Sapphic September 2018 - Harry Potter Femslash Oneshot Collection

Day 9 - Bringing Work Home - Pansmione

Prompt: "I can't imagine what my life would have been like without you."

Pairing: Hermione Granger/Pansy Parkinson

Rating: Teen

Word Count: 1,056

Summary: Hermione is the Head of the Wizengamot, Pansy is a social commentator. They have an agreement not to talk politics at home, but almost always do anyway.

Tags: EWE, Post-Hogwarts, Established Relationship, Politics

Bringing Work Home

"I can't imagine what my life would have been like without you," Pansy sighed, putting down the newspaper and leaning against Hermione on the sofa.

Not looking up from the Wizengamot bill she was reading, Hermione reached out and gave Pansy's knee a pat. "Probably living in some sunny European country, designing formal robes and vindictively critiquing mass produced clothing," she said.

Pansy swatted at her hand and Hermione laughed, pulling it away to turn the page of the bill. "Sorry, love, too easy," she said. "Why are you getting morbid all of a sudden?"

"Just more unfortunate stories in the paper," Pansy said, picking it up and tossing it across to the fireplace. She missed, but didn't bother correcting it. She leaned more heavily against Hermione's side on the sofa and rested her head against her shoulder.

Hermione put the bill down. "Another of your friends in the paper?" she asked gently.

That was a testament to how often this happened, and Pansy grimaced. "It could be me. Bankrupt, losing the family estate. Getting involved in desperate and dangerous schemes and winding up in Azkaban. It could so easily be me."

Hermione put the bill to the side and wrapped an arm around Pansy's shoulders. "Nonsense. You are far too practical and you built yourself a strong support network. And it's nothing to do with me in your life. You turned your situation around yourself. You confronted your own faults and found ways to change and help others change with you. That's what made me sit up and pay attention, remember?"

Pansy smiled. "I thought it was that gown I wore to Parvati's launch."

"That too," Hermione said with a low chuckle, before she turned and kissed Pansy's temple. "I'm sorry they aren't reaching out for help. Who was it this time?"

"Millicent," Pansy said with a grimace. "Looks like she was the head of that smuggling ring Harry and Ron were losing so much sleep over. I had no idea. She never even hinted she was that desperate. I didn't even know she'd gone bankrupt, there wasn't a single rumour about it. When she stopped being free to meet up, I thought she was doing better."

Hermione sighed and held her tighter. "You know it's not always a case of desperation. Some people just choose that life."

Pansy shook her head. "Not us. Not after the war. We all know just one step in that direction all but guarantees a life in Azkaban. Punishments are still harsher for us once our house affiliations come out at trial. Remember Daphne? First time offender for selling a single restricted potion and she got life."

"Revise your call for an investigation into Wizengamot bias. Put it out there again with new examples of these injustices and people will listen," Hermione said, as if she would not fall under scrutiny herself.

"It was rejected last time, unsurprisingly," Pansy muttered. "I'm just a social commentator, I have no real chance to change the Wizengamot. People listen because they like how I humbled myself and spoke more often of my own flaws in the beginning. It's different now that I'm attacking others more than the flaws of my own kind."

Hermione chuckled. "You're so wrong about that. Most of the Wizengamot read the transcripts of your seminars. Someone quoted you in session yesterday. They're receptive to what you say, but the more they scoff at the idea of an investigation, the worse they look. That will sway public opinion until the Aurors of Internal Review have to take notice. Keep putting out the call, eventually it will work."

Pansy groaned and turned her face into Hermione's neck. They weren't supposed to talk politics at home, even though they almost always did. It wasn't so bad when Pansy was just trying to help others see that purebloods were not inherently evil, just stuck in their traditions and deserving of time to adjust to the new norms and fall a few times before finding their way. It was easy to poke at all the flaws in tradition, it endeared her to the post-war public, but now?

"I won't escape anyone's notice that I'm calling for a review of the parliament my partner heads," she said softly.

"Oh, we're well past that," Hermione laughed. "That stopped being a problem a while ago. I survived the review board over that, it won't come up again. And about an investigation, I have nothing to hide. I do the best I can but I can't ignore the results of votes just because I suspect bias. And I don't have the power to start a review process because it could be taken as trying to get rid of opponents. I'd be removed from position whether my points are valid or not. It has to come from outside the Wizengamot."

Hermione kissed her temple again. "Put the call out there again, and if Internal Review ignores you, do it again. If they do try to come for our relationship again, let them. I never bring home anything that isn't a matter of public record, and you've never leaked anything classified or confidential before so they can't claim I tell you things I shouldn't. They'll find nothing."

Pansy wanted to laugh. "You make it all sound so easy."

Hermione laughed with her, turning her head and kissing her. "You're letting your relationship with the head of the Wizengamot make you hesitate."

With a sigh, Pansy shook her head. "It shouldn't be so easy to discuss me attacking your parliment."

After pressing another kiss to Pansy's lips, Hermione picked the bill back up and returned to looking it over.

"Nonsense," she said. "I support your work. If you ever became biased, that's another story. But those injustices against Slytherin offenders do exist and my hands are tied. I hope you do put out the call, and I hope Internal Review does investigate."

Pansy sighed. "See, what would I do without you?" she said.

Hermione just snorted. "You wouldn't hesitate, you'd just burn the Wizengamot down around you until they played fair."

Shaking her head, Pansy got up to make tea. "Careful, or I'll start to think you're holding me back and leave you."

"Whatever you say, love," Hermione said with another soft snort. "Bring some biscuits back with you."

End.