So, I finally have my laptop back! Though, you never knew that it was gone… But yes, it's been gone for about 8 months now? And I finally got it back the other day so expect me to be updating a lot more often as I can go on it whenever I want rather than when my Mum and Dad see fit for me to go on. Anyway, I don't particularly like this chapter, but you might – who knows. I hope you do enjoy it, if you don't. I honestly don't blame you.

Disclaimer:
I don't own any of these characters. Well that's a lie, I own Finnick – he's my own imaginary perfect boyfriend. Go figure. And though I don't own them, I consider them friends. Thus concluded I need a better social life.

Hermione and Minerva walked into the Transfiguration classroom, arm in arm. Hermione thought to herself how odd it was to be this close to a girl, though not really at all. She felt as if she had known Minerva all her life, which was half true. She had known her for most of her life, but this Minerva to the left of her right now was a completely new concept to her. She laughed, was mischievous and she's kissed the Dark Lord. McGonagall had never told her that, though now she suspected there was a lot she hadn't told her. She had to think of Minerva and McGonagall as two different people. In fact, she really didn't know anything about the girl stood next to her – she vowed to find out as much as possible as soon as possible.

As the rest of the class filed into the room, some dragging their feet, their bags already loaded with homework though this was only the second period of the day. Hermione stood awkwardly at the front of the room, shuffling from foot to foot, a habit she's had for years which she only did when she was nervous. She hoped that she wouldn't have to sit next to Riddle again, he only made her nervous and she never seemed to be fully in control in his presence. Not to mention the fact he kept trying to read her memories and she could never allow that. He couldn't know his future, of that Hermione was sure. When everyone had taken their seats, Dumbledore came sweeping into the room and smiled at the class. He didn't notice Hermione just to the right of his desk until he sat down at it.

"Is there a problem Mrs Granger?" He asked her. Of course there's problem, Hermione thought. I am fifty years into the past which honestly I have no right being. I'm becoming best friends with the woman who will be the successor to you in fifty years time. Oh, and I have to make the most evil being on earth fall in love. And if that wasn't hard enough, I have to make him fall in love with me. Me, Hermione Jean Granger. Plain old, bush-haired, know-it-all Hermione Jean Granger. Yes, there is a problem. But not one of those words came out of Hermione mouth. She gritted her teeth, she had to do this. After all she was Hermione Granger, the brightest witch of her age and she would come out of this fighting.

"I don't know where to sit Professor?" She smiled a little too tightly, just enough for Dumbledore to notice and his eyes filled with pity.

"You may either sit next to Mr Jones or Mr Riddle and as Mr Riddle is head boy I advise you..." He started before Hermione interrupted.

"Erm, I'll sit next to Finnick thank you Professor." She smiled at him and may her way to the back of the room. She could feel the class's eyes on her back and squirmed in her robes. She had always hated being the centre of attention, in fact she could only handle attention in small doses, and being a member of 'The Golden Trio' as they had been christened, and she nearly always felt uncomfortable by the amount of attention she got. And now the sensation was back, it was not a feeling she easily forgot. But she kept her eyes on the smiling Finnick in front of her and relaxed a bit.

Finnick smiled at the strange girl walking toward him. It was a first that some had chosen him over Riddle, given that he was highly attractive being half-veela but Tom had a certain charm about him. He was always second choice to Tom, but to this strange bushy-haired girl, he was her first choice. She had already show herself as different, she hadn't fallen for Finnick's charm and nor it seems, had she fallen for Tom's. He'd never met anyone like her, he's known her a mere hour and she already perplexed him but he loved a challenge and he knew, so did Tom.

"I feel honoured." He whispered, still smiling at her and she sat in the seat next to him.

"And why is that Finnick?"

"Please Pretty One, call me Finn."

"Pretty One Finn? Honestly, you do know my name, and you know my last name. You could call me either, I really don't mind."

"Hm, you are right of course. As I have found you have been every time you've opened that mouth of yours. But nicknames make people more, friendly towards each other. Right?" Hermione looked at the strange boy and smiled. He was her nineteen forty-four version of Harry. And that was what she needed right now, she was so un-used to girls company and she had to admit she preferred the company of a boy. And right now, Finn was just that. And he reminded her of home, her real home – the one that she left behind.

"Okay then. What should I call you, what nickname? What is an appropriate nick-name for you?"

"How about, Adonis?" He winked and Hermione did a very uncharacteristic giggle.

"No, how about…"

"Mr Jones, Mrs Granger – is there something you'd like to share with the class?" Asked Professor Dumbledore smiling with that familiar twinkle in his eye.

"No Professor." The both said bowing their heads but smiling all the same. Then Hermione heard another familiar voice, one that seemed to be constantly stuck in her head and not of her own choice. She sighed inwardly.

'You are a terrible flirt Granger; you shouldn't give Finn false hope like that. It's very un-lady like.' Hermione ignored the voice but Tom carried on. He was very persistent, she would give him that.

'Though I must admit, I never saw you as one to flirt so non-descript.' Still Hermione didn't answer and the boy carried on.

'Though, again, I don't suppose I really know you at all do I? For all I know you may be the biggest flirt on this side of earth. But I shouldn't make such assumptions, should I? I've know you but an hour and I know near to nothing about you, I have only assumptions' With still no answer Tom began to get frustrated, he had become so acute to receiving anything he wanted in Hogwarts, when he didn't it still came as a slight shock to him. Though he knew a flick of his wand and a murmur would correct that. He knew he could get the girl to scream even her most intimate secrets to anyone, the thought made him smirk slightly.

'You know Granger. The silence was endearing at first but now I realize I don't really care for you to talk to me. I was only being polite, and you are being intensely rude. And that is not an assumption. So now I see no reason to talk to you. ' And with that he stopped trying to get into her head, convinced that sooner or later she would come to him and he was counting on it being former.

But the absence of Toms voice in Hermione's head made her swell with panic and she had a strange sense of emptiness that she'd never felt before. Especially as Tom implied to say he was not going to talk to her again. Great Hermione, she thought to herself, you've not even been here one day and you've already blown it. Stupid, stupid, stupid! She scolded herself and threw herself into the work that Dumbledore had given here, she could control her magic. Her wand felt like an extension of her arm, the spells made familiar patterns on her lips. Why weren't emotions the same? Why weren't people the same? She hoped the work Dumbledore gave her would prove somewhat of a challenge to her but it didn't. She easily completed each piece of work until Dumbledore did indeed give her a challenge and for some unknown reason Hermione could not seem to master it. And each time she failed she got more and more frustrated which seemed in parallel to her hair which got bushier and bushier the more frustrated she got, which made her think of Tom saying he would never talk to her again, which made her panic which made her even more frustrated. It was a never ending cycle. And as Dumbledore dismissed the class Hermione didn't move, still attempting the spell. Finnick put his hand on her shoulder.

"Are you coming Hermione?" He asked softly.

"Erm, no. I'm, er, I need to, er, finish this spell." She said blushing, slightly embarrassed. Finnick smiled, nodded at her and left the room. Hermione sighed and carried on at the spell failing each and every time.

"Why is this not working?" Hermione screamed in her head and slumped on to the desk.

"Ow." Came a voice from the door. Hermione sat up quickly, making her back crack. She looked at the source of the voice that was annoyingly familiar already. Tom was leaning against the door frame, his finger rubbing slow circles on his temple.

"Could you be any quieter? It is really rather unpleasant to have someone screaming in your head." Then he folded his arms and smirked at her. It was then that it hit Hermione. She blinked and leaned back in her chair though her eyes were still glued to Tom. She saw what the other brainless, zombies the school called girls saw. He was thin and around four inches taller than Hermione's 5ft4. He had narrow hips and an air of confidence in himself that made him seem only slightly arrogant. His hands were average sized, his fingers thin, his square jaw jutted out only slightly with his smirk. His lips were full and Hermione was drawn to the, then quickly scanned the rest of his face. His blue eyes were full of amusement and his thick brown hair was perfectly styled in waves across his face. Hermione was realizing why every girl fell at this boys feet. But she wouldn't be one of those girls; she gritted her teeth and smiled sarcastically at Tom.

"Oh, is it really? Well, I'm awfully sorry Thomas. I'll abstain from doing it in future. Though, it is really your fault."

"My fault? And how is that."

"If you hadn't of talked in my head, then I wouldn't have screamed in yours." Tom didn't have a reply to that, not one that was quick enough anyway. Instead he decided to prove himself better then Hermione.

"Your wand movement is wrong, it's not swish and flick, it's flick and swish." He grinned walking over to her. She looked at him and scowled, he chuckled. The scowl seemed more appealing to him then her smile, it seemed more real somehow, more like a genuine emotion that Hermione would share with him. But Hermione didn't say anything to him, just performed the flick and swish motion and the cup in front of her completely vanished, she waved her hand where it had just been but there was nothing there, only air, just a little denser in the area where the cup had been. She'd transfigured a cup into air; she beamed and looked up at Tom. Though something felt very familiar about the situation though she couldn't put her finger on what it was.

"Thank you." She whispered her beam toned down to a small smile.

"You're welcome. Now I helped you, I want you to help me." Tom smirked, his eyes flashed. Hermione frowned, owing tom Riddle a favour was not something that Hermione wanted to do. And as she saw Riddles eyes flash, she knew that whatever it was she wasn't going to like it.

"What do you want Riddle?" She scowled. And there it is again, he thought.

"Just want to use your know-it-all ways." And then Hermione realized what was familiar. She remembered in first year, she'd had to tell Ron to swish and flick. And he never could get the pronunciation of Leviosa right; even now he got it wrong. Hermione gulped, though it wasn't now was it. It was that he would get it wrong and if Hermione succeeded in her task then she might never have to correct Ron. She wondered who would do it for me. Dumbledore had never told her what to do after she's made tom riddle fall in love. And to make one fall in love with you, then you must in turn fall in love with them. Hermione stiffened, that's why Dumbledore had taken away the memory, she would fall in love with Tom Riddle too, he thought she was the only one strong enough to do it. They would finish Hogwarts, get married maybe even have children, but Hermione would always see him as the most evil man in existence. Then she thought about the future and realized, no one would ever know her. Harry would never become the chosen one, he would grown up with his parents and be a normal child. He may not even become friends with Ron. Malfoy would never call her a Mudblood, he would never even turn out the way he did as his Father would never be a death eater. Muggle born children would not be discriminated against. She would be saving the entire world, but at what cost? Really in retrospect, it was miniscule, a tiny grain of sand on the earth but to Hermione, it was wiping out her whole existence, everything she had ever know and the thought brought tears to her eyes.

"I, er, I have to go Tom. I'm sorry." He stumbled through her words, picked up her bags and ran into what she knew to be Moaning Myrtles bathroom, but as she ran into a stall. She heard no giggles, no condescending tone, of course. Right now Myrtle was probably haunting Olive Hornby. So Hermione sat and cried till her next lesson.

Tom was perplexed by the girl, one second she seemed to be scowling at the boy in the emotion that could only be taken as annoyance, of the fact that he had called her a know-it-all? Or maybe that he had been able to perform the spell and she couldn't till he helped her. But the next, there was deep pain in her eyes and she had started crying. The ultimate weakness and if anything in the world could possibly scare Tom Riddle; it was that of another crying. He couldn't help them as he had no compassion to do so. He wanted to hex the girl for even putting him in that position and he thought he was about to before she got up and ran away. She even apologised. Tom was grateful, but even more interested in the girl he knew near to nothing about. He had always been the one who knew more than anyone, but she was different. She would be a challenge.

Hermione spent the rest of the day and week making firm friends with Finnick and Minerva. Joining in with their jokes, watching them play Quidditch, studying in the common room till, wherever the pair of them were – if Hermione wasn't with them it felt odd. If it was one, or two of them, another person would ask where the others were. But never once that week did she speak to Tom again. She thanked Merlin that potions was independent work that week even though she was sat next to Tom. He was persistent for the first three days; he kept trying to create conversation inside Hermione's head. Asking for the favour that she owed him, trying to seem to care and ask if she was okay. But each time Hermione's reply was 'I can't do this right now tom, ask me later. He gave up soon enough and they both worked in silence. But halfway through the week Hermione got an invitation.

Hermione was sat at the Ravenclaw during breakfast, chewing her toast rethinking her options when someone tapped her on the back. She turned to see Andromeda Black smiling shyly and clutching a roll of parchment to her chest.

"Good morning Andy." Hermione smiled at the girl, sporting deep red hair today. After their first encounter at the Breakfast table, Hermione had become somewhat of a big sister to Andromeda where her cousins and older sister hadn't.

"I've been told to give you this 'Mione. It's an invitation to the Slug Clubs next meeting from Professor Slughorn himself." She beamed. Hermione took it and thanked the girl, then shuffled down the bench so that Andromeda could sit next to her.

"Are you going Andy?" She asked her.

"Of course, according to Professor Slughorn I have great potential." She smiled proudly with her chest puffed out. Finnick and Minerva made their way into the great hall, Finnick sat on the other side of her and Minerva sat next to him.

"Are you going to the Slug Club meeting then Hermione? Minerva and I knew you would be invited. It's a black tie event you know.

"Really?"

"Yes, almost like a party. Though of course you don't have to bring a date. That's the one that they hold in the Christmas holidays. If you're in the Slug Club you either stay at Hogwarts or you come back just for that party. But also as it's the leap year this year, we have a Christmas Ball."

"Wow." Hermione breathed."Is there anyone else we know going?"

"Tom of course, Bernadette Downsern, Atlanta Boot. I can't think of anyone else. "Hermione froze at the thought of spending time with Tom but she quickly shoved the thought to the back of her head.

"I guess that's two dresses I'm going to need to buy." She laughed, Minerva nodded her head and smiled and Hermione went back to her toast thinking of the Slug Club Party.

Hermione sighed; her first academic week at Hogwarts was over. She would have a Tom riddle free weekend looking for a dress and next week she would start on Tom Riddle, right now she had to mourn the life that she was leaving behind forever.