Sarah Beth~
The days of September drew to an end and October started flying by. It was a day before Halloween, and I was still trying to figure out the way Muggles do it. Apparently Muggles bought lots of candy and sat outside their houses, waiting for kids to come by and take the candy they bought. Also, they dressed in costumes, instead of the elaborate ball attire that we wear. Jack-O-Lanterns, thankfully, were still the same. I could save money by getting the pumpkins in Diagon Alley and use one of my old ball gowns as a costume. Oh, the irony; I could go as a witch!
All that left was the candy. I couldn't get wizard candy with out people being suspicious, so I would have to use my paycheck I had just gotten to buy it. So, I went to the market and bought the cheapest candy they had, which still took up a chunk of my paycheck.
"Wow," Paige observed as he was scanning the four bags I bought, "this is a lot of candy."
"Yeah, I know." I giggled. "I'm really excited."
"Oh?" He asked.
"Yeah. Where I'm from Halloweens are a bit...err..." I looked for the word, "Unique."
"Where are you from?" He put the candy in a plastic bag. I looked up at the ceiling. I was being asked that left and right, so I needed to finally come up with an answer.
"Transylvania?" It came out like a question.
"Really? You don't have an accent?" He handed me my bag.
"That's because my parents were from here...They just, um, went there to teach orphans how to sing so they can get money to send the werewolves away." His eyes widened.
"Werewolves? There are really werewolves?!" I kicked myself in my mind. Muggles didn't know that werewolves were really real. Sure, they had legend from when helpless Muggle victums got into villages before the Ministry could find them, but as far as they all knew werewolves were legends.
"Did I say werewolves?" I faked laughed. "No, I meant 'there wolves'. You know....there are wolves." He laughed.
"Young Frankenstein. Nice."
"Yeah..." I played along, although I had no clue what he meant. To get away from the situation, I payed him what I owed and bid him adue.
Ohkay. I had the candy. I could mark that off my lift. Now, off to number 2; The Pumpkins. I got in my car and drove directly to Bullet Street. After parking (then backing off the sidewalk and re-parking), I ran up to my flat and put the candy in a big bowl. After making sure that I had my handbag, I closed my eyes and Apparated to Diagon Alley with a loud Pop!
When I opened my eyes back up, I was surrounded by the familiarly hustle and bustle of the wizarding Alley. I took it all in, letting any homesickness that I had disappear. This was my home. Everything looked the same ever since I was a little girl.
"Hello," A wizard in a red cloak nodded as he marrilly passed me on the cobblestone street.
"Hello!" I said back as I started to walk in the other direction to a Herbology and Plant store called 'According to Plan-ts.' Like everything else in Diagon Alley, I knew precisely where the pumpkins were in the store.
After buying them I walked a little further to another shop I knew well: The Fudge Shop.It was nestled on the corner leading into Nocturn Alley. That being, most people avoided it. I had worked there a year before the second Wizarding War, so it didn't bother me that much. Despite the name, it wasn't a candy shop but a Divination shop. The name came from the owner.
I walked into and rang the bell on the front desk.
"Coming," I heard Rufus cry from somewhere in the back. "Oh, Sarah Beth! What are you doing here? I thought that you were doing things 'The Muggle Way'?"
"I am...kind of..." We both laughed. "What? Muggle stuff is expensive! I figured I could have some money buying pumpkins here."
"Why do you need pumpkins? Muggles don't use pumkins!" He sat down on the counter top.
"Yes, they do. They aren't that different from us, you know. I'm carving Jack-O-Lanturns."
"You can do that...with out magic?!"
"Yes, but who says I am? I'm going to show off a little bit. What Ashley doesn't know won't hurt him."
"Well, look who it is." Mr. Benard, Rufus's father, walked in from where Rufus had. He went around the desk and hugged me. "How's my girl?"
"Broke," I chuckled as he let go of me.
"Oh, yeah, Rufus told me about how you can't afford anything in the Muggle world. Why don't you just come back here?"
"Because, I like Muggles. I'm just not used to everything yet, but I'm getting there!"
"Just like yourself, always so optimistic."
"Not always..." I trailed off.
"Who are you guys talking to?" Rufus's mother, Mrs. Elisa, came down the stairs as well. "Sarah Beth!" She smiled warmly.
"Hi, Mrs. Elisa."
"Come up stairs and have a cup of tea," She offered. This being their store they lived above it.
"No thank you. I just stopped in to say hello, and to ask Ruffie something."
"What?" Rufus asked.
"Are my ball gowns still at home?"
"Yeah."
"Ohkay. I"m going to go get one. Bye!" He nodded and then I Apparated to my old house.
I smiled as I examined the place: it was a bit messier than when I had left it. When I lived with him, I had constantly picked up after him, but now that I was gone, little things had piled up; A dirty plate from this morning's breakfast, a jacked laying on the sofa. The list went on. Chuckling, I went to what used to be my old bedroom. It had been untouched.
Going to my closet, I opened it up. Inside were all of my traditional Witch outfits, which included cloaks, hats, shoes, and ball gowns. I carefully picked out a silky, pink gown with golden accents. After grabbing a pair of matching cold heels (so I could look everyone in the face for once), I went on to the hat I wanted: A matching pink one with a golden rose accent and flowers.
Satisfied, I Apparated back to my flat. I layed my handbag down on the kitchen table, as well as the four pumpkins I had gotten. Then, I pulled out my wand, ready to carve. Taking a deep breath, I started...this was going to be a long night.
