Hogwarts: Transmigrated as the Top Student

At six o'clock the next morning, Jon Hart woke from his sleep.

He got up and looked around. He was in the Hufflepuff boys' dormitory.

Hufflepuff dorms were arranged as single rooms—each student had their own compartment. Though they appeared small from the outside, the space inside was surprisingly roomy.

His suitcase had already been brought in. On the windowsill sat the glass cage containing his two South African red spiders.

Jon walked over, pulled a few dead mealworms from the small box beside the cage, and dropped them inside... He wasn't particularly concerned about the health of these "pets"—as long as they survived until Halloween, they'd served their purpose.

After a quick wash and slipping on his black Hogwarts robes, he headed to the Hufflepuff common room.

It was completely empty at this hour—around a quarter past six. Warm sunlight streamed through the windows, casting a glow over the plant specimens set out in the room. Those had all been placed there by Professor Sprout, the head of Hufflepuff.

Jon didn't plan to linger. He passed through the rounded underground tunnel, climbed out of the barrel, and re-entered the first basement corridor of Hogwarts.

The school rules forbade wandering the halls at night... and Jon didn't have powerful tools like an Invisibility Cloak or the Marauder's Map to let him explore under cover of darkness.

But nothing stopped him from getting up at six to stroll through the quiet school. It didn't break any rules, and the lighting was better anyway.

His first stop was the kitchen, located just next to the Hufflepuff common room.

He wanted breakfast—but the Great Hall wouldn't be open at this hour.

"Gabriel said yesterday the kitchen was down this corridor..." Jon muttered as he scanned his surroundings.

Soon, he found it: a painting of a silver fruit bowl.

He extended a finger and lightly scratched the large green pear. It wiggled, let out a giggle, and suddenly turned into a big green doorknob.

He pushed through the door and was greeted by a room nearly the size of the Great Hall, with polished copper pots and pans stacked against the stone walls and a large brick fireplace on the far end.

"Sir... hello... sir..." A small creature darted toward him. "May I help you?"

It was a rather unsightly little "creature"—a House-elf. It had bat-like ears and bulging green eyes the size of tennis balls. Even though Jon had braced himself, he was still startled.

"Hello!" Jon took a moment to steady himself, then held out a hand. "I'm Jon Hart, from Hufflepuff. May I ask for some breakfast?"

"Hufflepuff!" the House-elf squealed. "Welcome... oh, so welcome... what an honor..."

As it screeched, it nervously clasped two of Jon's fingers in its tiny hands.

Immediately, six more House-elves rushed over, carrying a large silver tray piled with a tall glass of milk, a cup, and a heaping plate of cookies.

"Thank you, thank you so much... but this is way too much!" Jon said earnestly. "By the way, I don't know your name yet."

"My name is Klein, sir..." the House-elf replied, wiping away tears. "It's an honor to serve a Hufflepuff!"

More and more House-elves gathered around, stuffing bread, cakes, and pies into Jon's arms.

"That's enough, that's enough, really!" Jon said, then turned back to Klein. "Wait... why did you stress 'Hufflepuff' like that?"

"A thousand years ago, life was miserable for House-elves," Klein said, his voice catching. "Lady Helga Hufflepuff brought our ancestors to work in the Hogwarts kitchen, gave us work, and made sure we weren't abused. Thanks to her, we've lived better than any House-elf anywhere else ever since..."

"It is the duty of every Hogwarts House-elf to protect Hufflepuff House..."

...

Ten minutes later, Jon left the kitchen with his robe pockets stuffed full of food, under the watchful eyes of over a hundred House-elves.

Clearly, choosing Hufflepuff had been the right decision—at least he'd never go hungry at school.

And now he understood why there were no anti-intrusion spells on the Hufflepuff common room. It hadn't been breached by strangers in nearly a thousand years... because the House-elves were always watching its entrance. Any intruder would be driven away immediately.

He didn't return to the common room, nor did he rush to class—it was only 6:30. He began climbing up into the castle.

Hogwarts' staircases were notoriously complicated, but luckily the portraits were happy to give directions—and most were quite helpful. Jon followed their guidance and made his way to the eighth floor.

After more than ten minutes, he found the wall across from the tapestry of the troll clubbing Barnabas the Barmy.

He paced back and forth in front of the wall three times... and a polished door appeared.

The entrance to the Room of Requirement had revealed itself.

He reached out, turned the brass handle, and pushed the door open.

Inside was a dining table, set with a full set of utensils.

"Wow, this place is amazing!" Jon emptied his robe, placing all the cookies, cakes, and bread onto the table, then picked up the cutlery and began to enjoy his breakfast.

"Maybe I should test the limits of what the Room of Requirement can offer," Jon mused.

Start broad, and narrow it down step by step...

He stood up.

"I need a strategic missile silo and an intercontinental ballistic missile with a nuclear warhead!" he said silently to himself. "Nothing too powerful—something like the Dongfeng-5, Topol-M, or Minuteman III would do just fine!"