*Authors Note - I will be embarking on a year-long story/project that will follow the 7th year of Hogwarts, after the final Battle. It will be told from various perspectives and I will update on the last day of every month, following my own last year of schooling paralleled with the Hogwarts student's last year. As a little personal test, I thought I would attempt this piece to practice writing different perspectives. This is also the first fan fiction that I have uploaded. Please give me feedback and review =)- G.

veritaserum - very powerful potion that makes a person tell the truth (when asked)

veteresco - literally means 'age' in latin (potion)

dormitatorum - 'sleeper' in latin (potion)

valentulus - 'strong' in latin (potion)

…...

The Discoveries of a Seventh year Potions class

Chapter 1: Mishaps and mayhem

~* Hermione *~

It was a rainy Monday, and the Griffindors had double advanced potions with the Slytherins. The spring storms were particularly bad this year and it meant the grounds were so saturated that everyone had been cooped up in the castle for weeks. Tempers were flaring and nerves were being frayed, especially among the quiddich players: the quiddich season was temporarily paused and the House Cup was evenly balanced between Slytherin and Griffindor.

After the Final Battle, Hermione had returned with Harry to finish their educations; Harry to qualify as an official ministry auror, and Hermione to decide what the hell she was going to do with her life. She also wanted to be the most qualified witch of her age in as many fields as possible, it was a matter of her reputation. 'Of course', she reasoned, 'it has absolutely nothing to do with Severus….I mean Professor Snape'. She had been the one to find him after the battle, in the Shrieking Shack, minutes from death. After healing him as best as she could, Hermione sent her patronus to Madam Pomfrey and let him be carried off after that. Her only request was that he never know who saved him, she didn't want him to feel like he needed to treat her differently than he did, she liked him the way he was.

She had always respected his intellectual capacity and talent for magic and potion making; but ever since he saved her, Harry and Ron from Professor Lupin when he was a werewolf in third year, she had liked the small sliver of goodness that he rarely showed. She knew he had it, and Dumbledore must have seen his true nature to trust him so fully. He was like a mollusc, a hard shell of lip-curling, sneering and general hatred for everyone around him; but on the inside, she was positive that he was a good person, after all, he had almost given his life for Harry, hadn't he? Yes, Hermione had decided that Severus Snape was a teddy-bear mollusc….well, that was a bit of a stretch, but she was the only one who would ever know how she thought of him, so where was the harm? Exactly.

Well, anyway, Hermione trudged into the dungeons classroom and sprawled herself on her usual seat at the front of the class. Normally, this was a bonus, as she loved soaking up the knowledge that came from focusing intently on every word her Professors said. But today…today was not such a good day to be at the front of Snape's class; Hermione was a tad hungover from the weekend party Ginny had dragged her to.

Blinking her eyes repeatedly, she thanked the relevant deities that their first class was in the dark dungeons. Harry plopped into the chair next to her and groaned softly, he had been doing shots until the wee hours of the morning and he was feeling especially sluggish this morning. Draco Malfoy lead the procession of Slytherins sauntering in, he smirked at her infuriatingly and muttered something to Blaise Zabini, who sat next to him. Hermione looked away, she wouldn't give them the satisfaction of seeing her reaction. Neville sat behind Harry and her with Seamus and all four blearily pulled their quills, perhaps wishfully thinking that they could have a theory lesson, instead of actually having to do anything. Snape however, had other plans.

He stalked into the room, robes billowing and Hermione's breath caught a little in the back of her throat; her chest suddenly felt like it was being constricted rather violently. She tried to sit up a bit straighter and ignored how much her muscles protested when she did so. Professor Snape sneered at the lethargic class and his dangerously silky tone snapped the remaining less attentive students to attention immediately. "Pay attention, all of you…now". Snarling at their lack of interest, he continued menacingly "Today, we will not be making a potion" - the class sighed in relief, - "We will be testing multiple potions on you pathetic excuses for students. You will blindly take the potion and then write three foot of parchment on the effects you feel or felt when taking the potion."

Their Professor looked like he was a child before was Christmas, and it was positively terrifying. "You will take a potion, then spend the remaining lesson time writing an essay on the effects; the potions you nitwits will be testing shall be veritaserum, veteresco, dormitatorum and valentulus. The Slytherin girls will be taking dormitatorum, the Slytherin boys will be taking veritaserum, for the Griffindor girls - veteresco and for the Griffindor boys - valentulus."

Hermione (as usual), despite being hungover, had her hand up. Snape smirked and suddenly he was leaning in front of her and he quietly said "No, Miss Granger, you cannot bore us to death with the size of your brain, and obnoxiously state every mind-numbing detail associated with every single ingredient in the potions you will be studying" -he was whispering to her by the time he paused, and his smooth, silky voice was poison. Hermione felt tears prickle at the edges of her eyes as she looked at him and replied evenly "Of course not Severus, I was just wondering if you needed some help removing the stick you have up your arse from it's current residence…"

Hermione swore she could have heard a pin drop a mile away in that moment. The whole room was silent, reeling from the words that could not possibly have come from prude, know-it-all, teacher's pet Granger. Hermione held her breath, and slowly released it the second she saw a snarl forming on the face of her Potions Professor. He had backed away from her when she was talking, and now he stood, impassive in front of his students. His perfect, baritone, silky voice could have frozen a basilisk as he looked at her with black, dead eyes and slowly spoke in a deadly voice.

"Miss Granger, do not ever presume to call me by that name ever again." He crossed the room and waved his wand at a table with four cauldrons boiling on it. "I also expect to see you in detention every night for the next two weeks from 7:00 pm." The table followed him to the front of the classroom. Hermione nodded at him and tried her best to keep her face emotionless; Harry, Neville and well….the entire class was staring at her like she had stripped naked and started pole dancing. She made herself try to imitate the Slytherin smirk and leant back in her chair, slouching.

The class continued, albeit with a definite feel of unnerving uneasiness. Draco, Blaise, Pansy, Hermione, Harry and Neville were closest to the Potions Professor when he handed a dose of the respective potions each of them as they stood in a semi-circle.

Suddenly it was like they were all in a movie in slow-motion. A screech above them was heard and Neville jumped, his foot getting caught on someone's bag as he simultaneously dropped his glass vial of potion and fell into the group, unbalancing the exhausted, hungover Griffindors and taking the Slytherins by surprise.

Glass vials smashed and people fell into desks or on the dungeon floor. The potions dripped and slid and rushed along the sloped floor and collided, bubbling, popping and fizzing as Snape's eyes widened and he bellowed "GET OUT, OUT, DON'T BREATHE IN THE FUMES!" Indeed, the mixture had let off multiple, visible, fumes and as their Professor shouted frantically, trying to warn them, Hermione saw his eyes roll back in his head and he collapsed heavily. Hermione reached out to get her wand as she realised she was alone in the classroom with the unconscious Professor….and she had breathed in the fumes…ohh fu-.

Hermione woke up feeling like a herd of Hippogriffs had trampled over her entire body and left it bloated and clumsy. The Hospital Wing was lit by candles that floated around above her of their own accord (a new addition). Her eyes hurt tremendously, more than any other part of her body and she just wanted to go back to sleep, but Harry, Ginny, Malfoy, Blaise, Neville and strangely, Severus…I mean Professor Snape all sprawled around her bed. Harry and Ginny were sitting at the end of of her bed, the Slytherins were sitting on the bed to the left of her, and their gorgeous Head of House leant against the wall….inches from her head! Hermione calmed her breathing and hoped she wasn't blushing.

Neville occupied the chair to the right of her bedside…..and what the fuck? He looked like he had suddenly switched heads with Victor Crum, his arms were well muscled and he had gained visible inches to his height. But his face, his face was the biggest shock: he had thinned out a bit, and a shadow had appeared at his jaw line; he had acquired the image of someone that could make any red-blooded woman sit up and pant. Malfoy spoke up: "I know, right?" he looked at Neville in disgust "he had to be the one to suddenly look like sexiness threw up on him." Malfoy then did a double take, like he couldn't believe what had just come out of his mouth and made to climb out the metaphorical hole he was digging for himself; but Harry, surprisingly, did it for him. "Right ferret, 'cause you need to be more sexy" Harry clamped a hand over his mouth and looked everywhere other than Malfoy. What? Hermione knew Harry was in the closet, but he usually never slipped up in front of the Slytherin sex god.

She looked at her best friend and Ginny, ever the mind-reader, shook her head. "Why do I feel like my body is too big for me?" Hermione noticed everyone around her nervously looked away from her, except Snape, so she directed her next question at him. "Why do my eyes hurt?, and are you alright?" Her professor rolled his eyes sarcastically at her last question "Alright- "I mean, because you….passed out in front of me, professor". He just looked at her darkly, and she glanced away, unable to meet his eyes. "As for your other questions, we all have questions of our own and Headmistress McGonagall has decided we should all be informed of our conditions simultaneously."

As he said this, there was a small cough from the general area of the end of her bed and Ginny pointed to a cat that had undoubtedly been underneath her bed, that had come to sit at Harry's feet. Watching in fascination, she smiled a bit as their resident Headmistress and Head of Griffindor, appeared before them. Watching an animagus was always an interesting show; McGonagall nodded to them all and began promptly, "As you are all aware, the mixing of some potions this morning has effected all of you, except Miss Weasley, and I would ask you all to keep this between us, well, as best as you can"

It was here that she looked quickly at Hermione and as she nodded Hermione pondered why she would feel like this and then her eyes went very wide and she gasped "veteresco", it was the only potion that could apply to her symptoms. The age potion! "How many…how many years?" she whispered miserably. "Eighteen, Miss Granger, or double your real age" Snape said quietly. "So…I'm 36?…that means I'm a year younger than you?" she said to him, and he looked positively incredulous. "How do you know my age Miss Granger?" Hermione turned pink and looked down.

The headmistress continued on, ignoring them: "Now, Potter, Blaise, Malfoy and ehrm…Professor Snape were effected by the veritaserum potion, that has been altered by mixing with the valentulus potion, strengthening its effective time-span. However, it is also not as potent as it would be, had you taken it in it's pure form, meaning that you will speak your thoughts when your mind wanders, or you are not completely focused…. as we have witnessed".

McGonagall finally turned to Neville "Mr. Longbottom, you have ingested the fumes of a strengthening potion that was amplified by the gecko spleen used in the veritaserum potion, leaving you umm….." McGonagall faltered, unsure how to continue, but Ginny spoke up for her. "Gorgeous, jaw-dropping, sexy, thoroughly shaggable, hot enough to eat melted chocolate off" - "Miss Weasley, that will be quite enough!" Minerva looked furiously amused and Neville had gone an attractive shade of pink. Ginny giggled and winked at Neville who practically fainted, "Sorry Professor, just voicing the opinion of every girl in the school" she said cheekily.

"Not every girl" Hermione muttered quietly, then looked up, realising what she had said, and tried to backtrack "Not that…no, Neville, I….sorry" she gave up and shot him a look of sorrow; but he actually didn't mind "No, Hermione, it's alright, I don't actually care, and anyway, it'll wear off in a bit anyway, so…". He looked a tad downtrodden at that until the Headmistress spoke up. "Actually, you will all be effected by these potions for two weeks - minimum."

Hermione squeaked and swallowed slowly as her face twisted and she cried out "TWO FUCKING WEEKS!?" "Language please, Miss Granger" both Professors Snape and McGonagall said simultaneously. Hermione whimpered piteously: 'I can't possibly last two weeks, I just can't, what about classes?, I couldn't possibly go to lessons like this….oh merlin…' her whispered train of thought trailed off and McGonagall took the opportunity to inform them that they would all return to classes as normal and the school would be informed that it was temporary.

Hermione looked depressed "Hermione," Harry said "you look really good, it'll be fine" he looked really concerned for her and she smiled for the first time since the accident. "As much as I loathe to, I have to agree with Potter, age agrees with you Herm-" Snape spoke quickly and he put a hand to his mouth as everyone stared at him, shocked speechless. "I…" He gave up, scowled, and stalked out of the Hospital Wing. Ginny, who, as Hermione's best friend, knew everything, turned back to Hermione openmouthed and squealed happily. Hermione felt like her birthday and Christmas had all come at once, but years of concealing her emotions left her with a cryptic expression.

"Well," McGonagall said "congratulations, Miss Granger, for being the first person to ever elicit any response other than distain or downright hatred from our dour Professor. Keep in mind, he is under the influence of a potion" she swept out of the room and Madam Pomfrey came up to the group of seventh years. "Mr. Malfoy, you are to stay in the Hospital Wing so I can monitor your progress, along with Mr. Potter and of course, Miss Granger; the rest of you can get out." She shooed Neville, Ginny and Zabini out and Hermione sighed, 'what a day'.

11 : 47 pm

"Malfoy?"

"What do you want Granger? I was just having a wonderful dream about beating up poor defenceless house elves"

Hermione snorted elegantly "Shut it, ferret, I want to know why you and Harry are in here if your Slytherin bum-buddy isn't, didn't the same potion affect all of you?"

"Granger" he purred "that is the most disturbingly vulgar sentence that I have ever heard come out of your mouth. Blaise is most certainly not my lover, anyway, you should be asking your gorgeo- I mean you should be asking golden boy that question."

She grinned, this truth-potion was really coming in handy…."I wont tell my gorgeous friend what you said if you answer my question…"

"You should have been a Slytherin, Granger….whatever, I'll tell you"

Hermione grinned triumphantly. Malfoy started talking and she lay back, hoping that sating her curiosity would allow her mind to stop buzzing and let her finally sleep.

"Well, we ran out of the room and stood there gasping until Har- Potter, I mean" Hermione giggled and she heard Malfoy growl. "Sorry, continue" But Malfoy kept quiet as they heard Harry moan softly in his sleep and writhe around before curling back into a ball and remain quiet.

"Funny, I've never heard him do that before" Hermione mused aloud. "Whatever, continue Malfoy"

"Yeah, Potter noticed you weren't there I suppose and so he ran back in the classroom, stupid, brave Griffindor that he is, and of course, passed out as he tried to help you."

Hermione nodded, and waited for him to continue but the Slytherin remained silent. "What about you Malfoy?" she queried gently. He stayed silent. "Need I remind you that he could somehow mysteriously find out that you call him Harry in your mind, and you think he's gorgeous and brave….." she pressed on.

"Slytherin" he muttered. "Yeah well, I couldn't just let Golden boy go kill himself, so I, like the total idiot I am, tried to help."

Hermione gasped "You, you, you…like him"

"If you ever tell anyone about this Granger, I swear I'll- "

"Don't worry, I won't tell him"

"Good, now go to sleep"

"Night, Draco"

"Don't call me that"

"Why not?" she asked innocently.

"We are so not friends, Granger"

"Goodnight Draco"

He huffed "Whatever Granger"