How to Play Nice by WeasleyForMe
Bill finds out that his new work assignment has him paired with Hermione. Can he learn how to play nice with her? Bill/Hermione
"A ministry employee has gone missing!"
Hermione passed the disturbing notice to Bill, and she started to pace behind her desk.
Bill gently took the magenta parchment from Hermione's shaking hand and quickly absorbed the information.
Memo to Ministry of Magic Employees- All Departments
The Ministry has received intelligence that Penelope Clearwater, employed in the Animagus Registration Office, has been missing for the past 24 hours. A team of Aurors and Magical Law Enforcement Officers have been sent to search her home for evidence. If any Ministry employee has any knowledge of the whereabouts of Ms. Clearwater, please report immediately to your supervisor(s).
Sincerely,
Mafalda Hopkirk
"What do you think this is all about?" Bill asked, and Hermione stopped pacing to look at him.
"I'm not sure, but I have a bad feeling. I used to sit with Penelope at lunch occasionally when she used to work in Kingsley's office. She doesn't seem the sort of girl who would just run away for attention," Hermione said.
"No, not at all. She used to date Percy. She always seemed very level-headed."
"Hmmm," Hermione hummed, rubbing her head. "I think I need to get out of here for the day."
"I'll walk out with you," Bill replied.
Once they had reached the lobby of the Ministry, Hermione realized she'd slipped her hand into Bill's while they had been walking. She didn't let go of him until he spoke. "Want me to walk you home?"
"No, I'll be fine," she said barely above a whisper and walked away without another word.
Bill watched her until she disappeared into the throngs of witches and wizards in Diagon Alley.
Tuesday dawned, overcast and threatening rain. Hermione hadn't slept well. Her delicious dream of Bill in the shower had been replaced by one where she was trapped inside a dirty coat closet; as loudly as she pounded on the door, nobody would let her out.
At least today the Ministry would use Veritaserum on the two prisoners. If not for this, Hermione would have probably just stayed in bed. For although she and Bill weren't allowed in the interrogation room, they would have access to everything the transcriptionist recorded.
She didn't even make it to her desk to sing along with the Wireless before the stress began. When she rounded Dennis' empty desk, she crashed into Bill.
"You're not going to like what's going on here," he growled deeply, reminding Hermione that his blood was laced with lycanthropy.
"What is it?" she asked, barely setting her bag down before he steered her back into the hallway.
"Most of the Law Enforcement officials have been sent out to look for Penelope Clearwater, so there's only one left to question Macnair and Gordian," he snarled as they walked. "They lowered the priority of questioning them, plus it will take four times as long with just one officer working."
"No news on Penelope?" Hermione asked. She took Bill's grunt as a negative response.
"Where are we going exactly?" she finally asked, all too aware of the warmth of his hand pressed to her lower back.
"To try to expedite this ordeal."
Hermione argued with the receptionist in the Auror's Office, and after two hours of waiting, they finally started the Veritaserum interrogation. As soon as copies of the confidential transcripts were in Bill's hands, they rushed back to Hermione's office to read them.
"No Dennis today?" Bill asked, noticing the still empty desk in the front office.
"I don't remember him requesting off. Perhaps he'll be in after lunch. Let's read these over before we take them to Kingsley," she said, anticipating any information they may be able to gather.
They sat side by side behind her desk. Within minutes, Bill was completely absorbed in the Gordian transcript, and Hermione couldn't believe what she was reading in the Macnair transcript.
"Wow, they really will tell you anything once they've had a nip of Veritaserum. Hermione, you've got to read this part. Gordian told the officer he was planning on cursing that old pocket watch and giving it to a Muggle or a Muggle-born witch or wizard. I'm really glad I did a thorough sweep of his home before touching anything…" Bill trailed off as he read on.
"Bill, Macnair said that Flora and Hestia Carrow were the ones who smashed up that farmer's crops and put the Pixies in the Muggle school in Westminster. They were in my year at Hogwarts! Slytherin House, of course. And they are related to the Carrows who were at the Battle of Howarts! I wonder if the Ministry knows where Flora and Hestia live," murmured Hermione as she continued to read.
Bill read quietly for a few minutes, too aware of Hermione just inches away from him. She was muttering to herself as she read, occasionally nodding or biting her lip. He wanted to hold her and tell her that everything would be all right. He wanted to kiss her until they both forgot about the shocking things they had learned. As he watched her, she trembled slightly.
"What's the matter?" Bill asked gently, pushing a stray curl behind her ear.
She tore her dark eyes away from the transcript and looked at Bill. "Willard Macnair admitted he was too afraid to take the dark mark when he brother did, but now he wants to punish the 'Mudbloods' who tried to kill his brother in the war. I was the one who jinxed Walden Macnair at the Battle of Hogwarts, and I really did try to kill him, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. I just knocked him out until the Aurors took him to Azkaban. Now they want to punish me," she finished quietly.
"We won't let that happen," he swore.
"But you know who else is a Muggle-born 'Mudblood'? Penelope Clearwater," she stated. "Apparently there are a number of witches and wizards still practicing the Dark Arts. I don't think it's a coincidence that she's gone missing now."
Bill leaned toward Hermione and read something that caught his eye on the transcript in her hands. "Here, see that?" he asked as he pointed to a line on the parchment. "Gordian also said 'Invenire et capere'. I saw it a few pages back," he said skimming back through the transcript he had been reading.
"But that's Latin. Why are they using Latin?" Hermione puzzled. "I feel so overwhelmed! And where's Dennis? I could really use a muffin or something!"
Kingsley bounded into her office, and Hermione was slightly upset that he hadn't brought them some biscuits or sweets. "I've just come from the Auror's Office, and they let me know you two already have the transcripts from the interrogations. Well?" he asked, sitting opposite Bill and Hermione. "Find anything of interest?"
"Where do we even begin?" Bill asked, setting the stack of parchments in front of the Minister.
"I think I can narrow it down to one solid sentence," Hermione said. "Muggles and Muggle-borns aren't safe until we find the Carrow sisters and anyone else behind this awfulness."
Well, well, well... the plot thickens! Please review! I promise I'm trying my best to finish up this story soon for all of you :)