Audrey left the Potions office and headed for the kitchen.
"The original story said you just go down the stairs leading to the Hufflepuff common room to find the kitchen," Audrey muttered to herself. "But the problem now is, I don't know where the Hufflepuff common room is!"
It's often said that men and women have different senses of direction. In reality, this is a flawed theory. Most men focus on the shape of environmental objects when memorizing, while most women focus on the color.
Shapes don't change, but colors often do.
The staircase in the morning has a different color than the staircase at dusk, which is the origin of the illusion that women often feel their sense of direction is worse than men's.
Unfortunately, Audrey's memory also focused on color. She had wandered around all the staircase entrances near the Great Hall but couldn't find the legendary fruit painting that opened the kitchen door.
"George, is this enough food?"
"I think so. We're just showing Harry the rich nightlife of Hogwarts, not throwing a party. Right, Fred?"
"Makes sense. Too bad there's no booze."
"Should we go ask Wood to borrow some? I know he snuck a bottle of Firewhisky back from Hogsmeade last term."
"We can go to Hogsmeade this year, so we can pay him back then."
"But Harry will get drunk!"
"We'll get drunk too!"
"Haha, then we'll all be late together tomorrow morning!"
"What class do we have tomorrow morning?"
"Snape's Potions..."
"Oh, that's terrible."
"Yeah, normally it would just be ten points, but now he'll probably take fifty!"
"Fifty it is, then. Snape's already given Slytherin over seventy points today anyway. He's aiming for Slytherin's eighth consecutive win!"
"You're right. With Snape giving Slytherin points, it's useless no matter how hard we try. If he wants to take points, let him!"
"What was it Audrey called this?"
"Lie flat!" (x2)
"Oh, George, I just love that phrase!"
Audrey saw Fred and George walk out of a door and her eyes lit up. She moved over.
Seeing the two of them with their arms full of food, Audrey felt playful. She adjusted her vocal cords and, imitating Snape's voice, said: "Mr. Weasley!"
This scared the twins badly. They looked around but saw nothing, and immediately oiled their soles, sprinting toward the Gryffindor common room.
"Bloody hell, George, was that Snape?"
"Sounded like him. But why didn't he come out and grab us?"
"Who knows? It's bloody weird! I'd rather Filch give us detention than have detention with Snape!"
"Forget it, forget it, no drinking today... or if too many points are taken, everyone will complain."
"Yeah, yeah. Losing points isn't scary. What's scary is losing points and it's not even fun!"
Audrey watched the two run off, muttering, and her gloomy mood from being lost instantly lifted.
'Looking at the food they're holding, that means the doorway they just came out of leads to the kitchen!'
Audrey went through the entrance they had come from. Sure enough, it was a staircase leading to a lower level.
In a few minutes, she found the oil painting of the fruit bowl.
In her eyes, the pear in the painting was the area where the ancient magic echoes were most dense.
She tickled the pear. The pear giggled, distorted, and turned into a green doorknob.
Audrey dropped her invisibility and pushed the door open.
The kitchen was located directly below the Great Hall, with the same area and four long tables placed in the same positions as in the hall above.
It had a high ceiling, a large fireplace, and shiny copper pots and pans piled up against the surrounding walls.
House-elves were diligently preparing ingredients for tomorrow's breakfast.
"Another esteemed wizard," a house-elf spotted Audrey, and a group of elves immediately surrounded her enthusiastically. "What can we do for you, esteemed lady?"
"Little Mistress?"
Momo emerged from the crowd and came to Audrey.
"Is this the Little Mistress you always talk about, Momo?" the lead house-elf asked Momo, astonished.
Momo nodded: "Yes, this is my Little Mistress. The best Little Mistress!"
"Oh!"
"Oh!!"
"Wow!!"
"Respected lady, we often hear Momo speak of you! You are the kindest, most talented, gentlest, most amazing little witch. Please allow us to treat you!"
Audrey smiled and shook her head: "No need. I'm here to study."
"Wow! Momo wasn't wrong. You are so studious, truly the most amazing little witch!"
Audrey felt a little embarrassed. She said: "You all go back to your work. Just let Momo stay with me."
"Yes, Momo's Little Mistress."
"My name is Audrey Astley. You can call me Audrey."
"We wouldn't dare, Miss Astley."
"Miss Astley?"
Suddenly, a house-elf froze. "Is it the Miss Astley who sings?"
Audrey nodded, "That's me." She was a bit puzzled, "What's wrong?"
"It's Miss Audrey Astley!"
The house-elves began to cheer. "So Momo's Little Mistress is Miss Audrey Astley!"
The lead house-elf snapped his fingers, and music filled the Hogwarts kitchen. It was "The Industrious Little Bee," a children's song Audrey had created for Charles Primary School in 1990.
...Well, the "little bee" described in the song was indeed her secondary adaptation based on the image of house-elves.
"Next time I have a chance, I'll record a version of 'The Industrious Little Elf' for you."
This one sentence made the little ones explode.
They all cried their eyes out. "Miss Astley is just too good!"
"She's so gentle..."
"We're going to have our own song!"
Momo puffed out her little chest, looking extremely proud!
'See, everything I said is true!'
Ignoring these neurotic house-elves, Audrey began to observe the ancient magic echoes in the kitchen.
Because she had already used the kitchen's meal delivery and communication functions in the Great Hall, she quickly identified that part.
'So, remove that part, and the rest is for other functions, which must include the ghost-repelling part.'
She walked along the edge of the kitchen, memorizing as she went.
Until she reached the fireplace.
"Huh? This looks like an entrance!"
Audrey noticed something amiss, because the magical echo structure here was too similar to the structure of the main door at the Headmaster's office!
A large number of magic lines converged on a single stone brick, making this brick look different.
Audrey curiously tapped the brick.
The magic lines reacted immediately.
However, nothing happened.
She tapped it again, still no reaction.
Momo asked softly: "Little Mistress, can you see the magic traces too?"
Audrey looked at her and said quietly, "A little. Don't go telling anyone!"
"Yes, Little Mistress!"
Audrey continued to study the brick. She was certain this was the entrance to some secret room.
'How to open it?'
'The kitchen and the greenhouses are Helga Hufflepuff's territory...'
'Hufflepuff...'
Audrey's eyes lit up, as if she'd thought of something.
'Isn't the way to enter the Hufflepuff common room to tap the bottom of a certain barrel at the entrance?'
'The tapping rhythm, I remember it's in the rhythm of "Helga Hufflepuff".'
'So...'
She tried tapping the brick in that rhythm.
Sure enough, the reaction of the magic lines was completely different from before!
After the seven taps, the entire fireplace began to shake. The pots, cauldrons, and grills inside were pushed out by the soot-blackened wall. The wall moved to one side, revealing a huge entrance.
"Wow!"
Momo's eyes widened. "This is..."
"It's the entrance to the legendary Lady Hufflepuff's vault!" an older house-elf blurted out.
"Hufflepuff's vault?"
Audrey was only slightly surprised, but then she thought of Salazar Slytherin also leaving a vault at Hogwarts, and it felt natural.
"Miss Astley, there is a prophecy passed down among us Hogwarts elves for generations: One day, a young wizard will find Hufflepuff's vault and inherit her legacy!"
"I didn't expect you to be that young wizard!"
Audrey sighed softly.
She just wanted to find a way to repel ghosts. How did she end up inheriting Hufflepuff's legacy?
But a thief doesn't leave empty-handed. She wouldn't refuse the opportunity to enter a founder's vault.
After all...
'Since I'm already here!'
[Reviews - Power St0nes - Comments are highly appreciated to keep me going.....(+50 chapters) patre0n.c0m/talecrafter]