#fdstarter

Peter was there long before the “party” started. He wasn’t subtle about the pictures he was snapping for the Prophet of the census workers. They didn’t seem to be subtle about not caring. The whole thing made him highly suspicious. As people started arriving, he snapped a few more shots of prominent society members before making his way to the table to fill out the damned paperwork. His his worst suspicions were all but confirmed. Having to put his deadname as a known alias was bad enough, but the way the census worker pushed him to fill out the portion about his father, to put in any little detail his mother might have ever even hinted at, left him shaken.

He knew he should be photographing the games starting up at the different tables, but first he needed his hands to stop shaking. He went to the bar and opened his mouth to order an ale, only to realize he was technically on the clock. There were too many eyes who would report him drinking. He cursed under his breath and ordered a butterbeer instead. “This is all...a bit mental, isn’t it?” He glanced to the person next to him and chuckled.

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when the census had been brought up, Nellie had tried to convince the Minister that they didn’t need to include blood status. She knew just how dangerous that information was in the wrong hands, and Nellie was certain it would end up there. Frankly, she worried that she’d be the one asked to retrieve it, as she’d have the most access to it. Already, she was formulating what she’d do to fail her mission and not blow her cover. The idea that this was meant to be a party of all things made her head spin just a little bit. Nellie could already see how many people were on edge, and despite the ministries efforts to reassure them all by throwing a party, she knew it wasn’t working. 

after putting down her own name, she had been tasked with sitting at one of the booths for a while. Answering questions with a smile, helping people through the process, and overall trying to reassure people in whatever way she could - as was her duty. So she was undeniably relieved when she was given a break from her post. 

with a small sigh, she made her way towards one of the carts as she muttered, ‘ I need a drink if I’m getting through the rest of this night. ‘ 

She hesitates a moment at the entrance before electing to maker her way into the village, finding that some of her happiness moments here are now overshadowed by a darkness. It doesn’t matter, this is a Ministry mandated event and something that her mother would want her at as well. For this reason, she steps forward into the entrance despite everything in her insisting that she just go home. Marlene keeps her lips closed and instead makes her way around, eyes taking in everything before stopping close to the edge, almost away from just about everyone. Her head turns to the person near here, clearly going out of their way to avoid the chaos just as she had. “I wonder who thought a census was a reason for a party...” 

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more than anything else, Remus was proud of the expansions that were happening within the library. The pebble tablets were an upgrade, but he was particularly looking forward to the advance search assistant that he’d been working on. It was finally in it’s final stages, and Remus knew that it would help narrow down not only specific works that patrons might not remember the full title of or might otherwise have difficulty tracking down, but also suggest other books tailored to each person. Both a map and a search engine, it had the capacity to locate and retrieve any book necessary for patrons that were busy and on the go. 

for those that still enjoyed the typical library experience though, Remus ensured that it would be as least disruptive as possible. He understood the need for ambience, having spent much time in the library purely because he enjoyed the atmosphere of it. He was busy pulling the books he needed for his latest research topic when he felt the presence of a person behind him. Remus turned his head, polite as ever, as he quietly asked, ‘ can I help you find anything in particular? ‘ 

When: Noon Where: Café Who: Lily & Open 

It had been a few days since the census, and although nothing had changed on the surface, Lily knew that things were different. The Ministry now had a list with the details of every Muggle-Born in the Wizarding World, and their families, and it was only a matter of time before the wrong person would get access to it. It was a lot to deal with, but she knew that she could count on her friends during hard times. 

Seeing some familiar faces that day in Hogsmeade had brought up a lot of old memories, and that was exactly the push that Lily needed to reach out to her old friends. She waited at a table by the window in the local café with a warm drink in her hands, glancing down at her watch to check the time. She was starting to feel a little nervous when she heard the chimes above the door ring as it was opened, and a familiar face came walking in. 

“You know, I wasn’t sure if you would come or not,” she admitted, watching as they took a seat at the table. She had been a little too busy since graduation, and hadn’t made as much time for those she cared about as she should have. “It’s good to see you.”

When: Evening Where: Hogsmeade Village Who: Lily & Open

As harmless as the invitation from the Minister portrayed it to be, Lily couldn’t shake the feeling that the census seemed like a perfect way to gather information, only for it to later fall into the wrong hands. She didn’t want to imagine the consequences of the wrong person having access to a list of every Muggle-Born in the Wizarding World. But with the mandatory attendance for employees, and the underlying threat following it, Lily felt as though she had no other choice than to visit the village and register herself for the census. It would happen one way or another.

Lily glanced around her surroundings as she entered the village, hit almost instantly with waves of nostalgia as memories from her years at Hogwarts came flooding back. The excitement of visiting the village for the first time, grabbing a Butterbeer in the Three Broomsticks with her friends, keeping an eye on the pranksters coming from Zonko’s. Somehow, it seemed like it had only been yesterday when she was last there, but equally felt as though it had been much longer.

She shook the thoughts from her head as she continued down the path, winding her way along between the crowds of people. She could see ahead to where the Ministry of Magic’s table was set-up, and swiftly decided to avoid it for the time being, heading in the opposite direction instead. The gnawing feeling that she had upon reading the invitation hadn’t eased at all, so she would leave registration until the end of her visit. There were plenty of other wizards and witches around to keep them busy in the meantime. For the time being, Lily walked down the path and took a look around at the other tables, wondering if she would spot any familiar faces in the crowds.

When: Evening Where: London City Who: Lily & Open

Lily rolled her neck as she walked down the cobbled pavement, hoping that it would loosen out and release some of the tension in her body. Right now, after a long day of Auror training, a warm shower seemed like the most perfect thing in the world to her. After an exhausting three years, she was almost at the end of the training programme, and was under no illusions that it would become any easier from this point onwards. But she had never been the type of person to back down from a challenge.

It might have just been the lingering effects of the long day that she had, but as Lily headed down the alley, she just couldn’t shake the feeling that someone was watching her. She slowed her pace as she looked around her, ready to pull out her wand at a moment’s notice if she needed to. “You know, if you wanted to talk to me, then you could have just sent a letter.”

Perfectly polished nails grasped at Marlene’s elbow the grip appeared loving to an outsider but in truth, it was to ensure that Adira had control over her daughter’s motions, moving around the room from person to person it was as if seeing double. Two pretty blondes with pinned back hair in a dress that had never been worn before this and would be shoved in a closet to never see the light of day again. Marlene could fake it with the best of them, a smile on her face as she took place in the small talk with her mother because she knew for experience it was the only way to leave this room with her arm in tact.

It didn’t take long but it felt as though Marlene had lost years when her dad had come up, a hand placed on Adira’s back before nodding his head, gesturing for Marlene to go while she could. Slipping out of her mother’s grasp was similar to trying to get your foot out of a bear trap but she did it with as much grace as she could muster. Moving as gracefully as one could in heels she moved to the bar off to the side of the room, ordering herself a glass of Firewhiskey, grasping the cool crystal as though she was using it as a life line. Green eyes fell on her parents, watching how her father had taken her place effortlessly and played nice beside her mother as though he was born for it. A small shake of her head as she looked away --- having people that you loved was a dangerous thing in this day in age of war, it meant that people could be used against you.  “Tell me,” Marlene murmured to the person who was beside her at the bar. “How long is long enough at one of these before someone could slip out without too much of a fuss?”