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Sunday, 19 August 2012

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Across the British Isles witches and wizards were gathering in front of their wireless in anticipation of tonight's event. The first debate amongst all seven candidates for the upcoming elections, that were now only four weeks away. At precisely 16:00 you could hear the familiar voice of Lee Jordan. His wartime show "Potterwatch" had landed him a job at the Wizarding Wireless Network after the war, and he was still there, informing the wizarding world of current events.

- Lee: -

"Good evening and welcome to the most anticipated event of the season; The first debate between all seven witches and wizards who so bravely have put forward their names for consideration in the upcoming elections. We will start the program with a brief introduction of each candidate. Following that the panel has prepared questions and topics for the group to debate before we will accept questions from the audience. For this to be possible we have partnered with First Rate Electronic Devices. If you have a communicator from them then any election related question sent to support for the coming hour or so will end up on my desk. For those witches and wizards that are talented enough to manage it, we will also be accepting questions sent by patronus, but if you are sending your questions in that way then we kindly ask you to direct your patronus to my colleague Will Collin and not to me, so it does not disturb this live broadcast.

But without further delay, let us get the show started. It has hopefully not escaped anyones noticed that in four weeks a historic election will take place. Never before have we had so many candidates willing to take on the job of Minister of Magic. For make no mistake, it is a job and it is a tough one.

In alphabetical order these candidates are: Thomas Bulstrode, 52, magical historian and well known author. Evan Fawley, 82, Wizengamot member, healer and inventor. Hermione Granger, 32, who was instrumental in the defeat of the darkest wizard of our generation and is now part owner and inventor at F.R.E.D.. Then we have Rowena Lestrange, 38, owner of The Elder Wand bookstore and publishing company in Godric's Hollow. Neolin Parkinson, 72, revered potions master at Bottomless Cauldrons. Septima Vector, 62, arithmancy professor at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. And finally Blaise Zabini, 32, world traveler and entrepreneur."

Hermione was sitting in the studio rather nervous. She was slightly amused when she heard Blaise described as nothing more than "world traveler". Was Theo even trying to win this bet he had with Draco? They must have been able to come up with something better than that. But Blaise seemed fine with this description of himself and just winked at her when she raised an eyebrow at thim.

What followed was, as Lee had promised, the introductions by every candidate separately. Hermione had prepared a speech that exactly filled her allocated four minutes and she was rather proud of it. This time there was no mention of Harry Potter or the Golden Trio. This was about her and her alone. Not about "Harry Potter's faithful sidekick", as Draco had put it.

The others also tried their best to convince the voters that they would be the perfect choice for the position. She may have been biased but she found Thomas's speech pretentious. He sounded like someone who would look after his own interests and the interests of those like him. Evan came across much better. If Hermione was being honest with herself then she knew she probably would have voted for him if she hadn't been running herself. He was likeable and his background as a healer was something that spoke to everyone. He obviously had good bedside manners. He sounded like someone who would take care of you and fix all your troubles.

Rowena was harder to read. She had no political background, but she was likeable enough. Hermione could see herself becoming friends with this woman, discussing classic literature over tea for hours on end. It was however, hard to tell if she would be good at this job or not. Same with Neolin Parkinson. That man had nothing specific to speak in his favor. He was probably just one of those pure blooded wizards who was after ever more power, money and status. Septima Vector was of course a highly analytical woman, who used most of her time stating numbers facts about the magical population. The average family size and income, the annual rates of magical injuries and how that related to the funding of St. Mungos. Even if Hermione found many of the figures quite interesting and could follow Septima's logic of how society could be optimised better, she highly doubted the message was getting across to the voters.

And then there was Blaise. His manner was fully professional as he talked about his world travel and the relation of wizarding england with other nations. It turned out, much to Hermione's surprise, that he had done more than party on his trips around the globe. He seemed personally acquainted with many world leaders and was well versed in international diplomacy. She also found out that he spoke several languages, which she admitted would be handy in diplomatic situations.

Hermione did her best to stay alert throughout the entire procedure. The questions were insanely random, sometimes about specific policies and other times they got asked about their personal food preferences or which pets they had owned. It was exhausting and she was very glad when it was over and she could floo home.

- # - # - # - # - # - # - # - # - # -

[Draco:] How do you think the debate went?

[Hermione:] You were the one listening. What do you think?

[Draco:] It could have gone worse. You are definitely still in the running.

[Hermione:] But I am not doing as well as Fawley.

[Draco:] Probably not, no. But we still have time.

[Hermione:] I suppose. Did you come up with anywhere I can be seen and gain support?

[Draco:] The best I could come up with was to establish visiting hours so people can meet you somewhere.

[Hermione:] We could rent a place and open an election café. Free coffee and propaganda.

[Draco:] That could work. Employ those over-enthusiastic Hogwarts students that were drooling over you.

[Hermione:] It would have to be somewhere extremely visible.

[Draco:] Preferably in Diagon Alley. Is there any property available there?

[Hermione:] I can ask George. He knows that sort of thing.

[Draco:] Would Romeo consider closing WWW for a few weeks and letting you use his store?

[Hermione:] Possibly after September first when the Hogwarts students have emptied the shelfs, but not now.

[Draco:] Ok, that can be our backup plan. But let's try to find something better.

[Hermione:] Yes, we really would want it open and visible for the start of term rush.

[Draco:] Are you doing anything tonight?

[Hermione:] Another book club meeting with Fleur and the other Gringotts wives.

[Draco:] Sounds like torture.

[Hermione:] It's good to be seen, or so you claim.

[Draco:] So I claim indeed.

[Hermione:] I better start getting ready. I'll talk to you later.

[Draco:] Ok. Have fun.

[Hermione:] Before I go. Do I have a date for tomorrow night?

[Draco:] Yes you do.

[Hermione:] Do I get to know who?

[Draco:] No. Just show up at the Unicorn in Godric's Hollow at seven.

[Hermione:] You are insufferable.

[Draco:] I make your life worth living and you adore me.

[Hermione:] You should work on your modesty.

[Draco:] What is that?

[Hermione:] Look it up. I must go now.

[Draco:] Ok. Have fun.

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Monday, 20 August 2012

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Hermione was actually quite nervous before her blind date. She had been wondering all day who Draco could possibly have chosen to set her up with. He had said it would have to be someone outside her usual circle of friends, but at the same time it had to be someone that would further her campaign. She had spend more time than usual looking over her wardrobe. She did not want to send the wrong signals, in case it was someone she did not get along with, and yet she could not dress completely casual since The Unicorn was a very nice restaurant. She ended up in dark purple robes with delicate gold embroidery. It was classic and beautiful and did not show any unnecessary skin. She tried to put her hair back, but gave that up and just pinned the worst of it back a bit. She stared at the mirror for a bit, contemplating the multiple worst case scenarios that could be awaiting her this evening.

Truth be told, she wasn't a completely happy about following through with this plan of Draco's. She preferred to be in control of her own life. But at the same a good leader had to know when to delegate and in all honesty she didn't care too much about the details of the election process. Draco however seemed to enjoy playing politics and tended to have a good reason for wanting her to do something.

This whole election venture was barely her idea. She may have made the spur of the moment decision to put forward her own name, but it was his fault she was taking this so seriously. It was almost funny that the boy who tortured her for not being pure-blood was now supporting her in her quest to prove that you did not need to be pure-blooded to get the top job.

She knew that in the unlikely event that she was made Minister of Magic she would be a good one. She would obsess about every little detail and try her best to better the lives of every witch and wizard out there. But if she was being completely honest with herself, she was still a bit undecided. Was she really the best person for this job? Was there really no one else? Would she really be upset if she didn't win?

Then she pictured Thomas Bulstrode as Minister of Magic and shuddered. What a horrible thought. No, there was nothing to it. Draco was right. She could not honestly say that any of the other candidates were better qualified than she was. She would do her best and if she lost then at least she would sleep better at night knowing that she tried her best. So that meant she had to go on a blind date tonight. If she only was comfortable with swearing. This felt like yet another moment where swearing a bit might be appropriate.

Rowena's raisins!

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Hermione was a few minutes early, gave her name to the maitre d' and was lead to an elegant private table. She sat there contemplating how utterly idiotic this was for a few minutes before fishing up her fred.

[Hermione:] Remind me why I shouldn't curse you.

[Draco:] Actually I am somewhat amazed you haven't cursed me yet.

[Hermione:] Not helping here.

[Draco:] Because I have been on my best behaviour lately?

[Hermione:] Not allowing me to sit at home reading is just mean and you know it.

[Draco:] You are the one who left with Romeo-the-crazy-person on Friday.

[Hermione:] You know perfectly well there is no Romeo. Stop calling him that.

[Draco:] I know. You know. But many of your voters were left thoroughly confused by his antics.

[Hermione:] So no having fun when one is Minister of Magic.

[Draco:] No having fun in public. Having fun in private is always encouraged.

[Hermione:] My mystery date is late.

[Draco:] Your mystery date has a tendency to do that.

[Hermione:] Tell me who he is.

[Draco:] No.

[Hermione:] You insufferable gitt.

[Draco:] Manners, minister. Manners.

[Hermione:] So no calling people names either?

[Draco:] Same rules. Keep your public persona spotless and do whatever you want behind closed doors.

[Hermione:] Five minutes late. Can I leave now?

[Draco:] Not yet. If I was a betting man I would say your mystery date will be seven minutes late.

[Hermione:] I will make you pay for this.

She closed her eyes and before she could count to five to calm herself she heard someone take the seat opposite her. It was another two seconds before she dared open her eyes. What she saw astounded her. She had been expecting some slimy guy trying to get into her pants or some pompous know it all trying to impress her all night. Instead she had been set up with a witch. And not just any witch. None other than Pansy Parkinson. So, did this really count as a date?

"Surprise!"

"You can say that again," Hermione said and reached for her drink.

Pansy just laughed as she gulped down half of her white wine.

"You were expecting Marcus Flint, weren't you?"

"Possibly, although I didn't count him as very likely due to his recent public scandal with Astoria. Honestly, I didn't know what to think."

"Well, Marcus was a possibility, but he did get discarded rather quickly. As you say, he wouldn't have gotten you any votes right now. You would just be labeled his newest conquest."
"Who else was on the list of possibilities?"
"Celebrities mostly. But the problems with celebrities is that they tend to be associated with some scandal or other. Most of the scandals surrounding your name have been made up, which is what makes you such a good candidate."

"So what is this then? Do I like women now?"
"You can if you want to, but I think this is more supposed to be a friend-date."
"I wonder if that is what will be in the papers tomorrow."
"Whatever. Let them print whatever they like. I volunteered. It sends out the signal that you are comfortable with the reformed population without teaming you up with anyone that did anything particularly unsavoury."
"I see."

Hermione wracked her brain for a second before she ventured. "But you were never in the rehabilitation program, were you?"

"10 points to Gryffindor." Pannsy smiled and raised her own glass, which the waiter had just placed in front of her. "But everyone assumes I was. People tend to think in black and white, so because of one nasty comment about the chosen one in the midst of battle I have always been labeled a fan of Voldy."
"Were you even made to hold the orbs?"

"No, not even. They had nothing on me. Free speech and whatnot."

"Sometimes I wonder what would happen if all the supposed good guys were made to face the orbs. How many secred prejudices would be discovered among the good and noble."
"Would you get tested?"

"Not publicly, no," Hermione said thoughtfully. "But I would be curious to know what they had to say about me. No one really even knows how the orbs work."

"Draco once said it was more invasive than Voldy using legilimency against you."

"Ouch."

"He tends to over dramatize things though."

"I've noticed that about him."

"So are you two shagging yet?"
"No, we are not. Get your mind out of the gutter."
"Just asking."

At this point they got interrupted by a waiter wanting to take their order. Pannsy had obviously been here before and placed her order without even glancing at the menu. Hermione took a bit longer, asking the waiter about the soup of the day and what a "delmonico" was. In the end she ordered goats cheese and sweet potato raviolo plus an appetizer that looked good. They decided to share a bottle of some white wine that Pannsy seemed fond of and when they finally got rid of the waiter they could get back to their conversation.

"So tell me, how are things going with Ron."
"I'm not sure I'm allowed to discuss Ron. He is your friend. Ask him if you want to know."
"You know he hasn't actually told me about the two of you. Plus, if we are supposed to have a friend-date then you are going to have to be a good friend and give me some gossip."
"Ok. Me and Ron are fine. How about that?"
"I admit I was hoping for a little more detail but I will let it slide."
"You give me the dirt on you and Draco, and I will give you the dirt on me and Ron. Fair is fair."
"There is no me and Draco."

"You forget that I was at Theo's last week. I know who you danced that dance with. And the two of you were looking quite cozy if you asked me."
"Oh, no."

Hermione covered her face with her hands. Her momentary madness was back to haunt her. Pannsy would never let it go now that she had ammunition. Then Hermione's brain caught up with her and her eyes almost popped out of her skull as she asked quietly; "Did Ron see us?"

Pannsy smirked like she had finally caught her pray.

"Don't worry. I covered for you and your blond lover. I figured it was not a good idea to let Ron have a heart attack right there on the dancefloor, or to have him draw attention to the two of you by losing his temper and punching Draco in the face. So I distracted him. Quite successfully, I may add. You may thank me now."

"Thank you," came quietly from Hermione as she envisioned the horror that could have unfolded. Ron was somewhat known for his punch first and ask questions later policy. It was the reason he had not lasted in the Auror program.

"So are you still claiming there is nothing going on between you and Draco?"

"We were drunk. Ok? And it was just one dance. Just a moment of insanity." Hermione realized she almost sounded pleading. This was not good. Pannsy would never believe her, even if it was the truth.

"Alcohol has a way of revealing some uncomfortable truths, doesn't it? Like you fancying Draco. Who would have guessed."

"I am never going to convince you, am I? No matter how many times I say that there is nothing going on there."

"No. I have eyes, and I believe what I can see right in front of me."

Their appetizer arrived and Hermione thanked the waiter. She hoped the food would put an end to their current conversation, but no. As soon as they were alone again, Pannsy dove right in.

"Your babies are going to be so cute with blond and curly hair."
"I guess I should just be grateful you don't work for the Prophet. This is the kind of rubbish they love to print about me."

"It's not rubbish when it is true."

"You are just hoping to have some company in the Slytherin-dating-a-Gryffindor club, aren't you?"

"This is not about Hogwarts houses. Grow up Hermione."

"What is it about then? Order of the Phoenix dating ex-Death Eaters?"
"Maybe for you and Draco, but remember that I was never a Death Eater."

"I know. That was uncalled for. I'm sorry."
"Don't be. I know you didn't mean anything nasty by it. You were there."
"What is that supposed to mean?"
"The way I see it the wizarding world is split into distinctive groups. Most people think that is the sorting hat that divides people up, and talk about Slytherins and Gryffindors and the rest. Maybe that would be a good way of characterizing people if we lived in a different day and age, but we are living in the post-war-era. Things are different now."

"Different how?"

Both Hermione and Pansy leaned forward as Pannsy started to explain:
"According to me the first group is made up of the witches and wizards who got to chose a side. These are mostly the people who were around during the first war, before Voldy started splitting his soul and became utterly mad. When it was about ideals and not about terror. Wizards being better than muggles and all that crap. This group still only socializes with its own kind, and there is too much history for them to ever be comfortable with the ones that chose the other side decades ago. But these witches and wizards are still mature enough to talk civilly to one another and work together if needed. They want the world to heal. They all fought for better tomorrows and they saw people they cared about die. They want this to be that better world they dreamt of. Now that the war and its terrors are over they are mostly just glad to be alive. Whatever side they were on at the time, the fight died with old Voldy and they would not do anything to disturb the peace."

Pannsy took a drink, but Hermione just waited for her to continue.
"The second group are the people who never took sides. They may be loosely associated with one side or the other, like my parents for example, but mostly this group just hid and never had to face any hard choices. These are the judgmental people. The ones who have the luxury to say that they would have done things differently if they had been there. But the fact is that they chose not to be there. When things got ugly they ran, hid or looked the other way. This is the worst group of them all. Shallow and judgemental people, the lot of them."

Pannsy sounded bitter, but after taking a deep breath she continued:

"Then there are us. The kids of the second war. The ones who inherited a side and had no say in the matter. The war was on hold for a decade and a half and when it restarted no one offered us the chance to make up our own mind about things. We got thrown into it. Barely of age at the time it swallowed us whole. We are the ones who remember the terror, experienced the loss and live with the nightmares. The war is over now and I think it is ridiculous to still draw a line in the sand as if we aren't the same. We are the same, no matter what side we were forced to take. We should stick together against the ones who weren't there and do not understand what it was like back then."

"Yes, I see your point."

"All those Hogwarts students at Theo's the other week will probably become part of the second group. They were not there. They will probably read the stories of the war and they will see everything in black and white. Good people and bad people. That is what history teaches. No gray to be seen. They probably think it was romantic as fuck how the golden trio got to fly into the sunset on a dragon. I know it was nothing of the sort. War is never romantic. I was there."

"More wine?"
"Yes please."

Hermione reflected over Pansy's analysis of the wizarding population. It was rather profound, really. And it hit on so many truths that were kind of obvious, as soon as they were pointed out to her. Of course there are many ways of categorizing people. Educated people vs. uneducated people. Slytherins vs. Gryffindors. Rich people vs. poor people. Men vs. women. This was just yet another way of drawing lines, and saying us vs. them. But Pansy's lines were no less true than any of those other lines. They identified differences and similarities. Pansy had found a way in her mind to think of their generation as a united group, not split according to some long forgotten house rivalries.

"Is this why Theo and Draco are so nice to me? Do they share your views?

"Yes. We talked about it and we all felt it would be best if someone of our generation, the ones who remember, got the Minister of Magic post. It's why we made Blaise run. He is the only one we trust who has a clean history. But once we found out you were in the running it was a new game entirely. Draco argued that your history as a member of the Order of the Phoenix gave you a much better chance than Blaise ever had. Theo argued that sound political maneuvering would work in Blaise's favour, and the fact that you had no experience with politics would mean you would be out of the running before you ever started. As you may have guest there it all ended with a bet being made and you being Draco's pet project. Of course we all thought you would hex Draco's balls off rather than listen to a word of reason coming from him, but the two of you seem to have some sort of secret bond between you that has surprised us all."
"I told you about that."
"Yes you claimed Draco was your knight in shining armor. Sure. But even if he accidentally kicked you away from a blast-ended screwed in his youth at some point, he surely insulted you enough to make up for that. I say you must have the hots for him. It is the only logical explanation."
"Whatever Parkinson. You can continue to make up your little fantasies if it entertains you."

"Just… Hermione… Can I call you Hermione?"
"Sure. Pannsy."

"Hermione. If you do have the hots for Draco…"
"Witch I don't"

"... but if you do. I should tell you that he is worth the trouble. He is loyal and smart and the world treats him like crap, which he does not deserve, even if he thinks he does."
"Should I worry that one of my best friends girlfriend is obsessed with her ex?"

"Oh, shut it. Me and Draco dated for like five minutes a lifetime ago. Some snogging when we were kids hardly qualifies him as my ex."
"Still. Tell me about your own love life instead of making up stories about mine."

"Want to hear all about me snogging your ex?"
"No, now that you put it like that, Iprobably don't."
"Me and Ron work. I think. I guess we will see what happens if the world ever finds out about us."
"Your friends know. Don't they?"
"Some have figured it out, but they are keeping quiet about it."
"Does Ron know that they know?"
"He knows that Daphne knows. And thereby he suspects that Alexey knows. But he doesn't know that Draco and Theo got it out of me at some point."

"So he has not started hanging out with the Slytherins."
"No. Maybe you can help me with that. You seem to somehow have gotten over your hatred of all things green and silver."

Their food arrived and it looked delicious. Once they had asked for another bottle of whine and confirmed that, yes, the food was actually as fantastic as it looked they continued their conversation.

"So Ron is worried about your friends, uh?"

"It took him a long time to get over the fact that he was shagging the enemy."
"He needed to grow up at some point. Can't go around holding on to childhood rivalries forever."
"I blame the quidditch. It made everything so competitive at Hogwarts."
"That and the house cup. I wish they had abolished that by now."
"I hear they at least stopped the segregated seating in the great hall."
"They did? That's great. Then perhaps kids can finally make friends in other houses. It was ridiculous the way it was when we were there."

"I fully agree."

This lead the conversation back to their Hogwarts days, which eventually led the conversation to gossip about where people were today and who was dating whom etc.

Before they knew it desert had been served and eaten.

All in all it had gone remarkably well. Pansy had grown up to become the kind of person she could see working with Ron. Hermione sincerely hoped he didn't mess this up.

"Are you going to tell Ron about our friend-date?"

"Do you think I should?"

"Only if you want to keep him. Didn't you see the reporters sneaking about earlier? Tomorrow's paper is going to be all about our wedding plans. It might upset him."

"I suppose. What should I tell him?"

"I would recommend the truth. But that's just me."

"So I should tell him you are shagging Draco."

This comment and the associated grin made Hermione actually hit her forehead with her hand.

"No, Pansy. I am not shagging Draco."

"Sure you aren't"

"I am not."

"Aha."

"Stop it"

"Aha."

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[Draco:] Should I expect to be jinxed next time I see you?

[Hermione:]. No, Pansy was Ok. It was nice getting to know her a bit.

[Draco:] So the two of you hit it off?

[Hermione:] She is leaving Ron for me. The engagement announcement will be out tomorrow.

[Draco:] Excellent. You two will make lovely brides.

[Hermione:] But seriously, why her?

[Draco:] Your public persona needs more girlfriends. You hang out with boys too much.

[Hermione:] I like hanging out with boys.

[Draco:] What you like is irrelevant. It's all about appearances.

[Hermione:] We will see what they say in the papers tomorrow.

[Draco:] They were there?

[Hermione:] With cameras aloft.

[Draco:] Excellent. I have also had a productive evening.

[Hermione:] Let me guess. You and Theo want a double wedding with me and Pansy?

[Draco:] Very funny. No, I found you some quarters in Diagon.

[Hermione:] How did you manage that?

[Draco:] I convinced Madam Primpernelle to rent out her store for a ridiculous sum.

[Hermione:] And she agreed? Amazing!

[Draco:] She can sell her beautifying potions by mail order for the next four weeks.

[Hermione:] Hmm… I am not sure pink is my colour. Can we redecorate?

[Draco:] We can do whatever we want. Did I mention the ridiculous sum.

[Hermione:] Just send me the bill. I have a ridiculous sum or two in Gringotts.

[Draco:] What a coincidence. So do I. We have so much in common you and I.

[Hermione:] Ah, yes. We can have a ridiculous-sums-get-together-and-dance party.

[Draco:] Sounds like fun.

[Hermione:] So what is the plan?

[Draco:] To party?

[Hermione:] No, the actual plan.

[Draco:] Ah, yes. We get the keys on Wednesday morning.

[Hermione:] Sounds good.

[Draco:] I can meet you there at eight thirty on Wednesday if you want.

[Hermione:] I'll be there.

[Draco:] You should fix the freds so they can send numbers. "Eight thirty" looks ridiculous.

[Hermione:] I know, we are working on it.

[Draco:] See you on Wednesday.

[Hermione:] Sweet dreams.

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Wednesday, 22 August 2012

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When Hermione showed up at Madam Primpernelle's Beautifying Potions she found Draco's house elf Batty packing up the store. Things were disappearing into boxes, and boxes were disappearing to who-knows -here. Draco stood there watching Batty and waiting for her by the store counter with an extra cup of coffee that he handed over.

"You could help her, you know."
"Have you met Batty?"
"Once. But I know what you mean. Mine ar the same."
"You could have brought yours to help. She would have accepted that."
"They are busy. Laundry service."
"Ah, yes."

Hermione came up and leaned against the counter besides Draco and together they watched the store for a minute. It was only the one floor (plus a basement they were not allowed into) but it was extremely spacious. They could probably fit 50-60 people comfortably in here once the shelves had been removed, and perhaps 100 uncomfortably if needed. There were big display windows and from the right angle they could see both Ollivander's (now primarily being run by his sisters grandson) and Broomstix. When Hermione pointed this out to Draco he scooted a bit closer to her to see. Hermione was suddenly very aware that their shoulders were touching. Not much. Just a little bit. But it didn't seem like Draco was going back away again. He just stayed there and continued to observe the excessively pink store.

This was a prime location and everyone would be here this weekend now that the list of school supplies had been sent out. All they had to do was redecorate.

"So what are you thinking?" Draco asked softly.

"Purple and silver." Hermione answered.

"No red and gold?"

"Definitely not red and gold. I want to everyone to feel welcome here. Not just a quarter of the wizarding population."
"Good thinking. You will not win with only a quarter of the votes. At least not in the second round."

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves. I haven't been through the first round yet."

"You will."
"I believe it when I see it."

"Seriously though. Batty will be done emptying out the place in 20 minutes or so. You should call in those minions of yours to help decorate. And let your friends know what you are upto, if you haven't already. Make them feel involved. Install an espresso machine and refreshments here at the counter. You probably want chairs and some small tables. And a stage where you can give talks. Maybe arrange for some musicians to play every now and then."

"Basically open a club, only with coffee instead of wine."
"You may want to offer tea too. And some pumpkin juice or something for the kids. It is Hogwarts madness in Diagon this weekend. Everyone will be here."

"So what you are saying is that this has to happen fast."
"I would try to open tomorrow night if I were you."
"And what will you be doing to help out?"
"Nothing. My work is done here. Now I am staying far away, remember. No one should know that I am involved in any way."

"Will you at least be here for the opening party tomorrow?"
"Probably not, no."
"I don't like this, Malfoy. You shouldn't have to stay in the shadows like this. I understand what you are saying; that people are stupid and can't fathom the idea of rehabilitation, but I do not like it. When all of this is over, however it turns out, then we are going to start working on your public image. Yours and Theos. You and Theo are decent blokes who shouldn't have to hide in the corners at every single party."

Draco did not meet her eyes when she glanced towards him. He just looked thoughtful for a moment and Hermione did not miss that his eyes moved to his forearm. His left forearm. The one he always kept covered.

Then he sighed and put on one of his smirks.

"One project at a time, Granger. Let's get through 'project Granger' first. Then we can talk about your obsessive need to save everyone you meet."

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When Draco had given her the keys to the place and apparated out of there Hermione picked up her fred and messaged pretty much everyone she knew. Predictably not many were available on a Tuesday morning. Harry said he would come by on his lunch break if she had food, and Ginny said she may come by after lunch but she would have the kids with her so she would not be able to help.

Three out of four Hogwarts volunteers could not make it until after lunch, but Isabella apparated over immediately ready to help out. She even brought a friend that Hermione had not met before who introduced herself as Elina McRowen. Ron and George also came over since the Weasley's Wizard Wheezes did not open until 10:30. The rest of those she reached out to did not answer until much later.

They set to work. Hermione and the girls charmed the colour on the walls from pink to purple while the Weasley brothers worked on transforming some shelves into furniture and raised the floor in a corner about half a meter to make a performance stage. Ron left to open the store at 10:30 but George stayed, claiming that Ron could take care of things until lunch.

Neville and Hannah showed up and two of the Hogwarts volunteers; Helga and Erik. Erik had also brought a friend who Hermione had not met before, Henry, who seemed like a nice kid although a quiet one. Then Luna and Annabel were there. By lunch Alicia Spinnet and Lavender Brown had shown up too. Since there was no clear workplan there was a lot of chaos mixed in with some good old trial-and-error. Hermione had set the colour scheme of purple, white and silver, but the rest of the details were still up in the air and everyone seemed to have an opinion. More time seemed to go towards discussing the layout and the decoration of the place than was going towards actual work. Hermione's house elves came with lunch for everyone at the same time as Harry dropped by with a colleague that Hermione could not remember the name of (possibly John or Johan or something). Ron came on his lunch break and kicked George out of there to take care of the store in his absence.

Just when Harry was about to leave the door opened. People fell silent as Pansy walked in. She held her head high and acted as if everything was perfectly normal. She ignored everyone there, including Ron, walked straight to Hermione, gave her a quick hug and asked if there was any food left for she was starving. Hermione followed her lead and acted as if she had been expecting her, pointed her to the food and told her to grab her some pineapple juice if there was any left.

When Pansy was out of earshot Hermione found a lot of eyes on her that obviously wanted an explanation. The only one they got got was: "You saw the Prophet yesterday. Me and Pansy are best friends now."

Although it was obvious that her friends never believed anything written in the Daily Prophet, it was equally obvious that Hermione was not about to give any further explanation on why Pansy was there. So people had to just keep their opinions to themselves and go back to whatever they had been talking about. But when Pansy came back and sat herself besides Hermione there was still more than one raised eyebrow lurking around the room.

In the end it was Luna who saved the day. While everyone was still sitting she climbed up on the newly erected stage and explained her vision of the room. All the tables were to be circular with three chairs per table. And, yes, there were to be chairs and not couches. They did not want people to get too comfortable. People were supposed to come in, get exposed to the propaganda and then leave to make room for new voters.

Talking about propaganda there would be sketches of Hermione on the walls in silver and quotes from her Reflections-articles would appear as if an invisible hand was writing them on the wall. The stage would be decorated in lighter shades of purple and white in order to draw the eye to it and whenever there wasn't live entertainment on the stage they would have a charmed harp playing famous muggle songs. Hermione would need to make a personal appearance about 4 times a day on stage and the times would be set so everyone would always know when to expect her.

The bar would serve coffee, tea, muffins and a purple fizzy drink that supposedly had a strawberry/blueberry flavour. Nothing else. The muffins were going to be baked and individually decorated by Hermione's house elves, and those too would follow the colour scheme of purple and white.

Everything would be free but there would have to be some system in place to make sure no one abused the system. Ron suggested they could modify one of the Weasley's Wizard Wheezes products and give a small tattoo to anyone who ate a muffin. It could say something like "I support Hermione Granger for Minister of Magic" on their forehead which would then fade after some hours. That way they could easily keep track of who had already gotten a muffin. Everyone agreed that this was a good idea, although placing the tattoo on the back of their hand was probably better, and Ron left to tell George to get to work on it.

After Luna's speech things started coming together. The sign above the door was changed to say simply "Vote for Hermione Granger" and the windows got big signs announcing that they would be open on Friday morning. Isabella, Elina and Helga, another recent Hogwarts graduate who had now showed up, started working on flyers with "30 reasons to vote for Hermione Granger" (which were then folded into little broomsticks and made to fly around the place).

"The Hogwarts boys", as everyone was calling Henry and Erik, took over the rebuilding and organizing of the the café. Hermione sent out the invitations to the opening party tomorrow night herself and organised the house elves, who would be taking care of the muffin baking at Hermione's house.

By about five Hermione sent everyone home saying they had worked hard enough for one day. The rest could wait until tomorrow. She and a few of the others needed to start getting ready for Percy's birthday dinner.

The last thing they did before leaving was to test the first batch of the propaganda-muffins. Since it was just a minor modification on an existing product George had quickly made the special ingredient that would give everyone a 10 hour purple and silver tattoo. They all applauded when it the letters appeared on the back of Hermione's hand saying "I support Hermione Granger".

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[Draco:] How is it looking?

[Hermione:] Like an overdose of purple mixed with a bit of some sickening Hermione-worship

[Draco:] So in other words; absolutely perfect?

[Hermione:] I suppose so.

[Draco:] Are you doing anything exciting tonight or are you just working on your new purple project?

[Hermione:] I sent everyone home at five. I need to get ready for Percy's birthday dinner.

[Draco:] You have a busy social calendar.

[Hermione:] Yes, I usually do. Comes with being pretty and popular.

[Draco:] Yes, I guess I shouldn't be surprised.

[Hermione:] What will you be doing?

[Draco:] Probably reading Bulstrode's autobiography in front of the fire. I'm not quite finished with that one.

[Hermione:] Will you send it to me when you finish it?

[Draco:] Of course.

[Hermione:] Thank you.