To say Nikki was exhausted would be an understatement.  She had been going back and forth between work and the Muggle hospital her father was in.  To be honest she was eager for the reprieve of work.  Her father was doing well after his surgery, a Muggle thing used to remove infected organs or repair burns, but her brother was back in the country.  It was no secret they didn't get along, but this time was different.  He had been quiet and reserved, almost wanting to step into the role of the older sibling he should have had all along.  At least work gave her break from it all.

She unlocked the back door, planning to get some of the stock sorted before she had to open the doors to the general public.  It was no secret the shop was understaffed, but she didn't mind.  It gave her more time to think and she looked forward to the occasional interruptions from the general public.  When they weren't busy she had the chance to write, something other jobs didn't allow for.  It was also nice that she basically could set her own hours as the owner didn't particularly mind.  

Today was shaping up to be no different.  Nikki would be surprised if they got more than a couple customers.  All of the business models had predicted this, so no one was worried.  The less customers the better.  I can get more work done.  Quickly she went to work emptying the contents of the latest shipment of quills, a task requiring little thought.  Checking the clock she smiled and went to unlock the front door to await for customers to come.


Outfit

It was one of the rare days that Hermione would have to be at the Ministry for hours, when normally she had to venture into the Muggle world for a few meetings or to gain information about potential issues that were occurring. The majority of her job was her being in the Muggle world and getting a read on situations that had occurred, figuring out if she could solve them or if they had to be directed to the obliviators or some other department if it had gotten too out of hand. But today simply would be a day of paperwork. She didn’t mind those days, on occasion, as the process of keeping herself organized by spending a necessary amount of time at her desk always centered her and helped her to just take a breather. It had been an insane month, after all, and she had felt like she’d been going nonstop since the kids had returned from Hogwarts. Hermione loved having them home though, missing it when the house got quiet in September. It made get-togethers with the Weasleys all the more enjoyable, as well as just having family dinners—assuming that she wasn’t the one cooking, obviously.

But her work day had to begin eventually, and being reminded of all of the paperwork that would await her, she had decided to make a stop into Diagon Alley before heading to the Ministry. Having to do all of her filing and paperwork today had reminded her that she had to stop into Scribbulus to get a few more supplies. It was early, and it was clear to Hermione that the shop had only just opened, as the shop was silent from the moment she walked in. She smiled politely when she noticed the employee. “Good morning,” she said, brightly, “How are you?” Hermione asked, deciding that this was certainly a time for conversation if it meant putting off the paperwork for a bit longer. Yes, she did enjoy the break that it provided, but that didn’t mean she was going to like being stuck in the Ministry all day.

Outfit

Nikki noticed the bell above the door sound, making sure to look up and smile. "Good morning," she responded politely. "I am doing well. What about yourself?" she asked. She wasn't one to turn away small talk. It always seemed to make her day go faster. Besides, she didn't really have anything else to do today. She had already done all of the work needed for the day.

"Is there anything I can help you find?" Nikki asked, straightening one of the inkwells.

Hermione was still disappointed that the wizarding world had been so quick to discredit Kingsley, and Harry, all of those years back. In her mind, Kingsley would have made a great Minister for the long-term, and he would have been able to positively change their world and help it to rebuild successfully after the war. Instead, Durant took over and everything had been heading downhill since then. It was mostly for that reason that Hermione didn’t necessarily enjoy days that had to be spent at the Ministry itself; the break might have been nice, but it was simply a bit off-putting not knowing who to trust and not knowing if the Minister was about to personally nose his way into an office to attempt to implement whatever changes he had in mind. Since she had been a personal victim of this with his overhaul of the beast division years back, Hermione knew it was something that could happen at any moment. Luckily, it didn’t seem that the Muggle Liaison office was on the forefront of his mind. She smiled in response to the woman’s statement, shrugging lightly. “Good as of now, thanks, but the day is young.” She said, jokingly.

Sometimes she found it easier to simply use Muggle means of writing, bringing pens and paper into the Ministry—particularly when any of her paperwork involved it being sent into the Muggle world as opposed to somewhere else in the Ministry or just filed away in her own office. It was certainly something in the Wizarding world that she hadn’t quite understood them not simplifying, since it was far easier to use than quills and parchment. But there was something that she had always enjoyed about the old fashioned way of writing, though she supposed that was because she was quite used to it by now. “I just have a long day of paperwork ahead of me, so I needed to pick up a few supplies,” she answered, moving over to examine the different kind of available inks. There always seemed to be an endless amount—invisible, acidic, glow-in-the dark, self-correcting, color-changing… she couldn’t recall a time that she’d come in and not seen a new kind of ink. Adaline always enjoyed trying out the newest kinds, but Hermione simply purchased the same kind as always. Hermione supposed she could ask if they had any new ink and she could buy it for her daughter. Picking up her normal inkwell, she glanced over at the employee again. “Have any new inks come out recently? My daughter always likes to try out something new.”

Nikki smiled politely, understanding how the ministry was. It was no secret the wizarding world would have been better off under the direction of Kingsley, though that was not something to be admitted out loud. One never new if they would be viewed as a sympathizer and come under fire for it. She had seen far too many families torn apart just for being suspected of having involvement with former Death Eaters. It was maddening. "Paperwork is never fun and the ministry always seems to have more complicated forms than needed," she responded with a smile.

At the question for new inks she immediately moved to one that had become popular with the students. "We just got this ink in a week ago and already it is one of our best sellers. It is a variation of the color change ink that changes the ink color based on the mood of the writer," Nikki said, showing the bottle off. We need to order more, she made a mental note, noticing only two bottles were left on the shelf.

"If you have any more questions please let me know." Nikki stepped away for a moment to give the customer space to think. She always hated it when shopkeepers loomed over her, waiting for her to buy something and she always made a mental note to not do the same. On her way back to the counter and she made sure to straighten a few of the shelves, preferring to keep the place orderly.

It would be a long day; that was something that Hermione knew already. Of course, there was nothing to be done about it, since the paperwork simply couldn’t be put off any longer. Her office wasn’t exactly a hard one to be in, as the beast division had been with the Minster’s constant interference until the division had been cleared out anyhow. The Muggle Liaison office was left alone, thankfully, and Hermione was glad that Muggles were not on the Minster’s radar. It was preferred to her, though she obviously wasn’t happy that purebloods were being treated as such. Even growing up with their prejudice against her, she did not think that it was right how bad it was getting out there. Even being in the Ministry reminded her of that, but now was clearly not that the time to be thinking about that. “Exactly,” she stated, her smile widening. “They certainly like to make everything a lot more difficult for us—so many hoops to jump,” Hermione added, shaking her head in amusement. She supposed most forms were necessary, just concocted in such a way that were over the top as far as work was concerned.

Hermione followed the woman when she seemed to move toward some inks, laughing lightly. “Like the Muggle mood rings, yes, that’s perfect,” she stated, picking up a bottle. That was certainly the type of thing that Adaline would absolutely love. Hermione would have to come back for more bottles when there were more in stock, clearly, as she didn’t want to take the only two bottles that were left. “Thank you,” she added, as the woman had headed back over to the counter. Now she supposed she had to determine just what she would need for her own work, which was marginally duller. It was too bad that Deacon and Liam didn’t enjoy fun inks or she would buy them some. They could both do with new quills, she supposed, but it was a bit early to start shopping for the new school year. They could always use them for their summer assignments. “I’m sorry, just one more question. While I’m here, I should probably grab my sons new quills because Merlin knows they won’t stop in here themselves. Only last time I bought them quills they were too ‘girly’…” she added, rolling her eyes, though the fact amused her. “What is an ungirly quill in your opinion?” Hermione asked with a laugh.

Nikki had begun the order form for more of the Mood Ink, as she referred to it as, when the customer asked her another question. "No reason to apologize. From what I have seen most of my male customers prefer either a simple owl quill, for example the barn owl quill, or a turkey quill in black or brown. The final decision really comes down to how much they need to write. The turkey quills are cheaper so if they have a strong grip or go through a lot they would be what I would recommend. However, the owl quill is made for a smoother ink flow," she said smiling. A lot could be said about her, but Nikki did take pride in knowing her work.

"If you need any more help, please let me know," she offered with a smile and headed back over to counter to complete the order. She knew even more of the female customers would be in for it, especially when school started back up. In fact, it would probably be best if she placed a double order. If this was as popular as the changing color ink she would never manage to keep it in stock. 'That's not a bad thing though,' she thought, looking up to make sure the customer was still doing alright.

This had turned into a bit more than just getting supplies that she needed for her paperwork today, but she supposed there was no problem with grabbing a spare few things. Adaline would really enjoy the ink and probably be out of it in a few weeks and be dying to go get more. And the boys really did need new quills and could use them for their summer assignments since Merlin knew those hadn’t been touched yet anyhow. “Great, thank you,” she answered, with a smile. It seemed like the barn owl quill might be a good bet, since she certainly knew that Liam had broken quills before and that Deacon would want whatever quill that Liam got. She picked up two of those, before finally moving over to look through what she would need for work that day.

Perhaps she should stop back at home first to drop this all off, she mused, knowing that although quills and ink certainly weren’t inconvenient to carry around, there was always the possibility that today would be the da that the boys got bored enough to do their readings and she already knew that Adaline would begin using this ink immediately. It would also have the added benefit of helping her to put off this paperwork for just a bit longer. Hermione picked up a few bottles of her normal ink, before moving over to look at the quills again. It was about time for her to get a new one for herself, after all, she simply had to determine what one she wanted.

Finishing the paperwork quickly, Nikki set it in the outgoing pile. She had discovered the shop was running low on several other supplies, including several parchments and turkey feather quills. It was a task to keep up with everything. She was the person on duty the most and so most of the restocking obligations fell to her, though she didn't mind. With the responsibilities came a certain freedom and that was something the shop keeper had realized a long time ago she couldn't live without.

Noticing the customer pick up a few more bottles of ink and then make her way back to the quills, Nikki decided it was time to go and check if she needed any more help. "Are you finding everything?" she asked as she approached the customer. She always felt awkward on the approach, not wanting to startle the customer or attempt to push more items at them. However, part of her job was making sure the customer was taken care of and so she tried to walk that line like a tight rope.

It was hard to be in the Ministry and not be hyperaware of everything that was going on. After all, she was getting a firsthand look at some of it, and she knew that Harry was seeing even more than she was. Hermione found it difficult to have experienced the last war that had started because of prejudices and see that the same thing could easily happen again. They needed to actually fight for equality, not continue on this cycle where someone was always on top while the other group was on the bottom. Yes, the Death Eaters and everyone that had happened Voldemort during the war needed to be punished, but she wasn’t sure that this was the right way of going about it. Every time she had a day where she had to spend the majority of her time in the Ministry, she always found herself immersed in these times of thoughts. Well, she supposed that did actually happen quite often anyhow, but she couldn’t help but worry. If this got too far, purebloods and Death Eaters were going to hit their breaking point and it wouldn’t be good for anyone at that point—but particularly not anyone with a Potter last night as well as everyone else that she cared about. That, and she really did just think that everything would turn out all right, albeit with a lot of work, so long as they focused on truly being equal.

Hermione knew what quill she wanted, really, as she wasn’t one to branch out when she had found something that she liked—and she had simply liked pheasant quills for quite some time now. Now she felt like she was balancing a precarious amount of objects in her hands as this trip had certainly changed from what the original purpose had been. But she still did not want to head to the mystery just yet, wondering just how much longer she could possibly stall the inevitable paperwork. “Yes, I’ve found everything I came for—and then some, obviously. I can never come in here and just buy one thing,” she stated, shaking her head in amusement. Some women were like that with clothes, and she was just like that with writing supplies, apparently; though it wasn’t as if she was just buying them for herself, which made up for it. Though that did remind her that she had bought something for everyone but Harry and reminded her of her consistent mission that she hadn’t yet been successful in. Harry’s birthday was at the end of the month anyhow, which meant that she really needed to succeed in finding this quill, as well as finding him something that he would actually like; writing supplies weren’t exactly something that he got excited about. “Actually, one more thing. I know you probably don’t have any, as I can never seem to find them anywhere I go, but do you have any phoenix quills?”