Prologue
Tom Marvolo Riddle. The name can bring many thoughts and feelings to mind. To some he is the Dark Lord, the one they serve. To others he is Voldemort, an evil wizard who must be stopped at all cost. And to most he is He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, someone to be feared. But to me the name means something completely different, it's the name of my father. My name is Aurora Riddle and I am the daughter of Tom Riddle.
I never knew my father. Born only a few months before the infamous Harry Potter, he was gone before I was ever old enough to remember him. I counted it a blessing really. My mother had told me the truth about my father when I was eight, about who he was, what he had done, what was in my blood. She warned me of my future if I chose to follow in the footsteps of my ancestors, the fate that would await me. It was a lot to take in at eight years old, but a few months later she died and I was alone. The information she had passed onto me became my lifeline. I held onto my heritage, my past because it was the only thing getting me through the present. It was like a mantra I repeated in my head during the worst of times so I would never forget who I really was. When it finally came time for my eleventh birthday I was ready. Ready to face my new future. My suitcase was packed and I waited patiently at the door of the orphan house for my letter. I sat for hours in baited breath as I waited for the owl to come swooping by, wondering if I might even have someone come collect me to take me to Hogwarts.
It never came.
I wondered if it had just been a mistake, the owl could've gotten lost since I had been moved around so many times. Maybe it would come the next day. So I sat and waited the next day. Nothing. A week passed as I waited by the door, each day a little less hope, but my letter never came and now one came to take me. My lifeline had been cut. I no longer felt like I had a past or a future. I was again alone.
Three years passed before I was thrown a new lifeline. A new chance.