A/N: Thanks to antithought (love the name) for helping to collaborate with my research for this chapter.
Finally finished with the questions, most of which he had dismissed, Harry sat back down on his seat. Professor McGonagall stood back at the podium and continued her announcements.
"We have another addition to our staff this year," she said, speaking louder than before in order to silence the still crowing reporters. "Madam Hooch, our flying teacher, has retired, but will remain in the village of Hogsmeade. She has kindly agreed to commentate on this year's Quidditch matches. I'd like to thank Madam Hooch for the fantastic contribution she has made to Hogwarts." There was a round of applause for Madam Hooch, and each of the new Defence professors joined in with great pleasure. They all had fantastic memories of her.
"Thankfully, a new Flying teacher has been found, and again, she is a former student of the school. I hope you will all join me in welcoming Angelina Johnson back to Hogwarts." There was yet another raucous round of applause as Angelina stood up and waved to the rest of the crowd. Harry's concentration began to drift as McGonagall finally wrapped up the long ceremony.
Afterwards, everybody was gathered further along the edge of the lake, under a small copse of trees. Mrs. Weasley was hugging Harry so hard he thought he might have felt a rib crack.
"I want you to look after yourself, Harry. Being an auror has its downsides. Still, it should be easier now V...V...Vol...demort's gone." Harry respected Mrs. Weasley for this. It was still going to be a while before the wizarding world could confidently utter the name of the dark wizard who, until very recently, terrorised every single wizarding family. He cast his mind back to the very end of the last year, after he had slept for two days straight.
Harry walked into the Great Hall and tried to edge his way up to the Staff table without being noticed. Halfway along the hall, someone noticed him and shouted out his name. Though nearly all of them were mourning the passing of loved ones, they all stood up, turned to him and cheered. Harry smiled, though it may have been a grimace, and strode more purposefully up to the staff table and the carved lectern. He had been dreading this moment, when he would have to make a speech.
"Thank you, everybody," he started, his voice sounding magically enhanced due to the near-perfect silence in the cavernous room. "I would especially like to thank everybody who fought for Hogwarts. Many lost their lives in this battle, and they are the true heroes of this age. They fought for our future without any thought to their being part of it. They were the bravest of all of us, for they looked death in the eye, and never hesitated to make the ultimate sacrifice. They did this for us... for you. Mourn them today. Mourn them a week from now. But lay them to rest and pay your respects to them by living in the world they have created for us. If we continue to be brought down by recent events, Lord Voldemort will still be affecting us, and he will be winning the final battle. I propose we rebuild our lives first by the rebuilding of Hogwarts. Thank you, once again." Harry walked away from the lectern and up to Professor McGonagall.
"Thank you, Harry," she said, smiling with a tear in the corner of her eye. "I'm glad you're finally awake though. We were going to hold the funeral today for all those who wanted to have theirs today."
"Where's Voldemort?" asked Harry. "I think that we can lower Death Eater morale by giving him a respectful funeral, then cremating him. I feel sorry for him. He never knew love, or friendship, or any true happiness. He was indeed a lonely person." McGonagall directed him to the body, lying askew on a table in an adjoining chamber, away from the families of the fallen.
The funeral was a long and sombre affair, but everyone managed to stay alert for the whole ceremony. It drew on well into the night, each of the deceased having a speech from the person who knew them best and a short conclusion from Harry or one of the teachers. The last person to be laid to rest was Voldemort, and by this time he was being called by his old name. Though few looked happy at this prospect, Harry Ron and Hermione all gave short speeches pitying the Dark Lord, and his pyre was then lit, burning away the fear of the past decades.
Professor McGonagall walked over to where they were stood in the dappled shade by the lake. She was a changed person, and ruffled the hair of all her male Gryffindors and Hermione, who protested about her hair being mussed up, though less vehemently than she would have usually done. From then the new headmistress merely placed a comforting and proud hand on the shoulder of all her female lions.
"Professor Potter and Associate Professors," she addressed them in mock formality, "the end of the summer holidays is usually a time when the teachers at Hogwarts plan for the year ahead. You will need to plan your lessons carefully, making sure they teach everything that needs to be taught that year. I'd be happy to help you in any way you need, as I've already planned my Transfiguration lessons."
"About that..." said Harry slowly. "I thought you were the headmistress now. How can you teach Transfiguration at the same time?"
"Oh, being the head of a school like Hogwarts isn't a big job. Most of it is being a figurehead and going to meetings with the board of governors. Dumbledore kept himself busy with figuring out how to defeat Voldemort and with problems from the Ministry. If it wasn't for those, he would have continued to teach Transfiguration and I would never have got the job here."
McGonagall led the six new Defence teachers into the castle, through the Entrance Hall and up to the pair of gargoyles flanking the staff room door. Introducing each of them to the gargoyles, she led them into the long, oak-panelled room where the rest of the teachers were gathered with pieces of parchment gathered around them. Professor Flitwick was talking with Professor Bell and helping her plan out the year ahead. She was scribbling furiously on a roll of parchment, faster than Harry had ever seen anyone write. She even wrote faster than Hermione during a particularly interesting Charms essay.
"Harry, m'boy!" bellowed Slughorn, rushing over to him and scattering his parchment across the room. "Let me help you with this next year. I must admit, I was quite the duellist back in the day." He led them towards the largest desk in the centre of the room and they sat around it. They each took one year and planned the lessons for it. Neville and Luna took the second and third year with a curriculum of dark creatures. Hermione joined them, filling in the gaps and forming a curriculum of advanced dark creatures for the sixth year. Ginny and Ron took the fourth and fifth years, with a curriculum of curses, hexes, jinxes and counter-spells, plus a number of protective charms. Harry devised a couple of sketchy plans for the first and final years.
Harry's notes were sketchier than the others' as he was sitting next to Ginny. It was nothing to do with the fact that he had two years to plan, more the fact that he was mesmerised by every curl of Ginny's flowing handwriting. Thankfully, when the others were finished they put it more down to his having double the time to plan for. Professors McGonagall and Slughorn talked to them about the rest of the arrangements for the next year and how they would fit their normal lessons within their teaching schedules. They would receive their timetables at the same time as the students, and would be sitting with the staff at the newly-extended staff table.
Back at the Burrow, Harry sat at the kitchen table, cursing himself for being distracted. He couldn't think of what else to put in his seventh year classes. He'd been through every other year, merging everything into one cohesive plan, but the seventh year seemed so empty.
"Why don't we go to Diagon Alley and get your books?" suggested Mrs. Weasley, seeing that Harry was struggling with this sudden immersion into professorship. She held up the sheaf of parchment in her hand. "I've got everybody's equipment lists. Let's get everything for the others while they're out." The others were playing Quidditch in the orchard behind the garden under the silvery sky of late August. Mrs. Weasley threw a pinch of floo powder into the fire and very soon they were standing inside the Leaky Cauldron.
Harry managed to persuade Mrs. Weasley to use his money to get everybody's equipment. This was no mean feat, as she was very protective of all of them, and especially Harry. She saw Harry as her own son, and was so kind that she always wanted to give them everything she could, no matter what the cost. Harry respected that, but he respected her more than to let her pay for him, especially with the piles of gold he had lying in his own vault.
They bought refills of the potion ingredients they would need for the next year, including a new cauldron for Ron. The bottom of his cauldron was getting rather thin, and 'below acceptable levels' according to Percy. Percy had informed him that he could be fined if he continued to use his old cauldron. Besides, now Harry could buy him a better one, made of something better than pewter. He wanted to get the solid gold cauldron he'd seen on his first visit to Diagon alley, but apparently they'd been proven unsafe by Percy's earlier study. They reacted badly with the Draught of Living Death and some of the simpler calming tonics.
He bought four copies of The Ultimate Defence in Flourish and Blotts and made sure to pop into Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, much to the protest of Mrs. Weasley. He stressed to her the importance of disguises and stealth and that many of the items he needed were in her sons' shop.
"Ah, Mr. Potter," said a light voice. George's assistant, Verity was by his side almost in the instant he walked through the door. "What'll it be today? Everything free of charge, of course."
"I'd like to peruse the back room, please." Verity led him around to the back, the thickset Gregory Goyle stepping aside for them. Goyle had changed since he'd been pulled from Malfoy's shadow. He didn't care for the Death Eater ways of his father, and was actually quite nice once you got to know him. Harry took a handful of Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder, a few Decoy Detonators, a Shield Cloak and a set of Skiving Snackboxes. He was set for the year.