Chapter - 50 : Beltane Revelations part - 2

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The celebration was held on an unplottable hillside somewhere in the Lake District of northern England. Coloured lanterns hung in the sky, softly illuminating the hordes of wizards and witches who had gathered to celebrate. Musicians were playing on a small stage, the music amplified by sonorous spells so that the beat thrummed through the crowd. Everyone was dressed in brightly coloured robes and some of the younger witches wore flowers braided in their hair. Numerous stalls had been set up on the grass, selling charm bracelets and other magical trinkets as well as serving food and drink to those sitting at several long wooden tables. Up on the top of the hill two huge bonfires were burning, the smoke spiralling up into the cloudless night sky.

"It's said to bring good fortune if you dance between the fires," Sirius told Harry, leaning in to be heard over the music and the laughter of the crowd.

"It's especially lucky if you go togheter with a certain special someone," Andromeda added and shared a loving look with her husband. Harry found it strange to see her so happy; with her face unlined from grief and her expression light-hearted and smiling, any resemblance she had with her sister Bellatrix disappeared.

"I remember the first time I attended the Beltane festival with you, just after we left school," Ted reminisced. "We danced until dawn."

"And I consider us both very lucky," Andromeda said with a bright smile. The couple exchanged a tender kiss before Andromeda turned her attention to Sirius and Remus. "Well boys, shouldn't you two be finding partners to dance with? There are plenty to choose from." She gestured towards a nearby group of witches, all of whom were eying Sirius in open appreciation.

Sirius grinned and winked roguishly at them, making them giggle and blush. Then he sighed. "Too young," he said regretfully. "Though I certainly wouldn't mind getting lucky tonight!"

"Sirius!" Remus exclaimed, glancing meaningfully down at Harry.

"Orion's old enough to know about the quills and the inkpots, Remus." Sirius waved one hand in a dismissive gesture. "Now if you don't mind, I think I just spotted Hestia Jones over at the refreshment stand. Orion, you'll be all right if I head off for a bit, won't you?"

"I'll be fine, go ahead." Harry was quick to encourage him, knowing the older wizard hadn't had an opportunity for a night of fun in close to a decade. Sirius didn't need telling twice - he wended his way through the crowd of dancers until he reached Hestia and soon had her laughing and flirting with him.

Remus stared after him. "I really don't know how he does it."

"It's the Black family charisma," Ted told him solemnly. "Can't stand most of them, but you have to admit the Blacks can charm the pants off anyone if they try."

"Thank you, darling," Andromeda said. "You're not too bad yourself."

"What about you, Orion, any pretty girl caught your fancy?" Ted nudged Harry with a sly grin. "How about dancing with a witch or two?"

Harry knew any normal ten year old boy would blush furiously at the suggestion, but he only felt disgusted at the idea of having a crush on someone so much younger than himself. "No!" he quickly denied.

The adults wouldn't stop teasing him though and eventually Harry surrendered and began scanning the crowd for witches he was prepared to dance with. He noticed Madam Rosmerta selling butterbeers and firewhisky (way too old for him), and the Patil twins twirling around in time to the music (Harry really didn't want a repeat of the dreadful Yule Ball), and lots of other soon-to-be Hogwarts students - Lavender Brown, Susan Bones, Millicent Bulstrode. It seemed to Harry as if half the wizarding world had turned up for the festival and he didn't feel like dancing with a single one of them.

It was with great relief that Harry finally caught sight of Luna Lovegood and her father Xenophilius amongst the crowd. He recognised them immediately, mostly because they were both wearing bright yellow robes and waving their arms around their heads out of sync with the music. Harry grinned at the sight and – after promising Remus he'd stay within sight – headed off in their direction. He didn't feel at all hesitant in asking Luna to dance, since he was sure she wouldn't immediately jump to thoughts of true love and romance as other witches her age would. Harry shuddered to imagine how a nine-year old Ginny Weasley would behave. Harry had enjoyed his on-again-off-again relationship with the older Ginny, but her obvious crush on him as a child had been the cause of a lot of embarrassment. He was still filled with horror every time he remembered the singing Valentine she'd sent him.

"Hullo," Harry said with a bright smile as he came to a halt in front of Luna. "Would you like to dance with me?"

"That would be lovely," Luna said and then dispelled the brief impression of normalcy by adding, "Even though you're covered in Gibbering Humdingers."

"Er, what are they?" Harry hadn't heard of that particular imaginary creature before.

"Oh, they're small creatures with brightly coloured fur," Luna said conversationally. "They're very secretive and often pretend to be simple Grundlebugs in order to confuse their enemies."

"Oh," Harry said. He wondered if she was just being her crazy self or was implying something deeper. With Luna one could never know for sure. Then he suddenly remembered they hadn't been introduced. "I'm Orion Black by the way."

"My name's Luna Lovegood," Luna replied. "But some people call me Loony."

Harry frowned, angry that she had already been dubbed by that insulting nickname. Luna herself looked supremely unconcerned by the whole thing. "Uh, well, I'll just call you Luna if that's all right," Harry said. Only Luna could make him feel so awkward with only a few words, Harry thought fondly.

Luna seemed to decide the time for conversation was over as she grabbed Harry's hand and pulled him over to join the other dancers circling the bonfires. There seemed to be steps that everyone else knew, causing Harry to stumble a few times as he rather unsuccessfully tried to follow along. Luna didn't appear to mind though, and she and Harry were soon laughing and kicking up their heels as they twirled around in dizzying circles. All awkwardness and hesitation inexplicably disappeared, leaving Harry happy to keep switching partners for hours, dancing with every girl he even vaguely recognised and several he didn't. In a small corner of his mind he noticed he was behaving rather uncharacteristically, but the sheer joy and exhilaration coursing through him meant he couldn't bring himself to care.

Finally Harry collapsed down in exhaustion beside Remus at one of the wooden tables, a giddy smile on his face. "Wow, I feel almost drunk!"

"That's the magic you're sensing," Remus told him with an amused smile. "It's particularly strong on Beltane – protection spells and the like are easier to cast, and Seers claim their powers are stronger tonight than on any other night of the year."

"Is that really true?" Harry was doubtful, remembering Trelawney's unconvincing lectures on the subject of Divination. They left him unprepared to trust any claims she or others like her might make about their so-called 'Inner Eye'.

"Well, no one can say for sure," Remus admitted. "Still, everyone knows wild magic rises on nights like these, especially in the presence of strong emotions from hundreds of witches and wizards. It's not quite accidental magic, but something deeper - it's there and it definitely affects us though."

"So that's why I feel so happy and danced for so long," Harry realised. Now that he knew to pay attention he could sense the huge upsurge of magic, fuelled by the cheerful and excited wizards and witches surrounding him.

As he concentrated, the magic suddenly seemed to shift moments before angry shouts broke out nearby. Harry instinctively leaped to his feet and turned towards the disturbance, drawing his birch wand as he did so. He saw a group of wizards also had their wands out, apparently having decided to pick a fight with a young couple dressed in ragged robes and muggle trainers.

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Enjoying the fanfic and hungry for more?

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