Chapter One
Remus ☽
The buzz of the audience could be heard from backstage. Remus was dreading being thrown in front of a camera, even if he had been many times before. The feeling really shouldn't have felt foreign, yet somehow it did. He felt like he wasn't supposed to be there; he was viewing this whole experience through someone else's body. It was strange.
The coupling process went a bit like this:
You would be lined up on the stairs with two other celebrities, then be coupled up one by one.
You would make your way up the other set of stairs to the area where Fabian Prewett (one of the hosts) conducted interviews for the celebrities and their partners.
All in all, it was quite a simple process, yet it filled Remus with so much unease that he felt a tad queasy.
He was second in line to be coupled up, right after Arthur Weasley - a comedian who Remus had never even heard of. Let's be honest, he hadn't heard of many of the celebrities on the show this year, which made him feel slightly uneducated. Was he meant to look them up before coming into the studio and interacting with them?
“Two minutes ‘til cameras are rolling!” An assistant producer shouted from the top of a nearby ladder, sending the production crew into a frenzy.
In all of thirty seconds, Remus had had makeup touched up on his face, people frantically smoothing his outfit, and taming his hair; it was a lot to process.
A crew member ushered him onto the iconic Strictly staircase, and he was told to stand about halfway up the stairs where there was a marker in the shape of a glitterball. He stood patiently, however his hands were shaking and he could not focus at all.
He quickly scanned the audience and saw his mum and dad, who both lit up with smiles at seeing their son. Hope blew kisses while Lyall gave two thumbs up with an awkward yet reassuring smile on his face.
God, he really hoped he could make them proud. They would be proud of him whether he got voted out in week one or won the whole bloody competition, so he didn't know why he was so nervous over the ordeal.
A flurry of movement took his attention away from his parents. The professional dancers had taken their places on the staircase.
Sirius Black was at the top of the steps, dressed in a fully black outfit (very fitting considering his name), consisting of a black buttoned top that he had unbuttoned quite low down, and black dress pants.
Barty Crouch Jr was in relatively the same outfit, the only change was the sparkly green top he was sporting. Remus began to wonder if all the male pros would be wearing basically the same outfit. He hoped not, because that made the real possibility of him having to wear that outfit too.
Molly Prewett was right at the bottom of the stairs, in a purple glittery dress (that really clashed with her red hair), and a beaming smile. She was clearly very excited to be there, a stark contrast to the other two professionals, who looked miserable.
One of the producers shouted a countdown from ten, and then it all got very real.
Fabian Prewett took his place in the “Fabitorium” , or in other words, the auditorium that had been dubbed that, while all of the crew ran off screen, and the countdown ended. The Strictly Come Dancing theme tune played, and from then on, Remus sort of zoned out. He was still there, but not paying attention one bit.
Arthur Weasley was called down to where Gideon Prewett was standing, doing a jovial little introduction before the dramatic instrumental played.
“Arthur, your partner will be…Molly!” Gideon calls out with a beaming grin, as Molly immediately starts squealing and rushes over to encapsulate her new partner in a hug. He's grinning ear to ear, but Remus’ heart drops right to his feet as he comes to a realisation.
Oh.
Just his luck. His two options left, Barty Crouch Jr and Sirius Black. The two cocky, unfairly attractive men. He felt about twenty times more nervous now as he surveyed both of them.
They looked as confident as ever, but also weirdly looking like clones, (the Strictly outfit department really needed to up their game by the looks of it.)
Remus, bracing himself for action, finally descended the iconic Strictly stairs to join Gideon next.
“Ah, Remus Lupin! Professional baker and author, incredible to have you join us this year!” Gideon exclaimed, the audience clapping right after. Remus’ dad gives a whistle, and he goes bright red.
“Let’s hope your spinning is better than your stirring, young man. How are you feeling?” Gideon makes a pun and Remus internally scoffs. With these joints? Not a chance.
“I'm a bit Nervous I won't lie, but I'm excited to see who my partner will be.” He said, not wanting to keep his answers too long. Nervous was an understatement; He was terrified.
“Well, Remus….your partner for this year will be….”
Tick, tick, tick.
There was no clock in the studio, but Remus could feel the seconds passing by as he waited with baited breath for his partner to be called.
“Sirius!” Gideon called so enthusiastically, slapping Remus on the back excitedly.
Remus was starstruck. He was internally grateful he received Sirius as his partner, much preferring him over Barty. A smile broke out on his face as his new partner bounded over.
“Hiya mate!” Sirius exclaimed, bringing Remus into a tight hug. He smelled nice, like cologne, but not one that was too overpowering or gave him a headache.
Remus pulled back from the hug first. Sirius still had that toothy grin on his face, clearly very pleased about being partnered with him.
The audience ended their applause, and Gideon spoke again.
“Off you go up the stairs to my wonderful brother!”
The two ran (or in Remus’ case, a very fast walk) to the grand staircase, Sirius going up it two steps at a time while the other very quickly followed.
Remus sat down on one of the plush pink sofas while Sirius was directed to stand behind him, waiting for Barty and his new partner- Charity Burbage, if he remembered correctly- to emerge, while Molly and Arthur engaged in conversation with Fabian Prewett, the other presenter of the show.
Remus sat in awkward silence until his new partner's cheery voice broke the quietness.
“How are you feeling?” His voice is still relatively excitable.
Remus mulled over his answer before replying, tilting his head back to look at the older man. From this angle, he could see Sirius’ Adam's apple bobbing as he swallowed. He would be lying if he said he didn't find the dancer incredibly attractive, it was just the plain truth, (and he was sure half of the Strictly fanbase would agree with him if he was ever to admit it out loud.)
“Mm, nervous. But I'm excited. Haven't been in front of a camera in quite a bit.” Remus murmured.
Sirius nodded, about to reply before being interrupted by a makeup artist practically shoving a brush in his face and giving him some touch ups.
Someone did the same to Remus, doing something with his eyebrows before disappearing in all of twenty seconds.
“Ten seconds to rolling!” A producer shouts, before standing behind the cameraman. Ten seconds went by in a flash, and before he knew it, Fabian Prewett was bursting into his spiel of introduction.
Firstly, he went to Molly and Arthur, who were both enthralled with each other as partners. Their flaming red hair stood out against the purple and blue backdrop. They discussed feelings about the show, dancing, and everything that could possibly be linked to the show in general. Remus planned his answers mentally.
“Okay, coming over to you, Remus. How are you feeling about being a contestant?” Fabian asked, directing all his attention on him.
Remus smiled before answering. “I'm so happy to be here. Honestly, I've seen the other pairings and they're all brilliant. I just hope that I can, you know, make it far.”
The Prewett twin nods, before gazing up at Sirius.
“Sirius. Now, last year you finished fourth in the competition, but you've consistently placed within the top five for the past seven years you've been with us. That's quite the achievement, but you have only won once. This year, are you hoping to go all the way with Remus and finally lift the glitterball?”
Sirius nodded throughout the question.
“Yeah, I'm really hoping that this year is it. Obviously I'm so grateful to have won once and placed so highly in other years, but I would like to win again. Regulus has won twice and he's been here less time than me, so I want to beat him too.”
Remus almost forgot that Sirius had a brother- and even a cousin or two- on the show. It was quite well known that they had a bit of (he used that term lightly) a rivalry on and off camera. Nobody really knew why, but the tension was palpable between them all.
He just hoped Sirius wouldn't get too competitive.
Lily ❀
The first three couples had already been paired and now it was Lily’s turn to be bathed under the harsh light of the ballroom for the first time. She had nobody there to wish her luck, leaving her to pace backstage alone- her green, silk, bodycon dress hugging her tightly as she fiddled with her large silver hoops.
As she approached the top of the stairs, she saw the first three celebrities and their new partners talking to Fabian upstairs, each of them looking so relaxed and relieved. She had to keep telling herself how good it would feel to be out there on the dance floor, the one that she had always only ever seen on a TV screen.
She would be coming out with Pandora Lovegood and Alice Fortescue- they had previously met in the green room and she found both of them to be easy to be around. She was never really worried about the friendship aspect of it, however, since she had always found it rather easy to start up a good conversation and make friends.
As Gideon’s voice gained volume, she knew it was time to go out there. She flashed Pandora and Alice a smile before the three of them stepped down onto the stairs.
“Alright, next on our coupling up journey, we have…”
“Artist Pandora Lovegood!” Gideon paused for the applause whilst Lily smoothed down her dress one last time.
“Presenter Lily Evans!” Her heart thudded along to her footsteps of black stiletto under the luminous steps. She heard all of the people cheering and let out a small giggle instinctively, smiling and waving at the enthusiastic audience.
“Aaaaaand gardener- influencer hybrid Alice Fortescue!” Lily was now focusing on Gideon who was wearing a velvet green blazer which matched perfectly with his black tie and fiery ginger hair which seemed to be a more vibrant orange than even hers.
“Hey ladies, now are you ready to meet your partners?” Gideon Prewett said with a cheery grin. Lily looked around at the audience, then at the band, and finally at the four judges sat anticipating the pairings. The three girls all nodded politely as the lights came up on the pros.
Standing on the other side of the stairs were Narcissa Malfoy, Regulus Black, and James Potter. One of these was to be her partner, who she would spend the next few months with.
She supposed none of them were awful, she would be alright with any one of them, they were all good enough dancers. Regulus and Narcissa were from the world renowned Black family, known for their ballroom dancing; and James Potter, who joined Strictly a few years ago and won the whole competition last year.
First up was Pandora, Lily paid all her attention on seeing exactly how this worked so she could follow after. A few silent seconds passed Regulus- who was wearing an all black suit- was announced as her partner. He smiled at Pandora before walking over to her and Gideon and giving her a polite handshake and a smile.
Now it was time for Lily to start panicking, she stopped fiddling with the silver necklace that sat on her neck as a good luck charm from one of her close friends.
Pandora and Regulus made their way up the steps towards Fabian ready to wait for the next couples. Going second was probably the best, there wouldn’t be the stress of going first yet there was still suspense as to who would be her partner. There were two options left of course, Narcissa Malfoy and James Potter. At this point she just wanted the whole ordeal to be over and done with and she could say with her whole heart that she didn’t care who she got.
“Next up, Lily Evans!” She stepped slowly towards Gideon, glancing towards the audience with a small grin.
“So you are a presenter on loose women currently, correct?” She nodded, her waves bouncing excitedly as she did so.
“Okay well let’s hope that those hips are loose too!” The audience responded to that with a severe unnecessary laugh that made her feel like she was in a sitcom. Now, Lily, are you ready to find out who your Strictly Come Dancing dance partner will be?”
“I think so!” Lily said enthusiastically in an attempt to suppress the nervous feeling that consumed her and she felt like the floor would swallow her whole- she wished it would.
The suspenseful music started and her brain turned into the equivalent of a plate of spaghetti, thoughts racing through each tiny strand. seconds felt like hours until the music stopped at a crashing halt.
“ …James Potter!”
She breathed a slow sigh of relief before James ran over to her, virtually tackling her into an immediate hug, sweeping her up off of the floor and taking her breath away.
“Hey!” he whispered into her ear before pulling out of the hug and taking her hand up the stairs towards Fabian. Lily was just glad that part was over, she hated the feeling of anticipation from waiting.
This left Alice with Narcissa which Lily could see would be a nice pairing and they made their way to join James and Lily with Pandora and Regulus. Fabian sat in the middle of the sofa fiddling with his microphone and ruffling his ginger hair.
James made sure there was never an awkward silence between the two, yapping every second about anything and everything. He didn’t expect Lily to answer him and that was oddly okay with her. He was interesting and energetic as she had already seen in the previous seasons and in short he was just a ball of sunshine. He wasn’t the type to act like he was better than everyone else purely based on the fact that he was a professional. Lily was almost excited to be working with someone who wasn’t boring all of the time, she wanted to be paired with someone who wouldn’t make the process too hard and James seemed capable of doing that.
The cameras started rolling with a quick click and James promptly finished talking.
“Thank you Gid, I’m here with our next set of couples- Regulus black and Pandora Lovegood; James Potter and Lily Evans; and Narcissa Malfoy and Alice Fortescue! Now Pandora, can you please tell us a little bit about yourself?” Fabian said in the exact same voice that Gideon spoke to her a few moments beforehand.
Lily didn’t catch what Pandora said, she was thinking about what she would answer if she was being asked the same questions. It felt as though she was in her acting classes again, thinking of three fun facts about herself to share with the class.
“Lovely, thank you both! Now James, you won last year, how does that make you feel going into this year's competition, do you think you will be holding that glitterball again this year?”
“Well I sure hope so Fabian. I will put my faith in Lily and I think she can do well. Last year was so good and it was so rewarding to know that I taught someone how to dance so well that we won!” For someone so chaotic, he still managed to speak so eloquently and Lily liked that about him.
“Thank you James, Lily, how are you feeling going into this year's competition?”
Now it was her time to speak, she cleared her throat before answering. “I’m actually quite excited, I trust that James can lead us to the win and I’d like to learn something new. I’m feeling confident actually, I honestly thought I’d feel more worried than I am so that’s always a bonus.” Somewhat satisfied with her answer, she went back to fiddling with her silver hoops once the camera panned away from her. She almost missed what Alice said, too busy analysing her own speech.
“Right Narcissa, we have to talk about your absence last year, why was that if you don’t mind us asking.”
“So I had two beautiful babies, Draco and Estabelle Treasure Malfoy. They are watching at home with their daddy tonight!” Narcissa said waving towards the camera presumably to her kids. She found Estabelle to be an absolutely wild name but who was she to judge, she probably wanted to name her future kids something just as diabolical as Estabelle or Draco when she was growing up.
Alice then told the group about her marriage that was coming up right as the show was set to finish, and briefly mentioned her fiancé Frank, who was watching the show in the audience.
Despite all of this, Lily found herself intently watching James’ every move. She told herself it was just admiration and she found him an easy person to look at in the least weird way possible.
As Fabian handed the screen back over to Gideon, Lily breathed a massive sigh of relief. Now it was time for the fun part.
Marlene ♫๋࣭
Marlene was patiently waiting backstage, fighting the urge to look in the mirror every two seconds to make sure that she looked acceptable. She had redyed her roots since the interview and was looking more presentable, but she didn’t recognise herself at all. She was used to loose fitted, baggy clothes that covered her body, not anything like the skin tight, sparkling dress she was wearing right now. The silver reflected on the harsh lighting in the room and created shapes on the walls; Marlene was sure someone was going to get blinded if the light so much as hit her the wrong way.
She was dragged out of the dressing room and rushed onto the staircase before she even had time to process what was happening. She barely moved as people frantically ran about, adjusting her and the other contestants' hair and make-up.
Marlene was the last out of the group she had been put into to get coupled up. The other two contestants stood in front of her; Ted Tonks and Mary Macdonald. She had vaguely spoken to them both before. She didn’t really understand what Ted did, it was some sort of bizarre Olympic sport no-one had ever heard of, skeletoning, skeletonist? She had no clue. He was looking well put together in a sparkly pale green suit.
Mary however she recognised, she was on EastEnders, Marlene had never seen it but it was a popular enough show for her to be able to recognise the cast. She was wearing a pale pink dress covered in glittering swirls. Her curly hair was tucked behind her ears, framing her face and showing off the long dangling earrings she was wearing.
The crew were still running up and down the staircase, fixing last minute mistakes and setting up cameras and microphones along the side lines. It was starting to put Marlene on edge, if she could just go into this without putting too much thought behind it she would be fine. It was when she started to think about it that she began to panic.
She watched the professionals who were standing on the opposite staircase, with Gideon Prewett who was waiting to start calling out who would be partnered up with who. He was engaged in a conversation with Emmeline Vance who Marlene, not so subtly, thought was extremely hot, with her pale skin, thick black eyeliner and black lipstick.
Behind her was Andromeda Black who was in a short sparkly blue dress, there were people around her doing up her hair, she looked perfectly calm as four different people fussed over her and fixed her appearance.
Then there was Dorcas Meadowes. They had a velvet green suit on and Marlene hated how good they looked it in with their braids covered in little silver charms and their hands drowning in rings. They stood with their back straight and hands clasped in front of them, a blank face staring out into the ballroom, completely disregarding everything that was going on around them, not thanking the crew as they rushed about helping everyone, not even smiling at them.
Before she could think up any more petty reasons to hate Dorcas, the crew all fled backstage, Gideon took his place and one of the cameramen began counting down from ten.
Marlene fixed her posture and plastered a smile on her face just like everyone else was doing and waited for the camera light to start flashing red.
“Three, two, one!”
Gideon immediately started talking and if she’s being honest, Marlene did drone him out until she heard the first name being called.
“Ted, would you like to know who your partner is going to be?”
“I would love to know Gideon.” he responded enthusiastically.
“You are going to be paired up with…Andromeda!”
The brunette woman almost immediately materialised beside him and enveloped him in a hug, taking a moment to process before he threw his arms around her too. They broke apart and Gideon ushered them towards the staircase up to the deemed “Fabitorium” to be interviewed by his brother.
Gideon turned to Mary next, he began by asking her how she felt going from acting to dancing before turning the conversation back to who her partner would be.
“Do you have any preferences between these two?”
“Not at all, honestly I just want someone who’s a good teacher.”
“Well I can assure you that Emmeline will be incredible at teaching you.”
Marlene took all of three seconds to process what that meant for her and bury it down for her to think about later. She had to keep up appearances on camera, it didn’t matter how much she hated the person. If she wanted to win, and she did, she would just have to be civil about it.
She watched as Emmeline and Mary hurried up the staircase, leaving her, Dorcas and Gideon alone on the floor.
“Marlene I’m sure that by now you’ve figured out who you’re being partnered up with?” He raised his eyebrows at her and she gave herself less than half a second before she was smiling and saying “I think I might be able to take a guess at it.”
“Well for the sake of anyone out there who hasn’t put two and two together, Marlene your partner will be…Dorcas.”
They walked over to her and unlike the other couples who had all given each other hugs, they shook her hand. God were they that pretentious that they couldn’t even hug the person that would be their partner for the foreseeable future.
The two of them were ushered up the staircase to the auditorium where they met up with the other two couples and Fabian Prewett, Gideon’s twin brother.
Fabian was talking to Mary and Emmeline so the two of them sat down on one of the pink sofas in silence. Marlene was almost expecting Dorcas to ask how she was, but then she remembered exactly who it was that was standing behind her, with their crossed arms and perfectly upright posture.
Someone started counting down from ten and soon enough the cameras were rolling and Fabian was questioning Ted and Andromeda on how they felt to have each other as their partner. He asked how Andromeda felt about competing against so many members of her family, then questioned Ted on how he felt going into Strictly after being a skeleton racer - which Marlene still did not understand the logistics of - before asking how they felt to be each others partner, which they both replied enthusiastically about how thrilled they were.
Fabian then moved onto Mary and Emmeline, asking them similar questions as he had asked the other pairing, how they felt being paired together and such. Marlene was too busy planning out her own answers to really take in much that the others were saying. She was focused on a speck of blue glitter that was stuck to one of the sofas when Fabian finally turned towards her and Dorcas.
“Marlene, we'll start with you, how does it feel to be here? Is it at all similar to being on stage?”
“First off, It’s incredible to be here, younger me would be so proud, and honestly it does feel quite familiar, with the live audience and then Flitwick’s band.”
“And how do you feel to have Dorcas as your partner? I’m sure you’ve heard about how competitive they are.” He raised his eyebrows at her and Marlene struggled not to laugh at how comical he looked.
“I think we’ll work well together, I’m here to win and that’s what I plan to do so I think we have a common goal we can help each other work towards.” she lied through her teeth, ‘we’ll work well together’ fucking bullshit.
The twin shifted in his seat so he was turned to face Dorcas and Marlene relaxed knowing that he was done asking her questions.
“Dorcas how do you feel to have Marlene as your partner? Do you think she will help bring you to win the glitterball once again?”
“Well Fabian I believe that she definitely has the potential, it just depends on whether or not she puts in the time and effort to win”.
What made them think she wasn’t going to put in any effort? She wasn’t just here for fun, she had outrightly stated that she was here to win and she would do it out of spite if she fucking had to.
Evan 𓆚
Evan watched as the final three celebrities joined the professionals on the stairs. First there was Peter Pettigrew, a presenter for Masterchef. He seemed like he'd be easy to teach, Evan would be happy to be paired with him. Then there was Amelia Bones, a well known figure skater. Evan had seen her on the tv a couple of times and she was so elegant, with the way she skated, he would be over the moon if he was paired with her. The final celebrity was Kingsley Shacklebolt, a famous violinist. Evan didn't really know much about him, he had heard one or two of his pieces but that was about it, he didn't seem too bad as well.
Gideon Prewett began introducing the three of them, As the screens around the ballroom began to play each celebrity’s respective intros. He watched as Peter Pettigrew dressed in a white shirt paired with a sparkly bow tie began introducing himself. It was very similar to what Evan had done: name, age, some other information that wasn't that important, and how exciting he was to go on strictly. Amelia and Kingsleys’ intros were pretty much the same.
Evan zoned out through the videos, he would get to know whoever his partner was anyway. He snapped back to reality when he heard Gideon say, “alright Peter, your partner will be...” Evan straightened his posture as Gideon looked at the card he was holding. “Sybil Trelawney!”
Sybil began walking down the stairs, she quickly walked over to Peter and gave him a tight hug. People began speaking but Evan wasn't taking any of it in, he was just waiting for Gideon to start speaking again.
“Ok, Amelia Bones, who will your partner be?” Evan stiffened up. “Maybe some of your tricks on the ice will help you in the coming weeks.” there was an echo of faint laughs around the ballroom. Gideon once again at the paper. “There's two left, who will it be, who will it be…”
“Evan Rosier!”
It took a second for it to sink in, but Evan was ecstatic. He jogged down the stairs and did a little spin on the ballroom floor, before going over to Amelia and hugging her, as he had been instructed to do by the producers.
“The new professional, you must be so chuffed with that!” Gideon smiled at Amelia.
“Yeah, yeah I'm really happy.” Amelia smiled to Gideon.
“Good to hear, Amelia Bones and Evan Rosier everyone.”
Evan linked his and Amelia's arms and walked up the stairs on the other side of the ballroom, his life felt like a dream right now.
The next few hours went by in a blur. When he and Amelia got to the Fabitorium they were asked a few questions, then they got told to wait backstage while the crew finalised a few things. Backstage was covered in glitter as much glitter as the stage, with costume rails lining the walls. There were a few vanities that had bits of fabric and sequins scattered across them. This seemed like the type of place where glitter took over and never left. He was leaning against the wall beside a clothing rail when Dorcas Meadowes approached him.
“Rosier, question.”
“Meadowes.” Evan nodded at them. Apparently they were using last names. Two could play this game.
“Just wanted to let you know, all the professionals are going to the Nando's around the corner after we finish, you can come if you want.”
“Maybe, what time?”
“Nine-ish, guess I'll see you there?”
“No promises.”
Dorcas Meadowes was perhaps the most intimidating human Evan had ever spoken to.
_____________________________
Evan looked around his dressing room before he left. He was still in the studio; while some people opted to go home straight after filming, others - like Evan - stayed. He had only really stayed here because he wanted to have his dressing room in order. He had put a few old polaroids on his mirror: one of him and his sister from when they were still teenagers, one of him and his cat Hamster,(yes he named his cat Hamster), and another of some old school friends. He had filled one of the drawers with snacks, placed all his stage makeup out, and added a few cushions to the sofa. He just wanted to have the place feel more comfortable. It was where he was going to practically live for the upcoming weeks. He glanced at the clock; 8:54, He needed to get going if he wanted to make it to Nando's.
Evan grabbed his black coat he had hap-hazardly tossed on the sofa. He flung his bag over his shoulder and quickly closed his dressing room door as he left, making sure to twist the lock behind him.
It was when he got onto the street and out of the building that he realised he didn't exactly know how to get to Nando's. Dorcas has said it was around the corner, but, which corner? Was it actually around a corner or was it just a phrase the English use? He rummaged through his bag to find his phone. The screen lit up the dark street he was standing on, Amelia had messaged him. He forgot he had given her his number, which he needed to plan his training sessions with her for the upcoming show. He unlocked his phone and clicked on google maps, typed in Nando's, and began following the directions.
He spotted the group almost immediately, it wasn't as though they were hard to miss. All eleven of them sat nearest the window, three tables had been merged together to accommodate the dancers. Dorcas made eye contact with him and waved. He waved back, as Dorcas got out of their seat and made their way over to him.
“Rosier,” they exclaimed. “I was worried you weren't going to show up.” Surprisingly, Dorcas pulled him into a hug. Evan was taken aback but hugged them back.
“Well, I'm here now.”
“Yes yes, come on, you can get to know the Strictly family.” They took Evan over to the mega-table and pointed to the seat next to theirs. He just so happened to have Barty Crouch Jr on his other side.
Evan had seen Barty before. Obviously he had met them all today, but only very briefly. He had also seen Barty perform in the past few years of strictly. He thought he knew what Barty Crouch Jr looked like, but oh boy was he wrong. He was so, so wrong. He had never seen Barty's face so close, with his piercings glimmered in the dim light of the restaurant and his hair hung in front of his face almost perfectly. Evan could see a few remaining pieces of glitter that Barty had obviously been covered in from the show. In fact, Evan was sure he was on the exact same level of glitzed-up, but the glitter on Barty gave him a sort of glow. He shook himself out of it.
“Hey pretty boy,” Barty smiled at him. “We haven't really met properly, I'm Barty.”
“Evan.”
Evan soon found himself shaking Barty’s hand that had become outstretched. They were holding hands
Barty turned his attention back to the others at the table, he yelled something across to someone but Evan was not paying attention. He was crushing on Barty Crouch Jr.
James Potter was sitting across from Evan and he began a lively conversation revolving around dancing. He was nice, they were all nice.
Throughout the rest of the night they all ate their food and chatted away, it started with the others joining in on his and James’ conversation about the upcoming series, but eventually spiralled off into other things. Evan found himself mainly talking to Barty, they were sitting next to each other after all. He also struck up a conversation with James, who he found really entertaining and easy to talk to. His main focus, however, remained fully on Barty, who he would catch himself staring at him at the strangest times: when he was taking a sip of his drink, when he was flipping Aurora Sinstra off as a joke, when he was folding and refolding his napkin just so his hands had something to do. Evan couldn't stop. The worst thing was that Barty had an overall flirty tone with everyone, so he didn't know what to think. Evan had also noticed that Regulus Black had been chucking dirty looks at him. He had spoken to Regulus a single time, so Evan had no clue what he had done to upset him.
At the end of the night Dorcas offered to drive him home, but he declined. His car was still at the studio, which he discovered was actually just around the literal corner. He would just walk back and drive home on his own accord. Everyone was crowded outside of the restaurant, saying goodbye and hugging, while Evan kept to the side. He made eye contact with Barty who winked at him, but Evan couldn't tell if he imagined that part or not.
He waved to them all as he walked back the way he came. They all had split off in different directions, but he had ended up on the same route as Regulus.
Evan tried to focus on the path but it was difficult when all he could feel was Regulus’ icy eyes looking daggers into his back. He managed to turn around once and it turned out he was right. Regulus was glaring at him. Eventually he turned a different way and Evan was free to walk to his car without the anxiety looming over him.
He got home and collapsed onto his bed. He checked his phone before putting it on charge and going to sleep. He had given Dorcas his number and was added to the group chat they all had, there were one or two new messages regarding a topic Evan didn't know about just then another message popped up at the top of the screen.
Barty Crouch : hey pretty boy
Evan smiled to himself.
Evan Rosier : hey :)