AN: Hey guys! We're back! Really sorry about the long hiatus, work-life balance wasn't really existing for a while there. Still isn't, but I found the time to write something at the very least. Hopefully things will EVENTUALLY line themselves out to where I can focus on this enough to consistently get 2 chapters out a month (Which is my current goal.) Beyond that, I'm going to apologize up front about a few things. First off, this chapter is pretty rough. I'm out of the swing of things and am not as proud of this chapter as I'd like to be. Second, I really don't like this year of the story as a whole, and as such find it much harder to write for than it should be. Hopefully I'll be able to just get it over with, but I can't make any promises. As it is, enjoy your first of two chapters this month!
June had been a welcome breath of fresh air for Harry as he was, for the first time in a while, free from any pressing deadlines or dangers. After a very intense conversation regarding his role in the Basilisk incident in Hogwarts, which had been a whiplash of praise for being so brave in the face of danger, and scolding for doing something so phenomenally dangerous; it was decided that Harry wouldn't be punished for his role in those events. This gave Harry some time to simply calm down and enjoy being a kid for a while. Or it would have, if not for the conversation that Harry knew he needed to have with Andromeda.
"Hey… mum? Can I talk to you about something?" Harry asked hesitantly. Calling Andromeda 'mom' to her face was still a new concept to Harry, and while he was happy to do it, it still felt awkward on his tongue.
"Of course you can, Harry." Andromeda said from her place on the couch. It was a relatively rainy day, which had partially ruined Andromeda's initial plans for her day off with Harry, which was going to the park to do some broom flying, an activity that both of them did enjoy. Andromeda flipped off the television at Harry's serious expression, before patting the couch next to her and turning to him as he sat down. "What's the matter sweetie?" Andromeda said, a small amount of worry falling into her voice.
"Nothing's wrong, something happened this year that I need to talk to you about, it's just awkward, so I'm not really sure how to handle it." Harry said. Andromeda was easy to talk to, certainly more so than Nym or Ted would be about this. Nym would tease him, even though he knew she wouldn't judge, and Ted was just generally aloof. Nothing really seemed to phase him at all, so an emotional conversation like this wasn't something Harry felt he could approach him with first.
"Oh Harry, you're a growing boy. You're at that age where things are going to get awkward. Just come out and say it. I'm here for you, and all the weirdness that comes with it." Andy said with a smile, pulling Harry into a quick hug of reassurance. "Now, out with it."
"I… I'm dating a few of the girls from school. Hermione, Padma, Daphne, Susan, and Luna." Harry said, his shoulder's slumping as he managed to get it off my chest. "It was their idea that I'd be dating all of them, I had read a bit that multiple marriages were something that might be expected of me, being the last Potter and all, but… I didn't expect this."
"Oh my, seems I've got a little casanova in my house!" Andy said, chuckling a bit. "I can see why you were nervous to tell me Harry, but you have to remember that I'm from one of those old houses that do that kind of thing. My sisters' and I had all been raised that such a thing might happen to us, that our husbands may have other wives, although it didn't end up happening."
"What do you mean? I know Dad's muggleborn and all, but I didn't know you were from a family like that. Just that you were distantly related to my Dad." Harry said, a little confused.
"Oh, I guess I never really told you anything like that. The family I was from was called the Black family, which is one of the oldest families in Magical Britain. We didn't have the issue of having few heirs because the past few generations had had multiple kids to carry on the lines. That left the daughters of the family free to marry out, and possibly incorporate ourselves into other lines. That's how a Walburga Black managed to marry a Charlus Potter that became your great-grandfather. My two sisters married into other lines, my older sister Bellatrix married into the LeStrange family, which is another really old family. You've met my younger sister, Narcissa, she married Lucius Malfoy. The Malfoys are a new name in Britain, but apparently they're a decently old family in France, but Lucius made his name for himself on his own, as far as my parents were concerned at least." Andy said.
"You never really talk about your family at all. Why is that?" Harry asked.
"Well, the Blacks… they weren't good people. They were all about the 'purity' of pure-blooded wizards, that is that magical families should only marry other magical families. That's why we have the laws that allow for multiple marriages, to keep the number of unique family names high enough in the event that they start dying out. Mother in particular did not take kindly to the fact that I wanted to marry Ted, since he was muggleborn, and not part of an established family. Since I went and married him anyway, I was cast out from the family. After that I only really kept in touch with Narcissa and one of my cousins. Everyone else was so caught up on blood purity, and the war with You-Know-Who that was going on. I don't regret it though. I love Ted, and without him I wouldn't have Nym." Andy said. "I love you too Harry, even if we aren't blood. I'll say you're just as much my son as Nym is my daughter."
"Thanks mum. Why don't you talk to Narcissa and your cousin anymore though? You've never mentioned them." Harry asked.
"Well… Narcissa married Lucius, who has similar feelings about blood purity that the Blacks did. I imagine he had her drop contact with me, or she worried about what he would do if we kept in touch too much. As for my cousin… I thought he was like me, that he didn't believe in the blood purity nonsense, but it looks like I was wrong. He fell in with You-Know-Who, and he's in prison now." Andy said, taking a moment to hug Harry. "Let's not talk anymore about that. You however need to tell me about how all of these girls sunk their hooks into you. Especially Luna, since I haven't met her yet." Andy said with a huge grin. Harry blushed but told her as much as he could.
A few weeks after that conversation, Harry found himself equally embarrassed again, as Andy helped him into his dress clothes for the event he was about to attend. Since Susan, Daphne, Tracey, and Hannah were all pure-blooded witches of established families, they were set to debut themselves to the public, acknowledging that they were now on their paths to becoming young women, and that suitors could think about propositioning them. There were a number of girls all debuting at this event, all of them in his year at Hogwarts, and as Susan and Daphne's boyfriend, he had been invited to attend.
Andromeda thankfully had coached Harry through what to expect at one of these events, having had her own debut in her youth, and encouraged him to simply enjoy the chance to attend an event with his friends. The modernization of wizarding culture had put less emphasis on the 'suitor' aspect of the event, and simply used it as a yearly excuse to have a high society social event. Harry hoped this would hold true this year as well, as few things would make him feel more ill than watching someone like Draco Malfoy trying to 'woo' one of the girls tonight, especially if it was Daphne or Susan.
Harry was well aware that Draco would be in attendance tonight, as would all of the boys from his year's Slytherin house: Crabbe, Goyle, Theodore Nott, and Blaise Zabini. Crabbe and Goyle were Draco's cronies through and through, but Harry had little experience with Nott and Zabini. Harry hoped that they would be more cordial than Draco, but from what he had heard it wasn't likely. Outside of Slytherin though, the high-class old families were few and far between. Harry would be the only representative from Ravenclaw in his year, and Neville would be Gryffindor's, while Hufflepuff wouldn't have a single one. Other years occasionally fared better, although Harry didn't personally know any of any others who would definitely be there tonight. Harry had told himself he was going to try and enjoy this night though. Many of his friends would be present, and that was enough to make him happy.
"You look very strapping Harry." Andromeda said, putting the finishing touches on his outfit. Harry was wearing what was said to be a more modern take on dress robes, with what seemed to be a black tuxedo vest over a white dress shirt, with black slacks and shoes to match. The only thing that even hinted at this being a wizard's attire over a muggle one was that in place of a suit jacket, Harry was wearing a sort of half-robe that draped over his back and was worn as sleeves. Harry felt somewhat strange wearing the article, but Andromeda assured him that this is what high profile wizard wear simply was at the moment, but mentioned that taking it off a little later in the night would not be unexpected, especially if he was going to be dancing.
That had been another hurdle in his preparations for the night, although Nym and Andromeda had been happy to help him with that. For the past two weeks, an hour a night had been spent doing some basic practice to get him comfortable with the idea, and while Harry was no dancing fiend, he wasn't likely to step on anyone's toes. At least, not anymore.
In short, Harry was as prepared for this event as he could be, perfection drilled into his mind by the legacy of appearances that the Black family had demanded of its charges. While Harry couldn't feel any pride for the family that had kicked his adoptive mother out for simply choosing to marry the man she loved, he could at least appreciate that they were thorough.
"You look like a million Galleons Harry." Nymphadora said from her place at the doorframe of his room. She was currently in the style she had dubbed "Harry's older sister" which colored her hair a similar black to his, and her eyes the same green. It maintained her signature wild style though, and she had occasionally added dyed green tips at the end of her hair, but very rarely did she do that in front of her mother.
"I don't feel it, but I'll take your word." Harry said, nervousness filling his voice. While Harry hadn't known anything about this event two months ago, on hearing about how important it was seen to the families of Daphne and Susan, Harry had pushed himself to do his best to make a good impression.
A sound from the clock downstairs indicated that it was time for Harry to leave, Andromeda finished her picking at minor imperfections on his clothes and took a look at him. "You'll be fine sweetie, all the eyes are going to be on the girls anyway. Your goal would be to peak one of their interests, but you've already done that for two of them. Just go and have a good time. Make sure to tell the girls how good they look in their dresses! Oh, I wish I could go with and take pictures." Andy said, a wistful look on her face. Nym laughed and got up from her lean on the doorway.
"Alright ladies man. You've got two dates tonight, so make sure they feel as pretty as they can be. Make sure Neville does it for that girl he likes too. Your portkey leaves here in a few minutes. Make sure to hold on tight!" Nymphadora said, giving him a wide smirk.
The invitation that Harry received was something he was told was called a portkey, a single-use magical item that, when a certain set of conditions were met, would teleport whomever was holding it to a predetermined location. This would be Harry's first time travelling via portkey, and he was somewhat nervous to do it alone, but Nymphadora, Andromeda, and even Ted had said it wasn't anywhere near as easy to mess up as floo travel, something which Harry still had issues with.
With a great whoosh, Harry was swept away from the humble suburban kitchen of the Tonks household, and set into a greeting room in a large manor house. Within the high society of Magical Britain, it was generally expected that one of the families of girls who would be making their debuts to host the event, and generally it would be handled by whichever family was seen as wealthier or more influential. For the girls debuting this year, there were two candidates of note, Pansy Parkinson, and Daphne Greengrass. The Parkinsons and Greengrasses were old, well respected families, and were both quite wealthy. The Parkinsons found their fortunes in the textile industry, having been the first to successfully domesticate Acromantulas several hundred years ago, and using their fine silk to create high quality fabrics. The Greengrass family was a potions ingredients import and export juggernaut, and was responsible for nearly one fifth of all potions ingredients sold in the British Isles. Because of this, the Greengrass family estate was chosen to host this year's debutante ball, and they had pulled out all the stops. Large silk curtains bearing the family crest hung about the monumental entrance hall, occasionally wrapping themselves around large marble columns that accentuated the room.
A small elf in a dapper tuxedo approaches Harry. "Are you Mr. Potter sir?" it asked, its voice similar in tone to Dobby, the only house elf Harry was familiar with, but with significantly better diction.
"I am Harry Potter, yes. What is your name?" Harry asked, attempting to be friendly with the creature.
"My name is being Dikkie, sir. Please follow Dikkie to the waiting room Miss Daphne has been having mes prepare for you." Dikkie said. Harry noted that it seems not all of Dobby's bizarre speech patterns were unique to him. Perhaps all elves spoke like this.
Greengrass manor was an incredibly impressive building, filled with all of the luxuries and fixings of a grand Victorian era mansion. The only thing that separated it from a Jane Eyre television special was the presence of a few magical elements Harry recognized. Multicolored candles burned without heat in various sconces on the wall, shifting occasionally to provide the rooms with some extra life, several other house elves could be seen finishing up a few of their duties before the ball proper began, and a few of the paintings on the wall took the time to wave at him.
Dikkie opened the door to a room, and inside Harry found a few boys from around his age sitting and idly chatting to each other. Harry quickly saw Neville speaking with a boy Harry recognized as Theodore Nott. Harry thanked Dikkie before moving over to Neville.
"Harry! Glad you made it. I'll feel a lot better now that you're here. These events always make me nervous." Neville said, before turning over to Nott. "Theodore, I'm sure you know Harry, he's in our year after all."
"Neville, come on, EVERYONE knows Harry Potter. Pleasure to actually make your acquaintance for the first time though. Even if we've seen each other a couple hundred times the past couple years." Theodore said, chuckling a bit. "You can call me Theo if you like. Makes it easier to distinguish between me and my Grandfather, he's probably shmoozing it up with some of the other men, making business deals or something." Theo's eyes rolled a bit at that, before reaching his hand out to Harry.
Harry gave him as firm of a handshake as he could muster, before speaking up. "Pleasure to meet you as well. You two really have me at a disadvantage at these kinds of events though. This time last year I was still trying to deal with living in the magical world outside of school. Now I'm in some high society function." Harry said, a nervous smile on his face.
"It is still very strange to me how Harry Potter, saviour of the wizarding world, and heir to house Potter, ended up growing up with no knowledge of the magical world at all. Surely even if they wanted you out of the public eye, some preparations of what to look out for would be in order." Theo said, looking at Harry.
"You'd think, but I suppose that's not how things worked out. I'm managing now though, and I'd like to think growing up muggle gives me a good perspective on things. I'm adjusting pretty well now though, thanks to Mom, Dad, and Nym." Harry said. "Plus all my friends in the Sphinx Club. It really helps having people who grew up in this world to stop you from asking stupid questions about it." Harry laughed.
"I'm sure it does. You guys have been absolutely wrecking the curve on the tests and the like. Honestly, you're making the rest of us look bad." Theo said, a small smile on his face.
"We're just doing our best. We want to be good at what we do, so we're working hard for it." Harry said earnestly. Neville nodded in agreement. Theo admittedly seemed less enthused.
"I suppose. Oh well. You checking out any of the girls tonight? I wouldn't be surprised if Grandfather is going to try a marriage contract tonight." Theo said somewhat nonchalantly.
"Well, I am already dating Daphne and Susan, so I guess?" Harry said. He still felt weird about the prospect, but he did truly like all of his girls, and would take any chance he could to mention it.
"You sly dog. I had no idea. Figured if it was going to be anyone it'd be Granger, or one of the Patils." Theo said, causing Harry's blush to go deeper.
"Well, you aren't wrong, since he's dating Hermione and Padma as well." Neville said, which of course, caused Harry to blush even deeper.
"Man, I've got to step up my game. Harry's over here making me look bad." Theo said, before a clap caught their attention.
"Gentleman, the girls are about to make their entrances, please follow me to the main hall so you may watch them enter." A taller man in a formal suit said, before guiding the assembled boys out of the room and into the main hall.
The main hall of the Greengrass estate had been magically expanded for the night, now being over 60 meters wide and 70 meters long. Several tables full of refreshments lined the walls, with a few tables for sitting somewhat near them. A band sat on a stage half-way between the first and second floors, surrounded on either side by staircases that curved around the platform they were on. The floor itself was a beautifully maintained slab of polished marble, with light grey swirls that moved across its surface.
Harry had little time to admire the decor though, as soon the band started playing a slow tune, and the girls were introduced as they came down the stairs. First was Hannah Abbott, who Harry was aware Neville had a very significant and overt crush on, which she reciprocated, although neither knew of the other's feelings. She was wearing a rather lovely pale pink strapless dress, that had a large silk bow placed over her right hip. Below that the dress blossomed out to the floor, with gold trimming about the bottom that swirled around the dress flowing like water as she made her way down the stairs. At the bottom, she waited at a spot three meters from the bottom of the stairs, where a gap in the crowd had been made.
After her was Susan, and Harry was briefly taken aback by how good she looked. In keeping with her house colors, Susan had worn a marigold yellow dress that slung over her shoulders, joining just below her quickly developing bustline, giving a subtle look at the cleavage she was developing. The fabric of her dress held tight to her body until her hips, before it fell straight down to the floor, being light and fluffy, but not poofy as Hannah's had been. She made her way down the stairs as well, taking her place next to Hannah as they waited for the next girl.
Next was Tracey, who had taken to a solid green dress that hugged her upper body, before fluffing out at the waist and blossoming down to the floor. The dress, while simple, sparkled in the candlelight as small bits of glitter danced like fireflies over her legs.
After her was Eloise Midgen, a girl Harry knew little about other than her presence in Gryffindor house. Neville had mentioned she was friendly, if perhaps a bit snobbish. Given how wealthy her family would have had to have been to be here, Harry found that mostly unsurprising.
After Elois was Pansy Parkinson, a girl Harry was moderately more acquainted with. She had been one of Daphne and Tracey's closest friends before they attended Hogwarts, and had drifted away from them a bit and towards Draco Malfoy and his band of cronies. Harry thought she was a decently pleasant girl when Draco himself wasn't around. A bit arrogant and standoffish, but not altogether unpleasant. Her dress was the most visually impressive of the night, being a shimmering silver with green accents on her waist and shoulder. Harry was impressed by the dress, but it hadn't taken his breath away like Susan's had.
Finally, Daphne came down the stairs, and Harry once more had his breath taken from him. Her dress started as a chic black corset, held to her body by sleeves of black netting that covered her upper chest and arms. Tied around her waist was a forest green silk ribbon, that accentuated her developing curves nicely. From there, the back of her dress fell all the way to the floor, forming an A shape, with the front stopping just above her knees, giving a look at her very attractive legs. In Harry's eyes, Daphne looked absolutely stunning, and he felt bad that he hadn't had such a reaction to Susan. That seemed unfair to him.
Daphne took her place with the other assembled girls, as they turned around in lock-step and curtseyed to the crowd as the emcee of the band announced "This year's debutantes." Harry, as well as the rest of the gathered crowd clapped, as the band then began to play again, and the girls all separated into the crowd, to find their families, or simply to mingle.
Or rather, that is what would have happened, but four of the six girls had simply made a bee-line towards two of the boys standing idly near the front of the crowd, as Hannah, Susan, Tracey, and Daphne all walked to see Harry and Neville.
"You two made it! Oh we're so happy!" Tracey said, looking over at the two boys. "You guys look great! I was worried Neville's gran was going to put him in something old fashioned."
"Hey! Gran's not that bad." Neville said, jokingly taking offense to her statement.
"She wears an entire vulture on her head as a hat." Daphne said, and Neville deflated a bit.
"Yeah… she does." Neville said, holding up his hands in mock surrender.
"Although we don't hold a candle to you girls though. You're all stunning!" Harry said, trying to remember what Andy and Nym had told him. He needed to make sure to pay special attention to Daphne and Susan tonight, but should make all of them feel beautiful.
"Thank you Harry. I'm glad you like it." Daphne said, leaning over and planting a kiss on his cheek. He turned a bright red as she did so.
"Hard not too." Harry mumbled, causing a smirk to form on the girls faces.
"You should have seen him when you were coming down, his jaw was on the floor when Susan came down. He'd almost gotten it fixed when Daphne did, and it fell again." Neville said, poking fun at his friend. Harry punched him in the arm. Neville laughed.
"Good. I went through a lot of effort to get that reaction. You better be thinking about this dress every time you see me for a while!" Susan said, moving to Harry's opposite side to kiss that cheek. "Now come on. You owe each of us a dance. Neville, you'll have to pick up the slack and dance with Hannah and Tracey too! They don't have boyfriends to dance with." Susan practically dragged Harry to the dance floor, leaving a stuttering Neville in her wake. Daphne laughed and gently followed after.
As the band started playing something slow, Susan leaned her head onto Harry's shoulder and whispered to him. "So you really like the dress huh?"
"Not as much as the girl wearing it, but the dress is pretty good." Harry said.
"Sweet talker. I'm glad though. Makes a girl feel special, you know. Although I think fighting a Basilisk for me is probably all the special a girl could take for a lifetime." Susan said, taking a moment to kiss his cheek again. "I'd do more direct kisses, but that's frowned upon at events like these. Trust me, after seeing how you're looking at me, I'd rather take you into another room and not let you up for air."
"I.. I.. ugh.." Harry's brain shut off at that, and Susan laughed.
"Good answer." She said, as they continued their dance. The song wrapped to a close, and Daphne stepped up.
"Step aside Hufflepuff! Slytherin's turn!" Daphne said, with a mock push to Susan, causing both parties to laugh.
"Don't have too much fun! I controlled myself, you have to do the same." Susan said, walking over to a punch bowl to grab a drink.
"So handsome, your jaw was on the floor eh?" Daphne said, staring straight into his eyes. Harry was fighting every instinct to look away and hide his embarrassment, but he managed to keep his eyes locked on her.
"I'll take Neville's word for it, I was… distracted by something else at the time. Couldn't really tell what my jaw was doing." Harry said, pulling her in a little tighter.
"Oh, what would that be? I'd hate to hear that something was keeping you distracted from my entrance. It's a lot of work you know." Daphne said, in feign ignorance.
"Well there was this girl. Think she's in our year." Harry started.
"Oh? Do tell." Daphne egged.
"Yeah, think she's in Slytherin too. She had this beautiful dress on. Gave a nice view of her beautiful legs." Harry continued, pulling her a little closer.
"Didn't think you for a leg man Harry." Daphne continued, her breath a little hitched.
"I didn't either, but what really caught my attention was her hair though, this beautiful golden blonde, as well as the most wonderful bright blue eyes I can't help but get lost in." Harry continued, shooting a smile at her.
"What would you say to her if you got to talk?" Daphne asked, her cheeks a little flushed.
"Oh, I'd tell her how beautiful she was tonight. Ask her to be my girlfriend and all that. I have a weird feeling she'd say yes though. Might even suggest I date a bunch of other girls too. Maybe even invite me to her debut, then force me to play coy about watching her make her entrance." Harry continued.
"I bet you'd play along though. Fill her with all kinds of warm and fuzzy feelings." Daphne said. "She'd probably really want to kiss you, but feel bad about doing it when she promised her friend she'd show some restraint." Daphne said, leaning into his ear.
"I'd probably suggest she go for the cheek, it'd be a little more acceptable in the circumstances." Harry said, and so she did.
"I love you Harry. Thank you for coming. It means the world to me." Daphne said, leaning her head on Harry's shoulder.
"I don't know if I'm ready to say those words quite yet. Still trying to figure out what they mean. I do care for you an awful lot. And holding you in my arms does feel very very good." Harry said, tightening his grip on her just a little more.
"That's fine. You didn't have the best go of it before. I know how you feel for me. I can feel it. I can see it." Daphne said. "You're going to have to take me to a muggle movie this summer. I heard from Hermione that they take place in dark rooms. That was I can kiss you to my hearts content without any fear of 'social impropriety'." Daphne said.
"Don't threaten me with a good time." Harry said, giving her a kiss to the top of her head.
"Not a threat, but a promise." Daphne said.
Daphne and Susan traded Harry back and forth a few times during the night, happily dancing to a few songs and enjoying each other's company. Harry was formally introduced to Mr. Greengrass, who had attempted a threatening father routine, but was stopped in his tracks by both Daphne and Mrs. Greengrass. Harry also had a nice reunion with Amelia Bones, who Harry was happy to see again. They briefly talked about Harry's life with the Tonks's and how he was happy there. Amelia was glad to see that.
As the clock struck midnight, Harry was escorted to the entry hall, and handed an invitation, another portkey that would send him back to the Tonks household.
Daphne came up first for goodbyes. "I had a lovely time tonight Harry. It was everything I had always dreamed it would be. Thank you for coming. Also come here, there's something I need to let you know." She said, and Harry leaned in close for her to whisper something in his ear. "I love you." She said, before planting a deep kiss on his lips.
"No fair!" Susan said, before turning Harry to face her. "I love you too." She said, before mirroring Daphne's actions and placing a kiss of her own on his lips. Harry barely had the time to process it before he was whisked away to the Tonks kitchen, where Nymphadora and Andromeda were waiting for him.
"Did you have a nice time Harry?" Andromeda asked.
"Yes…. yes I did." Harry said, still dumbfounded.