Chapter 82: Aftermath
Chapter 82: Aftermath
The consequences of the Weasley twins' nocturnal adventure began to surface.
Filch seemed convinced that the students he encountered that fateful night belonged to Gryffindor. Every time a Gryffindor student passed by, he would glare at them, as if trying to pinpoint the culprits who had made a fool of him.
This odd behavior left the Gryffindors perplexed.
Unlike the clueless Filch, Snape had apparently identified the troublemakers from that night.
During Friday's Potions class, Albert could swear he heard Snape mention the words 'night stroll' and 'detention' to the Weasley twins.
It was clear that Snape had concluded that the twins were responsible for giving both him and Filch the slip the other night.
Seizing upon a flimsy excuse, Snape deducted five points from Fred and George and wiped out their potion scores for the day.
There was little the twins could do under the intense scrutiny of 'Snape's Stare'. The treatment for scabies they brewed was riddled with errors, and a single sip would likely poison someone halfway to death.
Before the end of class, in addition to the regular homework, Snape assigned Fred and George an extra report of no less than five inches on the preparation of the scabies treatment potion, citing their abysmal performance.
The students in the classroom shot sympathetic glances at the Weasley twins, knowing full well that their potion-making skills weren't the only ones lacking.
"How did Snape find out?" George wondered aloud, certain that Snape had identified them as the nocturnal wanderers in the castle the other night.
It seemed that without concrete evidence or having caught them red-handed, Snape had resorted to this deliberate method of vexing the Weasley brothers for their night strolls.
"Maybe he can read minds," Albert blurted out. "There must be magic that can see through people's thoughts, and Snape might very well be adept at it. Don't you think he can somehow tell when someone's lying?"
Albert was, of course, aware of how Snape saw through their thoughts, but he wouldn't divulge that to Fred and George; otherwise, he'd never be able to explain it to them.
"Is that really possible?" Lee Jordan voiced his skepticism.
"I don't know, but I think it's likely!" Albert cautioned. "Be extra careful these days. I've heard Filch has been patrolling the castle every night, eager to catch students out after hours and hang them from the ceiling to dry like kippers.
"You're the kipper," Fred retorted with a roll of his eyes, nonetheless heeding Albert's well-meaning advice. Night strolls were off the table for now—it would be sheer folly to court disaster, especially when it came to directly provoking Filch.
However, the twins were confident that Filch wouldn't be able to push them into a corner like he did the last time they ventured out.
"By the way, when did you two discover this secret passage?" Lee Jordan asked in surprise as he followed the Weasley twins through the passage.
"We found it that night, of course," Fred replied, crediting their discovery to their previous night stroll.
Albert, naturally, knew the reason behind this but chose to remain silent, quietly memorizing the location of the passage.
On their way back to the common room, Fred suddenly remembered something. With a serious expression, he turned to Albert and said, "Let us borrow that essay you wrote on the scabies treatment potion."
"I recall Snape giving you an E (Exceeds Expectations) for it," Lee Jordan piped up, remembering how Snape had taken away the scabies treatment potion essay just before class started and returned it with only an 'E' grade and no other comments written on the parchment before the end of class.
When Snape gave the essay back to Albert, he also issued a warning, threatening to put him in detention if he dared to attempt it in Potions class.
Naturally, Albert paid no heed to Snape's threat and verbally assured him that he wouldn't do anything.
"I've heard Snape never gives Gryffindors an O (Outstanding) for their homework," Fred commented.
"That's to be expected. Snape is a master at Potions, so the potions we brew must seem terrible to him," Albert said nonchalantly as he handed the parchment to George, adding, "Don't copy it directly, or I'll get into trouble too."
Fred took the parchment from Albert with a grin. "We'll be careful."
"Speaking of grades, what are the different ratings?" Lee Jordan asked abruptly.
"Usually, if your work is of acceptable standard, you'll get an O, E, or A, which stand for Outstanding, Exceeds Expectations, and Acceptable, respectively," Albert explained briefly. "If it's unacceptable, you'll get a P, D, or T..."
"If you get a T for your homework, you might as well prepare to be expelled," Fred interrupted, a mysterious glint in his eyes.
"Why?" Lee Jordan was even more perplexed.
"T stands for Troll," George answered seriously.
"No, it means your brain is as good as a troll's," Fred corrected him. "You know Hogwarts doesn't accept trolls as students."
Albert rolled his eyes. "By the way, remember to include me the next time you go on a night stroll over the weekend."
"You want to go on a night stroll too?" Lee Jordan asked, as if he had just heard something incredible.
"Yes, I plan to take a walk. As you know, the restricted section in the library is off-limits to students," Albert said mysteriously. "If you want to borrow books from there, you'll need to use special means."
"What book do you want to borrow?" Fred asked, curious.
"The Book of Spells by Miranda Goshawk," Albert replied.
"Why do I find this title so familiar?" Fred mumbled.
"You idiot, the book we use for Spell Class is The Standard Book of Spells, Elementary by Miranda Goshawk," Lee Jordan said impatiently.
"Fred really is an idiot," George agreed.
"Then you must be an idiot too, since we're twins," Fred shot back.
"The Standard Book of Spells series that we're using now is actually an abridged version. The complete set has seven books, one for each semester. The original name of this book is The Book of Spells," Albert explained. "The books we're using now have had some spells removed. I once wrote to the owner of Flourish and Blotts, but he told me that this book is no longer available because it stopped being sold decades ago. Only the revised version we're using now is available for purchase."
(End of Chapter)
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