Whether in Ollivander's Wand Shop or walking along the slightly crowded streets of Diagon Alley, Ron still couldn't quite believe that he actually had a new wand.
He even pinched himself to make sure he wasn't dreaming.
He carefully put his wand away, holding the small wand care kit that Ollivander had given him as a bonus.
His face was flushed with excitement.
Seeing how red he looked, Eda even had the illusion that the kid might be drunk.
The four of them walked along the cobblestone-paved street toward the secondhand bookstore, planning to meet up with Mrs. Weasley. Halfway there, they happened to run into her—she had come looking for them as well.
"Where have you four been? I've been looking all over for you!" Mrs. Weasley called out, waving to Ron, who was standing behind the twins. "Come here, Ron. We're going to find your father."
"Mom, why are we looking for Dad? Isn't he buying a gift for Percy?" Ron asked in confusion.
"Of course, we're going to Ollivander's to buy you a wand. Your father and I think it's better for you to have a brand-new one," Mrs. Weasley said matter-of-factly.
"..."
"..."
"...."
"..."
"Eh..?" But as soon as she finished speaking, she noticed that something seemed off with the four children in front of her. She asked again, "What's going on with you all?"
"Mom, we just came back from the wand shop. Eda gave me a wand as a gift…" Ron's voice grew quieter and quieter as he realized that his mother's attention wasn't on him at all.
"Mrs. Weasley, this is a birthday gift from Fred, George, and me for Ron. A boy only turns eleven once," Eda spoke up first. She knew that, given the Weasleys' nature, they would definitely try to pay her back, which would defeat the whole purpose of the gift.
"We just wanted to congratulate Ron on starting school, so don't worry about it, Mum," George added, catching Eda's glance. Fred quickly followed up with a few words of his own.
Mrs. Weasley let out a helpless sigh before stepping forward and pulling Eda into a warm embrace. In a gentle voice, she said, "Thank you, dear."
Mrs. Weasley had a good idea of how much pocket money the twins had—it all came from her, after all. She knew they wouldn't have been able to afford the wand, which meant Eda must have paid for it herself. And just now, Eda had spoken that way to prevent her from refusing the gift, as well as to save face for both herself and the twins. Mrs. Weasley understood all of this, which was why she gave Eda a hug right there in the middle of the street.
"Ok, women! If you keep hugging her like this, when exactly are we supposed to go find Dad and Prefect Percy?" Fred asked, looking at his mother.
"And if you squeeze any tighter, our Miss Twist might just suffocate," George added.
Mrs. Weasley wiped the corner of her eyes before finally letting go of Eda. She sniffed and said, "You two buggers.. sigh.. Now, let's go find your father and Percy, and then we're heading to Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions!"
"What are we going to Madam Malkin's for?" Fred asked, looking at Mrs. Weasley in confusion before shifting his gaze to Eda.
"Are you buying more clothes again, Eda?" George asked, looking at her as soon as he heard they were heading to Madam Malkin's. "Women, no matter their age, always love dressing up."
"Since Ron doesn't need to buy a wand anymore, we might as well get him a new school robe. He can alternate between the new one and Bill's old one," Mrs. Weasley explained. Then she added, "Oh, and we can get Percy one too."
"What?! Ron, fine, whatever—but why does that old-fashioned, rule-obsessed Percy get one too?" The twins protested in unison.
Mrs. Weasley, holding Ginny's hand, continued walking as she replied, "Because Percy is a prefect. If you two were prefects, I'd buy you new robes too!"
"Fred, we obviously did something right, so why do I suddenly feel like we made a huge mistake?" George asked his brother in frustration.
"Say no more, I was just thinking the same thing… If we had kept our mouths shut, Percy wouldn't be getting a new robe."
The phrase wanting to cry but having no tears perfectly described the twins' current state.
With her hands behind her back, Eda strolled over to Fred and George, grinning mischievously. "So, which one of you is going to be a prefect in fifth year? Or will it be both of you?"
"Absolutely not!" Fred and George declared firmly. "Not in this lifetime, not in the next!"
[Ding! A long-term task has been issued: If the host successfully becomes a prefect in fifth year, the task will be considered complete. If the host becomes the Head Girl in sixth or seventh year, it will be considered an overachievement.]
Ah, this... Eda had been gleefully watching someone else's home collapse, laughing at their misfortune—only to have a piece of the wreckage fall and crush her own home as well!
Choosing Eda as Gryffindor's prefect?
That would only happen if Professor McGonagall completely gave up on winning the House Cup. It would be a reckless, disastrous decision.
A prefect leading the charge into trouble, setting an example—for losing points? Just imagining it was terrifying. Who knew what else would happen, but one thing was certain: Professor McGonagall's blood pressure would skyrocket...
The group made their way through the crowd and found Mr. Weasley and Percy. Mrs. Weasley explained Ron's new wand and her decision to get both Ron and Percy a new robe.
Mr. Weasley didn't react too dramatically, nor did he say much to Eda. He simply patted her shoulder twice. Arthur Weasley was a man, a father—he didn't always express his feelings with words, but his actions spoke for him.
Time had never been a patient thing, and happy days seemed to pass even faster.
Before anyone realized it, the summer of 1991 had flown by in a blur of chess games and card matches.
After two months, Eda finally managed to defeat Ron, the Chess King. Granted, her victory wasn't exactly honorable, but in the end, a win was a win, and that was all that mattered.
Talent was a tricky thing, and Eda had to admit—she simply wasn't as good at wizard's chess as Ron. But if she had the chance to swap minds with him, she'd refuse without hesitation. Because, let's be honest, Ron's brain didn't always function properly.
Throughout the summer, Ron was absolutely obsessed with his new willow wand.
His dear older brothers, Fred and George, noticed this and generously decided to teach him a spell—a color-changing charm specifically for turning Scabbers a different shade. (Percy's old rat had officially been passed down to Ron.)
"Sunshine, daisies, butter mellow, turn this stupid, fat rat yellow"
That was the "spell" Fred and George had taught Ron—one that made absolutely no sense to Eda in any magical theory she knew. Even without formal training, just hearing it sounded completely wrong. But the key issue was… Ron believed it. He even secretly practiced it multiple times.
The results were predictable: every single attempt ended in failure. It wasn't a real spell in the first place—if it had actually worked, that would have been a miracle.
Ever since Percy had passed Scabbers down to Ron, the one constantly struggling against an off-white Labrador had shifted from Percy to Ron. If Ron let his guard down for even a second, Garlon would immediately start chasing Scabbers all over the place.
To be fair, Scabbers was one of the very few creatures that Garlon could actually defeat.
And the dog was relentless—whenever he saw the rat, he'd go after it like he was determined to end its miserable existence.
Back when Percy still owned Scabbers, he would at least tell Eda to control her dog, to stop acting like a cat chasing a mouse. Eda would humor him, pretend to scold Garlon, and the Labrador would behave for a few days.
But ever since Ron took over, Scabbers' life had taken a sharp turn for the worse.
Ron didn't dare ask Eda for help. He also couldn't exactly fight Garlon. So all he could do was keep Scabbers with him at all times.
And if he ever forgot? Well… Scabbers was on his own.
For Ron, this summer had been a mix of pain and joy. But for the aging Scabbers? It had been pure suffering. A summer of hardship.
Happy times always passed quickly. In the blink of an eye, it was September 1st—time for Hogwarts to start again. Ron and Harry Potter would finally be heading off to school, and with that, a new era of chaos and disaster was about to begin.
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