June 21st, 1992

Harry wasn't going to admit it, but right now, he was nervous. Not because of his dapper outfit or his friend Draco invited him, but because this was another whole kind of wizarding society; something he's not quite sure he's ready for. Nevertheless, he couldn't refuse such an invitation. The Malfoys were kind enough as to loan the small group a carriage so they can arrive like any other rich family, something that Harry deeply appreciates them for. On their way to the home of their flamboyant hosts in Wiltshire, Richmond kept talking and explaining to Harry and his friends all the details:

"The driveway isn't just a straight path to the Manor. No, you must turn right and then you see the impressive iron gates of the impressive abode. Yew hedges surround you everywhere, yet once you go inside the Manor that's where the real embellishment begins. A large fountain, elaborate gardens, and diamond-paned windows are the very first things you see. And furthermore–"

"Richmond!" Penny snapped, annoyed at her mate. "Enough of your nervous jibber jabber. Let the young ones discover the Manor for themselves." Embarrassed, Richmond shut his trap with a small "Sorry, Dear" at his wife. Harry, who sat between his parents, once more endured the torture of his mother brushing out his hair.

"Mum, I'm fine, I look fine!" he mumbled, but Penny wouldn't have it. To be fair, though, Harry admitted that he'd never looked more handsome then he does now. Simple black dress robes donned his fit figure, his single-breasted jacket hugging him nicely, and his golden cummerband matched his golden cufflinks. Penny tucked Harry's shirt into his cummerband once more, to make sure that Harry doesn't look like a fool, and this time it was Richmond's turn to scowl.

"Penny, the boy looks fine." Penny only frowned at him and tested her small bun to make sure it stayed. Dressed in a sleek black and white empire dress with a white tulle halter and a golden satin belt around her waist, she looked simply and gorgeously elegant. Harry smiled at remembering the day Penny bought the dress with his trust vault money (not that Harry really minded, in fact, that's how the werewolves could afford the nice clothing). Richmond made a bet with her that day that she was going to be the most beautiful woman at the celebration – regardless of her non-magical status. Harry couldn't help but agree with his adoptive father.

Richmond is dressed in a similar outfit as Harry, in fact, Penny joked that they looked like older or younger versions of the same person. It stung the man's pride but he knew better than to argue with his wife's sense of fashion. Selene, Phoebus, and Adam, sitting across from the Stidolphs, looked just as nervous as Richmond felt, and Selene expressed this by bouncing in her seat.

"I wonder who we'll meet at this party! I'm so excited, I can hardly stand it!" Harry smiled knowingly at her, and Penny winced as Selene almost tore a hole in her new dress from the bouncing. Selene, like Penny, is wearing a full length dress. Only, instead of a halter, she wears a scoop neck dress of silver satin and a small ballgown of red tulle underneath. The whole dress is covered in red lace with a red belt around her stomach. Phoebus, on the other hand, dons the color of green in his outfit. Dark gray jacket, pants, and bow tie with a green cummerband with matching green cufflinks. The specific color reminds Harry of emeralds.

"I just hope we won't meet anyone too...disagreeable," Phoebus tried to find the right words, and his attempt did not go unnoticed.

"You and me both, young one," Richmond smiled at Phoebus comfortingly, and Penny also put on a dazzling smile.

"But let's not worry about that right now," Penny gently reprimanded, "After all, the point of this celebration to have fun; and if there's one thing I know about the Malfoy family, it's that they know how to have fun." Harry smirked at Penny's comment for, knowing Draco, she couldn't be more correct about the rest of the family. Adam suddenly began to laugh, though he tried to cover it up with the sleeve of his basic black and white dress robes.

"What's on your mind, Adam? Anxious to meet someone? And here I thought you were satisfied with Hunter." Adam blushed at the mention of young Irene's name, and his hand went to his heart out of habit, where the haphazardly made celtic knot pendant lay. Adam recovered, though, and explained,

"No, I was thinking about a possible prank we could pull on someone if they're being hairy hearted."

"You will do no such thing," Penny's eyes were briefly aflame. "This is the first time werewolves have ever been invited to a gala such as the Malfoy's annual Summer Solstice Celebration, and I won't have a measly prank keep us from keeping in the family's good books." The boys shrugged, but Harry made the signal that he and Adam will continue the discussion later. Adam nodded to show he understood as the carriage approached the iron gates of the luxurious Malfoy Estates.


"Richmond! Penelope! Welcome everyone!" Lucius Malfoy, decked out in his usual fancy attire was the first to greet the incoming group. After the brief greetings were over, Lady Narcissa Malfoy came over and gave the adults each a glass of wine.

"It's imported from Greece, the godly wine makers of the world!" Narcissa shared cheerily as she drank a sip. Penny laughed and followed her friend's footsteps. Lucius spotted the children following the adults closely and began to shoo them off.

"Draco is around here somewhere, with Pansy Parkinson and the like. Look around young ones; you'll find them soon." With that, the exuberant Lord Malfoy whisked Richmond away to the nearest bar to toast to Richmond and his family's good health. Harry sighed in annoyance – are all adults this bonkers over a silly little beverage? Nevertheless, he did as Lord Malfoy offered.

"Come on guys, this place can't be that big right?"

Oh, how wrong he was. And with not that much room to swing a Kneazle, Harry and the others were having a difficult time getting through.

The least I could have done was keep my big mouth shut, Harry thought regrettably as a rather lofty man swung around in front of Harry and landed in a pool of (what else?) wine.

"You'd think that this kind of gala would be a lot more...oh I don't know...not so crazy?" Phoebus asked, his voice dripping with sarcasm as much as the fountains of alcohol are spurting alcohol.

"Not really," Selene explained, her tone as a matter-of-fact, "The Summer Solstice is always a gay time for witches and wizards. It's one of the few events where we can live about freely without any fear of breaking the Statute of Secrecy."

"The what?" Adam asked dumbly, over the noise of the party.

"The Statute of Secrecy is an age-old document stating we can't practice magic in front of muggles or in places where muggles could spot us." That drawl could only belong to one person. The group turned around to find Draco Malfoy, his platinum blonde scalp slicked back into a shining beacon, and his dress robes looking every bit as elegant and outrageous as his father's. Draco's all-knowing smirk made itself plain on his face as he greeted each of the group.

"We were starting to think your dad lied about you being here. We were about to take Cadogan's pony and leave," Harry joked as he was greeted by the youngest Malfoy. Draco smirked at this comment, as if his smirk wasn't big enough already, and he casually replied,

"Well, if you're going to leave, the door's right over there. Otherwise, I can take you to a safer environment."

"Safer?"

At that exact moment, one of the guests came barreling through one of the diamond paned windows on his broomstick, yelling gibberish and the like. He continued this pattern for a few good minutes before literally bouncing off his broom and splashing into a different pool of white wine.

"Yes," Draco responded solemnly, "Safer. Come on, you lot, and don't lag behind!"


Draco took them out of the main ballroom and into a smaller area. However, just because it was smaller, doesn't mean that it was any less extravagant. Large silk banners, donning the Malfoy family colors of green and silver, draped the carved walls. The walls themselves depicted several scenes which Harry guessed came from Greek Mythology. One displayed the kidnapping of Persephone, goddess of spring, and another depicted the birth of Dionysus.

How appropriate for the occasion, Harry thought dryly.

Harry and his friends aren't the only guests here. Like Lord Malfoy said, Parkinson is here (though Harry would rather touch her with a ten foot broomstick), along with Crabbe and Goyle, as well as the Greengrass sisters. Daphne, the oldest and in Harry's year, wears a simple royal blue ballgown with white diamond embellishments in the shapes of the Fleur-De-Lis all over, and her dark brown hair up in a neat bun. She is accompanied by someone who can only be Daphne's younger sister, since the two look so much alike. Dark brown hair, even longer than Daphne's, is caught in a messy braid that ran all the way down her small frame. She skips around in her silver dress with a dark blue waistband and a large blue flower on the side, giving her a much more youthful look.

"Dr. Livingstone and friends, I presume," Daphne joked as she was one of the first to greet the incoming children. Though he never interacted with her personally last year, Harry's always respected Daphne's lighthearted humor, for not only is it rather uncommon for a Slytherin, but can also insult the person in question very much so. A good tactic that Harry hopes to learn.

"Summer homework hasn't been too hard for you, Daphne?" Harry asked politely after their brief greeting.

"Not at all, though I can't say I probably did it as well as you, Harry." If Harry wasn't so quick-minded he would have easily fell for Daphne's flirtation. Nevertheless, Harry gave his classmate a smile of acceptance and moved on to sit on one of the many comfy chairs in the room. Selene, who was so bouncy and smiles two minutes ago, suddenly became extremely shy, especially when the only seat left was right next to Daphne. Harry watched as his friend slowly made her way over to the Slytherin girl and she quietly cleared her throat.

"Hello, Selene," Daphne greeted fleetingly.

"H-Hello, Daphne," Selene addressed quietly. She smoothed out her dress nervously. "M-may I sit here?" At Daphne's nod, Selene immediately sat down on the luscious, padded seat and began listening in closely on Daphne and Pansy's newest conversation. Harry glanced around and noticed that Phoebus is rather confused at Selene's behavior, only to shrug it off and continue chatting with Malfoy about quidditch.

"What do you think, Harry?" Draco asked determinedly. "Phoebus here says that Krum, the new seeker of the Bulgarian Quidditch Team, might have a chance to uphold to his predecessor's statistics. I think he's too young. What do you say?"

"I say that we let him play and whatever happens happens." At Draco's obvoius annoyance to his politically correct answer, Harry added, "But if you want an actual prediction, then I think Krum'll do just fine, despite his age." Draco rolled his eyes so much, Harry became worried that his eyes will get stuck at the back of his head for a fleeting second.

"Well, come on, Draco," Phoebus argued, "If a sixteen year old wizard can pull off a Wronski Feint and get out of it without a single scratch, then you have to admit there's some talent there."

"You actually believe those rumors, Grint?" Draco challenged, his grey eyes flaming with provocation. Phoebus only shrugged.

"Call me a dreamer."

Apparently it runs in the gene pool, Harry thought amusedly.


As per tradition, the party could only last during the day. Fortunately, it became a lot more fun as Harry spent more time with partygoers his age, and Draco had been a good host on top of all that. At last, the party ended as the sun set, and all of the legal wizards and witches drank one last glass of champagne to toast to their lives and to a new year.

Harry and his friends couldn't drink champagne, so instead they drank bubbly. Some of the others complained about this, but Harry didn't mind. He's in no rush to grow up. Thirsty still from the kids' games of Wizard's Chess, Quidditch in the Malfoys' personal quidditch field, and Exploding Snap, Harry was able to down the whole drink in one go, surprising everybody.

"Who knew you had it in you, Harry?" Adam asked, half joking, half in awe. Harry only shrugged.

"You can come back and visit, you know," Draco offered as the werewolf party began to leave, "Not like I want you here or anything." Harry smirked.

"Merlin forbid you have friends." Both Slytherins joked and, after making small plans in the school year, the four of them went onto their borrowed carriage. Selene was the last to get on.

"I suppose I'll see you in the fall," Selene offered to Daphne. Daphne offered her new friend a warm smile.

"Of course, see you later, Selene." After a brief hug, Selene climbed aboard the carriage and the group went home. Harry could have sworn, after they parted ways, that Selene went into the adolescents' tent with the biggest smile on her face that Harry's seen on her so far.

A/N:

Yay! I'm so glad a lot of you are excited about this sequel! Don't worry, I've got good stuff coming, and it's only going to get better from here! As usual, I don't own anything pertaining to HP, and please R&R! Cheers!

~ Galatea Griffiths