Venenum

Melanoleuca.

-I would like to thank for the words and all the kindness you have with me. There are no words to express how happy and accepted I feel. For me you are not just readers, you are becoming my friends and I highly value your attention and I feel extremely honoured.

-This chapter was edited on 24th August (2020) by my beta-reader Kcarmen. Please give her all the love for all the work she is doing in helping to edit the text to improve your reading.

---

My dedication to this chapter goes to Kcarmen. 

For those who don't know, she became not only the beta-reader of this story but also a friend. She is a very, very kind person, extremely patient, she gives me incredible writing tips. Thanks to her, the first chapters are better. So, I ask you to give her all the regards in this chapter.

Thank you very much, Kcarmen. I am extremely grateful that you take time out of your routine to help me and venture with me into this story. I'm sure all readers are grateful for all the work you have done to improve their reading.

------

Chapter 14. Melanoleuca - Fire. Fear. Frenzy.

Hermione was comforting Evelyn, using magic to clean the little girl's hair. Evelyn was still sniffling, trying hard to stop crying and trembling, but little by little she was calming down. Both girls were sitting on the stairs that led to the Dungeons, with only a beam of light coming from a window to illuminate and cast shadows of their silhouettes on the medieval style floor.

Afraid and with tears in her eyes, Evelyn Thomas dared to look into the face of her saviour, in the eyes of the girl, her saviour who was beautiful, gentle and powerful. She just didn't understand why she had been helped by someone else who didn't even belong to Slytherin House.

"You can tell me what happened." Hermione murmured, pulling out a few strands of hair that were on Evelyn's forehead.

The girl looked down, specifically at the small nails of her hand. Should she tell what happened? She had been warned that she shouldn't say anything about what happens at the Slytherin House, because in addition to being a mudblood - something she didn't understand the meaning of - she would also become a traitor to the House itself, which meant things could get worse for her. Evelyn didn't think things could actually get far worse than how she was currently treated, but she thought she shouldn't be pushing her luck.

"You can tell me, I am not going to tell anyone. I promise." Hermione continued, noticing the girl's hesitation.

Two minutes had passed and the girl had said nothing, keeping her eyes on her nails to avoid looking at Hermione as a few drops of tears fell and wet her pyjama pants, which had bunnies designed onto them. Hermione was already giving up on finding out what had happened, whatever happened. Some invisible obligation seemed to guarantee the young girl's silence, but to her surprise, Evelyn started to speak.

"I was happy to come to a school of Magic, I felt I was somehow special." The sweet, childlike voice rang out into the emptiness of the Dungeons corridors. "Everything was fine until we went to the dorms. They said that new students had to follow an initiation, to prove that we were proud and worthy of being a Slytherin. But then, they looked at me strangely and called me mudblood. What is a mudblood? " Despite the sadness in the girl's voice, there was also curiosity.