Hogwarts: From Little Wizard to White Lord

Newt Scamander had never been one to follow the rules to the letter. Even though he now lived in Muggle society and claimed to be retired, no one should have expected him to truly abandon his life's passion.

Beneath the Scamander home, the basement had been magically expanded into an enormous, hidden sanctuary.

The underground space was divided into separate habitats, each tailored to a different environment.

At the moment, beneath what appeared on the surface to be a desolate stretch of dry grassland, Tina and Peter emerged cautiously from a concealed hatch built into the tunnel system below.

Hiding amidst the tall, brittle yellow grass, both of them held telescopes to their eyes.

Tina whispered, "Do you see them?"

"I do... One of them looks excited, but the other doesn't seem interested."

Peter responded calmly.

Through the lens of the telescope, they could see two enormous creatures roaming in the distance.

Even at this range, it was obvious they weighed over a ton each. Their thick, smooth, wrinkled skin shimmered faintly in the artificial sunlight. They had single, prominent horns and resembled rhinoceroses at first glance.

But when one of them began bouncing eagerly on its stubby legs, its horn started to glow bright red.

Where the horn met the skull, a magma-like light pulsed within the core, shifting and swirling with barely contained energy.

"They're Erumpents," Tina whispered. "That red glow in their horns? That's a fluid with explosive properties. The female's the one hopping about she's reacting to the male's scent."

"Newt rescued them last year. A group of dark wizards captured them in Africa and smuggled them into Britain. They've been in captivity so long, they can't reintegrate into a natural herd. Newt's trying to encourage them to bond and build a family here before releasing them into the wild."

As she spoke, the two continued observing.

Through the telescope, they saw the eager female approach her companion with a bounce but the male immediately shoved her aside with a disgruntled snort.

Peter lowered the telescope and glanced at Tina. "The male doesn't seem very interested."

"No," Tina sighed. "In the wild, mating rights are earned through fierce competition. The winning male gets to pass on his genes. With just the two of them here, no dramatic duels or explosions... the poor fellow just isn't motivated."

Peter raised an eyebrow. "And they haven't gone extinct yet?"

Tina let out a weary chuckle. "I ask myself that all the time."

She led Peter further into the massive underground reserve.

Over the next two hours, they journeyed through enchanted environments: steamy swamps, rocky mountains, icy snowfields, and dense forest paths.

They encountered all manner of magical creatures kelpies shaped like horses gliding through freshwater lakes, spotted leopards with venomous fangs darting between trees, and even a group of shimmering blue Billywigs from Australia.

All of them had been rescued from the illegal creature trade.

Tina explained as they walked, "Most of these were smuggled across borders. Especially the Billywigs. Their stings make people float literally. That's why some adult wizards and schoolchildren use them for pranks."

Peter was surprised. "Aren't those regulated?"

"Very. They're classified as XXX-level magical beasts. Selling or owning them without a permit is illegal. Only a few candy manufacturers are allowed to import them Zizi Bee Candy uses their stingers in the recipe."

Peter nodded. "So naturally, there's a black market."

Tina sighed. "Exactly."

Tina had one more surprise in store for Peter.

She brought him to the enclosure of the Aerobird a bizarre and whimsical magical creature that looked, at first glance, like a clumsy dodo. Its wings were short and stubby, and it waddled awkwardly on land, resembling something that surely couldn't fly.

But as soon as it prepared for takeoff, it transformed dramatically.

Its body puffed up like a balloon, stretching into a large, rounded shape. Slowly, it began to rise into the air like a floating hot air balloon. Then, with a loud whoosh, it expelled a burst of air, reshaped itself again into a sleeker form, and soared through the sky with unexpected grace.

Its long tail could extend and retract at will and riding it didn't involve sitting on its back but being securely wrapped in its tail like a harness.

"Don't worry," Tina assured him as she helped him into the tail. "It feels weird at first, but it's surprisingly smooth."

Peter let out a small yelp as the tail curled around him, lifted him up, and then launched into the air.

The ride was exhilarating.

The Aerobird spiraled through the domed ceiling of the sanctuary, darting between the different artificial biomes with playful ease. For a moment, Peter forgot everything else.

This was magic in its purest form no danger, no darkness. Just wonder.

Of course, these Aerobirds were just a small part of Newt's collection. Because of his background in potions and alchemy, he had rescued a large number of rare, high-risk magical creatures from smugglers over the years.

But most of those had long since been relocated to protected habitats managed by the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures in various countries.

Still, Peter was captivated by what he saw today.

It was the first time he'd interacted with living magical beasts instead of ingredients harvested from them. He'd only ever known them as potion components. Now, seeing them breathing, flying, swimming it changed everything.

"You and Rolf would probably get along well," Tina said as she guided him through another enclosure.

"Rolf?"

"He's my grandson. He's crazy about magical creatures, just like his grandfather."

Peter blinked. The name didn't ring any bells at first, but then it clicked he vaguely remembered that Luna Lovegood, the famously eccentric witch in Harry's generation, eventually married someone named Rolf Scamander.

So this was him?

Interesting.

When they returned to the basement entrance after the tour, Dumbledore and Newt had already returned.

They were casting Extension Charms to further expand the underground sanctuary. It was advanced spellwork powerful and precise. Dumbledore had even taken out his wand.

Peter's eyes immediately locked onto it.

The wand was sleek and black, with a series of knotted ridges carved into the surface. It didn't look particularly remarkable, but Peter recognized it instantly.

The Elder Wand...

He could feel the immense magical pressure radiating from it deep, vast, like staring into an abyss.

For a brief moment, something stirred inside him.

But he quickly looked away.

Because just then, the expanded space shimmered to completion, and Newt opened his old suitcase. From within, a glowing silver shape emerged.

It was the unicorn.

Graceful and pure, it stepped carefully into the sanctuary, its eyes calm, its horn shimmering faintly in the light.

At that moment, a translucent panel appeared before Peter's eyes.

[Side Quest ②: Save the Forbidden Forest Unicorn (Completed)]

[Claim your reward?]

"Claim," Peter answered in his mind, not hesitating.

He had expected it to be something mild after all, the description said "language pack."

And indeed, there were no outward signs.

But he knew something had changed.

For a brief moment, his vision went white. His throat and ears tingled. Then it passed.

He felt... normal.

But the system panel confirmed it:

[You have acquired: Unicorn Language]

And almost immediately afterward

He began to hear voices.

Not Tina's.

Not Dumbledore's.

Not even Newt's.

Voices that weren't human.

"Yo (Where are we?)"

"Yo (Didn't you hear what Fawkes said? A temporary place to stay.)"

"Yo yo! (Look at that ugly little human cub. He's staring at us.)"

"Yo yo! (Ugh. Filthy, vulgar, disgusting creature.)"

"…"

Peter stood still, expressionless, as he listened to the voices of the snow-white, ethereal, fairy-tale-like unicorns… tear him to shreds with their words.

He had known, of course, that unicorns disliked men. It was in every textbook. They gravitated toward girls, especially pure-hearted young witches. Males made them uneasy.

But still did they really have to be this mean?

For a second, Peter found himself thinking: Maybe I should've let that freak Socket Man suck more of your blood after all.

The insults continued until the most radiant of the unicorns the whitest, with silver hooves and a mane like moonlight snorted and said, "Let's go. Dumbledore is too ugly. I don't want to be anywhere near him."

"Yes! Yes!" the other unicorns chorused in agreement.

Peter exhaled.

Suddenly, he felt a whole lot better.

By the time the unicorns had settled in, it was already quite late.

Tina, ever the gracious host despite her earlier sass, made a midnight snack. It had a distinctly American flavor hearty and strange, but still miles better than anything Peter had eaten in the Hogwarts Great Hall.

Dumbledore, of course, received nothing from Tina but indifference. Not that he minded. Smiling as ever, he simply reached into his robe pocket and pulled out a few pieces of candy, chewing contentedly.

It was nearly midnight when they finally bid farewell to the Scamander household.

Outside the quaint cottage, the sea breeze rolled gently through the night.

Fawkes gave a tired chirp as it descended again onto Dumbledore's shoulder, feathers looking slightly ruffled from the night's repeated Apparitions.

Even magical creatures had their limits.

As Dumbledore extended his hand, Peter saw a feather quietly float to the ground.

He bent down, picked it up, and without shame, slipped it into his pocket.

Dumbledore noticed. He smiled but said nothing.

Just as Peter turned to leave, the old man asked casually, "Peter, what did you think of Newt?"

Peter gave a noncommittal shrug. "Like you said, Albus. A good man."

Dumbledore nodded slowly. "He likes you very much. He told me he'd be happy if you visited again sometime."

There was a pause.

"Would you be willing?"

Peter thought of Newt's bashful smile, his awkwardness in conversation, the way he came alive only when talking about magical beasts.

Then Peter thought about himself reserved, sharp, observant.

He glanced at Dumbledore with suspicion.

What was this old fox scheming now?