Saul and Griezmann gave the hosts hope of a comeback before Isco's away goal ensured Real will face Juventus in Cardiff
A breathless, ferocious, compelling 90 minutes only served to deliver the same old ending in a fitting European goodbye to the Vicente Calderon.
Atletico Madrid threw everything at ending their Champions League curse against their nearest and dearest rivals, but it is Real who march onto the final once more.
For 42 minutes the impossible dream seemed on.
Saul Niguez powered home Koke's corner before Antoine Griezmann ended his penalty jinx against Real after Raphael Varane had upended Fernando Torres.
Atletico charged into every tackle, strained every sinew, but ultimately left themselves far too much to do in losing last week's first leg 3-0.
That much was confirmed when Real's standout player on the night Isco pounced three minutes before half-time to tap home after sensational skill from Karim Benzema in the build-up
A Real away goal left Atletico needing five, which they never threatened to get even if a first victory over Real in four attempts this season did slightly ease their pain.
1. Calderon will be missed
In its 50 years of history it is hard to imagine the Vicente Calderon has seen a night like this.
The special cauldron of an atmosphere that has swept aside Barcelona and Bayern Munich twice here in recent seasons was cranked up a few notches for the one European scalp still to allude Atletico.
Having lost out to Real in the Champions League for the past three years via a series of late goals and a penalty shootout, it was no surprise Atletico got so close before having their hearts broken once more.
They remain without a Champions League to their name and need to hope changing stadium doesn't mean their lose their fortress.
Atletico have now won 18 of their 22 Champions League games at home under Simeone.
2. Real cannot be stopped
Zinedine Zidane's men have now matched Bayern Munich's European record of scoring in 61 consecutive games stretching back to the first-leg of last year's semi-final against Manchester City.
Atletico had kept 17 clean sheets in their last 20 Champions League games at home.
Yet, not even Simeone's stalwarts have been able to halt the free-scoring Real machine in four attempts this season.
The ultimate challenge awaits Los Blancos in Cardiff, though, against a Juventus team that has conceded just three times in 12 games on route to the final.
3. Tifo tension spills over
The bad blood between the two sets of fans began before kick-off in the first-leg.
Real's fans provoked the Atletico faithful with a massive "how does it feel" banner with reference to their two final victories in the past three years.
A week of jibes followed with Atletico's players official Twitter account hailing their fans loyalty in the face of adversity with a few pointed elbows towards the Bernabeu.
Atletico's fans upped the ante with a tifo of their own stating: "Proud not to be like you."
However, that tension spilled over outside the ground as Real fans' buses were attacked with stones and bottles on their arrival.
4. Atleti performance a platform
After the disappointment of the meekness with which they were trounced last week, Simeone's men needed a performance that proved that can still go toe-to-toe with Madrid and Barcelona.
Uncertainty still clouds their immediate future.
The new 67,000 Wanda Metropolitano will struggle to be finished for the start of next season, whilst Inter Milan and Manchester United will do their best to poach Simeone and Griezmann respectively.
However, in Jan Oblak, Jose Maria Gimenez, Koke, Saul, Yannick Carrasco and Griezmann there is a brilliant young core to challenge at in La Liga and the Champions League for years to come.
5. Isco threatens Bale homecoming
Amidst a 90 minutes of pure madness, one man stood out for his calm amongst the pandemonium.
As Atletico crunched into tackles, clearing out anything that moved before them, Isco danced around them even as Real struggled to stand up to the hosts' early siege.
And in his most prolific season since joining Los Blancos four years ago, he even netted the vital away goal to settle the visitors' nerves just before half-time.
Gareth Bale should be fit in time for the final in just over three weeks.
But on the evidence of both legs against Atletico, it would be a crime if Isco was dropped to the bench to make way for the Welshman.
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