You're Married, Professor! Part 2
Teen · Romance · Drama · Humor · Post-War · Established Relationship · Multi-chapter · On Hiatus
I declare that the whole world of Harry Potter is the sole property of J.K. Rowling and that this story was not written for profit.
Hermione's head was ringing. Whenever she pictured the way they had parted, she couldn't even properly focus on what her classmate was actually saying to her.
At the café she found out that Grint was a distant cousin of Ronald's, which didn't bring her much joy either. At first she couldn't believe it, but then she looked him over and had to laugh at herself. "You're Ron all over!" she blurted out, and felt ashamed. Grint's red hair, brown eyes and his whole build. It was as if she had Ron sitting across from her.
When they had finished their coffee and assured each other they would stay in touch, they said goodbye. But Hermione didn't head home yet. She needed to calm down and sort out her thoughts. Severus's behaviour wasn't doing her any good and she had absolutely no idea what was driving him to it. Or rather, no idea is probably the wrong way to put it. She understood it, but she had no intention of accepting it. Besides, he was really overdoing it. He had never done this at Hogwarts. He was a loving man with his flaws, and there were plenty of them, from sarcastic remarks aimed at everyone, herself included, to the spells when he withdrew and spent whole days in the laboratory without sticking his nose out. But this?
In the end Hermione arrived at their front door and swallowed. She knew it would be a fight of enormous proportions, but she had no intention of letting herself be beaten. Nor of backing down. This was their life together and it had to have some boundaries! When she walked into the flat, she took off her shoes, tossed her keys on the shelf and went straight to the living room, where her husband really was sitting, acting as if she didn't exist. He didn't react to her quiet "Hi." Hermione walked over and sat down in the armchair opposite him. Severus didn't even try to lower his newspaper, so she swung her arm and grabbed it in the middle so she could see him. She tore it out of his hands and, furious at being ignored, blurted out, "Can we finally talk?" Severus responded by raising his eyes to her over the ruined newspaper and settling back comfortably in his armchair. "What do you want to talk about?" Hermione muttered to herself, "Relax, Hermione, take it easy!" and settled more comfortably too. "I understand that you don't want people to know I'm your wife. Favouritism, accusations and so on, but Severus! For one thing, nobody at school even knows you're married, and for another, you treat me worse than any of the other students. Maybe you're afraid there will be gossip if you're decent to me, but since nobody has the faintest idea you're married, there's no danger anyone would connect it with me!" She didn't even realise it, but she was slowly raising her voice. "And besides! The more you tease, the more you please! People might rather think you're interested in me! You treated me worse than you ever did at Hogwarts! And there's NOBODY here who feels the bloody need to watch you, like the Slytherins did!"
Severus sat with his hands folded in his lap, and at the end of her monologue he smiled lazily. "I don't know what you're talking about. You came late. Then you didn't pay attention in class! I have NEVER tolerated that," he announced calmly, but in a dangerously quiet voice, stressing the word never. "What I'm more interested in is what that was supposed to mean! You're a married woman and you go off for a little coffee?" He looked at her through narrowed eyes.
Hermione opened her mouth soundlessly and realised he was manipulating her. "Really, Severus? And don't you think you completely threw me under the bus? Besides, damn it, we live together! And you go off to school without me and don't wake me on purpose? Why did you let me sleep?" She couldn't understand and shook her head. "I really don't get it! It's just completely confused, childish and pointless, and I can't think of one single reason that would make you do it!"
Severus was still looking at her. Not for all of Merlin's knowledge and skill would he admit to her that he had overslept himself. That he hadn't even had time to wash. That he had nearly killed himself trying to get dressed. That once he was finally dressed, he spilled hot coffee all over himself and had to change, and that even though he was married, because of their different schools he had been living alone again, so while he fought his way through the whole morning, he forgot she was sleeping next to him and that she was going to the same school as him. By the time it dawned on him, he was already in his office. The whole morning left him in an extremely bad mood, and since he was trying to be a better professor, he tried to rein it in, but all that effort somehow went straight to the happy hunting grounds the moment he saw his former Know It All student, and he took all his anger out on her. It would be wrong to say he didn't regret it, but on the other hand, she had finished the job nicely with that little coffee of hers!
"So, Severus? Will you explain it to me? Or should I prepare for a whole degree's worth of spite from you?" Severus slammed his hands on the armrests. "You're winding me up! You know that, don't you?! All my life I've managed to keep myself in check, but you just provoke me beyond belief. My reasons are mine alone and I don't need to explain them to anyone! But you still haven't answered me! Did you want to get back at me with that coffee, or have you found yourself a new potential Weasley?!" he spat.
Hermione gasped and stood up. "Severus, you are a first class bastard! Bloody well pull yourself together! I won't put up with this, and I'm still your wife, damn it! You should sort out the way you treat me! I stopped being a frightened little schoolgirl a long time ago! Not that I ever was one. You were more of a nasty inconvenience we had to get through! But in the years we worked together, I got to know you well. You're not normally like this! I don't know what's crawled up your backside, but try to find a solution! And Weasley! I fell out with Ron and Harry and chose you, because I love you, and you're taking such magical care of that love of mine!" With that she started to leave, but turned back once more. "All through Hogwarts I was friends with two boys, does it really surprise you that I made friends with one here?! Do you really think I'll stay at this school without any friends? That boy saw how unfair you were and was only trying to set it right and help me! You completely ruined my first day and my impression of the school! Thanks!" And she slammed the bedroom door behind her.
Severus suddenly realised two things. First, he would apparently never win against his lioness. He chuckled and reached for his tea. Second, by the time he had got home, all his anger had evaporated and regret for all of it had taken its place.
By the time it would have been nice to go to bed, Hermione still hadn't come out of the room. So Severus decided to make peace with his lioness. He made dinner and knocked on the door. When she didn't answer, he went in.
She was lying on the bed on her stomach, sulkily reading some book. Severus had to laugh inwardly, because she was holding it upside down. Clearly she had grabbed it in a hurry so she would look busy. Severus wasn't stupid, that was the one thing nobody had ever accused him of, so he knew he had really hurt her. "Hermione," he said calmly. When she didn't react, he walked around the bed to her side, to be as close to her as possible, and lay down right on top of her. He wrapped his arms around her and pinned her to the bed so she couldn't move.
At first Hermione said nothing and didn't even try to free herself, but she had to hold her breath or he would have squeezed it out of her, so after a while she felt she needed to breathe. She wriggled and heard Severus's voice by her ear. "I'm sorry, little one! I behaved like an idiot. I admit it... I made a nice dinner, and in the morning I'll wake you and we'll have breakfast together! I promise..." She squeaked. She was starting to feel unpleasantly short of air and began to struggle, but Severus didn't budge, and Hermione burst into breathless laughter. "Damn it, Severus, I can't breathe!" To which Severus replied, "So? Will you show me mercy?" He kissed her ear. "Yes, yes! Now let me go!" At that Severus finally got up, and Hermione sat up and took a nice deep breath. "So, dinner, you say?" She had meant to sulk, but when he was trying so hard, and she was hungry on top of that, she couldn't resist and followed him to the kitchen.
Severus was rubbing his hands over how neatly he had slipped out of it. He seated Hermione at the table like a gentleman and then sat down opposite her. "So, if we put the bad day aside." He raised his hand when Hermione wanted to say something. "Yes, I'm a first class bastard and I won't do it again!" To which she cut in, "Where's your ring?" That threw Severus. "Well, if I don't want anyone to know I'm married, maybe that's why?" Hermione frowned, but said nothing. Severus shuddered at the thought that they would be fighting again. "Don't look for anything else behind it!" And from under his house shirt he pulled out a chain, with his wedding ring swinging at the end of it. Hermione looked at her own hand, she wore hers on a chain too, and she made a quick decision. "Fine. But I'm going to start wearing mine." She undid the chain and slipped the ring onto her finger. "I'll know you have yours on your chest, close to your heart, but Severus! If anything ever happens that makes me cry over this, I hope you'll put it on and stop all this fuss!" Severus propped his chin on his hand and looked at her with that intense gaze of his. "Fine." Hermione took some salad from the bowl and some roasted chicken pieces from the plate. "You really decided to make up for it properly, didn't you? My favourite food..." She smacked her lips, and Severus smirked and ran his foot along her leg under the table to hint that he had even more planned... Hermione scowled at him, but quickly shovelled her food down so he could carry on with his thorough apology!
The next morning Hermione woke up on her own without an alarm. She snuggled up to her still sleeping husband and pressed a kiss to his neck. Severus only grumbled. She laughed quietly and went to make breakfast and coffee, as she used to when she worked as Severus's assistant.
Still in her nightdress, she whisked eggs, then moved them onto a plate next to the already fried, crispy bacon and put it all on the table, where toast and fresh butter were already waiting. She made coffee to go with it and checked the clock. Then she cast a warming charm and went to brush her teeth. Severus was usually in the bathroom first and had mostly brushed his teeth already. Severus sniffed the air and smiled, waking up like this was nice. He slowly shuffled out of bed and went to brush his teeth, where Hermione joined him. While he showered, she brushed her teeth and then took his place in the shower. He went off to get dressed. He pulled out classic black trousers and steamed them with a quick spell so the creases were pressed. He put on his underwear, socks and trousers, and then took out a dark green shirt and a black jacket. He didn't forget to look in Hermione's wardrobe and took out a favourite dress he had bought her before. Hermione headed for the wardrobe right after him, but Severus was already sitting with his coffee and breakfast, waiting for her. He was holding the Ohio wizarding newspaper and studying what had happened where. Right underneath it lay the English paper too.
When she saw the dress, she smiled to herself happily and got dressed quickly. A dress meant heels. She hoped she could go straight to school with Severus. Then she joined him and took the English paper he had put aside. When she heard Severus sip his coffee, she looked at him over the top of the newspaper and watched him smile at her. "It's time, we should go. I still need to prepare for my lesson and you'll probably be looking for the lecture hall. Today we only have each other for the last double period." "Hmm," she answered and quickly cleared away the plates and the empty coffee cups.
At the door Severus ran his eyes over her, hummed in satisfaction and buttoned his jacket. Then he took her hand and they left the building together.
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Mimosa Confiante
By day, I work somewhere between marketing, copy and campaigns; by night, I usually end up somewhere between fanfiction, cosplay and yet another “what if” that refuses to leave me alone. I write mainly in the Harry Potter and Mo Dao Zu Shi fandoms, most often Snarry, Snamione, HarryLu and WangXian. My healthcare background means that anatomy, medicine and far too much research occasionally find their way into my stories. Cosplay is another way for me to play with the characters I love, whether I stay close to canon or turn them into my own fanfiction and AU versions. In Diary of a Slytherin Girl with ADHD, I write openly about life with a brain that usually has far too many tabs open at once.
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