Nighttime Wandering... Can You Form a Team Too?

Getting caught sneaking food was bound to be embarrassing, but it was different when you ran into fellow travelers.

The two nearly identical faces first froze in surprise. Once they realized that the person at the Kitchen entrance was not Filch on patrol, they both breathed a sigh of relief and put on smiling faces.

"What a coincidence."

"There are actually people in this world who think like us, daring to come out at night in search of food."

"Judging by your age, you must be a first-year, right?"

"You've only just started school, yet you already dared to wander around at night. You're definitely the boldest little wizard I've ever seen."

The two spoke one after another. Though they talked at an incredible pace, they seamlessly picked up where the other left off, their perfect coordination making it impossible to tell who had said which line.

"I'm certain there aren't any twins in the world more in sync than you two," Tom said with a sigh.

The two redheads froze for a moment. After exchanging glances, they repeatedly waved their hands at Tom.

"Twins?"

"No, no, no. We just happen to look alike and started school in the same year. We're absolutely not twins."

"Let's introduce ourselves first. I'm Fred."

"I'm George."

"?" Tom slowly produced a question mark. "Did you two forget? We met at the station before school started."

"Ah, we actually didn't fool you!" Fred clapped his hands.

"We didn't even speak to you back then, and we only met once. Yet you still remembered us."

Tom chuckled and nodded. "Of course. After all, Mrs. Weasley helped me out back then. I've always remembered it."

The twins' expressions went blank. This time, they were genuinely stunned. They had not expected Tom to give such an answer.

A few seconds later, the two smiled again. This time, however, there was none of their earlier joking demeanor. It was a sincere smile, like the one they might give a younger student they had taken a liking to.

["Friendliness" +4 Progress]

The twins each draped an arm over one of Tom's shoulders.

"Honestly, we never expected someone from the Muggle world like you to end up in a place like Slytherin."

"You haven't been bullied in Slytherin, have you? We heard they treat half-bloods and Muggle-born wizards terribly there."

"Right, right. We heard that during the Wizarding War, the Death Eaters even deliberately killed some half-blood and Muggle-born wizards who had graduated from Slytherin."

"You should know that a large number of Death Eaters had graduated from Slytherin. What they did was practically slaughter their own brothers and sisters."

Clearly, the twins had recognized Tom's identity from the start. They had simply been having fun and had not revealed it before.

As for the targeted massacres during the Wizarding War, they were most likely carried out to uphold the pure-blood ideology.

"Don't worry." Tom waved a hand. "The Slytherins in our year are all pretty decent. For example, one of my roommates is afraid of the dark and even asked me to put him to sleep."

"Really?!"

The twins were both shocked. They had not expected Tom to be so well-connected.

They had not heard about the fight during Flying Class. The school had specifically instructed everyone to keep it quiet.

To maintain stability between the Houses, incidents such as fights between students from different Houses had to be covered up, and those involved were forbidden from casually talking about them in public.

Otherwise, if the matter blew up, it might drag students from other years into it and lead to a brawl involving hundreds of people.

"No wonder the Sorting Hat called you a 'born Slytherin.'"

"Your leadership is seriously impressive. Not only did you make our little brother betray his ancestors, but you've also managed to get along so well in Slytherin."

The twins chimed in one after the other, showering Tom with praise.

Just then—

"Could you two please move aside from the doorway? I would like to prepare something for this little wizard to eat."

A House-elf appeared behind the twins. His large, bright eyes were fixed tightly on Tom; he truly wanted to serve him.

"Hello. Could you prepare something low in oil and high in protein for me?"

"Uh..." The little elf looked troubled. It was the first time he had heard such a strange request, because every little wizard who had come looking for food before had only cared about whether it tasted good.

"How about boiled chicken breast?" At last, the little elf came up with something.

"Sounds good." Tom nodded.

Watching the little elf run toward the stove, Tom sighed. "I didn't expect House-elves to still be working this late at night. I don't know whether to say Hufflepuff is fortunate or praise the House-elves for working so hard."

"It can't be helped. For House-elves, serving their masters is the most important duty and honor of their lives. Hufflepuff and the House-elves are practically devoted to each other."

As Fred explained, George pointed toward one side of the Kitchen.

The Kitchen was enormous. In one corner stood a huge pile of wooden barrels stacked on top of one another.

The barrels had all been modified. Aside from tiny doors and windows, they glowed faintly from within, making them look like little homes.

Many little elves poked their heads out from the barrels, staring at the stove with looks of envy or resentment, as though they envied the elf who could provide the little wizards with extra service.

Before long.

When the boiled chicken breast was served, Tom dug in heartily.

"By the way, you've both eaten your fill. Why aren't you leaving?" Tom asked, looking up.

The Weasley Twins hadn't left. They were sitting right in front of him, watching him eat, which made Tom feel rather awkward.

"We have a very exciting plan."

"That's right. Seeing as you love adventure at such a young age, you must like excitement too, so we've specially come to invite you."

"What plan?" Tom asked curiously.

"The corridor on the right side of the Fourth Floor used to be an open area of the castle, but for some reason, it's become off-limits this term."

"They say it's as exciting as the Forbidden Forest. We're planning to explore it. Want to come along?"

The Fourth Floor—Tom knew that was where the Three-Headed Dog stood guard. It happened to align perfectly with his own goal.

"No problem."

Smack!

Seeing Tom agree so readily, the twins couldn't help exchanging a high-five.

"Hey, how could you end up in Slytherin? With courage like yours, you should've come to Gryffindor!"

"That Sorting Hat really has no taste. You're obviously a born Gryffindor."

Tom nodded, agreeing with that statement. "You're right."

After that.

Tom ate while asking the two brothers about Hogwarts.

As experts in sneaking around at night, they naturally knew the layout of Hogwarts Castle extremely well. If he had any questions, asking them was definitely the right choice.

The two brothers naturally liked this junior who got along with them so well. As long as it was something they knew, they told him everything.

By the end, they had even told him what color Hagrid's underwear was.

Tom was so shocked that he forgot to chew, swallowing an entire piece of chicken breast whole.