Ghost Xiwen and Young Wizard Xiwen

"You really didn't need to stay here with me." After a long silence, Xiwen finally spoke. He felt uncomfortable letting Helena remain in such a dark, filthy place.

"For us dead people, it makes no difference where we stay," Helena said softly.

Silence fell between them again.

Xiwen suddenly realized that he was not good at handling situations like this, nor was he good at saying gentle, intimate things. Helena was probably the same. As a ghost, she had spent hundreds of years confined to her own world and rarely interacted with others.

Perhaps only someone as pure as her would trust me so easily, Xiwen thought.

At last, he came up with an idea.

"Is anyone here?" A young wizard in Slytherin robes walked over and asked with feigned surprise. "I've never seen anyone come this way before, but today it seems a little more lively."

"Lively?" Helena glanced at him with amusement. "I think 'dead' would be more appropriate."

"Huh, are you ghosts?" Young Wizard Xiwen pretended to look shocked. "Why are you staying here?"

Ghost Xiwen answered—or rather, asked and answered himself. "For certain reasons, I can only stay here for now, and she is keeping me company. Could you do me a small favor and clean up the filth here?"

Ghost Xiwen looked at himself across from him and found the sight of talking to himself inexplicably ridiculous. Unable to hold it in, he burst out laughing.

"Pfft!"

Helena looked at him strangely and asked, "What's wrong with you? What's so funny?"

Ghost Xiwen replied, "I thought of something happy."

"Pfft!"

Helena's expression grew even stranger. She turned to Young Wizard Xiwen and asked, "Did you think of something happy too?"

Young Wizard Xiwen nodded while trying not to laugh.

Helena looked at the two of them in confusion and asked, "So... did you think of the same happy thing?"

It really was the same thing. But Xiwen did not dare say that aloud.

After finally recovering, Ghost Xiwen cleared his throat and explained, "Ahem, ahem. I was thinking that we could ask the young wizard to make this place look nicer, so those terrible people wouldn't get their wish. Yes, that's it!"

Young Wizard Xiwen added, "I found a good place to practice magic, so I'm happy."

Helena looked at Xiwen inside the door, then at the young wizard outside. Something felt off...

She shook her head and asked Young Wizard Xiwen, "Are you really going to help us clean this place? You should know this is no small task."

Young Wizard Xiwen nodded. It's obviously to make myself more comfortable. Of course I'm more than willing. But aloud, he said, "It's fine. It'll be good magic practice."

As he spoke, he raised his wand toward the ground and shouted, "Scourgify!"

Some dust seemed to have disappeared from the floor, but the effect was not obvious.

Xiwen was dissatisfied, so he switched spells.

"Tergeo!"

The effect seemed a little better, but not by much.

Helena reminded him from the side, "It has probably been too long. The dust and dirt have already fused with the floor. That weakens the effectiveness of a Cleaning Charm based on the Vanishing Spell."

Only then did Xiwen realize that before him was Ravenclaw's daughter. Her magical ability in life must have been anything but weak.

"Then what spell would be suitable?" Young Wizard Xiwen asked politely, nearly failing to suppress another laugh.

"I don't remember any spells," Helena said.

"Perhaps you could try washing it clean with water?" she added with interest, then floated into the air to watch Young Wizard Xiwen perform.

Xiwen's face immediately fell. Who knew how long it would take to wash the place with water? Perhaps he could ask an older student or a professor for help?

"You could try asking some older students for help," Ghost Xiwen said, deciding to give his ghost double another line.

"That makes sense," Young Wizard Xiwen said to himself. "I'll just try a little today. Tomorrow, I'll find someone else to help."

He suddenly remembered something and looked toward the transparent barrier at the doorway, wondering whether someone who was not a ghost could pass through it.

Ghost Xiwen naturally said, "Come inside and clean the room."

Young Wizard Xiwen nodded, walked toward the open bronze door, and passed through the transparent barrier without any obstruction.

A smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

That meant whenever he wanted to leave, he only had to return his soul to his body and let Young Wizard Xiwen walk out openly.

In high spirits, Xiwen began casting all sorts of spells at different parts of the room to express his excitement—

"Aguamenti!"

"Scourgify!"

"Tergeo!"

"..."

After fumbling around for a while, Young Wizard Xiwen had nearly exhausted his magic. With the last scraps of power he had left, he used the Summoning Charm to bring over several spare candles from the dormitory and lit them nearby. At last, the cell looked somewhat presentable.

"Thank you for today, young wizard," Helena said sincerely to Young Wizard Xiwen. "What is your name?"

Young Wizard Xiwen smiled and replied, "Xiwen Rosier, ma'am."

Helena nodded, then turned back and glared at Ghost Xiwen. "Do you have no gratitude at all? Hurry up and thank Xiwen."

Both Ghost Xiwen and Young Wizard Xiwen stiffened, finding the situation utterly absurd.

So it had finally come to the point where I had to thank myself...

With an extremely strange expression, Ghost Xiwen said to Young Wizard Xiwen, "Thank you, Xiwen!"

Young Wizard Xiwen's expression was no better. He replied stiffly, "You're welcome, Mr. Ghost."

Helena did not notice anything unusual. She smiled warmly at Young Wizard Xiwen and said gently, "If you ever need help in the future, you can come to us. You may call me the Grey Lady, and he is Doctor Strange."

Young Wizard Xiwen awkwardly tilted up the corner of his mouth, treating it as a smile. "All right, I understand. Thank you, Grey Lady and Doctor Strange."

Xiwen fled back to the dormitory as though escaping. He felt that if he kept talking to Helena, his embarrassment would become unbearable...

Finally lying on his bed, Xiwen let out a long breath.

It was already past curfew. Fortunately, the castle dungeon was so remote that caretaker Pringle usually did not patrol there, allowing Xiwen to remain outside so late.

Come to think of it, being confined here isn't so bad.

With that thought, exhausted Xiwen drifted off to sleep...