* ~ The Eighth Year Universe Series ~ *
PART FOUR
Brave New World
Chapter 5: Exams and Elf's
"Are you sure you want to do this?"
Ginny took a breath and nodded. She tightened her grip on Blaise's hand, "It's the best thing for all of us."
Blaise looked at her with concern, "You know I would never force you into it, Ginevra and nor would my mother."
"I know," Ginny said honestly, "I came to this decision by myself, Blaise."
She glanced over her shoulder at Zara, Blanche, Beatrice and Billie. They all smiled supportively.
"It's not how I thought I would get married," Ginny admitted with a weak chuckle, "A run of the mill service at the Ministry rather than a big white wedding."
"We can have a big white wedding after the baby is born if you like?" Blaise asked her.
Ginny shook her head, "What's the point in doing something for appearances? That just makes this a big pureblood sham which is exactly what I don't want it to be."
"I understand," Blaise assured her.
"Are you ready?" A voice asked from the doorway to the small ceremony area.
"We're just waiting on the last witness," Zara replied smoothly, "Can you give us five more minutes?"
"Of course," The man said, and he disappeared once more.
Wizardling law stated that two witnesses had to be present. One had to be a relative or close friend of the groom and the other of the bride. This was to avoid sham marriages and to prevent young girls from being forced into unhappy marriages by their parents.
Seconds later, Bill Weasley stepped into the waiting room and smiled, "You invited me to your wedding?"
Ginny smiled and hugged her eldest brother, "You were the only one who I knew wouldn't judge, Bill."
Bill smiled and kissed her on the cheek, "Life is too short to overthink things, Gin. If this is what you want, then I'm all for it."
"Mum will kill you when she finds out," Ginny warned him.
"Oh, I can handle it," Bill shrugged, "I handled her wrath when I broke up with Lara, then when I ran away to Egypt and can you remember how mad she was when I brought Fleur home? She hated Fleur; it took a werewolf attack to warm her up to her!"
Ginny laughed and grabbed his hand, "Thanks, Bill."
Bill smiled broadly and turned to the Zabini's, "I'm Bill, Ginny's favourite brother."
Zara chuckled, "I can see why. I'm Zara. I believe you knew my daughter Belinda?"
Ginny bit back a chuckle as Bill's ears turned red, "I did, yes," he said simply.
"You did," Blanche agreed suggestively, shooting Bill an amused look.
"Is she coming today?" Bill asked. He looked like he was dreading the answer.
"No, she had to work," Zara replied, "My elder children all work hard, perhaps too hard, I sometimes think."
"Ah, I see," Bill said, trying to hide the wave of relief that had just washed over him.
"Ready yet?" A male voice asked.
Zara smiled and turned to the man, "Yes, we are. Come along, Blaise, it's your wedding day."
Blaise rolled his eyes at Ginny as they all traipsed into the room. They weren't dressed up exactly. Blaise and Bill wore suits, and all the women wore dresses, but it wasn't as fancy as a wedding ought to be.
It wasn't anything fancy, just the standard wizarding wedding ceremony, which was sealed with the binding of their magic. That was the part that Ginny had been nervous about. The colour of the glow signified the compatibility of the marriage and the strength of the bond. There was a broad spectrum of colours. For Bill and Fleur, it had been pale blue, signifying openness and serenity; Ginny supposed it made sense. Fleur calmed Bill when his anger got out of hand, and he was nothing but open with her.
When Blaise and Ginny's magic bonded, they kissed briefly and were surrounded by a pink glow.
Zara smiled, "Pink, for grace, gentility and happiness. I do believe that is rather appropriate."
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
"Guys, the N.E.W.T results are here!"
Daphne had never seen or heard the current occupants of Potter Manor move faster than they did when she shouted up the stairs that Monday morning. She shook her head in amusement as she heard clattering and hurried footsteps on the floors above.
"That has to be a record," Hermione said when Daphne stepped back into the kitchen and sat down across from the Gryffindor girl.
"Tell me about it," Daphne said as she picked up the Hogwarts letter with her name on it, "Do you think we should wait for the boys before we open them?"
"I didn't," Hermione admitted sheepishly.
Daphne looked over and laughed when she realised that Hermione had already ripped into her letter, "How did you do?"
Hermione let a grin break out onto her face, "I got six Outstandings."
Daphne smiled broadly at her, "Well done! Didn't I tell you that all of your panicking was for nothing?"
"I'm just relieved," Hermione admitted, "I know for sure that I'll be starting my new job in a couple of weeks now."
"Yeah," Daphne said as she began to open her letter, "That's why I'm kind of nervous about opening mine. If I haven't done well enough, then I won't be starting my Curse Breaking course anytime soon."
"What do you need?" Hermione asked.
"I need O's in Ancient Runes, Arithmancy, DADA and Charms," Daphne said as she held the letter with shaky hands, "And I need an E in Transfiguration and Potions."
Hermione scoffed, "You will have done that, easily. Go on, look at it."
Daphne grimaced slightly as she unfolded the paper and scanned her results. After a tense few seconds, she blew out a sigh of relief, "Thank Salazar; I did it!"
"All O's?" Hermione guessed.
Daphne shook her head, "I got an E in Herbology, but it was the one class I didn't need anyway, so I can handle that."
Hermione smiled broadly at her friend, "Perfect! How do you think the boys have done?"
Daphne got to her feet and put the kettle on the stove, "I don't think you have anything to worry about with Draco if that's what you mean. He only needs five E's, and he's been the second-best student in our year since first year."
"Has he?" Hermione asked in surprise.
Daphne turned around and looked at her friend with a frown, "You didn't know that?"
Hermione frowned and shook her head, "Is that why he didn't like me? Because I beat him in every class?"
"He pretended he didn't like you because it was easier than admitting that he wanted you," Daphne smirked, "But the whole know-it-all thing? I reckon that was probably jealousy, yeah."
"Right," Hermione said quietly, "I can't believe I never knew that. I mean, I always knew that he was smart, of course, but the second-best student in the year…."
"Uh-huh," Daphne hummed, "Harry, on the other hand, though...I'm sure he's nailed DADA, Charms and Herbology, but Potions and Transfiguration are his weaker subjects."
"I'm sure he will be fine," Hermione said honestly, "He got an E in his O.W.L's for both Potions and Transfiguration. He just scraped an A in Astronomy and a P in Divination. The only one he really flunked was History of Magic."
"Really?" Daphne asked curiously as she poured out two mugs of tea and two mugs of coffee, "I always liked History of Magic."
"So did I," Hermione admitted, "I found it interesting to learn about the past wars and revolts. I think Harry would have done too, but he always had so much on his mind, and Binns made it easy to nap through that class."
Daphne nodded thoughtfully. Before either of them could say anymore, however, the two men stepped into the kitchen in their pyjamas.
"N.E.W.T results?" Harry asked anxiously.
"On the table, babe," Daphne said as she nodded in the direction of the two letters.
Harry and Draco both grabbed their letters and tore into them as quickly as they could. Daphne and Hermione watched their other halves curiously and cautiously as their eyes scanned their results.
"Yes!" Harry said, "I've done it! I'm in the Selection Process!"
Daphne smiled broadly at him, "I knew you could do it. How did you do?" she asked as she handed him his coffee.
"I got three O's, two E's and an A," Harry beamed.
Daphne grinned, "That's amazing! Was your A in Divination?"
Harry laughed, "Yeah, but it's better than the P I got for my O.W.L. I got an O in Potions Daph, an O!"
Daphne chuckled as Harry put his coffee down on the table and drew her in for a hug, "You deserved it. You wrote an amazing Potions project."
"It wasn't that good," Harry argued, "How did you do?"
"I got an E in Herbology," Daphne said as Harry held her tightly, "But O's in everything else."
"I knew you would manage it," Harry said. He was bursting with pride, "You're brilliant."
"I know," Daphne said as she smirked up at him.
"How did you do, Draco?" Hermione asked her fiancé as Harry finally released Daphne.
"I'm in," Draco said as he looked up from his letter. He seemed stunned by this result, "I'm actually going to get to go to the Auror Training Selection Process."
Hermione smiled proudly at him, "Of course you are. You worked hard all year for this."
"I got one E," Draco admitted as he looked up at his other half, "But I always knew Transfiguration was my weakest class. Did you get O's across the board?"
"Yeah," Hermione replied with a wide grin.
Draco returned her grin and pulled her in for a hug, "I'm proud of you, Hermione."
Hermione smiled into the embrace and said, "Thanks Draco. I had better go and write a letter to my Mum. She'll want to know how I did in my exams."
"I'm going to floo Longbottom House," Harry said as he sipped from his coffee and walked towards the fireplace, "I want to know how Nev and Lil got on."
"When you're done, can I floo Theo?" Draco asked, "I hope he didn't flunk Herbology after that incident with the Venomous Tentacula. He needs an E to get into the process."
"I'm sure he scraped by," Harry chuckled, "But yeah, you can use the floo as soon as I'm finished."
He knelt in front of the fireplace and threw some floo powder in, then he said in a loud, clear voice, "Longbottom House."
The floo whirred to life, and Harry dipped his head inside it. For a brief moment, until Neville allowed him access, all Harry could see was the inside of a chimney. After that, though, the kitchen of Longbottom House came into view.
"Have you had your post this morning?" Harry asked eagerly.
Lilly was pottering around making breakfast, and Neville was sitting at the kitchen table, close to the fireplace.
He grinned at his best friend, "You mean, have I read this?"
Harry nodded eagerly, "How did you do? Are you in?"
"I'm in," Neville said cheerfully, "And I did way better than I thought. I got three O's and three E's."
"Well done, mate!" Harry said proudly, "I'm in too! I scraped an A in Divination, but apart from that, I got E's and O's too."
"How did the others do?" Neville asked as he nibbled on a piece of toast.
"Draco got one E and the rest O's," Harry replied, "Hermione got O's across the board, and Daph got an E in Herbology but an O in everything else. How about you, Lil? Are you going to be running around after us Aurors?"
Lilly turned around and grinned at him, "You bet I am."
"She only went and got O's across the board," Neville said with a ridiculously proud smile, "I wouldn't want anyone else stitching me up."
"Me either," Harry admitted.
Lilly rolled her eyes, "Aw, you guys, you're making me blush!" she joked.
Harry laughed loudly, "Anyway, I better get off the floo. Draco wants to floo Theo and Sadie to find out how they did."
"I'll give it half an hour before I floo then," Neville said, "And I can't wait until Saturday."
"Neither can I," Harry admitted, "See you later, Nev!"
"See you, Harry!"
He pulled his head out of the floo and cut the connection.
"So? How did they do?" Daphne asked expectantly.
"Well, Neville's going to be coming to the process with us this weekend, and Lil is going to be stitching us up," Harry chirped, "They both aced their exams."
"That's great!" Daphne said as Draco walked towards the fireplace, "I just hope Theo and Sadie have done as well."
"I don't think it's Sadie we need to worry about," Draco said. He threw some floo powder into the fireplace and knelt in front of it, "11 Grimmauld Place, London."
"I'm sure Theo has done fine," Daphne said.
Draco looked a little sceptical as the floo whirred to life, but before he could say anything else, he had dipped his head into the fire. Like when Harry had floo-ed Neville, there was a moment when Draco's head was in limbo somewhere in the chimney of the house. However, once Sadie or Theo had accepted the call and allowed access, their sparkling new kitchen materialised before him.
"Good morning Draco," Theo chirped, "Why ever could you be calling so early this fine Monday morning?"
Draco rolled his eyes, "You know why I'm calling, you idiot. Please tell me you passed your exams."
"You almost sound desperate," Theo grinned.
"Well, surprisingly, I'd kind of like to have my best friend as my Auror partner," Draco said sarcastically.
"Aw, how cute!" Sadie teased as she poked her head out of the pantry, "We don't have any eggs, honey. Do you want a bacon and sausage muffin instead?"
"That sounds amazing, babe," Theo called over his shoulder. He turned back to Draco and said, "Don't worry mate, I scraped through like I always do."
"What did you get?" Draco asked curiously after he had blown out a sigh of relief, of course.
"O's across the board with two notable exceptions," Theo said in amusement, "Guess which two?"
"Astronomy and Muggle Studies?" Draco chuckled.
"Got it in one, brother," Theo grinned, "I got an E in Astronomy which is a miracle. I think it's cause Sinistra fancies me."
Draco snorted.
"And I got an A in Muggle Studies," Theo said, "That's just chance, I reckon. The exam was mostly multiple choice."
"Oh, shut up," Draco said. He smiled fondly at his best friend, "I know you stayed up late to study. What I'm more impressed with is the fact you got an O in Herbology."
"Yeah, me too," Theo admitted with a grin, "I don't reckon it counted against me since the exam was technically finished."
Draco chuckled, and Theo grinned, "How did you guys all do?"
"We're all going to the process on Saturday," Draco said happily, "Harry and Neville got a mix of O's and E's. I got an E in Transfiguration but aced everything else, Daph got an E in Herbology but O's in the rest of her classes and-"
"- and the Princess got O's across the board," Theo finished.
Draco laughed, "Yeah, and she would kill you if she heard you call her that."
"Good thing she can't hear me then," Theo grinned.
"Lil got O's across the board too," Draco said, "So she'll be stitching us up when we get into stupid situations."
"Wicked," Theo grinned, "Sadie got 6 O's and an E in DADA, so she's chuffed to bits. It looks like everyone is going to get into the courses that they wanted to get into."
"It's a miracle," Draco laughed, "Anyway, I better get back. Harry and I have been duelling every day to try and train ourselves for the process."
"Do you mind if I pop over later to join in for a bit?" Theo asked, "I think a couple of weeks of lazing on beaches and eating fattening food has made me lose my touch ."
Draco snorted in amusement, "Sure, see you later, mate."
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
"Honey?"
Hermione looked up suspiciously, "You never call me honey."
"Sometimes I do," Draco argued, "I mean I have, once or twice, haven't I?"
"No," Hermione said as she narrowed her eyes at him, "What do you want?"
"Nothing!" Draco said a little too quickly and a little too defensively, "I just wanted to talk to you about the house."
"Have you heard anything else about it?" Hermione asked hopefully, "I know they only went in there on Monday, so they have only had a few days to look around, but I was hoping they might be done soon."
"They won't be," Draco admitted, "I did talk to them this morning. They have cleared the attic and removed the house-elves heads from the staircase. They originally thought it would be a three-day job, but they didn't realise quite how stubborn Walburga Black is. They found a secret door into another part of the basement too, so that needs to be investigated."
"Why? What's inside it?" Hermione asked anxiously.
"I don't know," Draco said honestly, "They wouldn't tell me over the floo, but it's all going to be in their oral report when they finish on Friday."
"Friday?" Hermione asked irritably, "That means we won't get any work done before you go off to the Auror Training Process on Saturday! I mean, what can I even do while I'm waiting for you to install the electricity?"
"I don't know," Draco replied honestly, "And I am not installing the electricity so that you know. I spoke to Harry, and he told me that the best idea was to get a Muggle electrician in to do it."
"Great!" Hermione snapped, "It will take weeks then!"
"Would you rather I killed myself playing with bloody muggle cables?" Draco asked her, just as irritably.
Hermione shot him a glare, "No."
"Then don't complain about how long it will take him to do it," Draco said matter of factly and perhaps a little smugly, "But look, that wasn't what I wanted to talk to you about. I've been thinking about how we're going to manage things once we move in, things like the housework."
Hermione narrowed her eyes at him again, "Right?"
"And I know that you're against house-elves, but what if we got someone else in to help?" Draco asked.
"Someone else?" Hermione asked cautiously, "What do you mean?"
"Someone human," Draco said tentatively, "A cook."
"A cook?" Hermione asked in that high-pitched voice that meant she was trying not to lose her temper, "Look Draco, I know my cooking might not be the best, but I will not have you employ a cook in our household!"
"I would pay her. It would be fair, unlike with house-elves," Draco said quickly.
"I don't want servants!" Hermione snapped, "We are not bloody Victorians! Why can't you just do the cooking when we have guests and let me cook using the microwave?"
"I have no idea what this microwave thing is," Draco said, "And how is it fair that I am the one to cook every time we have all of our friends over? Harry, Theo and Neville don't cook; they have house elves!"
"How many times do I need to tell you? I will not have a house-elf!"
Draco sighed heavily and reached into his pocket, "Then maybe you should think about this. I would pay for it for you, and it only takes an afternoon."
Hermione snatched the pink leaflet from him and looked down at the front page, "You cannot be fucking serious."
When Hermione started swearing, Draco knew that he had pissed her off, "There's no shame in-"
"No shame?" Hermione shrieked. This was it. She had blown her top, the shouting was about to commence, "You just gave me a leaflet titled "Becoming the Ultimate Housewife", you're lucky I haven't blasted you into the bloody wall! If you wanted a housewife and a house-elf and a woman to fill with heirs, then you shouldn't have proposed to me! No house elves, no cooks and no fucking courses on how to be a perfect housewife!"
"Hermione-" Draco tried to cut in as she stormed in the direction of the door.
"You heard me, Draco!" Hermione roared. Before Draco could say anymore, Hermione had swept out of the room. He heard her stomp through the house, and after a minute or so, he heard the front door slam with a thud. It was at that point that he let out a long-suffering sigh and dropped his head into his hands.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA .
"Uh…hi Hermione."
"Hi Lilly," Hermione said irritably, "Do you mind if I stay here for a bit? If I go back to Potter Manor, I think I might murder my fiancé."
"He didn't tell you to go on the domestic course, did he?" Lilly asked with a grimace as she stepped back so that Hermione could walk into the house.
Hermione stomped into the entrance hall of Longbottom house and thrust a leaflet at her friend, "This bloody thing you mean?"
Lilly made a face, "Oh dear…I think you should come to the kitchen; you need a cup of tea."
Hermione nodded and followed Lilly through the entrance hall into the kitchen. Longbottom House was significantly smaller than Potter Manor, it only had two floors, but those two floors were very spacious. The second floor was filled with eight bedrooms and plenty of bathrooms. The first floor sported a large formal dining room, a living room, a library/study, a lovely big bathroom and a beautiful country style kitchen with an attached pantry and cloakroom.
Neville had also extended down into the basement, which gave them slightly more living space. Half of the basement was unusable due to flood damage that had occurred while the house was empty. However, the area underneath the kitchen and library had been converted into a cinema room kitted out with a projector and a smaller bar/sitting room.
Hermione's favourite thing about the house wasn't inside, though; she loved the terrace that ran the length of the front of the house. Longbottom House looked great from the outside. It was whitewashed and grand looking like Potter Manor.
The terrace had the most beautiful views out over the gardens (which, of course, were kitted out with a pond and a large vegetable plot). Longbottom House had a different feel from Potter Manor and the Grimmauld Place houses because it was further away from London. It felt far more like a country retreat, and the fact that the views from every single window were of Exmoor National Park just completed that feel.
"Oh, that looks lovely, Tokey," Lilly said kindly to the house-elf that was pottering away in the kitchen.
The elf turned its large hazel eyes on Lilly and smiled broadly, "Thank you, Miss Lilly! Mister Neville says chicken hotpot is your favourite!"
Lilly smiled, "It is, and that smells much better than my Grandma's."
The elf blushed and bowed lowly, "Thank you ever so much, Miss Lilly. Is Miss Lilly wanting Tokey to fetch tea?"
"No, I'll get the tea," Lilly said with a wave of her hand as she popped the kettle on the stove, "Did Neville tell you where he went this morning, Tokey?"
"Yes, Miss Lilly," Tokey said with a fervent nod, "He said he was training with Mr Potter."
"Ah," Lilly said with a nod, "Okay, thanks, Tokey."
Hermione had been watching this exchange with mild interest. She had seen many people treat house-elves like scum, and she had seen many people treat them like they were slaves. However, she had never seen someone treat a house elf like a human, like a friend, until now.
"So," Lilly said as she put some tea leaves in a pot and turned to face Hermione, "Draco had the conversation about 'the help' with you."
"How did you know about that?" Hermione asked as she tore her eyes away from Tokey.
"He asked for my advice," Lilly said with an amused smile, "He wanted the opinion of a muggle-born on how you would suggest to another muggle-born that they really ought to consider a house-elf or a domestic training course."
"And you agreed with him?" Hermione asked in disbelief.
"No, I told him you would curse his bollocks off if he tried to suggest either," Lilly said matter of factly, "Clearly, he didn't listen."
"Clearly," Hermione fumed, "I mean, have you even looked at this thing?"
Lilly glanced curiously at the leaflet and snorted. The front page had a picture of a young, pretty witch smiling angelically. She winked at them from the cover as the title sparkled above her, "Becoming the Ultimate Housewife."
"Just a touch sexist," Lilly said sarcastically.
"It gets worse," Hermione said as she flipped the leaflet open to show Lilly the two page spread about this afternoon course.
Lilly shook her head in disbelief as she read aloud, "We can teach you in just three hours how to become the perfect housewife! Our course teaches basic cooking and cleaning charms that will leave your house sparkling and your husband smiling!"
"Do you know what it reminds me of?" Hermione asked angrily, "Around the time of World War One, do you remember all the promotional posters about how women could help the war effort by rationing and about how their place was in the home while their husbands fought?"
"Yeah, it does have a certain early 20th-century sexism feel to it," Lilly admitted, "I mean, this last page about the oath of the perfect housewife is total bullshit. Have you read it?"
"I didn't get that far," Hermione admitted, "I stormed out of the house before I could do something I would have regretted in the morning."
Lilly snorted in amusement, "Listen to this. I believe that homemaking is a noble and challenging career.
I believe that homemaking is an art requiring many different skills.
I believe that homemaking requires the best of my efforts, my abilities and my thinking.
I believe that no task is too humble that contributes to the cleanliness, order, health, and household wellbeing.
I believe that a homemaker must be true to the highest ideals of love, loyalty and service.
I believe that a home must be an influence for good in the neighbourhood, the community and the country."
"Is that the biggest load of pureblood bullshit you have ever heard or what?" Hermione asked as the kettle screeched to a boil.
Lilly scoffed as she poured out the tea, "It sounds exactly like the kind of crap they teach pureblood girls to prepare them for marriage. I mean, Daphne and Sadie both went to finishing school, did you know that?"
"I knew that Daphne did," Hermione admitted, "But I didn't realise that Sadie had to."
"Their mothers paid for them to go and spend a summer learning how to curtsey and dance," Lilly said in disbelief, "They were taught how to use silverware properly and the most elegant way to drink out of a wine glass. All for what? So they would attract a rich husband?"
"I think that's exactly why," Hermione said as Lilly set a cup of tea down in front of her.
"Well, I suppose their mothers must be happy then," Lilly mused, "I mean Theo's family own houses in practically every country in Europe. Between farming rare forms of Gillyweed and running a firewhiskey distillery, they are loaded."
"And Harry has lots of money," Hermione said with a nod, "He has Potter Manor and all of the money in the Potter family account. Mind you, Daphne didn't need a man with money, did she? Her father ran the biggest shipping business in Britain. He shipped wands to Japan and firewhiskey to Canada."
"And he shipped in illegal immigrants and black market products too," Lilly said darkly, "He was always in trouble with the law. That's where all the Greengrass money came from, crime."
"What about Sadie?" Hermione asked with a frown, "Her family made their money through legitimate means, didn't they?"
Lilly shrugged, "I don't know whether you could call it legitimate. Her father invented the sneakoscope,
which is where all of their money came from, but rumour has it that he stole the idea from a German wizard and then erased his memory."
"We should have introduced him to Lockhart," Hermione joked.
Lilly laughed and sipped her tea, "It's funny though, isn't it? Sadie and Daphne ended up with everything their parents wanted, but neither of us set out to find a rich man and make him our husband."
"No," Hermione agreed thoughtfully, "But that's because it isn't about that, is it? We fell in love, and then everything else came after that. Sometimes it's an issue that Draco grew up with a mother who was a housewife and a house-elf to do all of their cooking for them, and I grew up with two parents who worked and fed me on microwave meals and microchips."
"Oh, I loved microchips," Lilly admitted with a smile, "And I do get it, you know? It's not quite the same with Nev and me because he had a fairly similar upbringing to me. It was just him and his gran, they had money, but Augusta didn't really use it. She bought what they needed, and they got by just fine."
"How about you?" Hermione asked, "Did both of your parent's work?"
Lilly nodded, "My Dad worked away a lot because he was an entertainer. He used to go on tours and be gone for weeks at a time, so it was Mum and me most of the time. My mum worked long, unsociable hours. I got pretty good at being my own company."
Hermione nodded thoughtfully, "The thing is, it's not that my family don't have any money. My parents are paid well with both of them being dentists, I grew up in a nice house, and we went on holiday to France every year, you know? It's just that we didn't have servants."
"I think that's just a pureblood thing," Lilly said honestly, "I mean, let's face it, in the muggle world, you don't have servants unless you're a lord or a lady, but here everyone with a decent sized house and a seat on the Wizengamot has a house elf. It's going back to that whole 'the wizarding world is so Victorian thing', though. A hundred years ago, it wouldn't be uncommon for most well off families to have a house full of servants."
"Still," Hermione said as her eyes lingered on Tokey's back as the elf disappeared into the pantry, "Do you really think it's right?"
Lilly bit her lip, "I know your opinion, Hermione. I heard all about your elvish protection welfare society-"
"Society for the Promotion of Elvish Welfare," Hermione corrected quickly.
"Yeah," Lilly said sheepishly, "And I understand what you're trying to prove with that. The thing is, house-elves don't think they need any more rights."
"That's because they don't know any better!" Hermione exclaimed, "They are slaves, Lilly! They don't get paid; that makes them slaves."
"Does it really, though?" Lilly asked calmly, "Compare the situation with an old fashioned muggle one. There would be a big muggle household with a lord and a lady. They would entertain royal guests and the like, yes?"
Hermione narrowed her eyes but nodded, "What does this have to do with house-elves?"
"I'm getting to it," Lilly said, "That house would always be close to a village. What would the people in that village do? Well, sure, some of them would run a pub or an inn. Some of them would have a trade, but then what about the poorer of them? They would be employed on the farms that the people in the big house owned. Then what about the rest? The women who weren't allowed to farm?"
"I get what you're saying, Lilly, but it's a different situation," Hermione said, "The girls who worked as servants were paid."
"They were paid the most minimal fee," Lilly argued, "In return for their service, they got a room in the big house, they got three square meals a day and the most meagre pay. It was enough to take back to elderly parents and just help them get by, but that was all it was. Their pay was their board and their food, how is that any different to a house-elf?"
"House-elves don't get any pay at all," Hermione replied, "They don't get any holiday. They don't even get to wear proper clothes."
"Tokey doesn't wear a ragged old pillowcase," Lilly pointed out, "She has several, and I wash them every day for her. I don't force her to do anything that she's uncomfortable with. She doesn't clean the basement because it scares her, and I'm totally fine with that. I do everything that I can. I won't ask her to do something if I can do it myself but at the same time, having someone to keep a big house like this clean and to cook when Neville and myself are busy is really handy."
Hermione sighed, "I know you treat her right and trust me, I am not trying to imply that all wizards treat their house-elves like slaves, but some do, and that isn't right."
"It isn't," Lilly agreed, "And by all means, try and change that. Try and find a way for house-elves to leave their master's service if they are mistreated, but you cannot try and free all house-elves, Hermione. For them, it's just like serving the lord and lady in the big house. You know how a girl's mother would recommend her to the lady when she was looking for a new maid because she had been a maid at the house and her mother had been a cook? That's how it is for house-elves. It's an honour to serve the family that their ancestors served."
Hermione sighed deeply, "I just can't see it that way."
"Well, think about it this way then," Lilly said matter of factly, "You've seen that person who desperately wants work dragging themselves into the jobcentre day after day, haven't you? Even someone like you with a privileged background knows how sad and desperate that person looks."
Hermione only nodded.
"That is a house-elf who doesn't have a family to serve," Lilly said, "A house-elves health is tied to their family. Serving a family makes them happy and healthy. When they don't have that, they have no purpose, and there is nothing more pitiful than seeing a depressed house-elf in that state."
Hermione frowned to herself as she remembered Winky's mental breakdown after the Crouch family had freed her.
"You would be doing a house elf a favour by bringing them into your home, making them a part of your family and treating them well," Lilly said honestly, "You would be doing them an injustice by refusing to employ one and trying to force that upon others."
Hermione looked up at her friend, "Is that really how it works?"
Lilly nodded, "Talk to Draco about it. That house will be yours as much as it is his so if going to meet the house-elf that the agency pair you with will help you then do it. Don't leave it all to Draco. Go with him and meet the house-elf. I think it might just change your opinion. If it doesn't, that's fine, but at least that way, you can say that you tried to do things his way."
Hermione sighed again as she pushed herself to her feet, "Alright, I will. How does it work, being paired with a house-elf?"
"You go to The House Elf Allocation Agency in London," Lilly explained, "They ask you about your requirements first of all. It's simple stuff like the size of your house and the services you require of your house-elf because some have specialist skills."
"Like?" Hermione asked curiously.
"There are more mature elves who are great at keeping an eye out if you have young children," Lilly replied, "And there are young elves who make good playmates for young children if you don't have many other friends with children. Some elves are particularly good at cooking, and other elves can cook, but their speciality is cleaning. They don't ask you any super personal questions. They just want to get an idea about what kind of house-elf would fit in with you best."
"Then what?" Hermione asked.
"They pair you up with an elf," Lilly replied, "You get to meet the elf and talk to them. When we met Tokey, we instantly knew we would take her in. An abusive family had cast her out, they wouldn't tell us who because of confidentiality issues, and she just wanted a quiet life. I asked if she would mind doing a bit of cooking and cleaning in a big house, and she got upset because she didn't think she could handle a big house all by herself. I didn't realise that this doesn't count as a big house in the wizarding world. She had come from a five-story wizarding manor."
"Ah," Hermione said with a slight smile.
"So this was like a retirement home for her," Lilly said with a smile, "I liked her personality straight away, so we said we would take her on, and she has fitted in just great."
"So you can go and meet the elf, then change your mind?" Hermione asked carefully.
Lilly nodded again, "If you meet the elf and still think that it's wrong, then you are under no obligation to take that elf or any elf on."
"Okay," Hermione said with a slight nod, "I'll talk to Draco about it."
Lilly smiled at her friend, "Good, I think the two of you would struggle without an elf. You're both going to have such busy full-on careers after all."
Hermione nodded once more, "Thanks for all of your help Lilly."
"Anytime," Lilly said cheerfully.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
"Who are you, and what have you done with Hermione Granger?"
Hermione rolled her eyes and let her hands rest on her hips, "You heard what I said."
"I heard it," Draco agreed, "I'm not convinced the words 'let's consider a house-elf' came from your lips. Have you been imperiused? Has someone polyjuiced into you?"
Hermione glared at him, "Draco, I'm serious. We need to talk about this."
Draco raised his hands, "Okay, I'm listening. My fiancé, who has sworn blind since she was fifteen that she would never own a house-elf, has just suggested that we consider owning a house-elf."
Hermione sighed and sank into an armchair, "Lilly gave me a different perspective on it. She suggested that I would be doing house-elves more harm than good by keeping them out of work. I am not saying that we should get one either. All I'm saying is that it wouldn't hurt to go down to the agency and give it a go, would it?"
Draco stared at her speechlessly.
"I mean, we could do the whole pairing test and meet the elf they pair us with," Hermione continued, "And if I still feel like it's wrong, then we will have to come up with another solution, but if Lilly's right and I end up feeling sorry for the house-elf and wanting to take it in, then we will. Won't we?"
"Uh…yeah," Draco said with a frown.
"Are you okay with that plan?" Hermione asked slowly.
Draco nodded as he caught her eye, "I'm fine with it. I'm just amazed that Lilly managed to change your mind."
"She didn't change my mind," Hermione said, "She just gave me a different perspective."
Draco nodded again, "Alright, when do you want to do this?"
"Once we actually have access to the house," Hermione replied, "You need to focus on getting through the selection process first so let's start thinking about it seriously next week, okay?"
"Okay," Draco said. He shook his head in disbelief as he turned away from her. He was stunned that she had taken such a drastic U-turn in a mere matter of hours.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
Harry was pleasantly surprised when his old best friend appeared on his doorstep on Friday morning, "Hey Ron!"
Ron smiled, "Hey, mate. Can I come in?"
"Sure," Harry said, he stepped back, "Is everything okay?"
"Nah, there's family drama," Ron said with a roll of his eyes, "I'm here to warn you before you have to face it all on Sunday."
"Oh," Harry frowned, "Well, I'm not going to the Burrow on Sunday. it's the selection process for Auror training this weekend."
"Ah, damn," Ron muttered, "Shit, mate, I didn't realise."
"It's alright, but Daphne and Hermione were planning on taking Teddy, so you should probably come and fill them in on the family drama," Harry said in amusement, "Who was it?"
"Take a guess," Ron snorted as they walked into the kitchen where Draco, Hermione and Daphne were sitting around the dining table.
"It'll be Gin then?" Harry guessed.
Ron nodded, "Yep, it was Gin alright."
"Oh, dear," Hermione said, "What's happened?"
"Family drama," Harry said, pushing himself up onto the work surface, "Ron's here to fill us in before we have to face Molly's wrath on Sunday. Good thing you and I are busy, eh Draco?"
Hermione threw a bit of toast at him, "Shut up, Harry. What happened, Ron?"
"Ginny and Mum fought," Ron explained, "One hell of a fight, according to Dad. She said some bad stuff, and Mum said some bad stuff and Ginny moved in with the Zabini's."
"Oh shit," Draco muttered.
"Shut up," Daphne muttered back, "Why does this involve us having to face Molly's wrath, Ron?"
"Because some things came out in the course of the argument," Ron said sheepishly, "I think the wording was along the lines of, 'Harry spent the war shagging Hermione while we were supposed to be waiting for each other, and that's why I didn't marry him'."
"Well…shit," Harry muttered.
Hermione sighed, "And I gather she's not happy about that then?"
"She's outraged," Ron rolled his eyes, "Even though it's none of her bloody business."
"Thanks for the heads up, mate," Harry said with a genuine smile, "But I reckon Hermione can take your mum on."
"Do you?" Hermione snorted.
"Oh, I'll back you up," Daphne assured her, "I spent the war shagging the guy who knocked her daughter up, remember? She tries it on you, I'll pull that one out, and she can go to town on me, I'll give as good as I get."
Harry grinned at her, "You're a great friend, you know that?"
"You'd have made a great Hufflepuff," Draco said, smirking at her.
"Say that again, and I'll hex you into next week," Daphne said, pointing at her friend.
Draco raised his hands, "I'm saying nothing. Thanks for the heads up, Weasel. Your mum does need to lighten up a bit, though, doesn't she? I mean, I thought my family were conservative."
"Your family are conservative," Daphne scoffed, "Your Grandfather and Theo's Grandfather were gay as fuck for each other, but it was all covered up. Anyone who stepped out of line was just disowned and banished from the family tree."
"Yeah, good point," Draco mused, "But I reckon this generation is going to be different. I'd be okay with my kids being gay."
"Well, I am very liberal," Hermione began to say.
"Yes, we know," Harry cut in. He shot Ron an amused look, "Does anyone in this room need an example of how liberal Hermione's political views are? Nope? No? Thank fuck for that."
At this, Hermione got up and hit Harry over the head with her newspaper.
Ron guffawed with laughter at the sight.
"Some things never change," Harry muttered as he glared at Hermione.
"Nah, and that's a good thing," Ron chuckled.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
"Lillian Moon, you are the mistress of persuasion."
Lilly turned around and raised an eyebrow at Draco, "Do I need to be worried that you're trying to seduce me?"
"He better not be," Neville said from his spot next to Lilly, "Or I will kill him."
"Don't worry, fatbottom, I'm not trying to seduce your girlfriend," Draco said dryly, "I'm just amazed that she managed to convince my fiancé to consider owning a house-elf."
Lilly smirked at the blond boy, "I can be very persuasive when I want to be. I can also be very dangerous so remember that before you come into my infirmary with stupid injuries."
Neville grinned at her, "I like it when you get authoritative."
Draco groaned, "That's more about your sex life than I ever needed to know."
"Hurry up, Hermione!" Harry shouted from further along the second row. They were all gathered in the cinema room in the basement of Longbottom House. It was Friday evening, and they had decided to get together and enjoy film night to take their minds off their worry about the Auror Training Selection Process.
"Yeah, the movie is starting!" Daphne called up the stairs.
"Oh hush, I'm here," Hermione said as she appeared with a large bowl filled with sweet snacks. She divided it into several smaller bowls then slipped into her seat next to Draco. She was utterly oblivious to the conversation that had just occurred.
"So what are we watching tonight?" Hermione asked.
"It's called "Braveheart", and it was Theo's choice, so blame him if it's shit," Neville replied.
"What's it about?" Draco asked.
"You'll find out if you watch it," Theo replied sarcastically.
Draco rolled his eyes, but he fell silent as they all settled in to watch the film. They were all enjoying it well enough until….
"Hold up, pause it!"
Neville rolled his eyes but paused the film at Draco's request, "What's the problem, ferret?"
Hermione hid an amused smile as Draco pointed at the screen, "What is that?"
"What?"
"That white thing in the background!"
"It's a white van," Hermione replied, "It's a muggle form of transport usually used by builders and tradesmen."
"What's it doing on a 13th-century battlefield then?" Draco asked in disbelief.
"This film wasn't made in the 13th century Draco," Harry said in amusement, "It was made later, and the people filming it didn't notice that there was a white van in the background until it was too late."
Draco scoffed and shook his head, "What a continuity error," he complained.
"Alright, I'm getting the impression that you're not happy about the white van. Can I put the film back on now?" Neville asked as he shot Lilly a vaguely amused look.
Draco rolled his eyes once more and allowed Neville to put the film back on. They watched in silence for a few more minutes until Neville asked curiously, "What is this battle anyway?"
"Oh, it's the Battle of Stirling Bridge," Theo replied nonchalantly.
Draco narrowed his eyes, "Where's the bridge?"
"What?"
"The Battle of Stirling Bridge must have been fought on a bridge," Draco pointed out, "They don't call it the Battle of Hogwarts because it was fought in Hogsmeade, do they?"
"Merlin Draco, you take everything so literally," Hermione groaned.
"Well, if you're going to make a film based on real-life events, you need to at least make it properly!" Draco objected.
"Nothing about this film is right. That's why it's hilarious," Lilly pointed out, "I mean, does Mel Gibson sound Scottish to you? He's a bloody Aussie!"
"Honestly," Draco scoffed under his breath.
"Stop muttering under your breath, or I'm going to silence you for the rest of the movie," Susan piped up from the row behind them where she had been sitting, rather silently, with Percy.
Draco rolled his eyes irritably, but he did try and refrain from making such comments for the remainder of the film. Although the others commented on things like Edward I was a dickhead and that the love story between William Wallace and the prince of England's wife was totally unbelievable.
When they reached the end of the movie, they all headed upstairs into the kitchen. Nobody really wanted to go home yet because it was still early, and they were having a good night.
"I'll go into the storeroom and get another keg of butterbeer," Theo had offered as the group shuffled out of the cinema and headed upwards. Nobody thought any more of it than that until the basement door burst open and Theo ran into the room wearing nothing but his boxers, with blue paint all over his face and his body screaming at the top of his lungs, "FREEEEEEDOOOOOOM!"
As their mad friend streaked across the kitchen of Longbottom House, Draco summed up how he, Harry and Neville were all feeling.
"For the love of Merlin, we're going to have to share a room with him for the next 24 hours."
* ~ TBC ~ *