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November 1, 1998
Sunday Morning
"You're spo'sed to turn your head ninety degrees, wiggle your tongue and make noises that sound like you're flying," Tracey said, the air of an expert in her tone.
"Is that right, Harry?" Delphini asked, her eyebrows firmly scrunched together as she looked at him with a look of utmost confusion on her face. "If it is, forgive me for saying this, but kissing doesn't sound all that enjoyable. We can try something else if you're agreeable — Tracey, you'll help with suggestions and guidance, please?"
Tracey grinned. "I ca—"
"No," Harry said strictly, not trusting himself to stop it should the girls' conversation continue. "If you really want to try again, we can later sometime, Delphi. I think for now, what I'll get up to is meeting with the Minister for something. I nearly forgot that my next appointment was this afternoon and so I'll make it up to the three of you in the evening."
He wasn't completely telling the truth, nor was he lying. In truth, he wanted a bit of time to think about what kissing Delphini — Voldemort's daughter as his mind liked to point out — meant for his future. The fact that Tracey had seen it would likely mean Daphne knew about it within the next hour, if that. Harry was a dumb bloke most of the time when it came to witches and their feelings, but even he wasn't that thick. If Daphne liked him as much as he suspected she did, there'd a decay in their relationship.
That would be horrible in many ways, from a lost friendship to a person he could no longer trust in a position at the Ministry as he'd been hoping to do. Her quality wasn't exaggerated, Daphne was as brilliant as Hermione with a far brighter mind for politics and a family name that made anything she wanted to do, possible. With her on his side, firmly and as a friend if not something more, he could see the world in an even better place than he could do by himself.
Everybody deserved that and really, he could do a whole lot worse than Daphne. She was beautiful, had differing opinions and experiences in life, possessed a wonderful personality and her smile was something out of a Muggle modelling magazine. Delphi was a lot more like Luna in many ways with the added baggage of her parents. He wouldn't spill the beans, not even if she didn't know who her real father was, but that would eventually get out.
Nothing could ever stay a secret in the wizarding world.
"-rake Harry again, Tracey? Don't shake your head, if it wasn't you, it was Delphini and there's a reason I asked her before you," Daphne's voice said sternly, only now registering to his senses as he came out of a very deep near trance like state of mind.
"I'm good," he said, swallowing and shaking his head as he managed a wide smile over at Daphne. "Really, I'm better than good, I just didn't sleep all that well. How about you, Daph, everything going well today? I think you should've gotten a letter this morning unless it was delayed."
Daphne exhaled and stuck her tongue out of the right corner of her mouth, her eyes roaming all over him until she decided to speak after nearly three seconds. "My day has been as close to perfect as is possible at the present time. As you've just said, I have you to thank for that," she took purposeful strides towards him until eventually, she was able to lean down and hug him tightly to her body. "Thank you on behalf of my entire family, Harry, for aiding my little sister and ensuring she stayed out of trouble. I'm not sure if you knew she was a part of it and if you did, you're a far better actor than anybody gives you credit for. Regardless, now that's off with nought but an inexpensive fine and community service, I'd like to formally invite you to my home."
"Oh, that's awesome! Daph's parents are the nicest people in the world — the second nicest now that we know you, Harry. Morgana, you're quite the softie for cuties like us, huh?" Tracey tossed her hair over her head before she giggled, that giggle then turning into full-blown laughter as she thought of something of which he imagined was likely pretty heinous.
"What's so funny?" Delphini asked, falling for Tracey's trap before Daphne or he could tell her not to.
"I was thinking of Malfoy being a little blonde girl; shorter than Daphne, flat as Pansy and with Milly's person—" Tracey's voice suddenly stopped working despite her lips continuing to move.
All it took was one glance to his side for Harry to know why that was. Daphne, at some point during Tracey's speaking, had withdrawn her wand and cast a spell without a single person noticing. She was deadly quick and while that pleased him, it always wasn't a fact he'd forget. If he ever made her angry, really angry, or should he try and say something that may as well be a crime like Tracey had, she'd be quick to shut him up.
"That's not allowed to run here, Tracey. That's you and your speaking privileges done for the next few minutes," Daphne said, her nose held up high and her arms crossed under her chest in what Harry assumed was a very pointedly made gesture; she was still right in front of him and higher up since they'd hugged, after all.
"On that note, I'll be off to the Minister now. That's fine with you all, yeah?" Harry didn't wait for a response, got up from the couch and made it towards the exit within the span of five seconds, if that. "I'll be back at dinner with surprises for the lot of you — save him a place at whichever table you pick!"
And like that, he was gone, racing through the halls of Hogwarts towards the floo network that would transport him to the Ministry… where he could think stuff through without his typical girlish company that drove him up the wall.
"Har—" the man behind the counter coughed into his hand a few times, his eyes darting to his left and right before he straightened his tie and tried again in a far more calm, professional manner. "Mister Potter, it's great to see you. I was told to keep an eye out for you — I'm new, my apologies in advance if I make you do anything unusual that's usually waved off."
Harry shook his head quickly at the older man, his hands raised in the air. "Do whatever you need to. I don't need any exceptions made on my behalf and congratulations on the new job, thanks for taking it too. The Ministry could always use people like you."
The man seemed confused before he nodded, a look of recognition on his face. He understood after nearly ten seconds what Harry meant, that being the typical protocols being waved for Harry's person and the fact that it wasn't a good thing. If somebody impersonated him or should they give that treatment to somebody else, it was how an incident occurred.
"Thank you, Mister Potter. It won't take very long then, I promise," the man then requested his wand for a brief inspection, inquired as to what his business visiting the Ministry was for the day and if there were any other stops he planned on making aside from the Minister's office. All in all, that took five minutes and like that, Harry was off to his destination for a bit of an impromptu meeting.
It sure was a lucky thing that he'd told Kingsley to always expect him to randomly drop in. If Harry hadn't done that at the height of his nightmares, it was likely that he'd have to actually schedule a meeting like a normal person. He should probably do that anyhow so people don't think he benefits too greatly from nepotism and he likely would too, but right now, he needed the type of access that he had.
If he didn't have exactly the current powers that he currently did, the lives of those that he'd saved thus far as well as those that would still be getting helped out in the coming days if not weeks, would likely be ruined. Kingsley had to be the most insightful man alive and Harry had once more benefited from his famous luck.
"He's expecting you, Mister Potter," said the voice of the woman that typically acted as Kingsley's daytime secretary. She was younger, perhaps a recent graduate from Ireland or another school he wasn't aware of.
Merlin, most of the staff was like that. They were either incredibly young or incredibly old, as neither age group was as prone to the horrors of war as people his age up to what his grandparents' ages would have been. It made so much work take far longer, the occasional foreigner with experience from across the channel or pond could only do so much — it was all a matter of experience or the effects of ageing.
"Thank you, please tell Danny good evening from me too, if you could. I forgot to say goodbye last time," Harry said to the young woman, Eliza before he strolled through the doors of Kingsley's office.
"I didn't think we had a meeting today," Kingsley said curiously, exhaustion plain to hear in his voice.
Harry closed the door lightly behind him. "We didn't,' he answered as he took the few remaining steps to a chair, his body falling into it heavily shortly thereafter. "I wanted to speak with you about something. It may be a bit difficult, but I don't see it as entirely unreasonable. Merlin knows I needed a bit of time to myself too, or rather, some time outside of Hogwarts' halls."
"Everything alright?" Kingsley questioned, genuine concern in his tone as he lifted his head and blinked wearily at Harry, likely thinking about Delphini since Harry had spoken with the man about her.
"Girl trouble, nothing of which is Delphini's fault," Harry said quickly, shaking his head and calling for a house-elf to bring him coffee. "Now that Voldemort's gone, most of his people are captured and the typical threats are gone, the universe has seen fit to throw all of the best witches at me. Sorry, it sounds like I'm venting, doesn't it? Let's talk about why I came here so you can take a nap, yeah?"
Kingsley shook his head and made a gesture as if he didn't mind. "I'm here for you just as you've been here for me and my wife," the man said before he clapped Harry on the shoulder, reminding the younger man of Sirius. "Never forget that — as for a nap, I'll admit it sounds good, but I don't have the style or personality that Dumbledore did to get away with it."
Harry snorted; he felt that because Dumbledore, well, he definitely had style.
"Your secretary has some special privileges, right? Both of them do, I mean. They can relay orders for you, pitch their own ideas as a part of your own initiative and you've signed that executive order which even allows them to step into Directorial positions," Harry emphasized the last sentence especially, earning a hesitant nod from Kingsley.
"Were you wanting your own secretary with similar powers when you're appointed as my Deputy Minister?" Kingsley asked, guessing correctly Harry's upcoming request.
"Yes," Harry responded, confident and sure it was the right decision. "I would like one person that I could work with as closely and with as much confidence as you do with those two. I'd have my own bond with them so that cohesion is strong and I don't steal either of yours away and at that same time, they'd be able to help me while you're home, resting."
Kingsley grinned half-heartedly. "If only for that, I think I'll see what I can do. It may take a bit of pressure, from both of us, you're aware of that, right?"
Harry nodded. "I am — it's for the best, they'll see that and after half a year, the rest of the world will too."
"Ludvig," Kingsley called, his personal elf showing up within a second. "Coffee, biscuits and my favourite quill, please," Kingsley's eyes went back to Harry as he continued speaking to his elf. "We'll be here for quite some time, send a message to my secretaries… ah, my wife too. Delay that one for an hour so as to spare my suffering."
Internally, Harry snorted. Kingsley's wife was the perfect woman to counter-balance a Minister in his private life. She was confident, strong and not afraid in the slightest to speak her mind; like Daphne, a problematic part of his mind tossed in.
That part wasn't wrong.
November 1, 1998
Sunday Evening
Harry was mentally exhausted whilst his body couldn't be any more anxious for activity. He had done nothing but sit in an office chair across from and sometimes right next to Kingsley as the two ironed out a very rough draft for the creation of an additional position that would have similar powers to that of Kingsley's current secretaries.
It would take a lot of talking with their allies and more for those who were on the fence, but it was likely to be approved with no great amount of hassle. Harry was certain he could get a few of the 'darker' families to agree too, should they find out the person he had in mind for the position was a Pureblood that wasn't actively considered some form of turncoat by those who stayed true to the 'old ways' as they liked to say.
Daphne was exactly that too; her family actively engaged in the older lifestyle of the Pureblood elite. They would attend dinners and balls with the others, conduct regular business dealings for mutual economic growth amongst the families that remained friendly despite the current situation and most of all, they still practised many old traditions such as Yule or other Pagan holidays. He hadn't any clue as to how they worked since it was a relatively private affair, but he appreciated the sentiment so long as it didn't cause too big a problem.
"I told you, he'll be here in… he'll be here," Daphne said, the blonde girl at the head of a trio. "Hello, Harry. I had saved you a seat as you suggested, but when you didn't come after slightly over an hour, I figured you were still busy with your Ministry dealings. I trust based on the exhausted, yet satisfied look on your that they went well?"
"Well, that or he's just come out of a cupboard wit— wait, wait, let's not pull out any wands because of a joke, we don't need to escalate the situation," Tracey cut herself off, the dirty-minded, female-version of Ron raising her hands when Daphne began to reach for her waist.
"I don't keep my wand at waist-level, Tracey," Daphne said, rolling her eyes that were still holding contact with Harry's. "I appreciate that you refrained from making the joke though, you've come far since our time with Harry. Speaking of that, we should return to our tower. You won't need to worry about your meal, I've sent one of my house-elves to the kitchen so that a meal could be prepared and brought up for you."
Delphini nodded nearly a dozen times in a second or two, her hair whipping all about in the process. "Daphne and I picked out your favourite foods and desserts, you'll find everything that you like. We've watched you eat a lot, so we know that spic— oh, I wasn't supposed to mention that really," Delphini hummed, thoughtful for all of a minute before she shrugged and her expression turned pleading, albeit a more… lustful version of such a look. "Forget about that and take us back to the tower."
Tracey snorted and whispered something to Daphne which earned her a look. Delphini didn't seem to care if she'd heard it and Harry, well, he was hungry. If the girls had all paid attention to what he ate in such detail, who was he to care? It was endearing when he thought about it with only slight vibes of creepiness.
Stomach, then witches, then sleep, Harry eventually thought to himself, that priority working perfectly for him so far as he was concerned.
"Do you think they'll keep this eighth year of school going after we've all finished?" Tracey asked as she skipped along the hallway, twirling every once and a while when she noticed she was too far ahead of everybody else.
"Not in the slightest," Daphne answered, certain and strict-sounding. "It's unnecessary and costs Hogwarts more in expenses. I'm sure the Ministry isn't fond of all these new potential recruits for various positions being kept in Hogwarts an extra year either, but Harry would know the truth of that. Would you tell us, assuming you're allowed to?"
Daphne had turned towards him, her hand 'accidentally' brushing his in the process. She was more clingy as they'd walked, with physical contact happening far more than it usually did between the two of them. Tracey had told her about the kiss, that was his first thought — his second was that she was finally attempting to make her play on him, as her crush and feelings were well known by now.
"There were quite a few people in the Ministry who weren't all that happy with it, no," Harry said, agreeing with Daphne and feeling horrible when he returned one of her touches with a rub across the pack of her hand. He knew he wasn't dating either her or Delphini, but it didn't make him feel any better when both were making passes and he couldn't make up his mind.
"I figured as much and I can understand their point of view. Say, with our walk still having a fair distance, could you tell us vaguely what your trip involved? I'm aware that the walls have ears of their own but I'm sure it'd be enjoyable to see Tracey lose her whits if you spoke in secrets and riddles," Daphne said, smirking when Tracey's face turned into a scowl.
If there was one thing the latter girl hated, it was wordplay of any sort. It didn't matter if a person was being cunning, speaking in riddles or purposefully being vague, any indecisiveness was not tolerated in the slightest by the eventual Minister Davis. He supposed that was an… alright trait to have for a Minister, though he wasn't certain a person who always spoke their mind could be remotely good in the realm of politics, where lying was key.
"I was…" Harry paused when a smell hit him and immediately, he went silent whilst his hands found purchase in Tracey's robes and Daphne's; his arm barred Delphini's path forward too, thus keeping all three girls from moving forward.
When he was certain they couldn't advance, he made the usual shushing gesture and sounds as quietly as he could, and then he released them. All three reached for their wands when they saw him do so and again, all three pressed themselves to the wall as he did. The smell was familiar to him, strong and metallic as ever.
"What is it?" Tracey whispered as quietly as she could, which surprisingly was relatively quiet despite the near-silent status of the hallway.
Daphne gave the other girl a very stern look while Delphini kept her wand pointed at the area they had just come from. He swore her ears were twitching ever so slightly like a cat or other animals would when they were searching for the source of a sound. He was glad that she took whatever threat he perceived there to be so serious, all three of them had done excellent in that regard.
"Stay close, I smell blood," Harry said direct and to the point, one of his arms grabbing onto Daphne's hands with a look given to the girl for her to do the same right on down the line.
One… two… Harry counted, building himself up before finally, on three, he jumped around the corner with his heart beating and blood boiling, his mind now completely in fight mode… but there was nothing. All that he saw was an empty hallway, devoid of life and motion.
"Where's it coming from?" Daphne asked, her eyes peeled and scanning whilst in a slightly narrowed state.
She sounded nervous to Harry and he felt horrible for making her feel like that. He could have sworn the hallway was ripe with blood and a more rotten, almost decay-like smell. It was on his nose as strong as the days after the Battle had been. If he could've, he would have bet his entire vault that there was a body right around the corner, but there wasn't.
"I don't know," Harry said, shaking his head and sniffing the air. "It was… I could've sworn it was right around the corner. I know I wasn't mistaken, I've smelled that enough times to know what it'll be like — stay close to me until we get to the tower, all three of you. I'll send a Patronus to McGonagall once we're out of this particular spot so she and a few Professors can do a little scan to make sure whatever it is doesn't get by unnoticed.."
Daphne nodded once, looking at him with an expression he couldn't read for a change before she pulled Tracey closer to her, one arm wrapped around the other girl. Delphini on his opposite side, her eyes still looking behind them, pressed in tightly against him. Together, squashed together as they were, the four made their slow escape from the hallway in the direction of their tower.
The whole time, Harry expected a spell to come sailing at them from an invisible attacker and failing that, a scream of terror or bloody murder. He was so certain he'd smelled blood, so certain that he'd smelled the stench of decay that even now he could recall it. For a moment, he thought he'd even seen a figure for not even a tenth of a second when he'd turned the corner, but it had been gone so fast that he shook it off.
Nobody could vanish from sight that quickly and remain uncaught in such a small corridor, least of all a person that wanted to go completely undetected instead of just attempting to get the drop on them. It didn't make sense and so when they were far enough away, he conveyed that in his Patronus message before he carried on at a much quicker pace to their tower.
There would be absolutely no risking his three friends. That wasn't an option, not after he'd built such strong bonds with all three of them at the risk of his pre-existing relationships with Susan, Hannah, Neville and other friends from the DA.
"Come on, Harry," Daphne said from behind him, the other two already well through the second set of doors and in a conversation while she was tugging at his waist with one hand, the other still holding her wand in a stance that made it clear she would be ready to respond quickly in a confrontation. "If anybody were following us, you would have found them with the number of detection spells you've used. Some were even unfamiliar to me of all people, so I'll say without a doubt that's nought but the four of us currently in the tower."
Harry swallowed, his throat feeling a bit tighter than usual but he agreed and turned to join her nonetheless. Professor McGonagall would inform him of her findings and it was likely that she'd use some of the new Aurors that were trained up to patrol the school for a week or two as a result. Kingsley was cool enough to give her as direct a route to him as Harry, thus the two maintained regular conversations to ensure both the Ministry and Hogwarts were in the best positions possible.
"Here. Hold out your hands — move them to the right unless you're trying to grab my chest instead of your dinner," Daphne had started seriously, her tone still strict-sounding before it shifted to dry humour and if he wasn't mistaken, hints of invitation. No, no he definitely had to be crazy, she wasn't nearly as bold in that regard as Delphini was.
Speaking of the two of them, when he looked at the plate…
Daphne and Delphini had done a very good job in what they'd had put on it. There wasn't one item that he disliked, nor was there one that he even felt alright towards. Every single dish was one that he would actively order in a restaurant and while that alone was perfect, the fact that they'd gotten him two desserts instead of solely a treacle tart, was wicked and after all of that was seen, he realised she'd succeeded in her goal based on the smile she now wore.
He had been distracted, he still was, only this time it was with how beautiful she could look when she smiled widely instead of giving those grins or raised-nose half-smiles. The hot food prepared was only the icing on the cake, so to speak.
"Thank you," Harry said, smiling and going in for a hug with Daphne whilst ensuring he was careful to avoid any food spillage. "That was nice of you, of both of you. I'm sorry for keeping you so long too, it wasn't what I intended on doing."
"You're welcome and it's fine! Eat your food, I have a game to play with Tracey and a conversation about — what'd you say it was? Snogging? Yeah? Yeah, I have a conversation regarding snogging to have with her, Daphne can be your company whilst I ensure my attempts at improving for you are done correctly," Delphini said, making he and Daphne blink at one another in… confusion? uncertainty?
He wasn't sure what emotion would exactly fit the bill, but there was certainly a large degree of confusion. Delphini, well, there would always be a bit of confusion when she was involved, to put it politely.
"Well then, it would appear that you've been told and I'm your company while those two have their discussion about you," Daphne said, shaking her head and rapidly blinking sanity back to the forefront of her mind. "I'll probably pick a chip or two off of your plate if you don't mind. Once you're done eating, we can see what else you have in store for us tonight that you were pushing off."
Harry smiled and leaned back against the couch, sagging into the thing as he did so. "My fries are your fries, everything on here is yours to—"
"Even the meat?" Tracey said loudly, breaking away from her conversation with Delphini for all of a second to shoot a wide-open grin at the couple on the couch before she dove straight back into her previous conversation, words already rapidly being whispered between the two.
Daphne looked over at Tracey while he was left wondering about her new, likely dirty, joke or tease.
"I could curse her for you," Daphne said simply, already reaching up to her right sleeve for her wand.
"No no, that's fine. Tracey's just being… Tracey," he said before he did the best thing he could; he offered Daphne a fry that had a bit of melted, liquidy cheese on the tip of it.
She took it with a genuine smile and popped it into her mouth, content enough that she rest her legs in his lap in a very unlike herself manner. He didn't find it within himself to care and Harry certainly didn't dislike this new, more comfortable version of her.
When he was finished eating and Daphne was looking at him, the last bit of cheese at the corner of her lips now cleaned up after he'd pointed it out — and she'd leisurely slid her tongue out to take care of it in a way that thoroughly gotten to him — he was ready to speak.
"I got you the job offer," he said bluntly, satisfied that his face and mouth were clean. "It'll be coming to you by owl in the next few days. I hope it's not that forward of me or inappropriate, but if you accept, we'll be working pretty close together for what I imagine will be a relatively long time. As long as you keep the job if I had to put a time limit on it."
Daphne raised an eyebrow and leaned closer to him, her knees brushing his. "You've gotten me a job in the Ministry with no contract length or term limit?"
He nodded once, that was correct.
"I was aware that you'd be a good friend, but I didn't think you'd do this for me after a few months… are you aware that us working together frequently could make it seem like we're a couple?" Daphne's cheeks when slightly red, but she pressed on as always, confident and straight to the point. "You have your godson, Teddy I believe you said his name was, as well as his grandmother. Your friends, Granger and Weasley, they'll be back before too much longer too. I wouldn't want their relationships or lives hardened due to you spending time with the likes of us—" Daphne motioned around the room, to herself and the other girls " —outside of Hogwarts."
Harry shook his head. "I don't care much for what anybody thinks. If they really like me, they'll like my friends and if not, then they're no real supporter of mine," he smiled at Daphne then, one of his hands hesitantly settling on her shoulder. "You, Tracey and Delphini have changed my mind on more than a few things, stereotypes amongst them. You'll always be a friend of mine… now how about we go tell those two about your new job and their gifts before they burn everything down?"
Daphne leaned forward, paused to look around, and then pressed the rest of the way forward to kiss him gently on the lips. When she pulled back, her face flushed and her nose raised, she responded to him. "We can share the news together."
