Slytherin immediately noticed the large and tidy display window—it was the complete opposite of the cluttered window at Ollivander's Wand Shop. Through the spotless glass, he saw a neat row of books with gold-embossed covers.
"Voyages with Vampires, Travels with Trolls, Weekends with Werewolves… they're all written by the same author," he murmured.
Gilderoy Lockhart. Slytherin made a mental note of the name.
He had no intention of writing fairy tales only for Muggle children. There were children in the magical world, too. Naturally, if he wanted his Dream to be known by as many as possible, he needed to understand what stories appealed to wizardkind. And the most efficient shortcut? Study the work of well-established authors.
"Oh, Mr. Lockhart…" Professor McGonagall's tone was laced with a subtle awkwardness. She glanced at the cover image of the blond wizard, who was winking and smiling with flawless precision, then turned her head away, as if unable to bear looking at it.
Slytherin didn't notice her discomfort. He fluttered into the bookstore like a small, excited bird. The first thing that caught his eye were large cabinets filled with bundles of books tied together, labeled with a sign: First-Year Textbooks.
Exactly what he needed.
Professor McGonagall clearly didn't have time to dawdle, and locating these textbooks right away would give him more time to explore the books he truly cared about.
His first target: Gilderoy Lockhart's series. They were, unfortunately, not cheap—five Galleons per book. Slytherin wanted to buy other titles as well, so he picked just two: Voyages with Vampires and Travels with Ghouls.
The first intrigued him because he wanted to compare magical vampires with those from the Dream World. The second, he'd heard, was the most classic and best-selling in the series.
Next, he sought fairy tales.
"Children's books… here!"
He found the section, tucked away in a lonely corner. Compared to the vast, prominent displays of other genres, the children's section felt almost forgotten. It only had a few shelves, far fewer than he'd expected.
Slytherin tried to comfort himself. Children's books were rarely as popular as complex magical texts, he reasoned. A few shelves were already generous.
But he had been too optimistic.
Of the four total shelves, three were filled entirely with identical copies of The Tales of Beedle the Bard. Only the last shelf had a meager selection of other fairy tales—titles like Merlin's Stories and Dragon Adventures. Even this shelf wasn't full.
Judging by the thick dust on the final shelf, it hadn't been touched in quite some time. Slytherin felt as though a layer of dust had settled over his heart as well.
It was clear that the fairy tale market in the magical world was dominated by a single name: Poet Peter. Slytherin remembered learning the word market from overhearing Andrew on the phone.
The Tales of Beedle the Bard was not only the most popular—it was practically the only option available. Even the nearby book, Puffskein's Adventures, was covered in cobwebs. If not for his superhuman eyesight, Slytherin wouldn't have been able to make out the title—it was obscured by layers of dust.
He took a deep breath and picked up The Tales of Beedle the Bard, flipping to the beginning of a story at random. He wanted to see what kind of "masterpiece" had pushed all other fairy tales into obscurity.
"The Raven Witch and the Poison Dragon? What a strange title."
He read on, intending to skim quickly. After all, Professor McGonagall was in a hurry.
But something on the page made him freeze.
"...The Raven Witch Maleficent raised her wand, summoning countless thorns from the corrupted earth…"
Maleficent.
Slytherin rubbed his eyes and reread the passage. He hadn't misread it. The name Maleficent—along with the elements of ravens and thorns—told him a startling fact:
Someone had entered the Dream World before him.
Perhaps it was the person who had made a deal with Maleficent in exchange for Galleons?
Could that someone be Poet Peter?
The more he read, the stranger it seemed. The story told of a once-prosperous kingdom that had angered a dragon. In retaliation, the dragon, cloaked in green poisonous mist, took over the land. The soil was cursed; it grew only toxic fruits that harmed those who consumed them.
Just as the people began to lose hope, a brave knight passed through. Upon hearing the villagers' plight, the knight charged forward on a golden horse to face the dragon.
Unfortunately, the dragon's poisonous fire was beyond human resistance. Just a touch of its flames could reduce a man to a withered husk. The knight fought valiantly for five days and five nights, but ultimately succumbed when the fire found its way through a crack in his armor.
The people mourned the knight deeply, turning his story into song. Their grief and admiration inspired other knights to follow, each trying to slay the beast—but none ever succeeded. The dragon's dark green skin was impenetrable.
Moved by their sacrifice, the Raven Witch Maleficent, who lived in a swamp, came to mourn at the knights' graves. Her tears soaked the earth, from which a pure golden wand bloomed.
Armed with this wand, blessed by the spirits of the fallen knights, the Raven Witch challenged the Poison Dragon in the empty royal capital. The dragon's poisonous fire raged for seven days and seven nights, hiding the battlefield in a toxic haze.
Just when everyone believed the Raven Witch had perished, the fire extinguished—and Maleficent emerged, holding the dragon's horn in triumph.
The land was healed. Food could once again grow. The Raven Witch, having inherited the knights' noble will, created a magical forest beside the kingdom to forever protect its people.
The End.
Slytherin closed the book slowly, his mind racing.
There was no doubt about it—this Maleficent was the same Maleficent from the Dream World. The story's magical elements were undeniably hers. But…
The tale was clearly embellished.
It was obvious to Slytherin that Poet Peter had taken creative liberties. He likely wanted to emphasize the idea that courage and sacrifice could overcome any obstacle—a common theme in fairy tales.
So, had Poet Peter really been the wizard who struck a deal with Maleficent? Unlikely. According to Maleficent herself, that wizard only stayed for a short while, as if the Dream World rejected them.
Poet Peter, on the other hand, seemed to have observed the entire story unfold firsthand.
Slytherin felt a twinge of disappointment. He had believed himself to be unique—the only person who could safely and consistently travel between the real world and the Dream World. Discovering someone had done it long ago, even in the Middle Ages, unsettled him.
After all, children always want to be the only one.
Still, there was comfort in knowing that he wasn't alone. Not just in terms of his magical talent—but in his passion for storytelling. In Poet Peter, he saw a fellow fairy tale author with the same instinct for adaptation and artistic flair.
The story of Maleficent reminded him of his own recent success: The Helpful Sea Witch and the Disobedient Merperson, which currently topped London's children's book bestseller list.
Fairy tale authors, editors, and even readers often accepted a "little bit" of harmless embellishment. As long as the essence remained true, stories could—and should—be shaped by imagination.
Perhaps Maleficent and the Merperson Princess wouldn't be pleased with these altered versions of their stories. But fairy tales were never shared with the Dream World. No one there had ever voiced objections.
And silence, Slytherin reasoned, meant consent.
He reached for the best-packaged copy of The Tales of Beedle the Bard on the shelf, his hands reverent. If he was to read the works of his magical predecessor, he would do so with the utmost respect and curiosity.