5
The job search had been an on-going process which was proving to be more exhaustive than promising. Privately, the hiring committee bemoaned its pace, and the selection committee agreed. It would be easier by far to fill the position by alternative means (read: by word of mouth and invitation). But the position they were looking to fill was niche. The selection pool was small, and no single applicant was anyone any single member of the hiring committee knew.
A certain family had donated a large sum following the recommendation from a certain family. The monetary room the donating family had created with their contribution allowed for a five-year salary for one (1) aspiring R&D team member, at the contributing family's express desire. They'd been informed by the founders of the firm there would be no promises on who the position would go to, to which the family had no objections. It was a standard transaction, but the identity and reputation of the families involved were a first for the relatively new firm, who had made their political stances quite clear. One simply wouldn't expect Brunelleschi & Vaughn's views to be compatible with the likes of the Malfoys.
Well.
Even house elves have been known to riot.
Nonetheless, the space had proven hard to fill. Truthfully, they were inclined toward hiring a female witch, for no other reason than the gender ratios of their team suffered from a lack of "feminine energy." More truthfully, their ideal candidate needed to be more than familiar with a specific type of magic. It was not an uncommon focus, especially after the Prophet broke the story of Brunelleschi & Vaughn nearly five years ago, but background checks on some promising candidates had made the selection committee skeptical of their ethics. Some of their "perfect fits" had been lured away with promises of better benefits, or offered raises at their current jobs, and so had declined B&V's offer.
"This one graduated top of their class in 1999," said Remus Lupin, handing over a folder.
"Where from?" Their job search had attracted the best and brightest of several wizarding schools.
"Hogwarts," replied Lily Potter.
A pair of bespectacled eyes observed the file. Thin, red eyebrows raised. "No steady job," the ginger noted.
"She comes highly recommended," said the other redhead.
"By?" Kingsley Shacklebolt asked, who had yet to see the file. Fabian, bless his heart, was a slow reader, if thorough.
"Anika Hilbert. Filius Flitwick."
"Professors at her school," Lily said. This had been standard among most of their applicants.
"Paulina Abramovich." At this Lily and Kingsley started. Paulina's story was still a case study used during Auror training, though they had heard she had recently been collaborating with a young researcher on memory- and trauma-related spelling. Through risky self-experimentation Paulina had conquered most of the side effects she'd been left with after a bout of Cruciatus torture. She had been active in the Eastern Wizarding world for the last two years and was just starting to get some attention on the international stage.
"And?" Lily asked.
"Selene Vulchanov," Fabian said.
"Of the Vulchanov's?" clarified Kingsley.
The Vulchanov family was research royalty—a female member of their family was the founder of Durmstrang. They were a mixed family as well—tied to the Muggle royal line in Bulgaria. Selene Vulchanov was a patron of the collective cutting edge; her generosity was infamous. There was no reason to ask Miss Granger about her and Selene's acquaintance. The Vulchanov had detailed their entire history, and all letters had been charmed for authenticity.
"She's twenty-three," Remus said disbelievingly. Lily privately agreed—this applicant was the same age as her son.
The four at the long table straightened as the door opened.
Whatever they had been expecting of Hermione Granger was not what walked through the door. The first thing they realized was she dressed in Muggle workwear. Her brown pencil skirt suit is tailored to her figure. She wore brown, sheer pantyhouse tucked into a pair of cocoa pumps. There was an emerald brooch attached to her left lapel.
The sound of her heels clicking on the wooden floor was the only sound in the suprised silence.
"Miss Granger," Remus said. "Thank you for coming."
"Thank you for having me," she replied. Her voice was quiet.
"I am Remus Lupin. I will be conducting your interview along with Miss Lily Potter, Mister Kingsley Shacklebolt, and Mister Fabian Prewett."
"Pleased to meet you," she said. She swallowed the yuh sound in you and replaced it with a chuh sound. The affect sounded American.
"Per your application you consented to the administration of Veritaserum before this interview. I trust our secretary administered it properly?"
"Three drops," the woman replied.
"Where are you from?" Kingsley asked, no doubt picking up on the inconsistency in her accent.
"My mother is from the American South. My father is from Northampton. They live in Brixton now."
"I like Brixton," said Fabian, who had a way of softening applicants with polite conversation. "The Floo travel to Diagon seems a bit more pleasant from that way."
Miss Granger gave a tight smile and clasped her hands together. "I will take your word for it."
"You graduated from Hogwarts, Miss Granger?" Lily asked. The interviewee nodded.
"What house?"
"Slytherin, Miss Potter," Granger said as she touched her brooch.
Lily followed the movement of her hand before she looked down to her notes. "How interesting."
"Miss Granger," Kingsley started. "You graduated in 1999. In your application a recommendation from an employer is missing. Have you worked in the last six years?"
"The job search proved difficult after I graduated. I inquired to work in several research labs. The positions went to those better suited."
"Then what did you do for work?"
"I was visiting family abroad—they own quite a bit of farmland in Kentucky—and I stayed to research and live with them for some years."
So her family sponsored her for a few years, the committee assumed. Very fortunate.
"What did you research?" asked Remus.
"I did a lot of traveling in the States and worked with some wizards researching the intersection of space, place, and land memory."
"Where in the States? I may be familiar," chimed in Fabian.
"I was charting the sites of lynchings down the Mississippi River. I spent a lot of time in New Orleans. The wizards there have a deep belief that land has the ability to remember what has happened in it. I was interested in the implications—that land could remember, and its memory could influence the effectiveness of magic. Naturally, if the land, or," this the girl said as a throwaway, scratching with a manicured nail at the corner of her full lip, "American land, at any rate, could remember, I was convinced it could forget. I studied memory charms and their creation throughout my career at Hogwarts."
"Land sentience," said Fabian, to which Miss Granger nodded. "It is a theory Europe is hesitant to entertain."
"Was any of your research in New Orleans fruitful?" Lily asked.
"In short, no, but I still keep in touch with the research team there. They work in tandem with another team in the Everglades; they're hoping to use land sentience theory to reclaim shoreline inches. I was last informed they had gained two inches, or roughly five centimeters on the coast closest to the Gulf."
"Do you view sentience theory as a potential path to further spell innovation?" At this, Hermione straightened.
"At the very least," she said, "I view it as a helpful thought device. Regarding land as intelligent may make us more mindful about what we build on top of it. It can even allow for possibilities otherwise unfathomable. I read the first Runic accounts on the Undectable Extension Charm. I think the spell's creator would embrace the theory."
"I want to take a moment to talk about your recommendation letters," said Remus. "Paulina Abramovich—how do you know her?"
"Paulina and I have been corresponding since my fourth year. I reached out to her."
Oh. Kingsley blinked rapidly before he collected himself.
"She says you have been instrumental in the development of the trauma-curses she later patented." Paulina had invented three countercurses for the effects the Cruciactus.
"Did she?" Miss Granger said, managing to look surprised and pleased. "She is very kind. We both agreed countering the effects of the Cruciactus was an area of study. It felt relevant and personal for both of us."
"What hand did you have in the actualization of the spells?" asked Remus.
"Originally we planned to create one catch-all spell. Most of the foundational figuring and conceptualization was by my hand—the ideal number of syllables, the wand movements, the precedent for the spell. I consulted with Professor Hilbert for those parts. As I mentioned earlier, one of my focuses is memory and recall charms, and I approached the problem from that angle."
"All of the spells patented by Miss Abramovich credit the Draught of Peace for the figuring," pointed out Lily.
"Correct. At the time I was reading essays about the nature of the Draught of Peace and whether peace, as a concept, was truly able to be manufactured. Some posited the Draught was really a multilayered, benign memory potion. I took a chance and did the figuring."
"Risky," Lily replied with a smile.
"But the later work was done by Paulina," Miss Granger was quick to say. She smoothed out a wrinkle in her skirt as the selection committee digested her response.
"You mentioned memory and recall charms were your specialty."
"Yes."
"I think I speak for everyone when I say we recognize the potential for a memory specialist on the Brunelleschi-Vaughn development team. Advanced locks, discerning doors, improvements on the Extension Charm family…" Kinglsey trailed off.
"Indeed," Miss Granger replied, nodding as she clasped her hands in her lap. "In the ways which memory can be forgotten or recovered, memory can be fabricated, even in inanimate objects. A sink can 'remember' to wash the dishes it holds every Wednesday night at precisely half-eight. A room can be convinced to 'remember' how big it once was and expand. A door can 'remember' visitors. A rug can 'forget' its stains."
"Your statements imply even inanimate objects possess sentience. Or at least an awareness."
"Wands choose wizards, but my findings in the last years are, by-and-by, mostly inconclusive," Miss Granger said. "I hope to discover the answer here in London."
"What brings you to London?"
"I would like to connect with the English spelling community," she said. "When I left the social climate was quite different, but I was assured by friends things had changed."
"What changes are you expecting?"
Miss Granger looked down, seeming to steel herself. "I found attitudes toward blood purity to be outdated," she said.
"We agree," Lily Potter was quick to respond.
Miss Granger's hand touched her emerald brooch again.
Oh.
"How did you hear about this job, Miss Granger?"
"A school acquaintance pulled my coattails," she said. "I was immediately interested. I remember when the story of the Wizengamot broke. I've kept up the patents and journal entries coming from some who work here for a while. The statistical analysis on accidental magic among low-to-high income magical families stands out. Especially once the range expanded to include Carthage, Egypt, and into the greater East."
"Chang and Patil will be glad to know. That project took years, Merlin knows," said Fabian.
"Development prides itself on the diverse methods of problem-solving its members bring," said Remus, positively sounding like an employee handbook. "Our development style is open-lab and every two weeks we employ in-department critiques. Every half-year is a research-specific presentation where members of a sister company are encouraged to ask their own questions. The interconnectedness we share here has yielded plentiful fruit, but, as we deal with a multitude of experts, it can lead to disagreements. How do you handle constructive criticism?"
"Working in the States taught me so much," said Miss Granger. "The Americans think of the fundamentals of magic differently. I had to be careful to not impose my 'foreign' concepts upon my partners."
"Would you say you handle criticism well?"
"I'd like to think so."
"Should you disagree with a colleague," Kingsley started, "how do you give criticism?"
Miss Granger gave a thoughtful hum before she replied, "Dignity and reciprocity are important. I treat others how I'd like to be treated. Straight-to-the-point, but gentle."
The committee seemed to nod as one, and Miss Granger let out a breath, giving her skirt a miniscule tug.
"What do you expect working from here, Miss Granger?"
"Community is important to me," she said almost immediately. "And freedom. I need the two to create properly."
"What else do you need, Miss Granger?" This was from Fabian. Miss Granger blinked in what may have been surprise. The implication was strong in his tone.
"Am I to assume—?"
"We are ready to discuss payment, Miss Granger," said Remus Lupin. "Unless you have some questions for us."
The black woman seemed to waver in her seat, brown eyes flicking between each member of the interview commitee.
"Yes," she decided finally. "I've several." And what left her mouth only solidified the committee's resolve.
Their search was over.
Let me know your thoughts.
Thank you for reading.