Chapter 5
Cassandra woke early the next morning to get herself ready for work then prepare breakfast. While she got ready, she magically had breakfast cooking on the stove, she chose to stick to something simple being scrambled eggs and fruit. She stood in front of her small closet trying to decide what to wear, she did not own many clothes but chose to wear an emerald green dress, a black coat with matching black pantyhose and heels. She got the girls up placing Hallie and Holly in their highchairs with Periwinkle in a booster seat then put bibs on them before placing the food in front of them, "Alright girls some eggs, fruit, and milk." She leaned against a wall taking a bite of toast as she magically cleaned up the kitchen while watching the girls eat their breakfast.
Once they finished eating, she cleaned up their plates and faces. She took them to their room picking out three different outfits. She changed their diapers then placed Hallie in a plum-colored dress with white stockings and black buttoned shoes, Holly matched her sister but instead of plum color she wore a magenta color. The twins were color coded since birth Holly being the pink twin and Hallie being the purple, but with it being almost October their outfits were darker shades of their normal shades. She let them play while she got Periwinkle dressed in the same style dress, stockings and shoes but her color was emerald green to match her mother. She got their black peacoats on then left through the floo network easiest way to travel short distances with children she discovered when she had to travel with when she just had Periwinkle in her care. They arrived at the Magical Congress, she proceeded to take the girls to the daycare there that provided care for the employees who worked there. She approached the witch standing at the counter greeting parents and children, "Name," she said looking up at Cassandra as a parent signed their child into the daycare.
"Cassandra Rice. I am dropping off my daughters: Periwinkle King or she may be listed as Peri King then Hallie and Holly Porter."
The worker flipped through the book, "Transfers from the Ministry of Magic in London, England?"
She nodded, "Yes."
"We have received Peri's paperwork she is free to enter, but it says here that Hallie and Holly recently came into your guardianship?
"Correct…I am their godmother their parents passed away recently. They did not work for the ministry."
The worker nodded and handed her two clipboards with a quill, "Fill this out then we can let them enter." She took the clipboards and quill then went to sit down off to the side to fill out the paperwork. She finished them then returned to the desk, "We close at six o'clock if you arrive late, you will be charged a late fee unless you want to pay for the premium for the extended evening care?"
She shook her head, "No thank you. I will be back on time," she kneeled in front of the girls, "be good you three I will be back tonight to pick you up." She kissed their heads then two daycare workers came and escorted them inside with Periwinkle going to her age level room and the twins to theirs.
With the children safely in daycare, she proceeded to her department like at the Ministry of Magic she was working in the Magical Congress' Department of International Magical Cooperation. She was simply walking the hallways when a voice called for her, "Cassie."
She turned around and saw Richard walking towards her, "Good morning, Richard."
He caught up to her, "Good morning, Cassie. Having a good morning?"
"I suppose. I just dropped of the girls and now heading to meet with me head of department."
"What department do you work for? I do not think I asked yesterday."
"The Department of International Magic. What about you?"
He nodded taking a mental note of her department, "That makes sense coming from London. I work in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement; it is our largest department. My father got me the job, I am set to inherit his trade like many before him in our family is real estate locations around America and Canada, but I really do enjoy actually working instead of sitting at home visiting our club while having no real purpose. This is how my family are part of the upper American and Canadian class is from my father's side of the family always doing well in their company."
They continued their walk to the elevators to go to their departments as she spoke more on her family, "My parents were similar but they both simply came from older European families although I believe my mother's family has ties to the upper French class. I was trained from a young age the role I should play, I never listened which is why I am no longer in London like I mentioned yesterday. My sister, Victoria, she did anything and everything they commanded. The perfect daughter…if she had been a son, it would have benefited better, her husband did receive her dowry though. I lost mine when I got pregnant with Peri. If she had been pureblooded my parents might have reconsidered but she is not. I do not care though…I do miss my mother sometimes not my father or sister they were too coldhearted. My mother followed the strict upper-class beliefs as we have discussed, but she always had the heart of a true mother."
They reached the elevators, he pressed the button to call the elevator to them and as they waited, he told her, "We are not our parents and we provide the guide to the future. We change the future, one day they will be gone and all there will be left is those of the future…like your children. All we can do is show them the right ways it is up to them though to choose to follow. Just set the right examples and they should follow."
She smiled softly at him, "You are very wise, Richard."
He smiled back at her, "Thank you. You are very…" he started but the elevator arrived and let her on first.
The house elf on the elevator "Morning, Richard. Ma'am."
"Morning Nickels, Ms. Rice is going to the International Department. I will be going to my usual department."
The house elf nodded pressing the buttons to take them to the correct departments, "Department of International Magical Co-Operation"
Cassandra stepped off the elevator, "Bye Richard. Thank you."
"Bye Cassie," he gave a nod of his head as the elevator shut then took off for his department.
The rest of the day proceeded as it did as if she were still working in London, she was given her own office and most of the work she did consist of paperwork handling the affairs occurring in England involving Lord Voldemort. She read the papers that were discussing the situation currently unfolding there. She spent most of the day writing letters or speaking on the phone with someone from around world. In order to distract herself from one of the many reasons she left she did some minor work involving international trade agreements. When her day ended, she exited her office bumping into Richard waiting for her outside her office, "How was work?"
She jumped getting startled by him since she was not expecting him to there, "Richard! You nearly scared me to death. What are you doing here?"
"I wanted to walk with you to get the children…if you do not mind."
She started to say no, but she quite enjoyed his company even though she had only just met him the day before, "Um…alright. I do not mind." She walked with him to the elevators, "The daycare, please," she told the house elf.
"How was your day?" he asked breaking the silence.
She looked at him, "Oh, it was alright. Just the same stuff as I was dealing with a little less intense since I am not in the middle of the war like I was there."
"I do not blame you for wanting to remove yourself and the children from that. I am sure it was terrifying being there."
She rubbed her sleeve covering the dark mark, "You have no idea. Watching your friends put their lives on the line to protect the wizarding world from a man who wanted to remove all good and replace with only evil. I have friends who have to hide because their son is this special person. I worry about them daily; I hope they are never found. I do not even know their location very few do. Their son is the same age as the twins. I hope he does not have to go through the same fate as they have. He has his godfather though who if anything bad did happen to them he would care for him, he is a good man. We have similar backgrounds and both left our families to stand up for our beliefs."
The elevator arrived, "Sounds like you left a good set of friends. I am positive you will be able to return back one day, wars cannot possibly last forever."
They stepped off together, "Perhaps. I do not know I want them to know Hogwarts and see the sites I grew up with and the things I experience with the twins' parents but I will always have that fear that it will be too dangerous to return. Plus, there's the issue of Peri's father, he is there a very close friend of Professor Dumbledore's, but despite my original want of him not wanting to know about her I sent letter after letter to him asking to speak or meet or something but I never heard from him until the twins' parents' funeral where I refused to answer his questions. He had every chance for two years to contact me, but never tried once recently. I do not want to deal with that."
He gave a small nod, "I am truly sorry you have been through so much. You deserve a happily ever after."
She shrugged, "Right now my children are my primary focus nothing else."
"You need to be happy, too."
"I am content…not happy but content. Eventually I will be, but right now I need to protect myself for the sake of the children."
They reached the daycare, "I understand…I will bid you goodnight. See you tomorrow."
She signed the children out, "See you tomorrow. Goodnight."
"Goodnight," he said as the children came running out.
She hugged them, "Mama!" Periwinkle hugged her mother with Hallie and Holly.