A Strange Tradition

It was another all-too-familiar morning.

Once again, Ron spotted his family's Errol among the owls flying into the hall. To be honest, after being scolded by a Howler from his mother just a few days ago, he was rather afraid to see what the owl had brought.

He really didn't want to humiliate himself in front of everyone in the Great Hall again.

But more than one owl had flown in. Of the three, two headed for Gryffindor and one for Ravenclaw.

Everyone recognized the familiar packages the owls were carrying, and everyone was eager to see who the next owners would be.

"This one's for you, Ginny!" Ron was a little excited, while Ginny was no less excited than she had been the first time she saw Harry Potter.

One package dropped right toward Neville's head. Fortunately, Seamus warned him, or Neville might have suffered exactly the same public humiliation Malfoy had.

"I got one too?" Neville could hardly believe it, but the package did indeed bear the name Neville Longbottom.

As if someone had anticipated his reaction, Neville found a note inside when he opened the package.

Yes, you got one too, Mr. Longbottom! The power bank and instructions are already here! To make up for the late delivery, we've registered an account for you too~ Enjoy!

Neville: ??? I feel like I'm dreaming.

The third owner was sitting at the Ravenclaw table, looking at the item with curiosity written all over her face.

Luna reached out and caught the package the owl dropped. The people around her were astonished. Why had packages like these been delivered again this year? And why only at the start of term?

After opening the package, Luna curiously ignored the note beside it, picked up the phone, and examined it from every angle. "What's this?" Cho, who was beside her, answered, "It's a mobile phone. Around this time last year, a whole bunch of owls came in and delivered identical ones to some people. But I can't believe there are more this year..."

As she spoke, Cho smiled and showed Luna the one she had received.

Luna nodded, seemingly intrigued. "Ooh~ It's like a strange tradition." Then she turned back to study the thing called a mobile phone.

"Enter a name?" Ginny looked at the words above the blank line, wondering what name she should use. Fred reminded her that she didn't have to use her real name. Her two mischievous brothers said nothing else, waiting for their sister Ginny to figure it out on her own.

Meanwhile, a newcomer had already entered the group chat.

It was none other than Neville himself.

QQ Manager: Welcome new member [Gryffindor Sword Saint] to the group chat!

[Admin] Yan: Welcome, newcomer!

I'm Air: Hey, a Neville fan~

Magpie: Holy crap, feels like it's been ages since we saw a Neville fan?

Neville felt very nervous when he saw his name. Gryffindor Sword Saint?? C-c-could he really use that? (Believe in yourself, you absolutely can!)

Ced Is Mine: Woohoo! Welcome, welcome!

Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes Proprietress: Great, another newcomer!

QQ Manager: Welcome new member [Carrot Earrings] to the group chat!

To be honest, Neville had never received such an enthusiastic welcome before, and he held his phone, unsure what to do. Ginny spent a little while agonizing over what name to choose, but there clearly wasn't time for her to keep thinking about it in the dining hall.

Class was about to start.

Luna seemed to be adjusting well, even finding a moment to say hello to the group.

Carrot Ear Ornaments: Hello~

Then Luna put down her phone, turned off the screen, picked up her textbooks, and walked out of the Great Hall.

Why Hasn't My Owl Arrived Yet: Hello, hello!

Voldemort and Dumbledore, Stubborn for Life: Woohoo! Looks like another Luna fan!

Luna Is an Angel on Earth, No Arguments: Great, we Luna fans can finally hold our heads high!

Luna Lovegood's Biological Younger Sister: Damn it, there are so few people in our Luna fan group!

Bug Ming: This scene is so familiar.

Kerun: Do we have a tradition of promoting our own fan groups whenever a newcomer arrives?

The Young Master's Floral Underpants: A strange tradition has appeared.

I'll Sprint a Hundred Meters to Scoop Luna Up: Because our group really is small, damn it.

James-Brand Shampoo: Damn it, there aren't many people in the Marauders' generation fan group either!

[Admin] Yan: ...Hugging Ron and saying nothing.

Neville, Cutie Baby: ? Have any of us Neville fans said anything?

Stepmother Literature: Speaking of which, the newcomer said hello and then vanished...

Magpie: Maybe something came up. Plenty of newcomers joined before, and some of them never said anything either, right?

The Trio at Hogwarts: Our group is getting bigger and bigger! (proud.jpg)

Ced Is Mine: Yeah! /proudly puts hands on hips

The morning's classes finally ended. Ginny and Luna were in the same year and had both received one of the magical phones, so they had become quite close.

"Why did Snape spend the whole lesson staring at the two of us?" Fred looked indignant. "He kept taking points off George and me. We hadn't even started any pranks, had we?"

George nodded in agreement. "Exactly. Why was Snape in such a foul mood today?"

"...Is it possible," Harry ventured, "that you did something but haven't realized it yet?"

At that, Fred started thinking back. What had he and George done? They hadn't thrown any Dungbombs into Snape's office lately. Besides, the only office they'd played a prank in was that fellow Lockhart's.

And it had been the easiest kind to undo, too. Heaven knew that fool hadn't even got the hang of Finite Incantatem.

(After all, the only thing he was best at was Obliviate.)

As mentioned earlier, thanks to the twins' fine character, they had joined just about every group chat they could, though only a few had approved them so far. Even so, if everyone opened their screens for comparison, those two bastards would definitely be in the most group chats.

There were some groups where they dared to chat freely, but others required caution.

Snape's fan group, for example.

Professor McGonagall's fan group. (By the way, Professor McGonagall's ID was her surname. I forgot to mention it a long time ago, and I apologize here!!!)

And Fred and George, who worked hard on the front lines to get the first taste of fresh gossip, had succeeded in learning about Snape's past.

And the fact that Snape's secret love for Lily had come to nothing.

To them, it was absolutely earth-shattering gossip!

As a result, Fred and George had been unable to stop themselves from giving Snape strange looks in class ever since. But in truth, they wouldn't joke about things like that, which could easily reopen old wounds. They would much rather throw a Dungbomb into Snape's office.

But the crucial point was that, last weekend, Snape had discovered that the Weasley twins had been lurking in his fan group all along...

He finally knew where those strange looks came from.

The thought that more than half of Hogwarts might soon know about that part of his past made Snape feel especially miserable.

But honestly, Fred really hadn't gone around telling people. He and George might be mischievous, but they could keep a secret better than anyone, truly.

And so a remarkable misunderstanding came about...

But the points deduction really wasn't Snape's fault _(:з"∠)_. The twins had made a few small mistakes while brewing Potions; Snape had merely watched them like a hawk, refusing to overlook a single detail, and then taken off a few more points on top of that.

"Maybe Snape just wanted to take points off us." Ron slumped over the table. They'd had Transfiguration that morning, and his broken wand made casting spells so difficult that everything had gone wrong for him.

He wasn't in a very good mood now either.

"That reason... actually makes a little sense." George gave up and accepted it. "We've lost so many points and had so many detentions over the years that a few more won't make a difference."

Harry and Ron exchanged a look, each seeing the same sentiment in the other's eyes: So they knew...

Just then, Hermione came and went in a hurry, quickly finishing lunch and leaving without even speaking to Ron or Harry.

"What happened to her?" Ron asked, puzzled.

Harry said nothing.

Ever since receiving the information Harry had forwarded from that underpants fellow, Hermione had often stayed in the library looking for information on Basilisks.

But there really wasn't much useful information in the section of books they were allowed to borrow.

Then Hermione thought of the Restricted Section, but entering it required a professor's signature.

As Hermione considered how to trick-scratch that-properly obtain Professor Lockhart's signature, Ginny returned to her dormitory, having decided what name she would use to join.

QQ Manager: Welcome new member [The Weasley Family's Goddess of War] to the group chat!

Proprietress Number Two: Welcome! ...That name... is great!

Ginny looked a little excited in front of the screen.

Luna had recommended the name to her.

During a break between classes that morning, Ginny had still been fretting over what name to use. Luna had glanced at the group chat and said, "How about The Weasley Family's Goddess of War?"

"?" Ginny had paused. "Why?"

"That's how they describe you. It looks like you become really amazing later on~" Luna had smiled. "They all seem to be our fans."

"Really?" Ginny's eyes seemed to light up.

And that was how this came about.

Harry Potter's Midsummer: Wow~ That name... newcomer, do you like Ginny?

The Weasley Family's Goddess of War: Mm-hmm, yes!

Ginny was just about to say that she liked Harry more when she suddenly remembered her brothers saying that Harry had a phone like this too. Reason pulled her eager fingers back.

How embarrassing would it be if her idol himself saw it?

Ginny breathed a quiet sigh of relief, but the topic of conversation that arose in the group at that moment left her somewhat incredulous.

In the main group.

Ariana's Goat: Come to think of it, Ginny was really in danger when she first started her first year...

James-Brand Shampoo: Because she had the diary with her, and Ginny often talked to the Riddle in the diary back then, which made her mind especially easy to possess, qwq

Bug Ming: Suddenly curious, did Ginny ever tell the diary version of Riddle about her feelings for Harry?

Magpie: ? Riddle was shipping them in real time?

Red-Lipped, White-Toothed The Chosen One: Canon couple! Love this ship!

Mrs. Diggory: Love this ship! Ginny's a classic example of a fan successfully getting together with her idol!

Stepmother Literature: Ginny's liked Harry ever since she was little, www

Draco's Bangs: It's just that Harry's first love at the time was Cho.

Andrea of Persia: That's why Hermione advised Ginny to be more herself and try dating other boys. Sigh.

My Younger Brother Isn't as Handsome as Me: Well, damn.

Ginny, My One and Only Sister: Ginny really was a gorgeous girl in the original!! The extremely pretty kind! /shy

Ron, Let Go of That Hermione and Let Me: Ron's reaction when he found out later on that Harry had actually fallen for Ginny was hilarious, hahahaha!

Harry Is Mine: It was like, I thought you were my friend, but you actually want to get with my sister?!

What's Wrong with Eating More?: ??!

Proprietress Number Two: The men of the Weasley family are all secretly sister-cons! I'm into it!

I, Sandwich Biscuit: Proprietress Number Two, you really are...

Proprietress Number Two: Not at all~ I'm devoted to the twins alone /deeply affectionate.

Ginny's face had already turned bright red in front of her screen.

Meanwhile, Ron stared at Harry in disbelief, a hint of wariness on his face. "Harry, you actually like Ginny?" Harry hurriedly shook his head and denied it. "Ginny only just started school. I-how could that be possible? Ron, believe me."

But Fred had seized on something else entirely.

Dating other boys?

There were other boys???

George was about to start typing to ask which little bastards Ginny had dated, while Fred was already planning to nip it in the bud.

They didn't object to Harry, since they all knew him, but there were other boys?

Absolutely not!

Things were noisy on this side.

Over there, Hermione had already succeeded in getting Lockhart's signature.

Malfoy stared at the group messages, momentarily stunned. He'd only made an offhand remark back then, but she really did turn out to be Potter's little girlfriend??? What the hell???

--

Time for some brainless skits.

Brainless skit-about the Marauders' generation.

James: I really like the feeling of wearing sunglasses. (holding sunglasses)

Lily: ?

James: (puts on sunglasses) Because this way...

James: (openly stares at Lily right in front of her) Nobody knows where you're looking.

Lily: ...

Sirius: That's my brother!

--

Brainless skit-interviews.

Interview 1:

A group member is curious: when Harry and the others say things like that in the group, wouldn't they really be kicked out for being fake fans?

So I've invited ?, our great expert, to answer.

?: This fan group is tolerant. As long as people aren't being obnoxious, hurling abuse, spamming, or deliberately causing trouble, they won't be kicked out.

?: Besides, isn't it perfectly normal for newcomers to have questions? /smile

Interview 2:

Ms. Proprietress Number Two, what do you think about the Weasley Twins actually being themselves and often watching you post your deranged fanfic and those perverted remarks in the group? (thrusts microphone forward)

Proprietress Number Two: ?

Proprietress Number Two: Wouldn't that make it even better? Where's my Fred? Come out and fuck me, quick! /frenzied (muted)

All right, thank you for your cooperation! Staff, please clear the area!

Fred himself: (covers his eyes) ...Put some pants on.