AUTHOR'S NOTE: I also posted a chapter earlier this week (Ch21) Check that one out first if you haven't already ;) A special thank you to SarahRipley for your lovely review, your kind words made my day and inspire me to keep writing :) Thank you, thank you! And now to the story...
"Very well then, Ms. Granger," said the woman in the blue cloak. "When Tom Riddle arrived at Hogwarts, Edevane set his sights on him. He took one look at him…a half-blood orphan, new to the magical world…and he thought he'd be vulnerable, easy to control. They were both extremely handsome, talented, and by the time they reached their fourth year at Hogwarts, they held a dangerous sway over some of the wealthiest students at the school."
She leaned over the pensieve and Hermione followed after her.
Moments later, they were standing on the Hogwarts grounds, next to the lake.
The woman in the blue cloak nodded to their left, where a group of boys were standing.
Hermione froze when her eyes landed on Edevane. She almost didn't recognize him.
He looked no older than fourteen, but he had the same twisted smile she remembered from the last memory.
Hermione took in every detail of his appearance.
His tie was undone, and he was wearing a thin, silver chain around his neck.
His hair was rumpled and shining brightly in the sunlight.
He laughed at something a friend said, but he stopped when Tom approached the group.
"Edevane was always fond of beautiful things," the woman in the blue cloak said. "He liked to collect them—rare objects, precious jewels, women…"
She paused.
"But also men."
She looked at Hermione. "Long before Narcissa Malfoy, there was Tom Riddle."
Hermione watched as Edevane threw his arm around Tom's neck.
Tom gave him a brief nod and turned to talk to the others, but Edevane let his eyes wander longer than they should have.
The woman in the blue cloak glanced at the two boys. "At first, the wealthy pure-bloods at Hogwarts kept Tom out of their circles. They thought he was beneath them, but Edevane changed that. He took his orphaned friend under his wing, and in time, Tom impressed everyone with his talents in dark magic."
The scene changed several times and Hermione followed the two boys as they walked around the castle. They turned heads everywhere they went, inspiring both envy and admiration from their peers.
The woman in the blue cloak steered Hermione towards a set of stairs.
"But the truth was, it was Tom who controlled Edevane. They threw clandestine parties and recruited students to take part in their twisted games. But it was more than just games to Tom. He was recruiting his first Death Eaters. He seduced them with promises of fame and glory. He set fire to their minds with new ideas…"
Hermione looked around. They were in an underground chamber.
Tom took a sip from a bottle of firewhisky.
He was sprawled on a couch with several other people. Many of them were asleep, exhausted from a long night of revelry.
There was a beautiful Ravenclaw girl at Tom's side. She was awake too. She placed a hand on his thigh, looking at him longingly.
He watched her, waiting…
She straddled him slowly and kissed him full on the mouth. His hands reached for her waist, pulling her closer.
Edevane stood by a fireplace at the far end of the room. He drank from a tall glass, his gaze fixed on Tom. He held onto the glass so tightly, Hermione feared it would break.
Tom locked eyes with Edevane, reveling in his friend's discomfort.
The girl kissed Tom's neck, then his chest, and eventually, she sank to her knees to unbutton his trousers.
Tom bit his lip, challenging Edevane to look away, but he didn't.
The woman in the blue cloak spoke again.
"Tom knew that his friend desired him, but he also knew that he'd never act on that desire. Appearances meant everything to Edevane's father. If he heard rumors that this son was involved with another boy, he'd lose his inheritance."
The scene dissolved and suddenly they were walking through Hogsmeade, watching students board the Hogwarts Express.
"Edevane invited Tom to his home every summer, but he always declined. He returned to Bellefaire Orphanage instead. Edevane didn't understand why Tom returned to a place he so deeply hated, so he had him followed…"
"And he found out about Catherine," Hermione guessed.
The woman in the blue cloak nodded. "He was mad with jealousy. He couldn't stand the fact that Tom preferred the company of a muggle girl to his." She looked at Hermione. "Edevane told Tom that he'd discovered his secret, but Tom warned him to keep quiet. Things got worse between them in their final year at Hogwarts. Over the holidays, Tom asked Edevane for a favor."
The scene changed again.
Tom was in Edevane's study. It looked like he had just arrived.
They both looked older now, maybe seventeen.
"What are you doing here?" asked Edevane.
"I need a loan," Tom said swiftly.
"A loan?" Edevane asked. "What for?"
"You know what for. There's only a few months of school left. I'll need something to live on until I'm hired at the ministry."
Edevane tried to keep his anger at bay. "You're off to live with her, aren't you?"
"It's none of your concern."
"She'll destroy you, Tom. You don't understand. You're risking everything we've worked for!"
"No one needs to know about her."
Edevane raised an eyebrow. "It was very easy for me to track her down. Our friends can do the same. What will happen when they learn you're consorting with a muggle?"
Tom stepped closer to him. "Is that a threat?"
"No, it's a fact," Edevane said smoothly. He sighed, and took on a more friendly tone. "There's plenty of other girls Tom, pure-bloods with well connected families, I can introduce you—"
"I don't want any of them," Tom snapped. Are you going to lend me the money or not?"
Edevane shook his head.
Tom made to walk past him but Edevane blocked him. He grabbed hold of his collar and suddenly their faces were inches apart.
"Believe me Riddle, I understand what it's like to want something you can't have." His voice shook, and he reached for Tom's face. "But you're making a mistake…"
Tom looked at him, disgusted. "You don't want me with Catherine...or any other girl..."
Edevane froze, feeling a wave of humiliation wash over him.
"You're pathetic," Tom hissed.
Edevane's face turned red, and his eyes narrowed. "You won't see a single galleon from me. You and your muggle whore can rot."
Tom shoved Edevane away.
Hermione watched him leave and she winced when he slammed the door behind him.
The scene faded away, and the woman in the blue cloak moved towards Hermione.
"Although things were broken between them, they had an unspoken accord at school. They didn't reveal their secrets in front of their friends.
"And then a month before their time at Hogwarts was over, Edevane learned about the prophecy. He had a vision afterwards. He saw what Tom Riddle would become."
Hermione stared at her, waiting for her to go on.
"The day he graduated Hogwarts, Edevane saw blood stains on Tom's clothes. He sensed something bad had happened, but Tom refused to speak to him. It wasn't until later that Edevane returned to Hogwarts. Suspicious, he spoke to Dippet and resurfaced his obliviated memories. From him, he learned Tom had murdered his muggle wife and son. He also decided to track down the midwife. And when he found her, he obtained the first memory I showed you."
Hermione pressed a hand to her temple, trying to keep track of all the details. "And he discovered who you were?"
The woman in the blue cloak nodded. "Much later, Tom rose to power, and Edevane was one of the first to join him. He begged for his forgiveness, and promised to stand by his side. Years passed and Edevane remained faithful—until Voldemort started killing all those who'd formed part of his inner circle at school. They knew too much of his days at Hogwarts, and he didn't rely on them anymore. He had new Death Eaters, younger ones that showed him the proper fear and respect—people like Regulus and Bellatrix Black, Rodolphus Lestrange and Helen and Mason Mackay.
"Edevane suspected Voldemort would kill him next. And so he threatened to destroy him—to tell everyone that he had married a muggle and fathered a child with her—it would crumble his credibility and his cause just when he was reaching the peak of his power."
"Was Edevane still in love with him?" Hermione asked.
The woman in the blue cloak shook her head.
"Edevane was repulsed by him. Tom had undergone so many magical transformations by this point, that he no longer looked like the boy he was at Hogwarts. And Edevane had a new obsession—sixteen-year-old Narcissa Black. He was desperate to have her. He wanted to feel young again, and he refused to let Voldemort kill him. His knowledge of my mother is the only reason Voldemort has let him live all these years."
Hermione looked around. They were now standing in a dimly lit room. The only light came from a fireplace crackling in the corner.
"I know about your dead son," said a voice.
Hermione turned to her left. Edevane was standing beside Voldemort. They looked almost forty now.
Voldemort froze, his face unreadable in the dim light.
Edevane moved closer to him. "You married your muggle whore, didn't you, Tom?"
When Voldemort spoke, his voice was low, deadly. "My past is none of your concern…"
Edevane looked at him, unfazed. "In return for my silence, I only want to remain at your side—your right hand in all things. But I require your help, with Lucius Malfoy."
Voldemort suddenly laughed. "You want him dead? Even with Lucius out of the way Narcissa would never look at you. To her, you're nothing more than an old man."
"I don't care," Edevane hissed.
Voldemort smirked. "I see nothing has changed. You desire what is just out of reach."
Edevane looked at him steadily. "But I can have what I want. Can't I Tom?"
Suddenly, Voldemort lunged forward and his hands closed around Edevane's neck.
"If you want Narcissa Black, take her. If Lucius crosses your path, strike him down, I will not stop you. As for your life—I never intended to take it—at least not while you continue to serve my cause. But never speak of my son again." He flicked his wand and suddenly Edevane was hanging upside down.
Voldemort levitated him closer to the fireplace.
"What are you doing?!" Edvane shrieked.
"You've always had too much spirit, too much fire in you Edevane, perhaps I should let it consume you."
"Stop!" he shouted. "If you kill me, a faithful servant will reveal the truth in my place. You cannot silence me, not even in death."
"ENOUGH!" Voldemort roared.
He lowered Edevane into the fire and relished the screams that tore from his throat as the flames scorched his back.
"Perhaps your child bride will nurse you back to health! Little Narcissa will have her hands full!"
Voldemort's laughter was still ringing in Hermione's ears as the scene vanished and they returned to the orphanage.
The woman in the blue cloak turned to Hermione. "You know what happened next. Edevane was unsuccessful. Lucius married Narcissa Black." She paced the room. "But Voldemort did keep his promise. He let Edevane live."
"And Edevane never told him about you?" Hermione asked.
The woman in the blue cloak nodded. "As far as Tom knows, he only ever had a son." She sighed. "Edevane stood by him so that one day he could destroy him. And now, that day has come."
"Does Edevane want to take Voldemort's place?" Hermione asked.
The woman in the blue cloak shook her head. "He wants to keep the order of things as they've always been—nothing more, nothing less, but of course…he can be tempted…who is to say what he will do after Voldemort is gone?"
"Are you loyal to him?" Hermione asked.
The woman in the blue cloak laughed.
"I am loyal only to myself. And there are things I haven't told Edevane…like what is hidden in Renwick Abbey."
Hermione's breath caught.
The woman in the blue cloak stepped closer to her.
"Would you like to see a final memory, Ms. Granger?"
Hermione felt the cold night air on her face, and the first drops of rain.
She tilted her face up, letting the beads of water roll down her cheek.
There was something different about this memory.
For one thing she was alone, and for another, she was several inches taller. She looked down at her hands. They were slightly worn.
The ruins of Renwick Abbey stood before her. The imposing structure had beautiful arches, fortified walls and massive, supporting columns.
Behind the abbey, the forest was wild with tangled thickets and dense foliage that threatened to consume the place and swallow its secrets whole.
Hermione opened the gate in front of her.
She walked through a cloister, past colonnades until she reached a nave. She looked up at glass-stained windows, but a chill ran down her spine when she heard the soft whisper of voices.
Hermione followed the sounds, walking through the abbey until she reached a courtyard.
She looked at the ground.
There was a symbol engraved on the stones, a rune of some sort.
Hermione knelt down to touch the symbol, but as soon as she did, she heard the voices again.
They wanted her to do something…
She lay flat on her stomach and traced the symbol with her hand.
She whispered something in a strange language, making low, hissing sounds.
Parseltongue, she realized.
The ground beneath her broke open and she screamed as she fell several feet, disappearing in a cloud of dust.
Hermione landed with a crash, and she covered her head with her hands as bits of rubble fell all around her.
She was in some sort of tunnel.
There was no room to stand, and she had to crawl forward.
Hermione's hands were soon covered in dirt and grime, and she winced when her knee hit something. She reached out to touch it.
Fear paralyzed her.
It was a body.
Hermione felt a pair of shoulders, covered in a thin cloth…the person's back was to her, and showed no signs of life.
Something small and spidery brushed against Hermione's wrist, and she recoiled, withdrawing her hands.
She froze when she spotted something to her left.
It looked like a small bundle wrapped in a shredded blanket.
Hermione lifted her wand.
"Lumos!" she shouted, and the wand light illuminated the ground.
With shaking hands Hermione turned over the body and the bundle next to it.
Her mouth tore open in a silent cry.
They were skeletons—the skeletons of a woman and an infant child.
The woman's clothes had turned black, and there was a chain of spiders crawling into her mouth.
Hermione's throat tightened…she couldn't breathe…
Catherine and Henry. Tom had buried them here…
Hermione backed away, returning to the spot where she'd fallen. She clawed at the dirt, trying to climb back up, but when she tried to gain a foothold, she slipped.
She felt an overwhelming terror as she hit the ground, knowing that she wouldn't be able to get out. Her fingers and toes went numb with shock…
And then she saw it.
There was something wedged inside Catherine's skull. It looked like a piece of parchment…there were symbols written on it…
Hermione swallowed, dreading what she had to do.
She crawled back to Catherine's side, and extended a trembling hand.
But just as her fingertips touched the parchment, everything started to spin.
She screamed as she was yanked up, swallowed by a howling wind…
Hermione landed with a crash on the orphanage floor.
She had forgotten how to move, how to think…
"It is a map, Ms. Granger," said the woman in the blue cloak. "A map buried with the bones of my mother and my brother."
"A map?" Hermione choked, crawling away from her. "A map to what?"
"A vault, buried deep below this city. It originally belonged to Salazar Slytherin. Tom found it hidden within Hogwarts. Many years later he hid it again, in Renwick Abbey."
Hermione reached forward, trying to grab hold of the desk in front of her. "That was your memory, wasn't it?" she panted. "I saw everything through your eyes."
The woman in the blue cloak nodded. "Yes, Ms. Granger. That was the night I found the remains of my mother and my brother."
Hermione stood to face her.
"You must calm yourself and listen," the woman in the blue cloak said. "While the battle rages above ground, Voldemort will force his way inside the vault. We must kill him before the Death Eaters realize he is in danger. But what is inside, Ms. Granger, is not of this earth. The vault contains ancient magic, dark magic, that Voldemort wishes to possess."
"The symbols on the map…" Hermione started. "They're the same ones the midwife saw on Catherine's arm."
The woman in the blue cloak nodded. "Voldemort branded her with them. He wanted a living map, a human map that could never be lost. He feared other wizards might try to steal Salazar's map."
Bile rose in Hermione's throat.
Her mind was reeling with everything she'd learned, and yet, one thing remained a mystery.
"Why won't you show me your face?" Hermione asked. "You've told me everything except your name."
The woman in the blue cloak stepped forward and seized the pocket of Hermione's jumper. She took hold of something.
Hermione froze. She'd forgotten she was carrying the Founder's Book.
"I made sure you found this, Ms. Granger. I locked Draco Malfoy in the Founder's Chambers, knowing you'd go after him. I saw your heart and where it lay, and there, you found this book."
Hermione inhaled sharply.
Those days at Hogwarts felt like so long ago, almost like another life…
"Do you remember me now, Ms. Granger?"
Suddenly, a fog lifted from Hermione's memory, and a name fell from her lips.
"Romena Wright?"
The woman in the blue cloak smiled.
Hermione's mouth fell open. She had never seen Romena Wright up close…the first time she'd laid eyes on her was at the start of the year at Hogsmeade. Romena had introduced herself to everyone as Head of the Hogwarts Guard. After that, Hermione occasionally glimpsed her in the halls, but only from afar. And then there was that time in the hospital wing when Draco was injured. Romena had argued with Dumbledore...
But she'd been so distracted then. She hadn't looked at her properly…
Hermione stepped back, suddenly remembering something. "You tortured Draco. Why?"
She shrugged. "It was cruel, I know, but a necessity. He had information I needed. And I hoped you'd remember me, Ms. Granger, each time you looked at the lashings on his back—each time you lovingly traced them, wishing they would disappear. I left them there for you to trace—for you to remember."
Hermione felt a surge of fury.
"I have told you, Ms. Granger, that I am capable of both light and dark…that day I chose poorly. I am sorry for it."
Hermione nodded stiffly.
"Did Dumbledore know the truth?" she asked. "Did he know who you were?"
She remembered Romena standing at McGonagall's side when Dumbledore died. All that time, she had been so close…
"I never told him who I was, but yes, I suspect he knew." She circled her. "I'm afraid there's more, Ms. Granger. Romena Wright is merely a part I played, an uptight ministry official I impersonated using polyjuice potion. The real Romena Wright is in Hungary. I confunded her and usurped her place to get into Hogwarts. You've never seen my real face before."
The woman in the blue cloak removed her hood and lifted her wand. "Lumos."
The light illuminated her features.
Hermione gasped. She had bright blue eyes and rich dark hair, just like her mother.
But she also had Tom's height, his high cheekbones, and his pale skin. Her hands were also like his, with long fingers that wrapped elegantly around her wand. Hermione saw that a few wrinkles lined her face, showing her age, but she was still as stunning as her parents.
"Many nights I looked into the mirror not seeing beauty as you do, Ms. Granger, but the product of a twisted union. I hated my reflection and my origin. It was many years before I accepted who I was."
"And your name?" Hermione asked.
"Nerina," she said, softly.
Hermione looked at her intently.
"Edevane named me after the witch from the old children's fable. Nerina was a beautiful woman who transfigured herself into a swan to disguise herself from her enemies. Her family was at war with the wizards of a neighboring land. She would fly through the forest that surrounded her home, in search of their hideouts…
"Eventually, the war came to an end, but she continued to take flight every night as a swan, missing the liberty it gave her. But as the years passed, she found she was neither happy in her human or animal form. She loved both too dearly.
Hermione nodded, vaguely remembering the story from a book she'd read in her first year at Hogwarts.
"Her dissatisfaction led her to transfigure herself so often, that one day she could no longer return to her human form. She accepted her fate as a swan. But when she spread her wings, she found she could not fly. She was trapped in the forest that surrounded her home, cursed to remain inside it forever."
Nerina breathed in deeply. "As a child, I thought Edevane called me his 'little swan' as a term of endearment, but now I realize he was calling me his prisoner, his beautiful bird without wings."
Hermione looked at her sadly. She was silent for a moment, then she said, "It was you at Inverness too. You stopped Voldemort's curse when he tried to drain the Alliance of magic."
Nerina smiled at her. "Yes, and now I have found you at last, just as the prophecy foretold."
Hermione remembered the prophecy's words—the only way Voldemort could fail, was if flesh of his flesh betrayed him…
A child born to right the wrongs of the father. In time, this child would seek the help of the greatest witch of the age, and together, they would destroy him.
Hermione struggled to breathe."But why do you need me?"
Nerina looked at her bitterly. "I've learned all my father's secrets, but I cannot kill him myself. You see, Salazar pulls the strings even in death."
Hermione frowned. "What do you mean?"
"No one with Tom's blood can fatally wound him. I can plot and plan against him, gather the tools to destroy him, but I cannot strike him dead." She stopped, seeing that Hermione didn't understand. "You see, my father had to swear an oath to possess Salazar's secrets. In that oath, he promised to protect Salazar's bloodline. Years later, I too made the same oath. Tom hid Salazar's old diaries abroad. I discovered them, and only by swearing the oath, could I read them."
She looked regretfully at her wand. "Salazar's magic is too powerful to break. I have tried several times, but to no avail." She sighed. "After his own brother, Sebastián, betrayed him, Salazar trusted no one. He didn't want his heir to suffer the same fate."
She looked at Hermione. "There's one more thing you must know. Before he died, Salazar created a counter-curse to the prophecy. In the curse, he vowed the following: 'If the Greatest Witch of the Age is to defeat my heir, then let her be a woman, a muggleborn, a girl younger than seventeen…and let those who love her meet a tragic end."
Hermione's blood ran cold.
It had all come to pass.
Harry was likely dead, and Ron's life would never be the same, not after Greyback had attacked him. Bill had also told her what had happened at Greymoor. Ron had no recollection of the night he'd transformed—he had lost all awareness by the time Bellatrix had locked Fred in his cell. But he'd seen his brother's lifeless body in the morning, and he knew what he'd done. Hermione knew he would never forgive himself for it. And now Draco—she didn't know where Draco was…
Nerina looked at her carefully.
"Salazar named someone he thought would be the weak—someone his heir could easily destroy." She took a breath. "But he underestimated you, Ms. Granger. You have the power to end this war. You've figured out something I never could. I observed you at Hogwarts. You devoted much of your time to the study of ancient runes—I suspect you've dedicated years to learning some of the rarest symbols of our world."
Hermione stood stock still. She couldn't mean…
"Unlike me, you've figured out what the symbols on the map mean, haven't you? At this moment, you are the only person in the world—the only person other than Voldemort—who knows the entrance to the darkest place on earth—the place where dark magic began."
Hermione swallowed. The symbols she'd seen branded on Catherine's arm, the ones on the map—they all pointed to the same place, but it was impossible.
"The entrance is a myth," Hermione said firmly. "It doesn't exist. There's no such thing."
Nerina looked at her appraisingly. "Then why did you spend all those years tucked away in the library, going to the restricted section, researching forgotten symbols and their meanings…"
Hermione recoiled. Had she found a way to spy on her all these years, hiding in the shadows of Hogwarts? Perhaps in disguise or in plain sight?
"I never believed the mythical vault was a real place," Hermione whispered. "But I thought that Voldemort might search for it. I thought Harry might have to find him there one day—to fight him or stop him, I don't know. But it turns out I was wrong. I'm the one who has to fight, I'm the one who has to end this."
"You must tell me where the entrance to the vault is," Nerina said. "We must go there. It is the only way we can stop Voldemort, I beg you…"
Hermione swallowed, hardly daring to believe any of this was real.
"The entrance is under an ancient church overlooking the Thames," she said. "There are catacombs below it. According to legend, there are a thousand coffins and only one hides a passage—a passage that leads to a series of tunnels. We have to choose the right one, or we'll be trapped."
"We must go there," Nerina said. "As soon as Voldemort attacks the city."
Hermione nodded, but she was certain they'd find nothing more than earth and stone when they arrived at the bottom of the vault.
She looked down at her empty hands, wondering how she'd fight.
"I don't have a wand," she said. "I—"
Nerina removed her cloak. "You don't need one."
Hanging around her waist was a sword.
Hermione gasped. It was silver and inset with rubies just above the hilt.
Gryffindor's sword.
"You'll have the Founder's strength with you. The rubies carry their blood and yours…"
Hermione remembered placing her hand on a wall in the Founder's Chambers…something had pricked her, and only then was she granted entrance.
Nerina reached into her robes and extended her hand to Hermione. "You will also have this."
She held a thin, silvery cloth. It was strange to the touch, like water woven into material.
"Harry's invisibility cloak," Hermione gasped. "How did you get it?"
"I found it outside of Renwick Abbey, the night you were captured by Bellatrix. It was the same night I found the map."
"You were following us?" Hermione asked.
Nerina nodded. "I hoped to speak to you then, but I arrived too late."
"Harry—he must have known about the map," Hermione said slowly. "That's why he asked me to go to Renwick Abbey…"
Her words faltered and a knot rose in her throat.
Nerina placed a hand on Hermione's shoulder. "I watched Harry in his final moments, Ms. Granger. He met his death bravely."
Hermione gasped. "You were there?"
She nodded.
"Then—then he is dead?"
"I can't say for certain. When I left, his body was still on shore. But whatever the truth is, Ms. Granger, you will survive it. You are brave, and you will need to be braver for what you are about to face."
Hermione swallowed. There was one more question she had to ask.
Nerina observed her carefully, sensing her curiosity was not satisfied.
"What is it?" she asked.
"Tom Riddle is your father," Hermione said simply. "Your blood. Are you prepared to play a hand in his death?"
Nerina smiled sadly. "It is what I was born to do, Ms. Granger."
She was silent for a few moments, then she stepped closer to Hermione.
"You know better than anyone, Ms. Granger, that blood is simply that—blood. Your muggle parentage has not stopped you from excelling in the magical world. And although I carry Tom Riddle's blood in my veins, I am not like him. I am not a monster. And playing a hand in his death will not make me one. It took me years to accept that, but I believe it's the truth."
Hermione heard the pain in her voice. All Nerina had done—she didn't know if it was right or wrong or a little of both.
"Will you join me?" Nerina asked. "The daughter of a muggle and a madman? A ghost, a shadow...a secret weapon, in a secret war?"
Hermione looked into her eyes and it was like she was staring at Catherine.
It was almost like she was in the room too, pleading with her…
"Yes," Hermione said, clutching tightly to Gryffindor's sword. "I will."
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Thanks for reading! Hope you take a sec to review :) (There's 3-4 chapters to go, can't wait to share them with you!)