Tina only allowed herself the comfort of lingering in place long enough to gather her bearings, garbled by the instantaneous rush and abrasive yank that went hand in hand with Flooing. She was tingling from head to toe, and her balance was off kilter when she cautiously stepped out of the fireplace. The witch dusted the ash from her sleeves and gave her dark hair a shake to rid the locks of any stray cinders hiding there. When her vision refocused and Tina felt her potency restored, she was greeted with a familiar work rush as she took her first glance up and down the long corridor. Wizards and witches alike scattered about their business much like at MACUSA, and the sight offered Tina a minor amount of solace.
Just as she was about to dive into the slew of Ministry employees in search of Newt, a young witch with a clipboard greeted her with a genuine smile.
"Good evening," she said, half glancing at the board in her hand. "Are you Miss Porpentina Goldstein? That is the only MACUSA arrival we have scheduled at this time."
Tina cleared her throat with a soft cough and tucked her hair behind her ears. "That's me."
"Great, may I see your papers please?" The woman asked.
Tina already had them in hand and issued them to the overly friendly witch quickly. It took the Ministry Floo attendant only a minute or two to document the details from her pass on to the paperwork trapped beneath the metal clip of the brown board before issuing the booklet back with a toothless smile. "There you are."
She drew her wand overhead suddenly, casting bright yellow sparks to spout noiselessly from the tip. Not a moment later, a house elf appeared out of thin air.
"Yes, ma'am?" The creature looked at the attendant quizzically.
"Would you kindly escort Miss Goldstein to Mr. Scamander's office in the Beast Division on the fourth level?"
The elf nodded and waved for Tina to follow him without any flair. "This way."
With a quick tuck of her pass back into her coat pocket, she shuffled behind the house elf. The Ministry was a grand establishment, much like MACUSA in that it had an overtly official appearance to it. Tina was secretly glad for that; it almost felt like home. The house elf masterfully maneuvered around the hordes of moving people, creating a narrow rift in the crowed for the American witch to easily pursue. Before long, her escort waved her onto an elevator, and with a snap of its boney fingers the lift jolted upward, stopping abruptly at level four.
The gated doors gave way to reveal an open room, with many desks scattered about. Wizards and witches occupied only a handful of them laboring away, eyes locked with whatever engaged them; while at other desks quills scratched against parchment as if a ghost were seated in the empty chair. The division level wasn't too dissimilar from her place at MACUSA, she noted, throwing a glance around.
Her small companion hooked a sharp right and tutted along the outer perimeter of the ocean of desks.
"Follow this wall, you'll find Mr. Scamander's office on your right." The house elf instructed, lazily pointing a finger down the aisle.
"Thank you." Tina told the creature, shifting her suitcase to the other hand.
He nodded. "Have a nice evening."
Before she could extend the same pleasantries the creature vanished with another snap of its fingers, leaving Tina to tread alone in uncharted waters. All at once her heart rate quickened, and a suffocating wave of anticipatory anxiety washed over her. She remained at the mouth of the aisle before her, brown eyes leering down the pathway that seemed to stretch on ceaselessly. Tina's feet felt weighted as she began at a slow pace, unknowingly holding in her breath as she walked. She was careful to read each nameplate on every office she passed. The multitude of doors extended on and on and for the briefest of moments, Tina felt as though she'd never reach Newt's door after coming so close. Suddenly a sinking feeling took root in her mind, and it troubled her more than she cared to admit. Her heart was pounding all over, in her head, her chest- even her ears - and she took in a sharp breath to alleviate some of the thriving tension her own thoughts were plaguing her with. Then, just as quickly as her disquiet had snatched her in its unforgiving grasp, relief washed over her in a wave so strong it almost knocked her feet from under her. She smiled at the nameplate on the door with a nervous, soft chuckle.
NEWTON SCAMANDER
"MAGIZOOLOGIST"
With a heavy sigh, all of her stress drifted away. Her heart was still pounding, and her breaths still escaped her lips in shaky puffs, but all her misgivings were gone - replaced with eagerness. She neatly smoothed out her coat and attempted to fix her Floo beaten hair before letting herself inside.
The first thing Tina noticed upon entering Newt's office was how similar it was to the work shed in his magical case. Bookshelves bordered the walls, overflowing with a plethora of books and journals and knickknacks from his travels. On the small patches where the shelves didn't obstruct the wall hung a few photographs, most of which were – unsurprisingly – of beasts instead of people. There were superfluous barrels and crates of seemingly impractical baubles that only the Magizoologist could ever have a use for. To most the space might seem cluttered, but Tina knew that there was a certain organizational placement to everything, just like in his shed. His desk was the most unorganized feature of the office. It was stacked high with more journals and papers - folders even - each bearing the name of magical creatures scribbled in his handwriting.
The second thing Tina noticed upon entering Newt's office was that she was the only one there. It would taste a lie for her to say she wasn't somewhat disheartened finding the Magizoologist missing. She pursed her lips. Be patient. She thought to herself rather harshly. He's probably out on business.
Even so Tina waited, chewing her bottom lip, feeling the return of her stress creep back into her. She quickly distracted herself, studying the photos on the wall. Watching the black-and-white images did calm her slightly with their peaceful scenes; she even found herself able to name the creatures (all thanks to Newt's book). It was the largest image on the wall that stole her full attention; it was also the only image with a person in it as well as a beast. The desert landscape in the background – complete with pyramids – was overshadowed by the majestic thunderbird and smile on Newt's face as he gently stroked Frank's feathers. The dark-haired witch couldn't fight the grin that pulled her pursed lips.
Suddenly Tina heard the familiar click of suitcase lathes, accompanied with the sound of footsteps on a ladder. She veered to discover Newt Scamander at his desk as if he'd appeared out of thin air. He looked more irritated than the Auror was used to seeing him, and was very clearly mumbling to himself about his creatures. The wizard cast her a halfhearted glance from under the tuft of hair covering his face with a short-tempered sigh.
"Consulting hours don't start up again until Monday," his voice snapped as he tossed papers and folders about on his desk. "You'll have to—"
Newt's face turned ashen the moment he locked eyes with Tina. She stood leering at him with an arched brow, hand on her hip and a sideways smirk. His cheeks quickly regained their color, as well as an added hint of pink as he hurriedly fastened the buttons on his loose waistcoat and attempted to straighten his hair to no avail.
"Tina…" he uttered quite breathlessly. "How long have you been—"
"Only a few minutes," Tina reassured him.
The crossness from whatever had been vexing him fell away as she kept her gaze on him. His green eyes shimmered to life and a wide smirk settled on his full lips that caused Tina's heart to soar. It took everything in her to keep from lunging forward to embrace him.
"I must say, I'm very glad to see you again." Newt's smirk morphed into an endearingly fond smile, and Tina found herself matching the gesture unintentionally.
"I am, too."
"I hope you'll forgive me for speaking so harshly." He scratched the back of his head, moving his sheepish gaze to her shoulder. "The Niffler keeps trying to get his greedy paws on the ring I'm holding for Theseus – being his best man and all…"
His voice trailed off and his lips formed into a hard line, as if just thinking about the incident irritated him. "I got so caught up in arguing with the little pest it seems I missed meeting you at the hearth like I'd planned…" Regret wormed its way into his features, causing his face to contort into a more lamentable expression.
"That's okay," Tina remarked quickly in an attempt to coax the smile back onto his lips. "A house elf escorted me here." She paused a moment, eyeing Newt carefully to see if he looked any less remorseful. He didn't.
"Can't say I'm surprised to find out the Niffler is causing problems again." She chanced at a jesting tone and smiled at him.
Newt finally gave her a glance, and slowly his lips drew back into a soft grin, and the green in his eyes lightened once more.
"Yes, well…I'm sure Theseus would have me sacked if I lost the ring." The Magizoologist had never been the best at jokes, but Tina couldn't help but to smile at him. She had genuinely missed him. The air around him was intoxicating and she was helplessly addicted to it.
"I hope you don't mind," he spoke a moment later. "I just have some paperwork to finish up; I'm planning a trip to Fiji to study a type of crustacean there and the Ministry is insisting I take a team, or at the very least, an assistant to, well, assist me." His face soured toward the end of his statement, as if the notion of traveling with others repulsed him. "It all seems a bit excessive to me." He added with no small amount of chafe.
Tina struggled not to snicker at his gall, and planted herself across from his desk in one of the empty seats.
"I'll wait." She insisted. Being in his company was more than enough to keep her occupied.
Newt – ever the gentlemen – expressed another apology as he sat down and threw open a folder with the words Fire Crab written across it.
"Maybe the Ministry thinks you need an assistant because they're worried you might be in danger without someone there to keep an eye on you."
"Fire Crabs are hardly dangerous, Tina." He scoffed, not looking away from his work. "I'm under the impression they are docile enough to be kept as pets."
Tina's bows knit together, knowing full well his definition of docile teetered more to the 'sort of dangerous side.' "But, I'm assuming they can spit fire - shouldn't that…I don't know…make them dangerous?"
Newt had a tendency to see every creature he came across as perfectly harmless with proper knowledge of them (which most of the wizarding population didn't have). However, she'd managed to sneak a peak of the scarred skin on his stomach when she'd found him asleep during his last visit to America, so she knew they weren't all harmless.
"Not necessarily," he replied pragmatically.
Tina shook her head at the man's stubbornness, but couldn't shake the feeling that maybe an assistant would do him some good no matter how much he detested the idea. A sickening thought encompassed her mind with the notion of Newt being bested by a beast. For all he was, he'd always been tactful – careful – when she'd seen him dealing with creatures... but surely even he couldn't tame them all. Newt was fearless in his field (almost criminally so) and in his efforts to rescue beasts in need. Tina witnessed it all first hand, throwing himself in the line of fire to rescue and Obscurial – of all things. There hadn't been an inkling of a second thought when he'd jumped from the Squires roof that night in New York, and the thought of him in danger again unsettled Tina much more than she'd initially realized.
"Maybe…" the dark-haired witch began in a low, murmur. "Maybe someone going with you isn't such a bad idea."
Newt stole a glance at her from under his unruly hair, sensing the sudden shift in her demeanor.
"Not the crab one…" she forced a smile quickly to dispel any concern her tone pushed upon him. "But with the more dangerous creatures…in case something were to happen."
He gave her a meaningful sideways smirk but said nothing. Newt buried his nose back in the paperwork before him while Tina made a point of not going any farther into the benefits of traveling companions. He was obviously unconvinced, and she doubted she would be able to change his mind - he was just as stubborn as she was. She also tried not to concentrate so much on possibly life-ending scenarios Newt may get himself into; past, present or future. Tina was there to relax and destress; at least that was what Queenie wanted for her.
It wasn't long before Newt stumbled to his feet, closing the folder. He seized his magical case as he took a few short paces around his desk to reach the chair where Tina sat.
"Finished?" Tina asked in an uncharacteristically chipper tone as she stood.
Newt scowled – a heavy line along his brow – and a bemused sigh puffed from his pressed lips. "Yes, though I'm afraid my evening is booked…I'd love nothing more than to show you around London and Diagon Alley, but my brother's Stag Party is tonight. I feel an obligation to attend. I'm sorry, Tina."
The smile on her face fell somewhat – she hoped he hadn't noticed. "That's okay. I understand."
She wanted to venture around the foreign streets with him – just as he wanted – spending time in his company was all she'd wanted to do the moment she'd been reminded how she felt when she was with him. Simply sitting silently while he worked was enough to thrill her, but Tina had already prepared herself for the possibility of him being otherwise engaged. Newt was busy and popular, so she tried not to let it upset her.
"Could you refer me to a place to stay? This is my first time in London and—"
Before she'd even finished speaking Newt threw her a stern look of bewilderment. "That won't be necessary. There's plenty of room at my parent's estate in the country."
Tina was suddenly the one with the look of bewilderment. "Your parent's estate?"
Newt didn't seem to pick up on the abrupt and befuddled sound of her voice, and Tina swallowed nervously, unsure what else to say. She didn't want to be rude or seem ungrateful by the gesture, but staying with complete strangers – even if they were his parents – would make her feel more than a little uncomfortable. Staying with him would've given her less trepidation, but a hotel remained the superior option.
"Really, Newt…" Tina waved her hand as if to signal just how unnecessary his idea was.
He still wasn't catching on. "All the guests – well not all the guests – but quite a few of them are staying there. Myself included…"
Tina perked up, suddenly feeling better after receiving the new information. If Newt's there, it won't seem so bad.
"…my mother is insisting you stay, and I fear what she may do to me if I can't convince you to join us, Tina. Please?" He smiled at her – his toothy crooked grin that Tina often found herself thinking about. His tone was playful and welcoming, a bravado she wasn't used to from him, but it made her stomach flutter.
With a glance of his smoldering eyes, she caved. "Well, if your mother is insisting…I wouldn't want to be rude."
Newt's smirk pulled taut across his face. He was so unbelievably infectious that she couldn't tear her eyes away from his freckled cheeks and wild russet hair.
He offered her his arm with the faintest hint of a self-satisfied grin. "Shall we?"
Tina's heart was racing again, fueled faster by the euphoriant rush that engulfed her the moment she tucked her arm tightly around his, replying with a slow nod.
A/N: So I finished the second part of this story last night, and it was well over 10,000 words long as well, and I've still got one more part to write. So there are quite a few chapters for you to look forward too. Let me know what you thought of this chapter!
Chapter 3 will be up sometime on the 5th!
You can follow me on Tumblr at: fandom-non-sense
that's where I post progress and links to my fics if you guys are interested.