THC

Hufflepuff

DADA Professor

Round 3, Year 8

Drabble

Words: 852

Prompt: (Object) Red Dress

A/N Thank you so much to my wonderful teammates! I wouldn't be able to do this without y'all!

The Ministry was having a Halloween masquerade ball, and Moody had coerced Tonks into going. Formal parties weren't her scene; she preferred crowded clubs where she could get drunk and easily find one-night-stands. However, Moody had told her that she needed to attend the ball because it would be the perfect opportunity for her to get to know her colleagues in a different light.

The only thing Tonks was thankful for about that night was the copious amounts of expensive booze that would be served.

She was standing before her bedroom mirror in the dress she had bought for the occasion. The dress was a red number that hugged her every curve and ended mid-thigh. Tonks had paired it with a pair of thigh-high leather boots and a simple black mask with a feather on the left side of it. For once, her hair wasn't an outrageous color; instead, it fell in dark brown curls down her back.

Tonks smirked at her reflection. She always felt more confident when wearing a risqué outfit.

Remus couldn't believe he had let James and Sirius talk him into going to the masquerade ball the Ministry was hosting, much less wearing a Zorro costume.

"This is humiliating," Remus groaned as he looked at himself in the mirror.

Sirius threw an arm around his shoulders. "You've never looked better, Moony."

"Easy for you to say! You're wearing a costume you're comfortable in," Remus said, referencing the Austin Powers costume Sirius was wearing.

James laughed. "What isn't he comfortable in?"

Sirius smirked. "Let me get back to you on that."

Remus rolled his eyes. "I can't believe I let the two of you talk me into this."

"We're your best friends; we're supposed to put you in humiliating situations you're uncomfortable in," Sirius said.

"Much to my dismay," Remus muttered.

As soon as Tonks walked into the ballroom, Shania Twain's Man! I Feel Like a Woman! started playing, adding to her already outrageous amount of confidence.

Tonks grabbed a flute of champagne from a waitress walking past her. She usually preferred hard liquor, but she was willing to get drunk off of anything that night. She raised the flute in mocking, bitter toast to her lack of social life.

Remus was looking for Sirius, who had mysteriously disappeared along with some woman a few minutes ago, when he saw the woman in the red dress. His breath caught in his throat as he took in her beauty. Her dress left nothing to the imagination, and her thigh-high boots accentuated her long, graceful legs. He licked his lips as his eyes scoured over the miles of her exposed skin.

Remus was certain he had never seen such an attractive woman in his entire life.

After Tonks finished a good number of drinks, she saw a man standing by himself. He appeared to be wearing a Zorro costume, which made her laugh. She and her father used to watch those movies together when she was a little girl.

With liquid courage running through her veins, she walked over to him.

"Nice costume," a woman said from behind Remus.

Remus turned to face her, an unamused expression on his face. He was surprised to see the woman in the red dress standing behind him. He was better able to take in and appreciate her appearance than he was earlier. "My friends chose it for me."

"Nice friends."

"You're telling me." Then he gestured toward her dress. "So, who are you supposed to be?"

"Someone who is trying to remain anonymous," the woman said with a smirk.

"Is there any particular reason why?"

"I need some kind of personal life outside of my professional one. Besides, it's fun to be able to flirt anonymously with my colleagues," she said with a wink.

"Oh, I don't work at the Ministry."

The woman looked perplexed. "You don't work for the Ministry?"

Remus shook his head. "No. My friends work for the Ministry, but not me."

"The same friends who forced you into that ridiculous get-up?"

"One and the same."

The woman's smirk grew tenfold. "Then that makes this even more enjoyable," she purred.

Remus flushed, unsure how he should react to the woman's obvious attraction to him. "So, what department do you work for?" He asked, trying to steer the conversation in a safer direction.

"That is for me to know and you to find out."

"Now, how do you expect us to get to know one another better if you don't share any information about yourself?"

The woman smiled flirtatiously. "I was thinking we could get to know each other in the biblical sense."

Remus, who had just taken a sip of his wine, began to splutter. "That's… an idea."

The woman bit down on her lip to keep from laughing, which made Remus's eyes flicker to her plump, full lips. "Are you not used to being flirted with?"

"No, not particularly. The only women in my life are family members and my friend's wife."

The woman's smirk grew tenfold. "Perhaps I'll have more fun tonight than I originally thought I would."