Zoe and Peeves

The pear wriggled as if it were ticklish, giggling as it turned into a green door handle. Theo grabbed the handle and pulled hard, and everyone filed inside.

It was an exceptionally vast room.

Its size and layout matched the Great Hall above, with four long tables as well, except they were completely empty. Numerous gleaming kitchen utensils stood along the surrounding stone walls. At the other end was a brick fireplace, where flames blazed brightly, filling the air with the scent of Roast Meat.

The room was full of strange-looking creatures. They had huge bat-like ears, round eyes that bulged like frogs' and seemed nearly as large as tennis balls, pencil-thin noses, and long, skinny limbs. They wore tea towels bearing the Hogwarts crest as robes.

Hearing the commotion, all the little creatures turned to look at them. They watched the students with eager, expectant eyes, but did not swarm over all at once. Wherever Wade and the others looked, the little creatures bowed and curtsied in that direction, appearing extremely respectful.

"Merlin!" Michael said in astonishment, enviously. "So many House-elves."

"Welcome to the Hogwarts kitchens!!" Theo spread his arms wide. "This is the best place in Hogwarts!"

"You can ask them for anything you want to eat. The little elves are all very enthusiastic," Ryan added.

"Hello," Wade said, bending down to look at the nearest House-elf. "Could you get us something to eat?"

"Of course! Of course I can, sir!" the House-elf said in a high, thin voice. "It would be my greatest honor."

The House-elves happily brought over all kinds of food—pies, steaks, roast potatoes, egg tarts, raisin pudding, and more—as well as orange juice, Pumpkin Juice, vegetable juice, and even two bottles of Butterbeer. After everyone had eaten and drunk their fill, the little elves brought out a great many desserts, determined to leave them completely satisfied.

"I can't eat another bite," Neville said with difficulty after licking the ice cream in his hand.

"Most Hufflepuff students know where the kitchens are, since our Common Room is nearby. So it's an open secret," Theo told Michael. "Our Common Room always has all kinds of delicious food too—Hufflepuff never goes hungry!"

"This is wonderful." Michael sighed as he drank his Butterbeer. "Why couldn't I have been in Hufflepuff?"

"What are you talking about?" Ryan mocked. "At the Sorting, I distinctly heard someone say that if he got sorted into Hufflepuff, he'd rather drop out."

"Ravenclaw isn't all that great either," Michael said mournfully. "Ravenclaw Tower is too high—seriously, way too high—I climb so many stairs every day I feel like dying—every time I leave class and go back to the Common Room, I have to work up so much determination..."

He seemed to have drunk a little too much, sounding deeply aggrieved.

Wade had managed not to overstuff himself, but as a first-time drinker, his tolerance was clearly rather poor. Just two rum-filled chocolates and a glass of Butterbeer had knocked him flat. His head was spinning now, and everyone he looked at had double images.

Propping up his chin, he yawned lazily as he identified the House-elves one by one—

"Coco, Amy, Becky, Hobby, Lola, Phil..."

Having a wizard speak their names seemed to be an immense honor for the little elves. They lined up to tell Wade their names, as though they were performing some sort of ritual.

"Hmm, Zoe? Are you a girl?" Wade recognized the little elf who had first spoken to him.

To be honest, all the little elves had wrinkled faces like eighty-year-olds. Apart from their names, it was impossible to tell their gender from either their appearances or their clothes.

"Y-yes, Mr. Gray." Zoe twisted her fingers together, nervous and excited.

"Are you the ones who usually help clean our rooms and wash our clothes too?" Wade asked.

"Yes, yes, sir." Zoe nodded vigorously, her huge eyes fixed earnestly on Wade. "Zoe, Hobby, and Phil are responsible for Ravenclaw Tower."

Looking more closely, there was a tiny flower decorating this House-elf's tea towel—she really was a girl.

"Do you clean the other parts of the castle too?" Wade asked again.

"Yes, sir."

"Were you the ones who carried our luggage down from the train too?"

"Yes, sir."

"You work hard," Wade said with a sigh. "That's truly demanding work."

"No, no—how could it be?" Zoe hurriedly said. "We like working! Work does not make us feel tired. Having no work is what is truly terrifying!"

The House-elves all declared how devoted they were to their work and how they never slacked off. They put all their effort into making dinners that satisfied everyone, polished every piece of silverware until it gleamed, washed the students' mud-caked shoes spotlessly clean, and always appeared and disappeared quietly, never disturbing anyone. They were excellent House-elves.

Wade silently watched them for a long time without speaking.

By the time they finished dinner, it was nearly curfew. The little elves enthusiastically stuffed them with cream cakes and fried jam doughnuts, then they each returned to their house Common Rooms.

Wade and Michael kept climbing the moving staircases. When they were exhausted and panting, a suit of armor by the wall suddenly rattled, and then a white figure lunged out with a beast-like roar.

"Ah!" Startled, Michael's legs gave out, and he collapsed onto the floor.

"Ha ha ha..."

The white figure clutched his stomach and burst into laughter, floating in the air with his feet kicking wildly.

Michael was annoyed but amused. "Peeves! You're hiding here to scare people again!"

Peeves was a peculiar ghost at Hogwarts. He could float about, but he could also take physical form and touch objects. He loved causing chaos. Just as his name suggested, he was an incredibly mischievous fellow.

"Look! Two Young Wizards wandering around outside at night instead of sleeping!" Peeves circled Wade and Michael in the corridor, saying maliciously, "Just wait! I'm going to call Filch over! He'll catch you little troublemakers!"

Peeves loved scaring students who wandered around at night like this, then chasing them as they hurriedly ran back to their dormitories. Sometimes, he would tug at their robes and pull their hair to tease them. But this time, he had miscalculated. With a flick of Wade's Wand, a row of golden letters appeared before them, displaying the current time.

"Ha!" Michael laughed as he caught his breath. "There are still seven minutes until curfew! You can't fool us now, Peeves!"

Peeves's round eyes rolled as he said slyly, "Seven minutes—but that isn't enough for you to get back to Ravenclaw Tower."

"True. But by the time you bring Filch here, we'll definitely be back," Wade said casually.

Peeves curled his lip and grumbled, "Hmph, boring Ravenclaws!" Then he turned and floated away to play pranks on other students.