I write my story first in my native language. Yesterday, when I published the chapter, I made a mistake and published the Polish version. I'm sorry.

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Chapter 4

He felt a smile on his face. And he wasn't ashamed of it, unlike his grandson, who looked out of the corner of his eye at the girl who was lying on the blanket with a growing blush on his cheeks. It was a surreal experience for him. Abraxas was pretty sure it wasn't just for him. He could bet that only Hermione saw his appearance as something completely normal.

He hadn't realized until now that he missed her so much. For him, it had only been a week since the day she disappeared before their eyes without warning. The week he spent trying to see her again. Not only he want to see her, but only the bond between them could withstand the manipulation of time and lead him to the right moment.

He wondered if she missed him. She seemed older than when he had last seen her in the Slytherin Common Room. He sighed before asking her the question that had been bothering him ever since he realized that almost no one knew about her love of flying. "Why aren't you on the Gryffindor team?"

He noticed that both Draco and young Nott turned to them to better hear Hermione's answer. He wasn't surprised by them. Reportedly one of the best chasers he had on the team, was known for her aversion to anything related to flying.

"Brax…" - A smile appeared on the brunette's face, so similar to his own - "I didn't get tired in matches against griffins to play in their favor now. After all, who would I work with there? There's no one else like you, Malfoy."

"Are you angry with me? What have I done, sunshine?"

"You already know what..." - she snapped - "Don't provoke me, love."

After a while, he heard a not-so-subtle whisper. - "To me, it's just a ferret and for my grandfather is love?

He couldn't stop himself. He laughed. If only you'd seen me lick chocolate off her wrist at the Yule feast before I knew what I was doing...

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Severus Snape with apparent calm entered the Defense Against the Dark Arts room. After last year's battle, the curse on this position was lifted, and therefore he had the honour of working another year in this position. As if it wasn't enough for him to deal with his last year students in Potions class. Luckily only a year. He dreamed of bein in a potions lab. In a laboratory where there would be neither incompetent students nor exploding cauldrons. In a laboratory where only he and his experiments would be. Or possibly his life partner. However, before that happens, he will have to deal with the presence of Miss Granger and Mr. Abraxas Malfoy in the Slytherin house. If it were up to him, he would lock up Lucius's father until the problem of his presence was resolved.

Abraxas Malfoy shouldn't be given any information that could destroy the current timeline. But what could he possibly know?

"Bloody Dumbledore." - He growled and started getting ready for class.

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He couldn't help but feel like he'd seen this before somewhere. The sight of Hermione Granger laughing freely with Abraxas Malfoy brought back a memory he couldn't quite place in time. It was almost like deja vu.

"Theo, is something wrong?" - The Gryffindor's voice immediately became very gentle. - "You're so taciturn. Usually it's hard to keep silence in your presence." - He felt a blush appear on his face. Hermione was able to make him blush all too easily.

"Nothing special." - he answered the question, trying to ignore the intensity of his angry friend's gaze - "I just have the impression that I've already seen you both..." - he pointed to Abraxas and his new found friend - "...in a similar situation."

"If you've ever looked at your grandfather's photo albums from when he went to Hogwarts, it's more than likely. Hermione spent most of her time either on the pitch with us or in the library or…"

Theo burst out laughing, because at this point Hermione, looking quite embarrassed, covered the wizard's mouth with her hand. After a moment's struggle, she let go Mr. Malfoy, and he quickly took her face in his hands and placed a kiss on her forehead.

For a moment Nott felt like a voyeur.

Hermione quickly got up and walked away for a moment, saying that she had to go get her broom. Theo suspected she just needed a moment to herself. He knew her too well to believe there was no broom in her bottomless bag.

As soon as she was out of earshot, Draco's grandfather hissed at him, "Why are you ignoring her? Must you treat me like this? She is my friend and she deserves respect. I can see that you have feelings for her, and believe me, those feelings are reciprocated. But I won't let you treat her like a trash. I hope she finally stops sighing at you. Seven years of infatuation with a complete jerk is way too long."

"Seven years of infatuation?" - Theo noticed that Draco's voice was starting to tremble - "How do you know that Grandfather?"

"By Salazar, you're a bigger idiot than I thought. Only a blind man wouldn't notice those puppy eyes of hers when she looks at you. Anyway, she told Tom that she loved you a few days after he saved her and asked why… Shit, never mind." - The man's jaw clenched.

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The man paced the room, not knowing if he would receive another letter. Again and again he looked out the window. He was looking for the characteristic owl that belonged to his friend. Hermione had been writting him every day since she had returned to her time. Her first letter surprised him because she had never really told them her date of birth. Each subsequent one was like water in the desert. He missed her. More than he thought he would miss.

It was through their correspondence that she realized that he wasn't what most of the British wizarding community took him to be. Who did Albus Dumbledore take him to be... Because of this wizard, he couldn't return to his homeland for fear of being arrested. At the age of twenty and having been refused a position as Professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts, he amassed his savings and left for Egypt. He enrolled in studies in the Dark Arts of the ancient Egyptians, Romans and Greeks. He hasn't set foot in the UK since the day he left.

"You are..." - he smiled at the sight of the gray owl that flew in through the open window and gracefully sat down on his desk. - "Esmeralda, you are beautiful. As always."

The domineering owl wasn't afraid of him. He suspected she might even like him. It was his gift to Hermione for her eighteenth birthday.

He stroked her, gave her the snack he had prepared earlier and patiently waited for the moment when the owl decided to give him the envelope. - "Wait. I will write an answer."

Tom broke the seal, pulled out the parchment, and laughed maniacally as he read the letter. Brax is with her. They did it.

"Albus, Albus… Get ready for changes. Time to go home. It is also time for wizards to understand what ritual magic and blood magic really are. You kept that power to yourself. How long will it be before the British community finds out what you've done?"

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She was surprised when, after returning to the picnic, she noticed that there was a palpable tension between the three boys. She didn't like it because that wasn't how she had planned to spend the day. She had enough misunderstandings on a daily basis when trying to get along with both Ron and Harry despite her past with their ancestors. - "What happened here?" - She growled more than she intended.

She saw how surprised they were at her sudden appearance. It was clear that something must have happened.

Draco Malfoy fidgeted where he was sitting for a moment before deciding to answer her question. Should have left it to him. He showed courage. - "My grandfather said you've been pining for me for seven years."

All the tension left her body. She laughed, then slapped Abraxas on the shoulder. She knew there was nothing to be ashamed of. Feelings aren't always rational. - "Is there anything strange about that? You had a wonderful smile when I first saw you. But I knew there was no way you would reciprocate my feelings. I may have fallen in love with a mini Malfoy too quickly, but I'm not stupid enough to live with illusions."

After a moment of awkward silence, she looked at the stunned boys and asked - "I don't know about you, but I'm going to fly."

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Tom Riddle wondered how he was going to prove that he wasn't behind Volemort's crimes. His only chance was to gather opinions from his previous employers. Proof of graduation. Transcripts from hospitals, mostly Muggle hospitals, would be useful too.

That's how he founded the Knights of Walpurgis, but he had nothing to do with the organization that plagued magical Britain for two decades. Death Eaters. How could anyone who knew him believe that he would willingly shed magical blood? How could anyone who knew him believe that he would deprive innocent children of their parents? He would never condemn anyone to the fate that befell him. He wouldn't put anyone in an orphanage.

"How are you?" - His co-worker's voice snapped him out of his thoughts.

Tom looked at her and smiled. He felt she liked him. Because these two broken soul fragments, he hadn't aged normally. On the one hand, it was a pretty effective side effect of that dark spell. On the other hand... He had to be constantly on the run. Muggles have plastic surgery, but even with it, it was impossible to maintain his appearance for so many years.

"Marianne, I'm tired. I wonder how you can prove to someone that you aren't a camel." - He nodded and got up to leave the office.

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The next chapter is behind us. Was Tom Riddle working with Muggles a surprise? After all, someone took advantage of his personal data and face. In a magical world, he would have little chance of finding a job and a good chance of getting arrested ;). Regards, Katie Krum