A/N: I was toying with this idea for awhile. It's incomplete and I was thinking I shouldn't even bother to write any chapters if it'll just be incomplete. Then I figured I was probably overthinking things. I've just been so out of energy and so unable to deal with personal issues that I really don't know what to do with myself. If you enjoy this and want to see more, please leave a review. If you don't enjoy it and want me to stop, please leave a review and I'll consider just removing it. This fic may never be complete and I hate doing that to readers since a large backlog of my favorite fanfics remain incomplete from writers here. If you want to use this idea, feel free! I would gladly read another fanfic that utilizes this concept.
Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling and is her masterful work. It is not mine. :(
The first sign that a crucial aspect was amiss came a few days after Harry Potter's birthday.
"Albus!" spoke the voice in the fireplace. Dumbledore looked over from his paperwork to see Ollivander's head illuminated in the fiery green of the fireplace. "It's urgent! I need to build a custom wand and I think I'll require another phoenix feather from Fawkes."
Dumbledore's eyebrows knotted but he wordlessly gave a nod.
Ah, the young Longbottom boy and his grandmother may have chosen to shop late for supplies. So both boys must have identical wand cores to Tom's wand. Intriguing . . .
Albus Dumbledore smiled and sat comfortably in his chair as he witnessed young Harry become sorted into Gryffindor. Everything is in place. Young Harry will begin his Hogwarts journey and learn to become a hero and savior so that Voldemort will be vanq-
"Riddle, Delphini!" shouted the Deputy Headmistress in a Scottish accent.
Dumbledore froze and slowly moved his head to see a petite raven haired and grey-eyed girl take her seat on the stool. He blinked. Impossible . . .
Albus stopped himself from gaping and stared stonily at the fidgeting little girl from his high chair. Her posture betraying her anxiousness and worry. How could Tom have a child?! He . . . he . . . Well, I wouldn't put it past him to force himself on someone but . . . Why would she be named Riddle? Could it be a coincidence? Tom was the only Magical person in Britain with the name Riddle from what I could find through my sources. I'll need more information.
The hat remained silent for around the same length of time as it had for Harry. Curious . . . it is not often that the Sorting Hat finds more than one place for a child. Only children who already have exceptional personalities, both positive and negative, ever have to choose between Houses. Perhaps -?
"SLYTHERIN!"
Dumbledore sighed and clapped along with the rest of the school. A modicum of anxiety swelled within him as he watched the petite girl shyly make her way to the House of Snakes.
There is nothing to fear, she's just another student. But . . . I must find out more about her circumstances.
A week later, Dumbledore sat in his seat, remaining silent with his eyes glazed over as he thought about the future of Harry Potter and tried to simmer his growing anxiety over the mysterious Delphini Riddle. He could find no information about her. His eyes finally looked over to the person pacing in front of him. The tea on his desk had become cold in his brooding and he decided to steep his fingers.
He saw his potions professor continue his moronic tirade or some such about Harry Potter.
"Severus, the young Harry Potter is not the sole reason why I summoned you," said Dumbledore, he sighed as the idiot went on another of his tirades about James Potter and Harry's apparent arrogance. Sweet Merlin, I'd have thought he would be able to move past his boyhood memories and find himself someone to settle down with. Have I ever met anyone in my life who was this pathetic over an unrequited love?
Dumbledore's eyes widened with a start as he realized there was only one person who matched Severus in this regard; Albus Dumbledore himself and his unrequited love for Gellert Grindlewald. Albus refrained from putting a palm to his face and sighed once again.
"Sit down, Severus." It was an order, not a request.
Severus finally seemed to snap out of his idiotic tangent and sat across from the Headmaster. Dumbledore shot him a pointed gaze. Honestly, with the length of time he goes on about James Potter, I'm tempted to question whether he didn't harbor feelings of love for James too.
Albus suppressed that thought. Severus had begun coming to his office to vent his frustrations about James Potter's son coming to Hogwarts and Albus had to stop himself from sarcastically asking whether Severus had romantic feelings for James Potter and just buried it under his hatred. Enough of that nonsense, I must stay focused on important matters.
"Now, tell me more about Delphini Riddle," said the Headmaster, "How has she been adjusting to Hogwarts?"
"The Muggle-born?" questioned Severus, his eyes widened in surprise. Albus suppressed a frown. "Not well, I'm afraid. Young Malfoy has seen fit to become the center of attention in Slytherin House and he does so by either goading Potter, bragging about his father, or . . ."
Severus hesitated. His expression uncertain. Dumbledore felt a foreboding feeling and proceeded to let his frown show. " . . . bullying the Muggle-born at every opportunity. She hasn't been able to make any friends and she's been ostracized by the rest of Slytherin House already because of pureblood prejudices or because the other children wish to avoid being the next target of young Mr. Malfoy."
"Ah, and . . . how has the girl responded to the behavior?" asked Dumbledore, a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. Please, please . . . !
"From what little I've seen," said Severus, looking distinctly uncomfortable. "she's been trying to read and learn more about Pureblood society and culture so that she can fit in with her housemates. She continues to get taunted for her ignorance of pureblood traditions and I've seen her in tears on more than one occasion."
Severus's eyes widened at the expression of horror on Dumbledore's visage. His eyebrows furrowed as Dumbledore seemed to have a pensive visage a split second later. Dumbledore kept a neutral expression and cleared his throat.
Merlin . . . Sweet Merlin, this is exactly like Tom, thought Dumbledore, he turned his gaze to the window and couldn't stop the emotions and memories of his long buried regrets. I failed to see the signs before. Tom was more resilient to such taunting. He grew to hate everything despite - paradoxically - embracing the pureblood culture and trying to fit in. I never could tell if he was simply using his Death Eaters by being a symbol or he did buy into the racism because of all the taunting and became maladjusted as a result. It's too late to speculate. How can I stop this situation before it becomes worse? What can be done?
"Allow me to ameliorate one of your misconceptions, Severus," said Albus, Severus scowled. Ah, he expects a lecture about young Harry. "The girl is not a Muggle-born. She is most likely a Pureblood or a Half-blood witch. And . . ."
Albus paused. He turned to face Severus with a hard look. There is no delicate manner in which to phrase this statement.
"She is . . . probably the off-spring of a Death Eater through forceful means and not mutual love."
Severus looked as if he was going to choke. He gawked at the Headmaster's stern expression. Severus frowned. "And just how did you come across this information?"
"For the sake of the young girl's privacy, I cannot divulge further." said Albus, drumming his fingers on his desk. "Severus, please keep note that these are merely suspicions of mine at the moment. Whether or not that is her background, I wish for the girl to have as normal of a childhood as possible. I'd prefer not to create the very prejudice by voicing my suspicions, but she is highly unlikely to be Muggle-born. Has she mentioned any family?"
"None that I know of," said Severus, casting a critical eye at Dumbledore. Albus kept his visage in an expressionless mask. "I have been led to believe that she has grown up in an orphanage."
Albus's eyes felt as if they would bulge out of their sockets. No, no, no, no, no . . .
Severus blinked as he saw the unvarnished horror in Dumbledore's expression. So I didn't imagine it before? What on earth . . . ?
"Bring the girl to my office tomorrow at noon," said Dumbledore, his tone had a ring of finality to it. Severus slowly nodded. "I must speak with her."
"Come in, Ms. Delphini," said Albus, his tone in the light grandfatherly voice. The tone was used for young children in particular to ease their fear since many were intimidated by his very presence as a result of his fame as the one who stopped Grindelwald. The raven-haired girl fidgeted as she walked towards his desk and sat in one of the seats.
"How are you today, Ms. Riddle?" said Dumbledore smiling. His tone congenial and meant to set her at ease.
Delphini looked pointedly at her shoes. Her face pale. "Am . . . am I in trouble, sir?"
"Now why ever would you think that?" questioned Dumbledore.
Delphini looked up. Dumbledore suppressed a frown upon noticing tears streaking down her face.
"Because . . . you're kicking me out, right?" said the girl, her voice cracking. "I . . . I know I'm not good enough for Hogwarts. I probably got in by mistake. I don't do well in my classes and I don't know anything about how to be a proper pureblood."
Dumbledore blinked. "My dear girl, I would never kick a student out for not knowing enough about Wizarding culture. You've come here to learn as a student. Your classmates are . . . misguided in their behavior. You needn't force yourself into learning our ways due to the rambunctious comments of Young Mr. Malfoy. Find what classes you enjoy, be the best student that you possibly can be, that's all anyone should ever ask."
"I have no friends . . ." said Delphini, she grimaced and wiped away a few stray tears. "It feels like nobody in my House wants me, they say I don't belong with them. I feel like everyone hates me and I don't know how to stop it . . . I just want them to like me."
Dumbledore sighed. You cannot force an entire group to change their prejudices overnight. To what extent would interfering make the bullying worse for her? Lucius holds quite a lot of political clout and reprisals against a young girl wouldn't be out of the question for a buffoon with too much power and no ability to think over the ramifications. I cannot help her without either telling her about my suspicions regarding her parentage, which has far too many far-reaching possibilities with none of them being good for my plans, or jeopardizing my plans for Young Harry, which I cannot allow. He must be trained to be selfless and care for the wellbeing of others above his own life to fully put an end to Lord Voldemort and save the Wizarding world from the Dark Lord's evil machinations.
"Perhaps, try making friends with people from other Houses," said Dumbledore, he paused and thought over his next words carefully. Delphini frowned but nodded at Dumbledore's suggestion.
"Nobody likes Slytherins though, Sir," replied Delphini, she sighed. Her cheeks flushed from crying. "People would just think I'm trying to trick them."
"You can . . . be the first to change that," said Dumbledore. He mulled over the careful response to the real problem as he spoke in a calming tone. "Just try your best, Ms. Riddle."
How to explain to her the precariousness of her situation, and the delicacy that administering punishment to Young Mr. Malfoy requires, due to an incompetent fool of a father in power?
"Ms. Riddle, I would love to assist you, but unfortunately, Mr. Malfoy is a very rambunctious young man who will, no doubt, go to his father for any slight troubles because he lacks the maturity of facing problems himself. " said Dumbledore, peering at Delphini's frowning visage with a determined look to express the significance of Lucius Malfoy's political connections. "It could further problems for the both of us should he go to his father. His father, Lucius Malfoy, is quite . . . heavy-handed in his approach to school rules as part of the board of governors and I fear retaliation would be his first course of action against the both of us, should we try to discipline the young Mr. Malfoy for his behavior."
"I understand," muttered Delphini, she silently gazed upward at Dumbledore. Dumbledore froze as he could swear that he saw a red glint in the little girl's eyes but it seemed to vanish in an instant. "I'm not important enough for you or anyone else to help me. I'm not rich like Malfoy so I don't matter. Just some orphan girl whose a problem for everyone . . . like always. Nobody wants me and nobody cares about my problems!"
"Ms. Riddle, be that as it may," said Dumbledore in a firm tone, his expression neutral and his hands folded in front of him. "there are people dealing with far worse problems throughout the world and even in this very school. Perhaps you should learn to forgive your housemates for their jeering and be the better person."
"I was right!" snarled Delphini, her eyes narrowing into a scowl and her mouth clenched tightly as her eyes bored into Dumbledore's. Delphini rose out of her seat, her small body shaking and her palms tightened. Dumbledore maintained a stern expression. "You don't care! No one does . . . all I'm ever told is to be quiet about feeling miserable! Well, if I can't have anyone who loves me, then . . . then . . . I'll make you all respect me instead! Um . . . um . . . I'll . . . um . . . I'll become a Dark Lady!"
"What?!" said Dumbledore, he gaped. How did this conversation deteriorate so quickly?!
"I'll become the most powerful Dark Lady! Then, if I can't force people to like me then they'll fear and respect me! At least then, I'll be famous and nobody will bully me!" shouted Delphini, her cheeks flushing red and her eyes harboring a glint of blood red. "And . . . and I'll have a scary and cool name too! I'll be . . . Dark Lady Disaster! Wait no, that sounds stupid . . .um . . .um . . . Dark Lady Vader! Wait, no . . . no . . . I think I'd get sued for copyright . . . um . . um . . . ummmm . . . . Dark Lady Doom!"
"Doom?!" sputtered Dumbledore, he froze and gaped at the little girl gazing up at him in righteous anger.
"Yeah! Dark Lady Doom!" said Delphini, a sneer forming in her lips and her eyes narrowing further. "Then, nobody will make me cry anymore! I'll have everyone's respect and maybe people will finally love me! From now on, I'll rise to become the most powerful Dark Witch to ever exist! I'll become better than all the purebloods and make them bow down to me!"
"Ms. Riddle, what makes you so sure that this . . ." Dumbledore sighed and drummed his fingers. I must be careful with my words "course of action . . . is for the best?"
"It's destiny! It must be!" said Delphini, her tone full of unwavering conviction. Dumbledore blinked and tried to keep his expression neutral. He inclined his head. "Mr. Ollivander said that my wand is the sister wand of both Lord Voldemort and Harry Potter! Phoenix feather and Oak, 9 inches!"
Dumbledore gaped and his eyes bugged out from his half-moon spectacles at Delphini's tear-stained cheeks and triumphant sneer. She basked in Dumbledore's shock.
The first step to proving everyone is wrong about me! thought Delphini, I am worth something! I'll show them all! Maybe someone will like me someday!
Delphini ran out the room and slammed the door behind her. Dumbledore slumped his shoulders and sighed. Perhaps some children are simply cursed to be like their vile parents. There was probably no hope for her, after all. I'll have to keep an eye on her should she bump into Harry at any point. She'll probably become much like her father and eventually fall in place with Malfoy's group just to fit in with her House. Another rival for Harry to endure and learn to fight against for the sake of the betterment of all.
Six years later, Dumbledore would learn to regret those assumptions as the twisted, domineering smile of a sixteen year old young woman was present as the killing curse struck him and ended his life. His final, primal thoughts cursing Delphini as a young woman's laughter echoed throughout the astronomy tower and Harry watched on helplessly as Albus Dumbledore's lifeless body fell off the battlements and out of sight like a ragdoll. Yet Dumbledore witnessed, through a chance glimpse before his world faded to blackness, that a genuine smile was on both Harry and Delphini's lips when he was struck by the fatal curse. They were both pleased by the death of Albus Dumbledore.