https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-21-Is-the-Sorting-Hat-that-Brave-/12538113/
Chapter 20: A Prank Gone Wrong
Chapter 20: A Prank Gone Wrong
After sitting down at the Hufflepuff table, Kyle felt a sense of relief wash over him. The uncertainty before the Sorting had been weighing on his mind, but now that it was settled, he truly felt like a part of Hogwarts.
It was an amazing feeling.
Leaning on the table and propping his chin up with his left hand, Kyle casually observed the remaining Sorting while awaiting the start of the feast.
Due to the lengthy Sorting ceremony, many people in the Great Hall were now curiously eyeing Kyle, the latest addition to Hufflepuff.
Among them were several witches who glanced enviously at Kyle and Cedric chatting amicably, before turning back to their own tablemates, gritting their teeth in frustration.
Damn it, why are all the handsome ones in Hufflepuff? It's so unfair!
...
Over at the Gryffindor table, Fred and George were also gritting their teeth in dismay.
"Why did Kyle go to Hufflepuff!" Fred lamented, thumping his thigh in annoyance. "Now our carefully prepared welcome ceremony is useless!"
"Don't remind me, Fred," George said, rubbing his temples. "I mean, I could've handled Kyle going to Slytherin, but Hufflepuff... how is that even possible?"
"Yeah!" Fred nodded. "Is Kyle even loyal or particularly kind? Has the Sorting Hat gone senile?"
Just as Fred and George fell silent, a new Gryffindor student happened to sit down in the empty seat next to them.
And the next second...
"Argh!"
A scream echoed through the Great Hall, immediately capturing everyone's attention.
The Gryffindor student jumped three feet into the air as if he had seen a Boggart, and then started running around with his hands covering his backside.
All the while, he continued to wail in distress.
It was then that everyone noticed the round object dangling from his backside—a ball similar in size to a Quaffle, with a mouth full of sharp teeth, firmly attached to his posterior.
"Wait a minute, that ball looks familiar," Fred said, as if suddenly remembering something. He turned to George. "Didn't you put away the Biting Ball?"
George paused, "No, I thought you had it."
The two exchanged a glance, and then simultaneously looked towards the left, at the spot where the new student had just been sitting.
Undoubtedly, it was now empty.
"Oh, damn it," Fred said, his hand running through his hair in frustration. "That was all our savings."
The Biting Ball was a new gadget Fred and George had purchased from Zonko's Joke Shop at a high price. It could disguise itself as an ordinary cushion and be placed anywhere.
It was a bit expensive, costing three Galleons, no small sum for Fred and George.
But with the anticipation of Kyle's Sorting today, they had grit their teeth and spent all their savings to give their new schoolmate an unforgettable surprise.
To ensure their prank remained undetected, they had set everything up before Kyle even put on the Sorting Hat, placing the cushion on an empty seat next to them.
This way, if Kyle was sorted into Gryffindor, they could smoothly lead him to the trap.
Even if he was sorted into another house, it would be easy to retrieve the cushion later.
Everything had been planned to perfection.
Unfortunately, fate had other plans, and Kyle's sorting into Hufflepuff—the last house they expected—had left them too shocked to retrieve the "cushion" in time.
That thing cost three Galleons! They could have bought a whole box of Dungbombs for that price! It was only natural to feel distressed.
Fred, seeing Professor McGonagall approaching the new student, said helplessly, "I think it's gone for good."
Afterwards, the two of them sighed in unison.
On the other side, Professor McGonagall had also reached the new student. She first removed the Biting Ball and then inspected the young wizard.
He was unharmed, and there were no signs of damage to his robes—a standard magical prank.
Recognizing the familiar technique and the culprit's tool of choice, Professor McGonagall immediately identified the perpetrators without a doubt. She turned and glared at the twins.
However, as the Sorting was not yet over, she couldn't say much at the moment. Leaving the words "Gryffindor will lose twenty points" hanging in the air, she turned and returned to the staff table.
The new student, startled by the whole ordeal, was led back by Percy and then carefully inspected himself three times over to ensure he was alright before returning to his seat at the table.
Not far away, Kyle, seeing the glum faces of Fred and George, did not hide his schadenfreude, slowly raising his middle finger at them.
Kyle would bet Ron's integrity that the biting ball was 100% prepared by those two for him.
Now that it had been discovered by Professor McGonagall, it served them right.
"No, George, Kyle is too arrogant," Fred fumed, his face reddening with anger.
Others may not understand the gesture, but he certainly did.
For the past eleven years, every time Kyle mocked them, he would flip them the bird, so Fred knew exactly what Kyle meant.
"Don't worry, Fred," George said. "As long as Kyle is still at Hogwarts, we'll have our chances."
Like Fred, George was also seething, his ears turning red.
However, they truly had no recourse against Kyle at the moment, and they dared not cause trouble under Professor McGonagall's deadly glare, so they retaliated with a middle finger of their own.
Out of sight, out of mind.
The two temporarily suppressed their desire for revenge, turning their heads away to avoid looking at Kyle's infuriating face.
Kyle, for his part, didn't mind their reaction.
It was merely the last stand of two red-haired losers, and he wasn't going to take it to heart.
Moreover, Kyle knew that Fred and George wouldn't let this go. They were probably already plotting their next move.
But so what?
Over the past eleven years, he had rarely lost in their ongoing war with the Weasley twins.
The few times they had gained the upper hand were when he was much younger, and Charlie, that shameless bully, had ganged up on him due to his older age.
Now, Charlie was busy with his graduation exams and Quidditch, so he didn't have time to meddle in their affairs.
Without Charlie, who else could the twins turn to for support?
Ron? If that was the case, dealing with them would be even easier.
So, with a track record of victories, Kyle feared nothing.
...
(End of Chapter)
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