Although each of them had separate rooms, Harry, Ron and Hermione gathered in Ron's room. The fiery tempered Weasley kicked an ottoman across the floor. "Does anyone remember anything about time travel in our classes?"

"There's an entire section in the restricted area of the library on time travel, Ron." Hermione sighed with exasperation.

"Don't roll your eyes at me, 'Mione." He glared at the girl. "You just said it was restricted. That probably means you're the only one in here who's had a look at those books."

"Well, I haven't," she snapped right back. "As a matter of fact, a good deal of Muggle science fiction deals with time travel and it seems..." Neither Ron nor Harry were listening to her, so she just gave up.

Ron slumped in his chair and Harry sat down on the bed. "I'm more interested in Dumbledore." Harry's eyebrows beetled closely together. "All the time he's spent with us. That forgetting spell isn't going to work on him."

Hermione sat beside Harry. "You think our Dumbledore remembers us from this past, Harry?"

"I think so. If he did remember us and we weren't able to get back, I think he'd have told us. He's never given any indication to me that I wouldn't be around to deal with Voldemort." Harry didn't want to think about having to deal with Voldemort. Twice now he'd dealt with that Dark Wizard, each time hoping that it was the last, but the wizard was much more resourceful than he looked. Dumbledore had warned Harry last year that it wouldn't get any easier.

A sharp rap on the door startled all three. The locked door was rattled for a moment as they stared. "Alohomora!" It was Snape's voice and he was soon standing in the doorway. "Potter! Granger! To your rooms, now!" He moved back against the door frame as Harry and Hermione said goodnight to Ron and sullenly made their way past the potions professor. Once they had each disappeared into their rooms, Snape gave Ron a quick glare and pulled the door firmly shut.

Snape was finding it difficult to sleep and so he sat by his fireplace with his outer robe wrapped around himself. His thoughts kept drifting to what had been a few minutes to midnight in 1994. Snape had stonily listened to Draco's explanation of why he'd jumped Potter in Potions class. Of course it had begun that year on the Hogwarts Express. According to Draco, Harry had set the entire insult-fest off with a dubious remark about Draco's parentage and snakes. During classes the slander had continued via well-placed looks and expressions. Before Potions class that fateful morning it seemed Harry had called the Slytherin boy "Ferret-face", an unfortunate reference to the polyjuiced Mad Eye Moody who'd taken great pleasure last year in turning Draco into a pure white, bouncing ferret. Draco, unable to contain himself any longer, threw the first punch.

From that point on in their walk to the Forbidden Forest, Snape was the unwilling recipient of four different viewpoints of the fight and who was ultimately to blame, at once. Snape nearly threw a silencing spell upon the lot of them, but since even a teacher couldn't be entirely prepared for what one might come across in the Forbidden Forest, he had merely silenced them with a whip-crack of his voice and a glare. Once they were sufficiently cowed, he launched into a lecture on the Star Moss Night Blooming Orchid.

The grove of dead trees had been a place that Snape had chosen his first year as Potions instructor for the patch of the rare flower to grow. The seeds were expensive, but it didn't take many as the Star Moss was a self-propagating plant. It thrived on the rich nutrients to be found in rotting trees.

Snape's lecture faded as the reached the grove. It was a beautiful, tranquil clearing and the light of the full moon gave an edge of the ethereal to everything it touched. For a brief moment, his four students were silent and he could see that each of them appreciated this quiet beauty offered by nature. Time was slipping inexorably forward and Snape quickly instructed them on how to harvest the bloom and its root and then he positioned them. The harvester had to work quickly as the blossoms opened; they expelled a heavy perfume that could easily overwhelm. Snape explained that most seasoned harvesters barely managed five blooms before being overcome by the Star Moss perfume. The enmity between Potter and Malfoy momentarily forgotten, Snape had promised points to anyone who could manage to harvest six intact blooms.

The attack from the Vohlfayr had taken Snape completely off guard. There was no time to think about what had brought the Blood Fae to a part of the world that wasn't native to them; Snape and his students were under attack. The Vohlfayr were vicious and quick in their attack; distracting the others while setting up the most vulnerable as their prey. Weasley, nearest him, was trying to help Snape while Potter, Granger and Malfoy were struggling on their own.

"Protect your eyes!" he ordered as he felt tiny, needle-like fingers just miss his own right eye.

Malfoy let out a horrified scream and Snape could see that the fae had chosen their victim. He had begun to cast a defensive shield at the same time Miss Granger was casting a spell to save young Malfoy. Although he approved of the girl's quick thinking, something had gone wrong with the spell she cast. Their only chance, in the midst of Miss Granger's miscast spell, was to remove them as quickly as possible; he side-apparated with his students.

Deep in the replay of the memory, he slowed everything down and concentrated on the memory image of the girl. By blocking out the distractions surrounding himself and her, he was now able to clearly hear the charm she cast; Dispercio. It was advanced 6th year magic. A charm the girl could only have found in a book. It shouldn't have surprised him. Miss Granger often had her nose in advanced spell books. Books could only teach so much, though, and that is where the child had made her error.

A very timid knock upon his door stirred the Potions master from his thoughts. Utilizing a quick dressing charm, he was back in full robed regalia as he answered the knock. Standing at his door was the very child he'd been mulling over. "Miss Granger? Are you well?" It appeared she had been weeping.

Hermione swallowed. She felt like she was standing before the Lord of Judgement himself. The last person she wanted to face was Snape, but she had no choice. "Professor... if you... I have to know... what did I do wrong?"

Ohhhh Snape could have told the girl in no uncertain terms just precisely where she'd gone wrong and quite scathingly, but he swallowed the desire. He was not a cruel man, despite his reputation at Hogwarts of being the "meanest and slimiest git" to ever teach at the school. Her fear of him was evident in her eyes and had Dumbledore, or McGonagall been in reach, Hermione would have gone to them. She was unable to do so and so it was his responsibility to counsel her. With the exception of his Slytherins, the students of the other houses generally did not realize that his duties in regards to the welfare of ALL the students in Hogwarts was one he took very seriously.

"Come in and sit down, Miss Granger." His tone was conciliatory, but hinted that she was, indeed, going to get an answer. Once she'd gingerly seated herself upon the chair he'd so recently occupied, he inquired, "In which book did you find the Dispercio charm, Miss Granger?"

"Defensive Charms & Wandless Incantations by Elgar Dreath." Hermione watched Snape pace and silently berated herself for wandering so willingly into the snake's den.

"Elgar Dreath is an adequate author, but that particular book is one lacking in detailed information. I'm surprised that you hadn't noticed, Miss Granger. Normally your research goes above and beyond what is normally required." He turned just in time to catch a small smile from the girl as she caught the wisp of a compliment he'd extended. His dark glare wiped the smile from her face.

Hermione kicked herself mentally. She should have known that no compliment given by the dreaded potions professor came without thorns. "What was missing, Professor?"

"The Dispercio charm has three permutations, Dispercio, Dispercium Incantatum, and Dispercious Excorius. Each permutation has distinct and rather complex gestures. In Dreath's book, he not only left out two of the permutations of the dispersal charm, but he made a grave error in which the gestures for Dispercious Excorius were mixed up with the Dispercio charm."

Hermione felt her heart leap to her throat. One of the first things a first year student learned before they were even allowed to use their wand was to NEVER mix gestures and charms. Many charms were simple and used a basic waving motion of the wand. There were some charms though, whose magic were enhanced by particular gestures that further helped to focus the magic. This type of magic was taught only to fourth year students. "I... I had no idea," she whispered and her voice quavered tremulously. "I'm so sorry, Professor. But, how... why did it send us back in time?"

"It wasn't entirely your spell, Miss Granger. Little is known in our part of the world about the Vohlfayr except in children's faery tales. We don't teach about them in school, although after this incident," he glowered thoughtfully, "we ought to start. What I can tell you about the Blood Fae is that they create a field that allows them to phase slightly between our reality and time. Blood fae are difficult to attack because they are moving a few seconds ahead of us." Snape paused briefly to allow Hermione the chance to grasp the concept. He was pleased to catch the glimmer of comprehension in her eyes. He continued to elaborate. "I believe that your particular gestures with the Dispercio charm reacted with the time field projected by the Vohlfayr, opening a rift in time that we fell through. We were not followed by the fae because part of the original intent of the charm, that of dispersing the fae, was fulfilled."

Hermione nodded slowly. "So I separated us from the enemy by sending us back in time."

"That is what I just said, Miss Granger." Her glared down upon her. He purposely neglected to elaborate on his own contribution as he felt it more important to impress upon the little know-it-all the gravity of her mistake. "Now, does this answer your question?"

"It does, Professor. I am so very sorry, sir."

"Just see that you don't practice spells and charms from the books you read without more thorough research. And ask, if you wish to practice more advanced magic. You are more than capable and I'm certain that Professor McGonagall would be more than happy to indulge her favored student."

This caused a grin to light up Hermione's face and she jumped up from her chair. "Thank you, Professor. I promise, I'll ask for help from now on." She raced for the door and pulled it open. Relief flooded her body language, but Snape could also tell she was ready for escape. "Goodnight, sir!"

"Goodnight, Miss Granger." The door closed firmly and soon after he heard the girl's own door shut as well. A sudden yawn escaped him and he wasn't sure why, but he suddenly felt as though he would now be able to sleep.