Maverick threw the cocoon up and down in the air as if it was simply a tennis ball, catching it with one hand. Newt stared at him. "I'm not telling you," he shook his head. "Not with him in your hands. Too much of a risk."

Maverick rolled his eyes. "Listen, we can do this the easy way, or we can do this the hard way," he said, pulling out his wand. "I think, for the sake of everyone, we should do this the easy way, don't you?"

______ stepped back. She hated it when he used magic. She always loved watching Newt do it, every time she saw Newt use magic, it all seemed so wonderful. However, she did remember him telling her. Telling her that there are some people out there who use and abuse magic completely.

She just never thought she'd have to meet any of them.

"I'm not letting you do anything to that creature," Newt told him. "I'd rather cut off my hand than let you hurt any of my creatures."

Maverick sighed. "Well, at least I can say I tried to take it easy. You're a difficult guy to negotiate with, aren't you Scamander?" He pointed his wand right at Newt and muttered, "Crucio."

Hearing that word again, ______ froze up. She never wanted to hear it again, she never wanted to think about it again. She wouldn't wish it upon anyone.

She would have never, ever wanted Newt to have to experience it.

Newt let out a heart-shattering scream and fell to the ground. It felt like every inch of him was being torn apart, his skin was on fire, it was like a million needles were poking into him on every square inch of his body. "Newt!" ______ cried out, getting on the ground next to him. He couldn't respond, his eyes were shut tight, and he could only continue to keep letting out screams.

"How do you get him to come out?" the wizard yelled, his wand still pointed at Newt. ______ wanted to cry, she would do anything to make this stop. She saw herself in Newt, she saw herself getting tortured.

She couldn't have thought of this in her worst nightmares.

"Stop it!" she screamed at the wizard. "He won't tell you anything, and even if he was going to, he can't speak when you're doing that to him!"

Maverick, surprisingly, let go of his hold on Newt. It didn't last long, though, until she saw why.

Right as Newt stopped his screaming, beginning to open his eyes, he saw as Maverick pointed his wand at ______ and she slid over to him. "You're a brave little Muggle, aren't you?" he asked in a mocking tone. "Or is the word I'm looking for stupid?" He laughed menacingly, his wand under her chin, poking at her painfully. "What do you think you can do to stop me?"

Newt got to his feet as quickly as he could. "Let her go, Maverick," he told him in a cold voice. One she'd never heard Newt use. The only thing it came close to was when he was trying to keep her from being obliviated by Tina, but here, it was different. Completely different. It was almost like Newt was a different person, but he wasn't It was just another side of him.

It only goes to show, if you ever try to hurt someone he's close to, you're not going to come face-to-face with that "kind, innocent, Hufflepuff" label everyone likes to throw on him. He wasn't threatening him verbally, but in his tone of voice, it wasn't a friendly suggestion.

Maverick wasn't shaken in the slightest by this change of character. In fact, he found it funny. He didn't see Newt as a threat at all. He had no wand, no magic, and Newt, try as he might, didn't have it in him to use any kind of unforgiveable curse. No matter what, he could just tell he wasn't the kind to make matters extreme like that.

That's why he would never win.

Maverick laughed. "Why should I?" he asked, turning away from Newt and looking into ______'s eyes. "How about you and I have some fun?" he asked in a cold, menacing voice.

She shook her head, moving her arms up to push him, to get away. She had no such luck. "Anything you want to do, you can kindly count me out of it!" she yelled in his face, desperately pulling herself away.

Maverick turned to Newt. "Let's make a deal. You tell me how to get this creature out of its cocoon, and I'll let your little Muggle girlfriend go. How about that?"

Newt had a horrible feeling. Of course he wanted to help ______, and he would by any means, but he didn't trust Maverick. He would try to be sly and hurt her more, or just plainly deny the deal and hurt her anyways. ______ looked over at him. "Newt," she began, looking at him with pleading eyes. However, what came next her didn't understand at first. "Don't tell him. Don't let him hurt any of your creatures."

"______-"

"I'm not worth it," she told him, pleading. "You love those creatures, I know you do, and they love you. Don't give up, we can get out of this another way. Don't make the deal."

"If you don't," Maverick threatened. "There might not be another way."

Newt stood there, conflicted. He couldn't let this happen, he didn't want to make this decision. Maverick was making him chose between the girl he had been growing feeling toward for a while now and his creatures. If it was anyone ese, he might have taken the chance of finding another way. But it wasn't anyone else. It was ______.

______, who had been there for him, who saved him from certain doom out her window.

______, who let him stay at her house with little to no questions.

______, who he saved from horrible people at work.

______, who was always so amazed by his magic.

______, who he fought for so hard to keep her memories.

______, who was always enchanted and happy when around his creatures or any kind of magic.

______, who just might be the first girl he could say he nearly loved in a long time.

He couldn't let this happen. He wasn't going to watch her be tortured in front of him. She had been through enough already from the moment she tried to save his case.

"Alright," Newt said with a heavy heart. "I'll tell you. Just let her go."

"Newt, don't do this-"

As ______ began to plead, she was cut off quickly by Maverick. "You tell me first, and then I'll let her go." He pressed his wand further into her neck, and ______ thought it might just break her skin and plunge itself in any moment now. "Make it quick too, I don't have time for games."

Newt looked at ______. "I'm sorry, I have to," he told her. "It's more of a show than a tell..."

"Just tell me!" Maverick yelled, and ______ whimpered slightly, fearing he might actually puncture her skin.

"You take him by his tail, put it between your fingers, and gently toss him under your arm and behind your back, not letting go of his tail. Kind of like a yo-yo, but don't do it too harshly." Newt explained, looking away. "Now please, let her go."

"Was that so hard?" Maverick asked in a fake whine. He took his wand off of ______'s neck and threw her towards Newt.

Newt rushed over to ______, catching her in his arms and allowing her to steady herself on him. Before Newt could get a word in, ______ was already speaking. "Newt, I'm so sorry. You shouldn't have picked me."

"Sh," he told her, trying to calm her. "______, there's only one like you. You're the only one like you, and I don't want to have to watch you be tortured, or even worse, killed."

She continued to shake her head. "I'm sorry Newt," she told him.

Newt looked down at her, trying to catch her eyes, but she only looked down with a sad, defeated expression, tears in her eyes threatening to spill over. He was near tears too, no matter what, it was hard to do that. It's always hard to give up someone or something he cared so much about, but the stakes were too high. He wasn't going to allow Maverick to hurt ______ any more than he already had.

"It's not your fault," he told her. "I chose you. You didn't make me choose anything, and you're safe now. That's all I wanted."

He had no idea just what was in store.

Maverick turned and followed Newt's exact instructions, and before he knew it, swooping evil was before him. Wings out, fangs bared, is beady eyes looking like he was ready to maim someone, or even worse.

After all, swooping evil was known to feed on brains.

Newt and ______ turned their heads towards Maverick in sync, both having looks of shock and terror. Nothing in my case is dangerous, he tried assuring himself, but he knew deep that down it wasn't true. Any one of those creatures could turn deadly the second they were provoked, or at least dangerous enough to put up a lasting fight.

Even Pickett's attack was going to leave Maverick with one nasty scar.

Maverick pointed his wand at swooping evil's face, the exact target he needed to get to the entire time. Suddenly, Newt saw what he was going to do, and he felt a lump in his throat. He felt terrible, and he was sure he was going to be sick. "No," he began. "Please no, no, no..."

Maverick laughed, glaring at Newt before turning back to swooping evil, who was flailing around wildly. "Imperio."

He stopped fighting all together. All signs of free life left the creature as he hung like a bat off of Maverick's hand. He laughed manically and turned to Newt. "This was perfect," he told him. "Who knew that such a small creature could have so many uses?"

Newt couldn't help but look at him with a dumbfounded look. "What is it that you want Maverick?" he asked. "What is this all for? What are your intentions?"

"Oh, right," Maverick rolled his eyes. "Everyone always wants to know why the 'bad guy' is doing it all for. Not like it really matters anyways, either way you're still going to hate me, aren't you?" Maverick laughed. "It's a vicious and useless question, but I suppose since you've been through all this, you think you 'deserve it' don't you?"

Newt shook his head towards Maverick. "I didn't ask for any mind games, I just asked some simple questions. Is it too much for you?"

"Fine, fine," Maverick sighed. "I've heard a lot about you, about what you did for MACUSA over in the states. I also heard about why you were wanted over there for a while. Dangerous creatures, eh?" Maverick looked at swooping evil, who he still had his wand pointed at, dazed on his arm. "I thought it was interesting. A wizard with a case full of creatures, and the one creature wrecking havoc wasn't even one of his.

"I'd be lying if I said that there weren't times I wished I could defy the stupid Ministry here. It's like they're run by airheads, but I couldn't just go in and start fighting them, could I? I'd be arrested in seconds. It's too populated. But, a deadly creature who could take all the fall..." Maverick trailed off. "Well that could be quite useful. Only, there was one problem. I didn't want to take the time to go out and find one. So why not just bring one to me?"

Newt shook his head. He knew what the consequences would be. They would have no mercy on the creature, they'd kill him instantly. Then there would be trouble in his department, the exact thing he wanted to avoid. These creatures were misunderstood, especially swooping evil. I mean, just look at the name they gave him. "Why?" Newt asked. "Why? What good would attacking them all do?"

"Vengeance," Maverick told him. "They took my wife away to Azkaban for a crime she didn't commit. They told her they'd give her a fair trial, but that's not how it worked at all. They thought they had proof that she had attacked and killed an innocent group of Muggles and endangered exposure. They didn't even listen to her when she tried explaining someone had pinned it all on her. They just sent her away, they needed to close the case. They needed someone to put the blame on."

"I'm sorry about your wife, I really am," Newt began, as if trying to calm him. Like he wasn't already beyond hope. "But this will change nothing. This will help nobody. Your wife won't go free just because you kill the people who wronged her."

"Do you think I care about that?" Maverick asked. "I don't care if nothing changes, I don't care if everything changes. They will pay."

"Maverick," ______ pitched in. "Do you think this is what your wife would want? To murder people in her name? Nobody would want that."

"Don't you dare, Muggle," Maverick shook her head. "Don't you dare talk about her like you know her. It's your kind's fault that she's not mine anymore."

"How? How is it our fault? We didn't do anything. We died. It's us who were killed."

"Shut up!" He shouted. "Shut up, you imbecilic Muggle! Oh, I will have great pleasure in getting rid of you."

Get rid of me? ______ thought. That couldn't be good. Not even a little bit. Veins seemed to be popping out of Maverick's neck now, you could tell he wasn't happy by any means. He may have gotten what he wanted, but he didn't care for the morality lesson they tried to give him. He looked at Newt. "Anyways, I'm no longer in need of your assistance, Mister Scamander. So, you'll be my test subject."

"Test subject?" Newt asked, taking a step back now. He reached for his wand by reflex, but it wasn't there. No hope for a shielding spell, even some of the best wizards out there can't make a shielding spell without a wand, never mind him. ______ looked over at Newt, scared.

She feared for him. Whatever Maverick had in mind, he didn't deserve it. She didn't want to see him hurt. She felt this sudden wave of protectiveness, and she was sure of one thing more than she'd been sure of anything in her life: this couldn't happen. Not to him, not to Newt.

She wouldn't allow it.

"What's the best part of the body to go after if you mean to kill?" Maverick asked with a smirk. "Let's try the neck first, shall we?"

What happened next seemed to go by in slow motion.

Maverick directed his wand towards Newt, and swooping evil flew off his arm with alarming speed. So many things were running through Newt's head. Swooping evil's venom wasn't particularly dangerous, but that wasn't the problem here. They were fast, and their teeth were as sharp as knives. They needed to be, since they feast on brains, they need to be able to get through the skin and skull as fast as possible to get right to the good stuff. An attack to the neck wasn't going to turn out well. They would go right in, probably taking out a chunk.

And that would just be in the first bite.

At the same time, so many thoughts occurred in ______'s head. This wasn't happening, it couldn't happen. She was not going to stand there and watch Newt be killed in front of her. Not Newt, anyone but him.

Newt had done so much for her, so much for everyone. He was a good person, he was a genuinely good person. He always worried for others more than himself, whether they're wizards, Muggles, or magical beasts. It didn't matter. They're well-being came before him.

He saved her. He took her away from the hell hole that was New York. He cared for her when she was sick. He fought for her. He did more for her than she ever did for him, and never once complained or wished for something in return.

He was perfect. He was lovely.

She would not let him die. Not like this.

He wouldn't fight back. Like he said, he'd rather cut off his hand than let anyone hurt his creatures, never mind him.

Before she thought about what she was doing, she did it.

______ shoved Newt to the side at the last second, taking is place. Standing exactly where he was, and before Newt could even react, it already happened.

Swooping evil came down, directed from the wizard, and sunk its teeth into her skin.

As she let out a loud, painful, twisted scream, Newt stared in horror, what just happened still processing.

She had saved him. She had sacrificed herself, she took his place.

Maverick stood with his wand still pointed, shocked at her gesture. As a smile crawled onto his sick face. So what if a Muggle died? It didn't matter to him who got killed first. They were both going to die anyways. What a heroic gesture, he thought. Silly Muggle. It doesn't mean anything.

It meant everything.

"No!" Newt screamed as ______ fell to the ground. "______!" he yelled out, getting up and rushing to her side. His screaming was the single most painful thing anyone's ever heard. It was one of true loss, as if it meant it was all over for him, there was no hope. Like he had lost everything.

In a way, he had.

This screaming, however painful, was what ended up saving his life.

Maverick was distracted by his own feeling of euphoria, he didn't notice he was holding his grip of swooping evil a little loose. And that scream, that scream, hit it's ears. The scream of the one who tamed him. The scream of the one who kept him company. The scream of the one who fed him. Who cared for him. Who didn't try to hunt him.

The scream of the one and only person he'd ever be loyal to.

It was enough to snap him out of the spell. Swooping evil let go of the harsh bite it was making on her neck, but damage had already been done. Its venom was already inside her, not to mention a sizeable chunk on her neck that was hanging off, bleeding rapidly.

He moved off her neck, taking off into the air, letting Newt get close to her. "No," he began, the tears that were in his eyes earlier spilling. "No, ______, don't fade out. ______, can you hear me?"

______ opened her eyes slowly. "Newt," she began, a small smile on her face just from saying his name. "You're okay."

"You're not," he said, shaking his head. As her eyes threatened to close, he took her head in his hands. "No, stay with me, please-"

He was interrupted.

"As touching as this all is," Maverick began. "It's time to end this. Her sacrifice means nothing, I want to try the head now."

He pointed his wand, but nothing happened. Swooping evil did not move. "What?" he whispered, looking at his wand like it had a fault. That's when he realized what was going on. "No," he shook his head. "Not now. Not when I've come so far!"

Newt recognized what that meant, and looked over at swooping evil. He'd never encourage violence in one of his creatures, of course not. That didn't mean he was going to stop it, though. Swooping evil looked angry, like anyone would when they find out someone had been controlling them. "I'm going into my case," he said. "I'm going to turn my back on you for a moment."

Newt picked up ______'s body and turned to his case, opening it and diving in. Swooping evil turned to Maverick, and Maverick knew what was coming.

They didn't call him swooping evil for nothing, and so he did what he did best.

Newt panicked, his thoughts in a frenzy. Meanwhile, it was like ______ felt no pain. She felt something wet on her neck, but she didn't feel anything. Her mind, however, was getting fuzzy, and her vision blurred. Even though she felt no pain, she knew what happened, and she was filled with fear. "Newt," she asked, her voice cracking. "Newt, am I bleeding? How bad is it?"

Newt set her down on his bed. "Sh," he told her. "Don't talk. Don't do anything, it might just make it worse." His face was still wet, and through his panic, he was trying to find out what to do first. He knew what the venom did, it took away memories, and he didn't want that. He couldn't allow it, not after everything they've been through together. He wouldn't let that venom get far in her system, no way.

He wouldn't allow her memory of him to become evanescent.