Hogwarts: Harry Returns from Azeroth

Chapter 45. The Learned Newt and the Centaur Sacrifice
The suitcase that had aroused my curiosity suddenly appeared and was within my reach.

No, that's not right. The suitcase he had seen in the divination was newer, without those burrs on the corners. Many places on the suitcase the old man was carrying had faded due to wear and tear and the passage of time, presenting a mottled color.

"Oh! Newt!" Hagrid made a happy sound, walked up quickly and hugged the old man, "I didn't expect to see you here - are you also here because of the invitation of the centaur tribe?"

It was hard to imagine seeing this kind of expression on Hagrid's face. It was as if he had met an idol he had admired for a long time and was very excited.

"Yes, I come to see them every year and treat some of their illnesses - well, Hagrid, thank you for your hug," the old man explained with some difficulty.

To be honest, Harry could clearly see that when Hagrid hugged the old man tightly, the old man showed a slightly helpless and painful smile - Hagrid's hug was a little too strong.

"Sorry, Harry, I should introduce him to you first." After letting go of the old man, Hagrid turned to Harry and said, "He is Newt Scamander, a super powerful magical zoologist. If you took the Care of Magical Creatures course in your third year, the textbook you used was written by him."

"Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, right?" Harry nodded and said, "When I first entered the wizarding world, I read this book specifically to learn about the animals that are unique to wizards. It describes them in great detail."

No wonder Hagrid was so enthusiastic now - Harry knew how much Hagrid liked magical creatures, especially those that looked very ferocious.

"Hello sir, I'm Harry Potter, nice to meet you" Harry extended his hand.

"Uh, hello." It wasn't Harry's illusion. Newt looked a little embarrassed. He quickly shook Harry's hand, then lowered his head and patted his suitcase, saying, "I noticed you were looking at it. Well, it is indeed a good suitcase."

"Hahahaha" Hagrid laughed heartily. "This is a box that will make the Ministry of Magic nervous, Harry. There are many legendary stories about it."

"Is there anything special about it?" Harry asked with interest.

"Oh, then I'm afraid it's not my turn to introduce you, Harry. If you behave well, Newt might invite you in to sit down," Hagrid said humorously, then bent down and whispered in Harry's ear in a voice that Newt, who was standing next to him, could hear, "Newt is not very good at communicating with strangers, don't mind."

What is this, conspiring out loud?
And Hagrid, you are really not suitable for keeping secrets. For example, you have already revealed that the box can actually be entered.

Harry could see Newt was nervous.

But he felt that Mr. Newt's poor communication skills with strangers were probably limited to matters unrelated to magical creatures, because when the three of them sat down by the fire and continued to talk about the centaurs, Newt suddenly became very talkative.

"The centaurs are very special. They like to be alone and stay away from both wizards and Muggles," Newt said. "Although the centaurs claim that they have lived on this land and enjoyed this forest since ancient times, according to my research, they should have come from the mountainous areas of Greece and came to Britain a few hundred years ago."

"That means Hogwarts was built first, and the centaurs came later."

"Maybe," Newt shook his head and said, "It's been too long, no one can tell for sure."

"So where do they come from?" Harry continued, "I mean, how did they come into being? Did they exist naturally? Or were they created by some ancient wizard's experiment? What is their nature?"

Harry was trying to find something inherently evil about the centaurs - well, he was trying to find something.

Because just seeing the existence of the Centaur made Harry feel uncomfortable all over, and he wanted to get rid of this discomfort.

A kind of clean-up.

Newt covered Harry's mouth with a nervous look when he asked the question. The old man's movements were quite quick and he didn't look old at all.

"You are so bold, kid," Newt said in a low voice, "We are in the tribe of centaurs - I mean, they are a species in themselves, not created by some ancient wizards. Centaurs can't stand this kind of statement."

"Yeah, that's right," Hagrid said, stirring the fire. "You know, the centaurs are a very proud race. They are proud of it. And they particularly hate being used by wizards, whether you do it intentionally or unintentionally."

"Sounds like they have a sense of honor," Harry said dryly.

He was a little disappointed.

"Well, kid, I can hear your hostility towards the centaurs from your words... Have you been hurt by them before?" Newt also said dryly. He looked curiously at the horns on Harry's head and the totem that was now standing behind him.

"Not them," Harry shook his head and said, "Let's talk about the centaurs, Mr. Newt."

"Okay then," Newt immediately stopped asking. He continued, "In fact, the centaurs were originally identified as humans by wizards, but in 1811, the centaurs asked the British Ministry of Magic to classify them as 'beasts' because they did not want to share the human identity with creatures such as banshees and vampires."

"Although the Ministry of Magic has set up a centaur liaison office, it has actually never played any role at all. Hahahaha," Hagrid laughed.

"Yes, in the Ministry of Magic, 'sent to the Centaur Liaison Office' means that the person is about to be expelled." Newt also told a joke, and then he and Hagrid laughed even louder.

"What about wizards?" Harry asked again, "Wizards probably won't be willing to give the Forbidden Forest to the centaurs? After all, it's part of Hogwarts."

For any British wizard, Hogwarts is special and full of fond memories.

“Of course not.” This time even Newt shook his head. “Centaurs are jungle animals, currently widely distributed in Europe. Usually a group contains ten to fifty centaurs. The Ministry of Magic will divide up special living areas for these centaurs.”

"So the Forbidden Forest is where these centaurs live?" Harry asked.

"Not only centaurs, the Forbidden Forest is very large," Newt said seriously. "As far as I know, there is also a werewolf tribe living deep in the Forbidden Forest. They have been neighbors with Hogwarts and the centaurs for a long time and have lived in peace with each other."

"I see." Harry nodded. "That is to say, the Forbidden Forest was marked out by wizards and given to the centaurs... a reserve for the centaurs."

Harry used a word he saw in "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" to describe it, such as the dragon sanctuary.

"That's how wizards see it, but it's another story from the perspective of centaurs," Newt said softly. "I think you've figured out from this series of events, Harry, how wizards view other races."

"Dominant" Harry summed up his opinion with one word, "But this forest has belonged to Hogwarts from the beginning, right? If the centaurs originated from Greece."

"Yes, that's theoretically correct," Newt sighed and said helplessly, "But the number of professors at Hogwarts is limited. Harry, Hagrid, as a gamekeeper, is only responsible for guarding the edge of the Forbidden Forest. Hogwarts does not have the ability to manage the entire Forbidden Forest - and the Ministry of Magic will not allow the headmaster to have such great power."

"The most important thing is that no Minister of Magic wants a war with centaurs during his term," Newt concluded. "Especially when it comes to territory and race, centaurs can become very irritable."

"According to the records in Greece, the relationship between the centaurs and the locals was very complicated, because some centaurs liked to drink, quarreled and made noises, had rough personalities, and got angry easily. They had fought countless battles with the local humans."

Newt recalled his trip to Greece and spoke in a low voice. "The most famous conflict was after a wedding. The centaurs were too enthusiastic in celebrating and tried to snatch the bride, which led to a large-scale war. Of course, the centaurs were defeated." Newt couldn't help laughing when talking about this. "Part of the scene of that war is still the favorite decorative picture of Greek potters."

"Very good, I have completely understood" Harry nodded.

The centaurs, outsiders, regarded the protection given by the wizard as their own territory, but then began to be hostile and expel the wizard. They were rude and irritable - they confronted each other! They confronted each other!!!
"Wait, Harry, you look a little scary again," Hagrid stammered, "Are you thinking about something horrible?"

"No, you're overthinking it, Hagrid," Harry said naturally.

"Speaking of which, Harry," Newt said as he sat closer with some excitement, "the totem next to you - it's a totem, right? It looks very different from the totems of the centaurs, and also different from the totems I saw when I traveled in Africa."

"Well, can I ask what this decoration and the pattern on it mean? Why is it decorated with ox horns? This is the first time I have thought of wizards carrying a totem with them in Europe."

"Because Harry is a minotaur, Newt," Hagrid said casually for Harry, "that's the only answer he would give you if you asked him."

"Minotaur?" When it comes to his professional field, Newt will burst out with endless curiosity, even without the social phobia. He quickly said: "Minotaur? I did go to Greece to look for this magical animal recorded in ancient Greek mythology, but I didn't get anything except some murals and pottery patterns."

"I am indeed a minotaur, Mr. Newt," Harry said expressionlessly.

"Really? But so far, there is no race called Minotaur in the wizarding world. There are only related records in ancient Greek mythology. Um... and the Potters are indeed human. I don't remember them having any special bloodline."

Newt is very straight-laced and very firm when it comes to matters involving magical creatures.

"If I'm not mistaken, the horns on your head are also made by Transfiguration. There is no doubt that your race is human, not a minotaur," Newt said as he fell into thought. "But it's strange that your totem doesn't seem to be randomly fabricated. The production style, the decoration details, and even the words on it seem to have specific meanings. They are not randomly engraved... This is definitely not something that came out of nothing."

"No wonder... No wonder Dumbledore asked me to come and take a look..."

"Huh? Did Headmaster Dumbledore call you here? Newt?" Hagrid widened his eyes.

"Oh, don't worry about it, Hagrid," Newt said, looking a little flustered, "I just, um...anyway, it's nothing! I mean - based on my professional experience, Harry, you are definitely not a minotaur!"

Newt was very persistent in this matter.

"...You can understand this as my self-awareness, Mr. Newt." Harry sighed and said helplessly: "It won't hinder you, and I don't need you to give me any preferential treatment or any other attitude. For some reasons, I identify myself more as a minotaur than a human being - do you understand what I mean?"

"I see." Newt was relieved in an instant. "The quirks of genius wizards are always incomprehensible to ordinary people, just like Dumbledore's hobby of sweets is also something I can't understand... Just call me Newt, Harry, the word sir sounds weird."

Newt didn't care about empty titles or elaborate formalities.

Woo——!
Suddenly, a long horn sounded. The three people looked in the direction of the sound and saw that it was a centaur blowing the horn.

"The sacrifice has begun," Newt said excitedly, "We'll talk about the totem later, Harry, you probably haven't seen the centaur's sacrificial activities yet. It's very memorable for those who see it for the first time."

This is a very empty clearing in the forest, at the foot of a cliff. The tents where the horsemen live are built against the cliff.

Looking over there, one can see four huge totem poles standing in the four corners of the open space, on which are carved various scenes of horse people hunting and living. Ropes woven from vines connect the four huge totems, on which hang things made of various animal bones.

It could be an animal skull, or a piece of bones of different sizes, like a necklace pendant. It gives off a wild vibe the moment you see it.

A huge bonfire is now burning in the center surrounded by four totem poles. The meat that was roasting nearby has been taken away, and the horsemen seem to have added a lot of firewood into it, so that the flames that shot up into the sky even dyed the night sky orange.

When the horn sounded, the centaurs appeared one after another, either from the tents or through the woods, one following another, their four hooves stepping on the ground in a very rhythmic pace, and began to circle around the fire.

Harry noticed that many centaurs were looking at him, or more precisely, at the totem beside him. They seemed to have something to say, but they held back because the sacrificial ceremony had already begun.

"...I thought you would stop them," Harry whispered to Newt beside him.

Because in the conversation just now, he has discovered that Newt is indeed a respectable person. Not only does he know the living habits of various magical animals very well, but he has also devoted his life to protecting various magical animals and saving them from the brink of extinction.

But in the sacrificial activities of the horse people, the horse people appeared one after another and set up all kinds of prey they hunted around the bonfire, including wolves, rabbits, deer, and even some magical animals, such as horned camels, two-horned beasts, martens...

"I can't help it, Harry," Newt sighed, "This is part of centaurs' lives and has been like this for a long time... Besides, centaurs are classified as a type of magical creature. This is their own request."

"So they're not actually protected by wizarding law," Harry concluded.

"Well, you can understand it this way," Newt thought for a moment and said, "Look, the sacrifice has officially begun."

The horsemen sang ancient ballads in their own language with long and heavy breaths, circling around the campfire, and occasionally bending their upper bodies to salute the prey that came to them for hunting.

"This is a way to thank nature and prey for their selfless gifts."

Newt introduced quietly.

This ceremony of thanksgiving eased Harry's hostility very well, because it meant that the centaurs were not unrestrained demanders. They knew how to be moderate and were grateful.

At least the centaurs in Harry's memory didn't understand any of this. They were prepared to kill and plunder from the moment they were born.

The centaurs stopped singing, they turned around and faced the huge bonfire, then looked up at the night sky.

In this clearing in the forest, everyone can clearly see the stars in the sky - the night sky today is very clear, making the light of each star clearly visible.

The centaurs just stared at the night sky for a long time without moving.

"Ah, I know that," Hagrid muttered, "When I see centaurs in the Forbidden Forest on weekdays, most of them maintain this posture - looking at the stars."

"After all, the centaurs' divination is mainly done through two methods, one is fire and smoke, and the other is stars." Newt shrugged, "But to be honest, although the centaurs can always use this method to avoid disasters and seek good fortune for themselves, their words are often obscure and difficult to understand. Only centaurs can understand what centaurs say."

"Ah, yes," agreed Hagrid, "Never got a straight answer from the centaurs, and always looked up at the stars, as if they had no interest in anything except what was around the Moon."

(End of this chapter)