While Lynn dealt with the Muggles, Newt's efforts to soothe the Erumpent kept going.
Facing a creature clearly on the verge of a rage-out, Newt didn't dare use magic to restrain it directly.
Its hide ran thick and tough; a Stupefy would be little more than a tickle. If it missed, or failed to knock it out, it would only provoke the beast further, making everything harder to manage.
He spread his hands, palms out, and inched closer carefully. Slow, light steps, each one placed firmly, careful not to make too much noise.
The Erumpent turned its head toward him, eyes locked on. Its nostrils still huffed heavy breaths, front hooves scraping restlessly, but it didn't charge outright.
Newt kept edging forward.
One step, two, three.
"It's alright," he said. "No one's going to hurt you. Just calm down, okay?"
The Erumpent's nostrils flared, its pawing slowing.
It watched Newt, gaze shifting from wariness to confusion, then confusion to hesitation.
Newt took another step, hand almost brushing its rough hide.
Newt, of all people.
Anyone else, and the Erumpent would've already charged headfirst with a roar.
Just as Newt thought he'd steadied it—
a nearby utility pole, already wobbling from the earlier collision, let out a piercing shriek of groaning metal.
Then it dropped straight toward the Erumpent below.
Bang—!
The pole crashed square onto its back, snapping in two.
Debris scattered, wires crackled, sparks showered down.
Newt's hand froze midair.
He stared, mouth hanging open, at the two broken pole halves, then the sparking wire on the ground, then the Erumpent in front of him, momentarily relaxed but now slowly turning its head back around.
Newt swallowed hard and turned to run without hesitation.
The Erumpent let out a roar, kicking off with its hind legs, charging with its single horn aimed straight at his back.
Newt ran remarkably fast, coat flapping loudly behind him.
Nothing about this looked like an elderly man running.
Turns out people really can do anything under enough pressure—except math problems; if you can't do those, you just can't.
By the time Lynn wrapped up the Muggles' memories and returned, Newt was being chased in circles by the Erumpent.
The scene was, well—a bit pathetic, and a bit hilarious too.
His coat flying, hat long gone, hair whipped upright by the wind.
He wasn't slow, but the Erumpent was faster. Several times its horn nearly gored his back, and each time Newt lunged aside just barely in time.
Lynn stood at the corner and watched a moment.
His approach to dealing with aggressive magical creatures ran simple—if you can act, don't waste time talking first.
Soothing, communicating, easing closer slowly—that was Newt's territory.
Lynn flicked his wand.
A phantom Graphorn materialized instantly in front of him.
Grayish-purple skin, thick rough hide, two sharp curved horns—phantom or not, its sheer size and ferocity were enough to make any creature hesitate.
The Graphorn phantom stomped its hooves, lowered its head, building momentum, ready to charge.
"Oi! You big dummy!" Lynn shouted.
The Erumpent chasing Newt froze mid-stride.
It turned its head and spotted something roughly its own size, head lowered, two great horns bearing down straight at it.
Thump—!!!
The two massive heads collided violently, producing an extremely dull, heavy thud.
The Erumpent staggered sideways several steps, its four legs scraping white marks into the pavement before barely steadying itself.
Its head rang, stars sparking through its vision.
The Graphorn phantom fared no better.
Its shape flickered, edges blurring. But it solidified again quickly, hooves stomping, head lowering for another charge.
After another dull crash—
light flared along the Erumpent's horn, climbing up to the very tip.
Squelch!
A thick jet of explosive fluid shot from the tip.
It seeped instantly into the phantom's body, spreading fast along the grayish-purple patterning.
Boom!!!
The entire Graphorn phantom disintegrated from the head down, breaking into countless grayish-purple points of light that scattered like fireworks, drifting softly to the ground.
By then, Newt was finally ready.
Seizing the moment the Erumpent turned, his wand was already raised.
A spell shot toward its front legs.
Mid-turn, front hooves just landing, the Erumpent got ensnared by the spell.
Not fully immobilized, but slowed by a beat—enough for Newt.
He swept his wand again, adding two more spells.
One bound its hind legs, another wrapped around its horn.
Its movements slowed further, as if sinking into invisible mud, each step demanding several times the usual effort.
It tossed its head, straining against the bindings, only for them to tighten with every struggle.
Newt's hand stayed remarkably steady, the light at his wand's tip fixed unwaveringly on the creature. Sweat beaded on his forehead, his arm trembling slightly, but he held firm.
"Lynn!" he shouted.
Lynn had been waiting.
He stepped forward, wand raised, a ball of dazzling blue-white light already gathering at its tip.
The light crackled, air distorting around it.
No hesitation. A flick of the wrist, and lightning struck the ground right beside the Erumpent.
Boom—!!!
The blast shook the entire street.
The road surface cratered, stones flying, sparks scattering everywhere.
Newt seized the opening, wrapping an even stronger binding curse around its limbs.
"Now!" he yelled.
Lynn's wand lit again.
Not lightning this time—a thick jet of water, gushing from his wand tip with tremendous force, striking the Erumpent squarely.
It staggered back several steps under the impact.
It tried to steady itself, but Newt's binding curse already had it slowed; pushed further by the water, it lost its footing entirely.
Its hind legs buckled, its whole body tilting sideways.
Newt reacted fast, wrapping a chain around its neck to help it stabilize.
"To the left!" he shouted.
Lynn shifted the jet's direction by half an inch, letting it brush past the creature's flank.
Carried by the water's momentum, it leaned left, stumbling straight into the crater Lynn had blasted earlier.
After that stumble, it dropped right into a large net Newt had already set up.
"Lynn, close it!"
Lynn flicked his wrist, and the water jet vanished at once. He strode over to Newt's side, pointing his wand at the ground beneath the trapped creature.
A flash of light sank into the earth.
The net cinched shut instantly, pinning all four of its legs firmly to the ground.
It struggled a few more times, then couldn't budge an inch.
Newt finally let out a long breath, lowering his wand. His arm ached too much to lift, fingers trembling, but he walked toward it anyway.
"It's okay," he said softly. "No one's going to hurt you."
He reached out, gently pressing a hand against its skin.
"I'm sorry," he said. "Must have given you quite a scare."
Its breathing gradually evened out. The glow on its horn faded completely, and it lowered its head, nuzzling into Newt's embrace.
Edgar, who'd been hiding and watching the whole time, finally poked his head out from behind a car once the fight ended.
He glanced both ways, confirming the once-rampaging beast had gone docile, before cautiously stepping out.
"The case," he said, walking over to Newt and handing it over. "Brought it for you."
Newt took it, thanked him, and knelt to open the lid.
The Erumpent looked down at the open case, then at Newt, eyes full of reluctance.
Newt patted its neck, murmured a few words, and only then did it reluctantly step forward, placing its front hooves inside.
Newt waited until it had fully climbed in, then gently closed the lid and snapped the latches shut, finally letting out a long sigh of relief.
"Let's go." He picked up the case and turned to leave.
Lynn was about to say something when a series of soft cracks caught his ear nearby. He grabbed Edgar's arm, yanking him upward, and the two of them shot into the air instantly.
A second later, a dozen fully armed Aurors materialized out of thin air, surrounding Newt, still standing on the ground.
Matching deep blue uniforms, gold badges on their chests, wands all leveled squarely at him.
One lead Auror stepped forward.
"Mr. Scamander, you're suspected of violating the Statute of Secrecy. Please come with us to the Magical Congress."
Newt: "..."
The lead Auror waved a hand.
The group closed in at once; one took his case, others flanked him, some fell in behind.
With another soft crack, the whole group vanished on the spot, Newt taken along with them.
Quiet returned to the street.
Midair, Lynn and Edgar hung suspended, wind whipping their robes.
The two floated there, staring at the empty space where Newt had just stood. Neither spoke for a good while.
"Should I... ask my parents to help bail him out?"
Lynn thought it over and shook his head.
"Never mind," he said. "Let's leave this headache for the Headmaster."
He pulled his Magic Phone out and dialed Dumbledore's number.
The phone rang a long while before it connected. Dumbledore's tired voice came through, the sound of turning pages faintly audible behind it.
"Mr. Lynn, has something gone wrong?"
"Well, Headmaster, not a huge deal. Just that Mr. Scamander's been taken by the American Aurors. Was hoping you could bail him out."
Dumbledore: "..."
Lynn gave a quick rundown of what happened. Dumbledore went quiet on the other end.
After a moment, his voice returned. "Sigh, leave it to me."
---
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