Seeing Morris repeatedly poke his hand through the ghost's body, Cho Chang hurriedly grabbed his sleeve. "Stop! You can't just touch ghosts like that!"
Morris withdrew his hand and asked in confusion, "What's wrong? Sir Nicholas doesn't look angry."
"It's not a question of whether he's angry," Cho Chang explained seriously. "Ghosts carry a peculiar aura. If living people stay in contact with them for too long, they're very likely to fall ill. Last year, a student spent a whole night with a ghost and ended up in the Hospital Wing for an entire week."
"All right, thanks for the warning." Morris nodded thoughtfully.
Nearly Headless Nick elegantly adjusted his collar. "This young lady is quite right. Though it is not our intention, ghosts really shouldn't have too much physical contact with the living. But rest assured, brief contact does no harm."
In fact, Morris hadn't felt any discomfort. On the contrary, that peculiar icy sensation felt particularly pleasant.
He was confident that ghosts couldn't possibly harm him.
Still, since someone had kindly warned him, it was better to go along with it.
Afterward, Nearly Headless Nick returned to the Gryffindor table, bringing Morris's first encounter with a ghost to an end.
After Dumbledore delivered a speech that gave them something to think about, then conducted all the teachers and students in a thoroughly disjointed rendition of the school song, it was finally time to return to the dormitories.
The first years needed to follow their respective house prefects. Ravenclaw's prefect was a tall, thin boy, but Morris didn't know his name.
As they walked, Morris kept thinking about the headmaster's final words.
"...Finally, I must tell you all that anyone who does not wish to meet with an accident and die a painful death should stay out of the corridor on the right-hand side of the fourth floor."
Such a blunt warning was less a deterrent than an invitation to curiosity.
It had to be said that Dumbledore knew how to fan the flames.
Even the normally cautious Morris couldn't help taking an interest in that place.
But he quickly suppressed the thought.
Investigating now would be far too rash. More importantly, he had a vague feeling that this might have something to do with Harry Potter.
Unless he was fully prepared, keeping his distance would be the wise course.
Led by the prefect, Morris followed the group up the Marble Staircase, through a corridor, and finally up a narrow spiral staircase to a strange wooden door.
An exquisite eagle-shaped Bronze Door Knocker was set into the center of the wooden door, its metallic surface gleaming in the light.
"Welcome to the Ravenclaw Common Room." The prefect turned to face the first years with a polite smile. "I'm Prefect Robert Hilliard. As you can see, there's no fixed password here."
Robert pointed to the eagle-shaped knocker. "To enter the common room, you must answer the question this knocker asks. It might be a riddle, a logic puzzle, or a corny joke. If you answer correctly, the door will open. If you answer incorrectly..."
He spread his hands. "Then you'll just have to wait until someone answers correctly, or simply try again another time."
A faint stir ran through the first years.
Morris studied this unique entry system with interest-it certainly had Ravenclaw's style.
Unfortunately, though, he wasn't good at riddles.
Robert turned to the knocker and gently tapped the eagle's head.
The eagle-shaped knocker suddenly came alive and asked in a clear voice, "What grows the more it is shared?"
"See? A perfectly normal question." Robert turned to the first years and shrugged. "I think every Ravenclaw can answer this question. The answer is 'knowledge.'"
With the sound of a mechanism turning, the bronze eagle on the wooden door folded its wings, and the door opened on its own.
"Come in, everyone." Robert stepped aside to clear the way and gestured them inside. "Welcome to your new home."
Morris followed the crowd through the archway. The first thing he saw was a wall bearing a huge stone eagle, with a curved staircase on either side of the sculpture.
Only after climbing the stairs did the Ravenclaw Common Room truly reveal itself.
It was a breathtaking circular space with a high domed ceiling and a deep blue carpet underfoot, woven with intricate spherical patterns. Several groups of comfortable sofas and armchairs surrounded a fireplace, with a few books scattered nearby, adding a touch of lived-in warmth.
Most striking of all was a white marble statue standing at the top of the stairs.
It depicted an elegant witch. Morris guessed that this must be the house's founder-Rowena Ravenclaw herself.
Robert explained, "The common room has two floors. Take the staircase in the middle, and you'll find your dormitories-boys on the right, girls on the left. I'll give you your room numbers in a moment."
"For now, you're free to do as you like."
The students immediately grew lively and began wandering around in twos and threes.
Morris sat down in the armchair beside the fireplace, looked around, and casually picked up a book lying on the floor.
What a pleasant setting.
He nodded in satisfaction, then turned his attention to the book in his hand.
Surely the books Ravenclaw students read would be anything but ordinary.
He looked at the title-
"How to win the heart of a fellow wizard"
"..."
Morris silently put the book back where it had been.
It seemed this common room was more dangerous than he had imagined.
About three minutes later, Robert returned to the common room.
He cleared his throat and called out, "First years, over here."
The first years immediately gathered around, Morris included.
Robert unrolled the parchment in his hand and announced, "Ravenclaw only has five male first years this year, which isn't many. Dormitories are assigned four to a room, but because of the numbers, one person will be able to have a room to himself."
He looked around at the first years. "Would anyone like a dormitory to himself? The single room will be a little larger."
The first years exchanged glances and began whispering among themselves.
Most of them seemed hesitant.
Although a private dormitory was tempting, spending the night alone in an unfamiliar place was clearly a little frightening for an eleven-year-old, even if that place was Hogwarts.
"Any volunteers?" Robert asked again.
Morris and a black-haired boy raised their hands almost simultaneously.
At this, Robert let out a long sigh of relief-he had been worried that no one would want to live alone, which would have made the arrangements troublesome.
"Very good, Morris Black, and... Kyle Chesterfield." He glanced at the list. "But there's only one single room. Since you both want it..."
"Duel!"
An older student watching nearby suddenly shouted, drawing a burst of laughter.
"Don't interrupt, Cyril." Robert gave the student an exasperated glare, then turned to the two first years. "How about a contest, in keeping with Ravenclaw tradition? Oh, not a duel, of course. Don't worry."