Tina looked at the file in front of her on her desk. Photographs of New York from December last year loomed up at her as she perused the file, pretending that she wasn't looking at it for a specific reason. She hurriedly paged through the different papers and photos before stopping when the moving picture of a certain Magizoologist caught her attention. Tina gazed at it, wondering when Newt's next letter would arrive.

Ever since Newt had left, she had been anxiously awaiting his promised return to New York. The last she had heard from him, he had stated that his book was about to be released. Tina closed the file, hearing footsteps.

She looked behind her; Achilles Tolliver, one of her fellow Aurors, had entered the Major Investigation Department. He was tall, muscular, and handsome; a pair of glasses were perched on his nose. He beamed charmingly at Tina.

"Busy day?" he asked with a wink.

"Not really," Tina responded. She took a sip of coffee from her mug, her thoughts still with Newt Scamander. Achilles drew up a chair to the desk she was sitting at as she set her mug back down.

"I've got a question for you."

"Yeah?" she asked, coming back to reality. Achilles leaned forward, his attitude confident.

"Would you wanna go on a date with me?"

Tina blinked, surprised by the question. Achilles had joined the investigative team a few weeks after she had been reinstated, and since then, they had become friends. Queenie had told her sister that Achilles was romantically interested in Tina, but Tina had brushed it off and forgotten it until that moment. Her thoughts strayed to Newt and she wished he wasn't so far away. Tina hesitated, unsure how to react.

"I, uh, I don't know what to say right now," Tina stated, feeling stupid for doing so. She shifted uncomfortably in her chair. Achilles' smile dimmed slightly.

"This...this isn't a surprise, is it? I thought we were both on the same page here."

"About what?" Tina asked. She was disliking this conversation even more with every second that passed.

"C'mon, Tina, I'm sure you have feelings for me too."

She leaned forward and rested her right elbow on the desk as her chin sunk into her hand. Her mind grappled for what to say. She didn't think that she had interacted with him in any way to suggest she was romantically interested in him. Tina gazed at him awkwardly, knowing she didn't want to date Achilles because she had feelings for Newt.

Was it foolish of her to want to turn down a guy for another who lived more than three thousand miles away? It wasn't that she thought going out with Achilles sounded painful; she thought he was nice even though he acted cocky sometimes.

"I'm sorry, this conversation is so out of the blue for me, Achilles. I don't know what to say right now."

His grin grew as if she had only encouraged him.

"Really? Well, this is just a suggestion, but you could say yes."

She bit her lip and drank the last sip of her coffee without answering his question. A minute passed as she struggled for what to say.

"I have to go. Queenie's waiting for me."

"I'll walk you out," Achilles stated. Tina tensed up, suddenly self-conscious of every movement she made. She gathered up her stuff, put the file away, and they left the room together. He began to tell her a funny anecdote about something that happened to his uncle at Christmas dinner a few years ago. By the time they got out of the elevator and walked out into the lobby, Tina and Achilles were laughing so hard, they were struggling to breathe normally.

Tina noticed Queenie approaching them and she attempted to compose herself. She grinned as her sister said hello.

"Hi." Tina replied. She noticed Queenie suddenly turn her attention away from her to Achilles; her eyes widened as she glanced back at her sister. There was a pause and then she spoke again. "I forgot to tell you, but I gotta go run an errand, Teen, I'll see ya later at home."

"Alright."

Queenie hurried away without glancing back. Tina frowned, confused by her sister's sudden actions. She always seemed to be disappearing lately. However, she didn't have time to think about it because Achilles spoke to her in an earnest tone.

"You know, I didn't catch your answer before about if you want to go out with me or not."

"That's because I didn't give you one."

He laughed and she smiled slightly. Then, she decided to be honest with him.

"Achilles, I'm flattered. I think you're a great guy; it's just that I'm sort of hung up on someone and I don't think it would be fair to you if I agreed to go on a date with you."

It seemed to take a few seconds for the rejection to sink in. His expression sobered and he nodded understandingly. Tina bit her lip again.

"I'm really sorry."

He smiled slightly; he really did have a nice smile.

"There's nothing for you to be sorry for."

They stood there awkwardly; Tina wanted to leave.

"Listen, I have to go talk to Madam Picquery about something, so I'll see ya later."

"Alright, have a good night," Tina replied genuinely. He nodded.

"You too."

He walked away disappointedly. Tina sighed and left to go home.

Tina walked into her apartment and took off her shoes before she flicked her wand in the direction of the radio, causing it to quietly play music. It was a beautiful evening; sunlight streamed through the curtains into the living room. Tina hurried to the dinner table, seeing the small pile of mail that had been delivered shortly after she had left for work. She searched for a familiar-looking envelope, but there was no letter from Mr. Scamander. She looked again, but still found no letter written in his handwriting.

Tina proceeded into her bedroom, the faint, yet familiar sense of frustration simmering in her mind. She had constantly replayed their last verbal conversation in her mind for the past few months as if she were trying to convince herself that she wasn't imagining his fondness of her.

Well, you know, if you hadn't said all those nice things to Madam Picquery about me—I wouldn't be back on the investigative team now.

Well, I can't think of anyone that I'd rather have investigating me...

Does Leta Lestrange like to read?

Who?...

I'm so sorry, how would you feel if I gave you your copy in person?

I'd like that. Very much…

Tina wandered through the apartment, cleaning as she went. She set up some clothes on an ironing board to iron themselves and sent a duster around the room, carefully dusting surfaces. She imagined what his next letter would say: that he would be coming to New York in a few weeks. She would meet Newt at the dock and race toward him for a hug before he would finally give her his book. She didn't think about what would happen after his visit when he would return to London.

Tina levitated the dining room chairs to float into the living room and then she got out a broom and a dustpan. Suddenly, she noticed one of Queenie's magazines called Spellbound lying on the floor.

Wondering if the delivery owl had somehow knocked the magazine to the floor as it left, Tina knelt down and saw that the cover displayed a picture of Newt; she picked it up and lay it down on the dining table before sending the broom and the chairs back to their respective spots. Her heart beat fast as she gazed at the cover of the magazine which claimed to accurately document the lives of celebrities. She had always found the periodical unreliable, but Queenie thought it was entertaining.

Tina read some of the lines of text printed on the cover before certain statements caught her eye: BEAST TAMER NEWT TO WED! Bachelor magizoologist Newton Scamander to marry childhood sweetheart!

Tina's eyes widened in shock; she tried to console herself by thinking it was most likely a lie. After all, Spellbound was known for outlandish pieces about celebrities, but it surprised and bothered her to see Newt on the cover of the gossip magazine.

She hesitated then opened the magazine to pages four and five. Newt stood in the center of a picture on the page behind a table stacked with copies of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, a shy look on his face.

Tina recognized the woman standing next to him, Leta Lestrange, who was touching Newt's arm. She noticed the engagement ring on Leta's left hand and tears began to fill her eyes. Tina read the photo description:

Newt Scamander with fiancée, Leta Lestrange; brother, Theseus; and unknown woman.

She skimmed the article then closed the magazine slowly. She stared at the cover again. A surge of emotion filled her as she folded her arms and gazed at the picture of Newt. All she could think about was that he had completely forgotten her, or perhaps, he had never cared about her in the first place. The evidence was there in the picture; Newt was engaged to Leta Lestrange. How could a magazine lie about that when the picture was right there? He hadn't even written to tell her about the news. Obviously, if she meant anything to him, he would have told her. She had not received a letter from him despite the fact that she had sent one to him about a month ago.

Does Leta Lestrange like to read?

Who?

The girl whose picture you carry.

I don't really know what Leta likes these days because people change.

Yes.

I've changed. I think. Maybe a little.

A tear streamed down Tina's cheek, but she wiped it away; an intense feeling of sorrow and anger mingled together in her heart. When she had heard him talk about Leta that way when they said goodbye, she had understood his statement to mean that he no longer had feelings for his childhood friend.

"Mercy Lewis, I'm so oblivious," Tina muttered to herself as she walked away from the magazine on the table. She began to pace in the kitchen, trying to sort out her thoughts. She felt foolish for waiting this long, paradoxically hopeful yet doubtful about her feelings being requited. Tina took a deep breath, trying to get rid of the knot in her throat.

"Teenie?"

Tina stopped pacing, startled by her sister's voice. She hadn't even heard Queenie enter. Queenie was standing next to the closed front door, a worried look on her face as she explored the pain in Tina's mind.

"Oh, honey," Queenie said sympathetically. She approached the dining table and examined the article about Newt in Spellbound. She closed the magazine and crossed the room to her sister before embracing her. A few more tears escaped from Tina's eyes.

"It's gotta be fake, Teen. That magazine is full of bologna, you know that."

They let go of each other and Tina shook her head.

"I was supposed to get a letter from him weeks ago. The picture's there; it explains everything."

Queenie frowned and spoke earnestly.

"But, I know he was...oh, what's the right word? He was enchanted by you, Teen. It was so obvious before he left."

"In the last letter he sent, he wrote briefly about his brother who's an Auror and then went on to write that Aurors are "a bunch of careerist hypocrites". Those were his words. At first, I thought he simply meant it about his brother, but maybe he meant it about me too."

"Oh, no. That can't be," Queenie said sadly. Tina shook her head. Queenie heard every word she was thinking. Tina wanted to let go of her feelings for the Magizoologist and her hope that he would come back to see her again.

"You can't just push it away and pretend it never happened. You care for him a lot; I know it. For all you know, his letter got lost or somethin', hon. Don't believe that dumb magazine."

"Please stop reading my mind," Tina stated bitterly. Queenie's expression fell as she heard her sister's thoughts wishing that she would leave her alone. The radio droned on as they remained quiet. Queenie wished she could comfort her sister; Tina didn't deserve to have her heart broken. But then Tina frowned and looked at Queenie suspiciously.

"Where have you been running off to lately?"

"What do you mean?" Queenie asked nonchalantly even though she knew Tina hated it when she asked things like that. She pulled out her wand and began to perform the usual routine of spells so she could make dinner. She didn't want her sister's attention to be focused on her, but she knew Tina wanted a reason not to think about Newt.

"What errand did you have after work?"

Queenie paused, worried she wouldn't escape the trap she saw coming.

"I stopped by this new bakery I've been hearing about. It's really popular; I wanted to see what all of the fuss was about."

Queenie knew she had said too much as she listened to her sister's thoughts. A look of recognition crossed Tina's face.

"Oh, no, Queenie. Don't tell me you're doing this."

"Doing what, hon?" Queenie asked, still nonchalant, while she cut up vegetables to put in a salad. "Will you help me out?"

But Tina didn't want to help. She looked extremely annoyed and disapproving, her thoughts about Newt pushed away momentarily. Queenie paused as she heard her sister's internal judgement.

"Stop it, Teen."

"You're talking to him again, aren't you?"

Queenie stopped working on dinner and faced her sister, a defensive look on her face.

"I don't wanna talk about it. I don't."

"Queenie—"

"Stop."

"No, listen, do you understand—"

"Leave me alone!" Queenie shouted. She took a deep breath, calming herself. She didn't like yelling. "You don't need to tell me that what I'm doing is wrong. I know what the consequences could be so don't you dare think I'm being irrational. We're being real careful, I promise."

Tina sighed, frustrated. She couldn't believe it had taken her so long to find out that Jacob and Queenie were seeing each other.

"I thought his memories were erased."

"Only the bad ones," Queenie responded curtly.

Tina walked away and sunk down on the couch in the living room, gazing at her sister. Queenie leaned against the sink and looked down at the ground.

"What're you gonna do if you really get attached to each other and you want to marry him, huh?" Tina asked, "Does he know how dangerous this is?"

"Yes, I've sort of explained it. He knows I could—"

"You could end up in jail."

"I know, Teen. He knows too."

"Then how could he agree to this if it could end badly for both of you?" Tina asked. Queenie listened to her sister's thoughts.

"He's not being selfish! We're not going to get caught. Nobody knows he still remembers."

Tina sighed; it was all too much.

"It's against the law, Queenie."

"I know it is! Why're you lecturing me?"

Queenie returned to what she had been doing before. She furiously twirled her wand and nearly sent the bowl of salad tipping over onto the counter. She set her wand down harder than necessary and sighed.

"I just want what everyone else has," she whispered so softly Tina couldn't hear her.

The rest of the night was spent quietly. Neither of them brought up Newt or Jacob. When she was asleep, Tina dreamed of the December night in the subway; relived watching Credence die. He had been haunting her dreams often. She woke up with tears on her face and lay awake in her bed, wondering if Newt had dedicated his book to Leta.

The next morning, Tina left earlier than usual for work, annoyed with Queenie's stiff attitude toward her. She walked past a wizarding bookstore not too far away from the Woolworth building and saw that the window display was enthusiastically advertising the newly-released Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. Tina glared at the windows, but went inside and bought a copy. She didn't know why she did it.

As she was paying for the book, the middle aged witch who worked at the register spoke up. A copy of Spellbound lay open on the counter in front of her.

"Ah, yeah. Did you see this new Spellbound?" she asked, pointing to her magazine, "The author of this book is a real big shot. He's on the cover of this issue, ya know. He apparently got himself engaged recently."

Tina's expression remained blank, but inside, she felt incredibly sad.

"Thanks," Tina stated before leaving the store with her purchase.

A few days later, Tina walked up to Achilles in the Major Investigation Department near the end of the day. He beamed at her despite the fact that she was sure she had hurt his feelings the other day. Tina took a deep breath.

"Do you wanna get coffee sometime? With me?"

His smile grew. He nodded enthusiastically.

"Sure."

She smiled slightly and they decided to go right after work that night.

"This is a date, right? You're asking me out?" Achilles said playfully. He acted as if he had always known she would regret turning him down.

"Yeah. It is."

"Great. Sounds good, Tina."

He left the room and Tina proceeded to her desk, eyeing her copy of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them sitting on top. She had finished reading it the day she bought it. Tina picked it up and flipped the pages to the dedication she knew had to be meant for Leta. As if it were a way to numb her feelings for Newt, she read it again. It was something only he could have written:

To the most intriguing woman I have ever met—

your eyes are as lovely as a salamander's.

Tina opened one of her desk drawers and dropped the book into it.

"I hope you're happy, Newt," she whispered.

And then she gathered up her things and left the room.