Chapter Text
Harry stifled a noise of discomfort as he shifted on the bench he was sharing with his Potions partner. Hermione cast him a quick glance as she processed the not quite successfully muffled sound, then focused again on the rather complicated brew in front of them. Harry tried to powder the horn in front of him as finely as required by the recipe, but his hands were trembling and he knew he was fighting a losing battle. With a sigh he nudged his work over to Hermione who gave him a somewhat aggrieved look but took over the task without complaint. Trying to make himself useful, he ignored his sudden chills and the way that his body had suddenly started to produce an unusual amount of sweat, and stood up to go gather the next batch of ingredients.
He brushed against Malfoy at the ingredients table, who reached out to steady him when Harry stumbled. Malfoy had been on much better behavior since they had begun their seventh year; although by no means friendly, he had stopped taunting Harry and his friends at every available opportunity and seemed to be working off a goal of just ignoring them as much as possible instead.
“Watch it Potter,” Malfoy said, even as he released Harry’s arm after steadying him. Harry opened his mouth to apologize but a wave of dizziness passed over him again and he swayed. Malfoy’s eyes narrowed at this, and a keen gaze swept over Harry, taking in the swaying, the sheen of sweat, and the tremors that seemed to pass through him every few seconds.
“Granger,” Malfoy raised his voice abruptly, reaching out again to clasp under Harry’s elbow, holding him upright even as he continued to sway. “Potter needs the Hospital Wing.”
Hermione looked over from where she was sitting at the table Harry had just abandoned and widened her eyes as she took in the situation. “Yes,” she responded. “Thank you Malfoy. Professor, I will need to excuse myself and Harry from the rest of this class.”
Snape, sitting at the front of the room and observing his students’ behavior, only nodded.
Hermione had risen and walked over to where Harry and Malfoy were standing, significantly apart from the rest of the class working on their Potions, who had also paused to observe the small drama, but had mostly re-focused on their bubbling cauldrons. “My thanks, Malfoy.”
Malfoy waited until she had grasped Harry’s arm before withdrawing. “Congratulations are in order, Granger,” he murmured quietly, nodding his head in a small gesture of respect. “May Merlin smile on you and yours.”
Hermione’s eyes widened slightly in surprise but her composure didn’t break. “And the same to yours, Malfoy,” she responded, as they both ignored a confused Harry who couldn’t decide whether to demand an answer as to why his impending trip to the Hospital Wing was generating congratulations from his nemesis to his closest friend or just to demand that the trip become more immediate.
His body answered for him as his vision grayed at the edges and he slumped slightly, making Hermione let out a small sound of alarm before wrapping her arm around his torso and guiding him out of the classroom.
***
“You are undergoing your Presentation, Mr. Potter,” Madame Pomfrey informed the Gryffindor as he sipped on yet another Potion she had handed to him after settling him in a cot. Hermione had settled in a chair next to his bed and did not look like she intended to leave any time soon and, strangely, Madame Pomfrey had made no protest at her presence.
“Presentation?” Harry asked, confused.
Madame Pomfrey looked over at Hermione. “I assume you would like to tell him?”
Hermione nodded decisively. “I would, but I would prefer to wait for my Second.”
“That’s fine. He’ll need to be here overnight regardless and I must inform the COA. They will surely also send a representative to talk to him.”
“Is that necessary, Madame?”
“It’s standard procedure, Miss Granger. The Headmaster will be coming over to speak to you both as well, I expect.”
“I would like my Sponsor to be present as well, then.”
“That is understandable, of course.”
Harry had sat through the dialogue growing more and more confused. He was also at about his wit’s end with being ignored as though he wasn’t here when the conversation was clearly about him. He finally burst out, “Second? COA? Sponsor? Hermione, what is going on? What’s happening to me?”
Hermione’s gaze softened as she locked eyes with him, reaching out the grasp his hand gently. “Ron is my Second, Harry. And my Sponsor is Mrs. Weasley. I am an Alpha and as your closest Alpha friend, you are expected to join my Coven, which is why Madame Pomfrey is letting me stay with you right now. The COA is the Council of Omega Affairs, and if they are sending a representative to talk to you, I would prefer if Mrs. Weasley is present to provide me guidance. I’ve never registered an Omega before. ”
“An Omega?” Harry asked, somewhat dazed and also feeling suddenly exhausted, eyes drooping as he struggled to maintain eye contact with his friend.
“What you are, Harry. That’s what you’ve presented,” she leaned forward, suddenly earnest. “I promise, Harry, this wasn’t about keeping you in the dark. I know you’re confused right now, but what you’re feeling now is something that everyone newly presented feels. We aren’t allowed to discuss these things with neutrals. But now we can tell you everything.”
“Which you can do after Mr. Potter has had some time to rest,” the healer interjected. “His body is undergoing a fairly dramatic change and the sleeping draught I just gave him will allow him to process those changes with the least amount of discomfort.”
“Sleeping draught?”
And then he fell asleep.
***
“It’s called the Stricture. It’s ancient magic, passed down from our earliest ancestors. There’s no Wizard on Earth who can break it and many who have tried. It basically creates an information barrier between those who have presented, as you just have, and the un-presented, what we refer to as neutrals, mostly children below the age of presentation, muggles, and the rare magical person who lacks a biological secondary gender. The information barrier does not allow us to even use the terms Alpha, Beta, and Omega in the hearing of a neutral, and it prohibits us from showcasing Coven relationships in their line of sight. I am sure you have noticed that your friends have been a bit more closed-off to you this year, my boy. That wasn’t to be cruel, but it is because you are one of the youngest of your year, which means that while everyone else has been negotiating the terms of their Covens, you have been…enjoying the last taste of your childhood.”
Dumbledore’s speech had the tone of something that had been said more than a few times, and Harry was starting to believe that this really was a situation that had not been conspired against him. And it was true that his friends had been a bit standoffish this year. They hadn’t been…ignoring him… per se, but they had been spending a lot more time together without him. He had thought at first it was just Hermione and Ron’s budding romantic relationship and had worked hard not to feel like a third wheel. It was almost a relief to find out that there was this additional factor at play.
“Can you explain more about Covens, sir?”
Dumbledore smiled at him, clearly pleased that he didn’t sound angry. “Yes, of course. Covens are at the very heart of how the adult Wizarding World operates. All presented Wizards join Covens which are formulated around a Coven leader — someone who has presented Alpha, such as your friend Miss Granger. Coven leaders are almost always Alphas, though there have been rare cases of Betas taking the lead when something has happened to the Alpha founder. An Alpha, like Miss Granger, will then seek out Betas to fill the ranks of her Coven, and will select a Second, usually her most trusted Beta, like your Mr. Weasley. The sizes of Covens vary wildly and largely depend on the strength of the Alpha as a leader but also have something to do with whether or not they are able to attract an Omega.
“The vast majority of presented witches and wizards are Betas, about six out of every ten wizards. Out of that remaining four, three usually present Alpha, and form their own covens, while the remaining wizard will present Omega. Because Omegas are so few in number, they are precious in our world and the main reason the Coven system began in the first place was to ensure the protection of their Omegas. While our modern society has Covens of all types and dynamics, the original Coven was formed around Alpha and Omega pairs.”
“What your Headmaster has not yet mentioned is that Covens can be rampant with Omega abuse,” the cranky looking Ministry official spoke up suddenly. The man had been sitting in a chair across the room from the rest of them, dressed in drab brown robe and looking entirely uninterested in the proceedings. He had a large black portfolio in his hands that he had previously been engrossed in when Harry had woken up to find his hospital room quite filled with people. At the official’s words, the rest of the room swiveled to appraise him and he continued without much ado. “Which is why the COA registers every new Omega and ensures that they are being properly cared for.”
Harry bristled, “I’m not a child. I’ll care for myself.”
“I think you’ll find that its not quite that simple, Mr. Potter,” the official responded, looking him over condescendingly. “Omegas don’t exactly have the … defenses … to properly care for themselves if an Alpha takes it upon themselves to undermine those efforts.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Harry snapped.
Hermione jumped into the encroaching train wreck bravely. “Sir, we’re very happy to have Harry register and will comply with all your rules and expectations. But if you don’t mind terribly, it’s been a long day for my Coven and I think we’ll let Harry process some of this information. Surely you remember how overwhelmed you were at your own Presenting?”
“Miss…Granger, was it?” the official stood now to approach Harry’s bed: Mrs Weasley, who had been holding Harry’s hand and smiling at him in that way she had - like he was something precious, frowned at the man and stood up at his approach, clearly finding his behavior somewhat reproachful.
“Yes, Sir,” Hermione responded as sweetly as anything, but Harry knew his friend and he could tell she had her back up.
The official turned to look Harry square in the eyes. Abruptly his demeanor shifted. “Mr. Potter, might I speak to you privately?”
Harry blinked, surprised at the request. Almost against his will he shot a look to Hermione who tipped her head to the side - a shrug, if he was reading her body language correctly. His decision. He looked up at the Headmaster who twinkled down at him.
“It is fairly standard procedure Harry,” Dumbledore told him. “The COA is a guardian to all Omegas; they only have your best interest at heart.”
Harry nodded. “Alright.”
Everyone except for the Ministry official stood up and shuffled out of the room. The man smiled at him, taking a seat where Mrs Weasley had sat.
“My name is Vincent and although you cannot yet scent it, I am a Beta. I apologize for being so abrupt with your Alpha, but I find it better for Coven leaders to consider the COA as a less than friendly institution, the more they should fear breaking the law as it regards the abuse of Omegas.”
Harry blinked at him slowly, not really sure what to say. Eventually he went with, “Um, Vincent…Sir, no one has really explained to me why everyone is so worried about Omegas being abused.”
“I’m afraid that it is old tradition to have the Alpha of your Coven explain the state of the world to newly presented Omegas. It’s an important rite of passage for Alphas and Omegas alike, and I will not interfere with it. However, although I cannot proffer any specifics, I do want you to know that you have a voice. You have the right to have a say in any mating agreements, first of all…”
“Mating!” Harry squeaked. “Mating?”
“Yes,” Vincent confirmed solemnly. “Omegas enter formal mating arrangements instead of marriage like Betas and some Alphas choose to engage in.”
“I better have a voice in that!” Harry replied, appalled.
“You do,” Vincent confirmed again. “And you also have the right to call in the COA if you feel your Alpha has crossed any lines or that the Coven is an unsafe environment. We are your official advocates, and trust me, Harry, we will do right by you. I will leave you my work address and you may always reach me by owl post or, in dire scenarios, Floo.”
“Thank you,” Harry said faintly, struck a little dumb by this barrage of information he didn’t fully understand.
The man handed him the address and looked at the boy expectantly. “Best to memorize that now Mr Potter. Just in case you should misplace it.”
“Erm, yes, ok,” Harry looked down and swiftly memorized the address.
“Alright, well the only thing that’s left here is your registration!” The man sounded positively chipper now. He held out the portfolio which was now opened to a page showing a very official looking certificate which his name and designation. “This is a blood quill,” the man warned. “It’s used in official documents so there can be no forging of identity. You’ll feel a bit of a prick, but it won’t leave a mark.”
“I’m familiar,” Harry noted dryly, before signing the sheet swiftly, tamping down on his wince and handing the quill back.
Vincent stood abruptly. “Well that’s that then. Best of luck with your new Alpha, Mr Potter. Call if you need.”
The man pulled open the door and hurried out. The rest of Harry’s contingent filtered back in.
“Was everything okay, Harry,” Hermione asked briskly, eyeing him up and down as though Vincent might have touched him. It felt strangely possessive.
“Fine, ‘Mione.”
“Ok, well we’ve discussed it and you’re over the initial changes. You’ll start to pick up on everyone else’s designation in the next couple of days and most of the school has heard about your presentation, so you should expect to start seeing a lot of Coven behavior. It can be weird at first, but we’ll walk you through things. Everyone gives the newly presented a month or so to get used to the new way of the world, so you don’t have to worry about upsetting any other Coven’s accidentally for the time being. Ron is going to take you back to the Tower.”
“Hermione,” Mrs Granger said gently.
“I know, Mrs Weasley.”
“Harry,” Hermione said, looking him straight in the eyes. “I have something that must be done. It cannot wait. Usually Alphas introduce their Omegas to their Covens right away and also explain a little more about what you can expect as a newly presented Omega, but I have no choice but to postpone that until I return from my task. Can you be patient with me?”
“Of…of course, Hermione.”
Hermione smiled slightly but she looked distracted. “Thanks, Harry. Go with Ron, now.”
***
“Fred presented Alpha about a week before George presented Omega, so there was already a Weasley-sponsored Coven by the time that Hermione and I presented,” Ron told him as they made the walk from the Hospital Wing back to the Gryffindor Tower. “I presented Beta first and I figured if Hermione presented Beta too, it would be easy to mesh into Fred’s Coven. It’s not unusual for siblings to stay together in their Fledges, and Hermione gets along with them pretty well.”
“Fledges?” Harry asked.
“Yea, what we call wizard’s first Covens. Covens are such an important structure to how the Wizarding World works and the Stricture is so pervasive that it really doesn’t work to just stay in the Coven you’re ‘born’ to. By the time we present, we’ve been at school for years, made friends, and need to operate with these new dynamics right away. So new Alphas create ‘Fledgling’ Covens or ‘Fledges’ to kind of practice being Alphas, and new Betas and Omegas join the Coven of the Alpha they are closest with. Sometimes the Fledges become real, adult, lifetime Covens and sometimes they disperse and get brought into larger or different Covens after school.
“New Fledge Alphas almost always have an adult sponsor who helps guide them in leading a Coven. Hermione’s pretty rare, being a female Alpha and all, so it was a pretty perfect fit for mum to sponsor her…”
“Wait,” Harry interrupted, “That makes so much sense. Of course your mum is an Alpha.”
“Yea, yea,” Ron said, waving if off. “After Hermione presented, we discussed whether or not she should try to come in as a Sub under Fred…”
“A Sub?”
“Yea, like an Alpha who reports into another Alpha. Some Covens, typically really large Covens with a lot of Betas and more than one Omega work better with more than one Alpha. But Alphas are territorial and they also like to be in charge. An Alpha Sub would need to get along really well with the Alpha Prime and the Alpha Prime would need to be laid back enough to spilt up some of the control of the Coven.”
“Hermione wasn’t particularly laid back before she Presented,” Harry pointed out.
“No kidding. That’s why we decided to make our own Coven. We didn’t know what you’d present as but as long as it wasn’t an Alpha, we figured we’d be in pretty good shape and even if you did, we figured you’d probably be able to make it work as a Sub, given how close we all have been and what we’ve been through together. We weren’t sure if we would have anyone else at first, but we weren't super upset at the idea of just the three of us.”
“How large are Covens normally?”
“It really depends. Some adult Covens can get up to 50 people, but they tend to have a lot of drama and conflict, with a lot of smaller circles operating within. Most adult Covens are around a dozen or so. Fledges tend to be smaller, just ‘cuz the pool of people is smaller. Most here are about 5 or 6 I guess. A few are smaller, a few larger. Pretty much everyone in our year and some of the year below us have already Presented, so you’re a super late bloomer. Ginny presented Beta and she’s in with Fred’s Coven for now; He’s got the largest in the school at 10 people. Fred doesn’t have any Subs though, so he’ll either need to integrate a younger one or the younger members of his Coven will have to find a new Coven after he graduates. Covens can’t really survive on a day-to-day without an active Alpha.”
“Why not?”
Ron shifted, a little bit uncomfortable. “It’s kind of hard to explain. I guess there are two things really — one is that inter-Coven relationships are led by Alphas and with the exception of emergencies, a Beta really can’t stand in an Alpha’s place when dealing with other Covens. There’s a lot of structure around that actually. The second is that if the Coven has any Omegas, they can’t take care of them without an Alpha. Omegas really rely on Alphas.”
Harry opened his mouth eagerly but Ron rushed on, “And no, I think I’ll let OUR Alpha talk about that with you.”
Harry pouted. “Fine, then can you at least tell me who’s what and what the main Covens are? I’ve never hated having such a late birthday as much as I do right now.”
Ron grinned. “Yea - that’s easy. Fred’s got the biggest Coven in the school, as I said. It’s got a good reputation and an Omega, so it’s on pretty solid ground but Fred’s never been very competitive so it’s a pretty laid back Coven and doesn’t really throw its weight around. The rest of the 7th year Alphas have pretty small Covens. Hermione’s got a Coven of six now, including you. All Betas except for you and her - me, Luna, Dean, and Seamus. Malfoy has seven - Zabini is a Beta and his Second, Parkinson is a Beta, Crabbe and Goyle, both Betas. Padma presented Omega and joined Malofy’s Coven and Parvati presented Beta and joined to be with her sister. Ernie Macmillan has a Coven - his Second is Zacharias Smith, an Alpha Sub, and he’s got Hannah, Susan, Lavendar, and Justin as well. Hannah, Lavendar, and Justin are Betas, Susan is an Omega. Terry Boot is an Alpha, Anthony Goldstein is a Beta, his Second. It’s just the two of them right now, which is unusual. And Nott is an Alpha but hasn’t joined or started a Coven, which is making everyone very nervous. Bulstrode is a Beta but joined Flint’s Coven. Everyone is a little bit nervous that Malfoy will try to recruit either Terry or Nott as a Sub, which would give him a lot of power, but he doesn’t seem to have made any moves yet, and no one is sure how Zabini would take it.
“Hermione’s the only female Alpha in the school right now and you and George are the only male Omegas. Those are rare presentations, mate. But there are about seven female omegas in total.”
“What about Neville?”
Ron looked uneasy. “He’s unpresented still, Harry. I know you guys were born on the same day, but honestly Harry, you were incredibly late to present. We were getting pretty nervous over the last few weeks. It’s…unlikely…that he will present at this point. It’s rare, but there are cases of permanent Neutrals.”
Harry furrowed his brows. “I thought that all of the Wizarding World is based around Covens. If he’s unpresented, then the Stricture means we can’t even tell him anything about this…”
“It’s awful to be unpresented Harry. He’ll probably never understand why he feels so left out and why he can’t seem to get ahead in the world. Since everything is done via Covens, people will go out of their way to exclude him from parties, companies, anything where they would be prevented from interacting according to their true dynamics. He’d be living a lie and he’d never know it.”
Harry didn’t know what to say.
***
Hermione doesn’t come to see Harry that night, and it’s a weekend, so Harry lounges around the Tower, not really wanting to go out in the castle when he's so short on information. Ron seems to support this decision and aside from a quick trip to the kitchens to pick up some food, he’s stayed with Harry in the boy’s dorm. But now its almost dinner time, and Ron lets him know that he wants to take a quick trip the the library (the library, really Ron! Harry thinks, wondering how much under Hermione’s heel the Beta is). So Harry wanders down to the Common Room alone, bored of being in the boy’s dorm.
“How are you getting along then, Harry?”
George was in his usual spot in the Common Room when Harry approaches him, poring over a Charms textbook in an armchair near the fireplace. Harry would’ve previously thought him to be alone, but more attuned now to the hidden dynamics of his peers, he noted Angelina’s attentiveness from across the room.
“I won’t lie and say I’m not a little confused,” Harry admitted, flopping into the chair opposite and moving a hand up to rub against his temple. He’s started to be able to pick up traces of people’s designation now, but the new information is making him a little dizzy. It’s almost like a smell, but not really. He could tell that Ron was a Beta earlier, just by being in the same room with him, it was intuitive, and now he can tell that George is an omega. It’s frankly weird.
George chuckled. “Yea, mate, it’s like that for all of us for the first few weeks. Stricture is a real doozy, doesn’t let you prepare at all. Would be nice to have some warning, y’know? ‘Specially for people like us.”
“Yea, about that George…” Harry started. “I was hoping you could help me out here a little, I hear male Omegas are somewhat rare.”
“Can’t tell you too much without your Alpha’s permission mate,” George’s voice was light but he didn’t look Harry in the eyes, instead skimming the book in his hands.
“That’s the first thing I don’t get!” Harry exploded. “Ron tells me everybody gets to choose which Coven they’re going to join, and sometimes it takes weeks for people to decide. But no one asked my opinion at all! What if I didn’t want to be in Hermione’s Coven?”
“Doesn’t work like that for Omegas. If you had two already presented Alphas in different Covens that you were equally as close to, sure, maybe you get a choice; more likely they just fight it out and you end up with the winner. But it’s a matter of survival for us mate and no one in any Coven is going to believe you don’t belong to Hermione unless you publicly declare for another Alpha and Hermione backs your claim.”
“Why is it a matter of survival, George?”
“I can’t tell you about Coven dynamics without your Alpha’s permission Harry,” George continued, voice soft, eyes flashing when Harry was about to interject, “BUT, nothing is stopping you from keeping your eyes open; what with you being newly presented and all.”
Abruptly, George stood up. “Let’s go for a walk,” he said, and started walking towards the portrait entrance. Angelina’s voice sounded from across the Common Room. “George, you’re under guidance not to leave the Common Room right now.”
George turned, uncharacteristically flashing her a sneer. “You can tell my brother Harry and I are taking a quick kip out to the Quidditch pitch. It’s been a while since I’ve flown.”
Angelina rolled her eyes; “Oh, I’ll tell your brother alright. Don’t move, Omega.” She turned quickly up the stairs to the boy’s dorms.
George shifted from foot to foot for a second before nodding decisively. “Come on Potter,” he said, grabbing Harry’s arm and pulling him closer to the exit. The portrait had just opened up and Harry was just about to climb out when Fred’s voice sounded behind him, freezing him in his tracks.
He had never quite heard the older Weasley sound this way before. “Kneel, Omega,” Fred said icily and Harry turned back around to see George smoothly sliding to his knees. He heard the portrait slam closed behind his turned back.
“Alright, alright Alpha,” huffed George, from the ground. Harry stared at him in shock. Fred suddenly seemed to notice him.
“Ah. Testing the waters, George?”
“Harry needs to know what’s what.”
“At his Alpha’s own pace, brother. You know that.” Fred let a hand trail down to his brother’s head and ran it gently through his hair. “You’ve irritated Angelina. Apologize to her and return to your essay. We will discuss this further later, at the Coven meeting.”
“Yes, Alpha,” George sighed, gathering himself back up. He shot a wink at Harry and shuffled over to where Angelina was glaring at him. Fred turned to Harry, “Please tell your Alpha that while we respect her pace, it does pose some…inconveniences.”
“For me too!” Harry replied hotly, face flushed a hot red from the embarrassment. “What the bloody hell was that? Who asks their brother to kneel? And why did George just do it? Like it was nothing? Merlin, Fred.”
“Careful,” Fred snapped and for some reason Harry felt himself shrink back, intimidated, eyes cast down. “Go find your Alpha, Omega.”