Chapter 26. Go to the Ministry of Magic to Make Some Extra Money
"The records here are very interesting, and many of them are different from what I've read in other books."
Seeing Duncan approach, Hermione's eyes curved into a smile, and she excitedly shared her delight with him.
"Those are my grandfather's on-site investigations at Loch Ness—first-hand experience.
Most people can hardly even get near that Kelpie, let alone observe it up close, so a lot of what's in their books is their own conjecture—plausible-sounding accounts, but not very reliable," Duncan said.
"I see."
Hermione nodded slightly, impressed.
"Mr Scamander really is a great magizoologist!"
"He is, indeed."
Duncan nodded in agreement and cleared his throat.
"Hermione…"
"What is it?"
Hermione unwillingly tore her gaze from the page and looked at Duncan in puzzlement.
"Would you say we're friends now?"
"Mm… of course!"
Hermione thought for a moment and answered.
Though she had only met Duncan today, she thought he seemed decent and easy to get along with.
"In that case… come with me.
I'll show you something else."
"What?"
Hermione's curiosity was piqued.
She closed the book and set it on the table.
"You'll know when we get there," Duncan said, turning towards the door.
As Duncan passed, Fred leaned in and murmured, "Are you sure you want to do that?"
"We haven't learnt the Memory Charm yet—we won't be able to help you then!" George warned.
"Don't worry.
Even if she refuses to keep my secret, I still have a way," Duncan said confidently.
"Alright then."
Fred shrugged.
"Let's hope she's a trustworthy partner!"
The group left the work shed, and Hermione noticed an astonishing sight not far away.
Above the canvas-screened area, black clouds rolled like the sea, and a golden figure, like a dragon, darted back and forth among the clouds, calling wind and bringing rain.
Hermione's attention was wholly drawn to it, and even her steps slowed.
"In a moment, take it easy—don't get too nervous, and don't shout.
Kray is very shy."
Duncan gave instructions, then pulled a few umbrellas from a barrel by the path near the canvas and tossed them to the others.
They opened the umbrellas and walked into the thunder-and-lightning zone.
Sheets of rain pelted down, drumming on the canopies with a pattering roar.
Duncan felt his hand shaking along with the umbrella.
He clambered onto a jutting boulder and peered through the curtain of rain.
He waved and shouted, "Kray, calm down.
If you keep the rain pouring, my case will be flooded!"
"Duncan?"
Kray swooped down in a fury, complaining in rapid bursts.
"What on earth did you bring in here?
That smell is even worse than a troll's stench—it nearly knocked me out of the sky!"
"Sorry, my fault," Duncan admitted guiltily.
It wasn't easy for Kray, who had just borne the brunt on his behalf.
"Who are those two?"
As Kray drew near, his gaze picked out the two strangers on the ground.
He hovered warily, and the drizzle turned, in an instant, back into a raging downpour.
"Is it that stench coming off them?"
Kray's sharp eyes raked Hermione and Neville.
"No, it's not.
That was just an accident—trust me," said Duncan.
Kray beat his wings, hesitated a moment, chose to trust Duncan, and slowly descended to the ground.
At the same time, the massed storm clouds dispersed.
The sun reappeared; after the rain the sky cleared, and a slim rainbow curved in the distance.
"Come over," Duncan turned and beckoned to the others.
Fred and George dashed over at once, eager to hug Kray.
But he warded them off in distaste and answered them with two irritated cries.
"What did Kray say?" Fred asked curiously.
He knew Duncan could talk with animals.
"He says that stench must have been your doing," Duncan replied.
Fred and George grinned sheepishly, shamelessly trying to sidle up to Kray anyway like a pair of rogues.
Neville, too, overcame his fear, tiptoeing to a spot behind Duncan and staring in awe at the bird of prey before him.
Only Hermione stood stock-still where she was, muttering under her breath, "Patterns on the feathers… can control the weather… that's right, it must be the Thunderbird recorded in books… it's hard to imagine it actually lives in Duncan's case!"
"Wait…"
Hermione suddenly realised something, and her pupils dilated.
"I remember reading that the Ministry of Magic strictly forbids wizards from keeping Thunderbirds.
Which means… has Duncan violated laws set by the Ministry of Magic?"
Hermione stared dazedly at Duncan ahead; the brain that was usually so nimble suddenly felt a little sluggish.
She couldn't make sense of how a first-year starting school at the same time as her had suddenly been draped in the mantle of a criminal.
"Besides Kray, if you go this way past the canvas, there are two Erumpents over there," Duncan said, feeding Kray some grubs, as if he knew what Hermione was thinking.
"Further on there's also a Kelpie.
All of them are animals the Ministry of Magic strictly forbids keeping."
"Ah? More?"
Hermione couldn't help taking a panicked step back.
"Yeah—after all, this is exactly what my family studies…"
Duncan shrugged, turned back with a smile, and said, "I remember there's a Ministry regulation: if someone reports another person for illegally keeping magical creatures, they can receive a reward of one hundred to ten thousand Galleons."
Hermione blinked, understanding what Duncan meant, and hesitated before saying, "Why do you keep them in your case?"
Duncan stroked Kray's rough beak.
"Kray is following me of his own will.
The Erumpents nearby are ones my grandfather and I rescued from poachers not long ago, and that Kelpie is a bit frail and often falls ill—it's not suited to life in the wild."
"So you're helping these animals?"
Hearing Duncan's answer, Hermione visibly relaxed.
"Of course.
How could anyone in the Scamander family harbour ill intent towards magical creatures?" Duncan said with a smile.
"Mm…"
Hermione nodded slowly, rubbing at the hem of her clothes, her thoughts a tangled skein.
Duncan asked earnestly, "Will you help me keep the secret of what's in my case, Hermione?"
"I—I…"
Hermione opened her mouth, not knowing how to answer.
Everything before her exceeded what she knew and went completely against the principles she'd been raised with.
She'd never done anything so out of line.
Fred, George, and Neville all fell silent, waiting together for Hermione's reply.
Time ticked by.
Hermione was still struggling with it, and the ground had been scraped into a little pit by her foot.
"Don't put yourself through it…"
Duncan said regretfully, and a little spray-bottle-shaped vial appeared in his hand.
It was a reward he had just received for completing a quest—"Memory Eliminator"—with the same effect as the Memory Charm.
All it took was a spray in someone's face, and they would forget what had happened over the recent period.
That was also the confidence that let Duncan dare bring Hermione over for a look.
"C-can you guarantee these animals won't hurt anyone?" Hermione asked indistinctly.
"Huh?"
Duncan blinked blankly; he hadn't heard what Hermione said.
Hermione seemed finally to make up her mind.
She lifted her head, took a deep breath, looked solemnly at Duncan, and said in a firm tone, "I'm asking if you can look after these animals and guarantee they won't hurt anyone else?"
"Of course!"
Duncan smiled, put the spray away, and said, "That's my responsibility!"
"Then I'll help you keep the secret.
I absolutely won't tell anyone!" Hermione replied.
She suddenly felt much lighter, as though a great stone in her heart had fallen away.
"How did you know she'd say yes?" Fred's expression relaxed as well; he slung an arm over Duncan's shoulder and asked.
"Because…"
Duncan mused, recalling how Hermione would, in time, keep breaking school rules to help Harry, and said with a smile, "because to me she looks very much like a Gryffindor."
"Tch…"
Fred and George both made a disgusted sound at the same time and turned their heads aside in unison.
"By the way, what you just said—is it true?" George asked.
"There really is a reward for reporting it to the Ministry of Magic?"
"You two?"
Duncan looked the pair over with a dangerous glint.
"Heh heh…"
Fred wore a wicked grin.
"How about you put up with it a bit and we go to the Ministry of Magic to make some extra money?"
"Get lost!"
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