Struggling to survive at Hogwarts

The new students, including Thea, followed the prefect through the hall to the basement door, then down a winding staircase and a long corridor before finally reaching the entrance to the common room.

When the prefect uttered the command "Pureblood," a door suddenly opened in the previously unremarkable wall. Thea looked around curiously and suddenly thought of modern...smart doors.

Once inside, Thea discovered that the public lounge's architectural space extended to the bottom of the lake, and the soft green lighting gave the entire space a dark green hue.

Because the main body of the lounge is at the bottom of the lake, you can see the scenery at the bottom of the Black Lake through the windows here. Thea also saw the fleeting figure of a giant squid.

The walls and ceiling were made of very rough stone. Lights, glowing green and chained, hung from the ceiling. The lounge was furnished with carved chairs and numerous skulls as decorations.

The lounge was covered with thick carpets, and each chair had a fluffy and soft cushion embroidered with intricate and unique patterns.

Fortunately, the fireplace was burning, making the lounge warm and cozy, effectively dispelling the chill from the young wizard.

After entering the lounge, the senior students did not stay there as usual, but gradually dispersed through two separate passages, one on the left and one on the right.

Only freshmen and male and female class leaders remained in the entire lounge.

"Hello everyone, I am Gemma Farley, the prefect of this school year."

"The password for the common room changes every two weeks, so keep an eye on the notice board in the common room."

"Your luggage has been delivered to your dorm room. Please check the name tags on the doors."

"Also, students from other colleges are not allowed to come to our common room, and do not tell them our password."

"Finally, Slytherin respects the strong, and any act of weakness is abhorrent to us."

Given the special circumstances of this year's freshmen, Gemma didn't dare to say anything arrogant, and the male class leader remained silent. Anyway, there would be plenty of opportunities in the future, and there was no need to cause trouble on the first night of school.

After listening to Gemma's instructions, Thea and the others gradually entered the passageway leading to the dormitory.

The main colors of Slytherin's bedroom are also silver and green. It has an old-fashioned four-poster bed with green silk curtains hanging above it, silver embroidered sheets on the bed, and silver lanterns hanging from the ceiling.

Surprisingly, Thea shared a dorm room with Daphne, while Pansy shared a dorm room with a witch named Milison Burst.

In response to Thea's doubts, Daphne simply said mysteriously, "It's just a little trick; no one will notice."

After washing up, Thea didn't go to bed immediately. Instead, she sat down at her desk, took out her new notebook, and began to record what she had seen and heard that day.

He also added a letter to Narcissa to let her know he was safe and to tell Mrs. Weasley about the incident, and at the same time, he made sure to record the conflict between Draco and Ron that day "exactly" so that he could send it to his Uncle Lucius tomorrow.

Thinking about the problems the Weasleys would face, Thea's lips gradually curled up.

She's not a kind person at all; she believes in revenge. And this time, she's just playing the role of a mouthpiece.

Just as Thea and the others were receiving a lecture in the lounge, a dark old bat entered the principal's office.

"Oh! Severus! Would you like a glass of honey water?"

Snape ignored the old bee's enthusiastic recommendation and retorted sarcastically, "Did the great Headmaster Dumbledore really make your Potions professor abandon his lesson preparations just to come to his office for a cup of sweet honey tea?"

Dumbledore, realizing Snape's displeasure after being mocked, straightened his expression and said, "...We all know that the child went to Slytherin, so..."

“I know! I’ll keep an eye on that kid!” Snape interrupted Dumbledore.

Thinking about his increased workload and the sight of those eyes that looked exactly like his mother's tonight, along with some troublesome Slytherin, Snape paced back and forth in his office in frustration.

He blurted out without thinking, "I told you back then that as long as I cast a spell, everything could be resolved!"

Dumbledore, however, said with a serious expression, "Impossible, Severus! I will absolutely not allow anyone to kill an innocent little wizard under any pretext!"

Snape regretted it as soon as he blurted it out.

Dumbledore noticed that Snape's emotions had calmed down, so he changed the subject, saying, "...Are you still supplying the little wizard with magic stabilizers?"

“The supply has been consistent. A few days ago, Lucius wrote to say that the potion stabilizer could be given directly to that little witch, and he also included a list of potion ingredients,” Snape said coldly.

"And what about the Dreamless Potion and the Sedative?" Dumbledore asked again.

"The little witch's condition has improved somewhat. Although my potions are of higher quality, I don't have time to make potions specifically for one person, so I suggested they get them directly from St. Mungo's," Snape said expressionlessly.

Seeing Dumbledore's hands clasped on the table, lost in thought once more, Snape sneered, "So, now, can the great Headmaster Dumbledore let your Potions professor go back?"

Dumbledore waved his hand, indicating that Snape could go back.

Snape was angered by Dumbledore's use-and-discard attitude, so he turned and left, his wide black robes leaving an arc behind him as he walked.

Just as he was about to leave the headmaster's office, Dumbledore said earnestly, "It's not just birth that determines a person. We should at least give that child a choice, shouldn't we?"

The long black robe seemed to pause for a moment, but quickly disappeared through the doorway.

As soon as Snape left the office, Dumbledore went to the Pensieve again and skillfully reviewed all his memories of Thea, hoping to find the answer.

"...Albus, didn't you already know that child would go to Slytherin?" An old voice came from the portrait on the wall.

Dumbledore considered carefully: "Even though I knew she would go to Slytherin, but..."

Dumbledore paused, then turned to the Sorting Hat, who appeared to be dozing off, and asked, "Mr. Sorting Hat, did that child say anything to you?"

The Sorting Hat could no longer play dead. Reflecting on everything it had seen in that child's mind, it hesitated for a long time before leaving Dumbledore with only one sentence:

“That child is different from her father and mother, Albus, you should trust her more.”