lakshmi patil (patill) wrote in disorderic, @ 2018-03-30 20:36:00 |
|
|||
Entry tags: | clement max, lakshmi patil |
WHO: Clement Max & Lakshmi Patil.
WHAT: Catching up in a divided world.
WHEN: Earlier this week like Monday before Flick.
WHERE: St. Mungo’s, Administration Wing.
WARNINGS: Nah!
The floo was fixed, and Lakshmi had managed it without growing a third arm. Which, at least if he had, she’d have been in the right place for it — St. Mungo’s. The Administration wing had been plagued by a faulty connection for a few days now, and finally they’d been able to fix it. Rather than leave right away, Lakshmi wandered down the hallway of offices in search of the one that belonged to her former classmate Clement Max. She was in the habit of stopping in to see her friends while on work related business much to Vic’s ever apparent chagrin, but she was simply a social person. She knocked twice on the door that had his nameplate beside it, and then announced herself. “Clem, are you in?” Clement looked up from his paperwork in surprise; he didn’t tend to get that many visitors at work, many staff members concerned that if they bothered him too much he’d give them a bad task or shift (which was likely). “Come in,” he called, smiling when he saw it was Lakshmi and not a problematic worker he had to deal with. “Did you fix the floo?” Entering the office when the offer was there, Lakshmi stepped in and made her way to a chair on the opposite side of his desk. “It’s all resolved now, yes. I can’t even imagine how the charms got that way, but they’re sorted.” She took a seat, crossed her legs properly like a lady, and spied the paperwork Clem was buried in. “No rest for the wicked? There’s a ton back on my desk for me as well. Seems everything keeps getting busier these days.” “No matter how much work you do, the pile never seems to get smaller,” Clement commented, flipping through one of his stacks to emphasize his point. “Who knew increased paperwork was a side effect of war?” Lakshmi stifled a little snort in amusement at the truth of it all. “I know what you mean, and I wouldn’t have guessed it either, but the Department of Transportation is the same. There’s always something.” She sighed at that, remembering the longer evenings now that she and Vic were putting in. “Are you managing well with everything? Not that I would ever doubt you — I just know how it is.” “Work everything or everything everything?” Clement asked for clarification. “I mean, I’m obviously handling both fine, but work is the easier of the two. It’s a complicated time to be a pureblood, as I’m sure you know.” “Everything everything,” Lakshmi specified. “I’ve no doubt you can handle work, busy as it is. Or either, really.” Lakshmi may not have been a purist, but there were people -- not her friends, mind you -- that looked at her and wondered these days. “It is,” Lakshmi admitted with a bit of a sigh. “I understand why, but there’s nothing about being a pureblood that makes one a murderer.” She shook her head and then looked at Clem. “As if, right?” “As if,” Clement repeated. “I don’t think anyone who knew you would ever think you’re a murderer,” he assured her, hoping for the same in return. With a flick of his wand he summoned over his tea set, another spell quickly getting the water to a boil. “If you ever need to talk about it, I’m here though. I understand how difficult it can be to be judged based on something you can’t control.” Lakshmi gave her friend a little smile at that comment. “Not so much, no!” Which wasn’t necessarily what some of her own friends thought about Clem, but Lakshmi couldn’t see that either. Clement had his faults, but a Death Eater? Never. “Admittedly, it’s hypocritical given their justified reasoning against purism. Blood doesn’t matter one way or another.” Once everyone caught onto that things would be so much better off for everyone in the end. “But that’s reciprocated, too, of course. I’m here if you need to vent.” “I’m sure they think it’s justified in a ‘reverse purism isn’t a thing’ way,” he commented, pouring himself a cup of tea and then reaching for a second mug to wordlessly ask if she wanted one too. “Thank you, I appreciate that, but I’m sure you don’t need to hear about Madeline’s latest accusations. I know she’s your friend still.” With a slight nod Lakshmi accepted Clem’s offer of tea, and spoke while he poured. “Perhaps,” she admitted after a brief moment of thought. It was all rubbish and the less deal everyone made about blood the better. “She is,” the woman affirmed, “but you are as well. I try to stay out of the personal conflict as I can. I’m fond of you both, of course.” “Of course,” Clement agreed with a smile, genuinely pleased that Maddie hadn’t managed to turn all her friends against him, though he doubted that was for lack of trying. He was lucky that both Laskhmi and Lumos were so kind. He poured her cup, pushing it towards her when it was ready. “I’m fond of you too, and despite what she might think, I care about her as well. She is just determined to hate me.” The saving grace was that it was difficult to tell what was an exaggeration versus what was reality, and Lakshmi also didn’t agree that ‘purist’ made Clement instantly evil despite everything. Plus, holding Dante’s affiliation against Clement was silly and unfair. Dante Avery made his own choices. “It’s difficult for her,” Lakshmi said, trying to be soothing. “In general, nothing is easy right now. But I don’t doubt that you care about her even if things aren’t good between you both.” She accepted the mug, and then took a sip from it. “It’s difficult for me too!” More frustration crept into his voice than he liked and he raised his tea cup to his mouth to give himself a moment to calm down again. He still wanted people to think he was totally fine with the break up, after all. “Anyway,” he continued after a long sip of tea, “You don’t need to be caught in the middle of Madeline’s childishness.” Lakshmi mentally winced at Clement’s reaction, and she felt a flush of guilt. That wasn’t fair of her, really, to presume it wasn’t difficult for Clement either in this situation. “You’re right, I’m sorry. I can’t imagine what it’s been like this last stretch for you.” She let that thought hang and sipped at her hot tea for a moment, giving her friend the time to compose himself. She knew he liked to stay calm. “It’s alright. I like you both.” Which was the earnest truth, even if she was trapped in the middle of some petty things. “You’re both important to me. I manage just fine.” Clem forced a pleasant smile back on his face. “I’m glad to hear that. I’d hate to lose you as a friend.” She took another sip and gave Clem an earnest smile right back. “You won’t. After all, who would save you from paperwork?” Clement looked back down at the towers of paperwork with a grimace. This had never been what he’d imagined when he’d gotten into healing training. “Would you like to save me from it with a ‘Thank you for fixing the floo’ lunch?” he suggested. “We can even go somewhere that isn’t the Mungo’s cafeteria.” With a quick look at the clock upon the wall of Clement’s office, Lakshmi nodded. Vic may not be happy with her for taking an early lunch, but oh well. She’d get over it. “Of course. That way I can avoid the stack back on my desk a little while longer.” |