Chapter 4

Disclaimer: Not mine. I just borrowed them for a while. I promise to put them back when I'm done. Oh, nope, no money either...just for fun.

I want to give a great big thank you hug to EverMystique and DuchessOfArcadia for combing through this to help me make this presentable for reading. You're the best, thank you!

By noon, the sands in the Time-Turner looked normal. Hermione sighed sadly, put it around her neck and looked up at Severus.

He stood patiently, his expression neutral and nodded at her. "It's time, Hermione. You have to go home."

"I know," she said softly. "It'll be good to be back." She meant it, but in an odd way she'd miss this Severus Snape. But much as she'd have liked to stay with him and really get to know him, she couldn't, and he couldn't come back with her. So this was good-bye.

She grabbed her bag, slung it over her shoulder and looked up at him expectantly. She wanted to hug him good-bye, but his posture was so stiff and aloof that she knew it wouldn't be welcomed. "Thank you. You did so much for me this last week. I'll never forget it."

He huffed. "It might be best if you did."

She turned away and sighed.

"You're welcome. Now, go," he muttered softly, dropping his head so that his hair obscured his face.

Hermione set the runes to 'return.' Severus watched her with a resolute air. There was so much she wanted to say to him, but he refused to look her in the eye. She let the hourglass spin, and he vanished as the room spun out of focus.

She arrived back in the little room and wondered what time it was. As she walked up to the common room to change, she realized that lessons were about to be let out. Curious, she hurried to get to her Ancient Runes class. She arrived in the corridor a few paces from watching herself being knocked over when several fifth-years exited the door behind her. Her other self vanished before she hit the floor. Hermione pulled out her Time-Turner. The hourglass felt hot, and the sand looked almost like liquid. It'll have to cool, but I can't be seen. It took a week the first time for it to cool... Would a week still be enough? Or should it be two? I'll start with one. She quickly turned the ring back for a one week jump and prayed. The Time-Turner nearly burned her hand, but it still made the jump. Hermione carefully checked the corridor before running to find Professor McGonagall to tell her she'd miscalculated so that she could be hidden for a week until time caught back up to her.

Cronus Latimer examined the Time-Turner in his hand. "It's been over used, I think. It's still quite hot." He looked up at Albus from across his worktable with a worried expression. "You say she went back a week? Is that all?"

Albus rested his elbows on the workbench from his perch on the padded stool. "Minerva informed me that Miss Granger miscalculated and went back a week instead of an hour," he said, steepling his hands in front of him, watching Cronus turn the hourglass to examine the sands. "She took Miss Granger to her sister's house for the duration of her overlap, and Miss Granger will be back at Hogwarts on Wednesday."

"Odd, very odd," Cronus mumbled. "How many times has she miscalculated?"

"I am unaware of any other miscalculations," Albus stated. "But then I have had many other concerns as of late: Sirius Black for one, the Dementors surrounding the school for another, Minister Fudge's concerns and many interferences, and, of course, many parents who are highly concerned for the safety and welfare of their children. I am pleased to say that Miss Granger herself is apparently in good health and of sound mind."

"Well, Albus, this needs to cool down...but not too quickly... and at the correct temperature. Humidity is of concern...there cannot be any condensation..." Cronus began to stroke his beard as he paced, rambling his thoughts quickly, and Albus smiled. "I'm concerned that the device reset itself..." Cronus stopped and faced the black board that took up an entire wall of his workroom. "And that must be done with...I've never calculated for misuse...Einstein's principle of time relativity... Galilean's invariance of time in Arithmancy principle... to Pilsners' equivalence of rotational time," he said as he waved his hand to make the formulas appear on his blackboard. "I may have to consider Haughton's theory of collateral parallel time dimensions... The setting must be noted so that Miss Granger doesn't return to the time she left. She is waiting out the week in the Highlands. The Time-Turner will have to be reset..."

Albus stood and walked around the workbench to watch the wizard as he added in the runes and numbers that represented the setting of when Hermione returned.

"She disappeared Thursday, approximately at two o'clock. Just after her Ancient Runes lesson. We might add three minutes to compensate for her need to find a suitable place in which to utilize the Time-Turner unobserved," Albus said, adding in the additional information where it was needed for the calculation. They worked together on the calculation for an hour, adjusting the time of Miss Granger's departure time twice, before they determined the equilivent denominator. "Well, yes, the Time-Turner must sit in stasis and cool for a week and a half," Cronus admitted. "But the cooling...that is not my forte."

"Ah, but I can help you there," Albus said with a smile. "I have been mulling it over while we were talking, and I think I know just the spells needed. Of course, it will take two wands and preferably someone with an oak wand with a Dragon heartstring core...the magical complimentary wood to my own wand. Luckily I know just the wizard, and I can ensure you that he is most discrete."

"Whom?" Cronus asked. "There are very few who are allowed within these corridors and halls, Albus."

"Mr. Kingsley Shacklebolt," Albus replied with full confidence in his voice. "I can vouch for the man myself."

Cronus stroked his beard as he considered the suggestion. Albus waited patiently, knowing that his friend would have to consider all the implications of allowing Kingsley down into the Department of Mysteries to assist Albus in Charming the small blue box that rested on the workbench. "All right, Albus. I'll send for his assistance," he agreed at least.

"Excellent," Albus said, his blue eyes twinkling, and returned to his stool to wait the arrival of his Order member.

Severus sat at his desk and watched Hermione work on her potion. Every once and a while she nudged Longbottom or quietly hissed directions at him. "Miss Granger, kindly do your own work, and stop instructing Mr. Longbottom. That's my job, you insufferable girl," he snapped at her. "Ten points from Gryffindor. Mr. Weasley, shred the lemon grass, do not mangle it." Oh yes, a typical Potions lesson with the third-year Gryffindors.

It had worked. The mishap had been avoided and all was normal again. Or seemed normal. Only time would tell if everything worked out. The good thing was that Miss Granger was back, hand spring up to every question he asked, rhetorical or not, coaching Neville at every opportunity, and following Potter and the sidekick Weasley, breaking every school rule possible. He'd had to maintain a fierce acerbic tone whenever he was around her, but so far she hadn't demonstrated any inappropriate familiarity with him or made any innuendo regarding the week they'd spent in each other's company.

He stood and swept around the room, observing the students' progress on the simple Burn Paste. It wouldn't be the superior quality that he produced, but if any of them in the future received a minor burn at least they...well, most of them would be able to relieve the wound. Hermione's was perfect; in fact, he realized that she'd used the same directions they'd used when she'd jumped back, not the one on the board. He frowned at her, and she had the audacity to look up and smile at him, giving him a slight nod. He merely raised an eyebrow at her and tried to look disdainful before he turned to check Longbottom's. His was useless; it would barely receive an Acceptable. Goyle's was dismal, barely passing as was Crabbe's. Malfoy's potion was slightly off color but would turn out adequate enough unless he quit trying to whip it with is stirring rod. Potter's was passable, and Weasley's was... puce.

"When you are finished, bottle the potion in the large flasks on the side table and bring it to me," he said smoothly returning to his desk. "Weasley, don't bother bottling that concoction, it's abominable." He sat down, ignoring Potter and Weasley's complaints about fairness. Yes, everything was back to normal...thankfully. He glanced over at Hermione and their eyes met. Severus stared at her, keeping his expression as neutral as possible. Hermione turned her attention back to her potion where it belonged.

Severus cursed himself. The girl had another mishap with the Time-Turner and had gone back to his time again, not once but two more times!

As he remembered it, she nearly got caught in the cross fire between him, Potter, and Black the first time, and the second time she ended up in Gryffindor tower for a month. A bloody month! Then she disappeared without a trace. She had lived with Lily Evans and Potter...she could have changed the timeline! Who knows what events the girl had changed.

He knew that she'd come back to his time, even knew when, roughly.

"Minerva, give me the Time-Turner and I can fix this," he said, knowing that he'd have to convince himself to take care of the insufferable girl for the additional two times she'd gone back in time.

"No, Severus," Dumbledore said, shaking his head sadly. "This is a problem that is best dealt with in this time, not in the past. Besides, we aren't even sure when exactly Hermione went back to."

"I know where she went, or more acutely, when," Severus said firmly, placing his hand on Minerva's desk. "You don't remember the first time because I hid her. I even remember the second time. I was unable to intervene because the girl showed up right in the middle of a duel between Potter, Black, and myself. I could not prevent her from tampering with anything because your golden boys sent me to the hospital wing."

Dumbledore looked up at him with fire in his eyes. "Explain what you mean by 'the first time,'" he said forcefully. "And why wasn't I told?"

"Because, by limiting her contact so that she only interacted with me...my younger self...and no one else, I was able to ensure that the girl didn't expose anything or disrupt what should have happened, and thus stopped the events that resulted because of her death, that's why," he said dryly.

Minerva placed her hand over her heart as she inhaled in shock. "Her death, surely...?"

"Yes, her death. She died. That timeline was apparently erased because I went back and told my younger self to keep Miss Granger out of sight until she could return, thereby erasing that timeline and creating this one," Severus stated. "I did it once; I can ensure her safe return again."

"Severus, you cannot meddle in time..."

"And what exactly is she doing with a Time-Turner in the first place? Were you even aware that it is apparently as easy to go back a decade or two as it is an hour or two? Each time the girl has gone back, she miscalculates and goes back two decades instead of two hours. So, until she learns how to control the device, I will have to hide her each time until she can return. And each time it takes longer." Severus stood and paced a few steps. "It's not easy you know, keeping her away from everyone. She cannot be seen. My relationship with my housemates is stronger in my sixth-year; I start to be accepted... and Avery, Mucliber, Thortenson, and Rosier become protective of me. They start fighting the sixth- and seventh-year Gryffindors. Even Hurshiser and Rowe... Don't you remember?" He stopped and turned to face the old wizard. "I managed, each time, to keep her a secret. But if I don't go back and tell myself to, it might not happen."

Dumbledore watched him thoughtfully, but Minerva looked outraged. "You hid a thirteen-year-old girl in your dorms?"

"Don't be ridiculous," Severus snapped. "I used an old..."

"Enough, Severus. Minerva, are you listening to him? He has changed his arguments from probability to that of fact. He did go back, and will again," Dumbledore said and sat down on the chair in front of Minerva's desk.

"But, Albus..."

"No 'buts.' You heard him. He said that he was unable to prevent Miss Granger from being hurt when she'd arrived in the middle of a duel, and then he claimed that he was able to ensure that Miss Granger didn't expose anything or disrupt the events of this timeline, just as if it had already happened. I do not think it was a slip of the tongue. Although, Severus, that claim is, in fact, not entirely true. Likely, you prevented a worse wrong by your actions. But, Minerva, I believe that Severus did in fact go back in time to speak to his younger self." He looked up at Severus. "You said that each time it took longer. Explain?"

Severus sighed. "The first time, the sand in the hourglass took a week to cool and return to normal, the second time it took almost two and a half weeks, the third time it took a month."

"You hid her for a month?" Minerva asked in startled disbelief. "What did you do with her?"

"Yes, Minerva, it took a month. We revised together, she on her schoolwork, me on mine. I fed her, snuck her into the bath when she asked me to, and left the soiled bedding on my bed for the house-elves," he explained. "But she was cooperative, mostly. Thank Merlin, she likes to read."

"Which room did you use?" Dumbledore asked, steepling his hands in front of him. "I don't recall seeing her, so apparently you successfully kept her hidden. Did this by chance have any relation to Mr. Pettigrew being accused of ransacking the Slytherin boys' dorm?"

"It may have," Severus replied evasively about his use of Pettigrew's wand the first time.

"I thought so. Very ingenious of you..." Dumbledore smiled. "So where did you hide her?"

"I used an old classroom to hide her where I used to brew my potions as a student," Severus stated.

"Ah, yes, I know the one. Very clever, my boy." He rose from the chair. "Minerva, give him the Time-Turner. Severus, come with me. There is a storeroom in the dungeons I apparently need to show you. Miss Granger should have a proper bed."

On the way to the dungeons, Dumbledore was eerily silent. That could only mean one of two things: either the old man was upset with him or he was mulling everything over.

"Tell me how you accomplished it, my boy."

Severus smirked. Mulling it over. "That timeline doesn't exist, none of them do. When I go back, when I tell my younger self the facts, what little I can tell him, I change the timeline...again. I can tell you that I saw myself appear and disappear as if I'd Apparated, which we both know is an impossibility. However, since the Time-Turner that Miss Granger is using has the ability to return one to the time in which she'd left...a most convenient feature...I would assume that I did the same. However, I know that is an improbability. It took a week for the Time-Turner to cool enough for Miss Granger to return. So, if I'd waited a week in my house while the device cooled, then used it to see myself, and then adjusted the device to return me to my natural time... Of course, I'm speculating."

"Sounds, feasible, though, to go back in time far enough to allow the Time-Turner to cool and then return," Dumbledore mused over. "Still, little is truly known about these devices, since they are so new an invention. The original Time-Turners could only go back in time, and only by a few hours. When I went to retrieve Miss Granger's Time-Turner, I was intrigued by Cronus Latimer's use of combining Runes and Arithmetic calculations in conjunction with the device. I thought that with Miss Granger's love of the two disciplines, she'd be able to prove the piece's use, and Cronus and I could then compare notes." He looked up at Severus with that damnable look of intrigue in his eyes. "I don't suppose you'd care to indulge two old men in what you know? I'm sure Cronus would pay handsomely for your knowledge."

"No," Severus said flatly.

"Ah, well," Dumbledore sighed. "I'll just have to talk you into it."

Severus picked up the plain, brown leather diary and its older, slightly used twin and stuffed them in his pocket. He'd made entries in the older book with what details he could give himself regarding Hermione's bounces back in time. He wrote a letter to himself, explaining why he'd come back in the first place, Miss Granger's death and her staying with Lily, thus causing a castle wide hunt for her after she'd disappeared, warning himself to take the task of hiding Miss Granger seriously. He hoped that this time the plan would work, but he was counting on his younger self to carry it through. As it was, he'd have to spend a month in his house before he could approach the boy. No matter, I feel like I've done this a number of times.

Severus arrived at Spinner's End and looked around. The place was, just as it had been every time he'd returned home, dusty, musty, and dank. Someday, he'd have to dispose of the house. For now it suited his purposes. He cast a series of cleaning and Dust-Lifter Charms on his books. The Dust Repellant Charm had done well; the dust that had collected fell away easily and vanished. He went upstairs to remove the stasis on his bedroom and freshen up all his bedding and curtains. Once he'd finished, he'd see about stocking up the cupboards in the kitchen and check on how overgrown and wild the back garden had become.

That night, Severus took the chance and dined out. Afterwards, he took a stroll down a beachfront walkway. It was odd, having all the time in the world at his leisure. The next morning, he chose to see the Salisbury Plains and have dinner in Romaldkirk.

Over the next few days, he put his back garden in order. But mostly, Severus took the time to visit places he'd always wanted to see but never had. Unfortunately, once he'd spoken to himself, this timeline would vanish as if it never happened. Still, as he watched the seagulls over the rocky cliffs of Scotland, he felt at ease with himself.

One month to the day, Severus pulled out the Time-Turner and snuck into the castle for his self-made appointment with his younger self.

Severus still had a bit of a limp. Whoever taught Black how to turn someone's feet into crab legs should be killed on the spot, and using the Avada Kedavra would be too kind. Madam Pomfrey had put him right in no time, but the awkward angle had strained his tendons and ligaments. Now he had a week's worth of work to catch up and three potions to brew. At least Slughorn allowed him to make up the potions. Right smart of the berk, considering that it happened in his class right under his nose. Severus had the Burn Paste for Slughorn and the Sprain Emulsion for his ankle simmering in his secret room. They would be done and ready to bottle tonight. One down, two to go.

He pushed open the door, surprised to see the room lit. He cursed himself for not having set his wards on the door. He quickly drew his wand and entered, hoping that no one had messed with his potions. The desk he'd made into a bed for Hermione was back to its original form. His potions simmering away in his cauldrons on the heat resistant pads on the desk just as he'd left them. However, in his chair with his boots up on the desk was the wizard, his older self, as bold as you pleased. "Oh, it's you," Severus snapped. "You're back."

"Apparently," the older wizard said smoothly. "I do hope you're brewing this for sale rather than for Slughorn?"

Severus crossed his arms and regarded the wizard, wondering to what he owed the pleasure of his return visit. "I did as you asked. The girl left and no one saw her."

"Oh, I'm very well aware that you were successful," he said, drawing a fresh stem of dragonwort through his fingers, smoothing the spiky-looking leaves.

"And yet, you are back," Severus said warily, never taking his eyes off the man.

"Slughorn burn his hand again in class?" the older man asked with a slight quirk of his lips. "This is beneath you. It's at best a fourth-year potion, hardly worth your efforts."

Severus smirked at him. "Nah, he wants it for the hospital wing, and I get credit for making it."

His older self laid the stem he'd toyed with on the desk next to Severus' ingredients. "Use a common coffee filter to sieve off the comfrey preparation. It'll refine it, and use the dragonwort right after the comfrey oil. It will strengthen your potion."

"You were reading my book," Severus snarled, his eyes narrowed and his jaw set.

The man laughed. "Of course I did...I wrote the annotations myself, years ago. Check the book yourself, the marker will be exactly where and how you placed it."

Severus crossed the room and picked up his book, opening it to the page he'd marked. The piece of green ribbon lay under the same line in the directions where he'd put it. "I was considering adding the dragonwort, but before the oil, and increasing the aloe."

The wizard smiled and set his feet on the floor. "Each time you added the dragonwort before, the potion curdled. Add it after the oil, and the potion will change to a darker shade, but will be stronger and thicker. As for the aloe, I'd increase the calendula if the user has second or third degree burns, but yes, increase the aloe if it's only a first degree burn," he said assuredly. He pointed a finger at Severus' feet. "By the way, how are the ankles?"

"Both are sore," Severus said, clenching his jaw in annoyance that his older self remembered his humiliation.

The older wizard continued to watch him with a calm, relaxed pose, and then pointed to the other cauldron. "Add crushed pineapple before the witch hazel, and include the onion skin when you dice the onion. I also suggest you use lavender oil with the buckhorn," he suggested.

Severus' head tilted slightly, his brow creased as he considered the suggestion, and then one side of his mouth curled as he scoffed at him. "You're daft. You cannot use that with shredded Menkle skin! The lavender oil would soften the buckhorn and change its property..."

"Exactly. Fine, don't trust me," the man said with an offhanded air.

Severus' sneer disappeared. "So why are you here? I took care of the girl as you told me to," he said, walking to his workspace. The potions were fine. Once he removed the Stasis Charm, he'd finish them and start the Burn Paste over, this time using the dragonwort as his older self suggested.

"She'll be back," he said bluntly, and Severus looked up barely able to keep his mouth from falling open.

"She'll what? I thought...when?"

"Two days," his older self stated.

"You sure like to give a guy enough notice, don't you?" Severus snapped. Damn, again?

"Don't get smart with me," the man snapped back.

Severus slammed his hands down on the desk. "Hey, you're the one asking me to stick my neck out for that little girl," he snapped.

"She's important," the wizard insisted, his dark eyes meeting Severus' gaze.

"I know. That's what you said last time," Severus sneered, pressing his hands on the solid wood. "So I have to babysit her another week?"

"Two," the wizard said, nodding once. "Possibly two and a half."

"What?" Severus exclaimed, leaning forward slightly.

The other wizard crossed his ankle on his knee and rested his hand on his leg. "Each time back, it takes the Time-Turner longer to cool down. She uses the device every day."

"You're kidding me?" Severus said, pushing away from the desk and taking a step back.

"You know very well I'd never kid about something like this," the man said calmly, and Severus knew that it was the truth. "There's more."

"Terrific!" he exclaimed, throwing up a hand and rolling his eyes.

"You'll have to keep a diary..."

"A diary, you're full of it if you think..."

"Don't interrupt me," the wizard snapped.

Severus leaned against the desk where he and Hermione had revised together, crossed his arms, and glared at his older self.

"Yes. You'll have to keep an accounting of when she shows up in your time," the wizard said, a tick flicking in his cheek from agitation, "because, unfortunately, I don't remember the exact date and time of each occurrence. I know approximately when and where... What I was doing, but on one of the bounces back, Lily found her. That mustn't happen, as it proved to be disastrous."

Severus' arms fell to his sides and his eyes widened. "Lily finds her? Wouldn't that be better all around? She is a girl..."

This older self glared at him as if he'd lost his mind. "Yes, Lily found her and took her in. Then Miss Granger vanished, unfortunately, the same day Mary MacDonald and three other Muggle-borns were seriously hurt, and a castle-wide search was conducted for the Death Eater who broke into Hogwarts disguised as a little girl." The older wizard pulled out what looked like a pair of diaries. "This one is for you for to write in, especially noting the times when Hermione arrives, dates and places, any notes that will help yourself find her and hide her before she is seen. The second is the one I filled out with what I remember. It's vague, mostly notes and... If you write in this one, you'll have more to give the younger version of yourself when you come back as I have done in this time loop. If you don't, then you are doing this blind. I cannot keep coming back here."

"It's a girl's diary," he sneered, looking at the soft brown covers and snap enclosures with distaste.

"It's small and brown," the man insisted. "Easy to hide and identical. I bought them at a shop near Harrods. Since they are Muggle, there is no magical residue to make anyone suspect them. You know how to conceal your writing without leaving a magical trace on the pages. Once you have finished the year, put it in a safe place that you'll remember, but where no one will look."

Severus crossed his arms and refused to accept the diaries. "Tell me again, why is the girl entrusted with a Time-Turner if she can't use it properly?"

His older self put them on the desk with a soft thud, clearly agitated. "They are relatively new in my time. They are tricky. Going back in time, the rings have to be aligned correctly and the hourglass turned in conjunction with the rune alignment. Miss Granger is a bright girl, usually responsible, but she's an over achiever and trying to prove herself in our world. She wanted to take nearly every subject that Hogwarts offers at the same time, and her Head of House let her."

"Good lord!" he exclaimed, his arms falling to his side of their own accord.

"From what I remember, when I was your age, I started writing in this book and kept it," he said, picking up the used diary. "You kept it faithfully, but you will need to keep the new one in this timeline so that this older, used book will have already been filled out. I'd found it where you hid it...part of the time loop problem. It's a paradox, but will help. That's why I'm giving you my diary and a new one. After the end of your year, burn the old one, and you'll have the new one to bring back to you. You can copy down whatever I wrote that you think you should know."

"This is confusing," Severus said, placing his hands on the desk and leaning forward with his head bowed.

"Tell me about it," the other man said.

Severus raised his chin to look at him. "And why exactly am I going through all this trouble?"

The older wizard crossed his arms. "Believe me, Miss Granger is needed. You can talk about any subject with her or even brew potions with her. She's very bright. Only under no circumstances is she to be seen or to meet Potter, Black, Lupin, or Lily. You got that?"

"Yeah, I got that," Severus said, feeling like he'd been given a heavy assignment, one that he'd have to repeat each time this girl made her miscalculations and thus was dropped in his lap. "Well, at least she's not a brainless twit."

"You have no idea," his older self scoffed.

Severus looked up, dark eyes meeting identical but slightly lined dark eyes. "Wanna bet?"

~ T. B. .C. ~

Author's Notes:

To clarify some confusion: the Time-Turner in this story is more complicated than the book version. Hermione is testing it out for Mr. Latimer, and Dumbledore is just as curious about the new devise as is its creator.

Okay, I'll try to clarify the jumps just in case you got lost. (Heaven forbid! I can't let that happen):

The jump in which Hermione died was the first mishap. (Hermione's 1st double jump) Professor Snape went back to fix years later. (Severus' 1st jump – when he spoke to his teenage self – TeenSeverus1) So, Hermione's 1st jump is cancelled out. As in – didn't happen. So TeenSeverus1 waits for Hermione like he's told and hides her. (This is Hermione's 2nd jump2) But because jump1 is erased, only Professor Snape1 remembers it – he told himself about it, TeenSeverus1, that it happened; that's why Professor Snape remembers it later on. But he also told his teenage self about Hermione's 3rd and 4th jumps.

With me so far?