What kind of place was Little Hangerton?
Some Muggles would tell you that it was a small, marginal place that only came to mind when Big Hangerton was mentioned. It was not famous, and the name of the place sounded like a bad breakfast cereal.
But a zoologist would tell you that it was a paradise for Fire-Ash Snakes. There were not many residents in Little Hangerton, but most of them were alcoholics. They were careless and often forgot to turn off the fireplace, which led to the Fire-Ash Snakes growing unchecked and frequent fires in Little Hangerton.
Other than fires, there was nothing new in Little Hangerton. The town had a permanent population of less than 600. There was no school, and the children had to get up early to go to school in Big Hangerton. There was a community hospital, which was slightly bigger than a public toilet. An old man who looked like a skeleton lived in the hospital, and he had to take three deep breaths to speak. The community police and fire station also existed, and the staff there were much better than the skeleton old man, but one could not expect too much.
"Welcome to Little Hangerton!"
A little boy wearing a Boy Scout cap stood on the bridge, hiding his nervousness with a blank face because this was the first time he had spoken in front of so many people.
The little boy raised his voice and solemnly welcomed the arrival of the Psychic Battle program team and the onlookers.
The residents of Little Hangerton stood on the other side of the bridge and whispered to each other. "God, I haven't seen so many people in a long time. Look!
How handsome that guy is. Is he a celebrity? "A woman chatted with her companion while nibbling on an apple.
"Your husband is here." The woman who spoke lifted the basket in her hand and waved to the bearded man in a jacket. "This way, Dot!
Come here, you're in their way! "
The man called Dot held a chicken in his hand and looked unhappy. "This is my home. Who can I be in their way?"
He spat on the gravel road and quickened his pace to make way for them. But he still did not give up. "I can stay wherever I want."
"Don't say that, dear." The woman who was eating the apple pulled Dot over. "Our hotel depends on these tourists to make money."
"When did we open a hotel?"
Dot frowned. "The name Hanged Ghost Tavern is bad enough, and now it has to be Hanged Ghost Hotel?
Penny, think of these spoiled gentlemen and ladies who can't sleep at night! '
Penny shrugged and put an apple in the basket into Dot's mouth. "I don't know if I can sleep, but I know this is the only inn in town."
"What about the one on the corner?
The one in Old Hampton?
Something called 'Rabbit Hole Inn'? "
"They sold all their stuff. Usually, there are no tourists in this shabby place. Even the salesmen don't want to come here." A crippled old man joined the conversation. "You're not well-informed, Dot. The Old Hamptons have changed to selling groceries. Their business is much better than the hotel."
Penny tied the beak in Dot's hand with string to stop it from gurgling. "Who do you think Old Hampton sold the hotel suite to, Dot?"
"Heavens!"
Recalling that Penny had been cleaning the second floor of the tavern recently, Dot slapped his forehead. "You didn't even think to discuss such a big thing with me?"
"I've discussed it." Penny picked up another apple and took a bite.
"When?"
Dot began to search in his alcohol-damaged brain, but he could not recall such a thing.
"When you were asleep."
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, little girl," the crippled old man stopped the couple in time. "Business is more important. Let's deal with the chicken first. Let's talk about other unimportant things when we get home..."
Dot took a deep breath. "Okay, Mayor Gray," he snorted, glanced at Penny, and walked towards the bridge with the chicken in his hand.
— — —
The wooden sign with a missing corner had the words' Little Hangerton 'written on it. When Anna and the others got off the bus arranged by the program team, they saw the sign. It stood next to the bus stop, at the exit of a small path that led deep into the forest.
That was Anna's first impression of Little Hangerton. Maybe it was because she knew what had happened here, so she had a preconceived notion. At least Harry, Ron, and Hermione, who wore black-rimmed glasses, did not feel anything wrong with the place.
Lena touched Anna's hair. "Baby Anna, we should go out more often. Don't think about studying all day." Lena advocated happy education. She had no requirements for Anna. She just wanted her to live happily and not suffer.
"Don't study!"
Elvin, who was sitting in the pram, waved his little fist. Children grew up quickly. He was now speaking more and more fluently. "Baby Anna!"
Anna looked at her cute little brother. "You have to study, baby Elvin. Children should study hard." Although she knew that Lena was a good mother, she did not want Lena to raise Elvin to be free and undisciplined. Dudley, who lived next door, was a victim of happy education and spoiling by parents.
"To be honest, I don't agree with bringing Elvin." Anna frowned. "He will be happy to stay with Nanny Shasha. He can also watch the Pink Panther for the whole afternoon. It's … too dangerous here …"
Lena thought it was a little funny. She rubbed Anna's frown away. "Honey, this is just an ordinary town. The most dangerous thing is probably a grumpy old lady who has lost her denture. Anna, just treat this as an ordinary short trip. We are very safe." Lena took a deep breath of fresh air. "Look, this natural environment, the beautiful scenery that you can't see on Privet Drive —" She was intoxicated.
Anna looked around and found a dead rabbit under a tree. "Mom, there's a dead rabbit." See, she knew it was not safe here. "She knew it was not safe here.
Lena shrugged. "There are dead rabbits everywhere. Maybe it's not dead. It's just tired and wants to rest for a while. Baby Anna, relax."
"Barbecue!"
Ron and Harry were cheering. They wanted to pick up the rabbit, but Hermione pulled their scarves. "Can you not eat everything you see?
God knows how many germs there are in that rabbit! "
"This way!" The staff of the psychic battle waved the small flag and led everyone into the depths of the forest.
Anna sighed. She pushed the pram and followed behind the group. Beside her was the sound of Liana's camera clicking. "Anna and Elvin, two little cuties. Look at the camera, babies. Smile."
"Haha." Anna forced a smile. She didn't know if it was her illusion, but she felt that the road was getting weirder and weirder. There was always a chill around them.
Harry and the other two ran over. Lena stopped them. "Children!
Let's take a picture together! "
She asked a staff member to help her use the camera, then ran behind the children and hugged them. Everyone made a peace sign together. Although Anna didn't quite understand why they had to take a picture in such a gloomy forest, she still cooperated.
A picture was quickly taken. "Thank you." Lena took the camera and handed the picture to Anna. "Help me shake the picture, Anna. It will make the picture appear faster. I hope I didn't close my eyes just now."
"It's okay, Mom. Even if you accidentally closed your eyes, I can still... use the Developing Potion..." Anna squinted her eyes. She saw the contents of the picture, her family and friends, and the extra part.
"Oh, what a pity." Anna folded the picture. "Even the Developing Potion can't save this picture."
Ron came over. "What's wrong? What's wrong?"
Anna threw the picture into the blue cloth bag. "It's nothing. It's just that I'm too ugly in the picture. Let's go out of the forest and take another picture in a better place."
This reason was very reasonable, and Anna didn't think it was strange. Soon, everyone forgot about it. After walking for a few minutes, a bridge appeared in front of them. "Wow!" Some people were surprised. They didn't expect to see such a scenery after leaving the forest.
The historic stone bridge helped people to reach a corner that seemed to have been forgotten by the world. The buildings here looked ancient and mysterious. Dark brown tiles, honey-colored stone walls, and neatly arranged houses seemed to have countless secrets and history waiting for adventurers to explore. "What a paradise on earth." A gentleman took off his hat and sighed.
"Look here." Anna looked disapprovingly at the gentleman in the hat. The stone bridge looked like it could collapse at any time. She could tell that it couldn't even withstand a simple 'Disintegrate'. Oh... those beautiful stone houses... cobwebs... and scorched marks on the stone walls... vomit, and vomit. Maybe someone was violently beaten here. Maybe the people here are all crazy...
"Hell..." Anna muttered in an extremely low voice. She saw a strange-looking boy with a hat standing on the stone bridge.
"Welcome to Little Hangerton!"
Strangely, there was no smile on his face at all. He didn't seem to want to welcome everyone, but to ask them to run away.
"Hello!" The program crew and the onlookers waved at the boy enthusiastically. Soon, everyone came to the bridge.
The boy saluted everyone. "Next, please feel the tradition of our town. This will be shown by Mr. Bart."
Everyone looked on expectantly as they saw a man holding a chicken stand up. He seemed to be very angry, and his eyes were fierce. The chicken in his hand was struggling, but it couldn't make a single sound. Some of the gentlemen frowned, and some of the ladies couldn't bear it and whispered, "What does he want to do?"
It was clear what Bart wanted to do. He pulled out a sharp knife from his waist. Everyone was frightened. Anna's eyes widened, and she quickly held the wand in her hand.
"Coo — burp." Bart raised his knife and brought it down. A chicken's head fell to the ground. The neck that should have been bleeding was squeezed out by him, but no blood spurted out. He bowed slightly. The little boy standing next to him clapped his hands out of respect. The residents of Little Hangerton also applauded.
Although they didn't understand what was going on, everyone applauded.
Then, an accident happened. Bart's hand loosened, and the chicken's blood sprayed on Penny's face. Penny didn't react, but the little boy standing next to her was so scared that he screamed. He took a step back and accidentally fell into the stream.
Everyone panicked.
The crippled mayor, Gray, covered his face and sighed.