Main conference room. 1430 hours.


"My trip hadn't been any great secret," Solomon was explaining to Mordecai Hollingbury as the meeting dispersed. "So there's no guarantee there was an infiltration on that end. Reid doesn't think so, anyway."

It had been a long one. There was much to catch up on after the events of Halloween[1] - he had been away during the entire debacle, and requested floorwide reports. Halloran had sat in for Three, and Unspeakable Tan for Nine. In addition to the reports, they had to begin setting protocol for the possibility of future time loops.

But now that the meeting was over, Sol found himself talking to Hollingbury about the timing of the breach: the extremists must have had knowledge of both his and the Minister's absence.

"You didn't feel the loop, did you?" he crossed his legs and sat back in his chair - they were at the far end of the long conference table. "Must have been disorienting. I confess, I'm not sure how receptive I would have been to the warning without Morgenthau about."

1.	Nov 1st - A Breach Averted

He'd not meant to linger after the meeting but he'd found himself slowing down of late after hectic times, and the call at the eleventh hour to aid in reinforcing the barriers that Halloween had been one of those hectic times. Mordecai was content to reciprocate Solomon engaging him in conversation; he was in no hurry, especially not after all that.

"Everyone knew you weren't here," he agreed, "it wasn't as if it was hard to notice that you were absent. Still, I'm glad that even if it was a worst case scenario where there was indeed an infiltration, we know we can handle such emergencies in a pinch." He paused. "Wouldn't like to do it again, though."

At Solomon's question he shook his head. "If you told me there was a time loop happening a week back I would have checked if you were hexed. I'm still not as convinced, but that is because that is a circumstance I have no control over. The greater threat is the people behind the idea in the first place."

Mordecai fell silent for a moment, gaze drifting elsewhere. "I knew the movement was serious... I didn't expect them to be that serious." He glanced back up at Solomon. "I don't think I've heard your opinion on the people behind all this - what do you think of them, if I may ask?"

Hollingbury was right - putting the department through this again wasn't desirable, especially at such a large scale. Even if he had been here there was no guarantee they would have been able to pull it off without knowledge gained through the Loops. The number of extremists involved indicated a troubling blindspot in their operations.

"On the Futurists?" he raised his eyebrows and sighed slightly, tapping the saucer of a teacup long gone cold.

What Sol knew about them before Halloween was trifling. What he learned, after, was such a surprise that he wasn't sure if he had fully processed the information.

"I'm not sure," the department head began slowly. "Being so accustomed, as I am, to pressure from the other side of things. It's Purists who typically want the barriers down, isn't it? Getting a foot into muggle dominion to destroy, subjugate. Futurists want to do away with the separation for entirely different reasons."

And here they were, smack dab in the middle of either side, keeping the Statute on its feet.

"I've nothing against muggles, obviously," Solomon added, smiling grimly. "But there must be separation. For the sake of both worlds."

He was a halfblood and he knew perhaps a little more about muggles than the average wizard. Even the purebloods of the Carstairs, like Angela[1], navigated muggle London comfortably. But this was different.

1.	Virgil Carstairs' mother and Solomon's second cousin.

After the incident Mordecai had gone out of his way to look into the Futurists further on his own. Time ball aside, reading about them had resulted consequently in a long silence in his office contemplating both sides. He was no stranger to that, but it hadn't been a pleasant rumination.

"You know sometimes I like to play the devil's advocate," he began, "I suppose a quality I've picked up from my deputy. But you know I do it from a place of wanting genuine self-reflection and introspection, and there are aspects that I think have merit on their own." Mordecai paused to check his thoughts, his certainty. "I can't find any in their cause - and you know me well enough that it's not out of muggle dislike."

He knew Carstairs would know about him, if not on a personal level then just catching up on his history in the Ministry. "And every time either side tries to make a move we end up being the janitors of potentially bloody encounters." Mordecai spread his hands. "You know, every single time people come up with some new way to disrupt our world I have to come up with a new clause in law about it before the Board[1] starts pinging Statute violations like fireworks on New Year's Eve."

He leaned forward. "If they keep this up, by the end of the year I'm going to have a new desk made entirely of laws against Futurist crimes in the office, you mark my words." The exasperation was clear in his tone, even if he might have been making a joke. "But I'm glad you agree that their idea of the future should not come to pass. It would be lovely if I could hear what they feel would justify their cause, but I think my faith in them that they'll remain sane is on the extremely low side." Mordecai glanced up at Solomon.

"Do you think the Futurist movement has the same sort of traction and justification for people to get behind as the Purists do, if not less? Or, heavens forbid, more?"

1.	Magical corkboard with a map of the British Isles in the Improper Use of Magic Office that lights up whenever magic is used where it shouldn't be.

For a moment he thought Mordecai was about to actually play devil's advocate. Solomon was relieved to hear this wasn't the case. It was reassuring to hear the wizard complain about legal consequences of Futurist activity; bureacratic conundrums were irritating yet Sol felt more comfortable contemplating them than the logic behind Futurist idealogy.

"That's a good question..." he considered the question with a slight, unconscious scowl.

Purist movements were rooted in traditionalism, nostaglia, power. It has had longer to grow and he knew this better than most, being on the half-blood side of a pureblood family. On the other hand, Futurism was more proactive and flexible.

"Not the same sort," Solomon shook his head after a minute. "Different. That makes it more dangerous, perhaps. If people are unhappy with the current state of affairs they will be more open to breaking the mould, so to speak. More likely to believe that extremist behaviour is required to enact change."

Whether they were right, who knew? He liked to maintain order and consistency. But change was a constant. To relent to it was the best defence against extremism. "Time will tell," he added as the scowl disappeared. "What do you think?"

Mordecai's gaze focused afar as Solomon explained his point of view. When he was finished the bearded man remained unmoving, though the fingers of his hand resting on the arm of his chair tapped restlessly in contemplation.

"It's hard to tell if it will gain a strong foothold, even with the extremists," he began slowly. "You're right. Purism exists for entirely different reasons. Futurism seeks to open up rather than close us off, and most of the younger generations may grow to agree with it. The reasons we enacted the barrier in the first place grow more distant each passing year to the youth as the world changes, and with it the necessity of the Statute will come under fire."

He refocused his gaze on Solomon. "Questioning the Statute is not new, from back then to even recently. I've already been dealing with queries made on closer scrutiny of some of our laws. As much as we like to pride ourselves on having maintained this masquerade for hundreds of years and keeping our kind safe, much of the legislation is being left behind. I'm all in favour for not fixing what isn't broken, but much of it cannot remain as it was back then. And we need to deal with it before it adds fuel to the fire of the Futurist movement."

Mordecai's eyes lowered to his restless hand. "I'd say while the movement may yet to have gain traction in the British Isles, it poses a very real danger if we leave the matter of the Statute unattended and the concerns of those who would support its removal to the wayside. The movement may have few open representatives, but there are many potential seeds lying in wait in its garden. Like every garden it needs to be cultivated before aspirational seeds promote overgrowth. We may have had our struggles with Purism over the years and not all were successes... we should not let history repeat with Futurism."

His fingers stilled as he looked back up at his superior. "...At least, that's what I believe we should strive for. Whether it will happen or not..." Mordecai shook his head. "I've clearly too much of an opinion on this and I've said enough. In light of what the Ministry has done in your tenure, Carstairs, do you think we can achieve it to some degree?"

Still waters really must run deep. Mordecai had more to say than Sol expected, and his focus on the Statute cut through the rest of the matter with clarity.

"No no," he waved off the other wizard's self-deprecation. "If any subject is worthy of length, it's this. We have no window to the future and only the past to advise us on how to handle such extremism."

Solomon sighed as he leaned back, crossing his legs. Comparing the Pureblood movement to Futurism was not a neat way of looking at things. He liked to think of himself as having a foot in either world. Truthfully, his life was very much on this side of the Statute. Sol might hold clandestine meetings[1] at muggle restaurants but that was the extent of their influence.

"The problem is, I don't understand them." Sol admitted with a grimace. "If we're going to, if i may borrow your metaphor, tend their garden, we need to understand what they want and how they attract people."

Bloody purity was easy enough to wrap one's head around. It was an ideology of dominance and superiority, inherently violent. Realistically your blood status should not matter yet to this day the distinction was still made.

"From my point of view, it seems as though these extremists want nothing but chaos," he glanced down the conference table and thought of the meeting they had just held. "It's naive. Do they really trust muggles?"

1.	5th Oct - Gathering Stones

Again Mordecai regarded Solomon's words in silence for a brief time, lowering his head to gaze at the table in thought.

"Naive, yes," he said. "Chaos, no. There is a sensation of looking out for someone's well-being. The problem is that it does not address whose."

He lifted his head. "If I may indulge a little in my personal life - I live on a muggle street, among muggles. On weekends I greet my muggle neighbours like I am one of them. But I can tell you not one moment do I believe that the sentiments muggles had against us before the Statute was enacted, no longer exist in today's world.

"At the same time I am under no impression that I believe our kind to be so well-meaning. Purism means to put muggles in their 'place'. We both know what happens the moment someone stops seeing people as people." Mordecai's tone did not change, but there was a certain weight to his words as he spoke. "There is very little doubt that we have the ability to do plenty with magic. We can do a lot. We have done great things... great, and terrible things."

He raised a hand. "Let's say we want to share our magic with muggles. What are the consequences of that? What do we have to gain? What do we lose? What do they gain? Are we, as a people, ready to accept that our co-existence may be unbalanced? All these questions are valid, reasonable discussions to be had, except that the group we are dealing with, ironically in spite of their name, has not considered the consequences in the future."

Mordecai raised a hand to prop his chin. "I believe they have good intentions, but you know the saying - the road to hell, et cetera. Therefore I believe we need to have a discussion with them, or at least representatives they are willing to send, on what they want, on what they plan to do, and to be transparent with the most likely outcome. Whether they will listen or cooperate is not something we can control. But if we take the first step to reach out and come to an understanding, at least we can say we tried."

He looked up at Solomon. "I am aware that my rather moderate perspective may not sit well with you," he remarked with the quiet solemnity of a man who had already experienced criticism for said moderate perspective. "So as my superior I directly defer to your thoughts now, Carstairs."

It was something of a surprise to hear about Mordecai's personal life - to hear him draw their conversation back to his own experience with muggles. It seemed more immersive than how Solomon navigated muggle society.

Nonetheless, Hollingbury maintained professional distance.

"Defer to my thoughts?" he laughed lightly, tapping his teacup saucer again. "You needn't be so formal. At any rate, I don't believe these people are so centrally organised as to have willing representatives for the entire movement."

None of them seemed to be the leader of the Halloween breach, based on interrogations. Of course that was the kind of thing they hadn't disclosed at today's meeting and wasn't exactly in Mordecai's realm; not with so much to do on the legislative side.

"From what I can tell," Sol continued with a slight frown. "They are purposefully fragmented so as to avoid incriminating knowledge of one another or their leadership. Many of the extremists we caught don't even share an exact ideology. Extremism in itself was the most common ground."

Naturally, extremism attracted certain kinds of people. That's how you got halfbloods working with purists.  "But you do have a point," he added approvingly. "We should be seen as taking the first step, even if it's to appeal to the moderates."

Ever the pessimist, he wouldn't hold out hope for the leaders to reveal themselves.

"Of course, definitely, the movement isn't centralised. An approximate effort by involved, interested parties that contribute as much or as little as they find necessary as long as it achieves their intended goal. For them, collateral damage is a concern for individuals, not as a collective. Someone has to care, however, which leaves it to us."

Mordecai rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "I may speak in a more optimistic manner, but I am uncertain as to how the Ministry can help to open discussion instead of seeming closed to outside opinion. I have been trying on my part to do so with Improper Use, but change takes time and not everyone will want to speak with us even if we make ourselves extremely friendly. That is reality."

He prided himself on being a realist, but the next words he said showed his hand far more. "We should not expect any sort of leader to show up at all. Anyone in a movement can call themselves a leader, it does not mean they are capable of leading nor does it guarantee loyalty. In other words, a difficult balance. A thin line to walk. And at the end of the day, we're going to upset people anyway because we have to establish limits and not everyone likes being limited. What a cheery thought."

Mordecai folded his hands into his lap. Despite his clearly deadpan response he was not perturbed knowing that people would be upset. "Improper Use is doing its best, but we can't please everyone and it is what it is. All I want to make sure is that people know they are safe." He paused for a moment. "We do need to look into the movement further and gather the opinions of the public on the matter, get someone to promote our openness. I would make a terrible spokesperson for that sort of thing, I'm afraid." His words ended in an amused chuckle. "Don't make me do it."

He was serious. Despite his work Mordecai had never been one for public representation, preferring to operate in the background to keep the machine running smoothly while someone else polished its exterior. The Improper Use Office had flown under the public radar for years for this reason.

A good deal of Solomon's work involved public opinion - law enforcement was far from popular and it was reassuring to see that he wasn't the only one concerned with how to open discussions on sensitive subjects without being perceived as taking a strong stance. Futurism was relatively new, they would need all the help they can get.

"No," Sol laughed at Hollingbury's plea not to be made a spokesperson. "I wouldn't put that on you, not with all the other work you have on your shoulders. I'm not even sure if it is within Two's purview to be making that manner of decision."

Talk as they might from positions of influence, the Ministry was a vast contraption and this issue reached all corners. Solomon sighed and pushed away his teacup. "Muggle Affairs Office," he said slowly and pointedly.

They were on Level Five, for reasons beyond his understanding, and he rarely thought of their function. If Solomon was worried about the Statute he was more likely to reach out to Three to address a breach.

"If there are people who already straddle the fence between worlds," he continued dryly, "that's where we'll find them. Far more informed than either of us..."

Sol half-smiled at the other wizard. They were two old men, Hollingbury even older than himself. Age was far from a barrier to understanding but they wouldn't be able to solve this by talking circles in a conference room.

Mordecai mused over the suggestion.

"You know, they haven't spoken much to us over the years," he said eventually. The nod to the fact that they were supposed to be working with Improper Use went unsaid but implied. "To be fair, we haven't had a lot of crossover between Muggle and magical crimes until now, which has been the possible reason."

Where was it again? He didn't even know. Merlin, the monster the Ministry had become. "Either way, I will look forward to the participation of related parties and sharing of perspectives different to ours. I'll make sure to keep the doors of the Office open to them."

"Far more informed than either of us..." Mordecai smiled wryly at this.

"Would you be irritated if I said I'm looking forward to understanding their perspective and listening to their motives no matter how ludicrous, nonetheless?" His tone was cheeky. It was a light tease and Mordecai knew his superior was not so uptight, but that was why he could do it in the first place.

Hollingbury was a little formal but he approved of the seriousness with which the other wizard approached this subject. Sol knew where he stood with people like him, and could count on a thorough opinion of nothing else.

"I'm as interested in hearing what they have to say," he admitted lightly. "There's something to be learned about the way they think, it can be useful. The more we know the more we are able to... anticipate their motives, their movements."

Perhaps a bit typical for a former auror, to think of every movement in an adversarial light. One should after all pay as much attention to one's enemies as one's friends. And Solomon was more adept at making enemies.

"I had better get a move on," he sighed as he pushed his chair back from the conference table. "We must do lunch, Mordecai. There's much I'd like to hear of your thoughts on the Statute."

Trust his superior to think of the strategy with a more tactical mindset, but that was what Mordecai appreciated most of the time: a different perspective. Carstairs certainly brought a new meaning to the words 'council of war' at times.

He himself preferred the diplomatic route, convincing the voices most heard to a better side, but that approach did not necessarily work all the time. Some things needed a gentle elbow to nudge matters along. Other times it was a heavy hand that had to shove everything into action. A perfect mirror of the two seated at the table.

"Yes," he agreed, "although I'd definitely keep it light and simple for your sake, and I could do with a reminder to not talk a donkey's ear off about my career. Definitely lunch."