The aurors of MACUSA don’t believe Queenie Goldstein when she tells them their boss is a clingy man. They’re aware she’s a legilimens, but it’s hard for them to picture the Director of Magical Security, smiling happily while being wrapped around someone.
Because it’s not possible for the wizard that growls instead of talk, that’s constantly with a frown on his face and is in a permanent bad mood to be needy. Percival Graves seems like a man who doesn’t need or want company of any kind.
Fontaine and Abernathy start to think about what Queenie has said when they watch the moment Mr. Graves meet the freckled chaos that is Newt Scamander. They see in shock as Graves offers his hand to the magizoologist and leans forward while Newt introduces himself and smiles shyly.
It’s not a big deal though, it could be because Newt’s voice was too soft to hear it or because Graves just wanted to have a good look of the new consultant.
The second ‘incident’ occurs when Weiss is walking down the hall and she spots boss pretending to fix Newt’s scarf “because let me tell you, Lopez, there was absolutely nothing wrong with that scarf” and almost gasps when Mr. Graves fingers 'accidentally’ touch Newt’s neck.
Maybe it was just an accident, maybe it’s just Queenie’s words making all of them see what it’s not there.
Then Newt has to visit his brother in England and Kenneth is exactly in the right place to see Graves’ expression turn into a sad one.
Collins and him are in boss’ office when Newt comes back, a week later, and they both watch as Percival Graves pulls Newt close in a hug that lasts more than a polite one.
The magizoologist doesn’t seem to mind though, he just smiles at the Director when he cups Newt’s face in his hands. Then the auror returns to his normal, grumpy state when he remembers Kenneth and Collins are still in the room.
They have also noticed that in the meetings with President Picquery, when they have to use the large room, no matter how far Graves is from Newt Scamander, he always manages to end up sitting right next to him. Everyone finds this kind of behavior odd and even fascinating at first; everybody except Queenie and Madam President, who Fontaine swears has seen rolling her eyes at Mr. Graves more than once.
Weiss is lucky, or maybe not, to walk in boss’ office and find the most powerful, terrifying auror of America, completely asleep with his head on Newt Scamander’s lap.
Newt makes a gesture for her not to make too much noise -as if she would do something like that, she definitely wants to keep her job, and her head in place- and starts running his fingers through the Director hair. Graves makes a sound that reminds Weiss of a very content cat and she wonders for a moment if she’s just dreaming.
“He has been working so hard lately, I told him he needed some rest and for a moment I thought he was just going to ignore me, until he just…” Newt stops his whispering when the Director shifts a little, but the only thing he does is to get closer to the magizoologist.
Then Percival Graves mutters his name, his given name even though Weiss is completely sure her boss hasn’t called the magizoologist 'Newt’ yet. He still refers to him as Mr. Scamander.
She knows she’s right by the way Newt’s face turns bright red after that.
After she informs the whole Department of Magical Law Enforcement about it and Queenie kindly tells them that they’re not in a relationship yet, the aurors have a hard believing that.
It seems Queenie Goldstein is right for the second time, because they start dating after Newt almost gets injured during a case. Graves begins to scold him for being 'reckless and not having sense of self preservation’ and Tina Goldstein is ready to jump in his defense when it looks like boss is going to yell, but instead he just pulls the confused magizoologist to his chest and kisses him in front of a group of shocked aurors and traffickers.
And boy it gets worse after that.
But at least none of them doubt Queenie anymore. Graves seems to have forget about the rules regarding relationship between MACUSA’s workers because he just touches Newt at every chance he gets.
Newt’s talking with Lopez about garden gnomes when the Director just puts his arms around him and resting his chin on the curve of his shoulder. It has to be something that occurs very often, because according to Lopez the magizoologist doesn’t even blink when that happens.
Percival Graves also kisses his boyfriend in the middle of a meeting or he simply starts nuzzling his neck when the cases turn into hours and hours of work and Newt has to beg the Director to go back home to get some sleep.
But the auror doesn’t agree until Newt promises to go back home with him.
Sometimes, when Percival Graves is grinning from ear to ear or just saying something sappy to make Newt giggle and he remembers they’re not alone, he turns to his aurors like he’s daring them to say anything.
But they would never do something like that. How could they? They like their boss and they’re so glad to see him happy for the first time in years.