After an enjoyable day spent messing around with Dudley and reading some of his new books Harry was starting to get ready for the ministry ball. Standing in front of his mirror he wore some acromantula silk robes that were predominantly black robes that had some green highlights that brought out his eyes and was trying to tame his hair. "You look very handsome." Petunia said from behind him. As he turned around she said "Your parents would be very proud of who you became. I know I am."
"Thanks Aunt Petunia." Harry said. "The portkey will be going off soon."
"I know. I just wanted to say something before you left." She paused before saying "Those politicians will probably try and take advantage of your youth, but as long as you stay true to your morals and don't insult people unnecessarily, then you will do fine. Try and enjoy yourself but just make sure that you get home safely."
"I will, I've been told that Susan's Aunt will be aparating me home, so I'm sure that I'll be fine." Harry said before grabbing the portkey. "Goodbye." As the portkey whisked him away into the Ministry atrium.
As Harry struggled to hold onto the portkey through the spinning motion he was preparing to take the step as soon as he landed. Having asked his friends how he would be getting to the ministry, they all explained how magical transport worked, and the little tricks that they were told by their parents when they were old enough to use the various transportation methods. As soon as he felt the floor beneath his feat he started walking and saw the ministry appear around him.
While he walked through the atrium he looked around and saw all the other lords and their families starting to appear. He started following them through the atrium and past the statue of the centaur, goblin and house elf bowing to a wizard and witch. As he saw the statue he thought sarcastically 'Wow, that isn't ego driven at all. I can't imagine a single goblin who would be willing to do that. I might need to find a way to change that once I join the wizengamot, otherwise the relations with the other magical creatures will never improve.'
Once he made it to the large doors the aurors that were on duty checked his invitation letter and let him in. As soon as Harry walked in he looked around the room for his friends. He saw the large chandelier on the ceiling, the tastefully decorated tables, and the Nobles that filled up the room. Almost as soon as he made it into the room he saw Daphne, Susan, and Neville standing together and waved him over once they noticed him. Neville was wearing some dark brown robes with white accents, while Daphne was wearing a dark blue dress that highlighted her blond hair, with Susan wearing a bright yellow dress that matched her personality. "Hey Neville, looking good." Harry said with a smile.
"And what about us Potter?" Daphne said with her Ice Queen persona.
Turning to Daphne and Susan he exaggerated a bow and said "Words can not describe your beauty dear Daphne, nor your radiance dear Susan. Anything I say would be an insult to your splendor and."
"Alright that's enough Harry." Daphne said with a small red blush on her cheeks.
"Thank you Harry." Susan said softly.
"Very smooth Harry." Neville said with a laugh.
"Thanks, but I was running out of adjectives so I'm glad that Daphne interrupted me." Harry said with a laugh. "But anyway, what normally happens at these events because this is my first time that I've been here."
"Well, while we wait for everyone to arrive, most people socialize, the Lords will expect their heirs to socialize with other heirs while the women will generally take care of any children or be with other women. Once everyone has arrived you will be seated with the other heirs and children for dinner and afterwards there will be lots of dancing and talking. As you are the only remaining person in the Potter line, they won't expect for you to know everything but you must be careful of people trying to take advantage of you. It is expected for you to talk to at least one group from each major faction, the light, gray, dark, and one ministry group. As long as you reach a few groups that look to be in different social circles then it's fine." Neville instructed.
"Most of us will have to do some rounds with our parents for a bit but generally it happens at different times so you should always have some of us around. But you should still talk with the other heirs as this is a good opportunity for you to make connections for the future." Daphne added.
"Alright, so basically it goes socialize. Dinner and socializing with the people around me. Then dancing and socializing." Harry said while listing them off with his fingers.
"Yep, basically." Susan said. "Do you know how to dance?"
"I have got the basic steps down but I'm a fast learner, so if I can just observe some people dancing first, then I am sure that I'll be able to learn enough to not embarrass myself. Maybe once we get back to school you guys can teach me some more dances so that in the future we can actually enjoy ourselves while dancing at the balls." Harry replied.
"Hey there's Hannah and Tracey." Susan said while waving them over with Hannah wearing a soft pink that highlighted her pale skin and Tracey wearing a light blue that matched her eyes. "It looks like people are starting to sit down, maybe we should sit down so that we can all sit together."
Once the group sat down Harry looked around his table. He saw that there were four other students of Hogwarts that were on the table with him and his friends. "Hello everyone, I am Heir Potter, heir to the Most Ancient and Most Noble house of Potter." Harry said.
As Harry's friends copied his introduction the other four returned the greeting. It turned out that the other four children who were sitting with him were all in their second or third year. The first was a second year named Jack Roberts who was the heir to the Ancient and Noble house of Roberts. Sitting next to him was a third year named Katherine Pollet of the Ancient house of Pollet. On her other side was a second year Jasmine Cassidy with her older brother Douglas who was the heir to the Noble house of Cassidy who was in his third year.
After a pleasant dinner Harry heard an announcement that introduced the weird sisters who started playing some slow songs. As soon as the music started many older couples started dancing around the room. Harry then turned to Susan who was on his left side and said in an overly posh voice, "Milady, would you care to dance?"
"Of course, good sir." Susan said in an equally posh voice.
As the pair walked to the dancefloor Harry whispered to Susan, "Just remember that I only know the basics, but I am confident enough to not step on your feet. If you want to try something more complicated then just give me some more instructions and we'll see how it goes."
"Of course Harry." Susan said. As the next song started the pair started dancing. Harry was leading properly and didn't miss a beat and Susan commented on it. "Are you sure that you've never learnt before? You're doing really well."
"Thank you for the compliment, but I really have only learnt the basics from my Aunt. But I have done karate for many years which helps with the footwork." Harry replied.
Susan shrugged and just enjoyed the dance for a little while longer. "How are you enjoying the ball?" she asked.
Harry smiled down at her and said, "With a pretty girl like you in my arms how could I not enjoy it."
Susan then tapped him softly on the chests and smiled down before saying "Shut up, give me an actual answer. You know what I'm asking about."
"Well first of all that was an actual answer, I am really enjoying dancing with you, but I guess the dinner wasn't too bad considering that no one was particularly rude and it was easy enough to have a conversation with everyone. But I expect that once I have danced with all of you girls then the politics will start and I will need to watch out for everything else. But for now I am quite content and I think that I have a few more songs before I will need to change partners." Harry said.
The pair then continued to dance in partnership. With their steps becoming more advanced as Susan gave Harry instructions and the space around them increasing as more people took note of their dance. After one more song there was a small gathering that was watching them dance and by the end of their fourth song Harry and Susan separated. Harry bowed to Susan and Susan curtsied in return before there was some light clapping.
As the pair then returned to the group Harry made his way to Daphne and he bowed slightly at the waist and said, "May I have this dance milady?" Whil Neville who just returned with Hannah asked Tracey to dance.
"Of course milord." Daphne said, returning the bow with a curtsy and smile.
Making their way to the dancefloor they started dancing. "That was some impressive dancing. Are you sure that you haven't danced before?" Daphne asked.
"Susan said the same thing. But yes I'm sure that I haven't danced like this before." Harry replied. The pair continued to dance while they started to do some more advanced moves like spins and dips that caused more people to watch them dance again. "So when do you think that you'll have to do the rounds with your dad?"
"It will probably be after we finish dancing. I know that Dad already expected us to dance at least a little bit and was probably waiting for it once he saw how you were dancing with Susan. I think that there is a little bit of privilege that comes from dancing with you as the boy who lived and although he already knew how close we were, now the rest of the world does." Daphne said.
"Well then I should make the most of this because I doubt that we will have much time after this." Harry said.
"Make the most of what?" Daphne said challengingly.
"Dancing with you. It's really nice. Also I want you to get to enjoy at least a bit of this ball."
"Who says that I enjoy this?" She replied.
"Well, the smile on your face says a lot." Harry said.
"But I'm not smiling." She said, confused.
"But I can see it in your eyes." He said. "Now be quiet. If you want to try some new moves you'll have to explain it to me but for now let's just enjoy this dance."
Once more the pair fell silent and they continued to dance. As the songs passed there wasn't another word spoken but the pair moved in perfect sync. Harry led Daphne in a complex dance that amazed most of the audience and made Daphne's parents smile happily as they saw the happiness in Daphne's eyes. Once they finished Harry gave her a bow at the waist with a smile and Daphne returned the bow with a curtsey with her eyes shining brightly. "Thank you for this dance." He said.
"You're welcome. I hope we can do this at the new year's ball." Daphne replied. "But I can see my dad waving at me, so I'll have to talk to you later."
Harry then walked back to Hannah and Susan. He gave Hannah a small bow and with a charming grin he said "Milady can I have this dance."
"Of course Milord." Hannah replied with a giggle and a curtsey.
While the pair were dancing fine Harry noticed that he wasn't as in sync with Hannah as he was with his previous partners. While they were still dancing well and Harry could confidently lead her through the more simple moves he didn't feel as though he could lead her through the more complicated moves that he had been doing with Susan and Daphne.
"Did you enjoy your dance with Neville?" Harry asked with a mischievous grin.
Hannah blushed slightly before looking up at Harry and saying "Yes. Yes I did."
"That's good. How has the rest of your night been going?" Harry said.
"It's been going well, I expect that it will be more boring once I have to start doing the rounds with my dad." Hannah replied.
"Oh well, I guess I'll have to make the most of this dance then because we will probably both be busy for the rest of the night." They then enjoyed dancing for one more song before separating. "Thank you for this dance milady." Harry said with a smile and light bow at the waist.
"It was a pleasure milord." Hannah replied with a giggle and curtsey.
The pair then walked back to Daphne and Tracey. "Is it my turn?" Tracey asked with a smile.
"Well I was gonna ask you but if you don't let me ask properly then maybe not." Harry joked.
"My apologies. Please ask away." Tracey said.
"Well you've ruined it now. But would you care to dance?" Harry asked.
"I would love to dance." Tracey said.
As the pair started dancing Harry noticed that Tracey wasn't as confident while dancing as Susan and Daphne were. "So why was I the last to dance with you?" Tracey asked.
"Well I wanted to save the best for last." Harry said.
"Come on Harry, I know that's not the real reason, and I know it wasn't personal but I was wondering if you and Neville had a plan on who you would dance with."
"Yeah I actually talked to Neville before and we decided that you and Daphne would dance at the same time while Hannah and Susan would dance at the same time. Then we would dance with one each and switch pairs each time. I just asked Susan first because I thought that she would be able to teach me enough of the basics that for the rest of you I would be able to at least do the basics well. But she was a better teacher than I thought she would be and it turned out great. Then it was more just that Daphne was closer." Harry said.
"I kind of guessed that after you said that you just knew the basics. But I'm still glad that I got to dance with you." Tracey said.
"I'm just glad I got the chance to dance with all of you girls before the politics begin because I'm assuming there are a few Lords I'm going to have to talk to once I finish dancing with you." Harry commented.
"Then let's make the most of this." Tracey said before they just enjoyed the dance.
After a few more songs Harry and Tracey finally walked off the dance floor. "Are you done for the day Harry?" Susan asked once she saw Tracey and Harry walking back.
"I hope to get at least one more dance from each of you girls before I have to go, but for now I am unfortunately done." Harry said.
"Well, I am about to go and do my rounds with Aunt Amelia, did you want to come with us?" Susan offered.
"I don't think that would be the best way to introduce myself into politics. No offense to you or your Aunt, but if I am going to follow her around then no one will respect me so I think that I will need to go around on my own. Maybe we will run into each other though. But for now I am going to go." Harry said.
As he said that Harry looked around and saw a small group of five Lords standing off to the side of the dancefloor. "Hello Heir Potter." One said as he walked over.
"Hello everyone." Harry responded.
"I am Lord Bromley of the Ancient and Noble house of Bromley. With me are Lords Chester, Dutton, Finkley, and Whittaker. Lords Dutton, Chester and Finkley are all Noble or Ancient and Lord Whittaker is Ancient and Noble."
"It's nice to meet you all." Harry said.
"I must admit that most of us have been awaiting your first public appearance and have asked our heirs about you." Lord Chester said. "I have a son in his fourth year at Hogwarts and he has only good things to say about you."
"Really? I'm surprised that a fourth year has even heard things about me." Harry said.
"Well, from what he has heard in the Hufflepuff common room, you and all of your friends are some of the top students in your year." Lord Chester said.
"Well, I would agree that we are all some of the top students with few that can compete with us over so many subjects. But I wouldn't say that it is just hearing good things about me. That is just because of the effort that my friends have put in." Harry argued.
"But that could be argued that it was due to you bringing out the best in them." Lord Bromley said.
Harry frowned before saying "You could argue that I had an influence, but it cannot be said that it was only due to me that my friends are as successful in classes as they are."
"Well, it is good to hear just how humble you are." Lord Whittaker said. "But now that you are not being hidden away by Dumbledore, many of us lords have been curious about your opinion on many public issues. Would you care to share?"
Harry paused to gather his thoughts. "I agree with some of the thoughts about the necessity of conserving our traditions like yule and other traditional holidays. But I also think that it is very important to judge people based on their own merits. While I agree that acknowledging our history is very important, I like to form my opinions based on someone's actions rather than their five great grandfathers. So while I do acknowledge the importance of a person's family, and traditions, it is more important to think about someone's abilities than their blood purity."
"So a very balanced view on our history and traditions. What about progression?" Lord Chester asked.
"What do you mean?" Harry asked.
"What do you think of the muggleborns trying to change some of our ways?" Lord Chester clarified.
"Well, I think that some change is not a bad thing, for example if people continue to develop brooms then games like quidditch and broom racing become more exciting. Other inventions like the floo revolutionized traveling so I think that introducing new things can help, and even if they take inspiration from the muggle world, that doesn't mean it's a bad thing. So as long as the changes can help us and don't harm people, then I am all for changes." Harry said.
"That is fair enough." Lord Whittaker said. "But to sum up, you are accepting of our traditions, base people on their own merit while understanding the value of their family history, and are accepting of changes that can help our world and don't cause people harm."
"Yes, that is about right." Harry said. "But for now I'm afraid that I must talk to more people if I wish to get some more time to dance before I am taken home."
"Goodbye Heir Potter." Lord Bromley said.
With that Harry walked away from the group of Lords. 'That didn't go too badly.' Harry thought to himself, 'But I'm also quite glad that it is over.' Harry then heard a voice call him over.
"Goodness me. Is that Harry Potter?" A voice called out. "Mr Potter, please come on over."
Harry looked at the man who was speaking and saw that it was a group consisting of a few Lords and the Minister of Magic, who called him over, with his entourage. "Actually minister, it is Heir Potter." Harry said frostily.
"My apologies, Heir Potter. I was a bit over enthusiastic in my greeting. It's just that you haven't been seen in public since that horrible day all those years ago. Let me introduce you to everyone. With me are Lords Malfoy, Yaxley, Bulstrode, Carrow, Flint, and Selwyn."
"It's nice to meet you all." Harry said.
"Heir Potter," Lord Flint greeted, "I've heard that you're quite the duelist from my son."
"Your son is also quite talented." Harry replied.
"Thank you, are you participating in the dueling this new year?" Lord Flint asked.
"Yes. Master Flitwick has agreed to sponsor me in the singles and has sponsored me and some of my friends to join the team tournament as well."
"Flitwick has sponsored and tutored you?" Lord Carrow asked in surprise.
"Yes, he has tutored me since a few weeks into the term." Harry responded.
"That is very impressive, he is probably the best duelist from Britain in many years." The Malfoy lord commented. "He must have seen lots of potential in you for him to start training you from such a young age. I'm sure that you and your friends will represent Hogwarts well, just as young Marcus has."
"I hope to win the tournament and from what Master Flitwick has said, I should be in with a good chance."
"Well, you shall have to face my son so I'm sure that you will face at least one talented duelist during your competition." Malfoy said.
"Well this will be an interesting duel wont it." The minister interjected. "The Boy Who LIved versus the Malfoy heir. I'm sure both boys will put on a good show."
As Harry was getting bored of the minister continuing on with tales of his own dueling prowess that Harry had no doubt was over exaggerated he finally saw Amelia looking around for him. Once she made eye contact with him she started walking over to him. As soon as she made it over to the group she said "My apologies gentlemen but I must take Mr Potter here home soon and I do believe that he promised some final dances."
"Goodbye everyone." Harry said before quickly walking away with Amelia. Once they were out of earshot Harry said gratefully, "Thank you so much for this, I was getting very tired of listening to Fudge talking."
"You're welcome. But I wasn't joking that you should get your final dances with your friends before we go." Amelia responded.
"Of course. I should be done in maybe twenty minutes and I'll come find you then." Harry replied before rushing off to find his friends.
The first of his friends that he found was Neville getting a drink. "Hey Nev, I'm sorry but I'm in a bit of a rush right now, do you know where any of the girls are because I promised them each one more dance before I had to go?"
"Yeah I see them all over there, I was just getting us all some drinks." Neville replied as he pointed over to the side of the dance floor.
"Thanks Neville, and if I don't see you again tonight then I'll see you at the New Year's ball." Harry said.
"See you later Harry." Neville called after Harry as he walked over to the girls.
Harry then managed to dance with all four girls before he and Susan went to find Amelia. Once the pair found her they walked over. "Are you two ready to go?" Amelia asked.
"Yep." Harry replied.
"Then follow me, I will be aparating you home but there are certain spots that you are meant to apparate from." Amelia said.
"What's apparating?" Harry asked.
"It is essentially teleportation." Susan said. "But trust me it isn't fun to be side along apparated."
"That is true, it is quite likely that you will feel a little bit sick but it will go away very quickly. Anyway, grab my arm tightly and try not to resist this." She said, once both of the kids had grabbed onto her arms she twisted and the trio disappeared.
As they appeared with a crack outside of Harry's house, Harry and Susan immediately let go of Amelia's arms. Harry was bent over and holding onto his stomach while Susan was looking slightly better because of her previous experiences.
"I hope that I don't have to do that again." Harry said.
"I'm afraid that you probably will. But it is definitely much better when you are the one doing the apparating." Amelia said. "But it's now time for us to go, I'm sure you'll be wanting to get some sleep now."
"I certainly will. But thank you for bringing me home. Goodbye Susan." Harry said.
"You're welcome." Amelia said.
"Bye Harry." Susan got out, just before Amelia apparated them away.
Harry then walked into his house and got ready to sleep.
Line Break
The day before the new year's ball Harry received a letter from Daphne.
Dear Harry,
I talked to my parents and have gotten permission for all of our friends to sleep over at my house after the fireworks if you wish. I understand that it might not be possible considering most of our friends are girls and your Aunt and Uncle might not be okay with that but everyone will have their own room anyways. Also it will be after midnight that the ball ends and I thought it would be nice if you had the option of staying the night. I would also like to thank you for the book on occlumency because it is much better than any of the books that we have in our library. I'm sure that this ball will be a bit less focused on politics than the ministry ball so I hope that you enjoy it more and we can all spend more time together dancing. My parents have offered to take you back if you will need it as well in case that is important to you. Anyway I'll see you soon, please send an owl back if you are able to stay the night.
From Daphne
'That's nice of her.' Harry thought. 'I should ask Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon. I hope that it'll be fine because I think it will be a good time to plan out what we will do in Paris.' Harry then walked down to the living room to find his Aunt.
"Aunt Petunia, I just received a letter from Daphne inviting me to stay the night along with all of our other friends. We will all be getting our own rooms so you don't have to worry about that, but it also means that I won't have to make my way home past midnight. So would it be possible for me to stay the night" Harry asked.
"Would there be parental supervision?" Aunt Petunia asked.
"Yes. Daphne's entire family and most of my friends who go to the ball will be staying."
"And you would be able to get back here on your own the day after?" Petunia asked.
"Yes, Daphne's parents would be apparating me back." Harry replied.
"Then I guess it is okay. Just make sure to pack a small bag with all of the things that you will need while sleeping over."
"Thanks Aunt Petunia." Harry said before rushing upstairs to prepare an overnight bag.
Line Break
The next day Harry grabbed his overnight bag and pulled out the portkey that came with the letter and prepared himself for the spinning feeling that would come from the portkey. When the ground appeared below him he took the necessary step forward. 'Wow. That is an impressive house.' Harry thought. There was a large two story manor with an extravagant garden in front with tasteful decorations that demonstrated the taste and class of the owners.
"Harry." A voice called out.
Turning around he saw Susan and her Aunt had just landed in the recently cleared arrival zone. "Hey Susan, hello Amelia. You're both looking beautiful tonight."
"Just like your father Mr Potter." Amelia said with a sigh.
"But I was only telling the truth." Harry said with a mischievous grin.
"Oh well, you two can run along now and find your friends. Just make sure to say hello to the hosts on your way in and be respectful."
"I know Auntie." Susan said. "Let's go find Daphne and her family then we can find the rest of our friends."
The pair walked towards the house and saw that just at the entryway Daphne and her family were welcoming all the guests.
As the guests in front of them walked away Daphne looked over and noticed her friends. "Harry, Susan, you're here."
"Of course we are." Susan said while giving Daphne a hug. "We wouldn't make you suffer with just Tracey on New Years."
Meanwhile Harry was greeting Daphne's parents and Astoria. "Hello Sebastian and Ophelia, thank you for having me and Susan tonight." Harry said.
"It is our pleasure, we hope that having more of Daphne's friends means that she will be able to enjoy herself more." Sebastian said.
"And if her face while you were dancing at the ministry ball was any indication then there won't be any issues there." Ophelia interjected.
"Yeah Daphne was so happy after the ministry ball for once." The younger version of Daphne interjected.
"Tory. Shut up." Daphne hissed at her.
"You must be Astoria." Harry said, "I am Harry Potter, Heir to the Most Ancient and Most Noble House of Potter. But you can call me Harry."
Susan then cut in to introduce herself, "And I am Susan Bones, Heiress to the Most Ancient and Most Noble House of Bones. But you can call me Susan."
"But for now I think that we should go inside so that you can greet the rest of the guests." Harry suggested. "We will see you inside Daphne."
"Bye guys, I'll find you guys once I'm done here."
"Well this is a very nice house isn't it Susan." Harry commented.
As soon as Harry had said that he turned and pulled one of his wands out of its holsters after the pair heard a soft pop. Upon noticing it was a house elf dressed in a neat uniform with the Greengrass crest on it, Harry resheathed his wand and relaxed. "Can Poppy be taking your bags to your rooms for the night."
"Thank you Poppy." Susan said as the pair gave their bags to the well dressed house elf.
"Well I'm glad that they told their elves to do that because I never thought of it." Harry said.
"It is standard that house elves will take either pieces of clothing or bags when entering someone's house with the intention to stay, that is likely why the Greengrasses didn't mention your bags." Susan explained. "Sometimes it is really easy to forget that you weren't raised in the wizarding world with how good your etiquette is."
"Yeah there are still some things that I don't know but I'm sure that with the amount of time I spend with all of you guys I'll learn everything that I would be expected to know."
Before Susan could respond the pair heard a voice call out "Harry, Susan."
The pair turned around and saw Neville, Tracey and Hannah walking towards them. "Hey guys. You're all looking good." Harry complemented.
"Thank you Harry." Tracey and Hannah said in unison.
"Woah that was creepy, did you guys practice that?" Harry said.
"No." Tracey said, "But it was pretty funny seeing your reaction to it."
"Wow. I have such cruel friends." Harry said in an overly dramatic tone.
"Suck it up Harry." Tracey said.
"Oh well, anyway what can I expect from this ball. Is it going to include as much politics as the ministry ball?" Harry asked.
"Not really. Most of the children will talk to each other and the adults will talk with their friends on the balls that are hosted by families and not the ministry. While it is expected for the hosts to socialize with all guests, this often doesn't include the children aside from greeting the guests as these balls are more about enjoyment rather than politics." Neville explained.
"So it is just the ministry ball that includes lots of politics." Harry clarified.
"Yeah pretty much." Hannah agreed.
"Well I'm glad about that, it was pretty nerve wracking talking to all of the Lords for the first time." Harry said.
"And we get to dance with you more." Tracey said with a grin.
"Oh no, it's such a shame." Harry said sarcastically.
"What's a shame?" Daphne said as she came up to the group.
"Daphne, you're done with the greetings." Tracey said.
"Yeah, There were so many people. Anyway, what are you guys talking about?" She replied.
"We were just telling Harry about how we would be claiming him to dance all night long." Susan said.
"I thought that was a given." Daphne joked.
"Your wish is my command My Lady." Harry said with an over exaggerated bow.
Daphne then replied with over exaggerated pomp "Then you may escort me to our table as dinner shall be served momentarily."
With the rest of their friends snickering, Harry and Daphne walked arm in arm to where Daphne directed them to sit.
What followed was an enjoyable dinner with his friends and Harry noticed that while there were a similar number of tables as at the ministry ball, most of them were only filled with groups that were about half to a quarter of the size. Eventually a band struck up a dancing tune and Harry and Neville started to dance with all of their friends long into the night. As the hour got later many people started sitting down as they were running out of energy. Harry continued dancing with all of his friends even after Neville was tired and the dance floor started getting empty. With each song that Harry danced to, his skills grew and more spectators watched as Harry and whoever his current dance partner glided across the floor.
By 11:30 Harry had managed to outlast the everyone else, even when he and Neville were constantly dancing, as they all had to stop dancing starting with Hannah and Neville, followed by Susan and Tracey, with only Daphne's sheer stubbornness and her enjoyment of dancing with Harry that stopped her from tapping out earlier.
"Stop looking so smug Potter." Daphne grumbled.
"I'm not. I just really enjoyed dancing with you girls." Harry replied with a grin.
"I'm impressed you managed to last so long Harry." Neville said, "You kept dancing for like an hour after I stopped and you look like you could keep going."
"It's all the exercises in the morning along with dueling and quidditch." Harry said, but he thought privately that it was probably the room of requirement allowing him to train for pretty much a whole day that allowed for his insane stamina.
"Well, I enjoyed it a lot too. Thank you for dancing with us Harry and Neville." Susan said.
"Yeah thanks guys." Hannah said.
The group spent the next twenty five minutes chatting and waiting for the fireworks that were to come.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, please follow us out into the garden for the fireworks." Sebastian called out to the guests. The group followed their hosts into the garden and heard Sebastian call out again "The fireworks will be coming from that direction in ten. Nine. Eight."
As the rest of the guests joined in counting down the anticipation grew, "Three. Two. One. Happy New Year!" The guests called out.
Immediately the fireworks went off and what followed was a display of some of the wonders of the wizarding world. With fireworks with shapes of popular animals like phoenix and hippogriffs flying around the night sky, the display lasted for ten minutes with the fireworks of all different shapes and colors lighting up the night. In the final moments of the display the largest firework of the night appeared with a huge dragon appearing that let out a blast of flames out of its mouth before flying right towards the viewers. As it got closer to them the sheer size of it became apparent before it broke apart into one final display of colors in the night sky.
In the coming minutes most of the guests left with only the Greengrasses' close friends making it to 12:30. By now Susan and Tracey were leaning on Harry and only slightly listening while Hannah was lying on Neville's shoulder. "I think that it might be time for bed." Harry said.
"I think you're right. I'll go tell my parents that we are going to sleep now then I'll show you where all of your stuff is so that you can go to sleep. But you guys need to wake up Susan, Tracey and Hannah." Daphne said before walking off to find her parents.
"Susan, Tracey, it's time to get up so that you can get to your room." Harry said softly.
"No. I'm comfy." Tracey said before closing her eyes again.
"Ah, screw it. I'm just going to carry you two." Harry said. It took a bit of arranging but a sleepy Tracey was able to hold onto Harry from behind while Harry scooped up Susan in his arms.
Daphne came back and laughed for a moment when she saw how Harry was carrying both girls before leading the group up to their rooms. "Now how are we meant to get them out of these dresses?" Daphne muttered.
"Can't your mum do a switching spell on their clothes?" Harry suggested, "Flitwick taught me how to do them but I am not willing to try it on these girls as the first practical application of it because any mistake would be pretty bad for the girls."
"That's a great idea. I'll be back in a second." Daphne said before rushing off.
"Alright boys, you can go to sleep now. Feel free to sleep in and we will have an elf show you to the kitchen in the morning. I'll take care of the girls." Ophelia said.
"Goodnight. Ophelia." Harry said.
"Goodnight Lady Greengrass." Neville said.
"You can call me Ophelia as well, you know. Anyway, goodnight."
The pair then went into the other rooms in the hallway and found their overnight bags resting on the bed. 'House elves are very useful.' Harry thought, 'I'm so glad that I will have my own to take care of all my houses.'
Once he was ready for bed he flopped onto the soft mattress and his final thought was 'This is such a comfortable mattress.'
Authors Note
I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I know that it was not as interesting as others, but it was necessary to introduce Harry to the politics of the wizarding world. The next one will probably get through the first few rounds of the individual dueling tournament and include some of the group talking about what they want to do in paris.