As Delilah walked into the kitchen the next morning, she got a few questioning glances, but no one commented on the matter of the previous night. Good, she thought.

  Was it's cruel of her? Undoubtedly. Did she regret it? Not at all.

  Elio died with a gash through his chest, she thought it only fair Aleksander lived through the pain Elio was saved from feeling. She didn't kill the boy, but she made sure it felt like he did.

  Eventually Tom came down, also sparing Delilah a glance before he poured himself a cup of tea. Everyone was staring at him, waiting. He had been calling all the shots for so many years, and despite how much most of them claimed to hate him, they were lost.

  He took a tentative sip, the liquid burning his tongue and it was bitter, he didn't mind. "We have a lot to discuss," he eventually said. Pyrrhus scoffed under his breath as he took a bite of toast, "that's an understatement."

  Tom didn't bother to glare at the boy. He hadn't the energy. Nor did he feel the need to. After the funeral, something shifted. His relationship with everyone shifted. Even they could admit, they no longer saw Tom as the tyrant he so often posed as. Finally, they saw a boy who could care, and who could lead.

  Out of everything that's happened, it was reassuring.

  He looked at Delilah, "you didn't kill Eques, did you?" Tom's tone was casual, as if he was asking her if there was any sugar left for his tea. She picked at a thread on her jumper that she'd put on over her nightie and shook her head, "no, he's still unconscious though." Tom nodded, "good."

  After all, Tom was the one who wanted to deal the final blow.

  Delilah nearly let herself smile but she caught sight of Olive. Her heart broke for the girl. Of the two boys she let herself love, they ended up breaking her. Delilah worried she'd never let herself love again, and at the moment she couldn't blame her.

  Turning to the rest of the group, Tom sighed and set the cup down behind him on the counter with a clink of the china. "Main issue, Grindelwald knows who we are, what we want, he knows everything."

  Lolita shifted uncomfortably, gripping Cain's hand, "what does everything entail?"

  "I mean everything, he's a seer. And from what Delilah and I've witnessed, what he has planned for the future, muggle and magic alike, is pure destruction."

  Every one's nerves seemed to sharpen the air to a sting, making limbs jittery and hearts skip beats. "And what does that mean?" Olive asked, pushing the eggs around on her plate absentmindedly. She looked ill. Her skin sallow and her once perfect hair a frizzed mess.

  Tom and Delilah shared a glance, he reached for her, something he had always been afraid of doing. But the time to be idle was gone now, now was the time to act without thought of consequence. He wanted her by his side, and by god, he'd have her.

  His arm wrapped around her waist and she fell into him, the contact giving her a boost of energy she wasn't aware she needed. She rested against him, and cleared her throat, "Grindelwald's after the Deathly Hallows."

  There was a mix of confused glances and slumped shoulders, the boys in particular looked crestfallen. "What're the Deathly Hallows?" Lolita asked, gauging in her fiancé's troubled expression. "To make it vague, they're three objects made by Death himself. And if one collects all three, they become the Master of Death." Delilah felt a headache coming over her, she couldn't believe just how messed up everything had become.

  "Lovely," Olive said with a satiric sigh. "So now we have a mad man who can tell the future running after objects that will make him all powerful. Could it get any worse?" Delilah knew the question was rhetorical, and she hated to have to tell her that yes, it most definitely could get worse.

  "He already has one of the objects," Cain mumbled as he bit into a muffin. "Merlin," Lolita rested her elbows on the table and buried her head in her hands. Never in a million years did she think she'd end up on a War Lord's hit list, and with her fiancé no doubt.

  "Grindelwald currently possesses the Elder Wand. That leaves the Invisibility Cloak and the Resurrection Stone." Tom looked down at Delilah, how she was standing between his legs as he leaned against the counter, both in their pajamas. This setting was perhaps the most normal they'd ever get.

  "Do we have any clue where the other two are?" Abraxas asked, they all turned, not realizing he had been standing in the doorway. Tom shook his head, "we know the cloak is with the Peverell line and the stone hasn't been seen in well over a hundred years."

  There was a collective sigh and for a moment everyone either fell back into silence or dull conversation. Delilah turned to look at Abraxas as he fixed himself a cup of tea. "How's Aurora?" She asked.

  He shrugged one shoulder, adding a bit of honey to his tea before bringing it to his lips. "She's asleep, it's been a lot, as for everyone. She sort of got thrown into the middle of it all." Guilt laced his tone and she couldn't help the empathetic frown that brought her lips downward.

  "I shouldn't have let her come with," he said after a moment. Tom shook his head, looking at Abraxas for a moment and he took in how truly tired everyone looked. "I shouldn't have let any of you come with me, it was reckless." Delilah squeezed his arm, the one that was wrapped around her shoulders and rested across her sternum. "None of this was your fault."

  "I know that, but I still had a responsibility," he paused for a moment. He was used to voicing such thoughts to Delilah is the safety of privacy, but now they were around other ears. She turned in his hold, her gaze soft and the rich blue of her eyes set a blanket of reassurance over him.

  Tom looked at Abraxas, "I should've known better than to drag you all into this mess, it was selfish and I apologize. Truly, you've suffered enough by my hand." The blond's eyes widened in what was clearly shock.

  Part of Abraxas wanted to say it was okay, all was forgiven, but it wasn't. There'd be a lifetime in front of him before he truly forgave Tom Riddle. Nonetheless, he appreciated the gesture, never expecting him to have apologized for his behavior in the first place.

  He nodded once, "okay." 

  Tom understood and returned the nod, he wasn't asking for forgiveness because he knew it wouldn't be granted. But he thought it was at least worth something that he amended his fault.

  "We have to stop him," Pyrrhus suddenly said, causing everyone to turn and look at the raven haired boy. "How exactly?" Olive asked, her legs draped over his lap. Out of all she's lost, at least she had him, her best friend. She'd be damned before she let his slip through her fingers.

  Pyrrhus shrugged, "we know what he's after, it's simple. Get to the rest of the Deathly Hallows before he does." He was met with scoffs of disbelief. "He already has one of them, regardless we'd be no match. You already saw what happened last time we were against him. We were powerless." Lolita chided, not sure if she was completely in the mood to charge headfirst into a potential bloodbath of Grindelwald's wrath.

  "Think of it," he sat up straight, "without the other two he can't win."

  There was muttered discussion that followed afterward, Abraxas falling into a debate with Cain and so forth. Delilah merely bit at her lip, her mind churning at what Pyrrhus had suggested. If only she could talk to Harry, ask him all that he knows about the Deathly Hollows. She's heard Hermione talk about it with him in hushed whispers numerous times.

  She suddenly went stiff against Tom's chest, the latter of which looked down at her with a brow raised. Dumbledore's offer. Delilah swallowed thickly, feeling as if honey coated her tongue and she gripped Tom's hand, "I need to talk to you."

  Leading him to the sitting room across the hall, she shut the French doors behind her and saw Tom waiting expectantly in the middle of the carpet. She sighed and shut her eyes, "hear me out."

  "Oh, Merlin." Exasperation laced his tone and he fell into one of the plush chairs that littered the room. "No, just listen, I know I'll sound crazy." She knelt in front of him, shaking his knee as if to build up the courage to just spit it out.

  "Dumbledore talked to me yesterday," she began slowly and he gestured for her to get on with it. "And he might have, no he did, offer to get me another time turner." Tom went eerily still, his gaze not wavering from her face. Fear gripped at his heart with an iron fist and he had to force himself to breathe. "Meaning?" He finally said, her dragging this out was killing him.

  "Meaning, now this is the crazy part," she stood up and sat on his lap, wrapping her arms around his neck. "If this is you trying to persuade me before you even tell me what you're scheming, it isn't going to work." He said flatly, though he did enjoy the feeling of her nails along his scalp as she ran a hand through his hair.

  Delilah rolled her eyes and slapped his chest, "no that's not what I'm doing. Anyway, I was thinking. If we got the time turner, we could go to the future and either get information about the Deathly Hollows and then return and use that knowledge to collect them. Or, we can search for them in the future and bring them back here."

  Tom blinked at her.

  "Are you out of your fucking mind?"

  She sighed, but she wasn't deterred. "Please, just consider it. In hindsight it's honestly not a bad idea. Come with me to talk to Dumbledore." At the mention of the man's name his nose scrunched in distaste. Yes, the old wizard had been helpful as of late, but that didn't mean Tom liked him. He never would.

  "Tom, listen to me." She placed two cool hands to his cheeks and their eyes locked, time freezing as they did so. "I know this plan is far fetched, and beyond mental. But it's the only one we've got, unless you've got any better ideas. Come with me to talk to Dumbledore, that'll give you time to mull it over."

  He bit his cheek, his thumb absentmindedly rubbing a circle into her hip. She could be very persuasive if she wanted to be. "Just us this time, I'm not dragging everyone else into this, not again," Tom started and she nodded her head in agreement.

  "Just us."

  "When do you plan to tell them?" He asked after a brief pause, twirling a strand of her golden hair around his finger. Delilah sighed as she glanced towards the french doors, she could hear the mumble of their conversations from the kitchen. "Soon." He looked at her pointedly, "I wouldn't wait long." Resting her head against his chest, she took a deep breath. Still, she tried not to worry. Tom handled the news she was from the future well, far better than she expected. So perhaps her telling the group, on her own terms, would also be easy. One could only hope. 

  Delilah knew they needed to get word to Dumbledore, and fast. He had departed back to Hogwarts yesterday, but she knew she couldn't trust an owl. The chances of a letter being intercepted was too high for comfort. "I need my wand," she began to get up but Tom's grip tightened and she raised a brow at him. "Do you need it immediately?" He asked, his tone lulling, she didn't know if it was her imagination but it sounded deeper.

  "Yes, immediately. Unless you want to do it?"

  He tilted his head to the side, "do what?" Just then she remembered she never actually got to see him cast the charm, and the eagerness seemed to show on her face as he shot her a questioning glance.

  "Send a patronus to Dumbledore."

  Tom didn't even blink as he shook his head, "I'm not doing that." She pouted and he had the sudden urge to bite her lip, instead he settled for tracing her bottom lip with his thumb. A shiver went through her but she pushed forward, "why not?" He shrugged halfheartedly, but not giving her an answer. Delilah paused after a moment, "can you cast one?"

  "Of course I can."

  "Then why not? I didn't spend all those weeks teaching you all for nothing."

  "I'd hardly call what you did teaching."

  "Tom."

  He sighed heavily. He could cast a patronus, he just felt... odd every time he did. It wasn't that he felt bad, far from it, every time he drew on the memory he felt elated. Tom just wasn't used to feeling a pure, raw moment of happiness. It confused him. Digging his wand out from his pocket, he cast her a long glance with his dark eyes before focusing.

  With a deep breath, he gestured forward with his wand, "expecto patronum." Tom's voice was but a whisper as the room began to shine in a pale white light, as if he was summoning the moon itself. Delilah squinted as the patronus took form, and once her vision came to, her mouth fell open.

  "Oh my god."

  He glanced at her, for some reason he was nervous, "what?"

  Delilah was staring wide eyed at the gray hound patronus pacing in front of them, awaiting an order. She pulled her tongue from the roof of her mouth, it felt like sand paper as she cleared her throat.  "Send this message to Albus Dumbledore, we request a meeting as soon as possible at Hogwarts, regarding the offer of the time turner. I have a plan, albeit it's stupid, but I have a plan regarding Grindelwald and the Deathly Hallows." With that the dog turned and ran straight through the wall.

  Her heart felt like it was slamming against her rib cage, begging to be let out just so the boy in front of her could hold it and witness what he was doing to her. 

  Her patronus was a gray hound.

  Turning to Tom, his worry faded at the sight of her grin. It was small, but it was enough. After all the pain they've endured she was still able to smile and a warmth bloomed inside of him, it buzzed, hot and alive with desire for nothing else in the world but her. 

  Burying a hand in her hair, he leaned forward and their lips slid into place against each other. He never would get used to kissing her, every time it felt as if poison was greeting his tongue, but the sweetest kind that numbed his mind and enriched his senses. 

  As he said, Tom wanted Delilah, and if she would let him, by all the gods he'd have her.