Post Halloween Party Interview
The party was over. As the embers faded in the fireplace of the Burrow and the last guest (a very giddy member of the Sirius campaign clutching some Butterbeer, though we’ll not say who) left, a collective sigh broke out and every member of the group flopped into a seat, a couch, or in one particular case, the cat.
We all thought the party had been an outstanding success- but there was one thing more to do. The Professor and Molly had taken a day off from talking politics and campaigning, and were currently finishing with the remaining guests outside the Burrow. They were to return to us soon, to talk to us once more before the day of days.
We could hear Mrs Weasley discussing with Neville the properties of the plant he bought her, and some of the team could see an amused Professor Snape discussing nargle infestation with Luna outside the window. Sirius was speaking with Harry while Ron chatted with Hermione, Neville and Mrs Weasley. Professor Flitwick ambled out of the yard with Arthur- off to the Hog’s Head for a quiet drink while Mrs Weasley was busy, and slowly but surely, Cedric, George and Bill also drifted in the same direction, each bidding Mrs Weasley and Professor Snape a fond farewell, waving to us waiting in the living room and passing on their thanks for the leftovers we had given out.
Just as the room dimmed to a dull grey, someone thought to poke the embers in the grate and one or two very diligent others began picking up the rubbish left over from our one week rave in the Burrow. This, it was quickly found, was a futile exercise that would require extreme magical skill to fix. As new, vibrant red and orange flames began to warm us again, we all considered how wonderful Molly had been to let us stay here, for one whole week, and how brilliant it was that Professor Snape joined in the fun. The prestigious guests that arrived were well greeted and everyone had more than enough to eat- the comment was passed by one member of the team that a certain duck suit might not fit next year- but the party was, we all felt, a resounding success.
Our eyes were glazing over slightly and there was a quiet sense of achievement in the room. The few conversations taking place were about family, and friends. Campaigning had left our minds temporarily- until, right on cue, the Professor himself re entered the front door and nodded at us all waiting. Molly followed him into the house quickly, but disappeared into the kitchen.
The Professor spoke to zgirnius and snapegirl about the importance of inter departmental cooperation for a few minutes, but when Molly came with a floating tray laden with tea, coffee and some biscuits, the conversation stopped while we helped ourselves. As soon as everyone had warm tea or coffee, we all began to relax, and the interview- the last interview with us as a team- truly began.
Boushh: Do you feel the
party was a success? Did you have a good time?
MW: Yes my dear, I thought it was a wonderful success! And my
Birthday was also celebrated, which was a big surprise for me! I’m glad that Severus and I took time off over the week to come to the event. I know that members of the Witches Institute came along and showed some
new jumper designs and I’m quite looking forward to opening the many
presents and
cakes I received!
SS: I was very pleased with the party and I think it allowed everybody to make new acquaintances. It was a good way of calming down during the
election process- Though Miss Zgirnius’ continuous nail biting might indicate the contrary. I quite enjoyed myself.
Sly_Lady: What were the highlights of the party for you?
MW: Well, for me personally, my highlight was
dancing with Arthur, which is a favourite pastime of ours... What a wonderful surprise it was for me to see him all dressed up and ready to dance on my birthday! We haven’t had time to do that for ages, what with the elections!
SS: Speaking of dancing... I see
photographs have been taken for posterity. I perhaps will not be dancing again, but I must admit that it was all quite an enjoyable experience. We were honoured with the arrival of
old acquaintances too.
zgirnius: May we have an update on A Jumper for Every Child? Do you have any stories to share?
SS: It has certainly been a big success, which we are very proud of. I’m very happy to know that it will continue on beyond these elections, since the cause is such a good one to donate time to. Just a few days ago, some new designs were made up by the WI, and there are more designs coming every day. We are also receiving quite a large wave of support and there are new members joining the institute every day.
MW: And we have received many
letters from children the Charity has so far helped. I love to read them- I can feel how happy they are with their small gifts. In some cases, these are the only gifts those children will receive, and I’m so happy that we made such an impact with “Jumper”. It seems that our integration programme is at work already- regardless of whether we are elected or not.
Annielogic: How have your stops on the campaign trail been going?
SS: We’ve found ourselves talking to many people in many different walks of life over the past few weeks and in our travels, we’ve also found new contentious issues and a lot of support for our team, most notably when we have spoken to many teenagers going to Hogwarts School, to see what they think of the developments in the campaign.
MW: That’s true. It’s been an absolutely pleasure to get to know them better- and don’t think we stopped there! We have spent a lot of time with the elderly witches and wizards who are not to be underestimated or undervalued within our society. These are the people who know our history because they saw it happening, and they are to be valued rather than forgotten. We also took trips through Diagon Alley and through Hogsmeade talking to the man on the street to get to know more about those people we most seek to serve. The questions we answered were difficult but very thought provoking, and we were more than happy to receive them.
SS: We also spoke with other magical beings during the campaign, which proved very beneficial for us, and I hope, for them too. Our decision to break up the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures has been met with wide acceptance among other species- and we are more than pleased to provide more rights for other beings than have been provided before. Notably, our decision to set up the Department of Inter Species Cooperation has been applauded on every front, which we are very pleased with. In addition, we met with very knowledgeable conservationists who spent time talking to us about the magical creatures and plant species that they care for. These species are unable to directly tell us what they require so the conservationists information is valuable to us, to ensure the protection of such species for future generations.
MW: Absolutely. It was a pleasure to meet every single being we could during the last two months and I like to believe that we have the right ideas for the right time.
SS: That is also true- I think we genuinely have what it takes to make our society an even better place to live in.
snapegirl: Would you do anything differently?
MW: Not a thing in the world.
SS: I don’t think we could have worked with a better team- or chosen better partners- for this election. I am always open to advice, but I also trust my own instincts. I believe we have formulated everything to fit into a refreshed and ready society- a society that needs more development in a time of improvement. As far as I am concerned, we did the best job we could have done. There is nothing I want to change- and so nothing I would.
vampiricduck: Now that the elections are drawing to a close, if you were to go back in time and make the decision again, would you still run for Minister of Magic?
SS: Without doubt, yes. In the years since my passing beyond the veil, I have thought of ways to make the world I left behind a better place. It was, quite frankly, an awful time to survive in, and each day was a battle, as Molly will attest. It seems only fair that I can give to the world what it lacked so often during my time living in it. I am more than pleased to serve the people of Wizarding Britain, if they should choose to allow it. It seems fitting that our ideas and the ideas of our co candidates might be taken into consideration by a new administration. I know that if it were I and Molly who received the positions, we would do just this. If I were to go back in time and think about it again, knowing what the future would hold, I would still run for Minister- with Molly Weasley- regardless of the outcome of the election proper.
MW: I completely agree. I know that the biggest and most important thing to me is being a mother and a wife- my family mean everything to me, and so I desire to help them. The dark times, as Severus has mentioned, are past us. But it is the job of the future Minister to ensure that it is in the past they stay. I ran for Minister in order to provide the children of our society with a brighter future- and I picked the right man with which to do it. We are already fighting for this aim- which tells me that I have begun to achieve what I set out to do. This is for the children- the ones who’ve known no sadness or pain. I want their lives to be as happy as possible. I have no doubts at all. If I were to go back and choose again, yes, I would choose to run- and yes, I would choose to run with Severus Snape.
And there we left it. Mrs Weasley assured us that she was well able to clean the Burrow herself- and so we left. The group of us who had remained during the interview spilled into the yard as the last spark of sunlight disappeared from the sky and the clouds started to roll in for the night.
And I think we all felt very, very proud of our candidates, the decisions they made, the people they helped, and the things they achieved during the course of this election. We said our goodbyes, some of us heading for bed, some going back to HQ- but all of us very content.
Harold McAlindon once said “Do not follow where the path may lead.
Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.”
That is what these candidates will do.