Chapter Four: The Presentation
Aqualorum Containment Meeting
Department of International Magical Cooperation
March 12th
Hermione absently checked over her schedule as her coworkers filled into the large conference room. Her week was far too crammed for her to focus on some of the things she wanted to; she would barely have enough time to breathe, let alone get the most out of the more essential sessions she was included in. They were already beginning to do planning for H2, the second half of the year, and she needed to get more ahead of that this time around.
Examining the little blocks, she crossed a few weekly meetings off her schedule - she would request the project statuses via memo - and closed the schedule planner. The planner glowed green, indicating that it had updated for her secretary, and she relaxed in her seat.
All the internal team leaders were there, as well as representatives from other departments, loosely creating a room with expertise in large humanitarian efforts, international affairs, and health and human services.
Some of the members of the room looked rather nervous - it was a rare thing to be in a meeting with so many important members of the Ministry - and Hermione eyed them sympathetically. She had felt similarly when she had started working, until she had realized that some people actually saw her that way. It had been quite an adjustment to maintain comfort in situations with people she admired, but with practice she was able to treat them as she would anyone else.
She did a double take when Draco walked in, straight backed and calm once again, placing his bag on the floor distractedly and pulling out his materials. She should have suspected that he could be involved in this project, but she'd had no idea that he would be the one putting the tactical strategy together. This was something she would have assumed that a senior healer would do, or at least a business consultant.
Draco took a miniature projector out of his bag and enlarged it to normal size; after setting this on the table, positioning it briefly so that it faced the expanse of white canvas already pulled down, he tinkered with the slide reel, checking the little translucent squares.
After he dished out the parchment rolls, his eyes settled on her, and widened.
A flash of something like fear seemed to go through him, and Hermione was ashamed to feel a bit of detached satisfaction. His previous interaction with her had ended in a very odd way, and she had not forgotten the irritation she had felt when he had turned his back on her suddenly.
It had been over a week, however, so she wasn't actually angry anymore; she was more just resigned at the memory of it.
Regardless, he was about to present something very important to her department, something pressing, and she would treat it professionally, as she had always done with her former classmates. It was a very small world they occupied, so forming a bad relationship simply for a misunderstanding would be unfortunate.
Of course, she couldn't quite say that they'd had a good relationship before this; it just seemed that she had never really seen him in public, and so hadn't needed to deal with their relationship before this.
Just as the clock struck the hour, the room quieted down.
Richard Caticus, the Head of her department, said, "Thank you everyone for your time; I know it's tough to get us all in the same room." The people around the table chuckled and nodded.
"As you know, the Chinese and Nepalese Ministries are in a state of panic over the spread of aqualorum. They've reached out for aid to a fair amount of ministries in the Middle East and Europe, but are leaning on us as the largest to help them through this hardship.
"Mr. Malfoy is here to present the work St. Mungo's has been doing to help with the containment - and hopefully, cure - for the disease. Proceed," he finished, gesturing at Draco.
Draco bowed slightly, his eyes flitting to Hermione for the briefest of moments. "Thank you for meeting with me today. We've made some exciting discoveries that could help in the containment of the epidemic in East Asia."
He took a breath and said, "Through research and teams on the ground, we've been able to determine the cause of the rapid spread." He flipped on the small projector and waved his wand through the slides.
"What happens is the disease can easily piggyback off of fluids, and is spread through the mist and fog in the area. Therefore, the very weather in the region becomes the main source of contagion. Since there have been many damaging floods and storms in the past year, the disease has spread at an alarming rate."
"And how do you plan to stop this?"
"We've drawn up a tactical plan for your review." Draco indicated the parchment rolls in front of them. Hermione took hers up and scanned the outline quickly.
"We've worked with Spell Development in the Department of Mysteries to devise a simple incantation to make one impervious to outside fluids. It should prevent any healers or researchers from contracting the disease while they work. We've also created an ingestible potion that will prevent the diseased person from passing their infliction - it kills the contagious properties of the disease. Once this is administered, the disease can be properly treated through transfiguration therapy.
"In terms of execution, we are first proposing that some professional weather wizards set up a perimeter around the quarantine and temporarily alter the conditions there. Otherwise the disease will spread into the Middle East, and then potentially further west."
Hermione followed along on the parchment. The practical nature of the plan was simple - they would divert regular imports of the necessary potion ingredients to a camp just outside of the quarantined zone, where healers could brew the anti-contagious potion in bulk. Afterwards, they could send the potions in, allowing the internal healers to administer them.
She looked up; Draco was talking through this.
"From there, we can safely obtain a few patients for transfiguration therapy, and determine the best course for a cure. Afterwards, we can write a guide for this therapy and spread it to the healers in the region."
"How much do you estimate this will cost?" Richard asked, eyeing Draco.
Draco didn't miss a beat. "We've broken down three potential budgets, depending on how involved the British seats will want to be in the effort."
"Excellent," murmured Jonas, the financial planner on Hermione's team. She resisted the urge to roll her eyes; he was always looking for a way to do less work.
Draco smirked a bit. "The first plan, in the scenario that we cover most of the cost, will amount to at least 800 thousand galleons. There is a breakdown of what this entails in your guide there, and includes materials, salaries, construction, et cetera.
"The second plan, where we set up a humanitarian donation system, will get our community involved and will cut into that 800 thousand, potentially by a lot. However, this is risky since there is no way to know how much would be donated.
"The third option heaps the majority of the cost into the ministries in that region, and will only cost 150 thousand galleons, in the salaries of the healers and researchers we send for aid. Unfortunately, this option may also result in a lack of proper treatment for these patients, and could end up costing us the containment of the disease."
"Thank you - it seems the most cost effective option is for us to only send healers for aid - but it may be beneficial politically to get more involved. What do you think, Hermione?"
Hermione looked up at Draco, who was watching her impassively. She felt an odd sense of power in judging his work. She knew she was being critical for the sake of being critical, but that's who she was; it was her critical and analytical nature that had solidified her place in this department, and had earned her the respect that she received for her contributions.
A part of her wanted to make him sweat a bit, but she could truly find little fault with his logic and research. She expected nothing less of him, if she was honest with herself.
"I think the second option - with some tweaking - would be the best. We can run a full-scale, global campaign for donations." She turned to her peers, adjusting her voice to be more commanding. "This is a chance for us to bring together the magical communities of the world for a collective solution, to help out our magical brethren in another country. It directly executes on our mission for the year."
The department head nodded, glancing at the other advisors, who were nodding affirmatively as well. "Very good, Hermione. Any reservations you can think of?"
She nodded. "Are there other uses for the spell and anti-contagious potion? It may be a waste of resources to teach a single-use spell and potion for a specific disease."
Draco hesitated briefly, his eyes never leaving hers, and replied, "The spell is likely to have other applications - the obvious one is not getting wet in the rain, or when going underwater. As for the potion, it will take time for us to determine if there are other uses."
She smiled at him, indicating that she was satisfied with his answer, and turned to her boss.
He caught her look and said cordially, "Thank you, Mr. Malfoy, for outlining this plan for us. Especially the financial side; you've saved us a considerable amount of time. "
Draco cracked a bit of a smile, inclining his head in thanks. "Of course sir."
"So how can we get started?" Richard turned to the man sitting on his left.
"Process-wise, the board of governors needs to approve the amount of healers we send," the man - Egon, the lead for disaster relief - said. "Has Healer Camille already selected the healers to send?"
"She's working on the list now, and will likely announce it at the all-hands meeting this Friday," Draco replied.
"Good; I knew the Head Healer would be on top of it," he murmured. "Do you need any special permits to contract the ingredients?"
"We've contacted the suppliers for Slug and Jiggers Apothecary, as well as Pretty Penny's Pre-made Potions; we have seven suppliers ready to help so far."
Richard nodded approvingly. "Fantastic," he put forth. "And I'm assuming you've already worked out the details - accommodations and that." Draco nodded. "Anyone else? Are we ready to get started?"
The group looked around at each other, nodding and shrugging.
"Everything seems buttoned up," said the woman closest to the door.
"Great. Let's move forward with the second option, galleons-wise. Thank you everyone," Richard concluded.
The staff members around the table stood, and Hermione stood as well, recognizing the cue for the end of the meeting. Draco turned and collected his presentation materials quickly.
She had just walked around the front of the table when Draco's voice halted her.
"Granger, do you mind waiting a second?"
She looked up at him; he was wearing a slightly apprehensive expression, sliding parchment into his bag quickly.
She nodded without thinking. "Of course, what do you need?"
He closed his soft leather briefcase and came to stand in front of her. His eyes were framed in a pair of angular, frosted glasses today, giving his face a very modern, sharp look.
"I was hoping to get some feedback about the presentation. This is the first time I've done something like this... and it would be good to know how I can improve my practical healing planning."
By now the room was nearly empty; a few of the board members were still conversing, making their way to the exit.
Hermione smoothed her hands over her skirt, contemplating what she wanted to say. She could give him short, somewhat vague feedback now, though it would be less helpful in the long run, or she could break down her points, potentially keeping them there for a while. She was eager to get back to work, and could tell that he was somewhat uncomfortable being in this office after such an important presentation for him. Deciding that neither option sounded good, she went for an alternative.
"I can owl you with a written critique, going over some of the things you may want to consider presenting next time."
"Actually," he looked at her intently, "would you like to talk about this over coffee?"
The room was finally silent, and in the silence she found herself uncomfortable being alone with him, especially since she had spent much of her life avoiding him. Their brief interactions over the past few weeks had refreshed her understanding of who he was, but somehow it still wasn't enough for her to make plans with the wizard.
And... though he had clearly wanted feedback on his presentation, as it was in his scholastic interests, she had definitely noticed his previous appreciative glances, the way his eyes softened when he looked at her, or the way he took the time to notice what she was wearing.
That was what she would expect from a wizard who was interested in her... romantically.
She didn't want to think this way, but... he was essentially asking her to get coffee with him, an act easily similar to a proper date. And when people saw them there, together, talking and sipping their coffees, what would they think? They would recognize both of them easily, what with the way they were both constantly featured in The Prophet. It was likely that the gossip rags would be all over it as well.
Besides, somehow she felt that helping him wouldn't be in her best interests. And the idea of meeting up with him, focusing on him, for an unplanned length of time seemed unbearable. She would be on edge, waiting for him to say something that disappointed her, waiting for him to screw up and make her feel inadequate. She'd done something akin to that the last time they'd spoken; it was tiring to try to steer a conversation so she could stay comfortable.
Finally, her eyes downcast, she replied, "I... I don't know if that's a good idea, Draco."
She looked up, and knew she had made a mistake; his eyes had turned cold again, his pleasant, cordial manner dropped. For a second he looked almost resigned, but then reformed some semblance of a stoic mask and said, "Thank you, anyway," turning away from her.
Something about that micro-expression - that resignation, that borderline sadness - made her question her decision, and she halted him.
"Draco..."
He turned back.
She tried a small, timid smile. "Let me think about it, okay?"
He studied her, his eyes roaming over her face, his shoulders relaxing slightly. As she looked back at him, his expression softened, and he seemed to understand something.
She couldn't help but feel that they were sharing something real, that there were unspoken words passing between them in this moment; she could tell that he was torn between questioning her hesitation and saying something akin to an apology.
Apparently settling for neither option, he nodded once.
Relieved that he had chosen not to say anything, Hermione turned away. It seemed that she may have ruined a budding truce between them, that she may have completely nixed any possibility of a friendly development in their interactions, but she knew that if she were to see him again she would appreciate him knowing what her boundaries were.
He must have known that talking to him at all was somewhat hard for her - she had a feeling that he'd been close to bringing that up the last time they'd talked, and maybe even just now - so perhaps he would respect her wishes and keep his distance.
When she reached the door, Draco was already there, holding it open for her; she hadn't noticed him step around her to get to it first. She nodded at him in thanks and walked down the echoey corridor.
Author's Note (11/14/17): Now that my other story Blind My Eyes, Sew Them Shut is wrapping up tomorrow (yay!), I'll be updating this one on Fridays going forward. Follow the story for updates! Also, feel free to drop me a review and let me know what you think!
