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Tweak says, "I'm Henry VIII, I am"

Millicent Bulstrode (reinventingmils) wrote in finnigans_rpg,
@ 2014-10-07 03:17:00

Entry tags:

character: millicent bulstrode, character: richard summerby

Who: Richard and Millicent

What: Interviewing for a job

Where: Offices of International Exports Ltd.

When: Tuesday morning, 9:55 on the dot

Rating: SFW

The view was pretty, she had to admit. It looked like a fairly interesting neighbourhood, and she wondered how much of it was magic, and how much Muggle. Rubbing right up next to each other -- was it as straightforward as it looked on the surface, or did the Messrs Summerby have a detailed infrastructure in place on their properties? That would be intriguing to find out, she admitted to herself, looking at the building's façade while she straightened, smoothed, and made sure everything was in place.

Then she started up to the door, let herself in, and looked for the reception desk before making her way over to it. "I'm Miss Bulstrode," she said, curling her fingers around the strap of her purse a little more tightly as the receptionist looked up to meet her eyes. "I'm here to meet Mr Summerby; he's expecting me." Did she imagine a wince at her last name? Well, it didn't matter if her name meant something or not; she was here for a reason, and she wasn't going to let someone she didn't know taint the calm Dora'd helped her find. As she was offered a seat, which she took, and a cup of tea, which she declined, she took another assessing look around, noting the lines and the décor in addition to the people moving in and out.

Interesting. She knew the company's name fairly well due to the range of interests they covered, but she'd never had reason to know well anyone who was involved with it. Maybe that would change, after today. She hoped, anyway. The research she'd done to prepare had been mostly fascinating (the rest of it over her head), and while she knew perfectly well an office manager didn't really travel, she couldn't help hoping that if she were hired...maybe she could go along once in a while. It was something she envied Blaise, the opportunity to see new places while he worked.

He seemed taller in person, she thought in surprise as Richard Summerby came into the room at precisely 10 o'clock. How odd. She stood immediately, and offered him her hand when he drew close.

"Mr Summerby, I'm Millicent Bulstrode. Good morning."

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the_richard
2014-10-07 02:49 pm UTC (link)

Richard trotted a few steps to come into the lobby of the old International Exports building at exactly 10am. His appointment was of one of the major names in the wizarding world, it wouldn't do to get off to a bad start by showing up late.

"Rich, please, or Bee, Ms. Bulstrode," he replied with a smile, taking her hand. As always, he was careful to give a warm, professional handshake, moderating the strength in his hand to suit the person he was greeting. "A convenience when more than one Summerby works here. If you don't mind, we've a short walk ahead of us. I'm over in the Annex."

He led the way out the back of the reception area, down a short hall, and into a carefully maintained formal garden. "IE had the Annex built in the late 1800s when some of the more progressive senior partners decided we had better have a place where that new-fangled technology thing could be accomodated. It has taken a bit of work over the years, but things like electricity and telephones have been worked into the scheme of things."

On the other side of the garden they went into the back of an obviously newer building, through what was obviously a library, and into the back of a lobby where there were several lifts. Escorting Millicent into the lift he spoke with the young operator, "Two for the top, Wilson, This is Ms. Bulstrode. With any luck on my part, she'll be working here. And how are you coming with that paper I assigned on global currency comparisons?" The young man grinned. "I see now why you wanted me to do it, sir. There's an almost beautiful logic to the whole thing." "Watch yourself, or you'll end up assigned to Gringotts. Better brush up on your GobbledeyGook."

Out of the elevator and around the corner was the door to Richard's office , which was its usual disaster area. "Each of these folders and folios represents a contract currently in progress. When everything is finished and the paperwork cleaned up, it goes over to publishing in the old building and is kept in that library we came through for future reference." There were two comfortable chairs, behind two identical desks at the end of the room under the skylight. Rich motioned Millicent into one of them and took a seat in the other. "I've coffee, or I can ring down for tea, if you wish. You said you were interested in the Office Manager position. What do you bring to the table?"

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reinventingmils
2014-10-16 03:34 am UTC (link)

So it was a mixture of magic and non-magic. Millicent nipped lightly at her lip in thought as she took in the surroundings while they walked. And if she hadn't gotten to that conclusion by the time they got to the lifts, she thought, she probably would have gotten the tip-off from... The lift rose with a bit of a hop and a slow, extended swoosh that made her clamp her lips down on a squeal, and the thought died before she finished it. Morgana. All right then, the lifts must either have a slowing spell on them, or they were Muggle as well. She gave both men a glance out of the corner of her eye, looking to see if they'd noticed, and decided that Wilson hadn't, but that Mr Sum-...Rich very well might have, if the slight smile was any indication. Or he might have just happened to look over at that moment, and was being polite. She hoped it was the latter. Trying to explain that she didn't think she'd ever been in a Muggle lift would be awkward, though he'd probably expect it. She just...didn't want to look like a snob. That would kill things before they started.

Rich led her into his office, and Millicent was hard-put not to blink at the sight. That it wasn't quite what she expected was one thing -- her father's office had been full of hard, dark woods and plush leather chairs. This was full of light, which was very nice. But there was...a lot of paperwork. It wasn't strewn about, necessarily, but it was certainly a lot less...organised than she would have thought, given what (little, admittedly) she knew of Richard Summerby's public image. She took the seat he offered, and settled her purse in her lap, crossing her ankles and resting her hands on her bag. "I'll take some water, thank you," she said immediately, more for the chance to have something in her hands than from thirst. Though she might need it before they were through: there'd been one interview once when she'd been completely dry-mouthed after the first ten minutes from the amount of talking she'd been asked to do. Something gave her the impression Rich was more of a conversationalist than others, though.

"I am." Right to the chase, then. Millicent took a steadying breath, steeled her nerves, and smiled lightly. "I have experience as a personal assistant, which I'm sure you're aware requires a combination of secretarial and assistant skills." Did that sound condescending? She hoped not. And anyway, expectations were customisable, depending on the employer. Keep talking, Bulstrode. "I can keep a calendar, screen correspondence, plan meetings, make travel arrangements, keep a filing system, take dictation..." She drew in a tiny breath to keep herself from going too much more in-depth. Better to simply give the most important general skills, and then let him ask for more specifics if he actually needed them. "If you require me to prepare paperwork or do advance research, I learn quickly, so learning your preferences wouldn't take me very long. I can be discreet, and I would be willing to take an oath of fidelity, if you chose." She uncrossed her ankles, then recrossed them the opposite way. "And given that your business focuses on the international," she continued, "I speak fairly good French, and I'm learning German."

Millicent leaned back slightly, chin rising almost imperceptibly as she gave Rich an assessing look. "What in specific do you require for the position?"

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the_richard
2014-10-16 04:22 am UTC (link)

Rich got up and walked into the small kitchenette and got out two bottles of water. Handing one to Millicent, he went back to his chair and cracked open the top of his own as he sat back down. "Much of what is required you've already listed as being skills you have. In addition, you'll need to have a fair amount of... flexibility, I suppose is the best word for it." He gestured to the computer monitor on his desk. "I noticed the lift surprised you a bit. Happens a lot to those without a lot of experience in the muggle world. This device - it's called a computer - is how I communicate with quite a few customers, do my scheduling, many of the other things you mentioned. The underlying principals are the same. A business letter is still a business letter, for example. But by using this bit of muggle technology, that letter can be delivered to the other side of the world in seconds."

"I don't expect that you've mastered the latest muggle gadgets. I certainly need constant advice from those more skilled with them. The question is, are you willing to learn another way of doing things. I do a lot of business in the muggle world. The Summerbys have for generations. Muggle money spends the same as any other."

He sat back in his chair, pausing to take a quick drink of water. "You mentioned an oath of fidelity. The offer is appreciated, but not necessary. The reason is simple. Your base pay here would be enough to starve in an attic somewhere. Twenty galleons a week, paid by International Exports. To that is added 3% of what I bring in - for your first month. After that, for your first year you are at 5%, then up to 8% of my take. You get 15% on any contracts you close by yourself on any of my regular clients. I realize true loyalty can't be bought, but there is no reason it shouldn't be rewarded."

"I know a few different language learning charms. Don't need them myself - have an odd mind that just soaks them up - but others around here have used them. French will help you with the Marseilles office. Father is a senior partner here and runs it, so I'm back and forth to there all the time."

Rich smiled a little and leaned forwards in his chair. "So far, how does that sound to you?"

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reinventingmils
2014-10-17 06:09 am UTC (link)

As much research as she'd done on the company before she'd owled to ask about the position, Millicent thought as she opened her bottle of water, she hadn't found much on the man sitting across from her. She'd learned over the years that the Summerbys did business with non-magical clients, but she hadn't been quite sure how much interaction he himself would have with Muggles in his day-to-day business. But the more he spoke, the more she understood that it was a lot, and she couldn't help thinking she was coming at this with a distinct disadvantage. Even her stepmother, by far one of the more tolerant people she knew, hadn't done much (if anything) with Muggle technology, and Millicent regarded the computer-thingy with no little trepidation. If she were hired, and it broke, would she be expected to learn how to fix it? Would magic be permitted in certain circumstances in the office, for that matter?

Though he was right, she thought as he started breaking down numbers -- twenty galleons wouldn't get her far. In that case, it wasn't so surprising he didn't ask for any kind of oath; his way of handling things made a fair bit of sense. Tying a person's pay to their productivity would be a good incentive in itself. She wasn't sure it would work all the time, but that wasn't any of her business, either. And how intriguing that she would be permitted to close contracts in some situations. How much training would that require, she wondered? She needed to remember to ask.

Language learning charms! Millicent leaned forward a little, unconscious of doing it. She had never had the chance to learn any, especially when her aunt was the only one in the family who really cared about such, and she hadn't been on good terms with Millicent's father for some time now. "I enjoy Marseilles," she said with a nod, head tilting in thought. "It sounds reasonable so far, though I wonder how much training I would need in order to be able to close contracts as you mentioned before?" She took a small sip of her water. "And how much magic would I be permitted to use behind closed office doors?" A tiny roll of her fingers encompassed all of the technology on the desk where Rich sat. "Would it interfere with your...gadgets?"

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the_richard
2014-10-17 01:21 pm UTC (link)

Rich chuckled. "I'm sort of assuming your first month would be training in Muggle 101. If you can handle being taught by some of our younger office assistants, generally the muggleborn, you can pick up enough to get by in a week, and become fairly comfortable by the end of the month. Oh, and I should mention, the office assistants, great young boys and girls, are here for a chance to learn the business, make factor and start making their own deals if they are good enough. Don't doubt they'll be picking your brains about what a good PA does."

His smile grew larger. "What, really, do you need magic for? My biggest problem was getting over the habit of summoning files from across the room. We have telephones, and messengers to carry a note to the owlry in the old building. You want hot tea there's a microwave in the kitchenette, and somebody to explain it to you. Client files are even color coded so you know who is muggle, who is muggle in the know, and which clients are from the wizarding world. And once you learn the computer, you can pull up information on any of my clients so fast they will think you have the memory of an elephant."

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reinventingmils
2014-10-21 06:45 am UTC (link)

It was hard not to let the professional façade slide, but she managed it, face calm whilst thinking quickly all the while. A month was quite a lengthy amount of training, and she'd have to be very quick on her feet to learn enough to start doing the job well. Having her brain picked was fine: Millicent knew she had learned a lot from her previous employment, and how to multi-task under pressure. It just...would be interesting having to work so closely with people who wouldn't normally be in her...social atmosphere, as it were.

But a bigger sticking point remained, she realised as Rich kept speaking, and Millicent pressed her lips together very slightly. She was proud of her magic; it felt like a sort of betrayal, in a way, to have to completely hide that she had the abilities she did. There was a lot of Muggle machinery in the room, she noticed again: the computer, and several other things she didn't recognise. They all looked fairly expensive, she thought to herself, and handling them would make her nervous. Not only because she didn't know how to use them, but because it would only be correct for her to replace them if something happened to them while she were doing so.

And she had to wonder how well she would take to the finer points of very specifically not using magic.

Practicality and upbringing warred in her eyes as she looked around the room again. The former reminded her that rent needed to be paid by whatever manner she could contrive, since her father had specifically stated how much help he could and couldn't give her. But the latter screeched that she couldn't possibly consider working somewhere she'd have to hide her magic (need, indeed!), and be taught by people she probably wouldn't know in the first place. Her impression from Dora was that Rich seemed to be extremely practical, to the point of tolerating almost no frills at all, and that had been borne out so far. She could appreciate that, she admitted to herself. He was very, very frank, for good or ill, but he did at least see that she would be flying blind at the beginning, if he made her an offer and she accepted.

In the moment after he finished, Millicent thought rapidly. Her family had kept out of the world of the Death Eaters, but nevertheless, given that she'd been a Slytherin in Potter's year, not many would-be employers were eager to make her an offer. She couldn't begin to think how she would adapt (or what her father or, Morgana help her, Pansy would think), but Rich was offering, and she needed to make the best of her cards. No one could fault her for that. International Exports had an excellent reputation; she knew that from the small handful of times her father had gotten products through them. And for all that she didn't quite understand how the ship sailed, it seemed to be done very tightly.

So she sat back in her chair, shoulders straight, and tilted her head in query. "What would you expect from me in the first few weeks, given my...background? What do you consider the most important thing for me to learn at first?" Taking another sip of her water, she thought over his earlier comment. "How many office assistants do you employ, currently? What does a typical day in your office look like?"

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the_richard
2014-10-21 09:10 am UTC (link)

Richard had always been good with people. It had probably started when he was a child, the way his father and grandfather encouraged him to get out and meet both muggle and magical children, to play with them equally alike. His hadn't been the world of nannies and pristine nurseries. Yes, he'd had his tutors and the lessons his social status called for. But he could still speak French with a Parisian accent or that of a Marseilles dock worker.

Working with magical creatures had helped hone his acuity for non-verbal clues. During the war he'd stayed alive partly because of his powers of observation, his ability to react to tiny bits of information. Since the war, he relied on that and the way a child who had learned multiple languages could easily learn more as an adult to make a rather successful living as a contract negotiator.

So it wasn't that unusual, for him, anyway, that Rich caught the slight tightening of lips, the glances around the room at the various examples of muggle technology, the slight hesitations as Millicent considered what to say.

"Your first weeks? Learn the basics of a modern office. Get and idea of my schedule, what I'm currently working on, who my major accounts are." Rich picked his Daytimer up off his desk. "A muggle pen and paper version of a Rememberall. Handy invention, one that is gradually being replaced with electronic storage in my mobile phone - I still keep a paper backup because electronics are so vulnerable to stray magic though. That pile of contract folders other end of the office need to be checked that everything is in chronological order and sent off to the print shop next door. Checking them will give you a feeling for how deals are made."

"Ah," he nodded his head. "A point of clarity. International Exports is an old firm. A trading partnership at first. British goods to the rest of the wizarding world, foreign good back, since it wouldn't do to bring ships back empty. Some of the partners are still exclusively in that trade. I own a share of IE as a junior partner. I take a junior share of all company profits, and a junior share of all risks. International Exports the company provides the buildings, more importantly, the reputation of honesty and reliability, and pays the base salary of, well, people like you and the assistants. Which is a misnomer. The have to undergo a competitive examination to work here, and are actually more like paid apprentices. I don't own ships. I know people who transport things that do. I rarely buy things, and don't make anything, but I know people who want to sell things they make, and other people who want to buy those things. Or if I don't know them, I make it a point to get to know them. Then I broker a deal. Biggest to date was arranging the labor and materials to build a resort in Dubai. Paid cash for a building in Southwark I'd had my eye on with my share of the take. And paid off my partnership. So there's the firm, and then there's my business. I make International Exports money, it makes me money. But they really are two separate things."

"As I see it, you are buying in with your skills in office management, since you have references rather than starting from scratch like the assistants do. For that, you get a piece of my profit, because what you do will help me make more of one, and a chance to learn how we do the voodoo we do. I don't expect you to know it all starting out, I expect you to learn how we do things. And going back to what I mentioned before, I expect you to be flexible enough to deal with the wizarding world, muggles - a term we don't use much around here - and anyone anywhere in between that might be a customer."

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