Wihe house-elf kept urgio calm down, hoping she wouldn't act impulsively.

  But to Toller, this wasn't helping him—it felt like pity from a lowly house-elf. How had he fallen so low as to be pitied by such a creature?

  Eda's wand was still pressed against Toller's face, and she wore a smile as she spoke. To Toller, that smile was nothing but mockery—mockery of his weakness, his helplessness.

  Toller sidered drawing his wand to fight back, but could his trembling hands even hold it properly?

  Could he really stand a ce against this "Mudblood"?

  Eda was insane; she could hex him at any moment!

  With the ressed firmly against his fad fear swallowing him, Toller realized he couldn't hold out any lohe pressure of the wand increased, and he sensed Eda's patience wearing thin.

  In the end, Toller chose to abandon his pride.

  He lowered his head, no longer daring to look at the "demon" standing before him, his eyes dull and fixed on the floor. Even the sound of his owhing grated on him.

  Eda lowered her wand and stepped back a few paces. Sioller had surrehere was o push him further. "Get lost," she said.

  Toller hurriedly fled the spot, terrified that even a slight dey might result in a curse flying at him.

  His voice trembling, he muttered the password to the Fat Lady. The portrait swung open, but it felt painfully slow to Toller, who had never realized how sluggish its movement could be.

  The moment the gap in the wall appeared, Toller scrambled inside. Ihe on room, students were pying, chasing each other, or huddled in groups doing homework or chatting.

  As Toller stumbled in, he actally collided with audent.

  The sound of the student falling drew the attention of most of the room, and everyoiced the disheveled and paoller.

  Toller felt even more humiliated by everything around him. He ighe student he had knocked over and hurried back to his dormitory, ing himself tightly in his bs.

  Outside the on room, Wihe house-elf finally let go of Eda's robe aly patted her chest with her small hands, trying to calm down.

  She had been terrified just moments ago. Winnie adored Miss Twist and didn't want anything bad to happen to her, but she hadn't known how to stop the situation from esg.

  Winnie was certain that if Toller had refused to lower his head, Miss Twist would have cast a spell. She could feel it.

  "Miss shouldn't do such things," Winnie whispered timidly, "You hurt audent. The professors will punish you…"

  "Don't worry, Winnie. I was only sg him," Eda crouched down so she was eye level with the elf. "He was bound to back down."

  "Why are you so sure, Miss? Why did you think he would back down?" Winnie asked, puzzled.

  "Because he doesn't have the guts!" Eda replied.

  "Iions , I purposely bumped into him, and he didn't dare do anything except badmouth me behind my back, spreading rumors. Just now, when I threatened him with my wand, he didn't even have the ce to resist," Eda expined. "I kind of wish he had drawn his wand—at least I'd respect him a little more. I holy don't know how he got into Gryffindor."

  "It was still too dangerous, Miss. You shouldn't choose such methods. You could've gotten hurt! The professors won't be happy when they find out," Winnie said with genuine .

  "Alright, Winnie, I should head back. See you ime." Eda waved to Winnie before turning to ehe on room. The house-elf bowed deeply and only rose after the Fat Lady had hidderance more.

  Upoering the on room, Eda greeted a few familiar Gryffindor students. However, she couldn't shake the feeling that everyone was givirange looks.

  Fred and Gee were lounging in armchairs, fiddling with some magical gadgets that looked like prank items they had likely purchased. As soon as Eda sat dowo them, the twins quickly stashed their toys into their bags.

  "Why are they all looking at me like that?" Eda asked quietly, instinctively toug the tip of her nose. "Is my ill noticeably red?"

  "What are you talking about? Your nose looks just fine," Fred replied.

  "Did Sransfigure you a red nose or something?" Gee teased.

  Though they were joking, the twi on to expiuation.

  When Toller had ehe on room earlier, looking frightened and shaken, everyone assumed he'd had a scare.

  But when Eda followed in right after him, it became clear to them where that fright had e from.

  Naturally, the students filled in the gaps themselves, assuming that Toller had been frightened by Eda.

  The Gryffindors had been gossiping about the i ever since. With nothing much happeni so early in the school year, they were eager for any drama.

  Eda's frontation with Toller had bee the talk of the on room, and the students were excitedly speg about what exactly she had doo scare him so badly.

  "What did you do to Toller? You didn't nd a solid pun him, did you?" Fred asked, making a mock pung motion for emphasis.

  "Or maybe you hit him with the Bat-Bogey Hex? You were talking to Ginny about it over the holidays," Gee suggested. He had been eager to see that spell in a. If it could summon Snape Bogey instead of a regur bat bogey, it would be unstoppable.

  Eda shook her head and said, "I just scared him a little. Didn't hit him or curse him."

  "Just scared him? You don't look that frightening. He looked like he was being chased by a troll!" Fred and Gee said in unison.

  Ign their parison of her to a troll, Eda said, "Let's drop it. Don't bother Toller anymore for now. And you two—no messing with him behind my back. I'm sure Charlie wouldn't be too happy if his Beaters missed a match because of detentiht?"

  "Alright, o make him suffer a little," Fred said, gng in the dire of the boys' dormitory.

  "But since you've said so, we'll cel the pn," Gee added nontly. "Besides, we've got plenty to keep us busy, right Fred?"

  "You two have been ag all secretive tely. What kind of scheme are you up to now?" Eda asked, curious. The twins had been behaving oddly, and they hadn't been sneaking around the castle as much as usual.

  Fred waved her over, and as Eda leaned in, the twins whispered in her ears, one on each side, "Secret~~"

  The saying, "What goes around es around," seemed to apply perfectly to Eda. Last year, she had hidden the bes of her discoveries from the twins for months. Now, it was their turn to keep secrets from her.

  Karma.

  The twins' faces were filled with smiles of success, which made Eda angry and amused.

  Everyone has secrets, things that ot be told to others, things that one does not want to tell others are all secrets. Eda also has secrets, and she has hidden more secrets thawins.

  So if we round it up, we are even.

  ______

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