I own nothing you recognize. I simply play in JKR's universe for fun.

Many thanks to Amrun for going on punctuation patrol and all of her wording suggestions. This is a better story for her input.

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Hermione, July 12, 1998

Arthur and Molly were sitting in the kitchen enjoying a last cup of tea before going to bed. The nest was empty at the moment, since Ron and Ginny hadn't come home yet. Harry was treating the both of them to a Weird Sisters concert in Dublin so they wouldn't be home until very late.

There were advantages to being young and unemployed. The children -- and Molly couldn't think of them any other way -- didn't have to be up first thing in the morning, unlike Arthur who needed to be in bed. Molly looked over at the magical grandfather clock to check the location of her brood. Bill was at Hogwarts, Charlie was in Romania, George and Fred were in Diagon Alley at their shop, and the clock hands for Ron, Ginny, and Harry showed they were having fun. The newest hand, Hermione, showed she was at school.

As for Percy, his hand never moved anymore to show where he was, what he was doing, or if he was safe. He had cut the magical connection at his end.

Arthur scooted closer to Molly and began to nuzzle her neck. After all, a vigorous man with a household full of young people needed to take advantage of an empty house whenever he could. Molly, never one to miss an opportunity herself, started making little moaning noises when they heard the chiming sound the clock always made when one of the children apparated or portkeyed to the Burrow. Their heads went up simultaneously to look at the clock. Hermione's hand had moved to "home". Molly looked at Arthur with alarm. They got up and went to the kitchen door, looking out into the yard where they saw Hermione running up the path. Arthur opened the door and caught Hermione in a hug as she dashed up the stairs, her distress clearly on her face.

"Hermione, whatever is wrong?" he asked, concerned.

"You will not believe this," Hermione fumed, "You absolutely will not believe this. Draco Malfoy is at the college."

"Malfoy?" quizzed Molly, concerned. "Is he a student, too?"

"I was coming back to the dorm after visiting the library this afternoon and there he was walking down the hallway. He's living in the same dorm I'm in. We're on the same floor and his room is five doors down on the opposite side of the hallway from me. What the hell am I supposed to do?" Hermione was clearly in a panic. "I'm going to school in America at least in part to get away from the Death Eaters and now I find I'm practically living right next to one!"

"Calm down, Hermione," soothed Arthur, "We'll floo Albus and find out what to do." He released Hermione into Molly's arms and tossed the powder into the fireplace. "Headmaster's office, Hogwarts," he said. The flames turned green and Arthur stuck his head into the fireplace. "Albus?" he inquired, "Its Arthur. Are you there?"

Headmaster Dumbledore's face appeared in the green flames.

"I am here, Arthur," answered Dumbledore. "Is something wrong?"

"We've got a situation with Hermione. She just portkeyed back from the college. It seems Draco Malfoy is there, too. He's living in a dorm room just a few doors down from her," said Arthur, "Needless to say, we're very concerned about her safety, Albus."

"Arthur, is Miss Granger there? May I speak to her?" requested Dumbledore.

"I'm here, Headmaster," replied Hermione.

"Miss Granger, are you all right? Did Mr. Malfoy approach you in any way?"

"I'm fine, sir. Just startled and scared. Malfoy didn't come near me. I came out of the elevator on my floor and saw him walking down the hallway. He looked at me and I know he saw me. He turned and went into a dorm room five doors down and across the hall from mine."

"Arthur, Miss Granger, are you alone?" asked Dumbledore.

Arthur answered, "Molly is here with us. Everyone else is gone for the evening."

"Good. Then there is privacy. If you will give me a moment." Dumbledore's head disappeared for a moment and then reappeared. "I have Professor Snape here and I would like to send him through to speak to the three of you, if I may?"

"Of course, Albus," answered Arthur, stepping back from the fireplace.

The green flames shot up as Professor Snape appeared in the fireplace. He stepped out, brushing soot out of his hair and off his clothes. He wore his usual layers of black robes, even on a warm summer night.

"Good evening, Molly, Arthur, Miss Granger," Severus muttered, picking at a chunk of soot stuck to his hair.

Molly gave a soft hmph. "Severus -- let me get that for you." Molly reached up and caught the piece between her thumb and forefinger, pulling it out along with a couple strands of hair.

"Molly," protested Severus with a grimace, "I appreciate the help, but I would like to keep my hair attached to my head if you please." Severus straightened and looked at Hermione. "You have seen Draco Malfoy, Miss Granger?"

"Yes, Professor. He has to be a student. His room is right down the hallway from mine," she answered.

Molly interrupted. "Why don't we all sit down and I'll get some tea." She directed everyone into the parlor. When everyone was seated, she bustled about with a teapot and cups.

"Thank you, Molly," said Severus, accepting a cup. He turned to Hermione. "Draco Malfoy has been accepted into the Charms Program at Avalon College."

Hermione's eyes were wide with anger. "You knew Draco Malfoy was going to attend Avalon?" she accused, "You knew and nobody thought to warn me he would be there? I thought one of the ideas behind my going there was to be safe and now I've got Malfoy to worry about, right down the hallway from where I sleep?"

"You have us quite to rights, Miss Granger," replied Severus calmly, "The Headmaster and I both knew of Mr. Malfoy's plans and deliberately did not tell you. We needed your reaction to seeing him for the first time to be absolutely genuine."

"What are you getting at Severus?" asked Arthur, disapproving.

"Miss Granger, you are a poor actress," remarked Severus, "Whatever you are thinking or feeling tends to show up on your face. The more genuinely appalled you appeared to be upon encountering Mr. Malfoy, the safer for both of you."

"The safer for both of us?" quizzed Hermione, confused.

"Do you remember a conversation we had some months ago when I said I had been dealing with families on both sides of the issue?" asked Severus, "When I said parents on both sides wanted their children kept out of this conflict which was not of their making?"

Hermione looked stunned as the idea dawned on her. "Professor, are you saying the Malfoys sent Draco to Avalon College to keep him from becoming a Death Eater?"

"I must be very careful in what I say and how I say it, Miss Granger," drawled Severus, "Can you imagine a scenario where it might be to the advantage of the Order to help the Malfoys get their son out of the country to a relatively safe place, where he would be a non-combatant?"

Molly and Arthur looked at each other in surprise.

"Severus," said Arthur, shaking his head suspiciously, "I am very concerned about any plan you and Albus might have involving Lucius Malfoy. Not for one minute can Molly and I forget he placed Ginny at terrible risk when he planted Tom Riddle's journal in her books when she started at Hogwarts. How can you possibly place any trust in anything the man says, especially regarding the safety of a child?"

"You may find this difficult to believe, but Lucius Malfoy did not intend for Miss Weasley to be harmed by the journal." Arthur started to interrupt, but Severus held up his hand to stop him. "He told me he intended that the journal end up in your hands, Arthur. He believed your daughter would hand it over to you. Malfoy wanted to embarrass and ultimately cost you your job at the Ministry by planting it on you and using innuendo and suggestion to send the Aurors your way. You would have a difficult time explaining how the Dark Lord's journal came to be in your possession."

"That's a pretty poor plan," snorted Molly, "He was relying on a child to turn over a blank journal to her father after she found it in her cauldron? He really thought the Aurors would believe Arthur was dabbling in the Dark Arts?"

"It was a poorly conceived plan," admitted Severus, "Malfoy had the journal in his possession and was on his way to Gringott's to store it in his vault when he saw you and impulsively decided to go after you. The two of you had some sort of fight, did you not?"

Arthur winced. "Malfoy baited me and I lost my temper. It was idiotic on my part to let him get to me."

"Lucius Malfoy can be arrogant, impulsive, shortsighted, petty, and those are some of his finer qualities," said Severus, "But he is also a father who loves his son."

"Professor Snape?" Hermione tapped her lower lip with her index finger. "If Draco is at the college to keep him out of the Death Eaters, the Dark Lord must have approved this as a strategy for something. A strategy for what?"

"The Dark Lord considers himself immortal. What do you think his strategy might be?

Hermione was thoughtful. "Long term intelligence gathering about the United States? Making wizarding contacts? Sizing up the culture and technology?"

"Very good, Miss Granger."

"Did Draco know I was going to be there?"

"No, he did not -- nor did his parents. When Headmaster Dumbledore and I realized this might be a way to get both of you away from the Death Eaters, albeit for different reasons, we decided to encourage both of you to go to the college. The decision to tell neither of you about the other was mine."

"At some point," he continued, "Draco Malfoy will face the Dark Lord who will probe his mind. Although he has some skills as an Occlumens, the more actual memories he has that are safe for the Dark Lord to view, the safer he is."

Severus looked at Hermione intently. "I imagine Draco will be communicating with his parents about your presence. I expect to be consulted and I will advise them to encourage Draco to view your presence as an opportunity to solidify his status with the Dark Lord."

Severus paused and looked distinctly uncomfortable. This next topic was one he would have preferred not to discuss with Granger and the Weasleys.

"Please understand the Dark Lord equates your close friendship with Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley with promiscuity. If neither of them comes around, he will assume the relationship you have with them has diminished along with your influence over them. Draco can claim to be monitoring your actions."

Hermione was incensed. "I'm supposed to be promiscuous? Where did that come from?"

"The Dark Lord expresses the belief that Muggleborns are morally, culturally, and magically inferior to Purebloods. Death Eaters are expected to believe that nonsense. Riddle has proposed on several occasions that your friendship with two young males must be based in a sexual relationship."

Hermione was disgusted. "Well, he's dead wrong about all of that. Just because my two best friends are guys I'm supposed to be sleeping with both of them?" She threw up her hands. "Why am I even concerning myself about having the good opinion of the Dark Lord? This is ridiculous." She looked at Arthur and Molly. "Surely other people don't think that way, do they?"

Arthur patted Hermione's hand. "Of course they don't. Anyone who knows you would never believe such a thing."

"Does that mean that mean people who don't know me well would believe it?" Hermione shook her head in aggravation. "Never mind, it might irritate me to no end but it's irrelevant."

"Miss Granger, you and Draco Malfoy have something in common right now. You are both strangers in a strange land," suggested Severus.

"You've read Heinlein, Professor?" Hermione was intrigued.

"A part of my misspent youth. Do you understand my point?"

"We're both living in a foreign country. Malfoy is at more of a disadvantage than I am. From what I've seen, there's much more Muggle influence at the college than there was at Hogwarts. At least I've got a clue about technology. He won't."

"Precisely, Miss Granger. Again, can you imagine a scenario where enlisting Draco Malfoy as an ally rather than an enemy would be to the Order's advantage?" asked Severus.

"If he's already trying to avoid becoming a Death Eater, there might be some way he could help us, perhaps in a way we can't foresee."

"Is there something you could do to help that happen?"

"Help him adjust to the college. He's proud and accustomed to being successful at what he does. He'll be a fish out of water, so if I help him he'll owe me."

"Severus, this is all well and good," interrupted Molly, "But Malfoy has always treated Hermione horribly. He's called her terrible names and treated her like dirt. Why should she do anything for him when there's no reason to expect he'll treat her any differently?"

"There are reasons Draco Malfoy might respond very differently than in the past," responded Severus. "Can you tell me what those might be, Miss Granger?"

"Malfoy doesn't know anyone at the college. When he started at Hogwarts, he arrived with Crabbe and Goyle as pre-packaged friends." Hermione looked horrified. "Professor, please don't tell me any of his minions have come along with him?"

"No, Miss Granger. I assure you there is no one else from Hogwarts or any of Draco's acquaintances from other schools attending Avalon College."

Hermione looked relieved. "If I am at all friendly towards him, it will give him at least one person he knows. I could help him with technology and some of the cultural issues. As for the Dark Lord, Draco could claim he was only being friendly to get information out of me about Harry."

"I believe you have it, Miss Granger. Draco could benefit from a friendly face right now, more so than ever before in his life. All of the supports he has had to build his confidence and his arrogance are gone. You could make inroads no one has had a chance to make to before." Severus added extra sincerity to his voice.

Hermione looked at Professor Snape suspiciously. "You don't expect me to date him, do you?"

Severus gave her a miniscule smirk and shook his head. "Miss Granger, I believe I have upset you by telling you the Dark Lord's opinion of Muggleborns."

"No -- it was telling me that other people might believe that kind of nonsense."

Severus looked at Hermione, his eyes unreadable. "Miss Granger, I most definitely do not want you to date Draco Malfoy. It would increase the danger to you both." He leaned back and crossed his arms. "Why would I say that?"

"Because Draco is still a Pureblood and needs to be thought of as an aspiring Death Eater. To date a Muggleborn would be dangerous. Besides, if he is supposed to be gathering information about American wizarding culture, he could best do that by dating American witches. It would be especially dangerous to both of us because I'd certainly kill him at some point and wind up in Azkaban.

Severus snorted. "Very good, Miss Granger. I believe you have a solid grasp of the situation. May I rely on your good judgment in this matter?"

Hermione examined Professor Snape's face for a moment. She wished she could read this man. Severus Snape was a spy, Death Eater, member of the Order, and the teacher who had been kind to her when she was wracked with grief on Astronomy Tower. She knew full well he was manipulating her into seeing the situation his way by taking her through his series of questions. It was a very Slytherin tactic. At the end, it simply came down to a feeling, an intuition that she could trust him, regardless of his obvious attempt at manipulation.

"I will help Draco, sir. But, one 'mudblood' out of him and that's it."

"Most reasonable, Miss Granger. If he calls you names, you have my permission to hex him," replied Severus with a perfectly straight face. Mentally, he was congratulating himself on his deft handling of the situation. The little Gryffindor had been guided one step at a time into doing exactly what Severus needed her to do. And she never even realized what he was doing.

"I can't tell him you said that, can I?"

"No. You most certainly may not." Severus turned to the Weasleys, "Molly, Arthur, are the two of you satisfied with what I have said?"

Arthur shook his head reluctantly. "Severus, I'm willing to give you the benefit of the doubt, but I find it very hard to rely on a Malfoy for any kind of good will towards Hermione. If, at any point, she feels threatened by him we will need to revisit this discussion. Molly and I won't have her threatened, mistreated, or harmed by him or his kin."

"I agree. Miss Granger, will you make certain I stay informed about anything significant you encounter with Draco Malfoy?"

"I will, Professor Snape. Thank you for coming tonight and explaining what is going on." She looked at him wryly. "You don't have any more surprises up your sleeve, do you?"

Severus was tempted to reply "Only my wand, Miss Granger," but realized it might be interpreted as a risqué joke -- something that Professor Snape could never utter to a young woman only two weeks past being one of his students. Instead he answered; "No other surprises tonight, Miss Granger. One never knows what a new day might bring."

Severus looked at Molly and Arthur, "In that case, I will take my leave. Tomorrow is a work day for us and your first day of class, Miss Granger."

Hermione nodded. "I'd better get back to Chicago. It's 5:30 there and I'm going with some of the other students for pizza."

Severus stood, black robes rustling about him. "If I may avail myself of your floo, I will bid you all good evening."

Arthur stood. "We will see you at the next Order meeting, Severus."

Professor Snape disappeared into the green flames.

Hermione gathered the empty teacups and put them on the tray to take back to the kitchen.

"Hermione, do you feel safe about this?" asked Molly.

Hermione thought for a moment. "I feel reassured that Malfoy probably isn't a threat. I can't believe Professor Snape would try to mislead me about that. It doesn't change the fact that Malfoy is a real prat with a superiority complex," she sighed, "I will make an effort with him, but if he behaves like he did at Hogwarts I won't try again. He'll be taking the computer class for the next six weeks. That will be more than long enough to test Professor Snape's theory."

Arthur joined the women in the kitchen.

"Do you want us to tell Harry and Ron about this?" he asked.

Hermione looked up and speculated, "I don't know that it's a good idea to tell them right now. They're liable to overreact when we don't know for certain how Draco will behave. Give me a few days and I'll decide."

"We'll leave it between us for now," said Arthur.

Hermione dried her hands on a dishtowel and gave Molly a hug.

"Thank you for helping me sort through this mess. Quite honestly, when I saw Malfoy walking down the hallway it scared me half to death. I was afraid I'd have to withdraw from the college and I could just see all my plans going right down the drain."

Molly gave Hermione another squeeze. "Well thank goodness it doesn't have to be that way."

"I'd better get going," said Hermione as she gave Arthur a hug and headed for the door. The Weasleys watched as Hermione took out her triple moon necklace and disappeared.

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An instant later, Hermione appeared in the small transportation room on the first floor of the dormitory. She leaned against the wall for a moment to let her stomach settle and then headed for the elevator. She got off at the sixth floor and walked towards her room. Entrance required both the use of a Muggle key along with a magical password.

"Honeydukes's finest," she whispered and the door opened.

Crookshanks was sitting on the window seat Hermione brought for him. He was staring out at the street and she could tell he missed the freedom to wander outdoors he had had at Hogwarts and the Burrow. Tomorrow, wards would be set up so familiars could safely wander the hallway and the floor's common room. Each was to wear a charmed collar to prevent it from leaving the floor. Yesterday, half a dozen other students moved in with cat carriers, so Crooks wouldn't be lonely for long. She hoped there wouldn't be too many territorial disputes. The dormitory couldn't begin to compare with Hogwarts for size.

Of the twenty-four dorm rooms on the sixth floor of St. Germain Hall, students who moved in over the last two days already occupied twenty. Students from foreign countries were given the option of moving in on Saturday so they could adjust to the time difference before starting class on Monday. As a foreign student enrolled in a program for the fall with tuition and room and board already paid, Hermione could move in and keep the same room for the regular term.

Harry and Ron came with on Saturday to help her move. Everything she needed for the school year was shrunk and put in a couple of suitcases. It was nice to have their help and company. Hermione was all too aware that once they left, she'd be completely on her own. She wouldn't see them again for four weeks, planning for a home visit in August.

The Avalon College student handbook, which Hermione had read cover-to-cover twice, said each dorm room came equipped with standard issue furniture: a single bed with mattress, dresser, desk, desk chair, spare chair, and bookcase. Students were allowed to transfigure them into whatever form they preferred as long as they returned them to their original and undamaged shape when they moved out.

Harry and Ron were more than delighted to help Hermione reconfigure her furnishings. The standard metal bed became a day bed, occupying one wall. The dresser and desk were fine, but institutional looking. Within minutes, they looked like cherry wood antiques. The desk chair was redesigned to match the desk and a comfortable cushion added. The extra chair was now overstuffed and comfortable. The bookcase grew to the ceiling, changing from four shelves to eight and doubling in width.

Hermione purchased new bedding in shades of blue (no more Gryffindor gold and red, thank you very much), and the linoleum floor now sported a lovely dark blue area rug. Harry helped unpack her books. Only the most important references were resized to normal. The others were left in their reduced size in decorative boxes with an inventory of their contents displayed on the outside. Even so, Hermione filled five of the shelves. She imagined by the end of the school year, the other three shelves would be filled.

Once the work was done, Crookshanks was turned lose in the room and his cat carrier shrunk and stowed. Hermione set out the new litter box with a tall cover to keep the kitty litter in the box. Crookshanks inspected it, stuck up his nose, and settled on the day bed. Ron said he hoped there wasn't about to be a disagreement about where one's cat business was to be done.

Moving in accomplished, the trio decided to take a walk around the campus. Avalon's campus consisted of several converted office buildings in downtown Chicago, not too far from DePaul University. As such, there wasn't a campus that could be distinguished from the surrounding area. It fit in with Avalon College's "hide in plain sight" philosophy. The Muggle students attending DePaul and the wizarding students attending Avalon were indistinguishable as they mingled on the streets.

There were a multitude of shops and restaurants in the area, along with bars, coffee houses, movie theaters, comedy clubs and other forms of entertainment. The streets were crowded with traffic and pedestrians. Harry and Hermione had to give Ron quick training on the use of traffic lights in crossing streets. After spending seven years at Hogwarts completely isolated from the Muggle world, it was overwhelming to be around so many people. The buildings were enormous and packed close together. There was a park nearby, but in other areas there were only small patches of grass and trees. Harry called it the anti-Hogwarts, especially since there was no Quidditch pitch in sight.

By the time they found the library and the building where Hermione's computer class would be held, it was suppertime for Ron and Harry and lunchtime for Hermione. The six-hour time difference between England and Chicago already affected them. Hermione planned to stay up until 8 PM local time, which would be 2 AM in England. She hoped by Monday she would be sufficiently adjusted to the time difference to cope. Hermione offered to treat for lunch as a thank you. Besides, she was the only one with any American money.

The three decided to indulge in the classic American experience and went to a McDonald's Restaurant to eat. Ron flirted with the pretty girl behind the counter who advised the three Brits to try the Quarter Pounder with cheese, french fries, and Pepsi. There was considerable discussion about who decided chips were a French invention. Ron ended up eating his Quarter Pounder, finished Hermione's french fries, and went back for a Big Mac. At Ron's invitation, Hermione tried a bite and decided she liked it better than the Quarter Pounder. Hermione felt it necessary to explain that one hundred years ago, Pepsi and Coca Cola had cocaine as one of the original ingredients in their soft drinks. They agreed it was an interesting way of getting repeat business. Harry topped off his meal with an ice cream cone.

Feeling quite Americanized, they walked back to the dorm. By this time, the hallway was crowded with students and parents carting and levitating possessions. They returned to Hermione's room, where investigation showed Crookshanks had used the new litter box for its intended purpose, which was a great relief to Hermione. The three of them sat and talked about their plans for the year. Harry and Ron were to report to the Auror Academy in a week.

They would, as Harry put it, be working slave labor hours and couldn't count on weekends being free. Hermione planned to visit home in four weeks and they were determined to find some time together, even if it was at the Order's Headquarters so they could talk about their experiences. It was going to take a lot more effort for to make time to spend time together.

Eventually, it was time for Ron and Harry to leave. Hermione walked them down to the transportation room on the first floor of the dormitory. Long hugs and "good lucks" were exchanged. Hermione sniffled a little. Harry pulled out a charmed key chain with the Hogwarts crest and the two men portkeyed for home.

Hermione was alone, except for Crookshanks. She headed back to her room where she planned to camp out for most of the rest of the day. She had a copy of The Complete Idiot's Guide to the Digital Magic Operating System, which she intended to read.

Hermione finished putting her clothes into the closet and dresser, set up her desk, put out towels and toiletries in the bath she shared with the person rooming next door and settled in with her book. She was fighting to stay awake. Crookshanks saw no point to it and settled in to sleep. It was almost 6:00 when she heard noise from the room on the other side of the bathroom. Hermione was burning with curiosity, but waited to meet the person moving in next door. The noise quieted about half an hour later, so Hermione decided to knock on the bathroom door leading to the adjoining room. A pretty brunette answered.

"Hello, I'm Hermione Granger from the room next door," said Hermione, "Looks like we'll be sharing a bath."

"Hello, Hermione. I'm Anita Schuler," she said with an American accent. The girl opened the door wider and stepped back. "Why don't you c'mon in? I've almost got my room done."

Hermione walked in and looked around. Anita transfigured her room's furnishings into an ultra modern style with lots of chrome and steel done in black and white. Prominently displayed on the desk was what looked like a brand new computer.

"You're English aren't you? I just love your accent," said Anita.

"Yes, I'm originally from London, but I went to school in Scotland," said Hermione.

"That sounds so interesting. I'm just a standard issue American witch." Anita pulled out the desk chair, a marvel in leather and chrome, and offered it to Hermione who sat down. Anita sat on the bed. "I attended St. Brigit's Academy in Oak Park. That's one of the suburbs to the west of here. Where did you go?"

"I went to Hogwarts. It's a boarding school used by most of the wizards in the British Isles, though some do go to smaller day schools in England. There's a few English students attending Beauxbatons in France or Durmstrang which is somewhere in northern Europe. They keep the location a secret," confided Hermione. "I dated a student who attended there and he wouldn't tell me where it was, though owls get there just fine."

"I've heard about Hogwarts. You have your dormitories split up based on the personalities of the students." Anita rested her chin on the palm of her hand. "How exactly does that work?"

"It's done by a magical hat once owned by one of the founders of the school. The first thing you do when you arrive at Hogwarts is getting sorted. You sit and the Deputy Headmistress puts the hat on your head and it quizzes your brain. It announces which House you'll go in. Each of the four Houses has a reputed specialty; Hufflepuff for loyalty, Ravenclaw for scholars, Gryffindor for courage, and Slytherin for ambition," explained Hermione.

"That's really amazing. Which House did you get placed in?"

"Gryffindor, but the hat really considered putting me in Ravenclaw."

"So you're gutsy with brains?" laughed Anita.

Hermione joined in the laughter. "Well, I suppose it's probably true. One of my friends describes me as 'brilliant, but scary'."

"I'm majoring in Charms," said Anita, "How about you?"

"In England, we'd call that reading Charms." Hermione pulled up one leg and wrapped her arms around it. "I guess I'd best learn the local language. I'm majoring in Potions."

"Two year or six year?"

"Six. I want to do research."

"Good for you," said Anita, "They're talking about expanding Charms to offer a six year program. If they do, I'll take the two additional years. My big brother, Adam, is here too. He's in the Arithmancy Program, Third year.

"How does he like it?"

"He loves it. He's really got the knack, just like our Dad. He's going to join the family business when he graduates."

"What's the family business?"

"Computers and software."

Hermione nodded to the computer sitting on Anita's desk. "So that's why you've got a nice shiny new one here?"

"Yeah. Mom and Dad insisted I had to have a new one for school. It's really a good one and I'll be able to do all kinds of things with it." Anita crossed her legs and pulled up a couple of pillows behind her back. "Did you bring one with you for computer camp?"

"No," Hermione shook her head, "I don't know enough about them to know what to buy. I figured I would learn more about them first."

"I can help you with that. I'm here because I've been hired as an aide for computer camp. In my family, you get computers along with mother's milk. I did some fast-talking with Dad to get him to let me stay here in the dorm. I promised I'd help you newbies with computer shopping and homework back here in the evenings. It's easier to talk Dad into things if you put it in business terms. He's always in favor of giving the customer 'added value.'"

"It's great that the college offers a six-week program to help those of us who haven't had a chance to use computers get caught up with the other students who have. Hogwarts has such a strong magical environment that nothing electronic will work there. The school is better than a thousand years old. There are such strong traditions, like using a quill and parchment for written work; it's difficult to get the teachers to even think about doing something different. I can't tell you how many times I wished I could use a ballpoint pen instead of having to dip a quill in an inkpot every few words and getting ink all over my fingers."

Anita looked fascinated. "The United States is such a new country by comparison. I can't imagine how neat it must be to have gone to a school that old with such tradition and history. St. Brigit's is only about 75 years old and it's one of the oldest wizarding schools in the country. Before that, everybody got home schooled or attended little parent-run schools for wizarding skills. Rich families used to send their kids to European boarding schools like Hogwarts."

"I was overwhelmed when I first got to Hogwarts. My parents were both Muggles and I'm the first witch in the family as far as they knew," offered Hermione. "The sheer amount of magic surrounding everything is amazing. Things the wizarding world takes for granted, like moving stair cases and the castle being able to redesign itself, portraits everywhere with their occupants moving around and talking, and the Great Hall with the magical ceiling that looks like there's open sky above your head, its like something out of a fairy tale. On top of it, the teachers dress like they stepped out of a Charles Dickens' novel, except Headmaster Dumbledore who looks like a cross between Merlin and Santa Claus."

Anita gave a delighted laugh, "I've seen pictures of him. I take it his chocolate frog card doesn't do him justice?"

"Not at all. He comes across like he's all grandfatherly and cheerful, but he's really powerful and brilliant. He is always offering these lemon sweets to anyone he meets. It's very deceptive and makes it hard to believe he's the wizard who defeated Grindelwald," confided Hermione.

Anita took a look at the clock. "Are you getting hungry?"

"Yes," Hermione replied. "Two of my friends helped me move in and we went to McDonald's for lunch, but that's been a while."

"Do you like Mexican food?" asked Anita, "There's a place right down the block that makes the best tacos and chimichangas."

"I like tacos, but I've never had a chimichanga," admitted Hermione.

"How about we go get something to eat? I'll tell you my life story and you can tell me yours."

So far, Hermione liked this genuinely friendly American. "I'd like that. Let me go back to my room and get my purse and we can go."

Anita got up and grabbed a tiny purse off her desk. "I'll come with and you can show me what you've done to your room. Wasn't the furniture appalling?"

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Yesterday evening, Hermione had made her first American friend and got indigestion from her first experience with refried beans. All was well until today when she saw Draco and went into a complete panic. Hermione was grateful to Minerva and the Headmaster for gifting her with the two-way portkey that allowed her to get home quickly to Arthur and Molly. As manipulative as Professor Snape was in getting Hermione to agree to help Draco Malfoy, she could see potential for benefit to the Order. She could also see where trying to be nice to Malfoy could come back to bite her.

It was almost 6:00. At 6:15, Hermione was supposed to meet Anita and two other students to go to a restaurant for pizza. Hermione decided to tackle the problem head-on. Checking to make sure her wand was in the special pocket she transfigured into all her jeans, Hermione squared her shoulders and walked down the hall. She knocked on Malfoy's door. Hermione had the pleasure of seeing the surprised and dismayed look on his face when he answered it.

"Hello, Malfoy."

"Hello, Granger."

"I didn't know you were planning to come to Avalon."

"I didn't know you were planning to come to Avalon, either."

There was dead silence. Hermione squared her shoulders again.

"They don't do Houses here, so there's no Gryffindor or Slytherin to contend with. Just a lot of college students and we're all on our own," Hermione looked at Draco with a question in her eyes. "We're back to being First Years and there's no sorting hat. We can go through the next couple of years ignoring or avoiding each other or we can start over."

Draco leaned casually against the doorway and crossed his arms. "What do you mean by starting over?"

"No name calling, no baiting each other, no nasty remarks from either of us. We try to get along," offered Hermione, "I don't see Crabbe, Goyle, or Parkinson hanging around you. You won't see Potter or Weasley hanging around me. That could make it a whole lot easier."

"We're the only two from Hogwarts here," shrugged Malfoy. "At least it is you and not Potter or Weasley," he spat.

"Can you honestly see Harry Potter or Ron Weasley signing on for at least four more years of school?"

"No more than I can see Crabbe, Goyle, or Parkinson doing four more years."

After a moment's indecision, Malfoy straightened up and held out his hand. "Hello, I'm Draco Malfoy from England."

Hermione looked down at the proffered hand. "No tricks or practical jokes?"

"I wouldn't think of it, Granger."

"My name's Hermione." Hermione took his hand shook it.

"I'm Draco."

Both of them kept their expressions carefully neutral.

"A few of us are going out for pizza. Would you like to join us?"

"What's pizza?"

"Its bread dough rolled flat into a crust topped with a tomato sauce with Italian spices and mozzarella cheese. You can get different things on top of that, like crumbled meat, sliced onions, green peppers, or mushrooms. It's really good. One of the students who's going is an American and she says this place called Lou Malnati's has the best pizza in Chicago."

"Muggle food?" queried Malfoy.

"Muggles invented it. I think there are plenty of American wizards who eat it. I've had it lots of times in London. Good food is good food."

"Sounds like an adventure. Let me get my wallet and lock up here." Draco ducked back into his room and returned in a minute.

"We're meeting up by the elevator." Hermione nodded her head in the direction of the elevator. The two started walking down the hallway. Hermione spotted Anita with two other students waiting by the elevator.

"Hi, guys," said Hermione, "I'd like you to meet Draco Malfoy. He and I went to Hogwarts." Hermione made the rounds of introductions. Draco responded with the usual Malfoy charm, which had Anita gushing over his accent and cultured tones.

The evening went surprisingly well. The pizza really was as excellent as Anita said it would be. Draco was polite, if a little aloof. The other two students were from Chile and majoring in Arithmancy. They were friendly, but spoke little English and relied on translation charms. Fortunately, Anita spoke enough for everyone and no one made an arse of themselves. The group went back to the dorm early so everyone could make a fresh start in the morning.

For a first evening around Draco Malfoy, it had to be called a success.

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Thanks to my reviewers who I will answer tonight: Siren 34, Lady Rhian, Rinny 08, Duj (for the funniest and most creative review), Princess Fiona, Evil Mastermind 666 (for spotting the important typo none of the rest of us caught), Edania, Severus Fan, Shishkeberry, Amrun, and Phoenix Flight.