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Chapter 84: A Grand Promise, and a...
2022-07-14 Author: I'm Just a Pigeon
One, two, three… three red-haired children appeared in William's office.
Two of them looked identical, giving William the irrepressible urge to play a game of 'spot the difference.'
"Why is there another one? Ron, why are you here for detention too?"
William massaged his temples, feeling a headache coming on. Was Professor McGonagall afraid he was short-staffed and decided to send another student over? This was detention, not an experiment. What did he need so many hands for? To test potions on?
However, contrary to William's expectations, Ron, who had been sent over for detention on short notice, turned red and said nothing.
This made William raise his eyebrows. What was with this kid? He had just helped him with a curse this morning, and now by evening, he was acting like a stranger?
"Professor, Ron's just shy. After all, he's the first Gryffindor student to be frightened into fainting by Filch."
One of his older brothers—he couldn't tell which—chimed in gleefully, twisting the knife.
Frightened by Filch? That shouldn't be possible. When he was retrieving the archives, the caretaker was still complaining that the school's ban on corporal punishment was making students more and more disobedient. How could corporal punishment suddenly be allowed?
"You don't know, Professor. When Ron fainted, a lot of people saw it. They clearly heard him collapse right after Professor McGonagall announced he was getting detention with Filch."
"That's right. Professor McGonagall was angry about it for a long time. In the end, she decided to discuss it with Mr. Filch and then send him here to you."
The Weasley Twins, impossible to tell apart, recounted the story, taking turns with each sentence. If the three of them weren't standing right in front of him, William might have thought he was listening to a Slytherin and a Gryffindor student slinging mud at each other. Were they really brothers?
"Shut up, George. And you, Fred."
"Professor, I'm Fred, he's George."
What is this, a comedy routine?
William shot them a harsh glare, which finally made the two troublemakers realize this wasn't a squabble, but a group detention.
Speaking of which, none of these three students were his, yet they all ended up in detention with him. Had he just made more work for himself?
"I've discussed this with Professor McGonagall. The two of you—the three of you—will be responsible for organizing the archives for the foreseeable future. You will extract the more important information, compile it, and then it will be sent to Professor Binns to be entered into the School History. I expect every one of you to take this work seriously. After the School History is completed, your names will be recorded among the compilers. I imagine that's far more educational than scrubbing bedpans."
"The School History?"
The three students gasped in unison.
"Yes, the School History. Nearly a thousand years of history, from the school's founding to the present day, will be compiled by Professor Binns into a set of historical books and placed in the school's library. Of course, this won't be a short-term project. It might not even be finished by the time you graduate. But when it is complete, the name of every student who helped compile the information will be recorded. When people in the future look it up, they will see your names."
William, without any subtlety, painted an incredibly grand picture for them. More than half of all students who loved pranks craved the attention of others, and the act of compiling a history book and having their names recorded in it perfectly fulfilled their greatest desire.
The clearly audible gasps from the three students perfectly confirmed William's theory. He could even hear their breathing become more rapid.
"Alright, even the most epic history must have a beginning. Although the earliest parts are being handled by Professor Binns, we're responsible for providing the sections with detailed reference material. The drawers on the table contain information I got from Mr. Filch. Each of you pick a drawer, and you can begin tonight's work."
—
As it turned out, no matter how appealing the promise, it was hollow until you could actually bite into it. Although William felt the picture he'd painted was grand enough, it couldn't change the fact that the work itself was exceedingly dull and tedious. Only a minority of people could find fascination in reading tales from the vastness of history; most were only interested in historical gossip.
Less than half the evening had passed before William noticed a significant decline in the three transcribers' work ethic. They were no longer flipping through the materials with the same initial enthusiasm or discussing what they found. The quills in their hands now felt noticeably heavy. No matter how you dressed it up, detention was still detention. It was clear the students were tired.
"Alright, stop what you're doing and have some chocolate. It'll make your minds and bodies feel better."
William smiled and handed each of them a cup, then stood up and pulled a record from the nearest drawer.
"George, Fred, keep up the good work. This record is quite interesting. You can take a look when you're tired of writing."
The two students took the record with curiosity. The youngest, Ron, tried to lean in for a look but was squeezed aside by his two older brothers.
"What do you think? Pretty interesting, right?"
William held his hot chocolate, took a large gulp, and narrowed his eyes.
That paper had been specially provided to him by Mr. Filch. It was a list of Messrs. Weasley's transgressions—part one.
In reality, their records alone filled an entire drawer.
"Keep it up. We basically have to organize all these records. I'd rather not have to hand this job over to other students halfway through. The handover process for archives is too complicated; it's easy to create duplicate records."
William said with a smile, but the twin brothers suddenly felt as if they'd been plunged into an ice cave.
If they were shown those records by themselves, the two of them might have laughed, critiquing each other's mistakes that led to getting caught. But if the relevant archives were to be organized by other students, that was an entirely different matter.
Especially since Ron was also in detention right now. If he were to see those records—the Weasley Twins exchanged a look, each seeing in the other's eyes a terrifying future where their authority as older brothers would be utterly shattered.
'George, you think Ginny will ever get detention?'
Fred sent a signal to his brother with his eyes.
'I don't know. Besides that big-headed Percy and Ginny who just started school, we've all had it. I don't think Ginny is much like Percy.'
George responded with his eyes.
The two nodded silently. After a short break, to Ron's complete bewilderment, they resumed their work at twice their previous speed.
Ron, who had no idea what had just happened, watched them with a baffled expression. He had never seen his fearless twin brothers so terrified.
When he shifted his gaze to William, William raised his cup of hot chocolate and took a delightful sip.
*Ah, life is good!*
(end of chapter)
2022-07-14 Author: I'm Just a Pigeon
One, two, three… three red-haired children appeared in William's office.
Two of them looked identical, giving William the irrepressible urge to play a game of 'spot the difference.'
"Why is there another one? Ron, why are you here for detention too?"
William massaged his temples, feeling a headache coming on. Was Professor McGonagall afraid he was short-staffed and decided to send another student over? This was detention, not an experiment. What did he need so many hands for? To test potions on?
However, contrary to William's expectations, Ron, who had been sent over for detention on short notice, turned red and said nothing.
This made William raise his eyebrows. What was with this kid? He had just helped him with a curse this morning, and now by evening, he was acting like a stranger?
"Professor, Ron's just shy. After all, he's the first Gryffindor student to be frightened into fainting by Filch."
One of his older brothers—he couldn't tell which—chimed in gleefully, twisting the knife.
Frightened by Filch? That shouldn't be possible. When he was retrieving the archives, the caretaker was still complaining that the school's ban on corporal punishment was making students more and more disobedient. How could corporal punishment suddenly be allowed?
"You don't know, Professor. When Ron fainted, a lot of people saw it. They clearly heard him collapse right after Professor McGonagall announced he was getting detention with Filch."
"That's right. Professor McGonagall was angry about it for a long time. In the end, she decided to discuss it with Mr. Filch and then send him here to you."
The Weasley Twins, impossible to tell apart, recounted the story, taking turns with each sentence. If the three of them weren't standing right in front of him, William might have thought he was listening to a Slytherin and a Gryffindor student slinging mud at each other. Were they really brothers?
"Shut up, George. And you, Fred."
"Professor, I'm Fred, he's George."
What is this, a comedy routine?
William shot them a harsh glare, which finally made the two troublemakers realize this wasn't a squabble, but a group detention.
Speaking of which, none of these three students were his, yet they all ended up in detention with him. Had he just made more work for himself?
"I've discussed this with Professor McGonagall. The two of you—the three of you—will be responsible for organizing the archives for the foreseeable future. You will extract the more important information, compile it, and then it will be sent to Professor Binns to be entered into the School History. I expect every one of you to take this work seriously. After the School History is completed, your names will be recorded among the compilers. I imagine that's far more educational than scrubbing bedpans."
"The School History?"
The three students gasped in unison.
"Yes, the School History. Nearly a thousand years of history, from the school's founding to the present day, will be compiled by Professor Binns into a set of historical books and placed in the school's library. Of course, this won't be a short-term project. It might not even be finished by the time you graduate. But when it is complete, the name of every student who helped compile the information will be recorded. When people in the future look it up, they will see your names."
William, without any subtlety, painted an incredibly grand picture for them. More than half of all students who loved pranks craved the attention of others, and the act of compiling a history book and having their names recorded in it perfectly fulfilled their greatest desire.
The clearly audible gasps from the three students perfectly confirmed William's theory. He could even hear their breathing become more rapid.
"Alright, even the most epic history must have a beginning. Although the earliest parts are being handled by Professor Binns, we're responsible for providing the sections with detailed reference material. The drawers on the table contain information I got from Mr. Filch. Each of you pick a drawer, and you can begin tonight's work."
—
As it turned out, no matter how appealing the promise, it was hollow until you could actually bite into it. Although William felt the picture he'd painted was grand enough, it couldn't change the fact that the work itself was exceedingly dull and tedious. Only a minority of people could find fascination in reading tales from the vastness of history; most were only interested in historical gossip.
Less than half the evening had passed before William noticed a significant decline in the three transcribers' work ethic. They were no longer flipping through the materials with the same initial enthusiasm or discussing what they found. The quills in their hands now felt noticeably heavy. No matter how you dressed it up, detention was still detention. It was clear the students were tired.
"Alright, stop what you're doing and have some chocolate. It'll make your minds and bodies feel better."
William smiled and handed each of them a cup, then stood up and pulled a record from the nearest drawer.
"George, Fred, keep up the good work. This record is quite interesting. You can take a look when you're tired of writing."
The two students took the record with curiosity. The youngest, Ron, tried to lean in for a look but was squeezed aside by his two older brothers.
"What do you think? Pretty interesting, right?"
William held his hot chocolate, took a large gulp, and narrowed his eyes.
That paper had been specially provided to him by Mr. Filch. It was a list of Messrs. Weasley's transgressions—part one.
In reality, their records alone filled an entire drawer.
"Keep it up. We basically have to organize all these records. I'd rather not have to hand this job over to other students halfway through. The handover process for archives is too complicated; it's easy to create duplicate records."
William said with a smile, but the twin brothers suddenly felt as if they'd been plunged into an ice cave.
If they were shown those records by themselves, the two of them might have laughed, critiquing each other's mistakes that led to getting caught. But if the relevant archives were to be organized by other students, that was an entirely different matter.
Especially since Ron was also in detention right now. If he were to see those records—the Weasley Twins exchanged a look, each seeing in the other's eyes a terrifying future where their authority as older brothers would be utterly shattered.
'George, you think Ginny will ever get detention?'
Fred sent a signal to his brother with his eyes.
'I don't know. Besides that big-headed Percy and Ginny who just started school, we've all had it. I don't think Ginny is much like Percy.'
George responded with his eyes.
The two nodded silently. After a short break, to Ron's complete bewilderment, they resumed their work at twice their previous speed.
Ron, who had no idea what had just happened, watched them with a baffled expression. He had never seen his fearless twin brothers so terrified.
When he shifted his gaze to William, William raised his cup of hot chocolate and took a delightful sip.
*Ah, life is good!*
(end of chapter)
