Making Mistakes

little_bird

Story Summary:
The events leading to the birth of Albus Severus Potter.

Chapter 28 - Endings and Beginnings

Posted:
05/09/2009
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Harry walked back into the kitchen of the house with a sigh. He couldn't wait for MLE to come collect Skeeter, for Shacklebolt to leave, and to finally have the house to himself. There was Muggle money in his knapsack. Maybe he could get some takeaway and have a long, hot soak in the bathtub. He knew the trainees wouldn't be back for hours, so he could stay in the bath until he turned wrinkly and then some.

He noticed Skeeter was slumped against her binds. 'Stunned her?'

Shacklebolt nodded. 'She kept eyeing my bum,' he said with a shudder.

'Can't blame you'

Shacklebolt indicated Skeeter. 'As soon as they take her away, you and I need to talk.'

Harry wrinkled his nose. 'About?'

'It's nothing serious.' Shacklebolt waved off Harry's obvious anxiety. 'Just something I'll need you to think about while you're on suspension. Which, by the way, will start effective the moment you put the final report for this on my desk.'

'Trust me; it'll be on your desk as soon as I can get it written.'

Multiple pops in the back garden made Harry turn his head and look out the window. Six Hit Wizards had just Apparated into the garden, then filed into the kitchen. The leader, who had taken Flanagan to Azkaban, was with this group. 'Och. I see ye've got another 'en for Azkaban, then.'

'Yeah. She's got anti-Apparition and anti-Transfiguration jinxes on her.' Harry rubbed at the knots in the back of his neck.

'Why the Transfiguration jinx?' called out one of the wizards.

'She's an unregistered Animagus. Make sure you put a strong one on her cell.' Harry flicked his wand at Skeeter, and the ropes binding her to the chair disappeared. One of the Hit Wizards grasped her elbow, hauling her upright. Skeeter's head flopped back, exposing her face to the Hit Wizards.

'Ravenclaw's bleeding knockers!' exclaimed one of the wizards. 'It's bleeding Rita Skeeter!' he gasped.

'Yer powers o' observation kill me,' the leader said dryly. 'Ye'll hae ta forgive tha wee lad,' he told Harry and Shacklebolt. 'He's new.' He reached over and cuffed the rather large young man on the back of his head. 'Try an' keep a decent tongue in yer mouth, ye great muckle fool.'

Two Hit Wizards carted Skeeter out to the back, while Shacklebolt rummaged for a bit of rubbish to use as a Portkey. They milled around the back garden for a few minutes while Shacklebolt, Harry, and the lead Hit Wizard conferred briefly. The leader carried an old issue of the Prophet out to the others. 'All righ' then,' he called. 'We'll be leavin' in a few, so put a finger on tha paper, aye?' He glanced at Harry over his shoulder. 'Good job, lad.'

Harry nodded. 'Thanks,' he replied, as the group disappeared in a whirl of color. He turned to Shacklebolt. 'All right, what did you want to talk about?'

Shacklebolt jabbed his wand at the refrigerator in the kitchen, and two bottles of butterbeer flew out and landed neatly in their hands. 'Have a seat,' he said to Harry, uncorking his own bottle. He took a long drink and dropped to the low wall. 'So Gibson's retiring next year,' he said nonchalantly.

'I heard,' Harry said shrugging.

'I want you to take her place.'

Harry spewed a mouthful of butterbeer over his boots. Gaping at Shacklebolt, dripping butterbeer, he choked, 'What?'

Smiling, Shacklebolt sipped his butterbeer. 'I want you to be the new Head Auror.'

'B-b-b-but I'm not old enough!'

'You've been an Auror for how long now? Eight years? The others don't have a problem working with you, or even taking orders from you. Even Aurors who were part of the department before you came on.'

'You're mad,' Harry muttered, shaking his head. 'You're bloody mad.'

'I was planning on waiting until the end of the year to bring it up, but you handled this so beautifully. It was a good idea to use trainees from the beginning. They're all going to be better Aurors for it.' Shacklebolt stretched his feet out in front of him.

'I was just trying to use hands-on training.' Harry took a long pull from his bottle, wiping his mouth with the sleeve of his jumper. 'There's others in the department who've been there longer who could be Head.'

'True. But none of them are you.'

'Don't go there, Kingsley,' growled Harry. 'No special treatment.'

'I just meant that none of the others approach things the way you do. You collaborate, not just delegate. You spent just as much time out there as the trainees. You organized everything about this and you kept your personal feelings out of it as much as possible.' Kingsley coughed. 'Well, except for that one incident with Flanagan... But totally understandable.'

'I don't know, Kingsley.'

'You needn't give me an answer right away. Go discuss it with Ginny when you get home. Take your time.'

Harry fiddled with the label on his bottle, peeling it off in strips. 'What would I have to do? If I took the job,' he added hastily.

'Same thing as you did with this one. Organize the investigation. Well, you'd oversee multiple investigations, but not do the field work. Supervise it of course, check up on it. But not be out here the entire time.' Shacklebolt leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. 'Sometimes, if there's more than one department involved, like working with the Obliviators, you'd have to be there to coordinate with their Head. All things considered, it's not really any more work than you do now. You'd still have to keep up with your probation list.'

'Damn, I was hoping I could drop that one off...' Harry took a swig of his drink. He watched the shadows lengthen across the garden. 'Can I think about it?' he asked softly.

'I'd think you were barking if you didn't. It's a huge step.' Shacklebolt finished his butterbeer, and clapped Harry on the back. 'When you and Ginny get a chance to breathe, see how she feels about it. Gibson's not set to retire until next spring, so you've got some time.' Shacklebolt set his empty bottle down on the wall and strolled around the garden. 'But I need to know soon, so I can start handing some of the other duties over to you. Smoother transition for all of you.'

Harry snorted. 'Better the devil you know and all that rubbish?'

'Something like that.' Shacklebolt Summoned the empty bottle and made it into a Portkey. 'Burn that bloody bowler, would you? It's the last one...'

Harry grinned. 'Gladly. If I never see another lime-green bowler...' He took another sip of his butterbeer. 'I'll let you know when I come back to work in August.'

'That's fine. See you in a few days, then.' Shacklebolt disappeared.

Harry upended his bottle and drained the last of the butterbeer. He lobbed it toward the rubbish bin and walked back into the silent house.

*****

Ginny closed the back door behind Molly and Arthur with a relieved sigh. Bill had left about an hour after he arrived, but Molly insisted on cooking dinner, doing the washing up, supervising James' bath, putting James to bed, and making up the cot for Albus. She had even sent Arthur off before dinner to buy groceries, so now the pantry was completely stocked. She leaned her back against the closed door, and looked at Albus in a carrycot on the table. 'Well, it's just you and me.' Albus cooed in response. 'Oh, so you're awake now?' Ginny quickly fixed a cup of tea and dropped into a chair. 'So how do you like the place so far?' Albus had worked one of his hands free from the blanket and opened and closed it a few times. 'That much, eh?' She took a few sips of tea. 'It's generally not this barmy; with Grandmum going to and fro like she was today.' Albus blinked slowly. 'Okay, I'm lying. Sort of. Your dad and James get a little hyper sometimes. Especially when the weather's bad and they're cooped up inside. And then if Teddy's here, all bets are off.' Albus' hand rubbed against his cheek. 'Oh, Teddy is your dad's godson. He's over here lots, but I think you'll like him.'

Ginny finished her tea and picked up the carrycot. She looked down at the baby. 'If you don't mind, I'm going to have a shower. I need to clean up a bit.' Albus yawned widely. 'Right, I can tell it's just too exciting for you.' She slowly went up the stairs. 'I'm just going to take a peek at James. Just to make sure he's sleeping.' Ginny set the carrycot down outside James' door and tiptoed into the dimly lit bedroom. James was sound asleep in his cot. Ginny leaned on the top rail of the cot for a moment, watching him sleep. She bent down and brushed her lips over his sleep-flushed cheek. 'I really have missed you,' she whispered. 'Things are going to be a bit different around here, you know,' she told him, running her hand over his feathery hair. 'Just because we'll have to take extra special care of your baby brother for a while, it doesn't mean we've forgotten about you, sweetie.' Ginny rested her cheek on her folded arms. 'I just hope Daddy comes home soon. I love your grandmum, but having her come by every day is going to make me nutters,' she confessed.

She straightened and went back into the corridor, picking up Albus. 'Okay, I'm going to put you in the cradle for a mo. Don't worry; I won't be more than a few minutes.' She tucked him into the cradle next to the bed, and hurried to the bathroom. As she ducked under the spray and hastily gave herself a sketchy wash, she found herself repeating her wish that Harry would be back soon. At least she could take a shower that lasted more than two minutes. Maybe upwards of five. Chuckling, Ginny turned off the water, and wrapped a towel around her body. She peered into the cradle as she pulled on the nightdress that buttoned up the front.

'Are you hungry?' she asked Albus. 'Think you might want to try?' She lifted him from the cradle and settled against the pillows in the bed. As Albus began nursing, Ginny was struck by how quiet it was in the house. After two weeks of living in a hospital with all its ambient sounds and having at least one other person in the room with her, it was slightly odd for it to just be her and the baby. She looked down at Albus cradled in her arms. The big, empty, insanely quiet house didn't bother her. It was being alone with Albus for the first time that scared her a little.

There were still a million things that could go wrong. Hundreds of "what if" questions ran through her head. What if he stopped breathing and she couldn't get him to breathe again? What if his heartbeat stopped? What if he stopped eating or gaining weight? Albus had come home with a whole host of issues that James hadn't had.

Having done this before didn't necessarily make it easier this time around.

*****

Harry woke up flailing slightly. The scullery was flooded with light that blinded him temporarily. He shoved his glasses on his nose and sat up, looking at his watch. It was ten. Harry didn't remember the last time he'd slept until ten in the morning. He swung his feet to the floor and stood up, opening the door. He was greeted by the sight of all nine trainees sitting at the table. 'It's about bloody time you woke up,' Iain said brightly.

'Because the sooner we do the other house, then this one, the sooner we can all go home.' Brianna handed him a cup of coffee.

'How long have you been up?' Harry asked bewildered. He hadn't heard them come in last night. He had gone to bed before nine.

'What is it? Ten?' Andre said. 'Since eight. We've been ready to go for an hour.'

'If you slept much longer we were going to set off the Deflagraton Deluxe in Benjamin's bag in the back garden.' Kathleen added dryly.

'Funny.' Harry ran his hands through his hair. 'Will it kill you lot to wait for fifteen more minutes?'

Kevin sighed dramatically. 'I don't know. It might.'

Harry disappeared into the scullery for a moment, then came back with a bundle of clothing. 'Give me ten minutes.' He dashed through a shower and came back into the kitchen, his clothes sticking to his still damp skin, hair dripping, slurping the cup of coffee Brianna had handed him.

'You could have taken an extra thirty seconds to dry off,' Iain drawled sardonically.

'Sod off, Iain,' Harry growled, but a smile teased around his mouth. 'The sooner we're done here, the sooner we can go home, right?' One of the trainees Summoned a pair of clean socks and lobbed them at him. 'Can I eat breakfast first?' Another pair of hands shoved a bacon sandwich in his other hand. 'All right, all right, I get the hint.' He gobbled the sandwich down and drank the rest of the coffee, trying to put his socks on one-handed. He grabbed his boots and shoved his feet into them, flicking his wand at the laces. 'All right, let's go.'

They took turns Apparating to the back garden of the house Flanagan and Skeeter had used. When all of the trainees joined Harry in the back, he pointed his wand at the door. 'You're sure there's nothing more sinister up than a Muggle-Repelling charm?'

'Yes,' Kathleen assured him.

'You won't mind if I do another check?' Harry flicked his wand at the door.

'Do we have a choice?' muttered Andre.

'Not really,' Harry shot back. Satisfied that the house was safe, he opened the door and walked inside. He stopped in the doorway that led to the room where the rickety table stood. Piles of dusty magazines littered the floor. Dust motes floated in the air, dancing in the rays of sunshine that streamed through the single window. 'Andre, get some photographs before we box all this up.' Andre pulled a camera from his pocket and began to move about the room and take pictures of the room. 'When he's done, I'll conjure some cartons and we'll put the magazines in them. Use your wands. I don't want you touching anything.' Harry sneezed explosively a few times, as the dust that lay about the room tickled his nose.

'What about the residue from the Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder?' Lucy asked.

'I'll get you a vial, and you can put some of it in there.' Harry made a mental note to go through the joke shop's invoices when he got home to see who had ordered any of it in the last eight months.

'I'm done,' Andre announced.

'Brilliant.' Harry conjured several cartons. 'Don't try to pick up the whole stack at once. Just put a few in at a time.' He waved his wand again, and plucked a small glass vial out of the air, handing it to Lucy. 'Use Accio, but tap the opening of the vial with your wand. Residue ought to go into the vial.'

It didn't take very long until all the magazines had been packed away in the cartons. Harry led the trainees into the back and turned around to look at the house. He lifted his wand and removed the Muggle-Repelling charm. 'Let's go get packed up, eh?' The trainees Disapparated and Harry stood gazing at the back of the house. He could feel a little of the tension that had taken up residence in his shoulders since January vanish. One of his hands curled into a fist and he let himself relive the moment his fist had collided with Flanagan's face. He then pictured once more smashing it into Rita Skeeter's face. Smirking, he thought, -I know I'm not supposed to hit women, but God, it would feel so damn good. He hadn't understood the depth of her animosity toward him when he had her put under house arrest less than a year after the war ended. Nor could he have predicted she would spend the next several years nurturing it. He turned his back to the house. Can't ever let myself underestimate anyone ever again. Closing his eyes, he Disapparated.

*****

'So why does she hate you so much?' Kathleen asked. She was leaning against the doorframe to the scullery, while Harry folded his clothes and shoved them into his knapsack.

'Who? Rita Skeeter?'

'Yes.'

Harry snorted. 'I'm a lousy interview.'

'Seriously?' Kathleen cocked an incredulous eyebrow.

'Partially.' Harry checked the pockets of the knapsack for his spare glasses. 'The first time she interviewed me was when I was fourteen. I was most uncooperative.' He grinned slightly. 'To say the least.' Harry picked up the knapsack and carried it out to the kitchen. 'I tried to avoid her as much as I could after the war. You should have seen the story she wrote about Ron, Hermione, and me.' Harry shook his head. 'She implied that Ron and Hermione were having illicit rendezvous, and Hermione was only out to break my heart.' Kathleen's other eyebrow rose in question. 'No. It wasn't true.'

Harry returned to the scullery and flicked his wand at the camp bed. It folded itself and shrank. Harry tucked it into one of the pockets of the knapsack and began to cast Scouring charms around the scullery. He looked at Kathleen over his shoulder. 'Are you packed?'

'Yes.'

'What about Lucy, Brianna, and Moira?'

'Yes.'

'Your room cleaned?'

'Yes,' Moira chimed in. 'We're just waiting for the boys.'

'Has anyone cleaned the bathroom yet?' Brianna craned her head around the door into the kitchen.

'I did it already,' Iain said, dumping his bag on the kitchen floor. 'Somebody needs to go do the sitting room.'

'Is your wand broken?' retorted Brianna.

'Seriously. You two just need to get it over with and shag later.' Harry closed the scullery door. He looked at the two trainees, who were blushing furiously. 'I could make it an order,' he said lightly.

'Minor abuse of power,' commented Andre, dropping his bag next to Iain's. 'But if it'll get those two to stop bickering, I'm all for it.'

'Sod off...' muttered Iain, flushing a shade of red that Harry thought wouldn't be out of place on a Weasley.

'Somebody just go put a few charms on the bloody sitting room,' sighed Kathleen.

Harry motioned the interns to move with a hand. 'Stand aside,' he said. 'Scourgify maximus,' he murmured, pointing his wand through the open door. A bright blue jet of light shot out of the tip of his wand into the sitting room. He looked at the astonished trainees with a shrug. 'You learn how to do that quickly enough when your wife's been gone for a week, and you descended into levels of slovenliness that you haven't seen since you were fifteen, and she's due home in less than ten minutes.' He bent to pick up his knapsack. 'Not unless you want to sleep on the sofa for a week.'

He went out into the garden, waiting until all the trainees were with him. 'All right. Bree, Kevin, think of this as your final exam. Take down all the protective charms on the house. And the Anti-Apparition jinxes on the inside.' He gestured to the back door, and the two third-year trainees gulped a little, and went inside.

Harry perched on the edge of the low wall, crossing his arms over his chest. In a few minutes they came out of the house, and stood shoulder-to-shoulder as they removed the last protective charms from the house. Turning as one, the looked at Harry expectantly and he waved his wand at the house. If anything was left up, the house would glow softly.

Nothing happened.

'Good job.' Harry stood up, retrieving his knapsack from the ground. 'Accio,' he murmured, and his empty butterbeer bottle from last night flew into his hand. He tapped it with his wand. 'Portus. Get a finger on it. We're going to the training room.' A few seconds later, Harry felt the sickening jerk behind his navel and then they were standing in the trainees' room on Level Two of the Ministry, jostling each other to stay upright. 'Eric, Benjamin, just put those cartons on the table. I'll take care of them in a bit.' He looked at the tired faces of his trainees and gave them a smile. 'You all did a brilliant job. Go home.' He turned to leave the room and go to his office. 'And take the next week off,' he added over his shoulder.

'Harry?' Brianna's voice stopped him. 'Thanks... For not giving up on us.'

Harry cleared his throat. 'Thank you. For not giving up on me.' He was startled when Brianna gave him a brief hug. Harry, who kept most people at arm's length, other than the Weasleys, weakly patted her on the back. Lucy, Moira, and Kathleen gave him warm smiles and shook his hand. Iain, Andre, Eric, Kevin, and Benjamin each gave him what he thought of as the male substitute for emotive displays: the slap on the shoulder, as they gave him a brief handshake. They filed down the corridor to the lifts, chatting quietly. Harry blew out a long breath and shook his head.

He went down the corridor and unlocked his office. Harry pushed the door open and felt a little more of the tension leave his shoulders, as he went back down to the trainees' room. He pointed his wand at the cartons. 'Wingardium leviosa.' They rose in the air and Harry guided them out of the room, and into his office. He set them down neatly in a corner of the office. Shacklebolt could come get them whenever he wanted, but Harry knew he wouldn't start anything on Flanagan or Skeeter's trials until Harry's suspension was over. Sitting at his desk, he flicked his wand at the open door. 'Accio knapsack.' It flew into his hands, and he set it down on the floor next to his desk.

Harry pulled his thick notebook out of the knapsack, and began the long process of writing his final report to Shacklebolt.

Nearly seven hours later, Harry shook the cramp from his hand. He supposed he could have used a quill that would write down what he said, but Harry supposed he still had deep-seated prejudices against things like that. He preferred to write everything down manually. It was a guarantee that nothing would be put down in a way he didn't intend. He had even added the trip he took four hours ago to Weasleys' Wizarding Wheezes to go through the invoices from the last year. They hadn't sold Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder to anyone in over a year. Harry also had added that it was perfectly legal for him to search the invoices on his own, without proper Ministry paperwork in triplicate, as he was a part-owner of the shop. Harry sealed the horribly long scroll of parchment and tucked the notebook back into his bag. He swung the bag over his shoulder and picked up the parchment.

After he dropped the scroll off on Shacklebolt's desk, Harry went to the lifts and jabbed the button for the Atrium. It was after ten, and he couldn't wait to see Ginny. He lifted his right wrist, and examined the bracelet. St. Mungo's, then, he told himself. He trudged toward an Apparition point and turned, reappearing outside the entrance of the hospital.

Harry got through the window, and slipped down the hidden corridor to the maternity/neonatal wing. His pace quickened with anticipation as he slipped through the double doors and went down the corridor. 'Ginny, I'm... Home...' died on his lips as he took in the unoccupied room. He glanced at the number plate next to the door. It was the correct room, but Ginny's name wasn't in the card holder. Turning his head, Harry took a quick look at the room where Albus had been. His name was no longer in the card holder, either. Confused, Harry pelted down to the receptionist's desk. 'Where's Ginny Potter? And Albus Potter?' he demanded.

The witch glanced up at Harry. 'And you are...?'

'Her husband,' Harry said impatiently.

She took out Ginny's file and opened it. 'She went home yesterday. Both she and Albus were discharged.'

'Thank you,' Harry breathed. He darted to the Apparition point and went to the Burrow.

Harry opened the gate to the back garden, and stood in the darkness. Most of the house was dark and still, but a light glowed dimly in the kitchen. Harry took a few steps closer. Molly was quietly preparing a cup of tea. Harry's feet took him automatically to the back door, and his hand pulled it open. Molly turned in surprise as the door creaked softly. 'Harry!' she gasped. She wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him tightly. 'Are you home for good?' she asked worriedly.

'Yeah.' Harry returned the embrace.

'Are you hungry, dear?'

Harry started to say no, but his stomach growled. 'Uh, I guess I am,' he replied sheepishly.

'Sit yourself down then.' Molly was already flicking her wand around making sandwiches and soup appear on the table. Harry hungrily wolfed a sandwich down before he could protest at the amount of food. 'Stay right there, dear.' Molly hurried out of the kitchen and up the stairs. She burst into her bedroom, and shook Arthur awake. 'Arthur, Arthur, wake up, Harry's home!'

'Tha's good,' Arthur mumbled, still half-asleep.

Neither of them wondered why Harry was here, instead of his and Ginny's house in Godric's Hollow.

Harry had just started on his second bowl of soup when Molly and Arthur came into the kitchen. 'I thought I'd sleep in Percy's room tonight, if that's all right. Let Ginny get some sleep,' he told them.

'Why would you want to sleep in Percy's room?' Arthur asked.

'Well, I went by the hospital and they said Ginny and Albus had been discharged, and it's a bit late, so I thought I'd just sleep elsewhere tonight. I don't want to wake her up.'

Molly and Arthur exchanged looks. 'She's not here, dear.'

Harry looked up. 'Where is she?'

'At your house,' Arthur said.

Harry's mouth dropped open, and he pushed the chair away from the table, getting up so quickly, it fell to the floor. Without saying another word, he snatched up his knapsack and bolted out the door for the garden gate.