A/N: Hello, new and faithful readers!

So, this is pure indulgence for me. The idea for this story was in my mind since last summer, and after the angst that COG left me feeling, I knew I had to write it to soothe my Newtina soul. This is completely AU - Newt never came to New York, and Tina, Queenie and Jacob managed to get to England all on their own - and this is a romance with more fluff than angst.

I'll update chapters as quickly as I can, but don't expect a regular schedule for them. Please enjoy and leave a review!

As Tina Goldstein savored another bite of her freshly-baked Danish pastry, she was reminded that there were serious perks to living with a baker and his wife. Especially when his wife happened to be her little sister.

Said little sister, now named Queenie Kowalski, looked up at her big sister over the table and grinned at her. "Aw, shucks, Teenie!"

Tina smiled back before digging back into her breakfast. Living with a Legilimens for as long as she could remember, Tina had become used to Queenie responding to her thoughts. "You know," said Tina, after she'd swallowed her bite. "Every time I think Jacob has outdone himself, he makes something even more delicious. You've married a very clever man."

Queenie's eyes became bright and, quick as a flash, she was on her feet. She ran around the table and tightly gave Tina a hug from behind. Tina squeezed her arms in response, her own vision becoming a little blurry. Neither would forget how Queenie's romance with the no-maj Jacob (illegal in their native country) nearly tore them apart. Thankfully, it hadn't come to that, and their relationship was stronger than ever. To hear Tina say things like that about her husband meant the world to her little sister, and knowing how truly happy Queenie now was with the man she loved meant the world to her big sister.

Their hug ended when there came a familiar tapping at the kitchen window. Queenie let go of her sister, kissed her dark head, and then practically skipped to the window. She let the barn owl in and untied the rolled-up newspaper and little bundle of mail from its leg. After depositing five knuts in the little bag around his other leg, the owl hooted gratefully and took off.

"I'm going to leave the window open for a while," said Queenie, giving Tina the paper. "It's finally starting to feel like summer outside!"

Tina chuckled at the relief in Queenie's tone. "Good to know you disliked that very wet and chilly spring as much as I did."

Tina, Queenie, and Jacob had moved to England two months ago, in the middle of a very chilly and wet April. Honestly, it had been the only negative aspect of the move: Jacob's new bakery was off to a great start, Queenie reveled in making the apartment above the bakery a true home for the three of them, and Tina was growing more and more confident as an auror on this side of the pond.

As Tina unfurled that morning's edition of The Daily Prophet, Queenie sat back down to look through the few envelopes of mail (Jacob's mail, personal and business, were delivered to the bakery in the No-Maj way). Tina had barely read the front-page headline when her sister squealed her name.

"Teenie!"

Tina jumped a bit in her seat and looked over the paper at her sister. Queenie was holding out a square envelope, slightly larger than the standard kind. Tina's name and address were written on it in fancy calligraphy and royal-blue ink. When she took the envelope from Queenie, Tina noticed that the stationary of the envelope was thick and expensive.

"Open it!" Queenie exclaimed impatiently, practically bouncing up and down on the soles of her feet.

Tina shot her sister a half-hearted glare of disapproval before turning the envelope over. It had been shut with a wax seal, the emblem of the Ministry of Magic pressed in. Tina opened the envelope with a tap of her wand, and it opened easily. Inside the envelope was a single card, made of the same expensive stationary as the envelope.

Miss Porpentina Esther Goldstein,

You are cordially invited to the Annual Midsummer Festival,

A three-evening celebration of our magical community,

Taking place from the 21st thru 23rd of June,

Beginning each evening at 19:00.

Location: The Scamander Estate, Surrey

First Night: Festival and Recreation (all ages welcome)

Second Night: Ballet and Banquet (ages 11 and up only)

Third Night: Masquerade Ball (ages 17 and up only)

Please RSVP below by midnight of June 15th.

Of course, as Tina had read this silently, Queenie had followed right along by reading her sister's thoughts. And before Tina had even finished reading it, Queenie was jumping up and down in place and clapping her hands. "Oooooo, Teenie!" she squealed.

Tina covered an ear with her free hand and chuckled a bit. "Queenie, calm down! What is the big deal? I'd understand this reaction if the invitation were for you, not me." The amusement fell from her face and was replaced with an apology. "I'm sorry that this is only for me."

But Queenie waved that away as she took her seat at the kitchen table again. "Oh, don't be, Teenie. Why would they include me? I'm not a Ministry employee, after all."

Tina nodded and looked back down at the invitation. "I'm just a little surprised…I mean, I'm new to the Ministry. I've only worked there for two months."

Queenie shrugged. "Maybe every Ministry employee is invited regardless. Or maybe it has to do with where it is being held. Isn't your boss named Scamander?"

Tina nodded. "Yeah, Theseus Scamander…this 'estate' in the invitation must belong to his family, because I know he lives in London, not the countryside."

"The Scamanders must be one of those old pureblood families, then," said Queenie thoughtfully, her nose wrinkling in some distaste. "Seems like England and lots of European countries put a lot more stock in family name and blood-status than in America." Queenie paused. "Considering how much of America is comprised of immigrants and refugees, especially where we come from, it's not really surprising."

Tina nodded. "Once or twice at the Ministry, I've seen people give me suspicious looks after they learn my name or hear me talk. Thankfully, none of the people I work directly with do that, but on occasion, in passing…" She sighed, and then brightened. "Thankfully, my boss has never done that, and that gives me hope that the rest of his family won't either."

"What do you know about his family?" asked Queenie.

Tina's mouth twisted as she thought. "Nothing about his immediate family…There's a best-selling book in Flourish and Blott's written by a guy named Scamander, but it's not Theseus, and I don't know if there's a direct relation there…I know that Theseus got engaged recently, though. His fiancée works at the Ministry too, as an assistant to Theseus's direct superior, Travers. What was her name again…" Tina thought for another minute. "Leta, I think…Leta –"

"Leta Lestrange!" interrupted Queenie, remembering. "Yes, I remember reading their engagement announcement in the paper last week!" Her expression darkened slightly. "Lestrange…we've both heard about that family before…if what we heard is true, then they definitely put all value in pureblood status, to say the least."

Tina exhaled through her nose. "I've only seen Leta in passing, I've never talked to her myself. All I can say right now is that, based on what I've learned of my boss, I cannot imagine him marry her if she herself truly subscribes to those beliefs."

Satisfied, Queenie nodded before her expression became excited again. "Now, back to the matter at hand." She pointed to the invitation that Tina still held. "You're going."

Tina let out a sound between a sigh and a groan. Before she could say a word, Queenie spoke again.

"I'll start with the reason that, knowing you, you will take the most seriously: it's being held at your boss's family home. Emphasis on boss."

Tina rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I figured that one out already."

She looked back down at the invitation, specifically the options for the RSVP. Aside from a complete refusal option, there were three boxes for each night of the festival that one could check. Tina supposed this option of choosing which nights of the festival to attend as opposed to being required to attend all or nothing had to do with those Ministry employees who had families (there were age limits on some of the nights, after all), and the fact that the Ministry was always running on some level, like St. Mungo's.

Queenie, who knew her sister all too well, didn't have to see where her mind was going and spoke again. "No, Teenie. You should go to all three of them. And not just to impress your new boss." She rested her forearms on the table and leaned forward. "This is our home now, Teenie, and we have to make the best of it. I don't want you to make your work your whole life, like you did back home, especially now that it's not just the two of us anymore."

The young wife's voice was as gentle as it was firm.

"I want you to have your own life here, Teenie. To not just have good co-workers, but real friends that you can hang out with and go dancing with. I want you to open yourself up to that, and to something more with the right guy, when you're ready. Because he is out there, Teenie, no matter what you've convinced yourself in your stubborn head. This festival is the perfect opportunity for you to open some doors for yourself. I'm not askin' for a miracle, Teenie, I'm just asking that you try. Please?"

Tina listened to her sister's case in silence, and then contemplated in silence, staring at the invitation. She knew that her sister was right and had made very valid points. She had made her career her life back in New York City. It had been easier to do that there, though. Not only did she have a job that required a lot of time and attention, but Tina had worked that hard to keep herself and her little sister under a roof. Now, things were different. Queenie was married to a good man with a good business and income; Tina no longer had to look after her in the same way.

For the first time in her life, since her parents died, Tina was free to live her life for herself. It was an exciting and scary prospect, and a bit overwhelming either way. But she knew that she owed it to her parents, her sister, and especially herself, to try.

So, Tina took a deep breath before pulling out her wand again. With a flick of her wrist, a quill flew out of the ink bottle on the kitchen counter and into her other hand. Before she could hesitate, she checked the box next to each of the three nights. At the very bottom of the invitation was a line for her signature. She signed her name, and a few seconds later, the invitation glowed and vanished away.

Queenie squealed with joy again and ran around the table to give her sister another hug. "Oh, Teenie, thank you!" She kissed her sister's cheek before straightening again. "And don't you worry about what you're going to wear to any of it; I will take care of it. I know clothes shopping gives you a headache, and I am so excited to design something for you again!"

With that, Queenie hurried into the living room, where Tina knew her sister kept a sketchbook and a set of colored pencils. Tina chuckled to herself and shook her head. She knew better than to argue with her sister about this now, and she honestly didn't want to. Besides, the festival was two weeks away; no need to start worrying about it yet. For she knew that she would worry.

For now, though, Tina smiled at her sister's excitement and picked up The Daily Prophet again.