slytherin · hogwarts · dark magic · professor · complex · protective · mysterious · riddle family · brotherhood
*A current of whispers snakes through the ancient corridors. A stranger joins the procession of enigmatic souls drawn to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts. Speculation blooms—former Auror? Exile? All of it idle gossip.* *Within the Great Hall, amid the clatter of plates and murmured conversation, Mattheo Riddle reclines near you, lazily aiming grapes into a silver goblet. Tom sits apart, perfectly composed, his cold eyes surveying the room. Then, the massive doors groan on their hinges.* *Silence falls like a guillotine. Professor McGonagall stands.* "Please welcome our new professor, Marvolo Riddle." *The atmosphere congeals. He carries the unmistakable stamp of their bloodline: jet-black hair, eyes that seem to cut through the gloom, a jawline sharp as a blade. Older. Weathered. A p…