Soulmate!AU — being next to your soulmate accelerates healing.

In Grave Trouble

"We'll be back for you," the guard on Newt's right growled. The tip of his wand dug uncomfortably into Newt's back as he guided him through a maze of corridors. Newt winced, dizzy from a mixture of Side-Along Apparition and a bump to the head. At least he'd managed to collect all of his creatures, even if his suitcase was now in MACUSA's possession.

"Listen, if you just listen, I haven't done anything wrong. Please will you tell Director Graves? If I could just speak with him, I'm sure we could get this sorted out."

The guard chuckled.

"The Director is well aware of that."

A barred door was slung open with a metallic clang. Newt was thrown into a cell. He collided face first with cool, stone walls.

"Ouch," he muttered, touching his bound hands to the fresh graze on his cheek. "That wasn't very pleasant," he called after the retreating guards.

"Don't bother with them," a surly voice informed him.

Newt spun, scanning the cell for its other occupant. The room had no windows, just three walls and the barred door. He squinted, identifying a shape curled up in the corner.

"You must be something of a wildcard," the voice continued. "He normally has a fresh cell set aside for the prisoners he intends to take."

In a strange way, that was flattering. Newt licked a drop of blood from his lip and took a step forward.

"My name's Newt Scamander," he said in the voice he used to calm his most frightened of creatures. "Who are you?"

The man in the corner chuckled, dark and bitter.

"I'm Percival Graves," he said.

Newt tilted his head to one side and stepped closer again. Percival Graves was who the man who'd arrested him had professed to be—but Theseus had never said a bad word against Graves, despite them working together often. The Percival Graves outside those bars was cruel and vindictive, nothing like what he was supposed to be at all.

"Polyjuice?" Newt asked, putting the pieces together. But if this was the real Percival Graves, then who was pretending to be him?

"You're a clever one, aren't you?"

Newt stepped closer, still. The man looked like Percival Graves, but beaten and thin with hunger, his gaze desperate, his hands clutched close against his chest. Newt knelt and settled beside him, giving him the reassurance of warmth and another living being's touch.

"Too clever for my own good, an old professor of mine used to say," Newt joked, even as his heart ached. He hated seeing beings in pain, whether they be people or creature.

Graves snorted. Almost on instinct, he seemed to lean closer.

"How long have you been here?" Newt asked, keeping his voice quiet.

"Few months," Graves grunted. "As far as I can tell. Grindelwald caught me with my guard down.

Newt swallowed. Even he knew who Grindelwald was, and he'd barely been in Europe these last few years. A few months was a long time to be kept imprisoned, let alone by a man like Grindelwald.

"I'm sorry to hear that," he said. "I just arrived in New York today, actually."

Newt stretched out his legs and wriggled his wrists, trying to loosen the binds, but they wouldn't give. At least his cheek wasn't hurting as much as it had been, and the black eye the guards had given him had seemed to have stopped aching.

"Only today." Graves huffed. "You must have really pissed him off."

"I like to think so," Newt said, biting back a smile. "Do you think you can help me get these ropes off?"

Graves sighed and extended his hands. Now removed from where they'd been curled against Graves's chest, Newt could see the extent of the damage. Grindelwald had broken every single one of the man's fingers.

"I'm so sorry," Newt whispered.

"It's fine," Graves said. "They're not hurting as much as they normally do. He rebreaks them every few days."

Newt winced.

"Why?"

Graves grunted and cushioned his hands back against his chest.

"I caused him all sorts of trouble with the small amount of wandless magic I can perform. Eventually, he got bored with my mischief and found a permanent solution. Can't cast wandless magic if I can't move my fingers."

"Damn," Newt said. He twisted his wrists, trying to free himself, but he only served to rub his wrists raw. "Wandless magic is beyond me, for the most part, I'm afraid."

He leaned closer to Graves, glad he wasn't alone and imprisoned, with no idea what was going on.

"We have to get out of here," Newt said, then yawned.

"What do you think I've been trying to do?" Graves retorted, but he sounded strangely tired too.

"If I could just get this rope off," Newt murmured. He yawned again, tilting his head to one side to rest against Graves. He had had a long day. Perhaps a short rest and he'd focus on the task at hand. Just a little nap…

Newt snapped awake with a groan, heart beating wildly. It took a moment for him to come to his senses and he scrambled away from Graves, who seemed to be in the throes of a nightmare.

"Wake up," Newt said. "Graves. Wake up."

Graves froze, then slowly his eyes crept open. In the dim light of the cell, Newt could barely see the shine of them.

"Newt?" Graves rasped, after a moment of silence. "That was your name, wasn't it?"

"Yes." Newt crept closer. "Are you okay?"

Graves stared at him without blinking, then uncurled, stretching his arms and legs. He still looked gaunt, but there was a rosiness that had been missing from his pallor before they'd both fallen asleep.

"My hands. They've healed," Graves whispered.

Newt touched his fingers to his cheek. His black eye was no longer swollen and the graze on his cheek was gone.

"I- I don't know what happened," Newt said.

A smile was beginning to spread across Graves's face

"Don't you?" He wiggled his fingers, staring at them in awe. "Newt—this is amazing. You're amazing."

"Me?" Newt said. He held up his bound hands between them. "I haven't done anything!" His breath was coming in short, sharp pants.

"Come here," Graves said, stepping closer. Newt backed away, into the wall.

"No, I—what's happening?"

Graves paused and Newt sucked in a lungful of air, mind dizzy.

"Surely you've heard of the soulmate phenomenon? When two wixen come together and are able to heal each other's wounds just by being in close proximity to each other?"

Newt glanced Graves's hands and traced where the scrape on his face ought to be.

"Right. Okay. Uh, okay…" He closed his eyes for a moment. "Yes. Yes, of course I have. I just… hadn't, um, expected, um, anything."

"I'm going to come closer again, Newt," Graves warned him. "I'm going to remove those ropes from around your wrists. Is that okay?"

Newt's eyes snapped open and he watched Graves warily. Graves looked back, solemn. Trustworthy, if Theseus was to be believed. Newt nodded, stretching out his arms.

"Yeah."

Despite the rags hanging off Graves's frame and the dirt from spending three months imprisoned, Newt could see that Graves was handsome. When Hogwarts had given them a cursory class on the soulmate phenomenon, Newt had hardly paid attention. He'd never thought that magic might pick someone out for him, match him with another person like this.

"Sorry," he whispered. "It's a bit much." He resolved not to screw this up, the way he'd screwed up Leta and Hogwarts.

Graves's eyes were narrowed, focused on the rope as he wrapped his hands around Newt's wrists. He squeezed, and suddenly the rope uncoiled like a snake, falling to the floor.

"There," he said, sounding triumphant. "Enchanted rope—Grindelwald really didn't trust you not to cause trouble."

At that, Newt couldn't help but grin. He rotated his wrists, enjoying the feeling of freedom.

"He hasn't seen anything yet," Newt proclaimed. He'd been through worse than having to face his own fears. He took a breath and looked Graves directly in the eye. "Soulmates, then?"

Graves raised his eyebrows. "So it appears."

"Okay," Newt said. He smiled. "We're going to escape, you and I."

Newt dipped his hand into his breast pocket. Sure enough, there was Pickett, curled into a shaking ball of leaves.

"Let's get out of here. Extra woodlice for you if you can help us out, buddy."

The gobsmacked look on Graves's face would be one he'd save to conjure a Patronus with. Newt walked over to the barred door, placing Pickett on the lock.

"It's been magically locked," Graves said. He sounded cautiously optimistic.

"There's a reason bowtruckles are coveted so much."

Seconds later, the locked clicked open, Pickett chirping cheerfully. Newt scooped him up and tucked him away.

"Good boy," he murmured.

Graves spun Newt around, gripping his shoulders. Newt looked down at him, grinning. It was amusing to discover that he was taller than the Director Graves Theseus always spoke of with such respect. Perhaps this soulmate thing wasn't anything to be afraid of.

"I could kiss you," Graves said, his eyes twinkling.

"Let's save it for later," Newt said, feeling brave. He stroke the back of one of Graves's hands. "Come on. Let's break out of here."

"No one has ever broken out of Nurmengard before," Graves warned.

Newt strode forward, pushing open the cell door and striding down the corridor.

"Perhaps. But they haven't tried imprisoning me before, either."

Graves followed, hot on his heels. As he walked, Newt could smell ozone and the crackle of something like lightning. When he turned, Graves was forming a silver ball of energy that flickered between his hands. He was grinning madly. The sound of footsteps echoed on stone—perhaps they'd been a little loud opening the door.

"Let's get these bastards," Graves said. Newt grinned back and nodded.

As the first guard rounded the corner, Newt ducked beneath his spell and tackled him, stealing the wand from his hands. It looked like oak—not ideal, but close enough to his own to cast magic.

"Stupefy," he said and smiled at the wash of red spellfire. The core was likely unicorn hair, as it worked nicely for him.

Meanwhile, Graves was brawling with two other guards, a third collapsed against the wall, bolts of lightning forcing the guards on the defensive. When Newt joined the fight, all four were unconscious and bound together in no time at all.

This time, Graves stepped forward, grabbing the back of Newt's neck, and drew him into a kiss. Newt sighed, stroked Graves's cheek, and stepped back with a smile.

"Let's get out of here, save my friends, find my suitcase, and catch Grindelwald."

"A not inconsiderable list," Graves said, smirking. There was blood on his lips that he licked clean. "Let's do it."

Word Count: 1815

Auction Prompt: D8/A3 — Soulmate!AU in which being next to your soulmate accelerates healing. [1815 words: 36 coins]

Assignment #7 Ghost Hunting Task Two: Write about someone depleting their energy.