"So…" Newt paused, confused, rolling over on the bed to face Tina. "It's sort of like a state dinner?"
"I guess," Tina said slowly, sitting down on the bed next to him. "Representatives of the other ministries and those of the ICW will be there. To be invited by the Minister himself, it's a big thing Newt!"
He didn't look convinced.
"What if I embarrass you?" He asked.
Tina shook her head. "They're happy with their portion of the manuscript. In a few days, we return to England. Newt, we've been here nearly a fortnight, and you have learnt so much about the phoenix during your stay here…"
"I'll come," he reassured her quickly, "But, what if I embarrass you? What if I accidently offend someone by not knowing the proper cultural greeting?"
"Then we both will be embarrassing?" Tina shrugged. "All I know are the names of the diplomats, and even then, that's just the names they allow us to use."
"Right, so, for the Egyptians, allow them to introduce themselves with the name they have selected?" He nodded. "But what about the other cultures?"
"Talk to them about their countries magical creatures," Tina brushed his hair aside and leaning down to kiss him. "You'll win them over in no time!"
"So, if I were to stay with you all evening…" he asked hopefully. Tina rolled her eyes affectionately.
"If it means you'll come," She agreed, bopping him on the nose. "So you'd better get ready."
Newt groaned, and rolled off the bed. Tina smiled up at him as he leant down, giving her a quick kiss before tripping out of the room to his own down the hall (there had been an incredibly awkward moment when their host, Tamir had looked at them critically and then asked if they wanted one room. It had taken days before Newt could even look in his vague direction)
…..
Tina watched Newt out of the corner of her eye. Somehow, he had managed to find a professor of magizoology at Castelobruxo in South America, and the two were having a very enthusiastic discussion about the various creatures that could be found in the surrounding rainforest. Tina was almost certain they would be leaving with an invitation to stay in Brazil.
She turned back to the conversation she had been a part of before, to see the a few of them turning from her quickly and stifling smiles. "I'm sorry," she apologised, "Did someone…ask me something?" All that worry Newt had about embarrassing her, here she was managing just fine without him.
"No," the delegate from the Indian school of magic shook her head in amusement. "We were all just enjoying watching young love. Many of us are too old now."
"Oh," Tina blushed.
"How long have you been married?" Another member of the circle asked.
"Oh, um," Tina didn't think she had ever been more embarrassed in her life. "We, I mean, we aren't married."
"Oh," came the unimpressed reply from a few of the members.
"Don't worry," the American MACUSA representative clapped Tina on the back. "There's quite a few Galleons at stake in MACUSA, waiting for these two to tie the knot. I have Christmas, by the way, if you do manage to sort yourselves out before then."
"Is your research closely tied to that of Monsieur Scamander, Mademoiselle Goldstein?" A French wizard asked.
"Well, I've learnt more about magical creatures than I ever thought there was to know," She smiled fondly, "Newt's crazy for 'em, and he always wants to learn more about 'em. But, I wanted to know about the different wizarding communities around the world. So, I stay with the ministries and try to learn about each ones cultures and practices and how they differ from my MACUSA and Newt's Ministry of Magic backgrounds. I hope to represent them in a way that other witches and wizards find them as illuminating as I do."
"You find the differences fascinating?" the Bulgarian ambassador asked, eyes narrowing.
"Not like that, Ambassador," Tina said quickly. "We have the ability to have a flourishing international community. We have the ICW and we all watch each others backs. We are bound by the international statute of secrecy, wherever we go, so I think that providing the everyday witch, wizard, ministry worker, with an understanding of our differences will help with international co-operation."
Tina paused, aware she was about to say something potentially inflammatory.
"We need our international community to stand tall, Grindelwald is attacking the very tenants our communities stand on, and the only way we are going to beat him, is by working together," Tina looked down to her glass. "And I believe in that."
Silence greeted her. Then suddenly, the Bulgarian minister held his hand out.
"Well, in that case," he said, "I shall send you a formal invitation to our ministry."
"Extend it to Scamander as well," Penfold added. "You don't see one without the other."
"Then Mr Scamander is welcome as well," the ambassador inclined his head.
"I believe you have already visited many ministries," another person asked. "Do you have many more to cover?"
"I've managed to talk with about, ten ministries," Tina admitted, "So I think I will have to have a series of books to include them all in the level of detail I want to. Newt said that he doesn't mind travelling to places with not many beasts if it means I get my research done."
She realised she was talking about Newt again, and blushed slightly.
"I also show what I have written to the ministry it is about, to ensure that they approve of the representation I have given for the standard Anglo-American reader," She added, dropping her shoulders to stand up a little straighter.
The ministries present seemed to consider her words, nodding carefully. Penfold excused himself from the group, indicating that Tina should follow him. She smiled and nodded at the representatives, accepting Bulgaria's unofficial invitation.
"What can I do for you Mr Penfold?" She asked. She hadn't had the opportunity to talk to him before the dinner, and she knew he was going back to MACUSA the next morning.
He handed her a letter.
"That's from the President," he said seriously. "She wants to know what your intentions are with continuing employment once your field work is done."
"Oh," Tina felt her stomach fall. "Newt and I haven't talked about it yet…"
"I suggest you should," He said. "She wants to know by the end of the week Goldstein."
Tina nodded, looking at the envelope in her hand, before glancing across the room to where Newt stood.
"Hey," Penfold said quietly, "I'm pretty sure your guy will be happy with wherever you two decide to settle. So long as you're together, right?"
"Yeah," Tina replied quietly. She looked over to Newt again, this time catching his eye. He smiled brightly at her, frowning at the weak smile he got in return, before turning back to the Brazilian professor. Moments later, he was crossing the room towards her.
"Mr Penfold," Newt greeted, "Good to see you again Sir."
"You too Scamander," Penfold raised his glass in a salute, "Don't mind me, I need to talk to the English ministry before I turn in for the night."
With a mock salute with his glass, Penfold melted into the crowd. Newt turned to Tina immediately.
"What's wrong?" he asked quietly.
"Nothing," Tina said, not meeting his eye. He raised his eyebrow in disbelief.
"I know you better than that," He said, his hand moving to grip her elbow lightly, despite the crowd. She was pretty sure he couldn't even see them. "What's bothering you?"
"Something Penfold said about what we're going to do after this trip," She admitted.
"Oh, is that all?" Newt said lightly. Tina glared up at him that all? "I'll go wherever you are of course."
He was smiling down at her in that adorable, sincere and honest way which turned her knees to mush.
"We can talk about it later," She smiled back, tucking the letter into his pocket. "Come on, I need to introduce you to some people, given how you've spent the last hour and a half hiding in the corner over there!"
"I wasn't hiding," he muttered to her, but allowed her to lead him back into the fray.
"You so were," Tina muttered back.
….
"Thank you for inviting us Minister," Tina smiled up at the man, ducking her head in appropriate farewell. Waving hands haphazardly in Egypt wasn't done, considering they didn't use wands, but instead created sparks from their fingers.
"Yes," Newt copied her hastily, "Thank you for a very pleasant evening, Minister."
"I'll have the final copy of my manuscript to you tomorrow," Tina added, taking Newt's arm, "We can discuss the paragraph your advisors have had issue with, and see what I can do to make it better."
"Miss Goldstein, I await your arrival," The minister said in his slow, deep voice. They all inclined their heads again, before Tina led Newt to the apparition point. In Egypt, they thought that you would be able to apparate safer if you faced a picture of where you were going. Tamir, their host, lived in a wizarding community further down the Nile, whose picture was represented on the wall.
They landed in the centre of the community, mostly empty given the late hour.
"So, are you going back to the nesting sites tomorrow?" Tina asked as they walked slowly towards the edge of the village where Tamir lived. They were both stalling, knowing that when they went they reached the house, they would be actually have to separate.
"Yes," Newt said quickly, "Yes, there are a few things I wish to investigate about the nesting habits with relation to the other young in the nest. One of the nesting mothers seems to have five eggs, which is incredibly rare. What will you have tomorrow?"
"Well, a few of the advisors didn't like how I phrased a few things, so we've convened a meeting at midday to discuss alternatives. They like the rest, it's just that bit," Tina sighed and rested her head against his shoulder. "Benefit of being surrounded by creatures all day?"
"You don't have to deal with people," he finished for her quietly. "Which is why you, my dear, deal with other wizards, and I, as you so eloquently put it, hide."
"So much for, Oh, Tina, I'll embarrass you," Tina tried mimicking his accent. He chuckled at the attempt. They stopped at the edge of Tamir's compound. "So, I suppose I won't see you until tomorrow night now…."
"Possibly not even till the morning after," he admitted sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. "We're going out at dawn, but I may stay, one last night. I haven't seen one hatch yet. Just the egg..."
Tina nodded in resignation. She tucked her arms around his chest, his automatically circling round her.
"See you possibly tomorrow, possibly the day after then," she mumbled into his "dress" waistcoat.
"I wish you could come too," he sighed. "You'd love the nests! They're works of art, Tina."
"Go!" Tina disentangled herself, reaching up to press a kiss to his mouth. "I'll see you tomorrow."
Newt stood looking at her, his eyes crinkled from his smile.
"Love you," he said softly.
"Love you too," she whispered, finding it oh so hard to look away.
Tamir opened the back door.
"Come inside now," he called out, causing Newt to step away from Tina as if scalded and open the gate for her. Tamir was shaking his head in amusement when they reached the door.
Newt glanced over at Tina happily as she bid her goodnights and made her way to her room, leaving Newt discussing the trip to the phoenix sites the following morning.