Celebrating a Bright Future

[Claudia Holland]

The results were in, and Claudia felt like she was floating a few feet off the ground in happiness. She had won! It was all too unreal to really wrap her mind around it, though underneath the initial happiness was a little knot of worry and uncertainty. As exciting as this was, it would bring along a lot of change for her and her family. But those were things she could handle. With James by her side, she knew she could handle that aspect of her life. And for this new aspect of her life that was now opening up, she had no doubt she would be supported on all sides by the people working at the Ministry, and her new Deputy. If she was completely honest with herself, she was secretly relieved the runner up hadn't been Ioan Finch. Alexander Cade's views were different from her own too, but at least he had never been openly unpleasant to her during debates. But that was all in the past now. There was no reason to linger on Mr. Finch any longer. Claudia doubted she would see the man again.

They had opened their home for a small celebration for the hardworking people who had helped and supported them. The only person who had worked on the campaign and couldn't be here was Bethany Zanders, but she was a Hogwarts student so it couldn't' be helped. Claudia was also saddened that her daughters couldn't be here for this moment, though she was sure they had their own way to celebrate at the school. She had set out snacks and drinks and was glad to mingle and chat with the people who had helped and supported her through this journey. She knew that without them, she wouldn't have been able to make it. Claudia caught her husband's eye and gave him a smile as she approached him. "I'm going to ask you to pinch me a few times tonight, I think." She said softly.

 

[James Holland]

James couldn't quite believe how calm he felt. He was excited for his wife, of course, but no part of that excitement felt like surprise. He had known from the moment she had decided to run that nothing was going to come between Claudia and her goal, and it had been a joy to watch his tenacious wife put her heart and soul into her campaign. Every moment of the last few months had been leading up to this, and James had never doubted that the people of New Zealand would see everything he saw in his wife. Her strength, her sincerity, her dedication, how deeply she cared for others. The fact that there was going to be an entire country watching them now was a little difficult to grasp, as the election had already pushed James out of his reclusive comfort zone somewhat, but he knew that whatever adjustments he had to make would be worth it to have Claudia at the helm of their ministry.

James didn't expect to see much of his wife at her victory party, figuring there would be many important people she needed to be talking to, so he was pleasantly surprised when she approached him, taking her free hand and squeezing it gently. "I knew you would win." He murmured, making sure nobody was watching them before lifting her hand and pressing a gentle kiss to her knuckles. "You're going to be wonderful."

 

[Professor Grace Holland]

Grace hadn't been able to stop grinning from the moment the results had been announced. As soon as she could, she had headed over to her uncle and aunt's house. The election process had been fascinating to follow and help with, and she was very proud of her aunt. Though she also knew one thing for sure. She herself didn't want to do anything like this. She wasn't ruling out that she would ever work at the ministry, but if she did it would be in the Department of Magical Games and Sports, and she would definitely never try to run for minister or anything like it. Her father had hoped Claudia's campaign would awaken some sort of political drive in Grace, but it had only done the opposite. She knew she was happy where she was now, and that too was something to celebrate. Grace grabbed herself a drink and looked around to see if she could spot Victoire somewhere. Over the course of the campaign, she had started to like her quite a bit.

 

[Colin Michaels]

The hard work of Claudia and the team behind her campaign had finally paid off, with the results of the election in and Claudia being named the new minister. Colin supported his friend wholeheartedly and there was never a moment during the campaign he doubted her capabilities, so with the win secured and what was hopefully a bright future in store for the wizarding community of New Zealand he couldn't be happier. His usual set of worries were further from his thoughts than ever knowing Claudia was elected and her values and positive intentions would be make a reality in the wizarding world. Even as he got dressed for Claudia's celebration party with Eva in silence, bar asking if she was also ready to leave, Colin's demeanor was relaxed and cheerful in contrast to his usual state of reservation and anxiety. He refused to let anything get to him knowing the effort he made to volunteer in Claudia's campaign was worth it and the night was solely meant for celebration of the positive changes ahead. Arriving to the party alongside Eva, Colin carried a bottle of expensive Merlot he and Eva had been saving for a while as a gift for Claudia and James. He couldn't see a more appropriate celebration for expensive wine and smiled as he approached Claudia, greeting her with kindness and admiration of her success. "Claudia, James, hello! Congratulations!" He exclaimed, quickly offering bottle to the new minister. "This is for you, Eva and I have been saving it for a special occasion."​

 

[Eva Marsh]

Although she had been too busy to be personally involved in her friend's campaign, Eva had been following Claudia's progress closely, and the outcome of the election was a delight to hear. It was a little surreal, imagining the woman she had shared so many deep late night conversations over wine with running a whole country, but Eva knew the ministry would be in good hands with Claudia at its head. A cause for celebration came as a welcome break for Eva, and for once the heavy silence at home didn't bother her as she got ready, making sure she looked as nice as possible for Claudia's party. She wanted to put the effort in, to look as good as she hoped Claudia felt. Once she and Colin were ready, the thick silence between them broken by plain niceties, Eva was relieved to arrive at the party, the joy all around them the furthest thing from the still air at home. She made her way over to Claudia and James with Colin, relieved to find them unoccupied by other people. "I'm so happy for you." She said warmly, touching Claudia's arm gently. "You'll do a fantastic job. I can't wait to see where the country's going with you at the helm."

 

[Sara Moon]

Technically, Sara wasn't still assigned to Claudia Holland, but she's wanted to come along tonight, partially out of respect for the woman who would now be her Minister for Magic, and partially because she still worried. Of course, now that Mrs. Holland was minister, she would assigned a separate security detail to ensure her safety, but Sara was used to the woman, and quite liked her, though she still wasn't totally on side. Sara took convincing, and once Mrs. Holland got to work as minister, that was when she would make up her mind. As a person, however, she was lovely. By now, she was visibly pregnant; the baby was due in August. She'd been careful to cover up her pregnancy quite carefully during the campaign, aware that those who might seek to harm the candidate might perceive a pregnant bodyguard as a sign of weakness. They would've been mistaken, but she didn't want to place any question mark over the safety of her charge. Tonight, however, the bump was visible, and she approached the Minister of Magic with a smile and an outstretched hand, "Congratulaitons Minister, very well fought." Mrs. Holland had fought a clean campaign, and with plenty of controversy surrounding the other candidates, that was saying something.

 

[Claudia Holland]

Claudia knew she couldn’t just stay with her husband for the entire party, but she was happy to have him at her side. He had been at her side through this entire ordeal, giving her support that enabled her to do her very best. She was quite sure she wouldn’t have been able to win if it wasn’t for him, though she was also pretty sure he would never believe that if she told him so. She smiled fondly at him as he kissed her hand. “I know you always believed in me, even more than I myself did.” She said softly. “Thank you.” She moved away from him slightly to keep an eye on the gathering, which was how she spotted Colin approach with his wife Eva. Claudia smiled widely at her friends. “Thank you, and you didn’t need to… but I suppose it is quite a special occasion.” She said with a small smile as she took the bottle from him. Then she turned her attention to Eva, a friend she had seen a lot less during the campaign because they were both busy. “Thank you, Eva. It means a lot.” She said. Then, she couldn’t help adding. “Colin really was a wonderful help. He did a fantastic job supporting me and reading over my speeches. He’s such a talented writer.” She knew things weren’t always easy between Colin and Eva lately, and she hoped that reminding her of the wonderful hardworking man Colin was might help things a little. Claudia couldn’t help wanting to fix things, even when she knew they weren’t exactly her business. She noticed someone else approach, and once she realized who it was she gave her as wide a smile as she had given her friends. Being shadowed by an auror had been tiring at times, but Claudia knew she couldn’t have asked for someone better than Sara Moon. She handed her husband the bottle so she could give the auror her full attention. As she shook her hand, she looked at her with a grateful smile. “Thank you. And thank you for the protection during these past months. It’s something I have to get used to now, I suppose. But you really were a fantastic help.” She said sincerely. Claudia glanced down at her bump, and her smile widened even more. “And congratulations.” The fact that the auror assigned to her had been pregnant didn’t bother Claudia at all. She knew Sara was capable, and that didn’t go away because of a pregnancy. She only hoped protecting her hadn't distracted her too much from her own life. And she couldn't help hoping Sara would focus on herself for a bit, though this really wasn't Claudia's business either.