Archive of Our Own

Hermione stared at the reflection in front of her. She missed the bushy hair she detested so much when she was still young and carefree. Her golden brown hues staring back at her didn't recognize the pale and thin face that became of her. Dark red lips parted then closed. She sighed before turning away.

"Oh, look at me. So pretty," Myrtle mocked, with arms crossed. The opaque figure floated in front of her. Dead, but still amongst the living. One would think that she was simply of imagination, appearing from thin air.

Myrtle was the harsh reality of Hogwarts. An innocent young witch slain in one of the safest place in the Wizarding World. Unfortunately for her, nothing was able to stop the forces of evil and his will.

"You're lucky you're dead. You no longer have to suffer." Hermione knew that she was harsh, but life was even more cruel to them.

Hermione sometimes felt trapped in her own body and mind. Regardless of the steps she took and how far she ran, she remained in place. It was as if time stood still.

For a moment it did, whilst weeks and months turned into years without her consent. It felt as if she lived many lifetimes in the past and the future, merely watching as life passed her by. Never belonging. Only living amongst those that believed she was in fact who she said she was.

At times, she didn't know any more than they did. Other times, she still had to will herself to continue the fight. It was her against him.

Her first travel to the past was with Harry back at Hogwarts. They were able to fix what needed to be fixed without any dire consequences. 

It had been simple. Help Sirius survive and save Buckbeak. They did so without serious repercussions to the timeline. At least, that's what they were told. They didn't know any better. Fate had a way of righting all the wrongs.

They had won the fight, but not the battle. He was like a Phoenix from the ashes. Always rising from the dead. 

They were tasked again to save the Wizarding World. Two lost souls braver than anyone. Or just two foolish beings with a hero complex.

Meeting a teenage Tom Riddle should have been easy. It was before his first Horcrux. Before his first kill and taste of pure evil. But he had always been, they soon learned. 

They were wrong once more. A mistake of many. Not the first nor the last. Tom didn't simply become evil, he was born one.

Time was unkind and not a great healer in any matter. It took without giving any grace nor kindness. Its existence was far too cruel and unhinged.

If only they had known that going back would be far worse, they would have stayed and fought the Dark Lord to the very end. It didn't matter whose end.

The young Tom was more than just wit and charm. He was intelligent and powerful. Hermione slipped through the cracks of his words and got lost in them. 

She managed to get close to him, and gained his trust with perseverance and determination. It was only of course some cursed dream. Tom was steps ahead of her. She was foolish to think that she had outwitted him in his own game. She thought she had the upper hand for once.

"I’ll show you who I truly am, and what I'm capable of." He smirked at her. Dark eyes burned through hers, as he tightened his long fingers around her neck. His caress was neither gentle nor rough. He could kill her slowly or torture her. No one would be able to find them inside the chamber.

"Let her go," Harry shouted with his wand aimed at his temple.

"It seems you live another day, witch." Tom loosened his hold on her. "Soon," he whispered in her ear.

Hermione gasped for air when he finally let her go, took a step back from her. The smirk of his never left his lips. She could still feel his fingers around her neck, burning her skin with his touch.

"He won't always be around to save you." Tom needed to have the last words before he left them alone in the dark tunnels underneath Hogwarts.

"How did you find me?"

Harry walked over to her and held her upright. "Myrtle looked too happy when I was passing by. She was singing, in fact. That a Mudblood would soon feel the agony she feels."

"I guess I should thank her. She saved my life."

"I don't think that was her intention."

"We should have stayed in the forest. Do you remember?" Hermione reminisced one night underneath a canopy of leaves. A small fire kept them warm as they laid on the hard forest ground. "You still can, Harry. Save yourself before it's too late."

She was in no physical condition to continue fighting. They were fortunate to get away. But his glasses were cracked, and so was her wand.

"Hermione." Harry shook his head. His crooked glasses slid down his nose. Dirt smudged his cheeks.

"It's useless staying here with me. I'm hurt and can't get too far. He knows this. You have to go back. It's the only way." Hermione slipped the Time Turner over his head. "I'll be alright. You can come back and save me then. I know you will." She pressed her lips to his and spun the Time Turner.

Harry came back time and again. Always trying to save her from his tight grasp.

Each year was too late. Tom had become more powerful, gaining more knowledge that no one had heard of. 

Not only had she failed to stop him, but she remained by his side. 

"You will pay for this," Harry shouted from behind his wand. He raised it higher and aimed it at his enemy. The tip of his wand shot out a beam, shielding them. Even if it was just for a few seconds.

"Don't, Harry. He's too strong. You need to get out."

He raised his other hand to hold his wand with both as he struggled. "I'm not leaving you again, Hermione. I can't. I lost you once." There was desperation in his voice. 

"You need to live, Harry." 

"I can’t go on without you." 

"You have to. It's the only way. You need to get out of here before it's too late. Please, Harry. Do as I say." 

He shook his head. Tears welled in both their eyes. 

"It's the only way to defeat him. Not here, but in the future. He's too strong for either one of us."

Hermione walked closer to him with the Time Turner he brought for them. She slipped it once more over his head and spun it. 

"I'm so sorry, Harry." She had already lost herself years ago.

"We’ll always be together," he professed. It was a confession from the darkest part of his soul. At least, what was left of it. 

Hermione should have known. She already lived it once before. There was no mistaking the evil that he truly was.

Crimson eyes stared at hers, reflecting the golden brown that use to twinkle when he came near. The sparkle was all but gone. Still, a part of her cared for the man she once loved. If there ever was such a thing between them. But he was now gone, only existing in the deep recesses of her mind. 

In any other form, it would have been sweet and romantic. But coming from Tom Riddle Voldemort, it meant that their lives would be forever entangled. Whether she wanted him in hers or not, Hermione Granger didn't have much of a choice in the matter. He always got what he wanted.

From the tops of the mountains, reaching the cold mist of clouds. To the depths of hell, dark and dreary. He would always be there, as promised. And Hermione would be at his side. His mate. His companion for all eternity. There was no escaping him.

He had picked her like the beautiful flower from a garden. One could not simply pass by and admire it from afar without another thought. He chose her out of the many he saw and watched her grow to be just as wicked as he. 

She fell for it. His charms and his words.

Voldemort stood in front of her. His breath mingled with hers before his lips brushed hers. A soft kiss to tell her that she belonged to him. His long fingers and palm pressed the small of her back, pushing her flushed against him. 

"I wouldn’t be here if not for you." His voice was ever charming. Deep and rich, that sent a thrill down her spine. "Hermione." His other hand gently brushed aside her hair and tucked it behind her ear. "You helped me become who I am. Only you saw my true potential. For that I am forever grateful." 

She shuddered at his words as she looked all around them. Bodies, some dead and some wounded.