Chapter 1: The Orphanage
It was a cloudy day at Riddle Manor. It was quiet, and the only thing you could hear were the screams of prisoners a few times a day. Lord Voldemort sat in his private chambers, looking at the beautiful outside view. The view was dark and grey, the trees were dead and there seemed to be no sign of life except for himself and his followers that came and go for Death Eater business.
Lord Voldemort was a handsome man. He had jet-black hair which was always very neat, he looked somewhat normal if you excluded the blood-red eyes that he had. That was the thing he liked most about himself. It made him look different and powerful.
The Dark Lord was lost in thought about his future plans when there was a knock on the door. He sighed. 'This person better has a very good explanation,' he thought as he wandlessly opened the door to reveal a very nervous-looking Lucius Malfoy standing at the other side of the door. Voldemort motioned for him to come in as he wandlessly closed the door again.
Lucius Malfoy instantly kneeled down before the Dark Lord and waited for the order that he may talk.
"Rise, Lucius, and tell me why you decided to visit me at this time of the day and in my private chambers as well," Voldemort said coldly.
"My Lord, I have done what you asked me to. I examined orphanage The Fallen Star and discovered something." Lucius stopped momentarily to look at Voldemort's face. The man was listening with his full attention, so he continued. "There is this girl, my Lord. I believe she is one year old. I asked the Muggles who work there about her and they told me that that girl is different from the rest. She can do things, my Lord. Things other children can't do. The Muggles there call it 'freaky' stuff. They despise her for it. The thing is, usually accidental magic begins when the children are around the age of five. The girl is quite young to be having accidental magic. Which makes me think that, maybe she could be of much use to us in the upcoming war?" Lucius finished. He held his breath as he waited for the Dark Lord to reply.
"One year old, you say?" At Lucius' nod, Voldemort frowned. "That Is quite young indeed. I believe that perhaps you're right. I will visit the orphanage tomorrow to find out for myself. Thank you, Lucius, you may go now."
Lucius gave a firm nod, bowed once more and left the private chamber.
Voldemort was lost in thought. Who is this girl and why is she in a Muggle orphanage? Lord Voldemort always wanted a heir. Maybe, just maybe, if he feels that the girl is indeed very powerful, then maybe she can be his heir… He decided not to think too far ahead; he hasn't even met the girl. And besides, you can't really expect things from a mere infant? Can you?
It was the next day and it was time to visit this orphanage that wouldn't leave Voldemort's mind. He glamoured his eyes that were now light brown coloured and walked away from his Manor to the apparation point. He took one more look at his Manor before disappearing with a crack.
Voldemort was walking in a somewhat abandoned street. It was raining quite badly and no one was outside. The only thing you could hear was the birds chirping happily. No cars, no talking, only birds and his own footsteps.
He stopped at the sign that read The Fallen Star and looked inside from the window. He looked with disgust as it reminded him very well of how the orphanage looked like that ruined his life.
He walked away from the window and opened the door to walk inside. The inside looked to be quite cozy, actually, and you could hear distant laughing of children. He looked at the living room and saw two children from around the age of six holding a book in their hands while giving Voldemort a curious look. Voldemort looked away first and walked over to the reception where an old, plump woman was sitting, looking at him with a bored look. She had short grey hair which looked like she hadn't combed it for weeks. It disgusted him, but he kept his face steady of any emotion.
"Hello, welcome to The Fallen Star, how may I help you?" The woman said in a very forced-nice tone.
Voldemort resisted the urge to glare at the old woman and instead forced a polite look on his face. "Hello, Madam, I am here to visit one of your children. Although, I am not sure of what her name is. She is around the age of one and people say she can do stuff that other people can't do?" Voldemort finished his sentence in a curious tone.
The woman frowned. "I am not sure why someone would want to see someone like her, she is quite the weird one… She does not really have a name yet as she was dumped at our doorstep with no letter or anything. We call her Raven because of her Raven-coloured hair. If you're sure you want to visit her, you may follow me."
Raven. What a disgusting name. He was certain that would he take this girl, he would change her name instantly. "Yes, I am sure, thank you, Madam," Voldemort said, trying to keep his temper in check, instead of blasting this woman to the other side of the room at the way she talks about a witch.
The woman nodded and gestured Voldemort to follow her. They walked into a hallway. There were doors that led to toilets, one that led to the garden and one that led to the playroom. They walked up two stairs until they came to a door that said: Number 111. They stopped, the woman knocked on the door, before opening it, gesturing with her hand for the man to come in.
There on the bed sat a very small little girl. She was sitting crossed-legged, with her back towards the man, looking at the rain-filled street. She did not even look back when her door was being opened, but only when one of the workers here started speaking.
"Raven, you have a visitor. Behave yourself and don't do anything stupid," the woman said sternly. When the girl looked back, the woman gave her a strict look, before walked outside and closed the door.
The girl in front of him was pretty skinny, perhaps a little bit underweight. She had ice blue eyes and like the woman had said, raven-coloured hair. Her skin was pale, though not sickly pale and when Voldemort looked into the girl's eyes he could see the hurt and pain in those blue depths.
"'Ello, who you?" the little girl said in a cute voice, though Voldemort was unbothered by this. He was curious, however, how this one year old could speak decent for an infant, although he pushed this to the back of his mind.
"Hello, my name is Tom Marvolo Riddle. I am here to visit you and learn things about you," Voldemort (Tom) said in a forced-nice voice, while trying his best to use baby language.
"Doctor? I no sick, me promise. I not know why me do stuff, not my fault!" The girl started to panic and crawled backwards so her back was now against the wall. Voldemort walked a few steps towards her and smiled a little bit. He was reminded of his time in the orphanage when that old fool Dumbledore had come to visit him. Voldemort quickly pushed those memories away and focused on the frightened girl in this room.
"No, child, I am not a doctor. I am here to save you. Can you perhaps try and tell me what you can do?" Tom asked curiously.
The girl thought for a moment. "Snakes like me. I talk." Voldemort was taken-aback. This girl was a parseltongue. He waited patiently for the girl to continue. "I make things go boom. Accidents, me promise! I think that is all, Mr. Tom," she said uncertainly.
"Don't worry, child, I am not here to hurt you," Tom reassured the still frightened child. "You see, I am just like you. And we are not the only ones. There are a lot of people who can do the same stuff as you. Except for the talking to snakes. From what I know, only me and you are able to do that."
The girl's eyes widened in shock and curiosity. "Really?" she whispered in awe
Tom chuckled slightly at the shocked girl and nodded his head. "Really. Now, I am here to get you out of here okay? What do you think about me adopting you?" He said carefully.
A huge smile broke out from the little girl. This was the best day of her life. "Me love! Please adopt me! I want to leave!" the girl almost shouted.
Tom gritted his teeth at the sudden explosion from happiness but stopped himself from making a rude comment. This was his new heir, after all.
While talking with this strange girl, Voldemort became more certain and certain that this was his new heir. He could feel the power coming off the girl and she could talk to snakes. He decided that, although he absolutely hated children that maybe this girl was different. Maybe this girl would get a place in his heart. He faked a smile as he stood up.
"Come on, child, let's go to the receptionist to get this adoption over with." The girl immediately opened her arms for Tom to pick her up, which he did. With the girl in his arms, he walked downstairs and towards the reception where the old woman was sitting again.
The woman looked slightly taken-aback but also relieved in some way. Probably that she didn't have to worry about this 'troublesome' child anymore.
"Hello again, Madam. I would like to adopt this child." Tom said, adjusting his new child to his hip.
The woman nodded her head and got into her office to get a form. The woman asked for Tom's name and wrote it down at the top of the form. "I want you to sign this if you agree to these rules."
Tom nodded and went over the paper:
Do you agree to take responsibility to your new child and care for him/her as if it was your own DNA?:
Do you agree that you will love and respect him/her and keep him/her out of trouble:
It continued to ask the same type of questions until he had to sign it and then the girl would be legally his daughter. He signed It without taking a moment of doubt and returned the paper to the woman.
"That will cost you 25.000 dollars, if you please." The woman said in the same bored voice as earlier.
Tom nodded and paid the money before saying farewell and walked away from the building, while holding his new child.
They walked towards the place where they can apperate when Tom looked down. "Okay child, now, what we're going to do now is called 'Apperate.' You will have to hold onto my shoulder and not let go, okay? Whatever you do, don't let go." He finished his sentence sounding a little bit strict, but it was very important.
The girl nodded her head in confusion and gripped the man's shoulder tightly with both her hands. Well, as tightly as an average one year old can grip someone's hand and they disappeared with a crack.
The girl opened her eyes again as she had closed them shut when the weird feeling was forming in her stomach. She was feeling dizzy and laid her head on the man's shoulder to blink furiously trying to keep the dizziness under control. She looked around the place and her eyes widened at the sight of the very large Manor. She looked around and saw the dead trees and the dark sky and it somehow comforted her. Her father must have noticed this too as he watched with amusement at how she looked around her.
Once they were inside, Tom gave the girl a quick tour around the Manor. (Only those who are most important for now). He found that when the girl was a little bit older, she could explore on her own. They stopped at the biggest guest bedroom. Well, it was more like a guest chamber. This chamber was only used when one of his most loyal followers had to stay here if they were in danger, but he figured that his daughter could now have it.
"I'll get the house elves to decorate it properly for a one year old," he reassured the child.
The child looked around. It was absolutely beautiful. The colours that were used were mostly black and dark green, but there were also some things that were a little bit lighter in colour like silver. In the room was a huge four-poster bed which had a lot of pillows, again in the colours of dark green and silver. There was a huge wardrobe, but it was obviously empty. There was a big, soft carpet under and around the bed which was a little softer grey coloured.
"Me love, daddy," the girl said excitedly.
Tom gave a small smile in return. "I'm glad. Now, as you do not have a name yet… I have been thinking about a couple names…" Tom waited a couple seconds to think about the names, while the girl looked at him with a hopeful look. "I was thinking about Hadriette, Narine, Annora or Delaney."
"Annora! Annora!" the girl said, while bouncing in her father's arms.
Tom gritted his teeth and forced himself not to get violent with his new child. "Calm down," he said strictly and the girl immediately stopped bouncing. "How about: Annora Ambrosia Riddle?"
The girl smiled widely and nodded her head. "A'ora Am'oia Riddle," she repeated. "Yes, me love."
Tom rolled his eyes. 'This girl needs some talking lessons.' "Okay, Annora, I'm going to call some of my followers now so that we can introduce you." He transfigured the bed into a crib and laid Annora down. He then walked to the main sitting room to call his followers.
Lucius Malfoy felt the Dark Lord calling him and he had a feeling he wanted to see Narcissa as well. Once his arm stopped hurting, he went to search for his wife and found her in the nursery room playing with their one year old son, Draco.
"Narcissa, dear, the Dark Lord wants to see us," he said to his wife as she looked up at him.
Narcissa didn't answer for a couple seconds as she looked at Draco and then back at her husband. "I can't leave Draco here alone. Do you think the Dark Lord would mind if we brought Draco with us?"
Lucius looked at his son and shook his head. "No, I don't think so. Come on, hold Draco and grab my arm."
Narcissa did what her husband told her and they disappeared with a crack.
Lucius, Narcissa walked inside the Manor, Narcissa carrying her son and found the other Death Eaters from the inner circle already standing inside the main sitting room.
Bellatrix and Rodolphus were sitting on the couch as their one year old children were sleeping on their lap. On Bellatrix's lap sat a small girl with black, curly hair and a small blush on her cheeks. On Rodolphus' lap sat a boy who looked a lot like his twin sister, only he had short black hair that was very neat. He seemed to be a little bit awake and you could see the light brown eyes looking around the room. Rabastan and the other's from the Inner Circle who weren't here were too busy with Death Eater duties, so Voldemort didn't bother summoning them.
Narcissa sat down next to her sister with Draco on her lap. Draco reached with his hands for his Aunt's hair and began playing with it. This made Narcissa and Bellatrix chuckle slightly. Lucius decided to keep standing but he moved to stand behind the couch, while placing his hand on his wife's shoulder.
Severus Snape ignored everything as he sat in a black, leather armchair, staring at a portrait of Salazar Slytherin that hung above the fireplace, while waiting for the Dark Lord to make an appearance.
Barty Crouch Jr. sat on the opposite armchair of Severus while watching the little twins sleep and Draco play with Bella's hair.
Finally you could hear the Dark Lord's footsteps who were slower than usual. Everybody stopped with what they were doing to look at the direction where the noise was coming from.
Voldemort came into the light, holding what looked like… a child?
"My friends, I appreciate you all came here as I have something I would like to share with you all." Voldemort never talked in the same cold and dangerous voice he usually did when he was at a Death Eater meaning. His inner circle was very close to the man and so he talked in an almost-normal voice. But that did not mean that his inner circle could talk to him like he was a random wizard. They still had to show him the same respect as everybody else, they just weren't punished that often.
Narcissa was the first to speak as she looked curiously at the little girl In her master's arms. "My Lord, if I may be so bold as to ask a question, I was wondering who that cute little girl is?" Annora blushed and quickly hid her head in her father's chest. This made the two female's chuckle slightly, even the males were amused, except Severus of course.
"This, my loyal followers, is Annora Ambrosia Riddle. I adopted her and I'm planning on making it a blood-adoption soon. Say hello, Annora, don't be disrespectful," he said the last part quietly but strictly.
The girl slowly lifted her head again and looked at the people with a shy look on her face. "Heyo, me is A'ora," the girl said quietly.
Narcissa smiled at Annora. "My name is Narcissa Malfoy, Annora. I am very pleased to meet you." Annora smiled shyly and hid behind her father again.
Tom rolled his eyes. "I expect you to treat her like family and with respect. I want you to protect her from harm if necessary and if I find out she is hurt while you could have protected her, you will regret ever joining me," he said all this in a dangerous tone and his inner circle nodded quickly.
"Now, how about Annora, Gryphon, Devany and Draco go play with each other in Annora's room, while I speak to you about more important matters."
Bellatrix immediately stood up, while Devany and Gryphon following her. "I can bring them, if you don't mind, my Lord," she said politely.
Tom nodded and dropped Annora. "This is Bellatrix. You will obey her, okay? She will bring you to your room where you can play with your new friends."
Annora nodded and shyly grabbed Bellatrix's hand. Bellatrix smiled and walked slowly towards Annora's room with Gryphon, Draco and Annora following her. It took a while, because one year olds weren't the fastest, obviously. She was still holding Devany as she was surprisingly still asleep.
Once they were in Annora's room, she summoned some toys and told them to have fun before closing the door and walking towards the main sitting-room again.