"Is that you, Tina?"

Newt froze at the sound of the voice. He caught Jacob by the arm and shushed him softly.

"Yes, Mrs Esposito," Miss Goldstein called.

The voice floated up the stairs again. "Are you alone?"

"I'm always alone, Mrs Esposito."

Newt risked a glance back at her. Something in her tone had struck a chord with him. She was lying, and most people would have sounded at least a little suspicious. But she just sounded tired—resigned to the fact that she would go through life alone.

He knew how she felt. He had only ever had one real friend, and that relationship had ended in disaster. He suddenly found himself wondering what had happened to her—what had made her so sad. He knew she had lost her job, but there had to be more to it than that. There had been more to her words than just a statement of fact.

In a way, she reminded him of many of the creatures, he had rescued: mistreated, afraid, trying to protect themselves, and too scared to accept help. He had never been able to turn away without doing everything he could do to help, but this was different. Miss Goldstein was human, and he had never learned how to reach out to humans.

Newt jumped as a hand touched his arm. He looked up to see Miss Goldstein nudging him down the hall. She was scowling at him again, but for the first time, he noticed the haunted look in her eyes.

A/N: I hope you enjoyed this little story. Don't forget to vote and comment!

I'm currently rewatching Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them with my family. It's been quite a while since I've seen it. We got to this scene, and the way Tina says "I'm always alone" made me think of this.

Anyway, the movie's almost over now. We're just at the point where Newt and Tina say goodbye.

Have a good day!

Bye!

Published: 4 January 2022

(First thing I'm posting this year! Whee!)

I almost forgot to give it a title. Oops.