Between her duties as one of the British Seats in the International Confederation of Wizards and a member of the Wizengamot it sometimes truly amazed Sydney that she actually managed to get through all of paperwork she did everyday. Today was one of those days. The issue with French still hadn't blown over and some idiot on level one had decided that in the midst of an international crisis it was good time to have four hearings in three days. Yes, it most certainly amazed her that she was able to anything done.

Sighing rather loudly Sydney silently prayed that someone would come in and talk to her. She needed a distraction from everything that was going on. The ministry was in chaos and the upper management were not doing anything to make things better. Yet, they had left her and her department more or less alone. Whether that was out of fear of what she would do to them if they confronted her or a simple oversight, Sydney could care less. What was really important was that she could work in peace.

"Yes Eliza, please make your report. But, before you start, can you retrieve Dennis and Parker so that all of you can make your reports at the same time. That way we can hopefully get this nonsense with the Spanish figured out once and for all." Without waiting for a reply, Sydney took out her wand and readied the room for the mini conference that was about to start. When everyone had gathered, including the unasked for sectaries that would help this meeting move more quickly, Sydney performed a simply eavesdropping charm. Then she settled herself on to the couch and the meeting began in earnest.

About two hours had gone by when Sydney was forced to call the discussion to a halt. "I'm sorry but I really must make my office available to whatever guests I may have. You know my policy. Also, this is clearly more complicated than any of had thought. Eliza, I want you to put Tomas's team on this right away. Dennis, I need you to take a few people to the our Embassy in Spain for a few hours so you can get some first hand accounts. Parker, you are in charge of the office if anything else comes up. Oh and Eliza, I need you to get on the Floo with the French Ministry and see if there is anything else you can do to decrease the stress that situation has caused. All of are dismissed. Sectaries, please report to Addision for your next assignments."

As her office cleared out, Sydney once again took out her and rearranged everything so that it reflected its usual set up. Then, she sat done and returned to reviewing various files.

Sioned was confused, and that was something that didn't happen often. But, she supposed that not knowing what was going on was the price one paid for being out of the country for sixteen years. If anyone had asked her about the Latvian wizarding community's affairs she would have been well-versed, but she knew nothing about her home country. She thought, briefly, that she might have done better to stay home after Andris disappeared. If she had, Judy might not be dead. Sioned didn't even want to think about the other rumors she'd been hearing...not until she got confirmation.

Five minutes in Level Two had terrified her and shown her that she was not going to get reliable information there; at least, not organized information. So, when the shock of finding a new department head and an almost completely new staff wore off, she took the elevator to Level Five, wherein resided the woman she considered to be her second department head: Sydney Browne. The impressive matriarch was one of her primary clients and a good friend...but more than that, she was a trusted resource. She made it her business to know everything.

When she got off the elevator and entered the office forum, she was met with a wave of people exiting Sydney's office. Smiling at her good timing--they must have just gotten out of a meeting or something--she waded her way through and knocked on the frame of the still open door. Normally she would have made an appointment, but she needed some idea of what was going on before she went back up to Level Two.

"Madame Browne?" Sioned said. She wondered if the older woman remembered her. The last time she'd been in England had been more than ten years ago. She figured she'd better introduce herself, just in case. "Good afternoon. Sioned Baines. I was wondering if I might speak with you about a few things," she said, smiling.

After everyone had filed out of her office, Sydney did something she normally would not allow herself the luxury of doing while within the confines of the Ministry. She sighed. This year was getting longer and longer when it should have been getting shorter. There was chaos everywhere she looked and the Minister was not helping the situation as he should have been. Nothing was working and after nearly a century at the Ministry, Sydney found herself truly disappointed in what was going on. This had happened before, but it was hardly a frequent feeling. Fudge had been the worst mistake in her time at the Ministry. For some that was hard to be believe, but she has been there for both the Reed administration and the clean up after it... those had been hard times. However, the ministry had not fallen apart as badly as it was now falling apart.

Situations were cropping up everywhere at the British Embassy's and it was all she could do to stay on top of everything as it spiraled out of control. Yes, it was certainly a problematic but she had realized that it was not the fault of the Ambassadors or their personal staff. No, the problems abroad were a reflection of the problems back home. And that had been the primary reason why she had taken the Embassies,
Ambassadors, and everything else under her wing. No one had stopped her nor had they tried. While it was a relief that she had had so little interference, it still worried Sydney that people were not competent to do their jobs.

Sydney looked up at the sound of footsteps and smiled. Someone had been approaching her office while everyone had been leaving and now that she saw the person, she was quite happy. Sioned was a very good witch and very good at her job. I had been about three years since they had last spoken face to face. She had taken time about three years ago to talk to everyone overseas that was working for the Ministry so that they knew someone from Britain still cared about what they were doing. About five months had past since the witch had come up in any report she had read. While that might have alarmed her normally, Sydney did a good job keeping up to date on what was circling the rumor mill and rumor had had it that Sioned was back in the country.

"Yes my dear?" Sydney replied in a soft, welcoming voice. It was certainly a treat to talk to someone with Sioned's level of experience and besides, they were friends. "You may certainly as me anything you like Sioned and for the record, I did remember your name... I may be old but I'm not senile unless it helps get of doing something I would rather not. Please, by all means, ask away." Sydney answered warmly.

Sioned smiled at Sydney and walked in, sitting in one of the chairs opposite the other woman's desk. She should have known better than to think the woman would have forgotten her. She was sure Sydney never forgot anyone, the woman had such a long memory, and Syd was one of the British people she'd kept in contact with during her time in Latvia. Sometimes it had been easy to forget that she was British herself, and putting in a report to Sydney every now and then had been a good reminder. Besides, it was useful to Sydney too.

But now that she had leave to ask questions...what would she ask? Sioned always felt the need to be specific with her questions and not waste time with broad inquiries. And yet, that approach worked best when the asker knew something about what was going on. Sioned didn't even know where to begin to learn about the present circumstances. She pondered for a moment, her face impassive, before deciding that the first thing to do was confirm what was true and what was not.

"As you know, Madame, it's been quite awhile since I was last in England," Sioned began. "The last five months I've been deep in the Baltic forests dealing with the veela, and had no news from the wizarding world until I returned to Riga." She paused here. It was upon her return to the capital of Latvia that she'd gotten Marcus's letter about Judy, two weeks after the fact. It was then, too, that she'd learned of everything else, browsing through the pile of old Prophets that had been delivered during her absence.

"Is it true, Madame? Shacklebolt murdered? Harry Potter gone?" Sioned could hardly believe it now, even as she said it. She'd graduated a year ahead of Potter; she'd been in his house. They'd worked together, before he became Head of Department, before she went overseas. Sioned shook her head. "And this business about a fourth unforgivable curse," she said, pulling Carmen Snidgeton's article out of her pocket. "It says Edward Garrow murdered my niece," she added. "Has he been arrested? Interrogated?" Garrow she didn't know, though she'd known his father.

"It all just seems so far-fetched. Level Two is a mess, though," she said, leaning back in her chair.

Sydney couldn't help but smile at Sioned's questions. The girl certainly had some spunk to her. Of course she wasn't really a girl, but to Sydney, everyone younger than ninety was a girl so it didn't really matter.

"Well that was certainly a lot of questions. I will answer them as best I can and then I will frame my answers for you. I know it sounds just a bit bloody odd to tell you all of this, but this way you don't have a nervous breakdown when I tell you that I could give a shit about a lot of what has been going on." She had never been one for the more delicate arts of speaking, but the lack of those arts had served her well during her tenure at the Ministry. Time was of the essence and she really needed to start answering the questions before another crisis broke out.

"Yes, Shacklebolt is dead. That should not be in the least bit surprising to anyone who has worked in the upper levels of the Ministry though. I will make an exception for you because you have missed the promotions that would have given you the necessary access to resources to understand what I am talking about. In my opinion, he was good but the Ministry needed a change. Yes, I am well aware of how horrible that sounds–Addison I need copies of the reports on what happened around the time of the Minister's murder and the other reports for my team. I need them as soon as possible. Please draw up three batches and a fourth for Sioned.–where was I... Oh yes, sounds horrible but the Ministry needed change and we got it." Sydney said all of this without a thought to what the reaction of Sioned might be because frankly she didn't care. The woman had asked for Sydney's thoughts and she was giving them. That was all there was to it.

Leaning back in her chair, Sydney paused to watch the reaction of the woman sitting across from her and wondered if perhaps she was being just a tad too rash. The thought was fleeting and before Sioned had a chance to say anything, Sydney was speaking again.

"Potter is gone. Everyone is all up in arms about it and the whole of wizarding Britain seems to have forgotten that he the boy that lived and that sun rising and setting does not have anything to do with Potter.

As for your other questions... The mismanagement of level two have been a disgrace and and I am personally shocked that no one has stepped up to put that house back in order. The chain of command has alienated Ronald and the rest of them don't have a clue as to what they really need to be doing. In short, level two is in complete and utter chaos. As a result of that, transportation, games, and regulation are not exactly up to par. Accidents is just trying to keep everything under wraps so that the blasted muggles don't find out about our world and the admin level has its head so far up its ass that it can see out its own eyes. Mysteries is well mysteries and I could give a you know what. So yes... the Ministry as you knew it and I know it is falling apart from the inside out...

Maybe that is a bit of an exaggeration but I am an old woman and that is what I think. This office has been trying to keep the rest of the Wizarding World from finding out that this Ministry in no way shape or from has its house in order. So I hope that you will understand if I seem just a bit tired and my staff seems just a bit tense.

That being said, there are plenty of good people here that have been keeping their departments together and to someone like you, the Ministry looks just as it is supposed to; like we are in a crisis mode and we have let some things slide to take care other more pressing matters.

The Fourth is real. The man you speak of is very well connected politically but there is a strong movement to take him down. Also, and this is completely off the record, so off the record that not only my staff but also myself will kill, if necessary, to keep it off the record... Also, I will be supporting all efforts to remove him from office. If you even think about sharing that with anyone and I find out about it, you had better hope that you can find refuge in a country that I don't have diplomatic immunity in. And just so you know, I could kill the President of the Muggle United States and get away with it. Sioned, I know you are a bright girl, and I know that what you are going through a hard patch with your family, but please understand that as a British Seat I can officially take on anyone in this Ministry.

I hope that I have answered all of your questions." Finally stopping, Sydney waited for Sioned's reaction. She knew that what she had just said in an all too calm voice would unnerve most, but she also knew that Ms. Baines was made of stronger stuff.