Chapter Fifteen
Lisa let me stay in Gryffindor tower for the remainder of the night. I knew she could not fully understand everything I was feeling, but she was trying and that was more than enough for me.
I walked my friends to the train the next morning and said good bye, promising to write them all.
I watched as the train leaved and I sighed. Apparently, in the past very few people stayed home for christmas and only about two dozen or so students stayed.
I walked back up to the castle in a melancholy mood. I reached the entrance doors to find that Tom had been waiting for me.
I did not even look at him and I walked right by.
"Hermione, please. Let me explain," he said.
My mouth stayed firmly shut.
He tried again. "You don't understand Hermione."
I stopped dead in my tracks and turned to him. "I don't understand what? Please, enlighten me Riddle."
Tom flinched as I called him by his last name. "They're depending on me. I can't let them down now."
My eyes remained just as icy as before. "So you're saying that the reason you're still their leader is because of loyalty?" He nodded. I could not help but laugh humorously. "Are you serious Riddle? What about all your other loyalties? You have a loyalty to your muggle heritage, your loyalty to Hogwarts, your loyalty to Dumbledore-"
Tom snarled when I mentioned his teacher and said, "Dumbledore has done nothing for me. He is constantly suspicious of me and what I might do. I can't get a break with that guy. Just because he's your teacher, doesn't mean he's everything you think he is."
"Dumbledore has helped you out more then you can know," I told him, shaking my head. "If not for Dumbledore, you would still be in that orphanage with your magic untrained and uncontrollable. The only reason you're mad at him is becuase he is the only one who sees through your facade."
Tom glared at me. "You think you know everything, don't you. Just because you're a pureblood-"
I cut him off by laughing. "You really are dense, you know that Riddle? You take pride in knowing everything but you are so blind to some stuff. I'm not who you think I am. My name isn't Hermione Grendell, not even close."
Tom just stared at me before saying, "Yeah right. I'm not falling for that. You purebloods think you can just walk all over the rest of us and make us think whatever you want. You trick everyone else and lie to them."
"How is that different then what you're doing?" I asked him. My question brought silence. "And one more thing, Riddle," I told him. "I'm not a pureblood."
Unable to face him anymore, I calmly turned around and walked away.
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I managed to avoid Riddle as much as I could. It was surprisingly easy. It seemed as if Riddle was avoiding me also but I was alright with him. I still felt an ache whenever I saw him, his betrayal still hurt. I had to consciously keep all thoughts of him out of my mind.
I woke up early on christmas to find that all my presents were at the foot of my bed. I squealed, grinning at the stack of gifts.
I got everything from books from Dumbledore to make-up from Pippy to robes from Lisa.
I went through all my presents quickly and smiled. I then realized that there was one more unopened gift. It was a small box with a note on top.
I thought about who it could be from, deciding to just find out, I grabbed the box and pulled off the note.
Hermione
I'm sorry. I'm sorry for lying, I'm sorry for ruining what we had, I'm sorry I didn't stop, even when I knew that what I was doing was wrong - I'm sorry for everything. It's too much to hope that you will forgive me, but just know that that is all I want. Your forgiveness.
I thought I could have everything. After all, ever since I came to Hogwarts everything went the way I wanted it to. I guess it had to end sometime, your arrival marked the beginning of the end. You were a mystery, Hermione. You were a beautiful, intelligent, funny, charming, caring, intriguing mystery. I thought you coming here was a challenge for me and I thought that the point of the challenge was to add you to everything that I already had. To make you another part of my collection.
I was wrong.
You were too much for me, Hermione. And it wasn't until it was too late that I realized the point of the challenge was to gain your love, whatever it cost me. I figured this out after I had made possibly the biggest mistake in my life - losing you.
In my world of horrible things, you were my light. My candle in the dark. My Gryffindor among Slytherins. I may have only known you for four months, but those four months are the only ones in my life that have been worth living for. I don't know what I would do without you. I guess I'll have to learn though, since I know I don't deserve you and you belong with someone who can offer you so much more then I can.
But I am selfish, Hermione. I want you with me. I need you with me. I don't think I'll survive any other way.
And now we come to the most important part of this letter, my confession. I don't know if you'll ever talk to me again and as much as I would love to tell you in another circumstance, one where you don't hate me, here it is. I love you, Hermione. On some level, I always have. You're my perfect match. You're brave, loyal, smart, beautiful and amazing. You're perfect, and I love who I become when I'm with you.
Though no one knows it, villains want to be heroes too.
I won't make you read anymore of this, I don't even know if you stuck with it up until now. I just want you to know that I'm in love with you.
I'm at the point where I sink or swim, and unless I have you, I'll find my self at the bottom of the ocean, the darkest deepest part there is. Because without you, I can't swim.
And truthfully, without you I would never want to.
Tom
I finished reading it and felt a tear drop down my face. There was a conflict in me though, I didn't know if he was tricking me or not, how was I supposed to? He had hidden the truth from me for a long time and I don't know if I have even changed him at all.
I shook my head and turned to the box. It had a simple silver wrapping paper with a black bow. I unwrapped it very carefully, for some reason I didn't want to rip the beautiful paper.
I opened the box to find a beautiful hand held mirror inside. It was small, only about eight inches by five inches, but I didn't think the purpose was to see your reflection.
There was a note inside.
Hermione,
This is a mirror that has been in my family for generations. I've decided to give it to you I can't think of anyone else better suited for it.
The mirror will show you an image of someone, anyone you want it to. If you knew them, it will show your happiest memory that you shared with them. If you didn't know them well enough to have any happy memories, then it will show their image like a portrait.
I hope you'll be able to find some closure with it. Your need for it is far greater then mine.
Tom
My breath caught in my throat. Could this mirror really do all this? There was only one way to find out and I lifted the mirror up to my face.
It really was a beautiful thing. There was a pattern of enchanted, moving, silver vines that bordered the mirror and went around the handle.
I closed my eyes for a moment and thought of my parents.
When I opened them to look at the mirror again, I saw them. There we were, Mum, Dad and me, at christmas time. I watched as the three of us laughed and hugged each other.
Tears were pouring down my face.
I thought of Harry and Ron and the image changed. The memory that showed was a simple one. It was one of the nights at Hogwarts where the three of us were just sitting together in the Gryffindor common room and relaxing. We had stayed up late so we could get the room all to ourselves and all the bad things, the deaths, the war the losses, were forgotten.
I put down the mirror, overwhelmed by the emotion that I felt. I stood up and wiped the tears off my cheeks. Taking out my wand, I cast a quick refreshening spell and I looked as good as normal.
Without a second thought, I ran from the common room.
I saw who I was looking for. He was walking towards the Slytherin table and I called out to him, "Tom!"
He looked startled at turned around. Before he knew what was happening, my lips crashed against his in a kiss that expressed everything I was feeling.
It took only a fraction of a second for him to respond and he put all the same feeling in return.
The two of us pulled back and stared into the other's eyes. I had no way to know what mine were saying but his were shouting message that was impossible to ignore.
It was a promise, a promise to never let go of me.
A/N: Like it? sorry about that last chapter. I looked over it and I realized that I had called Lisa 'Lily' for the entire second half. Sorry about that.
I really hope nothing like that happened in this chapter, cause I totally missed it in the last one. Hope you liked it anyway though.
review?