Realistic or Modern Yes, Minister [private for The Elusive Shadow]

[DaffodilsAndDragons]

Elucid

Monday 10th September, 1979. Margaret Thatcher's new Conservative government is back from summer recess, having worked in a more relaxed manner over the summer months. Notably, there is continued unsteadiness across the globe and the U.K's financial situation is not looking pretty.

If Rhian thought her first year of university had been surreal, walking past the rows of impressive Whitehall buildings towards the Foreign Office was definitely the icing on the cake. Walking into the building, greeted by about half a dozen personnel at once (a mixture of security and civil servants), had gone beyond the point of surrealism and into the world of 'am I actually doing this right now?'

Her morning had passed by like clockwork. She got up at 6:30, had some toast with a healthy spreading of marmalade accompanied by a cup of tea. A quick wash down prior to have a bath and a hair wash the day before afterwards, before raking her hair up into the neatest bun she had ever accomplished and putting on a blouse that she thought suited someone at least 10 years her senior. Her flatmates had not even roused from their beds while she was busybodying about the place; why should they, the semester hadn't even started yet. Before she knew it, she had climbed into only the second taxi she had ever ridden in, arranged by the Foreign Office itself.

She was placed in a sort of waiting room by one of the building's staff after they checked her details. The decor was fascinatingly fancy for a building where Rhian assumed important work went on; this was just a waiting room and it had three different paintings that she knew for fact everyone else knew the artist and title. She didn't have a clue. Before long, a man in his mid-50s appeared by the door; he looked very prim and proper. Rhian got to her feet and offered her hand as he introduced himself as the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State - the Foreign Secretary's right hand man; or some would say, the man really running the show.

"Miss Edwards, I doubt I need to remind you of just exactly how privileged you have been to be offered this position, and the level of trust that we as a department are giving you, especially in these troubling times" he explained loftily with a sense of purpose. Rhian's face dropped slightly in concern, first over 'troubling times', and then over privileged. Oh yes, because I didn't work for this position at all, she thought.
"I'm perfectly aware, Sir. It's a very humbling experience just being in the building" she replied truthfully, her accent being a sharp contrast to his own.
"I suppose it would be for a student, especially one from Wales; I can't say we have any Welsh staff here at all" he responded with a smile that felt a little less than genuine, which instantly made Rhian feel small. She'd probably have to get used to that feeling. He lead her out of the waiting room and through some of the long corridors, decked out with tapestry work and fine carpets. "The Minister is in his office, he's been informed of your arrival" he added as the walked.

"I wanted to know, Sir, a bit out my duties regarding the Minister? The response to my application didn't give any sort of detail" she queried.
"The Minister has many responsibilities during a day; paperwork, meetings with the cabinet, meeting foreign ambassadors, public announcements et cetera; you're responsibilities are helping him with his responsibilities. Filing, writing up his notes for him, getting him the things he needs..." he explained, carrying on for some time after. Rhian slowly became aware that this was going to be more of a personal assistant job, but she couldn't force herself to be disappointed. She was still going to be involved, she was still going to be on the inside of a system she had marvelled at, regardless of the fact that the wrong party was in charge in her opinion.

The Under-Secretary suddenly knocked on a door, waiting for a response before entering the room, Rhian in tow. Then she saw him; Francis Urwin - somewhat of a political legend with the sort of career he had tucked under his belt already. When she wrote to her father about the position he had mentioned he had commentated over the rugby on the radio a few times back in the day. This was definitely more surreal than going into the building, Rhian nerves, which she had kept under control for most of the morning, returned.
"Minister, this is Miss Edwards, the student from King's that'll be joining you for the political year" he announced, ushering her with his eyes over to him.

 

[Elucid]

Today wasn't really the best of days for Francis then again what day is a good day if you're a member of Margret Thatchers cabinet , just last week the IRA bombed a British convoy in Warrenpoint killing 18 add to it the fact that Mountbatten got himself killed on the very same day in a similar attack , the news is already creating a ruckus in International circles as one would expect when a member of the royal family can just be killed by some Irish thugs.

Francis like always got up early to do a bit of exercise which he was practically forced into by his wife but he'd like to think he had some say in it , besides a jog down Carlton gardens wasn't too bad there was some nice scenery around not to mention it was a nice quiet place to relax and think maybe even grab a smoke away from all the shenanigans at home not that he could ever avoid it. The first thing Francis heard after coming back from his jog was the sound of his daughter Alice having an argument or more appropriately a shouting contest with her mother , about what ? he couldn't really say , it probably had something to do with that little shit she liked from high school , "weren't girls supposed to be the responsible ones?"

"Francis , will you please tell your daughter here that she absolutely can't go to a party tonight ?! We've already got reservations at Corrigan's."

Amanda is a beautiful woman , she really is but sometimes somehow she can be more intimidating than the chief whip and that's saying something because Francis was one not too long ago , also there was just a small hitch in her plans that being the fact that Francis had completely forgotten about getting the reservation to Corrigan's , but that was the least of his problems right now right now he had to come up with a good answer to placate both the girls and the best he come up with was "Listen to your mother , Alice." which actually worked marvelously well at least it got the attention away from him.

Francis was a man of a few words especially when it came to the daily family arguments in fact he'd grown pretty adept at blocking the back and forth from affecting his sanity by doing as little as nodding all the while reading the morning newspaper. Francis didn't really get to finish his breakfast considering that he was already late. It was the first day after summer recess so the press had gathered around the family home , so Francis grabbed half a sandwich to eat on the way and his wife kissed him goodbye as he got into his car both these things were unusual but the constituents did love a hard working family man and that was what they would get.

Upon reaching the office Francis was met with the now familiar face of Charles Wilkinson . Francis learnt early on that being on good terms with the under secretaries makes life so much easier .

"Morning Minister , how was the ride ? hope the press wasn't too much of a bother"

"Now Charles , you know very well that I would be nowhere if the tabloids hadn't published all those articles against my opponent . A few pictures is the least I can do." The men exchanged a few more pleasantries as they walked to the Ministers office before getting down to business. "So , what do you have for me today?".

"Well fortunately not much, the real work will probably start after the cabinet meeting which is scheduled to be held the next week. For today you just have a house call from the defense minister and a meeting with the new intern not to mention some paperwork. Mr Glyn is already waiting for you in the office and has taken the liberty of pouring himself a glass of that Jack Daniel you hide in your desk."

Francis had told Henry about the bottle in confidence but never mind that how did Charles come to know , he didn't really wan't to press the point tough and let it go.

"Alright then , hold all my calls for the meetings unless its the Ayatollah or Margret herself" saying this Francis entered and subsequently closed the doors to his office. The defense minister Henry Glyn was busy pouring himself another drink , the man was quite large both in width and height which in Francis' view should have eliminated him from consideration as the defense minister , but the man was fun to be around and was pretty helpful too being a very senior member of the party.

"Don't you think its a little too early for that Henry ?!" of course Francis had had drinks early in the morning too but it wasn't really a great Idea to tell everyone that you're a raging alcoholic.

"Don't you pull my leg FU , I've got a lot of things to worry about right now . I'm presuming you've read the papers , 18 solders dead all young boys on top of that Mountbatten died too its a goddamn disaster my departments a shit-storm right now they're saying that these were one of the most well planned attacks undertaken by the IRA ever . If something like this happens again it'll be my head on a platter."

Francis knew there was a request coming next and didn't really want to listen to Henry's entire life story from scratch. "So you wan't me to get my MI6 buddies to make this their top priority ?"

"Precisely"

"Your going to owe me big Henry , and I don't mean tickets to the Arsenal game big alright?"

"You think i would be here if i didn't already know that" Henry said with a hint of anger in his voice.

"I'll think about it" In all his years as MP Francis had come to know that you never answer a request with a simple yes or no. The two men went on to talk about their families and the weather small talk at its finest until the Intern showed up , she seemed a bit shaken he knew he was on his first day.

"Wow , Francis how come you get all the pretty ones your one lucky bastard you know that" Henry said loud enough for the secretaries out back to hear.

"Ah yes , Miss Edwards please come in I presume you know , the Defense Minister here forgive him he's not learnt any manners even tough he went to Eton. I see you've met Charles there listen to everything he says intently he basically runs my life you know anyway Henry I think we're done here."

"Yes , i suppose I'll be off then FU remember what we discussed alright." and with that Henry left the office with a swagger in his steps shutting the door behind him.

Now onto the hard part you see Francis didn't really like the Internship program he felt that it was like babysitting a kid who had just entered middle school knowing nothing of how the world worked and he made it his personal motto to make it very clear to the interns that there would be no hand holding involved.

"Alright Miss Edwards , it says here that your from wales and I've heard that people there don't like to hear the bullshit we politicians throw at them , so i'm going to be straight with you . I didn't ask for an intern , I didn't want an intern and I definitely didn't have any say in choosing you for the post the only reason this internship thing even exists is probably because many believe that getting young conservatives involved in the political process will be a boon to us in the future , I personally don't hold this view you see we conservatives have basically found the key to staying in power and that is keeping at least 40 % of the people happy 70% of the time no one else matters and as such we can do perfectly well without the help of young voters especially if the one i'm trying to court is from Wales which votes predominantly for the other party" Francis stopped his little monologue to chug the remnant of alcohol in his glass.

"So you see Miss Edwards what i'm saying is that i am not your friend , nor your mentor as far as we are concerned I don't even know you but I still employ you and as such I expect absolute loyalty from you no matter what your political persuasions , which brings me to the second part of our agenda your first assignment. Your first assignment is going to be to book me 4 seats at the Corrigan Mayfair hotel for tonight , they're usually full most nights but mention my name and a vacancy will surely pop up. Well what are you waiting for , speak to Charles he'll get you all you need and close the door as you go will you."

DaffodilsAndDragons

 

[DaffodilsAndDragons]

Wow, Francis how come you get all the pretty ones, you're one lucky bastard, you know that. This wouldn't be the first shock to Rhian's ears in the next five minutes, but it certainly set the precedent. She turned her head, watching the Minister of Defence swagger away with a fire burning in the back of her throat, her mouth opened for a moment but instinct swiftly closed it. There was a slight curiosity at the discussion they had, but that went away when the room was left with herself and the Minister, not counting the Under-Secretary as Rhian was sure he was present for most things - he might as well be invisible.

Rhian listened in absolute shock at the tirade spewing out of the Minister's mouth; standing, starting up at him of course - even in these low heels he towered over her. It felt as though whatever foundations she had laid for herself were slowly crumbling from beneath her. When he stopped to continue his drink, which she thought was highly unprofessional (but who was she to say so), she thought it was over. Alas not, he carried out, the smell of alcohol wafting over to her which made her feel slightly sick in combination with the nerves she had. I expect absolute loyalty from you, no matter what your political persuasions. He didn't ask for much, did he?

The young woman's dilemma only continued when her suspicions about being a personal assistant were confirmed. Make a reservation at a restaurant? Who on earth did he think she was? Actually, she knew the answer to that question. She was Rhian Edwards, a miner's daughter from Blaenavon, and she was sworn to complete secrecy about what the Minsiter says and what the Minister does, no matter how insulted she felt.

"Yes, Minister" she replied curtly, with just another lingering on the s's to make it sound slightly poisonous. Her eyes had glazed over with angry tears, not very noticeable but almost inevitable given this kind of response. She turned on her heels and walked out of the room, remembering to unclench her fists on the way out. The Under Secretary's lips curled into a faint smile towards the Minister before he left the room with her, leading her into an adjacent room and pointing her towards two women sat at their typewriters behind a couple of desks.

"Mrs Whittaker, Miss Staple - this is Miss Edwards" he introduced her, Rhian found it incredibly hard to muster a smile despite the two women's greetings. The elder, Mrs Whittaker, was a woman in her 30s who's hair was starting to go grey, a little early if Rhian were to make a comment. Miss Staple was younger, and had a more firm face.
"Ah yes, the intern?" Mrs Whittaker confirmed with a smile, ushering the young girl over to spot they had made for her, opposite to them, it had its own typewriter and phone, as well as a collection of contact books and how-to guides for the machinery. Rhian made her way over to the desk and sat down, still clearly shocked and with a face like thunder.
"I'll leave Miss Edwards in your ladies capable hands" Charles said with a glance between the women, before deciding on going back into the Minister's office.

Rhian watched him go, waiting for him to re-enter the room before she looked back at the two ladies, unable to restrain herself.
"Is the Minister always so-"
"Unpleasant?" Miss Staple said back in a monotone voice. Rhian was surprised to hear it so quickly, but she nodded anyway. "I'm afraid so, he always seems to have a bee in that big old bonnet.".
"That's enough, Hannah" Mrs Whittaker warned, although it was clear from the expression she gave Rhian that she agreed. "Have you got something to get on with, Rhian?" she asked, giving an eye towards a pile of papers that needed sorting.

Rhian was surprised at the use of her first name, but she quickly sussed out that it was just the chain of command. She wouldn't call either of the woman by their first names, that'd be office taboo.
"Yes, but it won't take too long" she replied, managing a faint smile before making a grab for one of the contact books, thumbing the pages with a fury for that bloody restaurant.

"Minister, please don't take this in the wrong way, but perhaps you should have a slightly gentler approach to young Miss Edwards" Charles said cautiously, now back in the room and sat opposite Francis. "I completely agree that these young students need to learn that politics is not all sat by the fire discussing theories, but she is going to be with us for a while" he explained, watching for the man's reaction.

Elucid

 

[Elucid]

Contrary to popular opinion Francis didn't enjoy being a hardass but he had learnt early on in his career that maintaining a heavy hand with those under ones employ is absolutely essential after all if you want to ensure the loyalty of another you do not do it by being kindly and respectful , you do it by being intimidating using fear as a tool for ultimately what are human beings but self-interested creatures by unnerving and demeaning those closest to you , you are able to harness that self-interest into a desire to get in the good graces of their betters thus breeding loyalty and continued efforts on their part , however there was a balance that had to be maintained which if not followed would lead to employees simply quitting which was exactly what Francis feared had happened with the Rihan girl , he considered whether he'd gone a bit too far.

"Minister, please don't take this in the wrong way, but perhaps you should have a slightly gentler approach to young Miss Edwards" , Charles words shook the Minister away from his train of thought.

"Perhaps you're right Charles maybe I was too hard on her . Say doesn't the Minister in charge of the Intern in question have the authority to pay for their travel and meal expenses ?" The money would be going out of his own pocket but he didn't really mind he was a wealthy man after all.

"Why , yes they do sir , I will be sure to make the necessary arrangements and inform Miss Edwards about it unless you wish to do it yourself ?" . There it was again that wry smile on Charles' face he'd always have one when something went his way.

"No , It will be quite alright for you to break the news to her , now onto the other matters when do I have that meeting with the ambassador from Berlin ?" The West German's were worried like almost everyone in western Europe was about the Russians and their nuclear tests of course the Americans responded with thinly veiled threats but truly they weren't really concerned and why should they be ? it was not like the Russians could launch nukes all the way to New York , Westminster however was in havoc on hearing the news considering that at any moment London could be leveled to the ground.

"Well , you see sir there's been a slight change in plans the ambassadors actually coming tonight the change in schedule came directly from the PM's office and there was nothing I could do to reschedule apparently 'something came up' and the man had to reschedule."

"Damnit Charles , you know that today was supposed to be spent with the family . My wife is going to have my head for this." that being said it was like Francis was really looking forward to dinner.

"I am really sorry sir but there was really nothing I could've done."

"Fine , I'll inform the missus that we'll be having dinner with the man today you just make sure all the preparations are going smoothly." breaking the bad news to Amanda was about the most daring thing anyone could do but Francis knew he had to do it himself if he'd just made a secretary do it things would probably get out of hand quick.

"Of course sir, I'll make sure everything goes as planned , I'll leave you to it then sir" after having said that Charles gingerly left the room closing the doors as he went.

Francis poured himself another drink before making the call which went as one would have expected.

"Hello Honey ... no everything fine at work ... no I haven't been drinking ... yes know its not good for me , yeah about that dinner reservation ... you see uh , remember that German ambassador we were supposed to have dinner with well , he uh rescheduled to tonight ... look honey there's no reason to sh-... I know we didn't have one last time bu-... Well what the hell do you want me to do Alice tell the man to go f**k himself !!! ... I know , I know that was uncalled for , look I promise I'll make it up to you somehow ... ok then we'll talk later by-"

Francis was certain that the entire building heard that little outburst of his , It seemed that the older he got the more he lost his composure which was not at all a good thing . The rest of the day Francis spent in his office doing basic paper work and taking naps on the couch which he suspected was placed there for that very purpose , until he decided to take the rest of the day off and prepare for dinner but before that he needed to have a little chat with the new intern.

"Evening Minister , is there anything you need today?" The middle aged woman Mrs Whitaker called out as the Minister entered the room.

"Yes I'd like to speak to Miss Edwards please."

"Right this way sir" With that Mrs Whitaker lead Francis to the new interns desk , it seemed that she'd already settled in.

"Evening , Miss Edwards as I'm sure you know by now that I will not be needing that reservation to Corrigan's after all , it seems we'll be having dinner at home . If you've already made a reservation I trust you'll be able to cancel it . Oh and one more thing I have a favor to ask of you , I need you to run down to store and buy something expensive for my wife a box of chocolates or something feel free to take Miss Stenkle no Miss Stapler with you but make sure to bring it by my house sometime after the meeting ends which would probably be around 9:30 the German's are very particular about this sort of thing ." After ensuring that the instructions were clear Francis turned to Mrs Whitaker to make her aware of his departure "Alright then I suppose now that that's over I'll be off there's preparations to be done." Saying this Francis took his leave with the chaperon already at the car .

Before Miss Edwards could leave to do her job too she was interrupted by the under secretary "A moment , Miss Edwards I though I should inform you that the Minister has decided to pay your travel and meal expenses from his own pocket as long as you are under his employ , understand that such a step is not often taken and as such we expect that you will not make any unnecessary and frivolous expenditures and make him regret his decision."

DaffodilsAndDragons

 

[DaffodilsAndDragons]

Rhian's day, although getting off to perhaps the shakiest start it could've possibly began with, had slowly improved throughout. Once the reservation had been made (which still wasn't as simple as she thought it'd be, even after she mentioned the Minister's name), she helped Mrs Whittaker with the Minister's papers that still needed to be filed. She was put to the test with her typing ability also, having typed up some minutes from a previous meeting. Nothing of incredible intrigue, just a meeting with the Minister of Defence about military spending; still, some of the facts and figures were always interesting to think about given the current global situation.

She had lunch with them, sitting in the office's canteen (though it seemed a step up from a canteen by any means) - she listened to stories about Mrs Whittaker's husband and Miss Staple's disgruntled cat for about an hour. There was plenty of sorting to do on a regular basis throughout the day it seemed, and although she felt like Mrs Whittaker and Miss Staple were definitely using herself as a resource quite liberally, she appreciated their help with how things ran. She had spent the majority of the day buzzing between her own separate desk and the pair of women's joint one, coming towards the end of the day by just tidying her own space.

When the Minister arrived to speak to her, Rhian forced a smile. Ah, so the reservation was to be cancelled. Yes, she had heard him shout briefly down the phone earlier - come to think about it, talk of the West German ambassador had flown around the office too but not yet confirmed to her. Perhaps Mrs Whittaker and Miss Staple weren't at a place where they deemed it necessary to inform Rhian of the Minister's changes of plan, not yet anyway. A box of chocolates, she thought, now I'm to become a delivery girl. A glance towards Miss Staple who was lingering by the conjoining door to listen to the conversation; a shake of the head confirmed that the woman certainly did not fancy going shopping with the intern for a box of chocolates, and Rhian thought, who could blame her, especially as the Minister had forgotten her name for a moment.

Before should could even give her confirmation of the orders he had turned away and was on the way out. Rhian sighed, pulling on her jacket and picking up her purse and keys, thrusting them into her pocket. The Under-Secretary started speaking to her as she tucked the chair under the desk, and she listened in surprise. That was a dramatic change of tune. It was all no hand holding and cut through the bullshit earlier, now it was paying for most of her expenses? It was safe to say the Minister was a complex man. She gave him a firm nod, while she resented the Minister's words she couldn't resent his actions.
"Thank you for telling me; I understand how fortunate I am for this level of generosity" she confirmed, playing along to what he wanted to hear, though her smile was a lot less forced.

She made her goodbyes to the staff she had met and conversed with, leaving the building and making her way out of Whitehall with a spring in her step. It was just gone 5PM; her work for the day was almost done - just one more errand before she could go back to the flat and wait it out until 9:30. She decided to get the underground for the rest of the evening, finding another taxi to be frivolous as Charles had put it. On the way out Mrs Whittaker had suggested that Harrods was where she could buy the chocolates, so that's where she went. Climbing out of Knightsbridge station, she gazed at the department store that she had been in before a couple of times with her university friends but had never dared to buy anything.

It was still open of course, but not for long. She marvelled at the shelves of fancy boxes of a variety of different chocolates, picking one of the mid-range priced ones (though Rhian thought it was still extravagant for a bit of chocolate) for the Minister. She was concerned about what his own budget was, so didn't want to over step the mark. She was about to turn around to go to the lovely lady at the checkout, when she spotted the cheapest one, which the price rivalled a few days of work for her father, and picked it up. The chocolates still looked lovely, the box had the signature Harrods logo with a wallpaperish design. Rhian's mind worked fast with the maths, if she was saving on travel and food, she could afford out of her own pocket wages a bit of luxury.

With a smile, she brought the two purchases over to the checkout and handed over the money, asking for two separate bags. Her mind was gleeful at the thought of her parent's and sibling's faces at the box of chocolates - they weren't for herself, the opportunity to send them something from her city of residence, from the most famous department store in the world, was too lovely to miss. She exited the shop and took the Underground back to Euston, where she walked the rest of the way to her flat. The time was now 6:30, enough time for a bit of dinner and a freshen up before making her way to the Minister's address. She stopped at her local chip shop first, a favourite of her flat mates and got dinner on her - feeling generous and a little bit powerful with the extra money she had, but still, this wasn't close to overstepping the mark. Going to the Ritz would be overstepping the mark.

Her flat mates were both still in, probably only leaving the flat for the occasional cigarette (Rhian didn't allow them to smoke inside). They were, as predicted, delighted by the fish and chips. They sat around their modest table and talked about Rhian's first day, joking about how secretive she was being - she gave them just enough information about her day, not mentioning how much of a dick the Minister was to her at the beginning, of course. Loyalty was a word that had stuck with her, regardless of her feelings. Before she knew it, she was back in a taxi and on her way to the Minister's house - far superior than her flat, or family home, but that wasn't surprising. She carried the bag containing the box of chocolates in one hand, walking up the front porch and hesitating only for a moment before knocking the door with her free hand.

Elucid

 

[Elucid]

The Urwin household was bustling with activity that Monday evening with men and women working up a sweat making sure that the place looked trim and proper for the Ambassador and his entourage , informal meetings like these were common of course , in fact they were even encouraged as a chance for both sides to relax and unwind before they went onto business. Francis had got home from work early that evening to oversee the preparations and to hopefully make things right with his wife which was proving to be difficult with all the people around moving furniture , setting tables and whatnot . So Francis decided to spend the rest of the day watching TV in his 'study' which thankfully no one was turning upside down , eventually Francis had to come down though to get dressed and look like the perfect little family for the visitors even the kids were all tidied up.

The rest of the evening went quite smoothly , the German Ambassador had brought with him his family and a few associates from the embassy who were all treated to a great party with some fancy food and drinks of which the Germans especially seemed to like the Cumberland sausages in all their spirally glory however there was no question that the main attraction of the night came when Francis was forced to play the piano by everyone in attendance to which he responded by playing 'don't lets be beastly to the German' which although did manage to get a few huddled laughs from the British side but did not translate well with the Germans.

After the rest of the shenanigans for the day were done however the men retired to the 'study' to discuss matters of state over a few cigars and some brandy, it went as one would have expected with the Ambassador going on with the usual about how the Russian threat was too great and that the western powers were not doing enough to curb their transgressions not letting Francis get a word in until the Ambassador tired.

Francis: "Look Ambassador I understand that this is a grave problem and agree that we must together do something about it but I don't think such hysterics ar-"

Ambassador: "Hysterics !! that's easy for you to say sir when you don't share a border with the Iron Curtain" the Ambassador barked , a bit taken aback.

Francis: "Maybe , Hysteria was a poorly chosen word but i assure you that the British government is completely at your side in fact I am to make a public announcement in parliament condemning their actions."

Francis did his bit to repair the situation which seemed to have worked with the rest of the day being spent speaking about the general geopolitical situation until it was time for them to leave , much of the delegation was supposed to catch an early flight to America tomorrow and as such hurried to their hotels.

*********
​

Francis had just sat on the couch to loosen up when the calling bell rang , realizing that it was probably that new Intern he hurried to open it but unfortunately Alice had got their first.

Alice: "Francis , there's this girl here to see you . She's carrying some kind of package."

Francis: "Yup , yes I'm coming" with that Francis made a dash for the door.

Alice: "Well, aren't you going to introduce us" Alice said with a bit of suspicion in her eyes

Francis: "Of course , well , uh, this is Miss Edwards she's our , uh, new political analyst sent to advice on the Russian situation." Not the best aliases on Francis' part but hey it would probably do the job.

Alice: "She looks awfully young to be a political analyst for Westminster"

Francis: "Well, she applies a lot of product , seriously hon we've got to be going she and I have a lot to discuss ."

Alice: "Can't you just do it in the study"

Francis: "Nope its stuffy there besides I need to take a walk once in a while , doctors orders"

After that back and forth was done Francis lead Miss Edwards trough the gardens out back while lighting a cigarette , after a while of silent walking he finally spoke up.

Francis: "Thank you for bringing the chocolates by , you're handling your first day quite well actually most others usually have their semi-influential fathers ringing me up asking as to why their sons or daughters are running errands , but I suppose you don't have that luxury."

The pair walk a few more paces in silence before Francis stops

Francis: "I've got a statement to make tomorrow on the issues concerning the recent Soviet bomb tests , its got to be stern and forceful all the while satiating the minds of our European counterparts , now the speech i'm not concerned with what i am however concerned with are the questions the other MP's will throw at me , especially since I've heard that the speaker intends to give the backbenches more time which means it'll be open season. What i need you to do is prepare a list salient points that should be remembered like the places where the tests took place , how many tests took place and any other relevant information , more importantly I need you to write down what you think are the most likely questions that might be asked and subsequently answer them."

Francis stops the train of instructions being thrown at Miss Edwards only to take another puff from his cigarette.

Francis: "Well, what are you waiting for ? its already 9:45 I'll need this stuff on my desk at 6 o'clock sharp in the morning. Oh and drop that package with the driver will you i'll need to take a few more rounds we wouldn't want the wife to think that those chocolates had been bought by my intern now would we."


DaffodilsAndDragons