George hurriedly left.
Since Kyle's house wasn't connected to the Floo Network, he needed to first return to the Burrow and use their fireplace to reach Diagon Alley.
Fred had wanted to go along too, but after catching his reflection in a mirror, he changed his mind and retreated to the attic. Though usually carefree about his appearance, he didn't fancy becoming a spectacle in the crowded Diagon Alley looking as he did.
He'd rather not become the first laughingstock of the new school year.
In the attic, Kyle examined the twins' progress from the past few days. A large box contained more than ten different types of popular candies — Fizzing Whizbees, cream candies, toffees, and chocolate candies.
He picked up a cream candy and sniffed it, detecting a faint bitter smell that clashed with its natural sweetness.
"Mmm mmm mmm..."
Fred seemed to want to say something, but Kyle couldn't understand him.
He took out a notebook and wrote, "These are failed attempts. We discovered that only toffee can mask the taste of the Swelling Solution."
Kyle nodded and picked up a piece of toffee to smell it. The bitter scent was indeed much fainter, barely noticeable unless you were looking for it.
Their method was crude, though — they had simply hollowed out the candy and stuffed the Swelling Solution inside. With more care, they might be able to completely mask the solution's taste.
Of course, they might have simply been too lazy to do it properly. Until they worked out the correct dosage of the Swelling Solution, this could hardly be considered even a prototype.
Later, Fred handed Kyle another notebook containing their experiment records. It detailed the specific reasons for each failure and the adverse effects, spanning about a dozen meticulously documented pages.
While Kyle leafed through the notebook, George returned with a paper bag full of shrivelfigs.
"You didn't need to buy so many, George." Kyle said, reaching for the bag, "Shrivelfigs are just a supporting ingredient — one or two would have sufficed."
"Better safe than sorry." George said cheerfully, handing over the items, "What's this, you want to join us too?"
Kyle shrugged, "After a week of homework, I need some fun too."
"Speaking of that..." George sighed, "I can't believe you'd waste your precious holiday time on homework. Percy's the same way. When I went back just now, he complained that I disturbed him. Good grief, I just opened a door — it's not like he was doing his homework in the living room!"
"I must say, you're much better than him in this regard — at least you never blame us for not being able to do your homework."
Kyle ignored the twins' usual bickering and began peeling two shrivelfigs to extract their juice.
Meanwhile, George retrieved half a bottle of Swelling Solution from a nearby box. After considering for a moment, he found an empty bottle and split the potion in half.
Fred and George weren't particularly skilled at brewing potions, and Molly wouldn't allow anyone to mess with cauldrons at home. To save time, they had bought these Swelling Solutions directly from Diagon Alley, at five Galleons per pint. Better use it sparingly.
After adding the shrivelfig juice, the Swelling Solution's color gradually lightened from sky blue to light blue.
Kyle nodded approvingly. The color change was good — it meant the potion's properties remained intact. He picked up the bottle, preparing to test its effect on his hand.
But George stopped him.
"No, no, no, Kyle, that won't work." George said seriously, "We need the tongue to swell, not the hand."
With that, he took out a new piece of candy from his pocket, dropped some potion on it, and popped it directly into his mouth.
"I shouldn't have tasted it." George mumbled, "This taste is too weird, it's like ugh... ugh ugh..."
His cheeks began to puff up, and his words dissolved into unclear mumbling. His tongue was swelling.
Fred was excitedly gesturing beside him, making muffled sounds and clearly celebrating. George's tongue expanded rapidly, soon protruding from his mouth like a slippery python.
"Looks like it worked." Kyle observed.
The shrivelfig had successfully neutralized part of the Swelling Solution, making it target only the tongue where the potion had made direct contact.
All they needed now was to mask the potion's distinctive taste so young wizards wouldn't notice it, and their "Skiving Snackbox" would be complete.
Fred and George were overjoyed.
"You're brilliant, Kyle... haha, shrivelfigs!" George exclaimed once the Swelling Solution's effects had worn off, "You've no idea — we were about to give up."
"The Swelling Solution is too expensive." Fred said, spreading his hands, "We'd already wasted an entire bottle before this."
"Five Galleons!" George winced, "We really should have waited for you."
Just thinking about wasting five Galleons made his heart ache. That money could have bought enough Dungbombs for a small war against Slytherin.
"Don't you have money?" Kyle asked, "A hundred Galleons each — don't tell me you've spent it all?"
"Having money and wasting it are two different things." Fred sighed, "Besides, we only have thirty Galleons left now, thirty Galleons total."
On the first day of vacation, while Molly was scolding the twins, she'd accidentally knocked their hidden money pouch loose. Golden Galleons scattered everywhere, nearly giving her a heart attack — she thought they'd robbed some Slytherin student at school.
Though Fred and George quickly explained where the Galleons came from, she didn't believe them. Only when Chris came over was the situation finally cleared up.
However, Molly had confiscated those Galleons, claiming she worried they'd use them for mischief.
Now, Fred and George only had what was hidden in their trunk. Just as they said, thirty Galleons, no more, no less — just enough to get by.
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