Summer Holiday

Chapter 37

It was Halloween night and Sophie sat in front of her mirror applying makeup while Cho went through Sophie's closet.

"Are you sure you don't mind me borrowing something to wear? I don't have to." Cho asked.

"Cho, you can wear anything you like. I don't mind." Sophie smiled at her.

"What are you going to wear?"

Sophie turned and glanced at her wardrobe. "Probably my green sweater. Maybe a black skirt. I'll have to look when my makeup is done." She turned back towards the mirror.

"Maybe we shouldn't go." Cho held a black long sleeve shirt up to herself and looked in the mirror.

"Why do you say that?" Sophie asked.

"I just have a bad feeling. Slytherins are going to be there." Cho hung the shirt back up and looked at Sophie.

"Yeah but so are our Slytherins. It'll be fine. What are you worried about?"

"What if they try something?" Cho sat on her bed.

"Then there's three other houses there to kick them out. I really doubt they'd try something with that many people there."

Cho looked down at her lap and fidgeted with the seam on her pants. "I don't know....."

Sophie stood up and walked over to her closet. She grabbed something and walked over to Cho. "I promise we'll be fine. Any sign of trouble and we'll leave. Promise. Okay?" Sophie looked at Cho. "Here. Wear this. It makes your eyes pop." Sophie handed her a lilac sweater with a v neck. "You can borrow some of my jewelry too. I've got a great silver necklace to go with that sweater." Sophie placed a hand on Cho's and smiled. "We're going to have fun tonight. Okay?"

Cho's mouth slowly turned into a grin. "Okay. You're right."

They headed to the Hufflepuff common room together, slightly nervous to see who was already at the party. They arrived at the pile of barrels near the kitchen and looked for the correct barrel to tap.

"Bronson said it's this one." Sophie pointed to a barrel that was slightly off center from the pile.

Cho grabbed Sophie's arm. "Have you ever been in the Hufflepuff common room?"

Sophie thought for a moment. "No actually." She turned back towards the barrel and tapped to the rhythm of Helga Hufflepuff. A passage revealed itself and loud music suddenly leaked out to the room they were standing in. They eyed each other, then began their journey down a sloped earthy path. The music grew louder and they could see various colored lights begin to illuminate their path. The entrance ceiling was low, and they lowered their heads slightly upon entering. The common room looked as if on any regular day it'd be perfect for reading a book in the sunlight on a cozy day, but now it was decked out for Halloween. Decorations looked like they had exploded around the room. Brightly colored lights flickered and changed color every few seconds. Loud chatter from students combined with the beating stereo made it difficult to hear anything else. Sophie and Cho stood in awe.

"You guys came!" Bronson walked up to the girls and wrapped his arms around them. "Welcome to the party!" Bronson outstretched his arms. "You both look beautiful." He grabbed each girls hand.

"We wouldn't miss it." Sophie squeezed Bronson's hand.

"Let me give you the tour. We've got a dance floor." Bronson pointed to the middle of the room where students were dancing. "There's the bar. We've got two bartenders. Justin Fletchley and Blaise Zabini." Bronson pointed to the bar. Justin was serving two Gryffindor students while Blaise leaned against the bar casually. "Very progressive huh? Slytherin bartender." Bronson beamed. "We've got Fred, George, and Ginny as our DJs." He gestured to the three Weasleys happily queuing new songs. "We also have Neville managing first aid." Bronson leaned in and whispered. "He insisted we had someone for that." Bronson laughed. "Well please enjoy the party. We put a lot of work into it. Enjoy yourselves!" Bronson smiled proudly. "Oh Cho! There's actually someone I want you to meet. Follow me." Bronson grabbed her hand.