A/N: This is my first attempt at writing fan-fiction - or any story at all, in fact. I've been a massive fan of SSxHG stories for the last 8 years, and I've wanted to write something of my own for a long time, but I'm only just getting round to it! I thought I would combine a couple of my favourite tropes to make a story that I always wanted to read.

This story will involve time-turner use to age-up Hermione, and she will be an adult by the time a relationship begins. There will be a Marriage Law that takes place during the later chapters. Starting at the start of Hermione's fourth year at Hogwarts, and it will be a 'Coming of Age' story for her, as we follow her from 15-going-on-16 into adulthood. The romance is a slow burner.

I encourage anyone to leave me a review with their thoughts and any constructive feedback. This story is important to me, and I want to do it properly.

Chapter 1

Albus Dumbledore sat in his office, reflecting on the year that had passed. After a long summer, he was preparing for the students to return in less than one month. His mind kept drifting back to Harry and what had transpired in the last few months. After years of believing his trust in Sirius Black was misplaced, he had learned his loyalty to James and Lily Potter had never faltered.

If Hermione Granger hadn't been gifted her time-turner last September, Harry and herself would have been unable to rescue Sirius from his wrongful sentence. It had been a fortunate coincidence that he never could have anticipated. Ordinarily, he would at no time entertain involving children in such matters, but there had been no alternative. Once back up and running, the Order would benefit from Sirius' avidity. All in good time, he thought to himself.

Hermione had taken Dumbledore by surprise in her three years at Hogwarts. It was not uncommon for muggle-born students to be overzealous in their studies. However, he struggled to recall the last time he saw a student so adaptable to her surroundings; her intelligence and intuition shone. The more he considered the matter, the more sense it made to utilise the girls' talents for the cause. He could not know when Tom would return, but he suspected time was slipping away. Pettigrew's release unsettled him; it was prudent preparations began quickly.

Miss Granger needed to remain close to Harry Potter. Her influence would encourage him to stay focused on his studies. Power demands knowledge; without it, his efforts would be for nothing. Time could be borrowed for Granger to tutor him. Yes. He could design a timetable for the two of them to follow, ensuring Harry received a bespoke education that could swing the outcome of the upcoming war.

On the second day of the new term, Hermione was summoned into Dumbledore's office. She assumed that he wished to collect her time-turner. Whilst pleased to be entrusted with the responsibility, she was surprised she had been allowed to keep it thus far. After dropping Muggle Studies and Divination, there was no further need for it, much to her disappointment. At some point during her third year, she had grown attached to the necklace. Perhaps this was not entirely surprising, as according to her diary, she had actually taken two years of her life to complete her third year. A diagnostic spell she had performed on herself revealed she had aged an additional 368 days, meaning that on 16th September, she would be turning 16 years old. Having always felt more mature than her peers, learning she would be almost two years older than other students in her year was discomforting.

"Ah, Miss Granger, how lovely to see you again. I trust you had a nice summer?" asked Dumbledore as she walked into his office.

"Yes, I did, thank you. I spent much of it at the burrow with the Weasley's." She replied, awkwardly rubbing her hands together. She was unsure of how to hold herself.

"How nice to hear." Dumbledore smiled, then gestured for Hermione to take a seat. "Lemon drop?" He offered as he reached into the side pocket of his robes.

"I'm okay, thank you, Sir." She said as she walked towards the offered chair and took a seat.

"You may be wondering why I have called you into my office today?" He asked. Hermione nodded, wishing that they could move past the small talk quickly.

Dumbledore explained his plans for her to tutor Harry, confiding they needed to plan strategically to prepare for Voldemort's return. He emphasised how significant her actions were at the end of her third year, telling her he believed her invaluable to their cause.

Hermione felt taken aback by his words. "I'm sorry, Sir, I'm not sure I understand. Do you think I should be tutoring Harry? I'm not qualified! I haven't tutored anybody before. What if I do it all wrong?" Hermione babbled nervously.

"Yes, I do. You are close to Harry, and he will listen to you. This may be new territory, but your professors tell me you're a fast learner. I have full confidence in you." He reassured her. Hermione couldn't help but beam at his words. "You will, however, need some additional time to manage your workload. I trust you still have your time-turner to hand?"

"Well, yes… but wouldn't you want that back? I've dropped two subjects." Hermione spoke in a small voice, furrowing her brow.

"This is much more important than you to enrol in every class Hogwarts offers, Miss Granger. If you wish to help me, you must keep the time-turner in your possession."

Feeling silly, Hermione simply nodded, uncertain of what to say to the headmaster.

"The tutoring will be simple. Each term, I will choose a topic for you to research and then later teach to Harry. I will check in with you in separate meetings to ascertain whether the targets have been reached. Where possible, I will provide you with one-to-one support from trusted professors. This is not only an opportunity to better our cause but a chance to also expand your learning. You know the rules surrounding time travel; I trust that when necessary, you will find suitable times to go back to revise the material. Also, following the incident with Sirius Black, Harry is aware of your time-turning privileges. You need not keep this a secret from him." Dumbledore explained as he leaned forwards, his hands coming together to form a steeple.

The more Hermione considered his argument, the more sense it made. Who was she to turn down the opportunity of developing her education? She grew increasingly excited at the prospect of offering her hand. Furthermore, some of the proposed material must include Defence Against the Dark Arts – her worst subject. It would be foolish to turn down a chance to expand on a critical area of her education. She was never one to shy away from an academic challenge.

"Okay then, I'll do it." declared Hermione. Dumbledore smiled widely in response.

Severus Snape had been called into a meeting with Dumbledore. It was the third day of term, and he had just lost 40 minutes of his time listening to his godson. Draco had been ranting about his mistreatment at the hands of Mad-Eye Moody; the bloody lunatic had turned him into a ferret. Although he believed the auror had lost his touch a while back, even he hadn't expected that. While caring for Draco, he had far more pressing things to get on with than listening to a teenager indulge their ego for the better part of an hour. However, it wouldn't be proper for him to be turning the boy away. He didn't have the patience to listen to Lucius scold him for not making time for his son. Draco had unquestionably inherited his father's ability to drag out a dull conversation.

It was now 8 pm, and he still needed to finalise his lesson preparations for the following day. The first two weeks of term were always hectic. He had to ensure that the first years in his house were settling in well, all while setting aside time to catch up with the older Slytherins.

"There you are, Severus. Punctual as always. Please take a seat." Dumbledore said in greeting, gesturing towards the velvet chair in front of his desk, a small smile on his lips. The older man was already seated in the chair behind his desk.

"No need, Albus. Will this be quick?" Snape said shortly, standing rigidly just a few steps away from the door. Dumbledore looked displeased that Severus was planning on being difficult.

"I thought it would interest you to know that I have arranged for Harry to receive private tutoring from a fellow student. Hermione Granger will be taking on the extra-curricular task of guiding him through material that I believe will better his chances of survival in this war. He has already shown an aptitude for Defence Against the Dark Arts, but I fear the school curriculum will not suffice in preparing him for the upcoming war." Dumbledore said.

"With all due respect Albus, I'm not certain what this has to do with me," Snape replied tersely, disgruntled that he had been taken away from his free time to discuss the brat Potter and his bothersome bushy-haired friend.

"Well, for Miss Granger to teach the material, she must first learn it. Whilst she can take up additional reading to help with some of the load, I think it would be beneficial for her to have one two-hour session a fortnight with you. I thought we could start with defensive spells." Dumbledore informed him.

"You have surely got to be joking? I can barely tolerate that insufferable chit in class, let alone give up two hours of my free time every other week to teach her a subject that, reportedly, isn't even her strong suit! Whilst I find it difficult to believe that either child presents a proficiency for the Dark Arts, she is the weaker of the pair. Why would you have Miss Granger tutor Potter in a subject that, according to the rest of the faculty, he is more proficient at than her? " Snape shouted, feeling incredulous that it should be he that takes up this responsibility.

"Are you saying Severus that you would rather teach Harry instead?" Dumbledore said calmly, knowing full well that this would hit a nerve with him.

"Of course I'm not!" Snape spat. "I think this whole idea is half-baked, and I cannot fathom why in Merlin's beard, you think it is worth going through with! I appreciate that you have placed an awful lot of faith in the boy, but I don't see why he needs this level of special treatment. Or, why you trust his rather wearisome little friend to deliver it."

"Don't forget to whom you are talking with, Severus," Dumbledore said pointedly, leaning forwards in his chair, a coldness present in his blue eyes. "You will be meeting with Miss Granger. You will be providing private tuition to her. I expect your first lesson to begin the third week of term; you may arrange the finer details of your sessions with her."

Snape's nostrils flared, his hands clenching and unclenching next to his side. He was used to Dumbledore not considering his opinion. It had been made rather apparent last year that Severus' concerns were of little consequence to him. He hadn't quite forgiven him for what had happened at the end of the previous term when Black escaped. He had no proof, but he was sure that Dumbledore, Potter, and Granger had some play in the events that occurred that evening. He knew not to argue the point any longer, recognising when a conversation was futile.

"Fine. Is that all, Headmaster?" Snape spoke brusquely, glaring at the grey-haired man sitting before him.

"Yes, Severus. You may leave." Dumbledore said. He brought papers on his desk closer to him and picked up his quill to begin writing, not sparing an upwards glance at the younger professor as he left.

Snape spun on his heels and walked out of the room and down the stairs, cloak billowing behind him. Upon exiting the headmaster's office, he saw two Hufflepuff girls standing at the end of the corridor giggling between themselves.

"5 points each from Hufflepuff for loitering," He thundered, an ugly sneer on his face.

He knew that he was unjustly harsh, but he couldn't quite bring himself to care. After all, these students did not belong to his house. Merlin help any student that crossed his path as he headed back towards his rooms - he was not in the mood to deal with children tonight.

Hermione was sat in double potions on Friday, 5th September. It had been three days since she'd sat in Dumbledore's office agreeing to tutor Harry. Only a brief conversation had been shared between the two friends about the headmaster's proposal. Yesterday, the fourth-year student body hadn't talked about much more than the awful Defence Against the Dark Arts lesson they had with Mad-Eye Moody – Hermione and Harry included. Those present still couldn't believe they had witnessed all three unforgivable curses take place in a classroom.

Hermione felt awful for Neville. Not only did he have to witness the torture curse during the first lesson of the year for DADA, but only a day later, he had double potions with the teacher he feared the most. She was grateful that today's lesson was entirely theory-based. There would be no practical for Neville to make a mistake, which would only anger Professor Snape. She suspected that he wouldn't make anywhere near as many slip-ups if he felt more comfortable around the foreboding professor.

"You have two weeks to provide me with four parchment sides on an introduction to antidotes, their benefits, and an explanation and insight into three of your choice. Class dismissed." Snape said, addressing the room. His eyes landed on her as he watched her place her books into her satchel. "Apart from you, Granger. I need a word."

Ron immediately was indignant, pulling a face. "What's his problem now? You've not even done anything!" he muttered crossly under his breath, looking between Harry and Hermione. Harry looked confused, wondering what on earth the professor would want with her.

Hermione exchanged a look with Harry and Ron. "Don't worry. I'm sure it won't take long. I'll meet you at dinner."

"If you're sure 'Mione. We'll make sure to save you a seat." Ron said, looking uncertain. Harry nodded his agreement.

"Let me know what he says," Harry whispered to Hermione as he made to leave the classroom with Ron.

"I don't have all day, Miss Granger!" Snape snapped, a half-second away from interrupting Harry. His eyes narrowed after watching the conversation between the three friends.

"Yes, Sir. I'm sorry! What do you need to talk to me about?" Hermione said, edging towards her teacher.

"Since you've agreed to tutor Potter, I've now found myself in the rather undesirable position of being forced to ensure you do it properly," Snape said, contempt oozing from his voice as he looked down his rather large nose at her.

Hermione didn't know what to say to this. Dumbledore had told her she would receive additional help from her teachers, but she wasn't expecting it to be so soon. Certainly not from her Potions professor, either.

"Well, do you have a voice, girl?" Snape barked at her, irritated at her lack of response.

"Yes, of course. Sorry, Sir. Headmaster Dumbledore said that it was a possibility that I might be receiving additional support from my teachers. I was, however, unaware that you would be the one… well, helping me." Hermione stammered, audibly unsure of herself. It was highly unusual that she would have a one-to-one conversation with Professor Snape, and she certainly had not planned to make it a regular occurrence. He was indeed intimidating when looking directly at you.

Snape curled his lip. "Believe me, Miss Granger, I hardly found myself jumping for joy at the… prospect of teaching you privately," He said silkily. "You will meet me in this classroom on Wednesday 17th September at 8 pm precisely. I will terminate this little deal you have made with the headmaster if you are so much as a second late. I expect you to meet me at that exact time every fortnight."

"Yes, Sir. I understand, Sir." Hermione nodded her head quickly.

"Good. You are excused." He said, his wide nostrils flaring at the young girl who stood before him.

Hermione didn't need to be told twice. Leaving the classroom promptly, she headed towards the great hall for dinner. Dread was beginning to pool in the pit of her stomach. What on earth have I gotten myself into? Hermione wondered. Whilst she had the utmost respect for Professor Snape, she certainly did not feel comfortable or familiar with him. He was one of the few teachers that didn't respond to her performance in class with praise, which, quite frankly, threw her off-kilter. He had mocked her for showing enthusiasm and had even outright ignored her. I might have a better rapport with Professor Binns, she thought scornfully.

Walking through the doors leading into the Great Hall, her friends beckoned her over, gesturing toward her reserved seat. Grinning, Hermione forgot her exchange with Snape and ran over to them.