After blowing up the balloon, Louis left a small bit of uninflated end, then twirled it deftly between his fingers. In no time, a little balloon dog took shape in his hands.
"You need to get out of here! We'll find a way to escape in a minute!" Fred shouted when he saw Louis still standing by the door. "Or better yet, come help! Don't just stand there!"
Louis ignored him and instead used the power of the Monkey Talisman on the balloon dog.
Instantly, the balloon changed… the folded creases vanished, and it became a lifelike figure that looked as if it had always been a real dog—just made of balloon.
"…Okay, the Monkey Talisman can't turn an inanimate object into a living thing," Louis muttered, and activated the Rat Talisman instead.
With a flash of light, a palm-sized dog materialized in Louis's hand.
It was a Chihuahua—sharp-toothed, aggressive, and instantly awake. The little monster immediately began barking wildly at Louis.
"Back off!" Louis shouted and hurled the barking furball straight at the three-headed dog.
With a high-pitched yelp, the Chihuahua soared through the air toward the ferocious beast.
George and Fred had absolutely no idea what Louis was doing. They froze when they heard his shout, then turned their heads just in time to see a tiny dog flying straight toward Fluffy.
Where did that come from?
That question flashed through their minds—then they saw Fluffy's attention suddenly shift to the incoming canine. All three heads lunged forward to bite.
The giant dog was distracted!
Even people could barely stand a Chihuahua's obnoxious yapping—imagine how unbearable it was for an already irritable three-headed dog.
George and Fred knew this was their chance and immediately bolted.
But how long could a Chihuahua actually hold off a beast like that?
As Fred ran, he glanced back—just in time to see Fluffy's middle head viciously tear into the Chihuahua.
There was no blood. Just a loud pop—like a balloon exploding—and then a burst of fire erupted from the dog's little body, singeing Fluffy's eyes.
Though the flames didn't actually harm Fluffy, the sudden burst startled him. All six eyes squeezed shut, and the beast stumbled backward in a panic, accidentally tripping over his own legs and falling flat on the ground.
That was all the time they needed.
Louis dashed out first, with George and Fred close behind. Once everyone was safely out, Louis kicked the door shut and slammed the latch into place, ending the chaos once and for all.
George and Fred collapsed on the floor, panting heavily. The two unfortunate students they had rescued were still unconscious, groaning faintly.
As for the rest? They'd all bolted long ago—probably to find a professor for help.
"You two are in so much trouble," Louis said from the doorway, listening to the furious roars still echoing from behind the door.
"Shouldn't we be saying that?" Fred asked weakly.
"Of course not. I was just a heroic Slytherin passing by who heard screams and rushed in to help," Louis replied, adjusting his slightly crooked top hat. "Good luck."
He could already hear Professor McGonagall's furious voice from down the corridor.
In the end, Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, and Hufflepuff each lost fifty points, and the students were sentenced to help Filch clean the castle as punishment.
And Slytherin?
All the other Slytherin boys were still recovering in the infirmary, and the only one involved in the incident was a "passerby" who just happened to act heroically.
Professor McGonagall stared at Louis with suspicion in her eyes, but after asking the nearby portraits, they all gave the same answer:
"He was just passing by."
So… Slytherin gained fifty points.
George and Fred were absolutely amazed—completely in awe. They both agreed: Louis was way too cunning. No wonder, when they first ran into him under the watchful eyes of those portraits, he immediately claimed he was "just passing by."
"How did you even do that?" Fred and George pestered him as they followed behind. "Was that a Transfiguration Charm? But why did it explode?"
"That's a magician's secret," Louis replied flatly, eyes distant.
He was reading a system prompt and had no time to entertain the twins' endless questions.
> [You used magic combined with a fire trick to fool a magical creature (Three-Headed Dog).]
> [You have earned: 120 Trick Points.]
> [Current Trick Points: 14,440]
> [This is the first magical creature you have successfully deceived.]
> [Achievement Unlocked: Magical Creature Tamer ]
> [ Magical Creature Tamer: Increases affinity with and control over magical creatures. Every three magical creatures tricked slightly improves this achievement's effect.
Another achievement! And this one looked far more practical than the Trickster Who Mocked the Dark Lord title. More importantly—it could grow.
Maybe he could try it out on Fafnir later. Technically, owls counted as magical creatures too.
While his thoughts drifted, Louis looked up and realized he had already reached the library—and the Weasley twins were still trailing behind.
"How long are you two planning to follow me?" Louis sighed, glancing back at them.
If it were a pair of twin sisters, he might've stuck around for a longer chat. But two boys? Yeah… no thanks. Best to send them off quickly.
"We're just really curious about that magic trick," the twins said in unison.
Louis shook his head. "Like I said—it's a magician's secret. I can't just reveal it to anyone."
"We'll trade you something for it!" George offered, pulling a candy tin out of his pocket. "This is our latest invention—Quick-Skip Candy. Eat one, and you'll come down with just-serious-enough symptoms to get out of class, without any lasting effects."
"There are ten pieces inside. Each effect lasts about ten minutes," he explained, handing the tin to Louis.
Sounded pretty interesting—probably something in the realm of potion-making.
Louis poured one out to inspect it. Looked like a regular candy, nothing special on the surface, but it gave off a faint medicinal smell.
"Interesting… but my tricks are passed down through the family—very rare and valuable." Louis said this while holding the candy tin, but notably, didn't return it.
"Still not enough, huh?" George shrugged, disappointed. "Then how about—"
"You'll have to add more," Louis interrupted with a raised brow and outstretched hand. "Extra… fees."
The twins paused for a moment, glanced at each other, then burst out laughing.
"You really are a riot," Fred said, pulling a round ball from his pocket. "Here—this is a Dung Bomb. Not one of our creations, though—it's from Zonko's Joke Shop."
The moment the thing came out, Louis caught a whiff of an indescribably foul stench.
"Yeah, no thanks. You two keep that one," Louis said, pinching his nose in disgust.
"What else can we do? Everything else we're working on is still in prototype stage—nothing finished," Fred said, shrugging helplessly.
"You two actually make magical gadgets yourselves?" Louis asked, intrigued. "And those candies… they sound like potions, but potions can't have mutable properties like that. So—is it alchemy?"
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