Harry cursed under his breath as the beast's roar sent tremors through the cobblestone street, rattling windows and sending a flock of birds screaming from the rooftops.
The narrow street of Rue des Fleurs Enchantées, once bustling with shoppers and children playing, was now a chaotic mess of overturned stalls, scattered goods, and people frantically fleeing for their lives.
Harry could feel the raw power emanating from the beast, each step of its massive paws sinking deep into the ground, its claws leaving gouges in the stone. Its fiery eyes took an interest in Harry, as if recognizing a challenger among the scattering masses.
He kept his wand at the ready, shoulders tense.
The creature lunged around the gap, swiping with a massive paw. Harry barely sidestepped, the air whistling as claws missed his shoulder by inches; where there had been twelve feet of distance between him and the beast, now there was barely a couple. He shot a blasting curse at its side to gauge its strength, and it was enough to send it staggering, but it only seemed to irritate the beast and nothing else.
The manticore snarled, its humanoid face twisting into an angry grimace as it swung its tail forward. Harry ducked, dropping low as the venomous stinger stabbed through the wall behind him, splintering wood and sending debris scattering.
A few people cowered behind an overturned shop stall, either too terrified or too stuck to move. Harry caught sight of them, and with a swift motion, shot a banishing charm at their feet, the spell shimmering and pushing them gently away from the beast's direct line of sight.
"Get everyone out of here!" he shouted to the remaining bystanders. "Now!"
Nearby, the guards that had surrounded Dumont were struggling to keep their barrier intact as they pushed the Minister back slowly towards the apparition point, all while the Minister shouted his own commands from the back, his voice furious and commanding. His eyes caught Harry's very briefly, a look of cold calculation there.
The manticore didn't care about him though. It leapt again, wings battering the air, and Harry raised his wand, conjuring a shimmering barrier just in time. The beast collided with it, and the force sent Harry skidding back, his heels digging into the stones.
"You want a fight?" he muttered under his breath. "Fine."
Harry drew on his magic, feeling the familiar hum of power gathering in his body, and twisted his wand in an elegant, looping motion. A line of fire burst from the tip, streaking toward the manticore. The flames licked at its mane, scorching fur, but the beast merely shook itself and bellowed.
The manticore crouched low, muscles rippling. It opened its mouth, and a gout of venomous gas burst forward. Harry swore and flicked his wand, dispersing the cloud with a gust of wind, but the smell still burned his nose and watered his eyes a little.
He shifted to the left, forcing the beast to turn its head to track him, away from the stragglers still trying to make it to safety. He could see some of the shopkeepers gathering courage, trying to pull people into their doorways. A few brave souls even brandished wands, though none dared attack.
"Just keep clear!" Harry shouted. "I've got this!"
The manticore leapt again, its claws aiming for his head. Harry rolled to the side, using his wand to blast a wave of frigid air at the ground. The beast skidded, momentarily losing its balance, and Harry seized the opportunity.
With a sharp flick, the cobblestones beneath the manticore's paws cracked and transformed into stone hands, trapping one of its front legs. It snarled, thrashing, wings beating furiously. Harry aimed his wand at the ground and sent another wave of force, widening the fissure and transfiguring even more hands to form a better grip on trapping its limbs.
The manticore's tail however, wasn't so restrained, and it snapped forward, and Harry barely had time to throw himself backwards. The stinger grazed his arm, almost slicing through his jacket and hitting his side. The skin of his arm twitched just a little and he hissed but didn't let his focus falter.
The beast was getting angrier, and Harry knew that meant it was getting more reckless. He needed to contain it somehow.
He moved in a circle, keeping his wand trained on the beast's face, gauging its movements. It was still struggling to free its legs, roaring in frustration as Harry's transfiguration held up better against the will of the beast. The manticore snapped its jaws, foam flecking from its fangs. With a sudden motion, it whipped its tail around, aiming to catch him at his other side. Harry dropped, planting his hand on the ground and using the momentum to vault himself up and over the range of the strike.
Once back on his feet, he raised his wand and whispered a command. Ribbons of light shot out, coiling around the manticore's wings and pinning them to its sides. The beast roared, pulling against the bindings, but Harry didn't stay idle as it struggled. He layered more spells, weaving the bindings into chains that glowed hot against its fur.
A cheer went up from a few brave onlookers, and Harry allowed himself a grim smile. He didn't know whether they were brave or stupid enough to stay so close but at this moment, he cared not. The beast thrashed, muscles straining, and with one furious swipe, shattered the bindings. Harry didn't waste time cursing.
He pressed on, summoning the wind again and forcing it into a tight vortex that whipped around the creature's head, confusing it and drawing its attention. The beast snapped at the swirling air, its instincts forcing it to follow the movement.
From behind, an Auror shouted something in French, and Harry caught the flash of a curse. The manticore howled as the spell struck its side, searing its fur. For a moment, it whirled away from Harry, enraged at this new target.
Harry didn't waste the opportunity. He sprinted forward, ducking under the tail swipe and driving his wand directly at the creature's chest. Harry timed it such that the burst of raw, condensed force slammed into the manticore just as his stone transfiguration let itself shimmer away, sending the beast reeling. It crashed into the side of the auction house, splintering a support beam.
"Now!" Harry shouted to the guards and the Aurors alike, "Contain it!"
But they didn't move.
Harry's gaze flicked to Dumont's guards, their formation unbroken in the distance, wands held at their sides. The Minister stood at the back of them, pristine and untouched, his expression cold and…amused?. He didn't look afraid, not this time at least. He looked…intrigued.
"What are you doing?!" Harry shouted, voice hoarse from the dust and adrenaline. "Contain it!"
Not a single wand was raised. One of the guards, a tall wizard with a trimmed beard and eyes like slate, gave him a withering look, as if Harry had just asked him to perform a circus trick.
"Your duty is to protect your citizens!" Harry yelled again, but his words were swallowed by the deafening roar of the manticore as it slammed its massive body into the side of a shopfront. Bricks exploded outward, crashing into the street and sending dust clouds spiralling. Panicked screams erupted as witches and wizards scrambled for cover.
The guards didn't move.
Harry turned his gaze towards the pair of Aurors, who'd been probably on patrol or something, who'd already shown more initiative in helping him than half a dozen guards at the Minister's side.
"Follow my lead!"
Harry clenched his jaw, not waiting to see their reaction as fury bubbled in his chest.
He wanted to hear their responses, but there was no time. The manticore had turned its baleful eyes back on him, its lion-like body crouching low, muscles bulging. Its wings flared out, sending gusts of hot, dusty air spiralling through the street.
"Fine then," Harry muttered under his breath. "Have it your way."
The beast lunged, and Harry reacted on instinct, flicking his wand in a sharp arc. A blast of shimmering blue light struck the cobblestones in front of it, exploding into a spray of sharp stone fragments. The manticore roared as the shards peppered its hide, scratching but not penetrating its thick fur.
It only seemed to make it angrier.
The beast charged, its wings flapping heavily, claws scraping deep furrows into the ground as it barrelled forward. Harry took off at a sprint, feet pounding against the pavement as he weaved through the debris. His wand snapped out, sending bursts of magic into the ground, cracking the street into jagged lines to slow the creature's momentum.
But it hardly stumbled.
A blast of green fire shot from its mouth, licking the air with searing heat. Harry ducked behind an overturned toy cart, the flames scorching past him and turning the wooden frame into a pile of smouldering ash in seconds. He popped back up, wand flicking sharply, and sent a volley of spells directly into its face.
The creature snarled, shaking off the impacts as if they were mere raindrops. It roared and leapt, covering the distance between them in one brutal pounce. Harry barely rolled out of the way, the ground where he'd been standing obliterated beneath its claws.
"Fuck this," he muttered, chest heaving. He had fought Death Eaters, battled in duels, but this, this was pure, unrelenting, raw power fuelled by barely sapient intent to harm. There was nothing in its eyes, nothing but a target and unimaginable raw power at its disposal.
He spared another glance towards Dumont and his guards. They had moved further back and away, not even pretending to care. The two Aurors were too busy barricading the area to keep the stragglers away.
"Right. No help, then," Harry growled.
He refocused, hands steady, mind sharpening. There were no distractions now, just him and the beast. His wand twisted through the air, weaving a pattern that shimmered faintly before erupting in a flash of brilliant light. The manticore roared and staggered back, momentarily blinded.
Harry dashed forward, closing the distance before it could recover. With a flick of his wrist, the cobblestones beneath its massive paws cracked and shifted, spreading like a spider's web. He pulled the very earth from beneath it, sending the manticore tumbling into a shallow pit that snapped closed around its legs like a trap.
The beast roared, wings thrashing as it tried to free itself, its massive claws scraping the edges of the stone fissure. Dust and rock spewed up in thick clouds, choking the air. Harry tightened his grip on his wand, steadying his breathing.
"That should hold you for a moment…" he muttered, even though he knew it wouldn't last.
The manticore's roar cut through the air like a jagged knife. Harry spun back, eyes narrowing. The creature had freed one of its paws, clawing at the stone around it. Its stinger lashed out, spearing the ground in frustration, venom bubbling from the tip and sizzling against the ground as Harry moved and it failed to strike its target. Harry reinforced his creations enough to make sure the limbs stayed trapped and the beast, unmoving.
"Alright, you want it rough?" Harry said under his breath. He twirled his wand, magic pooling at its tip before firing in a narrow beam, slicing through the air with a crack. It struck the manticore's shoulder, pushing it back.
Its wings flapping mightily, sending gusts of hot air in all directions, it roared helplessly, unable to move as it pleased. Harry braced himself, digging his heels into the ground as the force of the wind battered him. He shot another spell, this one aimed at its wings. Tendrils of light coiled around the leathery appendages, constricting with a tightness that sent the beast roaring in anger.
The manticore thrashed, trying and failing to wrench its wings free with a burst of raw strength, snapping the spell to no avail. Its wings flapped violently, sending gusts of dust and debris swirling around Harry, who held his ground, looking at his wand in surprise. That binding spell was supposed to have been unbreakable.
Across the square, two Aurors, one tall and broad-shouldered with silver hair, the other wiry with sharp eyes, stood near the remnants of a fallen stall, wands clutched in white-knuckled grips. Harry caught their eyes, jerking his chin towards the creature.
"You two!" he shouted over the roar of wings and panicked screams. "Can you reinforce the binds? I need its wings locked down properly!"
The silver-haired Auror looked startled, but his partner nudged him sharply. "Oui!" they both shouted, and with synchronized movements, they raised their wands, streams of silvery light lashing out and coiling around the manticore's wings.
The creature bucked and screamed, its monstrous tail snapping wildly in all directions, venom hissing as it splattered onto the cobblestones, sizzling and leaving blackened scorch marks. Harry flinched as a stray drop landed mere inches from his feet.
"Keep it steady!" Harry yelled, moving to the side to gain a better angle. The Aurors moved closer, their wands vibrating with the strain as the magical bindings tightened. One of them swore loudly, knuckles white from the pressure.
The manticore's wings tried to flex, testing the strength of the restraints. For a moment, Harry feared it would break free again, but the combined effort of wands seemed to do the trick. The beast staggered, wings held taut and immobile, its roars turning to snarls of frustration.
"Good!" Harry shouted. His mind raced, brute force wasn't enough. The hide was too thick, the wings too strong. He needed something else to get through. Precision.
He took a step forward, wand steady. "I'm going for its tail!" he called back to the Aurors. "If it breaks free, hit it with whatever you've got!"
The silver-haired Auror nodded grimly. "We're right behind you!" they said in English this time.
The manticore's eyes blazed with fury as Harry approached, its tail whipping back and forth in rhythmic, lethal snaps. He could feel the heat radiating from its body, the air thick with the metallic tang of venom. Harry's wand moved in sharp, deliberate motions, light sparking at the tip as magic gathered, pooling into a single, razor-sharp point.
And then his wand lashed forward, sending a thin, needle-like streak of concentrated magic shooting towards the base of the manticore's tail. It struck true, slicing through the joint where muscle met bone.
The beast howled, a sound so raw and primal that the ground seemed to shudder with it. Its tail convulsed, flailing wildly before sagging, twitching weakly as venom leaked onto the ground, hissing and bubbling.
Harry didn't stop. He pivoted, wand twirling with brutal efficiency.
"Get its legs! Cut it off at the joints!" Harry shouted, eyes never leaving the manticore. The two Aurors glanced at each other, momentarily stunned by the authority in his voice, but they raised their wands nonetheless, sending quick, sharp jets of light towards the beast's legs. The spells glanced off its tough hide, leaving only minor burns and nothing debilitating.
Harry gritted his teeth, wand arm steady. He knew it would take far more than surface spells to break through the manticore's natural armour. The Aurors hesitated, clearly unprepared for a full-scale creature of this magnitude. Harry snarled in irritation.
The manticore growled and trashed, its claws seeking targets that were just too far its reach.
"Alright then, big guy. Let's see how you handle this," Harry muttered under his breath. He raised his wand high, tracing intricate sigils in the air. A pulse of light flared at the wand's tip, before shooting downwards in a jagged line. The ground trembled, stone splintering as thick, enchanted vines erupted, snaking around the creature's legs and travelling up to its thighs with the force of iron chains.
The manticore roared, snapping at the vines as they tightened, forcing its legs to buckle. He ducked as the beast tried to lunge with his hands, rolling to the side with practised ease. He fired off a blast of blinding light directly at its eyes, causing it to rear back, momentarily disoriented.
"Keep it distracted!" he barked at the Aurors. One of them sent a flurry of sparks towards its face, not nearly powerful enough to do damage, but enough to divert its attention. Harry seized the moment, advancing swiftly. His wand cut through the air with precision, sending focused bursts of magic right where the plates of its exoskeleton met soft tissue.
The beast howled in pain, legs shuddering under the combined strain of Harry's magic and its own weight. Its wings tried to flare to escape the assault but Harry's transparent chains held tight and steady, trapping the beast even further. Good. Finally!
"Now!" he shouted, his voice edged with determination. He aimed at its throat, where the armour was weakest. An angry, yellow curse shot forward with a crackling hiss, slamming into the soft tissue just beneath its jaw. The manticore staggered, a guttural cry spilling from its mouth as blood, dark and viscous, began to drip from the wound.
One of the Aurors, eyes wide, raised his wand as if to help, but Harry stopped him with a sharp look. "No. I've got this." His voice was firm, resolute. Now was not the time for them to step in. That had been earlier.
Harry stepped forward, wand alight with a cold, steely glow. The creature snarled, one last desperate lunge sending tremors through the earth, but Harry stood his ground. He whispered a string of ancient words under his breath, powerful, binding magic that flared brilliant white as it left his wand.
The air hummed with power as the spell struck, wrapping around the beast like a spectral vice. It shuddered once, its throat bulging before it burst into a splatter of blood and tissue, its eyes rolling back before it collapsed to the cobblestone with a crash that reverberated across the entire street.
Dust and debris swirled around Harry's feet, and the crowd, hiding behind enchanted barriers, gasped collectively.
Silence stretched for a moment, broken only by the distant crackle of flames and the hurried whispers of astonished onlookers. Harry lowered his wand slowly, breath coming hard and fast. The two Aurors exchanged looks, then glanced at him with something akin to awe.
Harry flicked his wand with a flourish, extinguishing the residual magic still humming in the air. "Right then," he muttered to himself, brushing off his jacket as though he had just finished a casual stroll rather than subdued and killed one of the most dangerous magical beasts known to wizardkind.
He turned to the Aurors, nodding curtly. "Do what you must but I'm claiming the beast. Right of conquest, and all that."
They didn't move for a second, still stunned, until Harry raised an eyebrow. "Well? Are you waiting for tea and biscuits?"
That snapped them out of it, and they hurried off, probably towards more crowd control, now that the scared wizards and witches had turned eager instead, nearing closer to take a look at the fallen XXXXX creature. Harry looked down at the beast, its form still and unmoving. Exhaling deeply, pocketing his wand and began to walk away.
Only then did the crowd begin to cheer, but he had better things to do than get some public acclaim for this.
He turned, willing to look for the Minister, but the crowd was too thick, and before he could even try, cameras were flashing.
"Right," he murmured, grimacing, "time to go then."
Taking his trusted portkey, he muttered the phrase to take him back to the Ministry.
~~ .
Contrary to his expectations, Harry hadn't been able to quickly portkey out of the country, not when he still had to go through the proper channels back to the area where he'd first arrived. Naturally, he thought amusedly, he'd have to have an Auror escort to go there, who were now even more eager to stare at him and whisper about him when they thought he wasn't paying attention. He hoped that the manticore incident hadn't reached their ears yet, or maybe it had and it was the result of having yet another topic to gossip about.
But then his soured mood vanished when he literally bumped into his godfather in the lobby of the Ministry.
"Harry!" Sirius said jovially, looking handsome in his navy blue dress robes.
"Sirius!" Harry hugged him and they began to walk together. "What are you doing here?"
"Official business with the Minister," Sirius said and then leaned to whisper, "we're removing the Hit Wizards from French soil."
Harry was surprised. "What happened?"
Sirius rolled his eyes. "Dumont has enough support in the ICW to get them to pressure me to let France govern itself."
"So you're here to do the deed?"
"Already done! I am on my way out!" Sirius announced, throwing an arm around his shoulder.
Harry chuckled.
"How did you find him?"
Sirius shook his head. "Same old; grumpy but polite. He's the perfect politician. Doing everything exactly right. Sometimes, I feel that he's a bit too stuck up, but crossing all T's and dotting all I's should hardly be considered a rarity in politics, and yet it is."
Harry snorted. "So you haven't heard the latest?"
They were handed the new one-way and single-use portkeys to go back to the Le Passage des Sorciers.
Sirius' eyes gleamed as he looked at him interestedly. "What's happened? What's the latest?"
"Not here. Let's talk at home. You're coming with me, yes?"
Sirius began to reply but then suddenly, an Auror was surging forward from his escort, dragging his attention.
"Monsieur Potter?"
Harry turned to her, raising an eyebrow.
The witch who had addressed him was of medium-height, her heart-shaped face vaguely familiar to him. With her auburn hair pulled back and falling to her shoulders, she had a sort of severe, non-traditional beauty about her that he couldn't miss. And her voice was also very soft but with a sharper undertone to it, making him subtly appreciate it.
"Yes?"
The witch simply swallowed as tears leapt to her eyes. "I just wanted to thank you, Mr. Potter, for that day. My son and I are alive because of you."
The sincerity with which she spoke, even in her funny accent, took him aback for a second. Maybe he did have more supporters outside of Britain than he'd thought.
And then he formed a smile, a genuine one that he didn't get to sport that often in public.
"Thank you, Mrs…."
"Bernard, Merci, Monsieur Potter, Merci beaucoup!" she said as she shook his hand.
Harry nodded to her as he finally turned to go, not wanting to look at his godfather, knowing what must be going through his mind.
Even after activating his portkey to go to that beautiful French street, Harry could see, from the corner of his eye, how Sirius hid a smile.
Harry sighed. "Alright, Padfoot, out with it."
Sirius grinned. "I know what tomorrow's headlines are gonna be."
Harry raised an eyebrow, looking unimpressed. "France cuts ties with the ICW?"
Sirius laughed and then shook his head, looking too smug. "Haha but nope! Harry Potter—Defeater of Manticores and Seducer of pretty Aurors!"
Harry facepalmed.
"So you did hear about the incident."
Sirius scoffed. "Of course I did, as did the entire Ministry. And by tomorrow, every newspaper will be speculating your heroism."
Harry grimaced. "I wish they wouldn't."
"You don't have a choice, Harry," Sirius smirked, "No choice at all."
~~ .
Harry stepped out of the fireplace at Potter Manor, brushing a bit of ash from his shoulders as the familiar warmth of home wrapped around him. The chandelier above shimmered with enchanted light, its crystals refracting rainbows across the marble floor. It was late afternoon, the sunlight slanting in golden streaks through the tall arched windows, but the house was eerily quiet.
He frowned, stepping forward. "Mum?"
"In the parlour, darling!" Lily's voice called back, and Harry followed the sound, his steps muffled by thick Persian rugs.
As he entered, he found her seated in her favourite armchair, a collection of newspapers spread out on the coffee table in front of her, both Muggle and magical alike. A half-empty cup of tea sat at her side, steam still curling from its surface. Her brows were furrowed, mouth set in a tight line.
"Bad news?" Harry asked, slipping off his coat and draping it over the back of a chair.
Lily looked up, her expression softening slightly at the sight of him, but the tension remained. "You could say that." She gestured for him to come closer. "Sit. Julius?"
The old majordomo popped in front of Lily. "Mistress?"
"A cup of coffee for Harry, thank you," she said kindly.
The elf bowed. "Of course."
Harry leaned forward, eyes scanning the headlines as a steaming hot mug appeared on the glass table in front of him. The Muggle papers were bold and loud:
"FRANCE AND GERMANY ON THE BRINK OF ECONOMIC COLLAPSE – Diplomatic Relations Severed!"
"Tension in Brussels: Belgian Ministry Demands Explanation from French Authorities!"
Harry's eyes flicked to the magical papers. They were just as grim:
"INTERNATIONAL CONFEDERATION IN TURMOIL: France Withdraws from European Wizarding Accord!"
"FRENCH MINISTRY Refuses Access to Magical Ports for Belgian Wizards!"
"GRINDELWALD'S SHADOW? French Aurors Seen Patrolling Borders with War Wards Active!"
Harry raised an eyebrow. "Grindelwald's shadow? That's a bit dramatic, don't you think?"
Lily didn't laugh. "It's not just dramatics, Harry. There's truth in it. The French Ministry has been reinforcing its borders, both magical and Muggle, for weeks now. And the reports of wizards and witches moving across Europe... something's escalating."
Harry leaned back, brow furrowing. "Or someone. But... France? They're not exactly known for aggression. They've always been more... reserved. Strategic."
"That's what makes it so worrying," Lily replied, picking up one of the newspapers and tapping it with a well-manicured finger. "They've pulled out of the European Wizarding Accord. Do you know how monumental that is? It's been in place since Grindelwald's fall! nearly fifty years of unity and peace shattered in an instant."
Harry reached for one of the papers, his eyes scanning the lines quickly. "French Ministry Enforces Strict Border Control – Claims of National Security Heightened"
She looked up at him. "Did Dumont say anything about this?"
Harry's eyes flickered with something unreadable. "Nope. But it would be foolish not to suspect him and his intentions. France's policies shifted the moment he took office, and Sirius told me that he's no longer authorized to have troops in France."
Harry's mind flicked back to that grand chamber, to Dumont's face as he spoke, commanding, charismatic, unyielding. A man like that was a bit too charming, too silver-tongued to betray his true intentions. It was worrying.
"What about the Muggle side of things?" Harry asked, leaning forward. "Is it connected?"
"Almost certainly," Lily said, nodding grimly. She shuffled through the papers.
"The British Ministry of Defence is involved now?" Harry asked, eyes widening. "For what?"
Lily shook her head. "The Muggles are preparing for the worst. They're not blind to France's movements. Military units are being deployed across borders, but they haven't announced it publicly yet. Too afraid of mass panic."
"What is this escalation?" he murmured as he exhaled, fingers steepling under his chin in thought. "If Dumont is behind this...along with the Muggle Minister, then it's not just political. He's setting the stage for something much bigger."
Lily's lips thinned. "War?"
Harry's eyes snapped up to hers. "Do you really think...?"
"I don't know?" she echoed, voice dropping to a whisper. "Do you remember the sheer number of the Grindelwald veterans? The ones from the World Cup?"
Harry nodded slowly. "Too many. Riddle's army."
"I bet they're somehow involved in this tension. The increased Auror presence and France withdrawing from the accord doesn't signal something benign to me."
Harry sat back, mind whirring. "Surely the ICW won't permit a major nation to do this?"
Lily's expression was grim. "Who knows what they think? They probably aren't even taking this seriously enough."
"They probably think Dumont is a visionary or something."
"Right." Lily agreed.
And then she reached forward, squeezing his hand. "You need to be careful, Harry. Whatever's coming… I'm sure they'll try to drag you in it. Meeting with Amelia was just a part of the support they would want from you."
Harry looked down at their entwined hands, a strange sense of inevitability settling in his gut. "I hope Dad's presence is at least a barricade to those requests, now that he's gonna be the Deputy."
His mother gave him a look of mild amusement, a smile playing at her lips. "I know. I just wish... we could have some peace without some constant threat hanging over our heads."
Harry smiled back, though it didn't reach his eyes. "Me too, Mum. Me too."
But deep down, he knew they were past wishing. The stage was set, and the actors were already in motion. To do what, he had no idea.
"Oh, by the way," Lily said, summoning an envelope from another chair, "this came for you while you were away."
Harry glanced at the rose-gold envelope with his name written in an elegant, feminine script across it. It was an unfamiliar handwriting.
"Who is it from?"
"I have no idea," Harry said, tearing it open and taking out the parchment that lay within.
Dear Mr. Potter,
It is with sincere delight that I extend to you an invitation to join our family for luncheon at Greengrass Estate on the afternoon of August the 31st.
I do hope you shall not find our countryside estate too quaint, given your recent excursions into far more glamorous territories. Nonetheless, I assure you, the company shall more than make up for any lack of spectacle.
Kindly RSVP at your earliest convenience. The floo address is "Greengrass Estate". Should you have any trouble, my daughter, Daphne, will be keen on ensuring you find your way here without issue.
Yours with warmest regards,
Lavinia Greengrass
Lady of the Greengrass Estate
Harry put down the letter to see Lily with a thoughtful look and a gleam in her eye. "Looks like it's happening, darling."