The four adults had withdrawn to the high table where they were now engaged in some sort of discussions, and every once in a while, the ministry lady did not appear to be in agreement with the headmaster.
She kept pointing a finger towards Hermione—or rather the Pichu—and shaking her head. The headmaster, on his part, remained unreadable as he calmly engaged her.
The two would engage Professor McGonagall once or twice, but Hagrid was more of a silent mountain, only nodding his head to whatever the headmaster was saying.
Maybe he was contemplating what would happen if the lady knew about his hatchling.
Magnus, however, did not see all this as he now had his back towards them.
He stood in front of Hermione as he tried to engage her in some sort of small talk just to ease her mind.
So far, it wasn't working on her.
The good thing, however, was that the Pichu stayed calm. It was even letting out some playful giggles as it tugged at Hermione's robe.
"Are they going to take it away?" Hermione asked him as if he had any idea what the four were discussing.
"No," he said curtly as he patted the Pichu's fur.
Of course, he knew that that was likely what would happen.
I mean, Mrs. Winston had stated that one of the reasons for indexing was to ensure dangerous Pokémon did not find their way into the school.
Now, Magnus would not call the Pichu dangerous—I mean, at least not to those life-threatening levels... at least for now... but once it became a Pikachu and later a Raichu, the voltage of its electric discharge would hit deadly levels.
I mean, in the anime, the power had been too strong that it even crushed the test machines.
By then, however, Pikachu would have learned to control this weakness.
The Ministry, however, knew nothing about this Pokémon, so with the lack of data, it meant they had to conduct more research, and that meant they would have to take the Pichu away.
He couldn't say this to Hermione... I mean, she was smart enough, so she had probably deduced as much, but hearing it confirmed by someone else wouldn't make it any easier on her.
"I don't think they will," Ron, who, together with Harry, had come to join them, said, nodding towards the high table. "I mean, she doesn't look pleased with whatever they have agreed on."
Magnus looked over his shoulder to see the four were already descending towards them.
Ron was right. The headmaster was still chatting with the magizoologist, and although they seemed calmer now, the ministry lady did not appear satisfied.
Magnus moved to stand behind Hermione alongside Harry and Ron.
Dumbledore came straight for Hermione.
"Ms. Granger, I hear you have landed quite a unique hatchling," the headmaster said, pushing back his glasses and smiling as he stooped to observe the hatchling.
"Hope you don't mind if I pet him a little?" he asked calmly, and Hermione automatically nodded, though a bit unwillingly. I mean, what else could she have said?
The headmaster smiled before proceeding to pet the Pichu.
'She is screwed,' Magnus thought. 'He will be zapped!'
He waited almost breathlessly for Dumbledore to pull back in sudden shock...
Eventually, he did, but it wasn't sudden or in shock... it was more of curiosity.
"Certainly unique," he said, stepping back to give way to Mrs. Winston, who had been standing right behind him.
Despite the potential disagreements that might have been in whatever debates they had been having, Magnus noted that the lady did not betray any as she addressed Hermione.
"My apologies, Ms. Granger, for the long wait, but it was utterly necessary," Mrs. Winston said, with a gentle smile having crept back on her face. This lady seemed to have quite a number of personalities that she could easily slip in and out of with ease.
The other first years had gathered around them to hear what would happen to her Pokémon.
"You may have noticed that there is no data on our record nor that of our partners about your hatchling," she went on to explain in that disarming voice that still had a hint of professionalism to it.
"Your Pokémon is therefore a new entry. It's what we magizoologists would call a parent generation."
'Surely not,' Magnus thought. I mean, the Pichu hadn't just come out of thin air; it had hatched from an egg—an egg that could only have been laid by another Pikachu.
"Normally, we would be required to directly study the hatchling for some months before releasing it back to the trainer." She paused as if carefully considering her next words.
"The headmaster and your head of house have assured me that your hatchling will be under careful scrutiny."
She smiled, and for the first time, Magnus noticed it never reached her eyes. For the first time also, he noticed a small book in her hands.
"I expect, therefore, that you will notify your head of house of anything that you might think is out of place," she said, handing the book to Hermione.
She transferred the Pichu to her left hand and took the proffered book.
"That is a record diary," Mrs. Winston explained with another gentle smile. "Due to that arrangement, I expect you to make daily entries about the behavioral habits of your hatchling," she said, locking eyes with Hermione in emphasis. "Don't ignore any details. With new entries, any little detail or observation is critical. Can you do that?"
Hermione nodded. What the lady was saying sounded tasking, but then, to a Hermione who had once juggled through classes with a Time Turner, that must be a small price to pay for retaining her hatchling.
"Good... remember, every little detail," she said before looking at the hovering book.
Dumbledore cleared his throat noisily, and Mrs. Winston, who was preparing to dictate the new entry, turned towards him.
The headmaster smiled. "Pardon my interruption, Olena... I might be wrong, of course, but is it not customary for the owner of a parent generation Pokémon to propose a name?"
She must have forgotten that in the process, but she nodded her agreement.
"That is correct, Professor. I must have forgotten it..." she said, beaming at Hermione. "But I must also state that the name is considered provisional until approved by the department."
Dumbledore nodded his understanding, then they all turned to Hermione.
"Go on, Ms. Granger," Mrs. Olena said. "Do you have a name in mind?"
She thought for a few seconds, and Magnus contemplated whispering the name in case she had forgotten. But as it turned out, she hadn't.
"Pichu," she said without even looking at him.
Mrs. Winston and the teachers smiled.
"Pichu," the lady repeated as if testing the name. "Easy enough," she said, turning to her levitating record book.
"New entry, identity pending. Ms. Hermione Granger of Hogwarts, year of admission 1991, owns a parent generation Pokémon with species provisional name of Pichu. Frequent observation is required."