The day seemed to drag by as Hermione read and re-read through her research. Although everyone agreed that progress would likely be slow, a sense of hopefulness pervaded the Ministry, the feeling of finally  doing  something buoying their moods. She jumped at every noise in the hallway, anxiously grabbed every memo the second it entered her office in case it contained news. When the time came for the afternoon debrief meeting, Hermione found herself seated in the conference room a full half hour early, and she wasn’t the only one. By the time the clock struck four, only the curse-breaking team had yet to arrive.