A/n; This us a new area for me so I hope I can get this right...

Chapter 1

Newt stumbled to a stop as he heard cheering. Creeping forward he peered through the cornrows and spotted a large gathering, torches and lanterns lighting individual faces in a large crowd.

"I saw her. She just threw those men clear across the street. They didn't even do nothin'"

"Knew she was trouble from the day she was born. Killed her parents she did. Evil. Pure evil. You can see it rising off her like a...a evil spirit!"

Newt crept closer. "Dougal? They're going to kill her aren't they?" He looked the to the Demiguise for confirmation. "If I save her will she kill me?"

Dougal looked at him blankly.

"Well that's a lot of help, thank you," he sighed, looking back at the girl. He'd seen the expression on her face before. It was both scared and resigned; reminding him of his creatures. The suffering they'd endured had made them tired. This girl knew what was going to happen and wasn't even fighting it. She'd given up. He had to make a choice and quickly. Any moment someone was going to kick the stool out from under her feet.

"Dougal, back to camp. Quickly!" Taking a deep breath Newt drew his wand and pointed it at the rope that linked her to the tree, burning it through from his hiding place before appartating to her side.

"Sorry about this," he whispered as he grabbed her and disapparated away, taking her with him, all the while keeping his back to the mob. He'd managed to land them back at his camp. "They'll start looking for us so we'll need to get away from here as quickly as possible." As Newt drew his wand and directed his tent to disassemble he realised the girl hadn't said a word. He flicked his gaze to look at her and found her staring, eyes wide and looking very unsteady on her feet. "Oh Merlin! I'm sorry, here sit. Apparating can leave passengers feeling very travel sick." As he reached to guide her to a stool she flinched causing him to stop his advance.

She swayed on her feet before flopping onto a stool. The man hadn't looked at her properly at all, when he did glance in her direction it was fleeting, mostly keeping his gaze to one side of her.

"I…I won't hurt you. I promise," he assured her, peering at her through his floppy hair. Now the adrenalin of his rescue had faded his normal awkward self had returned and he was feeling a little lost himself. "Those…. That…. Well, they'll come looking for us. I..I..should've obliviated them but there were too many, so we need to move."

She'd learnt over the years that if she concentrated on facts then her panic wouldn't consume her. So she regarded him carefully. Two things stood out immediately; his bright blue coat and the suitcase strapped to his back. It struck her as a strange idea, but then her haphazard rescuer wasn't entirely normal. For one thing his equipment was moving by itself. Maybe she'd been hanged after all and it was taking a while to die. Lack of oxygen could cause hallucinations. That must be it.

Once the tent was packed away into a bag, Newt unstrapped his suitcase from his back and laid it on the floor. "Dougal? Where are you hiding? We need to leave," he called, his eyes scouring the undergrowth that surrounded his camping site. Movement caught his eye next to the girl as his furry friend revealed his hiding place. "Come on, into the case."

The Demiguise looked from Newt to the girl, trying to draw his attention to his oversight.

"Yes Dougal, we have a visitor and she's a little nervous right now so why don't we get you home with the others and get her away from here?"

Dougal sighed and gently pawed at the rope still around the girl's neck and wrists.

"Oh…. Oh Merlin's beard, I.. I'm so s..sorry. Here let me help you." As he hastened towards her he caught himself and slowed his approach as she recoiled slightly. He decided the best course of action was to approach her like one of his creatures; calmly and kindly. "I won't hurt you. I'll try not to touch you, just p..please let me remove the ropes at least?" He kept his body turned slightly away and hunched, trying to make himself seem smaller. Hesitantly he knelt before her and began dealing with rope around her wrists. He kept his eyes fixed on their hands. "Are you hurt?" When she didn't respond he looked up at her.

She gave a small shake of her head.

"My name's Newt, Newt Scamander."

Still not a word.

"And you are?"

The girl bit her lip and started waving her freed hands.

Newt frowned and then realisation hit. She wasn't waving her hands, she was talking to him. "You can't speak?"

She shook her head.

"Oh…right….um. My sign language is a little rusty….We'll just have to make do for now. Is there anywhere safe I can take you?"

No

"Oh…well. W... D…Do you think you c..could trust me enough to a…at least get you away from here?"

She regarded him. He was softly spoken, unimposing and seemed like he genuinely wanted to help. And quite honestly she had nothing to lose. She nodded.

Newt gave a relieved sigh, he didn't want to leave her in harms way. "R..right. Well. We need to move. Yes. I'm afraid that means apparating again, sorry. But it really is the fastest way. Just hold on tight to my arm, wouldn't want you to get splinched." He grabbed his case and tent bag then offered his new friend his arm. "Ready?"

She looked up at him eyes wide, heart pounding. That horrible feeling assaulted her again; like she was being pulled apart and squeezed together at the same time with no air to breathe and surrounded by blackness. She squeezed her eyes shut, turning her face into the fabric of Newt's sleeve.

"There we are. Safe and sound," Newt announced. "This part of the journey is decidedly more comfortable. Just in time too. Come on." Without thinking he grabbed her hand and started running towards the train. She stumbled, trying to stay upright as her head swam and she tried to make sense of where she was.

Finally he dragged her into a train compartment and flopped down on a seat. Watching her sit huddled in the corner of the bench opposite he cleared his throat. "So what… er what should I call you?"

She started to sign but saw him struggling to interpret. Sighing she paused then breathed on the window, fogging it up before raising her finger to write.

"Felix?" he queried.

She shrugged and nodded.

"Well it's nice to meet you, Felix," Newt said, flashing her a small grin that made her feel a little warmer inside. "Dougal you've met," a small sigh escaped him as a squawking erupted from his pocket. "And this is Pickett," he told her, holding out what looked like a green stick insect. "He tends to live in my pocket. I keep trying to get you to go home to the others don't I? ...That's because you never spend any time with them!... don't blame me for them leaving you out... Pickett,we've discussed this." He looked back at Felix. "I need to see to the rest of my creatures." Placing his case of the floor, Newt waved his wand, charming the compartment in a way that meant people would walk straight by without even noticing the door. Opening the case he stepped inside, almost disappearing from view. "W..would you like to come?" He didn't wait for an answer, descending into the case completely.

Felix watched for a moment, blinking in confusion. Her life had suddenly become more surreal but at the same time it felt normal. Like one of her dreams had become reality and she was almost afraid she'd wake up. Taking a deep breath she peered in to the case.

Newt's face appeared at the bottom of a set of steps. "Come on. It's perfectly safe. Nothing to worry about at all." He gave her a small smile as she hesitantly stepped in and reached out a hand to steady her. "Welcome to my world."

XxXxX