Dearest, Hermione. 

I think a muggle establishment would be a more appropriate place to meet. Shall we converge at The Blue Unicorn, at 7pm on Thursday?

Regards,

Severus Snape. 

____

She was definitely overthinking. 

Hermione hadn't put so much thought into her outfit since attending the Yuleball when she was a fumbling teenager. She felt hopeless. Not exactly one to follow the latest fashions, Hermione always dressed for practicality and comfort. Of course, she always made sure she looked presentable, but that was more an act of pride than it was vanity. It wasn't like magical society had any blossoming fashion trends anyway - Madame Malkin had been producing the same style of robes for the past five decades. 

Hermione hadn't held an interest in muggle clothing in years, preferring the much more modest wizarding robes. She simply refused to wear crop tops, vintage fur coats or whatever the latest trend was. Mom jeans were the only trend Hermione had managed to get on board with. 

She stared at the acid washed denim in the mirror - they did make her ass look good, but did she look too muggle? Hermione and Severus could hardly turn up to a muggle pub in central London sporting full wizarding regailia. She sighed, changing her top for the hundredth time that evening. Usually neatly folded and stored, (almost) the entire contents of Hermione's wardrobe was currently strewn across her bedroom. It looked as though a bomb had exploded in a deparment store. 

Severus was a simple man - He would prefer simple. 

She opted for a v-necked Tshirt (that tasefully displayed her assets) and her mom jeans. Hermione decided to leave her hair down, hoping it made her appear casual. 

Casual 

Tonight's meeting was anything but casual. Tonight was to be the end of this whole cursed journey. Like everyone her age, Hermione had been affected by The Ministry of Magic's Postwar Population Planning Act - a glorified marriage law. Marketed as The Ministry's solution to the dramatic decrease in the magical population since the war, the act forced anyone of age to find a suitable partner to marry, or be forced to go on a series of dates until a partner is selected for them. 

Older members of society defended The Act, stating that the young people of today were lucky that the matches were not chosen for them. The Ministry could have easily assigned the matches themselves, obliterating any opportunity for a love match to be formed. Hermione also considered herself fortunate that there wasn't a reproduction clause. She happened to be aware that marriage laws in some countries forced couples to copulate weekly, with the goal of producing children. 

As Severus had said, the notion was strikingly similar to one presented by Lord Voldemort to ensure blood purity. 

 All of her friends had managed to find a love match. Harry had proposed to Ginny as soon as The Act had been passed, eliminating any need for either of them to date again. Ron had offered his hand to Lavender, shortly after Hermione had proudly rejected him. None of her friends had experienced the uncertainty and anxiety that Hermione was feeling now. If Severus didn't propose soon, she would have to begin the dating process all over again (or lose her last shred of dignity and beg Draco to take her back). 

____

Hermione was seated at the bar of the pub, 10 minutes before the agreed upon time. The bar tender had served her a glass of ice water while she waited. The establishment seemed as though it would suit Severus's taste. The lights were dimmed to give a cozy atmosphere, and the tables were placed apart to provide ample space for discreet meetings. Well-placed dividers, light fixtures and house plants provided plenty of cover for guarded interactions. Hermione leaned against the bar - which was not sticky, a typical indicator of a cheap tavern. 

At 7:05pm, Hermione glanced towards her watch. Severus was nowhere to be seen. She swallowed her anxiety, reassuring herself that he may just be late - perhaps he got caught up with a potion? 

It was odd, being in a muggle establishment now that Hermione was used to the magical world. From her seat at the bar, she watched as a black cab pulled up outside the pub. Two ladies tumbled out, one of them was holding a mobile phone up to her ear and talking rapidly down it. 

She smiled. Hermione was accustomed to seeing such things, having spent her early years surrounded by less advanced versions of smart phones, computers ect. Hermione had even owned a mobile phone, when she was 10 years old, although this one had buttons rather than a touch screen. She could understand why magical folk, like Arthur, were often fascinated by muggle technology. Hermione could also see why they would be afraid of it. 

Unable to help herself, she glanced at her watch again - 7:08. She sighed, and sipped her water. Hermione had faith in Severus, he didn't seem like the kind of man who would stand a lady up without having a good reason. Her thoughts spiralled. 

Had she given him a reason?

Perhaps he was getting cold feet. Hermione understood that entirely. The whole point of this meeting was for them to come to a decision about the rest of their lives. Severus was not an emotionally available man, Hermione knew that he would be way out of his comfort zone. Not to mention the fact that they hadn't seen each other for years. Although she loathed to admit it, one of Hermione's greatest anxieties had been in his presence again, after all this time. Would things be weird? Would she only see her Ex-Professor? 

Maybe Severus shared similar anxieties? 

She recalled their last conversation

Severus paused to find the correct words. "I will admit that I have been having doubts."

"Can I help with those?" Hermione asked.

"Not entirely." He said. "I have to work through this alone." 

Hermione knew that the man was complex. She knew that the monster of his past still roared its ugly head, and Severus was still a slave to his history. However, she had been patient. She had given him time. She had offered her assistance. At some point, Severus was going to have to push past the darkness and embrace the fact that times have changed. They were no longer living in active conflict, he was no longer a spy. He had been acquitted. Now was the time for him to get over himself and embrace normalcy (if one could call a Marriage Law normal). 

By 7:15pm, Hermione's determination was beginning to crumble. She was done giving him the benefit of the doubt. She knew little of the way Severus lived his life now, but when they were in school, every aspect of his life was controlled. Everything he did was intentional. He was not the kind of person to be late, due to a misstiming or unforeseen circumstances. If he truely intended to be somewhere, Severus Snape would make sure he was present and accounted for.

At 7:30, Hermione stood, pulling on her coat. She was humiliated. The man at the bar gave her a sympathetic smile as he took her empty glass. Hermione was fuming.

He wasn't coming. She had been kind enough to wait 40 minutes, and to invent excuses and reasons as to why he might be late. Severus Snape had stood her up. 

Hermione was in the right mind to apparate straight to Malfoy Manor, and propose to Draco herself. 

____

Fortunately, Hermione possessed enough self-preservation to apparate home, instead. By the time she barged through the front door of her flat, tears were streaming freely down her face. Hermione was embarrassingly out of breath from the stairs she had stomped up to get to the security of her flat. 

Hermione fell to her knees when she saw the state of her bedroom. It was exactly as she had left it, when she was getting ready in anticipation of a proposal. Almost every item of clothing she owned had been abandoned across every available surface. Her vanity table was a riot of colour, discarded make up brushes, eyeshadown pallets and lipsticks lay discarded and forgotten about. 

She felt ridiculous. Her mom jeans, and v-necked top looked silly now. The mascara she had so painstakingly applied was now smeared down her cheeks. Hermione only sobbed further at her own moritfication.

The implications of Severus standing her up were much larger than just decimating her pride. 

He had been her last chance. 

Severus had been her one opportunity to escape this merlin-damned marriage law, and now she was forced to do it all again. She would have to date again, to display every inch of her personality to a complete stranger. She would never escape the sympathetic looks from her friends, the awful comments from her boss surrounding her failed attempt to get hitched, and the undermining letters from The Ministry reminding her that every moment that she was single, she was failure to the rest of society. 

A shower and a bottle of wine later, Hermione's heartbreak had morphed into rage. She was as furious with herself for believing his lies, as she was upset with him for leading her on. Hermione hated crying over men. She relieved her feelings in the only way she could think of.

Severus, 

At the risk of sounding cliche - I don't think this is going to work out.

You're lucky that I even dignified you with a response, after you deemed it below yourself to meet at our agreed upon place this evening. This letter has no purpose other than to serve as therapy for my own feelings of regret. 

The irony of it is - I choose you because I thought that you would present me with a challenge. If only I had known just how soon we would face difficulties, I would have spared myself the trouble. You spoke of needing time, and I have given you plenty. You say you need to face this alone, and I have nothing but respect for that. 

I won't allow you to put your self-depreciating spin on this situation. To clarify, I am not upset that you need time to process your feelings, take all of the time in the world. I am upset because you apparently don't possess the basic human decency to alert me that you need longer to process your thoughts. I would have been understanding, Severus. I would have given you time.

I am not the kind of woman who gives disrespectful men a second chance.  

Am I to declare to The Ministry that we will not be marrying? Or have you already seen fit to do so on my behalf? 

Hermione Granger. 

____

The following morning, Hermione awoke to a splitting headache and an angry looking owl, flapping at her window. Wrenching herself from the bed, she let the owl in and untied her reply. 

There was a tidal wave of overwhelming regret for a split second, as Hermione recalled the events of the night before. She glanced at the state of her room, the empty wine bottle on the floor and the mountain of tissues in her bin, and decided that she needed a cup of tea before she opened his reply. 

Hermione,

I do not feel the need to apologise, just as I did not feel the need to write and inform you that I would not be attending our meeting. 

Who would have thought the Gryffindor Princess had a taste for snakes, not one but two? Imagine my surprise, when picking up dinner at a recommended restaurant, to see my intended having a cosy meal with my godson. I happen to know that Draco was rather upset when you turned him down. I did not, however, expect such betrayal from my own kin. 

In your last letter, you are awfully quick to blame me. Alas! I could never have predicted war-hero Granger to be so conniving and deceitful.  Do not mistake me, Draco shall suffer in accordance with his actions, but you shall regret the day you crossed me. 

I had every intention to propose to you, Hermione. I was inclined to uphold every promise I had made, and do my utmost to ensure your happiness. 

It is clear that my trust has been misplaced. I intend to inform The Ministry of the dissolution of our relationship post-haste. I can only hope that this will be the end of our contact. 

Severus Snape. 

____

Severus, 

Although this goes against every instinct that I possess, I'm sensing that there has been a rather large misunderstanding. Thus, kindly let me explain myself. 

I happened to be in need of Draco's services, as Deputy Head of The Department of Magical Law Enforcement. I had initially owled him, asking to arrange a formal meeting to discuss the relevant matters, but he insisted we meet at a restaurant he thought I would enjoy. I have no desire to be connected to the issue at hand, therefore I agreed to meet outside of the rumor-mill that is The Ministry of Magic. 

I'm afraid one of my friends has been unfortunate enough to be entangled in quite the scandal. I was only asking Draco for professional aid. If you were to owl him privately to enquire about our meeting, then you would find that our stories correlate. Or perhaps you require to use your legilimency in order to believe me? 

Regarding our previous relationship (if one might call it that), Draco is very aware of where the boundary lies. Although he is still rather wounded, he is respectful of my decision. I can assure that nothing untoward has happened, or shall ever happen between myself and Draco Malfoy. 

This being said, I know it is not in your nature to trust, but I am a little offended that you would expect so little of me. Had you simply come to talk to me, perhaps we would be happily engaged by now. I cannot marry a man who does not think me honorable. 

At the risk of sounding repetitive, I do not give out second chances. I present you with an ultimatum. Prove your trust, and perhaps I might choose to believe that this was all a misunderstanding. 

The decision is yours. 

Hermione Granger. 

____

Hermione, 

Mark this moment as I believe it to be a first. I had considered myself an accomplished spy until this very moment. 

Draco was able to corroborate your story with very little prompting. You have my deepest apologies. 

I very much doubt that you would so freely offer your forgiveness, I do appreciate that you value our relationship enough to "offer an explanation" as you so phrased it. I expect that further explanation and a healthy dose of shameless grovelling will be required before you forgive me entirely.

I think we ought to meet in person, if you are still willing, to continue this conversation.  

You're aware that I have become somewhat of a recluse? That being said, it's true that very few people truly know where I reside, in the interest of security of peace. I would like to invite you over for afternoon tea, tomorrow at 2pm if you are available, to talk through everything we ought to have discussed earlier in the week. 

Is that proof enough of my trust in you, or shall I take it further? 

Deepest regrets, 

Severus Snape. 

____ 

So convinced that Severus's deep-rooted distrust would be the death of their relationship (before it had really begun), Hermione found herself shedding tears of relief upon reading his reply. 

They had yet to form an agreement and already, Hermione and Severus were having troubles. She had yet to secure herself a match, and she felt like the pathetic donkey chasing the carrot. Hermione was no closer now, to biting the carrot than she had been earlier in the week. Severus had insisted that he needed time to "work things out" - what exactly had that meant?  In addition, their argument over Draco only added to the list of things that were to be attended to at a later date. 

Her anxiety was doubling by the day, as was her hesistation. What if she had chosen wrong? What if Severus would be a very poor match indeed?

Hermione supposed that she could call things off. Sure, she had 3 weeks now to get married, but that wasn't the be all and end all. If she and Severus failed, they would each get a further 6 months to try and form an organic union before they were sorted into the blasted Ministry Dating pool again. Hermione laughed humourlessly - it would probably take her the next 6 months to get over Severus. 

How big was the magical population, really? How many choices did she have left? 

To top it all off, Hermione was still painfully aware that all of her friends had achieved something she hadn't. All of her friends now possessed a family unit, something she found herself envious of, despite feeling as though she wasn't ready to have children just yet. It sounded ridiculous, but Hermione was still the same overachiever she had been at school. Her friends had set a timeline of sorts, and Hermione was falling behind.

Hermione didn't want to re-enter the dating pool. She didn't want to have to meet new people, or arrange any more dates ever again. She wanted Severus. 

Sighing in defeat, Hermione wiped her tears, It had been an incredibly long week, in which she had found herself acting rather out of character. She felt almost as though she didn't entirely understand herself anymore. 

As though someone had cast a lumos charm, a light flicked on the inside of Hermione's mind. Perhaps that was why Severus was being so... cautious. He too felt equally as overwhelmed and unseemly as she did. 

Maybe they did need to speak to one another.