Prologue
Kingsley Shacklebolt sighed, rubbing his bald head. Why was he even here this early? He rolled his eyes. Because Mad-Eye's a workaholic, he reminded himself. The retired Auror was taking on training the new recruits, which was going to be a considerably large job, considering the Auror Department hadn't taken on any new members for three solid years. Unfortunately for Kingsley, more trainees meant more qualified Aurors had to be around to train them, which in turn meant more working hours for him.
A grim expression upon his face, Kingsley pulled what seemed like a mountain of paper planes towards him, and flicked his wand, muttering a spell to unfold them.
Caddock, Michael. Davenport, Stefan. Greentree, Sean. Hatfield, Sherry. Honeysuckle, Ariadne...
After several hours of reading Auror training application forms, Kingsley's head was thumping. He had not the slightest clue how he would remember all the names and details he'd read and the faces he'd looked at. He stood up, stretching out aching limbs and attempting to suppress a yawn.
"Sleeping on the job, there, are we Kingsley?" called a sickeningly cheery voice from outside the cubicle.
A moment later, the crooked nose of Albus Dumbledore poked around the corner, followed by the rest of the old wizard. The other wizard blinked in surprise. Dumbledore wore a garish purple and orange set of robes with a matching pointed hat. Unfazed by the lack of response, Dumbledore said, "Oh, this rather dashing ensemble was a gift from the Peruvian Minister for Magic. He has lovely taste, wouldn't you say?"
Kingsley nodded mutely. "Yes, quite," he replied. "I was just reading over the files from the new Auror trainees. Mad-Eye wanted to quadruple check that all the applicants had fulfilled all his requirements. He left that job up to me. It's quite tedious, you see."
A smile tugged at the corners of Dumbledore's lips. "Well, well. Alastor never seems to change, does he?"
Kingsley shook his head ruefully.
Dumbledore bowed deeply. "I should leave you in peace, then. Wish Alastor good luck for me, will you?"
"I surely will," replied Kingsley. "Goodbye." He then closed the cubicle door behind the older wizard.
An hour later, Kingsley heaved a sigh of relief. At long last, he had finished reading and checking each application, and not a single one was something to be concerned about, although he worried about what Mad-Eye would make of some of his trainees. Some of the pictures showed applicants with quite literally half a dozen earrings in each ear, some wore Spectrespecs, while one applicant looked to Kingsley like he was still recovering from a bout of dragon pox.
Oh, well, thought Kingsley. Mad-Eye is supposed to know what he's doing. Shaking his head in bewilderment, he went to get himself a cup of tea and a crumpet slathered with jam and butter.