bookbashuk Chapter 93 The Birth of the Thunderbird
Chapter 93 The Birth of the Thunderbird
The incredible feat of using time magic to allow the Thunderbird to skip the hatching and fledgling stages is enough to earn any participant in the ritual a Merlin Medal of First Class. This is because, in addition to the incredible task of obtaining the Time Fragment, it demands extremely rigorous and even cruel requirements in terms of transfiguration magic, magical biology, and potion preparation.
Without the full support of Albus Dumbledore, Newt Scamander, and Severus Snape, no matter how hard Mo Ran tried, he could not have accomplished such a great feat.
......
"The most basic requirement for manipulating time is that the caster himself has the marks of time magic. Now that Newt, Severus, Harry, and of course me have all traveled back in time using the Time-Turner, this prerequisite has been met."
Dumbledore's slow, leisurely voice echoed gently through the woods.
A few days ago, after Harry put the Thunderbird egg into the Pocket Forest, Dumbledore in the original timeline officially began his plan to use the Time-Turner to find and destroy Horcruxes.
Now, standing in the Forbidden Forest, he and Professor Newt Scamander are the two who have made their way to the past.
"We also have to thank Ferenc for his help."
Professor Scamander added:
"Unlike his proud race, Ferenze was willing to help us. Without his astrological prophecy, we probably wouldn't have been able to ensure the timing was accurate. In fact, the centaur race shouldn't be defined as magical creatures. They have their own culture, understand human languages, and even possess prophetic magic no less powerful than that of wizards and prophets..."
"Cough cough..."
Seeing that Newt's professional habit was about to steer the conversation off-topic, Dumbledore quickly coughed twice.
He said:
“Of course, of course, Newt… but we can talk about these things later. We have a more important mission tonight, so please focus on your work.”
"Oh... okay then..."
Newt nodded slightly embarrassedly and stopped his introduction about the centaurs.
Rumble!
A rumble of thunder sounded, and Dumbledore pulled an antique gold pocket watch from his pocket. He checked the time, then looked up, his gaze drifting over the treetops to the distant dark clouds.
Just like when the Thunderbirds give birth, the baby Thunderbirds will cause thunderstorms when they hatch.
"Nebulus." (Misty clouds)
"Silencio." (Silent and still)
With the combined power of the elder wand and Dumbledore's own spell, the two spells first emitted a cloud that covered a small part of the Scottish Highlands, and then reduced the noise of the increasingly turbulent thunderclouds in the sky.
Everyone present was a wizard who was quite familiar with Dumbledore, but after witnessing the work of the world's greatest wizard, even Snape, who was usually the most serious, couldn't help but twitch his lips.
"All right."
Dumbledore said gently, looking as if he had just enjoyed a sweet afternoon tea.
“Next, Harry needs to go north to find the old me and Newt. Just say hello, you should know what you need to do. Severus, I need the booster and Felix Felicis I asked you for before.”
"Mr. Potter once provided me with the venom of the Octopod, which saved me some trouble, but Fire Serpent eggs, unicorn horns, and blood are not so common..."
Severus Snape said bluntly. Clearly, he was asking Dumbledore for money to make the potion.
"I will write to the board of directors to apply."
Dumbledore, seemingly having anticipated all of this, replied slyly:
"However, we should wait until everything has settled down, since telling them now might expose our plans."
......
Strolling through the Forbidden Forest at night is a very pleasant experience, but only if you have enough magical power.
Without Moran's help, Harry's strength could no longer reach the level of a Hogwarts professor. However, thanks to his patient and diligent study since before the start of his first year, he was more than capable of protecting himself in the Dark Forest, which was full of magical creatures.
Recalling how he had tricked and killed DB Cooper a few days earlier, and how he had secretly guided his godfather, Sirius Black, to search for Peter Pettigrew, and then used the big black dog to successfully lure his former self into the Forbidden Forest, Harry had similar feelings to those he had when he was in the time rift.
The mystery of time and the sense of destiny make one want to both pursue it and break free... especially for Harry, who bears the title of "the boy who survived".
Unlike the Harry in the original books, who was academically outshone by Hermione, the Harry in this timeline is a true savior. Having thwarted Voldemort's plots twice, he has already gained the trust of many wizards before the end of his fifth year.
"Mr. Potter! Please! You must eradicate Voldemort completely!"
"My child's name is Merry, he's seven years old and can't go to Hogwarts yet. But when he's able to go, please keep an eye on him, he's truly your number one fan!"
......
Harry has been hearing flattery from strangers every now and then since he graduated from his first year.
Compared to the satisfaction that fame brings, he felt more of a sense of mission that he could not avoid.
Harry never considered running away. From the moment he learned of Voldemort's existence, he understood that even if he didn't stand against the man, Voldemort would do everything in his power to destroy him. What's more, that damned monster had killed his parents.
Therefore, both publicly and privately, he must shoulder the responsibility of being a savior.
On the other hand, no one in the world doesn't want to be in control of their own life.
The precious time a child spends from the time they begin to remember things until they grow up and reach adulthood is something that no amount of money, material possessions, or even magic can match. This is also why, in the original story, Dumbledore wanted to keep Harry out of the fight against Voldemort as much as possible.
Fortunately, Harry is Harry. Even without extraordinary magical abilities, he dared to face Voldemort alone at the age of 14, relying solely on his courage. Otherwise, the Harry Potter series might have ended prematurely with the fourth book.
"Eh..."
Harry sighed softly, as if trying to shake off the frustration of having his life predetermined. But after only a couple of steps, he bumped into Dumbledore and Professor Scamander, who hadn't yet used the Time-Turner.
"Oh? Looks like we've run into someone we know, Newt."
Dumbledore said with a smile.
Judging from his nonchalant demeanor, he was exactly the same as himself who had just used the time converter.
"I'm not too surprised by Dumbledore."
Newt, who was speaking from the side, seemed both excited and hurried. Clearly, the years may have aged him considerably, but they could not extinguish his passion for magical creatures.
He added:
“Harry is my student after all, and with all these strange things happening in the Forbidden Forest, he must be able to sense it... Wait a minute, where did your Obscurial magic go? Is something wrong?”
"Ah... I... no."
Harry mumbled somewhat:
"I've been practicing some rather unique magic lately, which isn't easily affected by dark magic, so I found a way to temporarily isolate him."
"I see."
Newt Scamander casually agreed.
He wasn't particularly interested in magic other than magical creatures, and he also knew that besides himself, Harry had been learning from Dumbledore and other professors.
However, just when he thought the topic would be over, Dumbledore spoke up again.
"Unique magic? That's incredible! You wouldn't mind showing this old man something, would you, Harry?"
"what?"
Harry instinctively called out.
Looking into Dumbledore's deep blue eyes behind his half-moon spectacles, he silently asked himself:
"Didn't we agree that all you need to do is say hello? Is there some other hidden meaning behind your statement that you should know what you need to do?"
The brief hesitation lasted only a moment. Then, Harry drew his wand from his waist and thoughtfully recited a spell:
"Protego Gubraithian." (Protected by divine fire)
call!
Flames even more vibrant than the blue of Dumbledore's pupils erupted from around Harry's body, and a ball of light, leaping and swirling like an elf, eventually formed a semi-circular shield around Harry.
Dumbledore was naturally familiar with the Ancient Flame, but he had never actually used it to create a sensory shield.
Logically speaking, with his exceptional, almost aggressive, talent, inventing such a spell shouldn't be difficult for him. Since he hasn't devoted any effort to it over the years, there must be other important reasons.
"This is really...very unique."
A flicker of surprise crossed Dumbledore's face, but he quickly regained his composure. However, when he stared at Harry's face, a glint of shrewdness flashed in his eyes for a fleeting moment.
"Please forgive me for not being able to give Gryffindor points this time, Harry."
He said:
"First of all, I'm not your Defense Against Magic teacher, and secondly, the spell you cast isn't within the scope of what's taught at the school. But as the headmaster, I'm very happy to see such an outstanding student. Oh, by the way, Newt, would you like to test Harry's recent learning progress as well?"
Professor Scamander didn't have the mischievous pleasure of "making fun" of Harry. Since he wasn't a current Hogwarts teacher, he didn't want Harry to do anything thankless, so he simply asked casually:
"Alright, I'd like to hear your thoughts on the unusual activity in the Forbidden Forest."
Harry, who already knew what had happened in the "future," pretended to think for a moment and said:
"There aren't many magical creatures that can influence the weather, and none of the ones I know of live in the Forbidden Forest. Unless Professor Lockhart forgot to take his she-devil with him when he left last year, it's very likely a newly arrived alien species."
(Lohart wrote "Vacationing with a Hag," in which the term "hag" usually refers to an ugly old witch. Wizards believe that various hags live on the islands of Britain. Some are benevolent, responsible for regulating the weather, while others are evil and enjoy eating people. Regardless of good or evil, hags all have one thing in common—they all look like ugly old women.)
"Invasive species..."
Newt murmured those four words repeatedly.
In his view, every magical creature has its own unique way of surviving. Unless affected by human interference or other extreme events, no one would willingly leave their former home and come to a strange, dangerous forest near a large number of wizards.
"Could it be that what happened in North America before...?"
Noticing the change in Professor Scamander's expression, Harry knew he had completed his task in the course of history. He waved goodbye to the two professors, who were nearly two hundred years old combined, and headed straight for the castle.
Before long, he heard Professor Dumbledore's voice again.
"Ah...it's you, Haha~, still can't resist taking a few more walks around school at night?"
"Oh, Harry? We meet again. Is something wrong with the Obscurus inside you?"
"No, no... everything is fine."
......
Returning to the vicinity of the Thunderbird's nest, Harry was shocked to find that the embankment standing by the water had transformed into the time-space distortion seen in the Time Hall.
Fallen leaves, after drifting for a while, will fly back to the branches along their original trajectory, and the ripples on the lake surface stirred up by the wind will also use actions that defy the laws of physics to continuously wash against the pebbles on the shore.
Witnessing time magic beyond the Rewind Charm was a rare opportunity for Severus Snape and Newt Scamander. Having finished their tasks, they were both focused on Dumbledore waving his wand, completely unaware of Harry's return.
"Tempus imperium...Tempus reversus...Tempus procedit..."
As Dumbledore chanted, the Elder Wand seemed to transform into a conductor's baton, waving gently.
Unlike the conductor in the eyes of Muggles, this greatest white wizard was trying to manipulate not the musicians, but time itself.
Having already experienced similar phenomena in the Hall of Time, Harry didn't react like the other two teachers. He glanced at Professor Snape, then at Mr. Scamander, and couldn't help but marvel at how he was already experiencing what it felt like to "graduate" so early.
Thanks to his past experience studying alchemy with Mr. Nicolas Flamel, he immediately recognized the "strange spell" Dumbledore was referring to.
Those words and phrases composed of letters are actually Latin. According to alchemical and ancient magical texts, before wizards created a large number of commonly used spells, silently reciting Old English or Latin helped them concentrate better.
"Tempus imperium...Tempus reversus...Tempus procedit..."
Harry repeated softly:
"They seem to represent time control, time reversal, and the progression of time... So, Professor Dumbledore's constant attempts are actually aimed at magically controlling time in this area. Yes, that makes sense; no wonder the fallen leaves and streams look so strange..."
After calmly analyzing the current situation, Harry seemed to recall the scene when he used the Brain Monster in the Brain Hall to view Moran's memories and witnessed Moran shatter the crystal dome and gather the scattered fragments of time.
At the time, he thought Mo Ran was handing over both the images he could understand and the images he couldn't to him in order to explain the whole story. Now it seems that there was more to it than meets the eye.
"Could it be that his technique for gathering fragments of time is the knowledge that Professor Dumbledore needs most right now? But this kind of thing is far too profound. I can't even grasp it intuitively, so how can I convey it to Dumbledore?"
Hiss... Huff...
At crucial moments, Gryffindor's adventurous and innovative spirit, along with Harry's wit and courage, once again played a decisive role.
After taking a deep breath, recalling the saying "When you can't make up your mind, it's wise to go back the way you came," he drew his wand from his waist.
"Expecto Patronum!" (The Patronus)
hum!
The silvery-white stag emitted a gentle, non-glaring light, illuminating everything around the pool. Before Snape could even react that Potter's Patronus was the same as his father's, this Patronus, carrying fragments of Mo Ran's memories, flew into the air and arrived beside Dumbledore.
One second, two seconds.
The recurring strange phenomena around him ceased as Dumbledore's arm slowly lowered.
Instead, there is absolute stillness.
"It seems that the news that came from Azkaban at the time was not a rumor."
Dumbledore pondered to himself:
"If time magic is used like this, then Dementors are indeed no longer invincible. For example, making their existence disappear into time..."
With a thought from Dumbledore, the Pocket Forest containing the fragments of time slowly floated into the air.
In a daze, the four people present seemed to have seen the baby thunderbird being hatched, breaking out of its shell, and crying for food in a slideshow.
Rumble!
Thunder rumbles over a thousand peaks, rain falls upon ten thousand mountains.
After overcoming countless hardships, the little thunderbird, destined never to be born in North America, suddenly flapped its enormous wings and soared into the sky.