He would have much rather preferred a position where he could boss people around without being blamed for their mistakes, but such positions didn't exist - not even in the sort of dictatorships that he'd read about growing up. He supposed he could blame the multitude of changes in his life - from obscurity to prominence, from loneliness to an actual relationship. He just needed to learn balance, and without making a fool of himself in the process.

No more of that topic, though.

"Hudson's the professor, isn't he?" he chuckled. "They say Hogwarts turns its professors into a crazy lot - he's probably reveling in the mystery," he teased, if only to help soothe his friend's worries. "But you're right about Skeeter. They say she has ridiculously high expectations for merely dealing with creatures. Imagine the poor bastards running the lower offices - they don't deserve that."

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