Harry Potter and the Stitch in Time

Chapter 41

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Chapter 41

Charlus's holiday was cut short as he was called back to the school for the emergency job of appointing a new head. The professors were all called into a meeting with the governors, with the agenda being suggesting people to take up the job. When Charlus walked into the staffroom there was predictably some grumbling. Mostly it was about timing, like "could have bloody waited until the visitors left. This makes the school look bad." And "couldn't we have at least gotten a courtesy warning? I had to cancel plans to be here." Charlus naturally ignored them and took the chair that had become his in his time since Christmas.

As soon as the last of the governors arrived, the meeting started. Professor McGonagall was the name put forward by most of the professors, but before they could even get to the point where anyone got to voice opposition to that idea Minerva herself shot down the idea. "I'm not yet ready for that responsibility. If you would have asked me at the start of the year, I would have taken the job without a second thought. Yet this last year has me re-evaluating a lot of my decisions, chief among them how ready I was to follow Albus's word with everything that was going on. I would like to keep my current post, and I would very much like to remain in consideration for the job in the future. However, for now I must decline."

Charlus was quite surprised by Minerva's decision. Nothing she had said to him made him suspect that this would have been her decision. In truth he was relieved that he didn't have to speak out against her having the job, he liked Minerva even if he didn't feel she was right for the job. Other names were not as widely supported. Someone suggested Griselda Marchbanks, but she was older even than Dumbledore, and while her mind was as sharp as it ever was, the daily grind of administering a place like Hogwarts would be too taxing physically. Another suggested Slughorn, as a former professor and Head of House.

Minerva actually put Charlus's name forward, but he declined that right away. He was a good Potioneer and he was a fair hand at teaching, after having had a few apprentices to practise on over the years, but he was not an administrator. However, when he turned down the post he decided it was the best opportunity to give his own pitch. "... so that's why I must decline. But I think we are considering this wrong. We keep looking for someone with experience teaching, yet the position of the head of the school is not a teaching one, it's an administrator. We don't need someone who knows how to encourage students to do their homework or who knows the best way to keep a class's attention, we already have those. What we need is someone who can look after the school's financial needs, stretch every Galleon as far as it will go so that we can get as much as we can for the students. Someone who can see if the skills being taught are actually ones people need in their lives and in their workplaces. With all of that in mind, I suggest we offer the position to..."

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The trip back to Hogwarts on the Express was a little weird for the trio, as they had two Aurors in the compartment with them. One insisted on sitting next to the door while the other next to the window. They were going to stay with at least Harry and Hermione until they got to the castle. Technically Ron wasn't under their protection and was free to go do whatever he wanted, but given how close he was to Harry and Hermione it was strongly recommended that he stayed with them.