Who: Alastor Gumboil & Peregrine Derrick What: Discussing the Ministry changes When: Monday, November 7th Where: Alastor's office Rating: Low
Peregrine started his shift a little earlier than Alastor did, so he'd been at his desk, working on paperwork for the past hour. On the surface, the office was operating smoothly. People went about their work, delivering files or working on paperwork. Few people seemed to be going out of the office today, but it was early and there were days like that; sometimes there just wasn't much to do out in the field. But the undercurrent of tension was new. People were being very quiet and Peregrine didn't like it. People were being far too careful about doing their exact job: nothing more and nothing less. He hadn't been here long enough to have seen a Department Head change before, but he'd seen supervisor changes. People were always careful until they learned what the new boss expected of them, but this seemed much worse than usual. Perhaps it was only because it was a new Department Head and not just a supervisor, but Peregrine still felt uneasy.
He was relieved to see Alastor arrive, but he didn't head into his office immediately. He'd caught some of the vibes of caution floating around the department and he didn't want to run immediately into his supervisor's office, as though he had things to complain about. So he worked for a little while longer on his current file, then picked it up, carrying it with him to Alastor's office as though he needed to consult with him about the case. He knocked on the door politely. "Mr. Gumboil?" That was odd, too, since he usually called Alastor by his first name, but it seemed unwise to seem too familiar with him at the moment. He waited for permission to enter and once in, closed the door behind him.
He dropped the file carelessly on the desk and didn't wait to be invited to sit down. He dropped into the chair and leaned forward, resting his arms on the opposite of the desk. "What does this remind you of?" That unfinished statement had been bothering him since receiving Alastor's owl the day before and he was determined to get the answer out of him.