Eulalie Hicks

Eulalie Hicks

Tom covered his nose, staring with disgust at the strange creature wolfing down food in front of him.

"Where did you find this thing?"

"It's not some 'thing.' It's a house-elf. His name is Toby, and he's my most loyal servant."

As Li Weide spoke, he added a chicken drumstick to Toby's plate.

"What is that supposed to be?" Tom stared at Li Weide blankly.

Having only just entered the wizarding world, Tom still had no idea what house-elves were.

Before Li Weide could say anything, Toby sprang up and shrieked in a somewhat hysterical manner.

"Ah! Great Young Master Weide! Kind Young Master Weide! How could Toby allow you to add food for Toby? Toby is a disgrace! Toby must punish himself!"

"Stop. I order you to sit quietly and finish your food."

Just as Toby grabbed Tom's new cauldron, ready to smash it against his own head, Li Weide calmly gave the command.

Toby had no choice but to put down the cauldron and obediently sit back down on the floor to continue eating.

His tennis-ball-sized eyes, however, brimmed with tears.

"Oh... Young Master Weide is the best, greatest master in the whole world!"

"So what exactly is going on? What is a house-elf? Is he always this unhinged?" Tom asked with a frown.

Unable to sleep, Tom had picked up the things he had packed long ago and come to meet up with Weide. The moment he entered, he saw Li Weide ordering Toby to eat.

Having never seen a creature like a house-elf before, Tom truly had no idea what bizarre trouble Li Weide had stirred up during the few hours he had been gone...

Li Weide patted Tom on the shoulder and said seriously, "Don't worry. Even though your status has gone from my most loyal servant to my second-most loyal servant, I'll still treat you just as well as before."

Tom's face instantly darkened, and even the veins on his forehead bulged as he asked through gritted teeth, "Who did you say is your servant?"

"Tom... you're nowhere near as respectful toward me as you used to be. Now you know why you dropped from first servant to second servant, right?" Li Weide said with a face full of regret.

"You..." Tom forcibly suppressed the urge to attack, because he did not want to get beaten up!

Calm down... you can't beat him yet... calm down...

Tom took several deep breaths before his emotions finally eased.

"What's wrong? Are you hungry too?" Li Weide looked at the pot in his hand, then at Tom. "There's still some left here, if you want it..."

"No! I'm not hungry at all!" Tom's emotions, which had only just calmed down, nearly erupted again.

"Fine, then forget it." Li Weide placed the pot beside Toby and let him keep eating.

"So what exactly is a house-elf?" Tom persisted.

"House-elves are wizards' most loyal servants. Their race has mastered plenty of interesting magic too. It might not look as powerful as wizard magic, but it's very useful for dealing with household chores. Oh, right, I read all that in a book at the bookstore today."

Then Li Weide selectively told Tom what he could about how he had wandered around outside and picked up a house-elf.

After all, if a house-elf kept following him around from now on, there was no way he could hide it from others. He might as well say so directly.

"I don't see how a filthy creature like that could be of any help." Tom looked at Toby with disdain.

"Don't underestimate any kind of creature, Tom. Otherwise, you'll definitely suffer for it someday," Li Weide said meaningfully.

By then, Toby had cleaned every last bit of food from both the plate and the pot.

"Young Master Weide, Toby has never eaten so much..." As Toby spoke, he looked about to cry again.

"All right, Toby. Go find somewhere to rest first, and remember to clean yourself up. I don't want to see you looking filthy again next time."

Toby sniffled, bowed deeply, and said respectfully, "As you wish, Young Master Weide."

Pop!

Toby vanished from the spot, leaving behind only a sound like a whip striking the ground...

The sight made Tom's eyes widen.

"See? At least you won't have to wash dishes for me anymore." Li Weide pointed at the plate and pot on the floor.

Only then did Tom notice that the plate and pot that had just been on the floor had somehow become spotless.

It had to be said that Toby truly was an experienced house-elf. His kitchen magic was practically flawless.

Suddenly, Tom's eyes flickered as he said, "Washing dishes is nothing. I can actually cook for you."

"You're planning to poison me, aren't you?" Li Weide remained unmoved.

"Tsk... was it that obvious?"

In the blink of an eye, a pale streak of dawn appeared in the sky, and the day gradually brightened.

Li Weide sat on the bed, reading The Count of Monte Cristo in his hands with great interest.

Meanwhile, Tom kept glancing outside from time to time.

"Did Dumbledore's people forget to come pick us up? It's almost dawn already," Tom said anxiously.

Li Weide suddenly closed his book and said, "Isn't it here now?"

"Here? Where?" No sooner had Tom asked than the faint sound of neighing drifted down from the sky.

Tom hurriedly looked up.

The neighing drew closer and closer. Suddenly, a carriage burst out of the gloomy clouds! But as far as Tom could see, there were no horses in front of it—only a middle-aged man acting as the driver.

Li Weide also looked out the window, but in his view, three jet-black, winged, skeletal horses were straining to pull the carriage down toward them.

Li Weide recognized them as three Thestrals. They were magical creatures whose appearance could only be seen by those who had truly witnessed death.

Before his transmigration, Li Weide had witnessed death, so he could see the Thestrals.

Tom, on the other hand, was still a complete novice, with a kd of 0/0, so he could not see the Thestrals yet.

"Bang!"

The carriage landed before the orphanage gates with a tremendous crash.

Yet the people in the orphanage and the other residents on the street seemed not to have heard it at all. Everything remained quiet.

At that moment, the carriage door suddenly opened, and a dark-skinned witch with curly hair, holding a book in her hand, jumped down from the carriage.

She looked at the orphanage gates before her, then directly raised her head toward Li Weide's window. Her gaze met Li Weide's and Tom's exactly.

A faint smile curled across the witch's lips, and the next second, she vanished from where she stood.

Tom widened his eyes and peered out the window. "Where did she go?"

"Are you looking for me?" A woman's voice suddenly came from behind them.

Tom jumped in fright and quickly turned around.

Li Weide turned his head as well, only to see that the witch had somehow already appeared behind them.

Tom stared at her in shock. "You... who are you? How did you get in?"

One second she had been outside, and the next she was behind him on the second floor. Just thinking about it was frightening.

"Hello, my name is Eulalie Hicks. You may call me Professor Hicks." The witch smiled and extended her hand toward Li Weide and Tom.

Tom watched Hicks warily without moving.

Li Weide extended his hand as well and shook hers. "Professor Hicks, are you the person Professor Dumbledore sent to pick us up?"

Eulalie Hicks was a character from the film Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. She was Ilvermorny's Charms professor and one of the earliest members of Dumbledore's Army.

Also, I intend to follow the movie's setup and have a young Professor McGonagall appear... even though, according to the original timeline, Professor McGonagall would only be three or four years old at this point...