Hi, This is will a nice size novel type story and a marriage law challange. This is my first story so any comments will be greatly appreciated. Updates will be at least weekly. I have always loved marriage law challanges but I am putting my own little twist to it. She is a seventh year in this story but is 18 and consenting. Snape will be a little OOC but still the same snarky bastard as always deep down inside and you will see it come out every now and then and shake things up.
Disclaimer- I do not own the charicters in this story and envy JK Rowling who dose! I just play with them since she is done with them!
-Hermione refused to open her missive from the ministry of magic. She already knew what it contained. The marriage law had been passed not a month before since the population of the wizarding world was greatly decreased from a recent epidemic. Every muggle born over 18 was required to marry a pure blood and produce an offspring within one year or go to Azkaban. Not only did the ministry take away their right of when to marry but they took away the right of who they were to marry.
They stated in their article in the daily prophet that in order to ensure the survival of their race each pairing would be based on the ministries assessment of who was biologically most likely to create multiple offspring. What methods they used, she didn't know, she just knew she didn't want any part of this. She would snap her wand and join the muggle world. She refused to become a baby incubator for the ministry of magic.
She finished putting her neatly folded cloths in the large duffel bag that her parents had given her years ago for a birthday. She had already put in her toiltieries and several of her non magical books for some reading material for the journey along with her savings from her summer job. She gingery picked up the picture of her friends in front of the great lake at Hogwarts taken last year and felt her heart clench. They looked so happy.
She would never see them again. Never say goodbye. She wiped the tears off her face and put the picture frame onto of the already packed clothes and zipped up the bag. The light was almost gone from the sky a bright red sunset taking over outside her childhood home. As soon as it was dark she would leave, and never look back. She sat on her light blue bed that she had meticulously made earlier staring at all her possessions that she was leaving behind. The ministry was ruining her life.
She heard a strong knock at the door downstairs but didn't bother going to see who it was, she really of didn't feel like entertaining company today she just wanted to sit here and soak everything in. Alone. She started shifting through some of her photo albums from Hogwarts and smiled sadly when the magical pictures waved back at her. She was pulled out of her thoughts by her dad suddenly shouting,
"Absolutely not!" She had never heard her father raise his voice so the sound was foreign to her and sent chills through her body. Something had to be seriously wrong for him to flip out like that. She had to go see what's going on her curiosity wouldn't let her ignore such a strange occurrence. She put down the old photo album and padded down the stairs to the living room freezing in her tracks when she saw who the company was.
"Professor? Headmaster? What are you doing here?" She exclaimed suddenly aware of the fact that she was only wearing a tank top and short shorts. It was summer after all. Both of them looked amazingly out of place the headmaster in his exuberant robes and Snape in his blackest robes glaring daggers at the wall not even acknowledging her presence obviously not wanting to be there. The headmaster however greeted her with a warm smile and his twinkling eyes.
"Ah Hermione, nice to see you are doing well." He said either not noticing or ignoring her inappropriate wardrobe.
"What are you guys doing here?" She asked suddenly worried. Had her plan been found out? Were they here to force her to get married? She would not do it! She would stand her ground she didn't care what they had to say. Her dad looked mad as hell and obviously barely controlling his rage.
"I will not stand for this! She is my only daughter I will not marry her off like some piece of meat!" He told the headmaster fiercely and she couldn't help but feel very loved in that moment.
"Its okay daddy I have no intention of getting married I am leaving the wizarding world. I'm assuming that's why you guys are here?" She questioned coldly.
"Nothing you can do or say will convince me marry some guy I don't love so don't waste your breath. I'm snapping my wand tonight, and that is that." She stated daring the headmaster to object with her cold stare. He seemed unfazed by her statement but rather shocked and maybe a little...was it sadness she saw? She couldn't be sure whatever it was passed quickly.
"You might want to reconsider that statement Ms. Granger, I know this must be incredibly hard on you and I am doing everything in my power to get this law repealed, but have you thought about the long term consequences of your decision? Severus will be killed and if he dies we lose the war." The headmaster said sadly looking into her chocolate eyes looking very much like a pleading puppy dog in that moment. She barely noticed however concerned that her headmaster had finally lost his marbles. She looked to snape who didn't deny what the crazy headmaster had said instead looking at the pictures on the wall with a scowl that she was surprised didn't shatter them.
"How on earth will me not becoming a baby factory cause snape to die? That doesn't even make sense professor are you quite okay?"
"You didn't read your letter did you?" Snape growled finally turning to her, only to fix her with his deadliest glare. She bristled annoyed.
"Why on earth would I do that I don't plan on getting married I don't care what they have to say." She said defensively crossing her arms suddenly feeling very foolish under the potions professors glare. He rolled his eyes huffing annoyed at her idiocy.
"Well maybe if you had opened your letter instead of coming up with this foolhardy plan you would have found out that we had been placed together. "He said talking to her like she was a five year old who didn't do what they'd been told. She burst out laughing at the absurdity of his statement.
"The ministry thought me and you would be a good pair! Did they have a death wish for me?" She laughed heartedly for the first time since the article in the daily prophet had appeared. She laughed so hard she started crying before she was able to get a semblance of control over herself. Snape simply glared at her unimpressed by her maturity level.
"Not the ministry, the dark lord." He said coldly causing the amusement from his previous statement to dissipate rapidly. She started laughing and laughed so hard she started crying before she was able to get a semblance of control over herself. Snape simply glared at her unimpressed by her maturity level.
"Not the ministry, the dark lord." He said coldly causing the amusement from his previous statement to dissipate rapidly.
"You mean the madman that's been chasing after her best friend to kill him is now trying to kill her…and you expect her to stay in your world? I think not!" Her father yelled at the headmaster harshly.
"I will have no part in this, Herminoie you are 18 so I can't stop you from marrying this…this…pervert, but if you do you will be disowned and never welcome back in this family." She felt like crying as her father and mother left the room refusing to look at her. She really expect her mom would've said he was being irrational and calm her dad down but she walked past Hermione cold as ice obviously supporting her dads decision. She knew why they were here now. The marriage law was Voldemorts new plan to cause chaos in the wizarding world and he was trying to take the light side down from the inside out by forcing the muggle borns to marry pure bloods to do their bidding and be their servants. She felt bile rise up in her throat. If she didn't marry snape, the dark lord would kill him, and their cause would be lost without an inside agent. She would single handedly be responsible for the end of the world as she knew it if she refused him.
The headmaster and snape looked at each other shocked her dad would disown her so easily but there was nothing she could do about that. As much as it hurt her, they never had understood her world and knew it would happen at some point or another. She took a shaky breath refusing to let the tears she so badly wanted to shed out in front of her professors. Life was so unfair sometimes.
"You don't have to if you don't want to." Snape said his voice tight but held no malice in it which was unusual for him. He refused to look at her but instead turned his eyes back to the horrid pictures that taunted her of her family smiling carefree. She felt pity for him. He didn't think he was worth it to her. She would be giving up her freedom yes, but if she didn't he would die. He thought his life so invaluable that she would choose her freedom over his life.
She shouldn't be surprised even after everything he had given to ensure a victory for the light even the order members treated him with contempt maybe that was why he was so harsh all of the time. He had to be in order to survive. She felt something stirring in her heart for the man that had made her life at Hogwarts miserable. She had to help him.
"Well Miss Granger?" The headmaster asked kindly his eyes twinkling brightly already knowing her answer.
"I want a proper proposal." She said softly resigning herself to her new fate. She might not be free to become whatever she wanted and marry who she wanted but she was going to make the best of it. Snape's head snapped to face her in surprise obviously not having believed she would marry him.
"Are you sure?" He asked warily after looking at her for a moment trying to see if she was being serious. She sighed softly brushing her curly hair out of her face and nodded not happy with her decision but knowing it was unfortunately the right one. Snape got off the couch he and the headmaster had been sitting in and walked slowly towards her keeping their eyes locking and she saw an emotion in his black eyes that she couldn't Identify but that was strong nonetheless, so strong it took her breath away and she could look away from him. He stopped right in front of her and she had to look up to keep looking into his eyes because he was so tall, she had never before realized how much taller than her he was. Slowly he sank down onto one knee and took her small soft hand in his much larger calloused hand.
"Will you marry me?"