Protected Ivory [2]

One

I sighed as I heard the tell tale sounds of Severus banging things downstairs. Not the most subtle way to wake me up, but I supposed it would do. After tomorrow morning, I would be woken up by Draco jumping on my bed instead of Severus' passive aggressive ways. I groaned as I pushed myself into a sitting position and glanced around my room. It really was small, as it was supposed to house a child, not a teenager, but it was only home two, maybe two in a half months out of the years. 

"Are you awake yet?" Severus called up the stairs, his voice drawling. 

"Yes," I sighed, rubbing my face as I gathered all my hair on the top of my head. "Getting dressed now."

I heard him grunt as he went back to whatever he had been doing. It was Ministry day, which came every Monday and Friday, and I was at least a little excited about that. Whenever Severus had his three hour meeting at the Ministry, I was left to amuse myself. Many of the other workers would share a kind word with me, but most had their own duties, so I didn't bother them much. In the first few weeks, I had spent some time with Arthur Weasley, but his work was a little too crazy for me. Amos Diggory, who had always considered me just another one of the boys, loved having me around, but Severus had put that to a stop almost instantly. He said losing one eyebrow was enough.

I had thought about spending time with Lucius, but his work was super boring, so I just ended up sitting out in the waiting room with the kind old witch who talked school, boys, and fashion with me. As I was now single, Fred and I separating at the end of this last year, I felt free to amuse her with my feelings on the boys in my year, and those outside of my year. However, after the second week of break, I had talked to her about all I could think of. 

That third week, my luck changed, though I wasn't sure for better or worse. Bartemius Crouch, Sr. walked into the waiting room, wanting to talk with someone about something, when he spotted me. I was reading "A History of Magic" in order to get started on my summer homework, though I was almost done with it. 

"Ivy Hamilton, what on earth are you doing here?" he asked, startled. Mr. Weasley's son, Percy, was at his side, seeming surprised Mr. Crouch was giving me the time of day.

"Just waiting for my uncle," I said, shrugging, looking towards the door. "I'm on house arrest, didn't you hear? Everyone else did."

"Are you referring to the werewolf incident?" he asked, his face unnaturally soft. 

"Yes," I sighed, closing my book and sitting forward to look at him, a smile on my face. "Is there anything I can do for you, Mr. Crouch?"

"Why aren't you visiting the other departments?" he asked, still on the topic of me being there, apparently. "It's a good opportunity for you explore jobs."

"I did for a few weeks," I admitted, shrugging. "Mr. Weasley's work is crazy and strange to me, Amos lost me an eyebrow, and Lucius' work is so boring. I don't think I could sit through another one of his meetings, even if it got me doing something besides waiting for my uncle."

Mr. Crouch seemed to be thinking about something for a moment before smiling. "I could talk to Severus, maybe you could shadow me while you're here. It's only for three hours on Mondays and Fridays if I remember correctly."

"Yes, that's right," I said, perking up. I wasn't entirely interested in Mr. Crouch's work, though it had it's interesting points. I was more interested in getting to know more about his son, my stepfather. "It wouldn't be too much trouble, would it?" I was so wrapped up in my excitement, I had all but forgotten Percy was there. 

"Sir, with everything going on, maybe it wouldn't be a good idea to have a child shadowing you," Percy tentatively began, but Mr. Crouch set eyes on him.