Harry Potter: Red Weasley The Strange Red Wizard

I looked out the window of one of Hogwarts' towers, deep in thought. Lately, I'd realized that despite having a lot, I still didn't feel satisfied. I needed more. Not that I couldn't get it, but… it was taking too long. I could achieve what I wanted, sure, but not in the timeframe I desired. So, I had to act.

I needed crystal coins—a lot of them—to upgrade the board and other aspects of my domain. At this point, every item, element, or the domain itself required these coins for further improvement. The only way I knew to obtain them was through monthly quests, which I was grinding nonstop—even refreshing them with gold to optimize the process—or through campaigns.

Neither option was bad, but both came with a cost: time spent away from the world. That could cause some issues, especially with perception. Spending years, even decades, in another timeline only to return and find everything unchanged was, at the very least, unsettling.

After pondering for a while, I decided to start with something simple: replay the Marauders' campaign. Campaigns could be repeated infinitely, though classification rewards could only be obtained once. Fortunately, I still had classifications F, E, D, C, A, S, SS, and SSS pending. Knowing the campaign already, it shouldn't be too difficult.

But I'd leave that for later; for now, I had more immediate concerns. The search for the remaining [Essences] had to be put on hold for a while. I still felt apprehensive after last time, but I knew I'd have to try again sooner or later. There were two I had in mind, but I hesitated... with my new alignment... yet I knew it was what I truly desired deep down... and I hoped that when the time came, Tonks would be able to forgive me.

I stopped thinking about the future; it was better to focus on the present. One of my current problems—though not the most pressing—was, ironically, a consequence of my own actions. My group of girls, so close-knit and with such little contact with other boys… had taken away my furry dream.

Yes, when I told Hermione that fate would punish her, I forgot that I'd distanced her from the Golden Trio. My precious Hermipussy no longer existed. Without hanging out with Harry and Ron like in the original story, there was no reason for her to volunteer to make the Polyjuice Potion. Plus, the Slytherin girls could give her answers that rendered that method unnecessary. Damn it, I want my Hermipussy… but how?

If fate wouldn't take care of this, I guess I'd have to.

...

A secluded place at night.

"Red...dy…" Pansy moaned as she leaped onto me, hugging me tightly.

We were in a hidden corner of the castle, so she felt confident enough to show her affection. In fact, she had already tried to kiss me without asking, assuming that was the reason I'd called her, but she froze the moment she noticed someone else was there.

"L-Lavender!" she yelled, panicking, staring at the girl who was watching us intently, already touching herself over her uniform. "W-What are you doing here?! This isn't what it looks like!" she stammered, her face pale and her hands trembling.

"Relax, Pansy," I tried to calm her. "She's one of ours."

"One of ours?" Pansy asked incredulously, looking back and forth between Lavender and me.

It took her a moment to calm down and process the situation. Meanwhile, I heard Lavender sigh in disappointment, seeing that Pansy had stopped kissing me.

"So… is she another one of your girls? Another lover?" she finally asked, recovering some of her usual haughtiness.

"Y…" I tried to respond, but Lavender cut me off.

"I'm not his lover. I'm his sex slave," she declared proudly, a spark of excitement in her eyes. "An object meant to relieve his lust, a toy whose only value lies in her cunt, a humanoid wreck full of..."

"Lavender!" I interrupted her before she could finish her twisted fantasy. This conversation would take a very different turn if she continued.

Pansy looked at her in confusion, but slowly seemed to accept the idea. Finally, she stepped forward with a disturbingly calm demeanor.

"Alright, I think that's fine," she said with a serene smile. "I'm glad you know your place. Don't worry; the Parkinson family will never leave you behind. In fact, I like you more than Granger. You know your worth and your role in this. It's a pleasure to meet you again, Lavender. I hope we get along."

She extended her hand diplomatically, and Lavender eagerly shook it.

I watched them with some concern as they smiled at each other like lifelong allies. But I decided to let it go for now. Future twisted family dynamics would be a problem for another day.

"Girls… can we continue?" I asked, interrupting their moment of camaraderie.

"You called me just to introduce me to your new toy? No offense, Lav," Pansy said familiarly, though with a hint of respect toward Lavender, mainly because she appreciated someone acknowledging their place below her.

"No… well, now yes, but actually I had other things to ask of both of you… well, all three of you. Daphne, would you like to step out of the shadows?" I asked, glancing toward a corner.

Everyone turned their gaze where I was looking, and soon a figure emerged from hiding. She looked a little flushed at being discovered but quickly adopted a stoic expression.

"Good evening, boss," Daphne said naturally, as if it were just a casual meeting.

"Is she also one of your toys?" Pansy asked with some excitement. The Greengrass family was very powerful. If her man had managed to subdue the heiress, and she herself became the lady above Daphne… her ego kept soaring, feeling like she was reaching an emotional climax.

"Assistant… I think," I corrected, unsure of how to describe the situation.

"I will be whatever you want me to be, master," Daphne replied with a slight tremor. It was evident she was a little embarrassed by the thoughts her own words might provoke.

"I suppose you heard everything and know the kind of relationship I have with them," I said as I hugged Pansy and Lavender, wrapping an arm around each of their waists and pulling them close to me.

"Yes, I already knew... or suspected," Daphne replied, without hesitation but without raising her gaze.

"Do you have a problem with that? Or do you plan to reveal it?" I asked, releasing my auras. The atmosphere grew tense. Daphne turned slightly pale, and both Pansy and Lavender trembled a bit, though not to the same degree of discomfort since my intent wasn't directed at them.

"No, I would never, sir. I swore loyalty to you. Your secrets are my secrets," Daphne answered, though her legs seemed to weaken. She was about to fall to her knees, both out of respect and from the overwhelming weight she felt.

"Fine," I said, withdrawing the auras. "I'll trust you. So far, you've been exemplary as an assistant since you pledged loyalty. I'll believe you won't say anything without my permission... but be aware there will be consequences if you break my trust."

For a moment, I questioned if it was kindness emerging within me, but I wanted to believe in her sincerity. I knew that in the past, I might have taken more extreme measures to ensure her loyalty: forcing her, threatening her, or worse. However, now I didn't feel the need to resort to such actions. This kindness could be dangerous, but perhaps it was a risk worth taking in this case.

"I won't disappoint you," Daphne said, sighing in relief as the intangible weight disappeared.

"Good," I replied. "There's someone else to add to my plans. It wasn't expected, but I think it'll be even better than before." I began explaining why I had gathered them there.

...

In the Lair, a small meeting with all the girls in my group was underway. They were all seated at various tables, in what looked like a sort of tea party organized by Pansy. There were small tables with two to four girls each, and at a certain point, when each mini-group was immersed in their conversations, Lavender suddenly spoke.

"Don't you find the whole Chamber of Secrets thing strange?" she asked aloud, in a tone that didn't seem to expect an answer.

"Are you worried about Filch?" Pansy teased, rolling her eyes.

"No, but... I don't think we should ignore what happened," Lavender replied defensively.

"Could it have been a prank or something?" Parvati commented, shrugging.

"Pranks don't leave a cat and Hogwarts' caretaker petrified to this day. And who knows how much longer they'll stay that way," Lavender responded firmly. "Nobody would dare go that far. They'd be... severely punished."

"Maybe expelled," Hermione murmured, a hint of concern in her voice.

"That's probably why the culprit tried to cover their tracks. Maybe, realizing they went too far, they wrote that whole Chamber of Secrets thing to divert suspicion," Padma suggested.

"Yeah, it was surely a prank gone wrong. If it weren't, the professors would have done something already," Hannah said, though her tone didn't sound very convincing.

"I don't think so," Lavender said, shaking her head.

"I agree with her," Daphne added. "Red doesn't think so either."

"Maybe..." Susan commented softly, leaning towards the idea after hearing that I didn't think it was a prank.

"You're overthinking it," Cho interrupted. "If the Chamber of Secrets was truly opened, why petrify Filch and his cat? Why not kill outright, like the legend says?"

"Maybe the culprit was afraid to kill and have Aurors show up," suggested Penelope, the oldest of the group. "Maybe they just wanted to scare people, make the 'unworthy' leave on their own without killing anyone." Her tone was thoughtful, and upon hearing that I didn't think it was a prank, she also adopted a more serious stance. She knew me well enough to consider my words.

"If that's the case, why doesn't anyone seem to care that much?" Tracey asked, still not entirely convinced.

At that moment, everyone seemed to reflect, and almost in sync, several said at the same time:

"Red!" (Several)

The collective comment didn't go unnoticed. The party I had organized and the rumors about my relationships with the professors had distracted everyone from the Chamber of Secrets matter. An odd silence followed.

"So... what do we do with this information?" Millicent asked, breaking the silence.

"I think we shouldn't just let it go," Daphne said, looking at those with at least one Muggle parent. "I wouldn't want my friends to get hurt because we didn't pay attention when we could have."

"Aww... Daphne cares about her friends!" Tracey exclaimed, jumping to hug her. She wasn't the only one touched by the cold Slytherin's concern; many of the girls felt grateful for her worry, breaking stereotypes about purebloods they might have once held.

"But what can we do about it?" Cho asked logically. "It's not like we can track down the culprit."

"Why not?" Pansy stood up with determination. "We should catch them before they get to us."

"But we don't know who it is," Hannah said, frowning.

"We don't even know if our assumptions are true," Cho added, trying to remain sensible.

"Then let's find out!" Pansy insisted, crossing her arms.

"It would be like an adventure novel... I could even write about it!" Lavender said excitedly.

"We'd be like Lockhart," Parvati added, letting the excitement catch her. "But... better."

The girls started talking louder and louder. With each encouraging comment, more people caught the enthusiasm. Penelope seemed skeptical at first, but after receiving a [message] in secret, she found herself encouraging the others too. Soon, everyone agreed to solve the mystery on their own, though some still had doubts.

"Wouldn't it be dangerous?" Padma asked, worried.

"We wouldn't risk too much," Hermione replied. "We just need to find the culprit and tell the professors. We wouldn't confront them directly... right?" Her tone turned uncertain towards the end.

"Of course not. We'll just unmask them and bask in the glory," Pansy assured. "Besides, we have Red." Her confidence seemed to calm everyone.

"Let's create our own legend!" Lavender exclaimed. "Let me write the book of our feats and make us famous!"

"Yeah!"

"Let's find the traitor!" Tracey said, angry about the stain on her house caused by the Chamber of Secrets.

"Let's kick their butt... even if they did us a favor by getting rid of Filch!" Cho added with a hint of malice.

There were more shouts and exclamations, all filled with excitement and determination. The decision was made: they would be the next heroines of Hogwarts.

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