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Tweak says, "Someone gave me fleas.."

Marietta Edgecombe (ex_edged72) wrote in strugglewithin,
@ 2008-11-30 03:47:00

Entry tags:

*complete, august 1997, bellatrix lestrange, marietta edgecombe

RP: Ink Face
Date: 29 August 1997
Characters: Marietta Edgecombe, Bellatrix Lestrange
Location: Ministry of Magic
Summary: Marietta is overworking herself in her attempts to make sure everything is in order for the Muggleborn "interviews" when she has a run in with Bellatrix Lestrange that leaves her shaken.
Completion: Complete

Marietta found it humorous that Umbridge could go home and rest and she still got stuck going through the times and names on the list. She had to make sure every i was dotted and every t crossed. There wasn't room for error. Error would be disastrous. Most people had already gone home for the night. She hadn't been home in days. She hadn't bothered to owl or let Padrig know she was staying over either. She assumed he'd figure it out. Making sure everything went smoothly on Monday was her job. She'd get into trouble with the higher ups if there was a kink. She couldn't trust these other babbling idiots to check all the paperwork anyways.

She'd went into this thinking that it was an issue involving a few hundred people but it turned out there was a bigger Muggleborn issue than she could have imagined. If they banned together they could easily overturn any Ministry mandate. The Ministry didn't have this sort of power. The Hit Wizard and Aurors combined couldn't get the job done properly. She was smart enough to know that there would never be a organization behind all the Muggleborns though. There were too many. They didn't have a leader. They could try but they weren't going to beat this. The Ministry was going to succeed in whatever it wanted. Marietta still wasn't sure where they were going with this though. In the bits and pieces of conversation she eavesdropped in, she knew it was going to be something that most people wouldn't like. Most people didn't know what was good for them though.

She could barely keep her eyes open but she focused on the parchment in front of her. The names were blurring together which should have been a sign to stop but she was stubborn. She was kept going until she nodded off face against fresh black ink on the page. It was going to smear all over her.

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sw_bellatrix
2008-11-30 12:59 pm UTC (link)

Bellatrix was wandering through the corridors of the Ministry with her hood down and wearing her own face. The pardons had finally been announced in today's Prophet and she was itching to be out and about as was her right as a lady of her class.

While the Ministry was a far cry from the brightly lit salons and shops that were her rightful domain, but it would do for now. Besides, it was important that she renew her acquaintance with its corridors and offices and handy little nooks. It had been far too many years since she was here and things had changed, which urked her greatly.

Finally she came upon an office that at one time had been part of the Records of Birth, Death and Inheritance Department. But now the door had a plaque that read 'Muggleborn Registry'.

Oh, how interesting.

A flick of her wand flung the door open and the strode over the threshold in a swirl of rich, heavy skirts. The girl at her desk jerked her head up, eyes wide over the signs on a decided lack of sleep. "Hello, my dear," Bella purred, "And who are you?"

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ex_edged72
2008-11-30 01:06 pm UTC (link)

Marietta was startled by the sound of someone entering. She was even more so when she saw who it was entering. Bellatrix Lestrange had been pardoned and she should have known she might come to encounter her. She never imagined it would be in the Ministry after hours though. That had not been something she’d ever fathomed.

“Edgecombe. Marietta Edgecombe,” she said trying to keep her voice even. She wasn’t a coward but something about the Lestranges always put her at a level of unease. They had quite a reputation though. They weren’t the sort to take lightly.

She stood as if on command to offer a hand in greeting. If she was there, she wanted something. What that something was Marietta wasn’t sure? She wasn’t even certain that she’d be able to give her whatever it was? She’d be damned if she didn’t try though. She had a lot of living left to be done. Death was not a desired item on the menu for the night.

“To what do we owe the honour of your presence at this hour?” she asked.

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sw_bellatrix
2008-11-30 01:18 pm UTC (link)

Bellatrix took the offered hand with a genial little smile. Edgecombe. Not as grand a name as Black or Malfoy or LeStrange, but acceptable. The tremble in the girl's voice, however much she tried to mask it, was gratifying. It was so nice to be recognized without having to name one's self.

"Oh, I'm just reacquainting myself with this hallowed place now that the little misunderstanding concerning my innocense has been addressed." She released the girl to prowl around the office, trailing her fingers across piles of documents and casting disparaging looks at the insufferably cutsy kitten covered decorative plates hanging here and there. "Burning the midnight oil, are you? I quite approve. I myself do my best work after dark." She smiled in manner that was far more predatory than the cats decor that surrounded her. "I love the way that darkness lets sound carry."

Spinning suddenly, she faced the Edgecombe girl again. "Where is that dowdy pink thing that heads this department? Should she not be here also?"

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ex_edged72
2008-11-30 01:36 pm UTC (link)

Marietta did not believe Bellatrix to be innocent. If Bellatrix Lestrange was not a murderer and a Death Eater, then Marietta was a virgin and pure as the driven snow. She was, however, not foolish enough to let it show on her features. There really wasn’t any reason for her to be there unless she was up to something. Obviously if she was looking for Umbridge then had something in mind. A part of her wished she’d allowed herself to slip off home instead of staying late now. If she screamed no one would hear her. The Ministry security obviously didn’t have much concern for the night staff if a Lestrange could roam the halls freely.

"I am just finishing up some last minute things,” she explained straightening papers. She could only imagine what having a list of names and addresses for every muggleborn might would do for a Death Eater. As much as she detested them, she didn’t much want to pass over that sort of thing. Her hand rested more firmly over her paperwork on instinct. “It’s my job to make sure everything is in order. I wouldn’t want anything to be out of line. I’m certain I’m missed at home though.”

There was a picture of her and Padrig on her desk. When they took the picture it had been civilized but most of the time the picture forms of themselves took to playing kissy-face or Padrig playing with her hair. It was embarrassing sometimes when people came over and took notice of it. She tried to maintain this professional image and that made her look more like a school girl with her first boyfriend. When it caught her eye she was tempted to move it away so Bellatrix wouldn’t take notice of it. Her cheeks flushed at the sight of it. Dammit! Padrig must you be so damned romantic in the fucking photo frame.

She aimed to distract with words instead. “Oh, Delores was in dreadful need of sleep! I told her that she really ought to go home and refresh herself. She’s too delicate to have to stay late. There wasn’t much need when she has an assistant like me. Would you like me to pass a message on to her? I’d be much obliged.”

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sw_bellatrix
2008-11-30 01:57 pm UTC (link)

Oh, the ickle baby bureaucrat had already learned to protect her paperwork. How darling. How futile if she was truly here pry information from Edgecombe's little grasp.

Bellatrix rarely curbed her impulses and did see the point of even a token effort right now. She sashayed her way up to the girl's desk and plucked the picture she kept shooting agonized looks at from its place between the ink well and the blotter. "Your husband? Boyfriend?" she asked, running an idle finger down the less than appealing face of the boy mauling the girl's picture self. Pausing, she gave the picture a closer look. "Well, well, Mr. Cadwallader. I didn't know he had such lofty taste in women." She smirked coyly. "He's a useful sort. Very obediant."

She dropped the picture none too gently back into its place. "No. I have no message for Miss Umbridge. I wouldn't want to upset her delicate disposition."

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ex_edged72
2008-11-30 02:10 pm UTC (link)

Her stomach turned and her already pale skin turned ghostly white. She could literally feel the bile rising in her throat. She knew Padrig. Bellatrix Lestrange knew of Padrig. Her Padrig. It didn’t sit right with her. He hadn’t mentioned a run in with Bellatrix Lestrange. He’d never once said anything about this woman and now she was saying he was obedient. Marietta wanted to jerk the picture out of her hand and insist that the person in that picture was not him. She couldn’t lie though.

“You know him?” she asked trying to keep the fear and anger at bay. She was going to murder Padrig for letting her get blindsided by this. How could he do this? Was this woman playing her? Maybe she didn’t even know him at all? Perhaps, there was some other perfectly logical explanation for this. “I wasn’t aware that he had dealings with you. Obviously his obedience stops at you. He serves his purposes.”

The picture falling back into place startled her again. Perhaps it was the sound of the crash or the cracking of the glass inside the frame. The way the photo version of herself and Padrig looked at her it was as if they knew she was fudging on the truth more than a little. “She’ll be sorely disappointed she missed you,” Marietta offered struggling now to maintain any mask.

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sw_bellatrix
2008-11-30 02:24 pm UTC (link)

Bellatrix laughed delightedly at the girl's pale and twisted expression. The sound was as cold and brittle and subtly wrong as the chime of the Snow Queen's sleigh bells. "We've met. He's quite the gallant lad, so eager to please."

She stepped away, back towards the still wide open door. "I'm sure it will concern Miss Umbridge greatly that I was here while she was not." She smiled prettily. "It was nice meeting you, Miss Edgecombe. I am sure we can expect great things from you."

Turning for the door, she said quite conversationally, "I'll be keeping an eye on you. Do give dear Padrig my greetings. Good evening, little girl." With that she swept back out of the office, the sharp sound of her bootheels fleeing before her down the darkened corridor.

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ex_edged72
2008-11-30 02:38 pm UTC (link)

Marietta Edgecombe was glad her wand was secured away otherwise she might have clutched it and she might have tried to get a cheap shot at Bellatrix Lestrange’s head. She was smarter than that though. She didn’t have a chance in hell at ever being stronger than her. She’d get herself killed. Her Padrig didn’t need to be pleasing her.

This woman needed to leave. Marietta was so close to shaking. She nodded and kept her mouth firmly closed until she’d watched retreat. She counted to fifteen boot heel clicks before she allowed herself to breathe again. She set into motion shortly thereafter furiously shoving her things into her purse.

She wanted to go home. She did not want to think about Bellatrix Lestrange watching her or Padrig. She tore her coat over her shoulders and took off down the opposite hallway in a near sprint. She just had to get home. She needed to get home. She’d come in early and finish the job.

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