Albus Potter, Classmates and Elves

Ch 10 Excrement

A little barnyard humor.

*

On November thirty, Friday, Harry walked to his office. Because of all the changes that Harry and others had been making to the Ministry, it was time for some major remodeling. Harry and his father-in-law's jobs were the same, but the new offices were going to make managing the Department of Magical Law Enforcement easier.

Harry nodded to Carol, Arthur Weasley's administrative assistant. She was an older Department of Magical Law Enforcement employee who had been on the run during the reign of Tom Riddle because she was born to Muggle parents. She handled administrative tasks, but was not part of the command structure. The larger office of the head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, Arthur Weasley, was directly ahead, to the left of his office. Since Magi could live as much as twice as long as Muggles, they usually did not retire until they were well past ninety, and Arthur was planning on staying on as head for a number of years.

On the right was the office of Dennis Creevey. Dennis was formally the Assistant Head Auror, although he also functioned as the assistant head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. Harry thought as he saw Dennis's office that formal titles did not really convey the informal power structure. Dennis was as much his and Arthur's assistant and heir apparent as he could be, and wielded far more power than many people realized. Dennis and the department heads, both of the Aurors and of the other departments, really ran the Department of Magical Law Enforcement on a day to day basis, Harry and Arthur were involved in every major decision, but more of their focus was on affairs external to the department. Harry, of course, had duties in Switzerland and worldwide as well.

Harry's office was as big as that of his father-in-law, with far more Muggle and Magical/Muggle technology than that of Arthur. Hermione had explained formal and informal hierarchies shortly after they started at the Ministry. Harry did not need nor want a bigger title or office. He was one of the most powerful and influential Magi in the world, something he accepted but did not lust after. Being Head Auror, with the excellent staff that he and his father-in-law had surrounded themselves with, was working well.

There were several conference rooms on the outside wall as well. Right outside of Harry and Dennis's office were the desks of several administrative assistants, including one for Dennis's wife Mary Lou. Someone staffed one of these desks twenty-four hours a day, three-hundred sixty-five days a year.

Cho Chang, as one of the shift supervisors, sat at a cubical across the hallway from the offices, where she and the other shift supervisors could see into all of the offices unless the windows were darkened. Harry saw her standing at the doorway to her office as he approached his new office. "Hello, Cho," Harry chimed. "Here because of third shift duties, or training? I don't think there is a raid being planned."

"I'm covering for one of the weekend Magi, Harry," Cho answered. "I have a training exercise scheduled for next week, but I'm going to take it easy the rest of this week."

"Your third shift staff will actually go a day or two without seeing you, at least for a few minutes?" Harry kidded. "You don't have to prove yourself."

Cho sighed. "I guess I'm still a Ravenclaw trying to get excellent marks."

Harry and Cho found it easier to exchange a little friendly banter since Ginny and Cho had made peace just before the twentieth anniversary of The Battle of Hogwarts.

Harry spent the morning rearranged his new office until he was satisfied, and then looked at the daily reports. The most pressing issue was also the most vexing, the basilisk at Hogwarts. He lunched with some of the staff, and then announced, "I am going over to Angelina's Angel Armor to arrange for glasses for the Hogwarts students, and for a day to treat glasses of students that wear them."