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Marriage Vows	By : selened Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female > Snape/Hermione Views: 23720 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

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Marriage Vows

Disclaimer: This
story was inspired by the Marriage Law Challenge on WIKTT. All Harry Potter characters belong to JK
Rowling and those with whom she has agreed contracts. This story was written for practice not profit.

Chapter Twelve In The Morning

Hermione awakened as the chamber was bathed in Italian
sunlight. She was disoriented at first
at waking up in a strange place but as soon as her brain clicked into gear the
events of the previous evening came flooding back. She was lying in the bed of her husband after the first truly
passionate night of her life and he was lying in the bed behind her, presumably
still asleep. She could hear him
breathing steadily. Would he wake if
she turned over? What time was it? Would he be angry if she woke him? Would he mind if she got out of his bed
while he was still sleeping? She was
lying between him and the wall. She was
trapped and also completely naked.

She decided to risk turning over as though still
sleeping. That way he could not be too
cross with her if she disturbed him. As
she rolled she realised she had underestimated their proximity and rolled into
him. He grabbed her, hard. She cried out and he realised what he was
doing and let her go.

�I�m sorry. Did I
hurt you? Let me see.�

�I�m all right. Just
startled.�

�That makes two of us.
I�m not used to sharing a bed any more.
I think I was just about to wake and my nerves are not very sound. Are you sure you are not hurt?�

�I don�t think so.�

�Any ill-effects from last night�s activities?�

�A little soreness.
I�m fine apart from that.�

�You�re sure?�

�I�m positive. I�m
happy that things went the way they did.
I liked it.�

�I�m extremely pleased to hear it.�

He kissed her affectionately before rolling over to look at
the small bedside clock.

�What time is it?� asked Hermione.

�Nearly half past nine.
The spell really sapped us. I
don�t usually sleep for more than five hours or so and we�ve slept around the
clock. I took the liberty of preparing
a salve for you if you would like it.�

�Perhaps after a bath?�

�Yes. If you want to
take a bath I could order some breakfast for us. I can wait for my shower.�

�If you don�t mind.�

�Hermione, if I minded I would not be able to conceal it in
my current caffeine-free condn.�

�Do you have a robe I could borrow?�

�Oh, of course, hang on� here borrow this.�

He handed her his shirt from the previous day which was
within his reach on the floor. Hermione
donned it quickly and slipped out behind him.
Severus wrapped himself in his outer robe from the previous day and
summoned a house elf to order food and coffee.

When Hermione emerged from the bathroom she found Severus
sitting in front of the table, which was covered in food. He looked up and smiled at her appearance in
his shirt.

�We can�t possibly eat a tenth of all that,� she said.

�I don�t think there were many takers at breakfast this
morning. And Dobby was rather keen to
make a fuss. Just eat what you can
manage.�

She sat down opposite him and helped herself to some toast
with a serving of mushrooms and tomatoes.
He poured his third cup of coffee and offered it to her. She declined politely and asked for orange
juice instead. He poured her some and
pushed it over for her.

�I planned this badly,� she said.

�Planned what badly?� he asked trying to sound relaxed.

�I moved in here with you last night in the clothes I stood
up in. Not very practical clothes at
that. I can�t even wear the robes to go
back to my room and I don�t want to transfigure them into something else. I didn�t even bring a toothbrush.�

�I think you can be forgiven for that. You have dealt with two proposals, suicidal
impulses, engagement, the attempted murder of your fianc�, wedding planning,
family planning, wedding ceremony, wedding night and moving into your new
home. You did this over the space of
four days. You can�t berate yourself
because we need to collect your trunk at some point later today. There are many issues we are going to need
to hammer out this weekend to plan our future.�

�What issues do you want to discuss first?�

�I don�t want you to be in the Seventh year Potions class
anymore. I cannot see you as a child in
the day and as a woman at night.�

�You want me to drop Potions? What happened to supporting my education?� cried Hermione
angrily.

�I never said you had to drop the subject. I just don�t want to teach you in that
class. You don�t need to be there. You could have taken the NEWT instead of the
OWL back in fifth year and scored the top grade. Your time would be better spent if I devised a personal study
programme for you at Apprentice level.
You could use the lesson times for homework and work with me in the evenings
instead.�

�Actually that might be interesting,� admitted Hermione
grudgingly. �I can still go to my other
classes can�t I?�

�Yes. Although I
suspect you don�t really need any more tuition for Charms and Transfiguration
or Arithmancy if it comes down to it.
However you do have a right to have one year of relatively normal Voldemort
free education and I don�t want to isolate you from your friends any more than
I have done already.�

�All right. We�ve
agreed on that. What else do we need to
think about?�

�Daily routines spring to mind. Do we eat together or separately? Are you still under normal curfew arrangements? Do you have to wear school uniform?�

�It�s too early in the day for all that. I�m still half asleep.�

�I will concede that.
Give it some thought and we can talk about it later. Are you up to accepting Melissa�s lunch
invitation?�

�Perhaps, I thiy Muy Mum and Dad would like to be reassured
I�m okay.�

�You are okay?�

�I think so. Dad was
upset by Professor Trelawney�s visit yesterday.�

�Doom and gloom?�

�And carnal lusts.
Did she try it on with you too?�

�Even Sybil is capable of predicting my reaction to that
superstitious twaddle. Besides I don�t
think she knows where I live. Have you
finished eating?�

�Yes.�

�I�ll have this collected and send Dobby to collect some
clothes for you to wear now. Beautiful
as you look, I don�t want to share the sight of you like that. Let me give you the salve.�

He walked over to the mantelpiece and handed her a small
jar. �It�s quite safe for internal
use. It�s often used after
childbirth. I�ll go and take my shower�give
you a little privacy.�

He went into his bathroom and Hermione retreated to the
bedroom. Sitting down on the bed, she
noted the condition of the sheets. She
could smell the aroma of their combined fluids and the now crushed petals which
brought back fleeting memories of the night before. She stretched out on the bed and gave herself over to
recollection.

Severus found her there asleep when he came in with a pile
of her clothing. He felt a pang of
guilt over how childlike she appeared in sleep. He sat down on the bed beside her and stroked her cheek until she
stirred.

�Are you all right,� he asked anxiously. �I left you alone as long as I could but if
you want to go for lunch we�ll have to be ready to leave in half-an-hour. I didn�t realise you had gone back to bed.�

�I didn�t mean to. I
just lay back for a minute to think and next thing you were here.�

�I think the binding spell took a lot of your energy. You�re not accustomed to expending so much
at once.�

�Surely it can�t require that much power. I mean anyone can do it.�

�Yes but the spell takes what it finds to use and we have
been rather keyed up this last week.
Not every binding creates that dramatic a light display you know.�

�I wasn�t measuring it.�

�Me neither. Albus
commented on it. I don�t seem to be as
badly affected but I�m a lot older and I�ve become rather too used to burning
the candle at both ends.�

�The room looked beautiful last night. It was a nice gesture. What would you have done if I hadn�t chosen
to fulfil the bond?�

�I would have conjured you a cot in the dressing room and
hidden this from you so I didn�t feel stupid.
I didn�t really have a choice about the decorating. It�s a custom. I had a constant stream of visitors yesterday making sure I
didn�t cut any corners, as though it were in my nature to do so. Albus wanted to help. He was quite disgruntled to find I�d done it
already.�

�The flowers were amazing.�

�I cheated a bit and used a stasis charm. It stops them falling apart. They should last for a week or so.�

�I might put them on the Memorial.�

�That would be fitting.
Did the salve work?�

�I didn�t use it yet.
I fell asleep.�

�Do you want me to apply it?�

�Oh� er� I ��

�Hermione, we have bonded.
It is therefore inevitable that I will wish to look after you. If I am being invasive please feel free to
state it plainly. You are in pain and I
can relieve you of it. Not all touch
needs to be sexual.�

�I�m being silly. I
have no reason not to trust you after last night. Please go ahead.�

He coated his little finger in the salve and eased it into
her. The cooling numbing effect was
instant and her discomfort was gone in seconds. He put the lid back on the jar and leaned down to kiss her gently
on the cheek.

�Severus,� she began, �Did I upset you last night� when we
talked about your family� when we were� well did I?�

�I find it upsetting to talk about my parents. It was inevitable that we would have the
conversation when you saw the scars. If
we had a normal relationship you would have known before our wedding
night. You were bound to be
curious. It is not your fault that
memories of my parents cause me distress.
We can lay the blame for that on my father. You have no reason to reproach yourself. From your caresses last night I rather
gathered that you would heal me if you could.�

�I would.� She
reached up and stroked his cheek, running her fingers down to touch his
lips. He caught hold of her hand and
softly kissed her fingertips.

�Madam Snape,� he said, smiling gently, �I really must
insist that you dress yourself in a manner befitting my wife or I will be
compelled to confine you here for the rest of the day while the Weasleys
entertain your parents down at the hut.�

�All right. I�ll be
quick.�

Hermione chose some underwear and dressed herself quickly in
the new burgundy robes she had purchased in Hogsmeade. In ten minutes she and Severus were ready to
leave. He was wearing his usual garb of
black high necked frockcoat and trousers with black gown over the top. They walked out of the castle together,
attracting quite a few glances. Once
outside he offered his arm, which she accepted, and they walked down to the
hut. Melissa had the door propped open
to let out the heat from the stove and was bustling around in her accustomed
breezy manner. They walked in to find
Mrs Granger and Molly Weasley sitting at the table each drinking a glass of
pumpkin juice.

�Glad you could make it you two,� grinned Molly. �Severus you can go and join the menfolk out
in the paddock. Charlie�s showing Mike
around the menagerie and we are indulging in women�s talk. Off you go!�

Hermione was surprised to see Severus back away without
demur. �Sit down Hermione, you looked
exhausted. Is it the bond?�

�Severus thinks so.
He�s tired as well. We both
slept round the clock and I have been back to bed since breakfast.�

�It�s normal enough,� said Molly. �I�ve never seen a display
like the one you two gave us. You�re
holding a lot of power between you.
It�s a good sign. My boys have
all managed a respectable show but nothing like that.�

�So the brightness is related to how strong the couple are
with magic?� asked Mrs Granger.�

�Yes, generally spells require differing amounts of power to
make them work depending on how complex they are but the bonding spell draws
the available energy from the participants to produce a stronger union. It�s normal for the bride to be shaky
afterwards. Just reassure your Mum he
treated you well and we can let the men back in,� said Molly with a grin.�

�Yes Mum. He was
good to me. I think it�s going to
work.�

The women grinned at each other.

�Now make sure you eat well and get plenty of rest over the
next couple of days and you should be back up to full strength before you know
it,� said Molly.

�Mum will you tell the men I�ll have food on the table in
about ten minutes?� said Melissa, �Take Liz, she shouldn�t pass up the chance
to see the unicorns. I�m surprised
they�ve stayed this long. You can sit
there young lady. I want you awake to
eat your food. It�s tempting to not eat
when you�re tired.�

Molly and Mrs Granger went out round the back of the hut.

�I�ll eat Melissa.
It smells wonderful,� said Hermione.
I wish I could cook.�

�I thought you would, being Muggle-born.�

�No. My mum works
long hours so she tended to buy lots of pre-prepared food to heat up. Lots of Muggles do. Also I lived here most of the year since I
was eleven.�

�I was about your age when I started to learn. I grew up at Hogwarts from being three. My family was wiped out by Voldemort, quite
early on and my only living relative and my godmother were both teaching here
so I came to stay. I didn�t start to
look out for myself until I went to live in Hogsmeade. I spent all my time in here as a kid with
Hagrid as my baby sitter.�

�Is that why you�ve kept it the same?�

�Partly,� said Melissa, bringing a pile of warmed plates to
the table. �Plus we haven�t decided
what to do with it. It does at the
moment with just the two of us but we�ll need to do something when the babies
stao coo come.�

�Do you want lots of children?�

�Oh yes. At least
three sons would be good for me and I think Charlie�d like some girls too.�

�Will you give up teaching then?�

�No. Dumbledore
understands. He thinks Charlie and I�ll
balance everything between us. We�re
not in an immediate rush to start. Are
you and Severus going to have kids?�

�I think so. We
haven�t talked about when though.�

They were interrupted by the entry of the rest of the
party. Charlie helped Molly and Melissa
bring the food to the table.

Now that the wedding was over Molly and Arthur were keen to
talk about the advent of their grandchildren.
The arrival of the first was imminent and both Percy and Penelope and
George and Angelina were newly expectant.

�I don�t imagine Fred and Alicia will be far behind either,�
mused Molly.

�Molly�s already started on the knitting,� laughed Melissa.

�You won�t be laughing when your baby needs clothes,� teased
Arthur.

�Give us a couple more years,� said Melissa. �You have to allow for the fact I�m the only
daughter-in-law with a career.�

�Careers are for single witches,� said Molly. You know my view.�

�Now where would my family be if the head couldn�t support
her dependants,� said Charlie, de-railing what was evidently a familiar
discussion. �I put myself under her
authority and protection and I�m making the most of it.�

Severus and Arthur laughed as Molly had no comeback. The Grangers looked confused. Arthur tried to explain.

�Melissa and Charlie did their binding the other way
around. Melissa took Charlie because
she�s the head of her lind hed he�s a younger son. Legally Melissa is the husband and Charlie the wife. If anything had happened to Bill, Percy
would have been my heir in Charlie�s place.�

�Our children won�t be Weasleys,� supplied Charlie, �They�ll
be Graceworthy-Planks.�

�Is that common?� asked Mr Granger.

< !su !supportEmptyParas]>

�Not very,� said Melissa, �My parents� families ran afoul of
Grindelwald like Arthur�s did. They
were both the last of their lines. They
went on to have a big family of which I was the baby. When I was three the Death Eaters came to call one night and
wiped us out.yes"> �What about you Hermione?
Are you going to have a career or rebuild the Snape family?�

There was a tense silence.
Charlie realised he may have put his foot in it as both Severus and Mr
Granger glared at him. Hermione tried
to fill the silence.

�I don�t know. I had
thought to have a career, possibly in research for the Ministry but that was when
I needed to earn a living. Now I could
do independent research or have children now and put off the career until
later. To be honest Severus and I
haven�t really had a chance to think about the rest of this year yet let alone
make long term plans. Everything has
come about so quickly��

�I�m sorry Hermione.
I didn�t mean to put you on the spot.
It�s actually easy to forget your situation. We got so used to seeing you working together� I just get a bit
sick of the family pressuring Melissa.�

&n]>

�It�s all right Charlie.
Like Melissa we�ve decided there will be an heir but there�s no rush,�
stated Severus.

�Changing the subject Severus, Albus was telling me you and
I are going to have an excursio the the Abbott family this week.�

�Oh yes. I�d forgotten
that.�

�Is that something to do with the child who�s related to
you?� asked Hermione.

�Yes. She is in
Slytherin as you know but according to our records she�s Muggle-born.�

�That�s a new one on me,� said Arthur.

�And on all of us if it were true, however the Sorting Hat
suggests she isn�t what she appears to be.�

�You�re as pure-blood as they come, Severus,� said
Molly. �What kind of relation is she?�

�Well according to the Sorting Hat she�s a Malfoy.�

�Oh goodness, Olivia!� cried Melissa.

�That was mine and Albus� reaction too.�

�She�s just like her.
I can�t believe it didn�t click at once.�

�We didn�t see it either until the Hat said it. Nor did Draco Malfoy and he must have seen
pictures of her even though she died before he was born.�

�A memory charm?� asked Charlie.

�No,� said Hermione.
�I�ve seen a picture of Olivia and the penny only just dropped with me
but I didn�t know Olivia so who would have cast a charm on me? It has to be on the child. That�s why we see it when we know.�

�The purpose of the visit is to see if the parents of Miss
Abbott are hiding anything or have had their minds interfered with. That may give us a clue as to how she�s
connected.�

�Could they have hidden a squib?� asked Molly.

�What is a squib?� asked Mr Granger. �I�ve heard the word but it�s not one I�ll
find in a dictionary.

�A squib is a child, born into a wizarding family, who has
no powers. They used to be locked up or
meet with unfortunate childhood accidents in aristocratic families. In the last century they�ve tended more and
more to live as Muggles. They�re seen
as bad blood. Even now it�s considered
a disgrace to have one in polite circles,� said Mr Weasley.

�The irony is that overly �pure� families are more likely to
have them. If I had married a Muggle my
magical genes would largely have won out over his ordinary ones when we had
children. In an inbred pure-blood
family you will tend to get recessive weak genes duplicated which is assumed to
be what causes a squib. Squibs aren�t
allowed to marry but in theory they can have magical offspring,� said Hermione.

�That will have to be something we look into,� said
Severus. �A family such as the Malfoy�s
can hide many secrets.�

�They can�t marry?
That seems ratcruecruel,� said Mrs Granger.

�Well it depends what you mean by marriage,� said
Severus. If a squib found a Witch or
Wizard willing to marry them they could do so under a contract. If they found a Muggle they could marry in
any of the Muggle ways. What they can�t
do is marry as Hermione and I have because they have no magical energy to
contribute to the binding and that is the common form of marriage in our
community.�

�I have a squib cousin,� said Molly. �He married a Muggle and they have Muggle
children. There are a lot more squibs
than there used to be. Most families
have them. Arthur and I stand out a bit
because big Wizard families are unusual.�

�So all the things in The Prophet about the Marriage Law
were right? About falling birth rate
and so on?� asked Mr Granger.

�Sadly yes,� said Arthur.
�But that doesn�t mean we approve of enslaving Muggle-Born Witches. I�m convinced we�ll find that Malfoy put a
lot of money into getting that Law passed.�

�But you don�t know why?�

�No,� said Severus.
�We don�t know yet. But if we
can find out we will.�

�Who is ready for pudding?�

Later that afternoon Severus and Hermione saw off their
wedding guests and returned home to the dungeons. Hermione was so exhausted that she agreed to let Dobby pack her
trunk for her while she went to bed.
Severus woke her for some food later on and had to physically carry her
back to bed after she fell asleep over the fruit bowl. She didn�t wake while he undressed her but
doing so took up the last of his reserves and he decided to join her.

A/N

Thanks to Sharon, Raija, KAT1441, azulkan2 and Gia for their
positive reviews. It�s particularly
interesting to hear your speculation about where the story is going. I hope it continues to live up to your
expectations.

There may be another chapter tonight depending on how active
the board is later on.
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Marriage Vows