Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

My Character's Backstories. AKA The Changes I Made Just Because I Feel Like it Would Make for a More Interesting Story

Their powers will be discussed after this.

Hermione:

• Hermione isn't from Britain in my fic. She's from Australia.
• She's the Queen's daughter. (I know it's far-fetched but I think that she's exactly the type pf person that would be one of the smartest princesses to exist, don't you think?)
• She is 3rd in line for the throne after her 2 older brothers.
• She has 5 siblings in total.
• Her father was abusive and he got re-married to the queen of Britain after he was made an outcaste when the Queen found out.
• She has been training to be the perfect person since she was 5, which is why she works so hard to get good grades.
• She has a lot of responsibilities in the monarchy. She's the main advisor to the country's decisions but she started off as a diplomat for war.
• She basically does everything her mother and her older brothers don't have time for. (Which is A LOT)
• Her mother believes that she should make her own way in the world which is why most people don't know that she's the Queen's daughter outside of the Muggle World.
• Since her mother wanted her to make her own way, she was sent to an academy when she was 6 where she learnt how to dance, sing, fight, learnt about her duties, etc. That was where she first first met Harry and  Ron. They trained together after Harry and Ron arrived.
• She was in a duo with Harry as well as a soloist where she made herself a household figure where everyone knew her name.
• She is extremely well trained for battle. Both on the battle-ground and as a tactician. That is the reason she can kick some serious ass even without her magic.
• Her magic is also extremely well honed courtesy of her siblings, who are also wizards and witches.
• Due to her extreme past and who she is, she has trust issues.
• She's pansexual because she cares more about what's in a person's head than their gender.
• She had a very serious boyfriend for a year and a half, but they broke up because the long-distance proved too hard.
• She sometimes has blackouts where she goes back into her past and feels like she's reliving her father's abuse.
• On her 17th birthday, her mother gifts her a pair of chopsticks that she can fit into her heels, hide in her sleeves, tie in her hair, etc. The chopsticks are actually knives and the switch back and forth whenever Hermione twirls them.

https://pin.it/7DuRpuf

https://pin.it/2TUq5V0 

Ron:

• Ron is still from Britain.
• The Queen offered him a position in the Monarchy after she found him during a trip as a secondary advisor, right under Hermione. Ron accepted and she pays him handsomely for his services, so his family's not poor anymore.
• The Queen also gives him and his siblings the same training that Hermione receives so that they could fit in easier and it indirectly makes them fit into the pureblood society as well.
• Ron doesn't pick the creative stream, but the stream where he could create his own successful business.
• Due to his success in the business world, he is also a world-renowned investor.
• Ron can also fight in battle without his magic, just not to the finesse and skill level that Hermione can.
• His parents love him and his relationship with Alex makes them very happy, so his mother has made it her personal goal to get them married as quickly as can.
• He identifies as pansexual.
• Ron is actually extremely smart if he applies himself to his studies.
• He actually did better in his Care of Magical Creatures and Herbology OWLS than Harry and Hermione. 
• Even though his family isn't poor anymore, they wanted to remember their roots and stay at the Burrow.
• Ron visits for a few weeks every couple of months, otherwise he stays at Hermione's castle.
• On his 17th birthday, the Queen gifted him a katana, which can break into two and also shrink far enough into a necklace for him to be able to put it around his throat and bring out whenever he wants.

https://pin.it/pXb6FK3

https://pin.it/1heNZg4

Harry:

• Harry's abuse from his aunt and uncle is much worse than described in the book.
• Harry was also constantly belittled by them for identifying as gay.
• He was taken out of his life at the Dursley's when he got scouted by an academy when he was 9. He left as soon as he got the opportunity.
• He like Hermione picked the creative stream.
• He specialized in languages. He can speak almost 23, excluding English and Parseltongue.
• He made a name for himself in the Muggle World for being one of the most famous and talented child prodigies along with Hermione.
• He now also gets recognized by muggles who have no idea who he is in the Wizarding World.
• He's also a soloist.
• The Queen treats him as her own son.
• She recruited him as a general after finding out about his natural leadership and his magical prowess.
• He rose up the ranks on his own before taking up the general post. He started as an officer cadet and moved up 9 ranks before he became a general.
• On his 17th birthday, the Queen gifted him a whip coated in bronze, both for its usefulness in battle and the fact that it would easily bend for Harry to be able to wrap it around his wrist as a bracelet.

https://pin.it/5R4F195

https://pin.it/6VnxaIo

Most of the other characters' backstories are the same as they are in the original. If it changes, I'll make sure to change it here as well.

Powers

Wixen can learn more than their wands and incantations. The wands are just a way for them to channel their magical energy easier. Most wizards and witches choose not to, but some, when they believe they are powerful enough, choose to learn particular branches of magic. It takes extreme dedication, determination and discipline, but it is possible.

Hermione is an Elemental. This means she can influence the element of Fire, Water, Earth and Air. An Elemental's strongest field is usually determined by their personality. This is why Hermione's skill with Fire and wind is the strongest. She has also been working on influencing multiple elements at the same time, so now she can fly, create storms, clouds and turn a brightly light room pitch black.

Ron is an Empath. This means that he can read people's emotions and if he tries hard enough, he can push through some of his own. Most of the time, because of how potent is empathy is, he doesn't even have to try to look into people's emotions, they're just there. He, however is an extremely strong believer in people's privacy. This why he won't ever speak about someone else's emotions without explicit consent.

Harry is a telekinetic. This means that he has the ability to move objects at a distance by mental power or other non-physical means. He started learning in his 4th year, right before his 1st task. He can now lift extremely heavy objects without much issue as well as use his ability intricately.

The Malfoys are all Legilimens. They possess the ability to peer into someone's minds and most of the time, they use their powers without anyone even knowing. (This will be quite important in the coming chapters.)

Theodore Nott is a Healer in training. That by itself isn't a power but the Notts are extremely well known for their powers in Medicine. For now he can cure minimal wounds like cuts, scrapes, burns, sprains and tiny fractures without much effort as well as help with minor illnesses like colds, fevers, coughs, etc.

Blaise is a Detector. They can sense various kinds of magic a person is using, even when they are well hidden.

The Greengrass family is known for their specializations. All of them have one topic they excel in. For Daphne it's Care of Magical Creatures and Astoria is a DADA buff.

Relationships:

All of the characters get around. None of them are simpering virgins by any means, it's just that the Slytherins are more comfortable with their exploits compared to the Gryffindors. However, when they start to lighten up, they get comfortable about their experience too.

Hermione has had a lot of casual hookups in the past. It is in fact very common at the academy the trio goes to. She did however, have a serious relationship in her fifth year, with Alexander Darius, who went to Ilvermorny. The long distance proved too hard for them and they broke up.

Harry has been in a relationship with Sebastian Finch since his fourth year, when Ilvermorny came to spectate on the Triwizard championships. They clicked and they've been going strong ever since.

Ron has been with Alex for 4 years. They met at the Quidditch World Cup and they were two goofs in love, even though they didn't know it yet. Harry and Hermione made it their personal mission to help them get together and they finally managed it in their fifth year during Christmas break.

The rest of the characters thought they had too much going on in their lives to try dating anyone serious.

Chapter Text

It was dark. All Hermione could feel was indescribable pain. All she could do was beg for it to stop. She saw the dark room. The same dark room she had been seeing for over a year. All she saw were the same faces she saw every time she tried to go to bed. Bellatrix, Greyback, and Malfoy. No matter how many times she had this exact same nightmare, she couldn't bring herself to blame him. She saw the haunted look in his eyes. She saw how he didn't want to let her go through this. But most importantly, she saw how there was nothing he could do. She saw the tip of a knife being lowered when her screaming increased tenfold.

Hermione shot out of bed as she felt someone shaking her. She saw bright, red hair, striking blue eyes and an infinite amount of freckles were noticeable, even in the dark room. Ron. She suddenly remembered that she was at The Burrow. She was visiting because Molly insisted she be around friendly company when she found out about everything that went down during their stint on the run. She felt her cheeks go hot as she realized that her screaming probably woke up the entire house. She started to apologize when Ron wrapped her into a hug that reminded her of safe, warmth, comfort and friendship beyond compare. He said, "There's nothing to apologize for." They laid back onto the bed, as they were and went back into a much more peaceful sleep.

When Hermione woke up again, there was light streaming out of the windows. She didn't have nightmares again after Ron came into her room. She never did, when one of her siblings, Ron or Harry was with her. When they weren't however, they would be much much worse than they were last night. If anyone other than the people in the house had seen Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley entangled together the way they were, they would have thought they were dating and had romantic feelings toward each other. Rita Skeeter would have a field day. But both Hermione and Ron knew, that would never happen. Ron actually has had a partner for almost 4 years, that very few people knew about because they preferred to keep their relationship quiet. Even if he wasn't, they knew they didn't want a relationship, they never had.

(AN: The kiss in the Chamber of Secrets never happened in the fic)

Deep in her thoughts, she hadn't even noticed that she was staring (without meaning to) at Ron had before he went, "Hey." Hermione looked at him and said "Hey back." "What were you looking at at?", knowing full well that I was just thinking. Playing along, I said, "Oh just your handsome face. It's a shame you're with Alex, I would've picked you straight up otherwise." He grinned at our daily banter. It was always like this, with us. Contrary to popular belief, neither of us were salty about the other not wanting to date us. Since the moment we were old enough to understand the idea of a relationship, Ron, Harry and I knew we didn't want one with each other.

Ron left to his room and Hermione got dressed for breakfast. As she looked in the mirror, she noticed how much she had grown up over the last year. Her features had become more defined, with her hazel eyes becoming more mature, growing into her own body and the most noticeable, was that her hair wasn't as wild and Amazonian anymore. In fact, it had dissolved into much more soft curls and had started complimenting her face. Dear gods, she was becoming vain.

She shook out of reverie and went downstairs to the table and smelled what she could only describe as heaven. God bless Molly Weasley.

"Good Morning!"

"Good Morning dear! There are owls for all of you sitting on the table." She thanked the kind-hearted woman she considered her second mother and went to go look at what they owls were about.

She sat down and saw that the letter had a Hogwarts seal. It read as follows:

Dear Ms. Granger,

We are pleased to inform you that Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is reopening. In light of the events from last year, we are inviting students whose last year of education at our institute was disrupted as eighth years. Term starts on the 1st of September. Please find enclosed all that you will need should you choose to accept. We await your reply.

Sincerely,

Minerva  McGonagall

Headmistress

She found the parchment about the resources she would need, but she also saw another sheet. She looked at it and saw that it was another letter, except it was a letter written personally by the Headmistress, instead of the standard one. She read the previous one again before she picked up the other. She was a creature of habit.

Dear Ms. Granger,

I hope this letter finds you well. I expect you've read the previous letter and you know that Hogwarts will be reopening. I am writing to you personally to once again urge you to return to the school. We are taking on many more new initiatives and would really like you to be a part of them. I understand that the school holds a lot of unfortunate memories for you, but I'm hoping you still remember the good ones and are willing to try and make some more. It might not be like you remember it, but I am trying my best to live up to the standard Headmaster Dumbledore left. I hope you genuinely consider attending.

Sincerely,

Minerva  McGonagall

Hermione was touched. She didn't miss the way the letters ended and was honored that Professor McGonagall wanted her to return quite so badly. She sat on the couch while debating the pros and cons in her head. She waited until the rest of the group arrived before she could make a proper decision.

Harry and Ron walked into the sitting room and saw the letter. They wordlessly sat down and read the letters when Hermione nodded at the owls. The three of them looked at each other and they knew the decision was unanimous. The Golden Trio would be returning to Hogwarts one last time.

Chapter Text

The second Ron got onto the Hogwarts Express, he knew that he would try his damnedest to make this year different. He was DONE with the life-threatening adventures and just wanted a peaceful year with his friends and his partner. He was also hell-bent on getting all of his NEWTS. Everybody thought that he was the "dumb" one in the Golden Trio but contrary to popular belief, when he applied himself, he could actually do quite well in his tests.

Harry, Hermione and Ron found that almost all the compartments were completely full and while looking for one with at least some friendly faces, they bumped into one that for the longest time, they considered unfriendly.

"Malfoy."

"Weasley, Potter, Granger."

The ice between the four hadn't thawed completely by any means, but they were getting there. After the three of them had stood on trial in favor of Malfoy and his family getting a pardon, he had apologized for his misgivings and said that he was eager to make amends with the people he wronged. While surprised, the trio were willing to let bygones be bygones and accepted his apology. It wasn't all water under the bridge, but they were all very cordial.

Malfoy moved to let them pass just as Ginny waved at them to let them know that there was a compartment to sit in. As they entered the compartment, tired from lugging their trunks around for so long they were practically panting. They saw Ginny, Luna and Neville, already comfortably seated.

Greetings were exchanged, trunks were strategically placed, treats were bought, jokes were told, before Ron was given a very pleasant surprise.

"Hey, Ron!"

Someone around their age stepped into their compartment. They had beautiful eyes and perfect pale skin that suited their soft face structure wonderfully. But what was most attention grabbing was the blinding mop of purple hair. It reached till right above their shoulders and looked like the properties changed with the light. One second it was bright enough to be neon, the other it looked soft and fluffy.

"Alex! What're you doing here? You go to Ilvermorny." said Ron while hugging them.

(AN: In the fic, Ron is an Empath. Meaning, he can feel other people's emotions and even influence them. It took a long time for him to learn how to control it and use it for the right reasons but now, he's one of the world's most powerful Empaths. He's the reason Harry and Hermione could keep going during the war. This is also the reason that he could help Hermione with her nightmares in the first chapter. The professors at Hogwarts, Harry, Hermione, the Weasleys and Alex know. I know it's random, but I feel like it will really make the story work a little better.)

All he felt when he saw them was pure love and fondness.

"Ilvermorny and Hogwarts have an exchange program. Six seventh year students from Ilvermorny go to Hogwarts for their last year. If it works out next year, Hogwarts students go to Ilvermorny." came the reply. They sat down and gave Ron a peck, to Neville and Luna's surprise.

"I suppose they want to promote school unity after the war." mused Hermione.

"Well, I suppose the cat's outta the bag. Guys this is Alex, they're my partner of the last 4-ish years." said Ron.

Neville, after a sharp breath yelled at Ron, "4 years!?! We've been dorm-mates for 6 years and you tell me now?!"

Alex didn't want their boyfriend to take the blame when it was completely their fault, so they tried to placate a person they had never met, "I wasn't very comfortable with people knowing about our relationship because I get enough backlash for identifying as non-binary. Ron has been extremely supportive." Thankfully, they were quite used to it.

"Wait. Alex, if six students are coming to Hogwarts, who're the other five?" Harry asked hopefully, hoping he would hear one name in particular.

"Well, Imogen Walters, Sebastian Finch, Alaric Malfoy, Annalise Claire, and-...." they looked at Hermione apologetically and said-"Alexander Darius."

"Wait, Malfoy?" Neville, Luna, Ginny and Ron said simultaneously.

Harry and Hermione were quiet, but for completely different reasons.

Harry was jumping with joy (on the inside) because his boyfriend, Sebastian was coming too!!

Hermione didn't know how to feel. She slumped in her seat, conflicted. Should she be happy, should she throw a fit, should she be upset? She was worried about how she was going to act around someone she had like so much. She had dated Alexander 3 years ago and they broke up because long-distance was too hard for them. Hermione wasn't completely over him. In fact, she thought that she was still in love.

(AN: In this fic, Hermione and Ron are both Pansexual, while Harry is gay. He only dated Cho because he was still figuring out his sexuality in his 4th and 5th years.)

Ron felt Hermione's conflicted emotions and grabbed her hand. He pushed through emotions that can only be known as warmth, calm and so deeply Ron. At least that's what Hermione describes it as whenever he does it. He'll help her deal with her feelings about Alexander later, but for now, he decides to keep the conversation moving.

He decides on, "Where are the rest of them now?"

Alex picks up on it immediately and says, "Oh, the Headmistress is giving each of us a briefing as to how the school works, what we should expect, what won't fly, basic stuff like that."

"Classic Minne."

That still didn't seem to take Hermione's mind off of Alexander, so he tried again. "You said something about a Malfoy?"

"Oh yeah. We weren't allowed to say anything about it because the family didn't want him to suffer hate. Apparently Alaric was supposed to go to Hogwarts but after hearing Draco's description, they didn't want the students to be biased about the younger brother too, so he was sent to Ilvermorny."

"That's kinda sad actually." said Neville.

"Yes, it is." said Hermione, her self-righteousness kicking in and finally bringing her into the conversation. "Make it a point to treat him as nicely as possible. All of them, not only Alaric. They're dealing with enough. The entire family's personal life is on the newspapers practically everyday, even though they've been given another chance."

Everyone in the carriage agreed, but they were worried about the rest of the school.

"Shouldn't we change into our robes?' said Luna, in her usual abrupt manner.

"We are getting quite close aren't we?" Ginny immediately replied. By the vibes Ron was getting from both of them, there was attraction between the two but they didn't know what to do about it. Well, they'd figure it out, and if they didn't Harry, the resident Cupid of Gryffindor would help them out.

They changed into their robes and saw the huge towers of Hogwarts come into view. For once, everyone's feelings were in unity. It felt like they were back home.

Chapter Text

Harry sat at the Gryffindor table, watching the First Years' sorting, feeling an odd sense of contentment. He had missed the feeling of coming back to Hogwarts every year. He watched as little kids started sitting down at the table that the Sorting Hat was yelling out.

After the Sorting of the First Years' was finished, Professor McGonagall called for order. In her usual clear, stern voice she began, "The school has been through a lot in the past years. We have learnt that while we did our best, we let the students and their prejudices run-for lack of another word-amok. We also distanced the houses and other schools of the Wizarding Community from Hogwarts. This is why we will be introducing an exchange programme with Ilvermorny this year. 6 of their 7th year students will be joining us at Hogwarts for this year. If all goes well, 6 of our 7th years will be joining the Ilvermorny institution for their final year of schooling. We have also started a house unity requirement. Students of all houses will be given choices of activities that Muggles enjoy. And yes, that is our way of saying, activities in which magic will not be permitted.

Harry watched as everyone in the Great Hall immediately started protesting. 'Why were they to come to a school for magic, if they weren't allowed to use magic?' He watched as Ron started grimacing, probably from the barrage of negative emotions that were hitting him at the moment. Harry felt him latch onto his emotions, mostly because his were the only ones that weren't driving him crazy.

Another thing that was very obvious, was that none of the 7th or 8th year Slytherins put up a single argument towards the new development. Either they were willing to learn from their past misgiving, or they already knew. It was most likely both. It made sense he supposed, quite a few of their parents were on the Hogwarts Board of Directors and they were some of the most affected by the war. It was a good thing that they were willing to learn.

McGonagall let the chaos continue for a little longer before she said "That is enough! I understand that this might be disappointing for you but if you, the future generations refuse to understand the important part Muggles play in our society, then there is no use of having a society at all!" Not as eloquent as Harry had come to expect of her, but it did they trick either way. Regaining her composure, she continued, "The activities will include dance, music, sports like basketball, football, rugby, to name a few, self-defence and weapons classes, although the last two are only for the students already of age, tactics classes, etc."

There were a lot of people confused about the sports she had named but others were a little levelled by the pursuits listed. She marched on, "There will be sheets posted for registry in your houses and it compulsory for every student to pick at least three activities, if not more. There is no set limit for how many activities you choose, but keep in mind that while we will not have as many academic classes as we used to, there will be more than enough for them to become a priority. Once you pick your activities, you will be given timetables and if they seem too overwhelming, you may speak to your Head of House or myself about dropping some." "

There will also be a column for 7th and 8th Years to volunteer as Captains for each interest." The Trio all straightened at that, and it didn't go unnoticed by the Headmistress. "I expect some of you are already looking forward to that. With that I would like to introduce your new faculty. Bill Weasley, your new Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor as well as Head of Gryffindor." There were quite a lot of young girls who looked extremely keen on the idea of being taught by someone like Bill. "Fleur Delacour-Weasley will be your new Potions Professor as well as Head of Slytherin." Everyone looked smitten with the Veela descendant as she smiled. "Wilfred Jones will be your new History of Magic Professor." This, peaked everyone's attention more than others because this meant that Professor Binns has finally stepped down!!

Everyone in the Great Hall broke into raucous applause. The Headmistress smiled. "I would also like to call the exchange students out, so that they can be sorted into their specific houses. All of you please come in." To Harry's joy, the students from Ilvermorny stepped in and in the lead was Sebastian Finch, the love of Harry's young life. Severus Snape would probably compare him to his father, but Sebastian looked better than ever. His alabaster skin, grey, piercing eyes and his beautiful, wavy, brown hair had just gotten more attractive since the last time Harry saw him. He glanced at Harry and grinned ruefully. He saw Ron smirking at him, sensing his absolute adoration for the man, but he didn't really care.

What did distract him was Hermione's downcast eyes. He saw Alexander and a wave of sadness overcame him for his best-friend. They had broken up on well-enough terms, but he had left her practically broken-hearted. He saw Ginny grab her hand and felt slightly reassured that his best friend would be okay. He watched as the 6 students walked up to the Sorting Hat that had once again been pulled out.

"Claire, Annalise," McGonagall called out. A short, stout girl - Annalise - stepped out to the front and sat on the stool. She sat in anticipation as the Hat pondered for a moment and yelled out, "Hufflepuff!" The Hufflepuff table broke out into applause.

McGonagall moved on, "Darius, Alexander." Hermione basically flinched. Harry could see why she liked him so much. He was tall and well-built. He wasn't stocky, but you could see muscle on his shoulders. Just poor Mia's type. He had beautiful green eyes, lighter than Harry's and bigger too. He had that noble-elegance Harry had gotten used to seeing in Purebloods and royalty at the castle. His black hair looked wind-swept yet clean at the same time. Everyone in the Great Hall was also swooning at him. However, by the look he gave Mia as he sat down, he wasn't completely over her either. No one had noticed it though. The Sorting Hat clearly didn't need much time to deliberate. It called out, "Slytherin!" The Slytherins all politely clapped for him as he sat at their table and welcomed him cordially.

The rest of the Hall didn't seem put off either. If this has happened 3 years ago, the rest of the Hall would have booed, but now they had been through so much that they saw the good in everyone until proven wrong. Even if they were, they were willing to give chances. It seemed like they had finally realized, house rivalry was a sad waste of calories.

Professor McGonagall called out, "Devon, Alex." Ron sat up. He looked very interested in their Sorting. Everyone was going to make so much fun of him in the dorms.

The Sorting Hat gleefully yelled, "Ravenclaw!" The Ravenclaw table clapped and welcomed her. Ron looked relieved.

The Sorting moved to Sebastian. He was sorted into Slytherin too. Harry was happy for him. Alaric Malfoy was sorted into Slytherin and while that was met with some whispers from some of the younger students, everyone showed him their support, Draco Malfoy too, indirectly Harry supposed. Imogen Walters was sorted into Gryffindor and another announcement was made.

Professor McGonagall stood up again and said, "All 7th, 8th and students of age in 6th Years stay back while the rest of the students may disperse." The younger students filed out of the Hall leaving all students of age stayed back. Since the journey was much quicker this time around, the Head of Houses were going to spend the afternoon helping the students getting acquainted with what their Hogwarts life is going to be from now. "I have another announcement to make. One that might make you quite... unhappy." She paused as if, she didn't know how to go about explaining. "The Wizengamot in all of its wisdom, has introduced a marriage law." she said, as if deciding to rip off a band aid. There was a moment of complete silence, before, all hell broke loose.

Draco

Draco and his fellow Slytherins sat in perfect quiet while they watched the rest of the students go bonkers. They had known this would happen. The Wizengamot wanted to increase the population of Wixen and this was the best way the twats could figure out how. He observed the Golden Trio as he saw that they were looking at each other and as if they had come to a decision, the same decision, in their heads, they nodded and looked back at McGonagall. He commended their ability to understand each other like that.

The Headmistress stood their for a few minutes, as if she understood their plight. She then went on, "I understand this must be upsetting, but the Wizengamot has thought this through and the law is already in motion."

"Professor?"

"Yes, Mr. Weasley." clearly appreciating Weasley's lack of barminess.

"How is this going to work? The Ministry is just going to tell us who to get married to? I mean, I'm no expert, but there are laws prohibiting this, aren't there?"

Professor Delacour answered, "Zere are lawz zhat stop zhis from happening, but the Wizengamot haz thought of everything. Zhey have changed the laws that prohibit it, since the issue that zhey wish to solve takes precedence." Her French accent was thick but not as quite, the first time she had come to Hogwarts for the Triwizard.

"And what is the problem they wish to solve?" questioned the Weaselette.

"Wixen population." answered the Smartest Witch of Our Age. Of course she had figured it out before anyone else. She explained in a clear voice, "There is a law that states that if the population of Wizards and Witches starts weaning, the Marriage Law will fall into place for unmarried people who are 17-25 years old. The Ministry will be putting forth conditions like living arrangements, having kids and so on. The last standard was 2 kids per pair."

"Ms. Granger is right. There will be Ministry officials here to explain but, there will be 2 per couple demand." explained McGonagall.

The horror on people's faces only increased.

Lovegood raised a dainty hand and asked, "How are the pairs going to be chosen?"

"I shall choose," said the Sorting Hat. I will be examining your lives and personalities and pairing you up with the most suitable partners."

Granger raised her hand, hesitating, "Professor, what about... people from the LGBTQ?"

That stumped Draco. What was LGBTQ? The Headmistress looked equally confused and inquired.

"Homosexuals, Pansexuals, Asexuals, etc," she explained.

"Ah." Understanding dawned on McGonagall's face. "Well, depending on each couple and their circumstances, adoption is always an option. Any other questions?"

There were no more questions. The doors to the Hall burst open. More people started arriving. Percy Weasley, Marcus Flint, Charlie Weasley, and A LOT more. Draco supposed they'd be joining since they were all of age and unmarried.

"Well, let's start with the boys. I will call out a name, you will come sit on the stool and once the Hat is done with you, you will sit back down. After all the boys are done with, the girls will start taking turns and get matched."

And so it starts.

Draco sat in complete boredom as names were being called. He and his friends were making bets on who would get paired with whom.

"I'll bet that one of three will try to use their status to get out of it." Pansy saying that brought him back to the conversation.

Blaise said, "I don't think so, none of them have tried to yet."

Only Blaise's turn was left. All of the rest of them were done, but the Sorting Hat had said some things that made Draco question who his match could be.

"Zabini, Blaise."

"Oh, finally." The boredom was getting really annoying."

"Would you rather you were paired off right now Astoria?" Daphne asked.

"Well if it would speed things up, absolutely."

"Well Blaise is the only one in the Zs, so I expect they'll start with the girls and some of the boys soon too." Theodore.

"I bloody hated that. Why didn't you tell me it would be so bad?" asked Blaise indignant.

"If we had told you, would have been a wuss and the entire process would have taken even longer." Marcus.

Professor McGonagall stood up. "Well, now that the boys have seemed to finish, should we start with the girls after a short break? You can head up to your dormitories and change into more comfortable clothing. It does seem we're going to be here a while. It wasn't obvious, but it seemed that even McGonagall was shaken by the entire ordeal. There was a touch of awkwardness to her posture and her manner of speech. Everyone got up, eager to change, since they had been there for almost three hours with no ventilation.

Hermione didn't know what to do. Before coming back to school, the Trio had agreed to stop hiding who they truly were. They weren't going to make an announcement or anything but if asked they would be truthful. 'So her current dilemma, should she wear the baggy clothes she used to during her previous years at Hogwarts or should she wear what she actually wanted and show off her actually fashion-forward self.

'Oh screw it.' She was going to wear what she wanted to. She chose to wear something that was stylish and cute, yet at the same time comfy and appropriate for school. They were however 8th years, they were allowed to take liberties with their fashion. She chose to wear a white shirt with long sleeves under a black dress. She wore boots, so that her outfit wouldn't be considered indecent. (She's not wearing the cap and bag btw.)

https://pin.it/JTNce38

She went back downstairs and saw that the rest of her house mates had changed too.

Harry was wearing a brownish sweater-cardigan with black-jeans. It gave him quite the dark academia aesthetic.

https://pin.it/6K4aZBn

Ron went much simpler but he looked just as good with a simple white long sleeved-shirt and blue jeans with white shoes.

https://pin.it/5vzBgkq

Ginny looked extremely pretty in her peach colored top with boggy white sleeves and white skirt. 

https://pin.it/YtnKgIP

George was dressed in a white sweatshirt tucked into beige pants.

https://pin.it/pC2FWzZ

Percy, also harnessing his inner fashionista, was wearing a red shirt with black pants. You might think it would clash with his hair, but it looked really good.

https://pin.it/5ZgodIY

Neville was simply wearing a white shirt with blue accents on the sleeves and black pants.

https://pin.it/13QhEiX

Oliver was wearing a blue cardigan over a white shirt with black jeans and white sneakers.

https://pin.it/4H0Us4V

Everyone had become much more confident in themselves as they grew up and knew that they looked good now. They left to the Hall again. They noted that everyone had changed into more comfy-stylish clothes. Hermione noticed how good Alexander looked.

He was wearing a simple black shirt paired with dress pants and black shoes.

https://pin.it/BqlZWQI

Her eyes strayed to the rest of the Slytherins. They all looked phenomenal too.

Astoria Greengrass was wearing a a black, long-sleeved top tucked into a checkered skirt with stockings and cute boots. Honestly Hermione wanted that outfit.

https://pin.it/72LQbIN

Daphne Greengrass was wearing a black long sleeved top like her sister, except hers was tucked into suede pants and paired with a coat. 

https://pin.it/34REv1E

Marcus Flint was wearing a green shirt with dress pants.

https://pin.it/2b1KAoC

Theodore Nott was rocking the emo-boy aesthetic and wearing a graphic white tee with black sleeves under it paired with jeans.

https://pin.it/3bhHWrv

Pansy Parkinson was wearing a green crop top with black jeans.

https://pin.it/4TQz4zT

Hermione's eyes flicked to Draco Malfoy and did a double take. That was...not how she expected him to dress. He was wearing a white dress shirt under a black designer sweatshirt and jeans. He paired them with accessories.

https://pin.it/8TAwmWE

Alex and Luna walked over to them and they looked fantastic.

Alex was wearing a summer dress over a white shirt.

https://pin.it/6py2rld

Luna was wearing a purple hoodie and paired it with matching pants.

https://pin.it/6Mf5oEK

"Alright now that we've all trickled back in, should we begin with the rest?" A general mumble of affirmation went through the crowd when McGonagall started things up again.

"So, how this is going to work is, girls, theys and male homosexuals may step up whenever they'd like and get paired. There will be no set order this time around. Once they are paired, they will sit with their intended."

Hermione noticed that there were Aurors all around the Hall. Did the school expect this to get violent?

"Who would like to go first?" asked Professor McGonagall.

Everyone stayed seated, terrified of who they would get paired with, if they got up.

To everyone's surprise, seeing that no one was getting up, Pansy Parkinson got up and sat on the stool. The Hat yelled out, "George Weasley!" The entire Hall broke out into whispers and the look on George's face made the entire table dissolve into laughter.

Pansy wrinkled her nose and asked, "Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure." came the amused reply.

She got up and sat next to George, put out her hand and said, "Pansy." George looked at the offered hand and said, "George." And that was that.

Hannah Abbot got up next and the Hat told her he required more information before he paired her. The Hat did this a few times. Daphne Greengrass and Ginny were told to wait as well.

That is, until Luna got up and sat on the stool. She sat there as the Hat evaluated her, before it yelled out, "Daphne Greengrass-" Ginny looked devastated. Hermione knew that she had been hoping to be paired with Luna, but the Hat wasn't done yet. "-And Ginny Weasley!" The Hall once again broke out into whispers.

Sure polyamory was more common in the Wizarding World compared to Muggles. It was still quite rare. The three looked at each other, unsure of what to do and decided they would sit at neutral ground -the Ravenclaw Table- and talk about what to do.

The Hat kept on pairing unusual couples together Hannah Abbot got paired with Susan Bones, Cho Chang with Terry Boot, Katie Bell with Justin Finch-Fletchley, etc. Most of these pairings went on as a complete roller coaster ride. People cried, screamed, yelled, one even tried to hex their pairing.

One particularly bad incident was when Lavender Brown went up onto the stool. The Hat immediately yelled, "Gregory Goyle!" Lavender burst into tears and Hermione sighed. Not only was she making a scene, poor Goyle looked like he was slapped. Not because he got paired with her, but because she cried. Hermione got that it was hard but again, poor Goyle.

She was given a calming draught and brought to sit beside Goyle. He gave her as wide a berth he could.

To keep moving, Professor McGonagall said, "If there are any boys who believe they could be paired with boys, please step up whenever you get the chance."

(AN: McGonagall isn't homophobic here. She just phrased it that way because she also wanted to include Bisexuals and Pansexuals.)

Everyone looked at each other at that announcement. None of them wanted to be out.

Seeing this, Oliver Wood said, "Oh you bloody cowards, I'll go first."

He sat on the stool pointedly ignoring the staring and the pointing. The Hat, having made it's decision, said "Percy Weasley-" Percy blushed furiously at both his relationship with Oliver and his sexuality being revealed, as the Hat continued, "-and Marcus Flint." Oliver and Percy looked at each other and shrugged as if saying, 'the idiot is never going to sit with us before we acknowledge it'. They went to the Slytherin table and sat down.

Harry nervously got up too. He didn't want his relationship wrecked but he had to if he wanted to know. The Hat gleefully yelled, "Sebastian Finch and Blaise Zabini!" The students all started screaming, 'Harry Potter's GAY?!"

Harry once again ignoring this, went and sat in between Blaise and Seb, who had coincidentally been sitting together. "Go on then." he said to everyone that was staring at him.

Hermione saw Ron and Alex trying to make a decision. Apparently they came to one and Ron got up and sat on the stool. The whispering restarted. 'Ronald Weasley's gay?!'

Hermione was done with the whispering! She got up and stood on top of the Gryffindor table and yelled, "That IS IT! What is wrong with you people? They're gay, let them be fucking gay! I've had it up to here with the rumor mill around this place."

Everyone looked absolutely dumb-founded. They hadn't expected Hermione Granger, The Golden Girl of the Wizarding World could be so crude!

Ron grinned at her and waited for the Hat to make it's decision. "Theodore Nott and Alex Blue."

Alex and Ron exchanged looks and almost simultaneously looked at Nott. He, on the other hand looked absolutely content with this turn of events. "I've always wanted to have a threesome. Come on, sit with me then. Ron smirked and sat with Alex, as if daring Nott to come sit with them. A pleasant surprise, Nott actually did.

Hermione got up. Everyone was flabbergasted. All three of the Golden Trio in a row?! Hermione rolled her eyes done with the propaganda. She sat on the stool, adjusting her dress. She heard the Hat's voice in her head.

"Tell me about Alexander. Would you make amends with him?"

"I suppose I don't need to tell you. You could just look through my mind and figure it out." Hermione remained stubborn. The fact that she was going along with this utter bollocks was because she didn't want to cause a scene. It certainly didn't mean that she was happy about it!

"Hm. Well, the two of you make a handsome pair, but need an outside push." The bloody Hat was enjoying turning everyone's lives around. Hermione was going to burn that manky, moldy, ridiculous excuse of headwear!

"Now, now, Ms. Granger. Let's not get violent. I know what to do with you." The Hat replied to her inner crusade of violence. The fact that he only sounded amused by it was even more infuriating!

Still, she sat there, with a poker face that would have made her mother proud, even if she was seething on the inside.

She wondered how her mother would react to this. She had always loved Alexander, but would she get her daughter married without consent just like that? Wherever Hermione looked at it from the answer was no. But, her mother was an extremely well-mannered lady, she would treat her intended with the at-most respect. (Just not in private)

The Hat seemed to have finally made it's decision.

Chapter Text

As Hermione sat there, waiting for the Hat to yell out the decision it reached, she felt everyone in the Great Hall staring at her, like pin-pricks on her skin. She was used to the staring. It made her uncomfortable, yes, but it was a direct effect of who she was. Being the Queen's daughter, came with its downsides.

As she scanned the Great Hall, she saw someone that made her feel infinitely more reassured about the process, multiple someones in fact. She saw Fredrick, Eric and Derek. The three of her brothers who were of age. She hadn't noticed them as they entered. All three of them looked perfectly content with the proceedings to everyone else, but Hermione saw their slightly stiff gaits, and the worry circling their eyes. Mia, however, wasn't worried. All four of them were going to get arranged marriages either way, so they were prepared for the idea of having a spouse they barely knew.

This was another reason, they lived their lives as much as possible. While they never shirked their responsibilities, they had their fair share of fun and rebellion. Fredrick had his sexual escapades, Eric had his tattoos, Derek dyed his hair so much, it was a wonder it hadn't fallen off, and Mia... Mia got bored easy so she had all of the mentioned. She had tattoos all over her arms, and her ribs, all covered by her shirt sleeves as well as her legs and neck, covered by intricate glamours that most people couldn't detect. She had dyed her hair a lot, mostly black, blonde or highlights, but occasionally the bold cerulean blue or purple too.

When it came to sex, she was no inexperienced slouch either. She did have a lot of partners, but she generally hated getting serious. She got hurt whenever she did. Men, women, theys, she didn't really care about gender. Plus, doing what she did, every second of everyday, she needed the stress relief.

Coming back to her siblings, she loved them more than anything. They were ridiculously close and all of them were crazy protective of Mia. Even Derek, who was younger than her. She could practically hear him yelling at her, 'I'm younger by 17 minutes. 17 minutes!'

She heard the Hat draw in a breath. Can the Hat breathe? She added it to her list of things to research. She heard the Hat yell, "Alexander Darius and Draco Malfoy!"

Hermione went numb. She had been expecting Alexander but Malfoy... She for the umpteenth time that day, was conflicted. She got up, her mind spinning. Sure she didn't hate him. She truly didn't. But there were still a lot things that he had done which had scarred Hermione more than anyone realised. Things between him, Harry and Ron might be okay but Hermione could hold a grudge. She knew the marriage would get nowhere if they didn't work things out.

She knew one thing, however. She trusted both of them to at least keep thing interesting. Neither of them would back down without a fight.

She sat beside Ander as Malfoy pushed his was beside him. She didn't know what to do. In the end, she called, "Jen."

Much to the confusion of the rest of the Hall, a house-elf showed up. After the War, Hermione had learned that her vendetta against abuse to house elves was misconducted. They did actually enjoy the work, but she still believed that people should be kind to them. Hence, she politely asked, "Jen, could you get me a coffee, strong and black? By strong, I mean, strong." She emphasized the word, in hopes that the elf would understand her desperation.

The elf beamed at the request and said, "Of course miss. I'll be back momentarily."

"That elf is a god-send."

"You always were happy about how much she helped you." Hearing Ander's soft, apologetic voice made her heart break. She really had cared for him, before he asked for space and a break-up after.

She looked at him for the first time in 3 years and said, "Well, have you met Malfoy?"

"I have not. Hi, it's nice to meet you. I'm Alexander." Alexander said, extending a hand. Malfoy looked at it curiously, if not skeptically. He took it and said, "Draco. You two know each other then?"

Hermione looked at Ander as he awkwardly answered, "We dated for a bit back in our fifth year."

Understanding dawned on Malfoy's face. The Slytherin in him seemed to set in and Hermione just knew that he was going to start asking very awkward questions. She would have no trouble answering them, just didn't feel like airing out her feelings in public.

So, she rushed to clarify, "There's no bad blood, we parted amicably." Jen came back with her coffee and Hermione might have professed her gratitude in quite the dramatic manner.

There was an awkward silence between them until they saw Ginny, Luna, Daphne, Theo, Ron, Alex, George and Pansy join them. "Hey," whispered Ron. "You good?" That was his way of asking if she need his help with her emotions. She nodded, as if saying 'no, I don't need you to empath my feelings away. But stay alert cuz I might just collapse momentarily.' She had no idea how they did it but he nodded back at her as if he understood, which he probably did.

Everybody started a conversation. George asked, "Does anyone find it weird that so many of us are paired with Slytherins? Conspiracy theory you reckon?"

Luna responded dreamily, "Of course not, the pairings might seem strange, but look deeper and there are connections there. 

"You think that I'm to be paired with this Weasley and Wood?" Marcus inquired.

"I do. Marcus and Oliver have had a rivalry for their entire Hogwarts career, but in Marcus' last year at Hogwarts, your two teams had to train together and you actually got to know each other. After that trick that the Weasley twins played on you, your year was thoroughly disrupted by a stint at St. Mungo's. Most don't know this, but Oliver was extremely worried about you. He tried to brush it off as being about not having a proper opponent for his last year of Quidditch, but he cared." came the reply.

Everyone was shocked that Luna had noticed so much about someone she barely ever talked to, but Mia wouldn't find it impossible for her to just sit and watch people for hours.

"And me?" asked Percy.

"Well, Percy, I don't think we need to talk about your preference to athletes." said Luna.

Percy's jaw dropped at both Luna Lovegood being so crude as well as the comment she made.

Deciding to tease him a little, Harry crowed, "She's not wrong. You dated Penny, she was did track, Oliver and don't tell me you weren't staring at Viktor Krum at the Tri-Wizard Tournament!"

Percy went as red as his hair and buried his face into Oliver's neck. Marcus on the other hand looked very pleased at this new development.

"What about us?" asked Pansy.

"George has always been extremely caring and generous to his partners, Pansy. He's practically a ray of sunshine and I have a feeling you're going to need that in your life," replied Ginny quietly.

Both George and Pansy looked confused. They clearly had a lot to think about as well as get to know about each other.

"Why did I get paired here then?" Daphne didn't look upset, just curious as to what Luna's reasoning would be.

"Ginny and I have always been extremely close. She's been nice to me when everyone else was rude. That being said, both of us tend be a little disconnected from the world and bad at communicating what we actually want. You come in because genuinely, you're the only one that is tolerable enough about our eccentric attributes." said Luna.

Ginny added on, "Look, I don't know how you feel about being married to us, but I hope you give us a chance. It also helps that both of us find you extremely attractive." Her brothers all looked at her disapprovingly. "What?! It's true!" She exclaimed as Astoria and Neville get paired together.

"Really? My sister with Neville Longbottom?"

Harry smiled. "After Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle once made fun of Neville for living with his grandmother in their sixth year, he went to one of the greenhouses like he always does when he's upset. He saw Astoria there, struggling with some plant or the other, because her OWLS were coming up. He asked her if she wanted help, completely expecting her to be snub, like all the Slytherins were with him, but she accepted. He taught her about all the plants she needed to know for hours and hours on end, until they had to leave for curfew. Neville walked her back to the Slytherin common room and left after she thanked him. She's literally the only girl he's talked about since."

"He's like actually in love with her." tacked on Hermione as she nursed her 3rd cup of coffee.

"Why us?' asked Malfoy. Hermione looked at him and he looked as though he thought no one would ever be compatible with him. She did not want to discuss this in public but the gods were not in her favour. She looked at Harry and Ron and glared at them. If looks could kill, they'd be decimated by now. Harry, properly threatened gulped and stayed quiet but Ron being Ron answered just to see Hermione pissed off.

"Well, both of these two are pansexual, if you hadn't figured that out. They dated for around a year and a half and I swear to god, they were like an old married couple." said Ron. Traitorous arse. Hermione was going to kill him. Slowly. She watched as Freddie got paired with some girl she had seen around the castle before, but never met. She forced her attention back to the table's conversation.

"They argued about silly things all the time, but at the end of the day, everyone knew it was only banter. They really cared about each other. And you... There was always something I suppose. If there was no war, I always felt like your dynamic would fit excellently with these two. You would playfully argue too, without it actually hurting your pride." said Ron thoughtfully.

Hermione watched as as yet another one of her brothers, Eric this time, got paired with a girl from Ravenclaw she didn't know. They sat down and chatted as if they were old friends.

George had that mischievous look in his eyes that Hermione had come to dread. "Also, Percy's not the only one with an athlete obsession." Hermione grabbed a spoon and chucked it at George. "Shut up."

Everyone once again looked at her, surprised. Theo asked, "Who... are you?" Hermione just smirked at him.

"No but seriously, there was Tae, Cyrus, Emma, Lauren, Iris, Nick, I could go on and on and on." chimed in Ginny.

"Really?" came a sarcastic voice from above Hermione's head. The blood drained out of Hermione's face as she looked at her twin brother, Derek. She gained her composure as he said, "I'm telling mom." He sat down with his pair, a boy named Aaron Whitlock. Hermione had Runes with him in sixth year.

"No you're not." Hermione shot back.

"And why's that?"

"You tell mom about this and I'll tell mom about the sneaking out."

"So you're blackmailing me?"

"Basically yeah."

"I've missed ya, hun. Castle's not the same without your intimidating presence. You don't tell I don't tell." He hugged her from the side.

"Deal. Guys, this is my twin brother. Derek Granger." Hermione introduced him to the eager group.

The introductions were paused when the last person to be paired had to be detained from hexing their intended.

The Headmistress stood up. "I understand that this is daunting and that this makes you very unhappy, but it is what is going to happen. To help you come to terms with it, there are professionals being provided. There is a member of the Wizengamot who would like to go through everything that will be happening."

An old man, walked up to the teacher's table and started speaking, "Good Afternoon. I'm extremely sorry that it had to come to this, but it happens to be inevitable. There are rules and conditions that must be followed. You may speak to any ministry officials, if you have special circumstances. To begin with, the weddings, to give you as much time as possible, you will have to be married by the end of the year. You are allowed to take care of your weddings financially, but the Ministry will support any reasonable amount. If you would like to, the Ministry will also fund your Honeymoons.

The second thing, living conditions. If you are still at school, you are allowed to stay where you are. However, if you have graduated, you will have to live together in the same place of residence. You will also have to share a bed after your weddings. The rest is up to you.

You are also expected to consummate your weddings on your wedding night. There are ways of knowing if you haven't. To increase chances of pregnancy, you will have to have sex at least once every week. The circumstances are not highlighted. For any polyamorous couples, all must participate at least once a week. You are to have at least 2 children throughout the course of your marriage. If you are infertile, or paired in a homosexual couple, you will be asked to adopt one of the many children left parentless because of the War.

I hope this goes without being said, but abuse against your spouses, whether it be magical or not will not be tolerated."

For the first time during his reading, he looked sympathetic as he said, "All of you are going to be married for the rest of your lives. The least you could do is make sure you aren't miserable throughout it. I had an arranged marriage and I hated my parents for making me do it. I hated my wife too. But along the having kids, raising them, arguing about trust and attention, you realize that you've actually given them a chance and fallen in love. A touch, a soft word, an apology, a nice hot meal, proving you care, goes a longer way than you might think it does. I wish all of you the best of luck."

The Hall was buzzing after his speech. Everyone was weirdly touched that he cared enough to leave such genuine parting words. They still weren't looking forward to getting married to someone they hadn't chosen, but they were willing to give it a chance.

Minnie got up again and this time she looked like she was about to give us good news. "The Ministry believed that you might need some support after today's events, so we have invited your parents to the school, so you can meet them. Muggleborns' parents have been accommodated into the wards as well." The fact that we would also be meeting our in-laws was left unsaid.

The doors to the Great Hall burst open with parents worried about their kids.

"You think she's going to show up?"

Hermione didn't need to ask what Derek was talking about. Their mother loved them and she gave them everything she could, but she was a busy woman. She couldn't be there all the time.

Everyone got  up as they saw their respective parents. Derek spotted something and said, "Sit up straight." Not even questioning it, Hermione set her posture right. Ramrod back, shoulders set, yet still elegant.

"Come on." The younger twin started walking towards the Weasleys in an attempt to delay the inevitable. The Malfoys we're here.

It wasn't too late to act as if they hadn't even seen them, and they were going to take that small window. They stopped in front of the Weasleys.

Hermione loved Molly Weasley. She really did. But the woman had a flair for the dramatic that would tire out Lady Gaga.

She was crying about how her children's lives were ruined into her husband's shoulder. The children in question, looked about ready to run away.

Ron stepped up, and kneeled down so that his mom could see him face-to-face.

"We're fine. We're all adults, none of us are completely against this-" well, that certainly wasn't true. "-who knows, this might actually turn out well if we gave them a chance." Hermione saw Ron's eyes glow. The fact that they did showed just how much effort Ron had to put in.

Before Hermione could put in her opinion, she saw Malfoy walk to her. As he got closer, he said, "My parents would like to meet my future partners. They've requested and audience." He looked extremely smug. She looked over too where the Malfoy's we're standing and she saw Ander already there speaking to them with his parents.

She sighed and motioned at Malfoy to lead the way. "Aren't your parents going to be joining us?" He asked her.

"I'm... not sure." She hated to be so vulnerable infront of him yet she found she had to.

He took this information without any comment, much to her surprise. They reached his parents and just stood there.

Hermione wasn't raised in a barn. She knew pureblood customs and Malfoy had to introduce her before she said anything. So she stood there. Waiting. Seething. Muddled.

Before long, Malfoy said something. "Mother, Father, this is Hermione Granger. Granger, Mr and Mrs Malfoy.

Mrs Malfoy stuck out her hand, the picture of grace for her too shake. Hermione took her hand and said, "Pleasure." She then repeated the process with Malfoy Senior.

She then turned to Alexander's parents and before she could even get a word out, Ander's mother wrapped her into a hug. That said more than enough.

She greeted them as Malfoy explained their situation to his parents. As he did so, the doors opened yet again.

This time, the hall for a lot quieter. Hermione turned and shook her head.

The Queen had arrived.

Chapter Text

Hermione watched as the Queen stepped into the Hall, looking completely regal and elegant, even though she looked perfectly normal. Hermione supposed that she hadn't wanted to flaunt her heritage, so she had dressed down from her usual floor length gowns into a simple jumpsuit. This, however only magnified how she looked. The olive brown skin and brown hair that Hermione had inherited from her perfectly complimented the ombre blue outfit she had on.

The Queen's Outfit

Hermione looked a lot like her mother. The only thing that was different was their eyes. Hermione's mother had beautifully deep, grey eyes that were filled with wisdom. Her daughter, however, inherited her eye color from her husband. It was something that Hermione hated about herself. Not only did she already have so many scars from him, both emotional and physical, she just had to have his eyes.

The Queen glided to her daughter, looking as if she wasn't even touching the ground and stopped in front of her. She took Hermione's face into her hands and looked at her apologetically. Hermione knew then, she had tried her best, but there was nothing even she could do to stop the abhorrent law from taking place. Hermione looked at her and she felt her mother engulf her into a comforting hug.

Hermione breathed in deep, taking in the moment. They didn't do this much. They couldn't. They were royalty to an entire country, they had traditions and customs to uphold. They were to stand tall in front of their people and never, even for a second, show their weakness or doubts. The fact that her mother had allowed herself this moment told her that she cared. It got hard sometimes, never being able to see your mother, show her weakness, never being told that she had made her proud.

She knew her mother felt all of these emotions too, but Hermione let herself be selfish for a moment. She let herself get angry and sad and insecure in the safe cocoon her mother had given her. Away from the Malfoys, the Darius' away from the world, but she had to come back up some time. So, she did.

She looked at her mother and they both smiled. She moved away and turned to the two families that were both waiting for her to be done. She went to Alexander's parents first. "Mom, I believe you know Alexander and his parents." All three of them bowed, the perfect example of well-mannered. They didn't, however, address her as 'Your Highness', a clear degree of familiarity. She shook Ander's hand as she exchanged pleasantries.

She then turned her focus onto the Malfoys who looked perfectly content waiting for her to introduce them to her mother. She didn't want to walk on eggshells around them for the rest of her life, so she dropped the bomb. "This is Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy and their son, Draco Malfoy. Meet my mother, Wendell Granger...., Queen of Australia" Hermione waited for the infuriating simpering that always begun when people found out about her status. She was very pleased to find that it didn't happen.

"Pleased to meet you." Mrs. Malfoy raised her hand - much more reluctantly than she did with Hermione - and watched as her mother shook it. She did the same with Malfoy Senior.

She looked to Malfoy and narrowed her eyes. "Hermione, would you go get your brothers?"

Hermione smirked and left to go find them without a word. One thing her mother didn't know, was that years of musical training with both Muggles and Wizards/Witches had given her excellent hearing. She could usually hear from almost 7 meters away. She heard her say, "My daughter has told me a lot about you. Oh, I wouldn't look so happy about it. It was nothing good. I'm going to say this once. To the both of you."

"Oh, the talk." snarked Malfoy.

"How about I talk and you listen?" she snapped back.

She must have pulled Ander into the conversation too.

"You hurt that girl, I will go to war against you. The Hat has made a very strange pairing here."

"Oh, we've noticed." said Ander.

"That girl is beloved. The entire country adores her. They would pick her over a thousand people in a heartbeat. Everyone will be watching you. I'm not saying give her everything she wants - although I wouldn't be surprised if she managed to get you to do that anyway - I'm saying watch it. If my daughter is unhappy, I will run you to the ground."

Hermione was touched, but she didn't need her mother fighting her battles for her. She had found her brothers and was just about to step in when Alexander spoke up.

"Our turn to speak now?" he asked.

My mother looked at him. "Sure."

Malfoy said, "You can have your people run around chasing me through the streets, waving sticks at me, I genuinely don't care. I'm a Malfoy. I'm not going to back off, just because your daughter might be difficult. I have a lot to make up for, especially to her. I know that. I also know that I'm here to stay and I am going to work it out with her. And him." He tilted his head towards Ander.

"Gee thanks. But, he's right. We're committed to doing this. I've been blindsided by the Law but that doesn't mean I wasn't going to try and make amends with your daughter. The situation just forces her into it."

Hermione watched her mother carefully, waiting to see her reaction. To her surprise, the Queen smiled and nodded. Hermione supposed that was that.

She stepped towards them, making her presence known and her mother started speaking again.

"I suppose you should know, that we are at an extremely dangerous crossroads here. I would like to start both of your spouses on basic training at the very least. It is their choice, but being your spouses means that they require the ability to protect themselves without their magic. Talk to Javier about it and see if Harry and Ron's matches will be amenable to do the same. I have to go meet your brothers' intended too and then I'll be leaving. Be careful, rational and don't die."

Her mother gave her an all-knowing look as if she knew that she was going to get into trouble. Hermione smirked and nodded.

She turned her attention back to Malfoy and Ander who were similarly saying their goodbyes.

Once they were done, Hermione said, "I agree with my mother. I believe you need basic military and customs training. I would like to speak to the family butler if you agree."

They both looked at each other uneasily and nodded.

"Okay. How did your parents react to you having to marry me?" She asked sarcastically.

"Well. Despite your extremely off-putting family status, they were pleased to see that at least they didn't have to have an embarrassment for a daughter in law." He said just as sassily.

Ander smirked. He looked like Christmas had come early when Malfoy said that. He was so smug that he knew something that so little did. "Are you going to tell him or should I?"

Hermione shot him a look that would have made anyone cower in fear, but he just raised an eyebrow at her, daring her to do something about it. "Thanks for that. My family situation is... complicated."

Malfoy narrowed his eyes, immediately skeptical. Hermione could practically hear the wheels in his head spinning to try and figure out what he didn't know, even though there was no possible way he could have known. "Complicated how?" he asked.

Hermione drew in a long breath, trying to understand how her life had turned upside down so quickly. "...My father's name was Pollux Rosier."

Malfoy's eyes widened. Even his famous blank Malfoy-ish stare wouldn't stay up due to this piece of information. His gaze darted across her face, as if look for clues that she was related to the vicious pureblood family.

"Stop that." She smacked him in the arm, uncomfortable with her childhood bully looking so invested in her features. "You aren't going to find anything. Another thing you should probably know about me, I almost always have multiple glamours casted on myself." It was true, putting aside the glamours on her tattoos and unsightly scars, she had also hid some of the features she had inherited from her father.

"Wait, I've never heard of a Pollux Rosier in their family's bloodline." Malfoy mused out-loud.

"That's the thing. His existence was hidden away by the family because they considered him something of a disgrace. He was born extremely weak, magical-wise. He didn't have a lot of energy in his magical core. It was just enough for him to be labelled a Wixen, but too little for him to actually cast with."

"But-.... Rosiers are some of the most powerful of the Wizarding population." Malfoy's face lit up as if he had just realized something. "That's why you're so powerful isn't it? You're part Rosier."

"I'm powerful because I have to be. I'm powerful because I work on it. And stop interrupting me. Anyway, he was practically shunted out of the family due to all of his problems, and he was desperate to prove himself. He wanted to climb the social ladder as quickly as possible, so he married the most high-profile woman he could find. That happened to be my mother." She held up a finger as Malfoy started to interrupt again. "I will hex your mouth shut if you don't let me finish."

Malfoy just smirked at her and let her continue.

"He spoke with my grandfather, the previous monarch of the country and he convinced him that marrying into a family like his would be most beneficial. Grandfather was a very orthodox man. He didn't believe women were powerful enough to be cunning or to ever amount to anything, so he thought he was doing the heavy lifting as he got my parents married against my mother's will. Both of the men demanded they have kids so that the King could pass on his monarchy in peace. They were extremely pleased when my mother gave birth to two boys 3 years into the marriage, both extremely talented and powerful." Hermione drew in a breath, knowing that this was when the story was going to get bad. She hated telling it and only a few select people even knew.

"Two years after, she gave birth again. This time to twins. A baby girl and a boy. My grandfather didn't want a daughter. He hated the idea of it and he decided that she would just be a drain to the Royal family. He informed my mother that he was going to take the girl away and give her to an old lady that ran an orphanage in the dead of night. However, before he could, he was killed of...unknown causes. All they knew was that the King's daughter was the only one who could take up the post."

Alexander leaned in, this was all he knew, but he always suspected there was more to the story than Hermione had ever told him. 

She became Queen and her husband became King Consort. Her oldest son immediately became the Crown Prince and her children next in line. The King Consort was enraged. He had expected the title of monarch to go to him and everyday he took that out on his children. Hermione's voice got quieter as she spoke. She didn't want to tell them, but she knew she had to. As she was speaking, the boys had led her out of the Great Hall and they were wandering around the school without her realizing it. She supposed they realized she was having trouble reliving and saved her from the embarrassment to everyone hearing her.

"The King Consort terrorized his children and did his best to whip them into the best and the brightest across the world." Hermione laughed humorlessly. "Sometimes quite literally.

Anyway, the King had ways of keeping this from my mother. This is why she had no idea, until our youngest sister, Gwen confessed everything to her. She had the him banished from the country after him being appropriately punished. The sad sod, of course married the country's biggest rival's daughter. He hasn't been in our country in over three years."

"Wait, why only banished? Why didn't she kill him?"

"My mother still had to cement her standing in Court, and if she had killed him, she would have looked either weak for trying to kill a problem or would look problematic herself, for killing everyone she disagreed with. She wanted respect not terror."

Hermione glanced at Malfoy and then Ander, waiting for their reactions. Malfoy looked to be still processing but Ander looked like he was furious.

He started speaking in an even, calm tone but Hermione heard the edge in his voice. "So let me see if I've got all the facts straight. You had an asshole grandfather. A father you abused you, while you were in a relationship with me and the worst part is you never even told me! His voice broke towards the end due to how angry he seemed. "Mia, I- I don't know how I missed it. Am I really that-"

"Sometimes.... you just miss the signs. There's nothing you can really do about it and even if you did know, there was nothing you could have done except wait for her to come to you herself." Surprisingly it was Malfoy who answered Ander.

Hermione looked at his, surprised. He had said exactly what she was going to.

Draco looked at Granger blankly. He knew what he had to say to Alexander because there was certainly no bad blood between them. But Granger.... Granger and Draco had a turbulent past. She probably wouldn't appreciate him attempting to comfort her, so he did the one thing he knew would get her going again as well as give him some comfort after being so vulnerable.

"Well, we've heard your sob story. It's nice to know that while I genuinely don't care if you aren't a Muggleborn, my parents will be pleased. Your two sidekicks are probably losing their minds worrying about where I've kidnapped you to and I would rather like to sleep without worrying about whether a redhead is going to curse me. So, we're heading back to the Hall. Chop, chop."

He started walking away, knowing the other two would follow.

Alexander called after him, "Being a dick doesn't make yours any bigger you know!"

Draco smirked, turned around so he was walking backward and replied, "I don't really need a lot of help in that department."

He watched as Alexander's eyes popped and his cheeks reddened. Draco was surprised to find that he desperately wanted to see that look more often.

He also knew that he was making an active effort not to look at Granger because he had no idea what to say to her. Her life was so twisted and he had only added to her issues. No matter what people said, he was remorseful. He looked at all the people in the Hall and saw the things he had done and said to make their lives a living hell.

He only knew two things for sure. He was going to make amends. He didn't want to be the person he was. He also knew that people weren't going to be willing to forgive him so easily, despite the applause for his younger brother.

"Dray!" He heard his brother the moment he thought of him. Draco whirled around at the distressed voice. His brother, much unlike himself, was a happy, compassionate person. There was absolutely no reason for him to be sounding so upset on his first day at Hogwarts.

Draco ran to the source of the voice and saw two 6th year Ravenclaws standing over his brother. The second he saw blood on his brother's face, he saw red. His hands started shaking in his effort to contain himself from disintegrating the two where they stood.

"Oi! What the hell do you think you're doing?" Granger seemed to have noticed his ire and cut in before he could.

"Why do you care so much? Their family hurt you too."

"My brother had nothing to do with that and even if he did, that's no grounds for attacking a student."

"He's a year above is, you'd think he'd know how to defend himself."

"Consider yourself lucky that he didn't lift his wand." He was about to say more but before he could someone else intervened.

"Apologize and leave."

Weasley and Potter had shown up behind them and even though the comment wasn't directed at home Draco had a strong urge to comply.

The other two, however looked as if they were in a trance.

They turned to Alaric and they actually looked remorseful as they apologized and walked away.

Draco lurched forward in his confusion and flitted his hands about his brother's person.

"Why didn't you defend yourself, absolute moron? Only I get to hex you." Compared to the way he acted toward everyone else, no one would expect Draco Malfoy to be protective of anyone.

But, he'd be damned if anything happened to his family and he sit by watching.

"Ow! Watch it!" Rick exclaimed in pain when I touched near his mid stomach.

"Stop being a wuss, I barely touched you." Contradictory to his words, he was more gentle as he pried his brother's hands away to look at the injury.

There was a bruise on the lower part of his stomach that was starting to colour.

"I'll have Theo look at it later." The younger tried to deflect his older brother but that was not going to fly.

"Or, I could look at it now."

Granger seemed to get a look at the bruise that was quickly becoming purple before she started rummaging through a little purse.

She looked to find what she was looking for before handing him a tiny, clear jar with a jelly-like substance in it. "It's bruising cream. I've learned to keep it on me at all times. Apply generously every 2 hours and it'll heal in a day."

"I don't need-"

"Say thank you." Draco cut off his brother's rambling protests.

"I-" Draco shot Rick a look and he looked to resign himself to his fate. "Thank you for helping. All of you."

"Anytime."

Draco shared a look with Rick before exclaiming, "What the name of Morgana did you just do, Weasley?"

"Oh, it's a really basic empath skill."

"Empath?!"

"You can't just say that and expect people to understand ya know." Potter butted in, completely unfazed by what had just happened.

"Ron is an empath. That basically means that he feels people's emotions by his body mimicking them as his own. It's a lot more complicated than it sounds and it takes immense practice and skill not to pass out in crowds." Granger took pity on him and explained.

"I know what an empath is. What I find surprising is that someone like him can accomplish the task." He said snarkily, covering up the fact that he didn't actually know that. He made a mental note to ask Theo more about it. He hated being blindsided.

"Hey, someone like you can be an legilimens, people like us can do anything." Potter shot back immediately.

"Enough. It's getting late and I still have to figure out where McGonagall's office is and talk to her about my schedule. Also, I'm really worn out." Alexander seemed to have regained control after Granger's story.

"You really need to work on your stamina." Granger said.

"You quite enjoyed my stamina when we were together." He shot back.

Granger's lips twitched in amusement as she tried not to smile.

"I'm going to the kitchen to find some food before I turn into a flesh eating monster. Anyone wanna join?" She saw the looks on their faces and giggled. "You'll get used to me. Ciao."

"I'm coming with!" The other two-thirds of the trio chorused.

"Off they go." Alexander said.

"You mentioned having to go to McGonagall's office?" Draco asked.

"Oh, yeah. She needed all the exchange students to choose our electives, but I'm not sure as to where her office is." He said that like an opening to get to know each other, so Draco extended a metaphorical hand.

"Would you like me to show you? And on the way if you'd like, we could discuss your electives."

"I'd like that." Alexander shyly replied. Contrary to Draco's first impression, Alexander didn't seem to enjoy the spotlight that much.

Sure, he was playful and fun but he also seemed to be very shy around people he didn't know. Draco liked the fact that he was such an open book.

"We'll have to go to the Headmistress' tower. It's down that way."

As they walked, Draco attempted to get to know Alexander, with a questions game. One of them would ask a question, both of them would answer and repeat.

"Okay, basics first. Siblings?" Draco asked.

"Nope. Single child. I did however feel like Hermione's younger sister was almost family." came the reply. Alexander waited for Draco to answer.

"Just the one for me. I've kinda spent my whole life protecting him from the world so I've never wanted another."

"That's a lot more deep than I would have expected from you."

"What is that supposed to mean?! I can be philosophical!"

"I'm sure you can. Okay. You ready for the awkward questions?"

"Sure am."

"Last time you had sex?"

"A month ago."

"Hm. 2 weeks."

"Really?"

"What?!"

They talked, bantered, argued about Quidditch teams, and Draco found that he... really liked him. It was a moment like in a cheesy romance book where everything went right. They liked enough of the same things to have common aspects but not enough to be uninterested in each other.

"Well, we're here."

"Thank you for helping."

They tried to stall before Draco had to leave, but there really wasn't much to be done.

"I'm gonna... go."

"I have to meet McGonagall anyway."

"Okay. Bye."

Okay. Bye?! What was he a second year?

"Hey, Draco?"

Ander, as he told Draco to call him sounded very close, very suddenly. Draco turned around with his hands in his pockets and found himself being grabbed.

Ander pulled him in and looked Draco dead in the eyes. They were a very pretty green. Draco could count the freckles on his face. Ander looked at Draco's lips and back into his eyes, as if he was asking a question.

Draco nodded and my whole world shifted. Being kissed by Ander was different to anything he had ever done before. All of his experiences were all to gain something. Stress-relief, mostly.

But with Ander, it felt like he cared. Call him cheesy, but Draco loved it. Draco raked his fingers through Ander’s hair, but it was Ander who took Draco's face between his hands with his fingertips curling behind Draco's nape, and then they collided. Draco's hands slipped to press against Anders’s chest the moment their lips met, and it was the kind of kiss Draco had dreamed about forever. The first kiss was curious but brimming with pure want, and Ander pulled away with his forehead against Draco's, their noses brushing together as they both took a deep breath, like they needed to process what they were doing.

But Draco was all in.

They kissed again, this time without hesitation. Ander's lips were soft and he still smelled like warm vanilla, completely intoxicating. Trembling, Draco traced his tongue along Ander's bottom lip, and that seemed to do it for poor Ander. He inhaled sharply and pushed the two of them until Draco's back hit the wall, and it stole Draco’s breath. But never once did they stop kissing, both of them in too deeply to be the first to ask for a pause.

"God, I hate you." Draco said. Ander pulled away, out of breath and looked a little hurt, so he continued.

"Why are you the male lead in almost every romance book known to man?"

"What do you mean?"

"I've had sex, I've kissed a lot of people, but you're the cliché. You kissed me so good I don't wanna go." Draco realized how whiny his voice sounded towards the end and he straightened up, clearing his throat.

Ander just chuckled at Draco's sudden awkwardness and said, "You're gonna miss curfew and I don't want you getting into trouble. Yet."

Draco walked back to the Slytherin common room feeling very unlike himself. It was like he was floating on clouds after the war. All the burden and pressure to be perfect and never crack had lifted.

He didn't need to put up a façade anymore...

Maybe he could finally be himself and be happy.