Difficult → Broderick Bode

[Lyssa Towler]

Lyssa had been shifted around the office for the last week straight, moving from small job to job, as the higher-ups tried to refill the now vacant job spaces & sort out who was missing & who had actually just fled because of the newest war efforts. Sitting up at the front reception wasn't as bad as Lyssa had thought it would be. There was no mail to answer, as it was only her job to sort the post to be sent to various other offices, & it wasn't the sort of place that people just wandered into. Most everyone that she had to talk to that morning had known exactly what they needed & where to go, which made her job quite a bit easier. 

As she watched the skulking form of Tiffany Lestrange vanish out of the nearest conference room & down the hallway that lead to the floo network, Lyssa glanced around curiously for a sign of Broderick. She didn't have many friends, & it was nice to get along with someone in the office. She had no qualms with any of her coworkers, but she did appreciate having someone that would talk to her other than a passing 'hello'. She glanced at her watch & then leaned back in her seat as she waited. They'd both be on lunch in a few minutes & she could finally relax a little. Not that the work she was doing was mentally taxing, but her chair was incredibly uncomfortable & she couldn't wait to get up & stretch her legs a little - not to mention exercise something else. Working with Mr. Godfrey has it's perks, as his office was a bit more secluded & she was free to change form as it suited her fancy, without being given confused looks or being thought of as a 'show-off'. 

[Broderick Bode]

Broderick stepped out of his office for his lunch break and was chatting with his co-worker Stamford Jorkins when he spotted Lyssa at the front desk "Lyssa, afternoon!" he chimed out charmingly equip with a matching grin "didn't know you were going to be working reception today" he clasped her gently on the should as he passed and cocked his head to the side "care to join us?"

[Lyssa Towler]

She was practically out her chair the moment she spotted them, more than ready to go on her break. "Absolutely." she said quickly, cheeks flushing in relief. "But," she warned him, "I've heard they're doing french onion in the cafe. We should go elsewhere."

"Oh, good call." Stamford replied, wincing a little. Lyssa gave him a grateful little smile & scratched at the back of her head, letting her previously straight brown hair curl around her fingertips in loose, romantic curls. Before any of them could move a foot, another violet memo appeared before them, darting into the office & flying in a great, swooping circle around them. Instead of letting it land, Stamford snatched it out of the air, despite Lyssa's protesting.

"Hey, you can't - that could be private." she insisted, jumping up & trying to reach for it. Stamford laughed softly & held it just out of her grip, giving her an amused, cocky sort of look.

"Kid, I'm an unspeakable. My clearance level is 'knowing-the-ministers-preferred-cereal'. I - HOSHIT."

Lyssa had shifted to give herself large fangs, eyes turning solid black from corner to corner. She mock-snarled at him & then immediately shifted back to normal & smiled perkily as she snatched back the memo & unfolded it. "Oh," she sighed, a little disappointed, now. "It's not even for me - it's just for Warner."

INTERDEPARTMENTAL MEMO
TO: Godfrey, Warner
FROM: The Desk of the Minister of Magic
RE: [CLASSIFIED]

---

The Minister of Magic requests the presence of Warner Godfrey in The Wizengamot Court, RM. 222, at his earliest convenience.

She paused as she went to fold it back up again, & then unfolded it once more, scanning it a second time with a frown of curiosity. "It doesn't sound good." she admitted.

[Broderick Bode]

Broderick instantly looked concerned his smile fading and being replaced by a frown, he looked down at the letter and felt a cold shiver through his spine.


As if like clock work an exhausted looking Warner Godfrey stepped into the room, he glanced over at the group and half-smirked "am I interrupting something?" he cocked an eyebrow looking amused then glanced down at the envelope "ah" he nodded his eyes flickering only for a moment in genuine fear but it quickly faltered and he smiled at the 3 dashingly "thank you Lyssa, I believe it is time for your break is it not?" he commented kindly but it definitely was her queue to leave. 

[Lyssa Towler]

Lyssa stammered nervously for a moment, her cheeks flushing pink, "I didn't - yeah, break, right, thank you sir." she ran a hand through her hair nervously, a streak of white going through it whereever she touched, as if heat-sensitive. She started toward the other end of the atrium, only to be stopped by Stamford, who grabbed her arm gently to stop her, then tugged at a lock of her hair carefully to warn her. 

"Oh." Lyssa turned to both of the unspeakables, blush fading, now, & shook her head, the tumbling locks of her hair immediately turning back to their light chocolately brown color that she'd been wearing for the day. "Better?" she asked them both hopefully, eyes flicking back and forth between the two of them.

[Broderick Bode]

Broderick watched Lyssa with Warner her hair shifting colors and then reverting back "all good" he replied with a warm hopeful smile and nodded "come on lets go" he placed a hand on the small of her back leading her toward the exit. 

[Lyssa Towler]

Stamford fell into step with them on Broderick's other side, glancing at them both.

"We should use the visitor's door. Quickest way out onto the main street. I could seriously use a soft pretzel, any ideas where we should go?" Stamford asked curiously to them both, but surprisingly, it was Lyssa that piped up first.

"There's a sidewalk cafe down the road from here & usually there's a street vendor out front. Can get your pretzel fix." she teased, nudging the slim man gently with her arm. 

[Broderick Bode]

Broderick grinned and shrugged "I am up for whatever tickles your fancy" he chuckled to himself with a shrug then turned to Lyssa "Busy day for you?" he asked politely with a devastatingly charming grin.
 

[Lyssa Towler]

Lyssa felt the blush heat her cheeks, desperately trying to shift it down a little. She was working on it. 

"Eh, alright, I suppose. A lot busier than Warner's office, I guess." she admitted. She loved her job working for Warner, but she had to admit, the front desk was a nice change - there were a lot of unfamiliar faces for her repetoire & it kept her a bit busier with more than just paperwork. "How about you? I heard you're running the reports & check-ins, half of the time." 

---

ooc. oh GOD

[Broderick Bode]

Broderick rolled his eyes at that and shook his head "not anymore thankfully I was last week but they found someone who just got back from Maternity leave to take it on less stress off my back " he shrugged his shoulders then winced slightly at the sunlight as it reached his eyes when they stepped onto the small cobblestone street outside the  vast building. 

[Lyssa Towler]

Her eyes almost immediately focused, going catlike for a moment to speed-adjust, then returning to normal. Her adaptation was getting much better. They passed through crowds of muggles also out on breaks from their various jobs, her eyes locking curiously on a tall brunette business woman with a ponytail full of shiny, gorgeous brown hair. Taking the elastic from her wrist to tie up her own hair, Lyssa subtly ran a hand over the length of her own ponytail to curl it while it was hidden beneath her fingers, smirking confidently as they kept walking without anyone nearby even giving them a second glance. She was getting much better, indeed.

Even Stamford didn't seem to notice, too busy hunting for the promise-land of a pretzel vendor with his eyes on the busy streets.

[Broderick Bode]

Broderick walked beside Stamford completely oblivious as the 2 of them talked about what quidditch team they were rooting for, when they reached the pretzel stand he offered to pay for the 3 orders. 

[Lyssa Towler]

Stamford, smirking, gave Broderick a friendly nudge of thanks & put in his order, glancing at Lyssa who ordered just a simple plain soft pretzel - extra salt. She'd definitely started to build up a craving the moment that Stamford had mentioned them back at the office. She looked up at Broderick innocently, which was easy enough now that Stamford had leaned away from the both of them to chat up the high school age looking girls nearby. He was a total flirt, but he was harmless. 

"Are you coming to the staff party tomorrow night?" she asked him, looking a little hopeful once he'd put his order in. The 'staff party' wasn't going to be particularly large or a grand event of any sort, but a handful of the more senior employees from various departments had decided that amidst all of the chaos & tension, it would be nice to blow off a little steam & grab a drink together. 

[Broderick Bode]

Broderick smiled warmly at the hopeful look on Lyssa's face and nodded "of course I am going to go" he nudged her softly then cocked an eyebrow "wanna be my date?" he asked playfully but half-serious.

[Lyssa Towler]

"I didn't realize it was such a serious affair." she teased, "Now that I know people are bringing dates, maybe I should up my standards." she mocked playfully, giving him a soft nudge to the arm with her own. She wasn't an idiot, he was obviously a catch, but she'd gotten over her little crush on him fairly quickly. Not that he'd done anything wrong, but once she got over the sort of shock of first meeting him, she had started to relax a lot more around him. 

Stamford seemed to appear, piping up, "This is true. I'd take you myself, but I already have a date." he said playfully, winking at Lyssa, who just rolled her eyes & turned back to Broderick with a smirk.