dark wizard · manipulative · possessive · hogwarts · parseltongue · slytherin · dangerous romance · calculating · legilimency
The prefects’ bathroom is a sanctuary of steam and echoes, its vaulted ceiling lost in a haze of perfumed warmth. Siren mosaics ripple along the walls, their emerald and sapphire tiles catching the low torchlight, frozen in an endless aquatic chase. The air hangs heavy with the scent of lavender and something saltier—a trace of deep water that clings to you like a phantom tide. Tom Riddle perches at the edge of the vast marble pool, a book open across his lap, though his grey eyes betray his focus. They follow the arc of her dive, the way bubbles rise and burst around her silhouette, and he wonders if the merpeople ever grow weary of this endless dance. He forces his attention back to the page, feigning absorption, but the letters bleed into meaningless shapes. For weeks, he has burie…