Chapter 202: Big Clean-up at the Old Mansion (Part 2)
Chapter 202: Big Clean-up at the Old Mansion (Part 2)
The group quickly cast their spells, and with visible speed, the messy kitchen began to transform into a spotless space.
Heavy iron pots and pans shimmered as they were cleaned, their surfaces becoming shiny and new. Ancient grease stains on the stone walls and floors were swiftly broken down and removed, and the wooden tables gradually turned a bright champagne color from the bottom up.
The dark and greasy furniture was passed from one house-elf to another, each giving it a spritz of cleaner, a good scrub, a rinse, and finally a thorough wipe-down. By the time the last elf put them back in the cabinet, they were spotlessly clean.
Even those from traditional wizarding families, like Neville and the Weasleys, had to admit that nothing could be more "magical" than what they were witnessing.
Michael, with tears in his eyes, said, "Ved... you should've come to help earlier. I didn't know you had prepared so many things..."
"Not all of this is my doing," Ved replied. "Mr. Marioni lent me his newest batch of products to test out their performance."
Neville said enviously, "I've always wanted to buy one... but Gran won't let me get a magical marionette. They're too expensive."
"The Aslan Magic Workshop has been working on reducing costs and increasing production," Ved said. "Magical marionettes will definitely become more affordable in the future."
"I hadn't decided what to give everyone for Christmas," Ved continued, "but now I think this will do. It saves me from racking my brain..."
"No, I can't accept this!" Neville exclaimed, his face turning red as he waved his hands in refusal. "They're too valuable! It's too much."
"They might be expensive in stores," Ved said, "but to me, they're just the cost of production—about two galleons each."
Neville breathed a sigh of relief. If the cost was only two galleons, he could think of an appropriate way to reciprocate.
The boy excitedly mumbled a shy thank you.
"Don't be so polite," Ved laughed. "As long as you don't mind, everyone will receive the same gift."
Everyone laughed, remembering last Christmas when Ved had given everyone a similar gift—a friendship bracelet.
Of course, no one thought he was being perfunctory or measuring the value of the gift by its cost. It was amusing, but there was also a hint of envy.
Who wouldn't want to be like Ved, able to create something so useful and fun that it brought great joy to others?
...
With the house's magic no longer resisting them, the cleaning crabs and marionettes worked with great efficiency, leaving the wizards to assist and take care of tasks that the magical creatures couldn't perform.
This included dealing with the doxies hiding behind the curtains or the boggart in the writing desk.
The two adult wizards took the opportunity to teach the younger ones, and if it hadn't been for the late hour, Lupin would have had them all face the boggart.
"It will peer into your heart and take the shape of what you fear most," Lupin explained. "The spell to deal with it is simple, but don't underestimate these creatures. I know of wizards who have been so scared by a boggart that they've forgotten how to use magic."
As he spoke, he herded the floating full moon into a box, seemingly intending to keep this particular boggart.
There were also seemingly ordinary objects, like snuffboxes or tweezers, that suddenly came to life during the cleaning, revealing that they had been imbued with powerful Dark Magic.
One of the marionettes was caught off guard and had its neck snapped, and two others were damaged beyond repair, much to the young wizards' dismay.
These marionettes were more than just simple tools like brooms or cauldrons. They had human-like appearances, were hardworking and capable, and even let out realistic cries of pain when injured.
Hermoine couldn't hold back her tears for the deceased, who felt like true companions. She turned away to discreetly wipe her eyes, not wanting the others to see.
Everyone pretended not to notice.
When Ginny first arrived, she was shy and reserved, but when it came to exorcising the doxies, she displayed combat prowess far beyond her years, surprising everyone.
What surprised Ved even more was Percy.
In the original story, Percy Weasley wasn't portrayed in the best light, but here he demonstrated exceptional leadership skills.
After the initial adjustment period, he quickly took charge, assigning tasks and transforming the group from a disorganized bunch into a well-coordinated team.
While Ved didn't mind the previous atmosphere of playing and working simultaneously, he had to admit that their current efficiency was much higher. With the bedrooms tidied, they even had time to tackle the garden.
Percy's shortcoming, however, was his constant reminder of his status as a prefect. Every three sentences, he would mention it, carrying himself with an air of authority, only to be inevitably provoked by the twins and losing his cool.
For dinner, Kreacher took charge.
The house-elf effortlessly prepared a delicious meal for everyone. His culinary skills were exceptional, and his French onion soup earned unanimous praise.
Unfortunately, their merriment turned sour as they accidentally woke Mrs. Black with their loud voices.
The portrait let out a piercing shriek, "Scum! Filth! Damned Mudbloods! You vile vampires! How dare you enter our home! Traitor! Kreacher! You've betrayed me! Betrayed the noble House of Black!"
The other portraits joined in the cacophony of shrieks.
Kreacher's face turned ashen, his frail body trembled, and tears streamed down his face as he cried, "Kreacher... Kreacher has served the noble House of Black faithfully for generations!"
He suddenly rushed to the fireplace, grabbing a red-hot poker and attempting to stab himself with it.
"Wait, stop!"
Harry lunged forward, pinning Kreacher to the ground and trying to restrain his arms to prevent self-harm. But Kreacher had already burned himself, and the smell of charred flesh filled the room.
The girls were stunned, but several boys quickly rushed over to help restrain Kreacher, preventing him from further harming himself.
Lupin hurried to draw the curtains, but this time, it seemed more difficult. Sirius, meanwhile, sat motionless, his head bowed.
Ved covered his ears, then pulled out the friend's account and quickly wrote a sentence on one of its pages.
He then grabbed Lupin, shaking his head to signal that they should leave the curtains open for now.
Soon, a figure appeared in a blank portrait on the third floor. He quickly moved through several portraits until he reached the entrance hall.
As the figure passed by each portrait, the occupant would suddenly fall silent. Eventually, he reached the portrait of Walburga Black, Sirius' mother.
"Walburga!" the figure said.
The old lady's shrieking stopped abruptly, her rolling eyes fixed on the visitor, her madness replaced by an expression of arrogance and defiance.
After a long pause, she spoke in a hoarse voice, "Phineas, what are you doing here?"
Lupin was surprised. It was the first time he had heard this portrait speak normally instead of just screaming and hurling insults.
The intruder, however, sighed and said, "Walburga, you should address me as your great-grandfather."
(End of Chapter)
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