It was nearly a week before Halloween. That afternoon, after delivering a large package of Muggle novels to Mr. Wolfe and retrieving the book he had lent him last time, Ryan met Colin Creevey in the castle corridor. Colin brought a message from Nick: 7:00 PM at a predetermined location.
It seemed that preparations for Nick's Halloween feast were about to begin, Ryan thought as he returned to the common room—only to find Hermione waiting for him.
The last time Ryan had seen Mr. Wolfe, Wolfe had complained that life in the Forbidden Forest was too dull and asked if they had any entertainment. Hermione, an avid reader, suggested that books could be a great source of amusement.
So, Ryan and Hermione lent Wolfe some of the recreational books they had brought to school. Now, Hermione had blocked Ryan's way, eager to know Wolfe's opinion on the books.
"Wolfe said he liked all of them because he was so bored that he would have gladly read any piece of paper with words on it at least five times," Ryan replied.
"He sounds like quite the studious wolf," Hermione said, clearly impressed. "I should ask my father to send me my encyclopedia next time. I think Wolfe would enjoy expanding his knowledge."
The day's classes went by quickly, with all subjects being fine—except for Lockhart's drama-filled lesson. Ryan truly couldn't understand why Dumbledore had hired someone like Lockhart. Was it to show students what a typical failure looked like?
After dinner, Ryan hurried to the Room of Requirement to begin preparations for the ghostly banquet.
Upon entering, he found that Nick had already set out five or six dishes. Each dish was steaming hot and looked even better than the food in the Great Hall. It was clear that, despite the magic of the house-elves, mass-produced cafeteria food could never compare to individually prepared meals.
Ryan then began casting spells, and after more than half an hour, he successfully transformed the six dishes on the table into a soul state.
At that moment, Ryan took out talisman paper and stuck it onto the plates. He instructed Nick to have the house-elves transport the plates to the designated location—but warned them not to remove the talisman paper. The talismans were necessary for the plates to hold the soul food; without them, the plates would be unable to carry the ghostly meals.
After completing the food transformation, Ryan sampled what remained. While the appearance of the food had not changed, the taste had completely vanished. The once-delicious dishes now had the texture of chewing plastic.
Exhausted, Ryan collapsed onto the sofa and started chatting with Nick. A thought suddenly struck him—Nick had connections with ghosts all across the UK, many of whom had witnessed significant historical events. Perhaps he could learn some interesting stories from them.
"By the way, can I attend your banquet as a living person?" Ryan asked.
Nick looked surprised. "I would be delighted to have you, but I assumed you'd prefer the school banquet over our rather gloomy one. That's why I didn't extend an invitation. But if you're interested, you're more than welcome to come. In fact, bring your friends along—I think the more, the merrier!"
When Ryan returned to the common room, he shared the news with the study group. However, most of his classmates weren't keen on attending. Ron, who was working on his Potions homework, found the idea odd.
"Celebrating the day you died? That's just weird," Ron muttered. "Besides, I bet the whole thing will be dull."
Most other students agreed, but Hermione was intrigued.
"I'll go," she said. "I've never read about many living people attending a ghost's banquet before. Besides, you said many important historical witnesses would be there—I'd love to meet them."
The next day, Hermione accompanied Ryan to the Room of Requirement. She was curious to see how he transformed human food into ghost food.
Nick expressed his sincere gratitude for Hermione's attendance. Meanwhile, Hermione watched Ryan's spellcasting intently, trying to learn the technique. But the language barrier proved insurmountable—Ryan's incantations were in an ancient dialect she didn't understand.
Defeated, Hermione sighed. "I wish there were more records about Eastern magic at Hogwarts. There's so little information, and it's frustrating that my curiosity can't be satisfied."
Two days before Halloween, when Ryan and Hermione arrived at the Room of Requirement, they found Nick floating in the air, clearly distressed.
"What's wrong?" Ryan asked. "You look worried."
"I made a huge mistake," Nick admitted. "I wanted everyone to enjoy a variety of dishes, so I made sure each one was different. But I just realized… none of the ghosts have cutlery! How are they supposed to eat the steaks? There's no time to cut and convert everything now—what should I do?"
Ryan thought for a moment. "Didn't you once mention that ghosts can carry items from their past lives?"
"Yes, but no one carries cutlery when they die," Nick explained. "And in my time, people mostly used knives to cut food, then ate with their hands. Forks weren't common yet. If you go back further, like to Slytherin's era, there were no knives and forks at all."
"Don't worry, I have a solution," Ryan said.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a straw-woven sword. Then, he bit the tip of his index finger and smeared a drop of blood on the blade.
Hermione watched in fascination. As the blood touched the sword, a faint light flickered across its surface—but when she looked again, the glow was gone.
Ryan then gripped the hilt and sliced through the soul-state steak on the table. The steak split cleanly into two portions.
Hermione's eyes widened in astonishment. "How did you do that?"
"I just experimented," Ryan admitted. "The book only mentioned that the calamus sword could cut through evil spirits. I wasn't sure if it would work on ghost food, but I gave it a try."
Nick suddenly rushed forward. Ryan quickly pulled the sword back, but the blade still nicked the back of Nick's hand.
Nick froze, staring at the small wound in shock.
Ryan assumed he was worried. "Don't stress about it," he reassured Nick. "The calamus sword affects ghosts the same way normal swords affect humans. You'll heal in a few days."
Unexpectedly, Nick suddenly dropped to one knee and clasped his hands together.
"Mr. Smith, I have a request," Nick said solemnly. "Please, promise me you will grant it."
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