"Who sent you that letter?" Cedric asked, frowning as he looked up at the Great Hall's enchanted ceiling. The owl had already disappeared into the massive flock of post owls, making it impossible to identify. "Maybe it was delivered to the wrong person? We still have some time before class. I can go with you to the Owlery to check later if you want."
Adam calmly put away the short note, pushed a plate of Yorkshire pudding towards Cedric, and said with an easy smile, "It wasn't a mistake. It was for me."
Cedric eyed Adam suspiciously but ultimately decided to focus on the pudding. He'd been craving it for ages, but it was rarely easy to snag a plate. After all, this was the Hufflepuff table, and even the Head Boy had to join the fair scramble. Adam, since getting over his initial confusion at the start of term, had become a formidable hunter at the table. Many older students considered him a worthy rival because he was so quick and could always predict when food was about to appear, swiping most of the fried chicken legs before anyone else could react.
"Alright..." Cedric happily paired the roasted beef with the Yorkshire pudding and started eating. He then looked at the ten or so plates stacked neatly beside Adam's empty spot and asked in surprise, "Why are you eating so little today? Don't you have an appetite?"
Adam finished the last bite of his veal steak. "Today's our flying lesson with Madam Hooch," he explained with a sigh. "I only ate until I was five-quarters full." He added, "By the way, do you know how to order from Honeydukes? It seems like everyone else just sends their owls to buy candy."
Cedric thought for a moment, fork in hand. "I have a flyer from them in my dorm. I'll help you look for it later. You just write down the candies you want on a piece of parchment and include some Galleons with the letter. The staff will have an owl deliver it for you. If it's not a huge order, you might even get it before your next class."
Adam nodded, pulling a rough-looking pouch from his small coin purse and stuffing it full of Galleons. He then held up a few pieces of Murtlap jerky, which instantly attracted a flock of owls, their eyes gleaming with desire.
Cedric's eye twitched, especially when he saw the bag of Galleons. He asked in disbelief, "You... you're not going to spend all that on candy, are you?"
Adam, who had just chosen the strongest-looking owl and negotiated a price of three pieces of jerky and a bottle of owl tonic, turned and nodded.
"But Halloween is over now. Are you going to eat all of that by yourself...?" Cedric glanced at the stack of plates and stopped himself. He realized that, yes, this kid probably could eat it all.
"It's not for me to eat," Adam said, shaking his head.
"Then is it for Shirley? But she doesn't seem to have much of a sweet tooth." Cedric looked even more confused.
As the owl flapped away with the heavy pouch, Adam threw down a Chocolate Frog Card he had been holding. A grin spread across his face as he told Cedric, "It's for snitching!"
"...Who got you this time?"
Cedric looked at the card. The picture of Dumbledore on it was yawning, but the name at the bottom of the card had been altered by Adam. The name "Grindelwald" stood out starkly.
"Grindelwald!?"
Cedric's shout was loud enough to make several people turn and look at them, including some of the professors at the staff table. The next time Professor Hogg looked up, his eyes met Adam's. The two exchanged a polite smile and raised their cups in a silent toast.
Cedric, who had the best view, noticed that Adam's smile looked a bit forced, and his right hand remained hidden at his side.
The Forbidden Forest, shrouded in darkness, was especially eerie. A few small figures crept nervously behind Adam, constantly glancing around. A sudden rustle in a nearby bush made them jump, their hair standing on end as they raised their wands in fright. But the bush quickly fell silent. The only sounds were the quiet breathing of their friends and the distant call of a bird.
Cedric and Cho exchanged a glance, swallowed hard, and carefully backed away from the area. Just as they were about to lean against a tree, something touched both of their shoulders. Their faces went white, their breathing stopped, and they slowly turned around to face a pale, terrifying, nose-less face.
Cho's voice trembled as she tried to scream, but the momentary lack of air caused the muscles in her throat to seize up. Her scream came out as a pathetic "squawk."
"Hahaha..." George, who was wearing the mask, was laughing so hard that tears were streaming down his face. Fred, who had been hiding in the bushes, was cackling with laughter, slapping the ground with his hands and knocking the grassy wreath he wore off his head.
"That's not funny at all!" Cedric fumed, his face beet red, ready to punch them. But when he felt a trembling Cho tightly gripping his sleeve, he lowered his fist and began to comfort her.
Adam turned to look at Shirley, and the young witch turned her head as well.
"Why don't you get closer?" they both said at the same time.
They stared at each other, wide-eyed, until Shirley finally looked away, her ears a faint pink.
Fred and George looked at each other, then said sourly, "I suddenly wish we were back in the castle. Even teasing Peeves with Filch is more fun than being here."
"Yeah, George," Fred agreed. "It seems like we're not needed here."
Adam turned to them, looking exasperated. "I don't remember inviting you tonight, did I?" he said. "Maybe I should mention to Professor McGonagall that you two are still..."
"Don't!" George interrupted, looking crestfallen. "Whatever you do, don't tell Professor McGonagall! Tell Professor Dumbledore, but not her. Because she'll definitely write a letter home to our mum."
Fred shuddered at the thought. He remembered when they came home after the last school year, excited to get back to the Burrow. The moment they opened the door, they were met with Mrs. Weasley's furious face. She slammed a letter from McGonagall, along with their report cards, onto the table. Ginny and Ron sat in their chairs, happily eating apple pie and watching their brothers get a good thrashing. Just as they thought Mrs. Weasley's anger had subsided, Ron rummaged through their luggage, found a few pieces of paper, and gleefully handed them to her. Seeing their forged report cards, Mrs. Weasley's anger turned into a terrifying laugh, and she quietly fetched her rolling pin from the kitchen.
As Cedric later described it, the whole village of Ottery St. Catchpole could hear the wails coming from the Burrow that night. All they had done was send seven boxes of Filibuster's Fireworks into the Slytherin common room, helping the little snakes fulfill their wish of seeing fireworks even underground. What was so wrong with being helpful?
As they were talking, another rustle came from the bushes not far away.
"Fred, did you put something else in there?" George asked, turning to his twin. Fred, equally confused, stared at the bushes.
"What? You didn't?"
The bushes continued to shake, accompanied by the snapping of dry twigs, as if some unknown creature was getting closer.
Cedric gave them both a look of disdain. "Knock it off," he said loudly. "If you keep this up, I'm going to get really angry."
"But we only had the one prank planned," George said, his voice dry as he swallowed.
Cedric frowned. "You guys still sound like you're playing a joke."
"No, really!" Fred suddenly pointed behind Cedric, his voice trembling. "Don't turn around..."
Cedric was about to turn around when Cho grabbed his sleeve, shaking her head at him in terror.
Two ghostly blue eyes, like two will-o'-the-wisps flickering in the dark, were watching them from the shadows.
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