A/N: Hello! Welcome back!

ONE

Saturday, 4 June 2005

Hermione could feel the magic rising, reaching for Riddle's as it hummed against the surface of her skin. The more he chanted, the more the air around them thickened; the more shallow her breaths became. Last time this had happened, her mind hadn't been as cluttered as it was now. Back then, she had been able to concentrate on the way their minds melded into a single presence. At the way his soul felt as it tangled itself with hers. The reason as well as the initiation itself was vastly different and despite their history together, she didn't feel as connected to him now as she had then.

She knew it didn't matter; that the bond would work the same regardless. So she did her best to relax and let it happen. So she continued to breathe; in through her nose and out through her mouth. With each breath she felt her mind clearing, but she refused to let go of the reason she was doing this. When it was over, she would bury the image of Draco's face deep within the box she thought Riddle couldn't find. With any luck, she would hide them from herself entirely.

A small gasp of shock left her lips at the feel of her palm being sliced open; the same one that she had cut years ago. As a steady stream of warm blood began to trickle down through their joined fingers, she recalled the way she had looked down at Riddle. Even looking up at him now she could see the fire in his eyes, but despite everything, there was no hatred. She swallowed hard as she tried to recall if there had been any back then as she mixed their blood together for the first time, but found none in her memories either.

She stiffened as she felt his presence pressing at the back of her mind. It was the last part of the process. All she had to do was drop her barriers and let him in. But it wasn't just her mind he was ready to invade. It was her heart, body, and soul as well. It was what being bound to him meant. Every single part of him would belong to her. But the opposite was true as well and the idea of experiencing his true feelings for her once and for all wasn't something Hermione thought she could ever be ready for.

With a deep breath, Hermione lowered every wall she had ever built over the last seven years. Her hand shook in Riddle's grasp and tears dropped from the outer conners of her eyes, but still, she held his gaze. But right when she should have felt the warmth of him, taking over every last part of her, they were interrupted by the sound of the door slamming open.

Riddle tensed and he kept his eyes on her for a second before moving past her shoulder to fall upon their intruder. "It had better be important, Lucius," he murmured, his jaw clenching after he spoke.

"The wards have been breached, My Lord."

Riddle's gaze found hers once more; a humorless smirk tugging at his lips. "Of course they have."

"I didn't-"

"Wait here," he ordered, removing his hand from hers. "Stay with her," he demanded of Lucius. "If anyone other than myself comes through that door, kill them." He stopped before the elder Malfoy; his eyes burning bright with rage. "And I mean, anyone." And after a glance over his shoulder at Hermione, he took off towards the door and slammed it shut behind him as he left.

Hermione traced a shaking fingertip across the cut on her palm and watched as the skin began to stitch itself back together. As she clenched and unclenched her fist, trying to power through the throbbing ache in her hand, she didn't realize Lucius had moved closer to her. She did a double take at the rage that took hold of his face, but was too shocked to do anything as he reached out and wrapped a hand around her bicep.

"We need to get you out of here," he said as he pulled her close to him.

"No," she said, trying to fight him off. "We're staying. He-"

He yanked her close and she stumbled, causing her to shoulder to slam into his chest. He used the opportunity to get closer still and brush his lips against her ear. "Stop trying to save me, Granger. We either do this together or not at all."

Hermione went absolutely still as the sound of his voice changed somewhere in the middle of speaking. And when she pulled back to look at him again, it was Draco holding her close instead of Lucius. Her breathing resumed, this time in quick, shallow pants as she pulled herself free of his grasp. "No, Draco, you don't-"

"No, Hermione, I mean it. Whatever deal you made with him, I don't care." He grabbed hold of her face and waited until she stopped trying to escape. "My life isn't the most important one. If we die taking him down, so be it. This isn't about you and me anymore. This is about the greater good." His eyes narrowed slightly. "Something you used to believe in."

"I do, it's just-"

"Just what, Hermione?" he snapped, shaking her a little as his fingers tightened around her flesh. "You said you chose me; that you loved me and yet I leave only to come home and find you've gone right back to him."

"I do love you!" she hissed, yanking herself free of his hold and shoving at him with her bloodied palm. "Which is exactly why I had to leave! I'm doing this for you! For both of you!"

Draco's eyes went wide with shock at her words. "Both?" he spat with a slight shake of his head.

"I told you in my letter that this is bigger than the two of us now I'm doing what's best to save as many people as I can. As many innocent lives as humanly possible." More tears blurred her vision as she raised one of her hands to her stomach. The look on his face as she put the pieces together broke her heart, but she continued to speak despite the pain. "I've done awful things, Draco; made too many bad choices. I can't let this be one of them."

Tears gathered in his own eyes as his gaze locked with hers. His head shook slightly as he stared at her with disbelief. But when his lips parted to speak, it was Riddle's voice they heard.

"Since I highly doubt you have come here to congratulate either of us, I think it is time you left, Draco."

Draco whirled around at the same time he grabbed Hermione's wrist and shoved her behind him. "I am not leaving her. Not with you."

Riddle inclined his head and reached up to rub at his jaw. "Then so be it."

Hermione felt as if the world had completely stopped moving. Riddle's wrist had flicked faster than she could blink and it wasn't until Draco was falling into a heap at her feet did she realize what had happened. Slowly, her gaze dropped only to take in the sight of his cold, lifeless eyes staring back at her. Her lips parted to allow the scream past her lips as she dropped to her knees beside him. Raising her arms up felt as though she were swimming through sludge, but her hands never reached their target. Instead, she felt an arm being looped around her waist, pulling her away from Draco completely.

As the world caught up to her, she fought back against Riddle's hold. She clawed and punched; kicked and screamed at him in an attempt to free herself. "Let me go!" she sobbed, knowing that if she wanted to use her magic to bring him back, it had to be quick.

"There will be no resurrection, Hermione."

"We had a deal!" she screeched at the top of her lungs. "We had a deal! I came back! I-"

Her skin began to burn as her emotions, her magic spiraled out of control. It was akin to what she had felt at the lab, but on a much grander scale. The more she fought Riddle's hold, the more he tightened it. The more she thought about Draco's lifeless eyes staring back at her over Riddle's shoulder, the more painful her grief became. She knew that no matter how long she lived, she would never get over this.

"Time heals all wounds."

Harry's voice echoed around the recesses of her mind as she began to blame herself. She wasn't sure why that memory chose to surface. All it did was send her down a spiral of blame. Had she gotten over her fear of heights she could have learned how to properly fly a broom. Had she mastered that skill, she could have steered her and Draco to safety rather than straight into the ground. If they hadn't fallen, they wouldn't have ended up having to time travel to the past in order to escape the Fiendfyre.

A jolt went through her system as she realized what she had to do. If she was successful, it wouldn't just be Draco's life that she was saving. It would be everyone that had ever died in the last seven years. From Theo to Ginny and even all the way back to Harry and Ron. If she could pull this off, everything would change. And if she didn't, she knew she would rather be dead than live in a world without Draco anyway.

Without any guarantees on whether or not it would work, Hermione quit trying to hold her magic back. Instead, she squeezed her eyes shut tight and focused as best she could on her magical core. She pictured it expanding, filling her entire being. She felt the drawing room around her shake and even Riddle lost his balance for a moment as the floor began to shake violently beneath their feet.

"What are you doing?"

"Fixing my mistakes," she whispered, reaching out with her magic to unclasp the necklace at her throat. As it slid off of her between them, falling to the floor, she added, "Goodbye, Riddle."

For a moment, she felt his magic try to lock her in place, but her untapped core overpowered his easily. And in one moment she was standing in the circle of his arms inside the Malfoy Manor drawing room and the next, she was standing before her younger self stepping through the door to the Room of Requirement.

Hermione wasted no time in reaching for her younger self, taking in the sight of the clothes she remembered wearing during the Battle of Hogwarts, and pulled her close. She used her magic to bind them together, wiping out any chance for a paradox and then opened her eyes again only to find herself successful. She swayed on her feet, but she refused to give in to the exhaustion from such a surge of power. Instead, she shook herself and took off towards the spot she remembered having found Harry.

She raced through the stacks, eager to put an end to everything once and for all. Eager to be free of Riddle. Eager to save Draco from death. She didn't care if he didn't remember her; never remembered what they felt for each other. His life was more important than his love for her. But as she rounded the corner expecting her best friend, she stopped short at the sight of Draco standing before the door instead. Panic seized her airway and dropped her heart into her gut as she stared. He was continuously raking a hand through his hair as he paced in front of the door.

She glanced down at herself and clothes and realized something she hadn't before. Instead of bloodied and torn from the fray of battle, they were freshly laundered and pristine. She swallowed hard as she brought her hand up to her throat and sure enough, the necklace she thought she was once free of was there again.

"No," she whispered as tears stung her eyes.

This wasn't what she wanted. She wasn't supposed to go back this far. She was supposed to have just gone back to May of 1998, not December of 1944. But it was too late; she could already feel herself getting weaker; her adrenaline running out. There was nothing she could do to fix this.

Draco did a double take as he caught sight of her from the corner of his eye. He studied her for a moment, but Hermione didn't care about the anger in his eyes. The fact that they weren't dull and lifeless was all it took for her to launch herself at him. He stilled as she wrapped her arms around his neck and clung to him while sobbing on his chest.

"Granger-"

"I'm sorry!" she cried as she felt his heart beating beneath his chest. "I'm so sorry, Draco. I didn't- I tried to-"

"Spare me the details," he said, shoving her away. His jaw clenched as his gaze traveled down to her necklace. "I want the necklace back."

She stepped back when he went to reach for it, this time shielding his hand from the curling around the pendant. Last time, she had used her magic to burn his hand. This time, she didn't have the energy to do that, but she couldn't let him have it. "I can't give it to you," she breathed, wiping at her tears with the back of her hand.

He stared at her, silently seething before his shoulders jerked in shrug. "Fine, keep the bloody thing. I hope you remember what you did every time you look at it."

"Draco-"

"It seems you might have gotten lost, Hermione."

She whirled around in time to see Riddle coming around the corner. "I just wanted closure," she said, her voice shaking.

Draco must have made the mistake of letting his gaze slide to the door because Riddle's gaze flickered over her shoulder, tracking something. His eyes narrowed before he turned his gaze to Hermione. "What lies beyond the door?" he asked.

"Nothing," they said in unison, both of them flinching at their dead giveaway.

Riddle took a deep breath, giving an almost bored stare to both of them. "I am in no mood to play games tonight. Tell me what you really came here for or I consider this going behind my back and kill him."

A fresh round of tears sprang forth and clung to her lashes. Hermione could feel her heart skip a beat inside her chest, but as she and Draco both parted their lips to argue, Riddle flicked his wrist and sent Draco toppling to his knees. Hermione saw him struggle against the magic while staring up at them, wide-eyed and open mouthed.

Riddle's impatience was plain on his face as he looked at Hermione and took a step forward. She moved closer to Draco and held out her hands to get Riddle to stop advancing. "It's our way home!" she blurted. "We fell through the same door to get here and it only appears on the night of the New Moon."

Riddle's anger was tangible and Draco continued to struggle while it took all of Hermione's strength to remain upright.

"And if it worked tonight?" he asked, stepping closer to her, staring down the length of his nose at her. "You would have gone back home and left me in the dark?"

"We made a deal," she said. "One that could easily be upheld when I get back to the future," she added, her voice breaking as she recalled how easy it had been to break that deal.

"You are not going anywhere, Hermione."

She swallowed hard; her chest tightening as she forced herself to say, "Then let me send Draco back."

"He knows far too much. To send him would be a liability."

"I-" she shook her head and sucked in a breath. "I'll Obliviate him."

Riddle stared down at her, searching the depth of her gaze for any signs of betrayal. She could feel Draco struggling against the magic that kept him pinned down. In her mind, she repeated a mantra that she had to do this. In order to save Draco once and for all, she had to do this.

"You think you can remove these last few months from his mind? Completely? Without any way to reverse it?"

"I've done it before," she said as a tear slid down her cheek. "I've removed my entire existence from the minds of people I care deeply about just to keep them safe from you. I can do it again." Her hand trembled as she reached up and laid a hand on Riddle's arm. "Please," she begged. "Let me send him home. I'll remove everything so he won't remember and…" Her voice trailed off and she cleared her throat. "And I'll stay."

The seconds it took for Riddle to consider her proposal stretched on for what felt like eternity. As he nodded in acquisition, Hermione turned to face Draco. As she did, the hold on him gave way and he shot to his feet. Hermione stared up at him; every single memory of their lives together flashing before her eyes. The life he would never remember regardless if she wiped his memory clean.

"Go ahead. I actually think I would prefer not to remember any of this," he taunted. "Knowing you'll have to remember everything while I get to be free of you is the best gift I could have ever asked for."

"I know," she whispered as she reached up to cup his face between her palms. "I'm sorry for ever hurting you." Her thumbs swiped across the highpoints of his cheeks as tears fell in fat droplets down her own. "All I ever did was to keep you safe," she whispered, her voice breaking. "I love you."

With that, her magic seeped into his mind. It was hard to keep it focused; to remove everything about her from the moment they fell through the door to this moment. It was even harder still to remain standing as her recent bursts of magic were beginning to take their toll on her core. And when all his memories of her had been wiped clean, she threw her arms around him, placed her lips to his cheek, and whispered, "Go."

There was a moment of hesitation before he pulled himself from her embrace and turned towards the door. He walked towards it mechanically, as if it were someone else making his legs move. But he never stopped. Not even as he reached the door and turned the handle. Not even as he stepped over the threshold and closed the door behind him. And as the door disappeared from sight, the floor rose up to greet Hermione, but she was unconscious before she ever said hello.

A/N: Hello again! If you're here, I assume it's because you fell for Tom along the way (I understand completely) and you needed some closure with Tomione. For those of you that love Draco/Dramione...THIS IS NOT THE STORY FOR YOU. As you can see above, Draco is GONE and that is the last we will see of him in this story.

I have big plans for part three so I hope you stick around on what I'm sure will be one wild ride!

As for updates, I have no set schedule. Currently, plan on just posting one so long as I have another written. Right now, I'm focusing on my original works and making an actual living as an author (my dream since I was thirteen)!

My novel debuts on Tuesday, January 26th and will be available on Amazon as an ebook and in paperback! For more information or if you'd like to stay up to date, come join my FB group: madrose_writing

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That is all. Love you!