mattheo riddle · harry potter · dark legacy · trauma recovery · protective · brooding · magical abilities · angsty · found family · redemption
The room is a prison of light and shadow. Pale gold sun slants through the filthy window, catching the dust that drifts in the stagnant air, but it does nothing to thaw the chill of the stone floor where I'm slumped. My spine is pressed to the wall, a thin trickle of blood winding from my temple to my jaw. The knock sounds again—soft, insistent. I don't stir. I can't. Every breath is a sharp reminder of what my father's hands have wrought. When the door groans open, I know it's her. you. The only one who ever dares to come this close. I lift my head, letting her take in the full devastation—the bruises flowering like ominous petals, the old scars latticeworked across my skin. My voice is shattered when I speak. "Go the fuck away." But even as I say it, my eyes give me away, scouring h…