Alistair reached up and gently tickled the painted pear in the fruit-bowl portrait.
The pear immediately squirmed, transformed into a large green door handle, and allowed him to pull the concealed entrance open.
The moment he stepped into the Hogwarts kitchens, dozens of house-elves noticed him and quickly gathered around with eager expressions.
“Sir, what can we get for you?
Would you like dessert?
Perhaps a chocolate cream puff?” one of them asked.
Alistair accepted the offered pastry, took a bite, and immediately tasted rich chocolate and cream.
“That’s delicious.
Thank you.” The house-elves practically glowed at the praise, several of them bouncing excitedly as though Alistair had given them an enormous compliment.
Standing in the warm kitchen with fresh food everywhere, he felt increasingly proud of both his decision to attend Hogwarts and his unexpected placement in Hufflepuff.
Ravenclaw had originally been one of the Houses he’d considered acceptable, but after less than a day at school, Alistair had to admit that the relaxed Hufflepuff lifestyle suited him better than spending seven years maintaining the reputation of an academic prodigy.
More importantly, having the kitchens almost next door was an advantage no amount of Ravenclaw intelligence could easily overcome.
He finished another bite of the cream puff before remembering why he’d actually come.
Alistair reached into his pocket and unfolded a small piece of parchment on which he’d written a list of ingredients.
“Could you help me get these by tomorrow?” he asked, handing it to the nearest house-elf.
The elf immediately accepted the list, and several others crowded around to read over its shoulder while Alistair calmly continued eating.
After studying the parchment for a while, one of them looked up with an apologetic expression.
“Mr.
Vance, most of these things aren’t difficult to obtain, but several aren’t commonly kept at Hogwarts.
We may need to purchase some of them from Muggle shops.” Another house-elf hesitantly added, “That means everything may not be ready until around noon tomorrow.” The surrounding elves looked almost ashamed that they couldn’t produce every ingredient immediately.
Alistair, however, wasn’t bothered in the slightest; some of the things he’d requested weren’t common in traditional British cooking, so the fact that the house-elves could obtain them within half a day was already impressive.
“That’s completely fine.
If one or two things are genuinely difficult to find, don’t worry about them.
As long as most of it is ready before lunch, that’s more than enough.” The house-elves visibly relaxed.
The one holding the list immediately straightened and declared, “No problem, Mr.
Vance!
We’ll make sure everything is ready before lunch.” Another elf eagerly stepped forward.
“Are you planning to cook something?
If you leave us the recipes, we can prepare everything and bring it to you when it’s time to eat.” Several others nodded enthusiastically, clearly hoping Alistair would let them handle the entire meal.
Unfortunately for them, that wasn’t what he wanted.
“No, thanks.
Cooking it myself is part of the fun,” Alistair replied with a smile.
“I’ll come back tomorrow around noon.” The house-elves looked slightly disappointed that he’d rejected their help, but they still cheerfully wished him good night as he left the kitchens.
Alistair returned to the Hufflepuff common room feeling satisfied with his preparations and eventually went to bed.
The meal he’d planned wasn’t complicated, but it would serve perfectly well as repayment for Cedric giving him that untouched steak during the opening feast.
The next morning, Alistair finished getting ready and stepped out of the boys’ dormitory to find Cedric already waiting in the common room.
“Morning, Alistair.
Want to get breakfast?” Cedric asked.
“Afterward, I’ll show you around the castle so you don’t get lost when classes start.” Alistair readily agreed, and the two left Hufflepuff together and headed toward the Great Hall.
Having someone who already knew Hogwarts well enough to act as a personal guide was exactly why he’d been so happy to meet Cedric.
On the way, Cedric smiled and said, “I wrote to Dad last night and told him you were Sorted into Hufflepuff.
His reply came by owl this morning.
He was really happy and reminded me again to look after you.” Alistair laughed softly.
“Mr.
Diggory really is kind.” The mention of the owl also reminded him that he hadn’t bought one of his own in Diagon Alley, and neither Vinda nor anyone else in the Alliance had thought to suggest it.
Since he would need some reliable way to send letters home, buying an owl or another suitable pet eventually seemed like a good idea.
After breakfast, Cedric began giving Alistair a proper tour of Hogwarts.
He showed him several classrooms he’d be using during his first year, explained which staircases were easiest to take, and pointed out corridors where getting turned around was especially common.
Alistair paid close attention because even his knowledge from the books and movies couldn’t substitute for navigating the real castle, where staircases moved and hallways seemed determined to confuse new students.
Cedric took the responsibility seriously, clearly wanting to make sure his younger friend wouldn’t arrive late to class simply because Hogwarts had decided to rearrange itself.
Eventually, they reached a small, gloomy room with no windows and only a single oil lamp hanging from the low ceiling.
Cedric suddenly lowered his voice.
“Remember this place.
And stay away from it whenever you can.” The mysterious warning instantly caught Alistair’s attention, because uncovering Hogwarts’s secrets had been one of the reasons he’d wanted to come here in the first place.
He glanced toward the dark little room and asked quietly, “What’s inside?
Does Hogwarts keep dangerous Dark artifacts in there?” Cedric shook his head with a grave expression.
Alistair tried again.
“Some kind of magical creature?” Another solemn shake of the head followed.
Now genuinely curious, Alistair leaned closer.
“Did something terrible happen there?” This time Cedric nodded with complete seriousness.
Alistair’s excitement immediately mixed with caution.
He already knew about Moaning Myrtle’s bathroom, where Myrtle Warren had died decades earlier, but he hadn’t remembered another ominous room like this from the stories.
“How terrible?” he asked.
Cedric’s expression became even more severe.
“Extremely terrible.” Alistair stared at the door, suddenly wondering what obscure piece of Hogwarts history he’d somehow forgotten.
“So what room is it?” Cedric paused just long enough to make the answer sound appropriately dreadful.
“That’s Filch’s office.” Alistair stared at him without expression.
Cedric waited for a reaction, then seemed disappointed when none came.
“Aren’t you curious what Filch does in there?” Cedric asked.
Alistair glanced once more at the gloomy office of Argus Filch, Hogwarts’s caretaker, and shook his head.
“I think I can make a pretty good guess.” Cedric looked slightly confused by his lack of curiosity, but soon moved on with the tour.
To Alistair, a room filled with confiscated items, disciplinary records, and whatever else Filch collected was considerably less mysterious than Cedric’s warning had made it sound.
By the time they finished exploring several more corridors and classrooms, most of the morning had passed.
Cedric was about to suggest heading to the Great Hall for lunch when Alistair suddenly caught his arm.
“Not today.
Remember the steak you gave me last night?” Cedric nodded, unsure where the conversation was going.
Alistair smiled.
“I promised myself I’d repay you, so I’ve prepared something special for lunch.” Before Cedric could ask what he meant, Alistair began pulling him back toward the lower floors.
“I’m cooking it myself.” End of Chapter 19 [Milestone: [Milestone: 10 Reviews = +1 Chapter] Enjoyed this chapter?