January 1928

Something was wrong.

In fact, Tina had known something was wrong for weeks; her intuition screaming that she wasn't being unrealistically paranoid. Newt had never been a particularly predictable man when it came to his methods; but he was always undeniably punctual when it came to getting letters to her. In that respect he was like a well-oiled machine, never letting a month slip past him without a message finding its way into Tina's hands.

It was no secret to anyone in her tight circle of friends that the Auror was missing her scraggly-haired Magizoologist something awful; Queenie had even taken to teasing her about the affections she held for him, not that Tina minded. She was always eager for an excuse to bring him into conversation, as if speaking his name would summon him to her from some distant land. The letters he'd been sending were helping her through his absence, easily becoming her most coveted respite.

Each of his messages were akin to small novels, laced with evocative turns of phrase and intriguing play by plays of his days. The passages bled into one another, constructing choppy tales that she found more riveting than any fiction inked on the pages of an issue of "Weird Wizarding Tales Weekly." Newt had offered her a glimpse into what it was like to be amidst dragons and old comrades with his letters. But her favorite parts were not the drawn-out and obviously passionate descriptions of all the dragons he was working with, or friends he hadn't seen since the war that he'd all but forgotten; no - Tina's favorite parts of the letters were the subtle tender words and promises. Those texts were written in poetic prose that made her miss him even more. They were often short quips, but sweet nonetheless, always well camouflaged in his scribbling. Tina always found them.

Like clockwork she would wake (usually on a Wednesday) to the clank of some bird tapping on her window. Most of the winged creatures were owls, but on occasion, she would venture into the living room to find an unknown vibrant bird perched outside the pane of glass, with feathers that came in shades of orange and pink and gleamed and glistened brightly in the morning sun. Tina missed those mornings. It seemed there was a broken cog in the metaphorical clock. There hadn't been a single letter from Newt in weeks; no tapping had pulled her out of bed with a rush of zeal since late October. Holidays had come in a swirl of snow and clouds without a single seasonal greeting, and Tina found herself in the middle of January without knowing why his letters had suddenly stopped.

Initially she'd let the first month pass with only slight concern, brushing it off with reasonable excuses that satisfied her practicality. When November became December and then December became January, still without one letter, Tina began to feel the merciless onset of dread start to consume her.

Newt was in trouble. She could feel it deep in the pit of her stomach.

The entire ordeal had made work an increasingly difficult task for her to focus on, which was something altogether new for her. Now most days Tina sat behind her desk amid her fellow Aurors, achieving nothing more than stares from her colleagues. The entire department seemed to sense her inner turmoil; they were used to seeing her completely absorbed in her work. Instead, she remained at her station, locked in an endless staring contest with the wooden surface of her desk while her mind trudged through every possible reason his letters could be delayed.

The workload for the Department of Magical Law was alarmingly high – rioters were being brought in daily – all witches and wizards swearing loyalty to Gellert Grindlewald. Such a spike in dark activity was more than mildly concerning, especially on account they had started around the time Newt's letters had stopped. Tina hoped that was nothing more than a frightening coincidence; yet she could not shake the disquiet stewing inside her.

It had been a snowy Thursday night when Tina heard the gentle tapping at her living room window, and with it came a confusing array of emotions. Relief and excitement were the first to crash into her as she stood from her seat on the sofa to retrieve the owl's message. Tina tried to quell the surge of joy working through her – Newt's letter had finally reached her, and she could feel whole again…

She threw open the window with unabashed vigor, startling the plump bird. He ruffled his dark-brown feathers as if to express his shock just as a gust of icy wind spit tendrils of flakes into the room. Goosebumps prickled on Tina's exposed skin, and a chill rattled through her. With an apologetic smile and an inviting tilt of her head she welcomed the bird in out of the cold while taking the envelope from its beak. The owl fluttered to the back of the sofa, studying Tina with its striking golden eyes as she shut the window before maneuvering around the furniture to sit near the fire. A small hoot sounded from the creature as she idled past, as if to thank her for her hospitality.

Upon more scrupulous inspection, it became clear that the letter in her grasp was not from Newt. Tina had a well-studied collection of his messages, and as such, knew immediately the penmanship on the envelope was not his. Miss. Porpentina E. Goldstein, was how it was addressed, far too formal to be from her Magizoologist; Tina – he would simply put, knowing how much she disliked her full name.

All of a sudden Tina's mouth was like a desert, and swallowing felt near impossible. No one – not even Queenie – sent her mail via owl. MACUSA did on the very rare occasion it couldn't wait until she made it to her office, but even then the stationary was wrong. It was too domestic – high quality – but less durable than the sterile and oh-so-professional feel of the Magical Congress stationary. The seal was a simple monogram, T.S, but it still felt overtly formal in how it was addressed. Although the parcel was as light as the feathers adorning the owl waiting patiently on the back of her couch, it felt weighed down by the surely dismal news it brought.

Dread was settling into her bones the longer she lingered with the message unopened. She finally managed to swallow the lump that had formed in her throat and, with a sigh, mustered enough courage to break the seal in order to put an end to the mystery.

To Miss Porpentina Goldstein,

It is with less than ideal news that I find myself meeting you in this less than ideal way. My name is Theseus Scamander, Newt's older brother and head Auror at the Ministry of Magic. I'm sure my dear brother has mentioned me in the multiplicity of letters he's written you; if not, then I shall have to have a word with him when this mess is all over…

He's alive! Tina was practically screaming internally - she had to fight back the happy sobs that were threatening to pour down her face.

…As I'm sure you've realized, Newt has not been in touch with you or I for several weeks— months now I suppose. The reason being, while on passage to Italy, he was taken by a small fraction of Grindelwald's followers. . .

Those tears – the ones of shock and fear – were harder to fight back. The mere thought of him being taken prisoner by a Dark wizard was almost too much to handle.

…I am happy to say, with some diligent Auror work on my team's part, the men responsible have since been taken into custody, and my brother rescued (magical case and all). He's currently in the care of very skilled Healers at St. Mungo's here in London, and I'm told he will make a full recovery.
You should know, Miss Goldstein, that you were the first person he called for when he woke up, and has since spent his days either sleeping or asking for you.
I hope this letter has brought you some amount of solace as well as an end to the mystery, at the very least. Newt is in the best hands, which should bring us both a little peace, yes?

I am so sorry we couldn't meet on a better occasion. You seem to mean a great deal to my little brother.

Theseus Scamander

All Tina could do once she'd read the words etched onto the yellowed parchment was cry. She cried tears of joy because Newt was alive. She cried tears of sadness because, like her recurring nightmare, she wasn't there to save him when he needed her. There were even tears of rage burning her cheeks, searing her vengeful thoughts into her skin. Tina wanted to know the men who took him - her Newt, the very embodiment of her happiness. She wanted to inflict the same horrors on them that they had surely shown him, and then some. Tina wanted to jump, to scream - to hit something or someone. All of her emotions were swirling and writhing inside her like vicious beasts locked together in a fight. It was late, and she needed to sleep to be ready to work in the morning, but her snarling feelings made it clear that work was the last place she wanted to be come daybreak.

Theseus' letter had alleviated some of the pressure of not knowing what had caused Newt to stop writing. It had also inadvertently ruptured the boil in her mind that had been swelling with dread and over-thought scenarios. Joy and rage were losing her internal fight for power, quickly succumbing to the growing sensation of anguish. Her apartment was cold again, a barren landscape of familiar objects that suddenly felt foreign. The fire had died down to an obscure glow, casting the space in sinister shadows, and with them came the crushing wave of loneliness.

Tina stood swiftly, causing the blood to rush to her head and the room to spin for a moment as she struggled to gather herself. When the spinning stopped, she shoved the letter in her blazer pocket; she had to go somewhere – anywhere. The owl flitted back to the window uttering a soft coo, asking to be let out once again. Quickly, Tina muttered a rueful "thank you" while urgently flinging the window open. The bird gave a small hoot as it flew gracefully back into the snowy sky just before Tina Apparated to the only place she knew could make her feel better. She didn't even bother to close the window behind her.

A/N: Chapter 4 as promised! We are now in what I'm referring to as Part 2: "Shall I Stay" of this story which includes this chapter and the next 4. I know this chapter wasn't very long, but I hope it will suffice!

Furthermore, you can follow me on Tumblr at fandom-non-sense
That is where you can keep up with my progress, check out my favorite works by other talented authors and even find a link to keep me caffeinated so I write quicker ;).

Also HUGE thank you and shout out to my betas onebethatatime and katiehavok. They are the true heroes here and I owe them both so much for making these chapters readable.