It started as one of those mornings where you just knew the day was going to turn out to be a disaster in Tina’s opinion.
The beginning of the morning itself though had been good enough with the exception of a small incident where Tina had stubbed her toe in her nightstand.
The sudden pain woke her up quickly after that, making her more careful about her actions, but albeit perhaps not too careful enough.
Because afterwards she had proceeded to spill toothpaste all over her work attire, making a downright mess out of the brilliant navy blue shirt that she had just purchased the other day.
Luckily she could easily take care of it with a simple cleaning spell, but it had still sucked.
Everything had been going more smoothly after that and for a moment Tina had thought everything was fine, but that was only until she had burnt her tongue on her scalding hot coffee which she had picked up on her way to work.
She could still feel her tongue aching despite it being midday by now.
And really, Tina had been lucky to have made it until then without going out of her mind.
Weiss had of course crashed into her with a pile of freshly sorted permits when she had just turned to enter the department of law, resulting in a rather hectic morning right away at the office to start with.
“The small incidents” which she had taken into calling them had eventually finally decided to decrease themselves by a small notion after that, much to her well needed relief.
Finally.
“Tough morning, huh?” Yowie asked her, sending her a somewhat tired smile as they sat down for a much needed lunch break in the cafeteria.
“More like a tough day with the way it’s going.” Tina sighed, picking at her overly runny mashed potatoes.
Unfortunately, there had been no chicken dumplings left by the time she had finally had the opportunity to take a lunch break. It had left her with only the soupy like connection which she now was staring daggers at.
“Tell me about it!” Weiss grunted as he flung himself down in the chair next to her, startling the two other aurors ever so slightly with his sudden appearance.
“I apparently have to deal with a hippogriff of all things later this afternoon.”
Tina perked up a little in interest at that and from the looks of it so had Yowie.
“A hippogriff?” She turned to look at him with a raised eyebrow, “Isn’t that the beast department’s job though?”
“One would think so, but apparently they are quite understaffed today and since it also had a relevance to the beast trafficking case we’ve been working on madam president decided that it would be better for us to deal with it together with one of them,” Weiss said, shaking his head a little.
He scoffed.
“As if we’re not understaffed too!”
Yowie groaned in answer to that.
“I know, right! I feel like boss has been on my throat regarding taking up extra work all the time lately. I mean I know we have duties and a huge responsibility, but this is just too much!”
Tina nodded passionately at her words, putting down her fork with a loud clang.
She couldn’t agree more.
“What is too much?” A quiet voice inquired from behind her, making Tina turn around to have a look at the person said voice belonged to.
“Newt!” Weiss gleefully exclaimed at the red haired man who was standing behind them before gesturing at the empty chair next to Yowie excitedly.
“Sit down, join us and I’ll explain. Everyone, have you met Newt?”
Yowie shook her head, offering a polite handshake to the other man in the process.
“Can’t say that I have. Although, I know that you’re probably a Scamander from the looks of it. What about you, Goldstein?”
Tina looked at the man who was now seated in front of her.
He looked awfully familiar with his dimpled face and lovely curls, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on where she recognized him from which she was prompt to say to him.
The boy or man as Tina probably should call him instead, rubbed the back of his head a bit shyly before explaining that he worked in the beast department next to them.
“Ahhh, that makes sense,” Tina nodded at him thoughtfully. “I’ve probably seen you around then.”
“Most likely,” Newt agreed timidly, not quite meeting her eyes while saying so.
He seemed quite shy by nature with the way he was squirming around a little in his seat, eyes planted on the table in front of them.
“How do you and Weiss know each other though?”
“Oh, Newt and I have worked on a few cases together by now. He’s a magizoologist. Remember the hippogriff I mentioned earlier, yeah, I’ll be working on that one with Newt here,” Weiss grinned at Newt who smiled back at him with a bashful expression on his face.
Tina hummed in understanding, sighing a little as she noticed the clock hanging in the middle of the hall.
It was quarter past one.
Their lunch break was soon over and she had barely eaten anything.
“Anyways, I forgot to tell you what was too much.” Weiss suddenly said, straightening up in his chair a little as he remembered his friend’s previous question.
“Work is too much, I’ll tell you that! And of course, the director..”
Newt scrunched his face up a little confusedly at that.
It looked a bit adorable, Tina had to admit.
“You mean Percival? Isn’t he really kind though?”
The aurors’ turned to look at the magizoologist in shock.
They couldn't believe their ears.
“Yes, the director also known as Percival Graves! But we don’t use his first name like that! And he is definitely not considered to be kind.” Yowie leaned in and whispered hurriedly to the magizoologist.
“Professional, yes. Kind, no!” She shook her head furiously.
“Oh.. Uhm, okay. Why?” Newt asked her with the same confused expression on his face.
Tina, Yowie and Weis collectively groaned at that.
Was this man serious?
“What do you mean why?” Tina hissed, turning her head around a little in all directions to see if anyone had overheard them.
“It’s the director, that’s why!”
“Goldstein’s right. Although, Newt. It’s not exactly breaking news that the director's heart is made of stone!” Yowie added, trying to explain Tina’s statement in more detail.
Newt stared blankly at them for a moment as he tried to digest what they had told him.
He frowned.
“Uhm.. Isn’t that a bit harsh? I mean being a director is no easy feat after all?”
Weiss chuckled a little at that while Tina tried to take a few deep breaths through her nose.
Yowie on the other hand looked like she had given up and Tina understood her.
She could not believe that a person who did not fear the director with the exception of the president still existed within their ministry.
Sure, Macusa was big and all, but most people Tina had met knew better about the director’s little temperament and the actions that followed it.
And sure, being piled up with more work during understaffed times was one of them, but that was one of the more understandable and gentler things the director had done towards them as it was out of his full control.
No, what made the director so feared among them was the other things he had done..
“Not at all. Did you know what happened to auror Johnson when he spilled coffee by accident on the director’s cufflinks?”
Newt shook his head slowly, his expression a bit puzzled as he replied with a hesitant, “No.”
“He made him work overtime for two weeks! Two weeks, Scamander! For something that was only an accident!” Yowie whisper-screamed at him as her face turned a bit pale, probably from just the thought of the incident.
And finally a bit of a realization struck up on Newt’s face.
“I see,” he said solemnly, his expression a bit serious. “That is definitely too much.”
“And that is only the tip of the iceberg.” Tina added, making Newt focus on her next.
“A couple of weeks ago I failed to deliver the papers on time because of a mistake I had made and I swear, I thought the director was going to snap at me!” Tina shook her head as she recalled the furious expression the director had made that day.
“Sure, I understand that he didn’t want to work overtime and it was my fault, but still..” Her voice trailed off as she paused for a moment so that she could collect herself.
The memory still made her tremble a bit after all.
“He could have been nicer about it,” Newt finished for her, his expression being a bit unreadable by now.
Tina swallowed thickly before nodding.
“Do you get it now?” Yowie asked him.
“Yeah, I think I do.” Newt answered back, humming a little thoughtfully before moving to stand up.
He sent them a bit of a sympathetic smile.
“Good to know, Newt. I knew you would,” Weiss said with a relieved expression painted on his face.
He couldn’t have expected what Newt was about to say next at all.
“Which is why I’m going to have a talk with him about it.” Newt then cheerfully exclaimed.
And before they even knew it he had started to walk back towards their office, his pace set to a brisk cadence.
“Wait, what?!” Tina exclaimed, shocked.
She looked at her colleagues to see that they too felt similar to her judging by their expressions on their faces.
“No, no, no. That’s not a good idea. Newt, did you not hear any of the things we just said to you???” Weiss desperately started to say as he practically sprinted after the other man, Tina and Yowie close behind on his heels.
“Yes, I did. And that’s why someone needs to tell him that he’s being a bit of a bully.”
“Oh, by Merlin's beard..”
Tina felt like fainting as soon as she heard the explanation the man had given her.
Could this man be any more naive?
Sure, enough. Her day hadn’t really started the best, but she had thought it had started to turn around by now.
She did not need her boss blowing up on them right now which is probably why she did what she did next.
“Pertificus totallus!”
Newt’s limbs froze up immediately as soon as the spell hit him and Tina watched in slight horror as the man proceeded to fall stiffly to the ground with a small thump.
“Oh my gosh, Goldstein!” Yowie shrieked as they all gathered around the frozen up man.
Newt did seem fine though on closer inspection…just petrified as expected.
Still..
“I mean.. he was going to tell on us!” she replied panickedly, her arms waving around a little as she tried to defend her actions.
Luckily, the office was still quite empty due to it still being lunch break.
That was at least another problem Tina was saved from worrying about.
“Oh, eum. You’re right. This buys us time from the director at least, but still!”
Tina felt her heartbeat start to calm down a little and willed herself to calm down a little before deciding on what to do next.
She bent down to get closer to the magizoologist’s level.
“Listen, Scamander. I’m sorry for stunning you, but you can’t just walk up to the director and-” Tina paused for a moment as she tried to find the right words.
“-and think that he will understand or listen to us. The director is not like that!” She felt Yowie nudging her a little, but Tina just ignored her as she continued on.
She was too into it now.
She had to make the magizoologist understand before their other colleagues arrived.
“For your own safety and just for the sake of the peace in this office just-”
The sound of someone clearing their throat interrupted her and honestly Tina would have ignored that too if it hadn’t been for the voice that followed it afterwards.
“Just what, Goldstein?”
Tina felt herself freeze up.
She recognized that voice and knew immediately that she was in deep trouble.
The auror slowly turned around to face the man of the hour with a frightened feeling growing fast inside her.
Graves looked positively completely furious!
“D-director!” she stuttered, cursing herself underneath her breath for stuttering.
“We were just… just..” She swallowed thickly as she glanced at Yowie and Weiss in desperation for a good answer.
However, one would have thought her colleagues had gotten hit by a stunning spell too from the looks of how they were standing completely still themselves.
It was almost like they were trying not to provoke a raging beast in front of them which probably summed up their situation rather well.
“Just creating a ruckus in the midst of our office by just stuttering about complete nonsense and not to say the least by stunning my husband?!”
Tina gaped at him.
His what now?
She felt her heart start to sink as she turned to eye the still stunned magizoologist laying on the floor in front of them.
She had expected the first part of that sentence, but not the latter part of it.
Her eyes finally picked up on the shining worn out silverband Newt was wearing in a necklace around his neck and she turned back to eye a similar, although better kept one around one of the director’s fingers.
She closed her mouth for a moment before opening it again, no sound coming out no matter how hard she tried.
The director raised an eyebrow at her, looking at her with narrowed eyes for a moment.
Moments seemed to tick away before the man finally softened his expression as he let out a sigh.
He then cast the counter curse on his husband, the light from it engulfing Newt's form briefly.
Afterwards he started to walk towards his spouse with confident and quick strides although his face had a slightly worried expression on itself.
“Are you alright, dollface?” he asked before cradling Newt’s head gently as the magizoologist started to come to.
Dollface.
Tina couldn’t help but notice how Yowie and Weiss’s eyes widened at that.
She could imagine a similar expression on her own face as well at that moment, because she had never imagined the director as one being in for petnames.
But then again, she had never imagined that he had been married either and yet here they were.
“Percival!” Newt grinned, moving to hug the other man happily.
And if Tina already hadn’t been so out of it due to shock she probably would have reacted in surprise to that too.
“I’m fine! It was nothing!”
Percival scrunched his eyebrows at Newt’s answer, opening his mouth to retort something back, although Newt quickly beat him to it.
“They were just scared of the consequences of me bringing up a few personal issues they had with you. I probably shouldn’t have gone off like that, but it was just so frustrating to see them behave like that when I knew I could help them out!"
Newt slowly stood up with the help of the director to glance back at all of them, smiling a little at their hesitant expressions before continuing on.
“Although, I think we may have to have a conversation about work attitudes after this?” The director looked a bit bashful at that to which Newt chuckled before placing a chaste kiss on his husband’s cheek.
“You’re too harsh, love. I’m telling you that you need to take out your vacations more! And tell Sera to hire more people!”
The director’s lips twitched a little at that and Tina found herself still rooted in the same spot as he started to smile.
She had never seen him do that before and was frankly quite shocked that he even knew how to do so.
“Uhhhhh…” Yowie eloquently said as she looked between the director and Newt.
“Weiss, did you know about this?” She asked, to which the male auror shook his head slowly back in answer to.
“Nope,” he said, popping the letter p in the word a little as he too stared at the couple in front of him.
“I mean, I knew Newt was married to someone of high standing, but… I had no idea it was the director!”
“Uh.. Surprise?” Newt smiled a little sheepishly back at him, grabbing the director’s arm for good measure as if they already didn’t know that they were married.
“The topic of Percival between us didn’t really come up before today though.. But while we’re at it I think Percy and I have some interesting things to discuss, right?”
“Right,” Percival grumbled back as he let out a small sigh.
He then let himself get dragged off to the side so that Newt could whisper a few things to him hurriedly.
Tina breathed out for the umpteenth time that day in relief and smirked a little as Yowie mouthed at her silently, “Percy. He calls him Percy???”
“I know!” She whispered back, her eyes trailing off to glance at the director and his husband standing at the side from time to time.
She could not believe what was happening right in front of her eyes at the moment.
“I thought I was going to puke by the way,” Weiss exclaimed dramatically as he slumped down on one of the desks close to them.
He looked exhausted.
“I know, right!”
Tina just hushed them before they could start up another discussion, having noticed that the director and Scamander were coming back towards them.
The director cleared his throat a little.
“Ahem.. I have a few things to say to all of you..” Newt nudged his husband’s shoulder a little in what was probably supposed to be encouragement.
“And the rest of the department when they arrive.” he added with a slight grimace on his face.
“I owe you all an apology. It seems I have been too harsh. It won’t happen again, but still.. I’m sorry.”
“Oh.. Um. You don’t have to apologize-” Yowie started to say, fiddling nervously around with her thumbs as she glanced at the rest of them.
It felt weird for them to receive an apology from the director after all.
“I insist.” The director replied in a firm tone, cutting her off before she could say anything more.
“In fact, why don’t you take the rest of the day off. I got word from the president earlier today that we could fill in with some other workers for a while so that’s the least I can do for you now.”
Tina looked at the other aurors for a moment, eyeing the dark circles they had underneath their eyes.
She gulped.
This whole situation felt too good to be true, but she still wanted it.
Not only for herself, but for her colleagues too.
“We’ll take it. Thanks, director. We appreciate you doing this for us..” She started to say, receiving wide eyes from her colleagues and a grin from Scamander.
“And I’m sorry too. For stunning your husband. Although, I think I owe Scamander that apology more than you..”
Newt looked at her with crinkled eyes as he smiled, “Please, that’s old history by now. I think in fact that we’ll just call ourselves even. Sounds alright?”
Tina smiled in answer, “More than alright. You were after all right.”
She glanced at the director’s slightly less frowning expression for a moment before turning back to the magizoologist.
“The director is kind.”
“Right?!” Newt smiled, looking at the dark haired man beside him with fond eyes.
The director just coughed a little, before waving them off.
Although Tina could see the slight redness creeping up on his neck and on his ears.
She sent them one last smile before nodding towards the door at the others.
They had barely crossed the threshold of the corridor door when her colleagues started to excitedly discuss the events that had transpired before them just before.
“I can’t believe that just happened!”
“I know! I would have never imagined seeing the director like that!”
Tina on the other hand just tuned out the conversation Yowie and Weiss were having with each other as they continued to walk out of the building.
She could not believe her luck.
Maybe she had been wrong about how her day would turn out to be after all.
She shook her head, still in disbelief over everything that had happened.
She could not wait to tell her sister about this!
---------- ---------- ---------- ---------- ---------- ----------
The fireplace was making soft crackling sounds as Newt decided to curl up beside his husband on their soft bed.
He let out a pleased sigh as he let himself be wrapped up into the warm embrace of the other man.
Newt hummed out contently for a while, letting himself bask in the cozy atmosphere for a moment before posing the question that had been on his mind for a while.
“Why didn’t you just tell me that the cufflinks had been stained due to an accident?”
He felt the man freeze up a little underneath him, making him release a small huff of laughter.
“You know I won’t get mad about it right? Same way, I won’t get mad if you get held up at work despite it being our anniversary dinner?”
Newt placed a small kiss on his husband’s face when he saw the sheepish expression the other was wearing.
“I know you have a demanding job, and you know that I too sometimes have work accidents, right?”
Percival wrapped his arms around Newt slowly.
He breathed in the scent of the magizoologist for a moment before replying in a quiet tone.
“I know. I just.. didn’t want you to get sad..”
“Oh, Percy..” Newt smiled fondly as Percival started to place a few kisses on his cheek.
“Although, you should have seen your colleagues' expressions when I said that you were kind.”
Percival scoffed.
“Was it funny, doll?”
“Oh, no, dearest. It was hilarious! I gotta tell Thee this too.”
Percival hummed for a moment, smiling into Newt’s bare shoulder as the other man chuckled.
“It was sweet to see them so concerned, but you could never be mean to me, Perce.”
Percival playfully bit into the red haired man’s shoulder for a bit, making him squeal a little in embarrassment.
“I can be mean towards you darling, if I want to. I wouldn’t be so quick to brush off their concerns like that.” The older man smirked, as he trailed his hand downwards on Newt’s body.
Newt gasped, feeling sparks travel through his body at the heated touches the other man was giving him.
“O-oh, Percy..” He giggled, placing a hand on his husband’s chest, looking forward to the night to come.
Although, he was definitely looking forward to telling this story to the rest of their family and friends too