Hogwarts Emerald

"A book? Couldn't you two come up with a better excuse?" Eda felt like her intelligence was being insulted.

Although the package in Fred's hand was square-shaped and did resemble a book, Eda was still suspicious. She didn't believe it was something that simple.

"Stop... Eda, stop..." George stepped in front of Fred, signaling him to secure the package quickly.

Fred was starting to regret mentioning a book. Now it only made Eda more suspicious.

"Shh... Don't grab it, I'll tell you, okay?" Fred said, frantically thinking of a solution.

Eda stopped trying to snatch the package and sat back down in the armchair, waiting for the twins to come up with a reasonable explanation.

"It really is a book..." George was also thinking fast, trying to find an appropriate way out of the situation.

Eda pointed at the twins with her finger and said, "I'm asking you to come up with a believable excuse. What's really in there? Why would you two be acting all mysterious over a simple book?"

"It really is a book!" George continued, following the story. "But it's not one you can look at!" He lowered his voice for the last part, making sure only the three of them could hear. The commotion had already drawn the attention of others around them.

"George's right, it's the kind of book... not meant for you to see..." Fred added, backing George up with a similarly hushed tone.

The twins figured that since they had laid things out, Eda would be too embarrassed to try and grab the package from them again.

They felt they had already given up too much to keep her from seeing what was inside.

However, the blush they were expecting didn't appear on Eda's face, though she no longer tried to snatch the package.

Eda said, "Tsk. Since both of you put it that way… I won't ask what's inside anymore…"

"We just can't tell you now, but you'll know in a couple of days," the twins said in unison. Though they hadn't completely fooled her, they had at least achieved their goal.

Eda waved them off, signaling she was heading to bed, and the twins sighed in relief. Just as they were about to head back to their dorm, Eda called out to them, having turned back.

"Wait a minute, you two distracted me so much I almost forgot what I was going to say. The Quidditch tryouts are open for sign-ups, and they officially start next Friday. So don't get into any trouble until then. Save anything else for after."

With that, Eda walked off without glancing at the defeated expressions on the twins' faces. Fred and George looked down at the tightly wrapped "book," shaking their heads and sighing as they trudged back to their dorm, dejected.

The first-year flying lessons were scheduled to begin at the same time as the Quidditch tryouts, and watching the students in the library with books on flying made Eda think back to herself a year ago.

On the second Friday afternoon of the school year, the weather was clear, with a mild breeze and plenty of sunshine—a perfect day for the Quidditch tryouts.

The twins, Angelina, and Alicia were all still calm, as they had confidence in their abilities. But Lee Jordan's nerves were written all over his face; he had been like that since the morning. Eda and the twins had been trying to comfort him, but to no avail.

The group arrived early enough that the twins could take Lee Jordan for a warm-up lap around the pitch to ease his nerves. Katie Bell watched them with envy, eager to get on her broom and fly over the Quidditch field.

On the half of the pitch closer to the castle stood Gryffindor students, while the other half was occupied by Hufflepuffs. Since heavy rain had interrupted Hufflepuff's tryouts earlier in the week, they hadn't finished and had to share the field with Gryffindor for their tryouts today.

A boy was flying on the Hufflepuff side of the pitch, and his impressive flying skills drew gasps from even the Gryffindor students.

Eda squinted for a while before recognizing the boy as Cedric Diggory. Not only was he in the same year as her, but he also lived in St. Catchpole village.

Eda had a good impression of him. Cedric had excellent grades, ranking just below her in the end-of-year exams last term. He had also been the first to help a classmate in last week's Potions lesson.

Cedric was handsome, kind-hearted, and well-liked by many of the girls at school, some of whom were eagerly waiting for him to grow a bit older. But if anyone thought he only had female friends, they'd be mistaken. Cedric was equally popular among the boys at school.

As more people gathered on the pitch, the students trying out for the team arrived as well. Captain Charlie Weasley, along with Oliver Wood, began organizing the tryouts, grouping the applicants for the first round of eliminations.

The initial test was a basic one: flying around the pitch in groups. This helped Charlie quickly weed out the weaker flyers.

After that, Charlie moved on to testing the applicants based on their preferred playing positions, selecting the best of the best.

The Chasers were tested first, and Angelina and Alicia stood out as the top performers. Charlie had already taken an interest in them last year, and during the latter half of the previous school year, he had invited them to practice with the Gryffindor team. However, since they were still too young at the time, they hadn't officially joined the team then.

Charlie whispered to Oliver Wood, who nodded while jotting something down in a notebook.

Angelina and Alicia, having performed excellently, returned to their friends, celebrating with high-fives. Lee Jordan, although not performing as well, didn't seem too disappointed. Instead, he looked relieved, as if a weight had been lifted off his shoulders.

Next came the tryouts for the Keeper position. Oliver Wood excelled, successfully defending his starting spot. Wood was a burly and serious player, always repeating his mantra during practice: "Win or die on the pitch."

This year, Professor McGonagall had promoted Wood to vice-captain, and Charlie was pleased with his successor. If only Wood could be a little less intense, Charlie thought, he'd be perfect.

Fred and George grinned as they left their group of friends, mounting their brooms for the Beater tryouts. Charlie knew his brothers' skills well, so he seemed relaxed. The Beater spots were practically guaranteed for the twins, and the tryout was more of a formality.

Just as the Beater tryouts ended, the Hufflepuff captain approached with Cedric Diggory, exchanging a few words with Charlie. Charlie couldn't help but feel a little jealous of Hufflepuff's captain for having such a talented Seeker. After all, Charlie had known Cedric far longer than the Hufflepuffs.

Standing next to Eda, Fred and George commented, "Charlie really likes that Cedric kid. He's pretty good at Quidditch."

"Smart, with a great personality," Angelina chimed in.

"Kind, always helping others," Alicia added, praising Cedric further. "Now he's great at Quidditch too. What a fantastic guy."

"He's also really handsome!" Katie Bell muttered under her breath. No one expected her to say that. Katie had also participated in the Chaser tryouts earlier, performing quite well. Charlie had even reminded Wood to keep an eye on her in the future.

Fred snapped his fingers in front of the three girls, who were clearly swooning. "Hey! Snap out of it, ladies. He's going to be our opponent soon, so save your fangirling!"

"Cedric's just a pretty boy—looks good, but won't be of any use on the field. We'll crush them when it's game time!" Lee Jordan added, clearly displeased. Angelina's admiring glances at Cedric were starting to make him a bit jealous.

After bragging a bit to Charlie, Hufflepuff's captain led the rest of his team off the pitch. However, Cedric made his way over to Fred, George, and Eda.

"Fred, George!" Cedric greeted the twins warmly. "I heard you guys made the team too. Go easy on us during the match, alright?"

The twins forced a smile, nodding stiffly. To them, Cedric was that ideal kid from other people's families, the kind they didn't want to be friends with.

They exchanged a few pleasantries with Cedric, who kept smiling throughout the conversation, exuding a sunny, approachable vibe.

Ever since losing to Eda in last term's exams, Cedric had wanted to befriend her, but the opportunity never arose. During the chat, Eda hadn't said a word, so Cedric took the initiative to speak to her directly.

Smiling, Cedric asked, "Can I call you Eda, like Fred and George do?"

"Better stick to calling her Esmeralda," George cut in abruptly, feeling an unexpected sense of danger and responding on Eda's behalf.

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