dark// tom riddle⚡️

xii

   "Mione," the redhead spoke softly as the brunette looked up towards her, "I need to tell you something."

   "What is it?" Hermione asked, curiously. 

   Ginny hesitated for a moment before speaking, "It's about Tom Riddle."

   "T-Tom Riddle?" she said, astonished. 

   "Yes." Ginny muttered, looking at her best friend suspiciously, "Have you heard of him?"

    "Uhm, no. No, I haven't heard of Tom Riddle. Why?" Hermione ignored the erratic rhythm of her heart and focused on what Ginny was saying. Of course she knew who Tom Riddle was. It was the boy who appeared in her dreams lately. She couldn't forget him that easily. 

   "Okay," Ginny continued trying not to look suspicious, "Remember during the ball, when I just, kind of disappeared for a little while?"

   Hermione nodded yes and Ginny continued, "I-I was talking to Tom Riddle."

   The brunette's eyes widened, she didn't think Tom Riddle was a real person. She had gotten so attached to him but didn't stop to think that he might've or could've been an actual person, "No.. He can't be real."

   "Yes, he is. He, erm, possessed me during my first year. Remember, when the muggleborns were petrified?"

   "Yeah, I was one of them." 

   "Right."

   "What did he say?" 

   "Who? Tom Riddle?"

    Hermione could only nod as he mouth defied her and didn't want to talk. 

   "He, erm, told me not to tell you anything. Like about him." she hesitated since she broke the deal with Tom Riddle but he was no where near The Burrow, so Ginny decided to spill everything from the part where he possessed her in her first year to now. She also mentioned that Tom Riddle was in fact now known as the famous Voldemort. At the end of the discussion, Hermione was left in shock as she tried to process everything she heard. Tom Riddle, the boy Hermione fell head over heels for was Voldemort? So Hermione technically fell for Voldemort?

   "You okay, 'Mione? I know it's a lot. I don't even know why he told me not to tell you." Ginny said, trying to comfort her friend. 

   "It's okay," Hermione said looking around and her eyes landed on the clock, "Gin, it's already 7:00."

   "We should probably head down, I guess."

   "You can go, I-I'm a little tired." Hermione lied. In truth, Hermione just wanted some time alone with the information she processed. 

   "Alright, I-I'll save you some breakfast." the redhead said as she got up and made her way to the door. Ginny looked back at her brunette friend, who was looking out the window, before she walked out, closed the door behind her, and went downstairs, leaving Hermione alone with her thoughts. 

   Within a few minutes, Hermione drifted off to sleep and as per usual Tom Riddle entered her mind in a form of a dream. 

~*~

"Hello, I'm Tom. Tom Marvolo Riddle." he said hesitantly.

"Y-You're real?" she said astonished.

"Yes."

"You can't be though. It's all in my head." she exclaimed. 

   Then everything started to blur, no sounds could be heard and no images could be seen. It was just a blur. Then, in a fraction of a second, everything became clear again. 

 "I do have a heart, it is in your hands." he whispered, "and I do have feelings, they are all for you." he said as he leaned into her unfocused features and gently touched his lips to hers for a second before he pulled back and ran off into the pitch black of the Forbidden Forest.

"Until we meet again, Hermione. I will always love you."

"I love you too, Tom." Dream Hermione said before she could even process the words. 

   Then the scene changed, now, Tom Riddle was kneeling beside her with his wand out as he murmured a healing spell over and over again and Hermione's tender wounds were slowly diminishing as the blood that poured out of her body went back in again. 

"You should've called me through the necklace." he said but Hermione couldn't say anything as she stared up at Tom Riddle, wondering how such a handsome boy became a murderer. She wondered how he turned into someone that was so unlike him. 

"Hermione." his voice was strong but smooth. 

"Hermione." he called again, his voice echoing. 

"HERMIONE!" and the brunette was pulled back into reality as Ginny Weasley shook her out of her slumber. Hermione's eyes adjusted to the bright sunlight pouring through the windows as she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes. 

"What time is it?" she said as she focused her attention onto Ginny, who's eyes were bright red, puffy and filled with tears. She had tear streaks on her perfect, pale face and her ginger hair was tousled up like Harry's, "What's going on?"

"You have to come now. Something's happened." Ginny said as a single tear rolled down her pale face. 

   Hermione got up and changed her shorts into pants, grabbed her wand, and hurried behind Ginny, her dark-brown hair billowing behind her. She ran down the stairs to see the pale faces of the Weasley family and Harry. 

"What's going on?" she asked, scared for the answer. 

"It's Charlie." Molly Weasley choked out, "He's..." she couldn't finish the sentence as she started out sobbing, clinging to her husband as Ginny clung onto her. It was Harry who answered Hermione. 

"Charlie's dead." and a gasp exited Hermione's mouth but Harry continued, "He's hung outside. Only Mr. Weasley and I have gone out to look. It has a note on it but anyone who touches it gets cursed. The letter is dedicated to one person, but we can't figure out who." Harry finished with a solemn look on his face. 

   Hermione looked over to Ginny who had stopped crying after she heard about the letter. Her face had gotten considerably paler and panic-stricken as it didn't have that fresh, youthful glow to it anymore. 'Could it be for me?' Ginny mouthed to Hermione. The brunette shrugged, scared. 

"Let's find out." Hermione announced to the group and everyone's head snapped up to her. 

"She's right." Fred stated as he wiped his nose on his sleeve. 

"We have to figure out what that note is about." George finished as he stood up from where he was sitting. 

   The Weasley clan, along with Harry and Hermione trudged outside to where Charlie's body was hung along with the note. Mrs Weasley took one look at her son's decapitated body and ran inside who was followed by Bill, the oldest. The rest of the Weasley's tried not to look at the body and instead focused on the note. 

   Hermione walked up to the small, folded piece of parchment and touched but was shocked. She looked over to Ginny and nodded to her. The ginger haired girl slowly made her way to note as she tried not to look at her brother's dead body. Tears sprung into her eyes as she touched the note and to her surprise, it didn't shock her. Ginny grabbed the letter and turned to face her family, they were all astonished. Ginny opened the letter and read it aloud;

   

You broke our deal, Ginerva Weasley. Now you will suffer the consequences, I will kill your entire family like ants under my shoe. Do not ever disobey Lord Voldemort.

   

   The note was not signed but everyone knew who it was from and once again, Ginny Weasley was put into a position where she had to obey or she would die.