Hogwarts: Dumbledore reigned over the wizarding world

Chapter 158 The Suitcase and the Magic Moon
In their last few days together, the two were attacked by Purifiers several times, and no matter how they hid, they were always found in the end.

Natalie said it wasn't from wizarding power, nor from Muggle technology, but something else entirely.

She was overwhelmed by the fear of the unknown...

Isabella still doesn't know what Natalie was thinking before she decided to die, or what made her decide to end her life.
Is it related to what she called "something that seems plausible but is actually not"?
With Natalie's death, these questions remain unanswered. Natalie left no clues, only some contact information for the black market and illegal safe houses for Isabella.

The apartment building Isabella just escaped from was an illegal safe house, run by a Pukki couple (Pukki are distant relatives of European fairies). Most illegal safe houses are operated by such magical creatures.

They don't care about the wizard's morality, or even whether he is a wizard, a Muggle, or a troll. As long as they have Galleons, Drogon (North American magical currency), US dollars, or euros, they are willing to provide services!
"I hope those people can escape..."

Isabella thought.

Most of the people staying in the illegal safe house tonight are like her—wizards who are affected by the current situation in North America and want to illegally cross the border to Canada for refuge.

Perhaps it was the large number of people gathered that attracted the Purifiers' pursuit!
But all she could do was give a warning before she fled and offer her prayers for now...

As the temperature grew colder in the early morning, Isabella hugged herself tightly to keep warm, listening to the sounds of battle fading into the distance as she drifted off to sleep.

A few hours later, as dawn broke on the horizon, she woke up again with a start.

Just like when she was startled awake from her sleep a few hours earlier, she once again sensed a slight magical fluctuation.

Isabella huddled under the water tower, too afraid to move, her eyes wide open as she watched the Muggle town gradually illuminated by the sunlight streaming in.

She saw the purgers once again.

They rode brooms and magic carpets, silently traversing the town in the morning mist, like dark, silent ravens. The difference was that now they each carried something called a "trumpet" in Muggle society.

They flew slowly, pointing the horn downwards.

Isabella watched with a mixture of fear and curiosity. She heard no sound from those "speakers" and sensed nothing unusual.

However, the persistent extrasensory spell allowed her to clearly hear that as the Purifiers swept across the town with their "loudspeakers," the entire town was rapidly "awakening."

The sounds of people that had disappeared from the town gradually returned, as if waking up from a deep dream.

When the first rays of sunlight finally pierced through the mountains and draped everything in a golden coat, this small town near International Falls (a border city of Minnesota) returned to its usual peaceful yet vibrant state.

The purgers have also vanished without a trace!

They cleaned up all traces of the battle before they left, as if nothing had ever happened the night before!
Isabella dared not let her guard down. She waited a long time until the sun was directly overhead before transforming into a cat and returning to the apartment building.

The place was also restored by the purgers.

The ruins from last night's battle have been returned to where they belonged, except for the owner of that building, who is nowhere to be found.

Perhaps some Muggles were also killed or injured.

But no one will remember this, just like in the past. The Purge handled everything well, keeping the secrets hidden, and Muggles will never know what really happened.

Isabella watched as several familiar Muggles walked out of the apartment, chatting away obliviously, and sighed wistfully.

There is also a sense of uncertainty about the future.

The fact that the Purifiers were able to find this place means that the border leading to Canada is probably already within their sights, and they... won't allow the wizards to leave!
Perhaps a trap has already been set up on the other side of the border.

Based on what Isabella has learned about the Purifiers' methods in recent days, this is quite possible.

Her plan to escape America appears to have failed...

Isabella prepared to return to the water tower. Although she was frustrated and defeated, she was not defeated. Ever since she decided to take a graduation trip in accordance with Hogwarts tradition, she had been prepared to accept the hardships.

Otherwise, why would she quit such a leisurely and safe job as a memory eraser?
Imitating a cat shaking its fur to shake off the gloom in its heart, Isabella returned to the building where she was hiding.

She saw an abandoned newspaper downstairs...

A copy of The Daily Prophet (North American edition).

Perhaps it was left behind by other wizards who escaped last night. These kinds of newspapers are usually enchanted with a weak confusion spell so that Muggles cannot see the moving pictures and text on them.

Isabella hadn't paid any attention until a large photograph in the newspaper caught her eye as she passed by.

The background of the photo appears to be a meeting venue.

The spotlight flashed like lightning, illuminating the boy in the lens's focus. The boy slightly raised his head, his expression solemn and dignified. The skillful framing made him appear sacred and majestic.

A line of bold text kept looping above his head:
[Ilfamoni has formally submitted a note inviting the WAC to visit North America with the highest diplomatic protocol. The WAC's first president, Vaughn Weasley, is scheduled to visit North America!]

As expected, Ifamoni agreed to Vaughn's request.

Last night, Joshua Porter, the representative of Efamoni, spoke quite frankly in an interview about the difficulties they are currently facing and why they insisted on inviting WAC:

"...The complex situation in America is developing in a direction unfavorable to Ifamoni," Joshua Porter said.

Since the outbreak of the conflict last year, more than 2000 students have been forced to remain at school and unable to return home for various reasons... Ifamoni has effectively become their last refuge, but unfortunately, our resources are limited.

[Iphamoni is just a magic academy. Over its centuries-long history, it may have nurtured countless outstanding wizards, but it is not a military institution. On a daily basis, it is maintained by only 50 teachers and a few Pukchi tribes...]

"We can't protect those students with our own strength!"

Mr. Joshua Porter was very sincere, but when asked by this reporter what threatened the lives of more than 2000 students, he refused to reveal the truth, saying only that the situation was complex and could not be summarized in a few words, just like the conflict that occurred last year, which was the result of multiple factors accumulated over decades.

Compared to answering our questions about the situation in North America, Mr. Potter's attention was clearly focused on how to solve practical problems. He told reporters, "Currently in North America, apart from the Pukcher, only the werewolves stand apart from everything else. Mr. Vaughn Weasley's wolfsbane potion has given these marginalized groups renewed hope and provided them with the possibility of reintegrating into the American magical world... That is undoubtedly an inspiring force, which is the driving force behind our invitation to Mr. Vaughn Weasley to visit North America and our strong advocacy for cooperation between the WAC and North America..."

"Our demands are not many; we only hope to gain friendship from both sides, resolve the current predicament faced by Iphamoni, and rescue the innocent students stranded at the school whose lives are in constant danger..."

After reading the interview in the newspaper, Vaughn smiled and casually put it down.

The reporter was right; Ifamoni's side was indeed very frank, not only agreeing to Vaughn's request for the level of protocol for the visit, but also not hiding the reasons behind it.

Perhaps the situation they face is so dire that they don't want to waste time with unnecessary words or cover it up.

But Vaughn thinks that there's probably an element of the other party deliberately trying to gain sympathy.

Look at this! More than 2000 innocent students!

Such numbers and groups will undoubtedly evoke compassion in countless wizards. As far as Vaughn knows, there are already voices in public opinion expressing sympathy for Iphamoni.

It is said that many readers have already mailed letters to the newspaper and the Ministry of Magic, urging the WAC to implement cooperation as soon as possible to help those poor people!

In a sense, Joshua Porter's remarks were akin to moral blackmail.

"No one who gets involved in politics is innocent."

Across from Vaughn, Barty Crouch picked up a newspaper, flipped through it, and commented, "Their original intention may indeed have been to bring in the WAC to cooperate and win over the werewolves to protect the school, but they still subconsciously set a trap for others so as to gain some initiative in the subsequent negotiations!"

Vaughn remained silent.

The essence of politics is the struggle and exchange of interests, so it's not surprising that the Ifamoni side has such thoughts.

Old Barty watched for a while longer, then frowned: "You need to be extra careful during this visit... I'm not referring to Iphamoni, those teachers at least have some self-respect. I'm worried about those weird organizations in America!"

"At its core, the current division in the North American wizarding world is actually a division between the three groups of wizards: pure-blood, half-blood, and Muggle."

"No matter what slogans they shout, the real reason is that they all want to settle scores with the enemy, vent their hatred and resentment, and win people's hearts. Therefore, the more than 2000 students stranded in Iphamoni are the best targets."

"And your visit is undoubtedly harming their interests, I'm afraid..."

“I’m afraid that once news of my visit to North America gets out, many people there will want to kill me,” Vaughn said calmly. “I understand all of this. Once bloodshed and violence begin, they can’t be stopped. After all, it’s easier and more effective to deal with the people who cause the problems than to solve them.”

Old Barty was silent for a moment, then nodded: "Good that you understand. When do you plan to leave?"

"Two days later."

"So anxious, you're actually being held hostage by morality and public opinion?"

Old Barty seemed a little incredulous.

"Heh, I just haven't had much to do lately," Vaughn chuckled, fiddling with his wand, and said listlessly.

He wasn't a person with too many concerns. If he didn't have to do certain things to realize his envisioned world, he could have stayed in one place quietly researching his own things, just like he did during those years before he entered university.

So-called politics, public opinion, or even the reputation required by the system—these things that can hinder a person's behavior and mind—are not particularly high in his mind's hierarchy.

The only thing that secured him a high ranking, and what he genuinely desired, was to study and understand the essence of the world.

Philosophically speaking, his only pursuit is truth!

But what frustrates Vaughn now is that he has temporarily hit a bottleneck in his magical research. Of course, there are many other directions to choose from, such as black magic contamination, souls, personality implantation, ether, and so on.

However, these are all quite complex and large-scale projects, and tools are needed to delve deeper into them.

The tools, or the related spells, can be obtained either by spending time developing them or by completing system side quests to study the fire dragon and obtain the "spell development module".

Rather than spending a boring summer in England, Vaughn would much rather leave and get to the side quests as soon as possible.

Of course, another important reason is that he hasn't received a letter from Isabella Rozier in a long time, and Vaughn is quite concerned about what's going on with his loyal pen pal.

Thinking about it, Vaughn asked, "How's it going with the matter I asked you to inform those families about receiving the fire dragon overseas?"

"They're fine on their end... Oh, right!"

Old Barty seemed to remember something and said, "What should we do with those captured werewolves? I heard from Lupin that you're going to use them for experiments to develop a new wolfsbane potion?"

"Yes, I'll take them with me when I leave."

"How do we carry them? The Seamless Extension Spell? To create a space that can accommodate so many people, simply casting a spell won't suffice; we also need a corresponding life-sustaining design."

"I know, I know someone who is an expert in this field."

The expert Vaughn was referring to was Newt Scamander.

This old wizard, who dedicated his life to the conservation of magical creatures, was able to transform an ordinary suitcase into a paradise where different magical creature species could coexist. His expertise in life-sustaining design was clearly exceptional.

In the afternoon, Vaughn left Crouch's house and Apparated to Dorset.

Fortunately, the two were not too far apart, and with his current magical power, which surpassed the average level of adult wizards, he didn't feel any burden.

Newt's house was visited by Vaughn several times, initially when Dumbledore brought him there to save the unicorn herd in the Forbidden Forest.

Then, Dumbledore must have given the naturally introverted and shy Newt some kind of spell, because the poor old wizard then opened his heart to Vaughn, answering all of Vaughn's questions with all his heart, and receiving gifts and invitations to spend holidays with him.

After several encounters, the two did indeed become closer—it should be said that Newt's personality was so harmless that it was difficult for anyone who had come into contact with him to feel any ill will.

After traveling over 100 miles, Vaughn emerged from the air as the Dorset sun shone brightly.

The Scamander Cottage, built beside the Muggle Highway, has a yard simply enclosed by a hedge, where groves of flowers and trees sway their branches toward the sun.

A little boy with freckles is weeding the nursery with a hoe.

The boy was startled when someone suddenly popped out of thin air, but he quickly realized what was happening and his mouth dropped open: "Apparition?"

Vaughn looked at the boy's signature orange hair and smiled gently: "Yes, you are Rolf?"

"Uh... I am, how did you know..."

“Nice to meet you. My name is Vaughn Weasley. As for how I know you, it was your grandfather who told me. He mentioned you when we corresponded last time. You'll be starting at Hogwarts in a month, right?” (No information found about Rolf's enrollment, so we'll assume he'll be in the same year as Luna.) “Hmm…”

The boy nodded shyly, looking exactly like his grandfather Newt!
“When you start school, you can come over to play with me, or you can come over to Harry and my brother Ron.” Patting the little guy’s head, Vaughn casually offered to do something for Harry and Ron, then asked, “Is your grandfather home?”

"Uh, yes, he and his grandmother were in the tea room..."

After the two said goodbye, Rolf breathed a sigh of relief as he watched Vaughn walk into the hall with practiced ease and then turn toward the tea room.

For a moment, I didn't know whether to be glad or not that the person who came was someone my grandfather knew, so I didn't have to say something I was too embarrassed to refuse.

It was probably because I was nervous about meeting people my own age for the first time.

He went back to tending the nursery, then, as if struck by a thought, suddenly looked up:
“Vaughn Weasley…Weasley…Ah!”

The little boy quickly ran to the eaves, where there was a deck chair with an open newspaper spread out on it.

Looking at the solemn and dignified little wizard in the large photograph in the newspaper, Rolf finally understood why that name always sounded familiar!
My grandfather actually knows such an amazing person?
The little boy's face turned bright red with excitement, and he could barely breathe!
……

The tea room is located behind the main house, in a corner of the garden that has been partitioned off.

It was actually a small greenhouse, where some rare and exotic plants were grown. It served both as a work requirement for Newt and as a hobby for him to relax in his spare time.

Tina also liked it there.

When Vaughn first visited the Scamanders, Tina hosted him in the tea room, which was the place he was most familiar with in the Scamanders' home.

As Vaughn turned into the backyard, he saw the greenhouse door open.

A few wisps of tea aroma wafted out.

Amidst the lush greenery and vibrant colors, Newt's weak voice of comfort could be faintly heard: "...Maybe things aren't as bad as the newspapers make them out to be. You know, the media always likes to exaggerate..."

"But I know even better what the situation is like in America!"

Tina's voice was muffled, trembling with sobs: "The Rappaport Act, the most idiotic law in the world, and those vicious people, have you forgotten? We personally experienced the riots caused by the Second Salem, and Grindelwald, Cresden, poor Cresden, born in such a terrible country, forced to become an Obscurant... The 20th century, Obscurants, is there anything more ironic than this?"

"Honey, that's all in the past."

“But the hatred won’t disappear. I wouldn’t be surprised if anything happened in America. It’s just that Queenie… I really shouldn’t have let her be so willful. I should have let her stay in England. Although the food here is terrible, at least it’s safe enough!”

"...You didn't say that 11 years ago..."

"What did you say?" Tina suddenly raised her voice.

Newt wisely swallowed the rest of his complaints.

Outside the door, Vaughn couldn't help but chuckle, then coughed and said, "Hey, Newt, Tina, I'm here to bother you again!"

"Merlin—"

There was a brief commotion in the greenhouse, but soon the Scamanders came out to greet them.

Tina's eyes were red and swollen, but when she saw Vaughn, she smiled happily, hugged him tightly, and kissed the top of his head.

Newt tilted his head and grinned foolishly until Tina glared at him, at which point he remembered to invite Vaughn into the tea room.

Another cup has been added to the cozy tea room.

Tina warmly brewed Vaughn some black tea, and Vaughn explained his purpose to the two of them: "...That's how it is. You should have seen it in the newspapers. With a boring interview and potentially endless back-and-forth negotiations, I had to find something else to do. Researching wolfsbane is a good way to make things less boring."

Of course, Newt chuckled at his explanation: "You're asking for a space that's 800 feet long, wide, and high... I can't imagine how many werewolves you'd need to keep them all alive..."

He's just socially awkward, not stupid.

Vaughn, unfazed by being exposed, said, "Of course I'll also bring in other living creatures, like those big winged ones. Don't worry, they're all from legitimate channels. It's just that I had a little disagreement with my dear Mr. Fudge, and the Ministry of Magic might not allow them to enter the country, so I chose to study them abroad."

"……I knew it."

Newt sighed. As a protector of magical creatures, he opposed wizards killing magical creatures and extracting their materials for research and invention.

But he also knew that such things were unavoidable in the magical world.

After all, the entire wizarding potion and alchemy system is built on the exploitation of magical creatures.

He's not the kind of extremist who, if he opposes something, demands that you oppose it too.

Therefore, even though he was uncomfortable, he still agreed to Vaughn's request: "My son gave me a briefcase 10 years ago. I hadn't retired yet. I traveled the world with it. It was very spacious, and I did my best to sustain myself with it. Well, the style shouldn't be out of fashion."

"Thank you, it's good that it works."

After thanking him, Vaughn took a sip of tea and noticed out of the corner of his eye that Tina kept glancing at him, seemingly wanting to say something but then stopping herself.

Based on the conversation he had overheard earlier, he thought for a moment and then said, "I just heard you talking about North America, Tina. You haven't been back to your hometown in a long time, have you? Is there anything I can help you with?"

When Vaughn left the Scamanders' house, he took a suitcase and a letter with him.

The suitcase was lent to him by Newt. Vaughn checked it and found that it was very spacious, almost comparable to the Scamanders' basement.

It is about 300 feet high and 1 mile long and wide.

Inside, there is a small pond, a small plain, and a raised terrain that simulates a plateau environment. Numerous exquisite spells maintain the sky, climate, and ecological cycle of this space.

It can even switch between day and night modes, especially at night. According to Newt, he originally modified the suitcase to save a group of Moonfoxes who were illegally hunted and raised in human society.

Long-term drug-induced domestication and abuse have caused those poor creatures to lose their natural instincts, and they generally suffer from stress reactions, even refusing to approach their own kind.

In an effort to heal and correct them, Newt asks Dumbledore and a few old friends to create a magical moon in his suitcase.

Thanks to the magical spells of several magic masters, the magical moon is almost indistinguishable from the real thing.

The moon-worshipping beasts, bathed in the full moonlight of the magical moon in a safe and sealed suitcase, were awakened to their instincts and completed their "moon-worshipping dance" (a moon-worshipping ritual of the moon-worshipping beasts, which some studies believe is a prelude to the activities and mating of the moon-worshipping beast group).

"I haven't tried whether the Magic Full Moon works on werewolves, but I think it should, after all, the Moon-worshiping dance of the Moon-obsessed Beasts is also a ritual with a mysterious aspect."

Newt said this as he handed the suitcase to Vaughn.

Over the past thousand years, the magical world has not conducted in-depth research on werewolves, but it has still grasped some basic information.

For example, what conditions are needed for a werewolf to transform under a full moon?
This is not nonsense; the full moon required for a werewolf transformation must be a "real" moon with a mystical quality.

Photographs, videos, paintings, illusions, and other means.

None of them have the effect of inducing transformation!
According to Newt, the Moonfox's moon-worshiping ritual also has such limitations and prerequisites.

That's why he created a magical moon.

He told Vaughn, “I think it should be very useful to you…you know, I don’t like your kind of…biological experiments, but I understand you need to study them to develop the wolfsbane medicine. Hope this helps!”

What a surprise.

Vaughn sincerely thanked Newt.

He also accepted the somewhat hesitant request: "If possible, I mean, if you have enough time and it won't interfere with your schedule, could you help me make a trip to Arizona after you arrive in North America? It's the habitat of ptarmigans. Decades ago, I rescued a ptarmigan and released it there; its name was Frank..."

Newt hopes Vaughn can help him visit Thunderbird Frank in Arizona.

The last time he saw it was more than ten years ago.

As a close relative of the phoenix, the thunderbird has an astonishingly long lifespan, but like the phoenix, its birth rate is also incredibly low.

Newt wanted to know if poor Frank had reproduced and what the condition of his habitat was.

Vaughn readily agreed!

There was also Tina's request—the situation in North America reported in the newspapers made Tina very worried about her sister Queenie, who lived in Manhattan, New York with her husband, Jacob Kowalski.

Unfortunately, New York is one of the most powerful regions in the Magical Congress.

Even more unfortunately, despite having produced many outstanding wizards throughout history, Tina and Queenie's Goldstein family is still classified as half-blood in America.

Because their family was not a prominent European family, but rather a "declining family" that prospered after migrating to the Americas.

Not to mention that Queenie's husband, Jacob Kowalski, is a Muggle!
Tina was very worried about their fate:
“Queenie is incredibly talented, far more so than me. She’s a natural Legilimency practitioner. She doesn’t need to learn or chant spells; she’s born with the ability to hear the secrets in other people’s hearts… This is both a gift and a burden. Queenie can’t control her ability. When she was young, she could endure and hide it, but as she got older and the longer she was ‘tortured,’ it became increasingly difficult for her to control her disgust and resentment towards what she heard…”

When the elderly Tina spoke these words, her eyes were somewhat unfocused.

It seems to bring back memories of my youth!
Few people know about that period of history, and Vaughn was one of them (it wasn't until 25 years later, when Newt wrote the new edition of "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them," that they revealed their thwarting of Grindelwald's plot).

So he agreed to help find out about Queenie and Jacob after arriving in North America.

If the two of them encounter any trouble, he will try his best to help.

Tina was grateful, but also felt guilty that her personal matters had put Vaughn at risk.

……

That night, Vaughn arrived at Hogwarts.

He needed to discuss the itinerary with Dumbledore.

During summer vacation, the campus is as quiet as a paradise. The golden castle, bathed in sunlight, is free of noise and screams. Even the damp wind blowing from Black Lake feels leisurely.

Vaughn found Dumbledore taking a walk and enjoying the breeze on the covered bridge.

When they met, Old Deng handed him a strange horn and a thick animal hide, saying, "This is Newt's gift to you, the horn and hide of a venomous beast. Newt obtained it during his travels in Africa. It is said to have been worshipped by the local tribes for thousands of years. He has read your theory of 'Mystical Fertility,' and these may be helpful to your theoretical research."

"The Mystical Characteristics of Pregnancy" is a paper that Vaughn published earlier this year during his spare time while researching wolfsbane medicine.

When conducting numerous experiments on extracting the properties of medicinal herbs, Warn discovered that some of the herbs did not possess these properties themselves.

Instead, the legend of the Muggles came first, and then wizards analyzed the plants to verify the legend and discovered that they really did have the corresponding functions.

The most typical example is the core material of the wolfsbane medicine formula developed by Warn.

Wolfsbane, wolfsbane, wolfsbane aconite!
Note that these are three different things. According to Muggle botanical classification, wolfsbane is a plant of the Euphorbiaceae family, wolfsbane is a plant of the Thymelaeaceae family, and wolfsbane aconite is aconite!

All three plants are highly poisonous, but they also miraculously possess the ability to inhibit the werewolf virus. The only common factor that causes this result is that all three plants are believed to have the ability to kill werewolves in Muggle legends.

Vaughn compiled this interesting phenomenon, along with the data he had gathered before developing the wolfsbane potion, into a paper, which he published in the magazine "Extraordinary Potions".

Of course, Vaughn and the "magic extraction method" were considered heretical by many pharmacists, so the paper did not cause much of a stir.

It wasn't until he developed the wolfsbane medicine that, thanks to the halo effect of his fame, some pharmacists set aside their prejudices, and the paper regained attention.

But there are no results yet.

Vaughn was surprised that Newt had actually paid attention to his paper.

He took the poisonous horn and the animal hide.

From their appearance, they do indeed look very historical. After a long period of time, apart from some black keratin layer, the rest of the venomous horn has crystallized.

The entire piece features an interlaced pattern of orange and black spirals.

(End of this chapter)