The Werewolf Act

The battle began abruptly, and it ended just as quickly.

Newt had barely drawn his wand and had no chance to do anything before all the werewolf wizards present lost their ability to resist.

When calm returned to the surroundings, the forest had become even more luxuriant. There was not even an open patch of ground to stand on, so Kyle and Newt could only barely balance on thick tree roots.

Countless twisted roots and trunks had tightly wrapped themselves around the werewolf wizards' bodies. From a distance, it looked as though the trees had borne an exceptionally tasteless kind of fruit.

"Incredible." Newt looked up at the trees, which had expanded at least five or six times in size. "Is this the spell you learned from Ravenclaw?"

"More or less," Kyle said. "The Plant Engorgement Charm was originally invented by Helga Hufflepuff to defend Hogwarts. She also used it to create the Forbidden Forest... though the Forbidden Forest back then was nowhere near this large. It could only be considered a prototype."

"That's truly remarkable." Newt patted a section of root beside him.

Under normal circumstances, although the Engorgement Charm could make plants larger, it also dispersed their original vitality. Like a balloon: the more it was inflated, the thinner its surface became, while its weight remained unchanged.

Unlike the Engorgement Charm Newt knew, these roots felt brimming with vitality. The entire thing was full of life, practically identical to something that had grown naturally.

But could an ordinary Scots pine really grow this large? Its trunk was like a cartwheel; in any case, Newt had never seen one before.

"Actually, this spell works best when paired with Devil's Snare," Kyle said.

"Devil's Snare?" Newt asked doubtfully. "What difference does that make?"

"Of course there's a difference," Kyle said.