Chapter 13

Landry slept easily that night after such an eventful day. Luckily, she was not bothered by the scratching noise that night, for had she been, she probably would not have been able to sleep at all. Now that she knew that the scratching was Morse code, it had been taken to a whole new level of terrifying. She now knew without a doubt that there was a creature within the walls of Hogwarts that could use Morse code, which meant it most definitely knew what it was , there was no denying that whatever it was was there for a reason. Landry could only hope that the reason was not a sinister one.

The next morning was, of course, Monday. Landry did not dislike Mondays in the slightest, in fact, she was rather fond of her classes. Having been used to mathematics and science as a child, Potions class and Ancient Runes were absolutely fascinating to Landry. She was, as usual, the first of her roommates to wake up. After getting dressed in her school robes and spraying herself with her favorite perfume that smelled exactly like freshly baked cookies, she grabbed the glass stone off of her bedside table. She immediately saw that she had missed a "call" from Genevieve. Landry was relieved that Genevieve had called her, as she had not heard from her at all the previous day. She quickly tapped the stone four times, and soon Genevieve's face appeared in the stone. It was loud wherever she was, and she was surrounded by a lot of people. She was laughing at something someone had said when she turned to face the stone.

"Hey, Landry," she said, still giggling.

"Hi," said Landry happily. "What's so funny?"

"Oh, my teammate Roger was just telling me about this time that he caught the snitch while hanging upside-down like a sloth!" Genevieve said.

"Oh, sounds fun," stated Landry. "So, I was going to ask if you wanted to go get breakfast together, but it seems like you're already occupied"

Genevieve gave an apologetic smile. "Sorry, Landry," she said. "The team and I went down to Hogsmeade for breakfast. But I'll see you later, yeah? Oh, and tell Professor Ableman that I won't be in Potions today! The team and I are spending all of today practicing!"

"Yes, of course! Have fun!" Landry said.

"Bye!" said Genevieve, and the stone went clear. Not for long though, as Landry immediately tapped the stone four times again, and soon Miles was smiling back at her from the glass.

"Good morning, Landry!" he said.

"Hello, Miles! How are you? How did coming out to your roommates go?"

Miles smiled. "It went pretty good! Three out of four of them were very accepting, the fourth just didn't really understand. But I think it's going to be okay!"

That's great!" exclaimed Landry.

"I thought so, too. Hey, do you want to go grab breakfast with me?" asked Miles.

"Definitely!" replied Landry.

"Awesome, I'll meet you in the common room in 30 seconds!"

Landry's stone went clear, and she stuck it into her pocket. She grabbed her school bag and hurried down to the common room. Miles was already there, and he grinned and waved when he saw Landry. Instead of wearing the skirt he had always worn with his uniform, Miles was now wearing a pair of very large pants, which must've been held up with magic. Or a very good belt.

Hi," Miles said when Landry approached. "Don't mind the pants, I borrowed them from a roommate. I was not about to wear that horrid skirt ever again. Not that it's horrid on you! It looks great on you, Landry. Just…I didn't like it very much." Miles explained.

Landry felt the fluttery feeling in her chest yet again. This seemed to happen a lot when she was with Miles, she realized. She wondered why.

"Well, I'm glad you don't have to wear the skirt anymore if you didn't like it, but those pants are…how do I put this…" Landry trailed off.

"They look like a tent," said Miles, bursting into giggles.

Landry laughed too. "Precisely. Why don't we go to Hogsmeade after classes-and after you take your potions at the Hospital wing-and I'll help you pick out some new clothes. Including school pants that aren't ten sizes too big for you," Landry suggested.

"That would be amazing," Miles said. "I definitely need some new clothes for my new look," he said, gesturing to his hair.

"Then it's settled. Now, let's go get some food!" said Miles.

The two teenagers went down to the Great Hall. Unfortunately for Landry, a certain pair of Slytherins were in the Great Hall as well. Landry was still very unsure of her feelings about that whole situation. Landry, much to her surprise, didn't feel jealous when she looked at them this morning. In fact, she wasn't sure if jealousy had ever been the right word to describe how she felt seeing Albus and Scorpius together. No, it was more hurt than jealous. Landry felt hurt that Albus had kissed someone that he knew she liked. But, Landry realized, hadn't she done the same thing when she had asked Scorpius on a date? Landry sighed, confused at what she had just discovered. Miles noticed her concern. "Do you want to leave, Landry?" he asked in a soft voice. Landry shook her head.

"No, I just…kind of…realized something," she replied.

"What did you realize, if you don't mind me asking?" Miles wondered.

"I'm not jealous. Like…at all," said Landry.

"You mean jealous of Albus?" Miles inquired.

"Yeah. I don't feel jealous. I just feel hurt that Albus kissed Scorpius whenever he knew I liked him. But I did the same type of thing when I asked Scorpius out. I'm not sure what to think. And I'm a little puzzled by this, too. I was practically in love with Scorpius. Shouldn't I be jealous?"

Miles thought for a moment. "I can't tell you how you're feeling, Landry. I wish I could, because you're my friend and I care about you, and I would help you if I could. But I can't. I'm sorry."

"No, don't be sorry," said Landry. "I don't really have to figure this out right now, do I? Let's just eat breakfast."

Miles smiled. "Okay," he said.

The two took their seat at the table that the Ravenclaws always sat at when sitting according to house. The breakfast buffet was laid out before them, and each of them began filling their plates. Landry laughed as Miles took an exceptionally large quantity of cinnamon toast. "You must really like cinnamon," Landry said, giggling.

"Don't judge me, Landry! Nothing to see here. Just a boy who really loves cinnamon toast," Miles replied, laughing just as much. "Besides, that isn't exactly a normal amount of baked beans you've put on your plate!"

Classes that day seemed to go by very slowly. Landry was genuinely excited to be going to Hogsmeade with Miles. After her final class was over, she quickly used a spell to vanish her school bag to her dorm room, and used the "clothespeari" jinx she had learned from her little sister to swap out her long school robe for a blue windbreaker that matched her uniform. Then Landry hurried off to meet Miles at the Hospital wing.

Miles was just leaving the Hospital after taking his potions when Landry arrived.

"Hey Landry! Right on time," he said.

"Wow, Miles! Your voice is already sounding deeper after only two doses of potion!" Landry noticed.

Miles grinned. "You think so?" he asked hopefully.

"Oh, definitely!" Landry confirmed. "Now let's go find you some pants that look less like someone transfigured the bottom half of you into an erumpant."

It was a crisp day in late October, with Halloween just around the corner. Leaves crunched beneath their feet as Landry and Miles made their way down the path to Hogsmeade.

"So did you hear that Professor Longbottom is throwing a Halloween party in the greenhouses?" Miles asked Landry.

She shook her head. "No, that sounds so cool!" she exclaimed.

"I thought so," Miles said. "Everyone in the school is invited. And get this…it's a Masquerade ball! Everyone is expected to dress up in fancy clothes and wear masks!"

"Woah, where are we going to find fancy clothes on such short notice? " Landry pointed out.

"Maybe we'll find some today in Hogsmeade," replied Miles.

The two soon reached Hogsmeade, and as they walked towards the store that sold Hogwarts uniforms and house pride clothing, they passed by a bookstore. Landry gasped as she saw the book that was in the window. "Oh my gosh!" she squealed, rushing over to the window. "Advanced History of Magic Volume 27 is out!"

Miles giggled. "You're the only person I know who would get this excited over a textbook," he said.

"This series only releases a book every century, Miles! This one will have all the stuff about Dumbledore, Grindelwald, Harry Potter, and Voldemort!"

"Once a century? And they're already on Volume 27? Wow, that's an old series," Miles said.

"It's the longest running series in Wizarding Britain," Landry said, with wonder in her voice.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Go in and get it, Landry," Miles laughed, opening the door to the bookshop for her.

Landry rushed into the store and grabbed a copy of the book from the large stack near the entrance. It was massive, almost half the size of Landry herself. Miles had to help her carry it to the counter. She gave the wizard who owned the bookshop a handful of galleons, and as she prepared to pick up the giant book again, he stopped her.

"Miss, would you like me to have this delivered to your school for you? You're at Hogwarts, correct?" the wizard suggested.

Landry nodded and thanked the man, feeling very relieved as she set the book back down on the counter.

After Landry's book delivery was all settled, the two teenagers finished their detour to the bookstore and went straight to Madame Malkin's Hogsmeade location. They were immediately greeted with a strong floral perfume. Landry and Miles both coughed, then turned to each other and laughed.

"That's a very strong scent," Miles said.

"You think?" said Landry with a giggle. "We'll live…hopefully. Now let's find you some new clothes."

They walked over to the Ravenclaw section, and Landry helped Miles select some new clothes. As they were going through all the articles of clothing, Miles let out a laugh. Landry turned to look at him, and he was holding up an extremely hideous dress. It was an extremely ugly shade of green, with magenta and teal ruffles all over it. Landry burst out laughing at the sight of it.

"Oh my gosh!" she cried. "What were they thinking?"

"I have no idea," said Miles through his giggles.

"Oh my gosh, I have to try it on!" said Landry. "This is too hilarious to pass up."

Landry grabbed the dress and ran to one of the changing rooms, quickly pulling off her clothes and replacing them with the hideous article of clothing. She called out to Miles, "Are you ready?"

"Yes, I'm ready for the big reveal!" he responded.

Landry pulled aside the curtain to the dressing room, expecting Miles to burst out laughing. But instead, his jaw dropped. Landry gave him a confused look, and looked down at the dress. But instead of seeing the hideous dress she had put on, she was now wearing a beautiful rose gold ballgown, with a big, fluffy, floor length skirt. It had off the shoulder sleeves and seemed to glisten whenever she moved. Landry was now just as shocked as Miles. She had no idea where the dress came from. Suddenly, an entertained chuckle broke the silence. An elderly witch, Madame Malkin herself, appeared from behind a wrack of clothes.

"I see you discovered my dream dress," she said. "A bit of magic I made years ago. It turns into the wearer's dream dress whenever they put it on."

"Woah, that's incredible! I'm sorry that we made fun of it," Landry apologized.

"Oh, don't worry, it's meant to look ugly whenever it isn't being worn," Madame Malkin explained. "That way, nobody will be tempted to steal it."

"That's very smart," Landry said, impressed. "It would be perfect for the Masquerade, wouldn't it, Miles?"

But Miles was not listening. He was still standing with his mouth open in awe, staring at Landry. Her face grew red, and yet again, the fluttery feeling returned. Madame Malkin looked particularly entertained. "Cat got your tongue, young man?" she asked in amusement. Miles snapped out of the trance he had been in, and his face turned red to match Landry's.

"Oh, no, I…I just…That dress looks amazing on you, Landry." he said.

"Thank you," Landry said, all of a sudden feeling far happier than she had ever remembered feeling before.

After a silence that lasted a little longer than it should have, Landry looked to Madame Malkin and asked "How much is this dress?"

Madame Malkin smiled. "Oh, you can have it. It's just been sitting around gathering dust for years. Nobody has ever even bothered to pick it up before you."

"Oh my goodness, really?" gasped Landry. "Thank you so much!"

"It's my pleasure, dear. Now, a Masquerade ball, you say?" she said, turning to Miles, "Would you like to see the matching suit?"