Newt rummaged around in his shed, looking for his potion kit. He heard a rapping sound from above him, and walked over to the bottom of his ladder to peer up. Tina had cracked open the lid of the case, and was looking down at him.
"We're going Christmas shopping right now. Do you want to come?" she invited.
Newt hesitated. He didn't particularly feel like having an outing right now, but he did need to buy gifts. There was his mother, father, Theseus, and of course Tina, Jacob, and Queenie. And he should probably also get something for his assistant, Bunty, too. After all, she was looking after his creatures in his apartment in London.
A/N: *Spoiler Alert* For those of you who don't know, Bunty is actually Newt's assistant, and we'll get to see her in Fantastic Beasts The Crimes of Grindelwald. And also, I know I wrote that Newt goes home to his family's house, but to clear things up, I just wanted to let you guys know that in the franchise, he also has an apartment of his own in London, where has has more creatures.
"I'll come," Newt said, climbing the steps of his ladder.
Tina stepped aside to let Newt emerge, and when he got out, he bent down swiftly to shut the lid of his case, switching the dial on it to Locked. Newt grasped the handle and stood up.
"You're taking your beasts with you?" Tina asked, though she didn't seem surprised.
"Yes. I always do. I'd think you of all people should know that by now, what with what happened last year," Newt grinned.
"You mean when you let that Niffler of yours escape and cause mayhem in the bank? Yeah, I remember," Tina laughed.
They walked out of Newt's room and into the living room, where Queenie and Jacob were waiting for them by the doorway. The Christmas tree that they had decorated yesterday was gleaming merrily in the center of the room, the warm golden beams of the lights dancing on the walls.
"Finally!" Queenie exclaimed. "What took you guys so long?"
Newt saw Tina's mouth fall open beside him, wearing an expression appropriate to have just been clubbed over the head. "We took so long?" she said incredulously. "What about all the times that I've had to wait for you?"
"Relax, Teen, I'm just pulling your leg," Queenie giggled, while Jacob laughed beside her.
Tina rolled her eyes and sighed, shaking her head. Newt bit back a smile, and the four of them filed out the door and down the stairs. They stepped outside into the bitter winter weather. It was snowing lightly, the white flakes drifting down lazily onto the ground, where they melted within seconds. An icy wind pierced through Newt's hair, and his battered leather case was swaying in the wind.
Newt shoved his free hand into the pocket of his greatcoat, and he felt something soft and lumpy at the bottom of it. He closed his fingers around it, and withdrew his hand to find a pair of Tina's former navy blue gloves in his palm. Smiling to himself, he slipped them on, and he thought he could see a skip in Tina's step as she glanced at his felt-covered hands. A fuzzy, tingling feeling crawled slowly up his spine, and he felt his smile broaden.
"So where are we going?" Newt asked no one in particular.
It was Tina who answered. "Basically to the American version of Diagon Alley," she replied.
A furrow creased Newt's brow as he thought of Jacob. "But what about–?"
"I guess I'll just have to pretend I'm a wizard, then, right?" Jacob joked.
An uneasy feeling settled like a stone in Newt's stomach, and he shot a glance at Tina to see his misgivings reflected on her features.
"Queenie, Jacob, are you sure we shouldn't just go to a No-Maj place instead?" she frowned. Newt got the feeling that this wasn't the first time she'd asked.
"Oh, liven up!" Queenie said, waving a hand dismissively at her sister. "Ain't no one gonna recognize Jacob, you'll see."
"Actually," Newt said, "I think plenty of people will realize he's a No-Maj, seeing as all four of us escaped illegally from MACUSA last year."
"If you're really worried, we can disguise him," Queenie said. She whipped out her wand from her pink coat prodded an anxious looking Jacob.
She murmured a few spells, and the baker's hair grew longer, to shoulder length, a beard sprouted out of his chin, and he shot up until the top of his head was level with Queenie's.
"Now he looks like a demented murderer," Tina muttered.
Queenie looked scandalized. "I thought that was the point," she moaned. "Ya know, make him as unrecognizable as possible?"
Jacob was looking very unsettled, scratching his beard and looking around at this new height. "This isn't permanent, right?" he asked.
"Course not," Queenie replied, swatting playfully at him.
Newt thought that even with the longer hair and greater height, Jacob was still distantly recognizable. However, he didn't voice this opinion as Queenie was already looking very impatient.
Tina was also still looking unsure, but she didn't protest again. They set off down the street, walking along and chatting amiably. It was much quieter on this street, as it wasn't the main one, and the occasional car or two would drive by at a steady pace.
Tina and Queenie suddenly veered sharply into a side street, and Newt and Jacob followed, surprised by the sudden change of direction. They came to a halt beside a lone and ancient looking lamppost. The lightbulb was flickering feebly, and the glass around it was cracked and grimy. The post itself was rusting, and the paint was peeling away, revealing the bare gray interior.
"Okay, so this is how we get in," Tina informed, nodding toward the lamppost. "Just step through it."
Jacob was looking confused. "How're we supposed to step through that?"
Newt could see how odd it would seem from a Muggle's point of view. For one, the lamppost was completely solid, and two, it definitely looked too thin for a person to walk through.
"Relax, Jacob, it's easy!" Queenie reassured, smiling encouragingly at him. "Here, I'll go first."
She walked straight into the lamppost, and disappeared, probably rematerializing on what Newt imagined was the other side. The lightbulb stopped flickering when she stepped through, and shone a bright white. Jacob let out a yelp of shock.
"Don't worry, it doesn't hurt," Tina said to him. "Go on, we'll follow you. Queenie's probably waiting on the other side right now."
Jacob stared at her as though she was crazy. Then, apparently deciding to just accept this bizarre way of entering a wizarding dwelling, he shrugged and squared his shoulders. Squeezing his eyes shut, he ran through the lamppost with his hands stretched out in front of him, as though expecting to crash into it. He disappeared once he came into contact with the pole, leaving only Newt and Tina left.
Newt looked at Tina, and she nodded for him to go first. He walked through the lamppost, and he felt as though he'd just stepped through a cool sheet of water. He emerged on the other side where Queenie and Jacob were already waiting, and Tina appeared behind him.
"Ready? Okay, let's go then," Queenie said.
They set off through the wide, cobbled street. Wizards and witches were bustling around them, shopping bags and money pouches dangling from their hands. The whole place was incredibly similar to Diagon Alley, though with an American twist to everything. As they walked, Newt's head turned in every direction. There were sweetshops, apothecaries, stores with custom-made robes, a broomstick shop, and bookstores. His heart raced as he recognized the cover of his book, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, on display.
A thought occurred to him. "If this is a magical dwelling, then how do Muggles get in?" he inquired.
"Well actually, anyone can get in, as long as they know about it," Queenie explained. "But as America's pretty strict about keeping wizards and No-Majs apart, I doubt that anyone other than Jacob knows about this place."
This piece of information greatly unsettled Newt. He couldn't shake off the lingering suspicion that somebody would somehow find out that they'd violated the law by bringing Jacob here, and by his and Queenie's marriage.
"It's a bit like the Fidelius Charm," Tina pitched in.
"Hope we don't get arrested," Jacob joked, but Newt could see that he was starting to sweat nervously. It was understandable why; if anyone realized there was a No-Maj that was aware of the magical community, MACUSA would be sure to send a team of Obliviators to wipe Jacob's memory right away, and he would forget everything with no chance of remembering, unlike last time.
Before Newt could voice his concerns, however, Tina spoke up again. "Queenie, I really think we should head back," she said, biting her lip and glancing around.
"Aw, come on Teenie, don't be such a stickler for the rulebooks. Trust me, nobody's gonna even notice we were here!" Queenie insisted optimistically.
Tina looked offended. "I don't always stick to the rules," she defended. "I got demoted for attacking Mary Lou, remember?" she glared at her sister.
"I don't know, maybe we should just go back," Jacob added uncertainly.
"Jacob, you really think so? I mean, you're disguised, and no one here knows you're a No-Maj," Queenie whispered the last part, lest they be overheard.
Jacob was looking slightly more confident. "Yeah, you're right," he agreed, reassured to some extent.
"Well, if we're not heading back, we should get on with what we came here for in the first place," Newt pointed out.
"Yes, let's split up and meet back here in an hour," Tina agreed.
Queenie and Jacob nodded, and each of them went their seperate ways. Newt's gaze lingered on Tina, and he watched as she paused, looked up at a sign hanging above a shop, and entered the building. Only then did he turn around and make his way down the winding, stone-cobbled street.
After walking for only a few minutes, a shop squeezed between a cauldron store and a place that sold herbal remedies caught his eye. It was small, but bright, and sold a variety of clothing that had been enchanted to float a few inches off the ground or change color.
Thinking that he would be likely to find Queenie's Christmas present in here, Newt entered. Immediately, the overwhelming scent of heavily perfumed air made him choke and splutter incoherently. After a great deal of coughing, which attracted strange looks from the customers, who were mostly witches, he recovered and hastily ducked behind a display to escape from the stares. In front of him on display were an array of silk scarves, embedded with glittering silver sparkles. A sign read: Self-Styling Scarves, Three Different Looks!
Newt spotted a pink one, and he picked it up to examine it more closely. It writhed in his hand, looping itself onto his wrist. He took it up to the counter, where a witch was sitting boredly, and slid it off, with some difficulty.
"Five Galleons," the witch said tonelessly.
Newt extracted a handful of gold coins out of his pocket, piled them onto the counter, and mumbled a thank you, then exited the shop with the pink silk scarf in a bag. He headed down the street, wondering about what he would get his other friends and relatives, and most importantly, Tina.
This is part one of Newt's little Christmas shopping trip, the next part will be published tomorrow, because I felt it would be too long combined into one (and I'm tired, XD). Sorry if this chapter was little boring, I'll spice things up tomorrow. As always, thank you for reading! :)