Harry Potter and all associated characters and situations are the property of J.K. Rowling. I make no claim to ownership.
CHAPTER 24: Pairings
7 January 1992
Harry spent as much time as possible in the Lair over the last weekend of Christmas break, with Theo covering for him with the castle's other residents. The boy knew his time was short. It would be insanely risky for him to try to sneak past all six prefects to access the Lair once they'd returned to school, and even Theo's ring wouldn't help since he couldn't hold his breath while speaking the password to enter the Lair or close it behind him. Consequently, Harry needed to learn as much as possible as quickly as possible, both by interviewing the room's various serpent inhabitants about the Prince of Slytherin and by perusing the small number of rare books he was permitted to withdraw from the room for personal use. He very deliberately did not take any books which the faculty might deem "dark," although he soon learned to his annoyance just how ambiguous the term "dark" was according to the school's vague guidelines.
He also took the time to master the Gemino Charm which, in conjunction with Hermione's innovations with the Switching Charm, allowed him to make a small portable copy of Salazar Slytherin's family tree that he could take for later study. He used the same spells to copy the names and dates on the silver placards that covered one of the walls and assemble them into a single document full of names to research, the earliest of which dated back nearly to the time of the Founders. The next-to-last name on the list made him laugh out loud. No wonder Draco expected his father to be able to fix any problem! He now genuinely looked forward to meeting Lucius Malfoy, and he hoped Draco was on hand when he finally did.
The first Tuesday after classes resumed also meant the return of Hermione's study group. Initially, there were three absentees: Lavender Brown and the Patil sisters. A few minutes into the session, Padma Patil arrived with her book bag and sat in her usual seat. Then, with a somewhat affected bit of throat-clearing, she began what sounded like a prepared speech.
"I have been asked to inform you that Lavender and Parvati will no longer be attending this study group as it conflicts with a different study group which they have been asked to oversee. I have also been asked to convey to you all that this is in no way intended as a slight to any of you, least of all you Hermione, as you are all 'super-cool' and you, Hermione, in particularly are 'totally awesome.' However, loyalty to House Gryfindor and the sincerity of Jim Potter's pleas for academic assistance forced them to make this difficult choice. Lavender and Parvati sincerely hope that this will not affect their friendship with any of you and wish you all the best of luck on your exams and in all your future endeavors. That concludes their message."
Everyone stared at Padma for several seconds with varying degrees of confusion. Finally, Blaise spoke. "I'm going to go out on a limb here and guess that 'totally awesome' and 'super-cool' were the only words from that speech that were quoted verbatim."
"Correct. For clarity's sake, I did take the liberty of translating the message from Parvati-speak to the Queen's English," Padma said drily.
"Much appreciated," said Harry. "So to sum up, they wanted you to tell us that they can't join us because they'd prefer to attend a Gryffindor-only study session that Jim has deliberately scheduled at the same time as our own. Is that about the size of it?"
"Yes."
"Out of Gryffindor loyalty?!" spat Hermione in shocked disbelief. "She's been complaining about Jim almost as much as I have!"
Padma shrugged. "That's the message I was asked to convey ... minus some nonsense words which I assume came from Teen Witch Weekly."
"Uh-huh," said Blaise. "So what's the real reason?"
"I beg your pardon."
"What Blaise means," said Harry, "is that you pointedly described that as 'the message you were asked to convey' which is not necessarily the same thing as 'the actual truth.' So what do you think is their real reason for ditching us?"
"What makes you think I have any insights into their motivations?"
"You're the clever twin," Harry deadpanned.
Padma blinked ... and then laughed. "Honestly, if Slytherin had more people like you and Blaise and fewer Pansy Parkinsons, I might have considered your House. The short answer to your question is ... capitalism."
"What?" asked Hermione. "I don't understand."
"She means Jim Potter is paying the two of them to study with the Gryffindors instead of us," said Justin Finch-Fletchley. Everyone stared at him for a few seconds. Harry and Blaise actually looked impressed. "What? I may be a Hufflepuff, but I'm a Muggleborn from a wealthy family. Of course I know what the word 'capitalism' means."
"And to be fair," said Padma, "it's not like it's bribery. Apparently, the Boy-Who-Lived and his little entourage are all genuinely struggling in Potions which is Lavender's strongest area. So they're paying her two galleons per session to tutor Jim, Ron, Dean and Seamus in that subject."
"So why is Parvati there?" asked Hermione somewhat crossly.
Padma sniffed. "Because Lavender will be there, which is the only reason she ever came to this group. My sister is ... not academically inclined. In any case, Hermione, I think that between you, me and Harry, we probably have Potions covered even without Lavender, so perhaps we should forget about them and get started reviewing?"
Hermione looked like she wanted to say something else, but Harry said, "I agree," before she could continue. She shot him a look at the interruption, and he shot her one right back which said "we'll talk more later." With that, the group got to work and spent a solid two hours reviewing the homework assignments that had been made before the Christmas break. At the end of the session, the group split up, but Harry nodded to Hermione, and the two of them went after Padma. They caught up with her before she left the library and pulled her aside with Hermione enacting a privacy spell.
"So," said Harry, "what was the long answer?"
"Excuse me?"
"You said the short answer was capitalism. What's the long answer you didn't want to give in front of the group?"
Padma shook her head and grimaced. "Slytherins," she said with a mild annoyance. Then, she looked back and forth between Harry and Hermione. "Okay, this isn't anything they've said. It's just my observations. So please don't go around repeating this." The other two nodded seriously. "First of all, Hermione, Lavender really does have a lot of respect for you and the way you've handled yourself as a Muggleborn who's new to our world and for how readily you've adapted to magical culture. But what I'm about to say may offend some of your ... well, your Muggle sensibilities, for lack of a better phrase, so please don't hold it against her or me."
Hermione stiffened a bit. "I'll do my best not to. Please proceed."
"As part of their agreement, Jim and the other boys are not just paying Lavender, they also had to promise to study hard, to be on their best behavior in class, to avoid losing House points, and to act like respectable young gentlemen, at least when she and Parvati are around. In short, I think Lavender sees this as a chance to spend time with Jim in a situation where she can influence his behavior and determine whether he might be ... suitable."
Hermione's eyes narrowed while Harry put a hand over his mouth. He had a feeling where this was all going. "Suitable for what?" Hermione asked slowly.
"Marriage, of course," replied Padma simply.
Harry struggled not to laugh at the look on Hermione's face. "Marriage?!" she spluttered. "They're eleven!"
"Hermione," Harry said with a chuckle, "Draco and Pansy have been engaged since they were five."
She actually choked at that. Harry laughed even louder and even Padma seemed amused.
"Marriage contracts ... at the age of five! I guess I'll be an old maid if I'm not married before my teens! Please tell me that this is not something I need to be worried about!"
"It's not," Harry reassured her. "The vast majority of magicals get married just like Muggles do. They meet, fall in love, and decide to spend their lives together. Divorce can be a bit problematic because there are usually magical oaths involved at the marriage ceremony, but generally most wizards and witches don't use marriage contracts except maybe as the magical equivalent of prenuptial agreements."
"Yes," said Padma. "Things only get complicated and legalistic – well, in Britain, at least – when you're an heir to a Wizengamot family. If you are, marrying the wrong person can affect your inheritance rights and possibly even the status of your family's seat. In Lavender's case, she's the Heir Presumptive of the Noble House of Brown. And the Noble House of Brown would like very much to become the Ancient and Noble House of Brown. But they need political support to get elevated. I think ... no, I'm quite sure that Lavender believes that marrying the Boy-Who-Lived who is also the second son of House Potter and – no offense, Harry – the favored son of House Potter will get them that support."
Even Harry was surprised at Padma's bluntness. "So being the Boy-Who-Lived trumps being the Potter Heir Presumptive?" he asked with some annoyance.
She shook her head. "No, there's more to it than that. You see, the Browns are a matrilineal family." She went on to explain for Hermione's benefit. "That is to say, pursuant to the family bylaws enacted when the Browns first joined the Wizengamot, Heirship passes exclusively to the eldest witch in the Brown line of succession. If Lavender wants to keep her Heir Presumptive status and eventually become the Lady Brown, anyone she marries has to be willing to change his last name to Brown or, at the very least, take a hyphenated name and accept that any children will be named Brown. Because the Potters are Ancient and Noble, that's not an option for you, Harry, at least not without sacrificing your right to become Lord Potter some day. You can marry whoever you want so long as your spouse takes Potter as her surname – or his, I guess, if that's your preference – but you can't change your name or add a name of lesser rank to your own without surrendering your Heirship. As second son, that's not an issue for Jim so long as you stand between him and becoming Heir himself."
Harry shook his head. "I swear, I have been poring over this crap for months, and there's still always some new bit of minutia for me to discover."
Padma shrugged. "It's not an issue that arises very often. There are only a few matrilineal families left, along with a few others that are strictly patrilineal. They were more common when the Wizengamot was founded, but by their very nature, such families are more likely to face line extinction because they're more selective about who can carry on the line than those houses that favor gender neutrality. Susan Bones' situation is the opposite of Lavender's, as the Bones are a patrilineal family whose only surviving members are women, Susan and her aunt Amelia. There won't be a Bones Heir and consequently there won't be a Bones Lord unless Susan gets married to some wizard willing to take her name and then produces a male wizarding child. Likewise, the Black family will probably lose its seat altogether when Sirius Black finally dies – there are no other living males descended from the Blacks who aren't disqualified because their surname is different. The family's money and estates will probably go to the nearest legal heirs, but the Black Wizengamot seat will remain vacant until some Noble family is elevated to take its place." She made a face at the mention of the notorious Black family. "No great loss there, of course. Anyway, the majority of Wizengamot families don't distinguish between male and female heirs, although surnames still sometimes remain an issue for witches."
"Hmm," said Hermione as she digested all this. "What about Parvati? Is she husband-hunting too?"
"Oh, no," said Padma easily. "She's been engaged since she was three."
Hermione started coughing uncontrollably. Padma smiled and looked at Harry. "I can see why you keep doing that to her. It's quite amusing."
"Three!" Hermione interrupted.
"Yes. The Kumar Pasha, the wealthiest and most powerful of India's wizards, had a son born a year before Parvati and me. He wanted to form a political and business alliance with the Patils, so he proposed a marriage contract to our father. I've meet the son, Sanjeev, a few times. He seems nice and looks like he'll grow up to be good looking, and anyway, he'll be absurdly rich."
"Hang on. You were three-year-old identical twins. How did they decide which of you would become engaged? Is Parvati the older twin?" asked Harry out of curiosity. Padma smiled at him again, but this time, it actually sent a shiver down his back. This smile was what he imagined his own fake smiles used to look like to others back when he was still pretending to like the Potters.
"Age and birth status had nothing to do with it. Our eldest brother is the Patil Heir, and we have several older siblings besides him. No, as I understand it, my father literally flipped a coin, with one daughter guaranteed a life of wealth and privilege, complete with multiple palaces, jewels on every finger, and an army of servants to wait on her every need. The other daughter would have to study hard and get a job."
Padma paused and her brow furrowed. "Did that sound as bitter out loud as it did in my head?" The other two grimaced and then reluctantly nodded.
AN: The title of this chapter ("Pairings") is blatantly trolling I couldn't resist, given how many people begged me to pair Harry with this person or that person for the first few weeks until I made it clear I wasn't going to. Obviously, not a lot of action in this chapter, but a nice introduction for our slightly embittered deadpan-snarker Padma Patil, an explanation for how Jim can still get Polyjuice Potion if for some reason he ever needs some (i.e. from Lav-Lav), an exploration of Wizengamot inheritance law which will be important for later, and some gentle poking at Hermione's "muggle sensibilities" (which, to me, are a perfectly reasonable response to arranged marriages). Also, our last pure humor chapter before the main plot starts to come to a boil.
With regard to the poll question from last week, the majority seems to want a single continuous story, but enough people want it broken up into smaller chunks to justify splitting the baby as it were. "Harry Potter and the Prince of Slytherin" will definitely cover Harry's first four years and will likely end with or shortly after the scene from the prologue in Chapter 1. As we get close to that, I'll ask the question again but will most likely end the story there and pick up with Years 5-7 under a new title.
AN2: Updated on 6/23/15 to correct the egregious misspelling of Padma Patil's name and also to correct the title of the story. AN3: And AGAIN the next morning because I got Parvati's name wrong too! Aaargh!
The next chapter will update on Friday, June 26, 2015. "Slytherin Maneuvers (pt 1)," in which Draco sows the wind and Harry is horrified to see what passes for cunning among Gryffindors.