No, as entertaining as the idea was to her here and now, Sarah thought with a sigh, it would have been no better to be stuck at work, away from home like this poor man was. She ought to count her blessings. (She began to, a little, when the stranger - Asha, he had said - gave her hand a brief bolstering squeeze. Sometimes touch was rather more convincing than words.)
The easy manner of conversation did keep her from panicking too much about stumbling around towards the Broomsticks in the dark, too, and she kept up the facade with gusto. Even if that meant admitting the truth of it. How easy it would have been, how tempting, to invent some grand story about the great life she led, some woman who did important things with her life, who had something to show for it. (What a ridiculous idea.) "Oh, I'm a welcome witch," Sarah said, with an abashed little laugh, "so they'll be doing splendidly without me. But perhaps if you ever visit the Ministry for a story," she added, a little fancifully, "I'll see you again at the front desk!"
The easy manner of conversation did keep her from panicking too much about stumbling around towards the Broomsticks in the dark, too, and she kept up the facade with gusto. Even if that meant admitting the truth of it. How easy it would have been, how tempting, to invent some grand story about the great life she led, some woman who did important things with her life, who had something to show for it. (What a ridiculous idea.) "Oh, I'm a welcome witch," Sarah said, with an abashed little laugh, "so they'll be doing splendidly without me. But perhaps if you ever visit the Ministry for a story," she added, a little fancifully, "I'll see you again at the front desk!"
