Veal & Venison {Tomione || 1940s/1990s}

Epilogue

Albus Dumbledore: A History

By Tom Marvolo Riddle

The first book in the History of Hogwarts Series:

Albus Dumbledore: A History

Harry Potter: The Boy Who Survived

Sirius Black: Tried by Life and Court

Severus Snape: Savior Undistinguished

Tom Riddle: An Autobiography

In memory of Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, Severus Snape, and all those killed by Voldemort in his many years of life.

Acknowledgements:

To my wife, Hermione Jean Granger, who was strong enough to save me and love me through it all.  To Ron Weasley for your loyalty and understanding when no one else noticed.  To Harry Potter, for your forgiveness and character that has shaped the lives of many.

And to Abraxas Scorpius Malfoy (1926-1968) whose only goal was to defeat me, but consequently gave me everything that I have today.  I am sad to have never thanked him in person, but it seems I can only travel through time once.

To the well-organized mind, death is but the next great adventure.

Foreword

    Albus Dumbledore was the only man I personally hated from the moment I met him.  He was too observant to let me go about my crimes in peace, too righteous to feel the brunt of my heinous powers.  He was the most powerful wizard of our era, a man of wisdom that all wizards should strive to resemble, and a man untouched by the darkness of this world.

    But, to the same extent that he 'hurt' me, he also saved my life as Tom Marvolo Riddle.  He sent Hermione Granger to my side, five decades back in time and effectively warping the timeline of me and her alone.   Through Dumbledore, I became the man I am today, still prone to sin but never to the heinous level of my 1940s crimes.  I write this in my continued attempt to right the wrongs of my past.  I hope Dumbledore would be proud.

To the other author of Dumbledore's story--which I so angrily read while hunting horcruxes across Scotland--I do not blame you for writing such things.  I, for one, know you are incapable of speaking honestly about the words of others, as seen in the past and continuing onward to the present.  If it had not been about Dumbledore, the lies would have slid past my notice, but having witnessed Dumbledore as a teacher and listened to Harry's stories of him, I know your words to be far from the truth.  After all, I did witness the duel between Grindelwald and Dumbledore, the one you described to be a "lover's quarrel."  Do not think I will have any mercy on your fictional tale, for I did tell you that you would regret offending my wife.  Wasn't there something about a "Granger twist?"  Even I laughed at that.

Inasmuch as this is an attempt to fix your wrong, I wish to make peace with the old man I now admire but then hated.  I owe everything to him, and I hope for him to look down at me with favor, rather than hate.  Here is to Albus Dumbledore, and for more people like him.

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This really isn't much of an epilogue, but I feel like the importance of Dumbledore was understated in this story. Part of me believes that Tom Riddle became Voldemort in canon because Dumbledore immediately disliked Tom, consequently causing Tom's need to prove himself as well as stewing his anger towards Dumbledore's cause: goodness. Dumbledore's change in perspective in this story is the true reason Tom ended up on the righteous side of the war, as he would have fallen into darkness if he'd stayed in the past without Hermione.

On another note, please continue leaving your Q&A questions on this chapter and the previous chapter. They can be whatever you so please. For example, you could randomly ask how many dimples I have, or you could ask Tom whether he truly gave up his dream for immortality because the author did a rubbish job of explaining his reasons.

On a completely random note, I took one of those 'celebrity-look-alike' quizzes today and it said I looked like Daenerys from Game of Thrones. I have never been so flattered, despite the fact she really isn't a celebrity.

Lastly, I want to thank each and every one of you for reading, voting, and commenting on this story. I honestly did not expect to receive such positive feedback on this story, but everyone has been so kind and supportive. I spent many hours writing, refining, and thinking through this story, and I am so glad it paid off. Although this is not my first book to hit 100K reads, I am so so so grateful. Thank you all for everything, and I hope to hear from you on some of my other stories.

Remember to comment questions!

xo

Patagonian