So many questions, and so few answers. Enrico sighed and leaned across the desk. "There have been a few medical reports, but right now the attacks have been.....rather sketchy, if you know what I mean," he explained, raising an eyebrow.

"Imagine if you were the one attacked by an 'invisible monster' and you barely escaped with your body intact. Now try explaining your injuries to a Healer, and try describing a horrific, mixed-breed foe the likes of which we've never seen before." Rico paused for dramatic effect, and also to emphasize his very serious point. "You see, even if there were reports of victims, no one would believe the survivors - they would most likely be locked up and hidden away due to 'insanity'." He shook his head sadly.

"I need you to focus on finding out how, who, where - everything you can from the author of this Quibbler article," Rico added, tapping the magazine. "We can only move on once we've verified this source."

Emma nodded her understanding of the situation, letting her eyes drift across the text of the article in the Quibbler, trying to get some clues to the answers that the Ministry wanted. The very fact that these things could exist out there in the open, made Emma shiver. How ghastly could an encounter be? She let her eyes fall on the article again, rereading, until something hit her.

"Rico, how come this article isn't signed? Journalists usually sign their work in reputable magazines... but i see no names mentioned." she pointed her pen at the beginning and end of the article. "Do you have an idea of who it might be? Unless Xenophilius Lovegood penned that one too?" She quirked an eyebrow again to make a point.

She took the magazine firmly in hand and started to flip each page carefully, dissecting it from every angle she could think of. She shook her head in disbelief; this magazine was utter rubbish!

Rico had started to lean back in his chair again, hoping that the line of questioning was over. Or, at least, at a halt. He'd just closed his eyes for a moment when bam, she had another question.

He sat up abruptly, shaking his head. "I dunno," he blinked, leaning across the desk to glance at the article. "I see what you mean though. But maybe the journalist wanted to remain anonymous?" He could only shrug.

"To be honest with you, Emma," Rico sighed. "I don't know much about The Quibbler or its edior, this this Xenophile guy," he frowned. "So what's the big deal? I mean, I just picked the magazine up on my way into work, it looked like a fairly legit publication - why is there so much doubt?" He stood up and started pacing around the office, wondering if maybe The Quibbler was a phony, scam magazine, like tabloids in the States. He'd never heard of anything like a tabloid in the wizarding world though....then again, he was new to Britain.

Emma snickered briefly before choking back the bubble of laughter that wanted to come up. Sitting back in her chair, she tossed the Quibbler back on the desk. Could anyone not know of the Quibbler? she thought to herself.

"Rico, the Quibbler has a reputation of being.... how can I explain this? It is good to read it with a healthy dose of scepticism. Ever heard of Crumpled-Horn Snorkacks?" she paused for a moment. "Blibbering Humdingers maybe?" she asked with a twinkle in her eyes. "If you haven't, you aren't alone. Old Xeno and his daughter are great believers of unbelievable things. They extolled about them in many articles and pieces written in the past, but never offered any true evidence of their existence."

Taking a more serious tone again, she added; "But that being said, they have written things that had very valid points. Pieces that nobody else wanted to publish, lest they wanted to attract the attention of Vold... Vol... He-who-must-not-be-named!" Emma stammered and blushed profusely. She still could not utter that madman's name without breaking out into a mild sweat. "Those were earth shattering articles, that brought out certain truths that nobody wanted to hear at the time..." Certainly not the Minister of Magic of that time, Emma thought with little generosity toward the man.

Rico had been pacing around his dinky office when he heard Emma start prattling on about some crumple-corned kornkacks or something. He whirled around and stared at her, his mouth hanging open just a little, as she berated the editor of The Quibbler on one hand and then praised him on the other.

Finally, he came back to his seat as she was explaining about Moldewort. Rico let her finish before he said anything.

"Well then...." he murmured, a faint smile on his lips. "Thank you for explaining the uh, popular history of this magazine to me." He winked at her. "We don't have anything like that - or like Voldewort or whoever - in the States, so I was confused there for a bit."

Rico nodded, then added, "But perhaps this is one of those rare occasions when the editor did get his story straight, hmm? And maybe it's worth investigating....."

Emma stared at him, a bit dumbfounded by his reaction. He didn't know about He-who-must-not-be-named? Who in the wizarding world didn't know about him! Obviously not Rico. She then analyzed the situation in a flash... he was from the States, hence the funny accent he had. And that wink of his; obviously not British at all. She wasn't sure if it was appropriate for a boss to wink at one of his employee's. She blushed slightly, her mouth becoming a bit dry.

Ok, she thought to herself, get back to business and forget the propriety of the situation. She nodded slowly to him.

"Yes, sir... um, Rico." she quirked a smile to apologize for calling him 'sir' after all the informal talk that had happened till then. 'This might be the situation. I'll get myself over to the Quibbler right away. Maybe I can get the information that is needed. Hopefully, it'll be another wacky tale of their's."
She stood up, taking pen and memo pad, leaving the Quibbler on his desk. She straightened her robe with a few passes of her hand over the front and back, trying to get back on even keel. "Will there be anything else?", she asked quietly.

Susan walked into the office and saw that it was almost empty except for Rico and another lady who looked like they were discussing something very important. When she walked a little more, she noticed that the lady was getting up. Ok, so I can go in then, she thought to herself.

She straigtened her robes and went up to the office door and knocked gently, waiting for a reply.

Rico nodded, relieved that she was done analizing The Quibbler and things. "I think that's all, Miss Brown," he said, emphasizing the Miss. If she's going to call me sir, then she should be called miss!

Just then, a knock at the door seemed timed perfectly. Rico hopped up and opened it, so that Emma could exit and whoever was outside could come in.

Quote:

Originally Posted by cutestar

Susan walked into the office and saw that it was almost empty except for Rico and another lady who looked like they were discussing something very important. When she walked a little more, she noticed that the lady was getting up. Ok, so I can go in then, she thought to herself.


She straigtened her robes and went up to the office door and knocked gently, waiting for a reply.

"Hello Susan!" he smiled across the threshold. "Do come in."

"Hello Rico," Susan smiled. "You seemed worried when I came in," she said, with a frown. "Is there anything the matter?"

"Worried? Me? Never," Rico flashed Susan a confident smile and beckoned for her to enter the office. "Actually, we might have a problem on our hands, as I was just briefing Miss Brown here," he gestured towards Emma, "but it's nothing to worry about. Yet."

He smiled again and picked up The Quibbler magazine before she saw it and started asking questions. Then again, on second thought, maybe Susan would be able to help....

Susan gave a reassuring smile. She smiled at the lady next to her and her eyes went to the copy of the Quibbler in Rico's hand, "Ah, the Quibbler." she smirked, "Lovegod up to no good again, is he?" she asked. "One should never take that magazine too seriously."

She stretched out her hand, "May I see it?" she asked. "Maybe I could be of some assistance," she said. Her eyes shifting from Rico to the copy of the Quibbler in his hand.

Rico's eyes quickly shifted from Susan to the magazine in his hand and back. Great, she noticed, he thought glumly. And of course, the next thing she says is that it's unreliable...just like everyone else. He was really starting to regret ever bringing the magazine in, especially if the article turned out to be false.

"Sure, take a look at the cover article," Rico finally replied, handing the magazine over. "Your expertise could come in handy, from your last job working with animals, right? he added with a raised eyebrow.

Emma smiled at Susan and Rico before turning toward the door, "I'll be off then and let you two discuss this issue. Wish me luck at the Quibbler, i might be needing it." She grinned ruefully. "Nice to meet you, Susan. I'll be sure to make a stop at your cubicle later on... get better aquainted and all that."

She nodded and left the office, going to the small library that stood next to a wall. Since she had to investigate this potential melding of species, she might as well be up to snuff about the information concerning the individual beasts. She let her gaze wander over the titles, until she found an encyclopedia of sorts. She brought it back to cubicle and searched for some information that could be usefull. Once found, she wrote it down in her memo pad and left the office.

Susan took the magazine from Rico's hand and read big flashing headline - 'International Scandal: Mixed-Breed Monsters!' She raised her eyebrows, "Mixed-breed monsters?" she looked up at Rico. "Well, that's a first!" she smirked. She looked back down at the magazine and flipped the pages to the article. She looked down and started scanning it, "A cross between a demiguise and a lethifold...attacking muggles and wizard...hmmm" she frowned and rubbed her chin, thinking intently.

Then she looked up again, "Well Rico, I don't know what to believe." she shrugged, "This could be just another typical bogus article or it could even be real. It's highly possible that some lunatic wizard might have tried this as an experiment which led to these results." She looked back down at the article. "A cross between a lethifold and a demiguise....", she repeated."Sounds dangerous." she shuddered.

"Maybe we could start by inquiring at St. Mungos about any cases related to this. Eventhough they've mentioned that are are several cases here, I think we should get a definate answer from the hospital authorities themselves." she said, looking seriously at Rico. "I have an aquaintance at St. Mungos who may be of assistance." she said, remembering a co-worker from her old job who had left to become a healer at St. Mungos.

Rico was relieved to see that Susan read the article with a sense of both skepticism and serious consideration.

"Uh yes, that could be a problem," Enrico nodded. "Well, we've had some reports about attacks, but naturally, you know, the victims have been labeled as 'lunatics'," he sighed.

"Right now, we're just starting the investigation," he added. "Ms. Brown is off to Quibbler headquarters to see who wrote the article....so, if any more reports come in, we might have to talk to your acquaintance." He shrugged. "What do you know about lethifolds and demiguises, though? Anything that could explain why these animals are being mixed and traded illegally?"

"I see", Susan said, nodding and looking out of the office where Ms. Brown had just left. Then, she looked back at Rico to answer his second question and sighed. "Well, both of them are highly dangerous creatures alone. So I shudder to think what a combination of them could be like. Again, like I said, it could just be the brain-child of some lunatic wizard who came up with this creature as an experiment." She looked at Rico and then looked down at the table, thinking about various possiblities.

"Since both of these creatures have been given more than 'XXX' status in 'Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them', it would have been highly difficult to transport the creature." she frowned, remembering ***-bits from her previous job. "It was obviously done illegally. Probably when the creature was at it's very small stages, it might have been traded through different means in the black market." she said, rubbing her eyebrow, feeling the vein on her forehead throbbing a bit. "I hope this is just another fake article." she said, looking up at Rico.

"Yeah, I hope it's just one lunatic wizard...." Rico shook his head and sat down in his chair, leaning back almost to the point of tipping over. But not quite, as he was practiced at balancing.

"A black market?!" Rico's eyebrows shot up. He wasn't that surprised...but if it was common knowledge....why wasn't anything being done about it? He stretched his muscular arms and then rested them behind his head. "So.....obviously the creatures must be breeded for a sinister purpose, to be traded on the black market, wouldn't you say? I mean, why else would you cross two highly dangerous animals?" He was just talking out loud, musing, and secretly hoping Susan would have some insight. She seemed very knowledgeable on the topic thus far...

Susan nodded glumily at Rico's comment about the black market,"The government is trying it's best to crack down on it, but with no success."

"I honestly have no idea why anyone would do something like that," she said, flicking back a lock of hair which came in front of her face, "I agree, it's obviously done for a sinister purpose." She paused, thinking about the possible dangers a creature like this could cause. "Do you think this could be the work of the death eaters?" she asked.

"Hmm....." Rico rubbed his chin, trying to make sense of the problem before them. He sat up abruptly when she mentioned 'death eaters' however.

"Death Eaters?!" he repeated loudly. "What do you mean? Weren't those the Voldywort supporters? I thought they were basically.....extinct?!" Enrico shook his head and blinked, wondering what more he could be ignorant about.

Susan was taken aback when Rico stood so suddenly, "Well, er.." she said, trying to get over the little shock, "I believe they have gone extinct. But you never know. There could still be some who believe that He may....you know...rise again," she said, with a shudder.

Rico rubbed his temples, then sighed deeply. "Okay, well, let's just hope it has nothing to do with You-Know-What or his supporters or whatever," he said with a frown, sitting back down. This was going take some serious planning.

"I think I need another coffee," he added, exhaling deeply, and cracking a smile. "All this talking has me thirsty again!"

Susan ran her fingers through her hair. She was getting flustered with all of the possibilities. This better be just a rumour, she thought to herself and sighed.

She looked up and Rico and gave a smile. She took his coffee mug and took out her wand. She pointed it into the mug and with a little tap, a smooth line of coffee came out of her wand filling the mug. After the mug was filled, she gave it to Rico, "here you go."

Enrico simply blinked in amazement when Susan was able to pour him a cup of coffee from her wand.

"How did you do that?!" he asked, clearly pleased. "I never did master those household charms…" he laughed and shook his head, picking up the steaming coffee cup to take a sip. And boy was that goooood. Just plain, fresh black coffee. Nothing quite like it.

"That's delicious!" Rico added after a long drink. "Can you do other drinks too, like specialty coffees, and tea?" It was a good subject to get his mind off of work.

Susan nodded and then shrugged, "It takes years of hard work, patience and persistance" she said jokingly in a dramatic way, it was actually pretty easy. "I'm glad you liked it." she smiled, feeling proud of herself.

"Er...I can make just regular coffee and tea and adjust the level of sugar and milk," she said, a little embarassed now. "I'm not a pro or anything," she chuckled. She was glad they could get their mind off of the current subject.

Rico chuckled at Susan; it was good to see her having a sense of humor even with an issue like 'mixed-breed monsters' on the mind.

"Well, it's certainly a talent, I'd say," he grinned, taking another sip of the drink. "I bet you can do those tidying charms and that packing one real well too." Rico nodded to himself, thinking that the only useful spells he'd learned involved fixing things or healing people.