Fernando left as quietly as he had arrived.
He needed to go back and investigate whether there was any precedent for Will's situation. He had only lost his composure for a moment. Magic defied reason, after all, and some people were simply extraordinary. Some wizards had powerful gifts of prophecy; others were born with a natural affinity for fantastic beasts.
Could Will's ability to sense magic be a special talent, too?
Fernando meant no harm. He was simply a stickler who devoted himself to research. As a member of the Society for the Promotion of Alchemical Excellence's review committee, he had to make sure everyone admitted to the society had earned their place through genuine ability.
Then again, if Rock Rowle had known how stubborn the man was, he probably would never have let him join the review committee.
Will treated the encounter with Fernando as a minor incident and thought little of it. That afternoon, he went to Care of Magical Creatures as usual.
He still needed to analyze the Hippogriff's magical structure. He also ought to find a way to learn the Patronus Charm soon—this term was his best chance to catch a Dementor.
In Care of Magical Creatures, Will encountered a new fantastic beast.
Since nothing had gone wrong in Hagrid's classes, he had grown bolder. Instead of giving everyone Flobberworms to play with, as he had originally, he had gone out of his way to find more exciting lessons.
For the past two weeks, for instance, the third-years had studied the Horned Beast, a particularly disgusting creature.
Horned Beasts were found mainly in America. Each was about the size of a large dog, with a toadlike head—only uglier and fiercer—horns, glowing red eyes, and a mouth full of fangs.
A Horned Beast's magic was concentrated in