|
|
Bluebird
Author: Coco Nutt
Date: 11-25-15 18:18
Wearing a blue dress covered in small feathers and a matching feathered hat Coco is, stylistically, a bluebird for the Hogwarts Halloween carnival. A blue mask over her eyes that has a beaky nose completes the look. Being engaged to the Alchemy professor has meant she gets to attend functions such as this and every now and then Coco comes to Hogwarts to have dinner with Fritz in the Great Hall when he has been here for office hours, which are in the afternoons on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Fridays. Less often they have lunch together here on Mondays before Fritz's first class.
The Great Hall has been transformed for the carnival. There are booths of all sorts creating lanes and aisles. A number of the game booths don't require someone to run them, but do have anti-cheating charms on them. Coco is trying her hand at one of them that seems to be Muggle inspired. The game requires the player to throw a frisbee through a hoop. There are different hoops, with each having a different level of difficulty. A prize is awarded based on difficulty level. Coco isn't sure how that happens since no one is running the booth but she's about to find out, or so she hopes.
Her third, and final attempt, goes through the hoop with the second lowest difficulty. Lights in the booth flash and a bag of sweets appears on the counter. Peering into the bag, Coco laughs. The sweets are whistles in the shapes of song birds, including a blue bird. She tries one out, stepping out of the way for a student to try his hand at the game.
A man with hair sticking up at odd angles all over his head, eye glasses that appear slightly askew, and a lab coat with vials of colorful liquids poking from one pocket and equally colorful smoke trailing out of another pocket is standing nearby. Seeing her prize he also chuckles. Grinning, Fritz says, "It's like it knows you."
"I'm thinking this is a house elf's handiwork," Coco replies, offering one of the sweets to him.
Before popping a lemony canary into his mouth he nods. "House elves would explain why only a few booths need someone overseeing them."
With plenty of time ahead of them before they need to report for a short shift at two of those booths that do need supervision, the mad scientist and the bluebird stroll the Great Hall, stopping at other booths, including one to get something to drink, enjoying the carnival while also keeping an eye out for any unacceptable student behavior and giving help where needed when someone can't figure out a game on his or her own.
Haunted Maze
Author: Minerva McGonagall
Date: 11-26-15 09:01
Professor McGonagall stood outside the entrance to the haunted maze and handed out time-stamped tickets to students as she sent them inside. There would be prizes for those who navigated the maze the fastest. Since manning the maze, Professor McGonagall had noticed some students go through it twice: once to see how fast they could do it, and a second time at a more leisurely pace to spot all the spooky things they may have missed or breezed past in their effort to get out of the maze the quickest. Some did it the other way around, but the maze was tricky enough that even those with the best of memories couldn't remember every turn to take to reach the exit.
Professor McGonagall was not in fancy dress. She wore thick, black velvety robes and a winter cloak with silver fastenings. Pinned to her cloak was a bright orange jack-o-lantern.
She had chosen to work outside if only to keep a better eye on the grounds. Professor McGonagall had some reservations about opening Hogwarts to outsiders after dark, but with Halloween falling on a Saturday this year and it being a holiday traditionally celebrated at night, she wanted to do something a little different. Naturally, she was not the only teacher on the lookout for trouble––and not just among the students. Other adults also patrolled the grounds and castle, just in case.
There had been Death Eater attacks on Halloween in the past––not at Hogwarts, of course, but elsewhere. In light of current events and the fact that Fairchild was spying on them, Professor McGonagall was on high alert. She did not think anything would happen at Hogwarts tonight, since Elphias hadn't heard anything to suggest otherwise, but one could never be too cautious.
"Hello, Great Aunt," said Madoc, when he stepped in line to enter the maze. He was dressed in a kilt and seemed to be regretting the decision, because he was shivering in the cold.
"Hello, Madoc. Did you want to try your hand at the haunted maze?"
"Is it very scary?"
"Are you easily scared?" she asked him.
"Not any more than a normal person, I would think," Madoc replied. He craned his neck to see what might lie beyond the entrance of the maze, but there was nothing to see. There were ominous sounds coming from within, though.
Minerva gave him a ticket with the current time on it and said, "Give it a go. You've got to find the middle, get your ticket stamped there, and then make your way back. The faster you find the exit, the better," she added mysteriously. "And don't forget to get your ticket stamped on the way out."
Madoc took the ticket and vanished into the maze before he changed his mind about it. He turned a few corners and ran smack through Nearly Headless Nick, who drifted between the hedges with his botched beheading in full view. Madoc shivered and moved on more quickly, especially when he heard rattling chains coming from somewhere nearby. He should have gone in with a friend instead of trying the maze on his own, but it was a little late now. His great aunt was right. The faster he got out of the maze, the better!
Halloween Carnival
Author: Jolyon
Date: 11-27-15 12:16
Asher and Malden clanked around the Great Hall together. They were both dressed as knights in armor. Their costumes were nearly identical, the only difference being their helmets. Asher's was rounded with a visor, while Malden's was elongated with a T-shaped opening for his eyes and mouth.
The boys had wanted to carry real swords as part of their costumes but had failed to get permission. Malden's great aunt told him he could have a wooden play sword, but he turned his nose up at the idea. He would rather have no weapon at all than a child's toy.
"What now?" Asher asked. There were still a ton of booths they'd not yet visited.
"I dunno," Malden replied. Some of the games required more movement than their suits of armor allowed. "Want a snack?" he finally suggested.
"Sure," Asher said.
They started to head over to one of the snack tables, which had Halloween-themed treats and drinks, when Jolyon called out to them.
"Want to bob for apples? You could win a prize!"
Asher and Malden both looked over and saw the Care of Magical Creatures professor dressed in a giant chicken costume. He looked ridiculous.
"No thanks," Asher muttered, while Malden burst out laughing.
The boys moved on to the snack table, which had biscuits decorated to look like pumpkins and spiders, ghosts made out of marshmallows and meringue, chocolate fairy cakes with bright orange frosting or topped with witch hats, and so much more. They each got pumpkin fizz to drink and a basket of little mummy sausages wrapped in thin strips of bread.
Then they clanked over to a wall and leaned against it to eat. Sitting in their suits of armor was simply too difficult!
(Maud) Unfair
Author: Celeste Quigley
Date: 11-27-15 13:49
Maud had never celebrated Halloween like this in her short life. At her father's house, he would watch a movie with her about vampires or werewolves that had nothing of scary. He never allowed her to watch real horror movies, because he thought she was still too young for them. Nevertheless, Maud enjoyed to spend the evening with her father, eating popcorn and commenting the movie. The movie she had seen last year was called The Corpse Bride. Maud inspired herself on that movie, and she had dressed up as a bride, and using a special make up kit to make it look like she was dead.
The whole castle was filled with spooky decorations and the Great Hall offered all sorts of fun activities. There was also a haunted maze outside, but Maud decided right away not to go in there. It scared her, and she was afraid to be trapped inside the maze forever. It wasn't very realistic, but she once had read a book where that happened to a girl, and she knew when it make to the wizarding world, nothing could be discarded. So, she preferred the comfortable temperature inside the Great Hall, where a lot of people were gathered.
After playing a few of the available games, she went to an area where food and drink were served. She had a plate of sausages, with tomato sauce, that the house elves had managed to make it resemble human fingers in blood. The spaghetti looked like worms. She had pumpkin juice for drink.
"For a moment I didn't recognize you. Look at you! Doesn't she look incredible, Reginald?"
Abraham Albright from her house, and Reginald Price from Slytherin joined Maud's empty table. Albert was dressed as a pirate, while Reginald only used a hairband that made him look like he had a knife stabbed on his head. Fake blood dripped from it once in a while, to make it look even more real.
"I told you, Abraham: scary costumes are the best. No one is afraid of pirates. People would want to hang out with you and the point is to scare them," Reginald said.
Abraham initiated a long speech about how pirates could be scary as well. He was so into it, that he forgot his pumpkin soup, which was getting cold. Reginald was having the same dish as Maud, and while Abraham was talking he put one of his sausages inside his soup, without him noticing. Maud tried not to laugh, in order not to give Reginald away. Finally Abraham tasted his soup, and he threw his spoon into the air, when he saw the sausage inside.
"There's a finger in my soup!" He spilled half the soup to their surroundings. Reginald and Maud laughed, but Abraham still hadn't understood the joke. "Professor!" he called out for help. "Look at what's my soup: it's a finger!"
That was when Maud's aunt approached. The girl's laughter died immediately as Celeste Quigley looked at Abraham's soup bowl, the sausage floating inside. At first she seemed truly preoccupied, and she had rushed to their table. Now, however, she seemed quite upset with such prank. She was not wearing any costume, but she had a hairpin of a spider on her hair, that looked like a black widow. The spider's multiple eyes were looking at the three first years, a mirror of the teacher's angry look. She had thought Abraham was not serious, when he called for help and that they were trying to pull a prank on her. She ordered them to finished their dinner, and go to their respective dormitories, declaring that their time at the Halloween celebrations was over.
They finished eating as fast as they could, feeling the pressure of the teacher's presence. Maud and Abraham said goodbye to Reginald, as he went to the dungeons and they went upstairs to the Ravenclaw tower. Maud was mad with her aunt. She didn't give them a chance to explain themselves, and even if she had not taken any house points or had given them a detention, she had been unfair to banish them from the Halloween carnival. Now she was really sure she did not wish to initiate any relationship with her aunt.
What Maud didn't know was that not long ago, at the Great Hall, a teacher had received a box with a human head inside. When she heard Abraham calling for help, Celeste had thought something similar was happening, but this time with a finger. She felt truly upset when she realized it was a prank, a terrible one, considering the head episode and she dismissed the students from the feast, not even thinking that they probably did not know about it. Later she would realize so and regret her decision but for now, she thought she acted with justice.
A Bad Idea
Author: Susan Fricks
Date: 11-27-15 15:39
"Are sure it's safe?" Susan asked Patricia McCourt, taking a glance at the maze's entrance.
"Of course. Don't be silly, Susan."
Patricia had managed to convince Susan to enter the haunted maze, located at the school's grounds. The two girls were wearing costumes: Susan was dressed as a ballerina, with a pink tutu and dance shoes, while Patricia represented a medieval princess, wearing heavy but beautiful blue robes, and a tiara on her head. They had already passed by Headmistress McGonagall, but none of them had dared to run into the maze like some other students were doing. They approached the entrance carefully.
Susan took a deep breath as the image of the Headmistress disappeared once they turned to the right. All the sounds coming from the castle had vanished and the only thing she could hear now was the sound of their breathing and their steps.
"It's just a spell," Patricia said. "There's nothing to be afraid of. Let's move on," she told Susan.
They continued their way into the maze, turning left and right, trying to find their way to the center. Now and then they could hear screams, coming from the other points of the maze.
"This was a bad idea…" Susan said looking at the floor, where a poodle of mud reflected the moon up in the sky. She stopped not wanting to pass over the mud. It wasn't because she was afraid to ruin her dance shoes but she was sure, the mud has not been placed there as a prop.
"Come on, Susan!" Patricia said, "I bet this is a shortcut, that will lead is straight away to the center. I bet most people just go in another direction afraid to ruin their sho…"she didn't finish her sentence because a hairy hand with claws came from the poodle of mud and started pulling Patricia inside by her robes. "AHHHHH!" she screamed, in panic.
Susan helped Patricia, pulling her away from the poodle and the hairy hand. She didn't need to use much strength to win this battle and soon the hand went back to its hiding place. Susan guessed the hand was there to pull the students' robes or ankles, scaring them.
"Oh Merlin…" Patricia mumbled. Her heart was beating very fast and her tiara had fallen on the floor. "Thank you Susan. You saved me!"
"It probably isn't real, just a spell."
"It felt real to me!" She adjusted her tiara, and looked back at the poodle. "Maybe we should just go back. We can tell everyone we reached the center, no one would have to know."
It seemed that now Patricia was the one who wanted to give up. But saving her friend from the scary hand had given Susan enough courage to continue. She felt like she could deal with what else was hiding inside the maze.
"Let's finish what we started. I'll lead the way," she declared.
Patricia followed closer to her. They screamed together at least three more times during their journey to the center of the maze. They reached it, almost hugged to each other, but with a sense of pride because they had made it. However, after a short break at the center, where they laughed and discharged the adrenaline, they shared a scared glance with each other once they realized they would have to go back inside, in order to return to the castle.
"You're right: this was a terrible idea," Patricia said. "I'm sorry Susan."
"It's ok. We crossed it once, we can do it twice. Ready?"
Patricia nodded and they went back inside the haunted maze.
Tackling One Game (Vincent & Devon)
Author: Christopher Chant
Date: 11-27-15 18:10
Thanks to his cousin Devon, Vincent had plenty of time to think about a fancy dress for Halloween should Hogwarts allow that this year. One of Vincent's great uncles has long had a love of something called fly fishing so Vincent decided he'd be a fly fisherman. He's wearing a long sleeved shirt with a multi-pocketed vest over it, khaki colored slacks tucked into waterproof boots, and a hat with a variety of colorful "flies" stuck into it. He's also got a fishing pole, which can be a pain to tote about but it does complete the outfit, and a tackle box, also something of a pain to keep up with but as it's larger on the inside than it looks, Vincent has found it handy for stashing a number of the prizes he's won at the game booths.
Stopping to check out one of the games he's not yet played Vincent doesn't at first recognize Devon. When he does, all he can say is, "Bloody fantastic, Dev!"
Devon's skin looks like bark and her hair looks like it's made of leaves turning fall colors of burnt orange, earthy brown, scarlet red, and burnished golden yellow. She wears an outfit in the same colors, the skirt airy and lightweight, seeming to float around her. After his initial reaction Vincent asks, "What exactly are you?"
"A spirit of autumn," she replies with a smile. "Are you Uncle Maurice?"
"Sort of. He was the inspiration."
Devon grins then gestures at the game booth. "Have you tried this one yet?"
"No, I was coming to see what it is."
"There's a special wand and you point it at moving targets, firing off a spell at them. The more you hit, the more points you get and the better the prize. I tried it earlier but my timing was off on hitting the targets. I'm going to try again."
"I'll watch you then give it a try."
Devon picks up a wand that looks like a toy one to Vincent. She double checks the instructions for the spell to say then when ready, starts. Vincent sees what she means about timing. The targets fly about and sort of like how a beater in Quidditch aims a bludger more for where the other player will be and not where the player actually is when batting the ball, shooting off the spell to hit the targets means trying to determine where a target will be when the shot gets there. So, don't aim at the target but aim where it might go.
Easy peasy. Not.
Devon does well enough to earn points for one of the lesser prizes, a bag of chocolates. She sighs, her lips pulling into a frown. "I don't know why this is giving me fits. I should be better than this."
She turns the wand over to Vincent who practices saying the spell a few times then he too is ready for the targets. To their surprise, he hits all but two of them, earning a large box of sweets. Devon, her mouth now set in a determined line says, "Well, can't have you outdoing me, cousin."
Vincent takes that to really mean can't have a first year outdoing a fourth year. Still, he grins at her and offers a few tips on how he was able to hit so many of the targets. A few minutes later, Devon has won a better prize, though still not top tier. She laughs and shrugs. "I give up on this one for now. I'm off to check out something else, maybe catch up with some friends."
Sticking the large box of chocolates into the tackle box, Vincent thinks catching up with a few friends sounds like a good idea. He goes in search, stopping along the way to play a few more games, and ending up outside at the haunted maze.
The Boggart
Author: Mildred
Date: 11-28-15 15:06
Mildred and her group of friends had left the school grounds after checking out the haunted maze. Unlike the past years, they didn't dress up in costumes. However the girls had dressed up as if they were going to a party. Queenie convinced them to wear make-up and that was a first for Mildred. She remembered when she was little going around her mother's make-up and her mother telling her that one day she would teach her how to apply it properly. But that day had never arrived since her mother died when she was eleven. Mildred never felt comfortable to go over her grandmother's things and try out her make-up, and obviously her father didn't have none of those things in his house. She had fun with her friends, as they helped her out with the make-up, and she decided that on her next visit to Hogsmeade she would buy some make-up of her own, to use once in a while, during special occasions.
"Achilles, do you want to take me to the haunted maze?"
Achilles's brother, Hercules, was dressed as a dragon. He was wearing a jumpsuit with a fabric that resembled green scales, had a tail, and the hood over his head had the dragon's ears and part of its muzzle.
"I just went there, Hercules."
"Please go again. I want to cross the maze, but…" he didn't want to admit in front of his brother's friends that he was a bit frightened.
Mildred approached Hercules.
"We can go together," she told him.
"Thank you Mildred!"
Mildred asked Wesley if he wanted to go again as well, but he refused. Coward she whispered, kissing his lips, and she went back outside with Hercules. Achilles followed them a few moments later. He seemed to have changed his mind, and felt in the need to support his little brother in this moment of need. The three of them entered the maze. Hercules gave his hand to Mildred when they encountered the first scare: a moving statue representing a troll. They quickly turned to the left, avoiding the stoned troll.
Then something strange happened. Mrs. Sims, Achilles and Hercules mother, appeared right in front of them. She had her wand pointed directly at Mildred. Her heart raced, as she tried to grab her own wand that was inside her purse. She wished she would be wearing something more practical than a dress, something with pockets. Achilles placed himself in front of Mrs. Sims:
"Mother? What are you doing here?"
Mrs. Sims looked at her oldest son with a confused look and she turned herself into another woman. This one was laying on the ground, and it seemed like she could not move. She was wearing a light summer dress, which was stained in blood. The scarlet liquid dripped from her head as well. It was clear she was severely injured, possibly dying. The woman said something to Achilles. Although it was impossible to hear her voice, Mildred was able to read her lips. Help me, she had said. A second later the injured woman vanished, when a group of laughing fourth years passed by them, in a fast run. In front of them was nothing big trunk now.
"A boggart," Achilles said. He was a bit pale, but he held his wand firmly. He was prepared to deal with the boggart but the creature went back to the trunk once it heard the laughs of the other students.
Achilles turned to Hercules, with a grin on his face.
"You're afraid of mom?" he teased.
"Of course not! Shut up!" Hercules replied, but his cheeks had turned red with embarrassment.
They started moving on, but Mildred found herself staying behind. Soon she had lost them in the maze. Mrs. Sims was not Hercules's boggart: it was hers. She was afraid of her since their duel in the school bathroom, almost two years ago. She did not wish to face her ever again. But Achilles had assumed that the boggart had projected his brother's fears, because to him there would be no reason for Mildred to be afraid of his mother. Hercules was still a first year and this was probably the first time in his life he had been face to face with a boggart. He wouldn't know yet what his biggest fear was. It wouldn't be odd if he had afraid of his mother, if she happened to be mad at him.
But it hasn't been Mrs. Sims that had disturbed Mildred the most. It was Achilles' boggart, the dying woman with the blood. Mildred didn't have any trouble to recognize her mother, and it wasn't hard to conclude that her state was from the day she had died, when she was ran over by a car. She had always been told that her mother had died instantly, but Achilles' boggart told otherwise. The only explanation for the boggart taking such form was because Achilles had been there the moment Mildred's mother was dying. Which confirmed the theory that it had been the Sim's car that had caused Sarah Campbell's death. But how was Achilles involved in all this? It was obvious that what he had witness had disturbed and frightened him to the point that it had turned into his boggart.
Mildred kept walking, enjoying the cold air of the Halloween night. It was good to be trapped into the maze, even if a haunted one, so she had time to process everything. Seeing her mother, even if in such state, had caused her an acute feeling of nostalgia. She started yearning for her mother's company, wishing she had been able to spend more time with her, not as a child, but now as a teenager, almost a young woman. Warm tears fell down her cheeks, as she reached the maze's exit.
Hercules was already gone, but Achilles had stayed to wait for her.
"Are you all right?" he asked, worried.
"Yes. I just got scared," she cleaned her tears with the back of her hand. Now her make-up was ruined. "I'm fine now. But I look like a mess," she joke.
"You've never looked better," he said with a smile.
Mildred thanked him and they went back to the castle. She was glad when she was able to sit next to Wesley, while Melpomene, Queenie and Amelia tried to think of a spell that would fix her make up. Achilles went to fetch butter beers for everyone, clearly not yet fully recovered from the boggart yet. Mildred watched him, as Wesley had his arm around her and she rested her head on his shoulder, hoping that later they would be alone so she could tell him what had happened that have left her so disturbed. She knew he had not bought the scare at the maze story. Melpomene didn't either, because for the rest of the evening she would send preoccupied glances at Mildred. It has been without a doubt Mildred's most scared and disturbing Halloween of her life so far.