Chapter Four: Karen
Thank you to Nytd, I appreciate the comments! School starts for me in a week, so hopefully between now and then I can write a chapter or two a day (I'm trying, how bout that?) After this, it's not going to go in order, because the girls agreed that if something really exciting is happening to one of them, it's not fair to stop and tell about someone else's boring day and have you miss something important elsewhere. (Aren't they sweet?)
In something totally unrelated, I got my Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone movie posters in the mail today. (The one with Severus on it, of course) - they have some at www.art.com, check it out! (They have Chamber of Secrets already, but it's got Dobby on it, and his movie appearance is frightening, I wouldn't be able to sleep in the same room as that poster.)
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Karen grinned as she walked into her new office.
"I don't understand what Xathereth thinks is bad about working at the Ministry," she said to herself, as she started to sort through all the letters on her desk, "Although, Mr. Bagman has some funny rules."
Karen thought back to her first day at work.
"Now, Miss Sumizone, you see that your office contains the door to mine. Please let anyone who wishes to see me know that they must have an appointment first, and that I have stepped out of the office at the moment and to owl me later."
"Owl you later. Right," Karen noticed how fidgety he seemed.
"And I also ask that you keep as meticulous accounts as you can, in relation to the funds of this department."
"Alright then, every Knut will be accounted for," Karen tried to not roll her eyes.
Now, Karen saw reasons for his fidgetiness. A group of goblins had been by to see him several times already, and she had turned them away, saying that Mr. Bagman wasn't in the office at the moment. She had a feeling that he was cowering under his desk or some such , as as soon as they had left the last time, Karen went into Mr. Bagman's office to find him brushing dust off his robes and muttering something about dropping a quill. It was believable, except for the jar of quills on his desk.
People had been by to see the department's accounts recently too, Karen recalled, and she confidently gave them the ledgers that she had put together, neatly written and everything accounted for. When they had inquired about the previous summer, that involved the piles of paper tied together.
"There is definitely something not right with Ludo Bagman," Karen thought to herself as she went over those things in her mind. There was a knock at the door, disrupting Karen from her thoughts.
"Yes?" She asked, looking up.
"Ezcuz me, mizz," said a grubby-looking man who spoke with a cockney accent, "Can yeh be takin' me to Bertha Jorkins' office?"
"Yeah, hang on," Karen put her quill back in the inkwell, and covered her letter. She really wasn't supposed to be working on personal things at work, anyway.
She led the man, who wore robes with the Ministry's seal on them, down the short hallway to a tiny office across from the small break room/storage room that belonged to her department.
"Eh, the door's locked," the man grumbled after fumbling with the knob for a minute or two.
"Can't you use your wand to unlock it?" Karen asked impatiently.
"I eh.. can't do magic," the man managed, and Karen realized that the man was a Squib. She had heard rumors that Filch, the caretaker at Hogwarts, was one too.
"Must be why he's a janitor at the Ministry," Karen thought to herself as she unlocked the door. He had a magic bag, it seemed, because she watched as he opened it out on the floor and pushed the desk and the other furniture into it, where it dissappeared.
"You remind me of my son," the man spoke as he struggled with a filing cabinet bursting with papers.
"How so?" Karen asked as she levitated the heavy cabinet for him into the bag.
"He's a good wizard, like I'm not," the man sighed as he folded up the bag, "Yeh, it don't look like it but I was married to a witch when I lived back in France. She couldn't take any more of my non-magic ways, and divorced me. I had to leave the country, stayed with my brother for a while. then the child support kicked in and now look at me." He smiled at Karen, and she tried not to wince at his bad teeth.
"I've got to be going, nice to meet you," the man waved as he walked down the hallway, "You seem like a nice girl, maybe I'll bring my son by sometime." and he walked out of the department.
Karen walked back into her office and sat down at her desk. She leaned back in her chair and looked at the light coming in the window and dancing on the ceiling.
"That was the weirdest thing I've ever been a part of," she spoke out loud, "I really ought to ask Mr. Bagman why they removed Bertha's things. and that man was so strange. I seem like a nice girl and he's going to bring his son by? I don't need to know his life story. I don't blame his wife for divorcing him though. He was a strange duck." Karen saw how the sun was lowering in the sky.
"Might as well tell Mr. Bagman what happened," she thought, and opened the door to Ludo's office. Her boss sat at his desk, looking nervous and scared. He was surrounded by people Karen recognized as 'Very Important Ministry Officials', by the way that they were dressed, and they were all yelling at Mr. Bagman about, strangely enough, Bertha Jorkins.
Karen closed the door again and sat back down at her desk.
"Well. it is almost five o' clock." she thought out loud, as she had gotten used to doing in the relatively quiet department, "I could just go in there to let him know that I'm leaving early. That's not really intruding." Karen knew she didn't want to get involved in any of her boss' problems, she had enough of her own, thank you very much.
"Mr. Bagman?" Karen stuck her head inside the door to Ludo's office, "I'm just letting you know that I'm leaving now, ok?" Everyone turned to look at her.
"Yes, yes, fine Miss Sumizone," Ludo looked distressed as he waved her away, pulling at his hair and then returned to staring at something on his desk. Karen closed the door and grabbed her things, Dissapparating to her family's flat.
"*Oliver!*"
Karen raised an eyebrow as she heard her sister giggling in the living room.
"Kira?" she called out. There was some scrambling coming from the living room, and Karen hesitantly opened the door. Her sister was retreating to an overstuffed burgundy chair in the corner, and on the sofa was a young man who Karen recalled to be Oliver Wood.
"What's going on in here?" Karen asked, noticing they both had red faces, "I'm not as retarded as Mum and Dad you know, sis."
"Well uhh." Kira looked from Karen to Oliver. Karen saw Oliver make a face to Kira, and Kira nodded and she wasn't totally getting what they were communicating.
"OK," Oliver said at last, after much gesturing between himself and Kira, "We've got something to tell you."
"That was obvious," Karen rolled her eyes.
"This is serious!" Kira had a pleading look on her face, "You can't tell Mum and Dad, or anyone else. It's a complete secret."
Karen sat down on the other chair.
"What is it? I won't tell anyone, Kira, you should know me better than that," Karen felt hurt that her sister would doubt her.
"Oliver and I." Kira cleared her throat, "We've decided that we're going to elope."
The room was silent for a minute.
"Wow, and I thought you were going to say you were expecting or something," Karen looked surprised.
"You can't tell anyone, we're just both going to go visit friends for a few days, and when we come back it's going to be the same as before, no one can know we were married." Oliver told her.
"Is it because of Rule 579?" Karen asked after a brief thought over the Quidditch league rules.
"Yeah," Kira was running her fingers over the flowers in the fabric in the chair, "It's stupid, but there's no other way."
"Alright, I won't tell," Karen promised, hoping that she wouldn't regret it, "And who knows, I might be able to get 579 lifted at work. Things could happen."
Kira ran to give Karen a hug.
"Thank you so much," the older sister told the younger. Karen hugged her back, and grinned.
"You two can keep snogging now, I'm going to go put away my things in my room," she teased, and closed the living room door behind her. In her mind she could only hope she was doing the right thing.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~ Thank you for being patient! I know I'm being slow. R/R! ~ Luv , Utena ~
Thank you to Nytd, I appreciate the comments! School starts for me in a week, so hopefully between now and then I can write a chapter or two a day (I'm trying, how bout that?) After this, it's not going to go in order, because the girls agreed that if something really exciting is happening to one of them, it's not fair to stop and tell about someone else's boring day and have you miss something important elsewhere. (Aren't they sweet?)
In something totally unrelated, I got my Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone movie posters in the mail today. (The one with Severus on it, of course) - they have some at www.art.com, check it out! (They have Chamber of Secrets already, but it's got Dobby on it, and his movie appearance is frightening, I wouldn't be able to sleep in the same room as that poster.)
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~
Karen grinned as she walked into her new office.
"I don't understand what Xathereth thinks is bad about working at the Ministry," she said to herself, as she started to sort through all the letters on her desk, "Although, Mr. Bagman has some funny rules."
Karen thought back to her first day at work.
"Now, Miss Sumizone, you see that your office contains the door to mine. Please let anyone who wishes to see me know that they must have an appointment first, and that I have stepped out of the office at the moment and to owl me later."
"Owl you later. Right," Karen noticed how fidgety he seemed.
"And I also ask that you keep as meticulous accounts as you can, in relation to the funds of this department."
"Alright then, every Knut will be accounted for," Karen tried to not roll her eyes.
Now, Karen saw reasons for his fidgetiness. A group of goblins had been by to see him several times already, and she had turned them away, saying that Mr. Bagman wasn't in the office at the moment. She had a feeling that he was cowering under his desk or some such , as as soon as they had left the last time, Karen went into Mr. Bagman's office to find him brushing dust off his robes and muttering something about dropping a quill. It was believable, except for the jar of quills on his desk.
People had been by to see the department's accounts recently too, Karen recalled, and she confidently gave them the ledgers that she had put together, neatly written and everything accounted for. When they had inquired about the previous summer, that involved the piles of paper tied together.
"There is definitely something not right with Ludo Bagman," Karen thought to herself as she went over those things in her mind. There was a knock at the door, disrupting Karen from her thoughts.
"Yes?" She asked, looking up.
"Ezcuz me, mizz," said a grubby-looking man who spoke with a cockney accent, "Can yeh be takin' me to Bertha Jorkins' office?"
"Yeah, hang on," Karen put her quill back in the inkwell, and covered her letter. She really wasn't supposed to be working on personal things at work, anyway.
She led the man, who wore robes with the Ministry's seal on them, down the short hallway to a tiny office across from the small break room/storage room that belonged to her department.
"Eh, the door's locked," the man grumbled after fumbling with the knob for a minute or two.
"Can't you use your wand to unlock it?" Karen asked impatiently.
"I eh.. can't do magic," the man managed, and Karen realized that the man was a Squib. She had heard rumors that Filch, the caretaker at Hogwarts, was one too.
"Must be why he's a janitor at the Ministry," Karen thought to herself as she unlocked the door. He had a magic bag, it seemed, because she watched as he opened it out on the floor and pushed the desk and the other furniture into it, where it dissappeared.
"You remind me of my son," the man spoke as he struggled with a filing cabinet bursting with papers.
"How so?" Karen asked as she levitated the heavy cabinet for him into the bag.
"He's a good wizard, like I'm not," the man sighed as he folded up the bag, "Yeh, it don't look like it but I was married to a witch when I lived back in France. She couldn't take any more of my non-magic ways, and divorced me. I had to leave the country, stayed with my brother for a while. then the child support kicked in and now look at me." He smiled at Karen, and she tried not to wince at his bad teeth.
"I've got to be going, nice to meet you," the man waved as he walked down the hallway, "You seem like a nice girl, maybe I'll bring my son by sometime." and he walked out of the department.
Karen walked back into her office and sat down at her desk. She leaned back in her chair and looked at the light coming in the window and dancing on the ceiling.
"That was the weirdest thing I've ever been a part of," she spoke out loud, "I really ought to ask Mr. Bagman why they removed Bertha's things. and that man was so strange. I seem like a nice girl and he's going to bring his son by? I don't need to know his life story. I don't blame his wife for divorcing him though. He was a strange duck." Karen saw how the sun was lowering in the sky.
"Might as well tell Mr. Bagman what happened," she thought, and opened the door to Ludo's office. Her boss sat at his desk, looking nervous and scared. He was surrounded by people Karen recognized as 'Very Important Ministry Officials', by the way that they were dressed, and they were all yelling at Mr. Bagman about, strangely enough, Bertha Jorkins.
Karen closed the door again and sat back down at her desk.
"Well. it is almost five o' clock." she thought out loud, as she had gotten used to doing in the relatively quiet department, "I could just go in there to let him know that I'm leaving early. That's not really intruding." Karen knew she didn't want to get involved in any of her boss' problems, she had enough of her own, thank you very much.
"Mr. Bagman?" Karen stuck her head inside the door to Ludo's office, "I'm just letting you know that I'm leaving now, ok?" Everyone turned to look at her.
"Yes, yes, fine Miss Sumizone," Ludo looked distressed as he waved her away, pulling at his hair and then returned to staring at something on his desk. Karen closed the door and grabbed her things, Dissapparating to her family's flat.
"*Oliver!*"
Karen raised an eyebrow as she heard her sister giggling in the living room.
"Kira?" she called out. There was some scrambling coming from the living room, and Karen hesitantly opened the door. Her sister was retreating to an overstuffed burgundy chair in the corner, and on the sofa was a young man who Karen recalled to be Oliver Wood.
"What's going on in here?" Karen asked, noticing they both had red faces, "I'm not as retarded as Mum and Dad you know, sis."
"Well uhh." Kira looked from Karen to Oliver. Karen saw Oliver make a face to Kira, and Kira nodded and she wasn't totally getting what they were communicating.
"OK," Oliver said at last, after much gesturing between himself and Kira, "We've got something to tell you."
"That was obvious," Karen rolled her eyes.
"This is serious!" Kira had a pleading look on her face, "You can't tell Mum and Dad, or anyone else. It's a complete secret."
Karen sat down on the other chair.
"What is it? I won't tell anyone, Kira, you should know me better than that," Karen felt hurt that her sister would doubt her.
"Oliver and I." Kira cleared her throat, "We've decided that we're going to elope."
The room was silent for a minute.
"Wow, and I thought you were going to say you were expecting or something," Karen looked surprised.
"You can't tell anyone, we're just both going to go visit friends for a few days, and when we come back it's going to be the same as before, no one can know we were married." Oliver told her.
"Is it because of Rule 579?" Karen asked after a brief thought over the Quidditch league rules.
"Yeah," Kira was running her fingers over the flowers in the fabric in the chair, "It's stupid, but there's no other way."
"Alright, I won't tell," Karen promised, hoping that she wouldn't regret it, "And who knows, I might be able to get 579 lifted at work. Things could happen."
Kira ran to give Karen a hug.
"Thank you so much," the older sister told the younger. Karen hugged her back, and grinned.
"You two can keep snogging now, I'm going to go put away my things in my room," she teased, and closed the living room door behind her. In her mind she could only hope she was doing the right thing.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~ Thank you for being patient! I know I'm being slow. R/R! ~ Luv , Utena ~