Enthusiastic House-elves

Near the entrance hall on the first floor of the castle, there was a door that led to the Hufflepuff Common Room and the kitchens.

Albert spent some time wandering around the entrance hall. He found two doors beside the marble staircase, as well as Filch's office. Filch's cat was staring at him with wide eyes.

"What's its name?" Albert asked.

Filch did not answer. He picked up his cat and went into his office.

"It's probably jealous," Albert muttered. If he remembered correctly, Filch was a Squib. He felt that, since the man was a Squib, he ought to leave the Wizarding World behind and properly integrate into the Muggle world. Why stay here and bring trouble and unhappiness upon himself?

All right, that annoying fellow was gone. Which door should he choose?

"Where would the kitchen be?" Albert took a coin from his pocket and tossed it onto the ground. It landed heads-up, so he chose the door to the left of the staircase.

Beyond the door was another flight of stone steps leading to a broad stone corridor. As Albert passed through it, the wall torches lit themselves, illuminating the area. He noticed that the walls were decorated with pictures of all kinds of food.

"Not bad luck." Albert found a large painting depicting an enormous silver bowl brimming with fruit. It was said that the kitchen was hidden behind that painting.

The secret to entering the kitchen lay in the pear.

Albert lightly touched the large emerald-green pear. To his surprise, it wriggled and giggled, then suddenly turned into a large green doorknob.

"So it really is here. Looks like my luck isn't too bad." Albert was in high spirits. After finding the Room of Requirement, he had smoothly found the kitchens as well.

He grabbed the handle and pulled open the door. The kitchen was as large as the Great Hall above. Countless dishes were arranged on the surrounding cabinets, while four long wooden tables stood in the middle. Their positions exactly matched those of the four house tables in the Great Hall upstairs.

Some food had already been laid out on the tables. It was probably breakfast for the students. When mealtime came, the House-elves would use magic to transport the food to the corresponding tables above.

"Is there something you need, sir?" One of the little elves noticed Albert and trotted over.

"The dining hall hasn't opened yet, so I came to have a look at the kitchen." Albert gave them a polite smile.

"Please come with me, sir." The House-elf grabbed Albert's hand and led him to a seat at the table. Six House-elves hurried over carrying a large silver tray, upon which sat a jug of milk, ham, fried eggs, toast, salad, and pumpkin porridge.

"Thank you, little ones." Albert poured himself half a glass of milk. He had not had the habit of drinking milk in his previous life, but he had developed it over the years. Thanks to that, he had become much stronger than he had been before.

"It is our honor, sir." Perhaps because someone had thanked them, every House-elf beamed and bowed to him.

Albert ate a serving of ham, fried eggs, and two slices of toast, then drank a small bowl of pumpkin porridge. His stomach was quickly filled.

As he finished the last small portion of fruit salad, he looked over the House-elves. They were all dressed—no, not dressed. They were wrapped in tea towels bearing the Hogwarts crest.

"I think I should be going. Thank you for breakfast." Albert noticed that his exploration progress had reached 7.3%.

"It is what we should do, sir," the House-elves said in their shrill voices. Before Albert left, many elves gathered around him and handed him all sorts of pastries to take back with him.

"That's enough. Goodbye, little ones." Albert put four pies into a brown paper bag and tucked it into his robes. They were for George and the other two.

The House-elves crowded around the doorway and watched Albert leave. They liked hearing that thank you; it made them feel Albert's respect and appreciation.

Following the route he had taken yesterday, Albert returned to the Common Room in just a few minutes.

However, it was still empty, and the ghostly lady had left as well.

When Albert returned to the room, the twins were still asleep, while Lee Jordan was already awake. He stared in astonishment at Albert in the doorway and could not help asking, "Where did you go?"

"For a walk, and breakfast while I was at it!" Albert grinned. "I brought you all presents."

"What presents?" The Weasley on the right climbed out of bed and scratched his head with his right hand, still looking half-asleep.

"I thought you were all asleep." Lee Jordan got out of bed, stretched lazily, and asked, "What presents?"

"Pies." Albert took out the brown paper bag from his pocket, pulled out a pie and bit into it, then handed the bag to Lee Jordan. "One each."

"Where did you get them?" Fred asked curiously.

"The kitchen."

"Wow, you actually found the kitchen."

"By the way, you snuck out on your own and didn't even invite us." Fred had woken up now too. If not for their beds, Albert would not have been able to tell which twin was which.

"Shouldn't you brush your teeth first?"

"Oh, I almost forgot about that." George put down the pie in his hand, then asked curiously, "How did you find the kitchen?"

"I wandered around randomly and happened to find it." Albert also told them about running into Filch. "His cat is smart. It'll alert its owner. Still, I think Filch was probably trying to cause trouble for me."

"I bet he was really frustrated!" Fred could not help laughing as well. He got up, ready to go explore. Hogwarts Castle was truly interesting.

After the three of them got dressed and washed up, they arrived at the Gryffindor Common Room. There was still no one there. Albert lit the fireplace and sat on the sofa beside it. The rain outside had stopped.

"Bill and Charlie said there are lots of Secret Passages in the castle," Fred said to the others as he ate his pie.

"But they won't tell us where the Secret Passages are." George complained a little about his older brothers.

"Maybe they want you to explore the castle's secrets yourselves. That's what makes it fun." Albert recalled what Nick had said and casually comforted them.

"I think so too," Lee Jordan agreed.

"Oh, I almost forgot." Albert walked over to the entrance and, while the Common Room was empty, took a few photographs. He also took one of the Fat Lady.

"You're taking pictures again?"

"I'm planning to send a letter home. To Muggles, everything in the Wizarding World is fascinating." Albert checked the photographs. He had already discovered that he had gained another skill related to photography.

"I heard Charlie say that Filch likes making trouble for students. He spends all day wanting to hang up students who break the rules and whip them," George continued after finishing his pie. "Filch also knows a lot of the school's Secret Passages and always appears out of nowhere without a sound."

"Most students who wander around at night get caught by Filch," Fred added. "Then they get points deducted harshly and detention."