Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of the characters therein.
Title: Over The Edge.
Summary: Hermione has to choose between the men vying for her affections. What to do?
Setting: Takes place in an alternate world where Harry is ambitious and Ron is like Mini-Arthur.
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Hermione Granger stood at a precipice. Whom to choose?
On the one hand, there was Ron. A sweet guy, clearly adamant in his affections for her. Smitten, in fact. He'd proposed to her already, but she'd said she'd have to mull it over. He had covered his look of worry with one of affable acceptance.
Ron was the logical choice, of course. But a future with him just seemed so… dull. She knew it would be filled with cooking, cleaning and taking care of the kids. Lots and lots of kids.
She didn't want to turn into a Molly Weasley Version 2.0 – and that was undoubtedly what Ron had planned for her. A careerless stay-at-home mom with a hand for her man and a bed to lie in.
Blah.
She turned her mind to the other man, whom all had called "the Chosen One" at some point in their lives. Harry Potter had also expressed his affections for her, around the same time as Ron had. Of course, due to this the boys didn't really talk any more, but what did she care? She was fed up being the mediator in their spats.
Life with Harry, she thought, would be like some sort of political fiasco. He was campaigning to be Minister of Magic now, and she suspected his sudden proposal was due in part to his need of a First Witch. Not that he didn't love her, of course, but that idea had definitely come into play.
She supposed it would be interesting to be the most powerful witch in the world, married to the most powerful wizard. But politics?
Not her style.
"Who should I choose?" she called down from the cliff to the person below.
"I don't give a Lethifold's arse," the voice grumbled back.
She grinned. "I wasn't aware they had arses."
"I'll give one to you as a wedding gift when you finally bloody choose one," it replied.
Hermione Granger, standing on the edge, looked to her right.
There stood Ron, smiling, holding out a bouquet of flowers.
She turned to the left.
Harry, checking over a spreadsheet, looked back at her.
Wooping, Hermione looked forward and leapt over the edge of the cliff.
She was surprised when she landed in the man below's arms. "I didn't expect you to catch me."
The man rolled his eyes. "I didn't expect you to go all cliché and have the decision 'send you over the edge'. It was a split-second decision, make no mistake. Had I had time to think about it I definitely would have let you learn the consequences of jumping from heights by allowing you to break something."
She laughed. "But your first instinct was to save me! That's touching, right there."
The man promptly dropped her. "Do shut up."
"No."
She stood up, dusted herself off, and looked at the man. "I chose you, you know."
He looked at her. "Clearly. Why else would you be down here?"
Hermione Granger smiled as Severus Snape pulled her into a kiss.