· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·
Early mornings and auror meetings did not mix well, especially after Ariadne had spent the night with Theseus. Thank Merlin he had gently woken her up. If not she was certain she would have accidentally slapped him across the face, which was not on her bucket list as she started her relationship with Theseus. Speaking of the man, he currently sat at the top of the table. Travers stood behind him, discussing something important. They were currently going through new assignments and plans. Grindelwald's acolytes seemed to be growing stronger each day with reports of stealing, murder and arson. Ariadne couldn't lie; locking up the main man in charge hadn't done anything to harm his cause. He would be even more powerful now if he escaped.
"Where is that assistant of yours?" Travers questioned, exasperation filling voice. With the acolytes inducing chaos, the Ministry had burdened him with more responsibilities. Nonetheless, Ariadne shot him a glare. His acidic demeanour was becoming even more unbearable. On a lighter note, Leta Lestrange sat in the corner of the room. She remained stoic, her posture straight, yet it was comforting to see a familiar face. She had sent Ariadne a sweet smile as they first locked eyes. It had been some time since the two had seen each other.
"I'm sure she's just running late," Theseus defended, not missing the way Ariadne sent daggers towards Travers. He forced himself to look away, he would not be caught today. Through the quiet corridor, loud footsteps disrupted the peace.
"Theseus-" Melinda barged into the room, her movements freezing as she caught sight of Travers. "Mr Scamander," she corrected, "You have to see this." However, her eyes landed on Ariadne. Panic warped her features and she looked shakened. Standing to comfort her friend, Melinda revealed the morning paper in her hand. Selwyn's spotlight long forgotten as more pressing matters made front page.
Ariadne's fingers softly grabbed the corner of the Daily Prophet. Pounding in her head blocked out the footsteps approaching. Slowly, she glanced at Melinda, the same amount of unease hidden in her eyes. The brunette witch flinched as a hand brought her out of her trance. Bailey stared down at her, his dark eyes darting between the two women with concern. However, Ariadne's eyes found Theseus'
"He escaped," Ariadne breathed, letting everyone around her know. Theseus shot up, Travers following. The paper was passed from Melinda to Ariadne, to Bailey then given to Theseus. His eyes skimmed the page, an expression of restlessness painting his face.
"This meeting is over," Travers ordered as soon as his eyes landed on the paper. Without wasting a moment, he stormed out of the room as Leta was left to follow. Everyone else was left stunned, tension coating the room. They were aurors, responsible to uphold peace and trained to investigate the misconduct of wrongdoers. Grindelwald's escape meant that they were all back to square one. It meant that Grindelwald would not stand for his trial against his crimes in Europe. It meant that Newt and Ariadne's victory was short-lived.
"You may leave," Theseus finally said, breaking the silence. With the new revelation, everyone was still. No one had moved an inch. It felt confining, the fact that Grindelwald was free to roam the streets meant that every place was now in danger. Noticing her bubbling panic, Theseus fought the urge to embrace her. "Ariadne, I want you in my office. Now." Numbly nodding, Ariadne followed Theseus out of the meeting room. Fixated on his back, she jumped when the door to his office shut. It was darker in here, the blinds were closed, letting in little light through the horizontal gaps.
"Are you okay?" His face was full of concern. Was she okay? Actually, what was she feeling? Stressed? Angry? Betrayed? Grindelwald's escape meant that they hadn't tried hard enough to cage him. His escape meant that no matter where they hid, he would always find them. Information that was classified somehow found its way into his acolytes' hands. Additionally, Ariadne would bet her whole life savings that her father had formulated the escape plan. That's what he was good at, following an executed plan that he had created, everything going according to how he wanted. Ariadne's stomach dropped at the thought: maybe this was her fault. She had seen her father walking freely in Abbott's manor a few weeks ago.
What if I wake up tomorrow and he's massacred thousands?
He's not like that. No, his one goal was always putting Grindelwald's cause above his own life, above his own daughter. Ariadne had brushed off Theseus' words that night, however they couldn't help but come back to haunt her. What if they successfully captured Silas Nott? What if they could have prevented Grindelwald's escape? What if she took matters into her own hands the second that Norman Abbott revealed Grindelwald's plans of escape? What if...?
"Ariadne?" A soft hand on her jawline brought her out of the maze. Her eyes finally connected with Theseus' blue ones. "Lost you for a second," a soft smile fitted his perfect face as he brought her close. His lips lingered on her forehead and she couldn't help but relax in his embrace.
"I'm sorry."
He lifted her chin up, making her look back up at him. "You don't have to be."
"I feel like I shouldn't be surprised," Ariadne started, trying to put her thoughts into words, "I knew this was going to happen."
"You had what we all had: hope," he stated. His warm hand trailed up to her cheek, "Hope that he would stay locked up forever."
"How do you feel?" Maybe with insight to his thoughts, she would know how to think.
"Scared. Determined. Terrified."
His words dropped a pit in her stomach. "I could have killed him," she uttered. "I was there when he was captured. I could have done it." Maybe then she could have saved them from his plans of torment.
"He would have turned into a martyr. Someone else would have picked up his beliefs and caused another ruckus. One with Grindelwald's death fuelling their anger."
She smiled at his words. It was well said, well put together. He easily soothed all her worries, no matter how little he tried. However, he couldn't stop the one thought that plagued her mind. "We can't escape the war that's coming can we?"
Before he could respond, a soft knock on his door brought their attention away. Knowing her place she stepped aside, letting him answer his office door. Melinda stood on the other side apologetic, her eyes betraying her assured posture.
"Travers wants to see you in his office." He was reluctant to leave, his head turning back to Ariadne. She gave him a knowing smile.
"Go," Ariadne whispered, her voice coming out weaker than she would have liked. Theseus looked like he wanted to step towards her, but he couldn't. Not here, not when Melinda stood in the doorway. That was their promise. Hesitantly, he nodded, leaving the two women alone in the dark office.
"Oh, Ariadne," Melinda enveloped her in a warm embrace. The brunette witch smiled gratefully as she returned the favour.
"I'm alright," she whispered, words evaporating as they touched the air.
"You don't have to be." The repeat of Theseus' words made her smile. How did she get so lucky with the people who cared about her? "Come, I left Bailey alone because of this."
At the mention of Bailey, Ariadne remembered something else. "And how'd your date go?"
"I left him midway," she answered nonchalantly. "Don't look at me like that. He was just... boring."
"Could've told you that beforehand," Bailey muttered, his hands in his pocket as they approached him. He had a sour look on his face that Ariadne could recognise a mile away.
"Don't be rude," Ariadne teased, a false sense of sternness in her voice. In truth, she was mocking his jealousy and he seemed to pick up on it as the tips of his ears burned.
"What did Theseus want anyways?" Melinda questioned, changing subjects as she noticed the smugness covering Ariadne's features and the embarrassment covering Bailey's.
"He was just checking in on me," she slowly said, giving them the truth rather than a suspicious lie. It was her turn to notice the knowing glance from Melinda and Bailey. Clearing her throat, "Anyways, how did the others react to the news?"
"Just alarmed. We've dealt with him on the loose before, we know what it's like." It sounded like naive words, tumbling out of Bailey's mouth. 'Just alarmed' is discrediting Grindelwald's ability to cause devastation or was she overreacting? Could they handle this situation perfectly well? Bailey seemed to notice Ariadne's state of perplexion, "Well, except Reuben Murphy. New kid looks terrified."
The trio turned to the youngest and newest auror on the team. He had almost completed his three year long training but was ready to finally be put into the field. "Theseus put him under my assignment. He's shadowing me." Ariadne disclosed, eyebrows raised as she studied her new apprentice. With Grindelwald's rise to power, they were getting less and less recruits. Many young witches and wizards were too afraid to put themselves out there. Others just couldn't get the grades for it.
Reuben Murphy was out of place. Many aurors didn't bother speaking to newbies, not until they had to. His newly appointed desk was clean, a single photo with his family sat in the corner. With no paperwork due to no prior missions, he played with his fingers, hoping that someone would put him out of his misery and give him something to do.
"I wouldn't worry," Bailey chuckled, hands clasped on her shoulder, "He looks obedient enough."
"Unlike us," she mused.
"Exactly."
[1634 words]
a/n
we finally got to plot #1 of crimes of grindelwald. now we have three months of lore to get through before i can actually thrust my characters into the movie.
hope i didnt take too long with this update that you've forgotten the plot!
kjlyds