Brighton - The Party Town
The first thing that Harry registered was the sea air. It was unexpected. When he looked around, he appeared to be standing on an ordinary British street and it was not until he swivelled round that he saw the dark choppy sea behind him. From where he stood, he could see that in every direction the night life was bustling. People were going in and out of restaurants and bars, laughing, drinking and carrying on.
It seemed utterly normal. Muggle even. Streetlamps ran up and down the streets. He could hear music blaring from a nightclub down the street. If it weren’t for the couple of wands, he could see here and there he’d almost think he wasn’t anywhere even remotely magical.
Looking aimlessly about, Harry wandered which way he should go when a man walked past talking on what appeared to be a mobile phone.
“Malfoy, why the fuck would you be at Club Revenge? I thought we were meeting in Greece. No. I’m almost there. What are you…?”
He started cursing and shoved the phone back into his pocket.
Malfoy? Malfoy was here. Harry looked the man up and down. He had dark brown hair and a muscular build. Tattoos covered his biceps. They were on stark display as they poked out from underneath the camouflage patterned tank he was wearing. He wore wide-legged cut off pants that looked ridiculous on a man that age. Harry frowned. Everything was slightly wrong here. He couldn’t quite put his finger on why, but the feeling still lingered.
He followed as the man powered up the pavement toward the club. The pink sign hanging over the door read “Club Revenge”. It was a non-descript building, the walls surrounding it a discoloured yellow. The only thing setting it apart from the Chinese restaurant next door was the bright pink sign. The burly man talked to the bouncer for only the shortest of moments before pushing inside. Harry looked around at the other patrons milling about smoking. It seemed so normal. He sighed and headed inside.
The bouncer held out an arm as he approached. “First time?”
Harry grimaced. “Is it that obvious?”
The man looked Harry up and down. “Well, this is a party town, and you look like you’re going to work.”
Harry glanced down at his clothes. He was wearing a plain white shirt and a simple pair of slacks. The man had a point.
“Ah.” He licked his lips. “Any suggestions?”
The man rolled his eyes and took out his wand. He made surprisingly quick work of the transfiguration. Harry’s slacks changed to a pair of acid wash jeans, full of frayed holes. Then the next minute his white shirt disappeared, replaced by a faded black T-shirt with “The Ramones” printed on it. His shoes had turned into scuffed black Doc Martens.
“Thanks,” Harry said pulling out the shirt a little. “The Ramones?”
“Yep. ‘s a bloody good band, the Ramones.” He grunted.
“Ah yeah,” Harry agreed trying to remember the last time he’d even heard a song by the Ramones.
The man stepped aside, and Harry walked into the club. It was like walking into a wall of noise and colour. Strobe lights pulsed, making the space flash with blue and pink light. People were dancing and drinking and grinding against each other everywhere he looked. The man with the mobile phone was long gone, disappeared into the throng of people.
The music was tugging on Harry’s memories, but he couldn’t quite figure out why. The tunes were all familiar and the words touched on something in the back of his mind. The people were the same. Strange haircuts and even stranger clothes. He had thought he looked ridiculous outside but now that he was here, he realised that this was the norm.
As he moved through to a bar at the back, he saw two things almost at once. The man he had heard on the phone outside was standing still, his fists clutched at his sides, his face dark. He was staring at the second thing Harry had seen, Draco Malfoy, who was leaning against one wall of the club furiously making out with a small black-haired man.
LCDrarry is finally revealed and this was mine! It was a wonderful fest experience and I was so happy to be involved.
