Title: Trailbreaking
Author: Knife Hand
Feedback: Constructive feedback appreciated, flames unappreciated
Spoilers: Nothing Specific, general for first few books.
Rating: R
Disclaimer: I do not own Hermione, or Luna, or Ginny, or Cho, or... I would buy them all but I am broke.
Summary: Angered at his unwilling selection as a TriWizard Champion, Harry and Hermione begin their own research in an attempt to take control of their own lives, with some… interesting consequences AU fic with some, from a certain perspective, extreme OOCness to come.
A/N: As the Wizarding world is still a few centuries behind the rest of the world and are ruled by a male aristocracy with delusions of competence there is no age of consent in the Wizarding world.
Hermione was leading Harry through the castle, both wrapped under Harry's Invisibility Cloak which was a very close fit with Hermione snuggled semi-comfortably in front of Harry. She led him to a classroom in a rarely used section of the castle. When they reached the classroom they through off the cloak, and Harry looked around in amazement. A section of the classroom was concealed by a curtain, and the rest of the room held two comfortable armchairs and a scattering of scented candles. Hermione sat in one of the armchairs and waved Harry into the other.
Had any of the teachers examined the room they would have been stunned. The wards were better than several around the Ministry of Magic. The transfiguration work would have impressed Professor McGonagall at her most critical and the charms around the room would have had Professor Flitwick taking notes and wanting to discuss their construction.
"So. What is this way to increase my power?" Harry asked, causing Hermione to flush.
"It's… um… Tantric Magic." Hermione said, hesitantly.
"What's that?" Harry asked, genuinely confused.
"Um. It's sex magic." Hermione said in a rush.
Harry's brain shut down for a second.
"So… we would…?" He stammered.
"That is the general idea." Hermione responded.
"So. How does it work? Not the, um, act. The Magic. How does this boost my power?" Harry asked, his face almost as red as a Weasley's Hair.
"With the proper rituals the, um, act creates a feedback between the two parties. It allows both parties to increase their magical cores. The amount of the increase is dependant on the relative strengths of the two parties involved." Hermione said, slipping into lecture mode.
A few hours later both lay in the bed that had been hidden behind the curtain. Turns out there had been a sacrifice but Hermione had not minded in the least.
Harry walked out into the Arena to face his Dragon. The roar of the crowed filled his ears but not his consciousness. His eyes immediately sought out Hermione, who gave him a smile. He stepped forward and was suddenly shrouded in flamed, earning a gasp from the crowed, all but one of whom assumed that he had been burnt alive. Needless to say they were all surprised when he calmly walked out of the flames almost a minute later. Harry bolted for the Dragon's nest, ducking and swerving around the Dragon's attacks with its claws and tail. One swipe did manage to contact with his shield and threw him to the ground the but the claws did not reach Harry, so he rolled up under the Dragon's belly and grabbed the Golden Egg, before ducking back out and away from the nest of real Dragon Eggs and their mother.
Harry and Hermione entered the Gryffindor Common Room to thunderous applause.
"What the hell are you all clapping for?" Harry snapped, causing silence to fall over the entire room. "You all abandoned me. With the exception of Hermione, not a single one of you have supported me or encourage me. You all treated me like an outcast and now it looks like I have a chance you think I will forgive and forget. Not bloody likely. I want nothing from any of you."
With that declaration Harry and Hermione turned and marched out of the Gryffindor Common Room. They eventually made their way to the same abandoned classroom from a few nights previously. Again Hermione warded the room and transfigured the furniture to a similar configuration as that night, including a single large bed.
With the tension of the First Task and then the confrontation with the Gryffindors, neither now truly considering themselves to be part of that House, they had sex that night. Not the ritualistic coupling of the Tantric magic, or the long, slow act of making love. Instead it was a fast, frantic, almost rough release of tension.
The next morning, a Saturday, Harry and Hermione sat at the foot of the Gryffindor table with a large gap between them and everyone else at the table. They sat chatting about small matters, for all the world acting like a married couple sitting in the dining room of their own home eating breakfast, ignoring the hall around them. Suddenly two post owls dropped a letter in front of each of them. The Letters were both from Gringotts requesting their presence at the first opportunity to discuss a sensitive matter that involved both of them.
"Professor Dumbledore. Hermione and I require immediate access to the Floo Network to attend a meeting with Gringotts." Harry announced to the Great Hall.
"That is against School Rules." Dumbledore said, without looking up from his breakfast.
"Page forty-two, Paragraph nineteen, sub-section four of the School Charter. Also Article fifty-six, Clause ninety-six A of the Fourth Wizard Goblin Treaty of 1219 and Amendment one-twenty-six, paragraph five, sub-section G of the Ministry's Corporate legislation enacted 1982." Hermione quoted. "We will require that Floo access within the next hour or you will be sanctioned and possibly declared an enemy of the Goblin Nation."
Harry and Hermione walked up to one of the seemingly disinterested Gringotts tellers. Disinterested until they handed over the letters they had received that morning, causing the teller Goblin to sit up strait. The teller Goblin pressed a button and a second Goblin came in from a door behind him.
"Please follow me to the Conference Room." The new Goblin said.
The Goblin led them through a few corridors to a large, richly appointed conference room. Inside the room sat a single Goblin and a distinguished looking Witch.
"Mister Potter, Miss Granger. My name is Sarnrock, Chief Legal Council for Gringotts London. And this is Maria Thresher of the Ministry's Civil Registration office. Please have a seat." The seated Goblin said.
Harry and Hermione took their seats opposite to Samrock and Mrs Thresher.
"May we ask what this is about?" Hermione asked.
"Of course, Miss Granger." Samrock replied. "It has come to our attention that four days ago, Mr Potter and yourself performed a class three Tantric ritual. Is that correct?"
Both Harry and Hermione blushed furiously at this statement and began to wonder if they were in trouble.
"Yes." Harry said reluctantly.
"Were you aware that class three Tantric rituals can also be considered wedding ceremonies?" Mrs Thresher asked.
"No." Both Harry and Hermione said, shocked.
"If you so choose, there is paperwork that can be signed that will validate the marriage." Mrs Thresher continued. "Should you choose to sign then you will not only be considered married, but will be granted emancipated minor status and will be free to inherit any Magical titles or property for which you are heir or have been bequeathed."
"May we have some time to discuss this?" Hermione asked.
"Of course." Samrock said, placing a small Brass bell on the table. "When you have made your decision, please ring the bell and we will return."
With that Samrock and Mrs Thresher left the room.
"Well. What do you think?" Harry asked.
"On several levels the accepting the offer makes logical sense." Hermione began. "Firstly it would get you away from your relatives. Secondly it would give us access to the Potter accounts and holdings, which would free us from dependence on Dumbledore or the Weasleys. But then this is not all about logic. What do you think, or more importantly, feel?"
"As I have said before, you are the only person in the world that I trust. I can not think of anybody else in the world I would want to spend my life with. But honestly, apart from the financial freedom, what can I possibly offer you?" Harry replied.
"Are you really that dense?" Hermione said shocked. "You are smart, funny, handsome and dedicated. You have saved my life more times that I want to think about and often put yourself in harms way to do it. You are the only person who was never intimidated by my intelligence and while you may have complained you always sat down and studied with me, regardless of what you would rather do. I have loved you since first year."
The pair eventually called Samrock and Mrs Thresher back in and signed the Ministry paperwork. Once it was signed Mrs Thresher left the conference room and Samrock turned to the newly wed couple.
"Now we need to discuss inheritances and the reactivation of two accounts. Namely the main Potter account and the Pendragon account, which has been dormant for centuries."
Four hours later both Harry and Hermione were exhausted and a bit overwhelmed by the paperwork that they both had to go through. When they had finally signed the last of the activation forms and had performed the proper inheritance rituals, Samrock left the room for a few minutes before returning.
"Lord and Lady Potter, you have some visitors." Samrock announced.
"Who would want to see us?" Harry asked.
"We took the liberty of informing them as soon as your emancipation was confirmed." Samrock replied.
At Samrock's gesture, three women entered the room. The first woman was in her late thirties, with long brown hair and a slender build but with well defined muscles and an empty scabbard at her waist. The second woman was in her late forties with short blonde hair and a stocky build. The third woman was in her early sixties with a matronly demeanour. The first two women wore blue and white military style uniforms, while the third woman was also dressed in blue and white but it was less formal than the other two women's clothes.
"May I introduce Commander Jennifer Potter, Sword-Mistress of House Potter; General Margarite Delacour, the Commander of House Potter Garrison and Mrs Gwen Seacourt, House Potter's Senior Advisor." Samrock said.
The Commander and the General both knelt while the matronly Advisor Seacourt curtsied.
"My Lord. My Lady." All three women said.
"Um, please stand up. Actually, take a seat." Harry said, nervously.
The three women sat across the table from Harry and Hermione, with Commander Potter and General Delacour sitting up with military bearing.
"So, Commander Potter. Are you related to Harry?" Hermione asked.
"Yes, My Lady." The brown haired woman replied. "I am Lord Potter's cousin through a non-inheriting line of the family."
"Please do not call me Lord, call me Harry" Harry said. "Jennifer, it would be a privilege to spend time with you whenever we can as you are the first real family I have ever known."
"My Lor… Harry." Jennifer said, "We will provide you with a means of instant transport between Hogwarts and any of the main Potter properties, but in the meantime we need to discuss the current state of both the Potter estates and our current Forces."
"Of course." Harry replied.
"Lord Harry." General Delacour said with her French accent. "We have over seven hundred troopers under arms, unfortunately the vast majority of these troops however are in Garrison duties in House Potter holdings in France, The Netherlands and Spain, and it would not be possible to free up these troops without compromising the holdings security."
The following meeting lasted for another four hours, discussing the disposition and status of both the Potter Properties and troopers.
Fleur walked out into one of the courtyards in the periphery of the Hogwarts castle, chatting away in French with a few of her Baubuxton companions. The other girls said goodbye having to get to their next class, something that Fleur, as a Champion, was not required to attend. She sat down on one of the benches, letting the clear sky calm her and feeling the delightful slight burn of the cold in her lungs. She heard the scrape of boots on pavement in front of her and looked down to see Harry Potter standing in front of her.
"Your Aunt Margarite says Bonjour." Harry said.
It took a few seconds for the words to sink in. Then it hit Fleur. If Harry had met her Aunt it could only mean one thing.
"My Lord." Fleur said with a bowed head.
House Delacour had served House Potter for hundreds of years. They had even started from one of the daughters of the House Potter.
"You will not let this interfere with the Tournament. You will compete to win for the glory of Houses Potter and Delacour."
TBC…