Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. If I did, I'd be rich. Not to say that I'm poor, but I don't have that much money…
Hey guys!
Now that Miss Hawaii's over, I've finally found some time to write! Not too much time, though; we'll be working on our next dance concert, Déjà Vu 3, for the weeks to come…
June 19th is my 17th birthday, so I'll try to get a chapter of Before the Order or The Burdens of a Lioness up as a present to you all :).
Anyway, hope you all enjoy this one!
saiyanwizardgurl
Chapter 10: Rufus Scrimgeour
"Albus? Albus, love, you have a Firecall from the Ministry."
Albus Dumbledore groaned as he rolled over. Opening his eyes, he was met by the emerald green orbs of Minerva McGonagall. "What time is it?" he asked.
"It's nine-thirty," said the witch, handing her husband his glasses. "I'm sorry I woke you; I was going to let you sleep in."
"It's all right, Minerva," he said groggily, swinging his legs over the side of the bed. "I think I've slept in enough as it is. Who is it?"
"Rufus Scrimgeour. According to the Daily Prophet, he is the new Minister of Magic."
The Transfigurations teacher held out a copy of the paper. The headline "Scrimgeour Succeeds Fudge" sparkled at the top. "Would you leave that on my desk, Minerva? And tell Rufus that I will speak with him shortly."
"Of course," she said, placing a tender kiss on his forehead before exiting their bedroom. The headmaster stood and quickly pulled on a clean set of robes. He winced slightly as his the bones in his neck popped when he turned his head. "I'm getting too old for this," he mumbled as he walked into his office. As expected, the head of the new Minister of Magic was sitting in the fireplace.
"Rufus," said, Dumbledore pleasantly, pulling up a chair in front of the hearth. "How have you been?"
"Quite busy since this morning, actually," replied Scrimgeour. "The Ministry is abuzz right now. The International Confederation of Wizards wants to have another meeting, and there's a lot to get done without all of that."
"So soon? Who asked to reconvene? Surely not anyone from the British seats?"
"Oh, no, no, Dumbledore; you, as the Supreme Mugwump, would be the first to know if that was the case. It's the Bulgarians that wanted to reconvene. Apparently, they are worried about the increased Dark activity in their country since You-Know-Who's return, and they have the French backing them up. They claim to have evidence that some of the Dark wizards in Bulgaria have snuck across the Austrian border and are planning to round up the giant colonies in the Alps for an attack on the French Ministry. And, I must admit, it sounds quite possible."
"Probable, even," said the headmaster. "Will the representative from Liechtenstein be present this time?"
"I believe so. I was last informed that he has made a full recovery from the injuries he obtained in last month's massacre."
"Good. Have you been in contact with the Irish Minister?"
"I spoke with him a few hours ago. He asked about you."
"Really, now?"
"Yes. He wanted to know if you had been reinstated as Chief Warlock and Supreme Mugwump yet. He said that it was about time when I told him that you were."
Dumbledore laughed. "I take it he will also be present at the reconvening?"
"I believe so."
"Just one question, Rufus. It is wise to hold a meeting for the International Confederation of Wizards here in Britain with all that is currently going on? Wouldn't it be wiser to take it over to Bulgaria or France? They are the ones that wanted to reconvene in the first place, right?"
"The Bulgarians don't want to run the risk of an attack on the Confederation, which they believe is likely to happen if the meeting is held in their country."
"And the French?"
"They don't want to let any foreign wizards through their borders."
"I see."
"Lovely, isn't it?"
"Quite. But back to the matter at hand, Rufus. I'm sure you didn't just call me to talk about the happenings at the Ministry of Magic."
"Perceptive as ever, are we, Albus?"
"Perhaps."
Scrimgeour smiled. "I'll take that as a 'yes,' then. I called to ask for a favor."
"A favor? Such as?"
"I would like to speak with Mr. Potter."
The headmaster looked thoughtful for a moment. "Why?"
"He has it in mind to become an Auror, doesn't he? That's what his fifth year job choice selection says."
"You know, Rufus, Cornelius tried this on me right after Voldemort's return was publicly confirmed, although, I must say, you are a better tactician than him."
"What do you – ? "
"You want Harry to promote the Ministry."
Scrimgeour blinked. "Well, not necessarily, Albus – "
"No."
"But I – "
"No. Harry is not a mascot for the Ministry. It is not his job to sway the public eye in your favor. And even if I did allow for you to meet him, he would not consent anyway."
"But everyone knows that we will need a strong government during this time of war, and what better way to gain public confidence than to prove that the Ministry is capable of getting the job done?"
"How would having Harry vouch for the Ministry prove its capability?"
"That's just it, Albus. If Mr. Potter were to let the public know that the Ministry has everything under control – "
"But Harry does not believe that the Ministry is in control. He believes that the Ministry has not been in control ever since last summer. Harry would say no such thing until he was positive that it was true and there was sufficient evidence for it. It pains me to say this, but I have yet to see proof that the Ministry has control over anything."
"Are you insulting me, Dumbledore?" asked Scrimgeour, his eyes narrowing.
"Certainly not, Rufus. I am confident that you are doing everything in your power to prepare the Ministry for this war, but you have only been Minister for a few hours. It will take more than that to rectify much of the damage that was done over the past year."
"Can't we compromise?"
"No."
"Surely there must be some way to get Mr. Potter to agree?"
"Listen to me, Rufus!" said the headmaster as he stood. He looked rather menacing. "Harry is an underage wizard; he is barely sixteen years-old! He is not a pawn for the Ministry to play with, for any reason whatsoever!"
"Well," Scrimgeour huffed, "I see that you are not going to change your mind. I'll just have to find another way to contact Mr. Potter."
"Good luck," said Dumbledore. "He is very well-protected."
The Minister of Magic threw the other wizard a death glare before his head disappeared with a pop!
The headmaster sighed, taking off his glasses and rubbing his eyes. "Why couldn't Cornelius have listened to me in the first place?" He walked over to the sofa and slumped down, rubbing his temples.
"How is the new Minister?" asked McGonagall as she walked into the office. The Transfigurations teacher looked at her husband and went over to him quickly. "Albus?" she whispered with concern, sitting down on the sofa. "Are you all right? Should I ask Severus to come up?"
"No, Minerva, I am fine. Just, please, stay with me. The International Confederation of Wizards is to reconvene soon, and I am not sure that you and I will have much time together for leisure for a while. To answer your initial question, Rufus is a definite upgrade, but he still thinks like Cornelius on some things," he murmured softly.
"How so?" she asked. McGonagall pulled her husband towards her. She let his head rest on her chest so that he was reclining against her.
"He wanted Harry to shine a good light on the Ministry." He smiled slightly as a hand snaked its way down to his waist. Dumbledore covered the hand with one of his slightly larger ones, and he sighed in contentment as another hand ran through his hair. "Rufus was not pleased when I told him that Harry would not do such a thing."
"Well of course Potter wouldn't do such a thing! Why should he? It's not his job!"
"That's what I told Rufus, but he was not happy with that response."
"How sad; our new Minister is not looking too capable, is he?"
"Rufus just has a lot on his plate right now, Minerva. He was an excellent Head of the Auror Office. He just needs some time to settle in."
"But do we have time, Albus?"
The headmaster sighed. "No, Minerva," he said, closing his eyes. "We don't."
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