After dinner, Mr. Twins came to find Muya and said they wanted to show her something they had invented.
"Isn't this just a piece of candy?" It was exactly the same as the candy they had sold to Hannah and the others that day, and given to her.
"No, no, no. This isn't just an ordinary piece of candy." Fred held up one finger and wagged it in front of Muya.
"It seems our cautious Little Badger and her friends haven't eaten the candy we gave them yet." George spoke in riddles beside them.
Muya was completely confused.
"Fine, this is a prank prop we carefully made—a candy that makes you have a runny nose nonstop."
"Of course, there are others, but we didn't bring them."
Muya was thankful that she had never been in the habit of casually eating things from strangers. Otherwise, she would have had a runny nose the whole time she was studying with Hermione.
"Then why did you call me over?"
Fred and George blinked, then spoke in unison. "We want to invite you to join our prank team."
"Sounds interesting. I'm in!" As long as she did not have to make those things herself. They looked like too much trouble.
"Of course, all you need to do is be our mascot... Huh? You agreed?" The two of them suddenly processed her answer, then began celebrating.
Muya shook her head. Being young was nice, thought Muya, who was currently a tiny little kid.
After saying goodbye to the Weasley twins, Muya trudged toward Snape's office.
Muya stood at the door, hesitating over whether to knock before going in. Five minutes later, Snape's voice pierced right through the door. "Do you need me to open the door for you, Miss Muya?" It startled her.
Fine, no need to knock now. She pushed the door open and walked in. "No, Professor."
"Process the two baskets of ingredients over there. Call me when you're done." Snape did not spare Muya a glance, concentrating instead on marking the assignments on his desk.
"Yes, Professor." Muya calmly walked over to the two baskets. The next second, her face fell. How was she supposed to deal with these slimy worms?! They looked disgusting! And those Snake Fangs would take forever to grind!
Muya glanced at Snape, who was marking papers. His expression was as ugly as if he had just watched someone eat one of those slimy slugs. Apparently, someone's assignment had earned a "P." Cedric had already explained the school's grading system to her during dinner.
She had originally wanted to ask him how to handle the basket of slugs, but seeing his expression made her too afraid to ask. She could only quietly start grinding the snake fangs.
An hour later, Muya had finally finished grinding all the snake fangs. She lightly tugged on Snape's robe. "Um... Professor Snape, how do I deal with this basket of slugs?" she asked softly, pointing at the basket on the right.
"..." Snape gave her a look, and Muya instinctively released his robe.
Snape put down his quill, rose from his chair, and walked over to the basket. "Watch my movements carefully, Miss Muya. You did a good job with the snake fangs."
Snape grabbed a slug, processed it in just a few quick movements, and tossed it into the other basket.
"Did you understand?"
Muya blinked her clear eyes, then shook her head.
Snape processed another slug. "How about now?"
Just as Muya was about to shake her head again, Snape returned to his seat first and said, "Miss Muya, if you do not wish to be caught wandering the halls at night and lose more points before serving detention, you had better hurry up."
Oh... She had originally planned to let Snape handle a few more slugs so she would have fewer to deal with herself. She had not expected him to see through her.
After processing the slugs, Muya felt as though her hands no longer belonged to her. She could practically still feel the slugs' slippery texture on them.
"Professor, can I wash my hands here?" This office felt so small, dark, and damp. It seemed like the perfect place to develop rheumatism.
"Scourgify. There, take this and you may leave." Snape handed Muya a bottle of potion.
"What does this do, Professor?" Muya shook the bottle and looked it over from side to side.
"Prevents cavities."
Thinking of the dishes they had eaten that night, Muya felt this would come in handy. She thanked Snape.
"One more thing. Because of your atrocious English, I have informed your guardian." He emphasized the last word, "guardian."
What? How could a professor tattle to her guardian?!
Snape curled his lips into a smile and sent Muya out the door.
"Ah!" After tucking the potion into her pocket, Muya pulled out her wand. "Lumos!" She was planning a nighttime tour of the castle, even though the darkness was a little scary.
She decided to head upstairs. On the way, Muya, who had initially been frightened, ran into quite a few wizards with the same adventurous spirit—Fred and George, Hermione, Harry, Ron, and a little lion she did not recognize.
She merely exchanged greetings with Fred and the others before they parted ways. She had heard they were going to research new prank products, and she decided she would watch them make them next time.
As for Hermione and the others...
"Mya Mu, why aren't you in the Hufflepuff common room? Oh, you're wandering the halls at night too?" Hermione hurriedly pulled Muya behind her.
"Actually, I saw lots of people along the way—Gryffindors, Hufflepuffs, and Ravenclaws. Besides, I just got out of detention with Professor Snape." Muya extinguished her wand and patted Hermione on the back.
Muya also greeted Harry and Ron, then finally looked at the unfamiliar boy. "Hello, I'm Mya Mu, from Hufflepuff."
"Hello, I... I'm Neville Longbottom. I'm a Gryffindor too, like them," he said softly.
"Oh no, we need to find somewhere to hide!" Harry, who was at the front, said in alarm.
"There's a door over there." Muya pointed, and the nighttime exploration team hurriedly hid inside.
"Whew~"
Just as they breathed a sigh of relief, a three-headed dog suddenly appeared in front of them. Its mouths were open as it watched them warily.
"Merlin!" Ron could not help crying out, while Neville fainted from fright on the spot.
"Here, doggy, doggy, doggy!"
Hermione and the other two stared blankly as Muya slowly approached one of the enormous dog's heads.
"Good doggy. Here, doggy, doggy, doggy. Don't be afraid." Incredibly, the dog began sticking its tongues out at Muya, and each head fought to lick her hand.
"Merlin's beard, that's incredible animal affinity," Hermione exclaimed.
"Oh, I think it might want a bath. It seems its owner hasn't had much time lately to take care of its hygiene," Muya remarked, then tossed it several chicken drumsticks she had packed during dinner.
Harry and the others were stunned by Muya's actions. Filch, who had been patrolling outside the door, also left. In the end, since it was so late, everyone returned to their own common rooms.
Before you continue