A Certain Magical Hogwarts

Wizard poker is a game of bets and bluffing.

Even if your hand isn't strong, with the right acting skills, you can make your opponent too afraid to call your bluff. In the end, the player with the boldest facade can often come out on top.

It's a contest of intellect and courage.

To Snape, William was clearly bluffing—poorly, at that.

But in William's mind, he held the ultimate card: the Merlin card, an unbeatable hand akin to a royal flush.

William's goal was to lure Snape into his trap, making him believe the bluff was real.

The situation boiled down to this:

William: I'm lying.

Snape: I know you're lying.

William: I know you know I'm lying.

And so Snape took the bait, fully convinced that William was guilty.

"If it wasn't you who attacked me, I'll compensate you. Of course, this includes examining their wands too," Snape said, gesturing toward Cedric and the twins to ensure William couldn't swap wands with them.

"Fair enough, Professor Snape." William smiled and pulled a wand from his pocket, casting the Prior Incantato spell.

The spell revealed a reverse playback of the wand's recent magic, displaying minor charms like Scourgify and other harmless spells. There was no trace of a Stunning Spell or any offensive magic.

Snape stared at the wand in disbelief. He snatched it from William's hand and demanded, "Stark, is this your wand?!"

"Of course it's mine. Do you think I have two wands?" William replied with a grin. "If you don't believe me, you can write to Ollivander. He'll confirm I've never purchased a second wand."

"But… there's barely any magic recorded on this wand!" 

Of course, there wasn't. That wand had been crafted by Cedric, and William only used it occasionally. But William had prepared for this.

"That's because I've been practicing wandless magic, Professor," William explained.

To prove it, he raised his hand, causing a cup on the table to levitate and tip over, spilling water all over Snape.

William's wandless magic wasn't very advanced—he could only manage minor tasks like moving objects. It was closer to accidental magic than refined skill.

Still, the Ravenclaw students erupted into applause.

"Hand over your wands! Now!" Snape barked at Cedric and the twins.

They complied, and after examining their wands, Snape found nothing incriminating.

His expression darkened. Could it really not have been them? Who, then, had attacked him last night?

"Professor Snape, since it's clear we weren't involved, I trust you'll honor your promise," William said, waving his wand.

A piece of parchment appeared in midair, and words began to write themselves across it.

"I've calculated our losses. We had 50 hallucinogenic mushrooms, all thriving thanks to dragon dung fertilizer.

"To be fair, we won't charge you for the dragon dung.

"At 20 Galleons per mushroom, at an average market price between 15 and 25 Galleons, the total comes to 1,000 Galleons. Thank you for your patronage!"

The parchment floated over to Snape, who frowned. "That's reasonable, but were there really 50 mushrooms?"

He hadn't counted the mushrooms the previous night, having been too focused on leaving quickly. Still, the number seemed suspicious.

And why should he compensate them when the mushrooms had been stolen and he'd been knocked unconscious?

However, surrounded by students, Snape couldn't deny the claim outright without embarrassing himself.

With a glare at William, he snatched the parchment and stormed off, muttering under his breath.

As Snape left, cheers erupted throughout the Great Hall—except at the Slytherin table, of course.

…

Later that morning, students were still buzzing about the incident as they headed to Transfiguration class.

Walking with the crowd, Ron spoke loudly, "It had to be William and his lot who attacked Snape!"

His outburst drew the attention of nearby students.

"Shh, keep your voice down!" Hermione hissed, glancing around. "Don't jump to conclusions. You saw for yourself—his wand didn't cast any Offensive Spells."

"But don't forget they each have two wands," Ron whispered conspiratorially.

Harry hesitated before adding quietly, "Hermione, when we saw Hagrid at breakfast, he warned us to stay out of the Forbidden Forest. He also mentioned… seeing William there last night."

Hermione fell silent.

"Exactly! They took the mushrooms and even extorted 1,000 Galleons from Snape," Ron said enviously.

"That's 1,000 Galleons!"

Harry, who came from a wealthy background, wasn't fazed by the sum. Instead, he admired something else.

"Did you see how William smashed that cup? Wandless magic… Everyone's saying he's better than Quirrell. Imagine if he taught Defense Against the Dark Arts!"

"Actually," Ron grumbled, "George and Fred have been learning combat techniques from William this term."

He glanced at Hermione.

"You knew about this, didn't you?"

Still pondering the Forbidden Forest, Hermione nodded absentmindedly. "Yes, I go every Saturday evening too."

Harry stared at her in awe, while Ron's face turned green with jealousy.

'It was me—it was me first! I met William first, talked to him first…' Ron's inner monologue was a torrent of envy.

"By the way, Hermione, what's your relationship with William?" Harry asked curiously, knowing they had met before Hogwarts.

"Oh, my dad and his dad were college friends. I met William once as a kid, but we lost touch after my family moved. Then, last Easter…"

Ah, childhood friends. Ron finally stopped grumbling.

…

Defense Against the Dark Arts Classroom.

The first class after the holidays was about to begin, and the students were ready to prank Quirrell.

Pranking him had become a ritual, a tradition that brought joy to everyone involved.

Instead of "Have you eaten yet?" the morning greeting had become, "Did you prank Quirrell today?"

Harris carried a trash can, intending to balance it above the door.

Kastellana was dressed in a round, fluffy Scottish chicken costume, bouncing on the teacher's desk like she was performing a dance, hoping to startle Quirrell.

Suddenly, a transparent figure emerged from the wall, catching everyone off guard.

Harris jumped in fright, dropping the trash can, which landed on Kastellana's head.

"Argh! Damn BastardI can't see! I can't see!" Kastellana flapped her fake wings furiously, her muffled voice filled with indignation.

The room fell silent as everyone stared at the ghostly figure.

William, too, was stunned as he recognized the apparition.

Quirrell's translucent form floated into the room, his head tilted unnaturally. He spoke in a cold, eerie tone:

"I want to play a game with… you."

His gaze swept across the students before settling on William.

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