dolohov

“I do enjoy aesthetics.” Nina smiled, checking once more on the dinner to ensure everything was going according to plan. The idea of Diana trying to ear worm her way into Antonins head. She wasn’t even sure much of it was Diana’s concern for Antonin. She was positive that it was about her dislike for Nina. She pursed her lips and thought about what she might say in her next run in with Diana. “Well Malcolms not my biggest fan at the moment either. But I appreciate that” she said.

Nina was caught up in her negative spiral of thoughts, suddenly sure that Antonin wasn’t serious with her. Until he spoke. He pulled her into him, and she rested her arms on top of his shoulders. He kissed her forehead and she closed her eyes. The most important person in his life. She took a breath and looked up to him “the most important? That’s quite a title” she smiled slightly, whilst her heart felt like it was fluttering with joy, she wanted to make sure he was being truthful. “I feel the same” she said, resting her hand on the side of his face and brushing her thumb against his cheek.

“As do I. There’s something to be said for enjoying the smaller things in life.” Antonin inclined his head, not sure if he was supposed to ask more details about Malcolm or not. It had been so long since he’d been in the early stages of a relationship and he supposed, in a way, he’d never truly been in one or by the time he and Katsiaryna had acknowledged that they were together it had been that way for many years. Now he shrugged another shoulder, lifting his glass to his lips as he watched Nina, well aware that mentioning Diana was probably not the best thing he could have done.

The class had just ended and Remus felt good about the lesson, but when Jennette Woodson had come up to him in his office he felt he needed to approach Dolohov. It wasn’t the first time that a student that wasn’t in his years had come to his office hours to discuss some class material. Though he had his set classes and lessons, sometimes they did overlap with what Dolohov was teaching but thought they could easily approach the other professor. Remus stood from his desk slowly and mindful of what conversation he was about to have. The other professor’s office wasn’t too far away from his own and he took the corridor down to the other office. 

When he arrived at the door, Remus knocked on the door three times. “Professor Dolohov, It’s Remus. There is something I believe we need to discuss.” Remus wasn’t sure how to broach the subject with the man but had his suspicions that they needed to discuss their mutual subject. It was a damning thing to have two different professors for two different age groups but it shouldn’t be this hard. Remus didn’t think it was that hard but he shouldn’t be having students from his classes come to him. “I just wanted to ask you something about your students. There’s been a few that are coming to me and…I’m concerned is all.”

@antonintheviper 

The office Antonin Dolohov had been given in Hogwarts was certainly nice enough. It was not as large as the one he’d had back at his home in London, but he appreciated the coziness of it as well as how different it was. He currently marked papers he’d assigned, his lips thinning when he realized that the majority of them were less than average in his NEWT-level courses. He groaned and his eyebrows lifted as he heard Lupin knocking on the door. “Come in,” he called, remaining in his chair, hiding his annoyance that his fellow teacher was barely out of Hogwarts himself.

“The chilling charms are probably more effective though. I just remember my father used to carve his own big spheres of ice for his drinks. That was his explanation.” She shrugged her shoulders slightly and sipped at her wine. It annoyed her that they were even talking about Diana. It was making her wine taste bad. “Someone like herself? What? Pompous and rude?” she scoffed. “Diana hates me. No wonder she wants you to see someone else. Probably won’t stop until you’re married to some floozy socialite friend of hers.” Nina could feel herself pouting, she couldn’t stop it either, imagining what leggy brunette with huge boobs or something Antonin would have been set up with. That thought was pushed from her mind and she snapped back to attention when Antonin spoke again. She took a moment, “Are you just saying that so I don’t get upset about Diana wanting to set you up?”

“They probably are more effective, but there’s nothing wrong with an aesthetic.” He liked nice things, of course, since he had worked so hard to achieve them. Antonin could tell she was irritated, though he didn’t realize she was that much so. His brows lifted at her comments and he lifted his own glass to his lips, hoping that the alcohol would numb his senses just a touch. “I’ll speak to Malcolm and I’m certain it will stop,” he pointed out, not wishing to go too far into it, though expecting his friend would be able to curb his wife’s worst impulses.

“Oh well I’ve got some nice vodka. I’m not an animal” Nina laughed, stirring the pot on the stove and covering it with a lid to let it simmer, also giving her a chance to chat without distracting herself.  “Thats true, unless you use one of those big sphere ones, they melt slower.” She said, turning to him. As soon as he mentioned Malcolm’s wife, Nina’s face dropped. Set him up? “What? Diana was trying to set you up? Why?” She furrowed her brows at Antonin. Then Nina’s mind started to run away from her. Had he asked her to? If he had what was he doing here with her? Was she just a fun plaything? That wouldn’t do. She wouldn’t let that happen.

Nina smiled as Antonin poured himself a drink “I didn’t either. I grew up on a farm, far from opulence. I think it’s why I do enjoy a bit of it now” she replied in Russian, walking over to the stroganoff to check on it, sipping her wine as she stirred slightly. “Whats your drink of choice? I’ll buy some to keep on hand.” Nina loved the way the corner of his mouth turned up slightly, he seemed very cheeky in that moment. She liked catching those small smirks, it proved that Antonin was someone who had an exterior that was there for most people, and she felt special to be able to see behind it. “We didn’t did we- I did I had a wonderful night. Thank you for taking me. Did you have a good night?”

Antonin nodded, agreeing with what she had said. He knew that he appreciated finer things simply because he’d needed to work for them in a way that so many in Britain did not. The idea of generational wealth irritated him more than he could say and he took a sip of the drink he’d prepared. “I drink vodka, usually,” he said with a quirk of his lips. “With an ice charm to keep it cold. Actual ice dilutes it too much.” The face he made was fond, however, and he leaned against a countertop as Nina asked if he’d had a nice evening. “I did,” he agreed with a shrug of one shoulder. “Though I could have done without Malcolm’s wife trying to set me up with someone else.”

Nina wasn’t sure how long it would take to get used to kissing Antonin. It was still very new, and each time was more exciting than the last. She mirrored his grin as he pulled away, and was sure her cheeks were pink. Butterflies were not a feeling Nina got often- if ever. Apart from when Antonin looked at her the way he was, and calling her Darling. “Hello” she said again “It’s small” she laughed, taking the flowers in his hand and smelling them “These are beautiful, you really didn’t need to. But thank you” she smiled, moving to the kitchen to pull out a vase “Beef Stroganoff. It was my mothers recipe. I’ve been missing home recently, so I thought it would be nice. Would you like a glass of wine? Or something stronger? I have a drinks cart just there in the living room” she said, gesturing to the caddy next to her couch as she poured herself a glass of wine. 

Kissing Nina was different from kissing Katsiaryna. He could not say if it was better – though it was certainly not worse – and even now, as he looked over at her, Antonin found Nina enchanting. His lips quirked at the corners at the grin on her face and he pressed one more kiss to her temple as she took the flowers from his hand. He shrugged at the assertion that the place was small and when he spoke, it was in Russian. “I did not grow up in such opulence as I live in now,” he told her quietly, a fact that he was revealing but had not necessarily given to others. “At the end of the day, it matters little.” He smiled at her thanks and moved to her drink cart to get something to drink. “Something a bit stronger,” he admitted with a small grin on his face. “You know, I realized we never got to discuss much of the Yule Ball. Did you enjoy it?”

“So it doesn’t live up to its reputation? Good think we’re going to change that.” If there were rumors that were actually believed about the shack, that would help ensure people ignored anything strange they noticed about it and Cas couldn’t help but think it would be fun to weaponize the place that everyone thought was a sleeping danger.

Making an impressed noise, Cas found himself of the opinion that Dolohov might be smarter than he originally estimated since using curses in another language was a good way of protecting yourself from people blocking or undoing your spells since it took longer to identify them thanks to the popularity of latin based spells overriding those rooted in other languages - but it did make it easier to identify the caster, or at least their nationality.

“I know a few other languages, but not Russian. Do you have a masterplan or should we each take a floor and cast our favorite curses to see the end result?” It would be better to work in harmony and back up the other’s spells, but if Dolohov would be castling in Russian, that went out the window. It would be interesting to see how the man chose to answer, however.

Antonin responded with a raised brow, his lips quirking at the corners. He was not incredibly impressed by his comrade, but he had no desire to be made a fool for making assumptions before he’d ever truly gotten to know him. His eyes focused on the other man and he inclined his head. “Indeed,” he stated, already running through different curses in his mind.

A satisfied smirk settled on Antonin’s face at the impressed noise that left Cas’ mouth. He was used to impressing others, but there was always gratification to be had when he realized it specifically. He had always thought it was easier to use another language for such dark spells; it would be that much more difficult to untwist, especially if they layered the spells with those spoken in English.

“I was thinking it might be best to layer them,” he drawled, in a tone that brooked no nonsense. It was a tone that his students had come to hate and Antonin had not yet realized that Cas was not one of his students. “If we layer the Russian spells between English ones, it would make it even more difficult to identify.” And he’d throw a few Belarusian ones in for good measure.

It had been a few weeks since the Yule Ball, since the first time Nina and Antonin actually stepped out as a couple. Or as close to being a couple as they’d been. She had seen people stealing glances throughout the night, and whilst she thought she would have been bothered by it, any worries disappeared with Antonin’s presence, his touch. And they’d kissed. She still felt a tingle at her lips when she thought about it. 

She’d invited Antonin over for dinner, she enjoyed flashy dinners and nights out and special drinks as much as the next person, but she’d been desperately wanting a quiet night in. And she’d dug out an old family recipe for beef stroganoff and wanted to see if she could make it like her mother used to. Hoping she would make it decently, this was the first time he was coming to her apartment, or coming into rather than just picking her up. Right on time, the doorbell went and Nina quickly wiped her hands on her apron and went to open the door. “Hello you” she smiled, stepping forward slightly and pressing a kiss to his cheek. “Come in, make yourself comfortable. It’s not a manor, but it’s home.” 

@antonintheviper​

Antonin had enjoyed his time with Nina over Yule. While it was different than the holidays he’d had in the past, he was confident in his affections for her. So much so that he’d seen little reason to allow himself to be set up with another when he knew that Nina was the only person he cared to spend time with in a romantic sense. Some might say it was bad form, he supposed, to be dating less than a year after his wife had died, but Antonin had never done what was expected in the way that others had.

When he arrived, he carried a bouquet of flowers in his hand – and a bracelet in his pocket that he’d purchased earlier that day – and leaned down to kiss her properly, one hand moving to her lower back. When the kiss was over, he pulled back and offered her a grin that was uncommonly seen on Antonin’s face. “Hello, darling,” he murmured, the endearment slipping from his mouth but not yet sounding quite right; he’d have to work on that. “It looks lovely,” he said. Though Antonin had become rather used to nice things, he’d grown up with nothing and this was infinitely better than that. Besides, he didn’t want Nina to think him so much a snob. “What are you cooking?”

“Slightly early.” Cas countered with a faint smile, well aware that the different between the two states was less than a minute. He wasn’t sure just how early Antonin had arrived, but if he’d wanted to get thing done sooner, then the meeting time should have been earlier and that wasn’t Cas’ fault. Maybe if he ever had to work with Antonin again, he’d stake out the place first and see just how long it took for him to show up.

“So this is the most haunted place in Great Britain, is it? Looks like a regular abandoned shack, if you ask me.” Cas commented as he looked around, taking in the grey wood that formed the walls and the dilapidated air the shack making it look as if it was a stiff breeze from falling apart. “But I’m sure we can fix that. I’m looking forward to seeing a master place a few dark curses on this place to make sure there’s some real shrieking happening.”

Antonin rolled his eyes, disinterested in speaking semantics with a man he did not know incredibly well. He prided himself on being prepared, but lately he felt that his job was to counsel the insipid idiots that the Dark Lord led into His path instead of actually doing something worthy for the cause.

But he digressed; this was neither the time nor the place to think such things.

A snort nearly escaped Antonin’s nose, but he instead refrained and raised his brow instead. “For what it’s worth,” he drawled. “In my months of working here, I’ve not seen a ghost nearby even once.” He shook his head as he looked over at the other man and inclined his head at what he took as a compliment. “That shouldn’t be a problem. But don’t be surprised if you don’t understand them; I prefer to cast in Russian. It makes my curses that much harder to identify.” And Belarusian even more so.

“Well I don’t know. Maybe you’ve got many parties and dinners you’d like to attend and don’t want-” Nina began, about to list the many reasons she thought Antonin might want to be alone, but as soon as she felt his lips on her forehead she stopped and looked to him. “Or maybe not.” she smiled, “Tire of you? No. I’ve felt tired every day since my sister passed away. Antonin you make me feel entirely awake.”

Her gaze soon met the other’s, not immediately recognizing him. She noticed his movement, and she soon made room, ensuring that he could access the vault without Zara being able to see inside. “I’d rather wait.” She flashed a polite smile. “At this stage of the process, I may unintentionally lock it into your vault, and I believe this is not how we treat a customer.”

Even though she loved to do this to one of the goblins, it was completely different from one of the bank customers. She walked a little farther, hoping that he would soon come in and retire. Her accent was strong and clearly showed she wasn’t from there. “Don’t worry, sir. I’ll be waiting when it’s ready.”

Antonin shrugged one shoulder, acknowledging the woman’s comment. Personally he had no intention of anything being locked in his vault forever and yet he wondered why a human was taking care of security measures instead of the goblins that were so famed. It didn’t matter, he supposed, and Antonin ran his hand along his jawline. “Alright then,” he responded before he began to pick the items he’d come for. They were not difficult to find, but then again his vault had always been meticulously organized.

Nina pursed her lips slightly to hide her cheeky smile at Antonin’s comment, she rested her hand on his shoulder as they stood watching the room. She leant in slightly and whispered in his ear, “If I’m pleased, I can assure you, you will be too.” She pulled back and sipped at her champagne. “That sounds lovely. I hope you don’t mind if I monopolise your free time.” Nina smiled. “We just finished Nutcracker, so I’ve got the Christmas and New Year off.”

Antonin Dolohov had arrived at the Shrieking Shack approximately three minutes before he was scheduled to do so. He abhorred lateness, more than anything else in his entire being, but he had never wanted to be a man who appeared to be overeager either. When it came to social events, he often arrived just a hair after the arrival time, but when it came to business he would always be early. And the Death Eaters were considered business, of that he was certain.

As he waited for his comrade to join him, Antonin contented himself with looking around the Hogsmeade grounds, curious as to whether or not students had snuck out of the castle as they were wont to do. A loud sigh escaped his lips and when he heard footsteps behind him, Antonin turned around. “Nearly late,” he drawled before his gaze even looked upon the man.

“I’ll help you, but you’re going to owe me and I’m only helping you if it doesn’t involve lawyers.” Considering just how tempted she was to plant the idea of infiltrating and destroying their company to some death eaters, it would be an understatement to say that Valentina was against the idea of lawyers at the moment. 

Unlike what some might think, it had nothing to do with her missing brother being a lawyer and more to do with the fact that a lawyer had the audacity to approach her and offer their card since so many of her family members had needed the services of legal professionals. Yes, her father and her previous intended were both in Azkaban for death eater activities, and yes, she’d already spent a short stint in Azkaban for suspicion of the same thing, but it was still an attempt at antagonizing her that sadly worked.

Antonin chuckled at the words and shook his head. “Is it possible for me to spend time with you, Valentina,” he drawled. “Without being reminded that I’ll owe you?” He ran his hand along his jawline as he looked over at her and inclined his head. Antonin enjoyed Valentina’s company, even if they didn’t always see eye-to-eye on everything. She was worthy of admiration, which was not a statement he felt compelled to say about anyone.

Currently, however, he was curious as to the lawyer statement and his lips twitched at the corners while his eyes shone with amusement. “Are there any lawyers you need to disappear?” he inquired, his voice teasing only somewhat. “I would never implicate myself, of course, but I know a person or two that might be able to help you.” Antonin leaned back as he looked over at her. “Or are you simply tired of the age-old fact that most lawyers work only for themselves, regardless of who’s paying them money?”

Diana nodded, smiling at him. “Absolutely. Malcolm and I were talking about inviting our friends over for dinner soon. To meet Daphne in a more intimate setting.” The baby party would be her and her and a lot of girlfriends so they had agreed that since that was taking longer to plan they could have their closest friends over for dinner. The elves would make a great meal and then their guests could meet the new star of Greengrass manor. Of course everyone had seen her picture in the papers by now, but she was even prettier and cuter in person. When he spoke about muggles and that it mattered to him that Nina was Russian too she grimaced and had to pause. Who did she know that was Russian and that would be fitting to stand next to Antonin? When a face popped into her head she had to smile. She’d be a great fit for him. Diana wanted to clap herself on the back for thinking of her. They hadn’t talked in a while, but she knew that Val wasn’t married yet.  “I have a few Russian friends too. Let me think… Oh, tres bien. I’ve got it! Valeria Ivanova, blonde and tall but not taller than you. Lovely eyes. She’s very pretty. Speaks five languages. Runs her own business. She’s very resourceful.” Valeria had a lovely tea shop in Moskau, they had common friends who introduced them when they were at a designers showroom once. Diana wasn’t the biggest strategic thinker when it came to things that didn’t concern her directly such as the war. Truthfully she did not care much about it. She knew that Malcolm used their dungeon with his friends sometimes but she did not ask him about it. “I really think you’d like Valeria if you gave her a chance. I have a good feeling about this. You would get along.”

The smile that graced his face was genuine and Antonin inclined his head in agreement. “I would like that,” he responded with a shrug of one shoulder. He had not been to dinner with them recently and he thought it might be nice to converse again, to get back into society instead of hiding away at Hogwarts the way he’d found to be helpful and healing. He supposed he ought to purchase a gift for the child and he made a mental note to send one of his secretaries out shopping within the days after the holiday. “Just let me know when it will be and I will be there, even if I have to find a way to sneak out of this castle at night.”

Lips twitched only slightly at the grimace upon her face following his words about Nina. Antonin was well aware of the attitudes toward muggleborns here in England and he could even admit to finding them well-deserved; many of them refused to assimilate in a true way and instead chose to join the magical realm with the goal of changing it to suit them. But then Diana was speaking more of women and friends and as he listened to her describe her Russian friend, he knew that his words had clearly not thrown her off the scent. Antonin clenched his jaw to avoid a heavy sigh. He knew – or at least he believed – that what Diana said came from a place of caring, that she wanted to see the best for him. There was a part of him that was gratified, that by Diana’s impeccably high standards he was seen as a person for whom she could intervene, but he also had little patience for those who wanted to undermine his decisions as they related to his own life. “I appreciate your consideration,” he stated, his tone still kind but tinged with a steel his business associates would be familiar with. “But I am perfectly pleased with the woman I’m currently seeing. I don’t expect you to understand, but I would appreciate you respecting it.”