"We were going to get married in the Summer House and have the guests in the garden," Ron informed Gabrielle in a stage whisper. "The Drawing Room only holds fifty people, but I expect Snape doesn't have any friends to invite."

"Ronald, you're still an arse," Luna informed him, appearing from behind him and walking right on past on her way to speak to the Grangers. Her dress had a calf-length handkerchief hem in layers of lilac and lavender silk that were so fine as to be translucent, making her look even more like a wingless fairy than normal.

"And Severus has all the friends he needs, Mr Weasley," Minerva added. "Even if he doesn't have thirty-seven cousins with attendant spouses and children. If you aren't one of them, then perhaps you should retire to another room until the ceremony is over."

"Professor! You can't tell me you think this is all on the up and up?" Ron protested. "Hermione would never marry the Greasy Git, not that this is even a wedding. It's just Stockport Syndrome. He kidnapped her and held her hostage until she thinks she's in love with him."

"And the Chudley Cannons will beat the Magpies in the league this year," Minerva retorted derisively. "Don't you use your damned eyes, boy? The pair of them glow. If you had half a brain in your head, you'd know what caused Hermione's recovery, and it's got nothing to do with anything as artificially induced as Stockholm Syndrome..." She silently mouthed the words, 'or Veela magic,' lest any Muggles should be nearby. "Now, still your malicious tongue before I tell your mother. I dare say that Molly was less than happy with you behaving the way you did, and even less so that she was deprived of a wedding when you had to elope to salvage Gabrielle's reputation and legitimise the grandchild she's expecting in five months. If I were you, I wouldn't risk disgracing her further with a display of sour grapes. Good day!"

Minerva had barely departed before there was a ringing of cutlery on crystal. The crowd turned their attention to where Mr Granger stood at the front of the room. "Ladies and gentlemen, if you could take your seats according to the seating chart by the door, champagne will be served and the ceremony will begin in a few minutes." He gestured toward the many sofas spread around the room. "Lunch will be served immediately after in the Tudor Hall."

Luna drifted from the room, pausing only to ensure that her father was safely settled on a sofa near the front beside Harry and Ginny, and to mouth the word, "Arse!" at Ron in his seat at the back of the room, behind Hagrid and Olympe Maxime.

When everyone was seated and champagne had been served, a quartet of musicians, seated off to the left near the front of the room, began to play. The whispers of the audience died away and they twisted toward the back of the room, where Hermione entered on Severus's arm with Lucius escorting Luna a few feet behind.

Severus and Lucius wore outfits very similar to traditional Muggle morning suits in black, but those in the know could tell they had been styled by wizards. Severus's hair fell in soft layers, Hermione having cut it for him the week before in preparation.

Hermione's dress was longer than Luna's but in the same ethereal style. Deep violet overlaid layers of black, and both women carried small posies of violets rather than more ostentatious bouquets. Hermione's hair was held back at the sides with combs decorated with the same delicate flowers, but it spilled loose beyond her waist, her normally wild curls tamed by Sleekeezy into rippling waves.

When they reached the oriel window that dominated the end of the room, Hermione passed her posy to Luna and both attendants stepped off to the sides, leaving the happy couple bathed in the late morning sunlight that seemed to have a magic all of its own, filled with sparkling dust motes.

The couple turned to each other, taking their partner's right hand in their left. Hermione spoke her vows first, her eyes never leaving Severus's face. "I, Hermione Jean Granger, do hereby pledge to share with you, Severus Snape, all that I am, and all that I will ever be, to love and care for you from this day forward for as long as you so desire."

Severus responded. "I, Severus Snape, do hereby pledge to share with you, Hermione Jean Granger, all that I am, and all that I will ever be, to love and care for you from this day forward for as long as you so desire and to nurture with you any future offspring as they grow to adulthood. Will you share my name?"

"I will."

Severus's hand dipped into his waistcoat pocket. "Will you wear this ring, one of a pair wrought to symbolise our union?"

Hermione's smile, if anything grew wider. "I will," she answered, waiting as he slid the band onto her wedding finger. She opened a tiny pouch which had been tied to her wrist with a ribbon and tipped a second ring into the palm of her left hand. "Will you wear this ring, which you have wrought to symbolise our union?"

At the sight of joyful tears welling in Hermione's eyes, even Severus deigned to smile slightly, as she placed the ring on his finger. "I will."

Severus nodded to Luna, who set the bouquets down on a small side table, lifting instead a shallow silver quaich by both handles and bringing it over to her former teacher before returning to get a glass each of champagne for herself and for Lucius.

"We will now drink a toast to celebrate," Severus announced. "The years of life are as a cup of wine poured out for you to drink. This Loving Cup contains within it a wine with certain properties that are sweet and symbolic of happiness, joy, hope, peace, love and delight. This same wine also holds some bitter properties that are symbolic of disappointment, sorrow, grief, despair, and life's trials and tribulations. Together the sweet and the bitter represent love's journey and all of the experiences that are a natural part of it. We ask that as we drink from this Loving Cup, so may you drink from your glasses, so that in sharing the wine you can also share in the blessings of this union.

"Those who drink deeply with an open heart and willing spirit, invite the full range of challenges and experiences into their being for themselves and for Hermione and myself." Severus lifted the chalice. "May all the sweetness life's cup holds for each of you be the sweeter because we drink it together, and may whatever drops of bitterness it might contain be less bitter because you share them with family and friends. Drink now, and may the cup of your lives be sweet and full to running over." Severus carefully tilted the quaich to Hermione's lips, holding it there until she had drunk several mouthfuls.

Hermione then took the cup from him, holding it as high as she could while still able to see how full it was so that Severus had to duck his head slightly to drink from it, their eyes meeting over its rim.

After a few mouthfuls, Hermione drew the cup back, ready for the next toast. "This Loving Cup is symbolic of the pledges we have made to one another to share together the fullness of life. As we drink from this cup, we acknowledge to one another that our lives, separate until this moment, have now become one. We toast the love we have shared in the past," she promised, tilting the cup up to Severus's lips once more, and then drinking from it again as Severus held it for her.

"We drink to the love we share in the present, on this day where we are united together in the sight of friends and family," Severus added, again allowing Hermione to sip from the cup and then letting her almost pour some into his mouth as it became more difficult for her to tell how much wine was left.

"And, finally," they pronounced in chorus, Severus's hands coming to rest over Hermione's so that they held the chalice together, "we drink to our love in the future." Hermione drank first, swallowing much more of the wine with this toast than with any of the others. When she gave a double blink, Severus lifted the cup to his own mouth, Hermione's hands still cradled under his, but his fingers guiding it as he drained what remained to the very last drop.

Once the toast was complete, Luna placed her empty glass and Lucius's on the table and then took the quaich from Severus and Hermione.

Hermione reached up, wrapping her arms around his neck, and Severus lowered his lips to hers for a lingering tender kiss.

---

Luna basked for some hours in the glow of a task well done, as numerous courses were served and speeches given. She danced the first dance with Lucius, who complimented her on her dress and on her letter-writing skills.

"Hermione would have been very cross if Severus's plan had worked," Luna answered dreamily. "She's a little bit scary when she's cross, so I thought we ought to avoid that if we could."

"She is fortunate to have found a man like Severus," Lucius replied.

"Almost as fortunate as he was to find her," Luna agreed.

Lucius smiled. "Indeed. I might even have considered her as a possible daughter-in-law, if she hadn't been a Mud— I mean Muggle-born."

"Then it's even luckier for Draco that she is. The dance is about to end. Do you think you could lead in that direction?" she asked, nodding over behind Lucius's left shoulder.

"Are you scheming again?" Lucius asked, obligingly making a turn. "Perhaps I should have looked closer to home."

Luna wrinkled her nose. "Draco's far too grim for me, and I really can't be bothered with all the politics and posturing."

"Dare I ask what you're up to?" Lucius said.

"I suspect you might, but I would be distracted by Wrackspurts and ignore you completely," Luna replied and gave a little curtsey as the dance came to a close.

Turning towards the edge of the dance floor, Luna beamed at Arthur Weasley as if finding him there was the happiest of coincidences. "Hello, Mr Weasley, I'm so glad you could come."

"Of course," Arthur remarked affably. "Hermione's practically family, and Severus is a fine man."

"I know it's a little rude, since you're just normal guests, but there are a couple of little behind the scenes tasks that might involve some lifting, and I wondered if I might be able to borrow Charlie for a little while."

The shorter redhead looked over at the mention of his name.

"I'm sure he'll be happy to lend a hand," Arthur said. "Won't you, son?"

Charlie's gaze flicked down over Luna and rather more slowly back up, stopping at her eyes, a tentative smile forming. "Yeah, I'll help if I can."

"Oooh, good, I'll show you where we're going. If you get two ice-buckets with fresh bottles of champagne, I'll get the glasses."

Luna led him first to the South Wing Tower, where they climbed a spiral staircase to the third floor and the Superior Suite. She set two of the glasses down on the chest of drawers beside the bed, and then added an ice-bucket she took from Charlie's arms.

"Do you want these others in the bathroom?" Charlie suggested.

"Oh, no, those are for the Duke's Bedroom downstairs."

Charlie's brow wrinkled slightly. "Who's staying there?"

"I am," Luna answered, "And you... if you would like. According to Hermione, it's practically mandatory for the bridesmaids at Muggle not-weddings to have lots and lots of sex, preferably with the most dashing single man they can find, and I wouldn't want to break with tradition. It might be bad luck."

"The m— most dashing single man they can find?" Charlie repeated.

"With the cutest stutter," Luna added, closing the gap between them and tilting her head up until her lips were only half an inch from Charlie's, her breasts a hair's breadth from his chest.

Charlie lowered his head unhurriedly and savoured her lips with gentle thoroughness, drawing her close with a splayed hand at the back of her waist.

Luna grinned through swollen lips when he finally lifted his head, leading him back to the stairs. "I'll take that as a yes," she sighed.