Rock lay stretched out comfortably on the sofa inside the tent.
The Undetectable Extension Charm was genuinely useful—out here in the mountains, all you needed was one compact tent and you had an entire living space.
He watched Newt still crouched at the tent flap, recording data through his omnioculars, and finally sat up.
"Grandpa, you planning to stand watch out there all night?"
"Yeah. If you're tired, go ahead and sleep," Newt answered without looking up, still fiddling with the omnioculars.
"Can't sleep." Rock glanced outside. Maybe it was the change of scenery, but he felt wide awake.
"Then keep me company." Newt smiled faintly and ruffled his grandson's hair.
"Fine by me." Rock got up, moved to the little stove, and started boiling water for tea. The two of them sat quietly at the entrance, watching the occasional creature pass by—only to turn away again when it hit the protective charms Newt had layered around the camp.
"Looks like this mountain range is being looked after properly," Newt murmured, jotting down notes on the magical creatures he'd spotted. "At least the populations seem healthy."
"Grandpa… something feels off." Rock's eyes swept the darkness. He'd felt it for a while now.
Before Newt could answer, the omnioculars in his hands suddenly spun wildly, emitting a silent, high-pitched whine.
No hesitation. Both of them snapped their wands up at the same moment.
"Protego Totalum!"
"Armour Charm!"
Two layers of protective magic slammed together, forming a huge, faintly glowing half-dome that sealed the space in front of them.
"Rock—get behind me. Now!"
Newt yanked Rock back into the tent. They had barely cleared the entrance when—
BOOM.
A deafening impact slammed into the barrier. The shield shuddered like it had been hit with a sledgehammer, light flaring, cracks spiderwebbing across its surface. The force was so violent it knocked the entire protective dome sideways.
The shockwave ripped straight toward the tent. Newt didn't waste a second. He grabbed Rock and hauled him outside again, wand flicking. His battered leather case flew into his hand.
Rock's ears were ringing so badly he could barely stand. His vision was still blurry, but the wild, flaring lines of magic all around him were screaming danger.
"Grandpa—Aguamenti!" he roared.
Newt's wand was already moving. "Aguamenti!"
Two massive jets of water exploded from their wands at the same instant. Newt's stream roared forward like a dragon of its own, smashing into the ground and sky just as a torrent of white-hot dragonfire erupted from the darkness. Rock's jet spun in a protective circle around them, soaking the earth and trees.
HISS—
The Chimera's flames met the water and the drenched ground in an explosion of scalding steam. A thick, burning fog wall billowed up, cutting off their line of sight for a few precious seconds.
"Disillusionment Charm!"
Newt cast on Rock while Rock cast on him. The older man's mouth twitched in a quick, fierce smile. Then he seized Rock's hand and yanked him toward a steep, rocky slope behind them, moving fast but steady.
"Scourgify!"
As they retreated, Newt's wand swept back and forth, erasing every trace of their passage.
ROAR—
The Chimera's furious bellow echoed through the steam. Flames belched again, burning the fog away as it swept the entire area. But Newt and Rock were already gone.
They ducked behind a fallen boulder, backs pressed to the cold stone, both breathing hard. Rock tasted iron and sulfur with every inhale. Newt was digging frantically through his pockets and pulled out several small, round objects that looked suspiciously like the Weasley twins' dungbombs.
Newt held up a finger—stay quiet.
Rock nodded, forcing his breathing to slow.
Newt hurled the decoys as hard as he could. His wand snapped out. "Defodio!"
"Diffindo!"
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The objects detonated in a burst of chaotic magical signatures and flickering lights. The Chimera's three heads whipped toward the noise. Its dragon head immediately redirected its flames.
Newt grabbed Rock's hand again. "Hold on tight. Don't let go. And keep your eyes shut!"
His voice was clipped, urgent. His other hand gripped his wand, pointing at the ground. In his mind he pictured the clearing at the foot of the mountain where they'd entered earlier.
"Apparition!"
The world twisted violently. The usual smooth squeeze of Apparition felt sluggish and rough, like they were forcing their way through turbulent magical currents.
A heartbeat later they vanished.
The moment they disappeared, dragonfire slammed into the boulder they'd been hiding behind. The rock glowed red-hot, then exploded. Molten fragments rained down.
ROAR—
The Chimera threw its heads back and howled in pure rage. The two insects had escaped.
At the base of the mountain, two figures stumbled out of thin air and collapsed into the mud, gasping. The cold night air burned Rock's lungs.
Newt ignored his own shaking hands and aching body. He lunged straight for Rock.
"Little Rock—are you hurt?"
Rock caught his grandfather's arm. "I'm fine, Grandpa. I'm okay."
Newt checked him over anyway, running his hands over every inch until he finally let out a shaky breath.
"This one's on me," he said quietly. "I got too confident. I shouldn't have made that call."
"Grandpa." Rock cut him off gently. "Don't say that."
He squeezed Newt's hand.
"At least I learned something tonight."
Newt blinked, confused.
"I learned that when you run into a Chimera, the first thing you do is Apparate the hell out of there." Rock's voice was calm, almost light. "But you just showed me the right way to handle it."
Newt stared at him for a long moment, then gave a tired, crooked smile.
"No, kid. That was pure luck. This was the worst mistake I've made in my entire life."