They got out of the fireplace, put on fake smiles and separated into the crowd. Sirius immediately went to the drinks table, took a cup of oak barley, and rested against the wall, slightly in the shadows and did what he always loved to do at dinner parties: people watching, in specific pure blood people, because pure blood aristocrats are not like other people. It's got something to do with being brought up by house elves and too much money.

Right now he was marveling at their choice of dress. They had put the theme as romantic moonlight on the invitations but for some reason everyone interpreted it as gothic decadence. He just knew somewhere around Regulus was sneering on the inside; goth was so out of trend.

Regulus, as he usually is when not around the people he's close to, became the distant, cold person that a pure blood was supposed to be. In fact, it would be better to say socially awkward. He just stood there drink clutched, lips tight, listening to one of the gorgeous French girls flirt with him, but not really getting the message. This was looking to be amusing, and Sirius stood a little closer to hear.

"I hear you are an excellent Quidditch player", miss busty who was spilling out of her red dress, squealed.

"Yes" said Regulus bluntly.

"Then you must teach me" she said, her voice dropping seductively.

"Quidditch isn't something that can be taught." the idiot snapped, clearly offended by the idea of it. But he remembered where he was and grudgingly offered "I suppose I can give you some flying techniques, although really-"

"Oh, but thank you! You must come to my villa in France and do our lessons there."

"Your villa? It would make much more sense to do it here at one of the Black manors. I'm sure my aunt Druella wouldn't mind us using her grounds to play."

"Oh no" she put her hand softly on his shoulder, but quickly put it down after he stared pointedly at it, "no let's do it at my villa" she gave a little giggle and fluttered her eyelashes, clearly moving in for the kill, "no one will be there this summer, and your aunt Druella, well she will be at her manor and we will need all the space we can get for quidditch lessons."

"What difference does it make if my aunt will be there? It's not like she goes flying around her grounds. And even if no one's going to be at your villa, there still will be too little space to fly around, it's not like we'll be flying indoors is it?" he said, becoming impatient now.

She opened her mouth then closed it, clearly confused. Unfortunately, at that moment she looked at Sirius who looked about to burst from laughter, and gave Regulus a very dirty look which just astounded him. She stalked off, and Sirius walked past Regulus to whisper in his ear "by the way she was flirting". He walked on smirking. Regulus may be the perfect pure blood but he was definitely going to die a bachelor.

He saw his aunt Cressida, a foul-mouthed middle aged lady who seemed to forget Sirius was his nephew every time she got drunk, and flirted with him. She looked a bit tipsy, so Sirius made a sharp turn to the left and nearly walked in to his mom. She was furious which, Sirius thought ruefully, always seemed to be the case whenever they met.

"Where is Bellatrix?", she hissed.

"Oh…ah" Sirius just realized that Bellatrix hadn't arrived with them. In fact, he last saw her was in the dining room. Luckily at that moment, Malfoy sr. called for attention to make a speech, something he loved to do at parties. Mrs. Black squeezed Sirius's arm tightly with her long nails and dragged him forward to be nearer to Malfoy.

"Well, we've been saying all week now that tonight there's going to be a surprise, and finally I can let out the big secret, something that has been making me very happy." said Malfoy sr. as usual relishing all the attention he was getting.

"You're going to marry again", a female voice called out from the back and everyone tittered lightly. Malfoy sr. had married eight times already.

"No no, I'm afraid it's not me this time-"

"You've won wizard of the year!" someone else called, and Sirius rolled his eyes, making his mother pinch his arm harder.

"Ha ha" he said not humorously, "actually, my dearest friends, the wonderful surprise concerns my son Lucius, whom, as you all know, got a job at the ministry in the department of international affairs. We are all very proud of him for getting this distinguished job at the age of twenty and I think I can speak for everyone when I say that great things await Lucius." Again Sirius rolled his eyes, even Regulus who standing next to Lucius could barely control the look of disdain on his face. "But we Malfoys believe you only become a man once you marry, and luckily there is a very beautiful lady here in this room, which has caught Lucius's heart. It is an honor for both families when I say that my son Lucius Malfoy is engaged to marry Narcissa Black!"

Everyone cheered wildly but Sirius groaned. He couldn't believe Narcissa was taking this silly teenage crush of hers so seriously. Even though she was eighteen and a graduated student, in many ways she was still a child. Sirius felt deep contempt towards his aunt and uncle for allowing their daughter to marry Lucius.

The party soon turned wild after that. People danced freely, occasionally slipping on the wine soaked floor. His uncle Phineas was throwing one of the pretty girls wildly above his head and swinging her around, much to everyone's delight. Uncle Walris was on his own, doing a vigorous disco dance. It was hard to believe they were his mother's brothers. His uncle Alphard, on the other hand was smoking a suspicious looking cigarette, and talking to Newt Scamander, they were both enthusiast of inter-species breeding, something illegal. He was going to join them, when something caught his eye.

There was Regulus in a corner, making out with the busty French girl. He felt a surge of protective anger; this girl was going to break his heart, he knew it. Regulus was too sensitive for a relationship. And he was too young to be making out! He marched up to his mother and wordlessly pointed to Regulus. Regulus was the only thing he and his mother agreed on, and she immediately went to break up the pair. With a sigh of relief he flopped down next to Alphard.

"You are aware that Regulus is fifteen, right?" asked Alphard, with twinkling eyes.

Sirius pretended not to know what he was talking about and took a deep drink from his glass.

"One day he is going to grow up and there will be nothing you can do about it." said Newt heavily "Like my son, Wulfric, who has decided to become a lawyer. A Scamander being a lawyer…in the ministry…it's ridiculous."

They were silent for a while, watching Walris and Phineas doing an intense Irish dance with each other, and then Newt continued "Regulus is becoming a big lad now. Wulfric told me he's an amazing duelist. It's nice to see some true potential from the old families. He reminds me so much of his late uncle Regulus. Now there was a true adventurer. He discovered forty isolated magical communities, more than half of them cannibals, the rest werewolves. His mother kept telling him not to go; she made all sorts of schemes to keep him at home. In the end, at the age of 42, he died from a werewolf bite at a bar in London. It just goes to show" he said, wagging a finger at Sirius "you can never control someone's destiny."

"Don't bother with him" said Alphard "Sirius is just like his mother, he needs to control the people around him"

"Of all the bloody accusations" Sirius started furiously, rising from his chair, but he did not manage to finish his sentence as large bang happened and the hall became covered with smoke.