Chapter 95: Trendy Accessories

Tempted by the lure of Galleons, Kyle and the others spent the entire week holed up in a small, stuffy, abandoned classroom. By the end, they'd produced more than 300 "Exam-Passing Amulets."

Of these, over 100 were meticulously hand-carved by the six of them, each one crafted with a steady hand and undiluted concentration. The other 200 were made assembly-line style: first, the patterns were carved, and then the Doubling Charm was used to transfer them onto the Rowan branches. The quality of these was admittedly less refined, but they still looked convincingly authentic.

After a week of effort, the group had become quite adept at using the Doubling Charm—a spell not usually taught until the sixth year.

"I'll leave the rest up to you," Kyle said, his expression serious, at dinner on the evening before the school year officially began. He looked at the other five intently. "You all know the process, so just handle it like you did when you sold the maps."

Fred and the others nodded with equally serious expressions. Though they'd done this sort of thing before, this venture was on a much larger scale, covering the whole school, and they were understandably a bit nervous.

"Kyle, should we really charge Hufflepuffs, too?" Cedric asked, hesitating. He was, after all, the nice one of the group.

Kyle clapped him on the shoulder. "It's a necessity, Cedric," he reassured him, "but we can offer Hufflepuff a special discount."

"Fifty percent?"

"No, 5 percent!" Kyle replied. After a moment's thought, he added, "But we'll round down a Knut."

Cedric's mouth twitched slightly. He wanted to protest, but with Kyle firmly holding the reins on pricing, it wouldn't make much difference if he argued.

After exchanging a few more words, everyone went off to finalize the plans for the next day.

To drum up interest, Fred and George even stayed up late to create a large flyer, which they posted prominently in the Gryffindor common room:

"Still stressed about exams?

Worried you won't score high enough to pass? No more worries!

To help you enjoy a wonderful summer vacation, we proudly present the "Exam-Passing Amulet!"

As recorded in Hogwarts: A History, this charm was a favorite at Hogwarts for over a century and was the top-selling product of its time.

Even Headmaster Dumbledore wore one for his exams! Interested buyers, please contact Fred or George Weasley, second year.

(Note: This product is purely symbolic and will not increase the wearer's intelligence nor substitute for exams. Please purchase responsibly.)"

The flyer didn't originally include the last line, but when Kyle found out, he insisted they add it to convey "stability" and avoid any potential refunds.

Fred and George were initially concerned that the disclaimer might deter potential buyers, but after only half a day, they realized they had nothing to worry about.

As soon as the first student picked up on the hint in Hogwarts: A History—a reference to the illustration of a wand and quill—students began flooding into the boys' dormitory with Sickle and Galleon in hand, each one anxious they'd miss out on the "Exam-Passing Amulet."

The dormitory door was pushed open so many times that, by the end, Fred gave up on using the Mending Charm and simply took it off with a flick of his wand.

In Hufflepuff, it was a similar scene, with students crowding Cedric's dormitory. Though no flyers were posted in Slytherin, word spread quickly, and Kanna became their go-to contact.

Only Cho, who handled Ravenclaw, had a slightly easier time. Most of the academically focused Ravenclaws were confident in their abilities and felt they didn't need the amulet.

...

One afternoon, a few days later, they gathered in the same old, abandoned classroom. The sawdust and pocket knives that had once littered the floor were gone, replaced by a square table stacked with piles of gleaming gold Galleons and silver Sickles.

Clink!

Fred swallowed hard. "How much is here?"

"Altogether, 709 Galleons, 15 Sickles, and 5 Knuts," Cho announced. "I didn't expect so many people to buy the custom model, so it's a lot more than we anticipated."

"More than 700 Galleons..." George's eyes were glazed over in disbelief. "This has got to be a dream."

Fred sighed beside him. If it is, I hope I never wake up from it.

Kyle picked up a gold Galleon from the table and laughed. "Well, you better hold on to that thought because there are seven years of dreams like this waiting for us."

"Then maybe I'd better wake up fast," Fred chuckled.

But as he laughed, his expression suddenly fell. He had just remembered he was a year ahead of Kyle. By the time Kyle was in his seventh year, Fred would already have graduated and wouldn't get any of the profits for that year. The idea of letting hundreds of Galleons slip away filled Fred with distress. He looked at Kyle with a pained expression. "Why couldn't you have enrolled a year earlier?"

Kyle, feeling slightly uncomfortable under Fred's gaze, stepped aside in mock disgust. "Not my call when I start school; you'd have to take that up with Dumbledore."

"Actually, it's the Book of Admittance that decides," Cedric mumbled from the sidelines, "so it really has nothing to do with the headmaster."

But Fred and George were too busy to hear him, already engrossed in a discussion about ways they might be able to delay their graduation by a year.

When they finally left the classroom, each of them had an extra hundred gold Galleons jingling in their pockets. The remaining money was entrusted to Kyle as start-up capital for their next venture.

Kyle gladly agreed. He'd have liked to invest some of the money in the Weasley brothers' joke product ideas, but they were too preoccupied at the moment, focusing on trying to decipher the complete password for the Marauder's Map. That, he figured, could wait until next year.

...

In the weeks that followed, the professors at Hogwarts noticed a curious trend: nearly everyone seemed to be wearing a particular style of wooden ornament. The pieces varied—some were simple, undecorated circles or squares, while others were more intricate, decorated with gold paint and finished with a layer of wax for a polished look. None of them had any magical properties.

Normally, the professors would overlook such fads; every year brought some new craze among the students, as long as it wasn't harmful. But this time was different. Ever since the ornaments gained popularity, they noticed the students seemed more relaxed in class, with an overall improved attitude.

To be honest, the professors weren't quite sure if that was a good thing or not.