PS - Chapter 1

Tuesday, September 1st 2009

Taking a deep breath, Lucy Collins sat down at her desk in her new office on the top floor of the Collins Enterprises building in the heart of London. She looked around a little nervously, clasping, unclasping, and re-clasping her hands on the ends of the arms of the chair. Here she sat on the precipice of her new life. A new job, a new city, a new world of opportunities. Since she accepted this job, one that she supposed she had always been destined for, Lucy had been featured in many a magazine spreads and had received many calls from the heads of other prominent fortune five hundred companies congratulating her. I worked closely with your father. I look forward to working with you too. I can't wait to see how you run your father's company, what changes you make, what new projects you start. The conversations were the same. They said the same things as the last CEO that called her and she made the same replies.

She had also, surprisingly, gotten a few calls from government officials who told her that they had also worked closely with her father and hoped to do the same with her. Maria and Raj had told her that this meant her father had given money to their election campaigns. Lucy did not want any of that. She would prefer to stay out of politics, even if Maria and Raj insisted at the business world and the political world were so intertwined that it was basically one big world. Lucy guessed she would learn the nuances of her new world in time.

"Are you sure you're alright, my darling?" asked Minerva, giving her daughter a small smile. She was sitting on the chair in front of her desk. She had come with Lucy to her first day of work to spend a little bit of time with her before she had to go back to Hogwarts to prepare for the student's arrival tonight.

"I'm alright. It's just - I don't know. It's a little strange, you know. The last time I was here I couldn't even reach this desk. I sat over there." She pointed out at the floor in front of the desk. "Playing with dolls and pretending to be CEO while Dad sat here, being the actual CEO."

Minerva smiled, standing up and walking around the desk. She wrapped her arms around her daughter, kissing her cheek before resting her chin on the top of Lucy's head. "He would be so proud of you, my love. So, so proud."

Lucy took a deep breath, reaching up and putting a hand on Minerva's arm. "I just worry... I just don't want to mess up. Things are quite bad right now with the financial crisis last year and everything. Collins Enterprises had to lay off a lot of people and make some pretty big cuts. I - I don't know if I can get us back out of it."

"You are definitely not starting at a very ideal time for Collins Enterprises. I know that things are very overwhelming right now but I know you will find your footing and you'll be okay."

"I am glad Maria and Uncle Raj are here. I don't think I would know where to even start if it wasn't for them." She looked down at the files on the desk. "I already have so much paperwork to go through."

"They are always here to help, of course, but I know that you'll be okay. You are qualified, you've proven yourself to be a smart business woman, and I know you'll figure this all out. You will be a great CEO, darling, I know you will."

"I hope so." Lucy looked up at her mother and Minerva let her go. "I'll do my best."

Minerva gave her a smile. "That is all you have to do. Your best will be more than enough. It always is."

Lucy wasn't sure about that but she didn't say anything. She watched Minerva walk around the desk and sit back down in front of her. She was about to say something else when the office door opened and Raj walked in, a large smile on his face.

"Good morning, boss," he said cheerfully, giving Lucy a little salute. He looked at Minerva. "Good morning, Minerva."

"Raj," Minerva said. "You know you're supposed to knock before entering the CEO's office."

Raj waved his hand dismissively as he walked over to the desk and flopped down into the seat beside Minerva. "Never did when Jay was CEO, don't think I'll start now."

"Uncle Raj, do you want to swap jobs?" Lucy asked.

Raj laughed and shook his head. "Don't think it works like that, Princess. Feeling a bit nervous?"

"Nervous? Me?" Lucy said with a frown. "When have I ever been nervous in my entire life?"

"Uh huh," Raj said. He shook his head and looked over at Minerva. "Ready for a new school year then, Min?"

"Yes," Minerva said with a smile. "Harry Potter is coming back to the Wizarding World this year, you know."

"We've all been told," Raj said with a laugh.

"Multiple times," Lucy added.

"By you," he said.

"Well, forgive me for being excited that one of the most famous wizards in recent history will be coming to my school. I just can't wait to see him. Hagrid said that he looked just like James but with Lily's eyes."

"Uncle Albus told me that you flooded their house with hundreds of letters inviting him to Hogwarts," Lucy said with a smile.

"Really?" Raj said.

"Well, they weren't giving it to him so I had to take matters into my own hands," Minerva replied inconsequentially with a dismissive wave of her hand.

"What exactly did you do?" Raj asked.

"She made thousands of letters and made them come through every opening that house had!" Lucy said. "She even had them coming out of the eggs!"

"Wow," Raj said. "Well, when has your mother ever been subtle."

Minerva gave him a look.

"Why didn't you just have one appear on his bed or something?" Lucy asked. "You know, somewhere only he would look."

"Because messing with people is far more fun," Raj said with a laugh.

Minerva rolled her eyes. Looking down slightly, she very quietly mumbled, "I didn't think of that."

Lucy laughed and shook her head. "Well, I also heard that you aren't speaking to Uncle Albus right now."

"No, I am not," she replied, crossing her arms again. "Did he tell you why?"

Lucy shook her head.

"Did he tell you the address I had to write on the letter to Harry Potter?"

"Nope."

"4 Privet Drive, The Cupboard Under The Stairs."

"The cupboard under the stairs?" Raj asked, smile disappearing. "As in he lived in the cupboard under the stairs?"

"The Dursleys have three bedrooms in that house, you know," Minerva said angrily, glaring at nothing in particular. "Three. A master bedroom, a room for their son and another that could be Harry's but has been turned into a storage for the son's toys. Harry lives in the cupboard. He sleeps there."

"Really? That's horrible," Lucy said. "Why would they do that?"

"Why would any adult mistreat a child? I have no idea. Hagrid went to take him to Diagon Alley the same day he picked up the Philosopher's Stone and said that he was basically skin and bones! And you should see the other boy! It looks like they're feeding all Harry's food to him. I told Albus that they were horrible when he wanted to leave him there. I told him they weren't good people but he didn't listen to me. He kept saying that Harry would be safest there but how can that be true? If he's malnourished and stuffed under the stairs, how can he be safer?"

"I don't know," Lucy said sadly.

"I knew I should have just scooped him up off that doorstep and took him home with me," Minerva said with a shake of her head. "I regret letting Albus leave that baby on that doorstep. Outside. In England. In November!"

"You left a baby on a doorstep?" Raj asked with wide eyes. "You didn't go in and explain to them what happened?"

"We didn't."

"Wow," Lucy mumbled with a shake of her head. "Why didn't Remus take him? Or someone else on the Order. I'm sure someone would be willing. Aunt Amelia could have raised him. She would have done a good job."

"She would have, I suppose," Raj said, suddenly feeling very awkward. "But... babies... children... not really our thing."

Lucy laughed. "Not really your thing, Uncle Raj, but I think you would be fine. Eventually."

"You are wonderful with children," Minerva said with a frown, looking over at Raj. "You both are. What are you talking about?"

"Children that aren't my own, I suppose," he said with a smile. He nodded over at Lucy. "Ones I don't have to worry about messing up."

"I'm not messed up."

"That's more thanks to me than you," Minerva said.

"I think I did a pretty good job with this one," Raj said. "I mean look at her now. CEO of a huge company with four degrees from Oxford University under her belt. I did a great job."

"I think that I can take credit for most of that," Lucy said though it didn't seemed she was being listened to right now.

"Oh yes, I'm sure she really benefited from you taking her to that bar when she was eight," Minerva said, ignoring Lucy.

"You and Amelia took her to a party where she studied alcohol's effects on her friends when she was seven," Raj said, raising an eyebrow at her. "How is that much better?"

"I'm right here," Lucy said. "Is Harry still living in the cupboard?"

"No," Minerva said. "They've moved him to the bedroom thankfully." She sighed and shook her head. "At least Harry Potter is finally back in the Wizarding World where he belongs. I will however fight for Harry to come back to Rochester with me when the year is through or somewhere else at least. I don't think he should go back to that house."

Lucy smiled a little. "He could stay with me and Tonks. I'm sure Tonks wouldn't mind too much."

Raj laughed. "Yes, because you would know how to take care of an eleven year old boy. You're just as rubbish with children as I am."

"True."

Minerva shook her head but smiled. "So, anyways, how is Tonks? How's her training going?"

"She's good. Training really hard. I've been helping her. Her exams and interviews are in October and she'll find out if she got the job in November. I never knew how hard it was to become an Auror."

"Yes, it's a very intense process," Minerva said with a nod. "They haven't taken on new Aurors in years. These exams are only just to get into the training years. If she passes them, she'll be assigned a mentor and will undergo three more years of training before she can be a full fledged Auror."

"Wow, three years," Raj said.

"The training is paid though, so that's a plus."

"Not very much," Lucy muttered. "I've been covering rent which I, of course, have no problem with but even when she starts making money I might still have to do that."

"It's hard," Minerva said with a sigh. "I know but I'm sure you and Tonks will figure it all out. Does she have a backup plan in case she doesn't make it?"

"Erm... no... not really," Lucy said quietly, looking down. "I tried to bring it up once but she was stressed out at the time and it didn't go over very well. I'm sure she'll pass and if she doesn't I'm sure she'll find something to do until the next set of exams."

"Who's covering the costs of the exams?" Raj asked with a frown.

"That would be me, again," Lucy replied, looking up again. "It's not that big a deal. I mean I have enough saved still to cover these things for until I get my first pay cheque, it's not really a problem. Sometimes I do wish I had not spent so much on my trip through Europe with Anne though. It would have been nice to have a little more money saved up."

"I can always -"

"No," Lucy said immediately, cutting her mother off. "No, you don't have to worry about it. I'm supposed to be a billionaire remember. I can't be taking handouts."

"Lucy, it's okay. It's partly your money anyways," Minerva said, not understanding why Lucy had such a problem using the money Jay had left her. "If you need a little bit of help before you get paid it's okay to use it."

"I'll be fine."

Minerva nodded though she did feel a little off about this.

"It's not a problem, really Mum."

"Yes, I know."

There was a pause. Raj looked between Lucy and Minerva before deciding to change the topic away from finances. "So, how have you been helping Tonks?"

"For the written portion, I've been helping her study and quizzing her. For the dueling portion I tried to help her but she doesn't like dueling with me because it's hard to figure out an end to the duel since I don't have a wand that needs to be disarmed. She had me hold a stick and pretend it was a wand so she could know when she had won but I kept forgetting to pretend to use it since I never use a wand."

Raj laughed. "I see."

"There's also a physical portion. I've been training for it with her. Part of the physical exam is running two point five kilometres in like under eleven minutes so I've been going running with her almost every morning. So far we're getting an average of about three minutes and forty two seconds a kilometre and we want to get it under three minutes and thirty seconds."

"Wow," Minerva said. "So you're also getting in shape as well then."

"Yeah," Lucy said with a laugh. "Gotta run off all that food I ate in Europe. Plus I haven't danced in like four months so I need something to keep me in shape."

"What dance competition will you be doing next?" Raj asked.

"Yes, I'll need to know what day of mine to leave open," Minerva said.

"I don't think I'll be entering any competitions any time soon," Lucy said sadly. "I'm still going through all the paperwork to actually legally be CEO and now I have more on top of that." She motioned towards the files on her desk. "Plus helping Tonks train, cooking dinner, and helping Anne plan the wedding doesn't really leave a lot of time for getting out to the studio. At the moment my ballet slippers are sitting on the floor in the corner of my bedroom under a pile of laundry."

Minerva sighed. "You're taking on too much, Lucy. You have a lot on your plate and you're cooking dinner every night as well?"

"Well, not every night. I order food when I'm too tired to cook or just can't be bothered. Also Nina sends food sometimes which is nice," Lucy replied.

"If you need food, Amelia or I could bring some over," Raj said. "You shouldn't have to cook every night."

"That's alright," Lucy said with a small smile. "I can handle it. It's just that Tonks is out training at the Auror Centre downtown all day and by the time she gets home she's exhausted and if I left it to her we would never have dinner."

"I hope that changes when the Auror exams are over," Minerva said with a frown.

"I'm sure it will," Lucy said with a smile. "I'm sure it will get better soon. Once everything settles down a bit and I don't have mountains of files to go through on my own time everyday, things will get better. I mean, Dad didn't spend all his nights sitting away in the office going through files right?"

"No, he left his work at work," Minera said with a smile. "He made sure he was free to play with you and Daniel when he got home, no matter how exhausted he was."

"Then I will do that too," she said. "Well, except not the playing with kids thing. Just the whole leaving work at work thing."

Raj laughed. "Hopefully the work slows down soon," he said. "Jay did have some weeks where he worked late almost everyday but they passed and everything got back to normal eventually. It's the most busy at the very start, you know."

"Yeah," Lucy said. "So, anyways, how's Aunt Amelia doing with the election?"

"She hates it. Hates having to worry about if she'll have a job or not next year," Raj said with a small smile. "She is quite confident that she will still have the position if Fudge is reelected but the polls show that Lister isn't that far behind and she's less confident with him."

"It does seem like a close race. I'm sure Lister will still keep her on if he wins though," Minerva said. "She is good at her job and I couldn't imagine who he could appoint that would have as high approval ratings as her."

"She has a dinner meeting with him tonight," Raj said. "I suppose we'll see where he stands then."

"It would be stupid for him to appoint a new Head of the Law Department. Aunt Amelia's been there for years and everyone loves her," Lucy said. "The Bones family is still very largely respected in the Wizarding World."

"They are," Minerva said with a nod. "I doubt Amelia will ever be asked to resign from that position. I do think she may step down if another position arises."

"Oh?" Lucy said. "And what position would that be?"

"Minister for Magic," Raj said.

"She's going to run?" Lucy asked.

"Maybe someday," Raj said. "I told her to run this time but she wasn't sure she was ready."

"I think Aunt Amelia would make a great Minister of Magic," Lucy said with a smile. "Much better than Fudge or Lister." She made a face and opened her drawer. She pulled out two pieces of parchment to show her mother and uncle. "I've gotten loads of letters asking for donations. Fudge loves to mention how he's known me since I was thirteen and how much his wife absolutely loves me. Oh and how proud of me they are."

Minerva smiled a little. "Wow, no holds bar on the flattery I see."

"Nope. Have you donated?"

"I have. Mostly for Amelia's sake than Fudge's."

"We've all given him so much of our money," Raj said with a shake of his head. "I hope he wins or else all these favours we've been saving up will be for nothing."

"I suppose I'll give him some more," Lucy mumbled, folding up the letters and setting them on the desk. "For Aunt Amelia."

"Thank you, love," Raj said with a smile.

"Also, I'm not a big fan of Lister," she said. "I'm not a big fan of Fudge but I like him better than Lister."

"I agree," Minerva said. "Lister has still avoided taking a real stance on a lot of important issues. Say what you will about Fudge but at least we know where he stands."

"Do you think he'll win?" Lucy asked.

"Fudge? Probably," Minerva said. "He's still riding quite high from his job creation initiative from last year."

"That was a good plan, I will admit," Raj said.

"It was. Maybe he's not that much of an idiot," Lucy said.

"Honestly it was all Zelda. She's the one with the real brains, I think," Minerva said. "Zelda Fudge should just run on her own."

"She's good at pretending she's just a complicit housewife," Lucy said. "She likes me though. I bet if I wanted something done she would get it done for me."

"Well, if you plan on breaking the law, you have a lot of friends pretty high up," Raj said with a laugh.

"Don't encourage something like that," Minerva said, smacking his arm.

Lucy smiled. "Well, I wasn't planning on it..."

Minerva rolled her eyes.

"Well," Lucy said, looking down at her watch. "I have my first ever meeting in like fifteen minutes. You'll be there, right Uncle Raj?"

"Yes, I'll be there," he said with a smile. "I'll sit in the back and give you small encouraging thumbs up."

Lucy smiled a little before the smile disappeared and she got nervous again. "How do you... like... do the meeting thing?"

"Isn't this mostly just an introduction?" Minerva asked with a laugh.

Lucy nodded.

"Just introduce yourself and get to the point," she said. "No one likes meetings that drag on far longer than they need to. You've never had a problem talking to people. I'm sure you'll be fine."

"What if everyone hates me?" Lucy asked, sounding very worried. "What if they think I'm stupid? What if they don't want to take orders from an eighteen year old? How do I deal with that? They're all, like, old and know what they're doing!"

"You'll be fine, darling. Don't worry. I don't think they'll all hate you. There may be a few people who don't want to listen to you because you're so young and they think they know better but you'll prove them wrong. I know you will," she said.

"You know what you're doing, Lucy," Raj said with a smile. "Just take a deep breath, be genuine and people will respond to that."

"They're, like, all men," Lucy said with a frown. "I was looking through the numbers and when Dad was CEO it was almost half and half but recently the Board of Directors have been hiring mostly men. The first thing I'm going to do is hire more women to get us back to where we were when Dad ran the company."

Minerva smiled. "That's a good idea."

"I didn't know the numbers were that bad," Raj said. "I'm glad you looked into it."

"Then I'm going to talk to the engineers about the ideas I've come up with. I know that CEOs don't usually pitch their own ideas but I think I have a good idea for a new engine design that I want to try out."

"That's also a good idea," Raj said with a smile. "I don't think there is anything wrong with you pitching your own ideas."

"See you already have a plan," Minerva said. She looked at her watch. "Well, I should let you two get ready for your meeting and get going. I have some last minute paperwork to get done that a certain someone was too busy fussing over a stupid stone to worry about."

"I wonder who that certain someone is," Lucy said with a laugh, standing up and fixing her blazer. "How do I look? Ready to take on an adult meeting and do adult things?"

Minerva smiled. "You look wonderful, love," she said, getting up too. "Very professional."

"Thank you," she said, smoothing out the invisible wrinkles on her pencil skirt. "It took me an embarrassingly long amount of time to figure out what to wear this morning."

Minerva walked around the desk again and pulled Lucy close to her. She put her hands on her cheeks and kisses the top of her head. "You will be great, my love. Don't worry too much. Just take a deep breath and show those people that you deserve to be here. They will listen. I promise they will."

"Thank you," Lucy said. "I'll see you soon, Mum."

Minerva smiled and let Lucy go. "Goodbye, darling. Good luck in your meeting." She looked over at Raj. "I'll see you later, Raj. Take good care of her."

"I will," he said with a smile, getting up too. "Have a nice first day, Min."

Minerva walked out of the office, leaving Lucy and Raj alone.

Raj smiled at her and looked down at the files on her desk. "You've got this, love," he said as he collected the files she needed into a pile. He picked them up and held them out for her. "You are going to be a great CEO and if you ever need anything, I'll be here to help."

"Thank you, Uncle Raj," she said with a little smile, taking the files from him.

"Shall we head out then?"

Lucy nodded a little cautiously. She fixed her blazer one last time before following Raj out of her office. Maria looked up from her desk and gave them a smile. She stood up and walked over with a file in hand.

"You'll need this one too," she said, holding it out for Lucy. "You'll do great, Lucy. I wish your father was here to see the amazing young woman you've become."

Lucy gave her a little smile as she took the file from her. "Thank you, Maria. I'm really glad you and Uncle Raj are here. I don't know what I would do without you."

Maria smiled. "Go kick some ass, kid."

Lucy smiled and nodded. They walked to the conference room where all the heads of every department in Collins Enterprises were gathered. She watched them chatting amongst themselves as they waited for her through the glass walls of the conference room. They were all a lot older than she was, a lot more experienced at their jobs, not very likely to want to listen to a silly little eighteen year old girl playing CEO. She looked back at Raj who gave her a smile and gave her shoulder a little squeeze.

"You'll be great," he said, reaching out and holding the door open for her.

Lucy took a deep breath to calm herself before taking a step into the conference room. Raj followed behind her but stayed back as she kept going forward.

"Hello, everyone," she said as she walked into the room in the most professional and confident voice she could muster. All eyes in the room turned to watch her as she walked up towards the head of the table. "My name is Lucy Collins. I am the new CEO of Collins Enterprises and I look forward to working with you all."

...

"Darling, where is my travel cloak?" Tonks asked, quickly coming out of the bedroom and into the kitchen where Lucy was sitting with the her laptop open and papers spread out all around her. She looked very stressed out and tired. She looked up at Tonks and rubbed her forehead as she thought for a second.

"Um, I think I saw it hanging on the closet door," she replied, looking back down and picking up the next envelope. "Are you going somewhere? I thought you were going to help me with going through and paying all these bills."

"Oh my god! Was that supposed to be today?" Tonks called as she walked back into the bedroom to look for her cloak.

"Ah, yeah," Lucy said with a frown. "They're due in two days. We're cutting it a bit close. I was hoping that with your help we could get it all done quickly and then I could focus on this Collins Enterprises stuff. If I don't get it done soon that Gregory Dirkus guy that I told you about will be all over my case again."

"Gregory Dirkus?" Tonks asked, coming back into the room and walking back towards the table as she put on her cloak. She grabbed her bag that was sitting on one of the chairs. "I don't remember you telling me about him. What's his deal?"

"I'm pretty sure I told you about him. The head of the Marketing Department. The one who keeps making snarky comments at me because he thinks that he knows so much more than I do since he's a lot older than me and has more experience in business."

"Oh yeah. Is he being a dick again?" Tonks asked as she walked towards the fridge and looked inside. She found nothing and closed it again. Deciding to grab an apple from the fruit basket instead.

"No, I was saying he would be if I don't get through his proposals soon," Lucy replied with a frown. Was Tonks even remotely listening to her?

"Oh, well, I'm really sorry, love, but today is the day some of the retired Auror Officers are coming in to talk to us about the exam and give us tips. I can't miss it. They aren't coming back any other day so I have to go today. Can I help you go through the bills tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow I have my meeting with the Board of Directors remember?"

"Oh, well, the day after then?"

"That's when it's all due."

"Well, I'm sure we'll figure out something," Tonks said, walking over to the desk. She could see that Lucy was not very happy with her and sighed. She put a hand on Lucy's shoulder. "I'm really sorry, love. I wish I could stay and help but I have to go today. You know if I could I would cancel."

"Yeah, yeah, I know," Lucy said softly. "I just wish you had told me earlier."

"I should have, I'm sorry."

"It's alright," Lucy said, giving her a little smile so Tonks would believe her. Tonks smiled and leaned down to kiss her before saying goodbye and heading out the door. Lucy sighed and looked down at the brown envelopes and white papers that were scattered around the table. There wasn't much she could do about Tonks now. She knew that she was very busy with the date of her exam fast approaching and all. Lucy picked up the next envelope, opened it up, and got to work.

...

"Yes, I'll look into it," Lucy said into the phone, pulling clothes out of the dryer and throwing them into a basket. "Pink and white roses right?"

"Yes," Anne's voice came through the other side. "Thank you so much Lucy. You're doing so much for me and I really appreciate it!"

"It's not a problem, Anne," Lucy said with a smile as she picked up the laundry basket from the ground and walked into her bedroom. She put it down on the ground and the clothes inside began folding or hanging themselves and flying to their proper places around the room. "How about the Honeymoon? Have you guys decided where you want to go and how long you'll be going for?"

"We haven't decided where yet. Maybe Spain or Italy but I think we'll be taking a week off. If that's okay?"

"Yeah, that's fine. I'll let Maria know so she can make sure you have those days off," she replied. "And I was looking at the venue that you guys picked online. Are you sure you want this one? It doesn't have very good reviews. You should look it up and make sure you're okay with it before you book it. I made a list of other options if you'd prefer something else. I emailed it to you so you and Mitch could look at it."

"Wow, Lucy, thank you. You're honestly amazing."

"I know," Lucy said with a smile, leaving the bedroom as the laundry continued to do itself, going into the kitchen and walking over to the stove where dinner was cooking. "So, how are you liking your new position?"

"I'm loving it as you know," Anne said with a laugh. "It's everything I've ever wanted from a job. Getting to work close to you so we can go for lunch everyday, a good pay, and work that I can totally get behind! We're looking at more organizations working on job creation to try and get us out of this recession we're in."

"That's good," Lucy said with a laugh as she checked inside the pot on the stove. She picked up a wooden spoon and stirred the contents before putting the top back on and walking to the kitchen table where her papers were. "I'm glad you're liking it at the Jay Collins Charitable Foundation. And honestly my lunches with you are probably my favourite part of the day. Also, the least stressful."

"How are you doing? Is the workload decreasing at all? I know you've been working so hard lately and yet you still find time to help me plan this wedding. It's amazing and again, thank you so much!"

Lucy smiled as she sat down and started gathering the papers up. "It's okay. I love helping you plan. I don't think I've been this excited about a wedding since Daniel and Nina got married. The workload is definitely not getting anywhere close to decreasing. It's probably increasing actually. I had not realized how much stuff the Board had put off doing just to spite me!"

"It wasn't to spite you, Lucy. I don't think they think that far ahead," Anne said with a laugh. "It's just they can't do anything they're not authorized to do so a lot of things get pushed to the side for you to do when you can."

"When I can," Lucy mumbled with a shake of her head. "I was supposed to go see Mum this weekend but I can't because of all this work!"

"That really sucks," she said. "What about Tonks? Is she helping more yet?"

"Not really. Her exam is coming up so I've been cutting her a little slack."

"A lot of slack," Anne mumbled. "Lucy, you know I love Tonks but I can't help but feel like she's taking a little bit of advantage of you. You have so much work to do for Collins Enterprises and then you're also paying for everything, and you're doing all the chores. Her exam isn't till the end of October. I think she could find some time to help you out a bit more."

"It's a really hard exam, Anne," Lucy said with a sigh. "She can't waste time. She needs to study and prepare as best she can. She wants to get the position on her first try so she's working really hard. I'm sure once the exam is over she'll help out more and once she gets the job she'll help pay more."

"Well, if I'm putting too much on you, just let me know," Anne said with a sigh. "I don't want you to stress out about my wedding too much when you have so much other stuff to worry about as well."

"Don't worry," Lucy said with a smile. "I can handle it."

...

Friday, September 4th 2009

A chill ran down her spine and Lucy pulled her coat tighter around herself. It was dark now, the sun had set hours ago and the streetlamps on this street were very sparsely spread out. Wind blew through her coat sleeves, leaving goosebumps on her skin. She had lost track of time while working late at Collins Enterprises and had thought that a nice cool walk home would help her distress a little.

Lucy's walk home was usually during the end of the day rush so she never felt unsafe but now in the dark everything looked a lot more frightening. The cold, the large shadows, the dark allies. They gave her chills. She knew, of course, that in the day time these neighbourhoods were quite affluent. In the dark, however, it didn't matter.

Of course, it wasn't really a problem. Lucy was sure she could defend herself against any mugger, murderer, or Death Eater that may be hiding behind every corner waiting for her. She was sure she could take on five men, no ten men, with her bare hands!

Or she could use her magic.

That was probably the best option. Either way, she was quite confident in her ability to take on anything that may jump out at her. Though, she did hope she would never have to put her skills to the –

Lucy heard a noise and stopped in her tracks. Was that a scream? She looked towards a dark alleyway coming up in front of her. She slowly walked forward and listened closely. There were voices coming from the alleyway. A man and a woman. The woman sounded scared and the man sounded angry.

"Shut up! Give me your wallet, lady! Any jewellery, valuables, that's mine now!"

Lucy's eyes widened. She had just stumbled upon a mugging! Her heart was racing. What should she do? She was just thinking about this and now she had to intervene, didn't she? The woman began sobbing as she dug through her purse and pulled out the things he asked for. The cries were heart breaking and Lucy knew she had to move fast.

Lucy tossed her bag down behind some rubbish bins and pulled her hood over her head so it would hide her face before ducking into the alley. She slunk closer to the mugger and his victim as quietly as she could. As she approached, she noticed that the woman was wearing pearls and nice earrings. Her hair was up in a bun and she wore a smart coat. Perfect well dressed, upper middle class target for a mugger. She cowered in fear at every movement the man made.

"Hey! Leave her alone!"

The man and woman turned their heads to love over at her and Lucy saw the way the man held something in his pocket. Her eyes widened. He had a gun!

The mugger pulled the gun out of his pocket and pointed at Lucy. "Don't come any closer or I'll shoot! Just run along this doesn't concern you!"

Lucy didn't move. Suddenly her muscles tensed and her brain was screaming at her to just run. Just go! Get out! Get out! Abort!

She didn't listen. She stared down the barrel of the gun and felt her heart race. She had never been in front of a gun before, she had never even seen one in real life before. They were supposed to be quite difficult to get here. Standing in front of the barrel of a gun was a feeling that one can't possibly fathom. You can't prepare yourself for a sensation like that.

"I - I'm giving you one warning," Lucy said, voice shaking slightly as she raised her arms in front of her. Come on! Be scary! He's never going to listen to you like that! She tried to control her voice and continue a little more confidently. "Leave now and I won't hurt you!"

The mugger laughed and looked her up and down. "You're going to hurt me? You? You're the tiniest little girl I've ever seen." He looked back at the woman and jerked his gun, still pointed at Lucy at, a little bit. "Give me your purse or I'll shoot her."

"Don't listen to him," Lucy told the woman quickly as she took a couple steps forward towards the man.

"I said don't move!"

The woman looked between the man and Lucy with wide eyes before holding out her purse towards the man. She didn't want to be the reason this young woman, who was just trying to help her, got shot. The man smiled maliciously and snatched the purse from her outstretched hands. Lucy started walking forward again. The man looked back at her but she didn't stop. He pulled the trigger and the loud boom echoed through the alleyway. Arresto Momentum! Arresto Momentum! Lucy closed her eyes, hand still out in front of her, ready for the bullet to hit her but it never came.

"What the hell?!" the man exclaimed making Lucy open her eyes again. The small metal bullet was frozen in mid-air right in front of her.

Lucy smiled, it had worked! The spell had stopped a bullet going about seventeen hundred miles per hour in just the few metres between her and the gun. That was amazing, the spell usually took a lot more time at a speed like that. The man and woman stared at the frozen bullet with wide eyes for a second before the man regained composure and shot the gun three more times. Each time he did, Lucy stopped them from hitting her just in time. The gunshot sounds made her ears ring and echoed through the streets of London. Lucy was sure someone would hear them and call the police.

Lucy let the bullets go and they fell straight to the ground. The gun flew out of the mugger, now attempted murderer's, hand, landing on the ground and sliding away. The man was knocked backwards and he hit the wall on the other side of the alley with a thud. Lucy waved her hand and metal from the fire escape ladder on that building came to life. It move like a snake around the man's wrists creating shackles to keep him there until the police showed up. Lucy ran over to him when she was sure he was incapacitated enough. He looked up at her in complete horror as she approached but she just grabbed the purse from his hand and walked back to the woman. She stared at Lucy in shock and took a few seconds to regain control of her body so she could take the purse back.

"Do you have a phone? You should call the police," Lucy said, fixing her hood to make sure the woman wouldn't see her face. "They can handle this guy."

The woman nodded furiously, clutching her purse tightly as she dug through it in search of her phone. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you so much! I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't shown up when you did! Thank you so much! I - I wish I could repay you in some way!"

"It's no problem. Don't worry about it." Lucy was very happy with herself. She may have just saved this woman's life. The rush had still not worn off and she could feel her heart beating hard in her chest. She had never felt so... useful before. She had done a lot of different work in her life but she had never felt this useful. "Just call the police. They'll arrest this guy and drive you home."

Lucy started walking away, back towards the entrance of the alley where she had come from, when the woman called, "Wait! You never told me who you are?"

"It doesn't matter," Lucy said with a smile as she continued to walk away. Damn, that was probably the coolest thing you've ever done.

Lucy walked confidently out of the alley as the woman called the police. When she reached the end of the alley, she reached down and scooped up her bag before turning the corner. She started running, stumbling a little as she did so. Thankfully she was out of view at this point, though. As she ran away she heard the police sirens approaching the alley. She ran the rest of the way home and didn't slow down until she got to the door of her flat. She stood in front of the door for a little while, catching her breath and thinking over what just happened, what she had just done. She began to get worried. What if the Ministry wasn't completely on board with what she did? What if they were waiting for her behind this door?

Lucy took a deep breath, pulled out her keys and unlocked the door. She went inside and saw nothing, just a dark entrance. Lucy smiled a little to herself. They didn't know. The Ministry had no idea. Lucy swiftly took off her coat and shoes and started towards the bedroom.

"Where have you been?" Tonks said suddenly, making her jump.

Lucy looked over to see her girlfriend standing in the kitchen with a cup of tea in hand. "Oh, hey babe. I'm just getting in from work."

"I've been trying to call you for so long, Lucy! I was so worried!" she replied, walking around the kitchen counter and towards her. "I thought you might have died! I was so scared!"

"I'm sorry." Lucy debated on whether or not she should tell Tonks about what she had just done. She decided against it. She didn't know how Tonks would react to her risking her life, almost getting shot and breaking international law by doing magic in front of Muggles. "My phone's in my bag. I didn't hear it. I told you I was working late today."

"Yes, but I didn't realize you meant this late." Tonks sighed. She walked over and pulled Lucy into a hug. "I'm so glad you're okay, love."

Lucy smiled and hugged her back. "Me too. I think I'm finally getting through most of my work and hopefully won't have to work so late anytime soon."

"I'm glad. You've been working so hard, Lucy. I'm sorry I can't be of more help around here."

"It's okay. I know you're really busy too. I hope that my work will slow down soon and your exams go well and then we can actually see each other more."

"Yes. Right after my exam, I'm going to take you out to dinner to try and repay you for everything you're doing for me, love."

Lucy smiled. "I can't wait."

Tonks put her arm around her and let her towards the bedroom. Lucy's heart was still pounding in her chest. She felt exhilarated and was having a little trouble calming herself down. She was still pretty shaken up from having a gun pointed at her but she felt a lot safer in her girlfriend's arms.

They made it to the bedroom and Lucy pulled away so that she could put away her bag and get changed into her night clothes. Tonks got into bed and set her teacup down on the bedside table. She watched Lucy get ready for bed. Lucy's hands shook a little as she pulled she struggled with the buttons on her blouse.

"Are you alright, love?"

"Hmm? Yes, fine. Just cold. It's cold tonight."

"It is, yes. You should have Apparated. It's so late, why did you walk?"

Lucy shrugged, turning away and looking at herself in the wardrobe mirror. She took a deep breath to calm her nerves. "Needed the air. I've been stuck in that stuffy office all day."

"Have you eaten? You missed dinner."

"Yes, I'm fine. Maria ordered me some food before she left for the day."

"That's good. Remind me to thank Maria for taking care of you. Honestly, Lucy, I wish you would take care of yourself a little bit more."

Lucy smiled a little. "I do take care of myself." She quickly changed into her night clothes and climbed into bed. She leaned over and kissed Tonks's cheek before yawning and pulling the blankets around her. "Please cuddle with me."

Tonks laughed and wrapped her arms around her, snuggling close. "As you wish."

Lucy kissed her cheek again. "I am so tired."

"Get some sleep. Don't worry about breakfast tomorrow. I'll cook."

"Thank you, darling. I love you."

"I love you too."

Author's Note:

Thank you for reading! I am now starting to the first Harry Potter book. I hope that you enjoy the reading about Lucy and Tonks's journey through the Wizarding World. Please leave a review letting me know what you think!