Rince Draíochtach

Disclaimer: I just own the story. I don't own the characters, JKR does. As with anything you recognize from JKR's world. Technically, I don't own a lot of the terminology in this-my dance teacher does… So basically, I just own the story.

Summary: Life has been hard on Hermione. She's gone up against Voldemort and death eaters 3 times now? Not to mention that breakdown her best friend had the other year; that must have been a bit tough. It was during this turmoil, that she discovered the underlying beat of it all. A jump, a turn, a stamp. And that pulsing music.

A/N: Hey, welcome to the story! It is a story about dance primarily, but so much more. It takes place throughout the 6th book and into the summer of the 7th, so if you haven't read the Half-Blood Prince turn back now! And go read it. The story's based a lot on my own experiences and research, but very true to the books… Well, mostly anyways. ;) This first chapter is a bit of an introduction for the real story which begins the next chapter. And yes, the following chapters will be longer. You may be able to guess what kind of dance already by the title. Kudos if you can. Regardless, read on! Review! Flames will be used for breaking in my new hard shoes. Not that you would anyways, right? 

The Piper thro' the Meadow Straying

I am lost, and I rejoice in the openness I cannot decide where to go, so for now, I will dance where I am and be. There is no goal, no destination, just wilderness and life and being. I sing and dance and live in the wilderness, and I am home.
- Tziporah

Have you ever wondered which one came first? Music and dance, that is. Did people first start dancing to music or did people start playing music for dancing. What is dancing, anyways? Who was the first one who decided that he (she?) wasn't just moving, she (he?) was dancing? A girl in a field? A guy around a fire? I wonder what that person was thinking.

They say it's ancient, dancing. That's what got me wondering about who started it. The books have been no help. They all say the same. "The very origins of dance are unknown, but it's thought that it began somewhere in Africa in the very beginnings of man." Ancient, indeed. Can you imagine being the first person to dance? What a legacy! And to be unknown to posterity… Brings life into perspective, doesn't it?

I could have been that person. I heard the music, I felt the beat. Something stirred deep in me. I had never felt that way before. Even when I read the best books and encountered a daunting Arithmancy problem, I have never felt such a need to do something. I've heard it been called as instinct, but I'm not sure. That seems too animalistic. Maybe animalistic is the way it should be. Natural, connected to the spirits of the world. I don't know, I just know that it came.

I didn't dance for beauty, for love, for hate, for people. I didn't dance for anything. I just danced. But it became so much more. Once I knew what dancing was, I could dance for beauty, for love, for hate, for people. I could dance for the world and let out all my anxieties loose on that wooden floor. I danced for all of them. I could feel all of their magic in a bar, in a stamp. I needed to dance for them. I needed to dance.

It was because I heard the beat that I needed to dance. So I did, I danced. I fought all the little voices that said that I didn't have enough time or that I didn't need to. And I danced. I might never be a champion, but I will always be a dancer.

Come dance with me.