I do not own Harry Potter.

Plan No. 42

Harry had been working on his memoirs for more than a week, both night and day, magically adding more and more blank pages to the red notebook as needed. He only stopped to eat because of Kreacher's constant pestering would quickly become annoying if he did not. It was the owl that finally brought his writing to a halt. Harry had been receiving owls on an almost daily basis; mostly from people he had never met or even heard of, sending him letters of thanks and offering their condolences on losing his best friend. School aged children sent him drawings, mostly of him, often scrawled with the words, "Thank you Harry Potter." After three weeks, the flow of owls had slowed to a trickle, one or two per day, sometimes none at all.

At first glance, the particular owl that arrived on that Friday afternoon, appeared to be a typical barn owl, no different that many of the owls that had been delivering those messages thanks. It was the letter that the owl carried that made it different. The envelope was sealed with wax, imprinted with the letter "M", the symbol for the Ministry of Magic.

Harry cautiously opened the letter, wondering what it might be about. To his surprise, it was from Mr. Weasley. The letter was short and to the point, but left Harry quite curious.

Harry,

I need to discuss a matter of great importance that concerns both you and the future of the Ministry. If it would be convenient, I would like to meet with you in my office, tomorrow afternoon at 1 p.m. If you agree, I will have a Ministry car waiting for you tomorrow at 12:30. Please send your reply with the owl.

Sincerely,

Arthur Weasley

Senior Undersecretary to the Minister for Magic

Harry immediately noticed Mr. Weasley's new title within the Ministry. Senior Undersecretary to the Minister had to mean that Mr. Weasley was very close to Kingsley Shacklebolt, a big step up from the Office for the Detection and Confiscation of Counterfeit Defensive Spells and Protective Objects. Somehow it seemed appropriate, as well as smart. As the temporary Minister for Magic, Kingsley would want people that knew how the Ministry was run and with whom he could trust. Mr. Weasley fit the bill on both accounts.

Mr. Weasley's new position in the Ministry also meant that that the meeting he wanted to have might possibly be coming from the Minister himself. Harry could not tell what Mr. Weasley wanted to speak about with him. The letter had been distinctly un-specific. The reason for this, Harry was not sure, but it was obviously something important enough to warrant conferring at the Ministry rather than the Burrow or some other more casual place. While this made him curious, it also made Harry guarded. He was also not overly pleased about being associated with the future of the Ministry. The last time anyone tried to that, it had been Rufus Scrimgeour. Scrimgeour had wanted Harry to help him lie to the rest of the wizarding world by reassuring them that the Ministry had the Voldemort situation well in hand when nothing could have been further from the truth.

But this was not Scrimgeour, or even the old Ministry, for that matter. This was Arthur Weasley and Kingsley Shacklebolt, two people with whom Harry had a great deal of trust and respect for. He seriously doubted that their intentions were anything but honorable. So, Harry dashed off a reply, agreeing to the meeting, and sent it with the owl before returning to his writing. The next day, at 12:30 on the dot, Harry looked out the front window to see a Ministry sedan, just like the ones he had ridden in before, parked just across the street from the house. The driver was standing at the front of the car, his head shifting back and forth between numbers eleven and thirteen, trying in vain to see the house in between. He was a middle aged man, perhaps in his late 40's. Beneath his driver's cap, Harry could see a hint of graying hair, and his mustache looked to be a mixture of reddish blonde and white hair. He was dressed in a neat, clean, and well-pressed uniform, exactly the same as those worn by the Ministry drivers Harry had met in the past.

Harry informed Kreacher that he was going out and would be back by dinner time. He opened the door and stood on the top step, still keeping himself within the protection of the Fidelius Charm. After taking one last look up and down the street to make sure that no muggles could see anything, Harry turned and began to feel that familiar squeezing pressure against his body. An instant later, he was standing directly behind the driver. Harry's apparating skills had progressed to the point that when he reappeared, the normally loud cracking sound was gone, as evidenced by the fact that the driver seemed unaware of Harry's presence less than five feet away. Harry reached out, tapped the driver on the shoulder, and asked in a calm voice, "Did Arthur Weasley send you?"

The driver jumped, startled by the unexpected tap on his shoulder. "Blimey, you gave me a fright," the driver said as turned. He stopped as soon as he saw Harry, and for a moment, the driver did nothing. He just stared, at first just in a general way, and then his eyes traveled up to the scar on Harry's forehead, just like everyone else did when they first met him. "My Lord! Why you're…you're Harry Potter! Merlin's Beard, when Mr. Weasley said I'd be picking up someone important, I never thought it would be someone as important as you sir!" The driver quickly grasped Harry's hand and began shaking it furiously. "Sir, let me just say what an honor it is to be shaking your hand. Good Lord! Harry Potter! This is exciting, I must say. Oh, but where are my manners. Allow me to introduce myself. My name's Huxley, sir. I'm the Ministry's senior chauffeur. It'll be my pleasure to drive you to your meeting with Mr. Weasley this afternoon, speaking of which, we'd best be going. Mr. Weasley's instructions were to take you straight to the Ministry without delay. So, if you'll follow me sir." Huxley scampered over to the rear of the car, and opened the back door. Harry followed and climbed in the car, sliding across the seat to the opposite side of the car. Moments later, Huxley was in his place in the driver's seat. He turned back to Harry, and with a large smile said, "Let me say again sir, what an honor this is, having you in my car! If only I could tell the missus about this! It would make her day to hear that I got to meet you, Mr. Potter. She's a big fan of yours. I can't tell 'er of course. Mr. Weasley's instructions were that I wasn't supposed tell anyone who I was driving today, and it's more than my job's worth to go against my orders. Well, buckle up sir, and I'll have you at the Ministry before you know it."

From the moment the car pulled away from the curb, Harry realized that Huxley was a man who liked to talk…a lot. For the entire ride to the Ministry, he didn't stop speaking for one solitary second. He talked about his family, his work, and some of the goings on at the Ministry. Normally, Harry would have become annoyed with the constant chattering after only a few minutes, but after more than three weeks of speaking to no one but Kreacher, he found it rather relaxing to hear someone else's voice.

Twenty minutes later, the car pulled into the Ministry's parking garage. It looked no different than any other underground car park, only that it was considerably smaller than what one would normally have expected for such a large office complex. Then again, most witches and wizards did not travel by automobile either. Harry climbed out of the car and followed Huxley through a door and into a small corridor. They continued on to a lift. It was different than the regular Ministry lifts that Harry had been in before. This one was noticeably larger, not nearly as clean, and the floors and walls of the lift were covered in scratches and deep gouge marks. "Sorry about the lift, Mr. Potter. Mr. Weasley said to bring you straight to him by way of the service lifts. These are only used to bring up freight and the like. No one uses them for travelling between floors, and Mr. Weasley wanted us to avoid bumping into anyone, if possible."

The lift moved slower than the other Ministry elevators. It was almost a minute before it stopped and Huxley was able to open the security gate. On the other side of the gate, Mr. Weasley was waiting for them. "Harry, my boy, good to see you," Mr. Weasley said cheerfully as he held out his hand to Harry. Harry took it firmly and could not help but notice how tired Mr. Weasley looked. "Thank you for coming to see me on such short notice and on a Saturday."

"It's no problem."

"Thank you, Huxley. That will be all for now. If you could wait here, I'm sure we won't be too long." Huxley nodded before conjuring up a chair to sit in while he waited. "Well Harry, follow me, if you please." Mr. Weasley led Harry out of the service corridor and into the more elegantly decorated hallway that contained the offices of the senior officials in the Ministry. They were walking at a steady, but not too brisk of a pace. "Like I said before, Harry, I'm sorry to call you in on a Saturday, but I wanted to keep your visit rather hush-hush, so to speak. There aren't nearly as many people here on the weekends. I would have done this tomorrow when almost no one would be here, but Molly will have my head if I were to come in to the office on another Sunday. That reminds me. She wanted me to let you know that the family is getting together for dinner tomorrow afternoon. Molly said that you've been on your own for long enough, and she expects you to be there, even if she has to drag you to the Burrow by your ears. Personally, I wouldn't put it past her either. So if you value your ears, I'd show up tomorrow."

"Yeah I am kind of partial to them," Harry said grinning slightly.

"Excellent. Be there around one or so and bring your appetite."

"Mr. Weasley, I noticed on your letter that you've been promoted. Congratulations."

"Thank you Harry. Yes, indeed. Senior Undersecretary to the Minister for Magic. Big step up if I do say so myself. I would have been happy returning to my old job in the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office, but when the Minister asked me to help, I just had to say yes, especially considering what he really wants to do with the Ministry."

"And what would that be Mr. Weasley?" Harry asked.

Mr. Weasley stopped for a second and turned to Harry, and in a very low voice he said, "Best not to mention that in the hallway. Too many ears around here at the moment, if you catch my meaning." Harry nodded, fully understanding that there were certain things Mr. Weasley did not want others to know just yet. They started walking again. "For the most part, we've been working hard at getting the Ministry back up and running," Mr. Weasley said in a louder voice, almost as though he were trying to convince any unseen listeners that he was doing nothing but that.

"Yeah, I'm sure that's been quite a job."

"Indeed. The Death Eaters left this place in a sorry state. Lots of clean up to do, departments to re-organize, and of course, getting rid of all those people who supported You-Know-Who's regime. By the way, you might be interested to know that starting sometime next week Dolores Umbridge is due to stand trial for her crimes against Muggleborns. She's facing a life sentence in Azkaban for what she did. She's trying to argue that she was only doing as she was ordered, but that will never hold up and she knows it." A surge of glee filled Harry at hearing this. The old cow deserved to spend the rest of her life locked up.

They turned a corner that lead to a short row of three offices. "Here we are," Mr. Weasley said as he pointed to the first door on the right. A brass name plate that read Mr. Weasley's name and new title was right next to the very sturdy oak doors. He opened the door and gestured for Harry to go inside. The office contained an old oak desk and a set of equally old wooden filing cabinets lined against the opposing wall. This office was nothing like the one Harry had seen when Mr. Weasley was the head of the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office. It was neat, clean, and well-organized office, not the kind of office Harry would have expected Arthur Weasley to occupy.

"Follow me Harry," Mr. Weasley said as he strode to an open door at the opposite side of the room. Realizing that this was only the outer portion of the office, Harry followed Mr. Weasley through the other door and into a much more spacious room that definitely bore the signs that it belonged to Mr. Weasley. At the center of the far side of the room sat a desk, cluttered with several large stacks of papers. To Harry's immediate left sat a long conference table with several chairs sitting on either of its sides. On top of the table were a half dozen open file boxes filled with different files and papers. To his right, in front of a large white marble fireplace, were two comfortable looking leather bound chairs. It reminded Harry of the kind of places he had seen Muggle political leaders sitting in as they posed for photographs for the newspapers and television news programs.

"Wow Mr. Weasley. Nice office."

"Thank you Harry. It's a little big for my tastes, but there's not much I can do about that. It comes with the job. I do miss all of my Muggle trinkets though." It was only then that Harry noticed that all of the posters of automobile engines, the spark plugs, and every other muggle item that Mr. Weasley had kept in his old office, were not present in this one. "With all the meetings I have now-a-days, it seemed more appropriate to put them into storage for now. Got to give the right impression and all." Harry could tell that Mr. Weasley was being quite honest with him in this regard. He was now in a job where he could not fully be himself, something that obviously bothered Mr. Weasley. "Please Harry, have a seat," Mr. Weasley said as he gestured towards the two leather chairs. Harry sat down in one of them and then watched as Mr. Weasley closed the door, locked it, and then waved his wand over the door while muttering a spell before turning back to Harry. "There, now we can talk freely," Mr. Weasley said sly grin. "Would you like something to drink? Tea, coffee, butterbeer, or maybe a firewhiskey?"

From the smile on Mr. Weasley's face, Harry could tell that the firewhiskey was meant as a joke. "A butterbeer will be fine," Harry said, chuckling slightly.

With another wave of his wand, Mr. Weasley conjured up two bottles of butterbeer and handed one to Harry. "Staying away from the firewhiskey, I see."

"Yeah, for right now. I'm not too fond of its after effects."

Mr. Weasley sat in the chair just across from Harry. "So, Harry how have you been? Everything alright?" Mr. Weasley asked in a much more serious and concerned tone.

"I'm…er…I'm alright. As good as can be expected I suppose. I've been keeping myself busy. I'm painting the house, sprucing it up a bit. It's a lot better now…even managed to get rid of Mrs. Black's portrait. Well, Kreacher managed to get down. I let him keep it in the attic."

"Painting? Have you been using any muggle painting equipment by chance?"

"Yeah, it was the easiest to get a hold of."

"I wouldn't mind giving those a try. Wizards have the same equipment, only they've been charmed to do all the painting for you. Course, Molly won't ever let me use the muggle stuff, says they make too much of a mess."

"And how is Mrs. Weasley?"

"Ahh...she's…she's coping. It's been hardest on her. The boys and I, we all have jobs and places that we can go to, to get away from things. Molly doesn't have that luxury. She's been cleaning the house over and over again, top to bottom and doing a lot of cooking. I suppose she's just trying to keep busy, just like we all are. Thankfully, Fleur's been kind enough to stay with her and keep her company most days, and at least one of the twins spends the night when I have to work late, which is more often than not these days. I wish I could spend more time with her, but with the way things are right now…Molly understands." Just by looking at the expression Mr. Weasley's face, Harry could tell how badly he felt for not being able to be with his wife and help her through these hard times. "It hasn't been easy for any of us, but I think we'll pull through in the end."

They both sat silently for a few uncomfortable seconds, both seeming to think about the same thing, before Mr. Weasley spoke again. "Well, I suppose you are wondering why I've asked you to come here today Harry. I'm sorry that I couldn't be more specific in my note, but as I intimated earlier, there are a lot of people trying to figure out what the Minister is planning to do, what changes he wants to make. That's why I've asked you to meet with me, Harry. We need your help. There's a lot to do to get the Ministry back in working order, and the Minister…Kingsley…thought you might be more receptive to what he wants to ask of you if you were to hear it from me."

"Alright," Harry said, now on the alert. Something big was coming, something Mr. Weasley and Kingsley both thought he would not like to hear.

"Frankly, Harry, there is a lot more to do at the Ministry than just putting it back in working order. As you well know, our government has a lot of problems. The corruption and, of course, the latent blood-purity nonsense that is behind it all, are all deeply embedded within the Ministry. These are the reasons why You-Know-Who was able to take over so easily. People like Dolores Umbridge were perfectly willing to accept the regime change, no questions asked, because it gave them freedom to let their beliefs out and more importantly, it gave them power. Now, understand Harry, most witches and wizards are like you and I. They don't care one bit about blood purity or gaining power. They just want to go about their lives and be happy. What we are talking about is a very small portion of the population. Unfortunately, it seems like they all end up in government."

"And Kingsley wants to get rid of them all, right?"

"Precisely. He wants to clean house, Harry. We've already gotten rid of most of the offenders. Some were fired, quite a few resigned and left of their own accord, and some are being brought up on criminal charges. A couple of the worst offenders, ones who were facing the disgrace public trials and life sentences in prison, chose to commit suicide instead. Sad really. Anyhow, over the coming months, we will be weeding out more of those pure-blood fanatics. As we dismiss more and more Ministry officials and employees, they need to be replaced, and that's where you come in, Harry. The Minister would like for you to join the Auror Department. Not right away, but in a month or so. He reckons that you've earned a bit of a rest."

"But what about the NEWT requirements? I never took the exams. Don't I need those to become an Auror? "

"Under normal circumstances, yes, you would need your NEWT's, but with the state the Auror Department is in right now, we need to get some new young talent in there as quickly as possible. The past year has taken its toll on the aurors. We lost a lot of good people at the hands of the Death Eaters, and most of those that made it through only did so by siding with the You-Know-Who's regime. That leaves us with a very small handful of aurors that we really can trust. We thought about bringing up the advanced auror recruits and putting them straight into service, but the problem there is that for the past year their training has been heavily influenced by the dark arts and more of this blood purity nonsense. So, we've been forced to scrap every single one of our trainees."

"But if you need to rebuild the Auror Department quickly, why don't you need me to start as soon as possible?" Harry asked.

"Harry, the Minister knows full well what you've been through. He wants you to take some time. Don't misunderstand me Harry, we do need to rebuild the department quickly, but for right now, the Auror Department is covered. We've managed to recall several aurors out of retirement, to fill in the gaps for the time being, and fortunately, with You-Know-Who out of the way, there aren't any dark wizards making any real trouble at the moment. The only real thing we have to contend with is finding those Death Eaters who have, so far, managed to avoid capture. Right now, they all seem to be laying low and not making any trouble. The aurors we've called out of retirement are experienced and well-trained. They can lead the charge in finding the Death Eaters."

"What about training? Professor McGonagall said there is supposed to be three years of training to qualify as an auror?"

"Normally, that would be true, but this is a special situation, Harry. We are working on a new training program that will be put into place until we can get the Auror Department back up and fully running. I can't say for certain what all will be involved. As I said, we, or rather the aurors, are still working on that. All I can really say is that the training schedule will be significantly condensed, and much of the instruction will be on-the-job, so to speak. Oh, and Filius Flitwick has agreed to take a one year sabbatical from Hogwarts in order teach dueling to the new recruits."

"Professor Flitwick?"

"Yes. He was a dueling champion you know...won the All-Britain Magical Dueling Cup three years running. Really knows his stuff. What he did against the Death Eaters should speak for that."

Harry looked for a moment with excitement building up in his body. Without having completed school or his NEWT's, he had given up any thoughts of becoming an auror. Now, he realized that the dream was not dead at all. His immediate thought was to scream "Yes" as soon as possible, but there was something that was bothering him about this offer, something that Mr. Weasley was not quite certain he would like. "Before I agree to this I need to know something."

"Of course. I won't hold anything back."

"What's the catch?"

"Well, Harry, all we really want to do is to make a rather large public announcement that you've agreed to join the Auror Department. Nothing else."

"Alright," Harry said, still convinced that there was more to this. "So, why do you think I might have a problem with that?"

"Well, Harry, it's more the reason why we want to make a rather large public announcement that we think you might be concerned. Part of the reason is that we are hoping that your joining the Auror Department you will help with our auror recruiting efforts. If people see that you are willing to become an auror, we hope that some of them will be willing to sign up too."

"I don't see anything wrong with that."

"Yes, but as I said, that's only part of it Harry."

"So, what's the other part?"

"Before I tell you, I want you to know, that Kingsley's offer for you to join the Auror Department is not contingent upon you agreeing to allow us to do make any sort of announcement at all. It will stand no matter what you say. The Minister is certain, and I have to agree, that you will make an excellent auror. You are exactly the kind person we need to help rebuild the Department. So, if you wish for us to keep everything low-key, we will agree to that."

"Okay, I understand. Now, what's the other part?"

"Harry, the Minister and I both know how you feel about someone using you for their own political gain. Believe me, we fully remember what Rufus Scrimgeour tried to do with you, but, frankly, we need that same kind of help. You see, in the long run, simply cleaning house and putting the Ministry back to the way it was before won't prevent the corruption from occurring again. It will be a short-term solution at best. In a few years time, those corruptive elements will be present again. There have to be changes made in the way the Ministry is run and how it is been governed. We're not naïve enough to believe we can stop it altogether. Corruption and politics go hand in hand, just as they always have, but what we can do is to limit it, contain it, and hopefully make it so that no other dark wizard can gain control again. Kingsley understands this better than anyone. That's one of the reasons he asked me to take my new position, to help him come up with new ideas to correct the Ministry's problems and to figure out ways to put those ideas into action."

"I guess I'm not following you. Why do you need me? Can't Kingsley just go ahead and make all of these changes? I mean he is the Minister for Magic after all."

"No, Harry. He's only the temporary Minister for Magic. If he were to attempt to make any of these changes now, Kingsley could very well be out on his ear within a week. In order for him to do any real good, Kingsley must be made the permanent Minister for Magic, but that is not something everyone is quite prepared to do."

"But why Mr. Weasley? Kingsley's the right choice for the job. He's a good man, he's not a politician, and he can get the right things done."

"Harry, I wish it were that simple. The fact is, not everyone was behind Kingsley's appointment as temporary Minister. As you said, he isn't a politician, and there are five or six individuals currently working in the Ministry, that thought, and still do feel, that they could do a right sight better than our Kingsley. Fortunately, leveler heads prevailed, and Kingsley was appointed. Now, much to the dismay of those individuals, Kingsley has done a bang up job so far. All they can do now keep a watchful eye and wait for Kingsley to make a mistake."

"But how could improving the Ministry be a mistake?"

"It isn't a mistake, Harry, but you have to consider the condition our world is in right now. People don't trust the Ministry very much at the moment. Can you honestly blame them after what they have been through over the past year? Many people are afraid that Kingsley will end up being no better than You-Know-Who."

"Kingsley? No better than Voldemort!" Harry said furiously as Mr. Weasley flinched slightly at hearing Voldemort's name said aloud. "That is complete bollocks! Don't these people know that Kingsley was a member of the Order of the Phoenix? Don't they know he was one of the few that was willing to stand up to Voldemort?"

"Of course they do, Harry," Mr. Weasley said in gentle and calming voice. "But not everyone knows Kingsley like you and I do. He's being forced to walk a very tight line right now, proving to everyone that he isn't the next dark wizard but also be someone that give people back their trust in the Ministry. If Kingsley were to go out now and announce all of these sweeping reforms for the Ministry, it could very well make many people afraid. You are familiar with what happened the last time the Ministry tried to make big 'reforms'," Mr. Weasley said as he held up two fingers on either side of his head when he said "reforms."

"Yeah, Voldemort was in charge and the Death Eaters were running everything."

Mr. Weasley flinched again before saying, "There you go."

"So, how will making a big announcement of my accepting a position in the Auror Department help Kingsley become the permanent Minister?"

"Whether you know it or not, Harry, the wizarding community thinks of you as the next Albus Dumbledore. They respect you. They believe in you, and most of all, they trust you Harry. I daresay that if you were to tell everyone that you wanted to be the next Minister for Magic, wizards and witches from here to Hogsmeade would be clamoring for you to take over. If they see that you trust Kingsley Shacklebolt enough to work in his government, then maybe he is someone that they should trust, as well."

"I see," Harry said, not really sure what to do next. It was not as though Mr. Weasley was asking very much of him. Then again, Scrimgeour had not asked too much of him either. He had to believe, however, that Kingsley and Mr. Weasley really were trying to do the right things with the Ministry. "Mr. Weasley, I know that you of all people would not ask this of me unless you felt very strongly that this is the right thing. That said, I can't agree to any of this unless I have a better idea of what you want to do. I can't throw my support behind the Minister if I don't like his plans for the future. I understand if can't tell me everything, but if you could give me some hint, it would be helpful."

Mr. Weasley smiled. "I thought you might say something like that." He stood up and crossed to his desk and grabbed a roll of parchment before returning to his seat next to Harry. "I think this will help you make up your mind."

Harry carefully unrolled the parchment. The top of the roll read "Plan No. 42," and it was followed by a list a different ideas. "This is the final list of reforms that we have come up with. The first ten are things we absolutely have to do. The next several are things we would like to do but aren't committed to. The final group is made up of reforms that would be nice to have but ones that we don't really need at all," Mr. Weasley said.

"You've been busy. Forty two different plans, that must be some kind of record or something."

"Actually, the number is closer to twenty. I gave them all a variety of different names, just so I could talk freely to the Minister about them without anyone knowing what we were discussing. Plan No. 42 contains what, we feel, are the best elements of each of the other plans. If you'd like, I can go over them with you in a bit more detail."

"Yeah, that would be great, actually."

Mr. Weasley spent several minutes going over Plan No. 42 with Harry. Overall, Harry liked most of the ideas. There was a plan that would prevent the Ministry from using the Daily Prophet, and any other wizarding publications and media outlets, as tools for its propaganda. Mr. Weasley preferred to call it by the muggle term "freedom of the press". There were numerous educational reforms that would prevent the Ministry from ever interfering at Hogwarts again. There were also plans to introduce an elected parliament, new criminal investigation procedures, new hiring procedures for new Ministry staff and officials, and most importantly, laws that would guarantee the rights of all wizards and witches.

Harry had to admit that the list was impressive. He especially liked the educational and press reforms, two areas that had been used against him in the past. Not everything was perfect with the list. There were a couple of ideas that Harry did not fully agree with or thought were impractical, but these were in the "would be nice" section, the part of the list whose ideas were probably not going to reach fruition anyway.

"So, Harry, what do you think?"

"It's not bad. I like most of the ideas. I think it will be really good for the Ministry."

"So, you're accepting the offer?"

"I'm willing to take the job. I want to become an auror, and as you said, that part stands no matter what, right?"

"Of course, Harry. The job is yours."

"As for the other part, the announcement, do you mind if I take a day to think about everything you've said?"

"Absolutely, Harry. What I'm asking you to do goes against your principals. You should take all the time you need."

"Don't worry. A day should be enough. I'll let you know tomorrow at dinner."

"Very well then," Mr. Weasley said. Harry looked at him trying to get a better idea of his mood. He expected to find a look of disappointment on Mr. Weasley's face, but this look was not there at all. Mr. Weasley's expression seemed to be one of complete satisfaction with the outcome of this meeting. More than likely, he could tell that Harry had already decided to lend his help. Harry was, in fact, elated that he once again had the opportunity to become an auror. He just had not wanted to seem to eager to accept the job yet. "I suppose you want to get back to your painting and all. Why don't I walk you out?"

Mr. Weasley led Harry back to the service lift he had taken out. "Well, Harry, thank you for taking the time to stop by, and I look forward to hearing your answer tomorrow. Remember, dinner will be sometime afte one. Everyone will be glad ot hear that you will be joining us."

"Yeah. I'm looking forward to it."

"Fleur's been giving Molly some lessons in French cooking, so be prepared for something a little different. Don't worry though. So far everything Molly's made for me has been quite good, and knowing her, she'll make far more food than we'll really need. So, as I said, bring you appetite. Oh, and Hermione said she was going to bring some photographs from her trip to Australia. We've all been dying to hear about everything about her adventure down under."

Harry stopped cold. "Her…Hermione's going to be at the Burrow tomorrow?"

"Why, yes Harry. Didn't mention that?"

Hope you like this chapter. As always, critiques and comments are welcomed and appreciated.