Lady Tonks, Lord Potter

The match that set the blaze

Ted Tonks sat off to the side of all the room, in the finest dress robes he'd ever worn let alone owned, and sipped a glass of wine. Slowly sipped, as his wife had warned him that she wouldn't hesitate to respond like a Black if he was legless before the ceremony. And it was very much before the ceremony, five-sodding-hours before the ceremony. But it was a very nice room, one that he'd obviously never seen at Gringotts, as it differed very much from the cold, forbidding, austere look of the bank's lobby, offices and other assorted rooms seen by the public. Instead of feeling as if he needed to do his banking and then get out it felt...hospitable. The small window nearby his seat revealed that he was rather high above Diagon Alley, enough so that he felt as if he was up in the top seats of a Quidditch stadium. Any room could have a nice view, though, as it was the furnishings that made the difference. The chair was soft, some fabric he couldn't place, cushioned at just the right amount to feel comfortable but not as if he was sinking, and the décor reminded him, surprisingly, of his Gran's sitting room in Whitby, right down to the lace doily things and a tasteful seaside painting. Definitely a reflection of the room's owner.

As that owner entered the room Ted watched as Effie's eyes went to his glass of wine and raised an eyebrow.

"Have to keep up my spirits somehow."

Effie nodded her head and took the seat opposite of him, settling in. Ted made sure not to focus on the fact that her legs seemed to dangle over the edges, and wondered why she didn't have a more goblin-sized chair but then dismissed that thought immediately as the chair shrank until it was perfectly sized for the Gringotts goblin.

"Mr. Tonks, I understand wanting to be prepared for the day, but aren't you dressed for the ceremonies a bit early?"

Ted chuckled, his chest fluttering, and sat down the wineglass on the small table between them. "Andy's quite the whirlwind today, so even though I know I could get dressed in a snap I've been married long enough to know when to speak and when to just not and say 'yes, dear.' Pick your battles and all that."

Effie nodded and smiled. "Very smart."

"Every now and then." He ran his fingers over his temples, smoothing down imaginary out-of-place hairs. "I have to say, when we arrived, well, that was something I never thought I'd see."

"Oh?" Effie gave him a questioning look.

"The loincloth chap, having a slash over the doorway."

"Ah." Effie sat back and clasped her hands in her lap. "Yes, the security here will be unlike anything the wizarding world has ever seen. If everyone attends that has responded to the invitations, and even those who haven't responded, Goblin Nation will be ready." She paused for a moment, studying his face. "You do know that speaking of..."

Ted hurriedly held up his hand. "Not a word."

"Thank you." Effie leaned forward and tapped a small golden bell on the table, causing it's clear ringing sound to echo through the room. Shortly thereafter a young goblin entered the room bearing a tea service.

Once the niceties of tea had been observed, and after Ted drained his wineglass, the two unlikely companions sat and simply relaxed, chatting about preparations for the wedding but focusing on the more inconsequential things like flower choices, both of them avoiding the topic that was on their minds; would Voldemort show up? Would Death Eaters arrive in their robes and masks?

As the tea slowly drained from the teapot eventually, though, Effie had to ask one question. "How is Lady Black today?"

"Oh. Well." Ted sat down his tea cup. "She's been in a right state all day and her mum isn't helping. I tried to run interference but it was useless. Thank Merlin the Greengrass girl showed up, she and Dora and Jack have been locked away for hours. Literally locked away, mind you. I think Dora did it to keep Andy out. It was after that Andy came down, told me to get dressed and to head here. Luckily one of the non-loincloth goblins saw me and sent me up here."