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A Marriage of Convenience	By : NinaSweets Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Snape Views: 158856 -:- Recommendations : 5 -:- Currently Reading : 44
Disclaimer: Harry Potter characters and places all belong to JK Rowling this is a not for profit story.

Chapter List
- 1
- 2
A Marriage of Convenience
By Nina Sweets
Chapter One
“Harry Potter,”
Professor Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, looked around the hall wildly.
“Harry Potter!” he called sharply.
Harry Potter was sitting at the Gryffindor table of the Great Hall and had, till a few seconds ago, been thoroughly enjoying the Halloween feast. He had been watching along with the rest of the school as three champions from three separate magic schools had been selected by the magical Goblet of Fire to compete in the Triwizard Tournament. Beauxbatons Academy of Magic had their champion the beautiful Fleur Delacour, Durmstrang Institute had their champion, the fierce Viktor Krum and Hogwarts had just gotten their champion Cedric Diggory.
Those were the three names that had come out of the Goblet of Fire and there was only supposed to be three. Then the Goblet had spat out a forth name.
Harry’s name.
Harry blanched and sat, rooted to his seat.
Hermione Granger, one of Harry’s friends, who was sitting right beside him, gave him a nudge.
“Go!” she hissed and Harry shook his head.
He didn’t want to go. He didn’t like where this was going so he wasn’t going.
“Harry!” Hermione snapped and gave him a shove making him stand up.
Now that he’d stood his body seemed to move him forward. He headed toward the Head Table where all his teachers were sitting along with the two Headmasters from the visiting schools and the two officials from the Ministry of Magic. They were all staring at him all looking quite unsure as what to do. Harry was feeling very much the same way.
Professor Dumbledore simply watched him as he approached and when he stopped in front of the wise old wizard the man pointed toward the door where the other champions had gone and Harry miserably made his way through it.
His name had just been spat out of the Goblet of Fire.
Everything was happening too fast.
It was too slow.
The adults were all around him shouting furiously.
They were arguing heatedly.
No one was listening to him at all.
“The rules are absolute,” Barty Crouch said, “He must compete!”
Compete?
In The Triwizard Tournament?
No, he couldn’t do that.
There was outrage.
Harry was outraged.
The three original champions startled at Crouch’s declaration.
Madame Maxime from Beauxbatons Academy of Magic and Professor Karkaroff of Durmstrang Institute began to protest, calling every person in the room a liar and a cheater. Maxime was screeching in French, Karkaroff was spitting in harsh Bulgarian at Dumbledore.
“I can’t compete I’m fourteen!” Harry protested loudly over the noise.
“You have to! Your name came out of the Goblet of Fire, it is a legally binding contract you agreed to by entering your name,” Crouch said matter-of-factly.
“But I didn’t enter my name!” Harry cried.
The two officials from the Ministry of Magic, Crouch and Ludo Bagman, were steadfast. Harry’s name came out of the Goblet he would have to compete with the other three champions.
The adults were arguing again.
Harry frowned.
Hermione was the smartest person he knew... what would she do?
“Mr Crouch may I read the rule book?” Harry asked.
Every single person in the room turned to look at him. He could see his Professors all staring at him, each with a look of shock; none of them had known Harry to willingly read a book.
“It’s long; these rules have been in place for hundreds of years, new ones added with practically every tournament. Very dull, you wouldn’t want to read it.”
“May I? Or is a champion not allowed to know the rules of the Tournament?” Harry asked. Crouch frowned at him but with a flick of his wand the huge dusty tome landed in Harry’s arms.
Harry actually stumbled from the sudden weight.
Fleur and Krum laughed, Krum snorted into his hand and Fleur gave a delicate little titter.
“Let ze little boy compete I ‘ave just ‘az much chance of winning even wiz two ‘Ogwarts champions,” Fleur said haughtily and Harry frowned at her.
Yes he was on the shorter side for his age group and he wasn’t exactly at the top of his class but there was no reason to be rude.
“Don't worry I won’t be competing and Cedric will kick your lopsided arse!” Harry said nastily and Fleur gasped
“My arse is perfection!” she said then turned to her Headmistress and began to shout at her in French.
“Zis is no place for rude little boys,” Madame Maxime said to Harry. Harry went to retort that it was no place for rude old ladies but the Ludo Bagman the second Ministry official stepped in between them.
“Tensions are a little high,” Ludo Bagman said glancing between Harry and the large and formidable Beauxbatons Headmistress. “I think we should call it a night.”
Harry stared at everyone in the room before turning around and marching out of the room, the rule book clutched tightly in his arms.
He was used to being ostracised and used to being accused of lying and cheating, even trying to kill people but somehow this felt worse. It was on such a bigger scale now, it wasn’t just his school mates who had turned against him it was two very powerful wizarding schools and the Ministry and Harry could tell even his teachers didn’t believe him.
Well there was just no way was he competing in this stupid tournament. He had enough going on his life, there was a mad psycho wizard trying to kill him after all. He didn’t really feel the need to risk his life further by competing in a deadly tournament for a thousand galleons prize money and a little bit of fame. He was already famous thanks to the lightning bolt scar on his forehead given to him by the psycho wizard Lord Voldemort when he’d killed Harry’s parents.
Harry was making his way up the stairs from the entrance hall when a call of his name stopped him.
“Potter!”
Harry turned to find his Head of House Professor McGonagall walking toward him. He waited on the steps for her to join him. She stopped on the step below him so they were nearly eye to eye. Any closer Harry would be looking up at her. He was kind of short for his age at 5’3 and Professor McGonagall was a good five inches taller than him.
“How are you doing with that Transfiguration essay?” she asked and Harry raised his eyebrows at her.
“Can you just ask what you really want to? I need to start on this,” Harry said as politely as possible nodding down to the thick books in his arms.
“Did you put your name in the Goblet of Fire?” she asked simply.
“No,” Harry said trying to convey every inch of sincerity and honesty he possessed into that one word.
“That’s all I needed,” she said before straightening her square shaped glasses. “Now I’m assuming your protests are correct and you don’t want to compete?”
“Yes. Of course I don’t,” Harry said, “this is a contest designed for seventeen year olds I am nowhere near them physically or magically.”
“Well I know physically you may not be but magically... you just haven’t had to use all your potential before so you’ve no idea how powerful you really are. I’ve been around magic long enough to get a sense what a student is capable of. Why do you think I push you so hard? I know you can do the work you just won’t.”
“So you think I should compete?” Harry asked.
“Yes and no. Whatever you want to do I will support whole heartedly. I just wanted you to know that you’re not alone. You may come to me with anything,” she said and Harry bit his lip nodding.
“Thank you Professor,” he said and took a step toward her to give her a quick hug. He turned and sprinted up the stairs before he could think about the fact he’d just hugged his teacher.
Harry ran practically the whole way to Gryffindor Tower all the way up on the seventh floor of Hogwarts Castle. He stopped for breath when he could see the Fat Lady’s portrait that guarded the entrance to the Common Room.
“Balderdash!” he snapped the password out not really in the mood for a chat. The Fat Lady gave him a cool look before swinging open.
An explosion of noise met his ears.
There was apparently a party going on in his honour but he was having none of it. People slapped him on the back and congratulated him as he walked into the room.
They all seemed to think he’d put his name in the Goblet and no amount of protesting would change that. Harry didn’t care; he’d tell every single person the truth until they believed him or he turned blue in the face, whichever came first.
He managed to work his way across the room to the stairs that led to the boy’s dormitory. He headed straight up the spiral stairs still carrying the heavy book.
He headed to his bed and crouched down before his trunk shifting through it all to find his invisibility cloak. He threw it over himself and headed back down the stairs. He weaved through the party trying not to bump into anyone but no one noticed when he did, the room was packed with every member of Gryffindor house they simply assumed it had been the crowd.
He quickly made his way downstairs to the library and he vowed that he wouldn’t leave until he found a solution.
The library was of course deserted but the school caretaker Filch liked to do random checks on certain rooms throughout the night so Harry made sure he was safely concealed by his invisibility cloak in a far off remote corner of the library.
He settled the heavy book in his lap and began to read by the light of his wand. He read the entire rule book, cover to cover. It took him all night to finish it all.
It was as he was reading over the rules on participation again that a few eager students began to trickle into the library, trying to hurriedly finish their essays probably due tomorrow.
Thankfully no one came over to his little corner and Harry was able to ignore the quiet whispered chatter.
He skimmed the participation chapter trying to pinpoint exactly how to drop out.
There were a few ways to get out of participating but most of them involved maiming himself. The two options that didn’t involve hacking off a limb or two were as unappealing as cutting off his arm. He read through the case of 1474 when a boy had been entered by his friend and had gotten himself disqualified by getting knocked up.
Harry stared at the entry.
Men couldn’t get pregnant.
Then again magic had shown him that pretty much anything was possible.
He shook his head.
Getting pregnant to avoid death is a terrible reason...
Babies should be made out of love, from two people who loved each other very much. Two adults who loved each other very much, not fourteen year olds in school.
He sighed. Surely there was another way.
He resumed his reading looking for more cases of people being disqualified or dropping out.
After another hour of thoroughly studying the chapter he came to a conclusion. There was only one way he was getting out of this tournament and he frowned.
It wouldn’t be as simple as writing to his escaped convict of a Godfather and getting the man to act as his legal guardian forbidding him to enter. Parents/Guardians had no say on anything on Champions participation or any of the tasks they underwent.
A spouse however could forbid their partner from entering. The marriage laws overruled those of the Tournament.
Great, so Harry had to get pregnant or married.
He sighed rubbing his tired itchy eyes and checking his watch. It was eleven in the morning and he groaned and stretched.
He stood up, picking up the rule book and headed up to the Gryffindor Common Room invisible.
It was a Sunday so there were a few people walking about the castle but four years of practise made sure Harry didn’t bump into anybody on his way up the stairs.
He wasn’t quite sure what to do and there was only one person he trusted to give him solid practical advice without laughing in his face.
He headed into the Common Room and immediately spotted Hermione Granger’s bushy brown hair as it was bent over a thick tomb. She was facing the wall and her tiny desk was stacked with similar books, she was scribbling out notes furiously from the book propped up against the wall in front of her.
There wasn’t anyone else in the Common Room so Harry was safe to reveal himself.
“Hey,” he said quietly and Hermione jumped snapping her quill on her parchment.
“Harry!” she said turning to him immediately. “Are you all right? Where have you been? Ron said you hadn’t been in your bed last night.”
“I was reading,” Harry said and put the rule book down on top of one of numerous piles of books she’d been studying from.
“Reading?” she asked sounding puzzled. “Reading what?”
“Triwizard Rule Book,” Harry explained, “I’ve been trying to work out how to get out of competing.”
“Oh, you really don’t want to compete?” she asked sounding surprised and Harry raised his eyebrows.
“Of course I don’t. I’ll risk my life for a friend but not for some trophy and definitely not for other people’s entertainment,” Harry said hotly and she apologised.
“I just didn’t really get the chance to talk to you last night and Ron said-” she stopped abruptly, a pink blush blooming on her cheeks.
“Ron said what?”
“Well... that you were probably loving every minute of it,” Hermione muttered.
“Why would he say that?”
“He’s just a little jealous is all,” she said immediately and Harry rolled his eyes.
“Ugh great. Well when he’s done being a baby he can help me get out of this stupid thing. For now I only have you so will you help me?” he asked.
“Of course,” she said, “What have you found so far?”
“That the only way to get out of it is to chop off my arm or leg, get pregnant or get married.”
“What?” she asked and Harry nodded flipping open the rule book to show her the relevant sections.
While she read, studiously taking notes Harry headed over to the squishy red couch and flopped down on it. Before he knew it he had fallen asleep and just as suddenly he was being shaken awake by Hermione.
He sat up and let her sit down beside him. She was holding the rule book in her lap, her hands squeezing it tightly.
“You could get married but as you’re under the age of seventeen you’d need your parent or guardians permission first. Also if you did get married you’d have to marry a man over the age of seventeen,” she said.
Harry hadn’t really thought about marriage before. He was only fourteen; he hadn’t even been on a date yet.
He knew he’d like to get married one day and have a family but that was in the very distant future. He didn’t even know a girl he liked... at least not that way. Now Hermione was telling him he had to marry a man. He didn’t know if he liked girls or boys but he had assumed it was girls and was quite horrified with the thought of marrying a man, especially an older man.
“I can’t marry a man. It’s illegal.”
“You have no problem believing you can get pregnant but gay marriage shocks you?” she asked with a smile and Harry narrowed his eyes.
“Hermione you know what the Dursley’s are like. All I heard growing up were derogatory comments about anything that didn’t fit into their view of normal.”
“Sorry,” she said and Harry shrugged. “Well in the Wizarding World men can marry men. They may be lacking in animal and elf rights but they are extremely forward thinking on human rights.”
“Okay, but why a man?” Harry asked and Hermione flicked her hair out of her face before looking down at the rule book in her lap.
“Because men are the dominant partners in a Wizarding marriage. If you married a woman you’d be the dominant and you can’t forbid yourself from entering. You’d have to marry a man,” she said.
“Forward thinking and incredibly sexist,” Harry said and Hermione smiled.
“It’s the way magic works, male magic is more dominating, its why men make better defenders, the magic comes easier to you and women make better healers because the magic comes easier to us. It’s in the DNA, that’s not to say women can’t be defenders or men can’t be healers, they just have to work a little harder at it, that’s all.”
“Okay... so I just have to find a man.”
“Harry you can’t get married!”
“You just told me to!”
“I was answering your questions I did not tell you to get married” she said hotly, “This discussion is purely hypothetical you cannot get married!”
“I have to if I don’t want to compete and I don’t want to compete! What if I die Hermione?”
“Wizarding marriages are different to Muggle ones Harry,” she said.
“Well yeah, here blokes can marry other blokes apparently and have little babies together and stuff.”
“Because of magic,” she continued as if he hadn’t spoken “The bonding magic in a marriage mingles your magic with your partner; it meshes it together and makes it compatible for conception. Incompatible couples have little to no children,” Hermione explained. “You can’t just marry any wizard; you have to find one compatible with your magic.”
“How do I do that?”
“Years of dating and getting to know them after you graduate,” she said sternly and Harry glared at her.
“Hermione please help me!” he said and she shook her head.
“I don’t condone teen marriage or teen pregnancy Harry.”
“Well fine then can you figure out a way for me to ride a broom one handed then?” he asked
“You are not going to maim yourself Harry Potter!”
“Then find me someone to marry!” he pleaded and her lips thinned, a clear sign she was very stressed and frustrated. She blew some frizzy hair out of her face before sighing.
“You’re really considering this aren’t you?” she asked and Harry nodded.
“Of course I am,” he said and she bit her lip.
“Give me a week. If I don’t find anything we’re going to talk to McGonagall,” Hermione said sternly and Harry nodded sadly.

The next few days at Hogwarts were tough for Harry. All the Hufflepuff’s kept shooting jinxes at him between classes, the Ravenclaw’s all ignored him and the Slytherin’s all made nasty comments, not that that was particularly unusual for the Slytherin’s but with Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw ganging up on him too Harry was feeling thoroughly miserable.
Ron was ignoring him too and as Harry’s only guy friend he was missing him. Hermione was being very sweet but sometimes Harry missed just goofing off.
Harry spent his days just sort of following Hermione around in a daze, trusting her to get him to and from his classes safely and elbow him when he zoned out a little too much worrying over potential fiancés.
“This is hopeless!” Hermione cried out over breakfast Friday morning. She slammed the book in front of her shut and rested her head on it.
“Harry there’s no way,” she said sadly. She sat up and pushed her hair off her face with a sigh. Harry leant over and pulled some cornflakes out of her hair from where they’d gotten stuck when she’d laid her head down.
“Oh. Thanks,” she said distractedly. “I think we’d better go talk to McGonagall. We’ve got Transfiguration this morning we’ll talk to her after class.”
“What’s she going to be able to do that you couldn’t?” Harry asked
“You’re very sweet Harry but there really isn’t a heck of a lot a fourteen year old witch can do against a thousand year old tournament,” she said.
Harry sighed and followed her miserably away from the Great Hall and up the stairs to Transfiguration.
He wasn’t able to concentrate at all during class but Hermione thankfully offered her notes to him while they were packing up.
“Come on,” she said and led him up to Professor McGonagall’s desk.
“Ms Granger, Mr Potter, what do you need?” she asked, she was packing up her books and the homework essays she had collected from their class earlier on.
“It’s about the tournament,” Hermione said, “I’ve been reading the book all week and we haven’t been able to find anything to get Harry out of competing.”
“I found one thing,” Harry said and Hermione shook her head not even looking at him.
“We’re not doing that,” she said simply and Harry rolled his eyes.
McGonagall was watching them with an amused smile on her lips, “What aren’t we doing?”
“The only way a champion can withdraw from the tournament is if they are at a significant physical disadvantage to the other competitors, such as lack of limbs etcetera. If they are with child, or if their spouse forbids them to compete,” Hermione said quietly.
McGonagall stared at them, her lips thinning a sure sign she was not happy. She pushed imaginary loose strands of hair back in her tight black bun before standing up.
“So, Potter, are you right or left handed?”
“Right...” Harry said
“Well then cut off that one,” she said pointing to his left hand.
“Professor!” Hermione cried out. “We cannot maim him!”
“Well as your teacher and your head of house I cannot in all good conscience suggest you get pregnant or married,” McGonagall said
“See? You can’t just get married,” Hermione said with a smug smile.
“Besides Potter you would have to marry a man,” McGonagall continued.
“Yeah Hermione told me that. It’s got something to do with dominance and magic right?” Harry said.
“Well that’s the very simplified reason,” McGonagall said, “There are only several people in the world who could be dominating to you magically and in age which are the requirements in a marriage of this nature. They could be older then you but if they’re magically weaker you would be the dominate partner” McGonagall explained and Harry raised his eyebrows.
“So I couldn’t marry just anyone?” he asked and she shook her head. “Well you said there are a few men stronger than me who are they?”
“Well Professor Dumbledore... obviously. Remus Lupin, the dual nature of wizard and werewolf inside him gives him dominance over most wizards actually he just hides it very well. You-Know-Who but I don’t think he’ll be accepting your proposal,” McGonagall said and Harry and Hermione both shook their heads wildly. “Lucius Malfoy is another, there’s a colleague of mine in France, John Diaz but I don’t think you want to marry a stranger. There’s always Severus Snape or your Godfather Sirius Black, they’re both quite powerful. Powerful enough to be the dominate but if you go with Sirius it’s a little tricky because I haven’t seen him use magic in nearly twenty years I don’t know how he is after prison.”
“Sirius is like my dad, that is just too weird,” Harry muttered and McGonagall gave a sympathetic smile.
“There are several other people of course but these would be the most convenient for you,” McGonagall said and Harry sighed softly. “The first task isn’t till November you’ve got a little time. Have a think over the weekend.”
“Professor, I thought you said I shouldn’t get married,” Harry said slowly.
“I said I don’t condone it. If I don’t hear about it I can’t do anything about it so this conversation never happened,” McGonagall said and then shooed them away.
Harry made his way miserably downstairs with Hermione.
“What do you think?”
“I think that you’re crazy to consider marrying anyone,” she said and Harry shook his head.
“Can you be a little helpful please?” he asked
“I’ve been helpful! I’ve had my nose plastered to this stupid rule book all week!” she snapped.
“You’re right, I’m sorry. Thank you for trying to help I really appreciate it,” he said and Hermione simply nodded accepting his apology.
The rest of the day passed quietly, Hermione had forgiven him but wasn’t up for much talking and neither was Harry.
They stood together down in the dungeons of the castle waiting for their potions class to start. Harry was worrying over his new dilemma and Hermione was reading about the 1337 Triwizard Tournament where every single champion got disqualified.
Draco Malfoy, Harry’s rival from Slytherin house, was trying to get a rise out of Harry by showing off his ‘Support Cedric Diggory’ badges. They would change to say ‘Potter Stinks’ and Harry had put him down when he’d asked if he could buy some.
The door was yanked open and Professor Snape stood there scowling at all of them before stepping aside and letting them shuffle past him into the dungeon classroom.
Everyone made their way to their usual seats and Snape slammed the door closed sending the room into its usual semi darkness, lit only by a few flickering candles spaced here and there.
Snape began to lecture and Harry’s brain immediately tuned him out.
Hermione wrote him a note and slipped it to him, he unfolded it and frowned.
What about Snape?
What about him? He wrote back and passed the note to her.
Why not marry him?
Because it’s more disgusting then marrying Sirius
Harry, he’s smart he’s certainly powerful which means he’d probably be quite compatible for your magic.
Well if we’re going for powerful wizards maybe I should marry Dumbledore
Don’t be ridiculous you can’t marry Dumbledore.
But I can marry Snape?
Dumbledore is too old to get married. How are you going to consummate the marriage with someone his age?
Consummate? Like sex?
Yes.
EW Hermione! Gross!
“Potter!” Snape barked, “Are you passing notes?”
“No!” Harry lied immediately. Snape glared at him and then swooped like a big bat, black robes billowing behind him as he marched down to the back of the room where Harry sat.
“Let’s see what is so interesting that you couldn’t wait till after class,” Snape grabbed the letter and Harry felt his face flame. Hermione who was a table away had immediately hidden her face in her potions book. It was not exactly stealthy when the book was upside down.
Snape glared at her then at Harry.
“See me after class Mr Potter,” Snape hissed and Harry’s head dropped so he was staring at the table unable to look the man in the face. “Fifteen points from Gryffindor!”
He swept away back up to his desk and resumed his lecture glaring at Hermione and Harry.
Harry was so determined not to attract attention to himself again he didn’t notice when everyone began to set up their cauldrons to make the potion Snape had been talking about.
Hermione nudged him and Harry quickly began to copy Hermione’s movements squinting occasionally at the instructions on the blackboard.
There was a knock on the door and third year Gryffindor, Colin Creevey, slipped into the room. He gave Harry a brilliant smile before hurrying up to Snape who glared at him.
“Yes?”
“Uh... sir... I’m supposed to take Harry... uh Harry Potter that is upstairs,” Colin said breathlessly. Snape narrowed his eyes and Colin actually took a step away from him. Snape had that affect on people. Harry knew for a fact it was the man’s mission to make at least one student cry once a day.
“Mr Potter has another hour of potions to complete,” Snape said silkily and Colin bit his lip shifting nervously.
“Mr Bagman wants him sir. All the champions have to go, to take photos.”
“Harry you can’t,” Hermione hissed at him, “If you participate in anything any Champion does for the Tournament it would be considered as willingness to participate. You can’t go or you have to compete no matter if your spouse forbids you to later.”
Harry looked at Snape who was still talking to Colin.
“But sir, Mr Bagman said all the champions-”
“No,” Harry interrupted.
Everyone in the class had been pretending to work while they eavesdropped. They all dropped the act immediately though and turned to Harry.
Snape raised his eyebrow and Colin was glancing wide eyed between Snape and Harry.
“What?” Snape snapped. The class was practically spinning in their seats as their heads swung back and forth like they were at a tennis match waiting for Snape’s inevitable explosion at his very favourite target.
“No, I don’t want to go. I’d rather sit here and...” Harry glanced at his potion which was a pale yellow instead of the required green, “fail this assessment”
“Potter you have to go you’re a champion,” Snape said and Harry shook his head.
“I don’t want to be a champion so I’m not going,” Harry said. “Now I can either sit here and learn something or I can leave with Colin, attack him in the hallway and lock him in a broom cupboard and run off and hide somewhere till it’s all over.”
Colin stared at him horrified and simply offered a shrug. It was exactly what he planned on doing, besides in Hogwarts no one stayed lost for very long, the boy would be found in no time.
“Your immaturity astounds me Potter. You cannot hide from your problems,” Snape said.
“I’ve never hid from anything before in my life I think I was due.”
“DON’T BACK TALK ME!” Snape roared causing the class to jump nearly a foot in fright and poor Colin, who was beside him, scramble away several paces.
“Are you a Gryffindor or not?”
“Our choices make us who we are sir not our actions,” Harry said and Snape glared at him.
“Pack up your stuff and get into my office Potter!” Snape barked.
Harry was taken aback for a moment before he quickly began to clear his workbench, extinguishing the fire beneath his cauldron and vanishing the failed poison antidote.
He headed up to Snape who threw his right arm out pointing toward his office door.
“Get!” he ordered.
Harry hurried past him and quickly shut himself in Snape’s office listening at the door, curious as to what was going on.
“Unfortunately Mr Creevey Mr Potter decided to skip his afternoon class and no one has seen him since lunch have they?” there was silence.
“Have they?!” he barked
“No sir,” came the chorused reply from the class.
“So you go off and tell Mr Bagman that and absolutely nothing else do I make myself clear?” Snape asked, Harry heard Colin’s affirmative squeak and then the boy was hurrying out the classroom door.
“Back to work,” Snape ordered and Harry heard the man’s steps drawing closer. He hurried away from the door and stood waiting.
Snape entered the room and glared at Harry.
“Sit,” he ordered and Harry immediately sat in the chair in front of the man’s desk.
He had only been in Snape’s office once before and he hadn’t liked it very much then either. The man’s office was filled with all sorts of jars filled with slimy disgusting things. Some of the jars would rattle or emit odd sorts of squishy breathing sounds. He could hear something gurgling behind him but didn’t dare take his eyes off Snape.
The man’s stern face was dominated by his hooked nose, framed by lank shoulder length greasy black hair. He had dark eyes that always made Harry feel the man was staring right through him. He was always wearing black robes that made his pale skin look quite sallow and a sneer that never seemed to leave his face. At least it never did in Harry’s presence. The man greatly disliked him and had ever since Harry’s first potions class.
“Does that,” he pointed to the door and waved his hand vaguely, “have anything to do with this?” he held up the note Harry and Hermione had been writing to one another.
“Yes sir,” he said quietly.
“You want to get married!? At fourteen years of age? You want to get married to me or Dumbledore?”
Harry remained silent. He really didn’t want to be having this conversation and especially not with his greasy Potions Professor.
“Well?” Snape barked, “Do you have a fetish for old men or is there an explanation?”
Again Harry said nothing determined not to rise to the bait. He stared at his knees and kept his head down.
“Very well, perhaps a trip to the Headmaster is in order then,” Snape said and Harry couldn’t stop himself from blurting out a reply.
“I don’t want to die,” he said honestly and Snape narrowed his eyes. “Not in a Tournament designed for people’s entertainment.”
“You won’t die! No one has died for three hundred years in this Tournament!”
“I just can’t. Every inch of me is telling me to run. Run far away from this stupid Tournament. I love Hogwarts. It’s my home but I’ve never ignored my instincts before and they’ve never led me wrong.”
“Oh because taking on twelve foot mountain trolls and a thirty foot basilisk is a good idea!” Snape spat and Harry rolled his eyes
“It was thirty seven feet...” he muttered and Snape stood up.
“YOU THINK THIS IS FUNNY!” he roared and Harry pushed his chair away from the desk in alarm, scrambling away from the sudden noise. It was instinct from living with the Dursley’s, if someone is shouting get out of arms reach.
“No! No! I just...” Harry stopped. He didn’t know what he was trying to say. He took a breath and started again. “I know you hate me but for just one second can you pretend I’m any other student who has come to their professor with a problem and help me! Please!”
“Fine then! If any other student came to me and told me they wanted to get married I would tell them exactly this. HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MIND? YOU CANNOT GET MARRIED!”
“Only a spouse has the power to withdraw a Champion from the Tournament. The bonds of marriage overrule those of the Tournament,” Harry explained quickly.
“Potter! This is not the solution. This would only cause more problems. Go upstairs and get your picture taken like a good little champion and when they give you tasks just don’t do them. Stand on the side and wait them out.”
“Sir, you know they’ll make me participate. The people want a show and what’s better then the Boy-Who-Lived risking his life in a stupid task?”
“You do that on a yearly basis if previous years are any indicator.”
“But not for sport, not for some stupid prize,” he said getting defensive “and the things I do are not stupid, they’re the right thing to do, I had to stop Quirrell getting the Philosophers Stone and save Ginny from the Basilisk, I had to save Hermione from all those Dementors and help Buckbeak escape the executioner.”
“I know you helped Black escape as well, did he make off with Buckbeak?” Snape asked and Harry said nothing remaining silent and staring at his knees.
“You’re definitely doing this aren’t you? It’s just a matter of finding someone,” Snape asked and Harry nodded not looking up.
“Very well, I will be that someone,” Snape said. Harry’s head snapped up in shock.
“Uh...no thanks that’s okay,” Harry muttered and Snape smirked at him which was a very dangerous thing indeed.
“Potter, if you’re going to do this we will do it my way or I shall tell Professor Dumbledore and he shall not be very pleased.”
“About as pleased as he’ll be when he found out you married a student?”
“Yes,” Snape said quietly and Harry gulped, “but this way I shall be dealing with the full brunt of his anger and you will be the poor innocent student seduced by his nasty Potions Master.”
Harry slumped in his seat and bit his lip, “I wouldn’t have to do anything would I? You’re not going to make me move in with you or anything and we’ll get divorced right after the Tournament?”
“No you don’t have to move in with me and yes we’ll get divorced if that is what you wish,” Snape said and Harry nodded.
“Okay,” Harry agreed shakily and Snape smirked.
“I’ll take care of everything Harry, by Sunday we shall be married and you won’t have to be a champion anymore.”
“Great” Harry said feeling instantly relieved.
He greatly disliked Snape but he was still a teacher with his student’s best interests at heart. If Dumbledore could trust him so could Harry.
Snape stood up and waved his hand at the shelf of jars to his left. They moved to the right a revealed a dark passage way.
“Through there are my quarters. You shall stay there through the weekend. I shall come and collect you once I’ve sorted out all the paperwork. On Sunday night you may return to your dorm. You may sleep in my bed I don’t expect to be back till Sunday morning at the earliest. If you need anything call Tipple he is my personal house elf. He will get you anything you need. Do not answer the door and do not leave those rooms am I understood?”
“Yes sir,” Harry said.
“Good. Off you go then,” Snape said giving Harry a delicate push through the passageway.
Harry took a few steps before turning back; Snape was watching him with one eyebrow raised as Harry stared.
“Professor...” Harry started but didn’t get to say anything else as the shelf of jars shifted back into place closing the passageway leaving Harry in total darkness.

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A Marriage of Convenience