21: Hermione's Decision and Dippet's Plan

Hermione waited patiently as the rest of the class filed away. Once they were gone, she walked up to Newt Scamander. "May I ask you a question, sir?"

Kettleburn overheard her and hobbled over. The man's greasy black hair clumped to his scalp. His mustache twitched when he spoke. "Miss Norris, whatever question you have, I may be able to answer it."

Newt Scamander covered up his scoff by pretending it was a cough. Professor Kettleburn shot him an indignant look.

Hermione really didn't want Kettleburn there. She started to fidget on the balls of her feet and forced her face to redden. "It's kinda private, sir."

Professor Kettleburn's mustache twitched as he smiled. He nodded knowingly to her before parting ways.

Newt turned a keen gaze onto her. "What was your question Miss Norris since I can assume that you are not professing your feelings toward me since you already have someone."

Hermione ignored that last statement. "It's more of a favor than a question." Newt signaled for her to continue with a wave of his hand. "I need to find someone but I can't do it myself nor can I let anyone know."

Newt cocked his head, considering her words. "Who is it you need to find?"

Hermione wrung her hands together. "This is going to sound strange but I need to find the real Hermione Norris."

Newt blinked slowly before nodding. "Is there a place I should start from?"

Hermione blanched at his words. He wasn't going to ask her to explain? "You're not going to ask me why I'm looking for myself?"

Newt's shoulder twitched when he shuffled his weight onto his other foot. "Your accent and phrasing is slightly different. You seem knowledgeable and to possess information that you should not. I would have concluded that you were a spy but then I saw your sleeve ride up during one class." Hermione's face redden and she gave her arm a nervous glance. "Don't worry, no one else saw. From the evidence that I have seen, you are from the future, though I'm not sure by how long and I do not wish to know."

"You really are a genius."

"Just observant," stated Newt.

"Dumbledore told me that the Norris' resided in France. I'm not sure which city. Dumbledore also never mentioned them having a daughter. I had to find out through Riddle." Hermione shuddered when she mentioned Riddle. It wasn't from distaste but because she had been sent to the past because she happened to have the same name as someone from his memories.

Newt nodded in thought. "I must have read the body language from you and Mr. Riddle wrong. I am much better at reading creatures than people" mused Newt. Before Hermione could ask him what he meant by those words, Mr. Kowalski stumbled upon them. His pudgy face was covered in boils.

Newt flicked his wand without interest and the boils disappeared. Kowalski rubbed his face. "Magic is awesome."

. . . .

"Come in," rang Dippet's voice from beyond the door.

Tom pushed open the door to the headmaster's office. Summer was just around the corner and that meant the end of the school year. For Tom, that meant he had to go back to the orphanage. He tried to get one of his followers to allow him to stay with them and their family during the summer but all of their parents had refused. Tom's last resort was to ask Dippet if he could stay at Hogwarts. It was the same as every year. He already knew what Dippet would tell him but he had to at least try.

"Sir, it's about this summer."

Dippet looked up from the letter he was reading. "Tom, you know I can't allow students to stay at Hogwarts during the summer." Dippet shook his head causing white hair to fly around. The gesture reminded Tom of Hermione. He grimaced on the inside. Now was not the time to be thinking of that irking Gryffindor.

"You are a smart lad. Try asking some of your friends. I'm sure they will help you."

Tom sighed inwardly at his growing annoyance. "Yes, sir. I have already tried that option."

Dippet folded his wrinkled hands on the desk. "You must not have asked everyone then."

Tom opened his mouth to argue but closed it. The old man was right. Tom hadn't asked all of his friends. Well, technically she was his only friend. The others were just followers.

Dippet must have seen the change in Tom because he chuckled. "I believe you have someone to find."

Tom couldn't believe his ears. The old man was hinting that Tom should ask Hermione. He wasn't sure what the headmaster was playing at but he will obligely play along for now to see where it led him.

He said his farewells before slipping out. He glided down the stairs heading for the library. Hermione spent just as much time there as Tom did. He wasn't a betting man but he figured that if Hermione was anywhere, she would be in the library.

There was a reason Tom wasn't a betting man.

Hermione wasn't in the library, nor was she in the Great Hall, or out in the courtyard. The next place he decided to look was the Gryffindor Tower though he wasn't sure how he would be able to find out if she was there or not. Tom sighed with the realization that he might have to charm a female student. The thought put a sour taste in his mouth.

It must have been his lucky day because Lucretia was just walking down the moving staircase.

"Miss Black?"

Lucretia smiled when she saw him. "You can call me Lucretia, Tom." She emphasized his name to make her point.

He sighed. These bloody Gryffindors. "Lucretia," said Tom and was quite pleased with himself when he detected no distasteful tone in his words. "Have you seen Hermione?"

Lucretia tilted her head in thought. Black curls cascaded down her pale shoulders. Tom found himself wishing they were brown. What was with him?

Tom first noticed the change in him when he recalled that blasted memory. Ever since he connected Hermione to the kind woman in his youthful memories, emotions had started to swell within him. They were a small well at first but with each passing week, a bucket was added, slowly yet rapidly increasing that well. He just wasn't sure what he was feeling. He could only recognize anger, detachment, and pride. Now, he had all these new emotions with no name to put to them.

Lucretia finally shook her head. "I haven't seen her since her Care of Magical Creatures class." She smiled warmly and her blue eyes sparkled. "When you find her, tell her that I want to speak with her." She absentmindedly rubbed her belly.

Tom nodded with a polite smile. "I will and I hope you will do the same." After Lucretia nodded in affirmation, he took his leave.

If she wasn't in the Great Hall, the library, the courtyard, or the Gryffindor Tower, then where was she?

His feet shuffled down the corridors,  school robes bellowing in his quick procession. Where else did she like to go?

Tom stopped and could have slapped himself in the forehead. A tracking spell. Why didn't he think of that before? He muttered the incantation and followed the blue light that shot out of his wand.

The light led him out of the castle. He walked down to the slope that led to the caretaker's hut. He thought the light was leading him there but it shot past the hut and into the Forbidden Forest. Of course, the Thestrals.

The light bobbed in between trees and through shrubbery. After a few minutes of the fast pace, Tom felt his hair becoming sticky with sweat. After a few minutes, the light burst through into a clearing. The clearing was larger than the one Hermione normally went to. This one also had a lake.

Hermione was sitting down near the edge of a lake, no Thestrals in sight. What was she doing there and how did she find it?

Hermione whirled around with her wand drawn when Tom purposely stepped on a twig. "Tom?"

He felt his heart rate pick up and heat pull in his abdomen when she said his name. After the picnic she had finally started addressing him by his first name.

"Finally. Do you know how long it took me to find you?" Tom didn't care that he sounded slightly breathless, he was more worried about the fact that he sounded worried. "No, I suppose you don't," huffed Tom.

Hermione lowered her wand and patted the ground beside her. Tom made his way to her and sat down with as much grace as he could muster. "Did you want something?"

Tom laid back on his hands. "I'm not sure how much you know about me but I come from a muggle orphanage. I really don't want to go back but it's against the rules to stay at Hogwarts during the summer."

"So, you're asking me if you could stay with me and Dippet," concluded Hermione. "Why don't you ask one of your followers." She bit the words out as if they tasted awful.

Tom looked over at her but she faced the pond. That unruly brown hair of hers obscured his view of her. "I already have," admitted Tom. "None of them are able to."

Hermione sighed and laid back on the palms of her hands, matching Tom. "I'll ask, but I can't guarantee an answer you will like."

Tom waited but when she made no move to get up, he nudged her. She cast him a quick look and an amused expression flashed across her face. "Let me guess, you want me to do it now."

He nodded. It was a good thing she was smarter than his followers. He would have been waiting hours before they figured that out while it only took a second for Hermione.

She shook her head in amusement, causing those frizzy tangles to bounce. Tom found himself watching them in their dance, missing Hermione taking out her wand. A silver otter appeared.

"You can conjure a patronus?" Tom couldn't keep the admiration out of his voice.

Hermione nodded. "I can teach you over the summer if Dippet agrees to let you stay with us." She turned to her patronus. "Find Armando Dippet and ask him if it is alright for Tom to stay with us over summer break." The otter leaped playfully into the air and swam around her before darting off.

They only had to wait for a few minutes before a paper butterfly appeared. Hermione plucked it out of the air before Tom could grab it. She unfolded and read over it.

"Well?" Tom was growing impatient.

"He says well done on the patronus and that he is proud of me."

"Quit teasing me," growled Tom though he noted that his voice didn't sound harsh.

"You're like an impatient child," chuckled Hermione. "If you must know, he said yes."

In his elation, Tom hugged Hermione. It was only a half-hug that only lasted a second, but a hug nonetheless. He wouldn't have to travel back to that god forsaken place.

Hermione stared at him with large brown eyes. A light blush dusted her freckled cheeks. How had Tom not realized she had freckles?