Saving Grace

Disclaimer: I own nothing. JK Rowling does.

Note: my chapters are usually about 8 pages long – this one is 16, hope you appreciate I know I love long chapter updates. Chapter contains lemon. Please enjoy

Saving Grace Chapter 11

Once Severus and Hermione had apparated home they both changed into more comfortable clothing and retired to the sitting room to debrief.

Severus sat in his usual high backed chair and Hermione rested on the couch with her feet tucked under her, earning a slight glare from her husband. Ignoring him, she rested her head against the arm of the couch, enjoying the coolness of the leather on her cheek. She was exhausted and was slowly re-examining the events of the night. She was lost in thought, staring at the fire but not really seeing it, when Severus finally spoke.

“I’d like to hear your analysis of the evening Hermione,” he said, gazing intently at her.

She straightened but still stared into the fire as she began to rattle off her thoughts. “Lucius is none-to-subtly trying to tempt me to the Dark Arts. I will say he was right on target using his books and the lure of dark knowledge to try to manipulate me. He seems to want my trust, and would like to side-step you and be my ‘tutor’. But the way he looks at me…well, I know that look. Speaking of which, why did they kiss me?”

“It is an old custom, traditional in pure-blood society. It’s particularly popular among the Dark,” Severus answered casually.

“…Oh…” Hermione thought it was a silly tradition but kept it to herself. She didn’t look forward to making out with a bunch of old dark wizards but before she became thoroughly nauseated Severus motioned for her to continue.

“Draco…I don’t understand at all. He was acting so strangely, nice even. He offered to help me. And when he kissed me…well…lets just say it wasn’t what I expected.”

Severus felt his anger rise. “How did he kiss you Hermione?” He growled, his voice cold.

Hermione was shocked by his tone. It almost sounded jealous, but she dismissed the suspicion and answered, slightly red. “Well, it was like a… a real kiss. When Lucius kissed me it was gross and domineering but when Draco kissed me it was, well, like he meant it and I…” she stopped before she said something she would regret. Severus raised an eyebrow.

“Is that all?”

“No. During dinner someone attempted legilimency on me, though it was a weak effort without the eye contact, and I easily blocked it.” The moment she finished the sentence, she realized that she had admitted to not only studying a forbidden magic, but also being good at it.

“Well once again Potter has proved he is incapable of keeping something to himself. How typical. Do you realize just how stupid it was to let an uncontrolled teenager enter your mind? Oh no, you didn’t just let him, you probably ASKED him to do it!” Hermione was unnerved by his anger. “Do you have ANY idea the damage he could have caused?”

“Would it have been better if I hadn’t known how to block them this evening? Who knows what they could have learned from me? And do YOU have any idea how powerful Harry is?! So much has happened to him this past year. If you really looked at him for one bloody second you could tell that he probably has more power to his wand than half the professors at Hogwarts combined!”

“Potter is still a child. Any power he has gained is pure flash and smoke. If he wasn’t mature enough to know not to practice dark magic on his best friends, then he is even more idiotic than I thought. I refuse to do what the entire wizarding world, you included, has done, and give more credit to him than he deserves.”

Hermione was done arguing, she knew she was right but realized she wouldn’t get anywhere with her husband on this topic. In a last attempt to prove her point she said, “Flash and smoke! You think that is all he has? Fine Severus, believe what you like. But it amazes me how narrow-minded you are when it comes to Harry.” Severus didn’t respond, just gave her a superior look and sneered. Hermione sneered back.

There was a long uncomfortable pause. “Well? Do I get to hear your thoughts on the evening, oh wise one?”

“I don’t appreciate your sarcasm. I would remind you to keep a respectful tone when speaking to your…” He stopped himself and cursed.

“Husband? No, I don’t believe I do, Severus.” Hermione was shocked by her own gall. It was rather thrilling standing up to him after all these years.

“Hermione you are my WIFE not my EQUAL.”

“EXCUSE ME?”

Severus sighed and stood up, “I’m not going to argue with you over how I feel about our relationship. This discussion is over. I have work to do and you have class tomorrow. Good night. We shall begin our lessons tomorrow.

“What lessons?” Hermione was furious and didn’t like being sidetracked.

“Hermione if you wish to become a spy, and do all that it entails, than you have a lot to learn.”

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It had been a week since dinner with the Malfoys and Hermione had spent it ignoring the jeers of the Slytherins and enduring endless whispers of sympathy from the other three houses. She supposed she couldn’t blame everyone for thinking she was being raped and tortured every night; prior to her marriage she would have assumed the same. In truth, aside from their one fight, it hadn’t been an entirely unpleasant week. She ate breakfast in her room with Severus but thankfully still ate her other meals with the Gryffindors, giving her a chance to socialize with her friends. Each night she and her husband would do their work separately, go to dinner, and then come back for ‘spy lessons’. This was by far her favorite part of the day, the few hours in the evenings she spent learning the inner workings of the Death Eaters. Since his job as a spy was to know every minor detail of the dark force, Severus was quickly teaching her everything from the secret codes they used, to how many cubes of sugar the Dark Lord liked in his coffee (which unsurprisingly is zero). He had been shocked with the extent of her occlumency and legilimency skills and was so impressed that he actually complimented her. Together they continued her lessons and began strengthening her ability to look into other’s minds.

The only time awkwardness reared its ugly head was at night. Hermione always went to bed before Severus and refused to say good night, afraid that if she did he would expect something. She knew she was being childish but avoided the eventual confrontation like the plague. She would slip under the warm green comforter; turn off the light and get as close as she could to the right side of the bed without falling off. Severus knew she did this and found it amusing to see just how near to the edge she could get. As entertaining as this was it also worried him, he didn’t want Saturday nights to become a dreaded ritual that neither talked about. He was also faced with his rising desire for her. He couldn’t deny that she was an intelligent, beautiful young women and he lusted after her body. That first night with her had been the best sex of his life, which was saying quite a bit, and lying next to her with out being able to have her was torture.

It was Saturday night and Hermione had already made her quiet escape. She knew due to the Marriage Law that tonight they would have to be intimate, but still, she couldn’t bring herself to go to him. She crawled into their bed and laid in the middle, rather than in her usual spot on the outer edge. She stared up at the green canopy and contemplated her fate. Hermione couldn’t deny that she had enjoyed their previous encounter but knew tonight she wouldn’t have the potion to turn off her brain. She suddenly wished that aphrodisiac was still in her veins …

Severus entered the bedroom and she pretended to be asleep. She heard him undressing then felt the bed compress as he climbed in. Even though he was not touching her, she could feel the heat radiating from him.

“I know you’re awake Hermione so stop pretending.” She opened her eyes but didn’t look at him and grinned in spite of herself. He sighed and wished she was drugged again. He was tired of tip-toeing around the issue. “I know you don’t want to do this but we have to. You’re just going to have to deal with it. If you really wish to be my equal in this marriage then you will have to start acting like an adult.” That simple statement had the exact effect he wanted it to. Immediately Hermione knew he was right. She was being a child and he would never respect her if she didn’t grow up. She was a Gryffindor for goodness sakes! She turned over and without pause climbed on top of him and kissed him shyly. Hermione was very self conscious and afraid that she was doing something incorrectly but decided to try and fake confidence.

Severus was pleasantly surprised that she was taking the initiative. This was much better than having sex with an unwilling partner. He ran his hands up and down her sides then pulled her night shirt up over her head. They continued to kiss and he explored her body with his hands savoring the silky feeling of her skin. Soon their kisses became more heated and Severus, never one to be on the bottom, flipped her over and took charge. His hands teased her breasts as he kissed and nibbled the sides of her neck where she was the most sensitive. She moaned quietly and let her hands explore his back. She felt the numerous scars that she had seen when healing him but had never touched. His mouth trailed down and he took a taut pink nipple into this mouth and lapped at it. Holding himself up with one arm, his other hand trailed down her body making her quiver. He cupped her mound and she eagerly spread her legs without his suggestion. His mouth moved back up her body and kissed her as he slipped a finger into her heat. She was already wet, and with his ministrations she quickly became even more aroused. Severus was rock hard and she could feel him pressed against her hip.

His nimble fingers brought her to the edge but refused to let her finish. Without conscious thought her lips were moving against his mouth, begging him for release. Severus quickly shifted his body and positioned himself at her entrance, lifting her hips to receive his thrust. He buried himself to the hilt and watched her face. Her eyes remained closed but she let out a sigh of fulfillment. She rocked her hips to encourage him to continue and he did so enthusiastically. She twisted the sheets in her hands as he pounded her body faster. Severus kneeled and lifted her hips with his hands to get better leverage. This new position hit just the right spot and she moaned louder with every thrust. With a small scream she came and he felt her muscles tighten around him. Severus pushed in deeper and held himself still as he emptied into her. He shifted, pulling out of her, and laid down. She lay there watching him, and when he opened his eyes she whispered, “Thank you Severus.” He nodded and when she turned away from him he snaked an arm around her middle and pulled her close. She tensed when she felt his body curving around hers but quickly relaxed. He pulled the comforter over their bodies and buried his head in her soft hair, keeping his arm around her as they fell asleep.

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Hermione woke up and was surprised to still feel Severus against her. She shifted over to lie on her back and heard him wake up with a groan and a yawn.

“Good morning” she said, turning her head on the pillow to look at him. He nodded sleepily, never really having been a morning person. “May I ask you something?” Severus turned to her and opened a bleary eye. “When I healed you, I left the Dark Lord’s signature on your chest with many other signs but most of them are gone. How come you still have scars on your back and the ones on your arms…”

Severus cut her off. “I couldn’t very well have the Dark Lords signature scrawled across my chest for all to see, so he removed it. He put another tattoo on my inner forearm, which is what he uses to call me for Beloved meetings. The other scars he removed because he wouldn’t want to run out of room for new ones, now would he? He always leaves some to remind us of our place,” he bit out sarcastically. Hermione watched him with sympathy as he continued quietly. “The lines on my arm, if you will notice I have 6, are the count of great deeds I have performed in his name.” She opened her mouth but before she could speak, he barked, “No, I will not tell you what I did.”

She didn’t take offense. “Actually, that’s not what I was going to ask. I was just wondering if you would show me your call tattoos.” To her surprise he agreed and held his forearms together out in front of him. On his left arm, the dark mark stood out faintly in light grey. On his right was a snake, a large black one, its scales glistening over muscle in a way that made them look wet. The snake was not coiled but rather entwined with itself so thoroughly that it was more of a mass of tangled black shimmering muscle with two yellow eyes. Hermione reached up tentatively and ran her hand across the snake almost expecting to feel cold scales. When she noticed him looking at her with a smirk, she drew back and apologized.

Severus leered down at her, “If the view wasn’t so nice I might have objected.” Hermione glanced down and blushed furiously; the comforter had slipped down and her breasts were exposed. She covered them with her hands, which did little to hide them, and Severus’ smile widened.

Hermione sighed exasperatedly, “Men! I’m going to take a shower if you don’t mind.” She slipped out of bed, forced her arms down and walked proudly across the room and into the bathroom, closing the door behind her. Severus’ eyes followed her the entire time. Smiling to himself he considered seeing if she would be amenable to a two person shower when the snake on his arm blazed like a red hot iron brand. Severus gritted his teeth and wished the Dark Lord would just send him an owl or something. He got out of bed quickly and dressed. He opened the bathroom door and chuckled when Hermione shrieked in surprise. A small sly grin steeled across his face as he took in the view of hot water pouring down her naked body.

“I’m sorry to interrupt but I have just been called, I will most likely see you later this afternoon.” He strode to his exclusive apparition point at the far end of the bathroom and as he vanished, he heard her call, “Be careful!”

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Snape apparated and found himself in a large entrance hall. It was bare, and unlike the hall at Hogwarts, the cold stone walls offered no comfort or warmth. As he was regaining his bearings, he heard the voice that haunted his nightmares echo across the vast room, “Welcome to my home Severus.”

He fell to his knees and waited, listening to the ghost-like steps approach. “Rise my son and see your Lord’s castle.” Severus stood and felt the Dark Lord’s hand on his back leading him out of the entryway and into the study. The room was bleak, decorated only with an enormous desk and a few old leather chairs. The room itself had the distinction of having twelve doors on the wall to the left and a wall of glass to the right. French doors opened out onto a moldy overgrown stone patio. Stairs led down to great sloping lawns and what looked to be a sculpture garden and large fountain no longer in use. Voldomort stood facing the grounds; Severus tense beside him not yet having been given permission to speak.

“Even the most powerful man in the world still needs a home. Eleanor and Vincent Petracoff live in the guest house and see to my needs. I direct my army from here and someday soon I will rule the world from this room….” Severus remained silent. “How is your wife my son?”

Severus swallowed and began to recite his speech. “She is young, willing, and eager. Her quest for knowledge is unbounded and I have introduced her to several of my Dark Arts books. I thought it would be the best approach to play off her desires.” He paused and Voldomort nodded for him to continue. “I’m manipulating her for your needs. Rewarding and punishing in ways she barely notices. She learns quickly, even when she knows not the lesson. She has no sense of subtlety so I take her passing comments of her desire to meet my ‘colleagues outside of Hogwarts’ and to ‘learn everything I have to teach her’ as good indications that I am succeeding in my efforts.”

Voldomort smiled thinly. “Good work my son; I have the utmost faith in your handling abilities.” He turned and looked into Severus eyes. “When is your honeymoon?” Had Severus not been so controlled he would have sputtered in surprise. Voldomort smiled again, “Surely you must take her away, build her dependence upon you. I expect when you return you will have her…well in hand.” Severus knew a dismissal when he heard one. He bowed and thanked his Lord and they walked back to the entrance hall. As Severus prepared to leave, Voldomort gave him his final instructions. “Tell that Fool that you’ve been to my castle, but know not where it is. Tell him you believe me to be waiting for several ministry actions to settle before I move again.” He paused, “Oh, and Severus, I’m holding a celebration for my followers in one month’s time and I expect Hermione to give me her oath then.”

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Hermione left their rooms shortly after Severus, not wanting to stay and worry. She strolled to the kitchens to chat with Dobby. Three chocolate éclairs later she left and headed toward the fat lady’s portrait. She was disappointed to find an almost deserted common room with just a few whispering first years that made Hermione wonder if they believed her deaf. She decided to try Hagrid’s next and see if her best friends were there.

On her way out of the castle she was stopped several times. Once by Sir Nicholas, who asked her at least five times if she was feeling alright. Twice by a pair of Slytherin fifth years who wanted her to gossip about her husband and refused to take no for an answer until she threatened to hex them. And finally by Ernie Macmillon who approached her acting almost normally, rambling on about the last minute changes to her head girl duties scheduled for that week. After what seemed like forever she was able to escape and make her way down to Hagrids.

Being awarded Head Girl was Hermione’s dream and after achieving it she found it to be extremely anti-climactic. It was the same as prefect duties, only now she had the added responsibility of scheduling them for thirty other people. She had little more power than the rest of the prefects and in general was a bit disappointed by the experience. At first she had been angry that Draco had made Head Boy, not only because he was the ‘ferret’ but also because he didn’t do a thing to help in their shared managerial duties. But in the end she was glad that their shared title didn’t cause them to spend time together. Though now it looked like they would be, but for different reasons.

Reaching her goal she was happy to find Harry, Ron, Ginny, and Luna holding teacups and talking merrily with Hagrid. She easily slipped into the conversation and for a long time they were simply a group of friends talking and laughing.

Hermione soon found herself quietly listening as she reflected on her friends. They had all grown so much and it saddened her more than she would care to admit that this was their last year together. Ginny and Ron were no longer gangly, awkward, freckled children. Ron was a man, tall and filled out but still young in the face. He was surer of himself and according to Parvati was becoming quite an annoyingly persistent flatterer.

Ginny had become more centered. Far from her little girl days of wonder she was a woman and more sensual than her brother would care to admit. She was intelligent, well spoken, and confident. She had no trouble getting the boys at school to drool with her curvy body and beautiful light red hair.

Luna was still awkward and despite Hermione’s best effort she couldn’t pinpoint the change in her, though it was clearly there. Perhaps it was her eyes, which were still wide in curiosity and devastatingly piercing, but now more alert. Her body had filled out into that of a woman (still a rail thin one) but it was something else, something…internal. Hermione could only find one word for it, focus. Luna was just more…focused.

The biggest physical changes were in Harry. He too had grown and the years playing quidditch had defined and sculpted his body nicely, as it had done for Ron. Last summer Ginny had taken it upon herself to give him a ‘makeover’ and Hermione, like most of the girls at Hogwarts, appreciated her efforts. Ginny had cut his hair a bit shorter on the sides and had taught him to gel it into a barely distinguishable Mohawk. His hair no longer fell incessantly into his eyes and he now displayed his scar proudly. He had also visited a magical eye doctor and changed the style of his glasses. Hermione adored his new look; it reminded her of the muggle ‘punk’ bands that she loved. Harry liked the changes, and the interest he received from girls and subsequently carried himself with a bit more pride.

Hermione was pleased to observe the occasional shy glances between Luna and Harry. Most people would never imagine the two of them together; but they struck an odd, yet satisfyingly appropriate match. Though nothing had been said, Hermione’s female intuition was blaring and from Ginny’s expression she seemed to have come to the same conclusion. Ron was completely clueless, and it seemed, so was the unknowing couple.

It was during a lull in their conversation that Luna, in typical blunt fashion, destroyed their serenity by dropping a bomb shell. “I received my first petition today,” she said, not really to anyone. You could have heard a pin drop in the silence that followed.

Harry sat up and couldn’t hide his flash of anger, “From who!?”

“Henri Aldaine, the son of the chief editor of my father’s newspaper. He goes to Beauxbatons.”

No one spoke for a moment until Ron asked the obvious question, “Well, are you going to say yes?”

“I don’t know yet. I have one month to wait for other petitions. So who knows? I’ve only met him twice and I suppose he’s nice enough. I would prefer someone I knew…and someone that spoke English. Yes, I‘d definitely prefer to share a language with my husband.”

Hermione said the only thing that came to mind, “Yes that would be nice.” She felt sorry for Luna but appreciated her blunt way of facing things.

Harry didn’t comment but as Hermione watched him out of the corner of her eye she knew his anger was building like a thunder storm. Right on cue he jerked up, throwing his chair back and stormed out the door with out a word.

Everyone was still staring at the open door when Luna commented, “I do so love it when he gets all mad. Hagrid may I have one more of your lovely biscuits?”

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Soon after, Ron and the girls said their goodbyes to Hagrid and started up the sloping lawns. Ron pointed toward the quidditch pitch where they could barely see Harry zooming through the air.

“I’d better go talk to him…or at least tell him how he can improve his Garken Roll. Bye you guys.” Ron headed off and the three girls continued up to the castle.

“Luna, it’s great that you’re taking this so well.” Ginny said lamely, wanting to fill the silence.

“Oh well, what’s the point of worrying. Besides, Madam Zadar predicts that I’ll find my true love match this month.” Hermione and Ginny shared a smirk but didn’t say anything.

“I guess I’m the only one left…” Ginny said sadly. Hermione patted her back reassuringly.

“Who have you been thinking about?”

“I really don’t know. The boys at school are nice enough to date, but I couldn’t marry one. I don’t know, I just feel like I need someone older…”

“It is nice.” Hermione said idly. The two girls looked at her and broke into giggles. Hermione rolled her eyes and they continued to discuss various prospects all the way up the blossoming lawns.

When they reached the great hall the Gryffindors said goodbye to Luna. As she walked out of view Ginny pulled Hermione against the wall and quietly said, “Ron, Harry, and I are spending next weekend at Grimmauld place. Harry bugged Dumbledore into letting us. Do you think you can come?” Hermione’s spirit lifted at the thought of seeing the rest of her ‘magical family,’ and promised Ginny she would talk Severus into taking her.

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Severus was sitting in his office when she came in. “How was your meeting?” She asked, trying not to sound too anxious. He was writing something and didn’t respond. She was standing in front of his desk with her hands clasped behind her, wearing her school robes and quickly realized this was more of a teacher-student pose than husband-wife. She removed her robe and sat on the corner of his desk. He looked up at her with a quirked eyebrow. “Ahem?” she prodded him, knowing that he had heard her the first time.

“Hermione I do not report to you.” She waited, unmoved. “But if you must know, among other things I was directed to take you on a honeymoon and to have you ready to take the Mark in a month.”

“H-h-honeymoon? Mark?”

“We leave tonight.” He replied, choosing to ignore the second part of her question.

“WHAT?”

“I had a discussion with the Headmaster and he believes it would be best…”

Hermione cut him off, “Oh Goody! What DOES the headmaster think?” The sarcastic comment slipped out and she stopped immediately, not having expected to say it. Severus looked at her questioningly. “Umm, what did…Professor Dumbledore say?”

Severus watched her closely as he continued. “He has spoken with the Board of Governors and they have agreed that it would be a conflict of interest for me to maintain my role as your potions instructor. Dumbledore assured the board that with some tutoring you would be fully capable of completing the potions N.E.W.T. It was decided that we would ‘honeymoon’ for a week; in which, during that time I will tutor you for your Potion’s final. When we return you will sit your exam and for the rest of the year you will simply have a free period.”

“I can’t leave for a week! I have classes! And I can’t do your final now! I’ll fail, and what about my N.E.W.T’s and…and…I can’t!” She yelled, sounding slightly hysterical. The thought of spending a whole week with her husband without the distractions of the castle was making her head spin unpleasantly.

“Hermione stop being ridiculous. Do you not have all of the next week’s homework finished already?” She began to say that that was beside the point but he rudely cut her off. “Your professors will understand, and you are more than likely a month or two ahead in your reading. I don’t believe you will miss much. And as to my final, since I have written it, I would be the best choice of a tutor. Would I not? So I’d suggest that you stop being childish, go talk to your teachers, say goodbye to your friends and pack your things. We apparate tonight.”

“Where are we even going?” she stammered.

“Well, my home naturally. I certainly hope you weren’t wishing for some beach get-a-way honeymoon”

“Your home? Where is that…exactly?” Hermione had never thought about him living someplace outside of Hogwarts.

“A small Island off the coast Ireland”

“Uhhu…I wouldn’t have put you as Irish.”

Severus scowled, “I’m not.” She waited for him to explain but he went back to grading papers.

“Well…Uh, then I’ll just go toddle off and talk to…my professors.” He didn’t respond until she was almost out the door.

“Where I live will be kept between you and I Hermione.”

“Yes Proffes-oh hell” Hermione gave up and walked out.


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“You are going to spend a WEEK alone with SNAPE?” Ron sputtered.

Ginny kicked him and Hermione scowled, so he quickly corrected himself and said, “I mean…er…congratulations. I hope you, uh, have a wonderful time…”

“Thanks Ron.” she said weakly. “Where’s Harry?”

Ginny and Ron shared a look, “He’s sulking on the astronomy tower.”

Hermione nodded. She spent another hour in the common room talking with them. She left depressed, having learned that no less then eight of the Gryffindor girls had received petitions in the past week.


As Hermione walked through the halls she distinctly felt her world changing. She saw it in the wide-eyed fear in faces she passed and the hard edge everyone had adopted. The War had been going for almost a year, and like any fight it had its lulls and peaks. It had been quiet for the last month, since a Death Eater raid on a muggle town called Grait.

A lot had already changed. Over the past year Voldomort’s forces had been very active. Hermione guessed they were trying to strike hard early so as to weaken the Order’s support system. Slang from the old war had been resurrected. The two sides were the light and the dark, with their armies, the Order and the Death Eaters. The worst battle so far had been a surprise attack on the Diagon Alley of France, in Paris. Fifty-two people were killed in that attack alone. Reading the newspapers was disheartening because there seemed to be so little counterattacks being made by the Light.

It was hard for Hermione to not know what exactly was going on with the Order. Mrs. Weasley sent a letter every week with a few hints to what the Order was doing, but never anything specific for fear Earl, their owl, would fall into the wrong hands. Every letter expressed her concern over the safety of ‘The Trio’ and Ginny, always ending in a strict warning to stay out of trouble. Ginny received letters from the twins but they too were never really informative. Their business was suffering in wartime but it was still going well. They constantly apologized for being ‘secret holding git’s’ but never said a word of what they were doing for the light. The four remaining Hogwart’s students tried to understand. Harry had a weekly visit with Dumbledore, who told him a small portion of what was happening but even that was grossly disappointing.

The only concrete information they had was that this time around Dumbledore was employing the aid of several otherr Magical Unions (several hundred years ago the lines for magical unions were drawn and though the political muggle country lines have changed numerous times the unions have stayed the same.) Word had it that Dumbledore had already been in contact with the North and South American Unions, the Australian Union, and the North African Union. Mrs. Weasly had reported that three Wizards had been sent from America as early envoys and were staying at Headquarters. Dumbledore seemed hopeful that having the aid and trust of other Unions would help prevent Voldemort from persuading large amounts of foreign wizards to his purpose.

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“Hermione you’ve received a letter from your parents.” Severus was holding a letter in his hand and on the table Hermione saw Guinevere, the plump brown owl her parents had bought to communicate with her. Gweney, as her parents affectionately called her, looked up from her bowl when Hermione entered the room and chirped happily before going back to her food. She’d obviously been traveling for a very long time.

“Have you told your parents about…me yet?” Severus asked, his voice unemotional.

“Umm, no actually, you see, they’re taking a very long sabbatical in America, and I figured, not to, to worry them…” Hermione was suddenly very quite and she stared at her shoes. Under her husbands scrutiny she felt ashamed that she hadn’t told her parents of their marriage.

“I see…” He handed her the letter and sat down to wait while she read it. She opened it slowly.

Dear Mione,

How are you dear? Perfectly wonderful I hope. We’re currently in Miami, Florida. It’s a very colorful town, and while I am thoroughly enjoying the beach, your father is as red as a tomato. You know how he never tanned well. Last week we visited the Capitol city, Washington DC, and thought it to be quite beautiful. You should see the looks we get from hotel workers when we drive up with Gweney. We were thinking that in the summer when you join us, you might like to visit some of the universities. We don’t know about the schools for magic here, but I’m sure they’re very good. Why don’t you look into that dear? How is all that trouble you were so worried about last time we talked? Your father and I don’t quite understand but we are sure everything will by fine. You have a terrible tendency to worry. We don’t want you to forget about what is really important right now: doing your best in your last year. Your father and I miss you terribly and can’t wait to see you. But until then I want a full report on your life. Your last letter was entirely disappointing, so I expect a book on what you are up to this time. How are your friends? Your classes? Have you had any more thoughts on what you want to do after you graduate? Oh! And are there any boys in your life? I can see you blushing Mione my love. It’s only mum, so tell the truth! I want all that and more, don’t spare me any detail. Since I can’t be there to hug you over Christmas, I want to make up for it in letters. It would be wonderful if you could send us a telephone number so that we could call you on Christmas morning and say we love you, but those nice Weaslys probably don’t have a phone do they? I can’t understand how you claim to have all these wonderful magical solutions for problems but you still don’t have a mode of instant communication! Ah, I’m ranting, I’m sorry dear.
Oh! But I must tell you, your Cousin Andrew’s wife Vickie just had her baby….

Hermione skipped to the end, knowing the rest would be about family matters and she could read the rest later.

…Well I have to go and rub aloe on your father. We love you so much Mione and miss you terribly, write a lot and quickly. I hope it’s okay if Gweney stays with you until you write your letter. That way she can just come back with it, rather than make her and another poor owl make that long flight.”
We love you,
Mum and Dad

Hermione looked up and saw Severus watching her. “My mum asked if there were any new ‘boys’ in my life.”

“How much have you told them about the war?”

“Not much. I’ve told them that there are some bad wizards who are trying to start trouble. See, I didn’t want to scare them too much because I was afraid they would take me out of school. They don’t understand the magical world, or how important it is to me. They think I’ll just finish school and then have what they consider a normal life. I haven’t had a chance to…tell them about the law. They wouldn’t understand. They won’t understand you, or why I chose to marry you rather than leave the wizarding world.”

“You have to tell them.” Severus commanded.

Hermione felt her anger rise. It was her choice whether to tell them or not. He didn’t know what was best for her. “Why? It would only hurt them and make them angry and lead to a huge fight. Do you have any idea what they’ll think when they find out their teenage daughter is not only married, but to a man almost their age no less!”

“Hermione, you will be pregnant in less than a year, would you rather them come home to find you with child?”

“What are you talking about? Pregnant! I am not going to be pregnant. I care about my future. That’s why I’ve been placing anti-pregnancy charms on myself. You want a child by me?” She asked incredulously. “I notice you haven’t brought up birth-control.”

“It amazes me that I know this law better than you. You HAVE to be pregnant within a year! I haven’t brought it up yet because I am observant and noticed you placing charms on yourself. I was going to wait until closer to graduation before I discussed the fact that we would only have a few months left to meet the ministry’s idiotic deadline.”

‘I’m not going to cry. I’m not going to cry.’ She fell back onto the couch and pressed the heels of her hands to her eyes. “What am I going to do? I can’t go to university. I can’t get a job. My life is over!”

Severus tried to force himself to understand and be compassionate. Luckily he had given this very subject plenty of thought. He did not want to see Hermione’s brilliance wasted. “There are multiple choices. I could hire a nanny so you could attend university. Or you could be an apprentice to a master, most apprenticeships are casual and I’m sure that you could find a master who would be willing to let you bring a child to work.”

“And what are you going to do? I suppose my life is the only one that has to revolve around our child; you can just keep doing whatever you want.”

“No, I will not be the kind of father that my father was.” He paused and Hermione looked up at him but he scowled and shook his head. “I will make all necessary concessions as well.”

They sat in silence for a while. Hermione was still worried about her inevitable pregnancy but Severus’ words were helpful. She was always holding on to the hope that the law would be overturned and her life could go back to normal.

“How will I tell them? I can’t say it in a letter. And they’ll have to meet you…”

“Send them a letter saying that you have to talk to them in person. I will make a portkey for them to come to my home sometime this week.”

“Gwen can’t fly to America in less than a week.”

“Then I will apparate to America and she can find them from there.”

“But that means that I will have to tell them…now.”

“Go write your letter. I’ll go make the port key.”

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An hour later both had finished. Hermione’s letter had taken multiple drafts as she tried to relay the message of ‘you HAVE to come and see me NOW’ in a way that wouldn’t make her parents worry. Severus had spelled an old chocolate frog card to be a portkey on Wednesday, noon, Britain time.

Hermione walked him to the apparition room holding Gwen on her arm.

“They wrote from Miami so I am apparating to a small forest slightly north of that city. I should not be long.” He took Gweney, who had the letter tied to her leg and stepped through the wall.

Hermione heard a pop and walked into the bedroom to begin packing. She had just pulled out her trunk when she heard a returning pop. Severus walked into the room and Hermione let out a laugh. He had several scratches on his face and hands and a scowl that could darken a hundred funny days.

“That bird did not take too kindly to apparating.” His voice was low and extremely angry but Hermione just kept laughing. When she noticed him getting angrier at her levity she sighed and went to him. She held his face by the chin and studied the scratches. Most were shallow but three were slowly oozing blood and the ones on his hands were worse. She pulled out her wand and went about cleaning the cuts and healing them. Severus was silent and they didn’t make eye contact.

When she finished, she stepped back and studied her work, nodded and said, “You’re welcome” and went back to packing. After a moment of silence Severus thanked her softly and started to pack as well.

Half an hour later both were ready and Severus shrank their luggage and put them in his pocket. They walked to the apparition room and Severus lifted an arm. With out hesitation Hermione fitted herself to his side and wrapped her arms around his body. With a pop the world twisted and turned and finally righted itself.

Reality refocused and before Hermione could take in her surroundings, a small high, yet throaty voice said, “Libby is very glad to meet the Mrs. Snape. Very glad to meet Master’s new wife indeed!”

Hermione looked down to see two house elves beaming up at her and her mouth fell open.

“YOU HAVE HOUSE ELVES!?!?!?”

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Note: Hope you enjoyed that. Many, many thanks to my Beta, GeminiScorp. I would also like to thank my repeat reviewers, your devotion is very much appreciated. As always to all my readers, please review.

-Demos