Jacob put down the parchment and eyed Newt carefully. 'Tina hasn't seen this yet, has she?'

Newt, one hand still holding up his Murtlap, shrugged. 'No, not yet. Theseus has given her so much work that she hasn't had time.'

'Thank mercy,' Jacob muttered under his breath. While Newt walked back to the Murtlap's enclosure to release the creature, Jacob scanned over Newt's draft speech again. He took a deep breath. He had his work cut out for him.

'So what do you think?' Newt asked, returning with his hands covered in slime and totally oblivious to Jacob's look of bemused apprehension. Newt cleaned his hands with a quick 'scourgify'.

Jacob took a deep breath. 'Well, this here's good about Leta's hidden heart of gold and how she's one of a kind, like a Demiguise.' Jacob paused, a thoughtful expression etched across his features. 'Though come to think of it, you might have to define Demiguise.'

'Right. Define...Demiguise...' Newt had grabbed a spare piece of parchment and a quill, and was taking notes on Jacob's advice.

Jacob was a little taken aback at the way Newt was jotting down his every word, but continued, 'Anyway, so all that's good. But then you go into three paragraphs on how Tina caught an Occamy with a teapot the first night she met a Demiguise. And don't get me wrong, I appreciate the mention of my cockroach-catching skills, but this ain't all that relevant.'

'It isn't?'

Newt's frown was saturated with innocent confusion.

'No, it ain't relevant at all,' Jacob explained patiently. 'Look, this is your brother and Leta's wedding. Leta's gonna be your sister-in-law. You gotta focus on them.'

'Oh.' Newt picked up his quill again. 'Focus...on...Theseus...and...Leta...'

'Right,' said Jacob, 'And this next bit where you recount how Theseus and Leta met is great, 'specially the bit where she hexed him for trying to get the Salamanders out of the fireplace so he could use the Floo. Yeah, that'll get a laugh. But this stuff about Tina's eyes again, Newt. Honestly, you can't be saying this stuff at Theseus' and Leta's wedding.'

'But it's only half a sentence!' Newt protested.

'Trust me, buddy. It's half a sentence too much.'

Jacob's look was so serious that Newt relented and jotted down more notes. 'Leave...out...salamander...eyes...'

'The rest looks pretty good though,' Jacob nodded approvingly at the rest of the parchment. 'Talking about how they compliment each other, Leta dumbing down Theseus' intense Auror ambitions, Theseus bringing out the softer side of Leta...all good stuff. Good job, buddy. I gotta hand it to you. It's gonna be a speech to remember.'

Newt grinned. 'Thanks, Jacob. I'd better get to writing a second draft so I can show Tina when she gets back.'

While Newt gathered his writing equipment, Jacob stood up from his seat, stretched his cramped shoulders a little and made to head back up the stairs. 'Happy to help, buddy,' he said. Then, under his breath, he murmured with a slight smile. 'If nothing else, it'll hold the record for most magical beasts mentioned at a wedding speech.'

Leaving Newt to edit out the excess 'Tina' in his speech, Jacob found himself creeping back to the kitchen where Queenie was cooking some sort of stew. It oozed with the delicious scent of nutmeg and thyme. Jacob's mouth began to water.

'Oh, hey, honey, how was Newt's speech?' Queenie turned to him with that radiant smile that still made him weak in the knees. He tried to focus on Newt's speech.

'Oh, that bad, huh?' said Queenie with a sly smile. 'Pity Tina didn't get to read his first draft.'

'Whose first draft?' Tina had traipsed into the kitchen, soaked to the skin and dripping water all over the tiles.

'Hey Tina,' Jacob said cheerfully, even though it was apparent from her bedraggled appearance that 'cheerful' was far from the appropriate mood. 'I didn't here you Apparraparate?'

'Apparate, honey,' Queenie corrected him absently, too distracted by Tina's whirlwind thoughts to pay much attention to Jacob's vocabulary.

Tina whisked out her wand and dried herself off, but distinct tracks of liquid remained on her cheeks. Tear tracks. 'I walked back,' she said in answer to Jacob's question.

'Oh, Teenie,' Queenie said softly, with a sad sigh. She gave her sister a brief hug and sat her down at the kitchen table, Summoning a mug into her hands and filling it with fresh cocoa.

Jacob sat down opposite Tina as she dazedly raised the mug to her lips. Queenie had turned back to her stew, but her face was flooded with concern and her mind carefully tuned in to her sister's emotions.

'Bad day at work, huh?' Jacob said gently.

Tina sighed, setting down the steaming mug. 'Five No-Maj children. We couldn't save them. Didn't even capture the scoundrels. All in broad daylight. The Obliviators were run off their feet.' Tears began to prick at her eyes again, and she raised the mug, letting the steam wash over her face in an attempt to hide them.

Feeling utterly helpless, Jacob said the only thing he could think of. 'Come, Tina, why don't I take you down to the basement. I'm sure Newt could do with your company.'

Tina hesitated. 'I don't want him to worry.'

'Don't, Teen, he cares for you. Besides, he ain't no fool. He pays so much attention he'll know right away you're upset,' Queenie chimed in. 'Go see him, Teen.'

'Come on, I'll take you.' Jacob motioned for her to go ahead of him down the stairs.

But just as they turned to go, a loud CRACK from the living room made all three of them jump. They hurried into the living room, Tina and Queenie already raising their wands suspiciously.

It was Theseus. Dressed in a dark trench coat and even more soaked to the skin than Tina was when she arrived, Theseus was clearly distraught. His eyes were darting wildly as he looked around, evidently trying to find Newt. His hands trembled a little as he returned his wand to his sleeve.

'Newt's just coming up now,' Queenie answered Theseus' unspoken question.

Sure enough, having heard Theseus Apparate, Newt had come bounding up the stairs. 'What's going on?'

Theseus' next words, his voice frail and broken, put a chill in everyone's hearts.

'Leta's missing.'