The Hogwarts Emerald

Chapter 35 Twins' Sage Time

1989 passed by, and Ada welcomed 1990 in the midst of snow and wind.

This winter, Ada no longer has to go out to work in the wind and snow. Instead, she can do what she loves in a warm room and enjoy the delicious food provided by the house-elves, just like a wealthy landlord.

Ada hasn't had such a comfortable life for a long time, reading and studying when busy, and chatting and playing cards when free.

As the school opening date approaches, students begin to return to school one after another. They share the fun things that happened during the holidays with people around them. Couples who have not seen each other for a whole holiday talk to each other in a heart-to-heart talk as if no one is around. The whole Hogwarts is filled with a joyful atmosphere.

The four Weasley brothers came back together, with Charlie walking in front, followed by Percy and the twins. The short walk from the lounge entrance to the armchairs made the Weasley brothers look like big bosses.

Looking at the four brothers walking with the wind, Ada wondered whether she should give each of the Weasley brothers a newsboy cap next Christmas.

But they agreed in advance that if they got beaten, it would have nothing to do with her.

Charlie and Percy greeted Ada and left. The twin brothers sat directly opposite her and looked at Ada with a smile.

"It's a shame you couldn't come back with us," said Fred.

"Mom made a lot of delicious food, and Percy got fat," said George, raising his hands in an exaggerated gesture.

"Mom was very happy when she received your thank-you letter and told us to take you back with us next Christmas."

During the holidays, the twins told Mrs. Weasley about Ada's situation. They hoped that Mrs. Weasley could send Ada a Christmas present. The more gifts the better, so that Ada's Christmas would not be so miserable.

The kind-hearted Mrs. Weasley also agreed to their request. She was also very fond of the girl she met at the station. This was Ada's own talent. She always made a good first impression on people.

But Ada doesn't like socializing, so these good impressions are always wasted by her. It has to be said that this is a pity.

"That candy is the best gift I have ever received." Ada said. In fact, she liked all the gifts she received, especially Mrs. Weasley's candy and Professor McGonagall's notes.

"By the way, I found the secret passage behind the mirror." Ada lowered her voice and reported her holiday achievements to the twins, looking forward to seeing the twins' excitement.

"Well, that's well done," said Fred.

His reaction was very indifferent, which was completely different from what Ada expected, which made Ada feel that her joy was for nothing.

So, "love" will disappear, right?
George tried to comfort Ada's wounded heart with a flattering remark, saying: "You really are the smartest witch!"

"Why don't you look excited at all?" The twins' reaction was beyond Ada's expectations. "Haven't you always been thinking about this tunnel?"

"In the evening, let's go and take a look together in the evening." Fred said perfunctorily.

"You don't have to worry about being discovered this time. It's absolutely safe." George looked a little mysterious as he spoke.

"You said almost the same thing last time. What happened next?" Ada felt that her fragile little heart was hurt, so she also wanted to hit George's inexplicable self-confidence.

"We've been caught by dear Filch," the twins said together, "but we won't be caught this time, because we have this."

George pulled out an old parchment from his arms. Yes, it was the big treasure that he had stolen from Filch's office.

Ada glanced at the parchment in confusion, wondering what George had done with it, but she soon figured it out. She asked, "So, have you two found a use for this 'big treasure'?"

"That's right."

"correct answer."

But the twins did not show its magic in the common room. They took Ada out of the common room and came to an empty corner.

The three of them stood in the corner, their eyes fixed on the corridor, trying to prevent anyone from coming and peeking at their "secret".

"I hope it lives up to your mysterious look just now." Ada said, leaning against the wall.

She suffered so much for that broken mirror. If the twins don't give her an explanation today, they will never be able to copy her homework again!
"Please open your eyes, Miss Trist, look carefully and don't blink. This will be the secret to our success." Fred put the parchment in Ada's hand while speaking to her.

"Are you ready? Now it's time to witness a miracle."

Ada held the parchment and raised her eyebrows at the two brothers, her meaning was very clear: Come on, show it. "Let's start, George."

George drew his wand, tapped the parchment, and said in all seriousness, "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."

In an instant, thin lines of ink spread like a spider web from where the tip of George's wand touched, connecting, criss-crossing, and extending to every corner of the parchment; then words appeared on the top, green. Large floral letters:

Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs

Gentlemen who are here to help magical mischief makers.
Introducing
Marauder's Map
Ada looked at the parchment in her hand in amazement. This piece of junk that looked like garbage was actually so magical. All the details of the Hogwarts castle and grounds were drawn on the paper.

If that were all, it wouldn't be considered a treasure, but there were still many small black dots moving on the map, each with a name marked in very small font. Ada also found the names of the three of them on it, but the three names were crowded together and difficult to distinguish.

It seems that this Marauder's Map has marked everyone in the school. With this thing, there is really no need to worry about Filch. Ada found Foley's name on the map. At this moment, he was in his office with Snape, and I don't know what they were discussing.

"There are many secret passages here, most of which lead to Hogsmeade," George continued.

"There are seven in total. We can go and see them one by one in the coming days." Fred also pointed out the seven routes with his fingers.

No wonder the twins were not interested in their discovery. They had known it for a long time. Now it was just their sage time. Ada looked at the map and asked, "When did you figure out this map?"

"Of course, during these days at home," Fred continued, "we had a little accident..."

"Mom found out and gave us a lecture. She said we always do bad things." George rubbed his butt as he finished speaking.

"This gave us a lot of inspiration. After several attempts, it became what you see." The twins turned on the double surround mode again.

Fred pointed to the location of the library and dormitory and said to Ada: "From the map, we found that during the holidays you were either in the dormitory or in the library..."

George followed up, "Or the auditorium. You need to go out more often. Sunlight and fresh air are also important."

"You two are really free at home. You even have time to figure out where I have been." Ada said. In fact, she was not dissatisfied with the twins' behavior. This also showed that the two brothers cared about her.

Anyway, all you can see on the map is a small black dot and a name, and it doesn’t involve anything too private.

If Ada and the twins switched roles, she would probably do the same. This live map is equivalent to a real-time GPS positioning.

"At first we thought the map hadn't been used for a long time and was a little out of order, because you always ended up in the same few places."

"Later we realized that the problem wasn't with the map, but with you," George said. "Without us, you would only appear in these few places."

Ada didn't leave the castle much during this holiday, not because she really wanted to be a homebody, but because it was too cold outside. When spring comes, Ada wants to go to the big tree by the lake and take a nap there, which should be very comfortable.

"It's amazing!" Ada did not have the ability to create such a map, so she admired the four predecessors who made the map.

"Moonie, Wormtail, Padfoot, Prongs." George patted the title of the map and exclaimed, "What amazing predecessors."

"George, we also want to become such noble people. They are our goals!" Fred said solemnly.

“When we tried the secret commands wrong, they would share some prank ideas with us!” George said with nostalgia.

Fred had a holy expression on his face. He said, "I really want to meet them. They are really good teachers and helpful friends in life!"

The three people, each with their own preferences, were amazed at completely different things. Ada was amazed at the four's magical attainments, while the twins were amazed at their ability to play pranks.

Seeing that Ada had almost finished reading, George tapped on the Marauder's Map again and said, "The prank is over!" The map that was full of lines just now turned into a blank piece of paper again.

"This way we won't be discovered. No one will be interested in an old parchment." George said with a wink.

"Yes, it's you! Didn't you steal it?" The argumentative athlete Ada is entering the venue.

"We just had a common understanding with those four seniors and discovered the uniqueness of the parchment."

(End of this chapter)