Newt lay with his eyes shut as he tried to steady his breathing; he could hear the murmurings of the women as they pottered about just beyond the door and he wanted to look as though he was asleep when one of them inevitably stuck their head into the back parlour. The girls had given their own beds to the men, and the privacy that came with an actual room while they insisted on transfiguring to sleep on in the main living space. In the bed adjacent to his own, Jacob was reading an old Scintilla novel but he seemed to be enjoying it, based on the little laughs that occasionally escaped.
However, Newt had other things to focus on; firstly, he was late to feed and medicate various creatures and several of them would be getting anxious by now; secondly, he needed to figure out which creatures where missing; thirdly and fourthly consisted of finding the creatures and then getting them back into his case again… Some had been difficult in the first place and he was almost dreading going to have a look and see what had gotten out… other than the Niffler who had no doubt taken the chance to go hunting again.
And he probably ought to make something up for Jacob too, the man wasn't complaining but Murtlap bites weren't comfortable even for wizards and the muggle certainly had had a bit of a reaction. He had some tablets made from Billywig venom which was a highly effective painkiller, it had actually been a rather enjoyable venture in working out the ratios for those pills as he'd spent many evenings giggling to himself… he hadn't destroyed all the of the higher dosage ones as they were an easier solution to some of the painfully stressful situation he got into than a cheering charm, but his brother had kicked up an absolute fuss when he claimed Newt was using them as an alternative way to get soused; Newt hadn't exactly been able to object, but he honestly only used them when things got so bad that he couldn't sleep… however, they would work well at the same time as any other medication so Jacob could try one of them.
He'd also give Jacob one of the tablets made from Horklump tentacles and Flobberworm mucus; he hadn't found any use for the Horklumps yet, but they surely had to be something they were useful for, some reason he could give people to not extinguish them completely. He did have a couple of tablets left that he had made from Salamander blood though, and that would likely help. Salamander blood was a wonderful cure for many things, even if it was an absolute bugger to extract while keeping the Salamander alive…
As he lay waiting for the interruption, he wistfully imagined heading to India and finding a Phoenix; he'd heard stories of their beauty and desperately wanted to see one for himself. However, he also half didn't want to. He'd been gifted with Gubraithian Fire by an aged witch in the Irish Free State back in June (well, gifted or bribed into leaving… he'd annoyed more than a few important people there), but he had honestly humbled by the gift. He'd set up a small space for this behind his shed and now he could keep Salamanders without worrying about maintaining the flame that they lived in. Still, he wondered sometimes if having such a curative substance about made him lazy in his experiments to develop cures using ingredients that many wizarding households would be able to obtain and surely if he had phoenix tears available, his studies would take a back step.
He had a plan for an additional chapter in his book about cures; many wizards put up with certain ailments because Healers and Mediwizards didn't seem to use any potion, spell or cream if it hadn't been around for at least three hundred years! He wanted to add a chapter about alternative treatments that he'd developed that could improve people's lives! If everyone could just about how useful creatures could be, then maybe they would think twice about killing off everything that didn't do exactly as it had been told! He'd sent a draft of the chapter to his brother before he'd gotten on the ship over here though, and his brother had replied that maybe a chapter about How Animals Can Help People ought to focus more on helping people than nagging about the animals; Newt was still stubbornly refusing to reply to that, even though he knew his brother meant it in an honest, helpful way.
There was a hesitant knock and Newt heard the door to their room open. Tina's voice was equally uncertain when she uttered, "I thought you might like a hot drink?" Newt held still though, still feigning sleep as she placed a cup loudly on the table beside him.
"Hey, Mr Scamander?" Jacob was oddly endearing, his friendly attitude not at all diminished by Newt's inability to act like other people. "Look, cocoa!"
Tina let out a huff of irritation, "Toilet's down the hall to the right." She stated, but left after Jacob was the only one to utter any thanks.
He jumped up as soon as she was gone. Tina wouldn't be back now; Newt had heard the words "Let him stew overnight on it" enough times to know how people reacted to him, and they nearly always found he wasn't worth the effort of coming back to again.
He opened his case and hurried in, more than ready to get on with his evening. He was half way down the ladder when he realised there were no sounds of anyone following him. He went back up slightly and stretched to beckon Jacob over… a few moments later and he repeated his gesture with a call of, "Come on." When he heard movement, he continued down.
He frowned as he looked at his shelves; he knew where the Salamander pills were, and the Horklump ones, but he honestly couldn't remember where the Billywig venom tablets had gotten too; he had taken his brother seriously and pushed them out of immediate view when Theseus had worried about him getting addicted to them.
"For the love of…" came a muffled grunt behind him, but Newt kept his back turned. His case wasn't particularly large on the outside, but as the Erumpent could fit in then Jacob would definitely have no trouble.
A loud crash told him this was true and Newt glanced over at the kind man. "Will you sit down?" He asked, trying and failing to smile reassuringly.
"That's good." Jacob said, and Newt's eyes flickered up again to see the man looking curiously about.
As Jacob settled on a crate of pellets, Newt leaned over to have a quick look at his neck; it would need something more immediate than a pill to relieve the symptoms.
"Ah, that's definitely the Murtlap. You must be particularly susceptible." Murtlap essence was actually a soothing essence, which was probably why Jacob wasn't scratching and itching the rash that had been left behind, but there would likely be some about of pain deeper down as the teeth had actually taken some flesh away. "See, you're a muggle. So our physiologies are subtly different."
He placed some dried Shrivelfig leaves in a mortar and crushed them with a pestle as he spoke, remembering to try and keep his voice cheerful as he spoke, before reaching for some Bubotuber pus. He only needed to relieve the most immediate symptoms with this poultice so he made a paste and quickly applied it to the man's neck, not wanting to remain in his personal space for too long.
"Oww…" the other man groaned as the pressure likely brought the pain back.
Newt paid him no mind and he grabbed the different tablets, including a Billywig venom one as he spoke with a firm, "Now stay still. Now that should stop the sweating," Then he handed the pills over, "and one of those should sort the twitch." He hoped the Horklump one would; he was determined to find a use.
Unfortunate bystander sorted, Newt turned his attention to supper. He relaxed as he removed the preservation charm from the carcass to feed the Graphorns, the familiarity of the actions helping to get his mind off the strange day that he had had. As he chopped it up and tossed pieces into the bucket, Newt's mind drifted to his Swooping Evil.
It would be a good idea to extract the venom before he went to feed the others, while it was still settled enough to remain calm during the process. He'd found that Swooping Evil was far more docile when its venom was extracted on a regular basis, and he honestly suspected that the venom was painful to the creature itself. When he had first suspected this, it had seemed a bizarre part of evolution that any creature would store up something that would hurt itself, but recently he'd been considering another angle; he wondered if the pain from the venom was similar to hunger pangs that he felt when he forgot to eat… simply a reminder that food needed to be consumed.
With the venom removed each day, the Swooping Evil seemed to thrive on the alternate food source that Newt provided. From what he could tell, it was as well-nourished as it would be if it lived in the wild, and it had a far better disposition. It had been a struggle as he had been told they ate memories and others told him that they ate brains, but it turned out the food was actually the nutrients absorbed from the actual brain and from there it had been a matter of working out the proportions.
He passed the bucket of meat to Jacob with an absent-minded, "Take that." Before picking up an empty vial and Swooping Evil's chrysalis to extract the venom.
"Come on…" he coaxed gently as he squeezed it, wriggling the tips of his fingers slightly.
He heard Jacob step forwards before asking, "What you got there?"
Newt couldn't quite help smiling. For a muggle who would supposedly want to wage war on any witch or wizard he encountered, Jacob had an honest curiosity to him. "Well this… the local call 'Swooping Evil'; not the friendliest of names. It's quite an agile fellow." He let the cocoon hang for a moment.
Jacob hovered uncertainly for a moment, but the interest hadn't one from his face. While Newt had always regarded muggles more highly than American wizards did and had never doubted that each was individual which meant that their actions couldn't be definitively predicted, he was still surprised; even wizards tended to lose interest in what he was saying before long. His paternal grandparents were both muggles and they had never been able to pretend to care about the creatures he'd found during his childhood.
"I've been studying him." Newt decided to go into more detail, but he stuck to information that Jacob might care about. Personally, he found the way that they didn't settle into a gender until adulthood to be a fascinating point, but he hadn't come across anyone else who did. People tended to be more selfish and only hold an interest in anything that may be applicable to themselves. "And I'm pretty sure that his venom could be quite useful if properly diluted. Just to remove bad memories, you know."
He didn't risk boring Jacob by explaining that he was the only test subject he had for trying out the different concoctions he made. He would be careful not to dump too much information on someone who could be his friend; that usually alienated them and meant they sidled off. It wasn't intentional, but Newt often got carried away, his enthusiasm difficult to curb when he got talking about his creatures.
Plus, he had lost a fair number of his memories to the Swooping Evil venom. He could remember looking after dragons in the war, but that was only a vague memory and whatever had happened after that had gone entirely. He hadn't asked his brother about it though, unwilling to subject himself to the scolding that would inevitably follow if Theseus found out what he had done. He hadn't lost much from the years after the war as even the boring years hadn't been filled with bad memories. Before the war… well, he'd lost chunks of what had happened in school; some of it may have been to the venom, other bits to the natural memory loss that occurred over time but he could only remember a few bits.
His friendship with Leta was there, any struggles they may have had now wiped out. He wondered if something had happened though. He'd sent an owl to Leta a month ago, asking how she was and hoping to glean back some of the information that he had lost. She'd sent one back, but it had lacked any real familiarity; he'd not sensed any bitterness in her words as she informed him of the birth of her nephew and how her courtship to Felix Avery was likely to end in marriage… but no comments on what she thought of it. The words had been friendly, but they had lacked friendship and Newt had realised that they must have drifted apart at some point.
It made sense really; his remaining memories didn't contain Leta at all, but it had hurt nonetheless to note that his one friendship had apparently ebbed away. Looking down, Newt refused to stew in those thoughts for long; the pain was still there but he had other things to focus on… such as the Swooping Evil. He pressed his fingers against the chrysalis for a moment before flicking his wrist and letting Jacob see it, both showing it off and hoping to glean some amusement from the man's reaction.
Jacob gasped and jumped back a little, startled but not actually frightened. Newt couldn't help the grin that bubbled up as he murmured, "Probably shouldn't let him loose in here though."
The smile didn't fade as he headed through his shed into the main body of his case; it was fantastic to find someone so accepting… perhaps ignorance really was a blessing if it resulted in a mind as open as Jacob's.
"Come on." He called as he listened for footsteps behind him, but his attention quickly turned to Frank, who had gotten himself worked up.
Pulling out his wand to form an umbrella, Newt quickly hurried over, "Come on… come on…" he coaxed the Thunderbird, "Down you come…. Come on…"
Frank settled, landing and allowing Newt close as the rain stopped; he happily ate the grubs offered as Newt stroked him, warmth filling him as he couldn't deny the relief he felt at seeing the Thunderbird though. "Oh, thank Paracelsus. If you'd gotten out that could have been quite catastrophic." Frank pushed his head against Newt's hand, returning the affection as the wizard glanced over to the muggle. "You see, he's the real reason I came to America; to bring Frank home."
Attention fully on the creature, he didn't notice Jacob stepping forward until Frank began to react. "No, sorry. Stay there. He's a wee bit sensitive to strangers. Here you are… Here you are…" He petted Frank again, calming him down. "He was trafficked, you see. I found him in Egypt, he was all chained up. Couldn't leave him there, had to bring him back. I'm going to put you back where you belong, aren't I, Frank? To the wilds of Arizona!"
He looked up at the Thunderbird, beaming happily as he imagined Frank flying through the actual sky as opposed to being confined to this case. His charm work was decent, but Frank hadn't flown freely since he had been caught. His healing had been slow and while the leg wasn't fully recovered yet, it didn't actually hinder the creature anymore. Newt knew it would hurt to let this friend go, but the thought of Frank being where he ought to be filled Newt with eager anticipation; Frank would suffer if he never had his freedom and Newt had never intended to keep him. Frank was ready.
The Thunderbird flapped his wings and pulled up into the sky, making Newt grin widely. It had been a slow journey, but it had been worth every second, the wizard decided as he stepped back… each of his creatures were worth the effort, whether others realised it or not. No beast; human or animal, ought to be judged on what it could give to others. Worthiness of existence ought to be a simple fact, not a decision based on the values of society.
He turned away and cupped his hands up to his mouth, letting out a loud roar as he headed off towards the Graphorns. He grabbed the bucket before calling out again and smiling slightly, relieved to find these had not escaped either, "Ah, here they come."
"Here who comes?" Jacob had followed after him again, still not put off enough to retreat to the shed.
"The Graphorns." Newt replied, before grabbing the muggle's arm to stop him from running. So few people got to see these, it would be a shame if the man missed them. "You're all right. You're all right."
He glanced at Jacob as he moved to greet the pair, smiling fondly at them as their tentacles embraced him.
"So, they're the last breeding pair in existence." Newt explained, failing to mention the hunt he had had to try and find even a hint of another pair… the desperate search for more. "If I hadn't rescued them, that could have been the end of Grapghorns… for ever."
He watched as the pair's youngest calf approached Jacob, clearly curious at the person Newt had brought with him. This one had been born in his case and had no concept of danger… it was utterly oblivious to the threat that others could pose, hunted as Graphorns were; their hide was thicker than any breed of dragon that Newt had encountered, and their horns were useful in antidotes, but there were far too many who couldn't wait for the creatures to die without human intervention. And hunting seemed to be a uniting feature of the human race, a sickening interest in killing the most dangerous creatures possible and then displaying some trophy to show their own prowess… the beasts that existed inside people were loathsome than creature Newt had ever encountered.
He grinned as Jacob reached down to stroke her head. "All right." He murmured as he turned his attention to actually feeding them, throwing chunks of meat into the enclosure.
"So, what? You… You rescue these creatures?" The muggle's voice held no disgust, just an honest curiosity at something new.
"Yes, that's right. Rescue, nurture and protect them." He released those who were able to leave, such as the Porlock he had encountered in Ireland; it had been injured and skittish, but Newt had managed to win it over and the horse-guardian had remained with him for nearly two months until it had healed. Others would never be released, in particular certain creatures that had been born in his case and didn't have enough innate knowledge to defend themselves in the wild, having missed out on that vital period of learning. "And I'm gently trying to educate my fellow wizards about them."
It had been Theseus who insisted his education of others needed to be gentle. He'd noted that his little brother had two styles: a slightly awkward, earnest style where teaching was slow but people actually listened; and a far more forward style where he dumped too much information on others as he allowed his passion for creatures to emerge. Theseus often told him to stick to the slower version of giving information, as the latter tended to put people off entirely.
Newt frowned for a moment before clearing his head and considering Jacob… He was a good man and Newt was surprised to find that he really did trust him. "Come on." He said, leading the other over to the bamboo wood. "Titus? Finn? Poppy, Marlow, Tom?"
They headed over to the tree he had acquired for his Bowtruckles, Jacob making a fair bit of noise behind him as he crunched through the enclosure. Pickett came willingly out from Newt's pocket, happy to look around from another vantage point.
"He had a cold, he needed some body-warmth."
"Aww." Jacob's face split into a large grin which Newt couldn't help returning.
The clan scampered out to meet them as they headed over, but Pickett couldn't be tempted to join them as Newt fixed him with a stern expression. "Right, on you hop." But the Bowtruckle refused to budge. "He has some attachment issues."
Jacob didn't try interfering but he looked down at Pickett, clearly still interested in what was going on.
"Now, come on, Pickett. Pickett. No, they're not going to bully you. Now, come on. Pickett." The Bowtruckle was now clinging to his fingers and Newt felt his resolve disappear. "All right. But that is exactly why they accuse me of favouritism."
With the small creature on his shoulder, Newt turned his attention to other creatures that may have gone missing. The Diricrawls were popping about and he'd seen both the Fwooper and the Nundu. The Billywig numbered seemed fewer, but Newt didn't mind too much. Muggles didn't tend to notice them and they had entered his case of their own accord. The Doxies would need their medicine soon and he'd need to check that neither Runespoor had budged. The Mooncalves and Occamies weren't terribly likely to have gotten out, but the Erumpent had; she didn't really have anywhere to hide in her enclosure, so Newt was certain that she had gone. The Niffler was an absolutely bugger and the wizard already anticipated finding his nest empty.
"I wonder where Dougal's gone." He murmured as he looked around. He'd hopefully stuck near to one of the other creatures, having very little interest in actually getting away from Newt; he supposed Dougal had simply wanted some fresh air and a look around, and would then find another creature to wait with once he'd had his fill. The chirping from the Occamy nest distracted him from his musing though. "All right, I'm coming… I'm coming. Mum's here. Mum's here."
He hurried over, affection flooding him as he looked down and counted five. The eggs were mostly pushed deeper into the nest, but Newt wasn't going to disturb the others by pulling them out to count. Instead, he looked down at his newest Occamy, "Ah, hello you. Let me take a look at you."
Jacob approached the nest with a slight smile on his face. "I know these guys."
Newt grinned. "New Occamy. Your Occamy." He held it out, happily watching as understanding spread over Jacob's face.
"What do you mean? My Occamy?" The muggle looked down at the creature which had hatched earlier that day with wonder in his eyes.
"Yes. Do you want to…?" He held it out, wanting to watch the man's expression as he experienced this.
"Oh, wow. Yeah, sure." Jacob took the Occamy, a nervous expression on his face. "Okay, ah ha." He shifted it before reached out to pet it.
The Occamy nipped at him and Newt quickly spoke up, "Ah, no. Sorry; don't pet them. They learn to defend themselves early. See, their shells are made of silver so they're incredibly valuable."
As Newt leaned over to feed the others, he heard Jacob murmur in agreement. "Their nests tend to get ransacked by hunters." He explained, but managing to resist starting his complaints about the problems that hunters caused.
"Thank you." Jacob said softly as Newt took the Occamy back and placed it back in the nest with a bug of its own. "Mr Scamander?"
"Call me Newt." The wizard said, having decided that he did rather like this man. A novel thought had just occurred that perhaps he could have a new friend.
"Newt… I don't think I'm dreaming."
"What gave it away?" he managed not to chuckle, but his amusement crept into his voice all the same.
"I ain't got the brains to make this up." The humility almost didn't surprise Newt, who was beginning to accept that there really was someone else who had the potential to really care about the creatures that were Newt's whole life.
The notion that Jacob found his case more wonderful than anything he could imagine was flattering.
"Actually, would you mind throwing some of those pellets in with the Mooncalves over there?"
"Yeah, sure." And Jacob began to help with the actual work, not hint of reluctance to be seen.
He pointed, "Just over there." And watched as the man headed off.
Grabbing his wheelbarrow and setting off further, Newt sighed in resignation as he looked out, "Bugger. The Niffler's gone. Of course he has, little bugger; any chance to get his hands on something shiny."
He scattered feed for the Diricrawls and some mice for the Fwooper. Jonas was going to need seeing to though, his medicine was overdue as well. He removed the preservation charm from the bottle and picked Jonas up, humming softly as the tentacles curled about him.
"There you go, cutie." He could hear Jacob saying as he fed the Mooncalves.
Newt turned with a smile on his face as he headed back to the pond that Jonas liked to rest by, his bottle nearly empty already and the creature starting to sag with tiredness. One last gentle stroke and Newt headed off to look for Jacob.
The mooncalves were happily trotting about on their own and Newt noticed one of the canvases had come loose. He headed over and startled badly.
"Step back!" he called as Jacob approached the Obscurus, one hand reaching out. "Step back."
"What's the matter with this?" The muggle asked, but he wasn't moving.
"I said step away." He hadn't had the chance to study it yet, but he wasn't going to allow the force to kill anyone else. He'd failed that little girl enough without continuing it on after her death.
His tone more serious now, Jacob asked, "What the Hell is this thing?"
To which Newt replied, "It's an Obscurus." But that really didn't cover what it was, nor the devastation that it could cause; not that the other creatures were incapable of causing horrors themselves or of being on the receiving end of them. "I need to get going, find everyone who's escaped before they get hurt."
"Before they get hurt?" Jacob questioned, but Newt accepted the question was borne from ignorance.
"Yes, Mr Kowalski. See, they're currently in alien terrain, surrounded by millions of the most vicious creatures on the planet… humans." And it was vital that he rescued them again. "So, where would you say that a medium-sized creature that likes broad open plains, trees, waterholes, that kind of thing; where might she go?"
Jacob gave him a sceptical look, "In New York City?"
"Yes." He replied earnestly.
"Plains." The man frowned as he considered Newt's question, then he shrugged. "Ah, Central Park?"
"And where is that exactly?" He rather hoped to get these animals back tonight. He had the Erumpent to fetch, the Demiguise and, of course, the bloody Niffler; it would be quite enough to keep him going till morning.
"Where is Central Park?" Jacob's face twisted into a disbelieving expression but Newt waited. He wasn't from New York and this jungle had paths that looped around or led to dead ends. "Well look, I would come and show you but don't you think it's kind of a double cross? The girls take us in, they make us hot cocoa…"
Newt forced himself to look straight at the other man, trying to make him see reason, "You do realise that when they see you've stopped sweating, they'll Obliviate you in a heartbeat?"
"What does 'Bliviate mean?"
"It'll be like you wake up and all memory of magic is gone." Newt didn't bother to gentle his tone any, the spell was going to be cast eventually anyway.
The hurt shone in Jacob's eyes for a moment as he looked around. "I won't remember any of this?"
"No."
"All right, yeah." The man was nodding his head, a determined expression showing. "Okay, I'll help you."
"Come on then." Newt grabbed a bucket and sent him off to feed the woodland creatures as he went to cleave some meat for the older Runespoor, the younger still small enough to feed off mice and rats.
He didn't bother to clean the enclosures as properly as he usually did, dismissing maintenance for haste with a mental promise to do it later. Soon enough though, he had disapparated down to street level, Jacob crouched on the ground as he tried not to vomit.
"Which way then?" Newt asked cheerfully as Jacob pulled himself up with a groan, eager to go and find his creatures.
The man sighed, rubbed a hand over his head before muttering, "Come on."
At night, New York was much more pleasant. There were very few people about and Newt could spot animals scurrying here and there. It was the Niffler that he was keeping an eye out for, the Erumpent was hard to miss and Dougal was not likely to hide from him.
"I was watching you at dinner." He informed Jacob as they headed down yet another empty street. "People like you, don't they, Mr Kowalski?"
Jacob startled as they hurried along, giving Newt a curious look, "Oh, well… I'm- I'm sure people like you too, huh?"
That was highly inaccurate, "No, not really. I annoy people." He was capable of toning himself down when it mattered, but generally he didn't feel the need to; he didn't tend to encounter the same people very often and those he did come across frequently, such as ministry workers, would just have to deal with who he was.
"Ah."
"Why did you decide to be a baker?" He asked, wondering if his passion was a lifelong thing, similar to Newt's love of creatures.
However, there was exasperation on Jacob's face now, as though this was a question he had answered in one form or another often. "Ah well, um… because I'm dying in that canning factory. Everyone's dying there. It just crushes the life outta you. You like canned food?"
"No." He'd never tried canned food. There was a vegetable patch in his case and mixed with is charm work and so he'd never needed to try it.
"Me either. That's why I make pastries, you know. It makes people happy. We're going this way."
Newt rather liked his answer. His own focus was on keeping his creatures happy, but he found he didn't mind. "So, did you get your loan?"
"Er, no. I ain't got no collateral. Stayed in the army too long, apparently. I don't know."
"What, you fought in the war?" The wizard asked before remembering that not everyone liked to answer questions about the war. Having erased his own memories of it though, he liked to ask around and see if anything came back to him.
"Of course I fought in the war. Everyone fought in the war! You didn't fight in the war?"
"I worked mostly with dragons, Ukrainian Ironbellies; Eastern Front." Newt relayed most of the information he still had to the man. If he wanted more information, hopefully it would be about the dragons themselves.
However, his attention was caught by an earring lying on top of an automobile. He looked down and saw there were more… They were finally on the trail of the Niffler… He crept quietly along, eyes flitting about the shadows as he looked for the little bugger, Jacob pottering along behind him.
Something in the shop window that he had just past… Newt paused and backtracked slowly, turning his head to look. The bugger was pretending to be a jewellery stand, arms stretched out and covered in shiny trinkets; Newt stared at the Niffler as a bracelet slowly slid off his arm, and then he was pulling out his wand, muttering "Finestra," and diving into the shop after him.
The little bugger was as slippery as it ever was, but Newt was determined. He scrambled onto the desk as the Niffler clung to the chandelier, then he was clinging to it as well, both of them spinning as the wizard struggled to get his feet beneath him; thankfully, the chandelier gave way and Newt was back on his feet and hurrying after the Niffler again. They scurried across the desk again, past one case and onto another… the next cabinet couldn't take their weight though and they tumbled forwards on it, hitting the window. Gasping, Newt stared as the cracks webbed out from the point of contact… if the Niffler got out into the streets of New York, Newt was going to have to take a different approach to catching him; he'd have to leave his case behind with Jacob in the chase.
As the glass shattered and they both fell, Newt scrambled to grab the troublemaker, but he was too slow; it was off. However, Newt still had his wits about him and he drew out his wand with a cry of "Accio!"
It worked. The Niffler was unable to dodge the summoning charm and he, with all the jewellery he had taken, began to sail back towards the two men. The bugger was a true troublemaker though, and managed to use the pull of the summoning charm to catapult himself off towards another window; Newt non-verbally transfigured the window into a sticky jelly and it was stuck.
He approached the thing with a scowl on his face, "All right? Happy?" he demanded to know and as he pulled the Niffler out from the window, he felt an odd twinge of sympathy for his parents; he wondered if they got this exasperated when he'd been little and forever running off to go explore somewhere else. Still, they were one step closer to having all his creatures back. "One down, two to go."
As he busied himself with extracting all the jewels, the muggle Police arrived, firearms out as they approached the two men.
"They went that way Officer." Jacob quickly spoke up, pointing as Newt stuffed the Niffler into his pocket and tightened his hold on his wand.
"Hands up!" yelled one of the men, just before another shouted, "What the Hell is that?"
The bloody Niffler was looking for a way to escape again, but Jacob distracted them all by pointing out the lion that was prowling nearby.
Lions certainly were one of his favourite non-magical creatures and he rather suspected that they may have relations to the Nundu, perhaps dating back to a time when they were as similar to each other as wizards are to muggles. He grinned as he spoke, "You know, New York is considerably more interesting than I'd expected." But he took advantage of their distraction and disapparated, bringing Jacob, the Niffler and his case along with him.
"Right…" Jacob stated, his face ashen as he looked around. "Central Park then?"
"Yes please." Newt gave him a little grin, stuffing the Niffler back in the case along with the trinkets the bugger had brought in the hope that they would keep him distracted.
There was frost on the ground as they headed into the park and plenty of wildlife strutting about, including an ostrich that nearly knocked them over. He was going to have to come and observe these animals sometimes, preferably when he could actually talk to their keepers. Even so, a distant roar made Newt pause to pull out some protective gear… The Erumpent could be friendly, but if the man got in the way of her once Newt started the mating ritual then he could get badly injured.
"Put this on."
"Why- why would I have to wear something like this?" Jacob's face was a mixture of concern and bewilderment.
Newt decided now was the time to be blunt, he didn't want to understate the risks and have Jacob end up in a situation that he could have gotten out of. "Because your skull is susceptible to breakage under immense force."
Then he hurried along, ignoring Jacob's question of "Is this a good idea?" as they didn't have all the time in the world to find Dougal either. He was actually a little disappointed that he couldn't see the creature around here.
"Okay, if you just, uh, pop this on." He began to fasten the protective breastplate to Jacob's torso, tugging to check it was properly on.
"Okay."
Newt glanced up and noticed the nervous expression, which he rushed to soothe, "Now there's absolutely nothing for you to worry about." And he smiled at the man, though it felt a little tight.
"Tell me, has anyone ever believed you when you told them not to worry?" Jacob questioned.
Rather than explaining that he didn't often bother to reassure people anyway, Newt simply stated "My philosophy is that worrying means you suffer twice." After all, many creatures noticed if you got yourself worked up.
The beast's snorting was easily audible in the night air as they headed into the zoo itself. "She's in season. She needs to mate." The wizard explained, aware that she would be here searching for someone suitable.
There she was.
She was usually a docile creature, content to graze as she watched what was going on around her. Unfortunately, for all she was friendly even now, her hormones made her clumsy and therefore something of a danger… her over eager enthusiasm knocking what little grace she usually possessed out of her motions entirely. He pulled out a small vial of male erumpent musk; it had a repugnant smell, but it was beyond tempting to her.
"Erumpent musk. She is mad for it." He explained when he noticed Jacob's curious glance.
He dabbed it on, handed the vial to Jacob then grabbed his case and went in. she was pressed up against an enclosure, attempting to woo the animal on the other side which was cowering in fear; but she caught the scent on Newt and held still.
Newt back up slightly, before placing his case down carefully and opening it. He didn't look away, it was important to catch her attention and make sure she didn't notice Jacob, who had wandered near with the open vial still in his hands.
He stepped forward and ducked down as he let out a cry for her. She didn't turn so he slammed is foot into the ground, loud enough that she wouldn't miss it. He slid his foot back along the ground, pulling her attention firmly over to himself. Ducked down, he waited until her eyes were focussed on him, then he called out again and turned his own body to show her both his back and his arse; the angle had to be right for her to see both, or she would view it as an insult.
She seemed interested and moved away from the hippo to watch him as he snorted and bounced along. He just needed her to start copying him in a display of her own desire. He began to edge closer to his case, rolling quickly across the ground and back to his feet.
She copied.
She fell onto her back, feet from the case and began to wriggle in an effort to entice him.
"Good girl. Come on… into the case." He breathed as he watched her.
And then she froze, sniffing loudly. Newt frowned at her, perplexed as he rolled away and got to her feet. It was only when he heard a soft "Oh no" that he realised Jacob must have spilt some musk on himself. The man turned and ran, Erumpent in pursuit as Newt was left to stare at the damage she had caused.
"Repar-" But his wand was stolen by a baboon before he could even finish the spell. "Merlin's Beard!"
He scrambled over the rubble after the baboon, concerned that the animal would wave it. Wands tended to backfire when waved by those without magic, and he wasn't sure if animals would be included in that. It wasn't something he had ever tested.
He watched as the baboon stopped, looking over the wand curiously. If he could just coax it over then there would be no need for a chase, so he snapped a stick off a nearby branch and held it out, "They're exactly the same… same thing." He stared pleadingly at it.
"Newt!"
Jacob was yelling at him, but the wizard didn't take his eyes from the baboon. It began to shake his wand and visions of explosion filled his mind, causing him to yelp, "No, no, no, don't!" but the shaking continued until the wand did backfire and sent the baboon flying.
"I'm so sorry." He cried to the animal as he turned and ran across the park, down onto the frozen lake. He hit it and threw himself into a slide, opening his case and allowing the charms he had set up pull her back inside… and while she did end up back in, she only narrowly avoided crushing the other man.
They stared at each other for a moment, Jacob's eyes wide while Newt's were admittedly amused, he did enjoy a good chase.
"Good show, Mr Kowalski!" He said happily. He was too used to working on his own to get creatures to have even considered making use of Jacob; with the exception of when they had rescued Frank, the most Alice had ever been willing to do was turn her back and pretend she didn't see him retrieving different creatures.
The muggle held out a hand, surprisingly steady for the adventure they'd just had. "Call me Jacob." He corrected, and Newt smiled as he shook the man's hand.
He hauled Jacob back to his feet and noted, "Well, two down, one to go." With a relieved grin.
First, he had to go check the Erumpent was in her enclosure. While the items in his shed were charmed to withstand being knocked about, she had likely made a mess inside, so that would likely need tidying up.
"In you hop." He said to Jacob, allowing the man to step in first.
"Wow." Jacob sighed as they stepped out the shed and headed into the enclosure.
Newt cocked his head over to the man who was his second ever friend. "What?"
"It's just pretty swell down here, you know?" Jacob's eyes were shining fondly about as he turned and pottered over to the Occamies.
Newt smirked slightly, "I know." He replied, pleased once again at the genuine interest Jacob had in the creatures he had seen; a fine example of how to react, if only wizards over here were likely to pay attention to a No-Maj.
There wasn't too much to do, just a quick check to see the Niffler snoring away in his nest and the Erumpent settling moodily down in hers before flicked his wand about and righted his shed.
"Just one left then?" Jacob asked as he entered the shed a few minutes later, a smile still set on his face.
"Yes." Just Dougal to fetch. It was going to be more of a task as the creature hadn't been near the other two… if he was invisible then it would take more than one night to retrieve him.
"Let's go then!"
With that display of enthusiasm, Newt headed back up the ladder… but not out the case. It was stuck.
"It won't open."
"What?" Jacob, who had been standing with his hands on the ladder, stepped back to let Newt down.
"Someone's locked my case."
"Who- Wha- … but why?" Jacob asked, struggling to find the right question.
Newt sat heavily down on a bench and gripped his hair with one hand. "I don't know." He whispered.
Jacob sat on the floor by the ladder. "Then, we just need to wait for someone to open it?"
"Yes. I could use magic, but I don't want to try and remove the magic I've set on the locks in case I make a mistake and destabilise the charms that are in the rest of the case."
"Is that likely?" The man asked, but the concern on his face didn't seem to be a fear for himself. Newt wasn't sure what to make of that.
"It's not something that's ever been a problem before… but I've never been locked inside here before."
"Can we get out without you doing magic?"
Newt snorted slightly, not actually amused but his nerves forcing the noise. "Yes, I expect so. Dougal's quite capable of getting out of here, though he doesn't often try, and the Niffler can work his way through any gap."
"But you'd rather wait?"
"I have no idea where we are; we could be on the ground, or in the middle of a busy street, or hanging off the side of a building. It'd be best to wait until whoever shut us in here chooses to let us back out."
Jacob nodded and shifted to lean against a shed wall. Newt shut his eyes and pressed his face into his hands; it had been a very long day. He found travelling by boat uncomfortable at the best of times and rather than resting up afterwards, he'd had to chase after his Niffler, then he'd been arrested… then taken to a stranger's house and then had had to chase creatures again. Sleep was rather desperately needed at this point, but he wasn't going to be able to rest while he was locked up like this.
Eventually, there was a knock from the top of the ladder and Newt slowly began to ascend to the top.