A little hope in the darkest times

A second strudel

Jacob did not really know what to do with himself. He felt like a third wheel to the almost-couple Tina and Newt and Newt had ensured him about three times already that he did not need help with his creatures. Jacob did not even know Nagini and invading her privacy, especially now, did not seem nice. Theseus was back in the auror department. And that again, just made it clear how lost he was in the wizarding world. Strangely, he had always felt as if he had his own space in there. But without Queenie, he was all alone.

Why had she done that? Of course, he could understand that she wanted to be happy, he also wanted that.... But was love worth all this pain? Normally, in all these books, people said yes. People did these things, died for others and fell in love in wars. The truth seemed so different. Doing something out of love, he had always thought that it was a good thing. But Gellert Grindelwald was not doing something good. And Jacob was not sure how Queenie, his Queenie, was able to trust this system that wanted to rule over muggles. He knew that marrying her would not be easier just because Grindelwald said so. Things never got easier, they just got more difficult. Jacob was not sure how Queenie could think that being enslaved and controlled by an evil wizard could be a good thing.

He learned a lesson, as he stumbled over the kitchen. Normally, food just appeared, which made sense, because it was a magic world. Jacob has accepted that some things were just there. But today was the day he met the house elves.

„Nice to meet you, Sir. What do you want to eat, Sir? Should we cook you anything? We're so thankful we get to serve you, master", one of the house elves said.
„Uh, hey... What's your name?", Jacob asked.
The smiling house elf in front of him seemed really happy and she chanted her own name: „It's Mary"

„Can I make my own food here? You know, I like to bake and...", he began, but in the second he mentioned the word baking, Mary began to wave her arms, snap her fingers and all around him, ingredients flew through the air, and he found himself reminded of something else he had seen before. It reminded him of Queenie. And really, of course, Mary served him strudel. She saw that he was a little uncomfortable.
„Did Mary do it wrong? Mary is a Bad Bad elf!!!", she said and began to repeatedly hit her head at the table in front of which they were standing.
Jacob hesitated for a second, this situation was a little surprising and not in a good way. Finally, he was able to grab the house elf's arms and pulled her away from the table.
„No, you didn't do anything wrong. I'm perfectly fine, it's just my wife...."
Mary pulled out a chair out of nothing and told Jacob to sit down.
„Can Mary also know what happened to your wife?", she asked, her big eyes trembling in fear. And once again, Jacob asked himself, who could do such a thing to magical creatures. They were living in fear, of course they were. House elves had a strange moral system, thinking that they were bad and worthless if they did something wrong. Controlled by wizards, constantly saying master and actually nice and harmless if left alone. It almost struck Jacob down as he realized that Queenie had chosen the same fate.

She was a slave now. And if he could not ask her, in front of him sat a house elf he could ask.
„Why are you so happy? I mean, you're a slave, you're not even paid. How can you be happy?"
A dreamy expression laid on Mary's face.
„I have everything I ever wanted. A nice master, nice students, a purpose. It is the purpose of a house elf to serve. We are inferior to the wizard, of course I am happy to serve. It is my destiny. My ancestors served here, generations over generations. Why do you think we deserve something different? We never wanted something else. We were not taught to want more and it is the destiny of every house elf to serve. We're happy, as long as we can do something to help. Every house elf loves his master, because master made all of this possible. You see?", she asked and handed him the strudel.

Yes, Jacob understood. No one had ever actually said that house elves deserved something better. They were happy, because they saw this issue as god given. They saw it as their purpose. And they loved their Master, even though he had enslaved them.
That was the reason why Queenie had left him. Because she thought that the only way to get what she wanted, was to trust Grindelwald. Even though he enslaved her, was ready to enslave all muggles, she believed that.... Jacob suppressed the urge to vomit just now. She believed that they were meant to be enslaved. Another thought flashed his brain, and slowly, he was scaring himself to death. It all made sense now. That she had given him a love potion. All of that. She did not care about his free will, if it meant to destroy their love. Was this really the Queenie he had fallen in love with?

Mary handed him the strudel again.
„Eat it. It will make you feel better. I don't think your wife is like that. You know... Sometimes people just want change. They want to escape from their current reality, because it does not give them what they want. And change is not always a bad thing. Of course not. But... There is a mistake people make, when they want change. They don't ask the people if they want to change. They just destroy everything around them, because once something has to be built up again, it is built up again a little different than it was before. It depends on who commands to build the new buildings. I am sure, that there will be a time, when you can marry your wife. But you have to win the war, you have to fight for your rights. In this war, you are the only muggle able to see what is really happening. Fight for your rights, because your head is not yet programmed to believe that you are inferior."
And somehow, he knew that Mary was right. He was sure that she could see into the future. And yes, he would fight, for his love. And in his case, it would be something good.