Hogwarts has many vacant rooms, and even abandoned sewers tall enough for two people in the dungeons, but Filch is just the caretaker. Although he treats this place as his home, he doesn't actually have the authority to dispose of property.
The place he arranged for the Weasleys was outside the castle, near the Forbidden Forest.
"I don't know if this is the right thing to do." Filch led the way, turning his head to stare coldly at the twins, "If I find out you're deceiving me..."
George cut off his threat, "That thing isn't hard for us, we just need a little time."
Fred nodded, "Nothing is too difficult for us."
Anton looked curiously at the wooden fence faintly visible in the distant forest, "Mr. Filch, what is that place for?"
"Hagrid's Hippogriff enclosure. I advise you not to go near it, those animals are fierce."
George had a comical expression, "It's said that Hippogriffs are born from a Griffin and a horse."
Fred's expression was in sync, "So we have reason to guess that a Griffin is from a lion and an eagle, oh, bloody hell, I can't imagine that scene."
The sights and sounds of the wizarding world were once again reshaping Anton's worldview.
If proper wizards considered dark wizards to be evil, then in the eyes of normal humans, wizards were definitely evil too.
Even after wandering at the bottom of society for so long, and having seen many things that no longer surprised him, there were still many things he found hard to accept.
Like the shrunken head that all wizards seemed to love, hanging on the windshield of the Knight Bus.
Finally, they arrived in front of a wooden cabin.
On top of a one-meter-high wall made of stone blocks, the upper part was constructed with wooden planks. Long-term exposure to wind and sun had made the upper part look mottled and worn, and the stone chimney of the fireplace also seemed to be missing a corner.
Anton had reason to believe that this place was originally something like a pigsty, with wooden walls and a roof built on top.
And only a small half of it was built, because a large circle of stone walls extended out to the side.
"This is where I used to live." Filch said with some emotion, holding the key, "Once there was a blizzard, and the house was almost destroyed. Professor Dumbledore let me live in the castle."
He stuffed the key into George's hand, his bulbous eyes staring intently at him, "Don't go into the Forbidden Forest, don't do bad things inside, and don't come over after curfew at night, do you hear me."
George and Fred stood up straight like soldiers, "Of course!"
Heh, Filch didn't believe it at all. He twisted his mouth, "I'll be watching you."
"How long, how long will it take?"
"One..."
Anton quickly interjected, "One month, our imitation wands will be able to blow a strong wind, which can help you effectively blow away any smells and dust. Three months, the 'Scourgify' function will be perfected."
He patted Filch's shoulder smugly, "Sir, trust us, this is not a difficult task for us."
Filch nodded, his gaze sweeping over the three faces for a moment, and finally walked away with his aged steps.
George looked strange, "I was going to say one week."
Fred couldn't agree more, "This really isn't a difficult task for us."
Anton shook his head firmly, "One week, and you can be sure he'll take back this cabin as soon as it's done. Only a long period of three months will get him used to us being active here."
His eyes lit up as he looked at the house, "Now it's ours, and no one can take it back."
George and Fred said in unison, "You really are a Slytherin."
"Hehehe." Anton looked at the house and smiled with delight.
And so, all three of them laughed.
But not long after, the three of them couldn't laugh anymore.
No matter how they twisted the key, it seemed to be stuck, as if the lock was a fake.
With a hard pull from Fred, the entire door panel was torn off.
Bang!
The door panel fell, kicking up countless clouds of dust.
Not only that, like a domino effect, the house made creaking sounds, and soon, crash~
Rumble~
Clatter~
The entire upper wooden structure of the house collapsed.
Clang~
A round wall lamp base rolled to their feet.
"Bloody hell!" George was dumbfounded.
"Bloody hell!" Fred was dumbfounded.
"Bloody hell!" Anton was dumbfounded.
The three looked at each other.
Anton's mouth twitched, "I heard there's a spell called 'Reparo', do you guys know it?"
"That's indeed a good idea. A gentle flick of the wand, and it will return to its original state." George's face showed no happiness.
"The only problem is that we can't open the door, or it will collapse again," Fred added.
"..."
They looked at each other speechlessly, choked with silent tears.
Anton sighed, "This is the only way I could think of to get a place. We can't give up."
George nodded vigorously, "Looks like we need helpers!"
Fred chuckled, "We have a lovely younger brother."
Wow~
Now you remember your brother?
Anton had them rush to make some badges first, "Everyone who comes to help is a person who has made an outstanding contribution to the 'Weasley Shack', and we should give them a 20% discount."
George and Fred expressed their confusion.
"This will be our first batch of customers, gentlemen."
"Wow~oh~" George exclaimed.
"Good idea, Mr. Vampire," Fred was overjoyed.
This was where the importance of connections showed. The twins brought over many upperclassmen, and also called their younger brother Ron and his friends.
There weren't many people Anton could find, only his lovely roommate.
At first, Draco disagreed. He had parents and a house-elf who adored him, and he had never done any heavy labor since he was born.
"Slytherins really aren't united." Anton said with a sad face, "Looks like I can only let Harry Potter laugh at me."
How could he tolerate this?
His uncle could tolerate it, but Draco Malfoy could not.
Not only did he call Crabbe and Goyle, but he also gave a speech in the Slytherin common room, bringing over a large group of classmates of the same age.
Nice!
Draco was quite charismatic.
As the saying goes, enemies have a special hatred for each other when they meet. Draco's arrival aroused Harry's competitive spirit, and he specifically went to a nearby place to find Hagrid for help.
As the saying goes, a rich man is inhumanely generous. Hagrid's contribution was four huge logs, dried and thick enough for a person to wrap their arms around, to serve as the house's supports.
As the saying goes, many hands make light work. Before long, the entire ruin was cleaned up.
The cleaned-up site sparked speculation among the young wizards; this place must have been a pigsty before.
Hagrid reached out and touched the stone wall, put his finger in his mouth and licked it, giving a definitive answer, "Crups. Their urine has a unique sweet, grassy smell, and it lingers for years."
What kind of bizarre experience was this? Most of the young wizards found it hard to accept.
But experience is experience. Hagrid pointed to the middle of the stone enclosure, "Crups are animals extremely loyal to wizards. Early wizards loved to keep these dogs, but if their droppings accumulate too much, it's easy to attract Giant Hairy Earthworms."
The young wizards didn't know what Giant Hairy Earthworms were, but the mounds and pits of various heights inside the enclosure looked as if they had been carpet-bombed.
"Are we going to have to level them with shovels?" Ron refused. He hadn't learned the Levitation Charm yet, and when he was moving the wooden planks just now, his finger got a splinter, and it still hurt.
The upperclassmen said this was a very interesting topic, but after much discussion, all proposals were rejected.
The only reliable one was Transfiguration, but as soon as the magic of the Transfiguration was disturbed, the ground would return to its original state.
"We need an excavator." Harry Potter had a strange expression. His uncle was a director at Grunnings, a company that produced drills, and sometimes he would hear him discussing various machinery with his colleagues at home.
This proposal was also rejected. Most people didn't know what that thing was, and Hagrid also clearly stated that Hogwarts castle had powerful magic, and no Muggle machinery could be used here.
Just then,
Anton, who had disappeared at some point, returned.
"Huh, it's done so quickly?"
Anton, holding a small potted plant, looked at the spacious area with satisfaction.
"Unbelievable!" Draco was the first to complain, "You called us here to help, but you slipped away yourself!"
"Oh, I went back to the dormitory to get this little cutie." Anton patted the flowerpot, in which a section of green vine was growing.
Draco leaned back with a look of disgust, "Please don't let it get near me, I saw you pour a large basin of pig's blood into it."
Anton shrugged, "That's the key to keeping it alive."