Disclaimer: don't own.

A/N: Thank you everyone for your reviews. Just for your information: I also prefer Christian Coulson. He was much better! I don't know why they didn't use him in the sixth film. The other one was crap. CHRISTIAN COULSON FOREVER.

That's what happened in chapter 17:

"We were sent on a mission to change a certain dark lord from becoming dark." Hermione answered, gritting her teeth at the same time. "We failed, though. In fact, this future is even worse than the future before."

"Is it? Pity, I don't remember the other future you are talking about." the dark leader sounded disappointed. "So you went to Hogwarts in the forties? What were your names there and then?"

"Draco Lumiere." Draco's eyes looked at the floor.

"Hermione Delacour." Hermione answered scared.

"Delacour? Lumiere?" the man asked, disbelief colouring his tone. "Hermione, is that YOU?"

"Yes, it's me." Hermione nodded. "But who are you?"

"Let me show you." The leader said icily. "Let you see what I have become."
And he pulled off his hood.

On with the story:

TH&&&/HT
TH&&&/HT
TH&&&/HT

"No, master." Dobby stormed forward, his small frame quivering. "Don't show them who you really are. You told me to stop you from going insane."

"Silence, Dobby."

It took Hermione's whole willpower not to giggle out, although their situation was dangerous and quite hopeless.

"No one knows you." Dobby held his master's hood with both of his knobbly hands. "You told me, it's supposed to stay this way forever."

"Peace, Dobby. We'll make an exception. These young friends will join my army anyway." the man laughed and Hermione raised a questioning eyebrow at Draco. Army? Please no!

With a swift movement, the man pulled off his hood.

Hermione and Draco stared.

Who in the world was that?

He was kind of beautiful. The man had black short hair, sinister red filmy eyes and pale papery skin. Although he seemed to be still young; you could practically feel the massive power that radiated from him.

He stared at Hermione and he somehow seemed intrigued him, although everything about him screamed danger. "My name is Aro." he said calmly, his voice friendly on the surface. "I am the ruler of the vampire world and the magical world."

"Yy-you a-a-a-re a v-vampire?" Hermione stuttered, holding her wand tighter, although she knew that it was no use against vampires.

A vampire. That at least explained the permanent dark sky. More convenient for them.

The man nodded and Draco gasped openly, his eyes searching frantically for the exit.

"H-how do you k-know m-me?" Hermione stammered. "I don't know you."

"My loyal trusted friend had you almost permanently in his thoughts BEFORE and AFTER he was changed. I know you from his thoughts. Although he is a good occlumens, he is immune to my powers. If I hold someone's hand, I can very easily hear every thought, they've ever had." Aro said proudly.

Closest friend. Hermione shot a confused and scared glance at a green-faced Draco who didn't look back at her.

Aro sighed dramatically. "My helper and close friend will decide what you are going to be: either dead or part of our army." Aro smiled pleasantly and Hermione felt her stomach disappear.

"D-dead?" she squeaked out.

"No one leaves this place alive – either dead or as another vampire. My closest friend will estimate your powers and turn you accordingly." Aro snipped his fingers. "TOM!"

In what seemed to be half a second another vampire stood directly next to Aro. He too, had black hair, red eyes and pale skin. He was even more beautiful than Aro.

Hermione felt as though her knees had turned to leash. She knew this one.

Tom Riddle.

Tom looked at Hermione wide-eyed; she could actually recognize him, beneath the vampire-looks. His angular face and his beautiful cheek bones were still the same and even his mouth had the same kissable shape, but apart from that, all she could see: vampire. danger. blood-drinker.

Tom gasped and narrowed his eyes. "Hermione, is that you? Why did you leave me?" the vampire, who was most certainly her lover from the forties, asked coldly.

"Uhm… leave you?" Hermione tried to play dumb.

"In the forties. We were together. Don't you recognize me?"

It was too much for her. She broke down on the floor, crying. "I'm so sorry, Tom, I didn't want to leave you." she sobbed uncontrollably. "I really loved you – not only because of our mission, but because I felt we had a special connection. I was heartbroken when I had to leave."

"Why did you leave me then?"

"I HAD to. I didn't belong in the forties – and neither did Harry and Draco." Hermione wiped her eyes with a tissue that Dobby handed to her. "The laws of Time state that – "

"Screw the laws!" Tom said shaking his head.

Hermione hiccupped but said nothing, only wiping her nose.

"Look… do you know how heartbroken I was when you left?" Tom looked directly at her, sadness and anger marring his looks.

Meanwhile Draco had backed up to a wall, his face almost as white as the vampire's. Hermione shook her head. "No."

"I kind of died inside, Hermione. Half of my soul died without your presence. I was worried sick, you didn't even say good-bye."

"Harry thought it was easier like that."

Tom ignored her. "You didn't even tell me WHERE you went. Half the school was in uproar. Your friend Eileen, Hermione, ran off with a Mudblood because she was in love with Harry and had to get over him. And Harry left too."

Tom took a deep, shuddering breath now dropping the bombshell. "I couldn't even make a Horkrux, because my soul was already WEAK."

"No?" What a relief. At least one thing that went right.

"No, Hermione. My soul wasn't strong enough to rip it apart. I would have died in the process." Tom whispered. "If you hadn't left me, I wouldn't have needed the Volturi to turn me into a vampire. You know how scared I am of dying? That's only one of the few possibilities. Although I'm always thirsty, I'm fast, beautiful, strong and never dying. In fact, in this house, we are creating an army of vampires. Most of the victims who cross these doors never make it out alive – they are either killed or turned into another vampire. Hermione, if you hadn't left me, we could have had the OTHER future you told me about."

"Tom, I'm sorry. We didn't have a choice." Hermione was shaking badly now; not only from fear, but also from grief.

"You did, Hermione. Did you read TIME TRAVEL EXCEPTION by Caractus Burke carefully?"

She shook her head slowly. "Only a few of the chapters. It gets tedious after a while."

"I thought I would never see the day when Hermione calls a book TEDIOUS." Tom chuckled and Aro looked at him dumbfounded. "Now back to the matter at hand: I'm sure you didn't know that if you actually belonged to another time, that you were allowed to stay there?"

"I know that." Hermione said proudly. "But how do you know that the forties were the right time for me?"

"Because WE belonged together. You could have saved us all of this." he gestured outside to the permanently black sky and to himself. "Didn't you feel as if your soul was ripped into two?"

Hermione hesitated and chanced a glance at Draco who had slid down the wall in the process. "Yes, I did." she whispered. "It was painful."

"You did?" Draco said from the wall. "Why didn't you tell anyone?"

"We were in enough trouble as it was, Draco. I didn't want to bother you with my feelings as well."

"These aren't mere feelings, Hermione." Tom shook his head. "It's your soul. Your soul was screaming for mine and mine for yours. It hurt them to be so far away from each other."

"It's too late, Tom, we are back in the future. In a wrong future, mind you. And we are going to die, because it's a future where we shouldn't exist." Hermione shook her head. "Besides, the time turner broke. Dumbledore hasn't got any more…"

"I wonder, what would happen if I turned you…" the leader, Aro, wondered idly.

"T-turn us? In-into v-vampires?" Draco whispered terrified.

"Exactly, young man. Maybe then you would survive the time-paradox." Aro went on thoughtfully. "After all, vampires are stronger and immune to time-paradoxes."

"No!" Hermione said at once. "Please don't change us. We'd rather stay human and die a natural way." Draco, though, looked as if she were crazy: he obviously didn't share her opinion.

"My helper will decide." Aro smiled pleasantly, turning agonizingly slowly towards Tom. "Tom, shall we keep them or drink them?"

Hermione shot a terrified look at Tom who still looked shocked to see his former girlfriend there. After another challenging nod from Aro, he gave a little jump and stared at the two time-travellers.

"Hermione is formidable witch. I don't know about this young man though. He always struck me as mediocre." He smirked. "I'll say we keep the witch and dispose of the wizard."

"Nooooooooooooooo!" Draco screamed in agony. "Please… just let me go. Or turn me too. I can't bear it. I'm still too young to die."

"Young blood tastes even better." Aro smiled delightedly, ignoring Draco's pleas completely. "Teenagers' blood is the best."

Hermione had silent tears streaming down her face, sobbing quietly. She didn't have energy for more.

"Alright then." Aro said happily, startling Hermione. "Bring the girl to her room and prepare her for the change tomorrow. Afterwards come straight up and we'll both feast on the boy."

Tom nodded and held Hermione by her elbow. "Draco…" she called out, her voice quivering. "Don't worry. Everything will be fine… don't be afraid of dying. It's just the next great adventure."

But Draco had already fainted.

TH&&&/HT
TH&&&/HT
TH&&&/HT

Tom kept his icy hand on Hermione's elbow throughout their journey through the deserted halls. She shivered, not only from his cold touch, but also from fear. She would gladly change places with Draco anytime; she'd rather die than be turned into a blood-drinking monster.

Suddenly she remembered something and almost stopped in her tracks.

They had had Veritaserum although Aro obviously didn't need that. BUT they had said their OTHER last names: Delacour and Lumiere. What happened to their real names? What if she other future had been crumbling too? Her head was spinning.

"This is your room." Tom said quietly, opening a door to a room with no window. The walls were made of stone and made the room look like a cell. Hermione already felt claustrophic at the mere thought of staying there.

"We can't let you out." Tom said, as if he were reading her thoughts. "The walls are immune to any kind of magic."

"They are?"

Tom smirked. With a swift movement, he took her wand.

"Why are you taking me wand?" Hermione asked through gritted teeth, glaring at her former lover.

"You won't be needing it as a vampire." he laughed cruelly.

"Then why are you still carrying your wand?" she shrieked.

"I am special." Of course. "I am an exception to the rule."

"You are behind everything, aren't you? Aro is just your puppet." Hermione ground out.

"Exactly. Still as intelligent and witty as I remembered." Tom said with an odd sort of bravado. "And still as beautiful…"

Against her will, Hermione coloured.

"Hermione, what would you have done, if you could have gone back in time?" Tom asked, leaning closer to her, inhaling her scent. "If Dumbledore had another time-turner left?"

"I would have gone back to you, Tom." Hermione said honestly. "And I would have stayed there, because you obviously needed me. And I need you." she admitted. "I would never leave your side again." she said, half-mocking, half serious.

"Hmmmmm…" Tom said. "I like the sound of that."

"Unfortunately, it's too late." Hermione slumped down on the mouldy, old mattress which was obviously her "bed".

"Never say never." Tom said mysteriously. "Get some sleep, Hermione, you will be needing it for tomorrow's change. Mind you, it will be as painful as about a thousand crucios at the same time and it will last for three days. But after that, you will find out what real strength and power is."

Hermione groaned. "I'd rather not."

"One of our minions will bring you dinner. See you tomorrow. Good-bye."

TH&&&/HT
TH&&&/HT
TH&&&/HT

"Ohhh, I can see that someone is in love." Edward grinned as soon as Tom entered their shared room. "Again."

Tom ignored him.

"And it's the girl I saw in your thoughts. Interesting. I thought she lived in the forties?"

Tom meticulously brushed his locks to the side, not answering Edward's question.

"That's the one. And she is here – and she has obviously the same age." Edward was confused. "How is that possible?"

Against, his will, Tom turned around. "Everything is possible in the wizarding world, in case you haven't noticed." he sneered. "Hermione travelled through time to change the future – and obviously she failed. That's why she is back – and she will be turned tomorrow."

"Will she?"

"Don't play dumb, Edward. You know everything anyway."

"I do. And I also know that you don't want her to be turned. You want her to go back in time and change everything. You hate being a vampire and you hate having lost her love." Edward sighed.

"Yes."

"Want me to help you?"

Tom rolled his eyes. "You can't."

Edward grinned, holding out an arithmancy book, Tom had never seen before in his life.

"What is that?"