"You truly are a nutcase." Francis Pepper told his unexpected visitor.

It was late afternoon, and Francis was busy repairing a time turner for a colleague within the Department. The number of turns to hours had become inconsistent, which meant the mechanism was a little loose, though he wanted to be sure it was absolutely correct. Peering over his magnifying glass on a stand he had been using delicate tools to make adjustments when of all people, Johann Storm had sauntered in with a grin across his face like the cat that got the cream.

Ordinarily, visitors were not allowed within the department, only Johann, being overly curious had taken lunch with Francis earlier that day, where he'd asked theoretical questions about time and travel = nothing too unusual, just how time turners needed to work, and Francis had scribbled explanations with diagrams of timelines and equations on parchment. According to those who gatekept the Department, Francis had asked Johann to translate the notes for him - which was entirely untrue, but sounded valid enough. It had got him through to the workshop, where he had stood explaining his cunning trick to nose around the place.

"You know, I'm going to have to kill you now you've seen all this..." He told Johann in a deadpan tone, glancing down through the magnifying glass, his face briefly magnified from Johann's perspective to a large pair of eyes. Putting the tiny screwjoint back into place, Francis put down his tools, and sat back.

It was during that moment he missed Johann, who was about to finish for the day and go back to catch up on a lack of decent sleep for over 75 hours, take a swig from a new bottle of sleeping potion he had procured from St Mungos earlier. It was stronger, and not intended for use outside of the hospital. Grimacing at the taste, the younger wizard wiped at his mouth, hoping the stuff would do the trick, knock him out at last by the time he got back, and placed it down on the workbench nearby behind a couple of books where there was a gap.

By the time Francis looked up, the deed was done. He just saw Johann's face straighten, frown, and the next moment the linguist disappeared with a thump. Pausing momentarily, Francis hopped up from the stool, and peered round to see his overly curious friend crumpled to the floor awkwardly. Taken by surprise, he hurried to the German wizard and turned him over onto his back, shaking his shoulders and calling out.

To his horror, it appeared Johann had dropped down stone dead, right in his workshop, where he wasn't meant to be.

"Merlin!" He exclaimed to himself, and rocked back onto the heels of his shoes, his apron folding over his knees. Leaving Johann's body on the floor of the workshop, he hurried out, and along the corridors until he came to the office of one of his fellow unspeakables.

"Pardon the intrusion Colin - but I very much need your assistance in my workshop."

It had been a normal day for Colin, so far; come in at 8am, close door, wiggle fingers gleeishly and quietly long for the ability to play music while he worked. Still, the workshop - which he'd fondly referred to as his laboratory, to the scorn of some of the others - had its own audiological symphony that he'd grown so used to he could meditate to it.

He had his wand out, as usual, his leather apron tied firmly around his torso and waist so as to shield his clothes from spills. The room was actually quite well-lit, the light provided by the torches only having to compete with the dull glow of the bottles of potions that lined the far wall. Close inspection of said bottles often revealed things floating in them that set most people off meat for several days.

Personally, he liked the ambiance they provided.

Currently laid out carefully on a slab in front of him was his focus for today, though; the body of an elderly wizard. Sitting next to it was a small shard of rock - a piece of a cinder block, brought from the man's place of death. The man was only naked from the waist up, his long beard draped up over his shoulder to dangle off the end of the slab.

He was currently getting a good look at the old man's heart; the cause of his death via a heart attack. To Colin, it looked mostly normal, though there was an odd shimmer to it, possibly -

"Ruddy thing. Gave out quite suddenly, you know. Wife always said it'd be my liver, you know. That showed her. Ha. Ha." The laugh had no hint of humor in it whatsoever.

The old wizard had a very raspy voice that death had not improved; as a ghost, he was small and reedy, with a floor-length white beard, a long crooked nose and beady dark eyes. He resembled a thin candle that had melted, in Colin's mind. His ghost floated just behind Colin, clad in his dressing gown; his ghostly visage only partially ruined by the fact he'd retained his bunny slippers.

He'd only died a few days ago, though his body was in good condition thanks to several enchantments. Having become a ghost was one of the reasons he was here, though Colin was beginning to grow very slightly weary of him; the old man seemed content to talk even when Colin wasn't listening. This was especially annoying when he revealed some vital clue to the Ghostly process and then quite forgot what he'd said when Colin asked him to repeat it. The monotone of his voice was what was most grating.

The old man was quite happy to discuss his death, though, and that alone made Colin happy to have him about.

The door banged open and Colin nearly dropped his wand, having lapsed into thought over what the odd hint of magic around the heart could mean.

"Pardon the intrusion Colin - but I very much need your assistance in my workshop." Francis seemed to have come in a hurry.

"Bloody hell, Francis," Colin said, pulling the sheet over the body. "Don't just barge in like that, you never know what - what do you need?" His tone changed from annoyed to interested mid-sentance, as he came around the slab, removing his gloves and shoving them in the pocket of his apron.

"Don't just barge in like that, you never know what - what do you need?"

Lowering his head respectfully he acknowledged his entrance had been hasty.

"Apologies Downer," his eyes flicked momentarily to the scene. "Apologies Sir," Francis added respectfully to the ghost. "I wouldn't ordinarily interrupt your fine work, only someone's just expired in my workshop." The end of the sentence was expressed with a look of shock in Pepper's eye. Not being a medical man in any form, he didn't encounter dead, injured or dying people on any regular basis and rather didn't know what to look for - other than his occasional lunch companion had just collapsed and now didn't appear to be breathing.

"Or if he hasn't... I don't know what to... Colin, please, will you come, I don't know who else to ask - he wasn't meant to be in there!" Panic had begun to set into the other unspeakable's face - life was not to be complicated further if at all possible. This incident in his workshop would now imprint a particular time and event, so that he wouldn't be able to test the time turners back for a day or two at least for fear or revisiting it.

Colin gave Francis a waiting look, as if he was expecting Francis to start making sense on his own. When it became clear Francis wasn't going to reveal the joke - and was in fact panicking a bit - Colin quickly undid the ties of his apron, tossing it unceremonisly over the sheet that hid the body.

"Oh, don't worry about my body, it's not like anyone's using it-" the old ghost started to complain, but his raspy mumbles fell on deaf ears; Colin was more focus on Francis's panic and far more interested in a freshly dead corpse.

Oh and that a uninvited person dropping dead might be dimly viewed with the higher-ups. Yes. That could be an issue.

Colin gestured for Francis to get into the hall and closed the door behind them. "Calm down, Francis. What happened - heart attack, issue with the 'turners, or...? Who was it? Let's go, best not to have them get found by someone else without explanation."

"I don't know!" Francis exclaimed, becoming more exasperated. "He was just stood there, and the next he was in a heap. He was just talking to me, he's not even that old." The unspeakable's words tumbled out. Unflappable in a time related situation, he was not with potential dead bodies.

They hurried along the passageways between their rooms, and reached the door to the time turner workshop, which was slightly ajar. Francis tentatively led the way, wondering if he'd been seeing things, if Johann would be sat on one of the stools, fiddling with something he shouldn't be able to touch if Francis had been in the room still.

No, still very much flat out on the floor where he'd left him, not stirred, not moved.
"Merlin, he's not moved. How does someone just drop down dead?" Francis exclaimed, hands to his head. "He works for level 5, he shouldn't be down here-," Francis began to try and explain rapidly the whole story, but he tripped over his own words. For someone who knew his son Ambrose, they'd momentarily see a potential genetic link between Ambrose's inability to pronounce spells consistently with his father's anxiety over the fact Johann Storm had dropped dead on the workshop floor - seemingly not breathing.

Any inclination to snicker or be amused by the situation cleared his head at the sight of Johann Storm, replaced swiftly by a thudding panic. Ignoring Francis's gibbering for the time being, Colin walked to Johann's side, crouching and reaching down to place the tips of his finger's on Johann's neck. Flesh was warm, subtle movement under the skin, a quick feel by his mouth meant his was breathing.

His eyes traced along the length of Johann's body. Breathing was shallow but steady, heart pulsing normally, eyes gently twitching under his touch, though body not responding to a gentle shake of the shoulder.

"Normally, people don't just drop down dead, though it can happen - brain issues," He felt the need to clarify that point. "However..." he had crouched by Johann's head, but now he half-crawled toward's Johann's feet - eying the workshop itself. "Not that'd I'd rule it out in the long run...but in this case, he hasn't! "

As he spoke triumphantly, he straightened up, holding a small dark bottle. He held it out towards Francis, giving it a small waggle to indicate it. "He's just been swallowing this without reading the label, I'd wager. Bloody fool, if that's the case. But he'll live." A quick glance at Johann. "Probably."

Nudging Johann's body with his foot, he looked back to Francis. "I'll take him off your hands - he can sleep it off in my office. Don't think anyone'll stop if it's me carrying the body, unless someone recognizes him..." He snorted. "And if he does drop dead, it'll avoid paperwork. He wouldn't be the first to disappear in here."

Francis was so very glad Colin was now here to take charge of the situation. He retired to perch on a stool and steady himself. Panic didn't do him any good, though neither did the scene before him.

He was most pleased when Colin explained that Johann had not dropped down dead, and was still alive, and jumped up from the stool, hands clasped.
"Oh! That is good - but what on earth's wrong with him?"

Colin soon had the answer to that too, waving a bottle at Francis. The Chronomancer hadn't a clue what was in it, but presumed it was something not to be taken while talking with a colleague.

"No, he wouldn't be." Francis agreed grimly. The numbers of their counterpart unspeakables who vanished without trace for all sorts of weird reasons grew slowly but steadily. "But I think he'd be missed." He approached Johann's body and peered down at it.

"Sorry, he gave me a right shock. I rather panicked." Francis looked apologetically at Colin. "I think he was on his way home next, so I don't suppose anyone will miss him up at level 5 for now."

Colin grunted. "Understandable, given the situation - no worries. Up you get, Johann..." He strained with the effort to sling Johann's limp body over his shoulder, and nearly dropped him; stumbling backwards under Johann's weight, he accidently ran Johann's head and shoulders into one of the workbenches.

"Sorry - he's a heavy bugger, for someone who barely eats..." Colin adjusted his slipped glasses as best he could. "Oof. I'll be in, ugh, in my office.."

He tottered out of the workroom and down the hall, Johann's body over his shoulder. His friend keep slipping and Colin had little ability to properly hang on to him; by the time he got back to his own workspace, Johann's hands were dragging on the floor.

He put Johann down and approached the slab, ready to get back to work - then he eyed Johann and a wicked idea crossed his mind. He considered for only a few moments before he moved the old wizard's body - and ghost, ignoring the man's complaints - in the adjoining room.

Then he put Johann on the slab and calmly stripped him to the waist, laying him out as he would a normal corpse, the sheet pulled over his head.

Sitting at his nearby desk, Colin went back to work - writing his notes on the old man, drawing a quick diagram every now and then. Hours passed, as they so often did, without him really noticing their passage.

Sounds, faint at first, starting to come from under the sheet - Johann was waking up. Hurrying and trying to be quiet, Colin gathered his tools, pulling on his leather apron, mask, and large dragonhide gloves. Then he pulled the sheet back, standing over Johann with tools in hand.

As he gradually re-emerged from his deep, potion induced slumber, near utter unconscious slumber, Johann was not at all aware of his surroundings, or the face he'd been stripped to the waist and lain upon a morgue slab in the chilly room. The slumber was blissful, deep and dreamless, so utterly refreshing after many hours awake with a mind that wouldn't shut up and let him sleep.

However, as soon as one thing was noticed by his mind, the others swiftly followed. First, that his shoulderblades were pressed onto something cold, secondly that his nose was pressed against sheets which smelt like Hannah did after a shift at the hospital when the smells of potions and everything so sterile hung about her, and then the horrible, sudden and rushing realisation that he couldn't at all remember going to sleep, or going home.

Johann's eyes flew open and he realised he was staring at a sheet over his head, which was most definitely not his bed in Gabrielle's house, or any other he was familiar with. Suddenly, it shot out of sight, replaced by Colin, which surprised but didn't alarm Johann too much - he and Colin got on fairly well, even if his two good friends didn't get on all that well together also, which meant Johann tried not to invite them both out drinking on an evening.

His surprise turned to shock as he saw what was in Colin's hand, and he let out a yelp,
"COLIN!" and shot sideways away from his friend, and almost ended up falling off what he was laid upon head first, only he caught himself, and twisted awkwardly to prop himself up on his elbows. It was then he realised how cold he'd got, and had a chance to look around himself wildly.

"What?!" He exclaimed, head still trailing behind its usual speed as it shook off sleep. "How did I get here? Where am I?" Positively freaked, Johann's eyes shot glances around the room before looking to Colin with fear.

He kept his face straight. He wasn't sure how.

Watching Johann wake up was extremely funny, however. He kept his face straight long enough for the man to start rattling off questions, though he did lurch forward as Johann nearly fell. Wouldn't do to have Johann actually die, now would it?

Not that he'd have wasted the opportunity.

He did let his grin appear though., lowering the knife and saw. "My office, thought that'd be obvious," he said, smirking smugly. "You need to read the instructions on stuff you nick from the hospital, Jo. You could've died, you know."

"Died?" Johann was confused. He paused absolutely still a moment and his mind rewound.

He remembered talking nicely to the secretaries to claim he was delivering translations to Francis, then going in to talk to him in his curious little workshop. Johann's eyes narrowed and remembered unstoppering the bottle and taking a swig of the potion he'd slipped into his pocket the other day when he was passing through St Mungo's. The apothecary didn't have anything strong enough these days and he didn't much enjoy healers poking at him or telling him what to do (apart from Hannah, though he didn't heed her either).

Oh!

Colour flushed Johann's pale cheeks instantly as he twigged.

"That potion is a lot more efficient. Splendid." He told Colin, not associating his friend's warning with the potion at all. Died, nah, of course not. He felt excellent now. However, it didn't explain why he was half dressed.

"Colin... what am I doing here?"

Colin rolled his eyes - but he was used to Johann shrugging off warnings, so let it slide. "You took your potion in poor Francis's office, Johann, and keeled over. Poor fellow thought you'd died and panicked."

He was putting his tools away as he spoke, undoing his apron. "Be glad he came to get me, you could have been taken by the others, and at the hospital they'd have found out you nicked their supplies."

Retrieving Johann's shirt and jacket from his desk, he tossed them to the other man. "As for why you're on the slab, well..." He grinned. "Couldn't waste and opportunity to pull apart a brain like yours. I even got a jar ready." He held up a jar which had "JOHANN STORM" written on the label in Colin's square handwriting.

"Aw well, there'll always be another time."

"I did?" Johann asked, and a grin spread across his face. Amusing!

Johann gratefully received his clothes and set about sticking his arms back into his shirt, dangling his legs over the side. He continued to grin as Colin showed him the jar.
"Keep that, Ignan's always telling me I'll get myself killed. I'll be sure to try and keep my brain in one piece if I can though, thanks for the tip." He buttoned up the shirt, wriggling his shoulders as he appreciated the warmth.

"Thanks for letting me sleep though Colin, I suppose I best apologise to Francis for scaring him silly, even if I'd have loved to have seen his face. Oww..." Johann momentarily paused and rubbed the back of his head and shoulders with a grimace.
"Must have worked really quickly, think I smacked myself on the way down." Unbeknownst to him, it was also the fact Colin had almost dropped him hours earlier. Shirt buttoned, Johann pulled on his jacket and hopped down from the slab, automatically patting his jacket to check his wand was still there.

"So this is where you work?" Johann asked, rhetorically as it was more a repeat of what Colin had just told him. Turning on the spot he admired his surroundings. Because Colin and Francis were both unspeakables, they couldn't really elaborate on the specifics of their jobs or let Johann drop in on them. Still, that hadn't put him off trying, but he was impressed that his little accidental potion slumber had resulted in seeing both of their little domains.

"You're not going to have to obliviate me now are you?" He asked suddenly, clapping his hands over his unruly black curls.

"Really? Awesome. Try to keep your skull intact too, I'd love a cast-" The jar was replaced on its shelves of empty cousins, next to the jar marked 'JONAS TREVELYAN".

He looked around the office as Johann did, shrugging. He was quite happy with the decor, personally. "About what you expected? Clear off the slab, by the way, gotta stiff in the next room I really need to finish inspecting and prepping...and no, no memory charms, not unless you gab. The instant you gab I loose my job and you loose your face, gotcha?" This was his dream job, after all; he wasn't about to let Johann get him fired, not when his status as a werewolf put him on shaky ground anyhow.

Walking next door to give Johann a chance to finish dressing, when he returned he was wheeling a gurney, covered in a sheet. The ghost had been left behind in the other room; he didn't need him for this next phase.

"Wanna help?" He asked jokingly, as he pulled the sheet back.

"Alright." Johann replied, rubbing the remnants of the deep sleep from his eyes, and wondering where Colin had put the potion. If it worked that well, he'd hang on to it.

Checking his watch he realised the time, but it didn't concern him. He'd been heading home anyway, and it was good to spend time with friends, even if they were working. It wasn't as if he could spend time with Hannah at the moment. Ever since they'd gone drinking, she'd not been able to stand up properly so Johann had leant her his bed, she'd not spoken to him. He felt as if he'd done something he shouldn't, but had no idea what he'd done.

Still, the dead body bit didn't phase him too much. Johann's distancing between himself and his emotions (which prevented him from identifying what was romantic interest beginning to form in him) helped to prevent him noticing if he felt sick about things like that, in the same way he forgot if he was hungry, which he was, ravenously now. The conventional switch in most people seemed to be faulty in Johann.

"I best know what I'm getting myself in for if do drop down dead for real." He smirked, getting out of his friend's way and watching as intently as a cat did to a mouse or a bird.
"What can I do?" He asked.