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Thanks for all the reviews. I appreciate them very much. I've finally finished both reading Frankenstein and the assignment so I have been allowed to update this story. Thanks again for the reviews.

Chapter Nineteen: Finally Home

Hermione sighed as she got out of bed the next morning. Today was the day that everyone would see who she really was. After her decision last night, she and her family has spent the remainder if the day and a good portion of the night in Dumbledore's office getting to know one another. She was surprised at how alike she was to her parents and even more surprised that she had actually liked the Malfoy family. They were nothing like she had expected them to be. They were nice, considerate, and were willing to give her anything she wanted, all she had to do was ask.

Making her way to the bathroom, Hermione showered, got dressed, and magically dried her hair before making her way down the hall to her friends room. As she had suspected, Ginny Weasley was still in bed.

"Ginny Weasley, get up this instant! Classes start in forty-five minutes." Hermione yelled.

"Alright, alright mum. I'm getting up." Ginny answered rubbing her eyes before realizing where she was. "Hermione, is that you?"

"Yeah, no more glamour for me. From now on, this is how I will look. As for you, I think that you need to get dressed or we won't have time to eat breakfast before class. Now hurry it up." Hermione said.

Fifteen minutes later, the girls exited Ginny's room only to be greeted by the awaiting faces of Draco and Blaise.

"Finally! How long does it take you to get ready?" Draco asked.

"Like you have any room to talk, Draco. You spend at least half an hour in the bathroom every morning fixing your hair." Blaise shot back at him.

"I do not!" Draco complained. "It's more like twenty minutes"

"I always knew you were worse than a girl." Hermione said before looping her arm through Draco's and heading towards the Great Hall. Following Hermione's example, Ginny looped her arm through Blaise's and followed her friend.

The foursome joked all the way from the Head's Dorm to the Great Hall. Hermione was having such a good time with her brother, Draco, and Ginny that she forgot that the glamour had been removed the previous night until she entered the Great Hall and all heads turned to look at her. She stopped in her tracks, but a reassuring squeeze of her hand by Draco and a nod from Blaise convinced her to go on. As the four walked to the Gryffindor table, they could hear whispers from their fellow classmates. Everyone, it seemed, wanted to know who the new girl was, when she had arrives, why she was with two Slytherins if she was a Gryffindor, and even why Ginny Weasley was with her and the Slytherins.

"Who you like us to stay?" Draco asked Hermione as she sat down at the Gryffindor table.

"You don't have to. Unless of course you want to stay and converse with a group of Gryffindors that really do like you." She replied.

"On a second thought, we'll be over there." Draco said pointing at the Syltherin table.

"Just call us if you need us." Blaise added.

"She'll be fine. Now you two go!" Ginny ordered as she sat down beside Hermione smiling. "A little protective of you aren't they?"

"Yeah, but they have reason don't they. You didn't seem to mind being around them. Are you okay with the situation? I mean, we all share a dorm so do you mind hanging around with Draco and Blaise all the time?" Hermione asked her friend.

"Sure, I'm fine with it. Draco will take a little getting used too, but I kind of like spending time with your brother."

"You have a crush on him, don't you?" Hermione asked shocked.

"And so what if I do. I can't help if he's cute." Ginny answered. "Besides, you and Draco seem to be getting along pretty well."

"Were just friends. He's nice and all, but right now I'm not ready to have a relationship. Maybe sometime in the future, but for now were friends."

"Whatever you say." Ginny replied and was about to make another comment when Dumbledore stood up.

"As many of you have noticed, there appears to be a strange girl sitting at the Gryffindor table this morning. That girl, however, has been as Hogwarts since her first year in a slightly different appearance. I would like you all to meet Miss Rayanna Kaydence Zabini, more commonly known as Miss Hermione Jane Granger."

At Dumbledore's words, the Great Hall went into chaos. All heads again turned to Hermione. Students were whispering to one another. Most of the Gryffindors and Slytherins couldn't believe what they had just heard. However, the room fell silent once more when Dumbledore began to speak.

"I would expect all of you to treat Hermione as you have previously done. She is no different from the girl that you have grown up knowing. Her name has changed, but her personality has not. I would also ask you not to overwhelm her with questions. She will tell everyone whatever she wants them to know when the time is right. Now off to classes!" Dumbledore finished, before grabbing a lemon drop and exiting the Great Hall.

As the day went by, Hermione heard her name pass through the lips of many Hogwarts students. She hated being the center of attention, but their wasn't much that she could do about it.

"How are you doing, Hermione?" Harry asked coming up behind her.

"Fine, I guess. You'd think that people would have something better to talk about than me and my family. Do you know how many different rumors I have heard today. They range from me being kidnapped, to my having run away at the age of three, and there is even one going around that this is all a trick by Voldemort to lure you to him." Hermione explained causing Harry to laugh.

"It'll get better, Hermione. People will talk for a week or two, but eventually you'll become old news and something more exciting will come up and then everyone will talk about that." Harry said as he and Hermione entered the Gryffindor Common Room.

It seemed that Harry had been right. Eventually the gossips of Hogwarts lost interest in her being a Zabini and although some students were a little hesitant to accept her since she belonged to what any considered a dark family, things all went back to normal around the time of Christmas break.

- x -

"Have fun, Hermione. I'm sure everything will be just fine." Ginny told Hermione as they exited the Hogwarts express.

"I hope so. I wonder how my parents will react to each other. Enjoy your break. Tell your mum and dad that I said Merry Christmas." Hermione said giving Ginny a hug, before saying goodbye to Ron and Harry.

True to his word, Blaise had asked their parents if the Grangers could stay at the Zabini household over Christmas break. To Blaise and Hermione's surprise, the Zabini's thought it was an excellent idea and were thrilled at the thought that they would get to meet the people that had raised their daughter while they couldn't.

The Grangers, however, took a little more convincing. They at first declined the offer, saying that it would be unfair for them to interrupt the first Christmas they had with their daughter. It had taken several letters from Hermione, Blaise, and their parents to finally convince the Grangers that they were both welcomed and wanted at the Zabini Manor over Christmas.

- x-

Once of the train and on the platform, Hermione was greeted by both the Zabini and Malfoy Clan. Both her mother and father gave her a hug, something that was still a little awkward to her, but also something that she had come to expect and like about her family. It was quickly decided they were going to apparate to the Zabini Manor, something that Hermione hated doing. Unfortunately for her, she had to apparate with her brother since she had never been to the Zabini Manor and had no clue what it looked like.

Upon reaching their destination, Hermione was amazed at what she saw. The Zabini Manor was huge! It was surrounded by a fence that would open at the command of any Zabini or any other guest that was placed on the safe list. Around the house, thousands of flowers were planted, some exotic that she guess stayed alive due to magic. In the back yard she could see a large pool, various muggle sporting equipment, a Quidditch pitch, a small garden, and a child's playhouse that was about the size of some muggle homes.

"It's so beautiful." She whispered.

"Mum loves flowers. She gets them transported from all over the world. Our little brother has a thing for muggle sports, hence all the equipment that he never picks up, and the Quidditch pitch, is of course, used by Draco and me. You could join us in a game some time." Blaise said, explaining some of the things in the yard.

"Oh no. No no no. I don't do flying. I can handle magical creatures, but heights aren't my thing." Hermione said and was about to add something else, when she felt something pull on her pant leg. Looking down, she saw that it was the little boy that she had only met once before.

"Are you my sister?" He asked in a shy, curious voice.

"Why I think I am." Hermione answered giving the little boy a small smile. "And what would your name be?"

"Alden Landon Zabini" the little boy said proudly. "Are you going to live here now?" He asked afterwards.

"I'm not sure yet, Alden. I will be here for Christmas though."

"Well I think you should live here. I love you already." He cried before giving her a hug and running off to play in the backyard.

"He's a sweet little boy." Hermione said as she and Blaise continued walking to the house, not noticing the smiles on their parents' faces.

- x-

The next few days passed quickly and Hermione loved living with her biological family. They were so fun to be around and she couldn't help loving her little brother. Most of her days were spent with Blaise and Draco, and occasionally she would play a game with Alden and Samara, Draco's little sister.

As Christmas Eve rolled around, Hermione couldn't wait to see the Grangers. She loved the Zabini's, but she still missed the Grangers, who she hadn't seen since the beginning of the school year. She spent most of Christmas eve with Draco, Blaise having gone with his father to get last minute Christmas gifts. To her surprise, she was learning that she really liked Draco. There was defiantly more than meets the eye when it came to him. Just as the two of them finished reading a Christmas story to their younger siblings, the doorbell rang and Hermione jumped up to answer it.

"Mum! Dad!" She cried as she flung open the door and gave each parent a hug. "Ali, Tommy! Come here. I missed the two of you so much."

Just as she finished hugging her sister, Hermione noticed Draco enter the room.

"I told you mum and da- I mean the Zabinis that the Grangers had arrived." Draco answered, not really sure how he should address the Grangers.

"Thanks, Draco. Ali, Thomas, do you want to meet my other little brother and Draco's sister?" Hermione asked her siblings as she steered them towards the playroom where Samara and Alden were now playing a board game.

"You have another brother?" Ali asked innocently.

"Yes, his name is Alden and he is seven years old, just like you. And Samara is Draco sister. She's six an a half, almost the same age."

"Are they nice?" Ali asked at the same time that Tommy asked if they could do magic.

"The answer to both of your questions is yes. Now have fun. I'll be back later and you can spend time with me and meet my twin, Blaise." She answered as she and Draco made their way back to the living room where both sets of her parents were seated.

- x -

For days, Hermione had been worried about the meeting of her parents. She wasn't sure how to act. When she had walked in the room however, both sets of parents had been sitting together laughing with one another. Deciding that she would give them space, Hermione and Draco left the room before anyone noticed them. As the entered the kitchen, they came face to face with Blaise.

"Hey! I saw dad out there. When did you guys get back?" Hermione questioned.

"Not that long ago. Your parents seem to be getting along. It was a little tense at first, but they seem to like each other."

After hearing Blaise say this, Hermione stopped worry and spent the rest of the day with both of her families. Before she knew it, she was being woken up the next morning by her impatient little sister who was anxious to see what Santa had brought her this year. After arousing the rest of the family, Hermione and her sister, who was still dressed in her rubber duckie pajamas, made their way down the stairs and sat in front of the tree.

Quickly the room began to fill up with people. The Grangers arrived first, followed by the Malfoys, The Zabinis, and to her surprise, even Serverus Snape showed up with a smile on his face. The morning was spent exchanging gifts, Hermione receive twice the amount that she normally received. Once all the presents were opened, the adults left the children to play as they each did their own share to help with the Christmas dinner.

Sometime before dinner, Hermione separated herself form everyone else and looked out the window of her bedroom, lost in thought. She couldn't believe how everything had turned out. A year ago, if someone had told her that she would be in this situation, she would have admitted them to St. Mungo's. Now, everything just seemed right. She had been worried after finding out who she really was, that she would have to choose whether she wanted to be a Granger or a Zabini. Now she realized, that that was something she couldn't do. Whether she liked it or not she was both. She wouldn't be the same person if she chose on family over the other, something her parents seemed to realize long before her. She didn't know what the future held for her. She didn't know if Voldemort would attack them, if she would eventually marry Draco, as her parents would like, or even what Snape would say if she started calling him Uncle Sevvie. What she did know was that she could handle it. She could handle anything that was thrown at her because she was a Granger and a Zabini. She had the love of a large, somewhat dysfunctional family and that was all she ever needed.

The End

A/n: Well that is the end of the story. I hope that this last chapter was to everyone's liking. Please review and let me know what you thought.

I have been thinking of doing a sequel to this story. There are a couple of plot ideas running through my head that I believe I could make work with this idea. If I do write the sequel it may take a while before I post it because I want to finish a couple of my other stories before a start another long fic.

Thanks to everyone that has read from the beginning.

Please review.

Hope Renee Black