The Corridor on the Fourth Floor

After eating and drinking his fill, Charlie patted his stomach with satisfaction and pulled a gleaming Galleon from his pocket, placing it on the table.

"Thanks for the hospitality, that duck was amazing."

Billy froze at the sight of the Galleon, his tennis ball-sized eyes widening even further.

"Sir, what do you mean by this?" Billy's voice trembled slightly.

"Payment for the meal," Charlie said matter-of-factly. "Paying for food is only right and proper."

Billy shook his head, backing away repeatedly: "No, no, sir, Billy can't take money! Billy loves serving wizards, it's Billy's honor!"

The other house-elves shook their heads too, looking visibly agitated.

"Take it," Charlie insisted. "You did such a great job, you deserve compensation."

Billy's eyes instantly welled up. He took the Galleon with trembling hands and clutched it tightly to his chest.

"Billy has never met such a kind wizard!" he choked out. "You and Mr. Harry Potter are the best wizards in the world!"

The other elves were equally stirred, chattering their thanks in a jumble.

This left Charlie a bit baffled. It was just paying for a meal—why such a big reaction?

"From now on, if you call Billy in the dormitory, Billy will appear right away!" Billy vowed solemnly. "Billy will do anything for you with all his heart!"

Charlie waved it off, not taking it seriously. It was like saying "I'll treat you next time" when parting ways.

"Alright, I'll head back now."

Ernie followed Charlie out of the kitchen and spoke up along the way: "You didn't actually have to pay. House-elves don't need that; they love to work."

Charlie was a bit surprised. "People who love to work should get more rewards, shouldn't they? I never expected you, Ernie, with that honest face, to be an evil capitalist. Just wait, one day you'll end up on a lamppost."

Ernie flushed red at that and quickly explained, mumbling something about not being a capitalist and how he was kind too.

Charlie walked ahead, not listening—nonsense, nonsense, like a turtle chanting sutras.

Back in the dormitory, Justin was already asleep.

After washing up, Charlie lay in bed, thinking over the plan he'd discussed with the twins that day.

Half a month passed like that, and life at Hogwarts gradually settled into a routine.

Charlie had fully adapted to the school's rhythm.

Every day, he slept in class, caused trouble after class, and occasionally blew up Filch's office—life was quite fulfilling.

Under George and Fred's lead, they explored every secret passage in Hogwarts.

From the passage behind the one-eyed Witch Statue to the tunnel in Honeydukes' basement, Charlie knew them all by heart.

But there was one place that stumped them—the corridor on the fourth floor.

That damned staircase seemed to have a mind of its own. Every time they tried to go up, it would stubbornly veer off in another direction.

"This staircase is definitely rigged," Fred complained. "We've tried over a dozen times, and it messes with us every time."

"There must be something important hidden up there," George analyzed. "Otherwise, Dumbledore wouldn't go to all this trouble."

Charlie wasn't in a rush. He figured an opportunity would come eventually.

That night, Charlie approached the staircase again.

To his surprise, it sat there obediently, showing no sign of shifting direction.

"Bingo!"

Charlie's eyes lit up, and he hurried up the steps, afraid the staircase might change its mind.

The fourth-floor corridor looked unremarkable, no different from any other floor.

Rows of portraits lined both sides, and moonlight streamed through the high windows, casting a quiet glow on the floor.

At the end of the corridor stood a heavy wooden door with no markings on it.

Charlie was about to step forward to check when he suddenly heard hurried footsteps behind him.

Please don't be someone catching night owls.

He quickly pulled out his wand and cast a Disillusionment Charm on himself, blending into the surroundings like a chameleon, completely invisible in the pitch-black night.

Just then, four figures came running over in a panic—Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Neville.

Harry was in the lead, looking flustered. It was all Hermione's fault for constantly talking about expulsion; he was genuinely scared.

"I told you we shouldn't have come out!" Hermione rambled as she ran.

"Malfoy's clearly messing with us! Midnight duels and all that—it's obviously a trap!"

"What's the point of saying that now?" Ron panted back.

"The key is not to get caught by Filch!"

"If you two hadn't insisted on going, we'd be asleep in bed right now!" Hermione kept nagging.

"If we get caught, we'll definitely lose points, and we might even get expelled! Now look—we're lost, and Filch is chasing us!"

Neville was struggling to keep up at the back, his face pale as a ghost.

Ron had listened to Hermione's nagging the whole way and finally snapped:

"Merlin, I really wish I knew a Silencing Charm to shut you up!"

Hermione opened her mouth as if to teach him the incantation for the Silencing Charm, but in the end, she just huffed and ignored him, isolating herself from the other three.

The four of them reached the end of the corridor, and Harry grabbed the door handle.

"It's locked." Harry frowned.

"Filch probably can't find us here, right?" Neville asked cautiously.

Charlie realized they weren't here to catch night owls, so he dropped the Disillusionment Charm and suddenly spoke: "Don't worry, he won't find you."

"AHHH!"

All four of them screamed in fright, and Neville even plopped down onto the floor.

"Well, now he definitely will."

Charlie helplessly pressed his forehead.

After the shock, the four of them calmed down.

"Charlie?" Harry recognized him.

"What are you doing here?"

"Same as you, sneaking around at night." Charlie shrugged.

"That yell of yours just now probably echoed through the whole castle. Filch will be here any second."

Sure enough, Filch's voice came from the distance:

"You rotten little brats, you can't get away—I heard you!"

"Go on, Mrs. Norris."

"Meow!"

"We're doomed!" Hermione's face went white.

"He's really coming!"

Ron hopped around in panic: "We're dead for sure!"

Harry yanked at the door handle: "The door won't open!"

Neville had already started crying: "I don't want to get expelled!"

"Everyone, calm down." Charlie pulled out his wand and pointed it lightly at the lock.

"Alohomora."

With a click, the lock sprang open.

"Get in!" Charlie pushed the door open.

The five of them filed in. Charlie was the last one inside and closed the door behind him.