He still wasn't sure what to think of his new department head. Quite frankly, Dante didn't know a whole lot about her. Based on what he saw of her at the masquerade, he knew that Sian Llewellyn seemed ... loud. The complete opposite of his personality, ironically enough. The tall man was the quiet and observant type, which seemed to mesh well with enough with his former department head. But now he had to learn a new person entirely and hope for the best.

Another thing he recently learned about her was that she liked her coffee with five sugars and no milk. When he saw that bit in the message he had received from her, he did have immediate thoughts about that. Those thoughts, though, would remain unsaid and her request would be met. Such a concoction could be found in one of the cups in the drink carrier he was holding (the other being his own coffee -- black, no sugar or milk at all) as he approached the office.

Standing outside the gold gilded door, he glanced at the watch he was wearing on his wrist. Right on time. With his free hand, he knocked on the door three times to let the new boss lady that he was here for their 'little chat.'

She might not have been here long, but Sian was already making herself at home in her office. The new department head's very first order of business was making sure her office was VERY TASTEFULLY decorated, and wasn't it just?? She was OH SO PLEASED with the plush and velvety pink as far as the eye could see, along with the gilded gold trimmings every here and there. But the pièce de résistance was her absolute favourite zebra skin rug in the centre of the floor.

Sian had just arranged her candy dish on her desk just so when she heard a knock at the door. Ohhh who could it beee? Her interior decorator? Or perhaps the Minister himself for a lovely little chat? Orrr... did she have an appointment she'd forgotten already? She could have checked her appointment book, but just decided she'd figure it out when they came in.

"COOOMME IINNN!!" she bellowed in a sing-song voice at the door, then perched herself on her chair, awaiting her visitor.

The loud sing-song voice was unquestionably loud, only confirming his assumption that the new department head was definitely not going to be like Eliora. The woman's response from the other side of the door was quite different from what he was used to. There seemed like he would have to get used to a lot of new things, which in his mind had plenty of pros but just as many cons. So far, the loudness was very much a con.

Even so, he placed a hand on the doorknob and revealed himself to Llewellyn. A smile, his usual forced one that could easily be believed as genuine, was worn on his face ... and he really had to force himself to keep it there when he took in the sight of the woman's office décor. It was ... well, there really were no words that he could think of to appropriately describe it.

"Good morning, Ms. Llewellyn. Dante Zabini, Senior Obliviator. We have an appointment to discuss my interest in a promotion within the department," the Frenchman greeted her as he stepped forward. He then lifted one of the coffee cups from the carrier and held it out toward her. "For you. Coffee, five sugars, no milk."

Ms. Llewellyn, ooh she liked the sound of that. But who was....? This was not her interior decorator. Sian fixed the man with a curious look as he walked in until he revealed his identity. "Oh yes! Dante Zabini, of course, of course! We have an appointment!" Yes of course she knew that! She hadn't forgotten!

"A coffee for me? Oh you shouldn't have!" she exclaimed, instantly delighted as she took the extra sweetened beverage from him. But yes, yes he most definitely should have.

"Please have a seat. Pink plush velvet is only the most comfortable," she added as she blew on the coffee to cool it before taking a sip. "And you must try a piece of my homemade candy! I make them myself." She was proud of that. And yes, she did insist.

"A promotion though! How exciting!!" But there were formalities of course and she had to make sure he was the right fit. Leadership roles under her guidance had to be just the right sort. "Do go on. Tell me about yourself and why you think you should be promoted." Her smile was terrifyingly wide as she waited with baited breath.

He was still managing to keep up with that smile of his as Llewellyn confirmed that they indeed had an appointment and then enthusiastically accepted the overly sweet coffee. Dante couldn't help but wonder how she drank the stuff, but he remained perfectly silent as he sat down. His expression did not change, even though he didn't agree with her thoughts about this kind of seating being the most comfortable.

When homemade candy was brought up, he -- more out of obligation than anything -- reached for one from the bowl on the desk. "Thank you," he said, but didn't immediately indulge. Eating in front of a department head he didn't know all to well under current circumstances wasn't professional, not that he was tempted to do so.

Trying woman's candy in that moment was the least of his priorities, considering he was here to discuss a promotion he had been working toward. Dante appreciated that Llewellyn didn't hesitate on getting to the formalities, and that was what he was choosing to focus on instead of that oddly wide smile of hers.

"Well, as you already know, I am currently a Senior Obliviator within the department," he began. "I have been in an Obliviator role for the past fourteen years, the last seven being here in Britain. My training and earlier years as an Obliviator were with the Ministère des Affaires Magiques de la France before I transferred. I was promoted to Senior Obliviator after my first year in Britain and have since mentored a number of trainees alongside being called on for both routine and major statute breaches.

"Last year I spoke with the former department head about my interest in the Head Obliviator position, which has has been handled by someone on call upon request the last few years. That conversation resulted in me receiving training tailored toward leadership in addition to taking teams out on the field on a regular basis. The Obliviator HQ could benefit from having someone who can hold the position full time. I believe my years of experience and the training I have received, especially in the past year, have prepared me for the position and would make for a smooth transition."

His own coffee was then brought to his lips as he waited for the department head to respond. He anticipated she would have follow-up questions.

A very large, friendly, and slightly hyper silver husky ran into the office. The silvery dog ran in a circle around the desk then finally sat down panting. A moment later Conley Phora's voice spoke. "Miss Llewellyn, if you would be so kind as to report to my office immediately. I am currently here with Ambassador Roux."

Ooooh yes! This coffee was delicious! It was really to her taste, so that was one more point in Mr. Zabini's favour. Sian took another long sip before setting it down on a lacy doily coaster on the desk in front of her. Her smile still matched the sickeningly sweet beverage as she listened to the man rattle off all his accomplishments and qualifications.

And she did listen, but her focus was on the candy still in his hand. How very strange. Who on earth simply held food that was offered to them instead of tasting it? Sian's exaggerated smile slowly faded as she kept her eyes on the candy.

She, in fact, did have follow up questions. The first being: "Well....aren't you going to try it?" The candy, she meant, of course. "You did hear that I made it myself? I take so much pride in my candy! And I like to know what my employees think!" And right now she thought he was being quite rude!

"OH!" Sian shrieked in alarm when a dog of all things suddenly BURST into her office. Of course she knew that it was a patronus, but that only made it slightly better. She did not approve of this over-zealous intrusion!

"No! Shoo! OUT!" She waved her hands at the silvery dog, even as it sat down on her beloved zebra rug. But she did hear the message before it left, dissipated, disappeared or whatever, a message that left her heaving a loud, exasperated sigh. This was neither on her agenda nor sounded like something she wanted to attend to. But she supposed it was something she had to do and she would make it down there eventually. Just not immediately.

Now that he wasn't speaking, Dante noticed that the department head's smile wasn't nearly was wide as it had been just moments ago. For a moment he thought that he had said something he shouldn't have, but that idea was set aside in his mind. He stuck to the facts about his accomplishments and his qualifications and that was that. So what was...

Really? That was what Llewellyn was going to prioritize right now? A piece of candy? Eliora would never.

Though internally he was judging the woman and her apparent need to get her priorities sorted out, outwardly the man maintained a rather calm appearance. "My apologies, mademoiselle," he quickly replied, sparing her the reason why he hadn't popped the sweet in his mouth to begin with. His reason was now void. She wanted him to eat it right in front of her, so that was what he was going to do. If anything, it would butter her up again. Whether the smile went back to normal or not would tell as much.

Setting his cup of coffee down temporarily, he tugged on the ends of the wrapper to reveal the piece of candy within. With one swift movement, the candy was placed inside his mouth, right as a whispy silver dog bolted in the room and the woman shrieked. Dante was a bit taken aback by her response to it, but he quietly chewed as he observed the woman react to the Patronus and the voice of Conley Phora. The sigh did not go unnoticed as he swallowed the sweet.

"It's quite delicious," the Obliviator told her with a smile, not bothering to ask if he should come back later since she didn't seem all that concerned about addressing Phora's message that very instant.

Sian had been so flustered by the dog that accosted her right in her very own office without warning, that she had nearly forgotten that she already had a guest sitting in front of her. Oh right! Sian turned her attention back to Mr. Zabini and gave him a terrifyingly wide smile again.

"So where were we? OH YES! My candy, did you just love it??" It certainly seemed that he did and she was oh so pleased!

"There is plenty more where that came from, so please help yourself! Feel free to take some with you too, if you'd like." But with pleasantries out of the way, Sian rifled through her desk and found Zabini's file. Hmm.... everything appeared to be in order.

"I do like what I see, Mr. Zabini," she said, nodding to herself as her eyes skimmed his records, stopping here and there with a sound of approval. "And it looks like you come from a good background." With a name like Zabini, she would expect so. She closed up his file suddenly and turned her attention back to the man in front of her as she leaned her chin on her folded hands and considered him a long moment.

"Well! I think I can offer you that promotion. On a trial basis, of course." She siiiiipped her coffee. "But I'm certain that I can rely on your loyalty to the Ministry and wizardkind that there will be no issue making this a permanent position." This was standard, wasn't it? There were going to be some changes within the Ministry - some already taking place - that she really needed to be able to count on people in her department to uphold them.

Did Dante love her candy? As a man who didn't care much for sweets, no. As a man who had his eyes set on that promotion, yes. He nodded his head. When the department head suggested that he help himself to more, there was a slight moment of hesitation. He personally didn't want anymore, yet he couldn't help but reach forward and grab a handful. If securing that promotion meant taking a few more pieces of candy, then so be it. He was sure that he could easily get rid of them. There were plenty of people who worked in the Ministry that couldn't say no to candy.

The Obliviator sat in silence, carefully watching, as Llewellyn skimmed through his file. Her sounds of approval were quite reassuring.

When the woman mentioned his 'good background,' a smile, a genuine one, grew on his face. Normally he would have remained stoic as ever, but he didn't feel the need to do so. "I am pleased to hear you think so. My family has worked hard to preserve our status within the wizarding community, and I intend to continue that legacy by whatever means necessary." His family's motto was not something to easily forget: we were, we are, we will be.

He too sipped his coffee, and that genuine smile on his face remained on his face when the woman sitting across from him stated that she could offer him the promotion. "Of course, of course," the man replied to her mentioned her offer being on a trial basis. That much he expected, considering she was new to her own position and had yet to learn her employees. "I appreciate that you have placed your trust in me for this position, Ms. Llewellyn. I am quite confident that you will be pleased with my loyalty to the Ministry and the greater good of wizardkind."

Another hearty sip of his coffee was had as he rose to his feet. "I best leave you to carry on with the rest of your day. I am sure we will meet again soon for another little chat." They were busy people after all. That dog Patronus hadn't gone forgotten by him, and he had his own business to attend to. "Again, I thank you for your time and the promotion."