HP: The Right Way To Use Fantastic Beasts

For the next few days, Evans abandoned the Forbidden Forest and buried himself in the Hogwarts Library.

He was deeply intrigued by the Lethifold detector, but all recorded sightings of the creature were in tropical regions. The Scottish Highlands, home to Hogwarts, were anything but tropical. With lesson plans to prepare and a mountain of history to study, he had no choice but to shelve the mystery for now. He would have to wait for a holiday to investigate the places where Lethifolds had been known to appear.

His thoughts drifted back to the book in front of him. "Professor Binns," he began, a note of confusion in his voice, "are there some inconsistencies in the records concerning Merlin?"

He tapped two keywords written in his notes. "Most magical history texts state that Merlin was a great wizard who lived around the fifth century. But when I was a student here, I heard many older students say he was a member of Slytherin. There's even a portrait of him in the Slytherin common room, though it only shows his back and never speaks."

"But Hogwarts was founded at the end of the ninth century," he continued, puzzling it out. "That's a gap of nearly five hundred years. Did Merlin really live that long? And did he actually attend Hogwarts?"

"Many have asked this question," the ghostly professor intoned, his voice a droning monotone that never wavered. "In the field of magical history, the most common view is that the great wizard Merlin and the wizard who created the Order of Merlin are not the same person."

"Though this theory lacks sufficient evidence, other records indicate that the Merlin who founded the Order never used any methods to prolong his life."

"What kind of evidence?" Evans asked, his curiosity piqued.

"A magical plant called the Tree of Life," Professor Binns explained. "It adjusts its height according to the life standing before it; the longer one has lived, the taller it grows."

"Do you know of Nicolas Flamel?"

Evans nodded.

"Nicolas Flamel saw a Tree of Life just over a decade ago and stood before it," Binns continued, his expressionless face betraying no emotion. "That small sapling, after Nicolas stood still, grew at an incredible rate, becoming a towering giant nearly a hundred meters tall. Its canopy shaded several kilometers of open ground, almost disturbing the nearby Muggles."

Evans's eyes flickered with interest. He hadn't focused much on Herbology during his school days and had never heard of such a plant. But from Professor Binns's description, he could vividly imagine the scene. It must have been spectacular.

"After Merlin created the Order of Merlin, he once came before a Tree of Life with many witnesses," the ghost droned on. "At that time, he was only in his thirties, and the Tree of Life only grew to about four meters, which was consistent with his age."

"Is that so?"

Listening to the explanation, Evans nodded thoughtfully and turned his attention back to the book. If there was evidence, he would just have to follow what the texts said. He still didn't know how thoroughly he had to "read and understand" to satisfy the damnable seal. The thought of memorizing the entire magical history of the Middle Ages made his head ache. That wasn't something a few books could cover; there was an entire bookshelf in the library dedicated to the subject.

I won't have to memorize all of these, will I?

His future seemed filled with darkness. If he had to memorize a whole bookshelf, he wouldn't get anything else done all year.

Just as he was spiraling into despair, a tentative voice cut through his thoughts.

"Professor Binns, I have some questions about the history of the Goblin Rebellions."

He turned to see a young girl with thick brown hair and an earnest expression, holding a notebook and looking up at the floating professor with a mixture of awe and fear. Sensing his gaze, she gave a small, polite bow.

"Good afternoon, Professor Kahn."

"Good afternoon, Miss Granger."

Evans greeted her with a warm smile, then propped his chin on his hand, observing the interaction. The Care of Magical Creatures class didn't start for another week, and in the meantime, he'd been commandeering Professor Binns's time for history lessons. The person he saw most, aside from the ghostly professor, was Hermione Granger. Every afternoon, she would appear in the library and study until dinner. On weekends, she would stay all day.

Since he and Professor Binns were often discussing things, Miss Granger would occasionally join their conversations with her own questions. Professor Binns was a walking, talking history book who answered everything, and Evans was more than happy to offer his own guidance to the studious young witch, answering her queries about spells and other topics. They had quickly become familiar.

And as he got to know her, Evans felt a subtle, creeping sense of dread. He was studying so diligently because a magical puzzle forced him to, but this girl… she seemed to be doing it out of pure interest.

Full of interest in studying, he thought. What a terrifying little girl.

In just a few days, she had devoured several thick volumes, including Hogwarts: A History, a book so dry it could put an insomniac to sleep. And she still had classes every day. First years were generally busy, just beginning their magical education and grappling with fundamental theories. Yet here she was, every day, quietly reading and taking notes.

Where did this overachiever come from?

He swallowed, burying the fear of studious high-achievers from his past life deep in his heart, and re-examined the girl. To be honest, being an overachiever wasn't a bad habit. These kinds of children were perfect as workers.

Liking to study… what a simple hobby!

A hint of admiration crept into his gaze. Children who loved to study were the easiest to understand. Give them new knowledge, provide patient guidance, and you earn their gratitude. And as it happened, Evans had a great deal of fresh knowledge to share. He'd made significant gains researching his own unique talent over the years. Some simple magical abilities, like an Augurey's knack for predicting the weather, could already be reverse-engineered into spells for others to learn, though they were quite difficult. But if Miss Granger wanted to learn, he wouldn't mind taking on some extra teaching duties. He loved teaching studious young witches and wizards.

His lips slowly curled into a smile.

Most importantly, even practical classes like Care of Magical Creatures would have assignments. It was a well-known fact that grading was a tedious, boring task. But an overachiever like her would certainly not refuse to help grade assignments. In fact, such a task would only strengthen her understanding of the material. And since he would be teaching her so many unique spells, asking her to help grade papers seemed like a very reasonable request, didn't it?

It was simply a form of mentoring, a teacher guiding a beloved student. This way, once he finished his history studies, he would have more time to solve the puzzles in the Forbidden Forest.

A win-win situation.

Thinking this, Evans patiently waited for Hermione to finish her questions.

Then, in a voice like a devil tempting a mortal soul, he spoke.

"Miss Granger, are you interested in the abilities of magical creatures?"

(End of Chapter)

***

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