Summary: Once upon All Hallows' Eve, in the mysterious Shrieking Shack, two people who previously hated each other are set on a different track.
A/N: It's the end of October! The weather has turned cold (at least where I am), school has started to pick up, and I have started a short little story in celebration of Halloween. I hope you like it!
Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling is the genius behind this amazing world. I am simply momentarily occupying it.
Once Upon All Hallows' Eve
Chapter One
The Tale is Told
Rose wasn't sure how she'd been talked into this. She never did anything like this. She never broke the rules, never broke curfew and never did something simply because someone dared her to. Yet here she was, sneaking across the grounds towards the Weeping Willow on All Hallow's Eve.
She blamed Carly for this.
It had never been her idea to sneak up to the astronomy tower with some other sixth-years the Friday before Halloween to tell ghost stories and drink. Rose had not wanted to go initially, but Carly was much too insistent; it had started to really get to Rose and she finally gave in to her annoyingly brown-haired friend.
Her current situation was a direct result of the annoying, undeniable persistence of Caroline Meyers.
"I can't believe we're doing this! Carly this is all your fault," the dark haired Ella Rosemont whisper-shouted at the brunette ascending the astronomy tower stairs. Rose couldn't help but disagree. The trio's evenings usually consisted of sitting in the library and studying or working on assignments. Carly was continuously trying to convince her two bookworm friends to do something social. She wanted them to go to school parties, go to Quidditch after parties, or sneak out to various activities around the school grounds. Ella and Rose were usually able to rebuff Carly's attempts but this time she had been so unrelenting that she worn them down.
"Shut up Ella! This is going to be fun! You two are going to enjoy yourselves! I do not want to hear another complaint from either of you or I will steal you day planners and hid them, so help me Merlin!" Carly seethed, her anger totally fake. Rose rolled her eyes, but followed her crazy friends anyway.
When the trio arrived, the party was already in full swing. There was a fire blazing in the middle of the room with a large group of people situated around it, laughing and enjoying each other's company. In the corner stood a large barrel of some sort of mead that, judging by the behavior of the assembled, was most likely almost empty. A small, enchanted music box played the latest hit lightly in the background.
Rose maneuvered through the crowd and took a seat in front of the fire. All she wanted was to leave this silly party, return to her room, and finish her latest book. She had only promised Carly two hours; that was all she had to suffer through. It had better pass extremely quickly, or Carly would hear about it, day planner be damned.
"Drink this," a deep voice suddenly spoke behind her as the person shoved a red cup in front of her face. She turned to look at who had the audacity to force alcohol down her throat. Her brown eyes met the familiar blue of her favourite cousin and she smiled.
"Trying to get me drunk so I'll forget about this evening and not be able to tell your parents, Al?" Rose jokingly questioned, taking the drink he offered.
"You know me too well, Rosie. Now drink up!" Albus Potter responded, calling her by her hated childhood nickname.
"Yeah, Rosie, you've got some catching up to do," the snide, haughty voice of Al's best friend Scorpius Malfoy chimed in, squeezing himself between Rose and Albus. Rose nearly strangled him at his 'Rosie' comment, but was stopped by the arrival of Ella and Carly. Rose turned her head away from her cousin's vile friend and focused on her own friends. It was a difficult feat because Scorpius kept tapping his knee against hers.
Rose's distaste of the blond went back to their first train rise when he had tripped her, by accident he claimed, made fun of her favourite book, and then spent several hours staring at her to annoy her. It was then amplified by the fact that they both began competing for the top of the class. From this rivalry spawned a barrage of thinly veiled insults, taunts, and challenges that continued to escalate.
Now, Rose could barely stand to be in the same room as Scorpius without feeling the overwhelming urge to fling a string of creative insults at him. Having him at this party made it ten times harder to enjoy herself.
Half an hour after Rose had arrived atop the astronomy tower, her cousin Albus suddenly stood up. The motion, combined with the alcohol he had consumed, caused him to wobble a little at first. All eyes instantly gravitated towards the dark haired, blue-eyed male.
"Every year, on the Friday before Halloween, students gather atop the astronomy tower as we have done, and relay the ghoulish tales of this school. And, as part of this tradition, the first tale told is the one behind the Shrieking Shack, which is where I will begin the evening." Rose was surprised by the clarity of Al's speech. "It all started 50 years ago, on a night much like this…
Two sixth-years scurried across the front lawn of the Hogwarts grounds under the cover of darkness. They were headed towards a lone building off in the distance. It was a grand building, three stories tall with lavish balconies and a manicured lawn. However, the rumors racing through the halls of Hogwarts was that the extravagant exterior was a façade for a macabre house or horrors.
According to the rumors, the owner of the house was an old madman who did strange, magical experiments, some even involving humans. He experimented with dark magic, forbidden curses and even necromancy.
The two sixth-years had been instantly intrigued by what they had heard, and wanted to know if it was the truth. They began researching some of the claims in the library, but ultimately decided that observation would be the only option for definitive answers.
They made their plan to attempt a visit on Halloween, the next Friday, and began packing and prepping. They reviewed simple defensive spells and even learned some more advanced magic. They packed various magical amulets and protectionary objects as a precaution. Then they waited for midnight on Halloween and headed off.
"When does this get scary?" a voice in the crowd shouted. Others sharing the same opinion quickly joined it. Al shot them all death glares.
"Proper scary stories always begin with unscary, run-of-the-mill, expositional information to give you a solid foundation and lull you into a false sense of security. By starting it like this, you start to think you can handle the story, that it won't be too scary. Then you're even more scared when the story really gets going," Al explained simply, "Now shut up and let me finish my story."
The two sixth-years reached the elegant gate without much issue. They didn't run into any teachers or guards as they crossed the large expanse of the Hogwarts grounds. Now, the final hurdle between them and the truth of the legend was a small gate.
It was a simply gate, with a latch holding it in place. It didn't appear that there were wards around it, but they still paused for a moment. One did a quick detection spell and, when it came back negative, they unlatched the gate and proceeded towards the large, ornate house.
The lawn that stretched out before then looked chilling and ominous as a late night fog rolled across the area. The various statuaries and trees took on a foreboding appearance in the misty evening. Shapes blurred and morphed into terrifying images.
Now, while these two boys had a fair amount of bravery between them, this eerie environment sent the two bolting up the lawn towards the equally creepy house. They approached a first-floor window, and peered into the lit room.
As they looked through the glass, something taped the two on the shoulders.
As Al spoke about the mysterious tapping, a thunderclap sounded throughout the astronomy tower, causing some of the assembled to jump in fear and surprise. Al chuckled quietly at them, then reset his face into the serious, slightly creepy, face he had while telling the story and continued.
The two jumped and quickly whipped around, coming face to face with a wrinkled face, filled with freckles and age spots.
"What are you two up to?" he asked, his voice quiet and gravelly with age. The two froze, unsure of how to explain their presence, "why don't you two come inside? It is awfully cool out tonight. Come along then."
Jumping at the opportunity to avoid answering the difficult question, the two boys followed the old man into the house. They had never planned to enter the house, simply observe through the windows. However, now that they were inside, they decided it would be much easier to find their answers.
They followed the old man past many closed doors and creepy pictures and portraits into an elegant, if slightly dusty, sitting room. They took a seat on a faded plush sofa as the old man shuffled away muttering about tea.
A look passed between the two; this would most likely be their only opportunity to explore the supposed house of horrors. They took a quiet look down the hallway that the old man had left through. Seeing nothing, the two quickly stood and left the way they'd arrived.
The entry way was an elegant, two story expanse with a large chandelier hanging from the ceiling. Doors lined the walls, just asking to be explored. The boys tried several of them before finally finding an unlocked one.
It led to a dark staircase down into the dark abyss. One of the boys performed a lumos charms and the two proceeded down the blackened staircase following the dim glow of wandlight.
"Don't they know you never walk into a dark hallway or stairwell? That's just asking for trouble," Scorpius whispered in Rose's ear. A shiver ran up her spine, in revulsion she was sure. She turned to the annoying blonde, gave him a withering stare and returned to Al and the story.
The stairs creaked and groaned with each step the two took. Finally, after five minutes of climbing down through the darkness, their feet hit solid ground. The boy with the wand pointed it from their feet and out towards the room. A cool, ominous breeze blew through the room and the two shivered. Something about the room felt off.
They took several hesitant steps forward, stopping when they came to a large wooden table. The wand was lowered towards the table so they could see the objects that littered its surface. Nearly the entire table was covered with strange rusted implements. Saw, axes, and various other tools used in the act of torture lay in disrepair. The boy with the wand reached for a strange looking sword. He was suddenly stopped as his friend clasped onto his arm.
"I think it'll be best if we don't touch anything." The other boy nodded and they continued on throughout the room, looking at the objects that littered the large tables that filled the room.
At the very last table, the two found an object covered in a sheet. It was fairly large, if it was in fact one object, taking up almost the entirety of the table. The boy with the wand knew he shouldn't have tried to touch it, but his hand felt as if it had a mind of his own. He began reaching for the sheet and grabbed onto it before his friend could stop him.
In one fluid motion, he pulled the sheet off and nearly fainted at the sight that was revealed.
Albus paused for dramatic effect.
Lying on the table was a dismembered human body.
Rose, having heard this story many times from her cousin Fred, observed the assembled crowd. Most people were enthralled by Albus' words; they now sat transfixed around the fire, anxiously awaiting the end of the story. Rose smirked at their expressions.
The two boys who entered the Shrieking Shack that night were never heard from again.
Albus finished his tale with a bow and then sat back down. Murmurs erupted throughout the crowd as the tale was eagerly discussed. Rose turned to her friends to get their reaction to the story.
"That's not true!" a voice exclaimed over the murmurs, emanating from right beside her. Of course he would be the one to call out the sincerity of Al's story. Rose also knew the tale wasn't true, but she would never come out and say that.
"Is that so?" Albus asked, turning to his friend with a sinister, plotting look on his face, "so you'd have no problem spending a night alone in the Shrieking Shack?"
"Of course not," Scorpius stated simply, "it isn't haunted. Nothing would happen."
"I almost wish it was haunted," Rose muttered to Ella. Unfortunately, Albus had specially attuned hearing honed after years of pressing his ear to closed doors. From the other side of Scorpius, Al heard Rose's comment.
"You don't think it's haunted either, Rosie?" Albus asked.
Rose groaned, knowing where Al was going. However, she had no real option other than answering her annoying cousin. Albus would figure out a way to get what he wanted with or without her answer.
"No, Al, I don't think the Shrieking Shack is haunted.
"Excellent! Then you and Scorpius will have no issue spending Halloween night in the Shrieking Shack. Unless you're too scared."
And with that final comment, Albus sealed Rose's fate. She had no choice but to spend a night with just Scorpius. She was going to kill Carly.
To be continued
A/N: Okay, I suck at writing horror, so please don't expect this to scare you. I will try to make it somewhat suspenseful and maybe a tiny bit scary, but I make no promises. The main point of this story is romance, so that will be my focus.
Review and let me know what you thought!