Prologue: A Late Night at the Ministry of Magic

The ministry worker was at his wit's end as he finally packed his bags together. He looked despairingly at his wrist watch. It was going onto eleven PM! His wife would be livid he had been forced to stay so late, yet again. He was really starting to regret his 'promotion' to The Muggle-Worthy Excuse Committee. He was sure the last sap probably left due to the long hours and ever growing list of confounding problems they were forced to solve.

For example, just earlier that evening before he was about to slip out at his scheduled hour of six o'clock PM sharp to be home in time for his wife's roast hog, news came in of a young wizard that had tied up the Accidental Magic Department for several hours earlier that day when a muggle school's washroom was blown to smithereens.

The young wizard child had apparently been distressed when he had somehow given himself a pig snout, creating hours of work for the Obliviators and endless paperwork still stacked on his own desk.

It was a rather tricky situation, as hysteria among the muggles had broken out about terrorists, that tragic event happening among their community over in the United States a few years back. Muggle parents had run to the school, stealing their children back home thinking the school had been under attack. This, of course, made quite the mess for the ministry worker and their three departments, running around to all the homes masquerading as various different sales people so they could erase the children's memories of the pig's snout on the young boy.

For those that hadn't been directly exposed, the story was that the child was coming into puberty a tad early and had a rather large bulbous pimple on his nose. The explosion was a bit more tricky, however, they had woven a satisfactory tale involving faulty wiring and bad electrical work. As it was, the school was already preparing a lawsuit against a rather confused electrical company. It wasn't perfect, but it was the best they could do, for any explosions around young children were rather sensitive and hard cases.

The muggle parents of the young muggle-born child had of course been informed of their child's magical needs. They had decided to withdraw him from his muggle school until the next year when he would likely be sent a letter from Hogwarts, in order to prevent any further incidents.

"All parents of muggle born children should be informed early on in order to prevent this kind of mess!" the wizard muttered to himself, shuffling the papers in his bag that he had to take home with him. Thank Merlin for bottomless bags that felt light as air, for he had several rolls of parchment in there.

He proceeded down towards the lift, sighing heavily with weariness. He really hoped his wife had saved him pot roast. He winced, thinking of the ear full he was going to get after she had likely spent so much time preparing the dinner for their Friday evening together. It had been ruined yet again by a poor neglected muggle-born child that had no idea what he was.

As he entered the lift, a hand reached out to the door, stopping it before it could close. Startled, the ministry worker peeked his head out the corner to see who it was.

"Ah, Arthur, here late tonight as well are you?"

The red-headed Weasley was still a moment, unnerving the ministry worker until he responded.

"Yeah, had a bit of an incident up on my floor. Had a lot of work to catch up on before I have the next week off."

"A whole week!" The ministry worker exclaimed, watching as Arthur walked into the elevator. He was limping slightly.

The door closed, causing the lift to lurch forward sharply as it started its complex navigation between the Ministry floors, taking them both to the main level of the Ministry of Magic.

"Yes, my son is getting married next week, The whole family will be there."

"To the Granger girl right?" the ministry worker asked, nodding along. Arthur's eyes had become a bit brighter talking about his son, the long list of his responsibilities getting pushed to the back of his mind with the prospect of his son's matrimony and the consequential week long vacation.

The ministry worker felt a trickle of envy leak into his polite smile as he faced forward, watching as the various floors zipped past. He felt a slight pop in his ears a moment of weightlessness as the descended quickly.

"Hermione Granger, how he managed to catch her eye still boggles my mind. I mean, I love Ronald but that woman is smart as a whip, she is. Will be great one day – Merlin, I wouldn't be surprised if she was the minister one day!"

"Yes, close with that Potter too, right? I suppose he will be at the wedding?"

The minister pursed his lips, barely hiding the contempt there. It was well known that Ron Weasley and Harry Potter were the new blood in the Auror department, spouting new ideas left right and center. And that Hermione Granger now was another story altogether, she had already slipped right into a prime position in Magical Law Enforcement. The young wizards and witch had only been out of Hogwarts for five years and were already bypassing himself and the senior Weasley, moving up in the ministry ranks. However, it seemed Arthur did not share the ministry workers negative feelings, as he smiled with pride as he spoke of his youngest son and his friends.

"Yes, rumor has it half the ministry might all be there, along with Hogwarts's new Headmistress, McGonagall."

The minister worker grunted, happy to see the lift coming to a stop. He was ready to leave Arthur far behind him - he was bordering on bragging at this rate. Quite full of himself, that man was.

"Brilliant," he said weakly, the enthusiasm not really in his voice.

The doors to the lift opened, and the ministry worker nearly bolted out of the door, his briefcase held to his chest as if he were entering the usually busy Entrance Room. However, he quickly dropped it to his side as he realized he looked like a fool for the room was quite empty.

Well, with a few exceptions.

Bloody brilliant, the ministry worker thought to himself as he saw a familiar figure off in the distance, glad for the excuse to leave the Weasley fellow far behind him. "That there is Mimsey, I need to have a word with him before I leave. Good evening to you Arthur, best of luck with the wedding," he said giving a departing nod to the red-head.

Arthur squinted towards where Mimsey was standing in the shadows. He was hunched over something on the ground that they couldn't quite see.

"He alright? Is a little bit odd, isn't it? Hovering over the ground like that."

He did, in fact, look a little curious, and there was a wet gurgling noise coming from him as if he were slurping up a dish of particularly tasty spaghetti.

"Colin? You alright there?"

Mimsey stood up, the motion somewhat lurching and stiff. The ministry worker looked at him concerned and started moving closer to him.

"Colin?"

He reached him, placing a hand on Mimsey's shoulder, as the man remained silent, a faint gurgle coming from him. He now could see what his colleague had been looking at on the ground, and felt himself get sick to his stomach as he froze in horror.

There on the floor was a witch, her entire abdomen sliced open, the gaping hole a mess of her intestines as they leaked out over the floor, a puddle of blood surrounding her. As his eyes rose to her face he saw that her eyes were still open, her lips forming words as she breathed her dying breaths.

The ministry worker realized just as her eyes blanked over, the life leaving her body what she had been trying to say.

"Run."

But, it was already too late, because as his eyes turned to his friend - who he still was gripping by the shoulder - it was only to look into the blood dripping face of a monster. Mimsey's eyes had gone a dull lifeless grey and he gripped him tightly by the wrist as he turned into him.

The last thing the ministry worker heard was Arthur Weasley's frantic cries as he started shouting various spells at Mimsey. However, it was to no effect as the dead wizard turned his blood soaked mouth on him, biting down on the ministry worker's throat, and ripping it from his neck in a single bite. Blood gurgled in his throat as he desperately gasped for air, his gasps growing shorter and shorter. As pain ripped through his body, the ministry worker wished he had just left at six and had roast hog with his wife.

However, his wife would never see him that night, and by the time Molly Weasley saw Arthur, it was far too late.