A/N: Welcome to my Tomione story. I know it's not a ship for everyone, but i like it so... here is mine. This story is AU and starts in her first year and Hemione is essentially groomed by Tom from age 12. Enjoy and leave me a review :) if you ask a question and want a reply say so and I will PM you. I get on here once a week or so. Enjoy. The chapters are all about this size, maybe bigger, so it might be a bit between updates, depends on how the writing bug gets me.
As a young child, Hermione had always known she was different. She was obviously more advanced than the other kids in her primary school classes. She had learned to read at a very young age and started school well above her peers' levels of education. All of which had her pegged as an outcast. The other children didn't like how she answered all of the questions. They never picked her to play on any teams. This caused her to withdraw socially.
She had just doubled down on her books and ignored the teasing. She had hated the names they called her. There were many. Bookworm being the least favorite. The girls were meanest, making fun of her hair when the insults about her intelligence stopped working. Accidental magic had flared up often, though she wasn't aware that was what it was until she was older.
By the time Hermione had received her Hogwarts letter, she wasn't surprised that she was different. The kind professor coming to her door, telling her she was a witch wasn't exactly what she had had in mind. The magic bit was kind of a surprise but, she had always known she was special, better than the other kids. When her classmates tried to hold her down and cut her bushy hair, she had panicked enough that her magic lashed out, throwing the kids back. The main bully, a girl named Kelly, had a broken arm. Hermione had wanted it to be broken, wished it, and it happened, she thought she had telekinesis.
She was very excited to go to this new school, she just knew that she would fit in there. She just wanted to feel accepted, she knew it was right, it all made sense now. When Professor McGonagall escorted them to Diagon Alley, Hermione was awestruck. She had bought her first year books, and all supplies needed, plus a few extras to help her learn all about her new world.
She had spent the rest of her summer reading all of the books. She read through all of her course studies and the extra books she'd begged her parents to buy for her. Hogwarts, a History, might have been her favorite. She had read it three times before term had even started. She hadn't been able to practice the spells yet, but she knew once she was allowed she would be able to most of them. Small spells really, but she could feel the magic tingling in her fingertips, waiting to burst through her.
When she got on the train, she knew great things would happen. She could feel the excitement building inside her. She met several nice kids on the train. And to be fair, several, not so nice kids. She sat alone for a bit and practiced the few spells she could remember without the book. Every single one worked. She enjoyed the rest of the ride to Hogwarts, helping a poor boy named Neville find his toad. She met a fair number of students. The boat trip across the water was different.
Once inside the school, the first years were told to wait for Professor McGonagall. They were mostly quiet. She looked around noticing the few moving portraits she had read about. Hermione's attention was pulled to one of the boys she had met, Harry Potter, when he almost started a fight with a blonde boy she hadn't met yet. Boys were strange creatures.
She was nervous to go through the sorting ceremony. When the professor had lead the group into the Great hall, all trepidation had left her. The ceiling looked like the night sky, Candles floated along it, lighting the room nicely. Once the first years were all lined up, they began to call each student's name and place a dirty hat on their head.
She had read up on the different houses and figured she would probably be in Ravenclaw. Though she like the idea of Gryffindor. She would be fine with either one. When her turn came, she was happy to be placed almost instantly in Gryffindor.
The classes were amazing. She learned all she could and more. She spent a lot of her time at the library, reading everything that remotely sparked her interest. She hadn't made any friends yet, though her fellow Gryffindor students were cordial to her. She turned 12 just after term had started, feeling like she did every other year, alone. No one but her parents even acknowledged it.
The fact that she didn't have any friends here either hurt, it was exactly the same as the muggle schools. She had hoped that her awkwardness would be less here. But the other students seemed to avoid her unless they needed help with work.
It was looking better a month later, after an incident with a troll in the girl's lavatory. She had lied to her head of house, but she had made friends with Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley. It started off a good friendship. At least until she chose to study instead of sneak around breaking the school rules. She helped them with their classwork, other than it seemed she was useless to them.
She found herself at home with her parents on her winter holiday. She sat in her room, reading over the texts for her return to classes. She hadn't heard from either of her friends and she was now regretting lying to Professor McGonagall for them. The guilt was eating her alive. She had decided that when she returned she would tell her the truth and take whatever consequences she received.
She looked at her clock and realized it was almost time to go. It had taken forever to talk her parents into going to Diagon Alley. She pulled on a thick jumper over her shirt and slid on her snow boots. She grabbed her wand and moved downstairs to see if her parents were ready to go.
"Mum, Dad? We need to go." She called out.
She heard her father's voice from the kitchen. "Coming."
They piled into the small car and headed to The Leaky Cauldron. They parked the car and the three walk up to what looked like an abandoned building to her parents. They moved inside and headed straight for the entrance to Diagon Alley. She tapped the stones like McGonagall had shown her and watched in awe at the wall disappear.
After exchanging her allowance into wizarding currency, she walked her parents through the shops. They looked everywhere, searched different shops. She laughed as her parents went into the pet store and were looking around. They seemed so excited to see some of the more exotic animals. She stepped out of the store to get some fresh air.
She noticed a smaller street to her right. She looked at the sign. Knockturn Alley. She grinned at the clever name.
"Hello poppet. Do you like shiny things? Come here, I have all kinds of trinkets."
Hermione looked at the man, hesitating. He was dirty and seemed to be wearing torn cloths. She almost turned to go back into the store but something stopped her. A small twinge in the back of her mind. She made a decision and stepped forward. He had a small table covered by a velvet cloth. On the table were dozens of necklaces, a few gaudy rings and useless items. She looked over the table getting ready to turn and leave when a locket caught her attention. She brushed her fingers across the surface and gasped as a warm pulse moved up her arm.
"How much for this one?" she asked.
"You've got a good eye. That one is 20 galleons."
She looked at the thing, it was a bit gaudy, but something about in was calling to her. It felt familiar to her. She wasn't sure why, or how, but she needed this locket.
"I'll give you 10." She said.
"Deal." The man looked please.
She dug out the money and gave it to him. He wrapped the locket in tissue paper, she frowned as his dirty hands touched her locket. He smiled and handed it to her. She tucked the locket into her jeans pocket and hurried back to her parents. Her hand stayed on her new necklace, feeling the slight pulses of magic through her hand.
She was silent on the ride home. They pulled into her drive and she moved quickly to her room while her parents began dinner. She put away the few supplies she had purchased. Setting them neatly in her school trunk. She held the locket in her hand, thumb running along the raised 'S' on its surface.
It hummed again, sending a slight shock through her. She looked at the golden item. Her thumb found the small latch on the side, she tried to open it, to look inside. The latch wouldn't budge. She didn't want to chance breaking it with brute force, deciding it would have to wait until she got back to school before she could try with magic. She looked at it again, it almost felt warm in her hand.
She sighed and pulled chain of the locket over her head. She lifted her hair from under it. The cool metal touched her neck. She shuddered as she lifted the front of her shirt, slipping the locket under it. She didn't want to answer any questions about it to her parents. She felt it pulse against her skin, almost like it agreed. She smiled at the absurd thought.
The sound of her mother calling her for dinner made her jump. She headed down to eat. The rest of her time was spend reading ahead in her text books while lightly stroking the locket. She refused to take it off. It felt like a part of her now. Made her feel better. She was a bit sad having to go back to Hogwarts, not because she didn't want to be there. She was sad because she knew what she had to do. Once they had arrived back, she made her way to see Professor McGonagall.
She was alone. She had confessed her lie about the troll incident and was punished, losing house points. Harry and Ron were given detention. Now they hated her again. Ron even going as far to insult her teeth. She was halfway through the school year and was back to square one.
She was spending the majority of her time either in the library, or she would be down by the lake, weather permitting. She enjoyed the sounds of the birds tweeting, waiting for the warmer air of spring. The water was clam and highly reflective, making the day seem brighter than it truly was. It was one of her favorite places.
She would lay out reading her book, stroking the locket absently. The occasional pulse from it seemed to be stronger. It started out just a light pulse that would spread across her chest. Now she could feel it to her fingertips. She enjoyed the flairs of magic. No one else seemed to notice it. She had decided to try to read up on it.
Over the next few weeks, she read through every book on charmed, cursed or just strange jewelry, and found nothing. She had also been unable to open the locket either. She had a pretty strong alohomora, it could open most doors in the castle. It was useless. She was beyond frustrated by her failures. She had been unable to make friends. She had been unable to open the locket. She had been unable to figure out what was going on with the locket.
She was to the point where she was angry. She could feel her rage when she thought about her many failures. This school was supposed to be different. She was supposed to belong here.
It was near the end of the term, and she was in the common room, reading up on cursed objects again, in case she had missed anything. It was quiet, the fire still burned pleasantly and she was curled up in an armchair. A sound startled her. She looked up from the book and saw her former friends and Neville Longbottom arguing in loud whispers.
She stayed quiet and watched the interaction. Neville seemed to be trying to talk the boys out of doing something. Finally, Ron pulled out his wand and stunned poor Neville. They left him there petrified and out for anyone to find. She rolled her eyes. They were idiots.
She waited for the two to leave the common room and got up, placing her bookmark and setting the book on the table. She walked over to Neville. She frowned at the panicked look on the chubby boys face. She pulled her wand and cast a finite at him. His entire body relaxed and he pulled himself up.
"Thanks." He said turning red.
"Why did they petrify you?" she asked.
"They were sneaking out to see what was on the third floor that was so dangerous." He said.
"Let me guess, you told them it was a bad idea?"
"Yea." He said rubbing the back of his head.
"Well," she said grabbing her things. "Have fun with that, I am going to bed." She said turning to head up to her dorm.
She pulled her curtains closed around her bed and laid back. Her hand found its way to the locket and she traced the small filigree on the surface. She must have fallen asleep, because she was woken up by the loud gossiping coming from around her bed.
"I heard he almost died, hit by a giant chess piece." One voice said.
"Well Harry was poisoned. Can you believe they would leave all of that sitting around a school full of children?" another said.
"I can't believe Professor Quirrell was trying to steal from The Headmaster." Another girl squeaked.
Hermione smiled, happy the boys had gotten themselves in trouble. They deserved it. It doesn't matter who you are, you should not be allowed to treat people badly and do whatever you want. She thought back to poor Neville, lying there helpless on the common room floor.
While the entire school was at breakfast, it had been announced that Harry and Ron would be spending the rest of the school year at St. Mungos hospital. Hermione tried so hard not to snort into her cup. Neville had been awarded house points for standing up to them and getting Professor McGonagall for help. Good for him.
They were heading to the last of their classes when McGonagall pulled Hermione aside.
"Ms. Granger, a word please."
"Sure." She said, following the teacher into her office.
"Have a seat, you are not in trouble. I just wanted to tell you that Mr. Longbottom explained to me that you helped him after he was petrified by Mr. Weasley. I wanted to thank you. It allowed me to get to Mr. Potter before he succumbed to the poison he had ingested."
"It was no problem Professor." She said.
"Well, that may be so, but you saved his life."
Hermione squirmed in her seat. She was not comfortable talking about all of this. Her hand reached up to touch the locket subconsciously. Her worry melted away. Calm came over her.
"Enjoy the rest of your day Ms. Granger."
She stood and left quickly.
Term had ended and the train ride back was bittersweet. She sat alone and stared out of the window, her hand on the locket. She hurried off of the train and through the barrier to find her parents.
Hermione was enjoying her summer. She had purchased her 2nd year basic books the past December, and had devoured the content over the last few months. She figured it never hurt to brush up, though she was sure she had mastered all of these spells before her first year had ended. She practiced her wand movements and memorized potion ingredients.
She skimmed through the transfiguration book, while absently brushing her hand over her locket. She felt the pulse of magic pick up. The pulses giving her a truly euphoric feeling. So calm and peaceful. She barely noticed as the pulses started to match the rhythm of her heart beat. The steady thrumming against her sternum lulled her sleep.
She dreamed of Hogwarts. She knew she was in the school, though she had no idea where in the castle she was currently standing. The room was large and mostly empty. She stood on a stone walkway, edges with strange stone statues set in water. Hermione was fairly sure she had never been in this place. She took a few small steps forward, to get a better view of the larger area.
On the far wall, she saw a carved face mouth wide open as if he would begin to scream any second. The sight sent a chill down her spine. She was unsure how she was dreaming of a place she had never been before. Was this a real place at the castle? She was still staring at the grotesque face on the wall when a noise startled her. She followed the sound and noticed a man standing to her right.
She stared at the man, he was young, but older than her. She felt panic begin to build in her stomach, but almost as soon as it started, the locket started to pulse stronger. Sending a sense of calm through her body. The man turned to look in her direction. His eyes, black as coal, locked onto her and he smiled. She felt she had no choice but to smile back.
"Hello, who might you be?" He asked. His speech was slightly strange. Too proper, and very confident.
"Hermione." She said, still frozen in place.
"I'm Tom."
She wasn't sure what to do. She was dreaming right? Why was she dreaming about a tall handsome man named Tom? Tom was a fairly common name, this was just a random manifestation, she tried to convince herself.
"I won't hurt you." He said the humor all over his face.
"I know." She said, "You are a dream you can't really hurt me." She explained.
"Maybe." He smiled. "How old are you?"
She blushed. "Twelve almost Thirteen." She said trying not to sound as defensive as she felt.
His brows moved together for a millisecond before smoothing back out. He waved his hand a two overstuffed chairs appeared.
"Come sit with me, we should talk." He said.
She looked at the man and then the chairs. He had them a decent space apart, she mused. She sat in the chair closest to her. The man, Tom, sat across from her. She watched as he leaned back, relaxing into the chair. Hermione did the same.
"I am curious to why you are here?" He said.
She scoffed, "I am dreaming, that's why I am here."
He smiled again. "Do you know where you are?"
She frowned. "I am at my home, in my room studying. I must have fallen asleep." She said.
He chuckled. "No Hermione, I mean this place." He explained as he gestured to the large room.
She looked around, then back at Tom. "I assume somewhere at Hogwarts, though I am not sure where." She said, hating to admit she didn't know something.
His eyebrows rose. "You are correct."
She smiled, she liked being right.
"You are at Hogwarts, but it is a place no one has been to, save myself, in hundreds of years." He said hinting to see if she would know.
That sounded familiar, she brought her hand up to the locket subconsciously as she thought. Tom watched her lightly trace the pulsing object. She looked up suddenly.
"The chamber of secrets." She blurted out loud enough for it to echo slightly through the large room.
His eyes glittered as he smiled. "Right again, you are very smart, I am thoroughly impressed."
She preened under his approval. He watched her closely. She smiled and visibly relaxed into the chair. He wondered how much she knew.
He sat there, quizzing her on different things, and she answered them all. They were getting along quite well.
"How old are you?" she asked
"I am almost nineteen." He said.
She smiled. "So, if I am dreaming, but not dreaming, what is actually happening?" she asked.
The question had caught him slightly off guard. He smiled, this girl was very sharp. He like that, he could use that.
"I am unsure, but I have an idea. I need to research it though." He looked at her. "Will you come back and see me again?" he asked. "I might know more next time." He added.
She smiled, "I'm not sure how to come back, but I will try."
His smile was the last thing she seen before she woke up. She looked over at her table clock and saw she had been sleeping for about 20 minutes. That was impossible, they had talked for a few hours. She was so consumed with thoughts of the dark eyed Tom, she forgot about the locket. It still pulsed in time with her heart beats.
Just before school was to start, Hermione found herself back in Diagon Alley to get the supplemental books for Defense class. Apparently the new professor was obsessed with Gildaroy Lockhart. Hermione had to admit, the man was handsome in a flashy sort of way. She was purchasing the books when she overheard a heated argument at the entrance. She put her books in her bag and turned to leave. She saw the problem now. Harry Potter and what looked to be the entire Weasley clan were talking with a tall blond man.
She stood to the side and waited. Her parents were thankfully outside, waiting for her. Last thing she needed was for them to witness this mess. A voice behind her startled her.
"Eavesdropping are we?"
She turned to see Draco Malfoy. His face was extremely close to hers.
"No, just waiting to get through." She said.
Draco chuckled. "You are a horrid liar." He stepped closer to her. "Why would you be waiting in this dark, secluded area?" he leaned forward.
"Back off Draco." She said firmly.
"Or what?" he did step back, but only to look at her.
"Granger, look at you. You are filling out. Too bad you are a mudblood." He said.
She felt anger pulse through her, she knew the term but never thought anyone would use it. Her hand pulsed with the urge to curse him.
"Well." She said calmly, "I'd rather be a mudblood than an arrogant twat." She pushed past him. She had almost gotten free when a hand grabbed her upper arm. She collided with the blonde boy.
"Oh, I like hearing you talk dirty." He said.
"Sod off Malfoy." She stamped on his foot and darted out of the door.
Her parents were standing there, deep in conversation with Mr. Weasley. They were talking about different muggle items. Hermione moved closer. Just wanting to be by her mum.
"This is all very fascinating. I would like to keep in touch, if you wouldn't mind. Are you connected to the floo network?" Mr. Weasley asked.
"No, we haven't applied yet." Hermione answered for her parents.
"I could send an owl then. If you don't mind."
Her parents agreed and Hermione pulled them along. She was ready to go, now. She felt her heart racing, anger still just under the surface. She calmed slightly in the back seat of her parents car. She stroked the locket and calmed even more. By the time they pulled up the drive, she was better. She smiled and grabbed her bag.
"I'm going to put my things away." She called to her parents and hurried up to her room.
She added the Lockhart books, and the Third year books she had purchased, into her trunk for school. She restocked her parchment and quills. She also put in regular ball point pens and pencils. With everything in order, she locked her trunk.
She moved over to her bed, laying back and thinking about what had happened with Draco. What was all that even about? She must have dozed off, because she was suddenly back in the chamber with Tom. She walked into the large room and found him sitting in the chair she had last seen him in.
"Tom? How did I get here this time?" she asked.
"Hello, Hermione. How long has it been since your last visit?" he asked.
"Almost two months." She said.
"Interesting." He said.
"Why is that interesting?" she asked as she sat down across from him.
He looked at her, noting her subtle changes, hair a touch longer, face thinned out a bit. Her front teeth still slightly too large for the size of the others.
"It's been five days for me." He said.
Her eyes grew large. That was odd. She chewed her bottom lip as she thought about the time issue. Tom brought her back to the current situation.
"You are about to head back to school?" He asked.
"Yes, in three days." She pushed the worry aside and tried to enjoy her time here. She smiled. "I know it's not even been a week for you, but do you know any more about all of this?"
"I have a few theories but nothing concrete yet." He lied smoothly.
Her face fell slightly. "Well, its fine."
"Have you gotten you school supplies yet?" he asked changing the subject.
"Yes, we just returned. It was a trying day." She said.
"Why do you say that?" he asked.
"I was buying the books I needed and a few extra. As I was leaving I was accosted by a boy from school." She said, not really wanting to tell Tom what the Draco had said to her.
"What happened?"
She sighed. "He was just being a prat, he called me a few names and then I got away." She skimmed over it.
"If you're sure that's all." He said.
She nodded, grateful he didn't press the issue. They sat there, chatting about nothing of importance. She really liked talking to him. He didn't talk down to her because she was younger. He treated her like an adult.
She stood and thought that it was time to go and she woke on her bed. Her mum was still cooking dinner. She liked that she could spend time with him and still had time to do the things she needed here. She grabbed Hogwarts a History to see if she could find anything she might have missed about the chamber of secrets. She figured she could help Tom research here too.