Lord and Ladies

Start of Term

Harry felt quite content when boarding the Hogwarts Express. Although they spent most of the summer vacation just vacationing, visiting interesting places, staying with family, going to several beaches and having fun in other ways, they still managed to regain control of The Prophet, put Rita Skeeter to work on cleaning the ministry and freed Sirius. They had still not claimed their Wizengamot seats, as advised by Dumbledore, keeping that a surprise for its first scheduled meeting, a week after school started, nor had they removed the Hogwarts Board of Directors, for similar reasons.

Harry and his wives had lost a lot of the admiration they previously held for the old headmaster. They were now much more aware of his manipulations and his scheming, that didn't always consider the people involved, as their own marriage showed just too well. Still, he was a wise and knowledgeable man and a great resource in the coming war, although some of his tactics were far from perfect. They hoped that working together would allow them to get the benefits that Dumbldore could give them, while keeping at bay most of his other attributes.

They arrived to King's Cross train station early, occupying one of the compartments at the back of the train, where they could watch the whole platform. As the time approached, they saw Neville come in, then Draco, who looked paler than usual, with his two bodyguards, and soon most of the other students. As usual, the Weasley clan came last, barely on time to board the train before it started moving. It took some time until Ron found them. Opening the door, he first saw Harry sitting between Susan and Hermione. He wondered what that Hufflepuff was doing there, but didn't mind her too much. He then turned to put his trunk on the overhead rack and noticed Daphne sitting there, looking quite at home.

"What's this snake doing here?" he blurted, not even saying "hello" to his friends.

Harry responded coldly. "I see no snakes here. I'm sitting here with my three wives: Lady Hermione Potter-Ravenclaw, Lady Susan Potter-Hufflepuff and Lady Daphne Potter-Slytherin. Where have you seen any snake?"

Ron had difficulty understanding all that. It just didn't make sense to him. "Oh, knock it off! You can't really be married to any of them. We're all too young!" He was still standing, unsure about where it was right for him to sit.

Harry waved his hand, indicating for Ron to sit on the bench facing him, where Daphne was already sitting. Ron sat down, keeping as much distance from Daphne as that bench allowed.

"Do you remember that night both Hermione and I were missing?"

Ron nodded.

"It was that night that I magically wed all three. It was something orchestrated by Dumbledore without any of us knowing, but it turned out just fine, as we're now married and quite happy about it."

"But... You're only fifteen!"

Hermione took over. "Ron, you know that Magic cannot be bound by laws. Once some thoughts or deeds happen, Magic takes over, disregarding ages. Actually, getting married so young has the effect of emancipating us all, making us legally adult."

Ron still had difficulty wrapping his mind around this. "So, are you with Potter now? I thought we would start dating this year."

Hermione shook her head, smiling broadly. "I'm not WITH Potter; I AM Potter now, as are Daphne and Susan. We're out of the dating game, although we may like a date with our husband, once in a while."

Ron was trying to digest the information. It had always been a slow process with him, much slower than with Hermione or even Harry. He looked at the girls once again. Susan was pressed at Harry's side, just as tightly as Hermione was on his other side. He glanced at Daphne. She didn't look like she was cross with anyone present, not even with him, and she was certainly beautiful. Still, she was a Slytherin. He didn't know what to do about that information. He just took it in, hoping it would all make sense to him sometime later.

Neville joined them a moment later. "Congratulations! Gran told me that her friends at the ministry had seen the records of your marriages. You really chose well!"

Harry smiled, a bit apprehensive. "Thank you, Neville. I hoped this information would stay secret for a bit longer, but... well, it will become public as soon as we move to the married lodgings after the welcome feast, I think."

Neville smiled. "I won't tell." He then turned to the girls, taking each one's hand and kissing her knuckles. "Congratulations, ladies. You've married a fine lad, yet be aware that he's a magnet for troubles."

That made Daphne laugh heartily, sounding like delicate bells. "We've already heard about his adventures, but we can make our own mischief, you know."

He smiled back. "Yes. The way you made the Prophet change attitude was really brilliant! And then getting Lord Black free. I wonder what else you have in stock."

It was Susan's turn to answer. "Just wait and see. You're sure to like it."

The news seemed to have reached others as well, as many more students came to peek in and congratulate the newly married. Not surprisingly, Draco Malfoy was not one of them. The ponce ignored them completely, which was just fine for Harry and his family, although Harry wondered what caused that, hoping it was not some dark scheming that would only manifest itself at school.

Draco was actually afraid. He had also heard about Harry's marriages and about his taking control of The Prophet, and like his father, he was not yet able to comprehend all the implications. He only feared he would lose his position in the Slytherin hierarchy.

Harry's first problem, when arriving to Hogwarts, was choosing where to sit. He admonished himself internally for not having this question tackled at home, even before boarding the train, yet his wives didn't seem to have any problem with that, as both Daphne and Susan walked forward to sit at the Gryffindor table. "Are you sure it's right for you to sit here?" Harry asked Daphne.

She smiled. "As your wife, I'd rather sit here, with you, than at the Slytherin table, where they're sure to badmouth my husband, at least."

Except for Ron looking confused, nobody seemed to mind the two additional girls at the lions' table. The table that interested Harry the most was actually the head table. Harry wanted to know who the new defense teacher would be. Dumbledore had already told them that Moody (the real one) had lost interest in teaching, after spending most of the previous year as a captive. Remus Lupin could not take the job either, as his affliction was now well known, making too many parents unwilling to expose their children to "such a dangerous creature". Yet the head table was almost empty, as if most of the professors preferred not to be present, not giving him the chance to see for himself who it would be.

Despite the noise, his thoughts roamed to the plans they had put in action just a day earlier.

Rita had come with several folders full of documents. She had ample evidence of bribery, misconduct and many more illegal or questionable practices at the ministry. Two of the folders were dedicated to the current Minister of Magic, showing him as a spineless politician who only acted under extreme pressure and only minded his own interests, namely- money and popularity. His decisions were usually based on who paid more bribes and on keeping away from anything that could cause some stir in the public. While his decisions concerning Sirius had already been severely questioned and proven wrong, when Sirius finally got his trial, Harry was now directing Rita to question the decision about ignoring Voldemort.

The first article was due that morning, with follow-ups published daily until the next Wizengamot meeting took place. Harry hoped that would be enough to help him bring some change, once he joined that body, along with his wives. Being preoccupied with his thoughts, he missed most of the sorting, noticing only when Dumbledore stood up to talk.

"A new year starts at Hogwarts. We all welcome the new students who have just joined us, and we welcome back the returning students. Before we continue with the feast, I'd like to introduce some of the staff to you, for the benefit of the new students. You all know our Transfiguration professor and my deputy, Professor Minerva McGonagall, who also heads Gryffindor house."

Minerva, who had just put away the sorting hat, nodded her head at the students as she joined the table.

"Already sitting are Professor Vector, for Arithmancy, and Professor Babling – Runes."

Both stood for a moment and smiled at the students.

"Joining us at the end of the table – Rubeus Hagrid – Care for Magical Creatures. And joining us on the other side, Professor Sybil Trelawny – Divination."

Hagrid waved his hand at the students and winked at Harry. The woman with too many shawls seemed not to notice, as she sat down.

"The head of Ravenclaw and our very own charms teacher – Professor Flitwick!"

The tiny professor, who was already at the table, stood up on his chair and bowed to the students.

"You all know and love Professor Sprout – head of Hufflepuff house and our expert at Herbology.

Professor Sprout joined the table, smiling at the students.

"I'm sorry that Professor Snape, our potions master and head of Slytherin house, could not be present tonight. Don't worry, he'll be here tomorrow in time for the first lesson."

There was no mistake about it – most students groaned, hearing that. Snape was not very popular, not even in his own house.

"For many years we had a ghost teaching history. Professor Binns has finally decided to pass on, so our new Professor for History of Magic is Sirius Black!"

Harry stood up, clapping enthusiastically. Sirius walked in, bowing with flourish to the students and winking at Harry, before he took his seat at the table.

"Last, but by no means least – you've all seen her last year, proving that a witch was just as good as a wizard in most cases. Our new Defense Professor is none other than Fleur Delacour!"

Harry jumped on his feet once again. Although Fleur didn't do too well in the tournament, he had come to appreciate her and he knew she was very knowledgeable in many ways, surpassing many older people. He only wondered what effect her Veela heritage would have. He still liked the idea of studying in her class. Fleur seemed a bit overwhelmed by the cheers. She smiled at the students and took her place at the table.

"And now – tuck in!" Dumbledore waved his hands and the plates in the center of the tables filled with all kinds of food, reminding everybody how hungry they already were.

"Did you know about Sirius and Fleur?" Hermione asked Harry.

"No. Dumbledore didn't tell me, and Sirius didn't mention it either. He did say he hoped to give me some surprise when school began, but I didn't imagine it would be this. Fleur was actually contemplating joining Gringotts. I wonder what made her change her mind."

Hermione looked pensive. Daphne also looked at the head table pensively and then smiled. "It would be interesting to watch the boys respond to her allure."

"Harry is immune to it," Susan said.

"How do you know?"

"Last year, I've seen what effect she had on most boys, yet Harry seemed not to feel it at all. By the way he acted, you could think Hermione was the part-Veela, not Fleur."

"I have no Veela blood in me. The goblins checked us all, you remember," Hermione protested.

"We know, but for Harry you are the most attractive girl in the whole world," Susan said. Both Harry and Hermione blushed at that.

"You two are just as attractive," Harry tried to reassure them.

Daphne smiled and patted his hand. "We all know..."