Chapter 35
Chapter 35
Late that night, the little Hufflepuffs climbed into bed early. On a cold winter evening, nothing was more comfortable than a thick feather duvet.
One young wizard, however, had no choice but to crawl out.
Yes. Our protagonist.
“What kind of madness possessed me to arrange a meeting in the kitchens when it’s below freezing?”
Suer shuddered violently as he slipped out of the dormitory.
The fire in the Hufflepuff common room had long since died.
Whoosh.
Blue light appeared, illuminating one corner of the room. Feeling the warmth through the glass bottle, Suer gritted his teeth and crawled out through the barrels.
Tap… heh, heh… tap… heh, heh…
Footsteps.
Someone was outside.
George and Fred? No, their voices were not so old.
Curiosity made Suer lift the lid of the barrel by the tiniest fraction and peer through the gap.
Professor Kettleburn passed the barrels with a satisfied smile and staggered toward the basement stairs. His prosthetic hook supported a metal bucket. Judging by the tilt of his body, it was not light.
Why did he not use the Levitation Charm?
The question rose in Suer’s mind.
He had asked older Hufflepuffs who studied Care of Magical Creatures about Professor Kettleburn. They described a kindly, learned old man. His teaching methods might be old-fashioned, but he always found a fresh angle that broadened his students’ understanding. He was a respected professor at Hogwarts.
The person Suer saw now was a leering old wizard who seemed unaccustomed to using magic.
Only after Professor Kettleburn disappeared around the corner did Suer climb from the barrel.
Still puzzled, he tiptoed to the Hogwarts kitchens.
“What food would you like, sir? We have some pudding and chicken pie left over,” a house-elf asked with humble respect.
“Do you have pumpkin juice?”
Suer could not eat so much as another bite of pudding. During their daily game of wizard chess, Justin had predictably lost. His penalty was fetching a late-night snack from the kitchens, and Suer had eaten his fill.
“Yes, sir. I shall bring it at once.” The house-elf bowed.
A steaming cup of pumpkin juice soon appeared.
“Oh, thank you.”
Suer set aside the jar of bluebell flame serving as a hand warmer and accepted the juice.
“Did any professors come here just now?”
“Yes, sir.” The house-elf looked curiously at the blue flame sealed inside glass. “Professor Sinistra, Professor McGonagall, Professor Dumbledore, and Professor Kettleburn all visited.”
“Did Professor McGonagall come for cat food?” Suer could not help asking.
“Cat food?” the house-elf repeated in confusion.
“Ahem. Never mind. Professor Kettleburn–did he take something from the kitchens? I mean, I saw him just now.”
“Oh, yes, sir. Professor Kettleburn took some meat. Fresh meat,” the house-elf answered promptly.
“Meat?” Suer nodded. “Was it–”
Before he could ask for more detail, the kitchen door flew open and a blast of cold wind rushed inside.
“A cup of hot pumpkin juice, please.”
“One for me too.”
The two voices belonged to Fred and George. They carried their brooms, specks of white frost clinging to their clothes. Their faces were red from the cold.
“Wood has truly gone mad.”
“He is profoundly ill.”
Still complaining, the twins raised their heads and noticed Suer.
“Hello, little Hufflepuff.”
“Good evening,” Suer greeted them.
The house-elves moved quickly. George and Fred each took a sip of pumpkin juice, then released perfectly synchronised sighs.
“Could you bring us some chicken pies as well? We’re exhausted.”
“Of course, sir.” The house-elf nodded meekly.
A short while later, George and Fred rubbed their full stomachs and collapsed in identical poses on the chairs provided by the elves.
“Oh, we nearly forgot.” Fred looked at Suer.
Suer handed him the jar of blue flames on the table.
“This is it.”
“This can make money?” George leaned over and studied the dancing flame.
“What is it?” Fred turned the bottle in his hands but could not see anything particularly special.
“A magical product,” Suer said. “It lasts for a long time, is harmless, and provides light.”
“Most importantly, it keeps you warm.”
“Warm?” George closed his hands around the bottle and nodded. “It is warm.”
“So what?” Fred tested it for himself. “Many spells can do that.”
“But how many flames cannot harm a young wizard?” Suer smiled.
He took back the bottle, removed the stopper beneath the twins’ watchful eyes, and poured out the flame.
Blue fire danced in the air.
“It burns for a long time. More importantly, no one wants to walk through open corridors in the freezing wind on the way to class–especially Gryffindors and Ravenclaws. Your common rooms are both at the tops of towers, as I recall.”
As he spoke, Suer pushed a finger into the flame.
The blue fire immediately disintegrated.
Fred and George started and stared at Suer’s finger.
Suer obligingly turned his hand over several times.
The result was obvious. He was completely unharmed.
“Remarkable.”
Neither twin had ever heard of a spell so thoroughly incapable of harm. Even household magic could injure someone when used correctly.
Take Lumos. Pour in enough magical power and it became a flashbang.
To let them experience it, Suer drew his wand and conjured another flame.
The result was the same. Fred gathered his courage and put his hand inside. The blue fire dissolved at once.
“What spell is this?” George asked.
“Its name is Bluebell Flame. Hermione and I found it in a library book that was nearly falling apart.” Suer conjured another flame inside the jar and replaced the stopper.
“Bluebell Flame?” Fred looked puzzled.
“That is the literal translation from the runes,” Suer said. “And we have borrowed the book. No one can go to the library and find it now.”
“Someone may have discovered the spell before Hermione and me, of course. But the book had apparently been untouched for at least a decade.”
“You think it will work?” Fred remained doubtful.
“How do you propose doing this?” George asked.
Suer immediately laid out his plan. He and Hermione would manufacture the products. George and Fred would supply the bottles, advertise the goods, and sell them. The proceeds would be divided sixty-forty, with Hermione and Suer receiving sixty percent.
“I’ve thought of several advertising lines for different audiences.”
For example:
Still suffering from cold hands and feet? With this, winter holds no fear.
Or:
If you love her, give her a Warming Flask.
“There are five or six hundred students at Hogwarts. If only a hundred buy our Warming Flasks…” Suer looked completely confident. “We can earn several hundred Galleons!”
George and Fred exchanged a glance.
They had been hesitant. The words several hundred Galleons struck directly at their hearts.
“We’re in!” they said.
“A pleasure doing business.”