"I'm so sorry, Cora," Newt whispered.

Newt was terrified for himself, his creatures, and for Cora. She may have gone to school at Ilvermorny, but she was no witch. She was a Maledictus, cursed because of her gender and bloodline. She was good at simple spells, but not more complicated spells.

Currently, Newt and Cora sat in front of Graves in an interrogation room. Tina stood behind, flanked by the two executioners.

Graves eyed him. "You're an interesting man, Mr. Scamander. You were thrown out of Hogwarts for endangering human life - "

"That was an accident!" Newt exclaimed.

" - with a beast. Yet one of your teachers argues strongly against your expulsion. Now, what makes Albus Dumbledore so fond of you?" Graves questioned.

"I really couldn't say," Newt responded.

"So setting a pack of dangerous creatures loose here was just another accident, is that right?"

"Well, why would I do it deliberately?" Newt asked.

"To expose wizardkind. To provoke war between the magical and non-magical worlds."

"Mass slaughter for the greater good, you mean?" Newt asked, his voice tense.

"Yes. Quite," Graves responded.

"I'm not one of Grindelwald's fanatics, Mr. Graves."

· 　   ·  　 .    *    　*    ✧　　　　　　
   　　    ✵  ✹  　　 　 · .  ☆                                  
☽

Newt, Tina, and Cora were in a long, black, metallic corridor that led into a pure white cell with a pool of a rippling potion. They were forced into the room. A guard stood at the door.

"Don't do this, Bernadette. Please," Tina pleaded.

"It don't hurt," the first executioner reassured.

Cora was led to the edge of the pool. She began panicking, eyes darting to Newt hopelessly as her the insides of her back threatened to burst. He hoped her wings wouldn't burst. With the executioners' wands at the ready, it would dangerous.

"Don't - No, please, don't - Please, don't harm her," Newt whispered.

The smiling executioner ignored him and raised a wand to carefully extract Cora's happy memories from her head. She calmed down. Her expression was numb and vacant. The executioner cast the memories into the potion. The ripples came to life with scenes from Cora's life.

Cora appeared in the pool, but she was worn out, wearing rags that barely covered her body. She was holding a baby boy wrapped in a blanket, swirled into a bundle.

"Hello," she whispered. "Aren't you beautiful? I will never get tired of seeing your face."

He cooed, causing Cora to smile. He reached his stubby hands out to her face and she happily leaned in.

"I will never give you up, Credence."

"Credence?" murmured Tina.

"Don't that look good?" the first executioner asked. "You wanna get in? Huh?"

Cora nodded slowly, yearning for her baby. She sat in the execution chair, gazing down at the happy memories. Newt glanced down his own arm. Pickett was clambering, quiet and agile, toward the shackles that held Newt's hands.

The second executioner raised her wand to Newt's forehead. Newt seized his opportunity, jumping backward out of the way before revealing the Swooping Evil, which he threw forward toward the pool. He swiftly turned and punched the guard, knocking him out cold. Newt quickly undid Tina's shackles.

The Swooping Evil expanded into a gigantic, weirdly beautiful butterfly-esque reptile with skeletal wings. It continued to circle round and round the pool. Pickett clambered onto the second executioner's arm and bit her, startling her. It gave Newt time to grab her arms and take aim with her wand. A spell fired, hitting the other executioner, who dropped to the floor, her wand falling into the pool.

As it fell, the liquid rose up in viscous black bubbles, instantly engulfing the wand. In reaction, Cora's memories turned from good to bad. She was in a tent surrounded by hay and blankets as the ringmaster grabbed and touched her.

Cora's stool was lowering closer and closer to the liquid. The Swooping Evil glided across the room, knocking the second executioner to the ground. Cora snapped out of her reverie and screamed, wings spontaneously bursting out from her back. Newt was taken aback. She flew back in her haste, nearly knocking into a wave of the potion.

Newt stabilized Cora as he nudged his head to the door. "Come on!"

Suddenly accosted by the group of Aurors, the trio darted behind pillars, missing the fired curses and spells. Newt sent out the Swooping Evil, which swirled overhead, flying in and out of pillars, blocking curses and knocking the Aurors to the ground. It used its proboscis to probe in one of the Aurors' ears.

Newt made a clicking sound. "Leave his brains! come on! Come on!"

The trio continued running onward. The Swooping Evil flew after them, blocking curses as it flew.

"What is that thing?" Tina asked.

"Swooping Evil," Newt answered.

Cora winced as she forced her wings back into her back.