Chapter 6: First Day of Many

Disclaimer: All things Harry Potter belong to JKR.

A/N: Many thanks to my awesome beta, Southern_Witch_69!

Ron stood at the bars, rattling them while calling for the guard over and over. Luna sat quietly, watching him through hooded eyes.

"Guard!" He gave the bars one final shake and started to pace back and forth.

"What's all this racket in here?" a burly guard asked as he made his way down the corridor, obviously irritated. "You'll wake the whole lot!"

Ron quickly ran back to the bars. "Oh, thank God. You've got to get in touch with Kings... er... the Minister before he leaves for Italy."

The guard looked him up and down, clearly finding him lacking. "Son, it's after midnight. What would the Minister be bothering himself with you for? Say, I don't remember you from last check. What's going on?"

"We were brought here because we failed to consummate our marriage," Ron explained through gritted teeth, impatience dripping from every pore.

The guard let out a barreling laugh. "Oh, right. I heard 'bout that. Three couples havin' to wed today because of some charm three witches performed. You'd be one of them couples then?" he asked, looking back and forth between Ron and Luna.

When his ogling gaze held on Luna, Ron stepped in front of her so he'd be the one the guard was looking at. "That's right. I need to see the Minister before he leaves the country to wed us again so that we can get out of here."

The guard tore his gaze from Luna to look at Ron. He folded his thick arms over his chest. "You will have to wait for mornin'. This is not an emergency situation." His gaze shifted to Ron's crotch. "Trouble with the consummation, eh?"

"NO!" Ron yelled, placing a hand over himself. "I mean to say, I fell asleep and... Hang on! It's really none of your business."

The guard looked over at Luna. "If you need a real man, lovey, I'd be happy to..."

"You shut your filthy mouth! Don't you speak to her or even look at her!" Ron pointed at the guard through the bars. "Does the Minister know the way you talk to prisoners in here?"

Chuckling, the guard told Ron, "As long as it be consensual, it's not rape or nothin' of the kind."

"Go on!" Ron shouted. "Just let us know as soon as the Minister arrives!" Ron turned his back to the bars, clearly dismissing the guard.

"Waste of a perfectly good woman if you ask me," they heard the guard murmur as he walked away.

Ron walked over to the cot and sat down. "I didn't mean for this to happen."

"Okay. I started to come to the shop for you, but I wasn't sure of my welcome. Thank you for holding off that guard. He gives me the creeps." Luna shuddered violently.

"It's all right." Ron sighed. "I don't want this! I don't want to be married to you. I want my life back."

Luna nodded. "Your life with Hermione."

"That's right," Ron spat. "My life with Hermione. It'd have been bad enough for her to have called off our wedding, but for me to be forced to marry you, well, that's the icing on the cake."

"I repulse you that much then?" Luna asked as her eyes filled. "You truly hate me?"

"At this moment, close enough. I just don't understand why!" Suddenly, Ron realized what he'd just said to his wife. "No," he whispered, "I really don't hate you. I'm sorry; all of this just upsets me."

Luna nodded and turned her face from Ron, not wanting to see the contempt in his eyes for her. "Mostly it was the wine. From what I gather, it brings out your dark side and pushes you to act on it."

"Yeah, I know. It's just that I thought Hermione loved me." He leaned his head back against the wall and closed his eyes.

Luna got up off of the floor and walked to sit beside him. Touching his arm, she said, "She does, silly. She loves you very much." She stared into his eyes a moment. "There are all kinds of love, Ronald."

He looked at her as if she'd grown another head. "Not enough apparently. She had to have known that that stupid charm wouldn't have picked me!"

Luna cocked her head to the side. "Well, you sure seem to. Why is that?"

Ron huffed out a breath. "We'd better get some sleep. Hopefully, Kingsley will get here in the morning before he leaves so that we won't have to stay here until he comes back. I think this cot is big enough for the both of us."

Ron lay down on his side and closed his eyes. He immediately opened them again when Luna lay beside him because she snuggled back to him as far as she could. "Should've gotten the rings today..." He heard her utter before she drifted off. He shrugged and placed his arm about her and fell asleep.

Abruptly, Ron was awoken by a loud shout. "Up, you two! The Minister's here, and he hasn't got all day!" the same burly guard yelled into the cell.

"All right, all right, keep your trousers on! We're up!" Ron gently woke Luna. "Kingsley's here. You ready?"

His wife merely nodded.

Ron stood and saw Kingsley studying him. "I was very clear about this, Ron. I told you that you only had twelve hours."

"I know. It's my fault," Ron admitted. "I fell asleep. Don't worry; this one will be consummated straight away."

"I know that it will. You have to do it here before you can leave."

"What?" Luna asked, speaking for the first time. "Here? Why?"

"Because, Luna dear, once you've been placed here for failure to comply with the rules, you may not leave again until it's certain that the rules have been followed."

Luna nodded, broken-hearted. She'd wanted to shower first and make herself more presentable for Ron.

Ron turned to speak to her, but Kingsley cut him off. "Let's begin." Once he'd completed the ceremony, he told Ron, "There's a room you will be led to that has complete privacy. It will lock once you enter, and silencing charms will automatically place themselves around the room. Once you've... finished and dressed, the door will open for you."

Ron nodded and thanked Kingsley profusely. Once the Minister remarried them and left, the guard took them to the room they would use. "You sure you don't want me instead, lovey?"

"No, I do not!" Luna told him.

They both turned and walked into the room, the door closing behind them and cutting off all outside sound. "I want you to know, I truly am sorry that your first time has to be in a place like this."

"Oh, it's not my first time. Though it is our first time. I'm sorry I couldn't make myself prettier for you though."

Ron heard only one thing. "What do you mean it's not your first time?"

Luna turned to him and cocked her head to the side. "Nor is it hardly yours if Lavender Brown is to be believed. Is it different for you then?"

"Who?"

"That's not important..."

"You know who I've been with." Ron folded his arms in a childish gesture. "It's only fair."

Luna shook her head and sighed. "Dean."

"Thomas? But Lavender told me he'd been her first and..."

"Do you know another? Really, let's just get on with this so that we can go home, all right?"

"When?"

"Stop it, Ron!"

"When?"

"After the final battle. He'd just come back from the battlefield, looking extremely pleased with himself, and when I walked by, he grabbed me and kissed me, right on the mouth. Then one thing led to another... Anyway, that's all I'm saying about it, whether you like it or not."

"Fine," he spat, unsure of where his anger was even coming from. It was unreasonable, he knew, but all he could think about was that Hermione had saved herself...for him, and now, bloody Snape was the one benefiting from it. He shook his head to clear it and then walked up to Luna, jerked her to him, and kissed her possessively. He might not be her first, but for now, she was for him only.

She immediately wrapped her arms around his neck and began kissing him back passionately. She stepped closer into him, wanting to get as close as she possibly could.

Ron stopped kissing her and looked around the room. Once he spotted the bed, he took her hand and walked towards it.

When she saw her husband start to undress, Luna quickly followed suit. Soon, they were both standing there in their altogether, breathing heavily.

Ron looked her up and down and smiled appreciatively. Luna blushed. Saying nothing, he walked to her and started kissing her again, just as possessively as before.

Luna fell back on the bed, pulling her husband with her. She opened her thighs to cradle him there, wanting to ease the ache he'd started. She began grinding herself against him. She'd wanted him for so long...

Suddenly, Luna used her strength to flip him onto his back. When he looked at her startled, she simply said, "Let me love you, Ron." Then she positioned herself over him and sank down. Both let out appreciative groans.

Luna sat still atop him, gazing down into his wide eyes, watching him watch her, and wondering if he'd felt the connection. It was very erotic the way his aura glowed brightly. He placed his hands upon her hips and gently urged her to move. She was more than happy to comply.

She started moving slowly at first, then, as passion overcame them, more urgently. "Ooh, Ronald, I'm almost there." Suddenly, she went very still and tightened around him before moving on in erratic jerks.

Ron let her ride it out, but once she started coming down, he deftly flipped her onto her back and pounded inside of her urgently. It wasn't very long until he found completion. After a moment, he eased out of her and lay on his back.

"We need to get dressed and go," he told her. "I've got to be at work by nine."

"Yes," Luna agreed. "I do as well."

They both stood and dressed, neither mentioning the instant bond that they'd felt once they'd joined.

~*~

Ginny woke early, not sleeping well in the unfamiliar bed. She stretched and looked at the man she'd married...been forced to marry. She felt twin feelings of longing for what he could make her feel and guilt that it wasn't Harry who'd awoken those feelings within her.

She rolled out of bed as quietly as she could and went to the loo. She wanted to be finished in there before Oliver woke. Ginny knew that it wouldn't be long because he had practice early this morning.

Ginny startled. They were leaving for France at the end of the week. She supposed she could look at it as some sort of honeymoon... Cringing at the thought, she moved from the loo, past the bedroom, and into the small sitting room to order their breakfast.

While she waited, she spied a copy of the Daily Prophet on the table and picked it up to read. Just as quickly, she dropped it onto the floor, horrified at the front-page story.

The Boy Who Lived Dumped for a Famous Quidditch Star

Rubbing her hands roughly over her face, Ginny cried, "No! No! No!"

She reached down and picked the paper up, devouring the article.

It appears that Ginevra Weasley, daughter of the Ministry's Arthur Weasley, threw over our favored Harry Potter for Oliver Wood, the famous and only male player for the Harpies.

This reporter has further learned that the newlyweds married in a hush-hush ceremony yesterday afternoon at the Ministry of Magic, along with her brother, Ronald Weasley, to Luna Lovegood, whose father is the proprietor of the highly questionable Quibbler rag mag.

Completing the marriages at the Ministry were none other than murderer Severus Snape and the fickle Hermione Granger, who was, until yesterday, engaged to Ronald Weasley. (For more on Hermione Granger and the string of broken hearts in her wake, including Harry Potter, please turn to page five.)

Ginny groaned and threw the paper back onto the floor. Harry's prediction had come true. One thing was for sure: Harry was going to explode when he read that!

~*~

Severus woke with an armful of witch. They were front-to-front, legs entwined. He blew through his nose loudly, trying to disengage her hair from his face.

When he fully woke, he became aware of something else. He was hard as a rock, and she was right there. He immediately moved his groin back, not wanting her to wake and realize his predicament.

He gently untangled himself from her and went to shower. He looked over his shoulder as he walked to the loo and watched as she grabbed his pillow in her sleep and snuggled closer to it.

He went through his morning ritual quickly, wanting to be finished before she awoke. The fact that he felt the need to rush angered him.

He went into his sitting room to read the paper before breakfast and laughed out loud at the front-page headline. Yes, his name was in the article as well, but he highly doubted that many would even get that far down.

He looked up when he heard his wife clearing her throat from the doorway. He was glad to see that she was fully dressed. "Is there something you need, Granger?"

"Breakfast?"

"Don't act as if this is the first time you've ever seen Hogwarts, girl. You know exactly where to go if you want to eat!"

She put her hands on her hips and glared at him. "Where should I sit? Never once have I ever seen a... a... spouse in the Great Hall! You want I should sit at the Gryffindor table?"

"Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn."

Her mouth opened widely. "You know Gone With The Wind?"

"Excuse me?"

"It's a very popular Muggle book by Margaret Mitchell. Anyway, that's beside the point. Should I sit by you then?"

Severus sighed and looked around the room. Shrugging, he told her, "Sit where you will. Do what you want. It matters not to me."

Hermione nodded and glanced down at an invitation on the table beside Severus' chair. "Oh, are we going to Malfoy and Parkinson's wedding?"

He looked up once again, agitated that she kept interrupting his morning reading. "I was unaware that you'd received an invitation."

"Oh, well, I didn't. I just assumed that since we're married, I'd attend with you."

"Assumed that, did you? Well, don't. We are married in name only, as you are well aware."

"Professor, I know that you would not have chosen this..." He snorted, and she ignored him..."but here we are. Do you have to continuously be at odds with me?"

"Let's get this straight because I do so hate to repeat myself. I don't like you. I don't want to be married to you, and I don't want you here. We merely need to co-exist for one year. We are both intelligent adults... Well, you are when there's no alcohol involved, so I think we should be able to pull this off. Just stay out of my way, and I'll grant you the same courtesy."

Hermione took a deep breath as if gathering her courage. She paused, looking at him intently, then seemed to come to a decision. "Are you going to honestly tell me that you didn't feel something last night during..."

"During?"

"Stop being an arse! During intercourse! There was some sort of connection between us, and you know it."

"I felt nothing."

"You're lying."

"Do not stand here in my home and call me a liar, Granger!"

"Then don't sit here in your home and lie, Snape!"

He stood and slowly walked to her, towering over her in a menacing way. "Understand this well, woman. My feelings and thoughts are none of your business. How dare you presume to know what I did or did not feel and then stand here and call me a liar?"

Hermione shrank back, but only a little. "Don't you wonder? This was a soul mate charm! What if there is some sort of merit to it?"

He stood leering at her with his arms crossed, refusing to speak.

"Okay, fine! I apologize for calling you a liar. Perhaps you didn't feel what I felt, but I felt something. Like an instant connection or some sort of a bond when we... joined."

"You felt something, did you? More's the pity for you then. I didn't feel anything when we joined," he easily lied, "and I never will. Don't try to make this into something its not."

"What about the charm?"

"Smoke and mirrors to force unwilling people to wed. I don't believe in soul mates. And if I ever had one, she died years ago," he spat, turning from her.

"You mean Harry's mum, don't you?"

"Do not speak of it or her! It's none of your business!"

"Don't speak of her?" Hermione asked incredulously. "How ridiculous. Harry and I talk of her all the time. I know you loved her because I saw..."

Hermione stopped speaking at once when he whirled around and fixed his bottomless black eyes on her. "I can see that I didn't retrieve my memories back from Potter quick enough. How dare he share my most private, intimate thoughts and feelings?"

"NO! It wasn't like that! He wanted everyone to see the man you truly are!"

"Oh? And what type of man am I, Granger?"

"A hero."

Severus laughed so hard that he had to sit back down. "I am no hero, nor do I wish to be. I will leave all of that to the one who truly desires it. Don't romanticize me. You'll be sorely disappointed."

"When it comes to you, I romanticize nothing. I was merely stating that I felt a connection. I thought that you did, too. I see I was mistaken," she said stiffly. "I'm going to breakfast and then to work."

When she'd left for the Great Hall, Severus laid his head on the back of his chair and sighed. He would never tell her he'd felt anything. He didn't want her to have any false hopes where he was concerned. Once this year was up, so would their time together be.

A/N: I do think that Severus and Ronald protest too much!