Chapter 5 – Balls, Birthdays, and Bonfires

"I look ridiculous. Don't laugh!"

I was sitting cross-legged on Bella's bed, Narcissa was stretched out flat on her stomach next to me with her chin resting on my knee, and we were both finding it quite a struggle not to laugh.

Bella was thirteen, and so our parents' summer ball would be her first. Her dress robes, however, were an unfortunate combination of the fact that Mother did not know her oldest daughter at all, and had very definite ideas about the sort of thing a thirteen-year-old girl ought to wear to her first ball.

"We wouldn't laugh," protested Narcissa, her face suggesting otherwise. "It's just that you look very….pink."

With her dark looks, pink was not Bella's color, and frills certainly did not suit her dramatic flair. A battle had been raging for weeks over what Bella had christened the "pink robes of doom", and had culminated in her flatly refusing to wear them, and Mother saying that was just fine, she could simply not go to the ball at all. Bella was so desperate to grow up, to be counted among adults, that she would have done nearly anything to go, including wear pink.

"I can't even breathe," she muttered, glaring at her reflection in the mirror.

Narcissa had always been a gifted mimic, and now she hopped up and sashayed across the room to Bella, and stopped to look down her nose haughtily.

"Oh honestly, Bellatrix! Such breathing is not becoming a lady," she drawled in an absolutely uncanny imitation of Mother. "You were not raised to breathe!"

Bella and I collapsed into giggles as Narcissa continued to prance around, sweeping an imaginary gown and tossing her hair regally.

"At least you get to go. I can't wait until I'm old enough," Narcissa said wistfully, stopping before the mirror again, this time to gather her long blond curls on top of her head in an approximation of a fancy hairdo, and turned her head back and forth critically to examine the effect from all angles. Vanity was her vice, but we were indulgent of it because she was the classic beauty of the three of us.

"I don't suppose it will be much fun," Bella said, if purely to appease our little sister.

"There will be people from school there," I pointed out, secretly hoping for some news of Will Avery. In the last two weeks of school my crush had deepened. He was the perfect first love- good looking, popular, and completely unaware that I existed. If he had ever acknowledged me, even indicated he knew my name, I would have probably gone into spasms of idiocy and embarrassed myself. As it was, I was safe to indulge in the fantasies of a twelve-year-old girl, in which he suddenly realized my existence, I was spectacularly funny and articulate, he declared his undying love…and after that it faded off into the sunset, since I still was fairly naïve for twelve.

Bella looked supremely unimpressed at the idea of people from school.

"Lots of people from Slytherin will be there after all, all their parents are friends with Mother and Father," I went on, trying to be encouraging. She continued to scowl in the mirror. "Rudolphus will be there," this appeared to appease her somewhat and I was again disturbed, by his strange interest in her and by her obvious fondness for him, but I went on, "and Will, and Lucius, and-"

"Lucius Malfoy?" Narcissa broke in, turning and dropping her hands so her hair again fell around her shoulders in a curtain. "I think he's handsome."

"He's a git," said a voice from the doorway and we turned to see Sirius, hands in his pockets, smirking at Bella's pink robes. He had spent all the summer holiday so far sulking, because his request to have James Potter to stay at Grimmauld Place, or alternately to go and stay at James's place later in the summer, had been denied. Apparently Aunt and Uncle were taking the route of trying to limit the Gryffindor influence on him at least during the holidays. According to Reggie he was spending most of the holiday barred in his room reading quidditch magazines and writing owls to his friends. The only thing he could be talked into agreeing to was coming along when his parents were at our manor for a party.

Mother's voice called for Bella from the stairs; apparently it was time for her to head down and probably receive a strongly worded lecture on proper behavior before guests started arriving. Had it been Narcissa, they wouldn't have bothered, but Bella had been known to shock guests as a form of amusement before. She gave us a sort of desperate look as she headed for the door.

"Don't worry, you look pretty!" I insisted, and she rolled her eyes, showing exactly what she thought of my blatant lie, and then bumped into Sirius purposely on her way out, jostling him. In a show of maturity, he stuck his tongue out at her back.

I awoke a few days later, turned over lazily to watch a streak of sunlight in the ceiling stretch across the room, and then remembered with some surprise that it was my birthday. I was twelve. Our birthdays never went unnoticed, technically. Of course I would have presents from Bella and Narcissa, and probably something quidditch-related from Sirius and Regulus as well. I would receive gifts from Mother and Father, indirectly. Although they would not remember our birthdays of their own accord, Father's assistant was very good at reminding him of such things, and also very good at picking out the sorts of things young girls might like. None of us had ever had a birthday party, but we knew that family tradition dictated that a vast party would be thrown the year each of us turned sixteen. That was apparently the official start of trying to marry us off so we would cease to be our parents' responsibility.

Cheered by the realization that I could expect it to be a pleasant, if not particularly remarkable day, I hopped out of bed and pulled open the curtains, making Narcissa grumble and drag blankets over her head. I had a shock, because sitting complacently and quietly on the windowsill was a sturdy little brown owl, blinking at me. I started at it for a moment before I noticed that it was carrying a copy of the Daily Prophet. Mother and Father took the paper, of course, but I didn't get it myself. I opened the window to direct it down to the morning room where Mother was most likely having breakfast, but it ignored my attempts to shoo it away and stood there steadfastly, hooting softly as it stepped away when I tried to physically point it toward the front of the house. Finally I gave up and snatched the paper away, muttering "Fine, be that way." It gave me a reproachful look before taking off.

I closed the window and looked down at the paper in my hands, and choked. It started to move and shift in my hands, changing shape and color, until it was no longer a paper, but a large silver card with "Happy Birthday" scrolling across it in green. My mouth fell open, and I glanced to the bed, where only the very top of Narcissa's head was visible. Hesitantly, I opened the card, and knew the writing immediately.

Dear Andy,

I didn't want to get you in trouble, so I put a charm on the card that makes it look like a plain old copy of the newspaper to anyone but you. Pretty clever, don't you think? Well, I didn't actually do it myself because it's really advanced magic and all, and we're not allowed to use magic at home anyway. I don't know if your family celebrates birthdays, or if they're "for muggles" too, but I reckoned you should get a birthday card anyway. So anyway, Happy birthday!

Sincerely,

Ted

I stared, partly appalled that he had the nerve to send me something again after he had said he wouldn't, and partly embarrassed by the trouble he had gone to to make sure the card was undetected. I had to admit it was clever, while an unsigned card might make people suspicious, a newspaper was too commonplace to attract any notice.

"Wha'sat?" Narcissa was sitting up in bed, rubbing her eyes and looking at me curiously. "Why've you got the newspaper?"

I looked down at the card in my hands, and it still looked like a card to me. Apparently the charm worked. I quickly shoved it into a desk drawer. "No reason, I was just looking at it."

She continued to look at me strangely, but then her face cleared and she smiled. "Hey, it's your birthday! Happy birthday!"

My birthday passed pleasantly enough. As expected, there were packages from Mother and Father with a card signed in his assistant's handwriting, but my sisters and the house elves made a fuss over me, Bella even going so far as to have asked the house elves to make a cake for the occasion. As much as I enjoyed the little gestures from all of them, my mind kept straying back to the newspaper shoved in my desk drawer. To have my sisters and cousins make note of my birthday was normal enough, but there was no earthly reason Ted Tonks should. In fact, he had every reason not to, since I had certainly never gone out of my way to be nice to him, and sometimes went out of my way to be nasty. For some reason he had decided there was something about me that made me worthwhile to pursue was a friend no matter how against the idea I was. I should have realized then how stubborn he was. Unfortunately, he would learn that I was equally as stubborn.

Every year around Midsummer there was a festival in Hogsmeade. There was nothing terribly distinctive about the small village near Hogwarts except that it could claim to being the only all-wizarding town in Britain. The festival's traditions suggested that it had grown out of some pagan ritual, but whatever spiritual meaning it might have had was long forgotten; it was merely a reason for gathering on summer evenings with friends and neighbors. The final night of this festival was marked by a bonfire, which often brought witches and wizards from all over the country. We had never been to it before, for Mother and Father would have no interest in such a "common" ritual, but that year Uncle Alphard was in town on the night it was held, and when he suggested he might take the five of us, our parents were vaguely disapproving of his eccentric interests, but didn't care enough to make an issue of it by refusing. It was a night for young people, a night when the Ministry looked the other way when minor laws were broken, a night when the magical community gathered away from the eyes of muggles and let go of cares about security.

It was dusk when we flooed to the Three Broomsticks. Since we were not yet old enough to go to the village from Hogwarts on week-ends, we had been there only a few times. Mother and Father much preferred Diagon Alley for shopping or socializing. Hogwarts Castle was visible in the distance, looking like something from a fairy tale.

The streets were crowded with people- happy families, young couples, excited children, and vendors weaving between them, selling trinkets and sweets. Sirius insisted we go into Honeydukes, and Uncle Alphard didn't object, he was by far the most agreeable and lenient chaperone we'd ever had. Once armed with sweets, we set out again to the edge of the town, where a bonfire could be safely held. A few people seemed to recognize us, even spoke to Uncle Alphard in a friendly sort of way, and we saw a number of familiar faces- Hogwarts students of all ages and houses. There, at the foot of a mountain, the people of Hogsmeade had erected a pile of wood bigger than I was. All around the large field were blazing torches, and over to one side a small band played a lively tune with little skill but a great deal of enthusiasm. Laden tables were all around suggesting our stop at Honeydukes had been unnecessary, and other tables sold little trinkets and charms. A group of giggling teenage girls were crowding around a table where a withered old woman sat with a sign proclaiming she sold powerful love potions. Sirius snagged a cup of wine from a table, which Uncle Alphard neatly plucked from his hands and replaced. Sirius took it in stride and settled on lemonade from the next table.

As they determined it dark enough, two wizards who seemed to be in charge of the proceedings brandished their wands and started the fire with twin jets of flame. A simple spell, it was nonetheless impressive as flames licked up toward the sky. Next to me I heard Narcissa's "Oooh!" and Reggie was gazing up at the roaring fire with his mouth slightly open. Children ran around shouting while parents tried to keep them back from danger, and the adults all applauded. We found a grassy place to sit and watch the dancers and passing people, occasionally commenting and giggling, when I spotted movements in the shadows cast by the forest a good distance away, well outside the range of the firelight and the celebrating people.

I must have gasped, for Uncle Alphard followed the direction of my gaze, and then leaned down and whispered "It's an Auror. They're all around, just in case." He squeezed my shoulder gently. "Don't worry."

"Do they think something might happen?"

"Of course not. Just uncertain times…so they're being extra careful with everyone all gathered together this way."

"Look, there's Elizabeth!" Bella said suddenly, pointing to the other side of the fire, where we could see Elizabeth Rosier through the flickering flames. "Let's go say hello. Can we?"

Uncle Alphard waved a hand lazily. "Go on, but stay together, and be careful."

Narcissa followed as well, interested to meet people from Hogwarts she'd heard about. Elizabeth was standing with a group of other students and she waved happily to see us. Bella was introducing everyone to Narcissa when I felt something on my head. I reached up to find a crown of flowers, and then turned to find a grinning Will Avery, who then went on to place flowers on Bella, Narcissa, and Elizabeth.

"It's a tradition for the Midsummer festival," he explained. "For beautiful girls to wear flowers in their hair."

I melted, but Bella just spun around happily, making her hair fly out under the flowers. Laughing, she grabbed Elizabeth and Narcissa and dragged them into a wild jig. Somehow that allowed the others to throw aside their attitudes of cool detachment and join in, and we danced until we collapsed down on the grass. Sirius and Reggie hadn't joined us, and I guessed that Sirius wasn't too keen on the company of Slytherins besides us. But as we sat there drinking butterbeer, I saw two boys- Sirius and the messy hair of James Potter, making towards the dark woods. Handing my glass of to Narcissa, I went to follow them, if only to drag them back from being idiot boys and wandering off. Sirius just didn't think sometimes.

As I neared the edge of the woods, I stopped suddenly, hearing voices that were not Sirius and James, but adult voices.

"Not tonight…Aurors everywhere…"

"Ministry doesn't allow them to…"

"What would be the point…no muggles here…"

"…not just about muggles anymore…"

I could only hear snatched of their conversation, and although I knew I should move, I had stumbled on a private conversation and should walk away, but I stood rooted to the spot.

"Do I need to remind you…The Knights of Walpurgis…"

"Don't lecture me…he doesn't question my convictions…"

There was a crashing of foliage and I realized someone was coming, but before I could move a figure came through the trees, far too tall to be Sirius or his friend. Luckily, it was someone I knew- Rudolphus stopped dead when I saw him, and then managed to alter his expression from anger to a casual smile for me.

"What are you doing here Andromeda? Hardly a good idea for you to be wandering alone so far away from the people."

"I…thought I saw someone I knew," I replied lamely, not wanting to give away Sirius, and thanking my lucky stars that I seemed to be getting off easy on the merit of being Bella's sister and from a family he respected. He put a hand on my shoulder and steered me away from the woods.

"Better get back to everyone else, you never know what might be lurking in the dark," he said, light teasing in his voice. I couldn't help but agree.

"Hey, where did you go?" Bella asked as I dropped back down on the grass where they were now watching a group of wizards shooting off fireworks with their wands. I looked at her, and at Narcissa, leaning back in their light summer robes, crowned by flowers, and illuminated by the flickering firelight. They looked beautiful, and for once careless, and I just shook my head.

"Never mind."

The rest of the summer flew by in days that were all identical, and yet not unhappy. Two weeks before the holidays ended Sirius and Regulus came to stay (Sirius described it as dumped) at our house while our Aunt and Uncle went on holiday. They found our house preferable to Grimmauld Place, and so were in high spirits, driving the house elves to distraction with practical jokes, although they knew to stop short of pranking Mother and Father. I guess Sirius was really just testing things for the coming school year.

Finally it was the last night before we left for school, and we were all happy to be going back. We found Hogwarts less confining than Mother's critical eyes and now that Narcissa was going to Hogwarts we felt like there was nothing for us in the manor house. Narcissa was almost beside herself with excitement, and had packed and re-packed her trunk no less than three times, claiming the house elves had not done it properly. She did it again as we all lounged in her room, regarding her with bemusement as she insisted that her books would wrinkle her school robes unless she re-arranged it again. Her excitement was contagious, and I gathered up all my new books and stacked them neatly by size before putting them in my bag, with freshly sharpened quills and a new bottle of ink. As I was pulling things out of my desk, I came across the card Ted had sent for my birthday, and hesitated before sliding it between the pages of my new charms book. I wasn't sure why…did I intend to thank him? Or confront him with the evidence? Not really wanting to consider it, I set my beg ready for the next day, and went back to Narcissa's room.

Sirius and Regulus were hanging backwards off her bed, turning an alarming shade of purple. Bella was sitting in the window seat and laughing at Narcissa, who had again unloaded everything from her trunk and was looking at it as though it posed a particularly vexing problem.

"Second year isn't so hard," Bella was saying, as apparently Sirius had asked her about the class work we could expect. "I'm just glad I'll be able to go to Hogsmeade on the week-ends this year. Oh don't pout Gryffindor, I'll bring you sweets back," she added at his upside-down scowl.

"I hope I'm sorted into Slytherin," Narcissa said suddenly, apparently reminded of this by Bella's name for Sirius. I considered it, and decided Narcissa had nothing to worry about. She wasn't stupid, but she wasn't a dedicated student and wouldn't fit into Ravenclaw, and she had no qualities that spoke too strongly to Gryffindor, and she would eat them alive in Hufflepuff. She didn't lack confidence or ambition, and so she would fit in neatly in Slytherin, probably better than I did.

"You will be," Bella said comfortably, voicing my thoughts. "But you'll still have classes with some other houses anyway. They try to force us to mix with mudbloods."

"Really?"

"You wouldn't know the difference in classes," Sirius replied with a hesitant glance at Bella. "There's a muggle-born girl in Gryffindor, Lily Evans, who's one of the best in the year, and there's a kid called Tonks in Ravenclaw who's always racing Andy for the top marks."

"That's that kid who you always complain about in defense, isn't it?" Bella asked.

"He's so…so…smug!" I insisted. "I'm just glad I won't have to sit next to him anymore this year. I'm sure we get to pick new seats this term."

As I said it, said exactly what I was expected to say, I tried to think what a relief it would be to not sit next to him in every defense class, and not have to endure his teasing and competition and sarcastic comments. And yet, the only thing I really felt was a little let down that defense would probably be very boring that year.