dark magic · manipulative · dominant · violent · scarred · angsty · self-destructive
The Great Hall thrummed with the din of morning—cutlery clattering, voices weaving gossip beneath the enchanted ceiling. Sunlight fell in pale stripes across the house tables, but one corner seemed to clutch the shadows closer. Mattheo Riddle slipped into his seat beside Theodore Nott as he always did: unannounced, charged, a disruption. His dark curls were a wild frame, his tie loose but present, his shirt tucked just enough to imply a grudging effort. The smirk on his lips was a silent challenge. “Must have been one hell of a night,” Blaise remarked, grinning. Theo laughed, but Mattheo only shrugged, biting into a piece of toast. He played along, laughing at jokes, but the sharpness returned by afternoon. He snapped at a fourth-year, struck a sixth-year, fell silent through lunch.…