The Darkened Flame-Prologue
She was a shining star from the moment he saw her. She portrayed herself as bright as a candle in the darkness, piercing her gentle light through his tortured, confused soul, healing him, fixing him wholly and then some. His childhood, his days as Lord Voldemort, Slytherin king of Hogwarts, washed away to be replaced by a pure Tom, a man of worth, a man who deserved such a beautiful jewel as his Saphira
He took her out to a candlelight dinner under the stars, popping the question in the middle of dessert. He explained how perfect she was, how direly he needed her, and then...
"...You're the light of my life, my perfect Saphira, will you marry me?"
Her dark chocolate eyes gleamed with tears as she cried, "Yes. YES! Yes, Tom, YES!"
They hugged, and kissed, and she became Saphira Riddle just two months later. Tom had never been happier, except for perhaps when they got the news that she was pregnant with twins. One boy, one girl. Perfect.
Tom had never been happier with a Muggle in his life. Never. And he never would again, not after the accident.
Saphira was driving home, exhausted. She had given birth three days before, and refused to have any magical help. Tom had held her hand throughout the long labor, tears of joy pouring from his eyes, collecting on his cheek when he saw his beautiful girl first, then his handsome little boy.
It was one of the last times he ever cried.
Jace and Rosie Riddle were sleeping in the back seat of the small blue car that day in January. As they hadn't discovered how much magical ability either one had, they didn't want to risk splinching the fragile babies with side-along apparation. They both already resembled Saphira. Flawless, stunning Saphira with her deep brown silk curls and pale milky skin, who was intently focusing on the icy road. Tom was waiting at home for her, everything ready for the babies' first day home. Like a present on Christmas day.
A drunken young man by the name of Bill McCowley ripped around a corner just yards away, sliding across the ice into the front of Saphira's little car. It crumpled like a piece of paper with a sickening sound, the airbags snapping into her face, the car drifting into a tree. She was thrown out of the car, far away from the wreckage, into the mushy brown snow.
Tom instantly knew something was wrong, instantly knew his happy life had changed. He apparated to where his heart and soul took him, seeing Saphira crawling out of the slush towards the car, their babies still inside, still alive, still wailing.
"Tom..." She whispered, "My babies... Our babies...," she laid her head in her arms on the sidewalk, looking at him helplessly through half-closed and fading eyes.
"They're all right, hun." He said, in a stuporic haze, "Ill take care of them. WE will take care of them."
He blinked at her small torso, struck through with a road post. He fumbled with his wand, pleading her.
"No, wait, darling just hold on. I can mend it please just-"
"Tom... I love you... Let them be the light in your heart... Don't forget me... Don't forget... I love you..." Saphira Renee Riddle died with a final cough and a gasp, bleeding out all over the road. He dropped his now useless piece of wood and carefully cradled her, wailing his heart out over her soft still-warm body. He crushed her to his chest, hoping to absorb what was left of her, to never leave her, to love her forever still.
Tom held her for a minute longer, tearlessly sobbing over his loss, over his future crumbling away in his arms. Then he saw movement to the left, and he went silent.
He pulled out his wand and marched over to the unfortunate Mr. McCowley.
"Explain yourself." He said loudly, coldly.
The man let out a drunken giggle, and said, "Dude, aw' was that c-car RIPPED. Wow man-" He let out a snorting sort of laugh, oblivious to Tom pointing his wand at the man's own chest.
"Avada Kedrava" Said Tom Marvolo Riddle, watching the muggle idiot die without a second thought.
He then went back to Saphira.
"My little sapphire... I was your Tom. Your love. But with you, dies Tom Riddle. Dies our love. With this death, I rise Lord Voldemort once again."
Magicking a grave deep in the ground, he carefully levitated her broken body down, buried her, and turned back towards the wreckage.
He grabbed the two children from their carseats, magically grew a small tree above her hasty grave with two flowers that would glow only while the twins lived, and and apparated away.