𝔞𝔫𝔦𝔪𝔞𝔤𝔲𝔰

Twelve

The black, swirling wisp stared into my soul. I walked backwards, intent on leaving when I ran into Jacob. He was examining the obscurus. "What is that thing?" He asked me. 

"Step back." I heard Newt's stoic voice. Jacob and I jumped, startled. 

Newt grabbed my wrist, "Step away." 

"Newt, why do you have that?" I hissed at him. 

"What the hell is that thing?" Jacob asked shakily.

"An obscurus is very dangerous, why is that here?" I glared at him.

"I was trying to save a girl. I pulled it out of her so I could study." Newt explained. "It cannot survive out of this box though." He pulled Jacob and I away from the black cloud.

"I need to get going," said Newt, "find everyone who's escaped before they get hurt." 

"Before they get hurt?" Jacob asked incredulously. 

"Yes, Mr. Kowalski. They are currently in alien terrain, surrounded by millions of the most vicious creatures on the planet." Newt paused.

"Humans." I finished. He nodded solemnly, and with that, we walked away from the obscurus. 

Newt stopped in front of a grassy enclosure. It was evident that something very large had escaped it though.

"So where would you say that a medium-sized creature that likes broad, open plains, trees, water holes...that kind of thing, where might she go?" Newt asked us. Jacob and I looked at each other.

"In New York city?"

"Yes."

"Plains?"

"Yes."

"Central Park?" 

"And where is that exactly?"

"Where is Central Park?" Jacob looked hesitant. "Well, look, I would come and show you, but don't you think that's kind of like a double cross? The girls take us in, they make us hot cocoa..." Jacob struggled to find another point. 

"Yeah, maybe we could tell them..." I tried to reason, but Newt shot me a look. 

"You do realize that when they see he's stopped sweating they're going to obliviate him in a heartbeat?" Newt asked. I shrugged a little, "Yeah, I guess."

"What does 'bliviate mean?" Jacob asked.

Newt and I shared a glance. "They wipe your memory, basically." I explained briefly.

Newt went on, "It'll be like you wake up and all memory of magic is gone."

Jacob was quiet. "You mean I won't remember any of this?" 

I shook my head sadly.

Jacob looked betrayed. He looked Newt in the eye, "Yea." He said.

"Yea, I'll help you." 

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"Thomas, shhh." The cat jumped on my shoulder, trying to sit on my head but he was too fat.

"If you didn't want to walk, why didn't you stay in the case?" I picked him up and carried him like a baby. He purred contentedly. The three of us were walking down the streets of New York towards Central Park. We had snuck out of the Goldstein apartment through the fire escape.

"He's a wampus?" Newt asked again. I nodded, "I transfigure him into a normal cat when we go out in public. He's been one of my only friend since I've come here." I nuzzled his nose and looked over at Newt.

He was staring at me with a small smile. I blushed and looked away.

"So," I changed the subject, "I was watching you at dinner." I turned to Jacob. He looked surprised.

"People like you, don't they, Jacob?" I smirked at him.

"Oh, well, I'm sure people like you too." I just laughed.

"Sure. If someone would like an antisocial introvert that prefers the company of her cat, you call me." I said sarcastically.

Newt made a phone with his hand, "Hello?" He said into the 'phone,' sneaking a smile at me. I grinned and pushed his shoulder. "Oh, stop." I teased, trying to hide my blush.

Jacob chuckled and shook his head. "How about you, Mr. Kowalski?" Newt asked.

"Why did you decide to be a baker?" Jacob sighed and responded, "Well, because I'm dying in that canning factory. Everyone there's dying. It crushes the life out of you. You like canned food?" Newt and I shook our heads. 

"Yea, me neither. That's why I want to make pastries, you know. It makes people happy." Jacob pointed to the right, "We're going this way."

"So did you get your loan?" I asked him, petting Thomas. I remembered how we met at the bank and assumed he was there for a loan. 

"No," the man scoffed, "I ain't got no collateral. Stayed in the army too long, apparently, I don't know." 

"You fought in the war?" Newt asked, intrigued. "Of course, I fought in the war, everyone fought in the war. You didn't fight in the war?" Jacob turned to Newt.

"I worked mostly with dragons, Ukrainian Ironbellies.  Eastern Front." Something shiny caught my eye and I put my hand out, stopping Newt. He followed my eyes and saw the tiny diamond ring lying on the ground. 

We looked ahead and saw a whole trail of jewelry on the street. We followed it quietly, walking past stores lined up on the sidewalk. Newt stopped suddenly and backtracked. A certain niffler was standing on a table in a jewelry store, pretending to be a mannequin. 

Thomas growled him softly as the niffler turned it's head, staring at us. Newt raised his wand, "Finestra." With that, the glass window shattered and he jumped inside. Thomas leaped out of my arms and chased the niffler around the store.

Jacob and I stood outside, watching the chaos that ensued. Newt and my cat chased him onto a desk. He jumped on Newt's head and onto the chandelier. Thomas tried to jump but he landed short and flopped to the ground. Newt grabbed for the chandelier and dangled on it as it swung, eventually breaking. 

"Oh, come on." I muttered, my face in my hands. I heard a small click and saw that Newt's case had unlocked. A roar could be heard from inside, and I looked at Jacob. 

The niffler, with Newt and Thomas right behind him, jumped onto a jewelry stand. It tipped forward, only to be caught by the other glass window. No one made a sound as I slowly crept over and locked the suitcase again carefully. 

The window cracked,  not able to hold the weight of the niffler, Newt and Thomas. It shattered and they rolled onto the sidewalk. 

As the niffler ran away, I whipped out my wand. "Accio!" He was shot backwards, and all the jewelry from its little pockets slipped out. They flew towards us and we dodged them as we ran to catch the niffler. 

He caught a light pole and whipped around, landing against another shop window. Newt uttered a spell and the window turned into a sticky trap. The niffler struggled to loosen itself but to no avail. 

"Alright? Happy?" I said as I pulled him off of the window. I shook all the jewelry out of him and handed him back to Newt, giggling as I saw the two men were covered head to toe in jewelry.

I heard sirens and my smile fell. "Shoot." I held up my hands as we were soon surrounded by muggle police. "They went that way, officer." Jacob said, pointing the other direction. I sighed.

The jig was up.