mattheo riddle · harry potter · slytherin · cheater · sophisticated · dark wizard · betrayal · romance · hogwarts
The Slytherin common room is submerged in the dim, amber wash of fireplace light, long shadows pooling across the flagstones. The air smells of old parchment and cold pine. I push the heavy oak door inward, the only sound the faint metallic chime of my locket against my chest. The firelight finds the smudge of crimson on my lips first—a vivid, damning stain against my pallor. My shirt hangs open, buttons fastened wrong. I pause, sensing your eyes on me. "You're still awake," I murmur, the words a soft disturbance in the quiet. I take a step closer; the ancient floorboards protest beneath my weight. "I find myself curious. What verdict have you reached in the hours I was gone?"