Worthy Of Magic

Part 47 - the Badlands

An abstract of Aura.

Red – Power, Security, Jealousy.

Orange – Pleasure, Appreciation, Comfort.

Yellow – Status, Authority.

Green – Love, Compassion.

Blue – Knowledge, Influence.

Violet – Clairvoyance, Unification.

Unknown – What is enlightenment?

Time Unknown

Tonks was the first time he had got a hint of what sexual pleasure felt like. The murder. Her soft skin. Her terrified eyes. That night had later compelled him to read about sex. He understood it's pleasure was rooted in orange. He observed how it played in the colours of others and filed it all at the back of his mind.

All that he had learnt was coming back to him. This place was flooded with orange and Harry could feel the magic around him steer him towards a form of sexual pleasure.

He controlled it.

The succubi melted into the background and Harry followed Bellatrix to a nearby pristine white three storey building which had a wondrous positive energy and through its springy door into a messy club that was in the stages of closing for the night. Yellow light dominated the space and Bellatrix led Harry through the tables with broken glass and dead men to the bar behind which a familiar woman was cleaning up.

He remembered her from Hogwarts but didn't know her name, just that she had been in Hufflepuff.

She looked at Harry with a lingering gaze and turned to Bellatrix without comment. "Shall I turn on the jukebox?" she asked Bellatrix.

They sat at the bar and Bellatrix smiled at the girl. "Keep it mellow darling. The night's just about maturing."

Harry looked around and frowned. Was the bar opening or closing? It felt like sunrise was close by. He could see the subtle changes in the layers of magic around him. He slid on to the black leather bar stool and wondered what he should drink. Alcohol was something he hadn't really experimented with and with the vast options available at present, he didn't want to miss the chance. Having crazy for company was an added bonus. He might as well have fun until the time came to kill them and move on.

There was some sort of runic structure that protected the village. Harry had noticed it when they walked into the bar. He let the magic soak in. Yes... he could feel it. The runes told him there was a shield in place to keep things out ... or in, he wasn't sure. The dialect of the magic felt older than anything he had encountered so far.

"What will you have?"

It was the bargirl. She was looking at Harry with indifferent eyes. It was a facade. Harry could see her colours. She was scared and her survival instincts had given her the strength to maintain a mask of calm indifference.

Harry grinned. It was a good application of emotional control. "Beer," Harry said after a moment's thought. His Uncle had loved beer. Beer was usually the drink that led to a great beating. Maybe now he'd understand what frame of mind his dead uncle was in under the influence of beer.

"Whiskey for me, Sweetheart."

"Do you understand what place this is?" Bellatrix asked Harry. "You're done probing aren't you?"

"It's a Succubi's Nest."

The drinks arrived and Bellatrix downed her's in a shot. Harry took a slow sip through the thick foam and winced at the taste of bitter yeast. He decided he liked it.