NOVEL NEXT Chapter 29: If you don’t do it, you won’t die.
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After returning to the dormitory at night, Angelina, who had just laid down, heard a loud "bang". Angelina looked in the direction of the sound and found that Eda had thrown a small bag on the bedside table.
"What is that?" Alicia asked curiously, also startled by the noise.
"You didn't bring back a bag of rocks, did you?" Angelina asked.
"Why would I bring back a bag of rocks for no reason?" Eda responded, a bit exasperated. "These are cakes Hagrid gave me. He wanted me to share them with you."
Angelina and Alicia shook their heads immediately. It wasn't because they had heard of the notorious rock cakes, but any normal person wouldn't be interested in food that made such a loud noise when dropped.
"What? You say cakes? Those aren't food; they're weapons!"
"Come on, give them a try. Don't waste Hagrid's good intentions!" Eda said, taking a rock cake from the bag and holding it out to them.
Seeing the true form of the cakes made Angelina and Alicia shake their heads even more vigorously. "Eda, there's no need for us to try them. We appreciate the gesture."
Looking at Angelina and Alicia, who were as in sync as twins, Eda reluctantly put the "brick" down. The hardest food Eda had ever encountered before this was a frozen pear, but compared to the rock cakes, the hardness of frozen pears was nothing to brag about.
Throughout November, the professors turned the castle upside down. They didn't find the culprit or even a single clue. Apart from some contraband that Filch confiscated from students, they found nothing at all.
The students' tense spirits finally relaxed, and Hogwarts returned to its usual lively atmosphere.
Today, the Gryffindor common room was especially lively. The coffee table was laden with cakes, and there were pitchers of pumpkin juice, while the upper-year students even set off Filibuster's fireworks.
The students were celebrating today's victory in the common room. The Quidditch team, led by Charlie, had defeated Hufflepuff in today's official match.
Fred and George were wolfing down cakes, but even these delicious treats couldn't calm their restless hearts.
"Tonight, we're planning to sneak out for some nighttime fun. Want to join us?" The twins once again extended their invitation.
"Tonight?" Eda hesitated. "Aren't you afraid of getting caught?"
"The professors have stopped searching the castle so diligently. As long as we're careful, we'll be fine," George explained to Eda as he swallowed a mouthful of cake.
Fred added, "We just need to watch out for 'Dunghead' and his cat."
Ever since Hagrid referred to Filch as "Dunghead," the twins had adopted the nickname to refer to him as well.
"You two are really asking for trouble!" Eda said as she picked up a piece of cake. "I can already picture Professor McGonagall coming to fetch you from Filch's office."
"This makes it even more exciting!" Fred said.
"A mundane life is meaningless!" George said with a serious expression. "Eda, do you really want to waste your youth?"
My youth isn't wasted; I've been immersed in books. That's what Eda thought, but she said, "And how can I avoid wasting my youth?"
"Living a mediocre life at Hogwarts is wasting your youth!" George said.
"When you get old and your kids ask you about Hogwarts' secrets, won't you be ashamed if you have nothing to tell them?" Fred gestured animatedly, urging Eda to imagine the future.
Alright, you two brothers are like little Paul Korchagins! Eda had had enough of dealing with children during her time at the orphanage; she wanted to enjoy her solitude. She rolled her eyes, not engaging with Fred Korchagin and George Korchagin, and turned to go back to her dormitory.
"At eleven-thirty, we'll wait for you in the common room," the twins called out to Eda's retreating figure.
Lying in bed, Eda found herself unable to sleep, something that hadn't happened for a while. Recently, she had avoided late-night wanderings due to concerns about the attacks. She realized she missed those "Gryffindor behaviors."
Determined, Eda got up, changed into her nighttime gear, and quietly left the dormitory.
Eda walked down the stairs from the girls' dormitory, just in time to see Fred and George whispering in the common room.
"I bet Eda will come, one Sickle!" Fred said. "How about it?"
"I also think Eda will come, same bet," George didn't fall for it at all.
Eda descended the stairs and said to the brothers, "Ahem... I'm not here for a night adventure, I'm just worried you might get caught, so I'm here to keep an eye on you..."
"Alright, we get it," Fred smiled at Eda, who was pretending to be tough.
"Let's head out and discover Hogwarts' secrets under the cover of night!" George led the way.
Breathing in the corridor's night air felt unexpectedly refreshing.
"Eda, we found a secret passage in the first week!" George called back to Eda.
Fred proudly added, "The passage behind Gregory the Smarmy's statue leads outside the school, we're professionals!"
Under the cover of darkness, the three of them moved further away from Gryffindor Tower. The twins wanted to explore another secret passage, while Eda was on a mission to find a "safe house" and complete her tasks.
They didn't encounter any professors along the way. Fred and George led Eda to a mirror on the fifth floor, suspecting it might conceal a secret passage.
"Are you sure there's really a... uh... passage here?" Eda asked the twins, watching them fumble around the large mirror.
"Not entirely sure, but this mirror looks very suspicious."
"It's our intuition, you know. Girls aren't the only ones with intuition!"
Eda didn't share their sentiment; to her, the mirror looked quite ordinary and unremarkable.
[Ding! The host has discovered a secret passage at Hogwarts. Night adventure task completion +1. Finding the correct entry method will reward additional completion points.]
The night adventure task completion had already increased to 6 when they left the tower, and now it had risen to 7. Seeing the progress, Eda took out her wand, hoping to increase it even more.
Instead of randomly touching the mirror like the twins, Eda started poking at it with her wand, hoping to find the entrance by sensing the flow of magic. However, her efforts were just as futile as the twins'.
As the three of them stood around the mirror, at a loss for what to do next, a cat's meow echoed through the corridor.
~Meow!~
They all turned simultaneously to see a scrawny cat standing before them. It was none other than Mrs. Norris, Filch's beloved cat and the object of his affection.
Mrs. Norris's large eyes glared at the trio, issuing another warning meow: Meow! It was as if she was saying, "Raise your hands! Don't move!"
"Run!" Eda yelled at the sight of Mrs. Norris, and she took off, with Fred and George following close behind.
The three of them bolted away from the fifth floor, Mrs. Norris chasing after them and meowing incessantly to alert her owner, Filch.
Soon, Eda heard the distinct sound of Filch's footsteps echoing through the corridor.
"Split up!" Eda shouted as they reached the fourth-floor intersection, making a sharp left turn. Fred and George, however, both decided to run downstairs.
Eda was nearly beside herself with frustration. Couldn't those two have chosen different directions? One right turn and one going downstairs would have made it harder for Mrs. Norris to follow them!
Alone now, Eda eventually found herself cornered by Mrs. Norris.
She reached into her pocket and pulled out the rock-hard rock cakes, which she had brought along as a makeshift weapon.
Holding the rock cake out, she tried to tempt the cat. "Mrs. Norris, this is a rare delicacy!" She waved the rock cake enticingly before tossing it towards the cat.
The rock cake hit the ground with a thud and rolled to a stop in front of Mrs. Norris. But the cat was unimpressed and continued to glare at Eda, completely unfazed by the supposed treat.
It seemed that these rock cakes were useless for anything but as a last-ditch defense. Resigned, Eda turned and ran again, with Mrs. Norris still hot on her heels.
"Impedimenta!" Eda cast the Impediment Jinx at Mrs. Norris, hoping to slow the cat's pursuit.
The spell took effect, causing Mrs. Norris's movements to slow down. Eda continued casting the jinx at the determined cat, buying herself enough time to finally shake off Filch's beloved pet.
Breathing heavily, Eda clutched her chest to steady her racing heart.
The frantic sprint had taken a toll on her.
"I really need to work on my stamina. But with everything else going on, where will I find the time?"
While Eda managed to escape, the twins weren't as fortunate. Filch had caught them red-handed.
"Ha! I've got you two now," Filch gloated, gripping the collars of the twins' robes. "This time, I'll make sure you two are properly punished!"
Filch's face was alight with glee, his wrinkles almost glowing.
Fred and George, however, seemed unfazed. "Filch, what grand punishment do you have in mind for us this time?" Fred asked. "Polishing the trophies in the display room or scrubbing your filthy mops?"
"I'll string you up and lash you with a whip!" Filch snarled. "Even gutting you wouldn't satisfy my hatred for you two!"
"Too bad, those punishments were banned by the headmaster ages ago," George replied, unfazed. "There's nothing you can do to us, poor Filch!"
"One day, I'll make sure you two pay!" Filch gritted his teeth in frustration, dragging the Weasley twins by the back of their robes towards his office.
With Fred and George in Filch's clutches, Eda watched from her hiding spot behind a statue, alone in the now silent corridor.
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