When Kael and Newt left the box and returned to the room, they just happened to meet a brand new Dobby.
He finally discarded the large stained pillowcase he was wearing, and Tina modified Newt's old jacket to make him a new outfit.
As soon as Dobby put it on, he looked much more spirited, and more fitting for an assistant too.
However, his expression seemed a bit uneasy, probably because he had just become a free House-elf not too long ago, and still had an instinctive resistance to new clothes.
But with Tina around, this situation could be resolved quickly.
She was currently holding a sleeve and comparing something. Newt's jacket was large enough that she could make at least three different outfits for a Little Elf.
I suppose it's a kind of employee benefit... though some areas are not quite perfect yet.
Kael went over and pulled out two long silver needles from Dobby's cuffs and collar, putting them into the box on the table. Inside were scissors, rulers, balls of thread, and other things.
"Oh, I've been looking for them..." Tina exclaimed in delight.
"Why not use Magic?" Kael asked curiously, "That should be more convenient, right?"
"I used to prefer Magic when I was young," Tina said, "but now I find this method more enjoyable, like baking bread and cookies, it's a completely different feeling from Magic. More importantly, it helps pass the time."
Kael nodded, showing his understanding.
Perhaps older Wizards prefer these hand-crafted items; Tina does, and so does Dumbledore.
He also knits wool socks and scarves without using any Magic, entirely by hand.
…
Kael didn't stay long at Newt's house; two days later, he was ready to leave.
No choice but to leave,
since Newt discovered Kael's special ability last year, he hasn't let him idle.
Though there's no need to help deliver babies this year, Newt threw all the listless animals in the box to him.
In just two days, Kael transformed into a comforting little helper, consoling and advising over a dozen Fantastic Beasts.
This included but was not limited to, the Unicorn Bulls who lost fights and had no appetite, the Montili Goats who failed courtship and were depressed, the Invisible Beast who got stepped on by a Poison Horned Beast and couldn't pull itself out from the ground for half a day…
And yesterday afternoon, he chatted with a newly egg-laying Bird Snake for four hours.
It was supposed to end in an hour, but somehow, the Bird Snake awakened its chattery nature after recovering, clinging to Kael relentlessly, until Newt came at night to call Kael for supper, it reluctantly let him go.
So, on the third morning, after breakfast, Kael used the excuse of having to return to write his paper for "Today's Transfiguration Technique," preparing to leave.
As for those counseling jobs, leave them to Newt... he can manage it himself.
However, before heading out, Newt suddenly stopped him, "There's something I think you might be interested in."
"What?" Kael looked at him warily, "It's not another Invisible Beast stuck in the ground, is it?"
"That was just an accident, the Invisible Beasts are usually quite vigilant."
Newt laughed and said, "Three months ago, I received a letter from the Romanian Fire Dragon Reserve, inviting me to participate in a grand event in August."
"If you're interested, I can take you along."
"Isn't it a bit too dangerous?" Tina put down the scissors and frowned, "Little Kael is only in third grade."
"He'll be in fourth grade soon," Newt said, "after his birthday, he'll adequately meet the minimum age requirement set by the reserve."
A grand event? And an age requirement?
Kael started to feel curious.
Newt didn't keep him hanging, quickly explaining.
"Joyce mentioned in the letter that the most powerful Ukrainian Iron Belly in the Fire Dragon Reserve has grown old, as its strength wanes, the other Fire Dragons are starting to become increasingly restless, especially those few Hungarian Horntails, who have recently appeared frequently in other dragons' territories..."
From Newt's explanation, Kael soon understood what he meant by the grand event.
Simply put, the "boss" of the Romanian Fire Dragon Reserve is about to retire, and the dragon horde is going to conduct a leadership election.
Fire Dragons themselves are inherently irritable creatures; elsewhere, merely one look between two could result in a fight.
Let alone in the Fire Dragon Reserve, although it's huge, with dozens of dragons living together, it can seem a bit crowded, so they usually resort to force to occupy those territory that are more comfortable and have more food.
In this situation, people at the reserve cannot control it, nor can they intervene; they cannot make dragons behave as obediently as a Crup, they can only let nature take its course.
But this kind of situation doesn't often occur.
According to Newt, since the reserve was established, this situation has only happened once, when the Ukrainian Iron Belly defeated all the dragons, occupying the highest cliff, continuously until now.
This year is the second time.
Kael's eyes began to light up.
If that's the case, then it truly is a grand event, and if he misses this chance, it will hardly come by a second time.
"I have no problem with that," Kael immediately said, "But, will the reserve agree to let me in?"
"You can temporarily act as my assistant," Newt said with a smile,
"But with this, Dobby might not be able to go."
Hearing Newt's words, Dobby, who was tidying up the dining table, opened his mouth wide enough to reach his ears.
Not going? That's just fantastic.
When he was with the Malfoy family, he heard them mention that place, the Malfoys thought the existence of the Fire Dragon Reserve seriously harmed their family's interests, causing them to lose lots of gold.
A place inhabited by dozens of Fire Dragons... absolutely terrifying.
Thinking about it, Dobby's legs started to tremble again.
If he went, he probably wouldn't even be able to walk, just causing trouble for Mr. Scamander.
He didn't want Mr. Scamander to think he was an incompetent assistant.
Fortunately, this won't happen.
Dobby looked gratefully at Kael, who had saved him twice now, in his heart, Kael at this moment seemed greater than Harry Potter.
It's a pity he can't work for Kael's family, otherwise, he would definitely clean the floors more than ten times a day...
"But..." Tina was still a bit worried.
"Don't worry," Newt reassured her, "we'll primarily be treating the injured Fire Dragons, as long as we stay away from the center of the reserve, we won't encounter any danger.
Moreover, I'll be writing to Chris and Diana to obtain their consent before bringing Kael along."
…