Law or Love?

It was not unknown that the war had taken many lives from the wizarding world. It was also not unknown that the Ministry had been very un-pleased with the remainder of them. It was then that a law was pushed through. A law that any Wizard or Witch between the age 17 to 45 must be married within the next year to the wizard or witch of the Ministry's choice. To find your 'perfect match', they would send a test with 100 or so personal questions. Then, after a two week waiting period, a letter with their choice would be printed on a piece of parchment. Within the next five years it would be mandatory to have atleast 3 children. If you did not abide to these laws, troubling consequences such as having your wand snapped and living a muggle life.

-

It was no mystery that Dakota Sage Caine was very angry with this new law. She didn't believe in forcing love on people.
The worst part of this whole situation was the personal questions from the test. It made her extremely uncomfortable and even more angry. (if that was possible.) Now she was waiting for her reply to her test. She picked at her nails, biting harshly down on her lip.

-

Draco Malfoy was not about to get his wand snapped. Even if it meant that he was to marry whomever the Ministry assigned. Did he believe in this new law? No. Was he going to challenge them to change it? Not a chance.
Although Draco had changed since the war, small peeks of his former self still showed. With that being said, there he was, pacing around his small home. He could only hope that he would get someone he could atleast stand.

Fred was found sitting at home, hands clasping each other as he stared at the window, waiting for the parchment to come. The law wasn't exactly something that he wanted to be bothered with but he loved magic too much to give it up because of some disagreement with the Ministry.
What would make them crazy enough to force marriage, anyways? And for the witches and wizards to have to have three kids in five years? It was a little ridiculous to him and he wondered if whoever he was to be paired with would agree with that opinion.

~

Uneasiness radiated off Lena as she sat outside, staring up at the sky for any sign of the owl that was to bring the Ministry's decision to who she was matched up with. She wasn't excited about the idea at all and really debated on whether she should just give up magic. Being a muggle-born, she knew how to live as a muggle better than most, after all.
But magic was too much to just give up all of a sudden. At least she could give this entire thing a shot, right? Better than just giving up right off the bat. Shaking the thought away, she closed her eyes, but heard the light flutter of wings, signaling that the owl had arrived.

Dakota heard the faint flutter of the owl wings, and she instantly got up. The owl awaited her to grab the piece of parchment, before taking off in the opposite direction. She unrolled the parchment carefully. It was the moment of truth and she was honestly so afraid. Would she get somebody that was way older than herself or would she have to marry an insufferable prat?
She finally let herself look at the parchment.
It read; Dear Dakota Sage Caine,
We have reviewed you answers to your test and we have made our pick.
You are to marry and have children with:
Fredrick Gideon Weasley
If you do not agree with your spouse choice, you will be forced to leave the wizarding world completely.
We do hope you chose to marry and stay in the wizarding world.
(They'll be yearly check ups as to how your marriage is going.)

Ministry of Magic.

-

Draco stopped pacing at the sound of an owls wings fluttering into the room.
He quickly raced to the owl, taking the rolled up parchment from it.
He quickly unrolled the parchment, his eyes scanning over it quickly.
It read; Dear Draco Malfoy,
We have reviewed you answers to your test and we have made our pick.
You are to marry and have children with:
Lena Thompson
If you do not agree with your spouse choice, you will be forced to leave the wizarding world completely.
We do hope you chose to marry and stay in the wizarding world.
(They'll be yearly check ups as to how your marriage is going.)

Ministry of Magic.

He nearly dropped the parchment.

Fred shot up when he saw an owl land on the windowsill. Making his way over, he was quick to take the parchment, not bothering to watch as the bird flew off. He hesitated for a moment, a little worried about what would be written in the parchment, but he forced that thought away and opened it, his eyes scanning the paper that read:
Dear Fredrick Weasley,
We have reviewed you answers to your test and we have made our pick.
You are to marry and have children with:
Dakota Sage Caine
If you do not agree with your spouse choice, you will be forced to leave the wizarding world completely.
We do hope you chose to marry and stay in the wizarding world.
(They'll be yearly check ups as to how your marriage is going.)

Ministry of Magic

He stared at the parchment for a long time, admittedly uncertain of what to think about the choice the Ministry had made on his behalf.

~

Lena's mouth gaped open after she read the parchment she had received. There had to be a mistake, right? Her eyes read over the paper once more, just in case she had somehow managed to misread it.
Dear Lena Thompson,
We have reviewed you answers to your test and we have made our pick.
You are to marry and have children with:
Draco Malfoy
If you do not agree with your spouse choice, you will be forced to leave the wizarding world completely.
We do hope you chose to marry and stay in the wizarding world.
(They'll be yearly check ups as to how your marriage is going.)

Ministry of Magic.

There was absolutely no way that was right. That prejudiced Malfoy was who she was paired up with? Maybe she really should have just let her wand get snapped.

Dakota ran her hands through her untamed blondish hair. She gave out a frustrated groan and began to get ready to meet 'Fredrick'.
She knew who he was. Hell, he was one of the Weasley twins. He was one that was close to 'The Boy Who Lived'. He was extremely famous all around the Wizarding World and many witches would love to be with him.

She was sure that he had absolutely no idea who she was. She heaved a deep sigh and began to change out of her glamorous outfit of grey sweats and a baggy jumper.

-

Draco frowned heavily. He knew who she was. He was one of the many Slytherins that had given her a hard time for being a muggle-born. He knew it was wrong that he did give her such a hard time, but it was just the way he was raised. If he could, he would change it.
He let a frustrated growl and tossed the parchment to the side. He started to change out of his old dress ropes and into a more casual outfit, and grooming his bed hair.

Fred ran a hand through his hair before he made his way to his room, the parchment still in his hand. He didn't know Dakota all that well. He knew who she was and he hadn't had a problem with her before as far as he could remember, so maybe this would be a bit easier. At least he wasn't paired up with somebody that he just wouldn't be able to get along with at all. Then again, how would he know if he got along with her?
At least he could hope, he decided, as he got changed and got ready however else he could manage to, trying to ignore his thoughts.

~

A sigh left Lena's lips and she let a low grumble escape her as she crumpled up the parchment. Making her way back inside, she went to her room, her eyes scanning her wardrobe, which mostly just consisted of jeans and what she classified as 'lazy shirts.' Pulling out her most comfortable set of clothes, she went ahead and changed before brushing her hair and pulling it into a ponytail.
Whatever the Ministry members were thinking with pairing a muggle-born with a Malfoy, they were crazy.

Dakota pulled on a purple jumper, a nice pair of skinny fitting black jeans and a pair of black heels. She knew that Fred was definitely way taller than she was, and she really didn't want to be too short. She started to comb and tame her wild hair. She then curled her hair, and started to put on a little bit of makeup.
She was nervous, but she knew that this would have to be done.
For her sanity and his sake.

-

Draco washed his face with cold water, his hands staying on his face, just letting the water run. He sighed and finally removed his hands. He then st off the water and groomed his hair. Afterwards he got dressed in a black button up, a pair of jeans and a pair of Converse. He was nervous, so nervous that his hands trembled as tied his shoes.

Fred stared at himself for a long moment once he was ready. Wearing jeans and a shirt and tennis shoes, he tried to be as confident as he could manage. "You can handle this," he muttered to himself in reassurance, though he wasn't sure if the words would help him at all. Regardless, at least he had tried. He stared down at the parchment in his hand and let out a sigh. This had to work, he decided; it just had to.

~

Maybe she needed to upgrade her wardrobe, Lena thought once she was ready. Her clothes were hardly what she should really wear to something like this. She just didn't care for fashion, though. Sure, she thought clothes were cute, but she couldn't imagine wearing them, figuring that she would look odd. Toying with her ponytail, she chewed on her lip before she slipped on a pair of shoes.

Dakota let out a nervous sigh, as she nearly stumbled over her feet. She quickly used the Floo to get to Diagon Alley. This was where she was going to meet him and she couldn't be more nervous. What if it doesn't work? What if he hates her, or thinks she's ugly? What would she do if he refused to marry her? She surely didn't want her wand snapped. She gave one last shaky breath, before clasping her hands together to keep them warm.

-

Draco knew that he was supposed to meet her at Diagon Alley, but he couldn't bring himself to leave already. Sadly, he knew that he would have to meet her soon. Godric, what was he going to do if she rejected him? She could live a muggle life, she knew how too. But he didn't and she probably couldn't, no, wouldn't care.

Fred looked around his home for a long moment before he moved to grab some Floo powder. Making his way to the fireplace and muttered, "Diagon Alley." Just like that, he was there, glancing around the area with a few ashes covering his face and clothes. Ignoring that, he glanced around as he began looking around in search of her.

~

Lena eventually gathered up whatever courage she had and gulped down her nerves as much as she could manage to. Pulling out her wand, she apparated to Diagon Alley, stumbling a bit when she landed before glancing around. Several others were still around, a large crowd forming, and it made her nervous.

Dakota looked up to every sound of someone apparating in her general direction. Her eyes would every so often glance around for a glimpse of his orange hair and blue eyes. So far, she was having no luck, so she had decided to wait a few more minutes.

-

Draco finally decided that it was time to get to Diagon Alley. He let out a nervous sigh, before he apparated.
Seconds later, he found himself on the right side of the pavement. He put his wand away, stuffing his hand into his pockets, before starting his search for Lena.

-

Minutes later, Dakota looked up, expecting not to see him, when she caught a glimpse of his orange hair. She licked her lips, seeing that he was making his way over to her. He seemed nervous as well, as he was heavily chewing on his bottom lip. Oh Godric, Dakota hoped this would work well.

Fred's eyes glanced around, though it didn't take him long at all to find her - which he was both thankful for and worried about. Since he found her so quickly, it meant that he hadn't had time to prepare himself for this. Regardless, he approached her, trying to even out his breathing in hopes of forcing away his concern. It didn't completely work, but it helped a bit. When he got to her, he offered her a small, uncertain smile. "Hey," he muttered, ignoring how lame it was. How was he supposed to start a conversation with somebody that he just found out he had to marry? "So, um, are you up for this?"

~

Lena fiddled with her fingers nervously, closing her eyes as she tried to ignore everything around her. Mentally, she reminded herself that this was necessary, that she had to deal with this. Though she could handle living without magic, she knew that a lot of the people who were born into the wizarding world couldn't - and it was better to at least try this, rather than letting somebody down... Even if it was Draco. When she opened her eyes, she glanced around once and spotted him fairly quickly. Still fiddling with her fingers, she moved to go towards him.

She took a deep breath, trying to piece her words together, "Hello."
She offered a pitiful smile and continued, "I suppose so. If that's what you want?"
She would leave it his hands to decide whether or not she lost her magic. She looked up at him, seeing as he was atleast 6'4, while she was only a decently sized 5'9. (with the heels of course.)

-

Draco spotted her and decided to meet her half way. He shuffled his way over, offering her a apologetic smile, "Hi."
He scolded himself in his head. What the bloody hell was he thinking, giving her a apologetic smile?! She was going to think that he would refuse the marriage law and she would be lost without magic. He quickly replaced the smile, with a small grin.

Fred eyed her carefully, thinking over her words before nodding slightly. "We can at least give it a shot, right?" he asked, trying to be optimistic as he offered her a small, nervous smile.
Maybe he shouldn't be as nervous as he was, but oh well. Who wouldn't be nervous in this situation?
"As long as we work together, we should be okay."

~

Lena was a little amused with the small grin he offered and turned her attention back down to her fingers, taking a deep breath as she twiddled her fingers again, closing her eyes for a moment.
Once she opened them back up, she offered a smile. "So... I know we're not exactly on the best terms, but... I don't really want to be the reason somebody else loses their magic," she told him.

(This is probably my last post here for tonight, but I'll reply to whatever you post in the morning c: )

She nodded, slightly relieved by his words.
"Yeah, we could do that." She smiled warmly, yet still not raising her hopes. This could all go horribly wrong and he could possibly end up hating her. She wouldn't know what do at the point, but then again, he was her end result on the test, so they must of have something common right?

-

Draco smiled at the comment, but then sighed, "Yeah. That's very kind of you."
He frowned, knowing that what he did mech would not be so easy, but hoped he could get through it.
"Actually, I really want to apologize for my behavior towards you at Hogwarts.
I promise that I've changed from being a bit, " he starts, before rewording his sentence, "a lot of a prick. I'm not asking for your forgiveness, but I would like to have a shot of fixing what I did, and possibly redeem myself?"

(Haha, okay, good night!)

Fred smiled slightly and nodded slightly in response to her agreement. At least nobody could say that they didn't try. Taking a deep breath, he glanced around a bit. "We can do this," he decided with a nod, looking back to her. "I mean, since we got paired together, the Ministry had to have a reason to decide that, right?"
Or maybe they just picked random names out of jars.
That was incredibly doubtful, though, so he didn't think about it.

~

Lena blinked several times, eyeing him with surprise. "Ah, um... Redemption?" she muttered as she thought over it, though it surprised her that he was actually asking for a chance to do so.
"Look, if you're just trying to redeem yourself because of the fact we're paired together, you don't have to," she assured him, rubbing at her arm gently. "You only have to try to redeem yourself if you actually want to."

Dakota blink in surprise at his words, "Yeah, I was just thinking the same thing." She turned to look away from him when his gaze returned to her.
"So, maybe." She starts, "Maybe...we should try to...get to know eachother..?"
It was logical thing to do, really. I mean, it was probably best if you knew about the person you were marrying.
She hoped they would atleast have some things in common, rather than nothing at all. She returned her gaze back to him and offered him a small smile.

-

He frowned, "It's not that. I've been trying to apologize to the people I was a prick towards."
He burrows his hands further in his pockets, his eyes focused on the ground.
Draco realized why she had said it, as it seemed like he was only apologizing so that she would marry him. Draco nearly cringed at the thought. He was marrying someone and he had only just started trying to be nice to her.

Fred nodded slightly to her suggestion before thinking over it. "Well, then, what do you like to do?" he asked, offering a small smile. Better to get the basics out of the way, he decided - and, who knew? Maybe they actually liked doing some of the same things.
Considering they had been paired up together, it would make sense, he figured.

~

Lena had to admit, Draco apologizing to anybody was the last thing she expected. "I see," she murmured with a slight nod before shifting back and forth on her feet for a moment.
"Alright, well... Apology accepted." She offered a small smile, hoping to clear any awkwardness that still lingered between them before she glanced around.

Dakota shrugged, "I'm really open minded, so whatever we do, I won't mind."
It was true, she was a very open minded person. If she was willing too, she would be doing it, and would let you know when she wasn't.
She was still somewhat surprised herself though, as she usually had a place and everything figured out. She tried to think what the problem could be this time, before coming to the conclusion that she was still trying to figure Fred out. He was very well known, that much is true, but she still didn't know the small details. The little things that counted. Bloody hell, she could ruin this all by asking to sit somewhere!

-

Draco nodded appreciatively before asking, "So is there anything in mind you'd like to do?"
He offered a relaxed smile, feeling less anxious that he had before.
She had seemed to have forgiven him for the most part, but he knew that he would need more than that at some point.