Chapter 73: The Witch Shadow Empire
"Ma'am, will you buy one for your little girl?" he called out to Mrs. Weasley as they passed, glancing at Ginny in a daze, "protect her pretty neck?"
"If I'm on duty......," Mr. Weasley said, glaring angrily at the amulet seller.
"yes, but don't go around arresting people now, my dear, we're short on time. Mrs. Weasley said anxiously looking at a list, "I think we'd better go to Madame Morkin's robes store first, Andrew and Hermione need a new robe, Ron's school uniform is short and his wrists are exposed, and, Harry, you're definitely going to need to buy new clothes too, you're growing too fast-okay, let's go-"
"I don't need any new robes, Luna will have them ready for us. Andrew said.
"And, Molly, it's not fitting for all of us to go to Madame Morkin's robes store. Mr. Weasley said, "Why don't you let the four of them follow Hagrid, and we can go to the Blotted Bookstore and buy all of everyone's textbooks, okay?"
"I don't know what to do," Mrs. Weasley said annoyedly, apparently in a dilemma between wanting to finish the shopping quickly and wanting everyone not to separate, "Hagrid, what do you think ββ??"
"Don't worry, they'll have no problem following me, Molly. Hagrid reassured, waving his palm the size of a trash can lid. Mrs. Weasley didn't seem entirely reassured, but they separated the group, and she hurried to the Blotted Bookstore with her husband and Ginny, while Andrew, Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Hagrid went to the Quidditch store.
Along the way, many people had annoyed and anxious looks on their faces, and no one stopped to speak. Buyers are all sticking together in groups and heading straight for what they want to buy, and no one seems to be shopping alone.
"If we all go in, it might be a little crowded. Hagrid said as he stopped outside the Quidditch shop and leaned over the window to look, "I'm standing guard outside, okay?"
So they walked into the shop together. At first glance, the shop seemed empty, but as soon as the door closed behind them, they heard a familiar voice coming from behind a row of green and blue robes.
ββ¦β¦ It's not a kid anymore, you probably didn't notice, Mom. I have more than the ability to go out shopping on my own. β
Then there was a cooing sound similar to that of a hen hatching eggs, and then a man spoke, "Yes, my dear, your mother is right, none of us should hang out alone now, it has nothing to do with children or not children-"
"Where's your needle poking?
A pointy-faced boy with a pale face and pale yellow hair emerged from behind a coat hanger, dressed in a beautiful dark green robe with shiny pins pinned to the welt and cuffs. He strode over to the mirror and examined himself carefully. After a moment, his pale gray eyes narrowed.
"Andrew, how dare you swing around with that mudblooded at a time like this?" Draco Malfoy said as soon as he saw Andrew.
"Shut up, Malfoy. Andrew sneered and said, "It's you, if I were you, I would hide at home and dare not come out, and let the house-elf come out for youβββOh, by the way, you don't have it at home anymore, right?"
"You...... yes," Malfoy scoffed, "you'll learn your lesson, Andrew, soon." β
"That's enough!" Lady Morkin snapped, turning her head for support, "Madameβpleaseβ"
Narcissa Malfoy slowly stepped out from behind the coat hanger.
"Keep this mudblood away from me," she said coldly to Andrew, "and if you dare to speak rudely to my son again, I'll let you taste my power." β
"Watch your son," Andrew slowly walked over to her, staring at the smooth, arrogant face, "if he dares to do anything stupid, I promise he'll be like his father." β
Hearing this, Narcissa Malfoy had an ugly smile on her face.
"Be careful, boy. I suppose that if you are so rude, I can guarantee that you will soon become a virtue with your cat. β
Hearing this, Hermione grabbed his arm, "Calm down...... Andrew. β
"Let's go," Narcissa said, glancing at Hermione with contempt, "and now I know which dregs of society have come into contact with Quidditch, a wizarding sport...... Let's take a look at the Apollo store, which only accepts pure-blood members. β
With that, the two of them strode out of the shop, and Malfoy deliberately hit Ron hard before going out.
Sadly, they bought some Quidditch armor and some team posters, and walked out of the Quidditch shop.
"Everything?" Hagrid asked happily as he saw them come out.
"Pretty much. Harry said, "Did you see Malfoy and his mother?"
"See. Hagrid said unconcernedly, "But in Diagon Alley, they don't dare to act rashly, Harry, don't worry about them." β
Immediately afterward, the Weasleys and Ginny appeared, each with a large bag of books in their arms.
"Are you all right?" said Mrs. Weasley, "the things have been bought, well, we're on our way to Fred and George's little shop, stopping by the drugstore and the babbling owl shopβlet's go, keep up with ......"
They then continue down the street, looking for Fred and George's joke shop, the Weasley brothers and Andrew's magic trick shop.
"I don't understand, Andrew. Mrs. Weasley said, "Where did you get such money for those two silly boys?" β
"I think it's worth it, Mrs. Weasley. Andrew said with a smile, glancing at Harry, "They're doing a good job, aren't they?"
"Wow!" Ron exclaimed, snapping to a halt.
The facades of the surrounding shops are dull and buried by notices, while the windows of Fred and George attract people's attention like fireworks displays. Ordinary pedestrians couldn't help but turn their heads to look at the window, and a few people looked so shocked that they actually stopped, looking obsessed. The window on the left is full of colourful goods that spin, twitch, flicker, jump, and scream, and on the right is a large poster, purple like the Ministry of Magic's notices, but with large yellow letters printed on it:
Why are you worried about the mystery man?
You should care
Constipation Ren β
The feeling of constipation torments the Chinese people!?
Andrew immediately burst out laughing, "Wonderful, isn't it?"
They walked into the shop: it was full of customers, cardboard boxes piled up to the ceiling: the twins had developed a quick-acting truancy candy in their last year before Hogwarts left school. The most popular thing here is the nosebleed beef candy, and all that is left on the shelves is the last box that has been flattened. There are also several boxes of juggling wands, the cheapest of which can be turned into rubber chicken or pants with a single swing, and the most expensive ones that can be beaten in the neck and head if the user is not guarded. There are also boxes and boxes of quills, including automatic inkjet, spell checking, witty rush answers, and other varieties.
A group of teenage children watched excitedly as a little wooden figure slowly climbed the steps to a realistic set of gallows, both on top of a box with the words: Reusable Executioner - Hang Him if You Can't Spell Him.
The executioner is a Scrabble toy, which generally consists of a gallows and a small figure, and if the person participating in the game makes a certain mistake in spelling, the little person will be put on the gallows and put to death. β
In the most conspicuous middle of the store, there is an exaggerated counter with a purple potion bottle on display, and the sign below reads: Patented product: Daydream spell potion, don't taste it unless you sell it......
Hermione pulled Andrew to a large display case next to the counter, reading the caption on the back of a box. The box was printed with a brightly colored picture: a handsome young man and a bewitched girl standing on the deck of a pirate ship.
"Just recite a spell and you'll be in for a high-quality, stunningly realistic thirty-minute daydream, suitable for a regular school class, so simple and absolutely imperceptible (side effects include a dull expression and a slight drooling). Not for sale to children under the age of 16. β
"Hey, look," Hermione said as she looked up at Andrew, "this magic is amazing!"
"This thing, Hermione," a voice said behind them, "you can take one for free." β
Fred stood in front of them with a smile on his face, wearing a magenta robe, which was very incongruous and dazzling with his fiery red hair.
"How are you, Andrew?" they shook hands, "Hey, Hermione, I heard you're living with Andrew now?"
"What kind of cohabitation, can you talk? We're just sharing a house together, Andrew is the one who has a girlfriend, be careful that Autumn is getting you in trouble!" Hermione immediately retorted earnestly.
"Is that so? You seem to have said that Andrew is the one who has a girlfriend, isn't that girlfriend you?" George laughed.
"Well, it's not what you think. Hermione just needed a place to practice the defensive spells she had learned, and underage wizards couldn't cast magic at will, especially in the Muggle world. Although the Ministry of Magic is in danger, Hermione is willing to stay near your house so that she can practice magic whenever she wants. Andrew explained with a smile.
"I said no, Qiu Ke believed me very much. Hermione replied quietly, blushing.
"Well, I'll believe it. Fred laughed and said, "Andrew, you really don't have any intentions for Hermione? β
"Muggle magic!" Fred happily pointed them out to him, "for the kind of weirdos who love Muggle stuff to my dad, you know." I don't make a lot of money, but it's a long stream, and it's all a very novel thing...... Oh, here comes George......"
Fred's twin brother warmly shook Andrew's hand.
"Let's go, let's show you where we really make a lot of money - if anyone dares to steal, it will be more than Galleons!" he suddenly warned a young boy, who quickly shrank his hand back from the plastic bottle labeled "Edible Dark Mark - Whoever Eats Disgusting!".
George lifted a curtain next to the Muggle magic paraphernalia, a darker, but less crowded room, with low-key product packaging lining the shelves.
"We've just developed these more serious products. "It's funny to say......
"Do you remember your demonic cloak? Andrew, the one that can block deadly spells, the last time you gave it to us for study, Fred and I have a result now. "Of course, we don't have as much magic as you, so we can only keep it at bay with some ordinary spells." β
"That's right...... Hey, we just wanted to make something funny out of your cloak, but the Ministry of Magic bought five hundred of them for all of them!
"So we went on to develop anti-spell hats, anti-spell gloves...... Although our things are almost the same as disposable products compared to dragon leather products, the price is cheap, any family can afford it, and the supply is sufficient, and we are ready to promote it next..."George gushed about.
"Then we're going to go all out into Defence Against the Dark Arts because that's a cash cow. Fred added.
"We are where we are now, and it would not have been possible without you. β
"Don't say that. "Even if Andrew's face is thick, it's a little embarrassing.
A young witch with short blond hair poked her head out from behind the curtain, she was dressed in a magenta shop robe.
"There's a customer out there who wants to joke about the Crucible, Mr. Weasley and Mr. Weasley. She said.
"Alright, Veriti, I'll do it. George immediately said, "See for yourselves." β
"That's right, whatever you want. Fred laughed, "Also, if someone asks, don't forget to tell them where they got it." β
After they walked out, Hermione asked Andrew, "I think you seem to have the ability to be a prophet of the future, did you know they were going to do this, and that's why you gave them a lot of money?"
"Of course I don't know, but when it comes to prophets, Professor Sybil Trelawney does say that I have a talent for divination..."Andrew picked up a strange-looking, black owl-like contraption that looked like it was ready to run away, and held it in his hand and played with it carefully.
"Speaking of which, I don't know much about what the twins were going to run at the time, but I was optimistic about the twins, they were capable, self-motivated, and although they seemed a little frivolous, they were not bad in nature, so my investment was not strictly an investment in this store, but in the twins. He put the black owl under Hermione's nose and shook it, then made the same owl expression.
Hermione was immediately amused by Andrew's appearance, "Investing in twins? β
Andrew smiled and said: "In the history of the Far East, there is a story called Strange Goods, which tells the story of a merchant who financed a prince, and in the end the prince became emperor, and the merchant was paid a hundred times. β
"So you're so optimistic about the twins, what do you think they can be in the future?" asked Hermione curiously.
Andrew put down the toy and turned to look at Hermione, "Compared to them, you are the one I really like about the Queen..."