Albus was nodding. "I understand, Molly. I truly do, yet it is the case that Ginevra has been Sorted and become a student of Hogwarts." The old mage caught sight of the flour still on Molly's hands as the housewife wrung them desperately and he broke into a wide smile. "I believe I have an answer, however. For some time this institution has sorely lacked one of the most practical, eminently valuable lessons on everyday spells. Would you be willing, Molly, to join us as an instructor teaching an elective on Household Magic? I can assure you your salary would be generous, probably surpassing Arthur's, and I can envision myself giving you a few months in advance to pay off your debts and acquire scholarly materials for young Ginny. What do you have to say?"
Mrs. Weasley had gone from severely distressed to relief to disbelief, but had stopped wringing her hands. "Do you really mean it, Albus?" At his kind nod, she considered, "Me, a... a teacher? Oh, I don't know what to say. I never thought... Are you sure I can teach them anything?"
Dumbledore rose from his desk, beaming proudly, and came walking around it to pat Molly on the back reassuringly. "My dear former student, they are only children. No one I know is better qualified to deal with a gaggle of them. You've done a fine job on your own little flock, but now they are leaving the nest perhaps it is best for you to have something to do now that they are no longer going to be underfoot. I should say you'll make a fine teacher, and you know the subject matter better than I do myself, better than anyone else I know. I'm sure it would be a great benefit to future generations of young witches and wizards if you would pass that store of knowledge on."
Mrs. Weasley was, by now, happily flustered. "Well, Albus, if you think so. And it would be a great help to have the extra income. Why, I could even keep an eye on them while they are here at school! Fred and George get into so much mischief, you see, well you'd know that as well as anyone, I suppose. But it would reassure me to see them more often. Yes, Albus, I'll take the post!"
"Excellent, excellent." Dumbledore nodded gladly, going back to scratch some writing on a parchment with a quill. "I believe that I shall allow the first week for you to get coursework and textbooks selected. Meanwhile I will ask Minerva to see to it that signups are made available to the students in their common rooms so that you'll have someone to teach, and to subtly encourage attendance so you do not fall below other, more established electives in your course sizes."
There came a knock at the door and Minerva McGonagall entered without being asked, looking flustered. "Albus... Oh, hello Molly I'm glad you're here this concerns you too. I don't know if Albus told you but your son Percy just got resorted from Gryffindor to Slytherin."
From Molly's sputtering in shock she obviously hadn't been told.
Minerva sat down heavily in a chair. "It's devastated the boy, Molly. He can't be allowed to remain a Gryffindor Prefect in Slytherin! And the Slytherin Prefects are already chosen long ago, so unless one of those does something to lose a badge he's lost his special status."
"How, why did he choose to get resorted?" Molly stumbled out, falling into a chair herself.
Minerva shook her head. "All he did was *touch* the Sorting Hat, Molly! Something must have really changed in that boy for him to be so different from the little Gryffindor we got years ago. Honestly, I wonder why I didn't see his naked ambition before! He was at least twice as upset over losing his prefect status as he was over no longer being a Gryffindor! If he were to return to my House this instant I don't know that I could trust him with a badge. I think I'd give it instead to that Tofu fellow."
Molly's face set itself in stern, motherly disapproval.
"You should probably do so, Minerva." Albus moved to pour them all some tea. "As it stands your House is missing one of its prefects. Another should be appointed. Now that all that is taken care of, we have rather a long night together as there is a great deal to discuss, I'm afraid. Minerva, Molly has just been hired to teach a new elective course at Hogwarts. She is to be our Housekeeping Magic Professor."
McGonagall's face transformed to joy and she hugged the young woman. "Oh, Molly! Congratulations! Welcome to our staff!"
"Now then," Dumbledore continued. "We should probably inform our new teacher what her career entails, and how best she should prepare for those duties. Something that is bound to take all night and well into the morning, I'm afraid. You do not have the usual summer period to build up to this, my dear."
Above them on a shelf, unnoticed, the Sorting Hat softly hiccuped in its sleep, sending out a small spray of soap bubbles.
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(Posted Sat, 06 Aug 2005 07:41)
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