The Weasley twins, who were looking downcast, extended their hands to Eda. Eda thought that the brothers wanted her to pull them up, so she also extended her hands.
With a snap, the hand of friendship that Eda extended was slapped back by the twins.
"What's going on?" Eda rubbed the back of her hand, now red from Fred and George's slap, which had originally been smooth and fair.
"Potions homework!"
"Transfiguration homework!"
"This is compensation for the mental distress you've caused us!"
The twins spoke in perfect harmony, as if they had been talking this way since they were in the womb.
Eda directly threw her schoolbag to Fred and asked them to find it themselves. Personally, Eda was against this kind of thing, as it was of no use to her own academic progress, though she used to be just like them.
After finding the necessary homework, the twins began to write furiously. Once they finished their respective assignments, they would swap their papers, working on both at the same time. This method not only saved time but also greatly increased their efficiency.
Meanwhile, Eda took out a book titled "How to Make Your Spells Hit the Target." She had found it on an inconspicuous shelf in the library. The title had resonated with her, so she borrowed it despite its long-winded name.
After reading it, Eda finally understood why the book had been gathering dust on that shelf. It was completely useless, filled with nothing but empty words.
Compared to the book she had previously seen, "O.W.Ls and N.E.W.Ts: Five and Seven Year Editions," this one fell short. Despite both gathering dust in a corner, the "Five-Seven" book was genuinely valuable, containing real exam questions that were like a treasure trove for Hogwarts students.
The number of people in the common room gradually dwindled, and the crackling of the fire in the fireplace became more pronounced.
Fred, feeling a burst of creativity, rubbed his sore wrist and said, "I'd rather spend time with Filch than write another potions essay." He had just finished copying the homework and handed it back to Eda.
"Adorable but annoying Filch!" George, who had also just finished, chimed in, "Compared to Snape, Filch is nothing."
With a snap, Eda closed "How to Make Your Spells Hit the Target" and said to the Weasley twins, "You two should be grateful. At least you have homework to copy."
"This isn't copying! It's referencing!" George said with exaggerated indignation.
"We're just using it to spark inspiration and guide our thoughts," Fred added. "We don't want to waste our limited lives on endless homework. It's meaningless!"
If you two were any more sincere, I might actually believe you, Eda thought, rolling her eyes.
Eda reached out and rubbed her sore neck before asking the two, "So, what do you think is meaningful? Playing nicely with Filch, hiding around corners to scare little kids, or turning your little brother's toy into an ugly spider?"
"We were just playing a joke on Ron..." Fred said, his playful expression fading.
"We just didn't gauge it properly..." George added, looking a bit embarrassed.
The prank had left a significant psychological scar on their little brother, Ron. The toy he had been holding suddenly transformed into a large, crawling spider—a truly terrifying experience.
May Merlin protect Ron Weasley from ever encountering spiders again! Especially giant ones!
"How about we sneak out at night next time?" George tried to change the subject, albeit awkwardly.
Fred quickly backed up his brother, saying, "An ancient castle, silent and empty at night, doesn't that intrigue you, Eda?"
[You have received a team invitation from the Weasley twins for a night tour of Hogwarts. Accept √, Decline ×.]
"You guys were just caught recently, and you're already planning to get into trouble again?" Eda declined the invitation from the Weasley twins. She intended to lay low for a while and not go anywhere.
"Next time, I said next time..." Fred looked at Eda as if she was slow to understand.
"Not today, not tomorrow, but next time, whenever we plan another night tour," George explained patiently, as if talking to a small child.
"Uh... I mean that there's no chance in the near future. Filch will definitely be keeping a closer eye on you," Eda said, trying to salvage her pride. "And you can't lose any more points. If this keeps up, even with Charlie's good temper, he won't be able to take it. He'll tell Mrs. Weasley."
At the mention of their mother, Fred and George instinctively toned down their expressions. The kind woman was quite terrifying when it came to disciplining her children.
"Charlie won't. He's not Percy," George said, though there was a hint of uncertainty in his voice.
"I think a lot of people can talk about us losing points, but you—Esmeralda Twist—have no right!" Fred shook his finger at Eda.
"I... I made up the points I lost!" Eda retorted, though her tone was not very confident since she had lost a few points recently.
"Really?" Fred extended his finger to start counting. "Let's not even mention the fighting incident; we'll let that one slide."
Eda nodded in agreement, as that incident involved everyone and was considered a collective first-year penalty.
"Several times entering the Restricted Section of the library without permission, ignoring the library's closing hours... Madam Pince, who could no longer tolerate it, reported these incidents to Professor McGonagall. Points deducted, right?" George raised his right hand, straightening his fingers, and bent his thumb after he finished speaking.
"Using magic in empty classrooms and corridors, caught by Filch—points deducted!" Fred also raised his right hand, bending his fingers as he started counting Eda's infractions.
"In the greenhouse, neglecting to properly care for the herb plants because of daydreaming, points deducted by Professor Sprout! She likes you so much, and yet you always let her down," George said while lowering his right index finger.
Feeling like she was being painted as a "heartbreaker," Eda shamefully lowered her head. Though she felt sorry for disappointing Professor Sprout, she truly had no interest in taking care of plants.
"In the dungeon classroom, talking back to the professor, points deducted by Snape, and not just once!" Fred also lowered his index finger and emphasized Snape's name and the phrase "not just once" to irritate Eda.
The twins took turns listing Eda's "crimes" since the beginning of the school year, deflating her arrogance.
Eda stared at her toes, saying nothing. If her skin weren't already thick enough, she might have started fidgeting by now.
"Do you want us to continue?" the Weasley twins asked. Normally, Eda was always composed and confident; this was the first time they saw her like this.
"Uh... no... no need..." Eda squeezed out the words with great difficulty, clenching her fists. This was so embarrassing!
"Do you know what the other students call the three of us?" Fred asked.
"The Deduction Trio!" George blurted out the answer because he knew Eda probably didn't know. She had no friends and didn't like making friends.
Eda was more of a loner, more accustomed to facing everything alone.
"I originally planned to earn back the points you two lost, but now it seems I might not even earn back my own share..." Eda said, looking up at the ceiling of the common room helplessly.
She hadn't realized it before, but upon calculating, she was shocked to find that she could be compared to the twins. Although the points Eda had lost weren't as numerous as other Gryffindors, she was still far behind the twins. What did this prove? It proved that Fred and George were indeed the ultimate legends!
"I suggest you give up on that idea," Fred said.
"Haven't you noticed that ever since you got detention from Professor McGonagall," George said.
"You've become more and more uninhibited?" The twins finished in unison.
The Weasley brothers didn't mention it, but Eda hadn't realized this herself. Before her detention, she hadn't lost a single point, but after that... well, it was better not to mention it.
"I will control myself and not let anyone deduct any more points from me!" Eda declared, but compared to actions, words always felt weak.
"Halloween is coming up soon. Do you have any costumes in mind?" Fred asked.
"We're planning to make two pumpkin heads," George said.
"Pumpkin heads? Where are you going to get pumpkins?" Eda asked, puzzled.
Thinking about it, it was indeed almost Halloween. Without realizing it, Eda had already been at Hogwarts for two months. The orphanage had never held costume parties on Halloween, so Eda didn't have much of an impression of the holiday, aside from the phrase "trick or treat."
"Of course, from Hagrid, the gamekeeper. He's grown plenty of pumpkins."
"We've already arranged it with him."
To prepare for the Halloween feast, Hagrid had planted many pumpkins, some of which were as big as small huts.
Eda actually knew about these. She had seen Hagrid's pumpkins and even thought that if Hagrid sold his fertilizer in the Muggle world, he might make a good profit. She was just thinking about other things and hadn't made the connection right away.
"When did you two get on such good terms with Hagrid? I had no idea," Eda stretched lazily. She was feeling sleepy and her mind was a bit sluggish.
"We've always had a good relationship with him; you just didn't know about it."
"It's because you're always running off to the library," George said. "If you haven't decided yet, how about dressing up as Jack with us?"
The Weasley brothers once again invited Eda to join their team.
________
Read 12 chapters ahead of WN
Patreon.com/Dragonel