Here is the next chapter. Please read and review thank you love Hermione xxx
Being Lord Black sure did have its perks. Already Dudley had read the family grimoire and today he intended to use it. He wouldn't be telling Hermione about it either but he would be telling Damian and Neville. He just couldn't trust that Hermione would be ok with it. It was a spell used to put something into a book which hadn't always been there. He intended to use it with the founders written rule book. He sat down and told Neville and Damian his plan.
"I'm not sure Dudley. It would depend of course on what you planned to put in it. Why are we not telling Hermione or Zacharias? I mean I know we don't all see eye to eye but we are all founders' heirs in the end" Neville said as he rolled his eyes.
"Yes Neville and can you imagine Hermione's face if we were to magically alter a book?" he asked as Neville shuddered. He then said he didn't like it but he did agree they couldn't tell her because she would go mental. If she didn't stop ranting and raving about meeting Harry Potter and being his wife in the future Damian thought he'd have to seriously hex her. She wouldn't stop going on about how famous he was in their world. Today was such an example.
"Oh he's so famous. I mean it's written obviously in countless treasure filled books. Books are of course the essence of life or at least they should be. I wonder if Harry Potter loves books. Oh I do hope so for I shall be very annoyed if he doesn't but then again he's Harry Potter so I guess I can let it slide!" she said loudly sighing afterwards.
"Will you shut up! Harry Potter is famous for loosing his parents and probably feels very depressed about it quite often. He wouldn't have known how he even became famous and who knows he may not even know anything about the magical world. I mean I have heard that Albus Dumbledore was the only one who knew where he was but then again that could have been a lie put out to reassure people or something I don't know!" he snapped as she looked up at him defiantly.
"Damian you should adults never lie or should I say no one has ever lied to me!" she snapped back.
"Well they do when it suits their purposes or stops people asking questions of them. Have you ever considered that Albus Dumbledore may have told people he knows where Harry Potter is and that he's safe so they'll leave him alone and stop asking him questions about it? Anyhow we'll only know when we go to school won't we? You never know Granger he might like bookworms or he may wish to burn books altogether!" he thought smirking at that thought. In fact he did love books but not as much as Hermione. He enjoyed reading them but would never have considered them to be some sort of life essence or something like she did. Deciding that a prank was in order he called Kreacher and asked him for some Amortentia in a vial. Kreacher was highly confused and a little bit worried but gave it to him none the less.
"Oi Granger smell this and tell me what you smell?" he commanded as she looked at him ire all over her face.
"Well when I marry Harry Potter and you grow up alone without a spouse you won't be laughing anyhow. What is this? Well ok if you insist though it's a bit weird to be asking me to smell something when I don't know what it is. If this harms me you're done for. Hmm I smell books, chocolate, ink, champagne and your hair" she answered nonchalantly as he floundered. He couldn't even respond. He had planned to mock her about what she'd smelled but couldn't.
"Well then what do you smell? I'm assuming it may smell different to mine?" she asked as he jumped from being addressed at all.
"Yes um I smell melon, chocolate, frankincense, treacle tart and your hair!" he responded and then groaned slapping his forehead with his hand. This was not good at all. He didn't even like her he didn't think.
"I've got to go. The potion was Amortentia. Kreacher! Please put this potion away I'm done smelling it now. Actually wait I want the others to smell it too!" he said as he entered the room with Dudley and Neville in it. They were deep in conversation and in the midst of changing the book when both Damian and Hermione entered with Dudley giving Damian daggers.
"What in the hell Damian!?" he snapped as Damian rounded on him more angry looking then he'd ever seen him.
"You just shut your mouth Dudley and smell this. Tell me what you smell!" he snapped as Dudley jumped from his tone and did so.
"I smell orange, the sea, baklava, spices and the hair of a beautiful girl called Tracey Davis. That is what this potion is telling me her name is. Oh wow. Hey can I keep it?" he asked looking a bit intoxicated already.
"No you most certainly can not. Now Neville please smell it!" he asked as Neville looked unsure but smelled it anyway.
"Oh that's amazing. I smell logs crackling in the fire, butter beer, ferns, treacle tart and Susan Bone's hair. I do like Susan Bones. She's always looked very pretty. Can I keep some of it please?" he asked as Damian smacked himself on the forehead and glared at Hermione.
"No way is anyone keeping this. Kreacher! Please take it away now!" he said hugging Kreacher and shocking Hermione in the process. He was very confused about the whole thing. He didn't like Hermione like that he was most sure of it. He'd need to speak to his mum about it later on. Dudley and Neville were joined by Damian and a highly offended Hermione who really wished people would stop prejudging her. "Well if you're going to use this spell to edit that book we should do more then change the rules we should also change some of what the founders said about things too!" she commented wisely shocking them all and then crying because she seemed to always give everyone the wrong opinion about her. She did love books more then anything else in her life but there was more to her then that. She'd need to work on her first impressions. Trying to downplay her love of books caused her extreme depression so she couldn't do that but she would instead not tell everyone she met all the time about her love of books. Pretending to need to loo she exited the room and called Kreacher who came to her.
"Kreacher what was that potion Damian had me smell designed to do?" she asked as he smiled at her.
"Miss Granger it was designed to smell to you the exact way whatever attracts you the most. It is rumoured that you can sometimes smell the hair of your lover in it but I don't know if it's true or not because I've never asked someone what they smelled in theirs" he answered as she decided to go to the loo anyway and wash her face. It was flush indeed now. So Damian was the thing that attracted her the most. Now that she thought about it he did have gorgeous hair. His hair was a little bit shaggy but not overly long. It hung a bit by his eyes and he would need to move his head quickly to the side to get it out of his eyes but he liked it that way. She did too if truth were told. She felt very conflicted right now because she still really loved the idea of marrying Harry Potter when she grew up. Now with Damian P Black that wouldn't happen. Oh how she'd laugh about it in years to come.
It was decided to change what Salazar had said about muggles and his own house. Damian edited it as so:
Muggles grow more and more frightened of our powers day by day and I can see that it is no longer safe to have them see it as they have now resorted to burning us at the stake. We should both be able to live in harmony side by side even if we change things so they can no longer see us or notice us. Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is to become a haven for magicals of all kinds. Slytherin my own house is to pride itself on cunning and ambition as without these two traits used normally you cannot hope to get anywhere. This is my own opinion and so is what I have based my own house traits on that. You will find the other founders have different traits but we all get on none the less.
We are all friends. Just because my values are different then theirs should never mean we're not friends. Helga wants everyone in her house and I can say that I do not. I am not against muggleborn students as some stupid rumour Godric spread around would suggest. I know he meant it as a prank but it's not funny now when everyone thinks it's true. I want only those of a high magical core in my house. Your status doesn't matter nor does your bank balance. You could be exceptionally rich and a fool. Moreover you could as pureblood as ever and still have a weak magical core. The point is that your blood status doesn't come into it one bit for me at least. Rowena favours half bloods in her house because she feels them to be a good mix of both and while I admire that view I cannot agree with it entirely. My area of study shall be potions and I shall teach everyone equally and safely how to brew. It is always important to know how to safely brew as without it all manner of accidents can happen. Should that happen it is nearly always the fault of the Professor as he or she fails to understand the importance of safety measures and teaching people these measures.
Potions are like a huge house. You must start with a good foundation otherwise it all goes to hell. This safety lesson is our foundation. We fail without it. Also as my good friend Helga would say plants and how they are grown is imperative to the study of potions. We must understand first how they are grown and why they are grown that way. It is not merely a subject based on collecting ingredients and simply brewing the potion if one does not understand where the ingredients have come from nor how to harvest them. Both myself and Helga believe that our two houses should both unite when Herbology and Hufflepuff is our main subject area just as Ravenclaw and Gryffindor unite when doing charms or transfigurations.
He left it at that. Most of it had been the same he'd just altered Salazar's thoughts about status and muggleborns. He had actually said that they were creepy as you couldn't tell where their magic had come from and were therefore not to be trusted under any circumstances even if you did teach them equally. It was a bit of a mixed message really. Next the rules were changed as some of them were very archaic and not at all relevant to today such as students wielding swords in class and jousting for family honour where necessary. Hermione added in the new rules as such:
All students will be taught equally despite their current status in the world.
All safety protocols will be taught to first years in potions and if an accident occurs because this wasn't done the offending Professor will loose fifty points to the house they head.
All Professors will teach fairly and those who don't will see fifty points gone from whichever house they head.
No Professor can have more then two roles at any one time in the school.
The Professor who teaches flying and referees quidditch will also teach theory courses on the subject explaining all about the different methods of wizarding travel.
A wizarding introduction class will be compulsory for all first year students to understand the etiquette of our world and why we do whatever it is we do.
For all students of a pureblood nature muggle studies will be compulsory. If we do not understand a people we cannot hope to ever grow and thrive.
Bullying of all kinds by anyone irrespective of their status will be punished equally.
All decisions made by the resident Headmaster/ Headmistress will be in the best interest of the safety and education of all his or her pupils.
The Board of Governors should be there to impart knowledge about classes should be taught and advise on hiring people should a position become available. Their job is to help and support and guide. Personal opinions about status and or money do not belong on the board and all board members will give a vow that they will never in anyway harm the students in their care at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
All students who come to the school must have their own personal wand to avoid mistakes with their magical core should they try and use an inherited or ill fitting wand. To do so causes much harm to the person involved. If the family has fallen on hard times as is known to happen from time to time the school fund operated by the Board of Governors will pay for a new wand to be given to the student. All students will be questioned in their first year about this and all wands will be supplied as needed.
The rule editing ended there and the other sections of the other founders were edited to the way each one of their heirs liked and then the book was returned to the Hogwarts Library which had the only copy. As the others went home Dudley came in and sat down beside Ted looking visibly nervous and making Ted very concerned.
"Ted as you know we'll be off to school at Hogwarts in a few weeks but I am afraid I have lied to you. You see I am indeed a Lord and did in fact need your lessons and I will continue to need them in the future. Having said this what I didn't tell you is which house I am the lord of. I am the current Lord Black and as I have been reviewing Black family business as of late I wish to reinstate you, your wife and your daughter Nymphadora into the family once more!" he said seriously as Ted blanched for a while and then drank the calming draft Kreacher supplied him with.
"Dudley you should have told me this sooner. I am not happy you waited to tell me but either way thank you for reinstating us into the family. Andi was so devastated when she was kicked out for marrying me. It will mean so much to us. Oh thank you Dudley!" he said as Dudley looked at him in relief.
"Just one question Ted and I don't mean this as an insult but what was whoever named Nymphadora smoking? It's an awful name and one can only imagine how bullied she was over it. Whose wise idea was that? When I grow up and have kids am I expected as a Lord to give my kids ridiculous names? I'm just nervous and wondering if it's something I will have to do when I grow up. I'd rather pick nice names!" he said as Ted laughed his head off.
"Oh no offence taken Dudley. It is a rather nasty name but one my wife insisted on. All Black children are given celestial names as tradition so she had to have a celestial name although for some reason Andromeda became fixated on it and saw it as the perfect name. Nymphadora just insists on being called Dora now. It did offend Andi but she soon understood why. Black women are not to be trifled with so I let the name thing go. To be honest it was just a name and Dora is a wonderful girl" he answered as Dudley calmed his racing heart. That night at home Damian found Petunia in her room reading and entered.
"Mum can I talk to you about something? I need some advice about something magical which I did today!" he asked as she smiled at him and patted the seat of the couch next to her. He ran over and sat beside her cuddling into her side. He'd always loved cuddling with his mum and she too loved it.
"Yes of course sweetheart. I am not sure how great my advice will be but I can give it a good go none the less!" she responded kissing the top of his head.
"I gave Hermione a love potion to smell today. It's a special potion that once you smell it, it can tell you what attracts you the most. I had planned to prank her and laugh about what she smelled but she smelled many things including my hair. When I smelled it I also smelled her hair mum. But mum I'm not sure I even like her, like that. What should I do?" he asked as she looked at him in awe.
"Well Damian I'm going to forget that you told me you instigated this for now because that's not cool but I know the potion you're talking about. Lily told me about it one time. She said she could smell James Potter's hair in it and was disgusted with it. She later married him after he'd grown up a bit. He was a bit of a nasty bully to your dad when he discovered Vernon knew nothing about magic. I have always hated him for this reason but I would never wish him any harm. Damian you must promise me to always formulate your own opinions ok? My opinion should not become yours just because you feel like it should" she said seriously taking his hand in hers for a moment.
"Yes mum I understand that. I promise I won't have any opinion which isn't naturally mine. What should I do about Hermione though because you said Lily married James later in life. I don't know if I want to marry her mum!" he moaned as she laughed.
"Damian you're eleven so calm down. No one needs to be marrying anyone any time soon. You will have your whole life to think of marriage. Don't you worry sweetheart. When you're old enough to know, you will know yourself at what age that is, you can propose to her or someone else if she no longer does it for you, ok?" she asked as he said it was and went to bed. He had a lot to think about.