The Survival Guide to Hermione Addams - Book One

by zSpirall

The wizarding world knew suffering. The war with Grindelwald was devastating, the war with Lord Voldemort destroyed many families, and made the differences between purebloods, halfbloods and muggleborns grow into stratospheric proportions. All of these tragic events, the wizarding world could recover from, they were not, however, prepared for Hermione Addams. Alphawhitefox&zSpirall

12. Chapter12:The dangers of Addams' anatomy

Chapter 12: The dangers of Addams' anatomy

Summary:

The Hufflepuffs have a quick encounter with the Slytherins on their way to the Great Hall.

The bullying commences and attentions are grabbed.

Draco is put in his place and receives a letter.

He is not very good at text interpretation.

Hermione gets stuck.

Prejudice is everywhere.

Madam Pomfrey gets a visit.

It's very eye opening.

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Notes:

Hello my dear Darklings

I know, I know, it's been forever, I missed you as well.

You would think that work would slow down after December, but noooo.

ANYWAY, if you wanted lore, I bring you lore. Very important lore, please pay attention and don't let your guard down.

Hope you enjoy this chapter, BUT FIRST, a word from our sponsor AKA Zspiral.

Zspiral: Okay so Alphawhitefox was very gracious to let me write an Author's Note. First, yes, I changed my pseuds. From sixOnesixZero 616Zero to zeroSpiral to so on and so forth, to now zSpirall. I just feel like I'm always trying to find my name. And it's an ongoing thing with me.

Second, my main reason for writing this is I am a big big fan of the off off Broadway show called Puffs the Play or Seven Increasingly Eventful Years at a Certain School of Magic and Magic. Puffs is the story of a regular boy who finds out he's a wizard and goes to school in England where he makes two best friends and has adventures. This perhaps sounds familiar. But it's about the Puffs, he and the other Puffs simply want to learn how to be wizards and avoid attacks by evil wizards. I recommend seeing it. It's funny and eye opening to who the Hufflepuff are. So you'll see in this story hopefully some things that are inspired by the show.

Alphawhitefox and I are inspired by a lot of videos and shows we have seen and we try to incorporate that into our work by making it our own style, we'll reference as much of it as we can here.

So hope you enjoy this update, sorry it was so late in the making. Too many holidays and family gatherings, life has its chaos and has a way to get in the way of inspiration and motivation. We'll try to get the next one up as soon as possible.

But as our Hermione Addams would most likely say. 'You get what you get, when you get it.'

Alphawhitefox: Happy reading! ~

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

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Agatha Mary Banks, Hufflepuff Prefect, "Hi!"; guided her first years through the dungeons towards the Great Hall for breakfast. She had spent a good part of the previous night interacting with her firsties, explaining that in Hufflepuff they looked after each other, and that the older students would always be available for help. She, unfortunately, had to warn them to be careful around the other houses, especially the Slytherins.

"You see, us Puffs don't have the best reputation around here in Hogwarts. They'll throw food at us, throw curses at us. In fact, there is a list of curses hanging at the doorway and their counter curses so you know what to expect and how to deal with it when it happens, if you are unable to perform a counter curse, please ask for an older Puff to help you." Agatha informed her little firsties.

The curse list was a long one, and there wasn't a single Hufflepuff who had never had been hit with at least two in their first year, that meant that the bulk of the best curse breakers out there usually came from the Hufflepuff House. It was something that made a lot of people scratch their heads in confusion, since Hufflepuffs were known as the nicest, fun and happy little wizards and witches in the whole school. So it was beyond weird for the rest of the population when a fierce curse breaker turned out to be a badger.

With both Gryffindor and Ravenclaw's common rooms being located on the two tallest towers of the castle, and Slytherin having to share the dungeons with the Hufflepuffs, the snakes had a propensity to mock the badgers more than the other two houses. They were more often than not, responsible for Hufflepuffs knowing what it felt like to be cursed. Being so close to each other, badgers and snakes had the tendency of being at each other's throats. That was the case unless, of course, a lion was passing through, then Hufflepuffs seemed like to be instantly covered by an invisibility cloak and promptly forgotten. They were called weak and sentimental, the leftovers, the house where those who were not cunning, nor courageous, nor smart ended up in. They were the rejected, the failures and more often than not, were harassed and bullied by all the other houses. On the bright side, the Puffs found out that their common room was so close to the kitchens, that they could get snacks whenever they felt like and nobody said anything to them. None of the professors protested nor stopped them from doing so. Not that they really cared for the woes of the 'weakest House' besides, of course, their Head of House. Because of that, Agatha said she'd prefer if her firsties could go about the school in groups of at least three.

So when she saw Gemma Farley guiding her first years out of the dungeons, she had the feeling that the day wouldn't have a good start. Agatha watched Justin Finch-Fletchley get shoulder checked by one of the big boys surrounding that Malfoy boy, and get thrown to the ground. Before she could react, the Slytherins were gone, following their Prefect- who pretended she didn't see anything- whilst snickering to themselves.

The three Slytherins that were trailing after the group of firsties stopped in their tracks. First Addams, who was at the back of the group, then a black boy- with mahogany skin tone- stopped almost immediately followed by a brunette. Agatha hurried closer to Justin but Addams reached him first.

"Do you need assistance to stand up?"

There was no inflection in her voice or emotion on her face. Everything that made the girl approachable and friendly on the train the day before was gone. The smiles and the anxious but excitable way the girl shuffled side to side, almost hopping in place in pent up energy full of eagerness to be at Hogwarts and the need to help her friend find his toad was nowhere to be seen. In the place of that friendly face was a serious child who, despite asking if assistance was needed, hadn't moved a finger to offer help yet.

Justin hesitated. The annoyance of being shoulder checked to the ground evaporated on the face of the raven haired girl that looked at him dispassionately. He nodded absently and a few moments later the black boy stepped up and offered his hand to help him up on behalf of the witch. He smiled in a friendly manner whilst he helped Justin regain his feet.

"Apologies for my classmates' behaviour. They are entirely too arrogant to notice. I'll strive to correct it."

The raven haired witch said, already turning to resume her path to the Great Hall, being immediately followed by the other two Slytherin after they nodded politely at the Hufflepuffs. Prefect Banks reached for Justin and looked at him, asking with her eyes if he was alright. He nodded but turned towards the Slytherin trio walking away curiously.

"Too arrogant to notice what?"

Susan Bones couldn't resist asking loudly at the trio going down the hallway. Addams stopped and looked over her shoulder.

"That badgers eats snakes."

Whilst Addams disappeared down the corridor with her two friends, Agatha noticed that albeit her little firsties were warned about Slytherins' tendency to bully them, they were not prepared to be complimented by one. Ultimately, though Addams did not get the respect of Agatha's firsties, she got their attention. The students of this year would definitely be an interesting bunch, and Addams will be right front and center, leading the charge towards change. She pitied those who decide to resist it, they will certainly be trampled over.

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Draco didn't notice when Addams stopped following the group, he was too amused with Goyle shoulder checking the Hufflepuff boy. All that he knew is that he arrived at the Great Hall before the mudblood and she wouldn't get the chance to steal his seat again.

He walked the length of the slytherin table towards the spot he had been denied in the previous night, noticing how almost all professors were seated at the head table. It was only after he took his seat that he realised Professor Snape was watching him with an indifferent air about him. However, Draco somehow knew he was being judged and found lacking. He didn't dare sag his shoulders in an attempt to look smaller. He wouldn't. A Malfoy should always strive to look as aloof as possible and never cowered. He did want it though. His godfather's disapproving stare always held an immense weight for Draco, even when he didn't know what he could've possibly done to deserve it, he felt the weight of disappointment heavy in his stomach.

A faint pop behind him shook him off of the oppression he was feeling setting over him. From his right side, a cup of coffee was being set in front of him by a tiny hand covered with a charcoal sleeve that had a scaly aspect on the outer arm with spines emerging from it. Startled, Draco spun on his seat to see who was the owner of the arm, just to see that nothing was behind him. He furrowed his brows in confusion and turned back around just in time to witness the unsolicited cup of coffee receiving a companion, from his left side, in the form of a plate full of some kind of reddish brown paste of some sort that he could swear was breathing. He decided to poke it with his finger to make sure it was not his imagination, however his plan was thwarted by receiving a hard slap with a wooden spoon in the back of his hand.

"OW!"

He cradled his right hand with his left and whirled around to find himself face to face with a tiny angry elf, one head smaller than Dobby, wearing the weirdest outfit he had ever seen, with their hands on their hips, the wooden spoon fisted tightly in the creature's right hand. The elf was wearing a onesie that he assumed, meant to look like a manticore. The hoodie was full of burnt sienna fur, mimicking a mane, with the elf's ears poking out through the holes on the sides. The body was charcoal in colour with the outer arms, the outer legs and the spine having a black scaly aspect with spines growing out from it. The socked feet looked like lion's paws, complete with claws, small dragon-like wings standing proud and rustling as if they were real, and a wicked scorpion's tail hovering menacingly behind the creature. The violet eyes of the elf narrowed at him and Draco flinched on instinct as the wooden spoon was brandished in the direction of his face.

"You will not touch my mistress' breakfast."

Draco blinked in confusion, a bewildered "What?" leaving his mouth without his permission.

"You is also in my mistress' seat."

Exclaimed the elf in indignation. At that moment, Addams entered the Great Hall with Zabini and Bulstrode walking half a step behind her. She made her way towards Draco unconcernedly, as if he wasn't even there. Before he could open his mouth to taunt her, the elf snapped their fingers and Draco found himself appearing a few inches above the bench on the other side of the table, he was plopped down none too gently, forcing the air from his lungs and he let out a quiet but startled "Oof.". He watched in a daze as Hermione took his seat as if it belonged to her, the elf presented her with a fork and she patted the elf on the head- making them beam up at her before popping away- as she took the utensil and proceeded to poke at the paste on the plate which moved around the cutlery in distraught, trying to avoid being poked at.

When Draco leaned forwards and opened his mouth to confront the witch that once again stole his seat, he felt the weight of Severus Snape's glare setting on the side of his head as if daring Draco to imbue unrequested petty squabbling into his godfather's morning. Instinctively he closed his mouth, straightened his back and looked down in submission.

He picked at his breakfast dejectedly, all the fun he got from Goyle's antics earlier was sucked from his person. However, whilst he was just forbidden to pick a fight with Addams, there was nothing stopping him from glaring at her- not that she seemed to notice it-, and that's what he did at every opportunity in the midst of the conversation with Crabbe, Goyle and Wendell. He knew not to bother Theo during the mornings, he was always so grumpy before breakfast. But he could not ignore Blaise Zabini- who didn't even deign to look in his direction, choosing the far away bed behind the door- getting comfortable on the seat by Addams' right side, murmuring something only loud enough for her to hear and receiving a nod back. Draco couldn't help but notice Pansy glaring furtively at both Addams and Bulstrode, the half-blood sitting on Addams' left side. However it was the cut on her cheek that caught his eye, what had happened? She didn't have that when they went separate ways into their dormitories on the previous night.

His curiosity was pushed aside the moment owls started to appear with the mail. He felt his stomach filling up with dread when instead of his mother's eastern screech-owl, Calypso, his father's giant eagle owl, Perseus, was the one descending in his direction. Lucius Malfoy was not the kind of man to write to his heir to congratulate him for getting into Slytherin, that was what his mother would do. Lord Malfoy only wrote to people when he wanted something from them. So when Perseus landed heavily in the middle of the table in front of him, he gulped.

Suddenly his father's owl that was perpetually intimidating and seemed to look down at every living thing but Lucius Malfoy, tensed. The owl's head swiftly turned 180 to check what was the dangerous aura it felt. Perseus knew that landing heavily on the table would make him seem more frightening, he had done that many times before, he was used to being intimidating and liked when those who he brought letters to would hesitate to try to take the letter from him, even if he'd never tried to tear a piece of their hands. He did not anticipate a greater predator than him being present. And he definitely didn't anticipate that he would spill the drink of said predator with his forceful arrival.

Draco watched his father's ever terrifying owl lower his body alongside his head in submission as it shuffled pathetically closer to Addams, who was glaring at it for spilling her coffee. The weird elf popped into existence and cleaned the spilled coffee providing a new cup after glaring severely at the grovelling owl as well. Heir Malfoy watched in surprise as Perseus nicked one of his secondary feathers and presented to Addams. The witch's hand shot up fast and grabbed off the owl's wing, the raptor bird flinched but held still as the raven haired girl took one of its primary feathers as well. After looking at both feathers against the light, she nodded stiffly at the owl and allowed it to go.

Perseus stepped back in relief for escaping with so little consequence, feathers he could grow back, his head he could not. He turned back around to his master's heir, recovering the regalness he usually had and glared at the boy, as if challenging him to do anything but take the letter tied to his leg with hesitant hands in fear of the bird deciding to open his hand. When Draco fumbled a bit with the knot, Perseus clicked his beak loudly, making Malfoy freeze for one second and then finally get the letter free. The owl sat himself in front of the boy and nibbled at the bacon and ham on his plate.

"Heir apparent Draco Lucius Malfoy.

I have investigated your claims and found that they are true. There is a real Addams at Hogwarts and most importantly, the Addams in question is a Slytherin.

As the Head of the most Ancient and Noble House of Malfoy, it is my duty and obligation to warn you to proceed with caution on this matter.

To deal with an Addams is to walk a delicate line between the most valuable allies and the most fearsome enemies. To strive to achieve a peaceful and advantageous coexistence with them is the optimum ambition. Some have tried, scarcely few have succeeded.

I suggest not engaging with hostilities, for the result of such behaviour might not be favourable. One must always realise their place. You will be tutored in depth once you return home for the holidays.

Your mother sends her regards and congratulates you on such fast sorting, she asked me to tell you to be the example to be followed for the other Slytherins.

Don't let me down.

Head of the most Ancient and Noble House of Malfoy,

Second chair of Hogwarts board of governors,

Wizengamot member,

Lord Lucius Abraxas Malfoy."

Draco closed the letter and reflected on the contents. Going by what his father wrote, Addams wasn't actually a mudblood, which was mind boggling since he had never heard of the Addams before, it had never come up in any of his lessons. But still, his father said that very few were able to put an Addams in their place, if he was able to make Addams support him and back him throughout his decisions his father would be ever so pleased with him. He nodded to himself, deciding to do his best to bring Addams to heel and recognise him as her superior as she should. Perseus watched the boy nod and decided that he had done his job, so after stealing the last ham slice from Draco's plate he took to the air a bit clumsily until he got used to compensating for the missing feathers and headed home.

Just as Perseus' form disappeared beyond the enchanted ceiling of the Great Hall, Severus Snape rose from his seat at the professor's table and started to make his way towards his slytherins with a pile of parchment in hand. This caught the attention of most of the students, since that prompted the other Head of Houses to distribute the schedules of their students as well.

Hermione nodded in thanks when her schedule was delivered to her. She memorised her classes whilst Zabini talked enthusiastically with Bulstrode over her head about their upcoming lessons. They had both hit it off right away. The taller brunette had emerged from the girl's stairs in a rush looking for Hermione since she found the Addams' bed empty, she was frightened when she heard Salazar Slytherin's portrait start shouting when she was on the staircase between the fifth and sixth year. Millie was just as mortified as Zabini when she arrived at the common room to a serene Hermione, a pouting Salazar and a laughing Altair. Addams turned to her and greeted her with a simple 'good morning', introducing her to the boy that was looking at the small witch with admiration, bordering on reverence. When Blaise turned to ask Hermione's opinion of what transfiguration with the Gryffindors- being their first class- would bring, he noticed Hermione expertly removing her mug from the table as she watched the enchanted ceiling attentively. Whatever she was waiting for, she didn't have to wait long, a crow descended from above carrying a book twice its size and just as heavy compared to the bird. The large old black tome that was latched on the sides with the crest of her family adorning the cover was settled down softly on top of the table in front of her, followed closely by the form of Eris holding a letter in her beak and with a note tied to her leg landing on top of it.

"Good morning, Eris."

Hermione reached her hand towards the bird, ignoring everything else in lieu of paying attention to Eris, who croaked a greeting as she hastily moved the envelope away before Hermione could properly grasp it and showed her leg, indicating that the scroll was the priority.

"I see that Willow caught up to you before you came to me." She commented as she untied the small scroll from the bird's leg with expert fingers.

Being free of its burden, Eris dropped the letter over the book and hopped down to the table gracefully, not having to wait long until her witch presented her with a saucerful of eggs, which she took no time to start devouring.

"NF6- W."

Blaise wondered what the message on the scroll was about since it prompted a soft 'I see.' from Hermione that he only heard because he was sitting right next to her. He watched on as she immediately flipped the scroll and wrote something on the back of it, rolled it close and tied back to the crow that was eating eggs by her elbow.

Hermione quickly finished her breakfast, collected the letter into one of the inner pockets of her robes and picked up the tome the crow had brought, hugging it to her chest, essentially covering almost her entire torso. She informed Eris to deliver the scroll to Willow at her own leisure, suggesting that the corvid could rest on her bed or explore the grounds as she pleased before thinking about delivering the entrusted mail.

When Blaise made a move to get up to accompany her, Hermione said that there was something she had to do alone so there was no need for him to cut his breakfast short for her sake, she glanced at Bulstrode to let her know that that included her, since the girl also had begun to stand up. So they let her go without further attempts to accompany her, not that she would allow them to follow her anyway.

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With one hour until their transfiguration class, there was no reason for Hermione to rush, so she strolled calmly through the corridors in search of the moving stairs, nodding at portraits in greetings when they would wave and say hi to her. She even passed by two armoured sentinels who were marching down the halls in the direction of the dungeons, that apparently were involved in an intense bromance of some kind that she'd rather not get into.

Hermione let Hogwarts guide her path up the moving stairs until she was standing in front of the door that led to the forbidden corridor at the right side on the third floor. Glancing behind her, she noticed the stairs she had just climbed were moving away, essentially boxing her in front of the door, not giving her any choice but to go forward, as all the stairs had disconnected from the little platform where she stood.

Whatever horror the forbidden corridor was currently housing certainly itched her curiosity. However, she had another task to accomplish before exploring the enigma that was dangled in front of her face and yet denied to her on the previous night by the Headmaster. So with a sigh, albeit reluctantly, she turned her back to the door determined to wait, for however long, until Hogwarts decided to let her go.

"Miss Addams!"

The alarm in Mcgonagall's voice attracted her attention towards her right where she saw the Head of House Gryffindor climb down the stairs hurriedly. The Professor looked slightly startled, but Hermione suspected it was because, after only 5 minutes of waiting, she had tired of standing around doing nothing and decided to sit on the platform ledge, with her legs dangling off the edge, to read from the book she carried.

"What are you doing here, lass? This corridor is forbidden."

The stern older witch had a severe expression on her face after Hermione got up and stood away from the edge. Mcgonagall was once again surprised by Miss Addams. Where any other student would shrink on themselves, even if they were not at fault, the little witch simply looked up, meeting her eyes without hesitance.

"Apologies Professor, I was on my way to the hospital wing when the stairs moved away and left me stuck here."

The earnest tone on Hermione's voice expressed only the truth, but Minerva knew Slytherin students were great deceivers and she hadn't been born on the previous day. Besides, she had been Head of House of the Marauders and currently, the Weasley twins. Minerva couldn't decide which was actually worse to have been responsible for. She knew that right after breakfast would be the perfect time to try and explore the forbidden corridor, since the majority of the student body and the professors would be at the Great Hall, that was why she had come to check it.

"I see. You don't seem hurt, nor in pain, Miss Addams. Whatever would you need to be doing at the hospital wing right after breakfast on the first day?"

Minerva couldn't describe the microexpression that passed through Miss Addams face in any other way but frustration. If it was for the Professor foiling her plans of exploring the forbidden corridor or with the animagus not believing her, Minerva didn't know.

Hermione cradled the heavy tome closer to her chest protectively.

"Professor Snape informed us that we would have a health check sometime this week. There are things I have to discuss with Madam Pomfrey before that can occur. Clan business."

Minerva hummed in response. There wasn't much a Professor could do if clan business was involved, but of course, it was not the first time a student tried to use that kind of excuse to wriggle out of trouble. She had been teaching for over 40 years, she had heard about every excuse one could come up with. In this instance, it would be easy to assess if the girl was telling the truth.

"In that case, you wouldn't mind if I would escort you to the hospital wing, would you Miss Addams?"

She watched intently, searching for any kind of panic or nervousness for being caught in a lie, but the little witch simply nodded and let herself be led towards her supposed destination without another word nor resistance.

On the way towards the fourth floor, where the hospital wing was located, Minerva reflected on Severus' policy of physical checkups on his students, with first years going first. It established him immediately as a trustworthy person that his students could depend on. Minerva knew that Severus sat with each and every student during their private evaluations, whilst Poppy was bound by the Healer's Oath of not divulging patients' information, Severus was not bound by any kind of oath of that nature and yet the man was a tomb. His students knew that he would not tell anybody about anything he saw during the checkups.

Minerva wondered how many people could've been saved from following the wrong path if they were given someone they could trust like Severus was doing to his Slytherins. She couldn't help but wish in vain that the kind of support system the potions master created for his students were available for himself as well. It didn't help that during his years as student, Severus had as Head of House, Horace Slughorn. Horace Slughorn was the definition of self-serving Slytherin. Always eager to add to his collection of people bound to success with his abhorrent 'Slug Club', which he used to make himself more important as he utilised his contacts to move up in standing without ever complicating himself in anything, since he was just the middle man that introduced someone to somebody else. After Minerva noticed how effective Severus' system was, she wanted to implement that kind of practice for her Gryffindors, but the workload of being a professor, Head of House and Deputy Headmistress weighed more on her shoulders and consumed a lot more time than she wished for. Not only that, but more often than not she was overloaded with the administrative work of the school that was a job for the Headmaster, but Albus tended to occupy himself with his other two jobs as Chief Warlock of Wizengamot and as the Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards.

"We're here."

Miss Addams's voice snapped her out of her introspection, just then Minerva realised they were indeed standing in front of the hospital wing's doors. Hermione was watching her in silence, differently from any other first year who would probably try to grab her attention, the little raven haired witch just waited for her to gain her bearings once again.

"So we are. Go on then, I'll leave you with Madam Pomfrey and will expect to see you in class no later than half an hour."

Pushing the doors of the hospital wing open, Minerva gestured for the small first year to go in. At this point she realised that the witch was telling the truth, since Hermione didn't hesitate to walk into Poppy's domain. As she was turning to go and prepare her classroom, she saw the medwitch appearing and making her way to the Slytherin that still held the tome that was as big as her torso, cradled in her arms.

As Hermione watched Professor McGonagall finally leave, she let out a sigh of disappointment.

She did understand how suspicious she looked waiting right in front of the forbidden corridor, however she didn't appreciate the doubt that was plainly visible on Minerva's face when she failed to discreetly peer without disdain when looking down on her Slytherin tie. However bothersome, the prejudice ran both ways. To see an acclaimed professor treating a first year with such mistrust just because said student was sorted into Slytherin was really disheartening. It was no wonder Slytherin house as a whole, responded to that type of treatment by acting exactly how they were expected to act by the rest of the student body and faculty. It seems, the amount of work she had to do only increased by the minute. First things first, she would have to put Slytherin in order. Though there was nothing stopping her from making inroads throughout the school in the meanwhile.

But first and foremost, to her current task.

"Hello dear. What seems to be the problem?"

Madam Pomfrey was a woman on the shorter side with a robust build, build that was probably acquired after years of moving and treating patients. She wore a white cap that draped over her back covering her chestnut hair now turning grey with age. Her uniform was a white, high collar dress; a burgundy dress over it and a white apron with various pockets layered on top of it all. The medwitch, much like Professor McGonagall, had an air of no nonsense, that commanded respect from whoever was in the same room as her. Just by her demeanour, one could notice that she cared not for blood status or whatever poppycock people used as an excuse for prejudice, they were all flesh and blood underneath it all. However, when one looked into her eyes, one could see that they sparkled with a deep well of kindness and care.

"Good morning, Madam Pomfrey. My name is Hermione Addams, Professor Snape informed us that we would have physical checkups during this week."

Madam Poppy Pomfrey ran her eyes over the student in front of her, checking if anything was wrong out of habit. She had scheduled all the Slytherin's appointments with Severus before the year had started. It was not rare for some of his students to come earlier to their appointments in order to have more privacy and to not have their Head of Head looming over them whilst they were being examined. And yet, they were never this early, coming right out of breakfast on the first day.

"Yes, that is correct. All Slytherin's years have their appointment time slot written in their schedule, except for the first years. For first years, in order to preserve their privacy, I go to them after class and examine them in Professor Snape's office. What can I help you with, Miss Addams?"

The medwitch observed the tiny first year take a look around her, checking to see if they were alone.

"If we could move to a more private setting, please. Since you will be the immediate healer on site that will be attending me primarily, I brought with me a basic medical tome about my clan. I would like to discuss details that are not suitable for public spaces and help you navigate this book that will explain all you'll need for my care."

Poppy blinked for a second, processing the enormous implication of being involved with keeping the secrets of a clan. Very few families referred to themselves as a clan, the majority of them didn't even qualify to be called a clan. Clans were very very old families that had hundreds of members all around the globe that had grown to be a force to be reckoned with, of course there were ancient and noble houses out there, but they couldn't be called a clan. A clan was much more than just an ancient house, it was more than a family. The magic of a clan was alive and pulsating through each and every member that was part of it. Being part of a clan affected everything about a person, it affected how they interacted with the world, how their magic reacted to everything else. The views of a clan, their words, their lifestyle, determined the power that flowed through its member's veins.

Throughout her years of apprenticeship and later on as a master of her own, Poppy interacted with very few people that belonged to a clan. The way that magic seemed to bend to their will was astonishing. Minerva was one of the most breathtaking witches Pomfrey had ever met. The Mcgonagall clan was present in every part of Minerva's body, how she pressed her lips in a flat line showing disapproval, how she walked with her shoulders back and head held high, specially how the stern woman weaved the magic and commanded it to dance to her tune which it happily did.

Rare were the clans where the magic had been present for such a long time and so strongly that it had bent the biology of its members. Poppy could feel that the student in front of her was different from any other person or creature she had ever treated before. She had never heard of the Addams clan, which wasn't a surprise since she wasn't the type to travel. She'd spent her whole life in Britain. She graduated from Hogwarts, married the love of her life, trained under the healers from St. Mungos, fought in a war, lost her husband and later apprenticed under the previous medwitch of the school before taking her place as the Matron.

Regardless if she had heard of them or not, a clan should not ever be taken lightly. She had the potential to become the primary healer of a child of the Addams clan for the next seven years, and Poppy Pomfrey was nothing if not dedicated to her charges.

"Of course, dear. Come, let's talk in my office."

Poppy guided Miss Addams towards her office, a door located at the immediate left of the entrance of the hospital wing.

The office was decorated with her various certificates on the wall; a big antique desk with her high back office chair sitting behind it and two more office chairs resting in front of it; at the back of the room, there was an examination table with a big window behind it. The wall behind her desk was covered with big shelves littered with books. Her office was warded for privacy, she didn't even have any painting in the room, as to prevent spying on her patients.

Madam Pomfrey sat on her chair, gesturing to Hermione to get herself comfortable.

"So what do you need to discuss with me, dear?"

Miss Addams deposited the heavy looking tome on the desk between them- a small puff of dust raised in the air- and rested her hand over the cover before the medwitch could reach for it, not that the greying brunette had made any move suggesting her eagerness to take the book.

"As a healer, I'm positive that you have some knowledge about clans and the difference between them and normal old families, correct?"

The older witch nodded seriously. The magic of a clan, differently from old bloodlines, didn't survive because of its members, it was actually the other way around. The magic present in ancient and noble houses tended to influence its children and favoured a type of magic over others, for instance, where the Blacks were gifted in Dark magic, the Potters were more inclined towards defence against the dark arts, Slughorns were accomplished potion masters and Longbottoms were the best herbologists one could find. The magic could favour one area, but it certainly didn't take the reins over its children, it didn't cry for its members, it didn't rage, it just was. Longbottoms could be excellent aurors, Potters could be great potioneers, Slughorns could dedicate themselves to charms and Blacks could use transfiguration as easily as one could castLumos.

Clans were an entirely different beast. The magic of a clan was alive, it intertwined itself into the very being of its children. It was their last line of defence. Whilst a person from a clan had their own magical core and individual magic, they were still directly connected with the magic of their clan. It was as if, behind every single member of the clan, was this enormous predator, ready to jump in and defend its cub. A veritable ocean of magic of past, present and future members. The older the clan, the more powerful its children. And to balance all this power, it meant that the clan had numerous members.

In fact, to be recognised as a clan, a family had to be at least 300 years old, have no less than 150 active members, meaning full fledged adults; and live spreaded out, usually in different countries, divided by several branches. How the transition from family to clan happened was a mystery strongly guarded by existent clans. Nobody knew how a clan became a clan until they were able to carry the title. Only the conditions were known.

"Good. In that case, I am tasked to inform you that the Addams clan is a little more than over ten thousand years old. You are being given this information as a courtesy, to allow you to weigh your options and think if you are certain you would like to accept to be my healer during the years I am enrolled at Hogwarts."

Poppy's face, normally so controlled, couldn't help but to reflect the surprise of receiving that information. Her eyebrows were as high as they could go, the colour had drained from her face and her mouth was open in shock. There was, out there, a clan that was over ten thousand years old. Her mind couldn't even comprehend the amount of power and what it could do, that this clan possessed. How many secrets has this clan guarded? How much history has this clan seen? What kind of biology a member of this clan had? What kind of mutation has over ten thousand years of living magic have caused on the entire family?

It was at that moment that the Ravenclaw inside her reared its ugly inquisitive head. So many questions unanswered, so much knowledge that she didn't have. She was ravenous for information. She greedily eyed the book that Miss Addams still had her hand over protectively. For centuries, healers wondered what an old clan's magic could do to its members. The clans they knew of, were at the most, less than two thousand years old. Healers only knew that the living magic of a clan altered its children's bodies thanks to those clans who let themselves be studied.

But Madam Poppy Pomfrey had the answers right there in front of her. Even if she knew she would be sworn to guard the secrets that would be revealed to her with her whole being, and she would never be allowed to share the things she would learn with anybody for the rest of her life. She wanted to know. Her hands were itching to page through the book and learn every impossible thing this clan was capable of.

Having regained control over her face and emotions, Poppy looked at Hermione Addams, -who was waiting patiently for her to pull herself together- with a serious expression.

"I see. I'm grateful for your consideration and I understand the seriousness of the situation of how it could be dangerous if any of your clan's secrets were leaked. However, I am first and foremost, a healer. I made a vow of aiding any and all who are under my care. I will not run from my duties, Miss Addams."

Hermione nodded in approval.

"Very well."

The raven haired witch reached into her robes and pulled out the envelope she received with the book earlier. Poppy watched as Miss Addams pulled a wad of parchment from the envelope and deposited in front of her. When she picked it up, Poppy realised it was a contract. A very unforgiving contract that generally stated that every worldly possession she had,- including but not limited to properties, any and all vaults, even any kind of intellectual research she could have made or would ever make- would be transferred to the Addams clan in case she betrayed them either voluntarily or involuntarily, following by swift extermination of the oath-breaker. When asked to clarify what the involuntary part meant, Hermione told her that that way she couldn't use the excuse of writing something down as "notes to herself", leaving it in a convenient spot and having another person pick the information up. Which Poppy admitted was very astute. Normally she would feel incredibly offended by the implication that she would break the healer/patient confidentiality, but she did understand the implications of clan secrets getting out.

When she picked up her quill to sign it, Hermione stopped her, stating that she would have to sign it with blood and magic. Poppy sighed in exasperation, however she understood the cautiousness, even if it was annoying. She extracted a blood quill she had for official documents from the bottom of a warded drawer in her desk and concentrated to let her magic flow into the writing instrument, which was a lot harder than it looked, one needed to know their magic very well to be able to imbue it into written blood. After her signature was gleaming on the parchment in magical ruby red, Miss Addams took it to sign it as well, as the witness of the signing of the contract. The moment the quill left the parchment, the contract trembled, duplicated itself and the original copy turned to ashes before dissipating without leaving a sign that it was ever there beyond the copy resting in front of the medwitch.

"That is your copy. Keep it in a safe space, I suggest your vault in Gringotts."

Hermione rested the blood quill on the contract, and Poppy put both the quill and the contract into the warded drawer. Whilst Madam Pomfrey was ready to receive the book, the first year wasn't satisfied yet.

"Before you are allowed to study the book I will need a magical oath."

The medwitch seemed a bit startled.

"Whatever for, dear? Didn't I just sign a contract with blood and magic which is equivalent to an unbreakable vow?" She asked bewildered.

"That contract was to prevent you from spreading information to others, now I need you to swear a magical oath that you won't take, not even a drop of blood from me, without my consent. Your experiments are your own and we respect curiosity. I'll collaborate with anything you desire to study, but you won't be allowed to deliver any part of me, even if it's just a drop of blood, to anybody. Regardless if it's voluntary or not."

Again these Addams were taking it to the extreme, but once more, she understood. She wondered though.

"I understand your need to have caution, however I am intrigued. You've specified your blood more than once, is there a reason?"

Hermione furrowed her eyebrows and looked at her with a thoughtful look. She asked for an empty potion phial and a piece of blank parchment, which confused Poppy but she agreed easily. Miss Addams positioned the piece of blank over the phial and extended her finger towards the healer, asking her to cut her finger until she bled. Conformed that she wouldn't be getting answers until she did what was asked, the medwitch complied and using her wand she shallowly cut the girl's finger, just enough so bright red blood would come to the surface.

"As you will learn from the book." Miss Addams began to explain as she watched her blood starting to pool enough to form a heavy drop that just needed her to turn her finger to fall on the parchment. "The Addams clan didn't come from normies like witches and wizards did. Magic touched us long before it did the normies. We come from outcasts."

Although Poppy didn't know what an outcast was, she could deduce what a normie was. Miss Addams words rang with truth and she could feel the verity of it echoed within her magic.

"Outcasts evolved alongside humans but they were shunned because they had powers that humans did not. For that they were feared and envied, so they ended up forming their own families, their own communities. The Addams began like that, our family grew until we became a clan and our magic welcomed every power an outcast, normie, wizard, and witch would bring into it. With time, all these powers changed our body to protect us from those who wanted to use us in rituals and experiments; or just cause us harm in general."

At that moment, Hermione's eyes locked with Madam Pomfrey's.

"I have black blood."

With that, Hermione tilted her finger sideways and let the big drop of blood fall on the parchment. Poppy watched in surprise as the blood, as soon as it left Miss Addams' skin, began to change. The ruby red became pitch black, and when it hit the parchment, she noticed that the viscosity of it was much thicker, like honey. Then it started to sizzle. Her eyes almost popped from their sockets when she realised that it was eating away at the parchment like acid; when it plopped at the bottom of the phial Poppy thought it was over.

She was wrong.

Miss Addams picked up the potion's phial and held over her open palm, before the healer could ask why she was doing that, the sizzle began once again, and she watched in horror, as the Addams' blood melt the bottom of the glass until it hit Hermione's hand, where it turned back to regular red blood and sat there harmlessly.

Poppy was speechless. Hermione deposited the glass recipient-now with a hole at the bottom- on the table and cleaned the blood with a black handkerchief that had a cursive A embroidered on it, pocketing it without concern.

"Had you touched my blood as you are now, it would have eaten away at your flesh."

The medwitch nodded absentmindedly. She blinked and cleaned her throat, trying to be less frazzled than she was with what she had just witnessed.

"So, you need a magical oath to prevent me from taking any part of your body, be it hair or nails or blood to anybody. And to promise to never cause intentional harm if not for the sake of healing?"

"Essentially." Agreed Hermione. "With you vowing on your magic, I will be able to give you blanket consent to deal with injuries and exams without having to worry about consequences that others would have. For instance, my blood won't burn you. That way, even if I am unconscious you will be able to treat me."

"I see."

Living magic had the habit of doing whatever it wanted. Living magic like a clan's magic could be extremely protective and thus a danger to everyone around. Poppy once saw Minerva's magic lash out at an enemy that was behind her, that she hadn't seen, throwing them backwards in the way of an incoming spell that made the would-be assailour lose their wand arm and a few minutes later, their life; during one of the battles of the Grindelwald war. The Addams clan was at least eight thousand years older than Minerva's, Poppy shuddered with what it could do to keep its children safe.

Although she had been given the courtesy of learning the approximate age of the clan so she could think it through if she wanted to accept or not to be Miss Addams' main healer for the next seven years, it was that kind of information that she had just witnessed that would've determined if she would be up for the job. However that information could have only come to her knowledge after she signed her life away just in case she ran away with the knowledge she would gain.

Miss Addams was willing to offer Poppy protection from what her clan's magic could do to her with the cost of her basically renewing her healer's vows, although on an extreme level. Thinking about the pros and cons was an easy task. She had made a vow as a healer to not discriminate between those who came to her, and although she wouldn't be able to spread the knowledge she would acquire, she could learn more than what she expected from working with the Addams.

The medwitch picked up her wand and swore on her magic and life, that she would be Hermione's healer and would never approach her with the intention to harm for harm's sake. Miss Addams in retribution, verbally gave permission to Madam Pomfrey to exercise her profession and heal her without backlash or consequence befalling upon the medwitch.

The young witch then, picked up the book and walked around the desk to stand next to the healer. Madam Pomfrey looked curiously at her, wondering what more she would need to promise to make this arrangement go through. This was becoming a massive undertaking, but the book in front of her guarded so many secrets that having it resting in front of her was like being taunted with a glass of water in the middle of the desert, she couldn't resist her thirst for the knowledge within. Her late husband had always joked that a book was what would finally do her in when her time came. Hermione pressed her thumb against one of the latches, a needle then pierced her finger and a moment later all the latches around the book came loose with a click.

The first few pages were a plethora of squares filled with red and black circles and something tiny written underneath each mark that the healer couldn't see as Miss Addams flipped the pages too fast for Poppy to be able to read. It was only when she stopped on a page half filled with the monochromatic circles that Madam Pomfrey realised that the writing under the circles were names. Few and far between were blurred to the point of being unable to read, coincidentally, every blurred name was under a black circle.

"These pages are where admission is granted to the book." Hermione began to explain whilst she pressed her still bleeding thumb against the next blank square.

"When you try to open the book, it will draw blood from you to confirm it is you who is asking for access. Skin must be pierced for the book to open, and only the blood of those who had been allowed will be able to open. It will only open if the piercing is voluntary, if you are being coerced or even imperioused, nothing will happen. Your throat can be cut and you can bleed out over the book, and it will still refuse to open." The medwitch was wide eyed at the blunt and insensitive way Miss Addams declared that someone might cut her throat in hopes to open the book.

Hermione instructed Poppy to cut her thumb on one of the latches and guided her bleeding finger to rest over her own red mark, the healer's name appearing underneath their combined fingerprint. When asked why it was done like that, the raven haired witch explained that that way they knew who granted access to the person opening the book. Poppy noticed that, just like the majority of centuries of bloody fingerprints, Hermione's and hers mark was red. Once she pointed that out, it was explained that the black marks belonged to those who had betrayed the clan and later faced the consequences of their actions, the names were blurred because they didn't deserve to be remembered.

Poppy mused over the last statement, wondering what the fools that ended up betraying the Addams were thinking. Meanwhile, Hermione picked up the envelope that the contract had been inside of, tilting it until a ring and a little square of folded paper, in the same style of an old practised way of wrapping medicine, fell from it landing on her open palm.

The ring was offered first.

"This ring has protections in place to keep you protected from basic curses and advanced mental attacks. That includes behavioural potions and legilimens. No matter if the attacker is a master legilimens, they won't be able to get past your mental shields so as to reveal clan's secrets."

Madam Pomfrey received the ring and looked in wonder at the delicate piece of jewellery sitting in the palm of her hand that held so many protections for something so dainty. It was a small golden signet ring, with the Rod of Asclepius engraved on the head. Inside the band she could read 'Qui nos opprimere velint, illos libenter devoramus' written in a black elegant font.

"Those are the words of the Addams clan." Hermione said when she noticed the medwitch reading the inscription on the inside of the band. "It means 'Those who wish to oppress us, we will gladly devour'."

The images of the black marks on the book's pages of those who no longer had a name to be remembered by, flashed over Poppy's mind. That sounded about right.

Hermione slid the ring on the little finger of the medwitch's wand hand, letting her know that only an Addams or the removal of her appendage would take the ring off.

"Don't worry, the enchantments over it will prevent it from being a source of hurt, nothing will be able to grab or get stuck on it. It is completely sterile, so you won't have to worry about spreading diseases around."

Next, the folded paper was handed to her.

"That is Ember dust. It opens the entrance to the Ashen path. You can use it much like you use Floo Powder. Only use it for emergencies in your case. Since you are not part of the clan, entering the Ashen path without an Addams can be deadly for those who aren't protected by the clan's magic."

The confusion on her face must have been visible because Miss Addams started to explain what Ember dust was and what exactly was the Ashen path. Apparently the Ashen path worked more or less like the Floo, except, this Ashen path seemed to be literally a path. According to Miss Addams, the Ashen path was a separated sub dimension that an Addams could enter by throwing Ember dust into a fire- no matter the size of the flame- whilst holding their destination firmly in their mind, be that a place or person, appearing through the closest fire or fireplace closest to their destination. Poppy was instructed to never attempt to enter the Ashen path by herself; the Ember dust she had received was for her to send messages to Eudora Addams, Miss Addams' grandmother, in case of emergency.

Hermione decided to give a quick demonstration on how to do it. Following Miss Addams' instructions, Poppy left a lit candle on the desk by the student side and walked up to the torch on the wall. Ember dust, much like embers itself, was warm to the touch; its texture felt like fine silky sand that had the same colours of lit embers with a mix of black, differently from Floo powder that was coarse and cold, looking like grey sand. Throwing the Ember dust into the fire of the torch turned the warm orange-yellow fire into an almost unbearably hot mix of cyan and arctic blue. As instructed, the medwitch threw the blank parchment at the fire whilst visualising Miss Addams and turned quickly towards the first year, where she could witness the fire on the candle turn the same colours that the fire of the torch had assume, and the small flame grew bigger until, in a short burst of smoke it spat out the blank parchment that lightly floated down right in front of the little witch that simply reached up and plucked the parchment from the air.

Unaware of how she had just turned Poppy's world upside down, Hermione said that their business was concluded and she had to go to her first class, informing the healer that if she had any questions, she could let her know and she would explain to the best of her knowledge. Without looking back, the little witch strolled out of the door and disappeared beyond the infirmary doors.

Madam Pomfrey walked in a daze towards her desk and slumped herself down on her chair. After a while staring at the wall, trying to process the last twenty minutes, she motioned towards the book, wincing when the latch pierced her finger to check if she was allowed the information inside.

Bypassing the admission pages, she finally arrived at the first page of the old book. The title read 'The dangers of Addams' anatomy: So your patient is an Addams'.

Poppy let out a tired sigh, she would need a lot of tea. And firewhisky.

A lot of firewhisky.

---

Notes:

Oh Draco, when will you learn?

Not Hermione traumatising Madam Pomfrey without realising lol

Hope you guys had just as much fun reading as I had writing.

Now, who is curious to know the dangers of the Addams's anatomy? u

See you next chapter, Darklings!