Chapter 7: Ships in the Night

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of the related characters. The Harry Potter series is created by J.K. Rowling and owned by Warner Bros. Pictures. All rights of Harry Potter belong to Warner Bros. Pictures. This entire story is a work of fanfiction and is meant for entertainment purposes only. I am not making a profit from this story.

Notes: This chapter is inspired by the song "Ships in the Night" by Matt Kearney.

Summer 1997

Parvati and I plastered fake smiles on our faces as we stood across from each other by the entrance to the enormous pewter marquee. The hot August sun was beating down on the crowns of our heads and I was concerned that we would pass out from the heat before we were actually able to greet any guests who arrived. At least Sarika and Shahid were cramming everything into one day to mitigate any potential Death Eater interference in their wedding festivities.

We were wearing identical navy blue saree-style dress robes and silver jhumka earrings with matching high wedge heeled shoes. Parvati was holding a large round tray piled high with strings of jasmine flowers, while I was responsible for carrying a smaller tray of bobby pins for witches to use to fix the garlands into their hair before entering the tent.

"Bloody hell! That anal bitch may as well have cast the Doubling charm. Now even I can't fucking tell the two of you apart," a voice came from inside the tent.

We turned and saw Vijay standing a foot away from us with a perturbed expression on his face. His outfit was similar to the charcoal black dress robes he wore at Sarika's engagement party last year, but this time it included a ruffled white collar and posh silver cufflinks. His trousers were also matching. He didn't appear to be in high spirits which was likely due to Sarika becoming increasingly more overbearing as the big day approached. Fred and George were also unable to make it as a result of Bill's wedding falling on the same day as Sarika's, which probably put a damper on his mood as well.

"Did Sarika remove the rest of the clothing from your closet so you couldn't pull another prank on her?" Parvati joked.

"She confiscated my wand too. But seriously, this is going too far. I hope you can at least change for the reception tonight," Vijay frowned.

I nodded and he relaxed a bit. Vijay was right. Sarika knew that Parvati and I abhorred wearing the same clothing because we wanted our styles to reflect our different personalities. We only conceded to her ridiculous demands because today was admittedly her special day and she wanted her welcome party to appear "uniform". She had even carefully cast a hair-thickening spell on me that morning so my shoulder-length cut would extend long enough to plait like my sister's hair. I really wished I could wear my four leaf clover pendant, but I didn't want Sarika to see it and start asking me questions. I was a terrible liar.

"Hey mate, glad you could make it. Seating is inside," Vijay suddenly said, gesturing towards the entrance to the tent. A familiar heady scent of sandalwood and coastal air wafted towards me, causing my heart rate to exponentially increase.

I looked up and all my initial excitement immediately evaporated when I saw Dev standing in front of us beside a woman I did not recognize.

He looked devastatingly handsome as always in midnight blue dress robes and a pale grey shirt. His pretty companion wore an asymmetrical black halter dress and stiletto heels, making her tower over his short stature. Long, wavy black hair tumbled down broad shoulders, stopping at her ample bosom. Her full lips were painted red and the shimmering gold eyeshadow she wore made her twinkling amber eyes pop.

Rendered speechless by her beauty, I completely forgot to greet them and only came to my senses when she reached out to take a jasmine string and two bobby pins from each of our trays.

"Oooh Dev, who's this?" Parvati teased.

"This is my girlfriend, Anjali Chopra," Dev announced and my heart plummeted into my stomach.

Dev has a girlfriend.

"It's a pleasure to meet the both of you," Anjali said in a cheerful thick French accent.

Dev has a girlfriend.

"Really? I've never seen you with a girl before! I was starting to wonder if you and Vijay might be…" Parvati trailed off suggestively.

"Shut it half-pint. I just like to play the field," Vijay scoffed. Dev looked perturbed and Anjali giggled.

Dev has a girlfriend.

"Devie never mentioned that he knew such cute kids! What year are you in school?" Anjali asked. My stomach churned and I finally found my voice.

"We're not kids. We've actually almost finished school. Just one more year to go," I defensively explained.

"Oh that means you're still teenagers, not as old as us. They're still young, right Devie?" she fluttered her eyelashes down at him.

"Yeah, they're little ones," Dev said firmly and my heart sank again.

"Devie, can you please help me put these flowers in my hair," Anjali asked flirtatiously.

"Of course babe," Dev responded. "I'll see you guys later. Bye Padma," he smirked before going into the marquee with Anjali strutting behind him.

"I should get going too. More guests will be arriving and I need to rejoin the bridal party so we can make our 'grand' entrance," Vijay sighed.

After Vijay left the area, Parvati turned to me with worry evident on her face. "Are you alright, Pads?" she asked.

"I'm just nervous about greeting so many people," I shrugged, swallowing hard and feigning nonchalance.

"Chill, today will be over before you know it," Parvati smiled reassuringly.

'I hope so,' I thought bitterly before forcing a fake smile back onto my face when I saw some guests approaching from a distance.

*/*/*

I tapped my foot methodically to the beat of the wizarding rock music that filled the marquee. I thought things couldn't possibly get worse after my disastrous reunion with Dev a few hours ago, but Sarika actually managed to pull another one on me. Whether or not it was intentional, I'll never know.

After the ceremony ended and I had my usual shoulder-length haircut back, Parvati offered to check the reception seating chart for us and led me to our table. When we reached our assigned seats, I gawked at the people around us while my sister sat down and poured herself a glass of sparkling water.

"We're done greeting everyone. Now what's the matter, Pads?" she asked.

"Why in Merlin's name are we sitting here?" I hissed, tilting my head in the direction of all the children at our table. I didn't recognize them so they must have been from Shahid's side of the family. Even though it was probably close to their bedtime, they certainly weren't short on energy, having already been engaged in a spitball war with each other by the time Parvati and I arrived.

"What's wrong with this table?" Parvati asked in confusion.

"We're not kids! We just turned seventeen, which is legal age in the wizarding community!" I exclaimed, throwing up my hands in exasperation.

"Relax Pads. We're just barely adults and maybe Sarika didn't know where else to put us. Would you rather sit with our parents?" she knowingly asked.

"I suppose not," I begrudgingly admitted.

"Were you expecting to sit somewhere specific?" she slowly continued, trying to piece things together.

"Nope, not at all!" I quickly corrected her, taking a gulp of water from the glass she had just poured for herself. Parvati frowned and took my glass in return. I was secretly hoping to be placed at Dev's table, but perished the thought when he arrived with his girlfriend.

Then, one of the boys knocked over his cup of ginger ale and it spilled onto my plate. At that moment, I knew that it was going to be a long night.

It was later in the evening now, and my hands cradled a mug of chai while I listlessly stared at the packed dance floor. Vijay and Kirin were linking arms and drunkenly doing the can-can. Several guests, including the children from our table, had gathered around and begun cheering them on. I snickered at the ridiculous sight before sadly realising that it was the first time I had genuinely smiled all day.

I felt terribly guilty for not making any effort to enjoy myself after Sarika had invested so much time and energy into planning her wedding. The reception really did look like a page taken from a fairy tale book. The round tables in the marquee were draped in blue satin tablecloths. Each table had a tall clear vase of white roses immersed in water with a couple of tea lights floating on the surface as the centrepiece. Crystal chandeliers were suspended in mid-air around the tent, adding a luxurious effect to the festivities. The delicious food at the long buffet table had now disappeared and was replaced by a scrumptious dessert station with a flowery five-tier wedding cake that some guests had already started gravitating towards. The rest of them were in the middle of the marquee on the dance floor.

Sarika and Shahid were sitting near the back of the marquee looking appreciatively at all their guests enjoying themselves. Then, they turned towards each other and grinned before leaning forward to engage in a passionate kiss. I averted my eyes, feeling embarrassed at witnessing such an intimate moment between the newlywed couple, as well as a twinge of jealousy at their happiness. They first met at Hogwarts and began dating in their sixth year. I had almost finished my education there, but had yet to meet anyone who remotely sparked my interest.

"Now look who's moping at their table while everyone else is having fun on the dance floor. And you were complaining to me about Ron's behaviour after the Yule Ball!"

I turned and saw my sister sit back down in the chair beside me. Dev took the seat next to her and I felt a wave of anger wash over me from his presence. I still wasn't sure whether I misread his intentions or if he had cruelly led me on for his own amusement. Sue seemed convinced that he had been romantically interested in me and she was a pretty good judge of character. But, I wanted to figure things out for myself.

"Where's your girlfriend?" I tersely asked him.

"She's out there. I don't dance. Tried it once - didn't like it. Where's your boyfriend?" Dev shot back, suspiciously narrowing his eyes at me and tapping his fingers on the table expectantly.

"You got a boyfriend and never told me?!" Parvati asked incredulously. I rolled my eyes and shook my head.

"I'm referring to Ronald Weasley," Dev clarified, sounding irritated.

"Oh, Ron isn't her boyfriend. They just went to the Yule Ball as friends because they didn't have dates. Harry Potter and I went together for the same reason. It's so obvious that Harry is in love with Ginny and Ron with Hermione. I thought we explained this already when we visited during spring break," Parvati laughed.

Bewilderment filled Dev's visage, before it morphed into dismay. He crossed his arms onto the table and rested his forehead against them, masking his face from us. Parvati tilted her head towards him and looked at me in confusion. I carefully kept my face expressionless and continued to sip my tea.

"Devie, there you are!" a sunny voice exclaimed from behind me. Anjali sauntered around us, coming to stand behind Dev. She pressed her chest coyly against his back, wrapped her arms around him and grinned at me and Parvati over his head.

"Anjali, what's going on?" Dev sat up and chuckled nervously, likely seeing the look of displeasure that crept onto my face.

"I'm just spreading the love!" she giggled as she started massaging his shoulders. I glared at them.

"I hope you're enjoying yourself. How did you find the food? The palak paneer curry is pretty good, right?" Parvati asked cordially.

"I'm really enjoying myself! I love to dance so I joined a random group on the floor. I actually can't have the palak paneer because I'm a vegan," Anjali replied.

"Oh, what's that?" Parvati asked curiously.

"It means she doesn't eat animal products or byproducts. The palak paneer contains cheese," I deadpanned.

"Oh, I see. So, how did you and Dev meet?" Parvati inquired in an attempt to change the subject.

"We met on set at the Queen Square Theatre. After I graduated from Beauxbatons, I came here to study at the Wizarding Academy of Dramatic Arts and have acted in many productions. Earlier this spring, I was cast in one called 'A Night of Fright'. The director hired Dev to break a curse on a bangle I was supposed to wear as part of my costume. She noticed there was something strange about it. Dev broke the curse, saved the day and then we fell in love!" Anjali explained joyfully. I rolled my eyes.

"It's a good thing they caught that before any shit happened to Anjali 'Cobra' over here."

Vijay gripped the back of Parvati's chair, guffawing at his own lame pun on her surname while Kirin swayed next to him. To her credit, Anjali laughed good-naturedly.

"That joke was funny five months ago mate," Dev grumbled, leaning down to rest his forehead onto his arms again.

Ugh. I knew there was a reason I disliked snakes to the point of my boggart turning into one during Professor Lupin's D.A.D.A. class in third year.

Anjali started playing with Dev's hair and chatting to Vijay, Kirin and Parvati. I felt my chest tighten and quickly downed the rest of my tea, deciding it was time to join my parents on the dance floor.

I forced a smile onto my face and nudged my way through the crowd of guests until I reached them. While I was dancing, I briefly met Dev's eyes from across the room before angrily turning away. Perhaps losing myself in the music would help this humiliating night go by faster.

Notes: Scooby-Doo is one of my favourite cartoons so the play, 'A Night of Fright' is a reference to the episode 'A Night of Fright Is No Delight' from the original series :)

Dev's line about not wanting to dance during the reception is also a nod to the Teen Titans season two episode, 'Date with Destiny', when Robin refuses to dance with Killer Moth's daughter, Kitten, at her junior prom.

I used the literary version of Padma's boggart here. In the POA book, Padma's boggart is revealed to be a snake and Parvati's boggart is a mummy. In the movie, Parvati's boggart is a snake and we don't see Padma's boggart.

Lastly, Anjali's surname is inspired by my Woman Crush Wednesday, Priyanka Chopra :)