Ilvermorny's circular entrance hall had a notice board listing the Christmas-term magical classes and other big announcements.
One notice stood out: an honorary professor at Ilvermorny would be teaching a three-day Magical Creatures course.
"Sign-ups are here," the Horned Serpent prefect said, trying (and failing) to hide her excitement. The moment she saw Sean, she almost laughed. "Mr. Green—Mount Greylock isn't that freezing."
Wrapped up like a sealed parcel, Sean nodded in full agreement.
"You can call me Tina," the witch said as she tore down a sheet from the board—a roster for headcounts. "I'm in charge of tallying Horned Serpent's enrollment… and since it's Professor Scamander, a lot of people signed up…
We're lucky. Ever since Professor Scamander became an honorary professor, the master hardly teaches any classes at all.
People say he only accepted the honorary post because of his wife… Strictly speaking, if he were going to teach properly, he ought to be at Hogwarts."
Tina winked at Sean.
"Ten o'clock in the morning. Location: the Ilvermorny forest."
She handed him a not-very-thick book.
"Thank you for your help," Sean said. He took it—and then froze when he saw the title.
Ilvermorny: A History.
He flipped through it. Aside from being thinner, it wasn't all that different from Hogwarts: A History—and just like that book, it had a map of the school in the same place.
"The dining hall is behind the entrance hall. Good luck, Mr. Green. I've heard Magical Creatures isn't easy," Tina said, and left with her roster.
Ilvermorny's dining hall was as spacious as Hogwarts' Great Hall, but it didn't have thousands of floating candles, and the ceiling wasn't enchanted to mimic the sky.
Even so, Sean enjoyed a lavish lunch: at least a hundred turkeys, mountains of Christmas pudding, and heaps of Kribiche Wizard Shortbread Biscuits.
Tina sat not far away, discussing the upcoming creatures lesson with her friends.
"I've heard Mr. Scamander can communicate with animals in a way most wizards can't," said a witch with fiery red hair. "He can connect with different creatures instinctively, and form bonds with them. But…"
"But for us, it's harder," a boy wearing the Horned Serpent crest picked up.
"Every class turns into chaos," Tina said confidently. "I think people just don't actually read Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. It's really detailed."
Not far away, Sean was already absorbed in the pale yellow final pages of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them:
"In many ways, writing Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them was something I loved doing. When I look back and reread this early work, all those past events come vividly to life on every page. My greatest wish is that the next generation of witches and wizards will find new reasons in this book to love and protect the wondrous animals that share magic with us…"
Right before class, he finished the book again—he'd memorized its creature details more times than he could count.
With that in mind, with everything prepared, class time arrived.
The Ilvermorny forest lay not far to the right of the founders' statues. Passing by, Sean saw the Pukwudgie named "William" polishing Isolt Sayre's statue.
When he spotted the button on Sean's robe, he made a bunch of garbled noises. Then he vanished in a flash, looking thoroughly offended.
In the forest near the statue, Sean had already spotted Mr. Scamander.
He stood at the edge of a sunny clearing, an old brown leather suitcase at his feet.
He wore a worn brown coat and barely looked anyone in the eye—only tilting slightly to one side, letting a clear, shy, almost timid gaze skim over the students.
Time had etched wrinkles at the corners of his eyes, but it hadn't changed that earnest, focused, almost innocent air around him.
There was no grand introduction. The lesson simply began.
"Bird-snakes mainly eat mice and birds…" Newt said—and in the next instant, his suitcase cracked open a sliver. Something tiny shot out like a shadow.
The students all jumped.
"An XXXX-class creature…" Tina went blank.
The Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures classified beasts by danger—XXXX meant dangerous, requiring specialized knowledge and skilled wizards to handle. And now something like that was being released right in front of them?
The winged, feathered creature sprang out and immediately chased insects into the trees.
Some students trembled; others stared in fascination at the Bird-Snake.
"Bird-snakes usually eat insects, mice, and birds… but sometimes they'll catch monkeys…" Newt continued calmly. With everyone's attention locked in, they'd remember this lesson.
When Whitey, perched on Sean's shoulder, fluttered over out of curiosity, the Bird-Snake darted away at once.
"When they're young, bird-snakes are also afraid of owls… Una just reached adulthood, so she's still a little skittish…" Newt explained shyly, unbothered by the interruption.
A moment later, the Bird-Snake suddenly grew huge—one feather on its head was bigger than a student.
"Bird-snakes can expand and contract at will," Newt said with a faint smile. "They can grow large enough to fill a space, or shrink their bodies to match the space available."
Some students took notes while watching in equal parts fear and wonder.
"Bird-snakes can grow… Whitey," Sean murmured as he wrote.
The silver-white owl studied the Bird-Snake, then looked back at Sean—as if she understood—and promptly swallowed the cookie hanging at her neck.
In the next instant, a fire dragon nearly the Bird-Snake's size appeared in front of Newt and let out a roar.
"Whitey!" Sean's blank rune charm floated up. Guided by soul-transfiguration, Whitey quickly reverted on her own.
At the same time, the Bird-Snake—terrified—shot straight toward the students, shrinking to only a few inches long.
The students screamed and scattered.
Newt didn't panic. He looked at Whitey, eyes lighting up.
Sean, meanwhile, stood still and watched as the Bird-Snake dove into his pocket, poking its head out beside the Bowtruckle, Tila.
"Una… seems to like you," Newt said shyly—somehow already standing in front of Sean.