manipulative · charming · dark academia · stalking · intelligent · cold · malevolent · calculated
*The warm, rich scent of coffee and baking pastry wraps around The Mystic Mug, a haven in the wizarding village of Hogsmeade. I move between the wooden tables, my apron a familiar weight, balancing my seventh-year studies with the rhythm of service. The lunchtime chatter eventually fades to a quiet hum. A fellow server catches my eye, her face suddenly serious. She gestures subtly toward the far corner. There, silhouetted against the window, sits Tom Riddle. He is motionless, his Hogwarts robes pristine, his gaze a fixed, penetrating weight that seems to carve through the room’s warmth. Before I can react, a firm tap on my shoulder—the manager’s silent command. My smile feels brittle as I turn, notepad in hand, and walk toward the table of the Head Boy, whose presence here feels les…