A/N: Before everyone starts yelling and throwing things at the computer, please hear me out. I said this would be out in a week… it's been seven months. I couldn't write this you guys. I can't explain it. I thought I could do it, I had the chapter all planned out in my head, but I sat down at the computer and I just couldn't get anything out. Then I didn't want to write it because I kept getting so frustrated with it. I ignored it, thinking that I would get back to it soon enough, but then real life hit and this story zoomed down low on my priority list. I'm not going to go into detail, but a lot of bad stuff has happened these past seven months, and a lot of good stuff has happened too. I've never been this busy before and it drove me nuts for a while, but then I got used to it. I was doing things, actually getting out of the house, and I honestly didn't worry about this story for the longest time.

It was such a crappy thing for me to do. I neglected you all, and I feel awful. I never thought that anyone would actually care about this story. I can't apologize enough for not updating it.

I'm just going to slink away for now and let you guys get on with reading this chapter, if anyone still wants to read it.

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Below is an excerpt from a song that I thought described Tom and Hermione's relationship perfectly in this fanfic. I'm beginning this chapter with it because it describes, in a way, what has happened between them and what is about to happen.

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You touched my heart you touched my soul.

You changed my life and all my goals.

And love is blind and that I knew when,

My heart was blinded by you.

I've kissed your lips and held your hand.

Shared your dreams and shared your bed.

I know you well, I know your smell.

I've been addicted to you.

Goodbye my lover.

Goodbye my friend.

You have been the one.

You have been the one for me.

James Blunt "Goodbye My Lover"

Vauxhall Park Cemetery wasn't much to look at.

Fenced in and fairly secluded, the graveyard was small and bleak and weeded, so it seemed, only once every two weeks or so. The Weeping Willows stood tall while their branches hung low, grazing the tops of the graves that were beneath them. It was truly a depressing sight, that cemetery.

The poor souls who were laid to rest there rarely received any visitors, though many of them hadn't had any family when they had passed.

It was a sad final resting place for Muggles, but there was one who was different; one who had lain in her grave for over sixty years, alone and forgotten… until now.

……..

In the quiet of the graveyard the pops sounded like gunshots. A once empty space now held five people as they appeared out of thin air.

As soon as Harry Potter felt solid ground under his feet he slumped down, holding his head as though it were about to split in two.

"Harry!" Ginny shouted in panic. She managed to catch him before he fell completely but he was too heavy for her to hold.

Ron, who was still clutching the "Tergiversatio per Vicis", rushed forward with Tom and helped to pull Harry up and onto his knees. His body shook under their hands and the group exchanged worried glances.

"I'm ok." Harry whispered. "It's just… my head. He's trying to follow. I can feel it, I can…" Harry paused and his eyes seem glaze over. "I can hear him, in my head. He's whispering to me."

"What's he saying?" Hermione asked as she crouched down next to the others.

Harry looked up at her and as he stared into her eyes he felt hatred overcome him. This girl, she had caused it all. She was going to destroy him! He wouldn't let her!

Harry shook his head, trying to clear away these thoughts that weren't his. He felt so sick, so tired, but as he looked at his friends that were crouched down around him a calming feeling flowed through him. He was safe as long as he was with them. They were his family.

"Harry," Hermione asked again, "What's he saying?"

He stared at her. "He's coming." Harry said. He turned his head to look at Tom who looked both worried and resolute.

"Let him come." Tom said. "He won't be around for long."

The two boys stared at each other for a moment longer before Harry nodded.

"You don't have much time." He told him. Tom and Harry both glanced at Hermione.

"We'll get things ready." Ron said. "I can summon the Byzantium salt while Harry and Ginny read the spell. You two go on ahead."

Hermione and Tom looked at the others who all nodded their heads and smiled. Their hands reached out for each other's and they pulled themselves up. It was all so sudden and there was so much to say, but they didn't have time.

Time… such a frustrating thing. There was so little and so much of it, but right now there wasn't enough.

"I know where it is." Hermione whispered and she led Tom away as the others began to prepare.

Tom held her hand in a tight grip as he followed Hermione to a lone area a few feet away from where they had landed.

It was dark now, almost too dark to see, but Hermione knew where she was going. She stopped at the foot of a grave, one that was not adorned with a large grey stone, but with a small, black, weathered plaque.

No date of birth or death was etched into the marker, only a name in small letters that were beginning to fade away. Tom, however, could read them clearly.

Merope Riddle

His mother, whom he had never known. He didn't even know what she looked like, but that didn't matter to him. What mattered was that he was here, for the first time in his life, with the woman he had fallen in love with.

Everything had fallen into place for him at that moment and he realized he was about to lose so much but gain an impossible amount as well.

Hermione's hand held his as they both lowered themselves next to the grave marker. Behind them they could hear Ron talking excitedly to the others. He must have summoned the Byzantium salt then. They had to hurry.

"Hello mother." Tom whispered. "I know I've never come before, but I suppose I was too angry to look for you." His head lowered in shame. Hermione's breathing sounded a little erratic and he knew she was trying hard not to cry.

"I haven't… I wasn't a good person, before I came here. I didn't care about anything but myself because that was all I had. I hated and envied everyone because their lives seemed so much simpler then mine, but I was wrong about everything."

He squeezed Hermione's hand and stared at her, causing her to stare at him in turn. They looked into each other's eyes as Tom spoke again.

"I was brought here to learn, to change. I wasn't sure I wanted to at first, I didn't think I could, but I did because I found my soul mate."

Hermione bit her lip as tears welled in her eyes. She smiled sadly at Tom whose gaze hadn't faltered from her face.

"She gave me a choice, like no one else had ever done before. I could have chosen to turn away, but I couldn't, not with you here Hermione." He was no longer talking to just his mother. "I think I knew the second I saw you. You were so strange yet so familiar. You saved me Hermione, from the very first moment. I will never forget you. Never."

Hermione felt a tear slide down her cheek but she no longer cared. She was allowed that one tear at least for everything she was about to lose.

The graveyard seemed to darken more quickly then was natural. The air felt heavy around them even though the wind had picked up. Leaves stirred around the graves and the branches on the trees swayed above them.

It looked as though a storm was coming, but the couple knew better. This was the result of dark magic approaching. Voldemort was near.

They could hear Harry calling out to them.

"I'm sorry you two, but we have to hurry. He's close!"

Tom turned to look at the grave and he reached out to quickly trace the letters of his mother's name.

"I'll be back soon mother, I promise."

"Goodbye Mrs. Riddle." Hermione whispered. "I love your son very much, and I always will. I… I'll miss you both." More tears slid down her cheeks. Tom reached out for her and she moved forward into his arms.

They sat there, just holding each other.

"Hermione, Tom! Please, he's coming! Look at the sky!" Ginny yelled.

The couple still held one another as they looked up. Something was forming in the dark, swirling clouds. It was some kind of skull and it was taking shape at a rapid pace.

It was time to go.

The couple stood and rushed towards their three friends who seemed to have everything ready.

Ron had drawn a circle out of the hourglass sand and was waiting by Ginny and Harry who were both still on the ground. The large book was in Harry's hands, opened to the page that had been marked by Dumbledore. Ginny sat close beside him so she could see the spell and read it with him, just incase he got stuck on a word he couldn't pronounce.

Everything was prepared for Tom's return. It was all winding down quickly now.

Tom walked towards the circle and stepped inside. He turned to face Hermione who stood only a few inches away from him and their hands reached out simultaneously. Their fingers touched for just a moment but it was enough for Hermione to move forward into his arms.

Tom's mouth lowered to hers and the couple shared their last kiss. Such a calm, gentle kiss, but it was all they needed.

A crack that sounded like thunder ripped through the sky, startling the five teens and causing Hermione to pull away from Tom. The skull in the clouds now had a snake slithering from its mouth.

Hermione moved but stood as close as she dared to Tom. They both shared a nod, signaling the others that they were ready.

"We'll miss you Tom." Ginny said, sounding close to tears.

"We'll see you again mate." Ron said.

Tom didn't know what to say, but his warm smile was enough for the two redheads.

"Our paths were meant to cross Tom, one way or another." Harry told him. "I'm glad to have known you, my friend."

Tom wished he could have said something but words seemed to have failed him. Harry seemed to understand though.

The younger man smiled and asked, "Are you ready?"

Tom looked at Hermione and he held her steady gaze.

"Yes."

There was no time to waste.

Harry began the spell immediately, speaking as clearly as he could as Ginny whispered into his ear, saying the spell along with him just in case he stumbled on a word.

"Influit deus in angelos, angeli in corpora caelestia, caelestia in el ementa, el ementa in mixta…

Tom and Hermione stared at each other, neither looking away even as Ron let out a frightened shout. Harry and Ginny didn't falter either.

" Mixta in sensus…"

Someone was yelling. Their voice was piercing, their screams of anger hysterical. They bellowed out "AVADA KEDAVRA!" and the sound of a body hitting the ground echoed throughout the cemetery.

Ron was dead.

"Sensus in animum…"

"It'll be ok Hermione." Tom said softly.

"I know. I love you." Hermione said.

Tom smiled, and Voldemort's scream of fury didn't deter him as he said, "I love you too, my Hermione."

"AVADA KEDAVRA!"

A soft, feminine voice gave a surprised shout and then it was silenced. Ginny was dead. Voldemort must have intended to kill Harry, to stop the spell from being read, but he obviously missed.

Harry's voice only rang out louder then before. "Animus in animal! Viator, vado tergum!"

It was done.

Voldemort screamed again and the fury in that yell was enough to make even the bravest of men cower in terror, but it didn't matter. The spell was completed; there was nothing to fear anymore.

A strong wind kicked up around Tom and there was something tugging on him from all directions. It didn't hurt but it made him feel drowsy and lightheaded, like he was about to faint.

He broke eye contact for the first time with Hermione and looked past her. Ron lay dead on the ground. Ginny was dead as well but was cradled in Harry's lap as he lovingly stroked her beautiful red hair.

In his fury, Voldemort had bypassed Harry and was fast approaching Hermione. Tom stared at him, at the dilapidated monster who looked more like a creature then a human.

He would never become him. He'd kill himself before he'd let that happen. Everything would be alright. Ron was saved, Ginny was saved, Harry was saved, his Hermione was saved, and there was nothing to fear.

He looked at Hermione again though it was nearly impossible for him to see anymore. His vision was blurring and that feeling of dizziness was increasing, but he didn't care.

"Everything will be ok!" He shouted as loud as he could.

That last thing he saw, before everything went black, was his beloved Hermione smiling at him. Voldemort had closed in on her but she never looked away from Tom, not even as Voldemort's wand pressed into the back of her head.

"I know!" She yelled so he could hear. "I know!"

That intense pulling sensation increased. It was time, he realized… time itself, and it was trying to drag him back.

Tom gave into it and let it take him.

He closed his eyes and smiled, thinking of Hermione. She was safe now.

"Everything will be ok."

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He blinked.

The world around him had altered completely, all in the matter of a few seconds. The dizziness, the pulling, the darkness, the rapid wind… it was all gone.

His hands were shaking slightly as he looked around his surroundings, feeling calm and on edge at the same time. He was standing in Hogwarts, that much was certain, but what year was it? Had the spell been successful?

He couldn't be sure since Hogwarts never really changed over the years. Perhaps he wasn't back in his proper time?

"No." He said to himself, annoyed at the tremor in his voice. "It had to have worked."

He refused to believe that everything had been for nothing. Ron's death, Ginny's death, and Hermione's…

"No." He said again. They were safe now and none of that had happened. Voldemort never showed up because there was no Voldemort, not anymore. He would make sure of that.

None of his friends had died, none of it ever happened. It was erased from time, but not from his mind.

He thought of Hermione and his heart ached. Even if she was saved, they could never be together. He had found his soul mate and he had lost her just as quickly.

Tom's body shook and he slumped back against the wall. His lower back hit something blunt and he turned around in surprise. It was a door handle.

He knew this door well. It was a girls' lavatory and inside, unknown to everyone in the school but him, was the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets.

And… he gasped as the realization hit him. This was where he had appeared in Hermione's time! Granted he had been inside the bathroom when the spell had summoned him, but still. Perhaps this meant that he really was back in his proper era?

Hope filled him and he swallowed hard, needing more proof. He needed to know that Hermione was really ok.

That's when he heard a shout. Startled, he whipped around and stared down the corridor, searching for the cause of the noise.

"Oi!" Someone shouted again and Tom saw two figures fast approaching him. He recognized them immediately.

Husky Roderick Lestrange and lanky Alfred Avery were making their way towards him, both walking as quick as they could with matching wide grins lighting up their usually harsh faces.

Tom almost wept with happiness, but it had nothing to do with the two boys; as if he'd ever be happy to see those two anyways.

He was truly back. The appearance of his old "friends" proved it. He was in the 40s again where there was no Voldemort… and no Hermione. But she was safe now and that was all that mattered. Her life meant more to him then anything and if he couldn't be with her then at least he knew that she would be ok. She would live.

Tom moved away from the door and watched as his "friends" drew closer.

"We've just gotten back from Slughorn's office." Avery said once he and Lestrange had finally caught up to Tom. "We talked him into giving us another extension for our essay. The old man makes it too easy." Avery and Lestrange laughed but Tom remained silent.

These two boys were going to support him once school was out. They vowed to follow him anywhere.

Tom never wanted to be near them again. The farther away from his old life, the better. He had to cut ties with these people and he would gladly do so.

"You're lucky that you're brilliant Voldemort; you'd never have to bother with extensions, what with the brain you've got." Lestrange smiled and Avery nodded in agreement.

Tom felt as though someone had slapped him in the face. Voldemort… he would never be Voldemort. Never.

"Come on," Avery said, "Let's go see what Mulciber is up to. I'm sure he's…"

"Tom."

Avery stopped speaking abruptly and stared at Tom, wide eyed. Lestrange was looking equally troubled.

"W-what Vold…" Avery began hesitantly but he was cut off once again.

"Don't!" Tom said suddenly. Both boys stepped back from him. Even though he didn't sound angry, they were still afraid.

Tom breathed in slowly, forcing himself to stay calm. That name didn't mean anything to him anymore and it was going to disappear forever. He'd make sure of it.

"My name is Tom." He said calmly. Lestrange and Avery looked very confused but they didn't dare speak. "Do not say the name Voldemort ever again. Don't ask questions and forget you ever heard of it. Do you understand?"

Both boys nodded, looking more perplexed then ever.

"Good." Tom said quietly. He turned away from them and made his way down the corridor, never looking back once.

He would never look back again, at least not when it came to Lord Voldemort. Tom Marvolo Riddle was getting a second chance at life and he wasn't going to ruin it.

And when he and Hermione met again she would be proud of him. She wouldn't remember him of course, not as he would remember her, but somehow he knew that she would know.

They were soul mates after all and nothing would change that, not even time.

He would make her proud.

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A/N: Do you guys still hate me? Yes? (Cowers in shame) Well, this was the one chapter that I didn't want to write, that I had such a hard time finishing, and it feels so… blah. I wish I could have put off writing it even longer but I couldn't do that to you guys. I've already pissed off a lot of you, and I am very sorry. I'm not happy with it but this was my first chaptered story so it's supposed to be a challenge I guess. I've learned a lot while writing it and even though it drove me up the wall I'm going to miss cooking up ideas for it.

I hope I was able to give you guys a decent story. I tried my best, and I'm grateful to everyone who left me a review, even if it was a flame. You guys took the time to read this, and it means the world to me. I may have been a lousy updater but don't think for one second that I never appreciated any of you. I wanted to write a story just for fun, and I never thought anyone would read it, so thank you to everyone who has ever clicked on this stilly story and gave it a chance. Even if you hated it, thought it was clichéd, or poorly written, it means a lot that you even wanted to give it a quick looking over.

Thank you everyone, so much!

And there is an epilogue, so basically there's one more chapter left. I'm sure most of you are horrified, thinking that I'm going to take forever to get it out, but don't be. I know my word must be crap to you all so I wont say anything else on the matter. Just look out for it. (Smiles and hugs everyone, even if you guys are still mad.)

And just a quick note: the "spell" that Harry and Ginny were saying isn't a real spell. It's a passage from "De Magia Mathematica" written by a guy named Giordano Bruno in 1583. I just thought that it was a beautiful passage, and I had it translated into English, and even though it had nothing to do with a spell, I decided to use it anyways. Here is the English translation:

"To flow in God upon Angel, angel upon fleshly heavenly, heavenly upon first principle, first principle upon to mix, to mix upon feeling, feeling upon mind, courage upon breath."

And "Viator, vado tergum" is something I popped in there, to give the "spell" some kind of meaning. It means, "Traveler, go back."

I'm not very good at making up spells. (Rolls eyes at myself)