The world is full of paper. Write to me.
...Well, the professor did say she was sorry, and she hadn't meant to sound as if she was looking down on his background, and Daddy accepted her apology, but I don't think he's really forgiven her, as such. He says that where you get obvious bigotry, you'll also find a lot of people who pride themselves on not being like that, but who still view the other group as lesser, in their heart of hearts, and this often manifests as condescension. And people who pride themselves on being 'the nice ones' can get very nasty if challenged on that, so it's something to be careful about. It wasn't just that one remark, you see. She also made an attempt to gloss over quite how few rights Muggle parents of magical children have, and her explanation of the war was a lot more sanitised than what's in the books, and frankly even they seem a little simplistic...
...I tried that technique you mentioned for re-potting belladonna (with my father standing by, of course) and it worked very well, so my compliments to your tutor Mr S on that one, but I'm astounded he even thought to suggest silphium for indigestion. It's been extinct since the second century, you know - unless of course he knows someone who keeps a secret plantation of the stuff? That would be very exciting, but I don't see how they'd manage, unless there's a Fidelius involved or something...
...Claire and I weren't really friends in the first place, and she doesn't want anything to do with me any more now she knows I'm an atheist, since she's a very devout Christian, and it's not that I want to be friends with her now, but I'm still a little bit worried about her, if that makes sense. She's much quieter and more subdued in class than she used to be, and there have been a few occasions where she winced when sitting down, and even though I don't like her I don't want anyone to hurt her...
...I don't really see why you're that bothered about this muggle - a Christian and a sanctimonious one besides - and are you sure you're not just seeing horrors where none exist? Surely the simplest explanation is that she has been chastised by her parents for some wrongdoing or other, and I know muggles can't cast charms or hexes, but just beating with a cane or strap would have a similar effect to what you describe, and that kind of thing heals in a few days...
...it turns out it was her parents, you're right, they hit her with a slipper, hard enough to bruise very badly, because she'd been listening to music on the radio that they thought was 'worldly and sinful.' I'm glad it was nothing worse, but I still think her parents are dreadful, and so is their stupid 'Chosen' sect, and I hope the building does fall down. My parents would never do that to me, and the books I've been reading on child development suggest corporal punishment is not good for a child's mental health or for the relationship between parent and child. It was banned in schools only a few years ago - state schools, that is, I think private schools can still do it, and parents, though some campaigners want to ban it altogether, and I think they have a point...
...Wizarding law isn't that different from muggle law, then, insofar as parents do have the right to carry out moderate and reasonable corporal punishment. I can't really see that changing any time soon; we certainly don't have active campaigns against it. Hogwarts doesn't practice corporal punishment any longer, or Transfiguration as a punishment, but that only changed when Dumbledore became Headmaster, and if he does ever retire it'll be up to his successor to decide whether they want to keep the policy. In general, the Ministry doesn't interfere much with how individual wixen choose to bring up their children. There are quite a few laws on the books aiming to prevent magical children from being harmed by muggles, but they're quite vague as to what constitutes 'harm' and they aren't well-enforced. Some of Father's friends, especially half-bloods, have very strong views on the matter. And then there were those laws that came in in the aftermath of the Grindelwald war on the continent, when so many British family lines died out, and the Wizengamot basically gave itself the right to interfere in the custody arrangements of wizarding-born children if they were the sole heir, or one of only a few potential heirs, to a Wizengamot seat that was in danger of extinction. They made negligence and abuse criminal offences, but even if that's not proven, they can still argue that some situations are 'better' for the child than others, and individual members' political opinions will come into play. Thankfully I have too many cousins for it to be leveraged against us, to remove me from Father's custody and send me to someone who might be more in favour with the current establishment, but that's how Natalie Nielsen got taken from the family who were fostering her and put in the care of her great-uncle who everyone knows is an alcoholic. He's got a competent housekeeper, so it's not as bad as it might be, but I hardly think she's safer there than she was with the Greengrasses...
...Of course as well as going over my textbooks and the background reading, I'm also studying for my ordinary subjects. My parents want me to take at least a few GCSEs - that's the Muggle equivalent of OWLs - and I'm happy to do that. Mme F. thinks that the syllabus for GCSE French is almost insultingly easy, and I should be well beyond it long before I turn fifteen; but of course that's no reason to slack. Now the weather has turned warm, we've been spending a lot of time in the back garden practising conversation, but also doing dictation, working on grammar exercises, that kind of thing. We've been going through a lot of tinned sardines. And likewise, Mr C and Mr A don't think the GCSE Maths syllabus is terribly challenging, and they've agreed to prioritise the few topics on the syllabus we haven't already covered, though they don't really care for working with calculators. Mr C is also working with me on Religious Studies, along with someone I don't think I've mentioned to you before, Mr B. As well as asking students to learn details about Christianity and other major religions, it also has elements of philosophy and ethics, and that's his particular area of interest. Really, if my parents had wanted her to sit those subjects - and English and Music - before going to Hogwarts, I think I could have managed, in a pinch, though I'm definitely not going to suggest it to them. The amount of work I would have wanted to put in to be quite sure of getting As in everything would have limited the time I had available for my magical studies, and those are the ones I'm really excited about, at the moment...
...with that level of ambition, I can see why Slytherin's your first choice and Ravenclaw only your second. And being at - or near - OWL-level in five subjects before you go to Hogwarts is very impressive. Ordinarily, I would think there wasn't much point to your taking Muggle qualifications, but they're all subjects that are useful for a wix to know. Mathematics is basically pre-Arithmancy, and if I tried to argue against the value of learning music and philosophy, Father would call me an uncultured swine and probably make me memorise some long poem or other as a punishment. And the more languages one knows, the better, really. French will be very useful - doubly so if you do manage to travel there and acquire books - and I'd also recommend Latin. My father has me learning Old Norse, but that's partly for reasons of heritage, though it should come in useful for Runes. I suppose if it makes your parents happy, sitting the formal exam and getting the parchment certificate isn't that much of an imposition. Still, if you do end up in Slytherin, you'd be wise not to mention the specific qualifications, only that you are studying the subjects in general. You don't want to make yourself look like you're trying to stay rooted in the muggle world, to the exclusion of the magical one. Slytherins in particular tend to take the Statute of Secrecy very seriously. Father says that's where a lot of the prejudice against muggle-borns comes from, the idea that they have dual allegiances, to the wizarding world and the one they grew up in; that they stay rooted in their first world, don't bother to learn about their new world, instead trying to make it become more like the muggle one; and also that all those extra muggles learning that magic is real are a security risk. Please don't misunderstand me. I think you're a brilliant witch, and the magical world is clearly where you belong, and your parents seem like perfectly nice people. My father and I did appreciate his defence of us, that time in Diagon Alley. It's just that things won't be easy for you in Slytherin whatever you do, and if you do or say the wrong thing it will be worse...
...I'm not mad at you. Well, yes, I was very angry when I read the letter, but I've talked to Cro Mr C a bit, and calmed down. Even if we end up disagreeing on some of the details, I still want to be your friend. And I know you think better of me than to say that the prejudice against muggle-borns is right and correct and you approve of it. You're saying that it exists, and that some of it has at least a basic rationale. That's not the same thing. If you thought all muggle-borns were automatically bad - and automatically Light - you wouldn't be writing to me at all. There are a few things I want to make clear, though. I love my parents. I am not ashamed of them. I am not ashamed of where I come from. I'm not going to pretend to be anything I'm not. However, I was reminded, of something Daddy said, months ago when we were just starting to be penpals. That I should let people appreciate me for who I was, not what my blood status was in their eyes, and that you had a chance to get to know me before knowing I was a Muggle-born, and that helped a lot. So I shan't announce it when I'm first introduced, and if people want to assume I'm a half-blood, I'll let them. But I won't lie about it, either. And not just as a matter of principle, anyway. Mr C says that kind of lie would be found out sooner or later, and is practically an invitation to blackmail in the meantime. So I'm open to suggestions for things I can say that aren't lies, but will leave room for assumptions. And of course I've memorised A Meditation on Manners, and Callidora's Conversational as well. So if I can't go calling myself 'Hermione Granger, first of her name,' what should I say?...
...Hermione, I have the most fascinating news. Well, two things, really, although they're connected. I suppose I'll start with saying that I've made another new acquaintance, and I hope you'll find him as congenial as I do. I was already looking forward to the Hogwarts Express, but now not only do I get to meet you again and speak in person, I also get to meet him and I get to introduce the two of you. It's going to be brilliant. He's every bit as bookish as us - you should have seen the enormous mountain of books he picked up in Flourish and Blotts - and he seems particularly fascinated with the practicalities of what magic can do. Speaking of which, I was recently brought to realise that your own shopping spree didn't include any books on warding, and since you'll be sharing a dormitory with other girls whichever House you end up in, it's advisable to know how to ward your bed, and everything in the enclosed book is entirely legal. (Consider it a return for that intriguing Enlightenment Reader you sent me.) The other piece of news is who that new acquaintance is. You'll recall from Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts and Modern Magical History the figure of Julian Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived, yes? And no, don't worry, I haven't befriended an empty-headed celebrity. This isn't in any of the books, and isn't general knowledge at all, and it's going to be an absolute circus when the public - and the Daily Prophet - find out, but apparently the Potters had twins. Julian Potter is actually the younger twin...
...Yes, I've found Seamus Finnegan rather insufferable myself, on the occasions where we have attended the same social events. Macmillan, well, I used to think he was decent enough company, if a little pompous, but let us just say he does not subscribe to certain virtues of the modern Muggle world such as religious tolerance. (For which concept I have my other correspondent to thank.) I'm afraid some people think that not being a Christian (not even of the cultural kind) makes you a bad person, and this suspicion of general moral turpitude was passed on to friends of friends in law enforcement. My father had more than one uncomfortable interview. I don't believe you mentioned what your own beliefs were? You were quite right to be discreet while in public; I certainly would not advise getting into a theological discussion with your esteemed parent. Your characterisation of your brother's political education as 'everyone who doesn't like House Potter and Gryffindors and the Ministry is evil' amused me greatly. I'm glad the House's library, at least, lives up to its name. There was always a possibility that your father might have chosen to destroy all the books that might seem 'Dark' - he's certainly publicly advocated for such more than once, and many of his political allies are quite vociferous about the moral duty of society to uphold censorship - but I suppose just warding one section of the library off from everything else is considerably less work. Many dark artefacts resist destruction, and he does have something of a reputation for not putting in any more effort than he has to...
...I very much look forward to having some more in-depth conversations about the philosophy of magic with you in person, as well as meeting the fabled Miss Granger for myself. I'm curious about what kind of in-depth conversations she'll want to have with you; interesting subjects, I imagine. A lot of Jules' and James' conversation seems to revolve around Quidditch. I do find the flying itself quite fun, but as a conversational topic it can get very inane very quickly. I can't wait for Sunday...