THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN YOU AND ME
Chapter one: the difference between desires and responsibility
Hermione sat at the kitchen table in Grimmauld Place and contemplated life. She closed her eyes and the blood pumping in her head drowned out the concerned voices around her. A piece of parchment lay limp in her open hand. She could feel the tears threatening to fall, but she could not cry. If she cried then the others would pity her and that was something she would not be able to handle.
"Hermione, listen to me, everything will become clear soon." Remus Lupin looked worried, he knew that things would not get any easier but it would do her no good to know that. Let her be ignorant until she absolutely had to know the truth. For although the article explained what was to happen; it did not fully describe what was in store for all muggle born witches. Remus looked down on the piece of parchment and reread the article to try and further understand what it was trying to report.
ANNOUNCEMENT FOR ALL UNMARRIED MUGGLE BORN WITCHES
From September the first all muggle born witches seventeen years or older must marry a pureblood wizard. We at the ministry have been informed that the line of purebloods is slowly diminishing and so; the wizards must marry out of the prestigious bloodline. If a witch refuses to comply with this new law or tries to leave the country, the consequences will be grave. All witches shall report to the ministry once they have found a suitable wizard.
What the announcement didn't report was that the witches had no choice in which their suitor would be. This made everything so much worse, for the majority of pureblood wizards left were Death Eaters and Hermione was considered somewhat of a treasure because of her close relationship with Harry. Remus feared for her life and would have done anything to get her out of this position. Hermione startled him out of his reverie by voicing her own thoughts on the matter, 'Well that's settled then. Is there a list of purebloods for me to choose from?'
Remus shifted uncomfortably in his seat. Well, she'll find out sooner or later. Better it be from me than some Ministry official. 'Well, you see Hermione. You don't get to choose. Whoever writes to the Ministry first with a wish to marry you, shall acquire you.' The blood in Hermione's head pumped harder still at these words. Will this nightmare never end? 'Acquire me? Am I just an object to be owned? No, I won't do it if I have no choice of who I marry!' The tears that Hermione had tried so hard to keep at bay finally broke through and she cried freely at the horror of her future. 'It will be a Death Eater who shall marry me! If I end up the wife of a Death Eater you will find my body tortured and dead less than a month later! '
Everyone at the table sat in silence. What could they say? No one there could sympathise with her because no one else was facing that mortal danger. They all watched as a serene expression washed over her face. 'There is no way out of this. I shall do my duty and marry, but my life will not be wasted. I will communicate with you and try and find out information about Voldemort and do all I can to stop any evil doing.'
Hermione stood up from the table and went to face the window; she could see an owl heading towards the house. Does this bird carry my fate? Has someone so soon expressed a desire to marry me? The owl was a beautiful creature, a pale gold with hints of silver spread through. Hermione opened the window and the owl perched on her hand and lifted its leg. Hermione untied the scroll from the leg. Her heart fell when she saw that the parchment had a silver M on the front.
Everyone watched as Hermione read the letter, her head dropped on her chest and the letter drifted to the ground. Remus walked over to her and picked up the letter. The first thing he noticed was the name. Draco Malfoy.
A/N: If this seems familiar to you here is the reason: I used to be under another account. But then my family found out so I had to move everything here, sorry about the wait.