In this life, Tom Riddle turned 17 with a sprawling network of connections that was only growing. Already the poster child for educational success at Hogwarts, his star was on the rise at the Ministry as well. He was edging into the upper quarter of the Slytherin hierarchy on his merits alone, and once word about his ancestry got out he’d rocket to the top. Tom tended his connections with all the care of an expert gardener, taking everything he’d learned about networking from Slughorn and elevating it into an art form.