Chapter 3 – Auror Duties

Panting, Harry Potter stood up, reaching for his wand. His opponent, a Dark wizard named Plytos sneered at him.

"Ready to give up, Auror?"

Harry shook his head defiantly. "Adflictatio!" he shouted. The Pain Inflicting Spell was similar to the Cruciatus Curse, only it wasn't as torturous and was considered legal by the Ministry.

Plytos sneered again. He conjured up a Shield Charm. The spell deflected back. "Is that the best you can do? How pitiful."

Harry swished his wand and muttered a Dissolving Spell. The jet of blue light that was Harry's own spell dissolved into wisps of smoke.

"I will spare you your misery, Auror. Let's end this now!" Plytos said. "Avada Kedavra!"

Harry groaned, exasperated. "Protego!" Plytos laughed. He waved his wand. A beam of white light hit Harry squarely on the chest.

Harry laughed, knowing it would only incense Plytos. "That's it? Pitiful." He threw back his robes and it revealed a cluster of shimmering lights hovering around his chest. The spell had merely bounced off him. Good thing I cast a Protection Charm earlier, Harry thought. "Now it's time to finish you off."

"Accio Wand!" Then Harry muttered a spell that illuminated Plytos for a minute then he was thrown back by the force of the spell. He was knocked out cold as he hit the ground. Harry conjured up thick binds that magically bound Plytos and prevented him from escaping. Triumphantly, Harry pulled out his personal Portkey, a pendant hanging from a gold chain. He grabbed Plytos, touched the necklace and made his way back to the Ministry.

At the Ministry, Harry was greeted with cheers and thunderous applause. He grinned, leading a now conscious and furious Plytos towards a room reserved for captured prisoners. It was surrounded by spells and enchantments to prevent the prisoner from escaping. It was a temporary prison before the prisoner can be sentenced and sent to Azkaban.

"Fabulous work, Potter!" The Ministry of Magic, still Cornelius Fudge, strode in. "I received a memo that you were back from Siberia and came to meet you myself. Ah, I see you've detained Plytos." Fudge walked over to the room and peered inside, where Plytos was casting spells to try to escape but to no avail.

"Thank you sir." Harry said.

Fudge smiled. "Now, I think I'll leave you to celebrate with your officemates." He walked off. That seemed like a cue for the other Aurors. They surrounded him, congratulating him and shaking his hand.

"Great work, Harry." He turned and saw Matthew Rogers, a fellow Auror.

"Thanks, mate." He shook Matthew's hand.

A young woman went over to him and shook his hand. "Congrats, Potter." Harry grinned. So Natalia's finally warming up to me, Harry thought. Natalia was one of the Ministry's best Aurors and was its head. She had been reluctant to allow Harry to retrieve upper lever Dark wizards because of his young age.

Harry went to his office and rifled through his desk, looking for some papers. Now that he captured Plytos, he was going to have to do some paperwork. Finding them, he sat down and tapped his eagle-feather quill. He was dictating his findings in detail when Natalia popped her head in his office. "Potter! I want those papers on my desk pronto!"

"Sure thing, boss." Harry grinned. Chuckling, he continued his work and after about an hour, he sealed the papers in an envelope and walked to Natalia's office. He dropped them off and touched his Portkey again and it transported him home.

His home was in Number 12 Grimmauld Place, the former Black residence. Since Sirius didn't leave any heirs, the house was passed on to Harry after the Order of the Phoenix decided that it wasn't too safe for use anymore. So, before they left, the Order helped him put everything into place and soon, it was fit for human inhabitation again. Kreacher the house-elf had long passed away, so Harry had hired a new house-elf for himself.

He was just about to go down to the kitchen for a meal when the said house-elf entered, laden with a huge silver tray filled with food.

"Dobby learned that Masyer was coming home, so Dobby has brought Harry Potter his food, sir!" Dobby set down the dray on Harry's side table and bowed himself out of the room.

"Thanks Dobby!" Harry grinned. He turned to the tray. He grabbed a nearby croissant and bit into it. The rich, buttery taste exploded in his mouth. His appetite whetted, he eagerly dug into his plate.