Chapter 1: On Marriage
AUTHOR: Mnemosyne
Disclaimer: All Harry Potter-related people, places and events are the property of JK Rowling and Warner Bros. Studios. I make no claim on them. (Though if Ron, Bill or the twins ever find themselves searching for companionship in New England, they're free to look me up. I'm in the book. ;))
SUMMARY: When something is right, you know it's right. When time is short, you act in a moment. Ron and Hermione know these things. Tonight, they act on them.
RATING: PG-13, for some adult subject matter and blood-shedding. Please remember these are imaginary characters, and the things they do aren't things we should do. What do I mean? Read, and you'll find out.
PAIRING: Ron/Hermione (but of course!)
SPOILERS: For "Order of the Phoenix"
NOTES:
I wanted to a do a Ron/Hermione marriage fic that wasn't like any other marriage story I've read. I wanted to take them out of their familiar circle, and give their vows a darker tone. I think I was inspired by the gritty cinematography of the "PoA" film, which looked like antique silver: tarnished, but still beautiful. As for the "excerpt" at the beginning of the story… Well, it's got a sillier edge to it than the rest of the story, but please don't hold that against me. giggle I couldn't resist. ;)
I hope you'll enjoy this story, and if you do, I hope you'll take a moment to review! Thank you!
Excerpt from the Introduction to On the Laws and Leniences of Marriage For Magical Races, copyright Sir Ichabod Sisslestock, 1857 A.D.
It has been noted by many venerable wizards and witches over the ages that the laws governing marriage in our society are outdated, inconsistent, and appear in many cases to have been written by mages who were too far off their rocker with drink to know exactly what the term marriage entailed. They especially question the fact that so many of the more barbaric practices of our early history have been allowed to remain on the rulebooks as equally viable options to the more modern, less bloody ceremonies of today. Rather than striking such primitive practices from the law books, things like blood-bonding and Moon Marriage have been allowed to linger, not because anyone actually uses them, but because no one has ever bothered to say Don't do these things.
Of course, few wizards would ever actually follow these outdated practices, but there are far more troubling issues that are still relevant in today's world. Dissenters complain that 14 years is far too young for a legal marriageable age. They object to the fact that no parental consent need be given. They scream like banshees when they are reminded that no witnesses need be present at the ceremony. And they point with unerring accuracy to the fact that in many places, the laws governing magical marriage seem to have been copied straight out of a Quidditch rulebook, with the term "quidditch" scribbled out and replaced with "marriage" in all the appropriate places.
Proponents of the laws as they now stand rejoinder that 14 is not too young, and is in fact the perfect age for a legal marriage, being as it is double the lucky number Seven. As to parental consent and the presence of witnesses, they admit that such things would be nice, but due to the ease of forging signatures, the brewing of potions (see "Polyjuice"), and other forms of trickery, DEMANDING these things causes more trouble than it prevents. "Besides," Lord Alberforce Widdershin supplied in a committee meeting on the subject in 1850, "common sense has governed the way wizards and witches have been wedding each other for centuries. We're all big boys and girls, after all, and know the proper way of doing things. We hardly need to be told." When asked to clarify how big boys and girls could apply to children aged 14-years, Lord Widdershin is quoted as saying, "Well, just don't tell them they can get married, and I don't think you have to worry. What they don't know won't hurt your pocketbook."
As for the Quidditch connection, supporters of the current legal system are quick to point out that most Quidditch games work out better than an average marriage, and are much more exciting in the interim.
The debate about overhauling the Marriage laws has gone on for centuries, and will likely continue for centuries more before any progress is made in one direction or the other. Until then, most people are agreed that the issue of age at least is a moot point, because honestly, how many young people do you know who actually bother to read?
TBC…