A/N This one is for JD.
Squeals of laughter assaulted Anthony's ears as a group of girls took another round of firewhiskey shots in the living room of his flat. He didn't care for the taste, preferring the sweeter drinks at the Muggle gay bar where they would be heading shortly for Karaoke Night. It was Cho's 20th birthday, and she had wanted to do something "silly and unexpected." Marietta, Cho's best friend, had mentioned once that Cho loved to sing, so here they were, pregaming at his place.
"Anthony!" Padma shouted from across the room, an empty shot glass in hand. "Have a shot with us!"
"Yeah, come join in the fun!" chimed in Katie, her arm wrapped around her girlfriend Leanne's waist.
"That stuff is disgusting," Anthony replied with a grimace. "I'll wait until we get to the bar. Besides, someone has to make sure we get there in one piece."
Anthony didn't drink that often, as it made his ability to suppress his Legilimens difficult. His great-aunt, Queenie Goldstein-Kowalski, had been born a natural Legilimens, and the ability had been passed down to him. Although his family kept telling him it was a wonderful "gift" to have, he had learned the hard way not to let anyone know about his power. No one wanted a friend who could read your thoughts. His childhood had been rather lonely.
He'd been anxious to go to Hogwarts because he read that Rowena Ravenclaw had been a natural Legilimens. Although his great-aunt Queenie was still alive (albeit quite old), she lived in America, which made it difficult for her to teach him about their gift. So, after he was sorted into Ravenclaw, he sought out the portrait of Rowena and asked if she would give him private lessons. Now, he could easily block out everyone's thoughts, as long as he had a clear, unaltered mind - meaning, no alcohol.
The bar they were going to was one Anthony went to more than he would care to admit. He enjoyed the Muggle atmosphere, where he knew he wouldn't be judged, and he sometimes put a toe into a moral grey area by using his Legilimens to pick up guys.
"Are you guys ready? If we don't leave soon, we won't be able to get on the karaoke list," Anthony said, sounding slightly exasperated.
"Just one more shot!" Cho yelled. "To me, the fabulous birthday girl!"
The girls lifted their glasses in the air and yelled, "To the birthday girl!" and downed their shots.
"I have a feeling I'm going to regret organizing this night," Anthony mumbled to himself.
A PASSAGE OF TIME
Fifteen minutes later, the six of them walked through the brightly colored doors of Plush. They handed over slips of blank paper to the bartender while Anthony discreetly Confunded him so he would think he was looking at Muggle IDs.
"Everything seems to be in order," the bartender said after a few moments. "What will it be for you all?"
"A round of Cosmos, please," Anthony said, knowing the girls might not be familiar with Muggle drinks.
"Coming right up. If you lot want to take a table, your drinks will be brought over to you."
Marietta grabbed Cho's hand and skipped toward a table next to the stage. Everyone followed and sat down, looking excited - except Anthony, who halfheartedly smiled.
"So, how does this work?" Leanne asked Anthony.
"Well," he started, pulling the binder on the table toward him, "you look through this list of songs and choose one to sing. Write it down with your name and take it up to the DJ. They'll call your name when it's your turn, and then you just sing what's on the prompter. There'll be music so you can get the gist of the tune to sing along to."
Cho grabbed the binder and started flipping through it.
"Here are your drinks," said a voice from behind them. Anthony looked up and saw the bar's most gorgeous waiter.
"Thanks," he said, smiling a bit foolishly. When he turned back to the table, he saw Katie wiggling her eyebrows suggestively at him. Rolling his eyes, he turned to Cho. "Is anything catching your eye?" he asked.
"Not yet," she replied slowly, her eyes scanning the pages. "OH MY GOD! This is perfect!" She hurriedly scribbled something on a piece of paper and rushed to the DJ.
"Any idea what she chose?" Padma asked Marietta.
"No, I didn't get a chance to see what she wrote," Marietta said. "This drink is delicious, Anthony. What is it?"
"I actually don't know," he said sheepishly. "I just know it's called a Cosmo and I like it."
A PASSAGE OF TIME
After a few more rounds of Cosmos, Anthony could feel his control of his Legilimens slipping. At that point, the DJ called Cho's name. She jumped out of her chair and headed onto the stage.
"Give it up for Cho Chang, who will be singing Mariah Carey's hit song, 'Always Be My Baby!'"
Anthony groaned inwardly. "You've got to be kidding me," he thought to himself. "She still isn't over Cedric? It was years ago!"
"Gosh, she's beautiful. I wonder if I should tell her how I feel tonight." Anthony suddenly heard Padma's thoughts slipping through the cracks in his mental wall.
"Crap," he thought and tried to shove her voice out of his mind.
The music started, and Anthony was not prepared for what came next.
Cho's voice screeched like nails on a chalkboard. He attempted to block it out, but that proved to be difficult, especially as she got to the chorus and sang even more emphatically.
You'll always be a part of me
I'm part of you indefinitely
Boy don't you know you can't escape me?
Ooh darling 'cause you'll always be my baby
And we'll linger on
Time can't erase a feeling this strong
No way you're never gonna shake me
Ooh darling 'cause you'll always be my baby
Anthony didn't want to listen to Cho butcher such a beautiful song, so he lowered his mental wall a little and focused on the others' thoughts. Unfortunately, everyone at the table (and the whole bar for that matter) seemed to be thinking about how horrible Cho sounded.
Everyone except Marietta, that is.
"She's so perfect. I wish we could go back to how we were in fourth year - almost girlfriends. We had so much fun. Maybe if I could just kiss her tonight, we could try again, but for real this time."
Unsure how to handle this new information, Anthony hastily tried to put his mental wall back up. He screwed up his face in concentration, trying to block out the dying animal noises coming from Cho's mouth.
Sensing a presence before him, he opened his eyes to see a cup of tea on the table in front of him. He looked up, and there was the gorgeous waiter from earlier.
"You looked like you could use this," the waiter said with a knowing smile. "It's just Earl Grey, I promise."
"Thanks, I do believe I could do with some sobering up," Anthony replied, smiling back.
"Hey, this is kind of forward, but my shift ends soon," the waiter said, looking nervous. "Do you maybe want to get out of here?"
Anthony couldn't believe his luck. An extremely delectable guy wanted him?
At that point, his mental walls were rudely assaulted by Cho's sobbing inner voice: "Diggy, I miss you so much!"
"Sorry," Anthony said, trying to convey his disappointment. "I really should sober up and take care of my friends."
"No worries, I get it. Another time, perhaps?" the waiter asked with a hopeful smile.
"Definitely," Anthony replied. "I'm Anthony, by the way."
"Ricky," the waiter responded. "Pleased to meet you. See you around."
Anthony turned back to the stage, feeling giddy, just as Cho sang the last lines of the song.
You and I will always be
No way you're never gonna shake me
No way you're never gonna shake me
You and I will always be
"We WILL always be, my dear ChoCho," Anthony heard in his mind, but strangely, it sounded like an echo. He suddenly realized it sounded like whenever he heard the Grey Lady's thoughts. Feeling alarmed, Anthony looked around the bar. He caught a glimpse of a translucent figure in a far corner and barely managed to make out its face right before it disappeared.
"HOLY SHIT!" Anthony exclaimed.