The Austere Stonewall, Book 3: Hermione
Chapter 3: Interview & Scheduling
Hermione had recovered from her days of cramping just in time to give her interview. Severus had been even more attentive to her following her confession to him on her first day of bleeding. He had been quieter in a contemplative way and she knew he would probably talk to her when he was ready. She didn't repeat her words to him knowing that by his reaction, he probably wasn't ready to hear them.
Poppy had forced her to create a menses journal where she wrote in dates, times, symptoms and flow information. She felt like it was unnecessary but the matron had insisted.
Her apprenticeship continued to go well. Today she had learned to reverse the transfiguration of horns on a 4th year Ravenclaw's head. She was starting to see what Poppy had meant about her needing to do a follow-up apprenticeship at Saint Mungos, though. She was thankfully not getting enough practice here doing major procedures or healing. She reveled in it being so boring. In fact, she'd had time to theorize what she needed to start a potion that would reduce scar tissue.
Currently, she was sitting in a chair facing a team of 6 Wizengamot members that Kingsley had selected for the interviews. Severus had done his a few days ago and Minerva was cleared before that. Harry and Ron had done there's before Severus. Hermione was likely one of the last to be interviewed and she was thankful as none of what she had to say would be news to them.
"State your name, please," Kingsley's booming voice called everyone gathered to attention.
"Hermione Jean Gr-Snape," she said with an embarrassed smile.
"Everyone in here will state the wand oath of silence that what is stated in this interview will not be shared with anyone outside of this meeting without express permission from the Minister of Magic or the interviewee."
Vows of silence were given and then Hermione was asked to give a vow to tell the truth when she spoke. She repeated her oath, happy that she had an out to refuse to speak if it would give away information the public did not need. Of course, they could always reverse the oath if she were put on a trial but none of what she was hiding was incriminating to her.
"Mrs. Snape," simpered a witch who looked like she might be 80, "please tell us about your first year in the wizarding world and all the relevant information to You-Know-Who."
So she began, telling them of how she came to be friends with Harry and Ron. She could tell that they had heard this story before but she was obviously telling them more than Harry or Ron had. A wizard gasped when she said Ron had made her cry and that was the reason for her being in the bathroom. She rushed to explain that he had felt bad about it and that was why he'd followed Harry to rescue her.
She was asked questions about how she'd been able to figure out the solutions to the defences guarding the Philosopher's Stone and she went through how the Devil's Snare didn't like fire and laughed about how she had panicked about not having firewood. They had chuckled with her and listened to Harry catching the key and Ron winning the chess game. The potion's puzzle was something she still remembered and she recited it for them allowing them to try to figure it out with conjured replicas. They figured out the poison but they were all stumped on which was the potion to get forward through the fire and which would allow them backward.
She hadn't told them about Hagrid's dragon or about Malfoy trying to get them all in trouble because it wasn't really relevant, she thought. Her first year at Hogwarts seemed so long ago.
On and on she talked, answering questions that were about Harry's treatment at his home with the muggles, about Dumbledore's penchant for allowing the three of them to run around the school breaking rules and taking care of adult problems. Hearing it stated aloud, Hermione knew that the three of them should never have had to deal with most of the problems they had. She knew she would never allow her children to mess around with dark lords and magic beyond their abilities.
She knew upon the retale of her 5th year, that this was when the Wizengamot started to feel uncomfortable. No longer were the stories fun to hear. It wasn't a cute story of some second years turning into cats or 4th years just trying to follow the rules against the odds. After 5th year, there were injuries and deaths and children who were traumatized beyond repair. Ron still had marks from the brains, Ginny's ankle often hurt in the cold, Neville had lost the most special piece of his dad he had left (his wand), Harry's innocent godfather was dead, and Hermione had nearly died herself from a curse that slashed her open hip to shoulder. Most of them were queasy at her description of the curse and how it felt and how it affected her even today. She glossed over the fact that it got close to an ovary and that they were still inspecting her for damages.
Tears were in their eyes when she admitted to obliviating her parents so thoroughly that it could not be undone. She had saved them from death by Voldemort and the Death Eaters and most of the Wizengamot were parents themselves. They seemed sad by her sacrifice but she held firm and continued.
Having already heard the spiel that they'd been on a secret mission, Hermione was not asked to tell them what that mission was. They listened as she detailed what life was like in the tent and how she'd had to pack meticulously in preparation for it. How Ron had been splinched and her potions stock had saved him. They smiled when she outlined Ron and Harry trying to pick wild mushrooms and berries to survive on the first day only to realize Hermione had stocked up powdered eggs, canned meat, and other various foods. They hadn't even thought of food until it was time to eat and went searching. Hermione had scoffed that they would starve if she hadn't been gathering supplies for months in advance.
Her torture was a topic she hadn't wanted to relieve but she got through it stoically. She'd not had many panic attacks lately and her nightmares were fewer with Severus there. The details of her torture were new to the interviewers, though. They had only heard from Harry, Ron, what they had witnessed personally from the dungeons. She gave them every curse and spell she knew that was used on her. She described the blade of the knife down to the hilt and walked closer so that they could all see and feel her 'mudblood' scar. When they asked about the other people who had witnessed her torture she told them that Narcissa and Draco and Lucius and Greyback had been there but only Greyback had wanted to participate. She told the truth about how the Malfoys hadn't wanted to be there any more than she had and were unable to act any differently without getting themselves killed. The scar on her neck from Bellatrix's blade was a thin white line but they could see it from across the room when she tipped her head back.
They took a break to eat a late lunch before they picked back up after her torture. Even after two tellings, her audience was in awe of her story about the realization that Voldemort hid something in Bellatrix's vault that would keep him from dying. She referenced her earlier-told ability to brew polyjuice potion and how that practice made it possible for her to brew it and use a hair from Bellatrix to invade her vault.
They were enthralled about how Harry had the idea to ride the dragon out of Gringotts and how she had been the one to blow out half the building to allow the dragon though. None of them had ever ridden a dragon so of course they asked her how it was. She had told them riding a dragon was by far more terrifying that riding a hippogriff or a thestral. Of course, most of them hadn't ridden one of those either so it was all interesting to them.
Describing the Battle of Hogwarts was horrible. She knew that it was all important to history so she forced herself to leave nothing out. She spoke of everything she saw, everything she felt, what she suspected, and what she was told about later. It was dinner time when she finished and was dismissed.
She didn't feel like facing the Great Hall and went back to Severus's quarters. She called a house elf and asked for a helping of whatever was served before sitting down in front of the fire.
Dinner could scarcely be considered over when Severus walked in the door. He didn't say anything as he sank down on the couch next to her and held her.
About a week later, Hermione was feeling fine. She knew from Poppy's observations of her, that she was going to ovulate in the next day or so. She was pleased that her body was responding the way it should but Poppy told her it was the undamaged ovary that was ovulating so it would take another month to learn anything about the other one.
This left her in an awkward position. Knowing she was ovulating soon meant sex might result in conception. She didn't like the knowledge of this as it placed a burden on her. It felt like if they got pregnant this time, it would be her fault for knowing she was ovulating. If they didn't, it felt like her fault anyway.
She was still trying to determine her feelings on the matter when Poppy snapped at her.
"Go back to your quarters, take the night off. You're doing no good here and you'll get no studying done if you don't stop worrying about everything."
She had shook her head but the matron had wagged her finger at her, "Don't make me get Minerva down here to get a hold of you. Here's what you're going to do: you're going to your quarters and you're going to bathe in relaxing warm water. Then, you're going to wear something revealing and wait for your husband to come back. You should know what to do from there, right?"
Her face was red but she nodded silently.
"Your husband is a grown man who is aware and tracking your cycle as much as you are. Communicate with him," the witch demanded before shooing her out of the hospital wing. As Hermione was leaving a girl with a bloodied elbow came in. Hermione turned to look at Madam Pomfrey but was told to keep going and not allowed to stay and assist.
"But dinner…" she protested in a last effort to stay.
"I'll tell him that you were instructed to eat an early meal in your room and that you're fine," Poppy assured her.
That was how she found herself taking a bath and trying to determine her thoughts. To purposefully attempt to get pregnant was never something she'd ever considered. She knew that Severus knew and nothing she did would be considered "going behind his back" but it felt sneaky. Not telling him she was ovulating and they could risk making a baby before they were ready was wrong. But, Severus knew they needed to make one and he knew that she'd been tracking her health with Poppy.
To tell him know with full disclosure what was happening seemed like she was advocating for and in favor of getting pregnant.
Giving up on sorting it out for the rest of her bath, Hermione leaned back in the tub and closed her eyes. What would a child between them look like? A little boy with dark raven hair and pink cheeks, a little tall, and a love of books came to mind. Maybe with proper nutrition her son wouldn't be as thin and sallow as Severus had been growing up. Would her son have his father's nose? Likely. Maybe it would be less prominent. Truthfully, having shorter hair and scruff on his face did wonders for his nose, though. Maybe it was the perception of Severus as the big bad potions professor that made it seem so ugly in the past. She rather thought it was Romanesque and suited him, now, though.
She pampered herself as though it was her wedding night again. She found her nightgown from that night (now missing the blood stain) and pulled it all on again. She let her curls tumble down her back. She parted it deeply to one side and tousled the curls and checked her appearance one last time.
In Severus' bedroom, she lit a few candles and turned the bed covers down. She found a meal waiting for her and she ate it all as quickly as she could so that she could refresh her mouth for the next 12 hours. When Severus returned from dinner and his rounds following, Hermione was sitting on the couch in front of the fire, a thin journal from a past healer in her hands for reading and studying.
She watched him catch sight of her and pause in his motions to remove his teaching robes.
"Good evening," he greeted her in that deep baritone of his.
"Good evening, husband," she returned his greeting as she softly closed her book and set it aside.
His dark eyes roved over her nightgown and caught on the visage of the top of her breasts and the slice of thigh poking through one of the slits in the skirt. She watched him trail down her thigh, admiring the stockings that she now wore that went with the nightgown.
Severus didn't have many tells but she watched him swallow.
"I was under the impression that you were sent to our quarters by Poppy to eat dinner here and relax," he said, undoing his cravat and frock coat.
Breathing in, Hermione kept his gaze. "I was. I did."
Draping his frock coat over the back of the sofa, Severus' long fingers undid the first half of the buttons to his shirt but did not continue to untuck his shirt. They paused and she got the impression he was waiting for her to give him a sign that she was indeed dressed like she was as a sign. She stood and stepped up to him to help him unbutton the rest of his shirt and pulled it out from his trousers.
"May I ask," he drawled slowly, "why you are dressed up like a gift to me if you have been here relaxing for your health?"
She knelt down in front of him and undid the laces of his dragonhide boots, holding them so he could step out. He reached down a finger to pull his own socks off. She suspected he was ticklish but didn't want to admit to it.
She set his socks and boots under the coffee table, out of the way, and stood back up.
She chewed her lip for a moment. "Poppy sent me home with a set of instructions and I've followed them."
He raised his eyebrow and unabashedly checked her out. She blushed as he literally bent his neck to look her up and down before settling on her cleavage that was puffed up over the top of the corset top of her nightgown.
"Poppy told you to come to our rooms and wear the sexiest piece of clothing you own and wait for me to come devour you?"
"Yes."
He looked her in the eye, humor dieing away from his demeanor.
She flushed. "She didn't say it exactly like that, but yes."
A moment's silence passed and then he nodded his head. "Ah, I see."
Relief flooded her at having him understand.
"We...don't have to...if you want to wait…"
To his credit, he didn't falter. "No. We should. I want to. You've no idea how amazing you look in this. I think you could wear it forever and my eyes would never get their fill of you."
She reached up on her tiptoes, hands on his forearms as they gripped her by the hips, and kissed him deeply.
"I agree but this...it means…"
Severus pulled her fully into his body and his tongue was in her mouth. It was hot and so sensuous that she whined when he pulled back.
"It means we're actually trying to make a baby. We knew this needed to happen and I am in a much better place than I was when we first learned we would. I hope that you are too."
She nodded quickly and kissed him, hands holding his strong forearms, keeping him gripping her hips. She nipped his bottom lip and he grasped her arse and pulled her up his front. Hermione quickly wrapped her legs around his waist as he turned to take her into the bedroom.
He didn't pause. He didn't ask her again. Severus was slow, methodical, and intense with his methods that night. He took his time to kiss and lick all of her body. ALL of her body. Only then did he even remove her trousers and he began the process again until he reached her center. When he entered her, his face was much more unguarded. Hermione could only watch, mouth wide open in pleasure, as he took her slow and hard and with what she could only describe as passion. She'd never felt so treasured or desired before. When he came deeply inside her, She clutched his back, holding him to her and for the first time, she wanted that little boy she'd dreamed of in the bath. She wanted to have a piece of Severus to hold and love.
They'd fallen asleep still intertwined, his seed not having been cleaned from her womb as he usually did. And, only a few hours later, she woke to see his dark head of hair at her naked chest. He looked up at her, her nipple in his mouth, and she couldn't help but moan as she gave into him again. This time, he was a little more hurried and she wondered what had awakened him to make him take her again so soon after their previous act, with such wild abandon.
Exhausted, she fell asleep again draped over his chest with his hand buried in her hair. When she woke again, the sun was barely up and visible through the charmed dungeon window. She rolled over Severus. One leg on either side of his hips. She pressed kisses into his chest and his hand lazily traced circles on the top of her thigh.
His voice was heavy with sleep. "Are you trying to kill me, witch?"
She sucked a spot under his jaw on the good side of his neck and his other hand found her breast and kneaded it softly.
"No," she breathed out against his skin. "You were just too tempting underneath me."
He rolled her over and kissed her. When he pulled back to look into her eyes, she carded her fingers through his shorter hair and gazed at his dark stare.
"Severus….I...I love you," she admitted, a little surprised that she told him. She hadn't been planning to but the way he was looking at her made her feel that she was making the right step.
Her husband didn't speak. His actions spoke enough. He made love to her that morning, softer than he had the night before and she was almost sure it wasn't enough. No matter how much she whined and pleaded for more, he was determined to take his time and to last as long as possible. When they came together, she knew that he was aiming for that particular reaction on purpose. They were in this together and he felt the same as she, even if he couldn't admit it.
She felt his eyes following her as she got ready for breakfast and she blushed when he caught her eyes, not attempting to hide the fact that he was staring.
They were actually late for breakfast that day even though they'd been up at dawn. Poppy smirked so hard that Minevera kept looking between the three of them in hopes of determining the cause. Severus said nothing to anyone until Poppy and Hermione attempted to leave. He reached over to touch her lightly on the arm in order to garner her attention.
The medi witch paused and looked at him questioningly.
"Thank you," he told her sincerely. For a moment, Hermione blushed and looked away as she knew Severus was thanking the healer for sending his wife to him for sex but Madame Pomfrey only smirked again, patting his hand the way a mother does to a son.
Cheeks aflame, Hermione followed her from the Great Hall and to the Hospital Wing. She thought for a moment that Poppy would let the subject drop but of course it was a false sense of delusion. No sooner than Hermione began the sheet refresher charm, did Poppy call out, "So, good night?"
Not answering, Hermione blushed and went about her chores. Poppy cackled and left her alone.
That night was much the same. Poppy hadn't tracked her ovulation as she must have known it would put too much pressure on her apprentice not to mention, there were some things that needed to have at least a little mystery to it. Severus hadn't waited long after dinner to strip her down and have his way with her. She did note that he was sticking to missionary position and that he was much gentler these past two days than he tended to prefer.
It was a day later when ovulation was probably over that Hermione asked him about it. All he'd said was that he couldn't knowingly conceive a child the way he had been conceived. Hermione took that to mean that his mother had been raped or that he'd been conceived out of something other than love. That was a new insight into her husband that melted her heart further, knowing he wanted any of his children to be made from love rather than hate or as an accident. Even though the ministry was insisting they have the children to begin with, by doing it on purpose, they were changing the rules to make their children's lives better. It was an endearing thought, to think of their children that they didn't have yet.
That day they also received an invitation to a Ministry Ball, being held December 2, 1998. It would be the 6 month anniversary of the final battle and the Order of Merlin was being handed out to those deserving as well as the dead honored with a memorial that was replacing the monstrosity in the atrium.
"I'll need a gown," Hermione admitted to her husband during lunch that day.
He wasn't happy with that but agreed to escort her shopping. She told him they could stick to muggle stores for her gown and he was much more willing to take her after that.
Her week went by without incident. He was allowing her to run again but she missed her piano as an outlet. She asked if they could visit the cottage so she could play soon and he'd hedged on giving a definitive answer.
Shopping with Severus was much easier than shopping with Ginny. She didn't have to guide Severus through the muggle world because he already knew. Severus didn't ask her to try on everything in sight nor did he ask her opinion on what she thought he should get. Since was a wizard (one who had stopped growing long ago) he had several sets of dress robes that were appropriate for the occasion and insisted that he wear dress robes to the ball.
Hermoine couldn't imagine him in a muggle tuxedo anyway and the image had her chuckling in the dress room.
In the dressing room with her were four dresses. She hadn't really given much thought to what she wanted, she found what size she thought would fit her and selected what she thought was pretty. Severus, however, had looked around next to her and after 20 minutes laid the fourth choice over her arm and directed her to try them on.
Her first choice was a burnt orange color and while she didn't really care for the color, the dress was pretty. It was one shouldered and would cover her Dolohov scar completely. The fabric was chiffon and the skirt was very floaty. She let Severus look at the dress after she'd put it on and he'd shrugged.
"You might need alterations in a few places but it looks fine," he told her.
The second dress was an emerald green and was strapless. She didn't mind her scar poking out a little bit since a glamour could solve that problem but the dress wasn't as flattering as she'd wanted. It was satin and fitted to the knee before flaring out. Severus' response had been less positive than the first so she barely let him look at it before changing.
The third was a burgundy, almost like wine, lace number. Under the lace was a layer of black satin. She thought the dress looked a bit like a gothic nightmare once she put it on. She charmed the black satin to the same color of burgundy as the lace and the look was instantly much more pleasant.
She stepped out to show her husband and he cocked his head at her. He stepped behind her in the three way mirror as she turned side to side. The dress was an off the shoulder style, with loose sleeves that settled over her arms and draped there, not actually having any function. The dress was A-line and brushed the tops of her feet.
"Better," Severus complimented.
The last choice was easily the best option. Of course Severus would be better at picking out clothing for her than she would. This dress was a sweetheart neckline with two tiny straps that went over her shoulders. The back was v that showed off her shoulder blades before the V closed up just below where her bra strap would be. The bodice was fitted to her hips where it flared out a bit. The skirt of the gown was less puffy than the orange and the burgundy had been, more so than the green was. It was perfect.
The desire on her husband's face was all she needed to see before she turned right back around and changed. The price tag on the gown was more than she would have spent on a gown but Severus hadn't been checking the cost when selecting.
She found a pair of heels that matched and looked right without having to add a bunch of spells to. Severus offered to hold them while she looked undergarments at his insistence. She didn't really know what to choose but when she gave up looking, Severus had paid for the dress and shoes and was holding the gown in a zippered bag over his arm with a smug look on his face.
A kiss was his thank you and since they were in a muggle store, he hadn't minded that they were in public.
"You don't mind that it's a muggle dress and not dress robes?" she asked him again during lunch at a local restaurant.
Rolling his eyes, Severus assured her that he did not think less of her for wearing a muggle gown to the ministry ball and that it was actually the proper thing to do, considering that she fought the war in part for muggleborn rights.
That eased her mind about having to find some sort of a cloak or robe to incorporate into her look the way she had for her wedding dress.
Severus was a little uncomfortable after lunch, as they walked the streets in search of an apparition point. At first Hermione thought it was paranoia that was bothering him but that wasn't the case.
"I've been working on a potion," Severus admitted. "I've nearly got it ready to test but I am unsure about actually developing it."
"Why not?" Hermione was perplexed. "Does it do something bad?"
"No," he said, pausing to guide her across the street. When they crossed, he resumed talking. "It's just that I don't know how you'll take it. I've developed it for you and it requires a rare ingredient."
The suspense was intense before he looked away from her and studied the autumn colors of the trees they were passing. It really was a nice day to be out walking in the muggle streets.
"It erases scar tissue," was what he finally told her.
Her Dolohov scar. Her knife scar on her neck. Mudblood. They could all be erased. She smiled at him. How sweet it was that he wanted to use her sacrifice in a potion meant for her. She kissed him in the street.
"That's so sweet," she murmured against his lips.
"I am not sweet," he growled lowly.
She smiled coyly as she linked her arm in his and let him guide her along to where he wanted to disapparate from.
"It sounds like a great contribution to the potion world, Severus. You should make it, if you think you can. I know there are a lot of people out there who would benefit from it."
"Potter?"
"Maybe," she agreed doubtfully.
Harry had told her he used to like his scar until he learned what it was from and what it represented. His Umbridge scar, however…. Ron, likewise, might like to be free of his scars from the Department of Mystery brains. Lavender, Bill and Remus came to mind next. If Remus had been alive, he'd have been perfect to use as a testing dummy.
Her husband was certainly a wonderful man, she was starting to see.