Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them Chapter 6: Introduction - Magical Beasts in Hiding Summary

How It All Goes Down

  • But, obviously, not every single magical creature can be hidden forever. There's that yeti in Tibet and that kelpie in Loch Ness that just loves publicity.
  • Luckily, most Muggles don't want to believe that fantastic beasts exist. They much prefer non-magical explanations for anything extraordinary.
  • And if any Muggle should say she's seen a Hippogriff flying over her house, her neighbors will probably just think she's a little crazy.
  • Yeah, it's probably a bummer for that Muggle, but it's better than being burned at the stake as a witch, right?
  • Okay, so how do wizards hide fantastic beasts? Some hide themselves. Other prefer not to go near Muggles. But others really need to be kept away.
  • Wizards create safe habitats with Muggle-Repelling charms in places where magical creatures live (such as woods with centaurs or ponds with merpeople).
  • There are also limits on which animals can be bred or sold. (Tell that to Hagrid…)
  • Disillusionment Charms can also conceal magical beasts from Muggles who are looking right at them. Very handy with Hippogriffs.
  • And let's not forget Memory Charms when things go totally haywire.
  • Then, of course, there's the Office of Misinformation, which will be dispatched to spread a plausible non-magical explanation for any sighting of a fantastic beast.
  • These are the guys responsible for explaining to Muggles that all the pictures of the Loch Ness kelpie are actually super fake.
  • They're kind of like the Men in Black, except they have wands.