Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, it is the property of the brilliant J.K Rowling. This story is the product of her marvellous characters and world and my imagination.

1. Slughorn's Christmas Party - 1944

She doesn't want to be at Slughorn's party.

(She doesn't want to be in 1944 either).

She's not fond of Slughorn. He's too much of a collector, too unfair in his treatment of students and far too surprised (and not in a good way) when he discovers she's a muggleborn.

Death Eater material he is not (too cowardly, too determined to stay neutral) but prejudiced he certainly is, even if not in the more obvious way that others are.

But she's supposed to be blending in and Dumbledore says that no one turns down Slughorn's coveted invitations and the influence he can use on their behalf.

Dumbledore's not much use to her at the moment. He won't let her speak a word about the future in his presence because of timelines and not changing things. He doesn't hear what she tries to explain – this isn't a normal time-turner accident. She's been erased from her own time and placed in the 1940s. The timeline will be different anyway so why can't she change things for the better.

But Dumbledore, even now, is inflicted with the same problem his older self had – the staunch belief that he is almost always right and that his way of proceeding is obviously the best one.

So she's trapped in the past trying to work out the best way to stop two horrific wizarding wars and she's stuck with an unhelpful Dumbledore and, of course, a budding dark lord.

Tom Riddle. She's heard about his looks and charms and magical prowess from Harry, Ginny and Dumbledore in her old time, but it doesn't prepare her to see him in the flesh.

He's evil, she knows, but he's also so clever and powerful and the sort of guy that she might fall in love with if he wasn't a psychopath.

He notices her of course. She gets the feeling that he notices everything unusual. She tries to seem as normal as possible but her arrival is so strange that everyone talks.

She momentarily considers trying to appear more average academically, but Riddle strikes her as the sort who would just see through her and besides, she can't bring herself to do it. It would pain her to act less intelligently and gall her to not at least try and compete with Riddle.

She can't decide if he hates her. He certainly seems irritated when she gets a correct answer before him but she also detects interest and a look in his eyes that she recognises – she knows it appears in her own expression when she finds someone with the same passion for learning that she has.

He asks her to Slughorn's ball but she turns him down immediately, thankful that she's managed to get a date with a fellow Gryffindor seventh year – William Potter, a cousin of Harry's grandfather. Riddle scowls and stalks off in silence, but Hermione senses he may cause trouble.

William loses all the bones in his legs in a freak accident (not that Hermione believes that) the evening of the party. Skelegrow can fix it, but he has to stay in the Hospital Wing overnight. Rumours whisper it was a spell gone wrong while some of the Gryffindors were practicing Duelling but Hermione knows better when she sees Riddle's smirk.

She goes alone to the party. William is unconscious so she doesn't have an excuse to visit him and miss it.

Riddle is there with his band of sycophants. He asks her to dance and she refuses.

He asks her again while his minions loom and his pale hand grips her wrist painfully.

She agrees.

He smiles like he's an angel as they sway and twirl but it doesn't fool her. She stays silent and stony-faced during the song but he doesn't seem to care. When it's over he thanks her and kisses her hand.

She flees to her dormitory.

2. Seventh Year Graduation Ball – 1945

Hermione wonders when the tradition of the Hogwarts Graduation Ball ended and why it had.

No one she knew had ever mentioned it and it comes as quite a surprise when, following exams, the entire seventh year can talk of nothing but the ball.

It wasn't just the girls who were excited. The ball was not only a chance to dress up for one last party with your year, but each one is apparently spectacular, with beautiful decorations and great music. There are also a number of guests to give students the chance to mix with possible future employers. It is a big deal.

Hermione is dreading it.

She lies to dress up once in a while but it isn't much fun without all her friends. She's made acquaintances in her own House, some she quite likes, but she hasn't got friends like Harry, Ron, Ginny, Neville and Luna. She's lonely and would rather not spend a night bored while everyone reminisces about events she wasn't there for.

She also dreads Tom Riddle, who she is sure will use the busy event to finally manoeuvre her away from everyone for the 'private chat' he's constantly insisting on.

She's avoided it so far but she can tell he's losing patience and nothing good ever happened with an irritable dark lord around.

She doesn't think he's worked out her time-travel origins yet, but he definitely knows that there is something different about her and she's got no doubt that he'll figure the truth out soon.

She only hopes she's graduated and has found a place to hide before he does.

He asks her to the ball and she says no just as she did for Slughorn's Christmas party.

She's more irritable than usual. Dumbledore is still insistent on preserving the sanctity of the timelines and she's starting to consider sending a Howler to his office to shout out future knowledge to him so that he'll listen.

She's curt and snappish in her reply to Riddle but he doesn't seem to mind.

That should have been her first warning.

…..

The Graduation Ball opens with the Head Boy and Girl dancing together, and Hermione is ever thankful that her only being present in this time for less than a year means she never got the chance to be Head Girl.

But a day before the ball Eugenia Fawcett, the Head Girl, comes down with a rare strain of Dragon Pox. No one can say quite how she managed to get it but she is removed immediately to St Mungo's for treatment. She'll live without any negative side effects but she won't be out of the hospital for at least two weeks.

Headmaster Dippet therefore announces his brilliant idea – instead of the Head Boy and Girl opening the ball, the top scoring male and female students should. This is Tom Riddle of course … and Hermione.

She curses herself for not following through on her plan to be more average and when she looks at Riddle's expression she knows two things – Eugenia's illness is not a tragic twist of fate and Headmaster Dippet did not come up with his idea alone.

She wants to curse Riddle but she's fairly sure he won't hesitate to curse her back.

Instead she smiles stiffly at the crowd of students, teachers and visitors who watch them waltz and tries to ignore Slughorn's loud proclamations of what a charming couple they are and Riddle's hand sliding lower down her back every moment.

He watches her covetously. She tries not to shiver in fear. They dance in silence.

3. Nott Industries Annual Summer Gala – 1947

Dumbledore finally listens to her warnings about Tom Riddle a few months after graduation, once she has resorted to using the Howler. While he silences it quickly he cannot un-hear what he hasn't been quick enough to silence.

He maintains, though, that Riddle has not yet acted in a way that can incriminate him and that there is no proof that the incidents that had occurred during his time at Hogwarts were his fault.

He encourages Hermione to accept the job offer she receives from Nott Industries (an offer Riddle is no doubt responsible for) as a means to keep an eye on Riddle.

While the job is actually amazing she doesn't appreciate being used as bait of sorts or having to spend time with Riddle, who is also coincidentally employed in the same department as she is – a department that includes only the two of them and a supervisor who is almost never around.

She is changing things already. Riddle should have been working in Borgin & Burkes but instead he is with her at Nott Industries.

That means it is possible. She's been a bit unsure before now, not quite positive that she can and she is determined to keep doing so. If she can stop the war then so much can be better.

She starts by talking. Trading her stony silences for questions about his opinions on various laws, magical creatures and spell classifications. He opens up quite easily about his belief that there is no dark and light magic, only power. She can see his point (he reasons well) but she can't understand why he has to be so radical about it, nor can she accept his views on muggleborns.

Because there's no real reason for blood prejudice. Purebloods have a slight advantage in knowing about magic, but muggleborns, having gone to school, are often ahead in certain areas thanks to a well-rounded education. She knows his opinions are probably only for the sake of his pureblood friends and born from the anger he feels for muggles but she also knows he's persuasive – surely they can be convinced by the idea of power over purity.

She's not quite sure how she went from trying to talk him out of world domination to attempting to make his world domination plans fairer but she'd rather not think about it.

He's surprisingly tolerant of her efforts. Oh he argues fiercely back and turns every one of her points back on her but he does listen, which means a lot coming from someone she's often seen dismissing almost everyone else as idiots.

…..

She misses her first Nott Industries Summer Gala due to illness. She is of course not actually sick (she's got an excellent immune system) but she can't face being around Riddle and his sycophants and everyone looking at her with awe or jealousy or fear because Riddle, once in a blue moon, actually listens to and agrees with her ideas.

She has to attend her second Gala – it'll look suspicious if she's ill two years in a row, especially since she's never taken a sick day otherwise (she has a fear that if she's away even one day Riddle will corrupt all her ideas into ones that suit his evil agenda, plus she does actually like her job).

Besides, Riddle has a look in his eyes that suggests he'll break down her wards and drag her there if she doesn't show.

Riddle asks her to go with him to the Gala. She refuses. It seems almost tradition now.

She turns up and has quite a bit of fun despite her misgivings.

But when the dancing starts she has the urge to flee. She looks around for an escape but Riddle, of course, appears next to her and puts a possessive hand around her waist.

He leads her to the dancefloor despite her protests and refuses to accept silence. He goads her into talking and they dance through five songs and a number of debates on House Elves, the Unforgiveables, spell creation and the pitfalls of the Hogwarts curriculum.

She won't admit that she has a good time with him.

4. Abraxas Malfoy & Ariadne Rosier's Engagment Party – 1949

She's never dreamed of being invited to a Malfoy party.

Yet she knows she should have expected this. Abraxas Malfoy is one of Tom's (yes, he's Tom now – she thought it would irritate him to be called by his 'common' name but now she sort of likes it, Merlin help her) loyal servants and good friends with Arsenius Nott – their companies are thankfully involved in different areas and avoid rivalry.

Abraxas' engagement to Ariadne Rosier is big society news and the engagement party is bigger than the state balls of many countries. Hermione receives her invitation with resigned trepidation.

She rather likes Abraxas. He's not as nasty as his son or grandson and he doesn't seem to mind much that she's a muggleborn – partly due to Tom's control but also because he actually seems to like her. He enjoys a good debate and he has a great interest in ancient magical texts, a topic she also enjoys. For one of Tom's minions he's surprisingly good company.

She thinks it must be from his mother that Lucius Malfoy got most of his undesirable qualities. Ariadne is haughty, a huge blood purist, and hungry for both power and money. She has brains, which makes her even worse as she puts them to use in exclusively cruel ways. There are rumours that she killed a rival for marriage to Abraxas and while Hermione is fairly certain that story is merely a rumour, not much would surprise her about Ariadne.

One doesn't refuse an invitation from the Malfoys. Society would crucify her if she did and she can't afford to have people look too closely at her, not with Tom already knowing too much (he's got the time-travel bit, but he thankfully hasn't figured out exactly when she's from yet).

She has no desire to enter Malfoy Manor but no choice either.

Tom asks to be her date. She doesn't even need to verbally refuse now – a look alone does it.

…..

She's edgy the week before the ball. Work is tense – Tom is working on some nasty experiments under the guise of 'research' and she's got a horrible feeling he's responsible for the four wizards and two witches who went missing recently.

"All near-Squibs," he says carelessly when he sees the headline in the Daily Prophet, "why does anyone even care."

His cavalier attitude shakes her and reminds her that he is a wizard to be feared, not fixed.

So she researches half a dozen untraceable poisons and a number of muggle murder methods that magic can't trace.

She's so disgusted by herself that she goes to see Dumbledore, who offers lemon drops and rambles on about forgiveness and how he thinks she's doing rather well with Tom. She supposes he has a point – as far as Hermione can tell he's made no other Horcruxes since the diary and ring, and she thinks she may have influenced his opinions a little. But he's still killing, still creating and using terrible spells.

He's still a monster.

…..

So she doesn't want to dance with him at the engagement party. She partners Abraxas (Ariadne glares), Arsenius Nott, Ares Avery and countless others, but never him.

She skilfully avoids him every time he appears and hides out in different parts of the ballroom, forever thankful that it looks much different now than it did when Bellatrix tortured her.

Finally, though, when the last dance is announced, he appears out of nowhere and waves his hand.

She damns him and his skill at wandless, non-verbal magic.

Because now she can't seem to move more than a foot away. Not only that but he is clearly the leader in the spell – any movement of his tugs her but she can't affect him or move away herself.

She's forced to dance with him and scowl at his triumphant expression.

She'll get him back for this.

5. The Serpent Restaurant – 1950

She gets her revenge for Tom's spell at Abraxas' engagement party and she thinks it's especially deserved considering he refused to lift it once the dancing was over and only let her free two hours later when the party finally finished.

She disliked being stuck next to him and she especially hated how she couldn't unravel the spell herself. Tom is many things but a sloppy spell caster is not one of them.

In retaliation she goes on the offensive and does her level best to destroy (in a way that will seem accidental and completely unconnected to her) all of Tom's unsavoury research and dangerous, dark projects.

She knows it's petty and childish and probably a bad idea in the long run but she's angry and a Gryffindor – the combination doesn't really equal subtle.

He knows it's her, she can tell. Yet he says nothing, only looks coldly at her in a way that makes her a little afraid. She feels like prey and she doesn't like it at all.

But she keeps on. She's doing the world a favour anyway because no one needs the dangerous, painful spells that Tom creates – there's enough of them in existence anyway.

"I never took you as one to halt progress," Tom says to her, crowding her as he likes to do in an attempt to intimidate her (it works even though she refuses to admit it).

"There's progress and then there's being a psychopath," she replies promptly, not even looking at him.

He's silent and she looks up to see him watching her. She sighs, "you've got so much potential Tom, why do you waste it trying to hurt people."
He laughs, high and cold and too much like his future insane self for comfort, "I am not the one wasting my talents Hermione. You could be a queen."

"I've never much wanted a crown," she says quietly before leaving the room.

She wonders if he's too far gone on his hunt for power to be saved.

…..

Her actions obviously irritate him too much, or else he sees an opportunity to exploit, because he blackmails her into dinner by threatening to tell Arsenius Nott about all the work she's sabotaged. She knows he has no proof but she also knows Nott will do whatever Tom asks and fire her without question.

"Whether or not my work offends your delicate sensibilities Hermione, it would have made the company a lot of money. Arsenius won't be happy."

She can't afford to lose the job that allows her to keep an eye on the budding dark lord so she accepts defeat in this particular matter and goes to dinner with the devil.

He takes her to The Serpent, the most elite restaurant in wizarding Britain. It's got a minimum of a year's waiting list but of course Tom gets them in on two days' notice.

It's far more upscale than she's comfortable with, which is probably his intention, but she does feel pretty in her dark green silk dress (Tom again – his blackmail means she has little choice but to wear it and she won't admit that she loves it) and with her hair tamed for once.

The food is divine, Tom is charming and she's actually enjoying their riveting academic discussions.

Then music starts and he offers his hand to her and she remembers who it is she's dining with and refuses.

He only looks at her sharply and she realises that this is covered by the blackmail too. She stands reluctantly and takes his hand.

'The future of wizarding Britain,' she thinks, 'that is why I am dancing with a dark lord'.

But deep down she knows that isn't the only reason.

+ 1. The Ministry of Magic Annual Ball – 1951

Tom stops most of his unethical experiments, but he complains daily about it, wondering why she is so determined to help every downtrodden creature she can find.

"Because they deserve help," she argues back, "I knew a boy once who everyone called a near-Squib, but when he grew into his magic he was a force to be reckoned way. I knew a House Elf whose loyalty to a master who was kind helped stop a tyrant, and one whose oppression by a cruel master led him to actions that helped destroy that master. All those people and creatures you think aren't worth it have their own talents and it will be your loss if you overlook them."

Tom scoffs at her, "you are hopelessly naïve darling. I commend your examples but the exception proves the rule."

She scowls at his pet name but he takes no notice, "you shouldn't waste your potential trying to help every creature Hermione, you are capable of so much more."

She storms out then, unable to take more of his elitism.

His voice echoes after her, "you know I'm right darling, one day you'll see it."

She hopes to Merlin he's wrong.

…..

"He doesn't care about helping people or creature rights or anything a decent person would be concerned about," Hermione rants to Dumbledore.

He looks at her with his usual serene expression, "my dear Miss Granger, you must know that there are many in our world with the same lack of care, a number of whom are good citizens. I do say that the measure of a man can be learned from how he treats his inferiors, and that is true my dear, but it takes time for some people to learn this. Tom has stopped his more morally ambiguous work, has he not?"

"So he says," Hermione admits, "but of course I don't trust that he's not just conducting them in secret."

"You have a good influence over him Miss Granger," says Dumbledore, "be patient and you'll see the results."

Hermione sighs. Dumbledore's platitudes are all well and good but he has never seen the destruction Voldemort had wrought in her old timeline (though now he hopefully never will). She thinks perhaps he's overcompensating after Grindelwald, trying to give Tom the chance to be something better that Grindelwald never took.

She's not sure she likes the burden on her shoulders – not when the price for failure is so high.

…..

After a while Hermione notices that those around her are treating her with more respect. Even Ariadne Malfoy nee Rosier sneers a little less.

Tom refuses to admit to anything but Abraxas cracks as soon as she offers him a rare ancient Egyptian text she found on a work trip abroad recently.

The Death Eaters, or Knights of Walpurgis as they are currently known, haven't been as active since Hermione arrived in the past, but they have still been discussing the future they desire for the wizarding world. They remain convinced that the current government is ineffective and restrictive but, Abraxas explains, Tom has been lately turning their thinking around regarding who should be in charge – now, he says, it is power that matters rather than blood.

The purebloods cannot go against Tom. He is fearsome, for one, and they also don't want to admit that they aren't powerful.

Hermione is more than a little shocked. Such a policy is still discriminatory in a way, but it is less racist and more likely to give everyone an opportunity for power if they work hard.

…..

Tom doesn't seem to understand why she's so pleased. He says it's only logical to ensure the government is no longer full of idiots.

He talks more openly now though, of his plans to bring muggleborns into the wizarding world earlier so they can learn about magic before they go to Hogwarts. He also talks of schools pre-Hogwarts to give all magical children, regardless of blood, some basic knowledge.

She's not stupid and she's aware that Tom is only talking to her of the plans she will approve of. She's sure there will be severe punishments for those who go against his ideas, and she knows his desire to loosen spell restrictions might cause serious dangers.

But at least he's being smarter and less insane about his plans now. Surely that's something good? There will be far less indiscriminate killing now, hopefully no wars at all.
She doesn't think she'll ever be able to stop Tom from taking power of some sort. At least his political ambitions are a saner, less bloody way to give him power, Because he's charming and handsome and clever, and she's got no doubt that he'll end up easily elected.

…..

She watches Tom as he mingles at the Ministry Ball, charming old and young, pureblood and muggleborn, rich and poor alike.

The current Minister for Magic, Wilhelmina Tuft, has been heard commenting about possibly retiring soon and Hermione would bet all of Abraxas' vast ortune that Tom will be the next Minister once Minister Tuft steps down.

Tom finally breaks away to come over to her about half an hour before the ball ends.

"Dance?" he asks her, as he always does.

She pauses before she can give her automatic refusal.

Tom isn't a good man and he probably won't ever be. But he's intelligent and powerful and a whole lot less murderous than he would have been without her influence.

And she realises that over the years she's actually come to like him. She realises that eventually she may even love him, crazy though that would make her.
So she takes his hand, "alright then."

He masks his surprise, she tries not to smile and they dance in contented silence.