"Peverell, I had supposed that you could do better than this", said Death in disappointment.
"What I am doing here again?", Harry demanded of Death, "You have the audacity to meet after you have killed my best mate, drove another of my best friends away and made it so that my wife in that world was never born here. What is the meaning of this?"
Death sighed, "You can't expect the same thing to happen every time. The worlds are subtly same and different at the same time. You are supposed to adjust with the scheme of things."
Harry growled, "As I reckon, I am doing pretty well here and mixing with the people here. What seems to be the problem?"
"Why are you treating James and Lilly as strangers?", Death asked.
"Because they are", Harry said, "my parents had died about more than a hundred years ago, remember?"
Death grunted, "It seems that allowing you to retain the memories of that world was a bad decision after all. No worries, I can always wipe them."
"Don't you dare", Harry snapped, "That is all that I have left of them."
Death laughed humourlessly, "Peverell, that life is ended. It isn't like someone there is waiting for you to miraculously return to life. All of your friends, your wife died before you and you were the last who was merely counting his days. I see that you are still attached to that life. Such a distraction is a lethal thing especially for an Agent of Death."
"Why is attachment a bad thing?"
"Attachment is what makes you keep lingering in the middle. Your soul gets stuck in between the mortal and the spirit world. These ties of the human body have no relevance in the other world where a soul has no other identity. It is just that, a soul. You get attached to something and you won't be ready to pass into the next adventure. You would remember your life as it were, and you will keep clinging to it never letting it go."
"What do you want me to do?", Harry asked harshly, "Forget everyone just like that?"
Death smirked maliciously, "Well then who are you?"
"I am Harry Potter", he said.
"Harry Potter who?"
"Son of James and Lilly Potter, father of James, Albus and Lilly."
"That Harry Potter is dead", Death said, "Who are you?"
This time Harry tried to speak again but no sound came out of his mouth.
Death again asked, "That Harry Potter is dead. Who are you?"
Harry was clawing at his throat, trying to speak something and Death kept laughing in his face, "Tell me who are you? Who are you?"
It seemed like eternal torment that death was subjecting him to. Harry kept trying to speak but no voice would come out. A time came when he even forgot what his name was. He forgot who he was. He forgot that he was an agent of death. He only remembered nothing as if he has never existed before. After hours of agony, Harry Potter started remembering who he was and what he was.
Death who was staring at him, was saying softly, "I suppose you know now what happens to a person after they die. You have died in that world and all those relations and ties have ended there. It'd do a world of good to you to remember that. The world where you are now is where you belong. Your home is the hearth of James and Lilly Potter. You are my answer to all the prayers that they had made to me. Don't disappoint me again or you'll experience my true wrath. Unleash the Thestral within on your enemies. Bring balance to things. Don't let chaos win."
"Harry! Harry! Wake up!", Neville was shaking him up roughly.
Harry sat up groggily, "What is going on?"
"Harry, you were having a nightmare", Neville said, "You were tossing and turning in your bed and mumbling that I am Harry Potter, I am Harry Potter."
"It was a bad dream, Neville", Harry said, "Sorry to wake you all up."
"You didn't wake us up, mate", Neville said, "It's already 7:00 in the morning. Rush to the bathroom or there won't be any hot water left for you."
When he came out of the bathroom, he saw several students huddled around a notice board. He asked Lucian who was among them, "What is it?"
The boy said excitedly, "Angelina, the Quidditch captain of Gryffindor, is conducting the try outs today."
"For what positions?", Harry asked.
"All of them", he answered, "Oliver also used to conduct trial for the whole team. I hope we will get a decent seeker this year."
"What do you mean?", Harry asked.
"We haven't had a good seeker since Charlie Weasley left and has been flattened in Quidditch cup every year. In my first year, they had a third year try for it and half time, he couldn't keep his eyes on it. Second year, they got one of the Prewetts to play seeker as opposed to Chaser and that was a big disaster. Last year, the loudmouth Cormac McLaggen was the seeker, and he was the biggest mistake."
"When the trial will take place?", Harry asked.
"Today at 12:00 on the Quidditch pitch", he said, "I have heard that your father was a prodigious Quidditch player. Are you planning to attend the trial?"
Harry nodded, "Yes."
"See you there then, Potter", said he and left the common room.
They met on the Quidditch pitch at noon and Angelina decided to cull the prospects, "Those who are first years and those who are not here to try out leave the pitch and go in the stands."
Half of the crowd left the ground and she turned to the remaining ones, "So here is what we are going to do. Forms lines according to the position that you are going to play. First seekers then Keepers, then beaters and lastly chasers."
As the lines formed, she went to the first prospect for seeker, "Mount up. I am going to release the snitch in two minutes, and you will catch it only when I give the signal."
The nervous student nodded and flew up. Barely 3 minutes had passed before he crashed to the pitch with a dislocated wrist. The others after him didn't fare much better and Angelina was losing all hopes when it was Harry's turn. He waited for her to explain the instructions and then mounted up. As the snitch was released, he kept an eye on it and the other eye on the Weasley twins who were pelting Bludgers at him. He was even using the school's old brooms to make it more exciting.
As Angelina gave the go, Harry launched forward with speed and suddenly went into a nosedive and flashed past one of the twins who was so distracted with the flying that the Bludger almost knocked him off his broom. The other twin sent the second Bludger at him which Harry evaded by doing a barrel roll and as the golden ball which was within his hand's grasp started going upwards, Harry tilted forward and caught it by the wings.
Angelina was clapping excitedly and the Weasley twins were watching him with curiosity.
"2 minutes! That is quite a record Potter. Congratulations, you are the new seeker for the Gryffindor team. You will need a good racing broom."
Harry sheepishly said, "Does a Firebolt count as good racing broom?"
She snorted, "Talk about show off. With a Firebolt on the team, we will be unstoppable."
Harry's first trouble in the world came with Avery.
They had a period of Care of Magical Creatures, and he was teaching them about Unicorns when Harry asked him, "Professor, are Unicorns creatures of light?"
Avery grunted, "No creature can be classified as such, Mr. Potter. Unicorns are nothing but magical horses."
"But Professor, if they are not creatures of light when why can't you perform dark magic perfectly with a wand containing core of a unicorn tail hair?"
"That is speculation Mr. Potter. Ollivander likes to make big assumptions, but it is not so."
"But Professor, Mr. Scamander himself in his…"
"Last, I remember, I was teaching this class, Mr. Potter and not Mr. Scamander and you will write what I tell you. Is that clear?"
Harry decided to tweak his moustache a bit more, "But Professor, that is what I know and that is what I will write."
He growled, "Insolent, aren't you? Alright, it will be detention for you this evening at 08:00 my office and 10 points from Gryffindor for your cheek."
Harry smirked inwardly. Avery wouldn't know what really hit him.
However, before that detention, Harry was called to meeting by Lily Potter.
When he entered her office, he found that McGonagall was also present in Lily's office.
"Harry, come in" said Lily, "How was your week so far?"
Harry nodded respectfully, "It was nice, ummm… mum".
The word 'mum' had a magical effect on Lily who beamed at the boy before him but maintained her facial expressions, "Can you tell me why are you antagonising Snape? What has he done to you?"
"I don't know about this Snape, but my Snape had done a lot of questionable things in life. Can you tell me if Snape ever joined Tom Riddle here?"
She nodded, "It is a secret but since there are probably no secrets from you so yes, Snape had become a Death Eater leaving Hogwarts but then something happened which made him defect sides and become a double spy for Dumbledore."
"So, he is friends with you?", Harry asked.
She shook her head, "No. He burnt that bridge ages ago, precisely in OWLs year."
"Did he call you by that word?", Harry asked.
"Yes", she replied, "But I had also seen him involved in torturing some muggles during a Death Eater raid after we had graduated, and he used to be the interrogator for Tom Riddle."
"There are no chances of going back?", Harry asked her.
"No", she shook her head firmly.
"How is father?", he asked, "Is he able to handle Azalea by himself?"
"Azalea has a lot of uncles and aunt to look after. James only has to see to it that she goes to bed by time", Lily replied, "He is having the time of his life right now. The three rapscallions gather in the sitting room every evening and drink Firewhisky until two starts looking as four to them."
"Is there anything else?", Harry asked her, "I have got a detention to get to."
She nodded, "Harry be careful of Malcolm Avery. We have our suspicions that the Avery Lord is a Death Eater and has been planted here to spy on Dumbledore and the Order of the Phoenix."
"I suspect the same and that is why I got into a detention with him", Harry said, "By morning tomorrow, we will definitely know if he is a Death Eater or not."
"Oh dear!", McGonagall whispered.
"What happened Professor?"
"If he is outed as a Death Eater, I guess we will have another staff vacancy on our hands and that too at the start of the year. You sure don't wait like Mr. Longbottom till the end of year to strike."
Harry grinned his famous lopsided grin and it was eerily similar to James Potter, "Well, someone has to break his record."
Her lips thinned in a line, "I hope you don't entirely devote yourself to pranks like your father and godfather, Mr. Potter."
Harry shook his head, "Professor, you forgot to include Uncle Moony in that list."
Lily smirked as McGonagall's eyes narrowed, "I see that you have the marauder's penchant for trouble. By the way, congratulations on making seeker to the team. I hope you will help us win the house cup. It's been a long drought."
"Now get going Harry", Lily said, "Don't give Avery a chance to punish you more."
When he arrived in Avery's office, the teacher was waiting for him, "Mr. Potter come in. Take a seat."
Harry took the seat that was indicated to him and appeared to be relaxed but he was really taut as a bowstring.
"Would you be partial to a cup of tea?"
"Sure Professor", said Harry and the teacher poured two cups. The cups were identical and there was apparently nothing wrong with the tea, but Harry was not about to just pick up the cup offered to him. He was planning to switch it.
"Mr. Potter, when it had become known that you had died on that Halloween Night, I along with many others was devastated. I don't know your parents very closely, but I know your father from our constant skirmishes in the Wizengamot."
Harry was half listening to them and was looking around the room and his eyes stopped on a volume that he knew very well, "Professor, is that the Monster Book of Monsters?"
Avery nodded, "Yeah, it is. A very fine book for students interested in the subject. Have you read it before?"
"No Professor. It was not available at where I grew up. I once saw a copy, but I couldn't open it. It tried to bite my hand off", Harry said.
"You want to see it?"
"Please Professor", said Harry, giving him big eyes. Avery, the fool that he was, fell for it.
He stood up from his chair, walked to his shelf and Harry swapped the cups. When he re-joined Harry at the table, Harry had picked up his cup and slurped loudly. Avery nodded in satisfaction and picked up his own cup.
As Avery was sipping tea Harry who kept his hands on the table, incanted, "Immobulus, Incarcerous."
Avery had no chance to react before he went stiff, and he was bound up in ropes which dug into his skin.
Harry, who had dropped all pretences, asked him harshly, "Are you a Death Eater?"
Avery could not stop himself before words spilled from his mouth, "Yes, I am a Death Eater."
Harry grinned victoriously, "Where is your master hiding?"
"He lives in the middle of an island in the sea with an old fortress. The sea is the first line of defence and the next is the moat which runs around the island. An army of death eaters patrol the walls. The Dark Lord has also employed a lot of magical creatures in the security of the place and the location of the castle itself is a Fidelius secret of which he is the secret keeper."
"Why were you going to administer Veritaserum to me?", Harry asked him.
"The Dark Lord has been told that the Potters tricked him, and their son was not killed but you were kept at a secret location all these years", said he, "He wanted us to find the truth behind these rumours."
"Why is he interested in me?"
"Years ago, he was looking for a boy who was born at the end of July to parents who have evaded him thrice and only two boys fit the specifications- you and Neville Longbottom. He thought he had already killed you but you being alive throws a wrench in his plans."
"What if I am the same boy?", Harry asked.
"In that case, I was to stun you and take you with me out of one of the secret passages out of the castle", he said, "All of his Death Eaters have been alerted about you."
"If I were to tell you that I am not that boy, but it is an elaborate ruse of Dumbledore with others to fool him, then?"
"Then I was to kill you and leave the castle", he said.
"How many Death Eaters you know?", Harry asked him.
"Lucius Malfoy, Greg Jugson, Selwyn, Yaxley, Lestrange brothers", he said, "These are the ones that I know about."
"What about Peter Pettigrew?"
"He is the Dark Lord's closest confidante and his errand runner", he said, "Pettigrew only leaves his side when there is some spying to be done."
"How can I catch Peter?", Harry asked him.
"Sometimes, he goes out for a pint at a rundown bar at the far end of Knockturn Alley."
"How does your Dark Lord summon you or you summon him?"
"He has branded all of his faithful with a mark which is branded in our skin and his ingenuity lies in the fact that he had made it invisible."
Harry started grinning and stunned the Death Eater. After having stunned him, Harry tore open his right sleeve and started waving his wand over it whispering in Parseltongue. A faint red glow surrounded Avery's right arm and Harry started to grin. Things were starting to look good.
He levitated Avery into his bedroom, altered his memories so he would remember that Harry had told him that he was not the boy who was born to James and Lilly Potter and then he left.
"Potter, where you have been?", Lyra Macmillan asked him, joining him on the Gryffindor table for breakfast.
"You know, this and that", he said evasively, "Pranking people, annoying teachers and being a general headache."
She snorted, "You think you are like Uncle James, don't you?"
He shook his head, "Oh no. I have to do a lot before I will get anywhere near him, you know. He is Venison steak, for crying out loud."
She raised an eyebrow, "Venison steak? Whatever that means, Potter?"
"Nothing, Macmillan. Just my rotten sense of humour."
"Harry", said Ernie who was joining them at their table, "How are you finding the classes?"
"It's only been two days, Ernie", he said, "I have got Professor McGonagall first thing this morning with the snakes, and I have heard that she is hard to please."
Lyra nodded, "Oh yes. She is very hard to please and she has no favourites except one."
Harry raised an eye, "Favourite? I thought she didn't do favourites?"
"No, she generally doesn't but every rule has an exception", she said.
"So, who has the honour of being the exception?", Harry asked.
"Oh, it's Longbottom", said Lyra, "Everyone knows how she fawns over everything that Longbottom does."
"Neville? He is that good at Transfiguration?"
"Scarily good", said Ernie, "Now here he comes. You can ask for yourself."
"What are we talking about?", Neville said as he joined them.
"Neville are you McGonagall's favourite?", Harry asked him matter of factly.
Neville dropped the goblet that was in his hand, "Yeah right. If pushing me to do better than others, earlier than others is being favourite then yes. Nobody has been given as many detentions by her in our year as I."
Harry snorted, "You have my sympathies, mate and for what it's worth, you can remain her favourite."
Neville nodded in thought and then suddenly started to grin, "I can't wait for Transfiguration lesson today."
Harry was a bit disarmed by his grin, "Why? Eager to get another detention?"
He said gleefully, "No. She pushed me so much because my mother is great at Transfiguration. She will hold nothing back on you because your father is a master in Transfiguration."
Harry shuddered visibly, "I hadn't thought like this."
Neville snorted, "It'd be good to have the attention deflect from myself for once."
"Are you taking Runes?', Lyra asked him.
"Yes, I have planned to", Harry told her, "But Professor Babbling still hasn't got to get me about the test that I am supposed to take."
"It won't be that hard", she said, "Babbling loves us and want all of us to do well."
"Aren't you a ray of sunshine?", Harry said teasingly, "You are always optimistic about something."
"Well, that's me, Lyra Macmillan", she said haughtily.
"Let's get going Harry", Neville, "I won't push it past McGonagall to give us detention if we are late to class."
Professor McGonagall was waiting for them when they entered into the class.
"Today we are going to try and learn animate to inanimate Transfiguration. Mr. Longbottom, what is the complication that we can expect in such Transfiguration?"
Everyone was looking at Neville who was grimacing, "Professor, in animate to inanimate Transfiguration, we change a living organism into a non-living organism and as such, we can't expect any special complications except that if the Transfiguration is not done properly then the thing which has been transfigured retains its properties. For example, if you transfigure a Hedgehog into a pincushion and it is not done properly then it would curl in fright if one approached it with a pin."
"5 points to Gryffindor", she said, "Well answered Mr. Longbottom. Now everyone take out your wands and practice the wand movements with me."
Harry watched the class go on with interest. This McGonagall was no different than the McGonagall in other world but this one took a more patient approach and took time to teach everything to the students.
"Now take a Hedgehog each and practice transfiguring it into a pincushion", she said distributing hedgehogs to them.
Harry took his and just sat there without doing it. McGonagall noticed this and approached him, "Mr. Potter, do you need any help with this assignment?"
"No Professor", he said, "I am already done with it."
She raised an eyebrow, "Indeed? Then tell me how your Hedgehog is sitting there untouched?"
"Professor, I can do it at once so I waiting for last 10 minutes of this class."
"Well then why don't you show me?", she asked.
Harry looked around the class and noticed that everyone was watching him with interest. Perhaps they were thinking that he was going to be the new scapegoat and wanted to see him fall.
Harry took his wand, pointed it at the Hedgehog and said the incantation clearly. A second later, a pin cushion was sitting in place of the Hedgehog and it was very detailed.
McGonagall conjured a pin and pushed it in and there was no reaction from it. She looked appreciatively towards him, "Well done, Mr. Potter. I will expect this level of workmanship from you in all my classes from now. Ten points to Gryffindor."
Everyone who was waiting for the axe to fall was disappointed. Neville however looked relieved.
Harry watched towards where the Slytherins sat and saw Daphne Greengrass looking at him curiously. Bold as brass, he stood from his seat and walked to sit beside Daphne, "Need any help, Ms. Greengrass?"
She blushed, "Please Mr. Potter."
"What are you doing here, Potter?", hissed Malfoy, who was starting to froth at the mouth seeing her with him.
"Well, as I see we are sitting in class and last I read, it was not illegal for students to sit together."
"You can't sit with Slytherins", he hissed.
Harry glared at him, "What is exactly your problem, Malfoy? Why you have to interfere everywhere? She isn't your sister, is she?"
Daphne snorted, "Obviously not."
She then turned to Draco and glared coldly at him, "Malfoy, I hope you don't want me to repeat what I did last year."
Malfoy recoiled and said nothing, but Harry could see that he had started to harbour hatred for Harry in his heart.
He turned to Daphne, "Now Heiress Presumptive Greengrass, what problems are you having with this transfiguration?"
She smirked, "Why don't you tell me Heir Presumptive Potter?"
He mentally grinned. This Daphne was as sharp as that girl he had known and this one too knew how to hit on others.
"Cast the spell", he said, "I want to see what you are doing wrong."
She cast the spell and Harry realised her problem within a second.
"Stop waving your wand too much, Ms. Greengrass", he told her, "The movement is very simple. A quarter counterclockwise with a flick at the end. And the main problem is the intent."
"Intent?", she asked raising an eyebrow.
"Yes, you have to intend the spell to do what it does", he said, "You have to intend the spell to do convert this hedgehog into a pin cushion."
She tried and she was successful, sort of. Her hedgehog had changed but it was not as neat and perfect as Harry's had been.
"5 points to Slytherin for doing it second, Ms. Greengrass", said McGonagall pleasantly, "You have finished at the same time as Mr. Longbottom."
She was pleased with the praise that she received, "Thank you, Professor."
Harry could see that Malfoy was mad because Harry was sitting near Daphne and talking to her, so he decided that he would goad him more.
"Ms. Greengrass, would you honour me by letting me be your escort to the library for a study session?"
The pompousness which Harry could taste in his own mouth as he said those words felt like bile to him. But he ploughed ahead.
"You certainly move fast, Mr. Potter", she said, "And since you have helped me, I definitely cannot refuse you. Come and find me in the library after classes at 5:00 p.m."
He grinned, "As it happens, I like Transfiguration the most. If you have any problems with it, we can discuss it or if you like, we can discuss other subjects."
"I see you like to cause disturbances in the class like your notorious father and god father", said Professor McGonagall, "So if you are done with the assignment for this class, Mr. Potter, if you are free to go."
Harry stood up sighing, "Yes, Professor."
"You are Harry Potter, right?," asked a younger girl when he arrived on the ground floor of the castle.
Harry bent to her level and asked, "What can I do for you, little lady?"
"My name is Natalie McDonald. I have a letter for you," she said handing him a letter which was addressed to him in Dumbledore's fine curse writing.
"Thank you, Miss," he said bowing to her, making her giggle.
The letter from Dumbledore was noticeably short. In fact, it only contained three words- "My office. Now."
Harry returned the way he had come and arrived at the Headmaster's office in 5 minutes where the password was the same.
When the gargoyle admitted him, he saw numerous people in the room.
"Harry, take a seat," said Dumbledore pointing him to chair which was vacant.
Harry sat and the Headmaster turned to him, "Harry, what happened yesterday with Avery?"
Harry knew this question was coming. He also found that Dumbledore was looking incredibly tired as if he had been fighting for a long time. This Dumbledore had it hard in life. The Dumbledore in other world did not have to fight a long drawn-out civil war but this one did. It was bound to take its toll upon him.
"Professor, before I tell you anything I need to know the identity of those who I don't know."
"Well, you already know James, Sirius, Remus, Sturgis, Hestia, Alastor, Kingsley, and Emmeline. The woman beside Emmeline is Dorcas Meadows, the one who is beside the Prewett twins is Benjy Fenwick. I trust every one of them."
Harry nodded, "Yesterday, Avery tried to spike my tea with Veritaserum but I swapped the cups on him and under the influence of the potion, he told me a lot of things."
"Did he tell you anything about the Death Eaters?," Moody asked eagerly.
Harry nodded, "He did. He told me that he is a Death Eater and his master in hiding on an island which is under the Fidelius. He also named a few Death Eaters to me."
Moody whispered in anticipation, "Tell us their names, lad."
"Lucius Malfoy, Greg Jugson, Patrick Selwyn, Yaxley, Lestrange brothers and Barty Crouch Junior," Harry told them, just throwing the last name in casually. He guessed that Barty Junior would be a Death Eater in this world too.
"What else were you able to find out?", Albus asked, as if he knew there was something more.
Harry grinned, "All of his followers are branded by a Mark, precisely the Dark Mark. It is branded in their skin, works as a protean charm and he can find their locations through it and torment them with it."
"We have never found any such Marks", Moody growled.
"Well, you won't find that mark until you know how to find it. It is invisible and requires a spell to be cast in a language that is not known by everyone. Parseltongue to be precise."
"How do you know it?"
"I am special that way", Harry said, "I was born with this power."
"So, you can find the Mark on their arms?", James asked him.
Harry nodded, "I can."
"Albus, what shall we do next?", Alastor asked the Headmaster.
"You'll have to arrest Avery, I am afraid. I will post ads for a new teacher immediately", said Albus, "I daresay however that young Harry had broken Neville's record of getting a teacher ousted of the school and this time, it is a different teacher."
Everyone had a good laugh over this, and the assembly dispersed. When only a handful of people were left, James asked him, "Harry, what more can you tell us about them?"
"You of all people cannot find them because none of you can speak Parseltongue. I can detect the Dark Mark because I speak that language so if you want to make any headway against them, you'll have to get me to check them."
"That will be hard. Barty will not agree to using a child", said James.
Harry grinned, "Good thing that I have pointed fingers towards his son then."
"I was wondering about that", said Dumbledore, "Are you certain that he is a death eater?"
"There are a few differences between the two worlds, Headmaster but there is no harm in being cautious. We can have him apprehended quietly and make it look like an abduction by Death Eaters. A quick inspection of his arm and if there is no harm done then an obliviation charm will make him forget everything. If you catch any Death Eaters though, please keep them unconscious or tied in magic restraining shackles so they can't escape or call Voldemort to their help. And if you want my advice then you can contain them in the Chamber of Secrets."
Dumbledore smiled, "That is a great idea, Harry."
As Harry was dismissed from Headmaster's office, James escorted him, "Harry when were you going to tell me about the Basilisk?"
Harry shrugged, "I was going to tell you but later it slipped from my mind. I never learnt to bow to authority figures."
"Understandable but remember that we care for you", James said, "And if you want someone to just talk, please do let me know."
Harry nodded, "I will."
"So why haven't you done any prank yet?", James asked.
Harry grinned, "A bloke has to make some preparations, dad. Doesn't he?"
The man who was sitting in the throne like chair in the middle of the room was not a scary looking bloke per se but everyone in wizarding Britain feared his name. For years, he had terrorised their world and killed countless of wizards and witches alike.
He was of about average height; his facial features may once have been handsome but now he was getting on in years. While for wizards, age is not an issue, but the grey had started to show in the hairs around his temple and there were even a few wrinkles on his skin. His eyes were normal brown with a reddish tint to them and his face looked contorted as if he had left some of his humanity behind him over the years. He was dressed in a plain black cloak, his hair which was shoulder length long was pulled back in a ponytail and the harsh lines around his mouth spoke of him having a temper.
About him, a group of house elves were milling about and mortally afraid of their master. They knew that he would kill them even if he got angry for the most trifle of reasons.
In his younger years, he was known as Tom Marvolo Riddle, but he had gotten rid of that name as soon as he could and assumed the name Lord Voldemort. He was one of the brightest students to ever have passed out of the halls of Hogwarts and he wanted to rule the world. Since his idea of world domination did not line up with sentiments which were prevailing at that time, he became a rebel.
He started amassing an army of the blood supremacists who thought themselves to be above everyone else and believed the muggle born and half-bloods were ending their world. It was not true of course but it became a rallying point for all his followers, and he cleverly coaxed them into thinking that he, Lord Voldemort was the saviour that could deliver to them what they had desired from a long time.
He was well on the ascent and on his way to world domination till he heard the blasted prophecy. His follower Severus Snape had brought it to him, but it was a pity that the man had only heard half of it. He had sent Severus Snape into the service of Dumbledore to spy on him and promised a reward of his choosing to Severus when they captured Wizarding Britain. He had once thought about capturing the seer herself to find the prophecy but abandoned that line of prophecy when it became clear to him that the seer wouldn't remember any of it.
When he had killed Harry Potter that night, he had invoked the fury of wizarding Britain collectively and of his old teacher, Albus Dumbledore. They had banded together against him, and he had repeatedly failed to kill Neville Longbottom, the other boy who could be a threat to him. When Wizarding Britain took the hard instance against him, there was full retreat for him and others. It had made him hide here in this place where none could find him.
"My Lord," said one of his best followers who was sitting before him, bent on her haunches, "There is report from Wizarding Britain and it is important for you to hear it urgently."
"Send them in and tell them that if they are bringing bad news then they would experience my displeasure."
"Yes, my lord," she said gleefully before she walked out of the chamber.
Of all his followers, only this woman knew of all his follower's identities, and he always kept her close to him. She was born in a very noble family but was banished for supporting Lord Voldemort and his ideals. She had been young when he had invited her into his circle and she had at times, offered to bear his children. She was not bad to look at and she certainly could give him powerful children if he wanted to leave a legacy, but it was not a legacy that he wanted to leave. He wanted to live forever and had taken steps to ensure that.
He had succumbed to the weakness of flesh at times but had never given her heart's desire to her which would have elevated her status among her followers. Even now, years later she tended to all his needs with same zeal as before, but she won't ever be rewarded with the prize that she coveted.
"My Lord," said one of his followers who was kissing the hem of his robes, "Avery sent us a report about the task that you have entrusted him with."
"Tell me."
"The boy who is being called as the long thought dead son of James and Lilly Potter is not the same boy. This boy was born somewhere in USA where a different branch of the Potter family existed until a few years ago. The boy's parents died in a Potions accident, and he was left as an orphan. The boy greatly resembles James Potter and they decided to spread this misinformation."
Voldemort laughed, "I can see the old fool's meddling in this. Undoubtedly it is his doing. Tell everyone that the boy is off our radar and tell them to concentrate their energy on eliminating Neville Longbottom. They will get a lot of chances in the upcoming event."
"Yes, my lord," they said and hastily retreated.