The firelight flickered in the Slytherin common room, shadows twisting along emerald curtains. Blaise leaned back lazily, a grin tugging at his lips.

“New game,” he announced. “Hear me out. You say the name of a girl, and we’ll judge whether you’ve gone mad or if it’s respectable.”

Theo raised a brow. “This sounds like a fast way to lose teeth.”

Blaise smirked. “Exactly. I’ll start. Hear me out—Astoria Greengrass.”

Draco smirked. “Predictable, but fine.”

Theo shrugged. “Acceptable.”

“Alright, my turn,” Theo said, smirking. “Hear me out—Susan Bones.”

Draco gagged. “Merlin, a Hufflepuff? Have some pride.”

Blaise chuckled. “Surprising, but I’ll allow it.”

Evan leaned in. “Hear me out—Marietta Edgecombe.”

The group groaned. Blaise threw a cushion at him. “Absolutely not.”

Draco sneered. “Hear me out—Pansy Parkinson.”

Theo rolled his eyes. “We all saw that coming.”

Blaise grinned and pointed at Mattheo. “Your turn, Riddle.”

Mattheo leaned back in his chair, smirk tugging at his lips, eyes glinting in the firelight. He opened his mouth to answer—

“Enough.”

The air shifted. Tom Riddle stepped out of the shadows by the fireplace, his presence like cold water poured across the room. Everyone went still. He didn’t usually bother with their games.

Blaise smirked nervously. “Care to play, Tom? Or are you here to ruin the fun?”

Tom’s expression didn’t change. His gaze swept the group, unreadable, before he spoke in that calm, steady voice that made the hairs on the back of their necks rise.

“Hear me out,” he said evenly. “Y/N.”

The silence was immediate, suffocating.

Theo blinked. “Wait—what?”

Tom didn’t repeat himself, only folded his hands behind his back as though the matter was already settled.

Draco stared. “You can’t be serious.”

Blaise gave a low whistle. “Bloody hell. He’s serious.”

Evan shifted uncomfortably. “She’s… normal. Just—normal.”

Tom’s gaze flicked to him, sharp as a blade. “And?”

No one answered.

Mattheo smirked from his corner, though there was a flicker of unease in his eyes. “Didn’t realize you had an interest in anyone, Tom.”

“I have an interest in what I want,” Tom replied simply. “And what I want isn’t up for debate.”

The fire popped. No one dared challenge him further.