This is a work of fan fiction using characters from the Harry Potter universe, which are trademarked by J.K. Rowling. I do not claim ownership of these characters nor the locations such as Hogwarts, Hogsmeade, etc. that are Rowling's creations.
I thank Rowling for the universe she has created that allows me to do something like this for my own entertainment and, hopefully, the entertainment of the readers.
"Morning Harry," Ron said jauntily as he strode into Harry's office, bouncing on the balls of his feet. "What a fantastic day it is, don't you agree?"
Harry stared up at him from behind his desk, an eyebrow raised. "What?"
"I'm just saying," Ron continued, swinging his arms casually through the air. "I just feel that today is going to be a really good day. The sun is shining, the birds are singing…"
"Magical maintenance have fixed your window?" Harry caught on.
"No, why?" Ron asked, confused.
"Wait, so that isn't what's got you all excited?" Harry asked, leaning back in his chair as he looked inquisitively up at him. "Seriously Ron, what's up? You're acting as though you've been force fed a bottle of Elixir of Euphoria."
"I don't know what you're talking about, Harry," Ron denied, still with the same inane smile on his face. "I'm just feeling very positive about this day. Hermione," he cried happily as she stepped into the office, causing her to jump in surprise. "How are you?"
"I'm, uh, fine, Ron," Hermione replied, looking rather bewildered by Ron's mood. "Are you okay?"
"Never been better," Ron said happily while Harry subtly shook his head behind his back.
"Hi, Harry," Hermione greeted him, placing a report on the little free space left on his desk. "How are you today?"
"I'm good, Hermione," Harry replied, picking up the report and quickly scanning over the first page. "You doing alright? I heard about Tony."
Hermione sighed. "Well, it was only a matter of time," she said dispiritedly. "I've got used to it. It's just sad to think that my personal life has been so completely destroyed by my professional life."
"Hey, stop worrying about it," Ron said, pulling Hermione into a surprise hug. "Tony was a no good loser."
"He was your friend," Hermione pointed out as Ron let her go. "That's how I met him."
"I know," Ron nodded in agreement. "That's how I knew he was no good. I just didn't say anything because Harry told me not to."
Harry held his hands up in surrender as they both turned to look at him. "Hey, I thought you were just being overprotective," he said defensively. "It's not my fault you were right."
"It does happen sometimes," Ron pointed out, causing Hermione to roll her eyes at their banter. "Oh, look, Colin just got in. I'm just gonna go say hi, see you in a second." And then he was gone.
"What is with Ron today?" Hermione asked as Ron went out of sight.
Harry shrugged. "That's what I was wondering," he said with a sigh. "I haven't seen him this excitable since the Chudley Cannons beat Puddlemere United." Harry shook his head. "That was a long day."
Hermione nodded, remembering the day vividly. "Well, I need to get back to my office," she said eventually. "You'll look over the report?"
Harry nodded. "Oh, and Hermione," he called as she reached the door. "You will find someone. If I can do it then so can you."
"You're telling me I should date one of the Minister's children?" Hermione asked with a smile.
Harry shrugged. "Ginny's off the table but I have heard he's got six sons."
Hermione laughed at Harry's mock serious expression. "See you later, Harry," she said, walking out of sight. A few seconds after she was gone, Ron arrived to take her place.
"Hey, where'd Hermione go?" he asked in surprise as he walked back into the room, looking around as though he expected to find Hermione hiding behind the door.
"Back to her office," Harry replied. "How's Colin?"
"He's good," Ron responded enthusiastically. "He had dinner with his parents last night; they had spaghetti, he had a pizza. It was apparently very good. The pizza that is, not the spaghetti…"
"Okay, Ron, stop," Harry said, cutting Ron off midstream. "You are being so absolutely ridiculous today that I've just got to ask you… are you pleased that Hermione and Tony broke up?"
Ron seemed taken aback by the question. "Well, obviously since he was no good for her than I am pleased they're no longer an item," Ron blustered. "I mean, if she found a good guy then obviously I'd be happy for her and support her relationship, but Tony…"
"So, it's Tony that was the problem," Harry probed, knowing otherwise. "So if Hermione were to go out with, say, Neville, you would be fine with that?"
"Yes," Ron said unconvincingly, his face betraying his emotions. "I mean, Neville is a good guy, he'd take care of her, and if Neville broke up with Alea, not that he would, but-"
"Ron," Harry cut across him, giving him a look that said he wasn't for a moment fooled. After a second Ron sighed, his shoulders slumping as he slipped into the chair across from Harry.
"What should I do?" he asked, putting his head in his hands.
"Well first, you need to calm down," Harry told him. "You're scaring the intern."
Ron looked behind him and spotted the young blonde girl sitting by Cho's desk, the girl looking away hurriedly when she found him watching her. "Right, sorry," Ron apologised, calming down somewhat. "I got a bit out of hand."
"A bit," Harry snorted but refrained from saying anything else.
Glancing behind him again, Ron lowered his voice. "Why do you have an intern?"
Harry shrugged. "It's a Hogwarts organised internship for students with an interest in politics," he said, as though reciting from a personnel file. "Her name is Lizzie Durand and she's 16 years old. She's been here a couple of days, I'm surprised you haven't noticed her yet."
"How long is she going to be here?" Ron asked.
Harry shrugged. "Who knows," he replied. "Cho is the one really in charge of her, my name is just added to make it seem more important. Ah, thank you Cho," he said as Cho walked into his office and handed him another file.
"What's that?" Ron asked uninterestedly.
"An application for Deputy Communications Director," Harry replied, shoving the file he'd just been handed underneath the one he had lying open on his desk.
"You're getting a deputy," Ron said in surprise. "Why? When did this happen?"
"Orders from above," Harry said, waving a hand vaguely up in the air. "Amos, to be precise. He said that between me writing all the speeches, keeping the Wizengamot in line and talking to the goblins about the finance council I'm being spread too thin."
"I suppose that makes sense," Ron replied.
"Kind of," Harry said, frowning as he came across a line in the application before him. "It does mean I'll have to spend the whole day deciding who to hire. Does 'very different' make sense?" He asked suddenly, looking up to face Ron questioningly.
"Sure," Ron said with a shrug. "It's 'very the same' that you'd have problems with."
"Hmm," Harry hummed under his breath. "I'm still not particularly happy about it. I just don't think it works in this context."
"The applicants have to submit a speech?" Ron asked, leaning forward to read the file.
"I figure that's the only thing I'd really trust a deputy to do," Harry said. "Especially since I can just get them to send their attempts to me once they're finished and let me correct them before they are actually used."
"I can't believe you get a Deputy," Ron griped good-naturedly. "When do I get one?"
"What would you need one for?" Harry shot back. "You don't do any work as it is."
Ron grinned. "Touché," he chuckled. "So, this speech. What's the scenario?"
"The Minister speaks to an animal conservation society," Harry responded from memory. "They must mention both the Minister's tough stance on poaching and his ideas for opening up an animal reserve on the grounds of Hogwarts."
"An animal reserve on the grounds of Hogwarts?" Ron repeated questioningly.
"It's about seeing if they can take an absurd idea and still write convincingly in favour of it," Harry explained. "I figure this assignment should allow me to see both what they are able to do normally and what they can do in more bizarre scenarios."
"Makes sense," Ron replied. "How many applications have you got?"
"A fair few," Harry replied. "The submission deadline isn't until 10 so there's still time for more. I'll have them all looked at by midday and then I'll start arranging interviews for the afternoon."
"Sounds like you've got this under control then," Ron said, standing up from his seat. "If you need any help just ask."
"'Our proposals will ensure less instances of animal poaching'," Harry quoted. "That's fewer, right?"
Ron nodded. "See you later."
"Hey Remus, how are things going?" Arthur asked as he stopped in on the Muggle Liaison Office, wide eyed secretaries rushing to get to their feet to show their respect for the Minister.
"Everything's going well, sir," Remus replied, standing up and shaking the Minister's hand warmly. "Parvati has got me up to speed on everything going on at the moment."
"Good, and you've settled into your office?" the Minster replied.
"Well, it's still a little bare," he said conversationally, looking around the room. "But I'm sure that'll change after I've got through a lot more work than I have." He gestured for the Minister to take a seat before sitting back down.
"There is something I'd like to talk to you about," Remus said. "Blaise, do you mind getting the door?" Blaise nodded silently, closing the office door before standing at the back of the room.
"What's the problem?" the Minister asked.
"I got a memo from our muggle counterparts," Remus said, sliding open a draw and pulling out a piece of paper. "They say there has been a rise in muggle's reporting incidents of sorcery or witchcraft over the last few years and they wish to meet with me today."
"That's not all, is it?" the Minister asked. Remus shook his head.
"This morning there was a parade in Aberdeen to celebrate the football team winning the Scottish Cup," Remus continued, pulling out a news article and showing it to the Minister. "A 16 year old wizard decided it would be funny to transfigure the cup into wood, the only problem being that he could only get access to the cup whilst it was being paraded down the street."
"So he violated both the law on Underage Magic and the Statute of Secrecy in one fell swoop," the Minister said with a sigh. "How are the muggle's explaining this off?"
"A firework," Remus replied. "Of course that wouldn't be enough for the players holding the cup at the time so we have an obliviator squad out there now to sort everything out."
"So what's the problem?" the Minister asked. "It sounds to me that everything has gotten under control."
"Yes, except that couldn't be further from the truth," Remus said earnestly, pulling out a stack of parchment from the drawers of his desk. "In the last five years the number of instances of underage magic in front of muggles has doubled. I'm not sure what the last guy was doing here but he has missed a trend of ridiculous proportions."
"Doubled," the Minister repeated. "In five years, are you sure that's right?"
"I had Parvati dig up all the records," Remus confirmed. "We're talking about a significant increase in irresponsible magic use, and what's worse is that the muggles are noticing. The increase in muggle reports of magic isn't coincidental, the muggles are becoming more and more aware of our existence and with the technological advances of the internet and the 24 hour news cycle every story is being reported and more and more people are being informed of these strange happenings."
The Minister was silent for a long time, taking in Remus' words and mulling over his options. "Your meeting, when is it?"
"12 o'clock," Remus replied.
The Minister nodded. "Okay, I'm going to send Amos along with you, just to get you properly introduced to our muggle counterparts," he said, standing up. "Listen to them, see what they have to say, and then meet with me in my office when you get back."
"Yes sir," Remus said.
"I'll tell Amos to meet you at the port key gate at five to twelve," the Minister continued, gesturing for Blaise to open the door. "Good luck, Remus."
"Thank you, sir," Remus replied as he rose with the Minister, walking with him to the office door before waving his goodbye.
"How did it go?" Parvati asked, pulling up alongside him and watching the Minister walk away.
"Okay, I guess," Remus replied. "This was obviously news to the Minister so I think he'll take this seriously. Apart from that we'll just have to see how the meeting goes."
There was a brief moment of silence between them.
"I've nearly completed the Lockheed report," Parvati said suddenly. "I'll have it on your desk when I'm done."
"Thank you," Remus said, walking back into his office and shutting the door behind him.
"Cho!" Harry called from his office, sorting through the files that were now arranged into little piles on his desk, nearly drowning him out. "Cho!"
"I'm here," she said, striding purposefully into his office. "What do you need?"
"Ah, Cho, there you are," Harry said, moving his head slightly so he could peer between two stacks of parchment. "Could you please take the stack on my right down to records and put them away, I won't be interviewing these people."
Cho raised her eyebrow. "I take it then that you'll be arranging the interviews yourself," she said, putting a hand on her hip.
"I thought you were going to do that," Harry said, confused.
"I was, but then I was given this filing task that will certainly take up too much of my time," Cho retorted. "And for that matter, why didn't you just bring these out for me? In fact, I don't think I've seen you leave your office all morning?"
Harry blushed slightly in embarrassment. "You looked busy out there, I didn't want to get in your way," he said quietly.
Cho just gave him a quizzical look. "When has that ever stopped you?" she asked, frowning at him as he tried to hide behind his piles of parchment.
Suddenly she burst out laughing. "Is this true?" she said, chortling. "Harry, are you afraid of the intern?"
"What, no," Harry said defensively, although he remained hidden behind his towers of parchment. "I just felt that it would be rude to intrude upon her experience here."
"That is the lamest excuse I've ever heard," Cho said with an amused shake of the head. "She's your intern, it would be a bit of a shame if she never actually met you. In fact, why don't we go see her right now."
"Now, do you really think this is the best time?" Harry hedged.
"Of course," Cho said briskly. "You've got a task for her to do, after all."
"Cho, I don't know," Harry replied, shrinking down in his chair. "I don't know how to talk to a 16 year old Hogwarts student, I wasn't even particularly good at it when I was one."
Cho looked at him quizzically. "Where did you hear she was 16?" she asked curiously.
"I had admissions send me her file," Harry admitted guiltily.
"Well admissions have got it wrong," Cho replied. "She's 18 years old and graduated Hogwarts a few months ago with fantastic grades. She's on this internship at the personal recommendation of Headmistress McGonagall."
"Huh, really?" Harry said in surprise. "McGonagall recommended her?"
"Yes, and I believe she also said she was glad that you would be the one supervising her," Cho said pointedly. "I'd hate to disappoint her."
Harry sighed. "The things we do for our teachers," he said as he stood up, grabbing onto the files from his desk. "I'll talk to her, but only if you're there with me. I don't want to be left alone with her."
"Of course, sir," Cho said indulgently, turning her back and rolling her eyes as she led Harry out of his office. "Lizzie!"
"Yes, Miss Chang," the blonde girl said immediately, looking up from the papers she was sorting.
"This is Harry Potter, the Communications Director," Cho gestured to where Harry was placing down the pile of folders. "Harry, this is the intern I was telling you about, Lizzie Durand."
"Nice to meet you," Harry said politely, holding out his hand.
"You too, Mr Potter," Lizzie said with a blush, shaking his hand softly. "It's such an honour to be working for someone so well renowned."
"You can't possibly be talking about me," Harry said with a smile, his nerves unraveling slightly as he talked. "And don't bother with the Mr Potter nonsense, just call me Harry."
"Okay then… Harry," she said with a giggle. "Is there anything I can do for you?"
"Well, yes, I've got a task for you," Harry said. "It'll be fairly boring work I'm afraid."
"That's okay," Lizzie said, fluttering her eyelashes. "I'll do anything for you."
"Okay, great," Harry replied, taken aback by her enthusiasm. "Could you take this stack of parchment down to the store room and file them away? You just need to match the nine digit code to the right shelf and slip it in. Cho will show you where the store room is."
"Sure," Lizzie said with a smile. "Do you mind if I just use the bathroom before I go?"
"Not at all," Harry said.
"Thank you, Harry," Lizzie said, blushing cutely as she walked away.
"Well, she seemed nice," Harry said with a smile. "You're right Cho, I shouldn't be so nervous around young people."
"Unbelievable," Cho said quietly, shaking her head.
"What?" Harry replied, nonplussed.
"Did you honestly not notice what she was doing?" Cho asked.
"Being nice," Harry answered uncertainly.
"She was flirting with you," Cho said vehemently. "She wasn't even being subtle about it."
"That wasn't flirting," Harry denied. "She was just being nice to me. Everything she said was proper and polite."
"She was batting her eyes, blushing and giggling like an idiot, Harry," Cho listed. "She was flirting with you. She was metaphorically throwing herself at you. Have you never had a girlfriend before?"
"Hey," Harry said indignantly. "I resent that. In case you haven't noticed I have a girlfriend right now."
"Of course," Cho said, calming down slightly. "I'm sorry, but I just want you to realise that she's sucking up to you, big time."
"Right," Harry said, calming down himself. "I hear you, I'll keep an eye out for her." He exhaled loudly, looking around the office space disinterestedly. "Could you arrange the interviews that I want?"
"Just give me the codes and I'll arrange a schedule for you," Cho replied.
"Thanks Cho," Harry said. "Start the interviews at 12 if you can. In the meantime I'm going to look over the report Hermione left me." He walked into his office and scribbled the codes on a blank sheet of parchment, Cho taking it from him as he straightened up and moved round his desk. Picking up Hermione's report, he settled into his chair to read it.
"Amos, how are you doing?" Remus and Amos were greeted by a tall dark haired men with an immaculate suit, his voice very traditionally english as he welcomed them.
"Stuart, good to see you again," Amos greeted, shaking his hand genially. "Stuart, I'd like to introduce the new Head of our Muggle Liaison Office, Remus Lupin. Remus, this is Stuart Ainsworth, the Head of Magical Affairs for the Prime Minister."
"It's good to meet you," Remus said pleasantly.
"Likewise," Stuart replied. "So, shall we get down to business?" He sat down behind his desk, gesturing to the seats before him. "The incident this morning with the Scottish Cup?"
"A 16 year old kid thought it would be an amusing joke," Amos replied. "Our obliviator squad have wiped the memories of those who were able to see the cup turn to wood."
"Well, that's one particular case settled," Ainsworth said. "But it just highlights the fact that more and more incidents like this keep happening. We've got people petitioning the government to look into these unusual occurrences, thousands of names. These people have seen magic and are convinced it's real."
"We are aware of your dilemma," Amos admitted. "But nothing short of hunting these people down and wiping whole years of their memory will be able to convince them otherwise."
"I am aware that even magic has its limitations," Ainsworth said. "Which is why we should be looking at how to prevent more people from witnessing magic, rather than worry about those that already have. Why are people starting to notice?"
Remus and Amos shared a look. "Underage magic use in front of non-magical people has doubled in frequency in the past five years," Remus said reluctantly. "We're not entirely sure how the previous administration missed this, or in fact whether they even thought it relevant."
"Well, it is relevant," Ainsworth says. "Before we could just brush off the idea of magic as ludicrous, tell them these were the delusions of sick men who had fooled themselves into believing the impossible. Now, more and more people are reporting strange activities, more than your obliviator squad can keep track of. A sizeable chunk of our population believe in magic now, and they're scared of what they don't fully comprehend."
"What's the current policy for dealing with these reports?" Remus asked.
"It depends on how realistic they may sound," Ainsworth replied. "If someone calls in saying he heard a weird sound while he was in bed last night, we can just ignore it. But others come in with more detailed claims, some even with photos or videos of clearly magical happenings."
"We try to misdirect them," Ainsworth continued. "We tell them things like, that man is a famous illusionist or a pyrotechnic expert, those lights were light refractions from the sea or the elephant came from a local travelling circus."
Ainsworth stopped talking with a sigh. "We've used every trick in the book and we still have to continuously defend ourselves from these stories. I'm tired, my magical comrades, tired of misleading the people of my country and mocking those for what they've seen when I know they are speaking the truth. I hate lying to them."
"Stuart, you're not suggesting what I think you're suggesting?" Amos said warningly, peaking Remus' attention. "Stuart?"
"As the democratically elected leaders of this country we shouldn't be lying to our people," Ainsworth said shortly.
"It's for their own good," Amos argued. "It's just like not revealing nuclear launch codes to the public. Ignorance keeps them safe."
"From what, Amos," Ainsworth retorted. "Wizards. Are you saying that by knowing of their existence the non-magical people of Britain are more at danger than they were before."
"Yes," Amos replied. "And what's worse, they'd bring it on themselves. Say a man in Derbyshire finds out his next-door neighbour is secretly a wizard, what does he do? He'll either fear him, distrust him or badger him to make him solve every single one of his problems."
"You are assuming that," Ainsworth said. "If we release what we know of wizards, what they can actually do and what they can't, what is there to fear?"
"The killing curse," Remus said quietly, bringing the other men's attention to himself. "In a country where it is necessary to have a licence to own a gun the idea that someone else can kill you just as easily without one is terrifying."
"We've tried to live side by side before," Amos said. "And do you know how that ended; witch hunts. Women were burned at the stake, regardless of whether they were ever magical in the first place."
"We've changed," Ainsworth argued. "We've become more civilised."
"Maybe," Amos replied. "On the other hand we still have crime. Murder, theft, rape. Do we really want to give people another reason to fight?"
Ainsworth pursed his lips, not happy at all with how the conversation was going. "I was told by the previous Head of Muggle Liaison's that anti-muggle sentiment was at an all time low."
"It is," Amos responded. "But it is still there, and something like this would bring all those nay sayers back into the public eye. They will take the inevitable scuffles between wizard and muggle and use it as propaganda. Wizarding society is still fragile and still well behind yours, but we are improving."
"Yet you still fear being honest with us?" Ainsworth questioned, sighing as he glanced at his watch. "I fear we will not reach an agreement now," he said, rising to his feet. "You should return to your Ministry and talk to your Minister, just as I will speak to the Prime Minister."
"Very well," Amos said, rising to his feet and shaking his hand.
"It was good to meet you," Remus said as Ainsworth turned to him.
"Likewise, and I look forward to the many meetings we will undoubtedly have in the future," Ainsworth replied, shaking his hand too as Amos pulled out their port key, ready to return to the Ministry.
Harry chewed his lip as he looked through the application again, glancing over at the nervously energetic young man across from him. "How many drafts did you write?" Harry asked, flipping to another page and focusing in on a line that had bothered him.
"Seven, sir," the man said quickly, sitting on the edge of his chair eagerly.
"And this is your seventh, right?" Harry questioned as he re-circled the offending sentence.
"Yes, sir," the man told him, his body almost trembling as he waited on tenterhooks for Harry to speak.
"Seven," Harry repeated, circling another section he'd previously underlined. "This line, 'for now we owe it to ourselves to protect our aquatic wildlife, from the fishes and the octopi to the sharks and the dolphins'. Are you happy with it?"
"Yes, sir," the man said, nodding his head emphatically. "I think it's very emotive and gets across how strongly the Minister-"
"Ron, can you come in here for a moment?" Harry called as he saw Ron walk past his office door, cutting the applicant off mid word.
"Yes Harry?" Ron said, wandering into the office casually.
"Ron, could you perhaps point out what is wrong with this line?" Harry asked him. "'for now we owe it to ourselves to protect our aquatic wildlife, from the fishes and the octopi to the sharks and the dolphins'."
"Well, the word fishes is wrong unless you are referring to the various types of fish as opposed to just all the fish in general," Ron replied immediately. "And on that note the plural of Octopus is Octopuses or Octopodes."
"Also sharks are actually a type of fish so it makes no sense to list them as a separate creature, especially when we use the word fishes," Harry added, resisting the temptation to score right through the line. "It just makes the Minister look stupid."
"Would they care?" the applicant asked.
"They are an animal conservation society," Harry stressed. "If they don't care then they should."
"I didn't know sharks were a type of fish," Ron said in surprise.
"Well, you flunked Care of Magical Creatures so I'm not surprised," Harry retorted, to which Ron shrugged.
"Harry," Cho said as she squeezed past Ron to get into the office. "The Minister is calling a staff meeting, so I suppose this is for you too, Ron."
Ron nodded. "We better go," he told Harry.
"Alright," Harry said before turning to the applicant. "I'll be back after this meeting, in the meantime try and figure out why polar bears don't hunt penguins in the wild." Harry left on that note, walking briskly out of the room and following Ron down the corridor as Cho went back to her desk.
"Why don't polar bears eat penguins?" Ron asked suddenly, to which Harry gave him an 'are you kidding' look. "I know it's probably a really simple thing that any human being should know but I'm interested."
Harry sighed. "Polar bears live at the north pole, penguins live in Antarctica," he explained simply. "In order to hunt them the polar bears would have to travel half way around the world and back for every meal."
"That makes sense," Ron admitted. "I just assumed, you know, since they both live on ice…"
"Hey Daphne," Harry said as he entered the Minister's outer office. "Please tell Ron that I don't care about any excuse he may have for his truly appalling animal general knowledge."
"Oh, was he telling you how the Kracken is a real creature?" Daphne asked sympathetically.
"It is," Ron exclaimed. "They live in the Mediterranean. Why does no one believe me on this?"
"Because every reported finding of a Kracken has actually been proven to be a giant squid," Harry replied. "And even if they were real, legend states they would live off the coast of Norway."
"And Greenland," Daphne added. "You can go on ahead, you're the last people to arrive."
Moving into the Minister's office they found the Minister, Amos, Remus, Hermione and Neville standing around waiting for them.
"Sorry we're late," Harry said as they walked towards the group. "We had some… legendary sea monster issues."
"Ah, Ron still trying to convince you the Kraken is real?" the Minister said knowingly.
Ron held his tongue this time, no doubt realising it was a different thing arguing with the Minister than arguing with the Minister's assistant. Instead he asked, "What's happened?"
"Remus and Amos have just returned from their meeting with the Head of Magical Affairs at Downing Street," the Minister informed them. "They've been having trouble with an increased belief in the existence of magic, due mainly with the fact that underage magic occurrences in front of muggles have been rising dramatically."
Remus took over from this point. "Downing Street is calling on us to either prevent their public from seeing magic in the first place or," he paused. "Or we come clean with the non-magical public, admit we're here."
There was an explosion of noise in the room as Harry, Ron and Neville immediately started arguing, gesturing wildly.
"Enough," the Minister said, not raising his voice but still being heard. The room fell silent. "I know this is an idea we are not at all comfortable with but we need to remain calm so that we can discuss this in a civilised manner."
"I think first we need to look at ways of reducing these instances of magic in front of muggles," Remus said. "The best way to hide something is to not show it, it's only because muggles are seeing magic that they suspect anything."
"So, you suggest tougher penalties for those using magic in front of muggles," Neville continued his train of thought. "Disincentivise the crime by punishing it harshly."
"The Statute of Secrecy doesn't actually give any description of the punishment dealt to those who broke it," Harry said. "Imposing bigger fines would be both possible and likely effective."
"Except it won't work on underage magic users, which Remus said are the biggest problem area," Hermione pointed out. "Younger people don't understand money as well as their parents do."
"But the parents might get stricter with their rules if we increase fines," Neville pointed out. "The parents won't want to pay the money just because their children wouldn't follow the rules so they'd put much more stress on the rule."
"Would it make a difference?" Harry asked. "You'd have thought the existing laws would be enough. First time you get a warning, second time you're expelled from school."
"A lot more of our children are learning at home with private tutors these days," Amos told him. "It's only those that go to Hogwarts who really worry about the rule."
"Then raising the fines wouldn't work either," Harry pointed out. "The kids that are breaking the law are the ones from families that have a lot of money, and therefore aren't as affected by the fines. And what about the less well off families. One slip up and they get smacked with a massive fine that could potentially stop them from being able to feed themselves properly. The current system is tough enough on those families, we can't make it worse."
"Maybe a fine based on family income," Neville suggested.
"That wouldn't work," Ron denied. "Families would complain that they're being disproportionally fined and the system would have to be so complicated to account for every form of income that nobody would really understand it."
"So what's left?" Hermione asked. "Better education?"
"That's interesting," Harry agreed. "If we can impress upon children at a very young age how important it is not to expose ourselves to muggles we may be able to bring the numbers right down."
"What is it causing the numbers to rise?" Ron asked Remus. "They're increasing at a much greater rate than our population is, why is this happening?"
"It comes back to the courts," Remus said. "Parents claim there was a valid reason for using magic and often the child just gets a slap on the wrist. It makes them think they can get away with it over and over again."
"So we tell the courts to get tougher on this issue," Neville summed up. "That should help short term and in the long term we'll focus on better educating the children."
"Maybe we could introduce mandatory basic muggle studies," Hermione suggested. "Teach them this lesson from the moment they first start using magic."
"Are we going to talk about coming out into the open with the muggles?" Remus asked, to which the room quietened down. "I've worked at muggle schools and the things they are learning everyday tells me that one day they are going to have the technology to find us, and we'd be better off if we told them first."
"We can't, Remus," Ron said quietly. "Even if we are able to get the muggles on board at first they'll not stay satisfied for very long. We are a society who has hidden away and manipulated them without them even knowing for centuries. We tell them we exist and they'll ask what we've been doing these last couple of hundred years. Are you ready to admit to that? I know I'm not."
"Our own society would kill any attempt at peace with the muggles," Harry brought up. "We still have a lot of blood purists in our society, in our government even, who think magic is might. These people won't sit back and watch us become friends with muggles, they'll fight. We'll hear stories about muggles burned in their own homes, mentally abused in a way no muggle could ever understand."
"They won't stop at random civilians," Neville added. "Assassination attempts on the Prime Minister are almost guaranteed, and who knows how well the muggles are equipped to repel them. This could spark a civil war, where either one of our races being destroyed, or else sent into hiding." Neville shook his head sadly. "We're not ready to face them."
"We may never be ready," Remus spoke. "But we may not have a choice. I'm not talking about now, I'm talking about the future. Don't we owe it to the next generations to try and get ready. Think about it. Blood purity as an issue is getting less and less important as the days go by, we may be ready to meet the muggles when they do inevitably find us."
"And the muggles?" Harry asked. "What's to say they won't start a war in fear of what we can do. If we wait for them to find us they may just obliterate us before we realise we're caught."
"Perhaps we can get them ready too," Remus said, to surprised looks around the room. "Ron, would you be surprised if we discovered that the Kraken is real?"
"Well, no," Ron replied.
"Why is that?"
"Because I already thought they were real," Ron said obviously.
"And why do you think that?" Remus pushed forward, ignoring the bewildered look on Ron's face.
"Because that's what we taught you as a child," the Minister said understandingly. "We read you stories of a terrible sea creature that sunk pirate ships and so you still believe that it is true."
"So are you saying," Hermione said slowly, catching on. "That we can teach the muggles about us, through children's stories?"
"I don't know if we can," Remus said as everyone's attention piqued up. "I'm just saying we could try. If we have children's stories, with the same morals and emotions we share with the muggles, we can tell them what we can and can't do, and more importantly, what we will and will not do."
"So you're saying we can teach them about this curse that can kill someone in a second," Ron said. "But we can also teach them how seriously we take that as a society."
"Exactly," Remus said excitedly. "Muggles may still be wary of our powers but they would also recognise the moral code we live by. They may fear things like Dementors and Dragons, but they'll be taught about how we wizards have learned to protect people from them."
"They won't be happy about the way to ward off dementors," Harry pointed out.
"But they will feel comforted by the fact that it is an emotion they recognise so well that we use to drive them back," Remus countered. "We may not be ready to show ourselves to the muggles in our lifetime, but instead of being wary of these people with unusual powers the muggles might actually see us for what we are, a society that's doing its best to do the right thing."
There was silence in the office as he finished speaking, each of them looking at each other with a strange feeling of hope they had never expected.
"Well, this was a productive meeting," the Minister said with a wry smile. "Rather bizarrely I feel like we're actually starting to get things done around here." A few chuckles followed his remarks as the senior staff started to relax after their debate.
"Remus," the Minister continued. "You and Amos go back to Downing Street tomorrow and tell Ainsworth what we've been talking about in here. Amos, let Remus do the talking, he's very convincing."
"Will do, sir," Amos said. "Harry, could you join me in my office before you go?"
Harry followed Amos into his office as the rest of the Senior Staff started to wander back to their daily tasks. Shutting the door behind him, Harry turned to find Amos leaning back against his desk.
"How's the new Deputy Communications Director coming along?" Amos asked.
"I'm currently at the interview stage," Harry said. "I looked through the applications and selected the best ones."
"I heard what the application was," Amos said pointedly. "A speech, no one is going to fulfil your high standards on that."
"That may be so," Harry said. "But I can still find the person who comes closest to fitting the criteria."
"I suppose you're going to make this mainly a speech writing role?" Amos said.
"I've got too much of a relationship with the members of the wizengamot, and for that matter other important councils," Harry pointed out. "I'm not particularly happy about delegating my speech writing either but I understand I have to make sacrifices."
"I'm not doubting your ability," Amos told him. "I'm not even doubting the fact you can do all these things at once."
"Then what are you doubting?" Harry asked.
"Your health," Amos told him. "I've been thinking about it ever since Councillor Wilson went down with dragon pox. If I fall ill I have Neville to fill my boots, if Hermione falls ill Demelza can take the press conferences. If you fall ill who am I counting on? Cho? Ron? As much as I appreciate their talents, they couldn't do what you do."
"So when you said you wanted me to appoint a deputy," Harry said slowly. "You really wanted me to appoint a deputy."
"Just something to think about," Amos said. "When you are conducting your interviews. Who would you trust to do your job?"
"Right," Harry said. "Okay, thank you, Amos."
Amos nodded to him, signalling that he should go. Exiting the office and walking past Luna's desk, Harry almost ran straight into Ron.
"What pearls of wisdom did Amos give you?" Ron asked as he fell into step beside him.
"He wants me to think about who I would trust to do my job if I was unavailable," Harry replied, accepting a bunch of forms from Cho as she passed him and scribbling down his signature on them.
"You should listen to him," Ron advised. "He was involved in all the hiring meetings when we got our jobs, I'd say he was pretty good at it."
"Can't argue with that," Harry conceded. "Are you going to see Hermione?"
"No," Ron replied. "I could though."
"Great, can you hand her these forms," Harry said, passing the pile of parchment to Ron. "I've got to get back to my interviewee."
"Good luck," Ron said as they split up, Ron heading straight on while Harry turned to the left. It wasn't a long walk before he found himself standing by the door to Hermione's office, which was left open.
"Hey Hermione, Harry asked me to pass these to you," Ron said, strolling in and dropping the documents on a free spot on her desk. "What are you writing?"
"I'm drafting some lines about the new muggle contact methods we're hoping to achieve," Hermione answered, scribbling away at her parchment. "I can imagine there are going to be a lot of questions on this so I may need the head start."
"Hermione, don't do that," Ron admonished, causing Hermione to look up. "This is never going to get to the public. We'll be long out of office before anyone finds out."
"Maybe that is the case," Hermione conceded. "But do we not owe it to the wizarding public to tell them we're doing this?"
"Maybe," Ron said, copying Hermione's reply. "Maybe that's the honourable thing to do, be honest with our people. But, Hermione, if we tell them about this the blood purist elements of our society are going to do exactly what we just said they would do when the muggles find us. One of the big necessities of our plan is that the ideas of blood purism are pretty much extinct by the time the muggles find us. If we tell them we're doing this it'll give them a cause to remain in our society for as long as they want. Hermione, don't do it."
Hermione sighed after a moment, dropping her quill and flattening out her only just started speech. "You're right," she admitted. "As much as I feel it is wrong to withhold information from the public I know you're making sense."
"Thank you, Hermione," Ron said. "You know what… no," he started, before stopping again. He seemed to have some sort of internal struggle, before he walked towards the door.
"You know what your problem is," Ron said, turning to face Hermione as he stopped just in front of the door. "You're too nice. Most of the time that's a good thing but there are people out there who will try to take advantage of that and will step on you and force you down to achieve their own goals."
"I'm saying this both as the Political Strategy Director and your friend, don't let anyone step on you." He stood there for a second, staring straight into Hermione's wide eyes, before he turned and left, leaving behind a stunned Hermione.
"The next applicant is outside," Cho told Harry, "Do you want me to send him in?"
"Yeah, go ahead," Harry sighed. "How many interviews do I have left?"
"This is the last one," Cho informed him. "You're nearly done."
"Thank god," Harry moaned. "I'm honestly ready to kill someone right now. I'll finish up with this guy and then I'm going home."
"Alright Harry," Cho said, leaving the room. A few seconds later a young man with dark hair walked in, looking very nervous.
"Hi, thank you for giving me the opportunity to interview for this post, my name is Dennis Cr-" The man started before he was cut off.
"That's more than I need to know," Harry cut in, his feet resting on his desk as he leaned back in his chair. "Sit down and let's get to it."
Dennis sat down in the seat across from Harry, looking even more nervous at Harry's seeming disinterest.
"First off, how many drafts have you written?" Harry asked, application held open in his lap as he checked it over.
"One," Dennis replied nervously.
Harry looked up in surprise. "One?" He asked. "I'm sorry, but are you taking this seriously? Do you think one draft is good enough for the Minister?"
"I am taking this seriously, I promise," Dennis said earnestly. "My agent only called me about the opportunity an hour before the deadline for submissions."
"Really?" Harry said with a raised eyebrow. "Where were you when your agent called?"
"The cinema," Dennis replied.
"Alone?" Harry questioned.
"With my girlfriend," Dennis answered, before amending himself. "My ex-girlfriend, now."
Harry was quiet for a couple of minutes, not entirely sure what to say. "Well, that would explain the change in handwriting on page 2," he continued, business like.
"Yeah, that's when the movie started," Dennis explained. "They put the lights down and I couldn't see the parchment as clearly as before."
Harry nodded, reading through the file before him. "Your speech is certainly very emotive," Harry said, flipping through the pages. "Not particularly fact heavy, but the language used covers that up quite well."
"Yes, well, I thought, given who this speech was being made to, that they would already know a lot of the facts in the first place," Dennis said. "I thought talking about our ideals and plans should take precedence."
"Fair enough," Harry noted. "It perhaps could use a few more facts to show that the Minister does know what he's talking about, but I see your point. What happened at the end?"
"I started to run out of time," Dennis admitted. "I wanted to go over it again if I had the opportunity but…"
Harry nodded in understanding. "Dennis, I'm going to ask you something you may not have expected when preparing for this interview," Harry said, throwing the application onto the table. "If the Ministry were trying to create a wildlife sanctuary on Hogwarts grounds, what would you do to get the Wizengamot on your side?"
Dennis took a second to think. "I would talk to the Warlocks of the Wizengamot and try to convince them of why they should vote in favour of it," he said. "But truthfully a bill like that wouldn't pass the Wizengamot. Instead the Ministry would be better off creating a sanctuary in a much less well known area and leave Hogwarts as it is."
"What if the Minister insists it be at Hogwarts?" Harry pressed.
"I'd advise the Minister that we wouldn't be able to get approval from the Wizengamot," Dennis said. "But if he insisted I'd do my best to pass the vote, and I would fail."
"Good call," Harry said appreciatively, taking his feet off the desk and leaning forward in his chair. "How about you go back to wherever it is you-"
Harry was cut off by his office door opening, Colin stepping into the room. "Hey Harry, Ron wanted…" he tailed off as he noticed the people in the room. "Dennis?"
"Hi Colin," Dennis said with a nervous laugh. "Fancy seeing you here."
"Wait, am I missing something?" Harry asked, looking between the two of them.
Dennis laughed again. "Yes, as I was saying, my name is Dennis Creevey," Dennis told him.
"Oh," Harry said, catching on. "Well this is interesting, isn't it?" Harry looked between the two brothers with amusement. "I would think you'd want to talk to each other for a bit. Don't worry, Colin, I'm almost finished here."
"That's okay, Harry," Colin said. "I just wanted to let you know Ron's seen the Apothecary report you forwarded to him and he says he's got it under control."
"Great, thanks Colin," Harry said gratefully. Colin hesitated for a second, before leaving the room, leaving Harry and Dennis alone.
"So, I can assume you forgot to mention to your brother that you were applying for this job," Harry said with a smile.
"He's always so busy," Dennis excused himself. "I didn't deliberately keep him in the dark."
Harry chuckled. "Well, back to the task at hand," Harry said. "Go home and have a look over this speech and redraft it. I'll meet you here at midday and we'll go over it together."
"Thank you," Dennis said gratefully, rising to his feet, Harry mimicking him. "You have no idea how grateful I am for this opportunity."
"You may find I understand more than you think," Harry told him, leading him out of his office. "I'll see you tomorrow."
Dennis smiled gratefully as he walked off, Colin catching him up half way down the corridor. Harry watched as they talked, until eventually they turned a corner and moved out of sight.
"I'm getting Dennis to redraft his application," Harry told Cho, dropping his old application on Cho's desk. "He'll meet me at 12 tomorrow."
"Shall I call the other applicants and tell them you need another day to make your decision?" Cho asked, reaching for the phone.
"Nope," Harry said thoughtfully. "Just tell them they didn't get it," he said, shrugging on his cloak. "See you tomorrow Cho, Lizzie." He locked his office door behind him and strolled away, nodding to Ron as he passed his office.
"Hey Remus," Ron said, walking up to Remus's office door and peaking inside.
"Hey Ron," Remus replied, his voice slightly hassled as he searched through his drawers for something.
"Is this an okay moment to talk?" Ron asked uncertainly, noting the feverishness of Remus' movements.
"I'm afraid not, Ron," Remus replied with genuine sorrow as he seemed to find what he was looking for. "I've got to go see the Minister right now."
"Is this about the muggle thing?" Ron asked. "Parvati mentioned that you'd just come back from meeting their Magical Affairs Office."
"Yes, that's it," Remus replied, rounding his desk and exiting his office, leading Ron out into the corridor beyond. "I talked to Ainsworth and he said he'd have to talk it over with the Prime Minister before they could go any further. Anyway, I got back to the office and half an hour later there was a memo from Downing Street asking for a meeting between the Minister and the Prime Minister."
"That'll be difficult," Ron told him. "The Minister's schedule is pretty full, and I can't imagine the Prime Minister's will be less so."
"Exactly," Remus agreed. "They sent me a couple of appointment times so hopefully we'll be able to find a match."
"You're going to need a lot of time for that meeting," Ron said. "This won't be a simple matter at all."
"I agree," Remus replied. "I don't think we'll get through everything in one meeting, especially with the lack free time the Prime Minister seems to have. I just want to get through enough talks so that both sides have an understanding on what we are trying to do."
"Daphne," Remus said as they reached the Minister's outer office. "Could you see if the Minister's got any time free at any of these slots?" He slipped the memo he'd received in front of her.
"Let me see," Daphne said, looking through a piece of parchment she had sitting neatly at the edge of her desk. "He's free at two o'clock but he's got a meeting at 2:10," she told Remus.
"We'll need more time than that," Remus replied. "Is there any way to push back that appointment?"
"Hang on, I'll just check," Daphne said, picking up her phone and quickly dialling a number. For the next few minutes Daphne spoke on the phone, Remus and Ron remaining silent as she worked.
"Okay, thanks," Daphne said, hanging up. "I've been able to push that meeting back to 2:30," she informed Remus. "What should I put in it's place?"
"Meeting with the Prime Minister," Remus responded promptly.
"And he'll know what it's about?" Daphne asked.
"He'll undoubtedly be able to figure it out," Remus replied. "Is he in right now, I'd like to brief him before the meeting?"
"He's in a meeting but will be back in around ten minutes," Daphne replied.
"I'll be back then," Remus said, picking up the memo again and turning on the spot. He walked out of the Minister's outer office and instead went to Amos', Ron on his heels.
"Is he in?" Remus asked Luna.
"Mr Diggory is looking over some papers right now," Luna informed him. "I'm sure he'd be happy to see you."
"Great," Remus said, knocking on the office door and opening it. "Amos, I've just heard from Downing Street."
"What do they want?" Amos asked from behind his desk.
"A meeting between the Minister and the Prime Minister," Remus replied. "I've tabled in an appointment for two but I wanted to brief the Minister before he went."
"The Minister is in a meeting right now," Amos told him.
"I know, but Daphne said he'll be back in about ten minutes," Remus replied. "I thought I'd catch you up in the meantime."
"Alright," Amos said. "Ron, are you with Remus?"
"Oh no," Ron replied. "Remus gave me a brief overview but we were only just talking about this in the corridor."
"Then what are you here for?" Amos asked.
"Nothing, I was just talking with Remus," Ron answered weakly.
Amos rolled his eyes. "Why don't you get back to work," he said dismissively.
"Right, of course," Ron said, turning to leave before hesitating slightly. "There's just one thing…"
"Yes, what is it?" Amos asked, frowning.
For a moment Ron seemed to struggle with himself, before he let out a defeated sigh. "Doesn't matter, it's not important," he said, waving it away. "I'll just go."
"Oh, Ron, before I forget," Remus said suddenly. "Could you get a message to Parvati that the meeting will be at two and that she should inform Ainsworth?"
"Will do," Ron nodded, leaving the room and closing the door behind him with a tired sigh. Closing his eyes, Ron took a deep breath before he started to move again.
"Problem, Ronald?" Luna asked, causing him to jump as he'd forgotten she would be there. "Anything you'd like to talk about?"
Ron hesitated again, but again opted not to speak. "No, I'm fine," he told her. "Luna, could you get a message to Parvati Patil that the Minister will meet the Prime Minister at two and that she should inform Ainsworth of the situation?"
"Will do," Luna said promptly, scribbling down what Ron had said before picking up the phone, presumably to read off what she'd just written. Nodding his thanks, Ron decided to start making his way back towards his office.
"Hey Neville, have you got a moment?" Ron asked as he saw him walking down the corridor towards him.
"Sorry Ron," Neville said hurriedly. "I've got a meeting with the goblins."
"Don't worry about it," Ron waved him away as Neville briefly hesitated. "Is Harry going to be there?"
"Yes," Neville said, rearranging the documents in his arms. "Would you like me to tell him you're looking for him?"
"No, no, it's fine," Ron waved him off again. "It's not really important." Taking another moment to look at Ron, Neville quickly hurried away again. "Good luck, Neville," Ron called to his retreating back, not really getting a reply as Neville disappeared out of sight.
"Requested entrance for the Minister for Magic in relation to meeting with the Prime Minister," the portly figure in the painting on the far wall said officially.
"Request accepted," the Prime Minister responded, having now got used to the rather bizarre portrait on the wall. The figure in the portrait disappeared and no more than a second later a man appeared in front of him, holding on to a circular disk.
"Prime Minister Haywood," the Minister for Magic greeted warmly, placing his port key safely inside his robe pocket. "As always, a pleasure to see you."
"Likewise, Minister Weasley," Benton Haywood replied, having grown to both like and admire the balding, red headed man. "Please, have a seat. May I get you something to drink?"
"Perhaps a glass of water," the Minister suggested. "Port key travel always leaves me awfully dehydrated." The Prime Minister complied, pouring out two glasses of icy cold water that he'd had brought to his office, knowing his counterpart's need for rehydration from past experience.
"I hear Ainsworth has been speaking with your new Head of the…" the Prime Minister struggled a second for the name, "…Muggle Liaison Office. He's seemed quite impressed with his conviction."
"Well, I've known Remus for many years," the Minister said lightly. "He can be really quiet and mild most of the time, but what makes him such a great man to have around is the passion he brings to his work."
"I think that could be said for any of us major politicians," the Prime Minister said with a smile. "I've always said that's what separates us from normal people."
The Minister chuckled at that, before taking a gentle sip of water and moving on. "Benton, I have only half an hour free so it would perhaps be best if we move straight on to business," he said, leaning forward in his chair as he placed his glass down on a coaster.
"That would seem fair," Benton said, likewise placing down his glass. "I understand you've completely ruled out coming out to the non-wizarding public."
"That is correct," Arthur stated. "We did debate this, we didn't just decide to stay safe and stick with the status quo, but we still came to the decision that it would be a bad idea. I don't think either of our societies are ready for that yet."
"But you think that through careful conditioning you can train our people to accept this," Benton challenged. "I agree we would have difficulties dealing with the knowledge that there are witches and wizards living among us, but I also believe we will be able to accept it, just like we did when we gave black men equal rights, and when we gave women the right to vote."
"I'm not claiming that non-magical people wouldn't be able to deal with this," Arthur responded. "I'm telling you that the magical people are the ones that are causing the problem."
"Is this because of the blood purists you have mentioned in the past?" Benton asked.
"Partly," Arthur replied. "Blood purity has become less and less an important issue as the years have passed, and we still strive to this day to ensure muggleborns and purebloods stand on equal grounds."
"If the ideas are starting to die out then why can't the wizarding world accept their place in relation to the muggle world?" Benton asked.
"The blood purists are low in number now, there's no doubting that," Arthur told him. "But that isn't the only problem with wizarding society. Non-magical people are, on the whole, incredibly tolerant of those who are different. Wizards are not."
Arthur took another sip of water before continuing. "In our world we have goblins, werewolves, centaurs, mermen, each magical creatures with the sentience and the intelligence to have built their own societies. Yet we have famously struggled to accept them as part of our society, creating hostility with even the most mild mannered of races."
"I think I see where this is going," Benton said as Arthur started to build up ahead of steam.
"It's not that I think non-magical's would have trouble accepting us, it's that I believe the wizards will react badly to being exposed," Arthur said. "The blood purists will be small in number but people will listen to them, because people get scared."
"That sounds as though the wizarding world is still as backwards as you claimed it used to be," Benton said, a slight tone of admonishment in his voice.
"In a way it is," Arthur replied with a sigh. "But we're trying to change that. Muggleborns now have equal rights as purebloods in the eyes of the law, as do half-bloods. Werewolves still find themselves at odds with society but now we provide services to allow werewolves to get through the full moon in the comfort they need. And right now I've got members of my senior staff in meetings with representatives from the Goblin Council in order to introduce a new wizard-goblin finance council."
"I know I can't tell you to do this," Arthur said. "I have no authority over you. What I am doing is trying to help you so that one day, when the non-magical people do find the wizards, they can accept them, even with all their foibles."
Benton sat back in his chair, once again marvelling at his counterparts conviction. He wondered, as he often did, if he would be such a strong minister if his society was like the red haired man's across from him.
"I understand, Arthur," Benton said. "In fact I never doubted for a minute the intentions you had when you made this decision. I understand why you think this is a good idea, and to be honest with you I've got to say that I'd be very interested in working with the wizarding world with a project like this. Let's get down to specifics."
Arthur smiled. "I was thinking stories centred around Hogwarts would be a good idea," he said conversationally.
"The school?" Benton asked, weighing up the idea. "Certainly fits into the idea of teaching people about magic."
"Not only that, but Hogwarts is where wizarding children grow into adults," Arthur said animatedly. "It's not just magic they learn, it's morals." Arthur took another sip of water, before launching into his idea, getting so into the discussion that he was quite a bit late for his next meeting.
"This line here seems a bit long winded," Harry pointed out as he and Dennis leaned over the final draft of Dennis' speech. "You've got a good flow going and it just gets a little caught up on this line."
"How about this?" Dennis asked, scratching through part of the line and adding a small section further ahead. Harry took his time studying it, mulling the words over, before he made a small change and pronounced himself satisfied.
"Now, this word here," he pointed to the line below. "You've used it a couple of times already, it might be a bit-"
"Harry," Ron called from the doorway. "Do you have a moment?"
"Sure," Harry replied, placing his quill down as Dennis went back to checking his speech. "What's up?"
"Eh, it's nothing, it's just," Ron paused, unsure what to do. "Can we talk about this in my office?"
Harry frowned, but nodded, getting out of his seat and following Ron out of the room. Walking into Ron's office, Harry turned to him as he closed the door behind them, waiting patiently.
"Ok, this is the thing," Ron said, before seeming to rethink his decision. "Actually, no, don't worry about it."
"Ron," Harry said firmly, cutting through Ron's babbling. "If this is putting you into such a state you should just tell me. Alright?"
"Alright?" Ron nodded, still shifting slightly from foot to foot. "You know the rule, you know, the half-your-age-plus-seven rule?" Harry nodded. "Is that really a rule or is it more just a guideline?"
"Well, it is called a rule," Harry replied, feeling confused. "But by that logic it's acceptable for me to date a 21 year old but not a 20 year old. Why are you asking?"
"Well, I was talking to someone," Ron replied nervously. "She was a bit young, only 18 actually, but I'm sure she was flirting with me."
"She was," Harry nodded in exasperation. "Her name wasn't Lizzie Durand by any chance?"
"Yes," Ron said in surprise. "How did you know?"
"She's my intern," Harry replied. "She tried flirting with me yesterday, I thought Cho must have been mistaken, but…" Harry sighed as he rubbed at his growing headache. "I'll need to have a word with her."
"She was playing me?" Ron asked, somewhere between horror and disgust.
"I'm afraid so," Harry said as he made his way to the door. "If it helps at all I fell for it too. I'll see you later." Harry walked out of Ron's office, leaving behind a shellshocked Ron.
"Hey Cho, where's Lizzie?" Harry asked as he looked around, unable to see the blonde haired intern anywhere.
"She's in the store room," Cho told him. "Why? What do you need her for?"
"Nothing," Harry waved off. "I just need to have a word with her. I'll be back in a few minutes." He started to move away before he thought of something else. "Hey, Cho, have the employment papers ready for when I get back."
"Really?" Cho asked in surprise. "You're really going to hire him?"
Harry shrugged. "He's young, he works hard," he reasoned. "I think I can work with him. Just have the papers ready for when I get back."
"Will do, Harry," Cho replied as he walked off, turning down a few corridors until he reached the store room. Entering, Harry had to dodge quickly as an assistant went bustling past, an entire box of files held in his arms. After he had cleared the doorway, Harry looked up to see the room empty except for himself and Lizzie, putting files away onto one of the many shelves.
"Harry," she greeted with a dazzling smile, placing the stack of papers on the table beside her as she spotted him.
"Miss Durand," Harry said shortly, closing the distance between them quickly. "We need to talk."
"What about?" Lizzie asked, trying to maintain her cheerful facade but feeling slightly unsettled by Harry's demeanour.
"I understand you're an intern and you want to make a good impression," Harry said sternly. "But you do not go sucking up to people. When you did it to me I was happy to just let it go, but doing it with Ron too is simply not on."
"I'm sorry," Lizzie said but she was quickly overridden by Harry again.
"This is the Ministry of Magic," he ranted. "This is where we run the country. We do not behave like this. We work hard every single second and if you think you're going to get anywhere doing anything else you're in for a big shock."
Lizzie was close to tears by the time Harry finished his rant. "I'm sorry," she said pitifully, sniffing as she tried desperately to hold the tears back. "I just really wanted a good recommendation. I didn't want to but my sister told me I had to use everything I had to my advantage and I didn't want to fail just because I didn't try everything."
"Lizzie," Harry said seriously, cutting across her confessions. "What you've been doing is unforgivable in a place like this, but I'm willing to let this slide." Lizzie looked up in amazed as he said this, but Harry's stern expression kept her grounded.
"I want to see you work," Harry told her. "That is all. I want you to work as hard as you can, and to realise that that is the only thing that matters here. I will base my evaluation on the quality of your work and not on how nice a person you are. Nice doesn't get you very far in this business." Lizzie nodded in understanding, her voice having left her.
"Good," Harry said approvingly. "Okay, this is what is going to happen. You are going to pull yourself together, do up another button on your shirt," he gestured to the revealing way she was wearing the garment, "file away these papers and try this again."
"Yes sir," Lizzie said quietly, looking down to the floor.
"Lizzie," Harry said, catching her attention. "You are here under the recommendation of Minerva McGonagall, don't let her down." Harry turned and walked from the room, entering the corridor beyond as though nothing had happened.
"I'm back, have you got the papers?" Harry said promptly as he arrived back outside his office.
"On your desk," Cho replied. "I've put red crosses where he needs to sign and black crosses for you."
"Great," Harry replied. "Does he realise what you brought in?"
"I don't think so," Cho said thoughtfully, glancing through the office door at Dennis's back. "He was really focused on the speech, I'm not even sure he realised I was there."
Harry nodded approvingly, before walking into his office and sitting behind his desk. Without fuss he signed his name next to the black crosses and placed the forms in front of Dennis. "Sign next to the red crosses," Harry told him.
Dennis looked up in shock. "Are you giving me the job?" he asked breathlessly, seemingly unable to believe it.
"Yes," Harry replied simply. "You have shown me an adequate ability with speech writing and I believe you will have the ability to grow while you are here."
"Thank you," Dennis said breathlessly. "Thank you so much."
"You're welcome," Harry smiled before he jabbed his finger at the forms. "Now sign this, before I change my mind."
With a grin Dennis scribbled his name down, finishing with a flourish as he wrote his signature for the last time.
"Congratulations," Harry said as he pulled the forms together. "Cho!" Cho hurried into the room. "Here are the forms for HR," Harry told her, passing the forms back to her.
Cho took them and quickly left the room, no doubt on her way to submit the forms she'd just received. Harry stood up and rounded the desk, leading Dennis out of his office.
"Be here tomorrow, at 9 o'clock, sharp," Harry told him before offering his hand. "Congratulations."
"Thank you," Dennis smiled, taking his hand and shaking it. "I won't let you down."
"I don't care about that," Harry told him. "I just want you to promise you won't let the Minister down."
Dennis' smile grew wider. "I promise," he said sincerely. Turning away Dennis headed down the corridor.
Watching him go, Harry was interested to see him stop and talk to Lizzie, blushing slightly as he spoke to the girl. Frowning, Harry squinted after them as they eventually broke apart. Getting a better look at Lizzie, Harry smiled as he saw the very real blush on her cheeks and her shirt properly buttoned up.
Noticing he was standing on his own with nothing to do, Harry went back into Ron's office, which still stood with its door ajar.
"Hey Harry," Ron said gloomily as Harry stepped inside.
"Hey Ron," Harry replied. "Something the matter?" he asked as he sat in the seat across the desk from his friend.
"It's nothing," Ron waved away tiredly. "Not anything you'd care about at any rate."
"You'd be surprised," Harry replied. "You may think it's stupid but anything that gets you upset like this is something I want to know about."
Ron regarded Harry for a moment, as if weighing up whether to trust him or not. "Harry, you've been dating Ginny for nearly two years," Ron told him.
"Two years come December," Harry agreed.
"And of course Neville is going out with Alea Reed," Ron continued. "Amos, Remus, my father, all married. Even Hermione is going on a lot of dates."
"And you're worried that you're not?" Harry finished for him, understanding.
Ron nodded. "When Lizzie started flirting with me I actually thought, for the first time, that a girl was taking an interest in me," Ron admitted. "To find out it was all an act, it hurt me more than it should."
There was silence as Ron finished talking, the two of them both reflecting on his words. Eventually, Harry spoke up.
"Maybe you're asking the wrong question," Harry suggested. "Maybe, instead of asking why don't girls like me, ask what can you do to get girls to like you."
"I don't understand," Ron replied.
Harry cleared his throat as he sat up straighter in his seat. "You know Remus is married to Nymphadora Tonks, right?" he asked, to which Ron nodded. "But you don't know the whole story."
"What's the whole story?"
"Well, Tonks is the daughter of Sirius's cousin Andromeda, who married a muggle called Ted Tonks," Harry told him. "When Tonks first tried to ask Remus out he said no. He told her he was too old, too poor and too werewolf for her and that she deserved better. Tonks kept asking and asking and asking but Remus wouldn't back down."
"So you're saying I've got to play hard to get?" Ron asked, frowning.
"No, you're thinking about this from the wrong side," Harry told him. "If Remus had got his way he would be sad and alone. You've got to be like Tonks; she tried again and again to get through to him and eventually she managed."
"So what should I do?" Ron asked.
"I'm not going to tell you who to date," Harry told him. "But, if you really want a date just, go to a bar, meet a girl and talk to her. She may not be the one you want to spend the rest of your life with, but if you never ask she never could be."
Ron smiled at Harry, a small smile that spoke of hope rather than happiness. "Thanks Harry," Ron said, standing up. "I'll do that. Tonight I'll go talk to a girl and ask her out, and if she says no…"
"Then pick yourself up, dust yourself off and move on," Harry told him as he paused. "There is going to be rejection sometimes but that isn't a sign for you to quit."
Ron nodded as a comfortable silence fell between them, the two old friends sitting in silence.
"You miss him, don't you?" Ron said suddenly.
"What?" Harry asked in surprise, having not expected Ron to speak.
"Sirius," Ron replied, knowing he was one of the few people in the world Harry would speak to on this. "It's coming up to that time of year."
"Of course I miss him," Harry sighed sadly, memories of his godfather rising to the surface. "I don't go a single day without thinking about him."
"You don't talk about him," Ron pointed out.
"He doesn't really come up in conversation," Harry replied. "I know it's been almost 13 years but sometimes I think the worst dishonour is to forget him now he's gone."
There was a knock on the office door as Colin stuck his head in. "Nevan McCoy is waiting for you in Meeting Room 3," Colin told Ron, to which Ron nodded.
"I'll be right there," Ron replied, signalling that Colin could go. As he did, Ron got to his feet and started stacking up some files, before turning to Harry. "I've got to go meet McCoy right now but I'll remember what you told me."
Harry nodded. "If I don't see you before you leave, good luck," he told Ron, who promptly left the office, leaving Harry alone, staring into the rain soaked window.
"Harry, the Minister is calling a meeting," Cho called into his office, prompting Harry to emerge.
"Alright, thanks Cho," he said as he placed a couple of forms on her desk. "Hey, is Ron in?" Harry asked Colin, noticing the closed office door.
"He's already left," Colin told him.
"Is the meeting urgent?" Harry asked Cho.
"They didn't say urgent," Cho replied.
Harry nodded. "No need to call him back then," Harry said to himself, walking away from his office. He strode through the corridors, noting how few people were still around, before reaching the Minister's outer office. Daphne was on the phone, so she just nodded him into the office, where Harry found the Minister with Amos, Remus and Neville.
"What's going on?" Harry asked.
"We just wanted to update you on our discussions with Downing Street," Remus said. "Is Ron still here?"
"No, he's left already," Harry told him.
"Hermione was getting ready to leave last time I saw her," Neville added. "She's unlikely to still be in the building."
"That doesn't matter," Amos waved away. "We'll just brief them in the morning. Now, the Minister met with Prime Minister Haywood earlier today…"
Meanwhile, elsewhere in the building Ron was trying to get up his courage. He'd returned home not long ago to get on his best shirt, along with his expensive cloak before coming back into the Ministry. Taking a deep breath and then letting it out slowly, Ron started to move down the corridor and towards his target.
After just a few steps Ron was halted by the office door opening and Hermione stepping out, dressed in a beautiful black dress. Ron felt his heart stop for a moment as he took in her beauty, his blood rushing through his ears.
Before he could take another step someone else walked out the door. Ron froze as he took in Michael Corner, dressed in a sharp suit as he stepped after Hermione, offering out his arm which she took with a giggle. Together they walked away, not realising they'd been watched the whole time by a man who felt as though his world had just come crashing down around him.