CHAPTER SIX
A Painful Touch
November 1907.

     "If it isn't my favourite assistant!" Torquil cheered, perceiving Elska walking out of the lift. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and said. "You are a bit late, darling."

"I always come at this hour, Torquil," Elska argued with a frown. "You've got a meeting at nine, what are you doing here?"

Torquil sighed, "Well, I was looking for you, dear Elska. You are supposed to be with me," he muttered, leading her to the meeting room. "Now, come," he added, pushing the doors as he apologised for his delay and sat down.

Elska had no choice but to mimic him. She didn't even have the chance to take off her coat or put her lunch box in the office. Now, she looked like a fool who was late at work. There were some men she recognised around the table; she had grown accustomed with over the past few weeks. Besides, Torquil had taken the time to introduce her to every special person at dinners.

Another surprising thing, Torquil was very gentle with her. He behaved like a father and a superior when needed, but Elska had somehow glued an etiquette on his forehead with 'father figure' written on it. If Elska had the chance to have a mother figure in her life after the death of her parents, she would not have been very lucky in the father figure department considering Newt and Theseus' father had died when they were very young. But Torquil filled the position perfectly.

"Who are we seeing today?" Torquil asked his colleagues as one of them perched himself above his list, smacked his lips and answered a name that Elska wished she had forgotten by now. "Mr. Scamander? Surprising. Why is that?"

"He wishes to see us," the man replied with a shrug.

"Right, send him in then," Torquil told him as he nodded. Torquil then leaned closer to Elska, "How about we have lunch at the Hopping Pot, Elska?"

Elska breathed out, humming, "Why not, eh?"

Shaking her head, she tried to hide her shaky hands by putting them under the table but all she could was stare at the double doors waiting for Theseus to walk in. Elska had been lucky enough to not see him since she had started–he was busy as an Auror and she was thankful for that. It was somehow bound to happen.

All of a sudden, Theseus stepped in the room and apparently, he didn't expect Elska to be there because he frowned as soon as his eyes settled on her. Torquil was whispering something in her ear that she couldn't even hear, it was immediately translated as a buzz. Elska watched as Theseus dragged the chair in front of her and sat down. His blue eyes stared right into hers and she was not able to look away.

"Theseus, what a pleasure to see you," Torquil cheered with a smile. One that he had mastered over the years, it didn't seem even genuine. "What is bringing you here?"

"Concerning Cassius Rakepick, we believe he is hiding somewhere in Germany–do we tell the German Ministry of Magic or do we go there ourselves?"

"Well, I assume your superior will know how to deal with this," Torquil said.

Elska leaned closer and whispered, "He can't. He's on a sick leave, sir."

"Sick leave?" He exclaimed as Theseus shrugged, his lips forming a thin line. "Oh well, I reckon you can go there if you are sure of yourself, Mr. Scamander. Take a few men with you, will you?"

"Am I allowed to choose any man in the Auror office?"

"Surely," Torquil replied, laying a hand on Elska's shoulder. "Go with him and do a list, will you?"

Elska opened her mouth to argue but she suddenly remembered that there were in a room full of people, "Of course, sir," she muttered, rising to her feet and saying goodbye to everyone with a nod of head and a smile. "Mr. Scamander, please," Elska added, noticing Theseus was still on his chair.

"Sorry, yes," Theseus said, clearing his throat as he stood up. "Mr. Travers, thank you for having me," he then added, exiting the room. Elska was waiting for him, her back facing him as he sighed. "Hello, Elska."

"Hello, Theseus," Elska replied quietly, starting to march towards the Auror office.

"Wait," Theseus exclaimed, taking hold of her wrist and bringing her closer. "Can we at least have a decent conversation without you ignoring me, Elska?"

"We are at work, Theseus. We don't have to share a pleasant and decent conversation," she reminded him as he rolled his eyes. "Would you follow me please?" Her tone was now almost pleading.

Theseus clenched his jaw, "Will you ever say thank you for the help to get this position?"

That made Elska stop in her tracks as she turned around to look at him, "Do you really want me to say thank you, Theseus? I didn't even need your help in the first place!" She argued quietly as he looked down at her. His eyes were soft yet confused. "I am here today because Newt told me about it, not you."

"You would have never listened to me, we both know it," Theseus remarked.

"Stop it, will you?" Elska muttered angrily and before she could say something else, he had pulled her into an unknown room of the ministry. "Where are we?"

"No one ever comes in here," Theseus reassured. "I miss having you and Newt in my life," he whispered, stepping closer to her but Elska took a step back.

As much as Elska wanted to be close to Theseus and had been longing for it ever since that night shared before his departure, she couldn't let him get close to her or she would fall into that same vicious circle of letting him in. But as Theseus spoke, he kept coming closer and closer until his face was inches from her and she was pressed against a table.

"Elska," he whispered, and she closed her eyes, looking away. "I hate being away from you and not talking to you," Theseus admitted, putting his finger under her chin and making her look up.

"Why didn't you tell me that before?" Elska murmured, her throat dry and her eyes looking for some hidden truth within him. "I mean you had two years to tell me this, why now?"

Theseus sighed, "It is not as easy as it seems."

Theseus' hand reached her cheek and Elska closed her eyes at the contact, cherishing his brief touch that she had missed so much. There. All she feared was coming back–the memories. When his touch was delicate like that, she was taken back to the time where they were happy and he didn't hold her accountable for Newt getting expelled. He loved her wholly and wasn't afraid to show it. Now, they hid in an abandoned room where he could steal one or two touches.

"I have to get back, Theseus."

"I know, love. I know."

Theseus leant down to press a kiss on her forehead and lingered there for a moment. He pulled away too soon, to Elska's impression and straightened his costume before clearing his throat and inviting her to walk out.

"What are you doing for lunch?"

"I am eating at the Hopping Pot with Mr. Travers," she answered.

He clicked his tongue with a chuckle, "I see you two have grown close then."

"He's my superior, Theseus."

"Well," he said with a small smile. "He talks very highly of you. Elska there, Elska here. It is all very heartwarming, really."

Elska snorted, "Sod off, alright? He's a nice man and he has a wife."

Theseus nudged her, looking down at her as he said, "Well, it never stopped men before."

"You're gross, Theseus!"

"I am merely saying," he said with a chuckle that made Elska shake her head with a laugh. "We should eat lunch one day, perhaps try to bring Newt, yeah?" Theseus said as she hummed.

"Let's do that list," Elska told him as he nodded, agreeing. Theseus led her to their offices and before he could speak, Connell Barclay's voice echoed.

"Elska!" He exclaimed happily as she turned her head to see him approach her. "Hello, what are you doing here?" Connell asked as his hand laid on her waist and he kissed her cheek. Elska's eyes widened and Theseus frowned.

"I–er, hello Connell," she breathed out, still quite shocked by Connell's gestures. "I'm working."

"Hello, Barclay," Theseus chirped in, extending his hand for him to shake.

"Oh, hello mate," Connell smiled widely.

There was no sympathy in Theseus' voice. It had lost all its warmth from before and it felt cold. Quietly, Elska tried to step aside, wanting to keep a certain distance with Connell. He was a nice bloke but she preferred him as a friend for now.

"Come on, Elska," Theseus' voice snapped her out of her thoughts as he put his hand on her lower back and kept her close to him. Once they were far enough from him, he looked down at her with a certain jealousy. "So you know Barclay?"

"I—yeah," she breathed out quietly. "We went on a date."

"Date?" He repeated. "I didn't know."

Elska chuckled quietly, "How could you? Besides, nothing happened. Connell is better as a friend."

"For now," Theseus muttered. "Right, I'll take five Aurors with me. Reckon Travers will be alright with that?"

"Of course."

Elska wrote down rapidly as Theseus pronounced the names of the men he will be bringing along. After a few minutes, Theseus told Elska he was done and walked her back to her office. All the time, he kept his hand on her lower back or on the back of her neck. Elska hadn't felt his touch for so long that she felt disturbed throughout the whole walk.

"Thank you, Theseus."

"Of course, Elska," he replied with a smile. "Be sure to tell me what Travers thinks about the list, alright?"

Elska nodded, "I will."

Hesitantly, his hand reached for her cheek and she jumped slightly at the touch but relaxed rapidly when the pad of his thumb caressed her cheekbone.

"Talk to Newt, will you?" He said softly.

Her throat was dry but she somehow found a way to reply, "I will try."

...

Elska sat in front of Torquil at the Hopping Pot after the meeting that had been rather long. Usually, she was never asked to attend them but she suspected Torquil to want her next to him. He had been chatty throughout the whole time they had been there, and Elska knew he had not listened too much about what the Aurors were asking of him.

"So, my dear Elska, how do you like it with us?"

"I'm having a good time," she told him.

He hummed, stuffing the fork in his mouth, "I've seen the way you looked at Scamander."

Elska froze, unprepared for this kind of talk with Torquil. Elska had grown to know him, she knew he would be quick to ask questions and he would not let go until she had told the truth.

"What way, Torquil?" Elska asked, drinking her glass of elf wine that she was now very thankful for.

"Well," he fell back in his chair, his hands behind his  head as he looked at her. "You know, the way. Is there something with that boy?"

Elska snorted, "Careful, Torquil. I'm starting to think that you care about me."

"Isn't it obvious that I do, Elska?" Torquil queried, still staring at her. "Of course I care."

"I'm only an assistant."

"Bullocks," he groaned, waving his hand at her as if he was dismissing her in an annoyed manner. "You do know that you are more than an assistant to me. You remind me very much of my niece. Her name was Coral."

"Coral is a very beautiful name."

"My sister chose it. She's always been very fascinated with all these Muggle stories," he told her, grabbing his napkin to dry the corners of his mouth. "I loved my niece. She died of some Muggle sickness, I wouldn't know its name but we thought she was immune to it, it turned out Coral died because of it."

"I'm sorry," Elska whispered.

"It's old history now," he said, clearing his throat. "My point is I do care about you, Elska."

"Thank you," she said in a low voice, unable to meet his eyes as tears threatened to spill out of her eyes. "I—I'm very grateful."

"I've read your file, my dear Elska. The way your parents perished, it gives me shivers," Torquil told her with a sigh. Elska didn't think she had talked about this before with someone other than Erin, Newt or Theseus. "But, you ought to know that I will take care of you as long as I live. I didn't hire you because Theseus talked to me about you. I hired you because when I saw you, I saw joy—I saw a way for me to feel better after my dear Coral had left us."

"And do you feel better?"

"Of course, I do. You know, Evelyn is very happy to know you," he said, mentioning his wife that cooked Elska's favourite dish every time she came over for dinner. "You make us very happy and somehow you fill a void that we did not know we were missing before."

Elska's eyes were teary and she sniffled, rapidly grabbing her napkin to dry the ones that had escaped her eyes.

"If there were not people around, I'd have hugged you so bloody hard, Torquil," Elska muttered.

Torquil chuckled, "Nonsense," he shook his head as he rose to his feet and opened his arms. "Come here, dear Elska."

Elska stood up and circled Torquil's body with her arms and rested her head against his chest where she could hear his heartbeat clear as day. Closing her eyes, she savoured the moment and felt how his head rested on top of hers.

"Now let's eat, shall we? I am starving," he told her, pulling away as she chuckled. "Merlin, shall we order another glass of elf wine?"

"Perhaps, yes."

Torquil snorted, "Careful, if we drink too much, we might not reach the office."

Elska laughed, shaking her head. It was as if something had shifted within Torquil, he seemed lighter and careless. His smile was wide and he even had wrinkles near his eyes. If anyone at the office saw him that way, they wouldn't believe their eyes. But Elska was alright with it. He was the father she had lost too young and she was the daughter he never had.

—————
authors note, what do we think????

theseus being jealous?? the tension still being there???
torquil and elska relationship??? 🥹🥹🥹