"Deliberate?" Newt glanced at Dumbledore, feeling he probably ought to refuse. Yet, when he pictured those endless grasslands and the exuberant magical creatures roaming there, he simply couldn't bring himself to say no…
While Newt hesitated, Xenophilius and Luna approached.
"Headmaster Dumbledore, Mr. Scamander, I think Luna may have caught a cold," said Xenophilius. "We'll head back to the inn and get some rest."
Dumbledore gazed into the distance. Through the thick, drifting clouds, a hint of silver was just visible.
Swedish nights were always fleeting—give it another hour or so, and dawn would break once more.
He smiled, waving them off. "Of course! It's getting late. You should hurry back and rest!"
…
After bidding farewell to Dumbledore and the others, the three of them strolled down the cobblestone lane, surrounded by clusters of other wizards.
Most looked rather worse for wear—pale, shivering, still reeling from the ordeal.
As soon as they spotted Wyzett and his companions, the wizards surged forward, grasping Wyzett's hands in gratitude, voices tumbling over one another in thanks.
Some, overcome with emotion, even wept openly, as if finally releasing the terror they'd bottled up inside. Even though they'd been transformed into reindeer, they'd seen enough to know what Wyzett and the others had done.
No matter how things had unfolded, without their intervention, nobody dared imagine how it all might have ended.
Wyzett felt awkward as his hands were shaken up and down by the crowd.
Noticing this, Xenophilius deftly stepped forward, shielding Wyzett and Luna from the enthusiastic mob and fielding the flood of gratitude himself.
"We're just tourists, really…"
"Want to contact us? Here's my card…"
"Yes, I'm the editor-in-chief of The Quibbler…"
"He's Wyzett—we're family…"
"Oh, his background? Well, it's a bit complicated, quite extraordinary…"
"Yes, that's right—he's been through a lot. That's why he's so willing to help others…"
As the editor-in-chief of The Quibbler, Xenophilius had plenty of experience handling this sort of scene.
"You've caught a cold?" Wyzett finally managed to extricate himself, turning to the question that had been gnawing at him. "Was it because we were up in the sky, and Frigg didn't shield you?"
"Of course not." Luna smiled at his anxious expression. "It was just my first time flying like that… I'd never experienced anything so wonderful."
"Me neither," Wyzett admitted, letting out a long breath.
He thought back to their time in the air. "Have you mastered that spell now?"
"I have!" Luna suddenly raised her wand and murmured softly, "Læviasa!"
A wizard who had nearly tripped was gently caught by an invisible force, saving him from a nasty tumble on a jutting cobblestone.
"You really have mastered it!" Wyzett grinned, though he couldn't help but wonder, "Did something happen up there?"
"I saw a glowing thing flying toward me," Luna recalled. "Frigg told me it wasn't dangerous, so I just…"
Her wrist, pale and smooth as jade, made the mistletoe bracelet she wore seem all the more delicate and radiant.
Nestled in one of the bracelet's blossoms was a silver-blue crystal, shaped like a shard of ice.
Wyzett quickly activated his Oculus Magicae. The crystal shimmered, sending slow pulses of silver-blue light outward.
Proof of ancient magic.
Luna beamed, her smile bright as sunlight. "Remember? I once told you, someday you could teach me other things…"
After watching Wyzett and the others depart, Dumbledore lowered his voice. "Newt, it seems you're hiding something from Wyzett, aren't you?"
Newt countered, "Do you remember the message your Patronus delivered to me?"
A sharp glint flashed behind Dumbledore's half-moon spectacles. "You mean… that Obscurus… was Wyzett?"
Newt pulled a glass orb from his pocket. Now, it was completely empty. "The black energy inside was the Obscurus itself."
"I searched my whole case before I managed to collect that wisp. But just now, as soon as they landed, the black energy couldn't wait to return."
"That's not normal," Dumbledore observed. "Otherwise, it would've returned the moment you arrived."
"Exactly!" Newt nodded. "I could feel its joy—raw, instinctive joy. Something must have happened atop the World Tree."
"I see." Dumbledore stroked his beard. "Now I understand."
Newt asked, "Are you going to ask him about it?"
"Let things unfold as they will, I suppose?"
"You're… Headmaster Dumbledore, after all."
"Is there a problem? Since it's already returned, let it be!"
"I sometimes think I was born in the wrong era…" Newt teased. "If you'd been like this back in my day, maybe my life wouldn't have been so… legendary."
"He may have far more to bear in the future," Dumbledore said, eyes narrowing. "Didn't I mention wanting to travel to Africa? Are you interested?"
"Do you really mean to go?" Newt eyed him curiously. "Is it for the Animagi? Or those murals… or something else?"
"Travel is about scenery and learning, isn't it?" Dumbledore replied with a sly smile. "Those are just side benefits! Will you come?"
Newt hesitated. "But African magical creatures are rather… spirited. Tina probably wouldn't want me taking risks—especially at my age."
Dumbledore's eyes glinted, fox-like. "What if I guarantee your safety? I need an experienced guide."
"You'll guarantee my safety?" Newt stroked his chin. "So I can see any magical beast I want? Erumpents, Runespoors, Nundu—anything?"
Dumbledore nodded. "Of course. I'm just along for the ride. Other than the murals, I'll follow your lead."
"You're not looking for a new professor anymore?"
"As I said, you and I can deliberate together!" Dumbledore grinned. "Think it over?"
"All right, then! For the sake of the magical creatures!" Newt sighed dramatically, resigned but not without a hint of excitement.
All around them, swirling portals began to appear as officials from the Swedish Ministry of Magic arrived on the scene.
A yawn sounded behind Dumbledore—Björn from the Department of Mysteries had finally woken up.
"Newt, looks like we'll need to wrap things up here before we head off to Africa…"
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