October 31, 1987
Hogwarts
Halloween had always been one of Katherine's favorite holidays. She loved being able to dress up in an insane outfit, going out into the Muggle world to go trick or treating with some of her old primary school friends.
This particular year had Halloween falling on a Saturday, and so the students were encouraged to dress up for the Halloween feast later that night. Many students seized the opportunity to be out of their uniforms, but quite a few people dressed up.
Katherine stood in front of the mirror in the Gryffindor dorm bathroom, trying to figure out what was missing from her outfit. Sporting an old purple romper she had found in a thrift store during the summer, a jean jacket, and a pair of black doc martens, Katherine wish she knew a spell to turn her hair pink for the night. She was hoping she looked like she belonged in the famous band, Jem and the Holograms.
"You're missing eyeliner," Leah called, banging on the bathroom door. "Will you please come out now so I can change?"
"Give me a second!" Katherine snatched the small tube of eyeliner she had thrown in her trunk last minute, and applied two wobbly wings. It was the best she could do; not particularly skilled at it, she hoped for the best every time.
Leah rushed pass her as Katherine opened the door, a bundle of clothes under her arm. Before Katherine could even ask her what she was planning on wearing, Leah promptly closed the door.
The delicious scent had wafted up into the Gryffindor dormitory a long time ago, filling every student with a sense of anticipation about the feast. Personally, Katherine hoped that there would be cheesy pasta. It had been one of her favorite dishes to share with her Mum before they went out for the night.
"Leah, we're going to be late!" Katherine threw one of her shoes at the door to emphasize her point, but the dull thud did little.
"You should've thought about that when it took you an hour to get ready," Leah grumbled. She loved Jem and the Holograms and insisted that Katherine match her. Leah herself was wearing a bright pink dress and matching platform shoes.
"It wasn't that long," Katherine insisted. Leah just raised an eyebrow, and dramatically gestured to the door.
"Shall we leave now?"
Katherine snorted, pushing the door to the dormitory open. It wasn't that long until the feast started, but she couldn't wait to see what people were wearing.
"Do you think a lot of people will be in costumes?" Pushing their way out of the dormitory hole, the two girls started towards the Great Hall.
"I don't know," Leah said thoughtfully. "There's quite a lot of Muggleborns that attend, but there's just as many people that didn't grow up around Muggles."
As the two made their way down the stairs and into the Great Hall, Katherine's jaw dropped. The Great Hall was better than anything she could have dreamed.
Normally lit by the light of floating candles, the Great Hall had changed dramatically. The ceiling was crowded with a myriad a jack-o'lanterns, each with a different expression carved into it. The usual candles were now residing inside the pumpkins.
The usually neat Great Hall was also covered in what Katherine sincerely hoped were fake spiderwebs. Many students had obviously jumped at the chance to dress up for Halloween. The Gryffindor table was filled with an assortment of strange outfits, outlandish hats, and surprisingly normal shoes.
"This is great!" Leah was obviously pleased when she sat down, Katherine sliding onto the bench across from her.
"It's definitely," Katherine paused, looking around the Great Hall again. "Not what I was expecting."
"The costumes or the decorations?"
"Both," Katherine answered honestly.
When it was clear that the majority of the students had made it down to the Great Hall for the feast, Dumbledore stood up.
Dressed in deep midnight robes, golden stars twinkling every time they hit the light, Katherine couldn't help but feel a great deal of respect for the man.
"Now that you're all here," His voice was deep and grave, expression somber. "Might I invite you to dig in to this delicious feast our house elves made us?"
He waved his hands as food magically appeared on the table, much like Katherine's first night here. There was laughter from the students, applause scattered around the hall as the sounds of forks and knives scraping plates filling the air.
Katherine eagerly reached for the pan of lasagna across from her, piling a steaming heap onto her plate. She snagged a roll from the plate that Leah was reaching for, not pausing when Leah shot her a death glare.
"Keep your hands to yourself," She snapped, but the friendly smack on the hand let Katherine know that she wasn't really mad.
"That's what you're eating for a Halloween feast?" Leah asked curiously, eyeing Katherine's plate. While there was a generous serving of lasagna and two rolls, her plate looked sparse compared to the other students.
"My Mum told me to wait for dessert," Katherine replied around a mouthful of lasagna. She desperately wished for a cold glass of butterbeer to wash the pasta down with, another part towards their Halloween tradition.
Her Mum's prediction turned out to be right; after most students were starting to slow down from the second servings they had piled on their plates, treats of every variety appeared up and down the tables.
Katherine was happy to fill her plate this time, picking up pumpkin cheesecake, various sweets, a bowl of ice cream, and several pastries. Leah was staring at her gobsmacked as she munched happily away.
"Any other advice your Mum gave that I might want to know?" Leah asked, trying to match Katherine's pace for dessert.
"Why?" She asked, puzzled.
"Your Mum's been right about everything she's given you advice on for this year," Leah shrugged. "I didn't know if you had any more gems hiding up your sleeves like 'the answers to History of Magic is found in the greenhouse' or something like that."
"Definitely not," Katherine replied, amused. "I'll write her tomorrow and ask her if she has any advice for keeping up with History of Magic."
"Make sure you explain how boring it is," Leah quickly said. "I don't want her to get the wrong idea about me."
"I'm sure she'll understand. Binns was here before my Mum even started Hogwarts."
As the feast slowly wound to an end, Katherine was resorting to propping herself up on her elbows. The food had been delicious, but the amount of sugar she had consumed was starting to catch back up to her.
Earlier, she had entertained half of the Gryffindor table with tales from every year she had gone trick-or-treating. Whether they had found her stories of enchanted costumes that Muggles couldn't quite figure out amusing or the way that she rambled on, punch-drunk on the sugar high she wasn't quite sure.
"I'm ready for bed," Leah yawned sleepily, prodding Katherine. Her head snapped up with a start; this was happening with increasing frequency around the hall as people slowly crashed.
"We can't leave yet," Katherine protested, reaching for some remaining candy. "Everyone else is still here."
"You must have fallen asleep," Leah giggled. "Because half of the hall is gone!"
"I'll help you up," She said, making her way over to Katherine. She tugged the other girl's arm, helping Katherine rise from the bench.
Leah threw an arm around Katherine's shoulder, and Katherine couldn't help but think she couldn't be happier. Halloween on a Saturday, with no classes, her best friend giggling with her as they made their way back up to the Gryffindor tower.
And as they stumbled over the portrait hole and back into the dormitory, Katherine didn't bother to change into pajamas. She simply collapsed into bed, romper, jacket, shoes and all and fell fast asleep.
YOU ARE READING
Lumos
Fanfiction"Who is she Albus? She looks so familiar." Severus pleaded with him, thinking of the auburn haired girl that had sat in the Great Hall earlier that evening. "She is your daughter Severus," Dumbledore told him, as his knees went weak. "Wha- that's no...
