Adult-FanFiction.org : Harry Potter

Marriage Law	By : teshara Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female > Snape/Hermione Views: 12493 -:- 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.

Chapter List
- 1-Marriage Law
- 2-2
- 3-3
- 4-4
- 5-5
- 6-6
- 7-7
- 8-8
- 9-9
- 10-10
- 11-11
- 12-12
- 13-13
- 14-14
- 15-15
- 16-16
- 17-17
- 18-18
- 19-19
- 20-20
- 21-21
- 22-22
- 23-23
- 24-24
- 25-25
- 26-26
- 27-27
- 28-28
- 29-29
- 30-30
- 31-31
- 32-32
- 33-33
- 34-34
- 35-35
- 36-36
- 37-37
- 29
- 30
- 31
AN: I apologize for the Mary-Sue last chapter. Anyone who
wants to beta and is on yahoo chat im me. I�m teshara.

Luna: Oh! I love debating, nitpick as much as you like :)

I�m having a lot of fun writing this story, but I think it�s
built more like a serial, rather than a novel-by-chapter type thing. I don�t
see any end coming soon. Does anyone mind this or should it have a definite
beginning-middle-end?

I posted this and didn�t realize the review function was
down on ff.net. For 2 days I got no reviews until I looked up my story and
manually read them. I thought my chapter sucked so bad y�all were quiet and
weren�t going to tell me. LOL! Thank you for the reviews! Over 16,000 hits and
counting!

Marriage Law Chapter 30

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Harry left the hospital soon after the doctors were
convinced he was healed and quite honestly, a dangerno ono one.

Sirius Black had left Grimmauld place, his money, and his
possessions to Harry in his will. With the arrival of Harry�s 18^th
birthday the title and deed were transferred to him. Narcissa Malfoy was
furious and was contesting Harry�s claim to what she insisted was her family
home and fortune. Perhaps she was upset at the death of her husband and capture
of her son during the raid at the Ministry.

Harry soon moved into his new house and honestly seemed a
bit lonely after the aurors moved back to the rebuilt Ministry. The house had
been completely cleaned out of all charms and spells. Any protections were
standard, although Harry could add any of his own. He started the day he moved
in.

The magical items that were deemed safe were kept; others
were taken elsewhere or disposed of. Harry was recompensated with a large
amount of gold and the thanks of the Department of Mysteries

The scout from the Hornets began hounding Harry shortly
after he had moved in, but Harry decided he needed a few weeks to himself
before settling himself in a career. Especially one so public, looking the way
he did.

Reporters bothered him constantly and he was pelted with
owls at all hours.

Harry had been offered a number of house elves from some of
the older wizarding families as a token of their thanks. With help from
Hermione he assured them of a steady wage and time off to pursue other hobbies.
For some of the elves that meant doing work in a different part of the house,
unpaid. Hermione was frustrated but took Severus� advice and finally gave up.
Harry was impressed.

Harry even negotiated a contract for an enthusiastic young
elf on behalf of the Weasleys and Molly finally got extra help around the
house.

Dobby accepted Hermione�s invitation to visit the Snape
estate before the school year started. Soon after he wrote to Professor
Dumbledore requesting he make use of vacation time he had saved up. When
Dumbledore asked Hermione about it she just smiled and said Dobby had so much
to entertain himself with there he probably wanted to make the most of his
trip. Dumbledore had looked at her suspiciously, but approved Dobby�s request.

Dumbledore took Hermione�s advice and additionally, hired
her as a councilor at the school. The Ministry had put all new hiring on hold
and Hermione still didn�t know whether she wanted a Ministry position at all.
She was needed at Hogwarts for the time being. A school harboring any animosity
in a post-war situation could be volatile. To Hermione�s surprise he had also
hired a former Slytherin, Blaise Zambini to be a councilor as well.

Hermione vaguely remembered the Slytherin, although they had
shared classes. He was a thin young man of medium height. His dull red hair
hung lank and lifeless on his head and was cut unevenly, as if he had done it
himself. His skin was pale and had a grayish pallor to it. His mouth was a thin
slash set in a long face. His dull brown eyes blinked slowly at whatever he was
looking at. He had always been quiet in class and had kept to himself.

Now that the war was over and they were out of school,
Hermione was pleased to find Blaise was shy and intelligent. She also noticed
he never wore green or black, although he wore a silver pin with a snake on it.
She never asked why.

When the year started the children of the Deatheaters and
other pureblooded families seemed to be able to talk to him, and he seemed to
perform his job well. He was organized and efficient. Hermione was thankful for
the help.

Unfortunately, some of Hermione�s friends were still
students and they wanted to pop by at all hours. Most of the time they showed
up when they were supposed to be in class and just wanted the afternoon off.
Hermione turned them all away, annoyed they were wasting her time. After she
had taken 30 points from Gryffindor they finally stopped showing up.

Even more unfortunate, Hermione found there was a desperate need
for councilors at Hogwarts. Some of the First Years of mixed parentage, away
from their parents for the first time, suffered from incredible nightmares and
the house elves reported an occasional bed wetting to Hermione. She often found
herself summoned out of bed in the middle of the night to talk to a hysterical student.

Blaise found himself more often summoned to the hospital
wing. Apparently Deatheater children had a bizarre idea of what their duty was
once their side had lost. He very nearly lost his nerve after they had found
the first suicide attempt. He came back to the office he and Hermione shared
covered in blood. He had calmly made a cup of tea and stared into the fire
until it was nearly time for dinner. Hermione had given him a biscuit and he
offered her a single small smile. It looked as if it pained him. The girl
survived.

Madame Pince was thankful for the assistance. If Hermione
and Blaise hadn�t stepped in, it would all fall to her in addition to her
normal duties as healer of Hogwarts.

Severus had started out the year with his �bottle fame, brew
glory� speech, much to the annoyance of Hermione and Professor McGonagall who
happened to be passing his room as he started his first class of Hufflepuff and
Ravenclaw. Professor McGonagall fixed Hermione with a withering look and
Hermione had to cover her mouth to keep from laughing.

Neville had woken a few weeks after the school year. From
what Ron said, it sounded like he was in the magical version of physical
therapy. He walked with a noticeable limp now and talked much slower than he
usually did. Ron commented that his father had thought this was because Neville
had become more focused, not because he had any damage to his brain. Neville
had already written to the Ministry about information on their Auror program.

Mrs. Longbottom had showed up at the Ministry while
construction was still going on, demanding to speak to whoever was in charge.
She demanded Neville be hailed as a hero publicly and her family be noted for
their dedication to the cause. Mr. Weasley, who was in charge although no one
was using the title �Minister,� agreed and decided to boost morale in the
nation by throwing a celebration for the battle heroes with a special part of
it dedicated to the Longbottoms. The celebration was to coincide with Halloween
and would be covered extensively by both the Daily Prophet and the Quibbler.

Luna Lovegood was now her father�s top reporter and the only
person to get an interview with Harry Potter. Mostly, because she let him help
her write the questions and he edited it with her. It talked about his
disfigurement, but there was yet to be a picture published of him since the
battle.

Mrs. Weasley was rapturously proud of her husband and joked
since there was no Minister he had become the nations �Arthur.� Dumbledore was
still peppered by owls a dozen times a day but unlike Fudge, Arthur seemed to
pay attention to Dumbledore�s replies and the owls soon stopped coming so
rapidly.

Remus Lupin had been granted the Defense Against the Dark
Arts position. After some new changes at the Ministry it became much easier for
him to get a job, as long as the proper precautions were taken. His students
quickly warmed up to him and he was freely able to discuss lycanthropy, its
effects, and how to avoid it happening to you.

Hermione was delighted to find Remus� quarters were somewhat
near hers and invited him to join the scavenger hunt for charmed items in her
room. Severus wasn�t pleased at the intrusion, but rather than argue with
Hermione he retreated to his room and bound it with a silencing charm.

Hermione had finally showed Severus all the pictures Colin
had developed of their quarters and he laughed out loud at the vines on her
bed. Helga said she vaguely remembered putting the charm on the bed at the
request of a suitor, but really didn�t remember all the charms on the room
anymore, or even who the suitor was.

Since Severus was prone to loud snoring at times, Hermione
was thankful for a bedroom of her own to retreat to; otherwise she used the
room as her study. Severus still used the room on a regular basis for fishing,
but otherwise stayed out of it. He wasn�t willing to feel her wrath by
upsetting any of her piles of scrolls or books.

Once a week Hermione took the floo connection to the
Bibloitheque oo Amazon. She reported anything she found out on Harry�s
condition to the Amazons. Harry was a bit curious about them, but regarded them
in the same category as the dozens of historians that were owling him on a
daily basis.

The Amazons weren�t really interested in the information
Harry had gained about Voldemort, but the process used to make the exchange
happen. This was their only difference from the other historians, in Harry�s
eyes.

Ginny found herself very popular her Seventh Year. Although
she was polite and socialized, she mostly kept to herself. There was no way to
hide her missing finger, but the cut was so exact most people didn�t notice
unless she gestured with her hands. Her scar was covered by her robes. She
hadn�t gone to see Harry after she heard what happened to him. She never talked
about the battle to anyone.

The Marriage Law was disillusioned after the Ministry was
ready to take on new business. Several marriages were annulled, some with the
authorities having to step in to retrieve confined women.

To everyone�s surprise, Padma Goyle stood by her new husband
and refused the offer of an annulment. Gossip said she stood by him because of
his change of sides near the end of the war, but those close to him said it was
the stubbornness and loyalty of a good woman that changed him. Either way, it
one of the very few marriages that worked out, unexpectedly. Hermione felt it
was inappropriate to comment.

***

�Severus?� Hermione asked tentatively.

Severus lay nude under the sheets near her. He had planned
to spend the day fishing off her window ledge, but she had been reading a stack
of parchments when he came into her room, only wearing a towel wrapped around
her waist and one around her hair. They hadn�t stayed in place for long.

�What?� Severus frowned at her sternly.

�What?� Hermione asked, taken a little aback at his
reaction.

�You only use that tone when you�re about to say something
you don�t think other people will like,� Severus said. �How expensive is it?�

�Well, I suppose that depends,� Hermione said, stalling. �This
is not the way I imagined this conversation happening,� she said, a little
annoyed.

�I�m sorry,� said Severus, relaxing a little. He thought to
himself that he would have to work on his paranoia. �What is it?�

�I was just wondering,� began Hermiolowllowly.

Severus froze. Was she going to ask him about his past? His
Deatheater past? God forbid, his sexual past?

�Do you want any children?� Hermione blurted out.

Severus blinked.

He had a whole school full of children. They drove him
absolutely mad. Pieter seemed to enjoy his, but he seemed to have the most well
behaved children on the planet. Curious, considering how he and Severus had
been as boys.

�I honestly hadn�t given it much thought,� said Severus,
propping himself up one elbow. �Do you want children?� He was relieved. It was
a touchy question, but unlikely to lead to divorce.

�Well,� said Hermione, trying to sound logical in case she
was going to have to present an argument. �I had always imagined I�d have
children.�

�Well,� said Severus, looking like he was thinking hard. �If
you conceive in the next few weeks you will most probably give birth in the
early summer. It would be practical to have several months of free time after
the child arrives.�

�I didn�t mean right now,� said Hermione, surprised. �I just
meant, you know, for future reference.�

�Ah,� said Severus. �Do you want children with me?�

Hermione looked at Severus. His black eyes were fixed on her
and he looked very serious.

�Well, you are my husband,� said Hermione sarcastically.
�You would be the logical choice.� He gave her a look she couldn�t decipher.

Severus gazed down on her speechless. This woman. This
infuriating, beautiful, stubborn, bossy, intelligent, competent, compassionate
woman, that was brave enough to take his name when anyone else would have turned
and fled, wanted his child.

�Well,� Severus smirked at her and laid his head back on his
pillow. �I would be, wouldn�t I? At least Hogwarts would have one competent
potions student.�

Hermione smacked him and rose from the bed.

�Hermione,� Severus said seriously as he sat up. �I can
support a family. I never really planned one, but I never planned on getting
married either.� He began pulling his clothing back on. Hermione watched him.
He got to his feet and kissed her on the forehead. �I don�t regret getting
married.�

Hermione gave him a crooked smile.

�Back to work,� Severus said pointing at the piles of
research material. �I�ll go getch.�ch.�

Hermione made a face at him, but went back to her work.

***

�Hello, Severus,� said Remus Lupin as Severus walked through
the portal to the kitchens. �How are the fish biting this fine Sunday?�

�I couldn�t tell you,� said Severus a little stiffly. No
matter how hard he tried he could never really be comfortable in the presence
of the werewolf. �Hermione had other plans.�

Remus chuckled.

�Maybe I should have taken advantage of that law and gotten
myself a young wife,� he mused. Severus brushed past him and opened the door to
a cooling cupboard.

�More trouble than its worth sometimes,� Severus said as he
picked a basket off a shelf and placed a couple of apples in it.

�Wearing you out, is she?� Remus grinned wolfishly as he
brought a mug to his lips.

�She is not wearing me out!� Severus exploded suddenly. �We
are two perfectly capable adults!�

Remus was quiet and appraised Severus for a few moments.

�Do you want to talk about it?� Remus asked. He reached into
the inside pocket of his robes and brought out a small flask.

Severus poured himself a mug of pumpkin juice and held it
out to Remus. Remus poured a healthy dollop of an amber liquid into Severus�
mug. Severus took a deep drink and sat quietly for aent.ent.

�She wants a child,� said Severus. �Perhaps more.�

�Right now?� Remus asked, looking mildly surprised.

�Well,� Severus hesitated. �No.�

�Then what are you worried about?� Remus asked drinking from
his mug. �She�s a young bride, Severus. Of course she�s thinking about babies.�

�I suppose you�re right,� Severus said lifting his mug to
his lips. �At least she doesn�t want one now.�

�I take it you don�t want children, then,� Remus said.

�I,� Severus started awkwardly. �I never thought I�d have
the opportunity.�

�She might even change her mind when she gets older,� said
Remus slowly.

�Not that I�m entirely opposed,� Severus said as if Remus had
stayed silent. �I just hadn�t given it much thought.�

�It looks as if she�s giving you time to think,� said Remus.
�At least a couple years warning. Sensible girl.�

Severus drained his mug and stood up.

�She always is,� said Severus as he finished packing their
lunch.

***

�What took so long?� Hermione asked as she looked up, her
face appearing between stacks of scrolls.

�Lupin was in the kitchens,� said Severus.

Hermione waved her wand and the scrolls cleared from the
table to a corner of the room. Severus set the basket on the table.

�Why didn�t you ask him to join us?� Hermione asked opening
the basket and unpacking it.

�I didn�t know if you�d be dressed,� said Severus. �It�s a
pleasant day and light is spilling onto the bed. You might have decided to take
in some sun.�

�Not a half bad idea,� said Hermione who had slipped into
casual red cotton robes. �I might think of that in the future.�

A large black barn owl landed on the open window sill with a
scroll attached to a leg. His feathers ruffled loudly at his landing. Severus
looked at it and frowned.

�What�s wrong?� Hermione asked.

Severus shook his head. �That�s a Black family owl. It must
be from Harry. It just � surprised me.�

Hermione had never spoken to Severus of Sirius. She wondered
if it would be appropriate. She decided if he wanted to talk about it she would
by all means let him, but she didn�t know his limits and didn�t want to find
out just now.

�I wonder where Hedwig is?� Hermione frowned as she walked
to the window. To her surprise the handwriting wasn�t Harry�s.

Dear Hermione and
Professor Snape,

Harry is holding a
secret celebration at his house next weekend. It�s Friday night at 9:PM so you
won�t be missed at dinner.

Hope all is well with
you.

Sincerely,

Neville

�He just bounces back, doesn�t he?� Severus chuckled as he
shook his head. He was reading over Hermione�s shoulder.

�Must get it from his grandmother,� Hermione said folding
the letter. �Are we going?�

�I can�t imagine you not going,� Severus sighed. �Are you making
me go?�

�I couldn�t fathom making you do something you didn�t want
to do,� Hermione said with a grin. �At least not without me ending up
miserable.�

�Good to see you applying that intellect of yours,� Severus
said turning back to the table and his half finished sandwich.

�So I�m going by myself?� Hermione asked as she dug in the
basket and came up with an apple.

�Unless you insist I go,� said Severus. He desperately
wished he didn�t have to attend.

�Fine,� said Hermione. �I will go to a fabulous party and
you�ll sulk around the dungeon.�

�Smashing,� said Severus picking his fishing pole up. He
kissed her on the cheek and climbed out her window.

***

�Hermione!� Ginny crowed across the room as Hermione stepped
through the fireplace into the kitchen of Grimmauld
Place. Hermione was about 20 minutes late due to a
fight between a fourth year Gryffindor and a second year Slytherin. It had
taken both councilors to diffuse the situation.

Hermione waved at Ginny, not wanting to shout over the noise
filling the room. Fred and George ran up to meet her, pumping her arm as they
shook her hand and shoving a bottle of Butterbeer at her.

�Where�s that man of yours?� Fred joked.

�You expect him to crawl out of his dungeons to enjoy
himselfermiermione asked, her eyebrows raised.

�A snob is what he is,� said George grinning and shaking his
head. �Doesn�t want to sully himself with the presence of us.�

�Oh stop it,� said Hermione. �He�s not as bad as that.�

�Heya, Hermione,� an excited voice said behind her. She
turned to face Harry.

The uncanny thing was his face still looked the same. He
just looked as if he had drawn on his face and put Muggle contact lenses in. He
hugged her heartily.

�How are you, Harry?� Hermione asked, a little hesitant.

�Drunk,� said Harry with a solid nod. Hermione looked at the
twins and they nodded as well. She sighed.

The flames behind her leapt up green and crackled. She
stepped aside as Professor Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall entered the
kitchen.

�Well it looks as if the party is already in full swing,�
said Dumbledore cheerfully. �Excellent.�

In her hands lay the open box. The inside was lined with
brown leather and a gold chain lay in it. From the chain a pendant dangled,
made of something Hermione had never seen before.

It was fashioned into a lacy three dimensional pattern. The
material was almost translucent, but flashed multiple colors throughout the
body of the material very quickly letting off a decent amount of light. As
Hermione pulled it out she spotted a small leather pouch at the bottom of the
box. It looked as if it was meant to go over the pendant so it wasn�t blinding
at all times.

�What is it?� Hermione asked.

�A piece of Bifrost,� said Dumbledore.

�What?� Hermione breathed.

�When Ragnarok took place the bridge was shattered,� said
Dumbledore. �What is left is the Aurora Borealis.�

�This is a piece of the sky?� Hermione breathed.

�This is a part of the bridge that was broken off and forged
when it was still corporeal,� said Dumbledore.

�Incredible,� said Hermione as she slipped the leather pouch
over the pendant and tied it tightly. She slid the chain around her neck and
placed it under her robes. �Why did they give it to me?�

�One of the Jotun insisted it belonged to you,� said
Dumbledore slowly.

�What are you saying?� Hermione asked, draining her goblet.
Dumbledore refilled it for her.

�Some Vikings were descended from Heimdall,� explained
Dumbledore. �Apparently one of them- created a child with one of your
grandmothers.�

Hermione was silent, but once again drained her goblet. When
Dumbledore refilled it, his bottle poured out water.

�That must have been over fifteen hundred years ago,� said
Hermione. �I�m sure there are thousands of descendents of Vikings throughout Britain
by now.�

�Apparently one of the Jotun was instantly drawn to you,�
said Dumbledore. �Mithrax is a historian among his kind and was taken by how
much you looked like a silver bust of Heimdall he has a record of.�

�Just because I look like someone doesn�t mean I�m related,�
said Hermione.

�He took a sample hair off your robes when you were injured
in the blast,� said Dumbledore, refilling his own mug with the bottle he held
in his hand. �When his test came back as he suspected he finally had someone to
return this artifact to.�

�Should I be wearing it?� Hermione asked.

�It is your right to wear it,� Dumbledore said. �The chain
will never tarnish or break and the shard itself holds great power only you can
learn.�

Hermione fingered the pendant through her robes and shook
her head.

�I will of course want to see any notes you take in your
research,� said Dumbledore. �Not much is known about it.�

�Of course,� Hermione echoed faintly. She placed the box in
her pocket.

�As far as Mithrax can tell it makes a wonderful source of
light in the dark,� said Dumbledore.

Hermione nodded. Part of her wondered if it did anything
besides make light.

Suddenly the door flew open and Harry and Ron burst in.

�Didn�t like my speech?� Ron laughed as he took a deep drink
from his mug. Hermione knew it was full of Butterbeer.

�It was wonderful,� said Hermione, smiling at him.

�Truly inspirational, Mr. Weasley,� said Dumbledore raising
his mug.

�You�ll do us proud, yet,� said Harry laughing.

Ron turned red, but smiled at them. The door suddenly
darkened behind them.

�Hello, Hagrid,� said Dumbledore cheerfully.

��Allo,� said Hagrid, a mug the size of a small barrel in
his hands. Hermione had never seen him in Grimmauld place and watched him duck
through the door frame. She thanked the powers that be for Victorian ceiling
height. �Sorry I�m late. Had a bit of trouble with the Augureys. Got into a
cage of pixies.�

�We�re glad to have you,� said Harry, smiling and turning to
face him.

It was apparent from Hagrid�s expression that he hadn�t seen
Harry since his transformation. The color drained from his face. He took a step
backwards and hit his head on the portion of wall above the door he had to duck
into to enter the room.

�Ow!� said Hagrid, rubbing his head and regaining his
composure. �Sorry Harry. Quite a look you�ve got there.�

�I know,� said Harry, sighing. �I wonder if I could get away
with wearing a veil and sunglasses at all times.�
- 29
- 30
- 31
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

Marriage Law