Born to Rule: The Story of the Slytherin Princess (paused)

Chapter 20

"The serpent or snake
is said to represent rebirth and immortality
due to the way it sheds its skin. Throughout
history it has been associated with evil and
temptation, but also wisdom."

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!As the students slowly dispersed from the gruesome scene, Filch pushed his way through the crowd. His eyes widened in disbelief as he took in the sight of his beloved cat, Mrs. Norris, hanging lifelessly from the torch bracket. A pained gasp escaped his lips, and he dropped to his knees, clutching his face in agony. 

"Mrs. Norris..." he whispered, his voice filled with grief. "You! You murderer! You monster!" he shouted, pointing a shaking finger at Harry. 

 Filch lunged forward and grabbed onto Harry's uniform, his grip tight and unyielding. "You killed her! I'll kill you!" he screeched. 

 Suddenly, Dumbledore appeared, followed by a group of teachers. The students standing nearby quickly stepped aside as they made their way towards the gruesome scene.

 "Everyone will proceed to go back to their dormitories immediately, everyone except for you three," Dumbledore said firmly, his eyes fixed on Hermione, Harry, and Ron. 

 Draco watched maliciously as Dumbledore singled out the Gryffindor trio. The other students quickly followed the slytherin prefect to their dorms, leaving the three friends alone with the teachers. 

 "Famous Harry Potter always gets himself into trouble," Theo laughed.

 "It's mental, how Potter always ends up in the worst positions ever," Daphne added. "But I seriously doubt that he opened the chamber," she continued. 

"I mean, what are the chances of him opening it?" Blaise nodded in agreement. 

"First of all, why would Potter open the chamber of secrets when he's not even a Slytherin? And second, what could he possibly hope to accomplish by doing so?" Draco remained quiet as the others discussed the situation. His mind was already turning, formulating a plan.

 "Whoever is opening the chamber had better do a great job," he finally spoke up. "I hope they target Granger next." His lips curved into a wicked grin as he imagined the chaos that would ensue.

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In the days following the attack on Mrs Norris, everyone at Hogwarts was abuzz with speculation about the identity of the perpetrator and the one who opened the chamber. Many whispered behind closed doors, conjecturing that it was someone from the Slytherin house, for their obsession with blood purity was well known. Draco and Clarissa's names were tossed around like hot potatoes, as they were known to be especially vehement about their beliefs. However, others thought that it would be too obvious for the attacker to be from Slytherin, and some even dared to whisper that the Golden Trio was the culprit, as they were the ones present at the scene of the crime, with Potter in the lead.

Filch, the caretaker, was not about to let this go. The scene of the crime was etched in his mind, and he stood guard at the spot where Mrs Norris was found, convinced that the attacker would come this way. When he wasn't standing watch, he was handing out detentions left, right, and center, for offenses such as "laughing," "being too happy," and "talking too much." He seemed to be lashing out at anyone who crossed his path, as if the mere sight of a happy face was an affront to his sense of justice.

Blaise sighed as he entered the common room, having just received a detention for the heinous crime of smiling. "I can't believe I got a detention just for smiling," he grumbled.