As exam time drew closer, the atmosphere in the castle gradually grew tenser. Students could often be seen hurrying through the corridors with hefty magic books in their arms, quietly reciting spells and potion recipes.
The library was even more crowded. Sometimes, if you were even a little too slow, you could not find a seat and could only borrow the books to read elsewhere.
Most of those people were students preparing for their O.W.L.s and N.E.W.T.s. As a first-year, Silvan did not feel nervous at all.
The only difference was that he had become more popular.
That was mainly because of Fred and George. At noon on the day their detention ended, the two of them had strutted around the castle with their "good-as-new" wands.
While attracting plenty of attention, they had also given Silvan's product a round of advertising. Now, many people had begun asking him about the coloring spray.
It was rather embarrassing, really. He had prepared the stuff at the start of term, yet had completely forgotten about it amid all sorts of other matters. He did not sell his first bottle until the school year was nearly over.
But by then, everyone had basically spent most of their pocket money. Silvan's pricing was the sort meant to keep him fed for thirty years after opening shop, so plenty of people asked, but almost no one actually bought any.
"What if you lowered the price a little?" Fred suggested over breakfast one day. "If they were all one Galleon, most people could probably afford one if they gritted their teeth."
"Yeah." George nodded beside him. "A wand only costs seven Galleons. Coloring spray can't cost more than a wand, can it?"
"No way. I refuse to rip off poor students," Silvan said righteously.
"Hm?" The Weasley