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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Chapter 7
"You've no idea how he was like... Even then..."
—Horace Slughorn talking about Tom Riddle[src]
Horace Slughorn (HBP promo) 1-1
Horace Slughorn, his former Head of House and favourite Professor
Professor Horace Slughorn was the Potions master during Tom Riddle's years at Hogwarts. Tom Riddle was a member of the Slug Club, a "collection" of Slughorn's favourite students, including students who were well connected, and those who proved to be talented and appeared to have potential for great success. At some point during Tom Riddle's time at Hogwarts, he asked Slughorn about Horcruxes. Slughorn initially baulked, but under the influence of Riddle's charm, convinced himself that Tom was asking for "purely academic" reasons and told him what tearing one's soul would basically entail. Most significantly, Tom asked if it was possible to make more than one horcrux; while the question shocked and horrified Slughorn, he didn't deny that it was possible. With the information he received from Slughorn, Tom Riddle affirmed his decision to create six Horcruxes; ultimately, this would tear his soul into a total of seven separate pieces—seven being the "most powerfully magical number"—and allow him to effectively achieve some degree of immortality. Ashamed of having so badly misjudged Tom Riddle, and for the part he played in providing Riddle with such destructive information, Slughorn modified his own memory.
In 1996, Slughorn left retirement and returned to Hogwarts to replace Severus Snape as Potions master. Albus Dumbledore gave Harry Potter the task being "collected" by Slughorn and retrieving the original version of the memory. Harry managed to get the memory from Slughorn in 1997, with the help of Felix Felicis, copious amounts of mead, and Slughorn's fondness for Harry's mother, who had been another of Slughorn's favourites. The memory confirmed suspicions Dumbledore had about the steps Voldemort had taken to become immortal, which proved to be of vital importance in Voldemort's ultimate defeat.
During the Battle of Hogwarts, Slughorn, who initially appeared to flee the school, brought reinforcements from Hogsmeade to join the fight against the Death Eaters, and later duelled directly against Voldemort with Minerva McGonagall and Kingsley Shacklebolt.
Ginny Weasley
"...I was patient. I wrote back. I was sympathetic, I was kind. Ginny simply loved me... No one's ever understood me like you, Tom... I'm so glad I've got this diary to confide in... It's like a friend I can carry around in my pocket... If I say it myself, Harry, I’ve always been able to charm the people I needed."
—Tom Riddle to Harry Potter on his manipulation of Ginny[src]
Ginny x
Ginny in her first year with Tom Riddle's diary
Although Voldemort had lost his physical body, he managed to approach Ginny Weasley, a first year Gryffindor girl and younger sister of Ron Weasley who had a huge crush on Harry Potter, through one of his Horcruxes: his diary. Tom Riddle's soul communicated with Ginny through his diary, sympathising with her problems and giving her advice, which made her emotionally vulnerable to Riddle's influence. As this fragment of his soul was preserved as his 16-year old self, prior to the later disfigurements, Tom Riddle was able to use his earlier good looks to make girls swoon as he had done decades earlier, in this case making an insecure girl feel valued that a tall, dark and handsome man took an interest in her problems. Eventually, Riddle was able to possess Ginny, use her to open the Chamber of Secrets and free Salazar Slytherin's Basilisk to petrify several Muggle-born students (including Hermione Granger). When Ginny figured out what she had been doing, despite having no memory of what happened during the times she was possessed, she attempted to flush the diary down a toilet; however, as the diary was a Horcrux, it remained undamaged and later ended up in the hands of Harry Potter himself.
Tumblr lwytwl8cBl1qcm4vyo3 250
A possessed Ginny writing a message on the wall
Ginny, worried the Diary would reveal to Harry things she'd written about her feelings for him, stole the diary back. Riddle possessed Ginny one last time and had her enter the Chamber of Secrets, with every intention of killing her and using her life to restore his own. Harry, however, as a Parselmouth, was able to enter the Chamber, rescue Ginny, and slay the Basilisk with the Godric Gryffindor's Sword. He then used one of the Basilisk's fangs to stab the Diary, effectively making it the first of Voldemort's Horcruxes to be destroyed.
Despite being outwardly sympathetic and understanding, Riddle actually felt great contempt for Ginny, viewing her as "silly" and describing her as "stupid little Ginny". He considered her "boring" at first, but thought that her diary entries became "far more interesting" after he started possessing her as he apparently found her confusion amusing. Ginny's retrieval of the diary angered Riddle as he had hoped to learn more about Harry Potter. When Voldemort's lieutenant, Bellatrix, was killed by Ginny's mother Molly Weasley in retaliation for nearly killing Ginny, Voldemort nearly turned his wand on both mother and daughter. However, this gave Harry the incentive to reveal his being still-alive. Ginny and her surviving relatives all saw Harry defeat Voldemort shortly thereafter. It was unknown to Voldemort that Ginny had won Harry's heart in her fifth year, but he might have suspected it. In addition, Ginny would marry Harry some point after Voldemort's death, making her the Dark Lord's distant cousin-in-law (albeit while Voldemort was dead).
Rubeus Hagrid
"Monsters don’t make good pets, Hagrid."
—Riddle before he turned Hagrid in[src]
Rubeus hagrid
Rubeus Hagrid, his determined enemy
Rubeus Hagrid and Tom Riddle were both students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in the 1940s, with Hagrid being three years his junior. In 1943, Riddle opened the Chamber of Secrets, unleashing a Basilisk on the school's Muggle-born students. Most of the students who were attacked ended up petrified, but when the Basilisk finally succeeded in killing one of them, Hogwarts became in danger of closing—a consequence Riddle hadn't foreseen, which would mean him having to return indefinitely to Wool's Orphanage. Upon realising the school might not have to close if the perpetrator were caught, Riddle stopped attacking students with the Basilisk, closed the Chamber of Secrets, and framed Hagrid, who was known for his love of dangerous Creatures and at the time was raising Aragog, a young Acromantula, for the crime. Hagrid managed to protect Aragog and even threw Riddle to the ground when he tried to curse him, making Hagrid the only person to challenge Riddle while he was a student. Despite this, Hagrid was expelled from Hogwarts, and the school was allowed to remain open. Believing in Hagrid's innocence, however, Professor Albus Dumbledore convinced Headmaster Armando Dippet to allow Hagrid to stay on at Hogwarts as Gamekeeper.
Tom Riddle never felt remorse for framing Hagrid and ruining his life. As Riddle went on to become Voldemort, Hagrid joined the Order of the Phoenix and fought against Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters in the First Wizarding War. In 1981, Hagrid was devastated when Voldemort murdered his friends James and Lily Potter, but shared in the relief of the rest of the Wizarding world when Voldemort lost his powers and disappeared after failing to kill young Harry Potter. Although many believed that Voldemort was dead, Hagrid, agreeing with Dumbledore, believed that he would one day return to power. Along with the vast majority of the Wizarding community, Hagrid refused to say Voldemort's name, generally referring to him as "You-know-who" although he once reluctantly said Voldemort's name when explaining his background to Harry. Since Voldemort had a certain respect for Hogwart's professors, it is not known if that included Hagrid, who taught Care of Magical Creatures. This is unlikely considering Hagrid's half-giant status.
In 1995, after his resurrection, Voldemort dispatched his Death Eaters to convince the giants to join their side, while Dumbledore had sent Hagrid and Olympe Maxime to do the same. While Hagrid and Maxime were on good terms with the Gurg, Karkus, the Death Eaters supported the giant Golgomath in an uprising that resulted in Golgomath beheading Karkus and taking over the giant colony. The giants then attacked Hagrid and Maxime, who were forced to retreat.
In 1998, Hagrid fought in the Battle of Hogwarts and was captured by the Death Eaters. After Harry sacrificed himself to be killed, Voldemort ordered a grieving Hagrid to carry his friend’s “dead” body in his arms, where it would be clearly visible to Harry's supporters. When Harry finally defeated the Dark Lord, Hagrid was amongst the first few who were able to congratulate him on his triumph.
Quirinus Quirrell
"You see what I've become? See what I must do to survive? Live off another; a mere parasite."
—Voldemort talking to Harry Potter through Quirrell[src]
Quirinus-Quirrel 458
Quirinus Quirrell, his loyal servant
Quirinus Quirrell encountered Lord Voldemort's disembodied soul fragment in the Black Forest of Albania, during his world travels. Originally naively trying to capture the Dark Lord's remains, Quirrell overestimated himself thinking he could subjugate Voldemort and learn powerful magic from him. With promises of wealth, domination and possibly immortality, Voldemort convinced Quirrell to become his faithful servant, and even to share his body. Quirrell followed orders with a tint of fear, and at times tried, feebly and futilely, to resist the possession.
On Voldemort's orders, Quirrell returned to London in 1991 and broke into Vault 713 at Gringotts Wizarding Bank to procure the Philosopher's Stone, only to find that it had been emptied earlier that day and the Stone transferred to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry by Rubeus Hagrid.
Quirrell took the position of Professor of Defence Against the Dark Arts at Hogwarts, with the aim of tracking down the Stone. When he and Voldemort realised Harry Potter was starting at Hogwarts that same year, Quirrell attempted to kill Harry, but was prevented from doing so first by Severus Snape, then, unwittingly, by Hermione Granger.
Quirrell once again turned his attention to finding the Philosopher's Stone, and overcame several enchanted obstacles to travel through the Philosopher's Stone Chambers. Harry followed Quirrell through the Chambers, believing he was actually following Severus Snape, and eventually found Quirrell attempting to retrieve the Stone from the Mirror of Erised in the final chamber. Voldemort ordered Quirrell to use Harry to get the stone, and when the Stone appeared in Harry's pocket, Harry attempted to conceal the fact by lying about what he saw in the Mirror. Voldemort, seeing through Harry's lie, offered Harry power and glory, and even the possibility of seeing his parents again, in exchange for joining him and handing over the stone. Upon Harry's refusal, Voldemort ordered Quirrell to take the Stone by force, but found that Quirrell was unable to touch the boy without enduring excruciating pain as a result of the protection afforded to Harry by his mother's loving sacrifice. To escape the pain, Voldemort separated his soul from Quirrell's body and fled, leaving Quirrell to die; Dumbledore noted that this was an act of Voldemort's mercilessness on his subordinates as much as towards his enemies.
Wool's Orphanage residents
"I can make bad things happen to people who annoy me. I can make them hurt if I want to."
—Eleven-year old Tom Riddle to Albus Dumbledore[src]
Tom Riddle grew up at the Muggle orphanage where his mother brought him shortly before her death in 1926.
Tom's relationship with the other residents of the orphanage was strained, to say the least. Some of the orphanage's staff, such as Mrs Cole, believed that his mother had originated from a circus due to his middle name. When Albus Dumbledore, then professor at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, arrived at the orphanage to invite Tom to attend Hogwarts, Tom initially believed that Mrs Cole, the orphanage's matron, had called Dumbledore to take him to an asylum. Dumbledore discovered that Tom had been bullying the other children, namely Amy Benson and Dennis Bishop, and that he had a habit of keeping trophies to signify the terror he was able to cause. He knew he was different from the other children; he was intelligent and far more powerful than his peers, and had no issue with punishing those who did not do as he told them. When Dumbledore assured him that he wasn't from an asylum, and that Tom was, in fact, a wizard, Riddle was unusually quick to believe him, having always considered himself "special."
Riddle hated the orphanage, which was a reminder of the poor and common start to his life; ultimately, he thought of Hogwarts as his first and real home.
Hepzibah Smith
"You naughty boy, you shouldn't have! You do spoil this old lady, Tom."
—Hepzibah Smith, in response to Riddle bringing her flowers on the day she showed him The Locket of Slytherin and The Cup of Hufflepuff[src]
Tom Riddle first met Hepzibah Smith when he worked at Borgin and Burkes. As a polite, handsome, and clever young man with a great capacity to charm and a powerful gift of persuasion, he became friendly with Hepzibah, flattering her and making her feel pretty. He convinced her to show him two of her greatest treasures—Salazar Slytherin's Locket and Helga Hufflepuff's Cup—which he planned to steal and turn into Horcruxes. He killed Hepzibah two days later by mixing a lethal and little-known poison into her cocoa, and took the two artefacts. He was never suspected in her murder, as he framed Smith's house-elf, Hokey, by modifying the elf's memory. Prior to her death, Hepzibah realised too late of Tom's greed for the treasures, which led her affections to falter somewhat.
Order of the Phoenix
OotP
Order of the Phoenix, his enemies
The Order of the Phoenix was a secret organisation founded and led by Albus Dumbledore to oppose Voldemort and his Death Eaters.
Though it was unknown to Voldemort till shortly before his defeat, Severus Snape was a member of the Order who had defected from the Death Eaters and worked for Dumbledore as a spy shortly after Voldemort began hunting Lily Potter.
James and Lily Potter were members of the Order who became prime targets for Voldemort during the First Wizarding War, after Voldemort heard of a prophecy foretelling of a child destined to destroy him. This fit the description of their young son, Harry. On 31 October, 1981, Voldemort found the Potters after the Fidelius Charm they had cast was broken by Peter Pettigrew. Voldemort killed James first and ordered Lily to stand aside, so he could kill Harry. When Lily refused to stand aside, Voldemort killed her as well, making her murder a sacrifice that caused the Killing Curse Voldemort aimed at Harry to backfire; Voldemort lost his body and fled to Albania.
Shortly after Voldemort lost his powers in 1981, the Longbottom family suffered at the hands of Bellatrix Lestrange, her husband Rodolphus, her brother-in-law Rabastan, and Barty Crouch Jr, who tortured Alice and Frank Longbottom, new parents to Neville Longbottom, to the point of insanity. They became permanent residents of St Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, and Neville was left to be raised by his grandmother, Augusta Longbottom. During the Battle of Hogwarts in 1998, Neville openly defied Voldemort and was tortured. However, he survived, and destroyed Voldemort’s last remaining Horcrux when he beheaded Nagini using the Sword of Gryffindor.
Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody was a highly skilled Auror and active member of the Order who fought against Voldemort during the First Wizarding War. After Voldemort’s first downfall in 1981, Moody was responsible for rounding up a number of Death Eaters, such as Igor Karkaroff, and killing several others, like Evan Rosier. In 1994, Voldemort ordered Barty Crouch Jr to kidnap Moody and imprison him in his own trunk. For the next nine months, Crouch used Moody's hair to brew the Polyjuice Potion that would allow him to take Moody's place as temporary professor of Defence Against the Dark Arts at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. In 1995, Crouch used his position at Hogwarts to make sure Harry Potter was transported to the Little Hangleton graveyard, where Peter Pettigrew used Harry's blood in a potion that allowed Voldemort to be restored to his body. When Voldemort failed to kill Harry in the graveyard and Harry returned to Hogwarts, Barty Crouch Jr attempted to murder him personally. Dumbledore, Minerva McGonagall, and Severus Snape rescued Harry, after which Crouch was exposed, and Moody was freed. After Dumbledore’s death in 1997, Moody took charge of the Order of the Phoenix, until he was murdered by Voldemort during the Battle of the Seven Potters.
Nearly all of the Weasley family was active within the Order of the Phoenix. They fought against Voldemort during both the First and Second Wizarding wars. They lost family members such as Fabian and Gideon Prewett, who were brothers of Molly Weasley, and Fred Weasley, who was killed in the Battle of Hogwarts. Voldemort had previously tried to manipulate Ginny Weasley in 1992, in an attempt to return to physical form, through one of his Horcruxes. Voldemort was furious when Molly defeated Bellatrix, and would have killed her, had Harry not intervened. Most of the Weasley family watched the final duel between Voldemort and Harry, and were witnesses to Voldemort’s death.
Dorcas Meadowes, Caradoc Dearborn, the Bones family, the McKinnon family, Benjy Fenwick and Emmeline Vance were all Order members killed either by Voldemort or by his Death Eaters during the First and Second Wizarding Wars.
—Horace Slughorn talking about Tom Riddle[src]
Horace Slughorn (HBP promo) 1-1
Horace Slughorn, his former Head of House and favourite Professor
Professor Horace Slughorn was the Potions master during Tom Riddle's years at Hogwarts. Tom Riddle was a member of the Slug Club, a "collection" of Slughorn's favourite students, including students who were well connected, and those who proved to be talented and appeared to have potential for great success. At some point during Tom Riddle's time at Hogwarts, he asked Slughorn about Horcruxes. Slughorn initially baulked, but under the influence of Riddle's charm, convinced himself that Tom was asking for "purely academic" reasons and told him what tearing one's soul would basically entail. Most significantly, Tom asked if it was possible to make more than one horcrux; while the question shocked and horrified Slughorn, he didn't deny that it was possible. With the information he received from Slughorn, Tom Riddle affirmed his decision to create six Horcruxes; ultimately, this would tear his soul into a total of seven separate pieces—seven being the "most powerfully magical number"—and allow him to effectively achieve some degree of immortality. Ashamed of having so badly misjudged Tom Riddle, and for the part he played in providing Riddle with such destructive information, Slughorn modified his own memory.
In 1996, Slughorn left retirement and returned to Hogwarts to replace Severus Snape as Potions master. Albus Dumbledore gave Harry Potter the task being "collected" by Slughorn and retrieving the original version of the memory. Harry managed to get the memory from Slughorn in 1997, with the help of Felix Felicis, copious amounts of mead, and Slughorn's fondness for Harry's mother, who had been another of Slughorn's favourites. The memory confirmed suspicions Dumbledore had about the steps Voldemort had taken to become immortal, which proved to be of vital importance in Voldemort's ultimate defeat.
During the Battle of Hogwarts, Slughorn, who initially appeared to flee the school, brought reinforcements from Hogsmeade to join the fight against the Death Eaters, and later duelled directly against Voldemort with Minerva McGonagall and Kingsley Shacklebolt.
Ginny Weasley
"...I was patient. I wrote back. I was sympathetic, I was kind. Ginny simply loved me... No one's ever understood me like you, Tom... I'm so glad I've got this diary to confide in... It's like a friend I can carry around in my pocket... If I say it myself, Harry, I’ve always been able to charm the people I needed."
—Tom Riddle to Harry Potter on his manipulation of Ginny[src]
Ginny x
Ginny in her first year with Tom Riddle's diary
Although Voldemort had lost his physical body, he managed to approach Ginny Weasley, a first year Gryffindor girl and younger sister of Ron Weasley who had a huge crush on Harry Potter, through one of his Horcruxes: his diary. Tom Riddle's soul communicated with Ginny through his diary, sympathising with her problems and giving her advice, which made her emotionally vulnerable to Riddle's influence. As this fragment of his soul was preserved as his 16-year old self, prior to the later disfigurements, Tom Riddle was able to use his earlier good looks to make girls swoon as he had done decades earlier, in this case making an insecure girl feel valued that a tall, dark and handsome man took an interest in her problems. Eventually, Riddle was able to possess Ginny, use her to open the Chamber of Secrets and free Salazar Slytherin's Basilisk to petrify several Muggle-born students (including Hermione Granger). When Ginny figured out what she had been doing, despite having no memory of what happened during the times she was possessed, she attempted to flush the diary down a toilet; however, as the diary was a Horcrux, it remained undamaged and later ended up in the hands of Harry Potter himself.
Tumblr lwytwl8cBl1qcm4vyo3 250
A possessed Ginny writing a message on the wall
Ginny, worried the Diary would reveal to Harry things she'd written about her feelings for him, stole the diary back. Riddle possessed Ginny one last time and had her enter the Chamber of Secrets, with every intention of killing her and using her life to restore his own. Harry, however, as a Parselmouth, was able to enter the Chamber, rescue Ginny, and slay the Basilisk with the Godric Gryffindor's Sword. He then used one of the Basilisk's fangs to stab the Diary, effectively making it the first of Voldemort's Horcruxes to be destroyed.
Despite being outwardly sympathetic and understanding, Riddle actually felt great contempt for Ginny, viewing her as "silly" and describing her as "stupid little Ginny". He considered her "boring" at first, but thought that her diary entries became "far more interesting" after he started possessing her as he apparently found her confusion amusing. Ginny's retrieval of the diary angered Riddle as he had hoped to learn more about Harry Potter. When Voldemort's lieutenant, Bellatrix, was killed by Ginny's mother Molly Weasley in retaliation for nearly killing Ginny, Voldemort nearly turned his wand on both mother and daughter. However, this gave Harry the incentive to reveal his being still-alive. Ginny and her surviving relatives all saw Harry defeat Voldemort shortly thereafter. It was unknown to Voldemort that Ginny had won Harry's heart in her fifth year, but he might have suspected it. In addition, Ginny would marry Harry some point after Voldemort's death, making her the Dark Lord's distant cousin-in-law (albeit while Voldemort was dead).
Rubeus Hagrid
"Monsters don’t make good pets, Hagrid."
—Riddle before he turned Hagrid in[src]
Rubeus hagrid
Rubeus Hagrid, his determined enemy
Rubeus Hagrid and Tom Riddle were both students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in the 1940s, with Hagrid being three years his junior. In 1943, Riddle opened the Chamber of Secrets, unleashing a Basilisk on the school's Muggle-born students. Most of the students who were attacked ended up petrified, but when the Basilisk finally succeeded in killing one of them, Hogwarts became in danger of closing—a consequence Riddle hadn't foreseen, which would mean him having to return indefinitely to Wool's Orphanage. Upon realising the school might not have to close if the perpetrator were caught, Riddle stopped attacking students with the Basilisk, closed the Chamber of Secrets, and framed Hagrid, who was known for his love of dangerous Creatures and at the time was raising Aragog, a young Acromantula, for the crime. Hagrid managed to protect Aragog and even threw Riddle to the ground when he tried to curse him, making Hagrid the only person to challenge Riddle while he was a student. Despite this, Hagrid was expelled from Hogwarts, and the school was allowed to remain open. Believing in Hagrid's innocence, however, Professor Albus Dumbledore convinced Headmaster Armando Dippet to allow Hagrid to stay on at Hogwarts as Gamekeeper.
Tom Riddle never felt remorse for framing Hagrid and ruining his life. As Riddle went on to become Voldemort, Hagrid joined the Order of the Phoenix and fought against Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters in the First Wizarding War. In 1981, Hagrid was devastated when Voldemort murdered his friends James and Lily Potter, but shared in the relief of the rest of the Wizarding world when Voldemort lost his powers and disappeared after failing to kill young Harry Potter. Although many believed that Voldemort was dead, Hagrid, agreeing with Dumbledore, believed that he would one day return to power. Along with the vast majority of the Wizarding community, Hagrid refused to say Voldemort's name, generally referring to him as "You-know-who" although he once reluctantly said Voldemort's name when explaining his background to Harry. Since Voldemort had a certain respect for Hogwart's professors, it is not known if that included Hagrid, who taught Care of Magical Creatures. This is unlikely considering Hagrid's half-giant status.
In 1995, after his resurrection, Voldemort dispatched his Death Eaters to convince the giants to join their side, while Dumbledore had sent Hagrid and Olympe Maxime to do the same. While Hagrid and Maxime were on good terms with the Gurg, Karkus, the Death Eaters supported the giant Golgomath in an uprising that resulted in Golgomath beheading Karkus and taking over the giant colony. The giants then attacked Hagrid and Maxime, who were forced to retreat.
In 1998, Hagrid fought in the Battle of Hogwarts and was captured by the Death Eaters. After Harry sacrificed himself to be killed, Voldemort ordered a grieving Hagrid to carry his friend’s “dead” body in his arms, where it would be clearly visible to Harry's supporters. When Harry finally defeated the Dark Lord, Hagrid was amongst the first few who were able to congratulate him on his triumph.
Quirinus Quirrell
"You see what I've become? See what I must do to survive? Live off another; a mere parasite."
—Voldemort talking to Harry Potter through Quirrell[src]
Quirinus-Quirrel 458
Quirinus Quirrell, his loyal servant
Quirinus Quirrell encountered Lord Voldemort's disembodied soul fragment in the Black Forest of Albania, during his world travels. Originally naively trying to capture the Dark Lord's remains, Quirrell overestimated himself thinking he could subjugate Voldemort and learn powerful magic from him. With promises of wealth, domination and possibly immortality, Voldemort convinced Quirrell to become his faithful servant, and even to share his body. Quirrell followed orders with a tint of fear, and at times tried, feebly and futilely, to resist the possession.
On Voldemort's orders, Quirrell returned to London in 1991 and broke into Vault 713 at Gringotts Wizarding Bank to procure the Philosopher's Stone, only to find that it had been emptied earlier that day and the Stone transferred to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry by Rubeus Hagrid.
Quirrell took the position of Professor of Defence Against the Dark Arts at Hogwarts, with the aim of tracking down the Stone. When he and Voldemort realised Harry Potter was starting at Hogwarts that same year, Quirrell attempted to kill Harry, but was prevented from doing so first by Severus Snape, then, unwittingly, by Hermione Granger.
Quirrell once again turned his attention to finding the Philosopher's Stone, and overcame several enchanted obstacles to travel through the Philosopher's Stone Chambers. Harry followed Quirrell through the Chambers, believing he was actually following Severus Snape, and eventually found Quirrell attempting to retrieve the Stone from the Mirror of Erised in the final chamber. Voldemort ordered Quirrell to use Harry to get the stone, and when the Stone appeared in Harry's pocket, Harry attempted to conceal the fact by lying about what he saw in the Mirror. Voldemort, seeing through Harry's lie, offered Harry power and glory, and even the possibility of seeing his parents again, in exchange for joining him and handing over the stone. Upon Harry's refusal, Voldemort ordered Quirrell to take the Stone by force, but found that Quirrell was unable to touch the boy without enduring excruciating pain as a result of the protection afforded to Harry by his mother's loving sacrifice. To escape the pain, Voldemort separated his soul from Quirrell's body and fled, leaving Quirrell to die; Dumbledore noted that this was an act of Voldemort's mercilessness on his subordinates as much as towards his enemies.
Wool's Orphanage residents
"I can make bad things happen to people who annoy me. I can make them hurt if I want to."
—Eleven-year old Tom Riddle to Albus Dumbledore[src]
Tom Riddle grew up at the Muggle orphanage where his mother brought him shortly before her death in 1926.
Tom's relationship with the other residents of the orphanage was strained, to say the least. Some of the orphanage's staff, such as Mrs Cole, believed that his mother had originated from a circus due to his middle name. When Albus Dumbledore, then professor at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, arrived at the orphanage to invite Tom to attend Hogwarts, Tom initially believed that Mrs Cole, the orphanage's matron, had called Dumbledore to take him to an asylum. Dumbledore discovered that Tom had been bullying the other children, namely Amy Benson and Dennis Bishop, and that he had a habit of keeping trophies to signify the terror he was able to cause. He knew he was different from the other children; he was intelligent and far more powerful than his peers, and had no issue with punishing those who did not do as he told them. When Dumbledore assured him that he wasn't from an asylum, and that Tom was, in fact, a wizard, Riddle was unusually quick to believe him, having always considered himself "special."
Riddle hated the orphanage, which was a reminder of the poor and common start to his life; ultimately, he thought of Hogwarts as his first and real home.
Hepzibah Smith
"You naughty boy, you shouldn't have! You do spoil this old lady, Tom."
—Hepzibah Smith, in response to Riddle bringing her flowers on the day she showed him The Locket of Slytherin and The Cup of Hufflepuff[src]
Tom Riddle first met Hepzibah Smith when he worked at Borgin and Burkes. As a polite, handsome, and clever young man with a great capacity to charm and a powerful gift of persuasion, he became friendly with Hepzibah, flattering her and making her feel pretty. He convinced her to show him two of her greatest treasures—Salazar Slytherin's Locket and Helga Hufflepuff's Cup—which he planned to steal and turn into Horcruxes. He killed Hepzibah two days later by mixing a lethal and little-known poison into her cocoa, and took the two artefacts. He was never suspected in her murder, as he framed Smith's house-elf, Hokey, by modifying the elf's memory. Prior to her death, Hepzibah realised too late of Tom's greed for the treasures, which led her affections to falter somewhat.
Order of the Phoenix
OotP
Order of the Phoenix, his enemies
The Order of the Phoenix was a secret organisation founded and led by Albus Dumbledore to oppose Voldemort and his Death Eaters.
Though it was unknown to Voldemort till shortly before his defeat, Severus Snape was a member of the Order who had defected from the Death Eaters and worked for Dumbledore as a spy shortly after Voldemort began hunting Lily Potter.
James and Lily Potter were members of the Order who became prime targets for Voldemort during the First Wizarding War, after Voldemort heard of a prophecy foretelling of a child destined to destroy him. This fit the description of their young son, Harry. On 31 October, 1981, Voldemort found the Potters after the Fidelius Charm they had cast was broken by Peter Pettigrew. Voldemort killed James first and ordered Lily to stand aside, so he could kill Harry. When Lily refused to stand aside, Voldemort killed her as well, making her murder a sacrifice that caused the Killing Curse Voldemort aimed at Harry to backfire; Voldemort lost his body and fled to Albania.
Shortly after Voldemort lost his powers in 1981, the Longbottom family suffered at the hands of Bellatrix Lestrange, her husband Rodolphus, her brother-in-law Rabastan, and Barty Crouch Jr, who tortured Alice and Frank Longbottom, new parents to Neville Longbottom, to the point of insanity. They became permanent residents of St Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, and Neville was left to be raised by his grandmother, Augusta Longbottom. During the Battle of Hogwarts in 1998, Neville openly defied Voldemort and was tortured. However, he survived, and destroyed Voldemort’s last remaining Horcrux when he beheaded Nagini using the Sword of Gryffindor.
Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody was a highly skilled Auror and active member of the Order who fought against Voldemort during the First Wizarding War. After Voldemort’s first downfall in 1981, Moody was responsible for rounding up a number of Death Eaters, such as Igor Karkaroff, and killing several others, like Evan Rosier. In 1994, Voldemort ordered Barty Crouch Jr to kidnap Moody and imprison him in his own trunk. For the next nine months, Crouch used Moody's hair to brew the Polyjuice Potion that would allow him to take Moody's place as temporary professor of Defence Against the Dark Arts at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. In 1995, Crouch used his position at Hogwarts to make sure Harry Potter was transported to the Little Hangleton graveyard, where Peter Pettigrew used Harry's blood in a potion that allowed Voldemort to be restored to his body. When Voldemort failed to kill Harry in the graveyard and Harry returned to Hogwarts, Barty Crouch Jr attempted to murder him personally. Dumbledore, Minerva McGonagall, and Severus Snape rescued Harry, after which Crouch was exposed, and Moody was freed. After Dumbledore’s death in 1997, Moody took charge of the Order of the Phoenix, until he was murdered by Voldemort during the Battle of the Seven Potters.
Nearly all of the Weasley family was active within the Order of the Phoenix. They fought against Voldemort during both the First and Second Wizarding wars. They lost family members such as Fabian and Gideon Prewett, who were brothers of Molly Weasley, and Fred Weasley, who was killed in the Battle of Hogwarts. Voldemort had previously tried to manipulate Ginny Weasley in 1992, in an attempt to return to physical form, through one of his Horcruxes. Voldemort was furious when Molly defeated Bellatrix, and would have killed her, had Harry not intervened. Most of the Weasley family watched the final duel between Voldemort and Harry, and were witnesses to Voldemort’s death.
Dorcas Meadowes, Caradoc Dearborn, the Bones family, the McKinnon family, Benjy Fenwick and Emmeline Vance were all Order members killed either by Voldemort or by his Death Eaters during the First and Second Wizarding Wars.
