AN: Sorry about the delay in updating, I was traveling in the wilds of Arizona for a week. Expect more frequent updates. Also thank you so much for all the lovely reviews.

February 5th, 1927

Dearest Tina,

Your most recent letter, like all of your other letters, has been the bright spot in my increasingly dull and dreadful week at work. Just this morning a new stack of folders was set on my desk for 'creature review.'

Creature review is the simple, but time consuming, task of reading over case files from other areas of the ministry. The whole point of the review is to see if there was any unnoticed creature activity that might have been missed by the unit receiving the case. An example I had this week was a man is illegally growing a wizard-made hybrid of the dirigible plum. These plums before they are ripe are bright green and for some reason highly explosive after being picked, which children in his neighborhood loved. As they made a big scene of lobbing the exploding plums at each other. It wasn't until one of the children came home coated in an extremely sticky and powerfully scented goo that these illegal plums were reported to the ministry.

The Department of Agriculture and Growing Regulations launched an investigation shutting down, and promptly ended, his plum growing. This has nothing to do with my department at all, however, the file needed to be reviewed. The only slightly magical creatures-based thing was the fertilizer he was using to enrich the plum soil.

Not all case reviews are as useless as that one was. In the past we have discovered a hidden breeding colony of digicrawls by reviewing other department's cases. Sometimes even the rare dragon's egg case crosses my desk. However there are more misses then there are hits. Of course, this task should not be falling to me, but our department is currently, and has always been, understaffed. So I end up with these files for review about every week or so. It is one of the least charming aspects of my work. I have been pushing the ministry to expand our department, or at least give us an assistant, however every request gets pushed to the back of his desk.

I'm hoping that with the publication of my book, maybe the Minister would feel compelled to expand our department. I was hoping that my attendance at the last charity event would sway the man a bit, but alas, nothing has come from it. Well, nothing has come from it except more invitation to more events. The Minister seems to be making it clear that if I want more staff in my department I need to attend more parties.

There isn't a shortage of parties either. The Minister has been asking me more and more to attend events and I tell him that I need to check my calendar before I let him know since my book is just about done with the first round of edits. However, I am actually checking my brother's calendar to see if he is attending any of these event. I would rather review all the creature cases alone then attend more parties then I need to.

I think you are right, that I should use this time to reconnect with my brother. Our parents invited us home for tea over the weekend and we had a nice, and rather enlightening, chat about the charity events he typically attends and several other things. He gave me some pointers on how to be a better and more comfortable guest. Such as find the grumpiest, oldest, looking man at the party and talk with him, chances are he doesn't want to be there either and is looking for someone to have a "real conversations." The advantage is, by talking to him you appear to have excellent manners but you also will learn something new. Also to always compliment something the hostess is wearing. She will inevitably tell you that is an old dress or trinket, or a family heirloom, however the compliment should still be delivered. The last bit Theseus suggested was that if you don't want to dance, do not stand alone to the side. If you are standing alone and you look like even a remotely reasonable young man, someone will try to get you to dance with their; daughter, sister, niece, cousin, cousin's eldest daughter, and so on.

There are a lot of stupid seeming rules of all this nonsense. Frankly, I don't mind dancing, I would just prefer not to do it surrounded by strangers who are going to judge my social graces on it.

Something that also makes me anxious about these charity events is who might I meet there. You know that I was expelled from school, and frankly that reputation has not been forgotten. Some people do not seem me as a hero (which I am not), but see me as an unchecked danger. Not only am I being judged by my social graces but also by my past. So few people actually know about the real reason from my expulsion from Hogwarts that it just doesn't seem right that it is used against me. Additionally, I'm worried that parts of my past I am not ready deal with are going to appear in front of me at one of these events. I know it is pointless to worry about these things, as worrying only makes you suffer twice. However, it is nice to have someone I can confide these thoughts too.

My brother agrees with you, in the sense, that I should be using those events to push my 'agenda'. I asked him what my agenda was, because I honestly did not think I had one. However, he asked me why I was writing my book in the first place.

Then it made sense I want to inform witches and wizards about magical creatures. I want to show them they are worth protecting and knowing about. It is amazing how thick-headed I can be sometimes. Theseus said that I should be using every opportunity at these events to tell people about my own experiences with magical creatures. However, he also suggested that I should also be curating my stories that I tell people.

'Maybe don't tell them that you were almost drown by a kelpie, as exciting as the story is, it only teaches them to fear the unknown. Why not tell them how to spot a kelpie? Or about the research being done with dragon by-products? Or how school of ramora protected a fishing vessel during the Great War.'

I am guilty, as I think everyone is at times, at telling the more exciting and dangerous tales first. Those are one in which I do more rapid discovery of a creature. Those are the cases I am most proud of, so I want to tell them first. However, Theseus is right, those stories tend to be scarier and less well received by people at fancy parties looking for causes to support.

I liked the phrase you used 'pulling a Kowalski' when you don't want people to underestimate you. I think that I am going to use that when I finally agree to start going to those events again. Socially, I am not the most-well versed or even that well received. People get bored just after a few moments and I won't allow that to happen. For the sake of my creatures, I shall try harder.

It sounds like you are 'pulling a Kowalski' yourself at work. I love that you have kneazles in MACUSA, and I think I will use that when I suggest it to the Ministry again. If MACUSA is using kneazles, why aren't we? I am not surprised that most people haven't noticed them. Kneazles have an excellent sense of direction and once they have the layout of a place, they can figure out how to get around practically unseen. Typically people who aren't looking for them, don't see them. Kneazles really are a great creature, someday, I hope to have several.

I also think that it was wise that you hinted to another department that you think you are getting their assignments. It really is careless of your president to give you cases that should be going to your Protection of Magical Species department. Those individuals should be trained to deal with those situations better then you are.

How is the runespoor egg case going? I just want to suggest that your practice caution on this case. Especially since it seems you have been assigned a trainee. I will admit that a side of me is uncomfortable with you babysitting this Billy Bricks kid. It seems like a major restriction on your work. Is he with you all day? Everyday? I just want to encourage caution. You must think I am like a mother-hen the way I constantly writing and asking you to stay staff. I feel like a hypocrite saying this to you, since my own work can be dangerous at time, but please be careful with work. I have a bad feeling about how things are going at MACUSA.

Also, I do have a bit of exciting new. There was a new mooncalf born several days ago, and I can report that she is doing very well. Her mother had a hard birth, as it was her first pup. Yes they are called pups for the sake of simplicity, calling it a mooncalf calf would become very confusing after a while. Mooncalf's typically only have one pup at a time. Sometimes, albeit very rarely a mooncalf will give birth to two pups at once.

As for the rest of the creatures in my case, everyone is doing very well. I have been looking for a male erumpent in captivity to breed my female erumpent with. Erumpents have long mating seasons which typically last a year, however, after that mating season, it is typically several years before they are in heat again. I have been trying to get in touch with any African game parks, however I have not had any luck. There are a stunning shortage of magical public zoos right now, since it is still in vogue to have private zoos. However private zoos tend to be poorly kept and the creatures just are not treated the way that they should be. I would be loath to mate my erumpent with a private zoo's erumpent (if any of them had erumpents) since they would attempt to claim ownership on the offspring.

I have other really exciting News, my book is scheduled to be published in May, which means that come June 1st I should be sailing towards you. I too am looking forward to exploring New York with you. It would be lovely to actually see the city and not have to worry about it being destroyed as we go. Last time I was in America, my intention was to travel to Arizona right away. However, I would still like to see that part of the country. I was curious if you might be interested in traveling with me?

I will be excited to, hopefully, see Jacob when I am in New York. How has the search been going since it is almost Valentine's day?

Speaking of the holiday, Tina, please do not think this is too forward, but, would you consider being my Valentine? I've never asked someone to be a valentine before so I am not quite sure of the appropriate steps. In a strange way it is kind of funny, I have mastered the erumpent mating dance, but I don't know the proper way to ask a lady to be a valentine.

Theseus suggested that I send you a token of my affection. However, I didn't know what to send you. I walked through Diagon Alley trying to find something appropriate. I know this is probably not the traditional valentine's gift but I thought it was fitting. I found it at a children's shop and made some adjustments to it. I hope it is to your liking.

Your Valentine?

Newt

Tina unwrapped the small brown paper package that was sitting in her lap. Inside was a small stuffed niffler. The body of the little creature fit in the palms of both of her hands. She laughed as she saw its dark fur and tiny billed face. She simply loved it, nothing could have been more appropriate. She rubbed the creature against her cheek and smiled at herself. When pulled the tiny plush fellow away from her check she saw that hanging from his pouch was a tiny gold chain with a small crystal heart hanging from it. She tugged on the chain, it was been sewn into the pouch. Tina wondered if this was the small alteration Newt had made to the small creature before he sent it.

Tina couldn't help but break out into a full smile. She was sitting on her bed with the sliding doors to her and Queenie's bedroom slightly closed. Queenie was in the other room cooking dinner. They had come back from another night searching for Jacobs and found a small package from Newt. Queenie insisted her sister open it in privacy. Tina rubbed the small niffler to her face and was appreciative of the suggested privacy.

She reviewed Newt's letter, occasionally pausing during the letter to pet her stuffed niffler. In her last letter she wrote "Dearest Newt." She was curious if he had noticed when he got that letter, but she could tell by him writing back "Dearest Tina", that he did indeed notice. Did he write 'Dearest' back because he felt that way about her? Or was he just being polite and following her lead?

Tina paused at a passage. "Additionally, I'm worried that parts of my past I am not ready deal with are going to appear in front of me at one of these events." She frowned, did he mean Leta Lestrange? It made sense that he might run into her at a party. She knew a bit about the Lestrange family, specifically that in while they were in the United States they were to be kept under observation. She happened to come across the Lestrange file the other day in the Investigation Team's archives. There wasn't much in there other than a few redacted documents.

She sighed and looked back at her niffler. She suddenly felt better. Leta Lestrange never received a Valentine 's Day gift from Newt, but she did. He even said in his letter that he had never give a gift before. Leta Lestrange did not get lovely letter from Newt either, neither did the Countess. Just her.

Just her. Feeling suddenly better, she picked up her new niffler and went to show Queenie. Now all she needed to do was figure out what to send Newt back.