Ancestry 09 - The Plot Sickens. by Voracity2

Ancestry 09 - The Plot Sickens.

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Ancestry 09 - The Plot Sickens.

On the train up, Hermione was with Harry, Ron, Ginny, and Neville, and Luna joined them now and then by drifting in and out of the compartment. She looked at Harry. "What's on your backup list?"

"The Americas probably. They've got a few good schools and fewer people with plots about my life." He looked at Ginny. "I've gotten tons of notes about how poetic it is that I'd marry you when my Mum was a redhead too."

She shook her head with a sigh. "Mum too. She'd like that. I remember having the crush but I know you better now, Harry, and you'd drive me nuts."

"Ditto." He looked at Hermione, who shook her head with a sigh. "Yours?"

"They wanted me to have children with Goyle."

"Euagh," Ron complained. "Oh, that's sad."

"I needed a shower the first time I heard. I had to resort to Disney songs to get that horrible idea out of my head." She tipped her head back then looked outside. "We're slowing down. We're not near the bridge yet. It's not been long enough." They all grabbed wands, Neville going to find Luna to make sure she'd be okay too while alerting others. Sure enough the train stopped and people tried to board but the students fought them off. Finally they apparated off.

Harry looked at the kids near him. "Not in masks or robes, just looked like regular people. Anyone got any idea?"

"I know a few were Ministry," Draco said from down the train. He pushed his hair back. "One was my father's assistant and he will be hearing about this." He went back to his compartment to send his father an emergency owl once they were back underway.

Harry, Hermione, and Ron all shared a look then went to check on the other students. Hermione was still a prefect. Ron was too. The other prefects had a meeting after checking on their houses. Something really had to be done. Hermione also shared about the graduation vow when someone said they couldn't wait for their graduation.

***

The new headmaster stood up in front of the great hall that night. "Children, those people were greeting you this new year and were to hand out the new conduct manuals," he announced.

A fourth year Hufflepuff stood up. "Sir, we've been attacked for the last six years somehow, even though I've only been here for four. They stopped us in the middle of nowhere without houses around and were trying to board the train. None of us are going to allow ourselves to not fight back after all this."

"I've thought about changing schools," Harry told her from his seat. "I'm sorry."

She glared at him. "You're not allowed to move! If you're not here we'll probably end up dying! Not like anyone else fights back around here or helps the rest of us learn how to fight back! So you three are to stay, Mr. Potter!

"I don't care who you have waiting on you in the colonies, you're staying here so more of us graduate." She glared at him and he grinned back, nodding some to calm her down. She looked at the headmaster again. "Sorry if we misconstrued the intent of them boarding the train but it didn't look good to us." She sat back down.

"You're all too paranoid and you need to calm down."

"Then don't let us be attacked this year," she shot back. She looked at the upper years. "Will we have exercise class again this year?"

"Of course. Tai chi and tae bo both and maybe some mild aerobics for the quidditch team." That one patted her on the arm. "Remember, you're only responsible for your roommates to make sure they're safe."

"I know and I can do that."

Harry looked over. "Remember, it never happens until the spring. For now, practice shielding things and how to lock and block things like doorways. That's useful in many ways and it'll keep your room safe if you're locked in there away from things." They nodded at that.

"Practice alarms too," Hermione added. "So you can alarm the stairs or wherever so you have some warning. We do yearly just to make sure we know when boys are trying to sneak up." That got a smile and a nod. The headmaster was looking horrified.

"Each house has an escape hatch, make sure you know where it is," Ron told her. "Most of the kids who have cursebreaking skills or siblings know how to do that so ask. There's probably some of us in each house." That got another nod. He looked at their new first years. "We'll show you when we get up there during the first year talk." They nodded and dug in again. Ron looked at Harry. "Did you do anything fun this summer?"

"Some. I mostly spent a lot of time talking about my family to pictures and ghosts." He looked at his hand. "Malfoy, I have a letter for you from some barrister or another. They delivered it to my house instead."

Draco gave him an odd look, almost not sneering. "Why would they?"

"Ask me that later. In private."

"Fine, Potter." He ate a bite of dinner and chewed slowly. That was weird. The headmaster was totally horrified by the children and how they acted. The teachers handed out the new conduct manuals.

Hermione looked through hers, grimacing. "I'm sorry, Professor, may I come up?" She nodded so she walked up there. She pointed at an entry. "What business is it of his if I take medicines? My allergy pills work wonders when we bloom all spring long. You don't have that here. I'm not going to not take medicine so I'm afraid I'm going to be breaking that one. He has no reason to know anything about any medical things I may have as that's considered private and confidential information."

"Young lady," the headmaster complained.

She glared at him. "My parents are dentists. They have to deal with regulations about medical matters all the time. It is against the law for you to even try to get into my medical records without just cause. There is no cause that a headmaster would have to do that. The school nurse perhaps but not anyone else. I am not turning mine over to her as I have a doctor I enjoy and she only sees me for emergencies. That is the law, Headmaster." She walked off again, going back to reading.

Harry shook his head. "They may have to write the american aurors for mine but I doubt they'd answer and I'm told that Madam Pomfrey doesn't keep records on us the way a regular doctor would." He looked through his, shaking his head. "First page, already a problem for those who don't have parents."

"I didn't even think about that," Hermione admitted, tipping her head to look at him. "Neville, would your grandmother violate that since it says parents only?"

He looked then nodded. "It would. Well, I guess I'm breaking rules like a Gryffindor this year too." He went back to reading, using a quill to make notes. "Maybe I'll send it to Grams," he muttered. "I'll sound like Malfoy but oh well."

Harry giggled at that. "Sometimes things like that happen, Neville." He looked at the list and kept going, making his own notes. There was a lot wrong in here. "Hmm, that first clause. The students who're over-age can sign their own, Hermione. Right?"

"Yes." She smiled and nodded. "They can by law. If they're an adult they can sign any permission slips they want to sign. It's the benefit of being an adult."

Harry nodded. "The auror gave me a signed, notarized form saying I could sign my own permission slips, that I had the right to do my own permissions and decisions about school and medical care." He went back to making notes.

Neville had added some parchment to make more notes on, including about that topic. He looked ate Harry. "Did you think about emancipation, Harry?"

"I did but the paperwork they gave me to file was full of very bad clauses. Things like I would turn over all the family's properties to the bank." Neville winced. "I have no idea what happened to the bank but apparently they've fallen into the same hole as the Ministry."

Neville sighed. "They certainly have. My Grams complains about that all the time." He grimaced. "Did you get to see any unusual plants over there?"

"I didn't get outside, Neville. I went to the hospital, the court a few times, but otherwise not a single thing. Where my cousin lives is too dangerous for me to go outside at all. Full of vampires apparently."

"Wow. That's not good." He frowned and went back to his notes. "Where was he?"

Harry grinned. "Ask me later, Neville."

"Okay. Not like they can't spy."

"There's ways to prevent that," Hermione said quietly. "I'll do all our portraits tonight in our rooms but leave an out for screaming in emergency."

"You will not," Professor McGonagall ordered.

She looked back there. "We have four male portraits in our rooms watching us change, Professor. If they leer at me again I can burn them instead." She smiled slightly. "Your choice of course."

"We'll have them changed, Miss Granger. You could have complained."

"I did. Each and every single year and each and every single month. I filled out the paperwork and you never did change a single one." The professor looked hurt. "It's bad enough I had to tell one of the first years last year why the perverted painting was leering at her." She looked around. "Hmm. Some didn't come back," she said quietly.

"I hope they're okay," Ron said. "Why is it only girls?"

Hermione looked at him, looking upset. "Do you want me to explain that to you, Ron, or do you want to have an imagination and then nightmares?"

He shuddered. "No, I get it." He ducked his head and dug back in.

Harry nodded. "There's a few missing at each table, Hermione."

"Then I hope they're all right." She looked at him. "If not, I hope they can be saved." He nodded at that. She went back to her own notes. Her mother was going to be highly displeased. Even if it did make her feel like Malfoy as well.

"I think even Percy would've broken half of these rules," Ginny said. Ron snickered at that, nodding some. "Mum's going to heave a fit."

"She'll try to tell us to just go along with it, the rules are the rules," Ron mimicked. "And she'll get nagged by Bill." He looked at Harry. "Every time someone had to look at things and you weren't there, things started to unravel. Did you realize that?"

"I wasn't there as a scapegoat or smoke screen," Harry agreed. "Which showed all the messier places in a brighter light, so people started to notice for a change." He grinned. "Is it true that cursebreakers with the gift get into a lot of trouble?"

"Yup. Bill found a maze under the school and got lost for a week. Dad brought him to the bank that weekend to talk to them about how to apprentice." He got back to the rule book, eating one-handed. "Hell no," he said quietly. "That's so wrong Merlin would pitch a fit." He nudged Hermione with an elbow so she looked over while chewing. "I flipped ahead to start at the back."

She looked at that in her copy. "That's not in mine." She looked at the covers. "Oh, you have one for boys. More sexist propaganda trying to push women down." She made that note as well and so did Neville. She showed them one of hers. "It's of no business how I capture my monthly blood as they put it. We have trash cans in the bathrooms for that reason, boys."

They just nodded at her for that, they had no idea. The teachers were going to be horrified.

***

Hermione looked at her professor the next morning. "Yes, Professor McGonagall?"

"It was noted that you were verbally annoyed last night, Miss Granger."

"Yes, about many sexist and problematic rules." She smiled a bit. "It's of no business to him how we handle our monthly bleeding."

"Witches and wizards banish things, Miss Granger. It's how we're trained."

"Then we wouldn't have toilets and we'd walk around nasty arsed all day, Professor. Personally I like bidets more than paper to clean but we use what we have." She stared at her. "I'm not going to be an unsanitary slob and banish my blood somewhere else. Who wants to deal with that?"

"It's what we do."

"It may be what you do. I was taught to properly clean up myself after I use the bathroom and then wash my hands," she said bluntly. "Every single time. Also, his idea that we take time off from school because I'm bleeding is a bit of a problem. We have devices to capture it and block it so it doesn't go everywhere.

"No one wants to sit on old rags anymore. We have tampons, pads, and even cups to do that for us." She blinked a few times. "If you didn't try to force us back to the fourteen hundreds it might help us more. Now, is there anything else?"

"The headmaster has said that muggle borns may not go to town."

"I'd like to see him enforce that as he has no right if my parents allow me to." The professor stared. She stared back. "If my parents want me to I can go wherever they say. If he should try to stop me I'll make sure I can go anyway. As I'm not under punishment, he has no right to restrict me to the school for any reason. And he has no reason to tell the ones who've obtained adult status the same thing.

"As I'm seventeen in six days, which is legal in the magical world, he has no right to say a thing to me about me going to town when I want to. Technically an adult can go anytime they're not in class. It's written on the slip." She smiled a bit. "Now, anything else, Professor? I have to go hand in Potions homework."

"If you keep being so loud he'll make it worse on others."

"Or he could learn that we're not weak. No woman is weak, Professor. We're all stronger than men because we have to put up with men plus children someday." She flinched back at that. "I'm not weak and I'll be damned if I don't feel the need to start a civil rights movement right now. Now," she said more happily. "Can I go to Potions and please write me a slip saying I was up here? Maybe he'll only take a few points today."

"Fine, Miss Granger, but do be aware you're going to catch it from the other young women who're going to get hell for your strident nature."

"Then he'd better be prepared for their strident nature. War makes people stronger, Professor, and we've all grown up with it while we were here." She took the slip. "Have a good day." She left, going to Potions, muttering the whole way. She knocked before walking in, as was proper. "Professor McGonagall," she said quietly.

"Warning me that the new headmaster hates that women are women. Apparently he wants us to not stop up our bleeding and just gush everywhere while we ditch classes." She sat down, putting her homework in front of her. He snatched it and walked off glancing over it. He snorted at something. "That's from the botanical garden in London, sir. I've included their printed page from their pamphlet as well." She looked at the notes and got to work on what she could do in the time she had left.

He looked at that printed page. "Interesting usage from muggles. Incorrect by what we know of it but amusing, Miss Granger." He stared at her. "So you only lost twenty points for Gryfindor for being tardy."

"Thank you, Professor." He glared at her for that. She smiled back. "I'm starting to like you more than the head of my house right now." He shuddered but went back to his desk to look over that detail better.

***

Harry met Draco that morning as they had to hurry off after dinner. He handed over the letter.

Draco didn't touch it. "Why send it to you?"

"Because Sirius adopted me as his heir when I was born," he said quietly. "And his grandfather upheld it."

"My mother thought he may have." He took the letter to read over, grimacing at that. "Yours?"

"No. I had the new family lawyer look over the papers involving any current member of the family that's still alive so I know who they are and what they know about anything in the family. That was filed for your name. And the last page may piss you off. The Ministry has a marriage license on file for you."

He flipped to that, shaking his head. "Like hell."

"Which is why I thought you should know. I only got it two days ago but at least you're safe up here."

Draco looked at him. "We were all pleased that she told us that she was fighting back against them hitching her to Greg."

"She's not amused and she's had to stun aurors in her house, Draco. More than once."

"Damn it," he muttered.

"So you may want to warn your parents? I don't know how to do that. I'm a bit overwhelmed because half of the time the rings are chatty and giving advice. Contradictory advice." He glared at his hand.

Draco looked. "Which is the Potter?" He pointed at his ring finger. "That's the Black," he said with a point. "The others?"

"Peverell and Costins. They died out years ago but were part of the Dumass clan and my cousin didn't want that one apparently. He's got enough on his plate with the Dumass one."

"I noticed the pendant. Does the heir wear the ring?"

"I never asked to see it. I didn't notice it either. If so he's got it hidden."

"Is he Alexander Dumass?" he asked quietly.

Harry shrugged. "No idea. I know he got cursed at one point in time. I know he's really mad about it too. I know me being around brought up bad memories."

Draco nodded. "You've given us all nightmares, Potter." He grimaced. "Are you going by Potter or Potter-Black?"

"Potter. I talked to Arcturus' ghost and he agreed with the ring. And that he hated your dad."

"Mum said that." He grimaced. "So, what are your plans for me as the head of the family?"

"I have not a single one right now. Though I did promise to beat your arse in public if you became a blight on me this year." He grinned. "I was a bit tired that day."

"Charming. You could have the right to decide my marriage."

"Make one that'll make you happy enough to raise a good family that'll stick up for the honest, equal treatment things that're making Hermione rant about our new headmaster. Just...marry out of the bloodlines? The family tree looked like a vine. If you want me to I'll protest a forced one though."

"It does," he agreed. "We're doing that anyway." He nodded. "Thank you for not shouting that."

"I wouldn't do that anyway, Draco." He left, going back to his study hall in the library. He had to study to do good when he switched schools. Because Hogwarts could fall in for all he cared right now.

The nurse came in and sat across from him. "People have been asking me to examine your forehead, Potter."

He looked at her. "The doctor took it out. He patched up the scar itself too." He showed it to her with a smile. "I'm told it'll fade in a few years to being barely visible."

"It should." She looked at him. "People are complaining you went to a hospital."

"I should've been many times and didn't get to. So they can complain and I don't care. I did what was best for my health. They have no say in anything about my health decisions."

"They think they should."

"Then they can carve that same scar in their own forehead and be me all they want to be," he said bluntly. "Every last one of them."

She smiled a bit. "Good answer. Is it gone?"

"Yes. I'm told it was destroyed already. They gave Madam Bones a report."

"That's good." She touched it gently then nodded. "It's well healed. Did they give you potions you had to take?"

"No, they used IV's. I had a lot of medicines in my IV's while I was in there. A few pills for a few extra days to make sure I didn't infect. They said they don't use potions, they use medicines. If they have one that'll help my growth restart I'd be grateful. I'd like to at least grow a few more inches. I feel short."

She nodded. "I'll look into that." She smiled a bit. "The other things you noted being delayed?"

"Yes it is. Thankfully that's finally starting." He grimaced. "Which is weird but Xander and I had a few talks about girl things. Apparently he had a lot of them in his life."

"That's probably enlightening."

"So is Hermione talking about birth control options." He grinned. "Oh, from what she said last night, there's an electronic thing in her that will work. And it's not to be removed."

"The GPS thing she mentioned?"

"Yes, it's a locator. So they can find her if she's kidnaped."

"I can understand that. Though I'll be looking it over so I can identify one in the future."

"I'm sure she'd agree. The world's a dangerous place for women."

"It can be but it always has been." She got up and went to find Hermione Granger to look her over. She was in arthimancy so the teacher was kind enough to let her go early. She took her up there to look her over. "I wanted to look at the device so I could see what they were."

Hermione pointed at her lower back. "It's in there in a muscle."

She looked it over. "It is shielded."

"It came from the French community. Did you know they have computers in their schools?"

"I did not." She frowned. 'Did it come in two parts?"

"No, that's my IUD, Madam Pomfrey." The nurse stared at her. "It's very helpful and it can stay in for another few years. Then I'll have it replaced until I'm ready to have children."

"I know the theory but I thought we went past that with the potions."

"In the muggle world there's pills, patches, shots, little sticks implanted, and IUD's with hormones and without. Mine's without."

"That's not a bad choice, dear." She stepped back with a nod. "You're fine."

"Can you tell if a cup would work for my cycles? I've wanted to try one."

"They have a what now?"

"It's a little rubber inserted cup that works like a tampon and catches things. Every now and then you pull it out, rinse it out in the toilet, then put it back. Like tampons but it's reusable."

"I have no idea about that. You might ask Professor McGonagall."

"She thought we all banished things instead of being properly cleaned up."

"Ah. Some do it that old way."

"I find it fairly nasty. How do you keep clean?" She hopped off the bed. "Am I cleared for class? Or lunch actually."

"Yes, dear. Go to lunch." Hermione smiled and left. "We'll talk during the girlhood class."

"I took the muggle one, Madam Pomfrey." She shot a grin at her. "Professor McGonagall thought it robbed us of some innocence but it was very thorough so I opted out for another study hall." She smiled and left.

The nurse made that note and a few others then decided to burn them. If it wasn't a major treatment she did not need to make more than mental notes. Just in case someone got into them. Which Professor McGonagall tried to do after lunch. She smiled at her. "Yes, Minerva? Need a headache potion already?"

"No, wondering why you called Miss Granger up."

"I wanted to look at that device to see what it felt like so I could identify it later." She smiled slightly. "Apparently it's from the European magical community."

"Oh. Really? So it'll work?"

"Yes. It will. It can find her here if we need it to."

"Oh, I see. Is she fine otherwise?"

"Yes, she is. She had a question about menstrual cups versus tampons but I had to admit I had no knowledge."

"I have no idea what that is."

"Neither do I but she said it's a reusable little rubber thing that you stick up there to gather the blood but you take it out to clean it out and then reinsert it. So no waste like tampons do."

"Do we use them here?"

"Yes, Minerva. Girls these days use disposable methods to control that. We have trash cans in the bathroom for that purpose. Even the pureblood girls do as banishing is seen as rather nasty."

"Oh, I see." She grimaced. "Fine. Anything else I should know?"

"No, dear. She was fine. I just wanted to look at that device. She did mention a few birth control options they have that we don't when we got onto that topic and I asked about the class."

"She said she's skipping it because she already knows it all."

"Yes, the muggle version goes into much more than ours. The one my niece went to had pictures from a documentary that some people did with actual cameras snuggled up near the child to see how it was growing." Minerva looked horrified. "It's quite moving but she didn't have any doubts about gestation development."

"Why would they?"

"So they know what happens week by week according to her. It didn't harm the child or mother."

"Oh." She rubbed her neckline. "That's very much something we would not do."

"We don't have the cameras to do that. They have ones that're as thin as a hair." She smiled. "Did you know the French schools have computers in them?"

"A what now?"

"It's like an electrified typewriter according to our father," Ron said as he carried in Ginny. "Was reading and fell down the main staircase. Landed on Harry but he said he's fine. He's limping but fine he said." He heaved her onto a bed and walked off shaking his head.

Madam Pomfrey came over to check her. "Knocked yourself silly on Mr. Potter's hard head?" she asked, looking amused.

"No, I hit his bony hip and then the floor," she moaned, holding her head. "The room's spinning."

"I'll get you the bowl, dear." She went to do that and something for her headache. "Here you go," she said, handing it over. "If you have to get sick, go ahead."

"Thank you, Madam P." She heaved a few times then finally threw up. "This is worse than when I fell out of a tree."

The nurse tucked her in and went back to her desk. "She'll be fine. Not a full concussion."

"That's good." She went to her free period to think about things. She had Hermione and her group later that day. "Miss Granger, the Muggle studies teacher was wondering about how to get students more knowledge of the muggle world."

"That's easy, Professor. Have a few of the muggle born students take some home with them for a short holiday." She smiled. "Or over the summer maybe. Two or three for each that volunteer with their parents' permission."

"I hadn't thought of that. I know you're in there."

"Yes, I spend a lot of time telling her that those things she's mentioning are decades out of date and were used before we were born." She looked amused. "She has no idea what an ATM is. She sent a note to my mother who sent back pictures of them and other items she may need to know about. Including modern stoves and microwaves."

"Oh, I didn't realize that." She went up to start the class, making that note for the teacher. The last few wandered in from outside so she got up to start the class.

***

Harry looked at his yearmates, who were shaking their heads. "Card games?" he offered.

"My deck disappeared from my trunk," one said. "Apparently solitaire is now contraband."

Harry frowned. "That makes no sense."

"It seems to be epidemic around here," Hermione quipped. She looked around. "I have no idea how to kill the time tonight. Anyone got anything they want me to proofread?"

"No papers given yet. It's only the second day," Neville said.

Harry groaned. "Dobby?" he called quietly. The house elf appeared, still wearing real clothes. "Can you find where our stuff that got stolen is this year?"

"In Headmaster's closet, Harry Potter sir." Hermione smiled at that. "Miss Grangy's books too."

"He's shit out of luck with that." She summoned them. They didn't come. So she did a different summoning and they all came back. All their stuff came back. Including her fun reading books from last year. "Ah, that's where it went!" She went to curl up in a window seat to read.

"Thanks, Dobby. The headmaster is against us playing snap or anything."

"The man has a mental defect," Hermione said bluntly. "And it's centered around himself and his ideas." She went back to reading, finding her spot easily enough.

McGonagall and the headmaster stomped in. "What did you do?" she demanded.

Hermione looked at her. "I took back my stolen property." She stared at her. "There's no reason to confiscate a free reading book. We don't have homework yet." She went back to reading.

"What's that about?" Ron snorted as he came back down the stairs from putting up his cards.

"Other realm fantasy novel."

"Oh." He nodded. "Like Tolkein?"

"Somewhat but not quite. It's based loosely around the mythology of a role playing game system. There's a lot of books loosely based on it. I've read this one before if you want to try it, Ron."

"No thanks. Too much reading is bad for me," he said dryly. He looked at Harry, who was playing solitaire. "Three on the four," he said.

"Thanks, didn't spot that." He played that and kept going. He looked at the heaving adults. "There's nothing wrong with snap or solitaire."

"It's gambling," the headmaster said firmly.

"I'm not betting a single thing on anything," Harry snorted back. "Just because it's got a card doesn't mean it's gambling. There's trading cards in the magical world too."

"I say we bring in Pokemon," a lower year muggle born quipped. "It's a lot of fun. Or one of the dueling card games like Yu-Gi-Oh."

Hermione looked at her. "Those are really expensive though. And someone would pout about losing their favorite cards somewhere in the castle. But if you do, we prefects don't mind. It's a trading card game mostly for Pokemon." She went back to reading. The headmaster was trying to confiscate the cards and then stomped over to snatch her book. She took it back.

"It's my private property," she said simply. "I am allowed to read for fun as well as education. It's not like it's the Communist Manifesto. Though the assignment I read that for was rather amusing. The book itself was boring as anything." Ron looked at her oddly. "Primary school, Ron. My last year there. It was a comparative paper on styles of government."

She looked at the headmaster again. "We are allowed to have free time activities. We would at home as well. As we're without homework we have to do something. Would you rather have us start an orgy or something?" A few of the boys laughed at that. "Most of us wouldn't participate but we may cheer people on." Those boys choked at that.

"You are unreasonably mouthy, young lady."

"No, I'm correct," she said. "And I'm sure I'm correct. We can't study every minute of every day and when we're done studying we need things to do in our downtime. If that's reading a fantasy novel then it is. If it's playing solitaire or snap, it is. At least we're still being social and pleasant. Around April that tends to change."

"Hermione, such books give younger students ideas that aren't proper."

"What? That other realms have fantasy novel settings?" She shrugged. "They all know the difference between fantasy and reality, right?" They all nodded at that. "So it won't give them ideas."

"Women weren't warriors," one said.

"Who do you think guarded queens and princesses?" Hermione asked back. "Or the family's home when the males were off fighting in wars they probably didn't want to be part of?"

"Oh, I didn't think about that. What about Mulan?"

"The movie was based on an actual Chinese myth from what I've seen noted. It was based on a real person."

"Wow." He looked at Harry.

"Didn't see the movie," Harry admitted.

"Oh." He looked at Hermione again. "There's rumors about your wedding?"

"There's no way I will *ever* marry someone before I finish college and start my career. I'm not going to risk my future on the whims of someone who can warm my bed and take out my trash. I may date someone but it won't be here. I know all the boys here and they're not to my tastes." She smiled a bit at him. "But if you hear the gossip starting again you can clearly shoot back for me please."

"I can do that. My mother's with the Ministry and said they're going to force marriages on everyone to make sure we breed enough."

"Then they're going to have hell to pay. Many of us will end up dead from that. Mostly women but if I'm forced I'll kill whoever attacks me." She shrugged. "If it's without consent it's rape. That's not only wrong and illegal but heinous and something that society should wipe from the earth."

"I can see that. But she said they're going to make it a law."

"I'd hate to see the ones who'd be forced have to fight back in courts and otherwise," Harry quipped. "I'm not even going to be dating until after the war's done. I'd never let anyone be a victim of that." The kid pouted. "And like her, I know everyone here and I'm doubting there's one here who I'd take in someday."

"They said you're marrying Ginny Weasley."

"Hell no I'm not," Ginny said. "I used to have a crush but nope. I know him too well and he's like my brother. I'm not into brothers." She turned the page on her magazine. She looked at Lavender. "Is that doable with my hair?"

She looked then shook her head. "You'd need it to be longer and a lot of help. Your hair's too thin and wispy."

"That sucks. It looks cute." She went back to looking at hairstyles. "Hermione, do you straighten yours?"

"No, I use a special shampoo we found. It's muggle but it's fantastic on my frizz problems." She went back to reading. "Someone tell Draco so he can nark to his father about that idea?"

"Yeah, we can do that," Harry agreed.

"Grams will have a fit," Neville said from his seat, smiling at the professor. "She doesn't want me to marry until after I have a mastery. She said early marriage dulls your future worth and then we'll have a whole generation of stupid people running the government. Even worse than we have now." She huffed and stomped off. "Anyone want to run down there?"

"I've got Prefect rounds," Ron said, going to tell others. The headmaster tried to grab him but Ron had a lot of siblings and could get out of most holds. "Oy, Abbot," he called as he walked down the stairs, thinking like Hermione. "You out here?"

"Weasley, you're loud," she complained from her spot.

"One of ours just said her mum's planning with the Ministry to force marriages on all of us. Against our wills."

She blinked a few times. "Excuse me?" she demanded. He nodded. "Name your source."

"Millers."

"Oh hell no!" She stomped off to pull that child out and ask him anything he knew about it. Then she wrote her mother and aunts.

Ron looked at Draco since he was watching that looking amused. "Can you please pretend to be a younger you and tell your father?"

"Yes, he'll be hearing of this," he agreed dryly. "With my luck they'll try to marry me to Pansy."

"Better than mine," Goyle complained.

"She said it was so bad she had to go shower off the bad thoughts," Ron told him. "And she's not dating before college."

"Good of her," Goyle agreed. "She's way too smart for guys like me."

Hermione came down the stairs with her book. "No, I prefer men who read a lot so we can talk about what we're reading and debate ideas. I have no idea if you do like to read or not but physically you're too big for my tastes. I don't want to feel like a doll next to a boyfriend." She smiled at him.

"I don't like to read a lot," he admitted. "Aunt Narcissa huffs when she catches me with a fantasy book."

"I'm rereading one of the D&D novels. The headmaster and McGonagall just had a fit."

"Wow," he said with a nod. "That's so wrong." They walked off as a group to break up snogging and send kids back to their houses for the night if they were actually doing work.

Hermione leaned into the library. "It closes in ten minutes," she called. "And don't make a mess for Madam Pince to clean up! She deserves better!"

"Yes, Granger," a few called back. They did clean up their areas and did leave on time so the library could close on time tonight. The librarian kissed her on the cheek for that good work when they passed in the halls.

Hermione smiled at the guys. "She does deserve some time to put up her feet and appreciate not being asked about things." They nodded at that. They walked off to check the usual snogging places and clear them out too. Hermione cleared her throat from the doorway. "I do not want to see any nakedness when I come in there," she announced. A few squeaked and there was a rush for clothes.

"It's nearly nine. Go back to your dorms please." She walked off. "I'll be back in ten minutes to write up couples making out." They fled before the time limit and most of them even cleaned up their messy spots. She only found one condom and used a 'return to sender' spell to send it at whoever had been using it. Draco laughed at that. She smiled. "It works well and I didn't have to see any naked arses tonight."

"I was laughing at how you taught him to clean up after himself." He walked off snickering. That had been a slytherin who had gotten hit with it, he was sure of it. And he was right because that one was complaining when he walked in. "Granger banished it back to sender because she didn't want to see it."

"I need to clean up after myself better," he complained, looking embarrassed and shrinking in his seat. "Did she close the library early?"

"Got the librarian out of there on time. Told them to clean up their own messes."

"She usually does," Pansy agreed from her and Milicent's corner. "It's sweet to Madam Pince." She looked over. "I heard that gossip."

"From Millers, whose mother works in the Ministry contract office."

"I've already told my mother," she said. "She's going to go burn down the building because I doubt whoever is who we'd choose."

"Granger said she'd just kill them."

She nodded. "Not a bad idea. We can teach the younger kids," she said, looking at the clump of first years. "You need to learn how to defend yourself. We'll start running the seminar on Sunday again soon." She looked at Millie, who shrugged. "I like her idea of ideas of blocking, locking, shielding, and alarms."

"We do all that already," Millie reminded her. "To make sure no boys get into the girls' rooms."

"True." She went back to homework. "A lot of snogging?"

The one who had been hit by his used condom looked back at her. "Granger stands in the doorway to note she doesn't want to see a naked arse so we scramble into clothes, then she announces she'll be back in ten minutes to write people up. She's only had to do a few of them."

"She's a lot nicer than I am," Draco said. "I'll stand there and watch and critique if you're poor at it. They seem to never do that again in front of me." He grinned as he walked off.

Pansy shook her head. "That figures." The others who had heard nodded too. Draco was a bit freaky. He probably liked to watch.

Draco came down the stairs. "The second floor bathroom is leaking heavily again." He went to tell Filch, finding him complaining loudly about not finding students out and about. "Yes, we did our jobs, Filch. Our bathroom on the second floor is flooding hard on the girls' side. It's about to the stairs. Can you send a house elf?"

"I can do that and fix it tomorrow. Use another one." He stomped off to make that note.

Draco walked off to tell the others that. That way they knew to hide any contraband items and someone would be in there at all times while it was being fixed so nothing got touched. The house elves came in to mop up the mess and see if they could fix it or report what was going on. This time it was a fully split pipe. They'd have to replace it.

***

"Oh my god and Merlin!" a female voice called. "POTTER! HELP!" He ran down the stairs and to where she was crying and pointing at the thing on the floor. "Stop it! Make it go away!"

He moved her out of the way, looking at the snake. "It's poisonous, did you get bitten?"

"No, it just popped out at us!" She pointed at her friends. "We were coming down to go to class! It came out eating a *mouse*!"

"It's okay as long as you didn't get bitten." He picked it up carefully. "Go to class. I'll have Hagrid send it to the Ministry to be sent to somewhere safer." They ran out to do that. He carried the snake out there, making Hagrid grimace. "Can you send it to the Ministry to be sent somewhere safer? It's still a little one, Hagrid."

"I can do that, 'Arry. It looks pretty."

"It's poisonous, Hagrid. Be careful." He grinned and took it to put into his pocket. "Thanks."

"Welcome. I heard 'em yell."

"Second years going to herbology. It popped out to scare them." He grinned, going back inside. "Just a baby snake," he called. A few people sighed loudly at that.

Ron looked up at the reentry. "Big?"

"Snake. Small poisonous baby snake."

"Oh." Ron nodded. "At least they knew you'd kill it."

"It's going to the ministry to be sent to a safer area." Ron grimaced. "It's better that way. They do eat spiders."

"I guess." They looked at the teacher, who looked amused. "Sorry."

"It happens. I'm glad it's going somewhere safe as well, boys. Who has it?"

"Hagrid."

"Excellent, he can keep it calm." He went back to the lesson of the day.

At lunch, Hermione looked at him. "What happened?"

"Small poisonous baby snake. I gave it to Hagrid so he could send it off."

She nodded. "That's nice of you." She handed him the plate with bread. He made his own lunch so he could eat. "Think we'll have homework tonight?"

"Shh, don't say that or we will," Ron complained.

"I did mine during my study hall just now," she admitted. "Neville, any homework tonight?"

"Bit but it's a later assignment."

"I have some," Ginny said. "But it's a herbology paper. Do you have last year's notes, Neville? I'm beginning the fifth year run of homework."

"I do and you can borrow them," he agreed.

"Thanks. I'll make a copy later." She looked at her classmates, who were pouting.

Ron looked down there. "The week before the hols in our fifth year we had nine papers due before we left and two after we came back." They all groaned. "That was the only set I didn't procrastinate on."

"We had more than that," Hermione said. "That depends on your electives. And we had it more than once, Ron. We had it back before halloween that year. And one in march too." The fifth years moaned. She smiled. "Just keep notes and revise as you go. Don't wait until the last minute to reread them, but do reread them the night before the test to refresh.

"Just a few months before hand sit down with your notes from all your other years and go over them slowly, class by class. Then put them down and aside until the night before the test, then refresh yourself." They nodded at that. "Though you can do flash cards and make games of identifying things. That works for some."

Harry looked down. "Don't do what she did to Ron and pop quiz him." They giggled at that. "But she's right, take it slowly then refresh so it stays with you." They nodded. "And study all years. We had some from second year."

"Wonderful," Ginny said sarcastically.

"You can study with others. If you have friends who're good in one or two areas, let them do the main refreshing and then help you when you're stuck while you do the same with your good areas," Hermione said.

"I didn't think about that." She looked over her shoulder. "Luna, wanna help us study?"

"Sure, Ginny."

"Thanks." She looked at her classmates, who all smiled at her for that. She spotted something and looked. "Hagrid, you've got an escapee."

He looked around him and found the snake again, picking it up by the tail. Which made it want to bite. Which it did, the headmaster. "Oops." He took it to send it to the ministry now.

"Madam Pomfrey, that snake was poisonous," Harry called. "It's a type of rattler." She hopped up to see who had gotten bitten. She had to call for an anti-toxin from the main hospital, who had to call a muggle one. It was going to be a long day in the infirmary.

***

The school board got Mr. Potter to talk to him that night. The room was under peace and truce spell to make sure nothing got too heated. "Why did you not kill the snake, Mr. Potter?"

"I don't tend to kill defenseless creatures who're just trying to live their lives. Yes, it wandered into a school. I made sure it hadn't bitten anyone and gave it to Hagrid to send to the creatures people so they could release it back into the wild in a better spot. Hagrid apparently got busy with classes because it came to lunch with us. And decided to go visiting. It's a very young snake, only a few months old."

"Why were you involved instead of Mr. Filch?" another asked him.

"Because one of the girls screamed my name and I had to hop up from defense to go see what was going on." That got a nod. "Did you want me to ignore them?"

"No." Lucius looked at him. "We have decided it's not your fault or Hagrid's fault. Snakes are snakes and will bite people they think might be tasty." He looked at the others. "We have however been deluged with letters from students about the code of conduct?" Harry pulled his out to hand over with a smile. "Oh, with notes."

"Neville sent his too but he had to add in parchment pages to finish his note making."

Lucius winced at that. "Longbottom?"

"Yes, Mr. Malfoy."

He nodded once. "The boy doesn't usually complain."

"You can also add that the headmaster confiscated cards and books because apparently he considers us playing snap or solitaire gambling and Hermione reading in her off time to be illegal."

"No homework?"

"Just got the first big assignment earlier today. It was a few days ago. Second day of school. The first night we spent going over the many ways the rule book is meant to screw up any female student and any muggle born."

Lucius shook his head but went into it. "Your handwriting is atrocious, Potter."

"Sorry. Best I could do at the dinner table."

Lucius shook his head again, going on. "What is that?"

Harry leaned over to look. "Yes, that's what he thinks it is." Lucius shared that.

"That would leave the girls out of classes for weeks just lounging around."

"Probably about a week," Harry said. "And they have things that can handle that need. You'd have to ask a girl because I've only seen adverts."

Lucius grimaced but kept going, staring at a few things. "He wanted you do to what?"

"That's just one of the minor ones, Mr. Malfoy. The major ones are underlined. One's underlined twice and scribbled through because I got mad and my pen went flying and did it."

The older man stared at him then went back to it. He found the underlined ones and mentally winced. The scribbled one he had to hold up to look at clearly but that was bad. "We did not approve this."

"He tried to stop the train in the middle of nowhere so he could have people board it and hand those over. Which panicked the students and they fought them off."

"I can see why with the dementors your third year," Malfoy said dryly.

"Exactly."

Lucius stared at him. "Are you the patron avenging saint of the school?"

"No. It just happens around me, Mr. Malfoy. I sincerely wish there had been someone I could follow instead of being in front. I'd love for teachers to actually protect the students for us." He winced at that. "Their idea is to lock students in the houses and leave them in the dark otherwise.

"Also, we're already missing a student." One of the board members sat up straighter at that. "One of the young slytherins hasn't been seen in a few days. They all seem upset but won't note it anywhere. I don't want to ask Draco but maybe you could ask Draco?"

"I shall be doing that, Mr. Potter." He stared at his hand. "I heard."

"It was news to me but many things are about my family."

"Point." He looked at the others. "Do we go back to the last code of conduct?"

"Yes," a few said.

"Before one of the muggle borns have a fit," another added.

"Hermione's promised to start a civil rights movement for witches," Harry said with a grin. "Mostly to stop this and the plot at the ministry to force marriages. Again."

"Again?" Malfoy demanded.

"Miss Miller told us that same night of the card and book incident. We shared with the other students so they could protect themselves."

"That should be the parent's jobs, Mr. Potter," one said. "Even for you, you have godparents."

"I do, Remus Lupin, who was ready to go rip out someone's throat. But like earlier, I'd love to have a teacher to follow instead of having to plan how to protect the students ourselves. They don't deserve this. Any of this."

"No, they don't," Lucius agreed, staring at the boy. "What if there's another attack?"

"We've got plans. Have had for over a year. Just in case we needed them last year." He stared at him. "We're adding more kids who can protect themselves all the time. Because we're having to do it instead of others doing it for us."

"Do you think that some of the children won't be involved?" one asked.

Harry stared at him, showing his anger at that very idea. "If so we're not naive anymore. Yes there will be. Will they get hit just as hard? Yes. We've made that point a few times when necessary. Their only job is to protect themselves and their roommates if they need them to.

"Or if they're trapped somewhere whoever they're trapped with. Especially if they're younger kids. We hate it, we *loathe* that idea, but it was the only one we had as we're the only ones doing things. If an adult would like to step in and stop some of it for us, we could like to relax for a bit. Especially Hermione."

"She should be able to but I'll be looking into that. Did anyone else of note come up?"

"They're going to try to force me with Ginny Weasley in some sort of poetic move since she reminds people of my mother, even though my mother was apparently more like Hermione. Some people have suggested her instead but she's like my sister as well. Less so than Ginny is. Someone suggested I start to bugger Neville and he had a choking fit and nearly had the Hufflepuff eaten by a killer plant." He sighed. "Which caused a huge mess that Ron somehow got blamed for."

"Is it a radio drama?" Lucius asked dryly.

"Yes. Often." Harry nodded at him. "Because we're teenagers having to save ourselves and our world."

"True, all teenagers are like that." The board members shared a look. "We will be talking to the headmaster tonight. He wanted you banished from the school for him being bitten."

"It's not my fault I didn't kill a defenseless being. Maybe it's his fault for smelling like a tasty meal for a snake." A few tried not to laugh.

"Point, Mr. Potter. You're growing into your father's wit."

"His painting said I look like him but I'm a lot more like my mother apparently."

"No, your mother would've helped Miss Granger lead a revolt already."

"That'll probably happen when he tries to restrict anyone who's not a pureblood to the school instead of town trips."

"That's not reasonable. You need to get away from the school sometimes. Why did he do that?"

"We have no idea. But even Neville said he'd be breaking rules like a Gryf this year." He shrugged and left.

The board argued about the rule book. Most thought it was unnecessary and over-extending. The man had been a bad compromise as a pick. It was coming home to them. The headmaster strolled in looking pleased. "It's not Potter's fault for not killing a harmless being that wasn't hurting anyone at that time," one told him.

"He's right to have sent it to Creatures to have them release it." That made the headmaster glare at them. Oh well! "Also, we've been buried in owls about your code of conduct. Let's talk about them and why you made them."

"That girl," he sneered.

"No. We've had a great many from Slytherins. From Ravenclaws as well."

Lucius nodded. "We have. Every single pureblood in the school has sent us an owl about the new code of conduct." He stared at him. "So explain yourself to us." The man sat down with a huff to go over them one by one. They asked questions, taking notes, and making points about those that would be impacted more than others. They had to appear to be reasonable or the school could get sued.

***

Harry got called to a meeting that weekend, frowning at the Weasleys. "What's going on?" he asked Ron.

"No clue." They walked into the meeting room. "Mum, Dad, emergency?"

"No, we've heard some news and came to talk about it," Arthur said. He looked at his daughter.

"I haven't even started a revolt yet," Ginny joked.

Her mother sniffled. "You're getting married! Finally!"

"No I am not!" she said, backing away from the hug. "I'm not even seeing someone, Mother! Did you bang your head?"

Arthur cleared his throat, looking at Harry. "Really?"

"Oh, no, she's like my sister. I'd never touch that girl. Especially since I think it'd be icky since so many think she looks like my mother." He shook his head. "We're not seeing each other and it won't happen."

"Of course it will," Molly cooed, giving him a hug.

Harry got free. "No it won't. I'm more likely to take up the suggestion that I should go bugger Neville than Ginny."

Ron sighed. "Harry, don't make me hit you for insulting my sister." He looked at his parents. "That was some idiot at the ministry's idea of a good idea. Like them trying to marry Hermione and Goyle."

Arthur winced. "That would not work."

"Neither would Ginny and I. Really. She's like my sister. I don't believe in incest." Ginny swatted him on the arm. "Hey!"

"Shut up, Harry. You're panicking." She looked at her parents. "No, it won't happen or I'll call Merlin back my own self, Mother." Her mother looked so upset. "I might've had a crush on him but I've seen him when he's sick, when he's scratching his butt, when he's lacking sleep, when he's grumpy. I don't want to touch that and haven't since my second year." Harry looked at her. "You being heroic was hot but it made me see what being with someone like you is like. I don't need that stomach upset."

"I don't need that stomach upset either," Harry told her. "Not my doing usually. No one else does it." He looked at Molly again. "I'm not touching Ginny. Ever. I'm sorry someone told you that. We've been fighting that rumor and all that stress the whole time."

"They said the paperwork's been signed, Harry dear."

"I didn't. The auror who has my legal guardianship didn't. Xander didn't and he's got my magical guardianship. So someone forged it or someone who thought they had authority did it. If they made it legally binding they're in for a rude shock when there's no kids in the next generation. Because forcing someone like that is rape." She winced at that. "Sorry. Please, help us complain."

"Please help us stop that," Ginny agreed. "I don't want Harry. I don't want any of the boys in this school. I know them too much to ever want to kiss them or go farther."

Arthur sighed. "You could grow to love someone."

"Not here. Especially not in the house. I know too much about them, Dad. Maybe once I start working and I meet others I'll find someone but right now, marriage isn't even a concept I want to think about."

"You could give in."

"No, I won't," Ginny said simply, staring at her. "Never, Mother. Not ever. I will not touch Harry, kiss Harry, snog Harry, screw Harry, nothing like that."

"Hey!" Ron complained. "I don't want to think about you doing any of that."

"So?" Ginny demanded, looking at him. "It'll happen some day and it won't be anyone I presently know. Or you know probably." She looked at her parents again. "No." She looked at Harry. "If they try it, don't kill me?"

"I'll immobilize you and maybe just damage you a bit instead," he said dryly. "They're going to have to knock me out and drag me there anyway, Ginny."

"Point. Well, you can bring down the ministry."

"Yes I can." He nodded with a smirk. She shuddered at that look.

Ron looked at him. "Should've done that when we were defending it. Would've saved us some problems."

"I thought about it." Arthur scowled. "It's the truth."

"It is, because I thought the same thing," Ginny told them. She looked at her mother. "Anything else today, Mum?"

"No." She sighed. "I wish you would give in."

"I don't and if I am forced to marry someone you're not getting grandkids. I'll take myself or them out first." She walked off.

Ron nodded. "Hermione says the same thing and so do most of the other girls."

"I can agree with that," Harry said. "I'd do it too. They try to force me and I'll handle it like I would a problem that it'll become." He left them to talk to Ron if they wanted to.

Professor McGonagall stopped him to smile at him. "I hear congratulations are in order."

"No they're not."

"It's normal to be a bit nervous, Harry."

"No, I'm not going to do anything with Ginny Weasley. Ever." She looked startled. "I don't care who tries to force it; I'll call them out to duel them for honor if I must. I didn't agree to that, no one who has any say in my life agreed to that, and it won't be happening. Ever. For either of us."

He got free of her hand, making it go limp at her side. "I have no idea who has this idea but if I have to find out and sue them too I will." He walked off again fuming. He sent an owl to his lawyer to see if he could find that out and stop it. And for anyone else on the list.

McGonagall went to talk to Molly, who was huffy that they had turned down her fondest dream of her daughter marrying Harry. "They're young. They could grow into it."

"They could," she agreed, looking at her. "Harry did promise to only injure her slightly."

"Well, he has had to fight too many years, Molly. So has Ginny."

Ron leaned in. "I'll save Ginny if I have to by injuring her. We might need Harry, Ginny can work from a chair." He looked at the professor. "Your classroom just sprung a leak in the roof. We all got drenched and so was your desk." She hurried off to go fix that problem. He looked at his parents. "Stick up for us please." He left again.

***

Harry faced the whole Wizengamet board a few weeks later. "No, there was no marriage. I did not consent or fill out that form. No one with any ability to have custody of me signed that form. As I'm sixteen I'm more than able to make up my own mind."

"It's a legally binding document, Mr. Potter."

"It's a forged document," he countered. "No one signed it from us."

"Her mother did."

"Her mother knows we're not going to do that. She knew that then. We told her then. Ginny told her this summer. We told her when she showed up to be happy about it. We're not married and we're not together and we won't ever be together. And the more you push this the more I never want to date anyone at all!" They all winced at that.

"For that matter, your plots to make us all breed for the future will just end up with a lot of people dead. Forcing a woman that way is rape and she's well within her rights to end that rapist. None of the ones in that list want that relationship and they'll live apart so no kids will come of it.

"No matter what you put on paper it's not real and we're not going to give in. If we have to destroy this ministry to do so, so be it!" He stared at one. "Now, I believe we asked to see said papers so we could sue the one who signed them fraudulently."

"It was not! They had custody of you!"

"A US auror has custody of me," he corrected. "And my magical guardian is my cousin Xander, who is the heir of the Dumass clan." He shuddered, shrinking away from him. "No one else has any shred of custody of me. So who was it?"

"The school does during the school year."

"That's false. It's against the law. It's explicitly written into the school's charter." He put it down on the front desk, the one who took in evidence. "Does that not say that the school does not hold custody or guardianship of any student, that right remains with their families?"

He looked it over. "It does." He looked back to pass it around. Then he looked at Harry again. "Please control your temper."

"Please control your minions," Harry shot back. "I'm not a slave to the ministry." He stared at him. "Should they try to make me, I'll walk off. Permanently." A few winced at that and one sniffled. But Neville's grandmother was a bit sentimental. "The whole school will follow." He looked at the others.

"How did you like being told that your daughter has been given out like a party favor to Ron Weasley? She got sick for days and went on crying fits. Ron had to assure her multiple times he didn't want her or to touch her to make sure she didn't cut herself. Is this how magicals raise their children?" He stomped off. "Hand the lawyer the papers or I'm suing you and them!" He slammed the door behind himself and it broke. Then fell off the hinges.

"I have the feeling the whole ministry will fall in that way," Madam Bones said. "Though I agree since they're trying to force my underage niece into one as well. Where are the paperworks?"

"Filed. It's all legal."

"It's not legal. Even if there's a blood bound contract there's legal clauses to get them out of it and I doubt these are blood bound."

"No, they're not," Lucius agreed. He handed over the ones he had found. "Draco will not be marrying his first cousin. His name's not Victoria." The evidence person winced at that anger. He looked it over. "By the way, it was signed by Dumbledore."

"He'll be dying wherever he is," one quipped.

"Considering that they tried to marry someone to Tom Riddle, yes he will be." He still had to tell Voldemort about that plot. A few others winced and rubbed their arms over their marks. "We really must end all these plots. Before some unfortunate people are born."

"Is Draco arranged yet?" one asked.

"We're looking overseas. That way the blood isn't too mixed in." That got a sigh and a nod. "My wife has a short list ready for his opinion."

A few nodded. "Do we think Potter will turn into a Dark Lord to fight us?"

A few looked at him in pity. "You're forcing him there," Augusta Longbottom told him. "I think he'd stop at us." They all considered it. "I call for us to be presented the formal forms so we can look them over, dispose of them as the garbage they are, and then fix the problem that got started even if it is the hard way. Which does mean jail," she told a few by staring at them.

The evidence person looked. "Bad news, there's an enforced copulation law." They all stared at him. "That both parties would surrender all family goods to the ministry if they are not followed within a month."

Xander strolled in with someone with him. "This is the head judge of the international courts. Convince me and him that we don't have to end England."

"Who are you?" one asked.

"Xander Harris, heir of the Dumass clan and Harry's cousin." He smirked. "His magical guardian."

"We thought they all died out with Alexander."

"No and he had kids. As Harry proves." He smirked. "Including a few others like Professor Snape." A few looked disgusted. "We're not allowing this. I have Harry's magical guardianship. The auror who has his physical guardianship is livid and planning on how to get over here. We're all suing everyone involved.

"If they try to confiscate anything we're going to have to remove a lot of people from family lines to protect any assets like ancestral homes. Which means all your lines stop. Because you can't readmit them." He looked at a few. "Your families are old. Are they done with?"

"No," one said, looking at the others. "I say we get those and immediately declare them illegal then launch an investigation so we can handle this the hard way."

"It's an automatic clause in a binding legal document."

"Only if it's legal," Xander said. The judge came over to look at it. "Was it signed by someone who had legal custody of Harry?"

"No. It's signed Albus Dumbledore." He frowned. "The one that was your representative to us?"

"Yes, him and he's in jail." Madam Bones looked at him. "He and Fudge had a lot of stupid and bad ideas. They got sued and found guilty in civil and criminal trials." She looked at Xander, who smirked back. "Please do not live up to his former nickname, Mr. Harris."

"I don't think he really ever intended to bring down buildings. Though sometimes it might've seemed to be amusing. Right now.... It won't help any."

Someone rushed in. "The south tower's dungeons at Hogwarts just collapsed."

"Anyone hurt?" Xander asked.

"No. That's not where classes are held. That's a storage area." He looked at the others.

"Potter's still in town," Xander said. "He's getting on the knight bus. But I'm guessing there's a natural cursebreaker up there right now. We do things like that." He grinned at Bones, who shuddered. "And I'm guessing there's more than one as Weasley shows some gifts too."

"Oh, no," she muttered. "Hogwarts can't fall in."

"It's a school. The legacy can still live on even if the school's an actual ruin," Xander said. "If it falls in, oh well! Maybe we'll find all the other stolen items that he was hiding." She winced again but nodded. "Now, anyone who upholds these is guilty of attempted line theft and ending a noble and honorable house." He looked at one.

"Which the Potters were. And the Longbottoms are." Augusta blinked then winced. "Unless you really want to lose everything to the bank, who the clauses default to...." He grinned. "Is that your endgame to bring down the community? I can help with that. See, you guys lean a lot of things on the back of cursebreakers. The shields over Diagon.

"The ones that keep the alley from being run into by the tube and underground systems. The ones that keep the bank from falling into the tube and underground systems. Every single protection you have on the community rests on the back of the human cursebreakers. Because you contracted the bank to put up and maintain the shields instead of doing it yourselves." He smirked a bit. "We can withdraw all our energies from it. Hell, if I do that, the bank falls in." He grinned. "Within weeks."

"You can't do that," Amelia Bones said.

"Like hell I can't. I'm not employed by the bank and they're still trying to siphon off me."

"That would be very dark."

"It'd be very just as it was stolen energy." She grimaced, looking away. "It doesn't have to happen but I'm pretty sure all of the cursebreakers are going to be mad that they and some of their siblings have been given away like party favors to be sexually assaulted for years on end and forced to bear children against their bloodline.

"Which will end the bloodlines as the family magic would end that tragedy to protect the rest. As it did with Madam Piazars at one point in time." He looked at the one who had taken over their family's title and seat. He looked horrified.

"Now, are you all guilty of line theft and ending many bloodlines? I mean, the bank can auction off the remains that the cursebreakers don't loot. Most of us are legal and good people but nothing else to do when our jobs are suddenly gone. Since the community goes with it you'll all be exposed to the real world, which is nothing like yours. I doubt a single one of you would ever watch a tv.

"So, forced integration, the loss of everything you've ever had, your money being devalued as worthless in the muggle world, because it's not backed up by anything or acknowledged, and outing the community to the world at large so no other country would let you in because you could be tracked. Or you can do the right thing immediately." He held up the time turner. "I can do it for you but if I do that, the hell you're going to pay is your own because I'll remember you didn't act." He looked at Amelia Bones.

"I'll go," she ordered, taking it from him and going back by months to go stop all that.

The world rippled and everyone realized but now it wasn't that way. Xander kicked back in class, being happier again. That quit endangering his family. The bank was probably in trouble for helping that idea.

***

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