Peeves: Last night was quite the prank

Early in the morning, Lucien left the Ravenclaw Common Room, heading to the Great Hall for breakfast.

He rubbed his temples; the splitting headache hadn't subsided.

He was no stranger to this headache—it felt similar to when he had exhausted his magic to cultivate the Youth Apple Seed. It was as if a group of Troll were drumming in his head, and he could hear his temples throbbing with every step he took.

Actually, Lucien didn't know whether his first practice of the Patronus Charm last night was successful or not.

He only remembered that the moment he uttered the incantation and activated the magic, the magic power within him seemed to be ignited by something, becoming unusually active and uncontrollably surging towards the wand.

Then, he heard all sorts of sounds—cheers, laughter, jubilation... a flood of sounds rushed into his mind.

Then, it was as if I lost consciousness, or as if my thoughts were occupied by those sounds.

When I finally came to my senses, it was already morning.

Lucien climbed out of the box and found that his roommate Terry was not there. The bed was neatly made, so he probably went to the library or something.

Only a note remained on the desk, written in Terry's handwriting:

"Dude, that fog was so cool! Being enveloped by it felt so unique, like the first time my parents took me to the Quidditch World Cup..."

Lucien shook his head, folded the note, and put it in his pocket.

His headache was so bad that he couldn't think clearly, but thankfully he didn't have class this morning, so he wouldn't be late.

As Lucien Ravenclaw Tower, around the corner, he heard a shrill, off-key song:

"Last night was both wondrous and terrifying. A ghostly fog enveloped the castle, yet it brought joy and sweet dreams. How strange, how very strange..."

The sound rose and fell, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on singing.

Interspersed within the singing was another, relatively soft and ethereal voice:

"Excuse me, could you please give me back my necklace? I need to wear it to class..."

The singing abruptly stopped, and a shrill voice rang out again, this time with obvious smugness:

"Oh~ here's your necklace, it's made of corks! Hmm, it even smells like Butterbeer —I won't give it back to you, because you forgot to address me respectfully as ' Peeves Ghost'—"

Lucien walked around the corner and looked in the direction of the sound.

A small "ghost" floated in mid-air.

Its face is comical, with a broad face and big eyes, its features squeezed together, making it look both cunning and irritating.

The clothes he wore were also quite different from those of other ghosts—not the plain, pale robes, but a bright, flamboyant outfit that resembled a clown's costume.

He was wearing a tie and a hat, but his slippers had long cracks, revealing his constantly wriggling toes.

Lucien squinted. "Peeves."

This thing isn't a ghost, but a "stalker"—a mischievous entity that has existed since the birth of Hogwarts.

Unlike ordinary ghosts, Peeves can touch physical objects and move them. For example, he's holding a necklace made of bottle corks and waving it around, giving the other person no chance to take it back.

It also uses this ability to frequently play pranks on students and teachers, causing most people great suffering.

Lucien's gaze shifted downwards, and he saw a little girl trying to reach out to Peeves.

Her long, dark golden-brown hair reached her waist, her silver eyes were wide open from tilting her head back, and her skin was so pale it was almost transparent.

Luna Lovegood.

At this moment, Luna was standing on tiptoe, reaching out towards Peeves, her expression serious and calm, as if she had experienced having her necklace stolen many times before.

Just as Peeves was about to continue teasing Luna, he suddenly turned around as if he had caught a whiff of something new.

Upon noticing Lucien's appearance, Peeves' comical face immediately lit up with excitement.

It abandoned Luna and Accio over, pressing its large face close to Lucien's, almost touching the tip of Lucien nose.

"Do you know who played that prank last night?" Peeves blinked his round eyes, his tone clearly admiring. "I really liked what that guy did; it really made Hogwarts a lot more lively!"