m_findlow | Fantastic Beasts & Where To Find Them: Fanfic: Room service

Title: Room service
Fandom: Fantastic beasts and where to find them
Characters: Newt Scamander, OC
Author: m_findlow
Rating: PG
Length: 833 words
Content notes: none
Author notes: Written for samuraiter's prompt "Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them, Newt Scamander, he never judges a creature by its appearance alone" at fic_promptly
Summary: Newt didn't expect to find anything in this tin pot town.

Newt hadn't intended on stopping here. He'd been headed for Arizona and this small town was just meant to be a one night stopover

'What kinda name is Newt, anyway?' asked the hotel manager. 'You Brits are a strange lot,' he added. 'You with the Ministry or something?'

'Just a traveller,' Newt replied. 'A writer, actually.'

'Whatchoo writing?'

'A compendium on the world's rarest and most misunderstood magical creatures.'

'Right,' he replied slowly, nodding. The guy was clearly a nutter. Probably imagined them in his head. 'Seen any good ones?'

'Loads, actually.' He decided it probably wasn't a good idea to mention that most of them were living in his suitcase. 'Where's good to eat around here?'

'Try Moe's down on the corner. Them no-mags make the best pecan pie this side of the Appalachians.'

Before Newt had a chance to thank him for the suggestion, there was an almighty scream. Instinctively, Newt followed the hotel owner out the back to where a family had run out of their rooms and were now peeling away down the highway in their station wagon.

'Holy crap!' The hotel owner said, standing in the doorway of the pokey little hotel room. Newt made to move past him but he was roughly grabbed and shoved back out. 'You really don't wanna go in there, pal.'

'Why not?'

'There's a great ugly beast in there!'

Newt ignored the warning and pushed past, trying to get a look for himself. It wasn't until he reached the bathroom that he saw it for himself. Not that there was much to see, since all he could make out was a huge brown hairy flap of skin that seemed to cover most of the rest of its body. It seemed to sense him, taking a peek from behind what Newt had established was a giant ear, before it quickly hid right back behind it.

'You're an Appalachian Mitrodux,' he said, noting the big hoof like feet and the wrinkly, saggy skin covered in rough hair. There'd been stories of them hiding in the hills on East coast America for decades, but no one had actually seen one for just as long. He hadn't even thought to come looking for himself, assuming they'd either died out or were so well hidden that no one would ever find them. What a marvelous entry this would be for his book!

'Come on, now. No need to be shy. I'm not going to judge you. Why, some of my closest friends have, well... Actually they don't, but that hardly matters, does it?'

The Appalachian Mitrodux drew one of its enormous ears back, revealing the lipless mouth and the four rows of teeth that protruded from its mouth. That really wasn't the worst of it. The breath which now came out in long puffs of warm putrefaction was hitting him full in the face. It was all he could do not to upend his stomach.

'There we are, then,' he said. 'That wasn't so hard, was it? Now, what say you and I go for a little walk?' The Mitrodux looked reluctant to move anywhere. 'Don't get me wrong,' he began, 'I have no issue with you staying here, but the muggles probably aren't going to agree with me, hmm? A hotel is no place for you.'

There was a haw and a squeak and suddenly out from behind the other huge ear, tumbled a much smaller creature.

'Oh, you have little ones,' Newt said. 'No wonder you thought it might be best to come inside. There were three more, nestled behind her great hulk, making it four in total.

'Newt!' came the cry. 'I've called the fire chief. He's a friend of mine. Gonna bring down something we can capture it with.'

'There's really no need,' Newt replied.' It's not dangerous.'

'What are you talking about? It's a great ugly monster.'

'She's a mother trying to protect her babies, that's all.'

'Well, either way we gotta get rid of it. I can't have monsters ruining my business. What's say you stay here and keep an eye on it, and I'll wait for the chief out front.' He didn't wait for Newt to agree, simply leaving him.

'It looks like you can't stay here, old girl,' he said, picking up one of the tiny Mitrodux, about the size of a football, but I do have somewhere you can go. Just until we can find you somewhere safe to live.'

Not long after, Newt left to find the hotel owner, who was waiting out by the side of the highway.

'I thought you was keeping an eye on that beast?'

'It escaped I'm afraid,' he apologised. 'I doubt you'll see it again after the scare it got here, though.'

'Hmph. The scare it got? I just lost my only customers thanks to that honking great monster. This isn't a big town, ya know. Don't get a lot of tourists.'

'You've still got me,' Newt replied, patting his suitcase gently.

Fantastic Beasts & Where To Find Them: Fanfic: Room service

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