\u201cAuror office stands firmly behind their head couple\u201d, Lyra read the headline and smiled. \u201cNow I see why you were late for dinner\u201d, she glowed at Viktor. \u201cThank you for defending us, that was very sweet of you\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was very much my pleasure\u201d, he smiled back.<\/p>\n
It was not just him. His picture was posted prominently at the front page, promising grim consequences to slanderers and traitors, but there were other interviews, with very similar opinions expressed. Normally, Harry would be the head of the Auror department, but since the changes in law that Lyra initiated were in effect, married couples who worked together were considered teams, and as such, the position of the department head was shared between the two of them. This, in effect, doubled the performance of the office and produced such stellar results that everybody kept asking why nobody thought of it before.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf I accepted half the drinks the guys at the office offered to buy me, they\u2019d have to bring me home in a wheelbarrow\u201d, he laughed. \u201cAs it turns out, they already considered transfiguring Ron into a toad, but they concluded this was even better\u201d.<\/p>\n
The door bell rang, and she closed her eyes briefly. \u201cKreacher.\u201d The elf apparated with a crack. \u201cYes, Young Mistress?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cArthur Weasley is at the door. Please let him in\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou have to teach me how to do that\u201d, Viktor looked at her pleadingly.<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course\u201d, she smiled.<\/p>\n
\u201cOh, there you are\u201d, Arthur greeted them, and looked around. \u201cI like what you did with the place. You kept the tradition and removed the dark stuff. Very cozy\u201d, he nodded approvingly.<\/p>\n
\u201cHello Arthur\u201d, Lyra smiled and approached to greet him. \u201cIt\u2019s nice to see you\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have to apologise for Ron\u2019s idiocy\u201d, he looked at her sheepishly. \u201cIt was an incredibly nasty thing for him to do, and I honestly don\u2019t even recognize him any more, how dark he\u2019s become. Ginny was so annoyed with him that she threatened to leave the house, and when he started pointing nasty insults at her, Molly and I threw him out of the house\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cI heard some of it from aunt Andromeda\u201d, Lyra confirmed. \u201cIt\u2019s about time he faced some consequences for his actions. He betrayed Harry multiple times before, and broke Hermione\u2019s heart more than once, and some comeuppance was long overdue\u201d, she nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe tried to move in with George, but George read the article and threatened to spray him with an instant pox powder from his store\u201d, Arthur laughed. \u201cI hear his attempts in other places didn\u2019t go much better\u201d. His eyes fell to Lyra\u2019s forearm and he gasped. \u201cThe Dark Mark isn\u2019t there. Not even the faint scar that was left on others. It\u2019s like it didn\u2019t exist at all\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cSomebody finally noticed\u201d, Lyra smiled. \u201cI had to hide my forearms for the last month in the Manor. It vanished when I gave my wand to Harry and surrendered my only protection. Something changed \u2013 I think I felt Dumbledore\u2019s presence and heard a sentence in my mind that I\u2019m the Mistress of Fear now, and I didn\u2019t know that the Dark Mark was gone until I had a shower that evening and looked. I think it had something to do with the Dark Mark being based on fear, and since fear could no longer command me\u2026\u201d, she shrugged. \u201cHad anyone noticed, I would have been in trouble, but fortunately, it was early enough in the year and I could pull off long sleeves.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m going to kill Ron\u201d, Arthur whispered.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou should take a number, because there seems to be a line\u201d, Viktor grinned. \u201cHalf the country wants to curse him, and the other half didn\u2019t read the Daily Prophet\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cI wonder if he\u2019ll learn to feed himself now, or just crawl under some rock, be miserable and starve\u201d, Lyra mused.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s his problem now\u201d, Arthur was firm. \u201cHe already had a job in the Auror department, immediately after the war, while you were back to school, but he quit after six months because he didn\u2019t like the actual work and responsibility. Molly and I didn\u2019t say anything but we weren\u2019t thrilled either. Now that he made enemies of you and Harry, not to mention the rest of the office, I don\u2019t suppose he\u2019ll be welcome there either.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOh, it would be quite easy for him to find work with his abilities. He would merely have to grow up and face responsibility\u201d, she nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen that happens, we\u2019ll have to check hell for snowballs\u201d, Viktor laughed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cAuror office stands firmly behind their head couple\u201d, Lyra read the headline and smiled. \u201cNow I see why you were late for dinner\u201d, she glowed at Viktor. \u201cThank you for defending us, that was very sweet of you\u201d. \u201cIt was … Continue reading