It certainly wasn’t the time or the place to be discussing the Ministry. The wizarding world had once again found itself at the point where it was hard to know who to trust. The person sitting next to you could be a former Death Eater, could be a member of Dimitte like Hermione was, or it could be a man or a woman that was in Durant’s pocket. She didn’t doubt that he wanted to know what people were saying about him, and she really didn’t doubt that he was having some people that he deemed risks being followed. Obviously that was the case for Death Eaters, but she wouldn’t be surprised if Harry was being trailed as well, or McGonagall when she was out of the castle. For all Hermione knew, she was being followed. The thought was certainly possible, and if had been one thing that Moody had taught her, it was constant vigilance. He would more than likely be glaring at them at the fact that they had even lightly discussed the Minister in public. Usually Hermione had more forethought than to do that, but she had found herself distracted by her thoughts of what he could be up to next. She was glad to see that Parvati was on the same page where that was concerned, but it was a conversation that needed to be dropped for the time-being. It was the type of conversation really only suited for private. Hermione shrugged lightly, taking a sip of her wine as she kept herself from looking around, not wanting to attract more suspicion. “Ah, well. He was put to the position for a reason, I’m sure he’ll do what is best,” she said, offhandedly, which was obviously the exact opposite of the truth. He really only seemed to do what was best for himself and his own agenda, after all.

Hermione welcomed the conversation change, however small, because it was better for both of them to keep to topics such as this. “Manchester. What’s going on up there that warrants a visit?” She asked, curiously, knowing that the spirit division did occasionally have to go on sight, obviously, as did many members of the respective divisions for magical creatures. Hermione certainly did miss her work in the beast division, and found herself quite curious what Parvati had been doing. What she had learned from working in the Muggle Liaison office was that muggles saw a lot more than anyone in the wizarding world thought, they just really didn’t think much of it. They explained it away without a second thought, which worked out well, but there was always a point where it would get too far. “So far it’s been all right, so here’s hoping it stays that way,” she replied, taking a sip of her wine.

It seemed the kids coming home for Hogwarts always happened the same way. Things would be incredibly quite for nearly a week as they appreciated school being over and finally being able to relax. Then, suddenly, all hell would absolutely break loose. Normally this coincided with the first trip over to the Burrow to have a large dinner, so that was something else she could blame on George. “I am—until the first time I have to clear out a portable swamp from the entryway, then I’ll want them right back at Hogwarts,” she joked. She had made it clear to Liam and Deacon, as well as George, that she would rather them use their WWW wares at home than at school. They certainly took advantage of that… and then also used them at school, irritatingly enough. Those products were going to be the death of her. She smiled further at the comparison, knowing that it was very likely that her daughter was just like her and avoided getting caught in her rule-breaking. “If she is, then she’s smarter than me,” she stated, laughing. Hermione certainly didn’t doubt that as a possibility.

It was becoming slightly more and riskier as the they continued to speak about the minister in public, Parvati knew that, she had worked at the ministry long enough to know exactly how they operated and how they at times like to fool the wider magical society. She was a pureblood and had lived in the magical world all her life, she had seen so many changes in the ministry that she had lost count. She of course realised that they should probably cease speaking about Durant, they didn’t know if he had his people out in the pubs or wherever listening out for any talk that may be taking place. But Parvati wouldn’t put it past the man. The witch snuck a look out of the corner out her eye in the direction Hermione had come from, who knew was passing through the pub at this hour. As Hermione looked around, she focused on the contents of glass. She really hadn't even worked out how Butterbeer was made even after drinking it for so many years. The woman looked back at her friend and nodded solemnly as Hermione spoke. If she was naïve about everything she would have believed those words but she had seen too much and her blood status overall made her more weary.

Looking back at her diary for a second, Parvati shot a the other woman a kind smile. Even if the trip was a shot one, it was a much welcomed break for her from London. “An elderly witch up there believes she has some new occupants in the abandoned house next door and so we’re just heading up there to check it out” there was no register for spirits in the magical society of the UK, like there was with werewolves. But perhaps with minister acting the way he was, that was a good thing. Parvati didn’t go on site often , perhaps three or four times a year but she didn’t mind it, especially with Ernie now swamped at work it kept her occupied enough. She would rather this than going stir crazy. “Hopefully, and do you get out of the office a lot?” the woman asked curiously since she honestly didn’t know. She and Hermione hardly crossed paths these days.

As the school year passed, Parvati missed Anaya more and more. At least this had being her second year, it wasn’t so bad as her first year. There were some days when she would get home, kick off her shoes and actually appreciate how quiet the house was. “The entryway? Well that must be quiet the welcome for your guests” she chuckled as she imaged seeing that as soon as she entered in the door. Thankfully Anaya’s pranks weren't so elaborate, well not at least. Who knew what her daughter would get when she started her third year in September. "We do hear stories from Anaya about the tricks your kids get into, let me tell you that Ernie and I are very impressed” Parvati smirked. Yes, this conversation was a much, much safer topic.

Obviously, working for the beast division and the spirit division were quite different, even if they were in the same department. Being on the same floor, they had all had a good idea of what everyone else was doing, unless it was a more sensitive issue that was kept a bit more private from other offices. So, Hermione did recall a lot of what the spirit division had to do, even vaguely. It had always seemed like interesting work, even if it hadn’t called to her as much as the beast division had. Hermione supposed she could have transferred there after Durant’s cleansing of her office, but the Muggle Liaison Office had been a good fit for her too. There did seem like many divisions of the Ministry that interested her, all seeming as though they could use the help of additional employees—particularly with everything going on. “Sounds like a nice chance to get out of London,” she commented, nodding. That was actually just how she felt about being able to go into Muggle London at times—a break away from madness. Mancaster would be a hell of a lot more affective than stepping through the Leaky Cauldron into the Muggle world. “I do, thankfully. I don’t know how I’d stand being cooped up in the Ministry too long. The change of pace is nice.” Hermione explained. She knew that most people didn’t know what happened in the Muggle Liaison office other than… liaising, obviously, but most of her time was spent acting the part of a Muggle to see what was going on in their world. Particularly if there were any situations were they might have seen or be suspecting anything about the magical world; if that were the case, then she would hand it off to another office to further investigate. All she really had to do in the actual office was paperwork.

Really, the pranking got over the top as far as Liam was concerned, though the fact didn’t surprise her. It didn’t bother her all that much when it was done at the house or the Burrow, it just aggravated her when they brought it to Hogwarts and got in trouble for it. Talking to George about it did absolutely nothing, which meant there was frustratingly little for her to do about it. “Oh, yes, and Liam makes sure to set them up right before we do have guests over,” Hermione told her, shaking her head. Out of all of George’s products, the portable swamps were actually the least irritating; they were a pain to clean up, but they didn’t make annoying noises or blow up, which was an improvement. Though there were a lot of those around Grimmauld Place as well, and even more at the Burrow. One never knew what they were going to walk into there. “They’ve got ingenuity, I’ll give them that,” she agreed. They seemed to come up with the best ways to pull of these ridiculous pranks, taking them to a new level. She had no doubt that George was also getting letters, though of a different kind, explaining just how successfully they had pulled off some new stunt. It was getting to the point that she might just have to start ignoring it, since nothing she said did any good.

Parvati wasn’t sure why still worked for the ministry given the current political climate but she work in one of the departments that had nothing to do with whatever Durant was up to. That worked in her favour and she could concentrate on her work, which she was very thankful for. She had been at the ministry for so long now in the same department that occasionally her parents would ask if she wanted to leave or at least change departments but there was something about the spirit division that kept here there. And with everything the way it was now, that a lot safer for her. With the exception of her husband she had no idea how it was for other purebloods working there. The witch nodded. “Yeah it will be nice, I don’t get to do it very often” she shrugged with a small smile. Thankfully she didn’t have any trips out of London for work during summer, she much rather spend the time with her daughter. However they could always go on a holiday during that time, if her and Ernie could score leave from their jobs that is. “Believe me, it’s not an easy thing do, I sometimes take extended lunch breaks just to survive through it” Parvati laughed because it was true. Thankfully she could always stop Madame Malkins or any of the other shops to see if they had anything to offer. However she had started venturing into Muggle shopping centres more and more too, knowing that they had some pretty interesting things to offer.


She had no idea how it must be for Hermione at home since her kids, the boys especially loved playing pranks so much. Then she wondered how it must be for the teachers at Hogwarts, how would they know if the student was being serious or if it was just another prank. “Really? Well at least he’s trying to give them a memorable welcome” Parvati smirked. Thankfully Anaya had never done something like that so she never had the headache of trying to remove it. Sometimes she did wonder how the twins had even come up with creating such a product, it was ingenious for sure and a pain for most adults to remove. “They seem to do so, have all of them taken up Quidditch then?” she asked Hermione knowing Harry’s past with the sport and what good seeker he had been for Gryffindor. Of course she hadn't seen him in a while either, so she couldn't ask him anyway. She was actually surprised that Anaya hadn't told her much about the school Quidditch competition, it was often talk about pranks, her classes or some tale a girl in her dorm had told her.
"Think I'll need another one"  she said smiling as she looked at her now empty glass. She turned away from Hermione to order another drink from the bartender as he was passing by before she turned her attention back to the witch seated beside her. 

Trips in the Beast Division had happened on occasion, though not very often. While she had been in there, she had worked with werewolves and quite clearly that couldn’t happen on the full moon—as she didn’t work on the Werewolf Capture Unit. Arguing for werewolves’ rights hadn’t exactly been successful, obviously the dissolving of her office had proven that. Hermione nodded in agreement at the trip sounding nice, even if it was for work, Hermione was sure that Parvati would enjoy the brief time away from the craziness of London. “Seems entirely necessary,” Hermione said, laughing, though it was certainly true that lunches would be a good break away from the Ministry. Luckily for Parvati, Hermione doubted that the Minister would be interfering much with the Spirit Division.

“Yes, that’s exactly how he sees it,” she replied, laughing. The excuses for the portable swamp debacles always began with trying to entertain their guests. Obviously the majority of their guests actually didn’t care, since most of them were amused by the WWW products as well. Apparently, she was the only one that wasn’t—or so everyone told her. Although the pranks that her sons pulled were absolutely aggravating, she was glad that Liam had been able to have a normal time at Hogwarts thus far, as well as Adaline. Hopefully the same could be said for Deacon, and for the remaining years that Liam and Adaline both had at the school. Her and Harry’s own years at Hogwarts had been quite eventful, obviously, and she wanted their children to have their fun and get good marks, clearly. Luckily, there was no dark wizard to fight or Triwizard Tournaments, and it seemed that they would be able to get through their schooling unscathed. Assuming the Ministry didn’t try to get involved at the school again. Although she wished that pranks weren’t involved in having a ‘normal’ time, it was very apparent that that was a pipedream. “Liam is on the team, and I believe Adaline and Deacon both plan to try out next year,” she told the woman, before pausing to take a sip of her wine. That was where Adaline did not take after Hermione, since she still couldn’t be convinced to get on a broom. Of course, Deacon was also obsessed with the sport, but as a first year he couldn’t try out, much to his irritation. In fact, there had been quite the situation at the beginning of the year when he had tried to fly around the Headmistress’s office, seeing if she would take notice and put him on the team like she had for his father. Clearly, that hadn’t gone well. Hermione smiled slightly at Parvati’s words, taking a sip of her own drink as the former Gryffindor ordered herself a new one.

The witch looked around noting that as the evening had progressed more and more people had come into the pub. She assumed that most were there to relax and unwind and enjoy a little fun after a hard day’s work. Parvati couldn’t blame them, she was here for the same reason. It seemed that a lot of people flocked to this place after work. Even if they were just going between the magical world and the muggle one they did stop by for a quick drink. For a moment Parvati tried to recall if she had ever eaten at the Leaky Cauldron. She couldn’t remember any time she had. Maybe, instead of eating the ministry café she would stop in here for a change. She may be able to even drag her husband away from his desk long enough so they could actually have lunch together. “Yes very necessary,  however I doubt Ernie sees it that way, the man thinks I shop too much” she smirked. In all honesty most of her shopping during her lunch break was actually of the ‘window shopping’ variety, she had cut down on her shopping drastically from her younger days.


Parvati laughed at Hermione’s response. At least now if she ever went over she knew to possibly expect a portable swamp to greet her. She was glad that Anaya had never gotten such an idea to welcome to guests, at least that she didn’t have to clean up that mess. But it certainly would be an entertaining sight. She was certain that Ernie would possibly even encourage their daughter to pull off a few more pranks at home as she got older, which really Parvati didn’t mind. “That’s great! I’m sure they’ll be great” she smiled at Hermione. She was unsure if Hermione wanted all her kids on the Quidditch team but Parvati got the impression she didn’t mind it too much. “I’m not sure if Anaya will try out, she loves to fly but gets a bit nervous with some of the moves needed in a game” she said. The witch remembered when her daughter first learnt to fly as a child, plenty of tumbles had ensued. Parvati thanked the bartender for her drink and took a small sip of her butterbeer. “So any plans for the summer? going anywhere?” she asked as she set her glass down on the bar.

It wasn’t often that Hermione actually found herself lingering in the Leaky Cauldron, so she was glad that she had run into Parvati. Normally, she really did simply use it for the purpose of going in between the Muggle World and Diagon Alley, which was clearly something that she had to do quite often. It was because of this that she was surprised at how quickly the pub seemed to be filling up, though she did suppose that it was a normal time for everyone to come to get a few drinks. Everyone was getting off work right around now anyhow, and some of the smaller shops in Diagon Alley might even be closing early depending on the amount of business they’d gotten during the day. Regardless, she was enjoying talking to her former dormmate and experiencing the atmosphere that the Leaky Cauldron provided. Maybe she would have to come here more often, as it seemed a good way to unwind from a hectic day, and Merlin knew with everything going on, she could use that. “Well, ‘too much’ really is simply a matter of perspective,” she countered, solemnly, an amused smile on her lips. Hermione didn’t like shopping all that much, though she had gotten used to it over the years to the point that she could actually tolerate it. At Hogwarts, she had really thought that she could get by with just being intelligent, as she was sure that was how it should be; but she did know that first impressions were important as well, and that spanned more than just conversations, clearly.

Hermione had suspected from the beginning that their kids would get the troublemaking gene as well as the interest in Quidditch. Even if they weren’t simply born with it, it was difficult to imagine her children growing up around the Weasleys as well and not pick up Harry’s love of Quidditch and trouble. Well, she supposed Harry didn’t love trouble, he just had a propensity for finding it. Luckily, pranks were far more harmless than the types of trouble they could be getting in. “They get enough practice in,” she replied, taking a sip of her wine. As always, she did not fly, but she didn’t mind watching others do so from time to time. Watching the matches that were put together at the Weasleys were always entertaining, that was for certain. “Some of those moves are incredibly daunting, so that’s entirely understandable.” Hermione agreed, nodding. Sometimes she literally thought that someone was going to barrel into the ground during dives, which was unnerving just to watch on occasion. “No plans as of now, but we might pull something together,” she stated. Their trips did always end up being a bit more spontaneous, surprisingly enough, as it was something she would have hated in the past—not having it planned in advance, but now she rather enjoyed doing it like that. Getting out of England for a bit might be good for all of them with what was going on, but at the same time, she did want to be around in case anything happened that required them to help out. “How about you?”

It wasn’t lost on the witch that running into Hermione this evening had been a completely random occurrence. One that was entirely welcome. She rarely saw her own twin let alone her friends these days. But she figured that everyone was busy with their work and/or their families nowadays. She would soon be busier when her daughter returned home for the summer. It was something which she was very much looking forward to. Looking around she saw that the other patrons of the pub were congregating together in their own groups. Honestly she figured that the Leaky Cauldron would be a popular spot to wind down after what she presumed for most would have been a hectic day. At least if they worked for the ministry it may have been the case. She laughed lightly at Hermione’s comment. “I’ll leave you to convince Ernie of that” Parvati countered. If that were to case she was sure that her husband would argue his point but knowing Hermione she would most likely convince him otherwise. It would be an amusing sight surely. “I’m surprised he hasn't insisted more on coming along with me to make sure I don’t buy out half the shop” the witch added as she bit her lip. Maybe later tonight when she saw him she would put that suggestion forward just to hear what he would say in response.


Quidditch had always been a topic anyone could discuss whether they played the sport or not. Parvati knew that Hermione didn’t like flying, she had observed that during their years at Hogwarts but she knew that her dorm mate had been to the Gryffindor matches. But she assumed that some students had no interest in the sport whatsoever and had never attended one match. That, however was not the case with her daughter. Anaya made it point to balance out her time at school between studies and school events like Quidditch matches. “I’m sure they do, Harry I assume is behind that” she nodded with an amused smile playing on her lips. Given the natural talent that he possessed it, was a natural supposition. “Very true, I still cringe at what the players get up to on the pitch when Ernie and I get out to a game” she commented. Parvati normally cringed at some of the sights she saw with the professional players during a match. She smiled back as Hermione spoke of having no travel plans currently but she supposed that both she and Harry would be busy with whatever the minister was up to. She took a sip of her drink and set down her glass on the counter and shook her head. “No travel plans of yet but if Ernie and I can both score leave off from work we may head to Spain” she shrugged nonchalantly. It was an idea they had discussed many months ago but who knew if would that trip would ever take place or not.

If she took a look around, she would assume that a large majority of the people in here drinking were probably from the Ministry. The tension there and all of the work that had to get done was enough to lead anyone to want to stop by the pub for a drink or two. She was enjoying herself, really, and decided that she definitely needed to stop in here more often after she was done at the Ministry. She would try to convince Harry to do so as well, maybe, but the auror office was a lot busier than her office, so she knew that his hours were a bit harder to work around at the current time. It was understandable, since they were trying to keep everything in line as well as dealing with the ridiculous interrogations that the Minister seemed intent on giving to every pureblood, regardless of their family name. “I’m sure I could figure out some kind of logical argument for that,” Hermione replied, smiling. She did like shopping, for clothes at least, a bit more than she used to, though it still wasn’t how she would choose to spend her time. “Well don’t give him any ideas or he might consider it.” She said, jokingly.

At any given time, Hermione was surrounded by people who loved Quidditch. It didn’t matter if they were at the Burrow, or simply at home, it was a sport that everyone loved. She did enjoy watching it, but let them just talk about it knowing that those conversations could go on forever. “Between Harry, and the Weasleys, yes,” she agreed, before taking a sip of her wine. “It’s practically what they do all summer at the Burrow,” Hermione added, knowing that it was the best place for them all to play the sport. After all, Grimmauld Place didn’t exactly have the yard for such activities, so she was glad that they had somewhere to play all of their never-ending matches. “Exactly—they’ve death wishes, I swear to Merlin.” Hermione was always surprised when someone pulled out of a dive or something without hitting the ground, and it seemed like their moves only got more reckless over the years. It was insane to her, but obviously the professionals knew what they were doing. Now that Parvati had brought it up, Hermione realized that she really should contemplate what their plans were for the summer. They did all enjoy the spontaneity of their trips in the past, but it might be nice to have one down in the books for everyone to look forward to. It was definitely something to consider, at the very least. “Spain is probably quite lovely in the summer,” she acknowledged, though she had never been there before. “Do you know where in Spain you’d head to?” Hermione asked, wondering if they had planned that far into it or if it was just a passing idea.

This evening was going better than she had predicted. It was always nice to run into a friend; it definitely beat being at home by herself and reading over files or checking out what lies that Daily Prophet had decided to spout for that day. Perhaps she would have to make it a point to stop in here regularly, instead of just passing through it on her way to and from work. She often stopped in here on lunch as she had spent many of her teenage years here during the summer with her sister and so this place reminded her of the small place of reprieve they had despite all that went on in the magical world at that time in their lives. She laughed at the other witch’s reply. “Hermione, could you argue that witches and wizards needed some kind of legislation that allowed them to travel with Grindylows through the floo network” Parvati smirked. Yes, okay that was definitely farfetched but it made her point strong that her friend could argue any point given to her. Sher reconsidered her thought of inviting her husband to come out shopping with her but decided against it as Hermione did have a point. “Yes even Hufflepuffs can be surprising at times….” She trailed off.


Taking a sip of drink she nodded as she comprehending what Hermione was saying. She supposed that it was both and more challenging at the same time having to contend with the Weasleys and Harry when it came to Quidditch which undoubtedly most witches and wizards loved at different levels. Maybe she and the family would have to catch a game or two this coming summer. “Well that’s a good thing right? I mean at least no one complains of being bored” she summarised. Of course she figured for the Potter kids had the advantage of living in both the magical and muggle worlds they would never be bored during their holidays. Of course like her own daughter they had easy access to the various wares at the Wheezes shop. “That’s one way to phrase it, thank goodness they have mediwizards or witches at each game” she smiled before taking another sip. They hadn’t done any research into where to in Spain having only briefly brought it up a few days ago over breakfast. “Not really no, we haven’t even discussed if we would travel there by magical means or via those muggle things, planes?” she asked wondering if she had gotten the word right or not.