09 | bar hopping is my favorite hobby

DOROTHY STOOD WITH Newt, looking down at her beloved city with sadness. She was officially a criminal, and officially wanted by MACUSA, and if caught, she would be killed.

She remembered when she was younger, standing out on her balcony when a party raged downstairs. She remembered seeing the skyline in the distance, the lights still alive even though it was already midnight and she was supposed to be asleep. Dorothy loved New York. She loved how it never slept, always awake, always partying, and she wanted to be a part of it.

But she never was. Dorothy was never outgoing enough to be invited to parties. She never spent every night drunk and waking up without memory of the night before. And she wasn't "normal" like her parents, so she never knew what galas were like on the inside.

While she watched the city, Newt and Tina were standing together, muttering about something and Queenie walked into the pigeon coop where Jacob stood.

"Your grandfather kept pigeons?" Queenie asked him with a smile, "Mine bred owls. I used to love feeding 'em."

Dorothy closed her eyes for a second, letting herself remember when she was younger and the second maid she became closest to sat with her as she watched the city glow.

"Life is too short to dream, honey," the woman told her with a frown, "If you want something, take it."

And Dorothy did that. She dreamed about going to the big city she adored, dreamed about living there and finding love in the city, and she did. Well, she was working on the love part, but she definitely did put her dreams into action, holding those words close to her.

Dorothy had dreamed of so much more, though. She dreamed of traveling, immersing herself in different cultures, and helping people. Dorothy wanted so much more from life, and she knew that it could never happen as long as she was a fugitive.

"Graves always insisted the disturbances were caused by a beast," Tina said as Dorothy walked over to them, "We need to catch all your creatures so he can't keep using them as a scapegoat."

The James girl looked at Tina with sadness. She felt bad for everything she had said to the girl before they were taken to be executed. In that cell, with everything crashing down on her, she was angry and took it out on the Goldstein girl.

"There's only one still missing," Newt told them, "Dougal, my Demiguise."

"Dougal?" Tina asked as Dorothy furrowed her eyes in confusion, saying, "Demiguise?"

Instead of answering their questions, Newt continued, "Slight problem is that...um, he's invisible."

"Invisible?" Tina stated again, smiling slightly at how ridiculous the idea was.

Dorothy, though, rolled her eyes, moving around slightly. All she wanted was to go home, seeing Margaret again before they left, and pretend like the weekend never happened.

"Yes - most of the time...he does...um," Newt tried to explain, but looking at Dorothy, with her eyebrows creased and disbelief written on her face, he forgot the rest of his sentence.

"How do you catch something -?" Tina began to question him as Newt broke her off.

"With immense difficulty," Newt said with a small smile, looking at Dorothy.

Dorothy, who was spinning gears in her mind, tried to think of anyone she knew who could help them. Obviously, they were too busy to notice anything unusual with an invisible figure. But not everyone had the weekend she had, and she knew that someone would be watching - or just so happened to witness it.

"Gnarlak!" Dorothy cried, looking with wide eyes to Tina, whose mouth turned to an oval.

"Excuse me?" Newt asked, a little taken back by the change in conversation. Especially when he hadn't the slightest clue what they were talking about, or if that was something they were calling him.

"Gnarlak - he was an informant of mine when I was an Auror! Dorothy usually went with me when I would talk to him! He used to trade in magical creatures on the side -" Tina explained.

"He wouldn't happen to have an interest in paw prints, would he?" Newt asked, cutting her off.

Tina nodded, "He's interested in anything he can sell."

€

Tina led the group down a dark alley covered in bins, crates, and other discarded objects. She motions them down to a basement apartment, where they walked before reaching a dead end. The doorway had been blocked, with a poster of a simpering debutante in an evening dress. The three woman stood in front of the poster, raising their wands in unison as they transformed their outfits to flapper dresses. Tina's was a dark blue, Queenie's a baby pink, and Dorothy's a dark red; her favorite color.

Tina then stepped forward to the door, knocking four times, watching the woman on the poster eye them. Newt, knowing that there would need to be a change in his outfit, made himself a bowtie, to which Dorothy giggled at.

Then, the hatch opened as Dorothy stepped beside Newt. "Really? A bowtie?" she laughed slightly at him.

Newt just smiled at her as they walked inside. Dorothy looked around at all of the criminals the wizarding community in New York had look at them, eyeing them with suspicion as their wanted posters glowed on the walls. Dorothy looked to see one in particular that made her uneasy.

GELLERT GRINDELWALD: WANTED FOR NO-MAJ SLAYINGS IN EUROPE

She turned away quickly from the poster, grabbing Newt's hand in comfort. Once she realized once she had done, a blush went to her cheeks as she realized that Newt hadn't pulled away. His hand was warm in hers, softer than she imagined as she faintly saw scars poking out from his coat. And Dorothy frowned slightly as she saw them.

Dorothy looked to see a glamourous goblin sing, she knew the goblin well. The two had met one time when Tina had to talk to one of the criminals and the singer was on her break. She remembered their conversation well. Dorothy sat as the goblin vented about her husband and how she thought he was cheating on her.

"The phoenix cried fat tears of pearl, when the dragon snapped up his best girl, and the Billywig forgot to twirl, when his sweetheart left him cold, and the unicorn done lost his horn, and the Hippogriff feels all forlorn, 'cause their lady loves have upped and gawn, or that's what I've been told," she sang gracefully, and Dorothy got lost in all the magic, not even realizing that Newt was pulling her to a table.

Newt offered a smile as the two sat down next to each other and Tina across from them. The Goldstein girl looked around anxiously, "I've arrested half of the people in here. When I was an Auror, of course."

"You can tell me to mind my own business..." Newt started carefully, "but how exactly did you lose your job."

Tina nodded, "Right. Well, it was for a boy named Credence. His mother beats him. She beats all those kids she adopted, but she seems to hate him the most."

Newt, realizing the only other piece of information he knew, said, "And she was the No-Maj you attacked?"

"That's how I lost my job. I went for her in front of a meeting of her crazy followers - they all had to be Obliviated," Tina sighed, "It was a big scandal."

Queenie sent a signal to them as Tina looked up. "It's him," she whispered as a goblin with a cigar in his mouth made his way over to them.

Dorothy heard the jazz singer, focusing on her words as well. "Yes, love as set the beasts astir, the dangerous and the meek concu, it's ruffled feathers, fleece, and fur, 'cause love drives all of us wild."

She watched Gnarlak as he carefully watched everyone, smoking the cigar he had. He reminded Dorothy of a No-Maj Mafia boss. The thought send shivers down her spine as she realized how similar he was to one as well.

Gnarlak sat himself at the end of the table, the air around him changing to confidence and dangerous control. Quickly, a house-elf brought him a drink before scurrying away.

"So - you're the guy with the case full of monsters, huh?" Gnarlak bluntly said, looking at them.

"News travels fast," Newt tried to laugh, but the mood didn't brighten at all, "I was hoping you'd be able to tell me if there have been any sightings. Tracks. That sort of thing."

The goblin downed his drink as another house-elf brought a document to sign. "You've got a big price on your head, Mr. Scamander. Why should I help you instead of turnin' you in?"

"I take it I'll have to make it worth your while?" Newt asked him as the house-elf scurried off with a signed document.

"Hmm - let's consider it a cover charge," Gnarlak said as Newt pulled out a couple of Galleons, sliding them across the table to the goblin, who barely looked up.

"Huh - MACUSA's offerin' more'n that," he said, unimpressed by the bribe.

There was a pause before Newt pulled out a beautiful metal instrument and placed it on the table.

"Lunascope?" Gnarlak chuckled, looking at it without emotion, "I got five."

Newt rummaged through his coat pocket, pulling out a frozen ruby egg. "Frozen Ashwinder egg," Newt told him.

Gnarlak smirked, finally interested in something the man had to offer, "You see - now we're -"

He stopped himself as he saw Pickett, who peeked out of Newt's pocket, looking around at the dingy building.

"- wait a minute - that's a Bowtruckle, right?" Gnarlak asked as Pickett quickly retreated to the pocket.

Newt put his hand gently on the pocket protectively, "No."

"Ah, come on, that's a Bowtruckle - they pick locks - am I right?" the goblin smirked.

"You're not having him," Newt said in a cooler tone, and even Dorothy tensed.

"Well, good luck gettin' back alive, Mr. Scamander, what with the whole of MACUSA on your back," Gnarlak got up, walking away from them.

"All right," Newt called in agony as Dorothy stared at him in disbelief.

"Newt! You can't - you can't give Pickett away," Dorothy told him with wide eyes, watching the goblin walked back with pride, a smirk on his face.

Newt brought Pickett from his pocket, Dorothy watching as the Bowtruckle clung onto his hand, not letting go no matter what. "Pickett..." Newt said in sadness, slowly handing the creature to Gnarlak. Pickett reached his tiny arms forward, whining as he wanted Newt to take him back, but the man didn't look at his beloved creature. Dorothy, too, looked away as she tried not to cry at the goodbye.

"Ah yeah..." Gnarlak sighed happily, looking at his new creature as Dorothy eyed him with disgust. "Somethin' invisible's been wreakin' havoc around Fifth Avenue. You may wanna check out Macy's department store. Might help with what you're looking for."

"Dougal..." Newt said in a wispy voice before returning his gaze to the goblin, "Right, one last thing. There's a Mr. Graves who works at MACUSA - I was wondering what you knew of his background."

Gnarlak stared at him, his mind racing about how much he could say, but how he would rather die than spill those secrets. "You ask too many questions, Mr. Scamander. That can get you killed."

Then, a house-elf was heard, "MACUSA ARE COMING!"

The house-elf Disapparates as many others start running away. Tina looked at the goblin, "You tipped them off!"

Gnarlak stared at them, chuckling menacingly. Dorothy looked to the wall to see the posters change to hers, Newt's, and Tina's faces. Aurors began Apparating into the bar as Jacob walked up to the goblin.

"Sorry, Mr. Gnarlak -" Jacob started, but stopped himself when he punched the goblin in the face, "- reminds me of my foreman!"

Newt scrambled onto the floor as chaos erupted around them. Dorothy looked around, grabbing Tina's hand in shock as she tried to calm herself down, watching as Newt looked for Pickett.

Finally, Newt grabbed the Bowtruckle, grabbing onto Jacob as the group Disapparated, going to look for the last creature missing - Dougal.