Disclaimer: My plot, JKRs action figures.
Let Them Eat Cake
"Is this how wizarding weddings are normally done?" Harry quizzed Hermione. "Or is it a security measure?" They sat with Luna, waiting for the ceremony to begin. They'd spent the morning hauling things through the trellis, setting up and decorating with Fleur's family before having a quick lunch back at the Burrow and getting dressed in their formal robes.
"You mean the portal or the location?" Hermione asked. "It's tradition to have the wedding near the bride's family, because usually they do most of the work. The Weasleys have such a large family, they sent the invitations out to their guests telling them to Floo or Apparate to the Burrow. They couldn't very well have people trying to Apparate to a protected location here in France, of course, so they set up the portal for the day. I believe there are several security precautions within it as well. This location is accessible only to guests who can pass through a portal. There is one at Fleur's family's house as well, I believe."
"Can it detect Polyjuice or Imperius?" Harry asked, concerned. "Or Animagus rats?"
"I'm sure they've covered all the angles," Hermione said, brows drawn.
"I bet this messes up the owls," Luna commented dreamily.
"I need to find Mr. Weasley and get some straight answers." Harry's jaw was set as he rose from his seat. "I don't see the need for secrecy."
"Bit twitchy, isn't he?" Luna observed.
"You could say that," Hermione sighed. "This is like a nightmare for Harry, I'm afraid. All the people he cares about in one location. His 'saving people thing' is giving him a nervous breakdown."
Fred and George ushered people to their seats, giving each one a discreet wand tap. Around each guest's neck was placed a small garland of flowers, resembling a Hawaiian lei.
Harry came back with a disgruntled look on his face. "Well, they claim Polyjuice is ineffective due to the one-hour time gap through the portal. Even if someone drank it just before stepping through, it would be worn off as they stepped through to the other side." He was still frowning darkly. "Full moon's not until tomorrow night, so no werewolves to worry about, no vampires during the day... Dementors aren't really a possibility, since they'd have to come through the portals."
"Oh dear," Luna gasped, her eyes like saucers. "You don't suppose…"
"What?" Harry tensed.
"Have they considered…." She lowered her voice and glanced around furtively. "Cornish pixies?"
Harry took a deep breath through flared nostrils. "Luna," he warned, "This is real. I know there's something coming. Voldemort has gotten strong enough to block me, so I'm not feeling the twinges in my scar anymore, but I know that bloody bastard is up to something."
"Well, of course he is," Luna nodded. "And we'll face the battle. Everyone is aware of the possibilities and they're on their guard. All we can do is our best, Harry."
Harry propped his elbows on his knees, massaging his eyebrows. He restlessly stood again, "I'm going to check on Ginny and Ron," he said. "Neville should be back with Hannah by now as well."
Sure enough, he met Fred escorting Neville and Hannah to seats next to Hermione and Luna.
Harry went to Ron's room first. "Hey, this portal thing would be the thing to have on your birthday, Harry!" his friend enthused, having recovered from his late night debauchery. "You could go through at eleven at night and it'd already be midnight there, so you could hit the pubs for an hour, then come back and hit a few more."
"Do you age an hour every time you go through?" Harry asked. He'd gone through so often, he probably qualified to actually be seventeen.
"Yeah, but you subtract it by coming back through." Ron shrugged. "S'pose you could Apparate round to the Burrow and come through a hundred times or so if you're in a hurry to come of age." Suddenly his eyes narrowed suspiciously. "You aren't in a hurry for any reason, are you?"
"Nah, you know my birthday plans only include taking an Apparition test and spending the day in a vault," Harry said distractedly. "Have you seen Ginny?"
"Probably still in her room getting ready." Ron tried to straighten his tie in the mirror.
"Anyone else in there?" Harry envisioned walking in on a disturbing scene filled with witches in various stages of undress – bride, bridesmaids, friends and mothers all primping in front of a mirror.
Ron gave him another suspicious look. "Mum is probably in there helping, so don't get your hopes up for any privacy. And Charlie is just itching to get hold of you anyway, so watch your step."
Harry rolled his eyes. "As if watching out for Voldemort and his minions isn't enough fun, I need to watch my back for a pack of vicious redheads with a misplaced sense of propriety. No, Ron, I just wanted to check on her, make sure no one has kidnapped her or something. Merlin, I'll be glad when this thing is over." He left the room, shaking his head and muttering darkly. He tapped on Ginny's door.
"Come in, Harry," she chirped.
"How'd you know it was me?"
"Because I recognized your body heat all the way through the door," she said, rolling her eyes. "No, seriously, you and Hermione are the only ones that knock, and she wouldn't be up here checking on me when everyone is supposed to be in their seats. I'd snog you silly, but I wouldn't want to smudge my lipstick, sorry darling," she said airily. "Now be a good boy and go sit down so this thing can get started."
"Will you at least be on the wedding side of the portal now?" he fretted.
"No, the portals are part of the ceremony," she said with a grimace. "Fleur's plan. Gabby will come through their side, then I come through ours, then Fleur makes her glorious appearance through theirs. Ron will escort Gabby and Charlie walks with me. Then the vows, rings, bondings, blessings, blah, blah, blah, now pronounce you, blah, blah, blah, Mr. and Mrs. William Weasley, kiss the veela--er bride--and off we trot." She waved her hands for emphasis, as if it would help speed things along.
"Not a fan of weddings?" Harry asked.
"No, not particularly," she huffed. "Entirely too much pomp and circumstance, not to mention the nightmare of organizing it in the first place and the stupid frilly lacy…ugh!" She gestured over her dress robes.
"You look gorgeous," he said sincerely.
"Thanks. But you'd best commit this sight to memory, because it isn't going to happen often," she warned.
"Not even for me?" he teased, his fingers playing with the ring on her finger.
"Are you ever going to tell me what that is about?" she raised a brow.
"It was my mum's," Harry gave her a lopsided smile. "When I put it on your finger, I wanted to ask you to…well, wait for me, I suppose. I shouldn't even ask."
"Oh Harry, of course I will, I promise." Ginny reached to kiss him, lipstick smudges be damned. As soon as her lips touched his, a bright flash of pink light sparked around them.
"Bloody hell! What was that?"
Ginny snickered. "What, you mean that's the first time you've seen fireworks when we're together?"
Harry frowned at her. "What did that ring do? Lupin never mentioned any enchantments on it."
"It was a beautiful ring on its own, but now it's a promise ring." Ginny smiled delightedly. "Did it glow when you put it on my finger?"
"I don't know." Harry blinked, wondering what a promise ring signified. "I wasn't watching it, I fell asleep."
"Why would Lupin know about it?" Ginny asked.
Harry quickly explained the stones and the story behind the ring, finishing with the ruby being his birthstone and the peridots hers, so it rightfully belonged on her finger.
"So what exactly does a promise ring do?" Harry asked delicately. He vaguely remembered Ron telling him about Arthur's reaction to his sons almost making an Unbreakable Vow as children.
"Well, it's not like an engagement ring," she explained. "It's just a token of commitment, really, no painful deaths upon broken promises or anything. Well, not from the ring, anyway." She pinned him with a narrow-eyed glare reminiscent of her mother. "Pink is happiness, joy, love, healing and kindness, so a bright flash shows an abundance of those things, which is good."
"Oh Merlin." Harry pursed his lips. "Did your mum or dad say anything? Sod it, no wonder Charlie is after my hide."
"No, I've had it Disillusioned around them mostly. I knew they'd ask questions and I didn't have answers until now." She smiled slowly, capturing his lips with hers again.
"You know, love," she purred. "You could ask for anything right now and I'd say yes."
Harry pondered a moment. "Would you wear these dress robes every night?"
Ginny laughed and shoved against his chest. "No, you prat."
"How about just for my birthday?"
Ginny snorted. "Not bloody likely!"
"So I'm not worth getting all dressed up for?" Harry gave an exaggerated sigh of disappointment.
"Even better," she whispered wickedly. "You're worth getting undressed for."
He grinned.
"So what do little tomboy witches dream of then?" he asked. "Hermione told us once that all little girls dream of their wedding day, but obviously that didn't include you."
"Well, it's not the idea of marriage that offends me. Marrying the person you love is wonderful, and a party after is fine, too. I guess it's just the ceremony. Inviting people you hardly know, dressing up in clothes you never wear…it seems unnatural somehow. Insincere, like it's a show for everyone else; just a production. It should be private and intimate, just between the people involved. Afterward, a celebration with close family and friends."
Harry smiled a bit wistfully. "That sounds perfect."
He watched her touch up her lipstick then ducked his head next to hers in the mirror. "That color looks much better on you than me," he commented, wiping her lip prints off his face.
Ginny chuckled. "Drat, I hoped you wouldn't notice and would go around all day with a dreamy expression and my lip signature in plain view."
"You enjoy making me look like an idiot, don't you." Harry raised an eyebrow at her reflection.
"Idiot is such a strong word." She met his eyes in the mirror with a devilish gleam.
He licked his lips deliberately. "Mmm, where did you find lip stuff that tastes like treacle tart?"
"Merlin, Harry, you are going to give me nightmares," Ron's voice called from beyond the doorway. "The mental image of you trying on Ginny's lipstick is disturbing, to say the least." He poked his head cautiously around the door frame. Harry blasted him with a projection of his great-auntie Muriel, lips all a-pucker, glossy and gleaming. Ron staggered to his knees, hands to his temples. "Holy shit, Harry, what the bloody hell was that!"
"Sorry! I'm sorry, Ron!" Harry gasped, rushing to his side.
"Gotcha, you bastard." Ron smirked, cuffing him. "Now get your arse out to your seat!"
"Boys!" Ginny rolled her eyes. She turned back to the mirror, checking her hair.
Harry's glance lingered on her another long moment. His eyes narrowed and he went back to Ron's room, where he grabbed something from his trunk. He waved to Ron as he left the house and went through the portal yet again.
"Should have thought of this earlier," Harry muttered to himself, ducking behind a tree to don his Invisibility Cloak. He spent the next several minutes busily eavesdropping and spying on people as he wandered among the guests before going back to the Burrow to stalk Ginny some more. She nearly caught him once, whirling suspiciously with her wand drawn.
It was all he could do to keep himself from sweeping her under the cloak with him, just to make her squeal with surprise…. No, easier to restrain himself if he didn't continue with that particular line of thought. Later on though, the idea might have some intriguing possibilities. Along with the notion he'd been entertaining about a moonlit ride on his Firebolt….
"Safety first," he sternly reminded himself, resuming his anxious patrol. The music changed, and he noticed the atmosphere was now one of eager anticipation. He ducked back through the portal to wait with Ginny until her turn to emerge. He breathed a sigh of relief as she gracefully took Charlie's arm. He slid into his seat for a moment to reassure Hermione that he was, indeed, present. Several nervous minutes later, he was compelled to start patrolling again. He couldn't explain the feeling he had. It was fluttery and buzzing somehow. Not exactly nervous, but something was definitely off. He prowled around the guests, noticing the feeling became more uncomfortable around Fleur's relatives. He'd never seen so many gorgeous blondes in one place before. Not that he'd ever let Ginny catch him looking at veela. He was just thankful they didn't affect him the way they had at the…
He gasped as though doused in ice water. Holy living bloody hell! Scenes from the Quidditch World Cup flashed through his horrified mind. Males of all ages entranced and poised on the brink of committing atrocities; beautiful women transforming into hideous avian creatures, throwing fire, Ron's persistent slack-jawed expression around Fleur, regardless of exposure to her powers.
"Moody, where's Moody," Harry muttered desperately, scanning the crowd. "Tonks, Lupin, oh Merlin, where are they?" He didn't dare leave the scene of the perceived threat, yet he needed to get a message to as many Order members as possible. His watch! Swiftly he keyed in a message and sent it to everyone. He swore fluently under his breath, realizing Ron and Ginny could not possibly get the message standing in front of everyone. He debated the wisdom of sending a Patronus, but rejected the idea. "Shit, shit, shit," he despaired. "How the bloody hell do you fight veela?"
Less than half a minute later, music began playing, and Harry's heart sank as he watched fifty or more veela girls stand in unison and begin dancing. He brushed away the tendrils of mental infiltration he felt, easily resisting their Imperius-like pull. He glanced quickly at Fleur, whose horrified countenance confirmed the dance was not part of the ceremony, and began throwing hexes as fast as he could. Nothing seemed to even come close to hitting them and desperately Harry yelled "MUFFLIATO!" casting the spell around himself and the flock of veela, effectively trapping himself in with them.
Some of the men in the crowd, particularly the younger ones, had already succumbed to the veelas' hypnotic powers, and were dazedly throwing hexes randomly, striking anyone in their paths. The abrupt cessation of the song and dance routine only enraged them further, and Aurors quickly responded, stunning several of the aggressors. Meanwhile, the veela were getting irritable. Many of them had begun sprouting the tell-tale wings and beaks of their kind, and fireballs rained down amongst the guests. "AGUAMENTI!" Harry bellowed, hosing several of the fireballs before they could start a blaze.
Some of the veela had taken note of the direction his spells had come from, and were throwing fireballs with alarming accuracy, considering they couldn't see him. Harry's Quidditch skills served him well as he ducked and dodged. He Imperviused his cloak, hoping against hope it would protect him from fire in case of a direct hit. He continued reapplying the Muffliato spell, as well as dousing the veela with water. Several of them completed their transformations and took to the air as the Aurors began to surround them. Their raucous screaming filled the air, and Harry cast a Patronus almost reflexively. His glowing, silver stag erupted into the air, scattering the flock of horrendously ugly birds.
Hermione had deduced Harry's location and quickly led a small group to his side, where they formed a flank around him, backing him up with their own Patronus spells. Ginny and Ron soon joined them, moving together in the back-to-back stance they'd practiced. Harry gasped in relief and yanked off his cloak, shoving it into a pocket of his robes. Hannah had accompanied Neville, and they formed a triangle with Luna. Ginny joined Harry, and Ron was backed by Hermione. Together, they cast Shield spells to protect bystanders from the hail of fire, while keeping their Patronuses in the sky.
Harry tried firing body-bind spells into the air, but accuracy was difficult with the swooping flock. "ACCIO FIREBOLT!" he finally yelled in exasperation.
Aurors and Order members seemed to have the crowd control situation in hand. They had herded the spectators to a protective cove of trees, casting Shield and Impervius spells on the treetops. The portals had been sealed as soon as the bride had appeared, so no evacuation had been attempted. Mrs. Weasley was hurrying about, treating people for burns and various hexes.
Harry heard the rushing sound of his approaching broom, which he'd wisely hid by a nearby tree. Ginny laid her hand on his arm, her eyes pleading. "Let me come with you," she implored. "You know I'm a good flyer, we're a good team. Let me help, please."
"You wear this," he said tersely, whipping his Invisibility Cloak out of his pocket and wrapping it around her, casting the Impervius spell on it again. He felt her straddle the broom in front of him, securely between his thighs. "Have your Patronuses herd them together and use Levicorpus on anyone, or anything, that falls," he shouted to the others and commanded his broom skyward. Harry threw Shield spells in all directions while Ginny ruthlessly dropped the birds with Freezing and Stunning spells.
Lupin, Tonks, Fred and George soon joined them, swooping and diving, casting spells of their own. Moody, Kingsley and the rest of the Weasley men were busy on the ground, catching the falling veela and placing them in restraints.
"Are they Imperiused?" Ginny gasped between hexes, ducking a wild hex from Fred.
"Must be," Harry answered shortly, jerking the broom to the side, narrowly avoiding a fireball.
"Blast them!" Ginny said suddenly. "Project something!"
"Like what?" Harry ducked and shielded again.
"Dragons!" she screamed.
Harry threw another shield spell, then sounded a piercing whistle as he concentrated on projecting the vision of an enormous, gape-mouthed, fire-breathing Hungarian Horntail.
The whistle had caused the veela to pause, seeking the source of the noise. Stunned by the vision, most of them dropped like rocks out of the sky.
Then Harry vaguely realized that real dragons had appeared on the scene. Charlie was astride one of them, intent on eliminating the few remaining bird demons. "Oh, you meant Charlie's dragons," he whispered. "I thought you meant for me to...well, whatever, it worked." He wrapped his arms around Ginny, resting his forehead on her shoulder with an exhausted groan.
"Are you okay?" she asked anxiously.
"Yeah, just tired," he slurred slightly. "Wonder what's next. Merlin, don't let it be dementors…"
"Just rest," she said comfortingly, squeezing his thigh. "You've been amazing, now let me be the lookout for a bit while you catch your breath. You're not going to fall off the broom, are you?"
"No…" She felt most of his weight fall against her back.
"Shit, Harry, you've got to let me fly this now," she said urgently. "Or get us to the ground before you pass out. Harry! C'mon love," she pleaded.
"Ground," he mumbled, pitching against her again as the broom began to nose dive. Her scream brought him around, and he managed to land, collapsing as soon as his feet touched. Ginny hastily pulled the Invisibility Cloak off, shoving it back in the pocket of his robes.
"Harry! Rennervate! Hermione, help! I think he's hurt," Ginny sobbed.
Hermione had watched the perilous descent with her heart in her throat, too shocked to react. Ron and Neville had kept their wands trained on the broom, prepared to catch their friends. They all raced to Harry's side.
Hermione scanned him with her wand. "Magical exhaustion. We have to get him somewhere to get some rest." She conjured a stretcher and gently levitated Harry onto it. She and Ginny cast Wingardium Leviosa on the stretcher and headed for the shielded copse.
"MUM!" Ginny cried, seeing her mother bustling about the makeshift hospital they had set up. Molly spun on her heel, racing to Harry's side. Hermione rushed back to Ron.
"Oh Ginny, what happened to him?" One hand stroked his forehead; the other grasped his wrist, checking his pulse.
"Magical exhaustion, Hermione said." Ginny held fast to him, willing some of her own magic to transfer to him.
"Thank Merlin," Molly sighed in relief. "He'll be fine, dear. He just needs to rest a bit."
"I'll stay with him," Ginny said. Molly nodded, and went back to assist with other injuries.
Aurors scouted the area, refusing to open the portals in case of an ambush on the other side.
"This location is unplottable," Arthur explained to Ginny when he hurriedly stopped by to check on Harry. "There will be no other threats from the outside. Only the things that came through the portal exist here, so we don't have to worry about dementors or Death Eaters. We knew of their veela relatives, of course, but veela aren't dark creatures, and they were family. We never suspected. We were lucky things were contained so quickly."
"Luck had nothing to do with it," Ginny interrupted. "It was all Harry's doing. He sounded the alarm before the veela started dancing. My watch was flashing like crazy."
Harry stirred then, struggling to open his eyes. "Wedding done?" he fought to focus on Ginny's face for several moment.
"Yes, love," she soothed. "It's all over, they're married."
Harry muttered something that sounded suspiciously like, "kiss the veela, blah blah blah..." as his eyes drifted shut again.
Voldemort was still reeling from the image of an enormous dragon crashing through his consciousness when Snape billowed into his chambers.
"Master," he bowed, "you are distressed. May I offer a headache potion?"
Voldemort glowered at Snape, hissing evilly, "You presume much, Potions Master." He reached for his wand, but his movements were oddly sluggish. "Bring me more Strengthening Solution."
"With any luck, I have just seen Potter being eaten by a dragon," he murmured to the empty room.
Voldemort's wild high-pitched cackling echoed when Snape returned, placing a steaming goblet before the Dark Lord. He scowled, his neck muscles and his pride protesting the constant prostration.
"Your expression of revulsion can be attributed to the taste of the potion, I assume." The slithery voice carried a hint of derision.
"I assume the worthless whelp is causing you irritation yet again, my lord. I merely wished for the opportunity to kill the brat myself. However, I would never presume to encroach on your wishes, Master."
Voldemort gave Snape a thin-lipped smile. "I may have been somewhat…selfish regarding my plans for Potter," he intoned. "In light of the most recent vision, I have reason to believe Potter has tangled with the business end of a large dragon. I do not begrudge the dragon the pleasure of killing him. If the vision is not to be believed, then I would not begrudge you that pleasure either." He waved his hand as if shooing a bothersome insect. "Take young Malfoy, let him practice casting the Killing Curse on Potter until he gets it right. If you give him a bit more incentive to die, so be it," he shrugged carelessly.
Snape bowed yet again, backing out of the room.
"Poor Bill and Fleur," Hermione commented as they sat near Harry's bed back at Order Headquarters. The group of teens had Portkeyed back as soon as French Aurors began pouring through the Delacour's portal. By the time reinforcements made it through the Burrow's side, many of the Order members had quietly disappeared as well. "They didn't even get to eat their wedding cake."
"They'll just have to have some of your birthday cake instead."
"Birthday cake?" Harry gasped. "How long was I asleep?"
"Two days, mate," Ron said quietly. "You missed the full moon."
Harry closed his eyes, groaning. "What happened after…" he frowned, trying to remember if all the veela had fallen after his projection. His head throbbed, making concentration difficult.
Ron and Hermione filled him in. Thanks to his early warning, there had been a few serious injuries but no deaths. The veela had been Imperiused, almost certainly by Voldemort himself, as veela were thought to be immune to the curse.
"Oh bloody hell, I crash landed," he said worriedly, glancing around wildly. "Where's Ginny?"
"She's fine," Hermione soothed. "She just went to get some breakfast for you in case you woke up. I have to admit, Harry, I was worried when you took her with you, but having her help was a smart move."
"I nearly killed her crashing the broom." He covered his eyes, hearing her scream of fear echo through his mind.
"Only because you wouldn't let me fly the broom!" Ginny flounced into the room bearing a tray. "Bloody chauvinist backseat driver!" You probably did that on purpose, trying to scare me away from your little adventures, you great prat."
"Did it work?" he asked.
She cuffed him playfully and nudged him over so she could sit with him on the bed. "Off you toddle to the kitchen, now." She waved Ron and Hermione out the door. "I've got everything under control here. Winky has your breakfast ready."
Ron shook his head with amusement, capturing Hermione's hand on the way down the stairs. "Do you think we need to tell him about the werewolf attacks?" he asked. "You know he hates having things kept from him."
"Let's not mention it," Hermione sighed. "There's nothing anyone can do now, and not much anyone could have done that night, either."
Lupin had been devastated to hear about the multitude of planned werewolf attacks. Apparently the werewolves had taken Wolfsbane so they could keep their minds as they targeted certain people and families. Umbridge had immediately demanded legislation for the imprisonment of all known werewolves, and death penalties for any who resisted. Tonks glibly told Umbridge that the last place she'd seen Lupin was in France at a wedding and he'd mentioned going abroad. She told Umbridge he often Apparated to Hawaii to avoid the full moon entirely. "You see, he pops over there at sunset, and of course it's still morning there. He spends the day napping and comes back when the full moon is over," she'd said with a shrug.
Having made up the lie on the spot, Tonks wondered why Lupin didn't do exactly that. When she asked later, he frowned. "I've thought of it, but Apparating around the world once a month would be as exhausting as the transformation."
"A better kind of exhaustion, I would think."
"Perhaps, but you know the further the distance, the more likely you are to get Splinched," he said. "And even if I only jumped one or two time zones at a shot, I'd have to visit the place first, for reference. Getting there physically to set up safe Apparition points would require expensive planning.
"Still, it could be done?"
"Well, theoretically, yes. I would have to go backwards around the world, probably going from here to Greenland first, then across the States from New York to Los Angeles, then Hawaii. I could not make that trip in reverse, however, as I'd cross over the full moon. I'd have to continue west, probably through Australia, Singapore, India and parts of Africa before winding up back here again."
Tonks raised her eyebrows. "You've given this a lot of thought," she said.
"Of course. Don't you think I've tried to find any way to avoid transforming into a bloodthirsty threat to humanity every month? Yes, I've thought about it, but it's simply not feasible."
Tonks moved to rub the kinks out of his sore muscles. "Interesting idea, though."
Harry awoke the morning of his seventeenth birthday to a sensation that made him sure he was having one of his more vivid fantasies. "Holy living mother of Merlin," he gasped, shuddering, his fingers wound in Ginny's hair. She crept up his torso, snuggling next to him.
"Happy Birthday," she grinned wickedly.