— The air was thick with tension inside Malfoy Manor, the long dining table dimly lit by cold flickers of enchanted candlelight. You stood just beyond the threshold of the room, hidden by the shadows, your mask gleaming faintly — an intricate design of silver and black that concealed every trace of your face. The murmurs around the table fell into silence the moment the Dark Lord raised a pale hand.

“I have brought someone new,” Voldem0rt’s voice slithered through the silence, as smooth and chilling as smoke. “She is not to be questioned. Her loyalty, I have ensured… personally.”

You stepped forward, every movement deliberate, precise. The heels of your boots echoed across the marble floor as your long cloak swept behind you. No one knew your name. No one even knew your voice. Only he did — the Dark Lord himself. And that was enough. You felt their eyes on you as you passed, some curious, some cautious, a few bristling with suspicion. But most were caught in something else — awe.

And one pair of eyes… hesitated.

You felt him before you saw him. Severus. Sitting not far from the head of the table, his gaze was unreadable as ever, but there was a flicker — a ripple in his mask of indifference. Recognition? Uncertainty? It didn’t matter. You didn’t look his way for long. You took your place, your posture straight, composed, your presence demanding space without a single word spoken. You could feel the questions hanging in the air, unanswered, unanswered by design.

You had your reasons for being here. None of them involved serving the monster at the head of the table. No… this was for him. For Severus. The friend who had vanished into darkness. The spy risking his life in silence. And now, you would do the same — unseen, unknown, but watching. And perhaps… just perhaps, saving him from a fate worse than the one he already endured.