Ajab

I love those little Tom Riddle fanfics where he's a misunderstood orphan who just needed a hug. Tom is honestly such a one dimensional character in canon so I genuinely enjoy seeing people expand on him and give him more depth.

Riddle era—Elise Goodwin

The Goodwins are a pristine, pureblood dynasty. Politically, they wear the righteous badge of the "Light," holding a heavily respected, influential seat on the Wizengamot. But behind the noble politics lies a desperate craving for legacy and Elise was their golden ticket.

Elise was born with the family’s legendary, long-lost genetic jackpot: unrivaled, hyper accelerated Apparation. She moves at a speed no other wizard can touch, possessing absolute kinetic control over her displacement. The last Goodwin to hold this gift died a millennium ago, and the magical world assumed the trait had been bred out through centuries of intermarriage. Elise proved them wrong.

The moment her first accidental magic manifested, the power dynamics of House Goodwin shifted. Her parents instantly skyrocketed to the top of the family hierarchy simply for being her creators. To lock in their newfound status, the family immediately invited the Ministry of Magic into Elise's life. She wasn't raised as a child; she was raised as a prized state asset.

…

When you are told from the cradle that you are a miracle weapon, it does things to your ego. Elise is insufferably arrogant, completely laid-back, and effortlessly looks down on almost everyone around her.

During her time at Hogwarts, she was a textbook menace an absolute asshole and an unrepentant, smooth-talking womanizer (traits she proudly carries into adulthood). She never had to try, because the world was already handed to her on a silver platter.

…

At age 14, the Ministry drafted Elise into an elite "youth program." In public relations terms, it was a prestigious training initiative for gifted youngsters. In reality, it was a predatory government operation designed to weaponize vulnerable children and turn them into ruthless soldiers.

It was in this high-stress crucible that Elise met Adealine Bones for the first time. Their legendary, fierce rivalry was born in the dirt of that program alongside deep-seated psychological trauma that neither of them likes to talk about.

In 1947, at the age of 21, Elise officially signed on as a full-time Ministry operative. She genuinely believed it was her own independent choice. In truth, her desk, her title, and her entire trajectory had been mapped out by her family and politicians before she could even walk.

…

Elise quickly earned a reputation as the most difficult asset in the Ministry's deployment pool. It wasn't a matter of competence she was terrifyingly good at her job. The issue was her absolute refusal to work with partners.

On the surface, she claimed she hated them because they were weak, sluggish, and fundamentally slowed her down. She couldn't stand wasting precious seconds waiting for people who couldn't move at her breakneck speed.

But the arrogant veneer hid a much darker truth: She couldn't handle the guilt of watching them die. When you move like lightning, everyone else feels standing still. She watched partners get caught in the crossfire because they weren't fast enough, and the emotional toll became too heavy to bear. Her solution? Become entirely toxic. She actively drove her partners away with insufferable behavior before they could even step foot on their first mutual mission.

She was perfectly content to operate in isolation until Albus Dumbledore stepped in. Recognizing the catastrophic threat of the rising Dark Lord, Dumbledore bypassed the usual bureaucratic channels and forcefully partnered Elise with the one person she couldn't outrun, couldn't manipulate, and couldn't stand: Adealine Bones.

Father!Tom Riddle headcanons

First of all to be clear: I don't think he'd be a father.

-I think he doesn't see a need for an heir since he's immortal and probably thinks he'll be so forever.

-And if he gets an heir, he's not the only Heir of Slytherin anymore, which would probably make him feel less special (the thing he's afraid of the most besides dying, because he has a superiority complex). I mean, there is probably a reason he killed his whole family besides the obvious; he wanted to be the only Heir of Slytherin. Yeah so anyway

About the kids:

-I'm gonna say it because nobody said it before:

-some of them are gonna be ugly.

-We always forget about the Gaunt inbred genes. The Riddle genes can't save them forever; some of them are gonna not look so good, and those are going to be the ones Tom doesn't see as worthy enough because they don't resemble him.

Who would the mother be?:

-Despite how much I want him to have a child with someone like Bellatrix, he'd probably look for someone like Merope,someone obedient and desperate who he can control, just lock into a room, and never worry about.

-So Tom would probably treat her awfully. And since he made sure she’s both emotionally and financially dependent on him, she’d probably be very emotionally unstable, and his other children would have to comfort her and take care of her.

- So I feel like his children (minus the heir) would be very protective of her.

-I imagine her to be a very short, very frail, and repressed woman who was probably sheltered by her pure-blood family as well, and that's probably another reason why he chose her: because he knows she'll never fight back or try to leave.

The heir:

-I think Tom wants a complete copy of himself, so obviously a boy, and he’d get his wife pregnant until he got the perfect child.

-The other ones he’d probably push aside and give them to his wife while focusing on his perfect little copy all by himself.

The baby's name:

-I’m kinda conflicted here. He’d either name him Tom Jr. because that’s his name, or he’d completely reject that since he hates that name and choose something very far from the ordinary.

-The “unwanted” children (idk how else to refer to them 😭) would probably be the ones named by the mother.

How would he act like a father?:

-He’d only focus on his heir.

-He’d raise him separately from his siblings.

-The siblings would be with their mother, who’s probably very mentally unstable since he purposely sought someone out who was like Merope. So there would be one child (probably the oldest) who’d take that role and take care of their mother and the rest of them.

-And Tom and his son? He’d take him to trips, teach him discipline, and teach him about the importance of their bloodline and about his role as an heir. But don’t get me wrong, he wouldn’t love the child; exactly the only things he likes about the heir are the things that resemble himself he Dosent see him as his own person just an extension of himself.

-So his heir would probably grow up seeking his approval and attention.

-And the other kids would despise their father, or maybe some would be obsessed with him and try to also seek out his approval, but fail over and over again because they’re wrong in his eyes.

The children’s relationship with each other:

-One thing I can tell you for certain is they’d hate the heir. They would feel immensely jealous and feel hatred towards him because not only is he the only one getting treated well by Tom, he’s an extension of Tom like I said before, so he’d treat his siblings just as badly and they could do nothing about it.

-Occasionally they’d get along. Maybe when Tom leaves them alone to go to a meeting, they’d all have to spend time together.

-Maybe they would play a game with the little heir; it would be kinda fun at first and everyone would get along.

-and then the little heir would lose his temper because he lost, ruin the game, maybe dramatically throw everything on the floor, cuss his siblings out, make sure they remember how worthless they are, and ruin everyone’s mood.

(Okay I got a little lazy near the end but you guys get my vision 😭)

Adealine’s story didn't begin with legacy; it began with loss. When she was just nine years old, at the height of Gellert Grindelwald’s reign of terror, her parents were murdered by Dark wizards. They weren’t freedom fighters, and they weren’t part of the resistance they were simply two Muggleborns caught in the crosshairs of prejudice. To Adealine, it wasn't just a casualty of war…it was a brutal hate crime.

That single, devastating moment forged the core of who she is: a woman fueled by a deep rooted, unyielding hatred for pure blood supremacy and anything that crawls out of the Dark.

Left with nothing, Adealine was taken in by the state. She never spent much time inside the walls of the orphanage where they placed her. Instead, she spent her days outside, transfixed by the Ministry Aurors training nearby. Positioning a high intensity combat facility right next to an institution full of displaced, traumatized children was no accident it was a deliberate recruitment strategy.

Eventually, the Aurors grew used to the permanent fixture on the sidelines: a small, fierce girl standing with her arms crossed, watching their every move with a faint frown. Slowly, she integrated herself into their world, starting by simply handing out towels just to be close to the magic.

….

If Elise is a lightning bolt, Adealine is a thunderstorm. She is hyperfocused, quiet, and guarded.

Her time at Hogwarts was entirely forgettableat least to her. While she had a few fleeting, brief romances, she was a painfully average student academically. It wasn't a lack of talent she possessed immense raw potential, but her mind was always miles away from the classroom. She didn't care about transfiguring teacups or memorizing history dates. She was a soldier waiting for the next deployment.

….

At thirteen, Adealine’s dedication paid off. She was drafted into the Ministry's "youth program" alongside other exceptional teenagers. At first, it looked like glorified internship work assisting Aurors, joining routine patrols, prepping gear, and handling paperwork.

But by five teen , the Ministry fast tracked her into an advanced system. Adealine was given command of her own team, comprised entirely of other teenagers. Most of them shared her scars either orphaned by Grindelwald’s war or bred into military families.

The missions started small, but the peace didn't last. In the wake of Grindelwald’s defeat, the Auror Department was severely understaffed and desperate. They handed Adealine stacks of highly questionable legal documents, and she signed every single one without a second thought. Why would she question it? Hunting down Dark wizards was the only thing that made her feel alive.

Then came the breaking point. A high stakes mission went catastrophically wrong. Adaline was forced to watch, completely helpless, as one of her teammates was literally torn apart right before her eyes. It was a core trauma that should have halted the program but the Ministry simply swept it under the rug. The meat grinder kept turning, and they kept sending children into the line of fire.

….

Officially and legally, Adealine joined the Auror Department the second she turned seventeen, already a veteran carrying more ghosts than wizards twice her age. Over the years, her bitter resentment toward the privileged pureblood elite never wavered; if anything, it solidified into concrete.

She operated with a cold, precise efficiency until the day the bureaucracy shifted beneath her.

With a new Dark Lord rising, Albus Dumbledore personally intervened in the department's pairings. To Adealine’s absolute horror, she was bound to a new partner. Not just any partner, but the absolute embodiment of everything she despised: an arrogant, egotistical, loud-mouthed pure-blood nepo baby who had been handed the world on a silver platter. Elise Goodwin

Eleanor Nott was born the only heir to the ancient House of Nott, and from the moment she could walk, the world seemed determined to place itself at her feet.

Unlike many pureblood heirs, Eleanor was never raised beneath the crushing weight of expectation. The Notts were an old family, wealthy enough that they no longer felt the need to prove themselves. They had survived centuries of political shifts by doing what they did best…remaining comfortably neutral while everyone else fought wars around them.

Her parents adored her. They indulged every curiosity, financed every hobby, and allowed her a freedom most pureblood children could only dream of. While other heirs were lectured about bloodlines, alliances, and family honor, Eleanor spent her youth devouring books on Muggle history, attending theatre productions in secret, and pestering scholars with endless questions about civilizations long since turned to dust.

To the horror of gossip columnists across magical Britain, Eleanor developed an almost embarrassing fascination with Muggles.

She loved their literature. Their architecture. Their inventions. Their history.

Most of all, she loved their ruins.

The Daily Prophet nearly burst into flames when it was revealed that Eleanor had spent a small fortune funding archaeological expeditions throughout Europe and the Mediterranean. Even more scandalous was the reason: many of the artifacts she recovered were destined for her personal collection, a sprawling archive of both magical and non magical antiquities that rivaled several museums.

The headlines were merciless.

"Nott Heir Squanders Fortune on Muggle Trinkets."

"PureBlood Collector Obsessed With Muggle Relics."

"Has Eleanor Nott Forgotten Her Heritage?"

Eleanor framed her favorites.

The criticism never bothered her. Being rich enough to ignore public opinion was one of the great privileges of life.

For years she remained entirely detached from politics.

Light. Dark. Ministry. Reformists.

Even when it came to the muggle born whose culture she seems to be so fascinated by.

It all seemed terribly exhausting.

Then Tom Riddle returned to her life.

She had known him at Hogwarts, though "known" was perhaps generous. Everyone knew Tom Riddle. He had possessed that irritating habit of becoming the center of every room he entered.

Back then he surrounded himself with a carefully selected circle of admirers and followers. They called themselves the Knights of Walpurgis, though Eleanor had never paid much attention to whatever mysterious business occupied them.

She had her own interests.

After graduation they drifted apart, and for years she heard nothing about him.

Then, sometime in her mid twenties, Malfoy casually mentioned a rising figure gathering influence among the old families.

A wizard calling himself Lord Voldemort.

The name immediately struck Eleanor as ridiculous.

Naturally, she invited him to tea.

Curiosity had always been her greatest weakness.

Their reunion was not especially sentimental.

Tom remained as ambitious as ever, while Eleanor remained just as impossible to impress.

Still, the conversation fascinated her. Voldemort spoke of power, influence, and a new future for wizarding Britain. Eleanor listened with genuine interest, though she viewed the movement rather differently than most of his followers.

To many, joining Voldemort was a matter of ideology.

To Eleanor, it looked like an investment.

The political winds were shifting. Dark affiliations had become fashionable among the circles she frequented. Wealthy families were quietly choosing sides.

Why shouldn't she?

She certainly had no intention of participating in raids, duels, or assassinations. The entire point of being rich was avoiding unpleasant work.

So Eleanor joined.

Not out of fanaticism.

Not out of hatred.

Simply because it seemed advantageous well and very beneficial

If this new order succeeded, House Nott would be positioned perfectly.

If it failed, House Nott had survived worse.

Voldemort never particularly liked her.

He found her arrogance infuriating.

Unfortunately for him, Eleanor possessed the one quality he valued too much to ignore: influence.

The Nott fortune opened doors that even fear could not.

Her connections stretched through academia, foreign governments, private collectors, and old pureblood circles across Europe.

She could acquire information, artifacts, and introductions that others simply couldn't.

As a result, she found herself drawn steadily closer to Voldemort's inner circle.

Not because they trusted one another.

Because they were useful to one another.

This arrangement worked perfectly until the day Voldemort approached her with what he claimed was a simple request.

He needed someone to help him leave England discreetly.

Someone knowledgeable about ancient magical history.

Someone capable of navigating old ruins and forgotten locations.

Someone who could help him find Rowena Ravenclaw's lost diadem.

Eleanor stared at him for a long moment.

Then laughed.

Of all the people he could have chosen, he wanted the wealthy collector who spent her free time excavating ruins and arguing with historians.

Unfortunately, she could not deny that he had chosen correctly.

Nor could she entirely refuse an old schoolmate.

So, against her better judgment, Eleanor Nott found herself dragged across the continent.

….

Personally Voldemort never understood how someone could be so intrigued by history yet witness it being made and remain so unconcerned by it.

Eleanor never understood how someone could spend so much time conquering things and so little time appreciating them.

Their “partnership” endured regardless.

And now some random facts about her:

-I actually only created Eleanor to be a death eater companion for Tom for a fan fic I was writing about Elise and Adealine that’s why she’s kinda over the top but she eventually grew on me

- I hate her she’s really evil I wrote her to be incredibly insufferable and she is

-she’s like an out of touch nepo baby she consumes muggle media and is extremely invested in it (she’s really into that stuff I’m talking huge collection she proudly shows off) but also is a blood supremacist and takes part in oppressing muggle borns

-is extremely pretentious like you know those people who’ll read a book or watch a movie and make the most surface level interpretation ever and genuinely act like they have it all figured out and on top of that they’ll be all over you about it? Yeah that’s what she’s like

-I even invented a new term for her “pureloodsplaining” it’s cause she’ll consume muggle media find muggleborns who are also into that stuff and genuinely act like she knows so much more then them and understands the culture significance even though she never stepped a foot out of the wizarding realm

-She has a huge collections of muggle ancient stuff (don’t ask me what exactly I have no idea) she commissions Archeologists to find them for her so she basically stole a buch of ancient muggle history from all over the world

-A muggle chaser(??) like she is really into muggle/muggleborn women she dates them treats them awful and then dumps them or ghosts them