CEDRIC

My eyes automatically snapped open at roughly five-thirty in the morning these days. I don't think I've ever worked harder in my life, and I took seven N.E.W.T. classes. The shifts I had been pulling at the Ministry lately, on top of patrolling the streets, had meant that I spent very little time at home. Any of the precious hours spent at home were mostly spent sleeping. I rarely saw Jennifer, and it had really been taking a toll on my mood.

I rolled over and found her sleeping beside me, something that was nothing short of a miracle. She looked peaceful in her sleep this time, not frowning or chewing on her cheek or twitching. Even the bruises under her eyes didn't look as dark and threatening. This close, I could count the freckles splattered on her cheeks and smell the dust of the bookstore in her hair, mixed together with her own sweet scent. I reached over and pushed a few strands of hair away from her mouth, stroking her cheek. It made my heart feel so full, seeing her like this.

Her eyes blinked open and took a few moments to focus on my face. When they did, she looked confused.

"Morning," I greeted, gently pressing my lips to her forehead.

"Morning," she replied, frowning slightly.

"What?"

"I… nothing." She rolled out of bed and I did the same.

"Nothing?"

"Just… weird dream."

"Want to talk about it?" I followed her to the door of the bedroom.

She shrugged. "Not really. It wasn't anything important." But she wouldn't turn around and face me.

"Jen, please don't shut me out."

She turned around, and gave me a smile that didn't reach her eyes. "I'm not, promise. It just wasn't anything worth sharing." She kissed me on the cheek. "French toast okay for breakfast?"

I considered my options. If I pushed her now, nothing would end well. Maybe it really was nothing. Maybe I was being paranoid. "Yeah, sounds great."

This was weird. Jennifer usually told me her dreams, even if they weren't bad. I wondered what it could have been as I showered, but nothing I came up with sounded plausible. Yet, I had the nagging feeling all through getting ready for the day that there was just something she wasn't telling me, something I should probably know about, or at least might want to know. Something to do with Lance? Maybe, but Lance only sent her vivid nightmares. And Jennifer hadn't thrashed all night. In fact, it didn't even look like she had moved at all. So no, not him. What then?

Breakfast was good, as always. Left to my own devices, I probably would have starved off. But the French toast was nice and fluffy and the bacon delicious. I ate with no complaints.

"What's your schedule today?" I asked, catching her eye. She didn't look tired, just… like she wasn't really here.

"Oh, erm… work and then Brittany asked me if I could watch Diana while she was on patrol. So I'll be back after midnight. What about you?"

"I have a double shift today. We lost Charlotte over the weekend."

"How? Death Eaters?"

"No. Dementors." The word stuck in my throat, and I saw Jennifer shudder. "I've got to go in and cover all her work until we get a replacement. If we get one."

We were silent as I got up and set my plate in the sink. I went to wash it but she stopped me. "I'll do it. You need to get going."

"You sure?"

"Yeah."

She started to pull away, but I set my hands on her shoulders and kissed her deeply. She was a bit surprised, but relaxed, her lips so soft on mine. I could have stayed there forever. "I love you," I whispered as I pulled away, my lips brushing her warm cheek. And I meant it, every time I said it, possibly more each time.

"I love you, too," she responded, her eyelashes fluttering so slightly, my stomach bubbling with heat. I wish I didn't have to leave so soon. There were about a hundred things I wanted to do besides go to work, and most of them seemed to involve her.

"See you later, then."

"Yeah. Have a safe day."

"You, too."

Then I had to let go and walk out the door, locking it behind me and Apparating across town to the alley outside the new entrance to the Ministry. I allowed myself one heavy sigh before I slapped on my work face and headed out of the alley.

If there was ever a dingier place to have the hidden entrance to the most influential place in England, I couldn't even begin to imagine it. The old subway loo had six stalls and a line of at least three wizards in front of each, all waiting to flush themselves in. I got in line, trying to find something pleasant to look at, but not finding anything (as usual). The mirror along the back wall was covered in water spots and dirt, the sinks cracked and aged. Several tiles on the floor were missing, showing the once-white mortar beneath. I closed my eyes while I waited, trying to picture Jennifer's reaction to this system, and I chuckled under my breath. She would have been disgusted, going into a tirade about the conditions of the loo, "Absolutely digesting, and what, you're supposed to flush yourself down? Who thinks of this crap, Umbridge?"

It was my turn now. I wrinkled my nose as I stepped in the toilet bowl and flushed myself down into the Ministry. It was still disgusting, even if I didn't actually get wet. Once in the grand entrance hall, I walked away quickly, eager to escape to my office. I crammed into the lift to the fourth floor and the Creatures department. I poked my head into the Goblin and House-Elf office to see if my dad was there yet, but he wasn't. Frowning, I went on down the hallway into the Beings section and into my tiny office.

As usual, there was a stack of paperwork on my desk that was about a foot away from reaching the ceiling and a second pile of "To Be Filed" on the floor growing at an alarming rate. I would have to make a trip down to the filing room today, otherwise tomorrow I wouldn't be able to get in the door. I stepped carefully over files of illegal creature breeding and rumors of Kelpie attacks off the coast of Ireland to reach my chair, only to find a purple memo on it.

"What in the name of Merlin is this?" I muttered, grabbing it and flipping it open. In curly gold script, it read:

"Mr. Diggory,

Due to the unfortunate circumstances that resulted in Mrs. Grey's death, I would like to meet with you at seven o'clock to discuss prevention of future attacks.

DD"

What did Desdemona want? She hardly ever sent out messages to anyone, let alone me. I took the note with me as I scrambled out of my office and down the hall to hers, through the door with the gold plaque that reads, "Desdemona Dorkis, Head of Beings Division," and found her sitting at her desk. Her office was immaculately clean and much larger than my own, book shelves lining the wall and several portraits of famous wizards and some odd creatures above them, almost a story higher. This was only my third visit, but nothing much had changed since I had last been here a few weeks ago.

Desdemona was a small, older witch, but everyone in the department knew not to cross her. Dad had even warned me about her when he heard that I had been assigned to the Beings division. Normally, her gray hair was in tight curls and she dressed in neat robes (usually a shade of turquoise), but today was not the case. Today, she had dark circles under her eyes, her hair frizzy and her clothes rumpled. Must have been a hell of a night.

"Ah, Mr. Diggory," she said wearily, not even attempting to smile. "Early, as always."

"I try to be punctual."

"Of course. Sit down." I did, unsure of what she was going to say. Her face was unreadable, even in her exhausted state. "Now, Mrs. Grey's death is a shock to us all. She was a great witch, and even better at her job." I merely nodded. "And you of course know that her death was no accident."

"Dementors," I offered.

"Yes," she said, pulling out a pipe and lighting it with a tap of her wand. "This Dementor problem is getting out of hand very quickly, and that's why I'm making the executive decision to create a new office."

Well, that was a surprise. "A department for…?"

"Dealing with Dementors and Inferi, specifically. It will respond to reports of Dementor and Inferi attacks, educate the public, and train all Ministry officials in handling such beings. We may even talk to Dumbledore about sending someone to run a seminar for the more advanced students at Hogwarts."

"And what do I have to do with this?" I asked, unsure if my hypothesis was correct. I wasn't sure if a promotion was something I wanted. I may have to drop my shift for the Order.

"I want you to lead the new department," she said simply, blowing smoke rings up to the ceiling. "It's a hard job, but you're the only person I can spare who would have any idea of what they're doing."

I sighed. Yes, this was where I thought she was going. "Alright, but… me? Are you sure I'm qualified for—"

"You can produce a Patronus and I've seen you with a Flame Charm," she said, the corners of her mouth turning up just a tiny bit. "Believe me, you're more than qualified for the job."

"So… what do I do?"

"Well, first thing is to get yourself approved by the Minister, but I've already done that for you," she said, pushing a file towards me. "Second is to get yourself organized, which is what I suggest you do next. Then you need to start getting some people to work for you and train them. You'll also need to answer any and all owls directed towards you."

She was so sure that I could do this, so confident that I had any clue what I was doing that I didn't want to say anything to the contrary. "So… I'll be in my office then?"

"Yes. Get my son-in-law to take down all your old filing. You don't need to be bothered with that now, eh?"

"Yes, Ma'am."

She waved her pipe around, getting smoke everywhere. "And none of this 'Ma'am' stuff anymore. We're colleagues, Cedric, not teacher and student."

"Alright… Desdemona."

"That's better." She finished off the pipe and nodded to me. "I'll make sure the owls get redirected."

"Thanks," I said, standing and grabbing the file. I walked out of the office a little dazed. Under normal circumstances, a promotion this early into my career would have been amazing, but now… a Dementor and Inferi unit? Things must be going worse than I expected. Though, it wouldn't hurt for more people to be training in using the Patronus charm. And I'm sure I could at least teach people that. Jen had taught me well last year.

I decided I would visit Lewis before going back to my office to start cleaning. He was busy as always, scribbling furiously on some letter to someone that Desdemona obviously couldn't have been bothered with. He glanced up when I entered and held up a finger until he was done writing the letter. I noted that he looked just as distressed as everyone else in the office, flecks of ink tracked across his glasses, his own desk covered in so many papers I couldn't actually see the top of it.

"There," he muttered, signing it as Desdemona. "What do you need, Cedric?"

"Apparently, I'm to have you take all my filing down to the room to get dealt with."

"Look here, I'm not—"

"Desdemona's orders," I added, cutting him off. "I'm sorry, I've got an entire new office to run." I really was sorry, and I hoped Lewis would understand.

Grumbling, Lewis rolled up his letter and put his quill away before following me to my office. "This is going to take a bloody cart. How often do you actually file your paperwork?" he asked, cleaning his glasses on his robes. I couldn't tell if he was joking around with me or not.

"When I can," I replied defensively. "It's been murder here, you know that. And I've spent most my time in the field." When Lewis sighed and shook his head, I added, "Look, I'll repay you later."

"Yeah, yeah, let me go find a cart." He left, still grumbling, but hopefully less so.

I sighed and ran my hands through my damp hair, making it stick up in odd places. "I guess that I'd better get this organized so Lewis doesn't hex me," I thought out-loud.

So I began to sift through all the files and papers and redistributed piles into more organized piles than they actually had been before. To me, at least, they made sense. To file… to keep… to pitch… stuff I would need… stuff I didn't care about anymore… I worked like this for almost an hour, and Lewis still hadn't come back with a cart.

"It doesn't take this long to find a cart," I muttered under my breath, heaving a pile of files into the corner of my desk. Was Lewis planning on returning any time this year?

As I went for another stack, a purple memo zoomed in and ran straight into my head, startling me and making me scatter files everywhere. "Merlin's pants!" I yelled as it started spiraling around the cramped office. I snatched it out of the air and opened it with one hand, rubbing the sore spot on my head with the other.

"Cedric,

We need to talk now. My office.

Kingsley"

This day was turning out to be spectacular.

"Great, just… great," I said, shaking. What was going on now? I left for the Auror's offices, imagining the worst. Someone had to be dead, or injured, or missing. And just what was I going to do if it was one of my parents, or Jared, or Colin, or… Jennifer? I didn't think I could live without any of them. I tried desperately to push the thoughts of any one of them dead out of my mind, but I wasn't succeeding. I picked up my pace instead.

Kingsley's office had made me laugh once upon a time. My favorite wall had pictures of Sirius on it with a list of possible locations. Egypt, Italy, America… Kingsley must have had fun with it. The other wall, however, was more sobering. It had prison photos of the at large and the most wanted Death Eaters. None of their faces were crossed off. Yet. Hopefully. Kingsley himself looked a bit unsure, but only a little. Kingsley almost always kept a cool head.

"Cedric, I've just gotten a Patronus."

"Dead?" I asked shakily, gripping the desk for support. My knees wanted to give out. I couldn't take this.

"No, not dead. But your parents were attacked."

"What? Attacked? But, they're—"

"They were under protection, yes," Kingsley said wearily. "We think their location might have somehow been given away. But they're fine."

"Fine?" I asked, getting a little irritated. "They were just attacked, how can they be fine?"

"Amos assured me that they were. They're on the run, but unharmed. The house has been vacated."

The house. My house. It was a moment or two before I could even think, let alone sputter out, "But… how?"

"I don't know, Cedric." Kingsley was frowning now. "We're all working to secure a location for them, though."

"They could stay with me—"

"You and Jennifer have got enough problems of your own. And that would be the next place that Death Eaters would come knocking, I'm sure, if they were somehow following your parents,," Kingsley cut me off. "You need to let us worry about them."

I was too stunned to argue. "But—"

"I wanted to let you know what was happening, not for you to argue with me," Kingsley said, his voice raised slightly. "Now, please, go back to work. We all have more than enough on our plates."

This wasn't logical at all. Why shouldn't I be helping my parents? But instead of continuing on the argument, I sighed and said, "Yeah. Keep me updated, will you?"

"To the best of my abilities."

I trudged back down the lift, down to my office, down into the place where I could be upset without anyone seeing. He hadn't even bothered to ask if I could help. They were my parents. And I didn't know what I would do without them.

As I sat down at my desk, I wondered if this was what Jennifer felt like sometimes – this helpless feeling of not being able to do anything, this feeling of resentment that came with not being trusted in your abilities. I guess I should have felt this before, but I never had… I didn't like it at all. It felt unnatural. I sighed for maybe the hundredth time just this morning before making myself get to work on the newest office at the Ministry. Luckily, my office was a lot less full of paper. Lewis must have finally come by while I was gone.

I picked up the folder Desdemona had given me earlier and began flipping through it. It held suggestions for classes to hold, directions on how to schedule mandatory training, and a list of people who not only held the skills necessary, but also were currently in departments that could spare a few people. There was no one new to hire, really, since I had been part of the last recruitment of students graduating from Hogwarts. I had a lot to do, but my mind wasn't letting me focus on any of it. I had to talk to my Dad.

"Expecto Patronum," I said, conjuring my Retriever Patronus with a little difficulty. He sat and waited for orders. "I need you to take a message to my Dad, wherever he is. Tell him… To contact me, and that I hope he and Mum are okay. And that I love them." I took a shuddering breath. I couldn't loose it at work. "That's it."

My Patronus barked, then leapt and dissolved into the air, off on its mission. I sat back down again, not feeling much better. I didn't know how I was going to get through the rest of the day without a serious distraction, so I buckled down and started pouring over the notes in the file. I wrote all over the list of potential people to work with. I couldn't have a big team to start with, maybe two other people, since the office was small enough. But they had to be competent enough that I could trust them in the field if I was teaching. I ended up with five out of the eight people's names underlined, and I wrote each of them an interview request on a pieces of purple parchment. I sent them all off, and started reading the procedures to request mandatory classes. There was a lot of writing I needed to do, and I also noted that I would want to make a test so that anyone who could already do the charms wouldn't need to waste their precious time. I was half-way through a draft when Lewis came back.

"All done. You owe me, big time. The file room was in a right state all morning," he said, sounding grumpy but looking a little better.

"I'll buy you a drink, or six, anytime you want," I said, giving him a smile. "Thank you."

"Well, at least I wasn't forging signatures all morning, but I do enjoy that some days."

He allowed himself to snore in annoyance before he left, though I was fairly sure his annoyance was with his mother-in-law, not myself.

I worked steadily until it was nearly time to go. My mind still strayed to worrying about my parents occasionally, but I shut those thoughts down. Kingsley said they were okay, and I had to trust him. And surely Dad had received my Patronus. I should get—

A huge, silver dog burst through the wall, and I upset my inkwell when I jumped in surprise. Flustered, I waved my wand to clean up the mess.

"Cedric, your mum and I are safe. I will share details with you later. Love you, son."

As my dad's voice and his Patronus faded, I sighed in relief. Hearing his voice had done wonders to calm my nerves. I hoped that maybe I could see him in person when he told… the details? About the attack, I assumed. Maybe his and mum's hiding plan. But I could worry about that later. I needed to tell Jen what was going on.

As I gathered my work to leave, I paused. No, there was no reason to worry Jen. I would hold off the information until I had the whole story from Dad. If the lack of details was driving me mad, I could only imagine what it would do to her.

I left with a larger folder of work that what I had started with in the morning, but I had a lot to do tonight. I could stay late, but I wanted dinner and to work in the quite of my own living room. I wave my wand, switching off the lights, and I left for home.