The group of four were hanging on her every word, Hermione didn't disappoint. "Tom was disgusted by everything about his uncle, and enraged to discover his father was a muggle. He stunned his uncle, took his wand and headed for Riddle Manor. Like my Harry, Tom Riddle was a handsome boy - I saw him in Harry's memory when he faced the basilisk. Like my Harry too, Tom really resembled his father - that's where all similarities end. He murdered his father and grandparents using his uncle's wand. He even memory charmed his uncle to think he had committed those murders, his uncle died in Azkaban. Tom Riddle Junior also died that day, and Lord Voldemort was born."
Taking Harry's face in her hands, Hermione gently kissed him. With their foreheads touching, Hermione revealed more to their close support group than she intended. "We have access to all these memories, no one on the planet knows him as well as we do - and there lies the problem. My Harry keeps seeing these similarities in their lives, and is terrified he could go the same way…"
This caused an immediate reaction amongst the four adults, all proclaiming that would never happen. Harry and Hermione though were concentrating on each other, she'd felt her betrothed's revulsion as she mentioned quite innocuous similarities between Tom and him. Hermione knew instinctively this was something they had to completely quash, otherwise it would eat away at him. 'You are mine. You will be my husband, the father of our children, this needs to end now. My dad wants a gun, and training to use it, so he can put a bullet into any Death Eater that comes near his family - does that make him dark?'
'Of course it doesn't…'
'And our actions against them don't make us dark either. We know what they are, and our actions are an appropriate response to these monsters. You need to let this go love, I can feel it lurking at the back of your mind. If it consumes you, then I will be next. I won't leave you, I'll be your Dark Lady if that's what it takes to stay by your side…'
That was like striking a bull's eye, her Harry would never allow that to happen. With another quick peck on the lips, they joined the real world to find themselves being confronted by an angry Sirius.
"I was raised in a dark family. I ran away and was taken in by the Potters. For the first time in my life, I saw how a real family operated. Harry, you are not dark, and never will be while you have Hermione, your family and your friends. I'm so sorry for the burden you both carry around with you but prouder than I can say of the way you're handling things. People who are going dark don't burst their arses spending a fortune to open a new school that will help witches and wizards."
Bill and Amelia voiced their agreement before Remus had the last word on the matter. "I think we're all guilty of forgetting you're not yet fourteen, and that's one hell of a burden for anyone to carry. I wish we could share that burden but you are far better having Hermione in your head than say Sirius. Now that could turn you crazy - never mind dark."
While Remus achieved his objective of putting smiles on their faces, Amelia was all business. "I need to know if you're both up for this today. If not, or not even one hundred percent certain, we need to cancel. These horcruxes are not things that can be taken for granted."
Harry and Hermione put their game faces on. "Amelia, we got this. Our bond is new, but unbelievably important to us both. Hermione was just dealing with something before it could become a problem. If Dumbledore had taken that attitude with Riddle, we wouldn't be stood here now."
As Harry and Hermione approached a solid oak door, both thought this was easily the most sturdy part of the structure. Harry wondered what was holding the rest of the house up, until Hermione quipped back a one word answer - magic!
The dead snake hanging from the door wasn't just there to put anyone off who made it past the notice-me-not charms that were on the building and surrounding area, it was also a guardian for most of the defences Voldemort had set on the house. Harry giving the password in parseltongue saw all but one of those defences disabled.
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