Catastrophe || n.s

ix. gnarlak

Penelope stuck close to Newt as Tina led the group down a dark alleyway, deep within the darkest parts of New York. As they approached a certain building, she began to hear the faint rhythm of music coming through the brick walls. Tina suddenly turned to her right, stepping down a flight of metal stairs into a dark hallway. Penelope hesitated a moment, swallowing thickly before following Newt down the stairs.

They group approached a brick door at the end of the hallway; on it was painted a portrait of a beautiful woman with curly blonde hair. As they neared it, the portrait came to life. Tina and Queenie stopped in front of the door, looking at each other before waving their wands in unison. Their normal, everyday clothes were changed to elegant dresses. Penelope looked at her own clothes, then back up at Queenie, silently asking her what to do. The blonde witch pointed her wand at her, and Penelope felt a chill on her legs as her warm clothes were transformed into a simple, yet elegant black dress.

A thick silence fell over the group, one that was broken my Newt's awestruck voice. "Merlin's beard."

Penelope turned to look at the man, surprised to see him staring at her with wide blue eyes. She felt herself go red under his intense gaze, and she looked to the ground sheepishly. Behind her, Tina coughed almost angrily, and Newt's eyes suddenly snapped away from her. He held up his own wand to his neck, and a simple black bowtie appeared in the collar of his white shirt.

Once Tina realized what he had done, she nodded and turned back to the brick door. She knocked slowly, and the woman in the portrait blink each time she did so. Her eyes were suddenly torn away, replaced by the dark eyes of man staring at them through the door. He grunted before backing away; a moment later, the heavy door swung open, and the jazzy music immediately grew louder.

Tina and Queenie entered the building without hesitation, and Jacob pushed past Penelope in attempt to stand by the two woman. Penelope hesitated, however, and jumped as she felt a warm arm slip around her waist. She was surprised to find Newt standing at her side, staring down at her with soft blue eyes.

"Stay close to me in there, Penny," he told her, turning away from her and looking inside the gloomy building. "Who knows what these people could do."

Once inside, Penelope could get a good glimpse of the atmosphere around her. On the back wall of the building was a bar; Queenie and Jacob were both seated there, staring at a tray full of drinks. In the middle of the room, a female elf danced around a group of people, her purple dress sparkling in the dim light as she sang a jazzy song. Sitting at a table behind the performer sat Tina, looking at Penelope and Newt as if she were waiting on them. Newt's grip around Penelope's waist tightened as he slowly led her over to the table.

She took a seat beside Newt, who was looking around the building with curious eyes. She missed the feeling of warmth that came with his touch, as his arms were now at his side; she longed for him to wrap his arm around her waist once more.

"I've arrested half of the people in here," Tina said suddenly, breaking the awkward silence that hung over the trio.

"You can tell me to mind my own business if you please, but I saw something... in the death potion back at the Congress. I saw you hugging that Second Salem boy," Newt said quietly, turning his gaze to look at Tina. Penelope looked at her hands and clenched her jaw, as she sensed a bit of jealously in Newt's tone.

Tina smiled slightly, nodding. "His name is Credence," she told him. "His mother beats him... She beats all those kids she adopted, but she seems to hate him the most." The last few words she spoke rose a bit as if she were attempting to fight her emotions. She shook her head slowly, drawing her gaze away from Newt's and looking at the table once more.