The Moonlight Noon Chateau
By Hippy
Gypsy
Disclaimer: [sings to the Alleluia tone] JK Rowling! JK Rowling! Owns Harry Potter! Owns Harry Potter!! Not me! [takes a bow] Sorry. That just popped into my head. It made me laugh! Anyways, JK owns HP and I own the Moonlight Noon Chateau. [Oliver, Sammy, Carlotta, Evan, and Tiffany applaud in the background] Thank you! Thank you! As for the music, such as "The Rhythm of the Night," it belongs to that wonderful movie, Moulin Rouge! Wahoo! So on to Chapter 5! Hope you're enjoying this!
Antonio
Safrin was an elderly man, but his eyes where wide and quite alert. He looked as sharp as a tack and twice as
nice. His white hair was brushed back
in the fashion, and his tuxedo was crisp and clean. The wrinkles that appeared around his eyes from his smile showed
of long lost humor and the little silver Snitch at the end of his cane was
polished to a beautiful shine. He held
his arms open and Minerva ran into them. "My my little Minnie. Look at
you!" he said, tears in his eyes. "I'd
never thought I'd reach the point in my life where I would actually feel this
old."
Minerva
smiled. "Oh Antonio, don't talk like
that. You're just as young as
before." She turned to the group. "Everyone, this was my father's best friend,
Antonio Safrin. Antonio, these are my
colleagues: Sybill Trelawney, Rubeus
Hagrid, Severus Snape, and Albus Dumbledore."
Antonio
smiled, but still looked curious. "Albus Dumbledore? Well, welcome
Sir! I'd never thought I'd see you
here." He shook his hand.
Minerva
smirked. "See? I have connections."
Albus
smiled solemnly. "I'm afraid it's in
poor nature that I come here tonight Monsieur Safrin."
"Oh really? What's the matter?" He looked to Minerva, but she stared off
into space looking timid. "Minnie, this
is going to be bad isn't it? Tell
me." He gave her a stern look.
Minerva
suddenly got a look on her face that was the equivalent of a worried
child's. "Antonio…it's…" She looked to Dumbledore for help. She couldn't tell him.
"Sit down
Monsieur Safrin."
"Call me
Antonio, please," he replied a little curious.
"Very
well. Antonio, about a month or so ago,
you had trouble with your finances for the Moonlight Noon Chateau, didn't you?"
Antonio
looked weary and sighed deeply. "Yes."
"And you
signed a owner partnership with someone didn't you?"
"Yes. That's correct."
"What is
the name of your new partner?"
"Monsieur Thomas
Eldder. Actually comes from England
around your way. Why?"
Trelawney
and Hagrid's eyes widened and Snape groaned. "Spell his last name for us," said Minerva.
"E-L-D-D-E-R."
"There you
go. He's spelling his name backwards,"
said Snape.
"I don't
understand," said Antonio. "What's
going on?"
Dumbledore
looked straight at him. "Antonio, did
you know that Lord Voldemort's real name is Tom Riddle?"
He went
white. "Yes, but what does that have to
do with anything?"
Minerva
held his hand. "He signed the papers,
Antonio. Lord Voldemort is your new
partner. He owns half of the Moonlight
Noon."
Antonio
buried his face in his hands. "Oh
god…how could I have been so stupid as to not notice it?"
"Don't
blame yourself. We personally have no
idea what he's trying to do, acquiring half a nightclub," said Dumbledore in a
reassuring voice. "But-"
"OH MY
GOD!" Carlotta suddenly gasped. "Oliver! The Diamond Dogs!"
Everyone
turned around and found Carlotta covering her mouth with her hands. She looked a bit pale. "What about the Diamond Dogs?" said Oliver
and Antonio at the same time.
"Do you
think they're…you know…if they come with…You-Know-Who?"
Oliver
suddenly realized. "They must be Death
Eaters."
Albus
looked up at Carlotta. "Death Eaters?"
"They must
be!" she replied.
"How many?"
"Four or
five."
"Do you
know their names?"
Carlotta
thought for a moment, and began to count them off on her fingers. "Crabbe… Goyle… Avery… and Malfoy. Lucius Malfoy!"
Snape
sneered. "He's here?"
Carlotta
nodded.
"Lord
Voldemort and the Death Eaters…here…I can't believe it," Antonio said blankly.
"I wouldn't
threat," said Dumbledore. "Is he here
tonight?"
"No. He's out of town until Monday."
"Has he
tried anything yet?"
"Not that I
know of."
Albus
looked around the group. "Then I don't
think you have anything to worry about right now. We plan to stay here though and keep an eye on him. You have our full support Monsieur Safrin."
Antonio
looked a quite a bit calmer now. It
wasn't everyday that he had the most powerful wizard of modern times behind his
back. "So what should we do now?"
Albus
leaned back in his seat. "Enjoy the
night and continue you're work like you're supposed to," he said with a smile.
"Continue
work, huh?" He turned around in his
seat and looked at Oliver and Carlotta. "I believe you two have been away from your posts for long enough, no?"
Oliver
snapped his fingers. "I was hoping you
wouldn't notice," he said mockingly, and Carlotta pushed him back behind the
bar.
Antonio
began to turn back to the group, but was cut off. A smiling young man was standing beside the table. "Sorry to interrupt you, Monsieur Safrin,
but…" He held out his hand to
Sybill. "May I have this dance
mademoiselle?"
Sybill's
mouth dropped. "I…uh…" She looked from Antonio to Dumbledore to
Minerva.
"Go," said
Minerva encouragingly.
Sybill
smiled a little awkwardly. "Um…okay…sure."
The young
man took her hand and kissed it suavely. "Madame Diva," he said. "A shy
friend of mine was wondering if you'd be willing to share the next dance with
him."
Minerva
smiled. "Certainly." She rose and took the man's other arm. As he led her and Sybill away, she looked
over her shoulder and said, "Later boys!"
Antonio
chuckled and turned back to Dumbledore. "Such is the way around here."
Severus
looked around him. "This place is
magnificent Monsieur Safrin."
"'Eye,"
agreed Hagrid with a smile.
"If you don't
mind me asking, how did you think of such an extraordinary place?" said
Dumbledore.
Antonio
took a sip of wine and smiled. "It may
seem a bit non-original, but long ago, I had a dream. And this dream was filled with colors! With mountains, and oceans, and leagues of colors! It was the oddest, yet the most wonderful
dream I had ever had. When I woke up, I
knew I had to try and bring that dream alive again. It became an obsession…I've never made the dream come true, but
with the Moonlight Noon Chateau, I came pretty damn close." He smiled fondly. "I wouldn't trade this place for anything."
It was at
that point that Carlotta came running across the busy dance floor. "Antonio, Little Rock and Devine were
wondering…" She bent down and began to whisper
in his ear.
Antonio
smiled and chuckled. "He's the one to
ask Sweet Pea, not me," he said motioning to Dumbledore.
Carlotta
whispered into Dumbledore's ear. He
began to chuckle too. "Fine by me. It sounds like it would do him some good."
Carlotta
smiled. "Another bottle of wine
Antonio?"
"Yes please
my dear."
"What
happened to Diva and Madame Trelawney?"
"They got
asked to dance," said Severus.
Everyone
looked out to the dance floor. It was
an array of color, and for a moment Snape was sure he had stepped into Antonio
Safrin's dream. No wonder he had wanted
to recreate it! It was the most
beautiful thing he had ever seen. He
sat watching, smiling, and pondering this for a long moment, when suddenly, the
can-can dancer, Little Rock, appeared in front of him.
Little Rock
held out her hand. "Care to dance
Monsieur Snape?" She smiled.
Snape
snapped out of his trance. "What? Me? Dance? No no no…" He turned back to the table to find Antonio
and Dumbledore smiling slyly at him. Snape crossed his arms and sneered. "You tricked me."
"Get out
there Severus. Have a little fun!" said
Dumbledore.
Little Rock
held out her hand again. "Please
Monsieur? I don't want to be the only
girl without a partner." She began to pout.
Snape was
determined to sit the dance out, but for some odd reason, he sighed and got
up. "Alright, but I'm warning you. I have no idea how to dance."
Little Rock
took his arm and led him to the dance floor just as a new song was beginning to
play:
"Can you feel
the rhythm of the night?
(feel the rhythm)"
"What do
you mean you can't dance?!" said Little Rock over the music. "Everyone can dance!" She placed her right hand in his left, and
she put his other arm around her back. She wrapped her other arm around his neck and said, "Ready? Just follow my lead!" And with that they were off. Severus tried to follow her moves and a
moment later, he couldn't believe it. He was dancing! Stranger was the
fact that as he went on, he began to enjoy it!
Oliver was
dancing with a woman next to him. "Hey! What are you doing out
here?!" he shouted at Snape with a smile.
"Dancing
apparently!"
He spun
Little Rock and took hold of her again. "During this dance people switch partners every few seconds, so your not
going to see me again this dance I think!"
"Okay!"
"And
switch!"
Little Rock
twirled away to dance with another man, and in her place came the woman who had
been dancing with Oliver. It was the
woman in the diamond-studded dress, who had been the highlight of the
night. "Monsieur Snape I presume?! I'm Tiffany the Prima Donna, headliner of
the Moonlight Noon!"
Severus
took her hands and led her across the floor. "A pleasure mademoiselle!"
"You're
very light on your feet Monsieur!" she said with a smile.
"Thank
you!"
The
switched partners again and this time, to both his surprise and delight,
Severus's partner was Minerva. "What
are you doing out here?!" she shouted with a smile.
"Antonio and
Dumbledore conspired against me!"
Minerva
threw her head back and laughed. "Your
not bad though, I'll admit that!"
And they
switched again and Severus's heart jumped up into his throat. Carlotta had suddenly spun into his arms,
the most gorgeous of smiles on her face. She stopped a moment when she saw who her new partner was, and they
spent what seemed to be the longest time just staring at each other, straight
in the eyes. Their faces were barely an
inch apart. Severus had the strangest
urge just to reach out and kiss her. What
am I, insane? he thought. That
snippy little brat? Instead, he
cleared his mind, took her into his arms, and they began to dance.
He had
probably been better off kissing her. She was so light on her feet and her perfume was the scent of
roses. It was intoxicating him in the
worst way. And as she danced, she kept
giving him that wonderful ruby-lipped smile. Severus was beginning to wonder if this woman was actually an angel sent
from heaven!
When the
dance ended, Severus stopped, took both of her hands into his, and kissed
them. "Thank you for the dance,
mademoiselle Carlotta."
She gave
him a soft smile and walked away.
Severus
watched her for the longest time that night as she waited tables and danced
with the other young men in the Moonlight Noon. He couldn't explain what was happening to him. He had never had a feeling like this
before. Never had the mere sight of a
woman made his head turn as it had tonight as he danced with Carlotta. My God, have I gone insane? he thought
for the thousandth time that night. Am
I actually in love with this woman after one meeting, one dance, and a
smile? Does love at first sight
actually exist? He pondered this as
the music played on into the night.
Note from the Hippy Gypsy: Well? I'm trying. Anyways, the romance picks up in the next
couple of chapters. PLEASE
READ AND REVIEW AND NO FLAMES!!!
