Ten to ten, mid morning.

Much of Edwin’s office looked as it had before, but he was rather enjoying his new desk. It was broader than the last, which gave him that bit of extra elbow room and space to spread out the regular documents he was given to review. The carpet was still as thick as ever, absorbing sound and suppressing echoes. It kept his office rather quiet, once the double doors were closed, much quieter than it had formerly been. The grandfather clock had not yet returned from the Department of Mysteries, but would be ready in a matter of days.

When it had malfunctioned earlier in the month, nobody had expected attempting to fix it would result in severed fingers. The discovery of a temporal tamper had delighted Francis Pepper, the unspeakable summoned to examine it after the fingers incident. Edwin trusted Pepper, he was a good man, and not mischievous like his brother. Octavius Pepper had just spent the last hour staring at Edwin at regular intervals, painting his portrait.

Apparently the clock had become severely damaged, but that was nothing in comparison to the news that the tamper had been placed there to mess with Edwin directly. When you wished time might fly during a boring meeting, you wanted control over it, not that someone would influence it at seemingly random. It explained some jumps in time in the week before, which Edwin had put down to his own misperception. Owing to the secrecy behind the whole clock incident, he had not been able to discuss it specifically with Octavius, but had asked some questions about the artist’s own temporal incident which had caused him to live twenty years of his life in parallel, in America.

The Minister took a moment alone to survey his refitted office, now free of any potential bugs or magical interference, and stretch his legs under the desk. It didn’t last long, with a prompt knock at the double doors which opened to reveal his expected guest.

It took a week to strip the Minister's office. Brinley had made sure it was thorough. He and Francis Pepper had lost thirty minutes. Brinley had no idea it had happened. Until Pickler pointed out how long they had been there. He had read more about them in the Ministry library. Could understand why Pepper was excited to find one.

Now the Minister was back in his office. Brinley was pleased. He had seen it reduced to an empty box. No wall paper. No carpet. The office had been as busy as Diagon Alley. It was proper to have Glass back where he belonged.

"Minister." Smile allowed. "Good to have you back." He closed the door. Took a seat. "We will search your every week when you leave. Make sure nothing is here that should not be." Brinley would make them search more often. It was important this was a place for secrets.

“Minister.”
“Abbott.” Edwin shared the smile. He had missed the office for the week, there was no doubt about it. Silly though, considering it was just a room, and only his while appointed. It had belonged to many others before him, the bold and the bad. He shuffled his shoulders against his chair, which he had perhaps missed most of all.

“Sounds reasonable.” Edwin agreed to the plans to search his office regularly. He trusted Brinley to appoint the correct people for such a job. It would be an invasion of his privacy but he had his home for anything he felt truly that way about. Work invariably followed him home.

“Any progress on investigating the origin of it?” Every sitting Minister had plenty of enemies by virtue of the job, but Edwin was keen to identify who might be actively working against him. He would much prefer them rounded up and in cells than allowed to keep acting against him. Was it werewolf activists, dementor enthusiasts, anti-Ministry or those against the Statute? Or perhaps a jealous ex…

“And did you find anything else?”

"No sir." Said Brinley. Dismayed with his findings. "Francis Pepper has investigated the tamper. But he is unaware of the creator." Brinley remembered the meeting. Francis had gone on for ages about the beautify of the tamper for half an hour. Brinley was patient and his friend but it was pushing it. "It has gone to Magical Law Enforcement as evidence." Even spying on the Minister was not a top job for them. "We think they only needed one to disrupt your timing for a week or two. Now they have been discovered they will not try the same trick twice."

“A week or two?” Edwin repeated, mulling it over. “You know, I’ve been trying to pin down how long it might have been,” he sat back, shoulders pressed into the high-backed chair, running one hand over the other. “I’m sure some of my meetings the past month have dragged on suspiciously long…”

Edwin’s humour was lesser-glimpsed since he had taken office, but with Abbott he could permit the relaxation. “No, I am sure the time distortion would have become apparent to you, Pickler and Holmes in the adjacent office if it had been longer than a few days. Only reassuring fact of this occurrence.” His hands parted and he shrugged.

“Good job the only harm otherwise was Dervish and his fingers, though I understand they have grown back now.”

"Confirmed sir." Said Brinley. He had seen the fingers. Regrown good as new. "How many more sittings for your portrait?" Brin had gone to one sitting. It was not long. Sketching. Early one. It would not be hung up until after Edwin died. But it was tradition. Every Minister had one painted. Zephyr had one Annwyl too. Ready to join the ones in the hall. The longer it took the more Pepper could put words in Edwin's ear.

“Ohh… maybe two more? He can be a bit of a perfectionist, Pepper.” Edwin sighed, drawing out the oh, and stretching his arms straight over his desk. “He’s not let me take a peek yet, so I’m a little worried he’s decided to do a Bagnold and skimp on clothing.”

Octavius Pepper had leapt to infamy for painting an unauthorised painting of Minister Bagnold in the nude, before displaying it in a Diagon shop window as she passed. More recently he was known for his flying cars, but he was still the most accomplished portrait painter Edwin knew personally. “That, and I think he’s enjoying bending my ear about the car debate.”

Edwin leaned forward to eyeball Brinley Abbott directly.

“Ever been to America, Abbott?”

"Perfectly pleasant place." Said Abbott. (Penny Pickler would be proud.) "Why Sir? Are we expecting visitors?" If they were it was news to the Senior Undersecretary. It was his business to know. But now Brinley put two and two together. "...The cars?" He asked.

“The cars.” Edwin smiled knowingly, lacing the fingers of his hands together before him on the desk. “You’re going on a short trip across the pond to inform our policies on them, hosted by Octavius Pepper.”

Edwin had resisted for as long as he could, and Pepper’s explanations and reasoning were beginning to hold water. “I need my best man on it, to give an objective eye. Can’t have people claiming favouritism to an old friend or that he’s done me a deal on the portrait. (Of course he hadn’t, Octavius might be a bit of an eccentric artist, but he wasn’t a fool when it came to the Ministry’s budget for Ministerial portraits!)

“Not for a month or so, mind you. You’re needed here for the inquiry and my never ending calendar, but perhaps when summer comes around and the nights are at their shortest.” Less time for werewolves, less time for vampires to enjoy their mischief. “Better weather, too. Set yourself up with some meetings with their Transport division.” He extended the invitation and suggested itinerary from Pepper’s American company, Blue Silver.

Brinley was surprised. He did not think Edwin would ever give flying cars his attention. Perhaps he still was not. Even though he wanted to send Brin to look into it. He had a sudden thought.

"Be prudent to take someone senior with me. Quill Som?" He asked the Minister. They both knew Quill very well. She had been Edwin's Deputy before he became Minister. Quill and Brin were close. Maybe getting closer. "When the night are at their shortest sir."

“Som?” Edwin echoed, as if contemplating how Quill’s name sounded in this context. “I will consider it,” he shrugged, “put it to her, and see what she feels. We might be able to spare her, and she will be a good ally to you with Pepper.” He trusted Quill implicitly, though he wouldn’t share his worst with her, as she had a moral compass far better calibrated than his own.

“Very well. That will be all, Abbott. Thank you.”

End