Chapter 158: Suitcases And The Magic Moon
In the last few days they spent together, the two encountered several attacks by Purifiers. No matter how they hid, their pursuers always found them in the end.
Natalie said it wasn’t power from wizards, nor Muggle technology, but something else entirely.
She was crushed by an unknown fear…
Isabella still doesn’t know what Natalie was thinking before deciding to die, or what exactly made her decide to end her life.
Was it related to the “something else entirely” she mentioned?
With Natalie’s death, these questions would remain unanswered. Natalie left no clues, only some contact information for black market, illegal safe houses to Isabella.
The apartment Isabella had just escaped from was an illegal safe house, run by a pair of Pukujians （ a distant relative of European goblins ）. Most illegal safe houses were operated by such magical creatures.
They didn’t care about wizards’ morality, or even whether they were wizards, Muggles, or trolls. As long as they had Galleons, Sickles （ North American magical currency ）, US dollars, or Euros, they were willing to provide services!
“I hope those people managed to escape…”
Isabella thought.
Most of the people staying at the illegal safe house tonight were, like her, wizards affected by the current situation in North America and seeking to cross the border into Canada for refuge.
Perhaps it was the large number of people gathered here that attracted the Purifiers’ pursuit!
But all she could do was give a warning before escaping herself, and offer her prayers for now…
As the temperature dropped further in the early morning, Isabella hugged herself tightly, trying to retain warmth, and gradually fell asleep, listening to the sounds of battle receding in the town.
A few hours later, as the dawn began to break, she woke up again.
Just as she had woken from her sleep a few hours earlier, she once again sensed a faint magical fluctuation.
Isabella huddled beneath the water tower, too afraid to move, her eyes wide open, watching the Muggle town outside slowly illuminated by the spreading daylight.
She saw those Purifiers again.
They rode broomsticks and magic carpets, silently passing through the town shrouded in the misty morning, like dark, silent ravens hovering, except now they held something in their hands that Muggles called a “megaphone.”
They flew slowly, aiming the megaphones downwards.
Isabella watched with fear and curiosity. She heard no sound from the “megaphones” and sensed nothing unusual.
However, with the enhanced sensing spell she maintained, she clearly heard that as the Purifiers swept by with their “megaphones,” the entire town was rapidly “awakening.”
The human voices that had disappeared from the town gradually returned, as if waking from a deep slumber.
When the first rays of sunlight finally pierced through the mountains, bathing everything in gold, this small town near the international border city of Niagara Falls （ a border city in Minnesota ）, returned to its usual peaceful and lively state.
The Purifiers had also vanished without a trace!
They had cleared all traces of the battle before leaving, as if last night had never happened!
Isabella didn’t dare to let down her guard. She waited for a long time, until the sun was directly overhead, before transforming into a cat and returning to the apartment building.
That place had also been repaired by the Purifiers.
The ruined walls from last night’s battle had returned to their proper places, only the owner of the building was gone.
There may have been some Muggle casualties.
But no one would remember such things. Just like in past incidents, the Purifiers had handled everything discreetly, keeping the hidden things hidden, and the Muggles would never know what had truly transpired.
Isabella watched a few familiar Muggles walk out of the apartment, chatting obliviously, and sighed with melancholy.
Along with a sense of confusion about the future.
The Purifiers being able to find this place indicated that the border to Canada had likely come under their purview. They… would not allow wizards to leave!
Perhaps the border was already a net.
Based on Isabella’s understanding of the Purifiers’ methods in recent days, this was highly plausible.
Her plan to escape the United States seemed to have failed…
Isabella prepared to return to the water tower. Despite her deep dejection and frustration, she had not been defeated. Ever since she decided to embark on a graduation trip in the tradition of Hogwarts, she had been prepared to face hardships.
Otherwise, why would she have resigned from a job as a Memory Charmer, which was leisurely and safe?
Shaking her fur like a cat, dispelling the gloom from her heart, Isabella headed back to the building where she was hiding.
She saw a discarded newspaper at the foot of the building…
A 《 Daily Prophet （ North American Edition 》.
It might have been left behind by other wizards who escaped last night. Such newspapers were generally enchanted with a mild Confundus Charm, making them invisible to Muggles, with their moving pictures and text.
Isabella didn’t pay it any mind until she passed by, and a large photograph on the newspaper caught her eye.
The background of the photo seemed to be a venue.
Flashes like lightning illuminated the boy in the camera’s focus. The boy looked up slightly, his expression solemn and dignified. The artful framing made him appear sacred and majestic.
A line of bold text circulated above his head:
【 Ilvermorny formally submits a memorandum, inviting the WAC with the highest diplomatic courtesy. Vaughn Weasley, the first President of the WAC, will visit North America! 】
As expected, Ilvermorny agreed to Vaughn’s request.
When Joshua Potter, the representative of Ilvermorny, was interviewed last night, he was quite candid about the difficulties they were currently facing and why they insisted on inviting the WAC:
【… “The complex situation in America is developing in a way unfavorable to Ilvermorny,” said Joshua Potter. 】
【 Since the conflict broke out last year, for various reasons, over 2,000 students have been stranded at the school and unable to return home… Ilvermorny has effectively become their last sanctuary, but unfortunately, our resources are very limited. 】
【 Ilvermorny is just a magical academy. In its hundreds of years of history, it may have nurtured countless excellent wizards, but it is not a military institution. It is maintained by only 50 teachers and a few Pukujian tribes… 】
【 “With our strength alone, we cannot protect those students!” 】
【 Mr. Joshua Potter was very sincere, but when the reporter asked him what threatened the lives of over 2,000 students, Mr. Potter was unwilling to reveal the truth, only saying that the situation was complex and could not be explained in a few words, much like the conflict last year, which was the result of various causes over decades. 】
【 Rather than satisfying our curiosity about the North American situation, Mr. Potter’s attention was clearly focused on solving the immediate problem. He told the reporter: “In present-day America, aside from the Pukujians, only werewolves are independent of everything else. Mr. Vaughn Weasley’s Wolfsbane Potion has given these marginalized groups new hope and the possibility of reintegrating into American wizarding society… That is undoubtedly an encouraging and vital force. This is the original motivation for us to invite Mr. Vaughn Weasley to visit North America and strongly advocate for cooperation between the WAC and North America…” 】
【 “And our demands are not much. We only hope to gain the friendship of both sides, resolve the current predicament facing Ilvermorny, and save the innocent students stranded at the school whose lives are constantly threatened…” 】
After reading the interview in the newspaper, Vaughn smiled and put it down.
The reporter was right. Ilvermorny had been quite candid, not only agreeing to Vaughn’s requirements for the visit’s protocol but also not concealing the reasons.
Perhaps their situation was so dire that they didn’t want to waste words on pretense.
But Vaughn suspected there was also an element of deliberate exaggeration on their part.
Look at over 2,000 innocent students!
Such numbers and groups would surely evoke sympathy from many wizards. As far as Vaughn knew, public opinion was already showing sympathy for Ilvermorny.
It was said that many readers had already mailed letters to newspapers and the Ministry of Magic, urging the WAC to expedite cooperation and help those poor people!
In a sense, Joshua Potter’s statement was akin to moral blackmail.
“No one who gets involved in politics is pure.”
Opposite Vaughn, Old Bardi Crouch picked up the newspaper and flipped through it, remarking, “Their original intention might have been to introduce WAC cooperation and enlist werewolves to protect the school, but they still subconsciously dug a pit for themselves to gain some leverage in future negotiations!”
Vaughn remained silent.
Politics was essentially the competition and exchange of interests. It was not surprising that Ilvermorny had such intentions.
Old Bardi looked at it for a while longer, his brow furrowed. “You must be extra careful during this visit… I don’t mean Ilvermorny; those teachers are at least somewhat decent. I’m worried about those strange organizations in America!”
“Fundamentally, the current division in the North American wizarding world is actually the division among these three groups of wizards: pure-bloods, half-bloods, and those of Muggle origin.”
“No matter what slogans they shout, the root cause is that they all want to settle scores with their opponents, to vent their hatred and resentment, and to rally support. Thus, the 2,000-plus stranded students at Ilvermorny are the perfect targets.”
“And your visit undoubtedly harms their interests, perhaps…”
“Perhaps as soon as news of my visit to North America spreads, many people there will want to kill me,” Vaughn said calmly. “I understand all of this. Once bloodshed and violence begin, they cannot be stopped. After all, solving the person who causes the problem is a simpler and more effective way than solving the problem itself.”
Old Bardi was silent for a moment, then nodded. “It’s good that you understand. When are you planning to depart?”
“In two days.”
“So soon? You, too, can be blackmailed by morality and public opinion?”
Old Bardi seemed incredulous.
“Heh, I just don’t have much to do lately,” Vaughn said with a smile, playing with his wand, his tone listless.
He was not a person with too many scruples. If it weren’t for the need to do certain things to realize his vision, he could have, like during the years before he attended school, stayed in one place and quietly researched his own work.
As for politics, public opinion, or even the reputation the System required, these things that could constrain a person’s actions and mind were not particularly high on his list of priorities.
The only thing that held a high position and was what he truly desired was to research and understand the essence of the world.
Philosophically speaking, his sole pursuit was truth!
But what frustrated Vaughn now was that he had temporarily reached a bottleneck in his magical research. There were still many directions to choose from: dark magic pollution, souls, persona embodiment, aether, and so on.
However, these were all complex and grand projects. To delve deeper, he needed tools.
And these tools, the relevant spells, could either be acquired through time and development （ development ）, or by completing System side quests and researching Fire Dragons to obtain the “Spell Development Module.”
Compared to staying in England and enjoying a boring summer vacation, Vaughn naturally preferred to leave and start the progress of his side quests as soon as possible.
Of course, another important reason was that he hadn’t received a letter from Isabella Rosier in a long time. He was quite concerned about what his loyal pen pal was up to.
Thinking of this, Vaughn asked, “How is the matter of receiving Fire Dragons abroad that I asked you to inform those few families about progressing?”
“There are no problems on their end… By the way!”
Old Bardi remembered something and said, “What about the captured werewolves? I heard from Lupin that you’re going to use them for experiments to develop a new Wolfsbane Potion?”
“Yes, I’ll bring them with me when I leave.”
“How will you bring them? Undetectable Extension Charm? To create space that can accommodate so many people, a simple charm won’t suffice; it will also require corresponding life support designs.”
“I know. I know an expert in that area.”
The expert Vaughn was referring to was Newt Scamander.
This old wizard, who had dedicated his life to the protection of magical creatures, could transform an ordinary suitcase into a paradise where different magical creature populations could coexist. His mastery of life support design was clearly superb.
In the afternoon, Vaughn left the Crouch residence and Apparated to Dorset.
Fortunately, the two locations were not too far apart. With his magic, which now surpassed the average level of adult wizards, it was not a burden.
Vaughn had visited Newt’s home several times. Initially, it was to save the unicorn herd in the Forbidden Forest, and Dumbledore had brought him along to visit.
Then, no one knew what Dumbledore had said to the naturally introverted and shy Newt, but this poor old wizard thereafter poured his heart out to Vaughn. He always answered Vaughn’s questions diligently and would send him gifts and invitations to celebrate holidays.
After several such encounters, their relationship had indeed become close—in other words, Newt’s personality was so harmless that it was difficult for anyone who interacted with him to develop negative feelings.
After traveling through about 100 miles of space, as Vaughn emerged from the air, the sun was shining brightly in Dorset.
Scamander’s cottage, built beside a Muggle road, had a yard enclosed by a simple hedge, with swathes of flowers and trees proudly displaying their branches towards the sun.
A freckled young boy was weeding the nursery with a hoe.
Seeing someone suddenly appear out of thin air, the boy was startled but quickly reacted, his mouth agape: “Apparition?”
Vaughn looked at the boy’s characteristic orange hair and smiled gently. “Yes, are you Rolf?”
“Uh… I am. How did you know…”
“It’s our first meeting. My name is Vaughn Weasley. As for how I know you, your grandfather told me, of course. When I last corresponded with him, he mentioned you. You’ll be starting at Hogwarts in a month, won’t you?” （ No information found about Rolf’s enrollment; assumed to be the same year as Luna ）
“Mm…”
The boy nodded shyly, looking exactly like his grandfather, Newt!
“When you start school, you can come visit me, or visit Harry and my brother Ron too.” Patting the little fellow’s head, Vaughn casually took on some tasks for Harry and Ron, then asked, “Is your grandfather at home?”
“Uh, yes, he and Grandmother are in the tea room…”
They parted ways. Watching Vaughn walk familiarly into the main house and then turn towards the tea room, Rolf breathed a sigh of relief.
For a moment, he wasn’t sure whether he was relieved that the visitor was an acquaintance of his grandfather, sparing him the need to utter an embarrassing refusal,
or if it was due to the nervousness of encountering someone his own age for the first time.
He turned 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 a lounge chair was placed, with an open newspaper spread on it.
Looking at the large photograph on the newspaper, the solemn young wizard, Rolf finally understood why the name had sounded so familiar!
His grandfather knew such an amazing person?
The boy’s face flushed with excitement, and he could barely breathe!
…
The tea room was located behind the main house, in a partitioned corner of the garden.
It was actually a small greenhouse where some rare magical plants were grown, serving both Newt’s work needs and his hobby for relaxation.
Tina also liked it there very much.
The first time Vaughn visited the Scamander home, Tina had hosted him in the tea room. It was the place he was most familiar with in the Scamander household.
As he turned into the backyard, Vaughn saw the door to the greenhouse open.
A hint of tea fragrance wafted out.
Amidst the lush greenery and vibrant colors, Newt’s faint comforting voice could be heard: “…Perhaps the situation isn’t as bad as the newspaper says. You know, the media always likes to exaggerate…”
“But I know what the situation in America is like!”
Tina’s voice was muffled and tearful. “The 《 Rappaport Law 》, the most foolish law in the world, and those wicked people, have you forgotten? We personally experienced the riots caused by Second Salem, and Grindelwald, Credence, poor Credence, born in such a terrible country, forced to become an Obscurus… Obscurial in the 20th century, could there be anything more ironic?”
“My dear, that’s all in the past.”
“But hatred doesn’t disappear. I wouldn’t be surprised by anything that happens in America. If only I hadn’t indulged Queenie’s willfulness back then, I should have made her stay in England. Although the food here is terrible, at least it’s safe!”
“…You didn’t say that 11 years ago…”
“What did you say?” Tina’s voice suddenly rose.
Newt wisely swallowed the rest of his complaint.
Outside the door, Vaughn couldn’t help but chuckle, then coughed. “Hey, Newt, Tina, I’m bothering you again!”
“Merlin above—”
There was a flurry of activity inside the greenhouse, and a moment later, Mr. and Mrs. Scamander emerged to greet him.
Tina’s eyes were red and swollen, but seeing Vaughn, she smiled happily and hugged him tightly, kissing the top of his head.
Newt smiled foolishly, tilting his head, until Tina glared at him, reminding him to invite Vaughn into the tea room.
A cup was added to the cozy tea room.
Tina warmly served Vaughn black tea, and Vaughn explained his purpose to them: “…That’s how it is. You must have seen it in the newspapers too. A tedious visit and subsequent negotiations that are likely to involve a lot of back-and-forth. I need to find something else to do for myself, and researching Wolfsbane Potion is a less boring way to do it.”
Of course, Newt smiled at his explanation. “You’re asking for a space 800 feet long, wide, and high… I can’t imagine how many werewolves you’d need to bring to require such a large area to house them…”
He was just socially awkward, not foolish.
Vaughn, having been found out, was unfazed. “Of course, I’ll also bring other creatures, like those big winged ones. Don’t worry, they’re all from legitimate sources. It’s just that Mr. Fudge and I have had a few minor disagreements, and the Ministry might not allow them to enter the country, which is why I’ve chosen to do my research abroad.”
“…I knew it.”
Newt sighed. As a magizoologist, he was against wizards killing magical creatures for their materials for research and invention.
But he also understood that such things were unavoidable in the wizarding world.
After all, the entire potion and alchemy system of wizards was built upon the exploitation of magical creatures.
He was not an extremist who would oppose something and demand that others do the same.
Therefore, despite feeling uncomfortable, he still agreed to Vaughn’s request. “A suitcase my son gave me 10 years ago. I wasn’t retired then, and I traveled the world with it. The space is vast, and the life support is as good as I could make it. Yes, the style should still be current.”
“Thank you. As long as it works.”
After expressing his gratitude, Vaughn took a sip of tea and noticed, out of the corner of his eye, that Tina kept glancing at him, wanting to say something several times.
Combined with the conversation he had overheard earlier, he thought for a moment and then proactively said, “I just heard you talking about North America. Tina, you haven’t been home in a long time, have you? Is there anything I can help you with?”
As Vaughn left the Scamander home, he took with him a suitcase and a letter.
The suitcase was lent to him by Newt. Vaughn examined it; the space inside was immense, almost comparable to the Scamander’s basement.
It was about 300 feet high, with a length and width of 1 mile each.
Inside, there was a small pond, a small plain, and a raised terrain simulating a plateau environment. Numerous exquisite charms maintained the sky, climate, and ecological cycle of this space.
It could even switch between day and night modes. Especially at night, according to Newt, he had initially modified this suitcase to save a batch of Mooncalves that had been illegally hunted and raised in human society.
Long-term drug domestication and abuse had caused these poor creatures to lose their natural instincts, generally exhibiting stress reactions, and unwilling to approach even their own kind.
To treat and correct them, Newt had asked Dumbledore and a few old friends to create a magical moon inside the suitcase.
Thanks to the wondrous spells of these magical masters, the magical moon was almost indistinguishable from the real thing.
The Mooncalves, which worshipped the moon, finally awakened their instincts in the safe, enclosed suitcase, bathed in the full moonlight of the magical moon, and performed their “Mooncalf Dance” （ a form of moon worship ritual for Mooncalves, believed by some researchers to be a prelude to their group activities and mating ）.
“I haven’t tried if a magical full moon works on werewolves, but I think it should be possible, as the Mooncalves’ moon-worship dance also possesses a mystical nature,”
Newt said this as he handed the suitcase to Vaughn.
Over the past thousand years, although research on werewolves had not been very in-depth, some basic information had been gathered.
For example, what conditions were required for a werewolf’s transformation during a full moon!
This was not stating the obvious; the full moon required for a werewolf’s transformation must be “real” and mystical.
Photos, videos, paintings, illusions, and other methods.
None of them could induce transformation!
According to Newt, the Mooncalves’ moon-worship ritual also had such limitations and prerequisites.
That was why he had created a magical moon.
He said to Vaughn, “I think it should be very useful for you… You know, I don’t like your kind of… biological experiments, but I understand that you need to research them to develop Wolfsbane Potion. I hope it helps you!”
This was truly an unexpected joy.
Vaughn sincerely thanked Newt.
He also accepted Newt’s somewhat awkward request: “If possible, that is, if your schedule allows and it won’t delay your trip, after you arrive in North America, could you go to Arizona for me? That’s where Thunderbird habitats are. Decades ago, I rescued a Thunderbird and released it there. Its name is Frank…”
Newt hoped Vaughn could visit Thunderbird Frank in Arizona for him.
The last time he had seen it was over ten years ago.
As close relatives of Phoenixes, Thunderbirds had astonishingly long lifespans, but like Phoenixes, their reproductive rates were equally astonishingly low.
Newt wanted to know if poor Frank had managed to breed a flock and what the habitat conditions were like.
Vaughn readily agreed!
There was also Tina’s request—the North American situation reported in the newspaper made Tina very worried about her sister Queenie. She and her husband, Jacob Kowalski, lived in Manhattan, New York.
Unfortunately, New York was one of the most powerful regions of the Magical Congress.
More unfortunately, the Goldstein family, from which Tina and Queenie hailed, although they had produced excellent wizards through generations, were still classified as half-bloods in America.
This was because their family was not an old European lineage but a “fallen house” that had only developed after migrating to the Americas.
Not to mention that Queenie’s husband, Jacob Kowalski, was a Muggle!
Tina was very worried about their fate:
“Queenie is incredibly talented, much more so than I am. She’s a natural Legilimens. She doesn’t need to study or cast spells; she can hear other people’s inner secrets from birth… This is both a gift and a burden. Queenie can’t control her abilities. When she was younger, she could endure and hide it, but as she got older and was ‘tormented’ for longer, it became increasingly difficult for her to control her aversion and resentment towards what she heard…”
As the elderly Tina spoke, her gaze seemed distant.
She appeared to be recalling events from her youth!
Not many people knew of that history, and Vaughn happened to be one of them （ It would not be until 25 years later, when Newt compiled the new edition of 《 Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them 》, that their feat of thwarting Grindelwald’s plot would be revealed ）.
Therefore, he agreed to inquire about Queenie and Jacob’s situation after arriving in North America.
If they were in trouble, he would also find a way to help.
Tina was very grateful. She felt guilty that Vaughn might be putting himself at risk for her personal matters.
…
That night, Vaughn arrived at Hogwarts.
He needed to discuss his itinerary with Dumbledore.
The campus during the summer holidays was as serene as a paradise. The castle, bathed in golden sunlight, was devoid of noise and the screams of playful children. Even the damp wind blowing from the Black Lake seemed leisurely.
Vaughn found Dumbledore strolling and enjoying the breeze on the gallery.
Upon meeting, Old Dumbledore handed him a strange horn and a thick piece of beast hide, saying, “This is Newt’s thank-you gift. A Graphorn horn and hide. Newt obtained them during his travels in Africa, where they were reportedly worshipped by local tribes for thousands of years. He read your 《 Mystical Incubation Properties 》 theory, and they might be helpful for your theoretical research.”
《 Mystical Incubation Properties 》 was a paper Vaughn had published earlier in the year during his free time while researching Wolfsbane Potion.
When he was extensively conducting experiments on extracting properties of medicinal herbs, Vaughn discovered that some herbs’ properties were not inherent.
Instead, Muggle legends came first, followed by wizards who, to verify the legends, analyzed the plants and found they indeed possessed corresponding functions.
The most typical example was the core ingredient in the Wolfsbane Potion formula that Vaughn developed.
Wolfsbane grass, Wolfsbane, and Wolfsbane aconite!
Note that these are three different things. Wolfsbane grass, classified by Muggle botany, is a plant in the Euphorbia family. Wolfsbane is in the Thymelaeaceae family, and Wolfsbane aconite is Aconitum!
All three plants are highly poisonous, but they also miraculously possess the effect of inhibiting the werewolf virus. The only common factor causing this result is that all three plants are said in Muggle legends to have the ability to kill werewolves.
Vaughn organized this interesting phenomenon, along with the information he had observed and compiled before developing Wolfsbane Potion, into a paper and published it in the 《 Fantastic Potions 》 magazine.
Of course, Vaughn and the “Magic Power Extraction Method” were considered unorthodox by many potioneers, so the paper didn’t cause much stir.
It wasn’t until he developed Wolfsbane Potion and gained celebrity status that some potioneers set aside their prejudices, and the paper regained attention.
But there were no significant results yet.
Vaughn hadn’t expected Newt to have paid attention to his paper.
He took the Graphorn horn and hide.
Externally, they indeed had a sense of great age. After being weathered by the long passage of time, the Graphorn horn, apart from some black keratin layers, had crystallized in other areas.
The entire surface displayed a spiral pattern of orange and black intermingled.
