A new chapter is up.
Come in, get comfortable, and let’s see what kind of trouble waits this time ❤️ ✦ Edmund could feel his scalp prickle.
At a time like this, the twins still had the nerve to turn the whole thing into a performance?
Fortunately, Fluffy was not picky.
Once it heard the music, it stopped attacking and slowly walked back to the trapdoor.
Then it lay down again.
Edmund signaled with his eyes for the twins to retreat with him.
The three of them backed out slowly.
Edmund closed the door with care, locked it again with a spell, and only then let out a soft breath.
When he turned around, he nearly jumped.
Fred and George were staring at him, their faces full of curiosity.
They exchanged a glance, then moved at once, one on either side, slinging their arms over Edmund’s shoulders.
“Our dear Lord Gaunt,” one of them said grandly, “thank you.
I am Fred, and this is my brother George.” “Idiot Fred,” the other protested at once.
“I am the older one.” Edmund stared at them for a beat.
Lord Gaunt?
What sort of ridiculous title was that?
Since they had decided to tease him, Edmund did not hesitate to return the favor.
“Dear Lords Weasley, I was sent here by Headmaster Dumbledore himself to protect you.
You may call me your guardian.” Edmund said it with such a straight face that Fred and George seemed momentarily caught.
“Dumbledore really sent you?” Fred asked.
“Did he find out we were out after curfew?” George looked uneasy as well.
For all their lawlessness, the headmaster still held a certain weight.
“Of course not.
I was out after curfew too.” Edmund rolled his eyes and explained what had happened.
“So that noise back there was you!” the twins said together after hearing the story.
“I had just been reading in the library when the two of you dragged Filch in my direction,” Edmund replied.
He did not bother denying it.
“Then what spell made you invisible?” George asked, completely unconcerned by the accusation.
His attention had shifted at once to Edmund’s sudden appearance.
If they could learn that spell, Filch and Mrs.
Norris would become far less terrifying.
“The Disillusionment Charm.
If you want to learn it, you will have to search the Restricted Section.
I learned it by chance.” Edmund did not hide the answer.
He liked these two lively troublemakers.
If possible, he also wanted a chance to study the Marauder’s Map in their possession.
Fred and George looked at each other.
Both of them had the same eager gleam in their eyes.
As for the Restricted Section, that was not much of a problem for them.
Edmund stretched.
After running around with the twins for half the night, it was getting late.
“All right.
I need sleep.
Unless the two noble Lords Weasley have more business, I will be going.” The twins were not offended.
If anything, their grins widened.
This was the sort of friend they could work with.
“You really should have come to Gryffindor, Lord Gaunt,” George said, giving him a thumbs-up.
Edmund suited their taste far better than their younger brother Ron.
Edmund waved and said nothing more.
He turned and left.
Where the twins went afterward, he had no idea.
He was fairly certain, however, that it was not toward Gryffindor Tower.
When Edmund reached the entrance to the Ravenclaw common room, he lightly touched the bronze eagle knocker.
It came to life at once.
Whether the young wizard before it had broken school rules did not matter.
It performed its duty faithfully.
“Two fathers and two sons went to buy hats.
Why did they buy only three?” “Because there were three generations: grandfather, father, and son.” The door opened, and Edmund stepped into the common room.
Then he froze.
A girl stood near the entrance to the girls’ dormitory, staring at him in a daze.
“Cho?” “Edmund?” They spoke at the same time.
Edmund recovered first.
“What are you doing here?” “I came to get this Quidditch training guide.” Cho answered blankly, then seemed to realize that Edmund’s situation was the more serious one.
“Why are you only coming back now?
Where did you go?” Faced with her questioning, Edmund did not try to hide it.
He told her everything that had happened that night.
He explained why he had gone out, how he had run into the twins, and even what had happened in the third-floor corridor.
When he described secretly setting the twins up with the fallen helmet, Cho laughed so hard she nearly doubled over.
When he reached the part about the three-headed dog, her face tightened with worry.
Only after hearing about its weakness to music did she relax, and then her excitement returned.
“That is brilliant, Edmund.
You have only been at school for two days, and you have already gone exploring after curfew.
I have been here over a year and never tried it.
Next time something that fun happens, you have to take me with you.” Edmund looked at the visibly excited Cho and nearly cursed aloud in his own head.
Who would have thought that the quiet-looking girl had such a wild streak?
Then again, as Ravenclaw’s future Seeker, she probably had a taste for speed and risk in her blood.
He rubbed her head lightly, smiling at her with open fondness.
“All right.
If something fun happens next time, I will tell you.
Not recently, though.
I may go out at night, but it will only be to read.
Very boring.” Feeling the warmth of his hand, Cho gave him a sweet smile and accepted the arrangement.
They talked for a little longer before returning to their dormitories.
The next morning, Edmund followed the other Ravenclaw students down to the dungeons for Potions.
On the way, they met the Gryffindors heading there as well.
Harry greeted Edmund, but before they could speak much, his roommates dragged him along.
Perhaps Edmund’s arrival had caused a small butterfly effect.
There were unusually many Hufflepuffs in this year, nearly as many as the other three houses combined.
As a result, Hogwarts had decided that Hufflepuff would attend separately, while Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin would share several lessons.
That meant today’s Potions class had Gryffindor and Slytherin as well.
Remembering that he had not done his daily check-in, Edmund spoke silently to the system.
‘System, check in.’ [System] Daily check-in complete.
Reward acquired: Potions Knowledge (Epic).
His luck was that good?
Edmund raised an eyebrow.
Combined with the Potions knowledge he had received before, he was now roughly at the level of an excellent fourth-year student.
After embarrassing Snape at the Sorting Ceremony, he was certain the man would try to settle the score in Potions.
Edmund had been worried his level might not be enough.
Then the system delivered exactly what he needed.
For once, the useless thing had excellent timing.
CREATORS’ THOUGHTS AuroraVale Thank you for reading.
I hope this chapter pulled you a little deeper into the story.
Stay close, because things are only getting more interesting.