Kate rode the elevator all the way down to the first basement level.
Yes, that's right—the first basement level. Here, the staff passage led straight to the staff dormitory.
Right now, though, the one living in this staff dormitory was an old bat.
Maybe it was because he'd grown used to staying in the Slytherin dungeon, but the moment Snape arrived, he'd demanded to move into the staff dormitory—and renovated the place a bit while he was at it.
Now, apart from a few Teachers, hardly anyone ever came to visit this room.
But Kate had knocked on its door all the same.
When Snape came to open it and saw it was her, his already cold face revealed a touch of scrutiny.
"Miss Shafiq, if you're not here about something important..."
"Head of House, I've come to pay you back for the materials!"
Kate flashed an utterly harmless smile, and just as she went to reach for the pouch at her waist, she paused: "Aren't you going to let me in first?"
Almost no student had ever dared to speak to him like this. Snape narrowed his eyes, but still stepped aside to make a small gap and let her in.
The moment she walked in, Kate was taken aback by this renovated staff dormitory.
Originally, a room here had been meant to sleep six people in bunk beds, so it was far roomier than an ordinary hotel guest room.
But now, all that remained was a single crude bed, while every other surface was crowded with all manner of potion bottles and cauldrons.
He'd turned a perfectly good room into the set of a horror film.
Truly worthy of a Potions Master—these things really did follow him wherever he went.
After taking a tour of this faintly grimy, smoke-hazed room, she finally stood still and drew a complete ten-inch length of shed snakeskin from her pouch.
"Head of House, why don't you see whether this can settle your material costs?"
The instant he saw the thing in her hand, Snape's gaze went a little rigid. He couldn't wait to take the shed skin and examine it minutely against the light.
Shed skin from a Basilisk—this was a top-grade material that money could scarcely find, and what's more, Kate had handed him a full ten inches of it!
Only after recognizing the precious value of this thing did Snape silently set it down, and even the way he looked at Kate became a little different.
"This only covers the materials," he said coldly.
Kate caught on instantly, and produced a Basilisk fang, wrapped in tissue, holding it out: "Then, would this be enough to cover your labor?"
Snape, who had only just barely kept his composure, suddenly went wide-eyed.
"This is a Basilisk fang—please be careful, there's still venom on it," she reminded him kindly.
Snape couldn't have cared less; he simply snatched the fang and studied it earnestly, his gaze practically the way one might gaze upon a beloved wife.
Holding back her laughter, Kate asked again, "So, Professor, may I leave now?"
Snape was in no mood to deal with her now and waved a hand carelessly, so Kate, stifling a laugh, lowered her head and hurried off.
By the time he realized what he'd just done, Kate had long since vanished without a trace.
Running all the way down the stairs to the first-floor Great Hall, Kate finally couldn't hold it in and burst out laughing.
This had finally shut the old bat up—let's see what excuse he could come up with to put her in detention next time!
Catching her breath a little, Kate walked over to the elevator, and just as she meant to ride it up, she pressed the button—only to see Malfoy's and Pansy's faces appear in the opening doors.
But the two of them were currently raising their wands and pointing them all around the elevator, doing who knew what.
"What exactly are you two doing?" Like she was observing some piece of performance art, Kate couldn't help asking.
Inside the elevator, Malfoy's expression shifted slightly, and she retorted stubbornly, "None of your business!"
Oh, then she wouldn't bother.
Kate simply stood where she was, waiting for the elevator doors to close, planning to catch the next one up.
But after waiting quite a while, she still saw no movement in the numbers on the display.
With a baffled look she pressed the doors open again—and saw that Malfoy and Pansy had each switched to a different side, jabbing their wands all over the inside of the elevator, drenched in sweat.
"Do you two not know how to use it?" Kate asked sincerely.
Malfoy straightened up at once, redness instantly flooding her entire face: "How could a Muggle thing like this ever stump me!"
"But earlier you clearly almost got stuck at the subway ticket gate," Kate honestly reminded her.
Earlier, when they'd come to stay at the hotel, the people in front had demonstrated one by one—yet when it was Malfoy's turn, not only did the machine swallow her ticket, she'd also nearly failed to get through.
In the end it had been a kind Muggle lady behind her who'd used a subway card to swipe her through all over again.
For a Wizard entering the Muggle world for the first time, there were always all sorts of things to get used to—and that was perfectly normal.
So from the very start Kate had suggested that it would be best to pair one Muggle-born young wizard with every ten students, so nothing would go wrong.
It was just that this Young Miss Malfoy, leaning on her family's clout and clustering together with the other pure-bloods, hadn't figured out how to use these simple devices even now.
"All right, I understand." Kate saw through it but didn't say so, and asked patiently, "But I'm in a hurry to get back, so might I trouble you to let me ride this elevator with you?"
Pansy gave Malfoy a light nudge from behind, shoving her right up in front of Kate in one go.
"I—" Caught off guard at being pushed so close, Malfoy's face flushed at once, her voice even beginning to crack a little, "Why on earth should I let you ride?"
Kate blinked, then simply lifted her hand and reached straight toward her.
Watching this person's hand about to make contact with her own, Malfoy—her little face flushed scarlet—backed away two steps, dodging her touch.
And Kate took the opening to walk right in, pressed the elevator's floor button, and nodded calmly: "Thank you."
Thank you for what!
Malfoy clenched her teeth hard. "You think we need your help?"
"I only pressed my own floor, that's all," Kate replied, her expression unchanged. "It just so happens you live on the same floor as me."
As she spoke, the elevator arrived. She stepped out, then glanced back at the two inside: "Not coming out?"
Pansy, hiding behind again, gave her another push.
Left with no choice, Malfoy awkwardly stepped out, still insisting stubbornly, "I can manage an operation this simple too; I don't need your help."
"Mm, I'm sure you can." Kate gave a faint smile, not bickering with him, and simply turned to head toward the room at the end of the corridor.
Staring somewhat blankly at her retreating back, Malfoy finally came to her senses, then turned and set off in the direction opposite to hers.
She had nearly reached the far end before turning her head back, hesitating—only to see that Kate was already standing in the doorway, where that Ravenclaw Seeker had opened the door, come out and pulled her into a quick hug, then drawn her inside.
Grinding her teeth unconsciously, Malfoy clenched the wand in her hand, opened her own door with an Unlocking Charm, and slammed it shut with a "bang."
Pansy, outside the door: ...
Well—tonight the young miss was going to be sniffling away in her single room again.
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