In the hall, the Gryffindor table was already full of people. Eda first filled her seat with a bowl of steamiable soup. After a mouthful of the vegetable soup, Eda's body, which had been a little stiff by the cold wind, finally rexed.

  "How was the training today?" Angelina asked. The weather was very cold today, so she and Alia did not go to watch the training.

  "It's a real pity you two missed out today," Fred said before Eda could speak. If he weren't holding a sausage, his words might have been more ving.

  "We had a friendly match with the official team, a half-court offense and defense game," Gee added, while piling food onto his pte.

  Angelina and Alicia looked regretful. They turo Eda and asked, "Are they telling the truth?"

  "Unfortunately, they are," Eda firmed. "They lost the friendly match. If you had been there, maybe you could have won." Not wanting to rub salt in the wound, Eda set down her food and tried to fort the two. "But don't worry too much. Charlie said there will be more friendly matches iure."

  The two girls brightened a bit at Eda's words, though they still attacked their roast beef with a noticeable iy.

  Charlie had indeed mentioned future matches. The current Gryffindor team wasn't very strong, and Charlie had little hope for the Quidditch Cup this year. He inning his hopes on the geion: Fred, Gee, Angelina, and Alicia were all promising talents worth nurturing.

  After a hearty dihe group returo the bustling on room. Eda, at Fred and Gee's insisten bang work a, decided against ara practice.

  Fred and Gee were battling with their homework as if the workbook had wrohem somehow. Meanwhile, Eda had finished her assigs long ago. pared to her mrueling study routihis homework was a breeze.

  Eda pulled out a book titled *Brewing Ylory* from her bag to read. With Potions css ing up, she wao be well-prepared.

  "What did you do to upset Snape retly?" Gee asked, looking up from his homework. He noticed the Potions book in Eda's hands, prompting his question.

  "I don't know. I haven't argued with him at all tely. Whatever he says, I do. I've been as obedient as be," Eda replied, not looking up as she read about the properties of a potion ingredient.

  "How do you mao be so unlucky?" Fred chimed in. "Out of all the students this year, you're the one Snape picks on. You might as well try your luck with the *Daily Prophet* lottery!"

  Eda was slightly tempted by the idea. Who knows? Maybe she'd get lucky and win a grand prize, fulfilling her dreams of wealth.

  "If only Professonagall could be more like Snape!" Gee sighed.

  In truth, Professonagall was quite protective of her students as well, though she did it more subtly than Snape. Her care was less obvious but just as strong.

  "If she were like Snape, she wouldn't be Magall. That's the differeween a deputy headmistress and a regur head of house," Eda pointed out. "It's something Snape 't pare to."

  "If we could just knock Slytherin off the top spot for the House Cup this year, Snape's face would be priceless!" the twins mused, their expressions filled with longing as if they could already see that glorious day.

  "Go to sleep and dream about it," Eda yawned, waving goodbye to the twins before heading back to her dormitory without looking back.

  Friday afternoons were pure torture for the first-year Gryffindors. The weekend was just around the er, but the prospect brought no joy thanks to the shadow cast by Snape and Potions css.

  Fortunately, Gryffindor had Eda, a "remarkable" tank who reliably dree's ire, allowing the rest of the css to endure only minor disforts.

  Eda bore the brunt of Snape's animosity, shielding her fellow Gryffindors from his venomous tirades. As a result, Potions css for the others was hardly more than a light drizzle of Snape's wrath pared to the storm Eda faced.

  Sihe beginning of November, Snape's harassment of Eda had intensified. He started asking questions beyond the textbook, ofteing challenges far beyond the first-year curriculum.

  If Eda failed to ahese questions, she faced a barrage of Snape's ockery. Any hint of defiance or dissatisfa from her was met with a dedu of points.

  In the dimly lit Potions , the young Gryffindors arrived early. Eda and the twins sat quietly in their usual seats.

  Eda hunched her shoulders, trying to appear as inspicuous as possible. She wao avoid any further poiions, so she decided to y low. She knew she couldn't win against Snape, and there was no shame in that.

  As soon as css began, the door opened and Snape glided from the back of the to the desk at the front. His sallow fad greasy bck hair were as unappealing as ever, and his pierg gaze swept over the students.

  Eda wondered how much shampoo it took for So wash his hair, and how long it stayed . Hiding behind the twins, she felt like a quail trying to avoid his notice.

  Despite the dim lighting atempt to ceal herself, Snape's sharp eyes found her immediately. His gaze settled on Fred and Gee, seemingly seeing right through them to Eda.

  Realizing there was no point in hiding any longer, Eda braced herself for the storm.

  "Miss Twist!" Snape's voice rang out from the front. "If I o brew a Shrinking Solution, what ingredients would I need?"

  He had asked this question in the previous Potions css, and Eda hadn't been able to answer. Determined not to be caught off guard again, she had goo the library afterward to look up the recipe.

  "Chopped daisy roots, skinned shrivelfig, sliced caterpilrs, o spleen, and a dash of leech juice, Professor," Eda recited fidently.

  Although Snape was inwardly pleased with Eda's effort to find the answer after css, he would never show it. He tiard her with the same stern expression, withholding any hint of approval.

  Snape's habit of starting each css by questioning Eda was his way of punishing her for her nighttime wanderings, which had caused him extra work. By giving her additional tasks, he hoped to tire her out and prevent her from sneaking around at night, f him to up after her.

  I on making things difficult for her, Snape wasn't satisfied with just one question. He tinued, "If I wao brew a Beautification Potion, what ingredients would I need?"

  Here it came, as she had expected. The familiar pattern: after revisiting st css's question, he always moved on to something beyond the sylbus.

  "I don't know, Professor," Eda replied calmly, trying to keep aion out of her voice.

  "It seems our know-it-all Miss Twist isn't so omnist after all," Snape sneered. "Perhaps only when you've lost your pretty face will you bother to learn the recipe."

  Eda ched her fists uhe desk, trying to distract herself and not let Snape's wet to her.

  "Given your intellect, which barely rivals that of a troll, I'll simplify things for you," Snape said, preparing to ask one final question before beginning the lesson for the rest of the students. "otions use a jobberknoll feather?"

  "Memory Potions aaserum, Professor," Eda responded meically. She had just read about jobberknoll feathers the day before, so this question was a fortunate ce.

  "Miss Twist, it appears you have finally learned how to engage your brain. You're now smarter than a troll, a truly remarkable achievement," Snape sneered before officially starting the lesson. "Turn your books to page 87. That is today's topic."

  The sound of pages rustling filled the , and Eda, wearing a pained expressio out a sigh of relief. At least today, she hadn't lost any points and could feel she had justified Professonagall's support.

  As the twins flipped through their books, they gave Eda a thumbs-up, indig she had dooday.

  Though Snape's questions were often unreasonable, Eda had learned a lot of extra potion recipes thanks to him. It was a small silver lining in an otherwise frustrating situation.

  Eda wasn't oo take blessings franted, but she truly couldn't hahis particur form of "blessing." If anyone else wa, they were wele to take it off her hands.

  Snape's subtle torment was really hitting Eda's ot, leaving her feeling quite helpless. She wondered when this ordeal would end, hoping Snape might eventually show some merd let her off the hook.

  ________

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