Disclaimer: I don't own Rose Granger-Weasley, Newt Scamander or any other character created by J.K. Rowling. My aim is merely to entertain and play around with them a little.
Chapter thirty-seven: In which Rio de Janeiro is stifling hot
The gang – minus Yusuf and Theseus – soon gathered at the Scamander house, and Rose was finally made aware of the real reason for Tina's foul mood. She's cornered her sister as soon as Queenie and Jacob had stepped inside the living-room, had grabbed her hands and, brow furrowed, she'd told her everything about the earlier meeting.
"I'm sure Mr Travers will let you two come as well," the brunette said at long last. "You could pretend it's part of the honeymoon you never had."
Rose realised then: Tina didn't want to leave her sister behind. She was angry that Queenie hadn't even been mentioned back at the Ministry. And it made total sense, too.
The blonde surprised them all, though, when instead of nodding or agreeing in any way with her older sister, she shook her head with a giggle that Jacob surprisingly mirrored a few seconds later. "No, Teens, it's actually better for us to stay here…" She turned to Newt, eyes glistening with an emotion Rose couldn't place at first. "We can take care of your roommates, Newt, help Bunty out. Jacob loves doing it, and he hasn't been able to for a while."
"But, Queens," Tina said, trailing off when her sister freed one hand to place on her stomach.
Nagini understood before anyone else, and gasped delightfully.
"I'm pregnant," Queenie said then, a grin splitting her lovely face in two as Jacob started giggling again.
The following minutes were spent hugging, congratulating and laughing. Tina's mood was lifted immediately by the prospect of being an aunt; but Rose couldn't help but feeling a bit uneasy about her closest friend not coming with them to Brazil…
"It'll be alright, darlin'," Queenie said, having probably overheard her thoughts. She came closer, her smile still as magnificent as two minutes prior, and Rose imitated her without realising. "You'll be in safe hands."
And Rose hugged her tight once more. "I'm so happy for you, Queens."
The blonde giggled again, and then, Newt said, looking as serious as ever, "I just hope this child of yours takes after its mother."
Jacob's outraged 'Hey!' made everyone laugh harder.
It took Travers three days to get the Portkey. Only one for Dumbledore to hand Newt the 'schedule' of his book-signings. And probably less than an hour for Rose to feel like she was once again running head-first into a trap.
Brazil being much hotter a country than England, she'd packed lighter clothes, mainly white, and decided to wear a thin pair of light blue cotton trousers with a white blouse. Nobody was really surprised to see her forgo wearing a dress, but Tina smirked when she assessed her attire all the same.
Queenie, Jacob, Yusuf, Bunty and Dumbledore had come to see them off at the Ministry. Newt's smitten assistant had been given a notebook filled with instructions, and was cradling it to her chest as if it was the most precious gift she'd ever been given. Yusuf exchanged a few words with Theseus and Tina; and Dumbledore wished them all luck.
Then, after the usual hugging session, all five of them gathered around a battered pan that grabbed them around their navel and pulled them, yet again, to another continent…
The first thing that Rose clocked upon landing was the stifling heat. The second thing was the loud, very loud buzz of conversation and activities around them all. They'd landed in the wizarding part of Rio, but it still looked like an overcrowded Trafalgar Square on Remembrance Day.
Left and right, people buzzed about, waving potion supplies or wands in the air, shouting prices in Brazilian Portuguese. Some people, apparently unbothered by the crowd, weaved around them to accost those who sold something of interest to them. None of them seemed encumbered by the heat.
"Merlin," Tina swore a second later, "it's horrifyingly warm…"
"Maybe you shouldn't have worn black, Teens," Rose chastised her friend, who'd refused to change her colour-pattern. Tina glared at her playfully, but a wave of her wand and a chilling charm later, she appeared much more at ease.
Rose found her idea a stellar one, and applied the same charm upon herself, then Nagini, who looked at her gratefully. The young woman was not as relaxed as the others looked. She was never really comfortable with crowded areas, and this was a really crowded area.
"Abernathy!" Theseus then hissed, drawing out his wand and turning to the crowd.
Everyone mirrored him, searching through the sea of people for the short American. Newt was the first to spot him, but Rose soon did too.
It was impossible to mistake him for anyone else. He was weaving through the crowd, jaw set as he pushed people to and fro to reach his destination. Apparently, the pavement, though it was invisible in such a crowd.
He hadn't seen them. Which Tina immediately thought suspicious.
"If he was standing there, then he surely has seen us arrive. A Portkey landing isn't exactly discreet."
Theseus nodded his assent. "Yeah, he must have seen us." He was gritting his teeth, but lowered his wand. "Chance that he might have been waiting for us?"
Rose shook her head, eyes glued to where the former MACUSA official had vanished in what looked like a café. "I think he wants us to follow him in there…"
Theseus turned his gaze to her, hard and almost cold. "See what I meant? We've barely landed and they're already trying to get us into a trap!"
She glared back, unafraid to show her anger. "They'd have tried to lure you into a trap if I hadn't been there, too! Stop being such a moron!" She sharply turned to Tina, who was regarding her with wide surprised eyes. "What do we do?"
"Well," Newt answered in her stead, "obviously we can't follow him. It undoubtedly is a trap."
Tina nodded. "Yes, let's ignore it. At least we know they really are here. Let's go to the Ministry first. We can't risk it without having backup."
Theseus, who was still glaring at Rose, snarled. "Fine. Let's go."
The Brazilian Ministry's entrance lay at the bottom of the Morro da Babilônia, one of the three well-known peaks towering over Rio. From far away, Rose caught a glimpse of the Cristo Redentor, which wasn't finished yet. It was a bit surreal, because she was so used to seeing pictures of it in all its glory. She wondered if she'd ever get used to it.
Sculpted into the granite, a little way from the tourists' entrance to the cable-cars leading to the Sugarloaf Mountain, was the face of a winged serpent. Tina, after checking the notes Travers had given her, placed her hand on the head of the snake, and phased through the rock after looking back at her friends.
One by one, they imitated her. Not knowing if the magic in Nagini's veins would allow her through, Rose held her hand while they entered.
Just like the British Ministry of Magic, the Brazilian counterpart, despite being built underground, was lit with artificial light coming from fake windows. The decorating style of its Atrium differed greatly from what the Brits – and American – all knew, though. Obviously inspired by its European roots, the Brazilians had used mosaics to represent one of Brazil's most famous landscapes: the Amazonian jungle. While, in London, the fountain depicted magical fraternity through different races, here, the main fountain made its water run through luxurious plants before falling down and following its course to two smaller fountains where glittered jewels.
Colourful parrots flew overhead to deliver messages, and Rose was astonished to see so many blue macaws when, in her time, they were an endangered species.
Most people buzzing about were men, dark haired and eyed; but the person they found at the information desk was, unsurprisingly, a woman. What was more surprising was the fairer tint of her hair, and her green eyes. Rose thought she might have been of mixed heritage.
The witch scanned them all with a perfunctory smile, before saying "Bem-vindo ao Ministério da Magia. Como posso ajudá-lo?" Obviously, none of them spoke Portuguese, and she noticed their confusion immediately, her smile straining as she repeated in broken English, "Welcome to the Ministary da Magic. How I help?"
Theseus stepped forward, clearing his throat. "We're from England, reporting our presence as tourists."
The woman's brow furrowed, but her smile didn't dim. "Turistas?" When Theseus nodded, she turned to a huge book of admission, no doubt, and placed it on top of the counter, pointing at a line with a quill. "Sign name here."
Theseus wordlessly did it, slipping a letter on top of the book for the witch to take. She was visibly surprised, but opened the envelope all the same. The eldest Scamander had been given it by Travers. It was written in Portuguese, and disclosed the real reason for their visit.
As he handed his brother the quill for Newt to sign the book, the witch's brow furrowed, and then, she turned to the macaw waiting on a perch behind her desk, handing it the letter and the name of the person it had to carry it to. Then, she nodded solemnly at Theseus, who looked visibly relieved. So far, so good.
Tina signed the book after Newt, then handed Rose the quill. The red-head approached the book and mirrored what information had been put down by her friends previously. 'Nome: Rose Scamander. Nacionalidade: English. Objetivo da visita: Book-signing.'
Someone had approached the group as she was writing, holding Travers' letter. It was a tall, black-haired man with hazel eyes and a bright smile. He marched towards Theseus immediately, and offered him a hand to shake.
"Welcome, Mr Scamander," he said jovially, with a lovely accent peeking through. "My name is Joao Santos, I'm a Caçador. An Auror, if you want. I will help you during your visit."
Theseus nodded, and introduced each member of their party. Rose, having done her part, handed Nagini the quill, and while the young Maledictus wrote down her own name, she met the man's eyes.
His gaze brightened immediately as he clocked her face, then studied her attire before glancing up at her once more. His smile widened into a grin, and the hint of flirtation rose into his expression as he grasped her offered hand and lowered a kiss onto her knuckles.
"This is my…sister, Miss Rose Scamander," Theseus was saying in an edgy tone, but Rose couldn't think on it right then. Joao's gaze was too captivating.
"Miss Rose," the Brazilian Auror almost purred, "it is a pleasure to make your acquaintance."
She couldn't help it, she blushed.
Well, then. Brazil wasn't so bad, after all…