AN: Thank you, everyone, for your birthday wishes, and I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter about the Winter Wonderland. Sorry this is a day late but I was a little hungover yesterday and didn't want to post under the influence. It's a bit of an in-betweeny chapter so I can get us back to Dobby's Law and the house-elf breeder saga. I hope you enjoy it! :-)
Ron starts his third year of Auror training whilst Hermione gets an interesting offer from the Minister of Magic.
Hermione and Ron's post-reunion bubble, unfortunately, didn't last long and a couple of days later, they found themselves stood in the Ministry Atrium.
"But I don't want to go to training today…" Ron had tangled his fingers so tightly with Hermione's, she was worried he was going to cut off the circulation. He pulled playfully at her arm, a sullen look on his face. "I don't want work to ruin how I feel after this weekend…"
His spare hand gravitated towards the silver chain around her neck and he carefully picked it up, playing with it idly. They had spent almost all of the rest of the weekend in bed, only leaving the room to eat and Hermione hadn't once removed her necklace. They had even skipped the usual Sunday lunch at the Burrow; both of them had had enough family time recently.
Hermione smiled fondly at Ron. He was getting very good at delaying the inevitable. "I wish we could just live the rest of our lives only in bed, but the fun stuff would get boring if that's all we did. We need work to keep life interesting…" She took a quick glance around the atrium before leaning forward for a quick kiss from him.
"That's easy for you to say, you like work!" Ron kissed her back but pouted as she pulled away.
"You do too, deep down!"
She carefully untangled her fingers from his with another kiss. "Have a good day, I'll see you for lunch?"
"Yeah, I guess so, if that's the only chance I'm going to get to see you today…" He let out a dramatic sigh, scowling playfully as Hermione laughed at him. "Don't laugh at my misery. You're so mean…"
"And I love you too sweetheart…" She gave him a push towards the Auror Department, laughing again as he stomped away, but soon picked up his pace as he spotted Neville and Harry down the corridor. She watched him go until he disappeared then headed towards the elevator that would take her to her department.
Ron caught up with Harry and Neville and followed them towards the Auror briefing room. The trio knew the drill; the first day in work at the start of the year was always kicked off with a briefing and it would continue to be that way for their entire Auror career. Ron groaned as he spotted Robards waiting for them outside the briefing room.
"Looks like it's time for our yearly bollocking…" He muttered under his breath as they neared the Head Auror.
Despite his bravado amongst his friends, Ron gave Robards a respectful nod as they filed past him and took their usual seats in the room.
Harry settled into his own seat; his eyebrows raised at his best friend. The change in his mood from Friday to now was really noticeable. He'd gone from practically throwing boxes around the shop to walking with a bounce in his step in just a couple of days. He and Ginny had a suspicion that Ron and Hermione had done some "serious talking" during the week after Christmas and Harry had felt worried for his friends, it was only natural. Aside from Ginny, they were the most important people in his lives; he wanted them to be as happy as he was. In the past, Ron and Harry had avoided discussing their respective relationships but Harry had hoped that if one of them had needed it, they could come to him.
He made a mental note to remind them of this the next time he had a chance. Anyway, it looked like whatever they have been dealing with had been resolved.
"You seem happy, Ron…"
"I'm excited about starting our last year of training Harry. One more year and we'll be free!" Ron gave his best friend his biggest grin.
"And that's it? 'Cos I was wondering if your happiness had anything to do with you skiving family lunch yesterday…"
Ron gave Harry a look that showed him there was definitely more and he was about to tell him about his exciting weekend when Robards decided to let the door to the room close with a hard slam. The trainees knew better than to talk over the Head Auror, so they turned their attention to the front of the room.
"I'll tell you later…" Ron fixed his attention on his boss. He was determined to work even harder this year so that he could graduate at the top of his class and he had surprised himself by his willingness to put in the work to get there.
"Good morning trainees…" Robards waited for the chorus of greetings back to him, his hands folded behind his back.
"You are about to embark on your third, final and hardest year in the Auror Academy. Already, you'll have noticed your class has diminished in size, leaving us with only the best potential Aurors in your year. But that does not mean that you are allowed to rest on your laurels. The graduation date has been set, but I have no qualms about cancelling the event if I feel none of you meet the standard we have come to expect from our Aurors, and Minister Shacklebolt agrees with me.
"You will need to be in top physical shape. Any time that you are not in classes or on a mission, I expect you to be at the gym or putting in extra practice hours. You should now be able to draw your wand and duel within a nanosecond, so your reflexes will need to be fine-tuned and I expect you to be a walking encyclopaedia of charms, potions, and duelling spells. If I decide to test you, you will get 100% in that test.
"Your tutors will not be afraid to fail you at any point in the year and once you have failed, you will have to restart the whole three years again – if I decide to allow you back on the course. No exceptions, no coming and crying to me that life is hard and you need special considerations because there will be none.
"You will start to spend more time out in the field, so warn your mothers and partners that you could be asked to go away at the drop of a hat and potentially for days at a time. There will be longer training sessions and more exams and if you're not miserable by the end of this year, then you have not been training properly."
The Head Auror took the opportunity to take a breath and scanned the room for the Aurors who were left on the course. His eyes settled on the Weasley boy, who was sat with his arms folded across his chest and a huge puppy dog grin on his face. Despite the shit and additional paperwork he and the Potter boy had been through with Perch and that stupid house-elf mission, the trainee Auror was still as enthusiastic as ever. In contrast, Harry was sat with his head bent over his desk, furiously scribbling notes.
He shook his head; he wondered if they'd still be his best trainees at the end of the year.
"Today you will be partnered with first-year recruits. These are fresh; some of them will have come straight out of Hogwarts so you will need to show discipline and patience. Sometimes, the strongest spells aren't the most effective and I'd like to see you matching your wand work to the enemy you are facing. Brute force isn't always the answer.
"Finally, I'll remind you not to get distracted this year. There is a potential for you to lose your lives or worse, your careers. You are dismissed!"
Ron watched Robards walk out of the briefing room with a flourish of his cloak then turned to Harry and Neville. "Do you think he was talking about us when he mentioned about getting distracted?!"
"Probably," Harry smirked. "I think he underestimates the amount of 'peril' we've already been through. I was definitely getting Hermione vibes from him. You'd think the two of them would get along better!"
"Definitely – 'I'm going to bed before either of you get us killed. Or worse, expelled!'" Ron laughed as he mimicked his girlfriend, although not in the nasty tone he used to adopt when taking the piss out of her. "I'm pretty sure that's still her motto for life! That witch is mental…"
Harry laughed and started to follow his colleagues out of the briefing room and towards the changing room. "So why are you so happy today? You look like the Canons won the league…"
Ron scoffed. "Unlikely! They haven't won since 1892 and I doubt they'll make a start any time soon. Ginny could probably play for them and they wouldn't still be able to win! Look, I think Hermione wants to tell you at lunchtime, so just act surprised when she does but we decided over the weekend to move in together!"
"That's great news!" Harry clapped a hand on Ron's shoulder. "Although to be honest, I thought you were already living in Primrose Cottage with her…"
"Nah, I still go back to the flat occasionally. My lease is up in a month or so, so it was inevitable it was going to happen sooner or later!"
"Oh, that's so romantic. I bet Hermione was pleased with that offer…" Harry smirked as he yanked open his locker door.
"Actually, she asked me. Although I was planning on asking her but she beat me to it!" Ron leaned against his locker, frowning momentarily at his best friend. "Have you got any tips?"
"For what?"
"Living with a girl and specifically Hermione. We've spent a lot of time together, but I've always had the flat to escape to if I'm starting to annoy her. I've never actually lived with a girl properly and the year the three of us spent in that bloody tent does not count."
Harry closed his locker door again so he could see Ron better. He considered his answer carefully. Life with Ginny had been pretty plain sailing so far, but they'd always been good at communicating with each other and they rarely argued. Ron and Hermione could argue over who had started their arguments and Harry was pretty sure that it was one of their favourite things to do.
"Don't listen to other people's horror stories because it will put you off for life. People will try and scare you; they'll tell you it will only make the two of you miserable but if you're both willing to put in the work you'll be fine and I'm pretty sure the two of you are okay with that. Also, you'll find her hair everywhere…"
Ron wrinkled his nose up in disgust and opened his own locker door, starting to get changed for duelling practice. "That's gross Harry…"
"Tell me about it…"
Harry gave his best friend a knowing look then continued getting changed.
Meanwhile, Hermione was waiting to be called into Kingsley's office. Dobby's Law was due to be officially instated next week and Hermione had been invited to present her final communication plans to the Minister. Luckily, she'd ensured she had completed it before leaving for her Christmas break but had spent the morning familiarizing herself with it anyway. This was the final hurdle and if Shacklebolt approved her plans, all she'd have to do is sit back and wait for release day.
Hermione continued her pacing until she heard the heavy wooden door being opened. She took a breath and put the biggest smile on her face before turning to look at the Minister.
"Miss Granger…"
Kingsley gave her a friendly smile in return and opened his office door wider, inviting her to come in. Hermione followed him in after letting out a shaky breath. She sat down in the seat opposite him and passed over the file.
"Hopefully, your secretary passed you a copy of my plan before Christmas, but I thought I should bring it with me today just in case."
The Minister flicked briefly through the paperwork before closing it with a smile. "Yes, I read it last week and I was highly impressed. Dealing with all the press in once conference is better than holding individual meetings and I also liked the idea of inviting house-elf owners and anyone else interested to a town hall so that they have the chance to ask questions. I have asked Delilah to start sending out invites already. I've added a few additional questions to your FAQ script, just some different angles for you to consider…"
The minister tapped the file with his wand, and the questions started to write themselves onto the parchment. "So after the release next Monday, your work on Dobby's Law will be done. Are you still confident that Betsy can head up the new department?"
"Absolutely…" Hermione smiled at Kingsley.
"Betsy knows the law and its implications inside out and we've put together a solid team to man the new department. She has grown in confidence since she first started working with us and although she'll be sad to leave Hogwarts permanently, she's enjoying living in the sanctuary with the other elves. I'll continue to deal with the press until all the attention has died down and the law has moved into business as usual."
"You've thought of every aspect, as per usual." Kingsley passed the file back to Hermione and sat back in his seat, pressing his fingers together as he regarded the young witch. "So, have you given any consideration as to what your next project might be?"
"I really want to get my translation of the Tales of Beedle the Bard published. Professor McGonagall sent me Dumbledore's commentary on the stories and I'm going to use them to write the foreword. I was hoping that I could have permission to use the library here at the Ministry to work when I need to?"
"That's fine Miss Granger. You can retain your pass and your credentials." Kingsley pulled open a drawer in his grand oak desk and dug around in it before pulling out an envelope with a small smile. "Well I don't want to put any pressure on you, but MACUSA has caught wind of the good work you have done here with Dobby's Law. They've written to me to see if you'd be interested in implementing something similar there."
Hermione took the envelope with a curious smile. She could see the seal of MACUSA on it, although she didn't know a lot about the American Ministry of Magic. She opened the letter, reading it quietly to herself.
"That's definitely an intriguing opportunity." She folded the parchment back up and offered it to Shacklebolt.
"You can keep it. I really hope you'll consider the offer carefully, Miss Granger. You're bound for great things and you're already making a huge impact with the work you're doing, especially considering the fact you've only been out of school for 18 months. You need to consider your career moves carefully and MACUSA is a powerful entity. I believe you'll do very well over there…"
"I have always wanted to go to New York!" Hermione let herself consider what her life might be like in the huge city, but her stomach lurched as she considered what Ron's thoughts on the offer might be. She bit back a sigh and forced a smile back on to her face.
"Thank you, Kingsley. I will definitely consider it."
She carefully slid the letter into the pocket in her robes and stood up.
"Of course, if you don't want to go to America then I can help you find something here." The Minister stood up too and leaned across his desk to offer Hermione his hand to shake. "I'll see you on Monday morning at the press conference."
Hermione left the office, checking her watch as she moved. She was due to meet the boys for lunch in half an hour. If she was quick, she would have time to go to the library and check out a few books before going to grab Betsy and hide her letter in her bag.
She had already decided to do a bit of research so she could fully understand all the implications of the offer before she broached the subject with Ron and although she knew she shouldn't leave it too long before speaking about it to him, she definitely didn't want to do it while she was having lunch with Harry.