In the quiet morning hours when employees on the overnight shifts were just getting off, something that shouldn’t happen...happens. In the creature holding room, the kennels that house the bloodhound dogs on the left wall break with a loud resonating CRASH!

In a matter of moments all the locks on the kennels burn up and break letting out 50 hounds of varying ages from pups to grown hounds to roam free in the holding room.

The hounds act like frisky cows going nuts on the food and equipment found in the nearby cupboards. It doesn’t take long before the holding room is a sight of full chaos with injured howling hounds, broken equipment and half eaten food everywhere.

...not to mention the door that had been left slightly ajar. The perfect opportunity for the curious or rambunctious bloodhound to embark on an adventure elsewhere in the Ministry...

Darej was coming in after the overnight shift team left, it was mundane work usually when he stopped in the holding room, but he had no complaints. Just come in to feed the creatures, clean, and yada yada. He began to hear a commotion through from one of the holding rooms. He drew his wand out immediately, given how things have unfolded unexpectedly recent, he was met with the bloodhound dogs barking and running about the place.

....


"WHO LET THE DOGS OUT?" He yelled out for any in the vicinity to realize what's going on as barking commenced. Of course, he shouldn't have yelled, his kneejerk reaction was going to cost him as he moved his wand to close the door behind him so they didn't run out.

This place was a mess, but that could wait, he needed to get the dogs back in their holding area. It took a moment for him to consider the possibility with the lack of treats on his hand. Ah...

Waving his wand at the nearest group of bloodhounds, Darej performed the Animalis Fidelis charm. It would remind them that he was trustworthy. I'm not going to harm you, just going to put you back in the safe place.. Of course, this would go faster if others happened to drop in on the scene. For now though, he was up to the new challenge.

Albert Morgenstern just received his clearance from St. Mungo's, and was ready to report for work early that day. For those who has been working in the department long enough, his presence hours before the reasonable hour of timing in was not an unusual sight. The man was rarely late for anything, let alone the usual work day in the Ministry.

However, the elusive regular work day was slowly turning into a messy one when he almost jumped out of his skin at the sound of a man's voice, the sudden shutting of the door, and the unmistakable barking of 50 bloodhounds. "Must there be chaos at this ungodly hour?" he thought irritatingly as his curiosity got the best of him. Sighing at the pile of paperwork before him, he slowly got up from his desk and towards the Creatures Holding Room.

Albert slowly opened the door, and stuck his head inside to take a peek inside what used to be an organized space of the department. "Certainly it wasn't me." he said, addressing Patterson inside the room.

Albert eyed the bloodhounds carefully, then to the mess they have made, and then back to the bloodhounds foraging for food. The man already dreaded the clean up that was surely going to be required of them. Not only was he wearing his favourite suit, he also just had a hip replacement for Merlin's sake.

"I am ready to call it day."

Jasper had been looking forward to a tranquil day at the Ministry. After a busy week of investigations and fieldwork, he was hoping for a day to decompress and catch up on operative paperwork that had been piling up on his desk. Chai latte in hand, he had just entered the Level 4 corridor when he instinctively flinched at the sound of a loud CRASH.

So much for serene. He jogged toward the creature holding room—because where else would such a commotion have originated—temporarily stowing his beverage on a table in the work area before shoving open the door.

The dogs. Merlin, he always thought that the hounds shouldn't be kept in those bloody kennels. Not sturdy or roomy enough for the creatures, in his opinion. "Morning, fellas. Nice way to start the day," Jasper said to his colleagues with a chuckle as he started to clear a path from the broken equipment littering the ground. "Albert, great to see you back." He gave his supervisor an earnest nod, genuinely pleased to see the man back on his feet.

Japser reached into his coat pocket, pulling out a handful of dog treats—leftovers from his walk with his own pups this morning. "It's not much, but it's something." He tossed the treats down here and there as he pushed his way through the group of dogs, toward the kennels. Once he made it to the wall, he leaned in close, eyes squinting in curiosity. "The locks. They're all broken," he stated incredulously. "How did that happen?" The question was directed to no in particular. But it was curious indeed.

While Albert was ready to throw in the towel, Jasper Cohen's disposition had been the opposite, and in true Albert fashion he did not like the enthusiasm. None of it was spoken, of course, and the man made sure to mask his slight irritation as his agent threw the door wide open and strutted inside. Seeing that there was no escaping the task at hand, Albert rolled his eyes and followed the guy, and made sure that the door was shut, because if there had been any stray, he was not going to go after it...not even with his new set of hips.

The nod was returned to his younger colleague and a "Thank you," was given. His leave had been a lucky one, being able to dodge the call to arms against the uprising that just happened, but he had been very worried about his own family, especially the youngest ones in the unit. "I hope all was well, while I was gone?" he gave Jasper a look-- one that spoke about the recent happenings in and around the magical community. However, given the current situation of his own desk, the work had piled up for everybody.

Loosening his tie and undoing the top button of his shirt, Albert looked around at the situation, noting that there were a number of bloodhounds that had been hurt. He'd have to make use of everyone and everything in the room to get at least one thing done until more help comes along. "The locks were burned, and obviously that was not the bloodhounds' doing," he said as he carefully made his way through the sea of dogs, and towards a shelf that kept all of their food. "Now is not the time to deduce the how's and why's of this situation," he said as he checked the dog food and treats inventory from the shelf he just opened, "Take note of everything now, and we will draft a report for the department head after we're done here. Now, we must do damage control, otherwise these bloodhounds will take control of us." he said, almost in a drawl, obvious that he has been doing this for ages.

He turned to both men in the room, and realized that they were all in the same division. He was very pleased with this turnout, seeing that the task at hand should be easy considering that his team was a very able one. "Alright gentlemen," he said with a sigh, clearly exhausted already, "Their food supply was left as it is, meaning we have enough to feed them." he said gesturing to the sea of fur and drool before them. "I suggest one of us usher them towards their training room at the end of the hall, scatter the food on the grassy ground and let them graze for their treats to keep them occupied and drain off the excess excitement." they were bloodhounds after all. They were built for active duty. "While that's being done, one of us can fix the place, while the other tends to the injured puppies and see if any of it need further medical attention." he said as he looked between Darej and Jasper. "The floor is open to suggestions, if you have any better game plan. Otherwise, you can go ahead and pick your preferred task."

Someone had to take control of the situation, yes?

Darej was already in the process of luring a bloodhound dog with the use of the Friendly Animal charm so they would be more trusting and follow him into their space. Guess I'm the only one around.. He thought bitterly. They better not think I did this. That's when Albert came in, who was his supervisor who thankfully didn't cast suspicions on him. Followed by another colleague of his entering in, Jasper, wasn't it?

"No idea, I think whoever was in the last shift should be looked into since we walked into this mess." Darej said as Jasper mentioned the missing locks. But their supervisor suggested they not worry about that now, which was okay with Darej. He liked the blunt direction. Especially, since it was going to be hard to discuss everything with the barking dogs running around. "I can help with luring them into their space again." Darej said. "Think we should also check the other creature's locks incase they're next on the list to be set free." That was his only suggestion before he continued with placing friendly charms on another bloodhound but now with treats in his hand to set for them to follow.

Kitty was happy things were back to normal. Or, er, getting there. Either way, he sprightly made his way to the DMC where he expected to have a fairly mundane day of paperwork and reports about his recent outings—fine in his book—until he heard a lot of barking and commotion from the holding room. Someone let the dogs out? Might as well go see...

Kit was greeted with a bunch of dogs as he slipped into the room. He pretty much knew what he would find from the barking, but he still gasped. "Doggies!" he exclaimed, scooping up the puppy closest to him and cradling it in his arms. He looked around and saw the mess that was made, and then he noticed a couple of his coworkers... maybe not the most professional way to enter the situation.

What happened? They didn't do this themselves, did they?" Kit asked to none of them in particular, still cradling the puppy in his arms, rocking it gently. He recalled each of their names—Darej, Jasper and Albert—but he didn't actually know any of them super well yet. Maybe he could get in their good graces by helping out! "I'm here to be used, so just let me know what to do!" he grinned, bouncing on the balls of his feet.

Crossing his arms across his chest, and leaning backwards on one of the counters, Albert nodded in agreement with Darej's suggestions. They would have to check in on their other colleagues and inquire about their shift. Albert opened his mouth to give more orders to his subordinates when another one of his charges had entered the scene. Must they be so enthusiastic?! "Shut the door quick-- nevermind." The enforcement supervisor eyed the newcomer, and with his quick reflex, used basic wandless magic to shut the door behind the young man with a loud bang. No, they cannot afford to have a stray bloodhound wandering off to other parts of the ministry...not with the kind of mess they were in at the moment. It was, as it is, enough legwork for the old man.

Albert had been told time and again to be extra patient with his team or with anyone for that matter. Lucky for the young man, he was relatively new to the department, and that he was literally young-- practically still learning the ropes of things around his work as a sentinel, the department, and the ministry. Despite his earlier irritation, he did admire the kid's enthusiasm. He would have to look out for this fellow, however. Such disposition lent a lot of vulnerability, especially with the line of work he has. Albert retrieved his wand from his wand's holster this time and levitated a busted lock for Flannigan to see. "Unless bloodhounds can melt off these things, then the answer to your question is no." he said, keeping his voice neutral.

Albert pushed himself off the counter and retrieved a clean bag to keep the busted lock for evidence. They would have to send it to DMLE's lab to have it examined. "Alright, you're up Flannigan. As Darej here suggested, assess and check all the locks of the other enclosures and make sure they are all secured and locked. From what I can gather, we only have to tend to the bloodhounds, but make sure the other creatures in this holding room are safe and sound too." he said, moving towards the damaged enclosures and took out a small spy-like camera from his pocket and took pictures of the scene. "When you're done, help me repair these enclosures." he said as he continued to take pictures from all possible angles for their collective report.

Kit jumped a bit as the door slammed behind him. Okay, so, maybe he should've knocked or something, but that's alright, right? None of the doggies got out... well, that's alright if Mr. Morgenstern didn't like him much right now, he could prove his worth!

He examined the lock as it levitated towards him. "Oh... yeah, that's definitely scorched. Imagine if the dogs learned how to breathe fire, how wacky would that be, huh?" Kitty giggled a little bit at the thought of it. Little fire breathing puppies running around and being all cute and committing arson.

He listened to Albert's instructions and nodded. He put a determined smile on his face and gave a little salute. "You got it, boss!" Kitty hummed and skipped away down to the other enclosures to examine their locks, puppy still cradled in his arms. "I'm gonna name you Mr. Scuttlebuns, because I think it's cute—well, unless... oh wait no, so sorry, I'll name you Mrs. Scuttlebuns, I hope you like that name, I think it's just great..."

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It has been ages since he encountered someone such as the young Kittredge Flannigan. The enthusiasm did not go unnoticed, and he'd learned from his teaching stunt years ago that some of the students who seemed to be the clueless type were the ones who actually had a functioning three-pound brain. An unamused brow was raised at the attempted humour from the younger employee, however, Albert cannot help himself but comment on it. "We already have dragons on the list-- full-grown and juvenile ones to help with the fire business." okay, they were not exactly cuddly or cute, but that was not the point.

A sigh escaped from Albert's mouth as he went about his task. Pocketing back his camera, the older man spared Kit another glance over his shoulder and wondered how in the seven hells of Hades did the boy become a Sentinel. He's young...even too young in his own opinion, but the Ministry saw something in this kid.

And... Mrs. Scuttlebuns.

Merlin. He did sound like a young Aramis, his son, and this earned an amused grin from the rather stoic and cold Albert Morgenstern. Retrieving his wand this time, the supervisor stepped back and began to repair the broken wall. Broken stones, concrete, and the occasional wooden parts were magically placed back to its original position, giving the room a less cluttered look. Albert reached out with his hand and gave the restored wall a feel, nodding in satisfaction. "So... a Sentinel, Mr. Flannigan. Would you like to share with us your story? How did you end up...here?" the others may already know why, but for obvious reasons, Albert was clueless. He was not the type to mingle with his fellow workers since they were all way younger than him, even the current Department Head, so he did not exactly fit in...nor was he interested in fitting in. However, duty calls for him to be sociable at the very least.

Kitty blinked and nodded slightly after a beat. "Oh, yeah, of course, that... makes sense." So, maybe Mr. Morgenstern didn't find it as amusing as he did... good to know.

Kit's ears perked up as he was checking the locks on the other enclosures. They all seemed to be fine so far. Mr. Morgenstern asking him about his experience was... a good thing, right? Might as well give him the whole shebang! "Hm... well, I've been wanting to be a Sentinel since... I could want to be anything, really," he chuckled, "My dad used to be a Sentinel himself—Forde Flannigan—but he retired... oh, thirteen years ago now? But I looked up to him ever since I had cognizant thoughts, and I wanted to do whatever he did—like, everything. So, once I got to Hogwarts I made sure to be good at what a Sentinel should be good at. Studied real hard, joined the dueling club, and I ended up really enjoying all of it which was the cherry on top. And once my dad retired I pretty much pestered him every day until he started training me. I knew the Patronus Charm before any of my classmates, and I picked up nonverbal casting not long after. Dad was a great teacher. But I got all my OWLs and NEWTs I needed, went to WU London and majored in Magizoology and Defense Against the Dark Arts. After I graduated I worked at Scobald's Creature Sanctuary for about two years—I was pretty good, if I do say so myself. I started out by caring for the XXX Level creatures, but by the time I left I was in with the XXXXX's. And then I applied to the DMC because I just couldn't wait any longer and I knew I could do it, and.... now I'm here!" Kitty giggled and hopped giddily, startling Mrs. Scuttlebuns in his arms. "Oh, I'm sorry, sweetums..." he cooed, stroking her head.

A long-winded answer was exactly what Albert had been aiming for. Something to occupy the young man while he did his task, and at the same time get to know him. It was an effort to address his lack of socializing with his peers that the Ministry had no problems addressing in his performance sheet. His record was stellar, until said remark suggestion was inked on paper. He didn't like it one bit, but if he could get away with it, why not? He asked, the young man replied, all went good and according to plan.

By the time Finnegan was done talking, Albert was already finished with installing the repaired crates and began to usher in the older hounds back. He'd also kept a mental tally of the dogs that he was able to usher back, and those that followed Patterson into the Exercise Room. Oh Merlin, no...

"More than 13 years ago, the Sentinels were under the Beings Division, until recently. I would've known your old man if the reshuffling was made earlier." Albert said without looking at the younger Finnegan, both hands on his hips, his brows furrowed. Has it really been 14 years since he joined the Ministry?

However, his annoyance was apparent with his deduction. Albert sucked his teeth and scratched the back of his head. "Gentlemen, I believe we're missing a few hounds." some may already have escaped before Patterson found the Holding Room in total chaos. There definitely was a huge discrepancy between the number of crates, and the number of hounds present.

The Holding Room looked better from when they first found it though, so some of them can go out and look for the stray ones. Usually, he'd use a Patronus to send out a message to every department about the situation, and a simple set of instructions on how to handle the creature. But since it was still a bit early in the morning, the message would be useless, knowing that most are keen on arriving just at the last minute.

Besides, he's got a new set of hips-- might as well test drive it around the Ministry. "I'll go and look for the missing hounds. You're free to join when you're done with your tasks." Albert said as he headed for the door, eyeing the remaining Enforcement staff inside the room. "Double check everything, especially the food cupboard-- make sure it's locked. I expect to see your reports on my desk this afternoon. Carry on." he added as he opened the door and walked out of the Holding Room.

Kit nodded and frowned a bit at Mr. Morgenstern's response—if they had known each other then he might have been impressed—but it wasn't that big of a deal.

He perked up at Mr. Morgenstern's assessment of the dogs. "Oh... well that's... not very good, is it?" He listened to the rest of his orders and nodded. "Got it!"

Kit got back to checking the locks on the rest of that cages—they all seemed to be in order, from what he could tell—and then he slipped out to go look for the missing pups. Still carrying Mrs. Scuttlebuns, of course.