The Ministry of Magic

Lily and her mother are walking along the streets of London. They are not too crowded, although the roads are packed with cars. Lily is wearing a green shirt with brown jeans and boots. Ginny is wearing a red and white striped shirt with black pants and a white hat. The two are holding hands. As they turn the corner, there is a red telephone box. They squeeze into it. Ginny grabs the phone and punches in the code 62442. She puts the telephone down where it originally was, and the telephone box starts moving down below the ground level like an elevator. Outside the telephone box as it moves is the floo network to the Ministry of Magic. They walk towards a circular room with a beautiful water fountain in the middle of it. The fountain has a golden statue of what looks like witches and wizards holding hands and standing together in a circle. Elevators are on the left, and the right and a hallway is in front of the fountain. Ginny taps Lily and stops her from curiously looking around herself.

Ginny: Come.

Lily grabs her mother's hand and they walk around the fountain towards the hallway. On the right as they enter is a desk with an elf sitting behind it. The elf is short and is wearing a pint-sized Ministry uniform. He smiles as Ginny walks up to them. He speaks in a rather high voice.

Ginny: Oh, hello there.

Elf: Hello! My name is Plotway. How may I help you today?

Ginny: We don't have an appointment or anything, but the Minister should be expecting us.

Plotway: Can I have a name?

Ginny: Ginny Potter. This is my daughter, Lily Potter.

Plotway: Oh, of course! The Potters. She is expecting you. Right down this hallway is her office.

He points down the hallway towards a huge wooden door with fancy black metal handles, golden designs, and inscriptions.

Ginny: That would be hers! Thank you, Plotway.

Plotway: My pleasure.

Lily smiles at him, and Ginny pulls her down the hallway. She stops at the door. Ginny knocks on it three times. She waits a moment, but there is no answer. After a while she knocks again. A tall man with platinum blonde hair opens it and smiles.

Ginny: Malfoy! H-hi! Do you know where-

Draco: Hermione? Oh, yes. She's at a meeting, of course. Seventh one today. It's just unbelievable. Come in.

Ginny takes Lily's hand, and they walk into Hermione's office. Draco walks towards the front of Hermione's desk and straightens up her supplies and her papers.

Ginny: When should she be getting back?

Draco doesn't look up from Hermione's desk.

Draco: Actually, any minute now.

Ginny (mumbling): Since when does Draco Malfoy smile?

Suddenly, Hermione bursts through the doors. She smiles brightly at Ginny and Lily. She is wearing a tight black skirt that goes down to her knees and a ruffled red top. Her hair is pinned up into a neat bun. She brushes off her skirt and then looks at Draco surprisingly.

Hermione: What the hell are you doing with my stuff?

Draco: What? Am I not allowed to help you?

Hermione: I am perfectly fine managing my own personal items.

Draco puts his hands up in the air in defeat and steps back. He chuckles and sits down in an armchair placed a distance from Hermione's desk.

Hermione: So, how are you, Ginny?

Hermione moves some of the supplies laid out on her desk and sits on top of it.

Ginny: Me? Oh, I'm fine! Don't worry about me. You are not here for me. You're here for this lovely lady.

Lily smiles and rolls her eyes.

Hermione: Why, of course! That's exactly why we're here.

Hermione grins at Lily. There is a small silence.

Ginny: Well, I should leave you lot to it then! I'll be just below this floor in the auror headquarters. Harry has some papers that I need to finish and complete for him.

There is a silence when Harry is mentioned. Ginny leaves the room. Hermione gets up from her desk and walks towards Lily so that she is standing in front of her. She puts her hands on her hips.

Hermione: So Lily, Draco and I have been working on this case for a while now. We have a lot to tell you.

Draco: Is there anything you know about Dabriah? Anything at all?

Lily: Well, Professor Reynott did tell me one thing. He said that Dabriah is trying to lure me to wherever she is. She doesn't want my dad; she wants me.

Hermione: We've established that. Is there anything else?

Lily: Nothing other than the explosion in Norway being related to her, somehow.

Draco: Yes, we've researched that also.

Hermione: Hold on one second.

Hermione turns around to her desk and reaches for her bag that is behind it. She digs in her large, tan bag with many zippers and pockets and takes out a large muggle computer. Draco looks confused. She sits at her desk and opens it.

Draco: What's that?

Hermione: It's a muggle device.

Draco: Obviously. What's it called?

Hermione (laughing): It's a computer. I can look up any of the news and information about Dabriah if I can just... log into the wizard side of things.

Draco: You know what? You do your thing. I have no idea what you're talking about.

Hermione giggles and Draco smirks. He stands behind her and watches Hermione's computer screen. Lily walks over and stands next to Draco on the other side of Hermione's chair.

Hermione: Here we are.

A website made for the Ministry pops up on her screen. There are news articles as she scrolls down the screen.

Draco: Oh, is that it?

Hermione: Good catch.

She smiles and clicks on the article about the explosion. She scrolls down. Draco puts his hand on her shoulder.

Draco: Wait, stop.

Hermione glances back at him and stops scrolling.

Draco: There.

He points to a photo of a woman laying on the ground with her eyes closed. Hermione turns to Lily.

Hermione: Do you know who that is? I don't see a name. I didn't even know that there was a death.

Draco: I've seen her before.

Hermione: Really? Where?

Hermione turns around in her chair and Lily crosses her arms.

Draco: I- Well, I think it was when I was at the market with Mum when I was about sixteen. We were in London, and Mum needed to buy some fruit a lady was selling, and I believe that this woman may have bought some as well. I don't know her name. I just saw her. I don't know how I remember that.

Hermione: Interesting.

Draco: Who wrote the article?

Hermione: Good question.

She turns around in her chair to look at her computer. She scrolls up to the top of the screen.

Hermione: Nora H. Barneby. Do you know her?

Draco: I have an idea- Wait, shouldn't you know everyone in the facility?

Hermione: Well it is rather large. I don't know everyone.

Draco stares at the name on Hermione's computer. A few minutes later, Draco, Hermione, and Lily are walking towards the Ministry elevators.

Man: How are you, Minister?

Hermione merely smiles and nods as people wave to her. Draco looks at her and then looks back at a map that he is holding of the Ministry.

Draco: This really is a huge building. Er- Maybe we should try going down one floor. This map isn't helping at all.

Hermione: Alright, then.

Lily sees the elevator open and they all walk inside. Two other wizards hop in as well.

Hermione (whispering to Draco): I've always hated these elevators. They get so crowded.

Draco: Then change them, Minister.

Hermione laughs. Lily looks back as the elevator closes and Hermione and Draco quickly grab onto a band attached to the ceiling. Lily holds onto the railing attached to the left of the elevator since she is too short to reach the band. The elevator moves back and down one floor. A voice says "Department of Magical Law Enforcement." One of the two men steps out of the elevator. Hermione, Draco, and Lily step out also.

Hermione: She should be just down this hall, here.

Draco nods. The hall is crowded with aurors. Lily takes Hermione's hand. Draco slightly smiles at the two. Down the hall, there is a large wooden door that looks similar to Hermione's. Draco opens the door for the two ladies to reveal a longer hallway that is empty. There are millions of identical wooden doors with golden bars inscripted with auror's names.

Draco (sighing slightly): Now, we just have to find her name. She is an auror, right?

Hermione: Yes.

Hermione takes her wand and walks quickly down the hall looking at every door. She suddenly stops at a door on the right after being a distance away from Draco and Lily. Hermione gestures at them to come over, and they do.

Hermione: Nora Hailey Barneby.

Draco: Nice work. Shall we?

Hermione looks from left to right and then points her wand at the door handle.

Hermione: Alohomora.

The door unlocks and Hermione walks in first followed by Draco and Lily into the auror's office. The office is fairly small with only a desk, a few chairs, and a bookshelf filled inside it. Nora has short, curly brown hair. She looks up from writing on a piece of parchment with a long yellow quill.

Nora: Oh, Minister! How may I help you?

She has a fairly high voice and a bright smile. Hermione hesitates before speaking.

Hermione: I-I read the article that you wrote about the explosion out in Norway.

Nora: Oh, right! It just took forever to finish. My husband Philip said that I was up late almost every evening writing it! What about it?

Hermione: Oh, there was a picture. I'm just being curious, of course, but it was of a dead woman. You didn't give a name. Do you know who she is?

Nora: I-I ...

She hesitates.

Nora: I wouldn't be telling you this if you weren't the Minister.

Hermione looks at her closely.

Nora: Her name is Laurel Blacksmith. She's Dabriah Blacksmith's mother.

Hermione: Of course! Why didn't I think of that before?

Hermione pauses.

Hermione: I should be going, then. Thank you for all of your help, Nora.

Nora: Of course.

Hermione, Draco, and Lily leave her office. They stand outside it, and Draco turns to Hermione.

Draco: That's all the information that you needed?

Hermione: What else did you want to ask her?

Draco: Who was the man holding her?

Hermione: Isn't it obvious? That's Dabriah's father.

Draco: Of course. I assumed that. Totally.

Hermione (rolling eyes): Sure, Draco.

Hermione laughs. She turns to Lily.

Hermione: I'm so sorry, Lily. We've dragged you all this way and haven't said a word to you! Alright, now all we have to do is figure out where your dad is and why Dabriah wants you. They most likely are not in Norway after this incident, or very far from the heart of it. We'll have to do a little more digging.