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Its quarter past four, Newt was supposed here at four on the dot as per their Mother’s request.
While he’s often been frustrated by Newt’s unpredictable but this time he’s really managed to push his buttons. Since his and Leta’s engagement his mother had eagerly been trying to gather all of them under one roof and celebrate that finally one of her sons has, as she’d put it, gotten his act together and found a wonderful girl to settle down with.
Leta really is wonderful and at times he can’t quite believe she chose him out of all the people she could chosen from. His proposal had been really god awful, just sort of blurted out, no finesse or anything while they were on their evening walks. She’s just rolled her lovely cinnamon eyes and very sweetly said yes to him.
Newt had expertly managed to wiggle out off several of the dinners that Leta has tried to arrange between them and Newt but he’d never thought that Newt would disappoint their Mother in this way. Anger bubbled up within him and he had to fight the urge to get up and go find his brother and give him a good shake but the scruff of the neck.
But if he left he’d only upset his mother even more
Leta lay one warm hand soothingly on his knee, she must have felt him twitch with suppressed energy, one thumb rubbing gently at a crease in his trousers and he couldn’t help but smile down at her. Her responding smile made his heart beat a little faster with joy. When they’d first started courting she’s been so… uncertain… carrying a melancholy air... like she was half expecting him to explode at her at any moment but now when she smiled regularly with warmth in her eyes, so carefree and happy it made him giddy.
He’s done that and it makes him so happy.
“You know Newt, Theseus.” She said, her eyes sparkling “He’s probably gotten distracted by his book and completely forgotten about us”
His Mother snorted slightly, flicking her wand to reheat the teapot again, “Oh Newt and his little book” She’s always wanted Newt to have a proper career, like their father or himself and despairs slightly at him “messing around with his creatures”. Although since joining the Beast Division Newt has gone from strength to strength, so she indulges him.
She’s mostly likely right.
They’re not close, as some people would say as different as chalk and cheese but there is a part of him though, quite a large part of him actually, that would rather like a closer relationship with his brother. Like what he’s observed between normal brothers. But Newt has always held the world at an arms length except for his creatures not to say that his brother hasn’t tried.
He can remember very clearly going into the Hippogriff stables when Newt was around eight years old to find him cry silently, tear’s dripping down his thin little face, hugging his favourite hippogriff tightly. After about an hour of calming him down and persuading him to let go of the hippogriff, the majestic beast had borne being a child’s security fairly well all things considered, he’s managed to get the story out of Newt. Apparently Newt had tried to make friends with one of the neighbouring wizarding families children and had only gotten teased and cat called mercilessly, which he’d taken in good humour, until one of the children had taken his Puffskin, Freddie. So Newt had hit him, and had been told off by their mother for doing so.
He didn’t understand, Newt had sobbed clinging onto the hippogriff, He’d tried to be nice but that nasty boy had taken his Freddie and had been hurting him, he’d only been trying to stop him. And he’s gotten punished for it.
Where was the fairness in that?
Why couldn’t people be predicable like the Hippogriffs? You approach them right and nine times out of ten they’re your friend and won’t hurt you. People will.
Unable to answer all he’d been able to do was mop up the tears and try to hug him. Newt wiggling away from him, reattaching to the hippogriff, had made him sadly wish for a more normal brother.
Newt’s gotten better over the years, but still sometimes its like he’s half a step out of the rest of the world.
Lost in his memories, he jumped nearly out of his skin when the sitting room door burst open and his brother fell into the room, tripping over his own feet and nearly spilling the little table heaving under afternoon tea.
Speak of the devil and he shall come after all.
Newt stooped slightly in the middle of the room as if he was apologising for being so tall, hands fiddling nervously with the buttons on his grey coat, blue eyes glancing nervously around from face to face from beneath his tousled reddish brown fringe. Apologetically he shifted from foot to foot before their mother.
Like him and their mother, Leta has also gotten to her feet when Newt had burst into the room. Her lips are slightly parted and she looks delighted to see him. If he remembers correctly Leta and Newt were friends at Hogwarts before he’d been expelled. Most of Leta’s stories about her time at school began with “Newt and I….”
“So sorry” The corner of his mouth quirked up into an appeasing half smile “Meeting with my editor you see and we might have over run a smidge”
The overjoyed smile on their mother’s face assures him of forgiveness at least from their mother as she throws her arms around her youngest son. Which Newt bore stiffly with a long suffering expression.
Once his mother had released him from her maternal embrace Newt swivelled slightly to face himself and Leta. He didn’t look directly at them in fact he looks more uncomfortable than he’s seen Newt in a long long time.
“Theseus, Leta” Newt greets them quietly. He’s not seen his brother since he left on his fieldwork trips and has missed him immensely.
“Congratulations” Newt said softly still staring at the ground, eyes tracing the patterns in the rug “I’m happy for you both…. So pleased” To his amazement Newt submits to a hug from him, feeling thinner than ever all lean angles and limbs, his travels must have taken their toll on him even before the incident New York, surprising him by lightly patting his back briefly. As soon as he’s relinquished Newt from his arms Leta steps forward and wraps her arms around her old friend. Newt doesn’t exactly hug her back but he does for a split second put one arm ineptly around her shoulder and holding for a moment before retreating.
He is happy to see them, he can tell that about his brother at least.
“Sit down, Newton” Their mother ushered Newt over towards the arm chair and him and Leta over to the little sofa “and have some tea.” She eyes him critically “You’re far too thin and you must get your hair cut”
As their mother fusses over them all, pouring them tea and offering cake and scones he rests his arm around Leta’s shoulder enjoying the sensation when she leans back against him. Watching as his brother tries to take a sip of tea and a mouthful of cake while their mother relentlessly fusses over him he can’t help but reflect on what his mother said to him the other day when he was helping her re-pot seedlings.
“I’m worried about Newton” His Mother had said as he’s stretched up to reach the pots on the top shelf for her, her oval face look up at him anxiously, He and Newt had inherited their father’s height and her stubbornness.
He’d laughed at that, she’d been worried about Newt from the moment he’d been born. She’d glared at him sharply and slapped his hand.
“He never talks about any friends or women. He’s so focused on finishing that book of his and his creatures”
“Oh come on Mum” He’s said humorously “You’ve always said he needed to focus on his career and now he’s succeeding at it”
“I know” She glanced around conspiringly “But he never talks about any friends, it’s all about his creatures or his next travel plans and I’ve never heard him say a word about girls except for Leta”
He’s found himself pausing at that, his mother’s worries suddenly making a lot more sense but he tried to make a joke of it “You just want more Grandchildren” She’d laughed but turned away shaking her head.
“I’ve seen the joy being with Leta has given you. I want that for Newton, I want him to be settled…
…I don’t want him to be alone”
“The launch parties next month” Newt’s announcement cut through his reminiscence and he leaned forward a little to re-join the conversation. Newt took a sip of tea before stuttering timidly “You’re all welcome to come if you’d like.”
“Oh Newton” Their Mother’s eyes were shining with pride in him “We’d all love to come” Leta nodded vigorously in agreement. Newt look perplexed by their enthusiastic, unused to such high praise from well anyone, although he sensed that Newt was relieved that he wouldn’t be facing the press alone. He fidgeted with his cup and muttered something about arranging it with his editor.
“Have you settled on a title?” Leta asked his brother “Theseus told me you were having trouble deciding” At that Newt winced slightly as she’d hit on a sore spot. His book gone through numerous renames and arguments between Newt and his editor Newt had told him frustratedly, apparently the man didn’t think any of the names Newt had come up with were very attention grabbing.
Marketing Dear Boy and that sort of thing
“Yes” He murmured, still playing with his tea cup finger running around and around the rim “A friend of mine came up with it”
He can practically see his mother sit up straighter and prick up her ears even as he himself did. Never before in his adult life has Newt referred to someone as his friend, colleague yes, acquaintance yes. But friend Never.
Not picking up on his and his Mother’s shock Leta leaned forward and said teasingly “And what is it Newt? You can’t expect us to go to your book launch and cheer you on if we don’t even know the title of your book is.”
A little chuckle escaped Newt before he caught himself and looked at the ground abashed “Actually it’s just something she said when she said goodbye to me, I thought about it a lot on the journey home and it just fits.” A true smile, full of happy reminiscences, spread across his face “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.”
It’s a good title, a very good title actually.
Wait did Newt just say, she?
“She?” Is all their startled Mother can manage.
“Yes, her name is Tina Goldstein I met her in New York, You’d like her Theseus she’s an Auror” Newt’s not told them anything about what he’d gotten up to in New York, in fact he knew that Newt had been forbidden from talking about it. All they knew was that Newt had been instrumental in assisting in the capture of Gelert Grindelwald.
“You made a Friend?” He can’t stop the out burst
Newt actually glared at him “Actually I made several friends in New York Theseus, I’m not completely incapable.”
Startled he exchanged surprised looks with his Mother. Newt is ever so slightly flushed around his ears, which tells him that Newt really likes his Auror.
Very deliberately she set down her cup of tea and smoothed her skirt, he knew that look their Mother was going on a fact finding mission and from how Newt was eying her in trepidation he’d realised it too.
“So” She said with deliberate slowness “How did you meet your new friend?”
Under the focused gaze of their Mother Newt quailed, looking like he’d rather face a manticore “Oh I…” He glanced at Theseus silently begging him for a distraction, he just sat back slightly excited to hear this himself “Well she arrested me and then…”
Of course that was how Newt would meet a girl.
“… Then I nearly got her executed.”
Unfortunately he’d been taking a swig of tea when Newt had related that little anecdote and the out of the blue statement had him exhaling in surprise instead of swallowing, spraying tea over the rug. Looking round at the room Leta and His mother’s shock is similarly presented, so with a muttered spell he manages to save the rug from tea stains before anyone really notice.
Mouth hanging out in shock, all their mother could manage was a startled, high pitched “What?”
Newt looked surprisingly unconcerned by his announcement as he shrugged one thin shoulder and reached for another slice of cake murmuring “It all worked out in the end” Leaving them to digest their shock and collect themselves Newt calmly finished his slice of cake, licking his fingers with satisfaction.
Really only his Brother could meet a woman and be both arrested by her and nearly get her executed
Apparently having not dropped enough bombshells on them for today Newt said casually “We’ve been exchanging letters to each other.”
He doesn’t know what flabbergasts him more, that Newt getting arrested or that he’s been writing letters regularly to this Tina woman. He can see that his Mother is likewise struggling to wrap her head around the concept that Newt is interested in something other than his creatures.
“So” Their Mother sat down her cup firmly, preparing herself maybe for anymore shocks Newt might decide to throw at them “What’s she like?”
“Brave, driven” Is the immediate response, like Newt has been thinking a lot about this and has been bursting to talk about her with anyone “Kind and compassionate and she’s a very interesting woman”
Of course any woman his brother has to be interested in has to be an interesting woman. And he doesn’t know if that reassures him or worries him.
Newt fumbled for his waist coat pocket and waved a piece of paper animatedly “I’ve got a picture.”
Both he and Leta have to lean over slightly to see the picture that Newt has reluctantly relinquished to Mother. It’s just an article from the newspaper cut out hurriedly and slightly clumsily but Newt handles it very carefully as if he’s frightened of tearing it, eyes following it carefully as they passed it between them.
He takes his time to examine the woman in the photo. She’s pretty and quite pale with dark hair and very intense dark eyes. But when the woman in the picturebreaks out into a smile it changes her whole face lifting with happiness and brightening her eyes. He can see why his Brother is attracted to her.
“She’s a very pretty girl” Mother says almost thoughtfully as Newt snatches it from his fingers
“Beautiful” He’s glad that Mother had put down her tea cup as they would have had a nasty accident if she had been holding it. Never have either of them heard Newt refer to anything other than his creatures as beautiful.
Gazing at the cut out, Newt’s face is suffused with an internal joy, his whole body practically vibrating with happiness.
“It doesn’t show so well in newsprint” Newt said thoughtfully almost to himself, speaking clearly for the first time since he’s entered the room, thumb stroking the picture tenderly “But in reality they’ve got this effect in them… it’s like fire in water, like fire in dark water. I’ve only ever seen that in… in…” His voice trailed off uncertainly when he notices his rapt audience looking at him with astonishment, shifting uncomfortably under their scrutiny.
And barely says more than ten words for the rest of his visit, deftly deflecting anymore inquiries from Mother and Leta, just listening intensely to the discussions about the wedding planning and about hearing about how Mrs Prewett’s enchanted pineapple upside down cake beat Mrs Goyle about the head during Ottery St Catchpoles annual fate, sipping his tea contentedly and smiling occasionally when the situation called for it.
As the conversation flows around them he reflects that his little Brother really falling in love with this Tina person as he realises with a jolt of shock that this isn’t just some passing fancy. He’s made a connection with someone and he isn’t willing to give it up, no matter the distance between them. What’s more is that Newt has recognised how he’s feeling and is trying to act on it.
Has reality turn on its head?
Still he’s delighted that his dear little brother has found someone and is apparently as interested in him as he is in her. He can feel his heart expand a little out of love for his almost happy little brother.
As they go to leave he pulls Newt to one side and asks him in an undertone if he’ll be his best man. There is no one else he’d rather have at his side, steadying his nerves as he waits for Leta at the end of the aisle. Newt looks at him suspiciously for a moment, like he can’t decide if Theseus is making a joke, before hesitantly agreeing if Theseus thinks its best.
He does.
As they watch Newt apperate away after enduring another hug from their mother rather than staying for dinner, claiming he has to get home to care for his creatures as his niffler’s just had a litter. It’s reassuring that despite all the changes Newt still remains the same old Newt. Leta wraps one arm around his waist and he gives her a loving squeeze contently.
His brother’s home safely and apparently capable of forming relationships with other people, his Mother is over boiling with glee that both her son’s are getting settled and his fiancé is in his arms.
Life is good.
What could possibly go wrong?