Why Me: Would the Innocent Parties Please Stand Up, or Who Wants To Cast the First Stone?

Why Me: Three Sides of the Same Coin by Pearle

Summary: Another interlude into the marital infidelity of Hermione Weasley and Severus Snape. This time, they take a few people along with them. HGSS

Companion piece to Why and Why, Indeed

Disclaimer: The characters, settings, etc. of the Harry Potter series are not mine; they belong to J.K. Rowling and Co. I promise to return them when I am through. Well, most of them anyway.

~~~~~ Why Me: Three Sides of the Same Coin ~~~~~

Chapter 6 - Why Me: Would the Innocent Parties Please Stand Up, or Who Wants To Cast the First Stone?

Ginny lay exhausted against the pillows, her hair a stark contrast to her pale complexion. A thin sheen of sweat covered her brow. The pain had finally subsided. She didn't know whether it had run its course, or the potion the Healer had given her had taken effect, either way she was grateful it had stopped. Her hand idly caressed her stomach, reassurance for both her and the baby.

Harry rushed to her side. "Ginny, are you okay? Is the baby all right?" The worry was obvious in his eyes. He had lost too many people in his short life. His heart couldn't lose her or the baby.

A slight smile crossed her lips. Her eyes opened to view her husband. "We're okay. The Healer said it was a magical surge. Seems our little one is doing magic in the womb. I suspect the Headmaster will be sending a Hogwarts letter sooner than later."

"Magic in the womb? Is that normal? It would have to be wandless magic." Harry grinned lopsidedly, relieved that she was okay. He held her hand, afraid to let go, afraid she might disappear. "You didn't send a wand in there did you, Gin?"

"There's only been one wand in there I can think of."

The sound of someone clearing their throat caught Harry's attention. "Mr. Potter, it is a great honor to meet you, sir."

Harry nodded. He had never been comfortable with the Wizarding world's hero worship of him. It had grated on his nerves as a young man and only increased in adoration in the years since his defeat of Voldemort. He understood the need to thank him, even sometimes the need to touch him, to reassure themselves that the Dark Lord was really gone. He understood it; he didn't have to like it, but he understood it. Harry's simple acceptance of his fate was what set him apart from mere mortals. He had saved the Wizarding world, and the world at large, from a heinous fate, yet he asked nothing in return. For this fact alone, he should have been touted as a hero.

Harry was long used to dealing with the admiration. "Thank you, that's very kind of you. How are my wife and baby? What does it mean, a magical surge?"

The man's countenance changed as he resumed his professional manner. "Yes, magical surge. It's very rare. Most babies do not show their talent until much older. Normally it is a manifestation of a simple desire. A toy that is out of reach that 'magically' floats across the room to them. An extreme surge of anger at a young age that starts a fire or blows something up."

Harry thought back to the time of Dudley's birthday, at the zoo, when he had made the glass of a snake cage disappear and then reappear, trapping Dudley behind it, but he had been almost eleven then.

"You are one of the most powerful wizards in our world, Mr. Potter. And you, Mrs. Potter, come from a strong, pure wizarding family."

Harry's brow furrowed, his voice mildly harsh. "Because my wife is a pureblood?"

The man's smile was genuine. "No, sir. Because there is no known history of squibs in the family, and the fact that she stood with you and the others at the final battle proves the strength of her magic. I, myself, am Muggle-born. It is one of the reasons I am most grateful to you for your unselfish devotion to this world."

Harry's shoulders slumped. He normally did not lash out at someone else. Worry for Ginny and the baby's health, coming on top of dealing with Hermione and Ron, had shaken his normally calm exterior. Oh god, Hermione and Ron were in the outer waiting room, along with Severus and his in-laws. He ran his free hand over his eyes, giving his wife's hand a quick squeeze with the other.

"Harry, what is it? I'm fine. The baby's fine. They said I could even go home." Ginny knew her husband only too well to know that something of major importance was bothering him. She was fine, now what?

"Hermione, Ron, your mum and dad, and...Snape are in the waiting room." His voice was quiet in the small room.

Ginny's eyes went wide. "Are any of them dead, yet?"

"Mr. Potter, if someone is injured in the other room..." the Healer rushed towards the door.

Harry held up his hand. "No, no one's been hurt. Yet. They're all too worried about Ginny."

"Snape?" Ginny asked in surprise. Why would he be worried about her?

"He was here seeing Hermione when one of the matrons ran to get her. I'll deal with them in a minute. Healer Addams, what do we need to watch? What care does my wife need?"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The air in the waiting room seemed to crackle around its inhabitants. Severus had grown restless sitting on the antique wooden bench, he now paced the small area in front of the elevators. It would have been an almost comical sight to watch him pace twenty feet, robes billing out menacingly behind him, only to have to turn in on himself to avoid hitting the wall so he could continue his movements. Only the scowl and the deadly gleam in his eyes held the redhead watching him in check.

Ron may have had a redhead's legendary temper, but he wasn't stupid. He had acted in anger when he Apparated to Hogwarts. He knew now he was lucky to get out with his life, due largely in part to the Headmaster and Harry. Snape was one of the most powerful wizards alive and the most dangerous. He watched Hermione worry her bottom lip.

Molly watched the others in the waiting room. Her attention was divided between worry for her daughter and her unborn grandchild and whatever mess Ron had managed to get himself into this week. Deciding to break the tension, Molly turned to her daughter-in-law. "Hermione, I was thinking of having everyone for dinner at the Burrow on Sunday. Would seven o'clock be all right with you?"

Severus stopped his incessant pacing to watch Hermione. His focus came down to this, to her answer. He would stay or leave depending on what she said. His body tensed as he watched her lick her lips before speaking.

Hermione could feel the tension humming around her. She scanned their faces, each intent on her answer to Molly's question. Ron looked so hopeful; it was all she could do not to grab her wand and hex his bits off before turning him into something useful, say a doormat she could walk on. Molly seemed to know something she wasn't saying, her eyes were shadowed as she waited for her answer. And Severus. He looked like a cross between a giant bat and a caged panther she had seen at the zoo as a little girl. She would have dearly loved to turn the floor under his feet to super glue, if only to stop the restless pacing of the man.

Hermione turned to address Molly. "Why don't you ask..."

The rest of Hermione's answer was lost as Harry opened the hospital room door.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

All heads turned toward the sound of the door opening. Harry was glad to see everyone was still in one piece. A calliope of voices reached his ears.

"Harry, is Ginny all right?"

"The baby, what about the baby?"

"Harry, what happened?"

Wearily, Harry held up his hand. "Ginny and the baby are fine. The pain has stopped. The Healer said it was a magical surge. The baby was doing a bit of magic in the womb."

"It would seem your offspring has the same disregard for the norm that you do, Potter. I should hope I retire before he, or she, reaches Hogwarts." Snape's sneer was of long practice.

Hermione turned to Severus, almost forgetting he was there. "Severus..."

Molly looked between the two. "Severus - since when is Professor Snape - Severus? What is going on here?"

"Great, now you've done it. Gone and upset my mum you have. What do you have to say for yourself? " Ron glared at the dark man but directed his comment at Hermione.

"What do I have to say for myself? I'd say, I'm not the one shagging every little chit that bats her eyes at me. That was you. Maybe if you had shown a little restraint, I wouldn't have left you." Hermione's nerves were strung tight. She glanced at Severus. A shiver ran through her just watching him flex his hands. "All right, maybe I would have left anyway," she murmured.

"Left you? Ronald Weasley, what is going on here? What is Hermione talking about? And what is Professor Snape doing here?" Molly's voice was growing in volume. Had Hermione said she knew Ron was fooling around? This was bad. Now what, and what was Snape doing here?

"I am not shagging every little chit that bats her eyes at me. You're the one shagging the bat of the dungeon, or have you forgotten." Ron and Hermione were almost nose-to-nose. They were about to engage in a full-scale, all-out screaming match.

"Me? You're the one nailing anything that moves. Tell me, Ronald, did you limit your choices to only the females, or did you double your chances by including some of the lads as well?" Hermione's voice oozed sarcasm as she spoke to her now estranged husband.

Severus smirked as he watched Weasley's face turn redder than his hair. He had to hand it to the little witch, she knew how to hit below the belt, literally.

Arthur Weasley was strangely quiet in the face of the acquisitions flying around the room. He watched his wife's cheeks flush as she started a full attack at their youngest son. His mind was actually on the meeting of the Wizengamot Council called for tomorrow afternoon. He now had some inkling of what Dumbledore would present tomorrow, in view of today's escapades.

The Healer stepped out of Ginny's room. "Do I need to remind you people this is a hospital? I hear one more word and you will all need a week to recover from the hexes you are hit with." The man's stern gaze moved from person to person, it seemed to wither as he meet the black eyes of Severus Snape. Hastily, he turned to Harry. "Please come with me, I have some discharge instructions for you and your wife."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Ron moved to the far side of the little waiting room and slumped down on the antique bench. He held his head in his hands as he tried to figure out how things had gone so impossibly wrong so quickly. By the looks of things, his mother was going to kill him. And that seemed to be the least of his problems.

Hermione and Snape. He would not have believed it if he didn't see them with his own eyes. She was standing to the side talking quietly with the greasy git. How could she choose Snape over him? Well, he was going to have to put his foot down. She couldn't divorce him, so she had better come to terms with their marriage. Maybe they should take a trip somewhere, help her get over this foolish notion of leaving him, once and for all.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Molly sat on the couch next to her husband. "Arthur, are you in a coma? You haven't said one word about any of this. What is going on between Ron and Hermione? She must know about his fooling around, but what is Professor Snape doing here?"

"I suspect he is here to see our daughter-in-law."

"Why would he want to see Hermione? You don't think the two of them...? No, she hates him." Molly's eyes went wide with surprise as she thought about exactly what 'seeing' might entail.

"She will just have to get over Ron's little indiscretions. She can't divorce him; they were married in a magical ceremony. St. Mungo's won't keep her on if they find out she's left her husband." Arthur patted his wife's hand. "It will be fine, you'll see."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Severus, I need to straighten matters out with Ron. I will owl you in a few days. Perhaps we can have dinner this weekend." Hermione bit her bottom lip; she needed to get Severus out of there. She really didn't need any more of a scene then they had already created. Any minute now, her boss would show up and relieve her of her job, just to add to today's merriment.

Severus stared at the woman in front of him. Here was his chance. What did he want? Was he willing to allow himself to be drawn into the fray, or should he cut his losses and leave? His black gaze locked with Hermione's. Severus sighed, it would seem he was going to be just as much of an idiot as Weasley and jump into the melee.

He dropped the pitch of his voice and was pleased to see Hermione shudder slightly as he spoke. "Hermione, I understand you need to settle matters here. Meet me Wednesday for dinner. Just dinner, I will not ask anything further from you. It will be enough to know you are all right. I merely want to talk, or listen, the choice is up to you. I will owl you tomorrow."

Hermione nodded. Severus was being uncharacteristically understanding about all this, but she wanted him gone before she had to face her in-laws and Ron. "All right, dinner Wednesday."

Severus nodded and strode back up the hallway to Hermione's office without a backward glance at the others. He would be damned if he was going to stand there and wait for an elevator, he would take the stairs next to her office to the ground floor.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Hermione squared her shoulders and turned back toward Ron and his parents. Her voice was cold as she addressed her husband, "Ron, since you seem bent on being the injured party here, why don't you explain to your parents about your extra-curricular activities for the last three years? I believe they started a month after we were married."

Predictably, Molly Weasley turned on her son. "Ronald, how could you? That girl in Romania wasn't the first one? You told me that was an isolated incident. You lied to your mother?" Molly's voice droned on as the woman continued to lash out at her son.

Hermione tuned out Molly's rant. At least she would not look half as bad in their eyes after Molly got through with Ron. Arthur's voice in her ear cut through her inner musings.

"There is no such thing as divorce, Hermione. How will you support yourself when knowledge of your own affair becomes public knowledge? A dalliance now and then is common among married wizards. It doesn't mean anything. Why don't you and Ron try and talk things out? You have both made mistakes, it's time to put them behind you and try again." Arthur was damned if he was going to be a laughing-stock because his son couldn't keep his pants up.

"How many affairs did you have, Arthur? Is that where he learned it? I don't give a damn what may be the standard for males in the Wizarding world. I don't have to put up with it." Hermione glared at the man she had come to think of as a father.

"You can't win. Give it up now and no one will be the wiser."

"I'll know." Hermione's voice rose above Ron's whine and Molly's lecture. "I believe the problem lies between Ron and I. I will thank you both to stay out of it. Ron, I will send you an owl outlining the terms of our separation. Thank you for your advice, Arthur. It is most gratifying to know you are concerned with my future, but don't worry, my job is guaranteed. I will be fine."

Hermione crossed to the door of Ginny's room. It was time to start taking control of her life. "I'll check on Ginny and see what's keeping Harry. If you will excuse me." Hermione knocked on the door and entered the room without waiting for an answer.

TBC

A/N: A quick thank you to all those reviewers who threw such useful items at me for the last chapter. I plan to hold a virtual/cyber garage sale next week, just as soon I get everything organized.

Next episode: What business does Albus have with the Wizengamot? And why would it concern Arthur? What will Ginny have to say to her brother? And her mother? Tune in next time for more questions and more answers.

A grateful thank you to Nakhash, my beta for her corrections and unbelievably wicked suggestions that will surface in future chapters. Another set of eyes is always helpful, the mistakes, however, are still my fault.

Please review and let me know what you think.

I love hearing from you! As always, thoughts, comments, reviews, whatever are always welcome.

Regards, Pearle