Chapter Text
Gab didn't have a single good word to say about the two No-Maj women.
According to his account, those women had gone so far as to murder several employees of Decima Technologies just to steal trade secrets. Even though Decima had disbanded, many former employees still held a grudge against them. There were plenty of people who wanted them dead, but they were notoriously difficult to find and even harder to kill. Clive, as a wizard, had bravely taken upon himself the heavy responsibility of seeking justice.
The young boy even went as far as to boldly suggest to the Head of the Auror Office: "Even though Greg’s use of Unforgivable Curses on No-Majs is illegal, given the circumstances I just described, he should be treated with leniency."
Director O'Neal cleared his throat. "Aurors only make arrests; sentencing is the work of the court. I trust that if Clive and Malfoy intended to kill them for the sake of justice, the court will take that into consideration."
However, Gab admitted that even he couldn't crack the two No-Maj women's phones.
With Gab’s introduction of the two women concluded and his explanation regarding the locked phones finished, lunch drew to a close. Gab's parents hadn't participated in the conversation at all—they couldn't. Moreover, they were clearly still immersed in the grief of losing their younger son.
After lunch, the family of three excused themselves and went home. The Head of the Auror Office, the Director of No-Maj Object Disposal, and the Head of the Beast Division all returned to their posts. This left only the retired professor and the young employee of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures (DRCMC) in the cafeteria hallway.
"Juniper, if you aren't in a hurry to get back to the office, I have something to tell you."
"Oh, I'm not in a hurry. My division head never checks my attendance as long as I get my work done. What is it you’d like to say, Professor?"
"Let's find a quiet place. It’s best if what I have to say isn't overheard."
"A quiet place... there aren't many spots in this building for a private chat, but..." Juniper gave a mischievous smile. "You’ve asked the right person."
Juniper led the professor through several corridors, up an elevator, and into her office. On the floor behind her desk sat her silver-grey suitcase. She locked the door with her wand, opened the case, and made an inviting gesture: "After you, Professor."
In moments, the two of them were sitting on the lounge chairs inside the suitcase's living quarters. Juniper even brewed tea for the professor.
"It’s been a long time since we’ve chatted like this, Professor. I really miss our time at school."
The professor smiled. "How is your great-grandfather’s health?"
"He’s doing well, from what I know, though he rarely goes out into the field anymore. Grandma Tina locked his case inside her own cabinet; she ruled that if he wants to enter the case, someone must accompany him. Whenever I have a holiday, I go to their house and accompany Grandpa Newt into the case."
"He must dote on you. And you are truly someone for him to be proud of. Catching an Obscurus is no small feat!"
"It certainly wasn't easy. Mostly because Obscuri are so rare. Although I’ve heard Grandpa Newt tell the story of how he caught one many times—since I was ten, actually—and I’ve simulated the practice dozens of times, I still felt unsure when it came to the real thing. I actually hoped that by removing the Obscurus, I could save the child, but the boy died anyway, just like when Grandpa Newt caught the Obscurus of that Sudanese girl. The infection had lasted too long; the Obscurus had eroded the child’s life."
Professor Ashe nodded. Juniper noticed the heavy look on her face.
"Professor, did something happen?"
The professor nodded again and sighed. "I mentioned that Sameen Shaw and a police friend of hers saved my granddaughter, Amelia, but I didn't say why Amelia needed saving. You’ve heard of the BBB organization by now, I assume?"
"Of course."
"One of their members went to my daughter’s house and tried to push Amelia off the second floor just to see her display magic. Of course, at that height, Amelia wouldn't have been hurt. But his behavior was loathsome, and the No-Maj didn't know the child wouldn't be harmed. So Shaw and her policeman friend stepped in and injured the man. His name was Lucas Canon; I found that out later."
"Then Root and her friends are good people! When I spoke with them, I didn't think they seemed like villains. I thought it was strange earlier, why Gab kept speaking so ill of them!"
"We need to keep an eye on that boy Gab. His brother just died, yet he seems completely unburdened by grief."
"Yes, I felt something was off with him too. When I went to catch the Obscurus, I asked the parents why the child became an Obscurial—what kind of persecution he faced. They both said it must have been the local No-Maj children causing trouble, but they couldn't name a single specific instance." Juniper lowered her voice—even though it was just the two of them in the case. "To be honest with you, I suspect Gab’s bullying caused his brother's condition. But I have no proof, so I can't say it to others."
"That is truly tragic. How can their parents face such a thing!" The professor showed a rare, profound sadness. "But our Amelia surely wouldn't face such a fate!"
"Amelia?"
"Alas, it happened three days ago. After Amelia was terrified by Canon last time, my son-in-law installed a hidden camera outside the house. It captured everything."
Three days ago, right around the time Root was forcing Shaw to share her bathtub in the new apartment...
Lucas Canon could hear his heart pounding.
Before his injuries had even fully healed, he had re-read all of Boyan Bai's blogs and met offline with Mark Hales, a fellow BBB member, to fill in the gaps of his erased memory. However, when he suggested they investigate Amelia again, Mark was hesitant, clearly unwilling.
"My wife and son need me. If something happens to me, what becomes of them?"
Lucas understood. He was afraid of death too, of course, but he was single; no one relied on him. Besides, last time he had only had his memory erased, which proved wizards wouldn't kill just to keep a secret. After all, with a memory-erasing trick like that, why bother with the effort of murder?
He decided that this time, his actions would leave no trace on the internet.
He didn't know about the Machine, of course, but he knew the power of Big Data. He knew that several apps on the phone he used every day might be listening to him or reading his online comments. It was practically common knowledge.
If he truly found evidence of magic, he would be the first person to do so, not just one of several.
So, he spent all his spare time studying the Elworth family. Gradually, he figured out their routine: the location of the three children's school, their commute times, and the fact that every Sunday evening they would go to the nearby town of Elderfield for dinner at the grandmother's house. He found that address, too.
Amelia rarely moved alone, often staying with her sister Ava, and sometimes their brother Aslan. But after tracking the family enough times, he finally found an opening.
It was a gloomy afternoon. Coach Kevin Elworth was at the stables, and May had taken Ava to the dentist. Only Aslan and Amelia were home. Aslan, like most boys when their parents are away, took the opportunity to invite his friends over to play video games in the living room. Amelia was upstairs in her own room.
Lucas saw the little girl’s window was open. He gripped the frame and climbed the exterior wall. During the climb, he thought he heard an owl hoot. It wasn't dark yet; owls shouldn't be active. He wondered about it for a split second before slipping through the girl’s window. The girl had just opened her mouth to scream when he quickly covered it. Her tiny limbs struggled desperately but to no avail, just like when the same man had grabbed her weeks ago.
"Don't make a sound! I just want to play a game with you!" Lucas whispered.
However, to little Amelia, this whispered approach was even more terrifying, because last time this man had pushed her off the railing. She tried to bite his hand, but before she could apply any force, she was pinned to the floor and slapped hard. A large, hand-shaped red mark immediately flared up on her soft cheek. The child was so terrified she couldn't even cry.
At that moment, Lucas saw a mass of black mist erupt from the child's body, striking him like a powerful gust of wind. His body was lifted off the ground, slammed backward through the window, and he fell headfirst into the flower bed below. Blood immediately stained the grey-green stones red.
Amelia didn't know what had happened. But when she looked down through the gaping hole where the window used to be, she knew she had caused a catastrophe.
She dashed upstairs, ran to the owlery, and wrote a letter to her grandmother. Then she curled into a ball in the owlery and waited. She knew her brother and sister were different from her. In fact, in their family of five, only she was "different." So she couldn't go downstairs and tell her brother that someone had fallen to their death in the flower bed, nor could she explain to him or his friends why her bedroom window was now a giant hole.
She could only wait for her grandmother to arrive. This was something only Grandma and Aunt Martha could handle.
Fortunately, she didn't wait long. Grandma and Aunt arrived together. Her aunt Apparated directly into the yard, while her grandmother arrived by broom under a Disillusionment Charm, only becoming visible once she entered the broken window.
Hearing the commotion, Amelia hurried back to her room. By then, her grandmother had already used her wand to restore the window to its original state.
"Little pumpkin, come here! Are you alright?"
"Grandma!"
Amelia buried herself in her grandmother's arms. The old woman held her tight.
Meanwhile, Martha had already placed an invisibility spell on the No-Maj corpse below to keep it hidden for the moment. She strode into the living room and said sternly, "Aslan, game time is over!"
Terrified, Aslan quickly turned off the console. His friends hurriedly excused themselves and ran out.
"Now go upstairs and stay with Grandma!"
Aunt Martha, usually so gentle, was suddenly so serious that Aslan didn't dare ask questions. He ran upstairs and found his grandmother and sister in Amelia's room. Martha went back to the yard, grabbed the invisible body, and vanished with it in a crack of Apparition.
A short while later, Kevin returned. He was surprised to see his mother-in-law, but when he opened his mouth to ask, she clearly didn't want to talk. So he shut his mouth and went to check his son's homework.
A bit later, May returned with Ava. Grandma told Ava to take her sister to her own room and called May into Amelia's room.
Ava showed her sister the My Little Pony cards she had collected. Usually, Ava was too protective of them to take them out. Looking through her sister's collection, Amelia finally managed a smile.
In the next room, the three women spoke in low voices—Martha had returned. She told her mother and sister that she had dropped the man below the office building where he usually worked.
Upon hearing her mother's analysis of today's event, Martha was shocked, and May immediately burst into tears.
"How could this happen... we all love her so much! Even though she's the only magical child in the family, Aslan and Ava don't bully her! How could my child..."
"She won't!" Martha put her arm around her sister's shoulder. "It must have been an accidental magic outburst. If you ask me, she did a great job! I don't advocate for killing, but that No-Maj has been looking for trouble more than once! Besides, falling from the second floor—who would have thought he'd die? The Aurors wouldn't treat this as a crime! Every wizard had experiences they couldn't control when they were little... Oh, sorry, May."
Martha realized after she said it that her sister hadn't had those experiences because she was a Squib.
"Could it be? Mama!" May looked at her mother through tears.
The old woman sighed. "But she said she saw a mass of black mist."
"She's never had that before!" May struggled to find a final shred of hope. "Which means she just got 'sick'. Maybe... maybe it can still be cured?"
The old woman sighed again.
May began to sob. Martha couldn't help but shed tears as well. They both knew the fate of an Obscurial. The longest-living Obscurial in history was only 20, and most lived only to the age of 8.
Of course, the account from Professor Ashe didn't contain quite so many details or emotional beats. However, Juniper could still feel the old woman's profound worry for her granddaughter.
"I haven't reported this to the Auror Office yet," the professor said. "I want to wait until I'm certain if it’s an Obscurus. Of course, regardless of the outcome, I will report it. A No-Maj died; it's a serious magical accident."
"You are too kind," Juniper said. "Many people wouldn't report this at all. The Auror Office often turns a blind eye, as you know. Wizards' living space is being severely compressed now, and magical accidents involving No-Majs are becoming common."
"I am a professor at Ilvermorny! The Head of the Auror Office was my student. If he found out I withheld information, where would I hide my old face?"
"Professor, let me go see Amelia! I’ve never encountered an Obscurial in the very first stage. Even Grandpa Newt hasn't. He always said that if an Obscurus has just formed, there might be a way to expel it. But as I said, they are so rare that clinical trials are impossible, and MACUSA never budgets for this research."
"Alright. Actually, I was hoping you'd tell me that black mist isn't necessarily an Obscurus. After all, though you're young, you’ve seen far more magical creatures in the field than I have."
"It's certainly possible. The child said a 'black mist'; perhaps her description was inaccurate."
Though Juniper comforted the professor this way, her expression darkened. She knew that the black mist was very likely an Obscurus.