A/N: Because I'm so darn nice, look what I have. Another update! Yes. It's amazing, is it not? And you didn't have to wait for like, a month before I updated! I'm getting better at this, I must say. Anyway, thanks for all the reviews! My bedroom is nearly done. I'm just moving all the furniture around and that is such a pain. Still, I still found time to update, and all is good. Um, I didn't actually plan the ending to this chapter, but it seemed to write itself so, you know. Deal.

Oh! And to the reviewer who asked where the line "Welcome to the exciting world of Chemistry" came from (I don't remember if you reviewed this story, or the other one. Sorry!) The line came from an episode of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Where Will tries to study but he only ever gets as far as reading that line before he's interrupted.

Please Read, Review and Enjoy!

"I … I don't remember. It's weird. One minute I was walking down the corridor and the next minute I was sitting in Professor -" Stopping herself before she finished, she realised that if she told the truth about where she ended up, she would have to answer a hell of a lot of questions about how she got there, and why she even stayed for as long as she did.

The bad thing about that was, she didn't know why she had stayed with him for all that time. It had made a change having an intelligent argument, and she couldn't say she didn't enjoy the mans company … when he wasn't being a complete arse of course, but this was Professor Snape she was talking about! She couldn't possibly like the man in any way, shape or form. Could she?

No. Of course she couldn't. It was unthinkable. Still, he was quite … No! God, what was wrong with her?! This was her professor!

"Hermione?" Harry waved a hand in front of her face and clicked his fingers, "Are you Ok?"

"Hmm? What? Oh. I'm fine. Why?" She blushed and looked down. She had been thinking about the way Professor Snape stirred his potions, which was bad. Very, very bad.

"You went silent and kind of wistful. Is there something going on?" He put a hand on her forehead and started fussing again.

"What? No, of course not, Harry! Honestly, you and your imagination." She babbled on, ignoring the look she got. "What's with the mothering act, anyway? I'm not saying I don't appreciate it, but it is a little weird."

"I was worried about you. We thought you'd gotten yourself kidnapped and we'd have to come along and save you again!" He said with a glint in his eyes. It was a long running joke between the three that Hermione needed saving every other week, even though they all knew she could manage by herself perfectly well.

"Me?! Haha, wow that's rich. You, Mister, need saving far more than I do. Remember when you saw that cockroach on the floor and you …" Their conversation grew quieter until the sound of their voices had altogether vanished. To say Severus was relieved would have been a major understatement. Somehow, he'd managed to avoid Potter finding out that he'd basically kidnapped his best friend. But it was a very close call. A very close one indeed.

"Where the bloody hell have you been, 'Mione?? We've been looking for you everywhere!" Was the greeting Hermione received when she stepped into the common room half an hour later, after a quick visit to the kitchens and a handful of rolls and some butter. The redheaded boy looked like he was trying to decide whether he should yell at her and give her an earful about worrying her friends, or giving her a huge hug and tell her how glad he was that she was safe. In the end, he settled on a mixture of the both.

"Do you know how stupid that was? Are you mad? You say you're going to the library and then you disappear without a trace. You know Malfoy's on the prowl. What is wrong with you?" He muttered into her ear while giving her a big hug. She grinned and said

"Ron. Ron it's ok. I was always in the castle. Why was everyone so worried? I was only gone for a few hours." She asked.

"'Mione, we think Malfoy is up to something. Something involving you, but we don't know what. So can you imagine what we thought when you just disappeared? He left the Great Hall right after you did, and we didn't see either of you at all! Just … don't go off by yourself. At least until we can figure out what he's up to. Promise?" Harry took hold of one of her hands and looked into her eyes.

Hermione had never realised just how mesmerising those green eyes of Harrys were. But now as she looked into them, she found she couldn't tear herself away.

"I … I promise." She managed to get out, before falling silent once more. Ron looked at Harry, then at Hermione and leaned towards Lavender, who was watching this interaction with interest.

"Come on, Lav, let's leave these two alone." He mumbled before taking her hand and giving it a gentle pull.

"But I want to see where it leads!" She moaned while walking with Ron up the staircase and into the boys' dormitory.

"Harry, I …" But she couldn't go on, as he moved closer to her and took her other hand in his. As they stood by the fire, eyes locked, both could only think about one thing. What was happening here?