Hello Lovely Readers!

I'm rather reluctant to post this chapter, I really honestly am because I know that at least a few of you are going to stop reading from this chapter onwards and I really don't want that to happen. The only thing I can really as is that you guys have faith in me and believe me when I say that all will be right by the end of the trilogy.

Please have faith and don't kill me guys.

~VTM

Chapter One: It's only the beginning

Albus Dumbledore patrolled the halls of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry with smile set upon his face. The school year had just begun with the sun out to greet the new students and welcome back the old. Albus had a feeling spreading through his entire body as he watched his students out on the grounds and in the hallways laughing and practicing their craft, that this year was going to be a very good one.

"...Shouldn't have done it! He's going to get back at you one day James."

"Oh please Mooney. This is Snivellus we're talking about here."

"Yeah, besides, that pink really did suit him."

"Shut up Sirius!"

"Oh lighten up Mooney!"

"Next time we should add a Babbling Beverage!"

"Peter!"

"Never new you had it in you mate!"

"Nice thinking Peter!"

"You're all barbaric."

"And you wouldn't have them any other way Mr Lupin," Albus finally intervened, "Though I think that Mr. Snape would."

Sirius' and James' eyes widened at the sight of the Headmaster and Peter practically quivered before him while Remus just stood there shaking his head. The Headmaster smiled at the four seventeen year old boys. They had been trouble makers ever since the day they had met, well, more Sirius and James than the other two but that was beside the point. They had a special bond between them that just attracted mischief, mayhem and trouble where ever they went and they didn't mind it in the slightest. Sirius practically lived, breathed and ate it. No matter how much Remus berated them for almost getting him into trouble he loved it just as much as they did and Peter was just happy to be included. James however, was the antagonist. He started it all and every teacher inside the castle knew it.

"P-P-Professor Dumbledore, we were just-" Peter stuttered but Albus held up his hand to silence him.

"You will receive a month's detention with Professor McGonagall for your practical joke," he told them and they all groaned as he turned away, however their faces brightened when he said, "And yes, that pink really was lovely. I might use it for this year's Christmas cards to the staff."

He heard the young boys snicker and he smiled as he moved in the opposite direction. He had taken all of five steps when he heard great cries coming from the Great Hall.

~O~

She landed hard against the cold stone floor, blood oozing from her many wounds and a groan escaping her lips as she tried to hold herself up on her hands and knees and failed. She toppled over onto her side once more, the blood stained bed sheet she used as clothing almost coming undone with the stress it had gone through in the past few minutes. She coughed several times as more blood came up from her stomach and spilled onto the floor. She took a few deep breaths before trying to sit up again, managing to lean herself against the staff table and close her eyes in exhaustion.

She had no idea what era she was in but it didn't matter. She was away from Riddle…at least for now. She had a feeling that he would pop up some time soon and try to ruin everything she worked for and all plans would be laid to waste. Not that they hadn't been already. Curse her underestimation of him! She should have known that he would have been watching the entire time! She should have known that he would have known what she was up to! He was just- No, she should have known, end of story. If anything had gone wrong in getting them out of there it was her fault, no one else's.

She heard a loud crash emit from somewhere at the back of the hall where a table cloth had just been pulled from the its Gryffindor lodgings. A shaky Severus emerged from behind a bench, bloodied and bruised just as she was and all together just as exhausted. When his eyes met hers across the room however it seemed he had all the energy in the world. He almost ran in her direction…he limped really but it was still a quick limp over all.

But his gaze severely contradicted his actions.

"Are you injured?" He said in a business like tone, as he checked over her, giving her his outer robes to cover her practically naked body.

"Not terminally," she whispered back, "Just exhausted."

He nodded curtly as he picked her up and she coughed at little more.

"I'll take you to the hospital wing and we can treat you there-"

"Where's Draco?" She asked him quietly.

"We'll find him after we get you to the hospital wing," he told her firmly. He then proceeded to walk back down the isle to the hall doors. She rested her head against his chest in exhaustion, small tears leaking from her eyes.

"I'm sorry I got caught," she whispered, "I was getting so confused, I just needed some help…"

He said nothing.

"I should have just kept everything to myself, I should have-"

"Stop that ridiculous rambling and-"

He cut himself short for some reason and looked away from her to the floor. He had kicked something, something that obviously wasn't supposed to be there. Hermione lifted her head from his shoulder to see. It was an arm, clad in an expensive black silk sleeve, limp, lifeless.

Severus dropped her, she landed on her knees and crawled to the body, ignoring the pain that was now soaring through her joints. And there he was, pale as ever, eyes wide open in fear, lifeless, gone.

Dead.

She screamed when she saw him, pulled his body out from under the table with Severus' help. They began working on healing spells trying to close his wounds but all the while they knew it was no use. She screamed over and over again, tears flooding her eyes as she tried so hard to save him. But he was lost…

Hermione launched the dagger she had detached from Draco's back straight at Riddle.

Riddle launched the only weapon he had left.

"AVADA KEDAVRA!"

It was meant for her! She was the one meant to be on the floor! Not him! Anyone but him! How dare he do this to her! He wasn't allowed to die! He just wasn't!
They could both distantly hear the doors to the Great Hall opening, people entering and almost screaming as loud as she was but none of them stepped forward to help. It was then that she felt familiar hands on her shoulders.

"Come away Hermione," Albus said to her, "There is nothing you can do for him now. Come away."

But she didn't want to leave him. She had to stay with him, help him, and heal him, just as he would have done for her. Severus was having the same trouble convincing the woman who had tried to pull him away as well.

"Let go of me!" He roared, "I will not stand by and do nothing!"

"There is nothing you can do," McGonagall told him patiently, "Come back with us."

They struggled and they fought until they were hauled off of the body entirely. Hermione screamed for them to let her go but they wouldn't. They managed to get them both out of the hall and once they did her exhaustion took hold once more. She collapsed to the floor in crying heap. Once Severus shook off his captors too he began to pace angrily around the Entrance Hall. He then fired curse after curse at the doors and the walls to try and relieve the anger that he felt. When cursing was no longer enough he slammed his fist into the nearest stone wall and let out a sharp groan of pain.

There they stood, two time travelers lost in their grief, two teachers with sympathetic eyes, a head boy and head girl, all of them confused and worried.

"Lily, James," Albus finally said after a while, "Guide the students back to their houses. Tell them they are not to leave their common rooms."

"Yes Professor," they said together before hurrying off. Lily lingered by Hermione's side for a few moments however and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"I'm so sorry for you loss," she whispered before departing.

Minerva McGonagall then stepped towards Severus, tried to comfort him but he shook her off again. He instead went over to Hermione who Albus was trying to console to no avail. He picked her up again and began to walk out the door when Albus stepped in front of him.

"Stay Severus," he told him, "Let us help you."

"How do you know my name?" Severus spat at him.

"My boy I've been teaching you for the last seven years, known you for the last ten," Albus smiled at him kindly, "How could I not? I daresay that Eileen would know that it's you that stands before her now that her son has been in this world for the last seventeen years."

A look of absolute shock coated Severus' features as he stared at the older man and then looked down at the girl in his arms.

"What did you set the time turner to?" He asked her abruptly.

"I don't know," she answered quietly, "I just made it go forward, I didn't know what year I just…"

He shook his head.

"It was our only way out," he huffed.

"Didn't work though did it," she whispered bitterly. Despite his cold demeanor he seemed to hug her closer to him, something that she had become accustomed to in the past few months that she had spent away from her own time. She distantly wondered if things would change back to the way they were once they managed to find a way back but couldn't dwell on it. It would never be the same again no matter what happened and she didn't want to think about what the future held now without Draco in it…

"Please Severus," Albus implored him again, "Come up to the hospital wing, get yourselves checked over and then come to my office for a lemon drop or two."

Severus looked uneasy for several moments before looking down at Hermione. She was battered, bruised, exhausted and who knew what kind of after effects the spell Riddle put on her would have. She may have fought it off but it was by no means gone. He could see it in her eyes that she could feel it too, the cold presence of power rippling through her body, threatening to take control at her weakest moments. It would be best to have her checked over at least, to make sure there was no immediate danger. He gave a curt nod to the older man and they were lead away to the top floors of the castle to receive medical treatment.

Poppy was all in a flutter when she saw the two of them walk in. She immediately began to shove potions down their throats and cast spells on their wounds. The one thing that each of them refused to do however, was swallow the pain killer solution that the medi witch seemed to have on tap.

"You won't be able to rest if you don't take away the pain!" She implored them.
Hermione just shook her head and Severus swatted the woman out of his way. Hermione herself had refused to be placed in a bed and was in a chair next to the man who she had forced onto the hospital property.

"We need to stay awake," she muttered to all who bothered to try and listen, "If we take those then we'll fall asleep. We don't know what the consequences will be for what we've done."

"Perhaps now would be a good time to elaborate on that," Minerva said from the corner.
Poppy looked at Dumbledore who indicated for her to leave. She did so grudgingly, leaving the pain potion on Severus' bedside table. Hermione looked at her fallen comrade, silently asking him how much she should tell.

"We can't change anything," he told her, "We can't meddle with what's already happened, with what will happen. It could make things worse for us."

"It's already worse," she whispered to him, "What more could possibly go wrong?"

She held her wand up to him for the first time since she had acquired it and saw his eyes widen. She began glistening with tears once more as she followed the damage that had been inflicted upon the valuable stick of wood. There was no way it could be used again now.

"It chose another," she told him, "And now it's damaged beyond repair because of it. There's no way that he's going to survive without it, not in the graveyard, not in the ministry…We've already destroyed the future that was made for us, there's no point in trying to fix it. We have to create our own destinies now."

"Bad things happen to wizards who meddle with time-"

"Bad things have already happened!" She suddenly burst out, "We've changed peoples' lives! Put them in danger," she looked down at the floor again, "Lost someone very dear to us."

Severus looked away from her then and refused to meet her eyes. She knew he was feeling guilty, like it was all his fault. He had been the one to send them back after all, he was the one who chose to ignore Dumbledore's warnings…but he couldn't think like that. Not now. Not when he was needed the most.

She got up from her chair and sat on the bed next to him.

"You're right," she whispered, "We can't change the past…but the future is never entirely set in stone."

He seemed to think about it for a few minutes, unsure of what to do. It was a rather unpleasant sight really, Severus Snape unsure. He had always been the pinnacle of knowledge and decisiveness in her life, always there with a plan to carry out, some kind of task in mind and now after all this time he was unsure of how to proceed. It was definitely a frightening sight indeed. Hermione decided to push that little bit further.

"You don't always have to make the decisions Severus," she told him, "Let me take over for now."

"You could get us all killed for this," he told her, "Or even worse, fed to the dementors."

"Is that really any worse than what we would have to face if we went back home?" She asked him, "Is it really any worse than what we would deal with if we went back to where we started?"

He seemed to think some more before giving her the slightest of nods. If she wanted to take over, to tell them everything…she now had his permission to proceed. With that, she turned her attention to the two older people in the room and sighed.

"You may wish to take a seat," she said, "This could take a while and might be a bit of a shock."

And it was. By the end of her story McGonagall was gaping like a fish and Dumbledore held an expression that clearly said he had a lot of thinking to do. Severus and Hermione sat there patiently and waited for some kind of response from their two most trusted advisors and when they received none, Hermione felt that it was best to speak first.

"We realize that this is a lot to take in," she told them, "And we know that we shouldn't have told you anything at all, but we are at our wits end here. We've lost one of our most trusted friends on this journey, we've suffered greatly at the hands of the Dark Lord even before he became the Dark Lord and now we stand before you, humbled and frightened and ask for your help."

"Merlin," McGonagall whispered, "I'd always known there was something off about you in school but never did I dream…I was only a second year at the time and it never occurred to me to…"

Dumbledore sighed.

"There is nothing we can do to undo what has already been done," he said cryptically, "Your past has been changed, or rather Tom's past has been changed, and therefore so has his future. We on the sidelines must simply wait and see how this plays out from now on."

"So you'll do absolutely nothing then?" Severus spat, "Like always you will sit in your high seat above the violence and the suffering and watch with all superiority-"

"My dear boy you are not listening to me," Dumbledore said quietly, "We may not help you with your time travel. That is your task, not ours. However should anything arise that time travel does not take priority over we shall certainly be of assistance. For instance, finding Miss Evans some clothes and tending to all your wounds…there is no consequence that would prohibit us from that."

"So if we are really honest with ourselves we can't change anything until we find out what has already been changed." Hermione whispered to herself before speaking up to the rest of them, "If that is the case then it seems we have need to visit some old friends…or rather I have a need to visit some very new ones."

"Do you really think that wise?" Severus asked her.

"At the very least I should see if Cygnus is even alive," she told him with a sharp look, "It's because of me he was landed in the hospital wing in the first place."

"There is an easier way to see if he is alive or not," he told her, "Ask either of them if Bellatrix, Narcissa or Andromeda Black attend this school and you will have your answer."

Hermione blinked for a few seconds before turning to the headmaster.

"I'm pleased to inform you that all three of those girls did attend this school," Dumbledore smiled, "Bellatrix and Narcissa in Slytherin house and Andromeda in Ravenclaw. Their parents Cygnus and Druella Black donate regularly to the school's fund for the underprivileged."

"There is your answer," Severus told her.

"That also means that he was released from Tom's service," she whispered to him, "It also means that he is possibly still-"

"No," Severus snapped at her, "You are not going to see him and you will not disturb my mother either! We will leave them be, get back to our own time and fix this mess ourselves!"

"What is the point in going back to our own time when we have nothing left to go back to!" She screamed at him, "We have a golden opportunity here-"

"We had a golden opportunity before and you blew it!" He sneered, making her draw back from him in shock. The other teachers in the room seemed to do the same. He sneered at them all before removing himself from the bed and walking away from them, out of the hospital wing without another word. McGonagall went to follow him but Hermione stopped her.

"Let him go," she shook her head, "He needs time to think."

"He can't just walk out after saying such a thing-"

"He didn't mean it," she told her, "Not really. He's frustrated and angry and he really thinks that this is all his fault. Plus being in this time really doesn't help."

Minerva still looked uncertain but it was Dumbledore who consoled her.

"He will be back when he is ready," he told her, "You and I both know how stubborn he can be."

~O~

Many miles away from where Hermione and her companions had landed a woman sat on her doorstep tending to fresh bruises and cuts that had been given to her only moments ago. She had watched with glee as her husband had stumbled out the door in a drunken rage after she had refused to…tend to him. She had watched as he pulled his keys from the coffee table and driven the car off down the road.

She hoped he crashed and died a very painful death.

It wasn't usually something you would say about your husband but she said it everyday. She said it as she made breakfast for him, as she did his laundry, as she made their bed, as she served him dinner, as she cleaned his house, as she did his dishes and as she slept next to him at night. Most of all she said it as she said it at times like these, where she sat out in the sun and dealt to her cuts and bruises that he gave her. It wasn't much of a hastle really, being a witch did help. The only problem was that she couldn't deal back to him without using magic and that was of course illegal.

Some days she wondered what had made her choose him in the first place but then she realized that it hadn't been that way in the beginning. He had been charming and sweet and kind but as soon as he had that ring on her finger it all changed. The one thing she could say she was grateful for was the beautiful son he had given her. She thanked Merlin every time he wasn't home to see her this way. Then again her husband didn't think much of him either. She thought of it as an annoyance really, the way he would hit her with all his muggle might but her son was always enraged by it. He had tried to fight back on occasion but she had always held him back, knowing that his temper would not scream at him to use magic.

Just as she cast the last of her bruises away and swallowed a potion for the pain there was a crack from the bushes in front of her. She rolled her eyes, knowing exactly who it was and what he was there for.

"I thought the mudblood would never leave," he said as he came out and dusted himself off, "Why do you stay with the idiot? You obviously don't love him."

"Because I'm just as stubborn as you are," she replied, "Why do you stay with your wife? You obviously don't love her and your father is dead. He can't say anything about it now."

"Matter of principle," he told her, "Malfoys don't get divorced."

Eileen Snape rolled her eyes at him. She may have loved him once, she probably still did, but she would never be able to get over the Malfoy rules. One set for them and another for everyone else.

"What does he want this time Abraxus?" She asked him, "I've already told him, he can't have my son."

"He knows he has to wait for that," he told her as he joined her on the patio, "He'll wait until Severus is out of school and then-"

"And then my days are numbered," she laughed, "I already know all his plans concerning my son and I'll tell you right now, none of them will work."

"And how are you so certain of that?" He asked her with a scoff, "You and I have watched him grow into what he is. You know the kind of power he holds."

"You can tell Tom straight from me," she said with smile full of secrets, "My son will go blond before he's ever a true Death Eater."

Abraxus just looked at her as though she'd gone mad but that was nothing unusual these days.

"He's willing to wait as long as it takes for Severus," he told her, "But he's not why I'm here."

She raised her eyebrows.

"I take it you remember Hermione Evans?" He asked her.

A great shock went down Eileen's spine as she stared at her former lover. That was a name she hadn't heard in over thirty years and she had hoped that the next time it found her ears it would have come from someone different. But her Prince genes kept her in check and she got a hold of herself quickly.

"What about her?" She asked.

"He seems to think that she's back in the country with her Uncle Leopold. Not sure about her fiancé though," Abraxus told her, "Apparently there are records saying he was killed at the front all those years back."

"Nice to know but what does all this have to do with me?" She asked curtly.

"He thinks that if Hermione goes to anyone while she's here it'll either be you or Dumbledore."

She laughed.

"He's still running on that theory is he?" She asked, "That she was one of Dumbledore's stooges sent to go and get rid of him? Or does he still think that she was trying to steal his glory?"

"It doesn't matter what he really thinks," he told her, "Not to you anyway. If she comes to you, he wants to know."

She scoffed.

"He'll leave Severus be if you hand her over."

Now he had her attention. She narrowed her eyes at him.

"I don't believe you." She snarled, standing from her seat and walking. He followed her inside her house and persisted. He would really get in trouble if he didn't find some kind of common ground with her.

"He's willing to-"

"I don't give a damn what he is willing to do!" she roared as they reached her kitchen, almost hitting him as she swung around to face him, "Not once has he ever done right by me or my son! Why on earth would he start now?"

"You know what Hermione meant to him," he told her, grabbing her by the arms, almost trying to shake sense into her, "You know what she represented to him."

"Yeah, everything he is now!" She said as she struggled from his grip, "He couldn't have gotten much further with her by his side-"

"He doesn't see it that way!" He yelled as he knocked her into the kitchen counter and held her there, "Think about it Eileen! This is your chance to save both you and your son! If he had her then he wouldn't need Severus, he wouldn't have to spite you, everything that happened thirty years ago would be forgiven and you could walk through Diagon Alley or St Mungo's without fear of being attacked by Death Eaters in disguise!"

"I don't have any fear when it comes to him," she sneered, "Not anymore."

"That's why you married the muggle then is it?" He spat back, "That's why you hide here under hundreds of charms and spells to keep anything magical out?"

"You're here aren't you?" She quipped.

"Only because of the Fidelius charm you placed on me that night we-"

"Shut up!" She told him, "I had to do what was best for my son and after that mistake-"

"It wasn't a mistake and you know it," he told her, "You know it just as much as I do and if you would just stop being so stubborn and divorce Snape and come back to me-"

"To be your whore?" She laughed bitterly, "I'm better than that and you know it. I would be able to divorce Tobias if I wanted to but you; you would never leave Lestrange would you? Dearest Miala would never survive."

"He could order me to kill you at any moment Eileen!" He roared at her, "Just because he can't end it himself doesn't mean he can't send me to do it and I would have to, just to protect my own family!"

"And he knows just as much as I do that if he ever laid a finger on me, yours or his, Severus would never go near him," she smiled, "I'm everything to that boy, I'm all he's got and Tom knows it."

"Eileen you've backed yourself into a corner," he whispered desperately, "One of three things are going to happen here. Either he finds Hermione without your help and he doesn't need Severus anymore, in which case you're dead; or he finds a way to get around the fact that Severus loves you in which case you're dead; or you take this deal, hand over Hermione, he doesn't need Severus anymore in which case-"

"I'm dead anyway," she laughed again, "Face it Abraxus he isn't going to keep any promises concerning me unless it's to have me killed. I'm not going to get out of this alive. I've made my peace with it, it's time to make yours."

She gave an almighty shove, making him stumble and she walked over to the door, holding it open for him with a smirk.

"Now get out of my house," she told him firmly, "And don't come back unless it's to tell me that Miala's chest has finally exploded and her nose has fallen off."

He closed his eyes and shook his head before walking out her door without another word.

"And you can tell your lord to go fuck himself," she yelled after him, slamming her door shut and retiring to the living room to watch some T.V.