Chapter 3 The Logical Lioness

Hermione sat under an apple tree in the orchard behind the Burrow. She absent-mindedly tore grass into tiny pieces and tossed them into the gentle breeze. "Roger, Anthony, or Snape?" Hermione whispered to herself. "I know Anthony the best, he is smart, though not very attractive." Hermione sighed. "I guess I can't judge on that, seeing as I'm all brains and no beauty." She shook her head, clearing that train of thought. "I need to stay on track."

Hermione dropped the grass from her hand and reached into her pocket. She pulled out the Ministry letter and unfolded it. "Roger Davies." Hermione read with a frown. "He was quite the womanizer. Dated three girls at once sixth year, if the rumors are to be believed." Hermione stared at the paper in her hand, intently, willing it to give her the answer to this dilemma.

"Need someone to talk this over with?" Ginny asked as she approached Hermione.

"You're going to join me no matter what I say." Hermione retorted, cocking one eyebrow at the younger girl.

"True." Ginny giggled. "I thought two heads would be better than one." She sat down next to Hermione under the tree.

Hermione silently handed the letter to Ginny, then pulled the wand that previously belong to Bellatrix Lestrange out of her pocket. She could never quite call the wand her own even though, according to Ollivander, it's allegiance had changed. With a flick of the wand, Hermione conjured a quill. "I think we should take notes."

Ginny laughed loudly as Hermione conjured some parchment. "You are such a book worm."

"I know." Hermione said as she wrote Roger Davies' name on the paper. "Is it true he was dating three girls at once during your fifth year?"

"The only time he wasn't dating more than one girl is when he dated Fleur or Cho." Ginny said shaking her head.

Cheater! Hermione wrote on the paper under Davies' name. "He is smart, though." Hermione said writing Ravenclaw.

"He was a good Quidditch player." Ginny said matter-of-factly. "Not that it matters to you." Ginny stuck her tongue out at Hermione.

Hermione ignored the younger girl and stared towards the sky. "I read in the Daily Prophet that he was going to try out for the Chudley Cannons. Which means that he's going to be doing a lot of traveling if he makes the team."

"Is that a pro or a con." Ginny asked with a smirk.

"A con." Hermione said as she added a note to her parchment. She looked up to see that Ginny was staring at her, questioningly. "I would have to travel with him, seeing as we will be required to have a child so soon after we marry."

"I would never get to see you." Ginny said with a frown.

"I would still see you, just not as often. Though, how am I supposed to get a job in the Ministry if I'm stuck traveling with him." Hermione said with a deep frown.

"It's not like you can't apparition or floo to work." Ginny reminded, looking at Hermione like she was thick.

"I can't apparate if I'm abroad." Hermione stated sternly. "And I would have to be staying somewhere with a fire place on the floo network to travel that way."

"True." Ginny muttered.

Hermione took the letter from Ginny's grasp and crossed off Roger Davies name. "Logically speaking he is not a good choice for me."

"Anthony Goldstein has a job in the Ministry of Magic." Ginny stated helpfully.

Hermione added a note to the paper. "I've never been fond of him." Hermione confessed quietly with a frown.

"He's smart, talented, and a good person." Ginny said comfortingly as she reached out to pat Hermione on the shoulder.

"He is but we don't have anything in common."

"You're talented, smart, and a good person too." Ginny responded with a supportive smile.

Hermione frowned. "But my passion is in reading books and exploring new knowledge. Anthony pursues knowledge merely to complete whatever task is at hand."

"Professor Snape, pursues knowledge for the sack of knowledge." Ginny remarked.

"Are you suggesting I should marry Severus Snape?" Hermione questioned.

"You didn't cross him off the list." Ginny replied.

Hermione frowned. "I didn't cross him off because he's a hero, a brilliant man, and according to Harry, has a heart, contrary to popular belief."

"You would have to be married to a man that loved your best friend's mom, who's dead." Ginny retorted.

Hermione sighed. "I'm getting in a loveless marriage so what does it matter if he loves someone else. At least I know he is loyal, smart, and brave."

"You make him sound like a Gryffindor." Ginny said with a shake of her head.

"He is, in a way." Hermione smiled.

"It sounds like you've made up your mind." Ginny responded with a frown.

"Snape will probably go back to teaching at Hogwarts, there will be a safe routine then, and I'll be able to work at the Ministry. He is independent which means he can take care of himself without me around. He is, obviously, loyal to Dumbledore and our side, has been for a long time. He is smart but not pretentious. I know that he wouldn't physically hurt me. And I'm sure that he would not protest to me finding my parents, he may even help me."

"I think that you're forgetting that you must sleep with him and bear his children." Ginny interjected.

"You forget that I will have to bear one of these men's children and I'm sure that I'm not going to have to pretend to enjoy it with him at least."

"Ron's not going to like this."

"I don't like this either but there's not a lot I can do about it now. I will get this law overturned but I can't do it in a week."

"Is this really the man you want to spend the rest of your life with?" Ginny asked softly. "This new law doesn't seem to give you the option of a divorce."

Hermione laughed bitterly. "Why should it give us that chance?"

"I think you should choose Anthony." Ginny urged. "You two at least have the option of being friends through all of this mess."

"I'm sure that if I marry Anthony I will be marrying his friends too. Terry Boot will be in my house constantly." Hermione groaned. "Besides doesn't Anthony hate cats, that would mean Crookshanks couldn't live with me."

"Well, Crookshanks could live with Harry and me. And I know that you don't like Terry but at least they're both Ravenclaws." Ginny objected.

Hermione turned to the young red head as if she was seeing her for the first time. "Is this about him being Slytherin?"

"It's going to hurt your reputation to marry a Slytherin." Ginny reasoned.

"He's a hero, I don't think that's going to hurt my reputation." Hermione responded as she turned back to her parchment and made another note.

"It sounds like you've already made up your mind." Ginny muttered, standing up and dusting herself off.

"No, I am merely thinking this through logically." Hermione said looking up at Ginny.

"Just owl the Ministry and be done with this." Ginny sighed.

"I want to wait until the end of the week. That gives me a chance to find out if Snape is in St. Mungo's."

"Why?"

"I want to find out how he survived." Hermione answered.

"No one's going to be happy about any of this." Ginny said turning to look at the Burrow.

Hermione crossed off Anthony's name and circled Snape's before vanishing the quill and extra parchment. Slowly, she stood and the refolded the letter before sliding it in her pocket. "Let's keep this between us for now."