Chapter Twenty

"I already know what my addiction is
I'll be looking for labels, I ain't looking for love
But, I shop for purses while love walks out the door
Don't cry, buy a bag, then get over it!
And, I'm not concerned with all the politics
It's a lot of men; I know I can find another!
What I know, is that I'm always happy
When I walk out the store, store…"

- Fergie, "Labels Or Love"

Halloween finally arrived.

And all throughout the day, the students were in an impatient mood as they could not wait for classes to be over. By the time the last period bell signaled the end of classes, students up and down the castle were in a frantic stampede to rush back to their respective dormitories so they can prep themselves with the limited amount of time they had before the night's festivities started.

Over at Gryffindor Tower, the seventh year boys dorm was a cacophony of opened trunks and wardrobes with a slew of hot muscular boys standing around in their underwear; fresh from their communal shower and began to lightheartedly tease each other as they dressed up and made jesting comments on each others' appearances.

Not surprisingly, their fifth dorm mate, MacNeal, was nowhere in sight all day; presumably busy making the final preparations for his underground after-party. Currently, Al and Jeremy were schmoozing with fellow roommates Frankie Archibald and Gabriel Del Mar, who were debating whether or not they should engage in a drug-induced four-way at Phoenix's bash with Slytherin girls Anneliese Hardwick and Diana Von Strauss, who were the most part best friends with a look-but-don't-touch sex appeal.

It was already half past six, and the al fresco dinner at the Quidditch pitch was slated to begin in exactly seven-o'-clock sharp. The boys hurriedly dressed and performed the usual vanity spells for their appearance, and headed down to the common room where the many of the Gryffindors were milled about. The boys spotted Cindy and two of her dorm mates, Elizabeth Knox and Lucia Fernandez, gossiping spiritedly by the bulletin boards.

"Hey, Tominaga!" Jeremy hollered. "Bitch, you're looking majorly high fashion right now."

Cindy punched Jeremy in the arm as he drew nearer, but took it as a compliment. "And you're not looking too bad yourself, you fucking bastard… But damn! Hey ladies, check out Al here…"

Cindy wolf whistled while Elizabeth and Lucia giggled as they scanned Albus up and down with coy appreciation. Al self-effacingly shrugged.

"Well, it was the best I could do…" Al modestly replied. "I didn't want to be too dressy for tonight, so yeah… This is it."

"Whatever, Al. You are one hot piece of ass in that suit!" Cindy exclaimed, and their seventh year classmates who huddled around them chuckled heartily.

"Okay, can we not discuss my fashion sense and just go downstairs now?" Al testily retorted.

With amused smirks on their faces, the seventh year Gryffindors exited the common room and made their way down to the Quidditch pitch; talking casually with each other along the way.

***

Everybody line up…! The show is about to start…!
Places…! The show is about to start…!
You have to show a look, have a look, or give a look…!
Faces beautiful… No one ugly allowed…!
Are you ready? Here we go!

Cindy looped her arm around Al's and crooned. "Oh, but Potter, tonight is all about fashion, my dear… Where's the fun if you don't get to critique what everyone's wearing during special occasions?"

"Yeah, and you're so sure that you're going to be on the Best Dressed List in next month's Wizarding Vogue?" Jeremy quipped as he sidled beside Cindy, referring to the fact that a press party for the popular Wizarding fashion magazine will be covering the school's Halloween ball, along with other Wizarding media contingents.

"Duh…!" Cindy pompously declared. "I didn't spend more than eight hundred Galleons for nothing, you know. And the girls and I have even placed a little bet on who's going to make the list."

"Totally." Lucia piped up from behind them. "We're sure that Amber Beynon from Ravenclaw and that Hetherington girl from Slytherin sixth year is a shoo-in, but that complete, delusional cow Kylie Davidson from Hufflepuff is Worst Dressed hands down."

"Whoa! Kylie?" Gabriel queried in surprise as Cindy and everyone else choked up in fits of laughter. "Hey, she's an alright girl. She's not that bad-looking or anything."

"Oh, that's right. Defend her…" Elizabeth drawled. "The stupid bint is completely full of herself, the way she was talking yesterday in the girls' loo. And don't you guys even notice her choice of accessories?"

Frankie laughed. "Well, I do have to admit, there was this one time I saw her wearing these weird looking things on her hair. I swear, I thought she had an infestation of mutated flobberworms attacking her head."

The group of Gryffindor friends cheerfully laughed and snickered as they continued to discuss more potential fashion victors and victims from both sexes, when the boys learned that Wizarding Vogue was doing a Best and Worst Dressed for the males as well. By the time they stepped out of the castle, they were besieged by a rather wonderful sight.

Fashion is the art!
Designers are the gods!
Models play the part of angels in the dark…
Which one of you would ever dare to go against
That beauty is a trade and everyone gets paid?

The long, meandering pathway to the Quidditch pitch was flanked by hundreds of big floating jack-o'-lanterns singing cheerful but morbid Halloween themed songs. And everywhere, the younger students were already in a steadily moving procession towards the brightly lit open air stadium. Al surreptitiously scanned the crowd in search of that familiar platinum blond head, but saw that Scorpius, and his two friends for that matter, were nowhere in sight.

Fashionista…! How do you look…?

And as Albus neared the entrance to the arena along with his friends, they saw that there was a fancy red carpet setup by the stadium gates with a horde of photographers flashing their cameras at the passing students. To Cindy's thrilled surprise, she pointed out that her favorite fashion editor, Charmagne Le Fontaine, was doing on-the-spot interviews with selected students and faculty members who were obviously pleased with the turnout.

New York! London! Paris! Milan!
Tokyo? I think that's in Japan…
Asia! Malaysia! Las Vegas to play
L.A. – if you pay my way…

And when Wizarding Vogue's press representative finished her chat with the somewhat flustered Professor Trelawney, Cindy immediately pulled Jeremy and Al forward along with her and the trio found themselves being graciously greeted by the seemingly intimidating-looking fashion editor with her levitating notepad and Quick-Quotes Quill scribbling efficiently beside her.

Fashionista…! How do you look…?

"Ah, and we have here three very stylish young students here with me now…" Charmagne noted in her lilting French accent as she sized the three friends up through her stylish spectacles, and then noticed Albus bashfully hovering beside Cindy. "Why, if it isn't Albus Severus Potter! Second child of the Man Who Lived! What an honor to finally meet you, monsieur!"

Who are you wearing?!

Charmagne extended her hand and Albus meekly shook it before she resumed her interview. "As you might not know, me and my fabulous team from Wizarding Vogue are here to cover this marvelous Halloween ball of your prestigious school. Now, I know how annoying it must be for you to hear so many times that you look like you father, but we will skip all that. Wizarding Vogue is all about fashion! Now, care to tell us what you're wearing for this event?"

Albus smiled and casually shrugged his shoulders. "Well… I bought this suit from War Ghost Underground along with my friends here last week. It's more of my style, 'cause I'm not really into very formal stuff, but still looks good enough for fancy events like this one. I think this one's from Dom + Stef, if I'm not mistaken… And yeah, the scarf by Urban X-Change was an afterthought since I prefer wearing them than performing Warming Charms."

Sean John
Calvin Klein
Donna Karan's fashion line!

"Oh, it's simply fabulous and quite practical, Albus mon cher!" Charmagne trilled excitedly. "You certainly take after your older brother, James. We did run a feature article on him a while back, and he's such a sweetheart! How is he by the way with his recent publicized transfer to the Falmouth Falcons?"

"Well, James is more of a sporty type of style than mine." Al politely clarified. "And yeah, he's doing very well, thanks. You know him, star Seeker and all that. Product endorsements left and right being offered to him, so I'm very proud of my brother."

"Well, we certainly hope that this will be the first of many features of you and hopefully the rest of your family in the magazine." Charmagne genuinely remarked. "And who are these two rather très à la mode friends of yours?" She then turned to Jeremy and Cindy, who was obviously doing cartwheels inside herself at being recognized by one of her fashion idols.

Al stepped back and introduced them to the charming editor. "Oh, yes… These are my best friends from Gryffindor – Jeremy Fischer and Cindy Tominaga. Cindy here, by the way, is a very loyal subscriber to your magazine, Madame."

"It is a great honor to finally meet you in person, Madame Le Fontaine…" Cindy breathed in her starstruck daze.

"Likewise, my dear Madame…" Jeremy winked as he made a small but formal bow to her.

The veritable Wizarding fashion editor giggled rather girlishly and clasped Cindy's and Jeremy's hands. "Oh, you are too flattering, mes ches adolescents. And please, all of you call me Charmagne. Madame Le Fontaigne makes me sound old…!"

The trio laughed at her self-deprecating pronouncement, despite the fact that she did look like your typical aged and slightly eccentric grandmother. A rather fashionable and sophisticated grandmother who still possessed the posture of a graceful runway model, that is. Charmagne continued to grill Jeremy and Cindy as more students and faculty members passed by them, having been interviewed and photographed by the other media publications present.

"And I must say! The best friends of young Monsieur Potter here are quite the style mavens themselves! Tell me, what are you wearing for tonight?"

Cindy went first and proudly went into a spiel about her outfit while posing for the cameras. "Well, as Al here said, we bought all our clothes at War Ghost Underground. I decided to go all black and tailored, but still edgy and feminine; since I had a feeling every other girl at school would be wearing dresses. I tend to go for funky yet high fashion pieces because it's more of my style during parties or whatever. Right now, I'm dressed head-to-toe in Ferocia Coutura from her latest fall/winter collection."

Valentino
Y.S.L.
Ferragamo and Chanel!

Charmagne nodded in approval. "Absolutely chic and righteously fierce, Mademoiselle Cindy! And I believe this was inspired by our last month's fashion editorial spread, am I right?"

"Oh, yes!" Cindy confirmed. "And may I say, one of your most stunning editorials yet…!"

"Well, I'm very pleased you loved it, Cindy mon cher…!" Charmagne intoned. "And you, Monsieur Jeremy, tell us what you're wearing this evening!"

Jeremy grinned and brushed back his styled bangs. "Well, I'm the type of bloke who's more laidback and casual, but I still want to make an effort when I go to major parties or whatever cool event is happening. I'm wearing a black graphic print shirt, gray trousers, and trainers. Just to make it a bit formal, I threw on this cool maroon jacket with a slight military influence to it. And it's all from the His Fabricated Armouring label, which is one of my favorite brands for wardrobe staples."

Halston
Gucci
Fiorucci
Don't forget my Pucci!

"My, my… Such a very daring yet classy look you're sporting, jeune homme!" Charmagne declared. "And looking at the three of you, I wouldn't have expected anything less from Gryffindors with a sense of style! I smell Best Dressed List all over you three on next month's issue…!"

"Oh, it would be a great honor to be in Wizarding Vogue, Charmagne!" Cindy joyously exclaimed.

The fashion editor giggled once more and beamed at Cindy. "Well, of course I have to confer with the other editors at the office, but I'm sure they'll see reason once they view your photographs. Oh mon Dieu! I'm afraid I'm monopolizing your time, and the feast is about to begin! Let's have a few more photo ops and then we'll go inside, shall we?"

The three Gryffs smiled and posed gamely with Madame Le Fontaine for the Wizarding Vogue photographers, before they went into the Quidditch pitch and blended with the gathered crowd; Charmagne giving them each air kisses before setting off with her press team to sit by the media section, while the trio searched for a vacant table.

It was a clear autumn night, and the moonlight bathed the field in a beautiful pale glow. The grassy field was scattered with hundreds of small intimate tables fit for groups of three or four. All around, there were more of the singing jack-o'-lanterns and everywhere else, the cheerful school house elves looked especially clean for the occasion and were dressed in snowy white togas as they began to serve the courses of food.

But all Al could think about was the fact that he would get to see Scorpius Malfoy soon, who was still a no-show at the feast along with Verity and Massimo. After last night's rather steamy performance for the handsome Slytherin in the Room of Requirement, Albus knew that Scorpius would finally yield to him at MacNeal's after-party. Rose's portfolio had not failed him yet.

***

Dinner was a rather upbeat but rushed affair, since everyone wanted to go back to the castle so that the concert would begin. When Professor M. had finally announced the concert lineup for that night, the students screamed fanatically as the Dragon Riders, Priscilla Sparks, Double Trouble, The Harmony Hags, and Warlock Jones suddenly appeared as they flew a couple of laps and waved merrily above the ecstatic crowd on broomsticks before flying off to the castle.

Soon, the teachers properly ushered the students out of the Quidditch pitch to avoid a nasty stampede rush back to the castle. But those who were invited to MacNeal's party soon found themselves discreetly departing from the gathered throng outside the Great Hall and heading to Moaning Myrtle's bathroom.

When Al, Jeremy, and Cindy made sure the coast was clear after staying for a couple of songs in the Hall from the first concert act, they discreetly trooped up to the second floor and made a stealthy path to Myrtle's unused bathroom. Stepping inside, they saw that the sink rotunda had already been opened to reveal the downward slide leading to the Chamber of Secrets and that a small queue of the exclusively invited were lining up to jump in the exposed hole, Al's sister Lily and his cousin Rose among them. The two girls grinned as they beckoned the three over to them.

"Hey!" Rose cheerfully greeted as she gave the three friends hugs. "You guys finally made it! Oh, this is going to be so awesome! Shame we had to skip the concert early though, but anything MacNeal does is probably more fun or whatever the fuck he's gonna do. You guys brought your invites?"

"Yeah." The trio replied in unison.

Cindy looked at Rose's rather House-oriented outfit. "Oh, wow! You're truly a blue-blooded Ravenclaw, aren't you? I see you bought that one over the cute white number I saw…"

"Of course…!" Rose happily replied as she twirled around in her blue silk cocktail dress. "But there's also this other one I'm planning to debut during the holidays, so all is good."

Fendi and Armani
God, I miss Gianni!
Kenneth Cole
Michael Kors
Mr. Ford, I can't afford!
D+G and B.G.B.G.
Looking good is never easy!
Alexandre Herchchovitch
Naomi Campbell – such a bitch!

"And seriously, the three of you look amazing!" Lily gushed as she eyed their outfits. "You guys were so lucky to be interviewed by Wizarding Vogue."

"Hey, you don't look too bad yourself, Lils." Al said as he saw his sister's rather bohemian chic look. "Wait, is that one of Nana Molly's old patchwork dresses?"

Lily sniffed in annoyance, but Rose interceded. "Correction, Al. It's called vintage. And I helped Lily deconstruct the dress to make it more sexy and fun."

I wanna be delgada
To fit into my Prada
Oscar De La Renta
Louis Vuitton
Imitation of Christ!
Beauty has a price…!

"Yeah, because why would I waste money on clothes when I can spend it on more important things?" Lily countered.

Al snorted. "On what? Like recreational potions?"

"Exactly!" Lily haughtily retorted, but grinned at her brother all the same. "Besides, it's short and flowy so it shows off my leggy assets. And I styled it up with some gladiator sandals to add the sexy kink factor."

Fashionista…! How do you look…?

"You're all about the kinks, aren't you, Lily?" Jeremy humorously quipped.

"Yeah, let's cut this conversation short, shall we?" Al interjected before his sister could reply. "In case you haven't noticed, the last person just jumped and there are people waiting behind us."

True enough, Rose and Albus were next in line at the hole, and more invited people were coming in the bathroom. Taking the lead, Al winked at his group before jumping in and made a fast, freewheeling ride down on the bowels of Hogwarts with his friends not far behind him as they screeched with glee upon their twisting descent.

What are you wearing…?!