A/N: I had trouble uploading this due to my server. Sorry it took so long to update. Merry Christmas to all

Disclaimer: I own nothing, not even the title. I borrowed it from another book.

Chapter Fourteen

Applications

Ron remembered the first time he stepped into the Auror Headquarters. He was about six years old and he and Ginny had tagged along with their father to work. They had wandered around while their father wasn't looking and slipped past the room with several cubicles filled with busy wizards and witches. They had stared curiously at the cubicle walls filled with family photos and Quidditch team articles and posters until an employee found them and sent them back to a frantic Arthur.

Ron didn't see much change in the office he and Harry had just stepped into. The big difference now was that a lot of cubicles seemed empty. Ron knew this was because more than half of the Auror force had died in the war. The air too seemed a lot more subdued. The Aurors were busy as ever but they seemed to do their work silently.

But even the subdued atmosphere couldn't dampen Ron's excitement. He was finally going to take his Auror's test with his best friend—well one of them at least. He was disappointed that Hermione stood firm on her decision. After her revelation at Godric's Hollow, she left the Burrow after dinner to visit her parents. She had not been back since, though she promised in her latest owl she'd be back at the Weasley home to celebrate with them after their exams. She had complete confidence in their passing and that was at least comforting.

"Where do you think we should go, Ron?" Harry asked. All the Aurors looked occupied and they didn't want to disturb any of them. They looked around and noticed a witch with purple hair. She turned around and smiled.

"Wotcher Ron!" Tonks greeted him. She moved closer. "And Harry," she whispered. "You're just in time," she added in her normal volume. "Here, you need to fill out these forms. There are a few applicants already." She went back to a whisper. "Best to fill it out in my cubicle so you'd have a bit of privacy. You two need to fill out one form each."

She led them to a cubicle with a messy desk. She swept some of the papers away with her wand to clear a space for them and summoned a chair for them to sit on. "When you're finished, go up to Chief Atalanta's office. She wants a word."

Ron and Harry sat down and made a quick survey of the cubicle. There was a list tacked to Tonk's board. Other cubicles seemed to have similar lists to their own boards. It had two columns. One was labeled "suspect" with a list of names of captured Death Eaters and right across was a column of dates—schedules of their trials. A lot of familiar names were there but one name managed to strike at Ron.

"Bloody Dolohov! He just wouldn't die wouldn't he? He's scheduled for a trial today, wish we could be there to see. I hope they lock him up and make him do hard Muggle labor for the rest of his life."

"You're still at him for what he did to Hermione?"

Ron bit his lip and glared at the name as if it was Dolohov himself. "Hermione was wrong. He deserved whatever she threw at him that night. It wasn't just Hermione, you know. Did you know he killed my uncles? Gideon and Fabian Prewett were Mum's younger brothers. I never really met them, but Mum used to talk to me about them. Great Quidditch players, she said. Of course she was the best; she taught them everything she knew. Dolohov was said to be the leader of the group of Death Eaters that tortured them to death."

"Moody showed me a picture of them once. He said they fought like heroes."

"Yeah, they did. They were Aurors too you know. They were barely out of Auror Academy when they died. That's why Mum doesn't want me to be an Auror. She knows what she's risking."

Ron thought about his Mum who lost two sons and two brothers in two wars. She must have had a million heartaches in all the years when her family—both the Prewett and the Weasley sides—risked their lives. He was beginning to understand why she mothered him and Harry so much.

Ron had thought about why he wanted to be an Auror. Well, apart from the status it carried and the adventure that he could find in the job, he knew there must be a better reason why he was getting into this. Harry had his reason with his guilt over deaths he still blamed himself as the cause. Hermione, he realized, didn't have a reason. And as much as he hated to admit defeat, that was why she refused to join them. But what about him? What was his reason?

Thinking about his mother now, he finally saw what purpose he had in this office right now, filling out Auror application forms. He didn't want to see anyone lose another family member again if he could help it by keeping people like Dolohov at bay—even if he had to put himself on the line to do it.

Harry broke his thoughts when he finished his form. They picked up the two forms and headed to an office at one end of the room. On the door was a nameplate: Andrea Atalanta: Chief Auror.

"Come in," a female voice called out before they could even knock.

Inside, they found Moody talking to a witch seated behind a desk. Her hair was streaked with gray and tied in a tight bun. She was slender and well-toned for her age and her expression told Harry and Ron that she was not one to be trifled with.

"Have a seat," she commanded. She looked them closely in the eye, as if assessing them.

"Potter and Weasley?"

They nodded at her, not sure what to make of this woman.

She folded her hands and without losing eye contact, began to speak:

"I am glad that you have accepted this opportunity to become part of the force. Moody tells me he has informed you about the special circumstances why we invited you in the Academy. I'd like to repeat however, that your admission is not final yet. I want to see for myself what you can do—your grades in Hogwarts notwithstanding. As you know, we only accept the best in the Academy."

They continued to nod in silence

"You will be taking your tests today with the other applicants, but you will be doing it a little differently. As Moody explained before, you will both be trained. We cannot do anything about your written exams, but all your practical exams will be evaluated separately." She raised an eyebrow at them as a warning. "We have provided means of tracking down your progress as individuals so don't think you can cheat your way out of every test by helping each other. You will also be undergoing specialized training to improve your potentials as a team. That is all, do you have any questions?"

They shook their head.

"Very well, you're dismissed. Follow the other applicants outside. Shacklebolt will guide you through the procedures. He has already been informed of your situation."

"Good luck Potter, Weasley," Moody said. Ron gave him an acknowledged nod before he and Harry went out.

"Blast it! I thought we could get through this together," Ron exclaimed.

"Might as well. If we find me another body, we need to train individually anyway. At least they can't do anything about written exams, that's a plus on our side. She said we have to find Shacklebolt. You think Kingsley's related to him?"

Ron shrugged. Kingsley Shacklebolt had been among those who died in the last battle. Ron hoped that this Shacklebolt would be just as nice as their old friend from the Order. It would certainly help settle their nerves if someone as kind as the old Auror would guide them through the exams.

They found the other applicants waiting at a bench just two cubicles away. There were around 20 people there. Ron found a familiar face.

"Alicia!" Ron called to the heavy young woman with dark hair. She looked up at him.

"Weasley! Hey, you're here too!" Alicia Spinnet exclaimed. Immediately, all conversation from the other applicants stopped and they turned to look at him. Ron expected them to turn away after a glance, but they didn't. They stared at him as if he was some curious creature. He noticed that Alicia too had been staring at him.

"What?" he asked.

"N-nothing," she said. "It's just that—your scar. I read about it in the Prophet but I didn't think it was so…"

"Ugly?" Ron challenged.

"No, it's not that. Just… big. I didn't think it was well… I assumed it was just like Harry's… Oh I'm sorry. I didn't mean to, about Harry."

"It's alright, Alicia," Harry said.

"Right. So you're here," she added, changing the subject.

"Yeah, and you too. I thought Aurors only accept fresh graduates."

"They used to. But they needed more trainees this year. I got an invite two years ago when I graduated but I turned it down to play pro with the Holyhead Harpies. This year, they re-invited all those who turned down their previous invites. I wanted a career change so I came here to give it a shot."

"Good, nice to know someone familiar."

"There a couple of people we know here too." She stood aside and Ron saw Padma Patil, Blaise Zabini and Terry Boot behind her. There were also two young men Ron recognized were in Hogwarts the same year as Fred and George.

"Hey Weasley," Zabini greeted. "Still aiming for some action, I see."

"Slytherin git," Ron muttered and Harry agreed. Blaise Zabini had been one of the few Slytherins in their year that joined the D.A. when it re-opened in sixth year. He also fought on the side of the Order on the final battle. It didn't, however, make him any less hostile to Harry and Ron.

"Sure I'm all for some action. Bring on what you got, Zabini," Ron replied.

"Fine way to greet each other, you two," Padma Patil interrupted. "Hey, Ron. Nice to see you again."

Ron shook her hand. Padma sounded cheerful enough, but Ron was remembering that this was the girl who had used a killing curse successfully. Perhaps all of these people had killed or caused some damage to another person. Harry's words echoed in Ron's mind: "Who knows who else we managed to injure that night?" Ron never bothered to find out if he had killed any Death Eaters. If he did, they deserved it, and it was not worth knowing. But it made Ron see something. These people lining up to be Aurors weren't exactly innocent. Like him, they had faced death and knew exactly what was expected of them in the line of duty, as he knew what was waiting for him and Harry as well should danger present itself.

A whooshing sound made them all look up to the ceiling. A misty figure appeared and settled right in front of them.

"Kingsley?" Harry gasped in shock.

Standing in front of them, grinning with amusement, was a spectre of a tall black man.

It was the ghost of Kingsley Shacklebolt.

A/N: For those of you who were wondering about the reference to the Prewetts, J.K. Rowling revealed in her website that Molly Weasley's maiden name is Prewett. In OotP there was a scene where Moody showed Harry a picture of the original Order. He mentioned Fabian and Gideon Prewett as brothers who died like heroes taken down by five Death Eaters. Also in Book 5, a caption under Dolohov's face that appeared with an article about the escape of the Death Eaters said Dolohov was convicted for the Prewett brothers' murders.

I've always been fascinated about Molly. She's a woman surrounded by her family of men yet she seems to be the dominant figure above all of them, even Arthur. I wanted to explore a more hidden side of her life. I like to imagine her as more than a housewife and mother. (If you noticed in a previous chapter, I gave her a possible alternative career). I've also thought about a chapter in OotP titled "The Woes of Mrs. Weasley" where showed her fear of losing her sons. I thought about the Prewett murders and realized that Molly may have been a more scarred person than she appears. She's really one of the strongest women in the HP world and I think Ginny has a great role model in her.

This chapter is dedicated to Molly and all strong women out there.