"Given the unprecedented events that have taken place at our embassy in London, the Office has found itself forced to take immediate action to ensure that Americans overseas will have a fully staffed embassy to turn to." The Office head, a balding man by the name of Nelson Agnew, spoke. "That being said, it is my duty to inform you that we will be filling the positions in London, with diplomats stationed at this branch. Those with least seniority are the ones that will be taken into consideration."

"By least seniority, do you mean those that have been with the Office the least amount of time or with their division?" asked Joseph Fitzgerald, a diplomat with the European division.

"The Office," Nelson declared, his eyes darting from one diplomat to the other. "The files for those being taken into consideration have already been pulled and will be carefully reviewed by the Secretary of Magic, the Head of Magical Law Enforcement and myself. Those that will be reassigned will be informed no later than Friday, three pm. Now, are there any questions?"

Hands immediately shot up in the air, struggling to remain still when their basic instinct was to wave around frantically. They had to remain poised, respectable, even when they were panicking. Nelson scanned the meeting room, his eyes landing on one diplomat and then another, until finally landing upon Adelaide's face.

"Miss Thirlby." Nelson called on her.

"Are we to know the list of those being taken into consideration?" she asked.

"I would recommend talking amongst yourselves, I'm positive you'll be able to figure it out." Nelson replied, clearly thinking her question a waste of time. "Anyone else have a question?"

Fucking prick, thought Adelaide. She'd never cared for Nelson Agnew. No one really did. He was a gluttonous man that wore expensive suits and thought he could get away with everything, just because he came from a very well respected magical family. He used their reputation to his advantage, calling upon the legacy of his father and late grandfather to coast by on doing the minimum. Adelaide hated him. Whenever she saw that balding head of his, she always imagined punching right between the eyes, so as to knock him back and bruise his nose. It was a violent thought that she'd never have the courage to actually carry out. Perhaps it was because she would never actually do it that she so often daydreamt of punching him. That was the only way she could get out her aggression towards him. And in her mind, there wasn't anything wrong with fantasizing about hurting her boss. Most people fantasized about hitting their boss. They just never did it because they wanted to keep a roof over their heads.

The meeting ended shortly after, leaving the diplomats free to return to their respective offices where they would discuss who they thought was being considered. Adelaide walked alongside Victoria, her brow furrowed in an unattractive fashion and her dark brown eyes firmly fixed on the ground, as if it were the one that had annoyed her.

"One of these days, I'm just gonna punch him in that smug fucking face of his," Adelaide mumbled angrily. "I mean, who the hell does he think he is? Talking to me like that? I could just hear the contempt oozing from his every word. Ugh. He's so frustrating!"

"He is," agreed Victoria. "And believe it or not, he's actually gotten better. I remember when he was just a diplomat, oh, it was hell. I felt bad for the Canadians that had to deal with him."

"They actually sent him out on meetings?"

Victoria nodded. "Apparently, they thought he'd be a good fit with the Canadians, since their diplomats are always so polite. And it worked out, they humored him well enough, but I swear the world laughed at this country, when they made that oaf the Office Head."

"And why did they make him Office Head? I don't get that."

"His father donated to the right people and Nelson's been here ever since."

"So we're going to be stuck with him until his dad stops giving money?"

"Seems like it." Victoria held open their office door. "Want to make a list of who might be relocated?" she asked as she walked over to her desk.

"No . . . alright, yeah, I do." Adelaide pulled up a chair to Victoria's desk. "But I'm nervous about it. I mean, I've been here five years, which seems like a long time, but I'm starting to think that it might not be as long as I think it is and that I'll get shipped out. Do you think they'll ship me out?"

"Not really sure." Victoria was sincere. "If it's worth anything, I hope not. It'll be strange to come into work and not have you there, with that grin of yours."

"Thought you said my grin annoyed you."

"It does. Then again, any single, childless person that's smiling annoys me." Victoria pulled out a sheet of paper. "I see them smiling and all I think is, look at this jerk, they probably slept eight hours and didn't have to make breakfast or fix someone else's lunch. Don't get me wrong. I love my family, really I do, but sometimes I just want to sleep like I did when I was single. There's nothing like sleeping ten uninterrupted hours. Oh. I can't even remember the last time I slept four." Victoria let out a soft sigh. "Listen to me, going on and on about how much I miss sleep. Sound like such an old woman. And I am. Forty-nine is up there."

"Forty's the new thirty."

"I'm about to enter fifty."

"Nuh-uh, you're about to enter forty." Adelaide took off her blazer. "You know, if you want I can watch the kids while you and Joaquin run off for a weekend."

"That's sweet, but I'd rather run off alone."

"Why?" she nearly laughed.

"Because if I go with my husband, he'll want to have sex and be all romantic," Victoria explained. "And all I want to do is have some wine, watch a few movies, wear shapeless clothing and sleep. That's my idea of a weekend getaway."

"Am I gonna be like you when I grow up?" teased Adelaide.

"Presumably worse," replied Victoria. "But who knows, maybe your Russian enthusiast will be a homemaker and you'll sleep to your hearts content."

"Are you gonna keep going on about him?"

"Mhm," replied Victoria. "Now that romance is finally on your horizon, I'm going to live vicariously through you."

"Victoria, I think you've finally lost your mind."

"Lost that, years, ago," she began to jot down the title on the paper. "So . . . let's get started on this list, yes?"

Adelaide nodded.

"We know that Devon's only been here two weeks, so he's certainly going to be considered. And then there's Mark from the European division, he's been here . . ."

"Almost a year," Adelaide spoke.

Victoria scribbled that down. "And who else? I feel like the Asian division had new personnel recently."

"Not that recently. Last time they got new people was around two years ago, when Jeffrey and Maura were hired."

"Right, right," their names were also jotted down. "Anyone else come to mind?"

". . . uh, I think the Canadian division got a new one a few years back . . . Wilson, I think."

"The one that's always saying jokes that, aren't funny and then gets upset when no one laughs?"

"That's the one!" exclaimed Adelaide. "Think he got here a little bit after I did."

"We'll put him down for four years." Victoria paused before asking, "So anyone else?"

"Me."

"Don't be silly. They only have to fill three positions and there are already five to choose from."

"So you don't think they'll put me into consideration?"

"In my mind, no," Victoria took off her reading glasses. "You're meant to be in this division. And that's that."

But that wasn't that. Victoria may have been the head of the Latin American division, but she wasn't the Office Head and come Friday, three pm, Adelaide was amongst the three diplomats that were summoned to Nelson's office. Her heart nearly stopped when his secretary called her to go to the office. She had half a mind to just slip out the door and pretend she hadn't been called, but she knew she couldn't do that. She was an adult. Adults couldn't just run away from her problems. That's what her father had taught her and so she went to the office, where she was greeted by Mark and Wilson, whom were waiting on the couch outside Nelson's office.

She understood why they were there. Mark dealt primarily with Western European countries, mostly the United Kingdom and France. He already had contacts in the British Ministry. Wilson dealt solely with Canada, which allotted him time to immerse himself in the complex relationship between the Canadian Ministry and the British one. Through that, he gained a good understanding of how the British Ministry worked. Those two fit in London, but her, not so much. She specialized in Latin America. She had learned Spanish through a nanny that had raised her in the absence of her deceased mother. She had even gone on to study the different sayings from the various countries in Latin America. Adelaide had truly immersed herself in her division, so to take her from there and throw her into Britain didn't make sense.

The only reason she could think, of why they reassigned her was because she'd minored in British politics during her time at Harvard. But that didn't mean anything. Not really. She had learned, she had attained a rather high grade point average, but her knowledge was strictly text book. There was no real world experience. It was like having a student do nothing but read medical text books and then expect them to complete surgery without them ever having had lab time. It made no sense to her and when it was her turn to enter Nelson's office, she made her opinion perfectly clear.

"I can't be transferred." Adelaide declared. "I have no formal experience with the British diplomats and have a pending case with the Chilean Department of Magic. I am thankful that I was considered for the position but I must insist that I am unfit for the assignment."

Nelson stared at her for a moment, his lips pressed into a thin line and beads of sweat forming along his balding head. He was exhausted. The week had been draining on him and he wanted to put an end to the fiasco in Britain as soon as possible, so he leant forwards in his desk, his eyes narrowing slightly and proceeded to speak.

"This assignment can not be turned down. It is yours to fulfill."

"With all due respect sir, I am unfit for it."

"Unfit? Not at all, at least, not according to your file," he held up the thick file that documented her adult life. "It says here, that you were educated at Harvard where you minored in British politics. You were taught by Professor Barbara Feingold, who is the most celebrated political scientist in British politics. So for you to say that you are unfit is nonsensical."

"I minored in British politics, because my father asked me to. I never wished to follow a career in British politics or in European affairs which is why I majored in Latin American policy. And I insist that I should not be reassigned."

"Is it because you're afraid?"

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me." Nelson smiled deviously. "That's it. Isn't it? You're afraid of what's going on in Britain. That's why you don't want to be reassigned. Must say I never took your for a coward."

"Coward?" her right brow began to twitch, a sign that she was growing frustrated.

"Yes. A coward," he said simply.

"You clearly haven't read my file, because if you had, you would've read that I went into Columbia with a group of Aurors to aid in the rescue of muggle children that were being held captive by a group of rogue wizards. You would have read that I acted as translator when spells were being shot everywhere. So don't . . . don't call me a coward, because the cowards are the silver spoon diplomats that sent in their request to be transferred after Voldemort came back."

"So by your logic my brother in law is a coward?"

"If he sent in a request to be reassigned, he is." Adelaide hadn't thought of what she'd said, she was so caught up in the moment that she failed to recognize her statement as career suicide.

"Miss Thirlby," he said her in a deathly calm voice. "I want you to pay very close attention to what I am about to say. You will accept your assignment at our embassy in London. You will carry out your tasks and perhaps, when their war blows over, you will be reassigned to the Latin American division. If you refuse to be reassigned, then you will be fired."

"You can't fire me for not wanting to move!" she hissed.

"You're right, I can't, but I can fire you for something else. Perhaps a diplomat from Uruguay will think you're rude and incredibly difficult to work with. Perhaps it'll be one from Guatemala or even Peru."

Adelaide wanted to tell him to go fuck himself. That she didn't need the job that badly, but although the words formed on her lips, she couldn't bring herself to say them. She had a mortgage that needed to be paid, a car that had to be paid off and bills, so many bills. Her job allowed her to live a comfortable life, a life in which she never went without and could indulge herself. If she were to lose her job she wouldn't be able to keep her lifestyle, so instead of saying fuck you, she held it in – like so many others across the world do – and settled for nodding her head in a sign of understanding.

"Now that that's settled, Kathleen will give you the packet informing you of what is expected of you. There will be a mandatory meeting at 8 am on Monday. I suggest you get there early."

"Wait," she interjected. "When are we expected to begin in London?"

"Three weeks time," he replied. "Next week has been set apart for the diplomats to make the necessary arrangements for their homes. The week after will be devoted to moving into the flats we have for the diplomats, as well as to set up the offices and the following week the work begins. Now if you excuse me, I have another meeting to go to. So please, go back to your division."

One day, Adelaide was going to send a nasty hex his way, but today wasn't that day, so she stood up and walked out of the office, her lips pressed into a thin line and her brow twitching in an almost violent manner. When she reached the division, Victoria practically leapt from her seat and just as she was about to ask her what had happened, Adelaide told her the news.

"I'm being reassigned."

"There has to be something we can do. Perhaps I can write a detailed letter explaining why the division necessitates your presence."

"Don't think that'll work."

"And why not?" asked Victoria.

"Because I called his brother in law a coward," stated Adelaide.

"Ada . . . no, tell me you're joking."

"Wish I was."

"Why would you do that?" asked an exasperated Victoria.

"He called me a coward and I got worked up. You know how I get when I get worked up. I don't think!"

Victoria shook her head. "Maybe I can salvage the situation. I'll make some calls and hopefully something will get straightened out."

"Don't."

"Don't you want to stay here?"

"Yeah, but," she lowered her voice to a whisper. "Nelson said if I don't go, he'd find a way to fire me so I think its better that I go and this way, I'll get to be there for Gwen. That'll . . . that'll be worth it."

"QUE? QUE? (What? What?)" roared Victoria in Spanish. "No! No! I'm going to go have a word with human resources and . . ."

"Don't make a big deal out of this." Adelaide placed her hand atop Victoria's. "This doesn't need to be made into a big issue. I'll just go to London. The war will blow over soon enough and then I'll come back."

"That's not the point."

"I know what the point is, but I have a mortgage. I need this job to pay my bills and you do to, so just forget about taking it up with human resources."

"Adelaide . . ."

"Just forget it. There's nothing I can do to get me out of going to London so I'll make the best of it. I'll set up a home in the house they stick me in and I'll find Theo a new puppy daycare. I'll even be able to spend more time with Gwen. It'll be alright."

Victoria remained unconvinced. "I have friends, you know, in high places. They might not be as high at the Department of Magic, as Nelson's are, but in Latin America, I am the American official that everyone knows and if I were to tell the Secretaries of Magic and Ministers for Magic that I need a friend to remain in my division, I'm sure they'd be more than willing to help an old friend."

Adelaide was tempted to take Victoria's offer. She honestly didn't feel like relocating to London. The move would be strenuous, she'd have to look for a new daycare so that Theo would be on her sleeping schedule and she hadn't a clue as to where she'd find caregivers as outstanding as the ones he currently had. But as much as she wanted to remain at her current post, she knew she couldn't bring Victoria into this.

"I really appreciate you wanting to help, but I feel like I should just go. It'd be easier that way."

"But what if you get hurt?"

"There's no reason for me to get hurt. I'm an American diplomat."

"An American diplomat with a muggle-born father and a muggle mother," added Victoria. "In America, that's not an issue, but that's what they're fighting about over there and I. . ." her voice cracked. "I worry that something may happen to you."

"If I get hurt, an investigation will get launched. The Department will want to know what happened and if they find out that Voldemort or someone in the British Ministry was involved, then . . . I don't know, maybe a war will erupt. America does have a penchant for war. And he may a vile fiend but I'm sure he knows that, so he'll think twice before taking out a . . . well, I don't really know how to describe my blood. Am I a muggle-born? Is that it?"

"You're a witch." Victoria declared. "That's all there is to it."

"Then don't let your mind fixate on what they'll think about my blood. You said it yourself, I'm a witch. And everything will work out."