The Muggle Project

The Program

After I had finished eating lunch I went straight to my Defense Against the Dark Arts class only to be told it was canceled because Professor McGonagall left the school grounds to do some private business with the Board of Governors. Her leaving put Krum in charge to over-see the school grounds since he was the Deputy Headmaster.

I spent the next hour and a half waiting outside the Muggle Studies classroom, wondering what the new program would be like.

Only when I saw the familiar faces of my friends did I gather to my feet.

"Hey Hermione!" Parvati called as she and Faye walked my way.

"Hi." I called back, giving a slight wave.

"Are you feeling better?" Parvati asked me.

I nodded my head before stepping aside as Professor Tonks moved to unlock the door.

"Gather in students, gather in."

Several students rushed in and quickly took seats near the center of the classroom. I on the other hand secluded myself and sat in the back. This was abnormal for me. I always sat in the front if I could.

The only other person who sat near the back was Draco Malfoy. He was across the room from me, two desks separated us.

"Welcome to Muggle Studies!" Professor Tonks began.

"This class is a bunch of bull crap, I can't believe I am required to take this." Draco mumbled under his breath. "Pathetic!"

Professor Tonks began pacing the front of the room. "Before we get into the nitty gritty I will explain the overall course. Day 1, where we are now, consists of settling down. Once I am finished you will be paired up with a partner and that partner and you will move into your new living quarters for the remainder of the school year."

My hand shot into the air.

"Yes, Miss Granger." she smiled.

I put my hand down and took a breath. "You said we will have new living quarters, what do you mean?" I leaned forward, moving to the edge of my chair.

"Yes, very attentive Miss Granger. For this class the Board of Governors have magically constructed a series of houses located on the grounds of Hogwarts. 20 houses to be exact. You and your work partner will be living in a house together." She explained.

I didn't have to be told to understand that by partner she mean male student, not female.

"During this time in the home you will live as Muggles do. The homes have spells put on them so no magic can be used by any student at all. Your classes will be considered your work. You will go to them and return home once it is all over. On the days you report to my class you will be tested on various muggle skills. The higher the scores the better the incentives."

My hand shot up in the air once more.

"Yes Miss Granger."

"Incentives, what exactly are they and what do we benefit from gaining them?"

"Very wise question. The incentives earn you credit and credits will get you things like better quality food, health products, clothes and other things you might want to buy."

"But all that is covered by the school."

Professor Tonks shook her head slowly. "Every house is stocked with basics but only enough for the first week. After that week you will be using your credits to purchase your own things just like muggles do."

"But we already do that anyways."

"That we do, Miss Granger. But those that know how to do magic know that there are common spells that we can use to double what they already have. So in turn they never have to buy more." She explained. "Muggles don't have that luxury. Once something runs out it is gone until they buy more."

"This class is so stupid," Draco scoffed. "I'm rich, I will never have to work a day of my life if I don't want to."

"Shut up Malfoy." I hissed across the room to him. "If you don't like it then you can just leave. No one is keeping you here."

Professor Tonks continued.

"What you need to know next is that each of the couples will get to experience the joys and woes of conception, pregnancy, childbirth and parenting."

I jumped out of my seat. "You have got to be kidding me! I am not ready for a family!" I shouted.

Suddenly the entire class jumped in, muttering agreements. It took all of ten minutes for her to restore order in the classroom.

"Calm down everyone, it is not real. It is a simulation. There will be no actual love making going on. You will just think you are. Time charms are placed on the beds so that when they are used at the given time will put the users under a mental and physical illusion that they are indeed doing the deed. For the conception and pregnancy, the female will also be charmed. Just like every real pregnancy, you will experience morning sickness and other side affects. Then will come the growing stomach. The pregnancy itself will last for a month. Then you will give birth."

This time Faye rose her hand before I did.

"Yes Miss Dunbar."

"Uh, will the giving birth hurt? I mean, how will this work?"

"That is an excellent question. Like I mentioned before, the house has charms on it. The charms are all timed. During labor you will be charmed to feel labor pains. These will be spaced out, in accordance to an actual labor. Starting out at 30 minutes apart, then the 50 seconds which is normally when you would be dilating and getting ready to push. You will feel all the pains associated with birth and once it is over a small baby will appear in the arms of your partner."

She lifted two glass bowls from her desk that contained slips of folded paper in them and moved to the front of the class room.

"The children will be charmed to genetically take after the parents in looks and personality. Their growth will be abnormally quick but will stop once they look to be 7 years old."

"If my calculations are correct, Professor, the school year is 9 months long meaning the child will have one years growth added each month. 7 months, 7 years. Leaving two months for the conception and pregnancy." I said.

"You would be right." I watched Professor Tonks shake the bowls, scrambling the papers inside before she held the bowls out allowing everyone to take a paper and pass it around. "Males you will take a blue paper, females a pink. The numbers you get will decide who your partners are."

I watched curiously as everyone in the front began picking their paper. When the bowl holding the pink papers reached my side I reached my hand in and took the final slip.

Opening the paper I smoothed it out before staring at my number. Mine was a 13.

"Once everyone has a paper and the bowls are back up front you may find your partners and then we will make our way to your new living quarters." She said.

I rose to my feet and grabbed my bowl and the one Malfoy had and took them up to the front. Then everyone began scrambling to find their partner. I stood off to the side and waited for the majority to pair up before I began looking around. One by one everyone was gathering in pairs. Then, I was standing alone.

Where was my partner?

Then I found him. There sitting in the back of the classroom with his head down was Draco. Draco friggan Malfoy was my partner.

"This has got to be a mistake." I mumbled as I crossed the room. "Draco, what is your number?" I snapped bitterly.

He glanced up at me. "13, move along Granger."

I narrowed my eyes at him before I slammed my number, face up, on his desk. When he saw it his head snapped up and his eyes widened dramatically.

"There is no way in hell that I am going to be partnered with a mud blood. I'd rather be with the Weasley girl than you." He growled.

I leaned over his desk, my face inches from his. "If you think for a second, that I am going to allow you to screw up my chance of graduating, you got another thing coming. You and I are partners, despite how unfortunate it is that we both hate each other, I am going to deal with it in a professional manner and so will you. If you step one toe out of line, Merlin help you, I will take you into the Forbidden Forest and do things to you that will make even a death eater tremble in fear." I threatened.

Leaving Malfoy speechless I stood up and straightened my robes.

"Okay everyone, lets head down to the houses." Professor Tonks called as she opened the doors.

The houses were located behind the castle between the Green House and the Quidditch Pitch. It was a beautiful ornate neighborhood that reminded me of walking down the street near my parents homes. The homes were two stories. The top story had white wood while the bottom was a red brick.

We continued walking until we were standing in the middle of a yard that led to a home that was twice the size of the others. It had two stories and like the others was decorated with white wood and red brick. The only difference in it's appearance -besides the size- was that the first floor had a wrap around porch and the second had a wrap around balcony.

This must be where Professor Tonks would be staying.

She took out her wand and fashioned a small stack of papers which she began handing out to everyone.

"The papers I just passed out explains the crediting system in depth. It talks about what days you can shop and how many credits you can earn and how to earn them . It also lists the time schedule for the charms, the length that they last and what to expect when you experience them. Lastly, you will notice the house just over my shoulder."

I rose my hand. "That is where we can reach you if we have a question or emergency right?"

She shook her head. "You can find me in my office at the castle if you need me. Or just send an owl. This house belongs to the pair that has the highest combined O.W.L.S scores."

Everyone turned to look at me and Draco before she had called out the official names.

"With a combined score of 12 Outstanding's and 6 Exceeds Expectations, Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy." Professor Tonks walked over to us and handed me a pair of keys. "Congratulations." She said to us before turning to the rest. "Go and pick a house. Note, they all carry the same interior so there should be no riff raff when it comes to decision."

Without speaking a word to Draco I crossed the remainder of the lawn and climbed the four stairs that led to the porch before I unlocked the front door.

When I entered I looked around. Everything was beautiful. The interior reminded me of a beautiful country manor, wicker, glass, colors of champagne, cream and white. I couldn't believe that for the next 9 months I would be living here.

The only thing that could have made this better would be if I was partnered with anyone other than Draco.