hollow // credence barebone

15. the letters

"18th march 1927.

credence,

the snow is finally beginning to melt. it was an unusually fierce winter but it's finally going away. i'm writing this letter on the ship back to england. to be honest, i'm not sad to leave new york. i started hoping that i could feel something once the time for goodbye came, but all i feel is drain. i think you'd know what it feels like. i wonder if you miss the city, or if you're glad to be out.

as promised, i took care of modesty. the congress found her a new family. they are a young wizard couple and they all moved together to washington two weeks ago. i correspond with them regularly and they say that things are tough, but they have the highest hopes. modesty is terrified of magic. the very sight of a wand sets her in uproar and she won't talk to anybody. it will take time to heal her wounds, but we're all hoping she can overcome it. right now, she's in good hands. they will slowly work on helping her relax into the new world. when she's 11, she will be accepted to ilvermory. it's hard to tell much about the future, but when the time comes, i belive she will be ready.

she asked about you. after all of this, she still calls you a brother.

i'm sorry it took so long to send this letter. macusa was very strict about everybody involved in the case, and they put us all under control. i'm still not sure if they stopped following me but at this point i can't bear to care enough. i hope this owl will find you well. the beautiful thing about these birds is their ability to find people even when you don't know where they are. i know i told you not to announce your residence, and i say it again. for now, stay in the hiding. there's many who will want to find you. macusa enjoys the thought that they have eradicated you completely, but not everybody believes that. let them wonder. whatever it takes, you will be safe.

on another note, i finally graduated. it felt good to watch these old textbooks burn as i looked at my certificate and felt ridiculous. i spent over a year addicted to caffeine and insomnia just for this single piece of paper. for a moment, i wanted to throw it in the flames as well.

i will contact you again once i'm home. for your safety, do not reply to this letter yet. it will not be now, but soon enough i believe we will meet again. until then, stay strong. you're perfectly capable of it and don't forget it. ever.

elise

ps. the second salem church was burnt down, too. i won't say who started the fire, but you can make a wild guess. i did find a bunch of your belongings, though. i don't know if you still wanted any of these things, but just in case, they are safe with me. in a few days both me and them will arrive in england. after that, well... i guess they'll need a little bit of washing. dust and blood don't make them look very good."

"21st april 1927.

credence,

london is lousy. i forgot how much dirt littered the streets. it makes you think about the cobblestone in new york and how neat everything was compared to here. i attached a picture so you could see. this is a street where my home's still stubbornly standing.

and yes, it's my house. i was born and orphaned here. i avoided it for a long time, but i suppose it's time to stop running. there's mold and dust on every possible surface. it will take me some time to bring it back to a normal state. i'm thinking of putting plants in every room, and maybe changing the walls to white. this fireplace could be charming when the winter comes. i don't know. it feels surreal to be here and feel nothing. not even a ghost remained.

gallert grindelwald is locked up in macusa's prison and watched by the best security guards of the entire magical world. none of us is dumb enough to believe he'll want to stay there. i guess we're all waiting for the day he escapes. when he does, there will be only one person who can defeat him. that person is my old teacher from hogwarts, and let me tell you, i didn't want to see his face first thing after coming down the ship. this old man is ridiculous, but i owe him a lot. so i shut up and didn't say anything that mean. well, at least i think it wasn't that mean.