Chapter 22
"Welcome back, my friends," Tom said coolly.
His followers shifted, looking uncomfortable. Only Reg, Lucius, and Severus were unfazed.
His inner circle had shrunk immensely. Bellatrix, Rodolphus, Rabastan, the Carrows, and Antonin were in Azkaban. Barty and Evan were dead. Peter Pettigrew was a traitor. Walden, Thorfinn, Corban, Vance, Gordon, Reg, Lucius, Severus... only eight left.
"Master," said Corban cautiously. Thorfinn winced. "How have you returned? How did you achieve this... miracle?"
Tom smiled coldly and glanced at Reg' seat. Raven removed the Notice-Me-Not Charm, causing the five members unaware of his return to jump.
"Raven!" Thorfinn exclaimed. "You're alive!"
"He was the one to find me," Tom said sharply. "He spent years undercover as Hunter Black, searching for me. The only reason he didn't find me until now was because he was more worried about Harry Potter."
"Why?" Corban frowned.
"Because he's a fucking child, maybe?" Reg snapped at him. Corban blanched. "Dumbledore took him, and I've never trusted him to take care of a child. He gave Harry to magic-hating Muggles."
Reg's infuriated expression told the rest of the inner circle how bad the abuse had been.
"Are they dead?" asked Walden darkly.
"They've been arrested by Muggle authorities," Reg said sharply.
"Harry Potter-Black is now off-limits," Tom said, bringing their attention back to him. "Lady Mage chose Reg as Harry's parent, and... well, you know what Raven does to anyone who hurts a child," he said sleekly. Everyone shuddered. "Now imagine what would happen if you hurt his child."
Reg's expression darkened, and Corban almost fell off of his seat.
"Raven, Lucius, Severus, and Harry all contributed to bringing me back," Tom continued. "In doing so, they also restored my sanity. We're going to approach our goals... differently this time around."
"What do we need to do, my Lord?" Thorfinn asked.
"Politics," Tom deadpanned. Walden made a face.
"Didn't you try that first, Master?" asked Corban. "Didn't Dumbledore stop you?"
"Yes... however, I have a plan for that," Tom said calmly. "It involves Rita Skeeter."
It also involved faking the insane Voldemort's return, because Dumbledore and his Flaming Chickens would be the only ones to believe he was back. However, only Lucius, Reg, and Severus would know of that plan.
"You will continue the tasks you had before my disappearance," Tom continued. "We will no longer be doing raids, however. Only Loralai will be killing."
Loralai Dabria Zabini slid out of the shadows, making everyone jump except Severus, Lucius, and Reg. She smiled, causing a majority of his inner circle to turn red. Reg just rolled his eyes.
"Marchese Zabini, welcome to the inner circle," Tom said calmly. Walden frowned slightly. "Silence your misogynistic ideals, Walden. Unless you would like to cross the Black Widow?"
Walden blanched.
"Please, take a seat, Loralai," Tom continued. She glided over to the end of the end of the small dining table, pulling out the chair between Corban and Vince. Corban drooled a little. "Pay attention, Corban. What has happened since my disappearance?"
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Tom had just finished getting ready for bed when a ten-foot-tall being appeared in his room. He jumped, wand pointed at the cloaked figure.
Calm yourself, Voldemort, the being drawled. It shrunk to seven feet tall and pulled the hood down, revealing a very attractive, raven-haired man. "I am Death."
"...fuck."