An Mrises Norris

> Break a rule in front of her, put just one toe out of line, and she'd whisk off for Filch, who'd appear, wheezing, two seconds later.
>
> Mrs Norris's close relationship with her master, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

**Mrs Norris** was the pet cat of Argus Filch, the caretaker of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Mrs Norris was described as having an unusually strong connection with her master, alerting him to any students misbehaving inside the school castle. Template:Pet-Individual
She was described as appearing almost the same way as Filch. She had bulging red later blue, lamp-like eyes, a scrawny, skeletal body and dust-coloured fur.

## Biography

### Under Argus Filch's ownership

Mrs Norris was born sometime prior to ***1984***, and became the pet cat of the Hogwarts school caretaker, Argus Filch. She formed an unusually strong bond with her owner, and often alerted him to any misbehaving students almost instantly. Because of this, she along with Filch were widely loathed by most of the Hogwarts students, and many students' dearest ambition was to "*give her a good kick*".

#### *1989–1990 school year*

Towards the start of the school year, Mrs Norris hissed at Jacob's sibling when they entered Filch's office to inquire about ***Jacob***.

#### 1991–1992 school year

During the 1991–1992 school year, Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger often narrowly escaped the cat on their nightly trips through the school throughout their first year. Harry once got caught by her one day for tracking mud on the floor. She and Filch nearly caught Harry, Ron, Hermione. To avoid them, they hid in a room on the forbidden third floor corridor, and unknowingly encountered Fluffy.
During the 1991 Christmas holidays when Harry and Ron first encountered the Mirror of Erised on a late night stroll, she noticed them being out of bed and wandering around the castle at night. Harry had the suspicion that she was able to see him even when he was under his Invisibility Cloak, although she may have just sensed someone there but couldn't see, as cats are known to possess highly advanced senses that humans do not have.

#### 1992–1993 school year

 File:Mrs Norris petrified.jpg
Mrs Norris was the first victim of the Serpent of Slytherin when the Chamber of Secrets was re-opened in 1992. On Hallowe'en night, she was petrified by the basilisk when she saw its reflection in a puddle of water in front of the unused bathroom in the second floor. Ginny Weasley, possessed by Tom Marvolo Riddle, hung her from a torch bracket by her tail, where she was found by Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger, next to the threatening message written on the wall.
Headmaster Albus Dumbledore examined the cat but was unable to revive her. Argus Filch was devastated, and even accused Harry Potter of having attacked her. Thankfully, Mrs Norris was revived by Professor Pomona Sprout with the help of a Mandrake Restorative Draught at the end of the 1992–1993 school year.

#### 1993–1994 school year

In 1993, when Harry obtained the Marauder's Map from Fred and George Weasley, Mrs Norris showed up on the map, alerting Harry to her presence and allowing him to carefully avoid being caught by her.

#### 1997–1998 school year

##### Battle of Hogwarts

 File:Filch Deathly Hallows.jpg
Before the ***Battle of Hogwarts*** started, Mrs Norris was seen hissing, screeching and batting at some ***owls*** who had escaped from the ***Owlery*** to return them to their proper place.
Mrs Norris was likely kept safe during the battle, being a cat. She survived the battle, and was with Filch as he swept up debris in the Great Hall, sitting next to a pile of rubble.

## Physical appearance

Mrs Norris was a dust-coloured cat with bulging red later blue, lamp-like eyes, and a scrawny skeletal body.

## Personality and traits

Mrs Norris appeared to be a very intelligent and perspective cat, who often looked out for misbehaving students and seemed to be very good at spotting them. She also had excellent knowledge of the Hogwarts Castle. She also appeared to have a somewhat hostile temperament, often hissing at people, but she was very affectionate towards her owner Filch. This affection was not limited to just Filch, however; Mrs Norris showed a liking to a select few individuals, ***Alanza Alves*** and the ***Chimaera at the Magical Creatures Reserve*** being among them.
She may have also developed some sort of Occlumency, since ***Jacob's sibling*** couldn't access her mind, unlike Filch's. It's also possible that cats were immune to mental intrusion from Legilimency.

## Relationships

### Argus Filch

 File:Filch and mrs. Norris.png
Filch and Mrs Norris had an unusually close bond. Filch was extremely fond and protective of her. Even when patrolling separate corridors, the two seem to be able to communicate and Filch came directly to her when she spotted a student misbehaving. When she was attacked by the basilisk in 1992, Filch's first thought was that she was dead, and he was understandably devastated. It is unknown what happened to Mrs Norris after the war.

### Rubeus Hagrid

> An' as fer that cat, Mrs Norris, I'd like ter introduce her to Fang some time.
>
> Hagrid talking to Harry and Ron about Mrs Norris, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

Rubeus Hagrid could not stand her, as he was ***allergic*** to cats. He suspected that Filch set her up to follow him around whenever he came up to the school. Hagrid once remarked that he would like to introduce her to Fang, his pet dog. However, she seemed to respect the other Hogwarts teachers.

### Hogwarts students

Mrs Norris was hated by a majority of the students. Much like her master, she had excellent knowledge of the castle. Being caught misbehaving by her was just as bad as being caught by Filch, because she would fetch him straight away. It was the "dearest ambition of many to give Mrs Norris a good kick."

## Etymology

Rowling said she obtained the name Mrs Norris from a character in ***Jane Austen***'s *Mansfield Park*, who is similarly odious and is hanging around in the background frequently.

## Behind the scenes

 File:Mrs. Norris LEGO.jpg
 File:Filch and Mrs Norris POP.jpg
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* Mrs Norris seems exceptionally smart for a cat, to the point that many have suspected she is a cat/***Kneazle*** cross like ***Crookshanks*** or an Animagus. However, ***J. K. Rowling*** has stated on her website that she is just a highly unpleasant cat. This was confirmed again when Rowling stated on Twitter in response to a fan query that Mrs Norris would lose in a very brutal, close fight with Crookshanks, as Crookshanks's kneazle ancestry would eventually give him the edge.
* Mrs Norris's role in the first two films is much the same as her role in the books. She also appears briefly in the third film and in the fourth and fifth films she, along with Filch, are used more as comic relief. In the fourth film, Argus Filch is seen dancing with her at the ***Yule Ball*** showing a brief sensitive side to Filch and showing his love for his cat, and on the fifth film Mrs Norris is seen climbing on Filch during the Welcoming Feast, while he is clapping enthusiastically at ***Dolores Umbridge***'s speech. She has significantly more screen time in the final film; Filch carries her as he runs into the Great Hall screaming that the students are out of bed, as well at the end of the film, where she is comically sitting next to a pile of rubble as Filch attempts to sweep.
* In the earlier films, Mrs Norris has red eyes. In later films, however, she has blue eyes. Also, in the films, Mrs Norris has brown and grey fur.
* The cat that played Mrs Norris is a Maine Coon. In sharp contrast to Mrs Norris's description in the books as being scrawny, Maine Coons are a large, stocky breed.
* Several animal actors portray Mrs Norris throughout the films. The most notable include Maine Coons named ***Maximus***, ***Alanis*** and ***Cornilus***, and animatronics were also used. Specific animal actors were used for specific purposes. Maximus was trained to run alongside Filch and jump onto his shoulders, while Alanis was trained to be held in Filch's arms without squirming. She was so good at her job that often she fell asleep during shoots.
* It is unknown if she joined the fight with or without Filch. It is unknown what happened to her after the war, although given her age of around 14 or possibly older during the Battle of Hogwarts, it is plausible that Mrs Norris had since passed away.

## Appearances

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## Notes and references

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1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Template:PS
2. ↑ Template:HM
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Template:COS
4. ↑ Template:POA
5. ↑ Template:DH
6. ↑ Template:DH
7. ↑ Cite error: Invalid `<ref>` tag; no text was provided for refs named `eyes`
8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 Cite error: Invalid `<ref>` tag; no text was provided for refs named `PS8`
9. ↑ Template:OOTP
10. ↑ Template:HM
11. ↑ Template:HM
12. ↑ Template:HM
13. ↑ Cite error: Invalid `<ref>` tag; no text was provided for refs named `PS9`
14. ↑ Cite error: Invalid `<ref>` tag; no text was provided for refs named `COS9`
15. ↑ *The Connection* interview with J. K. Rowling, available via Web Archive
16. ↑ J.K. Rowling on Twitter - "It would be brutal and very close..."