"Hey." Hope murmured as she walked across the platform of the Kelpie's enclosure, biting her lip to see Newt crouched down, pouring measured bits of oils into the fish chunks.
Newt looked up with a small smile. "Hi..." he swallowed, the light in his eyes that usually glowed there was a bit dimmed. Darkness swept under his eyes, leading Hope to believe he hadn't slept well last night.
Guilt clawed through her chest as she lowered herself to the damp wood and nodded slowly. "I'm sorry about yesterday. For snapping at you..." she trailed off, trying to fight off the heat of shame that crept up her neck.
It hadn't been right, yelling at Newt when he'd done nothing wrong.
"You were just trying to help." Hope cleared her throat of the lump forming.
Newt moved a little closer. "I'm not angry, Hope." He murmured, making her glance up at him in surprise.
"You should be..."
"You weren't yelling at me." He replied calmly, taking her hand in his. "You were upset by the situation, and I added kindling to the fire. If anything, I should be apologizing. Last night wasn't the time to put my opinion into the mess."
Hope took a shuddering breath. She just couldn't understand how he could be so, well, understanding of it all.
"Someone tried to kill you, Hope. I think that warrants some high-strung nerves."
Swallowing hard, she nodded, trying to let his words comfort her, but the guilt resided. "You look exhausted." She murmured.
Newt smiled crookedly. "I couldn't sleep, so I came here around midnight and have been here since. I knew you were safe with Albus, but I couldn't help but worry about you. I'll admit, I was angry too. Not with you, but all the trust built for you here. The level of comfort you were starting to have was shattered in a single evening."
"Not all the trust," she offered with a small smile, "I still have you." Taking his hand, she squeezed it lightly. "And Albus."
Newt pulled her a little closer and smiled, the glow in his eyes returning a little as he pressed a soft kiss to her knuckles.
"Did you feel safer in his chambers?" He asked gently.
Hope nodded. "I did. I slept...very well last night." Red flushed down her neck as she thought about last night. The mere memory made her pussy quiver. Though she could see his eyes still didn't quite match his smile, and then she realized.
"I doubt he would mind if you stayed sometimes while this is getting figured out."
A glimmer of hope shined in his eyes as he perked a little. "Hope I didn't mean to insinuate-"
She quickly cut him off with a kiss. "When you can't sleep, I'm usually in bed with you. Last night I wasn't, and that must have felt awful," she murmured, "so you'll be staying with us tonight. I've made the decision."
Chuckling, he shook his head. "Is that really a decision you can make?"
With a laugh, she shrugged and threaded her fingers with his. "I have him wrapped around my finger, too."
"Too?" Newt grinned.
Hope nodded, matching his smile. "Oh yes," she leaned forward and kissed his lips, "but don't worry. I'll use my power for good. Most of the time." She giggled.
"Troublemaker." He smiled as he stroked her cheek, kissing her fondly.
Hope and Newt lost track of time as they revisited each other, restoring the uneasiness she'd felt from yesterday.
As Newt closed the suitcase and locked it, he glanced at her. "I do have some good news. Do you remember Sylvia?" He asked.
"Sylvia?" Hope puckered her brows, trying to recall a face to the name.
"The first day we met, she was the one who brought you a blanket for the trip to Hogwarts."
"Oh!" Hope grinned and nodded. "Yes, of course. Why? Is she visiting?"
Newt nodded with a smile. "Yes, she's just finished a trek through the Tundra to help the Ministry with some dragon poachers, but anyway she'll be here tonight, and I thought maybe we could go out to the Three Broomsticks to catch up."
"That sounds fun," she nodded, "while we're there, maybe I'll stop at Gladrags." Her fingers stroked through her hair and bit her lip. "And maybe I'll stop at Madam Snellings as well."
Then, Newt took her face in his hands, gazing directly into her eyes. "If you'd like to, I will support you but just know you look gorgeous. Always."
Hope's knees quivered a little. "Hm...that's an excellent way to get laid, Newt." She murmured, brushing her fingers along the backs of his hands.
With a chuckle, he kissed her nose. "Come on. I'm starving."
It was a bit past lunch now, and they made quick work of eating in the Great Hall. They discussed the plans for releasing a few creatures within the next few months.
"Do you think that's what he meant?" Hope asked as the conversation quieted down, chewing thoughtfully.
"What did who mean?"
"The centaur," she nodded, "he said I'd be meeting my end soon. Do you think he meant last night?"
Newt cringed a little at the question, not meeting her eyes as he took a larger bite of food. Clearly thinking of a way to answer.
Frowning a little, she set her fork down. "Why won't you look at me?"
He looked down, and that fear she'd seen in his eyes was back. "I'm sure it's what he meant..." he trailed off.
"You are a terrible liar, Newt Scamander," Hope narrowed her eyes at him, "so what I'm gathering from your lack of an answer is that would be a no. Why? Because I'm destined to die?"
"You are not going to die."
"How do you know that?" She whispered. "How often are Centaurs right?"
Newt's silence was deafening.
"Right," she took a slow and deep breath and picked her fork back up, "well if I'm going to die, I'd rather die having eaten cake first." She said as she scooped a bit of chocolate fudge cake into her mouth.
"I don't habitually discuss my future with Centaurs, Hope. Just because they see it in the stars doesn't mean that's how it will play out. It's like Divination. It isn't always accurate, and if it does happen, it often doesn't happen how we think it will."
Hope tried to let his words sink in and offer comfort, but the fact was she'd been told she'd die soon, and last night was the first attempt. How many more until they'd succeed?
The afternoon seemed to drag on as Hope filled with excitement. She wanted to get out of Hogwarts for a little bit. Maybe Newt had been right; much of the trust she'd built over the last few months felt fragile. She loved Hogwarts, but the thought she might be safer outside its walls infiltrated her mind.
She was bouncing on the balls of her feet, on her third cup of coffee, as they began their trek to Hogsmeade. Albus had even tagged along, and Hope knew why.
His trust was waning thin too.
Hope strutted like a cat along the brick wall of the bridge, very aware of their watchful eyes. Ready to save her were she to fall.
"Maybe I was some sort of acrobat before," she mused as she switched to walking backward, making Newt cringe, "do you think anyone would recognize me if there were posters?"
Biting his lip, Newt shrugged. Still observing her feet. "I think that could lead to the wrong people recognizing you. Hope, you would give me much more peace of mind if you walked with us on solid ground."
"This is solid ground." She grinned over at him mischievously, but the twist of his worried expression made her sigh and concede.
Hopping off the edge of the bridge, she walked with them the rest of the way, looking up at the cloudless sky.
"Hm, big storm coming," Hope murmured.
They glanced over at her, and Albus chuckled. "Looks clear to me."
"For now," she nodded, "but I can smell it, and there's a charge in the air. Like I can taste the electricity."
Newt spoke now. "Part of me wonders if you might be much like a seer, as in Divination. You did see something in the crystal ball when you first arrived. Not to mention the visions from the spellbook."
"Grimoire," she corrected with a nod, "I wonder if I should try some of the magic in it. See if anything happens."
Albus shook his head immediately. "I wouldn't advise it. The book contains many dark elements, and the consequences could be severe with your memories absent."
"There's a knot untying spell. How dark could that be?"
"It might not be referring to a literal knot," Albus shrugged, "could be metaphorical for something else. I'm just saying that I wouldn't recommend just trying it to see what happens with magic of this type. You don't want to risk getting hurt or hurting someone else."
Hope nodded with a soft sigh. "I suppose you're right." She just wished he wasn't. Honestly, more than anything she wanted to see what she could do. If she could really do anything.
By the time they reached Hogsmeade, Hope was starting to feel the cold air sink into her bones, but luckily they arrived at the Three Broomsticks before they could begin shivering too much.
Inside, Sylvia sat at the barstool, chatting with the bar matron. She glanced over, did a double take, then her face spread into a grin.
"Newt!" She hopped off the stool and rushed over, wrapping her arms around him tightly.
Hope immediately saw herself snapping her neck and watching the light leave her eyes.
Woah, that was a bit of a violent vision, she thought.
Swallowing hard, she smiled tightly. Her eyes felt warm, but she didn't believe it to be sadness. No, the emotion she experienced curdled in her stomach like spoiled milk. Jealous anger wasn't a good color for her, so she tried to force a smile.
Albus's crooked smile and the way his eyes met hers told her he knew exactly why she suddenly looked so constipated.
Newt returned the hug, not as tightly, and pulled away to gesture to Hope.
"Syliva, you remember Hope." Newt beamed as if showing her off was what he'd been looking forward to most.
Syliva smiled warmly at Hope. "Of course," she looked her over, "you look wonderful. I imagine they've been treating you very well at Hogwarts. Poor thing, you were skin and bone when I saw you last."
Hope's smile tightened further as she grinded her teeth. It felt different when people used the term 'poor thing' when she'd been malnourished, but now it felt more like an insult.
"Yes," she nodded, "very well."
Sylvia grinned. "I'm glad to hear it. Come on then, a round of Butterbeers on me."
"Sylvia, you don't have to..." Newt trailed off.
"It's my treat, Newt. I've not seen you in so long. Let me do this. Please?"
Newt conceded with a sigh and a smile, nodding as they found a table after Syliva put in the order.
"So," Sylvia smiled at Hope, "what have you enjoyed most about Hogwarts?"
Hope's mind flashed between being on top of Newt and under Albus, of their times laughing and talking or simply sitting in silence while entertained by their own activities.
"Well, I'm helping Newt with the creatures." Hope nodded with a smile, which seemed a safe enough answer. It was a close second to her favorite activity anyway. "Newt said you were trying to find Dragon Poachers?"
Syliva nodded with a sigh of disdain. "With no such luck yet. They're slippery things, those Poachers, but we'll catch them. We're headed to Appalachia next. There's word a new camp has been set up there that only houses Dragons, but it's not even as simple as that. They're using them in fights for Galleons." Sylvia shook her head with a sigh. "Anyway, any luck on your memory?"
Hope slowly shook her head, picked up her warm tankard of Butterbeer, and took a foamy sip. Letting it warm her. "No. Probably never will."
With a frown, she nodded and patted her hand. "Well, here's to new memories then."
Glancing down at her hand, she felt a wave of nausea hit her and looked between Newt and Sylvia. It became clear to her, confirming the anger she'd felt earlier upon entering.
Sylvia wasn't to be trusted with her Newt.
Mine. Hope internally declared.
Hope faked another smile, but there was a bit of venom behind her gaze. "Thank you."
Albus cleared his throat and smiled warmly at Sylvia. "Sylvia, naturally, your accommodations are arranged for your stay if you'd like to reside at Hogwarts."
"Oh, that won't be necessary, Albus, thank you." She nodded. "I've actually rented a room here."
Hope caught her sigh of relief just in time, sipping more Butterbeer as her shoulders relaxed. At least she wouldn't have to share the same roof with a man stealing...Hope sighed at herself.
Stop that. Syliva is just another woman, so what if she had a thing for Newt?
What's not to love?
The bottom line was, Newt would never do anything to hurt Hope, and she believed that. She trusted him, and that would have to be enough.
It wasn't like Newt had shown any signs of flirtation toward Syliva. In fact, if he was flirting with anyone other than herself, it was Albus. Unable to meet his eyes and fiddling with his tankard whenever he directed something at him.
Hope knew immediately why it was so different seeing him have feelings for Albus. She loved them both, and seeing them want each other sent a tingle down her spine.
"-in the market-"
Sylvia nudged Hope's elbow and smiled when Hope glanced over, pulled from her distracted thoughts.
"What?"
Syliva laughed. "I was saying Newt told me you were in the market for a new dress."
"Oh," Hope nodded, sipping again and licking her upper lip with a quick swipe, "he's taking me to the Valentine's Ball." She grinned over at Newt and watched his complexion turn deep maroon.
She could have sworn Sylvia's eye twitched a little. Maintaining her smile, she replied, "Aw, so romantic. That sounds adorable. Need an extra set of eyes?"
Hope wanted so badly to retort, 'Not from you.' "Sure." She said instead
"Well," Sylvia looked at Newt and Albus, "perhaps we'll meet you back in a little bit? We're going to have a girl's day."
Hope quickly looked at them, signaling for help with an expression of panic. Newt, completely oblivious, nodded eagerly. "Alright. We'll meet you back here in an hour or two."
Albus pursed his lips into a smile, but his eyes drifted to Syliva with a knowing gaze. Hope knew that look, something big was on his mind, and if Albus didn't trust Syliva with her Newt, then neither should she.
Still, they nodded in agreement and left the store.
This was about to be the longest two hours of Hope's life.