Who: Percy Weasley & Marietta Edgecombe When: August 3, 1997; Afternoon Where: The Ministry of Magic, Percy Weasley's Office What: Supervisor and Assistant meet! Rating: PG Open/Closed: Closed
The chair in the reception area, to Marietta, felt unwelcoming. At least that's what she imagined as she waited. Waiting played tricks on the mind. It exacerbated annoyances and stretched time. The ten minutes she had been waiting felt like twenty, and her nervousness grew, making her stomach feel as if it were twisting in on itself. She willed herself to sit with a straight back and her legs crossed at the ankles, hoping to make a great first impression on her direct supervisor with the combination of her tasteful outfit and posture.
Marietta knew that the heart of the first impression--so important to get right--was in the details. She adorned herself in turquoise and charcoal. She wore a fitted button-down turquoise blouse with a charcoal cardigan and pencil skirt that ended below her knees. Her modest suede pumps were of the same hue. She even accessorized with pearl earrings and a pearl bracelet on her left wrist. As part of her normal primping routine she had straightened her curly, reddish-blonde hair, but she opted to smooth it back into a French twist instead of leaving it down. She had treated herself to a French manicure and put on a little makeup, making sure to keep it natural. But there was one glaring problem with her appearance: no matter how polished she looked, the scars that spelled SNEAK across her cheeks and the bridge of her nose remained.
Marietta studied a potted fern across the reception area, trying to focus her thoughts and calm herself. Before leaving that morning for her own job at the Ministry, her mother rattled off a substantial list of recommendations. Her handshake was to be firm, her demeanor pleasant, her attitude positive and accommodating; she wasn't to bite her lips, fidget nervously, speak rudely, be ungrateful, among many other things. The advice rolled around in her mind while she tried to exercise the power of positive thinking. However, positive thinking wasn't her strong suit. Marietta knew that her mother, who was a part of the Floo Network Authority, pulled strings to land her this job; she felt like she had a lot to prove--she had to step out from under her mother's shadow to be known for herself. She didn't want to be "Beatrice Edgecombe's daughter," she wanted to be "Marietta."
Hearing her name at that moment, Marietta turned her head and saw the familiar frame of Percy Weasley. Marietta stood up to meet him, the man who had, when a teenager, pretentiously patrolled the halls of Hogwarts as Head Boy. He may have lost the right to wear his Prefect badge upon graduation, but he still wore authority. At least it was warranted by his position.