In a three-story building near Ottery St Catchpole.
Eleven-year-old Kael Chopper stood by the window, carefully reading the parchment in his hand.
Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore (Order of Merlin First Class, Chief Wizard of the Wizengamot, Chairman of the International Confederation of Wizards)
Dear Mr. Chopper
We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.
The term begins on September 1st. We await your owl by no later than July 31st.
Deputy Headmistress Minerva McGonagall
...
Indeed, it was the acceptance letter from Hogwarts.
Ever since crossing over here eleven years ago, Kael had been waiting for this day.
As to why he was so certain, it was simple—because there were a few other special families living not far away.
The ones Kael was most familiar with were the editor of The Quibbler, Lovegood.
And the Weasley family.
Especially the latter, with its incredibly bizarre architecture and the family's red hair, made Kael immediately realize the nature of this world.
It is worth mentioning that living here also implied that Kael, in this life, came from a wizard family.
His father, Chris Chopper, worked at the Ministry of Magic, as the Deputy Minister of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, and was also the head of the Beast Office. Due to the inherited talent to communicate with Fantastic Beasts, he was also a famous Magizoologist and one of Newt Scamander's few students.
His mother, Diana, also worked at the Ministry of Magic, but in the Department of Mysteries, though Kael didn't know exactly what she did. He tried various ways to find out, but all failed. It was obvious that his parents' sense of secrecy was quite strong; they never divulged even a hint of information.
The family's status... well, since no remarkable figures had emerged from his ancestors, one could only say it was pretty average compared to those famous surnames like Dumbledore or Grindelwald.
But even so, Kael was already quite satisfied. At least his parents were both wizards, so getting into Hogwarts was definitely not a problem.
Unless he was a Squib.
And that doubt was dismissed after his first magical outburst at the age of three.
Even though he had long known this day would come, when the owl actually pecked open his window with the envelope, Kael was so excited he almost jumped up.
Clutching that parchment like a treasure, he wouldn't let go even in his sleep, checking it every now and then.
...
"Dear, you've looked over that acceptance letter for three days already. Can you put it down? I assure you it's absolutely real!"
Chris looked at his grinning son with some helplessness and reminded, "Don't forget, we arranged to go to Diagon Alley today with the Weasleys next door. Don't keep them waiting."
"Okay, Dad, I'm coming."
Upon hearing this, Kael hurriedly put away the Hogwarts acceptance letter he had read countless times, quickly stood up, and knocked gently on a nearby stump: "Groot, I'm leaving."
As soon as he spoke, a little green guy jumped out and waved at Kael.
Kael's family did have magical creatures, but not many. Besides the Bowtruckle named Groot, there was also a Kneazle named Tom.
Though Chris, being the Deputy Minister of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, could easily have kept dozens of magical creatures, he didn't. And even Groot and Tom were only there because they refused to leave, so they were kept.
It's not that Chris disliked magical creatures; it's that he believed so-called magical creatures shouldn't really stay with wizards.
What you keep by your side can only be called a pet.
On this point, the middle-aged gentleman known in the Ministry for his gentle demeanor had a very firm stance.
His viewpoint was even supported by Newt Scamander.
Newt also believed that magical creatures belonged in nature, and he always acted accordingly.
As for why there were so many magical creatures in that peculiar suitcase of his, it was purely due to Newt's unique condition.
Kael had met the old man, and not just once, so he was quite sure.
Just like a certain remarkable god of death schoolboy, Newt Scamander too had a similar condition.
Kael vividly remembered when he was five years old, walking in the garden with Newt, he saw with his own eyes a Diricawl diving right into Newt's arms.
It's important to note that Diricawls are natural masters of Disillusionment; though not particularly bright, and not actively concealing themselves like other magical creatures might, they possess a very strong territorial sense, and a keen perception ability for danger.
Once they sense a wizard or other threatening creature approaching, they would retreat at the first opportunity.
The first sentence describing the Diricawl in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is that it can only be viewed from afar, never up close.
Yet such a Diricawl just hit the mark and precisely dived into Newt's embrace.
Absolutely ridiculous.
And when he was seven years old, still going out with Newt, he encountered a Fire Salamander.
At eight, an injured Unicorn.
At ten, nearly turned into a Cauldron by a Fire Crab.
…
Among these Fantastic Beasts, some were smuggled into the British Magical Realm and then escaped, others wandered in for unknown reasons. They always managed to appear around Newt in all sorts of absurd ways.
And this, under the premise that Newt stayed at home all the time.
Back in the day when he carried a suitcase around the world returning Fantastic Beasts home, the situation was much more severe than now.
For every Fantastic Beast sent home, there would be ten or twenty new Fantastic Beasts crashing over. Over time, it would be strange if there weren't many beasts in his suitcase.
…
With such a special gift, it's no wonder Newt was blacklisted by almost every Ministry of Magic upon entry.
After all, before meeting Newt, those Fantastic Beasts had quite a temper, especially the injured and pregnant ones, which could explode at the slightest provocation.
Imagine you're leisurely having afternoon tea on the street, and suddenly a rampaging Manticore or Nundu jumps out beside you... Tsk, the mere thought of it is enough to scare someone into a cold sweat.
So, Grindelwald, Voldemort, the Dark Lord messing up the place needs to do it himself? Just this? Totally weak.
Look at Uncle Newt; he doesn't need to do anything himself to make anywhere disappear, just buy a plane ticket, stay for three or five days, sip coffee, enjoy the view, and that's it, without even touching the cause and effect afterward.
No wonder Grandma Tina is considered great, holding Newt firmly by her side. It's no exaggeration to say the whole world owes her a Merlin First Class medal.
It's the British Magical Realm that suffers for it.
According to incomplete statistics, since Newt settled in Dorset, incidents involving Fantastic Beasts have begun to rise exponentially, and the British Magical Realm has inexplicably become smugglers' favorite place to dump goods, without exception.
Thankfully, though these events have been occurring frequently over the years, none have caused any serious consequences. At most, some unlucky fellow got a bit lightly injured.
It seems that being Newt's birthplace, this place probably has a passive buff.
But Chris isn't so lucky, due to his job, every now and then he has to work overtime for several days.
But seeing how Kai looks at him, he probably is thoroughly enjoying it.
…
As he arrived at the door, Kai discovered that besides Chris standing there, his mother Diana had also unusually returned from the Ministry of Magic early, smiling and watching him.
Her black hair was meticulously groomed, and her black robe with white edges was neat and poised on her. As she looked at Kai, her light blue eyes were filled with gentleness.
Elegant and intellectual.
This has always been Kai's impression of Diana.
Instinctively, Kai turned to look at Chris... alright, a bit handsome, vaguely seeing the charm of his youth, with both appearing quite compatible.
Most importantly, Chris isn't balding. Even though he's almost forty, the distance between his hairline and eyebrows remains around one inch, a stark contrast to Mr. Weasley next door.
Obviously, with such strong genes, Kai's appearance isn't far off; among the people he knows, he might even rank first, despite his young age allowing for major troublemaking potential.
Of course, this isn't important, as Kai never cares much since he doesn't depend on his looks for a living.
"Sorry, I'm late."
Kai walked between the two, apologetically remarked.
"If you could put away that notification, you probably wouldn't be late, and Hogwarts won't leave the UK just because you didn't take care of the letter."
Chris looked at Kai, quipping a made-up joke.
Well, maybe it was a joke, at least Chris was very happy after saying it.
As for Kai, though he didn't understand why Chris was laughing, he politely tugged at his mouth corners, pretending to give his dad some face.
Fortunately, this situation didn't last long.
"Alright, it's getting late; we need to go."
Diana smiled slightly, interrupting the awkward interaction between father and son, casually taking Kai's hand: "There are lots of things to buy for school; we need to hurry over, and it's impolite to keep the Weasleys waiting."
Then, with a crisp pop, she took Kai and disappeared from where they stood.
Seeing this, Chris quickly followed using Disillusionment.
…