A few weeks earlier, Alice Mc.Garden had been called to the Ministry of Magic. The young woman had very little desire to go there, yet when the Floo powder dissipated, a heavy feeling took hold of her heart. The grandeur of the place, its enormous columns, its tiles so clean that she could see her reflection in them—all of this had been missed; she would not have thought that the incessant noise of people coming and going would evoke such a sense of nostalgia…
She crossed the vast reception hall and introduced herself at the counter, where she was directed. Although she didn’t need help navigating the labyrinth, knowing where the person she was supposed to meet was located was a good starting point, and according to the hostess, she was right to inquire since the man was not in his office but in a completely different department at that moment. She greeted the hostess and headed towards where she would find him.
She traversed a few corridors, recalling her first times at the Ministry when she had gotten lost and had to ask for help to find her way. All those times when her dear boss had reprimanded her for her incessant tardiness. Over time, the place had become almost familiar to her; she wouldn’t say she could navigate it blindfolded, but her instincts had memorized the various paths and guided her quite well up to this point.
Suddenly, she began to slow down. Had these corridors always been so long? No, obviously nothing had changed; everything was identical; it was she who was… weaker. Perhaps in deciding to come despite Poppy Pomfrey's warnings, she had forgotten that her body was nothing like it had been before the incident. Alice was breathless and paused for a moment, leaning against a wall. Two months of rest had not been enough—not even for a simple visit to the Ministry. But she did not want to dwell on that; she calmed her breathing, composed herself, and resumed her path.
A few intersections later, she finally came face to face with him. A man of average height, with a rather square face and graying hair. The man she encountered was none other than Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic himself. As Alice approached, she offered him a smile that was meant to be friendly, but it faded slightly when she realized that the minister was accompanied. Beside him stood Lucius Malfoy, a high-ranking official at the Ministry, standing tall and proud with his back to her. She had no trouble recognizing him, as his long blond hair was a characteristic feature of his appearance.
"Ah, Alice Mc.Garden!" said the minister as he saw her approach. "I’m sorry for having hounded you for so long to secure a meeting with you; I am now obliged to postpone our encounter…"
A little further down the maze of corridors, Arthur Weasley, accompanied by Harry Potter, was heading toward the courtroom. They crossed paths with the three individuals but did not linger. Despite the speed of their passage and the distance that separated them, Harry imprinted the moment in his mind and remained particularly struck by this woman he did not know, or at least by her eyes. Eyes of such a unique gray that they evoked a strange feeling...
Lucius Malfoy turned slowly to face the young woman, and one could sense a tension building within him at the sight of her. Lucius Malfoy, the honorable head of the Malfoy family, seemed somewhat unsettled and inclined toward animosity at this encounter.
“Mc.Garden…” greeted the head of the family “politely.” “I have heard of your return among the… living. It seems difficult to be rid of you.”
“Good day, Minister, Mr. Malfoy.” She nodded to each of them. “I am sorry to learn that you wish to postpone your meeting…” She then addressed Lucius Malfoy in a more haughty tone. “Let’s just say I’m doing my best to be… tenacious.”
The minister seemed to pay no attention to the cold exchange that had just occurred between the two interlocutors and resumed speaking.
“My apologies once again, Madam Mc.Garden. I had my mind occupied with recent matters of great importance, to the point that I forgot to have you informed of the rescheduling of our meeting…” He seemed genuinely troubled by the inconvenience caused.
“It happens; no need to worry about it.”
“Oh, but perhaps we have a few minutes?” He glanced at his watch and nodded. “Yes, yes, that should be enough. Oh, excuse my frankness in advance, Alice; may I call you Alice?” He didn’t wait for her response and immediately continued. “I wanted to make you a proposal that I hope you will accept. Would you like to resume your position as an Auror? I understand that after your… unfortunate accident, it might be difficult for you to consider returning to such a job immediately… But I would like to have you by my side in my inner circle. You see, you did excellent work with my predecessor, Millicent Bagnold…”
A wave of discomfort washed over Alice. Of course, she suspected that her summons had a specific purpose, but she thought it would involve questions or even an interrogation… not a request for reemployment, especially not so soon. She did not let her unease show and replied with a rather calm voice.
“I’m sincerely sorry, Mr. Minister, but I must decline your offer… Another position has already been proposed to me, and it seems to match my current abilities…”
“Another offer? Who has gotten ahead of me?”
Alice felt an unpleasant sensation, but she couldn’t pinpoint what it was at that moment.
“Well, Albus Dumbledore has offered me a teaching position at Hogwarts…”
“Won’t your abilities be stifled there?” he said, somewhat dismayed.
“With all due respect, I don’t think I deserve such attention from you, Mr. Minister, and as I said, this position better suits what I am capable of doing at the moment… Of course, nothing says this will last forever… But for now, I believe a calmer job will suit me perfectly.”
Fudge nodded, unable to add anything since the discussion didn’t seem open. He regained his composure and, with a bit more energy, added, “That’s quite unfortunate for me, but I wish you a good recovery, and I’m sure that being a professor is a job that will suit you perfectly, Miss! I hope that when the hectic life of an Auror is missed too much, you will know where to turn!” He glanced at his watch and suddenly hurried off, clearly aware that his time was up. “Good heavens, I’m going to be late for the hearing… We’ll continue our discussion later, Malfoy! Madam Mc.Garden…” He waved goodbye and left.
The Minister disappeared around a corner, leaving Malfoy and Mc.Garden alone. Or at least it would have been a tête-à-tête if Lucius Malfoy hadn’t hurried off. That wasn’t such a bad thing, Alice thought, even though she noted a significant lack of politeness on his part, surprising for a Malfoy.
She left as well; this outing had greatly exhausted her, both physically and mentally. All she could think about was returning to the comfort of her bed.
---
A few weeks later, Alice Mc.Garden stood before a crowd of students and thus began her debut as a professor at Hogwarts. This raised numerous questions in young Potter.
“No idea, well… now that you mention it… She was hanging out with Fudge and Senior Malfoy…” he added.
“In any case…” Ron began, his mouth now half-full. “She’s prettier and seems nicer than the other one…”
“Judging people by their appearance is wrong, Ron… What if she’s as strict as the other one?” Hermione scolded.
“Killjoy…” the redhead shot back.
“And you’re so superficial,” she retorted.
The two boys burst into laughter, while Hermione looked utterly dismayed by the mentality of her two friends. They were so absorbed in their lighthearted banter that they didn’t notice they were now being watched by the witch they had just made the subject of their conversation.