What Should Have Been

{12}

It was nearly a week since they should have been married, and it was long enough for both Severus and Hermione to be rather emotionally drained. They'd fought and cried, and by Merlin, they just wanted things back to a semblance of normalcy. Although neither wanted to give in on their point of view.

Severus was ultimately hurt still, how could he not be? Hermione still blamed him for it all and had requested that he change at least a small bit to show he still cared about her; still loved her. It simply looked as they were getting nowhere.

Looking through her day and realizing it was quite empty, Hermione decided that to be the bigger wizard, she would approach him first. Who knew what he was up to, though she guessed he was probably shacked up into his potions' room doing positively nothing but sulking over a brew. At least it would make him easier to find, she thought.

Hermione apparated quickly after changing into something presentable, but she wasn't expecting the block of wards he'd placed up that sent her directly outside of his apartment. He'd locked her out?

Feeling a bit sick from the unplanned shift, she had to lean back against the hall and look about, hoping desperately no one saw her just pop into the hallway. There weren't any muggles about, so she easily slipped up to the door after her recovery and knocked. She knocked a second time, completely ignoring the doorbell on her left until it caught her eye in anguish. Feeling a slight bit foolish, the brunette wondered if maybe this was a sign that she shouldn't be there. Not that Hermione believed that rubbish.

One press of the doorbell and the intimidating, black door swung open on its hinges with an imperious dark wizard behind it. His face looked as though he had seen Voldemort over her shoulder, however. Was he really surprised she would confront him? Did he know her at all?

Hermione looked back to her thoughts over the week, wondering if he had been thinking about it as much as she... by the look of his pristine manner, maybe he hadn't thought of her at all.

"May I come in?" She wondered at him, gesturing inside of his flat.

"Surely," he managed to compose, but he couldn't get the war of facial features under control on his visage, it seemed.

"I figured we needed to talk, and I came to see how you've been thinking over the past few days. I wanted to know your thoughts on our situation here, if you've come to any conclusions as to why I did what I did."

She thought the stoic approach was wise, and maybe it would have been if he hadn't been thrown into the throng of things with his own memory lapse. Maybe things could have simply been better, but they weren't, so Severus Snape stood there horrifyingly still and gawked at her.

"Come to any conclusions?" He rasped. "Do you think this is a matter of legal importance? This happens to be our life you're speaking so politically of!"

"And I thought you'd be more diplomatic about this! You were always the one who spoke like this was a business deal," Hermione pursed her lips and looked at him with steely brown eyes.

"Yes, a whole evening I spent proposing to you with the softest and most decadent words I could have scraped from my most walled-up heart, was the epitome of my professional career," Severus sneered ar her, violently swiping his hand through the air.

"That was one night, Severus, one night which you were completely forgiving of your facade."

"Hermione, you are asking me to be someone I am not."

"Forgive me for asking for who I commenced this relationship with," Hermione retorted.

"Ah, so it is a relationship now?" Severus wondered in faux amusement, "At any rate, you hardly seem to notice that you've done wrong."

"What I did was idiotic, but I had had my reasons then. I will not apologize."

"Of course not."

They both tossed loathed looks at one another as they faced what had been unknowingly brewing between them for weeks.

"We must talk through this, Severus... I am not leaving until we come to an agreement," Hermione determined for the both of them.

"Well, then I hope you are feeling quite liberal tonight, my dear because I do have an idea for us."

Walking through the flat, feeling Severus follow her, Hermione sat down on a sofa and brought her feet up under her, getting comfortable to hear yet another proposal from him. She hardened herself lest he attempt to berate her.

"Severus, what is it you--"

"Propose?" He finished for her, and quickly he started to talk again seeing the perturbed look on her face, "Well, it's quite simple really. We will continue with the bonding, as planned, due to your muggle pretenses of not daring to live with me completely before a marriage ensues. If we are to work this out, it must be together... alone. I am not a pliable man, Hermione Granger, and your stubbornness has always rivaled mine in many unattractive ways. I love you, that I have not ever doubted, but as you should see: my idea is our best choice."

"But the ceremony," she stuttered as if their whole upset hadn't even happened. "All of our friends shan't be there at such impromptu--"

"Sod it. I never wanted such a crowd anyways."

"It's binding... and it won't solve any of our problems!"

"The binding shall not, but if you love me then we, ourselves, may solve this dilemma."

"Fine."

In all honesty of truth, Severus had expected her to throw a wild fit and detest and protest the very thought of marrying in the state they were in. His logic was perverse, in all honesty, torturing him and her to live with one-another to solve their problems while most developed problems when co-inhabiting. His suprise must have swayed her.

"Unless you were jesting, in which case--" Severus held up a hand and crossed over the expanse of his sitting room to gently place himself down next to her.

"I bring up no hypothesis in which I do not believe."

"So... we're really going to marry? And live together under such deplorable circumstances?" Hermione whispered her question out, attempting to remain steely, but her heart yearned for a wedding and another magical soul to bond to.

"Yes, the bond should make it easier, I've heard that our feelings for one-anther become quite... impassioned."

Hermione jolted, scooting rather uncermoniously backwards at the sound of sultriness in his voice.

"I do not care how much the bond changes the way my attraction pulls me to you, we will simply be living with one-another."

Severus nodded, though he had a smirk threatening his lips. It was like his own form of pay-back, to love her so deeply that she looked uncomfortable. This is what she recieved for not thinking that he loved her enough; for thinking him an ignorant abuser. His mind argued against better thinking that maybe his completely one-eighty changes in mood were probably a reason why Hermione was so short with him.

"Fine then, how do you say to us going now, Hermione?" He tried rather hard to lace his voice with a desperate sort of want.

Still, she looked like a first-year the first time they ever saw a ghost.

"My things are still--"

"I've enough here, you see."

Hermione watched the imposing man stand tall and stretch out his hand to her, and with a shaky breath she took it... hoping beyond hope that it would most certainly solve their problems.

A/N

This felt like it needed to end here so it did.

And, have I mentioned that this will be wrapping up in a few chapters?

I have a much better story on its way with actual plot and cool things like that. (Still very much Snamione)

Sorry it's late, by the way, I've been uncharacteristically busy as of late.

AND HAPPY MOTHER's DAY TO ALL THE MOMS OUT THERE. 🌸