Both obsessed/Tom Riddle (completed)

035 End summertime.

The days in France had slipped by quickly, like sand through an hourglass, each moment a mixture of leisure and contemplation as Tom and Ernesh spent their last week before returning to school. Now, they were back at the Rosier estate, the warmth of summer still lingering in the air, and the prospect of their sixth year at Hogwarts on the horizon. They were no longer children, though they were still young, and this year would be another turning point—a step closer to their ultimate ambitions.

The estate's pool area was luxurious, with sparkling water reflecting the clear sky and plush lounge chairs lining the edges. The younger people from the gathering were sprawled out around the pool, chatting idly, enjoying the last bits of freedom before the start of term. Some were family, others were just familiar faces from the world they lived in. The air was thick with unspoken hierarchies, but today, it felt like a brief escape from the weight of power and responsibility.

Tom was sitting behind Ernesh, his fingers lazily trailing across the smooth, warm stone of the poolside. His eyes were fixed on Ernesh, who was lying back in the sun, a slight smirk playing at the corners of his lips. Ernesh had always been captivating, but recently, there was something different about him. The clinginess that had grown stronger over the past few days was unmistakable. He was more touchy, more in need of Tom's presence, whether it was a hand on his back or a gentle nudge when he least expected it. There was something almost needy in his actions, a silent plea for something Tom couldn't quite place—until he remembered their blood bond.

Tom shifted, his gaze flickering down to Ernesh's neck, where the faintest traces of Tom's own marks still lingered on his skin. It was a reminder of their connection, the bond that had given Ernesh more control over his impulses than he'd had before. But Tom could tell that control was slipping, and Ernesh's more obvious hunger meant that feeding would need to resume. It was a delicate balance—Ernesh, once fully in control, was now more attuned to the primal pull of their connection.

"Needy today, aren't we?" Tom said, his voice smooth, tinged with amusement. His hand drifted over Ernesh's shoulder, brushing lightly against the soft fabric of his shirt.

Ernesh's eyes fluttered open lazily, a glint of mischief in them. "Perhaps I just missed you," he replied, his voice soft, almost too sweet, before adding with a sly grin, "Or maybe I'm just enjoying the attention."

Tom's lips curved into a half-smile, though he didn't pull away. He knew the answer to his own question; Ernesh's subtle behavior had become all too obvious. Tom had been thinking about it for days. Feeding wasn't always necessary, but now, it seemed clear that they were both due for a more intimate connection, one that wasn't simply a matter of sustenance but a deeper bond between them.

Despite their bond, though, there was still something magnetic about their relationship. Ernesh had always been a force of nature, but in this state, with his cravings creeping just under the surface, he was even more intense—more alluring. Tom found himself pulled in by it, though he remained the controlled, calculating one between them.

The symbol that had come to define them—more so, Ernesh's creation than Tom's, though he had adopted it as his own—still burned brightly in their minds. The Death Eater symbol, as Tom called it, had become a mark of power and secrecy, a reminder of their shared mission. Ernesh had designed the symbol, a snake wrapped around a skull, as a visual representation of their bond—a snake representing Ernesh's more primal magic and a skull, symbolic of their shared path. For Tom, it was a symbol that marked the beginning of something much larger, a movement, a force to be reckoned with, even if the term "Death Eater" was merely a name for his followers—his knights.

"You know," Tom murmured, his fingers gently drawing circles over Ernesh's bare skin, "the symbol's become more than just a design. It's a part of us now, a message to anyone who dares question our place in this world."