Chapter Text
The storm rages with a thundering clap and the heavily pregnant woman wakes with a gasp, clutching her stomach. She shakes awake her husband, “Henry. Henry, wake up, it’s time.”
His eyes snap open tiredly and he gently places his own hand over hers, “You’re sure?”
She cries out when the pain hits again, “Yes. Yes I’m sure.”
The burly wizard stumbles out of bed, “I’ll go floo the healer and-.”
“Just hurry, please.” She begs him and he rushes off after kissing her forehead.
Hours later their beautiful daughter is born. All wild curly hair and warm amber eyes.The door opens after a soft knock to permit entry to Henry followed by a cloak hidden woman. The wizard feels his heart melt at the sight of his wife and child.
Cracks and pops of apparitions around their home ring out and instantly wipes the joy from his face, “They’re here we have to make this quick.”
His wife’s eyes become resolute when she nods. The woman raises her wand before asking quietly, “Are you sure this is what you want?”
Emma and Henry nod determinately, “Place your hands on the babe.” Following directions, they place their hands upon their daughter.
Low chanting fills the room with rising intensity and the couple grinds their teeth as they feel their magic being ripped from their bodies and transferred into their daughter. Once the spell is complete neither of them can feel the once steady thrum of their magic.
Intruders banging around in their home signals their nearing approach and the caster apparates away without another word. Helping his wife with their daughter and grabbing few bags Henry ushers his family into the floo. Without looking back or wasting a moment he throws down the green powder and speaks his desired location.
For many years, this night -as assumed by the entirety of the wizarding world- was the night the Dagworth- Langley bloodline ended.
The last few days of the school year carries with it a notable topic of interest for the students of Hogwarts. Although muggle-born, the last four years have proven several things true about one Hermione Jean Granger. She is Harry Potter’s best friend, she’s a know- it- all, she’s very protective of those she cares for, she’s extraordinarily powerful and -most impressively- has near perfect control over said power.
However, that control is nowhere to be found as of this morning. The reason for her fuming anger and pulsing magic is unknown until their headmaster calls for silence at dinner.
“Before we begin this evening's feast, I have an announcement to make. Early this morning, I was informed that the Ministry has enacted a new law requiring all students of Hogwarts, current and future, to submit their blood for a magical heritage test.”
A wave of whispers and murmurs washes over the crowd so he raises his hand, and the noise recedes, “I understand that this may seem unnecessary or cruel to those with non-magical backgrounds,” everyone collectively glances at the fury in Hermione’s eyes before looking away, “but I assure you, it is not.”
He takes a brief pause to let his words soak in, “Your respective heads of house will take you in groups to the infirmary where Madam Pompfrey along with several healers from St. Mungos will take a small vial of blood. By the time you return to bed that night, your results will be waiting for you.”
The headmaster touches on a few other non- important topics then claps his hands, starting the feast. Harry looks at Hermione with compassion in his eyes, “I’m sorry Hermione, it’s not right.”
She looks up at the bespeckled boy with a shrug before glancing back down at her food, “There’s nothing I can do about it now. While I do understand that this might be beneficial, all the new first years who are muggle- born will be subjected to even more ridicule and taunting than any of us now.”
Ron lifts his face from his plate, “Issh not reawy vat bod issh iit?”
Harry winces as the wrath of Hermione’s face shifts to the redhead. Inwardly, he pleads with any and all higher powers that Ron manages to keep his mouth shut, but as usual, his luck isn’t that good.
“How dare you say ‘it’s not that bad’ Ronald Weasley! You may be picked on, but those who are muggleborn are treated far worse than you could imagine. If you actually paid attention to those around you and stopped eating for one bloody minute maybe you could see that.” The brunette glowers at the boy who turns a luminous shade of red.
He chokes down his food, clambering to his feet while pointing an accusing finger at Hermione, “You’re just jealous that you’re not nearly as important as I am around here. Cause I’m pureblood and you’re just a-”
Harry bravely tries to stop him, “Ron don’t!”
“ Filthy-” Ron hardly pays attention to the boy- who- lived.
Ginny shoves her brother, “Ron! Stop!”
Ron pays no mind to his sister either, “ Mudblood.”
The student body is actually dumbfounded into silence as they listen to the argument between the Gryffindors, but the room becomes all together smothering when they feel the brutal surges of magic pulsing out from the young witch.
She stands with a gaze so icy, even Ron seems to realise he won’t be getting out of this unscathed.
“ What did you just say?” The composure in which she questions him leaves no doubt that she heard him perfectly clear.
His previously bright complexion turns ghostly, “I-i.. well... um.. I-” Hermione cuts him off with a sneer.
“I know what you said you daft prick.” The collective gasp is due to having never heard the Gryffindor princess swear before, “Now listen to me very carefully, we are no longer friends. You will not talk, walk or sit anywhere near me.” He tries to interrupt but she doesn't let him.
“I’m not finished. You will not join any groups or partner with me in any of our shared classes. You will not look or so much as breathe in my direction. As of this moment, it's like we never met. Do I make myself clear?”
Ron’s face is near purple by the time she’s done but before he can muster up a response a hand is slapped over his mouth and three others yank him from his seat and shove him further down the table. “Sorry Hermione.”
“Yeah truly, we’ll make sure Ronikins here doesn’t bother you.”
Hermione’s frame loses some of it’s hostility at the appearance of the twins and she gives them a grateful nod. Taking a deep breath to reign in her thundering magic, she gathers her abandoned cloak and leaves the Great Hall without another word.
Lost in her thoughts, Hermione heads to the infirmary. Entering she looks around and approaches, waiting for the healer to notice her, “Ah, Miss Granger, what a wonderful surprise! What can I do for you? Is everything alright?”
The brunette works her jaw a little before answering, “I’m alright, but I was hoping to get my blood work done now.”
“I wasn’t aware you were in the first group of students.” Madame Pomfrey replies with a furrow of her eyebrows.
Shuffling nervously she answers, “I’m not here with a group. I’m just hoping to get this out of the way.”
“Alright, have a seat then.”
Hermione releases the breath she was holding and takes the offered seat. They don’t speak again and in short order the older witch holds a small vial of Hermione’s blood.
Muttering her thanks, Hermione leaves the infirmary and hides away in the library to avoid the gossip that is surely circulating. Luckily, she’s always prepared so her things are all packed save for an outfit or two.
She gives a quiet greeting to Madam Pince, who simply stares until she is out of view.
The brunette finds her favourite spot and loses herself in the books. She doesn’t realise how long she is there until the stern librarian comes to tell her the library is closing for the night.
Nodding, Hermione diligently puts away the books she read and exits the library heading to the Gryffindor common room. She gives the password, slips into the open space and sighs in relief when she is met with silence.
She soundlessly enters her room unsure if her roommates are awake or still asleep, giving them a nod when they look over at her. Walking over to her bed, she frowns when she sees two separate envelopes with her name scrawled on both.
Picking up the larger of the two, she flips it over and breaks the wax seal with the seal of St. Mungos. Reaching in she pulls out a single piece of parchment.
Hermione Jean Granger nee Dagworth
Mother~ Emma Sofia Granger nee Dagworth formerly Langley
Father~ Henry Oliver Granger nee Dagworth
Hermione Jean Granger nee Dagworth sole heiress to the
Noble House of Dagworth
Hermione Jean Granger nee Dagworth sole heiress to the
Noble House of Langley
Hermione Jean Granger nee Dagworth sole heiress to the most
Royal and Noble House of Ravenclaw
Hermione Jean Granger nee Dagworth sole heiress to the most
Royal and Noble House of Gryffindor
Hermione Jean Granger nee Dagworth sole heiress to the most
Royal and Noble House of Slytherin
The world turns into an unidentifiable blur of color as she rereads the document over and over. She must’ve read it at least a dozen times, but still can’t believe the words. Shaking her head she looks at the smaller envelope and decides to read that one before trying to process the other.
Flipping the letter over, her eyes fixate on the Gringotts Wizarding Bank official seal. Taking a shaky breath, she opens the letter and immediately loses the little air left in her lungs,
Dear Lady Hermione Granger nee Dagworth,
I, Ragnok, Director and Head Goblin of Gringotts Wizarding Bank, formally invite you to Gringotts to claim heirship to
Noble Houses of Langley and Dagworth,
the most Royal and Noble Houses of
Ravenclaw,
Gryffindor,
and
Slytherin
Along with any and all vaults, shares, properties, and assets associated with
Noble Houses of Longley and Dagworth,
the most Royal and Noble Houses of
Ravenclaw,
Gryffindor,
and
Slytherin.
I await your response via owl at your earliest convenience.
She obviously realises that if Gringotts is sending her this correspondence, then she truly is the heiress to the families listed. But again, if that is true then her parents are either lying to her about who they are or they aren’t really her birth parents at all.
Unable to think clearly, she isn’t sure she wants to know which is the lie.
She numbly makes her way down to the common room after summoning her patronus, gives the mighty steed a message to deliver to Harry and him alone.
She spies her moody familiar perched on the arm of the sofa nearest to the fire and gives him a morose smile.
As her patronus disappears up the stairs, Hermione feels regretful. It’s late and Harry hasn’t been sleeping enough as it is. Who does she think she is to take away what little he could get?
A few minutes pass and as Hermione considers calling back her patronus, Harry comes clambering down the steps, his hair and clothes dishevelled and bed tousled, “Hermione? What’s going on?”
Knowing that he was woken up and still rushed to comfort her, she leads him to a sofa in front of the warm fireplace and gives him the letters. He reads the blood results first before reading the request from Gringotts.
He finishes and looks up at her with wide eyes, “Hermione, do you know what this means?”
She stares into the flickering flames, “It means that my parents are liars one way or another.”
Sensing her inner turmoil, Harry wraps an arm around her shoulders and she leans gratefully into her brother in all ways but blood.
“Maybe you should talk to them? I’m sure they have their reasons for keeping this from you, but no matter what, this doesn’t change anything Hermione. You’re still my best friend- Merlin, you’re family at this point.”
She shoots him a thankful look while they sit in companionable silence, “May I borrow Hedwig tomorrow to write home and to Gringotts?”
He agrees easily, “Of course.”
She only manages to mumble her gratitude as she feels the day’s -the year’s in all honesty with everything between Sirius, Lupin and Pettigrew- events catching up to her. Tiredly she goes to sit up but is tugged back into the couch, “S’alright Hermione, we can sleep down here tonight.”
Thankful for how well the boy could read her, the brunette agrees and they shuffle around getting comfortable before falling asleep- neither minding when Crookshanks curls between them and begins to purr.
The last two days of school are fraught with tension but uneventful nonetheless. Hermione’s parents know she is aware of her true blood status and the teen is worried of course, but both her mum and dad are adamant about always supporting and loving her no matter how she reacts to their truth.
She chooses an empty cabin for her and Harry on the train home, and they are joined by Neville, Ginny and an adorable Ravenclaw named Luna Lovegood.
Hermione can recall seeing the younger girl in the halls, sometimes talking to Ginny, but more often than not by herself so the older teen preens internally, pleased that the blonde has joined their little family of misfits.
They sit in a relaxed silence for the most part but over the hours-long ride, someone will share an idea and the others discuss it until the silence returns naturally.
As they pull into Kings Cross, all of them make promises of writing with hopes of visiting over the summer holiday while waiting until the platform is semi clear of people.
Luna skips over to barrel herself into a man with the same long, wavy white blonde hair, her father , Hermione notes to herself. Ginny begrudgingly trudges over to her family with a bear hug for her dad and grimace for her mom, who is glaring daggers at Hermione (no doubt having heard a false account of what happened from Ron).
Neville calmly makes his way over to an older woman who embraces the tall boy with a squeeze and cheek pat. Harry walks Hermione over to her own parents before walking through the wall and out to catch the Knight Bus.
She shuffles in front of her mum and dad before rolling her eyes at herself. No matter what, these are her parents. They have and will love her, her whole life no matter what. She throws herself into their surprised arms and breathes deeply as they cuddle her between them.
They pull apart with soft laughter as Crookshanks yowls unhappily from where he sits in his travel cage at Hermione’s feet.
As a family they decide to have ‘ the talk ’ after dinner, that way they can all eat and enjoy a meal together after so long apart. Shortly after they are finished eating and cleaning up, they get comfortable in the den.
Hermione’s father, Henry, starts, “I’m sure you have many questions, but maybe some of them will be answered if we tell you our story first. Is that agreeable to you?”
“Yes, of course.”
Emma, Hermione’s mother, continues, “To start, we want you to know, we are your birth parents. We were once purebloods, but before you were born and in order to keep you and our family safe, we had to give up our magic.”
The next couple of hours Emma and Henry tell her all about their lives leading up to and after her birth- only keeping two sensitive secrets to themselves.
“When we were told it was you that both sides were searching for, we made the necessary arrangements to hide ourselves in the muggle world. The night you were born, we left the wizarding world and never looked back.”
“But why would Mr. Williams give you the practice? You wouldn’t have been able to get through muggle dental school that quickly.”
Emma smiles softly, “Mr. William’s own parents were squibs so he understood our past. He let us work there doing clerical work while we went through the proper schooling and once he retired he let us take over.”
“I understand running from the Dark Lord, I do. But Dumbledore? He fights for the light. Why would you run from him?” Hermione questions reasonably and without judgement.
Henry moves and takes a seat next to his daughter, “Hermione when we found out your mother was pregnant with you we got a visitor. She told us of a prophecy involving you. She didn’t tell us exactly what it was but she made sure to impress that Dumbledore was not to be trusted with your power.”
He looks at Hermione intently, “That’s why we couldn’t- wouldn’t join the war. Sure, Voldemort fought for blood supremacy and control of the wizarding world, but Albus fights for himself and the power he has over the wizarding world. Both of them are willing and able to manipulate others' lives to suit their needs.”
Thinking it over, Hermione presses forward, “If this is all true, how come Dumbledore doesn’t realise that my magic is related to the Dagworth or Langley lines? Not to mention, McGonagall came here when I got my Hogwarts letter, how did she not recgonise either of you?”
“The spell that was used to give our magic to you is safeguarded. Until your magical core is fully developed, the safeguard will keep our magic hidden and inaccessible to you or anyone who might go looking.”
“Preventing Dumbledore or anyone else from knowing my heritage.”
“That’s right. As for McGonagall, it’s been over a decade and neither of us were one of her cubs when we attended Hogwarts. Because of that, we might have looked familiar but it was unlikely she would think to draw that particular connection.”
“I suppose that makes sense. Theoretically, is there a way to access your magic before I am of age, since that is typically when cores are completely formed?”
Her mum nods, “Regardless of our magic, you will always be significantly more powerful than many of your classmates and possibly even some of your teachers. However, the only one who can remove the safeguard would be the one who placed it and we have no way of contacting her.”
Emma’s tone is strained but Hermione doesn’t push further since she has enough to process as is.
“Thank you for telling me everything. It’s a lot to handle, but I can understand why you did what you did.”
“You can?”
She gives her father a reassuring smile, “Yes, I only wish you would have told me sooner.”
Her parents accept that, “I do have one other question.”
“What is it, love?” Emma brushes a stray curl from her daughter’s face.
“Well two questions. One, how is it I’m the heiress of Ravenclaw, Gryffindor, and Slytherin? And why does my letter from Gringotts say I am the sole heiress to the Dagworth and Langley lines?”
“Even though your mother and I are still alive, in the magical world the heirs or heiresses of pureblood houses must have magic so when we gave ours to you-”
“You were no longer eligible to claim heirship.”
“Exactly, Sunflower.” Hermione rolls her eyes good naturedly at the nickname from her father while Emma answers her first question.
“As for the Royal houses, there is not much fact to go on but there have been rumours throughout the centuries that, should the founders find a person they deem worthy, they can transfer bits of their own magic into them. Therefore making them the heir or heiress to that Royal house.”
“So Rowena Ravenclaw, Godric Gryffindor and Salazar Slytherin all found me worthy enough to give me some of their magic and make me their heiress?” Her voice is full of disbelief and her eyes confirm her bafflement.
“It appears that way, love, yes. We can always get a confirmation test done when we go to Gringotts.”
This surprises the witch, “You’re going with me to Gringotts?”
“Well duh, I think it’s time for you to lead our family into the wizarding world.” Her father snorts.
She beams in response, “I absolutely agree, but..”
“What is it?”
The teen looks at her parents, “Can I invite Harry?”
Emma grins warmly, “Of course you can, let him know we will pick him up on our way.”
She thanks her parents profusely before excusing herself to bed with a promise to talk more with them once she had a bit of time to process what she has learned.
They understand so she heads to her room and changes into her night clothes. She lays down, feeling her mind drifting off as she closes her eyes and thinks to herself, time to shake up the wizarding world.