𝕿𝖗𝖊𝖒𝖔𝖗 - ʳᵉᵍᵘˡᵘˢ ᵇˡᵃᶜᵏ

Chapter 8: Hogsmeade Weekend

[ October 15th, 1977 ]

     THE FIRST Hogsmeade weekend of the year was apparently a very important affair for Hogwarts students. So important, in fact, that Theona had been given the password to Gryffindor tower and was expected to arrive at exactly ten AM to get ready with the girls. She didn't quite understand what the fuss was about; they were only going shopping for a couple of hours and then getting drinks with the boys at a pub called The Three Broomsticks, and none of that seemed to require an hour's preparation. But, who was she to question the whims of Mary MacDonald?

"Thea, get over here!" Mary squealed, gesturing largely over her head. She'd started calling Theona 'Thea' rather than 'Theo,' because she thought it was more girlish.

Theona had been awkwardly standing in front of the portrait whole for about a minute, before Mary found her. She liked Ravenclaw tower far more than Gryffindor tower, she decided. Ravenclaw was decorated with calming blue and bronze and was rarely filled with students, while Gryffindor was loud with reds and golds, and bustling kids who were sending gobstones flying in the air. It was like her own personal hell, so she was incredibly grateful when Mary dragged her up into the girls' dorm.

Lily was dressed in a collared halter dress, with a cream turtleneck underneath to counteract the cold, while Dorcas seemed comfortable in an long, dark red floral skirt and band t-shirt. Across the room, Marlene was standing by the mirror in nothing but her underwear. Theona immediately slapped a hand over her eyes.

    "Don't be a prude, Bell," Marlene cackled, knocking Theona's hand away from her face. She was still just as indecent as before and Theona's face flushed a deeper shade of pink.

     "Put a shirt on, at least," she hissed, forcing her eyes to stay on Marlene's face and not drop down to...

     "Only for you," Marlene cooed, grabbing her Chudley Cannons shirt from off the floor and pulling it over her head. Her ass was still poking out the bottom, but it was easy enough for Theona to ignore. "Help me find an outfit if you're so bothered."

     "I still don't understand why we have to get dressed up, it's just the guys," Theona said, looking around the mess of a room they called their dorm. Clothes were everywhere; hanging off the bedposts, strewn across the floor, piled in the corner. One pair of pants was half way out the open window, blowing in the wind.

     "It's not just the guys," Mary corrected, as she strode over to her trunk and began rifling through, "it's our chance to show a little bit of individuality, and a little bit of skin."

     "For Lily it's about the guys, though. Or rather, one guy in particular," Dorcas giggled, watching as Lily turned the same shade of red as her hair, "James Fleamont Potter simply will not be able to keep his eyes off you."

     "Shut up, Meadowes. I hate him," Lily denied, chucking her hair brush across the room at Dorcas.

"Aha!" Mary exclaimed out of the blue, holding up a pair of flared jeans and an itty-bitty tied top with big, flowing sleeves. It was a very no-maj ensemble, and Theona hated that she had to remind herself not to grimace at the thought. "For you, Thea."

"Oh, that's okay, Mary. I'm comfortable in this," she gestured down to her plain dark purple robes.

"Nonsense," Mary shook her head defiantly, "I'm gonna force muggle fashion on you if it's the last thing I do. Now get your arse in the bathroom and change."