Benjain knew that Persephone ultimately trusted his direction. She might question it at times, but she wouldn’t overstep her boundaries, unless absolutely necessary. This was not one of those situations. Where he was going wasn’t terribly dangerous, but to be going at all was the real danger in leaving the department without him fielding whatever Durant sent his way. Benjamin chuckled at her response, shaking his head lightly. “Durant would have a heart attack if a pureblood was leading the department,” he pointed out, slightly annoyed by the validity of that statement. It was absolutely ridiculous, that viewpoint. He understood being slightly suspicious and questioning, but when the questioning didn’t lead to anything, it was better that it was dropped. Instead, Durant seemed to want to keep pressing until he forced the answer that he wanted. “Said no man ever,” he quipped, raising an eyebrow in her direction. “I’m quite certain no man likes to be pushed around,” he laughed.

“Bloody mouth of hers? Do you even hear yourself?” the Head of Aurors asked accusatorily. “I think you’re lucky the worst she’s done is use a few curse words, if she really is taking after you,” he pointed out. He wasn’t sure how the girl was with her wand, but if she was as stubborn as Persephone, perhaps she was just as good. “And yes, you’ve tamed it for the MOST PART over the past fifteen years. Except, it’s still quite easy to tell when you’re really…passionate…about something,” he added, smirking slightly. When angered, he wasn’t sure which language she swore more in, switching between them in quick succession. He wasn’t even sure half of what she said, but her facial expression gave her away.

“Well, I don’t know how teenage girls work, I wasn’t one and I don’t have one,” Benjamin shrugged. But he supposed he knew people, having studied them for far too long. “From her perspective, you chose work over family, no matter the reasoning. You come from a long line of family being top priority. I just don’t think she sees that you did that for the family, so maybe if you explained, everything would go back to normal,” he suggested, not really certain in that outcome in the slightest. Girls were far too complex for anyone to understand, he noted a long time ago. It was as if none of them wanted to follow general principle, making decisions to throw them off purposefully. “A bodyguard? Well, now that’s a fine way to keep a bodyguard around…” he trailed off, shaking his head in amusement. He knew that Seph wouldn’t marry just for work. She wasn’t about to try to get buried by Ma.

Benjamin frowned at her words, making a slight face. “Horrid? That coffee is great,” he argued. “If you want something different, then you bloody buy it,” he said stubbornly. A grin spread on his features at the mention of her going to his favorite coffee shop. It had been a long time since he went that way. “Oh, just the usual, if you can even remember that far back, you old fart,” he joked, humor in his eyes.

Persephone knew he was right about Durant. There was no doubt in her mind that Ben had to fight pretty hard to get her back, and use some of his connections in the process. ”Aside from Durant badgering you, anything I’ve seen him getting his knickers in a twist about have been irrelevant for the most part. It almost feels like he’s only going for purebloods that won’t fight back at this point. Which by that logic, means it will be a long time before he ever gets to me.” She said matter-of-factly. Part of her knew that if it really came down to it and their family was threatened Ben would probably try to get between Persephone and the threat. That was the only bad side to being the subordinate of your closest friend, he knew too much about how she operated and could sense most of her moves before they even had a chance to manifest, then of course he could stop her in the process.

She rolled her eyes at him with a laugh when he said no man liked to be pushed around. It was rare for her to try to urge him away from the desk without saying something. She normally just tapped him on the shoulder and told him what she needed before grabbing anything. It was only when she was really wound up that she man handled him a bit. She arched an at her friend as he commented on her mouth. ”All that matters is that I’ve gotten better… around the office.” She clarified with a light laugh. She was still pretty loud outside of work, but she was sure if that stopped friends and family would be concerned that something was wrong with her.

”You could have fooled me.” She said with a smirk as he said he had never been a teenage girl. Persephone rubbed her forehead as he continued to speak. The man had known her almost half of her life, and most likely knew her the best out of just about everyone. So him thinking that speaking logically to Bells while she was still pissed wasn’t going to work, even though she was already planning to attempt that approach. ”Have you forgotten that you are talking about a DiTraverso woman? Logic doesn’t work on us when we’re in a mood.” She said before crossing her arms and raising her eyebrows at him in amusement as he spoke of her ‘bodyguard’. ”You gotta do what you gotta do. Take one for the team and all that jazz.” She joked with a chuckle.

Persephone raised an eyebrow at him as he argued with her over the coffee though she couldn’t stop the grin that came over her face. Gods she hadn’t realized just how much she missed home and her old department. ”What happened to hospitality? I move into your office and you can’t even be nice enough to provide us with halfway decent coffee? So rude…” She laughed before furrowing her eyebrows at him in mock offense. ”First off, aren’t you closing in on sixty? I mean it certainly looks that way.” She began gesturing to him as a whole. ”And of course I remember your usual… damn fat ass.” She chuckled loudly as she pretended to peek around him to look at his backside.

“Glad to hear that you think him badgering me is relevant,” Benjamin deadpanned, giving her a look. The man was despicable, irritating beyond belief but Benjamin was used to it. Well, no he wasn’t. He couldn’t even remember his time before Durant, back when things were actually peaceful and looked hopeful for the community. Now, the future looked bleak with every passing day. He was really hopeful that the Minister would have been voted out already, but no such luck. “That’s the hope,” he stated, really wishing that it would be a while before Durant would find it necessary to go after the DiTraverso’s. However, after the loss of their family, a part of Benjamin was concerned that the Minister would find this as being an opportune moment to press on buttons. Mourners were more likely to say things that they really shouldn’t, fueled by a hidden and not-so-hidden rage that was building within them. That, or they were so devastated by the news that they would slip up and say other things they really shouldn’t. this would certainly be something that the Minister would take into account.

Persephone did have quite the mouth on her, that much he had known right off of the bat from meeting her. She was bloody stubborn, something he quickly realized was a trait amongst every member of her family, and she was confident…another trait that every DiTraverso seemed to carry. Well, he supposed she was a DiTraverso-Petrov, which was just a bloody mouthful to say anyways. He never really did understand why women, after marrying, would hyphenate their names. If they didn’t want to get bloody married, they should have saved their money and kept their name. But to each their own, he supposed. He just really hadn’t seen Seph as being the type to be THAT stubborn.

“Yes, I rather liked getting to sit around and braid hair and paint nails or play with those dolls…whatever they’re called,” he shrugged casually, a glimmer of humor in his eyes. Or maybe that was what even younger girls did. Did teenagers play with barbins? Or was it barboas? Barbie’s? Yes, Barbie’s. Just the thought of the young DiTraverso running around playing with dolls was humorous as whenever he did see her she was either running around outside or she was in the sky somewhere. He sighed dramatically at her statement, rolling his eyes. “Excuses, excuses. You DiTraverso women need to work on your logic, then,” he pointed out. “How many moods on average can I expect a DiTraverso woman to have? I need to start marking these in my calendars,” he explained, picking up his quill jokingly as if planning on taking notes.

“Hospitality? I let you move into my office, didn’t I? Isn’t that enough bloody hospitality? Or would you like me to fold your laundry as well?” he asked, quirking an eyebrow in her direction. Be careful, DiTraverso-Petrov. I may just put you on coffee duty for the next month for your lack of appreciation,” he chuckled lightly. “And I’d probably look just as bloody good at sixty as I did at thirty, so you’re welcome,” he shrugged, feigning cockiness. “Good to see not ALL of you have aged,” he joked, referring to her good memory. “Jealous of my buns of steel? What have they been feeding you in Russia?”

Persephone arched an eyebrow at Ben. ”It’s relevant seeing as you are one of the few people that is actually going to be a threat to him. I don’t think it’s necessary and I certainly don’t like it, but it makes sense for him to go after a ‘big fish’ opposed to the poor souls he’s nit-picking at right now.” She said matter-of-factly. The Minister was a despicable man and the sooner he was out of office the better, not that there was much they could do at present to make it a possibility. Apparently a majority of the wizarding world had lost their bloody minds. She wasn’t sure just how they were going to handle it when the Minister finally did turn his eye towards their family. If the man was as good as he claimed to be there would be no way he would allow Ben to be involved.

The vision of her friend braiding hair and painting nails made her laugh. ”I don’t recall doing much of that my teenage years. I was too busy flying and preparing for battle. So I guess I’m not a good base to go off of. I doubt many fifteen year olds battle Death Eaters in a small attempt to return order to the world.” She said lightly. It shouldn’t have been a shock to her family that she had decided to become an auror seeing as she was one of the many students that stayed behind to willingly risk her young life to protect others. She knew friend was very particular when it came to who worked under him and she wondered if her involvement had been part of the reason why he spent the time training her.

Persephone shot him a look as he spoke of DiTraverso women and their ‘moods’. ”You keep this up you might have to mark every single day you work with me as a moody day on your calendar.” She said before smiling and shaking her head. She certainly got into her moods though they weren’t as frequent as they once were. Her temper was still there but it took a lot more to trigger that those days. ”Also, since when did you start addressing me by my hyphenated name? You know I still go by my maiden around the office.” She said raising her eyebrows at him. She didn’t have an aversion to her married name, but she had been working in the business so long that she felt it would be too awkward to change her name. After she got married in Russia her colleagues there still addressed her by her maiden.

”Well tomorrow is laundry day. What time should I be expecting you?” She said with a laugh. She was appreciative that he hadn’t minded sharing his space with her until things could be sorted and another office become available. Then again from the sounds of it she wouldn’t need her own desk if she was going to be out in the field so much, which she was definitely not complaining about. ”I think I can handle a coffee detail.” She joked before breaking out into loud laughter. ”You forget I’ve seen you at thirty, you certainly do not look like you did at thirty.” She teased lightly. He had never been a bad looking bloke, but she couldn’t help but poke fun at her friend. ”Women age like a fine wine. I’m only getting better with age.” Persephone ran a hand through her hair with a cocky smile on her face. ”Buns of steel? Oh Ben, who has been lying to you? I also can tell your eye sight is going old man. I look damn good thank you very much. You know how many blokes around here would love to share an office with me? You should be appreciative of the beauty that graces your office on a daily basis.” She joked with a chuckle.

Benjamin let out a heavy sigh, rubbing his forehead slightly out of his stress. “Yeah, I know. I’m setting things in place, just in case. I know I have to be careful. He’s setting his pieces, so we all need to watch how we respond to him,” he shrugged, knowing that the past few conversations he had held with the man, he was merely digging himself in an even bigger hole. He knew, unfortunately, that he had to start being a bit more political with the man so that he wasn’t an actual threat. He hoped that the Minister would cool down watching the department, giving them a little bit more leeway than being watched like dogs. He bloody hated politics.

“Yes well, I expect that even if the world wasn’t falling apart then, that you still wouldn’t be doing that. Somehow I doubt that’s in the DiTraverso bloodline,” he laughed, finding it to be a ridiculous thought. From all of the women of that line, which weren’t many, they all seemed a bit too busy to try that. He was confident they had their girly moments more than they let on, but that was of no concern to him in the slightest. “No fifteen year old should have to be concerned about battling Death Eaters in order to save the world,” he countered, shaking his head lightly. He had been on that side, someone that others had to battle and he still felt guilty about it at times. That wasn’t who he was anymore, but he couldn’t change what he did. It really was unfortunate that kids didn’t get the chance to be kids, needing to grow up quicker than they should. Hell, they hadn’t even had a chance to learn everything they needed in school and already, they were forced to think quickly, being introduced to the real world in a harsh form.

“Looks like I’ll be needing a new calendar,” he shrugged, looking at his own. “Pity; I rather liked this calendar.” He rose an eyebrow at her inquisition, taking a sip of his coffee. It was interesting to him that she didn’t take the bloke’s last name, not really understanding it. It really just was not something he could understand in the slightest. “Do they hyphenate last names in Russia?” he asked, giving her a look of disbelief. “Oi, do your own bloody laundry, woman. What use are you?” Benjamin smirked, sifting through his papers a bit more.

He glanced up at her comment, amused. “Whatever gets you through the day, sweetheart,” he laughed. “Cocky much, I see? Some things never change, apparently. Too cocky for your own good. If I wanted beauty to grace my office, I would get some flowers or something ridiculous. Alas, no flowers. But thank you for your offering; it’s greatly appreciative. On second thought, I’d rather have flowers…they at least take up less space and never speak,” he pointed out, giving her a look.

Persephone nodded her head in understanding. She knew that with everything going on with the Minister they had to be on their toes constantly, ready for anything thrown at them. She was confident she could save face if she was put in that position though it would be exceptionally difficult if he got personal with her. She knew the man was giving her friend flack for his relationship, which she found extremely unprofessional and odd in general.

It wasn’t completely true that all DiTraverso women didn’t have girly moments during their lifetime, but they were rare. ”We have our moments.” She laughed lightly. The auror actually did enjoy having her feminine moments, dressing up, and putting on more elaborate makeup though she would never say anything. She had spent far too many years trying to maintain a more hardened appearance for herself, and that was a hard habit to break. ”I didn’t have to, I choose to, Benjamin.” She said seriously looking him over. She knew he still felt guilty about his involvement even if he never really spoke about it. He had already expressed his worry to her about her and their family’s safety because she had such knowledge, but regardless she was sure that he needn’t worry about it.

She rolled her eyes as he looked over his calendar before he looked over to her. It was nice to have these little comedic breaks when it came to cases that were so intense. She sighed heavily rubbing her forehead as he asked another question about her surname. ”Have you and Ma been discussing this again when I haven’t been around? It’s much more common than you think for a woman to hyphenate their name all over. It gives me wiggle room to use my maiden or my married surname for whatever I’m doing. Example; I use my maiden name as an auror, but use my married name as a professor.” She said with a shrug.

”Hey I cook for you, the least you could do is fold my laundry.” She laughed before shaking her head at his next comment as called her sweetheart. She arched an eyebrow at him before laughing lightly. ”I guess I should just tell the receptionist to leave flowers in your office on days I don’t feel like coming in. I doubt it will keep the office in order and leave you little ‘Honey-Do’ lists when it comes to case work, but whatever floats your boat.” She said with s smirk before looking up at the clock. ”I’m guessing you’re going to be pulling an all nighter, and heading out tomorrow for your connections that you will not let me accompany you to?” She sighed walking over to her chair slinging her teaching robes over her shoulder before picking up her briefcase. ”If you insist on going by yourself I expect you to be at the house in the morning to have a proper breakfast before you leave. I’ll even make your favorites; I’m not letting you go on an excursion like that on an empty stomach.” She said approaching him with open arms to embrace him.

Benjamin had a bit of trouble with being told what to do, which is why he supposed that he was looking forward to being the Head of Aurors. He hadn’t been interested in the paperwork, but he had been interested in directing others, trying to see the bigger picture despite emotional connections. He had found that he had slipped a couple of times, but ultimately, he liked to believe that he was able to stay neutral in most cases. He had failed with the case involving Tatiana, but he liked to believe he was keeping straight enough for the case involving Isabella. It was because of this that he had known that he ought to watch Persephone and make sure that she stayed alright, not wanting her to go bloody kill someone as that would be hell to try to get the Minister to not put her in Azkaban or something. Well, he really doubted he’d be able to do anything of the sorts, keeping her that protected. As much as he hated to admit it, the Minister did have a good amount of power, annoyingly enough.

It was always amusing for him to think of the DiTraverso women having their girly moments, though all of the men knew that they occurred for the most part. Of course, no one would really mention it, afraid of what the women would do when they were all on the same bloody side. Benjamin chose not to respond to her statement, not seeing much of a difference between what she had to do and what she had chosen to do. A part of him wondered if he had ever harmed any of the DiTraverso line, not wanting to know for sure. The thought that he could have possibly harmed any of his current family was aggravating, but that certainly wasn’t who he was anymore.

He chuckled at her response about her last name, shrugging. “Perhaps we have,” he stated, grinning. “I heard you tricked your niece into meeting you by using your married name,” Benjamin laughed, shaking his head in amusement. He was certain that conversation hadn’t gone over well at all, but he was certain that the pair would make up eventually. They would have to eventually or their summer was going to be ridiculously long.

“Does throwing it into the closet count as folding?” Benjamin asked, raising an eyebrow at her, amused. “You can do that yes, but don’t expect a job much longer after that,” he joked. “Correct,” he stated with a nod. He even had a cot to sleep on at the office for nights like these, knowing that going back to his apartment would be a waste of his time. “What time’s breakfast?” he asked, feeling his stomach grumbling at the thought of food. He supposed he should go grab something quick for the night. Benjamin grinned as he stood from his seat, giving her a strong hug. “Don’t worry so much,” he grinned.

Persephone knew that Ben would be trying to keep an eye on her in regards to the case with Bells. She had known the man for almost half of her life and a majority of that time she worked under him. It was easy to read him a good bit of the time, but likewise he could do the same exact thing with her. There was not much of anything she could really hide from him when it came to her in most ways. She noticed he hadn’t commented on her saying that she choose to fight in the battle but dropped the subject. No matter how many times she told him she had willingly participated he would still believe there wasn’t a difference which she could see from his perspective but would never push about it.

She groaned rubbing her forehead as he mentioned her using her married name to trick Bells into coming to her office in the school. ”Oh that was just a barrel of fun.” She said with a light laugh hoping that things wouldn’t be as tense over summer break as they had been that afternoon. It had broken her heart the way Bells had spoken to her, and still hurt to even think about.

Persephone rolled her eyes as he commented on throwing laundry in the closet opposed to folding them. ”You’re ridiculous.” She said with a shake of her head and smile. She arched an eyebrow at his next comment before letting out a chuckle. ”I see how it is, fire me just because I was nice enough to have flowers grace your office.” She paused glancing up at the clock thoughtfully to figure out what time she would want to have breakfast taking into account the fact that she knew he would be up most of the night working and she wanted to be sure he got some kind of sleep before dropping by. ”I was thinking around nine. I’d like you to get some kind of sleep before coming by.” She knew that was a lost cause but figured she could at least try. She returned his hug tightly before pulling away from him and shaking her head. ”If I stopped worrying you would be concerned.” She said making her way to the door. ”Please at least try to get some kind of sleep.” She added before leaving the office far too awake herself to even think about sleeping as the letters started reentering her mind again.

--End of Thread--