(closed)

[xxxxx]

Who: Newt Scamander (suffusive), Remus Lupin (xxxxx), Sirius Black (doggo), Tina Goldstein (goldsteins)
What: A reasonable wizard discussion that will almost definitely not end with many things on fire.
When: Nowish.
Where: House 34.
Warning(s): None currently, will update if someone dies or makes out.

[ Somehow, with how being entirely unimportant and probably not actually theft, there's tea. It isn't the best tea—something made that much more apparent by the lack of milk or sugar to go along with it and mask its defects—but as far as foreign planet teas go, it's really not far off from English Breakfast.

The currently-made tea is in two mismatched cups: one foisted on Sirius, the other already half empty and hanging at a precarious angle in Remus' hand. ]

—the day afterwards, [ he's saying in the quiet tones, even though he's also so far avoided any particularly clear statements, so it would take both eavesdropping and context to know what he's talking about, ] if it isn't any trouble—

[ He'd like to stay with Sirius and his muggle roommates after the full moon, is the gist of this conversation, if one has the necessary context to follow it. If a fourteen-year-old can suss him out over a school year, even a bright one, he's not inclined to leave extra clues for an Auror and her magizoologist friend (who may already be totally onto him, but he doesn't know that). Which means taking himself and his post-moon misery elsewhere.

But the rest of that discussion will have to wait, because there's noise at the door—possibly the very witch they're waiting for! possibly with company!—and Remus stops talking and straightens up, sort of. He doesn't stand up properly from where he's leaning, nearly sitting, on the counter top, but he looks a little bit more dignified about it. ]

Comments

[suffusive]

[ Ah, yes, Grindelwald, a mixed bag of memories. The entire experience is deeply darkened by the loss of Credence, his second catastrophic failure after the girl in Sudan. There's something uniquely horrifying in the death of children, he thinks. And Jacob had been lost, in a manner of speaking, too.

But he gained a connection with Tina and Queenie. Together, they captured a dark wizard (once the darkest, before this Voldemort), if only temporarily. That's nothing to sneeze at. Regardless, he would gladly trade the story for information on how Albus Dumbledore fits into the future ahead of him (and perhaps, a polite inquiry into the nature of Remus' scars), but he considers Tina's apparent discomfort above all else, noting the sharp grip on her elbow and crease in her brow. Another time, then. His mouth tugs sideways, almost a smile at Remus. ]

I'd like that, Mr. Lupin. [ a nod to Sirius. ] And Mr. Black. But, yes, we must be going. [ Then, he shoots a retort to Tina, mild and wry — ] I'd heard cooking for someone is a gesture of affection. From reliable sources, at that.

[ That's probably soft boy sass for accept this bloody kindness and remember to eat. He stands to tidy after himself, returning his cup to the sink and continuing on in neutral tones. ]

And I've a dragon queen rather justifiably unsettled by magic in my flat, you see. [ "Dragon queen" said as if it's an entirely normal problem to encounter in the wilds of this Olympia, more weary than irritated. The non-sequitur is meant to explain his appearance in the flat to Remus and Sirius, as well as diffuse any remaining tension. It shifts the topic away from the fragile, connective tissue of their criss-crossing histories, if nothing else. ] Makes even the smallest tasks mundane.

[ And difficult, including an activity as simple as cooking. He hadn't thought he relied on magic extensively until he needed to ask permission to utilise it freely. ]

We only meant to drop off supplies for later. [ The vegetables. He offers an apologetic smile. ] Best take care of our business first. [ Whatever business Tina means to imply meant they were only stopping by for a moment, if she even has anything beyond an excuse to leave this house. He seems intent to follow her, at any rate. ]

[doggo]

[Sirius, distracted by the actionable when--very potent, that when, an inevitability that he is cleaving to with every bit of himself that remains, redirecting all that furious energy that saw him out of Azkaban--is slow to agree with Remus. No agreement made aloud, of course, but agreement in the way he takes another sip of tea. Cool, like: this could certainly be going worse indeed.

And yet he's not going to protest interlopers who are content to see themselves out. Nor is he going to protest Remus doing all the necessary pleasantries so he can continue to sit here and drink tea like an animated skeleton.

Well. The thing about dragons stirs him to a little more life, at least.]

Dragon who is a queen, or a queen who rules dragons.

[--Looking a little less skeletal, by some miracle, when he looks around. Perhaps it's because this is the lightest sentence he's managed this whole time--sort of a joke, more proof that he's salvageable.]

Becomes a bit more of a critical difference when it comes to potential immediate destruction of your cottage, I'd think. Don't all beasts like being cooked for?

[Dragons, objectionable Aurors... you know, beasts. He takes another sip of tea.]

[xxxxx]

[ Tina's comment earns a friendly scoffing head shake: imposing, hardly. She was practically the guest of honor, if guest of honor is another way of saying intended victim of a tea ambush. And it is.

If she's leaving, though... Remus reaches a hand across the table, past his own empty cup and the wand he still hasn't put away, and hovers over her untouched tea long enough to allow for objections that she wants it after all before he picks it up. It's lukewarm, by now, so there's no risk of scalding to prevent him from downing half of it.

Maybe he would have downed all of it, but he cuts short and lowers the cup at dragon queen, mildly alarmed and intensely interested in the potential presence of an actual! dragon! queen in Scamander's house, and of course her eating habits and magic aversion.

Sirius beats him to asking, while he's still swallowing, and then tells—well, it's almost a joke, and even if it isn't the funniest thing he's said, any attempt at levity from Sirius Black is going to be getting a smile out of Remus for the foreseeable future, just for the effort. For the fact that it's possible.

Then he realizes it's possibly a mean almost-joke, and his grin dims politely to a faint smile, so he's relatively straight-faced when he says, ] They definitely do, [ which could just be a comment on some personal experience with dragons or any number of other beasts or, sure, tetchy Aurors, rather than a joke that's somewhat more recklessly cheeky.

He finishes the rest of Ms Goldstein's kidnapped tea and stands up to start collecting cups. ]

[goldsteins]

[She shoots Newt a quick, ill-amused look. Gladdening only when the topic shifts even if she looks a little put-out-- No, worried, she's been worried about the man's living arrangements from the beginning but thinks better on saying anything about it.

She'd already met one of them and he didn't seem too awful-- But, well.

Tina catches the tail-end of the joke, brow quirking but she says nothing more on it. For the moment, she hardly seems of the mind to enter this conversation at all. Her dislike to the situation or perhaps the humor goes unmentioned, but she draws a breath all the same.]

I'm sure you'll find much more interest discussing your Dragon Queen. [It's another give that he doesn't have to join her since surely he's more interested in the conversation going here, whatever way it goes. Creases in her brow deepening she manages a nod.] Enjoy your conversation.

[It's said stiffly, but said all the same before she loosens her arms and turns away from the group to retreat towards the door.]

[suffusive]

[ By the time Tina attempts to dismiss him, he already has the vegetables stowed and his coat in one hand, trailing at her heels. The joke earns an amused smile, at least. ]

A mother of dragons, if you can believe that. Doesn't look it, mind, but very thrilling all the same.

[ In a tone that suggests mild mischief rather than outright thrill, but, well, best not to discuss the good queen too much, lest she hears of it and grows tetchier. Fierier? More likely to eat him, at any rate. He remains occupied with concern for Tina, too. Her provision of an escape perplexes him, certainly, striking him almost as a rejection of his company. He follows anyway, offering a parting flourish of a wave to Remus and Sirius. ]

I'll be sure to [ a pause as he recalls the word. ] telephone if she starts breathing fire from across the way — I live just across the street, as it happens. [ walking and slipping his coat on at the same time. ] So, you know where to find me.

[ tacked on in the event his new dog friends are looking for him!! ]