Alan turned his attention to the street-level shops on the outskirts of Diagon Alley. The magical thoroughfare wasn't hidden in a demi-plane; it was merely concealed by a shielding charm and was physically connected to the adjacent streets.
His idea was simple: find a shop outside Diagon Alley that sat closest to his own house, buy it, and disguise it as an electronics store. Then, he would dig a tunnel directly from his basement to that Muggle shop and run a high-power electrical cable back to his laboratory.
This would solve his energy crisis and provide a direct underground passage to the outside world, which would be convenient for moving into the Muggle world if the need arose. For safety, he planned to install secret doors at both ends of the tunnel and add layers of magical protection. He could even cast a Muggle-Repelling Charm or a Confusion Spell so that no one would accidentally stumble upon the secret. Since he didn't actually intend to make money from the electronics store, he would simply pay the electricity bill every month to keep the power flowing legitimately.
Renovating the shop would take time, so Alan decided to use the interval to finalize the magic lathe and begin digging the tunnel. After planning his next steps, he headed back to the first floor. As soon as he stepped out of the basement, he saw Hog still stuck in the railing, gnawing on the very wood that trapped him.
"Master! You're finally out! Please save me! This damned railing is so hard, I don't know why. How did I even squeeze in here?" Hog let go of the wood when he saw Alan, staring at him expectantly.
"The entire house has been reinforced by me, so it's normal that you can't gnaw through it. By the way, where's Kiki? Why haven't I seen her?" Alan had been back for quite a while, but the house-elf was nowhere to be found.
"She went to help the Longbottoms. Augusta sent a letter yesterday saying their house needed a deep clean, but there's only the old lady and the young boy there now, so they asked Kiki for help. You agreed to it before," Hog said, desperately pulling at his head.
Alan nodded. He had instructed Kiki to assist the Longbottoms or the Weasleys if they needed it. He had sent letters to both families previously, so they were well aware he had a house-elf.
"Master, don't just stand there, get me out!" Hog was almost speechless. He didn't want to be a permanent fixture of the staircase.
"Get you out..." Alan looked at Hog's stuck head and a slow, mischievous smile spread across his face.
"Master, what are you doing? That smile is terrifying." Hog's heart hammered against his ribs, and he watched Alan warily.
"Nothing. I just finished a new alchemy tool a while ago and haven't tested its effects yet. It can help you get out of that gap." Alan reached into his spatial ring and pulled out a metal ring. Its diameter looked to be exactly the width of Hog's neck.
"Woof? Woof!" Hog was instantly terrified. Being a test subject was bad enough, but the thing in Alan's hand looked suspiciously like a dog collar. Hog had tested plenty of equipment for Alan; while some were useful, many were unreliable, and he had developed a healthy resistance to these mysterious inventions.
Alan gently tapped the collar twice, and it expanded. He slowly lowered it over Hog's head.
"Woof! No, no, Master—gak!" Hog tried to pull back, but he was wedged tight. Once Alan fit the collar around his neck and shrunk it to a snug fit, Hog realized that nothing painful seemed to be happening. He twisted his neck experimentally, but the collar felt weightless, as if it weren't even there.
"This is a byproduct of my research on Transfiguration this year," Alan said, watching Hog frantically shake his head. "Don't panic. Now that it's on you, it will cling to your body and activate a camouflage function. No one else will see it."
"Then I won't be able to see it either? What is this thing for? Could it be..." Hog's dog face contorted with a sudden, horrifying thought. "Could it be that if I make you angry, it will suddenly tighten and snap my head off?"
"Your imagination is quite rich," Alan said, amused. "Its function is somewhat related to what you said. Why don't you try inputting some magic into it?"
"What? I have to activate it myself? Is this some kind of suicide device?" Hog let out a yelp as if he were about to faint.
"If you pretend to faint, I'll leave you here to become one with the stairs," Alan said, his voice flat.
"I... I think I can hold on a little longer..." Hog struggled for a moment, then stood back up.
"With your acting skills, I should send you to a circus," Alan shook his head. "Now, just channel some magic into the ring. It won't kill you."
"Really? No symptoms that cause a dog great pain?" Hog asked cautiously.
"If you babble any more, I'll show you what real pain is." Alan glared at him.
Hog choked back his next question, squeezed his eyes shut, and directed a pulse of magic to his neck. The ring shimmered with a faint magical glow as it reappeared. Then, Hog felt a truly bizarre sensation.
He was shrinking.
As the magic flowed, Hog's body steadily grew smaller. A few seconds later, the wolf that had reached Alan's waist was now a small dog, no taller than a human knee. Hog stared up blankly at the giant-like Alan standing before him.