Hope you're enjoying the story. Just to let you know, there will be a few original characters featured but some canon ones too.
Hermione noticed he was a different man from the first time. He wore what looked like a dark blue dress and had a pointy beard and a round hat with stars on it and he looked around the sitting room with a haughty look on his face as though he thought it was all beneath him. Unsure of what was happening she sat on the sofa in between her parents and her mother took her hand and squeezed it a little.
"My name is Articus LeRoy and I am from the Muggleborn Relocation Office in the Ministry of Magic," he began, sipping his tea from the nice mug her mother had given him. "Recently we have been hearing of several incidences of accidental magic both in and around this house. Normally this would simply require a warning but I'm afraid since the Simmons incident things are now quite critical. I must tell you, Hermione has quite a strong magical ability, one of the strongest I've seen in a five year old child. She really will make a remarkable witch some day."
Hermione looked around at her parents but they did not look happy.
"The first piece of news," he went on, "is that there is a special boarding school, several hours from here, called Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, which will be able to train your daughter to use her magic properly. She will be attending when she turns eleven."
"A boarding school?" her mother queried, "But we've planned for her to attend Whitecliff School. It's one of the best schools in the area and very hard to get into."
Mr LeRoy smirked a little as he put his mug down. "I'm sure it is. But it will not be able to teach Hermione the things she needs to learn about the wizarding world. No Muggle school will be able to. A Muggle, by the way, is the name we give a non-magical person."
"So we're Muggles?" her father asked.
"That is correct. This brings me to the second piece of news." He smiled at them, but it stayed at his lips and did not reach his eyes as her parents smiles did.
"You have already been informed of the Muggle Relocation Act. But just to recap, this created a system whereby magical children of Muggle parents are introduced to the wizarding world via a fostering scheme. We feel that Hermione would benefit from this greatly. She would have the chance to live with a magical family who will teach her about her abilities and about the magical culture and lifestyle more generally. They will teach her to control her accidental magic and more importantly they can deal with the consequences. Each family takes full responsibility for the child's welfare and will bear all financial costs of the placement, including food, clothing and anything else required."
Hermione thought he sounded like he was reciting the information, as though he had said it many times before. Her parents were staring at him in shock. Eventually her father spoke.
"You... you mean you want to take Hermione from us and let another family bring her up?" She could feel her mother's arm around her, holding her tightly. Tears sprang to her eyes.
Mr LeRoy chuckled a little. "Of course not! We are not that heartless. Forgive me; I should have made myself a little clearer. All fostering placements are on a trial basis, just to see how the child gets on with their new family. And of course, visits will be arranged as we've found that this is very beneficial for everyone. You will be seeing your daughter on a regular basis, don't you worry. I'm sure you will have lots to tell them, Hermione!"
Hermione panicked at the thoughts of going to live with another family, away from the home she loved so much. Suddenly the shepherdess ornament fell off the mantelpiece and shattered on the hearth below.
"I didn't mean to do it! It just fell when I got upset!" Hermione burst into tears. She knew how special that ornament was to her mother.
Mr LeRoy got up and walked over to the shattered pieces. "I know that, dear," he told her. "But look, watch!" He took a stick out of his pocket and tapped the pieces as he uttered something that sounded like "Reparo". Immediately the pieces flew back together and the shepherdess flew back to her place on the mantelpiece. All three of the Grangers stared in amazement.
"Did you mend it with your stick? Is that…" Hermione couldn't believe what she was seeing.
"A wand. Yes, it is. And you will have your own wand some day and then you will be able to do things like this. And many more things besides."
He sat back down again. "Mr and Mrs Granger, I hope you can see that it is not safe for Hermione to live here. Her magic is very strong and will only get stronger as she gets older. What if she hurts either of you or sets the house on fire?"
"I would never do that!" Hermione exclaimed, looking around at her parents with wide eyes. Her mother held her closely.
"Unfortunately we have had some serious incidents with accidental magic over the years and we can no longer take any chances. Several years ago a young boy burned his family's house down, not deliberately but through an accident caused by his uncontrolled magic. His parents had already refused a fostering placement, claiming they could cope with him. For that reason I really do feel it is best for Hermione to live in the wizarding world for a while, among other magical people."
"And we can visit her?" her father asked.
"Absolutely. And I can guarantee she will be well taken care of by her host family. All families are briefed about fostering and have been approved in advance."
"How long is this placement for?"
"All placements are assessed on an individual basis so it's very hard to say at this point how long it will be. We will talk more about that later."
"Will we get to meet this family?"
"Not at first I'm afraid. There are many practical reasons for this. But there will be opportunities to get to know each other on visiting days."
He opened his briefcase and took out a sheet of paper. "I am very happy to advise you that we have found a most excellent family for Hermione. They are the Malfoys, one of the most prominent wizarding families in Britain. Lucius Malfoy is very well known in the Ministry and a governor on Hogwarts Board of Management. His wife Narcissa is also from a very well-known family and both are looking forward to being foster parents. They have a young son, Draco, who is around Hermione's age so he will have some company and Hermione will have a foster brother. Won't that be nice my dear?" He turned to her and smiled, and Hermione could not help but smile back. She'd always wanted a brother or sister. And learning about magic sounded fun and interesting. Plus it was only for a little while and she would still see her parents. Maybe it wouldn't be too bad?
"I cannot remind you enough of how lucky your daughter is. The Malfoys have a large manor and very substantial estate in Wiltshire, with plenty of space to play-"
Her father sat up. "Hold on... Wiltshire? You didn't mention that part."
Her mother had been listening quietly but now she spoke up as well. "I was under the impression the family would live in London, or near enough. We'll have to go all the way to Wiltshire to visit our daughter? But that will take-"
Mr LeRoy smirked. "Oh, I'm afraid you've misunderstood. You will not be visiting Malfoy Manor. And the Malfoys will not be visiting here." He looked around the room with a raised eyebrow and suddenly Hermione did not like him very much. "All visits will take place within the Ministry of Magic itself. We've found this is best. There is a room set aside for this very purpose and nobody will bother you there. Refreshments will be served, of course."
Her father seemed to be struggling to get his words out, which was something that did not happen very often. "Best for whom, exactly? And where is this Ministry of Magic anyway? I've been trying to find out about it and nobody seems to know anything."
Mr LeRoy cleared his throat and smiled that odd smile again. He seemed to be enjoying himself far too much. "Yes, it would be hard for you to find out anything about us. The Ministry is highly secretive, as is most of the wizarding world and for this reasons the building itself is hidden away from Muggles. But I can assure you that special arrangements will be made to bring you there and we will be in touch about those in due course."
"But what about school? The term is already under way and Hermione has settled in at her primary school. Will she be able to transfer to a local school?" her mother asked, with a little agitation in her voice. She was a firm believer in a good education.
"Oh, she won't be going to school, at least not until she attends Hogwarts in six years' time. I believe the Malfoys have engaged a private tutor for Draco and Hermione will be joining him for lessons. She will be learning everything she would have learned in her Muggle school, such as reading, writing and arithmetic, as well as a few…extra things relating to the magical world. The tutor comes with very good references and I'm sure he will teach her everything she needs to know and get her ready for Hogwarts too."
He pushed the sheet of paper in front of her father. It looked crinkly and old, not like a regular piece of paper at all. Then he took out a bottle of ink and something that looked like a bird's feather. "If you don't mind, could you both sign this form for me, just to say I've been here and went through the procedure with you? I'm afraid we have all this tiresome paperwork nowadays. Can't move in my office for all the forms. I'm sure it's the same in your world."
"Well, yes, we do have a lot of paperwork in the surgery these days", her mother remarked as she watched the curious man opposite her dip the tip of the feather in the ink.
"If you prefer, you can use one of your own pens; you might find that easier," Mr LeRoy told them as he marked a space on the page with an X.
"Now just a moment," her father said in a louder voice than usual, startling his daughter who had started to get a little bit bored and did not really understand everything. "I'm not signing anything. We're not happy with this and my wife and I won't be signing any of your forms, not without a solicitor present." His voice was firm, like the voice he used when he told her to tidy her toys away and she wanted to do something else.
"That can be arranged-"
"I meant our own choice of solicitor. If not, we can't proceed."
Their visitor sighed, looking between the three of them and trying to hide his annoying smirk.
"Well, I'm sorry to hear that. But the fact remains that Hermione cannot stay here and the Malfoys will be expecting her in a few days."
Her mother spoke up again, trying to keep her voice quiet and calm. "Isn't there any way around this? Can't we learn to deal with all this magic at home?"
"I'm afraid not. You see, you and your husband have no magic. Therefore your daughter needs to be with a family who can help her."
"Isn't there…I don't know, a course that we can do, or something?"
The strange man before them let out what sounded like a chuckle, but it was not a friendly one. "A course! No, you will not be able to learn magic, I'm afraid." He seemed amused by the very idea.
"If we can't meet this family, can you at least leave a phone number so that we can call them?" her mother asked, her voice a little shaken.
Mr LeRoy did not seem to be in a hurry as he put the form back in his briefcase, then sat back in his chair, clasping his hands together and resuming his serious expression. "Malfoy Manor does not have a telephone. No true wizarding home does. All communication will be via owl-post, just like you have been receiving from us in the last few weeks."
"So you want to take her miles away, to a family none of us have ever met, and we can't even phone her?" Hermione glanced up at her father, who had always protected and loved her, and saw that there was fear in his eyes. Everything had been going wrong since those letters started arriving and now some stranger was scaring him, a grown adult.
"If she's started hurting other children then it is important we move quickly and get Hermione to a safe home. The Malfoys are willing to take her in and at this stage I really must insist-"
Her father sprang to his feet, rattling the mugs and spoons. "Insist! This can't be legal! You are not taking her anywhere!"
"Mr Granger, I will not tolerate aggressive behaviour."
"Get out. Right. Now." He was trying very hard not to shout but his tone was extremely firm and Hermione buried her head against her mother's shoulder. "John, please-" she urged him.
Mr LeRoy simply got up and stood in front of them as calmly as he pleased. "I will leave for now but you are simply prolonging this process. You must understand that this is for her own good. I should also point out that you should not try anything... silly as we will find out very quickly. I will leave a list of the things that your daughter needs for her Relocation and she must be ready by the date provided. Good day to you both."
With that he vanished with a soft popping noise, leaving all three bewildered.