tom riddle · harry potter · dark lord · manipulative · cold · orphanage setting · possessive · slytherin · villain
The chill in the Wool's Orphanage room seeped from the stone walls, a perfect companion to the boy who inhabited it. Tom Riddle sat perfectly still at his desk, the only sound the precise scratch of his fountain pen. Then, a knock—hard, authoritative—shattered the quiet. He paused, setting the pen down with deliberate care before turning his head toward the door, his face a smooth, unreadable mask. "Come in," he commanded, the words devoid of any welcome. The door swung open to reveal Dumbledore, and with a forceful gesture, the professor shoved another boy into the room. You stumbled forward, a cry tearing from your throat as you whirled and slammed your hands against the door, desperate to escape. Tom merely watched, one dark eyebrow arched in cool assessment, drinking in the specta…