We Were Innocent
Disclaimer: Fantastic Beasts belongs to J.K. Rowling.
Written for Caesar's Palace Shipping Week
Prompt - Safe
Pairing - (platonic) Credence/Modesty
Credence could still remember the day Modesty joined their family.
He'd been much younger then, only sixteen when she first walked through the door, her eyes bright with curiosity. She held Mary Lou's hand, clinging to her adoptive mother, still so innocent and unaware of the horrors that existed in this place.
"Credence," Mary Lou called out, the oldest of her thee children flinching at the sound. "Chastity, come here. I want you to meet your little sister."
Credence lingered on the stairs a moment longer, watching in silence as Chastity hurried past, eager to greet her sibling.
His oldest sister was wearing a false smile to mask the pain, pretending, like she always did, that everything was alright. It was a convincing illusion, he thought. The perfect lie, carefully crafted with a gentle embrace and words of encouragement from their mother. But if Modesty had looked up, if she had seen him cowering on the stairs, she might have realized that first impressions could be misleading.
It wasn't long until the punishments began, her sharp cry piercing the silence, followed by a resounding crack as Mary Lou slapped the child across the face. Credence thought she might go easy on her because of her age, but was proven wrong when his mother demanded that he give her his belt.
When they were left alone, Modesty clung to him, trembling and sobbing as Credence held her close. He felt terrible for having been a part of this, his belt lying in the hall, bloodstained and forgotten.
"It's okay," he murmured, knowing that it was anything but. "I'm here, Modesty. I'm here. It's going to be alright."
He didn't know what else to say. He just wanted her to feel safe, to protect her from the pain he'd known since childhood. And if he couldn't do that, then he could at least comfort her in the end, holding on even when he himself dissolved in tears.