A/N. Oh golly, plot plot and plot! Review, and tell me what you think of this chapter, it took me a while to straighten it out, and I'm still not quite satisfied, but I couldn't do anymore with it. Anyways, thank you for the reviews and alerts! Enjoy.

Sadly, we all know I don't own these characters.

Severus sighed as he exited his door. Why did the headmistress think it was acceptable to summon him this late in the evening? He just been about to doze off when her owl had slammed against his window, screeching for him to open it. Severus scowled. He hated owls. He much preferred his raven, Sarthor, to any owl. Reaching the gargoyle that guarded Minerva's office, he growled at it to open. After it moved aside, he stormed into her office. He stopped abruptly as he noticed Minerva wasn't alone, Granger occupied one of the seats in front of the headmistress's desk. His scowl deepened, what business did Minerva have with the both of them? Stalking towards the desk, he swiftly took a seat. "May I inquire as to the late summons, headmistress?" he said stiffly, not glancing at Granger.

"The Ministry has been having severe issues with a new jinx that has become popular in recent months," Minerva said in a straightforward manner.

Hermione leaned forward. "What does that have to do with us?" she asked, slightly confused.

Severus sneered. "While I appreciate the information, Minerva, I have no desire to keep up with the latest spell trends."

Minerva glared at him. "The jinx is causing adverse effects towards whomever is unlucky enough to experience it. The effects appear to be permanent, according to the healers at St. Mungo's."

"What sort of effects?" Hermione asked, intrigued.

"The patients are plagued with unending nightmares, the jinx makes their greatest fear come alive. There is no counter curse, and the Ministry is stumped," came the reply.

"I still fail to see how this concerns Granger and myself," Severus said.

Minerva heaved a sigh. "I was getting to that, Severus, if you would let me finish," she continued, shooting another glare at the sour man. "The nightmares are causing the victims to go crazy, transforming them into dangerous and uncontrollable creatures."

"Do they know who created the curse?" Hermione asked, a puzzled look on her face. She too was having trouble understanding why the both of them were there.

Severus glanced at her. Her questions were, he admitted, something he would have asked himself. In order to find the cracks in the curse that would allow someone to create a counter jinx, they would need to know exactly how the creator had come about the spell.

"No," the headmistress replied wearily. "There has been no leads where that is concerned. It appears to have been created all by itself."

Severus frowned, leaning back. "Perhaps the curse isn't new, Minerva?" he said thoughtfully. "What if it's an old curse, and someone found it and decided to be an idiot and try it out, without any regards for the effects it would have on the unsuspecting victim."

Hermione looked at him, and nodded. "That would explain why no one can figure out where it came from, and why it has such horrid effects. Old Dark Magic was known for playing on the minds of whomever the magic was performed on," she added reflectively.

Severus nodded, surprised by how much she knew. "It is much more likely than it being a newer curse, especially considering that there are few still alive today whom would have the knowledge to create such a curse without any rare tomes on the matter," he said, looking at the headmistress. "This still does not explain why you have summoned us together."

"Yes. About that," Minerva said tiredly. "The Minister has asked for yours and Hermione's help in creating something to counter the effects of the curse."

Hermione frowned. "Headmistress, I am flattered, but I don't think I would be much help in creating a counter jinx for Dark curse."

"Not a jinx, Hermione, a potion," the headmistress replied.

"A potion?" Severus said, mulling it over. Supposing the right ingredients were found, it could be possible, but it was notoriously difficult to create a potion to affect the mind. Without the origin of the curse, they would be faced with a very difficult task.

"But, Minerva, does the Minister have any idea how difficult and time consuming it is to create a potion to influence the mind, let alone fix and repair mental or emotional damage?" Hermione said quickly, though her face was screwed up in concentration as she considered how it would be possible.

Severus glanced at Hermione. She wasn't one to be underestimated, he decided.

"Yes, Hermione," Minerva replied. "I tried to tell him, but he was convinced that Severus, with your help, could find a way to make it work," she turned to the potions professor. "You are well known as one of the most ingenious and inventive potions masters alive, and Hermione has shown herself to be quite competent in that area. Both the Minister and myself are confident you two could make some headway."

"You do not expect me to work together on this with Granger," Severus drawled. If anything, he could work on it himself. It would provide some interesting and challenging work, and prove a much needed change to the monotony of his life at Hogwarts.

Hermione looked affronted. "I'm sure I could help in some way," she sniffed. "If only to provide a different opinion."

Minerva glared sternly at Severus. "You both will work on the potion, Severus. It is the Minister's orders."

Severus sighed. He was being forced to work with the insufferable Defense teacher. What a fabulous ending to an evening.

"There is exactly six weeks until the Christmas break," the headmistress said. "The Minister would like for you and Hermione to have made some progress by then."

Hermione looked appalled. "Six weeks? I don't even think I could be done with preliminary research by then, never mind actually starting the potion!" she protested angrily.

Severus silently agreed with the bushy haired witch. It would need months of research, delving into ancient books and appraising all of the known potions ingredients for their properties, and which ingredient would work with another without blowing the castle up. The more he thought about it, the more he was convinced he couldn't even create a base until well into next year.

"Minerva that is simply unreasonable," he said with an annoyed tone. "It isn't possible to finish researching and finding the appropriate ingredients in less than a year, let alone a couple months."

Minerva sighed as she eyed the two people in front of her. "Try, Severus, Hermione. The Minister is panicking, he doesn't know if he can contain the victims, or if anyone else knows of the curse or who will use it."

Hermione groaned. "We can try, Minerva, but I can't promise anything," she said resignedly.

Minerva nodded. "That's the best we can hope for, I suppose. An owl will arrive for each of you within the next few days with all that is currently known about the curse and its effects. Thank you both."

Severus nodded stiffly and arose. "I will see what I can do," he said. "Granger, meet me in my office Saturday at eight, we should discuss how to proceed." He turned and left swiftly.

Walking towards the dungeons, Severus was contemplating how to start the research, his mind working at top speed. How would he even begin this task? He mulled it over as he walked. The first thing he'd need to do is gather every old book on Dark magic and curses that he knew of, and start to search for anything that resembled the effects of the curse. Entering his quarters after snapping angrily at the dragon portrait, he undressed and climbed into bed. He knew there was no point in trying to start the daunting task without a good night's rest. Sighing heavily, he stared into the darkness. He would be working in close proximity to the Granger girl for a long time. The prospect wasn't a pleasant one, and he was not looking forward to it. As brilliant as the girl was, he still found her as insufferable as she was while he was teaching her. Albeit, her skill and intuitive thinking would be a great help, he didn't think it was necessary. Grumbling, he rolled over.

Severus didn't think he had ever been more annoyed at the thought of creating a new potion than he did right then.

A few days later, Hermione was in the library. Not surprising, considering that she had been spending the past three evenings in the library, focusing on the Restricted section. In front of her were a pile of old books, most written over hundreds of years ago. She currently had her nose buried in Magick Moste Vile, an old book filled with horrid curses and jinxs, designed to cause the victim various amounts of pain or anguish. She was taking notes on the curses that affected the mind, about how they worked and what they did to whomever the curses were cast on. She sat there for hours, scribbling on her parchment and reading, her eyes a blur as she devoured the book. Eventually she looked at her watch, and swore. Five to eight, which meant that she would be late for her meeting with Snape in his office. Grumbling, she shut the book and gathered up her parchments, stuffing them in her bag. She brought with her the books she thought most likely to help, and hurried out of the library. She rushed through the corridors, she didn't want to give Snape any reason to dislike working with her any more than he already had. Reaching his office, she took a deep breath and smoothed her hair down, not that it did any good. She opened the door and quickly shut it behind her.

"Granger. You're late," Snape said irritably. "Tardiness is not something I have a tolerance for."

"I'm sorry," she panted as she took a seat in front of his desk. "I was in the library doing some research."

Severus gave her a withering look. "Miss Granger, I hardly think any books of importance to our task could be found in such a place as the Hogwarts school library," he said snidely.

Hermione scowled. "You never know," she spat. "It could prove useful. I would rather cover all my bases."

"Very well," he said, lips curling to a sneer. "Have you made any discoveries?"

Hermione blushed. "Well, no, but-"

"Well then. We shall be looking elsewhere for our information," he interrupted. "I have talked to Minerva, and received access to the Dark books that Dumbledore kept in his office in an attempt to prevent students from becoming too informed."

Hermione nodded, knowing exactly why Dumbledore had removed most of the books on Dark magic from the library. "Have you looked through them yet?" she asked.

"Miss Granger, may I remind you that not all of us can read books as we breathe the air," he said dryly. "And while I enjoy reading, these books are not light, and will take some time to completely peruse."

"Well, what have you gleaned from them thus far?" she asked eagerly, not deterred by his less than pleasant tones.

Shooting her an annoyed glance, Severus answered. "Nothing of any value, mostly that the majority of the old curses that affected the mind did so through the mind's ability to imagine things."

Hermione nodded. "Yes, I noticed that too. They mostly attack the subconscious, making it believe a certain thing without affecting a person's reason."

"It generally rendered the victim insane," Severus said. "Due to the fact that the subconscious would be tearing apart the victims mind whenever the conscious mind relaxed."

"That would drive anyone insane," Hermione said thoughtfully. "Still retaining your capabilities to think for yourself, but unable to do anything as the curse slowly took over your mind..." she trailed off, inwardly musing over the possibilities of a counter potion.

Severus nodded. "It shows us the general direction in which we have to work – the subconscious."

Hermione paled and sighed heavily. "This may take longer than I originally thought," she said worriedly. "The mind is already a fickle and incredibly difficult thing to control or heal, but the subconscious is something that even the victims own mind has no control over."

Severus looked at her gravely. "Exactly. It means we have a very difficult time ahead of us."

Hermione leaned back, and looked at him. "Is this even possible?" she asked quietly. "To create a potion that purges the subconscious of magical poisons, but doesn't affect the conscious mind or the victims ability to think for themselves?"

Severus sighed. "I do not know, Miss Granger. It certainly has never be done before in recorded history."

Hermione suddenly grinned and grabbed one of the dusty books from the desk. "I always loved a challenge," she said with an excited gleam in her eye.