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Right now, Newt wanted nothing more then go someplace quiet and sleep. It didn‘t matter that he‘d been basically out of it during the entire flight back from China. After all, He‘d been unconscious, which really didn‘t count as resting to him.
Sadly, no matter how much his expedition to recover the Qilin and the fight against Grindelwald‘s followers had drained him, Newt really couldn’t afford to take a break right now. He was cold, despite the spell he’d used to warm up and dry his clothes, his chest felt as if his Erumpent had sat down upon it and his head was pounding fiercely.
Each inhale brought a sharp sting of pain and if he didn‘t concentrate, the dizziness that was lingering just at the corner of his awareness threatened to send him tumbling face first onto the floor.
Newt sadly didn‘t have the time to do more then to quickly make sure all his creatures were well cared for, completely disregarding his own needs for the time being.
After that was over and done with, he quickly had disapperated to Hogsmeade, where his brother was already waiting for him. Popping from one place to another really didn’t do him any favors and as he slowly walked towards his brother, he started to wonder if maybe he should have taken the time to at least figure out, what spell he’d been hit with last night and how severe the damage done to his body actually was. If he continued to get worse, he wouldn’t last till the end of the upcoming conversation, not to mention their entire mission.
The meeting with Theseus and Dumbledore thankfully wasn’t too long and neither one of the two older wizards had seemed to notice the fact that he was carefully leaning against the table in order to keep upright as well as staying as far out of their conversation as possible. If he’d been feeling better, he would have actually tried to stop Albus from overdoing it with his demonstration concerning the blood oath to the extend he had, but Newt still didn’t feel safe enough on his feet to actually do more then call out to his mentor and distract him from whatever though was causing the enchanted piece of silver to hurt him.
After Dumbledore had finally said his goodbyes, but not before leaving Newt with specific instructions as well as a couple items, only his former teacher could come up with, he finally started to relax a little bit. He knew, his former teacher was a very perceptive man, who would definitely have insisted upon Newt seeking medical attention before leaving, which would have delayed them for longer then the young Magizoologist would have liked.
The train they were scheduled to board in about twenty minutes would take some time to transport them to their destination, which should leave him with enough time to hopefully fix, whatever damage Credence and Grindelwald’s other followers had inflicted upon him.
Still though, he really was regretting that they would need to take a portkey to get on that train since it was simply too far away to safely apparate there, the process adding nausea to his already steadily growing discomfort.
Well, at least they had an entire cart to themselves, so they really didn’t need to worry about any muggles witnessing them appearing from seemingly out of nowhere.
When the world finally stopped spinning, Newt noticed that he and Theseus weren’t the first ones to arrive. Karma and Bunty were already there, sitting in silence and watching on, as the two brothers materialized at the far end of the cart.
It was close to noon now. If, and Newt really hoped so, Lally had been successful in convincing Jacob to join their group, they should arrive any minute now as well.
After quietly greeting his colleague and the dark skinned wizard, he was quite proud of himself for at least managing this so smoothly, at least for his standards.
Leaning onto the nearest wall for support, he noticed Bunty starring at him with a raised eyebrow. Of course she’d notice that something was wrong. The two of them had spent a lot of time together and had patched each other up on numerous occasions, so they both knew the signs to watch out for, indicating that something was wrong with the other. This had spared each of them some nasty consequences over the last years.
Slightly shaking his head, he hoped she wouldn’t prod for more information right now. They didn’t have time for this. Thankfully, she seemed to get the hint, at least judging by the slight frown on her face. Newt knew, she wasn’t happy with this at all, but other things still were more important then his own health. There would be enough time for that later.
Thank Merlin, his brother hadn’t noticed anything yet. They had only recently started to spent time together again, They’d both needed each others comfort after Leta’s death, this finally managing to close the gap that had started to grow between them back when Newt had been expelled from Hogwats.
If he still recalled correctly from their childhood, Theseus was a complete mother hen when it came to Newt and he certainly could do without that for the time being, no matter how much their relationship may have improved recently, he refused to give his brother reason to fret over him.
Shifting slightly in order to find a more comfortable position while he waited, another sharp stab of pain raced through his body. He’d broken his ribs often enough to know that feeling, groaning inwardly at the thought of forcefully repairing the damage later on. Fixing broken bones never was fun, no matter if magic was used or not.
Taking shallow breaths in order to control the pain a bit better seemed to help, at least for now.
Finally, the rest of their planned group arrived. Newt couldn’t help but hug Jacob upon seeing the muggle for the first time in months. He’d missed the man quite a bit. He even managed to ignore all the aches and pains for at least a short amount of time. Meeting Professor Higgs was pleasant as well, although he only shook her hand as greeting. After all, he really didn’t intend to pick up that hugging habit from his brother.
In general, he hated physical contact. There were only a few people around, who were an exception to this, and Jacob just happened to be one of them.
Once everyone had calmed down, Newt started to relay the messages, Dumbledore had instructed him to pass along to everyone. The rocking motion of the train had by now managed to completely kill his sense of balance, pure force of will being the only thing keeping the young wizard on his feet. Longingly, he looked at a couple of very comfortable looking seats only a couple of feet away from him while he watched Bunty read her note, a completely stunned expression on her face. If he could only find a good reason to move over there…
Well, he just needed to hold on for a couple more minutes and then, hopefully, he could discreetly slip away and rest, maybe even go down into his case in order to fix himself up properly, far away from any prying eves or overprotective older brothers.
Just the thought of escaping all the people staring at him and spending time with his beloved creatures, as well as his families latest addition in form of the baby Qilin, managed to calm him down somewhat and gave Newt the strength to continue without too much difficulty.
Everything was going well, at least considering the circumstances. Until it didn’t.
Newt was almost done, the only thing left being the tie for his brother. Unfortunately, the Niffler had taken an interest in the red and gold colored piece of fabric as well. Really, by now, he should have expected this. And maybe, if he had been in better shape, he’d have definitely not made the mistake of keeping that thing and Teddy in the same coat.
The little creature was now fiercely holding on to the shiny article of clothing, completely forgetting everything around it it the process.
Turning away from the others in order to argue with his Niffler in private and to hide how much that little struggle actually hurt him. He could feel everyone staring at him, someone was even chuckling quietly. Newt tried to pry the piece of fabric out of Teddy’s beak. However, his little friend really didn’t like that at all.
The little guy started fussing around quite a bit, one of his clawed feet catching one of Newt’s busted ribs with a surprising amount of force and, even if only by accident, precision. The unexpected new flash of agony had Newt letting go of his furry friend.
Unable to suppress a pained groan, he found himself kneeling on the ground, one hand braced to the carpeted floor, the other pressed onto his burning chest. Each breath was pure agony. In some far away corner of his mind, he had to admit that Teddy had terrifying aim.
“Newt?!” He could feel hands on his shoulder. Someone was calling him, shaking him slightly in order to get his attention, the movement bringing a new wave of pain and intensifying the spinning in his head.
Gritting his teeth, he raised a shaking hand, weakly pushing whoever was making it worse away, or at least, attempting to. “S-stop…” He’d surely pass out or get spectacularly sick if they didn’t.
To his surprise, the shaking stopped, although the warm feeling of that steadying hand on his shoulder stayed.
Finally getting himself under control, Newt managed to turn his head, his gaze landing on basically everyone closely surrounding him, his brother being the one to touch him, worry etched deep into his expression.
“I… I’m quite alright, please don’t worry.” Even to himself, his voice sounded weak
“But Newt…” Jacob stared at him, concern written clearly on his kind face. “Sorry man but… You really don’t look too well.”
“He’s right Newt. Your face is almost as pale as a ghost. And don’t tell me the Niffler did it. I’m no specialist like you, but even I know that those things aren’t dangerous.” Theseus looked at him, the panic in his eyes betraying his calm tone of voice.
“Actually, Nifflers can get quite defensive.” Seriously, had his brother never seen what chaos one Niffler could cause at a muggle bank?
“Don’t change the subject!”
“Sorry. I’ll take care of it in a sec, but first…” Remembering why exactly he and Teddy had fought just now, he took out the red tie and handed it to his brother. “Dumbledore wanted you to have this, so please keep it close, just in case.”
“Fine, if I do, will you then tell me what happened?” Theseus stuffed the gift into his pocket without sparing it another look.
Reaching for his suitcase, Newt pulled the worn piece of leather toward himself and opened it with careful movements in order not to hurt his ribs even further. “Just give me half an hour in here, then I’ll be good as new, promise.”
“This is not what I asked, Newton.”
Great, now Theseus was using his full name, which had never been a good sign in the past.
Sighing, Newt closed his case again, deciding that indulging his brother would be the fastest way to get this over with. Turning to his assistant, who’d stayed a few feet away with a knowing look on her face, he called her over. “Bunty, would you mind…”
“Broken ribs, right Newt?”
Not for the first time, he was grateful that he’d decided to keep her around. The two of them had really come to know each other quite well. “I suppose so.”
“Okay. “She really looked more exasperated then worried. “Anything else?”
“Concussion, maybe a couple of scrapes and bruises, but nothing major.”
“Very well, I’ll bring everything up here.” Without another word, the witch disappeared into the suitcase, leaving the others completely stunned.
“How cone you tell her just like that and not me?” Theseus looked almost hurt.
“Easy. Bunty already knew.”
“WHAT?!”
Wincing at the lout outburst, the pounding in his head intensified. “How often do you think we’ve patched each other up since she started working with me? My job isn’t exactly risk free, you know? She knew I was hurt the moment we arrived.”
Gritting his teeth and ignoring Pickett, as the little Bowtruckle chirped in concern, Newt tried to get up. He really didn’t mind sitting on the floor, but surely, having a conversation would be more enjoyable for everyone if they found a more comfortable spot.
To his surprise, a strong pair of hands grabbed his arms and pulled him carefully to his feet. Swaying slightly, it took him a few seconds to find his balance and open his eyes without having the room spinning all around him. Looking at Jacob with a grateful smile, he carefully stepped towards the sitting area in their cart and clumsily collapsed onto the nearest seat he could find, his Muggle friend not too far behind, certainly in order to catch him, should he loose his balance.
Even if New York still was a sore topic and some really horrifying things had happened there, Newt was still grateful for the friendship he’d formed with the man. He wasn’t complicated like most other people and he was an honest and friendly person. He really appreciated having Jacob here with them.
“Hey Newt? Do you need anything? Maybe some water?”
He shook his head. “Thank you Jacob, but not right now. Bunty will be back with some medicine soon and then I’ll be good as new.” Oddly enough, he felt the need to reassure his muggle friend. After all, Jacob was still new to their world and had, as far as Newt knew, never come into contact with the way, wizards and witches went about medical treatment. The man had lost a great deal in order to help them, so Newt felt as if he owed Jacob at least that much.
“You sure?” The genuine worry in the man’s eyes was almost to much to bare.
Newt simply nodded. “I’m sorry to have worried all of you. I just didn’t have the time to take care of this sooner.”
“Really now?” Theseus looked at him as if he’d just said something funny. “And, little brother, since when exactly have you been walking around with broken ribs and a concussion?”
“Calm down Thee, it happened last night when I went to retrieve the Qilin.”
“Still doesn’t explain how you got injured in the first place.” His brother looked almost… scared maybe? “Please Newt… I don’t want to loose you too, so just tell me when something’s wrong, okay? I’m sure Dumbledore wouldn’t have minded if we’d taken the time to patch you up.”
“I know, but we’ve got so little time. I was planning to take care of my injuries as soon as we were here and everyone was settled since we still have a few hours until we arrive in Berlin, but apparently…“ Looking at his feet, where now a small, black creature was sitting and staring at him intently, he carefully reached down and picked the little guy up. “… Teddy here had other plans.”
The Niffler made a few quiet, but clearly distressed sounds and curled up on his lap, back pressed into Newt’s stomach. Absentmindedly, he carded his fingers through silky fur as he started his explanation on what exactly happened in China.
“After traveling through south China for a few days, I finally managed to find the area, Dumbledore told me about a couple of weeks ago. Apparently, an acquaintance of his had told him about a pregnant Qilin down there, so I went to look for it. Once I actually found her, I watched her from afar for a couple more days and when she started giving birth, I went to her location to get her and her baby into my case as soon as possible.” Here, Newt stopped for a moment, last nights memories clearly at the forefront of his mind. Flashes of green light, the look in the female beasts eyes as she took her last breath and the despair he’d felt upon realizing that he’d lost her baby…
His breathing had picked up by now, eyes staring at noting as the horrible events from last night finally caught up to him.
He could feel himself shaking as he quietly continued his tale, well aware of the fact, that Theseus had knelt down right in front of him, clearly concerned by the panicked state all of this had his brother in.
“J-just when the little one had been born… The mother was… She was hit by multiple killing curses. Some of Grindelwald’s followers were there to kill them. Credence was with them as well… I took the little one and tried to run, but they chased me and managed to push me over a cliff with some sort of stunning spell and down into the river. I think that’s were my injuries came from. When I came to again, I just saw them taking the baby and leaving with her.” By now, tears had started to leak from his eyes.
Next to him, Jacob patted his back. Of course, they had heard that Grindelwald had gotten his hands on a Qilin as well, but up until now, none of them had managed to figure out, how he’d gotten his hands on one in the first place.
“I got back to the hurt Qilin mother after a little while, but there was nothing I could have done. The moment she died, I noticed a second baby. Apparently, she’d had twins.” Smiling at the thought of the small creature now in his care, he quickly finished his tale. “I messaged Albus and told him what happened and then, one of my creatures took me home. I arrived just in time to make sure everything was fine at home and then I went to Hogsmeade.”
Of course, he’d left out some details, for example the fact that he’d been unconscious for the entire trip back home, but in his opinion, this was all that needed to be said.
Sadly though, Theseus seemed to think otherwise. “So, you mean to tell me that not only did you spent Merlin knows how long in some Asian jungle, but were also attacked by dark wizards and nearly died? And you didn’t think it was maybe important enough to mention this to us earlier?!”
His brother was almost yelling now, looking furious.
“What the hell Newt! You could have been killed and we wouldn’t even have known!”
The volume in which his brother was ranting caused Newt’s headache to spike dangerously, the added pain making his stomach flip uncomfortably as the room again stated spinning.
“Theseus, maybe you should-”
“No Jacob, this isn’t the first time my brother and I are having this discussion and frankly, I’m getting sick of having to try to get this into that thick skull of his!”
Clenching his eyes shut, Newt tried to take deep breaths in order to settle his stomach, but unfortunately, his efforts weren’t paying off. He only managed to quickly turn away from Jacob and Theseus, before starting to violently throw up onto the floor.
Surprised yells were heard all around him, but the young wizard couldn’t care less. If he were able to get enough air into his lungs, he certainly would have cried out in pain. Each forceful retch sent excruciating pain through his chest and head. Newt was dimly aware of someone holding him upright and rubbing his back gently, but he was in far too much pain right now, to care who it was.
Heaving again, he couldn’t suppress a quiet sob any longer. This was pure torture. Broken ribs really weren’t any fun and throwing up wasn’t either, but both combined? It was hell.
When it finally stopped, the only thing holding him upright was the strong pair of arms around his torso, otherwise, he would have surely found himself on the ground by now.
“Newt? Hey are you okay now?” Jacob was standing in front of him, carefully avoiding the mess on the floor. “You still feel like throwing up? I could get a bucket or something if you need it?”
Unsure about his current ability to speak, Newt only shrugged weakly, honestly not certain weather he would be sick again or not. The sour taste on his tongue and the sharp smell of vomit were almost enough to turn his stomach once more, so maybe Jacob’s idea would benefit them to some extend.
Apparently understanding the look on his friends face, the baker hurriedly went over to the small bar and dug around until he came up with a small waste bucked which he then preceded to place in front of Newt, just after someone, probably Lally, had used a spell to vanish the vomit he’d so inelegantly deposited there earlier.
“Shhshh, it’s okay, I’ve got you…” Gentle fingers combed through his reddish locks as his brother did his best to reassure him. “Just tell me if you feel sick again, okay?” For once, New didn’t fight Theseus on hugging him gently. He was simply hurting too much and was way to exhausted. “Please just promise me that you’ll talk to me if something is wrong, okay Artemis? I don’t know how to get through this if you don’t trust me enough to do at least that.”
It had only been a quiet whisper, but really, those words couldn’t have been clearer, even if Theseus would have shouted. No one except his bother had ever been allowed to use Newt’s second and third names, and for him to do so, the situation was either humoring or deadly serious.
“Okay…” His answer was whispered just as quietly, this moment only belonging to the two siblings. Letting his head rest against the elder Scamander’s shoulder, Newt took this moment to just rest for a minute. “Sorry, Thee…”
Just then, the quiet sound of the latches of Newt’s suitcase opening could be heard and Bunty emerged back from the mysterious depths of it.
Taking a look around, her kind eyes landed on the scene in front of her. Immediately understanding crossed her face, closely followed by concern when she spotted the bucket on the floor and Theseus basically cradling Newt in his arms. “Sorry I took so long, I’m not used to the case yet and it took me a bit to find everything.”
“Don’t worry about it Bunty, I’m quite alright.”
Worried frown on her face, she stepped closer to her employer. “Of course Newt, but you look worse then when I left, so please forgive me if I can’t really say, I believe you right now.”
Just smiling at her, Newt watched as she carefully deposited a couple of vials and herbs next to him. However, before he could reach for them, she had already uncorked and pressed another bottle into one of his shaking hands.
“You always react badly to head wounds Newt, so please take this one first, otherwise, and I’m sure you know just as well as I do that you’ll just throw everything back up in a matter of minutes.”
“Thank you Bunty, you just know me too well by now.” Before quickly drinking the thick, light blue liquid that would take away the nausea he was currently suffering from, he could make out a slightly jealous look on his brother’s face.
It took only a minute for the potion to take effect and after that, Newt already felt much better, at least he did, after battling quite fiercely in order to keep it down long enough to do so. Looking at what else his assistant had brought him, he noted quite happily that she’d really brought everything he may need.
There was the silvery potion counteracting his concussion, a yellow one against dizziness a couple of herbs that would serve to numb the pain he was surely going to feel as soon as he started to set his broken ribs and of course every wizard’s all time favorite. Pulling a face in disgust as he looked at the bottle of Skele-gro, he heard his brother chuckle next to him.
“Aww, don’t be such a child Newt. I know it’s disgusting, but there simply is nothing better for healing damaged bones and you know it.” If Theseus was teasing him, he surely had gotten over his worry for now. Just frowning at his brother in annoyance, Newt swallowed the silver potion as well as the yellow one before taking a deep breath and starting to slowly chew on the light green and immensely bitter leaves. Their effect sadly would only take the edge off the pain for a very short amount of time, so he would need to be fast about this.
Bunty looked at him, knowing what would be next. “Newt, do you want me to…?”
“Nah, I’d rather take care of this myself.” Of course, he trusted her, but he’d come to be more comfortable with setting his broken bones himself rather then have someone else do it.
Turning to his, by now very confused looking muggle friend, who was now standing between Lally and Karma, he looked reassuringly at him. “Sorry Jacob, but this won’t be very pretty to look at.”
“Nah, don’t worry pal, I’ve been in the war, I’m sure I’ve seen worse.” Despite his brave words, the muggle looked worried and slightly pale.
“Thee, would you mind giving me some space?” Apparently understanding what Newt was about to do, he nodded, but only scooted away a very short distance, still staying close enough in order to intervene, if need be.
“Okay, but if you need my help…”
Nodding once more, Newt started to slowly take off his coat and west, his white shirt following closely after. Despite the numbing effect of the herbs he’d taken, even this simple chain of movements was almost bringing tears of pain to his sea blue eyes.
With his torso now bare, everyone was able to see the massive bruising covering a large part of his chest. Even under the discoloration and the lean muscle covering Newt’s body, it was painfully visible that some of his ribs definitely weren’t really where they were supposed to be.
“Ouch.” Lally looked at him with sympathy.
Every one else was just silently staring. Even the deformed ribs and the dark bruising couldn’t hide all the scars covering the wizards torso, arms and throat. Some were small, likely from some sort of work related accident, others were far more concerning. Old claw- and bite marks in various sizes of course were found there, as well as an old burn scar that stretched over Newt’s side and disappeared under the waistline of his pants. All these were clearly caused by some creatures he’d preaviously worked with. Not pretty to look at, but still not as concerning as some others, that were obviously caused by magic as well as human hands. Among those was also a cluster of thin lines that almost looked like a spiderweb, as well as scars on his wrists and neck that indicated that someone once had actually chained Newt up over an extended amount of time at some point.
The faces of his companions went from pale and worried to almost nauseous, an angry look definitely prominent in their eyes as they started to actually think about, how some of Newt’s scars had come to be. Secretly, Newt was happy, that his back wasn’t visible right now. The injuries he’d suffered once at the hands of a bunch of poachers had left a nasty array of scars back there as well, some even more unsettling then the ones on display right now.
Avoiding Theseus’ gaze for now he focused on Jacob, who looked almost as bad as Newt felt.
“Newt… w-what, I-I mean how…? The poor muggles voice was shaking, horrified by what he’d just seen.
Sighing, the magizoologist shrugged slightly, wincing as as the movement pulled at his ribs. “It’s okay Jacob, back in New York, you have seen how even the more tame creatures I care fore can get. And working with them until they actually trust me takes time, so this really isn’t as bad as it looks.”
He could hear his brothers breathing becoming forcefully even beside him. Before the man could say something, Newt laid a hand on his brother’s shoulder, shaking his head. “We’ll talk about this some other time Thee. Don’t forget that we were out of contact for quite some time. You’ve got your life and I’ve got mine, so please accept that.”
Not giving any of them time to say anything else, he finally focused on the task that had lead him to dress down in the first place.
Newt could already feel the herb’s effects lessen, so there really was no time left to stall. Taking out his wand, he took a deep breath and concentrated on his magic before mumbling a few quiet and quick words and slowly moving the thin piece of wood carefully over the damaged areas on his chest.
Immediately, he had to grit his teeth in order to suppress whimpering in pain as the broken pieces of bone started moving under his skin and slipping back into place with a few sickening cracks. As the last rib snapped back to where it belonged, Newt groaned pitifully. This was the fastest way to go about it, but it was also one of the more painful ones.
Breathing heavily, he clutched his wand tightly in order to ground himself.
Right next to him, he heard a bottle being opened at a liquid being poured into a small cup. Soon, his brother’s hand was back on his shoulder as he quickly pressed the revolting potion to Newt’s lips with a slightly shaking hand.
“Come on, little brother, only this and then you’ll be able to rest.” Theseus’ eyes still held shock and concern for what he’d just seen, but at least, the man was able to focus on the situation at hand, something that was absolutely nesessary in his position as head Auror.
Before Theseus could actually force that stuff down Newt’s throat however, Jacob had picked up the bottle it had come from and read the label with a frown on his round face. “Uhm… Are you guys sure this is safe to drink? I just mean… There’s a skull on there and it really doesn’t smell like anything that’s even remotely safe for human consumption.”
The magizoologist send a thankful look towards the Muggle that had, if only momentarily, spared him from probably the most revolting thing to ever be created.
“Nah, it’s safe Jacob.” Lally, as an actual teacher, seemed more then happy to elaborate for him and disperse the tense mood tat still clung to everyone. “You see, dear Newt here used a spell that only shifted his damaged bones back to their original position, but to actually heal them, he’ll need to drink some of that stuff. It’s called Skele-gro and it’s a potion that very safely and efficiently heals broken bones in a very short amount of time. Of course, it is possible to get the same result with the right spell, but those a very tricky and a lot can go wrong with those, which is why they shouldn’t be used except in case of emergency.”
Jacob seemed to take all this in with wonder in his eyes, that look soon turning into confusion. “But… If it’s so great, why exactly does it look like Theseus is actively forcing Newt to drink it?”
Upon that, the dark skinned witch started laughing quietly. “Well, you see… This stuff is terrifyingly disgusting.” Now, the witch couldn’t suppress the small giggle coming from her throat upon witnessing Jacob’s unbelieving expression as his gaze wandered between her, The bottle of Skele-gro and Newt.
Just as she’d finished, Theseus had managed to slip the potion down his brother’s throat and was now pressing his hand over Newt’s mouth to prevent the younger from spitting it out.
“Come on Newton, just swallow, I know it’s disgusting, but the sooner you do, the sooner you’ll be done with it.”
Newt himself was not amused by this ar all. His body instinctively tried to rid itself of the foreign substance, but his older sibling simply wouldn’t allow that to happen. The sharp foul tasting potion slid down his throat agonizingly slowly and Newt felt the urge to throw up again right about now, but managed to just barely suppress it.
Breathing heavily through his nose, he nodded, signaling his brother that he had indeed swallowed the potion and to his great relief, Theseus took his hand from Newt’s face.
Leaning back into his seat, Newt looked at his brother with a sour expression, not saying anything.
“Aww, come on Newt, you would have had to take it one way or another and I figured this to be the fastest one.” Now, the Auror brother was actually grinning at him.
Glaring at his brother, Newt put back on his shirt, but just as he was about to retaliate, his chest started to feel hot, that feeling increasing to a very painful, burning sensation. Gasping in pain, Newt curled into himself as far as possible, curling up like a wounded animal. Head on his knees and face buried into his arms, he forced himself to breathe regularly as he barely noticed someone wrapping a blanket around him.
“Woah, is he alright? I told you that stuff didn’t smell right!”
“Calm down Jacob, I may not have mentioned it earlier, but this is normal.”
“What? Didn’t you say it would heal him?”
Lally nodded, a serious look on her face. “And that’s exactly what’s happening right now. Forcing bones to heal like that is painful to say the least. For now, the best thing we can do is to leave him alone for a bit. He should be good to go in an hour or two, so don’t worry about it.”
The baker still looked skeptic, but chose not to comment on it further. Instead, he sat down on the seat opposite of Newts, determined to watch over his friend.
Meanwhile, Newt hadn’t paid attention to his surroundings far to occupied with the feeling of his bones knitting themselves back together. Theseus may joke about it all he liked, but that still didn’t change the fact that using Skele-gro simply sucked. Cursing inwardly, he hoped this wouldn’t take too long. He was planing on sleeping once this was over until they reached Berlin and he couldn’t very well do that while feeling like he’d swallowed a salamander.
He could hear everyone going about their travel activities, just as a soft sound and a gentle nudge to his side pulled his attention away from the discomfort he was currently in.
Teddy sat next to him, staring and whining in distress, apparently unsure if his human’s suffering had been his doing or not. Forcing a smile, Newt reached out and picked the black creature up. Cradling the Niffler to his still aching chest, he quietly reassured his friend and gently ran a hand through its fur.
“It’s okay Teddy, I know you didn’t mean to hurt me, I not mad…” he continued like this until the small creature had fallen asleep, now providing him with the safe feeling of warmth he always had when surrounded by his creatures.
And finally, despite the pain and all those haunting memories from last night, Newt felt his eyelids drop as he too, drifted off to sleep, at least for now able to forget about the grueling task that awaited them in a couple of hours. The last thing he heard before finally drifting off was the soft chirp of Pickett, who’d been carefully watching his human.
The small green creature had been the one present for the disaster that had been China and he’d been really worried for his giant as well, but thankfully, there wasn’t a need for that anymore. The other giants had taken good care of his caretaker, so he too, decided to take the time to rest and cuddle up to Newt’s warm skin, relieved to be able to feel the human’s breathing and heartbeat every second that passed.