November
"Think Percy will win?" Hermione asked, sipping her tea, and peering at the headline of the article Ron was reading.
"He wouldn't have against Fudge, but he has a chance against this Magnus Beddington guy."
"You don't like Beddington?"
"He's a bit too old-fashioned for my liking. He wants to bring back torturing and that sort. Not to mention he got arrested on two charges when he was seventeen."
"For what?"
"Muggle torturing and Dark activity. He wasn't charged, no one could prove anything." Ron put down the paper and folded it. "Well, I guess I'd better be off to the office. Something must have happened last night that they need me to investigate."
"You know, I'd have thought you'd care a little bit more about who our new boss is going to be."
"Hermione, no one who makes Minister can ever change anything. They can promise all they want, but nothing big ever comes of it. You remember Fudge. Did he really do anything? If he made any improvements in the lives of witches and wizards it was because Dumbledore was whispering instructions in his ear. Percy wants to merge the Ministry offices with the Auror's offices, but Gudgeon Post would never allow it. Let's just face it. Nothing is ever going to change around here."
* * *
It was the beginning of November, and the thought on everyone's mind was the election for Minister of Magic, taking place in just one week. It was an important job; the Minister was considered to be the head of all magic activity in all of England, and he was the head of all forms of law enforcement and rule making.
Ron didn't deem it too important. After all, he was getting married the day after elections, and he was just a tad more excited about that. There were so many plans to be made and work to be done, starting back from almost three years ago when he had proposed to Hermione on her deathbed. They had been waiting for her health, for his school, for their jobs, and now it had all come in to place. Percy wasn't happy because it took some of the glory from his campaign, which he was absolutely sure he was going to win. And Bill was sour because three of his youngest brothers were married and he wasn't even seeing anyone. Ron and Hermione weren't going to let either of them spoil their day. Unlike two brothers before him, Ron had money and he was using it to avoid a backyard wedding like Fred and Angelina's. He and Hermione were getting married at a five-star Muggle hotel, since so many of Hermione's relatives were Muggles themselves, clueless about the aspects of the wizarding world.
Now he tried to focus on the task at hand, a large file containing information about an attack on a Muggle jogger. Business was slow after Voldemort's downfall, but Dark activity was starting to pick up again. That could only mean one thing: the rise of a new Dark Lord.
* * *
"Ron!" Hermione's voice filled the sleepy corners of his brain. "Breakfast!" Ron sat up slowly and rubbed his eyes.
"Coming!" he answered, getting up and slipping on his robes. He was tired; yesterday had been a late night at the office, with three attacks on half bloods at seven pm.
He shuffled into the kitchen and sat down at the table, where Hermione was already starting on her eggs and toast. Ron picked up his fork as an owl pecked on the kitchen window. Ron lifted his hand casually and the window opened. The owl swooped down with the paper, and Ron tipped it with a few coins from his pocket.
"Let's see what's in the Prophet today…." He opened up the paper and started to skim the headlines. "Six more attacks this morning. Gonna be a rough day at the office. Unicorn power sales up twenty-three percent from the same time last year. Someone at the other end of this table is feeling good about that." Hermione smiled, but didn't look up from the book she was reading.
"Holy…!" Now she looked up at Ron's outburst. "Hermione! Check this out!" He read out loud:
"There was some controversy at the Ministry today as Harry Potter announced this morning that he will be the third candidate for Minister of Magic, alongside Percival Weasley and Magnus Beddington. Consulting the official Constitution of Magic, a person is allowed to announce candidacy up to three days before elections are held. Potter meets all the requirements of the position of Minister, and ballots will be reconfigured to show his name."
"Harry's running for Minister? That's a bit odd, don't you think?"
"Yeah, considering he hasn't been seen in public since his defeat of Lord Voldemort, and that was only by the two of us and a bunch of dead Death Eaters. What kind of Minister is he going to make?"
"I don't know, but people will vote for him, won't they?"
"I guarantee it."
* * *
It was voting day and Ron was beside himself. Who was he going to vote for? He had promised Percy a vote, but that was before Harry had announced that he was running. And he wasn't sure he wanted either of them to win. Then again, he didn't really like that Beddington fellow either. He was thinking of not going to vote at all.
Hermione was trying to convince him to go, persuading him that it was his duty as a member of the wizarding community. Ron supposed he, like the rest of the world, would wind up voting for Harry. Harry had made a good teacher in fifth year, and a good Quidditch captain, an excellent Head Boy and even a good friend. Plus, he was the Boy-Who-Lived-Not-Only-Once-But-Several-Times, and that was a feat that no one could overlook. Hermione refused to share and of her political views with him, not wanting him to make a decision based on what she liked.
Ron found himself at the Ministry of Magic that afternoon, telling his name to little old witches behind long tables, who gave him the magical ballots. There were the three names on it: Percy Weasley, Marcus Beddington, and Harry Potter. The ballots were bewitched to prevent cheating and miscounts, and all Ron had to do once he had his paper ballot inside the tiny voting booth was tap his wand on the name he wanted. After all his indecision, he went with his promise and voted for Percy.
When he met Hermione for an early lunch, she quizzed him on his voting.
"You did go and vote today, I hope?" she asked.
He sighed. "Yes, after all your nagging."
She quietly took a bit of her salad.
"Do you want to know who I voted for Hermione?"
"Oh, no. It's alright."
"You can ask. Go ahead."
"No, it's your own business who you vote for."
Ron sniffed. "Who did you vote for, Hermione?"
"Me? I voted for Beddington. I know you don't like him, but I just couldn't bring myself to choose between Harry and Percy."
"I voted for Percy," Ron said shortly. "But I don't think it much matters, Hermione. Harry will win."
She continued to eat, not saying anything. And while the rest of the community voted, they had taken off work to prepare for the wedding.
To be continued…