authorsnote: tiny segway chapter, but with some interesting thoughts to say the least...
the slow burn continues...
do enjoy, do review!
songrecs: about you - the 1975 (literally their song)
Days later and any calm that might have existed, gives way to the storm.
Wedded and to-be bedded! Wizengamot ratifies new laws!
The Wizarding World was almost in uproar just last week when the younger side of our marriage-eligible population put a halt to proceedings, holding them up and almost stopping them entirely, insisting the Ministry hadn't followed the correct procedure writes Daily Prophet correspondent Rita Skeeter. Theres something you don't expect from the more youthful side of our society!
Though one might question procedure and protocol when looking down the wand of our population being extinguished, the fiery young wizards led by the infamous Boy Who Lived, Harry Potter himself, insisted upon reforming the in disarray Wizengamot to see the decision made! And so they did, and though reports aren't allowed inside the hallowed halls of the Wizengamot , this author received plenty of tidbits second hand.
The Wizengamot , now made up of much more youthful and handsome faces with the old guard either locked up, dead or infirm, admitted the marriage law had not been made in error, but rather had stepped too far.
And so the newly formed Wizengamot (after several preceeding hours around whos who and whos new, and whos in charge, they really can't help themselves, can they?), has agreed to ratify the marriage law, with some key exceptions printed here:
All paired couples will marry within one month.
All paired couples will live together and co-parent.
All paired couples will remain faithful.
All paired couples will have a minimum of four children.
Any harm caused to a spouse by their partner will be punished by the harshest sentences, and protection spells will be put in place.
All weddings will be covered by the Ministry and any disruption to work.
Those we knew, now we have some changes!
The fertility treatments prescribed by the Ministry will be optional, no longer mandatory.
The Ministry will no longer check on the couples intimacy (we can all be thankful for that!).
Yearly fertility check ups, including one prior to marriage.
The Wizengamot will monitor the population and the efforts monthly, if the situation doesn't improve we can expect changes!
So there we have it. The Wizengamot has ensured the public aren't going to have to accept being watched whilst crossing wands, but does stripping back the initial plans risk the population? Should we be risking something so fragile?
No one wants to give up their freedom to marry in peace, and who they want, but doesn't the survival of Wizarding Britain take precedence? Or did our new radical and young Wizengamot decide their needs outweighed that of the population? Of the job crisis at St Mungos? Of the seers speaking doom if we do not boom the population?
This author wonders if perhaps Mr Potter, and his friends might be too inexperienced, too young, too reckless to be making such big decisions. No one will question the Wizengamot of course, but question perhaps our young members commitment to the greater good.
"I should have kept her in that jar"
At least Harrys nod told her he agreed.
Hermione was, it was fair to say in a bad mood. It was two mornings after the Wizengmont session, something she'd been fiercely proud of Harry for. He'd recounted what he'd done, she'd even made him pull the memory so she could hear him speak, and she had felt pride burn in her heart for how well he'd done, for the things he'd said, for the way he'd been a leader.
But that bright spark had been followed by only bad news.
Not only was Rita Skeeter causing grumbles, but so were the old hats at the Ministry, people complaining the stripping back of the marriage law made its success uncertain, that they couldn't risk the population this way. Hermione had, had to put a mail recall ward on Grimmauld Place to stop any mail getting through, hate mail, aimed at Harry (two howlers had, had to come to teach them that).
Further to that (and for slightly selfish reasons), Harry had been informed he was entitled to take up an office space at the Ministry for the Potter seat, and when he'd told the Administrative Officer for Wizengamot Affairs he planned to nominate Hermione to take over, he'd been told in quite a sniffy voice that proxies were only allowed in the case of infirm or presumed dead Wizards, not live ones.
Hermione had resisted the urge to hex her.
She shouldn't have been surprised (that the Wizengmont would accept a representative for someone who might be dead, but not someone who didn't want to be forced into a life of politics was just classic), but she was still upset, her work at the Ministry would be important, and yet she knew she'd never get an elected seat, knew she'd never get to be a lawmaker in the Wizengmont, power stayed with those it always had.
The Wizarding World was never fair.
And if that hadn't been enough, they'd been invited to dinner.
Which didn't sound bad, but no, they'd been invited to dinner at Malfoy Manor.
Let alone the fact she'd been tortured there (which should have been her biggest concern), but Hermione knew it would be overflowing with purebloods with politicking, with Harry being gawped at, and the whole idea of it made her want to refuse to go, but she knew that wasn't possible, had said, and did again, as much to Harry.
"Remind me again why we have to go?" He asked her three days later over breakfast, another Daily Prophet lay between them, and the two days before, the headlines less tame somehow with;
Are the younger Wizengamot eroding our traditions?
Will Wizarding Britain become extinct?
What renowed Seers have to say about the death of magical kind.
Hermione was feeling she really should have kept her in a jar.
"Because you're an important figure in the Wizengmont, which you need to remain to get rid of any archaic laws, and you can remain that why by mingling and forging connections" Hermione insisted, and Ron next to her, a regular drop-in at breakfast grimaced.
"Why can't you just take Harrys seat?" Ron asked, but without a full mouth, Lavender was a good influence.
"Because the Ministry is awful" Hermione cursed, they were, the nods around the table were universal.
It was always an injustice.
"Who's going to be there?" Harry asked, and Hermione picked up the invite atop the Prophet, it was embossed, parchment with the Malfoy crest, she was half tempted to throw the thing into the flames, the other part of her (annoyed at being summoned by Draco Malfoy, annoyed he was summoning Harry as the political figure and not her), picked it up and read over.
To Lord Harry Potter and Hermione Granger,
You are cordially invited to a dinner party at Malfoy Manor.
Formal dress expected.
Saturday the 11th of August, 7pm.
RSVP
"Since when are you a Lord?" Ron asked.
"Since I somehow ended up on the Wizengamot" Harry mumbled as he reached for some toast, shot Hermione an apology look and she managed a smile.
"Does that make you a Lady?" Ron teased then, though one vicious glare from Hermione and he dropped it and went back to his sausages.
"Got your dress robes Ron?" Hermione shot back, he wasn't the only one that could mock.
"You can borrow them if you like" He threw back at her with a grin, "I think the lace would really suit you" They laughed at that, Harry too, though something flickered across his gaze, it was gone before she could identify it.
"So we're going to this then?" Harry confirmed again and Hermione rolled her eyes but with a fondness.
"Yes we'll go, mingle, talk, curse the Ministry and eat" Hermione said, noticing both perked up at the last word, which was reasonable, she was sure the food would be good.
If only the location and company wouldn't be so rotten.
"And you'll be alright Hermione?" Harry asked then, gently this time, "Going there?"
She nodded, perhaps too quickly, too brusquely, but she did, "I will, its fine, a place doesn't mean anything" It didn't, that was what she was trying to convince herself at least.
"It doesn't" Harry insisted, and she managed a smile again, Harry more often than not knew what to say.
Silence fell for a moment.
"Well at least we'll get to see everyones pairings" Ron interjected in an attempt at tact or distraction, "Its crazy to think in just one month we'll all be married soon, won't we?"
One month, married, it was crazy.
Whereas Ron as always had a talent for putting things in the plainest terms that stuck with her, and this one did.
One month, married.
One month.
Married.
With the man sat across from her who always knew what to say.
She just wished she did.
A knock on the door broke her out of her thoughts.
Thoughts that should have been focused on her annoyance at the Wizengmont, or worry, panic, slight annoyance at the dinner they were to attend tomorrow, Draco Malfoy and the pureblood institution in general, but they weren't.
They were focused on Harry.
After a day of more house cleaning (Lavender had dropped by and was a dab hand), of clearing out the house, redecorating, and a plant date (which had turned double, with Lavender insisting on well Lavender plants, 10 of which Ron had ended up taking home), the night had wound down, the Ministry thoroughly verbally cursed, she was alone.
Alone and everything came to her.
It had really hit her, after her shower, wand drying her hair into somewhat manageable curls something Ron had said over breakfast;
'We'll all be married soon won't we?'
They'd all be married soon, the Wizengmont session had made sure of it. Any fight was gone, they could never fight the law, she knew that, the data spoke for itself, but now it sunk into her, she was going to be married.
She was going to marry Harry.
And she remained terrified.
Lavender had said something too that had scared her.
'Who thought you'd end up with Harry?'
End up with, because that was what this was, divorce didn't exist in the Wizarding World. And the fear continued.
Terrified she'd ruin things, terrified she felt too much, terrified he'd find her annoying, or harpy-esque, that this would ruin their friendship.
Thay they'd end up bitter and alone, and … she knew she and Harry could never fully turn from one another, it wasn't a possibility in her mind, and yet the fear remained, like vines threatening to creep up her throat.
And something else too.
Soon enough she'd marry Harry, her best friend, a soulmate even if she wasn't sure what that meant, but more, the whole point of marriage was babies, and that meant –
That meant something else.
"Can I come in?" Harry spoke, outside of her door, she scrambled to her feet, looked down at herself, dressed in one of his quidditch shirts and shorts, once she'd have just yelled an affirmative, now she looked down at herself, cursed that she'd never be a girl who dressed in nice nightgowns or silky things, was that a rip up the arm of the shirt?
What if Harry wanted one of those girls? Girls she pretended she didn't want to be but had always harboured a secret envy of; put together girls, what if Harry wanted one of them?
What if Harry wanted something she could never be?
"Of course" She called, her voice a little off, was it obvious? Her insecurities? Her nerves?
Was it obvious she was terrified of this? But not for the reasons she should be? \
Was there a reason she didn't want to see?
Stubborn fool.
"You alright?" Harry asked, he too in a quidditch top, but long bottoms. It was just like meeting early in the common room at school, but this felt different, this felt intimate.
Her cheeks were pink, she could feel the heat, and were Harrys too?
"Yes, you?" Oddly formal of her, she cringed.
"Nervous for tomorrow" He admitted, and that eased something in her, for with it all, Harry being Harry, she could be Hermione.
They were best friends, they knew how to do this, back and forth, and talking, they just didn't know how to do anything else.
"You'll be fine, I'll be with you" Hermione said, and Harry smiled, and that as always warmed something in her, like she had an internal light that only switched on when Harry was happy.
Foolish indeed.
"I know" Harry said, and he smiled then, "I'm counting on it"
"Always"
And she meant it.
"Always" Harry repeated, "It will be us, always, won't it?"
"Yes" She said, and though she knew this was fact, truth, due to the marriage law, something else was underneath Harry's words, something more.
'It will be us, always'
What was he feeling? The same as her? Or something else? She didn't even know what she was feeling.
Two fools now.
But neither were ready yet, might not be for a while, and instead when Harry opened his arms, Hermione didn't hesitate, a hug was all there was that night, and yet it was what both needed, sinking into each others embrace, both with their whole bodies, not a hug of friends, but something more.
They just needed to figure out what that was, or admit it to themselves.
But who would jump first?
like I said a small chapter, but next we have a dinner, and some revelations? and advice from our resident pureblood? what?!
you shall see!
also this is slow burn, I'm not sorry for the angst! our poor foolish bbys have THOUGHTS to work through!
I'll be back soon I promise!