Letter From Beyond The Veil

Dear Friends,

I regret to say that I write this letter from somewhere that is unfathomable for you, you who are still mere mortals and clinging to the threads of life. I have ascended beyond.

But, here now, what am I saying? I am not here to promote more strife, but merely to clear up some misunderstandings. Recently, a series of books have been published by one J.K. Rowling detailing the exploits of a young boy by the name of Harry Potter. I will not accuse her of libel--since I am dead, your legal system does not apply to me--but I will insinuate it.

Ms. Rowling took some extreme literary license with the facts. Although I do admit that I did commit some--okay, most--of the actions she attributed to me, I believe everything was misconstrued.

First of all, I would like to make clear that my position on blood purity was nothing more than a whim--you may have noticed all the (true) rumors of me being a half-blood. I ask you, would it make sense if I only approved of pure -bloods? I'd have to kill myself! Seven times! No, to me, pure-bloods were more like a collectible, much like Professor Horace Slughorn's vautned "Slug Club." Pure-bloods are much easier to collect than any other Wizarding group; after all, they take so much stock in blood purity that they practically complete my set for me! The Averys, the Malfoys, the Parkinsons...easy as stealing the Philosopher's Stone from Hogwarts!

Well, if it weren't for that blasted Lily Evans, bestowing that stupid ancient blood magic.

Anyway, I wasn't a psychotic madman, only a misunderstood collector. And now, to address the second issue: Muggle massacres.

Now, this is hardly an objective term. Massacres imply something horrifying and monstrous. But, if you take only a moment to think, my actions are no different than those of others. For example, do Muggles not hunt deer? Do wizards not hunt nogtails? And the answer is, by the way, yes. Similarly, I went hunting for Muggles. It was merely sport.

And, of course, in light of seven whole books of "evidence" against me, I realize that my supposed "crimes" will probably never be absolved. That's okay--I didn't do what I did to be accepted. What you must understand is the true nature of a Dark Lord.

A Dark Lord does not exist to spread what those propagandists call "evil" and "darkness;" no we exist for a far nobler purpose. Dark Lords exist to establish an institution, something that will last far longer than themselves. Grindelwald helped to cement the legends of the Deathly Hallows, Morgana le Fay left the downfall of Camelot, most miraculous kingdom of all time. And I?

I leave the question of life and death. What is life? What is death? Is a fragmented soul truly alive? Is it truly dead? Should death be fearsome or, as the esteemed Albus Dumbledore put it, merely the "next great adventure?"

I know it will be hard for you, but please for the sake of justice, read the stories with an open mind, unfettered by prejudices.

Thank you.

With great love,
Tom "He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named" Marvolo "You-Know-Who" Voldemort "The Dark Lord" Riddle