Chapter Text
A great idea they said, you need a vacation it’ll be good for you. Ha! They weren’t stuck wandering the dense jungles of South America lost and mercilessly attacked by swarms of giant mosquitoes. She berated herself mentally, she was a federal agent trained in worse case scenarios, this shouldn’t scare her but it did. Thinking back to the brochure that promised a quiet untouched rustic retreat she scoffed loudly, she should have known better, at the very least investigated more! It was silly, she came here to escape from real life not to escape a jungle in order to save it!
Things had been so stressful at work, Tina dedicated every waking moment obsessed with the recapture of the felon, Gellert Grindelwald. The man was a sociopath, baiting others into his demented cult with his charisma and charm, using them to commit atrocities in his name. He had his followers so manipulated that one took the fall for him on the witness stand, turning over the case she worked so hard to build. Bile rose in her throat replaying the vivid image of him walking freely out of the courthouse as he turned to smirk at her tauntingly. Since that day he haunted her, knowing that someone like him roamed about freely destroying the lives of others on a whim, drove her pursuit of justice.
Her sister and brother in-law had been correct she supposed, working around the clock had taken its toll on her physically and mentally. Lately she snapped at anyone and everyone and that included those she loved most. After a biting remark directed at Queenie over brunch she found herself being righted thoroughly, her little sister may look sweet tempered but Tina had known better than to piss her off! Both encouraging her to take a much needed respite, Jacob had picked up a slew of pamphlets from the travel agency just round the corner from his bakery. Sifting through them her attention was drawn to a one of a kind tropical vacation with rainforests, wildlife, and the serenity of the outdoors. Leafing through she smiled, she loved traveling especially to distant out of the way locations, when had work managed to suck the other passions from her life? That was it she decided, she was going to have a magical vacation in the lush tropical paradise of Belize!
That was how she pictured it anyway, the reality was upon arrival she had been provided with an off road Jeep and a crude map indicating her ‘tropical hideaway’. Winding through the muddy unmarked roads Tina found herself becoming more and more lost. The GPS was picking up no signal and she supposed it was due to the lush canopy of vegetation overhead. Continuing onward she saw no indicators of the civilized world and began cursing loudly as the engine began to sputter, “No, no, no! Damnit!” And here she is, backpack filled with basic necessities hiking through the jungles of Belize miserable, alone, and scratching her skin off!
Having walked on for what seemed like hours, dusk was quickly giving way to night. Caught up in her own misery she lost her footing, tripping over an exposed tree root falling to the ground. She would not cry, she wouldn’t! Pulling herself up she heard movement somewhere nearby, her first impulse was to look toward the noise, it was a very foolish mistake. No more than 20 yards away a large jungle cat stalked through the thick underbrush. Gasping vocally, the creature turned locking its eyes on hers. What do I do, play dead? No that’s if a grizzly attacks. Think, Tina think! Maybe I should chance it and run, or climb the tree?
Trembling she started to move her leg, poised to shift into a full run, when a hushed voiced froze her in place. “Stay very still, you’ll never outrun a Jaguar. Slowly sink down get as small and non threatening as you can.” Complying with the disembodied voice to her left the massive spotted cat let out a low grumble and stalked away. Releasing the shaky breath she was unaware she had been holding, her hand came up to her heart as the man who just saved her life kneeled in front of her. “There now, just take a deep breath you’re alright, you’re alright. Jaguars are usually disinterested with humans unless given opportunity of a good chase.”
“Who are you?!”
“Sorry?”
Confused and frightened she pushed, “Who are you!?”
The strangers faced brightened in the dim light before replying, “Newt Scamander, and you are?”
“What are you doin’ here Mr. Scamander?”
Laughing lightly he lifted a quizzical brow, “ I could ask the same of you, how does an American end up in Belize backpacking through a nature preserve ?” Sitting upright she groaned outwardly rubbing her forehead before looking back at him, “Nature preserve!? Jesus Christ, this was supposed to be a relaxing vacation!” Looking sheepish she apologized for the outburst, “I’m sorry Mr. Scamander, thank you for saving me and all, it’s just a real long story. I’ve been schlepping through the jungle for hours and right now I’d like nothing more than to take a shower and slip into a real bed. So, if you’d kindly give me a lift back toward civilization I’d greatly appreciate it.”
Squinching his boyishly handsome face he looked on the verge of delivering bad news. “I’m sorry Miss...” Interjecting she provided her name, “Goldstein, Tina Goldstein.”
“Yes, well, Miss Goldstein, I’m afraid that won’t be possible. We are currently several miles out from the preserve station and I traveled here on foot. I do however have a camp set up just a way and you’d be more than welcome to stay there.” Reaching out to offer his hand Tina recoiled instinctively, “So you mean you won’t help me get outta here, is that what your saying?”
Bristling Newt stood up mildly offended brushing off his pants. “No what I mean is, there is no way the two of us are hiking five miles in the dark during prime hunting hours for much of the wildlife here. I’ll be more than happy to assist you at first light when we can avoid most of the more dangerous creatures and actually see what may do us harm. Besides, loud as you are we wouldn’t make it a mile without drawing attention from all the fauna!”
Drawing herself up to stand, imposing full height, she pushed into his personal space looking up just slightly to stare at him. “You know what, I don’t need your help! Just point me toward the station and I’ll be on my way!” Rolling his eyes he huffed at the lovely stubborn woman in front of him. Smiling coyly he lifted both hands in mock courtesy, offering vague direction to the preserve’s headquarters. Fixing him with suspicious eyes she pushed up her sack and set off in the direction he had motioned. She was three steps away when he mischievously called out, “Oh Miss Goldstein, do watch your step and be mindful of the ‘Tommy goffs’ they’re terribly venomous!”
Pausing she looked back over her shoulder curiosity halting her stride, “What are those?”
Stuffing hands down in his pockets he rocked back and forth on his feet, “They’re a highly aggressive species of snake whose venom contains lethal neurotoxins. Just move slowly and look down, they tend to camouflage into their surroundings even in daylight. Being that they are plentiful I’d say the chances of you running afoul of one are the same as encountering a pigeon in New York. Well, cheers!”
Pride siphoned away by fear she took a deep breath and walked back over to Mr. Scamander. She was an excellent judge of character and this man seemed to be a trustworthy sort, even though there was something vaguely mysterious about him. “Ok you win, but if you try anything you’ll regret it. I’ll expect you to take me to your headquarters as soon as the sun’s up. Just so you know Mr. Scamander, I’m far more formidable than I look.”
Grinning broadly he ducked his head before replying, “I can believe it Miss Goldstein, shall we?”