"Not expected," he thought, was something of an understatement, but Aldous had the good manners—and good sense—not to indicate as much in tone or in deed. For a moment, he wondered if she would accept it if he said no, he didn't have time at the moment (a perfectly reasonable response, given his position within the Ministry of Magic!) but thought better of it. Better to have it over and done with swiftly, or Aldous would likely have her outside his office perpetually until he relented.

Aldous retrieved the letter from his desk drawer, the crisp parchment having been neatly refolded and tucked back inside its original envelope.

"See for yourself," he answered as he stood to pass it to her. "It is all quite official, don't worry—nothing that you should not be reading," Aldous added with a small smile.