Disclaimer: Harry Potter is owned by JK Rowling et al. Anything you recognise is the intellectual property of these individuals and corporations. No money is made from the writing of this story.

Thanks to Kallanit and LadyStiff for cheerleading this story for me. Thanks also to RussianDestruction for her help in the correct Latin pronunciation of the spell.

This story is in answer to a challenge from Nox Rosa Aeterna. The link to the challenge can be found on my profile page although some things have been tweaked a little bit. It includes a relationship between Hermione Granger at age 18 (in the year she turns 19) and Severus Snape who is still her professor. No graphic descriptions of sex will take place while Hermione is still a student.

IMPORTANT NOTE: This story is canon only until the end of The Goblet of Fire. The Order of the Phoenix is canon up until the point when Voldemort possessed Harry in the Ministry Atrium. It is at that point, for the sake of this story that things change. Harry defeats Voldemort at that time. The only Horcrux that Voldemort made was the diary. The only other change is that Hermione's parents were killed in a Death Eater attack after Christmas in OOTP.

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Chapter 1 – Genus Formare Animas Ligandi Et Magicae

Ron Weasley huffed as he looked around the Great Hall. It was his class's designated study period, a time when they were forced to sit quietly and complete homework or revise for their classes. He looked around the room. The seventh years, of which he was one, were from Gryffindor and Slytherin. Ron scowled across the room at the Slytherins, especially Draco Malfoy who was currently in conversation with the Evil Git Snape. Malfoy was probably sucking up as usual. The hall was also occupied by lower year Hufflepuffs, Ravenclaws and first-year Gryffindors. Ron stared around the room at various people, mentally undressing a few of the girls and sending imaginary spikes and daggers into various Slytherins and members of opposing house Quidditch teams.

Ron sighed as he focused his attention on his two best friends, both studiously working on the opposite side of the table to him. He huffed a breath of air out of his mouth, trying to get their attention. Without looking up, Hermione Granger slid a large tome across the table to him and whispered harshly, "Do the assignment, for goodness' sake. Here, this book has plenty of information." He looked to his other best friend, Harry Potter, expecting to share their usual moment of camaraderie in the face of Hermione's swotty behaviour, but he was taken aback to see a look of annoyance on Harry's face instead.

With another huff, Ron pulled the heavy book toward him and began to noisily flip the pages. 'He's no fun since he started living with a Professor. I liked him better when he was more about a good time than grades.'

Harry had been living under the guardianship of the Defence Against the Dark Arts professor, Remus Lupin, since Harry had defeated the Dark Lord Voldemort at the Ministry of Magic at the end of their fifth year. With the threat of Voldemort gone, and the Death Eaters capitulating and vowing Unbreakable Vows that they would not try to incite terror and unrest, there was no longer a need for Harry to reside with his blood relatives. Having been left the residence of number twelve Grimmauld Place, Harry and Remus took up residence there, dealing as best they could with the death of Sirius Black and figuring out the best way to go forward in their new dynamic of father and son.

Remus had returned to Hogwarts last year at the insistence of the school's Board of Governors. The DADA scores had never been higher than the year he had taught and everyone, even the Slytherins, agreed that he had been the best teacher they had had in the subject. It was his homework essay they were working on today.

'Patronus Charm... I've been able to do it for two years already... Don't know why I have to do an essay on it... I already know all I need to know for it... He should be teaching us stuff we don't know...' Ron's petulant thoughts swam through his head. Another, louder huff from him had not only his two friends looking up in reproach, but most of the seventh years sending him scathing looks. He sheepishly bent his head down and loudly flipped the pages again. Ron did not know it, but his continued huffing and the distracting noise of the turning pages in the silence of the hall had now garnered the attention of Professor Severus Snape and he began to make his way over to reprimand the miscreant boy.

What happened next was almost a comedy of errors. The page in front of him distracted Ron enough to finally stop flipping. The wand movements diagrammed on the parchment, along with the phonetic spelling of the incantation drew his attention. Without looking up, he began to wave his wand in the beautifully complex flourish, while at the same time incanting: "Gen-us For-mar-ay Anny-mass Li-gand-ee Ett Maj-i-kay!" A light issued out of his wand, splitting and heading straight for Hermione and Harry opposite him.

At the last second, Professor Snape arrived on the scene and, with an ingrained sense of protection, pushed Harry out of its path. Undaunted, the light immediately shifted to him as the nearest target and was absorbed by him and Miss Granger. All the students in the vicinity watched in shock as the light entered both their bodies and disappeared. They both took a breath to begin yelling at Ron for casting a spell in the crowded hall when the light exited their bodies, swirling around them and shooting in and out of them, rays multiplying and multiplying until both were surrounded by pulsing lights of all colours. The sheer magnitude of the magic swirling around them finally became too much and the pair collapsed unconscious.

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I would like to reiterate that Ron is not at all evil or malicious in this story, he is just a teenaged male. Ron is loved in this fic but he is a bit clueless.

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