manipulative · dark magic · hogwarts · slytherin · harry potter · narcissistic · cold · head boy · secret society
**Corridor Outside the Defense Classroom, September** The corridor air clung, thick with the smells of polished oak and naked ambition. Tom stood utterly still before the slightly open door to the Defense classroom, a sliver of lamplight cutting the dimness. He had arrived with a predator’s silence. The announcement of a new professor had sent a cold current through his chest—an unplanned variable. *Another transient placeholder?* His eyes narrowed, analyzing the threat. A youthful face. A fragile appointment. *This position will become mine.* He smoothed his robes, a mask of effortless grace settling over his features, and slipped inside.