New Minister’s Yule Party

The day after I got home, we were getting ready to go out. The new Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge, has invited all the great families of the British wizarding world to a big party at his manor in order to show off his new status for all to see.

We arrive in our most beautiful evening outfits, my mother with a green dress and long silk gloves decorated with a snake in gold thread. My aunt and Susan are wearing very formal white evening dresses. My father, who had opted for an evening robe in the style of the wizard nobility, also wanted me to wear a similar one, but I cursed and swore that the one who would make me wear frills and lace was not yet born. Finally defeated by my categorical refusal, they let me wear a black tuxedo with waxed shoes.

We were among the first guests to enter the room, my aunt having strongly insisted on arriving on time so that she could talk to as many guests as she could. According to her, Fudge had already started to cut the budget of some key departments of the ministry, including the department of magical law enforcement for lack of major cases and she had well hoped to convince the large families of wizards to agree to force Fudge to give her back her finances.

"Amelia how nice to see you here." Fudge comes to us with arms wide open and a facade smile plastered on his face.

"Cornelius. "My aunt answers him rather coldly.

"Come on, Amelia, no need to sulk today. It's a holiday!"

"I'd enjoyed it a lot more if I could afford to put some of your guests behind bars." My aunt is ready to dig up the hatchet of war and plant it in the skull of the fat man she has in front of her.

"And who do we have here, would it not be our new auror and his lovely family. So how were your first months in Hogwarts?" He's obviously trying to change the subject to have a much more pleasant conversation. Let's not give him that pleasure.

"Boring, most of the classes are below what you see in other magic schools." I said that trying to embarrass him even more. " And I don't understand why some subjects aren't in the curriculum. And for some of them there has to be enough students to ask for it as an option to be considered. Take alchemy for example, it is in the main curriculum in Beauxbaton and Uagadou but is completely absent from the classes of Hogwarts. And we better not even talk about the making of magic wands which is the subject of a full course in Ilvermorny! How can we safely say that Hogwarts is the best school with such gaps?"

'I... Well, these are subjects that the ministry does not find essential in the basic knowledge that a young wizard should have. In addition, these are subjects that can be dangerous for such young students."

"Surely no more than Snape's class."

Fudge seems very embarrassed by my remarks "Ho, but look at who we have here. Excuse me, but I have to welcome my other guests." I don't think we'll be invited back to one of his parties.

My parents leave to chat with the adults, exchanging forced laughter and political handshakes. Susan found some Hufflepuff friends, leaving me all alone by myself. I finally find a group of the Slytherin students in a corner of the room. I recognize first-year students with whom I have the habit of talking like Draco, Blaise, Daphne or Theodore Nott, but also others older like Marcus Flint, the captain of the Quidditch team.

When I arrive, Blaise Zabini is the first to notice my presence. "Your parents dragged you to this party too?" The others turn around and make room for me among them.

"Unfortunately, yes. I would have preferred to stay home, but they told me I have to show up at parties like this when you're a member of high society."

"Don't tell me about it. My mom loves this kind of event and drags me there whenever she can." I remember that Zabini's mother is particularly known for the strange way in which her seven husbands died. Marriages that she greatly benefited from because she inherited huge sums of money from her multiple dead husbands. Everyone suspected that she was probably at the origin of all these deaths, but she always found a new rich idiot that let himself be seduced by her.

"That's for the better, finally a place where true wizards can discuss in good society without the presence of the mudbloods." No one is raising their voice against what Draco is saying. There are only children of old families of wizards here, and some of them think like him. I don't even bother to try to correct his behavior, it wouldn't do me any good right now.

"It's too bad they're here. Everyone's still licking their shoes as always." Marcus turns his face in the direction of the Potter family who is discussing with Fudge. Rose is held by the hand by her mother and looks bored to death. However, I probably can't help her this time, I doubt that James will let his daughter discuss with Slytherin students.

"They will eventually be forgotten. They may have participated in the fall of You-Know-Who, but if they don't make new waves, everyone will forget them over time." Draco nods, approving my comment.

All of a sudden, the lights go down and magical lights fly over the dance floor as the musicians start playing slower music. Several couples come to the center of the room and start dancing. While I don't expect it, Daphne reaches out to me.

"Would you escort me to the dance floor?" I'm surprised she wants to dance. Usually at school, she does everything to be as far away from this kind of distraction as possible.

"I was saving my first dance for you, pretty lady." Okay, I didn't really plan on dancing tonight. Especially since I'm a poor dancer. The only time I danced in my life was at my senior prom in my senior year.

Daphne holds out her hand to me while blushing before we go dancing in a corner of the room. I regret very much that I did not take the time to learn one or two dance steps before coming here because I almost walk on her feet twice.

At the end of the song, we separate by bowing slightly to thank our partner as per the custom. I was a real dance disaster.

"Not too bad, but you'll have to practice more for the next time." She gets away with a mischievous look. At least she's nice enough not to embarrass me in front of everyone.

The end of the evening goes quite well, I discuss banality with several students of Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff whom I know by sight. The topics of conversation revolve a lot around the chocolate frogs' cards and the classes of Hogwarts. I have spoken little to the students of Gryffindor who tend to avoid me or find excuses after a few minutes of conversation. I finally meet Susan who is in the company of Hannah and several Hufflepuff girls.

"Good evening ladies." I bow slightly and several girls start blushing and giggling.

"Hey, Sean. Hannah and Megan were wondering if you were playing Quidditch?" The question just kind of caught me off guard.

"I learned with Father, but I never played a real match?"

"Oh, then are you planning on joining the Slytherin team next year?" It's true that it's not a bad idea. Quidditch is very popular among wizards, as well as players who practice it at a high level. Just look at Viktor Krum. Plus, I like flying so it could be fun.

"Why not, I'm sure it could be fun."

"Then we'll come and support you." Megan Jones gets a little closer and starts blushing. Does the necklace Stryga gave me work in the slightest? " Well, not when you will play against Hufflepuff, then we'll cheer for Cedric."

I can't help but let out an amused smile. "Well, thank you, I guess." The girls go off giggling and I go back to hanging out with the Slytherins. When I arrive, Marcus puts a finger on his mouth to signal me to shut up and we go out with several boys on the terrace.

Marcus takes a flask out of his jacket and starts to share it among the boys who take a sip for the most part. I sniff the container to see if I can feel the presence of an herb or the scent of a potion but there doesn't seem to be anything unexpected inside.

I'm the only one in the first years to have a sip, and how I missed a good drink. Not that I am an alcoholic, but I like the uninhibited side of alcohol, even though I strongly underestimated the effect it was going to have on a body as young as mine.

"Ha-ha, well played Bones. Learn from him, morons." Adrian Pucey is one of Marcus' only friends and a member of the Quidditch team.

My father comes to pick me up on the terrace. When Marcus sees him, he hastens to hide the flask in his pocket.

"Everything all right, boys?"

"Perfectly fine, Mr. Bones" Marcus is a little red but it can clearly pass for the cold air of this month of December. However, I think my father understood what was going on and pretended that he saw nothing.

"Well, Sean, it's time to go home, say goodbye to your friends."

I wave to the crowd and join my father and the rest of the family before I go home.