Chapter 3 : Fair And Wilde
Albus awoke the next day with the same sensation that he had woken with the day he was to go to Hogwarts-that of pure excitement. Though still quite early in the morning, with the sun barely up, Albus was quick to slip on his clothes and make his way downstairs.
He was immediately met with the sight of his Uncle Ron fast asleep on the couch in the living room. Despite the many additional rooms in the Potter Mansion, his uncle always tended to sleep there during his stays over. For a moment, he wondered why he had stayed so late and decided to crash, but was snapped out of his thoughts by a loud voice.
"Hey...what are you doing up?" he heard his brother ask.
Albus spun around and saw his brother exiting the kitchen, holding a plate with a large stack of toast on it.
"Dad's going to Diagon Alley with us. And then taking us into his work" he said.
"Yeah I know, Uncle Ron told me. He's bringing Rosie too, her and Aunt Hermione are gonna meet us there."
"Hey, let me get some of that toast" Albus said as he watched his brother take an unusually large bite of the topmost piece.
"Get your own!" his brother shot, dragging the plate away from Albus as he reached for it. "It took me hours to make this!"
"It's just toast!"
"Hey hey, wuzzagoinon?" he heard his Uncle Ron murmur as he tried to get up and fell off of the couch.
They both laughed and helped him up. He looked extremely disheveled, and he was still in the robes that he had worn last night.
"Who's yelling?" he said, rubbing his eyes as he staggered back onto the couch.
"No one's yelling Uncle Ron..." they both said.
He continued rubbing his eyes before blinking furiously and saying "What time is it?"
"Early" Albus told him.
"What are you guys doing up?"
"Getting ready to go to Diagon Alley -"
"- Well he is" James cut him off. "I was sending a letter to -"
"You were not, you were making toast!" Albus bickered.
"I can do two things at once Al!" his brother shot back.
"Okay boys stop, stop!" Uncle Ron said with a stifled yawn. "Well I guess I'm not going back to bed" he muttered to himself. Then he eyed the toast in James' hand. "Which one of you wants to make me breakfast?" he asked.
The next few hours passed by exactly as one would expect a morning to pass with Uncle Ron; filled with stories of his many heroic tales and feats, with his own sense of humor making them extremely entertaining. Albus and James sat in the kitchen with him, pounding their fists on the table with laughter at his jokes while munching on toast. He was just in the middle of telling a particularly adventurous story involving him fighting off hundreds of acromantulas when they were interrupted by a loud scream.
"Uncle Ron!" they heard, and there was a split second warning before Lily ran through the house and jumped onto his lap.
"Ow!" he said with a groan. "What happened?" he asked her. She was crying.
"Mum says I can't go" she pouted.
He gave her a stern look. "Now you know I can't do anything about that. Your mother terrifies me."
"But it's not fair" she moaned.
"Remember last time you went to Diagon Alley?" he told her with another stern look. "We told you if you didn't return that wand to that boy you couldn't come next time. And did you?"
She shook her head.
"What did you do instead?"
She stared at the ground. "Bit him."
"Exactly. Besides, Diagon Alley gets boring after a while anyway, wouldn't you rather stay here?"
"She has to" came a voice from the doorway. Albus' father had just entered the kitchen. "After what happened last time. She gets too excited. But she'll get to go next year anyway. She has to, after all" he added as he poured himself a cup of coffee.
"When are we leaving dad?" Albus asked excitedly.
His father stifled a yawn and took another sip of his coffee. "Whenever you're ready to go, I suppose."
"I'm ready now" Albus replied.
His father gave a small smile and said "You guys ready?" to James and Uncle Ron, both of whom nodded.
Ten minutes later they were standing by the fireplace in the sitting room, Uncle Ron reaching into a small pouch filled with glittering powder. "All right, I'll go first, then you after me Al" he said.
He took a small pinch of the Floo Powder and threw it into the fire, making it immediately turn an emerald green. "Diagon Alley" he said lazily. And with a single step in, he vanished.
Albus took the bag of powder and threw in another pinch happily. He loved traveling by Floo Powder; the sensation of constant spinning always made his day. "Diagon Alley" he said to the emerald green flames, and with a step in he instantly vanished, and was suddenly hurtling through space, elbows tucked in and eyes closed, until with a sudden stop, he found himself in a dingy looking bar. The Leaky Cauldron.
"Step away from the grate" his Uncle Ron said, giving him a rough pull to the side just as his brother emerged from the fireplace.
"Blimey, I'll never get used to that" James said, dusting ash off of his clothes. "Can't wait 'till I can apparate."
Their father appeared a second later, he too dusting ash off of his clothes. "Shame that this is the closest grate to Diagon Alley" he said as he straightened his glasses. "You used to be able to floo right into the Cauldron Shop."
They began walking through the Leaky Cauldron, his father shaking hands briefly with everyone who saw them. Albus was somewhat used to this. The previous time that he had been in the Leaky Cauldron, some people had even shook his hand simply for being his father's son.
"Glass of firewhiskey Harry?" asked Hannah, Neville's wife and landlady of the pub. "On the house" she added.
"No, no I'm fine" he replied. "Much too early for me, and I have to go into work later."
"I wouldn't mind a glass" he heard his Uncle Ron mutter, though he continued following them through the pub. A few moments later they found themselves face to face with a brick wall. Albus watched as his father took out his wand and tapped a brick. Nothing happened.
"Damn" he whispered, scratching his head with his wand. He turned to Uncle Ron. "Was it three down, four across twice, or four down, twice across three times?"
Uncle Ron raised his eyebrows. "I thought it was two down, two across, three times" he said.
His father groaned. "Maybe it was three up, two across, four times."
"No, there was no four" Uncle Ron said thoughtfully. "I think it's two up, three down, three times."
"What? That doesn't make any sense! That would just be one down three times! It would just be three down! There's an 'across' in there somewhere..."
Albus and James watched as they bickered. After a few more unsuccessful tries, they both turned to the staring children. "Do you remember it?" his father asked them.
"Nope" they both said. "Mum always did it, she remembers it" James said.
Their father turned back to their uncle. "Maybe three down, two across, twice."
"No, it can't be, you didn't mention a four."
"You just said there wasn't a four!"
"Oh right..."
So suddenly that it made Albus jump, a voice interjected from behind him.
"Having trouble?"
A man had just walked up behind them, the most plain looking man that Albus had ever seen. His hair was dark and short, parted in the middle, and he was wearing basic robes of black. For a second, Albus thought that he was angry with them, for he had a slightly sour look on his face, but he shook hands with his father nonetheless.
"Fango!" his father said, taking his hand. "What are you doing in Diagon Alley? When are you going into the office?"
The man known as Fango shook Uncle Ron's hand as well before answering. "Can't Apparate into work, and the floo network's been shut down."
His father raised an eyebrow. "Why?" he asked.
Fango shrugged. "Extra security measure most likely. Kingsley's been in a rage ever since-you know" he said, casting a tiny glance at Albus and James. Apparently he didn't want to say anything too important in front of them.
"So I'm using the phone booth method" he continued. "And there's a booth right here in Diagon Alley. Isn't that why you're here?" he asked.
"No, I'm shopping with my children. Could you help us out a bit?" he said, motioning towards the wall.
"Oh right, of course" Fango said. He tapped a brick on the wall with his wand, and Albus watched as it slid open to reveal a doorway. "It's three up and two across three times" he added.
"I knew there wasn't a four" Uncle Ron said.
They walked through the doorway and out into Diagon Alley. Filled with people shopping around in anticipation for the school year, it was hard to see through the crowd in which Fango disappeared.
"Who was that guy, dad?" James asked.
"His name is Fango Wilde" their father told them. "I don't know him very well, even though he's been at the Ministry for quite some time. Different departments."
"Is he one of the ones you had to investigate?" Albus asked.
"No, there would be no point. He's not very high up in his department, and even if he was, he'd have to have a few Extendable Ears to hear anything. The Department of Magical Transportation doesn't really deal with anything other than portkeys and floo powder" he told them as they walked through the packed streets.
"But what if he did over hear something?" Albus asked, but his question was drowned out by the sounds of children yelling near them.
"Mum, mum!" they were yelling. "The Edge is on sale!"
They skipped the visit to the Cauldron Shop, as both Albus and James already had one, but made a quick stop at the Apothecary to refill on potion ingredients. Albus was pleased to tell his father that he was quite good at the subject, his best in fact. He was able to name most of the things on the shelves as they picked them up, as well as many of their properties.
"And those are bezoars dad!" he said excitedly as he pointed to a large tub of grey stones. "They can cure most poisens!"
"I know" he said grimly, trading a glance with their uncle.
They left the Apothecary soon after, and meandered the streets for Flourish & Blotts until they saw a figure with flaming red hair running up to them.
"Rosie!" their uncle shouted as his daughter ran into his arms. They could see Aunt Hermione and Hugo in the distance.
"How come you didn't come home last night?" she asked him.
"Fell asleep there" he said with a slightly apologetic grin. "Was your mum mad?"
"I don't think so" Rose said. She turned to Albus. "Did you see Uncle George's new stuff?" she asked him.
"Yeah, I think he gave me some for my birthday-" he started, before James pushed ahead of him.
"I haven't" his brother said with a look of glee on his face. "Be back later dad!" he called as he ran around the corner, no doubt to restock on numerous products from his uncle's shop.
"Guess it's just me and you then son" his father said with a grin.
"I'll go with you guys" Rose said.
"Okay, then you three go shopping for books and we'll meet back at the Leaky Cauldron later" Uncle Ron said. And he hurried off to go meet his wife his son.
It was fun, walking around with his cousin and father as they visited the various shops of Diagon Alley. Much to his chagrin however, his father seemed more impressed with Rose's many high test scores then he did Albus' stories of night time wanderings. As they were shopping for A Standard Book of Spells : Grade 2 however, his father turned to him.
"What do you say we take a peek in Quality Quidditch Supplies after we get your new books?" he asked him. "I hear you've got a new broomstick."
Albus agreed, though he felt nervous. He had only agreed to learn to fly because he thought his brother would be disappointed if he didn't. He didn't want his father to think it had become his new obsession. They shopped for their books and continued down the crowded streets, Rose still naming her numerous achievements.
"And you wouldn't believe what Professor Flitwick said about my color changing spells Uncle Harry..."
Albus walked slightly ahead of them to ignore his cousin's ostentatious ramblings. He entered Quality Quidditch Supplies and strode past the rows of Quidditch robes and gloves. This was easily the most packed store he had been in thus far. Young children were running back and forth in front of him, seeking their parents, probably to force them to buy them something. Albus was just thinking of how childish it was to beg your parent for a broomstick when he heard a familiar drawl from the aisle next to him.
"Oh come on father" he heard a boy whine.
"It's much too expensive Scorpius" came a stern voice that seemed like nothing more than a deeper version of the boy's.
Albus' heart leapt. He turned the corner and saw Scorpius Malfoy, one of his best friends at Hogwarts, with his back turned. He was speaking to his father, who looked very much like him, despite his receding hairline and slightly more narrow eyes. They stopped arguing when his father looked up and saw Albus staring at him.
Albus went slightly pink and went to back up; he had not heard very pleasant things about Scorpius' father, especially from his uncles. Before he could fully make it around the corner however, Scorpius turned and gave a cry of delight.
"Albus!" he said, and he immediately walked over to him, motioning over his shoulder for his father to do the same. His father gave a small sigh and followed after. "You here shopping with your dad?" he asked.
"Yeah but I've got no clue where-"
"I'm right here" he heard his father say. He had just appeared from around the corner and placed his hand on Albus' shoulder. With a sideways glance, Albus saw Rose standing next to them.
"Dad, this is Albus and Rose" Scorpius said, pointing towards both of them in turn.
"Pleasure to meet you" his father said, though he did not shake either of their hands. "And it is nice to see you again as well, Harry" he added, with a stiff nod. He spoke the last word with apparent discomfort, as if he did not usually use his first name.
"Good to see you as well Draco" Albus' father said, with equal discomfort in the name he had used. "Still working at Borgin & Burkes?" he asked politely.
"No" Mr. Malfoy said plainly. "I quit a few days ago. I am currently seeking work."
"Ahh" his father said, running his hands through his hair. "And how is Astalea?"
"Astoria," Mr. Malfoy corrected him icily, "is doing fine. She's out shopping for books right now. Scorpius insisted I see this new broom he's been badgering me about. The Lightning's Edge."
"Ohh, Al has one of those, don't you Al?" his father said cheerfully.
Albus nodded, while Scorpius gave him a bemused look. Albus had made it quite clear during the previous school year that he was not very fond of flying-or even sitting high up in the stands for that matter. Scorpius was obviously very curious as to why Albus had a broom.
"How's the rest of the family?" his father asked. Albus could tell that he was trying to keep the conversation going without letting it go into negative territory.
"Fine" Mr. Malfoy said curtly. "We are not on good terms with some extended family, and it makes for some quiet Christmas', but otherwise we are quite fine."
Scorpius looked up at his father. "Maybe they could spend the holidays with us dad!" he said with a grin. "I hear they have a huge family, they'd probably enjoy a quieter Christmas anyway..."
Mr. Malfoy looked down at his son and, with great effort it seemed, flashed a smile. "Maybe" he said in a falsely cheery voice. "But we really must be going now" he added in a bit of a darker tone. "We need to stop by Madame Malkin's...you're showing far too much ankle in your school robes. It was nice meeting you all."
He swept by them towards the door, Scorpius following along after him, looking back as they left.
"Well he didn't seem too bad' Albus said to his father as they examined the emerald Quidditch gloves on the shelf. "I wonder why he doesn't get along well with the rest of their family though."
His father looked down at him with a small grin. "I can only guess" he said sardonically. "Now let's go find your uncle. We need to head into the office soon" he said with a glance down at his watch.
They left Quality Quidditch Supplies seconds later, Albus scanning the streets for Scorpius. His father seemed to have done his best to steer him away though, and even with a clear view of the streets they were nowhere to be seen. They were just passing by Eeylops Owl Emporium when James came running towards them.
"Dad" he said, tugging at his fathers robes with a broad grin on his face.
"Yes?" his father said, apparently curious as why James was acting so giddy.
"I need twenty galleons" he said, practically bouncing up and down on the balls of his feet.
His father raised his eyebrows. "Why? What did you find in Uncle George's shop?" he asked.
"I can't tell you" James replied, still bouncing up and down.
His father gave him an intrigued stare. "Why not?"
"I just can't!"
The answer didn't seem to satisfy him. He continued peering at him through his glasses. "You remember the rules, right?" he asked.
"It can't be illegal, it can't be hazardous to anyone's health, and it can't be traced back to you" James said irritably, ticking them off his fingers.
His father heaved a large sigh and fished around in his pockets for gold. He pulled out a small handful and dumped it into James' greedy hands. "That counts as your allowance!" he called as James practically skipped down the street. "And hurry back, we're going into the Ministry soon!"
He heaved another sigh as Uncle Ron came bounding up the opposite street, with Hugo atop his shoulders and Aunt Hermione walking slightly behind him. "Just got back from Gringotts" he said when he reached them. "You lot got all of your things?" he asked. "Ready to go?"
"Waiting for James" his father mumbled.
"You were in Gringotts?" Albus asked excitedly. "Did you see a dragon?"
He had never been in the famed wizarding bank before, for he had never needed to go and retrieve money. But he had heard stories of the underground vaults, some of which were so well guarded they could suck you in and keep you there for years.
"Don't be stupid Al, there's no dragons in Gringotts" Rose muttered scathingly. She hated it when somebody said something even remotely imaginative.
"You never know" his father said, checking his watch once more. "Do you know where the phone booth leading to work is in Diagon Alley?" he asked Uncle Ron.
"I think it's right behind Florean's old ice cream parlor. And that's where we should be heading now, here comes James."
James had just emerged from around the corner, pockets bulging with items that he was desperately trying to conceal. He hurried up to them, panting. "Ready to go?" he asked.
They all nodded and followed Uncle Ron through the streets, which were beginning to thin now that the morning rush was over. They followed him for several minutes, watching as stragglers passed by them, until eventually they turned down a dark alley behind a boarded up shop that looked as though it hadn't been used in years.
"Florean Fortescue was a good man" his father told them as they walked to the very end of the alley. "But he was unfortunately killed during the second war. We've kept his shop here though, in his memory."
The walked to the corner of the alley, where a silver telephone booth was crammed into a corner. Albus looked up at his father, his eyebrows raised. "This is the entrance to the Ministry of Magic?" he asked.
His father entered the booth and took the phone in his hand. "Not exactly" he said. "There was originally only one booth, right above it. It's underground. But as more muggle born wizards and witches starting joining a few years ago, we've installed these booths in several places. They descend underground, and travel through a series of tunnels that lead directly to the main hall."
Albus looked at the shabby telephone booth. It was certainly big enough to fit all of them, but it looked clumsily made. He watched as his father dialed numbers on the phone and began talking to the receiver, for a cool woman's voice had just said "Welcome to the Ministry of Magic. Please state your name and business."
"Harry Potter, Ronald Weasly, and Hermione Granger, reporting for work" he said. "Bringing four children with us as visitors."
James snorted. "I'm not a child" he muttered.
Small silver badges shot out from the booth into his father's hands. He pinned one to his shirt and passed the others along. Albus stared down at his badge as he pinned it to his own shirt. It read Visitor to the Ministry.
They all entered the phone booth, and immediately after the doors closed they began descending through the ground slowly. For a few seconds, Albus watched the solid concrete on the outside, but once they hit a certain point deep in the ground, an abrupt stop made him lose his balance. He got up while his brother laughed (for no one else, not even Rose, had fallen) and pressed himself against the side as the phone booth began moving slowly to the left. Then, with a sudden burst, the booth shot through the ground with great force, and all of them were knocked off of their feet.
Held down by the force of gravity, Albus watched the windows as the phone booths swerved in different directions, traveling for miles underground. For several long minutes, the phone booth simply didn't stop, and Albus was now beginning to feel sick. He toughed it out though, and a sudden stop let him know that the ride was over.
"Enjoy your day" said the cool female's voice as the phone booth door slid open. His father stepped out, followed by Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione, and then the children. Albus' jaw dropped.
They were standing in a magnificent hall with one of the most polished wooden floors he had ever seen. Second only in size to the Great Hall in Hogwarts, the walls were of equally polished wood, and the stunning ceiling was of a deep midnight blue. There were several more telephone boxes across the walls, with every few of them separated by a grate where wizards were popping in by Floo Powder. Albus noticed that flooing to work seemed more popular. Many of the telephone boxes remained quite stationary.
They proceeded through the large hall, Albus right behind his father and careful not to bump into anyone. Many of the people seemed in a great hurry, or slightly irritated. They were muttering things about tightened security and cursing under their breaths as they headed for large golden gates.
"Blimey, had we known that the grates were working we wouldn't have bothered with the damn telephone booth" Uncle Ron said as he passed a grate that shone with bright green flames.
"Ronald!" Aunt Hermione said. "Must you really curse over the smallest things?"
"He has a good point though" his father said. "They should have told us when the grates starting working again. I can hardly blame people for being irritated."
They continued walking down the large hallway, and right in the middle Albus saw one of the largest statues he had ever seen in his life. He moved closer and saw that it was actually a fountain, a fountain comprising of different stone shapes. There was a wizard with long hair and an even longer beard, who bared an uncanny but not exact resemblance to a portrait that he had once seen in the Headmaster's office. Next to the wizard was a woman holding a book who dressed very muggle like; Albus could only assume that she represented a standard muggle. The woman had a house elf on her shoulders in a manner similar to how Uncle Ron would sometimes carry his children, and the wizard the same, only with a goblin instead. On the right was a centaur turning away from them, as if minding its own business, and on the left a giant, which stood at least twice the size of the wizard. All of them were smiling, except for maybe the centaur, who was merely grinning. Water was shooting from the wizard's wand, the muggle's book, the golbin's and elf's ears, and the centaur's arrow. He bent low to read the description on the fountain.
All proceeds from the Fountain of Brethren will be donated to St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries.
He could see silver sickles and bronze knuts in the pool; people were dropping them in even as he looked. He raised his head and saw that his family was nearing the golden gates. By looking at the fountain, he had straggled behind.
He hurried up to them and caught up as soon as they passed through the lift, taking them to a much smaller hall filled with golden lifts. A lift opened right as they reached it, and Albus and his family got into one with two additional people. One was a bearded man leaning casually against the side of the barrier, who shook his father's hand when they entered. The other was a blonde woman who greeted them all with an energetic "Hi."
"Hello Susan" his father said.
"Any clue why they stopped us from flooing in?" Uncle Ron asked.
The woman named Susan shook her head as the lift began to drop. "They wanted tightened security for some reason, I guess they didn't want someone to get in here. I only just received a memo about it, I came in a bit late today".
"Level six" the woman's voice said as the lift opened, but the rest of what she said was drowned out by two more people who got on the lift just as Susan was leaving it, arguing loudly. They both stopped abruptly when the lift began to move again.
They traveled down more lifts for several minutes, each time someone new getting on as someone else got off. On more than one occasion, Albus noticed that paper airplanes flew onto the lifts as well, only to leave at the next floor. Finally, the cool voice rang out saying "Level two, Department of Magical Law Enforcement, including the Improper Use of Magic Office, Auror Headquarters, and Wizengamot Administration Services."
"Well this is us" his father said as the lift opened.
"I'm going to go back up" Aunt Hermione said, giving Uncle Ron a quick kiss on the cheek as most of them stepped out of the lift. "My department is back a few floors. Look after Rosie and Hugo, won't you?" she asked.
"Yeah they'll be fine" Uncle Ron said as they began walking down a corridor lined with doors.
She shot him a serious look before the lifts closed once more. Shrugging it off, he and his fellow Auror led them around a corner until they were staring directly at a pair of heavy oak doors. They both stopped before opening it.
"Now we can't stay long" his father said. "But I figure you can at least have a look around headquarters."
He pushed the door open, and Albus felt a small twinge of disappointment. Whatever he had been expecting, this was most certainly not it. It was a gargantuan room, sure, but it was cramped and filled with many cubicles of which the tiny paper airplanes were rapidly shooting in and out of. It appeared to be very busy; the noise of chatter could be heard from the entrance.
"Are all of these people Aurors dad?" Rose asked.
"Not all of them" Uncle Ron said as they started moving towards the rows of cubicles. "Most though. Others kind of have desk jobs. And some people are only assigned here to make others look bad" he added, narrowing his eyes at a person in the cubicle nearest to them.
"That's my office back there" Albus' father told him, pointing to a door in the back. There were a few doors next to it, leading to other offices, but his looked the most official. "Let's go introduce you to some people."
He led them all in between the cubicles, poking his head in to see who might not be bothered with an interruption, but everyone seemed extremely busy. After a few moments, they entered a cubicle near the back, one slightly larger than the others, and saw a man with very long brown hair sitting at his desk, prodding strange instruments with his wand.
"Got a sec?" his father asked the man.
He turned around with an irritated expression on his face, but it softened once he saw who it was.
"Well hello there!" he said cheerfully. "These all yours?"
"Those two are mine" his father said, indicating Albus and James. "Those two, Ron's. Kids, this is Maximus Tothill, he's an Auror in my task force. What are you doing there Max?"
The wizard turned back to a small silver disk that he had been prodding, and Albus noticed that it was on top of a poorly drawn map. "Searching" he said gloomily. "I've been trying to track it, but this particular wa -"
His father coughed loudly, blatantly interrupting him. "Why don't you tell me later" he said, giving the tiniest of nods to Albus and the other children.
Max looked horror struck. "Oh...oh right" he said before he continued prodding his silver disk.
"Right...this was a bad idea" his father said as they left the small cubicle. "The Auror office is filled with a lot of...information"
"Dad come on, we can handle whatever it is you guys are talking about" James moaned.
"No...no really. I shouldn't have done this" he said.
Albus couldn't help but notice that his father was now sweating profusely. The fact that one of his colleagues had been stupid enough to let something slip greatly unnerved him. He led them back towards the lifts, hurrying through the cubicles, until he came to a stop so sudden that Albus bumped into him.
In the very corner of the headquarters, where there were no cubicles, but simply and open amount of space, two people were talking. Or possibly arguing. Albus immediately recognized the first as Fango Wilde, and he had a very disdainful look on his face indeed. It was quite curious to see this, as he now knew that Fango worked in a different department, but even stranger was who he seemed to be talking to. He was speaking to someone with neck length jet black hair that stuck up at odd angles. Albus could not see his face, but for a wild moment, he thought it was his father.
"No way" his father whispered, staring at the two men in the corner.
"What is it?" Uncle Ron asked, craning his neck from behind him to see what had stopped his fellow Auror.
Without warning, his father's face broke into a huge smile. He turned around at once, and instead of leading them towards the lifts, he began walking towards the two men, Albus and the other children following after him.
"Well look who it is" his father said as he approached the two men. The arguing (or maybe it was talking, neither had raised their voice) ceased at once. Fango Wilde looked up and walked away, keen to be out of the conversation, and the man with jet black hair turned around on the spot. Albus gasped. He even saw Hugo cover his eyes, and he heard Rose give a tiny yell.
The man was smiling. Or at least...half of him was. Though the entire right side of his face was perfectly normal, his left side was one of the most hideous things that Albus had ever seen. There were large scars all across his cheeks, and numerous bumps and indents. His mouth seemed to get thinner on the left side, as though he couldn't move it if he tried. It kept the same pale color as the rest of his face, but when he turned to the side to face the man walking up to him, you could clearly see where the bumps protruded.
It appeared as though his father was used to this appearance, because he held out his hand and shook the scarred man's hand vehemently. "Mr. Fairhart" he said with a smile. "And where have you been these many weeks? The office was getting boring without you."
Mr. Fairhart smiled back, pulling on the scarred and mangled skin on his face, making it look even more grotesque. He ran his hand through his hair, and Albus saw, with shock, a silver wedding ring on his finger. For a split second, he wondered if the person he was married to was aware of what their husband looked like, but he was cut off from his thoughts by the man's voice.
"I left the country for a bit" he said. "Had some things to find."
By this time, Uncle Ron had joined the group, his mouth wide open. "We thought you were kidnapped or something!" he exclaimed, and Fairhart laughed.
"No I'm afraid not, you'll have to put up with me still" he said while chuckling.
"Well it's good to have you back S-"
BANG!
Uncle Ron's sentence was cut off by a small explosion. Black smoke had begun issuing from James, who was now coughing as he tried avoiding the cloud around him. Many wizards had rushed from their cubicles and pulled out their wands, aiming them in James' direction, but his father had stood in front of him, arms stretched out.
"Don't! It's just my son!" he yelled at them as they gripped their wands. He pulled James out from the cloud of black smoke. "Am I about to discover what it is you bought from Uncle George's shop?" he asked.
James continued coughing, but still managed to speak in between breaths. "Not if I can help it" he grinned.
His father rolled his eyes. "Okay I think its time to go now."
"But dad-" both James and Albus started.
"No, you've seen where I work, that should be enough" their father said firmly. "I'll walk you guys back to the main hall now."
Albus hung his head, defeated, as his father waved goodbye to Fairhart, who turned around on the spot and hurried off, no doubt to continue his argument with Fango Wilde. He began walking them through the halls and back onto the lifts, and once the doors had closed and they began moving up, James spoke.
"Dad, who was that guy with the weird face?" he asked.
"That's Mr. Fairhart" he said. "He's in my division, but he doesn't actually go out and fight. Now that I think about it...I'm not entirely sure he even has any field experience. He's a good guy though, funny. You'd both like him."
"Oh yeah, he's great" Uncle Ron said as the lift doors opened on the topmost floor. "He's been gone for a few weeks now though, I wonder where he went?"
Albus watched as his father shrugged his shoulders. "Haven't got a clue" he said.
"What happened to his face?" Hugo asked as they walked past the large fountain.
"I've never asked him" Albus' father said. "And I probably never will. We all have our secrets, after all."
They walked to the very end of the corridor, where telephone booths were zooming in and out of the walls and green flames were erupting from grates. Albus looked up at his father, nervous that he might just throw up if they went back in the telephone booths. "Dad, can we floo home?" he asked.
His father smiled at him and reached for some powder.