They had spent nearly the whole day packing. We'll, everyone except Newt, who had situated himself at the far end of the dining table, reading the newspaper at least several times to occupy himself. Tina and Queenie had busied themselves upstairs, attempting to calculate the appropriate number of outfits for the journey. Newt had no idea how long they would be gone, it was hard to say. Grindelwald's movements were unpredictable, and new points were popping up on the map by the hour. He knew because he had been watching said paper for hours.

"Hey, Newt?" Jacob said suddenly, awkwardly shifting into a chair at the table. Newt looked up from the paper, he realized he hadn't even been reading it for the past minute.

"Er, Yes?"

Newt had already assumed Jacob was going to say something about not being able to go. He held his breath.

"Can you uh, tell the girls I head out to confirm my absence back at the bakery? I shouldn't be long."

A smile tugged at Newts lips.

"Yes, I will most certainly let them know, Mr. Kowalski."

"Thanks bud," Jacob said, clapping him on the shoulder.

Newt watched as Jacob carefully slipped out the door, then disappeared. His short lived happiness faded quickly as his eyes went back to the map on the table. He picked it up gingerly, already knowing there would be a new mark somewhere outrageous in the few seconds Jacob excused himself. It hadn't changed for a while since Missouri.

This time was different though.

Point after point, every second another showed up, stretching from Washington to West Virginia. He was apparating every second. Newt followed the appearing dots across the sheet, each place more random than the next.

Then it stopped.

One more point slowly materialized. New York. Right within the city. Newt's gut did a triple front flip. No more action. No more points. That was it. He couldn't help but imagine Grindelwald standing outside in the street at that moment.

"Newt?" Tina rounded the corner, her eyes rounding at the look of of horror that was sure to be on Newt's face. Perfect timing, huh?

"Tina we need to cast spells on the house, now," Newt said, standing up. She looked at him incredulously.

"Newt, what on earth are you talking about? What's going on?"

Newt practically sprinted to the window, nothing outside. Yet.

"It's Grindelwald, he-he's here, in New York, the Map went nuts and now he's here-"

"Wait- he's back? Here? In New York?"

Newt nodded breathlessly. It was as if all the air had been ripped out of his lungs. He was losing it faster than he was gaining it. There was no possible way he was back.

But the case was so close now..

"Newt, you need to calm down and please explain what's happening,"

He put his head down and handed her the map, shifting his weight nervously, trying to steady his breathing. After a moment he heard Tina's soft "Oh my god.."

"Let's get some charms cast, we'll look over this later." She decided, tossing the paper unto the table.

They both spread to different parts of the house, casting protective spells that would hopefully keep Grindelwald at bay, if he did decide to drop in. After ten agonizing minutes of spell casting, they covered the whole apartment.

"Tina," Queenie emerged from the stairs. Newt almost forgot she was there. She looked panicked. "There's explosions down the street. Where's Jacob?"

"Why do you ask?"

Queenie went pale. "Oh lord please don't tell me he went back.."

"Why? Queenie what's happening?" Tina asked, now panicked as well. Newt couldn't blame her, he was panicking too. Everything was happening way to fast for his liking.

"Those explosions were right near his bakery, Newt do you have any idea where he is or what's going on?"

"I-I.." He knew he needed to tell them Jacob had left, but the words weren't coming.

"Newt please!"

"He left to go tell them he would be gone, I-I was supposed to tell you but then everything happened I'm sorry-"

The words spilled out of him like a tap that he couldn't adjust. He put his hands on his head, taking a step backwards. Everything was overwhelming him now.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," he repeated this as he stumbled backwards and out of the room, not looking back.

Tina

She watched as Newt tore out of the room, practically sobbing. She lunged after him, but was stopped by Queenie grabbing her wrist.

"Give him a minute, Teen, he's been through a lot."

"I need to see if he's alright," she protested, pulling against her sisters restraints. Queenie didn't budge.

"He'll be fine. He just needs some time alone, trust me."

Tina sighed, and yielded to her sisters wishes. Something she didn't like to do.

"I'm gonna go check and see if Jacob's alright," she said, quickly moving to the door. "Just wait a while, and I mean it. I know you."

"Okay, okay. Why don't I come?" Tina suggested.

"He might need you after while Teen. I'll be back in a jiffy."

Tina watched helplessly as her sister left, leaving her alone in the kitchen. It was dead silent. She walked over, looking again at the map, hoping there would be some new development to distract her. To her dismay there was nothing. She had to have stared at the paper for a solid 3 minutes before finally deciding to put it down. She couldn't take it. She needed to check on Newt. She turned the corner slowly, not knowing what she would find. He didn't have his case, so there was really no telling where he had gone. The apartment wasn't big though, so she wouldn't be looking long.

"Newt?" She called, already knowing the chances of her receiving any sort of response were slim.

She kept calling until she finally found him, sitting in the corner of the bedroom, his knees up to his chest. The way he looked reminded her that of a child who had just been yelled at. His head rested on his arms, facing right into the wall.

"Newt?" She said softly. He flinched slightly, but didn't turn his head.

She walked over, slowly sinking down on the floor next to him. She gingerly put a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry," He whispered, "I'm ruining everything."

"Newt you haven't ruined anything. We were distracted, I'm sure Queenie will come back with Jacob any second and it will all be alright. Just a little scare, that's all."

His eyes looked down, half his face was still covered by his arms. She lowered her head to his, forcing their eyes to meet.

"Listen, I know you've been through a lot. We're going to get the case back, okay? It will be alright, trust me." She said, now rubbing his shoulder comfortingly. He spoke, his voice soft, yet shaky. He turned to her, slowly. She hated seeing him like this. It only fueled her determination to get the case back.

"But what if we don't?"

"We will Newt, we will."

Pop!

Tina and Newt jerked their heads as Jacob and Queenie appeared, Jacob being supported by Queenies arm.

"Flying cars sure are fun!" Jacob slurred, his body weight rocking back and forth.

"He's alright, just a little shook up from a minor Taxi incident," Queenie reassured them, hauling the loopy Jacob out of the room.

Tina had turned to speak to Newt again when she heard a loud screech and multiple thuds as Jacob fell down the stairs. She smiled unconvincingly at Newt, attempting to hide her cringes at the noise. Thankfully she heard the faintest traces of Jacob laughing.

"See? He's fine."

Newt grinned slightly, which made Tina feel a lot better. She stood up, holding out her hand.

"Ready to come back downstairs, Mr. Scamander?"

Newt takes her hand and she pulls him up, almost effortlessly. Considering she was a fairly weak individual, she looked at him.

"Newt, have you been eating?"

The question seemed to have caught him by surprise.

"We'll, erm- maybe not as much but enough-"

She cut him off.

"Newt you need to eat," She gestured to his torso, which she had just noticed was abnormally skinny. How could she have missed that? "You're as thin and paper, and you look sick."

"I-I'm sure it's just-

"We're giving you a proper meal before we go, and you can't say otherwise."

Newt lowered his head, defeated. "Okay," He responded quietly.

"Good," Tina said. "Now get some rest, you need it."

She spun around before Newt could respond and headed down the stairs, very pleased at the won argument. Very pleased indeed.

"How's Jacob?" She asked, seeing her sister tending to Jacob in the kitchen.

"He's doing real good. Justa little shook up from the taxi," She said, applying some healing cream to his face. "He'll be fine and dandy by the time we leave."

Tina smiled. Not because of the comment, but just at the sudden realization they were finally going somewhere. They were going to leave New York, and quite possibly travel the country! Of course, it wouldn't be all kicks and giggles, but she was quite pleased to have a change of scenery. Something she never experiences except for at Ilvermorny. Plus, she would be getting to do it with Newt.

"Aw!" Queenie turned around, beaming. "You are really happy about that? Teen that's absolutely prec-"

"Sh!" Tina put her hands up, nervously looking to the stairs, remembering last time. "Don't say another word!"

Queenie grinned knowingly, then turned back to Jacob, whose arms were resting on the top of the corner. The dazed look on his face now gone.

"I bet I knew the lousy sap who hit me too," He muttered. Queenie giggled, rubbing in the last bit of ointment on his cheek. A common trend in the Goldsteins apartment, it seemed. She smiled, then went back to the living room to finish off her packing. Of course, she would be packing plenty of books, and files (Which she conveniently borrowed from MACUSA.) Of course, she was nervous. A trip like this could last weeks to months depending on how Grindelwald decides to behave. They barely even had a plan, but with all forms of transportation (except for portkeys, whom Queenie kindly mentioned,) but those are a huge hassle sometimes, and are hard to find in the middle of forests and deserts. So they would be traveling either by foot, car or some other means. That or patting rocks and trees for weeks on end. It would be too easy for Grindelwald to sense when they used magic to move, so they would need to sneak. She shook her head, and decided to dwell upon something else. She was confident Newt would be able to come up with a plan. If not, she could most certainly take over.

Newt

The name always struck a chord in her. Especially lately, seeing him in the state he was was absolutely dreadful. The way he cried, it made her feel so helpless. He could never imagine losing her life's work all at once. All of his creatures, that he fought hard to protect. No. She sternly forced the negative thoughts away. They were going to get the case back, no matter what. There wasn't a doubt in her mind, and if there was, it wouldn't be valid.

She would give her life to see Newt smile, and if it comes to it, then so be it. They were getting that case back.