Albus sat calmly watching as his hosts bustled around preparing tea and settling down. He nodded in thanks as he accepted a cup.

Finally all were present and Ms. Granger's father sat back and said, "Headmaster Dumbledore, welcome to our home. You asked to speak to us. What would you like to talk about?"

Albus carefully sat his cup down and said, "Yes. Thank you for seeing me. A matter occurred to me upon first learning of your daughter's enrollment in Hogwarts." He paused and then continued, "I believe that your daughter could confirm that I am quite a bit older than most non-Magicals would assume."

The two looked over to Hermione and she blushed a bit as she said, "It's true. Professor Dumbledore graduated Hogwarts in 1899. So, he's known to be about 110."

Albus smiled, "I was 110 as of July 26th last. Since my youth, I have met many and learned much history. It might be uncommon knowledge, but I am considered a Half-blood according to current labels."

Jane looked at Graham and then said, "That's all very interesting, but what does this have to do with why you are here?"

Albus sipped his tea and said, "I will soon get to the point. I just wanted to establish a bit of background." The three Grangers nodded. "Now, my mother – like your daughter – was considered a Mundane-born witch. Of course, back then, it was far less a matter of interest than it is today. But it is and was a matter of interest. So, I asked myself, where did the magic come from?" He looked at the two parents and said, "Where do children get their traits from?"

Jane and Graham looked at each other and then Graham said, "Well, it's genetics. Children get their traits from the father and mother who get traits from their parents and so on."

"Exactly! So, how do children achieve traits that neither parent has?"

Hermione began almost bouncing on her chair in her enthusiasm to answer. The Headmaster looked at her and said, "Ms. Granger?"

"I learned about this in school! Sometimes, genes become recessive. Two parents with brown eyes will most likely have brown-eyed children. But if both parents had a parent themselves with blue eyes, there's a chance that a child with brown-eyed parents could have blue eyes. It's a," she thought about it for a minute, "one in eight or a one in sixteen or something like that," she shook her head and got back on track, "there's a chance anyway that a child will have blue eyes."

Albus looked at Hermione with some interest. "Well. I did not expect such a detailed explanation. If we were at Hogwarts, I would be assigning points." He turned to Jane and Graham. "This is common knowledge?"

Both parents nodded. Jane said, "Modern Genetics is a scientific subject that is perhaps … a hundred years old? I'm not exactly certain, but I know that it is younger than you are." She said this with a bit of a smile.

Albus considered this. "Could I ask you to obtain a basic text on the subject which could explain it? Such a recent discovery in the non-magical world would not necessarily have had time to become well known in the magical world. I would like to study the subject in some detail if possible. The beginning sounds appropriate as a good place to start."

Hermione suddenly jumped up and rushed upstairs. Albus looked at the Grangers with some curiosity even as the two smiled and shook their heads.

Jane said, "She only gets this way about books."

The three sat for a few minutes drinking tea. It gave the parents time to enquire about their daughter and Hogwarts in general.

Soon, they heard Hermione quickly coming down the stairs. They looked over as she rushed in, books in hand. She placed one in front of the Headmaster.

"This was my book from my last year of Primary. There's a chapter on basic genetics." She placed a second book on top of the first. "This was an additional book which explains it in more detail that I begged Mum and Dad to get me when we studied it. In the back, there's a list of books where the information came from, which would tell you other books which you can use."

Albus looked over the two books. He was often surprised, when he came across such books, at how well such books were put together and organized. These books, however, were far, far more sturdy – and colorful – than almost any book published in the magical world.

"Excellent! I shall peruse these and then return them in the future."

Hermione exclaimed, "Oh, no! You can have these. I've already read them fully and I can always find more books on the subject if I need them. Take them as a gift."

Jane and Graham were amazed. Graham stage whispered to the Headmaster, "She must really like you – she never gives up books."

Hermione blushed and Albus smiled. "Thank you, Ms. Granger. I shall study them thoroughly."

He tapped the two books with his wand to shrink them and stuck them in a robe pocket.

"Anyway, seeing as all seem to have an excellent understanding of the subject, my further point shall be easily explained. My question becomes: If young Hermione here is Magical, where did that magic come from?"

Jane and Graham had talked about this a bit. "Maybe we had ancestors who were magical," Jane said.

Albus nodded. "Precisely. And your family name gives us a clue." He turned to Hermione and said, "Have you heard of the Most Extraordinary Society of Potioneers?"

Hermione shook her head.

"Ah, well then. The society has been around for about a century. Its founder was a man by the name of Hector Dagworth-Granger."

All three were startled by that. "A possible great-grandfather?" Jane asked her husband.

"I don't know. But if not, it's possible that he was named after two families which combined: The Dagworths and the Grangers. It's possible we're related several generations earlier."

Albus nodded. "When I heard your daughter's name, it reminded me that many families have been lost in the past half-century. In the 1950s, the Dagworth-Grangers family died out. All of the children had been lost in the previous decade due to war."

Graham was both saddened and curious. "I am very sorry to hear that. It would have been nice to find magical relatives if they existed."

Albus nodded. "Yes. Family bonds are important. However, when a family becomes lost, it often occurs that there is a legacy that remains. Such legacies are often claimed by those branches of the family that split off in recent generations or even further back. The Dagworth-Granger legacy, however, remains unclaimed 45 years after their passing. It is my thought that your daughter might qualify to claim it."

Graham was curious. "Isn't there some means for such things to be dealt with within a certain number of years? Any large legacy that is unclaimed is usually resolved by an appointed executor."

Albus replied, "I don't know how things are handled outside of the magical world, but our government and our institutions are based, in large part, upon systems put in place centuries ago. And we are notoriously slow to change. So, in magical matters, inheritance is dealt with under the laws and traditions of Primogeniture. In some families, it requires a male to inherit, in others female, and in still others either can but one gender or another is given preference. In the magical world, traditionally, either men or women can inherit but sons are given preference over daughters. However, due to treaties created in the past, the Ministry of Magic does NOT control who may inherit. They will distribute estates according to a will but if there is none, such legacies fall under the purview of an ineligible and uninterested third party."

Jane looked thoughtful as she said, "It would be difficult to find such a third party if the number of families are limited. Depending on how interrelated families are, there might be almost no third party that is ineligible and uninterested."

Albus nodded. "The crux of the matter. Almost all families are related in one way or another to some degree – no matter how distant. And depending on the size of the legacy, uninterested is almost impossible to find." He turned to Hermione. "Ms. Granger, whom within the magical world deals with wealth but is almost certainly unrelated to most any family?"

Hermione thought about it and then exclaimed, "The Goblins!"

Albus nodded in satisfaction. "Exactly. They have means which allow most any legacy to be examined for eligibility. And unlike wizards and witches, they do not bend to external pressure in deciding such things. The law allows any legacy to be assigned by Gringotts if not distributed according to a legal will. They are, in fact, the executors of any unassigned legacy. In the past, laws were attempted to limit such legacies to Purebloods only but Gringotts inheritance laws were set according to treaty centuries ago. Unless a subsequent treaty is accepted by both Gringotts and the Ministry, it cannot be changed. And the likelihood of such a treaty coming into place is as unlikely as the possibility of Pureblood bigots embracing goblins and calling them brother."

Hermione chuckled at that. Albus joined her. The two Grangers were confused. Hermione said, "Basically he means it's impossible." There were nods of acceptance.

Graham then asked, "So, what is it that you wish us to do?"

Albus said, "The Dagworth-Granger family was of particular interest to me in that I knew several members. I fought with members during the war and I was on good terms with them due to my status as an alchemist. It would do my heart good to see their legacy properly placed. So I ask that young Hermione go to Gringotts and take a test to see if she qualifies for inheritance. There is some small cost involved – goblins do nothing for free – but they are utterly honest and unbiased in such matters."

Hermione looked at her parents, who were looking each other in the eye – communicating without speech.

Finally Graham said, "We can go tomorrow when we visit Diagon Alley to complete our holiday shopping."

Albus nodded once again in satisfaction. "I would be most relieved to find that Hermione does in fact qualify. If you could let me know what you find, I would be most appreciative."

Jane said, "Of course. And thank you for visiting and explaining."

All four stood. Hermione said, "Thank you, Headmaster. And if you need help finding more books I'd be happy to help."

Albus chuckled. "If I need your assistance, I shall let you know forthwith. Now, I am off to a dinner appointment. Happy Christmas to you all."

The Grangers all replied with "Happy Christmas" before the Headmaster apparated out.