Chapter 59: Courting Hermione
Hermione barely slept that night as she went over everything she knew about her life. She tried to figure out how she felt about being a princess, a pureblood princess at that. Did being pureblood discredit all her work she had accomplished in getting muggle borns treated fairly? Was the real reason she was so smart because she came from Merlin's line? It was all so confusing, trying to balance who she thought she was to who she really was.
She spent the most time that night going over her feelings for Severus as well as everything she knew about the woman he loved. She was determined to break the betrothal and be with him if he would have her. The more she thought over everything the more she realized that she may have a very good chance. The conversation he had with Albus about being in love with royalty as well as how he acted around her, before it was all contradictory but knowing she was the princess made things much clearer. "He may love me back," she told herself with a smile. "Why else would he have looked so sad this morning when he heard of my betrothal?"
She knew Severus would never admit his feelings to her as long as she was betrothed. He was too proud for that, not to mention that he also followed the old traditions. In the old ways it would be disgraceful to go after a woman who was betrothed. She wondered what would happen if she just told him her feelings and snogged him senseless. He had never turned down one of her kisses yet, that has to count for something.
Severus spent most of the night pacing his room trying to figure out what to do about Hermione's betrothal. The only thing he could come up with was to petition her father for her hand as well. He was the highest of the royal court so his bloodline should win out over any others. He wondered again what would have happened had his mother lived; perhaps Hermione and he would be betrothed instead. He had always been glad his mother was not around to interfere in his life until now.
Severus made up his mind and flooed to Harry's. He wanted to have a talk with Phillip Granger and give the prince a piece of his mind for treating Hermione as he has.
"Severus," Pip said in surprise. "What do we owe this honor to?"
"I want to discuss this betrothal of Hermione's," he told the Grangers seriously. "She is very distraught. I hate seeing her so sad."
Tori smacked her husband in the back of the head, "I can't believe you ran your mouth off to that insolent boy. Now look what you've done! It's bad enough you won't let me tell her the truth about who she really is but now she is upset about the betrothal. I can't say I would blame her either."
"I did what was best for her," Pip told them both, although they were all questioning if that was the best move. "Besides I wasn't about to give that little brat the right to court Hermione! He knows she doesn't like him and wanted to trap her into marriage anyway. What kind of man tries to weasel himself into a woman's heart?"
"I would like to know who she is betrothed to," Severus requested trying to keep his voice impassive. "I need to know he will take good care of her."
"I am afraid that I cannot announce that information before we announce her identity." Phillip told him, glad to see that Severus was watching out for his little girl.
"Then I respectfully request that you allow me to submit a proposal for her myself. That way she will have a choice in whom she weds and will not be stuck with someone who does not care for her." Severus said, earning an incredulous look from Pip and a huge grin from Tori.
"What are your intentions with such a request?" Pip asked him, shocked at the request from such a closed off man.
"I am in love with your daughter," Severus told them. "I had planned on asking for your permission to court her once she finished university. I only want what is best for her."
"And becoming King has nothing to do with it?" Pip asked him through narrowed eyes while Tori rolled her eyes at her unobservant and narrow minded husband.
"If there were a way to give up the throne and remain with Hermione I would not hesitate. I believe I would do a good job as king but have never desired it. If I did not love Hermione then I would never think of such things, but with her being your daughter I cannot be with her and remain only a nobleman." Severus told them.
"What makes you think you'll be a better choice than who she is betrothed to?" Pip asked him.
"First because I love her, second because we are best friends and have a wonderful relationship, and third because I believe she cares for me as well and may in time come to love me. I do not believe you could ever hope for her to fall in love with whoever it is she is betrothed to. She will resist your choice simply for the fact that he was not her choice, no matter how perfect you believe they are for each other." Severus told them and both Grangers had to agree.
"We will discuss your proposal," Phillip said. "Until then you have my permission to court my daughter. I believe your intentions towards her to be noble and I will see what comes of the courtship. This courtship is to be kept private, I do not want word to get to the paper since I told the boy it could not be done."
"I respect your wishes sir and will do everything in my power to see that Hermione is treated the way she deserves. Thank you for listening to me and granting your approval of our courtship." He told them with a bow before leaving the room.
"Well that is a refreshing piece of information," Phillip told his wife as she still sat smiling. "I never expected him to fall for our little girl. I have always been hesitant in their betrothal. I know my mother desperately wants to align our house with the Snape line, I just never anticipated Hermione loving someone only a few years younger than me."
"She does love him," Tori told him with a smile. "She told me so the morning they left for the wedding. She doesn't believe he loves her though, so hopefully things will go smoothly. I am happy they found each other on their own terms and not ours. It will make things much easier when we announce their betrothal."
"I do find it amusing that he thinks he is competing with someone," Pip said with a chuckle. "It never crossed his mind that he may be the one he is so set against!"
"I think it is lucky he never found a woman and settled down on his own. After his mother's death there was no one to tell him of his impending betrothal, without it being announced he could have easily married someone else." Tori told him.
"Then it looks like they were meant to be, just like we were my love," Phillip told her before kissing her. "I only hope they will be as happy as we are."
"Back to work then huh?" Hermione said with a smile as they apparated back to Harry's. "I missed the lab and my bed while we were gone. It's almost funny how much like home this feels."
"I must say that I prefer being here rather than at the school during the holidays. The company is infinitely better here." He told her with a soft smile that made her knees week. He knew he was allowed to speak to her like that now and it gave him hope every time she swooned at his comments or casual caresses.
"I would be absolutely bored out of my mind without you here. All the boys talk about, when they are not snogging their girlfriends, is Quidditch and the girls only have weddings on their minds." She told him with a grin. "So what is the plan for the next few weeks? Anything special you want to work on?"
"There is one special project that I am going to focus my time on this summer," he told her, thinking of his plans to court her. "I think we should finish your product lines before you start university. I also heard Minerva mention that she wanted some time with you when she stays here next week."
"Yes, I am hoping to finish a transfiguration project I am working on with her before the summer is over. I say we spend the day in the lab perfecting my latest potion ideas and then head into town for the evening. I need to get out. I felt almost suffocated at the Malfoy's and know I need a night on the town." She told him, hoping he would take the bait.
Severus smiled to himself at how easy she was making things. "Perhaps dinner and a movie in muggle London then?" He suggested. "I remember you were complaining that you never get to the cinema anymore."
"That sounds lovely," she told him with a big smile as they agreed to meet in the lab after unpacking. She was resolutely ignoring her parents until they decided to talk to her, she was very upset with them and was not about to make it easy on them.
"Hermione, are you in here?" Ginny's voice called out into her room. She found the brunette in the closet trying to decide what to wear to the movie that night. "What are you doing? It looks like you are getting ready for a date!"
"I guess that's what I am doing," Hermione told her with a smile. "Severus is taking me to dinner and a movie and I want to look my best. Just because my parents want to ruin my life doesn't mean I'm not going to go after what I want. Maybe if they see how happy I am with him they will change their minds. Or I should say my grandmother's mind. I know my mum wants me with Severus since she told me so but my dad and grandmother are the ones I have to convince."
"So this means we are to phase two of Operation Seduction then," Ginny said with a grin and started digging for proper lingerie. "I saw how he looked at you this weekend and I think the plan is working."
"I agree," Hermione told her with a smile. "He has been very affectionate and we kissed a couple times. The best one was when we were pranking Draco. I kissed the whipped crème off his lip and he pulled me in for a full snog, tongues and all. After we stopped the kiss he told me we had to stop before he was unable to. I doubt a guy would say that if he wasn't at least a little interested."
"Next time just tell him you don't want to stop and see where it goes!" Ginny said with an evil smirk.
"I am glad we stopped after just a kiss. I want to tell him that I care for him before we go any farther. I don't want to trick him into thinking I am just playing around when I want so much more from the relationship." Hermione told her sadly. "I just wish there was a real future for us. With my parents stupid betrothal I won't be able to be with him."
"Nothing is final until you say 'I Do' so don't give up yet. Come on, let's get you looking spectacular!" Ginny told her.
"You look wonderful," Severus told her as he offered his arm to her. "I will be the envy of every man in the restaurant." He loved how she blushed prettily at his compliment and held tighter onto his arm. He guided the apparition and soon they were in front of a very cozy looking Italian restaurant. "I hope Italian will suffice?" He asked as he led her in and gave their name for the reservation.
The maitre-d sat them and Severus ordered them a bottle of wine. "This place is great," Hermione told him with a grin. "I couldn't have picked better myself." She loved the romantic ambiance and hoped he had chosen it for a reason. They were seated in a curtained booth, away from prying eyes. They talked quietly until their food arrived and things were going quite smoothly. Severus was proud of himself for setting up their first real date so perfectly.
They finished their dinner with just enough time to make it to the movie on time. They were seeing Armageddon as Hermione heard it was a very good film. She was wondering how he would like a big screen movie as he had seemed to enjoy watching movies on her laptop. "Would you like anything?" He asked her indicating the snack bar.
"No thank you I am still full from dinner," she told him and smiled as he placed his hand on her lower back to lead her towards the theatre.
"Is the old man giving you a hard time hot stuff?" an obnoxious teenage boy asked her as they walked by him. He was leering down her shirt.
Hermione stopped walking and turned back towards the idiot who disturbed her evening. "I would much rather spend my time with a real man than a pubescent idiot like yourself. And if you keep staring at my chest I am going to call security and have you removed before you're hurt."
"And just who is going to be hurting me?" The guy laughed. "Not this old timer."
"Come darling," Severus said making sure to purr the name. "This boy is not worth our time or effort. Besides, I promised you I wouldn't send another person to the hospital for hitting on you and I plan to keep to my word."
Hermione grinned up at him, noticing the pale look on the idiots face now. "Yes, I wouldn't want him to ruin our evening together." She told him looking deeply into his eyes.
"Come, let us take our seats before the movie begins," he told her and led her into the theater, pushing the moron boy out of the way. He could understand why the boy would hit on her, she was radiant this evening. They sat near the back in the center for the best view. Severus was surprised by the size of the screen and realized why it was worth the hassle of going to a movie rather than watching one at home.
The movie was excellent in his opinion. He always liked the muggle space movies since the wizarding world had nothing equivalent. He had always thought it would be neat to see what the world looked like from outer space. He also appreciated the action of the movie as Hermione leaned in close to him, giving him an opportunity to place his arm around her. He was hoping the move would not be too forward and was rewarded when she snuggled in against him for the remainder of the film.
"That was good," Hermione told him happily. "We should go see movies more often; I had almost forgotten how great they were in the theatre."
"Speaking of the theatre," He said as a segway. "Would you be interested in accompanying me to Les Miss this season? I have requested tickets for next month but will be able to cancel the extra seat if you do not wish to accompany me."
"I would love to," she told him with a grin. She decided to plan an evening for them as well. She had heard Rent was in town for the next few weeks and knew with the right connections you could always get seats at the last minute.
"I had a wonderful evening," he told her after he had walked her to the door of her room. "Will I see you in the morning?"
"Of course," she told him with a big smile; things were going very well between them. "Thank you so much for the night out, I had a lovely time." She kissed his cheek and headed into her room. She knew she could have given him a proper kiss but wanted to wait, no need to seem too forward.
"So you took her out last night?" Remus asked the next day at lunch. "I heard her telling Ginny what a great time she had. She also told her that you seemed to enjoy the outfit Ginny had picked out so I assume she put some effort into looking nice for you."
"Yes, things are moving along nicely. I talked with her parents and they have agreed to let me court her as long as I keep it quiet. I know I can trust you to keep it between the two of us. I am hoping that she will respond favorably to my affections and be spared having to marry someone she does not care for." Severus told his friend.
"So will you marry her then?" Remus asked him with a smile. He had never thought of Snape as the marrying kind but with Hermione it seemed perfect.
"If she'll have me," Severus told him. "Although I don't plan on telling her that goal for a while yet. I want her comfortable with our new level of relationship before I mention marriage. I wouldn't want to frighten her off."
"Where are you taking her next?" Remus asked. "You should get a plan together so you can properly woo her."
"We did dinner and a movie last night and I have been planning a surprise for her next week. I was able to get box seats to the Paris Opera House for a showing of Phantom of the Opera. I know she will appreciate it and have been planning it since I found out she likes musicals as much as I do." Severus told him with a smile. He had been planning the outing since February and was hoping it would be the thing to spark their relationship.
"I am sure she will love it. You'll have to let Ginny in on the surprise so she can make sure Hermione is dressed appropriately." Remus told him, surprised his friend was going to so much trouble.
"I am still working out the details of the evening but will consult Miss Weasley," he conceded, realizing the value of having an insider in on the plan.
"So what else do you have planned?" Remus asked him.
"I plan to take her to the London showing of Les Miserables and perhaps one more show this summer. It is the only time of year I get to indulge in my love of theatre and would love nothing more than to have her accompany me. I also thought I would continue to take her to dinner or other smaller things." Severus said.
"So did he kiss you yet?" Ginny asked Hermione the next morning. "You know you have him once he initiates a kiss."
"He's not going to kiss me," Hermione told her sadly. "He follows the old customs; in fact I am surprised he even asked me out last night. I would think he would have had to get permission from my father to take me anywhere alone."
"Maybe he did," Her mother said, startling them as she entered the room.
"What do you mean?" Hermione asked her, hoping for a good answer.
"Severus came to see us before you got back from the wedding. He told us you were upset over the betrothal and requested permission to court you." Her mother told her with a big smile.
"He did what?" Hermione asked, afraid she was dreaming and her mother would wake her from it.
"He asked for permission to court you. Your father gave him permission. But remember that your betrothal is still set. I hate to imagine how horrible it must be for you to feel trapped and we decided to give Severus a chance. Now he was told that he had to keep it secret that he was courting you, so I doubt he will even tell you. I can tell he doesn't want to do anything to ruin his chances." Tori told her daughter who looked shocked and Ginny who looked smug. "I told you things were not hopeless and I think this proves that he has feelings for you as well."
"Maybe," Hermione admitted, letting a little smile on her face. "I refuse to get my hopes up before he tells me anything. For all I know he is just being my best friend and saving me from a horrible betrothal."
"Now don't say such nasty things about your betrothed, you may not know who it is but he is a wonderful person and you'll regret saying such things about him once you find out who he is." Tori told her with a small smile.
"I don't care who he is, if he's not Severus then I don't want him." Hermione told her mother. "I would rather spend my life alone yet still in love with him. I will not marry this other man."
"It's a magical contract my dear, you cannot get out of it without your grandmother's approval." Tori reminded her. "I will help you any way I can but the final word comes down to hers as she initiated the betrothal."
"Just tell me one thing," Hermione said and prepared to ask the question that had been plaguing her dreams the night before. "Tell me it's not Neville, I know nana is friends with that family. I couldn't do that to him and Luna."
"No my darling it is not Neville Longbottom," her mother told her with a soft smile. "I promise you that the man is not involved with anyone else. He has never really dated, it's like he has been waiting his whole life for you."
"And I have been waiting all of mine for Severus," Hermione told her mother through narrowed eyes and stomped out of her room to find the man she loved before she hexed her family.
"You should have told her that to ask permission to court a woman the man has to declare his feelings. What did he say?" Ginny asked Mrs. Granger with a smirk.
"He loves her as well," Tori told her with a grin.
"Now I know the two will be together so will you tell me who this mystery man is?" Ginny asked her, glad she knew the actual secret.
"I cannot tell you his name," Tori told her with a grin. "But he is the son of one of my mother-in-law's best friends. She only had two best friends and there is only one whose son is still single, the other is Neville's grandmother."
Ginny thought on everything she had heard of the Queen and the light bulb went off. "That's why you gave him permission!" She laughed, "He was the one all the time. I wondered how you got around letting him court her with a betrothal but it's not breaking the contract since she is being courted by her betrothed!"
"Now you understand why I keep trying to get them to admit their feelings for each other. It is obvious to all of us that they are in love so I wanted them together before the betrothal announcement so she wouldn't be as upset. She is going to be so mad that we have kept the truth from her for so long that I wanted something to go smoothly." Tori told her.
"Well I will do everything I can to encourage her this summer. When do you plan on telling her the truth?" Ginny asked.
"If it had been up to me we would have told her the day the war ended," she told the redhead. "I hate keeping this from her and keep pushing my husband to tell her. Maybe the end of the summer, I don't know."
The week flew by and it was soon Saturday night. Hermione had made Severus promise to keep Saturday night free since she was working on something for them to do. He didn't complain as he hadn't come up with a good second date yet and they had spent most of the nights just hanging out in the lab or watching movies with the rest of the group in the drawing room. Harry had Mr. Weasley charm a newly bought big screen TV to run off magic so they could all watch movies together rather than crowding around the laptop.
"Are you going to tell me where we are going?" Severus asked as she leafed through his wardrobe to pick out his outfit. Jade was sitting on the bed laughing at him.
"Let her dress you," Jade told him. "She cannot complain about your wardrobe if she chose the outfit."
"We are going for a quick dinner and then a show," she told him with a grin. "It's nothing fancy yet we still want to look nice." She handed him a pair of black dress slacks and a hunter green dress shirt. She transfigured one of his teaching robes into a black sport coat and pulled out his pair of black dress shoes. "I'm going to go change; I'll meet you downstairs in 30 minutes."
"She is steeling my idea," Severus grumbled as he obligingly got dressed in her approved outfit. "Now my surprise will not be as good."
"Nonsense," Jade hissed. "You are taking the girl for a night out in Paris; she is taking you to a casual show in London… big difference."
"Fine," Severus grumbled before heading off to find his date for the evening. Hermione was waiting for him wearing a simple black dress, nothing fancy yet classy. She took him to a quaint little bistro a few blocks from the theatre and they had soup and salads before walking to the play house.
"This is a very different kind of show," she warned him. "It is nothing like the classics but the music is great."
He nodded his understanding as they entered the theatre and he really understood when he realized they were to see Rent. He had heard it was a bit unorthodox but good nevertheless.
"So what did you think?" She asked as they made their way back out into the London air. She was smiling and humming some of the songs to herself. She enjoyed sitting next to him all night and hoped he enjoyed himself as well.
"It was quite original. I agree that the music was very good but I do not think that it is one of my favorites. It was an enjoyable performance though and I had a very nice time." He told her with a smile, he was noticing that smiling was easier around her than anyone else and he didn't even mind people seeing him smile at her.
"Did you want to head back or maybe take a walk around for a while, it is still fairly early." She suggested hoping to prolong their date.
They walked around London enjoying the sights and talking of the play as well as other topics and just enjoying each other's company and being away from the house. Harry was working on redecorating the rest of the rooms so the place wasn't so dark, but sometimes it could still be suffocating. They passed a street vendor selling roses and Severus bought her a single red rose, as they did not have any fire and ice roses, which he helped her slip into her hair. "Thank you, it smells lovely." She told him with a sparkling smile as she snuggled closer to him as she was holding his arm. She had not expected the romantic gesture and was pleasantly surprised. Severus was happy with his impulsive decision and relaxed again once she started walking closer to him.
They said goodnight after returning to the house and Severus kissed her hand and caressed her cheek before hurrying off to his rooms before he went against tradition and kissed her. Hermione that night had wonderfully sweet dreams of him and their future together.
"Do you think they will ever tell me the truth?" Hermione asked Ginny and Severus one day the next week. She had completely avoided her parents unless they started the conversation and was hoping they would just come clean. She had filled Ginny in on knowing the truth and Ginny was relieved not to have to keep the secret from her friend any longer. They all decided they couldn't let the truth get out until the Granger's came clean to their daughter.
"I know your mum wants to tell you and has since the war ended," Ginny told her with a shrug. "It must be your dad that doesn't want to tell you. Maybe he wants to let you get through school without having to be the princess."
"That makes sense," Hermione told them. "I mean its going to be hard enough to be a war hero and attend classes, let alone have more potions successes then all my professors combined. I wouldn't want to imagine what being a princess would add to that!"
"It would be like taking on Harry's life for a while," Ginny said and they all nodded and remembered all the hardships Harry went through just because he was famous. "Maybe it's a good thing they are waiting."
"It just irritates me," Hermione told them. "There is no reason that they can't keep my identity a secret from everyone else. I just want them to come clean with me. I shouldn't continue to live a lie, a lie I didn't even realize I was living until last week."
"You could just tell them you know," Severus suggested. "Next time you meet with the Queen just call her Nana and see what her face looks like!"
"I am afraid that as soon as they realize I know the truth they will announce my betrothal and I am more than willing to put that off for as long as possible. So until they tell me I will continue to pretend that I am just muggle born." She told them.
That night the assembled group was at dinner, Harry, Ginny, Severus, Hermione, Minerva (who was staying for 2 weeks), Luna, Neville, and the Weasley clan minus Ron who was due to arrive shortly. They were laughing and talking when an over excited Ron Weasley burst through the door followed by a glowing Susan. Everyone knew they must have some good news and stopped their conversations to turn to the new arrivals.
"We just had the absolute best day!" Ron told them, turning to grin at Susan. "You won't believe what has happened."
Everyone turned to Susan who was literally bouncing up and down with glee. "My mother was arrested for financing the dark arts, her title was stripped and I was named heir!" She told them and everyone all cheered knowing that was the best news possible. "The Queen came and told us in person the good news and welcomed us into the court. She even gave her blessing on our wedding."
"That is amazing news," Ginny said as everyone started hugging the couple. They knew that money would no longer be a problem for the couple and couldn't be happier for them.
After the hugs were finished the two shared another knowing smile. "That's not the best news though," Ron told them with the largest grin anyone could ever remember seeing on his face.
"What could be better than that?" His mother asked, still amazed at the last piece of information. Ginny was eyeing her brother suspiciously and was hoping against hope that Susan wasn't already pregnant.
"I made starting keeper for the Cannons!" Ron yelled out, the grin getting larger. There was a stunned silence for a moment before everyone started cheering and clapping and gathering round for another set of hugs. They all knew that Ron's dream was to play for the Cannons and although they had an opening this season no one actually thought he would get the starting spot, most likely a reserve on some team but not the starting keeper position on his favorite team.
"This calls for a party!" Harry yelled and instantly there were champagne bottles on the table and they all celebrated well into the night, even the adults.
"Well Ron your financial problems are solved and you landed your dream job, what are you going to do now?" Harry asked him with a smile.
"I am going to marry the most amazing woman I have ever known and start raising the next bunch of Weasley redheads." He told them all with a laugh. "We want to be married before the end of the summer so when I start to tour with the team we are already married as well as before she starts her healer training."
"And we don't want anything as fancy as Draco's wedding," Susan told them. "I just want our group of close friends and my father there and it will be perfect."
"Why don't you get married the weekend after us?" Bill suggested to them. "We are not leaving for our honeymoon for a week after the wedding so we would still be around and Draco and Gabrielle will be back. That still gives you plenty of time before Susan starts her training for a nice long honeymoon."
"Sounds perfect," Susan told him with a smile and a hug. "I can't wait, I almost wish we were already married and had just eloped."
"I've always wanted a small wedding as well," Hermione told them while Ginny said she wanted everyone she had ever known invited to hers, earning a groan from Harry. Everyone was still surprised to see that Ginny did not have an engagement ring on her finger.