Harry looked restlessly around the Ministry's large ballroom. The whole room was lavishly decorated and shone in full splendor. Actually very pretty, if only there weren't so many people in it.
."You don't need to be nervous, you can do anything," Severus reassured him.
"Especially since you've reread all the chapters in the book," said Sirius.
“Not all of them, only those that explain how to behave at parties. .but I'm not nervous about that, just annoyed, "Harry replied quietly.
"Then what is bothering you?" Severus wanted to know.
“I'm looking for our friends, but you can't find your way around this crowd. .or is it because I'm too small? "
"Quite possible, I just saw some red heads, unfortunately accompanied by their parents," Sirius grumbled.
"I thought they weren't invited to such events?"
Severus nodded.
.“Usually not, but the Ministry's New Year's Eve ball is actually a party for the employees of the house. The fact that foreign politicians and business people were invited this year is an exception. "
.“And that's probably exactly why Arthur and Molly came. You want to make yourself popular with the guests, ”Sirius sighed.
“Great, hopefully there is no incident. .I don't care about my parents, but my friends would suffer. "
The two adults agreed with their son.
"Is it still a normal ball or will it become an official stage?" Harry then asked, startled.
.“No, this evening is only for entertainment, the minister has already told us that. He doesn't want to see anyone who doesn't eat with the stick hand, ”Sirius reassured his child.
."Oh, well, I still can't eat that well with my left hand," the boy confessed.
"You're still learning that," smirked Severus.
"Good evening Harry, you look gorgeous. The cloak looks great on you. "
.the green-eyed man turned and looked directly into the friendly face of Ariel Greengrass.
“Good evening, Mrs. Greengrass. Thank you for the compliment, of course I can't even come close to keeping up with your looks. .they look lovely, ”Harry greeted the lady.
“What a charming young man you are. Thank you very much for the kind words. Your fathers really did a great job raising you. .you both look great too, by the way. The clasps on your cloaks match your wedding rings. "
“That was intentional. And like Harry, we can only return the kind words. You look really beautiful. .your husband must be very proud to have such a beautiful wife, "Severus said gallantly.
“Thank you, dear, now I know where Harry got his charm from. My husband and Draco are trying to keep some young men away from the girls. "
."Hopefully Draco isn't exaggerating," Harry mused.
“No, of course not, this time I will have to worry more about the reaction of my daughters. They weren't that enthusiastic about the rapprochement between these guys. .each only has eyes for her partner. Oh, there they come.
Did you let the young men live? ”Ariel wanted to know.
“But only because we didn't want to make a scene. What insolence, ”Astoria grumbled.
.“These idiots know very well that we are both already taken. You are in the seventh year. Just because Colin and Dennis aren't here today doesn't mean we'll be looking for a replacement, ”Daphne growled.
."We're not that dissolute," Astoria grumbled again.
Only now did the rest of the Greengrass discover the Snape Black family. And immediately the big greeting started.
"Are you all wearing them?" Harry wanted to know at the end.
.“I did, it wasn't going well with my sisters. Would look stupid with the clothes. "
“We have them in our evening bags. Mama just increased the capacity, ”said Daphne.
"What is it about?" Asked Antonius.
.“Each of us got socks from Dobby for Christmas. We decided to wear them today, ”Harry explained.
"Even we carry ours," Severus grinned.
"For real? I'd love to see that, ”Ariel chuckled.
.Sirius and Severus positioned themselves so that the evening party couldn't see them clearly, then they both lifted their pant legs a little. Harry and Draco also participated. Each of them wore two different colored socks.
.suddenly two Dobby socks were visible.
Immediately everyone looked up and saw the amused face of Lucius Malfoy.
"Is there a reason why you all show your presents from Dobby?" He wanted to know after a greeting.
."Mom wanted to see it," Astoria grinned.
"You also got some?", Astonished Antonius.
“I always get some. Both for my birthday and for midwinter. .Besides, Harry wrote me in his last letter that everyone would wear them today, I couldn't stand back, ”he admitted.
Sirius had a hard time suppressing his laughter.
.“Others have a secret handshake, a ring or some other sign, we have our socks to encourage each other. Nobody believes us. "
“And that's exactly why I made the suggestion. .dobby will be happy when he hears it, "said Harry now.
"Will Ron and his siblings wear them too?" Daphne wondered now.
"I'm sure of that," Draco said, convinced.
.in the meantime a lot of the ball attendees had already noticed the group. And these people really wanted to talk to the new guests.
."Well Skunk, ready for an evening of sheer boredom and artificially friendly fuss?" Draco wanted to know.
"You sound like we're at a funeral," the boy grumbled.
"Well, the old year is dying, isn't it?" Astoria giggled.
."I hate New Years Eve," Lucius admitted.
The man only received nods of approval from his friends and young people. This festival had long since lost its appeal for everyone.
."Hopefully we'll get the chance to talk to the redheads," Draco said.
The blond boy wanted to be around his girlfriend, of course, but unfortunately her parents were always with her.
.“Ask her to dance later, neither Molly nor Arthur can forbid their daughter to do so. That would be very rude, ”suggested Antonius.
."I hope I don't have to dance with every dance that asks me to, because I don't want to," Harry whispered to his fathers, looking a little uncomfortably into the crowd.
."We'll protect you from all unwanted advances," Sirius reassured the boy.
“Just don't forget what I told you. Don't eat anything without first checking, ”Severus reminded his son.
.“Aren't you getting paranoid now? If someone finds out, your reputation will be ruined. Remember, this party is for entertainment only, ”Ariel warned.
.“Nobody will notice, but Harry and I have had bad experiences with enchanted objects. I just want to prevent someone from sneaking up on my child who has no business near him. .for example the old man over there ”, Severus pointed to Albus Dumbledore.
"Merlin, I completely forgot that he's still a member of the council," Draco groaned theatrically.
."Just keep your composure, and now we should really talk to the guests otherwise we will attract attention."
.Unfortunately, Lucius was not entirely wrong with these words - the people were already in the starting blocks and really wanted the attention of these famous guests.
.Harry stayed close to his parents and endured a few greetings and praise. The people here were even worse than they were back then in Diagon Alley or at the Christmas ball.
.In a little pause, in which Sirius and Severus distracted the vultures, Harry finally had time to take a closer look at Lucius.
The man looked stunning in his evening wear. .and of course today he had given up his cane and thus both hands were free. The green-eyed man would have loved to begin to sigh. He thought the politician was so beautiful. But unfortunately he couldn't stare too hard at the object of his desire either. .not if he didn't want to provoke rumors. But then he noticed one more thing:
"Mr. Malfoy, you're wearing the clasp. She looks great on you, ”said the boys, a little breathlessly.
.the blond looked down at the embarrassed student and then gave him a stunning smile. Briefly he let his hand wander to his hair and touched the student's gift.
"Thank you for the compliment. .the little piece of jewelry goes perfectly with a large part of my wardrobe. And especially on an occasion like today, I couldn't resist wearing it. "
.of course Harry blushed again at the words, but not as much as usual. Presumably the boy was getting used to the presence of Lucius, or it was all the people in the room. .The politician could not say that exactly. But it pleased him.
However, he had to admit, the embarrassment of the little green-eyed man also had something to offer. .but for some reason the blonde didn't want to share a shy Harry with half the wizarding community.
"Look, there are the champions from the tournament," Harry interrupted the politician's thoughts.
."You knew they were invited."
The boy nodded.
"Yes, but not that they would come too."
Harry was very excited, he would finally see his friends again.
.He had kept in touch with everyone by letter, but apart from Fleur and Cedric, the other champions lived in other countries. You couldn't meet on the side.
.harry spent an hour with his foreign friends. Of course, the Veelas and Remus were also there.
..together with the Greengrass siblings and the Weasleys, who were sometimes able to sneak away from their parents, it actually turned out to be a pleasant time.
Rita Skeeter and Mr. Lovegood had also been invited. .That of course meant that Luna had come along and of course she had brought Neville with her.
Harry also got through the meal without any major incident. .the minister had made sure that no strangers sat next to him.
Severus really did control all of his food and drinks, but he did it very discreetly. And as it turned out, his approach wasn't paranoid. .through his anticipatory action, the Potions Master was able to prevent Harry from drinking a love potion and a friendship potion.
Severus gave Lucius and Sirius a slight wave and they nodded. .they would find those responsible and hold them accountable. Nobody just assaulted a teenager. Especially not at an event that should only be used for entertainment. .that would have very unpleasant consequences for some people.
Harry was pleasantly surprised, however, that he really had impeccable table manners. As he looked around the room, he recognized some people to whom this did not seem to apply. .so he could have saved himself all the fuss. He quietly thanked his dad for the great lessons.
After the meal, the minister asked briefly for attention.
"Good evening my women and men. .I hope you all enjoy this wonderful event. Usually this party is more of an internal matter, where the employees of the house should get to know each other outside of their work. .but today there is a specialty. You have probably already wondered why journalists and high-ranking personalities from abroad are among the guests today. .the reason for this are the new laws for the equality of magical beings.
When we passed this law, many politicians from other countries approached me to congratulate the country on this step. .But not only that, also dealers who have long wanted nothing to do with England are now looking to talk to us.
.in other words, due to the decision to give magical beings the same rights as all other witches and wizards, our foreign colleagues have finally decided to trade with us again. .we are no longer seen as backward. And we owe all of this to some courageous youngsters who stepped on us adults tremendously and made us aware of our years of stupidity. .I would like to thank these courageous young people again for this.
Not only England, but also other countries that have long insisted on the old traditions agree that magical beings are no worse or better than any other. .whoever does not adhere to it is a criminal and nothing more.
And we want to celebrate this end of narrow-mindedness today. .even if it should actually be taken for granted, but unfortunately it took us longer than most of the world.
.There are also some magical beings among the guests of this evening, and only a few of you have noticed this so far, I don't really need to say more. Not true?
In the sense, enjoy this evening and make new friends. "
.loud clapping followed this speech. Of course there were some people who weren't so happy about this turn of the evening, but they wisely kept their mouths shut.
.Today history was written, countries that had distanced themselves from England for a long time now sought proximity to the island. That was a real reason to celebrate.
Harry and his friends all shone with the stars. .they had made it, the magical beings really became equal.nobody would dare to hunt them down, except for a few idiots, but the rapprochement of the other countries turned the water off for these fanatics tonight.
.especially Harry and the other champions were pleased that Crouch hadn't called them by name. He thus granted them their privacy.
The green-eyed man hugged his fathers with joy.
"This is wonderful news," he grinned.
."I knew you'd be happy about it," smirked Sirius.
Everyone watched with satisfaction as the dance began. The couples just streamed onto the floor. .and finally Draco had the opportunity to have his lady of the heart to himself a little. Ginny's parents were simply ignored.
The two floated beaming across the parquet. .they were joined by Neville and Luna, followed closely by Ariel and Antonius. Remus and Fleur also mingled with the crowd.
"Alright," Harry said to his parents.
"Where to?" Severus wanted to know.
."Well, dance, I can see that you would like to ask Sirius. I also like to watch you do it, it looks so nice when you move to the music. "
.severus looked at his husband, and then on to some of the guests who had positioned themselves conspicuously inconspicuously near Harry.
"We don't want to leave you alone," Sirius confessed.
“You won't, I'm still here too. .I would also like to invite your son to dance too. So don't worry, ”Lucius intervened.
Harry looked up at his beloved with bright eyes.
"For real?"
."Yes, if you want," smirked the man.
Harry didn't know what was riding him, maybe it was the joy of the Minister's nice surprise. In any case, the boy was feeling very brave right now.
."Of course I want to dance with you, you know that," he simply slipped out.
Severus and Sirius both got big eyes, they hadn’t expected that, but Lucius didn’t show anything. .especially when he saw the teenager's embarrassed face.
The blonde simply raised his hand to offer it to Harry, and Harry didn't take long to ask. Lucius carefully led the youth onto the dance floor and pulled him close.
."You are getting bolder."
Harry swallowed.
"Or crazier," he mumbled.
"Don't, never be ashamed of your feelings," Lucius asked his dance partner.
“It's not as easy as it might sound to you. .How are you supposed to feel about feelings that you don't understand yourself? ”Harry wanted to know.
The blonde didn't really know what to say to that. He hadn't really expected such an answer either.
.he carefully stroked the little one's back.
"Just enjoy it," he said then.
"I do that every second."
Smiling satisfied, Lucius turned his dance partner and then pulled him back to him.
.he himself was far from having romantic feelings for the teenager. He didn't know if that would ever change, but there was no way he would allow Harry to suffer from it. .not if it could be prevented.
The rest of the evening passed far too quickly for Harry. He couldn't even remember the midnight fireworks afterwards. .all he knew was that Lucius stayed by his side the whole evening and made him feel very special, even if the man didn't reciprocate his feelings, Harry felt good ..