The book detailed how to permanently anchor an Extension Charm to a physical container (like a building). Beyond the spell itself, it required several ancient rune carvings to provide magical support, along with some special materials—like the slime of a transfiguring lizard, which could be found in the Potions classroom's supply cabinet. But one thing the Potions room didn't have?
An Occamy is a feathered, winged, two-legged serpent-like creature that can shrink or expand its size at will.
Its feathers carry that same magical property, making them ideal for setting up a long-term Extension Charm space.
But because their eggs are made of pure silver, Occamies are prime targets for hunters, leaving them exceedingly rare. As a result, Occamy feathers fetch a sky-high price.
According to the book's requirements, Cohen estimated that to house a fire dragon *and* have a room for himself, he'd need at least seventy-seven feathers—enough to pluck an Occamy bald.
Cohen had no intention of shelling out a fortune for seventy-seven feathers. They were pricier than unicorn hair, another Ministry-classified 4X material.
Unicorns, at least, were somewhat approachable—pure-hearted folks could get close, and even Ollivander could snag a few tail hairs (though he'd nearly been gored by one once).
Occamies, though? Thanks to humans constantly stealing their eggs, they were insanely wary. Spot a human, and they'd bolt at lightning speed. If cornered, they'd balloon to a massive size and crush the threat flat.
"This supply chain's a little *too* obvious, isn't it?"
Cohen frowned at the contact info printed at the chapter's end:
*[For Occamy feather purchases, contact Nerva Rodriguez in Dorset. Negotiable prices, fast shipping, available across Europe.]*
But that was Dumbledore's problem to deal with.
"I saw in the book that the ancient rune carvings need Occamy feathers," Cohen said, barging into the Headmaster's office on a Saturday morning—this time with a genuinely legit reason.
"But they're too expensive. Can you hook me up?"
"You're already at the stage of carving ancient runes?"
Dumbledore sat behind his desk, a stack of letters in front of him. He looked up at Cohen with a gentle smile but didn't immediately agree.
Cohen's progress surprised him a bit. Newt hadn't started reinforcing his suitcase with this method until *after* he'd been expelled. The Extension Charm was practically impossible for a lower-year student.
But if it was Cohen? Well, that tracked.
If Cohen acted like an average little wizard, Dumbledore might've suspected he'd turn into another Tom Riddle.
All those magical creature materials Cohen had couldn't just be feeding the air, right?
"It doesn't seem that hard—except for the materials. Occamy feathers are stupid expensive. Maybe I should just go full-time into raising magical creatures. I could live off selling their seasonal sheds and eat cupcakes every day…"
Cohen showed Dumbledore his half-finished suitcase, casually tossing in his "dream" for good measure—which delighted Dumbledore.
"The salary of a headmaster isn't exactly lavish—" Dumbledore said slowly.
*Yeah, sure, old white-beard. I'll believe that when I see it…*
Cohen took it as a joke. Poor? Dumbledore just didn't *need* money right now.
In other words, Galleons were mere numbers to him. Nothing could stop Dumbledore from getting what he wanted.
"But here's some good news: Newt Scamander's Occamy has bred into a thriving population—and he happens to be one of my closer students."
Dumbledore winked at Cohen over his half-moon glasses.
"Meaning you can score me seventy-seven Occamy feathers for free!" Cohen's eyes lit up, locking onto Dumbledore's gaze.
"Meaning you can buy these fascinating magical materials from him at a lower price. We could get them for seven Galleons each—cheaper than unicorn tail hair," Dumbledore said, still smiling warmly.
"Cohen, gaining something without effort can fulfill a wish easily enough, but remember: life isn't just about the 'result.' The 'process' matters more."
Clearly, Dumbledore had likely heard from the centaurs about Cohen cozying up to the unicorn herd. And he wasn't about to foot the full bill for those feathers—Cohen wasn't exactly strapped for cash himself.
Still, a discount was a win. Cohen planned to sell some Acromantula venom. He didn't need much of it himself, and if he ever poisoned someone, he'd rather use his own blood in a sealed container.
After getting Newt's address and a letter of introduction from Dumbledore, the headmaster called out as Cohen was about to leave:
"I'm glad you've found something you love at Hogwarts. Once the suitcase is done, I can offer some extra help—Newt used to complain that his little critters kept slipping out of his."
Dumbledore definitely didn't want a fire dragon bursting out of the suitcase. Hogwarts might end up needing a multi-million-Galleon renovation if that happened.
Cohen agreed. He wanted to lug the suitcase around anyway—if the dragon escaped during summer break and showed up at Number 5 Privet Drive, Rose would lose her mind.
Then the whole family would have to play cat-and-mouse with the Ministry…
Back in the Room of Requirement, Cohen started drafting a letter to a potion shop to sell the Acromantula venom. Newt probably wouldn't take it—he wasn't some terrorist, and at his age, he likely wasn't raising venom-dependent dangerous creatures anymore.
After bottling the venom into jars, Cohen stuffed them into a sack and handed it to Earl to fly to Diagon Alley.
"It won't spill, right?" Earl asked, eyeing the bulging sack of venom jars warily.
"I've got kids to raise—if I die out there…"
"I'll make sure the egg gets to Hedwig," Cohen reassured. "Anyway, how do you even know it's your kid…"
That earned him a withering glare from Earl.
Once the money came through and the Occamy feathers were bought, Cohen could start sprucing up his "mobile base."