Jacob and Stella sat on the bench inside the jail cell, Stella sitting facing away from them all while Jacob stared blankly into space. Tina was standing at the cell doors, leaning forwards against the bars, while Newt sat huddled in a corner, curled miserably in on himself.
"I'm so sorry about your creatures, Mr. Scamander." Tina finally said, breaking the silence that weighed down on the group. "I truly am."
Newt didn't move, and neither did Stella, as another silence fell over them.
"Can someone please tell me what this Obscurial, Obscurus thing is, please?" Jacob finally asked, unable to stand the silence or his curiosity any longer.
"There hasn't been one for centuries." Tina answered, glancing back, and Stella leant her head back as she answered, "So how does that explain what Jacob and I saw?"
Tina looked at her, shocked, while Newt finally explained quietly, "I met that one in Sudan three months ago."
They all glanced at him as Newt explained to the two Muggles but without looking at them as he picked at the callouses on his hands, "There used to be more of them, but they still exist. Before Wizards went underground… when we were still being hunted by Muggles… Young Wizards and Witches sometimes tried to suppress their magic to avoid persecution."
Stella's eyes widened while Newt continued sadly, "So instead of learning to harness, to, to control their powers… they developed what was called an Obscurus."
Jacob's mouth also parted in horrified shock, while Tina added quietly, "It's an unstable, uncontrollable dark force that busts out and attacks. And then vanishes."
She looked at Newt as she checked, "Obscurials can't survive long, can they?"
"There's no documented case of an Obscurial surviving passed the age of ten." Newt muttered, still not looking at them. "The one I met in Africa was eight when she…"
He broke off, his voice catching and he folded his lips tightly before he finished in a choked tone, "She was eight when she died."
Stella's eyes welled, and she turned her head while Jacob asked incredulously, "What are you telling me here, that a, that Senator Shaw was killed by a, a kid?"
Newt just gave him a slight nod, barely glancing over, while Stella continued to stare blankly into the empty cell beside theirs.
"But that Madame President won't listen?" Jacob asked incredulously. "What if you showed them the one you captured?"
Tina looked up in surprise, while Newt shook his head.
"They would never believe it." He muttered. "Either that, or they might believe me to have released the Obscurus that killed-"
He broke off, ducking his head further while Jacob swallowed, his throat suddenly feeling very, very dry.
"So, what'll happen to us now?" Jacob asked slowly, glancing between Newt and Tina. "I mean, if they think you're behind this…"
"I'd assume Mr. Scamander and I will be taken in for questioning." Tina answered quietly. "And, er, you and Miss Rowland…"
"Obliviated, right?" Stella said flatly, quietly. "We won't even remember having met you."
Jacob started, his wide eyes swiveling around in despairing incredulity, while Tina shifted uncomfortably and nodded. Newt glanced up at Stella, but she was still turned away from him, from all of them, as she stared unseeingly into the next cell, fighting back the tears that threatened to blur her vision.
She'd forget it all – meeting and befriending Jacob; the magical world they'd been unaware of all around them; the beautiful and sometimes terrifying creatures inside Newt's case; Newt himself…
And despite her best efforts, a single tear slipped down Stella's cheek as the group lapsed into silence once more.
Later
Jacob and Stella watched in silence as the two Aurors – which Stella learnt meant basically magical law enforcement – led Tina and Newt out of the cell, locking the two Muggles back inside while the two wizards were taken away.
About halfway down the dungeon-like jail, Newt turned around and he called half-heartedly, "It was good to make your acquaintance, Jacob. And I hope you get your bakery. And I'm sorry I couldn't help you in your search, Stella. I hope you have a safe return to London."
Jacob waved half-heartedly back, while Stella avoided eye contact with Newt as she nodded silently, swallowing heavily. Jacob glanced at Stella as she turned and curled back up on the cell bench as soon as Newt and Tina disappeared around the far corner.
"Are you okay?" He asked gently, placing a hand on Stella's shoulder, and she shrugged.
"I suppose." She muttered as she picked at an invisible spot on her pant leg. "It doesn't matter anyway, does it? You and I won't even remember each other by the end of the day, let alone the rest of this."
Jacob sighed, glancing up again to stare at the empty jail. He then settled himself down beside Stella once more, leaning back as he said, "I saw you two. Back in Newt's suitcase. I mean, before I pretended to have just walked into the paddock."
Stella tensed, but Jacob went on, "I think you might have been too hard on him – he's clearly got a lot more going on than we thought."
"That's true of everyone, though." Stella countered as she looked up at Jacob at last, her brown eyes as sharp as usual.
"You look cheerful and you're incredibly optimistic, Jacob; but you're suffering inside that canning factory and – let's face it – if you don't have collateral, your dream of opening a bakery is very far away."
She paused before she lowered her eyes and added quietly, "And yet, you don't let it get you down. It's very admirable."
"I think you are too." Jacob answered with a shrug. "I mean, a woman reporter, and in crime news too? You had to have faced incredible prejudice, and have had to work your ass off to make get to where you are."
"It's not as impressive as you think." Stella sighed, shaking her head. "I still have so far to go; and a dead-end on the 'ghost' trail is only going to set me back further than it should."
"I'm sorry." Jacob sympathized, but she answered, "No, I'm sorry. You also have a dream, and here I am just moping on about mine."
"We're a sorry pair." Jacob agreed and Stella snorted.
Jacob paused, before he added quietly, "But, Newt's face when you turned away from him? It was the sorriest face I'd ever seen on a man – and I've been to a war."
Stella hunched in slightly on herself at his words, but her voice was even as she muttered, "You're exaggerating."
"Not really." Jacob murmured gently. "Emotional pain is often deeper than physical pain. And nothing hurts more than to see someone you love in pain."
Stella's head shot up as she shot Jacob an incredulous look, but he met her gaze evenly with his own kind brown eyes as he said, "Yeah, I said it. Because I'm certain I wasn't wrong about what I saw in Newt's eyes… and yours."
Stella turned her head away again sharply, fighting the tears that had welled up in her eyes again.
"Maybe you're right… but it wasn't me he saw, Jacob." Stella murmured miserably. "He never saw me; he always just saw someone else."
"Stella-" Jacob began, but Stella interrupted with just the slightest catch in her voice, "It doesn't matter anymore anyway. He's gone… and I won't even remember him."
Her fists clenched as she struggled not to tremble, while Jacob sighed. With nothing he could say in response, he simply patted her shoulder as they sat quietly and awaited their own inevitable fates.
Moments later
Stella and Jacob exchanged looks as they stood with their Auror escort inside the lift, heading to wherever it was they would be obliviated.
Apparently, since they were Muggles and couldn't do magic, the higher-ups had decided they only needed one guard. It irked Stella that those wizards were right – there was nothing she or Jacob could do without getting caught in a minute. Or less.
"Hey, Jacob?" Stella said as they arrived on their floor and the elevator doors started to open.
"Yeah?" He asked, and she said simply, "Thank you. For everything."
Jacob glanced at her before nodding, knowing what she meant, and as they were led out of the elevator, he answered, "You too, Stella."
She nodded tightly as their guard took them out into a large lobby of sorts, filled with various witches and wizards and… strange creatures Stella wasn't sure what to call. There were a few creatures that looked like a cross between imps and creepy Santa elves, dressed in rags; a white furry… thing, and others she couldn't even begin to describe.
Suddenly, a familiar face came hurrying over, and both Jacob and Stella blinked in surprise as Queenie Goldstein joined their group, greeting their guard. "Hey, Sam."
"Hey, Queenie." The man acknowledged, and Stella gently nudged Jacob and forced him to look forwards with her, rather than at Queenie.
Queenie too ignored them as she informed their guard pleasantly, "They need you downstairs. I'll obliviate these two."
"You ain't qualified." The man answered immediately, not falling for Queenie's attempt as easily as they might have hoped.
Stella pursed her lips, before she raised a slight brow in surprise as Queenie leant over her shoulder to whisper at Sam, "Hey, Sam? Does Cecily know you've been seeing Ruby?"
Stella internally cheered as she literally felt Sam pale behind her.
"How did you-?" Sam began slowly, but Queenie cut in firmly, "Let me obliviate these two, and she'll never hear about it from me."
'Go, Queenie!' Stella cheered mentally, impressed by the blonde's resourcefulness as Sam gave up his hold on the two Muggles.
Queenie took their shoulders instead, leading them quickly away as Sam turned around and left them.
"What're you doing?" Jacob whispered, but Queenie hushed, "Sh. Tina's in trouble, I'm try'na listen. Jacob, Stella, where's Newt's case?"
"A man called Graves took it." Stella answered in a low undertone, barely even moving her lips, and Queenie nodded slightly as she turned them around the whole lobby and back towards the elevator.
"Okay. Come on." She whispered as she tugged the pair with her, and Jacob asked in surprise, "Wait, you're not gonna obliviate us?"
Queenie looked at him in surprise, and she answered honestly, "Of course not. You guys are one of us, now."
She squeezed both their arms in solidarity, making both Muggles smile as Queenie led them quickly away.
The trio stood, pressed against the wall right outside Graves's office, Stella keeping a wary eye out while Jacob shifted restlessly and Queenie tried to unlock the head Auror's office door.
"Alohomora." She muttered, flicking her wand at the door. "Everto."
Nothing worked, and Queenie sighed as she muttered irritably, "He would know some fancy spell to lock his office."
Stella glanced over and then peered at the door.
"It doesn't have a keyhole to pick." She muttered, brow creasing. "But…"
She glanced over the sides and at the hinges specifically.
"Jacob, help me out?" She asked as she backed up away from the door. Queenie frowned, while Jacob understood instantly and moved next to Stella.
"What are you two doing?" Queenie asked, puzzled, and Stella explained, "Breaking in the good old fashioned, Muggle way."
With that, she and Jacob ran at the door, ramming it with their shoulders. The heavy door instantly broke open, swinging on its hinges but thankfully not breaking down completely.
"Come on." Stella whispered, glancing around, and Queenie hurried inside the office, grabbing Newt's briefcase off Graves's desk as well as two wands lying to the side – Newt and Tina's, which had been confiscated upon their arrest.
The trio hurried away quickly, and Stella asked as she glanced over her shoulder while they got back into the elevator, "Did that not trigger any alarm or something?"
"It might." Queenie admitted as the elevator opened on a basement floor… just as an alarm started to ring throughout the building.
Jacob looked up in alarm, while Stella tensed and Queenie said quickly, "We need to hurry and get Newt and Tina, and then get you all out of here quickly."
"Lead the way." Stella gestured, and Queenie strode quickly down the various corridors, ignoring the alarm as wizards and witches in long coats and fedoras hurried passed them - apparently the Aurors, who had been alerted to a breech of some kind though by the confusion they weren't quite sure what.
"Looks like we might be lucky." Stella noted, and Queenie muttered back, "Let's hope it lasts."
"But how do we find Newt before they all find us-?" Jacob began, when they turned a corner - and almost ran right into Newt and Tina as the pair came rushing around the other side.
As it was, Stella did collide headfirst with said magizoologist while Queenie and Tina barely avoided a similar greeting as all five of them skid to a quick halt.
"I'm sorry!" Newt gasped as he righted Stella, who just shook her head quickly to clear it.
"Oh." Newt added as he glanced down and spotted his suitcase in Queenie's hand.
The blonde held out the case, and she ordered urgently to her four companions, "Get in."
Stella stared out at the city below, swinging her legs slightly as she sat at the edge of the rooftop they were gathered atop.
Queenie's plan had been a neat success, and the blonde secretary had easily snuck them all out in the suitcase before bringing them to this building so they could remain hidden for at least a little while longer. The witch was currently standing beside Jacob in the small watchroom in the centre of the rooftop, the pair huddled over a nest of pidgeons that Jacob had found.
Newt was standing perhaps five feet away from where she sat, but it might as well have been a hundred feet between them with the uncomfortable tension that continued to permeate the air between them. Newt had not said a word to her, although given what she'd basically yelled at him she wasn't surprised. It didn't make it easier though.
Even Pickett picked up on it as he stood, perched on Newt's shoulder, and looked between them. He chirped at Newt, who shook his head, making the Bowtruckle frown and chirp again, almost insistently and indignantly.
"Sh, no, Pickett." Newt muttered, and Stella finally asked as she glanced over, "Is everything okay?"
"Yes, he, um, he's just being a bit, er…" Newt mumbled nervously, pushing Pickett back into his pocket.
Stella looked away again, and they were silent for a moment, before Tina finally walked up to them wearing a nervous expression. Not that Stella blamed her.
But Tina didn't have much to worry about - Newt didn't really look like he held any hard feelings, and Stella had already wearily forgiven the woman for her actions. Yes, it had been idiotic but she had genuinely wanted to do what was right and she couldn't honestly blame the woman for trying to be a good wizarding citizen. It was easy to see that Tina was contrite about the part she had played, and now that their goals aligned perhaps she would be of greater help in their search. Or at least in keeping them off the MACUSA's radar.
The three remained quiet for another minute or so, before Tina spoke up at last.
"Graves always insisted the disturbances were caused by a beast."
She nodded at Stella as she went on, "But it can't have been yours, Mr. Scamander, as Miss Rowland pointed out. We need to catch all your creatures so that he can't keep using them as a scapegoat."
"There's only one still missing." Newt explained as he glanced over at the witch. "Dougal, my demiguise."
"'Dougal'?" Tina repeated with some surprise, but Newt just nodded as he answered sheepishly, "A slight problem is that, um, he's invisible."
Tina's head snapped over immediately, just as Queenie and Jacob also looked over. Even Stella was incredulous as Tina repeated flatly, "Invisible?"
"Yes." Newt admitted, adding quickly, "Most of the time, he does some, um…"
He gestured as he trailed off apologetically, and Stella sighed while Tina began, "How do you catch something that-"
"With immense difficulty." Newt answered, cutting her off with a forced grin, and there was a moment's silence from everyone else.
"Well, maybe if we look around for…" Stella broke the silence first as she suggested slowly. "I don't know, do demiguises leave tracks?"
"Paw prints." Newt confirmed, glancing at her uncomfortably in a way that had nothing to do with the mostly invisible demiguise.
Stella looked away again, causing Newt's lips to curve down further, when Tina suddenly brightened and piped up, "Gnarlack."
"A what?" Stella asked blankly, as Newt also asked in confusion, "Excuse me?"
"Gnarlack." Tina explained. "He was an informant of mine, before I lost my job. He used to trade in magical creatures on the side."
Stella's eyes widened, while Newt asked hopefully, "He wouldn't happen to have an interest in paw prints, would he?"
"He's interested in anything he can sell." Tina answered with a shrug, and that made Stella pause.
It sounded like Gnarlack was a black market-type trader, and while such traders could be useful informants, Stella had once learnt the hard way that they also usually couldn't be trusted. Because if they liked to sell anything they could… that included you.
'Let's not get hasty.' Stella told herself firmly. 'It's the only lead that we've got. Besides, this isn't your world; you're probably overreacting.'
Right… Except, usually, her gut was never wrong.