Shipping C3 - Competitive X
Setting C2 - Conference/Seminar
Stacked With: SoC; PP; LL; NC; StL; ToS; FPC; Cluster; Rum; MLG; ER; Fence; Star; RoIL; O3; FR; SN; T3; Mea; Ship; Set
Individual Challenges: Short Jog (Y); The Real MC; Two Cakes (Y); Eating Cakes (Y); Neurodivergent (Y); Rowl in Her Grave; Rian-Russo Inversion (Y); Ethnic & Present (Y); Setting Sail (Y); Hold the Mayo (Y); Do It For Howard (Y); Zed Era (Y); Gryffindor MC x3; Ravenclaw MC; Hufflepuff MC; Performance Art; Old Shoes (Y); Tell My Story ; Not Stupid; Purple Stripe; Adult Activities (Y)
Primary & Secondary Challenges: Queen Bee; Soul-Like; Second Verse (One Man's Cow; Lyre Liar; Muck & Slime; Rock of Ages; Lovely Coconuts; Broom's Only; Car in a Tutu; Unwanted Advice; Spinning Plates; Nontraditional; Not a Lamp; Ladylike; Persistence Still); Chorus (Seven Gates; Some Beach; Sitting Hummingbird; Larger Than Life; Unicorn; Fizzy Lemonade; Machismo; Odd Feathers; Wabi Sabi)
Tertiary & Generic Challenges: RoIL (Workstation); O3 (Orator); T3 (Thimble); Mea (Ennui); SN (Rail)
Warnings: Innuendos, lewd comments, Verbal Abuse
~o0o~
Hermione had considered calling in sick just so she wouldn't have to face Cedric. If they knew and they told everyone, she'd be screwed. Still, she was a professional and would not be chased away so easily. She didn't wish to be perceived and had frumped up with her thickest turtleneck, her most shapeless skirt, and her clunkiest clogs. The most fashionable part of her outfit was her black cloche hat with the purple flower, but she had selected it because it hid her face better. Deciding to go by her favorite coffee shop, she got into the lift to walk, rather than apparate straight to her designated work entrance like usual.
The doors opened and she froze when Cedric walked in. They stopped dead in their tracks and blinked in surprise.
"Granger? What are you doing here?"
"I live here," she said.
"Really? How long?"
She sighed, trying to do the maths. "A while. After I graduated Hogwarts, shortly before Ron and I broke up. What are you doing here? Spent the night with a partner?"
"Er, no, I don't…" they shook their head. "I live here, too. Have for a while. Funny how we've never crossed paths."
"Yeah."
They didn't know. She tried not to sigh with relief.
"Erm, did you go to the Halloween party?" Cedric asked.
"No. I—I changed my mind," she lied. "My costume wasn't all that good, I didn't have a date, and I didn't think I'd have fun. So I stayed home and watched movies by myself."
They looked at her like they didn't believe her, but not in the sense that she was their one night stand.
"You went, right?" she asked.
"Yeah. I didn't have a date either, but I had a good time with this girl at the party," they said. "We hung around and danced. It was nice."
She was glad she could hide her trembling hands in the pocket of her coat. "Well, that's good. What about the gallery? How did that turn out?"
Cedric cringed. "Well… I know art is subjective and that people can find beauty and meaning in anything… but that was the worst art show I had ever been to and it's obvious that she's using her mother's fame to boost the reputation of her work rather than any actual skill or even effort."
"Ouch… really? Are you allowed to write something to that effect?"
"Technically, no, but I'm going to channel my inner Rita Skeeter and be as backhanded as possible." They looked around. "Oh… I hadn't intended to walk with you. Where are we?"
"This is my favorite bakery," she said, nodding at a person leaving who held open the door.
"Huh."
The bakery in question was a French-Japanese fusion with the best potato croquettes. Hermione often bought loaves of milk bread here for fruit sandos. It wasn't very well known, but they did well enough. She queued up behind the person ordering and inhaled deeply.
"Good morning, Mimi!" said Yoshi. She was the eldest daughter of the owners and had been taking on more of the work as the years had passed.
"Hello, Yoshi. Usual and… give me a slice of the chocolate strawberry cream cake to go."
"Everything okay? You never order cake during the week."
She tried not to look at Cedric as she swiped her credit card. "I don't want to talk about it."
Yoshi didn't charge her for the cake, which was sweet of her. Why was Cedric still there anyway? Hermione stood off to the side to wait for hers while they placed an order of their own.
"Mimi?" they said, standing next to her.
"It's a nickname," she said. "Hermione is a lot to write on a coffee cup and I don't really care to be called 'Mione' anyhow."
"Huh… Can I call you Mimi?"
"I doubt anything I say will stop you."
After getting her breakfast, she apparated to her designated entrance without another word to Cedric. She was one of the lucky ones who didn't have to enter via toilets. Instead, she lined up at the bottom of an escalator that required a special pass to go up in the nearby underground. At the top, she passed through her security check and was walking down to the atrium towards the lifts.
"Morning, Hermione!"
She slowed her walking to allow Harry to catch up to her.
"I didn't see you at the Halloween party," he said. "Neither did Luna and she notices everything."
"I didn't go. It's no fun going to these things alone anyway."
"Ah, well, you probably wouldn't have enjoyed it anyhow. It was absolutely crazy. Everybody drank so much of that witch's brew they called in sick to work."
Is that what everyone thought of her? That she didn't know how to have fun? Well, she supposed that was partially her fault for separating her work and social life personas so completely, but what would she do if she became the boss and people started using things she had done against her? Which was why she absolutely refused to let anyone know that she had gone to the costume party dressed up as Sexy Michael Myers. Least of all Cedric Diggory.
Speak of the devil, they ran up just as Hermione and Harry stepped into the lift.
"Hold the door!" They squeezed in next to Hermione. "News Department, please."
She ignored the way her heart fluttered madly.
"Auror Department," said Harry. "Oh, I was going to tell you yesterday at the party. There's this bloke I work with. He's really nice. Bookish sort. I think you two would be great together."
Did he really have to be talking about this in the lift in front of Cedric?
"No," she said.
"Hermione—"
"No! I've been on a blind date recently and it did not end well."
"Come on. We just want to see you settle down with a nice guy and make sure you're, well, taken care of."
"Harry, I'm not gonna buy a pig just for the sausage," she said.
Cedric spluttered on their coffee and coughed. Most of the wixen in the lift looked scandalized while a couple young witches tittered. Harry stared in shock at the crassness of her statement. Hermione stepped off on her floor, Cedric followed her, still choking and coughing. She ignored them and went straight to their office so she could eat before the meeting in the conference room. They always had a huge meeting at the beginning of each month and everyone worked on Thursdays and Fridays to prepare for the weekend editions.
She sat down at her desk and opened her pastry box, breathing in the warm smell. She sipped her coffee and ate the croquette first. Cedric sat down at their desk and mopped their face up, still coughing slightly as they got to work drafting out their article on the art show.
Hermione already had her Ask Sophie letters stacked up and started reading through them, sorting them into life problems, household problems, and recommendations. Most days she could blend together similar questions into one question so that as many people as possible could get a response.
"So, what is your reasoning for not dating?" Cedric asked.
"I'm sorry, all questions must be submitted in writing and are expected to receive a response in four to six weeks."
"Come on, it's not like I'm going to use anything personal against you to get the promotion," they said. "It wouldn't be sporting. Work related faux pas are free game, however."
"Right. I'll open up and next thing I know you and all the other men in this office are laughing at me behind my back."
They furrowed their brow. "You really don't think highly of me, do you Granger?"
"Well, you haven't exactly been nice to me, have you?"
"That goes both ways."
"Good morning!" Luna sang as fae walked in. "Oh, dear, there's a bit of a chill in the air."
Cedric smiled. "Hello, Looney-Tune! No chill, just having a conversation with our dear friend Hermione."
"Friends, is that what you are?" fae said. "I don't think rivals for the same promotion can really be friends until the matter is settled. In-laws or no."
"No, it cannot," said Hermione. Guess she and Cedric were in-laws in a way weren't they? They butt heads at every family gathering ever since Luna and Harry got married.
"Oh, come on…"
"No, Diggory! You're always getting into my personal space and saying dumb things and I've learned how to speak Luna, but until you actually start getting at what you mean, I'm never going to learn to speak Cedric!"
"I… you're right. I'm sorry."
"I'll accept your apology when you actually change, not before," she said.
"Yeah, fair enough."
"How was your Halloween, Hermione?" Luna asked, sitting down at faer desk.
Hermione stared at the letter in her hand and threw it on a pile without reading a word. "I don't want to talk about it."
At ten o'clock, they went to the conference room for the meeting. There were donuts and coffee ready. The table was for editors and art department managers only, everyone else had to stand. The editors were always late, but were furious if anyone else got there the same time they did. It was a power play, obviously.
McLaggen was already there regaling some exploit to a handful of men.
"Yeah, I ended up leaving them in the hotel room," he laughed. "Told them I'd get us some ice and champagne. After a while, women just get so clingy. You gotta tell them something."
"What the hell is he blathering on about?" Hermione asked Shaylyn Ramsey, the fact checker from the Business Department.
Unfortunately, McLaggen overheard her.
"Those two women at the costume party," he said. "The ghost and this bird in the creepy mask. She had nice tits though, and the ghost-girl had long stems."
He was so full of it. "Really?"
"Yeah. But you're still the main girl for me, Granger. Jealous?"
She looked him up and down. "No."
He scoffed and scowled while the guys around him hooted and laughed.
"Whatever, you're ugly anyway."
"So I've been told."
"I bet you're a lousy ride, too."
Moment of truth. There were plenty of queer people here at the newspaper; it wouldn't affect her promption.
"My girlfriends never complained," she said. "Wish yours could say the same."
A pin could have dropped.
Cormac blinked and wrinkled his nose. "Wait… you mean to tell me this entire time you've been a lezzie?"
"I prefer queer. Gender doesn't really matter to me. I wouldn't say I'd never date a man, I just don't want to date you."
"No need to be such a bitch, Granger! You should be grateful that anyone wants to go out with you! I could have anyone!"
"Great, go bother them then!" She huffed and crossed her arms.
This was becoming too much. Maybe she needed to just… sacrifice the promotion and use up that vacation time. Go away somewhere… get some time to herself.
Before she could come to a decision about that, the editors and Editor-in-Chief walked in. Edward McLaggen, Cormac's uncle, was nothing like his nephew. He was a soft-spoken, but firm man. Hermione didn't like him, on account of his insistence at understaffing to cut back on costs, but he was efficient in other ways and at least he let her publish articles calling for rights to be given to Magical Beings. Sure, he didn't take them seriously, but they were published nevertheless and that was a win for her.
"Settle down everyone," said Mr. McLaggen. "That means you, Cormac."
Cormac stopped speaking and shot Hermione a nasty glare like she had something to do with his reprimand.
"Sales are up," said Mr. McLaggen. "We asked our subscribers to fill out a poll last quarter. 63% submitted a response and it was mostly positive. 15% have complained of our Society and Entertainment pages pro-stance on the Welfare Investment for Lycanthropy Treatment, but seeing as Mr. Amorian's department has the highest approval ratings; at a 99% positive rating overall, I think we can allow Miss Granger to continue writing her opinion pieces."
He called her out by name! It wasn't exactly praise, but that did mean that he knew who she was and thought she was good at her job.
"The areas we need to work on are Finance and Sports," said Mr. McLaggen. "In Sports related news, there's been a serious issue with turning in articles on time. Ratings are about average, but there are complaints of the pages being few in number. If you can get more Sports pages, maybe we won't have to work our Social Watch pages so hard." He looked at them. "Where are the rest of you, anyway?"
"You didn't hire anymore people on account of us being hard-working, unable to say 'no,' and 2/3rds of us have no social lives to account for," said Luna.
"Hey," Cedric and Hermione protested.
"Ah, then I oughta pay you more for your trouble. You three deserve a raise anyway, most new subscribers mention in their surveys that your articles were the main reason they subscribed over one-time purchases. Mr. Hart, make a note of that."
"Yes, sir," said his secretary.
Well, a raise was good, but Hermione rather wished she could get more time off without it affecting the others in her department. One or two more people would do that.
"As for finance, the main issues stem from no one really knowing how finances work," said Mr. McLaggen. "Any suggestions on how we can improve that?"
Hermione hesitated a moment, then raised her hand.
"Yes?"
"What if we brought in a Goblin to consult?" Hermione asked. "Or even on board to write the articles? I mean, who better to give advice on finances than someone who has worked in the banking industry? Aside from the grave-robbing— I mean—curse-breaking division."
"Don't be daft, Granger," said Cormac. "Nobody is going to want to work next to a smelly goblin. Things reek bad enough already." He sent a nasty look to the resident Vampire, Siobhan, who twitched with hurt.
"Have you considered that it's your breath wafting back into your face?" Hermione retorted before she could stop herself.
"None of that now," said Mr. McLaggen. "Miss Granger, it is rather unheard of to have a goblin working in the Ministry. They like to keep to themselves, you know."
"I think Hermione is right," said Cedric. "Goblins only keep to themselves because they have been pushed out of wixen spaces. We've already made decent strides by destigmatizing vampires and werewolves, so isn't it high time that we set the trend and break down the barriers?"
This got people talking.
"Eloquently said, Mr. Diggory," said Mr. McLaggen. "Good thing I have a man like you working here. Alright, how about this? We reach out for consulting first and if it improves in… oh, let's say in two quarters, then perhaps we'll look into hiring one or two."
"Thank you, sir," said Cedric, glowing from the praise.
Hermione tried not to wilt. It was still her idea anyhow, and as long as a step in the right direction was being taken, that was celebration in and of itself.
The rest of the meeting was mostly about going over Kingsley Shacklebolt's unopposed election and how they'd report on that, plus what they'd focus on with the holiday season coming up. When it was over, they were sent off to lunch and would get back to their usual schedules afterwards.
Not wanting to get behind on her work, Hermione had packed her lunch and set up to eat at her desk. Cedric had done the same and Luna went to meet Harry for lunch.
"D'you ever worry that they'll give someone else the promotion just so they don't lose us as writers?" Cedric asked.
"At least once a day," Hermione sighed. "Why do you want the editor position so bad?"
"You first."
"For starters, I'm bossy. So it's only natural for me to aim for the boss position."
Cedric chuckled. "And what else?"
"Well, if I'm editor-in-chief one day, then that's several decades of making sure the Daily Prophet remains on the right track. Of boosting up the voices of those who are silenced, tearing down those who abuse their power, and providing information. Maybe there is some sort of benefit to fear-mongering, but I think it should be geared towards things like the environmental crisis, which is caused by major corporations covering up research for the past fifty years and revealing that their waste is pushing this planet on the fast track to destruction unless regulations are put in place."
"Take a breath."
Hermione inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly. "Sorry. Anyway, I worry that if someone like Cormac became editor-in-chief we'd be back to square one. Maybe his uncle doesn't actually care about our causes, but he does care about ratings and that's what we bring in. If I get there, then I can hire more people who think and care like I do so we don't have another Voldemort."
Cedric studied her and nodded. "I agree. I feel the same way, but there is a slightly more selfish reason for wanting to be editor."
"And what is that?"
"I want people to stop looking at me as Cedric Diggory the Failed Champion," they said. "I'd be Cedric Diggory, Editor. Hopefully one day Editor-in-Chief. I'm not an idiot. If I were, I wouldn't have been the go-to for essay editing in school. After that Tournament fiasco… nobody trusted me with anything. They still hold it against me."
"Well the drive for respect where respect is due goes without saying," said Hermione.
The corner of their mouth twitched. "Look, I think either one of us would be a great editor. If it's you, I promise I'll respect you."
"Yeah. Ditto." She stirred her soup and sipped it. "They'll probably pick Luna."
"They'll probably pick Luna."