Bertha P.O.V.
Bertha Jorkins held a job in the department of International Cooperation.
She worked for that infuriating man Barty Crouch senior. Born a halfblood nobody would understand why she did join pureblood fanatics like the Death eaters. It was not for fear or recognition she had a price to pay or more like vengeance to give.
Bertha was born to a former follower of Grindewald that the boy known then as Tom Riddle had saved. After the war this man had hid himself in Great Britain.
In his fifties he married a young witch a muggleborn, It should be bit of fun for him and a couple of heirs to boot. After two boy's she was born. She graduated a couple of years before. Potter and his wife and friends and even if her future was not bright it would be great.
Her father owned his own business and she hoped to get a reasonable position in the ministry. She got that dream becoming a junior clerk in the department of regulations. And being smart with talking and pretending to not be too bright many told her much. This way she learned many things. She was known as a gossip but new when she should keep quiet
This made her also useful for gathering information.
Her father had worked for Grindewald as a spy and had taught his children the trade. To pay his debt he helped uncle Tom this way. While her family ran the business . She worked herself up in the ministry. And the information her family gave was not to useful they knew the ways to find it.
Interrogation is as sometimes less useful as conversation.
While many called him lord she called him uncle. When he visited he was not the dark lord he was just uncle Tom laughing and talking with them asking about their education and learning her and her siblings a bit more about the branches of magic.
Becoming his follower was something in an unpleasant future.
This happened after she had been used by a muggle group of man while delivering some reports to one of the muggle ministries. Being grabbed from behind and drugged by a group of men
The next couple of days had been an hell for her. Used in every way the group could think of she had been chained up in an basement The men told her that nobody would miss her. Well they were wrong on the fourth day she was found not by aurors but men wearing silver masks being led by her adoptive uncle.
The group of men were tortured in to insanity her uncle said this should be an warning to every person that would do things like that.
Being brought to St Mungos she was checked over and healed in a couple months but the scars remained. Many at her work gave her pitying looks but two of them gave her looks of hatred when they thought she could not see them.
she started to investigate those two. Finding out that family members of them
at the same time while she was used by the group of men. Where found in the same building she had been held together with four other men all turned to drooling wrecks.
Going through her contacts in the muggle government she got access to the file on the investigation of the assault on those bastards.
Most had former convictions except two but they were linked to those charges but there came never enough evidence up.
Noting down the dates of the former crimes she started look through the archives at the ministry finding out both that given her angry looks worked on those day's there in the area. Compiling the evidence she was shocked when her investigation was thrown out of the window by Barty Crouch Sr. for being nonsense both ministry employees were respected and hardworking.
The only ones that where understanding her desire for investigation and justice where Amelia Bones and Arthur Weasley.
Depressed she went home not even talking to her family. Taking time off she started to gather more evidence
Going over the new evidence she found she saw a pattern and using all her contacts she connected the dots.
She had not been the first woman or man that was used like this but there was a very big cover up. Always linking those family names to it making evidence disappear. In a perfect world that she was not in this would not happen.
But that some of those case where signed of as nonsenses by a certain head of the DMLE made her frown. Conspiracies against proper people he called it without any evidence except hearsay.
"Well in her opinion those actions weren't very proper.
Sitting behind her desk going over her notes she heard knocking on the door.
"Enter." she called.
Opening the door was her uncle.
"Hello Bertha. Sorry I did not visit earlier but your parents told me you were researching something?" Bertha smiled at the men that was starting to grey slightly.
"Hi Uncle Tom." Tom Riddle gave her a smile the little girl that once in better times had sat on his knee had grown in a fine woman.
Maybe she had found some clues on the person that had broken him in pieces. The time that he had spent with the Jorkins always calmed him
But now he and his followers were like a pack of rabid dogs. Destroying everything they did not like. If his adoptive cousin had found something maybe she could clue the rest also together.
Taking a seat on the bed of her he looked to the girl.
"What happened? he asked."
When Bertha was done her Uncle Tom was gone and almost replaced by the mad Lord Voldemort.
"Uncle please calm down?" Bertha begged
This calmed the dark lord down but anger was still radiating from him like warmth from an inferno.
Tom Riddle P.O.V.
"Bertha." He started "I knew a couple of those names very well." Standing up he walked to the window and watched outside lost in memories of the past.
London 1938
Walking down the street beside the child hailing from Wool's orphanage Albus Dumbledore felt himself as excited as the young boy it was always a beautiful thing to show the world of magic for the first time.
While he was concerned about young mister Riddle.
He could understand that the boy was wary off everything and he gave off some angry vibes when he had told him that magic should not be used on others like the boy had done.
Entering the Leaky Cauldron he looked to the boy wearing scruffy but reasonable maintained clothes and asked
"Did you have had breakfast Tom?" He asked
The boy raising his head slightly shook his head while saying. "No sir."
"Well then you can join me I haven't eaten breakfast yet."
Two dark eyes looked to him from under the cap that the boy was wearing.
Something he was always suspicious of was generosity it came always with a price."
"I have no money to pay for it sir."
" I will pay my boy breakfast as I am told is the most important meal and I love to have a good conversation in the morning." With this word spoken he led the boy to a corner booth where they could see and be seen by everyone."
Seeing the son of the barkeeper arriving Dumbledore spoke.
Hello Tom two breakfasts please and a pot of thee. The boy wrote it down and the young boy that was seated gasped as he saw it fly away to wat seemed to be the door to the kitchen.
"Your first time to the Cauldron lad?"
The young boy nodded.
"welcome to the world of magic lad." the adolescent said while walking away.
After a few moments their breakfasts arrived both man and boy enjoyed it immensely. The boy that had not eaten since the day before yesterday smiled while eating.
Albus smiled at the sight if a breakfast could please the boy like this than there was hope for a better world
Hogwarts sorting 1983
Riddle, Tom Albus Dumbledore called.
Seeing the small boy almost run to the stool with the sorting hat on it made him smile. Little Tom would go far.
Seeing the boy sit on the stool with the hat on his head Albus was hit by nostalgia.
"Slytherin." Sounded through the hall the table clad in green and silver clapped politely. Young Thomas Riddle walked to the table and took a seat beside the boy that was sorted before him in the house said boy turned to Tom and offered his hand.
"Abraxas." The blond boy said.
"Tom." The black haired boy said.
Hogwarts years Tom Riddle
Tom proved himself an excellent student and also popular.
He had friends in all the houses.
Most of his schoolmates offered him a refugee from the orphanage.
And for the first time in years he spent his holiday's mostly out of the orphanage. Tom Riddle started to learn what a normal live was, well as normal as a magical live was,
But the summer before his fifth year changed everything
Tom had left London with the rest of the orphans from Wools orphanage they were placed in an abandoned hotel near the sea. Tom loved it here. He promised himself he would go live near the beach. Seeing the vastness of the sea he would happily give up magic to travel over this blue wonder.
Turning away from the sea he came face to face with a man.
"obedientam." And Tom did not know anything anymore.
This one spell changed everything. Tom became calculating and cruel gone was the friendly boy replaced by a darker version of himself
The first Hogsmeade outing he saw the man again.
The man ordered him to find the chamber of Slytherin and open it.
Tom fought against the command just as much as the basilisk in the chamber fought his commands.
Both ensured that there were no victims. But when you try you will always fall one time. Sweet Myrtle the girl Tom had a crush on died.
But he was on a mission and framed the half giant boy Rubeus Hagrid.
It was not right but at least Dumbledore saved him.
The worst part was the breaking of his soul. This made him give even more in to the darker parts of himself.
The summer of sixth year
Tom spent the summer near a town called Little Hangleton, Staying with one of his friends. One day while helping his friend's father in the fields he spotted a man and a woman riding on horses. The biggest surprise was that the man looked like an older version of himself. Keeping his head down while working he wondered who the pair was. That evening he asked the parents of his friend about them.
They told him he was the son of the local squire. Tom Riddle was his name.
After saying this his friend and his parents realised that the name was also the name of their guest. Tom smiled and said it would be just a coincidence.
The father of his friend shook his head and told him the tale about Tom and Merope the witch that had bewitched him.
The next day Tom went looking for answers. Finding the shack where Merope had lived he found a savage man threatening him in parseltongue.
When he responded in kind the man smiled
"So you are my sisters brat."
Tom nodded
"Well little bastard get lost."
Would Tom not be under a said spell he would have not reacted like he did now. Pulling out the razor he used for shaving he stepped forward and thrusted into his uncles neck.
"Good by uncle. "he said while pulling the razor out.
He watched the other man choke on his own blood and when he had died he picked up the man's wand while searching the shack he found some money and a ring. After he was done he left the shack.
Outside stood the man that had placed the spell on him and forced him to tear his soul to shreds.
"Bravo Tom." he said
Tom Riddle wanted to yell at him and curse him but he could not.
"You were always helpless boy you should know the feeling."
The glare Tom gave the man could freeze the sun.
The man laughed whole heartily.
"you can fight boy but you will always just be a puppet."
Before he knew it Tom used his uncles wand a shot of a piercing hex.
The man's look of surprise when the hex hit his chest made Tom smile.
Walking to the fallen man he bowed over him and smiled.
"You created a monster guv. I hope you are happy with it."
Tom walked down the path to the village.
That evening the news spread through the village the Riddles had been killed in their own house. Most people had not liked them. But the news that the girlfriend of the son had been pregnant and killed shocked the village.
Seventh year
Being head boy kept him busy but it gave a very good cover to network.
Most of his former friends called him lord already. Tom had fully given in to the curse. Leaving Tom behind and becoming Voldemort.
The only one that resisted him was Walter Jorkins with this man he still was Tom. The man had recognised the signs and tried to help him whenever he could.
On his graduation day he looked to the teachers table and saw the tears in Dumbledore's eyes.
As Tom he would have shared those tears but as Voldemort he wanted to laugh about that weakness.
The next years
Tom travelled through a continent ruined through war seeking knowledge and items that could help him to gain power. In Albania he found the diadem of Ravenclaw. While working for Borgin and Burkes he charmed miss Smith and killed her to gain his mother's locket and Hufflepuff's cup.
Those items he choose as vessels to break his soul even further.
When he returned to his homeland he started to gather his followers. Starting a war that would ruin magical Great Britain and Ireland. He led his followers on a rampage. With barely a lucid moment he gifted his followers with some of his soul anchors. Others he hid in places important to him.
Bertha and uncle Tom P.O.V
"Bertha I will grant you my mark. But do you think it is wise to take it?"
"Uncle I want vengeance people like them should not go unpunished,"
"I understand dear but taking my mark will cost you your humanity."
"If that's it wat it takes a give it freely."
Tom sighed "Please reconsider this Bertha. There is more at play. We need reasonable people in the government."
"I know uncle but last week I went to the hospital because I was throwing up.
One of the healers gave me a potion saying it would solve my problems.
The next day I miscarried. When I went to the hospital for answers. They told me it had been an act of mercy because my baby would be a squib."
"If it takes to be rabid dog for vengeance so be it."
The next week
The Daily prophet announced the dead of two ministry workers and an senior healer of Saint mungo's
While reading the newspaper Bertha smiled.
Pulling up her sleeve she saw the mark her master had gifted her with. If vengeance meant to be rabid dog so be it.