"Magic," Andrew echoed, chewing the word. "Forgive if I'm less than excessively skeptical."
"In your position I would feel much the same way," John replied, taking another sip. "Indeed you Muggles have made it far easier to cover up our existence in recent times, with your skepticism."
"Also forgive me if I fail at grasp the significance."
"Oh, definitely, it's not something that's easy to explain. The Second Wizarding War alone would take at least seven volumes to explain. But I shall endeavour to give you the best overview I can, and I shall start at the beginning. If you have questions, feel free to interrupt."
"Noted. Continue."
"The world of wizardry dates back to ancient times, long before written history. Legends and folklore tell of the great city of Atlantis, of the grand wizard Merlin. Philosophers and historians have given their entire lives to the study of our history, and yet it is still shrouded in mystery.
"Once upon a time, wizards and Muggles- our term for those without magic- lived in relative harmony. Wizards practiced their magic openly and were held in high esteem. Slowly but surely, however, distrust and hatred grew. If our history is correct, it is around the year 1000 when our societies began to separate-"
"Excuse me, is that 1000 CE or 1000 BCE?"
"Ah, anno domini- so AD or CE."
"Right, so about negative... hold on. Glass, convert date: 1000 CE to universal coordinated time... negative 30612967200 in universal. Whoa, that is lot of numbers." He motioned to the wizard. "Continue."
"Right, so our existence was threatened- quickly Muggles began witch-hunts, burnings, brutal attacks on any wizard or anyone thought to be associated with wizards. It continued for hundreds of years- as you probably know- and we went into hiding. We built our own world, hidden from yours."
"How did you do that?"
"Simple spells- well, relatively simple. Confusing and erasing the memory of Muggles. Charms that cause Muggles to turn away, though one who is aware or has strong enough willpower can resist. Charms that cause buildings to disappear, from maps and from reality. Unplottable, it's called. Please remember what I just said- it will become important and I will return to this thought later.
"It was in the seventeenth century- I know this date system seems old-fashioned to you but understand that the magical world is always behind in certain things- when the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy was passed. It was now our responsibility to cut ourselves off. Again, please remember this for I will return to it."
"I still do not understand what end your are proceeding."
"Patience, please. In each country, a Ministry of Magic was founded-"
"Every country?"
"Nearly every country. It is the Ministry's responsibility to ensure that the wizarding world is hidden and remains hidden. This includes wizarding locations and all magical creatures within the sphere of influence. Should anything be revealed accidentally or otherwise, it is their responsibility to cover it up."
"No secret can be kept forever."
"Indeed. The twentieth century was a tumultuous time for the wizarding world and to one who knows that chapter of our history my story will make far more sense. I will endeavour to keep this as short as possible, but it was an eventful time."
"I'm all ear."
"In the late nineteenth century, two of the greatest wizards ever born were born- excuse my awkward turn of phrase. Those two men were Albus Dumbledore and Gellert Grindelwald, and together they quested to find the Deathly Hallows, items that would grant immortality- or so the legends claimed. However, they had a fundamental difference- Grindelwald was Dark, evil, a vile creature."
"That's somewhat harsh. Good and evil is subjective."
"It is not!" John spat, the can crumpling slightly in his hand. He took a deep breath and continued. "Over the years, Gellert Grindelwald raised an army and took over Europe, leaving a path of terror in his wake. All in the name of the greater good, supposedly- we know he wished to rule all Muggles, and all wizards as well. He feared Dumbledore, and left Britain alone, but Dumbledore knew he could not challenge Grindelwald, so did nothing to stop him. Finally, in 1945, Dumbledore challenged the weakened Grindelwald and won, imprisoning him in a prison of his own design."
"Why was he weakened?"
"Make a guess. The year was 1945."
"The end of World War Two... oh... but I still amn't seeing it."
"Like a few other dark wizards, Grindelwald was empowered by human sacrifice. Though the records have been largely destroyed, it can be surmised that he worked with Muggles to this end. Some time before the beginning of your war he made contact with a man by the name of Heinrich."
"Heinrich Himmler. He was working with the Nazis. The fucking Nazis." Andrew took a deep breath. "And the Holocaust, Jesus fucking Christ."
"Indeed. Ironically, the strongest evidence is a photo of the two together, Muggle and wizard, strange I know, taken by one of your agents whose name I cannot pronounce. Fortunately, your Office of Secret Actions did more to cover it up than we ever could. If one knows the context it is proof the Nazis were involved with what you would consider the occult-"
"It's ironic, isn't it?" Andrew interrupted. "Good wizards and good Muggles isolated themselves, even tried to kill each other. But evil and evil would work together."
John raised an eyebrow. "Did you not say you did not believe in good and evil?"
"I did, but I felt simplification would be superior."
The wizard shrugged. "In any case, for all his horror Grindelwald would not be the last. After him, Lord Voldemort came into being, ruthless in his quest for power and immortality. Many were killed by his hand, until one time he could not. When he tried to kill baby Harry Potter, his Killing Curse rebounded and killed him instead."
"Let me guess, he came back?"
"He did indeed. Through varying means the Dark Lord rendered himself partially immortal, and swept Britain in another wave of terror. He killed Dumbledore and a great many other powerful witches and wizards before Harry Potter killed him once again, this time for good."
"Well that's a poetic book end, isn't it?"
"Yes." He said, remaining quiet.
"Notice you've told me a huge lot about what has happened. What about what can you do?" Andrew asked, eager to get more information out of the man.
"The capabilities of wizards, you mean?" He barked a sharp laugh. "I fear they will seem ludicrous and arbitrary to someone like yourself."
"Do tell."
"Fundamentally, we are not constrained by what you consider laws of the physical universe-"
"So have we- the ship we're on right now can exceed c-"
"Magic does not merely skirt or circumvent the laws of physics, it outright ignores them. Conservation of energy, conservation of mass, Newton's laws, in our world they do not exist."
"But that's impossible!"
"Do not demonstrate your ignorance. Did you not once consider flight impossible? Exceeding the speed of sound? Exceeding the lightspeed barrier?"
"Those specific accomplishments, not fundamental knowledge of the how the universe works!"
"And what about the time before Newton, when you knew that gravity did not exist? The time before Einstein, when you knew that time was always constant?"
"Those are examples of not knowing fundamental laws, not knowing fundamental laws that are actually false!"
John sighed. "Clearly it is fruitless to argue, so I will not. I will merely outline our capabilities."
"I understand."
"A wizard can Apparate, or instantly move from one place to another. They can cast charms, wards, and curses on objects to varying effects- I know that is being vague but there are more than I can describe. There are spells to wipe memory, spells to injure, spells to heal, spells to destroy and spells to kill. It is possible to conjure and to transform, and to brew potions with a great variety of effects. Some can even predict the future through signs and visions."
"Are there limits?"
"Some. What a wizard can cast and how powerful his spells will be varies from person to person. Dumbledore was very powerful- I am not even a fraction of him. There are a few laws and principles- food cannot be created from scratch, the dead cannot be raised, alchemical properties mix, et cetera et cetera.
"Also, for most magic all but the most powerful of us need a wand. A magic wand is typically made of a strong wood with a core of magical material, such as a phoenix feather or unicorn hair."
"Right, so you need a wand and there's great variances in individual power." John nodded, and Andrew asked, "There's still one thing I would like to have know."
"What would that be?"
"Now? What's changed? It seems that after the large wizard war all the things would have returned to equilibrium."
In response, the wizard nodded gravely. "And that is precisely the problem. For all that has happened, we have not changed."