A/N- This chap is 3x the length of the last. Hence the quick upload compared to the last one. I'm almost done with chapter 9, so I figured I'd upload this one a wee bit early. Lots of goodies in this chapter. Enjoy!


During their first week of summer break Alexander took Theo and Hermione shopping in London to make sure Theo was adequately attired throughout the summer. Hermione also took Theo to see his first movie, which he was fascinated by. During the next week and a half mostly they worked on homework as they'd be unable to do so in France. Nor would they want to, in Theo's opinion.

"Is there anything in France you're especially excited to see?" Theo asked his sister as they rolled up their potions assignments.

"I'd like to see the Louvre museum," Hermione answered. "History has always intrigued me."

Theo nodded. He didn't have anything in particular he was eager to see, but he'd had a feeling his sister did. She was very well read, he knew that already, but she just seemed to like learning new things. Theo was definitely not the same but he had to admire her enthusiasm for learning. It was so radically different from Pansy & the Greengrass sisters.

Actually, the more time they spent together the more Theo thought that any aristocratic pureblood wizard would run for the hills if he went on a date with Hermione. She wasn't what they'd been raised to expect, and he doubted they'd know how to handle her. That set him at ease. Between their father not letting anyone get to her and Hermione's 'improper' pureblood attitude, maybe they could stave off the gold diggers. That would make him very happy. Although on the other hand, Theo wouldn't mind hexing a few of the pureblood idiots who were dumb enough to try and get to her. Especially if it was someone like Ernie MacMillan. That would be especially satisfactory.

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Draco Malfoy had never been happier in his life. While outside of Malfoy Manor he was the proper, no emotion pureblood teenager he was supposed to be, it was a completely different story when he was home. He slid down the banister on the main stairs, he ran through the halls. He did everything he'd always wanted to do but not been able to with Lucius Malfoy in the house.

When he'd gone home for a few days after the death of his father, his mother had taken him to his aunt's house where he met the family that had been struck off the Black family tree; Andromeda Tonks and her muggleborn husband Ted and her halfblood daughter Nymphadora Tonks. Who, for the record, hated her name with a passion. His mother had explained that she loathed his father's views and that all of that nonsense was stopping right that second. They would be spending plenty of time with the Tonks family.

For his part, Draco was happy to consort with people his father would have hated. If for no other reason than because he knew it would have enraged Lucius. He'd kept his head down at Hogwarts when he returned, but it felt like a weight had lifted off his shoulders and next year things would be different. He was certain.

And he rather liked his cousin, who simply went by Tonks. She was in training to be an auror, having graduated from Hogwarts the year before, and Draco found the pink-haired witch very entertaining and great fun. She didn't even mind him hanging around despite being so much younger than her. For Draco, it was shaping up to be the best summer of his life.

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Albus Dumbledore watched the aurors enter the castle from his office's window. Never would he have thought removing Lucius Malfoy from the picture would make Cornelius Fudge so outspoken and determined. Albus was facing a hearing regarding his conduct as headmaster of Hogwarts and that wasn't a good feeling. He felt it was quite likely he could end up sacked. Especially if they found anything else in the school that could harm the students.

There were his other titles to be lost as well. And of course the Weasleys were facing the impending trial of their daughter for attacking Hogwarts students. He'd hoped the ministry would somehow blame Voldemort for it, as Albus was sure Voldemort was involved, but it looked like that wasn't going to happen from where he was standing.

When Madame Bones and Rufus Scrimgeour had cornered him and asked about the basilisk, he knew his answers weren't satisfactory. When she asked about Lockhart being a charlatan and his students and staff knew it, why didn't he? Well, Albus knew that was the beginning of the end. The trouble was that he had no good answer. No justifiable one. His teachers had all made it clear they found Lockhart a sham throughout the year. He'd ignored them.

He opted to stay in his office for this visit. He'd not even been able to face the children after Cornelius and Amelia had questioned him. It was certainly the most nerve-wracking summer Albus Dumbledore had had in a very long time.

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Amelia Bones had five Unspeakables with her as the group of aurors went through the school. The Board of Governors had given them full access when Cornelius had asked to have his aurors make sure there were no more threats hiding in the castle's walls. They found nothing of import on the first six floors, but on floor seven the Unspeakables discovered a hidden room. "Interesting," one of them said. "If I needed to hide something dangerous, a hidden room would be the best spot."

Amelia stood back as they studied it to work out how to open it. Ten minutes later, a door appeared and they entered, pulling out a horcrux detector they'd created to identify soul fragments of Tom Marvolo Riddle, aka Lord Voldemort. They'd already found Hufflepuff's Cup in Bellatrix's vault and they'd found Slytherin's locket in the Black family home. Snape had given them plenty of Basilisk venom and they, along with the diary, were already destroyed.


There was still the issue of what to do to the Weasley girl. After consulting with the Unspeakables, she and Rufus had come to an agreement. Voldemort's influence couldn't be ignored but telling people that Voldemort was still around was not a good idea. They feared Death Eaters would get aggressive again or worse try to work out how to bring back their not quite dead master. They had a different idea. The healers at St. Mungo's had explained that the girl had no actual mental issues. She had been possessed, but still had plenty of control over her actions. Certainly enough to be held accountable for them.

They also could say that the only thing that seemed to be lingering damage from the diary was her memory. It seemed like Voldemort had managed to wipe or suppress her memory from each attack. Presumably, the Unspeakables hypothesized, because he wanted the girl to go insane and then he could fully possess her. The diary possessed a weakened Voldemort, whose powers were severely lacking but not to the point he couldn't have fully possessed her if her mind had completely gone.

However, no one could agree with what to do with the girl. Azkaban wasn't seen as an option for any child. However they could hardly lock her up in the incurably insane ward of St. Mungo's. She wasn't insane. But they had to punish her. She could not be allowed to get away with her crime.

Amelia had contacted other countries to inquire about their juvenile facilities for magical children who committed crimes. France had a juvenile facility on an island off their northern coast, not all that far from England, and had offered it up to her. Amelia thought that was the best option. It was close enough her parents could visit her. At age 21 she could be transferred over to Azkaban if the girl hadn't shown any mental signs of improvement. If she had, well, they'd cross that bridge when they came to it.


After an hour of searching the room that was filled with random objects they found a horcrux and promptly destroyed it. "We should finish our search," Amelia said, "But I certainly feel better about children being at this school now that that thing is gone."

"Agreed," an Unspeakable nodded as they left the room.

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"Honestly Theo, it's not that complicated," Hermione told her brother.

"How is this game popular? There's only one ball, you can't use your hands-"

"Except the goalkeeper," Hermione interrupted.

"-and you kick the ball into the net?" Theo shook his head, "I really don't get how it could be popular."

"Attend an actual game and you would," Troy smirked. He found teaching the young man about footy hilarious. While Alexander had clearly kept himself aware of non-magical things, Theo hadn't been taught about them at all and so Troy had the privilege of teaching Theo to ride a bike (Alexander had given them the cash to get Theo his own) and now about football. Theo had quickly grasped riding a bicycle, and enjoyed it, but football was clearly puzzling for someone who grew up watching quidditch. "I think I have some season reviews that show highlights. I'll dig them out tonight and you can watch a few, get an idea of the game."

"That's a great idea," Hermione smiled. It was hard to explain a sport played by 22 players when there were only three of you. "It's almost time for lunch anyway."

"Come on we can wash up and go out to get something," Troy said.


"I like this," Theo said as he collected rent from Helen Granger after she landed on his property, "Actually, lots of Slytherins would like it. Draco would probably crush everyone in our house."

"We can get you your own copy of Monopoly to take to school," Troy suggested.

"You should show him Battleship, Hermione," Helen told her daughter.

"You'd like that too but it's a bit easier to cheat at that," Hermione mused.

"Really? Sounds interesting," he gave her a small smile.

"You'd cheat in a heartbeat, wouldn't you?" She glared at him.

"It's not cheating, it's seizing on an opportunity," Theo grinned.

"Remind me to never play more than one Slytherin at a time," Hermione said.

"Oh Blaise would definitely cheat," Theo nodded. "He's horrible when we play cards." A bemused Helen and Troy shared a smile at Theo's enthusiasm. Hermione had never had a friend before Hogwarts, which had concerned them. And her friendship with Harry Potter and Ron Weasley had them uncomfortable after she'd been hurt at school and they'd met the Weasley parents, Arthur interrogating them about batteries and plugs. Honestly, they'd written wizards off as completely daft.

But Alexander wasn't, and the two dentists felt bad for Theo not having his mother. They had wanted another child, but been very content to just have Hermione. And it might seem odd, sharing custody with Alexander, but they felt sympathy for the man who'd lost his wife so young and had to raise his son on his own. From what he'd told them, Alexander's parents and in-laws were monsters and he'd devoted much of Theo's life to protecting him from them.

Theo was a delight to the Grangers. He was polite, intelligent, and he was able to keep Hermione from being swallowed up in her books, which was a feat as far as they were concerned. It was very hard to keep her out of them for long, typically, but she was incredibly invested in teaching Theo about the non-magical world and they were delighted to see her playing around more as she exposed Theo to it.


"I hope we get a competent DADA teacher next year," Hermione mused as she checked over the worksheet the ex-auror who'd been teaching the class had given them to complete over the summer.

"That would be nice," Theo agreed. "Maybe now that our father is on the board he can make sure we actually get someone who knows what they're talking about."

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"You want a werewolf to teach our children," Alexander said, gazing at Dumbledore like he was an idiot.

"With the Wolfsbane Potion it isn't an issue," Dumbledore insisted.

"I find that hard to believe, given all he has to do is miss a dose and he's in a castle with easy access to victims," Alexander frowned. "I know who Remus Lupin is, Albus. I was only two years below him in school. And he's already nearly killed a fellow student, why the devil would we make him a professor?"

The old headmaster paled at the mention of Remus nearly killing a fellow student but he tried to ignore that dig, "He's the only viable candidate."

"That isn't true," Thomas Corcoran frowned, "Minister Fudge has offered to install an auror in the school as the professor. I understand he's also suggested several cursebreakers from Gringotts as an option, given the rumors that the position is cursed."

"I really do think that Remus would…"

"We're not putting a werewolf around children," Alexander stated unequivocally. "I am a parent and I wouldn't want him near my children; there will be outrage when people find out just who is teaching their children defense."

"The board is in full agreement," Corcoran nodded. "We will not be hiring Remus Lupin. We will get either an auror or a cursebreaker; whichever individual we deem most fit for the role."

Marlene Diggle gazed at Albus, "You would do well to remember, Albus, that you are on very thin ice after all you've done this past year to your students." Thinking of his upcoming court date, Albus Dumbledore could only nod and leave the room. "Oh, Albus?" He turned and looked at the old witch, "We want the pets rule enforced. Only a cat, owl, or toad. Nothing else. It is our understanding you've been letting some students get away with taking a pet rat to school. That ends this year. Cat, owl, or toad are the options. End of story." With that Dumbledore was dismissed, feeling very minor for the first time in a long time after meeting with the Board of Governors.

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While Hermione was teaching Theo about muggle culture and things, Theo and Alexander in turn were teaching her about pureblood culture. While learning about her biological family was very interesting, she was not amused with the courting rituals which were either innocuous or just obnoxious. In Hermione's opinion, it was all insufferable. "I really don't think I'll be as desired as you think I will be," she said. "I was hardly noticed the end of this year."

"That will change when we go back to school," Theo said. "If Father won't sign off on a betrothal, they can still trap you into one."

Hermione sighed, "So I can't accept presents from any pureblood."

"Or allow them to buy you anything," Alexander added.

"Yes, yes, I know," Hermione tried not to roll her eyes. This was so stupid. But it was important to her brother and father, and so she was trying to not be so judgmental about it. For better or worse, this was part of being pureblood and she wanted to learn about the family she came from. "Anything else?"

"Plenty but these are the most important things," Alexander said. "Pureblood culture has many things that won't apply to you but betrothals do and no one hates muggles so much that a pureblood witch just happening to be raised in the muggle world would be a dealbreaker."

Hermione grimaced and he gave her a sympathetic smile, "I know this is much to take in. I'm not saying your classmates are insidious and would do these things, but their parents might push them into it."

"Anyone who tries this won't be very pleased with what happens to them," Hermione mused. Alexander smiled. There was no denying she was his daughter. He had a similar vengeful streak.

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Harry Potter sat up in his room at the Dursley home, brooding. He'd been angry at Hermione and certain she was lying about Dumbledore the night he'd learned she was actually a Nott. But after Colin and the others had woken up, they'd said the same thing. Dumbledore had refused treatment to the petrified students, and only Alexander Nott's assertion of his parental rights had made the headmaster back down. They couldn't all be lying, could they? Colin had even walked up to Nott and thanked him for healing them. Ever since the other students had woken up, Harry had found himself unsure about Dumbledore. If he was the greatest light sided wizard ever then why would Dumbledore refuse the help Nott had offered? How come Nott and Snape had done in a day what Dumbledore hadn't done in months? Either Snape & Nott were exceptionally powerful wizards or Dumbledore wasn't concerned about the muggleborn students. There was really no other option in that matter.

Then there was that bizarre interaction between Alexander Nott and his uncle. Whatever that was (Harry still wasn't sure), the Dursleys had never treated him better. He was mostly ignored, not forced to do millions of chores, and Hedwig was allowed to roam outside at night. Harry was even allowed to do his homework downstairs at the dining room table, which was something he'd never imagined happening in a million years.

Harry'd also been able to get a subscription to the Daily Prophet after writing to Arthur & Molly asking how to set one up. Somehow they'd signed him up for it and Harry felt more aware of his world, getting to read the goings on every day. There was plenty of news to catch up on and most of it related to the goings on at Hogwarts.

He'd savored seeing that Lockhart was sentenced to life in Azkaban after casting the memory charm over ten times (the aurors were apparently combing his books to acquire the exact number but were finding it difficult), with all the victims thus far unable to have their memories restored. Apparently that was a crime taken very, very seriously in the wizarding world.

When it came to Dumbledore, the reading wasn't positive. His various positions were all under review but he'd already lost the title of Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot. The papers didn't pull any punches regarding what had happened at Hogwarts. The Lockhart fiasco just made things worse. Although when Harry thought about Lockhart's reason for going to Hogwarts, and how Dumbledore seemed aware that Lockhart was a fraud and uninterested that the students weren't getting an education, it was hard to feel much sympathy for the headmaster. A competent DADA professor might have been able to recognize and stop the attacks sooner. Especially if they were an ex-auror like their temporary instructor toward the end of the year was.

Harry had learned more in a month with their temporary instructor than he'd learned all year under Lockhart. He hoped they had someone just as good the next year. It would be hard to go from someone so good to someone horrible.

The more Harry thought about events at Hogwarts that year, the more he was thinking he'd really screwed up and let his temper get the better of him. Not just his temper either. He had to admit, one of his first thoughts upon learning Hermione was a Nott was that she'd desert him for Theo and the Slytherin would occupy all her time. He did feel jealous of Hermione. She suddenly learns about her magical relatives and has a brother and father in their world while Harry…Harry had no one. Just his friends and the Weasleys. He owed Hermione an apology. And he owed one to Snape, Alexander, and Theo Nott. No matter his personal feelings about Snape, the man had done nothing to be accused of wanting one of his students dead. Harry had all summer to work on his apology. He didn't want to do it via letter; he'd said terrible things to Hermione's face. He owed her a face to face apology.


A/N- RE: Lupin. Honestly, Lupin was never going to come into the fic this way (he still could, somehow, but I'm not quite sure how that would happen yet). It's got nothing to do with bigotry and everything to do with, as Alexander points out, one missed dose and he has a castle full of victims almost completely unable to defend themselves from him. I cannot see any parents finding that an acceptable option.