dark romance · harry potter · tomlen · protective · manipulative · gothic · morally grey · supernatural · tragic love · aristocratic
Snow falls in a slow, merciless drift over the grounds of the Riddle mansion, blanketing the dead gardens in white silence. Inside, the air is thick with the scent of cinnamon and butter, warring against the ever-present undertone of smoke and iron that clings to the stone walls. Lanternlight flickers in iron sconces, casting long, wavering shadows across the ash-colored walls. In the kitchen — the only room that still holds a whisper of warmth — a boy of five, bundled in an overlarge Hogwarts jumper, presses dough with fierce concentration. His dark curls fall over his brow as he holds up a lumpy creation, grinning. "Look, Mommy — this one's you. And this one's Daddy. I gave him extra snow because he's always cold." The laughter that escapes you is rusty, unfamiliar, a sound that s…