TBAY: the Marauder's Map

[random_monkey0_0]

No: HPFGUIDX 39876

This must have been brought up before, but I didn't see many theories 
on the FAQ:

How did Fred and George figure out how to work the Marauder's Map?
If they found the map in Filch's office, they couldn't have been given 
instructions on how to use it. How on earth could they have come up 
with the phrase, "I solemly swear I am up to no good?" Consider how 
many possible combinations of words there are in the English language, 
compounded by the fact that it would have been much more secure for 
the Marauders to come up with a string of gibberish or foreign words, 
instead of an actual phrase. Granted, they might have used a real 
sentence for the ease of memory (this *is* a group with Peter 
Pettigrew in it, after all), but that's still a lot of phrases to go 
through. 

I have several theories, with varying levels of plausability:

1. Dumb luck: Fred and George huddled over the parchment, studying it. 
"Any idea what it is?" asked Fred in the Secret Language (of course 
thay have a secret language, they're twins!).

"None," said George.

Fred pulled out his wand and pointed it at the parchment. "Tell us 
what you're for."

>From the end of Fred's wand, green ink spiraled out, forming itself 
into two cursive letters and a fullstop: 
"No."

George pulled out his wand, pointing it at the parchment. "Pretty 
please?" he said.

"We said 'No'," the map replied.

"Please?" asked Fred in a whiny voice. "I solemly swear I am up to no 
good!"

2. Invisible Brain: Fred and George huddled over the parchment, 
studying it. "Any idea what it is?" asked Fred in the Secret Language 
(of course thay have a secret language, they're twins!).

"None," said George.

Fred pulled out his wand and pointed it at the parchment. "Tell us 
what you're for."

>From the end of Fred's wand, green ink spiraled out, forming itself 
into a sentence:
"Why should we?"

"Because we want to know," said George.

"What do you care?" the paper asked.

"We found you in the 'Highly Dangerous' drawer in Filch's office," 
explained Fred. "We want to know why you're highly dangerous."

"You stole from Filch?" exclaimed the parchment. "You kids are our 
kind of scum, fearless and inventive. Thirty-fi-- um, we mean, say, 'I 
solemnly swear I am up to no good.'"

3. Random chance: "Chocolate hot-fudge sundae!" said Fred. 

"Goo-goo-ga-choob!" said George.

"Why don't you give up already?" asked the parchment. "You'll never 
guess the secret words."

"So it is more than one word!" exclaimed Fred.

"Damn," said the parchment.

"Besides," said George, "We've been up for twelve days straight doing 
this. We're not about to quit now."

"We promise that we are good?"

"We promise that we are up to no good?" said George.

So whaddaya think? any good enough for Theory Bay? Even, like, some 
water wings?

The Random Monkey, who (insert suckup here)