Chapter 24 Mask
As soon as she returned to the classroom, Della proved her status as a score-adding machine. Of course, this was due to the generous help from Professors Snape and Quirrell, but it still made the Slytherins feel better.
The three first-year students who caused trouble have not been seen attending classes since the incident. It was said that they were taken back by their families the next day. No punishment has been approved for them yet, and everyone speculates that they will most likely be expelled from school.
But Draco knew that Parkinson and the others would definitely come back.
His father had written to him about this, and in the letter he was severely reprimanded. Draco knew that if Parkinson and the others did not come back, the anger would slowly gather on him, a Malfoy. After all, he was indeed the leader of the first grade.
Even though he hadn't meant to insult Della Riddle in that way.
It's obviously enough to play a little prank...How come Parkinson and the others...
In any case, Riddle had returned to the Slytherin table intact and looking even more glorious, and he had to take responsibility for the actions of his followers.
While everyone was paying attention to her and Maggie, some people kept looking at him, which made Draco feel extremely ashamed and angry. Although he wanted to leave, in order not to show his cowardice, he could only hold the cutlery tightly and pretend nothing happened to continue eating.
God knows how frustrating he had been this week. Facing those ambiguous glances, he had to control his temper. He couldn't even laugh at Porter and Weasley to his heart's content. As long as they mentioned Della, several suspicious and condemning glances would immediately be cast at him, which made Draco even avoid Harry and the others.
On the contrary, Riddle's popularity improved a lot. Draco saw many times that senior students from various colleges greeted her with gentle faces.
Even now, Riddle was sitting next to Prefect Lind and having his meal with a well-behaved look on his face. He was completely loved by her.
Draco gritted his teeth, but there was nothing he could do. He could only concentrate on cutting his steak fiercely.
But I have to say, that camera is so...
It might be okay to use this against Potter, but to use it against a girl is...too despicable.
And Maggie, Parkinson and the others were so cruel as to hurt Maggie like that.
Draco frowned as he thought about it. He was also in the lounge that night. He had come out to laugh at Riddle's joke, but he didn't expect to see the miserable Parkinson and the others, and the dying Maggie.
The little snake that was almost the darling of the Slytherin group was injured like that. Even Draco, who had never been liked by Maggie, felt worried for him, not to mention those who had fed Maggie.
Ever since Sergeant Lind ran out of the lounge carrying Maggie, the atmosphere in the entire lounge has changed. Since then, people have been looking at him with unfriendly eyes. If Sergeant Ryan hadn't maintained order and asked everyone to go back, I'm afraid someone would have come up and grabbed his collar to question him.
Parkinson and the others are so stupid. Now my father is joining the school board to resist Dumbledore's decision to expel them, and in the end, I am the one who will be scolded.
Damn Dumbledore, Damn Riddle! Damn idiots!!
No matter how angry Draco was, Della just chatted quietly with Senior Alian, just like the friends she saw in twos and threes in this restaurant.
And now, every time she entered the restaurant with Harry and Ron, Fred and George would cast their eyes on her, senior sister Ellian would wait for her and Maggie, and there were many kind glances.
It's really satisfying.
Although she had some homework piled up due to missing a week of classes, and she had to find teachers for guidance one by one, the most troublesome thing was the appointment with Professor Quirrell in the Room of Requirement tomorrow. He had already taught her the Invisibility Charm, the Harming Charm, and the Confusion Charm. According to him, not even Mrs. Norris would be able to find her trace.
Della thought as she exchanged lunch with senior Alian with a smile.
She has always had a clear understanding of her own character and has never been entangled in good and evil, but the relationship between her friends is really sweet. In contrast, she is a little resistant to the so-called father's side.
However, in essence, it is still about seeking benefits and avoiding harm. Just like her initial resistance to Slytherin came from the tendency revealed in everyone's words, even though the feeling of being cared for was addictive, Della still had her own considerations.
She only considered favorable situations, which made her feel even more despicable. The gifts and kind looks that had been placed in the dormitory also weighed heavily on her.
Previously, she asked others to be hypocritical, and she responded with hypocrisy. But now, others responded with sincerity, and she could only respond with hypocrisy.
After all, this was what she had planned.
In this place where no one knows her past, she uses a mask to replace her eyes.
It should be said that this mask was put on before coming here.
The image of Quasi's excitement flashed through Della's mind. She picked up the napkin beside her to wipe her mouth, explained her intention of going to the library to Ariane beside her, and then left leisurely with Maggie.
Along the way, people kept greeting her, and Della responded with a smile.
Only when she sat down in a corner of the library did she breathe a sigh of relief. Maggie had already slid onto the table, and her slender snake tail was slowly stroking Della's left wrist, where no trace of anything could be seen.
Della lowered her eyes and looked at Maggie, smiled slightly, and took out a pen and paper. Maggie wrapped her wrist around her and watched the beautiful handwriting slant out on the paper.
"I was found by my father, and I made an Unbreakable Vow with Quirrell."
Della stopped writing, and three seconds later, the words on the paper faded. Then she continued to recount the events of that day to Maggie one sentence at a time at this frequency.
While Della was writing, she paid attention to Maggie, who was concentrating. She had always known that Maggie was very smart, too smart. But after she was five years old, she only had Maggie, so no matter what secrets she had, Della didn't care.
Anyway, Maggie won't hurt herself.
This was the only thing Della had been certain of since she was a child.
After writing down the true and objective events of that day, Della put down her feather pen. She looked into the dark yellow pupils, and both pairs of eyes were filled with inorganic coldness.
Della smiled slightly, put the paper and pen aside, picked up the Transfiguration book and spread it out, and Maggie cooperated by lowering her head beside her hand.
Maggie was not considered a human, so of course she was not within the scope of confidentiality. The more troublesome part was the word "assistance". Della didn't know whether some unfavorable hints to Chilo would be considered a violation of the agreement, so she objectively described everything that happened that day. She couldn't ask Maggie for her opinion, but she thought that Maggie would agree with her.
Maggie has his own judgment.
After the Transfiguration class in the afternoon, Della passed Professor McGonagall's small test very smoothly and also received some additional guidance, which benefited Della a lot. It turned out that she still needed the teacher's guidance to better use the words she read in the book.
Before leaving, Professor McGonagall told her that Dumbledore would wait for her in the headmaster's office after dinner. Della was a little surprised, but still responded to Professor McGonagall with a smile.
Sure enough, at dinner, the principal, whom she hadn't seen for a long time, sat in the top seat. When she looked at him, he raised his glass to signal her. Della could only smile obediently in response.
In the whole school, apart from Malfoy, Dumbledore was probably the only one who had seen himself like that.
Ah, he also knew he was a Parseltongue.
The words Voldemort had said to her once again came to her mind, because they were similar...
At that time, the strange behavior of Mr. Ollivander in the wand shop was also revealed, but apart from them, no one else was surprised by her appearance. Della was a little confused. She felt that she knew too little about Voldemort.
I can try asking him next time we meet, well... maybe I can ask Dumbledore too.
Thinking that Dumbledore would personally deliver the admission letter to her, Della guessed that Voldemort should also be a student of Hogwarts and was also accepted by Dumbledore.
However, asking that question would probably make me look even more suspicious.
If it weren't for the three unbreakable vows, Della might have told Dumbledore everything for the sake of her friends, but now, Della could only take one step at a time.
Until she stood in front of the headmaster's office, Della had no idea what Dumbledore would say to her.
She exhaled slowly and pushed open the door.