Newt turned around and spoke quickly, "We have nothing to talk about, Grindelwald."
That string in his heart had been taut ever since he learned that Gellert was to become his assistant.
Never trust anything Grindelwald says.
Who would have thought, not only was Grindelwald undeterred, he even took a step forward.
"Perhaps hear what I have to say before making a decision, Scamander."
Newt was resolved not to listen to his nonsense, nor answer nor stop, just heading straight into the tent, planning to check on the Zouwu's condition inside.
This was a good partner he had from over sixty years ago in Paris.
Seeing Newt walk into the tent, Gellert followed in as well.
"Let's say this, Scamander," Gellert said, "I'm willing to collaborate with you to separate my sister from Scarhead..."
"Haha." Newt replied with an awkward yet courteous smile.
You?
Separate your sister?
To Newt, there wasn't a single true word in that sentence.
"You should trust me, Scamander, I don't think my sister and that Scarhead are a good match," Gellert advised, "that Scarhead... lazy, arrogant, I really don't know what my sister sees in him... How about a collaboration? I think Miss Swedding is quite suitable for that Scarhead kid—though her current situation isn't very optimistic."
Newt said nothing, starting to search in the cabinet for the cat teaser.
Zouwu, a magical creature native to China, looks much like a giant cat, its size as large as an elephant.
Its body has five colors, and its long feather-like tail is even longer than a python.
This creature can run extremely fast, covering a thousand miles a day.
As for the cat teaser, it's actually a little bird toy Newt made... This is Zouwu's favorite toy, and seeing it makes Zouwu as happy as an ordinary cat seeing a teaser.
"I know you don't trust me, but you can see the current situation, Scamander."
Ignoring Gellert was undeterred, still persuading Newt, "A woman of my sister's level, Miss Swedding can't deal with—not many can compete with her, currently only the life-or-death unknown Miss Malfoy... But Miss Malfoy's personality, I've heard my sister describe, if she were a bit more normal, my sister wouldn't have any chance."
"She's whereabouts unknown now, so I think, we can't let my sister get ahead, we need someone to compete with her, hence, I believe Miss Swedding would be a good choice, since she also has strong feelings for that Scarhead Enchantress, right?"
Newt paused slightly in his actions.
Seeing hope, Gellert pressed on, "Come now, Scamander, don't you want to fight for your aunt's happiness? Think about it, my sister isn't scary, but do you really want your aunt to regret her life due to your moment of hesitation?"
Newt stopped his search for the cat teaser.
He admitted, Gellert made some valid points.
Despite not wanting to believe Gellert's words, he couldn't ignore his aunt's happiness.
Especially knowing his aunt became the way she was due to her feelings for Harry.
As a nephew, he must think of what his aunt wants, worry about what she worries about.
With this in mind, Newt asked, "Why should I collaborate with you?"
Seeing Newt take the bait, Gellert was delighted.
Great, as long as you don't stay silent!
Thinking this, Gellert decided to stoke the fire further.
"Because we want the same thing, Scamander," Gellert snorted, "I want my sister to leave that awful Scarhead—and your wish is for Miss Swedding and Scarhead to be together, which also means making sure my sister leaves Scarhead for you to achieve your goal."
"I won't deny that," Newt said.
"So we have shared interests, Scamander," Gellert said earnestly, "See, our core desires are actually the same... So what are you waiting for?"
Indeed, Gellert deserved his name as someone who played major roles before, speaking with an undeniable persuasiveness.
At least, Newt was now somewhat swayed, seriously weighing what Gellert had said, considering whether to recruit him into the Hapa Party.
He was brainstorming internally, pondering... Now Miss Grindelwald holds a huge advantage, having already seized the 'Magic Refueling' opportunity, almost an unbeatable situation.
In such circumstances, she has no need to send her brother as an undercover agent.
Moreover, being a proud person herself, she wouldn't stoop to such disgraceful acts.
Thus... perhaps it could be understood in two ways.
The first, Gellert is acting alone.
The second possibility, Gellert truly wants to separate his sister and Harry.
"I decide to observe you first, Grindelwald," Newt didn't fully trust Gellert, he just ambiguously said, "If you pass our evaluation, I'll formally recruit you into our core... But for now, you'll only be on probation."
"Understood," Gellert showed a knowing smile, "Of course I understand your skepticism, Scamander, given that she's my own sister, it's hard for anyone to believe I'd want to separate them."
Newt struggled for a long time, finally giving an evaluation.
"You're really... not quite human," he said with a complicated expression.
Gellert laughed.
"If I were truly a good brother who respects my sister's choice, would you be able to fulfill your wish and make your aunt happy?"
With these words, Newt fell silent.
He admitted Gellert was right.
However, Newt had no moral burdens, given that Harry and Miss Grindelwald aren't yet a couple, it didn't technically count as "separation."
Everyone's just in fair competition, though the starting lines are different, at least they're competing.
Newt felt he surely had to fight hard for his aunt's happiness.
Since that's the case, temporarily teaming up with this evil Grindelwald wasn't a big deal.
"I remember Miss Grindelwald saying, we should wait for Miss Malfoy's return before proceeding with fair competition," Newt suddenly said, "Your Eye of Prophecy, quickly tell me, when will Miss Malfoy return?"
"I seemed to have told you to wait until next Christmas, why are you in such a hurry?" Gellert said leisurely.
"You never told me," Newt said firmly.
Gellert "Oh"ed and said, "Well, then it was Nimongard and Al who said it—get ready, Mr. Scamander, strive to let that foolish wooden Scarhead know your aunt's feelings within this year..."
"Foolish wooden man?" Newt asked in confusion, "Why call him that?"
Gellert snorted and said, "God, if you knew the story between that Cassandra Malfoy and that foolish Scarhead, you'd think he's just an unworthy thing like I do!"
After his rant, Gellert embellished and shared the story he heard from his sister with Newt.
Of course, he mixed in some personal grievances, resulting in an enhanced version of the "Miss Malfoy wants my confession" adolescent pig-headed tale.
After listening to Gellert detail this century-old feud, Newt's expression grew complex.
Such a wooden man... can really...
(Third installation delivered)
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