Dinner Party
14th February 1978
She didn’t show up for her tutoring session that day, she didn’t want to see Remus, so she stayed in her dorm. By four she received an angry letter from Professor McGonagall telling her she had detention and lost fifty points for Slytherin but she honestly couldn’t care less.
He would be smug though, because Antonin hadn’t even acknowledged that it was Valentine's day, even when Alecto had received a giant bouquet of roses from her mystery lover in Hogsmeade, he’d barely spoken to her all day so when she received a large box with a black silk dress and a note telling her to meet him in the common room at seven, she had a flurry of excitement for the first time in months.
She touched up her makeup before slipping into the dress, she rummaged through her cupboards to find her black lace up heels to pair with it.
She wondered where Antonin was taking her, they’d never actually been on a date before, unless you count the one time she and Antonin were accompanied by their mothers to Diagon Alley when they were thirteen, three months before they got engaged.
Solana looked at herself in the mirror, straightening out her dress.
You look fine.
She just had to keep that thought at the front of her mind so she didn’t forget it. She grabbed her bag and wand before making her way down to the common room, where Antonin was sitting down, waiting for her.
“You're late,” he stated, looking down at his watch not even glancing at her.
“By a moment,” she said, checking the time, it was only a minute past seven.
“Yes, well when I tell you to meet me at seven I expect you to be there.” he glowered, standing up.
Solana nodded and her smile was tight. “My apologies, it won’t happen next time.”
Antonin grunted as he stood up straightening his robes.
“You look handsome,” she said.
“Well we’re supposed to look smart, aren’t we? Let's get this over and done with,” he said, boredly.
She hoped he wouldn’t be cold all evening, saying that she wasn’t that hopeful.
“Where are we going?” she asked as he took a pouch of floo powder from his pocket.
“Dinner,” was all he said.
Solana hated herself for getting her hopes up for anything more, she held back a sigh as they entered the fireplace.
They stepped out into a luxurious lobby, everything was trimmed with gold, the frames, the walls even the carpet.
“Wow,” she gasped. “It’s beautiful,”
Antonin grunted. “Just do me a favour and don’t embarrass me, okay?”
Solana frowned.
“Lestrange, Carrow,” Antonin said, his demeanour changed instantly, as a grin appeared on his face. “Good of you to be here,”
“Isn’t it mandatory, Dolohov?” Amycus said, shaking his hands. “Also you’re late.”
“Yes well,” Antonin glanced at Solana, who still had a frown on her face.
“Right, well everyone is inside, and I’m not gonna lie, Alecto is looking… well–” Rabastan began, crudely gesturing to his chest but Amycus smacked the back of his head. “She looks very nice and respectful. Bartemius really lucked out when they broke up.”
Amycus shook his head as the two headed into a room.
“This is not a date?” Solana asked, not moving from where she was standing.
“A date?” Antonin scoffed. “Why would this be a date, Solana?”
She slumped in her stance, “No idea.”
“Come on,” he told her, entering before her, she stared at the giant gold doors, sighing as she headed in.
The room was packed with familiar faces from school and outside, she was sure she had seen her sisters but the two seemed busy with their husbands, she noticed by one of the doors a hooded man watching everyone.
Solana followed Antonin as he made his way around, greeting everyone with a smile. If only they had seen him five minutes ago.
“Alecto,” Antonin said, elegantly, he kissed her cheek as he greeted her, she was wearing a red dress that clung to all of her curves, Rabastan hadn’t been wrong about her chest, Solana was jealous of how voluptuous that region was.
“Antonin,” she said, red tinged on her cheeks, she didn’t even acknowledge Solana.
Solana’s face now had a permanent frown, Antonin only kissed her cheek when he wanted sex, he never did so in public.
“I’m going to get a drink,” she muttered before walking away from them, she made her way to the back of the bar where there was a bartender wiping down the side.
“Can I get your strongest drink?” she asked, setting her bag on the bar, and lifted herself onto the stool, relieved from the pain from the heeled shoes digging in her arches.
The man hesitated, he had short light brown curls, and brown eyes. He was wearing a name tag, Bellamy, “Are you sure?”
Solana tilted her head. “What, you don’t think I can handle it?”
“Of course not, madam, my apologies.” He grabbed an aged whisky from the side and poured it in a glass before handing it to her.
She necked it down in one, without a reaction to the alcohol burning her throat.
“Could I get another one, please?”
Bellamy looked stunned. “Wow,” he muttered as he poured another.
This one she didn’t gulp down in one second, she turned around on the stool searching the crowd for Antonin, and conveniently Alecto was standing right next to him in her dark red dress.
“Not how you expected your Valentine's day to go?” Bellamy asked, again wiping down the side that was already spotless.
“Not at all,” she muttered, sipping her drink, as Alecto giggled at a joke Antonin told.
“You keep looking at that couple over there,”
Solana sighed. “That is my fiancé and my best friend.”
“Oh,”
“Yeah, oh.” she said, placing the empty glass onto the side to which Bellamy picked up and poured another glass for her. “Thanks.”
“No worries,” he told her, yet again wiping the side.
“Why do you keep wiping the side?” she asked.
“It looks more professional if I’m busy,” he shrugged, also my manager will murder me if he see’s me standing around doing nothing.”
Solana nodded, her head turned as someone began tapping on a champagne glass. “Dinner is ready, please make your way into the grand hall.” a short man said, waving everyone over.
“I better go and endure this two hour meal,” she groaned.
“It’s four.” Bellamy said.
“ Four?” she groaned, picking up her bag. “The food better be nice.”
“It’s not…”
“Okay, thank you Bellamy, there’s a mark over there, be a dear and wipe it up,” she said, walking away from the bar and entering the hall.
There was one long table with a black runner down the middle, the plates and cutlery were also made of gold.
She saw her name in cursive on a small envelope in between Antonin and Alecto.
Of course.
She sunk into her seat.
“Hey Lana,” Alecto smiled, taking her seat.
“Hey,” she said, acting as though she wasn’t angry about the fact Antonin had changed his entire mood for her . “Your dress is really nice,”
“Oh, thank you,” Alecto smiled, “You look really nice as well,”
Solana smiled, looking over at Antonin who had sat down without a word, with a ring of a bell their first course appeared on their plates.
By the fourth course Solana was done… with the party, not the food, in fact she hadn’t even eaten a substantial meal yet and she was starving. She also couldn’t get a word in edgeways between Alecto and Antonin who were getting on like a house on fire.
During one conversation Solana reached over to hold his hand but he swiftly dropped as he continued talking, which made her want to sink into her seat and fall into the ground.
There was a short interval between the courses as drinks were brought out, everyone seemed to have the same wine but when Bellamy put her glass down it was the same whisky from prior.
“Thank you,” she smiled at him.
He gave her a nod about placing a glass of wine in front of Alecto but his hand slipped and the liquid landed all over her dress.
“I am so sorry!” Bellamy said, quickly running over to grab tissues.
“You fucking idiot!” Antonin scolded standing up, and checking over Alecto.
“It’s fine, Toni,” Alecto said, standing up.
“ Toni ?” Solana muttered, looking over at him, she had never called him Toni.
Alecto didn’t hear her, “Look, magic will fix this.” with a wave of her wand the stain was gone. “It’s fine.”
“Watch what you’re doing next time,” Antonin growled at Bellamy.
“Certainly sir, I do apologise.” he nodded, carrying the empty glass away.
Solana wondered if it had been her if Antonin would have made a big fuss, she downed the drink once again.
“I’m going to the bathroom.” she said, scraping the chair on the ground, walking out of the grand hall.
She banged open the door to the bathroom, her feet throbbed inside her shoes. She sat up on the window sill, unwrapping the thin string and threw them to the ground beginning to massage her feet.
There was a knock on the door.
“Toni?” she asked, hopeful.
“No, Bellamy.” he said, from behind the door.
“Oh,” her voice faded.
“Sorry… Are you okay?”
“Fine,”
“I feel like you’re lying,” he said. “I brought the bottle of the whisky,”
“You can come in,”
The door squeaked open, he poked his head through the door, with a small smile on his face. “Hey,”
“Hey,”
“I didn’t bring any glasses.”
Solana shrugged as he handed it to her, “It doesn’t matter,” she drank it straight from the bottle.
If she kept this up she would surely be just like her mother.
“So did you do it on purpose?” she asked as he sat beside her.
He laughed into his lap, “I thought about it and I told myself I wouldn’t do it, but then my hand accidentally slipped.”
Solana chuckled, taking another swig of the whisky. “This is really bad by the way,”
“Yeah, I don’t know how you’re drinking that,” he grimaced, shaking his head as she offered it to him.
“With great difficulty,” she hiccupped.
“Then why are you continuing to drink it,”
She shrugged, “These dinners are always boring,”
“You’re telling me.”
“At least you get paid,”
“Paid to be called a fucking idiot?” he breathed a laugh.
“I’m sorry about him,” she said, “He’s usually less talkative… to me anyway.”
“Why are you with him?”
“Huh?”
“You obviously don’t like him–”
“It wasn’t my choice,”
“What, it’s arranged?” he asked.
“Yup,” she plopped the P.
“Do you love him?”
“I used to… I think, but recently… I don’t really know. We got engaged when we were children, I think I loved the novelty of getting married…” she sighed. “And now I’m older, I’m not too sure if I do. Or if I ever did love him.”
“Well that sounds dandy,” he said, clapping his hands together.
Solana began chuckling.
He raised a brow, “Did I say something funny?”
“You remind me of someone,”
“Not your fiancé, I hope.” he said.
“No, no…” she shook her head, her mind went straight to Remus, she should really apologise to him for storming out of the library. “You remind me of my… well… he’s not really a friend–”
“Not really a friend? That makes perfect sense,”
Solana chuckled. “No, he’s my tutor, i guess… but he’s quite funny–”
“You get tutored?”
“No– yes, but I don’t actually need it–”
“Sure–”
She shook her head, she could now feel the alcohol in her system flush in a wave, that whisky really was strong.
“I let my grades slip and Professor McGonagall–”
“Oh I loved Professor McGonagall–”
“She can be a real pain in the arse–”
“Yes but it’s always for a good cause,”
Solana rolled her eyes, hiccupping again.
“Okay, I’m going to take this from you,” Bellamy said, taking the bottle from her.
“Wise choice,”
“I am very wise,”
“You were a Ravenclaw?”
“Huh? No,” he shook his head.
“What house were you in?”
“You have to guess,”
She studied his face, “Gryffindor,”
“Nope,”
“Well you’re not a Slytherin, because I would have recognised you.”
Bellamy’s eyes glistened, “That leaves only one house left.”
“There is no way you were a Hufflepuff!”
“What does that mean,” he said, acting offended.
“You just… don’t seem like a Hufflepuff,”
“I don’t? I thought the traits were very clear, I was patient with your fiancé, I was dedicated to drop the wine on your friend and I’m so loyal I came to find you to give you your drink,” he grinned.
Solana laughed. “You’re a fucking idiot.”
“Second time I’ve been called that, tonight.” he shook his head smiling at her, his brown eyes felt familiar, warm and comforting, even down to his laugh he was just like Remus.
Solana could only blame all the alcohol for what happened next, she leaned over and kissed him, but as he pulled away her cheeks grew red.
“I’m sorry–” she began, but he smiled at her and pulled in kissing her back.
She climbed onto his lap, catching only snippets of breath as they kissed. It was only when Bellamy began sliding his hand under her dress she snapped back into reality.
“No,” she said, pulling away. “No, no, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to– this is wrong–”
“Didn’t seem wrong to me,” Bellamy breathed out, a smirk playing on his face.
“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have kissed you, this– I can’t do this–” she stood up grabbing her shoes, before she felt him hold her arm lightly.
“This can stay between you and me,”
She shook her head. “I am engaged–”
“You don’t even like him–”
“That doesn’t matter, morally this is wrong. I will take full responsibility for this but– I can’t– I have to go,” she told him, running out of the bathroom.
She had kissed him because he reminded her of Remus? Remus fucking Lupin? She rubbed head frustratingly.
Why the hell would she do that?
She stumbled into the lobby, crouching down to put her shoes back on, in the reflection of a gold frame she fixed her lipstick that had smudged onto her cheek.
Taking in a deep breath just before the doors opened on their own, she saw that Antonin had swapped seats and was placed next to Alecto.
“Where have you been?” he muttered as she sat down.
“I went to the bathroom,” She said.
“You were about to miss the ceremony.”
“What ceremony?” she asked, looking at him.
“The reason why we are all here.”
Solana gave him a confused look, a cold chill entered the room, she looked up and saw that the hooded figure from before was standing by the door.
“My Lord,” the room chorused as he walked towards the table, his red eyes glared as he looked around.
Goosebumps began to rise on Solana’s arms, for this was the first time she had met Lord Voldemort.