Chapter 61: Office 34B
"Is Mr. Munch always so…blunt?" Claire said to Bill and Arthur as they walked towards the All-Purpose Room.
"Eric Munch is a man of few words," Arthur said.
"I can't imagine he'll be anything but a Watchwizard," Bill chimed in. "He doesn't stand out."
"But enough about him," Arthur said and spread his arms. "Welcome to the Ministry of Magic!"
"Thank you, Mr. Weasley," Claire said, smiling a little.
"What brings you here?" Bill asked.
"You're part of the Hogwarts group, right?" Arthur guessed.
Claire nodded. "I'm supposed to be going to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement."
"How are your first impressions so far?" Arthur asked.
"To be honest, I'm a little nervous," Claire stated.
"The Ministry can be overwhelming at first, I'll admit, but I'm confident you'll do well," Arthur said encouragingly.
"Weasleys are usually right about this kind of thing," Bill added.
"I'll try my best," Claire responded.
"Speaking of that, punctuality does count," Arthur said as he walked faster while Claire and Bill kept up with him. "You should meet with Amos Diggory in the All-Purpose Room. He's in charge of the Hogwarts students today, so he'll be able to get you the right credentials and clearance to walk around the Ministry freely without being bothered by Mr. Munch or any of the other Watchwizards again."
"Right, thanks again for your help," Claire said and entered the All-Purpose Room.
Inside was a big lounge with a roaring fireplace, multiple tables with lamps on them, and large windows showing a pine tree-covered valley with a clear river running through it while a bright blue sky lay overhead. Standing near the window was a middle-aged man wearing a tan coat under a green cloak and straight gray hair.
"Whoa, these windows are amazing," Claire remarked.
Startled, the middle-aged man turned away from the windows to face Claire. "Who are you?"
"I'm Claire Krystal, one of the Hogwarts students that's here to participate in an off-campus assignment," Claire explained. "Are you Amos Diggory? Mr. Weasley said I should talk to you to get my credentials. You are Cedric's father, right?"
"Yes, I'm Amos Diggory and Cedric is my son," the middle-aged man said. "But I've never heard of a Weasley. Do you know what your assignment is?"
"Not really," replied Claire. "Though Professor Dumbledore said I needed to go to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement."
"I see, well I'm…no longer in charge of the student program," Amos said.
"But that can't be," Claire objected. "The student program just started. You can't no longer be in charge that soon."
"Look, just go to Office…34B?" Amos hesitated for a moment before nodding to himself. "Yes, that's it! They'll help you."
"Okay, well, thanks, Mr. Diggory," Claire said.
"Good luck on your…assignment," Amos replied as Claire left.
Claire then left the All-Purpose Room and made her way to Office 34B. Unlike the previous room, this one was covered in pink walls and furnishings with various pictures of cats on the wall as well as cat-shaped tea kettles.
"I hope this is the right room," Claire muttered. "This room's way too pink even for my taste."
"Hem-hem."
As her eyes widened, Claire looked back at the front door and saw a middle-aged woman with short brunette hair enter into the office wearing a light-pink jacket over a dark pink dress.
"Um, hello," Claire said to the woman. "Who are you?"
"Dolores Umbridge, Head of the Improper Use of Magic Office," the woman said with a kindly smile plastered on her face.
Claire held out her hand. "Nice to meet—
"How did you get into my office?" Umbridge interrupted.
"Well, I—
"Speak clearly! Don't mumble."
"Of course, Miss Umbridge."
"That's Madam Umbridge to you!"
"Yes, Madam Umbridge."
"Now you're going to tell me why a child like yourself is in my office without my permission. And do not lie to me."
So Claire explained her off-campus assignment to Umbridge along with her interaction with Amos Diggory, who told her to come here.
"I should have expected as much from Diggory," Umbridge said irritably. "Now you say you're a student from Hogwarts. What is your name?"
"Claire Krystal."
"Oh, the so-called Hero of Hogwarts? How delightful! I was just about to have a cup of tea. You'll find that it really relaxes you and makes you…open right up. Perhaps you'll join me for tea sometime?"
"Maybe sometime when I'm not busy with this off-campus assignment. I'm late enough as is."
"When a Ministry member invites you to tea, you make the time," Umbridge advised. "I'm just dying to hear about your adventures, especially with the Cursed Vaults."
"Sure thing, Madam Umbridge."
"Best of luck, Claire Krystal. Now I did pass by Wilkie Twycross on the way here, and he was talking about students. He was heading to the All-Purpose Room."
"I'll go see him right away to get my assignment, and hopefully my credentials."
Then Claire left Umbridge's office and went back to the All-Purpose Room. Inside, the room was filled with a lot of wizards and witches who were either chatting amongst themselves or sitting on the sofas near the fireplace. Among them stood a tall man wearing a gray robe with a matching gray scarf around his neck and had white hair.
Claire approached him and he said, "You're late for your assignment, Miss Krystal."
"Sorry," Claire said, lowering her head. "Are you Wilkie Twycross?"
"That would be me," the gray-robed man said. "Why were you late?"
While Claire was tempted to mention Mad-Eye Moody, she decided not to remembering what he said about being careful on who to trust. "A friend held me up, before I got here. It won't happen again, Mr. Twycross. Can you please help me get back on track? Because I don't want to let Professor Dumbledore or my friends down."
"First and foremost, you need your credentials for the day," Twycross stated. He then reached into his pocket and took out a white badge that said, 'Visitor' on it. "At the end of each day that you're here, you'll return this badge to Mr. Munch. Now, you must listen to the Rules of Conduct for Students Visiting the Ministry of Magic before heading off to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement."
To be continued…