#like Charlie woke up as a very poor boy and goes to bed as the heir to a chocolate factory fortune and a space traveler | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

secondgenerationnerd · 5 years ago

Text

Snowy Days

This is the request I promised earlier! a little bit of plot to move things along, but for the most part, it’s just some cuteness.

----

Milagro Reyes-Wilkes knows better than to think she can sleep in on vacation.

“Mom! Dad! It snowed!”

“Mami...” Milagro jerks awake as her sons burst into the room. Ten-year-old Ben dances around the bed while four-year-old Max climbs up the sheets. She shakes her head, smiling softly at her pouting baby, nudging her husband with her foot.

“Babe, the boys are up.”

Colin groans, pulling his pillow over their head, grumbling, “We agreed: before eight a.m. they’re your boys.”

Milagro rolls her eyes as Max climbs into her arms. “What’s wrong, mijo?”

“Esta muy frio, Mami,” Max shivers, clinging to his stuffed monkey. Milagro kisses his dark hair, cuddling him. “No le gusta.”

“Si, Mami lo se. But it’s going to look so pretty soon.” Milagro lets him cuddle into his arms, loving her cuddly, pouty boy.

“Dad!” Ben jumps onto Colin’s back. That wakes him up. Colin rolls onto his back, clearly groggy as hell. “You gotta get up! It snowed!”

“‘For sale: one jumpy kid, will take the best offer.” Milagro kicks him under the sheets. “What?”

“No selling my boys.” Ben crawls over to his mother, mismatched eyes shining at her. She can already tell what he’s going to ask, in the way only a mom can, “Breakfast first and then we can go out in the snow, ok?”

“Ok, Mom!” Ben bounds out of the room.

“I’m telling you, Mil, that kid is part speedster.” Colin rubs his eyes. Milagro gets out of bed, passing him their younger son. He carries Max to the already bustling kitchen.

“Hi, Auntie Milly!” Two little girls race past them to the kitchen table.

“Baby Dolls!” Jai comes running down the hall, chasing a dark-haired little boy in monster jammies, “No powers inside!”

“Good morning,” Damian yawns, scratching his head, “I see your children woke you up as well.”

“Your kid is 13.” Milagro points out.

“She was complaining about her cousins.”

“Definitely your kid.” Colin yawns. The Wayne Winter lodge is large enough that the adults get their own rooms, with a few rooms to split their kids into. Ben’s already at the breakfast bar, happily chowing down on a bowl of grits Jon made, chattering away at quiet Peter Kent. Damian’s daughter, Asha, sits with Charlie Kent, discussing the logistics of the superhero movie they’d watched the night before. Lily and Milly Harper-West giggle with M&M Kent. Their little brother, Luke, tugs on Lian’s sleep pants. Lian scoops him into her arms, kissing his little cheek.

“Welcome to the chaos.” Irey laughs into her coffee mug. “I think we all told the kids the same thing.”

“Breakfast before fun?” Milagro gratefully takes another cup of coffee from her friend.

“Still not fair, Mama.” Asha pouts. Irey kisses the top of her daughter’s head.

“It’s my job to ruin your life, kiddo.” Irey teases. “Also, that movie didn’t take into account the fact most heroes don’t run in a straight line when something’s falling.”

“Three steps to the left and you live.” Lian laughs.

“Asha, did you see the video with the baby elephant--”

“With its teddy bear?!” Asha squeals with Charlie about the cute animals. Damian yawns as he takes a cup of tea from Irey. Asha makes a face as her parents kiss good morning. “Mama! Baba! That’s gross!”

The adults can’t help but laugh. Mar’i makes her way into the kitchen, carrying her youngest daughter. Laney sneezes, whimpering in mar’i’s arms.

“Is Loo Loo ok, Momma?” Charlie’s dark brown eyes flash with concern for her baby sister.

“She’s ok, starling.” Mar’i runs a hand through her oldest daughter’s blonde pixie cut. “She doesn’t like the cold, remember?”

“Me too...” Max pouts at Colin, who had set him at the breakfast table. Colin chuckles at his pouting son.

“I know, bud. Dad’s completely unfair.” He sets a bowl of grits in front of the toddler, “Eat something and then you can have all the cuddles you want.”

“Remember the last time we were here?” Lian asks her friends. “Don’t think we were up this early?”

“After the space juice the night before?” Irey laughs. “Heck no.”

“Mommy?” Lily tilts her head.

“Yeah, baby doll?”

“What’s space juice?”

“Something that you aren’t allowed to drink until you’re thirty.” Jai tells his daughter.

“I think it’s a grown-up thing,” Milly whispers to her twin.

“Like when Momma and Daddy wrestle in their room?” M&M asks. Jon turns dark red while his friends and wife laugh.

“I thought you said that’s how Lukey got in your belly, Mommy?” Milly asks her mother. “You let Daddy--”

“Who’s ready to go outside?” Lian asks. The distraction works, sending their kids flying to their rooms to change. “Jai, remind me to never let you near me again.”

The next forty minutes or so are filled with kids changing into snow clothes and searching for missing clothes.

“Mom!” Ben shouts from the front room, “ Donde estan mis botas y mi abrigo?”

“Boots are in the garage and coat’s hanging up in the front closest, mijo,” Milagro smiles down at Max, pulling on her sweater. “Don’t you want to play with your cousins, Maxie?”

“Later...It’s too cold...” Max might share more of her features but the look he gives her is pure Colin. Of course, she has to pick her sweet boy up and carry him out to the porch. She joins Lian and Irey on the porch swing, watching their husbands play around in the snow with their kids. Mar’i brings Laney out, the little girl wrapped in an extra blanket.

“Come on, Pete!” Ben shouts to his cousin. Peter laughs and helps Ben throw snowballs at the girls. Asha and Charlie take cover, retaliating in turn. “Give up! You girls don’t stand a chance!”

“Never!” Asha shouts back, pelting him with a snowball. While the older four battle it out, the middle four are hard at work making snow babies.

“Look, Daddy,” Luke points to the little pile of snow with two stones on it, “Look what I made.”

Jai kneels down, smiling warmly at his son, “Looks great, Little Man.”

“Daddy! Daddy! Come see our stuff,” Jai’s pulled to the side by his daughters, laughing as he goes. Jon helps M&M finish her snow baby, giving her a high five. Damian and Colin have joined opposing sides to the snowball fight.

“Some things don’t change,” Milagro notes. Laney starts coughing in her mother’s arms.

“Loo Loo?” Max looks over at his cousin. He crawls across his auntie’s laps, patting her back. “It ok. You be ok soon.”

“Tanks, Maxie.” Laney snuggles closer to Mar’i.

“Poor thing. Is she ok?” Lian asks.

“Yeah. I mean, she was a preemie so her immune system isn’t great.” Mar’i kisses Laney’s ginger curls. “My sweet starling.”

“Uh-oh.” Milagro gestures to Colin, Damian, and Jai huddled together while Jon helps the all the kids build a giant snowman. “They’re plotting.”

“Ok, guys, let’s see who can find the best arms for the snowman,” Jon tells the gaggle of children.

“I can!”

“No, Milly, I can!”

“I’ll beat all of you!” Asha shouts, running ahead. Jon watches the kids head to the edge of the woods, still within sight. He doesn’t see Colin, Jai, and Damian sneak up behind him. They tackle him, which is no easy feat when dealing with a half- Kryptonian.

“COLD!” Jon yells as his friends shove snow down his pants. Once he regains his footing and pushes them off, Damian, Jai and Colin fall to the side, laughing. Jon glares at them, “V-Very fu-funny.”

“Hey!” M&M shouts, runnning towards them, “You can’t do that to Daddy!”

“I-It’s ok, honey.” Jon heads towards the house. “I’m going to change my pants.”

The mothers notice their older children huddle together, conspiring, as their husbands stand up, still laughing.

“Daddy!” Luke starts towards Jai, before tripping. Jai’s posture immediately changes when the little boy starts crying. Ben and Asha start wrestling, too violent to be for fun.

“Hey! Ben!”

“Asha Nuri!”

The men run over to the kids, Jai stopping to pick Luke up as Colin and Damian pull their children apart. That’s when Asha shouts, “Attack!”

“AAAAGH!” The seasoned heroes are genuinely caught off guard as the eight children wrestle them to the ground, shoving snow down their fathers’ pants. Once the kids get a fair amount down, they race towards the porch. Their laughing mothers will protect them. Laney and Max giggle hysterically in Mar’i’s arms.

“Oh my god,” Lian snorts. Jai, Colin, and Damian make their way to the porch. “I’ve never been prouder as a parent!”

“Aren’t you going to punish them?” Jai grunts.

“No!” Irey laughs, “You all totally deserved that!”

Jon comes out with new dry pants as the other guys go inside. He raises an eyebrow at the women on the swing, “Do I want to ask?”

“The kids just got revenge for you.” Milagro kisses Ben’s head. “And our husbands are pouty because they deserved it.”

———

“Asha, come snuggle us!” Milly moves her stuffed puppy to the side. Sitting crossed legged between Milly and M&M, Asha smiles up at Irey, who hands her a cup of cocoa.

“Thank you, Mama,” Asha sips the cocoa, getting whipped cream on her nose.

“I supa man!” Max jumps off the armchair and onto the pile of pillows. Colin’s never looked more offended in his life. Laney jumps after Max, squealing as she lands.

“Cha-Cha,” Laney toddles to Charlie, pulling her sister’s hand, “Wights? Wights?”

Charlie looks over at her parents, a silent request for persmission. Jon chuckles, “Go ahead, cowgirl. I’ll get the lights.”

The kids squeal when he turns the overhead light off. Charlie’s dark brown eyes start to glow, changing color as she opens her hands. Sparks from the fireplace turn to flittering fairies flying across the living room. Luke giggles as a little fairy pulls on his sleep shirt. Laney and Max toddle after a pair of fairies, Charlie keeping the illusion just out of reach.

“Ok,” Colin nods, “I’ll admit, your kid’s powers are pretty dope.”

“This is nothing.” Mar’i watches her daughter with a loving smile. “Starling, do you want to tell a story?”

“Can I, Momma?”

“Of course.” Jon and Mar’i take pride in the way their daughter stands in front of the fire. Charlie’s gained so much confidence since they adopted her seven years ago. The living room fades away, leaving them all in the middle of a forest, trees higher than any they’ve ever seen before.

“Once upon a time, in a far off land overrun by bandits and outlaws, there were eight misfits.” Charlie retells one of her parents' old missions in the fairytale setting. Her powers allow them to see exactly what she describes. Her cousins and siblings watch in wonder. Even the adults get lost in the story.

“Alright,” Milagro notices Max yawning and rubbing his eyes. “I think it’s bedtime.”

There’s gentle whining from the kids, but for the most part, they go without too much of a fight. Milagro tucks Max into the bed he’s sharing with Luke. Lian kisses Luke’s head, chuckling. “I see Max sleeps just like Luke.”

“Butt in the air?” Milagro laughs softly as they tiptoe out, “He’s just like his father.”

“Same.” They meet their friends in the kitchen to have a small nightcap. Mar’i hands them each a glass of whiskey. “I forgot you have a thing for hard drinks, Princess.”

“Blame my parents.” Mar’i shrugs.

The conversation isn’t like the ones they used to have. When their lives were a balance of civilian vs. hero, all that mattered was school work, bets, missions, training, and whatever weird turn their conversation took. Now, they talk about work lives, new recipes, suggestions of new places to visit, and their families. But it’s so much easier now for them to appreciate everything they’ve gone through.

Days like today remind them why, nearly 20 years ago, they formed their ragtag team to save the world. So they could one day have them

#damian wayne #irey west #mar'i grayson #lian harper #jon kent #jai west #milagro reyes #colin wilkes #future fic #familes #snow day #cuteness #like 90% fluff

8 notes · View notes

charlie-and-yoshi-rp-hell · 5 years ago

Text

Episode 48: Recovery

The two halves are finally back together. Now the boys need some time to relax and renew their bond.

(PS: Sorry for being inactive for almost a year now. Life got in the way and I was busy finishing my Bachelor´s degree, and had to fight off depression. I´ll try to upload a bit more frequently. A huuuge thank you goes out to the followers who are still here. <3 )

-------------------------

Yoshi Raven: Of course the ghost tried attacking him but it was over in a few seconds. Arthur watched them fuse back together, he heard their screams but he didn´t dare getting closer - he might end fused with Lewis and he wasn´t sure if that´d be healthy.

But when he was one person again and dropped on the floor, Arthur rushed to him and sat down next to him, a worried look on his face. He sensed that there was just one end to their connection and not two - the spell had worked.

He looked at Vivi, smiling happily. "Thank you so much, Viv. Thank you."

Arthur looked back at Lewis, gently touching the locket and sending some energy.

"... Lew? Can you hear me?"

Charlie McCarthey: Upon further inspection, Lewis' ghost form was breathing. After about 6 breaths or so, that slowed and stopped. After that, the anchor responded, pulsing orange wearily as if responding to Art's question.

"He's going to need rest after this, Arthur." Mystery commented softly, walking up to Lewis' other side and nudging his hand a little with his nose. Lewis grunted tiredly and rolled over onto his side, still lying on the ground.

Yeah...m'up.

Yoshi Raven: "I know, Mystery. I can see that." he mumbled and gently hugged Lewis.

"Welcome back, cotton candy. I missed you. Come on, you´ll go sleep now." Arthur whispered while helping him get up on his feet.

"Are you okay? How do you feel, Lew?" he asked, hugging him again. Yes, he had enjoyed having two of him but just one now was even better. Much, much better.

Charlie McCarthey: Lewis stood on shaky legs, shaking his skull until his fiery pomadour flickered back into shape.

"I'm okay... dizzy. A little confused."

"That's a common side effect, the book says." Vivi assured, and Lewis nodded absently, finally seeming to notice Arthur's skinny arms wrapped around him.

"Hey.... are you okay?" He asked, the events of the previous hour catching up to him. Lewis immediately started to look guilty.

Yoshi Raven: "... yeah, I guess. I´m glad you´re back together. Now, let´s move you in the bed, you need to rest. We can talk later."

Arthur gently pulled him to the bed and made him sit down, then walked back to Vivi and hugged her, not saying anything. He also petted Mystery´s head.

"Thanks, you two. I´ll make a nice breakfast tomorrow but I guess we all need some rest now."

Charlie McCarthey: "Of course, Artie." Vivi pecked him on the cheek, and did the same to the still exhausted looking ghost. Lew grunted sleepily, and leaned back on his palms.

"You don't sound okay." Lewis muttered as he shifted into his human guise. It was worth the power it took. He felt a little better when he looked... human.

"Art. I'm sorry. I didn't mean..."

Yoshi Raven: The mechanic got back to Lewis and before he could finish his apology, he just kissed him.

"I know, Lewis. I know." Arthur mumbled, sounding tired. He leaned against him, enjoying the warmth of his body. Yes, it was his Lewis for real.

"It wasn´t your fault. I was too selfish, we should´ve reversed the spell earlier. But... I liked having two of you. It was new and interesting but I risked everyone´s safety. I knew ghosts are possessive of the one they love but you still have your... let´s say human conscience that keeps you from doing bad things. Your ghost half didn´t have this anymore. So please, don´t blame yourself. I´m the one who should apologize."

Charlie McCarthey: "Artie, no. Hey, you're allowed to want things, buddy. You didn't know the ghost side would go downhill that badly and that fast, huh? No one could have been prepared for that." Lewis soothed, pulling Arthur into his arms.

"You weren't selfish, maybe poor judgement but we were sort of keeping you busy." He chuckled.

Yoshi Raven: That last statement made him blush slightly and he leaned against him.

"Let´s say all of us were idiots. We don´t need a discussion right now. I´m tired, and you need sleep too." Arthur grinned and poked Lewis, then moved out of his hug and lied down on the bed.

"Come on, I want my single heatpad back" he purred, patting on the matress next to him.

Charlie McCarthey: "Agreed." Lewis smiled, lying down next to Arthur. He folded himself carefully and curled an arm around the mechanic's waist.

"Your heating pad is right here." He assured, the anchor pulsed warmly.

Yoshi Raven: He moved as close as possible, snuggling against him.

"Don´t you dare getting up before I wake up. Got it?" he asked, putting the sheet over them and kissing Lewis again, grinning.

Charlie McCarthey: That was all the coaxing Lewis needed.

"I won't." He soothed, eyes crinkling in amusement as Arthur wiggled down under the sheets more.

He curled around Arthur's smaller body and it felt like he lost awareness the second his head hit the pillow. For a long, long time, Lewis body stayed 'off' and he simply focused on healing.

Yoshi Raven: Arthur was sleeping for a long time, too. Now that there was more room for him, he could finally move around in his sleep again without hitting against another body.

He woke up very slowly the next day, looking at Lewis. When he turned around, there was no one else, no second Lewis. Good. He looked back at Lewis and touched his cheek gently, caressing there. If he was still too tired, he wouldn´t wake up but if he was fine, well. Arthur let him choose and still showed some affection.

Charlie McCarthey: For once, Lewis was the late riser. He was pretty much out of it for a soild hour or so after Art woke up, and spent this time lying on his side, still and quiet and wrapped around Arthur. Eventually though, his body started forcing itself back to 'awake' mode, and the ghost's eyelids flickered. He buried his nose in the pillow and groaned, tightening his hold on what he presumed to be Arthur.

That took...more out of him than expected. He needed to get training with Mystery, and soon.

Yoshi Raven: He didn´t do much more and let him rest but as soon as Lewis started waking up, Arthur placed small kisses all over his face. "Hey... Lew, sleepyhead. Come on, get up. You can´t get all the rest you need at once ~ " he whispered but when there was no reaction, Arthur wiggled out of his hold and sat down on him. "I´ll stay here until you get me down, cotton candy."

Charlie McCarthey: Lewis pitched a snort over his shoulder and calmly raised an arm. His palm met Art's waist and with out a word he pushed him off his body and--gently, mind you--onto the mattress. And off Art toppled into a pillow limbs and pillows.

But Lew lifted his head to see this, grinning at his other half.

"Mighta worked if you weighed more, buddy." He suggested breezily as he rolled onto his back and stretched.

Yoshi Raven: "Eh, next time I´m gonna put the van in here and onto you" he giggled, "And yes, believe me I´ll make it work."

He shoved the pillows away and sat up, looking at him a bit worried.

"How do you feel? Better? Still tired? Any aftereffects of the spells?" Arthur asked, tousling his hair a bit. He wondered if the behaviour of the "evil" ghost half would affect him for some time - he hoped not, though.

Charlie McCarthey: "Well, a little bit of a headache. I think that's from the joining. Two minds and all, you know. But, no side effect, I don't think?" Lewis frowned, giving himself a mental once over. "Yeah, I think I'm alright." He smiled warmly to reassure Artie, pulling him over his lap to kiss him good morning.

"C'mon. Want breakfast?" Oh Lew. Still determined to take care of others first. Especially when it comes to food.

Yoshi Raven: Arthur sighed, glad that he wasn´t suffering more than a headache. This would fade away. But then he wasn´t thinking about his own health and he had to give Lewis a warning glare. "I do want breakfast but I´m gonna make it. You be a good ghost and sit in the kitchen without helping. Got it?"

He moved from his lap and to the door, waving at him to follow.

Charlie McCarthey: Lewis grumbled, but it was a lighthearted one. He got up and trotted after Arthur like a puppy, snapping his fingers for his deadbeats.

"Well at least let them give ya a hand." He said, the nest of purple bodies cooing and trilling as they swarmed their master, clearly relieved there were only one of him now. They had been confused of to obey, and had taken to hiding the past few days.

Yoshi Raven: "Of course I´ll let them help. I have missed these cuties." Arthur petted every Deadbeats head when he was surrounded by their tiny warm bodies. He entered the kitchen and gave them tasks to do while he started making pancakes. Of course he made sure Lewis was sitting on a chair and not secretly wandering and helping.

"By the way, I haven´t seen our 'cat' for a long time.... Gear? Come here boy!" he called, looking for the two coloured small ghost.

Charlie McCarthey: "I think he was hiding out with the rest of them--yep, here he comes."

Gear glanced at Lewis warily, but upon deciding this was in fact the one and only Lewis there was, chirruped and beelined for Arthur.

Lewis sighed. "I don't blame him for being skittish of me... my memories of a ghost aren't exactly friendly ones." He muttered guiltily.

Yoshi Raven: Arthur let Gear land on his shoulder and petted him gently.

"Well I don´t know what your ghost half did when he wasn´t close to me, but I can imagine. But as I said, it wasn´t your fault. A ghost that´s just focused on... owning someone would hate every creature that was disturbing him."

He started baking the pancakes and had to stop Gear from stealing the finished ones.

"You know... it wasn´t the possessive behaviour that scared me. It was that the ghost half wasn´t listening to what I wanted anymore. Well, and that he tried taking over against my will. I know that you would never do that, and that´s why I´m calm. I know I can trust you and I´m sure Gear and the others will notice you´re back to being nice." Arthur smiled at Lewis, giving Gear a smaller pancake.

Charlie McCarthey: Lewis was quiet for a while, watching his whole world stand there cooking and feeding bits of pancake to the orange deadbeat. It... really made him happy. So, so happy, to be a part of the world still and to be allowed to exist with Arthur. He reached out mentally, that strong magenta aura curling protective tendrils of power around the smaller, chipped orange one on the other end of the bond.

His gaze was warm and soft as he observed the two, and though ghosts can't cry, his eyes still looked watery.

"Yeah. Yeah, you can trust me Art." He stood, feeling the urge to close the distance so he could hug Arthur from behind and bury his face in the crook of Arthur's neck, nuzzling him basically.

"I promise. I'm yours." Saying I love you, while useful, meant less than this statement.

To a ghost, there was no better way to say you loved someone than by promising yourself--and all the power that came with you.

Yoshi Raven: Arthur sensed the warm, protecting blanket around his soul and it made him smile. This was what he was used to. A gently, warm soul on the other end of their connection.

"I´m yours too, Lewis."

He placed the finished pancakes on three plates and let the deadbeats move them on the table so he could hug the ghost. Arthur put his arms around him, face buried in his chest and staying like this. After all the wild nights, both of them needed a lot of hugs, kisses and affection.

Charlie McCarthey: Their relationship was built on so much more than just sex--even if the sex was damn good. This stuff--the hugging and kissing and just general cuddlin--was super important too, especially to the ghost who needed the stable connection to keep himself... human. Arthur kept him sane, kept him protective and needed.

He hugged his other half tight, giving a little laugh at the way Artie burrowed against him.

"Comfy, there?" He joked happily, rubbing Arthur's shoulder with a hand in an absentminded manner.

Yoshi Raven: "Yep. If I wasn´t hungry, I´d stay like this for the next few hours." he giggled and looked up at the tall ghost.

"Besides, the smell of the food will soon bring our two other dorks in here and we better get out of their way. I don´t need foot prints all over me."

Arthur slowly let go of him and sat down on his chair.

"Soo, what are we gonna do if there´s no mission for us? Do you have ideas or plans?" he asked while taking the first bite.

Charlie McCarthey: Lewis laughed at Art's comment about the chowhounds.

Sitting down at the table, he made sure Arthur got plenty of food for himself while Gear wiggled into Arthur's lap and looked cute for scraps.

"Hmm, if we don't have a case... you wanna go flying again?" He asked with a tiny grin, his amused look saying he knew what the answer was going to be.

------------------------------

(Previous) - (Next)

#lewthur #episode 48 #fluff #the boys are recovering from the double ghost trouble

30 notes · View notes

lifeasabashly · 7 years ago

Text

Berwick

So I’ve been applying for this camp, through work for the last four years or so, and this year, after almost deciding that I didn’t need it anymore, I got picked to go. It is based in the Berwick Forest, 40km out of Dunedin in May which usually would sound like a whole lot of miserable to me (as I am a sad sack throughout most of Winter) but for some reason I was keen to go.

Arriving at an empty airport in Dunedin and realising I had been left behind was a shit start that really made me question if I had made the right choice. But that was the last time I had that thought. I got picked up by one of the Lions Club members eventually and dropped at the camp where everyone was already sitting in their ‘watches’ with their GP lines and beanies. I was in Green watch which suited me fab, my fav colour. I immediately was thrown into the team building exercise where we were writing a story about a hole in a balloon. It’s interesting thinking back now to those people I met, and how those relationships changed and grew over the 8 days I was there.

My watch was made up of Moe (said Moy) (60s), Mark (60s), Julie (50s), Myself (26), Max (24), Erin (21), Kohan (19), William (18), Mikayla (18) & Harry (18). Such a range of people from all walks of life.

I’d miss the orientation session, along with Charlie and Morgan from Trustpower so we briefly sat down and went through this before heading to our bunks. Being last meant I got a top bunk - which I was fine with as it meant I was closer to the warmth (and farts I guess).

We woke EARLY the next morning, about 5.40am to bagpipes blasting outside our room. I freaking love bagpipes so this actually put me in such a good mood. We got dressed and headed to our first activity which was like a brain teaser type activity in the common room. It was far too early for me to be able to contribute anything useful and I’m pretty shit at these types of things anyway so was happy to let the team lead us to success! Finally at 7 we got breakfast, typical camp style lining up for cereals, toasts, porridge the works. I went hard out of fear of not eating again for a long time and a huge day ahead. Before I knew it we were kitted up in our wetsuits heading to our first big activity - Kayaking. Now I’m not really for or against Kayaking. Can be fun, sometimes it’s just boring so I was keen to see what they had planned. We started in a pool, the tiny, local community pool that used to be used by a school that was now shut down. The water was ice. I wore my socks in. They made us do flips in the kayaks and taught us how to safely exit if we did flip on the river.

Then we were in the river. I had chosen my paddle and kayak that I felt would suit me best, plus they were perfectly colour coordinated so thought I was away for the win. We had barely disembarked before one of our watch Will, had fallen out of his kayak. He was complaining it was too small and hard to maneuver. Me being the good Samaritan *coughs* offered him mine. This was my first mistake and lesson learnt. Never be nice. His kayak was tiny, it took me 3 goes to get in the damn thing without falling out. I was wearing my sneakers (as the river was colder than the pool) and I was incredibly cramped and uncomfortable the whole river journey. To my dismay when I fell out on a turn, I was trapped by my sneaker and spent a good 3 minutes flailing about until Will caught up and was able to help me out. Overall it was still fun though. When I had to get out of the kayak at one point to - kiss the front (the things these instructors made you do) I bruised both legs and by the end of the float (due to falling out so much) I was a freezing, shivering mess. But I DID IT. I think they were worried about hypothermia though as they sent me straight to the van where the heater was blasting.

We headed back to lunch which was sandwiches and hot pies. God I love a good pie. So delightful. Then we had tea prep so I spent the next hour peeling & chopping carrots with Mikayla.

Straight into Knots & the Confidence course after lunch. I gotta say, I am possibly the worst knot tier in the history of the planet. I had to be shown about 300 times before it stuck and then the next day I still couldn’t tell you what the damn knots were called. Lucky I had a watch full of able humans who had done guides and were just onto it to help me through the rest of the week where knots were ESSENTIAL to survival! The confidence course was fun. The very first part was a tyre wall which I felt very prepared for after spending Intermediate sitting on the tyre wall at lunch times. I must admit, once I was at the top I was still abit shaky/nervous going over the top. Even more so when we had to carry a bucket full of water over too! Erin struggled with this one, she just would not budge at one point, saying her arms/legs were giving up, bawling her eyes out and Leanne (one of our instructors) would not let her give up. She made it over and I’m glad, but I definitely had a moment of - this feels like bullying. It just shows you though, some people need it. The rest of the course was pretty tame, tarzan ropes onto walls, that sort of jam. It wasn’t until the last bit - a firemans pole that I got a bit nervous again. I don’t know what it is about them but they freak me out. This one was exceptionally high too! Leanne was there giving me technique and before I knew it I was at the bottom. Embarrassed at how easy it was! Unfortunately Moe, was close on my tail and did it straight after me without any technique and sped to the bottom where she snapped her ankle in three places. I got to do First Aid, but poor Moe was gutted. Her ankle did the floppy thing like Harry’s arm in Harry Potter. It was pretty gross but intriguing. She was in no pain! Just shock I guess. Ironically that night after dinner, we had our First Aid training. I was in bed by 9 and asleep by 9.01 for sure. Absolutely shattered.

Day two! We had games first thing from 6am-7am. Again, puzzles in the morning, not my forte. Esp not before kai. After breakfast we had toilet duties which is always a barrel of laughs right? Then on to abseiling. This was based at camp. The hill to the top was a bit of a bitch to get to but abseiling was fun! We did it three times, the third time blind folded. Beef was our instructor. He was a spunk. After lunch we were back on to knots and bush craft which I don’t overly remember doing but again I think this is because I was hopeless at it and all the knots seemed the same to me. Looking at the schedule it’s hard to believe that this took up most of the afternoon. I remember we had to pull a pole somewhere and tow a truck though. Then Dinner, then night exercise. This one was us carrying a massive heavy pole from one side of the camp to the other as a team. It wasn’t awesome. The walk back under the stars was lovely though.

Monday was our first sports session - Netball. I loved it. It made me think how some days I would just play netball and that’s all the exercise I would do.... this was just the first thing for the day! Our team lost, JUST. But our commitment and passion was 10/10! Next was mountain biking which I was super excited for but MAN it was hard. We got kitted up with bikes/helmets and then did some practice stuff on the icy grass/mud. We then headed up the hill. I could bike up all of 2 minutes as it was steep AF. Everyone had to get off and walk most of it. We learnt how to jump logs and break/maneuver down steep hills. I came off the bike twice, one time landing on another stationary bike but it was so awesome! Then we got to boost down the hill. It was SO fast. I felt alive. I loved it. 100% Mountain biker for life.

After lunch we were back into it with a ‘Bridge Exercise’ - they gave us tiny hints to what we were doing throughout the course - but they never really helped. This was intense. When we realized what we had to do, get from one side of the bridge, underneath it and come up on the other side - there was a lot of planning involved. And actually doing it, (and trusting your teams knots) was pretty crazy! We aren’t allowed to share photos of this and I didn’t get any, any way but this was such a cool challenge. After dinner our night exercise this night was hilarious. We were all blindfolded and either had to lead or direct our watch around camp. It was pretty freaky putting your trust in strangers this way, especially at night. I DID end up in a swamp. But it was so fun. Making the most of our other senses and what not. Pretty cool. And just when we thought we were finally done for the night, blindfolds off. I hear this blood-curdling scream and Leanne comes racing up to us in full diva/drunk actor mode yelling about how she pushed her brother ‘Eric’ off a cliff and he’s dying at the bottom. So off we trot following her to save Eric. I got the fun task of taking care of drunk Leanne who was going on about popping cherries, working her ‘night job’ and the likes. Much to Harry’s disgust as Leanne is his mums best friend. So entertaining. Finally with Eric stretchered back to camp and bandaged we were allowed to go to bed.

Tuesday Tramp Day! This was what I was most nervous about, a 15km tramp through the wilderness. Seemed like not far but boy was it ever. It took us 12 hours. We went the wrong way twice and not just a few steps like probably 2-3kms each time. No instructors, reception, just a map (that wasn’t the best if I may add!) The majority of the tramp was up hill and it was hard. Erin couldn’t hack it. She got blisters day one and the whole tramp (before she got taken out) she was moaning about them and stopping every 20 steps. It meant we moved incredibly slow - I didn’t really get a chance to get tired. She was though. I felt sad for her because everyone was tired/sore in some way and she couldn’t just push herself. Anyway, she got taken out with Max, who was borderline collapsing at every turn and then we could pick up the pace. By 7.30pm it was dark, cold and we were so over it. By 8.30 we were finally at The Hilton, exhausted and starving. I ate mince boiled with instant mash potato and peas. It looked like spew but I devoured it. Then I went to bed, it’s possibly one of the worst huts I’ve stayed in. Made New Beers look like a resort. But I slept solidly.

Wednesday we were up early to make our way to the Mahinerangi Dam. Damn son. It was huge. We had lunch first - chicken AND ham luncheon sandwiches - just bread and butter no shit, dried apricots and a cup-a-soup. Gourmet I tell you. We set up our tents, wet and dirty from the previous 2 watches and then got set up for our dam abseil. First one, no biggy, no dramas for me. Second one... I’m not quite sure what happened but I was afraid. I didn’t realise I wasn’t going to be able to use my feet and would just have to lower myself down. I think the shock of that suddenly happening just set me off and I burst into tears. Sobbed the whole dam way down. Need any more damn puns? Damn. Others didn’t do the second one, but Harry and Max went all profesh on us, bouncing off the walls like Spiderman. Show offs.

After the dam activities, we were off for another wetties exercise. Raft building. Each team member had to sail out to the island and back without getting our lines wet or drownies. It was actually a really easy task and we finished it so early we had heaps of free time. FREE TIME!? At Berwick? NEVER. I went and set up my tent, I got nominated to tent with the boys as we only had 3 person tents plus we wanted to avoid the snorers (Mark, Will, Max, Erin...) Kohan, in my tent didn’t bring a bed roll, so Harry and I ended up putting our two together and sharing. We played some president which I was excellent at for once. We had some snacks, then went and made dinner. Pasta packets - Mac & Cheese. This was actually pretty tasty. I ate heaps! After dinner we had another activity. Learning to use a GPS. They are super legit - who knew!? And Geo-caching is a thing. I’m 26 and I’d never heard of this, but people leave notes for other people around the world to find. It’s like a world-wide treasure hunt! So cool! Thankfully we got to have an early night and headed back to the tent. I slept in full gear - beanie, puffer jacket, merinos, socks - the works and was still shivering. I’m actually so glad there was no way of knowing how cold it was that night but there was ice on our tent in the morning.

Thursday was another 4 hour tramp back to camp. We got lost... again and were late getting back. We went straight into lunch then an Initiative course. This was probably the best ever. Or maybe it was just I remember it so well as it was near the end of the week. It was loads of team-based activities that weren’t physically demanding but just hilarious and you had to use your brain and trust your homies to succeed. I got heaved over walls, thrown through ‘spider webs’, held my fingers against holes in a giant drum while the team filled it with water #frozenfingers. I had to sit on Harrys shoudlers so we could all fit onto this platform after swinging across a mudpit. We then had to dive into another mudpit/lake, do a massive flying fox, ropes again and more. Dinner, then more sport afterwards. Cricket, which would have been amazing except it was inside and you couldn’t smash it so I got out pretty quickly. Had a few successful bowls however.

Friday morning we had more sport - football (lame but fun for others) then breakfast and cleaning. Everyone was back from the tramps Friday and we were on dinner so had to prepare a shit tonne for the ‘’roast meal’ (8 Roast Beefs!). It was a huge job. Then we were off for our ‘river exercise’ which we were told - all being well you shouldn’t get wet. I have to admit by this point, I had very little clothing left and reaaaallly didn’t want to get wet if I could avoid it. So when our first team mate came across the river and dropped to the side, a sodden mess- I was hugely disappointed. I think this was the only task we actually had to ask an instructor for help. We had to be split into two groups on each side of the river and using our ropes (not getting them wet) we had to get each team member to the other side of the river and back. Thankfully, by the time I had to go across, not only was I being pulled back and forth #noeffortrequired but I did not touch the river with any part of my body! Great success! Harry got dunked which was sad for him but hilarious for everyone else. Back to camp for a quick lunch then we had another group activity (bridge building) and then orienteering. Both were fun, but orienteering took us ages! Makayla, Harry and I were in a team and these two just spent the time waffling. I had to be mother hen quite frequently to keep them on the job at hand! We played some truth or dare which was great on my part because I am an excellent question master and kept orienteering fun, but it was cool because you got to explore the whole camp. I saw a baby wild pig! And there was probably 3 times total I said over the course - surely they wouldn’t make us go up/down/through there.... alas, it was the right way. When we finally got back, Kev the instructor was on his way out to us to check we weren’t dead. Dinner was a bit emotional as it was our last night... then we had to go do our performance ‘Welcome to Berwick’. It was in the tune to ‘My House’ by Flo Rida and our watches show was definitely the best. We even had backing music... just saying. After that we all headed back to the rooms to spend time together before lights off as I knew I had an earlier flight Sat morning and wouldn’t get to do the last relay or wind down drinks/BBQ. Harry was quite distraught. He was crying and saying he didn’t want to leave and that Makayla and I were his best friends and I was just amazing. It was all quite overwhelming for me. I loved these two, so easily and quickly in this weird environment we’d been thrust in - but I guess for me I had a lot of friends, Chris and life to go back to and neither of them didn’t have quite that. So I will try be good friends to them both, because I think they need that. I know they’re gonna do great things. It’s exciting to watch.

Saturday morning was spent cleaning, trying to find all my shit and then a few tears saying goodbyes (even from me! Shock Horror!) Kev drove me away in the van and it was hard leaving. I really could have stayed there another week or more I think. I just loved it.The truth is I really didn’t miss home that much, I was too tired or busy... I didn’t think I had missed Chris even until I saw him and burst into tears. Now being back, it’s hard to explain how life-changing and inspirational it was. I feel like a dick talking to people about it and saying that that’s exactly what it was for me but people don’t really get it unless they’ve been. I LOVED not using my phone or having it anywhere near me, I LOVED the people I met and stories we shared, I LOVED being outside, being dirty and being completely me without anyone's expectations. I loved learning all these new skills and really pushing myself and then finding out how awesome I could be!

Finally, I must admit though, I LOVED coming home to an ice cold bourbon with Chris too. #OGhobby

#berwick #camp #newzealand #dunedin #blog #personal #camping #outdoor #dangan ronpa lab experiment au #outwardbound

3 notes · View notes

elpinicerhymeswithmagnifique · 7 years ago

Text

They meet in a pub ten years after the war.

(One) (Two) (On ao3.)

Two

The next day, Harry is gone.

Charlie awakes slowly, blinking into the blurry light of late morning. The bed beside him is empty and cold.

He sits up and yawns widely. With heavy arms, he grabs his cigarettes from the ground and opens the window.

In a cup on the windowsill is a lonely fag end. He imagines Harry standing there beside the bed, leaning outside the window, maybe still naked, absent and inscrutable, maybe watching Charlie sleep.

He had been surprising last night, all grace and sure and silent.

How his hands had grabbed the sheet in search for hold when Charlie had sucked him. He had been quiet, but so, so delicately responsive under his hands. The curve of his ass had been perfect in Charlie´s palms and his writhing had stolen Charlie´s breath away.

He smiles faintly.

Then he stubs out the smoke next to the other and gets up.

___________________

He doesn´t expect anything, so he is and isn´t surprised when Harry walks into the bar two evenings later. It´s fuller and louder this time. Charlie and Mort draw beer after beer, fill rounds of shots, silently working with and around each other, years of routine between them.

There hadn´t been a note or a sign from Harry save the cigarette in the cup. Charlie is too old to read too much into a night of sex - even if it had been a night of amazing sex with a ghost of the past – and so he only thought slightly blue about soft skin and wet lips, but didn´t wait for anything. (And didn´t move the cup from the windowsill.)

Harry comes to the counter and orders a cider, his eyes following Charlie, but he says nothing more than two words. He only gives a faint smile and goes to sit in a far corner, pulling a small book out of his jacket. He´s wearing the same dark blue sweater as last time.

Charlie keeps doing his job, aware of Mort and the small knowing smile on the face of the wrinkled bastard.

After two or three hours, it gets quieter and they take a break, leaning against the register.

Mort drinks half of his beer before he says something in his husky voice, earned from a life that´s majority was spent with a smoke between his lips. “You should go talk to him,” he nods in Harry´s direction. “He seems lonely.”

Charlie snorts. “You go talk to him then. You´re far better at consoling the lost.”

The old man squints at him, doubt written over his features. “I´m not the one he´s here for, brat. Or should I snog him and take him home, too?” he scoffs.

“Rima will be delighted.”

(Mort´s wife is the driest, most hard-nosed person Charlie has ever met, reminding him a lot of Professor McGonagall. The first time they´d met, she told him how she captured a ship, full of grown fishermen, and went after her wastrel father, seventeen years old and her crying baby sister on her hips, back when the last century was still shaking in the aftershocks of two world wars. That´s how she met Mort, a nine years older fisherman on said ship, who had fled from his home, because his skin was too dark and his mother too Jewish.)

Mort chuckles quietly and lights their cigarettes. The crowfeet on his face seem to deepen in the light and shadows.

Charlie eyes Harry. He is still reading in the corner, a third cider nearly empty in front of him. He seems tired.

“He doesn´t seem like talking,” Charlie states shrugging.

“Well, then just bite him like last time. He didn´t seem to mind.”

He rolls his eyes. “You don´t know him, Mort.” Not that Charlie knows him either.

“Oh, yeah?” Mort huffs, half annoyed, half-amused, and empties his bottle. “I don´t need to know him to recognize a lonely boy who´s seeking for company. I´ve seen enough of them. Plus,” he sneers down on Charlie, “d´you think, the long-lost hero of the whole British Wizarding World would be long-lost, if he keeps visiting the work place of his old folks?”

The bloody bastard looks smug as Charlie coughs on his cigarette. “Thought I wouldn´t recognize him, hm? I may be an old Irish man with a bar in the States, but I´m not stupid,” he bites, looking rather pleased with himself. “Now get lost.” He puts out his cigarette, turns around without another word and takes the order of two women.

Charlie slowly exhales.

___________________

Harry looks up from his book when Charlie puts two beers on the table and sits down opposite of him.

They watch each other. Charlie asks himself, not for the first time in the last three days, what has happened to his hands.

They´re calloused and their backs are scarred all over, scar next to scar over more scars, like a map of hurt, faintly painted with white acrylic paint. They remind Charlie of the one nasty torus on his own upper back. He wants to ask him, wants to point at his fingers and say, what happened that you punished yourself like this and refused proper treatment – but he doesn´t.

Because Harry talked near to nothing two nights ago and looks as worn out as back then. Because he´s oddly calm, like he´s seen so much and is tired of that, and Charlie bets his tips of the whole month he wouldn´t be the first person to ask him and get no answer.

But mostly because Harry reminds him of the wild cat he used to feed as a kid, a huge old stray, with ugly scars over the left side of its face and only one ear.

It never let Charlie near it, no matter how often he fed it or waited patiently twenty feet away. One too loud word from his brothers or one step too near, and it disappeared silently into the fields and meadows behind the Burrow. It liked to sleep up in a cherry tree, out of reach and far away from prying eyes, only coming down when it wanted something.

But sometimes, Charlie would find dead mice and small birds outside his window.

And one time, in his last summer at home, he fell asleep on the grass, hiding behind his father´s old shed – exhausted from chasing the twins and Ginny´s never ending chatter, fleeing his mother´s nagging about his decision to go to Romania after his diploma – and when he woke up, there was dark cat hair all over the left side of his jeans and a tail disappearing between the bushes.

He has a feeling that Harry, too, would leave the second Charlie gets too near.

So, instead, he blows the smoke between them and nods towards the book.

“What´s it `bout?”

Harry gives him a level look, his head tilted. Glancing at the book, he says, “A mysterious hotel in New York City, where people tend to vanish.”

“Ah, crime. Who´s the culprit?

“Angels.”

Charlie raises his eyebrows. “Is it good?”

Harry nods and grabs one of the bottles. Charlie is caught by the way his throat moves as he swallows, a hot wave of lust flushing through his body – wet lips wrapped around his cock, swallowing something entirely different - and when he sees Harry´s smirk, he suspects that that was exactly the intention.

Charlie was right, Harry´s not in the mood for talking. They sit silently across from each other, drinking and smoking, stealing glances at the other. Charlie hears Mort laughing hoarsely at some joke he´s telling two young women who could be his granddaughters. The crowd´s good tonight.

“How long have you been working here?”, Harry asks.

Maybe talking after all. Huh.

Charlie shrugs. “Four years. Actually, I own some parts of it. Mort made me partner couple years ago.” He points his thumb vaguely in Mort´s direction at the bar. Harry follows and smiles flimsily.

Charlie questions tentatively, “You´re working somewhere?”

For a moment, Harry looks like he´s going to withdraw, as if the question already has been too much. Then he shrugs similarly to Charlie before. “Yeah. Small Bookstore.”

Charlie´s not surprised, surprisingly. It somehow fits him now. He can almost see Harry sitting in a dusty old shop, surrounded by shelves, drinking tea and reading. Like a cat dozing in his favorite spot, hidden from the world.

Harry yanks him out of his thoughts.

“When´s your shift over?”

His voice is rough and Charlie feels the hair on his forearms rising. His eyes flicker to Harry´s lips and he wets his own, just to see how Harry tilts his head again and opens his mouth slightly, breathing out.

“How ´bout now.”

“Good.”

Charlie sees Mort grinning smugly when they leave. He flips him off behind his back as he follows Harry through the door.

___________________

The night is cold, but Charlie lives near the pub, only two corners away in a little flat with two rooms and a kitchen. They walk in silence, their hands deep in their pockets.

When Charlie gets the keys out in front of his apartment building, Harry shuffles into his space and they just stand like this in the doorway, breathing against each other, their faces only an inch apart. Harry looks dark in the faint streetlights, like an unfathomable siren who lures every person unguarded enough into his trap with just one look and one word from his sinful lips, and Charlie is going to be one of the many poor souls that have fallen for him.

Harry´s eyelids drop and he closes the last gap. It´s an almost natural motion, without any hesitation or prolonging, as if there isn´t a past connecting them, no silences and unspoken questions. As if they´re just two men stumbling upon each other on the first nights of a cold autumn, who decide to linger in the same space a little longer.

The kiss is light, a promise for more, but a smouldering heat´s boiling underneath it.

Charlie takes his head in both hands, keys falling to the ground, and deepens the kiss, relishing in the low moan escaping Harry.

It´s so much, so much desperation and loneliness, lust and want. He has the presentiment of never feeling this ever again, if he´s not very cautious.

Harry grabs him by the hips and presses them closer together, his tongue searching for Charlie´s in a way Charlie can´t help but admire.

Caution never came easy to Charlie, only with animals and others, but he never got the hang of it for his own life, for himself. He always jumps straight into opportunities, not even thinking through remotely how he will end up or if he will be getting hurt. It´s his greatest weakness and strength, his boss in the infirmary once told him, after he had fallen for and into the bed of an intern from Alaska, who´d crushed his heart in pieces when she left without so much as a note. (This, and his ability to soothe any living animal on this planet with only his hands.) She warned him, that one day he would fall so deep, not being cautious and not caring for the consequences, he may not stand up again.

And so, fourteen years later, he falls without care as he kisses this beautiful boy, who turned up in his life out of the blue.

Because Harry is lonely. Because Charlie spent hours and hours sitting twenty feet away from a lonely cat when he was only sixteen. Because he wouldn´t even hesitate for a second to do it again, if it means to give the lonely cat a place to stay and sleep and eat, regardless of whether he gets something in return or just his heart broken. Because Harry is breathtaking and the only thing Charlie is able to see in this moment.

He´ll give him everything Harry allows him to give.

“Inside,” Harry breathes into his skin, “now.”

#Harry Potter #Charlie Weasley #mywriting

2 notes · View notes

shannsleeve · 8 years ago

Text

Fantastic Reasons and Where to Find Them

Chapters 11 & 12 have finally arrived! Thank you to my very tiny readership for sticking with this fic. I’m so sorry it took a while to get these chapters up. Lots of school work and writer’s block plagued me but I hope you enjoy it none the less.

@teacup-occamy, I OWE YOU EVERYTHING. <3

Tagging: @sowerewolfglitter, @dorkwolf-nightmare

Trigger Warnings: Child Abuse, Harassment

CHAPTER 11

The next morning, Feather awoke with a sneeze. A cloud of dust swirled around her head as she reluctantly shoved the duvet off her legs. Sitting up, she realized that neither Tina nor Queenie lay beside her. The apartment was silent, save for the ticking of the clock on the mantel. Feather glanced at it, yawning loudly as she did so.

10:30.

No. Impossible. She hadn’t slept in so late in ages!

Glancing at her case, she noticed the two empty potion bottles. The medicine worked. Despite her reservations, she had to admit that, perhaps, following her prescription regimen wouldn’t be quite so terrible. She turned to the still open window, squinting as the sunlight hit her eyes. A slight breeze blew through the room and she heard a rustling noise on the table beside her. Looking over, she found a note written in Queenie’s hand fluttering dangerously close to the edge. She picked it up while stifling another yawn.

Feather,

Went off to work. You were sleeping so soundly I didn’t want to wake you. There’s some toast and oatmeal on the table for you. I’ll meet up with Tina at the office and we’ll be home before dinner. Don’t forget to check in! Have a great day, darling!

Queenie

Feather absently grasped the pendant around her neck and took a few moments to recall the previous evening. She’d explained her struggle to the sisters, they shared cups of cocoa, and cried together. Then, they’d heard the roar of a beast. Tina left to chase down Newt and Jacob while she and Queenie waited for them to return. They waited and waited and waited. When the clock struck half past midnight, the two witches decided to end their vigil.

“I’m sure they’re all right,” Queenie said, her voice quivering. She could sense Tina’s thoughts and knew her older sister was both furious and terrified. The image in her mind was that of Tina hurrying through the streets, clutching Newt’s case to her chest. Suddenly, a harsh wind blew through, snuffing out all the lights. Before Queenie’s vision darkened she saw her sister’s face covered in tears, jaw set with determination.

“She’s got Newt’s case and is on her way to MACUSA,” Queenie whispered.

“I know you’re worried, Queen,” said Feather, taking hold of her friend’s trembling hand. “But Tina knows what she’s doing.”

Queenie nodded, forcing herself to relax. “You’re right. Teenie’s got things under control.”

They’d both gone to bed hoping Tina would return in the morning. Now, alone in the apartment, Feather’s concern grew. Queenie’s note seemed cheerful enough but she couldn’t shake the feeling that something had gone awry. Perhaps Tina hadn’t made it to the Woolworth Building. Was it possible that she’d gotten attacked along the way? Or maybe she’d gotten into trouble with her previous department again? Could she have been arrested? But for what…being a good person? Maybe that weird Niffler thing she mentioned caused more havoc and was eating her somewhere! No, right. Wrong, of course.

Feather violently shook her head, trying to dispel her racing thoughts. The clock on the mantel rang out the hour with a loud gong.

“Sweet Merlin! The fuck?!” she shrieked, nearly jumping out of her skin. After taking a few long heartbeats to catch her breath, she finally rolled off the couch and slowly trudged over to the oatmeal and toast.

Tap-tap-tap.

Munching on a slice of toast, Feather looked up to see Reginald and Charlie alight on the open window sill. Neither had any parcels or letters haphazardly attached to them, but looked at Feather expectantly nonetheless.

“Treats, boys?” she asked, summoning a handful of owl biscuits. “Goodness, we’ve spoiled you rotten!”

The two owls clacked their beaks in annoyance, only stopping when Feather spread the biscuits in front of them. While the birds ate, Feather finished her own breakfast with a huff. Looking at the time, she realized it was quarter past eleven.

“I should go out and do something,” she muttered, looking about the room and feeling a weight settle in her chest. If she was being honest, she really didn’t feel like doing anything at all. Sudden reluctance, she knew, was part of her illness and today it was rearing its ugly, sloth-like head. The couch and duvet were calling out to her and she wanted nothing more than to curl up and sleep the day away. However, both the Healers and the sisters would not approve of such behavior. With a lazy, stunted glance at the door, she decided to pop out to the market and gather ingredients for dinner. “I suppose it’s better than sitting here staring at…nothing...”

Reginald and Charlie looked up from their meal as Feather slowly padded to the shower. They both realized that Reggie’s mum wasn’t feeling too well, but, for once, decided not to do a thing about it. After all, she was a grown witch and could handle herself. Right?

Early winter in New York City was always a fickle thing. One day the sky would be crying torrents of rain, and the next it would swallow the city in a white cloak of ice. Today, a light snowfall added to the few inches that had fallen during the night. As Feather stepped onto the brownstone porch, a chill swept through the street, bringing with it the smell of sea and salt. In response, she hastily adjusted the scarf around her neck. It was an old, woolen keepsake from her days at Hogwarts. The yellow and black threads were worn and patched in some places, but the scarf was perpetually warm.

Although it was close to noon, not many people were out and about on 24th Street. Evidence of the morning’s busy traffic was present in the black slush and footprints that littered the street. A few automobiles drove by, spewing ugly black smog into the air. Unlike yesterday, a certain grey drabness clung to everything, causing Feather’s mood to fall a little more. Across the way, two girls, no older than twelve, were skipping hand-in-hand towards 25th Street. Upon seeing them, Feather’s heart ached for Tina and Queenie as well as her own sister. Her hand found the pendant that was buried in the ends of her scarf. With a jolt, she realized that she hadn’t checked in with the sisters since she woke up. Drawing her wand, she tapped on the pendant, visualizing Tina’s face. The pendant glowed for a few moments before dulling and leaving behind a little warmth. Turning back to the street, Feather noticed that it was now empty and, oddly enough, very silent. She hastened to the end of the street, feeling a little better as she heard more automobiles, carriages, and people scurry to and fro.

“Here goes nothing,” she muttered and trudged her way through the ice and snow towards Chelsea Market.

Two hours later, Feather emerged from the underground Market with two large paper bags full of ingredients for pumpkin-apple pasties and her favorite alfredo pasta.

“Hopefully the boys stay for dinner,” she said quietly to herself. “I’ve bought too much otherwise.”

She looked up at the sky and covered her eyes as bit of light filtered through the thick clouds. The snow had stopped but the wind picked up, causing Feather to shiver through her coat and scarf. She desperately wished she could Apparate straight into the apartment, damn all advice to the contrary. Gritting her teeth, she pulled her coat more securely about her shoulders and hugged the groceries more tightly to her chest. She tramped through the dirty slush towards 22nd Street, pausing briefly to smile at the hot dog vendor she met the day before. When their eyes met, he nodded towards the corner where she’d met Credence. Sure enough, the gangly young man was standing in the same spot, holding out pamphlets to the empty air.

“Oh, Credence!” Feather rushed across the street, barely stopping to see if it was clear before crossing.

The boy’s head shot up at the sound of his name. He spun around wildly, looking for the voice that called out to him. When he spotted Feather, a fierce blush colored his pale cheeks. “H-Hello, miss.”

“Hello!” Feather skittered to a halt in front of him, looking him over with concern. He was dressed in the same outfit as the day before but with the addition of a ragged black scarf and threadbare wool coat. He was shivering violently as he tried to meet her gaze. “Oh, you poor thing! You’re freezing!”

Credence ducked his head and clamped his teeth together to stop them from chattering. “Oh no, ma’am, I’m just fine. T-T-Thank you.”

“Nonsense!” As subtly as she could, Feather grasped her wand inside the sleeve of her coat. She turned away from him for a minute, pulling one small thread from her scarf as she did so.

“R-Really, ma’am,” he said, taking a step away from her. “Please don’t worry about me…it’s cold but, Ma says—“

“There we go!” Feather spun around, clutching her bags tightly to her chest. Draped across them was a thick, newly knit black scarf. She nodded towards it as she met his eyes. “Please, Credence. Take it.” Her voice carried a touch of desperation and concern. “You really shouldn’t be out here in the cold without something warm.”

Credence stared at her as if she had grown two heads. After a few moments, he took a hesitant step forward, hand outstretched.

“Go ahead,” Feather encouraged, holding out the bags as far as she could to make things a little easier for him.

The young man grasped the scarf in one hand and gently lifted it off the bags. His eyes widened as he absently dropped the pamphlets he was holding. The woolen accessory was warm. Almost without thinking, Credence stripped himself of his old scarf and wrapped the new one around his neck. The warmth embedded itself in his bones and his shivering ceased. It felt nothing less than magical.

“Do you like it?”

His head shot up at Feather’s question. He observed her, marveling at how excited she looked to have shared something so simple with him. “Yes. Thank you, ma’am.”

The first genuine smile of the day spread across Feather’s lips. “You’re very welcome! Now, have you had lunch? I was just about to--”

“CREDENCE!” A shrill voice cut through the air like a knife, slashing through the bubble of subtle serenity that surrounded them.

Credence shrunk to less than twice his size in a matter of seconds. With trembling fingers, he buttoned up his coat, trying to hide the new scarf within its depths.

“CREDENCE BAREBONE!” The voice was closer and was accompanied by the hurried clacking of very worn heeled shoes.

As the sound came closer, he fell to his knees, scrabbling to pick up the now ruined pamphlets. He groaned when he realized that they were soaked and blackened by the slush along the pavement.

“CREDENCE! CREDENCE! CREDENCE!”

Feather saw Credence cradle his head in his hands as he forced himself to stand, tears streaming down his cheeks. His panic spurred her into action. She turned to confront his verbal assailant, doing her best to place herself in front of him as a shield.

She came face to face with someone she did not expect.

A middle-aged woman in a dark coat, dress, and cloche stared down at her from the end of a very pointed nose. Anger and dominance were etched into every wrinkle of her pale, pinched face. Her lips, set into a fierce frown, were framed by pronounced lines. Behind her stood a young woman in a similar outfit and a young girl in a faded grey frock and coat. Their faces were gaunt and pale, like Credence’s, and they sported dull blonde hair pulled back into low, tight buns. They peered at Feather warily through red-rimmed, glassy eyes.

“I beg your pardon, miss!” The woman barely spoke above a whisper, but her words resonated in the freezing air. “Did you have a question about our Cause?”

“I’m sorry. What? And, forgive me, but who are you?”

“The Cause! Our fight against the plague that’s infected our city.” The woman’s eyes burned with a mixture of passion and disgust as she held Feather’s gaze. “I am Mary Lou Barebone, director of the New Salem Philanthropic Society.”

“I see.” The last thing Feather wanted was to run into the infamous leader of the Second Salemers. She silently cursed herself for giving Credence the magical scarf. If it was discovered, there would be hell to pay in both the Muggle and Wizarding worlds.

“Are you a seeker, miss?” Mary Lou asked, gliding towards her. “A seeker of justice?”

Feather stifled a laugh. “Not a seeker, no. I’ve done a bit of keeping in my time though.”

Mary Lou smirked although Feather wasn’t sure if it was out of understanding or another reason entirely. “Indeed. Well, were you able to speak to my son? I hope he kept you well informed of our next meeting.”

Credence.

Feather heard him shift nervously behind her. It all began to make sense. The pamphlets, the dead stare, the thin clothing. She just wanted to be certain.

“So is that why Credence is out here in the cold? To provide information about your…Cause?”

“Of course!” Mary Lou’s mouth split into a wide, saccharine grin. “It is the honor of all my children to represent the Society and protect our fine city from—“

“Those who don’t fall under your idea of ‘normal.’” The words tumbled out of Feather’s mouth before she could stop them. “Anyone who is different or queer or strange. You are so small-minded!”

Mary Lou was taken aback. “I beg your pardon?!”

She advanced on the older woman, getting so close her grocery bags were nearly crumpled between them. “You’re so obsessed with preaching that you’ve put other, more important things aside! Have you noticed that this poor boy is freezing out here?!”

Slowly, Mary Lou turned and regarded her son.

Credence had quietly slipped behind a set of silver trash bins when Feather came chest to chest with his mother. He sunk further behind them as he felt her gaze rest on him.

“Is this true?” Mary Lou questioned. “Are you cold, dear?”

Credence emerged from his hiding place but tripped as he processed her words. She’d never called him dear before. “Um…a-a little.”

“Ah.”

His mother’s utterance of that single syllable nearly made his heart stop. On trembling legs, he scrambled out from behind the bins to stand beside her, head hung low in penance. “I should have dressed more warmly before leaving today. I’m sorry, Ma.”

“Yes. Yes, you should have.” Mary Lou placed a finger under Credence’s chin, tipping his head so that his gaze met hers. “We’ll finish settling this matter at home. But, for now, let’s get back to the task at hand, hm?”

“Madam, please!” Feather exclaimed, completely flabbergasted. “You can’t be serious?!”

“My dear, children run wild without proper discipline.” Mary Lou pinched Credence’s cheek once before plucking a crumpled pamphlet from his arms. She turned it over in her hands, caressing the stained cover as if it were something sacred.

“But that’s not what I—“

“Miss, you must understand! Witches are a threat to our safety! They bring their pagan practices from across the ocean and spread lies, curses, and disease.”

Almost, as if on cue, the older girl stepped towards Feather, nodding vigorously. “I saw them, miss! Those dirty, rotten dewdroppers--“

“Chastity!”

The girl abruptly shut her mouth and slipped back behind her mother, glaring sourly at her shoes.

“But Mama, we saw ‘em!” The youngest Barebone child stepped forward, blinking owlishly at Feather. “The witches! They looked kinda like…” She raised her hand and pointed straight at the young witch.

Feather nearly tumbled off the pavement as she regarded the girl’s finger with fear and disbelief. Her wand hand twitched involuntarily and she felt the smooth curve of its handle brush her palm. A second round of Obliviations in less than a day seemed more and more likely by the minute. However, before Feather could even think of casting the spell, Mary Lou rounded on her daughter.

“MODESTY!” she shrieked. Then, to Feather’s horror, she grabbed the little girl by her bun and yanked.

Modesty let out an unholy screech as she fought to untangle her mother’s fingers from her hair. Behind her, Chastity stood silent, worrying her lip between her teeth.

“STOP!” Feather cried, throwing the groceries to the ground. At the same moment, she felt a strong hand grip her arm.

“No, miss, don’t!” Credence begged as Feather gaped at him. “Please don’t…you’ll only make things worse for her…”

Ice flowed through Feather’s veins at his words.

You’ll only make things worse.

That’s what her sister used to say when their parents went into a rage. That’s what the group chided her with when she wanted to reach out to a struggling colleague. That’s what he barked at her when she tried to soothe the stress and ache from his shoulders.

You’ll only make things worse.

Every time she was scolded, she did nothing. She didn’t argue. She didn’t rebel. She merely watched the suffering in submissive silence. And so, there she was, watching a child suffer and, again, doing nothing.

Modesty fell to her knees, whimpering as her mother twisted the bun tighter.

“Apologize.”

“Nuh-uh!” She tried to squirm free but to no avail.

“Modesty!” Mary Lou yanked on the bun again, eliciting another scream.

“NO! I WON’T!”

The older woman closed her eyes and sighed in defeat. “Headstrong child! I’m so sorry, Miss. Sometimes my youngest has these fanciful ideas…” She paused to lift her hand from Modesty’s head, stretching her fingers lazily as she did so. Once she was free, the girl scurried behind her brother, clutching on to his coat for dear life.

Feather stood stock still, mouth agape, as Mary Lou removed Credence’s hand from her arm and replaced it with her own. “Friend, I apologize for Modesty’s accusation. I hope it doesn’t dampen your interest in the Cause.”

“Dampen…interest…” Feather repeated mechanically. She tried to formulate a better response but couldn’t find the words. Her stomach churned, as if she’d eaten far too much, and her heart beat erratically as her mind replayed each of Mary Lou’s punishments.

“Here, dear, take this.”

The witch nearly lost her breakfast when she saw the pamphlet pressed into her palm.

“Hopefully the good Lord will bring us together again soon!”

Mary Lou squeezed Feather’s arm, a gesture that was far more terrifying than reassuring, and gathered up her brood. The Barebone girls each mumbled a rough goodbye. Credence, on the other hand, couldn’t look at Feather as he passed.

As the Barebones rounded the corner on 22nd Street, the trembling, distraught witch quickly gathered her discarded groceries, squeezed her eyes shut, and Apparated – Healers’ orders and common sense be damned.

CHAPTER 12

She’d never Apparated in the middle of a panic attack before, but bollocks if doing so didn’t put a swift end to one! In fact, her wand didn’t even have the opportunity to spark and burn a hole in her sleeve. As the Goldsteins’ apartment materialized around her, Feather found herself in a crumpled heap on the floor. Upon further inspection, she realized she’d landed beneath the dining room table. She attempted to roll onto her knees but collapsed flat on her stomach instead, nearly hitting her head on one of the table legs. Again, her breakfast began to come up and her head felt as though a fully-grown Ukrainian Ironbelly was tramping around inside of it. With a groan, she flicked the wrist of her wand arm and summoned the waste bin. Then, as the last waves of transportation magic washed over her, she let herself be sick for the first time since she earned her Apparation license.

“Merlin’s fucking balls,” she grumbled, shoving the bin away. “I bloody hate when the Healers are right!”

With another groan (and quite a lot of will power) she rolled out from underneath the table until she heard a loud crunch! Unable to sit upright due to residual nausea, she forced herself to lay on her back, carefully turning her head to find the source of the unfortunate noise.

“Oh no!”

The groceries were strewn across the floor in all directions. One bag was slashed to pieces; spilling out of it were a ripped parcel of pasta and two battered apples. The source of the crunch came from the other bag which lay under Feather’s left foot. She lifted the appendage and was surprised to find it covered in white powder. With a start, she realized the can of icing sugar she’d bought was completely crushed beneath the weight of her foot. So much for making a hearty meal. She blinked away tears of disappointment with a huff and finally rolled onto her knees. With practiced hands, she felt every inch of her torso, looking for any long cuts and bruises. Finding nothing, she moved onto her legs, arms, and neck. Nothing there as well.

“At least the bag was Splinched and not my fucking arm…”

“You Apparated?!”

“MERLIN’S—“ Feather stopped mid-exclamation as she found herself nose-to-nose with a very red and flustered blonde witch. She hadn’t even heard the distinctive pop! of Apparation. “Queenie, y-you’re home!”

Without pretense, Queenie roughly grabbed Feather by the shoulders and yanked her up. “Feather Rose, you answer me!”

Feather nodded vigorously, knowing full well that her friend had already seen her thoughts.

“Oh, thank Morrigan!” Queenie crushed Feather to her bosom, nearly smothering her in a flurry of pink velvet and jasmine.

Feather balked. “What do you mean, ‘thank Morrigan?’” Only then did she notice that Queenie was alone. “And where is Tina?”

“Oh, right…”

“Queenie. Queenie, you’re scaring me.” Feather lightly pushed her friend away. Her heart beat faster again as the younger Goldstein chewed on her lip, eyes darting to some spot behind Feather, then back to her face. “What in the name of Paracelsus is going on?”

Queenie took a deep, bracing breath. “You’ve gotta trust me, all right?”

“A-All right?”

With a firm hold on the young witch’s hand, Queenie nearly dragged her across the room to the teal couch. Resting upon it was a familiar, battered suitcase.

“Isn’t that Mr. Scamander’s?” Feather asked. “Why do you have it? Didn’t Tina—“

“Yes, she did, and I know you’ve got a lotta questions, honey, but you gotta stop now and do what I tell ya.” With a flick of her wand, the locks of the case undid themselves and the lid flew open. “Now get in.”

“I beg your pardon?!” Feather cried. “What the bloody—“

“Sorry, sweetie,” Queenie said, patting Feather quickly on the cheek. “But there’s no time!”

Then, with a well-placed shove, Feather was falling hard and fast.

She landed soundly on her bottom in one of the Hogwarts Greenhouses. Well, to be more precise, one of the tiny, cramped sheds that Professor Beery erected in each greenhouse at the beginning of her first year. No, that couldn’t be right. Didn’t she just get shoved through a leather suitcase? And, there weren’t any hidden portals that could possibly lead into Hogwarts. Headmaster Dippet wouldn’t allow it. Yet, the place she now found herself in looked, smelled, and felt the same.

The scents of freshly turned earth, sweat, and mildew filled her nostrils as she got to her feet. The familiarity she was surrounded by tugged at her heart and she couldn’t resist the urge to amble around the small space. It was filled to the brim with magical and non-magical objects. Every nook and cranny that could be jammed full of something was stuffed and then stuffed again. Towers of wooden drawers and shelves lined every wall. Each of them held a plethora of plants, vials, and potion materials. Dozens of old maps and smudged sketches of creatures and landscapes were stuck haphazardly against every open expanse of wood. In one corner stood a rickety workbench covered with more sketches, an old, rusty typewriter, a grimy cauldron, and a few broken quills. Half-hidden beneath the workbench was an old canvas camping bed nearly swallowed by a pile of multicolored feathers and what looked to be a handful of Sickles and Galleons.

“That really isn’t safe, Mr. Scamander,” she murmured to the empty air. Conjuring a small pouch, she reached for the pile of coins. It wouldn’t do for this man’s savings to be stolen or lost. Just as the last of the conns slipped into the pouch, a door she hadn’t noticed before flew open and slammed against the wall beside it. A few papers fluttered to the floor as the oldest Goldstein sister rushed in, hair askew and eyes shining with unshed tears.

Wait. Tears?

“Feather!” Tina cried, rushing forward and grabbing the young witch’s face in her hands. “I thought I heard somethin’ movin’ around in here!”

“Tina, it’s good to see you too!” Feather gently held the hands on her cheeks. She started as a few tears fell unbidden from Tina’s eyes. “Darling, are you all right?”

Tina shook her head, willing her tears to stop and her throat to open. She was an Auror, for Mercy’s sake! The muted voices of Seraphina Picquery and Percival Graves reminded her that she was a demoted Auror, but to hell with them! She was stronger than this. Wasn’t she?

“Have a seat,” Feather said, leading her to the camping bed. Once Tina was comfortably settled, Feather transfigured a nearby box labelled ‘FLESH-EATING SLUG REPELLANT: DO NOT EAT’ into a low stool. She scooted it closer to the bed, sank onto it with relief, and turned her attention back to Tina. “So what happened last night? Why are you so frightened?”

“I wouldn’t say frightened…” Tina sniffled. A watery smile graced her lips as she dabbed at her cheeks with the end of her sleeve. “I’m more shaken, really…but then whaddaya expect from bein’ thrown into the…the…no. I can’t.” She plucked one of the feathers from the bed and threaded it through her fingers. Over and over she did this until Feather couldn’t stand the tension anymore and reached out to still her hand.

“Porpentina, talk to me. Please.”

Tina’s face fell. “You know it’s not that easy.”

“Try.”

Tina swiveled away, looking for anything to focus on that wasn’t Feather or her feelings. Again, the witches fell into an awkward silence. Many moments passed as each witch stubbornly held onto her resolve; one was firmly set on staying silent and the other was struggling not to ask a million different questions.

“Stop it, Queenie,” Tina muttered quietly. She could feel her sister pushing against her thin Occulumency shields. “I don’t want to.” She glanced back at Feather. “But you’re both gonna make me, aren’t you?”

Feather wanted to disagree, but knew she couldn’t. “Things have changed…and, to be frank, no one’s explained to me what the bloody hell’s going on!”

Tina winced at Feather’s sudden irritation. When Queenie said they were going to “grab Feather real quick and be off” she thought an explanation was included. In truth, if Tina’s pendant hadn’t started glowing right as they exited MACUSA, Feather would have been left on her own. “Mercy Lewis! Fine. You win.” She rubbed her temples, willing her brain to find a sufficient starting place. She started with her demotion and the terror the Second Salemers were bringing to the Wizarding Community. Feather didn’t interrupt but felt horribly sick as Tina described defending Credence from his mother.

“He’s just a kid,” Tina whimpered. “I couldn’t leave him.”

“I know,” Feather replied, blankly staring at her lap. “Poor thing…”

Tina barely noticed her friend’s response and continued onto how she met Newt Scamander and Jacob Kowalski. Here, her words carried a spark of irritation and a touch of mirth. However, the lightness of her tone did not last. As she finished her narrative regarding the chase of the two men across New York, dismay crept back into her voice.

“After I found ‘em at Central Park, I picked up the case and made my way to MACUSA.” Tina looked imploringly at Feather. “They broke the law. It was my job. Too much has happened. I couldn’t…I had to do somethin’.” She felt Queenie’s consciousness lurking outside her mind again, ready to help if necessary. Unfortunately, they still weren’t in the clear or her sister would have been beside her in an instant. But Queenie or no Queenie, nothing could have stopped the deluge that poured from Tina’s lips. “I made a huge mistake…”

“What? Darling, you were doing your job—“

“No! I shouldn’t have brought the case to the President! I shouldn’t have walked into that meeting!” Tina cried, grabbing Feather’s hands and squeezing so hard the fingertips became slightly blue. “I made a huge mistake, Feather! I sold ‘em out…but I didn’t…I didn’t want anyone to get hurt.” Tears fell more quickly down her cheeks as her mind replayed the moment she, Newt, and Jacob were bound and dragged away to the cells. “We didn’t deserve it! I didn’t do anything! But it’s the law and Graves said—“ Her breathing quickened until Feather was sure no oxygen was reaching her lungs. “H-He s-said—He said—“

“Tina, take a breath, darling,” Feather murmured soothingly. “It’s all right! It’s all right!”

“No! No, it’s not! You don’t understand!” Overcome with guilt and grief, Tina shoved Feather’s hands away as if they were made of Fiendfyre. “They put me in the Chair! THEY-PUT-ME-IN-THE-CHAIR!”

The silence that followed Tina’s outburst swallowed the warmth from the shed. A number of heartbeats later, Feather finally grasped what Tina was trying to explain.

“The Chair…oh, in the names of Merlin and Morgana…”

All Wizarding communities around the world practiced some form of extreme punishment. After all, something had to deter the most powerful among them from taking complete control – or at least that was the goal. From what Feather knew, America was one of the last countries to still implement a death penalty; one that permanently ended a person’s physical and spiritual existence, not just destroyed the soul and left the body an empty shell.

The Chair was such a device. It floated above a lake of dark potion, a variant of the Draught of Living Death. Once the accused was placed into the Chair, it sank closer to the potion until it was encased in the liquid. From there, death was, hopefully, instantaneous.

“It was all ‘round me. That potion…” Tina was shaking. Violently. The vibration of her limbs sunk through the camping bed and into the floor, rattling the wooden floorboards. She glanced down at her hands and screamed as black tendrils, so like the potion, creeped across her palms and wrapped around her wrists. Faintly, she felt Queenie’s consciousness try to curl itself around hers; a barrier against the gruesome visions. But, as much as she wished for Queenie’s physical presence, her sister’s body didn’t materialize around hers. It still wasn’t safe. It still wasn’t over. Tina’s screams turned to sobs as the tendrils disappeared and warm fingers firmly took their place.

Feather held on tightly to Tina’s wrists, swallowing her own tears and the memory of broomstick splinters biting into her skin. She understood the horror. She understood the pain. She understood the terror. But Tina didn’t choose the edge. Someone she trusted sent her there, and that simple fact was impossible to comprehend.

“M-Mama was there. I wanted to be with her…then I couldn’t stand to see that woman and he cried…and Newt…” She could still feel herself jumping onto the Swooping Evil, her blind trust as she leapt from the disintegrating Chair, and Newt’s warmth as he caught her. All the emotions the adrenaline had forced away bubbled to the surface and Tina was helpless against the onslaught.

“Hush, darling, hush.” Feather enfolded Tina in her embrace, just as the witch had done for her the night before. “You’re safe now. I promise.” She felt Tina bury herself into her bosom, trying desperately to hide from the pain and shock coursing through her body.

Then, without warning, the door Tina came through was thrown open again. Tina and Feather nearly jumped out of their skins as Newt Scamander and Jacob Kowalski stumbled into the shed, disheveled and thoroughly out of breath. Jacob staggered forward as he tried to regain his balance, mumbling a quick apology when he tripped over Newt’s right foot. Once righted, he smiled awkwardly at Feather who merely nodded at his greeting, her attention fixed solely on the other man.

Newt’s attention, in turn, was focused entirely on the weeping witch. As if she were a wounded creature, he reached out to her. He whispered her name as if it were a prayer as he knelt before her, eyes filled with supplication. “Tina.”

“How dare you?!” Feather snarled, clutching Tina closer. In a swift motion, she put her body between the wizard and her friend. “How dare you speak to her?!”

At Feather’s outburst, a small stick like creature crept out of Newt’s breast pocket and hoisted itself up onto his shoulder. It angrily chirped at Feather, gesticulating wildly, until Tina heaved another sob. At the sound, it calmed a little and patted Newt’s cheek forlornly.

Keeping her gaze trained on the offending wizard, Feather pointedly ignored the spindly creature and nearly spat in Newt’s face. “You put her in that Chair, didn’t you, Scamander? It’s your fault—“

“I tried to stop them! Told them she had nothing to do with…” Newt trailed off, his tongue tied with shame. He was close to tears but bit them back, feeling undeserving of sadness. His head hung low before the witches, as if awaiting the blade that would strike him down.

“Hey.”

Feather’s head shot up as Jacob joined Newt on the floor, effectively forcing her to shift until Newt had access to Tina. She couldn’t help but turn her anger towards the No-Maj. “Let me guess. You also had something to do with this?!”

“Feather, take a breath.” Jacob held up his hands, showing her he meant no harm. “Give Tina a little space and let’s talk this over.”

The young witch was taken aback. He was speaking to her as if she were an irate, caged beast. The thought made more resentment towards the two men writhe inside her, but before she could retort, Tina squirmed in her arms, trying to break the embrace. Feather reluctantly released her.

“Go,” Tina sniffed, pulling a handkerchief from her pocket. “I need to speak to Newt anyway.” Gently, she dried her tears before standing at full height, looking every bit the powerful, regal Auror she was.

“Tina!” exclaimed Feather and Newt simultaneously, one in bewilderment and the other in relief.

“Please,” Tina murmured, reaching down to pull Feather to her feet. “I’ll be fine.” She guided the witch to Jacob, then knelt beside Newt, took his arm, and, once he was on his feet, walked back towards the exit of the shed. Once the door closed behind them, Jacob took Tina’s seat on the camping bed.

“What happened tonight was one helluva ride, honey. Now, I’m gonna tell ya, but you gotta promise that you’ll wait till I’m finished before you say anything.”

Feather began to protest but relented when Jacob fixed her with a pointed, no-nonsense stare. “Fine. Go ahead.”

The portly man heaved a sigh and absently rubbed the bite on the side of his neck. “Well, uh, after you ladies went to bed, Newt showed me ‘round in here.” He gestured to the shed and the door leading beyond. “It’s an amazing world he’s got out there. And…I couldn’t let him try an’ chase down all those missin’ creatures by himself.”

“So you two saw it fit to escape the flat and run off on your own?”

Jacob cleared his throat uncomfortably. “Uh, yeah, about that…I just…” “Just what?” Feather hissed, sarcasm coating every word. “Wanted to help?”

Jacob nodded in earnest. “Newt an’ the girls have done a lot for me in the short amount of time that I’ve known ‘em. Not everyone’s that kind and open-minded, ya know?” He smiled a little as Feather looked away, thoroughly embarrassed. “Looks like ya do, doll.”

“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I shouldn’t have been so rude.”

He waved away her apology with a chuckle. “Nah, don’t worry ‘bout it. I’ve been through worse.” He winked which elicited a smile from his companion. The tension that had filled the shed during Tina’s episode vanished in the wake of Jacob’s friendly air. Feather quietly admitted that she could breathe again.

“Please continue your story, Jacob. I’ll keep interruptions to a minimum. Promise.”

“All right…where was I? Oh yeah! So Newt and me were on our way to Central Park and we – well Newt – broke into a jewelry store to catch that sneaky niffler…”

Jacob was a gifted storyteller. Feather nearly fell off her stool in stitches when he described the Erumpent’s newfound love for him. He quickly passed over the night in the cells when he saw Feather’s face contort with pain.

“We don’t have to talk about that…I’m sure Tina—“

“Thank you, Jacob,” Feather said, cutting him off. “So, how did you escape? MACUSA’s crawling with Aurors and Merlin knows whatever else these Americans use to catch fugitives.”

Jacob’s mouth split into a wide, excited grin. “It was Queenie! I dunno how she knew where I was but she found me. They were gonna Oblivate me, but then she showed up and we went to Graves’s office lookin’ for Newt’s case.”

“Queenie? I see…” Feather smirked as Jacob’s cheeks flushed a brilliant scarlet and he became overly fascinated with the toe of his left shoe. “That girl’s got a lot of nerve. Bless her heart.”

“Yeah. She, uh, she told me that I was one of yous now.” He proudly straightened the lapels of his jacket and waggled his eyebrows.

Feather couldn’t resist another laugh, but, behind the mirth, her heart ached. Jacob approached magic the way she did as a child – full of joy and wonder and never ending curiosity. It was clear that he’d fallen in love with everything about the Wizarding World, even the most horrible parts of it. As they grew older, most witches and wizards saw magic merely as a tool. The mystical aspect of this most intimate part of them was lost on work and chasing dark wizards across the globe. It was a travesty that he would have to forget it all while the rest of the world continued to turn.

“She’s not wrong,” said Feather. “You deserve the magic far more than most of us.”

Jacob shook his head. “Nah. Not a guy like me.”

“You sell yourself short, Mr. Kowalski.”

He shrugged. “You’re real kind, Feather. But it’s not about being deservin’ of all this. It’s about what you’re given.”

Feather was stunned. “That’s too simple.”

“Sometimes it really is.”

Knock. Knock.

Feather and Jacob instinctively spun around to face the shed door. Newt and Tina strode through, both significantly less teary and more relaxed.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

“It’s Queenie,” Tina said, looking up to the ceiling of the shed.

“She must’ve reached my apartment.” Jacob stood, brushing off bits of fluff and feathers as he did so.

Sure enough, the ceiling opened to the evening sky and a rather familiar bob of glittering blonde hair filled the space.

“C’mon! It’s gettin’ cold up here!” Queenie called. “And Teenie, I need to have a word with you!”

All four companions smiled up at her, some a little hesitantly, others a little more than eager. Newt drew his wand, summoning a rather dilapitated ladder that dropped from the opening. Tina climbed up first, anxious to see her sister. Jacob clambered up after her, sending Feather a wink as he did so. Newt gestured for Feather to follow.

She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Listen, Mr. Scamander, I am so sorry for what I said earlier. I—“

“Don’t worry about it, Miss Firestone. Please.” He gestured to the ladder again, but did not meet Feather’s eye.

“I’m sorry all the same.” She took a breath and closed her eyes as she began her ascent. She only opened them again when she felt the cool rush of New York air and heard the rumble of city life below.

They were on the rooftop of one of New York’s many tenements. Tina and Queenie embraced near a small pigeon coop at the center while Jacob stood by, hands in his pockets, a dreamy look on his face. Feather made her way to the edge, a bit farther away from the rest of the group. Slowly, she processed everything that had occurred in the past few hours. It all seemed like a wild dream that she was sure to wake up from any moment. But, simultaneously, she knew in her bones that it was all too real. For the first time since she’d left home, she had a purpose – to help her friends fiddle their way through this mess. It would be a welcome distraction from her own pervasive thoughts, especially the ones that crept into her mind as she stared at the pavement below.

“Feather Rose, you better not!” Queenie’s lilting voice jolted her back to reason. She turned around to see the blonde witch standing side by side with the No-Maj, and the other witch and wizard perched on the edge of the roof a little way from them.

“I was just thinking, Queenie! I’ll be over in three ticks!” Feather took a moment to regard her four companions. They were all thrown together by chance and, for some reason, she was being given the opportunity to join them. As she looked on, Jacob and Queenie doubled over in a fit of uncontrollable giggles. Newt and Tina stepped closer to one another, small smiles of understanding on their faces. Feather’s heart ached again, this time with bittersweet conviction. Even if their happiness wasn’t meant for her, maybe she could be a part of it, a part of something greater than her despair. She hopped off the ledge and walked towards the group, a slight skip in her step.

#fantastic reasons and where to find them #newt scamander #tina goldstein #queenie goldstein #jacob kowalski #fbawtft #fbawtft fanfiction #tw child abuse #tw harassment

11 notes · View notes