Percival Graves returns to high society in the States and is reminded why he chose to remain in New York City as an Auror for so long. How the heck did Grindelwald go from international terrorist to Supreme Mugwump candidate between 1927-1932? I guess one will have to look at real life history about how such things are possible. For starters, the organization would have to be legitimized.

In High Society

Eddie and Gabby wasted no time in breeding. Percival was not familiar with house-elf breeding habits, but triplets were a large brood. They had two elves from Capri join the household – twins Morty and Frollo. The pair soon set the grounds to rights in time to host the first ever Halloween gala dinner at the Graves family seat open to the wizarding elite in many years. Still, they need to hire from Plummy's again to cater to the guests.

His disability was known to most by now, and no matrons were urging their daughters his way with an eye for marriage. Seraphina was another matter. Seraphina was attending on behalf of her brother and as co-owner of the prominent Liberty Teashop franchise in addition to her status as former President. She hovered nearby, close enough to intervene and extricate him from any tricky social situation or potential gaffe but not so close as to stifle him. There were discussions about developments in Europe and Grindelwald's apparent rehabilitation in Germany, pushed forward by the incumbent Supreme Mugwump Vogel too. Percival earned himself Seraphina's heel on his foot when he got too undiplomatic in his remarks about what he thought of the situation.

There was talk of President Able Fisher's decision not to run for the post of Supreme Mugwump in 1932. The MacDuff family head apologized and assured Percival that Malcolm MacDuff would trouble them no more. That made the wine sour on Graves' tongue. They likely had Malcolm buried so deep in prison or an asylum, that he would never be free in this lifetime. No one from MACUSA attended. President Fisher had declined the invitation, pleading urgent family matters. Graves planned to invite Tina Goldstein and his former colleagues to a more intimate gathering after the gala.

An hour and a half into the dinner, he felt like Apparating into the woods, or even Alaska, splinching be damned. Seraphina laid her hand in the crook of his elbow and steered him into a discussion with representatives from Ilvermorny, including Professor Lally Hicks. Professor Hicks gave a glowing report of the current batch of Graves children schooling in Ilvermorny and thanked Graves for his family's contribution to the new medical wing. Graves jested that seeing the current generation's misadventures in Quidditch, it might be prudent to ensure his heir had the best medical care available.

He glanced over to Cousin Sheridan and his eldest son. His cousin and potential heir were both enjoying the party, mingling with the guests. He would allow a few more years before making the naming of his heir formal. Dr Ajay Fontaine called him aside for a quick medical scan when he noticed how his patient was flagging. He was slapped with doctor's orders to hold back on the wine in favour of gillywater or pumpkin juice.

It was three in the morning when the last guest left. Most guests do not stay over apart from family and close friends. Mrs Graves had long retired to her room by then. Percival was so exhausted, he fell asleep in the drawing room and awoke to find himself cuddled up to Sera, who was similarly sleeping on the couch. He thought the smell of her stale rose perfume mixed with sweat was sweeter than any fragrance from the scents his mother had the elves douse the place with to remove the stale cigar smoke and other unsavoury odours.

The press representatives at the gala could have had their photos splashed on the front pages of all wizarding newspapers but Percival found he did not mind. If anyone had anything to say about a former MACUSA president and her Director of Magical Law Enforcement cuddling together on a couch, they could stuff their wands up where the sun doesn't shine. He would not mind waking up each morning to a kiss from her.

There were only eight other families remaining of the original Twelve, the remaining families having died out or moved back to the Old World. Lord MacDuff was not keen on intervening in the wizarding war. Madame Lopez was similarly unwilling to choose a side. Lord Jonah Wilkinson was already well past his hundredth year and fell asleep over his pudding. Lord Grimsditch firmly stated that Grindelwald was a European problem despite his little stint in New York. Lords Weiss and Fischer declared that they would support Grindelwald's organization if it left behind its terrorist ways. No one needed any more wars. Lords O' Brien and Fontaine were more amendable to Graves' belief that Grindelwald might intervene in the Americas at some point. However, even they would not commit, at least not openly. Were it not for Sera's hand on his elbow, he might have hexed his peers into the new year.


There were more social events he attended with Seraphina or his mother by his side. Seraphina was the picture of charm and dignity as she beamed at the press, keeping him from bolting at times. The Yule Ball and New Year slipped by as 1930 arrived. Newt found time to visit Tina in New York, on a stopover to the West Coast. At the same time, Graves drove down to the city for a routine scan at St Kitts and meet up with the pair for dinner.

Jacob Kowalski was not doing well. He could not accept losing Queenie and began to withdraw from his magical friends. Newt was perturbed when Jacob declined to meet up with him and Tina to see some new hatched occamies in his suitcase. Graves was invited into the suitcase and tried his hand at feeding the bowtruckles. He chose to ignore any licenses Newt might have overlooked for his creatures to enter the States, so long as he kept his creatures in his suitcase, especially that Niffler.

Theseus dropped by for a brief visit in early spring. They talked of the upcoming election in 1932. The candidates were massing their supporters, running and being eliminated from the race. The British candidate suffered a crushing defeat against the Scandinavians' candidate. The Russian candidate had an accident with a Ukrainian Ironbelly, squashed flat like a blini. The African candidates refused to run in protest over the ICW's biased wand criteria. The Latin Americans were fielding Madame Vicencia Santos and the East Asian ministries had flagged dark horse Liu Tao as their man. Their original candidate got mauled by a Qilin. There were whispers, especially in the European ministries, about suspicious illnesses or accidents, or candidates suddenly opting not to run for personal reasons.


One of the hardest things about Nurmengard was the loneliness that set in with the first nip of fall and did not lift until the daffodils peeked out from the snows. Young Eva and her professor were persuaded to work for His Lordship. The old professor was not doing well. Queenie was not sure if his health was frail to start with or if the Crucios had taken a toll on him. The pair worked in the deepest dungeon of the castle, concocting goodness-knew-what potions for their captor. Only a select few were allowed to witness the works and none of them would divulge anything.

During the long winter nights, it was too easy to allow one's guard down and seek solace in another's embrace. There were affairs aplenty in the castle in the winter months. Even the stern Vinda had her flings. Only Grindelwald remained aloof for the most part during his too brief sojourn over Yule. There were times when he showed some affection to Aurelius – a smile, a word of praise, a kiss to the brow. Queenie did not know if they were genuine or merely crumbs to keep the boy's loyalty.

Queenie spent her free time with the professor or Aurelius. She knew both would never take advantage of any weakness on her part. The professor was researching some reverse Death potion, that Queenie gleaned from his mind when she peeked. The idea made her skin crawl as she imagined pools with inferi lurking beneath them. Eva Prince was hopelessly naïve when it came to matters of the heart. Queenie had warned Abernathy off the girl. Perhaps the toad could not pass up such easy prey, or it might be another acolyte. The results were the same.

"Deep breaths, sweetie…" Queenie coaxed as the poor girl retched over the sink. How far along was she? Most witches learnt contraceptive potions from their mothers or older female relatives, just in case. Perhaps the potion was badly made, or she ran out of ingredients.

Queenie was no healer, but the signs were undeniable. Eva Prince had been looking awfully pale and peaked. For the past week, she had been running from the breakfast table to the privy each morning, if not buried under her quilt in misery. Still, the progress of whatever work the pair were engaged in must have been to Lord Grindelwald's satisfaction.

This was no place for a child to be born and raised. Would Eva be allowed to keep the child, to birth it even? Someone else would figure it out soon. If only they could get the young woman away from here…

"I believe a word of congratulations is in order for Miss Prince," Grindelwald tapped his spoon on his wine glass for attention at dinner. "Did anyone not notice we have a little one among us?" His mismatched eyes swept over his acolytes.

The poor witch sank down in her chair with a whimper. The wizards exchanged glances, but no one made any move, until Queenie did.

"Oh, how darling! A baby," Queenie drawled. She took Eva's hand and give it a squeeze. "You'd need things for yourself and the baby…" She was sure she sounded like a giddy schoolgirl as she chattered about baby quilts and maternity robes to Grindelwald's bemusement.

Queenie glanced at each of the wizards in turn. Abernathy was suddenly very interested in his soup. Nagel refused to meet Queenie's eyes. Krafft simply smirked and stared back at Queenie, enough for her to confirm he was not the father as he had been bedding Vinda over the past months. Zabini simply shrugged indifferently. Carrow was spluttering some protest about not wanting Eva or the baby about to hold back His Lordship's plans.

"Oh, madame, I agree. Perhaps Miss Prince should leave to have the child…" Queenie grabbed her chance.

"No, we still have need of Miss Prince's talents and the baby will not be due for a while…" Grindelwald interjected. "After her work here is done, Goldstein may bring her elsewhere to have the child."

A slight win. Queenie patted Eva's hand reassuringly.


"I miss Queenie," Tina murmured as she burrowed against Newt's bare chest. Another stopover in New York before he returned to Britain to write on the White River Monster.

"I know…" Newt kissed the top of her head. Both were tangled up in the sheets of the cot in his shed. "Where is Mister Graves now?"

There was something he needed to approach Graves about. His parents have been reminding him of it. He needed permission from him as Tina's de facto guardian to formally court her. It was ridiculously old-fashioned and proper. He had a ring ready more than once, but he kept losing them thanks to Teddy and company before he could string together a proper proposal without muffing his words. He knew where to look for the ring now. It was likely in Teddy's pouch or in the nest.

"In Alsace or Geneva… Family business matters" Tina murmured sleepily. Graves' world was a far cry from hers now. He had left the world of Auror work and MACUSA behind. As did Madame Picquery. The pair attended charity galas and society dinners. Spellbound splashed the couple's photos on their pages captioned the Beauty and the Beast. Madame Picquery was still strikingly beautiful at her age, and Graves came by his scars honourably. The Auror office had an ongoing wager as to whether the pair would ever make their relationship official and get hitched. The New York Ghost wrote about Graves' foolhardy investments in European railways and airships. Tina could not believe that after regaining his magic, her Uncle Percy would be content to sit back and spend his time dabbling in business.

Has it been three years already? Three years since they rescued Uncle Percy. Three years since they lost Queenie and Credence. Three years since they reconnected but their relationship did not seem to be going anywhere. Could she give up her career in MACUSA to follow Newt chasing after rare magical beasts? Or would he stop his adventuring to settle down?

"They sighted a Qilin in Kweilin, China. They believe it is part of a mated pair. We do not see them that often. This was the first recorded Qilin attack in four centuries. The locals know it as the kingmaker beast…" Newt gushed on about his plans for his next adventure.


Charmed two-way pocket mirrors. Percival Graves browsed the meagre selection of souvenirs on offer in the station store. A luxury wizarding express to run from London, along the coast to northern France to Germany, Austria, Switzerland and down to Italy. It had looked good on paper, but once he was on the ground… Graves chuckled. A lot of work was needed on the alpine side of the tracks. Alpine trains were used mainly for transporting goods and livestock. The scenery was great only for a few weeks when the flower meadows bloomed. Local wixen preferred broomsticks or hippogriffs to get about the valleys. Cousin Sheridan would tear into him when the accounts came up at the end of the year. Perhaps he was not suited for business either. He bought a pair of mirrors as souvenirs.

He had forgone his fashionably tailored clothes in favour of more practical garments for walking in the alpine valleys. It made a welcome change from hobnobbing with the elite. He probably looked like a tramp after that run-in with the billy goat sharing his railcar on the way up. He gave up on shaving after losing his charmed razor in Vienna. Results shaving with his wand were highly unsatisfactory. Purchases in hand, he strode off to the waiting room and was surprised to find it occupied by two witches. One was a pale middle-aged witch. The other was…

"Gutentag, Fraulein…" Percival called out a greeting in German and sat across from the pair, looking directly into Queenie's green eyes as he took a swig from his flask of elderflower tea. Could she recognize him? More importantly, were they in danger in this Swiss backwater?

Author's Notes:

Switzerland has 3 official languages which are shared with her neighbours – German, French and Italian. The fourth is their local Romansh.

The Qilin is described as a benevolent creature in Chinese myth but with a fierce side (part dragon). I imagine if one gets mauled by a Qilin, it will bring into question one's suitability as Supreme Mugwump candidate. Tina and Newt are still seeing each other but neither are in a hurry to progress into marriage.