Part Three
Late that evening, Hermione's mirror buzzed unexpectedly. She stared at it, very uncertain if she should answer it. "Manos!" she called.
"Lady, what can Manos do for yous?"
"Tell Tom my mirror is calling. What should I do?"
"Manos will check, Lady," the little creature disappeared. Hermione still had difficulty believing the little elf had fooled them all so thoroughly at Hogwarts. Though, if any elf was capable of deception, it would be Dobby, she figured.
Waiting for Tom or Severus to arrive it occurred to her that this would have been the perfect opportunity to betray the two men. She could have told someone at home everything.
Then again, when Tom stepped into the library with his own mirror open and a smirk on his face; she knew it had been a test. "I just wanted to know if you're coming to bed?" He asked as he snapped his mirror shut and hers stopped buzzing. "We really should charm our own set, huh?"
She stood. "I have made my choice, Tom. I will be joining you and Severus. There was never any other choice I could make, was there? Just like Severus, I've again and again swore to you that I'll stand by your side. I'll not go back on my word just because you are not who we thought you were."
He held out his arms and she walked into them. He embraced her and for the first time in a long time, she felt like she was coming home; like she truly belonged. "We will bond tomorrow," he whispered and in the blink of an eye he had apparated them to the bedroom.
The next morning, Hermione once again woke up cuddled up to her men; her Dark Lord spooning her from behind and her Dark Prince acting as her perfect pillow and squeezy toy. The warm breeze from the open window caressed her naked skin. She sighed, she wanted this lazy break from her 'real' life to never end.
"Are you ready to bond today, my Goddess?" asked a sleepy voice from behind her. His strong arms snaked around her middle, pressing her up against him.
She smiled into her pillow. "Yes, I am."
"Then why the sigh?"
"How in the world do I explain this situation to my very Muggle, and while open minded, very traditional, parents?" She rolled over onto her back to meet the eyes of her Dark Lord. "'Mum, Dad, you'll never guess what I did last night. I got married! This is my new husband Tom, and this is my other husband Severus'" she said with a pretend high voice.
He laughed. "That would be highly amusing, I'm sure."
"Even though I'm so different from my parents and we live in different worlds most of the time; we've always got along very well the few weeks I get to see them every year. I hate hiding something this important from them."
"Then, perhaps you should go see them, spend today with them. Severus and I can finish preparing for the ritual on our own. Since it is a Dark Ritual, it can not be done under the Sun anyway. Once the ritual is done, I'm afraid all of us will need to adjust to our new power level; and especially you. There's a very real risk that you will influence their minds if you go see them before you have yourself under control. The mind of a Muggle is frighteningly easy to bend and warp, even subconsciously for a powerful wizard or witch."
"Really? We will be that powerful?"
He nodded. "Yes."
"You are not doing this just for the added power are you?" she frowned suspiciously.
He shook his head. "Not entirely, no. We are doing this specific bonding ritual for the power; but we are bonding because we've found you to be a good complement to us. You are vibrant, smart and beautiful; our magic sings when you touch us. Simply, we've fallen for you. We want to share the power we have. Why not add to it, when it is possible to do so?"
"My, you are poetic this morning," another sleepy voice came from her other side.
"Morning, Severus," she smiled at him and gave him a quick kiss.
"Hey," Tom protested. "Why didn't I get a good morning kiss?"
She giggled and doled one out to him as well. "This is not the way I imagined the 'Horror of Hogwarts' and the 'Terror of Britain' spending their summers," she smiled.
Severus snorted. "We have not spent a summer like this in sixteen years, Hermione. I'm quite sure you already know how I spent the last sixteen years and you know what Tom suffered as Harry. We barely had five years together before the Fall, but those were mostly taken up by our plans for the war. This relaxed mindset is as new to us as it is to you."
Hermione decided to ignore the subject of the war and their more violent tendencies. "Tom, was Harry ever interested in me this way?"
"I was, Hermione. Only, my self image and confidence was too damaged by the Dursleys. Then, before I could gather the courage to say anything, Ron expressed interest and I stepped back. Dumbledore has much to answer for; he completely ruined both my childhoods."
"You know, it is quite difficult for me to remember you are also Harry. You are so very different. Actually, the both of you are quite different from your usual selves."
"Hermione, Tom Riddle was born in 1926. Harry was given all Tom's memories of a life spent traveling and learning before inadvertently turning himself into a Mad Dark Lord."
Severus caressed her arm from beside her. "And the Professor Snape you've learned to hate at Hogwarts is only a role I play, not what I'm really like. It's a role I enjoy playing, though," he winked.
"Bottom line, Hermione," Tom concluded. "The two of us are the Dark Lord Voldemort, with all that entails; but we are also able to relax like this in private. The Dark Lord is not all we are. It's complicated, yet simple. Will you share this with us?"
She could not help smiling. "Yes, yes, of course I will. I find this whole thing quite exciting actually. Never before have I been challenged and wanted like this. I want to learn Dark Magic, Ancient Magic, Ritual Magic and Sex Magic or whatever I feel like without anyone telling me it's wrong
or evil. How could I possibly turn you down?"
"Perhaps because you do not also wish to learn cruelty along the way?" Severus asked.
"We're not nice men, Hermione."
"I don't care, you're wonderful to me. And you should know by now I have a vindictive streak as well. Just ask Marietta Edgecombe, I'm sure she'll testify I'm pure evil."
"We're taking over the British Wizarding World, not some prank. People will die, possibly at your wand."
"The Wizarding World of Britain needs to change! The bigotry is horrendous. The Light has ruled for a long time and discriminates against everything not Light. As a Dark Wizard or a Muggle-born you are worth nothing! Cross-breeds are worth even less, barely considered human. A pure Magical Creature, either dark or light is barely considered sentient even though they have a well developed society. All this need to change! So Yes, I wish to join you and the Dark Side, you are the only hope for the British Wizarding world to evolve and survive.
"Very well then, my little know-it-all Dark Lady, it's a deal!" Severus grinned.
"We'll put you in charge of our ideology, I'm sure we could use some adjustments, we have been quite bad in the discrimination-department too."
"I'm sure I will enjoy adjusting the view of Muggle-borns of some Purebloods in your ranks," Hermione smirked.
"Mum! Dad!" Hermione squealed in delight as her parents entered the restaurant they had agreed to meet at. She had tried to arrange to spend time with them but they'd been busy at the conference all day. She'd been lucky to have them meet her for dinner with Severus and Tom.
"I'm having flashbacks to class," Severus mumbled when she was off her seat and waving her hand in the air like a lunatic to get her parents attention across the room.
"Be nice, Professor!" Hermione elbowed him playfully when he stood up next to her.
Tom left his seat as well, though the two men followed at a more leisurely pace as she was hugging her parents fiercely.
"Mum, Dad, I want you to meet Tom and Severus," she grinned and slid her arm around Tom, who once again looked like a young God amongst men. They had debated letting her parents get used to her having a steady boyfriend her own age before they let her in on the fact that it was a triad and that they were already married, but in the end decided to try for the truth. Should it be too much for the elder couple, they could always Obliviate them and try again. Magic was quite handy with such things, after all; especially with Muggles.
"Hello," her father shook hands with first Severus and then Tom. "I'm David Granger," he gestured towards his wife, "and this is my wife Mary Granger."
Mary Granger seemed to be bursting with happiness as Severus put his lips to her knuckles in the old-fashioned way. "Oh, my, such a gentleman. I'm so happy my Hermione has friends to spend time with."
Tom took her hand also using the traditional greeting. Mary looked all kinds of flustered when he smiled brightly at her. "Tom Riddle, at your service," he nodded. "We heard from a mutual acquaintance that you had escaped England for the summer."
"Indeed," Severus nodded. "England could be quite hazardous these days...unless you have the right friends of course."
"Yes," Mary nodded. "I hear magicals born to normal people is in quite the danger. Can you tell me;
how much danger is our Hermione in?"
"Oh, don't worry, dear. Hermione is quite safe, and by association; you. No Dark Lord will ever come after you; not here, not in Britain. I can personally promise you that, Mrs. Granger," Tom vowed seriously.
"How do you know? Are you certain you can protect her?"
Hermione giggled. "He can protect me, Mum, I promise."
Mr. Granger was looking paler and paler as he seemed to remember something. He pulled her away from Tom. "Hermione," he began anxiously.
"What is it Dad?" asked Hermione.
"Wasn't Tom Riddle the name of that Dark Lord you told us about?" he whispered. "This guy doesn't look like any Dark Lord I ever imagined, but..." David ran his eyes down the colorfully dressed young man in front of them.
"Good observation," Severus added with a wink, having heard every word. He swung his arm around Tom. "He is."
"But...But...what... why...how?"
Hermione winced, here came the breaking point.
"How can I be here, with my right hand Death Eater, and acting all friendly with a Muggleborn and her Muggle parents?"
David nodded mutely.
"That is easy. Everything you know, or think you know, about Voldemort is probably false, propaganda from the Light Side, or willful lies from Severus here."
"I still don't get it? You did not kill Hermione's friend's parents?"
"Sixteen years ago; Voldemort was technically defeated when killing the Potters. My body was reduced to ashes and what was left of my soul attached to the body of the child. I decided to become a child, to grow up once again, since it would be impossible to hide that I was a grownup in a child's body any length of time. I became one Harry James Potter, your daughter's best friend these last six years. I love her Mr. and Mrs. Granger, no matter my plans for the rest of the world, I would never hurt Hermione."
Now they were gaping.
"I did not find out who I was until I was given back my memories a few days ago when I turned seventeen and Severus took me from my abusive relatives."
Mary looked him over once again. "You do not look seventeen, nor like Harry."
"I am a what is called a Metamorphmagus, a shapeshifter, as is Severus, we can look any way we wish." He held out his arms. "This is how I look when in private with the people I truly trust."
"You trust our daughter, and us?" her dad asked, his doubt rather obvious.
Tom nodded.
"Do you really expect us to trust YOU?" Mr. Granger cut back. "You could have done some magic to our daughter, to turn her head."
Tom's eyes turned hard. "Yes, I very much trust your daughter. I trust her enough to be here, telling you this, showing you who I really am. It was her wish for you to know about me, us. She did not wish to hide that she is entering a new phase in her life in the Magical World along with us."
"Hermione, dear. Are you sure you can trust these men?" Hermione's mother now added.
This massive doubt from her parents was not what Hermione had expected. They were usually so open minded. She closed her eyes in brief pain, she knew that once the doubts had taken root, there would be no turning them around. She took a deep breath and did what she needed. Her wand hidden under her wrap, she pointed it and whispered "Obliviate!"
"Backup plan, then?" Tom asked, eyes full of concern for her when she looked at him.
She sighed. "Yes."
They moved the dazed Grangers into a more secluded area of the restaurant. Tom and Severus changed their appearances as soon as they were out of sight from the rest of the patrons. Then the conversation started over.
"Mum, Dad, this is Harry Potter and Professor Snape from school. They're also hiding out in Greece this summer. I found them, just by chance, in the Magical areas of the city a couple of days ago…"
Hermione had to forcefully swallow her uneasiness at the lies they were forced into. At least now her parents wouldn't worry about her when she moved in with her friends instead of staying in her room at the hotel. In retrospect, she should have guessed the truth would be too much for them.
The bonding was a ritual where the separate personal powers were added to the partners', and did so every time it was performed with a new partner involved. When Tom had bonded with Severus, he had gained the younger man's innate talent for Potions and Mind Magic; as well as the vitality and strength of his Magic. Severus had gained even more strength, Parseltongue and Metamorphmagi talents. They had been truly equal, it mattered not that one of them had been more powerful to start with, they both gained.
Now they added a third person, it was like starting again. Tom felt Hermione's presence in his mind as soon as she drank their mixed blood. Her exceptional clarity of mind brought both Tom's and Severus' capacity for higher logical thinking to a never before imagined level. Not until he experienced it, was he able to conceive just how intelligent their new partner was; and he'd never been a slouch in the intellectual arena himself.
Never before had a Muggle-born, first-generation Magical been part of such a ritual. Tom was amazed at the pure vitality of the magic she contributed, it was completely untainted by any of the blood-based diseases and defects so prevalent in pureblood Britain. Tom himself had escaped madness and deformity by a hairsbreadth when his demented mother had fallen for a Muggle. Severus was the only magical child of his generation among the Princes, and that was probably because of his Muggle father. The Potter-body was also strong and vital from the infusion of his Mother's virginal magic.
The Trinity was born from the ritual, something practically unheard of in the Magical world for millennia. The Founders of Hogwarts had been a four part bond, the legend of their combined power was still very much alive in people's memories, even though they did not know how it had come about. Tom had read his ancestor's journals, he knew what they had achieved and how.
When he became aware of the world around them again; he tiredly opened his eyes to the world, absently wondering when he'd fallen out of the bed. He blinked at the blinding light and closed his eyes again with a wince. Oh, right, they were still in what was left of the ritual circle on the roof. They had passed out after the influx of new power and now the new day was starting.
A pair of dark sun-glasses materialized on his face at the vague need to protect his eyes while he checked on his bond-mates. He was also only vaguely aware that he didn't need his wand, total concentration, or incantation to do Magic; it just came to him automatically, at the mere thought.
He leaned over towards Hermione, she had fallen backwards, from her sitting position in the circle, just as he and Severus had. He smiled, she was even more beautiful now. She had an inner glow that heightened every feature; even her hair had a golden sheen to it, the tangles turned into a mass of curls around her head. He caressed her face almost reverently. "Time to wake, my Goddess!" he whispered into her mind.
Power - both Dark, Light and Wild - was infused into her very being. She took a moment to enjoy the delicious feeling before she opened her eyes to the world. The presence of her two companions positively radiated that same Power very close to her. They were more than just bonded, they were parts of her, as she was part of them. During the ritual they had briefly taken on the very shape of the others as they gained their power. Then, with one last flash, they had been pushed apart and once again returned to their true, original forms; Hermione, Severus and Harry.
She opened her eyes into the morning light, she could have sworn she heard Harry's voice calling for her to awaken. She snorted in amusement when her eyes landed on a Harry dressed only in black glasses leaning over her with a smile on his lips.
"That was awesome, wasn't it, Goddess?" He grinned enthusiastically.
"Indeed," came Severus' cool and calm one from next to them. She looked over to find him looking his young and handsome self. His true self, she reminded herself.
"Oh yeah," she agreed as well, still feeling quite out of it. She held a hand over her eyes against the increasing light. She'd never imagined the pure bliss of having so much magic pulsing through her body. A pair of black glasses appeared unbidden onto her face as well.
"How are you feeling, Hermione?" began Harry's voice and changed into Tom's darker timbre right in the middle of the sentence. "You had more to gain, after all. Sev and I were already powerful."
"I feel both off and marvellous at the same time. My body aches like after a vigorous workout, yet it is like I could do anything and still have power left over." She glanced at him and found him again to be back as young Tom, his preferred shape.
Severus chuckled. "You can."
She smiled, and at her brief desire, levitated off the floor holding her arms out. She felt light as a feather and let herself float around the warded rooftop they were on. "I can fly, and I know I will not fall," she giggled, twirling around. "No more flimsy brooms for this girl, oh no!"
Tom joined her, equally lightly, he laughed and swooped around her, as if he had been on his old Firebolt. They played above the still smirking Severus on the ground until Tom caught her and they let themselves slowly sink down on top of him.
"Let us enjoy the rest of today," Tom mumbled against her neck, between soft kisses. "Tomorrow, you start your Dark Lady training, Mrs. Snape-Riddle-Granger."
She blinked. "That is certainly a mouthful of a name."
"Formally, we all have it," Tom replied, looking up from her neck again. "Our True Magical Names are now Snape-Riddle-Granger, but we can still go by any name we wish. And, technically this body's name is still Harry James Potter even though the Magical soul occupying it is Tom Riddle's."
"And, don't forget we are also the Dark Lord Voldemort,"Snape added.
"You truly consider ME to be the Dark Lord as well?" She wondered.
"You are an equal part of this union: so yes, you are," Tom nodded "As soon as you have complete control over your powers, you will be able to take the form Severus created for us."
Silently, she considered it. What surprised her even more was that she did not mind at all. She had gained something from her companions that had not been there before. She was no longer the same compassionate young girl she had been. She had invited Darkness into her heart. She also knew she had given her partners some of her Light, though she suspected it would never overpower them as much as the Darkness was influencing her. "I knew I would change, guys. The Darkness you've given me is quite intoxicating."
Thankfully, they managed to spend the rest of the day recuperating undisturbed in their own bedroom. They spent the night partying at the club on the rooftop where they first met, greatly enjoying the pulse of the music and the crowd.
The next morning, Severus was awakened by the invisible medallion around his neck heating up.
"What's the matter?" Tom mumbled when his pillow moved away when Severus sat abruptly to check the message on the medallion.
Severus groaned. "Dumbledore is calling a meeting of the Order later today," he sighed. "I hate those bloody boring, useless meetings!"
Tom chuckled. "Want me to go?"
Severus looked at him beggingly. "Would you? Please!"
"I will, don't worry. Are they really that bad, though?"
Severus winced, as if in pain. "They are," he nodded. "I know you wanted in on those meetings as Harry, but they are terribly tedious, I'm afraid."
"I didn't really care about actually participating, I just I always hated being the topic of discussion but never informed about what was said, planned or done."
"What always disturbs me the most is how they expect you to perform according to their plans without you ever knowing about those plans. I was supposed to teach you Occlumency, but not allow you to learn the theory, or read any books on the subject. They told you nothing about why it was important, or what could be done through such a connection."
Hermione snorted in clear amusement from her position still on the bed.
"What?" Severus asked.
"I just realized. Dumbledore asked the very one responsible for those visions to help Harry block them."
"Indeed," Severus snickered.
Hermione looked between the two men., "How is it that you're not angry, Tom? He treated you like shit. He's responsible for your Godfather's death."
Tom nodded. "That's a good question, actually. The answer is: I, as Tom Riddle, bonded of Severus Snape, hated Sirius Black just as vehemently as Severus did. He mercilessly bullied Severus for seven years at Hogwarts: and, he tried to have him killed or at the very least infected with Lycanthropy. Now, as Harry Potter I was starved for any type of affection, Black was my one hope to escape my abusive relatives. I loved the IDEA of him, someone who was always on my side against all the other untrustworthy adults. The fact is though, I never truly knew him, did I? You spent more time around him than I did. When I got all my memories and power back: I reverted to the personality of Tom Riddle, fifteen years as Harry Potter affects me, sure, but who I am is Tom Riddle. Tom Riddle is bonded and in love with Severus Snape and positively loathes Sirius Black. Severus played his part, I cannot fault him for that. He had to see his loved one every day and never see love in his eyes, never recognition, never affection."
"I settled for the one true emotion I could get," Severus added quietly. "Hatred. To have seen indifference would have killed me."
"And with Death Eater children and Dumbledore so close, you could never even try for friendship or even mutual respect. It would have put the whole charade in peril," Hermione added. "I think I understand now."
"Good. Then, let's start honing your talents, my young wife," with that, Tom descended upon her with a predatory look in his eyes.
"Come and get it, old man," she giggled.
"Do not. ever. call. me. that." He intoned in between kisses that were definitely not those of an old man.
She squealed as he rolled them over so that she was on top, easily accessible by their partner.
To be continued...