Revived and Wedded

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~o 32 o~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Revived and Wedded

~H~

When Harry stumbled into the house from the Floo, limping and wearing an arm sling, Hermione let out a cry of alarm, "Where were you last night? I was worried sick!" as she rushed over to him. "You could've at least sent me a message or something."

"Hold on, I'm still sore," he said, holding up a hand as if to stop her from lunging at him.

She made a weaving motion with her wand as she removed the ashes from his clothes. "What happened?" she demanded, pulling his good arm around her shoulders for support. "Are you all right?"

"Hermione, my ankle is fine," he insisted, but didn't remove his arm. "I was at St. Mungo's, and I had loads of forms to fill out about the raid."

She tightened her arm about his waist as she turned her shoulders sideways slightly to glare at him. "Raid? What raid?"

He straightened his posture a bit as he looked at her squarely. "We found one of the hideouts yesterday. Dolohov, Mulciber, and MacTavish are now behind bars, and William Holabird is in custody for questioning. Do you remember him? He worked in Magical Transportation."

"The guy who claimed to have been Imperiused?" she asked, trying to guide him to a seat.

"Hermione, I'm fine," Harry said, shrugging her off.

"You need a pain potion!" she said, wondering if she'd be able to conjure crutches for him.

"My potions are in my pocket," he said with a grimace when he put weight on his sore foot.

"You're still limping," she insisted and pulled him down on the sofa. "I should elevate your foot." With three different quick flicks of her wand for the right spells, the ottoman moved closer, grew taller and then became fluffier.

"It was broken," he stated with a smirk as he set his foot on the offered rest. "The Healers mended it in no time, but I pulled my ligaments and tendons as well." He leaned back and sighed as if his leg wasn't the only part of him in pain. "Can't I just sleep here tonight?"

Hermione laughed. "I'll have to convert the sofa into a cot," she said as she summoned a pillow from his bedroom. She stood up and looked about the room. "And Kreacher will have to set up dinner on the coffee table..."

"Transfigure away!" he said with a wave of his hand, catching his pillow before it hit her.

She enlarged the coffee table to make an eating table and asked Kreacher for blankets. "So tell me about the raid. What happened?"

Harry took a deep breath and sat up. "Snape, er, Severus figured it out. He called a meeting and told us the general area where the house was located. Kingsley asked Ron and me to help lead the search teams with Maurice Duncan, who was with me, and Robert MacNaughton, who was with Ron. Maurice – I really like him – he let me lead it as if I was the lead Auror. Anyway, Severus was with us – my team – and we found the house. Loraine, you remember her, right? She and Mathilde Wells blasted the house, although we couldn't see it – 'cause of the Fidelius Charm – and Severus set the roof on fire. He also burned Rivas, but that was an accident... But, between the fire and smoke... Anyway that's when the fighting started."

Hermione swallowed, listening intently. "So was anyone hurt?" she asked, mentally crossing her fingers.

Harry looked at his hands. "Darthmyer and Mathilde are dead; Rivas has third-degree burns on most of his body. Phillip Bradford's shoulder was hit with a curse that turned his skin and some of his bicep to ashes, and Loraine and Maurice – they both had minor injuries, but they're fine now."

He was idly playing with a thread on the fringe of the throw pillow he'd pulled onto his lap. She leaned down and tipped her head to look at his face, but he refused to look at her. "Harry, what is it? What happened? Tell me," she implored, sure that there was more, something he wasn't telling her.

He looked, up his eyes haunted. "Hermione, its Severus. He was hurt. He was unconscious when I found him. He's still unconscious... I don't even know what hit him," he said remorsefully.

Hermione coved her mouth as she sat back, her mind taking a while to process what he'd said. She opened her mouth to ask the questions rolling foggily through her thoughts, but only one word escaped. "Alive?"

Harry nodded. "He's alive, but not responsive." He reached for her hand as she stood up and walked to the window. He's hurt. Not dead. Hurt. Hermione turned, not sure which was faster, Floo or Apparating.

She barely heard Harry say, "Hermione, I'm sorry, I didn't see it happen. Everything was happening so fast... and the fighting was life or death with these guys."

"I'll be back," she said, hurrying to the door to Apparate to St. Mungo's. She arrived at the Apparation site and quickly scanned the room. The queue for the receptionist was long, but since she had no idea where Severus was, she had no choice but to wait. Several people turned to look at her, some whispering to their companions. She ignored the stares and murmurs.

When she finally reached the receptionist, the witch simply said, "Go to the Spell Damage Ward on the fourth floor, Auror security wing," and handed Hermione a disc on a safety pin. "You'll have to wear this at all times," she stated bluntly, and then leaned to the side to peer around her. "Next."

After asking the first Healer she saw when leaving the lift where to go, Hermione hurried down the corridor to a set of double doors. A wizard with a sensory wand sat next to a table with a one-armed brass scale on it. "That won't be necessary, Armand," Auror Hobday said as he approached. "If you're Hermione Snape, what color robes did you and Mrs. Potter buy recently?"

Hermione smiled. "We bought two each, one red and one yellow."

He nodded and opened the door for her. "He's down the hall, fifth door on your left."

She thanked him and walked quickly to the room. Three Healers stood around the bed, two of them holding clipboards while the third ran a diagnostic check with his wand. They stopped talking and turned, all three staring at her as Hermione pushed open the door and entered. Severus lay on the bed, the blankets folded neatly at mid chest, and his arms lay at his sides. If it weren't for the slight rise to his chest, and the pulse of the light at the end of the Healer's wand matching a heartbeat, she'd have thought him dead. "How is he?" she asked softly, fighting back her fears.

"Nonresponsive. His vital signs are good, and he's warm, but he hasn't awakened yet," stated the grey-haired wizard with the wand on the other side of the bed. He tucked his wand into his pocket.

"What happened? Do you know what spell hit him?" she managed to say around the lump in her throat.

Two of the healers turned their attention back on Severus, leaving the dark-haired wizard with a pointy chin to address her question. "We're not sure." At Hermione's wide-eyed incredulous stare, he blushed slightly and continued. "He's swallowing his potions, water, and liquefied food, and his motor reflexes seem normal. His breathing and heart rate are normal for a resting rate... but he's nonresponsive to anything around him."

The youngest wizard of the group added, "He's not responding to pain stimulus."

"Not unlike having been kissed by a Dementor, except his eyes are closed, but he's not drooling and he's nonresponsive... or being on Draught of Living Death, except his reflexes are uninhibited, and he's visibly breathing." Her mind raced through the affects of the curses she knew. "Almost like... May I see his chart?" she asked, looking at one of the wizards holding clipboards.

"We've gone over every possibility," the older man stated as the younger wizard asked, "You don't remember me, do you?" He smiled when she shook her head.

He did look familiar, but she couldn't place his face. "I'm David Cadwallader. My little brother and I were on the Hufflepuff Quidditch team, but Jason always was the better flyer."

She smirked despite herself at his comment. "Hufflepuff... I remember Jason; he was a large, burly guy. He played Chaser, didn't he?"

"Yes, well, I take after dad's side of the family. Jason always said you were wicked smart," Healer Cadwallader said, handing her his clipboard. "Maybe you'll see something we don't?"

The grey-haired wizard bristled. "She's not a trained Healer. In fact, she hasn't even finished her education at Hogwarts yet."

Hermione ignored him as she read through the Healer's notes.

"Sorry, this is Healer Galen Cavallaro," Healer Cadwallader said, first indicating the dark-haired wizard and then the older Healer. "And this is Healer Calvin Lansing."

She glanced up to politely acknowledge both Healers and turned her focus back on the chart. "Inert, unaware, listless... motor reflexes responsive but he's unresponsive to pain stimuli, skin warm... A white misty appearance in the eyes..." She looked up at Healers in surprise. "His eyes are glazed over by a mist? Show me!" she exclaimed as she scurried over to the bed. She gently pushed one of Severus' eyelids up and peered at his eye.

The lights dimmed somewhat behind her as Healer Cadwallader illuminated his wand tip and moved it back and forth to show her the whitish haze on his dark iris. "Because his eyes are such a dark color, it's easy to see, but this way you can see the swirling of the discoloration – as if the aqueous humour behind the lens is, in fact, a mist."

Hermione stood up and paced, turning over the facts in her mind, trying to remember anything that fit the description of Severus' condition. The mist on his eyes reminded her of something from her Defense class... "Vitalis exanimum – but it can't be," she mumbled, then stopped and faced Healer Cadwallader. "What would happen if a living person was hit with the spell to turn a corpse into an Inferi?"

Healer Cadwallader gasped in shock at the implication. "He would... be a living dead!"

"But he'd still have his soul though, right?" she asked, hopeful that deep down Severus was still intact.

Healer Cavallaro crossed his arms and looked down at Severus with an appraising expression. "We've not determined that–"

Healer Lansing interrupted the younger man. "But that would be cruel to..."

She pivoted to face Healer Lansing and glared at him. "He was in a fight against Death Eaters! I think cruel and unusual would be a given in this situation! Dolohov liked to cause as much pain and damage to his victims as possible and enjoyed inflicting slow, painful deaths. Mulciber was well known for inflicting the Imperious on people, and MacTavish..." She gasped and covered her mouth. "Wasn't he accused of creating hordes of Inferi at his first trial?"

"But no one has ever found a way to reverse the Inferius Curse," Healer Cavallaro stated. "The bodies are usually burned."

"Not an option," Hermione snapped.

"So, miss know-it-all, how does one reverse the irreversible?" the older wizard sneered.

"Well, first we look up every reference on the Inferius Curse we can find, then list out the key aspects of the curse and break down its magical elements and affects. Then we list all counter spells for each affect and test the combinations until we find a counter curse," she stated the obvious back at him, defiantly.

Healer Cadwallader's eyes lit up with excitement. "And if we can find the opposite antipodal magical effects, and identify the magical movement, we might come up with a counter curse!"

"Yes," she agreed, and held up her index finger, moving it in the air as she rationalized out, "In most spells, the word is a means of focusing one's strength and desire or deliberate intent while the wand movement is the adjuvant for the determination and direction of the spell. If we can find the correct opposing antonym and determine the proper movement to direct the wand's natural energy flow, we might be able to create a reversal to the curse."

Healer Lansing crossed his arms, and huffed. "Ignorance of youth – there's no reversing the Inferius Curse."

"All I need is to get into a library. Maybe Professor McGonagall will allow me to use the one at Hogwarts," Hermione said, handing Healer Cadwallader back his clipboard.

"The Healer's library is on the first lower level, and we have access to mice," Healer Cadwallader suggested, reaching for her arm rather than the clipboard.

Hermione smiled. "And I can go with you?"

He smiled and opened the door for her. "I'll take you there personally."

*

Hermione rested her elbows on the table, her fingers laced together, and pinched the bridge of her nose with her thumbs. Yashar Javidan, Healer-in-Charge of the Auror Spell Damage ward, had granted Healer Cadwallader time to research his new hypothesis on reversing the Inferius Curse, and gave Hermione an access pass to the research facilities of St Mungo's.

Hermione had gone home Monday night frustrated at the lack of information regarding the curse and exhausted from a long day reading through old tomes and documents. Heedless of the consequences, she'd returned on Tuesday, determined to find the answer. Wednesday, she'd slipped out early and beat David to the small office off the main medical library that he'd procured for their research.

Kreacher had popped into the room with her usual breakfast, saying that "Master says Miss is to eat or I is to shove food down Miss' throat." He likewise appeared with a plate of sandwiches for each meal after that.

She should've returned to Hogwarts days ago. Professor McGonagall had left several messages at the house when Hermione had missed the train, and Hagrid had even visited Harry to see if she was all right; however Hermione had refused to leave until a reversal to the curse could be found. McGonagall's last message had indicated that she could have a leave of absence until Friday, but she had to be at the castle by Sunday. And Luna and Neville were getting married Saturday. Hermione hated the extra pressure, but refused to give up trying.

Late Thursday morning, Harry arrived with a sack lunch and to ask how things were going.

Hermione resisted the urge to hex him. "It's not going so well," she said dejectedly. Several stacks of books and numerous parchments with charts and tables lay scattered on the table in front of her as she read over the numerous notes she'd taken on the effects and affect of the curse.

Harry tilted his head with an encouraging smile. "I know you'll figure this out – you always do."

"I'm not so sure this time," she said, pulling a large, heavy book toward her.

"Hermione, if anyone can find it, it's you." He placed the bag next to her. "Will you at least be home for dinner?"

"I should, but I'll be late," she replied, wishing he'd go so she could concentrate.

David arrived a few hours later, carrying a stack of books and a few scrolls. "You're here? I found some more references."

"Really? From where?" she asked, reaching for the scroll about to fall from his pile.

"I got permission to borrow some old tomes from the Malfoy library," he replied, dropping his pile on the table. "When I said what I needed, Mr. Malfoy was really quite helpful. He personally helped me find all this."

Hermione wasn't surprised. However, after reading all the new material, it didn't tell them anything that they didn't already know. She rested her head in her fingertips and peered down at the list of Latin words on the parchment between her elbows, saying them softly to herself in random combinations. "Responsum. Perspicientia. Animatus, animate, animatum – having life or alive. Vivo, vivere, vixi, or victum – to live, be alive or survive. Novare – to revive... or reficio, reficere, refectum, revivisco, and reviviscere – to come to life again, revive." She sighed, knowing that they'd tried each combination of words without any success.

David tried the latest incantation on her abandoned list again on one of the Inferi-cursed mice, but there was no change in the mouse's condition. He tried the next one on the list with the same results.

Hermione cupped her hands over her nose and mouth and exhaled slowly. It has to be here. I'm just not seeing it. She closed her eyes a moment and then picked up her stack of notes again, scanning each page even though she'd already memorized every word.

She turned to David and dropped the hand still holding her parchments onto the table. "What if we're looking at this the wrong way?" She exchanged the sheets of parchment for one on the table while looking for one she had yesterday. "The Inferius creates a false life; it animates, revives the body in a zombie-like state. What if we have to kill or destroy it to beat it?"

David looked at her in alarm. "Kill the patient? No, that wouldn't be allowed," he said emphatically with a sweep of his hand.

"We're not getting anywhere trying to revive the mice. What if the answer isn't to animate or reanimate them at all? So what if the answer was the exact opposite: to inanimate, deaden, discourage, or kill. It would be like rebooting the system of a computer, shut it down to release the spell and then resuscitate?"

"Are you bloody mad?" he asked, staring at her as if she'd lost her mind.

She ignored him, finally finding the sheet she wanted. "Here, abolere, abolevi, abolevitum – to destroy, do away with... Abrumpo or abrumpere – to break off, sever or to remove. Perimere or peremptum – to do away with, destroy, kill, annihilate... Ferire – to strike dead, slay, kill... That seems likely. Mortiferus ferire is used to kill magical creatures humanely."

"But that's backwards. You're talking about killing him!" he croaked out as she Summoned another of the caged Inferi-cursed mice to her.

Carefully constructing the wand movements for both spells in her head, she practiced variations of two spells, trying to combine them into a fluid movement. Finally, thinking she had it, she aimed her wand at the mouse. "Mortiferus ferire vitalis," she said determinedly, and then quickly added, "Rennervate." The mouse remained lifeless. She summoned another mouse, thinking that she needed to flick her wand more, and repeated the spells. Again the mouse lay lifeless.

"I told you, it won't work that way," David stated. "You have to..."

She summoned another, ignoring him. "Mortiferus ferire vitalis," she said, quickly adding, "Reaspiroatum," trying again. The mouse lay dead in its cage. She sighed in defeat.

David's eyes narrowed as he stared at the mouse. Suddenly his eyes widened as he clutched his hands in fists and stared at her as his pursed lips stretched into a smile. "No. Try, Reanimaus aspiro," he suggested. Hermione Summoned another mouse. "Mortiferus ferire vitalis," she said watching the mouse die, then quickly added, "Renanimaus aspire," as David added, "Resuscardio ictus," with a swish of his wand.

The tiny nose twitched. Then a foot jerked, and the side expanded as the mouse took a breath. Slowly, as if waking from a drunken sleep, the little mouse rolled up onto its feet, staggered, fell, and began to shake.

Hermione sucked in her breath as the mouse stirred, tears forming in her eyes.

David performed a diagnostic on the mouse, and turned to her in amazement. "We did it!" he exclaimed, leaning over and hugging her.

~S~

Severus started to open his eyes and then squinted at the bright glare. He moved his hand to cover his face, and the lights dimmed.

"Sorry about that," an overly eager voice said. "Your eyes are not used to the light."

"Severus?" Hermione asked imploringly, gently touching his shoulder.

"Yes," he tried to respond but his mouth was bone-dry, and he could barely talk.

"Oh, my God, you're back!" she exclaimed, clasping both hands in front of her mouth as she gazed disbelievingly down at him.

"He's awake?" the deep baritone voice of Kingsley Shacklebolt asked from somewhere across the room. Two heartbeats later and the dark-skinned, bald head came into view. "So you've decided not to die after all."

"Really? I thought this was the afterlife," Severus snarled. "Where am I?"

"In the hospital," Kingsley said with a grin.

Severus looked around, ignoring the pain from moving his head. "St. Mungo's?"

"Yes," the enthusiastic male voice replied.

A Healer held a cup to his lips to drink. He tasted Rejuvenating Elixir on his tongue instead of the expected water and almost choked before he forced himself to swallow. "I'm thirsty. Give me water before you drown me with potions."

"So you are cognitive as well as awake," Kingsley said teasingly, and then his expression became serious. "Before you ask, we got them. Dolohov, Mulciber, and MacTavish are in Azkaban. William Holabird is in custody. Naturally, they're not talking, but once you are up to it, I'll authorize a visit."

Severus turned his head to get the Healer to stop pouring the potion in his mouth so he could talk. "Anyone else–"

"Hurt? Yes." Kingsley told him about the casualties calmly, but his eyes were haunted with grief: "Mathilde Wells is dead, I'm afraid, so is Samuel Rivas. Perkinson said that he was burned by a cursed fire... It wasn't Fiendfyre. He said he'd never seen anything like it – consumed Rivas in seconds and didn't respond to water. Rivas never had time to cast the Flame-Freezing Charm. Perkinson rolled him in the mud to put it out and sent him here by emergency Portkey. Rivas died several hours after arriving on the ward."

"The Flame-Freezing Charm wouldn't have worked. It's a spell that Lucius used... it's the Infernardentis," Severus tried to explain. Hermione gasped and covered her mouth.

Damn; I killed him. I used the Infernardentis to burn the house. He'd have to explain it later.

"Darthmyer died, the Entrail-Slicing Curse of Dolohov's got him," Kingsley said solemnly. "He bled out before MacNaughton got him here, and Phillip, the Healer's are having trouble regrowing his shoulder. Some nasty curse turned his skin and some of his muscle to ash."

"The Cinefactus – if there is any of the ash... I have a salve that if mixed with his ashes will regrow the tissue, but you have to be able to get as much of his ashes as you can."

Kingsley nodded, making a mental note. "I'll send Loraine; she knows where he was hit."

"Don't send her alone. The others might go there," Severus warned, trying to push himself up into a sitting position.

Hermione adjusted his pillows to prop him up.

"So noted," Kingsley stated. "There was another body found in the house we haven't identified yet. I'm assuming one of theirs. It's burned beyond recognition and not any of him left to use Polyjuice."

Hermione's face seemed to pale even more, and Severus covered her hand hoping she was all right.

Kingsley apparently noticed. "I'll come by later," he said and left them alone.

Severus looked at her. "What day is it?" he asked to change the subject. Judging by the light streaming in from the window, it was daytime.

"It's Friday, Severus," she said, sitting in the chair by his bed.

He glared at her in astonishment. "Why did Minerva allow you to come here? You should be attending your lessons."

The Healer smirked as he tried to get Severus to drink another potion. "You'd be the living dead if she were. You owe her your life."

Severus glared darkly at Hermione. "Explain."

"David and I worked it out," she started to say and the Healer, David, snorted.

"She's the one who worked it out; I simply gave her parchment and let her kill off one mouse after another."

Hermione blushed. "Either Mulciber or MacTavish – I think it was MacTavish – hit you with the Inferius Curse. David and I figured out how to reverse it and resuscitate you."

The young Healer snorted softly again. "She figured it out. Right brilliant she is," he said as he tried to get Severus to drink the potion.

Severus swept the cup away with his hand. "What do you mean, resuscitate?"

She lowered her head, staring at her hands in her lap. "Ihadtokillyoutodoit," she mumbled quickly like a first-year being forced to rat on his friends.

Too bad for her he was used to run-on speech. "You had to kill me?" he asked incredulously, not comprehending what she meant.

Hermione took a deep breath and began to explain. He listened in amazement as she told him what she'd done and how she worked out the counter curse. "There are others, apparently, in the Spell Damage ward who are suffering the same thing. Yashar Javidan, the Healer-in-Charge of the Auror Spell Damage ward, and Healer Benjamin Levin, Healer-in-Charge of the general Spell Damage ward, want Healer Cadwallader and I to show the technique to the other Healers."

Severus closed his eyes for a minute. He was amazed at what she'd achieved, and not a little dumbfounded that she'd done so in such a short amount of time, but she'd said they'd only tested the counter curse spells on mice before testing it on him. That was a huge leap to make, going from mouse to human without any other trials.

"Are you mad?" she asked softly. "I know it was a –"

He opened his eyes. "You're bloody lucky it worked. Human size and physiology are quite different from a mouse, Hermione," he stated in his professor's tone.

She collapsed back in her chair, shoulders slumping and her head down, fiddling with the cuticle on her thumb. Seeing her react so dejectedly made him feel guilty, but she'd still taken a huge risk with his life.

"I only wanted you to recover," she said softly.

"If it weren't for her, you'd be a nonresponsive lump in the bed, and you berate her for taking a chance to heal you?" David chastised him.

Severus turned and glared at the vexatious Healer.

"She was here, all day and even well into the night, working on finding your cure, and this is how you thank her?" the Healer ranted. "Maybe the papers were right, and she should've filed for the annulment. You don't deserve her."

Hermione jumped up and held up her hand. "David, please. Leave it alone; he's just cranky. I should've tested the counter curse on a larger animal before trying it on him. He's right; I was rushing forward irresponsibly and too arrogant... I jumped to conclusions and short-cut the process, believing I was right... I know it worked, but I could've killed him."

David thrust the potion into her hand. "Here, he needs this. I'll be down the hall. Let me know when you're ready to do the counter curse on Simmons."

Hermione nodded and smiled weakly at David as he left the room.

Severus stared at the ceiling. "I want you to return to school."

She sighed, and he turned to face her. "I mean it, Hermione. I want you at the castle. We arrested Antonio Dolohov. That means that his cousin, Dragen Dolohov, will want revenge. Unless he was the unidentified body burned in the house, which I strongly doubt." Her gaze snapped to meet his, and he was glad to read comprehension in her soft amber-brown eyes. "So until he's caught, you're not safe."

"But then neither are you," she said, laying a hand on his arm.

"And that's why Kingsley has me on the Auror ward and not in general population. The security on this ward is much higher." He reached up and she slipped her hand in his. "Thank you, Hermione. I can't believe... thank you."

She smiled and sat down still holding his hand. "Would you like me to read to you? I have the Prophet..."

"No, anything but that," he said with a sneer. "How about reading one of your medical books, instead?"

One corner of her mouth pulled back, and she looked at her hands, disappointed. "I had to leave them all downstairs." She looked up, her hands clasped together in her lap, and shrugged, making her breasts squeeze together enticingly. "I have all my notes, though."

He gave her a half-smile. "I want you to write this up for publication. You've made quite a discovery, and you should receive credit for your efforts. I'll see that it gets sent to the right people."

Her face lit up in a smile.

~H~

Time had seemed to fly by. Severus was still weak and recuperating on the Auror Spell Damage ward under tight security. Because of her determination to find the counter curse, Hermione had missed the rehearsal and dinner at the Longbottoms' for the wedding. On Saturday, she left Severus' room when the Healer brought him his lunch and Apparated to the lawn of Neville's house. She was ushered inside quickly and escorted up the master suite. She was shocked by the flurry of women, in various states of dress, already primping for the wedding.

Hermione was introduced to Luna's cousin, Roselyn Prescott, and her aunt, Shaylee Donovan. "Luna is having her hair and nails done," Roselyn stated, sounding too much like Lavender Brown as she guided Hermione into the room. "You should too." The girl looked at Hermione's hand grasped in her perfectly manicured one and gasped. "Your hands are a mess!" She pulled Hermione along and sat her next to a witch having her grey hair done up in rollers. "She needs to have the works," Roselyn told the magical beautician.

Across the room, Hermione finally caught sight of Luna surrounded by several older ladies as Mrs. Donovan approached them with two veils in her hands for Luna to choose from.

"Ruth Gottlieb, I'm married to Augusta's brother," the woman said as another woman in a smock appeared.

"What have you done to your hair!" the witch in the smock exclaimed as she clasped Hermione's hand and gasped. "Your nails!" Two tables appeared from nowhere on either side of Hermione with small clamshell-shaped bowls of green goo. "Go on then, while I brush this out," the woman said, pushing Hermione's hand into the warm goo.

The witch began to wash and set her hair as the lady next to her gabbed on about how sad it was Neville's parents wouldn't be attending.

"I think it's sad, but given their mental state, I can see why," Hermione said, grimacing as the witch's brush snagged a snarl.

Mrs. Gottlieb rambled on, "After all, only Alice shows any sign of recognition..."

Hermione tried to pay attention as the witch behind her tugged and pulled on her hair as she set in the rollers. Finally the woman moved to sit beside her and proceeded to give her a manicure. "Oh, good, the ink's gone," she said, massaging her fingers. Hermione was shocked to see that her nails had grown a good half inch.

When the witch moved to the other hand, Ginny appeared, her hair in rollers and her nails painted in pale pink. "You made it! I was about to send dad to go find you. Harry said you're spending all your time at St. Mungo's. You were missed at the rehearsal."

"Why don't I let you young people talk," Mrs. Gottlieb said with a smile, rising from her chair.

Ginny plopped down in the vacated seat. "How's Severus?"

"He's doing much better," Hermione answered, lulled by the sensations of her manicure.

"Harry told me that you helped the Healers find a spell to wake him," Ginny asked as the Longbottoms' house-elf, Asia, handed each girl a plate stacked with finger sandwiches and pieces of fruit speared on toothpicks.

"Gin, it was awful!" Hermione said as she sat up a bit. "He was hit with the Inferius Curse."

"But – no – that's impossible!" Ginny exclaimed loudly, making a few ladies turn their heads. "He's alive though, right? I mean, he wasn't really turned into an Inferi?"

"No, he was alive when MacTavish cursed him. It made him almost comatose, but I created a way to reverse the curse that worked, and he's getting better." Hermione explained what she did.

"Oh, my gosh, that's bloody brilliant! You created the spells from scratch!" Ginny exclaimed, once again drawing attention.

As the woman in the smock finished first with Ginny's hair, then Hermione's, the girls discussed the creation of the counter curses and the theory Hermione finally used, and then Ginny caught her up on what had been happening at school. "Oh, and I'm Quidditch captain this year, so you're stuck coming out for all the games. I may even drag you out for practices, too."

"Games, yes, practices – we'll see," Hermione said, admiring their hair styles in a mirror. The witch had pulled the sides up with sparkling combs, leaving her hair to fall down her back in luxurious curls.

Mrs. Longbottom came over to inspect the witches' work. "Very nice. Now into your robes, and we'll take pictures of you girls on the stairs."

Luna was now standing in the center of the room, inspecting her bouquet of white flowers interspaced with tiny blue and yellow roses. When she looked up, she practically ran over to Hermione. "You came!"

"I wouldn't miss it!" Hermione hugged Luna and took a step back to admire her wedding robes. "You're lovely."

Luna's strapless wedding robes were made of billowy, white silk layers over a soft blue under dress and decorated with hundreds of tiny crystals that caught the light as she moved. Her hair was curled, pulled up at the sides and laid silkily down her back. "Thank you. Harry told me about Severus. I'm sorry he won't be here."

"Marry in blue, lover be true... marry in white, everything's right," one of Luna's aunts said in a girly, sing-song voice as she made sure the robes hung nicely. "Now walk slowly, Luna dear. You don't want to mess up your robes."

"Yes, Aunt Aenya," Luna replied, turning slightly. "Hermione, this is my Aunt Aenya O'Doherty, my mother's elder sister, and that's Shaylee Donovan, her younger sister. They're from Ireland. Roselyn Preston is my cousin... over there is Neville's Great Aunt Enid, and Mrs. Longbottom's sister-in-law, Ruth Gottlieb." Luna peered out the window as Hermione greeted each woman.

"I'm glad it's overcast; its good luck if it rains on your wedding. Mr. Weasley came here this morning to help dry the grass. He was the first one to congratulate me!" she said, beaming. "I'm told that's lucky too."

"It's bad luck if a woman gets there first. Now did you hear the birds this morning, Luna?" Mrs. O'Doherty asked. "It's good luck to rise to the song of birds on your wedding day."

Luna nodded. "Yes, and I had my window open and the seeds on the feeder to encourage them just like you suggested."

"Good, good. Now the veil. Irish tradition says it must be a happily married witch to help you with that, to ensure a long, happy marriage for the bride and groom," Mrs. Donovan said joyfully as she helped her sister put on Luna's veil. Mrs. Longbottom placed the wildflower wreath on Luna's head to hold the veil in place. Mrs. Gottlieb carefully folded Luna's veil back, and the older ladies all stood back and smiled.

"Now you have my earrings, yes?" Mrs. O'Doherty asked, and Luna nodded. "They'll bring you luck whenever you wear them, you know."

"Yes, Aunt Aenya," Luna said as she inspected the chandelier above her.

Luna was given two Sickles from her aunts for her tiny purse, which dangled from her wrist. "For luck," they said with identical winks.

Great Aunt Enid, not to be outdone, quickly gave Luna two more. "For luck."

"Now, you have something blue, something cheerful, something old, and something new..." Mrs. Donovan said giddily. "You bathed in Rosemary and rose oil, and used the lilac soap?"

Luna nodded, examining the veil by holding the edges with both hands. "And I have a Knut in my shoe."

"Excellent!" her two Irish aunts exclaimed, Mrs. O'Doherty clasping her hands together with a girlish smile.

A witch gave Ginny and Hermione their flowers, and they were led to the grand staircase for pictures. The banister was decorated lavishly with flowers and candles and soft music wafted from below. After several different posed arrangements, Great Aunt Enid shooed off the photographer. "What a nuisance of a man."

Mrs. Longbottom shook her head. "If you girls are all ready, we have to get to the entry so we can start the wedding."

Hermione was surprised to see Mr. Lovegood, Neville, Dean, Harry, and Ron with several older wizards, standing in the entry hall. Considering that Luna's aunts had literally ensured that every Irish good luck superstition had been met, it struck her as odd. Everyone knew it was bad luck for the groom to see the bride before her grand entrance.

A wizard in long robes wearing a striped, embroidered shawl, stood by a table with a scroll laying open upon it, and Hermione noticed that all the guys wore a yarmulke on their heads. Neville, Luna, Great Uncle Algie, Augusta Longbottom, and Mr. Lovegood took their places around to the table.

"In the presence of witnesses, the groom undertakes the marriage obligations by presenting me with a token of his promise," the Rabbi said, picking up an object off the corner of the parchment on the table.

Neville took what looked like a little Limoges box, held out to him by the Rabbi, lifted it, and then returned it to his outstretched hand. The Rabbi spoke again, and then Neville, his Great Uncle Algie, and Augusta Longbottom signed the beautifully decorated parchment the Rabbi had called the Ketubah.

"The Ketubah is a binding document of confidence and trust, which details the husband's obligations to his wife," the Rabbi said and smiled at Luna. "Therein, the Groom pledges to 'work for you, honor, provide for and support you, in accordance with the practices of Jewish husbands who work for their wives' honor, provide and support them in truth."

Neville then carefully lowered Luna's veil over her face.

"It's reminiscent of Rebeccah's covering her face with her veil upon seeing Isaac before marriage," Ruth Gottlieb whispered to Hermione and Ginny.

The Rabbi walked out first, followed by Neville, then Mrs. Longbottom, and finally Neville's great aunt and uncle. Harry grinned and winked at Hermione and Ginny before he, Ron, and Dean, walked out.

Luna pointed demurely out the open door. "That's the Chuppah, which signifies the home he is providing me," she said dreamily. "I hope the peacocks don't make any noise. The Rabbi has a lovely voice."

Ginny whispered, "Just follow me; we stand next to the Chuppah on the right," then turned and walked slowly to the front to stand next to the gazebo at the end of the aisle.

Four white gossamer fabric swags were draped from inside the roof of the gazebo and wrapped around four of the supports, making a canopy inside. Large bouquets of flowers sat on pedestals and garlands of flowers decorated the rails. Two peacocks perched on the rails calmly on each side, their tails spread in twin fans, and Hermione wondered what spell was used to make them remain still. The flower girl and ring bearer walked down next and took their places, the young boy staring at Harry in awe. Then the music changed, and Luna walked forward with her tearful father as the Rabbi sang the blessing of welcome. Mr. Lovegood kissed her and reluctantly stepped to the side.

Luna circled Neville seven times as the Rabbi explained that it delineated the sacred space for their union and signified the sanctuary of the home being created. Luna came to a stop, standing to the right of Neville and smiled.

The Rabbi then recited the marriage blessings over a goblet of wine, which he said sanctified the marriage relationship.

Both Luna and Neville then drank from the glass.

"Harei at Mekudeshet Li B'taba'at Zo Kedat Moshe V'Yisrael," Neville said fluidly as he slid a simple gold ring on Luna's right forefinger, then thankfully repeated in English, "Behold, you are consecrated to me with this ring according to the laws of Moses and Israel."

The Rabbi then announced that he was going to sing the second blessing over wine, recited to give thanks to God for giving them the opportunity to perform this "mitzvah." His voice was lovely, a rich and robust tenor. When he stopped singing, he announced the reading of the Ketubah – the marriage contract, and then sang that as well.

The Seven Blessings, the Rabbi called the Sheva Berachot, were given next, each conferred over a cup of wine. Several different people came forward, each giving the happy couple a blessing and passing the cup to Neville, who took a sip and handed it to Luna to do likewise. At the conclusion of the blessings, Luna and Neville drank from the wine glass again.

As Luna and Neville each picked up a candle from the small table, the Rabbi explained the significance to those gathered to witness. "In the Unity Candle Ceremony – light is a symbol of God's presence, the candlesticks symbolizing the beginning of a home that will be filled with the light of Sabbath and festival candles. The flames represent the three partners in the relationship: Luna, Neville, and God..."

Neville and Luna lit the larger candle together as the Rabbi continued, "Symbolized by the lighting of the Unity Candle."

Neville took Luna's candle and placed it next to his on the table, and then held her hand, smiling happily at her.

"From every human being there rises a light that reaches straight to heaven. When two souls that are destined for each other find one another, their light flows together and a single brighter light goes forth from their united being," the Rabbi said. He looked up at the guests and paused. "Luna and Neville have written their own vows and shall read them now."

Hermione suppressed a smile at the comment, and took the flowers Ginny handed her. Luna handed Ginny her bouquet.

Neville pulled a card from his pocket and read, "I, Neville, swear by peace and love to stand, heart to heart and hand in hand, by your side. Mark, O Spirit, and hear us now, confirming this, our Sacred Vow." Neville took a ring from his pocket and slid it down the ring finger of Luna's left hand. "I, Neville, now take you, Luna, to be my wife. In the presence of God and before these witnesses I promise to be a loving, faithful, and loyal husband to you for as long as we both shall live."

He handed the card to Luna who read the vows softly to Neville, gazing forthright into his eyes. "I, Luna, swear by peace and love to stand, heart to heart and hand in hand, by your side. Mark, O Spirit, and hear us now, confirming this, our Sacred Vow." Harry nudged the ring bearer forward, and Luna took the ring from his pillow, then slid it down the ring finger of Neville's left hand. "I, Luna, now take you, Neville, to be my husband. In the presence of God and before these witnesses I promise to be a loving, faithful, and loyal wife to you for as long as we both shall live."

Luna tucked the card into the purse dangling from her wrist as the Rabbi picked up the silver goblet again. "And now please drink to the love you've shared in the past," he said, holding up the cup.

Neville accepted the cup, drank, and handed it to Luna, who took a sip and gave it back the Rabbi.

"Drink to your love in the present, on this, your wedding day." Once again, Neville accepted the cup, drank, and handed it to Luna, who tipped the cup to her lips again, passing it back to the Rabbi.

"And drink to your love in the future and forever more." Neville accepted the cup a third time, drank, gave it to Luna, who tipped the cup to her lips and handed it back to the Rabbi. Hermione privately hoped that Neville and Luna were not getting drunk.

A wizard in smart green robes, who'd been sitting next to Aenya O'Doherty, stepped forward. "May the road rise to meet you, may green be the grass you walk on, blue be the skies above you, and may the wind be always at your back. May the sun shine warm upon your face, the warm rays of the sun fall upon your home, and the rains fall soft upon your fields. May God be with you and bless you, and may you see your children's children. May you be poor in misfortune, rich in blessings, wise in money, healthy and strong for each other. May pure be the joys surround you, and may the hand of a friend always be near. May you know nothing but happiness from this day forward."

The Rabbi smiled and said, "You may kiss your bride." With a huge smile, Neville raised Luna's veil, gently wrapped his arms around her, and kissed her on the lips. Luna hugged Neville tighter and leaned into him, allowing her husband to deepen the kiss, much to the delight of some and the shocked gasps and comments of the elderly witnesses.

The Rabbi handed Neville a glass in a cloth bag that he placed on the floor. After the Rabbi explained the symbolism of the glass, Neville stomped down hard, shattering the glass to the cheers of their family and friends. A dozen doves were released magically from behind the gazebo, and the two peacocks cried out. Neville kissed Luna again and walked down the aisle for the reception.

Hermione accepted Ron's arm and followed Ginny and Harry when it was their turn to leave, smiling to herself. Ron leaned close to her ear. "He looks happy."

She turned to smile at him. "They both do."

~ T B C ~>

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Author's notes:

Yes, I know I cheated you out of the reception, but you know what happens: the blessing over the wedding challah (a large braided loaf of egg-rich bread), dinner, followed by dancing, and Neville and Luna were carried around the dance floor on chairs. (Augusta Longbottom flat out refused to do it, but Xenophilius Lovegood thought that was fun.) There was cake, the bouquet and garter toss, and all that fun stuff, followed by more dancing. Exactly what you'd expect, right?

I want to give a great big thank you hug to EverMystique and to DuchessOfArcadia for combing through this and helping me clean up my many mistakes. I really appreciate it more than you can possibly know.

Thank you, Jay, for the beautiful banner. I absolutely love it!