Smudged in the Dark ( About Tom Riddle )
written by Account Terminated
"First — and understand this, Harry, 'cause it's very important — not all wizards are good. Some of them go bad. A few years ago there was one wizard that went as bad as you can go, and his name was V — [sighs] his name was V..." - Hagrid A book to explain the life story of Lord Voldemort whom once people feared to speak out his name. Master of Dark Arts, this book will give you the fine taste of the dark witchcraft and wizardry.
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05/31/21
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Darkest part of History
Chapter 3
Morfin Gaunt: "I thought you was that Muggle, you look mighty like that Muggle."
Riddle: "What Muggle?"
Morfin Gaunt: "That Muggle what my sister took a fancy to, that Muggle what lives in the Riddle House big house over the way, you look right like him. Riddle. But he’s older now, in 'e? He's older'n you, now I think on it... he come back, see. "
— Riddle as he confronts his maternal uncle for the first time[src]
Tom Morfin
Riddle talking with Morfin inside the Gaunt ruin
Around August 1943,[18] Tom went to Little Hangleton to learn about his mother's family. While at the Gaunt Shack, he met his uncle Morfin Gaunt, with whom he was far from impressed. Morfin mentioned offhandedly at one point during this meeting that he thought that Tom looked "mighty like that Muggle," Merope's husband, Tom Riddle Snr. Tom immediately demanded the identity of the Muggle in question, and Morfin told Tom the story of his Muggle father, which infuriated Tom to the point of seeking revenge. Tom stunned Morfin and took his wand, went over to the Riddle House and, using his uncle's wand, murdered his father, grandfather, and grandmother with the Killing Curse.
He covered up his crimes by altering Morfin's memory, causing him to believe that he was the killer. When the Ministry of Magic investigated the crime, Morfin, who had previously served three years in Azkaban for using magic in front of and against Muggles, freely admitted to the deed and was sentenced to life imprisonment in Azkaban. Tom took the Gaunt family's signet ring from Morfin and preserved another part of his soul within it to make his second Horcrux, wearing it like a trophy at Hogwarts.[15]
Learning about Horcruxes
Riddle: "How do you split your soul?"
Horace Slughorn: "Well, you must understand that the soul is supposed to remain intact and whole. Splitting it is an act of violation, it is against nature."
Riddle: "But how do you do it?"
— Discussion of how Horcruxes are made[src]
Slughorn and Riddle
Young Riddle asking Professor Slughorn about Horcruxes
During his sixth year, Tom questioned Professor Slughorn, who was taken in by Tom's charisma, about the possibility of creating more than one Horcrux, something Slughorn felt deeply ashamed of in later years; in his mid-teen years, Riddle already sought to make himself immortal; being unable to find any recorded information on creating multiple Horcruxes, he asked the experienced and knowledgeable Slughorn for an opinion before attempting this unknown feat.
First time
Riddle splitting his soul for the first time
Tom succeeded in doing so at some point during this year, creating his first Horcrux in the form of the aforementioned diary and his second in the form of the inherited ring. During Tom's seventh year at Hogwarts, he was made Head Boy and received a Medal for Magical Merit. He was regarded as one of the most brilliant students ever to attend Hogwarts, a fact admitted by Albus Dumbledore himself.
After Hogwarts (1945-1949)
Albus Dumbledore: "Rumours of your doings have reached your old school, Tom. I should be sorry to believe half of them."
Riddle: "Greatness inspires envy, envy engenders spite, spite spawns lies. You must know this, Dumbledore."
— A business intercourse between a headmaster and his old student[src]
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Borgin and Burkes, Voldemort's former place of employment
After graduating, Tom immediately approached Armando Dippet and asked him for a chance to teach Defence Against the Dark Arts, and to remain at Hogwarts, for reasons that he did not confide with the then-headmaster — Hogwarts being his true home at heart, using the influential position as a teacher to recruit students into his future army, and to continue to penetrate the castle's magical secrets. Dippet rejected this offer, deeming the boy too young, but invited Tom to reapply in a few years, if he was still interested in the post, something that Dumbledore heavily advised against.
Shortly before leaving Hogwarts, however, Tom charmed Helena Ravenclaw, the daughter of Rowena Ravenclaw and the ghost of Ravenclaw House more commonly known as the Grey Lady, into telling him the location of her mother's diadem, which she revealed as a hollow tree deep within a far-flung forest in Albania. He presumably travelled there at her instruction, murdering an Albanian peasant along the way before retrieving the diadem, which he later preserved a third part of his soul within to make his third Horcrux.[19]
Upon his return to Britain, he was offered several positions in the Ministry of Magic, but ended up working at Borgin and Burkes for Caractacus Burke, to the disappointment and surprise of many. He set to persuading witches and wizards to part with their valuable magical heirlooms — a job at which he was very good.[15]
The rise of the Dark Lord (1950-1970)
Murdering Hepzibah Smith
"But before they were sure beyond doubt that the cup and the locket were both gone, the assistant who had worked at Borgin and Burkes, the young man who had visited Hepzibah so regularly and charmed her so well, had resigned his post and vanished. His superiors had no idea where he had gone; they were as surprised as anyone at his disappearance. And that was the last that was seen or heard of Tom Riddle for a very long time. "
—Tom disappears after murdering Hepzibah Smith[src]
Riddle Hepzibah
Hepzibah Smith shows Riddle Slytherin's Locket
While working at Borgin and Burkes, Tom befriended Hepzibah Smith, a wealthy but elderly descendant of Helga Hufflepuff. Between 1955 and 1961,[15][20] Hepzibah showed Tom her two most valuable treasures: his ancestor's locket and her ancestor's cup. Tom's eyes flashed red with greed and avarice upon seeing these objects and he desired them, because he saw the locket to be rightfully his as Slytherin's heir and the cup was a reminder of Hogwarts as well as a priceless artefact. Tom killed Hepzibah to steal these coveted objects and vanished without a trace. He covered his tracks well by implanting another false memory into an innocent bystander — Hokey, Hepzibah's house-elf. Hokey admitted to accidentally putting poison into Hepzibah's cocoa, which was believed, as Hokey was elderly herself. Meanwhile, Tom immediately resigned his post at Borgin and Burkes and fled with the cup and locket, subsequently turning them into two more Horcruxes using the murders of Smith and an unidentified Muggle tramp.[15]
Lord Voldemort's request
"I have experimented; I have pushed the boundaries of magic further, perhaps, than they have ever been pushed —"
—Tom regarding the magical experimentation he did while abroad[src]
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Voldemort during his time abroad, slipping further into the Dark Arts
Tom disappeared for ten long years. He slipped deeper into the Dark Arts, travelled extensively, consorted with disreputable people, began to become distorted in appearance and lost his handsomeness, due to splitting his soul so many times, and began to use the alias "Lord Voldemort" openly. He also severed contact with Professor Slughorn, who became upset for not living up to the Potions Master's employment offers. Ten years after Smith's murder, Tom appealed once more to the Headmaster of Hogwarts, who was then Albus Dumbledore, for the position of Professor of Defence Against the Dark Arts. After a short, superficially amiable chat, Dumbledore directly confronted Tom regarding why he had requested the position, as Dumbledore knew full well that Tom had no desire whatsoever to teach. Tom, unable to make an open request of Dumbledore due to the malicious nature of his true intentions, simply left after a final, gentle rebuke from his former teacher. From that day on, Hogwarts was never able to keep a Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher for more than a year, which was attributed by Dumbledore to a curse by Tom. The visit to Hogwarts was not fruitless, however, for Tom used the opportunity to hide Rowena Ravenclaw's Diadem in the Room of Requirement, where he believed it would never be found.[15][19]
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Voldemort travelling exclusively and gathering followers
Lord Voldemort, as Tom was now exclusively called, spent the next few years before the war gathering followers in witches and wizards who called themselves, collectively, Death Eaters.[21] Some were supportive of his cause to dominate Muggles and Muggle-borns; while others were greedy for domination, wealth and fame; and yet others joined the Dark Lord out of fear. Voldemort considered them more like servants than friends or family. They freely used the Unforgivable Curses and killed mercilessly and indiscriminately. According to Sirius Black, Voldemort also used tricks, jinxes, and blackmail to get people to willingly join him. At some point around this time, Voldemort greatly enhanced his skills in Legilimency, to the point that he became known to some (primarily his Death Eaters) as the greatest Legilimens in the world. Voldemort could read, control and unhinge the minds of others, and could almost always tell when he was being lied to. According to Severus Snape, Voldemort often enjoyed telepathically invading the minds of others, creating visions designed to torture them into madness. Only after extracting the last exquisite ounce of agony, only when he had them literally begging for death, would he finally kill them.
First Wizarding War (1970-1981)
"He was takin' over. 'Course, some stood up to him — an' he killed 'em."
—Voldemort actions during the First Wizarding War[src]
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Voldemort wearing a hooded cloak during the First War, as a possible means to invoke fear
In 1970, Voldemort started the First Wizarding War by taking advantage of one of the wizarding world's greatest weaknesses: the beings and creatures that they had outcast. The Dark Lord recruited the giants, who had long ago been driven by wizards into the mountains, and werewolves, who were persecuted by most witches and wizards. Many feared the goblins would also join him, as they were restricted from wand use, but it never happened. In fact, Voldemort murdered a family of goblins near Nottingham at some point during the War, for an unknown reason (possibly anger at the neutrality of the goblins, or no reason at all).
Bartemius Crouch Snr, who was the head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement at the time and was known for his fanatical hatred of the Dark Arts, issued an edict that gave Aurors authorisation to use Unforgivable Curses on Death Eaters without warning, and suspects were sometimes handed over to the Dementors without a Wizengamot trial. Many innocent people were locked away. For many years after, people were even afraid to speak his name, and he was referred to as "You-Know-Who" or "He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named."
Under the staunch protection of Albus Dumbledore, the only person Voldemort truly feared, Hogwarts remained a safe place of learning throughout the entire war. The Order of the Phoenix was created by Dumbledore at this time to fight against Voldemort. The war itself lasted for eleven long years.[22]
Testing his Horcrux's defences
"Harry turned his head to look at the greenish glow toward which the boat was still inexorably sailing. He could not pretend now that he was not scared. The great black lake, teeming with the dead..."
—The search for one of Voldemort's Horcruxes in the crystal cave[src]
Nine years into the war, Voldemort decided to test the defences around Salazar Slytherin's Locket in the crystal cave, and asked Regulus Black, a loyal 18-year-old Death Eater to lend him his house-elf, Kreacher. Voldemort took the elf with him to the cave, forced him to drink the Drink of Despair, and left him to die on the Crystal Cave Island. Kreacher was able to escape using house-elf magic, and told Regulus of what had happened.
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The Inferi in the crystal cave
Upon hearing Kreacher's story, Regulus, who had already been somewhat uncomfortable with the reality of being a Death Eater, decided to defect. He took a duplicate locket and placed a note inside for Voldemort to find, then ordered Kreacher to take him to where the real locket was hidden. Kreacher guided Regulus past the cave's defences. At the island with the basin of potion containing the locket, Regulus ordered Kreacher to take the locket once the potion was gone and replace it with the fake one, then escape without him and find a way to destroy the Horcrux. Regulus drank the potion himself, and when he tried to get water from the lake to quench his thirst, he was dragged to his death by the Inferi. Kreacher obeyed his master's orders and switched the lockets before escaping. However, despite his best efforts, he was unable to destroy the Horcrux.
The Prophecy
"The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches... Born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies... And the Dark Lord will mark him as equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not... And either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives... The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies..."
—Sybill Trelawney's first prophecy[src]
Ten years into the war, when Voldemort was at the height of his dominion, a prophecy was given by Sybill Trelawney to Albus Dumbledore which predicted the fall of the Dark Lord. This prophecy was given in the Hog's Head Inn during an interview for the position of Professor of Divination.[22]
This prophecy was overheard by Death Eater and informant Severus Snape.[15] According to Dumbledore, Snape only heard half of the prophecy and was then thrown out by the barman, Aberforth Dumbledore. He relayed to Lord Voldemort what he had heard, not realising that he had missed an important part of the message.[22]
Trelawney's description of the night's events was a bit different however, as she stated that after feeling "ill," Aberforth burst into the room with Severus Snape in tow, whom he had caught eavesdropping at the door. This is in contrast with Dumbledore's description of events. However, this may be due to the fact that Dumbledore had wished to conceal the identity of the spy from Harry, and told him a simplified version of the events. In any case, Voldemort received only the first part of the prophecy. Feeling threatened, he sprang into action to prevent the fulfilment of the prophecy.
There were, at the time, two babies to whom the prophecy could have referred — Harry Potter, the half-blood son of James and Lily Potter; and Neville Longbottom, the pure-blood son of Frank and Alice Longbottom. Both families had sought to thwart Voldemort three times, and both families were members of the Order of the Phoenix. Both children in question were born at the end of the seventh month, July. Voldemort chose to target Harry instead of Neville; Dumbledore suspected this was because Harry shared a similar family heritage with Voldemort, both of them being half-bloods.[22]
First fall from domination
"Lily, take Harry and go! It's him! Go! Run! I'll hold him off!"
—James Potter moments before his death[src]
Potter family murder
Voldemort arrives at Godric's Hollow and proceeds to murder James and Lily Potter
After a long search, Voldemort discovered the identity of the Potter's Secret Keeper, Peter Pettigrew, and was told of their location. With the Potter's Fidelius Charm broken, Voldemort simply walked into their home one night and murdered James and Lily. However, when he used the Killing Curse on Harry, it rebounded and seemingly obliterated his body. This happened because Lily sacrificed her life to protect her son, creating a powerful defence of ancient magic around Harry which protected him for many years.[23] Thus, after eleven long years of the First Wizarding War, Voldemort was defeated for the first time.
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Infant Harry Potter faces death for the first time
It was at this point that Voldemort's next Horcrux was unknowingly created. Years of experimentation, murder, and deliberately ripping apart his soul into so many Horcruxes had rendered the remainder of his soul so unstable that, when his body was destroyed, a small shard of his soul broke apart from the rest and latched unto the only other living being in what remained of the room: Harry Potter himself. The soul shard latched unto Harry's own soul, granting him some of the Dark Lord's own powers and providing him with a latent connection to Voldemort's own mind. What remained of Voldemort's mangled soul swiftly escaped from the ruins of the house that same night.
Missing years (1981-1994)
"I was ripped from my body, less than spirit, less than the meanest ghost, but still, I was alive."
—Lord Voldemort regarding his fall from power[src]
CouncilOfMagicalLawPottermore1
Four of Voldemort's most loyal Death Eaters sentenced to life in Azkaban
After Lord Voldemort's first fall from domination, the Death Eaters dispersed and attempted to return to normal life. Many claimed they had been under the Imperius Curse, while others stayed true to their master and continued his work, most notably the Lestrange family, who were eventually taken into custody, convicted at a trial, and imprisoned in Azkaban. Most of them however, managed ultimately to remain free and to re-integrate into society.[24]
Voldemort lost his physical form and magical powers, but he remained alive in ghostly form. The Horcruxes he had created kept his spirit bound to the physical world. He retreated to the forests of Albania, where he had previously found his fifth Horcrux, and waited for his faithful Death Eaters to find him, but many of them now believed him dead, and those still faithful to him were either dead or in Azkaban. He gained physical form by inhabiting snakes, though he disliked doing so because the bodies of such animals were ill-equipped to perform magic, and because his possession significantly reduced their lifespans; none of his hosts survived for too long. Additionally, any help that he could have potentially rendered himself required the use of a wand, and animals, obviously, could not be used for this purpose. Voldemort did not dare enter the communities to possess humans, as he knew that Aurors were still abroad, looking for any signs of him.[23]
Search for the Philosopher's Stone
"Harry Potter... we meet again."
—Voldemort speaking through Quirrell[src]
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Quirrell drinking unicorn blood in place of his master
In 1991, Voldemort formed a plan to regain his physical body. Hogwarts Professor Quirinus Quirrell had made a voyage to Albania, where his foolish and gullible mind was vulnerable to Voldemort. He latched onto Quirrell's body and came back to Hogwarts with him. Voldemort ordered Quirrell to drink the blood of unicorns in the Forbidden Forest so he could gain strength from the unicorn's healing abilities.
Somehow, Voldemort learned of the Philosopher's Stone, and how it could somehow return him to his to physical form. He ordered Quirrell to steal Nicolas Flamel's greatest alchemical compound, the Philosopher's Stone, from a vault in Gringotts Wizarding Bank so he could make the Elixir of Life. Voldemort discovered the Stone had been removed earlier that same day, and through Quirrell's connections at Hogwarts, learned it was hidden at the school.[23]
The same year that Voldemort set to the task of stealing the Philosopher's Stone, Harry Potter began his first year at Hogwarts. There were many barriers protecting the Stone. Quirrell had to trick Rubeus Hagrid, who was then the Hogwarts Gamekeeper, into telling him how to get past the three-headed dog Fluffy. To do this, he enticed Hagrid into a card game with the wager of a dragon egg.[23]
Severus Snape, who had switched sides near the end of the First Wizarding War and become professor of Potions, was suspicious of Quirrell and hounded him relentlessly. When Quirrell released a troll in the Hogwarts dungeons as a distraction, Snape blocked him off.[23] Voldemort was not to be stopped, however, and ordered Quirrell to send a fake letter to Dumbledore, asking him to go to the Ministry of Magic.
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Quirrell and Voldemort in confrontation, while in the underground chambers
Voldemort moved forward with his goal, moving through the security barriers to the Mirror of Erised. Quirrell saw himself presenting the stone to his master, but could not figure out how to get it. It was only when Harry Potter arrived, believing he was protecting the Stone from Severus Snape, that Voldemort saw a way to get it. Dumbledore would later say, "Only those who wanted to find the stone, but not use it, could get it from the mirror." Voldemort figured this out, and Quirrell attacked Harry. When he touched Harry, however, his hands blistered and burned. Harry placed his hands on Quirrell's face, severely injuring him. However, before Quirrell could harm Harry, Dumbledore appeared, and Lord Voldemort's soul fled, killing Quirrell in the process.
Reopening the Chamber of Secrets (1992)
Riddle: "How is it that a baby with no extraordinary magical talent was able to defeat the greatest wizard of all time? How did you escape with nothing but a scar, while Lord Voldemort's powers were destroyed?"
Harry Potter: "What do you care about how I escaped? Voldemort was after your time!"
Riddle: "Voldemort is my past, present, and future."
— Riddle exposing himself as Lord Voldemort[src]
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Diary Riddle showing Harry Potter one of his memories
Voldemort returned to the Albanian forest, weaker than ever. He had to wait yet again for someone to help him. Sometime before 1992, Lucius Malfoy came into possession of Tom Riddle's Diary. This was the same diary created as a Horcrux by Tom Marvolo Riddle as a boy in the 1940s. Malfoy planted the diary on eleven-year-old Ginny Weasley, who brought it to Hogwarts. She began writing in it, and found that a sixteen-year-old Tom Riddle was answering. She found comfort in the diary, not knowing she was being manipulated. Tom would always have sympathy. The diary slowly drained the life and energy from Ginny, transferring it to itself. Under the diary's control, Ginny re-opened the Chamber of Secrets and released the basilisk, which petrified several students. While possessed, she also killed Hagrid's roosters and wrote threatening messages on the school corridors in rooster blood. Ginny became upset and confused, knowing that the diary was doing something to her, and tried to flush it down the toilet in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. Harry Potter and Ron Weasley accidentally stumbled upon it, and Harry began communicating with the diary.[16]
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Harry destroys Tom Riddle's diary with a Basilisk fang
When Ginny saw that Harry had the diary, she stole it back for she did not want Harry to find out all the things she had written in the diary, or what she had done while under its influence. When this piece of Voldemort's soul was ready to take his physical form from Ginny's life, the diary lured her into the Chamber of Secrets, while ignoring her pleas and cries for mercy. Harry found Ginny in time and destroyed the basilisk with Godric Gryffindor's Sword. Fawkes also arrived, summoned by Harry's profound devotion and loyalty to Dumbledore.
This encounter and Horcrux is what revealed Voldemort's past as "Tom Marvolo Riddle" to Harry. At first, Harry thought he was an ally, and asked him to help. Then, when revealing his future identity to Harry, Riddle implied that he wanted to kill Harry in revenge for destroying him over even continuing Salazar Slytherin's wish of purging the school of Muggle-borns. Harry used the basilisk's fang to stab the diary, thinking it would destroy its dark power.[16] Not only was the diary destroyed, but Harry also unknowingly destroyed one of Voldemort's Horcruxes.[15] As Dumbledore surmised, the shard of Voldemort's soul that contained his core identity was still in hiding in Albania and remained unaware of these occurances for at least another year and a half.
Return to full strength (1994-1995)
Wormtail: " ...no, my Lord Voldemort. I merely meant, perhaps if we were to do it without the boy..."
Voldemort: "No! The boy is everything! It cannot be done without him, and it will be done exactly as I say."
Barty Crouch, Jr: "I will not disappoint you, my Lord."
— Discussion of Voldemort's plan to return to power[src]
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Peter Pettigrew holding a weakened and immobile Voldemort
In 1994, when Voldemort had all but given up hope of obtaining any help from his former servants, Peter Pettigrew, a.k.a. Wormtail, who had faked his own death years earlier and hid from authorities in his Animagus form of a rat, returned to his master. Together, they built a rudimentary body that Voldemort used for travel and performing magic. While in this form, Voldemort was forced to drink a potion made from unicorn blood and venom from Nagini the snake to sustain his life. Knowing that Dumbledore was sure to have seen to it that the Philosopher's Stone was destroyed, Voldemort knew he would not be able to use the Elixir of Life to create a new body for himself.[25] Voldemort decided to attempt an old piece of ritualistic Dark Magic to create a potion that would restore him to a body. He made plans to travel to England in order to obtain two of the three key ingredients, bone from his father, and the blood of his most hated enemy, Harry Potter. The third ingredient, the flesh of a servant, he would obtain from Wormtail.
Barty Crouch at Riddle House
Voldemort in the Riddle House plotting with Barty Crouch Jr and Wormtail
Pettigrew lured Ministry official Bertha Jorkins to Lord Voldemort in his forest hideout in Albania. He used magic to glean information about the Triwizard Tournament from Jorkins. Before killing her, Voldemort was surprised to find that someone else had put a Memory Charm on her and interrogated her to find the whereabouts of a loyal Death Eater, Barty Crouch Jr, who had been imprisoned in Azkaban and was thought to be dead. Voldemort uncovered that Barty Crouch Snr was concealing his son at his home after helping him escape prison. Jorkins had stumbled upon Barty Jr at his house, and Crouch Snr placed a Memory Charm on her so that she would not report it.[24]
Returning to the Riddle House in Little Hangleton, Voldemort also killed Riddle groundskeeper Frank Bryce for overhearing their plan to crash the Triwizard Tournament. They went to the Crouch estate, where Voldemort placed Crouch Snr under the Imperius Curse and freed Crouch Jr.[24]
Voldemort ordered Crouch Jr to capture Alastor Moody, the new Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor at Hogwarts. Crouch Jr and Peter Pettigrew did so, and created Polyjuice Potion which Crouch Jr used to impersonate Moody for the entire school year. He influenced the Tournament for months, ensuring that Harry would be the one to get to the Triwizard Cup first which, unbeknownst to anyone, was a Portkey. Meanwhile, Voldemort and Pettigrew stayed in the Crouch estate, ordering Crouch Snr to continue as usual. When Crouch Snr started to show signs of resisting the Imperius Curse, Voldemort decided it was no longer safe to allow him to leave the house, and instead made him stay home under the presumption of being sick. However, Pettigrew neglected his duties, and Crouch managed to escape, thus Voldemort quickly alerted Crouch Jr to stop his father at all cost. Upon Jr's success, Voldemort spared Pettigrew from execution, instead opting to punish him with a Cruciatus Curse.
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Pettigrew prepares to place Voldemort inside the cauldron
Harry, in the spirit of sportsmanship, requested Cedric Diggory to tie with him for the win. When they both touched the Portkey, they were transported to a cemetery in Little Hangleton where Wormtail and Voldemort were waiting. Under Voldemort's orders, Pettigrew murdered Cedric with the Killing Curse and went on to have Harry tightly bound and gagged to the Riddle Family tombstone.
After Wormtail had placed Voldemort's rudimentary body into a cauldron containing the near finished potion, he added the first two ingredients causing it to turn from a poisonous-looking blue to burning red before he proceeded to obtain Harry's blood and added it to the Potion for his master's rebirth.[24] Once the final ingredient was added, the potion turned blinding white, sending out bright sparks as it simmered before dying down and a thick white steamed the ritual now complete, Voldemort regained his physical body and emerged from the cauldron. Calling on Wormtail to robe him, the reborn Dark Lord took some time examining his body and getting reaccustomed to it. Then he called for his servant to show him his arm and used the now returned Dark Mark to summon his Death Eaters.
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Voldemort talking to Lucius Malfoy regarding his past behaviour
Those who were perhaps most loyal to him, save for those who willingly went to Azkaban in his name, appeared. Voldemort welcomed them before he scorned them for believing him to be dead and informed them that he would expect better of them now that he had returned. The Dark Lord told the Death Eaters of the events that had led to his first downfall, his years in hiding before he tried to steal the Philosopher's Stone by possessing Quirinus Quirrell and eventual defeat before finally of how Wormtail had located him, and they set out to orchestrate his resurrection.
Voldemort then set his attention on Harry, and began to mock and humiliate the boy before the Death Eaters. He then had Harry untied so he could force the young wizard into a duel where the Dark Lord had a greater advantage over Harry. After inflicting the Cruciatus Curse several times and the Imperius Curse on Harry, Voldemort was ready to end the one sided duel and kill Harry once and for all. Yet as Voldemort cast Avada Kedavra, Harry simultaneously cast Expelliarmus and their twin-core wands became locked in Priori Incantatem.[24]
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Voldemort duels Harry in a battle of wills, echoes appear as a result of Priori Incantatem
People who had been killed by Voldemort's wand came out as spectral visions. First Cedric Diggory, then Frank Bryce, followed by Bertha Jorkins, Lily and James Potter. They encouraged Harry, while distracting Voldemort. Harry pulled away and had enough time to grab Cedric's body and the Triwizard Cup to return to the Hogwarts grounds.
Voldemort now had some of his followers, but Barty Crouch Jr had been discovered, and was subjected to the Dementor's Kiss before he could be tried before the Wizengamot.[24] Thus, the only knowledge of Voldemort's return was Harry's word, which was vigorously disputed by the Ministry. Voldemort was able to grow in power in secret.[
Riddle: "What Muggle?"
Morfin Gaunt: "That Muggle what my sister took a fancy to, that Muggle what lives in the Riddle House big house over the way, you look right like him. Riddle. But he’s older now, in 'e? He's older'n you, now I think on it... he come back, see. "
— Riddle as he confronts his maternal uncle for the first time[src]
Tom Morfin
Riddle talking with Morfin inside the Gaunt ruin
Around August 1943,[18] Tom went to Little Hangleton to learn about his mother's family. While at the Gaunt Shack, he met his uncle Morfin Gaunt, with whom he was far from impressed. Morfin mentioned offhandedly at one point during this meeting that he thought that Tom looked "mighty like that Muggle," Merope's husband, Tom Riddle Snr. Tom immediately demanded the identity of the Muggle in question, and Morfin told Tom the story of his Muggle father, which infuriated Tom to the point of seeking revenge. Tom stunned Morfin and took his wand, went over to the Riddle House and, using his uncle's wand, murdered his father, grandfather, and grandmother with the Killing Curse.
He covered up his crimes by altering Morfin's memory, causing him to believe that he was the killer. When the Ministry of Magic investigated the crime, Morfin, who had previously served three years in Azkaban for using magic in front of and against Muggles, freely admitted to the deed and was sentenced to life imprisonment in Azkaban. Tom took the Gaunt family's signet ring from Morfin and preserved another part of his soul within it to make his second Horcrux, wearing it like a trophy at Hogwarts.[15]
Learning about Horcruxes
Riddle: "How do you split your soul?"
Horace Slughorn: "Well, you must understand that the soul is supposed to remain intact and whole. Splitting it is an act of violation, it is against nature."
Riddle: "But how do you do it?"
— Discussion of how Horcruxes are made[src]
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Young Riddle asking Professor Slughorn about Horcruxes
During his sixth year, Tom questioned Professor Slughorn, who was taken in by Tom's charisma, about the possibility of creating more than one Horcrux, something Slughorn felt deeply ashamed of in later years; in his mid-teen years, Riddle already sought to make himself immortal; being unable to find any recorded information on creating multiple Horcruxes, he asked the experienced and knowledgeable Slughorn for an opinion before attempting this unknown feat.
First time
Riddle splitting his soul for the first time
Tom succeeded in doing so at some point during this year, creating his first Horcrux in the form of the aforementioned diary and his second in the form of the inherited ring. During Tom's seventh year at Hogwarts, he was made Head Boy and received a Medal for Magical Merit. He was regarded as one of the most brilliant students ever to attend Hogwarts, a fact admitted by Albus Dumbledore himself.
After Hogwarts (1945-1949)
Albus Dumbledore: "Rumours of your doings have reached your old school, Tom. I should be sorry to believe half of them."
Riddle: "Greatness inspires envy, envy engenders spite, spite spawns lies. You must know this, Dumbledore."
— A business intercourse between a headmaster and his old student[src]
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Borgin and Burkes, Voldemort's former place of employment
After graduating, Tom immediately approached Armando Dippet and asked him for a chance to teach Defence Against the Dark Arts, and to remain at Hogwarts, for reasons that he did not confide with the then-headmaster — Hogwarts being his true home at heart, using the influential position as a teacher to recruit students into his future army, and to continue to penetrate the castle's magical secrets. Dippet rejected this offer, deeming the boy too young, but invited Tom to reapply in a few years, if he was still interested in the post, something that Dumbledore heavily advised against.
Shortly before leaving Hogwarts, however, Tom charmed Helena Ravenclaw, the daughter of Rowena Ravenclaw and the ghost of Ravenclaw House more commonly known as the Grey Lady, into telling him the location of her mother's diadem, which she revealed as a hollow tree deep within a far-flung forest in Albania. He presumably travelled there at her instruction, murdering an Albanian peasant along the way before retrieving the diadem, which he later preserved a third part of his soul within to make his third Horcrux.[19]
Upon his return to Britain, he was offered several positions in the Ministry of Magic, but ended up working at Borgin and Burkes for Caractacus Burke, to the disappointment and surprise of many. He set to persuading witches and wizards to part with their valuable magical heirlooms — a job at which he was very good.[15]
The rise of the Dark Lord (1950-1970)
Murdering Hepzibah Smith
"But before they were sure beyond doubt that the cup and the locket were both gone, the assistant who had worked at Borgin and Burkes, the young man who had visited Hepzibah so regularly and charmed her so well, had resigned his post and vanished. His superiors had no idea where he had gone; they were as surprised as anyone at his disappearance. And that was the last that was seen or heard of Tom Riddle for a very long time. "
—Tom disappears after murdering Hepzibah Smith[src]
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Hepzibah Smith shows Riddle Slytherin's Locket
While working at Borgin and Burkes, Tom befriended Hepzibah Smith, a wealthy but elderly descendant of Helga Hufflepuff. Between 1955 and 1961,[15][20] Hepzibah showed Tom her two most valuable treasures: his ancestor's locket and her ancestor's cup. Tom's eyes flashed red with greed and avarice upon seeing these objects and he desired them, because he saw the locket to be rightfully his as Slytherin's heir and the cup was a reminder of Hogwarts as well as a priceless artefact. Tom killed Hepzibah to steal these coveted objects and vanished without a trace. He covered his tracks well by implanting another false memory into an innocent bystander — Hokey, Hepzibah's house-elf. Hokey admitted to accidentally putting poison into Hepzibah's cocoa, which was believed, as Hokey was elderly herself. Meanwhile, Tom immediately resigned his post at Borgin and Burkes and fled with the cup and locket, subsequently turning them into two more Horcruxes using the murders of Smith and an unidentified Muggle tramp.[15]
Lord Voldemort's request
"I have experimented; I have pushed the boundaries of magic further, perhaps, than they have ever been pushed —"
—Tom regarding the magical experimentation he did while abroad[src]
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Voldemort during his time abroad, slipping further into the Dark Arts
Tom disappeared for ten long years. He slipped deeper into the Dark Arts, travelled extensively, consorted with disreputable people, began to become distorted in appearance and lost his handsomeness, due to splitting his soul so many times, and began to use the alias "Lord Voldemort" openly. He also severed contact with Professor Slughorn, who became upset for not living up to the Potions Master's employment offers. Ten years after Smith's murder, Tom appealed once more to the Headmaster of Hogwarts, who was then Albus Dumbledore, for the position of Professor of Defence Against the Dark Arts. After a short, superficially amiable chat, Dumbledore directly confronted Tom regarding why he had requested the position, as Dumbledore knew full well that Tom had no desire whatsoever to teach. Tom, unable to make an open request of Dumbledore due to the malicious nature of his true intentions, simply left after a final, gentle rebuke from his former teacher. From that day on, Hogwarts was never able to keep a Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher for more than a year, which was attributed by Dumbledore to a curse by Tom. The visit to Hogwarts was not fruitless, however, for Tom used the opportunity to hide Rowena Ravenclaw's Diadem in the Room of Requirement, where he believed it would never be found.[15][19]
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Voldemort travelling exclusively and gathering followers
Lord Voldemort, as Tom was now exclusively called, spent the next few years before the war gathering followers in witches and wizards who called themselves, collectively, Death Eaters.[21] Some were supportive of his cause to dominate Muggles and Muggle-borns; while others were greedy for domination, wealth and fame; and yet others joined the Dark Lord out of fear. Voldemort considered them more like servants than friends or family. They freely used the Unforgivable Curses and killed mercilessly and indiscriminately. According to Sirius Black, Voldemort also used tricks, jinxes, and blackmail to get people to willingly join him. At some point around this time, Voldemort greatly enhanced his skills in Legilimency, to the point that he became known to some (primarily his Death Eaters) as the greatest Legilimens in the world. Voldemort could read, control and unhinge the minds of others, and could almost always tell when he was being lied to. According to Severus Snape, Voldemort often enjoyed telepathically invading the minds of others, creating visions designed to torture them into madness. Only after extracting the last exquisite ounce of agony, only when he had them literally begging for death, would he finally kill them.
First Wizarding War (1970-1981)
"He was takin' over. 'Course, some stood up to him — an' he killed 'em."
—Voldemort actions during the First Wizarding War[src]
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Voldemort wearing a hooded cloak during the First War, as a possible means to invoke fear
In 1970, Voldemort started the First Wizarding War by taking advantage of one of the wizarding world's greatest weaknesses: the beings and creatures that they had outcast. The Dark Lord recruited the giants, who had long ago been driven by wizards into the mountains, and werewolves, who were persecuted by most witches and wizards. Many feared the goblins would also join him, as they were restricted from wand use, but it never happened. In fact, Voldemort murdered a family of goblins near Nottingham at some point during the War, for an unknown reason (possibly anger at the neutrality of the goblins, or no reason at all).
Bartemius Crouch Snr, who was the head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement at the time and was known for his fanatical hatred of the Dark Arts, issued an edict that gave Aurors authorisation to use Unforgivable Curses on Death Eaters without warning, and suspects were sometimes handed over to the Dementors without a Wizengamot trial. Many innocent people were locked away. For many years after, people were even afraid to speak his name, and he was referred to as "You-Know-Who" or "He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named."
Under the staunch protection of Albus Dumbledore, the only person Voldemort truly feared, Hogwarts remained a safe place of learning throughout the entire war. The Order of the Phoenix was created by Dumbledore at this time to fight against Voldemort. The war itself lasted for eleven long years.[22]
Testing his Horcrux's defences
"Harry turned his head to look at the greenish glow toward which the boat was still inexorably sailing. He could not pretend now that he was not scared. The great black lake, teeming with the dead..."
—The search for one of Voldemort's Horcruxes in the crystal cave[src]
Nine years into the war, Voldemort decided to test the defences around Salazar Slytherin's Locket in the crystal cave, and asked Regulus Black, a loyal 18-year-old Death Eater to lend him his house-elf, Kreacher. Voldemort took the elf with him to the cave, forced him to drink the Drink of Despair, and left him to die on the Crystal Cave Island. Kreacher was able to escape using house-elf magic, and told Regulus of what had happened.
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The Inferi in the crystal cave
Upon hearing Kreacher's story, Regulus, who had already been somewhat uncomfortable with the reality of being a Death Eater, decided to defect. He took a duplicate locket and placed a note inside for Voldemort to find, then ordered Kreacher to take him to where the real locket was hidden. Kreacher guided Regulus past the cave's defences. At the island with the basin of potion containing the locket, Regulus ordered Kreacher to take the locket once the potion was gone and replace it with the fake one, then escape without him and find a way to destroy the Horcrux. Regulus drank the potion himself, and when he tried to get water from the lake to quench his thirst, he was dragged to his death by the Inferi. Kreacher obeyed his master's orders and switched the lockets before escaping. However, despite his best efforts, he was unable to destroy the Horcrux.
The Prophecy
"The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches... Born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies... And the Dark Lord will mark him as equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not... And either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives... The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies..."
—Sybill Trelawney's first prophecy[src]
Ten years into the war, when Voldemort was at the height of his dominion, a prophecy was given by Sybill Trelawney to Albus Dumbledore which predicted the fall of the Dark Lord. This prophecy was given in the Hog's Head Inn during an interview for the position of Professor of Divination.[22]
This prophecy was overheard by Death Eater and informant Severus Snape.[15] According to Dumbledore, Snape only heard half of the prophecy and was then thrown out by the barman, Aberforth Dumbledore. He relayed to Lord Voldemort what he had heard, not realising that he had missed an important part of the message.[22]
Trelawney's description of the night's events was a bit different however, as she stated that after feeling "ill," Aberforth burst into the room with Severus Snape in tow, whom he had caught eavesdropping at the door. This is in contrast with Dumbledore's description of events. However, this may be due to the fact that Dumbledore had wished to conceal the identity of the spy from Harry, and told him a simplified version of the events. In any case, Voldemort received only the first part of the prophecy. Feeling threatened, he sprang into action to prevent the fulfilment of the prophecy.
There were, at the time, two babies to whom the prophecy could have referred — Harry Potter, the half-blood son of James and Lily Potter; and Neville Longbottom, the pure-blood son of Frank and Alice Longbottom. Both families had sought to thwart Voldemort three times, and both families were members of the Order of the Phoenix. Both children in question were born at the end of the seventh month, July. Voldemort chose to target Harry instead of Neville; Dumbledore suspected this was because Harry shared a similar family heritage with Voldemort, both of them being half-bloods.[22]
First fall from domination
"Lily, take Harry and go! It's him! Go! Run! I'll hold him off!"
—James Potter moments before his death[src]
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Voldemort arrives at Godric's Hollow and proceeds to murder James and Lily Potter
After a long search, Voldemort discovered the identity of the Potter's Secret Keeper, Peter Pettigrew, and was told of their location. With the Potter's Fidelius Charm broken, Voldemort simply walked into their home one night and murdered James and Lily. However, when he used the Killing Curse on Harry, it rebounded and seemingly obliterated his body. This happened because Lily sacrificed her life to protect her son, creating a powerful defence of ancient magic around Harry which protected him for many years.[23] Thus, after eleven long years of the First Wizarding War, Voldemort was defeated for the first time.
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Infant Harry Potter faces death for the first time
It was at this point that Voldemort's next Horcrux was unknowingly created. Years of experimentation, murder, and deliberately ripping apart his soul into so many Horcruxes had rendered the remainder of his soul so unstable that, when his body was destroyed, a small shard of his soul broke apart from the rest and latched unto the only other living being in what remained of the room: Harry Potter himself. The soul shard latched unto Harry's own soul, granting him some of the Dark Lord's own powers and providing him with a latent connection to Voldemort's own mind. What remained of Voldemort's mangled soul swiftly escaped from the ruins of the house that same night.
Missing years (1981-1994)
"I was ripped from my body, less than spirit, less than the meanest ghost, but still, I was alive."
—Lord Voldemort regarding his fall from power[src]
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Four of Voldemort's most loyal Death Eaters sentenced to life in Azkaban
After Lord Voldemort's first fall from domination, the Death Eaters dispersed and attempted to return to normal life. Many claimed they had been under the Imperius Curse, while others stayed true to their master and continued his work, most notably the Lestrange family, who were eventually taken into custody, convicted at a trial, and imprisoned in Azkaban. Most of them however, managed ultimately to remain free and to re-integrate into society.[24]
Voldemort lost his physical form and magical powers, but he remained alive in ghostly form. The Horcruxes he had created kept his spirit bound to the physical world. He retreated to the forests of Albania, where he had previously found his fifth Horcrux, and waited for his faithful Death Eaters to find him, but many of them now believed him dead, and those still faithful to him were either dead or in Azkaban. He gained physical form by inhabiting snakes, though he disliked doing so because the bodies of such animals were ill-equipped to perform magic, and because his possession significantly reduced their lifespans; none of his hosts survived for too long. Additionally, any help that he could have potentially rendered himself required the use of a wand, and animals, obviously, could not be used for this purpose. Voldemort did not dare enter the communities to possess humans, as he knew that Aurors were still abroad, looking for any signs of him.[23]
Search for the Philosopher's Stone
"Harry Potter... we meet again."
—Voldemort speaking through Quirrell[src]
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Quirrell drinking unicorn blood in place of his master
In 1991, Voldemort formed a plan to regain his physical body. Hogwarts Professor Quirinus Quirrell had made a voyage to Albania, where his foolish and gullible mind was vulnerable to Voldemort. He latched onto Quirrell's body and came back to Hogwarts with him. Voldemort ordered Quirrell to drink the blood of unicorns in the Forbidden Forest so he could gain strength from the unicorn's healing abilities.
Somehow, Voldemort learned of the Philosopher's Stone, and how it could somehow return him to his to physical form. He ordered Quirrell to steal Nicolas Flamel's greatest alchemical compound, the Philosopher's Stone, from a vault in Gringotts Wizarding Bank so he could make the Elixir of Life. Voldemort discovered the Stone had been removed earlier that same day, and through Quirrell's connections at Hogwarts, learned it was hidden at the school.[23]
The same year that Voldemort set to the task of stealing the Philosopher's Stone, Harry Potter began his first year at Hogwarts. There were many barriers protecting the Stone. Quirrell had to trick Rubeus Hagrid, who was then the Hogwarts Gamekeeper, into telling him how to get past the three-headed dog Fluffy. To do this, he enticed Hagrid into a card game with the wager of a dragon egg.[23]
Severus Snape, who had switched sides near the end of the First Wizarding War and become professor of Potions, was suspicious of Quirrell and hounded him relentlessly. When Quirrell released a troll in the Hogwarts dungeons as a distraction, Snape blocked him off.[23] Voldemort was not to be stopped, however, and ordered Quirrell to send a fake letter to Dumbledore, asking him to go to the Ministry of Magic.
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Quirrell and Voldemort in confrontation, while in the underground chambers
Voldemort moved forward with his goal, moving through the security barriers to the Mirror of Erised. Quirrell saw himself presenting the stone to his master, but could not figure out how to get it. It was only when Harry Potter arrived, believing he was protecting the Stone from Severus Snape, that Voldemort saw a way to get it. Dumbledore would later say, "Only those who wanted to find the stone, but not use it, could get it from the mirror." Voldemort figured this out, and Quirrell attacked Harry. When he touched Harry, however, his hands blistered and burned. Harry placed his hands on Quirrell's face, severely injuring him. However, before Quirrell could harm Harry, Dumbledore appeared, and Lord Voldemort's soul fled, killing Quirrell in the process.
Reopening the Chamber of Secrets (1992)
Riddle: "How is it that a baby with no extraordinary magical talent was able to defeat the greatest wizard of all time? How did you escape with nothing but a scar, while Lord Voldemort's powers were destroyed?"
Harry Potter: "What do you care about how I escaped? Voldemort was after your time!"
Riddle: "Voldemort is my past, present, and future."
— Riddle exposing himself as Lord Voldemort[src]
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Diary Riddle showing Harry Potter one of his memories
Voldemort returned to the Albanian forest, weaker than ever. He had to wait yet again for someone to help him. Sometime before 1992, Lucius Malfoy came into possession of Tom Riddle's Diary. This was the same diary created as a Horcrux by Tom Marvolo Riddle as a boy in the 1940s. Malfoy planted the diary on eleven-year-old Ginny Weasley, who brought it to Hogwarts. She began writing in it, and found that a sixteen-year-old Tom Riddle was answering. She found comfort in the diary, not knowing she was being manipulated. Tom would always have sympathy. The diary slowly drained the life and energy from Ginny, transferring it to itself. Under the diary's control, Ginny re-opened the Chamber of Secrets and released the basilisk, which petrified several students. While possessed, she also killed Hagrid's roosters and wrote threatening messages on the school corridors in rooster blood. Ginny became upset and confused, knowing that the diary was doing something to her, and tried to flush it down the toilet in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. Harry Potter and Ron Weasley accidentally stumbled upon it, and Harry began communicating with the diary.[16]
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Harry destroys Tom Riddle's diary with a Basilisk fang
When Ginny saw that Harry had the diary, she stole it back for she did not want Harry to find out all the things she had written in the diary, or what she had done while under its influence. When this piece of Voldemort's soul was ready to take his physical form from Ginny's life, the diary lured her into the Chamber of Secrets, while ignoring her pleas and cries for mercy. Harry found Ginny in time and destroyed the basilisk with Godric Gryffindor's Sword. Fawkes also arrived, summoned by Harry's profound devotion and loyalty to Dumbledore.
This encounter and Horcrux is what revealed Voldemort's past as "Tom Marvolo Riddle" to Harry. At first, Harry thought he was an ally, and asked him to help. Then, when revealing his future identity to Harry, Riddle implied that he wanted to kill Harry in revenge for destroying him over even continuing Salazar Slytherin's wish of purging the school of Muggle-borns. Harry used the basilisk's fang to stab the diary, thinking it would destroy its dark power.[16] Not only was the diary destroyed, but Harry also unknowingly destroyed one of Voldemort's Horcruxes.[15] As Dumbledore surmised, the shard of Voldemort's soul that contained his core identity was still in hiding in Albania and remained unaware of these occurances for at least another year and a half.
Return to full strength (1994-1995)
Wormtail: " ...no, my Lord Voldemort. I merely meant, perhaps if we were to do it without the boy..."
Voldemort: "No! The boy is everything! It cannot be done without him, and it will be done exactly as I say."
Barty Crouch, Jr: "I will not disappoint you, my Lord."
— Discussion of Voldemort's plan to return to power[src]
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Peter Pettigrew holding a weakened and immobile Voldemort
In 1994, when Voldemort had all but given up hope of obtaining any help from his former servants, Peter Pettigrew, a.k.a. Wormtail, who had faked his own death years earlier and hid from authorities in his Animagus form of a rat, returned to his master. Together, they built a rudimentary body that Voldemort used for travel and performing magic. While in this form, Voldemort was forced to drink a potion made from unicorn blood and venom from Nagini the snake to sustain his life. Knowing that Dumbledore was sure to have seen to it that the Philosopher's Stone was destroyed, Voldemort knew he would not be able to use the Elixir of Life to create a new body for himself.[25] Voldemort decided to attempt an old piece of ritualistic Dark Magic to create a potion that would restore him to a body. He made plans to travel to England in order to obtain two of the three key ingredients, bone from his father, and the blood of his most hated enemy, Harry Potter. The third ingredient, the flesh of a servant, he would obtain from Wormtail.
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Voldemort in the Riddle House plotting with Barty Crouch Jr and Wormtail
Pettigrew lured Ministry official Bertha Jorkins to Lord Voldemort in his forest hideout in Albania. He used magic to glean information about the Triwizard Tournament from Jorkins. Before killing her, Voldemort was surprised to find that someone else had put a Memory Charm on her and interrogated her to find the whereabouts of a loyal Death Eater, Barty Crouch Jr, who had been imprisoned in Azkaban and was thought to be dead. Voldemort uncovered that Barty Crouch Snr was concealing his son at his home after helping him escape prison. Jorkins had stumbled upon Barty Jr at his house, and Crouch Snr placed a Memory Charm on her so that she would not report it.[24]
Returning to the Riddle House in Little Hangleton, Voldemort also killed Riddle groundskeeper Frank Bryce for overhearing their plan to crash the Triwizard Tournament. They went to the Crouch estate, where Voldemort placed Crouch Snr under the Imperius Curse and freed Crouch Jr.[24]
Voldemort ordered Crouch Jr to capture Alastor Moody, the new Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor at Hogwarts. Crouch Jr and Peter Pettigrew did so, and created Polyjuice Potion which Crouch Jr used to impersonate Moody for the entire school year. He influenced the Tournament for months, ensuring that Harry would be the one to get to the Triwizard Cup first which, unbeknownst to anyone, was a Portkey. Meanwhile, Voldemort and Pettigrew stayed in the Crouch estate, ordering Crouch Snr to continue as usual. When Crouch Snr started to show signs of resisting the Imperius Curse, Voldemort decided it was no longer safe to allow him to leave the house, and instead made him stay home under the presumption of being sick. However, Pettigrew neglected his duties, and Crouch managed to escape, thus Voldemort quickly alerted Crouch Jr to stop his father at all cost. Upon Jr's success, Voldemort spared Pettigrew from execution, instead opting to punish him with a Cruciatus Curse.
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Pettigrew prepares to place Voldemort inside the cauldron
Harry, in the spirit of sportsmanship, requested Cedric Diggory to tie with him for the win. When they both touched the Portkey, they were transported to a cemetery in Little Hangleton where Wormtail and Voldemort were waiting. Under Voldemort's orders, Pettigrew murdered Cedric with the Killing Curse and went on to have Harry tightly bound and gagged to the Riddle Family tombstone.
After Wormtail had placed Voldemort's rudimentary body into a cauldron containing the near finished potion, he added the first two ingredients causing it to turn from a poisonous-looking blue to burning red before he proceeded to obtain Harry's blood and added it to the Potion for his master's rebirth.[24] Once the final ingredient was added, the potion turned blinding white, sending out bright sparks as it simmered before dying down and a thick white steamed the ritual now complete, Voldemort regained his physical body and emerged from the cauldron. Calling on Wormtail to robe him, the reborn Dark Lord took some time examining his body and getting reaccustomed to it. Then he called for his servant to show him his arm and used the now returned Dark Mark to summon his Death Eaters.
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Voldemort talking to Lucius Malfoy regarding his past behaviour
Those who were perhaps most loyal to him, save for those who willingly went to Azkaban in his name, appeared. Voldemort welcomed them before he scorned them for believing him to be dead and informed them that he would expect better of them now that he had returned. The Dark Lord told the Death Eaters of the events that had led to his first downfall, his years in hiding before he tried to steal the Philosopher's Stone by possessing Quirinus Quirrell and eventual defeat before finally of how Wormtail had located him, and they set out to orchestrate his resurrection.
Voldemort then set his attention on Harry, and began to mock and humiliate the boy before the Death Eaters. He then had Harry untied so he could force the young wizard into a duel where the Dark Lord had a greater advantage over Harry. After inflicting the Cruciatus Curse several times and the Imperius Curse on Harry, Voldemort was ready to end the one sided duel and kill Harry once and for all. Yet as Voldemort cast Avada Kedavra, Harry simultaneously cast Expelliarmus and their twin-core wands became locked in Priori Incantatem.[24]
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Voldemort duels Harry in a battle of wills, echoes appear as a result of Priori Incantatem
People who had been killed by Voldemort's wand came out as spectral visions. First Cedric Diggory, then Frank Bryce, followed by Bertha Jorkins, Lily and James Potter. They encouraged Harry, while distracting Voldemort. Harry pulled away and had enough time to grab Cedric's body and the Triwizard Cup to return to the Hogwarts grounds.
Voldemort now had some of his followers, but Barty Crouch Jr had been discovered, and was subjected to the Dementor's Kiss before he could be tried before the Wizengamot.[24] Thus, the only knowledge of Voldemort's return was Harry's word, which was vigorously disputed by the Ministry. Voldemort was able to grow in power in secret.[
