The Cards Are Out

Not only Hermione, but Ronald and the little wizards of the pure-blood family couldn't help but laugh.

"Isn't that the Cornish elf?" Ronald quipped.

"It sure is," Hermione agreed, chuckling. "They're mischievous little things."

Even Luke hadn't anticipated Lockhart using these creatures for practice. The situation was unexpectedly serious.

"Your mission is to bring them all back!" Lockhart commanded, his expression stern despite the amusement in his eyes.

The classroom erupted in laughter as Lockhart, with a comically disgusted expression, opened the massive cage containing the Cornish elves.

As the cage swung open, the elves swarmed out like bees from a hive, their high-pitched laughter filling the air. In moments, the room was overrun; they perched on the ceiling, the chandelier, and even the wands of the young wizards.

"Let's take care of this," Luke said determinedly, casting a spell at a blue-skinned elf.

Just as the elf reached for Hermione's curly brown hair, it was struck by a sudden burst of light and fell to the ground.

Hermione, startled, quickly covered her low ponytail and sought refuge behind Luke.

With nearly a dozen Cornish elves causing chaos, the situation was daunting.

"There's too many of them," Hermione observed, her brow furrowed in concern.

"We could try a binding spell," Luke suggested, though he hesitated to act.

Meanwhile, Lockhart stood on the stairs, a self-satisfied grin playing on his lips as he watched the chaos unfold.

"You'd think he'd do something about this," Ronald muttered, shooting a glance at Lockhart.

Feeling the weight of everyone's eyes on him, Lockhart finally decided to take action.

"Alright, I'll demonstrate!" he announced, clearing his throat and reaching for his wand.

But before he could even start the spell, a mischievous Cornish elf swooped in and snatched his wand.

Lockhart's expression shifted from confidence to dismay as he watched his wand disappear amidst the swarm of elves, his smile freezing on his lips.

"Okay, everyone, your task for today's class is to catch all these pesky little elves. That's it, folks, I'm running late!" Lockhart chirped before flashing a smile and shutting the door firmly behind him.

"Tsk!" Luke muttered under his breath, unable to contain his frustration any longer. He whipped out his wand and aimed it at the fluttering fairies. "Petrificus Totalus!" he cast, causing the airborne elves to freeze mid-air and plummet to the ground.

With the elves immobilized, Ronald dropped unceremoniously from the air, landing squarely on his behind.

As the minutes ticked by, the students rounded up all the elves and corralled them into the iron cage before the class bell signaled the end of the lesson.

Luke pocketed Lockhart's wand, contemplating its significance before stashing it away in a safe spot for later.

The first Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson concluded amidst the chaos of the elf roundup.

"Ugh, I've learned my lesson today – never let those pesky pixies out of their cages!" Ronald grumbled, rubbing his sore rear end with Harry's assistance.

"Lockhart is all style, no substance," Harry chimed in, nodding in agreement.

Hermione, clutching a hefty textbook, added, "I wonder if Dumbledore is aware of his antics?"

"We'll find out sooner or later," Luke murmured thoughtfully. He couldn't help but speculate whether Dumbledore had turned a blind eye to Lockhart's behavior, perhaps seeing some value in having him as the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor.

"In this game against Voldemort, you either have the skills or you're as good as dead," Luke concluded solemnly.

....

Inside the Hogwarts Great Hall, Luke held a cyan grape up to Hermione's mouth. She, in the midst of sipping her tea through a straw, adeptly accepted the grape. Yet, upon tasting it, her expression soured, her eyes narrowing at the mischievous boy before her. Luke couldn't help but smirk victoriously, clearly having fed her a deliberately sour grape.

Hermione retaliated with a light kick to Luke's leg, prompting amused sighs from Harry and Ron, who were observing this familiar exchange.

"Maybe we're interrupting something?" Fred interjected, coughing lightly from behind Luke.

Luke turned to Fred with a playful remark, while George and Lee Jordan joined them.

"What's going on?" Hermione inquired.

"We've just sold our first batch of cards!" George announced proudly.

"Sold them to Dumbledore?" Luke's surprise quickly turned to realization, recalling the deal the twins had struck with the headmaster.

"Sure did! And he paid eighty Galleons for them!" Fred exclaimed, placing a small bag on the table.

Ron's eyes widened at the sight of so much money, a rarity for him.

"Do any of our investors happen to be here?" Ron was quick to inquire, hoping for a return on his investment in Harry's venture.

"Indeed, but we can't distribute it just yet," Fred explained, noting that the funds were necessary for producing the next batch of cards.

"When will the second set be ready?" Luke asked, curious about the timeline.

"We'll be working overtime tonight, and the second set will be ready the day after tomorrow," George replied, signaling the twins' dedication to their burgeoning business.

.....

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