24|| Queen to D7
The night leading into Sunday morning is not spent in rest but thought for Hermione Granger. Finding herself sitting there for hours--unable to sleep--has her reconsidering everything of her life in this generation, from her identity to her relationships. And these thoughts have her coming to realizations, some of which are unnerving.
First, Hermione realizes that her Slytherin identity is becoming intermixed with her inner and natural Gryffindor spirit. No longer is she completely restraining her tongue around Tom Riddle, a dangerous thought. And yet, the more unnerving fact is that Tom has yet to punish her for it. Maybe it is due to the sheer uniqueness of this mix or her conviction in acting, but the Dark Lord does not seem particularly inclined to punish her for her personality.
Second, the time-traveller comes to understand that she likes Tom Riddle. When she came here, Hermione expected a coldly-masked, cruel man, which--of course--she found. However, Hermione has come to understand and communicate with a deeper personality of the enigma of the Dark Lord, one in which there is not always anger and coldness. This one, Hermione likes to spend time with...the Tom Riddle capable of humor and laughter that is not always based in maliciousness or cruelty.
Hermione does not know what to think of herself upon realizing these two things, her Slytherin identity becoming ingrained in her ways and Tom Riddle becoming likable company. Of course, she does not fear holding any sense of pity or compassion for the Voldemort of the future, given that he is a completely different creature from the boy she now spends time with. That is the Dark Lord Voldemort, and this is the dark student Tom Riddle.
By the time Sunday morning arrives, Hermione is preparing for her day, brushing her hair back into a ponytail after showering and taking to her robes. She treads softly about her room, as if fearing awaking a neighbor but truly becoming acquainted to the softness of a spy. The girl is quick to gather her textbooks and supplies, tucking them in her acquired bag before leaving her room altogether.
She perches herself near the fireplace in the Slytherin Common Room, expecting Tom Riddle's company even though the notion was unspoken the night prior. And Hermione is early to their typical meeting time, not necessarily due to excitement but her already-long morning. Then again, she is excited to see him.
And Hermione does not wait long, Tom Riddle striding into the Common Room moments after herself, pacing to her side as she straightens her posture. The dark-haired boy grins at the softly-colored girl, feeling comfortable in her company and more at-ease than when he is alone. It is an unstartling notion, but true all the same.
"Excited, Granger?" Tom questions her earliness, prompting her blush that seems more common with each passing day, not due to attraction but Tom's increasing taunts.
"Anxious to get started is all." Hermione cannot tell him that she's early because she spent the whole night thinking of him, and so she sticks with the more likely, false excuse of a bookworm. But then there's Tom, seeing right through the lies with a grin on his handsome features.
Hermione rushes ahead of him from the Common Room, nerves on edge, as they take to the library where no one resides, not surprisingly. They spend the morning across from one another, writing History of Magic and Herbology essays while consulting with one another for revisions and advice. And soon, the lunch hour comes and the two take to the Great Hall, very few people there and prompting awkward silences. It comes as a relief when they get their fill, moving quickly from the Hall at the silent promise to avoid that scene at future meals.
"Shall we do our Potions essay now?" Hermione asks, pointing to the stairway leading back to the library at a crossroads in Hogwarts. Tom turns to her stalled form, gazing easily at her as he pulls his bookbag strap higher on his shoulder, looking ever studious and handsome.
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Veal & Venison {Tomione || 1940s/1990s}
Fanfiction#180 in Fanfiction || #1 in Hermione || In the language of literature, there exists a seemingly-concrete, antonymous relationship between good and evil, light and dark, hero and monster. And yet, we often disregard the transition from one to anothe...
