Zhang Xiao watched Moaning Myrtle leave without looking back, then glanced at the equipment in front of him, utterly bewildered.
The other four young wizards stood there in a daze too. After a while, Hermione asked curiously:
"Why were the tears Moaning Myrtle just shed sparkling?"
"Those were 'Ghost Tears,' something extremely rare, not the sort of tears Moaning Myrtle usually sheds."
Nearly Headless Nick said enviously:
"They can only be shed when a ghost becomes extremely emotional, or recalls memories they've forgotten. It means she's recovered another part of her important memories.
"We all became ghosts out of a fear of death or because of an obsession. We exist because of our obsessions, but we're trapped by them too, so there are many gaps in our memories..."
That made sense. Zhang Xiao nodded gently. If their memories remained intact, they would be walking encyclopedias, even living fossils. These ghosts would certainly be treated very differently.
If their memories remained intact and they could manifest physical bodies like Peeves, wouldn't that put them on the level of ghost immortals?
Just then, the surrounding ghosts slowly gathered around him, their translucent, pearly-white bodies flickering like signal lights.
The Fat Friar stepped forward and looked at him with urgency and hope as he asked:
"Zhang, you just let Moaning Myrtle taste something, didn't you? Please, could you let us taste something too? Just once, once is enough. I can no longer remember how long it's been since I last tasted food."
Large, milky-white tears rolled down the kindly Hufflepuff ghost's face, and his expression grew sorrowful:
"When death came for me, my very last thought was actually that I hadn't tasted the delicious apple pie at home. When I came to my senses, I discovered I'd become a ghost.
"The obsession that