Case Stories | Fantastic Beasts Oneshots

Nightmares, Part 2 (Credence)

The room was warm and bright, and there were plenty of people around.

She wandered among the crowd, observing each and every one of them from a safe distance. They talked about the weather, the Quidditch matches, the Ministry, just about everything, so enthusiastically that they hadn't noticed her, even if she was standing in between them. She tried talking to them, shouting at them too, but they either ignored her or didn't hear her.

It was like she was invisible, or simply non-existent.

On and on she went, manoeuvring through the crowd as more time passed. Everyone around her grew closer, fell in love, got married, had kids, grew old, and she wanted that. But she couldn't find anyone who wasn't taken. All she had was herself, and she stood alone by a manhole cover which seemed to be the only non-living thing for miles.

She thought she would grow out of it, leaving it in the past, in her childhood, yet it followed her wherever she went, even to worlds that weren't real. She just wanted someone to see her, that's all.

And she got more than what she wished for.

Everyone she walked past stopped talking and took a look at her. She noticed them turn back and start talking. They were whispers, but she could hear them loud and clear. They echoed in her mind, each comment like a knife stabbing her heart.

"Did you see her?"

"Have you seen what she's wearing?"

"I've talked to her before and that was the last time I did."

"She's always alone, no one wants to hook her up."

"You've got to admit though, she's got guts strutting around here."

The whispers turned into chatters as they got louder and louder, and soon they transformed into buzzing and shouting and yelling and it was just so loud, she started to run.

Pushing past all the blabbering mouths who spoke of nothing but the truth, she tried to locate an exit but the sea of people was endless. Wizards and witches had their wands drawn out, all of which pointing at her. There was no corner or bins to hide in, just an infinite space filled with people.

She wanted to yell for it to stop, to melt into a puddle of water that no one would notice, and hopefully slip on too. That's when it came to her.

The manhole.

Strangely, she weaved through the throng of people easily and found the manhole in seconds. Quickly, she got down and heaved the cover up, only barely lifting it off the ground. With the remaining strength she had in her, she slid the cover aside and descended down the ladder.

It was colder and darker, but most importantly, there was no one in sight. It might be slightly better down here than above, but it still didn't erase the fact that she was alone and unwanted. She brought her knees up to her chest and hugged them tightly, burying her face into them.

Then she heard a voice, an innocent one, one that had no intention on harming her.

"(Y/N)?"

She looked up. There was nothing to see except for the dark, and the muffled voice came from everywhere around her. It was as though the dark was talking to her.

"(Y/N), are you okay?"

Opening her mouth to reply, she realised that she didn't have a voice. She shook her head, hoping to be seen.

"I...maybe you want to wake up. There's no one here but me, I-I think."

He sounded clearer, and familiar, and it was enticing her to do exactly as he said. And so she did.

Her eyes fluttered open to meet a pair of brown ones. She felt his hand on her forehead, and naturally, she reacted by sitting up.

"Credence?"

Immediately, the boy got off her bed and stood in an awkward stance, head tilted to one side. Realising that he wasn't going to say anything, (Y/N) asked, "What're you doing here?"

"I heard you," he answered, "I heard you from my room, and I-I got worried. So I came."

"Oh."

The silence started to settle in as she recalled what she was dreaming about. It was a recurrent dream, one that would happen every other week, and it was always the same. Except this time was different, the darkness had spoken out to her.

"Are you okay?" Credence asked, breaking the silence.

Not wanting to worry him, she nodded and patted a spot on the bed next to her.

"But you were crying," he said as he sat down carefully, "in your sleep. And you're really warm."

"Really?" (Y/N) looked away to dry her tears. She only realised they were there when Credence had mentioned them.

"What were you dreaming about?"

The question he asked was out of pure curiosity, but (Y/N) couldn't help but feel slightly attacked. No one ever bothered to ask what was bothering her. This was her first time answering such a question.

Hesitantly, she said, "Being alone."

"Does it hurt?"

She didn't know how to respond, so she remained quiet. Credence seemed to understood, so he said, "You've got me now. Maybe it'll hurt less."

Looking up at him with beady eyes, she smiled. She had only just met him, yet she felt so connected to him. Maybe it was because they were both in a similar plight. They were outcasts, and they only had each other.

She hugged him tightly and it was her turn to cry into his shirt.

Credence felt her warm body against his cooler one. As they lingered in the moment, Credence thought back to what he had learnt from (Y/N) in the past month. One, there were people that were just like him. Two, there were people that care for him. And three, how to hug and comfort people to a small extent.

He returned her hug this time, and swore that for the journey ahead, he would protect her, just as she protected him.