Ties Chapter 3
Chapter 3~ Understanding Expectations
Leaning over the large cauldron on the counter, Severus anxiously checked the potion once more before adding the last of the burdock leaves and watching them swirl in the liquid and dissolve. Everything seemed to be mixing properly and he set to completing his log entry for the day. While scratching away with his quill, he let out a sigh of relief that there had been no disasters today. After meeting with Albus the previous evening, he had been rather distracted and concerned it would impact on his work.
Once more replacing the barrier charm, he extinguished the candles to allow the potion to sit in the dark until he returned to work on it again the next day. The burdock had a tendency to make a potion light sensitive so he would have to limit the exposure until the stabilizing elements were added. Closing the door quietly, he swept down the dungeon corridors to his own rooms. Collapsing in his old leather armchair, Severus tried to relax enough for the tension to leave his shoulders and back after several hours bent over a volatile potion. The knock on his door, however, was to bring more than enough unpleasantness to leave him wound tighter than piano wire.
"Come in." He called out in exasperation, knowing who was at the door.
The Headmaster’s face appeared around the door smiling sadly. "Good afternoon Severus. I trust your research continues to go well."
Severus fixed the older man with a steady glare. "Just go ahead and tell me what you have arranged. I know you had a meeting with her this morning."
"Yes, Hermione arrived with her lovely cat this morning. He seems to be somewhat unsettled by the journey and-"
"Albus-" Snape said dangerously.
Dumbledore conjured himself a chair once more and smiled sheepishly as he sat down. "Well, if you insist. I met with Hermione this morning and she is open to the idea of accepting a petition from you and my contact in Law Enforcement has agreed to allow me to act on your behalf. I have taken the liberty of drafting a letter to send to the Ministry this afternoon. Take a moment to read it over and sign it."
Severus’ scowl deepened as he scanned the parchment. "Somehow I had hoped this whole miserable idea was a figment of my imagination. You can’t in all honesty be serious about this nonsensical suggestion. Miss Granger is not only twenty years my junior, but also my student!"
"Hermione will soon be nineteen in the eyes of the Ministry and there is no chance for a further delay. We can make arrangements regarding her status as a student. She is a rational young lady and I am certain if any two people can resolve their differences to achieve a common goal you can." Dumbledore coaxed.
"Aren’t there a vast number of Weasleys who could do the job. Undoubtedly one of them would be willing." he complained.
The headmaster looked at him with a very steady and serious gaze for a long moment before speaking softly. "Do you genuinely believe that?"
Snape’s shoulders slumped. "No. I don’t suppose so. I thought all this business would be over now. It’s all very trying."
Dumbledore nodded. "I agree, but Fudge will not be swayed. There is some hope for a new minister soon, but not soon enough. Will you do this as a favour to me? For yourself?"
Severus picked up one of the quills from the low table he had spread his experiment reports out on and dipped it in the ink pot. With a long, slow sigh he carefully scrawled his name across the bottom of the letter and handed it back to Albus. "You do realize I am only doing this because it would be such a waste of talent for her to break her wand or leave the country."
The corner of Dumbledore’s mouth twitched. "Careful with such extravagant praise. People will think you have gone soft." And with that the headmaster left the room and Snape pondered the drastic turn his life was taking.
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Hermione spent the remainder of the day in the Head Girl’s room. If anyone asked, she would say she was unpacking and settling in, but in truth she hadn’t done more than drag her trunk into the bedroom. Her quarters were located below the Gryffindor tower and accessible both from the common room as well as from an outside corridor. There was a good sized sitting room with a desk, bookshelves and a couple cozy armchairs by the fireplace. Her bedroom had a large four poster bed and attached was a private bathroom with a large tub. It was at least the size of a four man hot tub, with many taps like in the prefects’ bathroom, and by the looks of things she could charm it to have jets like its Muggle counterpart.
She had been surprised when Dumbledore first opened the door to see a plain white room. None of the walls or furniture had any colour. She was told that the Head Boy and Girl rooms were somewhat like the Room of Requirement. They moved around the castle each year to whichever house they were needed in. At the beginning of the year, an individual could choose their own house colours or any other decorating scheme they desired. When the school year was over, everything would return to white again.
Sitting in one of the plain, white chairs by the fireplace late after dinner, Hermione sighed. How did she manage to get herself into these sorts of things. She had once been told that ‘life is what happens when you make other plans’ but this was all a bit much to deal with. She agreed in theory that a marriage with Snape would solve most, if not all her problems. There was no real question of emotion and neither would feel obligated to the other. Just a name on a piece of paper really. She didn’t want any more than that from him and she was certain he wouldn’t want any more than that from her. No guilt, no great expectations, just simple and straight forward. Both of them were intelligent and rational people, so surely they could discuss this and band together against a common foe. After all, wasn’t that what they had spent the last few years doing anyway? There was no reason why they couldn’t join together in mutual hatred of the Ministry of Magic.
There was a knock at the door, shortly followed by none other than Severus Snape bursting through into the room.
"Do come in," she said sarcastically.
He glared at her and sat down in the other armchair.
"Have a seat. Make yourself at home." Under normal circumstances she would never be this sarcastic towards a teacher, but then again, this wasn’t a normal circumstance. After a minute of tense silence, each staring at the other in an attempt to make the other back down, he spoke.
"I don’t know who I’m angrier with, the Ministry for creating that stupid Act, or Albus for his suggestion."
"Be angry with the Ministry first. Don’t be angry with Professor Dumbledore though. He’s just trying to help me. If you want another place to direct your anger it should be with me, Sir. I do have other options." Hermione spoke with more bravado than she felt.
Though he looked like he was about to lash out at her for a moment, he held back the urge and shook his head instead. "No, your other options are as limited as mine. If either of us went abroad to evade the law, our names would be black listed. Even after the law gets repealed, you could never hold a position with the Ministry, there would be great restrictions placed on you in other aspects of your life, as well as monetary punishments. It will be difficult enough for Albus to manoeuvre this proposal to a satisfactory end. You are an intelligent student and shouldn’t have to abandon your academic pursuits for an unreasonable piece of legislation. No more than I should have to give up my career."
Hermione was startled by this statement, almost a compliment? Dumbledore had explained that Professor Snape would be on the lottery selection list due to his family circumstances. She hadn’t thought that the feeling of entrapment extended to him as well.
"You’re right, Sir. You shouldn’t have to sacrifice your career for anything and I refuse to alter my plans for some unreasonable edict."
"And just what are those plans, Miss Granger?"
"Limitless."
"In what sense?"
Hermione paused for a moment, wondering how much to tell him. "Exactly that, without limitation. I want to study, research and create. There are a few avenues I have looked at, Innovative Transfiguration, Experimental Charms, Medical Potions Development, but I have by no means limited myself to these options. I never wish to be tied down by anyone, government, employer, friends, family or otherwise. I do realize that is a great deal to ask for, but it is a path I planned on walking on my own, Sir."
After another moment of uncomfortable silence, he simply said, "Severus."
"Pardon me, Sir?"
"No, Severus. If the Ministry recognizes you as an adult capable of making decisions about your life as significant as marriage, then outside of a classroom setting there is no reason why we cannot address each other as adults," then paused for a moment, "Hermione."
Hermione was surprised by this statement. It hadn’t occurred to her when Professor Dumbledore first brought up the idea of marrying Snape... no Severus, that this would make her in many ways his equal, let alone the awkward position it would place them in during classes this year. Taking a deep breath, she spoke again. "Very well, Severus, that’s reasonable enough. If we were to suppose that Dumbledore manages to arrange this... liaison... for us, it would be reasonable for us have an understanding of each other’s expectations."
For a moment the barest hint of a smile touched the corner of Severus’ mouth, but it was gone as quickly as it came and she was certain she imagined it. He spoke with a hint of amusement in his voice, "You make this sound like a class with assignments and marks, but I appreciate your reasoning. I free you of any additional expectations beyond common courtesy and potentially discretion. I don’t need the whole school knowing about this."
Raising an eyebrow, Hermione replied, "I had no idea you were so easy to please. I, however, feel the need to be explicit with my expectations. Clarity leads to understanding, after all. I accept no responsibility for you financially, nor do I expect it in return. I expect complete freedom to go where I please, do what I wish and live where I desire, no questions asked. Simply put, a contract on a paper, nothing more. I don’t know if you are aware of this, but I was petitioned for by more than just the Malfoys. Ron Weasley had promised to assist me should Act 275 not be rescinded before the end of my grace period. Since, well... the current situation being what it is, I have had two of his brothers offer me the same, but I refused them both."
"Why?"
"I don’t need or want a ‘Ron substitute’ and I won’t ruin my friendships with the rest of the family. I know them all too well, and I can’t just change places. They come with too much baggage, too complicated. Perhaps you will hate me for saying this, but you are uncomplicated. I won’t make do, so will simply do without."
Severus nodded, but knew it wasn’t as simple as that. "I can accept that analysis of our circumstances. You need someone you know well enough to trust that is still a complete stranger. Despite what I said when I first arrived, I am not entirely opposed to a contract between us. Like you, I do not wish to enter into a complicated situation that could easily be thrust upon me by the twits in London. As I’m sure you can appreciate, I will not be anyone’s ‘doting darling.’ I am an independent individual, much like yourself apparently, and I think that we can respect each other, even in this unusual situation."
They sat quietly for a moment, before he asked a question that had been on his mind since Albus had discussed the idea with him at lunch today, "What do you know about magical marriage customs?"
"Not much specifically. From what I have red they are similar in many ways to Muggle customs, save the wand binding." She stated, a bit confused at the question. What was there that she was grossly unaware of?
"You are correct, in most ways it is a similar set of practices. However, with the new law, the Ministry has been enacting some older customs that have fallen into disuse in order to achieve their goals. The Ministry wants children, specifically from these particular unions. Without certain precautions, it would be a simple matter for anyone forced into these marriages to throw away the piece of paper, and have the two children required to dissolve the union with whomever they pleased. My guess is that you haven’t seen today’s Daily Prophet." He said, then handed her the newspaper.
"That’s HORRIBLE!!!"
On the cover of the paper was a black and white photo of a woman trying to shield her face from the cameras. When someone in the crowd around her managed to knock her hands away from her face a large letter ‘A’ marred her face in bursting, angry boils. Hermione’s guess was that they were bright red... "The scarlet letter...." she whispered.
"Before you ask, I don’t care about the ramifications of the Adulterous spell on myself, but I thought it pertinent that you were aware that it is being forced along with the wand binding. Ultimately, this will be more than a simple contract. The only way to counteract the spell is through procreation, regardless of what happens to Act 275 in the future. You want freedom to make your own choices, and I will give it to you. I will also leave the terms of dissolving this... liaison, as you called it, to you, Hermione."
She shook her head. "I hope you are prepared to be stuck in this for the remainder of your life, because it has never been my intention to be tied down by anyone, offspring included. I’m not concerned about the spell either."
Surprised by her easy acceptance of this new hurdle, he raised his eyebrows again. "You may not think that when you are sixty and your biological clock starts ticking."
"Sixty? What do you mean?"
"It seems you aren’t aware of all the ways magic makes you physically different from Muggles. As I’m sure you know, magic extends your natural life expectancy well beyond that of the non-magic population, but it also slows the aging process. This means that-"
"I’m stuck with my period ‘till I’m well over sixty! Oh Bugger! This day just keeps getting better and better."
A touch of colour seemed to creep into Severus Snape’s face by her blunt statement. "Among other things, but yes I suppose ultimately that is what it means. I’m sure that there are-"
But his comment was cut off by an owl tapping at the window. Hermione opened the window, and noted with a degree of relief that it was not the Malfoy owl, but an unfamiliar brown, Barn owl. Retrieving the note from the bird’s leg, she quickly cracked the wax seal. After skimming the letter she looked up, a torn expression on her face.
"It seems Professor Dumbledore has done some creative manoeuvring at the Ministry today. I hope you aren’t busy tomorrow, someone from the Ministry will be here ‘promptly at 9 am’ to officiate." Hermione thrust the letter at Snape and collapsed into a chair, face buried in her hands.
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Chapter 2
Chapter 4