Chapter 3: The Party

The new dance club was yet another interesting creation of Arthur Weasley. The architecture was made of red brick, classic stucco, chiseled stone and black onyx. The roof could double as a ski jump. The door to the entrance was flanked by matching statues of dragons eating garden gnomes which rested on Greek pillars. The inside was even more extravagant. The dance floor lights consisted of cascading concentric squares of orange, green and purple. To the right of it was a traditional long black bar with a brass railing; however, the backs of the bar stools had images of merpeople. The rest of the room was filled with tables made of granite and chairs that looked like miniature thrones. As the new owners inspected their venue, Barry turned to Robin and said, "Sir Arthur has outdone himself," as Maurice and Sirius just stood there bewildered.

Ninety minutes later, the music started playing and the doors were opened to the public. Molly Weasley stood behind the bar smiling, awaiting her first customers. The first to arrive were about a dozen younger members of the Order. Cedric Diggory laughed heartily and shouted, "This place looks wicked! What do you think, Cho?" Cho Chang responded, "I'm absolutely speechless!" The couple shimmied to the bar and ordered pints of pumpkin juice. The others, hearing this, charged over and ordered the same. As the crowd continued to swell, Sirius said to Maurice, "Amazing! This place seems like it's working." Maurice replied, "I agree, it's fantastic. I must say though, the music is much different than when I used to dance the Butterbeer Polka." Both men smiled as Barry and Robin came over to their table. Barry said, "Sirius, you're a genius! Thank you so much for this."

As people danced on the garishly lighted floor, and others sat talking and enjoying their drinks, Fred and George Weasley walked around with a platter of hors d'oeuvres that they claimed were vampire fricassee. Robin sarcastically said to the twins, "Have they been properly de-fanged?" George replied innocently, "We have both de-fanged, and fanged for those who are more daring." Everyone at the table took two pieces each.

Barry then said to Robin and Maurice, "We honestly should be mingling with the people. After all, this is our club, and we want to thank them for being here." After they had finished, Maurice went over to a middle-aged woman sitting at a corner table and asked her if she wanted to learn how to polka. She chuckled and said "sure", and the two of them went onto the dance floor. The other dancers became so fascinated with what they were doing, they stepped aside and let the couple move to the center of the floor. Maurice and his partner came alive with the attention, and showed off their polka prowess. Barry, once again sitting with Sirius, said, "I really was wrong to call him stodgy. Anyway, let me check things out at the bar."

As Barry was chatting with Molly, Bellatrix Lestrange walked into the club, came over to the bar and ordered a butterbeer and some "vampire fricassee". She then headed over to where Sirius was sitting. "May I sit down?" She inquired. Sirius replied, "If you must. To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"I know you wouldn't care in the slightest to hear my whining, but I must let you know that I am so tired of the Dark Lord's bumbling incompetence! We have been forced to retreat from every battle with the Order. What's worse, the Dark Lord, or should I say the Dork Lord, blames all the Death Eaters except himself. I'll tell you, Sirius, the battle last week was the last straw. We had to turn tail because of SINGING! Plus, the petulant brat got it in his head that I was laughing at him when I was under your tickling charm. I haven't a clue what I ever saw in him. I think I need a change of scenery, especially looking at this place. After all of the comrades you have lost, you still maintain your good spirits. I want to fight out of a sense of purpose rather than out of fear."

Stone-faced, Sirius replied, "You'll forgive me if I'm having a hard time believing any of this. You and I have been mortal enemies for years, so why would this not be a trick?" Bellatrix answered, "I don't blame you for mistrusting me. I would be just as suspicious if you said you wanted to join the Death Eaters." "Thank you for realizing that," retorted Sirius with a touch of sarcasm. "Voldemort left you rotting in jail for fourteen years, yet you remained fanatically loyal to him. Why would him running away from singing make you turn on him?" Bellatrix sighed and said, "As I said, that was the last straw. I have had several days to think about how often he has cursed me and mistreated me. Harry Potter earns people's loyalty by his bravery, his willingness to forgive others, and his acceptance of his own mistakes. I want to know that kind of leader."

Sirius thought hard for several minutes, then said, "While I still have my doubts, you were willing to walk into a wand-free venue with dozens of eyes staring daggers at you…" Just then, Barry and Robin walked over and asked Sirius, "Is there any trouble here?" Sirius replied, "Nothing I can't handle. I'll talk to you about this later." He then continued with Bellatrix, "As I was saying, it will still take a lot for you to prove yourself. I would just need to think of a test to give you." Bellatrix answered, "I am willing to face any challenge you wish to throw at me." Sirius smirked and replied, "Well, until I can think of something more difficult, and because this is supposed to be a place of fun, why don't you and I go onto the dance floor and not leave until one of us collapses?" The expression on Bellatrix's face was a mix of bemused and confused. "That is quite an interesting test." Sirius nodded and said, "Mind you, this is only the first one."

Once the combative cousins noticed that Maurice and his partner had gone back to her table, they got up and stepped upon the orange, green and purple lights. They started out slowly and nervously, sensing the immense attention from the others in the club. After a couple of songs, they decided just to let the music take hold of them, then their mutual animosity came into play. They performed numerous dance moves considered unheard of for such novices. They even did The Bump to wear each other down more quickly. Yet when closing time arrived, they were both still going strong. They agreed to go at it again night after night until a winner was determined.