Inside the Hogwarts kitchens, dozens of busy house-elves instantly gathered around the moment the three boys stepped through the doorway.
The Weasley twins clearly weren't surprised by the attention. Judging by their relaxed expressions, sneaking into the kitchens was obviously something they'd done more than once.
"Honoured wizard, what would you like to eat?" several elves asked eagerly.
"Two pumpkin juices and two servings of steak with roast potatoes," Fred and George answered in perfect unison.
Argus glanced around the bustling kitchen before giving his own order. "I'll have a lemonade, some fried sausages, and bacon with eggs, please."
"Thank you?"
One tiny elf gasped dramatically as though she'd just witnessed a miracle.
"Sophie, did you hear that?" the little elf cried excitedly, grabbing another nearby elf by the shoulders. "The honoured young wizard thanked Leah!"
The elf named Sophie immediately looked over with obvious envy in her eyes.
"Alright, Leah," Sophie said quickly. "Don't keep our distinguished guest waiting."
"You're right!" Leah squeaked in panic. "Leah delayed the honoured guest! Leah is a terrible elf! A wicked elf!"
Before Argus could react, the tiny house-elf picked up a metal pan and smacked herself across the forehead.
Argus froze in shock.
While he was still processing what had just happened, another elf had already delivered the food they ordered.
The difference in treatment was painfully obvious.
Fred and George received exactly what they requested, casually piled onto ordinary plates with little care for presentation.
Argus, meanwhile, was handed a beautifully arranged meal that looked like it belonged in an expensive restaurant. The bacon was covered in a thick, fragrant sauce, and even the lemonade came decorated with a small white flower floating delicately on top.
"Honoured guest," Leah said nervously, wringing her hands together, "this is a special sauce Leah prepared herself."
"Please… please enjoy it."
Her eyes were filled with nervous anticipation.
The twins looked down at their own food before staring at Argus's elegant meal.
Then they looked back at their plates again.
"This is blatant discrimination!" Fred protested immediately.
"Exactly!" George added indignantly. "Why didn't we get this treatment the first time we came here?"
"No, Argus," Fred declared seriously, "we demand a food exchange."
Leah's face instantly turned pale with panic. She opened her mouth as though she wanted to stop them, but didn't dare interrupt.
Argus noticed immediately.
He smiled reassuringly before gently patting the tiny elf on the head.
Then he cut off a piece of bacon, dipped it into the sauce, and took a bite.
The flavour exploded across his tongue.
"It's delicious," Argus said honestly. "Thank you, Leah."
The little elf nearly burst into tears from happiness.
"The honoured guest praised Leah's cooking!"
She immediately turned toward the other house-elves with an expression of pure triumph.
The surrounding elves instantly became competitive.
One after another, they rushed to prepare their best dishes and desserts, desperately trying to earn a compliment from Argus as well.
Plate after plate appeared before him like an endless feast.
By the end, Argus genuinely began to understand that too much delicious food could become a form of torture.
Meanwhile, the Weasley twins benefited enormously from his presence, stuffing themselves with dishes they had clearly never been allowed to try before.
When the three finally left the kitchens, the house-elves stood at the entrance waving reluctantly as though sending off honoured royalty.
George rubbed his stomach contentedly and sighed. "Looks like next time we sneak into the kitchens, we'll have to bring Argus along."
"Definitely," Fred agreed solemnly. "After tonight, ordinary food is going to taste terrible."
"Don't worry," Argus said with a laugh. "There'll be plenty of opportunities later."
In truth, he doubted he'd be spending many nights quietly sleeping in the dormitory from now on.
The restricted section of the library, the hidden chambers connected to Hogwarts' founders, and countless secrets buried within the castle interested him far more than resting early.
And if he could eventually get his hands on the Marauder's Map from the twins…
That would make exploring Hogwarts much easier.
The three eventually split up at a corridor intersection since Gryffindor Tower and the Slytherin dungeons were in opposite directions.
Fred and George offered to escort him back, but Argus confidently refused.
His memory was excellent. After walking a route once, he could usually remember it perfectly.
At least, that was what he believed.
"Meow!"
A sharp cat's cry suddenly echoed through the corridor.
Then came a familiar raspy voice.
"Mrs Norris… has another student sneaked out again?"
"Go on, sniff carefully."
Argus's expression stiffened instantly.
What rotten luck.
He definitely needed to learn a proper Disillusionment Charm as soon as possible.
Hearing Filch's approaching footsteps, Argus quickly scanned his surroundings before leaping onto a nearby moving staircase and slipping through the door of a dark classroom.
The room was pitch black.
Not a single source of light existed inside, while Filch's footsteps grew steadily closer outside.
Argus didn't dare use Lumos.
If Filch spotted magical light in the middle of the night, he'd immediately investigate.
Keeping one hand against the wall, Argus carefully moved deeper into the darkness.
He didn't particularly care about losing house points. To him, the entire system felt like a childish game.
What truly mattered was avoiding Dumbledore's attention.
Ever since their conversation in the Headmaster's office, Argus had realised something important.
Dumbledore was already suspicious of him.
And until Voldemort returned, Argus had no intention of becoming the old wizard's primary focus.
As he continued moving through the darkness, his hand suddenly brushed against another door.
"Hm?"
Argus frowned slightly.
Why did this place feel strangely familiar?
He recalled the stone statues and thick cobwebs he'd touched while entering the room, and a bitter smile slowly appeared on his face.
"No way…"
"Did I accidentally wander in here?"
Faint snores drifted through the crack beneath the door.
Argus instantly realised where he was.
This was the chamber guarding the Philosopher's Stone.
More specifically…
The room containing Fluffy, the gigantic three-headed dog.
Argus had absolutely no intention of opening that door.
There was no way Dumbledore hadn't layered this place with powerful detection magic. The moment the door opened, the Headmaster would probably know immediately.
"Guess I'll gamble on this instead."
Argus quickly hid himself in a shadowed corner before raising his wand toward his body.
"Scourgify."
A faint ripple of magic swept across him, removing the scent of food and dust lingering on his clothes.
Moments later, Filch's footsteps stopped outside the classroom.
"Has someone come in here, my darling?"
The hunched caretaker slowly pushed open the door while holding an oil lamp in one hand and Mrs Norris in the other.
The cat narrowed her glowing eyes suspiciously as Filch carefully scanned the dark classroom.
Argus remained completely still in the shadows.
After several tense seconds, Filch finally muttered something under his breath and closed the door again.
His footsteps gradually faded into the distance.
Argus let out a quiet breath of relief.
"Good thing I cleaned away the smell first."
"If we run into a professor instead of Filch next time, things won't be nearly this easy."
He waited patiently for several more minutes before cautiously slipping back out into the corridor.
Then, after walking for a while, Argus discovered an even bigger problem.
He was lost.
Completely lost.
The moving staircases of Hogwarts twisted through the castle like a giant maze, and after taking several wrong turns, Argus no longer had the faintest idea where he was.
"I really should've let the twins escort me back…"
He looked down toward the lower levels of the castle and seriously considered simply jumping from the staircase to save time.
Just then, a strong smell of garlic drifted toward him.
Immediately afterwards came a nervous, stammering voice.
"Y-you're… a new Slytherin student?"
"W-what are you doing here?"
....
Join my exclusive P@treon community for 60+ thrilling chapters!
Link: pa*treon.com/MidnightWonder (Remove the *)
If you join now you will get 2 Chapters for free as well.
Don't miss out, join now!