Fantastic Beasts And The Trials of Scamander

Pick Your Poison

They walked slowly down the hill, scanning for any sort of magical imprint as they became more and more submerged in the morning chaos. Newt had to admit, most busy areas like this one tended to disconnect his brain from the rest of his body and he often found himself where he intended to be with absolutely no idea how he got there. However, he couldn't afford to do that and was trying to as discreetly as possible hold to the tail of Tina's coat in the hope that with her constant scanning and checking he'd at least keep some sort of focus. Even if he did feel like a child who was scared of getting lost in Diagon Alley.

The density of people was increasing steadily then suddenly they broke into the square. The ground was made of dusty cobbles and colourful flags hung from each cart. Some of the carts were attached to oxen or horses, stomping their feet and snuffling hay in large baskets, but most of them were hand carts to lug boxes of produce and items for sale. These salespeople were shouting at the tops of their voices, laughing and joking with their neighbours as colourful silks from overseas and baskets of nuts and fruit were tossed around. People jostled around with leather purses clutched in their hands and small children attached to their hips while money was exchanged with grins and jovial exclamations to those surrounding.
"Pretty..."
Tina spoke into his ear as she scanned the stalls, politely waving a woman holding an ornate bottle of perfume away.
"Pretty chaotic. How on Earth are we meant to find anyone here?"
Theseus exclaimed as he nearly tripped over a goat and then Jacob herded the group more into a quiet area, Lally also nearly falling headfirst over the collection of animals only to be caught by Theseus and steadied on the cobbles.
"Look, you guys. If you had to run something to get a quick buck out of a guy like me, what'd you do?"
Newt, as well as his brother, Queenie, Lally and Bunty looked incredulously at him.
"You telling me you guys were never in a tight spot?"
There was a beat in silence in their little space away and then Tina began slowly
"I'd do something that just looked like no maj tricks"  all eyes landed on her and she shuffled under their gaze "When I got out of Ilvermorny, I didn't have two sprinks to rub together... I only did it for a day but I did some card tricks to pay for food"
She trailed off even further and Queenie looked over in surprise
"You told me that money was from some overdue inheritance?"
"It was when my occlumency was getting better" Tina explained with a sad smile before clearing her throat and mumbling "So uh- Something that classes as magic to No majs"
They went quiet then Jacob piped up
"I went to this Dame once who could tell the future? You guys able to do that?"
"Chrysanthi! I knew the name was familiar"
Lally suddenly exclaimed, rooting around her pockets before pulling out a very normal-looking address book. She flicked it open and at C, a few names down, was written
Chrysanthi, Seer and Cryptic. Do not floo call when marking needs to be done
"She's a seer?"
Bunty asked incredulously and Lally nodded
"Yes, but a very cryptic one"
"Aren't they all?" Theseus huffed as he began to scan the surroundings
"Even if he's not there and she doesn't know specifically where Dumbledore has gone we still have a chance!"
Tina then took off through the street with him and Theseus close behind and the others following.

They rounded a corner at quite a pace when Jacob called
"So what can this lady do?"
"See the future, Knows things!"
Queenie replied
"You people can do that? I thought that was just a weird Grindelwald thing"
"Some people can" Tina clarified from the front as they slowed in front of an enclosed tent with writing that he could read 'Chrysanthi Sees All'.
Everyone collectively heaved a sigh of relief at the sight as Tina continued slightly more solemn "Usually it's not very specific"
"Well, there's only one way to find out-" Theseus began, gesturing to the door, and one by one they slipped inside.

The inside of the tent was considerably cooler than outside and Newt felt the familiar embrace of magic fall over him. Inside the tent consisted of two sections: A small room consisting of nothing but a table low on the floor with a crystal ball on top of it and some cushions on the floor and a room obscured by a silk curtain that was clearly meant to look like it housed just a small bed but Newt recognised the runes upon the divider as the same ones on his case lid. Sat on the other side of the crystal ball was a tiny old lady, so frail she looked like she could be blown away by the lightest wind. Her hair, however, was a long luscious black which cascaded down to her waist, held back from her face by a ribbon around her head. She was wearing layers of colourful linen and greeted them with a toothy smile, reaching a wrinkled hand to clasp Lally's hand in greeting.
"Quite a turmoil since we last met, hmm?"
To his surprise, she had a faintly English accent and Lally nodded as the lady got up and tottered about summoning more cushions. Stopping to stare Theseus down before looking back at Lally with an eyebrow raised. She then poked her head out of the tent before withdrawing and locking the wards with a flick of her hand.

Her black eyes then landed on him and she looked him up and down in a similarly probing stare. He shuffled under the weight of it until finally, she gestured for them to sit and he kept to the furthest outreach of her gaze beside Tina.
"I know you know why we're here, and you know who we are" Theseus began and she waited until she sat before responding
"That I do..."

Expecting her to begin spewing knowledge of the Albus situation Newt's hand itched for his notebook but instead, she grabbed Queenie and Jacob's wrists and turned over their palms, tracing it with her finger before looking deep into her crystal ball
"The darkness has passed but dawn is yet to come. But life is not without stars and the sky is littered with brightness"
"Uh, Thanks?"
Jacob replied awkwardly, taking his hand back and trying to discreetly hide it behind Queenie who equally seemed uncomfortable and happy at the news.
"Look Ms Kokkinos we aren't here for our own futures"
"But they are all intertwined are they not? The moon must follow the brightness of the sun and the roots of the tree have no life without the leaves."
She then decided to ignore Tina, his brother and Bunty and looked at him instead. However unlike everyone else who she'd forcefully grabbed she seemed to sense his apprehension and gently removed his hand not currently gripping the case and unfurled it.
"So far the path has been hard to traverse has it not?" Despite being slightly confused at what she'd referred to he nodded anyway "The light is being brought back, the slumbering bear has received the first spring haze and now it's chasing the summer salmon"
What on earth
However, the woman nodded along with herself before turning to address the equally confused-looking group.
"Love is not just a label, it consumes, it embraces. It smothers until those in love are but one entity. This consumption is usually one of the joys" She looked at Tina then with one dark eyebrow raised "It changes us into who we really are but a heart cannot be broken clean in two then heal as if there were ne'er mark"
"So Dumbledore..."
Theseus began before trailing off and the woman nodded solemnly
"Even the statues of a millennia can crumble when the winds start to blow. A soul is much the same and if a soul has been poisoned by nefarious love then-" She looked to her crystal ball and caressed it with one long finger "An antidote must be found"

The tent filled with the awkward silence of people desperately trying to decode when Tina spoke up in that firm, commanding tone of hers.
"Ms Kokkinos, we wanna help him find the antidote. Do you know anythin' about where he might be?"
"Surrounded by forests, only nature can help him now. Potions from a man with skin as green as the sea"
He heard Jacob lean over to Queenie and whisper "Ain't the sea blue?" but Newt could feel excitement flood his bones.
"He's going to Croatia"
Tina looked at him equal parts exasperated and confused
"There is no way you can know that"
"I know who he's looking for if he's searching for a potion master" he sprang to his feet before declaring "Thank you Ms Kokkinos!" And exiting into the street, leaving behind a collection of confused people still sitting crossed-legged on the floor.

He didn't stick around to see the bemused expressions on everyone's faces or that as Tina went to leave last Chrysanthi called
"It's how we treat the scars of the past that define the future. Don't let fear of the unknown become your poison"

He did however notice that as Tina emerged from the sunlight that while Theseus was attempting to interrogate him she was worrying her lip repeatedly. Seemingly lost in her thoughts.