"You're certain you don't want someone here with you? I can stay," Booker offered.
"I can handle Mason Fallon," Rachel reminded him. She didn't need Sirius for this, or Booker, or anyone else. She could be political when she had to and she'd been a member of the Wizengamot for over ten years now.
"If that is what you want," Booker said.
"What exactly is it that you think he's going to do?" she asked, moving out to the desk in her main office. She kept this desk clear precisely so she could meet with other people there.
"Sometimes people are less willing to be indelicate when they are being observed. I suspect he may attempt to bully you into doing what he wants."
"Do you really believe that he can successfully bully me?" she asked incredulously. She wasn't exactly known within the Wizengamot for being flexible.
"Not successfully, but that doesn't mean you should have to endure the attempt," Booker pointed out.
"I will be fine. And I have Monty here if I need someone to tell him off for me, which I don't."
"I assure you I will intercede if necessary," Monty told Booker.
"If that is what you want," Booker said again, looking reluctant.
"It is. I'm not expecting to get anywhere with him, but I should at least try." She would give him a chance, because everyone deserved a chance, but she knew enough to not let herself be manipulated.
A knock on her door ended their conversation and Rachel went behind her desk as Booker moved to answer it. "Wizengamot Member Fallon," Booker said, bowing slightly.
"I have an appointment with Wizengamot Member Snow."
"Please come in, she's expecting you." Booker moved back and allowed Mason Fallon to enter.
"It's good to see you, Wizengamot Member Fallon," Rachel said, giving a small curtsy.
"You as well," he said, bowing his head.
"Please have a seat. Booker, I'll speak with you later," Rachel said, meeting his gaze.
Booker gave her a look that meant he still didn't approve of this, but he left the room.
She sat down and Mason sat down across from her. "I was told you were looking to speak with me directly?"
"It's only polite to deal with a person yourself instead of sending your sycophants," Mason said, squaring his shoulders. He was a fairly tall man, which meant he practically towered over Rachel even sitting, and he wore his hair long as many older pureblood men still did.
"I prefer the term friends."
"Whatever you want to call your followers. I don't make deals with them, but I'll make a deal with you," he said.
Rachel reconsidered the idea that Turner's faction might be recruiting Mason and wondered if they'd rejected him instead. She couldn't imagine any of them putting up with this man's attitude. "What sort of deal was it that you wanted to make?" she asked.
"Simple. I vote for your proposal, your faction votes for mine."
"That's not how I or my friends work, Wizengamot Member Fallon. We do not buy and trade votes. We vote for what we believe is right and for what will better magical Britain," she said, trying to keep her offense out of her tone.
"I've heard that you're an idealist, but the world doesn't work like that. Even Dumbledore didn't work like that. Your faction won't last another election," he predicted.
"Over the years I've found that the world works the way we make it work. If your proposal is something we believe in, we will vote for it whether or not you vote with us on other matters. I take it you do have a proposal that you're planning to introduce?"
"I do. More freedoms for our businesses. You'll receive a copy of the proposal this week. I intend to have a vote at the next session," Mason said.
Rachel had been in politics long enough to know that 'freedom for businesses' meant fewer protections for employees and consumers. It wasn't something that would pass while her faction stood in the way and she would make sure her faction stood in the way. "I look forward to reading it," she said, not seeing the point in prolonging this meeting. Mason Fallon was not someone they could work with, which was fine.
"I hear you are working on a proposal yourself. House Elf legislation?"
"I am. I'll be introducing the proposal later in the year."
"That will be tough. You'll want all the votes you can get." He raised an eyebrow at her. "Read my proposal. Then think about what you want. After all, the results are what matters."
"I'll read your proposal. I hope you have a good day, Wizengamot Member Fallon," she said.
"And you, Wizengamot Member Snow." Mason stood and left her office.
She sighed. "Is it always this way, Monty?"
"Yes, and worse. I suspect if you weren't who you are, he would have tried to bribe you," Monty said, looking down at her from his frame.
"He did try to bribe me. That's what a vote for a vote is. And, not to mention, his vote for my entire faction's votes. No way. That's absurd."
"Yes, but if you didn't have the reputation you do, he would have tried to bribe you with money. Pay attention to who votes for his proposal. Then you'll know who is willing to take money or favors from him," Monty suggested. "Who does he usually associate with?"
"No one. He's independent. But I bet Turner's faction will take bribes from him." Rachel was less certain about the Guilds. She trusted Ethan and she knew he wouldn't take bribes. She didn't think Janice would either. But there were others in the Guilds faction who were more pliable and she didn't know how well Janice could command their vote in the face of bribery. She supposed she'd find out. "At least we don't have to worry about his proposal passing. I need to put together a note to make sure everyone in my faction knows what to expect from him. Do you think I need to worry about him going to them individually?"
"No, but in your note to them, tell them that he might so they can be aware he will try to bribe them. Forewarned is forearmed. It also tells your faction that you will know why they voted for his proposal if they do."
Rachel shook her head and pulled out a quill and some parchment to write a draft of the letter. "I trust my people. As long as I make sure everyone understands what this proposal is and Mason's methods, they won't vote for him."
"You have a great deal of trust in your faction when some of them are still new to you," Monty said, hesitating for a moment. "Why are you so certain of them?"
"Because everyone in the Wizengamot knows what I stand for. They knew that when they came to me to ask to join."
Monty sighed. "Dear, sometimes people will deceive you for their own gains. You should ask yourself what they're gaining by being in a faction led by you and if it is enough to command their loyalty."
"I don't ask for their loyalty. I ask them to do what they believe is the right thing. If someone believes this proposal is the right thing, they can come talk to me about it and we will figure it out. I don't command their votes and I make that very clear. And I know they all know that taking bribes is not the right thing to do." Rachel paused, feeling her hands shake, and then set down her quill. "Why? What do you know? Do you know something about someone in my faction?"
"I don't know anything about them that you and Booker don't know. But I do know people and I know the Wizengamot. Lofty goals of doing the right thing will hold some of them for now, but it won't forever, particularly when it comes to voting for some of the less popular proposals. People care about being re-elected. You have a number of elected seats in your faction. They won't get re-elected by voting for unpopular measures."
She frowned down at her parchment. "I just want to do the right thing. And these proposals are the right thing to do. I know they are."
"They are what you believe is the right thing to do. There's a difference," Monty said.
Rachel found herself digging in her heels on that. Her proposals were the right thing to do. Fixing the prison was the right thing to do. Ensuring equality in hiring regardless of blood status was the right thing to do. Making it so that House Elves weren't trapped in households where they were being abused was the right thing to do. "I don't know what you want from me, Monty."
"I want you to consider that the way that you view the world is not necessarily the way that other people view the world and know that they will act according to their beliefs. I don't want to see you taken by surprise in the Wizengamot chambers."
She did know that. Of course she knew that. "If people didn't want to be in my faction, then why would they join?" she asked. It just seemed counterintuitive to her. People knew what they were signing up for. It wasn't like she'd kept her Wizengamot plans secret this past decade.
"Having your approval still counts for something. Being able to tell people that they're a member of the Girl-Who-Lived's faction will count for something. But it's hard for them, or for anyone, to know how much that will matter when it comes time for elections."
"The elections aren't for another three years." There was part of Rachel that was grateful that her seat was not an elected seat. She didn't like the idea of dealing with that every seven years. There was also part of her that felt that every seat should be an elected seat, but she also knew that was not a change that could be made while more than twenty seats were inherited seats, and maybe not even then.
"Yes, but when it comes time for the election, people will remember who voted for equality for muggleborns and who voted to liberate the House Elves. These are important matters, and as we've discussed, not everyone believes on those matters as you do." Monty shifted in his frame. "I'm not trying to dissuade you. I know better than that. But do not count your dragons before they hatch."
Rachel nodded. She needed to be more active in her faction. She needed to talk with people more. Sirius did a lot of the heavy lifting in running the faction, but she needed to be sure that the people in her faction were getting what they needed. Just another thing she needed to keep track of. "Thanks, Monty. I am trying."
"I know you are. Try not to worry yourself so much. I don't want you to become ill," he said, adjusting his glasses.
"I won't. I'm better at taking care of myself now." And she was, even when it was frustrating or tiresome. But she had learned the hard way that people needed breaks and food and sleep and everything else that came with caring for herself.
She settled in to write her letter, thinking over how she wanted to phrase things so that she didn't come off as directing or condescending. She had called the people in her faction her friends, and they were, so this was a letter of friendly concern and urges to be cautious. That's all.
"You're early, we weren't expecting you until the end of the month," Rachel said, giving Hermione a hug. She'd received a Patronus message in the afternoon telling her that their group dinner was moved to tonight because Hermione had arrived.
"I wrapped up more quickly than I was expecting so there wasn't a reason to stay. Besides, I missed all of you. Six months is a long time," Hermione said, returning the hug.
"We're glad you're here," Theo said, taking a turn to hug Hermione as well.
"I am glad to be back. As much as I enjoy traveling and the work, I'm always glad to come back," she said, releasing Theo and looking around. "I can't believe how much the kids have grown. Sarah nearly comes up to my waist now."
"I know, it feels like just yesterday all of us were passing them around to be carried," Theo said.
Rachel was thankful that Sarah and Scorpius were mostly beyond the age of wanting to be carried. Children were heavy. "Where are you staying? Do you need a room?" she asked.
"I'm with my parents for a little bit and then I'll get a month by month flat until I figure out what I'm doing next. I have some things I want to do now that I'm here in England and that will take a little while. There's a conference for curse specialists in the spring that I'm planning to attend, but that should only be for a week. After that, I don't know yet," Hermione said.
"You always have a place with us if you want it," Theo told her.
"I appreciate that," Hermione said.
They all moved aside as the floo activated and Millie and Natalie stepped through into Neville's entry hall.
More exclamations and hugs were given and Rachel and Theo led the way to the dining room where people were congregating.
"Oh good. I was hoping you were able to make it," Hannah said, one arm supporting Lisander as he clung to her.
"It was no problem," Theo assured her. "We were free."
Lisander wiggled around in Hannah's arms. "Uncle Theo!"
Theo went over and obligingly took Lisander, lifting him in the air before settling him into his arms.
"Thank you," Hannah said. "Have we seen anyone else?"
"Millie and Natalie are here. Are we expecting everyone?" Rachel asked.
"I think so. One day there's not going to be a table big enough for all of us. We barely fit as it is," Hannah said. "I'm going to go check on Sarah, please help yourselves to drinks. Neville should be here in a minute or two."
Hannah left the room just as Hermione, Millie, Natalie, Ginny, Luna, and Rolf entered. There were more greetings and Lisander reached to be passed from person to person. A few minutes later Neville arrived with Draco and Astoria, Astoria carrying Cygnus and Draco holding Scorpius' hand. Hannah returned a few moments later with Sarah.
Rachel smiled to herself as everyone chattered over each other, the kids going from person to person. Most of them had either small or non-existent biological families and Rachel was glad that the kids had a wide variety of people to call aunt and uncle even when they weren't directly related to them.
Before long the House Elves had sent out the dinner and everyone was gathered. Rachel wound up between Theo and Scorpius - Scorpius had insisted on sitting next to her.
There was a part of Rachel that missed all of them living together, though it had been four years since she'd last lived with her friends and some of them had moved out before that. Luna and Rolf traveled a fair portion of the year searching for creatures, though they often came back to England for periods of time to publish and to work with more local creature reserves. Hermione went where she was needed and could spend months researching and working to cure curses. Everyone else had settled in England.
Ginny played on the Magpies and shared a flat with Scarlett. She had done her Mastery in runes and did part time translation work on the side.
Neville had married Hannah six years ago and he had his own magical plant nursery that he ran and he was active in the Herbology Guild. Hannah had decided to tutor her own children rather than hiring tutors as pureblood families often did and had finished working at The Leaky Cauldron after having Sarah.
Millie and Natalie both worked in the experimental charms division of the Spell Crafting Guild, while Theo headed the modification of transfigurations section of the same Guild. Millie and Natalie had been dating each other for almost nine years now and had been living together for four years.
Draco and Astoria had been married for five years. Daphne had been uncertain about Draco dating her younger sister, but they had worked it out. Astoria's blood curse had been one of Hermione's first projects upon becoming a curse specialist, and while she hadn't cured Astoria, she'd helped Astoria manage some of the symptoms better so that she didn't get sick as often or as seriously.
Luna and Rolf had met on a creature seeking expedition as part of their apprenticeships and had found that they wanted to travel together. They'd gotten married three years ago, mostly as a concession to Rolf's father, who had been uncomfortable with them living together while they weren't married. It had been an unconventional wedding, but very fun.
It had felt natural for their group to expand to include the people that their friends loved, though they seemed to have an unspoken rule that no one introduced someone to the group that they weren't serious about. Hermione and Ginny had both dated off and on, but neither of them had settled on anyone for a significant period of time. Hermione said that dating wasn't on her list of priorities at the moment. Ginny had sworn off dating while she was with the League because apparently people were ridiculously intense about it.
The only person Rachel had ever dated was Theo, and she was more than fine with that. She couldn't see herself with anyone else.
"What does everyone's autumn look like?" Hermione asked as people slowly finished eating.
"Nothing special, I don't think?" Theo said.
Draco shook his head. "Same old, same old."
"We're here at least through Christmas," Luna said.
"As am I," Hermione said. "Possibly through the spring, we'll have to see. There are some things I need to do while I'm in England."
"We should meet more while everyone's here," Neville suggested, getting nods and calls of agreement.
"As long as we can make it work with our Wizengamot schedule, I think we should," Draco agreed.
"How is the Wizengamot these days?" Hermione asked.
"Well, Rachel's about to unleash House Elf legislation, so we'll see how that goes," Neville said.
Hermione looked at Rachel. "Do you think the proposal will actually get off the ground this time?"
"We'll see. I'm going to introduce it to the faction first. If I can't get their support, it will never pass," she said, hoping she could rely on her faction for that much.
"You'll have the faction's support. Sirius and I will make sure of it," Draco said. "It's everyone else we have to worry about. How was Mason?"
"Wanted to trade votes, I told him no. Monty suspects he's bribing people, so don't be surprised if he tries it with you," she told him.
"You and Sirius will be his next stop then if he can't get to Rachel," Neville said.
Draco nodded. "One of us should check in with Sirius so he knows what to expect."
"In other words, the Wizengamot is the same as it always is," Hermione said.
"Pretty much," Rachel said. "At the very least with our faction we have enough votes to stop things that we don't want to pass." Getting things to pass on the other hand was an entirely different problem.
"Anything else I should know about?"
"Rachel's Employment Equality proposal passed. I know it doesn't really affect you anymore," Theo said.
Hermione shook her head. "No, that's wonderful. It's impressive that you got it to pass. That never would have gone through in the last Wizengamot."
"I'm hoping it's a sign that all we've done to promote understanding about muggles and muggleborns is paying off," Rachel said.
"At the very least people are more informed than they used to be," Luna said.
"That has to be a step in the right direction," Natalie agreed.
"I think it is. There's still a lot of work to be done, but magical Britain is a different place than it was ten years ago," Millie said.
Rachel thought that much was true, but that didn't mean there wasn't still a lot of room for improvement.
"I need to check my cauldrons," Rachel said soon after they arrived at home.
"Don't stay down there all night," Theo said.
"I won't. Are you heading to bed then?" she checked.
"Yes, I think so. Goodnight," he said, reaching for her.
She stepped in and gave him a hug. "Goodnight." They stayed together for a moment, Rachel resting her forehead against Theo's shoulder. Somehow it had managed to be a long day.
They broke apart and Rachel turned to go down into the cellar. She checked her cauldron again, frowning over the mixture of calendula and hyssop. It was still frothy, though it was now a lighter shade than before. Mindful that she was still wearing her nice robes, Rachel removed the enchantments that kept her cauldrons from causing damage if they boiled over and gently waved her hand over the cauldron on the left to see what it smelled like. It didn't smell like anything had burned and there was no smoke - the scent was vaguely herbal, which seemed right to her. She used a ladle to put a sample into a glass vial, making sure to take some of the froth with it.
After taking a picture and setting the vial aside to cool, she checked on the cauldron of antimony, which was still happily molten. Not seeing anything that was concerning, Rachel put the wards back up and then moved to check on her ingredients storeroom. She had spells to adjust the humidity in the cellar so that nothing would spoil, but she checked once a week just to make certain everything looked right and to make sure she had the essentials on hand. She was running low on lavender, which she'd need the next time she did a cauldron of Modified Dreamless Sleep, and it wouldn't hurt to restock on willow bark so that she could make more Headache Easing Draughts for Theo.
She would check the potions cabinet when she went upstairs and see how soon she needed to brew. Satisfied that the cellar was in order, Rachel went upstairs and into the kitchen. The owl perch was empty, which meant Archimedes and Artemis were out enjoying the evening. She checked that their pellets were filled and refilled their water dish, even though she knew Tomsi would take care of it.
Rachel stretched her hands out and checked on the wards that guarded their home. Everything seemed in order and just like it was when she checked last night.
"Kreacher?"
"Yes, Miss?"
Rachel jolted slightly and crouched down. "I didn't realize you were already here."
"Miss does this every night," he reminded her. "Dobby and Tomsi be settled in for the night. Feverfew and Ring-A-Ding be upstairs. Master Theo be already in his bedroom. The owls went out when it got dark."
She knew it was silly to check like this every night, but if she tried to go to bed without doing it she wouldn't be able to sleep because she'd be worried. It was easier to just check and then when she was worried she reminded herself that she'd already checked. "Does anyone need anything?"
"No, Miss. All be well," Kreacher told her.
"Alright. Your joints aren't sore? You're doing alright?" She had noticed Kreacher getting stiffer with age. He didn't bend down as easily as he used to and she made certain that he didn't do tasks that would make anything worse.
"Kreacher be well. Miss should go to bed," Kreacher said. Over the years Kreacher had become a lot more willing to tell Rachel what he thought she should be doing.
"I will. Goodnight, Kreacher," she said, standing back up.
"Goodnight, Miss." Kreacher disappeared.
Rachel did a quick walkthrough of the bottom level of the house before going upstairs. In the bathroom she checked the potions cabinet and was relieved that there was still plenty of Headache Easing Draught, which meant Theo hadn't been using it as frequently these past few months. She still had another four doses of Modified Dreamless Sleep, so she was good for another two weeks.
She washed her hands and face, used a teeth cleaning charm, and then went down to her bedroom, where she found Feverfew and Dingbat waiting for her. Theo preferred to sleep with his bedroom door closed so that the cats couldn't lay on him - not that Feverfew would, but Dingbat wasn't particularly good about respecting people's personal space.
"Are you ready to sleep?" she asked Feverfew.
Feverfew meowed and led the way into the bedroom.
"Oh, Dingbat," she said upon seeing the mess in the corner of the room. Dingbat had stripped yet another one of her potted plants of its leaves. "Honestly. Why? You have toys. You have things to chew and scratch. Why is it always my plants?"
She was careful not to keep any plants in the house that could be harmful to cats, but it was still disheartening to continue to find them in this state. Dingbat looked unrepentant. In fact, Rachel was certain that Dingbat did not realize she'd done anything wrong at all. Feverfew was looking on with an expression that Rachel took to mean as a reminder that she didn't do anything to Rachel's plants.
Rachel gathered up the leaves and vanished them with a quick wave of her right hand and then examined the stem and branches that were left in the pot. It was definitely not salvageable. She left the pot as it was, tomorrow she could take it outside and pull out the roots and then decide whether or not she was going to try with another plant.
She paused for a moment at her bedside table and checked her pocket watch. All the hands pointed to home, just as they should. She set the pocket watch back down where she could easily reach it from bed and went back to her wardrobe.
Her clothing went into the hamper for the House Elves to deal with and it was nice to ease into a simple nightgown and bare feet. This was her way of telling herself that she was done for the day. No more problems to solve. Everyone was tucked away for the night. Everything was fine.
Once in bed she took a moment on her back to assess her left shoulder. It was still sore, though the throbbing had stopped days ago. She still couldn't lie on it for more than a few moments and rolling onto her left side was entirely out. More time, she decided. She needed to give it several months of not being aggravated and then she'd see how it felt.
She waved her right hand to turn off the overhead light and rolled onto her right side.
It was nearly eleven, and so naturally her mind was wide awake and she felt like her eyes were glued open. Sleep was something that time and care had not solved for her. Getting to sleep was difficult. Staying asleep was difficult. She had frequent nightmares, though not with the same intensity that she used to.
Dingbat announced her presence with a loud meow and then by climbing on Rachel's side. Rachel carefully redirected her onto the bed next to her and pet her while listening to her rumbling purr and feeling the softness of her fur. She needed to remember to groom her this weekend. She'd discovered that neither of the cats were fond of being groomed by the House Elves. Feverfew joined them a moment later, pressing her body against Rachel's knees.
Rachel reminded herself that everything was fine and that she'd just checked. Now she could distract herself until she either fell asleep or gave up and sat up to do some reading or research. Some nights she could trick herself to sleep by thinking about research, but more often than not she wound up sitting up to write down something she'd thought of or to mark where she needed more resources for research.
There were still many problems for Rachel to solve, but she'd made a rule that she didn't try to solve magical Britain's problems at night because that led to her being awake all night worrying. Instead she thought of cauldrons and what she might do with the essence of calendula and hyssop and why it had turned purple. It took a few hours, and a parchment full of notes, but Rachel eventually fell asleep.
On Thursday Rachel took a lift to level nine in the Ministry. She still didn't like the lifts, but she could use them. She stood for a moment, looking down the black tiled hallway that led to the Department of Mysteries. It felt strange to see it again. She'd spent nearly a year when she was fifteen dreaming about this corridor and she felt oddly on edge just looking at it. Rachel didn't like reminders of the war or of her connection to the Dark Lord, but she had learned to live with them.
"Wizengamot Member Snow?"
Rachel turned and found Head of the Department of Mysteries Patrick Sumner waiting for her. "Hello Department Head Sumner. Please, call me Rachel."
"Just Patrick, then. Come with me, we're in the offices, not in the Department itself," he said, motioning her down an adjacent hallway.
"Thank you," she said, following him. "I didn't realize there was more to the Department."
"Most people don't; most people don't come down this far. The majority of our work is done in the offices, not in the Department," he said, opening a door and leading her into an open office space that seemed to be divided into groups. There were a handful of people about, but each of them seemed occupied.
Further down they arrived at a group of enclosed offices. They went inside Patrick's office and Rachel took a moment to note all of the different artifacts on shelves and projects in different stages of research.
"Here, uh, just a moment," Patrick said, moving a stack of books from a chair and then holding them for a moment as he looked for a clear place to put them. Finally he put them in a stack on the floor next to his desk and then sat down in his own chair. "Please, have a seat."
Rachel sat, slightly bemused. She preferred her office space to be tidy but she understood how projects could grow until they were out of control.
"A few questions, as we begin. Just to confirm some things." He picked up a quill and a file and got ready to write. "You became a Potions Mistress and registered with the Guild in June of 2002?"
"That's right."
"And a year of auror training in '98-'99?"
"Yes."
"You received the Potions Guild Innovation Award in '06 for your work in sleeping potions?"
"Yes," she said again.
"That's impressive, to receive that award before you've turned thirty. You also have more than a dozen potions credited to you," he said, looking up from his notes.
"My focus is narrower than most people's. But yes."
He nodded. "How old were you when you first achieved the animagus transformation?"
"Seventeen."
"And the corporeal Patronus?"
"Thirteen."
"How many spells do you know wandlessly?" he asked.
Rachel hesitated. "I don't know. All of my magic is wandless unless I need my wand for detail work."
"And you've studied elemental magic." It wasn't a question.
"Yes, I have."
"Given our enclosed surroundings, I won't ask for a demonstration," he said, giving her a wink. "I've been told you're a natural occlumens."
"Yes, I am."
"May I test your shield? We require all Unspeakables to be at least mid-level occlumens."
"Go ahead," Rachel asked, feeling secure in her occlumency shield. Over the years she'd had a few people try to break it, but no one had ever succeeded. She somewhat regretted not asking Professor Dumbledore to try when he was alive. If she'd been able to keep him out, she could keep anyone out.
They stared at each other for a long moment, Rachel waiting to hear a shout from her manifestation to indicate that damage was being done to her shield.
Finally Patrick looked away. "Obviously unusual in its construction, but nevertheless effective. Did you even feel that?"
"No," she admitted, though she intended to go check on her mind magic when she was alone to make sure everything seemed alright.
"An intellectual and a magical powerhouse. Good combination, for us, at least," he said, making a note. "Now, you have questions for me."
"Questions and caveats. I can't give the Department of Mysteries my full attention. I have duties in the Wizengamot that still need to be taken care of."
Patrick waved a hand. "Yes, of course. We're fully aware of your proposals and your work in the Wizengamot. You'll be required to put in reports of what you're doing in the Department, but we're not watching a time clock here. Do your work, that's all I ask."
"I'd also like to ask about continuing publishing my outside potions research," she began.
"You're still fiddling with sleeping potions?"
"Yes, I am," she said, though she silently objected to her research being described as fiddling.
"I don't see a problem with you continuing to publish, though anything you intend to publish needs to be checked before you're given clearance to publish. Just Department procedure, because what you learn here influences what you do elsewhere."
She could understand that. In fact, she was hoping things she learned here helped with her Dreamless Sleep problem. "What sort of work would I be doing here?"
"I have a project for you that I can't get into the details on right now, and you'll end up doing a wide variety of research for different things, but I do understand that you wish to specialize in potions. That shouldn't be a problem. The first few years as an Unspeakable, most people simply bask in the research materials found in the Department Archives," he said.
Rachel felt a flicker of excitement about that. An entire archive of research and some of it was bound to be potions research.
"One thing you should know is that the Unspeakables are bound by strict confidentiality contracts. What you do here, what you learn here, cannot be shared with anyone without clearance from the Department. Is that going to be a problem for you?"
"No, that's not a problem. I'm good at keeping secrets," she said, though she felt a stab of regret that she couldn't share her research with Severus.
"I'm sure you are," Patrick said.
Rachel hesitated and decided she had to ask. "Are you planning on studying me?"
Patrick raised his eyebrows at her. "What precisely would we be studying about you?"
"I've had some unique life experiences. Some people in my life have expressed concern that the Unspeakables might want to study me," she explained. "I don't wish to be studied," she added, in case that needed to be said.
"You've had unique experiences, yes, and are uncommonly powerful, but I don't see that there's anything in particular about you that we would study. We'd certainly like to know more about how you survived the Killing Curse twice, but sacrificial magic is a taboo field of study, even here. I anticipate that you will use your unusual skills and experiences while you are here, but we're certainly not going to experiment on you."
That was a relief. She sat as she tried to figure out if she had other objections or concerns. It sounded like she'd still be able to publish. They knew she had obligations with the Wizengamot. And they weren't going to study her. "Being an Unspeakable is mostly research?" she asked, trying to get a sense of what she would be doing in the Department.
"Mostly research along with some other projects. We certainly have goals and objectives, but mostly our broadest goal is to collect information and increase our understanding of magic and of the world around us," Patrick said.
Rachel could support that. The more they knew, the more they could help people.
"Other questions?"
"Not that I can think of right now."
Patrick nodded. "Give it a weekend to think things over and come back on Monday with a decision about whether or not you want to sign the contract."
It was nice that he wasn't pressuring her. "Thank you. I'll give it a lot of thought."
"Good. I'll escort you back to the lift," he said, standing and guiding her from the room.
Rachel followed him back out of the office area, her mind busy at work trying to make a decision.
She found Severus in his office late on Thursday afternoon. "I brought something for you."
"Oh?" he asked, looking up from his work.
"Three vials, separated yesterday. The froth goes away when they've cooled," she said, placing the vials on his desk.
"What ratios?" he asked, holding one up and turning it in the light.
"Two parts calendula to one part hyssop. It's been boiling down for three weeks," she said.
"Should be potent. I'm not sure this is ingestible."
Rachel shrugged. "I was thinking topical for things like salves anyway. Speedy healing, reducing blisters and open sores. Besides, the dose makes the poison. A drop could go a long way."
"Perhaps." He set aside the vials and looked at her. "Not that I'm complaining, but any reason you are here today and not on Sunday?"
She kept her expression schooled, but Severus did always have a way of reading her, whether she wanted him to or not. "Theo's not home and I need to make a decision."
The corner of his mouth quirked up. "You do know that us listening to you is just letting you talk yourself around to whatever you're going to do anyway?"
"I know. But sometimes you stop me from doing something stupid."
"Dare I ask what potentially stupid thing you're planning to do?" he asked, looking slightly less amused.
"Join the Unspeakables. I had my interview today." She'd been stewing over it all afternoon and she still didn't have an answer.
"How did that go?"
"Well, Patrick seemed to know the answers to all of the questions he was asking me. I am a little bit concerned about how much the Department knows about me," she began.
"I think we can safely assume that they know more than we want them to know. There are rumors - but with the Uspeakables there are always rumors - that they have files on every magical person in Britain," he said. "It stands to reason that they've been interested in you from the time you were an infant."
Rachel had heard similar things about the internet and the muggle government, that they were tracking people and knew a great deal about them. It seemed strange that the magical government would do the same. "For what purpose? I mean, there's not quite thirty thousand magical people in Britain. They're just living their lives. I don't know what they'd want to know about people."
"It makes sense for the government to know certain things. The address of where people live so they can be located. Their income, for tax purposes. I know the Department of Education has records of everyone's OWL and NEWT scores, which people can request copies of to help gain employment or training. The licensing division keeps track of who is licensed to perform certain spells or work with certain ingredients. Marriage licenses, child births, and deaths are also registered so we can keep track of the population," he explained.
"Well, those things make sense. I can understand why the government would want to know those things. People make it sound like they're watching what we have for supper or something," she complained.
"It does, but altogether, you can get a fairly comprehensive history about someone. Where they've lived. Where they've worked. What they know. How much money they make. Who are their closest associates. Add to that the records the hospitals keep and the government knows a fair bit about any given person in magical Britain." He paused. "Now consider someone like yourself. Or someone like Draco. Or Sirius. Or even myself. I would guess they have even more information than that about all of us."
"Then shouldn't they have known who the Death Eaters were?" she asked, raising her eyebrows.
"I'm willing to bet they had very good suspicions about who the Death Eaters were, though people do not always follow patterns. In both wars some very unexpected people were discovered to be Death Eaters. But mostly it was people that were suspected through their family, their friends, or their associates. And there is also a difference between suspecting and having evidence. The MLE couldn't question people simply because they came from a certain bloodline."
That much she agreed with. She knew a number of people who turned away from the paths their family had set them on.
"Did they give any indication how much they know about you and the Dark Lord?" Severus asked, now looking concerned.
"No. Patrick knew I was an occlumens and that I can do elemental magic, but otherwise didn't say anything relating to the situation with the Dark Lord. He also said they don't want to study me."
The corners of Severus' mouth pulled down. "How truthful do you feel he was being?"
"Well." Rachel paused and frowned. It had been a little strange that he'd dismissed wanting to study her at all, but if he really didn't know about her connection to the Dark Lord - and that she'd carried a horcrux - then maybe there wasn't anything about her to study. "He did say he was interested in figuring out how I survived the Killing Curse twice, but that the Department didn't study sacrificial magic. That it's taboo even there. I wouldn't think that anything would be taboo to the Department of Mysteries."
Severus shook his head. "No, that's not surprising. Sacrificial magic is taboo because of the cost. The sacrifice has to be genuine. Engineering a way to study that would be difficult at best and absolutely disastrous at worst. As you know from practicing elemental magic, there is always a cost and for some things it is too high to pay."
She nodded. No one had ever brought up sacrificial magic to her when they talked about the situation with ending the war and killing the Dark Lord. Like most forms of blood magic, it simply wasn't talked about. She could also see that studying sacrificial magic without accidentally - or purposefully - killing someone or at least maiming them would be difficult.
"Perhaps he is being truthful and they do not want to study you. If they believe they understand what happened, maybe they don't see the need to explore it further," he suggested.
"Perhaps. I also made it clear to him that I don't want to be studied. I will leave if they try," she said.
"It sounds to me like you know what you want your decision to be."
Did she? "I just want to make sure I'm not being stupid about it."
"You joined the aurors and now you're worried about being stupid?" he asked.
"I was just fine in the aurors. It was a good experience," she said firmly. She wasn't going to bend on that one. She understood Severus being worried about her - she understood that a lot better now that she was a godparent - but overall the aurors had helped her even if they'd gotten into a few rough scrapes that year.
Severus shook his head. "What about publishing?"
"I have to go through the Department to get approved if I want to publish, but he said he thought the work I've been doing should be fine."
"I can't imagine the Department would want to classify a simple sleeping potion-"
"Not simple. I've been working on this for ten years!" she protested.
"Simple in its effects, not in its creation," he amended. "I'm saying I don't see anything harmful in it or anything that the Department could object to unless you wind up using classified ingredients."
"Is it bad that I want this?"
He arched an eyebrow at her. "Why would it be bad? It's not inherently bad to want something."
She sat with that for a moment. It wasn't exactly that she thought that wanting something was bad. She had a lot of things. Hell, she had her own library, with built-in bookshelves and everything. "I suppose it feels self-indulgent. It doesn't feel like the work I should be doing."
"What work should you be doing?"
She'd been through enough therapy to know that was a trick question. "I'm in a unique position to do things that other people can't do," she began.
"And even so, it is your life. I'm not suggesting that you disappear into a life of research in the Department, though some people do just that. I know you won't neglect your Wizengamot duties or any of the other tasks you've assigned yourself. You can have this too."
She wondered how true that was. Could she balance her work in the Wizengamot with research with the Unspeakables and not drive herself crazy? Quidditch had been different. Quidditch had been less time consuming and it had acted as a source of stress relief to her - most of the time, not during League Cup season. And it had helped cement her as a community figure and a champion for muggle rights. Playing Quidditch had helped people see her as more than just the Girl-Who-Lived or the person who ended the war.
"I'm not trying to influence your decision. I'm saying that you deserve to have things in your life that you want. Everyone deserves that. Just because you are a public figure does not mean you aren't entitled to pursue the things you're interested in," Severus continued when she didn't speak. "If your concern is that you aren't doing work to help people, then I'd say look at all the people you've helped with your improved sleeping potion. The Guild doesn't give the Innovation Award unless you've done something that truly helps and furthers the field."
"I suppose. I guess I feel like there's only so much of me to go around," she said.
"That's also a valid concern. You must prioritize what is important to you. I don't think you'd be this worried about this decision if it wasn't important to you."
Her work in the Wizengamot was important. As was her work improving the relationships between magical people and muggles. And her family and friends. And her research. She fully knew about the dangers of overloading herself and she didn't intend to repeat that mistake again. "I suppose if I'm doing half days with the Unspeakables, that wouldn't be too much," she hedged.
Severus nodded. "That sounds like a reasonable compromise. I think you know what you want to do, Rachel. Let yourself have the things you want, within reason."
She exhaled. She did want this. And provided nothing too weird or immoral was going on in the Department of Mysteries, maybe she could have it. "Alright. I mean, I can always stop if it turns out to be too much."
"You can. And you know how to assess yourself to see if things are becoming too much."
"I do."
"And you have me and Theo watching to make certain you're doing well also. If one of us sees something that concerns us, we'll tell you."
"Okay." She paused again. Could she actually do this? She thought that maybe she could. And maybe that could even be a good thing.
