Demiguise

Demiguise
Species information
Eye colour	Black Blue when predicting future
Skin colour	Beige
Hair colour	Silver
Related to	Hidebehind
Native to	Far East
Mortality	Mortal
Distinction	Can become invisible Precognitive sight Peaceful temperament Herbivorous
Ministry of Magic Classification	Beast XXXX
Status	Extant

"Peaceful, ape-like herbivores with the ability to turn invisible when threatened."

— Description

The Demiguise was a peaceful, herbivorous magical beast that could make itself invisible and tell the future, which made it very hard to catch.

Description

It could be found in the Far East, but only wizards and witches trained in their capture could even see them. It resembled a cross between a sloth and an ape with large, black eyes and long, silky hair.

Demiguise pelts were highly sought after as the hair can be woven into invisibility cloaks. Cloaks made from their hair eventually turn opaque, losing their invisibility effects as time passes.

Demiguises had precognitive sight, so that the only way to catch them was to do something completely unpredictable.

The Demiguise's ability to make itself invisible was used to symbolise the number zero, in the runic alphabet.

History

17th century

Dougal the Demiguise

At some point before late-1620, Phineas Fletcher smuggled a Demiguise to North America which escaped and bred with a Ghoul; their offspring were the first Hidebehinds.

1920s

Magizoologist Newton Scamander owned a Demiguise called Dougal, who escaped from his suitcase during his visit to New York in 1926 and caused a disturbance in the Ginzberg Delaunay department store while caring for an Occamy that had also escaped. He later found them both with a help of Queenie and Porpentina Goldstein, as well as No-Maj Jacob Kowalski.

1980s

As a child, Jules Egwu considered the Demiguise her favourite creature, as she was then very shy and envied its ability to make itself invisible.

During the 1986–1987 school year, a Demiguise stole sweets from the area around Hogsmeade and Hogwarts. It was later captured by Jacob's sibling, Penny Haywood, Andre and Jules Egwu. Jules later returned with it to Japan, where she was living at the time, as it was part of the creature's natural habitat range. Her parents were Magizoologists and she planned to ask them to find an appropriate place to release it.

1990s

During the 1990–1991 school year, Professor Silvanus Kettleburn taught his seventh-year students in Care of Magical Creatures how to properly handle and care for the Demiguise.

21th century

In the 2010s, Demiguses were among the various magical creatures that were caught up in the Calamity as foundables.

Behind the scenes

A Demiguise as a POP! Vinyl

• A Demiguise appears in the film Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, played by Edd Osmond.
• Given the Demiguise was described as peaceful, it is most likely that they were classified as XXXX because of the fact that special knowledge is required to catch them, not because of any particular danger. However, Newt Scamander said that they do bite if provoked.
• While shifting between visible and invisible, the Demiguise at some points appears translucent, as if blending in with the colours of its surrounding, in a similar manner to the effects of the Disillusionment Charm.
• The Demiguise behind the Hogsmeade thefts only stole sweet things, indicating that it had a taste for sugar. It's unclear if this was unique to this individual or a common trait of the species. However, Dougal stole a lollipop straight out of a child's hand and immediately devoured it before fleeing as he ventured across New York, indicating that he had a sweet tooth as well.
• The Demiguise was the penultimate boss in a special Forbidden Forest adventure in the Spring Festival update of 2022 in Harry Potter: Magic Awakened. Before the Demiguise could be fully defeated, its owner would emerge and summon Wizard's Chess pieces, the final bosses.

Appearances

• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (video game) (First mentioned)
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Mentioned only)
• Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (Mentioned only)
• Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: The Original Screenplay (First appearance)
• Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (film)
• Fantastic Beasts: Cases from the Wizarding World
• Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (play) (Mentioned only)
• J. K. Rowling's official site
• Pottermore
• Wizarding World
• LEGO Dimensions
• Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery
• Harry Potter: Wizards Unite
• Harry Potter: Magic Awakened
• Hogwarts Legacy (Appears as statue)