Yup, chapter 3, standard disclaimers and warnings apply, nothing else to say.
"Ms Granger? Mr. Weasley? The headmaster wants to see you. Can you please go to his office immediately? The password is mint potatoes."
Hermione and Ron looked at each other silently, but nodded. "Of course Professor, we'll go right now." Hermione paused. "Um, does this have anything to do with Harry?" McGonagall looked surprised. "Yes, it does, how did you know?" Ron grinned. "It always has to do with Harry, Professor!"
"Hermione will have an idea Professor, I promise. She's gotten me out of so many scrapes in the past. Just wait, you'll see."
Dumbledore and Snape shared an amused glance, but otherwise stayed quiet. Then there was a knock at the door. Dumbledore called permission, and Hermione and Ron entered.
A sudden thought hit Severus just then. Harry would be reluctant to tell his friends about his soon to be husband. Smirking, he eased his way behind Harry's chair and set his hand on the boy's shoulder. Harry jumped, and his cheeks reddened, but didn't say a word. Severus was a little surprised, but he couldn't deny the boy did catch on quickly… most of the time. He looked over, but neither the girl nor the boy had noticed his hand on their best friend's shoulder.
He shook his head.
Harry jumped as Snape's hand landed on his shoulder. What would Hermione and Ron say? Then he realized that was the whole purpose. It would lead the way into the conversation. He felt a little better about telling them now. But oddly, his incredibly observant friends hadn't noticed yet. His face reddened as a long slim finger started stroking his neck. It felt very nice, he had to admit, and was soon unable to suppress the smallest of murmurs escaping his mouth. Hermione heard it and turned to him just as he closed his eyes and shuddered.
"Harry! What… Professor Snape?" She cried, and Ron stared speechless. The hand stroking his neck moved up to cup his chin in a surprisingly possessive gesture, and Headmaster Dumbledore chuckled. Ron collapsed onto the chair nearest him and stared at the old man. "Harry, why is… Professor Snape touching you like that?" Ron made a strangled noise at Hermione's question, and Harry laughed nervously. "I don't really know, Hermione," he stammered, "why don't you ask him?"
Severus groaned inwardly, trust Harry to make him responsible for telling them, but smirked at the bewildered expression on Hermione's face. "My apologies, Miss Granger," he said, "however, my fiancé is so… delectable, I simply cannot keep my hands off him."
Ron turned a delicate shade of pale green as Hermione hit the floor in a faint.
"F…fiancé?" He repeated, and Harry nodded slowly, sure his best friend was about to walk out the door. "Harry, you're marrying Snape." It was a statement, not a question. Harry nodded again, and Ron sighed. "I want you to know I don't like the idea," he said. "But there's probably a very good reason for it. So tell me about it."
Severus and Harry stared dumbly at Ron. Dumbledore, seeing their confusion, sighed and began relating the tale to the redhead.
"I always knew this would get you into trouble Harry, but I never thought it would be something like this! That Umbridge cow!" He exclaimed, then went red. "Er, sorry Professors," he mumbled.
"Forgiven this time, Mr. Weasley," Dumbledore said, "however I must ask you to be a little more circumspect next time. Ah, I see you are coming around, Miss Granger?"
"I don't believe it." Severus frowned as Hermione voiced her discontent. "There is no way that the Professor would marry Harry Potter!" She continued to try and explain all the reasons why they could not get married, and Severus had soon had enough. Bending down, he whispered in Harry's ear, "shall we give her a small show Mr. Potter? Let her see we are serious?"
Now this should have made Harry nervous, considering the kinds of surprises that had been thrown at him that night, but he readily agreed. "Alright Professor." He whispered back, and Severus cleared his throat loudly. Hermione and Ron both swiveled their heads around in time to see Severus Snape capture Harry Potter's mouth in a passionate kiss.
Harry found it impossible to stifle the moan that threatened to erupt when Severus bit down on his lower lip. His hand slid into Severus' hair and pulled him closer, tearing a similar moan from the man. Moments later they broke away, and Hermione breathed again. "Oh. My. Well, that does make a compelling argument."
She closed her eyes and visibly tried to calm herself, while Ron gaped at the two men. "Ok," she said after a moment, "We need a plan. People are going to object."
Just a short chapter, I only wanted to get the Hermione/Ron confrontation out of the way… I promise the chapters will get longer, I hate short chapters myself, hopefully another one soon.
