Hogwarts Emerald

Outside, snow was falling heavily, covering the world in a blanket of white. In such terrible weather, no one was willing to venture outside. Even the twins stayed obediently in the warmth of the common room.

The circular common room was packed with students, scattered in groups of threes and fives. The best spots near the fireplace had already been claimed, so the twins had to settle for a random spot in the corner.

The brothers were busy dismantling a Fizzing Whiz-Bang firework, studying its inner workings. They wanted to understand the mechanism behind its magical self-ignition and water-activated blooming effect so that, when they had the skills, they could attempt to recreate it.

The twins had been inspired by Eda's proactive attitude and decided that even while still in school, they should start planning for their future. They hoped to use their time at Hogwarts to gain experience and save up some initial funds for their ventures.

Fortunately, selling the Marauder's Map earlier in the term had earned them a decent sum. Otherwise, they wouldn't have been willing to dismantle a Fizzing Whiz-Bang for research. As long as they didn't squander their money on betting how long the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor would last, their earnings would be enough to support their experiments for a while.

Eda, carrying her schoolbag, returned to the common room early. Couples with nowhere else to go had turned the library into a dating spot, and there were more lovestruck pairs than readers.

Fuck them! Humph!

Eda couldn't stand the atmosphere there, especially with the occasional odd noises that broke the silence.

Scanning the common room, Eda spotted the twins in the corner. She walked over to them, but the brothers, engrossed in their study, didn't notice her arrival.

"Ehm.."

Eda cleared her throat softly, finally catching the twins' attention. George reached out to take Eda's schoolbag, but he wasn't prepared for its weight and nearly toppled over.

"Ah! What on earth do you have in here? Why is it so heavy?" George asked in disbelief. "Did you pack the entire library in this bag?"

"I wish I could, but it has to fit in the bag first!" Eda sighed. If she could carry an entire library with her, she wouldn't have had to endure such a cringe-worthy scene today.

Fred packed away the dismantled Fizzing Whiz-Bang from the table and asked, "Why are you back so early today?"

"Outside, it's clearly a snowy winter, but the library feels like ...spring," Eda replied helplessly.

At first, the twins didn't understand what Eda was talking about. What did leaving the library early have to do with the seasons?

But it didn't take long for them to figure it out—they realized the true reason behind Eda's early departure.

The atmosphere brimming with "springtime" romance was no place for a single dog like Eda.

"What's this?"

George spotted a thick book sticking out of Eda's bag. The book was so heavy that it seemed more suited for knocking someone out than for reading.

"Obviously, it's a book. What else could it be?" Eda glanced at the book George was pointing to. "It's Fatal Potions. Most of the potions in it can easily strip a person of their life."

"This isn't another one of Cecil's recommendations, is it?"

Fred pulled Fatal Potions out of the bag and flipped through it. The first sentence of the book read: Is every sip of water you drink and every bite of food you eat truly safe?

"Damn.. Who else but Cecil would recommend such a dangerous book to Eda?" George leaned over to read along. After only a few pages, he understood why the book was in the Restricted Section. The potions described were wicked and dangerous.

Eda nodded in acknowledgment and said, "Just expanding my knowledge of potions to handle Snape."

"Where there's oppression, there's resistance," the twins chimed in unison. "Are you finally planning to make a move against Snape?"

".." Eda gave each of the twins a flick on the forehead. "Are you trying to send me to Azkaban?!!!"

"Just like your doting grandfather did!" Fred teased.

"Who?" Eda was taken aback—she didn't even know she had a grandfather.

"Glover Cecil, bahaha" George explained. "Don't you think the old man might be feeling too lonely, so he wants to adopt you as his granddaughter? Maybe even his heir or something?"

From Hogwarts to Azkaban, and in just two years—wouldn't that make Eda the ultimate prodigy, surpassing her so-called "grandfather"? She might not be the youngest prisoner in Azkaban's history, but it wouldn't be an easy record to beat.

The twins dodged Eda's punches while continuing to tease her. The common room was bustling with people, noisy enough that no one paid attention to the trio playfully scuffling in the corner.

"He's always recommending dark magic to you," Fred said. "Maybe he really sees you as his successor and wants to groom you into a dark wizard."

After Eda told them about Cecil's behavior, the twins had been discussing it incessantly. Cecil's actions were too much like a shady figure trying to lure children in a dark alley.

Combined with his time in Azkaban, it was hard not to question his intentions.

"Are we about to witness the rise of the next Dark Lord?" George knelt on one knee in front of Eda. "My Lord, I am your most loyal servant. May I kiss the hem of your robes?"

Though the twins joked around, their underlying message was clear: they wanted Eda to be cautious with Cecil and, more importantly, to avoid delving into dark magic.

They feared that Eda might lose herself, as few who studied dark magic met a good end.

Eda planted her palm firmly on George's forehead and pushed him over onto the floor. "You don't even qualify to wash my clothes!" 

The three of them burst out laughing. Fred and Eda chuckled from the armchair, while George laughed from the carpet. The warmth of their friendship and concern melted away the winter chill.

"Tomorrow's a Hogsmeade day, right?" Eda asked.

She extended her hand to pull George up, but he tried to yank her out of the armchair in return. As soon as he applied force, Eda let go, and George landed right back on the floor with a thud.

"Hey!"

Hogsmeade was a small, all-wizarding village near the school, the only such village in all of Britain. No Muggle presence existed there; everyone you encountered was a wizard or witch.

School rules stipulated that only third-year students and above could visit on designated Saturdays, provided they had a signed permission slip from their guardian.

Eda and the twins weren't in their third year, nor did they have signed permission slips from their guardians, but they had already been to Hogsmeade. They'd simply snuck in through one of the secret passageways.

"Perfect timing. George and I were planning to head to Zonko's Joke Shop anyway. We're running low on dungbombs."

Eda honestly couldn't understand what was so entertaining about those rotting-smelling magical stink bombs.

Wouldn't homemade rotten eggs work just as well?

They were just as stinky and far more economical.

The twins loved using dungbombs to prank Filch. Every time they created chaos with those bombs, Eda couldn't help but think of them as mischievous little kids brawling in an outhouse. Fortunately, not many students at the school resorted to dungbombs; otherwise, the castle would eventually become uninhabitable due to the stench.

"I have a lot of things to buy, so you two better be ready to carry my bags!"

The twins groaned in unison and flopped dramatically onto the armchairs. Shopping truly seemed to be a universal trait of women, whether they were witches or not—even when the witch in question was only thirteen years old.

"I'll buy you some butterbeer."

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