As you arrive at St. James’ Park, perhaps with your family in tow, you will notice that the minister and the department heads have been working hard to make sure your outdoor experience in January is a great one. With heating charms and the appropriate muggle repelling enchantments set, you and your family will get to enjoy the afternoon without worrying about London’s cold temperatures. If you are still feeling a little chilly, you will find warmed blankets set out for you to sit on and enjoy the picnic style dinner. Grab a basket at the entrance and enjoy the many picnic-themed foods.

As the day turns to dusk and the evening approaches, the Ministry has one more surprise to celebrate all their new and returning employees, so gather round and enjoy a surprise that is sure to end things with a BANG!

James Draper was not a fan of large social events such as this one, however, he unfortunately had an obligation to attend. Why they couldn't just have a regular orientation meeting was beyond him. Fortunately, the event was conveniently located right outside of the Ministry, which meant he could go get some work done afterwards. The real reason why he was here.

Walking towards the picnic area, the brunette stuffed his hands into his pockets and made his way past the entrance. Perhaps he ought to have brought a date along with him or something. Going stag would likely open up the opportunities for others to come bother him.

Drats.

You know who looked like he didn't want to be here? THIS GUY. He was grumpy. He was tired. And he was just about suffocating under all of these heating charms they had in place for the event. How much longer would he have to stay before dipping out?... Because he was pretty much done after the moment he showed up.

Laurel Vance-Rose stopped near the entrance to St Jameses park waiting for her husband to catch up with her. Brushing some blond strands away out of her face in the chilly January air she scanned around for a glimpse of her husband. After just a few moments she spotted him, standing about 50 feet away from her talking about a quidditch match no doubt, with a guy wearing a ghastly falmouth falcones scarf. Resisting the urge to sigh out loud or roll her eyes Laurel grabbed a picnic basket and set herself up to wait.

On this lovely, but chilly late January afternoon Jacob was wearing a casual dark jacket, over a white shirt and dark pants feeling upbeat and happy. A picnic orientation in St Jameses, meant free food, some hopefully nice company and if he was inluck fireworks by the end of the night. He picked up a picnic basket upon entering the park, heading towards the designated picnic area to find himself a blanket to sit on. He had not brought along a date because he honestly didn't know who he would have wanted to ask of the few girl's he knew.

Having been back in the country for a grand total of three weeks, Sloane was glad to see that he remembered the rain, the colder weather and to find that even after over fifteen years in Romania, he still felt at home in the cold drizzle as he walked through Muggle London.

He knew where he was heading, but he'd decided to leave a bit earlier so that he could ... just walk. Walk for no reason and see where he ended up. Worst case, he'd have to hide and disapparate - but it had been so long since he had just been. Been free to walk without worrying about which pregnant mothers he would upset or how tired his legs already were from walking over the reserve all day.

So he walked. Walked and walked and walked. Until he got to one of the many entrances of the park. And then he walked some more, happy to be back in the UK and on his way to his new job.

.... Once he found the right part of the park at least.

Lyra Woods' hands were shaking violently. He was starting his dream job. He shook his head and rolled his shoulders back. Now was not the time to nervous. If he was going to work here, he was going to have to maintain an image.

There were four people standing around. To ease his slight anxiety, he tried to guess which department they were in. Was he supposed to tell them what department he was actually in, or his cover up? He grabbed a picnic basket and sat down on one of the sheets. He didn't have any family with him, so he hoped someone would sit down with him.

Nathaniel walked down to the park. He always wondered why he had to go to these silly things. Social gatherings. Always awkward and always less fun than he expected them to be.

Since he had been in the area tying up some loose ends with his business he looked over dressed for a picnic. Brushing his hair off his forehead he glanced around taking note of faces. Wondering how many of them he would be working closely with. Who he may need to get to know. He was decent with people just hated obnoxious chit chat.

He noticed a few people sitting down but he wanted to wait a few more minutes before he actually sat. He hated getting comfortable only to be told he needed to move. It was an unknown. He hated unknown things. Hated having to wait around to find out what he needed to do. Sticking his hands in the pockets of his slacks, leaning back on his heels. This should be...interesting?

Caleb had finally shown up. He grabbed a basket at the beginning and started walking around. Jeez it was real hot here. He walked around a bit. A few people were already here. He spotted a man that didn't look to be having a good time. Could that be his boss? He didn't know. Any number of these people could be. Caleb sat in an empty space and gave thebman a small wave but didn't say anything.

Megan was in the house! Not a literal house but in the Park but you got the point. Clad in a pretty, sleek white strap dress and matching accessories thanks to her hot wife, she strolled around as she sought out familiar faces. Yuna would have loved to be there but unfortunately, she was busy as always with a modeling thing which clashed with the Ministry celebration. “Laurel!’’ This was the first person whom she knew that she saw. “How’s it going, girl? Wow, you look dashing.’’

Tallie had gone off somewhere for the moment, leaving Lucas alone. He wished he could have brought Brody along but his nephew was at Hogwarts. He knew the boy would have loved to be at this event. Where was Tallie now? Lucas wanted them to find Vic and the others together. More than that, he wanted them to find the new Games and Sports employees.

Caleb had not brought his parents with him, they were too busy, and his younger sister, well, she was at Hogwarts sooo...
He glanced around at all the food. He saw things like small sandwiches, crisps, watermelon, fried chicken, juice drinks...was that hot chocolate over there? He looked up and saw a woman that looked some years older than him. ((Megan))

He looked at her, waiting for a pause in their conversation she was having with someone else. He figured he might as well try and make a couple of friends...yeah, work wouldn't have time for friends but it might be nice.
"My name's Caleb, what's yours?" he asked a bit awkwardly.

She'd thought the worst thing about becoming Department Head would the increased office hours and the reduction in the amount of time she could actually go running around England but apparently it was the inability to duck out of these Ministry events that she'd despised since she first began working here. She had things to do. Arguably more things now, than rubbing elbows with people she didn't know or particularly like and had no invested interest in.

Lex had one arm looped with Fox's and her other hand holding on to Emmerson who'd been all too thrilled at not being left behind this time. Why the kid found any joy in being taken along to boring ministry functions was beyond her but this was a "family event" and the kid had a bounce in her step as she pulled them along. She wanted to pick a blanket, she wanted to carry the basket--Merlin you could swear this was just them on a trip and it might very well have been for the little girl.

Alexa allowed herself to be dragged toward an empty blanket, looking around for any of her MLE-ers. None yet and she didn't blame them. They probably had better things to do than sit back and pretend the Wizarding World was taking the day off to allow them celebrations. "I guess it could be worse." She conceded, taking a seat and allowing the little girl into her lap. "Could be another dinner event. I'd have to see you in a suit and do nothing about it." And she'd have to be far too overdressed for her own liking. The more formal gatherings were decidedly the worst.

Emmerson was AAAALLLL grins in her best picnicking dress and pigtails with her favourite ribbons to match. It wasn't all the time that her mummy said she could come to work stuff with her and while she didn't hate being left with Ezra at the manor, she loved all the times she COULD go out with her. Even more, Fox was there, so it was double lucky.

The 6 year old placed the basket down and threw herself liberally into her mother's lap. Emmerson reached across to nudge Fox with her foot, bright green eyes wide with the excitement of this WHOLE THING. "Wanna hear a secret?" The little girl whispered loudly. Her mummy told her what was happening later, and it made her all the more excited.

After telling her son the basic rules of this day out and letting him run off to read his book under a tree, Eliora had headed herself over to join the crowd gathering and selected a blanket for herself to perch on. She was going to take a couple of minutes just to breathe before doing the mingling thing.

This Department Head needed a coffee or five.

Darej had arrived, given the winters in his last country of residence the weather here was not much different than a nice chilly breeze. So he was dressed appropriately for such conditions.. Well, that was until he reached the designated meeting area. Clearly, there was some heating charms in place, so his jacket wasn't necessary anymore.

Now they were meeting for a picnic.. if it wasn't for the amount of people expected to arrive he would assume this was a blind date. The thought made him smirk, something to really look forward to. To the average outsider he looked pleased to be here. So who would be the first for him to speak with? His eyes scanned to see who looked the least bothered and inviting enough.

Standing in front of the gate, Yoongi Hyland was checking his face in the small compact hand mirror and with his free hand he styled his hair so that he looked as dashing as he felt. Having spend a lot of time and his parents money on daily facial skin care routines while he had been a hogwarts student had earned him a healthy looking flawless skin. The scars that he did had were hidden under his clothes so to the world he looked , as he would say so himself. Perfect.

Snapping the mirror shut with a dramatic -snap-, the twenty five year old entered the park with his hands behind his back. This was his second ministry orientation having started as a Spell Researcher last year and from what he had heard, they had a new Department Head.

Looking around for his colleagues, or at least someone that he knew, his dark brown eyes landed on a man who he knew all too well. Knowing that Draper disliked him and vice versa while they had been student and Professor, he still walked towards himwith confident strides and a glint in his eyes because he KNEW that he did not like company. "We meet again" he said calmly as he wasn't an emotional teenager anymore.


If it hadn't been for his father, who also worked at the Ministry and therefore knew about the orientation at the park, Kevin wouldn't have come. He wasn't a big fan of crowds or dealing with people and he had his hands in hisnpockets. He hadn't even bothered to dress up in nice clothes today. Looking at his watch, the Law Enforcement employee huffed in annoyance as his father was late today. So he had to be on time in order to not get a day long speech about being on time and laziness but when his father was late he couldn't say a thing about it.

Whatever. He wasn't going to wait at the entrance any longer. If the old man wanted to find him he could look for him.

Autumn Carey was back in the Ministry of Magic. After five years of writing and editing for the sports magazine, she was ready to return to the relative comforts of the Ministry. Of course, she also had some personal reasons for wanting to leave her previous job... but no one here had to know about THAT.

Upon arriving at St. James's Park, the 27-year-old stopped at the entrance and took a long look around. A casual orientation... awesome. She preferred it this way, as she found it difficult to properly interact with her coworkers in formal events. The heating charms set in place further served to make her feel more comfortable. Many employees seemed to be here with their family. Not wanting to interrupt family time, she wandered around aimlessly for a while, then walked over to a man who looked like he had come alone as well. Although she was an independent woman, she was not about to have a picnic all on her own. Might as well join this guy, yeah?

"Hi, mind if I join?" Autumn asked as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and sat down on the blanket without waiting for a reply.

There could be no one quite as excited about today as one Bambi Ella Ackerly, for those levels of excitement surely could not be contained in any human body. She was so unbelievably excited that she hadn't been able to sleep the previous night, thoughts and scenarios running through her mind, every single one of them happy and bright and good. She'd never felt so good in her entire life (perhaps a little tired, but that's quite alright), never felt as right as she did now when walking with the two most important girls in the world. Her daughter, dressed to the nines and peering curiously about, and her wife.

Arms linked, Bambi glanced at her amazing wife with a beam, reminding herself yet again that she's here and she'll be at the Ministry and all is well and they've found their place in the world. Layla Ackerly, in the ministry with her, is a blessing she never would have dreamed to wish for, and yet it had come true. "Have I said already how happy I am that you're here?" the twenty nine year old asked, freckled face contorting into another beaitfic smile.

Once they'd select a blanket for themselves, Bambi would need to go and speak with her new Department Head, as well as say hello to Mrs. Emmons-Clarke, whom she was very fond of. Perhaps she could invite her and her wife to dinner! Oh, what a great idea! This night was already fantastic and they'd only barely just arrived.


Yup, he was here. Yup, Emma was here too. No, he hadn't spoken to anyone or announced his arrival, no thank you. He'll be walking around in the shadows if someone needed him, keeping five eyes on his six year old as she ran around greeting MLE employees with high fives - likely searching for Emmerson - and another eye on the arrivals.

Benzi Rider, present.

The first thing that Giulia Elissa Barsi had done when she arrived in London on the 27th of December, had been to find a decent coffee shop. Everywhere seemed to claim that they had the best coffee in London but it had taken her visiting seven different café’s and shops before she found coffee that wouldn’t make her Zia Ciosa roll over in her future grave. And even it hadn’t been as good as the coffee she could purchase from Zia Ciosa’s café.

Still on the hunt for a better shop, the Italian was using café seven until she found something better.. But the coffee was hot, and it didn’t taste bad it just wasn’t as good as what she had been drinking in Italy.

However, right now she needed to find Eliora in the crowd - after all, one of the two coffees in her hands was for her. Black. As strong as they could make it. One sugar. The fact they drank the same coffee gave her hope for the future. Coffee was important. Eliora understood this, they could thrive on that.

Finally spotting her Department Head with her son, she smiled and moved over to her - wedge-heeled boots suddenly feeling like the best thing ever as she moved over the grass. Thin heels would have just been a pain on the grass. ”Ciao.” She said with a smile, crouching down on the picnic matt to the side of Eliora. ”I bring coffee.” Holding one of the large containers out, she grinned a little. She was the best assistant, right?

[Zia is the Italian word for aunt. <3 ]

So a picnic in January was certainly not what Mariana had been expecting. Thank Merlin, too, as she preferred the relaxed environment of sandwiches on the grass to a stuffy dinner party any day of the week. It was the perfect atmosphere for mingling and she was eager to meet more of the people she'd be working with.

The twenty-six year old lingered by the entrance to the event for a moment, noting the temperature change. The warmth was welcoming and she slipped off her jacket, draping it over her arm instead and feeling instantly more comfortable. Could she lose her shoes, too? Probably best to wait until she'd claimed herself a blanket before going through with that. She offered a smile to a couple who brushed past and then followed suit, selecting a picnic basket and moving towards the nearest unclaimed blanket. She wore a friendly smile as she went, hoping to attract some company. It'd be such a shame to picnic alone.


So this was it, her fresh start. Rosie had offered to come with her to this thing, but Emilia had refused. She appreciated her cousin's concern, but she was really fine. Eager, even, at the prospect of learning new skills, improving the ones she already had, and meeting people who were passionate about the same things she was. She needed this and she just hoped she was enough. The YATI program was nothing to turn your nose up at.

The nineteen year old opted to walk around a bit before settling down, wanting to get a feel for the people she'd be working with. It was easier at an event like this when they had family around, friends. The kids in attendance made her smile. She'd always had a soft spot for little kids, maybe because she'd spent so much time helping them out during combat at Dumstrang. They were just so excited about everything and she missed that feeling. It's why she was so happy to be there, having a chance to get that feeling back.

As she looked around, she wondered if any of the other aspiring aurors were in attendance. She was really looking forward to meeting them, maybe asking for advice. Hopefully she'd get the chance soon.

The entire reason that Layla Ackerly had decided to join the ministry was the two girls that were stood next to her. Layla never saw herself working in the magical world as she still mostly considered herself a muggle and working for a governmental body almost felt like hitting an ultimate low. Yet here she was with her wife on her arm and her daughter with them and with a ministry title attached to her now. Layla was a free spirit who couldn’t be tamed but now all she wanted to do was to make her family proud. Bambi had changed a lot about Layla since they had got back together. As an eighteen-year-old Layla had seen herself never marrying, never having kids, working in something sporty and muggle.. How that had all changed.

That wasn’t to say that she wasn’t impressed about having to come to this picnic thing. The twenty-eight year old wasn’t the sort to socialise and usually stuck to her own crowd. Her trademark frown was plastered on her face which only faltered when she looked at her wife who was practically beaming from ear to ear. It was infectious and the former Ravenclaw managed to drop her facade for just a moment to smile back at her. “I don’t know how you did it..” The Londoner replied. This arrangement worked for the whole family. It meant the partners worked similar hours and Ariadne could attend the daycare and they’d be home at the same time. It meant they could spend more time together as a family. It clearly meant a lot to Bambi and at the end of the day it was Bambi’s happiness that Layla prioritised over anyone else’s. “You know I’d do anything to see you smile.” If her cousin could see what a sap she had turned into she wouldn’t hear the end of his teasing.

Bambi picked out a blanket and Layla bent down to be at the same level as the adorable little girl who had clearly been dressed by her mother. She still wasn’t keen on kids but this one was definitely the apple of her eye. “Why don’t you pick us out a spot?” she encouraged their daughter. Layla was by no means a perfect mother but she sure did try.

A successful year had gone by and January was quite proud. Her first year as Senior Undersecretary went... quite poorly under the reign of the previous Minister and she was quite grateful that she had been given the opportunity to help turn things around with Charles as the Minister.

Speaking of Charles, January was initially inclined to go find him. He reminded her so much of her father who had passed away quite some time ago, so she felt comfortable around him. But she also knew he was a busy man and probably wouldn't be able to hold still for very long, so she had made a decision try and make new acquaintances tonight.

Quote:

Originally Posted by TakemetotheBurrow

So a picnic in January was certainly not what Mariana had been expecting. Thank Merlin, too, as she preferred the relaxed environment of sandwiches on the grass to a stuffy dinner party any day of the week. It was the perfect atmosphere for mingling and she was eager to meet more of the people she'd be working with.

The twenty-six year old lingered by the entrance to the event for a moment, noting the temperature change. The warmth was welcoming and she slipped off her jacket, draping it over her arm instead and feeling instantly more comfortable. Could she lose her shoes, too? Probably best to wait until she'd claimed herself a blanket before going through with that. She offered a smile to a couple who brushed past and then followed suit, selecting a picnic basket and moving towards the nearest unclaimed blanket. She wore a friendly smile as she went, hoping to attract some company. It'd be such a shame to picnic alone.

Spotting an unfamiliar face that seemed to be alone, but friendly, January grabbed her own picnic basket and made way for her. "Excuse me... May I join you or are you expecting someone?" Her husband and daughter were occupied, otherwise they would have joined her too.

Nobody was talking to Caleb. He frowned and decided to grab a couple of small egg salad sandwhiches and a hand full of crisps. He was glad to be warm. What was the point of this though? To get to know your work mates? He didn't know.

Griffin had come in a little late, he hated being late, but some things at home kept him. With a small grin on his face thinking of those things, he wheeled into the area. He hated these things really, but knowing Ullr would be with him made it a little easier.

Moving towards one of the baskets someone caught his eye, maybe it was a new employee close to his basket, "Hello, enjoying yourself?" It seemed like a fun time and he had seen some of his coworkers, but he'd talk to them later. First, he wanted to get a good spot to set up.

She was absolutely dreading this event. After being in Mungos all of holiday Victoria was still not 100%, but she had a job to do and she would be there. With Cossy and Helena settled in Australia and the paperwork all finalized, thank you timing for all that horribleness together, she was going to have to do this alone. She knew people would be staring and talking, at least some of the ministry employees would. Her and Cossy were inseparable. They both had run for minister at different times with the other by their side. People knew they were together and expected to see them both, but that wasn't happening and she had to face that fact and move on.

What she hated to admit was that it could be her. After three failed, how could she not assume it was. Feeling sorry for herself she stopped before going in and took a deep breath, this was not the full confident always happy department head everyone knew and she had to shake this before she stepped fully in.

Taking a few deep breaths she put a smile on her face and looked around as she headed into the park.

"Hello" she greeted the people as she passed.

Caleb turned after he swallowed a bite of egg to someone talking to him.
"Yeah, I reckon," he said. "A bit boring though," Caleb shrugged. He glanced at his plate of crisps and two sandwiches (One of them half eaten) as a silent offer if he wanted it.
"My name's Caleb," he said and offered a hand.

Bring the family! Right. The Minister did realize that some Ministry empolyees were in their late teens to early twenties and therefore hadn't started families? And don't even get him started on girlfriends/boyfriends. Needless to say, it was a family-less Ronan Carter that entered St. James Park for this Ministry get-together. He supposed he could've asked his mum to come with him, but how pathetic would that be? Besides, she was a very busy woman.

He looked around, getting a feel for the place before stepping any further in. Mostly because of Auror reasons, but also because he felt awkward in this setting. Not because of the park itself. He'd been here plenty of times. It was the 'picnic' aspect that was giving him trouble. Wasn't really his thing.

Once done with his 'Auror work', Ronan stepped forward, spotting someone that looked to be about his own age. That should make things less awkward, right? Though, she didn't look familar to him...

"Waiting on someone?" he asked, stepping up beside the unknown woman with silent steps.

Charles had been here all morning helping with the final details and even assisting a bit with the food preparation. Though he would also admit that part of the latter was also to ensure that there was no funny business going on with it. They had had a scare last year, which thankfully had proven to not be the tampering of any food in the food court, but one could never be too careful. Though what was truly weighing on the Minister's mind was more to do with January and that situation more so than the potential of food being spiked with something.

Because he was confident in the new security measures preventing such from happening.

And one thing the man was going to start fussing at people about was all this separation and lack of mingling. It was defeating the purpose of the event! Though he did plenty of mingling for the rest of them as it were. Which was precisely what the Minister was doing now, weaving among the crowd and shaking hands with anyone who would accept his outstretched one. "Greetings and salutations one and all!" his voice bellowed in greeting to one and all before he strolled around making a few individual ones. Of course, January was noticed. Impossible to miss his right hand AND he was quite keen to see their newest addition to their team. How would they fare as a trio instead of a duo? He was very interested to find out.

Stag or not, there would be no hiding from one Charles Hollingberry for you, James Draper. "James, good to see you, my boy," the man greeted with his usual twinkle. Ryunosuke had been very displeased with him when he had heard that the Minister had hired 'the likes of Draper,' but Charles was sure that his son's pettiness from his Hogwarts days was showing. Nothing to fret about. "Try to smile. This is a picnic, not a funeral."

There were plenty of other employees, new and old, about as well and Charles did his best to at least make brief eye contact with them. Particularly the likes of Nathaniel Flannagan, who Charles knew about considering the importance of that division with the coming World Cup. "Mr. Flannagan, welcome," he greeted the young man with a firm hand to his left shoulder. And a pat. A few pats. Pat pat pat.

AH! And there was Cambridge now with...whoever that gentleman was. But more importantly than that was the little girl along with here. "Miiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiss Emmerson!" he called out, crouching down with his arms out to either side. He was expecting a hug, you see.

He also, of course, caught the somewhat sullen presence of Victoria. He would need to sit down and have a chat with her over some tea later. Another check-in, of sorts.

-------------------
Airey was present and accounted for and certainly not sulking. At least, he was pretending to not do so. It was disappointing not having Maddox for a colleague anymore and having to put up with Draper instead but the Mysteries department head was dealing.

Dealing in that he was unable to sit still and was presently walking around sans mingling. Which was how he happened upon Ronan speaking with a young woman who he did not......oh. Oh. OH.

Nope. He, yes, he most certainly recognized this young lady and he wondered if it was too late - since he was staring just a tad, deer in headlights sort of awkwardness - to pretend to carry on as though he had never been walking right on by the pair.

"...Mr. Carter," he greeted. So much for discretion. "....Emilia. Congratulations on your new job."