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31 August 1942
I went back to the Gryffindor tower after my morning run. A few students were looking at me in surprise when they saw me coming out of the tower at this early hour of the morning, covered in sweat. I ignored them and went into the bathroom to take a shower. After showering and grooming myself, I went down to the great hall for breakfast.
After eating five times as much food as a normal person again and shocking everyone who had breakfast with me, I saw Professor Kettleburn getting up from the teachers' table and leaving the great hall, probably to go to his room. After drinking another glass of pumpkin juice and dealing with Faye for a while, I decided to go to Professor Kettleburn's room to talk to him. To be honest, I didn't have much to do today. Firstly to talk to Professor Kettleburn about Faye and to search Radagian's room, since searching Radagian's room might take a long time, I decided to talk to Professor Kettleburn first.
When I arrived in front of Professor Kettleburn's room, after checking my clothes and taking a deep breath, I knocked on the door.
'Come in.'
I walked in after hearing Professor Kettleburn's voice. When he saw me, he smiled and began to speak.
'Ah Hagrid, I think that's what brought my favourite student this year to my room.'
In the past years, Hagrid had always come to ask questions to Professor Kettleburn even though he didn't have a class because of his love for magical creatures. This had earned him the professor's favour. Oh, I must stop referring to myself in the third person, I'm Rubeus Hagrid now.
'Hello, Professor. Sorry to disturb you. I'm here for Faye.' As I spoke, I took Faye out of my breast pocket and put her on the professor's desk.
Seeing the Bowtruckle, Professor Kettleburn quickly got up from his place behind his desk and Faye approached him to examine it.
'A Bowtruckle is a species that usually lives in the wild and is reluctant to leave their trees.'
'Yes, Professor, I found him near my house, and I brought him to school after I got permission from Professor Dumbledore because he wanted to come with me. But there are a few things about him that have been bothering me. I came to talk to you about it.'
'Is something wrong? He looks perfectly healthy to me.' While he was talking, he was poking Faye or stroking her different spots and examining her reactions.
'Professor, the books said that bowtruckles feed on insects and pests that live in trees, but Faye eats almost everything. From owl snacks to chocolate and various snacks, especially owl snacks and chocolate. And when I try to stop her, she just sulks at me.'
He took out his wand and started to cast a few detection spells. After casting a few spells, he started to speak.
'Well, there doesn't seem to be any problem. Considering that bowtruckles usually live in the wild, bowtruckles probably don't get the opportunity to eat owl snacks and chocolate all their lives. So we may not know these characteristics of these little creatures.'
'Thank you, Professor, it worries me sometimes. Once in particular, I think he had the closest thing a Bowtruckle has to a stomach ache from overeating, and he doesn't seem to be settling down at all. He'd eat all the owl snacks in a day if I let him.'
'He's just a gluttonous little chap. Just don't let him eat too much.'
'Thank you again, Professor. Then I'm leaving.'
After Professor Kettleburn told me that I could leave, I left the room with Faye. After I left the room, I started to wander randomly around Hogwarts while I was holding Radagian's diary in my pocket. I was hoping that it would give me a sign. After wandering around for almost an hour without any sign, I finally came to the seventh floor. As soon as I got to the seventh floor, an emotion emitted from the diary that drove my voxnaturae senses crazy. I knew what I had to do. I ran at a brisk pace to the painting of Barmy Barnabas teaching the trolls to dance. The closer I got to the painting, the crazier the diary became. I passed the painting three times. Unfortunately, nothing happened, so I continued to wander around the seventh floor looking for another clue, but I found nothing useful. Finally, in a desperate attempt, I tried one last time, this time with the constant thought in my mind that I wanted to get into Radagian's room. By Merlin, this time it worked. On my third pass, there was finally a door in the place of the picture. What was waiting for me was a huge portrait hanging on the wall in a plain looking room.
When I entered and approached the portrait, the sound of the door closing behind me slowly opened the eyes of the sleeping man in the portrait. His voice was so loud that it echoed around the room and made me want to cover my ears.
'At last someone has come to this godforsaken place. I've been trapped inside this damn portrait for exactly 500 years....'
The portrait finally calmed down after shouting for a while. After taking a deep breath, he started talking again.
'I am the grand druid Radagian. Can you introduce yourself, young man?'
'Rubeus Hagrid, third year student at Hogwarts.'
'Well, since you've read the diary, you must know what this place is.'
'Yes, I do. But I have to lie. I was expecting a library instead of an empty room. You know, the heritage of the druids, their knowledge of magic.'
'Oh, there is what you want here and even more here, but it is not so easy to get it.'
'What do you mean? Am I going to take an exam or something?'
I couldn't help getting a little excited, I had mastered all the druid spells in the past month, some of them I liked quite a lot, especially the war staff spell, which filled my small staff with the power of nature and made it the size of a bo staff, allowing me to create a melee weapon without losing any of my staff's spellcasting ability. Another spell was thunderclap, which inflicted thunder damage to the area around me and paralysed my targets as if they had been struck by lightning, but my favourite was without exception primal savagery. Magic affected me a little differently than the book says. Normally it should strengthen my physical body and give me poisonous nails. In my case, I think because I was half-giant, it increased my physical strength and magic resistance, as well as awakening in me a primitive instinct hungry for war.
Radagian smiled and started to speak.
'Ah! It's not really an exam. It's more like you have to take a magical oath to become a druid.'
'You make it sound like druidry is different from ordinary wizards, I know there are some differences in beliefs, but all the information I have found about druids is that you are basically wizards with different beliefs.'
I wasn't lying about that, I had done my research before I came to the room, and the historical information about the druids was very sparse, mentioning some differences in beliefs. They were often portrayed as climate activists living in the wilderness, refusing to mix with civilisation. The information was quite contradictory, although it mentioned different spells from modern day magicians. If to become a druid I had to give up other forms of magic and live like a savage far from civilisation, I would refuse the offer.
Radagian thought for a moment about how to explain it, and then began to speak.
'For an ordinary magician, there are 4 important factors that affect his power. Body, soul-mind, magical energy and finally knowledge of magic. Lack of any one of these will negatively affect the other three. Any problems so far?'
'I knew the importance of magic knowledge and magical energy, but I didn't know the importance of the other two. Nowadays many magicians don't pay much attention to their body. Almost nobody does sports. As far as the mind is concerned, I have heard of a field of magic called occlumency and I try to train it, but most magicians never train themselves in this field.'
Now I was a little excited, here was my chance to confirm some of my predictions.
Radagian suddenly became very angry and started shouting.
'Are you serious what they teach children these days. Look, in magic there is something we call the holy trinity: body, soul-mind and magical energy, which are very important for a wizard. If one of them is weaker than the others, the other two will suffer. For example, even if a wizard does not do any training or body strengthening rituals, his body is stronger than the muggles. Likewise it is harder to cast spells that affect the mind on wizards and yes meditation and occlumency are the best ways to strengthen the mind. Now is there a problem?'
I was glad that some of my hypotheses were correct, it meant that I was already one step ahead of the others in terms of body strength due to my half-giant form.
'I think I understand. So what exactly changes in a druid?'
'Apart from these four, there is a fifth factor in druids and that is voxnaturae. The power of voxnaturae is vital for a druid.'
Right here I got a little too excited and interrupted him.
'Wait a minute, voxnaturae has different abilities? As far as I've discovered, it only allows me to sense the emotions of animals and plants, and especially allows me to communicate with more intelligent animals.'
Radagian thought for a while about what to do with an ignorant lout like me, he didn't say it out loud but his facial expression was clear enough and he continued.
'Voxnaturae is more than just communicating with animals and plants. We druids draw energy from nature to strengthen our spells, and in some cases even to make them fully druidic. Voxnaturae is our connection with nature. The stronger this connection, the more energy we can draw from it and the more powerful spells we can cast. The spells you found in the diary were the weakest of the druid spells. You almost didn't even need to deliberately use voxnaturae. For more powerful druid spells, you must actively manipulate this bond and draw energy from it, and of course the energy you can draw increases in direct proportion to the strength of the bond.'
Now I couldn't help getting a little excited, this man was telling me that I could use voxnaturae to strengthen my spells. But when I thought about it a little more, I realised that there was more to it than that. This was a completely different discipline of magic than I had ever heard of. At the same time, this magic discipline was deeply connected to voxnaturae. I continued talking to ask the questions I had in mind.
'As far as I understand, druid magic is a different discipline from normal magic and is highly dependent on voxnaturae, does this mean that the level of my voxnaturae determines my entire future, I mean, can voxnaturae become a restriction in the future?'
Although I am interested in druidic magic, I don't want to restrict myself completely in this way, and if there is no way to strengthen the voxnaturae and I vow to become a druid, it could partly ruin my future.
Radagian immediately began to speak.
'Yes and no. Firstly, the level of voxnaturae is not fixed. It can grow stronger or weaker over time. Although it limits access to some types of magic, it does not prevent you from using other types of magic. So there is no problem in areas such as alchemy, charms, transfiguration. It is more about what you do with that magic than the type of magic.' After pausing and thinking for a while, he continued to speak.
'For example, alchemy, etc. It is not a problem to produce new magical creatures using methods. But if you go and create abominations like dementors or chimera, you can lose voxnaturae directly, or you can extend your life with various potions, but if you turn yourself into a lich, you will lose voxnaturae. In general, if you practice the more evil and nature-defying aspects of the dark arts, such as inferi, you will either lose voxnaturae or weaken it. Conversely, if you save an endangered species, it strengthens voxnaturae, or if you prevent an invasive species from destroying its environment, it strengthens voxnaturae. The point is to protect nature and obey its laws.'
'I think I understand, but I have a few questions?'
He looked as if he was tired of explaining things to me, but he waved his hand to indicate that I could ask anyway.
'For example, how do I know if something will strengthen or weaken the voxnaturae?'
'Usually you get a warning before you perform the action, so make sure you don't miss it.'
'What are the limitations when creating new types of magic in general?' I've also started reading the book on chimaric alchemy I got from Diagon Alley last month. It's definitely a field I want to specialise in the future. Damn the Hagrid in me, the love for these bigger and more dangerous magical creatures definitely stems from him.
'With the hybridisation method, alchemy and rituals performed before the creature in question is born or in the egg are not a problem. But abominations such as chimera and dementors, which are made by forcibly fusing one or more creatures, can damage your connection with nature and even destroy it completely.'
I understand that there was no problem with this. There were even warnings about it in the book. In general, these creatures were always suffering, unstable and extremely aggressive.
That left only two questions.
The first one was 'I am a hybrid, a half-giant to be exact, and some of the spells in the diary affected me differently than it was written, will this be a problem in the future?'
'Spells that affect the physical body, such as primitive savagery, may affect you a little differently, but in the long run it will not be a problem. In fact, since giants have a better relationship with the nature around them than humans, it may even be useful for you in the future.'
This was a development that relieved me. Now there was one last question; both very important and ridiculous.
'Since a druid has not been born for a very long time, there are a few question marks about you. I read in some books that druids isolate themselves from civilisation and human life and prefer to live with animals in the forest. Is this true?'
Even though the question sounded ridiculous, I could not isolate myself from people for my future plans.
Radagian looked quite angry at this question.
'Who makes up such nonsense. I don't know, but if I ever get my hands on that man, I'll tear him to pieces. No, there's no need for that. In ancient times we druids were priests, healers, mentors and in some cases leaders, guiding people in the ways of nature. Some of my kind have done what you say. But that was more of a personal choice than a requirement of being a druid. I think the rumour is that we avoid the big cities. Do you know what it smells like to have thousands of people who never bathe more than once or twice a year living in the same place without a functional way to transport their various wastes out of the city?'
After taking a few deep breaths to calm down, he continued.
'I was a grand druid in my time, the equivalent of an archmage if you want to put it that way, and kings and nobles lined up to welcome me into their palaces and ask my advice. So no, you don't need to separate yourself from civilisation and live like a savage. Is the explanation enough?'
'So when do I take the oath?'
My question seemed to please and delight him.
'Take out your wand and place it over your heart, then repeat after me.'
He hurriedly did as he said and then continued speaking.
'I, Rubeus Hagrid, swear by my magic and my life that I will continue as a druid for the rest of my life, and that if the blessing of nature forsakes me in the future, I will return the treasures and knowledge I received from Radagian, and that I will tell no one else of these treasures and knowledge.'
As soon as Radagian finished his sentence, I swore as he said. The moment I finished the sentence, I felt the change, voxnaturae was not only more powerful than before. I felt the oath binding my magic and me.
After I finished my sentence, Radagianda spoke with a big grin.
"Now for the fun part, if you want to get my treasures, approach me and take the portrait off the wall." After removing the portrait from the wall, what awaited me was a silver orb, about the size of a soccer ball, waiting in a secret compartment behind the portrait. At Radagian's signal, I reached out to pick it up.
As soon as I touched the orb, I felt a strange tugging sensation below my navel and found myself in a completely different place. On one side of me was a castel savoia, a mansion-castle on top of a hill. On the other side of me was a large lake, and everywhere else, as far as the eye could see, was a wild landscape with no sign of human habitation. But something was very wrong here and as soon as I thought this way I realized what it was. There was no life here. Not even plants, just rock and earth as far as the eye could see.
Confused and a little scared, I started talking to the portrait I was holding in my hand.
"Where am I? Where is this place?"
Radagian must have found my fear amusing because he smiled a small smile.
"Don't be afraid son, you can return to Hogwarts whenever you want. And as you can see, there is nothing here that can harm you."
After I calmed down a bit, he continued.
"The greatest treasure I left you here is a pocket dimension."
"What's a pocket dimension? It's like one of those bags created using spatial magic, I heard they can contain a house or even a forest."
Now I was a little excited, I've wanted something like this since I was reborn.
"Son, this place is more than just items enchanted with the traceless extension spell, if word got out that you had a portable pocket dimension, powerful wizards would come from everywhere to hunt you down."
"What do you mean, what's the difference?"
"Pocket sizes are extremely rare phenomena that occur randomly in nature. They can be as big as countries. The forbidden forest near Hogwarts is one such place. The part that is visible from the outside is not even a tenth of the forbidden forest. If you can find such a pocket size in the process of its formation, you can stick it on an object like I did." He continued speaking before I could answer. "In ordinary spatial objects, no matter how large they are, the number of plants and animals you can grow is limited even by a greenhouse tree. But there is no such limitation in pocket dimensions. Even though most of them are not suitable for human life, they can give birth to incredible magical resources thanks to the extreme concentration of magical energy within them. Do you now understand the importance of having such a personal space? It is like having your own country from which you can extract almost unlimited resources."
I stood still for a moment trying to comprehend the dimensions of what I was being told. My brain short-circuited, then I sighed in disappointment when I realized that there were no living beings around me.
"If the pocket dimension can produce life as if it were no different from the normal world, then why is there not a single blade of grass here?"
I could have sworn that Radagian blushed and looked embarrassed for a moment, but he quickly recovered his composure.
"Well, that could be my fault. When I found this dimension and fused it with the sphere, it was not yet fully formed. Then I cut it off from the outside world and it never had a chance to produce life, but don't worry, with the help of a greenhouse tree we can make it full of life in no time."
"I thought you didn't need a greenhouse tree?"
"Not necessarily, but it would be incredibly slow. A greenhouse tree would make things much easier."
When Radagian said that, I remembered the little sapling I left at home and I hope nothing happens to it. While I was thinking about the sapling, Radagian kept talking.
"Now, if you are done with your questions, drip some blood on that orb so that it recognizes you as its owner, otherwise anyone who touches the orb can enter here. you can think of the orb as the door and control center of this place."
After binding the orb to myself, I realized that I could change the shape and size of the orb, so I turned it into a simple ring that would not attract attention. Then, with Radagian's suggestion, I went to the mansion next door. After walking around the mansion for a while, I left Radagian in the mansion according to his mistakes. I went back to Hogwarts, went to my room and quietly started to think about what happened today. What a day it was.