Staircase
 

Droo. <3
 

Armen was a stressing a bit. He and the other Department Heads it seemed, had recieved a memo from Lord Borr regarding the 'Enhancement of the Ministry' via plants and the like. It was an odd request but one that Armen and his department couldn't dream of ignoring.

So after reading the memo, the Department Head took to the stairs, in a confused state not really sure where he was going but he needed to talk to someone. But who?

Armen had been walking down the step so quickly he had just about run over a witch who had been heading up to level six. "Oh pardon me--" the man began but realized who it was, his level neighbor Gina, the International Co-op Department Head.

"Oh Gina, It's good to see you, how have you been?" Armen had forgotten the memo in his suprise at running into someone on the staircase. So many people just rode the lifts these days but he found it easier and quicker sometimes to just use the stairs. Then she began to hiss with a parchment in hand....Borr's memo. "Oh you got that too? What are we supposed to do about it? We obviously have to do something to make Lord Borr happy." he said shrugging. He wasn't sure what he was supposed to do. Shouldn't he have given it to Erica or Rafael in the tree-hugger departments.

Armen looked at Gina for a moment after she spoke, obviously annoyed by the time Borr wanted them to take out of their day to fix this 'problem'. He was beginning to remember that she had never been present at any of their Cult meetings, she had never seemed to be in the good sight of Borr and D'Isigny. Hmm...she was Anti-Cult.

"Yeah I know right?" he said kind of monotone-like. He wasn't about to bass Borr out loud, he needed this spot in good graces, and besides being in the Cult AND a Department Head in the Ministry was a good gig. "But maybe we should try and come up with something," Armen began. "We don't want him docking pay or something outrageous for us or our levels." he nodded. "We can always help each other brainstorm so we don't have to do all the work on our own."

Of course he was right.

A breeze charm, that would surely get things moving. Ok he had to end those stupid pun that he said to himself so often, they were getting old. "Good idea Gina. Ooh and we could partner it with a new 'Open-door' policy, where all doors in the Ministry are to stay open, excluding doors that need to be locked for a reason or ones that lead to the outside." These were good plans.

Did she say fudge...or cake?! "Umm actually I think I could go for a spot of dessert, Gina, what do you say?" he smiled at the woman. He knew he had liked her.

Come down to her office, "Sure, lead the way!" he said cheerily. He hadn't been down on level five in a long time and definately not sense the re-model. Armen was excited he was going on a sort of work-day feild trip and getting treats.

He began to follow his collegue down the stairs to the door labeled: International Magical Cooperation Department.

Gina nodded and lead the way.

ooc: My office (edited new part in)

Madeline walked up the stars headed to her Department. It was her first day at the Ministry and she was so excited. Her job was Junior Dragon Restraint Officer. She could not wait to get settled in and start working. Her blond hair flowed out behind her as she made her way up the stairs. Her blue eyes sparkled with happiness as the light hit them.

Jess/Alex. ^__^ It's a little lame..Dart isn't being active in my head. D:
 

Being that the lifts were quite jam-packed this morning and the Space Evolutionist was already late on her way into work this morning, Alexandria decided it best to take the stairwell. Her five foot six, average frame made descending the stairs easy enough, despite the three inch heels she donned that morning.

Though what she didn't expect to find was someone sitting on one of the steps. It was morning. People were either already at their desks or on their way. Not sitting. So as she bustled down the steps, the last thing she expected was someone in her path .... Who she may have accidentally stumbled over . . . books and other papers flying up in the air, as she fell forward . . .

Watch where she was going?!? Um.......... HELLO!?!? She wasn't one the one sitting there in the middle of a stairwell while people were trying to get to their offices! Frowning as she pulled herself up, she shook her head. And he didn't even seem to feel any remorse for tripping her. NO. He made it seem like it was her fault.

"Well if you weren't sitting in the middle of the stairwell, then I wouldn't have tripped," Alex snapped at him. "Really. Your moping here is reminiscent of someone who just got fired. You didn't just get fired, did you? Because if you did, I doubt it'd be a great loss with your level of respectfulness." She rolled her eyes, and went to collecting her papers and books together into a stack.

Wrapping it up. xD
 

Dannni/Gavinnnn
 

He still didn't know when morning got here. He could swear he'd only shut his eyes for a second then it was morning and his nieces were nudging him to wake up (because his alarm clearly wasn't good enough). He blamed paper work and the little things left to be fine tuned. Had to check then double check and now he just wanted to collapse in his office and hope no one needed anything signed and brought to the Minister. Not likely but while he ascended the stairs he would lie to himself.

There was noise just a little further down on the stairs, someone else heading this way? Gavin was only slightly curious but not enough to turn around until...

....

Good. Merlin. He stopped immediately in his tracks and turned to look at his company. jsdbvfksgf She was on the stairs. He took the time to walk....and she was on the stairs. Well that kinda made those months of walking pointless now didn't it? For a while he just stared before deciding it was fine. She was still a few stairs away. "Congratulations?" Consider him still half asleep.

Gavin’s response wasn’t at all what she had expected, and it only strengthened her resolve to pesteraccompany him. Taking the stairs two at a time until she reached his side, she flashed him a grin. Not a morning person, was he? Heh.
“Mmm, I heard about the big promotion,” she clarified, still amused by the news. “I had no idea you were so... ambitious.” It was definitely a step up from brewing love potions, she still wanted to shudder at the thought.

Emily sipped from her mug, peering over the top of it innocently. She’d have cracked a joke about him wanting to be closer to her - obviously, but at this stage she didn’t think he could comprehend it, so she’d save it for another time. Seeing as there would likely be more other times now with their close proximity, and the occadional need for collaboration. How, delightful.

If he was only half awake before consider him FULLY AWAKE NOW. Emily was climbing the stairs faster than his brain could comprehend...at first. The man nearly stumbled on the stairs as he went up another two the moment she settled next to him. Her hands might have been full at the moment but he didn't think that would stop her. Not at all. She was a determined woman afterall. He might have taken another step up as well. Only one. This was a good enough distance.

And then she was starting to make sense again. Promotion. Senior Undersecretary. Him. Now there was a small smirk. "Questioning my ambition? I thought it would have come out in the conversations we've had." He was at ease at the moment. She was just standing there and offering her congratulations while sipping...if he had to guess, he'd say coffee. Gavin could accept that. "How nice of you to startle me out of my skin so early."

But this was the first he'd seen her since he heard something of his own. "And what about you? Running the hoard of touchers and tacklers now I hear. It suits you."

She couldn't help but notice that Gavin was quick to take a step up at her approach.. he wasn't still worried about her touching up his face was he? Heh. Just to see how he'd react, she too took a step up. In her defense, he was already taller than her, so there was no need increase that margin.

Emily shook her head in response, "nope, I was under the impression you were comfortable down in your mysterious rooms huddled around your cauldron.." because that was the mental image she had of him. Low flickering green light, bubbling sounds, steam and fumes... and him, stirring, so diligently stirring the pothis cauldron. It actually impressed her, that he was capable of growth, and actually succeeded at it, not that she'd say any of this out loud.

Gavin's additional remark got a chuckle out of her. "I startled you?" she echoed, "so... terribly... sorry." She drew out each and every syllable, the sincerity in her tone masked by sarcasm. "No, but really you should be more vigilant, or at least awake..." she said with a nod. He looked disorientated. Out of it. He needed coffeeee.

And what about her? Emily's smile faltered slightly, before returning with more gusto. Emily shrugged, "You think?" Though after setting her sights on Head Auror, and accomplishing that goal, she hadn't anticipated on reaching this milestone till she was at least thirty-five, if not forty.
A part of her wanted to tease him, because she knew she could, but she was content with not walking alone for once - so she wouldn't scare him off just yet.

Again she closed the distance a little. Another step and he'd just look like he was running. No. Gavin didn't run but he didn't stick around much either. He had to think it through, given the height difference, she'd still have to do a bit of shifting with that folder and her coffee to make a hand free for touching. Logically--because surprizingly it was still present--he had no real reason to worry. Was he calling her bluff? Against his better judgement, yes, he was.

He gave a shrug. "I was comfortable down there. Very little people, very little interactions and the exact art of potion making. I still think about the lab I left behind but that doesn't mean I don't know when I've been offered better." Though people being in an out of his office was a bit unsettling at the start, he'd come to realize it was just another part of the job.

Gavin wiped his hand over his face, willing away the last bit of drowsiness. "Your remorse is inspiring." He retorted, his voice dragging to match hers. "But actually I think I'm wide awake now." Wide awake. This was the staircase, he was heading to his office she was going in the same directi--his eyes suddenly widened a bit at the realization. "Well look at that, we could almost be neighbours now." He mused, his tired look replaced with one of amusement though he wasn't all that sure having her on just the other level was entirely safe.

And was that a serious question? "They couldn't have picked a better choice. You were made for that job with your level of commitment." In the last conversation they had, she made it clear she'd rather work than have a lazy day. It spoke volumes. "And you bring a whole new level of intimidation to that department, think that might have lowered the crime rate already." Said only half jokingly. The woman was fierce.

He didn't flinch. That was progress, was it not? Instead of making him feel ill at ease - because she knew how to do that - she took two more steps, there was no point in standing around, they were both busy people now, no?

"Comfort is overrated," she mused in response, but she could understand its appeal. It was one of those things she never quite fancied herself, she liked change, challenges, being quick on her feet.. "but it pleases me to know your looks are matched with wit." He wasssss a pretty boy, or .. you know, rather dishy in appearance. Her experiences with these sorts of people told her that you needed one of two things to get by in the world. Looks, or brains... and if you had both you were exceptionally lucky and ahead of the game, so kudos to Gavin.

She grinned. Her remorse really was inspiring, she knew this to be true, heh. "Mmmm, sure," she added offhandedly as he made those morning faces, attempting to shake it off. "Not sleep well?" She asked, but it wasn't to say she particularly cared about his sleeping habits, that was his business. And then the knut dropped. They were neighbours, so close, yet still so far. "Wonderful, is it not?" she asked teasingly. "We'll be seeing so much more of each other.." good thing, or bad thing, she didn't know. Granted, for her it didn't make much of a difference, he was nice to look at, so unless he decided to bring his nieces to work for show and tell, she was fine with the close proximity.

And shucks. Flattery. On the inside she was beaming, though she only reacted with a lip twitch. Committed, she was... that much was clear, but the highlight for her, was that he thought her intimidating.
"What can I say? I aim to please," was her response, "and I'd very much like to see those statistics if you manage to get your hands on them." Lowering the crime rate was a desirable outcome.

And another two steps by her. It was almost like a dance only he wouldn't be caught dead in one of those. No. They were obviously walking. They both had an office to head to, work to see to. He continued up a step or two. Walking to work together, that idea was....new. That was how he'd describe it for now. If she kept her hands to herself then this wouldn't be such a bad habit to fall into whenever it happened.

Her logic always amused him. "Overrated?" He paused at the next step and glanced over at her. "I wouldn't say that. It's the least we owe ourselves in life." With all you forced yourself to go through, you might as well let yourself have a little something in life. That wasn't his only reason for stopping either. His looks matched his wit. This was probably the first time he'd heard her openly admit that he had a nice face but he was careful not to let even the faintest hint of a smirk cross his features. He was trying this modesty thing. Could she tell? "It always has, I'm just not much of a show off." Cue an innocent smile. Showing off? Him? Never.

His sleep was another thing completely. "I still don't think I really got any sleep last night but apparently I did. I'll live." Working on little sleep didn't bother him much. He wouldn't suddenly drop dead. Wonderful? Oh? "Interesting way to describe it." Wonderful? He rolled the word around in his head. Always the tease, wasn't she? "I'm inclined to believe that might not be such a bad thing. With all the people going in and out of my office, it'll be good to see a familiar face." A familiar face that was nice to look at. No complaints here. Not yet anyway.

"I'll get right on that for you." He said before giving an animated roll of his eyes. She was something else. In everything he said, she chose to cling to her intimidation. Even more proof that everything she did was deliberate, every step and moment.

Despite Gavin’s hesitancy, Emily proceeded to ascend the stairs, only looking back once to see he had stopped. His actions became clear as he stated his point on the matter of comfort. Again, they were disagreeing, and it was civil. Why couldn't everyone else be this easy to get long with? She smiled. "To an extent," she agreed, though still strongly in favour of it being overrated. "Comfort gets boring though, and it doesn't expose us to new experiences of new things which limits growth and opportunities." And she was all about opportunities. More so in her career, but she was attempting to become more sociable. See, she was being social... chatting and being nice and things. Not that she wasn't a nice person, she was, clearly.

As for not showing off, that much was true. He wasn't a show off - not really, which was definitely refreshing, though he was capable of being arrogant, that time in the lift came to mind. "Sure you aren't."

Sleep. Apparently he did? Meaning... he wasn't sure? Meaning he probably hadn't. That amused her, though she didn't let it show. She understood where he was coming from, to an extent, she'd had many sleepless nights, for various reasons which she didn't think was necessary to share. Of course he'd live, "and if you ever need waking up..." or startling, "I'm sure I can find time in my busy schedule to accommodate you."

Emily sipped from her drink again, her file still wedged safely under her arm. She nodded, she didn't think her view had been particularly interesting, but she went along with it. "Agreed," she added at the end of his assessment. It wouldn't be a bad thing. It would just be a thing.. if their timing allowed for it - and there was no guarantee of that being the case. "I've had people trampling through my office with barely a break in between..." and she wasn't a fan of being confined. How Wes put up with it, she didn't know. At least she seemed to be managing them time-wise, not letting them linger too long. She was efficient and this seemed to be mirrored by her employees so far.

Raising a brow at his eye rolling, Emily nudged Gavin with her elbow. "Place nice, I know where your office is..." her tone was light, and despite the words, she wasn't threatening him.

He would start walking again in a minute. He just needed a second to process that. Comfort was boring. "You've been spending too much time in intensive training." His face was perfectly straight. The only thing that gave away the fact that he wasn't meant to be taken seriously was the smile tugging at the corner of his lips after the first few seconds. Comfort, boring? Go figure. Again he got the image of her dragging herself through a wasteland with creatures gnawing away at her legs.

"How touching. I've got my own spot in your oh so busy schedule if needed. It's an honour." Because he was actually going to walk into her office half conscious. No. That was a recipe for getting himself behind metal bars without even knowing how. "Really a spot of coffee should do the trick." He was almost sure of that. "But I'll keep your offer in mind."

That he could imagine. Law Enforcement was a busy level. Always someone to take in, another security check to get done. The level, he imagined, hardly got a break which would have explained Emily's love for it. Speaking of that level. "How is that....De Talone thing working out?" There were rumours circulating around the Ministry but he wasn't about to believe any of them until he heard it from the Head herself, heh, the idea of her running that Department still amused him.

By now he'd gotten walking again and found himself sharing the next step with her when she elbowed him. "You'll have to get through the Junior Undersecretary first." He said with a grin. Of course he knew that wouldn't stop her but now he was even more amused. "And how's Office life treating you? A woman like you, I can't imagine sitting perfectly still all day signing paperwork."

Seriously. She could have some pent up energy. Itching for the moment she'd be able to go back out into the field and roll around in the mud.

HA! She could tell he was joking, but he wasn’t wrong... her training had always been intense, she was intense. “You’re right, perhaps I could give this lazy.. comfortable thing a go,” and see how long it’d last before she got bored and moved on. If her weekends and holidays were anything to go by, it wouldn’t be for very long.

Gavin’s tone amused her to the point where she wanted nothing more than to point out all the ways in which having a spot in her schedule was to his advantage, but refrained from doing so. She didn’t need more people trampling through her office and taking up her time, there was enough of that already. In the end, she was content with a “suit yourself.” His loss.

It was her turn to slow her pace and roll her eyes. The de Talone case... it was a stain on her department, and it marred her succession to department head. She wasn’t surprised Wes cut and run... aka went to Australia for family reasons ... it was perfect timing on his part, and now she was responsible for picking up the slack. “Depend what you mean... we’re no closer to a recapture than we were when she fled, but we’re making inroads with security and protocol review,” or you know, she was, “this mess, will never be repeated again.” Over her dead body, literally.

As for getting through the Junior Undersecs office... it would be as easy as a slice of pie. “I’m sure my toilet seat has greater defense against intrusion than your offices,” so it was in no way going to stop her, should she want to invade his privacy. The toilet seat thing, a joke. He knew that right? She wasn’t THAT paranoid.
Emily shrugged “I manage,” truth be told, it was ok... and until things fell into place she was willing to sit tight. There would be plenty of time fore running around later. “Oh please, feel free to stop by and witness my sitting patiently for yourself, I’m sure in the meantime hell is enjoying the frosty weather.” Cue smirk.

Now he was laughing, not the loud kind, or well it was more of chuckle. "You? Lazy? Comfortable thing? Right. Maybe in the same week I'll head down to the Atrium and hand out free hugs." The idea was that unimaginable. From what she'd said back during the break, she wasn't exactly on board with doing nothing. It made her stir crazy. No way she'd pull it off.

As for suiting himself....."I always do." He said with a small shrug. It was true. He might as well had. Everyone did what was best for them, he wasn't going to be that one selfless sucker who got the short end of the stick. "You do too, I can tell." Nod.

And they were slowing down again? He stopped and looked to her. Good news? Bad news? Essentially they'd gotten nowhere and the woman was still at large. "No leads then, I take it." Must be rough, mostly for her if he thought about. For someone who always liked being in control of the situation. The way she talked about her job, he could only imagine it was eating her alive. No doubt she'd over exert just to fix things if she had to and he was in no position to tell her not to. "No idea where she might have run off to either?" The woman was a major risk to the public given her track record. He was just trying to understand the situation a little better.

Now he was outright laughing and considering adding extra charms to his locks. "Point taken, I'll play nice and get you those stats."

She managed? "Spoken like a true Politician. Have you considered a move to my Department?" And an invitation to her office? "Brilliant, I'll stop by the moment I'm bored enough. It should be entertaining." Or not, but a good excuse to invade her office nonetheless.

Rearranging so that manic laughter isn't out of place/awkward
 

Emily's smirk softened into a smile, Gavin's good mood was infectious, so sue her. The free hugs part, got a chuckle out of her. "I'd actually like to see that," she mused, attempting to form a mental image of the scene, "just be careful, you don't want to tempt me." Watching him give free hugs in the Atrium was as good an incentive as there was for being lazy an doing... nothing. She could set herself up with a day bed, fluffy slippers and blanket and just watch the hugging unfold. All that human contact, would possibly drive him as nuts as boredom would drive her. Only, she'd be entertained for some of that time, at least.

She returned Gavin's nod. "What gave me away?" she asked, flicking her hair over her shoulder as she turned her head to make eye contact with him. Again, he was doing that reading thing, and wasn't wrong... she did suit herself. "Yet another thing we have in common..." they weren't so different, really. How, strange? nice? strange. Odd! Odd was the word.

A part of her was wondering if Gavin was laughing at her, or with her. At any rate, she couldn't hold back a light silvery laugh of her own. It was definitely a new experience laughing so early in the day, on a stair well of all places, when there was still so much to do. But it was... nice and she wasn't complaining. At least he understood, and seemed to be acclimating to her empty threats and touching/nudging... if anything, he didn't seem to mind. No jumping out of his skin or glaring at her this time, quite the opposite really.

"None that we haven't exhausted," she confirmed, not that there had been much to work with to begin with, the unsuspecting portkeys limited them in reaction time and in terms of physical evidence. There wasn't much to go on. "We can only speculate at this stage, but considering we've launched APW's and BOLO's worldwide there's not much room for her to move." And then there was the book she was after. "Though, we have reason to believe she hasn't yet fled the country, and won't for some time." That being until she has the book in her guilty little girl hands. It was only a matter of time until the redhead resurfaced, and when she did... Emily would be there, MLE would be there.

Emily nodded, her lips pursed in an attempt to smother a chuckle. Politics? Her? Work for him? No. "I've considered it about as much as you've considered becoming one of my touchers and tacklers." The thought of him in the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts office was amusing enough without thinking of him in something more, rigorous, like the Auror office. "Very entertaining," she affirmed, mockingly.

Yeah, he bet she'd like to see that very much but it wasn't going to happen, whether she took a lazy day or not. He tried to image standing in the middle of that room, person after person coming for a hug and it took every ounce of self control for him to not shudder right then and there. So much touching. He wouldn't have lasted 5 minutes. No use lying to himself. "I highly doubt lounging around all day is worth watching me crawl out of my skin." Seriously. He couldn't find the appeal.

"A bunch of little things." He responded. It wasn't just the way she spoke or the things she said, but it was just something that told him the woman didn't walk around trying to be a people pleaser. "We seem to have a lot of that." A lot more than he thought he'd ever have in common with a toucher if he was being honest. It was a....hmmm....a pleasant surprize? Sounded about right.

And was it him or did she not seem as guarded today? He'd gotten her laughing more than once, it wasn't exactly a normal thing. It wasn't to say he didn't think she had a sense of humour but more that she was usually either overanalyzing or trying to find the funniest way of making him squirm. Needless to say, she was much preferred when she was like this.

Of course he was paying extra attention while she spoke. The woman was still out there. What's more she was probably still in England taking her pick at the youth of others. Just what they needed, a psycho running around. "What makes you so sure she'll stay?" He was half hoping they didn't have that a strong a reserve of evidence arguing that point. Gavin would spare a moment of sympathy for the people living wherever she went but at the same time, he preferred her off somewhere than here. Reasonable, no?

Him? A toucher and tackler? The idea was scandalous to say the least. He had a policy of you keeping your hands to yourself and him doing the same. "I'm afraid that just wouldn't work out." So he saw her point. Politics wasn't exactly her thing. "It's all the same. Law Enforcement has been known to bend things until they fit what they need." The idea never amused him much until he put it in the context of her. She herself had admitted to being able to skirt the law. He remembered.

Emily considered his statement. Lounging around all day, sounded tedious, watching him crawl out of his skin... well, she wouldn’t object to seeing that. Just knowing how uncomfortable it would make him brought a tight-lipped smirk to her face. It was mean... but oh so funny all the same. “I guess we’ll never know.”

She raised an eyebrow curiously. A bunch of little things. This only strengthened her belief that Gavin was indeed very perceptive, a trait she no doubt admired. “I guess anything’s possible,” she added. What was that muggle expression? If pigs could fly? ... needless to say, there was a great deal of crazy in the world, so it wasn’t entirely surprising that they could have things in common.

They walked in silence for a moment, and Emily couldn’t help but think that their spontaneous meeting would soon end, and she’d have to return to her office, bark some orders, sign some papers, do her rounds and monitor progression before holing up in her office again until she was confident she could call it a daynight. For the most part, she didn’t mind...

Gavin’s follow-up question brought her back to reality. “There’s something she wants, that she doesn’t have yet...” and that was all the detail she was going to go into with him, here. Even if de Talone had skipped town, she would be back.
“That’s a shame, you’d be an asset to the department...” his insights and critical thinking skills would be of use, not to mention he was easier to get along wuth than some of her employees, including the ones she had known for years. Awkward.
“Mmm, all the same,” she agreed, though there was a hint of reservation in her tone.

That was very accurate. They would never know how truly rewarding watching him give out hug after hug was. It was one of those things in life that he didn't even open his mind to considering for a moment. The Ministry had a lot of people...it would be a lot of hugging for a man that hardly liked handshakes. "But don't let that stop you. A lazy day could do you some good. Maybe not now, what with your Department having to bounce around looking for a criminal mastermind but later on?" Emily resolving to do nothing was about as strange as her walking up to him asking for a batch of amortentia. Gavin just didn't see it happening.

At first he would have disagreed with her next statement. 'Anything' covered a broad spectrum of issues here but then he realized how many things were really possible, like him not cringing away when she elbowed him and even them here having what he could only assume was a normal conversation he didn't have many of those period. In the end she was perfectly right.

In the silence Gavin looked back at their progress. It didn't feel like it but they'd gotten up quite a few stairs without him even realizing. Another benefit to walking with someone else??--eh....no, another benefit of walking with her or any of the few other workers here that he actually didn't mind was more like it. "I think you might have done me more good than that cup of coffee I wanted." He idly commented. It was something that he'd only just realized. Gavin was planning to grab a cup before he started work but now he figured he could just jump right in. Interesting.

What's even more interesting was how vague she was being. "Not allowed to toss me a bone I can actually chew on?" Really. They was something she wanted and would be back for. Just how useful was that? There was more and by the sounds of it a good deal more than she was letting on but you could only get so much out of an MLE-er before it branched off into the territory of 'I'll have to kill you if I tell you'. He wasn't trying to get there...just trying to learn about the baddie.

"I'd be an asset to any department." He said with a smirk, a smirk that slowly faded as he actually thought about that. "Any except Creature Control and Environment stuff." So not every Department afterall. Nooooo.

She shook her head defiantly. No. She wasn't going to give it a go any time soon.. no. Especially with everything going on with work and still adjusting to her new role, but perhaps... one day. "Maybe, I do like a good challenge," and doing nothing was as great a challenge to her as wrestling a dragon with a troll on its tail. A small voice in her head seemed to think it might be a good idea, that she deserved a break - but she payed it no attention. Emily did narrow her brows and grimace at the whole criminal mastermind bit, pfffffft. Please. People seemed to give the redhead too much credit.

Taking the folder from the crook of her arm, she transferred it to the other. This meant that she only had one arm pinned to her side instead of two - allowing it to swing in time to her steps, relieving a bit of tension in her shoulder.
Emily grinned, taking a side-long look at her stairs companion. She did him more good than a cup of coffee? "Glad I could be of service," she mused, accepting the statement as a compliment. He really knew how to compliment a woman, didn't he? "Same time tomorrow?" she asked jovially, making a show of checking the time on her wristwatch. She wouldn't object to such plans, he was easy company even in spite of their differences, and their similarities.

"I did throw you a bone," she interjected matter-of-factly. "I never promised meat on it..." and really, he ought to have known better than to assume she would spill her guts about any case to a non-MLE employee. Mr FancyPants Senior Undersecretary or not, she believed in working on a need-to-know basis, and this, he didn't need to know. All he did need to know was that, "she's after a way to stay forever young, obviously, but don't worry your pretty little head about it... we're on it, I'm on it." Her words were sharp, but sincere. It wasn't his concern. It was hers. de Talone was hers.

If Gavin smirking and being smug with himself wasn't amusing enough, his admission to the exceptions certainly tugged at her own lips. "Mmm, you don't strike me as the outdoorsy type." Not that he didn't have a body for it it required being outdoorsy, but that was usually the case for those areas.

Now wasn't that the truth. He'd already figured that the woman sometimes did things, just to prove that she could. It was another one of those things probably wanting to prove herself and all. But what really peaked his interest was the expression she wore at him giving a ....compliment....yes...no....to De Talone. Someone seemed bitter. "You'll have to give her some credit. For a while she got away with all her crimes and she escaped, right in the middle of prosecution. That takes wit." The woman may not have been a genius but she was smart enough to get out. It counted for something...but was probably the last thing Emily would have wanted to hear. Oops?

Oh? Look at that, this would be a routine afterall. Definitely not one he would have minded and there might have been a smile at her question but he'd deny it if she pointed it out. "Sounds like a plan." One she was fully on board with. "I'll be sure to have my own cup of coffee next time, wouldn't want to leave you sipping alone." He'd already be awake but the morning would be long and it wasn't like she'd be hanging around his office all day.

He shrugged at her retort. "Can't blame me for trying." He may not have been fully briefed but now he knew more than he did when he first started up the stairs. The emphasis on herself as she spoke had him smirking again. This case was all her, whether she got help from her entire department or she did it alone. Emily didn't seem the type to take this sort of thing lightly. "Does this mean I can sleep with my doors open, you being on it and everything." He teased.

And there was a firm shake of his head. "Nope. I mean, I do things outdoors but animals and plants....are a no. I'll go on runs and the occasional hike but outside of that, it wouldn't happen." He was fine with exercising inside to keep fit.

She was a bit touchy on the subject, yes. And it had nothing to do with all the stress that she had to manage now that she was in charge of running the department. The expectations, the internal reviews, the coordination of everything all at once... and all in light of this blunder that happened to take place right in time for her promotion. The timing couldn't have been more perfect. It was her chance to make her mark on MLE, and to start shaping her legacy.
She loved her job, she loved MLE, she loved her new position and appreciated the opportunity. However. She did miss the hunt, and having to worry only about the hunt. There were so many other factors in play now, half of which were purely bureaucratic - which almost bored her to death. Gavin got a grunt. Just a grunt. She didn't want to talk about it. Instead, she sipped her coffee, her eyes trained on the steps ahead.

"Brilliant." Holding back a laugh, Emily huffed, exhaling sharply. "How thoughtful of you, coming to my aid like that... I hate to sip alone. " There was a hint of sarcasm there, though it was playful. In truth it hadn't even occurred to her that she was left out, or that she stood in contrast to Gavin, but she supposed that she did.

She swilled the contents of her cup in a small semi-circle before responding. "I never said I did..." as much as she disliked answering questions and disliked nosy people, she did - to an extent -appreciate inquisitive people. Gavin, was one of the few that could probably pull it off without getting under her skin, much. "Naturally... and because you obviously rank highly on my priorities list, I wouldn't let anything happen to you," she teased back, offering him a mock salute with her free hand.

Runs, she was itching for one of those. She'd managed to keep much of her regular routine, but there were the odd mornings where she didn't get to stretch her legs, and it pained her. "That, I can relate to.." she acknowledged with a small nod. "After leaving school... creatures and plants lost their appeal." They HAD been cool, and were welcome distractions while she was at Hogwarts, since then though, they held very little significance in her life - save for using them as potions ingredients, that was handy.

Really? That was all the response he'd get for that? Not even a word of protest proving him wrong? How disappointing. Must have hit a particularly raw nerve. If that was how he'd win the point of argument it could hardly count. What did grunts even mean? He glanced over at her curiously and saw her sipping her coffee. One thing was clear, this part of the conversation was over. Fine by him. Criminals weren't his cup of tea to begin with.

He shrugged, giving an easy smile. "You know me, always the selfless giver." Only half true. He could be selfless...but only for three people. Outside of that, not even. "You know, if we're gonna make this a habit I think we should settle on who gets the coffee on what days." To make it all official. He wouldn't mind coming to work and having coffee already there and waiting, juuuust saying.

Hah! One of the more preferred lies. Him ranking high on her priorities. "I always knew I'd make it onto that list one day. Just took a bit of long suffering is all." He said, adding on a bit of dramatics just for the fun of it but really, he imagined her priority list would have a good few things vying for the top and none of them would be him. Still, she bothered to humour him. "Should have you set up security by my office." Clearly a joke and only a joke. Not at all an invitation for them to go clogging up his Department with security personnel. No.

Hold on. Gavin raised an eyebrow at her. Plants and animals required CARE. Emily Browne nearly jumped out of her skin the moment Avery sat in her lap. There was no way. "You? They had an appeal to you at some point?" Consider him taken aback. It just didn't seem like the type of thing that could keep her interest. "I was horrid in those lessons. The plants I worked with all died and I swear the creatures had it out for me." It didn't appeal to her anymore but to think there was a time when it did. Wow.

It pleased her that he didn't press the issue, taking her cue to move on, from that topic of conversation. She'd heard enough whispers, enough criticism and read enough articles in the trash rag Daily Prophet to last her a lifetime. That wasn't to say criticism wasn't welcome, so long as it was constructive. Obviously, she knew MLE had flaws, holes in policy and protocol, staff that needed... work... hence why she was promoted to the top job. She had the skills set and the strategies to get them back on track. She had a vision, and the Minister himself supported them by supporting her promotion.

Him? A selfless giver? She didn't doubt he was capable of it, but she couldn't say that she had witnessed such a thing. That being said, the same could be said for her. "I'm sure you are," was her response, with a complimentary brow raise.
As for making this a habit, she didn't realise it would be extended to the acquisition of coffee too. But he raised a good point, for the sake of being efficient, it would work. "Sure, I can take Monday and Tuesday, you take Wednesday and Thursday... and Friday's we could treat ourselves to a breakfast date," she joked, or, half joked.

She was amused. Gavin's dramatics was amusing, and the smirky-grin on her face was evidence of this. "And was the suffering worth it?" she asked, curious. The security thing got a nod out of her. She was sure he wasn't serious, but it wasn't necessarily a poor idea. "It could be arranged..." just so he knew.

Gavin's reaction was not anticipated, and the look on his face made her pause in her step before continuing. "What?" she asked defensively. "You know, I wasn't always this standoffish and brash," she started in her defense. Not that she needed to defend liking creatures and plants at one point - but she did anyway. "But don't go getting the wrong idea, I was never into pygmy puffs and honking daffodils..." she was never one of those girls. Unicorns were one of those creatures in the grey area. On the one hand they were all pretty and fluffed up and adored by the annoying swooning girls.. but on the other, they were amazing creatures, legitimately. Emily emitted a silent chuckle. They died, or didn't like him. Merlin. "Please tell me your skills have developed since then, and that you're not inadvertently endangering Avery's life."

He couldn't actually tell if she was being sarcastic or not in her agreeing with his ability to be selfless. For the sake of keeping the conversation light he would assume she meant it...if only a little and would move on to the coffee arrangements. Wednesdays and Thursdays were doable and Fridays were....breakfast dates? There were all kinds of comments he could make about that but he went with, "An inspired idea. The cafe on the corner serves nice breakfasts. I don't know much about the food in the specialty area." Other than that it was now someone in his level's job to check it out and make a report on it. What they were looking for, he'd know when they found it, if there was anything to find.

Gavin took a moment's pause, as if he was actually considering her question before finally nodding. "I'll admit it was." But only because it allowed them to move beyond the stage where she tried to have him jumping out of his skin whenever they had a run in. This was progress and to think all he had to do was get through her and her finger wiggles and her disregard for personal space. "Got myself personal security now." That personal security for his face she'd told him she'd never even consider, heh.

As for arranging for security, he figured if he just ignored that bit, it wouldn't happen. MLE-ers were busy people, they shouldn't be wasting their time cluttering level one.

Merlin, someone was getting defensive. Gavin laughed. Even more passionate about this topic than he thought. Of course it was clear she wouldn't be advocating on the behalf of either any time soon but she sure seemed worked up enough at the moment. "A world without a brash and standoffish Emily. You'll have to forgive me, I'm finding it hard to imagine." The idea amused him a bit more than it should, really it did. From their first encounter she was nothing if not very bold in her actions. Anything outside of that was just hard to imagine even with her justifying it by mentioning the pygmy puffs and honking daffodils.

And he laughed even more. "Picking up a genuine bit of concern for my niece I see." The look she'd had on that day told him she didn't care to even remember the name Avery. "Lucky for Avery, she neither has roots and grows in a plant patch or has any Ministry 'X' classifications. I tend to have better luck keeping humans alive and my dog doesn't complain either." Tobi was a good sport about most everything once you fed him and pet him.

It amazed her how quickly their friendship was progressing. If you could even call it that. From sharing a lift and invading each others personal space... to a catch up in Diagon Alley in which she was subjected to his niece sitting on her lap and now they'd somehow arranged to meet on a daily basis for coffee and breakfasts on Friday's - granted, that last part had been her own doing. How, had all this happened? Furthermore, she questioned how and why he had been so quick to accept the plans, he didn't even sound as if he were joking.
"So long as the food's not contaminated, it's average," she mused, going along with the conversation. "I try to avoid it when I can... too many people, goodness knows what they've stuck their fingers in before making their selections." That was arguably the worst aspect about buffets, the food handlers with limited and questionable hygienic practices ... this was a form of touching she was most definitely against. "And it's far less intimate..." which was sometimes an issue. She disliked the increased chance of being over heard, interrupted, and in general annoyed. Emily much preferred the peacefulness of a quiet corner booth in a small establishment where she could sit, think and ignore other peoples' stupidity.

So the suffering was worth it? How sweet. Truly, she was touched, save for the personal security bit. That was a bone he could keep and chew.. she wasn't going to take it back. "You'll just have to hope I'm not otherwise engaged in your time of need or peril." As amusing as the thought was, heh.

Gavin's laughter annoyed her. Emily's expression fell slack but she resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "If you ever get your hands on a timeturner," she said, leaving the statement open ended, then there was his chance to see it. Bright eyed, optimistic, arrogant and unmarred by years of hard work and disappointment. She was probably more fun then too...

She was contemplating slapping him one on the arm for all the laughing, but instead, she exhaled a small laugh of her own. "Chalk it down to my line of work... protecting the public," Avery being one of them. Now it was her turn to laugh. Gavin made a good point, Avery neither had leaves nor talons or fur ... "tend to have better luck?" she asked, the way he phrased it, it sounded as if there was a shadow of a doubt in the statement. Then there was the dog. "You have a dog?" Now that, was interesting.

He was pretty much just going along with this entire conversation here while they made their way up step after step. It wasn't much of an issue for him. During the walk she'd only touched him once and that was to elbow him. Nothing tremendously life threatening there. Not at all like in the lifts where he could feel her breathing against him. That had been uncomfortable. If things continued like this he wouldn't have minded the company in the mornings but he could do without that image she just put in his head. People's hands in his food. He shuddered involuntarily at the thought. If he didn't like himself being touched he certainly didn't like his food being touched either. "Well that killed it for me rather quickly." Gavin had been thinking he should be less of a recluse given his new position and thought eating with the others in that area would be a good start but NOW.....he didn't see that happening.

"Privacy, fully expected from an MLE-er." It didn't surprize him that she'd have preferred not having her conversation being overheard, even if it was a simple talk on the weather. He could agree. If he wanted someone hearing he would have told them to pull up a chair and help themselves to a drink. How often did you see that happening?

"Otherwise engaged? Is that any way to treat your top priority?" He never thought he'd have gotten to use her own words against her so soon, even if they were only in joke. Truthfully, if the situation called for it, he could help himself. "I'll manage." Because he would. He really would if he had to. Dying wasn't an option...nearly was damaging his face. Priorities you see.

Someone was less amused. Gavin noted her expression, not willing to make his solemn just yet. Nope. This was news, to him anyway. "If I ever do, I'll drag you back in time with me--well not literally drag," because that involved touching, "but you get the idea." It could be fun, watching a different Emily. Of course he'd have questions after, that he was almost sure she'd never answer. That would have been counter-productive to seeing her as she used to be, no?

Line of work. Right. "I'll be sure to let her know the moment I get home." He'd fix it up a bit for the sake of six year old understanding but yes, he'd share, just for the heck of it. As for the use of 'tend' he simply nodded. "Tend." There were still things he blamed himself for, things he might have been able to prevent but didn't. No perfect record there and no need to talk about it. "I do, he's what muggles call a German Shepherd if I remember correctly. Better behaved than my nieces I'll give him that." Well...better behaved than Avery....Ashley had her moments.

She wasn't surprised that Mr. Don'tTouchMe Senior Undersecretary wasn't a fan of food touchers, along with regular touchers. Though for some strange reason, even just knowing that the thought didn't sit right with him - that he had lost his appetite for the idea - pleased her. It pleased her. Emily responded with an, "I figured it would.." heck, it was enough to make her think twice about eating there, and she was hardly the fussy type when it came to food. Five second rule much?

"You say that as if its a bad thing." Or so it seemed to be the case when anyone made any assessment or comparison to MLE. Privacy, was a commodity, one that she would willingly pay for if need be - not to say she didn't value spending time with people in general, even if she was choosey in that respect. Emily couldn't help but snicker. Gavin Gavin Gavin...
"Top priority or not, you can't have me all to yourself.." there were bad guys she wanted to see caught and sentenced, she had teams to manage and a great deal of other things to do. "You wouldn't want me to hold your hand, would you?" she asked, definitely joking, the sarcasm was there and everything. Of course he would manage, perhaps. She had faith that he would manage. Gavin may not have had her training, but he was smart, so he would persevere.

He'd drag her back in time with him?

....

"And why would you do that?" Th potential humour and bonding aside, she had no desire to revisit the past. Her memories served her well enough, so unless it was fruitful or served a purpose... she could do without. That wasn't the only thing Gavin said that piqued her curiosity. It hadn't occurred to her that he and Avery would discuss her in any capacity, she had been but a stranger that day... and yet still managed to end up with the child in her lap... go figure. Perhaps he ought to give her a lesson on stranger danger, if nothing else. "Let her know what exactly?" Because she could not fathom for a second Gavin telling the girl that she would look out for her, specifically.

Taking the next couple of steps comfortably in her stride, Emily glanced down at her watch then up at the landing ahead. German Shepherd, they were like those muggle police dogs, no? Not the sniffing ones, but the other, regular ones? "I picked you for more of a cat person," if she was being completely honest. That, or one of those dogs that looked like cats.

*begins wrapping up* ^^
 

Anyone would figure it was. How did people sit there eating after such a thought? He'd be right back to that cafe during his lunch break, or he'd pack his own lunch for the sake of that new resolve he was working on but Merlin knew he'd have to be something close to starving before he'd attempted touched food. Having the Minister's Personal Assistant checking out the food court was suddenly making all kinds of sense.

"Not a bad thing." He corrected. "Just a predictable thing." It was almost expected once you worked in MLE, otherwise you'd just be plain reckless with your life and information in general. Not something you could afford given the line of work. Naturally he heard the tone of sarcasm and all that other stuff that was meant to reassure him but that didn't stop his fingers from twitching at the mention of hand holding. It only served to bring back memories of the amortentia testing. SO MUCH CONTACT, Mer-lin. It was a wonder he didn't end up in St. Mungo's. For the sake of keeping the conversation light, he smiled. "Of course not. No. Definitely not necessary. My hands work better on their own." Without there being some other hand attached to them, making them uncomfortable.

...

......"Because I can." He answered her odd question. "It'd help when I'm making comparisons between you and what you used to be." That was it really. "Not a fan of the past then?" The idea didn't seem all that appealing to her...or maybe it was just the thought of being dragged. He could understand. Contact was always a no. As for what he'd let Avery know, "That there's people like the Pretty Woman, as she calls you, watching out for public safety, her safety. She....doesn't like Law Enforcement much." Go figure.

Was that the landing already? Almost there actually. When had they gotten this far? He was about to comment on this as they hit the platform but then she said that. "Circe, no. I hate those things. Overly affectionate, always rubbing against you, horrible temperaments." All in all just very bad experiences with felines that had him put off from them. Tobi was enough. Smart dog he was.

*sad face*
 

Just a predictable thing. Of course, because that wasn't a bad thing at all. Emily chose to ignore this avenue of conversation... she could see his point, and it was somewhat typical of the department in general, but still.. she strongly disliked the word predictable. It was unpleasant to say the least.

For the most part, she was quite perceptive, little things in actions and body language were easier for her to pick up on and read than other social cues. His sharp, deliberate comment coupled with his hand twitching which she managed to glimpse out of the corner of her eye, resulted in a soft smirk. She wasn't a fan of hand holding in general, but didn't dislike it that much. It brought back memories of her seventh year, trying to desperately to hold Jacob's hand for CoMC.. he was a bit of a fruitloop though, batty and down right dangerous on a broom. It was no wonder he made it as a professional beater. "The only time I'll hold your hand, is if I need to pull you out of harms way..." she added reassuringly, and that in itself was a scenario she didn't expect to ever play out. The only other instances where she would need to do so were if social protocol expected them to shake hands, but they could, avoid it in most cases. She was sure of this.

Because he can. Well, actually, he couldn't. She wasn't about to let anyone drag her anywhere, let alone let Gavin grad her into the past...
As for not being a fan of it.. no, some things were better left in the past, it was there for a reason, because they had moved on. "I wouldn't expect you to understand," was all she said in response. Revisiting school days was one thing, but the past in general, was something entirely different - to her at least.

For a moment she was taken aback by Gavin's Pretty Woman comment, but in light of his clarification, she understood, and accepted it. What got under her skin a bit, was that Avery disliked Law Enforcement??? She was a little girl! How could she dislike Law Enforcement? How much did she even know about it?... "Well that's just rude... we offer a service, and that's the thanks we get?" Circe help her, why was the desire for winning people over growing within her? Granted, advocating and promoting MLE was among her responsibilities now, and it seemed as though she was going to have a hard time of changing popular opinion. It didn't help that there were issues within the department that required her attention... but faith in MLE would be restored, it would.

She paused on the landing, not needing to go beyond this point, but turned to give Gavin her full attention, grinnning, in the light of his distaste for cats. They weren't all that bad, but she could see how that might be the case. "Ok... ok... I digress," she said moving on from pet assessments. Work was calling , and she was sure there was some wrangling that needed to be done, and paperwork to complete.. paperwork... how she loathed it.
"Thank you for the company," she said with a small nod, "it was surprisingly, agreeable."

*pets* There's always that complaint she has to make about the dress code
 

That deal didn't sound half bad. In a situation of life or death he wouldn't be mad enough to have reservations about hand holding. He was highly logical, he was and would have been able to overlook it for the sake of LIVING. "Good to know. I'll be able to sleep well tonight." Gavin would have slept well regardless but her promise amused him enough get a response from him. "And I'll do my best to keep out of life threatening situations so I won't clutter your oh so busy schedule."

He raised an eyebrow at her short response. It was obviously true, he wouldn't understand, he wouldn't even begin to understand and there wasn't much of anything he could do about that. Emily wasn't obligated to share anything with him. Gavin gave a small shrug. "I suppose not." More than suppose actually but she'd have already known that. There was no use pursuing it. Once again, he could tell this part of the conversation was over.

And the raised eyebrow raised higher. Was she taking offense to the opinions of a six year old? For a moment he didn't know what to make of it. "I'd hardly classify the feelings of a little girl as being rude. She's...not had the best luck with them." Not from what Ari had told him anyway. Things he wasn't very clear on, mostly what happened before he moved back from Ireland. Lots of grey area and little black or white.

But they were moving on....parting company really but that led to the moving on. "Sure thing." Agreeable. "And thank you, for keeping your hands to yourself." Said only jokingly, but really, she'd done a good job of that. "I'll be seeing you." He said with a casual wave before heading on. In his mind he was already going through the documents on his desk. This was going to be a long day.

this is truuuuuuuuue, and that's a wrap!
 

Oddly enough, considering she wasn't the conversational type, she was sad to see this trip come to an end.. especially because she had questions now. Like what kind of experiences could a small girl have had with law enforcement? What bad luck befell her? Seriously, she wanted to know... but it wasn't her business and she could respect that. Emily smiled and nod her head at the appropriate intervals.As it was, there wasn't anything else to say owing to the fact that it was time to get back to work, but there was always tomorrow, and every other week day... apparently. She was curious to see if they went through with their plans, she was keen for it, provided her work load allowed for it of course. "Yeah, I'll see you around," she offered with an easy smile, returning a his wave by raising her hand - minus the actual waving motion. Without any further hesitation, Emily turned on her heal and took to the main floor of level two.

Stephen was on the hunt,he really couldn't think of anything that could distract him from what he had to do...except that pretty red head that just smiled at him..or the dark hair girl that just passed him by. Other than that NOTHING he was out for BLOOD and he had company for this little expedition who might he add wasn't bad looking...

Hmm nowhere to really look...maybe they had the hidden them somewhere along the stairs.

He turned to his companion.

"Do you think they used some kind of concealing charm on them? if so we could try revealing them"

Okay so what the heck is going on? First things go missing now the lifts are closed. "Can this day get any worse?" Karmen mumbled.

Stephen had a good point. What if their belongings have been right in front of them this whole time? "Good point. Be my guest." She replied. He should try it first.

Curiosity crossed the young woman's mind.

"Why is your missing item so important to you?" He seemed pretty aggressive about missing it, that item must be worth millions or something?

Stephen heard Karmen muttering about something and figured she was referring to the lifts that oh so conveniently decided they would not work. What was seriously wrong with this place. He pinched the bridge of his nose honestly he was beginning to think this whole settle down one place thing wasn't working out. He could be on the beach in the Bahamas right now or riding a gondola in Venice with a beautiful Venetian woman. why did he condemn himself to this place.

He looked over once again to his companion she also agreed that his theory was plausible. Taking out his wand he did a set of revealing charms over the first couple of stairs, but all had come up empty.

He was just about to start on the steps above those he had just checked when he heard Karmen asking him a question. He turned to face her

"It's important because it has ten years worth of data and pictures that I've gathered while travelling" And what was most important about it was it had a picture of Beth and not just any picture but the last picture of her that he took before everything went to the dogs. He could re write the data and travel once again for the pictures but he could never get another picture of her,not in this life anyway.But he would keep that information to himself

Karmen nodded. "I see." She replied. "Bummer." She wasn't a woman of many words.

Many she should have recruited to her acquaintance that happens to be a renounced YATI. Shrugging her shoulders she deeply sighed.

Taking a deep breath Karmen realized that anger wasn't going to help solve anything.

"So you're a traveler?" Karmen asked, maybe focusing on something else will calm her partner to?

Stephen mentally sighed it wasn't just a bummer,it was like a death sentence. Well maybe he was just being melodramtic after all he had another picture of her in his wallet but the picture in his journal was significant that was the day he had decided to propose to her.

Well now his anger was in full swing and it wasn't all due to the journal thief, but confronting where the real problem was coming from was not an option so he'll just take it out on the thief when he finds them whoever they are.

Stephens musing came to a stop once he realized Karmen had asked him another question.

"Oh yeah,ever since my last train ride at Hogwarts I've been travelling around meeting people, seeing what other cultures are like plus I'm really into history so I usually go to historical sites and collect data and stuff" And get himself in trouble but he would save that for a later.

"what about ,what did you do after I'm assuming Hogwarts?"

That's interesting. Stephen seemed to have the life Karmen could have only dreamed of!

"History is cool." That was an amazing subject. Runes happened to be Karmen's guilty pleasure.

"I didn't go to Hogwarts." Karmen shook her head. "My mom wasn't too thrilled about having her daughters go to Hogwarts." Talk about disappointment. "But unlike you I continued with school. College. And I was a receptionist until I got hired here, in the Ministry." She added. Karmen still worked at a coffee shop, part time. When she wasn't working in the Ministry.

"I've always wanted to visit Romania. Have you been there?" She asked Stephen, considering he's traveled. Being half Romanian, Karmen always wanted to visit that country.

History was in fact very cool,Karmen certainly had taste. Stephen smirked, he could only imagine why her mother didn't want her and her siblings to go to hogwarts. He made a guess that would probably be the reason IF he were to have kids and was deciding which school NOT to send them to.

"And why wouldn't your mother send you to Hogwarts? is it because they act like barbarians?" that statement was true about most past and present Hogwartians.

"Well to be honest at that time going to college seemed a waste of time when I knew there were bigger better things for me to do, I mean I didn't go and I still ended up with enough money and a sweet job" Ofcourse he had to cut a few corners but those were just minor details."what did you study in college?"

"I actually stayed in Romania for a week but I didn't really get to do much site seeing if you catch my drift, back then there was only one site I wanted to see" feelings of nostalgia flitted through him. Ugh he really needed to stop this it was verging on pathetic. She was gone and she wasn't coming back.

<3
 

He had heard the approaching footsteps, as muffled as they were, but wasn't fazed by them until he found himself being addressed. A lop-sided grin gracing his features, Rainey returned his wand to its holster with a flick of his wrist and turned his attention to the delightful woman before him.

"Lynley," he greeted in return, bowing his head slightly out of respect for his female colleague. "I chanced a short break, but I'm sure my staff will manage without me for a short time," he informed, indicating his coffee. It was truly the breakfast of champions, and lunch too. If his staff were too inept to get by without his guidance for twenty minutes then there would be consequences for them all.

Pushing away from the wall, he stepped forward into line with Ms. Purcell, "May I escort you to your destination, I wouldn't mind picking your brain about something if it's alright." Or he could simply shadow her until she agreed to a talk. He was fine with either.

She was in agreement with him, and amused by the possibilities it seemed. He could always appreciate a good sense of humour. "Quite possibly, but trouble does often spell fun." It was just a thought, one which made him feel younger than he was. Of course, trouble came in various forms and those associated with his department were likely to be rather detrimental to ones health and livelihood.

His self-invitation was well received, something he didn't think would be a problem for him. However, the remark about his coffee earned a brow raise, his lips pursed in restrained amusement. "I wouldn't object to sharing... but if you don't mind..." then all the more for him. As much as he could be a gentleman, he was still selfish in some respects, or many, if truth be told. Nevertheless, he measured his pace to mimic Lynley's, placing his free hand in his pocket as he walked.

"Transportation," was the obvious answer to the question, but he could be more specific. "The ability of apparition, floo and portkey travel ... could it be restricted in a particular area?" He was fishing.

And she had a point there. What would his work entail if it didn't have anything to do with trouble? He didn't want to think about it, such depressing things. "It's not for everyone, but I see great value in it." He wouldn't be here if he didn't. Elliot simple shrugged slightly at her assurance that his coffee was not needed. Excellent. More for him. Sharing wasn't something he did often anyway, but where information could be pertained, well, he would do almost anything.

Obvious knowledge it was. Fishing though, was a skill that took time and patience, and he had had much experience with lead fish to his bait, the question of whether or not they took it, well... that was another matter.

Elliot nodded at intervals, seeming genuinely interested... and my was she lively, the spark in her eye and the way she spoke. Captivating. "Yes, yes it is... and truth be told I expected as much, but I am no expert which is why I thought to check with you."

Which led him to his next point, "Is the process for restricting transport on an establishment the same as imposing it on various private residences and small enterprise the same?" It would do him no good if it couldn't be done. Of course, it could be done... but he was looking for ease and efficiency.

Normally she didn’t take the stairs, simply because it was extra exercise she didn’t particularly need with Jemma and Julia at home, not to mention the stress of dealing with planning on top of her work. However, Amethyst had taken a wrong turn upon leaving IMC and ended up closer to the stairs rather than the lifts. One trip wouldn’t hurt her, she’d thought, before she’d heard a loud noise and turned a corner to see Victoria lying flat on her back. Rushing over, she knelt to begin collecting the scattered papers as the other woman had sat up.

“Are you alright?,” she asked gently, turning to set the stack of papers close by as she noticed the attention on the ankle. That didn’t look very good, but then it was easy to figure what had happened. The earlier crash had told her that. She resolved to wait until Victoria had responded before she ran to get help, however. If anything, she was capable of helping her stand if needed. She just couldn’t carry her. That would need assistance.

She was still in a bit of a daze. How in Merlin did she even fall like that? She lifted her eyes as she heard someone near her. "I.. I think so. I'm not even sure how I slipped." Now she was embarrassed, she had to fall in front of someone. Her eyes towards her ankle once more. "I could use some help up maybe? My ankle is a little sore, but I think it's alright." She didn't think it was broke at least.

Sitting more up right she lifted her hand for some assistance. "Thank you for gathering my papers. That would be my luck, headed to a meeting and not even having my papers together." She'd place them in order again before she went into the meeting, for now she had to figure out if she could even walk there. This was just not her day and she needed to it be. Contract days were always the roughest.

The pause had begun to worry Amethyst more, but then Victoria had spoken. The other woman still seemed a bit dazed, but at least she wasn’t unconscious. Help didn’t seem like it was needed immediately, or at least more than she could give. She’d shuffled the pages she had retrieved into a neater stack as she had listened, though. “Accidents do happen,” she said softly with a nod. “Of course. It’s lucky nothing worse happened.”

Getting to her feet, she offered a hand to her. “You’re welcome. I do understand what that’s like, and I hope you aren’t too late for your meeting,” she replied, holding the stack out for the other woman to take. She did deal with papers most of the day after all, although it was more messages and press releases than anything else. “Did you need any other help?,” she added, just in case things were in fact not as good as they seemed.

Yes, yes accidents did happen, but she was just walking down the stairs. How clumsy could she be. "Yes, very lucky you were here to help too. I'm not sure if I could getup if it was just me." Taking the woman's hand she got up and winced in pain. Yep her ankle was certainly injured. How badly she wasn't sure yet, but she had no time to deal with it right now. Leaning on the wall she rolled it around trying to let the pain ease away. "I'm Victoria by the way, not the best way to introduce myself, but honestly thank you for the help."

She finally set her foot down and reached down for her papers, "No, I think I'll be alright. Though meeting with one of the Quidditch owners is not something I should be late for." Especially this owner. She would hate to keep him waiting. "Always a busy time right before the season starts. So many meetings and papers to sign."

Glancing around she gave the woman a small smile, "No, I think I'm alright. I haven't made you late for anything have I?" She would so hate that if she made someone else late, because she was being a hazard in the work place.

There was obviously more to the statement than had been said, but Amethyst wasn’t about to press the issue. Not when it wasn’t her place. “Well, I’m glad I was here to help, then,” she replied. If only she hadn’t made that wrong turn out of IMC, she might not have been there to help. There might not have been anyone close enough to have helped, and that would have been unfortunate. Especially given the wince as Victoria had gotten to her feet. “Amethyst,” she continued, giving the other woman another concerned look.

Even more information seemed to be coming, not that she particularly needed to hear it to know who the woman was. Working on Level One did have its perks after all. She knew most of the people who worked at the Ministry, whether or not they knew her. “I can’t imagine it would be. Something you’d want to be late for, that is,” she said, nodding slightly.

She hadn’t quite let go of her, either. There was still the uncertainty that everything was truly alright, and she imagined it would be understood if anyone missed her. “Oh, no. Of course you haven’t. I had just been over visiting IMC.” More accurately, she had been visiting Gregory, but she kept that to herself for now. She didn’t know who was aware of their relationship, although at some point she knew it would have to be known. “I’ll explain if anyone questions why I wasn’t back at my post on time.” She wasn’t concerned about that at all.

Now that she was up Victoria could feel her ankle was hurting. "I do owe you for the help. Maybe a coffee sometime. Could be my treat of course." She wouldn't have it any other way. It was the least she could do, but maybe not at that moment since she had a meeting to get to, but soon. "That is a very pretty name." She really thought it was unique and special. She loved that about people's names.

"No, no especially Xavier. He has been a great supporter of anything we do here so I don't like to keep him from his schedule." Plus she did enjoy visiting with him. She had a department meeting as well to get to. So busy during this time of year, she couldn't help but wonder if she was starting to get too old for all of it.

"I'm glad I've not inconvenienced you. I won't keep you any long. Thank you again." She shuffled her papers around to make them look at least a little organized. "I guess I should be going."

Liz and Gid~
 

She'd missed the lift and would be damned if she stood around waiting for the other one. Too many things to do and a suspect back in lock up that was just dying to see her were enough incentive to see the Auror stomping up the staircase with purpose in each step.

At this point, she wasn't sure she would even call the man a suspect. All roads pointed to him and after that tussle they'd had on the way in, she couldn't wait to crack the rest of the information out of him. Naturally, she hoped he resisted as he had done out in that alley because she still wasn't done knocking her around for the all but wild goose chase he'd sent her on for the last couple months.

Higher and higher she climbed, ignoring the ache in her muscles but resigned to heading to the bathroom once she got to Level Two to clean up as best she could. The other guy looked worse, to be sure, but she'd hardly sit before him and give him the satisfaction of seeing most of his handy work.

Gid was trotting down the staircase hoping to grab some food his mind wandering to what he might grab or if he'd go out into muggle London or not. He'd skipped breakfast and was starving at this point. He heard the steps of someone approaching him as he made his way down. He nearly always took the steps but didn't often find many doing the same.

He finally turned to go down the next flight as he noticed who was coming towards him. A smile flickered until he noticed she was a little....disheveled. "Hello" he greeted as he got closer to her. He was curious but was it even his business? "Everything alright?"

The next flight of stairs alerted her to the fact she would soon be encountering company. Not particularly rushed footsteps, not frantic either so no one escaping anything--as unfortunate as that was. Sometimes it was easy to forget that emergencies weren't the only times people typically crowded the stairs, in fact, if she wasn't usually in so much hurry, she may have opted to take them herself.

Rounding the corner, she finally saw the face connected to the footsteps and found she was uncharacteristically pleased. At some point during the day the Auror had made plans to visit her boss' office and here he was saving her a trip! "Perfectly grand, bossman. Just wrestled a suspect into the holding cells, highlight of my week really. It's the struggle that makes it really rewarding." She said, meaning it to be explanation enough for her current appearance. "Had to check something with security but heading back up for the interrogation now."

But why waste this perfect opportunity? What were the odds she would find him not buried in paperwork like this again?

"Actually, I was hoping to talk to you at some point. You got a minute?"

He was grateful it was just a nice quiet day so far for him at least. It definitely didn't look that way for Alexa though! He grinned a little though at her saying she'd wrestled a prisoner into the holding cell. Hey all the more for her, some excitement was fun every once in awhile. It had been a little too quiet lately, it made him nervous for it to be so quiet. As if a time bomb was about to happen and everything go down or fall apart. Neither one was a very good option to him. "At least he's put in the holding cell now, and not out there still." he said in response "I agree though, the struggle makes it more rewarding." He enjoyed that part of it. Being able to show them who was in charge and being in the field definitely proved that. He nodded at what she said she was heading to do now. "I'll le...."

He had been about to say he'd let her be on with it when she spoke again. "Of course" he glanced around "Here, or would you rather somewhere more private?"

Naturally she expected her boss to agree with her. Gidyun was once an Auror and though he was confined to the office most days, he would have been acquainted with the life of high adrenaline, paranoia and sketchy situations. Once you really got into that, you could see the thrill in the struggle and the satisfaction that came with winning. Gave you this.....rush, y'know? Being the adrenaline junkie that she was, this was the type of thing that Lex fed off of.

But anyway, this was serious business. Here her boss was, open for discussion and willing to discuss it right here if she wished. Seizing the moment was going to have to be a thing.

"Here's fine. It honestly won't take too long." Alexa continued up the stairs, closing the gap until the two appeared on the same level. One did not bargain while in a lower position. It robbed any appearance of confidence and power--both of which she needed to portray right now. Lex straightened her posture, ignoring the way her joints seemed to complain at the action. Hazel eyes locked on his, almost boring into him as if trying to bring across how seriously she would like to be taken.

"I'd like to be placed under consideration for Head Auror." No going around the bush, no small talk about their day or coffee or the weather. "Emily was well aware of this intention from the moment I joined the ranks of the YATIs and our stand in, Elliot Rainey was equally aware of my desire to rise in the ranks of the Aurors. I'd like to think both saw much potential in me as both often trusted me with tasks not typically gifted out to YATIs, such as leading a sting operation and carrying out internal surveillance on Department Heads he deemed to be a security risk while still in training. I trust my track record since then can prove my value." There wasn't the faintest hint of a smile on her face; nothing that might give the false impression she was simply messing around.

"I understand you'll seriously need to take everything into consideration and that it won't only affect me but those around the Auror Division. At the same time, I'm willing to prove my effectiveness if you don't believe my previous work has started to convince you of my true potential." Until this summer, Alexa Cambridge hadn't taken a single vacation, not since she'd joined the force as a trainee. How long ago had it been? 7 years? 8 soon? She could scarcely remember. Similarly, she could scarcely believe it would soon be nearing a decade in the MLE in one capacity or another.

"Naturally, I don't expect anything to be overturned in one night or even a month or half a year depending but I'd like you to know I'm serious about this--it's something I've always been very serious about. I'd like to advance beyond the rank of an Auror. Essentially, I'm asking for more and think I'm in a position deserving of more. If you don't currently believe it, then I'd like the chance to prove it to you, beginning with a full file of all previous cases I've assisted with, among those the Hit Wizards and Chief Inspector allowed me on, and ones I've personally headed or partnered with Bellaire on." The point was, she was seeking opportunity and was willing to do anything to secure it.

There might have been not one, but two broken basilisk eggs in that box and two that had slipped away. While one had went to the lobby where the green plants grew the other slipped through a small crack and now was moving along the stairs to find some food or a warm place to hide.

And Rose too!
 

A basilisk's egg was being smuggled and now it's already hatched. How often this incident happened in his life? Rarely.

As Morgenstern asked anyone from the magical creatures department to handle this and since he and Rose were the ones to receive the patronus, he decided to do this task no matter how slightly dangerous it was. Getting the earthworm and guppies from the environmental department (thank Merlin their office was just next to them!) The 34 year-old quickly went down by using the staircase because using the elevator perhaps wasn't such a good idea if they wanted to be quick and not to mention how packed it was.

"Merlin's beard...." And apparently, Jordan had found the basilisk roaming around the stairs. "Rose, get the box ready." He said to his co-worker. She's following him here, right? If not... Well, looked like he had to deal with this creature by himself.

Smuggled dragon eggs and basilisk eggs were a rare happening, and that now at least two basilisk eggs had hatched and were roaming around the ministry was definitely for lack of better words to describe it an incident. Flaming feathers if this got out to the daily prophet? Rose didn't even want to think about that or Becca's potential anger.

Seeing as she and Jordan had been the only ones present in the creatures work area when Morgenstern's patronus had arrived Rose had decided to help out knowing full well that it could get dangerous. After picking up the steel cages from dragonology she had met up with Jordan who had gotten the food and they headed down the staircase instead of the elevator together.

When Jordan blurted out Merlin's Beard just ahead of her and stopped so quickly on the stairs Rose almost collided into him but managed to stop before she did just that. Straightening up she saw what Jordan saw; the baby snake. Changing her grip on the steel box she said "The box is ready Jordan. How do we catch it?"

This was a weird place for the baby to move around. The stairs caused some issues for the basilisk, but in it's very short life the basilisk figured it out and kept moving downward. That was until it smelled something that seemed like food. Sticking it's head up to sniff the air it looked straight at the human coming towards it. If only it knew that it was too little to do any damage it might have slithered way instead of stand tall, but the basilisk stomach took priority and it slithered closer to the food.

Rose was fascinated. It was probably not the right time to feel that way, but the baby basilisk did fascinate her. Jordan was standing in front of her with food in his hands that she hoped smelled appetizing to the baby snake. When the juvenile snake started to slither closer to them Rose kept her cool and considered. "I think the baby is hungry Jordan. Give me some of the food and i'll put some in the box/cage and set it on the floor and then i'll make a food trail that leads to it. Keep it's interest u-....."

Then Jordan had to go and levitate the snake into the air which was either very smart or very stupid. Setting the open steel box down on the floor as slowly and soundlessly as she could, Rose let her eyes trail from the juvenile snake to Jordan.

.......................hello kiddos :3
 

After mercilessly giving quick instructions to a junior dragonologist, Albert left the poor kid rattled with the newly hatched Romanian Longhorn Dragons. The beasts were relatively harmless for now, considering that he'd left it in an almost perfectly charmed incubator leaving extra room for the dragons to move in. It could search its mother all it wants, but just like a baby, it would soon deplete its energy enough for it to sleep while the young dragonologist go about his work for the day. No big deal...and hopefully, the laboratory would still be intact by the time they all got back with a baby basilisk in tow.

To the trained eye, the trail left by the juvenile basilisk wasn't that hard to follow. Jordan and Rose's voices made it all easier for Albert to track them altogether...and it seemed that they too are somewhat...unsure on what to do. To be fair, it wasn't exactly their division's job to do this clean-up, but it didn't stop Albert from being annoyed once more. They were both adults, supposedly well-versed with creatures, but sadly...right now, they don't look like it.

Albert leaned on the wall, crossing his arms across his chest, wand at the ready. He felt like he was transported back to his Durmstrang days where he taught students about Dark Magical Creatures. If they had been more prepared, he would've concealed a rooster in one of the cages, lure the basilisk in, and let the rooster crow. He must admit that his Durmstrang students would've done so much better with this clean-up task: fast, efficient, clean, and unforgiving; fit for a baby wizard-killer creature.

There was the food the baby was smelling and it cautiously moved a bit closer to the source, but it wasn't going to fully trust these figures around it. Right as it thought better of moving it found itself in the air. Making hissing and other stressed noises the beast wiggled trying to be released and finally falling straight on the shoe of one of the men.

Wiggling off the shoe the baby found itself surrounded by big objects as it explored around the shoes. The smell of food though kept it distracted and not as fearful as it should be towards the humans.

sorry, I forgot this XD