12:30PM

“He’s insane.” Evangeline Kuester muttered quietly as she stared at the document in her hands. Edwin Glass had inherited an inordinate amount of problems when he’d taken office as Minister for Magic. The Ministry’s most wanted criminal had been taken in and arrested but the problems he brought with him were yet to be solved. Dementors still plagued their country and the population looked to Glass to sort it out.

His method of fixing the problem was carefully detailed in the draft proposal that had been delivered to her desk by a junior member of staff. Kuester had reread said proposal at least three times before sitting back in her chair to fully consider the implications of such a proposal.

Between Glass’ horrendous suggestion and Lawrence Musgrave’s current situation locked in a cell on level 2, Eva found herself quickly feeling regretful about her return to wizarding Britain last year. Faces had changed, that was true. But many things had stayed the same. Their minister’s face had changed. But their minister was once again either cruel or stupid.

Resigning herself to the need to approach her superior about the proposal, Eva stood from the desk and left her office to cross the plush purple carpet to his. The wizard sat outside his office at a desk was ignored and Eva gave the door a quick tap.

She waited to hear the minister’s voice before pushing the door open and stepping inside. She didn’t speak a word or look at her boss until the door was pressed shut and she knew they wouldn’t be overheard. Document in hand, she turned to offer him a tight smile.

“I trust your meeting went well this morning, Sir?” It always benefitted discussions to start off politely before one questioned the other’s motivations and ideas.

“Come,” Edwin called.

He was seated at his large desk, reviewing a thick dossier of parchment, chin nestled between thumb and forefinger of his left hand, elbow resting on the desktop. His job required him to do a lot of reading, which is why he supposed previous Ministers used to rely on summaries and signing things that looked half-decent. Edwin liked to give as much attention as he could afford. He needed to learn about some of the deeper workings of the Ministry Departments, just as he knew Level 3 inside and out, but also know he could rely on his department heads. With the imminent loss of Gabrielle Murray for her maternity leave, and her unusual choice in temporary cover, he was paying more attention to Level Five. He was also trying to build the international relationships Zephyr passed on, as Minister.

Edwin didn’t glance up straight away, but his periphery vision identified Kuester as she stepped in. He finished the sentence he was on before looking up at her initial question. Striped jumper. Bold. Wasn’t he meant to be seeing one of the financial undersecretaries now? He made a glance to the grandfather clock quietly ticking away in the office.
“Yes, very well, thank you Kuester.” He laid his forearms flat on the desktop, and gave her his polite attention. “I think we shall make a very good team indeed.” He gave her a brief smile. “Was there a lad from finance waiting outside?” He asked, “Only I thought you were him when you knocked.” There was a pause, “He can wait, of course.” Edwin added, flashing an appeasing smile. She had something in her grip.

“I’m sorry to disappoint.” Eva responded in regards to not being the financial undersecretary he was due to meet. Regardless, she stepped further into the large office, not exactly being sorry to disappoint at all. “There was no one waiting, Sir.”

Still unsure of what to make of the new minister, Eva wasn’t certain how to approach the subject of his ridiculous plan without endangering her job and position in the ministry. This would go one of two ways but it was far too important to not challenge him on this. Other proposals, Eva left her opinion at home and simply tackled them from a legal standpoint. This, however, she didn’t feel she could be unbiased about.

“I’ve ah… I’d just read your draft proposal on the dementor situation.” Despite having no offer to sit, Eva decided to occupy one of the chairs next to his desk, crossing her legs and frowning somewhat.

Edwin blinked twice as she explained in slightly unsure terms, why she had come to visit his office. He had assumed, wrongly it seemed, that it was a flying visit for a clarity check or signature. Instead, she settled opposite him in one of the chairs set the other side of his desk. He took a split second, raising his eyes to the ceiling as he recalled which she might mean.

“It’s an early proposal, yes.” Edwin confirmed, looking back to her and shuffling his elbows slightly on the desk. “It needs work?” He suggested, “Do we need to set aside a time to discuss?” He glanced past her to the door, wondering where the financial undersecretary had got to. Since they had demoted Pickler temporarily for the incident[1] with Musgrave’s parcel, there had been one less efficient set of eyes watching the visitors outside his office.

1.	6th AprilThe Fire that was so Trim

The minister really had no idea what was wrong with his idea. Eva, feeling frustrated about having now, to tackle this head on, unfolded the parchment in her hands and stalled for a moment as she glanced back over the title and foreword. It was only a few seconds in reality before she looked back to her superior and shared the real reason for her visit to his office.

“It needs completely rethinking.” Gone was the subtlety and tact she’d planned on approaching him with. “Dementors were removed from Azkaban due to their allegiance with dark magic and the pure inhumanity shown through giving them prisoners to feed off. Azkaban is a buffet of souls for consuming.”  He wouldn’t take it well, she knew that. Few men in powerful positions took suggestions from women well. But she had to make him see.

Eva herself knew the effects of prolonged and severe exposure to Dementors. She’d spent a year locked away in Azkaban, a food source for the soul destroying beings. The horrors were something she’d not wish upon her worst enemy. Even the people that had put her there in the first place. Glass had no idea. She’d done her research, he was a halfblood, muggle mother. He’d probably never been near Azkaban back during the time of the dementors. He’d probably never truly experienced the lasting effect and torment.

“You have a duty of care to Azkaban prisoners, no matter their crimes, and this betrays that.”

More than a rough draft then! Edwin’s eyebrows shot up in surprise at Eva’s response. He shifted back slightly in his chair, drawing his hands back to the edge of the blotter.
“… Azkaban is a buffet of souls for consuming.”
“Yes…” Edwin agreed, though not entirely audible, it was clear from his lips.
“You have a duty of care to Azkaban prisoners, no matter their crimes, and this betrays that.”

He blinked and narrowed his gaze on Kuester.
“We have a duty of care to the nation,” Glass replied in a reasonable, but firm tone, “dementors have plagued us for over a year now. We have not tackled it, and it has impacted both on our lives and on Muggles. Clause 73, Kuester. We have to take action, and I am not expecting it to be popular.”

It was difficult to school her expression when he pointed the law out to her, the lawyer. He was right to expect unpopularity of his decision but, fortunately, it didn’t just take his opinion. It had to go through a higher body and she couldn’t see the majority of their ministry being in support of this idea.

“Clause 73 dictates our responsibility to conceal the dementors from muggles. It does not state the need to once again remove all rights from the human beings currently in our care in Azkaban. You are putting one group of people above another.” Her voice was showing a mild frustration. Over the past year her accent had become decidedly more English again, the foreign twang slowly leaving. Until she was frustrated.

Glass hadn’t even been in office for two weeks and she certainly hadn’t expected the need to speak to him in such a manner quite so soon. gone was the worry for how he’d take it, instead she needed her point to be made, regardless of his position.

“Surely as an expert in the International Statute of Secrecy considering your previous position, Minister, you are aware that it does not condone endangering the lives of witches and wizards in order to protect those of muggles. The statute was created to safeguard witches and wizards and I certainly don’t believe that theft and perhaps smuggling should stop someone from having the rights to sound mind.” People were sent to Azkaban for lesser crimes than murder. “Innocent people have been sent to Azkaban in the past. I defended them on Level 2. I was one of them and I can guarantee there are some currently within its confines; do they have no rights after you’ve already taken away their freedom?”

“We are already putting one group of people above another by letting them roam the country,[1]” Edwin snapped back through gritted teeth. He did not agree with the way Kuester had decided to insert herself into his schedule to debate when he had given her a perfectly polite opportunity to arrange a time for this discussion.

“Nobody deserves to be plagued with dementors, but between murders and children, who is more worthy of protection?” It was never going to come out well. Kuester was brimming to snap back at him, he had unintentionally picked a fight with a lawyer after all, but he lifted his hand, a finger raised to indicate he was not requesting an answer, but would like to state his case.

“It is a very early draft proposal to allow the contained research. We need to find a safe way to contain dementors away from a mainland population. Have Holmes schedule us time to discuss this. Now is not convenient.”

1.	Edwin is in a way, exploring utilitarian view - save the majority or the minority when a bad outcome is unavoidable?

The wizard had decided to silence her with a raised hand and a finger. A staff member quieted from her harassment of the disgruntled employer. Eva’s lips pressed together as she held herself back from responding. He wanted to speak, he could speak. She needed to approach this correctly or her entire argument would backfire through a lack of professionalism on her part. They would, however, need words another time regarding his method of asking her to withhold response.

Now wasn’t convenient. A moment ago the financial undersecretary could wait. Now, it wasn’t convenient. Blonde eyebrows shot up, barely visible beneath her fringe as she gripped the parchment. Now wasn’t convenient because she’d got him on the spot and he had no real argument prepared to back his opinion up.

“Now is not convenient because you know this isn’t a safe method of controlling dementors. I’ve taken you by surprise and you need the time to prepare your argument for this proposal.” She’d allow him to do just that if he so wished. It would be necessary, anyway, were he to proceed with the plan. If that were the case, in her role, she’d be expected to help him. The thought made her feel sick.

Regretfully, the witch stood.
“Just consider what you want your first act as minister to be, Edwin. I wouldn’t be doing my job if I didn’t strongly advise you against this.”

Edwin found himself wanting to argue back to Kuester, but he bit his tongue. She got back to her feet.

“Noted, Kuester. Now out,” the Minister snapped sternly, standing the other side of his desk to emphasise. He didn’t sit down until she had removed herself from his office and exhaled heavily. Where was the ruddy financial undersecretary?!

---

5:50pm

Three floo conversations, fifteen letters, six dictated responses, two meetings, three dossiers and eighteen signatures later, Edwin Glass was still brooding over the conversation five hours earlier. Setting aside the third dossier, he sat back in his chair and rubbed his eyes and ruddy cheeks with both hands, letting out a long sigh. He lowered his hands and steepled his fingers, tapping forefingers against his thick lips.

For all the years he’d led Level 3, he had made a point of learning the names of his teams, knowing things about them. However much had a little pleasure in chaos and being able to control maelstroms, and was a Slytherin who had covered up and helped co-ordinate disaster in and out of wartime, he was now Minister. In the week and a half he’d been Minister, he had come to realise he was going to make a hell of a lot of mistakes, and as much as he had been frustrated at Zephyr’s leadership - and control - his frustration couldn’t lead him to rash decisions now.

Besides, he liked Kuester. Not liked in the way he’d smiled and flirted with female staff in the past, not to imply Kuester was in any way ugly or undesirable, but she had given him an excellent first impression. She did know her stuff, he appreciated it, and he had failed her by not understanding her background.

Setting his head back, Edwin gave an exasperated sigh.
“Yes, you’re going to have to.” He told himself, and seized his chair by the arms.

Level One was quieter, most of the daytime staff having clocked off at five. The hallway was relatively empty, and Holmes had vacated, perhaps temporarily, the office outside Edwin’s. He had memorised the doors in the hallway over the past few days, and with a furtive glance up and down, he set out across the thick purple carpet to a smaller office he’d never stepped foot in yet. But now it was more than time.

The door was open, so Edwin paused in the frame, coughing gently to announce his presence and gently rapping his knuckles.
“May I?” He asked quietly, though it was rhetorical. Stepping into the booklined office, he pulled shut the door, and latched it behind him. There wasn’t as much space in here as there was his, so he remained stood by the door with his hands folded behind him, a hand on the door knob.

“About earlier,” the Minister began, eyes lowered, there was none of the ire from earlier. The wizard was altogether thoughtful. “You made some very pertinent points. I… Would you be willing to expatiate?”

Whatever junior members of staff Edwin Glass was used to speaking to like that, Eva wasn’t willing to put up with it. She had left he office feeling somewhat like a child reprimanded. It greatly irked her but she said nothing as she left, closing the door behind her. Her irritation was not going to get the better of her.

It did, however, take an hour to so to calm down enough to fully concentrate on her work and she, like the minister, tended to remain late past the contracted hours. From her desk she could see people leaving, the odd one wishing her a good evening and suggesting she didn’t stay too late again. Eva had waved them off picked up another document to read through.

When the minister unexpectedly arrived at her desk, Eva was sipping a hot chocolate at her desk. She glanced up, surprised. He asked if he could come in yet he did regardless and the door was pulled shut, leaving them in the now claustrophobic office.

About earlier… Eva found herself groaning inside, wondering if the same uncomfortable method of conversation would continue. But he admitted she’d had a point.

The temptation to ask if now was convenient was pushed back and she lowered the mug of hot chocolate to regard him carefully.

“By all means.” Her gaze dropped to the small armchair in the corner of the room; she didn’t need to offer the Minister for Magic a seat. If he wanted to sit, he would.

She appeased his request. He had thought to suggest another time, but letting things fester wouldn’t help.
“Thank you,” he acknowledged, and slowly took the armchair she highlighted. Her office was incredibly neat, just as she presented herself, and brightly lit despite the hour. The space was definitely her own, whereas Edwin’s office still didn’t properly reflect him as his old one had. Then again, he wasn’t one for many personal touches, no family photograph to display, and it didn’t seem right to rehang an old Department photo on Level One.

“You said you were one of them,” he began tentatively, finding it hard to meet her gaze. “I haven’t read your file, Kuester, forgive my oversight. I’d find it invasive, given what you’ve told me now, and you do not have to answer - but,” oh get to the point man, he lifted his gaze at last, assembling a neutral expression as far as possible, “...when you said that, what did you mean?”

“You said you were one of them,”

He hadn’t read the file. He didn’t know her history. Now uncomfortable with the conversation, Eva sat back in her chair, gripping the mug of hot chocolate as she considered how much to share and how to word it. She took a sip, stalling.

“When the ministry fell, I was sent to Azkaban with a life sentence for stealing magic. No trial.” She spoke quietly. The door had been closed to eavesdroppers but that still didn’t make the discussion something she liked to engage in.  She barely knew Glass, wasn’t yet sure what to make of him. But he’d been nominated and voted as their minister for a reason. She just had yet to see it.

Eva didn’t avert her gaze from Glass’, wondering if he would himself. Would he also find this too uncomfortable?
“I take the strongest sleeping potion the healers will give me just to sleep through the night without the screaming. More than a decade on and my own mind petrifies me. A couple of run ins with dementors doesn’t do that, Sir, being part of a feeding ground for them does.”

Edwin gave Eva his undivided, respectful attention. Although he hadn’t yet outrightly admitted it, he acknowledged he had been in the wrong to dismiss her earlier. She should have taken his advice to schedule a meeting however. He blinked once, twice, after her description. It came to the point quickly. He wasn’t sure what to say, but nodded to show he acknowledged what she had admitted. She carried on, taking him by surprise with personal detail aimed to appeal to him emotionally.

“I can understand your position a little better now, Kuester,” Edwin replied, as if the wind had been taken out of his sails. He didn’t dare say he understood because he didn’t, Kuester had proved that with her outburst earlier, and he would never understand what it was like to be incarcerated in the North Sea.

“Negligent for me to not be briefed… to recall.” Edwin added, as he had been an obliviator during the time. As much as the losses has been shocking, in the war it had become a default to assume anyone missing hadn’t survived, and being sent to Azkaban had become as normalised as taking a holiday in peacetime. Terrible.

“Would you prefer I reassigned you to other duties when it came to dementor policy?” He asked, anticipating it might be easier on the witch if she was downing sleeping potion to deal with her memories.

Despite the difficult topic choice, Eva felt this was certainly going better than this morning. She’d already made the mental note of not springing anything on the new minister without prior notification first. After a few hours of thought, he was far more amenable.
Or at least he’d made seem so far.
Until the final comment.

Eva’s brows shot up and she lowered the hot chocolate to her desk as she stared across at the wizard, not quite believing where he’d taken this conversation.
“That’s not what I’m asking for here.” The witch calmly stated, although her voice betrayed slight irritation. Had he come to see her here this evening, to act far more understanding, just to get her off working on his policy? Did he want it pushed through without the grievances of his legal advice?

“This isn’t about me avoiding difficult conversations about a difficult policy. I have dealt with my problems for over a decade and I don’t let them affect my work. But that does not mean I should have had to. I don’t care what someone has done, to sentence them to a lifetime of wishing themselves dead because that would be the only way to cope with the dementors… that’s barbaric.”

“Tell me, Glass,” Eva was now leaning forward, elbows on her desk, hot chocolate left forgotten, “would you visit Azkaban and perform the cruciatus curse on one of the life sentence prisoners? I mean…they’ve killed someone or far worse. They deserve it, don’t they?”