"Honestly, I was really scared just now." After leaving Knockturn Alley, Newt patted his chest, looking genuinely shaken.
"It wasn't that serious." Kael gave him a glance. "It was just a bunch of Dark Wizards. There were a lot of them, sure, but if it really came down to a fight, it's not like we'd necessarily lose."
Kael's tone was very calm, as if they were talking about what to have for lunch, and there was still one thing he didn't say out loud.
When you're facing Newt Scamander, numerical advantage is basically a joke. As long as he's willing to open his case, those Fantastic Beasts don't even need to do anything—just running a few laps back and forth would be enough to stomp Knockturn Alley a few inches lower.
So Kael really couldn't figure out what Newt had to be afraid of.
"Worst case, we could just ride Norbert and fly away." Kael said.
"That's not what I'm worried about. I'm worried about you." Newt glanced at Kael.
"Me?" Kael pointed at himself. "I'm not afraid of them either, wait a second..."
Then Kael seemed to think of something. "You don't seriously think I was going to have Norbert deal with those shopkeepers, do you?"
Newt didn't say anything, but his shifty gaze was as good as an admission.
"No way… there's no need for that." Kael shook his head.
Knockturn Alley had existed for so many years for a reason; Professor Dumbledore and the Ministry of Magic hadn't wiped it out, so why should he stick his nose in?
"And those shopkeepers were actually pretty sincere." Kael went on, "Their tone was a bit nasty, sure, but they did help me solve the Werewolf problem… like they said, a welcome gift for us.
"They already backed down. Why would I go out of my way to make a bunch of enemies for myself?"
"It's good you can see it that way." Newt said with a smile. "If you had really decided to go after them, I would've helped you, but after that, I might have to take back the Nundu and the Wampus Cat."
"I wouldn't..." Kael waved his hand. "But I don't understand—why would you think that? Or has my reputation out there really gotten that bad already?"
"That shouldn't be it, right?" Kael lowered his head, muttering, "I feel like I've got a pretty gentle personality, and I was quite popular on the train ride back too."
Newt cleared his throat twice and said nothing.
It was mainly what Kael had done these past few days that had made him think this way.
Back in the Dark Forest, Kael had killed seven or eight Werewolf Wizards without so much as blinking, and just now in Knockturn Alley, it had been the same—at the very first encounter, he'd let Norbert kill that guy who had mocked him.
It was perfectly normal that those actions would make him think some not-so-good thoughts.
However...
If Kael knew what Newt was thinking, he would definitely feel terribly wronged.
Hadn't they gone to the Dark Forest precisely to deal with the Werewolf threat?
In his mind, "solving a problem" definitely involved using his hands. He couldn't exactly go reason with the Werewolves… that would be ridiculous.
He had even, in the end, because of something Dumbledore had said a long time ago, spared the surviving Werewolves—he just let them stay in the Dark Forest instead of wiping them out completely.
To be honest, even now Kael still felt he'd been a bit soft, because if their positions had been reversed, those Werewolves wouldn't necessarily have spared him—in fact, they definitely wouldn't have.
As for what had just happened in Knockturn Alley, that had purely been Norbert's own dragon-ish behavior and had nothing to do with Kael. At the start, he had honestly just wanted Norbert to give that overconfident guy a little lesson; who knew the dragon would use that much force.
So it really had nothing to do with him.
Before long, Kael and Newt returned once more to the empty Leaky Cauldron. Tom Senior was still polishing that glass he'd already wiped who knew how many times; with no customers in the place, he didn't have any other work to do.
The two of them didn't greet him and just walked straight out of the pub.
It was already very late, and there wasn't a single person on the street outside.
"Want to go say hi to everyone?" Kael asked.
He didn't say where, but Newt knew very well that Kael meant the Headquarter of Order of Phoenix.
"I'll pass on the crowd." Newt shook his head.
Newt had never liked going to crowded places, and this time he'd come out solely because of the Werewolf incident. Now that the problem was solved, naturally he was going to head back.
Kael knew Newt's temperament, and seeing him refuse, he didn't push it.
The two of them went their separate ways at the door of the Leaky Cauldron. Newt Apparated away, and it was anyone's guess whether he was going back to Dorset or off to find Dumbledore.
Kael also used Apparition, but he didn't let himself appear directly at Grimmauld Place. Instead, he chose a small alley one street over as his destination and then took ten minutes or so to walk the rest of the way.
Kael came to a stop in front of the house marked number twelve. Since he already knew the address, he could clearly see what was going on inside: the lights were on, which meant there was still someone home.
It was probably Fred and George, who had just gotten back, or maybe whoever was on night watch. With that thought, Kael raised his hand and knocked on the door.
He didn't have to wait long before someone opened it from the inside.
"Kael? Oh, you're finally back."
To Kael's surprise, it wasn't Fred or George who opened the door, but Mrs. Weasley.
She stepped forward and hugged Kael, looking very emotional. "Fred told me he ran into you and that you went to Knockturn Alley. I've been worried about you this whole time. Thank God you're all right."