone, but once opened up things become more clear.

Quote:

Mr. McMillian -

With the adjustments going on in DMAC on top of pre-existing duties that my schedule is a bit tight. If you are available this Thursday around 2 pm, I believe I can squeeze you in. Otherwise, if this is not a terribly formal discussion, perhaps we could do a business lunch in the food court any day of the week? Although I prefer Wednesdays.

Regards,

Department Head, Magical Accidents & Catastrophes

A paper dolphin arrived in the Junior Undersecretary's office and planted itself right on the desk. After a minute, it opened to reveal a note.

Quote:

Dear Mr. McMillan,

I'm doing quite well, thank you. I hope you can say the same.

I'd be pleased if you stopped by. Things have been a bit hectic around level four as of late but if you'd like to stop by some day following the lunch hour, I'd be more than happy to speak with you.

Sincerely,
Harmony Skylark

Always so formal, so efficient, just so... personable. It was no surprise really that she'd grown to like the Junior Undersecretary. "Thank you," she mused as she accepted the seat.

Of course she'd heard many things from Gavin, so this was hardly surprising, simply another formality that needed processing. "Indeed, there's lot's to be done.. but what in particular did you need from me?" and by her, she of course meant her Department. It was going to be a whirlwind for the Ministry in general, but they still had their part to play, and she could imagine it being rather significant - all things considered.

Seeing the flock of memo's arrive didn't surprise her, and in fact she was becoming more appreciative of her own initiative in conducting this meeting as she was passing through.

Zach cleared his throat and walked towards the table where there is a pot of tea. He poured tea into two cups and and delivered one cup to Emily's side along with some tiny cute biscuits that he made the night before. He smiled at her as he took a seat and then said, "We are going to announce this before the weekend, but we thought we ought to inform all of the Department Heads beforehand." he said with a half smile.

He sighed and looked at Emily, "The Minister is retiring." he tried to make it not sound ever so dramatic. "He will announce it over a press conference this Friday. He will finish his term and then retire. It will then be followed by an election, soon." he said ever so calmly.

He took a sip of his tea to soothe his throat... Giving news to people will almost always hurt his throat. He looked up at Emily waiting for a reaction...

A Ministry memo in the shape of a cat directed to Mr McMillan entered the room and landed on the desk of the Junior Undersecretary.

Tea wasn't really her thing, not since MLE hooked her on proper caffeine in her YATI days. But still, she accepted the cup with a reserved smile. The biscuits too were, well, she was never one to turn down baked goods... and Gavin wasn't here too do it on her behalf. "Thank you," she stated before sipping and placing the cup back down on the desk.

She had a million thoughts on her way here as to what could be so urgent so as to need a face-to-face... and honestly she was still curious. Emily nodded, yes, yes... the Minister would be retiring - and no she was not liking the idea at all. However, she was still waiting for the news part, for whatever was so important thy had to meet to discuss. "Mmhhmm," she prompted. "I'm aware of all this.. was there anything else?" Cue more tea sipping and biscuit nibbling.

As Mariel was still on maternity leave following the birth of her daughter, the memo delivered by the Junior Undersecretary had been intercepted by her Quidditch Division Manager then forwarded along to her. Using her owl from home, the Magical Games and Sports Head jotted down a note on parchment and sent it along with Tisiphone to take to the Ministry.

The medium sized scops owl flew in through the open door, landed onto the man's desk, then shook the parchment free from her leg for the man to read. Her job complete, the owl flew off as quickly as she came. Inside the parchment now on the Junior Undersecretary's desk is a message from the Magical Games and Sports Head:

Quote:

Dear Mr. McMillan,

I am currently still on my maternity leave. I will, however, be in my office at 10 am this Friday to accommodate your request. If this is a more pressing matter that you need to speak with me sooner, please send an owl directly to my home or get in touch with my Quidditch Division Manager, Victoria Culloden, and she will reschedule an earlier time for us to meet. Otherwise, I will see you in my office this Friday morning.

Sincerely,


Mariel De La Garza
Magical Games and Sports, Head of Department

Zach nodded as he sipped some more tea. It has now been a custom for him since he moved to England from Australia, where coffee is deemed to be the god of all hot drinks... At its healthier too, now that he is trying to be a healthier and fitter person...

He smiled at the Emily. He then put down his cup and straighten himself up. "I also would like your input about the Department Liaisons." he said as an introduction. "Currently, we have no liaisons for any departments in the Ministry." Should he mention the fact that once they have a complete set of liaisons which for some unknown reason all have vanished and nowhere to be seen.

The anything else that she had anticipated, did not come... in its place, was another matter entirely - and one that was not entirely accurate. Emily shook her head lightly, "On the contrary, Simon Bennet is my Department Liaison, and has been for some time." So no, there were not none in the entire Ministry, but she couldn't speak for the other Departments.

Awkward?

Emily took to sipping her tea again, hazel eyes peering at Zach over her teacup.