Across any Divide

Chapter 1

"You ready, mate?" Theo sauntered up and clapped Draco on the back.

The pale blonde Slytherin scowled, shrugging Theo's arm off of his shoulders as he answered, "You know I'm not. I can't believe -"

"'I can't believe the Ministry can enforce this decree without the full backing of a wide panel Wizengamot.'" Theo mocked Draco's voice in a high pitched, feminine voice. "Or were you going to say that you can't believe the rest of the wizarding world was so accepting of this new decree?"

Draco slammed his book shut, scowling deeply at Theo as he pushed to his feet. "I was going to say that I can't believe that we weren't excluded from the decree given our... circumstances."

The war had ended two months earlier, and while Theo and Draco had both undergone their trials and been declared not guilty, they'd still done actions deemed punishable by the jury and had been sentenced to five years on probation.

The first year of that required them to return to Hogwarts for their final year of schooling. The rest of those years they would be subject to the new Reflection Program that the Ministry had seemed fit to implement.

The Second Wizarding War had left their numbers so diminished that apparently extinction was now looming in the near future. To prevent their numbers dwindling any more, the Reflection Program had been created and was launching today.

"It can't be that bad, mate," Theo argued logically. "It's supposed to be a perfect equation, a balance of magic and common ground. You filled out the questionnaire. It was detailed."

"Of course I filled it out," Draco seethed, glaring at Theo resentfully. "It was fill it out, or occupy a cell in Azkaban!"

Theo rolled his eyes, "I'm sure it wouldn't have gone that far."

"Really?" Draco spun around spitefully, biting back the urge to smack Theo upside the head with the textbook in his hand. "Did it feel optional when we were chained to the same chair our fathers had sat in when they were sentenced to death?"

Theo's face darkened, and he conceded slightly, "I'm not saying that the situation isn't less than ideal. I just meant... maybe it won't be so bad meeting the person who's supposed to be your soulmate."

That, after all, was the goal of the program. To facilitate and expedite the meeting and uniting of couples, therefore speeding up reproduction. It was nothing short of a legal breeding program; one that Draco wanted nothing to do with.

"Go find your soulmate, then," Draco snarled, dismissing Theo with a wave of his hand. "Find yourself a girl and start popping out babies like the Ministry wants you to. Maybe you'll get a year or two knocked off your probation."

Draco could tell Theo wanted to say more, but he refrained. He simply strode towards the door, stopping in the doorway to glance back. "See you tonight?"

"Unless I decide to off myself," Draco answered absentmindedly.
________________________________________________________________________

"When I call your name, please step forward. You will be given your Mirror, and then you can return to your place. Once everyone has their mirrors you are free to go. Please remember that monthly check-ins with your Overseer are required for the first six months, and if progress isn't being made adequately the Ministry may see fit to intervene."

Draco barely managed to choke down his dismay. His entire life choices had been made for him - his father chose what schools he attended, what friends he had. His father had even chosen which side of the war he would stand on, and now he was here and his father wasn't, paying the price for his sins.