Hey Tomorrow (Irina)

[ivanka luise krum]

June 1, 2026

Viktor Krum was out as Minister for Magic, and Ivanka was already cringing internally at just how terrible that was going to look for her family. As the youngest Krum child, she knew that she didn't really have much—if any—influence on her professional-Quidditch-player-turned-politician father's actions. That wouldn't stop the Daily Prophet (and every other publication from Britain to Bulgaria) from hounding her, though, and she knew it. It wasn't only that, though; the timing couldn't have been worse if her father had tried. Hogwarts was no more, and everything felt as though it had been crumbling around her already. Getting the grades at NEWT level that she needed to go into Curse-Breaking? She could forget about those.

It felt as though the only people who understood a fraction of what she was going through were her siblings, but even they hadn't been at Hogwarts for Elaine's final blow. The plus side, too, was that Irina was already in Curse-Breaker training, and Ivanka had begged her to take an hour or two to help her with her exam revision. Though she had no doubt that she would have been perfectly capable of getting the marks she needed if not for the destruction of the school, Ivanka had begun to question her own abilities.

"Urgh," Ivanka sighed, staring down at her lap. Her eyes scanned over a page towards the end of the new copy of her Ancient Runes book that she'd had to purchase to replace the one she'd lost at Hogwarts, but she quickly tossed the whole book aside from where she was seated on her bedroom floor. "This is hopeless, Irina. I can't focus," she complained as the book landed with a thud. Ancient Runes was her best subject. If she couldn't even do well at that, then she could kiss Gringotts goodbye.

Irina Rose Krum

[Irina Rose Krum]

Irina was spending time at home this summer, more than she had done the previous summer to be sure. But it was good, because after everything that had happened in the past year and a half, she needed to be home. Her family needed her. Well, perhaps not their eldest brother, who always seemed like he could take care of himself. And not her next younger sister Ana, who was…well she was safe wherever she was now. She mainly meant Ivanka, her youngest sister. With Hogwarts gone, her sister would be going to a new school this coming September, and she would be following in Irina’s footsteps as a Cursebreaker. Irina thought it was pretty cool that students now could start specializing specific career paths instead of just being told what jobs look for what OWL and NEWT level examinations, but she knew Ivanka was worried.

Lying on her back with her legs bent, Irina had closed her eyes while Ivanka studied on the floor next to her. She was dozing ever so lightly when the thud of a large textbook jerked her from her reverie. “Ivanka,” she sighed, then opened her eyes and saw the look on her baby sisters’ face. “Hey,” she said, sitting up and sliding down so she was on the floor next to Ivanka. “What’s really going on? You were really getting Ancient Runes before..” she trailed off; before Hogwarts was set ablaze and destroyed. “Is this what you still want to do sis?” she asked her softly.

ivanka luise krum

[ivanka luise krum]

June 1, 2026

Ivanka didn't even realize that her sister had begun to nod off until she noticed that she had inadvertently startled her awake. Irina was only cross with her for a moment, though, before she slid down to the floor to speak to her. She started off with a "Hey," but it wasn't the kind that made Ivanka think that she was going to be chewing her out for anything.

"What's really going on?" Irina questioned her, mentioning that she had had no problems with Ancient Runes before then. Ivanka knew that, too, but apparently it was enough for Irina to wonder aloud if Curse-Breaking were what she still wanted to do.

"Yeah, of course I want to do it. I can do it," Ivanka replied, a hint of disappointment in her voice despite her stubbornness. She knew that she would hate herself if she weren't able to make it into Curse-Breaker training. (Irina already had done it, after all.) "I just…" It was so hard to retain anything in preparation for her upcoming examinations. Her mind felt like it had been transfigured into a sieve—at least when it came to anything that she needed to remember for her NEWTs.

"I can't believe we've got to sit these exams," Ivanka added in frustration. "It's been two weeks since we all nearly died," and that wasn't even considering the people who wouldn't be able to take their exams as planned because they had died. "Can't they just use the grades we were predicted to get?" It would make the whole process so much easier for everyone involved. The Ministry wouldn't have to arrange everything that should have been done in the Great Hall, and no one would be put at a disadvantage because Hogwarts had been destroyed. The idea wasn't for a free pass; people would have had to have put in the work before the tragedy. If their father were still Minister for Magic, then maybe it would have been different.

Irina Rose Krum