Newt stood nearby, watching with intense focus—his gaze practically burning.
In the display window before him, the decorations featured statues of magical creatures that were incredibly lifelike. A dragon stretched its wings, an owl swiveled its head, and a hippogriff raised a proud talon...
Finally, just as Hermione finished admiring them with a look of envy, the Magizoologist pulled a heavy bag of Golden Galleons from his suitcase.
His purchase meant one thing: the Fairy Tale Workshop's inventory was about to be completely wiped out.
Professor Quirrell looked at Sean with some concern, but the shop manager didn't seem to mind at all. In Sean's eyes, considering Mr. Scamander was practically the source of their raw materials, the man was clearly too wealthy for his own good.
"He bought... everything?"
Hermione whispered the words in shock. She had just been intimidated by the exorbitant price of the biscuits, and now, someone had bought out the entire stock.
She and Neville watched as the statues, which had been so lively moments before, fell silent, while Mr. Scamander's face grew significantly rosier.
It was hard to tell if his flush was from the excitement or just the warmth of the fireplace.
Moments later, the group settled into the back of the shop. Between the window and a beautiful Christmas tree, there was a small empty table right next to the hearth. Five minutes later, Professor Quirrell joined them, carrying four large, frothy mugs of pumpkin juice.
They drank the juice, warming themselves up, and could clearly hear the voices of wizards passing outside the shop.
"What a surprise. Usually, the Fairy Tale Workshop would be dark by now," a witch living in Diagon Alley remarked.
"That acting manager is as clockwork as they come," her husband replied, his voice full of curiosity. "Except for a visit from a certain gentleman, I can't think of a single reason why he'd keep the lights on."
Hearing this, and thinking of the high prices and the famous wizards coming and going, Hermione felt that Sean must be incredibly respected here.
When she turned around, Master Scamander, who had been smiling the whole time, began to speak.
"Regarding the definition of 'Beings' versus 'Beasts'... in the early days, the attempts to decide which magical creatures should be classified as 'Beings' were extremely crude."
Mr. Scamander seemed more than happy to give the young wizards a lesson in the history of magical creatures.
So, everyone sat there drinking pumpkin juice and feasting on the extra treats that had appeared on the table—pumpkin pasties, roast beef, roast chicken, pork chops, and lamb chops—while listening to Mr. Scamander's narration.
It's worth noting that there were two wireless radios in the shop. The low hum of broadcasts from both the Muggle world and the Wizarding world mingled together, accompanying Mr. Scamander's magnetic voice.
"Burdock Muldoon, the Chief of the Wizards' Council in the fourteenth century, decreed that any member of the magical community that walked on two legs would henceforth be granted the status of 'Being,' while all others would remain 'Beasts.'
"In a gesture of goodwill, he summoned all 'Beings' to a summit to meet with wizards and discuss new magical laws. But to his great dismay, he realized he had made a terrible miscalculation.
"The meeting hall was packed with Goblins, and they had brought along every two-legged creature they could find.
"As Bathilda Bagshot tells us in A History of Magic:
> 'Amidst the harsh screeching of Diricawls, the mournful cries of Augureys, and the relentless, piercing song of Fwoopers, almost nothing could be heard. As the wizards attempted to consult their papers, all manner of Pixies and Fairies swirled above their heads, cackling and chattering.
> 'A dozen trolls began swinging their clubs, threatening to smash the hall to bits, while Hags glided around looking for children to eat.
> 'The Chief rose to bring the meeting to order, slipped on a pile of Porlock dung, and fled the hall cursing.'"
This description drew gasp after gasp from Neville; he seemed genuinely terrified by the chaotic scene.
Sean, meanwhile, was recording all of this in his magical creature notebook. He thought back on the history of magic, contemplating the Goblins' long tradition of fanning the flames of conflict throughout wizarding history.
"As we can see, simply possessing two legs does not guarantee that a magical creature can, or will, take an interest in the affairs of a wizarding government.
"Filled with resentment, Muldoon abandoned any further attempts to integrate non-wizard members of the magical community into the Wizards' Council," Mr. Scamander concluded.
"Was this the first sign of the conflict between Goblins and Wizards?" Sean asked thoughtfully. "I recall that three centuries later, Goblins incited a group of people to riot at the Ministry of Magic because they were unhappy with Quidditch reforms."
"Perhaps, perhaps not," Newt answered slowly. "The history of magical creatures tells me that wizards were not always the masters of the magical world. There are many epics within that history that we have yet to uncover.
"Whether the magic of wizards and the magic of beasts originates from the same source has always been an unresolved question in magical history."
Sean sat motionless, seemingly ensnared by the vastness of magical history.
"Let's move the hands of time forward," Newt continued. "Later, Muldoon's successor, Madame Elfrida Clagg, attempted to redefine 'Beings' in hopes of building closer ties with other magical creatures.
"'Beings,' she declared, are those who can speak the human tongue. Therefore, all creatures capable of making themselves understood to Council members were invited to the next meeting.
"However, problems arose once again. The Trolls, who had been taught a few simple sentences by the Goblins, began destroying the hall just as before. Jarveys raced around the council chamber, darting under chairs and biting ankles whenever they could reach them."
As Master Scamander spoke, Hermione frowned deeply, appearing to be deep in thought about how one might solve such a complex puzzle.
"So, how do we distinguish between a person and an animal?
"And what is it, exactly, that made wizards the masters of the magical world?"
Perhaps, Sean thought, it is knowledge and wisdom that allowed wizards to carve out a completely new path in the realm of magic.
If there is any true difference between wizards and magical beasts, it remains only in the wisdom passed down from generation to generation.
Sean, seemingly having an epiphany while standing on the shoulders of giants, spoke up. "That is why there are true wars between Wizards and Goblins, rather than with creatures like dragons or giants. It is a life-or-death collision between two intelligent species."
Sean's eyes burned with intensity.
He suddenly understood that it was wisdom that created the vastness of wizarding magic, preventing it from becoming a simple subject of study and observation like the field of Care of Magical Creatures.
He thought of the development of science in the non-magical world, realizing it coincided perfectly with the development of magic in the realm of wisdom. At the same time, he naturally thought of the distinction between emotion and reason at their intersection.
"A novel interpretation... and," Newt paused, humming in thought, "a reasonable one."
Newt looked at the young wizard with a gaze that was both enlightened and slightly startled.
Then, he continued: