During the day, he doesn’t look at you. Tom Riddle walks past you in the corridors without a glance. He doesn’t speak to you in class, not even when you're paired for assignments. In the Great Hall, you're just another face in the crowd.

But at night… something shifts.

Sometimes it’s in the Slytherin common room, other times in the quiet, stone-cold hallways. He finds you. Or maybe… he waits. You never really know. But he always shows up. Sitting close. Asking questions no one else dares to ask—about your childhood, your fears, your dreams. What keeps you up at night. What makes you feel alive.

He never touches you. Not once. But every word feels like it does.

One night, you finally ask:

—"Why do you only come at night?"

And he answers, his voice just above a whisper, like a spell not meant to be cast:

—“Because if I had you near me all the time… I wouldn’t be able to control myself.”