Albus Potter, Friends and Foes

Ch 27 An Almost Normal Start to the School Year

"Meet me for lunch?" the text message from Harry read. So, Monday August thirty, just before noon, Ginny (and Mitzi, of course) sauntered into the second floor of the Ministry of Magic. Against one wall were the offices of her father, Dennis Creevey, and her husband, plus offices of a couple of other senior staff. On one side of the large room were the cubicles for the Aurors, with slightly larger cubicles for the shift supervisors in the front. On the other side were cubicles for some of the personal in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, although patrol officers only had lockers, without their own cubicle.

One of the changes that Arthur and Harry had made was the addition of branch offices, including one in Hogsmeade staffed by two Aurors, and one in Diagon Alley staffed by a larger number of DMLE patrol officers.

Ginny walked down the hall that separated the cubicles from the offices and conference rooms. There were secretarial and staff desks in front of the offices. Ginny noticed that Mary Lou Creevey was not at her desk, which was not unusual. Mary Lou did make sure that there was someone either at one of the desks or in the day room with all the maps and other magical ways the DMLE kept track of what was going on, plus the Muggle televisions, twenty-four hours a day, three-hundred and sixty-five days a year.

"Hello, Gail," Ginny greeted the witch closest to Harry's office. "How are you today?"

"I'm fine, Ginny," the older witch replied. "It has been years since I have had to worry about getting a child ready for Hogwarts. You must be busy, though. I gather you do some of the shopping for Hermione's children as well."

Ginny gave Gail a rueful smile. "A much larger group than I ever though I would be responsible for. Hermione has no patience to go clothes shopping with her daughter! I don't really mind. How are things in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement?"

"It has been a quiet day so far," Gail Wheatley replied, "although we are a little busy getting ready to guard the Hogwarts Express the day after tomorrow. Actually your husband is worried that it is too quiet, but you know Harry. He worries if things are happening, and he worries if things are not happening."

"He feels it is his job to worry," Ginny admitted. "We are meeting for lunch."

Harry's door was open, and Harry arose and met Ginny. "The cafeteria is sending up food for the three of us," Harry told his wife as he handed menus to Ginny and Mitzi. Both filled in their choices. Harry charmed his already filled out menu and the other two into paper airplanes, and the three menus flew down to the cafeteria.

Harry waved his wand, and the room rearranged itself to have a dining height table and chairs for the three beings, and they all sat down to wait for the food.

"Minerva and the staff want all the students to come by train this year, including Albus and Cleo," Harry told Ginny August thirty. "Scorpius is one of the Slytherin prefects this year, and Rose is a Prefect for Gryffindor, so they really need to ride the train."

"Albus and Cleo are not Prefects, though," Ginny reflected.

"Minerva told me that just like I was never a Prefect, because I had too much pressure to do other things, she thinks Albus and Cleo are going to be too busy to be Prefects."

"I can understand that," Ginny replied. "I was not a Prefect, but I was captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team my last year."

"I'm worried about the train trip," Harry told Ginny. "I am going to have our extended family on the train before anyone else boards, and we have strengthened the anti-Apparition spells on the train. The Dementors are angry at our whole family, and I have a bad feeling about the next few years. I know you do not like how often I have been away for a day or two, but I need to stay involved with the International Auror's Association to understand what risks are out there and do my best to keep everyone safe."