Although the twins had officially turned seventeen today and were adults in the wizarding world, meaning they could drink alcohol and use magic outside school, they still instinctively felt guilty when Madam Rosmerta gave them an inquisitive look while they were ordering drinks at the bar.
It was just like the first time you used your own ID to enter an internet cafe or nightclub.
Fred and George loudly placing their orders and deliberately emphasizing them were both signs of their guilty consciences. The most obvious sign was that they had actually forgotten about Eda, a perfectly living person!
All this time, the three of them had always divided the work clearly. Eda would find a table while the twins went to order. Today, Eda had gone to find a seat as usual, but the twins had forgotten to order one for her!
The twins exchanged a glance and were just about to get up and return to the bar when Eda pressed them back down.
"I'll do it myself," she said.
After saying that, Eda made her way through the crowd to the bar. This time, she did not order hot cocoa or some other beverage. Instead, she ordered one of the Three Broomsticks' specialties, redcurrant rum.
Snape was the one who had told Eda about it. These days, however, the two of them seemed to be gradually drifting apart, and Eda did not have any good solution for it.
Ever since she had gotten drunk with Lola and Vinda had ordered her to abstain from alcohol, Eda had obediently not touched a drop. Even on the day everyone gathered at the Burrow, she had not touched any alcohol.
Eda knew that getting drunk could cause trouble, and she was not particularly fond of drinking in the first place, so giving up alcohol had been easy for her.
Today was simply a special occasion. Eda did not want to brush it off with a cup of Butterbeer or hot cocoa, so she ordered a cup of redcurrant rum.
Redcurrants, a type of berry, contain vitamin C and can be used to treat colds and tonsillar abscesses. They were also said to relieve fatigue and improve eyesight, as well as being beneficial for arthritis and skin conditions.
After returning to the table, the three of them raised their glasses and gently clinked them together.
The toast was more than just a toast. After the pleasant sound of their glasses touching, they were no longer carefree youths. They now had to take responsibility for everything they said and did. They had to be humble, and they had to be ruthless.
The twins recklessly took a large gulp, then immediately put their glasses down and pretended that nothing had happened. Their facial expressions betrayed them, however. The brothers were clearly unaccustomed to the fiery sensation.
Eda slowly took a sip of the rum in her glass. It was sweet and smooth, richly fragrant, with a hint of sweet and sour fruitiness. It truly deserved to be one of the Three Broomsticks' specialties.
After finishing the drink in her glass, Eda left the Three Broomsticks with Fred and George. The twins had only come here to satisfy their craving, not to get drunk.
Ordering a glass of the Firewhisky they had been dreaming about and drinking it was enough. What mattered was that damn sense of ceremony.
Besides, there was still a party that evening to celebrate the brothers' birthday. They could not get completely drunk during the day.
The people who came to celebrate the twins' birthday were the same as before. The cake was still made by Mrs. Weasley, and the other food was still provided by the house-elves, just like on Eda's birthday.
Everyone had a wonderful time, although it would have been even better if Angelina, Alicia, and Katie had not sung "Butterfly" together. The three women had already been completely brainwashed by that maddening melody.
After the twins' birthday, Easter vacation arrived in the blink of an eye. The sixth-year students, who had been free for most of the school year, suddenly became busy. The teachers of every subject suddenly assigned them piles of homework.
As soon as the holiday began, Eda and the twins received Easter eggs sent by Mrs. Weasley.
Eda's Easter egg was as large as a dragon egg, and it was filled with homemade toffee and chocolate. The twins' two eggs combined were only enough to match the size of hers.
April slowly passed during the holiday. There had been no progress at all in the investigation into Barty Crouch Jr. Sirius had sent back no news, nor had he managed to find Barty Crouch.
Even the Daily Prophet had barely mentioned Barty Crouch anymore. Although Percy Weatherby could still receive handwritten instructions from Mr. Crouch, the newspaper editors seemed to have already assumed that Crouch was gravely ill.
Next, all they needed to do was leave a space in the newspaper, ready to publish an obituary for Department Head Crouch at any moment.
The school was still peaceful as ever. Nothing unusual happened, as though the Dark Mark and the fourth champion had merely been April Fools' jokes.
Eda had to admire how patient the other side was. She even suspected that their zodiac sign might be the tortoise. Otherwise, how could they possibly endure for so long?
Fred went even further, joking that "they're competing with us to see who can live longer, trying to outlast us all."
Although it was a joke, Fred's words were not entirely unreasonable. The person who remained standing until the end would be the ultimate winner. At that point, whatever you said would be the truth, because everyone who disagreed with you would already be lying in coffins.
To be honest, Eda was somewhat disdainful of this kind of victory and this kind of winner. What she enjoyed more was the thrill of defeating her enemies, rather than secretly laughing over their graves.
But right now, the other side was behaving like a tortoise, pulling its head, hands, and feet into its sturdy shell, leaving her with no way to strike. Sometimes Eda even wanted to rush into the kitchen and let the drunken Winky experience the power of a thumb clamp.
But Eda knew that she could not act recklessly or alert the enemy at this time. Her impulsiveness would only drive the other side into hiding even deeper. Even if she really proved that Barty Crouch Jr. was still alive, it would not accomplish much. At most, it would let her know who her opponent was.
At this moment, both sides were competing in patience. Whoever lost their nerve first and made a move would be the first to expose a flaw. At that point, the other side could adapt accordingly and better accomplish its own objective.
Before the third task arrived, both Dumbledore and Eda had time to continue this battle of patience with the other side.
After the summer term began, the weather grew hotter day by day. Only the dim underground classroom could offer a trace of coolness, of course, that was before everyone lit their fires and started brewing potions.
Once the advanced Potions students lit their flames and set up their cauldrons, the coolness of the underground classroom disappeared.
If you wanted to feel a refreshing chill again, your only option was to anger Snape. Under his gaze, you would experience what it meant to feel as though you had "fallen into an icy abyss."
During Potions class that day, when Snape walked over to Eda for the third time, he finally stopped.
Snape did not criticize the horribly shaped potion in her cauldron, which was somewhat unusual. Instead, he lowered his voice and said, "A great deal of material has recently gone missing from my private storage room. Do you know what's going on, Miss Twist?"
Private storage room. As the name suggested, it was a storage room that belonged exclusively to Snape. Yet the Potions Master's storage room was practically an "open house," with people dropping by from time to time.
"I don't know. I haven't been to your storage room in a long time," Eda said. Her hands did not stop moving as she casually added the next ingredients to the cauldron.
Under her mysterious technique, the potion in the cauldron became like cement that had not been properly mixed.
Snape looked at the cement in the cauldron and disgustedly covered his nose. He continued, "I know it wasn't you. You only ever take finished products, and you even 'kindly' leave a note."
It was not an extremely provocative note saying something like "Here I come," but Eda did leave a list every time she visited, explaining what she had taken.
Normally, Eda would also conveniently help the Potions Master take inventory, checking what was missing, what needed to be replenished, and what needed to be used up as soon as possible.
But Eda had not visited his private storage room even once this school year, so Snape had been forced to take inventory himself.
Eda finally put down what she was doing and asked, "So what has gone missing from the professor's private storage room this time? If it's gillyweed, I think you know where it went."
"I of course know where the gillyweed went, although he refuses to admit it," Snape said. "Some African tree snake skin is missing from my storage room."
The "he" naturally referred to Harry. After all, Harry had a history with Snape.
Although Harry had indeed used gillyweed during the second task, he himself did not know that the gillyweed had come from Snape's storage room. Dobby had given the gillyweed to Harry, and Harry had not even asked the house-elf where it came from.
Snape continued, "The amount taken each time is very small, not enough to make a full potion."
Taking only a small amount made it harder for Snape to notice, reducing the risk. But taking small amounts meant having to steal repeatedly, which also increased the risk in an invisible way.
This somewhat contradictory method of operation, who could it be? African tree snake skin, was it Polyjuice Potion again?
"And if you don't want to attend class, you don't have to come. No one is forcing you," Snape said.
As he spoke, Snape drew his wand and cleaned Eda's cauldron. He really could not bear to keep looking at the cement inside it.
...
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