Riddle's Diminished Reign

Millie was lying quietly crying when she felt a weight settle on the bed and a small hand offered her a hankie, "when I was in the orphanage it was normal for someone to be crying at night, sometimes the kid next to you would get picked to have a new life and while you tried to be happy for them you couldn't help but wonder what was wrong with you that they didn't want. You just have to keep believing that someone out there will love you and tomorrow could be the day when the magic happens and it all comes true."

Millie dried her eyes as she listened to this extraordinary young girl.

"I kept believing and now I've got the best mum and dad in the whole world, every kid in the orphanage loves them but they picked me to be their daughter. When we go shopping tomorrow mum will spend as much time shopping for things to bring back for them as she will for us, she sits and reads to us all and we get so carried away the elves have to come and shoo us into lunch. You're a friend now aunt Millicent and Potters always look after their friends, my mum and dad will help you - just you wait and see."

Joan kissed her new aunt on the cheek before returning to her own bed as both witches fell asleep.

...

Amelia was full of questions but one now stood out from all the others, "was that squirrel really Voldemort?"

Harry explained how they had discovered the ritual and removed his muggle father's bones as a precaution; he had to credit Sirius for the squirrel.

All Amelia's years of experience were useless, she fell about laughing her arse off, Connie Hammer was the same while Tonks just gazed at her cousin in awe. Dobby had to bring refreshments before the two witches were calm enough to continue.

"Did you put your name in the goblet Harry?"

"No Amelia, we knew Dumbledore would charm the goblet to accept other schools and enter my name that way. We used this to enter Riddle as a student of St Brutus's Secure Centre for Incurably Criminal Boys. My relations told everyone that's where I went so we thought it was poetic justice."

Hermione continued, "This was our plan from the start, get him entered in the hope of stripping his magic though we never counted on Riddle having a new body. We just asked these two to empty the grave, can you imagine the wizarding world's reaction if he turns up at the tournament?"

This started everyone laughing again before Amelia asked, "but how did Hermione's name come out of the goblet?"

Hermione at least had the decency to blush, "that was me, I told Harry I would be beside him for everything and that includes this tournament, Dumbledore had charms all around the goblet but none of them gave Dobby any trouble."

"Amelia I know this will double the expense of the tournament so we would like to make up the difference," Dobby popped in with the chequebook and informed them that Miss Joan was now fast asleep. "We would also like to offer some training for your 'younger' professors, while I stand by my position that the institute comes first I can see no harm in letting them observe and ask more experienced professors questions."

"Thank you Lord Potter and with the way things are at the moment I'll take you up on both of your generous offers."

...

Bella was actually wishing she was back in Azkaban, they had returned to the Riddle house because they had no-where else to go. Every time the creature swished its tail Bella wanted to fire a cutting curse at it, what a fine stole it would make.

She wasn't sure whether it was the pain relief potion that was making her light headed or the continual scurrying about of the thing she could no longer call master. When she and Peter had been on their food foraging missions they were also given the task of searching for information, what a revelation it was when they found that issue of the Quibbler.

Both had decided at once that whoever showed this to the Dark Lord would pay with their life so no mention of the fact that his father was a muggle would ever pass their lips.

At the moment Bella had a dreamless sleep potion passing her battered lips, not a good idea to mix it with the pain relief potion but then when your only companion was psycho squirrel who gives a shit!

Bella's last thought before succumbing to the bliss of unconsciousness was that it didn't matter any more, Riddle, Quirrell or squirrel, Harry Potter had kicked his arse up a tree every time they'd went head to head.

....

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