Return to New York

Frustration

Newt walked through the streets of London, not bothering to Apparate. He was annoyed. His day had been awful. He had spent ages in the Ministry, just waiting for his hearing. He had finally been taken to it, only to be asked to hunt down and kill the very person he and Tina had tried to protect. And then Grimson had taken the job.

Newt had started home, only to be stopped by Dumbledore. He couldn't believe that his favorite, former professor had asked him to leave the country. He had refused, nearly saying that if he was going to risk getting thrown in jail, it would be to travel in the opposite direction. But Dumbledore had insisted he needed to go, giving him an address to a safe house despite his protests. 

Credence is still alive, he thought as he made his way along his street. He didn't die and he's in Paris. And people say he's Leta's brother. This last bit of information had shocked him the most. Leta's brother was supposed to be dead, and yet people thought that he was Credence.

However, the worst part of it was the thought that his travel ban hadn't been lifted. He was getting desperate. He needed to see Tina. Even if she had moved on and didn't want him anymore, he wanted to know that she was alive and safe and well. And happy. As long as she's happy, that's enough.

Newt climbed the stairs to his house, digging in his pocket for his keys. As he was halfway up the steps, the light in the window came on. Then it went out before coming on again. It continued flicking on and off as Newt glanced behind him. He quickly entered the house. Carefully pushing open the door to the living room, he peeked inside. 

One of the baby Nifflers, the solid black one named Persimmon, was swinging from the lamp chain, causing the lamp to switch on and off continually. The chain finally broke and Persimmon fell to the table. She noticed Newt as she began shoving the chain in her pouch. She continued to stare at him as she let the chain slid through her tiny paws. Newt let out an annoyed sigh and Persimmon dashed across the table, jumping up to the mantelpiece. 

A noise caught Newt's attention and he turned to see the brown baby Niffler, Pumpkin, sitting on one side of the scale, trying to shove the weights in her pocket.

Persimmon was running across the table now. Newt took a small pot and dropped it over the Niffler. The creature continued running and he followed her around the table. He took an apple from the bowl and threw it over his shoulder. It landed on the empty side of the scale, sending Pumpkin flying through the air.

Newt caught Persimmon as she ran off the table. Dropping her in his coat pocket, he spun around just in time to catch Pumpkin there as well. He pulled open the door to his basement and was about to start down when another sound stopped him.

Turning, he saw a third Niffler, Pumpernickel, pulling at the shiny gold foil around the top of a bottle of champagne. He tugged on the cork, pushing against the mouth of the bottle. Suddenly, the cork popped out, flying across the room, carrying the little grey and white creature with it. It hit the wall and bounced down the stairs.

"Bunty!" Newt called, following Pumpernickel into the basement. The Niffler bounced down the stairs with the cork. He landed in a patch of snow where he happily began tearing at the gold foil.

"Bunty?" Newt called again, searching for his assistant. He glanced over the rail. Bunty was a couple of floors down, working with a creature. "Bunty!" She looked up at him. "Bunty, the baby Nifflers are loose again."

The red-haired woman moved quickly. She grabbed a glove and pulled it on. Then she carefully approached the little creature, holding out her hand. Pumpernickel jumped at the shiny chain that hung from the glove and Bunty was able to scoop him up.

"Well done," Newt congratulated.

"So sorry, Newt," she said, taking the other Nifflers from him. "They must have picked the lock while I was cleaning out the Augeries."

"Not to worry," Newt replied. He pushed past her and made his way down the stairs to check on his creatures. Pulling off his coat, he hung it up in his shed as he went past.

"I've fed nearly everyone," Bunty said as she locked the Nifflers away. "Binky's had his nose drops and--"

"And Elsie?"

"Elsie's droppings are nearly normal again."

"Wonderful," Newt said. He began giving a Mooncalf its eyedrops. "You can -- Um -- You can clock off now."

Bunty looked reluctant. Letting out a gasp, she held out her hand. Her index finger was wrapped in a bandage.

"I told you to leave the Kelpie to me," Newt chided.

"That wound needs more ointment."

"I don't want you losing fingers over it," Newt replied. He put the eyedropper away and moved towards the Kelpie's lake. Bunty followed after him.

Newt pulled off his jacket as he descended the final staircase. He hung it on the railing and began unbuttoning his waistcoat.

"Seriously," Newt said as he pulled off the waistcoat and hung it where the jacket had been. "You go home now, Bunty." He was tired. It had been a long day and he wanted to be alone. He began rolling up his sleeves. "You must be exhausted."

But Bunty refused. "You know the Kelpie's easier with two," she argued, picking up Newt's waistcoat.

Newt continued to roll up his sleeves.

"Perhaps you should take off your shirt."

Newt turned to look at her. She was watching him, a curious expression on her face. 

There it is again. Always with the shirt. Why?

"Don't worry," he assured her. "I'll dry off quick enough." Then he lept backward off the platform, plunging into the deep water. He swam away from the edge, waiting for the Kelpie to appear.

When it did, he let it swim past him once before grabbing on the second time. He quickly maneuvered it to the surface where it lept out of the water. Newt let out an excited shout before he was dunked back under the water. Finally gaining control of the beast, he guided it towards the platform.

"Someone needed to let off some steam," he said. And that includes me, he thought.

"Ointment, Bunty," he called as he climbed onto the platform.

Bunty offered him the jar and he took a handful of the paste out of it. He tried to rub it on the Kelpie's wound, despite the creatures attempts to get away.

"You bite Bunty again and there'll be trouble, Mister," he scolded.

Bunty was holding a bucket of feed up and the Kelpie began to eat.

Suddenly, they heard a crash from upstairs.

"What was that?" Bunty asked as the Kelpie swam away.

"I don't know," Newt admitted, getting to his feet. "But I want you to go home now, Bunty."

"Shall I call the Ministry?"

"No," Newt said quickly. He wanted nothing more to do with the Ministry. "I want you to go home, please," he begged, rubbing the ointment off his hands.

He stepped past her, pulling out his wand. As he began climbing the stairs, he cast a spell to dry off his clothes. 

Newt crept through his house, following the sound of excited whispers and giggles. He held his wand ready, not sure what to expect. What he found surprised him.

A/N: CLIFF HANGER! Lol. No. Everyone knows what's happening next. I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Please vote and comment.

Now we've gotten to the movie so it's both easier and harder to write. The great thing is I don't have to think. The hard thing is making sure all the dialogue is correct and that I describe the actions well.

The good news is, I've done two of my English assignments. The bad news is, I still have one more to go as well as Math, Physics, a Home Ec test to study for, a French test to study for, a poem to memorize for English, and a test practice to grade . . . for English. To many English assignments. My mom hates us.

Anyway, have a good day!

Bye!

Written January 27, 2019.