Prompt Post #1

[fantasticbeasts_kinkmeme]

 ROUND 1

FUCK IT WE'LL FIGURE OUT SPECIFICS LATER

Important links:
You can check for fill updates at our tumblr page
You can upload your stories on AO3 anonymously here
You can alert us that you've filled a prompt here
You can talk about anything here

Comments

FILL: Graves/Newt - Soulmarks [2/?]

[(Anonymous)]

Since this story is following the general path of the movie I've tried to both follow the plot and not dwell on the details too much for this part. Hopefully it worked out. orz

------

Almost as soon as Percival disappeared down into the depths of MACUSA, Goldstein grabbed Newt’s arm and began to lead him back towards the Woolworth building entrance. Newt almost grabbed for the suitcase of pastries out of habit- not having the comforting weight of it in hand was nearly as discomfiting as Percival’s lack of recognition.

“Come on, faster! We have to find the no-maj with your suitcase before he opens it and breaks the Statute of Secrecy more than you’ve already done!” she hissed. “Did you get his name? Oh- or do you have some way to track the case?”

Goldstein had quite good instincts, Newt thought. He was somewhat impressed with her in spite of himself- he would have preferred she’d not drag him from where he’d been minding his business, but he supposed she was following habit. She must have been an Auror at some point, though he couldn’t figure why she’d been demoted to working registry if she had been so maybe she was just starting at MACUSA?

“Scamander. A tracker? On the case?”

Right. No time for speculation. “Yes- as soon as we can Apparate-”

Goldstein didn’t seem to need clarification. “Why were you staring at Mr. Graves like that back there?”

Newt’s hand went to his cuff. His wrist was still cold under the thick leather and when he stuck his fingers under the cuff it was to try and impart warmth there. He supposed the new cold was a little better than the previous burning, though the sensation felt deeper than his skin in a way the burning hadn’t. If he cast a warming charm, would that help? Why hadn’t he and Percival connected? Did the cold mean that Percival didn’t have Newt’s name? (Wouldn’t that be the cruelest irony of Newt’s life?)

No time.

“Wait, that’s- you mean Mr. Graves and... you? Really?” Goldstein murmured, eyes wide and astonished. She bit her lip. “Sorry. Private. I shouldn’t ask.”

Newt shrugged his agreement regardless. “I have his name. Something’s wrong, though. I didn’t feel anything when we touched and- well, he doesn’t seem to know me. Has something happened recently?”

Goldstein flushed, but neither he nor Goldstein had had much time to dwell on whether or not Newt had committed a breach of etiquette and Goldstein didn’t have a chance to tell him about Percival. They reached the nearest Apparition point to the Woolworth building and ducked into the dimmed doorway. Newt focused his suitcase, and grabbed Goldstein to side-along Apparate with her.

------

They Apparated to what was, kindly putting it, a scene of destruction; what had been an apartment building was now standing precariously with several massive holes in the walls. Newt could still feel his suitcase in the vicinity, but he knew something was wrong. It was almost a relief- something tangibly and visibly wrong he could fix. Newt waved his wand at various piles of rubble absently as he raced up the stairs to his suitcase, coaxing them back into their proper place.

“You can’t-! Stop that!” Goldstein hissed, “The Statute!”

Newt ignored her. The Statute was silly, so far as he was concerned, and they had no time to worry about that, anyway. He all but fell into the muggle’s apartment. His suitcase was lying haphazardly on the bed; the muggle was lying on the floor. Newt grabbed for his suitcase (thank Merlin it had been in the care of a muggle, since he’d spelled it to return to Theseus only if unfamiliar magic was used on the suitcase to try and get in). He sighed inwardly. The locks were undone.

Goldstein was right on his heels. “Was it open?”

“... Just a smidge,” Newt allowed.

She didn’t look very impressed. Newt was spared further questions when she noticed the muggle and threw herself over him, patting at his clothes ineffectively. “His neck’s bleeding- he’s hurt.”

Newt looked from side to side as though the newly repaired walls of Jacob’s apartment could offer him escape and then pursed his lips at Goldstein’s back. Such fuss. It was just a murtlap bite and there weren’t any flames coming out of the man’s backside, which meant it was easy enough to fix if Newt could get a moment alone with him.

Then again, maybe Goldstein would be busy enough fretting over the bite and how the muggle should have been Obliviated at the bank and now he’d have to be even more Obliviated that she’d forget Percival was his soulmate.

“If there are symptoms they’ll last forty-eight hours at most!” Newt finally said. “I can keep him if you want me to-”

“Keep him?” Goldstein snapped. “We don’t keep them! Don’t you know anything about the wizarding community in America?”

“I do know a few things, actually. I know you have rather backwards laws about relations with non-magic people. That you're not meant to befriend them, that you can't marry them, which seems mildly absurd to me- what if your soulmate is a muggle?”

He’d frustrated her, if the little growl under her breath was anything to go by, but In the end Goldstein decided Mr. Kowalski would have to be brought with them to her apartment in order to fix him. Luckily it appeared that she didn’t live all that far away.

The three snuck up the stairs and had Mr. Kowalski sit down.

Then Goldstein’s sister Queenie spoke and Newt immediately tried to get away, swearing inwardly as he was caught at the door. Queenie was lovely, but a natural born legilimens with talent like hers was fairly unusual. (Newt was somewhat surprised that she hadn’t been picked up for a case study in legilimens and several textbooks written about her.) Whether or not she really had trouble reading accented thoughts, Newt knew that he would have been all but shouting his confusion at her.

He didn’t need another person knowing his soulmate’s name, let alone about his wrist or their lack of connection. What would they be able to do about it, anyway?

Newt had Mr. Kowalski join him down in the suitcase as soon as they were alone in the guest bedroom so he could to give Mr. Kowalski treatment for the murtlap bite.

Then Newt introduced him to his creatures so he could make sure they were all settled and fed after the longest separation they’d had for a long time. He also took a tally of which creatures had gone missing- the Niffler was definitely still out there, and Dougal was likely gone given his restlessness back on the boat.

Still, watching Mr. Kowalski with his creatures was perhaps the best time he’d had since he’d walked off the ship at New York harbor. Newt even managed to forget about the chill in his skin for a time.

“How do wizards work?” Mr. Kowalski asked while feeding the Mooncalves, “Do you all keep creatures like this?”

“No,” Newt said, looking around his home and the various habitats he’d created in it. “Some have kneazles for pets, but most other wizards think what I do is meaningless and bonkers. They don’t think magical creatures should be protected, just used for their parts.” He shrugged. “Most other wizards don’t even know about half the creatures I know about.”

“No? I can’t imagine why not,” Mr. Kowalski said, scratching his head and looking around, “This is incredible.”

Newt smiled a little.

Later, while they were out looking for his missing Erumpent in the Central Park Zoo and Newt could pretend that the cold in him was just because of the night air in winter, and that he could forget about Percival if he really tried, Mr. Kowalski brought him to a near dead stop.

“So, what about soulmates? Do all wizards have one? You do, don't ya?”

Newt felt like the breath had been kicked out of him. Being reminded of a missed connection to a man who was meant to be his soulmate was not exactly what he needed. He turned a questioning gaze on his new friend.

“You've been playing with that cuff all evening. Have you met yet?”

“Do I look so young?” Newt asked, keeping his voice light, hoping he'd not given away his panic. It seemed like anytime someone asked about Percival the cold got worse. It had certainly spread up his arm.

“Well, no, I guess not but you don't look so old either,” Mr. Kowalski said. “It's the hair, maybe.”

Newt huffed a laugh. He yanked a helmet out of his suitcase. “Here. Put this on.”

Re: FILL: Graves/Newt - Soulmarks [2/?]

[(Anonymous)]

Aah, this is great!