****I do not own Harry Potter or any of the characters…I merely play around with them for my own enjoyment ***

This is my first story, so please bear with me. Feel free to leave suggestions, but go easy on me. I'm definitely not an English major. Reviews are definitely helpful ;)

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I woke up the next morning feeling refreshed again. Man, these beds here are so much comfortable than my beds at home or at college. I could definitely get used to having a queen-sized bed all to myself. You won't have it all to yourself for long. You have 3 months to get married to whomever the Ministry picks for you. You'll have to share a bed with him. Oh. Right. Well, I'm going to enjoy all of this stretching out while I can then.

I finally decided to drag my butt out of bed and get ready for the day. Once I felt properly refreshed and minty fresh, I made my way down to the Great Hall for breakfast. When I got there, I noticed most of the professors in conversations with each other. There was an open seat again between Severus and Hermione who both looked incredibly bored and ignored each other. I quietly made my way to the open seat and got my breakfast.

Oh coffee. I love you. I really do. What would I do without you? You're so good and tasty. Ooh! Pancakes! Awesome. Today is definitely starting off right! I was snapped out of my lovely internal monologue by Hermione and Severus as they tried to get my attention at the same time.

"Hey Elle," "Good morning," Hermione seemed surprised that Severus would talk to me and gave him a look. Severus just scowled and went back to his breakfast. I couldn't help but wonder what was going on there. I mean, I had heard he was a spy, but honestly, why such animosity? When it became obvious that I wouldn't get anything out of Severus at the moment, I turned my attention to Hermione.

"Mornin' Hermione. How'd you sleep last night?" I inquired. She seemed a little out of it as she left my rooms last night.

"Alright, I suppose. I'm just still not quite sure what to make of this whole situation. I mean, I'm optimistic that I'll like and eventually love whomever the Ministry picks for me, but I'm scared silly at the same time," she rattled. All of which were valid statements.

"I know what you mean. I feel the same way. But for the next week, we really shouldn't worry about it. We've done all we can. As of now, we just have to blindly trust that the Ministry knows what they're doing and will do the right thing," I told her. She thought about it for a moment, letting my words sink in.

"Yes, you're right, I suppose," Hermione admitted.

"I tend to be right a lot. When in doubt, just assume that I'm awesome and right and there won't be any problems," I replied with a laugh and a smile so she could see I was joking. "Well, I'm stuffed and I need to get some work done on my lesson plans. I really should figure out exactly what I'm doing for all of my classes. I'll see you later, Hermione. Goodbye, Severus."

Hermione looked at Severus confused for a moment before waving goodbye. Severus looked at me briefly before nodding his dismissal.

I took my time walking back to my rooms, just taking in my surroundings and thinking of all that had changed in my life in the matter of a couple weeks. A few weeks ago, I was back at college, finishing up my masters degree in teaching music, and then I had the interview that would change my life. When I learned of the opening and applied for the position, I honestly didn't even expect to get an interview. What British school is going to hire a first year American teacher? Apparently Hogwarts. I was completely excited when I found out I had an interview with Professor McGonagall and definitely didn't expect to get the job. It truly was my dream job. After a visit to London in my junior year of college, I had wanted to come back to live. Now, I got my opportunity to live here and teach my favorite subject on top of that. It was a win-win situation. Even this Marriage Law couldn't dampen my spirits.

Once I got back to my rooms, I grabbed my old notebooks from my education classes and took them to my office to work on lesson plans. I really needed to figure out what books to use as my textbooks for classes. The students need to know what they need to buy. I decided to go with what I knew and use the newest editions of the books I had used when I was in school. I thought back to the classes I remembered and figured I could use the ones I liked and come up with more. I worked on the lessons successfully for a few hours until I heard my stomach growl. Lunch time. Nice. Clearly, my stomach was telling me to go back to the Great Hall and grab some lunch.

I made my way back down to the Great Hall. Hermione wasn't there yet, but Severus was. I took a seat next to him.

"Hello, Severus. How is your day going so far?" I politely asked. I knew that while he may not mind having a conversation with me, he was definitely not the type to get all chatty with me as Hermione would.

"As well as can be expected," he replied gruffly.

"Well, at least it's not a bad day. It's pretty nice outside. Would you like to go take a walk with me after lunch?" I asked.

He thought about my request for a moment before responding, "I have much work to get done before dinner."

"Oh. Well, alright," I responded slightly disappointed. I turned my attention back to the plate before me.

He looked at me for a moment and told me, "Would after dinner be acceptable to you for a walk?"

I was taken aback. I had assumed he just didn't like me enough to spend any time with me outside of meals. "Really, that would be nice," I smiled tentatively up at him. What was it with this man that made me act like a school-girl at the thought of merely going on a walk? I had never really acted like that around guys.

He nodded his approval and left the Hall. Well that was strange. Right, well, time to make my way back to my rooms to work on more lesson plans. Maybe I can get enough done to not have to worry about them for a few days so I can relax. I finished my lunch making idle chat with the other professors near me before making my way back to my rooms to get some work done before dinner and my walk with Severus.

Hello all! Please let me know what you think. I would like your opinions on whom to put Hermione and some of the other characters with. Please, leave a review and let me know!

Thanks!

nwdani