A/N: I finally got the chance to sit down and devote some time to this story, I didn't move until I was finished with a chapter. I pulled an all-nighter and am beyond exhausted, but I couldn't wait to get this chapter out to you guys! I checked my story's views and I was shocked to see that I had 42 reviews and over 10,000 reads! All I can say is thank you guys so so so much for the support and for sticking around! I hope to set aside some time and get the next chapter out there as soon as I can! Until then, I hope you all have a wonderful Valentine's Day this Tuesday!

Much Love!

-VS

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, the characters, locations, or cleverness. It all belongs to the wonderful J.K. Rowling and Warner Bros. Studios.

Hermione's day had gone better than anticipated. Her first two classes—Transfiguration and Charms—went exceedingly well. Having both classes with a mixture of Ravenclaws and Gryffindors put her at ease. She had yet to spot Riddle, which for her, was a sigh of relief. The curriculum taught in both didn't differ much from what she was formerly expected to learn that year. Her advanced knowledge on the subjects did well to impress her professors, but Hermione remained modest as Aviela congratulated her on doing so well on her first day.

"Come on, Hermione! That refreshment quiz was difficult; a perfect on your first try of casting a silencing spell? It took Christopher a whole twelve minutes to silence Professor Arlington and not himself!" Aviela trailed after Hermione with her books held down at her side. "You don't need to act so modest. I mean, Abraxas certainly doesn't," Aviela said as she nodded toward the young Malfoy chatting up a group of Hufflepuff girls and casting a spell that caused velvety rose petals to fall out of his wand.

"What a chauvinist," Aviela said more to herself.

Hermione giggled slightly at the scene of seeing a Malfoy actually being a successful charmer—in more ways than one. Abraxas Malfoy certainly held the pureblood-expected grace and prestige that Draco had not.

"Either way, you wouldn't want me to turn out like that would you?" Hermione stated with laughter.

"Like what? An attractive, blond-haired fellow who's in line to inherit his family's fortune? Of course not," Aviela smirked. Hermione tried to keep a serious face, but it fell to pieces as laughter took its place.

"Well now, it's not every day you see two smiles brighter than the sun." Hermione and Aviela looked across from them and saw the young Malfoy toying with his wand and smirking in their direction.

"Oh, sod off, Malfoy. How many times have you used that line today?" Aviela said lightly, her hands resting on her hips in authority and an eyebrow raised in false interest.

"Enough to have caught your attention, eh?" Abraxas said smugly as Aviela scoffed and rolled her eyes. Abraxas then turned to Hermione, politely extending a hand, "Forgive my rudeness, miss. I am Abraxas Malfoy. I don't believe we have met."

Hermione stood in suspicion for a moment before cautiously grasping his hand.

"Yes—I mean no, we haven't. I am Hermione Sivad." Hermione fumbled over her words slightly—it wasn't every day you shake hands and make niceties with your rival's ancestors. True to the Malfoy nature, Abraxas took her bafflement as a sign of his charm going into effect.

"Well then, Hermione Sivad, it is very nice to meet you." Abraxas raised her hand to his mouth, kissing it gently. Hermione felt the back of her neck burn with slight embarrassed, but successfully kept a blush from creeping to her cheeks. "I look forward to getting acquainted this year," Abraxas smiled slyly as he conjured a red rose and presented it to her.

Hermione could not fight back the blush anymore as it tinted her cheeks to match the color of the flower. The small scene had attracted the eyes of numerous girls from various houses, causing them to send Hermione glares of sudden distaste.

Hermione gulped and quickly snatched the rose as Abraxas nodded and continued about his merry way. Awkwardly holding the rose, Hermione shoved it into Aviela's hand—feeling mortified. Aviela toyed with it momentarily before tossing it over her shoulder and shrugging.

"See? Chauvinist. Told you," she said simply before they continued their trek down the corridor.

Hermione parted from Aviela, making her way to the dungeons where she would have potions with Professor Horace Slughorn. She found it amusingly ironic that in her era as a 6th year, she was due to have him, and in this alternate time, she was scheduled to have him once again.

She readjusted her book bag before walking in and taking a seat at an empty table amongst the others. She pulled out her second-hand potions supplies that Hogwarts had given to her due to her lack of supplies. She arranged her book, parchment, and quill with inkwell neatly on the old wooden desk—occasionally straightening them to perfection every few moments. Class had yet to start, so Hermione observed the throng of students around her.

The class was made up of Ravenclaws and Slytherins. Some students were chatting about, some were rifling through book bags, and others appeared to be trying to stay awake after a long night of celebrating their first week's return to Hogwarts. Among a group of Slytherins sat a boy who looked vaguely familiar to Sirius Black; he sat aloof, his wand twirling in one hand, the other behind his head, and his feet propped carelessly upon the desk. Clearly a descendant of the Black family. If his looks had not given it away, his actions surely would've.

Before Hermione could ponder further on the subject, Professor Horace Slughorn bustled in with a potions book in one hand and a rather hefty looking travel bag in the other. He was a lot rounder than Hermione had expected. He appeared to be balding—despite his lack of age—and had a walrus-like mustache sitting prominently on his face.

"Good morning, class. Sorry I am late, I ran into a bit of a delay chatting with an old colleague of mine via floo powder. It's quite preposterous how time seems to fly nowadays isn't it?" Professor Slughorn laughed heartily to himself as he rummaged through his leather workbag. The students removed themselves from their huddled groups and took place at tables about the room. Professor Slughorn turned around to face the class.

"Ah, nearly full classes this semester, a nice change to the few who decide to bypass Potions as they grow older." Professor Slughorn waddled throughout the room to a storage cabinet located in the far right corner. As Slughorn searched the cabinet's storage, he spoke to the class.

"I know most classes today are still reviewing material from your previous year, but that can get quite mundane, so to spice things up, I shall introduce you all to the components of a newly created potion," He said as he pulled out various roots, bottled salves, and containers holding finely ground unicorn horns. Although nearly dropping a glass flask—causing the class to flinch at the almost-shattering—Slughorn sat the materials down on his desk and spread them out so the class could clearly see them.

"These components, when brewed together properly, create—"Before Professor Slughorn could finish his finish his explanation, the heavy wooden door to the class creaked as it was pushed open and shut once more. Catching the attention of Slughorn and the students, they all simultaneously turned their heads toward the entrance of the room.

Tom Riddle entered the classroom with a heavily worn, tan book bag slung over his shoulder—his face a mask of indifference.

"Ah, Tommy, my boy, I began to fear you had decided to disregard Potions this year," Slughorn said through squinted eyes as he recognized one of his most-prized students.

"I'm sorry I am late, Professor. I was up in the library doing research on various theories of displacement charms. I suppose the time slipped away from me before I chanced upon the reading material I was looking for," Riddle said expertly as he stood in front of Slughorn and shook his hand in greeting.

"It's quite alright, Tom, I hope you found what you needed for your research—that library can be such a labyrinth, you know," Slughorn chuckled as he pardoned Riddle of any possible room for punishment. "Just take a seat, and we'll begin."

"Thank you, sir." Riddle inclined his head in respect and turned, scouting the classroom for available seating. His preferred place—in the back with the other Slytherins of whom he was more than well acquainted with—was completely occupied. He seemed to almost shoot a slightly heated look from his eyes toward the Black descendant who, in turn, recoiled slightly under the quick gaze. Riddle's face, however, remained indifferent as he turned and place his bag atop the other side of the desk unoccupied by Hermione's belongings.

Feeling bile jump slightly up her throat from the sudden unexpected closeness, Hermione scooted her chair and belongings over to distance herself as far away as possible from Riddle as possible. Riddle, upon taking a seat, began retrieving his things from his bag as Slughorn continued.

"As I was saying, these components, when brewed together properly, create a potion based upon Amortentia—the world's most powerful love potion—but it lacks the same effects. Instead, the potion shows the strength of compatibility between two partnering experimenters."

Slughorn grabbed a mortar and pestle and placed it in front of him. He began adding ingredients to the bowl which Hermione identified as ginger root, mermaid scale ashes, a pinch of unicorn horn powder, and a set of dried doxy wings. He continued as he began to finely ground the ingredients together.

"This particular potion was brought into study and published in the August edition of Potions Today. Having not discovered the full potential of this potion, it is considered as a work-in-progress. The alchemists interviewed for discovering this particular potion requested readers to further contribute to the study by brewing the potion and experimenting its reactions to other ingredients in hopes to develop it—in a controlled environment of course." Slughorn added several frozen, ruby red ashwinder eggs which, when added to the concoction, caused it to smoke slightly and produce a semi-musky odor. A few students twitched their noses as the smell filtered throughout the enclosed room.

"I apologize for the strong smell. Ashwinder eggs tend to be quite strong when added to dried doxy wings. Speaking of which, does anyone know the relationship this potion and Amortentia have in common?" Slughorn questioned the class, but was only met with silence. Riddle, who was busy writing something down, raised his hand nonchalantly whilst writing.

"Oh, come now, surely one of you aside from Tom here has a guess," Slughorn prodded in hopes of drawing out some of the more shy students. With reluctant confidence, Hermione slowly raised her hand—unable to control the urge to answer a question in class that she knew.

"Ah, yes, miss…?"

"Hermione Sivad," Hermione said after clearing her throat.

"Miss Hermione Sivad, would you happen to be able to give ole' Tom a run for his money?" Slughorn chuckled.

"The relationship between both potions is the root component of frozen ashwinder eggs. Ashwinder eggs, when properly frozen with a suitable charm, are very useful in love potions or in other potions of the same caliber. Another common use for an egg is to be eaten whole as a cure for ague." Hermione finished her explanation slightly breathless.

Professor Slughorn stood there for a moment slightly baffled by her sudden burst of unexpected knowledge. The feeling of pride in impressing a teacher filled her.

Riddle, who was once head-down and focused on his notes, stopped writing midsentence as his interest was also piqued. He looked at her from the corner of his eye, observing her as she awaited Slughorn's approval. After blinking several times, Slughorn finally surpassed his initial reaction to speak.

"Absolutely splendid!" Slughorn said with a baffled laugh. "Excellent! You must study on your own time, like Tom here. But, I haven't had you in any classes throughout the previous years; I surely would have recognized talent like this early on!" Slughorn laughed jovially. "You must be the new transfer student sorted into Ravenclaw I presume?"

"Yes, sir. Thank you, sir," Hermione said graciously as her efforts to fight a small smile from creeping onto her face failed.

"Excellent! You'll make a fine edition to this school, why, you might even rival Tom when it comes to holding the top spot! Ho ho ho!" Slughorn chuckled once more. Upon hearing Slughorn's remark, Riddle's eyes became slits as he continued his writing. "Oh, and twenty points to Ravenclaw!"

Hermione couldn't contain a smile as she saw several Ravenclaws beaming at her for receiving the awarded points.

"I believe the mixture has set for at least five minutes, now all I have to do is add a single drop…" Slughorn commentated as he took a bulb-syringe and inserted it into a flask of clear shimmering liquid, withdrawing a droplet, "...of phoenix tears and allow it to sit for a day." Slughorn let the potion's reactants simmer slowly, then poured them in a pewter cauldron, shut the lid, and locked it high in a shelved cabinet so that it may brew unbothered.

"These are the base components to make a basic compatibles' potion. To examine the bond between two people, one must place a "piece" of them and their person of choice into the mix—whether it is a hair, a toenail, or skin. In this way, it relates itself to the infamous Polyjuice Potion," Slughorn said as he dusted his hands off on his robes and turned back around to the class. "Your final exams for this Potions' semester will be to successfully brew, alter, and test the potion on an assigned partner. Not only will this benefit your final grade and understanding of your fellow companions, but it will also contribute further to the study of this newly discovered potion.

"I am expecting a log on the brewing of the base potion, and detailed explanations of the ingredients you choose to add to the mixture, their reactions, and any other techniques used. We will test you're group's finalized potion in class under supervised vision before the Christmas holidays," Slughorn spoke as he produced a piece of parchment from his desk and stood at the front of the class.

"Now I will assign you into boy-girl pairs," He said, clearing his throat. The students sat up anxiously, awaiting Slughorn to announce the groups they were to be assigned to. "Borin Tuffden, Milda Resine. Ida Poler, Hadrian Black. Kingsley Hester, Leah Spencer…"

As Professor Slughorn called out the pairs, various dissatisfied shrieks and groans filled the room. Not only was he naming pairs by opposing gender, but also by opposing houses. He chuckled slightly at the whines filtering the room, but continued.

"Arto Gallort, Freya Hilde. And finally, Hermione Sivad and Tom Riddle." Hermione's heart sunk as she heard their names paired together. She knew she had a mission to accomplish and that this would be her prime opportunity, but she didn't wish to go about it this way—forcibly. "Now, if any of you have any more questions feel free to ask me after class. I should have your cauldrons and ingredient stock prepared by tomorrow, so make sure to stop by before dinner in the Great Hall and pick up your supplies with your partners. "Until then, I will see you all tomorrow when we will be learning about the exciting properties of the flobberworm!"

The bell rang signaling the end of class. Hermione stood and began putting her things into her bag. She breathed a slight sigh of relief upon remembering she had lunch in the Great Hall next. Sitting an entire class period beside Tom Riddle had her nerves frazzled and her energy drained.

"Miss Sivad, you're astuteness in class today was very refreshing to see. Usually we don't have many students that educated in potions by their 6th year. I am quite impressed," Slughorn spoke to Hermione as she finished packing up and pulled her bag over her shoulder.

"Thank you, sir," Hermione said kindly.

"Yes, yes. I was so impressed that I would like to extend any invitation to my social gathering of elite students a week from today. Only the highest caliber of student is given this offer you know," Slughorn leaned in and chuckled slightly—almost as though he were telling an amusing secret. "I would be honored if you agreed to attend our first get together of the year."

"Thank you, sir; I most certainly will consider it," Hermione said modestly in gratitude.

"Splendid! I will send word of the when's and where's by the end of the week. I am glad you will be attending! But, I must go; I have to finish that chat with my colleague. We ended on a sour note, mustn't upset our connections, eh? Ho ho! Goodbye, Miss Sivad!" With that, Slughorn swept out of the room, leaving Hermione standing alone and wondering what exactly had just happened.

She shook her head to clear her thoughts and vowed to consider his proposition later this week. Hermione crossed the threshold out of the room when a smooth voice caught her ear.

"So, Professor Slughorn extended an invitation for you to join the Slug Club? Hm… I did think the club was getting a bit too exclusive," Riddle said coolly as he leaned slightly against the wall. Unsure of his exact intentions, Hermione remained quiet, her eyebrows furrowed in curiosity, and turned toward him. Riddle pushed off from the wall.

"Then again, maybe Hogwarts is just becoming more frequent to hidden potential nowadays… At any rate, I apologize for my rude behavior upon our first encounter. I am Tom Riddle, and you are the infamous Hermione Sivad I've heard continuously about?"

"Y-yes, I am." Hermione worked hard on keeping her composure unwavering—though with great effort.

"It seems you have already impressed a lot of professors and students already, congratulations." Hermione was unsure if his congratulatory statement was sarcasm or honesty, but replied with a "thank you" nonetheless.

"It also appears we will be… partners on our Potions' final."

"Yes, it does." Hermione stated awkwardly. But her awkwardness didn't seem to affect Riddle, in fact, he seemed to not even notice.

"I am sure these next few weeks of term will be… interesting for certain." Riddle said with a slight smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. Hermione felt very uneasy at his response, but swallowed her paranoia.

"Yes… I am sure it will be," Hermione said, giving a farewell nod and dismissed herself from Riddle's presence.

Hermione finally turned the corner out of Riddle's line of sight, but he remained in his spot until she disappeared from vision. Riddle's mouth turned down and his brow knitted together tightly. He was no fool. He knew falsities when he saw them, and this one simply came in the form of a very unusual young woman. His plans would require intricate weaving to make them come together, but he would not let anything stand his way. Time was of the essence, but Tom knew the importance of his task; his importance to place his mark upon Hogwarts—one that would be remembered years to come.

His plans were nearly complete and he had little doubt of the success rate failing. But stranger things were occurring at Hogwarts. He could feel it stirring within him. Something was not right. He felt it deep within his bones. He hadn't deduced much from the sudden appearance of the unusual girl on Hogwarts grounds that stormy evening, but he knew one thing for certain: Hermione Sivad wasn't exactly what she claimed to be. There was more to her than what was known by word of mouth, and until his plans would be put into full action, he would make it his mission to uncover the truth of Hermione Sivad.

Riddle twirled his wand in hand momentarily before holding it firmly by his side. He smirked to himself. These next few weeks were going to be most interesting for both him and Hermione Sivad, indeed.

A/N: Thanks again! I hope you guys enjoyed feel free to review, offer opinions, or ask questions! I love getting feedback from my readers! If you have any questions, the best way to ask them would be to sign up with so that I can easily communicate with you! Thanks again! 'Till next time! 3