Hey all! This was my submission for Strictly Dramione's Spring Fest 2017 there will be at least 6 more chapters to come depending on how my edits go! Please tell me what you think a review makes my day
Story name: New Beginnings
Rating: M for later chapters
Pairing: Draco Malfoy/Hermione Granger
Synopsis: Hermione comes home to find her husband in a compromising position on the kitchen table and wants to get away from everything, the perfect job opportunity as a professor of Charms at Hogwarts is offered and she takes it. Only to find that there's a surprise Draco Malfoy old school nemesis is the new DADA professor what will happen?
Prompt: Hogwarts Professors. Hermione bursts into laughter, only realising after a few seconds that Malfoy had not joined in. "Wait", She said tensing. "You're Serious".
AN: All canon characters, plots, and situations from the Harry Potter universe belong to JK Rowling. I am not profiting from this writing.
Beta love to Sandra-Sempra who dealt with my random writing style for months and helped me keep powering through and encouraged me not to give up! Thanks lovie xoxox
Chapter 1: New regimes!
Hermione Granger hadn't stepped through these gates in over five years. Since the end of the final battle, she had gotten a job with the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures and she married Ronald Weasley. It was all perfect until one day it, wasn't anymore.
She had known what was going on from the beginning, she just didn't want to have to face the fact that her first love would ever cheat on her and that her marriage would end.
Then, five years after it had all began, she had come home from university after a hard day of studying the laws and customs of witchcraft and magical creatures to find her husband sprawled out on their kitchen table with his secretary, Pansy Parkinson.
Hermione hadn't said a word, which was completely out of character for her. She wasn't one to let things slide, however this time she silently went into her room, packed her things, and simply walked out. She went to the only place she felt safe, her childhood home where no one would bother her until she was ready.
Unknowing to Hermione, Minerva McGonagall had been keeping a close watch on her and her life for several months now, as she needed a new charms professor at Hogwarts immediately. Professor Flitwick had come down with some rare wizard virus, and was out of commission. She knew she was the right witch for the job, and visited her with comforting ears before offering her the position. The perfect escape for a new beginning.
There was a catch, however, to this whole get away. Hermione would have to run shared classes with the DADA professor every so often, to promote new ideals with the students.
That did not sit well with Hermione. The disclaimer coming from McGonagall's lips sounded as though she knew there could be potential trials between her and this other professor. Hermione hesitated at first but saw the determination in her old Mentor's eyes, and knew she would not give up without a fight.
So after a grueling session of sitting through negotiations, she accepted and moved on to the details. That was three months ago, and she still hadn't been told who the DADA professor was going to be, and had to settle with finding out at the start of term.
The moment of truth was about to be upon her, and she grew nervous as this had not been where she saw her life going. She quickly sent a patronus up to let the Headmistress know she had arrived and sat down on one of her bags to wait.
She was so intent on watching the doors of the castle that she didn't notice the man walk up behind her until he placed his bags down and said, "you would think she wouldn't keep her favorite ex pupil waiting so long." in his deep voice that she wouldn't forget anywhere.
She turned to face the blonde and couldn't help but notice how handsome he had become since she had seen him last. He still wore his expensive "specially designed and tailored for him" clothing and that exorbitant smirk upon his face. He wore a black oxford and black pants that looked like they could be sold at Nordstrom except for the fact that they were obviously stitched to his exact measurements. They framed his buttocks nicely and showed his front off to perfection.
"Malfoy, what the hell are you doing here!?" She yelled at her former classmate.
"Oh this is rich, she didn't tell you?" he chuckled a bit and went quiet, crossing his arms as he watched her try and figure it out.
"Tell me whaaa…." she trailed off and shook her head "surely not! You can't be! Not possible."
"I am and it is completely possible," he said knowing her brilliant brain hadn't slacked over the years and managed to crack that he was the new DADA professor.
As she was about to respond, she heard someone clearing her throat at the gate and turned to see McGonagall standing there wearing a stern expression.
"That is quite enough, you will not argue. I know that you two have a past but let's leave it there shall we? You two are the best people for these positions and you will also be good examples for mending the bridges between the houses. I will not have you being rude to one another once you cross this line," she pointed to an invisible line that crossed into the school, "understood?" She asked.
They both looked to the other and back to their former professor now colleague, and nodded. They picked their luggage up and followed the Headmistress.
As they journeyed up to the castle the group was silent, the two new Professors thinking about how they would have to deal with each other all the time and actually get along, it was going to be tough.
They reached the front doors and the older woman finally spoke "now seeing as you both asked to not stay in your respective house staff quarters we made a wing for you I will show you where it is located now and let you get settled before the students arrive tomorrow" she stated.
They followed her to the seventh floor and found themselves outside two large portraits. One displayed that of a lion and the second a dragon.
"These are your respective quarters," she said looking between the two of them, "You may create your own passwords, and the rooms will go to your design. They will only be able to be changed three times so choose the design wisely," she left them no time to argue over the fact that their rooms were situated so closely together before walking away.
Hermione went to her portrait and whispered "traduction". The lion in its frame opened its mouth and roared,swinging open widely to let her pass through. She ignored the blond at her back as she stepped inside.
She walked into the room and noticed that everything was a blank slate, dull and bland in color. Brows furrowed, she bit her lip in thought as she decided to design her lounge section first and then moved through to make it more like a muggle flat.
In her mind she pictured a large, spacious room with walls that were pearl white in colour. The floors were covered in a pale red carpet, decorated with swirls throughout the threads, and a large L shaped black lounge sectional with several ottomans spread throughout the room. The walls were mostly lined with shelves to store all of the books she had brought from home. In front of a sleek glass coffee table, a large fireplace of white with black and gold finishings set the focus point. Black marble stairs led up to a second floor, displaying railings of gold with black accents.. There were also two pearl white doors with gold handles heading off the lounge room that she would turn into a study and kitchenette and dining room for when she didn't want to eat down in the Great Hall.
As she opened her eyes she saw exactly what she had seen in her mind and smiled satisfyingly . She quickly added some artwork around the walls to tie the room together and decided that she would tackle her study next.
Pausing with her hand on the golden handle, she thought about what she wanted to see when she opened the door. She pictured a room of the same design with pearl white pigments upon the walls as the lounge with bookshelves covered three of the four from floor to ceiling. , The fourth would sit behind her desk and there would be a picture of a wolf and a lion resembling hers and Harry's animagus forms. Her desk would be elegant and large in size that was black with gold edging. Upon it, a lamp as well as quill and ink holders, and a spot for her picture frames. She anticipated many nights working in this space, and imagined the seat to be nice and plushy. There would be ottomans littering this room as well as there was nothing better than relaxing whilst she worked. She peered inside and once again saw the room that her mind displayed in full detail. Smiling again, she was happy with the magic that was infused throughout the space.
She moved onto the kitchenette and dining room, picturing the same coloured walls as the previous rooms, with a black marble bench and a stovetop with a small fridge to match. There was a island that she could eat at if she didn't want to sit at the table and a pantry off to the side that would hold all of her snacks.
The table was a black pine with two seats to match and cushioned with white material.. Upon its center was a crystal vase and some white roses and candles. The table could be extended as needed and more chairs would appear depending on how many people were going to sit down.
There was a window seat facing towards the Black Lake and forbidden forest and she could make out Hagrid's hut. She would love to sit there wrapped in a throw blanket and either read a book or mark assignments.
There would be a chandelier above made from tiny crystals that would sparkle in the sunlight invading the room through the large windows. Before her last thought finished in her mind, she opened her eyes, watching the room as it made the adjustments she had painted and loved that she got to see the magic happen.
She scanned the room at the perfection one more time, then decided to go upstairs and design the space upstairs that would be her bedroom, bathroom, and lounge..
She was halfway up the steps when she realised that two rooms and a large open space had already appeared for her, so she only had to design the decor, which would save a lot of time.
She started with the lounge where two small sofas in the same black fabric as before and a glass coffee table centered the space. Three of the walls were covered in more bookshelves and the fourth was a black accent with a large mirror in the shape of a sun. There was a marble fireplace that she would be able to sit in front of in the winter. A fluffy, black rug in front of the fire that would be excellent to lay down on.
Now that was taken care of she could move onto her bathroom as she wanted to leave her bedroom to the last minute because that was going to be her ultimate sanctuary.
She went over to the door that was closest to the upstairs lounge and stopped outside the door. She pictured in her head, the floors would be a creamy marble like tiling, there would be a gigantic walk-in shower off to the right that would be able to fit ten people because she hated having a cramped space as it made her claustrophobic. Then on the back wall there would be a massive one sided window so she could have a view and nothing could see in. There would be a massive pool-like bath up on a pedestal that she would step down into, it would have massaging jets and bubbles galore as she liked to occasionally have a relaxing soak after a hard week of work. Then there would be a bowl like raised sink for her to wash up at night, or after going to the toilet and the vanity would have lots of storage for all of her hair products in case there was a formal event. The toilet would be pearly white and the walls would be white with gold finishings.
She didn't bother opening the door, she knew it would be perfect and if it wasn't, she would use one of the three fixes the room allowed later on. For the moment, she wanted to move onto the bedroom so she could unpack all of her belongings and have a bit of a nap before going to dinner with the rest of the Professors.
She pictured a large room that would have a massive walk in wardrobe where she could get ready for the day and store everything neatly. There would be plenty of space to hang all of her robes and dresses and then there would be drawers for the rest of her clothing and off to the left would be a shoe rack that would fit all of her many shoes. There would also be a spot to place her jewellery that could be hidden with a wave of her wand after she had chosen her daily pieces.
A feature wall of charcoal black, in the middle of the feature wall would hang a mirror and below would be a king sized black wooden bed with gold and silver bedding, at the end of the bed would be a storage locker that could also double as a seat to put her shoes on in the morning.
On either side of the bed stood a nightstand, black in color, with golden lamps upon their surface., A nook by the window would allow her read in at night, or in a cozy reclining chair in the opposite corner.
With that done she opened the door, walking into her perfect bedroom and summoned her luggage so that she could get it all stowed away. Being a witch came in handy when, with a wave of her wand, everything was in it's place and she could begin to relax. She set the alarm on her wand and laid down in her plush mattress, falling asleep almost instantly.
She hadn't had a single night where she went to sleep and didn't wake screaming. Ever since the war had ended and she had time to really process what had happened at Malfoy Manor, she had been having nightmares about the capture. It wasn't always the same, sometimes it would change and others would join in to torturing her as well.
Today was worse, seeing Malfoy had brought it to the forefront and when she fell asleep, all she could see was him standing over her and being ordered to torture her. For hours he performed the Cruciatus curse on her in her nightmare, and every time the pain got worse. She screamed and thrashed, and the pain in her throat from her shrills had woken her only after an hour.
Disheveled with beads of sweat, she knew that if she didn't have a shower before the dinner and meeting that the other Professors would notice and start asking questions. She had been able to hidden the fears of her nightmares and past well, and sought to keep it that way.. No one else should have to deal with her nightmares.
Entering the main professor's lounge, she found that she was the last to arrive, which irritated her. To add to that, the only seat remaining was beside the last person she wanted to sit beside; Malfoy.
She sat down with reluctance and listened in to the conversations going on around her, noticing that her and Draco were the only ones that weren't involved in the discussions.
She surreptitiously glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, and saw that he was intently looking at a spot on the table.
She kind of felt the same, like she was an unwanted fly in the room, and she couldn't believe that after only a few years after leaving this place there were only a few staff members left from her time.
McGonagall stood and welcomed the two of them and then discussed arrangements about what was going to happen during the term. She gave the job of welcoming the first years to Draco and Hermione so they could start showing a united front to the students. She instructed that they had better start deciding on how they wanted to split up the sorting ceremony and that it had better be quick because the students would be arriving tomorrow.
Once she felt they understood their new roles with the welcoming, she moved on to talk about how each term they would have a different type of activity to promote house bonding. The first would be a dance, and she would have the four younger staff take care of the planning for those activities as they were the ones that the students would connect with the most.
Draco and Hermione both scowled in unison at the thought. They imagined their dealings with one another would only be so often, but it was looking like they were going to be spending the majority of their time here together.
This was not good, they couldn't stand being in the same space for more than a few minutes let alone the hours that they would have to spend together, working together.
McGonagall sat down and dinner appeared before them. Everyone ate quickly and albeit too quietly for Hermione's taste.. At the end. the Headmistress said they should work out everything tonight so they were well prepared for the events of tomorrow to avoid any problems. And as she had done before, she left before either of them were able to give a response.
The awkward silence that followed was taunting to say the least. Neither said a word to the other, not wanting to be the first to break the silence.
Then Draco couldn't stand it any longer.
"Do you want to do the greeting when they first arrive or do the sorting hat part? I don't mind either way." He said with little emotion.
"I have been thinking about it since she gave us the task," she began fidgeting slightly. "I think we should both do the greeting and walk the students into the hall so it shows house unity to them from word go, they will all know who we are and that we were in rival houses, what do you think?" She asked him.
He looked at her with a look of shock on his face and said, "I like that. It means we will both put a welcoming front first off and they'll get used to seeing us work together"
"So now all we have to sort out is how we are going to stand and who is going to address what." Hermione added.
"We should stand side by side at the top of the same spot McGonagall welcomed us." He motioned with his hands in front of him. "Walk them up to the stairs and then you should take the part about houses being family and I introduce the houses individually and tell them that we will be taking them into a side room first, then into the main room to deal with the sorting ceremony. I'll make sure they know we are always around should they need anything, explaining the direction to each house common room." he said.
"That sounds good actually! Are we both going to each call the students names as well? Or only one of us?" She asked.
"I think we should do some each so that we are showing the older students we are integrated as well," Draco smiled at her, looking completely unnatural on him, especially when directed at her.
As they sorted out the details, they found it easier and easier to converse with one another. By the time that they got to the seventh floor, they were talking amicably and had put the first foot forward to a better alliance.