"You look beautiful." Thorfinn said into her ear as he led her around the dance floor. His large hands resting on her waist. He smiled smugly as he looked around the ballroom at the others dancing.

"I have never received so many envious looks before tonight. We are truly beyond blessed to be here with you."

He was right. She had noticed it from the start of the party that people were looking at them differently now than they had been. Narcissa had explained to her the importance of how they presented themselves tonight. She was not an available witch anymore and it was up to them to make sure that was a known fact.

She had been more than surprised on Christmas morning to receive her gift from Antonin. Thor had come back from the reserve the day before and they had all stayed the night together so they could open presents in the morning before doing the rounds at all the Christmases they had been invited to. She had woken up to see Thorfinn and Antonin were both already awake. Dolly had a box in his hands that he presented to her with slightly shaking hands. She opened it up and felt her heart rate speed up as her breath caught. Her eyes jumping to their faces, looking back and forth between the two men.

"Is.. Is this.. Um." She struggled to form the sentence. "This is, this is ok with you?" She had looked at Thorfinn who reached over and gave her a devastatingly loving smile.

"It's more than alright princess, it's perfect. How it was always meant to be."

She took the paper out of the box and smiled at the signatures at the bottom. Feeling the magic sing in her fingertips she reached up to wipe a stray tear off her cheek. Summoning a quill she signs her name at the bottom of the betrothal contract with a flourish before grinning like mad and launching herself at the two men. Her future husbands.

Since she was now as good as engaged she attended the Malfoy new years ball alongside them both. Thorfinn, having offered for her first, escorted her into the hall and led her in the first dance. Once the song was over he walked her over to Dolohov and handed her off with a kiss to the cheek and the other wizard swept her into a dance, holding her just as close as Thor had. That move along with the new shiny ring she wore on her left hand let the others know she was spoken for. A fact they all seemed a little put out about.

"Don't look so smug." She chastised him playfully as the song ended and they made their way back to their group.

As they joined their group of gathered friends Hermione greeted Theo with a kiss to the cheek. She ignored the scoffing sound of the others who she had simply nodded and smiled a hello to. Her reasoning was that Theo absolutely refused to accept the proper hello. He had claimed if his sexual orientation wasn't known by now then whoever assumed things about them deserved to be ignorant. Hermione couldn't find it in herself to care as she was an affectionate person and normally greeted her friends with hugs and kisses to the cheek without ever thinking it more than friendly.

So they stood there in their small group and tried to speak positively even though there was a dark cloud hanging over all of them. Christmas had come and passed and been wonderful for them all until Rodolphus and Rabastan had clammered in their home early boxing day claiming Bellatrix was missing. She hadn't been by their home, and Narcissa said she had told her she was going to visit Lestrange manor. It had been over 24 hours since anyone had seen her. They sent out a search party and had others listening for signs of her but it had been five days and no one had any clues to where she could be.

This wore down on them all as she was such a dangerous piece to be missing. She had a lot of information and not a lot of filters. She was mentally unhinged and that made her dangerous. Even worse was she knew about Hermione and that just would not do. For Hermione it sucked because she had planned to use Bella as a bartering chip. She knew her father had asked her not to kill her, but he never said anything about her graciously giving her over to Sirius or hell even Madam Longbottom and allowing them to have their revenge. Now tomorrow when she went to talk with Sirius and Remus and Harry she would have to say she didn't know where Bellatrix was now, or what she was planning. She had been worrying about it all day and had worn away at her bottom lip from biting it trying to come up with a solution.

Now they all stood around in their pretty clothes and faked smiles acting as if life as they knew it couldn't implode at any given second. She smiled gratefully when Dolohov handed her a glass of champagne, effortlessly moving from Thors hold to his. Draco Theo and Blaise were part of their group, the only other ones from school that stuck by each other. After their parents found out her true identity the other Hogwarts aged children had kept their distance and were perfectly proper and polite to her. Seeing Marcus Flint bow down to her in greeting was one of the greatest moments of her life. They also stood with Rodolphus and Fenrir, the two men more than comfortable with the rest of them. The only odd additions to their group were Rabastan and Mulciber who were both poly juiced, as they didn't believe it was safe to leave them alone with Bellatrix gone. They both were supposed to be Durmstrang students, who spoke little to no english, therefore keping curious eyes away from them.

Others dropped by from time to time between dances, they weren't anti social. It seemed most just wanted to greet them, Hermione in particular, before they moved on. One of her favorites of those people was Yaxley. He was a different sort but she enjoyed him and his thick scotish accent. He whisked her away from the group for a dance and her side hurt by the end of it by how hard he had her laughing. His job at the DMLE meant he knew a lot of secrets about people and was feeling loose with them as he whispered them to Hermione as they danced.

They made it back to the group where he moved her to stand with her betrothed in the back of the circle. Cutting off his laughter to bend over and kiss her hand.

"Ah lass, it was a pleasure." He said, giving her a wink.

She wiped the tears from her eyes. "No please Corban, the pleasure was all mine." She giggled.

He turned to look at the two wizards on either side of her, his pale blue eyes sparkling.

"I hope you boys realize just how lucky you are. It's a boon to be with such a witch I tell you." He gave them both a look that translated to 'I know where you sleep, treat her right.' Before he excused himself and left the circle.

Hermione rolled her eyes at his antics but appreciated them nonetheless as she reached out and squeezed both of their arms. Letting them know that she loved them and she was lucky to have them there with her.

"So I never heard. How did Potter react when he found out you have a triad betrothal?" Blaise asked her.

Hermione gave a small shrug, thinking back to the discussion they had all had on Christmas. Sirius had received the request before her, and so he wasn't surprised to see them all three together at his home for dinner. She had worried about how Harry would react but thankfully it all went very smooth.

"He was very calm about it. It is taboo in the muggle world, so it took some explaining from Remus that it's perfectly acceptable within our world for him to understand. But he wasn't worried about me with the two of them as much as he was that it would be illegal or sully my reputation. Once he understood that it was all above bar, and that it would actually benefit me and my magic he was happy for us. It also doesn't hurt that he knew I would never have been able to choose between them. Sirius and Remus are both happy for us as well. Remus more so, but that's just Black likes to play the father figure card." She smiled and the others nodded.

"Makes sense," Blaise said I thought. "I wondered if you had taken into consideration the benefits it would have to your magic. I mean can you tell now? Is there a difference?" He seemed genuinely curious, and being a scholar herself she understood the need to satisfy that curiosity.

Both men beside her hid a smirk behind their drinks that did not go unnoticed when she let out a delicate snort. In one of the rare moments where her brain and her mouth didn't work together she just spoke aloud without thinking.

"Oh yes, definitely. I mean it helps no to set the room ablaze every time I have an orgasm."

Realizing what she just said aloud she slapped her hand over her mouth but it was too late the damage had been done. Blaise who had taken a drink was now choking on it and Theo was laughing while beating him in the back trying to clear his airway. Draco was staring up at the ceiling as if he could just focus his mind away from what he just heard. Her two wizards were both silently chuckling beside her not seeming to care that she just blurted it out. She blushed when she saw both of them looked smug.

The older wizards were the problem. Rodolphus and Fenrir were practically guffawing. Drawing attention to their group as Mulicber leaned against them with a deep booming laugh. Hereyes widened when she saw that eleven sweet Rabastan was chuckling beside the three. He was acting much more civilized but still. She mock glared at him.

"Et Tu Bass?"

"I think I am more surprised that Theo doesn't seem surprised at all." Draco said taking his eyes from the ceiling and crossing his arms all while staring at their dark haired friend.

Theo shrugged before crossing the circle and dramatically bowing in front of Hermione asking her for a dance.

"That's because I am not surprised Draco dear," He started with a smug smirk. "As the BEST friend, I know everything. And THAT gentlemen is why I still receive the cheek kisses in public." He finished haughtily with his nose in the air as he led the two of them to the dance floor, ignoring the chuckling behind them.

Her hands shook as she grabbed a handful of floo powder. This was it, she would step through the grate and everything would change. It didn't matter how they reacted to the news, she had to share the results would be the same, everything would be different. There would be no more hiding.

Rowle and Dolohov had practically begged her to let them come with her. She had disagreed, saying it would be best if she was by herself. Some of the information would be very hard to tell and for them to hear and the last thing she wanted was to come across like she brought back up. So she would go at this alone, well with Tully standing by, but it was just how it had to be done.

Throwing in the powder she called out for grimmauld place and stepped through. She arrived in the sitting room to see it was still empty. In her nervousness she arrived seventeen minutes early and naturally the others would be arriving last second. Kreacher hasn't come in the room yet, but that was ok, she had Tully scheduled to bring them tea in a few minutes. Tea that would be spiked with a calming drought, best case scenario, no one drew their wands today.

Remus was the first to arrive, as she assumed he would be. Being able to scent her out he had an unfair advantage. Even though they had just seen each other on Christmas she was pulled into his arms for a long hug. She took a deep breath of his calming scent and squeezed him tightly knowing this could be the last time she did so. They only broke apart when they heard the sound of a throat clearing behind them. Sirius and Harry stood in the doorway, Harry with his dark hair disheveled as always was cleaning his glasses while Sirius leaned against the doorway giving them both a knowing smile.

"This isn't doing anything for my concerns that Moony is your favorite vixen. I find myself heart broken yet again." He whined with a smile still on his face as Harry just shook his head and crossed the floor to pull her into a hug. Kissing her forehead, an action he had taken to doing since he hit his growth spurt.

Sirius, not one to be left out, left his place against the wall and grabbed her hand, spinning her to his side where he dipped her low despite her squawking at the action.

"Good to see you love, I take it you survived New Years at the Malfoy ball?" He chuckled. The trio had turned down the offer since the full moon was the night before and Remus wouldn't be healed enough to attend.

"Yes it was frightfully boring as you warned, and especially since I had to follow Narcissas rules about appropriate behavior." She rolled her eyes. "Fudge tried to approach me no less than five times but thankfully Dolly and Thor were always there to whisk me away." She scrunched her face in disgust. "Like I wanted his sausage fingers on me.. Ew.'

The statement had them all laughing and then moved to take a seat. The tea arrived silently and Hermione took a deep breath before addressing them.

"The tea has a calming draught mixed in with it. I wanted to warn you all before you drank it, as I'm sure you would have realized once you took a sip." She warned them and they all looked surprised but nodded with understanding. They made their cups and sat back waiting on her to continue.

"The next thing I am going to ask of you I have no right to, but I am going to regardless." She swallowed a large drink and her hand that was shaking the cup against the saucer calmed. "I need you three to take an oath. I need you to promise me that you won't reveal anything we discuss here today without my permission."

At their bewildered looks she continued. "So much of what I have to say isn't common knowledge, and my circle of trust is just the three of you. I don't know what the outcome of me telling you everything will be, but I think we all owe it to each other to give it time to work t between us." They nodded one by one understanding what she was trying to say.

After making their vows she cleared her throat asking them to hold off their questions until she was through. She had so much to say that if she let them interrupt her after every part she would never get through with it. They agreed to that easily, knowing it would be best to hear it all first.

"Just stay with me. I have gone over in my head the best way to do this and this is what I have come up with. It may seem odd to you all at first, but I promise it all ties together."

Sirius reached out and squeezed her hand in support and she released a shaky breath.

"I have worked out a lot on my own vixen and I know this will be hard on you. I have spoken briefly to Harry and Remus about it and they know to stay calm until you are finished. Regardless of what you have to say we are family and we love each other."

Harry nodded enthusiastically and Hermione smiled, wiping a stray tear that had fallen down her cheek.

"Ok. Well this all starts decades ago, before any of us were even a thought. Dumbledore visited a muggle orphanage in London. There was a name on his register for an 11 year old boy who lived there. His name was Tom Riddle. He was different, which should have been obvious given that he grew up in an orphanage while also experiencing bouts of magic. It was a rough time for muggles any ways given the world war but add to that a church based orphanage housing a child that could make unexplainable things happen and most of it tied to his heightened emotions, well you can guess how that went over." She rolled her eyes trying to ignore the pain she felt for her father when she spoke of that time.

"Dumbledore had an instant dislike for the boy. He said there was a darkness in him. Like no fucking duh he was dark. He had never experienced love, he was abused daily and treated like dirt and knew that he wasn't wanted. No one comes out of that without a little darkness in them. The four of us are literal walking proof of that." She huffed.

"The thing he didn't know at the time but the reason for Dumbledore's instant dislike was that the 11 year old Tom Riddle reminded him of Grindelwald. These stories Rita Skeeter has been posting. They are true. Grindelwalds aunt Bathilda Bagshot; you might recognise her name as she is an esteemed historian. She remembers the boys from their youth. They were close.. And I mean that in how it sounds. Lovers would be an appropriate term, but it didn't work out between them. No one knows what exactly it was that forced them apart but it coincides right to the timing of Dumbledore's sister dying. SO, Dumbledore meets a young boy who reminds him of his ex lover who he recently has come to hate. I hope I am setting this up right for you.

So now we have Tom Riddle going to school at Hogwarts and being sent home over the break to the same muggle orphanage. Only now the world is at war. The orphanage being in central London is in the heart of the bombings. The kids there live in constant fear that they will be bombed, meanwhile the government is rationing so they have no food to eat. Tom watches as the kids around him get sick and die, he sees death and destruction all around him, while he is kept alive by his magical core. Then bam september rolls around and he gets back on a train with a bunch of magicals who act as if life is perfect. It was jarring to him and it led him to have an immense dislike for the muggles who he was around when he suffered, but also gave him a fear of death and dying." She took a breath and saw they were all listening intensely.

"Doing a potion project Tom decided to look into his family tree. He was sorted into Slytherin but had kept his blood status a secret because he knew it would be a source of ridicule. He explained he was orphaned, and given the state of the wizarding world after Grindelwald attacks, no one questioned it. Well doing the spell he discovered he not only came from a wizarding family, but he was practically wizarding royalty. His family, the Gaunts, were descendants of Slytherin himself. He used this information to his advantage and was able to make more friends at school using the knowledge. The next issue came when he tried to reach out to his magical family, only for them to reject him. His mother had fallen in love with a muggle, who didn't love her back. Instead of moving on she dosed him with love potion and ended up married and pregnant. Her family disowned her for running off with a muggle and having no one else she let the potion wear off. She thought her husband would love her for her without the aid of the ption. But he didn't, he despised her, hated her so much that he left her. She was so distraught that she started the process of killing herself. She didn't take care of herself and got to the point where when she gave birth at a muggle hospital her body just gave up. The Gaunts could have come and claimed the baby, but they didn't." She noticed the sad expressions on their faces, and agreed it was quite the horrible story to start out with.

"Now that I gave you that sad history lesson I can continue. I just think it's important before I moved on that you understood exactly the head space Tom Riddle was in. Now, we half a teenaged wizard who has a darkness within him that he struggles to hide. He is immensely intelligent, top of his class with more OWLS than Dumbledore himself. Headmaster Dippet wasn't as strict when it came to what books were accessible, so Tom spent a lot of time in the restricted section and became nearly obsessed with dark magic. We all know how that type of magic calls to you, and if you don't fight it, it consumes you.

Well it consumed Tom and he dove deep enough in it that he found a horrible and despicable form of magic. Horcruxes." At the word both Remus and Sirius' eyes shot open and they looked a cross between horrified and disgusted. She nodded in understanding.

"For a wizard so afraid of death he saw it as a way to live forever. Immortality, the answer to all his problems." She shook her head sadly.

"Harry you probably don't know so I will explain. A horcrux is a piece of your soul. In order to create one you have to fracture your soul, the only way to do so is to commit cold blooded murder. Then when the fracture is there you have to use an incantation to tear it completely, and then imbed said part of your soul into an object. It doesn't matter what. It's a horrible act, listed as the worst in a magic most foul. You will never be the same again, as part of your foundation is gone. You can imagine if you struggled before with morality and doing the right thing. After such a spell you wouldn't be capable of it anymore."

Harry looked green as she explained and she didn't blame him. She too felt that way when she thought about just how deep her father had gone. It was a wonder he could function at all even now.

"Now back to Dumbldore." She said with a sigh. "He too is obsessed with immortality, but instead of creating horcruxes to bring him back if he was to die, he sought out a way to control death. To become the master of death, and the only way to do so was to become the owner of all three deathly hallows. I know you are probably thinking it is a kids story, but all stories are based on the truth, and that goes for this as well. The original three brothers were the Peverell brothers, and each of the hallows can be traced back to them. In their youth Grindlewald and Dumbledore worked together to find them, they did the research to know where they should be but they were only able to track down one. The elder wand. Grindlewald stole the wand from Gregorovitch, the wand maker. It was in his possession and that's when they learned that the elder wand only responded to its master. I dont think it's odd to know that it wasn't too long after that Dumbledore turned on Grindelwald, he dueled him but didn't kill him, he just won the allegiance of the wand he now carries." She continued despite their looks of disbelief.

"The second hallow, the resurrection stone, was passed down through the second brothers' side of the family until it was fashioned into a ring and forgotten about. The Gaunt family ring." She watched as their faces morphed into shock as they started putting the pieces together.

"The third hallow is much closer to home. The invisibility cloak." She smiled at Harry who she was surprised was still sitting up right, a testament to the calming draughts potency.

"I'm not sure how much you know about this so I am going to tell you what I know. Dumbledore reached out to the Potters, the elder Potters, Charles and Dorea. He wanted to form an alliance with them, for them to join him and his inner circle. They refused, for you see that was kind of their thing." She felt her face crack into a smile. "They had stayed out of conflict, they just wanted to be happy and practice magic as they saw fit. They weren't light or dark, they just were magical. Honestly it's how we all ought to be but that's besides the point. So the elder Potters turned down Dumbledore. But he didn't care at the time because now he knew where all three pieces of the hallows were. He only had to bide his time to get them."

She took a deep breath, here it goes, now she would be explaining why all of this had been important to do a back story on. She could already see how all three of their minds were racing with the new knowledge.

"The reason all of this was important to tell you is that Tom Riddle is the real name of Lord Voldemort." She ripped off the bandaid and cringed when she heard the sound of shattering glass. She looked up to see all three staring at her in shock. Remus' hand empty where it had been holding a teacup seconds before.

She gave them all a sad smile. "I know, I know it's a lot to take in." She took a shaky breath.

"Dumbledore had decided to make his move and went to collect the Gaunt family ring. But it was too late. Tom Riddle had already been by and after they rejected him again, he murdered them. Creating a horcrux in the ring, and taking it with him. I don't know how Dumbledore figured it out but he did. Now he had a problem, someone was in his way and this someone was powerful and intelligent and an actual threat to him. So he started the smear campaign, he said Voldemort was a pureblood supremacist and was seeking to destroy the wizarding world. A modern day Grindlewald who had to be extinguished before he burned the world down around him, and Dumbledore would save them all again as he was pure light. It was all dramatic and it worked. But maybe too well. You see Riddle was not a good person, but he was unbelievably charming and likeable and it didn't hurt that he was attractive as well. Where he had friends in all circles, now thanks to Dumbledore the purebloods started flocking to him and throwing their support and money his way. Families that were considered dark, which meant that they didn't try to label magic one way or the other, grouped together so as to not be alone against Dumbledore.

Tom accepted the role as leader easily. He had already created multiple Horcruxes by now and the power and magic went to his head. But as a half blood himself, it was never about blood prejudice for him. It was always about magic and the freedom to use it how it was designed. He didn't like muggles as we had discussed, but he wasn't a fool to think they didn't have a purpose. Same as muggleborns, there is a necessary hierarchy needed for a society to thrive. Not to mention he understood about the necessity of adding in new blood to old bloodlines. He was powerful, and he was a half blood. He couldn't pretend it wasn't possible for others to be."

She paused to take a drink of tea, her mouth dry from the long winded speech she was giving.

"Tom was comfortable where he was. He had created five horcruxes and had felt he had reached immortality. Now he had a following of some of the most prestigious pure blood families, and for the first time he was accepted. To Keep the crowd he had with him happy he allowed them free reign. He helped them get ahead in their careers, he supported their laws, he became a lord to them, some of them were decent enough, but some were absolutely bat shit. As I am sure you know. Sirius you more than any." She said and he snorted in agreement.

"That same type of manipulation was happening on both sides though." Sirius added even though he was trying not to interrupt. Hermione gave him a nod in agreement and he continued. "Dumbledore seduced his side with pretty promises as well. When we were younger I had told myself I was staying out of it but once James jumped in with both feet I followed him."

Hermione sighed. "And it hurts more to think of the reason James joined. If you remember me telling you earlier, the Potters were neutral and had declared themselves as such." She looked at Harry sadly warning him silently it was about to get worse. "Dumbledore needed them on his side, he needed access to the cloak when the time called for it. But Charles and Dorea weren't going to sway so he focused his attention on the younger generation. He looked the other way at your pranks and rule breaking, he accepted Remus despite his lycanthropy, he stoked the fires of house prejudice to make sure you were all separated from the others who would join Voldemort. But even after all of that it wasn't enough. So he had to take drastic measures."

A low growl ripped out of Remus' throat as he put together what it was he was saying. Sirius paled dramatically shaking his head back and forth whispering no, it couldn't be true. Harry looked between them all with concern.

"He knew if he convinced James to join that the rest of you would follow, especially if you had something in common you were working to avenge. I don't blame you all for not seeing it, you were buried in grief and helping your best friend through a devastating loss. But the accident that killed Harry's grandparents was not an accident. I know Dumbledore and the order, even the general public placed the blame on Voldemort. It wasn't him. That same explosion killed Serena Malfoy, Abraxas' wife, Draco's grandmother. It was what pushed the Malfoys to stand so closely beside Tom."

She closed her eyes and counted to ten to keep her emotions in line. Before opening her eyes and seaking again. If she was a better person she would give them all a break so they could come to terms with what she had said, but it would just be extending the inevitable.

"Dumbledore would use his power of manipulation a hundred more times before we get to where we are today, But I want to talk to you about the ones that affect you all and me the most." She explained and they bid her to continue.

"Regardless of the smear campaign Dumbledore tried to spread and the war he insisted was coming. There was a time that everything calmed down, it seemed like Voldmort and his followers had gone to ground."

Sirius and Remus nodded remembering that time well. It was when they all had graduated.

"The only reason the Potters and Longbottoms went into hiding was because Dumbledore was told of a prophecy, the one you retrieved the other night Harry. Now here is where things get difficult. Dumbledore did not hear the prophecy himself, it was told to him in a panic by one of his former students. The person who gave the prophecy, was none other than that batty witch Trelawney. Did you know she had not made any predictions before this, or after. And has no seer bloodlines. No, she was just a witch obsessed with Tarot readings that Dumbledore hired with no resume or past experience. Then magically one week after she is hired she goes into a prophetic trance in front of one of Tom's most loyal friends." She rolled her eyes at the ridiculousness of it all.

"Snape overheard the prophecy, he had known that Lily was pregnant. He was best friends with your mom when they were younger Harry, he loved her, though it was unrequited. He couldn't tell Voldemort because he was afraid of what would happen, and he didn't want to risk your mom's life. So he ran to Dumbledore and begged him to hide your mom, and to save her. Dumbledore accepted and said he would and made Snape a spy for the order. Putting him in unknown amounts of danger. One of the things he found out from Snape was that Tom had created a Horcrux. He didn't tell him there was more than one though."

"Now Dumbledore had your parents in hiding with the cloak, he had a spy in Tom's rank, and he knew how to defeat him. He reached out to another vulnerable member of the death eaters, and yet again manipulated him to do his dirty work. Dumbledore had found the hidden Horcrux, it was in a cave off the coast, and was guarded by cursed water and a lake of inferi. He knew he couldn't get to it himself so he asked Regulus to do it."

Hearing his brother's name Sirius head shot up, she could hear his heart beating rapidly from there. He must have put together then that his brother was thickly involved.

"Regulus was, like Snape, in love." She started sadly, feeling the tears drop down her cheek. "Where Lilly never really loved Snape that way, I don't think that's the same with the situation Regulus was in. Unfortunately the witch he loved was pregnant when they met, only a week or so but still. He was tasked with keeping her company and showing her around the country as she was from Russia. Somewhere in the time they spent together they fell in love. She was doing a duty with the child she carried, but she still loved it, and Regulus grew to as well. She made him the baby's father." More tears fell and Sirius reached for her hand again.

"Dumbledore convinced Regulus that Tom only wanted the baby that the witch carried and would dispose of her once he had it. He gave regulus the option to help him destroy Voldemort before that happened. He agreed and was sent off to his death unknowingly. He told him the only way to destroy the locket was with fiend fire. He would have had to cast it after being poisoned, then struggled to contain it, making him discard his wand and try to swim out. The inferi wouldn't have allowed that to happen. But Dumbledore got what he wanted, he destroyed the Horcrux. Tom felt it, it drove him mad, having his soul shattered was one thing but having a piece of it destroyed sent him off the deep end. That's when the attacks started back up again and the war really took off."

"What happened to the witch?" Harry asked softly, his eyes shimmering.

"Regulus had sent her a message via Kreacher if he didnt come back. It broke her heart, she escaped to the muggle world to give birth a few days later, no one knows what happened but the muggle hospital she was at burnt down the next day. She was on the list of casualties."

She looked up at them all to see them all teary eyed but she knew the question in all of their minds. How did she know all of this, clearly it wasn't common knowledge. From the look rowing on Sirius' face he was starting to put it all together. It was like he was drowning and she could save him if only she said she was just joking, or maybe even a psyche. But she couldn't. It was too late now and they more than deserved the truth. She looked at them one last time before speaking, her family, adopted as they may be she loved them each fiercely. She only hoped that they would still speak to her after all this.

"The reason I know this is because the witch who died that day was Anastasia Le Fay. My mother."

She didn't look up from her trembling hands, she didn't want to see their faces.

Sirius had known this to be true, he had read the journal from front to back twenty times by now. He watched as the witch who wrote it slowly but surely fell in love with his little brother. From what he could read of her they would have made a good match. The way she described Regulus had been eye opening. He had spent so long feeling betrayed by his family that he looped Reggie into the same category. He always coincides with him to be too lost to save, too far gone into the darkness to see the light. But the words written about him described a sweet and shy wizard. One that held her hands and let her cry on his shoulder. One that spoke fondly of his older brother and had caused him brave for having the strength to be his own person. It had hurt Sirius to read, then when he paired it with the excerpt from his last journal entry that warned him not to trust Dumbledore… well he couldn't doubt a word Hermione had told them. However in the journal he had read the name of the baby's father more than one time. The witch would express her wishes and prayer for Tom, saying how she hoped the baby would help him put himself back together again.

A throat cleared before a voice who also must have figured it out spoke up. He looked over at his god son and felt the tension rise in the room. His emerald eyes so reminiscent of his mothers shined out from behind his glasses that were a perfect replica of his fathers.

"Who is your father then Hermione?" His voice was much stronger than any other time he spoke, but it was lacking the ice she was expecting behind it.

She looked up and made eye contact with him. Her honey brown eyes searching for him for what would happen next. He gave her the tiniest of nods and it gave her strength to speak aloud. Something about that tiniest of head gestures let her know he was prepared to hear her say the words. That he had come to the conclusion himself but needed her, his best friend, to say it aloud.

"My father is Tom Riddle. The dark lord, Voldemort, whatever you want to call him. That's who he is, and he would like to meet you."