A/N: This story was written for the first annual Celebration of Beltane event hosted by Draco's Den on Facebook. This was my first step into writing a story regarding Beltane and after I found my inspiration the piece fell from my fingertips. I want to give a special shout out to GaeilgeRua for running this event for the group first of all and secondly for all of her help with this story. The invocation that Daphne speaks before falling asleep was found by GaeilgeRua on Pinterest which I adapted to fit this story.

This was beta ready by Grammarly and GaeilgeRua. All mistakes are my own otherwise.

Summer is coming, my loves!

Let me know what you think!

Love always,

~starr

The legend that followed the May Queen was something that had inspired Daphne Greengrass for as long as she could remember. She would spend the nights of her youth dreaming of the day when she would be crowned Queen.

She had attended the festival and participated in all of the traditional festivities since she was just a young girl. She had made her way from a May Pole dancer all the way up to Lady in Waiting for last year's Queen. This year, it was her turn to be the Queen, and she was eager to find out who was going to take the rightful place as King. Daphne had an idea of who she wanted to be crowned, but wouldn't know until the festival began.

The most vivid memory that Daphne had of stories from around the fire was listening to her grandmother talk about finding the love of her life at the Fire Festival. Every year, Daphne's grandmother would reveal new details just to make the story more interesting for those who had heard it year after year, but the overall story arch was still the same. On the closing night of the festival, her grandmother and grandfather shared their first kiss, and the rest was history.

"It was the night they first fell in love," Daphne mumbled to herself as she brushed her thumb along the edge of a photograph from the Beltane celebration. That was the year that her grandmother wore the crown. All Daphne could hope for was that the May crown would bring her the same romantic luck that it had brought her grandmother all those years ago.

As she continued to flip through her photo album of Beltane memories, Daphne was reminded of one of the first festival celebrations where she could remember hearing her grandmother's stories. She was determined to prove that the story wasn't true, that whomever she kissed on the final night would turn out to be the love of her life.

At six years old, she was convinced that it didn't matter who she kissed at the fire because falling in love with someone wouldn't be predicted by a simple kiss. So that night at the fire, she sought out her best friend, Neville Longbottom. If she was going to test the story's truthfulness, then it needed to be with someone that she was certain she'd know forever. When she heard the call for the final dance around the fire, she grabbed Neville by the shoulders and pulled him in for a kiss. It only lasted for a second, and when she pulled away, dropping her hands from his shoulders, Neville stared at her for a few seconds as his cheeks flushed bright red before Daphne decided that it was time for her to get going.

She had always heard that there would be fireworks when she kissed the love of her life. There were no fireworks that night, just weird feelings that she couldn't explain. The love of her life couldn't possibly be Neville Longbottom. He was her best friend, after all. Sure she felt love for him, but it wasn't the same as true love, could it?

She shook her head at the thought and continued flipping through the photographs. Deep down in her heart, she hoped that her silly little test at six years old didn't ruin her chance at true love. Every year since that silly little kiss, Daphne found herself hiding out near the fire on the last night of the festival. She didn't want to risk meeting the wrong person and running her chances at love.

That was going to change this year. Things had to change because she was the Queen. If her memory served her right as well as her own family history, the Queen went on to kiss her King, and they would find their happiness in life.

She glanced at the clock out of the corner of her eye and realized that it was getting late. Tomorrow was a brand new day and also the start of the festivities. Tomorrow, she would find out who her King would be at the crowning ceremony. Tomorrow would reveal the secrets that would change the rest of her life.

Daphne sighed and tucked her photo album into her nightstand. She leaned back against the pillows and closed her eyes. "As above, so below to my higher self. I now surrender all control," she began, interlacing her fingers together as she prayed. "As without, so within. Love will be my eternal mantra; my constant hymn."

As silly as she found some of the traditions from her youth, this was one she had grown quite fond of on the eve of Beltane. She found comfort in reciting the words as she hoped that maybe this year, she'd find her love.

"As the universe, so the soul. My heartbeat will match the beat of the universe; this being my lifetime goal. May my body become the true embodiment of my soul. This is my affirmation; this will be my greatest manifestation."

She rolled onto her side and pulled her blankets up around her neck, settling in for the night. The sooner she got to sleep, the sooner she would wake up and begin her reign as the May Queen.

. . . . . . . .

She was a vision in white. There were accents of pink flowers and green vines with subtle hints of blue flowers that stood out against her blonde locks. Daphne was pleased with her dress and crown. It appeared that everything was coming together for the celebration. Soon she would meet her King, and together they would reign over their kingdom, celebrating life and love.

With one last glance in the mirror, Daphne applied a coat of lip gloss before rising from her chair. She could hear her handmaidens gossiping outside of her tent about who they thought the May King would be. She exhaled sharply and rolled her eyes. They could speculate all they wanted. Daphne knew in her heart that the man she would see tonight would be the man that she was going to marry.

As she walked out of the tent, she was met with a cheer of oohs and aahs at her beauty. She thanked them all and continued on her way to the fire. The time to meet her King was near, and she could feel her nerves starting to get the better of her. Taking a deep breath, she walked to the far side of the bonfire from her tent. It was quiet there, and she would be able to calm her nerves without anyone asking her if she needed anything.

Daphne wrapped her arms around her stomach as she walked around the fire. The warmth of the fire brought her comfort, but there was still a crispness to the spring air. A fading reminder of the Queen of Winter's reign before the May Queen took over. As she rounded the edge of the fire, she found a tree with a curve she could lean up against and admire the fire and dancing. She could be hidden away from the excitement for now, but not so hidden that she couldn't be easily found.

She took great joy in watching the young children dance to the beat of the drums as the fire dancers intermingled with the crowds and the children. Everything about this scene brought back her memories of festivals past, and she was eager to make memories this year.

Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a dark figure walking toward her. It appeared as though they were walking through the fire. She pinched her eyes shut as she shook her head before opening them again slowly to reveal the same dark figure moving in her direction.

Daphne pulled her attention away from the dancers and turned to face the figure in the fire. She took a few steps closer as she tried to get a better look. She noticed that their hand was extended to her. Every part of her body and soul wanted to step into the fire and take the hand, but something stopped her in her tracks.

"Hello, my Queen."

Daphne furrowed her brow and cocked her head to the side as the figure came to light. The voice sounded familiar, but it wasn't until she saw his face that she knew who it was. She began shaking her head as a fit of laughter erupted from her body. She tried her best to stop her laughter, but she couldn't. Of all the men to come walking up to her wearing a flower crown on this evening, she never believed it to be him.

"Neville Longbottom," she mused, shaking her head in disbelief. She found herself smiling at her own foolishness. If she had learned anything over the years, it was always that her grandmother's stories spoke the truth.

"Was something funny, my Queen?" Neville asked, a smirk pulling at the corners of his lips as he took note of the surprise that showed on Daphne's face.

"Just my own foolish disbeliefs," Daphne replied, stepping forward to place a gentle hand on his shoulder. "Am I to assume that you are my King?"

Neville nodded his head, reaching out to grab Daphne's hand and bringing it to his lips. He placed a gentle kiss upon her hand before bowing his head to her. "Is the Queen displeased by her chosen King?"

Daphne paused for a moment, pretending that it was necessary for her to think long and hard about her decision. She chuckled when she noticed the concern growing on Neville's face. "Why would I be displeased to have my best friend as my King?"

Neville took a deep breath. He had been attempting to summon his courage to admit to her his feelings all day long. In fact, he spent most of the day hiding in his tent, forgoing his May King duties because he did not feel ready to face his Queen.

"Neville, what's wrong?" she asked, cupping his cheek and softly brushing her thumb along his cheek. She searched his eyes for an answer, but couldn't find any sign of one.

Closing his eyes, Neville swallowed his feelings of panic and fear of rejection that he felt welling up inside of him. As he opened his eyes, he met Daphne's gaze and smiled. "My Queen, as your King and as your best friend, I am here to offer you three things. The first of which you've already shown to be happy to take."

"Oh?" Daphne asked, cocking her head to the side. "And what might that be?"

"My hand," he replied, reaching up and covering the hand on his cheek with his own, pulling it away as he interlaced his fingers with hers. "The second thing I would like to offer you is my kingdom during this celebration of Beltane."

"And where might your kingdom be?" she asked, glancing down at their hands and smiling at the way they fit together seamlessly.

"Everything that you see before you this evening is my kingdom that I look forward to sharing with you," he said, his cheeks flushed with colour as he watched her stare at their hands.

"What is the third offering you have, my King?" she hummed, aimlessly brushing her thumb along his.

Neville took a deep breath, reaching out to tilt Daphne's chin up. She smiled at him as their eyes met once more. "I offer you my heart, my Queen. I have loved you since that night we kissed at this very festival many years ago. I was afraid that you did not feel the same after noticing that every year since you have remained hidden away during the final fire."

Instead of speaking, Daphne pressed up on her tiptoes and leaned into Neville's chest. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders as she pressed her lips to his. She let out a sigh of relief when she felt his arms find their place around her waist, pulling her against him. He slid his tongue along the seam of her lips, asking permission to deepen the kiss, which he was happily granted.

After a few moments, Daphne pulled away from the kiss and lowered herself down from her tiptoes. She tucked her head under Neville's chin as she caught her breath once more. She smiled to herself when she felt him place a few kisses to the top of her head.

"My King, I accept these treasures you have offered me," she said, tilting her head back to look up at them. "Let us go and join the festivities of Beltane and begin our life together."