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After orange juice and sandwiches, Mr. Lind led them to visit several more greenhouses. Under artificial control, these vastly different greenhouses simulated various natural environments. Each greenhouse smelled different.
Whenever they walked from damp post-rain paths onto steps, pushed open a new door, they seemed to enter a new season, a new world. Within just dozens of feet, the left might be hot humid South American rainforest—walls and railings covered with climbing vines, ponds swimming with colorful fish, aquatic plants covering half the water surface, herbaceous plants on shore so vigorously lush they seemed unable to stay in soil, thus noisily shot to the ground surface crowding together—the right was spacious comfortable temperate forest, oaks and firs standing beside quiet tree-lined paths.
All this was as if someone after traveling patted their head, said "I should record them all," so each different location, different time scene was captured, packed into a glass house for tourists to gaze at wide-eyed.
Some greenhouses even built a waterfall in the house's middle. In the emerald center mimicked misty mountain climate from distant lands. In water vapor, tall tree ferns towered.
Mr. Lind pointed at these trees spreading tender green fern leaves. Told them this species could reach sixty to seventy feet tall—"About five or six trolls stacked," the professor quietly told students from the Scottish School of Magic Acrobatics—if fierce sunlight shone in, these trees would like their ancestors hundreds of millions of years ago, silently cast green shadows, provide shelter for more fragile species thriving beneath them.
"This isn't specially designed by our garden," Mr. Lind said. "In natural forests, things are like this." Ferns, the highest spore plants, also the oldest vascular plants, were once towering giants among land plants. Their remains still burn today in iron-red smelting plants or roaring cars.
Interestingly, in this greenhouse mainly featuring ferns, there was also exhibited a very precious gymnosperm. This fellow that in Anthony's eyes had little difference from millions of other emerald lovely plants, according to Mr. Lind's introduction, was an endemic species on an archipelago. Due to threats from mining activities and fires, had become an endangered species.
"Endangered?" Stinson looked carefully. "But isn't this the thing tied on Fire Crabs?"
Her classmate also came over. Squinted trying hard to recognize. "I think so... At least very similar. Why do we tie branches on Fire Crabs again?"
Lind said, "What crabs?"
"Wait, let me check my notes..." The student who started writing essays on the train rustled through pages. "Not this, not this... I remember Professor Kettleburn taught... Diet, uses, breeding conditions... Oh, I found it!"
He pointed at a line in notes. Read, "When feeling threatened, Fire Crabs spray flames from their tails. Just tie specific branches on them, can make them ignite branches rather than human hands when provoked or startled."
"I don't understand. What's the benefit?"
Mr. Lind asked, "You... you use this to tie crabs?"
Anthony explained, "No. I've seen pictures of that thing. Rather than crab, more like turtle. The person naming it must've forgotten how to write 'turtle.'"
"Wait, not finished yet!" The student holding notes turned a page. Continued reading, "Fire Crab Trees' burning smell and smoke can make Fire Crabs feel calm and relaxed, even achieve hypnotic-like effects. In Fire Crab gathering areas, they easily fight each other. Therefore they mate in places where Fire Crab Trees grow densely, thus ensuring species continuation. Fire Crab Trees are thus named."
"Fire Crab Tree," Lind repeated. He'd just introduced students to a very long Latin scientific name.
The student read, "Usually, tying one to two Fire Crab Tree branches on Fire Crabs' tails suffices. However when transporting Fire Crabs in large quantities—parenthesis, remember to apply for permits, parenthesis closed—suggest besides binding branches, additionally place a Fire Crab Tree in the freight carriage."
Mr. Lind murmured, "A tree..."
Anthony said apologetically, "I think this is the fire threat and such."
When they found a Salamander model in the greenhouse, Mr. Lind looked at students' expressions. Before introducing actively asked, "What is this to you?"
"Salamander, I think," the student said hesitantly. "But this one's bigger. And here..." He opened his mouth. Pointed at his palate. "Looks different."
Anthony asked, "What does the botanical garden call it?"
"A replica of a fossil specimen," Mr. Lind said. "That fossil is very important. Affectionately called 'Lizzie' by researchers. It's considered possibly the earliest known reptile. But some think it belongs to some amphibian..." He said. Looked somewhat uncertainly at the wizards before him.
Anthony asked interestedly, "Where does this disagreement come from?"
"Amphibian juveniles live in water," Lind said. Voice more confident. "Amphibians also need to lay eggs in water. Because they have a waterproof membrane called 'amnion,' reptiles can lay eggs on shore. Their eggs won't lose moisture and dry in air. But, you see, if we only have a fossil, we can hardly determine whether its eggs have amnion."
Anthony asked the student beside him, "Do Salamanders have amnion?"
"What?" That poor student completely didn't understand Mr. Lind's introduction just now full of long difficult vocabulary.
So Anthony changed the question. "How do Salamanders reproduce?"
But just from the name, Salamanders probably shouldn't need to crawl into water to lay eggs. If he remembered correctly, the way to kill Salamanders was pouring water on them.
"Oh, they don't reproduce. At least not like other creatures," the student understood this time. Happily explained, "They're born from flames. Put Salamanders in fire. As long as burning time is long enough, new Salamanders will be born."
"No eggs?" Mr. Lind asked.
"No," the student said firmly.
The student with notes said rigorously, "Mainstream academia believes no."
"Mainstream academia?" Anthony asked. "Then, what does not-so-mainstream academia say?"
"I saw one theory—very non-mainstream, very unprofessional, I'd absolutely never write this on exams—says Salamanders after eating flames will, uh, excrete some invisible ash; when flames continue burning, ash becomes invisible seeds; when Salamanders' ethereal tears drip on invisible seeds, will grow an undetectable Salamander grass, then Salamander grass is immediately ignited by flames, births a small Salamander..."
Mr. Lind said, "Brilliant."
"Did I mention Occam's Razor?" Anthony asked thoughtfully.
"No. What's that, Professor?"
Anthony shook his head. "Forget it. Nothing."
He remembered why he deleted the Occam's Razor section—magic was exactly the thing that made Occam's Razor fail.
It desperately added assumptions and conjectures into its world. Then served everyone reality stirred into chaos. Complex hard-to-verify conjectures might be the more correct one. The beauty of simplicity in Muggle science didn't exist here. Only complexity, exquisiteness, teetering stacks of bone china teacups covered with floral patterns. Some teacups even had legs.
While following Mr. Lind who tried hard to restrain his puzzled expression continuing forward, Anthony asked, "By the way, where did you see this theory, Mr. Plunkett?"
"A tabloid," the student said. "Flourish and Blotts used it to wrap my books ordered this year. I think I accidentally bought too much. So much my wrapping paper could almost piece together a magazine... My mum said it's all topsy-turvy crazy talk. But actually quite interesting."
Anthony said knowingly, "The Quibbler."
He'd heard Flourish and Blotts staff complain about this magazine. The original words were "Even if they got Lockhart's exclusive interview, probably would become something like 'Gilderoy Lockhart, Hero on the Mountain: How I Helped Yetis Get Rid of Harassing Gnats.'"
After this greenhouse mixing magic and non-magic, their subsequent journey suddenly became relaxed and casual. Mr. Lind brought them to each greenhouse front. Would first confirm with colleagues no tourists were currently visiting the room. Then they could enjoy a frank exchange between wizards and Muggles.
He even led them to visit proud collections usually not open to public. According to him, even Professor Sprout praised these.
Unlike humans restricted by the Statute, British plants—plants everywhere in the world—didn't care whether each other had magic.
In places the Ministry hadn't yet regulated, besides those dozen magical creature encounters, Mr. Lind (and other botanists) obviously already encountered many plants with less aggression, less obvious magic. They either lived in a hidden work area in the botanical garden, or became images and specimens, crowned with adjectives like "precious" "rare," hung on corridor walls, placed in glass display cases.
Seeing a wall of leaf specimens, Anthony suddenly remembered something. Took out from his pocket the leaf students secretly mixed in. Compared with various leaves on the wall.
"What's this?" Mr. Lind noticed his action. Turned to glance. "Oak leaf?"
"Alright, oak," Anthony said. Found oak leaves on the wall. Looked and compared. Nodded. Put the leaf back in his pocket.
Lind pointed at a sealed leaf specimen in the distance. "Speaking of oak, that's also oak leaf. But that one's somewhat strange."
Anthony and students all gathered outside the glass cover. Carefully studied from various angles the oak leaf inside carefully preserved—but still looked no different from withered leaves beside trash cans, in puddles, or in muddy tire tracks.
"How strange?" Anthony asked.
Lind smiled. "You can't tell? Professor Sprout told me they weren't quite right."
"Magical hybrid?" a student asked muffledly. Almost pressing his nose flat on the protective cover.
"Regrettably, no," Mr. Lind said. "Professor Sprout found on these leaves some... I don't remember how she said it either. Anyway, her conclusion was some magical creature once fought on this tree."
"How can you tell?" Anthony came over more curiously. Overlooked this small stack of leaves from several furry student heads.
"I know!" Toller suddenly shouted. "Belbee Test!"
"No, Pulvis Test!"
Anthony, as a Muggle Studies professor lacking Hogwarts basic magical education and who set aside Potions, Herbology, Magical Creatures courses during self-study, listened to students discuss various methods for identifying herb growing environments, appearance states, magical value.
Professor Sprout should be very gratified. This Muggle Studies practical activity had almost become an Herbology review consolidation class.
Watching students debate what spell Professor Sprout should've used ("No, that one's destructive! Leaves couldn't possibly still be preserved this intact"), Anthony turned to ask Lind, "Why did you think to have Pomona test them?"
"Of course because I myself also suspected it might be related to magic," Mr. Lind said. "I initially didn't plan to collect them. But traces in the forest showed creatures came recently. And stayed here long. If no magic involved, I'd say those traces looked like a person... But this person-like creature's movement trajectory was quite unreasonable. Almost like drunk stumbling through the woods. And I'm quite certain if that really was a person, I should've encountered it already."
"Then what? What was it?"
"I don't know," Mr. Lind said. "This oak was broken at the waist. And the breaking height was very strange, Professor Anthony. Very strange. The trunk looked scorched. Leaves too. You see, the bottom piece. I immediately knew there was something strange in the forest. Collected some samples and immediately came back. Professor Sprout said I might've encountered wizards. There are always some bold wizards who like wandering around. Then encounter various Dark Magic things in forests."
"Where did you collect it?" Anthony asked concernedly.
Mr. Lind smiled. "You ask the exact same question as Professor Sprout. My answer is also the same: a remote good place. Beside Greece. Locals call it Veitmoor Forest."
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