AN: Thank you for all the support! It is very deeply appreciated!
It was best that Ginevra pick up Hermione's things from her apartment. Although Hermione had initially objected, Severus was able to persuade her that this was the best course of action. The last thing anyone wanted was unnecessary drama on Severus' wedding day. Hermione couldn't help but notice it was always referred to as Severus' wedding day. Was he the only one that got married today? Why wasn't it ever Hermione's wedding day? Sure, he was a hero, but people admired her too. Why was this not her wedding day?
It was also difficult not to notice that nobody had given her their congratulations. Instead, those around her were behaving as if they'd left the funeral of someone who had left a complicated legacy. It was odd given that her dress was amazing and her vows were beautiful. Why was nobody acknowledging how wonderful she was? Was it so hard to admit she'd had the perfect wedding? Why was nobody complimenting her on how amazing everything was?
To be honest, it was all quite rude.
Lucius had advised Hermione not to return to work tomorrow. He claimed it was to unpack her things and adjust to living with Severus.
"I'll have my whole life to adjust to living with Severus though," she argued. "I want to go to work tomorrow."
"Yes, but getting a head start on learning to live with him is advisable," Lucius replied.
"Why?"
"Because you don't want to come home to a complete stranger."
"Oh that's okay. I know Severus," she lowered her voice as the gleam in her eyes grew, "I know him in so many ways."
Her husband blushed.
"Yes, but everything about married life is so fresh for you," Lucius continued. "Best to allow yourself some time to adjust to your new reality."
She shrugged before her eyes brightened. "I can get those books on memory charms! I need to read them now!"
"Yes, you can do that," Lucius turned to Severus. "Where are those books?"
"They are on the coffee table," Severus pointed to four books stacked atop each other. "I collected them the morning after we, uh, reconnected."
"Oh thank you." She kissed his cheek. "I am going to enjoy being your spouse, especially if you're going to be so considerate towards me."
"I am going to do my best not to make you miserable anyway," he swallowed.
"You're already succeeding," she picked up the books. "You've admitted the project is hard without telling me it's impossible and without telling me I'm stupid for pursuing it. I appreciate that more than you realize."
"I will support you in any way I can," he answered.
"Thank you," she gave him a soft smile before she opened the first book.
The fireplace lit up. Severus granted entry to the newcomer.
"Okay, I think I got everything from Ron's apartment, or at least as much as I'm going to get today," Ginevra announced as she brushed herself off. Then, she turned to Hermione. "If you're missing anything, tell me and I can pick it up."
"I can pick it up myself later," Hermione offered.
"Trust me, it's best if I serve as an intermediary between you and Ron," Ginevra finished brushing herself off. Then, she began pulling tiny boxes out of her pocket and placing them on the ground.
"Did you run into any trouble collecting Hermione's things?" Severus asked.
"Not exactly." She took a deep breath. "Mum and Dad were there. They had a few things to say, most of them not appropriate to say in polite company. Needless to say, they aren't taking any of this well."
"I deeply apologize for you having to face them alone."
"Don't be. I'm used to Mum and Dad calling me a traitor and accusing me of abandoning the family. As for Hermione, well," Ginevra shrugged. "it isn't anything I didn't hear during my third year."
"Are they calling me a traitor who betrayed the family?" Hermione frowned.
"Those are the nicest things they said about you anyway," Ginevra finished placing the boxes on the ground. Then, she enlarged them.
"Why is everyone so upset with me? I didn't mean to hurt Ron," Hermione raised her voice. "It isn't my fault things ended badly between us and I moved on quicker than he did. He needs to get over it already!"
"Don't you think it's a little unrealistic for someone to get over a breakup in two days?"
"Why not? I did it."
"Yes, you moved on very quickly."
"I know, but things happen quickly sometimes."
Ginevra turned to Severus.
"Apparently fate works in mysterious ways," he answered.
"I don't think fate told you to sleep with Ron's fiancé," Ginevra furrowed her eyebrows.
"It was my understanding that Hermione was his ex-fiancé."
"I was his ex-fiancé," Hermione argued.
"Excuse me, ex-fiancé." Ginevra coughed.
"I'll read these books later," Hermione set them down. "I need to unpack."
"That you do," Lucius replied. "If you would like any help, I am happy to be of assistance."
"No, I'm fine," Hermione answered. "I can do everything myself."
"Would you like to change out of your wedding dress?" Draco asked.
"Why? It's comfortable," she argued.
"Yes, but you may ruin it if you wear it for too long."
"Don't worry. I'll be careful."
"I know you will be as careful in it as possible," Severus cut in. "Still, it is such a beautiful dress. I would be devastated if something happened to it."
"You would?"
"Yes, I love the dress, and would be upset if you accidentally soiled it or tore it while unloading your things."
"I suppose I would be upset too," she admitted.
"Then you should change out of it to ensure nothing happens to it."
"Okay," she stretched. "I have some clothes in my suitcase. I can put on a pair of shorts and an old t-shirt. That's better for unpacking my things anyway."
"That sounds like an excellent idea."
She gave him a small wave before she strolled out of the sitting room down the hallway.
"Now that she's gone," Ginevra glared at Severus and hissed, "what the hell were you thinking sleeping with her?"
Severus frowned. "I was thinking this Ministry law is nonsense and I wanted to have some fun before I was forced to get married."
"Forget the law," Ginevra snapped. "What were you thinking sleeping with her in particular? There were many other women you could have fun with. Why pick her?"
"She was single and a more than willing partner. We got caught up in the moment, and now we are wed."
"How long had you been in contact before…" Lucius asked.
"We only reconnected two nights ago," Severus answered.
"So this wasn't an ongoing affair?"
Severus shook his head.
"Merlin Uncle Severus, why did you decide that Hermione was to be your wife?" Draco asked.
"I told you, I didn't know about the marriage clause because I didn't read the entire article outlining the marriage law" Severus argued.
"Weren't you the one who told me to always read the fine print?"
"I didn't think there would be any fine print. I mean, we cannot even have sexual relations without them being controlled by the Ministry?"
"Apparently," Draco replied.
"Hermione isn't wrong to point out that this is a huge violation of privacy."
"Perhaps, but you still should've seen this coming."
He groaned.
"You know the press will be on your doorstep soon, demanding to know why Granger married you, not Weasley," Lucius warned.
"Technically she's Mrs. Snape now, not Granger," Severus argued.
"I will never get used to hearing her called that," Draco admitted.
"I doubt I'll ever get used to saying that."
"You need to get used to it," Narcissa began from the couch. "For better or worse, she is now Mrs. Snape."
"In her case," Severus deflated. "It's for worse."
"At least she may settle down now that she's married and the stress of the marriage law is behind her," Ginevra piped up.
"Excuse me?" Severus asked.
"Haven't you seen her lately?" Ginevra continued. "If I didn't know you were an honorable man, I would've thought you put her under some type of spell or gave her an illegal potion. She's unfocused, ecstatic, and not taking anything seriously. No matter what anyone tells her or how much trouble she's in, she's ecstatic."
"I'm sure she's just making the best of a horrid situation. Better to be too happy than too depressed."
"She doesn't even care about the love of her life."
"Why should she care about him? He broke up with her."
"That's funny, because Ron said they hadn't broken up. He said it was just another fight that they would've gotten through and you and the law had not interfered."
"Has it ever occurred to you that Ronald regrets his actions, but there's no way of rectifying the situation, So in his frustration he's telling people stories to make himself look better?"
"Has it ever occurred to you that Hermione may be doing the same thing?"
"I believe Hermione," he lowered his voice. "As would any of her friends."
"I am her friend, which is why I'm asking you to question what she's saying," Ginevra argued.
"You want me to disbelieve my wife?"
"I want you to face reality!"
Severus scowled.
"Hermione has gone mad, and someone needs to step in and do something," Ginevra argued.
"While sleeping with Severus wasn't the most advisable course of action, one can hardly blame her for wanting a better man than Mr. Weasley," Lucius answered. "If the only way to escape that relationship was to have a sexual liaison with Severus, she did what needed to be done."
"I didn't think Hermione would hurt those around her like that," Ginevra argued.
"Perhaps as a youth she could not see herself engaging in such behavior, but sometimes one must take drastic measures to receive the desired result."
"She doesn't seem to regret her actions."
"Should she?" Severus raised an eyebrow.
"Yes!" Ginevra threw up her hands. "She should be devastated that she will never marry the love of her life."
"Perhaps she never cared for Weasley," Draco answered. "Merlin knows if I'd just left Weasley for Uncle Severus, I'd be ecstatic."
"So you think Uncle Severus is better than a Weasley?"
"No, I think your brother and Hermione had a toxic relationship that was going to destroy them both if they remained in it."
"Fine, the relationship wasn't perfect, but who has a perfect relationship?"
"There's an imperfect relationship, and there's whatever the hell they had."
Ginevra close her mouth.
"All they did was scream at each other until their throats hurt. To say it was toxic is putting it mildly," Draco noted.
"What do you call what she has with Severus?" She pointed to him. "They've only reconnected two days ago, and now they're married. Do you think anything healthy can come out of this?"
"Healthy or not, they're stuck together now."
"Against everyone's better judgment."
"There's nothing anyone can do now. All we can do is hope things work out and help however we can."
"You sound so calm about all this."
"What do you want me to do?" Draco asked. "Getting excited about all this accomplishes nothing."
"True," Ginevra admitted.
"I will do the best I can for Hermione," Severus cut in. "Whatever that looks like, I will do what is in her best interests."
"Can you get her to stop smiling all the time?" Lucius asked. "I don't think she's frowned once today. It's unnerving."
"Why should I destroy her day?" Severus asked. "If she's making the best of her wedding day, who am I to thwart her?"
"Something's not right with Hermione," Ginevra noted. "Ron is devastated, and Hermione doesn't feel the least amount of guilt. She was so excited when she and Ron moved in together. All she could talk about was the new life they were building together. Now, she's having one night stands, and is thrilled to to marry another man."
"Her career could be in jeopardy once this scandal comes out and it seems to matter little to her," Lucius noted.
"Hermione and I will discuss all the implications of this marriage," Severus replied.
"She needs more than one discussion to set her straight," Ginevra noted.
"We'll discuss it as many times as she needs," Severus argued. "Right now, I'm trying to make her day less hellish than it already is."
"I don't think she's in hell," Lucius replied.
"Good," Severus replied. "I want the day to be as pleasant as possible as for her. It's her wedding day. She deserves a bit of joy."
"At Ron's expense?" Ginevra asked.
"No, but her emotions matter too. If she wants to be happy, who are we to interfere?"
"How badly is Ron doing?" Draco's voice was quieter.
"He's devastated," Ginevra shook. "He was crying the entire time I removed Hermione's things. Of course, Mum and Dad threw a few insults my and Hermione's way, but that's nothing new."
"I'm sorry," Draco rubbed her shoulder.
"I just wish I understood what has come over Hermione. This isn't like her," Ginevra answered.
"Perhaps she's changed over the years," Lucius replied.
"The war has changed everyone," Narcissa folded her hands. "Perhaps it's had some effect on Hermione we aren't away of."
"Well she needs to snap out of it before she destroys anyone else's life," Ginevra retorted. "It's going to take Ron years to recover from this blow, and Hermione has no compassion for him. It's like she doesn't care about anyone other than herself."
"That isn't true."
Everyone turned to the doorway.
"I am sorry I hurt Ron," she entered the room, wearing black shorts and a red t-shirt with a blue outline of Australia. "I told him that several times. He needs to believe me."
"Sorry can't undo everything," Ginevra warned.
"I know, and I didn't mean to hurt him."
"I sense a but…"
"But things have changed between us, and now I'm with Severus."
Draco leaned towards Severus, "Are you sure she isn't on some kind of potion?"
"Positive," Severus stared at Hermione.
"Anyway, I'm ready to unpack. Who wants to help me?" She approached the boxes.
"I need to leave," Ginevra noted. "I need to plan a wedding to a man I know and love."
"I should join her," Draco looked at his godfather. "Goodbye and uh, good luck, Uncle Severus."
"Thank you," Severus answered.
"Yes, good luck," Lucius shook Severus' hand.
"Thank you," Severus looked at Narcissa as he released Lucius' hand.
"Congratulations," Narcissa embraced him. "Somehow, you will find a way to make each other happy."
"Thank you," Severus relaxed.
One by one, the Malfoys apparated away.
Hermione huffed before turning to Severus. "I don't think they like me much."
"What do you mean?" He asked.
"I mean I heard them in the halls, and it sounds like they're mad at me, and probably mad at you too."
"You must admit that cheating on Ginevra's brother didn't improve her opinion of you."
"I said I'm sorry Ron is hurt," Hermione snapped. "Why does nobody believe me?"
"I know you're sorry." He approached her. "I'm sure someday, Mr. Weasley will know that too."
"Thank you," She leaned against his chest. "You're very supportive."
"I will always try to support you."
"Thank you." She looked up at him. "Do you want to see which box has the books?"
"The books?"
"Yes," she laughed and took his hand. "Books are the most important thing in life. They must be unpacked first."
"So they shall be," he allowed her to lead him to the boxes, trying to expel from his mind the fact that Hermione may need not only a husband, but a guardian angel as well.