According to one theory, the Basilisk terrorized Hogwarts students, but it may not have killed anyone. The beast petrifies students (and even a ghost) throughout Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. But one student is said to have been killed by it during Tom Riddle’s fifth year. It’s possible that this student wasn’t killed by the Basilisk at all, however, due to a technicality and a connection to Riddle’s quest for immortality.

Salazar Slytherin had a strong dislike for Muggles. Witches and wizards whose blood was not “pure” caused him to clash with the three founders. He was hoping that one day, she would kill all Muggle-born students. Slytherin constructed the Chamber of Secrets to house his Basilisk. When Tom Riddle, a.k.a. Voldemort, was a student, he used his diary, which was also one of his Horcruxes, to open the chamber.

A Basilisk is a massive serpent with deadly fangs whose venom is strong enough to kill even a Horcrux. Looking a Basilisk in the eyes is especially dangerous. However, an indirect Basilisk gaze would only cause petrification. Myrtle saw the Basilisk through her glasses, making her view indirect and terrifying her. Myrtle Warren, a.k.a. But it’s possible that she was just petrified. As part of his Horcrux ritual, Tom Riddle could have killed her. This idea makes sense when you consider that he started making Horcruxes as a student.

Horcruxes were one of the most heinous forms of Dark Magic in Harry Potter. Their creator split people’s souls in cold blood before bonding the fragments with a valuable object. Tom Riddle created seven Horcruxes in his quest for immortality. His first victim could have been Moaning Myrtle. They were allowing him to make his first Horcrux in his diary.

This hatred was not only a driving force behind Riddle’s attempt to conquer the Wizarding World. But it was also a significant factor in many of his murders while working on Horcruxes. Riddle’s other victims were his father and paternal grandparents, who were all Muggles, ironically.

Even though Myrtle looked at the Basilisk through transparent lenses, the beast’s deadly gaze would still protect her. Colin Creevey, for example, was only petrified and stared the Basilisk down through a camera lens. If the Basilisk in the Harry Potter books and films never killed anyone. She was upending many readers’ and viewers’ assumptions about the giant snake.