Romance Festival - Hogwarts Mystery

Festival Fun

The festival started the next day at two. After lunch, Sarah and Rowan helped each other get ready. Sarah wore a white shirt which hung off her shoulders with puffy sleeves and salmon shorts with colorful patterns. Andre had also given her some simple bracelets and a necklace with a crystal hanging from it. 

After styling her own hair in loose waves by magically heating her wand and wrapping the hair around it for a few seconds, she braided Rowan's hair in a fish-tail style. Rowan had borrowed one of Sarah's dresses, a pretty red one with a rosebud necklace. Once the two were satisfied, they made their way to the quidditch pitch. 

"Relax," Sarah told Rowan, who was green in the face. "Everything will be fine."

"Easy for you to say," she said. "I've never been on a date before. I don't know what I'll say."

"Just be yourself, and try not to overthink it."

"Too late!"

They both forgot about dates for a minute when they stepped through the arch and onto the quidditch pitch. The stadium was packed with stalls, people, and decorations, making a kaleidoscope of colors. Banners and pendants hung from all the bleachers and the goal posts in every color of the rainbow. 

"It's so...happy," said Rowan. 

Sarah agreed. She'd always thought of the quidditch pitch as a kind of battlefield, a place of beauty yes, but the kind of beauty demonstrated by raw skill and relentless focus. Now, the pitch had taken on a totally new persona. It held the beauty of a fairy-tale land, with all the potential of happily-ever-after.

She smiled, embarrassed at the sappy thought. 

"There he is!" Rowan squealed, breaking her out of her revelry. Sarah winced as Rowan clenched her arm in a death grip. 

Diego Caplan was striding toward them, in the confident, flamboyant manner only he could. 

"Rowan, there you are, my sweet. You look positively radiant," he said, taking her trembling hand and bowing low to give it a kiss. 

"Diego's your date?!" said Sarah. 

Diego looked up from Rowan's hand and flashed his sparkling teeth. "You are looking splendid as well, Sarah," he said. 

"You look nice, too!" said Rowan, rather louder and squeakier than was necessary. 

"Thank you," he said. "Sarah, don't tell me you've come alone."

"I've got a date," she said, still a bit shocked at the pairing of Diego and Rowan. "I should go look for him."

Rowan squeezed Sarah's arm even tighter. "We'll help you find him." Looking in her terrified eyes, Sarah could see Rowan was too nervous to be left alone with Diego just yet. So she strolled along with them, listening to Diego complimenting Rowan and giving them both advice for when the dancing started. 

It took little time for them to find him. He stood nearby the long tables set out for students to eat the treats offered at the stalls, scanning the crowd for her. 

"Barnaby!" she called.

He spotted her, breaking into a grin before hurrying over. Reaching her, he grabbed her around the middle and picked her up, holding her high and spinning her around. "Here she is, the best, most beautiful date anyone could ask for!" he called as they spun. 

Sarah had her hands on his shoulders. "Barnaby, you're causing people to stare at us," she managed to say through her laughter. 

He set her down, but kept his arms around her. "That's what you wanted, right? For everyone to know we're on a date. That's what I wanted, too."