Moving Up

[Faustus Prewett]

February 19

Less than a week after Faustus returned home, the Hogsmeade Slasher case was finally ended and Mr. Mereworth had quite suddenly resigned from his position as Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. While the previous Assistant Head (a man Faustus was honestly unsure of — why would an American be working for the British Ministry of Magic?) had been promoted to Head, Faustus had found himself with the promotion to Assistant Head.



While he had never really considered a desk job to be his cup of tea, Faustus had promised Jane that he would put in for a promotion and he would not have to leave again. He was going to be home with his children (and he was certain it would soon be five, not just four) and his wife, and he thought he might even gain a bit of weight and settle into being fat and happy.



Not that Jane would let him get out of shape.



As he arrived home for dinner that evening, Faustus had a broad smile on his face. Hogsmeade was safe from killers, dark wizards were being tried, and everything was perfect. "Jane, my love, I have some news!"

  

[Jane Prewett]

Jane could not have been any happier this past week. Her husband was home, her family was complete, and Jane was skipping along cloud nine. Even her children were happier with their father around, Eddy was coming out of her shell some, Jessa was calming down, even Iris was babbling "dadada" whenever Faustus was around.

Everything was perfect.

The children were all seated at the table, the puppies each had a bowl of food on the floor (though Jessa's puppy kept trying to eat Jane's puppy's food) and Jane was feeding Iris while they waited for Faustus to come home. He wasn't late, not yet anyway, though Edel and Jess were getting antsy at the table.

When her husband came in, Jane smiled broadly at him. Everything between them had been great this past week--everything. Their fights were long forgotten, their troubles, their frustrations. Love was blossoming all over again, and Jane was elated to be back in the blissful state. "Oh?" She asked as she gestured for the twins to start eating. "What is it?"

  

[Faustus Prewett]

This was the perfect scene, and one that Faustus thought that he could be happy coming home to every day for the rest of his life. Oh, the details would change. The girls would get older and be joined by younger sisters, and he and Jane would grow older. Their hair would turn gray, their skin would wrinkle, and their children would marry and move out of the house. One day, it would just be the two of them and the dogs (certainly they would keep having dogs). Still, it would make a perfect picture, and Faustus was looking forward to it.



"Do you remember that I promised you that I would put in for a promotion as soon as I got home from my — trip?" It was still a bit awkward to talk about, but he was glad that it was over.

  

[Jane Prewett]

Iris babbled and smiled as Jane fed her some of the sweet potatoes from dinner. Normally, the nanny fed Iris, but on this night Jane felt like doing it herself. She like being a mother, and she liked doing motherly things. It would be even better now, though, that Faustus was around to do fatherly things with them. The twins would soon be old enough, in Jane's opinion, to start learning how to use a broom stick (as Jane didn't see anything wrong with having them learn) and Faustus would be the better equipped out of the pair to teach them.

Transforming her face from an expression of "oh" at the baby to one of happiness and possible excitement towards Faustus, Jane said, "Yes. You said you would put in for a promot-" Then it clicked. Faustus had been promoted. He wouldn't be leaving anymore, if ever again. "You got a promotion?" She asked, excitement and happiness lacing her voice.

  

[Faustus Prewett]

"I did," Faustus said as he pulled his wife into an embrace. "I'm the new Assistant Head of the Department, Jane." He kissed her then, briefly, excited by the new chapter of his life that was starting. He was not going to be constantly called away on dangerous missions anymore, and his predecessor had been promoted, not died — although one of the previous Department Heads had died, but that had not been because of his work.



This was exactly what he wanted with his life. A quiet time with his wife and daughters. No more adventure — he had gotten more than enough of that for a lifetime.

  

[Jane Prewett]

"Oh!" Jane exclaimed, "So no more absences? No more long trips? No more worrying?" It'd been horrible when she was constantly wondering whether or not she was a widow. And every time he came home Jane wondered how long it would be before he'd have to leave again. But if he got a promotion, wouldn't that mean he wouldn't be leaving anymore?

Kissing him again, Jane pulled away with a broad grin. "You're going to have a desk job. We can start having regular meal times, and you can have more time with the kids!" Everything was going to be perfect from now on. Jane wouldn't be like Mrs. Hermia Page, the widow who's husband had come before Faustus.

  

[Faustus Prewett]

"There's some politics involved, but yes, I have a desk job. Most nights I will be home on time, and be able to play with our girls and eat dinner with the family." And he would be safe. He would know he was coming home to Jane and their daughters at night.



He kissed his wife again, passionately ù he had been worried. With his father cleared he suddenly felt drained. He had done what he had become an auror to do, and now he wanted to stay home with his wife and children and maybe even put on a few pounds. "Everything is going to be perfect, Jane."

  

[Jane Prewett]

Jane blushed at the intensity of the kiss in front of their children. The girls were all young, young enough not to know what it meant when a man and a woman kissed, but Jane didn't want to set the wrong example for them. She didn't want her daughters turning out to by hussies because their father was overly enthusiastic in front of their children.

She pulled away from his embrace and sat back in front of Iris. The one year old was a patient child, but not when it came to food. "This is so exciting." Jane said excitedly as she spooned a bite into Iris's little mouth and turned to look back at Faustus. "Everything is going to be amazing, and you're going to be home every night, and you're going to be safe. No more worried nights, no more crying, no more fights. Everything is going to be perfect." Especially if her growing babes turned out to be sons for her husband.