Chapter 56 - Breaking with Tradition

Two very different groups had the same idea about recent events.

Dumbledore was gone from Hogwarts!

For the Kitsune Clan, it was a great prank. They had been intent on lobbying the Board of Governors to remove the pain in the neck in order to give their friend Minerva the chance to fix the glaring problems. Only they never got the chance as Dumbledore had negligently given the job away himself. Naturally, they held a party to celebrate the removal of a problem and the elevation of their ally, and all in the form of a great joke.

At Malfoy Manor, the mood was also jubilant. Her husband was as proud as any peacock, strutting about the place and condescendingly pointing out to all and sundry that the old Muggle lover was gone from Hogwarts as if it had been his own work! Narcissa hid her disgust well, however. A true Slytherin never shows her hand to the enemy, and a true Slytherin knew that there were only allies of convenience and enemies. Even family could betray you if you let them.

Lucius had wanted to celebrate the occasion in Malfoy style with the gold 'reclaimed' from Muggle thieves to lay on a spread fit for a Dark Lord, complete with suckling pig, fatted calf and aged mutton and the best 'entertainments'. Narcissa had put her foot down, however. She had no desire to allow any Muggles in her home let alone for them to lay with her husband and his guests while she was there. Really, it was no wonder he got along so well with Crabbe and Goyle when they had the same lowborn tastes.

Instead, decorum had prevailed. There would be a dinner party with only the most select invitees in attendance. She may have to put up with that monster in her home but she would not allow him or his minions to hurt her status as the richest respectable witch in the country. The monster's eyes had flashed and he had clearly been tempted to use his wand on her but she knew she was right and so did the Dark Lord.

As their guests dined and enjoyed the finest of wines in surroundings of understated elegance, it was all she could do to hold back a most undignified response to her husband's posturing. His unwarranted arrogance was bad enough, the brigand and heir of brigands, but did he have to be so Merlin-damned obvious?

No, better for her to hold court at the other end of the room and let the riff-raff sort themselves from their betters.

As the afternoon wore on into evening, more and more Death Eaters succumbed to the lure of the wines, overindulging in the most uncultured ways. There, Crabbe had almost managed to relieve himself on a plant in the corner before a servant elf steered him to the nearest facilities. Animals such as Crabbe were only barely better than Mudbloods.

Was it any wonder she couldn't stand her husband's friends?

On his throne, Lord Voldemort kept his expression perfectly under control. Though he would never admit it, he owed a lot to the lessons learned at the orphanage in his youth, among them was keeping his body language exactly as he meant it to be. That had been a key factor in getting the first of the Death Eaters to bend the knee, his posture and every gesture reinforcing his dominance.

Since his return, he had noted his hostess was cooler towards him and his cause than she had been as a newly married witch. This was to be expected, if unwelcome. He had taken over the Manor where she lived, he had been defeated before his underlings by a lucky brat and she was older and more worldly than before. Still, she served her purpose as hostess, putting a more respectable mask on his forces than her clumsy husband could manage.

Unfortunately for her, her Occlumency was merely adequate and he had used a rare subtle probe to discover her true feelings about him. Narcissa was yet to discover the truth about his origins but she had already guessed far too close for his comfort. She believed him to be the bastard by-blow of some young Pureblood wizard sowing his oats. One who had discovered an unexpected talent for Parselmagic and then used that to con other young Purists into following him. That was her theory about why he refused to use a proper family name, in favour of a self-appointed Lordship and nom de guerre.

As long as the witch kept her suspicions to herself, he would allow her the conceit that she was truly keeping secrets from the greatest Dark Lord. Even unmarked, she was proving to be an effective aid in his campaign and her honeyed words made her criticisms easier to swallow. Truly, she was wasted on Lucius and they both knew it.

The reaction at Hogwarts was easy to sum up: Shock.

Not a single one of the students or staff had been expecting this. Even Aurora and Septima, who had agreed that she would make a good Headmistress, were surprised how quickly it happened and even more with how it occurred.

Sybil Trelawney, the Divination Professor, claimed to have foreseen it but the staff knew better. Certainly if she had known, she would have made sure to place bets on it. Gambling was frowned upon in polite society but all the staff indulged at one time or another, as it was one of the more pleasant diversions in an increasingly tough and stressful job. Sybil indulged more often than most so if her Inner Eye truly had Seen this, she would have made sure to rake in the Galleons.

An interesting side-effect of Harry's actions at the school was that no one among the staff or students was prepared to bet against him on anything by now, except for a few die-hards in Slytherin who were unable to admit that the Halfblood could be that much more talented than proper Purebloods. Sophie Roper had made a habit of taunting several of them until they laid their money down, then proceeded to take them to the cleaners as Harry met whatever challenge was thrown his way.

As lunch went on, after the shocking pronouncement from their new Headmistress and she sat in the throne-like chair, the students were abuzz with the news. Harry and his Jewels were far from immune to the effect. That only increased when Minerva had confided that she hadn't even needed to make her case before they recognised the existing situation and turned her from a de facto Headmistress to de jure.

"I, for one, am glad they recognised her talent after so long." Lavender spoke up. "I mean, I know she is busy but she is always popping around in the evenings to make sure things are ok in the Tower, taking care of her duties as Head of House. Those are going to be some big shoes for Professor Flitwick to fill as Deputy."

Some of the others groaned at the pun and Lavender looked around then put her head in her hands, groaning too as she got it.

"I do wonder why she didn't choose Professor Sprout?" Leanne asked curiously.

"Could it be something to do with her picking Susan over Hermione?" Megan asked. "What? That kind of thing is suspicious, right, Harry?" While she was no longer a Jewel, she still spent a lot of her time with them as none of them wanted to lose her friendship.

"Yes, her reasons sounded more like rationalizations to me, but it was clear that she wouldn't back down if she was called on it. She can be a true Badger that way," Harry added ruefully. "Even if it was Dumbledore behind it, though, that doesn't change the responsibility. But no, I don't think that was the reason. Professor Sprout is really at home as our Head of House and becoming Deputy would mean less time in the Greenhouses and the Badger Den. She would lose time with all of 'her' children."

There were a few nods at that, but Cho had something to add. "More than that, Professor Flitwick had the least responsibilities of the Heads of Houses. Minerva already had three jobs, Sprout had three too with her work in the Greenhouses and even Snape had extra duties, keeping the potions supplies topped off. He and Minerva also had a better working relationship, from what I saw at any rate, and has a keen mind."

That wasn't the end of it, of course. It was a source of much speculation though since Professor Sprout didn't show any upset at being passed over for promotion, her House didn't feel a great urge to protest on her behalf.

The Gryffindors and Ravenclaws were happy at their Heads' promotions, of course.

As for the Slytherins, there was grumbling from the children of Dark families at the 'unfair' way their Head was passed over, despite the fact that he was decades junior to the others and being hated by three quarters of the school would make it impossible for him to be an effective leader.

The majority of their House, however, accepted the reality of the situation that Snape would never have been chosen by McGonagall as her Deputy and that the witch had been the real Headmistress of the school for a while. The largest faction of these realists was the one aligned with the Greengrass and through her, Harry Potter. It was the worst kept secret in the school that McGonagall looked fondly on Potter and listened to his advice.

They congratulated themselves on picking the right team, and their loyalty to the Potter Alliance grew firmer as a result. They were far from alone in their pleasure.

While Minerva was settling into her new office, she found a stack of old papers in the Headmasters' Safe. Curious, she found a number of them were copies of old student or staff indiscretions dating from Dippet's time as Headmaster prior to Albus' appointment to the job. They were irrelevant now with the relevant people dead and buried, and Minerva cast an Incendio on them all to make sure they couldn't be used after making sure there was nothing to report to the DMLE.

The most interesting however, were a number of notices from the Wizarding Examination Authority advising to changes to NEWT and OWL schedules but with no details given. Minerva set these aside for later, making a mental note to ask Amelia if she can investigate from the Ministry end.

That evening, the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw Towers rocked to the parties thrown in their Heads' honour. The new Headmistress made an appearance, accepting their congratulations and heartfelt warm wishes, and sidestepping the pranks from the Weasley twins (just to show they cared, they claimed). Professor Flitwick was inundated with questions, naturally, and answered as best he could that in matters involving Ravenclaw, he would defend them fairly but if there was a conflict of interest he had to step back. This was a novel concept to many in the House but a couple of the Muggle-raised managed to explain it to the satisfaction of their fellows. It was quickly agreed that it was a great idea, and raised questions why it had to be brought in by the Muggle-raised rather than invented by the Wizarding World.

Another night of debate among the Claws. Yes, his charges would be fine and all was right with Flitwick's world.

In the Badger Den, the Hufflepuffs were cajoled into having a party for her good friend by Professor Sprout. Her genuine pleasure in the situation and Hannah quickly volunteering to fetch some snacks broke the ice, and Pomona was glad that she could share her joy with the children. She loved her time watching over them, helping them grow into the fine young wizards and witches she knew they could be, and wouldn't trade it for anything.

With Dumbledore now gone, she could have restored Hermione to Prefect but refused to insult little Susan by doing anything of the sort. Susan hadn't failed anyone, after all. The decision was taken out of her hands, however, as Susan loyally gave up her badge, saying she would have rather earned it honestly than received it because of who she knew. Pomona didn't quite know how to feel about this, though guilt shone through.

Turning to Hermione, she offered the badge and the bushy-haired girl thought hard before accepting it, declaring "Don't think this means you're any less worthy, Susan, and I would love for you to join me some nights."

Susan grinned and they hugged, quickly becoming a group hug as the other Hufflegirls added their own support.

Last of all but not least, the Slytherin Dungeons had their own ceremony, albeit one that was intensely private and personal.

Daphne had asked the others if she could 'borrow' Harry that evening, a mischievous glint in her eyes. Trusting her to explain later, they gave their consent and she led a trusting Harry behind her under his invisibility cloak to the 'hidden' entrance. He made his way inside unnoticed then Daphne guided him to a room he knew well: the Third Year Girls' dormitory. A quick squeeze and a push on his back, and he bypassed the No Boys alarm, landing silently in the room and waiting for Astoria Greengrass to come to bed.

Ten minutes later, he saw the beautiful girl's head poke through the door, looking around for her 'surprise'. Shrugging, she made her way to her bed on the theory that whatever it was would be waiting for her there.

After spelling the curtains closed and silenced behind her, a standard and necessary precaution in a House that was home to cowards like Draco and his fellow bigots who would enjoy attacking a helpless ally of the Boy-Who-Lived, she turned around and screamed.

"What?! Harry! What are you doing here?" By the end, she had calmed and was grinning. "Actually, never mind all of that!" She gave him a big hug. "I missed you lately. I used to look forward to school because it meant I could see you more but now the holidays are when I see you most."

Harry shocked her by kissing her cheek softly and he chuckled softly seeing that he had broken her. A second gentle kiss brought her around and she was confused but smiling brighter than ever.

"Astoria Greengrass, would you do me the honour of being my girlfriend?"

Her answer was wordless but far from silent, squealing for an instant before she did her best to fuse her lips to his, her arms holding him on top of her with surprising strength from such a small package. Eventually she came up for air, Harry's arms around her lower back and a smile on his lips. "Yes, yes, yes! Oh, I have waited so long for you, Harry. I can't wait to tell Da-" Her face fell. "Oh, no! Daphne and the others. They're going to kill us. You promised them that you wouldn't pursue a girl and-"

"Not without their consent, Astoria. Peace, dear. They know and gave their blessing. We all know you would never hurt us and we care about you too. Daphne was the one who sent me here tonight. It was the perfect time. Everyone else will be too distracted to notice anything unusual, even if I did slip up."

"Oh, we can't have you slipping up, Harry," the smirk on her face told its story as she pulled him down before kissing him, hands pulling at his clothes and making clear that she meant exactly that.

In the morning when she woke after a short night's sleep, she had a mild ache in her hips from sleeping in a weird position. Further exploration in her sleepy state revealed that the reason for the ache was she had her legs straddled either side of a man who, she noticed at last when she opened her eyes, was a smiling Harry Potter, stroking her hair softly.

They were late getting up by Harry's standards, but he felt it was worth cutting his shower in favour of the equally effective, though less pleasant, alternatives that Naruto had invented. Before he left, he gave Astoria a loving kiss and made sure no aches or pains remained of their night.

Out in the Great Hall, Astoria made her way to the Ravenclaw table where the others were eating that morning and sat among them, blushing and nodding at her sister's curious look and getting a hug from Hermione and Susan's whispered "Welcome to the team."

The great start to the day came crashing to a halt when a red envelope was dropped off in front of her by a hyperactive owl Ginny recognised as belonging to her brother. Ginny looked askance at the thing as the owl legged it for safety from the wail of the banshee.

"Is that a-?" Hermione asked curiously.

"Yes, it's a Howler." Ginny confirmed it absently as she tried to work out what to do. "Harry, should I listen to it or not?" He would know what to do. He always did.

"Well, it's up to you-" he broke off at the beseeching look she sent his way. "Yes, you might as well find out what they're saying. Then you can deal with it better than if you don't know."

Ginny nodded and breathed deeply, gathering her courage before reaching for her chakra. She shaped it into an Illusion technique that hid the smoking red envelope from everyone else. Most in the Potter Alliance could pierce the veil but the ones who had noticed her technique respected her privacy. Harry gave her a gentle smile then moved back to give her space as she set up a two-stage technique to dampen the volume from the enchanted and amplified recording of someone's voice, and stop it entirely from further away.

With that done, she poked her head in close and brushed her finger along the red envelope.

Immediately, it burst open and the much reduced sound of Molly Weasley's screeching came through clearly, halfway through a sentence. "-DIDN'T BRING YOU UP TO BE A TART OR SCARLET WOMAN! JUST WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO SAY FOR YOURSELF?"

There was more in this vein before Molly bothered to give any hint of the reason for her displeasure, referring to the 'disgraceful' way she dressed.

It was true that Ginny no longer bothered to dress in the head-to-toe coverage that had been standard for witches for centuries. Instead, she had on a shirt and light sweater, both tasteful and not at all revealing by modern British standards, and jeans and sneakers. She wore Hogwarts robes only when specifically required, explaining when asked that they were too cold in winter and too cumbersome. The school regulations required that students wear clothes when in public and that those clothes had to cover certain areas but they didn't mention robes, assuming that this was unnecessary.

The only reason for the regulations was the history of students transfiguring their robes on dares or having them hexed.

All this had been pointed out to the staff as respectfully as possible by the redhead when they saw her between classes at the start of the term. A few of the boys had goggled at first at seeing curves on display like that rather than hidden beneath the voluminous robes students normally wore, but they settled down fast, even quicker once the Jewels spread the rumour that Harry Potter would object to any harassment of a girl who was making their lives brighter. A few girls scoffed at that in private but Ginny's rebellious actions had kicked off something of a fashion revolution in the school. Rather than the clumsy shoes that had a pronounced tendency to slip on the stones, trainers soon found their way onto the feet of the Muggleborns and those closest to them. Only a few diehard purists resisted their lure once news spread of how comfortable the new trend was.

Likewise, the girls started wearing less covering clothes or ones that showed the shape of their growing bodies in a competition to keep the boys' attentions. This move was met with near unanimous approval by the boys (and a few of the girls) so any attempts to stop it by Snape or some of the more puritan students were doomed to failure.

The reverence of tradition and purity had come into direct conflict with teen male hormones and been trampled into the mud.

That hadn't meant that the parents were all pleased by the change but they confined themselves to letters ordering, begging or reasoning with their daughters. The way that the Jewels had supported Ginny, sporting their own more comfortable and elegant clothes to match, meant that the other girls had to adapt.

As one bright Ravenclaw had told her parents, if she wanted to get married, she needed to match the new trend. Word of her success spread and saw the defence used by the other students, young or old.

Molly Weasley was not the first mother to send a Howler but, unlike the other mothers, her daughter had never sent her an explanation for her actions.

The use of the Life Debt tradition meant that Ginny's behaviour was none of Molly's business according to all the rules of Wizarding society. Even crimes committed by her would fall under her saviour's purview rather than her former family until she was an adult, at which point she would have to take full responsibility for herself like anyone else.

That made Molly's Howler utterly unacceptable socially, butting her nose in where she had no business being. Ginny itched to use her wand but luckily, for Molly, her mother was out of range of any immediate retribution. That gave her time to engage her brain on the problem.

As much as it pained her to admit, maiming Molly would be going too far and Ginny couldn't think of any vengeance short of that which would resolve the situation. Molly simply would never admit that her authority had limits when it came to those around her. Legally, Molly's actions were mere words and should be ignored as such. While she had no authority to order people around as she did, she also couldn't stop them rejecting or ignoring her.

Socially, however, it was a different matter. Allowing Molly to continue without protest would only invite more trouble later. She needed to write to her Dad, explain to him the problem and she rummaged in her bag for quill and parchment.

The more progressive students had been using pen and paper for everything except their exams. The exams were more formal affairs and used special charms that only worked for exams written in the traditional way. New spells had been created that worked just fine with anything handwritten but they had yet to be accepted by the Headmaster or the Ministry's Wizarding Examination Authority.

The response to interference in a Life Debt like that was even more formal and archaic, requiring specific forms and even quills, ink and parchment from particular sources. For a start, none of the items could be magically duplicated or mass produced. All of them had to be obtained from natural sources, making the letters expensive to send and even more expensive if the writer's penmanship was poor. No error could be permitted in the letter sent, a single missed stroke of the quill meant starting again.

Ginny had stopped rummaging as she remembered this bit of Lore that had cropped up in her studies on the issue. Turning to Harry, she explained, "Sorry to ask, Harry, but I'll need a proper quill and such for this letter. I've got to write to Daddy and let him know how far Mum stuffed up. Would you mind helping me write it?"

"I don't mind, Ginny." Harry had been taught the customs too by Andromeda Tonks, and had the appropriate supplies. Looking around, he caught the other girls' eyes and got their acceptance, taking Ginny's hand and leaving the Great Hall before breakfast finished. They set up in the nearest unused classroom, Ginny snuggling at Harry's side, as she wrote up draft after draft of the formal letter to her parents on lined paper with pencil and eraser. With a final glance, she was satisfied that this draft would work for a final draft and Harry passed over the special parchment and set up the inkwell and quill for her.

Harry watched silently as Ginny gave it her total concentration. Barely two minutes later, the letter was drying and Ginny took a deep breath. "Do you think I did the right thing, Harry?" Before he could answer, Ginny had a thought and quickly grabbed another sheet, writing a more personal note to her father alone, putting privacy spells on it so that her mother would be unable to notice or read it. "There!" Her smile was tentative and Harry cuddled her before chuckling. At the window, his owl Miyuki was tapping and he quickly let her in.

"Such a smart and beautiful girl, aren't you?" he cooed. Ginny laughed at him. "Just like my other girls, you are." Ginny threw a scrunched up bit of paper at his head, giggling when he let it hit and pouted at her.

He tied the letters to her leg. "Please deliver these to the Burrow, Miyuki. I know a smart girl like you can find it, right?" Her emphatic nod made Ginny giggle again before she took flight, circling the room before she flew out the window and started her long journey.

Down in Devon, a plump witch was sure that this time, her wayward daughter would see sense and start obeying her absent mother. She was unaware of the missive headed her way that would arrive right in the middle of dinner and result in her being banished to the shed overnight without her wand.

During the course of the day, Ginny attended her classes, getting more and more worked up until she was free after dinner. Retreating to her dorm, she changed into the midriff top and miniskirt combo that she had always thought too scandalous. In her current state, they were perfect and she changed quickly, using a couple of Harry's stealth techniques to make her way to the East Wing Hall that the Jewels had made their own personal quarters over their time at the school.

Knocking on the door and entering, jaws dropped as they saw the new Ginny, a whole lot of her, strutting her stuff over to Harry and straddling his legs. Harry took stock of her clothing and held back the urge to sigh, his hands already beginning to massage the tense back of the girl in his arms. The other Jewels waited patiently until the little redhead calmed down enough to start explaining.

"What in Merlin's name?!" Daphne was normally among the calmest of the Jewels but you would never know it from looking at her now. "She grew up a Prewett, practically a junior line to the Weasleys who she married back into. I know for a fact that they are one of the more traditional families around, or they were before Y- Riddle did his best to kill them all.

"The point is that she knows just how seriously the old families take Life Debts and everything about them. That was what prompted the increased respect paid to her husband once he did something to acknowledge his family's debt to Harry, here. She just threw every gain, every bit of respect she had as a 'proper witch' away like it was cursed! And all just to throw her weight around and harming our Ginny into the bargain!"

"I so want to get my wand on her," sweet and cheerful Sally-Anne growled, "how dare she try to hurt our Ginny!"

"I agree!" Astoria piped up. Her first full day as a Jewel and already there was something interesting happening. "And I am sure between us we know a lot of interesting curses."

"We don't need any curses to make her suffer." Cho put in. "Pure 'Light' spells will do just fine. A Wingardium Leviosa placed right will make her day hell." She grinned evilly. "In fact, this would be a good chance to show her just how powerful we are."

"No, ladies, we don't have to reveal ourselves just for one ignorant housewife without a clue." Harry hated being the voice of reason when he already wanted to tear Molly apart for hurting the girl he loved.

When they looked at him, he added, "Molly Weasley is not worth losing our advantage of surprise over the Death Eaters and their supporters. So far, they don't know we are anything more than some students who get good marks. If we unleash our anger on her, they will be better prepared when they come after us. Besides, as much as I want to hurt her, she hasn't broken the law yet." He gave a wry grin. "And I am sure Amelia would be upset if we did it without her or with her involvement. She is working so hard to be a good Minister and this would put her in an impossible position."

The girls were reluctant to let go of their anger, just like Harry, but they did so for Amelia's sake. She would be blamed if this escalated further and none of them wanted to hurt her. They gathered around and gave their support and love, making her give a real smile for their efforts.

In the end, they settled down, not one of them saying anything bad about her clothing even as they knew it was a reaction to Molly's overbearing ways.

Lavender grinned and congratulated her on the new clothes and sent a clone to fetch her closest matching set while she rubbed Ginny's shoulder. 'Now,' she thought, 'I'll have someone else with me, showing off for Harry. And Ginny can be my excuse to ask Harry for more fittings and more slutty clothes.'

There was camaraderie of a different sort felt in the First Year girls' dorm down in the Badger Den. Athena Granger, beloved little sister of Hermione who held the distinction at Hogwarts of being the first magical friend of THE Harry Potter, was going over the latest letter from her penpal at Beauxbatons. Gabrielle Delacour was jealous that Athena got to see their hero every day, miserable that she could not, and excited to see that as a result of the Triwizard Tournament, other witches wanted to be her friend.

While she missed Harry, her fun big brother (and future husband, she promised herself), at least she could call him a friend, backed up by letters from the Boy-Who-Lived himself. That made her special in a way unlike anyone else in the school.

Gabby knew that many of them only had a shallow interest in her, but many friends were better than no friends, and she had every intention on transferring to Hogwarts at the end of the year. Mama and Papa had promised her she could, if her marks were good enough. She intended to set a new record if necessary so they could not back out of their promise to let her be with Harry, the dashing older boy she was sure would be her husband some day.

Athena agreed with the young Veela, Harry Potter would marry both of them, and their sisters. She hadn't been sure at first what she thought of the idea of having sister-wives, but Hermione was already her sister and would still be her sister when they were both married to him. She would have lots more sisters which she liked. The one she had had always tried her best to make her happy and she was sure it would be no different once they were married. Plus, she saw how happy they all were and knew she wanted that for herself too.

Over the last six months or so, Athena had started having weird dreams and weird thoughts. At night, she would dream about Harry, and having his arms around her. Then the dreams became more racy, imagining his hands wandering over her growing body and how it responded to him. She knew she was too young, yet she still longed to find out if he matched up to her dreams.

In the last few days, however, her dreams had started featuring the other Jewels too, sometimes they would watch her or be with their own Harry-clones, others she would help them make love to Harry. Her waking hours were no less confusing for the girl as at odd times, a voice at the back of her head would whisper about doing naughty things to Harry and even spying on her sister as she made love to him.

Athena put down the letter where she had just finished reading about the raunchy things Gabrielle wanted to do, shaking her head at how brazen the girl was when it was all Athena could do not to run and hide her face. She went to bed that Sunday night, thinking about how Astoria had just joined and dreamed about her own initiation, surprising herself when she included things even kinkier than what Gabrielle had wrote in her letters.

As the week progressed, Athena both dreaded and welcomed sleep. Her dreams were so erotic yet so taboo. Finally, on the Friday night she couldn't stand the tension and sought out her big sister.

"Hermione?" Athena's fearful voice caught her sister's attention immediately, as well as Harry's who looked at her from the corner of his eye.

"Yes, Athena?" Hermione asked as turned to her sister.

"I need to ask you something."

"Sure, Athena, what do you need?"

"Not here." Athena led her away in private, then looked up to the older girl. "Can you please add some silencing stuff? I- I don't want anyone overhearing this."

Hermione was almost burning with curiosity but kept it under control easily as she casually set up half a dozen silencing spells on the floor, ceiling and the walls. Her concern for her sister was more important than the need to know. "There, we are secure." She didn't add that Harry could almost certainly penetrate her efforts any time he liked without her noticing. Both girls trusted him, and he was honouring their trust.

Athena almost hugged her sister in thanks then blushed as a vivid dream of Hermione came to mind. "Um, I'm sorry about this. I have some questions and you're the only one I can ask."

She smiled back. "It's ok, Athena, ask away."

"Well, it's about you and Harry, really. Is it, is he any good?"

It was Hermione's turn to blush. "Oh yes! The way he, and then he, oh wow, just, Yes. Is that all you wanted to ask?" She had to grin at her adorable sister.

"No, just the start. You see, I have been having dreams about Harry with me, you know, that way, and-" Athena explained some of the feelings and dreams she had about him and Hermione listened, before assuring her that yes, having those feelings and dreams was quite alright, it was a part of growing up and even that Harry was far better than that.

When Athena added that she had dreamed about the other girls, Hermione's kinky mind started celebrating. 'Maybe there is a hope that my dirty little secret runs in the family?' That was confirmed later when Athena told her about her dream, spying on Harry making love to Hermione.

Throughout it all, Hermione answered her questions honestly and with more detail as their talk progressed. Athena was stunned by some of the things her seemingly pure big sister had done.

"You mean you like it when he puts it there?" She muttered to herself, "I thought I was alone in liking that."

"Oh, never alone, honey." Hermione replied having easily caught it thanks to the improved hearing they got from training.

"Oh God." Athena moaned at being caught.

"Yes." Hermione replied wickedly. "That's what I said."

"You're not helping, you know." Athena complained.

"Why not? You aren't nervous about being 'weird' any more."

"No, now I'm just totally embarrassed! How can I face Harry when I know he's got that thing in his pants..."

"And knows how to use it." Hermione completed with a smile. "Although I thought nothing could top when he used his tongue to-"

"I get the picture. Oh wow do I get the picture."

"Well, just know that any time you are curious, about anything, you can come to me and ask. I promise, I won't reject you, I won't think you're crazy. Well, not unless you start liking that idiot Malfoy." Hermione joked.

After a quick laugh, a frown formed on Athena's face. "You're not, are you?" Hermione asked, giving her a nudge.

"Eww! No. He's got that ugly albino thing going on his pointed face, and he's even uglier inside than out. It's Harry I like. But I don't stand a chance since he sees me as your little sister, do I?"

Hermione pulled the girl into a one-armed hug, shaking her head. "You've got it a bit wrong. He sees you as your own person, and a bit as his own little sister. Regardless, the fact that you're my sister won't matter. Apparently, you've forgotten Astoria is one of the Jewels, with full privileges, and if he doesn't mind that she's Daphne's sister, I know he won't mind that you're mine."

A relieved younger sister sat, enjoying her sister's attention, before turning and tickling Hermione in the side. The next few minutes dissolved into a tickle war.

As the laughter died, Hermione only had one thought about her sister: 'She's growing up to be a wonderful young woman.'

In the Gryffindor Dorms, Lavender was standing in front of her boyfriend in just her bra and panties, trying not to squirm as his nose was inches away from her crotch.

"Stand still, Lavender," Harry commanded her. "If you don't keep still, then I can't give you the results you want with your clothes, and you've grown over the summer." grinning as he made her moan.

"Now, dear," his mock stern voice continued, "if you can't follow a simple instruction, you'll never get your reward." The stress on the final word was small but unmistakable and Lavender moaned more. After the previous two fitting sessions had quickly ended up with Lavender kissing him, not that either really minded, Harry had told her that this time she had to wait until the end before she got that.

They had tried a number of skirts on her, checking them for fit and colour and any number of things, and every time, Harry would let his hands wander under the cover of checking each article of clothing on her.

She was right on the edge as he got her to step into the next skirt, although calling it a skirt was doing it a disservice. It was a microskirt, designer denim and outrageous for any girl to wear, and Lavender moaned again as Harry pressed the fabric into her to 'make sure of the fit'. "Yes!"

The clothes were scandalous, perfect for Lavender's preferences. She never knew before that there were so many ways to advertise, so many ways to break Wizarding convention on clothing, and she was going to break them all.

When she could think straight again, she mentioned the idea of making clothes for other witches too. It would be the first professional fashion label in the Wizarding World, she claimed, as all the existing shops only carried clothes they made themselves, family businesses whose quality greatly varied over time. Heading over to Parvati, she asked her friend what she thought, and the Indian witch was shocked, then kissed both of them soundly for the wonderful idea.

"We can sell fashion in both worlds, and us Jewels can model all the best clothing." Her enthusiasm fed Lavender's, and before Harry knew it they were running with the idea, bouncing suggestions of each other and him.

When they approached the other girls in the morning, they got a lot of interest, mostly for the idea of modelling for Harry, but a few were like Lavender and Parvati, willing to show off their clothes for the public and even had interest in designing their own unique lines.

Their efforts quickly hit a snag when they discovered that while they had plenty of ideas they had no experience modelling. Lavender took it as a personal insult when Hermione walked across their training room in high heels just about perfectly while she had trouble taking two steps in them. Hermione had quickly explained that she already had some experience while it was Lavender's first time so naturally Lavender would get better.

That soothed her ruffled feathers a little but for the next month, Lavender went everywhere in heels. Her poor abused feet took the punishment and she made sure to show Harry how grateful she could be for his footrubs and healing techniques as she built up experience and the needed muscles.

Her legs had never looked better, she proclaimed to everyone at the end of the month, and she showed them off in the most fun way she knew.

Around her, the girls didn't mind a bit.

That was later, however. They had other things on their mind first.

One of the most immediate changes at the school came when Headmistress McGonagall introduced new employment contracts for the staff to sign.

Included was a moderate pay raise, though the fine print indicated that getting the money was dependent upon meeting targets and not spawning complaints by the trunkload. The targets should have been easy enough for all teachers to meet as they were merely the standard results across Europe for their subjects in terms of spells mastered or potions brewed and so on.

For Professor Snape, it was an obvious warning that his previous behaviour would no longer be condoned. Not that this was news to the sour man, indeed if he was surprised by anything it was that Minerva hadn't summarily dismissed him from his post. Instead, he was being given three chances to keep his job. As long as he adhered to an also newly introduced Code of Ethics, he could appeal any termination from his secure position.

Naturally, a good Slytherin would be able to adjust to changing circumstances and cover up any times he broke this dunderheaded Code. Snape anticipated no problem on that front. The rest of the staff indicated their support for the measure, too. After all, more Galleons in their pocket for a job well done just made sense.

Of course, the other staff rightly expected Snape to fall afoul of the new regulations, and he did on the very first day when that fool Longbottom melted another cauldron and Finnegan exploded his concoction in a mistake that should have been impossible. While Snape was busy berating the two Gryffindors, they were slowly writhing in agony as the failed mess of a boil-growth potion instead made their skin start to shrink, constricting their movements and breathing.

Instead of getting the pair to hospital, he ranted at them for their incompetence while they turned blue from hypoxia. By the time, he ran out of breath, the two boys had nearly done the same permanently. Luckily, Daphne, one of Snape's favourites, managed to sneak them out the door and levitated them to the infirmary before he could think to assign them detentions on top of their near death experiences.

While Poppy Pomfrey was able to keep them from suffocating in their own skin, she insisted on keeping the pair under observation for the night to make sure they hadn't suffered any permanent brain damage.

Malfoy couldn't resist the lure and made several loud and unfunny jokes about the affair before moaning that he had been hoping to see the blood traitors die but that damned Greengrass ruined his fun. Of course, he did this in the Great Hall as newly appointed Head of Gryffindor Septima Vector was walking into the Great Hall on her way back from the Hospital Wing.

Her cold voice informed the Malfoy heir "It is obvious to me that you cannot handle the position of leadership you obviously desire. As a result of your disgraceful display it is obvious why you were neither good enough for Gryffindor, loyal enough for Hufflepuff nor smart enough for Ravenclaw leaving only Slytherin."

"Mr Malfoy, it is my considered opinion that you do not deserve to be sorted into any of the Houses of this school. Unfortunately, it is not up to me to correct that error. Rest assured however, that while you do your detentions with Mr Filch, I will be ensuring that Headmistress McGonagall is fully apprised of your utter lack of sense or tact."

She turned her sharp tongue onto Severus next. "As for you, sir, you may rest assured that your first breach of the Code will be rigorously investigated. I hope for your sake that your savings will cover the fine."

"When my f-" Draco began only to have his tongue cursed to stick to the roof of his mouth.

"You may stay like that until you learn some decorum, Mr Malfoy." Flitwick was unsurprised it had come to this. "Making utterly atrocious remarks is bad enough. Whining that you will go to your Daddy only highlights your lack of maturity. None of us have forgotten who your father is. When we punish you anyway, as we most certainly do, that should be enough to tell you that your threats will not work. Let's see, I do not wish to punish those in the House who are doing well but on the other hand, they are well placed to express their displeasure with you for costing them the early lead on points.

"No, I will not punish the innocent like that. However, as Deputy I am suspending your Prefect privileges for a fortnight. In the meantime, your Head of House would be entirely in his rights to reassign the badge to someone with more cunning."

Snape bit the inside of his cheek as he fought the stupid urge to attack either of his fellow Heads of House. If he raised his wand at either of them, Flitwick would put him in the infirmary. Flitwick was right, though. Draco had demonstrated conclusively that he was not Slytherin enough for the badge. A silent Summoning charm lifted the silver badge with a 'P' from Malfoy's robe and he caught it absently, already stalking towards Theodore Nott.

"Wear it well as a good Slytherin, Nott."

"Yes, sir." Theodore replied, barely hiding the pleasure in the promotion.

Across the Great Hall, there was satisfaction that Malfoy had paid the price for his vile words, but that was alloyed by displeasure at Snape elevating Nott instead. Sadly, there was no other candidate that Snape would pick. Crabbe and Goyle had even worse grades than the Malfoy scion and Blaise Zabini was too quiet, and neutral, for the 'reformed' Death Eater to pick.

"Bloody hell. Malfoy is an arse but he's also an incompetent one. Nott knows how to throw curses, though, and now that he's got his badge, does anyone reckon he won't try to push others around?" Terry Boot asked of the other guys, careful he kept his voice down so the girls could ignore his swearing.

"Now, Terry. Aren't you a Prefect, too?" Ernie teased his mate.

"Yeah I am. And have I pushed you lot? No. You don't cause much trouble and when you do, you fix it."

"Of course. Hufflepuff, you know." Ernie grinned.

Terry rolled his eyes. "Nah, that's Ravenclaw smarts at work. Now, Nott? He's going to think that he can get away with everything Malfoy did."

"You reckon? Malfoy just got punished and that's how Nott got his shiny new badge." Roger Malone pointed out.

"Definitely. Like Malfoy, Nott thinks he's cunning enough to get away with anything. Only, Nott actually is more cunning than the ferret."

"There are rocks with more cunning than the ferret." Harry pointed out, having wandered over.

The guys laughed at that, nodding. "Pity you didn't take the Hat's offer to go to Slytherin, man."

"Why's that, Wayne? I thought you liked having me in Hufflepuff."

"Yeah, but if you'd gone into Slytherin, we wouldn't have to put up with Malfoy or Snape or any of that lot." Wayne cheerfully pointed out.

"Ah, but if I'd done that, you'd never have met your lovely blonde girl from London." The guys crowed as Wayne's expression fell, then shifted to a dreamy expression as the lovestruck 'Puff thought about his girlfriend.

Unfortunately Septima Vector was as good as her word and brought an official complaint against him over his negligence that could have killed two students. It was a far cry from the glory days when he could yell at Gryffindors in his class to his heart's content and enjoy their delightful cries when his Snakes sabotaged their potions. In the end, thanks to several of the Board members having long memories, they levied the maximum penalty against him, three months' wages would be garnished and the money sent to their families. He was lucky, though he would never believe it, that neither family chose to take the matter further. Gone were the days when Dumbledore was in a position to quash all action against one Severus Snape.

Now, he had to treat all the little malingerers the same as his treasured Snakes or they would go crying to their Heads of House and he would be out the door. He couldn't bring himself to fawn over the useless little bastards like the other teachers so he had to cut back the help he gave his own in public. He made up for the lack by intensifying the private instruction he gave his House behind closed doors. After all, what they didn't know couldn't hurt him.

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