Halloween was my least favourite day of the year, and I'd come to hate it.
Oh, it wasn't that big a deal growing up. Sure, I was never allowed to attend my primary school's annual fancy dress party, but my ever-so-loving Aunt & Uncle never let me go to any school functions, so it didn't stick out as anything memorable. And I didn't find out until years later that it was the day my parents died. If I were at all religious, I suppose I'd try to commemorate them somehow, but while the Dursleys were staunch Church of England types, it was pretty much a formality... I don't think I ever even met the vicar unless he turned up when I was a toddler.
No, my dislike for the day started First Year, with the troll. Sure, I got two friends out of it, but I also almost got myself killed. Or expelled, as Hermione would put it.
Second Year was when the whole "Heir to Slytherin" mess started, and the entire school (except for the Snakes) went from cheering me to hating me.
Third year wasn't too bad. Sure, an escaped criminal attacked the Fat Lady's painting, and we were all in fear for our lives, but it turned out that Sirius didn't want to kill me. Quite the opposite, in fact.
Sirius. I wondered how he was doing. Was he safe? Was he happy? Not for the first time, I wished I could get in touch with him. Living with him, as he'd offered before Professor Lupin "wolfed out", would have been even better, but it was just too dangerous.
So there I was, sitting at the Gryffindor table, eyes closed as I listened to Hermione tell Ron about some obscure bit of history.
The Feast dragged on. Maybe it was because we'd just had one yesterday, but it felt like the meal lasted forever. All I wanted was for the choosing ceremony for the tournament to be over, and maybe then I could retreat to my dorm before Murphy struck again.
Finally, the plates magically cleaned themselves, and Headmaster Dumbledore stood.
"Well, the goblet is almost ready to make its decision," he announced. "I estimate that it requires one more minute. Now, when the champions' names are called, I would ask them please to come up to the top of the Hall, walk along the staff table, and go through into the next chamber where they will be receiving their first instructions."
He took out his wand and extinguished most of the candles in the Hall, except for the jack-o-lanterns, which made the shimmering light of the Goblet look even brighter. There was a building tension in the air.
"Any second," Lee Jordan whispered.
The flames inside the goblet turned red and started shooting out sparks. Then, a tongue of flame shot into the air, releasing a charred piece of parchment.
Dumbledore deftly plucked it out of the air, and announced the first Champion: "The champion for Durmstrang will be Viktor Krum."
"No surprises there!" Ron yelled as the Hall cheered. Krum gloomily made his way to the room the Headmaster had indicated, to the applause of the crowd and the praise of his head teacher.
Twice more, the Goblet flamed, appointing Fleur Delacour (the Beauxbatons student who looked like a veela) and Cedric Diggory of Hufflepuff as the remaining champions. I let out a breath I didn't realise I was holding. Now, all I had to do was wait for the Feast to officially end. "Excellent!" called Dumbledore. "Well, we now have our three champions. I am sure I can count upon all of you, including the remaining students from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang, to give your champions every ounce of support you can muster. By cheering your champion on, you will contribute in a very real -"
He suddenly stopped. The Goblet shot out a fourth piece of paper. By reflex, the Headmaster plucked it out of the air, and read a name.
My name.
My mind blanked, and all I could say was "I didn't put my name in! You know I didn't!"
The Headmaster called my name again. "Harry! Up here, if you please?"
With Hermione's slight push, I rose to my feet. Unbidden, something I heard Seamus Finnegan once say leapt to mind.
"Sod this for a game of soldiers!" I cried and ran for the nearest door from the Hall.
I didn't know where I was going, and honestly, I didn't care. All I knew was that the holiday had buggered me again, and I had to get away. I charged down a flight of steps and down a broad corridor past some barrels, only stopping when I saw a younger Ravenclaw student sitting beside a picture of a large bowl of fruit. Strangely, she didn't have any shoes on.
She looked up at me with wide silvery eyes that slightly bulged from her face.
"Hello, Harry Potter," she said dreamily. "I've been waiting for you..."
I looked down at her.
"Um..." I replied in my most charismatic Boy-Who-Lived (pat. pend.) voice. "Have we, uh, met?"
The girl giggled. "Of course not! I'm a third-year Ravenclaw. But I've Seen you before, Harry Potter. I'm Luna. Luna Lovegood."
I'd heard some odd wizard names before, but this was the first one that actually sounded like a Bond girl. Still, something about the way she spoke made me a little bit wary.
"Uh, nice to meet you, I guess, Luna. Please, just call me Harry."
I ran through her comments again in my head. "Wait, you said you were waiting for me? You knew this was going to happen? Were you behind my name coming out of the Goblet?"
I gripped my wand in my pocket, but she just laughed.
"Is that what happened? I only meant that the Nargles told me to be here, so I can take you where you need to go."
Nargles? I didn't remember them from Care, but then (knowing Hagrid), if they weren't venomous, feral, or explosive, they probably weren't part of the course. Luna suddenly leapt to her feet and wrapped me in a fierce hug, pinning my arms to my sides.
"Oh, we're going to have so much fun together!" she cried, voice only slightly muffled.
To my horror, I could feel my body reacting to the presence of an extremely cute girl in close quarters and tried to wriggle free.
"Um, Luna? What kind of fun are we talking about?"
She stepped back and smiled, half-leading half-dragging me back up the corridor. "Oh, the usual. Madcap adventures, death-defying escapes, thrilling battles..."
Not my idea of fun. Then again, perhaps she was just imagining it. She looked a bit loopy.
While I pondered the oddness of the situation, Luna had led me to a portrait of a red-bearded wizard holding a telescope, just off the Grand Staircase.
"Good evening, Professor von Rheticus," she called politely.
The portrait came to life and replied in a thick German accent. "Good evening, young lady. Should you not be at the Feast?"
Luna just shook her head. "I'm afraid not, Professor. We two scurrilous scoundrels have an appointment to keep."
"Ah, of course," the portrait replied, swinging open to reveal a hidden passage. I tried to remember if I'd seen it on the Map before, while Luna dragged me inside. A short while later, we were in a completely different part of the Castle, exiting from behind a tapestry of tap-dancing trolls.
"Come now, Harry." said Luna. "we're running out of time. Don't let the wrackspurts slow you down."
She faced the opposite wall, and spoke a phrase in a language I didn't know, "I Frenin yr Ysbrydion a'i Frenhines: Gwyn ap Nudd, ti sydd draw yn y goedwig Er y gariad at dy gymar Gad i mi ddod mewn i'th gartref."
The wall shimmered into mist, and I heard the sound of distant horns
"Go on in, Harry!" commanded Luna. "The Elves are waiting!"
"You mean like House Elves?" I asked.
She laughed merrily. "You'll see."
Then, with a sudden rush, she knocked me through the mists. There was a moment of disorientation, and then I found myself sprawled on the dirt in a grey forest. Out of the fog, a pack of white hounds with oddly red ears circled my fallen form. I sat back and pulled out my wand, wary of an attack.
A white horse rode into view, pulling up sharply, bearing a rider in silver armour.
"Hail and well met, young master Potter," the rider remarked, removing his helmet to reveal a graceful face with pointed ears.
Oh. Elves.
"I am Gwyn ap Nudd, liege-lord of these lands. I grant you passage to Annwn."
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
The spell used by Luna to open the door is supposedly an actual charm used by Welsh soothsayers. It translates to something like: "To the King of Spirits and his Queen: Gwyn ap Nudd, you who are yonder in the forest, for the love of your mate, permit me to enter your dwelling." I found a Welsh translation online.
With the permission of AlyssonR, of Caer Azkaban
Pronunciation, for anyone who cares:
Gwyn ap Nudd - Goo-in ap Neeth
Annwn - Ann-oon
The letters ...
i = i (as in ink)
y = I (as in eye)
f = v
ff = f
dd = silent th (as in theory)
oe = oh-eh
w = oo
LL = chl, ch (as in Loch)
h = silent h
g = gh (fricative g)
th = voiced th (as in them)
c = k (as in carry)
ch = ch (as in chair)
d = d
Vowels (including y and w) - there are no blends or diphthongs
