Kreacher's shouting drew all eyes to Draco in the Headmaster's office, even the phoenix Fawkes stared at him in surprise.
If he could, Draco would have liked to look in the mirror right now and see his own ridiculously comical appearance.
Steal?
This is nonsense and an insult to a Malfoy.
Draco composed himself, his expression returning to its usual indifference. He slowly and deliberately used his wand to "cleanse" himself, washing away the grime from touching Kreacher.
He faced the gazes of everyone in the room with an arrogant attitude, his tone turning cold. "I do not accept such insulting accusations."
"I did not lie!" Kreacher jumped up and down, shouting with conviction. His ugly face looked even more distorted and angry.
Draco glanced at him dismissively, his tone laced with threat. "To accuse a Malfoy without any evidence... do you know the consequences?"
"Kreacher, I demand an explanation!" Sirius glanced at Draco, then finally spoke sternly to Kreacher.
Kreacher glared at Draco fiercely, like a vicious dog chained to the spot, baring his teeth and roaring. "Kreacher did not lie! The day he came to Grimmauld Place, he took the young master's locket, and that heartless young master Sirius just gave it to him so casually!"
Draco opened his mouth, a sudden memory striking him.
On the day of the visit to Grimmauld Place, Dobby had sorted out a large bag of Dark Magic items, among which there was indeed an unassuming locket.
Dobby had once said that the locket contained "extremely powerful evil magic," but unfortunately no one had noticed anything at the time, so the locket was set aside and casually tossed into the bag.
Later, the bag ended up in Draco's hands. He had asked Sirius Black for it, intending to give it to the Weasley twins so they could use it as a prank item.
However, because they had been so busy since the start of the school year, they had not had a chance to talk privately, so the bag remained in his hands.
Since the start of the semester, the bag had been sitting in a dragonhide storage bag in Draco's dormitory.
Of course, it could very well be a Horcrux.
Draco remained silent for a moment, then suddenly remembered the series of strange things that had been happening to him over the past few days.
Since his rebirth, he had been very careful to use his Occlumency to control those memories and emotions so that he would not be defeated by them.
However, since receiving the locket in early August, everything had been on the verge of spiralling out of control for him:
Poor sleep, a jumble of nightmares lingering in his mind, terrifying memories swirling around... green lights, screams, falls, death...
The Occlumency that repeatedly spiralled out of control, the unpredictable mood swings, the inexplicable fatigue and gloom, the uncontrollable impulses, the frequent bitterness in one's heart, and the sarcastic remarks that slipped out of one's mouth...
There must be a reason for this.
Something as evil as a Horcrux could certainly have some negative effects on him.
When Ravenclaw's diadem was destroyed, it had emitted that mesmerising voice; Tom Riddle's diary could converse with people, manipulate their behaviour, and even drain their life force; so the locket... as a Slytherin relic... should also have some extraordinary negative effects to match its widespread fame.
Looking back now, Draco broke out in a cold sweat. It would be truly bizarre if his dazed state over the past month had not been influenced by the Horcrux in the slightest.
"I never imagined that dusty, gold thing would be..." Draco began, but then stopped mid-sentence.
Sirius Black knew nothing about Horcruxes. He could not continue.
He turned his head and glanced at Sirius Black, wanting to see his reaction.
A look of understanding appeared on Sirius's haggard face. "I seem to remember it. Indeed, I thought it was some useless thing... and was about to throw it away... Draco, do you still have it?"
"Of course! Give me five minutes! I think that thing should be in my dormitory." Draco nodded to Dumbledore and strode out of the Headmaster's office.
The sky above Hogwarts was already showing the first light of dawn.
Draco rushed back to his dormitory, opened the wardrobe, and pulled out a dark green storage bag.
Indeed, the dusty locket lay there quietly, creating a perplexing atmosphere.
When Draco held it in his hand, it felt heavier than he remembered, and he even felt that it was making some kind of rustling whispers.
His heart was pounding. Without thinking, he carefully tucked the locket inside a handkerchief and ran back to the Headmaster's office, clutching it tightly.
When the locket was placed on Dumbledore's desk, those gathered around it heard a deep, dull thud.
"It sounds heavier than it looks," Dumbledore said thoughtfully.
"That is right," Draco said, examining it closely alongside the other two. "Very heavy. Very unusual."
"Is it this? That locket?" Sirius asked, puzzled.
"It was so dirty that it was hard to tell," Draco said.
"That is right. Do you see the serpentine S formed by those tiny green gems beneath the dust?" Dumbledore said softly, a hint of fascination in his voice. "Extremely fine workmanship. Definitely the work of a goblin King. I believe this is probably one of Slytherin's relics."
"We need to ask Kreacher," Draco reminded them.
"Tell me, is this the locket?" Sirius roughly grabbed Kreacher's ear with his uninjured hand and brought the house-elf's large head down to Dumbledore's table.
"Yes! It is! It is!" Kreacher trembled with excitement. He was not saddened by Sirius's roughness; instead, he showed a hint of joy as he approached the locket.
His large, bloodshot eyes stared greedily at the dusty locket, never having expected to be alive to see the keepsake that his beloved young master Regulus had entrusted to him.
"Then what are we waiting for? Let us destroy it with the sword," Sirius said, looking at the locket with disgust.
"You can try," Dumbledore said, taking the Gryffindor Sword down from the wall. "Although I doubt it is that simple."
Sirius released Kreacher and, with his better hand, picked up the gleaming silver sword inlaid with rubies and began hacking at the locket.
"Clang!" Sparks flew between the sword and the locket. But after the sparks faded, the locket remained intact, lying there unassumingly, dusty and stubborn, seemingly mocking Sirius Black's naivety.
"As expected." Dumbledore moved closer to the locket, using the tip of his wand to lift its thin chain, watching the locket sway back and forth in mid-air. "Kreacher was right... it can only be destroyed by opening it from the inside. I suspect it has a security mechanism that releases its energy to destroy it only when it is opened."
"Then open it." Sirius put the sword aside and said fiercely. "Open it with a spell. I know a few useful tricks."
"Very well, I shall give it a try." Dumbledore placed it back on the table, pointed at it with his oddly shaped wand, and cast a few silent spells... Draco guessed they must be some profound incantations.
"It is no use." He placed the locket back on the table and calmly announced, "This security mechanism is flawless. I must say, it is truly a Slytherin relic; perhaps only a descendant of Slytherin can open it."
The room was deathly silent.
The hands of the old clock behind Dumbledore ticked away coldly, without pausing for any excuse, its sound exceptionally icy and merciless.
Draco sighed quietly.
Where can we find the descendants of Slytherin?
The Gaunt family was extinct. The last known member of the family... Morfin Gaunt... had recently died in Azkaban.
What makes the descendants of Slytherin so unique? Draco pondered, listening to the bubbling sounds coming from the cabinet where the Pensieve was kept, when a thought suddenly flashed through his mind.
This thought originated from a fragment of his memory... a fragment from the Pensieve:
The Gaunt family's dilapidated, tiled hut, with a dead snake nailed to the door in an S-shape; the hissing sounds made by the Gaunt family members as they communicated... a sound he recognised, the same sound Harry had used to open the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets in Slytherin.
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