Poison Pen

Chapter 18: The Clock is Ticking

Just where was this Oliver Twist getting his facts? That was on the mind of Cornelius Fudge, Minister of Magic. His plans for Hogwarts were in jeopardy. The whole fiasco with Umbridge was no proving to be his undoing. He should've sent someone with more Defence knowledge than Dolores, but no one was more loyal to his cause than her.

With Dolores now in Azkaban for torturing students with a dark artefact, Cornelius just wanted to destroy someone, anyone. He fantasized about Potter's head, along with Twist's, on a plate, prominently displayed in the Atrium of the Ministry. How dare they question his authority!

"Sir?" A red-headed aide stepped into the office nervously.

"Yes, Weatherby?"

"The Department Heads Meeting is ready, just as you ordered, Sir," Percy Weasley said with a slight frown. He hated being called Weatherby, but he was tired of correcting the Minister. There were times when he wondered if Fudge deliberately used the wrong name out of spite.

The meeting dragged on as Cornelius had expected. He demanded to know the makeup of each department's staffing, asking in particular for a breakdown of each position by blood status. He sent Weatherby out in the middle of the meeting for more tea, a calming draught as well as a headache potion.

Every department, it seemed, was headed by a pureblood with one exception. Dirk Cresswell, Head of the Goblin Liaison Office, who had claimed to be a pureblood had just been found to be a muggleborn. Needless to say, he was sacked and imprisoned for falsifying his family tree. However, not many wanted the position anyways, dealing with the goblins was considered beneath most purebloods.

Each department had muggleborns holding some positions, but nothing above the minor clerk and secretarial level. A press release was hammered out stating that all Ministry employees were hired according to education level and competence. Satisfied with their efforts, everyone went their way.

~~

Arthur shook his head as he entered the loo. He understood what Oliver Twist was trying to do with his articles and he was very impressed with the way Twist was trying to promote change within their world. However, everyone knew it would take more than just mere words in a newspaper to bring about true change.

He looked down at the sealed file that hadn't been in his hand when he entered. "Looks like another special delivery to the goblins for Twist," he sighed. He quickly and silently cast a wandless disillusionment spell on the file before he left the stall.

Arthur had been shocked the first time he'd been ordered to handle such a delivery. It wasn't difficult, nor even dangerous, simply a ministry employee stopping off on his way home for a withdrawal. After his withdrawal a brief stop at the local market and then home. The disillusioned file was casually left behind for the goblin teller and Arthur was home free. He did, however, wonder what Croaker was sending Twist. No, not something he was going to dwell on...sometimes it was better to remain ignorant.

~~

Rita Skeeter was also wondering where this Twist brat was getting his information. She would love to strangle the boy, but not before she'd wrung all the juicy information about his sources from his mind! Her thoughts turned to another annoying brat. She still owed Potter and that mudblood bitch that held her captive for so long. She shuddered at the memory of being trapped in that glass jar.

With great care, Rita slipped into her boss' office. She knew she would be fired if she was found going through his desk. She just had to get his notes and files on Twist not that the brat was writing for both papers. Ol' Fudge would pay her double her salary if she could get any dirt on the rabble-rouser.