Chapter 2: An Intellectual Solution
{A/N: Here's another update}
My Thanks To My Readers and Reviewers...Enjoy-S.S.
The Dining Hall,12 Grimmauld Place, Muggle World...
Hermione Granger had not been sure why Professor Dumbledore insisted upon meeting with her once the rest of the Order Members had settled in for the night. It had taken some time to keep Harry and Ron from finding themselves conveniently within the halls to eavesdrop on their conversation as Dumbledore instructed her to meet him without either of them being any the wiser. She had known that something was going on with the way Molly Weasley kept looking at her and hugging her quite a bit given that there was no real call for it. She had even gone out of her way to announce repeatedly how much she thought of her as a daughter. Sirius had been acting strange as well, a lavishing a good deal of attention on the young witch. He had often referred to her as Kitten a time or two since she and Harry saved him from Azkaban and the dementors. Professor Lupin would often give her sad looks then try his best to smile as if he had been putting on a brave face for some inevitably sad conclusion.
Feeling concern creep into her cool demeanor, Hermione made her way through the large oak doors that lined the meeting room and former house dining hall. When she arrived, the young witch could sense the heaviness of the unspoken topic as she took a seat on the opposite end of the lengthy table while Dumbledore took the other.
"Thank you for meeting me at such a late hour, Miss Granger." he said pleasantly despite the anxious atmosphere.
"Professor, if you don't mind I'd like to know what's so urgent that you needed to talk to me alone." she said wishing to get right to the point.
Truthfully speaking, the suspense had been leading her to come to all sorts of unsavory conclusions, one of which had brought out concern for the well-being of her Muggle parents.
"Not to worry Miss Granger." assured Dumbledore. "For now the topic for which I am about to discuss with you does not go into effect until certain requirements are met."
"Then why the urgency if you do not mind my asking?" asked the inquisitive witch.
Dumbledore smiled.
The little witch was clever indeed.
"I wish to provide you with something that not many witches nor wizards for that matter are fortunate to have when they are to be faced with your particular predicament." replied The Headmaster.
"My predicament?" she asked confused by his words.
"Forgive me I appear to be getting ahead of myself." said Dumbledore. "You may not be aware...but we have it on good authority that the Ministry of Magic intends to pass a law in which Muggle-Born witches and wizards are to marry into magical lineage bound families in a bid to preserve the ever lessening of magical blood in the wizarding world... as I am sure you are quite aware of your impending legal age...but I am afraid that is the very thing making you a target for unsavory things brewing on the horizon."
"What sort of unsavory things?" asked Hermione with an arched eyebrow.
"For starters, as we are well aware of the upcoming decree, so is the dark lord." said Dumbledore in a serious tone. "He intends to twist the new law into his favor by having his eligible death eaters marry Muggle-Borns in an attempt to make it easier to kill them off one by one."
The young witch gasped in horror.
"T-That's horrible!" she said not at all wishing to live in a world where Voldemort's darkest dreams have taken shape.
"It is indeed Miss Granger, and I am afraid you...being the friend of his enemy Harry Potter makes you a very well sought after target among his followers."
"T-There's no way I am marrying a death eater!" she said defiantly.
"I'm afraid Miss Granger, that the Ministry has given you little choice as far as potential husbands go." replied Dumbledore. "However, I have called you here to discuss a way to thwart the dark lord's plans for you."
"What can we do?" asked Hermione seeing the faint glimmer of hope within an entirely hopeless situation.
"Miss Granger, I have proposed that you find a husband of your own." said The Headmaster. "One whom can withstand the onslaught of the death eaters, as they will no doubt try and murder whomever you choose in a bid to free your hand for their own ambitions, naturally Molly Weasley's boys are not eligible due to this factor."
The amber eyed witch thought for a moment as the Headmaster spoke. She needed to come up with someone to marry that would not only save her from the onslaught of death eaters but would be willing to allow her to continue her life as it was. She had no intention of becoming some barefoot and pregnant trophy for someone of the likes of Draco Malfoy although he had not quite been of age just yet to be eligible.
No.
She had to pick someone who wouldn't expect too much from her as far as being married goes. Someone that seemed to loathe physical contact enough to not want to bed her just because the wind blew.
Someone that had been mature and intelligent enough to hold at least a small conversation. She couldn't see herself with anyone boring no matter how grateful she would have been to have her life spared.
A brief flash of Severus Snape entered her mind. The dark mark on his pale forearm had come to mind as well.
"W-What about Professor Snape." she said simply babbling the first thought that came from her tangled thoughts.
Dumbledore's blue eyes held an unnerving twinkle as a smile filed across his pleasant looking face.
"You truly are the brightest witch of your age." said Dumbledore. "Severus would make a fine choice of a husband, and he fits all the necessary requirements needed to keep you safe from the death eaters as well as allow for your continued education at Hogwarts."
"A-Are you sure he'll agree to it?" asked Hermione nervously.
She had not been on very good terms with the Potions Professor given her many transgressions against him in the past, from setting his cloak on fire during her first years to spelling him across the room during third year and stealing valuable ingredients from his potions stores for hi-jinks with Ron and Harry.
"I most certainly, assure you that he will." said Dumbledore with his blue eyes twinkling once more. "I suppose there isn't much to worry about given that you have found an intellectual solution to this marriage law problem...get some rest Miss Granger, I will speak with Severus on your behalf."
Hermione got to her feet feeling a bit heavy in her footing as she made her way toward the door. She wasn't sure that Snape would agree to marrying her given his abrasive nature.
He would probably laugh in her face while celebrating her impending doom.
"Everything will work itself out Miss Granger, I simply felt you deserved to know what was to occur given your age, you have quite a bit of time before than to enjoy."
The amber eyed witch nodded and took her leave of the elder Headmaster. She hoped he had been right about convincing Snape to take her hand in marriage, she had not wanted to be at the mercy of Voldemort's death eaters.
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The Sitting Room, 12 Grimmauld Place, Muggle World...
Unable to sleep for fear of her impending future as a random wizard's wife, Hermione Granger sat in the darkness of Sirius Black's family sitting room staring at the pages of a book who's lines she read repeatedly before attempting to finish the page. Her stomach had been in knots and her palms grew sweaty. She thought she had become a good deal as worrisome as Ron as she wondered what life would be like once she reached the age of sixteen. The Ministry of Magic were clearly attempting to overshadow the whispers of Voldemort's return while the despot himself was attempting to capitalize on their folly. The impending law was not only affecting Muggle-Borns but all witches and wizards that came of age. They were to be forced into marriage with individuals that wouldn't always have their best interests at heart.
Hermione sighed as she thought back to what she had known of Professor Snape.
She wondered if he would indeed have her best interest at heart, given his abrasive nature on even the most pleasant of days. There was a lot to be desired as far as The Potions Professor's personality was concerned but he had truly been her best option. The mark on his arm, in full view was a glimpse into the private affairs of a man that had been a constant staple of her Hogwarts life for as long as her friends had. His cold obsidian gaze had been fixed on her a time or two, mostly when she spoke out of turn or when she interrupted his lectures. He had not seemed all that fond of any Gryffindors given his natural inclination to support Slytherin at every turn.
Then again, all the Professors favored their own houses, even Professor McGonagall whom had a notorious disliking of all things Slytherin. What had been strange was that the elder witch seemed to take a liking to Snape in some respects. He couldn't possibly have been all bad if her own Head of House tolerated him.
With another exasperating sigh, the amber eyed witch closed the book she had been struggling to read. It wouldn't have done her any good to drag out the slow process of pretending to read it any way. Feeling the need for rest finally overtaking her, Hermione got to her feet and attempted to make her way toward the stairs in a bid to get to bed. She had gotten half way there when she found herself running into what appeared to be an ebony wall yet again.
In her distraction, the young witch had not heard the door open, nor did she see the slumped over figure of Severus Snape as he attempted to focus his efforts on reaching the comforting darkness of the basement.
"I-I'm sorry Professor." said Hermione out of instinct given it was Snape she usual crashed into while rounding corners.
She waited for the inevitable chastising but had been shocked to find that there was none to be had. Or at least that is what she assumed when she looked up to find Severus Snape glaring rather murderously at her. She had been about to go into another round of her most sincerest apologies when she noticed what appeared to be blood on his right cheek.
The young witch's curiosity had gotten the better of her as she moved, not even recalling getting back to her feet since her focus was on the apparent blood that added an unwanted bit of color to the dour wizard's cheek.
Snape had been dizzy from his long list of injuries, the dark lord had sent him and a few other fellow death eaters into battle against a group of Aurors in training. Unfortunately for Snape, this particular group was headed by Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody himself and to say there were met with resistance was an understatement. It seemed The Dark Lord was intent on his newly returned member proving his loyalty even by the most suicidal of means. Like everything else he had set his mind to, Snape excelled beyond the despot's wildest dreams despite being bested by Moody and nearly killed in the process.
Now he stood face to face with a curious amber eyed witch whom had no doubt been attempting to inquire about his recent injuries. The blood from the cut on his right cheek had evidently gotten her attention as she ceased her infernal blubbering and was inching toward him in a decisively familiar way. Snape instantly drew back catching the foolish girl's hand before it came in contact with his face.
"What do you think you are doing Miss Granger?" he asked seeming to break her from a trance with his cold and harsh tone.
"I-I..." began Hermione not sure she had an explanation for what had just occurred. "I don't rightly know sir."
"Stupid girl." muttered Snape. "I suggest you make your way to bed and it would do well for you to mind your own business."
With that, he released her hand, a delicate and soft hand at that and moved passed her determined to keep himself from showing weakness even to this young girl in the wake of the tremendous amount of agony he had been suffering. He focused on getting to the basement, to his makeshift lab and then to bed. He would not be able to apparate any further in his current condition and his body needed time to heal.
Hermione Granger watched in a combination of shock and awe as her Potions Professor made his way down to The Black Family basement. She had not doubt that he was going to get his hands on a health potion, but to see him injured...this constant and seemingly indestructible force of nature that caused students to tremble in dread no matter their age, was seemingly human after all.
The amber eyed witch had thought it sad that Snape had been so isolated even with it being apparent that he preferred it that way. She made up her mind to at least attempt to get to know him, that was if Dumbledore could convince him to marry. With one last look at the direction Snape had gone in, Hermione made her way up the stairs toward her designated bedroom.
She still had some time before her 16th birthday and a whole summer to enjoy just being with her friends again. Hermione willed herself to focus on the positive aspects of her young life, she was still alive and more than willing to join the older members of the Order of Phoenix in the fight against the despot Voldemort. Only now she was up for ending the tyranny of the Ministry of Magic as well.