I’ve Been Here Before [Camila]

[camila calderón]

January 2027

Although Bianca clarified that she was Muggle-born, she didn't say much more about it, other than to comment that at least Camila must not have had an overdependence on magic. Camila nodded her head in response but didn't want to push the subject. She wasn't sure that Bianca wanted it advertised that she was Muggle-born. There were no shortage of terms for Muggle-borns that ranged from impolite to downright hostile, and Camila didn't want Bianca to be subjected to any of them because of her, even if unintentionally.

Bianca took a moment to check her phone when it rang, only to silence the ringtone without answering the person who was trying to call her. "Nobody respects vacation time anymore," she complained, which led Camila to believe that it was probably work-related.

"People pick and choose what's useful," Camila noted about the issue into which Bianca had just run. Some of the same people who would probably scoff at the use of something like electricity had become totally into using mobile phones, the faster option than sending owls all the way to Brazil. "I think that people expect me to be reliant on magic," she continued with a laugh, "as if I have house-elves and this and that. But the minute they realize that I have a mobile phone, it's always, 'Hi, Camila. Can you do this?'" It was life, wasn't it?

Bianca Alia Rivera

[Bianca Alia Rivera]

Despite the fact that her Muggleborn background had been a point of contention during her promotion, it really hadn’t been all that relevant to Bianca’s life overall. She’d gotten some trouble about it during school – wizards in Latin America were a little more particular about their blood status and that passed on to their children too – but it had barely come up during her years as an Auror. It had only been her entrance into the public domain that had sparked the debate about whether blood status was important to high-ranking positions. But Bianca had been in her job for over a year and the debate had slowly quieted down. Besides, after her initial statement dismissing the subject, Bianca had refused to engage with it any further.

Camila also seemed to understand the frustrations of being surrounded by people seeking favors all the time – which cast a somber shadow over the glamor of being a rising star. She seemed young, but Bianca cast a scrutinizing gaze over Camila and the maturity it must take to deal with all those competing interests. Because at least Bianca was an adult, and she’d found ways to limit those pressures to her work life without bringing them home. It seemed impossible to have to cope with them constantly. “Mm,” Bianca acknowledged the pain of no one being completely unreachable these days. That was the downside of magicked Muggle technology – everything, and everyone, was constantly connected all the time. “It might be time to be a little less pleasant. Learn to set boundaries and expect others to follow them.” That was one way that Bianca coped with the constant attention, because people knew better than to cross the stormy Head of Law Enforcement. But it was an easier strategy for someone who’d never cared about public opinion, less so for natural people-pleasers.

Bianca pursed her lips as her phone began to ring again, and a quick glance revealed that it was Games and Sports again. It might actually be urgent, if he’d decided to call his colleague twice in a row instead of assuming she was unavailable at the moment. “I need to take this,” Bianca decided, already mentally planning the body dump if it turned out not to be urgent after all. “Don’t forget to call,” she said, nodding at the card she’d given Camila, then without further ado she turned on her heel to answer the Department Head’s call. “Rivera,” she answered curtly as she listened to the frantic voice on the other end of the call. Turning briefly, she brought up her hand to flash a quick goodbye to Camila, then continued down the corridor for a little privacy. She did hope Camila wouldn’t be too shy to contact her when they’d traveled back to London – Bianca knew what it meant to have a friend that understood your language and culture. It made the experience of being in a new country just a little less isolating.

camila calderón
[End post Bianca!]

[camila calderón]

January 2027

It was strange at first to hear Bianca tell her that she needed to be less pleasant with other people. Throughout her career, and especially at the very start of it, Camila had been reminded over and over again of the importance of maintaining her public image. Being disagreeable, she had been led to believe, was a surefire way to get labeled as "difficult" by others in the music industry. Camila had had reason to avoid burning bridges with anyone, but she knew that Bianca wasn't wrong in saying that she needed to set boundaries. It certainly helped that she was in a place in her career trajectory that she no longer felt as guilty about setting those boundaries.

She nodded to Bianca to acknowledge that she had heard her advice, just in time for Bianca's ringtone to sound for a second time. Camila wasn't going to keep Bianca from her phone call, nor did she blame her for the interruption. "I need to take this," Bianca told her. "Don't forget to call."

"Of course," Camila responded quickly. Even though Bianca had to leave to answer her phone, she had no doubt that she had someone else in Britain to whom she could turn.

Bianca Alia Rivera
Fin!