"Come on then—stick close to me. Once they've eaten, they'll be here any minute."
Hagrid strode into the Forest; Sean followed, tracking the prints.
Soon they reached the same densely wooded place where daylight looked like dusk.
"Wait here."
Hagrid set Fang down beside Sean and plunged headlong into the yew thicket.
Moments later, an eagle's piercing cry rang out in the distance.
An animal came trotting toward Sean.
It was a strange creature.
It had the body, hind legs, and tail of a horse, but the forelegs, wings, and head of an eagle. Its cold, hooked beak was the color of steel, and its bright eyes were a vivid orange.
The talons on its forelegs were a good half–foot long; just as Hagrid had said, it looked formidable.
Reassuringly, a thick leather collar ringed its neck and a long chain led back to Hagrid's huge hands as he brought the beast slowly up to Sean.
"Took me no small bit o' effort, Sean—come on—Merlin's beard, I know yeh must be beside yerself!"
Hagrid was rubbing his hands, almost more excited than Sean. "Right, listen—an' I know you'll pay attention, tha's best—first thing about Hippogriffs is they're proud. You walk up to it, give a bow. If it bows back, you can stroke it.
"If it doesn't, you leave it be—those talons'll do damage. Go on, try it, Sean."
Sean had waited a long time for this. He looked up at the high-held head, and without hesitating, stepped forward.
"That's it!"
Hagrid boomed, far more nervous than Sean. "Right—meet its eye—don't blink—blink too much an' a Hippogriff won't trust yeh—"
Sean held the Hippogriff's gaze; beside him Hagrid fretted, "Bow, Sean—"
Sean knew he was at the crucial moment of winning a Hippogriff's respect.
And as he began to bow—
To Hagrid's astonishment, the Hippogriff bent its scaly knees and made a clear, unmistakable bow of its own.
"Brilliant, Sean! You've won him! Blimey—took me a whole week!"
Hagrid was overjoyed. "All right—y'can pet him now! Give his beak a pat—go on!"
[You have gained Hippogriff (Buckbeak) Affinity at Expert standard, +50 proficiency.]
[Hippogriff Buckbeak: Slightly Friendly (20/300).]
[Advance: Attain "Slightly Friendly" (Entry) with three magical creatures to unlock Magical Creatures Domain Entry title.]
It seemed a success. Sean reached out and patted Buckbeak's beak.
The name was very familiar to him.
Buckbeak—symbol of freedom and breaking through dire straits; he'd driven off a werewolf, chased away Professor Snape, and borne Sirius Black to freedom.
A loyal magical creature.
In the Forest, Buckbeak lazily shut his eyes, apparently enjoying the attention.
The damp smell of earth hung in the dim grove as Sean kept pace with Hagrid through the thick wood.
They tossed ground beetles to Bowtruckles around tree roots, then fed raw meat to the Thestrals. After a while they'd head back to Hagrid's hut and make Fang's dinner.
All along, Sean's "panel" chimed happily:
[You have gained Bowtruckle (Tila) Affinity at Entry standard, +3 proficiency.]
[You have gained Thestral (Woo-Woo) Affinity at Entry standard, +3 proficiency.]
Affinity rose quickly—Sean was doing nearly all the feeding.
Hagrid, Fang in his arms, grew sentimental. "Knew it—he's daft about creatures—like me—"
Winning magical creatures' trust isn't easy—especially the cleverer ones; getting stuck just shy of friendly is common.
Sean was prepared to take the long road.
Thanks to his title, Junior Magical Creature Whisperer, he could glean a bit of what they felt.
Take Gugu, for instance—a rather large Bowtruckle.
He adored a small sapling, but the others thought, as a leading Bowtruckle, he ought to choose a bigger tree; it worried him. After Sean brokered a swap, Gugu's affinity leapt straight up to "Slightly Friendly (Entry)."
Days in the Forest were delightful: Sean sketched Alchemy rites for new creature-cookies while pacing the bounds with Hagrid, a lion of a man.
They dressed meat, gathered beetles, kept watch over the Forest—enough to make Hagrid think Professor McGonagall had assigned him a helper.
A remarkably good one: adept at using magic to speed tasks (five stone knives for butchery from a flick of Transfiguration), steady of mind, and fond of magical beasts.
That day, when Harry, Ron, and Hermione came to the Forest's edge looking for Hagrid, the first thing they saw was not Hagrid but Sean, riding a peculiar creature.
Hagrid came pelting after, elated.
"Merlin's beard! Buckbeak's stayin'! Sean—this is grand!"
Sean smiled faintly—if Buckbeak was staying, his creature-cookie was as good as decided.
"I thought Hagrid was the gamekeeper," Ron muttered. "Now he's just Keeper o' Keys? I know Sean's been in the Forest, but since when did he take the job?"
They trailed after Hagrid and drifted a little too close to the trees.
"What d'yeh think ye're doin', eh?"
Hagrid roared when he saw them riskily edging in, making them all jump. "This is the Forbidden Forest! First-years don't go wanderin'—Harry! An' you two! D'yeh dare try that again!"
All three hurried backward out of the trees, then watched, wide-eyed, as Hagrid and Sean—astride Buckbeak—swept off.
"Ah! Yeh saw that, did yeh?"
Only then did it strike Hagrid; he gawped two seconds, then blurted, eyes round.
"Yeah—first-years wandering," Harry murmured.
"Oh, oh—oh," Hagrid's large face went scarlet.
"Hagrid, aren't you going with Sean?" Hermione asked, worried.
"Er—well—blimey! What am I doin'—Sean! Careful! Wait fer me!"
And off sprinted Hagrid.
Leaving three students at the Forest's edge staring after them.
~~~
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