herumtreiber

Title: Windbound 4/33
Chapter: four
Author:herumtreiber
Genre: post DH, slash, romance, adventure
Disclaimer: The world and characters of Harry Potter belong to JK Rowling. Nor do I make any money from the writing of these stories.
Rating: R
Warnings: Sexual content
Epilogue compliant? Epilogue complaisant
Chapter length: 2151 words
Beta: None.
Summary: Draco/Harry, Ron/Hermione, Hannah/Dean, Justin/Daphne, Ginny/??? My take on the Marriage Law. Should they obey the government’s edict or fight it the Muggle way? This leads to marriage equality. Plus there’s a twist exploring how a Horcrux operates. Good!Lucius, finally:) Hufflepuff house is amply represented here.

Table of contents

Chapter four - part 1

The Monday after the gang met, September 28^th, Harry was walking towards the Room of Requirement when he met a disgruntled Susan Bones. She irritably mussed her plaited blond hair whilst she denounced loudly that git, Etienne Zabini. Apparently the boy had the gall to send her a gift to initiate their courtship.

While they waited for their blond sparring partner, Harry began a discussion about how strange it was to see Draco mingling with Hufflepuffs - and being accepted by them.

"You might think you know about us Puffs, Harry” – replied Susan as the Grey Lady saluted them with a nod of her translucent head – “but you don't. No one really does. It’s true that we are fiercely loyal to ideals and persons. My family's cherished motto is 'Reconciliation first.' They hold the belief that after the worst is over, the time comes to leave war behind and start fresh."

Susan walked up the marble stairs and nodded to the portrait of some friars writing in a scriptorium. "I faced the quandary of forgiving Draco or remaining aloof. I saw his joyful face and tears of happiness when he reunited with his parents during the final battle.”

Harry didn’t recall the occasion. In truth, the day was tinged with regret and sadness after the many deaths caused by Voldemort’s forces. In the confusion of that battle and its aftermaths, all he remembered distinctly were the bodies of his friends and classmates lying on the Great Hall.

He nodded grimly whilst he heard Susan’s words. The Hufflepuff girl continued, “If I had the dilemma of complying or losing my family, perhaps I’d’ve done the same thing Draco did. I’ve found that family demands complete commitment.”

Thinking wistfully about the family he never had – his parents yanked brutally from his life before he ever knew them by the damned noseless Voldemort - Harry replied, “Yeah, if I’d had the chance, I reckon I’d do everything for my family, even the Dursleys.”

Susan shot him a sympathetic look. It was common knowledge amongst the members of Dumbledore’s Army the treatment Harry received at the hand of the awful Dursleys. Many times she’d spoken with her Hufflepuff friends about it. They never arrived at a consensus. Most believed Harry needed to stay with them due to some family magic acting perhaps to protect him from Voldemort, but a significant minority just shook their heads. Surely there were other, viable relatives that weren’t so awful?

And if Dumbledore was so intent on keeping Death Eaters away from Harry during his formative years, his handling of the whole fake Moody affair would lead to the conclusion that the Headmaster had not been all that omniscient.

Shaking her head, Susan continued her story. "On the first day of term, I was walking on the corridor. You know, the one next to the Charms classroom?”

Harry nodded distractedly and Susan went on. “Well, I found Draco fighting four blokes – amongst them was Ron, by the way.”

Trust Ron to hold a grudge, thought Harry ruefully, shaking his head.

Susan stopped in front of the tapestry of the Dancing troll whilst Harry paced back and forth the required number of times. “Seamus was there, too. The lot was preparing to cast spells at Draco. I knew I had a choice-"

Susan paused to frame her thoughts.

“- I could just walk away and turn my back on everything Hufflepuff represents – ethics, compassion, friendship - or I could fight on the side of the downtrodden, remaining faithful to my classmate.”

After the door appeared, Harry stepped back and motioned for Susan to enter. The blonde walked with a proud step as she said, “It was one of the easiest choices I've made."

Harry frowned, recalling his own life. It had certainly been full of stumbling blocks. Perils seemed to sprung out of nowhere and lay in ambush for him. Fighting Voldemort he really had no choice but to follow his instincts and trust in Dumbledore’s guidance. His path certainly had no easy choices; Harry had berated himself endlessly because of the deaths of the people near him: his parents, Cedric – and Sirius, always Sirius.

Amidst the tribulations, he’d come to rely on simple comforts, like friendship and the trust of his small circle of friends. Harry had seen in Draco another victim of Voldemort’s and had chosen to reach out to the downed Slytherin and offer him his support to escape Azkaban and remain free. Harry recalled with a certain fondness the brat he’d met at Madam Malkin’s before his first trip to Hogwarts. Despite everything, the Gryffindor had faith in Draco’s goodness – his decision not to murder Dumbledore. For Harry, helping Draco had been one of the easiest decisions he’d made.

So Harry nodded and replied, “Yes, helping a classmate in need is always an easy choice.”

Susan picked up a cushion and threw it on the floor, weighing whether to sit down whilst they waited for the Slytherin. "So I decided to work for the future. We all make mistakes. During our years together, Draco's mistakes have been paid for in blood, suffering and humiliation.”

Harry hefted a silver sword whilst he listened to the Hufflepuff girl. Susan finally sat down and continued, "Draco changed as a result of the war. I guess it removed some cobwebs from his mind?”

Harry replied, “I think it did him good. I reckon the war changed us all.”

Susan cast a Tempus spell and frowned at the time, wondering where the Slytherin was. “Anyway, Draco’s still as stubborn and passionate as ever, but is more amenable to reason. He's got a temper, though, as several in the school will tell you. He can prank them good.”

The Hufflepuff girl essayed a smirk. "I’ll go so far as to admit that in some of them he was helped by Hufflepuffs – with the help of Terry. That Ravenclaw is really devious.”

During the talk, Susan felt Harry’s piercing stare – as if the Gryffindor was trying to gauge her deepest thoughts. Though Harry seemed to be unaware of this behaviour, a bit out of character for the normally cheerful Gryffindor.

Eventually Draco arrived, murmuring curses at an owl named Osiris that couldn't wait for an answer. The Slytherin noticed the sword Harry had picked up from the wall and decided they should learn more about wielding those weapons. Lucius had taught him the rudiments of swordplay, and later Draco had private lessons.

They fell to performing their routine exercises. Afterwards at Draco's urging, they started using the sword. Learning to move it with grace and precision was exacting work, and when the allotted time had run out, they were very tired.

They still had time to learn Defence against some Dark spells, at which Harry was proving to be unbeatable.

Harry didn't conjure any more snakes to use as duds. He just ordered the Room to produce dummies. Harry approached Draco and blushed. He started to say, "D-do y-you want to…"

Draco turned and looked at Harry's flushed face and answered gently, "What do you want to say, Harry?"

Harry replied a bit bashfully, "Will you go with me to Hogsmeade next weekend?"

Draco winced inwardly, that Sunday he had to meet his father again at the Hog's Head. "I'm sorry, Harry, but I’ve stuff to do on Sunday."

Harry's face fell. Seeing this, Draco continued, "But we could go on Saturday if it's ok with you?"

Harry beamed. "Yeah!"

While they were talking, Susan walked rapidly to the door. Draco called out to her, "Aren't you coming with us, Susan?"

Susan murmured something under her breath. Draco countered with, "Come on, Susan! What gives? You wouldn't want Hannah and Justin to get worried, would you?"

Susan sighed to herself - Draco might be softer now; it didn't mean he was any less of a stubborn Slytherin. Unfortunately if the snoops Hannah and Justin found out about this, they would pester her for days.

She glared at Draco and replied vehemently, "Fine! I'm going out with Robert Lehmke. He's related to Liz, the ombudswoman. He is a Slytherin in sixth year. Of course, with the dratted Marriage Law, it makes no difference what I want anymore, does it?"

Surprising Harry, Draco walked up to Susan and gave her a heartfelt hug."I'll distract the Snoopy Duo. Have fun."

Harry couldn't help but feel a little envious of Susan.

HDHDHDHDHDHDHDHD

On the last day of September, Draco received a missive from his father. Lucius and Jason wanted to meet today with the gang. Draco was instructed to use the enclosed portkey at 5:00 pm to get to Gondor, the estate of the Finch-Fletchleys.

At lunch, Draco waved Lavender over and gave her several parchments. He smirked his trademark Malfoy smirk. "I've been researching our wedding, Lav, and I need your signature in all these papers. Just sign here."

Lavender did as her fiancé requested and left with a sneer of her own. She didn’t notice the angry stares of the Slytherins, or the amused Hufflepuffs.

Draco leaned towards Terry and told him about the meeting. Hermione and Ginny were sitting in front of Draco and heard the news.

Meanwhile Justin was telling the Hufflepuff girls about Hermione’s latest creation. The RAMS, acronym that meant Resistance Against Marriage Submission.

At 4:54, they met in front of the Room of Requirement. Hannah opened the door, waving them into the room that was decorated according to her wishes.

Terry and Draco immediately started complaining about the awful yellow-purple combination. Justin soon joined their chorus, ignoring the angry stares of Hannah and Susan.

Draco started to disrobe and take out his belt - to the amazement (and secret delight) of some of them. Eventually he raised it and pointed to it. "This is the portkey. Perhaps my father is joking? Merlin knows!"

They all grabbed the belt and were duly whisked away by the portkey.

They reappeared in the manor of Jason Finch-Fletchley.

Soon the door opened and the butler waved them in. Mr. Jones told them to go to the dining room when they were ready and left them some pastries and refreshments on a side table.

After the greedy boys took some sweets, the group went to the designated room. Draco had to admit that the house was superbly decorated. There was an understated elegance to the marble floors, the French windows and the rich upholstery.

Approaching the centre of the room, Draco saw a table liberally covered by paper and yellowed parchment. Lucius and Jason were in a very spirited discussion about the United Nations Chart.

After the men greeted their sons and introductions were offered, the Hogwarts students took their seats.

Draco handed over to Lucius the parchment with Lavender’s signature. Lucius glared at it and hastily put it aside.

The elder Malfoy drawled, "I take it you have all been informed about the current situation with the Law."

After the students nodded, Lucius went on. "The Bill will be presented to Parliament on October 5th. Jason and I are doing our utmost to ensure that the measure does not find enough votes to become law of the realm."

Whilst Lucius was talking, Hermione was examining the books. After her experience in Malfoy Manor and her ordeal at the hands of crazed Bellatrix, Hermione could not find it in herself to trust Lucius completely. She was trying, but it was very hard to find the empathy to begin to forgive the elder Malfoy.

Putting a book down, Hermione frowned and asked a penetrating question. "What measures are you taking to ensure this, Mr. Malfoy? Political or magical?"

Knowing that the girl was bound to distrust him at first, Lucius replied calmly, "I assure you, Miss Granger, that if I were to employ Imperio on a Member of Parliament I would not succeed. In fact, I would act against the delicate geas that presides over our actions and probably would suffer a calamitous accident or die."

Jason sensed the awkwardness of the situation between Lucius and Hermione. The Malfoy patriarch had confided a lot in the muggle politician, so Jason sought to defuse the situation."We will use the traditional weapons of politics - persuasion and applying political weight."

Looking sharply at his son, the curly-haired man went on. "If we succeed, and the Law is defeated in the Commons, you lot have the problem of getting married to comply with that crazy Law of yours - for it would still be valid in your realm."

Jason pointed to the haphazardly thrown papers and parchments."This is where Lucius and I come in. We’ve concocted a delightful plan. Wizards tried to use Parliament and its brilliant history to do their dirty work for them.”

Jason smirked gleefully, not unlike Lucius. “Let them live with the results when the Muggle world responds!"

Justin, watching his father's visage, thought with a shudder that if his father had been a wizard, he’d have been sorted into Slytherin.

Terry smiled triumphantly and picked up a law book he knew from his own research. "I think I know where this is going. In the Wizarding World we have no recourse outside the Wizengamot and the Ministry. In the Muggle world, there are many possibilities to fight against an unpopular measure while staying within the law."

Hermione frowned, thinking that she needed to research more extensively. She hated when she failed to understand something immediately. "So Draco is going to demand something from the Muggles?"

Jason replied excitedly, "On the contrary, my dear, Draco has no rights in the Muggle world. There’s no record of his birth, no social security number, no school history, nothing. He can't come up and demand a trial if he doesn't exist in our eyes. I suppose this is another way the Wizarding World excludes young people from current history and movements - by making you invisible."

Sounding uncannily like a younger Lucius, Jason drawled lazily, “Let me read you a part of the proposed Muggle Law:

Be it considered as proved, that the State needs to safeguard the purity of the stock by adequately husbanding like with unlike, to prevent unwanted complications. An individual with mixed stock will be put together with a genealogically pure individual; a being of common stock will be joined with the genealogical pure entity."

The Hogwarts students looked horrified. Hermione realised with a sinking feeling how secure and smug the proponents of the Law must feel - hoodwinking their supposed allies with such artful drivel. Ginny's face was red, and the redhead was glaring at Justin, as if his making Head Boy was to blame for the whole fiasco.

Jason continued, "No, Draco will not demand anything. However, we will open proceedings in London, before the Director of Public Prosecutions - we'll also lodge a complaint in Brussels, before the European Union.”

Not wanting to be left out, Lucius interjected, “And we’ll complain with the United World in New York!”

Jason shook his head ruefully and commented, “The United Nations, Lucius – there’s no such thing as the United World.”

Whilst the Malfoy patriarch glared at his new friend, Jason continued blithely, “Our complaints will say that people's human rights are violated by forcing their hand in a manner that is reminiscent of slave trading. We will do this independently of whether the law passes in the Commons or not.”

Jason looked at Lucius, and the blond man went on, “If it passes, we continue our efforts, if it fails - this will greatly undermine the Wizarding Marriage Law."

Lucius concluded, "The beauty of this is that the persons complaining do exist in their world - they are some of the halfbloods and Muggleborns.”

Lucius pointed to the students. “People like Terry Boot, Hannah Abbot, Susan Bones and our own delightful Lavender Brown” – Lucius lifted the parchment the oblivious Lavender had signed and gloated – “who appended her signature to this affidavit so the case in her name can proceed."

Ginny shook her head – she wasn’t sure that it would be as easy as the men proposed. "What do you think they’ll do?"

Jason replied, "At worst, they will be put under enormous political force. The British Government will be under pressure from the European Union and UN, and the Ministry from the Muggle Government. The wizards in charge will realize they are not lords over all of creation, like hundreds of years ago. Now they have to play to a wider audience, and there is a source of succour that exists independently from them."

Pointing to the parchments scattered around the table, Lucius continued, "At best, the agencies involved will fight tooth and nail against the Marriage Law, knowing they face grave legal repercussions if they do not do their jobs."

Hermione, as was her wont, rapidly found the weak spot in the men’s reasoning. "But what about the Statute of Secrecy? We'll be putting ourselves in danger if those agencies investigate us!"

"The sessions will be attended by only a few persons,” Lucius replied, taking a sip from a glass of firewhiskey that was next to the phone. After slaking his thirst, he continued, “Approximately fourteen if all goes well. That is well below the number of eyewitness that have to be imperfectly obliviated after a magical prank has been unleashed in the Muggle world."

With a troubled expression, Ginny asked a seemingly innocuous question. "How many people within the Ministry know of these intentions, to seize the estates in the next years?"

Hermione turned to her best friend and tried to pacify her fear. "We don't know how many, Ginny. It might be that your father and Percy know nothing about this."

Hannah commented, "I don't think Mr. Weasley would support any part of this."

"I don't know” - replied Ginny with a faraway look in her eyes – “after Fred's death he busied himself with work. He's become a bit obsessed about it. I’ve no doubt that Percy will do the right thing – for Percy."

Hannah, Susan, and Terry dutifully signed their affidavits. Justin wanted to join them. Seeing his son grabbing the paper, Jason commented offhandedly, "I thought you were ok with your marriage?"

"I look forward to living with my future wife” – replied Justin after he’d signed - “but I do mind terribly the possibility of not having any options, of being trapped like my friends are. I will do what I can for them."

The students were surprised when Hermione insisted she wanted to be included amongst the plaintiffs.

Seeing their baffled looks, Hermione brushed aside a strand of her hair and replied, “I love Ron, but I wanted to wait, to enjoy a long courtship. To watch Ron as he fumbled his way into my heart – which he already owns, if the silly redhead only knew.”

Ginny snickered and soon she was joined by Hannah and the other girls. Hermione sighed and continued, “A long courtship and a relaxed wedding, that’s what I dreamed of during our endless journey in the forest, while we were away from Hogwarts.”

She glared at the offending parchments. “This silly law forces me to give up all these cherished dreams. I know only too well how demeaning it is to be judged according to silly blood distinctions!”

Lucius and Draco looked guiltily away as Hermione continued her passionate outburst. “I thought we abolished these silly beliefs along with Voldemort’s regime!”

Hermione cracked a smile and continued, "As a founding member of RAMS: Resistance Against Marriage Submission, it behoves me to set an example."

As they were preparing to grab the belt and portkey to the gates of Hogwarts, Draco mulled something in his mind. The measures discussed tonight were all right for him, but still the elusive gay marriage remained as far away as ever.

He had some ideas, some plans that he wanted to discuss with Justin. He wanted it to become a reality in the future.

Chapter five