A/N: Yeah why the hell not.
See disclaimer, Chapter 1.
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"Andréa?"
"Yes Miranda?" she asked absently, walking into the room. "Oh! Sorry, yes, Miranda?"
She glanced at the gaping faces from accounting currently taking a meeting in Miranda's office.
"Accounting is saying that we are 13% over budget. Is that correct?"
"Yes," Andréa nodded, her palms a little sweaty as the room looked at her. Miranda had told her that they would quibble over it. She remembered Miranda's words about the last accounting meeting and squared her shoulders. "But," she continued, not quite interrupting the editor. "That is 70% closer than we have been for the last five months. It takes into account the rain delay and the incident at the park that we had to wait for the NYPD to clear. If we hadn't taken the steps we did, to minimise the damage, it would have been closer to 45% over. We also made good use of the spaces we rented this month as well. We planned all the shoots over three days and got them done under budget. It was extremely difficult and stressful, but had we not had a total of four days delay, we should have been under."
"Thank you Andréa," Miranda said, sitting back with a smug smile and sipping coffee from her glass mug - she'd had the coffee machine installed Monday afternoon. "You see?" she gesticulated to the room. "I see no issue with the numbers this month. Acts of God are not in my wheelhouse, no matter how much I wish it to be so."
Andy bit her tongue and looked away to stop herself from snorting.
"So I would bid you good day as I have to get to the Board Meeting, where I've no doubt our erstwhile CEO will also be grilling me on the numbers, but I maintain the view that had Runway not pulled in half a million dollars of advertising this year, to date," she paused ominously. "We would be in a very different position, but as it is, we are currently sitting at -" she looked up at Andy.
"475.32 million," Andy swallowed. "Projected to be above five hundred and fifty by year's end."
"I see no reason to be worried. Any questions?"
The room was dead quiet and Miranda's terror driving whisper broke the silence.
"That's all."
Andy bit back a smile as the majority of the Accounting team ran from the room, leaving her watching Miranda purse her lips.
"You love it and you know it," Andy chuckled.
"I cannot say that I don't," Miranda muttered. "But they are not wrong to worry. Vogue recorded a loss this quarter of nearly 4%, which doesn't sound like a lot when you put it that way, but 4% on our revenue would be -"
"Nearly 2 million I think?" Miranda gaped. "I did Academic Decathlons," Andy chuckled. "You'd be surprised at how quickly you can learn to do big sums with the right formula."
"You are like a wisp of smoke that I cannot grasp, Andréa Sachs. I thought I told you not to surprise me?"
"Well, to be fair, I didn't mean to," Andy chuckled. "What time is your sproglet getting here?"
"Andréa," Miranda groaned. "Must you inflict these nicknames upon me!"
"I must, Miranda. It's in the rulebook. To be the best-assistant-ever, one must inflict nicknames on the tiny ones. It's like number four hundred and twenty-three."
"Out," Miranda ordered, barely holding back her smirk. "Out and make yourself useful. Caroline will be here at 3:25 and I will be at the board meeting at 4."
"You going to hang out with her for a bit?"
"Unless there's anything urgent?"
"Not anymore," Andy grinned, already moving the meeting she had scheduled to another time.
"Hmm," Miranda smirked. "Very well. Go, do something Andréa, that I may sit here and contemplate someone else's doom."
"I shall stay out of your way," Andy quipped, backing out of the room and pushing the door-to.
By the time Caroline arrived, the office was ordered and quiet. Everyone knew about the Board Meeting and had not bothered Miranda since the accounting meeting.
"Mom!"
Andy smiled as Caroline pushed open the outer door, dropped her bags and ran into her mother's office.
"Hello Bobbsey," Miranda said with a smile in her voice. "How was your day?"
"Am I interrupting anything?"
"You are not," Miranda muttered and Andy glanced over to see Caroline draped over her knee. "I wondered if you wanted to show me some of your drawings?"
Andy tuned them out, picking up Caroline's things and putting them behind her own desk and sent an email to the staff reminding them that Miranda would be out of the office and so would she. She packed her purse with a spare bottle of water just in case and played Candy Crush until Miranda appeared before her like a ninja.
"Holy sh-" she glanced at Caroline who was giggling. "Nikies! Hi! You ready?"
Miranda smirked a little and kissed Caroline's hair.
"Please do not get into trouble," she said gently. "I'll call when we're done but if you are ready to go home before me, call Roy?"
"I thought we'd take the subway, to be honest," Andy grinned as Caroline nodded eagerly.
"Oh heavens," Miranda groaned. "Well, I'm looking forward to hearing about it at dinner," she smiled gently at Caroline. "Or supper. Go to the bathroom and make sure you are ready to go. You may store your bag in the car with Roy before you leave."
Caroline ran off to use her mother's bathroom and Andy looked up expectantly at her boss.
"This is where you threaten to kill me if something happens to her?"
Miranda snorted.
"No, it's where I tell you that this," she handed over a credit card. "Is my personal card and I expect you to use it for whatever you want."
"What!"
"Andréa," she said gently. "Of all the people on this Earth, there is none I trust more than you. Use it for your food and, if Caroline wants drawing supplies or," she shrugged. "Whatever she wants, she may have it. They rarely get presents that cost me money and they rarely ask for things, but you were right, her talent is commendable and I plan on encouraging it at every turn. You, on the other hand, are doing me a great favour," she waved her hand to stop Andy interrupting. "Outside of work. You will not be paying for anything, not even your own food."
"I don't know how to be okay with this," Andy grimaced. "It's already a big deal -"
"She will teach you," Miranda said gently. "I will teach you. It will not always be like this, Andréa," she muttered. "I have a plan. By the year's end, you'll be on the way to financially stable, if not there already, I promise."
"I -" Andy looked up at her carefully. "That is the second time you've said that to me in so many words and it's beginning to scare me."
"Don't let it. I'm going to help you. You're helping me, so it's a straight swap."
"I'm not -"
"Oh, Andréa," Miranda said, sitting on the edge of the desk. "You should know by now that when I say something I mean it. Your help as my assistant is tangible, which is why the company -" she looked pointedly at Andy. "- not me - though I would if I thought you'd take it - pays you accordingly." She glanced at the door. "As my," she paused but Andy kept her gaze. "Friend, your help and your presence is more invaluable to me than all the money in the world. The only way I can give you something in return is to pay you in kind. With valuable knowledge and skills you would otherwise not receive."
"I am concerned," Andy muttered, glancing into Miranda's office as they heard Caroline coming back. "But I do trust you."
"That," Miranda said patting her hand. "Is how it should be."
Andy smiled as Caroline hugged her mother and grinned as she whispered in her ear. She nodded at whatever Miranda said and Andy passed her the folio with all the documents she would need.
"If they do not drain the life out of me, I will explain later," she said quietly.
Andy nodded and she and Caroline watched her go.
"She's kinda amazing," Caroline sighed.
"Yeah, she is," Andy muttered before shaking herself. "Right. Let me get this squared away and then we'll be off on our adventure!"
"I googled what you said about Chik-Fil-A," Caroline said, following her into Miranda's office. Andy tidied away all the papers into the safe and shut down the laptop. She locked the desk drawers and double checked there was nothing for anyone to find, then did the same at her desk. She even emptied the shredding into the locked shredding disposal bin. Irv may well have been going to the same meeting, but she didn't put it past him to send a lackey in his stead.
"And?" Andy smiled as Caroline frowned.
"Why do they do it?"
Andy shrugged.
"It's a tough one, to be sure. Some people believe something so strongly that they let it get in the way of common sense," Andy explained gently. "Some people get scared and react in anger. Some people," she sighed. "Just want to watch the world burn. There's no one reason for it. There's no good reason for it either, though."
"Religion is stupid," Caroline mumbled.
"It can be," Andy said, cupping the girl's cheek. "But it also provides comfort and support to people who need it. And some people do really great work for people in need. It's all so convoluted."
"Does McDonald's?"
"They don't do what Chick-Fil-A does, but," she shrugged. "They're not perfect either, but whatever you want, is fine by me."
"Have you ever eaten off a food cart?"
"I have!"
"Is it safe?"
"As can be," Andy chuckled. "If you know the right one."
"Do you?"
"Why do I get the feeling that if your mother finds out I'm going to be hung, drawn and quartered?" Andy chuckled. "Bring your bag, we'll drop it with Roy."
