Draco took it all in stride, shoving them off and joining their chanting with an energy she knew was put upon. One look back at Theo showed a sour expression on his face as Draco took the praise and adulation. She caught the eye of the girl on Theo's arm, and she winked at her.

Hermione blinked, and turned around. Draco herded her to the head of the table, and Hermione took her position behind Draco's chair. She found Susan behind Goyle, Mortensen behind Pucey, and Penelope behind Flint. A few new Carrow Girls behind the others. And as the strawberry-blonde took her place behind Theo as he sat, Hermione realized the chair to Draco's left was empty.

Blaise wasn't here. She was thankful that meant Giuliana was somewhere else as well.

As soon as the boys were seated, the girls stepped forward for the wine bottles. Hermione followed, reaching beyond Draco's shoulder and pouring wine into his glass.

They repeated their toast — "To the Dark Lord's power. May he reign forevermore" — and Hermione watched as eleven boys drank deeply to his honor. There was less food on the table than two weeks ago. No opulent pig roast or decadent side dishes. As the boys settled back into conversation, the strawberry-blonde and two other girls started moving around with trays, serving light hors d'oeuvres and cheese.

Without dinner in the way, it didn't take long for the first girl to drop into a lap — a giggly waif in a silver collar who draped herself over Terrence Higgs without a fuss. As if he'd been waiting for the cue all evening, Goyle directed Susan to his lap, his arms wrapping around her stomach and his face inhaling deeply at her neck as she grimaced.

Hermione was listening to the conversations and watching the boys closely, so she saw the exact moment Flint pulled a small box out of his robes.

"What do we say, gentlemen," he called out over the noise. "Shall we lose some Galleons tonight?"

The boys laughed and jeered, ribbing one another about who had won and lost last time. Flint's long fingers opened the box and plucked out a deck of cards and three dice. He began shuffling the deck as some boys groaned about the holes in the pockets, and others rubbed their greedy hands together in glee.

Hermione had seen the Weasleys play this game at the Burrow before (usually only betting Knuts). Her rudimentary understanding was that it was similar to Muggle poker. Ron had tried to teach her in sixth year, but had gotten frustrated with her questions and gave up after only twenty minutes.

She felt a shard of ice in her chest at the memory. She'd buried Ron in a book next to Ginny weeks ago.

Pucey started divvying the chips, and the cards slid across the table with a magical push as Flint dealt them. She looked up and realized that over half of the girls were otherwise occupied. Some sat in laps or draped over the shoulders of their "dates." The other half refilled glasses and offered snacks. Only Hermione was left standing at attention.