A Mile in their Shoes
folder
Harry Potter › Het - Male/Female › Lucius/Hermione
Rating:
Adult +
Chapters:
5
Views:
6,531
Reviews:
44
Recommended:
0
Currently Reading:
0
Category:
Harry Potter › Het - Male/Female › Lucius/Hermione
Rating:
Adult +
Chapters:
5
Views:
6,531
Reviews:
44
Recommended:
0
Currently Reading:
0
Disclaimer:
I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.
Chapter One
Title: A Mile in their Shoes (1/?)
Author: QueenC
Feedback: queenc@hotpop.com
Rating: R airiairing(s): Hermione/Lucius. Small bits of Draco/Ginny. Mentions Hermione/Viktor and Lucius/Narcissa.
Disclaimer: J. K. Rowling is the Goddess of the Potterverse. Please don’t sue me for not being her.
Distribution: Anywhere I send it. If anyone else wants it just let me know.
Spoilers: Through OotP
Summary: The new Minister of Magic finds an inventive way to punish Voldemort’s followers.
Author’s Note: So I began this fic with the hope of writing a Hermione/Lucius fic that is slightly different from the others. If this idea has been done before, then obviously the fic isn’t as original as I thought, but I solemnly swear that I thought of this on my own. I’m going to try to keep everyone (especially Lucius) as in-character as possible, but he may stray from time to time. Words in *’s are emphasized and words in italics are thoughts. Enjoy!
******
Hermione Granger frowned, critically gazing around the room she was sitting in. There was something that was missing, something that made the entire room seem wrong. The only problem was, she couldn’t figure out what it was.
Sighing, the young woman rolled her eyes. Of course. The lamp wasn’t on the bedside table, making the small but adequate bedroom seem quite bare. Her brow furrowed as she tried to remember why the lamp was missing, then the scowl deepened in frustration as her mind refused to cooperate with her.
That had been happening quite a bit recently. She didn’t know if it was some side effect of the hexes she’d been hit with during the final battle, or if it was because of the semi-Dark Magic she’d finally used to assist Harry in the defeat of Voldemort. And, the fact that she hadn’t worked up the nerve to tell anyone about her absent-mindedness meant that she might never find the cause.
Oh well, I suppose it doesn’t matter anyway. I’ll simply go grab a lamp from the storage room. Who cares if it doesn’t match the curtains exactly?
With that decision made, Hermione backed herself out of the room and pressed on the button that made her wheelchair move forward. She still hated the fact that she was unable to walk on her own. The fact that the mediwizard she’d seen at St. Mungo’s had told her it was simply a matter of time before her legs would work again didn’t help to lift her spirits any, either. She felt helpless, utterly incapable of the smallest of tasks without assistance.
Stop being so overdramatic. That isthe the case and you know it.
Telling the logical side of her brain to shut up, the young woman yanked a lamp out of the nearest box and, lying it across her lap, turned herself around and headed back to the room she’d just come from. It would have been easier, of course, to simply transfigure something else into a lamp. But Hermione had made a personal decision not to use magic for such things. At least, not until she was back to her old self again.
“Using magic to help with everything will only make me grow complacent,” is how she’d put it to Ron a few weeks earlier. “If I don’t have a reason to make myself do things, I’ll most likely sit around in this blasted chair and feel sorry for myself all day.”
The redhead hadn’t really understood, of course. As a pureblooded wizard who’d been raised around magic, he couldn’t quite grasp the concept that *not* using it was actually going to help his friend.
Of course, Hermione wasn’t so certain it would help, either.
Still, if there was one thing that could be said about the young witch, it was that she was quite stubborn when she chose to be so. And this was merely one of those times. It was also the reason that she’d refused to sell her family home after her parents had been murdered by Bellatrix LeStrange, and had actually insisted upon moving back into the house while she was living as a Muggle.
And it was *also* the reason that she’d agreed to help Arthur Weasley in his campaign to reform the surviving Death Eaters.
When the new law sentencing all former Death Eaters, with the exception of Severus Snape, to a magic-free life in the Muggle world for one year had first come into creation, Hermione had been one of the first Muggle-borns to volunteer to allow one of the men to live with her. She had told the Ministry that, as long as she had her wand, she wasn’t at all nervous at the thought of living with someone who would just as soon see her dead.
Merlin, I am such a liar.
Snorting, the young woman shook her head. Not nervous? Not bloody likely. She was terrified, in fact. What if the Death Eater that was sentenced to her attempted to use magic, regardless of the consequences? Or, worse yet, what if he decided to kill her with his bare hands? Or even through some Muggle means?
I’ll defend myself.
The thought came from the part of her mind that wasn’t constantly worried. It was the part of her that she’d relied upon when fighting in the war, and it was the part of her that forced her to get out of bed and into her wheelchair each morning.
It was also the part of her that she was beginning to hate.
“Yes, well, all paranoia aside, I’m certain I’ll be just fine,” she murmured to the empty room, once more gazing around to make sure it met her standards. The lamp had made quite the difference and she continued to speak to no one as she left the room and made her way to the ramp that led to the downstairs.
“After all, I have my wand, and I know far more about surviving without magic than they will. And I certainly can’t forget about the Auror that will be assigned to the case.”
Nodding once, Hermione stopped in the foyer. “Yes,” she finally announced aloud. “I’ll be just fine.”
As if rebuking her statement, there was a knock at the door. Swallowing past the nervousness that had formed a tight knot in her stomach, the brunette wheeled closer and opened the door. Standing on the doorstep was Tonks, a smile on the young Auror’s face.
And right beside her was Lucius Malfoy.
“Wotcher, Hermione!” Tonks said after a second, when Hermione had made no effort to greet them. Slowly, a frown crossed the woman’s normally cheerful face. “What? Didn’t the Ministry tell you you’d be watching over Malfoy?”
******
“You have *got* to be kidding me!”
Tonks sighed, tugging absently on her spikey, now-black hair. Glancing at the irate young woman from her position on the couch, she replied, “I’m afraid not. This is who the Ministry picked for you.”
Hermione blinked in shock. Waving her hand in the general direction of Lucius, who was sitting in the corner of the room with a scowl on his face, she exclaimed, “Lucius Malfoy? The Ministry decided that I should open my home to Lucius *Malfoy*?”
Tonks nodded. “Yep.” After a second, she added, “You know, they picked me as the one to watch over you. That’s good, isn’t it?”
The brunette raised an eyebrow, doing a good enough impersonation of her former Potions Master that both Lucius and Tonks shifted a bit in their seats. “Tonks,” Hermione said quietly, “I cannot *possibly* do this! I … I…” Shaking her head, she finally blurted out, “It’s Lucius *Malfoy*, for Merlin’s sake!”
The Auror sighed again. “I know. I tried telling the Ministry the same thing. But they wouldn’t listen to me. Said, since I’d dealt with him before, I was the best suited to do it again.” Giving the young woman a hopeful look, she asked, “Maybe they thought the same about you?”
“No,” Hermione snapped, shaking her head vehemently. “There must be some other reason. I had no more dealings with him than with anyone else during the war.”
“I am sitting right here,” Lucius finally spoke, his tone ringing clearly of insult. It was bad enough that he was being forced to do this. He would be damned, though, if he was going to be treated as though he wasn’t even present while around a half-blood and Mudblood.
Hermione whirled to face him, anger shining brightly in her eyes. “And I don’t give a damn!” she hissed. “I wasn’t speaking to you, nor do I wish to.”
Tonks blinked, a smile slowly spreading across her face. Now the Ministry’s decision was becoming clear. Lucius looked positively ready to hex Hermione into oblivion, and the girl didn’t seem to care in the slightest. Yes, this was going to work out just fine.
“Well,” the Auror spoke, drawing the attention back to herself before the blond wizard could respond to Hermione. “Guess I’ll be off, then.”
“But…” Hermione began, then stopped and sighed. “I suppose there’s no way out of this, is there?” she asked in an almost defeated tone.
Tonks gave her a sympathetic look. “Not that I can see. Of course, you’re welcome to try to talk to Arthur. But, from what Molly says, he’s pretty excited. Seems to think this ls gos going to work.”
Hermione nodded, knowing what the other woman was actually saying. If she were to refuse to cooperate and allow Lucius to stay with her, there was a chance the entire situation would backfire in Arthur’s face.
Thinking of the man who had risked his life to save hers more times than she could count, she knew she couldn’t do that to him. No, she’d simply have to try to make the best of things, at least until everything had settled down a bit. Then, if Arthur was secure enough in his job, perhaps she could pawn Lucius off on someone else and be done with the whole thing. But, until that time came, she was going to have to face facts.
She was now living with Lucius ‘Muggle Hater’ Malfoy.
******
Author: QueenC
Feedback: queenc@hotpop.com
Rating: R airiairing(s): Hermione/Lucius. Small bits of Draco/Ginny. Mentions Hermione/Viktor and Lucius/Narcissa.
Disclaimer: J. K. Rowling is the Goddess of the Potterverse. Please don’t sue me for not being her.
Distribution: Anywhere I send it. If anyone else wants it just let me know.
Spoilers: Through OotP
Summary: The new Minister of Magic finds an inventive way to punish Voldemort’s followers.
Author’s Note: So I began this fic with the hope of writing a Hermione/Lucius fic that is slightly different from the others. If this idea has been done before, then obviously the fic isn’t as original as I thought, but I solemnly swear that I thought of this on my own. I’m going to try to keep everyone (especially Lucius) as in-character as possible, but he may stray from time to time. Words in *’s are emphasized and words in italics are thoughts. Enjoy!
******
Hermione Granger frowned, critically gazing around the room she was sitting in. There was something that was missing, something that made the entire room seem wrong. The only problem was, she couldn’t figure out what it was.
Sighing, the young woman rolled her eyes. Of course. The lamp wasn’t on the bedside table, making the small but adequate bedroom seem quite bare. Her brow furrowed as she tried to remember why the lamp was missing, then the scowl deepened in frustration as her mind refused to cooperate with her.
That had been happening quite a bit recently. She didn’t know if it was some side effect of the hexes she’d been hit with during the final battle, or if it was because of the semi-Dark Magic she’d finally used to assist Harry in the defeat of Voldemort. And, the fact that she hadn’t worked up the nerve to tell anyone about her absent-mindedness meant that she might never find the cause.
Oh well, I suppose it doesn’t matter anyway. I’ll simply go grab a lamp from the storage room. Who cares if it doesn’t match the curtains exactly?
With that decision made, Hermione backed herself out of the room and pressed on the button that made her wheelchair move forward. She still hated the fact that she was unable to walk on her own. The fact that the mediwizard she’d seen at St. Mungo’s had told her it was simply a matter of time before her legs would work again didn’t help to lift her spirits any, either. She felt helpless, utterly incapable of the smallest of tasks without assistance.
Stop being so overdramatic. That isthe the case and you know it.
Telling the logical side of her brain to shut up, the young woman yanked a lamp out of the nearest box and, lying it across her lap, turned herself around and headed back to the room she’d just come from. It would have been easier, of course, to simply transfigure something else into a lamp. But Hermione had made a personal decision not to use magic for such things. At least, not until she was back to her old self again.
“Using magic to help with everything will only make me grow complacent,” is how she’d put it to Ron a few weeks earlier. “If I don’t have a reason to make myself do things, I’ll most likely sit around in this blasted chair and feel sorry for myself all day.”
The redhead hadn’t really understood, of course. As a pureblooded wizard who’d been raised around magic, he couldn’t quite grasp the concept that *not* using it was actually going to help his friend.
Of course, Hermione wasn’t so certain it would help, either.
Still, if there was one thing that could be said about the young witch, it was that she was quite stubborn when she chose to be so. And this was merely one of those times. It was also the reason that she’d refused to sell her family home after her parents had been murdered by Bellatrix LeStrange, and had actually insisted upon moving back into the house while she was living as a Muggle.
And it was *also* the reason that she’d agreed to help Arthur Weasley in his campaign to reform the surviving Death Eaters.
When the new law sentencing all former Death Eaters, with the exception of Severus Snape, to a magic-free life in the Muggle world for one year had first come into creation, Hermione had been one of the first Muggle-borns to volunteer to allow one of the men to live with her. She had told the Ministry that, as long as she had her wand, she wasn’t at all nervous at the thought of living with someone who would just as soon see her dead.
Merlin, I am such a liar.
Snorting, the young woman shook her head. Not nervous? Not bloody likely. She was terrified, in fact. What if the Death Eater that was sentenced to her attempted to use magic, regardless of the consequences? Or, worse yet, what if he decided to kill her with his bare hands? Or even through some Muggle means?
I’ll defend myself.
The thought came from the part of her mind that wasn’t constantly worried. It was the part of her that she’d relied upon when fighting in the war, and it was the part of her that forced her to get out of bed and into her wheelchair each morning.
It was also the part of her that she was beginning to hate.
“Yes, well, all paranoia aside, I’m certain I’ll be just fine,” she murmured to the empty room, once more gazing around to make sure it met her standards. The lamp had made quite the difference and she continued to speak to no one as she left the room and made her way to the ramp that led to the downstairs.
“After all, I have my wand, and I know far more about surviving without magic than they will. And I certainly can’t forget about the Auror that will be assigned to the case.”
Nodding once, Hermione stopped in the foyer. “Yes,” she finally announced aloud. “I’ll be just fine.”
As if rebuking her statement, there was a knock at the door. Swallowing past the nervousness that had formed a tight knot in her stomach, the brunette wheeled closer and opened the door. Standing on the doorstep was Tonks, a smile on the young Auror’s face.
And right beside her was Lucius Malfoy.
“Wotcher, Hermione!” Tonks said after a second, when Hermione had made no effort to greet them. Slowly, a frown crossed the woman’s normally cheerful face. “What? Didn’t the Ministry tell you you’d be watching over Malfoy?”
******
“You have *got* to be kidding me!”
Tonks sighed, tugging absently on her spikey, now-black hair. Glancing at the irate young woman from her position on the couch, she replied, “I’m afraid not. This is who the Ministry picked for you.”
Hermione blinked in shock. Waving her hand in the general direction of Lucius, who was sitting in the corner of the room with a scowl on his face, she exclaimed, “Lucius Malfoy? The Ministry decided that I should open my home to Lucius *Malfoy*?”
Tonks nodded. “Yep.” After a second, she added, “You know, they picked me as the one to watch over you. That’s good, isn’t it?”
The brunette raised an eyebrow, doing a good enough impersonation of her former Potions Master that both Lucius and Tonks shifted a bit in their seats. “Tonks,” Hermione said quietly, “I cannot *possibly* do this! I … I…” Shaking her head, she finally blurted out, “It’s Lucius *Malfoy*, for Merlin’s sake!”
The Auror sighed again. “I know. I tried telling the Ministry the same thing. But they wouldn’t listen to me. Said, since I’d dealt with him before, I was the best suited to do it again.” Giving the young woman a hopeful look, she asked, “Maybe they thought the same about you?”
“No,” Hermione snapped, shaking her head vehemently. “There must be some other reason. I had no more dealings with him than with anyone else during the war.”
“I am sitting right here,” Lucius finally spoke, his tone ringing clearly of insult. It was bad enough that he was being forced to do this. He would be damned, though, if he was going to be treated as though he wasn’t even present while around a half-blood and Mudblood.
Hermione whirled to face him, anger shining brightly in her eyes. “And I don’t give a damn!” she hissed. “I wasn’t speaking to you, nor do I wish to.”
Tonks blinked, a smile slowly spreading across her face. Now the Ministry’s decision was becoming clear. Lucius looked positively ready to hex Hermione into oblivion, and the girl didn’t seem to care in the slightest. Yes, this was going to work out just fine.
“Well,” the Auror spoke, drawing the attention back to herself before the blond wizard could respond to Hermione. “Guess I’ll be off, then.”
“But…” Hermione began, then stopped and sighed. “I suppose there’s no way out of this, is there?” she asked in an almost defeated tone.
Tonks gave her a sympathetic look. “Not that I can see. Of course, you’re welcome to try to talk to Arthur. But, from what Molly says, he’s pretty excited. Seems to think this ls gos going to work.”
Hermione nodded, knowing what the other woman was actually saying. If she were to refuse to cooperate and allow Lucius to stay with her, there was a chance the entire situation would backfire in Arthur’s face.
Thinking of the man who had risked his life to save hers more times than she could count, she knew she couldn’t do that to him. No, she’d simply have to try to make the best of things, at least until everything had settled down a bit. Then, if Arthur was secure enough in his job, perhaps she could pawn Lucius off on someone else and be done with the whole thing. But, until that time came, she was going to have to face facts.
She was now living with Lucius ‘Muggle Hater’ Malfoy.
******