"The light source was fading away, burning violet in the distance. The colour reminded me of the red gleam that had been in my eye, how close I'd come to having everything. It kept me thinking of how things could have been, would have been, different if that Riddle had taken care of his wife, his son.

"Often I sat under a tree and thought about them, how they may have acted. My mother, I decided, must have been a clever witch, charming and tactful like me. She probably was fooled by the devilish snake that was Tom Riddle, connived into thinking that she loved him. How could it have been any other way?

"'Hello Tom,' a soft voice said behind me. I turned to see Eileen Prince. I hardly ever had a chance to talk to her because of my plans. I'd forgotten just how persistent she'd been.

"'Hey Eileen. What are you doing this time?'

"'I needed to talk to you , Tom. I'm worried about you. All of these huge plans of yours, these ideas… is everything alright?'

"I sighed. 'It's the same as it's always been. Why, am I bothering you?'

"'No. It's not that, it's just… I don't know, I just don't want to see anything upset you. We're friends. You can count on me to do anything for you, Tom. You can tell me anything, and I'll always be there. Are we still friends?'

"I thought for a moment. 'Yes, we're friends.' She beamed at the words. I thought a moment about telling her everything, about revealing my soul, but then my yearn for power won over my teenage desires. What if she told someone? What if Dumbledore found out? The thought sent chills down my spine. I couldn't tell her, I couldn't tell ANYONE…"

I turned to Merope, Dumbledore and Lily. "You see my dilemma. You see how severe my desires were, how paranoid I was. I could have had her, you know. But I didn't need her, I only needed power. And that's the true beginning.'

All I could see now was darkness, and the distant winds were drowned out by Merope's sobs.