"Well, Director Potter, I'll leave her in your capable hands. Goodnight Hermione," Pops said and started to leave. He took a few steps and turned back to the two young adults and said, "Oh, Ms. Granger, there's something you should know before I go."
"Yes?"
"If anyone other than you had drawn a wand on the Chief," Pops said levelly, "they wouldn't have walked out of the room. Good night." The older man gave a short nod to Harry and strode from the hall.
"Harry!" Hermione shouted as she turned on Harry and poked him in the chest. "You better talk and you better talk fast! These people are driving me crazy! You should hear the things they say about Ron!"
"Okay," Harry said while raising his hands in a soothing gesture, "let's just floo over to my place and we'll have a nice chat. Okay?"
"Fine," she spat. Hermione stormed over to the nearest floo, grabbed a handful of floo powder, and tossed it at her feet saying, "The Haven!" before disappearing in green flame.
"Bloody hell," Harry sighed, "I'm dead."
When Harry stepped out in to his living room moments later he was greeted with classic Hermione. She stood with arms crossed and one foot tapping. Hermione had one eyebrow raised as if to say, "Well, I'm waiting."
Harry loved his home in Godric's Hollow. After some reservations Ginny had convinced him that it should be the place that they built their life together. Harry had decided to leave his parent's home as a monument to the First War. Instead, he and Ginny had bought a plot a bit down the road and built a home. It was designed to be cozy with the ability to expand when they decided to have children. Harry decided to bring Hermione here because it was the place Harry felt most comfortable.
Harry motioned to one of the two plush sofa's that sandwiched a solid walnut coffee table in front of the hearth. "Have a seat," Harry tried to say nonchalantly, "Wine?"
"I'm not going to become an alcoholic because of Ron," Hermione humphed.
"I might," Harry muttered while he brought a bottle of elfin wine and two glasses to the highly polished table. He poured himself a glass and left the other glass empty for Hermione to use if she changed her mind. Harry sat back into the sofa and took a drink of wine before sighing and rubbing the bridge of his nose.
"Harry, stop that."
"What?"
"Rubbing your face," Hermione explained, "You always do that when you're nervous."
"Right," Harry said while leaning forward and setting down his glass. "I just want you to know that none of us planned for things to turn out like this and-"
Before Harry could get started the fireplace burst into green flame and out stepped one Ginny Potter in her Holyhead Harpies uniform with a large dufflebag containing her Quidditch gear in hand.
Harry shot up, "Honey, your home!"
"Yeah, the Cannons completely suck," the fiery redhead said as she embraced Harry, "I don't see what Ron ever saw in them. It was a slaughter." As Ginny pulled away from Harry she noticed Hermione and then looked back at her husband. "Harry, what's wrong?"
"Nothings wrong love," Harry stammered, "Just having a chat with Hermione."
"Nothings wrong," Ginny said while raising an eyebrow and putting a hand on her hip. "Then why are you wearing your nervous face over the top of your guilty face? Why is Hermione here? What'd you do to Hermione?"
"I didn't do anything. I'm just explaining to Hermione why-"
"Ron's back."
"What?" Ginny asked while looking around. "Where is he? Ron! Ron!" Ginny started to call down the halls leading off the living room. As she walked by Harry grabbed her hand dragging her to a stop.
"He's not here," Harry said.
"Well where the hell is he then so I can hex the prats bits off!" Ginny shouted while pulling her hand out of Harry's grasp.
"He's sequestered at the Ministry," Harry explained. "He and his team are still on a high priority mission and they need to be on duty 24/7. I was about to explain to Hermione what has been going on so please sit down."
Ginny gave her husband an evil glare and instead of taking a seat on the couch next to Harry she walked around the coffee table and sat next to Hermione. Taking Hermione's hand in hers she said, "Okay, explain."
Harry gulped. I'm dead, he thought while looking across at two of the most powerful witches in England. Summoning his Gryfinndor courage, and a pull of wine, Harry began.
"Right, so I already told Hermione earlier how Ron did really well in Auror training. Even then Kingsley decided to place him in a mentor-ship program with one of the more senior Aurors. It was nothing fancy you know. Just routine type cases. I was put in a similar program for my first six months and I learned loads while not having to dodge hexes at every turn. Kingsley really knew what he was doing taking DA members in and then mentoring them. Anyway, Ron grumbled a bit about it but did his job."
"Yes," interjected Hermione, "I had just started at the Ministry and Ron would mention how he thought being an Auror would be more exciting. Though why he wanted more excitement after the war I don't know."
"Yeah," Harry agreed, "the few times we were able to get together for drinks he'd complain about his Team Leader. Seemed to think he didn't take him seriously. I told Ron just to hang with it for awhile. You know, get adjusted to it. Then Kingsley hit me with that bombshell of being the Interim Director of Aurors. Of course I didn't want to do it but he had some good points so I accepted."
"Yeah, and that was what? Almost five years ago," Hermione said with a scoff. She then poured herself a glass of wine and sat back in the sofa. "So much for interim," she said before taking a drink. Ginny took Hermione's cue and took Harry's glass of wine while motioning for him to continue.
Harry, looking put out, said, "Anyway, I hadn't been in the job for more than a month when Sr. Auror Smith came into my office and threw his badge on my desk."
"Ha, I wouldn't think Pops had such a flair for the dramatic," Hermione quipped.
"Pops?" asked Ginny giving Hermione a strange look.
"Yes, apparently your deranged brother gives everyone nicknames," Hermione said while fingering her wine glass.
"Are you done with your commentary or shall I wait?" Harry asked while starting to get flustered. After Hermione said nothing after a few seconds Harry continued, "So, I asked Pops what he was on about. He went into this speech about how he had nothing to teach Ron. How Ron should be running his own team and that he couldn't teach Ron anything. Well, I didn't know what the hell to do so I called Kingsley. After Kingsley pulled off some clever negotiating Pops agreed to go back and continue mentoring Ron."
"Well that's not what he told me," Hermione huffed.
"Yes," Harry said while rubbing his nose, "I heard what Pops told you. I was saying that Pops agreed to go back and mentor Ron. I didn't say he actually did it. What Kingsley and I didn't know is that Pops went back and pretty much turned the team over to Ron."
"You're kidding," Ginny put in for the first time, "Some idiot put my brother in charge of a team of Aurors?"
"Yes, dear, some idiot with 36 years of experience as an Auror put Ron in charge unbeknownst to myself or Kingsley. What I did see were the status reports. Like any government agency the Auror Department generates a lot of paperwork. Some of that paperwork involves arrest reports. Now, Pops has been around for a long time and it was common knowledge that he was waiting for retirement. Most of his reports were follow-ups and minor dark magic offenses. Then I started to see a pick-up in the number of reports coming from his team. I didn't think much of it until the nature of the reports started to change."
"Yes Harry, I've heard all this already. Ron started breaking open cases that Pops wouldn't have seen and then he saved Pops life in a raid. I've heard this," Hermione said impatiently.
"Yeah, well Ginny hasn't," Harry said testily. "You asked me to talk and I'm talking."
"Sorry," Hermione said almost contritely.
"So, it was obvious something was up with Pops' team. Kingsley and I decided to call Pops in for a face-to-face. This was about nine months after Ron became an Auror. After some evasion Pops finally admitted that he had turned control of his team over to Ron. Kingsley, ever the voice of reason, thought we should let Ron run with it. We didn't want to burn Pops experience so we asked him to stay on and smooth out Ron's rough spots. It's was a few months after that things went queer."
"Finally! What the bloody hell happened?!"
Harry sat in shock. In all his years of friendship with Hermione Granger he knew she avoided swearing. He was in deep.
"Err," Harry started nervously while rubbing his scar, "At this time the reports from Ron's team all started to point towards the same thing."
"Fenrir Greyback," Hermione stated flatly.
"Yes, Greyback. He has been on the Auror's Top Ten Most Wanted list for thirty years. Greyback has been #1 for the last twenty except for the few years were I replaced him. Somehow Ron and Pops had singled in on cases that involved Greyback. More amazingly, they seemed to develop new leads that could ultimately bring the bastard to justice. Kingsley was ecstatic. He had been dealing with Greyback off and on for twenty years. Hermione. Ginny. You know Ron's my best mate and I love him like a brother, but this was a big step. Kingsley wanted to put Ron on Greyback full time. I disagreed. I thought it was too much too soon knowing how Ron buckles under pressure. After some heated discussion Kingsley decided to leave the decision to me as I was the Interim Director of Aurors and it fell under my direct authority. That's why it's my fault Ron is always gone."
"What do you mean?" Hermione asked anxiously. "What's that mean Harry?"
"I thought about what Kingsley said," Harry muttered while not meeting Hermione's eyes, "I thought about Remus and how hard his life was because of Greyback. I thought of Bill and how Fleur could still love him after what Greyback did to him. I thought of Lavender and how she changed after she was attacked. I thought of us captured in the Forest of Dean and that bastard putting his hands on you. And I thought of vengeance." Harry wiped at his eyes and continued, "I gave the order that directed Ron and Pops to only follow Greyback cases. When Ron came to me six months later requesting to start a new unit I was the one that authorized it. And when I saw that Ron had become single minded in his pursuit of Greyback I was the one that ignored it."
"So why didn't he write Harry?" Hermione asked emotionally, "Why didn't we even know if he was alive?"
"I don't know Hermione. There were times when we didn't hear from him and his team for six months or more. We didn't even know he was coming back to London until yesterday. A letter showed up detailing the things he required upon his arrival. Kingsley and I barely arranged it all."
"I...I don't know what to say," Ginny stammered.
"I do," Hermione spat, "You're a right bastard Harry Potter." Before Harry could respond Hermione had disapparated.
Harry stared at the spot where Hermione had been a moment earlier. While staring he felt something soft hit the side of his head. Looking down he saw a pillow.
"What's this Ginny?"
"A pillow," Harry's wife said coldly, "I'd hate for you to be uncomfortable on the couch." Ginny turned while tossing her hair at Harry and walking to their bedroom.
Harry fluffed the pillow and curled up on the sofa.
"Bloody hell."
