Slow Dance

Chapter 2: The Party

A/N: Welcome to chapter two! This one features a song from 2007 that I've shamelessly transported to 1927. I recommend you listen to THIS [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oWCbpnqlWOw] version of it; as much as I love the fully orchestrated movie version, this stripped down one is a nice departure and I also feel it's more Newt and Tina.

For those of you expecting the tooth-rotting fluff I initially had planned...there's been a change of plans, so please brace yourself for angst. I hope you'll still read this and stick around for the long ending notes I've left you so I can explain.

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As it turns out, the brief glimpses of the other rooms of the lavish mansion that Tina had seen earlier that day were just a warm-up for the ballroom. After much oscillation outside, she entered the large room and was once again astonished by grandeur. There were several windows as large as doors lined up on opposite sides of the room; the drapes were opened so that the vastness of both the night sky and the estate could be seen from inside. On the farthest side of the room, opposite the entrance of the ballroom, a stage had been set up where there was an orchestra of about ten musicians and a male vocalist. Near the entrance were several round tables with about eight to ten chairs each; she could see from where she was standing that there was an absurd amount of utensils laid out for each guest. The guests themselves were scattered to the tables; the bar on the left side of the room worked by house elves – she found herself grimacing slightly on Newt's behalf – and the dancefloor in front of the stage, where some had begun to dance to the sprightly music the orchestra was playing. Several waiters in uniform tuxedos carried around trays of beverages and hors d'oeuvres.

What really took her breath away, however, was the ceiling. Two large crystal candle chandeliers (like the ones in the drawing room but much bigger) served as the main lighting sources, but between them in the middle of the ceiling appeared to be a painting of the night sky. But, as Tina walked forward to get a better look of it, she found that it was moving . It wasn't just that the stars painted on it were twinkling, but that as she moved forward, the canvas itself seemed to move too; as though the painting was actually a hole in the ceiling, and the sky painted on it was the same sky outside. Amazed, Tina forgot herself for a few moments, walking forward and watching in disbelief as the view painted sky adapted.

She stepped backward and gave a small yelp when she bumped into someone. Quickly turning to apologize, her embarrassment grew when she saw it was Theseus, holding a flute of bubbling champagne; to make things worse, he was smirking at her. (She was beginning to think that a smirk was his default expression).

"Ah, Miss Goldstein," he greeted, then, looking at the ceiling, "enjoying the view?" He was dressed stylishly in a grey tuxedo and waistcoat and black bow tie. The silver chain of his fob watch, dangling from a buttonhole on his waistcoat and disappearing behind his jacket, gleamed as it caught the light. His hair was still neatly slicked back, though slightly curlier than it had been earlier in the afternoon.

"Yes," she admitted, blushing slightly at her being caught.

"We've managed to make it look similar to the one at Hogwarts, though obviously the one they have looks like a real sky and not just a painting; much bigger too," as he spoke of school, a look of fondness passed his features. When he looked to her again, the mischief in his eyes reappeared. "I'm sure my brother's told you all about it in his letters."

Tina groaned inwardly as she found herself blushing yet again because of this man's teasing – how did he even know about the letters? – and she was about to reply when, after a brief glance about him, Theseus spoke up again.