"This way, go this way." Fred was running. He felt his heart beating faster and his blood boiling. The game of hide-and-seek with Filch was more interesting than he had imagined.
Filch had just passed through the secret passage and went around to the front to block them, but Fred was not worried. Before Filch got through the secret passage to the front to block them, the two of them took the lead and went in the opposite direction of him.
Filch will never be able to stop them in advance, and besides, his opponent's physical strength is not as good as theirs!
The only trouble is Mrs. Norris, this cat is more troublesome than Filch. It is very fast and smart, and it is not easy to get rid of it.
Filch's cat would alert its owner and was always watching them. Fred wanted to kick it, but they knew they didn't have time, and kicking Mrs. Norris would only make Filch more furious.
"I hear footsteps again. How come Filch is faster than us?" George complained breathlessly.
"Don't worry, he can't catch up. This way!" Fred was not as familiar with the castle as Filch. He needed to rely on the Marauder's Map to leave the other party behind.
"He's out of the secret passage." Fred suddenly laughed. "Turn right ahead, go down the stairs, and we'll go to the fourth floor."
"I bet... he's mad as hell!" George said cheerfully.
Filch did know a lot of secret passages in the castle and was more familiar with the castle's environment than the Weasley brothers, but so what? They had the Marauder's Map, and even if Filch went around to intercept them in advance, as long as they went that way, Filch's detour would make them lose track.
Fred slowed down his pace, took a breath, and looked away from the Marauder's Map. He said cheerfully, "Filch has stopped. I guess he's still confused."
"Actually, this is quite fun, running around in circles with Filch." George had completely lost all his sleepiness during the chase with Filch, and was now a little excited. "This is something we can brag about for months."
"Tsk, tsk, those annoying freshmen, wandering around in the middle of the night." Peeves suddenly jumped out of the trophy display room, blocked the two of them, and screamed with joy.
"Good evening." George raised his hand to greet Peeves. "Filch's cat is chasing us. Do you want to give him some trouble?"
"I'd rather you were caught by Filch." Peeves' eyes twinkled mischievously.
"We won't. Filch is still out to catch us." Fred shrugged, picked up his wand and used the Unlocking Charm to open the wooden door to another corridor.
"Well, maybe I should tell Filch," Peeves said seriously. "It's for your own good."
"Then tell him." George said disapprovingly as he closed the door. "But I heard that your relationship is not good. Would you like to see Filch in a good mood?"
Fred waved his hand at Peeves. "I have reservations about that, too."
"Students don't want to sleep!" Peeves, who was teased by the two men, suddenly yelled, "Wandering around outside the trophy display room."
"Peeves is a nuisance," George muttered, his eyelids twitching.
"If he doesn't shout, then it's not Peeves." Fred immediately glanced at the Marauder's Map. Filch was coming towards them at a very fast speed.
"Quiet Peeves."
Fred and George returned the same way they had come. Peeves was still in the corridor and had not left immediately.
"No, you should tell Peeves to scream louder," Fred muttered. "Scream at the top of his lungs!"
"As you wish."
Peeves saw the two men coming back and suddenly appeared in front of Fred, shouting, "Over here, over here, those nasty new brats are right here."
Before leaving, Fred made a rude gesture to Peeves and disappeared around the corner of the corridor with George.
"Peeves?"
A moment later, Filch came over breathlessly and said, "Tell me quickly, which way they ran to."
"You should say 'please'."
Filch didn't plan to talk nonsense with Peeves, and was ready to follow his cat to chase forward. He was almost furious tonight, those guys actually dared to play hide-and-seek with him.
Never!
Filch had never been so humiliated before, and he was determined to catch those students and punish them severely.
"What's going on?" Snape, dressed in sleep, appeared in the corridor.
"Professor, there are people wandering around at night, and I'm trying to catch them," Filch said through gritted teeth. "Peeves knows who it is, but he won't tell."
Snape looked up at Peeves and asked, "Peeves, who is that?"
"Two nasty Gryffindor freshmen," Peeves stared at Filch and said sarcastically, "Those two brats said you couldn't catch them!"
Peeves looked at Filch's face twisted with anger and flew away happily without revealing Fred and George's names.
"Professor, after being alarmed by Peeves, the two Gryffindor students must be preparing to return to the common room. We must intercept them on the eighth floor. I know there is a shortcut leading to the eighth floor..." Filch was experienced and quickly thought of a way to catch the students who wandered around at night, and quickly followed Snape's words.
Snape agreed. He didn't mind catching the two Gryffindor freshmen and deducting a hundred points from them.
At this moment, Fred and George, who were heading to the eighth floor, also noticed that Snape had joined the search for them, and frowned slightly and said, "We must hurry back to the lounge."
If Filch was the only one there, the two wouldn't worry about being blocked at all, but now with Snape joining the mix, the situation becomes uncertain.
No one wants to fall into the hands of this Potions Professor, as it would definitely not end well for everyone. Everyone knows that Snape hates Gryffindor students.
The two walked around outside and returned to the eighth floor, but the Fat Lady had not arrived yet.
Fred and George were disappointed, as this meant they would have to wander around the castle, avoiding Snape and Filch.
"Oh no! Filch is coming to the eighth floor through the secret passage. We must find a place to hide as soon as possible." Fred, who was observing the Marauder's Map, suddenly said. He immediately realized that something was wrong and quickly took the lead to run away.
"Be careful not to get blocked by Snape," George reminded quickly.
"I know." Fred felt distressed and quickly retreated back to the corridor. If he went to the seventh floor now, he would probably run into Cat and Snape. This team was more dangerous than Filch.
"There's a room next to it. Maybe we can hide in there." George pointed to an abandoned room on the right side of the eighth floor.
"No, we will definitely be found. Filch's cat is more sensitive than we thought. We need to be patient, circle around Filch and leave through the secret passage of the griffin sculpture." Fred stopped to take a breath. Realizing that there was a possibility that they would be caught, his mood suddenly became very bad.