Chapter 40: The Weasley Twins
Chapter 40: The Weasley Twins
Aside from Charms and Transfiguration, the subject that took up most of Wei De's time was Alchemy. While studying alchemy, he was also constantly deepening his understanding of several other courses.
The book lent to him by Professor Mori, 'Learning to Create Magical Artefacts from Scratch', was entirely different from other alchemy books. It hardly contained any dull history or theory, nor did it spend much ink explaining the interrelationships between the four elements. Instead, from the very first line, it delved straight into instructing readers on how to create various magical artifacts.
From common self-inking quills, moving photographs, and flying brooms to Howlers, to rarer possessions like meditation basins, magic mirrors, Invisibility Cloaks, and protective armor, almost every magical item Wei De had seen or heard of could be found within its pages. It even mentioned the Sorting Hat and Time-Turner, although the latter was mostly speculation without specific crafting instructions.
However, reading about these magical items wasn't enough to create them—it was like trying to build a computer without understanding electricity or programming, even with a complete set of manufacturing instructions. The complexity and danger of magical artifacts far exceeded that of computers, and without the necessary foundational knowledge, even the simplest steps would be incomprehensible.
Wei De had been studying with Professor Mori for several weeks, listening to his critiques of the assignments and creations of sixth and seventh-year students, and even assisting the professor in crafting a teaching aid for his class. After this period of training, Professor Mori suggested that Wei De could try creating the simplest of magical items—by combining just a few spells in the right way, one could produce some fascinating effects, as seen in self-inking quills and Howlers.
Several ideas popped into Wei De's mind. For instance, he could make a quill that automatically changed ink color as it wrote or add a distance-measuring function to a pair of glasses, or perhaps create a dancing puppet—and as these thoughts occurred to him, the necessary spells and steps for their creation formed in his mind.
The spells and runes required were all basic ones that he had already fully grasped, and he was confident that with a few practices, he would succeed. But should he really do it?
Wouldn't that make his creation no different from the student work that Professor Mori had called "garbage"? It would still be parroting someone else's ideas and superficially completing an assignment, resulting in a work with little intrinsic value.
This was Wei De's first alchemy creation, and he didn't want it to be so casual or end up in the trash after turning it in.
That night, Wei De's mind was abuzz with ideas, preventing him from falling asleep. In a half-dream state, he suddenly heard rustling sounds.
Wei De sat up in bed, waved his wand, and the oil lamp in the dormitory lit up, emitting a soft orange glow.
It was quiet inside and outside the dormitory. Outside the window, there was a faint noise.
Wei De got out of bed, put on his clothes, and walked to the window, only to discover that it was snowing heavily outside.
Feathery snowflakes fell in abundance, enveloping the entire castle in pure white. The thick snow covered everything chaotic, creating an especially serene and spacious atmosphere.
A sudden flash of inspiration struck Wei De, and he knew exactly what he wanted to do. As this idea emerged, all other conceptions seemed overly flashy and superficial.
In a wonderful mood, he returned to bed and slept soundly until dawn.
...
Wei De had thought that slamming Quirrell to the ground and giving him a bloody face was already outrageous, but he soon realized that this was nothing compared to what the Weasley twins would do—they enchanted several snowballs to chase Quirinus Quirrell around and finally hit him on the back of his head.
Professor McGonagall was furious. She stormed out of the Great Hall and took a total of thirty points from Gryffindor House—her own house!—for the actions of the twins. She also sentenced them to a month of detention—two weeks before the Christmas holidays and another two weeks after they returned.
The Weasley twins put on a show of remorseful apologies, but as soon as they were out of the professor's sight, they became smug and triumphant.
"Why did you target Professor Quirrell?" Wei De asked curiously as he stood in the corridor. For someone who knew the truth, their stunt seemed like pulling teeth from a tiger's mouth.
And while the Weasley brothers enjoyed their pranks, it didn't make sense for them to provoke a professor. After all, Gryffindor students highly valued their House points (as falling behind would result in ridicule from Slytherin), and no one would have faulted Professor Quirrell if he had taken two hundred points from them in one go.
Wei De found it strange that they would act so recklessly.
The Weasley twins stared at him for a moment, their expressions turning thoughtful. "Ah, you're the one from the library—"
"—what's your name again?" the brothers asked in unison.
"Wei De Grey, from Ravenclaw," Wei De replied.
The twins' eyes widened in recognition. They had heard this name countless times from their youngest brother, Ron. After every class they had with Ravenclaw, Ron would talk enviously about a wizard in their year named Wei De, who was highly regarded by the professors and was said to be the next Percy.
However, from what they had seen, Wei De Grey was nothing like their studious older brother Percy. And the fact that he, like them, was an alchemy enthusiast earned him some major bonus points.
The Weasley twins glanced at each other and then leaned in closer. "Aren't you curious?"
"Professor Quirrell always wears that big turban—"
"—no matter how the weather changes, he never takes it off—"
"—we even asked the house-elves in the kitchen, and they said he's never asked them to clean it—"
"—so there must be something hidden under that turban! Something he doesn't want anyone to see!" Fred Weasley stated confidently. "Maybe it's some kind of Dark magic artifact that's messed with his mind."
"Or maybe he's got a hideously scabby head—" George Weasley couldn't help but laugh as he imagined it, "Just thinking about it is hilarious."
"Don't bully Professor Quirrell just because he's easygoing!" Wei De admonished them in a tone that reminded them of Hermione. "Would you dare mess with Professor McGonagall's hair bun?"
"Don't say such scary things," Fred said, immediately putting an arm around Wei De's shoulders in a show of camaraderie. "And I've noticed something strange. Do you know what it is?"
"What?" George asked, playing along.
"I've noticed—" Fred drew out the word, looking at Wei De. "We've been talking about the turban, but you don't seem curious at all!"
Wei De's heart skipped a beat as he realized that beneath their carefree and playful exteriors, the twins had incredibly sharp instincts.
His eyes narrowed slightly, and George immediately picked up on the change.
He raised an eyebrow and asked, "So, you know something?"
Wei De crossed his arms and leaned back against the wall, squinting at the Weasley twins. "So... is this an interrogation?"
George and Fred exchanged a glance and then laughed. "Of course not!"
"You figured out the answer before we did. We lost this round," Fred admitted.
"But as for interrogating you, that's out of the question. We'll find the answer ourselves!" George said with a brilliant smile.
(End of Chapter)
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