Unlikely Places Chapter 1: Introductions: 1 through 6, a harry potter fanfic

A/N: Okay, this is VERY different from what I usually do. It's post-DH, it's practically angst-free, and it has more than one pairing (in fact, it has five pairings that I've never written before…), but I'm EXCITED!!

More Extensive Summery: Yes, there's a marriage law, but don't write it off yet- it has nothing to do with blood purity, and they let you choose your own spouse, for Merlin's sake. But as it happens, some of our favorite characters have two months to find someone and get married… This is gonna be fun.

Pairings (brackets- not going to be focused on as much):

Hermione/Draco - Ginny/Blaise - Harry/Pansy

(Luna/Ron, George/Padma)

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Unlikely Places

Some of Britain's witches fainted when they got the memo, but Hermione Jean Granger was not one to faint. Then again, she had never been one to boil over with uncontrollable anger either, and that she did do.

Wasn't the point of this war to gain FREEDOM? What did I fight for? What in Merlin's name gives them the right to decide this?

In fact, after letting out a scream of annoyance to herself (which was actually quite audible to others), she marched right up to the office of the Minister of Magic to complain. Of course, it wasn't all that unusual for Hermione Granger to be in the Minister of Magic's office. The two of them were, naturally, on first name terms and had quite a good relationship in general, Ms. Granger being the top researcher of the Dark Arts for the Ministry.

Not that anyone would have guessed as much at the moment.

"What in the name of Godric Gryffindor were you thinking!?" she was yelling rather forcefully, her wand raised.

"Herm- Hermione- It wasn't me!" The poor man looked rather frightened, and with good reason- Hermione Granger was a very powerful witch, and known to have a formidable temper upon the rare occasions when she unleashed it fully.

"What do you mean it wasn't you?! You have veto power. Don't you dare start saying it was the committee!"

"But it was the committee! I can't veto something that everyone else thinks is a good idea!"

"Like you didn't agree with it wholeheartedly until I came barging in here. You people have no right! This doesn't affect a single one of you! Ugh, I've had enough of this." She crushed the memo into a ball, slamming it down on the desk in front of the Minister before turning on her heel to storm out of the room, ignoring the astonished looks of the secretaries in the next room.

What Ms. Granger would never admit to was that the real reason she was so opposed to the new law was not so much her moral indignation as the fact that she simply was not ready to move on quite yet. Her relationship with Ronald Weasley had left her rather fragile emotionally even though she was a very strong woman, and she was most certainly not ready to start dating again. Besides, Ron tended to be a jealous sort of guy, and seeing her with another man so soon would likely cause a rapid deterioration in the patching-up of their former friendship. Right?

The paper that had been left forlornly on the Minister's desk slowly unfurled as he looked down at it.

Ministry of Magic
Interdepartmental Memo: January 17th, 2007

Due to the drop in population caused by the recent war, the Ministry has decided to promote an active effort to repopulate Britain's wizarding community.
All wizards and witches of childbearing age (this is tentatively defined as between the ages of 20 and 35, see attached for more details) who have not married must do so in two months, before the seventeenth of March this year. The witch must be pregnant by the one-year anniversary of the marriage.
An optional matchmaking service will be available to those who request it.
This can be deferred in cases of those who are currently completing continuing education programs and does not apply in the case of single parents. Please report to the newly established exemption office on the seventh floor to complete the necessary paperwork.
Thank you in advance for your cooperation.

Draco Malfoy, drinking his morning coffee and opening his post in the parlor of his flat not far from where Hermione Granger was, was quite as angry as she had been. And he was, similarly, not one for angry outbursts. He almost spit out his coffee, but that would have been very undignified (even though there wasn't anyone else in the room with him), so he ended up in a rather violent coughing fit instead.

Draco Malfoy was not ready to be tied down to any one woman, let alone marry her.

Naturally, he began thinking of ways to get out of this. He still hadn't gotten used to not being able to call upon his father to change rules for him whenever it was necessary.

He could find someone who would marry him without any emotional attachment (perhaps Pansy Parkinson, if she hadn't changed since school) and allow him to go on with his life as if they weren't married, and then he'd divorce her later… no, that wouldn't work, kids were a requirement. The whole point in fact. Eww, Draco didn't want a little brat to take care of…

He could just leave the country for a bit. Wouldn't be the first time he'd been on the run from the law.

Draco had been a sort of mercenary during the war. Everyone had expected him to follow his family tradition and guard his position in the Deatheater ranks with his life (quite literally), but Draco really didn't care about blood purity that much. Don't get the wrong idea- he never wholly supported the Light either. You see, never having been really cared for, Draco could not bring himself to really care about anyone but himself. His priority was his own well-being, nothing else. So he had played both sides, swaying toward one or the other depending on who was winning, and that was how he made it through the war years. Of course, few people approved of this system.

Yes, leaving the country sounded like the best option. Perhaps he could get Blaise to come with him. They could go to the States. He always had wanted to visit New York.

Blaise Zabini was walking into the living room of his flat wearing only a towel slung around his hips, pointing his wand at his hair to dry it, when Draco Malfoy's head popped into his fireplace.

"Blaise! Get over here!"

"Jeez, man, why can't you warn me? What if I hadn't been wearing the towel?"

"Eh, nothing I haven't seen before. Besides, this is important. I assume you haven't opened your post yet…"

"Of course I've opened my post, and I know what you're talking about. But I don't understand why you're so worked up over it. I was planning to try and find someone to settle down with anyway; now it'll just have to be a bit sooner than later. I'm twenty-seven, for Merlin's sake!" he pointed out.

"Well, I'm twenty-six," (Blaise scoffed) "and the point is… you've got to be kidding me!"

"No joke, for once. Come on, you've slept with enough women for two lifetimes. It's time you found yourself one you'd be willing to sleep with for the rest of your life."

"Not now it isn't. I'm going to the States for a while, I think. New York City. You're not coming?"

"Naw, man. I think I'll do the right thing for a change. Keep me posted, 'kay?"

"Fine, be that way." Blaise shook his head as Draco vanished. For all his pomp and circumstance, that man could be quite childish sometimes.

As for Blaise, well, he had meant everything he had said to his best mate. He was getting sick of the lack of meaningful relationships in his life. The problem was that he needed to get out of his on-and-off (and mainly nocturnal) relationship cycle with former Slytherins and other Deatheater spawn. He needed someone new. Perhaps that matchmaker thing was a good idea…

"This is not okay!"

Ginevra Weasley was pacing her mother's kitchen, the crumpled remains of the Ministry's letter dangling from her tightly closed fist.

"I think it's wonderful, dear. It'll make all five of you settle down, finally. I know you put your lives on hold for the war, but you aren't teenagers anymore."

The five she was talking about were Ginny herself, of course, her brothers George and Ronald Weasley, and their practically adopted siblings Harry Potter and Hermione Granger. Those two would always be considered part of the family by Mrs. Weasley, even though it had now been made painfully clear that they were never officially going to be.

You see, it had always been assumed that Ron would marry Hermione and Harry would marry Ginny. Unfortunately (from Molly's point of view, anyway) neither of these "perfect couples" turned out to be perfect for one another.

Ron and Hermione had dated on and off for years, and it took them far too long to realize that in the end they were hurting each other far more than helping. They had terrible fights- parts of both of their flats had been blown up at some time or another. In the end (which was very recent) they split for good on reasonable terms, but it was still a bit awkward between them. They were going to need some time to patch up themselves and their friendship, but Ginny was sure they would make it through.

The one upside was that the whole experience had brought Hermione and Ginny closer together. They had always been more of polite acquaintances than friends, but Hermione had needed a female to talk to and she didn't exactly want it to be one of her coworkers.

As for Harry and Ginny, that was a simpler story. When they had begun dating again after the war years, they had realized quite simply that what they had had for each other had been more of a mutual infatuation than love. In the end they were better off as friends, practically brother and sister, than as lovers.

They had parted on remarkably good terms, and they still met frequently for coffee and were very good friends. And Ginny knew she didn't love him, not like that. But she did need a little time- not to mourn the loss of Harry, but to mourn the loss of a dream.

"I'm going for coffee with your sister and Hermione," Harry Potter yelled into his flat, "you coming?" He figured it was worth a try.

"No, thanks. Gotta catch up on this paperwork…" his roommate, one aforementioned Ronald Weasley, called back from somewhere in the depths of the rather large two-bedroom. Harry sighed and shook his head as he grabbed his jacket and left the house.

He clutched his long raincoat to his tall frame as he walked against the rain, but he didn't have an umbrella to speak of. He barely ever used an umbrella since the war, unless he was wearing very fancy clothing- he had come to enjoy the feeling of the rain in his face.

"So, how are my two favorite women?" he inquired affectionately as he entered the café where Hermione and Ginny were waiting for him.

Hermione barely smiled. "You have two months to find a new favorite woman, apparently," she said pointedly, "and I, for one, am going to spend a little time in the States. I think this is ridiculous."

"Oh 'Mione, you wouldn't leave your job... would you?"

"Sure I would. They owe me like five months of vacation anyway. I know how dependant they are on me, it's not like they'd ever let me go. And don't you dare try and tell me that you wouldn't do the same thing if you weren't the wizarding world's perfect poster boy."

"You're the poster girl, anyway."

"You're not denying it." Harry turned to Ginny, who had been calmly sipping her cappuccino through all of this.

"How about you, Gin?"

"I'm thinking that rooming with 'Mione sounds like a good idea right now."

"Oh come on, you guys are going to leave me all alone with Ron?"

"Eh, you'll be clubbing every night looking for your soulmate. I'm sure you'll have lots of fun!" Ginny said. Harry nodded his head in the direction of the window of the café, then leaned in to whisper conspiratorially.

"Think the girl with the camera outside could be theone?"

Okay, that was a nice long chappie to start us off and give you some idea of the format of this fic. There will be a bunch of stories going on (five, to be exact), but they will be rather interconnected. Next chapter will introduce the other four main characters, and then we'll get into the actual plot. Unlike my other stories, this will be lighthearted and happy and not involve a lot of death. Please let me know what you think!