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Chapter 66: House-Elves and Portraits
Chapter 66: House-Elves and Portraits
Even though Ved could afford to buy ten of the latest brooms with his Gringotts vault full of galleons, he still expressed great joy over the gifts from the house-elves and shared some candy he had brought from home—he had grabbed a bag on his way out and stuffed it into his pocket.
"These are made by Muggles, without magic, but they have a rich aroma and taste delicious," Ved introduced them.
The house-elves wore expressions of being overwhelmed, hesitating for a while. But since this wasn't the first time they had exchanged gifts with Ved, the several house-elves soon calmed down and accepted the candy, thanking him profusely.
"Would Ved Grey like some breakfast?" Phil respectfully asked, "Most of the breakfast in the kitchen is ready at this time."
"Sure," Ved replied decisively.
Phil found an old pad that was relatively clean from the pile of junk, while Zoe and Hobby left the Room of Requirement, soon returning together. One carried a large tray filled with food, and the other held a large jar of beverage, Ved's favorite orange juice.
Hobby and the others knelt on the ground, spreading out a tablecloth, setting out the food and drinks. Ved sat down, and then he saw the house-elves get up and stand beside him, still holding the candy in their hands, their faces beaming as they looked at Ved.
Ved's mind suddenly flashed with a thought, and he looked up, puzzled, and said, "Why are you standing? Sit down, everyone—this is our breakfast gathering."
"Sit—sit down?" Zoe stuttered, "Me—us?"
"Of course!" Ved imitated her tone and then laughed, "Who else could there be here?"
The three house-elves looked at each other, their expressions more excited than the first time they received Ved's gift, as if 'sit down' was an unimaginable honor.
But they seemed to be tied up, not moving for a long time, their large eyes filled with apprehension.
Ved added a little more emphasis to his tone and invited them again, "Please sit down—don't you want to join me for breakfast?"
"Of course—we do!"
Zoe seemed breathless, trying to catch her breath, and then she sat down carefully next to Ved.
Next was Hobby, who was a little braver and sat clumsily across from Ved.
Then it was Phil's turn, and he wobbled, finally shrinking into the corner with the encouragement of his two companions and unconsciously tugging at the tablecloth with his slender fingers.
"Well then—" Ved looked at the three house-elves and announced, "Let's begin the breakfast gathering!"
He took the lead in picking up a meat pie and then gave each of the house-elves one as well, eating casually. Soon, sobbing could be faintly heard in the air.
Large tears fell from the tennis ball-sized eyes of the house-elves.
"So strange—so strange—" Hobby wiped away his tears and choked, "Hobby is so happy—why are there tears—"
Ved didn't say anything, just gently stroked his ugly little head.
Phil and Zoe, with bitter tears in their eyes, devoured the pies, swallowing them whole.
In the shadows of the old furniture, a wizard and three house-elves sat together for the first time in the interplay of light and dark, finishing their breakfast.
...
Monday in Ravenclaw still began with the not-so-popular Potions class.
The Room of Requirement was on the eighth floor of the castle, while the Potions classroom was in the basement. Ved was too lazy to climb the stairs, so he simply rode his broom down, circling around the castle a couple of times before finally landing in the central courtyard.
By the time he landed, Ved's fingers were almost frozen, and his ears and nose were red from the cold.
As it turned out, winter was not a suitable season for flying, even with warming charms; the howling wind still brought the chill.
"Smack!"
Hobby suddenly appeared, handing Ved his bag and eagerly taking the broom from him. He looked at Ved with admiring eyes and said excitedly, "Hobby will help Ved Grey put away his broom!"
"Thanks for your help, Hobby," Ved said with a smile.
Hobby bowed deeply, his long nose almost touching the ground, and then he disappeared with the broom.
Ved had already eaten breakfast and was originally planning to go directly to the Potions classroom. However, as his body shivered from the cold, the damp and chilly basement suddenly became unappealing, and the warmth of the Great Hall with its roaring fireplace drew him in.
Ved climbed the steps and walked through the entrance hall, taking a seat in the Great Hall for a while.
At this time, some miserable fifth-year students were already sitting at the long tables, most of them with messy hair and a troubled and helpless look on their faces as they ate breakfast and studied... or rather, ate their books, looking as if they were about to shatter.
Ved didn't dare disturb these intensely focused seniors, so he sat quietly for a while, reading a chapter of his Potions textbook. Once his body had warmed up, he quietly left the Great Hall.
"Hey, Ved! Long time no see!"
As he passed through the entrance hall, a familiar voice called out.
"Griffiths?" Ved looked over in surprise.
"Yeah, it's me." The red-haired wizard was perched on a large frame, having squeezed the original owner of the portrait into the corner, who glared at Griffiths indignantly from behind.
"It's been a holiday since I last saw you. Did you miss me?" Griffiths' cheerful voice continued, "Hmm? Looks like you had a pretty comfortable holiday! Your face seems a little rounder... I, on the other hand, have not—"
He rolled up his sleeves, pointing to a bruise on his arm as he said to Ved, "See this? Someone even beat me up! It's only been a few years, but everyone seems so distant now, and their tempers have gotten so short—"
—Are you sure it's not because of you that they're so irritable?
Ved silently mocked him in his mind, glancing at the poor wizard whose space had been occupied by the bully. He asked Griffiths, "Weren't you in the corridor? Why are you in the entrance hall now?"
"No, my portrait is still in the corridor!" Griffiths shook his finger and smiled. "They just said there was no more space in the entrance hall, but they didn't say I wasn't allowed to visit! I'm paying a friendly call on an old friend I haven't seen in a long time, and I'm sure Dumbledore wouldn't mind!"
"Hey, kid!" A wizard wearing a tall hat suddenly shouted at Ved from a nearby portrait, "Are you the one who brought this guy out of the Astronomy Tower? Do us a favor and take him back there!"
"Yes, yes! Take him back!"
"It was hard enough to get him up there, how did you manage to bring him down again?"
"Do you know how annoying he is? My hair is falling out in clumps!"
"—You're a portrait, you don't have hair."
"I'm speaking figuratively! Figuratively! Do you understand? Don't nitpick my words."
"I'm just stating the truth... Why are you so angry? Can't we all just get along?"
"Ahhh—who will drag this guy out of here!!!"
The usually quiet portraits suddenly erupted into chaos, and the early-rising students who were having breakfast were astonished, eagerly gathering around to watch the commotion.
Ved quietly slipped away from the entrance hall. Griffiths, ignoring the ruckus he had caused, pushed his way through the portraits without a care, even waking up some of the sleepers along the way, and followed Ved out of the entrance hall.
"Noisy bunch, aren't they?" Griffiths said with a smile. "House-elves are much quieter than them."
Ved paused and turned to look at Griffiths.
(End of Chapter)
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