Triumph Out of the Bitter Taste of Ashes

GeekGoddess -- ::grins:: thanks! : )
Deb -- I will be bringing the numbers out a bit in this chapter. : ) After all, Ron and Draco are putting the finishing touches on their report -- one that *should* be very similar to the one Hene jne just talked to Snape about. And yep. I\'m thinking the next Draco-Hermione encounter should happen in chapter 23 or 24. It depends on whether the burrow visit takes one or two chapters to write.
Shemham -- Thank you very much. That does ease my concerns greatly. And, the numbers are coming up. LOL from both angles, actually, which I forgot to mention to Deb. : )~
Rilla -- ask and ye shall receive, well, since I was going to do it anyway. ::smirk:: : )~ Hope you like.
Frolicking_Nomad -- Thanks! : ) I had wondered exactly how long that pill actually worked. I knew there was a pretty limited time on it, but not that precisely. As to the other, I will have explanations forthcoming. Admittedly, they\'ll have little to do with the law, hope that won\'t disappoint. The wizarding folk around her may not even think about muggle methods -- which I admit is an assumption -- but Hermione, being muggle-born will. I didn\'t realize it was actually *legal* that late in pregnancy, which will certainly have a rather profound affect on Hermione.
Michelline -- Your questions are answered here, at least in part. More answers next chapter. : )


AN: In the part where Hermione begins speaking about genetics, I won\'t necessarily be using all the \'proper\' medical terms.

There are several reasons for this, the first being the fact that it\'s been about 20 years since I studied it myself. I don\'t think, however, that Hermione\'s knowledge in this area would be much beyond the basics. If I did, I would go look it all up. : ) The idea behind the explanation she gives is sound, just not very technical, and might have the wrong terms used.

As fascinating as I found genetics when I studied it, what stuck with me were the principles and the ideas, rather than specific terms for what goes into making what in regards to DNA, and RNA etc. The principle behind dominate vs recessive genes in regards to inheriting traits is valid, as is the fact that ones carried on the x chromosome, if recessive, tend to occur in males more often than females, due to the lack of a counteracting second x chromosome, which might carry a dominate gene to override the recessive one, or another differing recessive to mitigate.

Hope that didn\'t bore anyone too much. ;-) And I just hope to high hope that the chapter itself isn\'t boring or confusing. LOL

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Chapter Twenty one
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Ron raced around the dorm room grabbing last minute belongings that he didn\'t want to leave behind for two weeks. He\'d put it off, as usual, to the last minute. Of course, the fact that Draco had been behaving like a complete prat for the last couple days was *not* helping. Ron, much as he had been surprised by the growing evidence from their report, was trying to be understanding of Draco\'s point of view. It wasn\'t easy, considering he\'d already thought the pureblood\'s point of view was ridiculous to start with. Draco wasn\'t making it any easier, sulking like a two year old who\'d been told they couldn\'t have another cookie.

Suddenly feeling utterly exhausted, Ron dropped back onto his bed and threw an arm over his eyes. Their slowly emerging conclusions were rather startling, even to him. It was looking as if muggle influence waned completely by third generation removal. Which, of course, was completely contradictory to everything Draco had ever been taught. He supposed, if he really thought about it, he could sort of understand Draco\'s put out reaction. It would be hard to have something you believed in completely turned upside down.

The biggest problem wasn\'t that, however. Draco could probably have lived with that. Even before this bloody project, Draco had admitted to at *least* considering witches with muggle heritage three generations back. He\'d been adamant about anything less than that. Ron was sure the blond\'s father would be livid at even that, would probably have become a ghost if he\'d realized his son might go that route. What Ron really thought was bothering Draco -- contrary to the Slytherin\'s sullen complaints -- was not the waning muggle influence, but instead, the rather stark evidence that the older pureblood families were destined to weed themselves out of existence if they actually stayed pureblood.

Oh, it wouldn\'t happen in the next few years, but even Ron could see, with the alarming rise in birth defects, and stillborns, as well as a slow but steady rise in the number of squibs born to pureblood lines, it would happen eventually. According to the data they\'d gathered, the squibs, of course could end up with full wizards or witches as children, but it was a certainly lower chance than witches or wizards having them, and didn\'t eliminate the other pureblood problems. Of course, the fact that squibs were viewed with as much disdain -- in general -- as muggles were, certainly wasn\'t going to help. Most, if they married at all, ended up with muggles, or so the data seemed to indicate.

Ron\'s head spun with facts and figures. This wasn\'t his best area; he was the first to admit that. Numbers and him just didn\'t get along real well. He sat up abruptly, not wanting to think about it anymore. In their research, he\'d discovered, much to his dismay, that his own family was not exempt from what he was beginning to refer to as the pureblood dilemma, and it had come as something of a profound shock to realize that his own mother had miscarried several times over the years. It was a terrifying thought, really. He hadn\'t given much thought, before, to his own future, about whether he would have children.

He snorted. Of course, he hadn\'t. He was a boy, and a teenager. What teenage boy thought about those kinds of things?

//Draco Malfoy.//

He shook his head. Now that he did, he realized it had pretty much been a given that it would happen eventually. Now, however, he wasn\'t so sure he wanted to go through that. The very thought that any child he might actually make wouldn\'t have even the chance to survive that an ordinary muggle one did, was . . . horrifying.

**

\"One thing I found most informative,\" Miss Granger continued excitedly, apparently clueless to just how horrified he was about the subject matter. This was their second meeting to discuss her calculations, and he wasn\'t liking what was being revealed any more this time around, \"was the apparent fact that over 80 percent of squibs are male.\"

Severus frowned. That hadn\'t been part of the assigned project, and he hadn\'t taken any notice of it. \"And why,\" he managed to ask, in something approaching his normal demeanor, \"is that so informative?\"

\"Because that indicates a high probability that what ever causes someone to be magical is a dominate gene, carried on the X chromosome, or conversely that what ever causes someone to be a squid is recessive.

Severus suddenly felt like a first year, listening to his first transfiguration professor -- lost. \"Explain,\" he said bluntly, not remotely liking the fact that he had to in the first place. \"Preferably using non-muggle terms.\"

\"Oh!\" Granger exclaimed, looking up at him in surprise. Pulling her lower lip between her teeth, she hesitated, obviously uncertain. \"Um, well, it\'s kind of complicated.\"

Eyes narrowing, Severus\' jaw clenched. \"I assure Miss Granger, anything *you* are capable of understanding will not be beyond *my* capabilities.\"

\"That\'s not what I meant!\" Granger snapped, eyes flashing angrily. \"Genetics is a study that many put *years* into. I wasn\'t inferring a damn thing about *either* of our intelligence! Beyond that, my knowledge is of the basics.\" A moment passed, while Severus waited, glaring, before she continued, pulling out parchment and quill.

She immediately began making odd squiggles and speaking of DNA, genes and other things too small to see, her words flowing fast and freely.

\"Oh,\" Granger said suddenly, her quill stopping as she looked at him.

\"What?\" he demanded shaking his head as he tried to clear it of unfamiliar terms, and confusing thoughts about how difficult it would be to study something you couldn\'t actually *see*. He didn\'t see how it was possible. He thought about saying as much.

\"Your eyes kind of glazed over,\" she said dejectedly. \"That means that either I\'m boring you out of your mind, or I\'m being obscure again.\"

Severus didn\'t believe it, but he laughed. He couldn\'t remember *ever* laughing when he felt like such an idiot. \"I take it you get that a lot?\" he asked, turning it back onto her in habitual defence. He almost winced as she did.

\"Yes,\" she sighed. \"Harry and Ron, they do it every time I start explaining school work at all.\"

Fighting with conflicting desires, self-protection versus an equally strong desire to *know*, Severus shook his head -- purposely ignoring the rather insulting comparison to her two male compatriots. \"As much as I would like to claim the former, for my own defence, I\'m forced to admit that I only understood about half of what you said.\"

Granger looked crestfallen.

\"While, I find it difficult to relate to \'DNA strands\' smaller than the eye can see making up everything, including people, I\'m willing to take it on conjecture, for now.\" Taking a deep breath, Severus said something he *never* ever thought he\'d say, especially to a *student*. \"For now, is there a way you can relate all this muggle information to something wizarding?\" his tone sharper than he\'d intended. He *really* did not like appearing ignorant, even if it *was* in regard to some obscure muggle science.

Granger grinned suddenly. \"That\'s it!\" She scrambled for a new sheet of Parchment.

Eyeing her warily, Severus leaned forward to watch what she was writing. \"Okay, compare DNA to a potion, and the magical affect of the potion to human beings. Genes are the \'ingredients\' to DNA. Chromosomes are the way the genes are put together to form the DNA. Separately, they don\'t really mean that much. Put them together in the correct sequence, and you have DNA that results in the \'magical affect\' of a human being. Just as different ingredients change the composition of the final potion and ultimately its affect, so different Genes change the composition of DNA and ultimately affect the final product . . . in this specific case a human being, whether wd ord or muggle.\"

Severus nodded. Put that way, it made eminent sense, quite logical -- without the need to know obscure terms from a field of study that sounded as bloody complex as potions. Something, as Granger herself admitted, a person could spend *years* studying before finally beginning to truly understand it.

\"Now, when it comes to the sex of a child, a very specific chromosome determines it. The DNA strand from each nt, nt, the egg and sperm, have 23 chromosomes, half of a full DNA strand. Like two halves to a prepared potion that you have to put the two vials together to achieve the final affect. Each chromosome can have literally thousands of different ingredients, ie genes, to make it up. The very last set determine sex -- among other things. An egg *always* carries what\'s called the X chromosome which is female. The sperm can carry either that same X, or a Y. Put an X and an X together, you get a girl. Put an X and a Y together, you get a boy.\"

It was quite fascinating really, something else that Severus never thought he\'d admit, being fascinated by something a student was \'lecturing\' about. He smirked, wondering briefly if he should allude to that now. He decided against it when he realized it would probably throw Granger into a fit, and he would be treated to stammers instead of an relatively smooth, if excited, recital.

\"So,\" he said instead, confirming for both of them that he was indeed following what she was saying. \"It is the father that determines the sex of the child.\"

Hermione nodded enthusiastically. \"Yes, exactly. Now, when information about that child is carried on the final chromosome, it would tend to occur more often in males if carried on the X and the gene were recessive.\"

\"Recessive?\" Severus asked, the term itself seemed self explanatory, but it was the first time she\'d used it, and he wanto beo be sure he understood it in context.

Again Hermione nodded. \"If a gene is recessive, it requires that the same trait be given from both parents in order to show up in the child. If a gene is dominant, it requires only one of the parents to pass it on, though that child might still carry the ability to pass on the recessive gene to their children even if they only get one recessive gene from one of their parents.\"

\"Go on.\"

\"Now for the crux of the matter. If magical ability is carried on the X chromosome, females have two chances to inherit the ability, males only one -- assuming that gene is dominant. If that dominant gene is absent in the X chromosome the mother supplies to the child, you end up with a squib if it\'s a male child. If it\'s a girl child then there would be the chance of the father passing down the gene. Of course, if the magical gene isn\'t dominant, or the one present in squibs isn\'t recessive, the ratio of squib occurrences in males and females would be closer, which means the whole theory falls apart.\"

\"So this entire, rather complex theory is based on one of two rather iffy suppositions?\" he asked in astonishment.

\"Yes, Professor, but one based on visible evidence.\"

Before Severus could figure out a less then utterly scathing response, Granger\'s eyes lit up in what could only be described as shock mixed with her usual excitability. \"What have you thought of now?\" he asked warily.

\"I just realized something rather, um, shocking.\"

\"Well, what is it?\" he demanded, growling at the delay tactic.

\"Well, if the theory is right, at least about Magical ability being linked to the x chromosome, it means that a wizarding father *can\'t* pass down magical ability to a son. It would be solely up to the mother\'s genes. Kind of like the reverse of the father being the one to determine sex, similar anyway.\"

It took Severus several moments to actually process her words, let alone their meaning, and after that, it took a few more to form any kind of response. \"That\'s . . . amazing, Miss Granger,\" he said carefully, pausing before saying more. \"You would do well not to mention that theory to anyone.\" The uproar that little tidbit would cause, even without proof, would almost certainly put Miss Granger\'s life in danger, as well as anyone else that was involved in the project. It would most certainly add to the pureblood mania. He shuddered to think of the implications. If correct, it meant that a pureblood who married a muggle, would be virtually guaranteed any sons he had would be squibs. The only chance would be whatever allowed for muggle-born. Speaking of--

\"So how does this account for muggle-born?\"

Granger sighed. \"It doesn\'t. The only thing in genetics that *can*, is the presence of wizarding ancestry far enough back it\'s been forgotten -- which if the theory still holds, still leaves out male muggle-born -- or spontaneous genetic mutation.\"

Severus smirked, but had only opened his mouth when Granger cut him off.

\"Don\'t even think it, Professor. That\'s beneath even you!\" she retorted, sounding angry, but looking faintly amused.

He watched her wryly. \"Even me?\" he asked, his voice dry.

Granger ducked her head, but not before he saw the blush begin, and a sheepish expression cross her face. As soon as it had come, however, it was gone, and the girl plowed ahead, apparently very willing to simply ignore the gaffe she\'d made.

Severus wasn\'t so sure he was. Never the less, he held his tongue, in favor of a sneak attack at a later time.

\"Aside from that, the numbers themselves are pretty much self-explanatory.\"

\"Indeed, and none the less incendiary for that.\"

\"Yeah,\" she mumbled. \"I can see where it might, rock a few boats.\"

\"Rock a few boats?\" Severus exclaimed hotly, grabbing up the project report that had suddenly become poison. \"Miss Granger! This will do more than \'rock a few boats\'.\"

\"I know,\" she replied, her quiet admission quite robbing him of his wind.

Hmmphing in irritation -- he\'d been quite looking forward to that rant -- he sat back down.


\"Even without my supposition about \'why\',\" she continued just as quietly, \"the facts are going to piss people off, because they\'re going to be scared.\"

\"Precisely, Miss Granger.\"

\"So why *did* you assign this project?\"

His normal response to such a question would have been to tell the asker it was none of their bloody business. He was quite surprised to find that it only occurred to him in passing this time. He paused a moment and related the conversation he\'d heard between Weasley and Malfoy, surprising himself even further, by mentioning his own thoughts on the matter.

She listened silently, her facial expressions ranging from outrage at Mr. Malfoy\'s rather cold-blooded assessments, to sympathy when she realized just how badly damaged the wizarding world had been by the conflict with Voldemort, to outright shock when he admitted his own beliefs had been just as baseless as Mr. Malfoy\'s had been.

\"You assigned it because you didn\'t like not knowing,\" she breathed in understanding.

He tried to take exception to the comment, but couldn\'t. That had, in fact, been part of the reason. \"Partially,\" he admitted. \"I had a choice, do it myself and forgo the research I normally do during school breaks, or assign it to them and have *all* three of us learn something.\"

\"Brilliant,\" Granger praised.

Torn between outrage at her cheek, and startling pleasure at the unreserved compliment, Severus had to fight a smile.

TBC

AN: I may give up predicting what the chapters are going to contain. LOL This time Severus ran away with me, while Hermione ran off at the mouth. I can pretty much guarantee Burrow next chapter though -- basically because I\'m starting the bloody thing while they\'re waiting for the train at the station. Oh, and for those interested, the next part of \"Mothers....\" is almost finished.


Kiristeen
Feedback: It\'s the bomb! : )~
Kiristeen@kiristeen.com


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