Chapter 29. Accident
"Harry," Adrian Wesson shouted, striding to Harry's side and placing a hand on his shoulder, "close your eyes."
"For wh—"
Before Harry could finish, the world spun violently.
With a twist of Apparition, Adrian and Harry appeared outside the shop.
Fortunately, the shop stood in a fairly secluded spot; the street had only one middle-aged man with his back to them, smoking by the roadside, and the sudden arrival of two people didn't attract his notice.
Because the Apparition distance was short, Harry didn't feel too unwell—just badly startled.
Still shaken, he gripped Adrian's forearm. "What happened, Professor?"
Adrian didn't answer. His eyes were fixed on the shop.
The previously quiet storefront suddenly let out a heavy, thudding vibration.
Harry jumped.
A moment later, the whole building shook violently; Adrian felt as though it might collapse at any second.
The next instant, the glass windows blew out with a bang, and the wooden door was hurled straight off its hinges, slamming down beside the smoking man with a resounding "Bang!"
"!"
The man dropped his cigarette in fright and turned toward Adrian.
"What happened!?" he shouted.
Adrian gave him an apologetic smile, then drew his wand and flicked it at him.
"Wait—"
Before the passer-by could finish, Adrian's spell struck him.
There was no need to worry; the charm wouldn't harm his body.
It would only make him feel as though his head had gone pointy.
After dealing with the passer-by, Adrian turned his gaze back to the shop.
From within came a series of dull crack—crack—crack sounds. The walls were being forced apart by something; timber and brick groaned under the strain.
Looking through the window, one could see nothing but sheets and sheets of green.
Harry stared, dumbfounded. The once small shop was on the verge of collapse under the enormous bulk of the Chinese Chomping Cabbage.
Its leaves had grown unimaginably huge; the ceiling inside had completely vanished, punched through by the swelling foliage.
Cracks had already spidered across the surrounding walls.
Gigantification indeed…
Adrian's mouth twitched; he sighed helplessly.
Trouble again.
If nothing else, the house wasn't fit to live in anymore.
Adrian walked toward the shop, flicking his wand to disperse the dust and debris hanging in the air.
As he approached, the Chinese Chomping Cabbage's previously massive body suddenly seemed to lose all strength. Like a punctured ball, it sagged and withered at speed.
It let out a low hum; its hulking form shrank rapidly, even the stem curling into a tight knot, and in moments it was back to its original size.
Harry followed carefully behind Adrian. Seeing the change, he blinked in confusion. "Er… why did it suddenly stop?"
"Probably because it ran out of magic," Adrian said, picking up the Chinese Chomping Cabbage and handing it back to Harry. "That giant form is temporary; it can't be maintained for long."
Harry accepted it and gently prodded its mouth.
The leaves twitched, but it had none of its earlier ferocity—there wasn't even strength to bite. Like a droopy little dog, it lay obediently in Harry's arms.
Adrian slowly shook his head and rubbed his temple.
For all the bluster of that "Gigantification," it had lasted, at most, three seconds.
"Let's think about how to handle the aftermath," Adrian said helplessly.
Harry glanced back at the wrecked scene, anxious.
Fortunately, the building had suffered only physical damage; a few Mending Charms would do.
"Reparo."
Adrian swished his wand. At his movement, the shattered glass knit itself together, the torn-off roof returned to its proper shape, and the door that had flown far away came back to its place.
In barely over ten seconds, the building was largely restored.
The potted plants and potion stock inside, however, would need Adrian to tidy up bit by bit.
Staring at the scene before him, Harry swallowed, then looked down at the Chinese Chomping Cabbage in his arms and asked cautiously, "Did I cause trouble?"
Adrian turned to him. Seeing the boy's unease, he chuckled and patted his shoulder.
"Don't worry, Harry. This isn't your fault. No one could have predicted a Chinese Chomping Cabbage would suddenly do that."
Harry's expression relaxed a little.
Just then, the plantation door suddenly opened—the door Adrian had specially reinforced, which hadn't been damaged by the Chinese Chomping Cabbage at all.
Remus Lupin stepped out.
Catching sight of the chaotic shopfront, he froze.
"What happened?" he asked, puzzled. "An earthquake?"
Adrian and Harry exchanged a glance.
"No," Adrian said, shaking his head. "Nothing of the sort. But you're just in time—help me tidy the shop."
With that, Adrian pushed the door open and headed out from the shop.
He left behind a thoroughly confused Lupin.
To Adrian, breaking the house was a small matter.
The real trouble was still to come.
With such a commotion, even in a secluded area with few people around, it was bound to be seen.
Just as Adrian expected, he spotted quite a few passing Muggles in the vicinity.
To be safe, he cast Obliviate on every single one he saw.
…
In the end, the matter was discovered anyway.
Not by Muggles, but by the Ministry of Magic.
The magical trace left by the Chinese Chomping Cabbage's Gigantification was likely too conspicuous.
Barely half a day later, the Ministry received a report of "anomalous magical activity in the Muggle world."
Since Adrian was the only wizard in that area, Ministry investigators quickly fixed on him as the suspect.
That evening, the Accidental Magic Reversal Squad investigated around Adrian's plant shop for quite some time.
Adrian hadn't wanted to admit anything—but the investigator simply slapped a photograph into his hand, leaving him speechless.
The photo showed the scene of the Chinese Chomping Cabbage swelling and bursting through the house.
Because of the angle, the Chinese Chomping Cabbage itself didn't appear directly in the image.
So there was no wriggling out of it.
"How did you take this photo?" Adrian asked the investigator, curious.
Perhaps because the investigation had gone so smoothly, the man was in a good mood—he even had the leisure to answer.
"Just a little backtracking spell," he said. "Of course, not something the average person could learn."
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