Improper Use of Magic and Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office
 

Chris rushed into their new office. So the improper use of magic employees and muggle artifacts will work together. There's no problem about that, and its going to be fun but crowded. The room was well lit which is good cause he has poor eyesight. He walk towards into his table and started working while waiting for his other co-employees.

Becca looked up from her adopted desk in the corner and smiled "Morning Chris," she greeted him "Excited?" she put down her quill and then walked over to him "Should be fun" she smiled again and then sat in a chair by his desk while keeping her eyes on the door.

Chris eyed Becca, she sounds a little bit odd. He's not excited at all. It sounds that he's a kid excited to go into a park. He smiled feebly then muttered, "Err.yeah. Tis should be fun, right" Then he scribbled down and continue writing. He wonders why the others was not at their office yet.

"It should be." she smiled "It'll be easier, that's for sure" she then watched his reactions and wondered if she'd done something wrong. Shaking her head a little, she stood up and moved back to the desk she'd been sat at before.

Catlin re read the letter she had received and entered her new office. She gave a quick glance around and saw Becca sitting at her desk.
"Morning" she beamed at her friend "Any desk?" She asked motioning to them

"Morning," Becca smiled and then nodded "You know it" she smiled at Catlin and then leant back in her chair, waiting for more people to turn up.

Catlin nodded and took her place at a desk near the window, Once she placed a few personal belongings around her she turned back to her friend "So we looking at some work coming in soon?"
Cat then spoke to the other person in the office "Hi there I'm Catlin Scuto, How are you?"

"I hope so" Becca smiled and then leant back "We just need to get settled first" she grinned "Chill out and then worry about work" she put her hands on the back of her neck "You know me, I wont work unless I have to" she joked.

"Haha, you give a vaild point there" Catlin chuckled pulling her notepad out and began jotting some bits down. "How many others are working in our office now?" She asked casually.

He nodded feebly then smiled, he focused again on his works on a minute. Then he turned to Becca again, "Hey Becca. How's your morning?" asked Chris, smiling widely. Then another employee entered their office

"Err.. Hello, I'm good" He greeted back then he stood up, "I'm Christopher Greenleaf" Chris told her then he offered his hand to the girl. He's sure that this office will be crowded after a few minutes or hours.

"Of course I do" Becca grinned and then looked down at the paper "There are... meant to be ten people in this office.." she nodded "I have two of you.. so we're waiting for eight more" she smiled.

"It's been good. Interesting" Beca smiled and then watched Chris "Yours?" sh genuinely liked to hear about their morning and journey to work. Then she beamed as he introduced himself to Catlin.

Walking into the office,With Dylan in her arms she saw Becca with some other people.She stopped and stood still and turned her attention to Dylan.Don't do Anything to embaress me to much Okay,And Be a good little boy. She said kissing him on the cheek before walking over to Becca.Hey Becca.Whats Up ?

"Alicia," Becca smiled "Welcome to the new office." she smiled at Dylan "Hey there" she winked at the little boy "Nothing, we're just settling in" Becca turned her attention back to Alicia "What do you think?" she grinned "And... I've got my own office now!" She smiled proudly and then pointed out the boxed off corner of the room "What's this little one doing here?" Becca smiled warmly and looked up at Dylan.

Smiling She looked around the new office.Thanks. she smiled again continuing to look around.Its...wow.Pretty.and....Wow. she giggled.Turning her focus back to the little group.Reeally ?! Congratulatioons! We need to have a party! You know to celebrate. she beamed.A ministry party that would be so great.Oh and Congrats on the Mrs.Brian Lee Title. she winked.Oh,Weell He has umm no where else to go. She said twisting her hair round her finger awkwardly.My sisters At hogwarts.And my dads doesn't want anything to do with him and yeah you get the point.

"No problem" Becca smiled. She giggled when Alicia became speechless about the room. "Yep. Thanks, maybe we do... but I think we should work first" Becca grinned. "Oh, thanks!" she grinned as Alicia congratulated her on her marriage. Then her gaze dropped to Dylan again "Yeah, no problem... I'll tell you what... you put him in my office to play with toys..." Becca smiled "I can get Tinker here to look after him while we work" She'd always been understanding about this stuff, having had to look after a litte kid herself.

Yup.That would be a good idea. She smirked.Stroking Dylan's cheek softly.Your welcome. she beamed.Looking at the other people in the room.Are you sure ? I mean I don't want him to disturb you. she smiled,that was a awfully nice offer.Thanks so much. Looking down at Dylan she smiled.Now You be a good boy,And Alicia buy you a ice cream in her break and mabye we can try and find Leah and No disturbing Becca while shes working cause shes busy and no disturbing anything else,Right ? Good boy. she ruffled his hair and smiled at Becca.

"It would," Becca grinned and then looked at Dylan again "Yep. Come on Mister" Becca stood up reached out to take hold of him "It's no problem at all. All I'll need you to do is direct people to my office" Becca beamed.

Totally.But We should arrange a party afterwards. Smiling she crouched down and put Dylan on the floor.nooo Nooo Stand up.And look This is Becca.Say Hello.And shes gonna look after you.Be a good boy. Giving him a kiss on the cheek she guided him over to Becca.Okay. Clearing her throat she did a little jump and pointed to Becca's office.Every Body! Becca's office over there! She smiled and put her arms down.How was that ? she winked at her and giggled.

Zoey walked into the new office she is sharing with the improper use of magic people. If there was one thing that Zoey was guilt of it was not knowing people in the other offices of Magical Law Enforcement. Sure she met Edward but that was it. She sat down at her desk and said "Good Morning!" to the other employees in the office.

Chris smiled back at Becca, "Interesting too. I just ate breakfast at the cafeteria a while ago with a girl who work on Dept. of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes." So they need to start their work now but he thinks that they should wait for the others to come into their new combined office.
Chris beamed as another two girl employees entered their office. "Good morning to you too!" He smiled, beaming at them. He like his department, its like having some new friends and acquaintances. He wonder if they should still wait or they can begin their work now.

Alicia Looked around the office,As she did so she saw a lady walk in.She smiled and said.Good Mornin'. It was really the only practical thing she could say without Sayin stupid.Im Alicia by the way. she smiled.

Penny smiled at the two other people that were there. "Hi. I am Penny. Nice to meet you Alicia." She said. Yeah this was going to be a good frist day. She looked around at all the trinkets and what nots. This was going to be fun.

Smiling at the young lady she looked around the office still trying to take it all in.Looking back to the woman she smiled.Nice to meet you too Penny. she beamed.This should be a good first day in the new office.

"I agree" Becca grinned and then crouched down to get herself to Dylan's height "Hey there, Dylan" she stroked his cheek gently and then stood up and gently picked Dylan up. Balancing him on her hip, Becca looked at Alicia. Facepalm! She covered her face with one hand and giggled "Alicia! That was fantastic, but if you'd like to tell people who DON'T know and ask after me.. it'd be nice" she grinned.

Becca grinned approvingly as Chris said his morning was interesting too "Ah, interesting. I got served breakfast in bed by my husband" she giggled and shook her head "He's crazy.. Anyway, get to know each other.. I'll be in my office with Dylan and just finalising some stuff" she smiled at them all before walking into her office and closing the door. Waving a wand at the clear floor, she conjured up some toys for Dylan and then put him down on the playmat she'd conjured up. Then she smiled at him and moved around to her desk, reading the paperwork, she ticked some boxes and glanced at Dylan before going back to the paperwork and just glancing at Dylan often.

Noah walked into the office and went straight for his desk, plopping into his chair. He looked up after sitting down and noticed a lot more commotion than usual. He flipped through some paperwork and occasionally glanced up at the people in the room. He suddenly realized that he hadn't really ever gotten the chance to get to know his fellow employees, besides Becky. Hmm...

Maybe I should start now...

But what was the rush? Plus they all looked happy in their own worlds. He crossed his legs at his desk and rubbed the sides of his head with his fingers. He hadn't gotten much sleep the night before, and he wished napping was appropriate in the work ecosystem.

Catlin decided she needed a cup of coffee she couldnt seem to properly wake up today, she started to make her way through the office towards the door when she saw one of her colleges she had never met (Noah) looking rather tired. Walking over to him she smiled and asked "Hi there im going for coffee you want one?"

Noah looked up from his paperwork and forced his eyes open enough to see one of his co-workers talking to him. Was she talking?...oh yes, she was. He rubbed his eyes a bit and nodded, clearing his throat. "Sure, that sounds nice." he managed a small smile and stood up wearily. He was such an idiot not to go to sleep until four in the morning. "I never drink coffee but it might do the trick this time." he yawned. "I'm Noah, by the way...Noah, uh...Ackart."
In all his exhaustion his last name had seemed lost for a bit.

Catlin tried her best not to laugh at her clearly tired co worker and managed to keep it back, that was until she spoke and a slight chuckle broke her lips "You wanna sit down again before you fall sweetie" She stood prepared to catch the guy incase he did actually fall. "Im Catlin Scuto by the way, how many sugars you take?"

Was he doing something funny? He checked himself and thought over what he had said quickly. "Good idea." he muttered, plopping back down into his chair. "I was up wayyy too late." he steadied himself on his chair and forced himself to sit up straight and smile politely, even though he was blinking more than often. "Nice to meet you."

Sugars. Sugars? How many sugars did he take? Well he usually just bought the whole bag, but...

Ooooohhh...

"Um...I don't know...ten?" he hadn't had coffee in years, he just remembered using quite a bit of sugar. Ten wasn't that much, was it? "Or...whatever..." he cleared his throat again. This would probably arouse another chuckle from the girl. "Just...a few, I guess..."

Glad when Noah took his seat again Catlin gave him a curt nod "I know that feeling well, Was it worth it though?" She really hoped the guy didnt think she was prying into his personal life she was simply curious.
Noting that he seemed to have trouble when it came to the question of sugar she decided it best to leave him and sort it out when she got back.
"Okay then I will be right back"

Glad that the break room was as close as it was she was back within five minetes with two cups of coffee and a hang full of sugar sachets, placing her cup back on her desk first she then returned to Noah and put the cup next to him "As you were unsure how many you wanted i thought i would bring you a few" She then placed the fifteen sachets next to the cup and smiled "Enjoy"

Noah managed a small laugh. "Not quite worth it, no. Watched a few old reruns and did a lot of thinking." he thought for a minute. "Though I should probably have been catching up on a bit of work." he glanced at the paperwork on his desk.

He was surprised that he had barely had a chance to yawn when Catlin was back with the coffee. "Oh, thanks." he smiled, genuinely this time. This would - maybe, hopefully - make him feel better. He looked at the packets, his smile widening. "Oh, you didn't have to - but thanks." he opened one of the packets and dumped it into the beverage, stirring it in with his wand. "Can't remember the last time I was so tired I had to drink this stuff." he dumped another packet into the substance and stirred again. "I think I want a lotta sugar." he smiled up at her micheiviously.

Sugar sugar sugar sugar sugar sugar.

Walking out of her office after a while, Becca sniffed and then made a face. Coffee. Her worst enemy. She looked over towards where the smell was coming from and coughed a little before waving her wand to clear the air of the smell before it did her any harm. She moved around the people who were sat at randomly placed desks and kept her distance from Noah and Catlin. Then she looked up and cleared her throat "Okay everyone... You've all got paperwork to do, but lets ignore that for the moment... I want Catlin and Noah to work together on this... " Becca nodded at the coffee lovers and held up a box with objects in it. Then she looked around "Everyone else.. Observe and take notes" she nodded again.

OOC: Check your PM's before posting, you two ;)

Noah, after adding numerous packets of sugar ENDLESS SUGAR! he noticed Becky talking. Anddd it was directed at him and Catlin. He blinked up at her and screwed up his face in concentration. It was too early to think, what was she thinking? He glanced at his muggle watch. Well, so what if it wasn't that early?
He nodded curtly, blinking again and now studying the box of objects. "Okay." he managed to say before yawning widely. He was tempted to shoot Becky a scowl or a glare but he decided it would be easier to just accept the situation.

evilpunishments

Catlin smiled she didnt mind doing work but she could clearly see Noah wasnt happy
"Dont worry this will be easy"
She wispered to him before picking the first item out of the box it was a spade. Before she had a chance to speak however another item came flying out of the box, she had to look twice before realising it was a paper aeroplane
"Or not" She added before asking him "You wanna try and retreave that while i inspect this spade?"
She then put the lid back on the box so to stop anything else escaping

Noah nodded. "Sure it will be." he watched as the aeroplane flew out of the box and held back a yawn. He smiled. Oh, the one day he felt like this and he had to do actual work. The cruelty!
"Okay," Noah stood up and scowled after the aeroplane. Die, aeroplane, die die die! He shut the door and started trying to catch the aeroplane, but it was flying too high. "Oh, c'mon!" he tried cooing to it, but it seemed to just look at him, teasing and soaring higher.

Noah sighed and stuck his hands in his pockets, still scowling up at the wretched thing. "Oh. Duh." he felt around for his wand and pulled it out, pointing it at the aeroplane. "I am such an idiot...Accio!" the aeroplane rushed into his hands and he held onto it tight, yet not tight enough to ruin it's form. He shoved it into the box next to Catlin and shut the lid.

"There. Tah-dah!" he exclaimed, sitting next to Catlin and looking at the spade. "Find anything wrong? It just looks old." Noah looked closer, blinking. "Oh...maybe it's just...dirty. It is a spade, afterall...I guess. Or it's old."

Rambling again, of course.

This time Cat couldnt help but laugh as Noah chased the plane around the office, once he had returned it to the box she turned her attention back to the spade and nodded as he spoke. "Yes it is old and rather dirty to but other then that i cant find any traces of magic, not on this item anyway" She went to put it on the desk next to them and chuckle "Do you think if i put this down without holding it then it will start to try dig a hole!" Still laughing she took a sip of her now cold drink "You wanna pick out the next object? Watch for the plane though"

Noah nodded, still studying the spade suspiciously. Something had to be wrong with it. "We'll come back to it, then..." She wouldn't have given them this box of objects if there wasn't anything that at least used to be wrong with them.
"Sure," he reached over and opened the box carefully, making sure there was just enough room for his hand to get inside the box. The aeroplane threatened to escape, pushing against his arm. He pulled out a pair of sneakers and hurriedly shut the box. He held them by the shoelaces and sat down again near Catlin. "How about you try and put these on and we'll see what happens to you?" Noah laughed, taking his wand out. "I'm only joking, I don't advise it." He prodded the pair of shoes with his wand and it gave a jolt as if they wanted to start walking on their own.

"Hmm..." he loosened the laces and tugged one of the shoes on his own feet. Again, the shoes gave a jolt, as if they wanted to work on their own. He wretched it off and stared at it. "What do you think?" he asked Catlin.

Becca circled around the two interestedly as they worked and nodded approvingly at their moves. They were doing well. She waved her wand once again to get rid of the threateningly dangerous coffee smell again. Maybe she'd have to ban coffee from the office... Or maybe not.

"Well i agree with you that they shouldnt be put on" She too prodded the shoes and was ready to grab them if they attempted to make a break for it. "I have a feeling that whoever cast the spell that made these animate were simply trying to have some fun" She continued to mutter under her breath more to herself then anyone else then spoke to Becky "Do we know where these items were first found?"
Suddenly the spade began to move but not as she expected, instead of it digging it had appeared to now have legs and hopped off the edge of the desk, without thinking she grabbed her wand and cast "Impedimenta" the spade dropped to the ground with a slam. Walking over to pick it up again something dawned on her "I hope that doesnt contaminate the previous spell cast on it"

Noah let out a small laugh as the spade hopped off the desk. "I agree someone must think it's funny...but it actually is. I mean it isn't for the muggles, but it is for me." he suppressed a grin and shrugged. "I don't think it would have, and we could probably still find other traces on it if we tried." he nodded reassuringly. "Plus it was asking for it."

He inspected the shoes a bit more before setting them on his desk. "Well they all have something in common so far...they're trying to escape."

Becca shook her head "Unfortunately, no.. they were handed in" she then eyed the spade "I've been informed that the objects become immune to the spells if you use one spell too much" she warned them "Just try to keep the magic used against them to a minimum..."

"Ohhh fun" Catlin joked as she placed the now legless spade back onto the desk then picking it up again "Lets put this back in the box to be on the safe side" Making sure to not let the plane out again she pulled the cushion out to fit the spade back in. Putting the cushion onto of the box she turned back to the shoes, "I dont know if this will work but" Getting her wand out again "Prior Incantato" She watched as sparks flew from the shoes and nothing else happened. "Well it was worth a try"

Noah watched as Catlin performed a spell on the shoes. Why hadn't he thought of that? "Aww, it didn't work!" Noah pretended to pout as he poked the shoes himself. He then looked at Becky.

"Oh that's great." he held back a groan. Minimum spells? Yikes.

He turned his attention to the cushion. "Uh oh. What's wrong with that thing?" he almost expected it to start flapping around their heads. He wracked his brain for anything that he learned at school about how to find traces of magic in things. He knew it was a familiar subject, and there HAD to be a way to do it. He was smart enough for this, wasn't he? Yes, he was, he was. These objects would NOT win. "Don't sit on it." he winked, nudging the cushion with his fist. "Well, you could. It might be entertaining."

"Haha, Why dont you try sitting on it, or shall we ask for a volunteer" She chuckled lightly and looked round the office. "To be honest from what we have seen so far i wouldnt think it wise, For all we know it could grow a mouth and bite you"
She couldnt believe a box of things could cause so much trouble "My guess is it must of been a student or someone like that that jinx these items, i mean they are all so random.." How could a student stump her, It shouldnt be this hard to come up with an cure for them. "The only spell i can think of that could make this happen is Piertotum Locomotor" Dread washed over her as she realised she still had her wand in her hand and without warning the spade grew its legs again,
The shoes began to run around the room,
The cushion which she was right about suddenly had a face on it and was trying to bite anything close to it,
The plane burst out of the box and flew round everyones heads,
The lego began to build itself,
There was a non stop ringing coming from the ornament and
The remote jumped up and appeared to put Noah on mute.
"Oh No, I am sooo sorry Noah" She couldnt belive what she had just done, it needed to be fixed now!

Becca shook her head and sat down at a desk as she watched the objects start to go round the room. She leant back in her seat and sighed softly before pulling her own wand out and twirling inbetween her fingers.

Noah watched it all happen, his eyes wide. It had happened in less than an instant, everything whizzing around and everything turning into chaos.
"Catlin - wha---" but all the sudden his voice was lost.

What the heck?

He signaled with his hands and tried pointing his wand at the flying objects, the biting objects, the ringing objects. He managed to silence the bell with an unspeakable spell. He yawned silently, shaking his head. Ay yi yi, what was going on?

He mouthed the words "I think that was the right spell." to Catlin while he swatted the paper aeroplane away.

Catlin couldnt belive what she had done, She knew as soon as this was cleared up she was likely to get a telling to off of a now very unimpressed Becky but even with the chaos going on around her she couldnt help but snigger when Noah mouthed the words to her. Racking her brain she came up with the only spell she could, hoping it would work she pointed her wand at the ceiling and virtually shouted "Finite Incantatum" Within a second all the objects dropped where they were and once again became inanimate, the only thing that didnt change was the fact the Noahs voice still didnt return (Evil Laugh)

Everything returned to normal, everything fell silent and dropped to the ground, everything immovable once again. Thank goodness, Noah thought, clearing his throat. He tried to say something but found that his voice was still inaudible.

NOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

He sighed deeply. He mouthed "sonorous" while pointing his wand at himself, but it didn't help bring his voice back. Did he have to actually say it? It should have worked! He sighed again and shoved his wand in his pocket, shrugging. He'd just have to start learning sign language.

He mouthed "this stinks" to no one in particular.

"I am so sorry Noah just hang in there" She then busied around once again collecting all the items. "Weeelll Im pretty sure we now know what caused the objects to come to life" she then placed them all back in the box and taped it shut writing the Piertotum Locomotor spell on the lid with a warning of

Quote:

Do Not Use around this box

Noah nodded in agreement and approval as he read the label Catlin and plastered to the box. He sipped at his coffee a bit, which was now starting to get a bit cold, and was WAYYY too sweet. The whole experience was interesting, if not a bit entertaining.

He wagged a finger at the evil box of evil things filled with evilness inside the evil things inside the evil box. Well, at least they figured out what caused this whole chaos in the first place. He glanced over at Becky to see what she thought, but made sure not to look directly at her. He didn't need anyone's approval, no sir.

But it would help if he had his voice back.

Becca glanced at Noah and then smiled softly. Pointing her wand at him quickly, she mumbled the counter spell and nodded to him before looking back over at Catlin "Well, now you've done that... You and Noah need to finish up this paperwork" Becca smiled and handed over a couple of pieces of paper "Copies" she nodded and then turned to the box. She tapped it smartly with her wand and then nodded as it sealed itself properly "All done" she smiled.

Catlin sighed with relief when Becca returned Noahs voice she then took the paper off Becky and took them to her desk
"Erm can i go for another coffee first? I will sit with it in the breakroom so i dont bring it in here" She laughed looking in the direction of her boss

Becca nodded "Sure..." she beam she grinneded as Catlin said she'd go to the breakroom and sit with her coffee "Thanks.." she smiled. "That's really considerate" Becca grinned and then turned to her office door "Gosh! Dylan!" Becca grinned at the tower of blocks he'd made "That's awesome, mate!"

"Its okay, i wont be long" With that Catlin turned and headed for the break room

Noah beamed, having gotten his voice back. "Thanks a bunch, Mrs. Lee Becky." he grinned. Ahh, even though he had only lost his voice for a total of about ten minutes, it was such a relief to finally talk!
He took the pile of paperwork and skimmed through it. Well, this was certainly easier than chasing around cursed objects at any rate...

Nodding at Catlin, Becca smiled. "No problem, Noah" Becca nodded to him and then glanced around the room. A job well done! "Well done, Noah" she praised him and then glanced at the door. Catlin would get her praise when she came back.

Smiling As she picked up Dylan.She looked back up as she stood up.But now...Everyone knows.So Theres no need to ask after you.You know it makes my life soooo much easier.And then I have more time to go for ice cream and talk to Addie and Wi- Doesn't matter. she beamed.

She grinned at Alicia and then looked around "I need everyone's attention!" she called out and smiled around at everyone "I'm afraid I'm gonna have to leave you all. I'm moving to a new job tomorrow. I have to love you and leave you" she winked at everyone "You're all AMAZING! And I'll be sure to check up on you all" she grinned "I'm afraid y'all can't visit me though." she smiled a little sadly "Anyway, as Alicia mentioned a party, I have a small present for you all" Becca waved her wand and a bottle of firewhiskey appeared on each desk "Remember, I'm always gonna be around..." she nodded.

Suddenly the smile dropped from Alicia's face.Leaving them ? What ?! No.She couldn't.She was obviously playing one of those pranks,But Becca wouldn't do that.She was wayy to mature.Blinking she looked down at the floor,without a word.

Becca walked over to Alicia and put an arm around her "'Licia?" she spoke softly "I know... but it's my dream job... I had to take it..." she kept speaking softly to her in a kind way.

Her name.Someone was saying her name.Looking up she smiled at Becca,Putting on a brave face,For Becca's sake.What ? Oh yeah,I know,I understand. she smiled.

"'Licia.. I'll still be around... just not around here..." Becca smiled and then pointed at Dylan "I have something for you too!" she gasped playfully and then produced a toy car from thin air and gave it to him "Magic!" she grinned at him before turning to Alicia again "Keep in contact 'Licia"

Smiling suddenly feeling a bit better she beamed. I knoow.I knoow.Ill make sure to come visit. she smiled petting Dylan.Dont let him know I can do that,He'll want stuff all the time. she shook her head.Of corse.

Catlin was just returning to the office when she heard her friends announcement This cant be haappening she thought to herself, why hadnt her friend mentioned it before. Not wantning to sound childish by telling Becca that she couldnt go she simply smiled and said "Congratulations sweetie, i hope you enjoy it"

"'Licia... you can't" Becca sighed "I'm gonna be in Mysteries. I'm basically gonna be the head unspeakable" she smiled a little and then giggled at Dylan "No, it's special. Only Becca can do it" she grinned and nodded "I'll be around though"

"Thanks Catlin" Becca turned to her and waved for her to come over "C'mere" she grinned "Gosh, I feel like I'm leaving my family" she shook her head with a small smile "That's what you lot are! My other family" she looked around.

I know that,Silly.I meant your house.Even though Im not sure where you live. she giggled.I learned of the unspeakable,When I saw Kris and Addie in the cafe. she smirked.They were totally so cute together.Yup.Thats right.

"Mmmm, remember that castle where I got married?" Becca smiled "That's my home" she nodded "So you do know where I live" Becca nodded.

Catlin was deep in thought doing her paperwork when a letter landed on her desk, thinking it was nothing she continued to finish her work.
Once she had finished it all and tidied up she finally opened her mail, turning it over in her hands she saw the Ministry's mark, could this be the letter she had been waiting for...grabbing her letter opener she sliced the top open and slid out the parchment inside. Her heart seemed to stop as she read the first line

Quote:

Dear Miss Scuto I am pleased to inform you that you have been chosen to be the new division head for the Office of Counterfeit Magic & Equipment Control. It was a very tough decision so I hope to see you soon.

Before she even read anymore she was on her feet and jumping up and down
"Oh my god!! I got the job!"
She spun on the spot a couple of times and dashed out of the office, straight towards Syd Wordsmiths office.....

Blackstone walked into his new office. It was definitely a change from International Magical Trading Standards Body, which was very bland and uniform. This office was anything but: Notes were tacked on boards lining the walls, trinkets of all sorts littered the landscape, stacks of paper sat on all the desks and piles of muggle things sat around. Blackstone blinked. It was definitely more comfortable than the sterile International Department he was previously in. But at the same time, the organized part of Blackstone wondered how stuff got done. Peering around the office, Blackstone waved to the people around the office.

"Um... Hi, everyone. I'm Blackstone Martimus. As I recently found out, I'm going to be your new division head... so thought I may as well introduce myself."

Just then a very excited looking lady rushed past her.

"And my guess is that many people are getting into new positions as division heads... So I hope you'll forgive me if I'm new at this."

Taken aback by the sudden ecstactic behavour of Catlin, Becca giggled "Well done Catlin" she called after her before looking around at the room again and sighing.

Her eyes fell on the new person and she smiled again "Guess this is my cue.." she looked at Alicia "I'll still be around. I promise" with that promise, Becca walked over to the new division head "Congratulations.." she smiled "And look after them for me" Becca glanced around the room again before nodding and waving goodbye to Dylan. She finally left the room with a small smile playing on her lips. There was a whole other adventure ahead.

"Why, thank you" Blackstone said. "And congratulations to you as well. I'd offer my congratulations to Catlin... but it appears she's already dashed out. Anyway, I'll do my best. Pleasure to meet you."

"Ok," Blackstone said, further entering the office. "I understand things are going to be a little shaky, what with all the transitions going on. There are a lot of important things happening, however. So today we can adjust but tomorrow I will need full concentration on some of these issues that are coming up in our division." He wasn't sure if he was saying this to let the others adjust or himself. Hopefully he hadn't come off to shaky... or hard, for that matter. He was still very new to this.

"In the meantime, I suppose it'd be a good idea to get to know each other." He could look at their files, of course, but he preferred to do it this way.

Zoey looked at the man who just walked into the department. "My name is Zoey, nice to meet you." She said with an outstretched hand.


She then turned her attention to Becca. "Congrats on the promotion. It was a really pleasure working with you and I hope you enjoy your new job." She said with a warm smile and an outstretched hand to congratulate Becca.

"Pleasure to meet you, Zoey." Blackstone said, shaking her hand.

"I suppose our first order of business would be to find out where you would each prefer to work. I understand that the divisions were merged a while ago, and that you are trained for their individual assignments. While we can all work on any assignment that comes up here, I'd like to know which tasks you are more comfortable with- those in Improper Use of Magic or Misuse of Muggle Artifacts."

Blackstone hoped he wasn't being to confusing. "So if you could let me know, I'll try to see that you are working where you are most comfortable. Also, while we're at it, why not tell me where you're from? I'd like to get to know you."

"Well I was originally hired into Misuse of muggle artifacts." Zoey said. "But I can really work anywhere."

"Ok, that'll be fine" Blackstone said.

"Now if I could call everyone's attention, there are a couple things we'll need to cover over the next couple weeks. In addition to 'Business as usual' we have the Quidditch World Cup coming up." Blackstone took a sip from his cup of coffee. "And as usual, whenever there is some major event going on, everyone has more work."

"For us, that means we need to be prepared. There will be a lot of stuff going on and it will be best if we get ready in advance. The Cup is still a ways off, but the more we do now, the smoother things will run later. I've met with MLES and the Auror offices, and we'll be working with them on safety pamphlets for the event. We'd especially like a focus on underage magic."

Blackstone hoped he wasn't being too long winded, but he had just gotten this information that morning and wanted to get moving on it. "So, while this particular assignment falls under our 'Improper Use of Magic'' half, feel free to join in if you are in the 'Misuse of Muggle Artifacts' portion of this division."

"That just about covers it... oh, except that there's a trip to Fortescue's in it for the person who can make the best pamphlet" Blackstone added with a smile. It was rather silly, trying to motivate his staff with ice cream. But Fortescue's Ice cream was very good.

"Any Questions?"

ooc: If you'd like to actually make a poster/pamphlet, please do so! It's not required, of course, unless you'd like some ice cream :D

The department was alive and bustling with activities when Anne entered. She peered around the unfamiliar office, as this was her first job in the Ministry. It has always been Anne's dreams to work in the Improper Use of Magic and Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office; she always found Muggle Artifacts fascinating.

"Erm...can someone tell me what to do..." muttered Anne under her breath.

When she realized that everyone is too engrossed with their work to notice her, she decided to just pay the Division Head a visit.

Blackstone noticed another person walking into the office. Skimming through his mental filing cabinet, he tried to place her... As if to answer his question, an interdepartmental memo came, alerting him of a new person coming in today.

"Hello, I don't believe we've met" Blackstone said, extending his hand, "I'm Blackstone." Beckoning her in, he stepped back to his notes. "We were just having a small meeting if you'd like to join." He scanned his notes and took a sip of his coffee. "I'm sorry, Anne, can I get you some coffee?" he asked, conjuring a mug.

"I've just gotten word that there is a man who has bewitched muggle cars to fly... some sort of taxi service for the Cup, I suppose. I'd like a few of you to see which regulations this is breaking, if we could get a list that would be great. Also we need to generally start training for the cup. Crowd control, improper magic use and all that."

"Any questions so far?"

[OOC: I am leaving tomorrow for a week. I will try to check SS but I'm not sure if I will be able to. If you have any immediate concerns, Pharoman18 is the department head, and he should be able to see to that, as well as any other division heads in this department.]

Anne smiled shyly and mumbled,"No coffee for me, thanks anyway." She was still full from all that pumpkin juice at the Leaky Cauldron to celebrate her first job at the Ministry.

Anne swiftly took a seat in a cushion chair across the table. She did not wish to disrupt the meeting in any way. As Blackstone explained Anne's first assignment to her, Anne listened in rapt attention and nodded her head at appropriate intervals.

"Any question so fair?" Blackstone had asked politely. Anne shook her head and took a deep breath. With the Cup coming and everything, she's sure her new job at the Ministry would be anything but relaxing.:hermy2:

"So" Blackstone continued "Between digging up charges on this taxi guy and making safety posters for the cup, we should have a good deal of work on our hands. Finally, when not working on these we can train with the other departments for crowd control."

"I will have to attend a meeting concerning the cup, so I will be out of the office for a couple days. I wish I could be here a while longer before leaving like this, but things are quite busy these days. I should still be available by owl, though."

"So if anyone has questions, feel free to ask. If not that just about wraps things up." Blackstone finished. He then noticed Anne's alert attentiveness. It wasn't that long ago that he was in that position, trying his best to take everything in. In fact, he was still taking stuff in. He made a mental note to keep an eye on her: she seemed pretty focused and that was always a good quality.

Blackstone leaned back in his chair and stretched when a small paper airplane on him. Sitting up he read it. He stood up, he had been expecting this. He had already made a bunch of speeches in his short time here, but once again he stood and cleared his throat to the office.

"Excuse me.. hey, everyone. I've just got word from department that we have the go ahead to take a look at this taxi guy. His car dealership is in Manchester, right here" he said , pointing to a map. "We're going to go down and take a look at things. Talk to him and basically close him up. He's breaking several regulations, which I trust we've gathered, it'll be best to solve this before the busy season comes up with the Cup."

"So, ready to do this?" he asked, somewhat inspiringly.

OOC: Go to the link posted, or look for the thread in 'outside the ministry'. Since we haven't brainstormed charges yet, you can make them up as they go or rp that here. We're a bit behind schedule, though. If you have any questions, just PM me. Oh, and I'm home from vacation, by the way, so I'll be able to check things here more often.

Warren walked into the Misuse office. Newly refilled coffee in hand and looked around. Everything was different from the last time he'd been in here with Becky when she was..prodding. Sighing he walked toward Blackstone's office and knocked on the door. "It's Warren. I need to discuss the issues of your case before I set a trial date."

Taylor walked into the Improper use of magic and Misuse of muggle artifacts office not really knowing what to do. 'jeez that's a long name' she thought to herself as she walked around looking for whoever was in charge

Zoey looked at the flyer that just came into the office, "Hmmm..." she said to herself. She had slight distaste for what the ministry was pulling with the World Cup but was she willing to walk out on work and risk getting in trouble?

Blackstone drained the last of a glass of water as he entered the office. So much to do. He vanished it and looked over the office. Noticing the paper airplane and responding poster, he sighed. Yes, all beings deserved rights, but it was probably a more complicated issue than that. And now he was really too busy to bother with that, however important it may be. Though Blackstone couldn't help but feel a little tug at his conscience as he sat down.

He scanned the checklist of things to do for the QWC lying on his desk. Just reaching the trial when a knock at the door startled him. "Um, yes? Come in" Blackstone said, standing. He summoned a cup of coffee and prodded it with his wand, heating it up. "Oh, Warren. I assume this is about Penney?" he asked, taking a sip. "Oh, I'm sorry, would you like some coffee?"

Blackstone then noticed someone he didn't recognize wandering around the office. "Um... Excuse me? Can I help you?" he offered.

Warren walked into the office when he was invited in and looked around out of habit, scanning his surroundings. Over his shoulder in the corner he saw someone walking around but still faced Blackstone. "Penney? I..don't..." shaking his head he sat down in one of the chairs across from Blackstone's desk not waiting for an invitation. "I'm afraid I need to know what your status is on that case of yours, the one that's to go to trial." Pulling out a small planner he flipped through the pages shaking his head at the offer of coffee, "No, thank you. Ah there it is. You see I am required to inform the Minister as well as department heads as to when the trial will start. Due to the QWC I need to do this as soon as possible or else people will not be available." Closing the planner he stuck it back in his pocket, "Make sense? Do we have enough to go to trial with this and get a conviction?"

Taylor noticed someone talking to he and turned to face them. "Umm.. yea i'm new here" She said not really knowing what else to say. "I'm Taylor Armstrong" She said as she offered her hand.

"Penney, that's the car dealer guy we're trying to get. Covington E. Penney." Blackstone said matter-of-factly. "I'm pretty sure myself that he's guilty, based on research and" he he sighed "a bit of intuition. But the trouble is, he's going to be hard to get a conviction on, any way you go about it." Blackstone continued. He leaned in over his desk and pursed his lips. "He's covering his tracks very well, I still have people researching the matter. I know you can't try him twice for the same crime, so we need a conviction... But this isn't going to be easy. I don't know when or if we'll ever have enough...." He trailed off. First big case he had to handle and Blackstone was already failing... "I'm really sorry I don't have more for you. Oh you wouldn't happen to know anything about our current, shall we say, protocol on veritiserum usage and such? I didn't want to use force when we went to question him... too much messy paperwork involved. But if it comes to it... I'll put a question in with Syd." he took another sip of coffee and turned his attention to Taylor

"Nice to meet you, Taylor" he said warmly, shaking her hand. "I'm Blackstone Martimus. Please, come in" he said, motioning to a chair in the office. "This is Warren, he's division head with the law enforcement squad and wizengamot. We've just been discussing the latest case." he said, indicating him. "Would you like some coffee?"

Taylor walked in and took a seat. "Hello" She said to Warren. " So what is the latest case? If you dont mind me asking" She asked. "No thanks" she said to his offer of coffee.

Warren listened to Blackstone with a frown, "This is not good. I do not want to take this to trial without enough to get him convicted. This would be my first case and taking such a ludicrous thing to trial might get me fired from my position." A thoughtful frown came over his face as he leaned back in his chair, "Veritaserum? Last time I checked you need to have Syd present but I would check. I tend...not to use that form of interrogation." Cough. Well with his size who could blame him. There was a reason why he'd been an Auror. Turning in his seat he nodded politely as he was introduced.

"I was hoping to be enlightened on that myself." Turning back toward Blackstone he looked thoughtful. "Petition Syd to use it and I'll be present during. I need this wrapped up." Standing up he nodded toward Taylor, "Pleasure to meet you. If you need me I'll be in my office, Blackstone," and with that he left.

Zoey heard Blackstone and Taylor talking about the most recent assignment. She had been there trying to get the guy to talk but herself and Blackstone were the only ones there. "Sorry to interupt, but maybe it would help if we get more people down to the dealership. I will go with Taylor and maybe we can figure something out to get him to open up more." Zoey said with a smile.

Misha slowly walked in as another walked out. His faint blue eyes observed the man, he seemed self important, a bit too cocky. Perhaps he ran things around here. Shaking his head, Misha grinned wryly as he set foot into the office.

It looked, very different.

How long had it been, twenty years almost? Misha had worked in this very department long ago, and things had definitely changed. Like this blonde girl for example, piping up to this other man... he seemed rather proud as well. Something about this situation seemed out of control, something was definitely amiss. Or, at the very least, something was not going correctly on the current case. Yes, that much was obvious.

THUD!

Misha's heavy briefcase-like bag it the floor loudly and dramatically. It was almost like yelling HELLO, but it was the old man version. Not the young whipper-snapper one. "First day of duty, my friends." He muttered nonchalantly in his dried, weary tone. "I take it you have something for me to do?" He was not questioning, oh no, he was demanding that an assignment be given.

Blackstone nodded as Warren left, staring pensively into his coffee when Zoe arrived. "No problem" he said, looking up. "Yes. This one's been a lot trickier than I thought. Definately more people. At the same time we need to keep Covington comfortable, more likely to say something."

He motioned to Misha and Taylor to come over, summoning another chair to his desk. "Misha, good to meet you, I'm Blackstone." he said, extending his hand.

"I think it's rather obvious we've been a bit short on manpower here, shall we say, so I'm very grateful to have your help" Blackstone started. "We're currently trying to get charges on a Covington E. Penney. He's a car dealer in manchester who is offering enchanted cars as a sort of 'taxi service' to the cup. He's been flaunting all sorts of regulations, but he's covering his tracks well."

Very well, in fact. They hardly had a thing on him and they were past their deadline.

"So... what we need to do is find a way to get him to talk. We can't try him without some kind of evidence. And MLES and the Wizengamot doesn't want to try him if we don't have enough evidence. Preferably we'd do this undercover, but he covers up very well, so we may look into other options."

Why was it always a big speech? Blackstone didn't like being long-winded, but he had a lot to say.

"Additionally" he continued "We have the World Cup starting. Meaning we need to fulfill our duties there, making sure people aren't using excessive magic and keeping the campsites cleaned of things the muggles might find afterwards. Specifically, we're to do this- " he said, handing out the list that Syd had given him.

"I'll leave it to your discretion as to which of these projects you'd like to work on, but we need to make sure we are covering both the car dealer and the cup.

"So... Any questions? Thoughts on how to tackle these?" Particularly, Blackstone hoped, thoughts on Covington, because he was stumped.

Misha gave the smallest tilt of the head in recognition as Blackstone gave his name. So this young gun is my head, eh? The thought was relatively ridiculous, but he knew he'd have to bite the bullet for the time being. Nonetheless, Misha shook his hand and sat down.

Finally Blackstone got to the good stuff. A car dealer? Was this really what the Ministry dealt with these days? Twenty, thirty years ago everything was a bit more malevolent, a bit more sinister. But perhaps Penney had malicious intentions after all.

Misha's eyes narrowed and the crow's feet around his eyes stood out. "You know, years ago I'd have blasted my way in there and hit him so hard with a stunning curse he'd be blabbing all he knows within seconds." Fukshansky shook his head almost mockingly, "But you young guns are much more modest these days."

His weary blue eyes looked to his left at Taylor, that girl seemed young. Very young, not too far out of Hogwarts. Division Head... he couldn't have been much older.

"I'd hope that veritaserum isn't illegal these days, find his local pub... slip a bit in his drink. Hell, someone track him under a disillusionment charm. We need to exhaust all of these options. No wonder everything gets so backed up in court these days, it takes the Ministry nine Christmas's to even do anything." His scratchy, croaky voice was surprisingly powerful and loud.

Ah yes, the World Cup was coming up. "I can run things anywhere you put me. I'd be particularly fond of showing the young guns that populate the Hogwarts corridors a lesson or two. Kids these days, so ignorant." He smiled though, ironically, as when he was fifteen he'd been caught doing magic at that very world cup. Good times those were.

A smile slipped across Blackstone's face as he listened to Misha. He clearly was experienced and knew what he was doing, unlike Blackstone. Or at least that's what he said. Albeit a little old fashioned, but a comfort to have such... wise advice? ... If wise was the word...

Blackstone finished his mental survey. "I've asked the department head about force and veratiserum. It would certainly make things a lot easier, but there's a good deal of red tape around that kind of stuff." He said, twirling a pencil through his hand. "Mr. Fushanky, I'll let you decide which of these assignments you want to take. Of course, you can do both, but if you prefer, you can pick which you'd like more involvement in."

"I haven't heard much yet from the cup. The campgrounds are divided into four parts, north, south, east and west. Those of you working on the cup should divide it up, take one or two campsites each to monitor. We're looking for magical use, especially magic that stands out. Additionally, around all areas of the cup we're looking for minors using magic. I'm going to contact maintenance and see what we're doing on cleanup."

"Concerning Covington, I've had a couple ideas of my own, should we not get access to forceful methods. Covington is already suspicious, I'm betting, would you agree Zoe?" he asked "However, Taylor and Misha haven't been there yet, I assume. If going incognito isn't enough, we have to find another way to persuade him. What do you think of 'telling' on Zoe or myself, so he finds out we're working for the ministry? Should one of you say 'That's a ministry worker', you might get on his good side by 'proving' you aren't on ours."

Blackstone didn't know much about muggle things, but one thing he did enjoy was their notion of 'moving pictures'. He watched far too many of them.

"And, actually, I was also considering 'tracking him down' as you said, Misha." he added. "The point is we can either convince him we're friends and potential customers, or we can do our own research and force it out."

And before he knew it, Blackstone had given another long-winded speech. Why did he do that????

OOC: Can we try to finish the car dealer plot as quickly as possible? We're a tad... well, very behind schedule

Slumped in his chair by his desk sat a snoring Noah, his elbow leaning on the desk with his head resting on his hand. It was quite unusual for Noah Ackart to snore, he rarely did. But on this occasion he was so deadly tired that within ten minutes of sitting down to finish some paperwork he had dozed off like a baby. He had stayed up all night watching muggle reruns and eating ice cream. He had been fine then, but now the sleepiness hit him like a very large boulder. A stack of papers laid on the desk by his resting arm that he had been reading before he fell asleep.

Real smooth.

sorry about the hiatus... i had finals week! done though. new charrie.. LIFE is GOOD