Hermione stopped and stared at the Phoenix War Orphanage. It was a cinderblock building with a low chain-link fence that served to enclose a packed dirt playground. Taking a deep, calming, breath, Hermione walked into the building. Smiling at the children, she entered the matron's office.

"What do you want, brat?!" The woman growled, not even looking up from her desk.

Hermione bristled. No child should, ever, be talked to like that. "I'm volunteering my time to read and play with the children."

The matron snapped her head up. "I'm so sorry, Miss Granger, Lacy Ferwalt, I'm the matron here. If there's anything I can do for you?"

"I want a copy of these kids' files before I leave." Hermione narrowed her eyes at the woman. "And I want you to treat these kids better."

"They're Death Eater brats."

Spinning on her heal, Hermione stalked out of the office not bothering to acknowledge that comment. She walked over to the, pathetic, bookshelf and pulled out a, sticky, book.

"Are you going to read to us?" A small girl, with big brown eyes and light brown hair, breathed; no one ever read to them.

"I am." Hermione patted the ground next to her. "I'm Hermione. What's your name?

"Myrna, I'm six." The young girls stated very seriously.

"You take care of the little ones?"

Myrna shook her head. "Cass and Gwen take care of us, they're eight."

Hermione smiled. "I'm glad, now…"

"What are you doing?" A stocky, black haired boy asked, staring at the older witch.

"She's going to read to us, Kayn!" Myrna exclaimed, causing twenty-three heads to snap in their direction.

One girl, with kinky black curls and violet eyes, paled when she saw the woman sitting on the ground. She recognized the witch.

Twenty-two children came running over and sat down. They were vibrating with excitement. The violet eyed witch tried to make herself invisible.

"Pwese weed to us." A small brown haired boy whined.

"Blythe." A young blonde chastised. "I'm sorry miss, name's Gwyneth; but the kids call me Gwen."

Hermione smiled at her. "It's quiet alright. Now, I thought we could read The Unicorn's Foal."

The children sat completely still for two hours as Hermione read books and made up stories.

"I hate to interrupt." Matron Ferwalt swallowed. "But it's lunch time."

"Of course." The smile that Hermione flashed the matron was predatory, before turning back to the children. "I'll come back soon."

"Yay!" Kado, a blonde boy smiled and grabbed onto her leg.

"Come on, lunch time, Kado." Gwen picked him up and settled him onto her hip.

Hermione stated putting the books back on the shelf.

"I'm sorry."

Snapping her head around, Hermione saw a small black haired girl. Her violet eyes were skittering around the room and her curls were pulled into a ponytail. "What could you possibly be sorry for, little one?"

She danced her fingers over her left forearm.

"I know your parents were Death Eaters." Hermione rolled her eyes. "Your lovely matron made sure of that."

The young girl shook her head. "No Miss Granger, I'm sorry I couldn't stop my mother."

"Excuse me?"

"My name's Cassiopeia Druella Lestrange." Cass swallowed back her tears.

Hermione grabbed the young girl's hands. "How old are you?"

"Eight."

"So you were three when I visited the manor."

"I saw it!" Cass wailed.

Hermione gathered the sobbing child into her arms and murmured. "It's not your fault. There was nothing you could do. My question is, why aren't you living with one of your aunts or cousins?"

Cass whipped at the tears running down her face. "A man came and took me away. Said I had bad blood, that my parents were dead and no on in their right mind would want me."

Hermione pulled the girl into a hug. "I plan on getting all of you out of here."

Cass smiled through her tears. She believed Miss Granger, the Golden Girl, the witch whose torture she still had nightmares about; and, for the first time, she had hope.

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Draco took a seat across from his mother at the tea table. "How are you today, mother?"

"Have you read the Prophet recently?" Narcissa took a sip of her tea.

"No, I have not." He really, really, didn't want to play this game today.

"I think you should." Narcissa placed her cup down. "You're in the society page."

"Oh."

"Yes, 'oh'." Cissy regarded her son.

Draco sighed. "Mother…"

"If you hurt that girl, I will kill you."

Draco started, opened and closed his mouth a few times. "I… wha…"

"I think I made myself perfectly clear." Narcissa dabbed her mouth with a napkin. "She's a good girl and a powerful witch."

"She's a…"

"I know she's a mudblood! Bella made that perfectly clear when she carved that disgusting slur into Miss Granger's arm." Narcissa took a deep breath. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have yelled at you."

Draco nodded. "It's alright. I'm glad you approve."

"She does understand what that bracelet mean?"

"She does." Draco nodded.

"Good."

"Mother, why do you approve, really? I thought Father…" Draco faltered.

"Your father was an idiot." Narcissa snorted, very unladylike. "The only problem with muggleborns is the security risk their families are."

Draco leaned back. "What if there was a way to ensure that they weren't a threat?"

"What are you saying, Draco." Cissy narrowed her eyes, what was her son playing at?

"Oh nothing, just thinking out loud." Draco flasher her a smile.

Cissy smirked into her tea cup. "I would like to meet Miss Granger, officially. That time she came during the war doesn't count."

"You want to Meet her?" Draco was shocked. "You're never wanted to meet any of the other girls I've dated."

"I have no intention of meeting one of your conquests. Miss Grange however…"

Draco hid a grimace. Either Hermione would survive this meeting with his mother or she would run away screaming.

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Hermione threw a packet of folders at Blaise. "Are any of these children's families alive and not in Azkaban?"

Blaise blinked. "Uh…"

"I take it you went to the Phoenix Orphanage?" Tracie inquired.

"I did, confer with Blaise on the orphans." Hermione rubbed her temples. "Draco, Nymph, did you know you have a cousin?"

"Aunt Bella didn't kill her?" Draco smiled. "Cass is alive?"

Hermione nodded. "I'm going to inform your mother tomorrow. She's invited me over for tea."

"We had a conversation." Draco shook his head. "She wanted to make sure I wasn't using you."

Hermione snorted.

"I have a question." Tonks frowned. "Why was a child with multiple family members alive and not in Azkaban, put in the orphanage?"

"And it's barely that. Those children need to find good homes. Which is where you two come in. Tracie, Blaise, I want you two to try to put these children with family. And to answer your question, Nymph," Hermione bared her teeth and pitch her voice, high and mocking. "'They're nothing but Death Eater brats.'"

"You cannot be zeriouz." Fleur looked appalled.

"The sins of the father visit the children down to the third and fourth generation." Luna hummed.

"You should get photographs." Daphne suggested. "I know a guy. Shoots for the society pages, but he's good."

"Point him my way." Hermione but her lip. "What do we have on our coup?"

Theo smirked. "I have discovered some accounting discrepancies."

"Follow it." Hermione chewed on the tip of her quill.

"I've found a way to get muggleborns." Lune stated, but didn't elaborate.

"What is it?" Blaise asked.

"Oh, Changelings."

Blaise ground his teeth together. "Do you have anything else other than an abstract idea?"

Hermione chuckled at their interaction. "I'll let you, all, have access to my Manor. It should have a library."

"Hermione," Tracie looked up from the folders. "You have a cousin."

"I know! And I can't do a damn thing about it until I accept my heritage!" Hermione glared at the wall.

"Okay; so Theo is following the money, Tracie and Blaise are going to be helping with the orphanage, Daphne is writing exposé on the Order and getting Mia in touch with a photographer and Luna is managing the Changeling Project." Draco wrote down on a note pad. "What else?"

"I got my job back." Tonks smiled. Hermione smiled back at her, eyes sparkling in joy.

"We still pushing the medieval angel, Milady?" Astoria bit her lip. "I think it's a great idea."

Hermione settled back onto the couch. "Oh?"

Astoria nodded. "Changelings, going back to the Old Ways, Fostering; people will see you as a beacon of Old Family power. You're restoring our wealth and lands to us. Embrace medieval and the Old Families will feel obligated to take care of those on their land."

Hermione steepled her fingers and regarded the younger Greengrass sister.

Astoria shifted uncomfortably in her chair.

"I expect fealty from all of you." Hermione nodded.

The Slytherin paled and grabbed their left forearms.

"Oh! For the love of… no!" Hermione sighed. "Do I look like a melodramatic egomaniac to you?"

Bill sighed. "There's a fealty spell and no, it's not the unbreakable vow."

"I'm surprised you know that." Blaise grinned.

"Astoria, how's George?" Hermione directed the conversation back to their coup and away from family rivalry.

"He's really funny." Astoria's face lit up and she even giggled. "Milady."

The Lady smiled. "Not yet. First we need to discredit the Order and current regime, then I get elected as Minister and consolidate power to the Old Families. Then I'll accept a crown."

Draco beamed down at Hermione, a smirk dancing across his features.

"Are you sure you're a Gryffindor?" Theo smirked.

"The Hat did want to put me into Slytherin." Hermione twirled a curl around her finger, her other hand was twined in Draco's. "But 'because of your perceived blood status, I'm going to put you into Gryffindor'."

Daphne snorted. "Ravenclaw, hell even Hufflepuff, would have been better."

"And then we would be living udder Voldemort's rule." Hermione smirked when the Slytherin's flinched.

"She does have a point, Daf." Theo chuckled.

"Anyway," Draco sighed. "Anything else to report?"

"Warwick zeemed awfully zmug about zomet'ing." Fleur cocked her head.

Grinning, Hermione shook hers. "I'll have him inform the Ministry when I'm ready."

"I wouldn't trust a Goblin, Lady." Bill stated.

"On this I would." Theo frowned. "To have this information, power, that the Ministry doesn't have…"

Luna nodded. "Better to gain the favor of the banished prince, than the pauper in power."

The Slytherins and Delacours exchanged confused glances.

"Quite right." Hermione nodded.

Tonks just shook her head. This is why people think your looney.

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A/N: Sorry about the delay; but between exams and moving back home it has been hectic. Also, due to me work schedule, I do not know how frequently I will be able to update over the summer. This is NOT abandoned. I will keep working on it.