A kiss and a promise - Newtina fanfic

2. At the house of Nicholas and Perenelle Flamel

At his house, the company was welcomed by a fragile lady who looked not a day younger than Nicolas Flamel himself. "Meet my wife Perenelle", Flamel said. "I've told her we probably could expect some guest, so I assume we have something nice to eat for you and some hot tea to relief your minds" "Of course, my dear!" she replied, and with a welcoming smile and a gesture to the fireplace, she invited the party to sit down and get some warmth. She summoned some teacups, a teapot and some cake and sandwiches from the kitchen and landed them on the table.

Nagini, Jacob and Yusuf sat down by the fire and Tina took place on the couch. Newt put down his case and reached deep into it to release the niffler, and after closing it carefully he sat down beside her. They all didn't have a big appetite, but the tea warmed them all and loosened their tensioned nerves. After a while, Yusuf started talking about the wizarding world in Africa and found listeners in Jacob and Nagini. Nicholas Flamel and his wife were a very grateful audience too. They were pleased to have some company in their house and loved the stories told by the fire.

Tina, on the other hand, wasn't listening. She stared into her cup with a white face, and suddenly a tear escaped her eye. Her mind was racing. Queenie.... why did she leave? Where was she? Was she ok? Was she ever going to see her again? Tina felt so hurt by losing her... Quickly she wiped the tear away, she wanted so much to be strong. A lot has to be done, and an auror like herself could not allow herself to break down and cry.

She didn't think someone had noticed her moment of weakness, but she was wrong. Next to her, Newt was pretending to listen to Yusuf, but in fact he was very aware of Tina and her struggle. His heart broke at the thought of her loss. He wished he could hold her, so she felt she wasn't alone and was allowed to cry and ease her pain. Feel he was there for her. But he didn't want to scare her, and besides... he didn't have the courage to do as he wished. What if she didn't want him so close to her, not want him to touch her? She had acted so formal earlier that day, keeping distance to him, calling him mr. Scamander again..... at least..... until he told her that stupid magazine got it all wrong and he wasn't engaged to Leta. He had seen her walls breaking down a little then.... and.... when he compaired her eyes to salamander's, she didn't turn away and even seemed to understand what he was trying to say...... Sadly, there was no time to sort things out then, but at least her attitude had changed.... maybe, a little.... But he wasn't so sure she trusted him again, like she did in New York. And that thought made him unsure what to do next.

A fluttering feeling went through his stomach at the realisation of being so close to her. A feeling he didn't recall having before, not until he met Tina. There was something special about her, something that gave him that particular feeling. It started when he had looked into her eyes during dinner at her place, the first night he was in New York. And he never stopped feeling this way, every time he thought of her. He suspected this special feeling could be .... maybe had something to do with.... love perhaps?

He remembered Leta and how he assumed he was in love with her years ago, but now he recognised the difference. The love for Leta had only been in his head, but this feeling for Tina was everywhere, in his mind, his heart, his soul. This could be for real, couldn't it?

Newt pushed all this thoughts away. His own feelings and wishes had to wait. Tina needed some space to cope with her grief, and he was able to give it to her without being close to her, if she preferred to be alone.

He made a decision and turned towards her. When he saw her looking back at his movement, he started "I have to go down in my case to tend my niffler. It escaped at the Lestrange tomb and it came back lame." He smiled shyly. "And the zouwu needs some care too. The matagots added some nasty scratches to the wounds it already has. Would you.... like to come and help me?" he asked her softly, while he nervously looked into her eyes.

Tina was very eager to escape the living room and the pretending she had everything under control. And better... she was thrilled by the idea of being alone with Newt for a while. They hadn't had time to talk about what Newt meant when he mentioned her "salamander eyes" earlier that day. She however was so moved by this words and hoped to discover more. More about his feelings for her, now she knew there was no marriage to Leta Lestrange. She didn't dare to hope that much, but still.... there was this little flame of hope in her heart....

Tina had tried very hard to forget Newt during the last few months. In vain. The moment she laid eyes on him again here in Paris, she knew for sure she couldn't ever forget him. It was like the strike of lightning to see him again, and she had to admit to herself she loved him. Very much. But could she ever admit it to him? And what would he think of her? And.... if he liked her, or even felt more.....was he able to show or tell her so, while he knew she was dating someone else? He surely knew... he'd said he heard she was happy now and he was glad about it. What a mistake she'd made... Achilles Tolliver..... she only welcomed his attention to forget about Newt. She didn't love Achilles.... True, they've had fun on their dates, but his attention and kisses meant nothing to her. It sometimes even annoyed her. A short time after they started dating, she'd known she had to put an end to their relationship, if you could even call it one. She hadn't ended it. And now.... was it too late? Newt was too much a gentleman to start dating her, while he knew she was seeing someone else..... Tina swallowed a lump in her throat and pushed back the tears that started to fill her eyes again. This time, they appeared at the thought of missing her chance to be with the man she really loved...

Tina was pulling herself together. How could she think of love while her sister had gone with Grindelwald, and she had no clue how to ever find her back? She had to put those romantic feelings aside, and her doubt with it. A hard job, looking into Newts asking blue eyes. But she had to focus right now on her sister. And besides, Newt asked for her help and she wouldn't refuse that. As a friend, at least..... Tina stood up and gave him a nervous smile. With a "Yes, of course I will" she followed Newt to the kitchen. He placed the case on the kitchen floor and opened it. With a shy smile he gestured her to climb in, and followed her when she did. Then he closed the lid.