Several male students were passionately discussing the didates for the Minister fic, but none of the options seemed to satisfy their picky tastes.

  "What are you guys talking about?" Charlie Weasley walked over and sat dowo the twins.

  "Politics," Fred said. "We're talking about who the lucky Minister might be."

  Charlie Weasley said, "Since when did you start being ied in that? Aren't you pnning to open a joke shop?"

  "It's not that," Eda said, having finished her meal and ready for css. "Their dream is still to open a joke shop. They don't really care who sits in the Minister's chair."

  The twins nodded in agreement. They couldn't care less who the Minister was, as long as it wasn't Arthur Weasley.

  As for Eda's "predi," the twins treated it as a joke. A Weasley being Minister fic seemed less likely than the Dark Lord returning.

  "Charlie, who do you think has the best ce?" Eda asked, curious about his opinion.

  "Who have you mentioned so far?" Charlie asked.

  "elius Fudge," Gee said. "And Bartemius Crouch."

  Charlie thought for a moment and said, "Among the didates, Fudge seems the least experienced, although he's done a good job in the Department of Magical Acts and Catastrophes. He still has a ce."

  A student who had been part of the discussion said, "I heard he's a bit weak? Seems easy to bully."

  "If he bees the Minister, does that mean we'll have a weak Minister?" Fred ughed.

  "The wizarding world has beey calm these past few years. It doesn't matter if the Minister isn't strong, as long as he doesn't mess things up," Charlie's friend Rupert said.

  "As for Barty Crouch, he's uo get the position," Charlie said.

  "Why? He seems much strohan Fudge," asked Eda, who had been quietly following the versation. She had read about Barty Crou the Daily Prophet, and her first impression of him was that he was very strong.

  "It's true, it's unlikely. Many people still remember his past deeds," Rupert agreed with Charlie.

  Charlie Weasley thought for a moment and said, "He used to be the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enfort and was sidered one of the top didates for the Minister of Magic. He was very close to the position."

  "Wait, Charlie, isn't Barty Crouch the Head of the Department of Iional Magical Cooperation?" Eda asked.

  "That's his current position. He used to be in charge of the Department of Magical Law Enfort. He was known for being a hardliner," Charlie expined. "He gained a lot of prestige for openly opposing the Dark Lord."

  "His approval ratings don't seem that good, though. It doesn't look like he was ever that close," someone questioned.

  "Yeah, he was very hopeful at one point, but then some things happened, and his reputation plummeted," Charlie recalled. "Barty Crouch lost people's trust, and that's when he was transferred out of the Department of Magical Law Enfort."

  "It's normal that you don't know about it. At that time, even we were quite young," Rupert added to Charlie's expnation.

  Lee Jordan, with a gleam of curiosity in his eyes, asked, "What happened? It 't be that..."

  "It's not what you're thinking, Lee," Charlie shook his head and de. "Those things are a bit too heavy for you to knht now. When I first heard about it, I felt sad for days."

  Rupert said, "I hadn't started school yet, but when my mom read about it in the Daily Prophet, she was furious. She's a very gentle woman, but she cursed old Barty Crouch for days."

  "Alright, the position of Minister of Magic is far away from us. Let's not think about these things anymore," Charlie said. "If you don't hurry up and finish eating, you'll be te for your m csses." With that, Charlie and his friend Rupert left.

  "What about Dumbledore?" someone suggested a new didate.

  Hearing Dumbledore's name, Angelina and Alicia, who had shown no i before, also joihe versation.

  "He beinister any time..." Fred looked at the person with an expression as if they were an idiot.

  Gee had the same expression and added, "...if he wao."

  The children from wizarding families all agreed with the twins' opinion.

  "Wouldn't he have to stop being the headmaster if he became the Minister?" the person tio ask.

  Eda also wasn't sure if the Minister fic could also be the headmaster of Hogwarts. If he could, that would be a bit terrifying, though quite...

  "He probably doesn't want to be the Minister," Eda thought for a moment and said. "With his reputation, if he really wao be the Minister, he probably would have been one already."

  The discussion tinued, now fog on Dumbledore. Eda didn't want to participate or tinue listening.

  Seeing that the twins had also put down their food, Eda said, "Alright, it's time to go, gentlemen. I don't want to have to run to css right after breakfast."

  Due to the heated breakfast discussion, Eda barely sat down in the Charms when the bell rang. If they had talked for a few more minutes, Gryffindor would have had a collective tardiness i, and Professonagall's expression would have been quite something.

  This Charms css was the first lesson after the holiday, and the students, not yet adjusted, performed poorly. As Professor Flitwick lectured on theory, many students' heads were nodding off, as if they could fall asleep at any moment.

  Because everyone was too sleepy to listen properly, their performance during the practical charms practice was even worse. Professor Flitwick had to rush around the , "putting out fires." It was hard work for the diminutive professor.

  However, Eda's performance was as sistent as ever, much to Professor Flitwick's relief. He generously awarded Gryffindor five points.

  The more Professor Flitwioticed Eda's excellehe more he envied Professonagall. But he only saw Magall's happiness, not the times when she was so frustrated she groueeth. It was a cssic case of seeing only the good side of things.

  Actually, it wasn't just Gryffindor students who were out of sorts; students from other houses were the same. The entire m at Hogwarts ent in a foggy haze.

  Fortunately, Gryffindor had a reprieve iernoon. Professor Binns' History of Magic css allowed everyoo catch up on sleep, giving the students a ce to replenish their energy.

  Professor Binns, who never looked at his lesson pns, droned on at the podium while students, who never opeheir textbooks, slept soundly below. Both sides were undisturbed and coexisted harmoniously.

  However, there was a dowo this arra. Sleeping too mu the afternoon could lead to insomnia at night, and a bad night's sleep could affect the following day's csses, creating a vicious cycle.

  Two weeks into the term, all four houses had lost a signifit number of points, causing headaches for the heads of houses. Even Madam Pomfrey, known for her miraculous healing, had no cure for this particur headache.

  As the csses progressed, the students adjusted during the sed week. Hogwarts returo its regur rhythm, and the heads of houses' headaches disappeared without the need for potions.

  Eda and the twins also took some time to check out the remaini passages. The Marauder's Map's records were pletely accurate, and the three of them mao avoid dete. Roaming around Hogwarts at night without w about being caught made this the most rexing night excursion they had ever had.

  Besides scouting the passages, Eda had been using the Marauder's Map to monitor Fawley and Shis not only satisfied her curiosity but also ensured her safety.

  Snape's behavior was quite normal; he frequently visited the headmaster's offid would engage in long versations with Dumbledore, who liked to pa his office.

  Initially, Eda didn't notiything unusual about Be Fawley. This professor was exceedingly well-behaved, always either in his office or his quarters, until an ued situation revealed Fawley's abnormal behavior to her.

  That day, Eda drank a lot of water, causio sleep restlessly a up once during the night. After addressing her personal needs, she returo bed and absentmindedly opehe Marauder's Map. This uional a allowed her to see Professor Fawley wandering the castle in the middle of the night.

  Over the few days, Eda discovered that the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor was unusually active te at night. He always chose to move around when it was quiet, making it difficult to be detected. If it weren't for the real-time monit capability of the Marauder's Map, Eda wouldn't have noticed this behavior.

  On the weekend, the weather was exceptionally cold and damp, so much so that evewins were relut to leave the castle. pared to her "hometown," Hogwarts' weather was retively mild, but Eda still preferred to cozy up by the fire in an armchair, unwilling to leave the firepce.

  Eda was absentmindedly reading a book, not even notig the twins waving their hands in front of her face.

  "Hey! Hey!" Fred snapped his fingers near Eda's ear.

  "My homework is in my bag; get it yourself," Eda said, snapping back to reality. "Don't disturb my wandering thoughts."

  Gee ughed and asked, "Where have your thoughts wandered off to?"

  "To Tahiti, where it's always warm and spring-like."

  "Where is that?"

  "Tahiti is the rgest isnd in French Polynesia," Eda said with a smile.

  "Have you been there?"

  Fred and Gee asked simultaneously.

  "Muggles say it's the closest pce to heaven, and the people who live there call themselves 'God's children.' I've always wao see it for myself, to know if it's as good as they say."

  "They probably wouldn't wele you..."

  "...yeah you're Merlin's child, after all."

  After giving the twins a fierce gre, Eda said, "For the week, don't even think about borrowing anything with words from me."

  Eda refocused her attention on her book. Now, every time she thought of Tahiti, she couldn't help but associate it with the witch hunts of the Middle Ages. The pleasant mood was pletely ruined.

  _______

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