Absit Omen RPG

Maya tried not to stare at Ignan and his secret son as they greeted each other awkwardly. Addressing Ignan as he did, was just plain weird and she couldn’t help but raise her eyebrows in surprise.

Her reaction was saved by Ignan’s oddly human response to the events and her mother sending them all outside. So, Maya lowered Katrine to the ground and the little girl ran off to grab Ignan’s hand. How on earth had her daughter taken to him so well? Had the grouchy old wizard cursed her?!

"So, is this your first family gathering, too?" Sasha asked from beside her and Maya grinned.
“They don’t have family gatherings Sasha Schlangenweit. Mum doesn’t like people and your secret dad just looks like he’d hex anyone that tried to befriend him.” In all honestly, Maya wouldn’t have liked anyone that her mum chose to settle with. But Sasha wanted pointers.
“Just don’t sit by your new step-mother.”

Whatever a Sith lord was, Maya didn’t seem to understand it. Instead she pointed to the coffee table where he could deposit his presents.

“Mor mor mor.” Neither mother nor grandmother were aware of whether Katrine was referring to Miranda or the couple arriving at the still open front door. Regardless, Maya reached arms out to take her toddler from her mother because Miranda appeared already decidedly uncomfortable with the amount of people entering her small cottage.

Johann, Maya had met the odd time at the ministry. He’d introduced himself back when her mother had randomly married the old man. He seemed nicer; nicer than his uncle (or was it cousin?) at least. And his Balfour? Well she’d seen him about but never spoken to him. Hadn’t her mother called him ‘Balfort’? Dark eyes took him in and she smiled.

Balfour offered a hand and Maya ignored it, instead choosing to pull the large and muscular man in for a hug.
“And I’m an Elliot that will remember your name.” Maya smirked at the wizard when she pulled back.

"Are we going to yell surprise and all that, when Ignan arrives?"

“This isn’t a fancy dress party.” Miranda responded calmly yet evidently unimpressed by the suggestion.

“Nah. Don’t wanna give the old man a heart attack and put him in hospital again, do we? How old now, Ma? 70?”

“Ask him when he gets here?”

“Oh wow!” Maya appeared from the kitchen as the tall younger wizard was allowed entry. “This is him, Ma?” Dark eyes so similar to her those of her mother swept over Sasha and she grinned. “Spawn of the demon headmaster…” she unashamedly made a muggle reference and ignored the glare from the older witch.

He didn’t look like Ignan Storm. Not that anyone else could really look like the grumpy old man that her mother had chosen to commit her life to. Why anyone would choose such a wizard remained beyond Maya’s comprehension. She still suspected the wizard had sizeable savings.

“Sasha the secret son.” The witch’s grin only widened as she gave the German wizard absolutely no choice about receiving a hug.
“I’m Maya, the one she has no chance of hiding.” Maya winked as she stepped back. "Spawn of Satan apparently."

Career Change
Character Name: Maya Elliot
Character Biography: http://absitomen.com/index.php?topic=17864
Previous Job/Position: Personal Assistant to Head of DMLE
Position Applying For: Trainee Lawyer

Why have you chosen to change careers?:
Maya took the job as a PA because she wanted to work in the DMLE but had a young daughter which meant inflexible hours. It's a job she's hated but settled with for months because it's the best she thought she could get. However, with the new cohort of trainee aurors and interns coming in, Maya took a chance and applied to train as a Ministry lawyer.

Elaborate on your expertise in this new field:
Maya has zero experience of this new field but she now has experience of working in the DMLE and how the department works and functions. She knows staff members and their various job roles.

Describe your new job and how you go about doing it:
Maya will be spending a great deal of time studying magical law and it's application. She will shadow various lawyers across the ministry to help with selecting what she wishes her specialism to be. Maya already knows that she wants to become a prosecutor for the ministry but realises that she needs a wealth of experience before she can even think about it.

"I don't see why you wouldn't be," The grumpy emotionless Darjeeling tea drinker said something that one might possibly take as a compliment. It even came accompanied with a smile that didn’t have its habitual strained patronising hint to it. Having worked for Carstairs for several months now, Maya knew better than to presume a compliment. In reality, the smile was probably relief at being able to get rid of her from his immediate vicinity without having to resort to the measures of dismissal.

“My body’s still warm!” Maya quickly responded with a smirk. But, upon realisation that dead body jokes on Level 2 were probably quite inappropriate, she schooled her expression and folded her arms.

“You’ll need an advert. I can do that.” Without invite, Maya found herself sitting down in the chair opposite his desk and pulling a tiny notepad and quill from her skirt pocket. “It will need to be really good. Not exactly an enticing job offer, is it?” Without waiting for her boss’ response, Maya started to put quill to parchment.

Tea. Darjeeling tea with its floral aroma seemed like something Maya was set to spend her life making. It certainly felt like it when her boss rarely bothered to even look up and address her. A good assistant was expected to be basically invisible and to anticipate needs before they even arose. Maya was not content with being invisible and neither was she convinced in being a professional tea maid in a smart office.

"Elliot!" The hot water was boiling in the small pot with her wand pointed at it. Tealeaves had been arranged in a small strainer. Carstairs had found her application and she wasn’t certain if he meant her approach was funny, or if it was her ambition that amused him so.

She didn’t rush, anticipating a distaste for such. But when the hot water had been carefully poured into the pot, Maya returned through the door with the tea tray floating in front of her. It landed on his desk and she gave a shrug.

“It’s not my notice,” she pointed out. “That will come if I am actually accepted.”

Memorandum
To:  J.Storm, Department of International Magical Cooperation
From:M.Elliot, Department for Magical Law Enforcement
Date: 11th April, 2011, 10:45am

Somewhere child friendly? Your relative is technically a grandfather. What does that make you?

Memorandum
To:  J.Storm, Department of International Magical Cooperation
From:M.Elliot, Department for Magical Law Enforcement
Date: 11th April, 2011, 10:45am

No?
Are you related to him?

How he would react to this, Maya wasn’t sure. As she gripped the parchment in her hand, she considered if he would laugh and throw it in the bin or if he would actually take her seriously. She considered if he would criticise her, telling her there was no chance, she wasn’t good enough. Would he have some biting comments or say that he was glad to finally be rid of her as an assistant?

Her mind flashed back to their discussion back in February when he’d outlined expectations and basically threatened her job. Since then, she’d stayed late and upped her game while still debating which direction she’d wanted to go in for her career. Being a personal assistant wasn’t enough. It was a stepping stone until she could make some real decisions.

Throughout her schooling, Maya had been so focused on becoming an auror. Her NEWTs had all been directed to that but at the end of sevenths year her priorities had switched. now, her priority had to be her little girl.

It was 5 o’clock in the evening when Maya finally stood from behind her desk outside Carstairs’ office with the parchment in her hand. She’d waited for half an hour after his last meeting before disturbing him. From her desk, she picked up a pile of parchment that they’d received over the past week. Applications to auror training or legal training were near their deadline date and Maya had finally plucked up the courage to add hers to the list. A quiet knock on the door signalled her intent and she waited before pushing the large wooden door open and stepping inside to push it shut behind her.

She had the pile of applications in her hand, the second one in the pile covered in her neat and cursive handwriting.

“The applications, Sir.” She walked towards his desk. “Head Auror Pratt’s checked the auror applications for your approval. He says he’s already culled a few.” She handed them over, trying to hide the nerves she suddenly resented. “Can I get you a drink, Sir?”

“You think I’m dumb?” Maya asked as JJ tried to prove a point by having a sip of his water. “I’ve not drunk that much that I won’t remember tonight, JJ.” Not that he would believe her. She was still convinced that he really was bitter from her dumping him for Bug after Hogwarts. That had been a mistake; not that she’d tell JJ. Perhaps not at least after this few cocktails.

But he thought she was emotionally defective and mean. They’d barely spoken at work since that discussion. She’d actively avoided him until this evening when her guard had been lowered.

“So now I guess we can add ‘dumb’ to the list of ways to describe me. Not only am I the mean and emotionally defective spawn of Satan, I’m also pretty thick.” Her voice was quiet so as not to alert the people in their vicinity, but she looked visibly hurt, irritated. “Perhaps you need to look at yourself.”

She started to move towards the edge of the booth chair to leave.

He grabbed her face. Instead of accepting the kiss like any self-respecting twenty something, JJ actually grabbed her face and kept her back. Maya swiped and batted his hands away, now staring at the wizard with a frown. Since when did JJ turn down a kiss? Since when had he become so choosy? Who cared if she’d had a few cocktails and he hadn’t? They’d kissed before. A lot!

“Merlin, JJ, it’s just a kiss.” She rolled her eyes, sitting back against the seat. Perhaps this was why she’d dumped him in the first place. She wasn’t looking for some chivalrous guy, she wanted to bad guy. That had, unfortunately, landed her as a single mother with an absent father.

With mild irritation now evident on her features, Maya pulled her hand off his thigh and waved it at his glass.
“Have another drink and stop being a bore.”

“You have pretty eyes.” The far from sober witch told the wizard in the booth with her. Her accent was heavy through alcohol, the Norwegian stronger after a few too many cocktails. One such cocktail was clutched in her left hand as she lifted to her lips, dark eyes still carefully watching her ex-boyfriend and current annoyance.

They’d been out for the evening with old schoolmates. Maya had known JJ would be there but it hadn’t put her off, they would need to get over each other’s company. They worked on the same floor at work, they’d known the same people at school. They couldn’t escape each other.
Now, throughout the evening, the couple had barely said a word to one another. Maya had been too busy enjoying some freedom from being a single mother. She’d dressed up in a short black dress, her colourful dragon tattoo on display on her right forearm. she’d put on makeup, brushed and styled her hair. For once, Maya didn’t feel like a mum, she felt like a normal witch with normal friends and a normal life.

Perhaps that was why she’d had so many drinks. She couldn’t handle them, never had been able to. But she’d been enjoying herself.

And now, somehow, she’d ended up in a booth with JJ and they were sat rather close.

He was handsome; he had been at school. But he’d been an idiot at school. Now he had the job she’d always wanted.

Maya didn’t think much about her action when she leaned in towards him. Her cocktail was placed on the table next to them, her hand placed on his thigh as she went to kiss him.

He seemed awkward with bug like eyes. Bug like. Bug. Now that was awkward. Sylvain certainly wasn’t Bug. He didn’t look like the sort to just abandon a girlfriend and child. But who did? Was it just bad ass wizards with tattooed necks that did that? Why was she even considering such things when sat at the bar on her first night out in what felt like years? It was probably more like months. Sylvain was no doubt uninterested in buying drinks for a young mother who’d probably get very drunk after one more.

Did Maya care?
Very little.

Instead she took her drink form the barmaid and lifted it to her lips. “What would you recommend then, Sylvain? After another I might need carrying home.” No, that was too much Maya. she frowned and sat up straighter, shaking her head. “No, sorry. Thanks for the drink.” It was official; motherhood had ruined her.

Maya wasn’t so sure she liked the way the bartender was looking at her, silently judging. She could judge all she wanted, she worked in a bar for Merlin’s sake. She certainly wasn’t in a position to judge others and the tall handsome looking wizard drinking alone a few seats down wasn’t exactly in a position to refuse.

The bartender asked him and Maya glanced back, offering a small smile, not too much, just friendly. His reaction wasn’t expected at all. It was less interested, more gnome about to be flung out of the garden. Maya bit the inside of her mouth to stop from making a comment in her tipsy state.

French and slightly scared. He was different and Maya had forgotten how to approach these sorts of situations. Or had she ever been in them? Throughout school she’d dated JJ and after school she’d dumped him for Bug. She’d had no practice whatsoever.

"Do I know you?"
That was why he’d agreed to the drink. If Maya hadn’t already drunk 4 cosmopolitans, she’d have been slightly embarrassed. As it was, she took this as a reason to get up from her stool and move along several to sit down next to the awkward stranger while she waited for the judging barmaid to make her drink.
“Not yet.” She said with a bright smile flashing her pearly whites. “I’m Maya.”

“You folks go.” Maya, perhaps a little worse for wear, planted a kiss on the cheek of her old Hogwarts schoolmate. “She’s with my mum tonight so I am not going home before the sun comes up.” A broad grin stretched across the young girl’s face as she waved off her friend before sitting back at the bar.

Bug had been gone for months now. This was the first night out Maya had really had since he had vanished and she was bloody well going to make the most out of it regardless of her friends dumping her to go home and sleep for work the next day. Maya had few qualms about showing up hungover. It wasn’t as if her boss would really notice since he rarely took his head out of his own arse to show manners to those ‘beneath’ him.

Crossing her legs on the stool, Maya felt her skirt inch up his thighs. It was a slim leather one, complimented by the black heels and dark red blouse that dipped possibly a little lower than her mother would have approved. Not that that mattered, her mother was on babysitting duty until the morning. No doubt the husband would appreciate an early wake up call.

A weary look was cast at her from the bartender but Maya paid it no mind, simply smiling back.
“Cosmopolitan, please.” Her dark eyes scanned the bar until she spotted a wizard further down. “He’ll pay.”