afnpc (afnpc) wrote in afic, @ 2011-06-02 17:07:00 |
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The Minister had been awoken this morning, and already he had an interview set up with the WWN to announce his good health. The hall outside Diggory's private room was crowded with his assistants and aides, the crew from the WWN, various Healers hoping to catch a glimpse or overhear the interview, and a whole host of Hitwizards and Aurors. Inside the room itself, Diggory was sat up and the WWN interviewer sat on a chair at the foot of the bed. "It'll be just a few moments, Minister," one of the crew said, fiddling with the large piece of recording equipment, similar to a Muggle phonograph, while another twisted the trolley it stood on to face Diggory better. Diggory leaned back against the pillows propping him up with a beatific smile. "No problem, lad. Take your time." He added with a humoured twist of his lips, "Thankfully, I have it in abundance now." Everyone in the room laughed dutifully, and he nodded his head. "Okay, I think that's done," the young wizard said, stepping back from the equipment. "We can go live when you're ready," he let the interviewer know. Diggory's Junior Assistant stepped into the room then, holding out a short roll of parchment. "We've crossed out the ones we haven't authorised. Stick to the ones underlined," he said sternly. "Robert, it's fine," Diggory interjected calmly, and Stebbins stood back to the side of the room, nodding. "I'm sure Mr Kepner here is perfectly willing to cooperate, aren't you?" he asked the interviewer, who nodded hurriedly. Mr Kepner had been chosen specifically because he was willing to please, and he co-hosted a popular daily breakfast show featuring light news and entertainment stories, health and lifestyle items, celebrity interviews and competitions. Today, though, there would be a special report across most stations with Diggory's exclusive interview, and Kepner was lucky to have the honour. "Right, erm," Kepner cleared his throat and looked down at the edited questions, familiarising himself. He then looked up and smiled at Diggory, turning to his crew to nod. "I think we're ready." Diggory took a sip of water as the crewman counted down from five, silently indicating 'two, one' before swishing his wand to activate the recording. Across the country, hundreds of wizards and witches tuned into the widely advertised report and listened closely as their Minister spoke for the first time since his assassination attempt. "Wallace Kepner here, good evening, Britain! Today I bring you a special interview with your Minister of Magic, Amos Diggory, here at St Mungo's, live. Minister Diggory, thank you for the oppurtunity to speak to you today. First things first, how are you feeling?" "Mr Kepner, it's a pleasure. Good evening, everyone. I'm happy to say that I'm feeling very well indeed." "The Healers have looked after you well, I take it?" "Of course. We have some wonderful men and women working here. In particular, there was one fine young Healer, trained in Muggle medicine as well as our own, who was instrumental in my recovery." "Muggle medicine?" Kepner repeated and Diggory shot him a sharp look that the recording would miss. "Yes. Augustus Pye is a Muggleborn that trained at one of the finest Muggle schools of medicine, and his expertise proved invaluable in my Healing. He is a perfect example of the contributions Muggleborns make to our society every day, enriching wizarding life, and, indeed now, mine. Thank you, Mr Pye," he directed towards the equipment. Kepner looked down at his questions before continuing. "The attempt on your life was made during your speech. Talk us through your experience." "I thought someone had set off fireworks," Diggory replied with a light chuckle. "I even looked up at the sky to see them. And then the next thing I knew I was being bundled down to the ground by members of our outstanding Department of Magical Law Enforcement. It's their procedure, of course, to ensure my safety. They managed to send out some shielding charms and Apparate me out of the area within minutes. "It's interesting to note that I didn't feel any pain at first. It wasn't until we touched down at the secondary location that I felt my wounds. One of the Aurors, a fantastic man named Jerry, was laying on top of me, and I said to him, 'Jerry, get off, I think you've broken a rib of mine.'. He got off me very quickly then, and I remember coughing, and I had a handkerchief full of bright red, frothy blood. Jerry simply turned and apparated me directly here to St Mungo's. "I walked to the hospital bed the Healers directed me to, and that was when it felt as though I'd been hit with a Jelly-Legs Jinx - of course, I hadn't, but that was what it felt like - and they got me laid down. "I was wearing, I remember, a nice blue suit, for the first time I'd ever worn it, it was brand new, and they were using a Severing Charm and cutting it off me," he said, laughing. Kepner laughed too, but then sobered and leant forward. "Did you ever think you might die?" Diggory gave a pause. "No, although I didn't just leave it to chance. I thought of my wife, and of my boy, Cedric," he said, clearing his throat. "I believe they helped me through it, their memories." "But you never thought that it might be the end?" "No, no, but I've since found out that many people here at the hospital thought that it very well could have been. The weapon used was something wizards have been unfamiliar with until now, but as I've said, Healer Pye was able to use his knowledge and was able to bring me back from that brink. And so I now sit here today, a healthy man." "Are you close to catching the person responsible?" Diggory nodded surely. "Due to our forethought of wand monitoring and tracking charms on our suspected terrorists, we have an abundance of information to work with. The DMLE is working tirelessly to take the wizard responsible off our streets, and it is of the utmost importance that the wizarding public is not in danger." "Are you angry with them?" "It is our belief that the wizard is a perfect example of the Burbage Report, a poor soul suffering from the types of mental disorders that wizards with pure blood are susceptible to. I'm not angry, no." "What are your plans moving forward?" "Well, I'll be spending a few more days here - my Healers want to be sure that I'm fine, the dedication to their oaths are admirable. But after that, I'm sure I'll be back in my office, working towards the peace of this country that we all deserve." Mostly everyone that was working late in the Minister's offices back at the Ministry were crowded around the wireless in the break room, listening to the special report. The Minister's door was left ajar, and someone walking past might not have noticed the small gift box placed atop his desk. Perhaps they might have thought it was a present for the recovering Minister, along with a card of well wishes, and continued on. They might not have suspected that it contained anything dangerous, but they would have been wrong, for inside sat a small bomb with an hourglass, the sands of which were slowly emptying into a pile in the bottom. There was possibly only a minute left before the hourglass emptied completely, at which point the bomb would explode in spectacular fashion, obliterating the Minister's desk completely and destroying the rest of the office and many of the surrounding offices. The sand poured down. And then it stopped. "Thank you, Minister," Kepner said, concluding the interview, before turning to the recording equipment. "There you have it; Minister Diggory is alive and well, ready to get back to work serving our country. Please stay tuned for the evening broadcast news and tune in later for the political discussion show with Janus Willoughby. I've been Wallace Kepner, thank you for listening, Britain, and good evening." The crewman swished his wand to end the recording and the hall outside burst into applause, Diggory smiling self-deprecatingly. Kepner leaned forward to shake his hand, and Diggory accepted it, nodding. "Nicely done, Kepner." It was then that an Auror hurried into the room, barrelling past the onlookers filling the doorway. "Minister!" "Yes, Carver?" Diggory said, noting the distress in the woman's voice. "Sir, something terrible has happened." Everyone looked to her in alarm. "There has been an explosion at the Ministry. I think it originated in your office." Diggory's Junior Assistant swept out of the room quickly, and Diggory nodded gravely, seemingly absorbing the information, and moved to leave his bed. "Please attend to those that might be injured and go ahead with the procedures we have set in place for this sort of event." Diggory's Healers rushed in, pushing him back into the bed gently but determinedly, babbling about him not moving and the need for him to stay laying down. Kepner and the WWN crew were ordered out of the room, and as the Healers checked Diggory's vital signs and bandaged wounds, Diggory focused on the wall, his eyes narrowing. By now, the Hitwizards would have Nigel Wespurt in custody already. The former Dumbledore's Army member and Suspected Terrorist would be being Imperiused to confess to the crime of planting the bomb in the Minister's office, confessing to being a part of the so-called Resistance, the terrorist group, and Diggory's plan would have been set into motion. The Resistance would not last the month. |