Original Author's Note:
For those of you who read this on CaerAzkaban, there have been some corrections and additions, but only minor ones. I'd like to thank Gemm Ethan Whitake, Polychromknight, Psychotic Goldfish, Slick 97, Michael, Callum (aka Doghead13), Alum Lewis, and other members of CaerAzkaban who assisted in making this chapter better over the last ten months. (Yes, this story has been in production for a long time)
Author's Note:
Since the original posting of this chapter, I have been a bit bothered by how this chapter turned out. So I decided that I'd go and revise it a bit. The first two scenes have been changed quite a bit, though not in a way that effects the events that occur later. I tried to add to the story to allow you to see certain things earlier than before and foreshadow what I published in other chapters. (Is it foreshadowing if you write it after what you're foreshadowing, when you make it part of an earlier part of the work?)
Chapter One: Mid-November
Harry Potter was a bit worried about his friend, Hermione Granger. She'd thrown up at the beginning of Double Potions, and Professor Snape had sent her to the Hospital Wing. Hermione had not been his friend long, but she was one now, since Halloween, three weeks ago, when he and Ron had saved her from the troll. He'd wanted to go with her, but Hermione had thought she could go alone, and Snape had kept him until the end of class, and even a bit past the official end of class cleaning up his and her station.
He'd gone to the Hospital Wing as soon as Snape let him out, only to discover that she'd been taken to Professor McGonagall's Office. Now he stood outside his Head of House's Office, his hand raised to knock, just as she opened the door.
"Mister Potter, I was just about to see about getting you," Professor McGonagall said as Harry lowered his hand. "But it seems that you have anticipated me. Come in and join Miss Granger." The tone booked no nonsense, though Harry had no idea why she was calling him to her office. He was doing okay in class, even in Snape's class, much to his surprise. He'd actually beaten Hermione in Transfiguration this morning.
Hermione was sitting in a padded chair before McGonagall's desk. As Harry took a seat next to her on one of the wooden straight back chairs, he noticed that she was barefoot, and seemed to be very nervous, judging from the hair she was chewing on. It hadn't taken him long to learn that Hermione mood clue. It also looked like she'd been crying.
"Mr. Potter, I have invited you here because your actions on the night of All Hallow's Eve have resulted in some additional consequences for Miss Granger," McGonagall began. "We are assured that your actions that night were by all accounts, a credit to your house. However, it seems that your dismount from the troll, and your primary role in Miss Granger's rescue has made Miss Granger pregnant with your child."
"But we didn't do anything!" Harry exclaimed. He was pretty sure that a boy and a girl had to do something to make a baby, but maybe that was different in the Wizarding World.
"Be assured, Mr. Potter, that we are aware that both you and Miss Granger are, as the term goes, blushing virgins," the professor said. Harry blushed, and looked at his feet. "Madam Pomfrey, Professor Flitwick, and I have been investigating the situation since Miss Granger was discovered to be pregnant this afternoon. There are a few charms that can be used to determine fatherhood, even this early, when cast by a witch or wizard of sufficient skill.
"We have also determined that your actions that night satisfied a ritual, mainly due to your landing in the third point while Miss Granger was at the fifth point of a ritual circle inscribed on the girl's lavatory floor, while satisfying the virgin condition on both your parts. We suspect that this ritual circle may have been in existence for quite some time. At some point, Miss Granger moved to the center of the ritual circle, completing the ritual. There should have been a spark at that point, but I doubt any of you were in any condition to spot it."
Harry pinched himself. He could not believe what he was hearing. He was too young for this. There was no way this was happening to him. He looked to his side. Hermione was staring at him. She was really chewing on that lock of hair. Professor McGonagall was continuing.
"I'm afraid that some rules have been invoked, as a result of your ritual rescue of Miss Granger. If you chose to acknowledge her, she will remain at Hogwarts, and you will be responsible for her. If you do not, unfortunately, she will be sent home until your child is born."
"Please, Harry, don't send me home," Hermione pleaded. Her eyes seemed to glisten with tears as she met Harry's gaze. He couldn't look away. Her gaze had him trapped.
"Don't answer yet, Mr. Potter," McGonagall said. "You should also know that by acknowledging Miss Granger, and taking responsibility for her, you will cause the wards at Number Four Privet Drive to collapse. Your home with the Dursleys will no longer be safe for you. Another residence will most likely need to be found by Summer."
Harry could not see that as a down side. It only made him more determined to say yes to the girl who was looking so sad and hopeful at him. He smiled.
"As your magical guardian, should you make this decision, it will be my job to ensure an orderly transition to a new muggle guardian."
"Magical guardian?" Hermione asked, her curiosity causing her to look back at McGonagall.
"Miss Granger, Mr. Potter, when a student without living magical parents is sorted, their head of house takes the job of magical guardian, unless the muggle guardian chooses another," McGonagall said. "In such a case it is our job to handle any purely magical related issue, and make sure that the muggle guardian does not panic due to magic or easily treatable with magic injuries or illnesses. Most of the time, it is a task that is rather routine for most Heads of House.
"Mr. Potter, you are not a routine task. Having reviewed your medical records this afternoon, I find your aunt and uncle entirely unsuitable as parents. I personally welcome the opportunity to remove you from their custody. I am aware that the wards at the Dursleys have prevented several attacks on your person by You-Know-Who's servants, but now that you are in school, other methods are as good, if not better than those wards."
"You mean, if I choose to acknowledge Hermione, I won't have to return to the Dursleys?" Harry asked. The idea that just by saying yes to a girl he would never have to see them again was too good to be true. McGonagall nodded. He looked at Hermione again. He could tell that she wanted him to say yes. "What would happen to Hermione?"
"Miss Granger would move to reside in attached space in the dorm room you reside in. As you would have some responsibilities towards her, as if she were part of your family, she will have to wear a thin cloth collar with your name on it. Should anyone harm her, this will give you a say in determining their punishment, as it would be considered an offense to the Potter family as well."
Hermione was having his baby, his family. Harry had never really had a family before. The Dursleys were not family, they were relatives. No son of his was going to grow up without a father if he could help it. He wasn't sure how he could help it, but saying yes was a start. "If you don't mind Hermione," he said tentatively. She smiled and nodded. It was an quiet acceptance that filled him with warmth. "Professor, what do I need to do?
Professor McGonagall pointed to a strip of white cloth and two golden anklets. "The anklets are optional wear, but the enchantments on them are quite beneficial." Harry stood up and picked up the white cloth strip. It was about a half-inch high, and had his name stitched in gray thread. He turned to Hermione, who had unbuttoned her collar and shrugged her robe off her shoulders, so he could fasten it around her neck. He placed it around her neck, and as soon as the two ends touched, it flared with a silver glow, and they fused together. His name was now stitched in black, and the collar rested low on her neck, easily concealed by the collar of her uniform blouse.
Hermione offered Harry her feet, and he put the ankle bracelets on. There was a corresponding silver glow when he snapped each of them closed. He couldn't find the join as he twisted them around her ankle. He couldn't see any way that they could be removed. As he stood back up, he had to wonder about those flashes.
As soon as Harry stood up, he found himself enfolded in Hermione's hug. He did not know what to do as her body pressed up against him, and her arms wrapped around him. Hugging was not something that he had a lot of practice in. He tried to return it, wrapping his arms around her. "Thank you, Harry," she muttered into his shoulder.
As Hermione pulled away, McGonagall spoke up again, "Miss Granger, now that you will be sharing the First Year Boys faculties, I will arrange some alterations. A tub will be installed, and a partition to separate the bathing area from the remainder. You shall not enter the bathing area if any other boy than Mr. Potter is present, and neither should they. It probably would do better not to even enter the other part as well. I shall inform the other First Years after we're done here of the changes.
"Mr. Potter, legally, you may chose to allow Miss Granger to use your last name, but only after she gives birth. I have obtained copies of the guidelines of concubinage for you both. I expect you both to become very familiar with them. A few students may be aware of the guidelines already. I suspect that Mr. Malfoy may be informed, but I do not wish you to spread them around. There are some private rights that you have now that it would be best that most of your fellow students did not know you have. Understood?"
"Yes Professor," both Harry and Hermione said in perfect unison. McGonagall handed them a faded blue covered book.
"The wardrobe and changes to the room should be ready by the time you return to Gryffindor Tower. I suggest that both of you head there now to look over those changes before the evening meal."
With that dismissal, they both departed McGonagall's office. Harry noticed that Hermione kept her arm where it was all the way back to the tower, but said nothing. It was nice. Especially since he no longer had to worry about wincing due to his injuries from Uncle Vernon.
It only took about twenty steps from her office before Professor McGonagall regained the rage she'd felt when she'd exited the Hospital Wing with Hermione Granger earlier that day. She blamed it on the three school governors who were doing a bi-monthly inspection of parts of the school. The rotating wave good bye from Mary Celeste Howard-Richmond, who had been the biggest gossip in Hogwarts back when she was a fifth-year to McGonagall's first-year, brought it all back.
Lucius Malfoy would have had to "accidentally" strayed into the privacy wards right after Professor Flitwick had confirmed that the still virgin Miss Granger was pregnant via an accidental ritual. McGonagall had to admit that the book on impregnation rituals that had been in Lucius's father's personal collection had been useful, but everything else the man had done wasn't. Especially when he brought the other two governors in.
Matilda Brocklehurst had memorized the whole Hogwarts Rule Book as well as the Old Laws, and could quote both backwards and forwards. To make matters worse, as a school governor she could make sure the letter of the rules had to be followed if she so desired. Brocklehurst always did. After informing Miss Granger of all the rules she was under, McGonagall wished that the witch would jump off Brocklehurst Light, so someone else would replace her. Not that it could save Hermione now.
By morning, McGonagall expected that the just departed Mary Celeste Howard-Richmond would have told everyone she could about the ritually pregnant virgin first-year in Gryffindor, no matter the rules of confidentiality. She wouldn't be surprised if the story ended up in the Prophet. It would certainly find its way into Witch Weekly, where Howard-Richmond was the Society editor. Perhaps the father being who it was might restrain that from happening, at least at Witch Weekly. It certainly wouldn't do so elsewhere, but those at Witch Weekly had to think towards their futures.
As McGonagall reached the Grand Staircases, she had to pause briefly, and when she did so, she heard a moan coming from a nearby broom closet. Given how long she had been a Professor at Hogwarts, the particular moan was easily identified as one that probably shouldn't be happening, and was a bit odd to occur before the evening meal, especially with how close to regular traffic the closet was. Of course McGonagall was well aware that the broom closets were a common place for the students of Hogwarts to make out, or even if the sound she just heard was for the usual reason, make love. She'd been a student at Hogwarts herself, and used them for both purposes, not that she'd tell any of her students that she had.
That's why there were charms on the closet as well as indicators on status and occupancy, if you knew were to look. The occupancy charms had been a student's creation. The status charms were a bit more complex and had last been redesigned by Flitwick a score ago. This particular broom closet was occupied and it seemed that the infertility charm had just been busted.
The couple within was about to be busted too. McGonagall opened the door with her wand and two prefects tumbled out, apparently just having completed the act. Penelope Clearwater had been leaning against the door, with Percy pushing up against her. She now was sprawled, with a raised skirt, on the floor with Percy on top of her, his pants around his ankles.
"Miss Clearwater, Mister Weasley, detention in my office at eight tonight," McGonagall ordered. "Get dressed, and you better hope that this was not Miss Clearwater's most fertile time."
Before McGonagall continued her course to Gryfinddor tower, she saw Percy Weasley look at those indicators, and his face go completely blank.
The fat lady opened at McGonagall's approach. Apparently she'd been warned. It was three strides to get into the common room from the portrait. The Professor quickly scanned for her first years. All she need to talk with where there. She waved her wand at an alcove, and it grew doors.
"First Years, with me please. I need to have a word with you about Concu... I mean... Miss Granger and Mister Potter," McGonagall said, gesturing at the alcove.
It did not take long for the seven first years that she hadn't parted with when she left her office to gather in the alcove. They all took seats on the padded bench along the walls of the alcove, and the doors slammed behind the Professor.
The sound of the door slamming finally brought the anger to her attention. She took a few deep breaths to calm herself, as she noted the terrified expressions of her First Years. Even though her house was known as the house of the brave, it surprised her when Ron spoke up.
The boy's voice was very tentative as he asked, "What did Harry and Hermione do?"
"I'm afraid that Miss Granger is suffering from repercussions from your, Mr. Potter, and her encounter with a troll on Halloween," McGonagall said.
"It's my fault, Professor," Ron said. "If I hadn't called Hermione a nightmare, she would have never been in that bathroom crying, and Harry and I wouldn't have gone to rescue her."
"Mr. Weasley, I hope in the future you are more honest at the time. That being said, I suspect that in nine months or so, Miss Granger will blame you quite loudly, along with Mr. Potter for her current condition." Almost immediately, the girls gasped, realizing exactly what had happened to Miss Granger. "Miss Granger, as a result of being rescued from a significantly powerful magical beast inside a ritual circle, is on her way to becoming the virgin mother of Mr. Potter's child."
It looked like all the First Years were now in a state of shock. Mr. Longbottom had even let his jaw drop. McGonagall waited until he closed his mouth before continuing. "Unfortunately, when Miss Granger was in the Hospital Wing finding out, the bi-monthly Board of Governors Hospital Wing Visitation occurred. As a result, Miss Granger will be moving to reside in a wardrobe room in the Boys Dorm. She has also been registered as Mr. Potter's concubine, and is required to wear a collar with his name on it.
"This will also require some rule changes in the Boys Dorm. Since Miss Granger will be using the boys facilities, a new rule has been established. If Miss Granger is bathing, only Mr. Potter may enter the bathing partition. Likewise, Miss Granger may not enter the bathing partition if anyone other than Mr. Potter is in it.
"Any questions?"
"You mean that you can get pregnant just by being rescued?" Sally-Anne asked.
"Only if certain rare ritual conditions are met," McGonagall said. "Rest assured that Hogwarts shall be working to negate the reoccurrence of such conditions. We are increasing the strength of certain magical creature wards, and reducing the areas were such events can happen. What happened to Miss Granger is quite likely a once a century event. Indeed, in recorded knowledge it has only happened thirteen times, the last of which occurred in 1792 in the aftermath of one of the tasks of the last Triwizard Tournament."
There was a moment's silence before Lavender Brown raised her hand. "Miss Brown?"
"Uhm, so she has to stay with Harry forever?" Lavender asked.
"That is correct," McGonagall replied. She knew there was going to be a panic.
"Ron, was that the Second Floor Girls Lavatory?" Lavender asked, turning away from the professor.
"Uh, yes," Ron replied, in a puzzled tone.
McGonagall saw Miss Patil's eyes light up. "Do you think my sister can join us?" she asked. This was not what McGonagall expected. For once the Deputy Headmistress didn't know what to say.
"Are you two kidding?" Sally-Ann suddenly yelled. "Forever binding yourselves to a boy as practically his slave? As part of a harem?"
"He's Harry Potter!" Lavender replied. "The Boy-Who-Lived! The most famous wizard alive save the Headmaster! He owns Witch Weekly!"
"Yes, who wouldn't want to?" Parvati joined in. "You know he's quiet, smart, and always willing to save the girl. He even gets a Wizengamot seat when he's of age."
"But you'd join Harry as his slave!" Sally-Ann rejoined.
"Miss Perks, Miss Brown, Miss Patil," McGonagall interrupted, finally able to organize an argument. "No one will be joining Miss Granger in her current condition. The chances of you replicating the events, are quite improbable, and we will be taking measures to make them impossible.
"I most especially advise that you do not seek out dangerous magical beasts. . Indeed, before Halloween, no First Year had ever survived an attempt at taking down a fully grown mountain troll. It is a task that Professor Kettleborn would strongly advise against letting his OWL students attempt.
"In addition, given that you would end up bearing his baby, suffering through nine months of pregnancy, I cannot see why you would want to. If for some reason you think pregnancy is some sort of picnic, which I assure you it isn't, I can arrange for you to hear every bit of the details of exactly what pregnancy is like, and most especially labor. It might be wise to move your year in Gryffindor through that course a year early, in any case.
"Miss Perks, though Miss Granger is having Mr. Potter's baby, and has some restrictions as a result of how she came to that condition, she is not a slave. And please, don't go looking for trolls."
As McGonagall finished, she could tell that the danger wasn't entirely sinking into the girls' minds. She was going to have to watch them. And she was going to send out the letters about moving up the class, at least for the girls. She looked over at the boys. The boys too, she decided. Hopefully she could get someone other than Snape to teach them.
"You don't want to go up against one of those trolls," Ron told the girls. "I was sure that Hermione and Harry were going to die. Especially after Harry put his wand up the troll's nose. He had to wipe off his wand afterwards."
"Ewwwweee!" the girls chorused.
"Professor, is there anything else we need to change now that Hermione is living in our dorm?" Seamus asked.
"Not at this time, Mr. Finnigan," McGonagall said, relieved at such a simple question after the fright that the girls had given her. "Any other questions? Mr. Thomas? Mr. Longbottom?" The boys shook their heads. "Then I shall let you return to your studies. Mr. Potter and Miss Granger should be settling her in, so please give them a half hour before you join them. If you have any further questions, about anything, please do not hesitate to ask me."
With that, she opened the door, and headed back to her office. She suspected that she'd find something worse waiting for her there.
The wardrobe appeared to be three feet wide, six feet tall, and about eighteen inches deep. It was placed to the right of Harry's bed, and he already hated it. It reminded him too much of the cupboard under the stairs. Hermione's reaction was different. She opened the wardrobe. At first all they saw was her spare robes, skirts, and a dress, but then Hermione pressed a brass rod that smoothly slid back and to the side. The interior of the closet rotated 90 degrees to the left, revealing a small room. On the right was a single bed, against a wall with a book case above it on three sides. A night stand was at the head of the bed. Harry thought it looked ... familiar.
"The book cases, and my books are already there," Hermione squealed. She jumped on to her bed, and pulled a book from the shelves.
"Hermione, you are not going to spend your life in this cupboard," Harry said firmly. "I don't care if all your books are right where you want them. I don't care if you get the privacy that you want. You may have to sleep here, but I don't want you spending one moment more than you have to inside this wardrobe."
"Why, it's comfortable here," Hermione replied, opening the book.
Harry stepped into the wardrobe, taking a deep breath. In three quick steps, he was next to Hermione. "No it's not," Harry stated, closing the book. "You shouldn't be hidden in some sort of closet." His voice broke as he continued. "It's not right to be pushed into a small space just because someone thinks it's not right for you to live with them."
He could see his cupboard under the stairs as he looked at the wardrobe room. The back wall, what wasn't covered with bookcases, reminded him of the wall that had been at the head of his bed in that cupboard.
Harry turned away from Hermione, suddenly aware of tears in his eyes. "It's not right." He wasn't sure if he was talking about Hermione anymore.
Gently, he found himself turned around, his eyes directed into Hermione's. "No, it's not," she said. She embraced him, and he could not stop crying. He wasn't sure how much time passed before his tears dried up.
"Come on, Hermione," he eventually managed to say, pulling out of her comforting embrace. He could see the question in her eyes. He turned away, ignoring the question for now. "We can study on my bed until lights out."
Hermione was in the showers when the other boys came up from the common room. Harry had spent the last thirty minutes sitting with her on his bed, going over the day's classes. He had a feeling that it was going to be a regular part of his day from now on. As soon as Seamus Finnigan arrived in the room, he started to take off his uniform. Seamus always stripped before going to take an bedtime shower, and didn't dress until morning unless it was really cold.
"Hold off on that, Seamus," Harry said. "Hermione's using the bathroom, and the rule says you have to wait."
"I'm still getting rid of this bloody tie," Seamus said. "I think Malfoy cursed it to strangle me."
"Obviously, ineffectually," Dean said as he headed for his own bed. "Man, this is going to be so strange." He pulled out his track pants and jersey. "Fresh and warm!"
"Has Dean begun his poetic waxing on the virtues of a warm jersey?" Neville said as he arrived in the room.
"He hasn't got to the poetry yet," Seamus replied, tossing his uniform jumper onto his bed. "Stop him please."
"I guess it is my turn," Neville said, aiming his wand.
Dean immediately turned around, "Okay, okay, no poetry tonight from me," Dean said. "But Harry has to, now that he has a girl." He'd already shed his trousers in favor of his track pants that he usually slept in.
"I think she'd throw something at me, if I did," Harry replied. "I don't know any good poetry."
"Percy the Perfect Prefect has finally gone down," Ron announced from the door. "Six years of trying, one hundred and thirty-six attempts in the last year, and I've finally beat him!" He did a little dance as he headed for his own bed.
"We know, we saw it," Neville said. "Well, not Harry, but you insisted that we stay for the whole game as your witnesses."
"Not that you needed witnesses," Hermione said from the door to the shower. She wore only in a short golden sleeveless gown, that went down about a third of the way to her knees; and her concubine collar and anklets. Her hair was damp, and her concubine's collar was dry. "We all knew that Ron was going to win."
As Hermione's bare feet crossed the threshold, the boys scrambled. Neville was down to his boxers, as was Ron. Dean just had to complete putting on the jersey he slept in, which due to his sudden hurry, it looked like he couldn't find the hole for his head. Harry smiled, he always undressed in the showers, so he was the only one who wasn't partially clothed when Hermione finished her shower. He had a feeling that his friend's habits were going to change due to her presence.
Dean stumbled and fell into Seamus, whose trousers were tangled around his ankles. The two both landed on the floor as Hermione started to giggle.
Ron sat down on his bed, "Hermione, what are you doing up here?"
"I sleep in Harry's wardrobe now," Hermione reminded. "And it looks like you weren't the only one to forget about that."
"I warned Seamus, otherwise you'd have been treated to a naked Gryffindor," Harry said. "Though knowing Seamus, that will happen sooner or later. He's got no modesty, what so ever."
"Don't need it," Seamus said, heading for the shower.
"I forgot to warn you, Hermione," Harry said, as Hermione sat down on his bed. "Seamus sleeps nude."
"Bit surprising, that first night," Dean said, finally with his jersey on. "Though, I have to admit to trying it, once. I don't know how he keeps from freezing."
"Speaking of freezing, I'm going to shower before Seamus uses up all the hot water," Ron said, heading to the showers as well.
"I'll wait a bit longer," Harry said, turning to Hermione. "I corrected the essay for Snape..."
"Professor Snape," Hermione interjected, as Harry handed her the essay.
"Hermione, can you look over my essay tomorrow morning?" Neville asked tentatively.
"Actually, we've got about forty minutes until lights out," Hermione said. "I'm ahead of things, so if Harry doesn't mind, I check some essays now. Only to proofread, of course. I'm not going to rewrite it for anyone here."
"Of course not, Hermione," Harry said, as he started looking though his essays again. "I think you've looked at everything else I've got ready."
Harry double checked his work again. When Hermione offered to check your work, you took it. Aside from the Snape work he didn't have anything else, at the moment though. So he watched Hermione correct his dorm mates' work. He'd never really paid attention to Hermione in any detail.
There was her hair, that he had really just classified as bushy, and brown, that was simplistic. It wasn't uniform in its brownness, actually being almost blond near the ends. She'd just come from the shower, so it was still quite damp, limiting its usual frizziness. Everyone said that Harry had his mother's green eyes and seemed to be trying to see them more clearly though his glasses, but Hermione's brown eyes were a much more normal shade, and at times he wished his were like hers, especially when people kept pointing them out.
Hermione tapped the top of her quill against her chin as she considered Neville's work. She did have a bit large front teeth, but Harry didn't think they were bad like that. Hermione had good eagle feather quills, that Harry was a little envious of. His were not that good, and he'd made a mess of them as he learnt how to write with them. Harry was a lot better with them now.
His eyes caught the cloth collar that Hermione was forced to wear. He found that he couldn't decide if he liked her wearing it or not. It didn't seem right that she had to, but it also symbolized the fact that she was having his baby. She was starting his family. In a way it meant that she was now his family. He wanted to have a real family, not like the Dursleys who treated him like a slave. And that was the other thing, a collar also represented slavery. He'd put it on her, before he really realized the ownership that it practically meant.
His eyes dropped down again, no longer willing to consider the collar. She was wearing a gold night gown that puddled in her lap as she sat there. He'd seen her choosing which to wear. Hermione had several light nightgowns, as she called them. There was a plain white one with long sleeves, a red one with white short sleeves, a baby blue one that barely came down to cover her panties and a couple others which he hadn't been shown, including one she called the orange monstrosity. That one was apparently a gift from her father who should never be allowed to purchase his daughter's clothes again.
His eyes focused on her flat belly. It wouldn't be that way long. Hermione had mimed how far her belly would go when he'd asked. He'd been surprised how big she though she'd get. Of course he didn't really know much about how babies grew in girls. Hermione would change that, and Harry found that he was looking forward to learning. Then again, if you were friends with Hermione, you learned how to look forward to learning, or at least fake it a little.