Notes: Hello everybody! We're back, after a mini-hiatus. Thank you once again for your patience and understanding. We really appreciate the kind comments you left as well. Hope you like the new chapter! \(^O^)/
Chapter Eleven
Kai POV
"Newton Artemis Fido Scamander!" One of the witches announces loudly with a distinct American accent, and marches over to wrap Newt in a tight hug.
"Ah, nice to see you too Clarisse." Newt says, looking mildly alarmed at having his arms pinned to his sides.
"We haven't seen you in ages! Who've you brought with you!" Clarisse asks, turning suddenly to stare at me. I involuntarily take a step back from the witch. She's not very tall, a bit shorter than me, and her long iron gray hair is pulled back into a simple braid, but she had sharp brown eyes that seem to pierce my skin.
"This is Kaimana, she my… er, my friend." Newt replies, tripping over his words a bit. Normally I'd be more upset about the "friend" comment, but at the moment I'm too focused on all the wizards staring at me to properly care.
Clarisse, thankfully, looks away from me to address Newt.
"Really. Your friend." She says dryly, and the tips of Newt's ears turn pink. He's saved from answering when another witch steps into the conversation.
"Nice to meet you, Kaimana." The woman says, and places a calming hand on Clarisse's arm. "I am Nicola, welcome to our shop." She says, with a gentle smile.
Nicola is a willowy witch, with long waves of brown hair that fall past her waist. Her dark brown eyes are warm, and her friendly voice put me instantly at ease.
"Hello, it's nice to meet you too." I say, and shake her hand.
Nicola smiles and pulls out a seat for us. I look at Newt, who blushes and sits down. I smirk and plop down into his lap. I feel him freeze up, and the others at the table laugh a little.
"She's feisty." Clarisse says, and I grin at her.
"Yes." Newt mutters, and wraps an arm around my waist. Behind us, Alexios snorts and pulls up a chair as well.
"What do you expect from a siren?" He says, but his tone is light and teasing.
Immediately, the other wizard who has yet to be introduced looks up from the card game and studies me with a critical eye.
"Are you really?" He asks, and I try not to shift uncomfortably under his scrutiny. Newt pulls me tight against him and rests his chin on my shoulder, no doubt attempting to calm me down.
"Yes." I reply, and his eyes light up with curiosity. The man opens his mouth to ask me something, but Nicola cuts him off.
"This is Dr. Rane, he's our resident potion's master. He studies the potential uses for various ingredients from magical creatures." She explains.
"What do you do?" I ask, interested to know more about these strange wizards.
"I'm a herbologist." Nicola says, with a wry smile.
"What about you?" I ask Clarisse.
"Hmmm. You could say I'm an archeologist. I study ancient magical relics." She answers, and that would definitely explain the shelves full of random objects that we walked past earlier.
"That is very interesting. I was always curious about magical relics before I was imprisoned, but after I was saved I was so busy with Newt and the other creatures I forgot I had that interest." I say, and she grins.
"Well, I could show you some of the things that I have laying around." She says, and I smile a little.
"I would love to take a look at them." I say, and Newt rubs my hip.
"I will make sure to have more relics around the case to so you have things to entertain yourself with," He says, and I kiss his cheek.
"I would enjoy that, love." I say.
Nicola smiles softly.
"I always knew Newt would end up with a pretty creature of his own," She says, and I blush slightly. Newt hums in agreement and presses kiss to my neck. Beside me Alexios rolls his eyes.
"So, Mr. Scamander. What brings you back here after all these years?" Dr. Rane asks suddenly.
"Actually, Alexios asked me to come. He said there was a gang of smugglers running around and the aurors weren't doing anything about them." Newt replies.
"Of course not. They're too busy chasing after us." Clarisse snorts.
"Yes, Alexios mentioned that as well." Newt responds, and I frown.
"Why would they chase you and not the smugglers?" I ask, and Clarisse looks at me.
"They don't understand us, and because of that they see us as a threat. So, they decided that we should be the ones hunted down and not the people doing the real crimes."
"That is ridiculous! If they had just talked with you they would see you all you care about is making sure the creatures are taken care of!" I spit, angry at the aurors and smugglers.
Alexios laughs.
"You're assuming the aurors actually care about the creatures. I promise you, they don't. They care about imprisoning as many "bad" witches as wizards as possible." He says, with an air of disdain.
"But you aren't bad!" I protest.
"Look at it from their point of view. We're a group of wizards who are on the run from the law in our own countries, we're here in this country without the proper paperwork, we brought along countless dangerous magical creatures, plants, and artifacts with us, and we've been here for several years now. To them, we are the bad guys. More so than the other criminals out there capturing and harming magical creatures that no one actually cares about." Alexios points out, leaving me at a loss for words. Maybe it's understandable, but that still doesn't make it right.
"It's alright, Kai. We can't fix everything, but we can at least try and save those poor creatures, right?" Newt says, rubbing my back, and offering me his gentle support. I lean more into him, and nods against his shoulder.
"Yes, they need to be saved," I agree, and they all smile at us.
"So, why did you call him here?" Clarisse asks Alexios, who sighs.
"Well, you know about the smugglers and… I think they have a Thunderbird." He says, and I look at him in confusion. What is a Thunderbird? All of the wizards at the table exchange worried glances.
"Are you sure it's a Thunderbird?" Nicola asks.
"Yes," He says, and they all frown.
"I had heard something in passing, but I never believed it was a Thunderbird." Clarisse says.
"I'm sorry, but what is a Thunderbird?" I interject, and Clarisse turns and grabs a book from a shelf behind her. She flips through it and stops on a page, showing it to me.
I lean forward to see detailed artwork of the magnificent creature and read the description written underneath it. "The thunderbird is described as having a head that is similar to that of a Hippogriff; they possess multiple powerful wings, with six wings in total. Thunderbird feathers shimmer with cloud-like patterns, and the birds' flapping can create storms as they fly. Thunderbirds can sense danger, and they are closely related to phoenixes."
I glance up at the small group of wizards standing around me with a look of fierce determination.
"We need to save this creature, and quickly." I say.
"How do you know about this, Alexios?" Newt asks, his arms tightening slightly around my waist.
"When the group first started making trouble I went to check out their operation, and… well. It wasn't pretty. They had dozens of creatures, all injured and malnourished. I only caught a glimpse of the Thunderbird, but I'm certain that's what it was. I knew I couldn't do anything to rescue the other creatures until I got someone who actually knew how to deal with a Thunderbird. That's why I decided to call you." Alexios admits.
"You're not serious?" Clarisse demands, "How could you not tell us about this, Alexios?!"
"I'm sorry. I knew if I told you, you would want to go and try to save it, and I knew we needed Newt's expertise before we did anything." He says, looking guilty.
"It's good that you didn't try to save it yourselves, Thunderbirds can be extremely dangerous, especially if you don't know how to properly care for them. I just hope we're not too late." Newt says, worrying his lip between his teeth.
"Well the we should go as soon as possible, we can't risk this." I announce, standing up and pulling Newt up with me. "Where is the Thunderbird being held? And how do we get there?" I ask, using my most authoritative voice that I usually save for niffler when he's misbehaving.
"It just east of here. I will show you to it." Alexios says, and everyone stands.
"We will save these creatures. Newt, once we do will you take them back with you?" I ask him.
"Of course. Although, it may take a bit of time to set up all their habitats." He says, and I frown a little.
"We will help you." Clarisse says, and the others agree with her.
"Thank you." Newt says, and takes my hand. I look expectantly at Alexios, who sighs and nods.
"Follow me." Alexios says. He leads us out, a chorus of well-wishes from the other wizards following after us.
Alexios leads us back the way we came through the maze of cages until we're standing right back at the beginning, a bright blue owl swinging over my head, and a huge rainbow snake coiled lazily on a rock in the store window.
"Are you ready? Do you have everything you need? This could be really dangerous. You don't have to go." Alexios murmurs anxiously.
"You called me from half-way across the world, it's a little too late to back out. Besides, you know me, I can't walk away from a creature in need." Newt says, giving Alexios a comforting pat on the shoulder.
"I know." The nymph says with a grimace. "Alright, if you're sure."
Alexios holds out his arm, and Newt takes it without hesitation. I take a deep breath and steel myself for whatever may come. Then, without warning, there's a loud snap and we're disapparating out of the little shop.