Hogwarts, the eighth floor of the main castle.
Holding a variety of desserts, a young witch with long silver hair stood blankly by the ugly stone statue, gazing down the empty corridor, her smile gradually fading.
She still hasn't solved her dilemma of madness. She can't seem to find the specific location of the Hufflepuff common room, and from the eighth floor to the negative first floor, it's quite cruel without an elevator. Now!
Recalling how the house-elf Burley led her before, it seemed to be a short way... Elena furrowed her little face and tried to remember the tour route from a month ago, surveying her surroundings.
The night was dark, and in the hallway stood several cold medieval knights in armor. Most of the figures in the portraits on the wall nodded listlessly. Walking down the hallway to Elena's right is a classroom with closed doors. She knows there is a black painted Steinway piano belonging to Grindelwald and Dumbledore in there.
At the end of the hallway, next to a warm torch, there is a portrait of an elegant and luxurious woman. The circular opening behind the portrait is the only entrance to the Gryffindor common room.
It's a pity that the "Fat Lady" as the Gryffindor house guardian isn't as reasonable as the bronze eagle knocker of the Ravenclaw house. If they were students from other houses, even if they knew the password, they couldn't enter the Gryffindor Common Room. Elena thought, looking down at her Hufflepuff yellow and black attire with frustration, wondering if she could blend in discreetly...
and many more things.
The little silver-haired Loli displayed a playful expression on her face, reaching out to tug on her black wizard robe, with no house mark displayed. As a first-year student who had just finished her first day at school, she was still wearing a navy blue tie with the Hogwarts crest. She wouldn't receive her house garments until the next morning: house emblems, knitted sweaters, bow ties, and scarves.
Having said that...
Bold thoughts suddenly appeared in Elena's mind. She pulled up the hood of her robe to cover her long silver hair and approached the Fat Lady's portrait, whispering like a lost bunny, "Excuse me, is this the Gryffindor common room? I'm sorry, I'm lost."
"First-year student? Oh, yes, this is the common room for Gryffindor house."
Upon hearing the voice in front of her, the Fat Lady slightly turned her body, looking down at the little girl in front of her and said softly, "I'm sorry, dear, but the protocol is that you still need to state the password to enter here, do you know the password?"
"Caput," Elena said clearly.
The Fat Lady smiled slightly and indicated with her left hand. The portrait swung forward, revealing the circular hole leading to the Gryffindor common room. Elena felt relief and hastened through the wall.
Just behind the entrance wall of the portrait was a cozy circular room filled with plush armchairs. The crackling fire in the fireplace made a comforting sound. There were two spiral staircases leading to the boys' and girls' dormitories.
On the first day of school, the long journey and the continuous succession of events had left most students exhausted. They returned early to their dormitories. The warm common room was empty, and Elena felt relieved.
As the "starting point" for the first time here at Hogwarts, this is probably one of the scenes she's most familiar with. The little silver-haired Lori ascends the right spiral staircase and pushes open the door. She entered the girls' dormitory in the Gryffindor Tower.
Lifting the edge of her hood, Elena carefully looked around.
As she saw a month ago, a row of beds with four-posters and a crimson flannel curtain extended from the entrance, and the floor was covered with a furry red-gold carpet.
In this era without internet and mobile phones, students didn't have too many distractions and entertainment options.
At this moment, most of the little witches from the Gryffindor house had either donned their robes or gathered in groups of two or three murmuring to each other, or sat alone by the bed reading quietly, and no one paid any attention to the newcomer.
Near the door, on the soft bed where Elena once slept, a little witch with long, wavy brown hair lay against the headboard of the bed, gazing at a huge, heavy book with a quill in hand. Occasionally, she scribbled what she was noting on the pages of the book.
Wow! Isn't this the classmate Hermione Granger?
Fate is truly marvelous...
Elena mischievously raised her eyebrows, tiptoed, silently walked behind Hermione, and glanced at the title of the book in Miss Knowstone's hands: "History of Hogwarts School".
The content described on the open page was precisely how the four founders arrived and established Hogwarts. No doubt, the cute little Hermione must want to verify what Elena said about crossing the lake.
"Cough, I actually didn't see it here."
Elena coughed and explained carefully, "However, the source of the ritual for crossing the lake is just as I said. If you are interested, you can ask Professor Dumbledore or Professor Binns from 'History of Magic'."
"I know, I just wanted to confirm it again... Yes! Um..."
Hermione nodded distractedly, barely beginning to speak when she abruptly stopped, her eyes widened in shock, and she twisted her head, and the quill made a long mark on the page.
"Hush."
Before Hermione could scream, Elena quickly reached out and covered her mouth, while at the same time raising a finger to her lips, indicating for her not to speak loudly, as she didn't want to be discovered in the middle of the night.
"Elena, how did you get here?"
Hermione looked at the familiar and delicate face in front of her, carefully surveyed her surroundings, and asked in a hushed voice.
"I got separated from the Hufflepuff team due to some mishaps, and then Professor Dumbledore asked me to come to this floor."
Elena sat on the edge of the bed, shrugging her shoulders. She replied sincerely, "Even though it may sound like a fantasy, the truth is right in front of you. The password is Dragon's Lake, isn't it?"
Noticing Hermione's suspicious gaze, Elena reached out in frustration and grasped the chubby face of the girl in front of her, with a touch of pain in her tone.
"Oh my, what's with your eyes? Am I going to lie to you? I'm from Hufflepuff! I just thought maybe Professor Dumbledore mistakenly remembered my house, after all, they have to think about so many things today. I don't want to add new problems for the teachers."
Indeed, what she said were factual, although some insignificant points were omitted in the middle, but that was still an irrefutable fact.
"But..."
Hermione looked suspiciously into Elena's lagoon-blue eyes. Although they were full of sincerity, her instincts continued to tell her that logically there must be something amiss.
"Okay, okay, don't think too much about it. Look, I brought you something nice."
Without giving Miss Alltone too much time, Elena simply removed her shoes, quickly climbed onto the plush bed, and eagerly opened her robes, revealing all kinds of pastries, cookies and candies brought from the headmaster's office. A muffled groan echoed throughout Hermione's quilt.
Hermione was momentarily frozen and her doubts were momentarily set aside. She quickly stored the book she had in hand and placed it behind the pillow. She reached out and gathered the scattered desserts and cookies so they wouldn't fall on the sheet or roll under the bed, eagerly exclaiming.
"Come on, come down, don't put everything on my bed."
Before she finished speaking, she saw Elena raise her hand directly and put her robe on the high stool beside the bed. She comfortably shook her long silver hair and then quickly slipped under the warm blanket, leaning against Hermione.
"Oh! You haven't washed your feet yet, don't fall asleep!"
Miss Beaver's face swelled, her big brown eyes glaring fiercely at Elena. Although she had had a moment of fear about sleeping alone for the first time at school, this did not mean she would not be angry, even if... even Elena looked good.
"Strictly speaking, this is my bed."
"How is it your bed... this is the Gryffindor common room, Elena, don't get into trouble."
Elena turned her head and lifted the speckled hair of Hermione that made her neck itch a bit, with a smile at the corner of her lips.
"Don't you think we could make a bet? If I can provide evidence..."
"...If it really is your bed, then I'll go along with your plan. But what if you don't provide evidence?"
Hermione wrinkled her nose and looked at her challengingly. She wasn't going to be afraid of Elena like the boys like Ron, Draco, and Harry. This time she decided to teach the silver-haired witch a lesson. To make her understand that Hermione Granger is not so easily fooled.
"Nothing more than..."
There was an imperceptible sigh in Elena's eyes.
When I first woke up at Hogwarts, I thought it was just a visit that I would never return to. Elena ~ ~ I used the buttons on my clothes to mimic a previous movie. In the previous storyline, a brief sentence was engraved on the edge of the wooden bed.
Shaking her head without explaining further, Elena raised a finger and said softly, "Touch the place on the right side of your bed. There should be a line engraved there, with the abbreviation of my name at the end."
"On the side of the bed... down to the right?"
Hermione looked at Elena, reached out to the indicated position, and felt a row of scratches.
Her fingertip slowly slid along the letters, and the girl read them out loud and curiously.
"I've been here-"
.....
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