Chapter 3
Not all that Mrs. Black, however, with the assistance of her two sons, could ask on the subject, was sufficient to draw from her husband any satisfactory description of Mr. Lupin. They attacked him in various ways—with barefaced questions, ingenious suppositions, and distant surmises; but he eluded the skill of them all, and they were at last obliged to accept the second-hand intelligence of their neighbour, Lady Rosier. Her report was highly favourable. Mr. Rosier had been delighted with him. He was quite young, wonderfully handsome, extremely agreeable, and, to crown the whole, he meant to be at the next assembly with a large party. At least he meant to be at the next assembly after significant pleading and begging from half the town. Ignoring the circumstances with which he was convinced, Mrs. Black claimed that there was nothing that could be more delightful! To be fond of dancing was a certain step towards falling in love, and she was convinced of the very lively hopes of Mr. Lupin’s heart.
“If I can but see one of my nieces happily settled at Godric,” said Mrs. Black to her husband, “and all the others equally well married, I shall have nothing to wish for.”
In a few days Mr. Lupin returned Mr. Black’s visit, and sat about ten minutes with him in his library. He had been aprehensive of being shown to a sight of the young ladies, of whose beauty he had heard, in his opinion, too much of; but he saw only the uncle. The sons, however, had the advantage of ascertaining from an upper window that he wore a blue coat, and rode a black horse. An invitation to dinner was soon afterwards dispatched; and already had Mrs. Black planned the courses that were to do credit to her housekeeping, when an answer arrived which deferred it all. Mr. Lupin was obliged to be in town the following day, and, consequently, unable to accept the honour of their invitation, etc.
Mrs. Black was quite disconcerted. She could not imagine what business he could have in town so soon after his arrival in Hogwarts; and she began to fear that he might be always flying about from one place to another, and never settled at Godric as he ought to be. Lady Rosier quieted her fears a little by starting the idea of his being gone to London only to get a large party for the ball; and a report soon followed that Mr. Lupin was to bring six ladies and two gentlemen with him to the assembly.
Mrs. Black grieved over such a number of ladies, but was comforted the day before the ball by hearing, that instead of twelve he brought only two with him from London—all of his guests wound up being childhood friends. And when the party entered the assembly room it consisted of all five altogether—Mr. Lupin, two women, a short stout man, and another young man.
Mr. Lupin was good-looking and gentlemanlike; he had a pleasant countenance, he was very tall, and had easy, unaffected manners. His friends were fine women, with an air of decided fashion. The stout man, Mr. Pettegrew, merely looked the gentleman; but his friend Mr. Potter soon drew the attention of the room by his fine, tall person, handsome features, noble mien, and the report which was in general circulation within five minutes after his entrance, of his having ten thousand a year.
The gentlemen pronounced him to be a fine figure of a man, the ladies declared he was much handsomer than Mr. Lupin, and he was looked at with great admiration for about half the evening, till his manners gave a disgust which turned the tide of his popularity; for he was discovered to be boorish; to have little respect for his company, and all too easily pleased; and not all his large estate in Gryffindore could then save him from having a most senseless, disagreeable countenance, and being unworthy to be compared with his friend.
Mr. Lupin had soon made himself acquainted with all the principal people in the room; he was reserved when it was respectable and amiable when needed, he danced every dance, and displayed reasonable anger that the ball closed so early, and was agreeable when it was suggested that he should give one himself at Godric. Such amiable qualities must speak for themselves. What a contrast between him and his friend! Mr. Potter, while dancing almost every dance, danced wildly and only with Miss Mckinnon and Miss McDonald, the two women he came with. He declined being introduced to any other lady, and spent the rest of the evening in walking about the room, speaking occasionally to one of his own party. His character was decided. He was the most uncouth, most disagreeable man in the world, and everybody hoped that he would never come there again. Amongst the most violent against him was Mrs. Black, whose dislike of his general behaviour was sharpened into particular resentment by his having slighted one of her sons.
Regulus Black had been obliged, by the overpopulation of gentlemen, to 6 sit down for two dances; and during part of that time, Mr. Potter had been standing near enough for him to hear a conversation between him and Mr. Lupin, who came from the dance for a few minutes, to press his friend to join it. “Come, James,” said he, “I must have you dance with someone whom we did not come with. I hate to see you making a fool of yourself in this stupid manner. You had much better dance with some local girl.”
“I certainly shall not. You know how I detest it, unless I am particularly acquainted with my partner. I cannot stand the rigid ritual of dancing with women who are only interested in wedding. It takes all the joy out of the act. Marlene and Mary are engaged, and there is not another woman in the room whom it would not be a punishment to me to stand up with.”
“I would not be so judgemental as you are, not everyone can afford the lifestyle you deam necessary” cried Mr. Lupin, “for a kingdom! Upon my honour, I never met with so many pleasant people in my life as I have this evening; At least converse with some of the men in the room, there are several of them you see uncommonly pleasant.”
“You were talking with the only pleasant man in the room,” said Mr. Potter, giving a smile to the eldest Black son.
“Oh! He is the most intriguing man I ever beheld! But there is a brother sitting down just behind you, who seems very intelligent, and I dare say very agreeable. Do let me ask his brother to introduce you.”
“Whom do you mean?” and turning round he looked for a moment at Regulus, till catching his eye, Mr. Potter withdrew his own and quickly said: “He is tolerable, but not intriguing enough to tempt me; I am in no humour at present to give consequence to young men who are slighted by other men. You had better return to your partner and enjoy her smiles, for you are wasting your time with me.”
Mr. Lupin followed his advice. Mr. Potter walked off; and Regulus remained with no very cordial feelings toward him. He told the story, however, with great spite among his friends; for he had a snide, mocking disposition, which delighted in anything ridiculous. The evening altogether passed off pleasantly to the whole family. Mrs. Black had seen her eldest son much admired by the Godric party. Mr. Lupin had conversed with him between every dance, and he had been distinguished by all the other gentlemen.
Sirius was as much gratified by this as his mother could be, though in a quieter way. Regulus felt Sirius’ pleasure. Bellatric had heard herself mentioned to Miss McKinnon as the most accomplished girl in the neighbourhood; and Andromeda and Narcissa had been fortunate enough never to be without partners, which was all that they had yet learnt to care for at a ball.
They returned, therefore, in good spirits to Hogwarts, the village where they lived, and of which they were the principal inhabitants. They found Mr. Black still up. With a book he was regardless of time; and on the present occasion he had a good deal of curiosity as to the events of an evening which had raised such splendid expectations. He had rather hoped that his wife’s views on the stranger would be disappointed; but he soon found out that he had a different story to hear.
“Oh! Mr. Black,” as she entered the room, “we have had a most delightful evening, a most excellent ball. I wish you had been there. Sirius was so admired, nothing could be like it. Everybody said how charming he was; and Mr. Lupin thought him quite admirable, and conversed with him continously! Only think of that, my dear; he actually conversed with him! and He was the only gentleman in the room that he talked to half as much. First of all, he asked Miss Narcissa. I was so pleased to see him stand up with her! But, however, he did not admire her at all; indeed, somebody will, you know; and he seemed quite curious with Sirius as he was going down the dance. So he inquired who he was, and got introduced, and talked to him for the rest of the evening. Then the two third he danced with Miss Malfoy, and the two fourth with Bellatrix, and the two fifth with Andromeda, and the Boulanger—”
“If he had had any compassion for me,” cried her husband impatiently, “he would not have danced half so much! For God’s sake, say no more of his partners. O that he had sprained his ankle in the first place!”
“Oh! my dear, I am quite delighted with him. He is so excessively handsome! And his friends are charming women. Either would make good matches for our sons if they ever deem it time to wed. I never in my life saw anything more elegant than their dresses. I dare say the lace upon Miss. Mckinnon’s gown—” Here she was interrupted again. Mr. Black protested against any description of finery. She was therefore obliged to seek another branch of the subject, and related, with much bitterness of spirit and some exaggeration, the shocking rudeness of Mr. Potter.
“But I can assure you,” she added, “that Regulus does not lose much by not suiting his fancy; for he is a most disagreeable, horrid man, not at all worth pleasing. So wild and so unmannered that there was no enduring him! He walked here, and he walked there, fancying himself so very great! Not intriguing enough to talk with! I wish you had been there, my dear, to have given him one of your set-downs. I quite detest the man. Regulus does not need that horrible man to mare his reputation.”