The annoying weather, continuous heavy rain, persisted. The flowerbeds were full of mud and water. Normally, this could be solved with a simple wave of a wand, but no one was doing it, because after clearing the nearly overflowing muddy water, the rain, falling like bullets, would instantly refill the flowerbeds. No wizard was bored enough to constantly clean the flowerbeds, not even someone as bored as Audrey.
Audrey was supremely bored right now. She missed the computers, the internet, the games, and the millions of online novel writers and tens of millions of self-media creators of her previous life.
She had even taken to lying in her dormitory, using her half-Hogwarts-castle authority to watch the drama unfold.
"Oh dear, isn't that Senior Clearwater? What is she doing? Percy?"
"…Wow… I didn't realize, Percy, you big, trustworthy-looking fellow, how could you be so sleazy!"
"Hey, hey, hey, don't leave! This broom cupboard is perfectly safe, there's no one around, don't go!"
"Damn it! I don't have authority in that area!"
...
"Haven't seen Hermione, she must be in the library…"
"Harry is having a miserable time! Training in this downpour… soaked in mud! Ah, that boy, is that Colin Creevey? Stop pestering Harry for photos, quickly tell him to go shower, what a disaster!"
"Draco? What are you doing? Stop bullying Astoria! Tsk, tsk, tsk, being a tsundere is fun for a while, but chasing your wife is hell. Why don't you understand?"
"Isaline hasn't come to see me much lately. What is she up to?"
"…That girl is knitting a scarf? Ho ho, it must be my Christmas present! Fine, I still have plenty of unicorn hair left from knitting Momo's pillowcase last year, so I'll knit her a pair of gloves this year!"
"The black dog!! Curse it, Sirius, you bastard, did my warning go in one ear and out the other?"
"Huh? He doesn't seem to be moving… Oh, he must be watching Peter Pettigrew. Fine, as long as he doesn't cause trouble…"
...
Audrey hadn't seen Ron Weasley in the parts of the castle she controlled. That was because Ron was dutifully staying in his dormitory, chatting with his pet.
...
"Scabbers, I won't let you leave!" Ron said, his eyes red-rimmed. "Die in peace. I'll keep watch over you, and after you die, I'll make sure you have a proper funeral!" He muttered to himself, "But is Hermione telling the truth? Scabbers doesn't look like he's about to die at all."
...
...
Halloween finally arrived. The Halloween that always brought some sort of trouble every term had come.
Glenda Chittock seemed busy and hadn't approached Audrey about organizing a Halloween concert. Though a few thousand Galleons wasn't much, it was still a source of income, so Audrey was a little disappointed.
Because of the abundant rain this year, even without Audrey's help, Hagrid's pumpkins had grown quite well. The atmosphere in the Great Hall for Halloween was extremely lively. Students were eating candy and fruit, excitedly discussing who would win the Quidditch Cup this year. Due to the Malfoys' generous donation, most people generally believed that the Slytherin team, having all switched to Nimbus 2001s, were the favorites to win, even without their greatest Seeker, Audrey.
However, Oliver Wood clearly disagreed. He was determined to defeat Slytherin in their debut match after Halloween! He was looking everywhere for Harry, because Harry Potter was their greatest hope of defeating Slytherin!
But Mr. Potter was attending Nearly Headless Nick's Deathday Party with his friends, so he hadn't come to the Great Hall at all!
Audrey lay sprawled on the long table, her head almost buried in her hands, looking miserable. Isaline had forcibly dragged her here.
"Audrey, Halloween only happens once a year. Just come out and relax! You've almost gone moldy staying in your room!"
I won't go moldy. I use a Scouring Charm every day!
"Look! The Great Hall is so beautiful today. Wouldn't you be missing out on this beautiful sight if you didn't come?"
Sorry, I can see it from my dorm! The Great Hall is right in my jurisdiction!
Chapter 116: Blind to the Obvious
However, Audrey couldn't bring herself to say "no" to people she cared about.
...
...
Harry, Ron, and Hermione emerged from the dungeon. The Deathday Party tonight had been absolutely awful! If it hadn't been for the Chinese Sichuan dishes Audrey brought into Hogwarts, the three of them wouldn't have been able to eat anything tonight. Though their stomachs weren't hungry, their palates, unaccustomed to spicy food, were burning hot. In cold November, they felt like it was high summer, sweating profusely.
"Kill him!"
"No, you can't kill him, the Little Master forbade it!"
"Kill him! He must be killed!"
"No, I'll be stewed into snake soup!"
"Kill!"
Harry froze. A cold, cruel voice sounded in his ear. Although the voice was muttering to itself and highly contradictory, he still understood that the owner of the voice wanted to kill someone.
"Did you hear that? Someone is talking!"
Ron and Hermione looked at Harry, confused. "No, we didn't hear anything!"
The voice grew fainter. Harry felt it moving away. No, I must stop him!
"This way!"
Harry ran, dashing up the stairs and across the entrance hall. The sounds of laughter from the Great Hall faintly reached him, disrupting his hearing. He listened carefully, then continued up the marble staircase to the second floor. Following the sound, he sprinted on, bursting through a door, and came out onto the open-air covered bridge leading to the towers.
The rain was heavy, stinging and chilling them. The sky was dark, and the lights from the castle windows barely allowed Harry to see the situation on the bridge.
A small figure stood there, holding a camera with both hands, aimed directly at Harry.
"Colin! Stop taking pictures!"
Harry suddenly flared up. Colin Creevey's constant pestering over the past few days had thoroughly annoyed him. Now that he was in a rush, Colin was still clinging around. Even a patient man would get angry!
"No, Harry," Hermione said. "Something's not right!"
Hearing Hermione, Harry also sensed that something was wrong. Creevey remained frozen in his picture-taking pose, allowing the rain to lash at him. The scene was unnervingly strange.
The three of them braved the rain and walked closer. Colin Creevey, now ghostly grey, terrified them.
Hermione suddenly cried, "Look at the ground!"
On the ground, a line of words glowed eerily:
"The Chamber of Secrets has been opened. Enemies of the Heir, beware."
"The Heir?" Ron asked blankly. "What Heir?"
Harry exclaimed, "We should go notify the professors! Colin has been murdered!"
The heavy wooden door, bound with iron strips and studded with iron nails, was pushed open, and the professors, led by Dumbledore, walked out. Dumbledore waved the Elder Wand, and an invisible barrier immediately covered the bridge; not a single drop of rain could fall there anymore.
Harry instantly felt warm. Dumbledore was here! This was wonderful!
"Oh, children, what has happened here?"
Harry and Ron stepped aside, revealing the grey Colin Creevey and the two lines of writing on the floor.
"Professor Dumbledore! We just came from Nick's Deathday Party, and I heard a voice, a cold, terrifying voice speaking. The owner of the voice seemed to want to kill someone, so we followed it!"
Snape snorted. "Who knows if that's a lie," he walked up to Colin and was about to continue his venomous remarks, but suddenly frowned. "Dumbledore, you'd better take a look at this student,"
"Oh, and the floor too."
Snape looked at Audrey, who had followed the professors.
"Enemies of the Heir? Astley, aren't you going to explain? I'd very much like to know how you were so certain that something had gone wrong here?"
That was right. The professors had been summoned by Audrey. She had suddenly informed Dumbledore at the staff table during the Halloween feast that something had happened on the covered bridge.
And the Headmaster and Heads of House all knew that Audrey was the Heir of Slytherin.
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