Chapter 16 Essentially Evil
Felicity couldn't stand. She couldn't. But this wasn't what bothered Felicity. Her mother was facing her, as well as her father. But her mother was angry. Very angry.
"Felicity... What was that? You call that a match? Not for a child of mine! Look at your brother!"
"You ought to be glad I'm not Ethan!" Felicity shouted, wincing in pain.
Cate cupped her hands, and hurled a great ball of green fire at Felicity, who screamed. Her leg healed instantly. Felicity breathed hard at stared hatefully at her mother.
"Ethan... Has never lost... His team ahs never lost. I have never lost. You... have..."
"Yes you have! I'm not an idiot! You lost the Cup three times! To the Potters at that! You have no room to talk!"
Cate laughed curtly. Then her lips curled into a thin grin. Her eyes glinted gold, as she stared Felicity straight in the eyes.
"I have never lost to the Potters... I believe Miss Potter has a way of twisting the truth... For the time my team did not win the Cup... I was not playing... I was pregnant... Or raising my children. I have never played Harry Potter and allowed him to catch the Snitch. I have played Professionally since I was 14 years of age."
Felicity sat there, stunned. She glared at her mother, and her father. Her father looked at her in a hurt manner, he didn't dare disagree with Cate. Everyone thought she was still "Unstable" as she was ages ago…
"Well sorry mother. I truly am. Not everyone is a perfect bitch like you... Excuse me while I clean myself up. Unlike some people, I do not wish to look like I have been to Hell and back..."
"Felicity! Don't speak to your mother that way!" Bellum hissed.
"Let her..." Cate said, holding up her hand. "She needs to learn to hold her tongue. She will regret that statement..."
Cate suddenly grinned, and stared at her daughter, who had stormed off. Ethan had never been this rebellious. Sure, he was mischievous, but not evil.... Bellum looked a little frightened. Not for himself, but for his daughter....
~*~
Brynn, Bryce, Mac, nor Ethan dared to speak. The whole common room was tense. Felicity had dried up the blood. She looked halfway presentable at least... Not even Brynn and Mac spoke to one another. Practice would be Hell tomorrow... Cate was not happy...
"Don't even ask if I want to go out tonight Mac.. I think I'll save all my energy for tomorrow." Brynn sighed.
"Me as well... I'm going straight to bed..."
"Good night!" Brynn said, giving him a small kiss on the cheek.
~*~
Cate had forced Felicity to come along to practice. Felicity refused to play, but consented to watch. Brynn stared at the essentially crabby mother and daughter. Ethan was keeping his distance...
"Today.. You will be running... Yes, running."
No one dared ask why.
"It will help you in the end to be quicker in the air."
Again, no one asked why.
"You run until you can run no more, or when I say to stop. Felicity... You may join us..."
"Yes... Master."
"Why are we running again?" Mac whispered to Brynn, at around the 20th lap around the field.
"I don't know... I think Cate is getting back at Felicity... So naturally, we're all being part of this... You know how she is..."
Brynn was the fastest runner, followed shortly by Mac, Ethan, and Bryce. Felicity was in the middle of the pack. The group was fast... And they all hoped this would not be a part of their usual routine...
"You can go.. You will run in the morning... Practice in the evening."
"We have potions right after this... I think I am going to die..." Bryce sighed.
"I only wish..." Ethan added.
"Well, maybe we'll all be so tired we won't cause much trouble..." Mac suggested.
"Dream on..." Brynn said.
"Do you think we'll get Halloween off?" Ethan asked.
"Fat chance." Brynn replied. "She'll make us work even harder, because it's a holiday...."
Everyone sighed and went their separate ways to get ready for class...
~*~
Felicity pushed some hair out of her face. She hated all Gryffindors, and her family. She wished they would all disappear. She wished she had total control for a day. History of Magic class was a good place to plot all evil schemes. No one paid attention anyways.
"I could do it... Make them all disappear for a day..." She said to herself. "It wouldn't be hard... Snape can be tricked into helping me... A potion of some sort... All I need is a detention..."
She turned to Blick, who was practically asleep. She grinned, and looked across the room at Crystal, who was rapidly taking notes. It seemed she had brainwashed Brian as well. They were all paying attention in class... Or were they?
"We can make Brynn, Ethan, Mac, and Bryce help us..." She said to Brian telepathically. "We need good costumes for Halloween."
"Can't we just... Make them?" Brian replied.
"Oh come on... Your siblings aren't that scary, remember? I'm perfectly positive Ethan and Bryce will give us a hand... Or else."
They all grinned and scribbled down more notes on their parchment scrolls.
There were not notes, but drawings of various costumes.
"We could go as the Marauders!" Fred said joyfully. Everyone looked to him thoughtfully.
"We could..." Crystal grinned. "But I want to win first prize in the costume contest. Brian and I wouldn't even have to dress up. We look like Blue eyes and Padfoot enough already."
"I never thought of that..." Fred said.
"But it would be fun..." Brian said.
"I still want to win. " Crystal said. "Even though it would be fun..."
"In the Black Manor... The attic anyways... There are trunks with costumes in them... I think the Marauders actually wore them at one point. That's where Brynn, Bryce, Mac, and Ethan are getting their costumes."
"You live there too though. Why can't you go home and..."
"I don't live in Black Manor, even though I'm a Black. That's where Felicity lives... We'd need to get Ethan to take us..." Brian said. "Or Cate... Or Felicity... Or Bellum..."
Crystal made a face. Certainly not Cate or Felicity. Those two scared her. It was between Bellum and Ethan... Bellum was nice... But it was hard to find him without Cate... Ethan seemed to be their best bet. And they had something against him....
"We'll get Ethan... Or we'll bring up that time we beat he and Bryce up..." Crystal grinned. "How good it feels to say that... I can only imagine what our first year here will hold completely... Theses have only been the first few months..."
Everyone grinned again and went back to pretending to take notes... Felicity stared at them across the room... She knew they were up to something... It didn't please her.
~*~
"There's that nice assortment of costumes in my attic..." Ethan said. "We could go there."
"That's what I was planning..." Bryce said. "Brynn and Mac might find something there too."
"Oh... Mind if we tag along?" said Brian, casually listening to their conversation in the Gryffindor Common Room. "You know..."
"Erm..." Bryce trailed off.
"We'll tell everyone it really wasn't Brynn who beat you up...." Crystal said, popping up and making them jump slightly. Bryce and Ethan looked at each other.
"Okay... Fair deal..." They said together.
~*~
"Well, we have a few tag-alongs..." Bryce announced.
"Eh?" Mac said.
"We're taking Crystal, Brian, Fred, and George..." Ethan said.
"Are you doing something nice for our annoying little brother?" Brynn said, rather shocked.
"Yeah..." Bryce trailed off.
"Well, go gather the kiddies, and we'll be off..." Brynn sighed.
Crystal, Brian, Fred, and George, all bubbling with excitement hurried along, reacting well to traveling with Floo Powder. In the highly decorative Black manor (Which oddly enough wasn't occupied by the Blacks) was still sparkling.
"Not half bad... I suppose Felicity gets to live in style..." Crystal said to Brian telepathically.
"Yeah... This was my parent's old house... They passed it on to Cate... I live across the street there..."
"Hey... That's not half bad either! Bigger than my house I tell ya... All Summer gatherings can be held at your house..."
"Attic is this way you guys..." Ethan said, leading them up a marble staircase. The manor was huge, and there was more than one elegant marble staircase. It had even gone through multiple attacks from Brynn, Bryce, and Ethan and still managed to look as if it were new.
The attic was in the master bedroom, which was close to the size of the Gryffindor common room. Ethan found the right place to stand, looked up and pointed his wand. A door appeared, with an of old creaky wooden staircase behind it.
"Come on... Just up here."
Everyone grinned, and dove right into the piles of old magical junk in the attic. There were interesting objects, some of which might have belonged to Gryffindor and Ravenclaw at one point. But however, Ethan led them to a large wardrobe-looking thing in a far corner.
"Costume trunk." He informed them. "Loads of stuff in here... Everyone just pick one, I suppose."
Brynn dived for the Princess costume Crystal had been eyeing up. She thrusted a matching Prince costume at Mac, who was holding a horrible monster costume.
"Aw... You can wear the Prince one...."
"Tights? Brynn are you nuts?" Mac questioned.
"We can be a couple... I'm not going to be a lady Zombie... I'd prefer to look human."
"Fine... But next party I'm choosing the costume..."
Everyone giggled. Bryce took the opportunity to take the very real-looking Zombie costume. Ethan laughed until he couldn't breathe any longer, when he chose a purple dinosaur costume...
"What the hell is it?" Brynn said, staring.
"I don't know... It's labeled Barney. Isn't it horrid looking? I for one think it's scarier than that Zombie... Look at it smiling!
Ha, ha, ha, ha..."
"Ethan's gone mad." Crystal stared.
"Oh, we've always known that." Brynn shrugged. "Deep down, we're all mad. Purple dinosaurs and all..."
The First Years didn't know what to say, but Crystal was quite sure she wasn't mad. She took a look at the older children though. Mac had a lampshade over his head, and Brynn was wearing a wooden box. Crystal took a deep breath and also stepped away, over to the trunk.
"Hey, look at this! We'd win the contest for sure..." She said, something catching her eye.
"That is the stupidest thing I have ever set sight upon." Brynn said seriously. "I'm not going dressed as a giant Quaffle!"
"If I go as this here Beating Stick, you, Brian Black, will go as a Quaffle." George said.
"I think you're catching whatever disease the twins have... Madness..."
"You know you want to." Crystal grinned. "Ah... I see that smile! Brian secretly wishes he were a giant Quaffle guys!" Crystal danced around the room.
"C'mon Brian... We'll win the prize!" Fred coaxed. "You complete the set!"
"Fine..." Brian said, still a little unsure.
"Yay!" Crystal said, leaping about and hugging him.
"Brynn was right... We're all a little mad..."
~*~
Through Quidditch practices, homework, and many an exam... Halloween had finally arrived. However, there as something decidedly strange going about...
"I command thee to bow, lowly Zombie!" Brynn commanded in the common room.
Perhaps she had taken the Princess thing a little too far.
Bryce, who could be mistaken for a real Zombie, by a real Zombie, roared and ran off. In a far corner of the common room, Ethan was singing, in a strange voice. Brynn stuck her nose in the air, took Mac's arm, and strolled off towards the party.
"Perfect." Crystal smiled. She was looking at her Golden Snitch Costume.
Her face wasn't visible at all. She could see out the costume, as well as eat, breath, and all those other neat aspects. But best of all: Her costume could fly. But she wanted no one to know who she was...
"Vox!" she said. "Testing..."
Her voice had changed instantly. She sounded like Felicity. This made it even better. She sounded purely evil. Perhaps someone would actually mistake her for Felicity... The fun she could have with that...
"Brian!" she called, rushing down the stairs. Brian jumped, and looked around. "Felicity?" He said, rather fearful.
"No, you great pat! It's me, Crystal. I changed my voice. "
"You creep. You sound like Felicity." Brian said.
"It's weird to see a big old Quaffle walking around. I can't see your face."
"Well of course. That's one of the points. I can't see yours either, good thing too... OUCH!"
"Didn't think a Snitch could hit that hard?"
"No, actually I didn't...."
"Where are Fred and George?"
"Coming... There they are... Coming down the stairs..."
"Hello mates!" Fred (Wearing the Bludger) called.
"Allo'" Crystal said cheerfully.
"Ahh... You changed your voice." George observed.
"No, really?"
"Shut up.... Let's just go..."
Crystal didn't have the only flying costume. The other 3 matching costumes flew as well. People pointed, wondering who they were. Even Felicity looked confused. She was dressed as what Crystal presumed to be Cate. It was either that or a Lady Devil.
"Halt, oh Great Golden ball! The Princess Brynn Black of Hogwarts demands an identity." Brynn said, holding out her hand as a signal to stop.
"The Golden Snitch. That's all I'll tell you." Crystal said.
"I am a princess! I demand you tell me!"
"Erm... Bye..." Crystal said, flying off.
"Bow to thee, oh greasy haired teacher." Mac said, turning to face Snape.
"Really Mr. McKenzie? Who died and left you boss?"
"I am Prince. You bow to your superiors... Guards!!!!" Mac shouted.
At once, the Zombie and Barney came running to Mac's side. "Arrest him!" He pointed. "Take him to the dungeons."
"That's my classroom you fool! Professor Dumbledore! PROFESSOR DUMBLEDORE!" Snape shouted.
Dumbledore was nowhere in sight. He was dressed up, and no one knew whom he was. Even the teachers were dressed up for the occasion. There was punch (Not spiked this time...) that no one cared to drink, due to the last party's concoction. There were pumpkins, and the ghosts, and costumes of all sorts.
"Lizzie and Sirius Black wore those exact costumes once..." Professor McGonagall, dressed as a ghostly version of herself; stated to a mysterious person, presumed to be one of the Professors. "James had that Zombie one... I've never seen the dinosaur..."
"The costumes from the manor?" The other person asked. "The possessed ones?"
"Yes... Our young royals. I presume they'll figure out how to get rid of the curse the way Sirius and Lizzie did... " McGonagall grinned.
"I love yoooooooou! You love meeeeee!" Ethan the purple dinosaur sang.
"Oh contraire, purple dinosaur." Brynn said, wrinkling her nose. "For my love is for but one person..."
"We're a happy familyyyyyyyyy..."
"Gllllarrrgghhhhhaaaaahrrrrhrhaaalll..." Bryce the zombie moaned. He was no longer capable of speaking English; for he was convinced her was a real zombie.
"There are all sorts of interesting folks here." Mac said to Brynn, they were convinced they were the only ones worthy of viewing.
"Indeed so."
Crystal meanwhile, was enjoying her costume, which was not possessed. But she discovered it could turn into a real Snitch, which was great fun. She whizzed around, scoping out people. There was a large crowd of girls she did not know, and then she caught sight of Felicity.
Felicity was donned in red silk from head to toe, bearing a striking resemblance to her mother. He hair was let down to her shoulders, and her eyes glinted. She was truly evil looking, but was nothing compared to the person next to her.
Malicia was a Vampiress. Her black hair danced menacingly around her face, and a very real looking pair of fangs was visible. More so, she hissed when she spoke, and the black of her dress added the wickedness. There was what Crystal hoped was fake blood dabbed near her mouth.
Taking this opportunity to torment Felicity, she picked up speed and hit her hard in the back of the head. Felicity lurched forward, crashing into Blick, who was dressed as a Dementor or something... Felicity scanned out the room, and her eyes caught sight of the Snitch. She muttered something, and went back to her conversation.
"I spy another year of Marauder costumes..." Professor McGonagall continued on. "The Snitch, Bludger, Quaffle, and Beating Stick there... There was a broomstick too, but I don't see anyone dressed up as it... Quite creative. James was dressed as that Snitch, Sirius was that Bludger, Meagan was the Quaffle, Remus was the broom, and Peter was the Stick. I wonder who dressed as what tonight..."
McGonagall was also judge for the costume contest. She was picking the winners. Her favorite so far was the Quidditch accessories...
There was the table of girls as well... They were also judging costumes... But not for any official reason, just trying to guess who was underneath them...
"I like the Zombie..." one of them said. She was dressed in white, with a mask over her face. White feathers adorned the mask, while glitter added sparkle. "I bet he's handsome."
"What if he's ugly? I mean, come on... You never know who it is!" another objected.
"But still... Even through the costume... It's clear he has a nice body... I bet he plays Quidditch." The girl grinned.
"Then go dance with him!" said another one of her friends.
"I'll figure out who he is by the end of the night... I'll get the mask off..." she grinned.
"Be sure that isn't all you take off..."
"I'll be sure." she said again, very seriously.
Bryce of course, was rather uncontrollable. He was chasing Ethan, who was convinced he was Barney. Joyful off-key singing apparently didn't please Zombies... The girl in the white gown smiled, and pulled the Zombie to the side for a dance.
"Grrrrrrrraaaaaaggggghhh."
"Hello yourself. Care for a dance?"
"BBBUUuuurrrrGGGhharrr!" Bryce sputtered, struggling to get away. But the girl held him steady.
"I really am very curious to know who you are."
"HHHHaaaaRRRRHhhhhaaaafggmmm!"
"Well then, I'll just call you Har, can that be short for HHHHaaaaRRRRHhhhhaaaafggmmm?"
"Guuur..."
"Okay, let's keep dancing, shall we?"
The girl's friends giggled as she danced with the struggling Zombie. Mac and Brynn waltzed (literally, waltzing) by, noses high in the air, acting very superior.
"Mac and Brynn..." The girl sniffed. "Do you know them?"
"BBByyyrrgghhandddkkkallll"
"Okay... I'll take that as a maybe. Brynn really is quite unpleasant. I have a feeling she despises me greatly."
"Hrrrr..."
"Well, shall we go for a walk.. The floor is rather crammed..."
"AAaaaagggrrrtttlllee."
"This way."
The table of girls giggled even more as she led him out a door, towards the gardens. The Zombie personality controlling Bryce didn't know what to make of all this, except that he should like it. The girl smiled behind her mask, her face not visible.
"It can't be bad... After all, this is what you wanted..." The girl said to herself in her mind. "Get the mask off... Maybe he'll communicate normally... Magical costumes these days..."
Her eyes were deep brown, the only facial feature that could be seen. They darted up and down, scanning the Zombie once more. She stepped closer to the frightened creature (Bryce), and wrapped her arms around his neck. She found the spot where the mask ended, and pulled it off his face.
"Damn!" was the first thing Bryce said. "It's possessed! That costume had control over me! I had no opinion whatsoever in my own actions... Who are you?"
The girl gasped. Bryce hadn't been who she expected to be under the mask. He was her enemy's brother! He was however, very handsome...
"I shall keep that a secret, and oh yes, You're very welcome for me freeing you of the possessed mask."
"Oh... Thanks." Bryce said, shuffling his feet. He looked at the girl. He wanted to see who was behind the mask. From what he gathered, she was good-looking. She was about his height, which wasn't saying much, because Bryce wasn't very tall. "I still don't know who you are."
"I'll tell you... eventually..." said the girl, her eyes darting around once more.
"You like being mysterious? Tell me though, are you always like this?"
"Perhaps... I really can't decide for myself who I am..."
"Torn between two paths? I know how you feel..."
"Yes, but it's not quite like you'd expect. I'm different from the impression people usually get...."
"Go on..."
"Your voice doesn't sound familiar."
"It's not my voice. Mine is quite different. I like the way this one is smooth. It's supposed to match the costume."
"Oh, but it did. Very well might I add."
"Thank you... I liked your costume..."
"You like Zombies then? Prefer men not capable of speaking properly?"
"No, no, no... It was so real looking. I wanted to see the intelligent person behind it, capable f creating such a costume."
"Ahh... I didn't make it. Found it in Ethan's attic. Loads of interesting things there."
"I see what you mean... Ethan is who again?"
"The one in that revolting dinosaur costume. Pugnare... Ethan Pugnare. He's my nephew actually...That's how messed up my family story is..."
They both laughed aloud. Bryce smiled, looking at the girl once more. He still had no clue who she was. There was applause in the Great Hall, he supposed the costume awards had started. He wondered if he won anything.
"I'll tell you what." the girl said suddenly. "I'll meet you here tomorrow, at 9:30 sharp. But please don't tell your friends. I like
secrets. Things are more fun that way."
"Will I get to see your face?"
"Yes... That is if you come."
"I will. Wouldn't miss it!"
"Okay, I'll see you tomorrow evening then?"
"Of course. Goodbye!"
"Wait... One more thing. Close you eyes... Tight."
The mysterious girl pulled the mask up, and kissed Bryce softly. No one opened their eyes while kissing anyways. Bryce didn't see her, he wanted to keep things a surprise again. But he put his hands on her face. Her skin was soft, but that wasn't a lot of help. After a few seconds more though, she pulled the mask back over her face, waved, and walked off.
"Bryce Black... What are you doing?" Bryce sighed. He ran his fingers through his hair and couldn't help but smile... He liked this girl... She was capable of holding an intelligent conversation, unlike his French date from the last party...
The girl sighed to herself as well, as she walked the halls. She sighted her group of friends, and hurried to tell them what she had saw. The group was smaller now, down to but two girls. The both had their masks off now, and giggled furiously and smiled.
"Well, who was it?" The blonde one asked.
"You did find out who it was, right?" the one with red hair added.
"Of course..." the girl in white said. She still had her mask on.
"Well?!" both girls said loudly.
"Promise me, Marian, Terri... That you won't tell anyone... You're my best friends... Don't wreck this for me..."
"We swear... Come on... We reeeeaaally want to know!"
"Okay.,. Well I was right. He was very good looking." the girl smiled to herself. "He had nice eyes... nice hair... Nice face... Nice body... Great kisser..."
"You kissed him? OOOoOooO... Who was it?"
"I'm not sure if I should tell you... I mean..."
"JUST DO IT!" both girls screeched.
"Fine..." The girl in white took a long pause, and a deep breath, and blurted it was about to speak...
"Hurry it up already!" The blonde sighed.
"Bryce Black."
The blonde and the redhead (Marian and Terri) looked at each other and smiled ear-to-ear. They jumped up and down and squealed in delight.
"What are you two, 10 years old?" the girl in white hissed. "Grow up..."
"She's right Marian," the blonde said. "He is nice looking... But he's in Gryffindor! That's..."
"Forbidden. I know, I know... But still, I do like him..."
"You always were the daring one... Rather strange... I was eyeing up Bryce a few days ago... When you battled wits with Brynn." Marian said.
"Mair's got another point... Brynn... That's Bryce's twin sister!" Terri continued. "Does he know who you are yet?"
"No... I told him not to mention it to anyone. If we keep everything secret, Brynn'll never know."
"Well, good luck... Are you seeing him again?"
"Yes, tomorrow. At 9:30..."
"Well, you need your beauty sleep, let's get you to bed..."
"For most evil costume the winner is... Malicia Flagnare." Professor McGonagall announced.
Malicia stepped up and claimed her small plaque. She showed it off to the Slytherin table and took her seat by Felicity once again. Professor McGonagall read on...
"Most annoying... The person in the Dinosaur costume, since we can't figure out who you are..."
A few people pushed Ethan up to accept his award. He didn't know what was going on, really, but started to sing the alphabet once again...
"Voted by the students... The costume you would least like to see next year... Brynn Black and Irvin McKenzie... In their erm... Royal costumes..."
Brynn and Mac accepted their award as if it were something to be proud of. They demanded that Dumbledore (who had been cleverly disguised as a popular wizarding singer) leave his high chair, and McGonagall give up hers, so they had better places to sit.
"Best Monster costume... The Zombie... Excuse me, is he present?" McGonagall waited for a few minutes, but Bryce was at that point, outside with the girl in white. "Well, I'll just save this for our special Zombie friend..."
The hall laughed slightly... McGonagall didn't sound like her usual self tonight. "Overall best costumes... The one we have all been anticipating... Goes to... The Quidditch erm... Quaffle, Snitch, Bludger, and Beating Stick, please come and accept your award... We couldn't decide who was best... So all of you get an award... Congratulations..."
Crystal grinned. Felicity still hadn't confronted her, though she had figured out who she was. She laughed aloud. She had beaten Felicity again, but Felicity hadn't tried to win this contest... She didn't care about costumes at all...
Felicity glared. She was seated next to Malicia, who was even beginning to scare her. It seemed as if she really was a vampiress. Felicity folded her hands together and grinned... Any second now...
A purple mist filled the hall. At once, everyone began to scream. Felicity, Malicia, Ariana, and Blick sat calmly at their table and smiled. The mist was a sort of curse; everyone saw their greatest fear. Several people had fainted, or wet themselves. Crystal was freaking out, and clinging to Brian, who was also having a spazz attack.
This alone was priceless to Felicity, seeing Crystal scared. Then something grabbed her by the scruff of her neck. Tapping her foot, glaring and all, was Cate. Bellum stood behind her; little Jack (cute as a button!) dressed as a small pumpkin. Felicity smiled weakly, and sighed.
"I hope you're happy now..." Cate said, releasing her grip completely. "You'll never learn will you?"
Bellum tapped Cate on the shoulder. They were dressed as... Well... They were dressed as themselves basically. The way they looked when they first met. He handed her Jack, and rolled up his sleeves...
He cupped his hands, shooting a look at Felicity, and a green mist formed, spreading, and taking over the purple one. Everyone stopped screaming at once. Felicity looked disappointed, and sat back in her seat. Several girls cooed at how cute the baby was, and Cate smiled, which was something she really didn't do too often.
"Everyone to sleep!" she commanded, turning with her husband to go off to their large dormitory.
Well, of course not everyone went to sleep. Princess Brynn and Prince Mac were trying to find a place grand enough for them. The path they chose however, led to the gardens.
"No one's out here... 'Tis lovely though..." Brynn said, cut off by Mac, who started to kiss her.
"Mmmm Hmm..."
"But outside?"
"Why not, darling? We have rights to be anywhere in the school. We are, after all, Royalty."
Brynn didn't have another chance to reply, for she was caught up in another kiss. The characters of the costumes were still in possession of their bodies. They didn't have control over what they were doing...
"Mac!"
"Brynn!"
"What are you doing?" They said at once, both snapping out of the curse of the costumes. It was a good thing too; Brynn's dress was halfway off, and Mac's shirt was unbuttoned.
"The costumes, Brynn... That wasn't me..."
"They were controlling us both..."
"Well, don't zip that back up! It'll be in control of you again!"
"Do you purpose I walk around like this then?"
"Go for it... We need to find Ethan and Bryce now..."
"I think I saw Bryce go back to the common room."
"Ethan is probably running around..."
"Let's find him before he causes greater embarrassment to himself..."
Ethan was still in the Great Hall. He was the only one there too, which was rather lucky. "ETHAN!" Mac shouted, but Ethan paid no attention. He was still convinced he was Barney. Brynn shook her head and walked right up to her nephew and pulled off the head.
"Whoa... That was scary… Remind me NEVER to do that again..." Ethan said, something out his hair and shaking his head fearfully. "That thing was possessed!"
"Well spotted. That took real brains to figure out…" Brynn said.
"Shut up… I wasn't asking you anyways."
"Oh, we hail you great annoying costume…"
"Well I see you had no problem getting your costumes off…."
"That was low… Very low…" Brynn said, shoving Ethan off to the side, into the wall.
"Did I actually win a battle against the Almighty Brynn?"
"No… you were in pain for a brief amount of time… I win. You lose. Too bad."
Bryce was sitting, yes, sitting… In the common room. He didn't sit very often. He was usually in the center of all the noise, causing it. "I met a girl… I met a girl… Wait- - I met a girl that likes me! I met a girl I like! I met a girl I like! I wish I could tell someone… But she said not to… I think… I'm keeping my promise… Wow, I really do like this girl! I can't wait for tomorrow! 9:30…"
~*~
The next day rolled along slowly, for Bryce, and the girl as well. She could watch him between classes, but he still did not know who she was. He got to the Invisibility Cloak before Mac and Brynn did, and set off before they did too. He was in the gardens by 9:10.
"She's not early… She's not late… Will she come? Wait—I'm way too early. She'll show up… I wonder what she looks like… She has nice eyes… A nice body… She's intelligent… She can't be ugly!"
Bryce talked to himself quite often. Sometimes the voices answered back. This was not one of the special occasions. Then he heard footsteps. Then he saw the person who was making the footsteps. It was a girl of course. She was early too. She was still in her school robes. She was slim, and had very tan skin. Her hair was black, and fell to her mid back. The top of her hair was straight, and then it started to wave softly at the ends. She had the same deep brown chocolate eyes, and she smiled at him.
"Hello Bryce." She said softly. Her voice was different this day, just as she said. She had only changed it for the one night so no one knew her. This time, her real voice, was accented. With a soft Spanish accent.
"Hello Reina…" Bryce said. He recognized her now. She was very pretty indeed. She was the prettiest girl at Hogwarts in his opinion. But she was a Fourth Year Slytherin. Emphasize the word Slytherin.
"Do you hate me now?"
"Why would I? Just because you don't get along well with Brynn doesn't mean I don't like you…"
"I was letting the whole enemy thing get to my head… And the Gryffindor/Slytherin rule too. This is kind of… Forbidden."
"Yeah…"
"But that makes it better. It's more romantic that way."
"Ahh.. I see."
"Yes.
"Have a seat. I want to get to know you. You seem very interesting to me..."
Bryce told his life story, of his siblings, his life, his hobbies, and all stuff he found uninteresting. Reina however, loved it all. Bryce liked Reina's story better. Her family was from Spain, but she had been born in Britain with her older brother, and the rest of the family.
They sat and talked the entire time, about little things. For someone from Gryffindor, and someone from Slytherin, they clicked very well.
"Bryce... Still don't tell anyone. I don't think it's a good thing."
"In fact... We can pretend like we never met. Or else someone will ruin it. Let's meet here every night, unless we say something otherwise..."
"Okay... I can come every night but Fridays... We have card games in the common room. I win a lot.. Good way to earn a name for yourself when people fear to play you... not a half bad way to earn money either..."
Bryce laughed. "I think I'm always out of Quidditch by 9:30... We'd better make it 10:00 though... Cate's pretty strict. I don't see any way she'll change her plans either... Just because I have a date..."
"Okay, so if you don't show up, I'll know why?"
"Yup." Bryce checked his watch. "Well, Ethan's probably lonely. Brynn and Mac are probably out. I bet he jumps when I return. I have to stop at the Kitchens and tell him I was out for Food..."
He kissed Reina softly, and pulled her off the bench. They parted at the kitchens after a short kiss. Their relationship was opposite Brynn and Mac's. Brynn and Mac had a very physical relationship, while Bryce and Reina talked to each other most of the time they spent together.
"Where were you?" Ethan said, just as Bryce had predicted.
"Kitchens. Want a crumpet?"
"At the kitchens? For an hour and a half? And don't even tell me you got lost.. You know your way around better than anyone here in the entire school."
"Erm..."
"Yes?" Ethan suddenly grinned. "Is this what I think it is? Bryce... Did you meet a girl?" He added eagerly.
"Shhh! Yes, all right, but don't tell anyone. Please... Ethan, you're my best friend. Can you please keep this quiet? It's supposed to be secret..."
"Yes.. I can keep a secret Bryce... But who is it?"
"That is one thing I cannot tell you though. If I tell you, then I'd have to kill you."
"Ha. Ha. Ha. Fine... This is nice... What's she like?"
"She's wonderful... She's"
"What does she look like?"
"She's gorgeous..."
"More details? Please?"
"Nope, sorry mate. Can't tell you that either."
"Then how do I know you aren't making her up?"
"Damn... That's what I was hoping you were thinking. I really don't care what anyone thinks, just keep it a secret, Eath."
"Okay, I get you. I won't tell anyone."
Felicity couldn't stand. She couldn't. But this wasn't what bothered Felicity. Her mother was facing her, as well as her father. But her mother was angry. Very angry.
"Felicity... What was that? You call that a match? Not for a child of mine! Look at your brother!"
"You ought to be glad I'm not Ethan!" Felicity shouted, wincing in pain.
Cate cupped her hands, and hurled a great ball of green fire at Felicity, who screamed. Her leg healed instantly. Felicity breathed hard at stared hatefully at her mother.
"Ethan... Has never lost... His team ahs never lost. I have never lost. You... have..."
"Yes you have! I'm not an idiot! You lost the Cup three times! To the Potters at that! You have no room to talk!"
Cate laughed curtly. Then her lips curled into a thin grin. Her eyes glinted gold, as she stared Felicity straight in the eyes.
"I have never lost to the Potters... I believe Miss Potter has a way of twisting the truth... For the time my team did not win the Cup... I was not playing... I was pregnant... Or raising my children. I have never played Harry Potter and allowed him to catch the Snitch. I have played Professionally since I was 14 years of age."
Felicity sat there, stunned. She glared at her mother, and her father. Her father looked at her in a hurt manner, he didn't dare disagree with Cate. Everyone thought she was still "Unstable" as she was ages ago…
"Well sorry mother. I truly am. Not everyone is a perfect bitch like you... Excuse me while I clean myself up. Unlike some people, I do not wish to look like I have been to Hell and back..."
"Felicity! Don't speak to your mother that way!" Bellum hissed.
"Let her..." Cate said, holding up her hand. "She needs to learn to hold her tongue. She will regret that statement..."
Cate suddenly grinned, and stared at her daughter, who had stormed off. Ethan had never been this rebellious. Sure, he was mischievous, but not evil.... Bellum looked a little frightened. Not for himself, but for his daughter....
~*~
Brynn, Bryce, Mac, nor Ethan dared to speak. The whole common room was tense. Felicity had dried up the blood. She looked halfway presentable at least... Not even Brynn and Mac spoke to one another. Practice would be Hell tomorrow... Cate was not happy...
"Don't even ask if I want to go out tonight Mac.. I think I'll save all my energy for tomorrow." Brynn sighed.
"Me as well... I'm going straight to bed..."
"Good night!" Brynn said, giving him a small kiss on the cheek.
~*~
Cate had forced Felicity to come along to practice. Felicity refused to play, but consented to watch. Brynn stared at the essentially crabby mother and daughter. Ethan was keeping his distance...
"Today.. You will be running... Yes, running."
No one dared ask why.
"It will help you in the end to be quicker in the air."
Again, no one asked why.
"You run until you can run no more, or when I say to stop. Felicity... You may join us..."
"Yes... Master."
"Why are we running again?" Mac whispered to Brynn, at around the 20th lap around the field.
"I don't know... I think Cate is getting back at Felicity... So naturally, we're all being part of this... You know how she is..."
Brynn was the fastest runner, followed shortly by Mac, Ethan, and Bryce. Felicity was in the middle of the pack. The group was fast... And they all hoped this would not be a part of their usual routine...
"You can go.. You will run in the morning... Practice in the evening."
"We have potions right after this... I think I am going to die..." Bryce sighed.
"I only wish..." Ethan added.
"Well, maybe we'll all be so tired we won't cause much trouble..." Mac suggested.
"Dream on..." Brynn said.
"Do you think we'll get Halloween off?" Ethan asked.
"Fat chance." Brynn replied. "She'll make us work even harder, because it's a holiday...."
Everyone sighed and went their separate ways to get ready for class...
~*~
Felicity pushed some hair out of her face. She hated all Gryffindors, and her family. She wished they would all disappear. She wished she had total control for a day. History of Magic class was a good place to plot all evil schemes. No one paid attention anyways.
"I could do it... Make them all disappear for a day..." She said to herself. "It wouldn't be hard... Snape can be tricked into helping me... A potion of some sort... All I need is a detention..."
She turned to Blick, who was practically asleep. She grinned, and looked across the room at Crystal, who was rapidly taking notes. It seemed she had brainwashed Brian as well. They were all paying attention in class... Or were they?
"We can make Brynn, Ethan, Mac, and Bryce help us..." She said to Brian telepathically. "We need good costumes for Halloween."
"Can't we just... Make them?" Brian replied.
"Oh come on... Your siblings aren't that scary, remember? I'm perfectly positive Ethan and Bryce will give us a hand... Or else."
They all grinned and scribbled down more notes on their parchment scrolls.
There were not notes, but drawings of various costumes.
"We could go as the Marauders!" Fred said joyfully. Everyone looked to him thoughtfully.
"We could..." Crystal grinned. "But I want to win first prize in the costume contest. Brian and I wouldn't even have to dress up. We look like Blue eyes and Padfoot enough already."
"I never thought of that..." Fred said.
"But it would be fun..." Brian said.
"I still want to win. " Crystal said. "Even though it would be fun..."
"In the Black Manor... The attic anyways... There are trunks with costumes in them... I think the Marauders actually wore them at one point. That's where Brynn, Bryce, Mac, and Ethan are getting their costumes."
"You live there too though. Why can't you go home and..."
"I don't live in Black Manor, even though I'm a Black. That's where Felicity lives... We'd need to get Ethan to take us..." Brian said. "Or Cate... Or Felicity... Or Bellum..."
Crystal made a face. Certainly not Cate or Felicity. Those two scared her. It was between Bellum and Ethan... Bellum was nice... But it was hard to find him without Cate... Ethan seemed to be their best bet. And they had something against him....
"We'll get Ethan... Or we'll bring up that time we beat he and Bryce up..." Crystal grinned. "How good it feels to say that... I can only imagine what our first year here will hold completely... Theses have only been the first few months..."
Everyone grinned again and went back to pretending to take notes... Felicity stared at them across the room... She knew they were up to something... It didn't please her.
~*~
"There's that nice assortment of costumes in my attic..." Ethan said. "We could go there."
"That's what I was planning..." Bryce said. "Brynn and Mac might find something there too."
"Oh... Mind if we tag along?" said Brian, casually listening to their conversation in the Gryffindor Common Room. "You know..."
"Erm..." Bryce trailed off.
"We'll tell everyone it really wasn't Brynn who beat you up...." Crystal said, popping up and making them jump slightly. Bryce and Ethan looked at each other.
"Okay... Fair deal..." They said together.
~*~
"Well, we have a few tag-alongs..." Bryce announced.
"Eh?" Mac said.
"We're taking Crystal, Brian, Fred, and George..." Ethan said.
"Are you doing something nice for our annoying little brother?" Brynn said, rather shocked.
"Yeah..." Bryce trailed off.
"Well, go gather the kiddies, and we'll be off..." Brynn sighed.
Crystal, Brian, Fred, and George, all bubbling with excitement hurried along, reacting well to traveling with Floo Powder. In the highly decorative Black manor (Which oddly enough wasn't occupied by the Blacks) was still sparkling.
"Not half bad... I suppose Felicity gets to live in style..." Crystal said to Brian telepathically.
"Yeah... This was my parent's old house... They passed it on to Cate... I live across the street there..."
"Hey... That's not half bad either! Bigger than my house I tell ya... All Summer gatherings can be held at your house..."
"Attic is this way you guys..." Ethan said, leading them up a marble staircase. The manor was huge, and there was more than one elegant marble staircase. It had even gone through multiple attacks from Brynn, Bryce, and Ethan and still managed to look as if it were new.
The attic was in the master bedroom, which was close to the size of the Gryffindor common room. Ethan found the right place to stand, looked up and pointed his wand. A door appeared, with an of old creaky wooden staircase behind it.
"Come on... Just up here."
Everyone grinned, and dove right into the piles of old magical junk in the attic. There were interesting objects, some of which might have belonged to Gryffindor and Ravenclaw at one point. But however, Ethan led them to a large wardrobe-looking thing in a far corner.
"Costume trunk." He informed them. "Loads of stuff in here... Everyone just pick one, I suppose."
Brynn dived for the Princess costume Crystal had been eyeing up. She thrusted a matching Prince costume at Mac, who was holding a horrible monster costume.
"Aw... You can wear the Prince one...."
"Tights? Brynn are you nuts?" Mac questioned.
"We can be a couple... I'm not going to be a lady Zombie... I'd prefer to look human."
"Fine... But next party I'm choosing the costume..."
Everyone giggled. Bryce took the opportunity to take the very real-looking Zombie costume. Ethan laughed until he couldn't breathe any longer, when he chose a purple dinosaur costume...
"What the hell is it?" Brynn said, staring.
"I don't know... It's labeled Barney. Isn't it horrid looking? I for one think it's scarier than that Zombie... Look at it smiling!
Ha, ha, ha, ha..."
"Ethan's gone mad." Crystal stared.
"Oh, we've always known that." Brynn shrugged. "Deep down, we're all mad. Purple dinosaurs and all..."
The First Years didn't know what to say, but Crystal was quite sure she wasn't mad. She took a look at the older children though. Mac had a lampshade over his head, and Brynn was wearing a wooden box. Crystal took a deep breath and also stepped away, over to the trunk.
"Hey, look at this! We'd win the contest for sure..." She said, something catching her eye.
"That is the stupidest thing I have ever set sight upon." Brynn said seriously. "I'm not going dressed as a giant Quaffle!"
"If I go as this here Beating Stick, you, Brian Black, will go as a Quaffle." George said.
"I think you're catching whatever disease the twins have... Madness..."
"You know you want to." Crystal grinned. "Ah... I see that smile! Brian secretly wishes he were a giant Quaffle guys!" Crystal danced around the room.
"C'mon Brian... We'll win the prize!" Fred coaxed. "You complete the set!"
"Fine..." Brian said, still a little unsure.
"Yay!" Crystal said, leaping about and hugging him.
"Brynn was right... We're all a little mad..."
~*~
Through Quidditch practices, homework, and many an exam... Halloween had finally arrived. However, there as something decidedly strange going about...
"I command thee to bow, lowly Zombie!" Brynn commanded in the common room.
Perhaps she had taken the Princess thing a little too far.
Bryce, who could be mistaken for a real Zombie, by a real Zombie, roared and ran off. In a far corner of the common room, Ethan was singing, in a strange voice. Brynn stuck her nose in the air, took Mac's arm, and strolled off towards the party.
"Perfect." Crystal smiled. She was looking at her Golden Snitch Costume.
Her face wasn't visible at all. She could see out the costume, as well as eat, breath, and all those other neat aspects. But best of all: Her costume could fly. But she wanted no one to know who she was...
"Vox!" she said. "Testing..."
Her voice had changed instantly. She sounded like Felicity. This made it even better. She sounded purely evil. Perhaps someone would actually mistake her for Felicity... The fun she could have with that...
"Brian!" she called, rushing down the stairs. Brian jumped, and looked around. "Felicity?" He said, rather fearful.
"No, you great pat! It's me, Crystal. I changed my voice. "
"You creep. You sound like Felicity." Brian said.
"It's weird to see a big old Quaffle walking around. I can't see your face."
"Well of course. That's one of the points. I can't see yours either, good thing too... OUCH!"
"Didn't think a Snitch could hit that hard?"
"No, actually I didn't...."
"Where are Fred and George?"
"Coming... There they are... Coming down the stairs..."
"Hello mates!" Fred (Wearing the Bludger) called.
"Allo'" Crystal said cheerfully.
"Ahh... You changed your voice." George observed.
"No, really?"
"Shut up.... Let's just go..."
Crystal didn't have the only flying costume. The other 3 matching costumes flew as well. People pointed, wondering who they were. Even Felicity looked confused. She was dressed as what Crystal presumed to be Cate. It was either that or a Lady Devil.
"Halt, oh Great Golden ball! The Princess Brynn Black of Hogwarts demands an identity." Brynn said, holding out her hand as a signal to stop.
"The Golden Snitch. That's all I'll tell you." Crystal said.
"I am a princess! I demand you tell me!"
"Erm... Bye..." Crystal said, flying off.
"Bow to thee, oh greasy haired teacher." Mac said, turning to face Snape.
"Really Mr. McKenzie? Who died and left you boss?"
"I am Prince. You bow to your superiors... Guards!!!!" Mac shouted.
At once, the Zombie and Barney came running to Mac's side. "Arrest him!" He pointed. "Take him to the dungeons."
"That's my classroom you fool! Professor Dumbledore! PROFESSOR DUMBLEDORE!" Snape shouted.
Dumbledore was nowhere in sight. He was dressed up, and no one knew whom he was. Even the teachers were dressed up for the occasion. There was punch (Not spiked this time...) that no one cared to drink, due to the last party's concoction. There were pumpkins, and the ghosts, and costumes of all sorts.
"Lizzie and Sirius Black wore those exact costumes once..." Professor McGonagall, dressed as a ghostly version of herself; stated to a mysterious person, presumed to be one of the Professors. "James had that Zombie one... I've never seen the dinosaur..."
"The costumes from the manor?" The other person asked. "The possessed ones?"
"Yes... Our young royals. I presume they'll figure out how to get rid of the curse the way Sirius and Lizzie did... " McGonagall grinned.
"I love yoooooooou! You love meeeeee!" Ethan the purple dinosaur sang.
"Oh contraire, purple dinosaur." Brynn said, wrinkling her nose. "For my love is for but one person..."
"We're a happy familyyyyyyyyy..."
"Gllllarrrgghhhhhaaaaahrrrrhrhaaalll..." Bryce the zombie moaned. He was no longer capable of speaking English; for he was convinced her was a real zombie.
"There are all sorts of interesting folks here." Mac said to Brynn, they were convinced they were the only ones worthy of viewing.
"Indeed so."
Crystal meanwhile, was enjoying her costume, which was not possessed. But she discovered it could turn into a real Snitch, which was great fun. She whizzed around, scoping out people. There was a large crowd of girls she did not know, and then she caught sight of Felicity.
Felicity was donned in red silk from head to toe, bearing a striking resemblance to her mother. He hair was let down to her shoulders, and her eyes glinted. She was truly evil looking, but was nothing compared to the person next to her.
Malicia was a Vampiress. Her black hair danced menacingly around her face, and a very real looking pair of fangs was visible. More so, she hissed when she spoke, and the black of her dress added the wickedness. There was what Crystal hoped was fake blood dabbed near her mouth.
Taking this opportunity to torment Felicity, she picked up speed and hit her hard in the back of the head. Felicity lurched forward, crashing into Blick, who was dressed as a Dementor or something... Felicity scanned out the room, and her eyes caught sight of the Snitch. She muttered something, and went back to her conversation.
"I spy another year of Marauder costumes..." Professor McGonagall continued on. "The Snitch, Bludger, Quaffle, and Beating Stick there... There was a broomstick too, but I don't see anyone dressed up as it... Quite creative. James was dressed as that Snitch, Sirius was that Bludger, Meagan was the Quaffle, Remus was the broom, and Peter was the Stick. I wonder who dressed as what tonight..."
McGonagall was also judge for the costume contest. She was picking the winners. Her favorite so far was the Quidditch accessories...
There was the table of girls as well... They were also judging costumes... But not for any official reason, just trying to guess who was underneath them...
"I like the Zombie..." one of them said. She was dressed in white, with a mask over her face. White feathers adorned the mask, while glitter added sparkle. "I bet he's handsome."
"What if he's ugly? I mean, come on... You never know who it is!" another objected.
"But still... Even through the costume... It's clear he has a nice body... I bet he plays Quidditch." The girl grinned.
"Then go dance with him!" said another one of her friends.
"I'll figure out who he is by the end of the night... I'll get the mask off..." she grinned.
"Be sure that isn't all you take off..."
"I'll be sure." she said again, very seriously.
Bryce of course, was rather uncontrollable. He was chasing Ethan, who was convinced he was Barney. Joyful off-key singing apparently didn't please Zombies... The girl in the white gown smiled, and pulled the Zombie to the side for a dance.
"Grrrrrrrraaaaaaggggghhh."
"Hello yourself. Care for a dance?"
"BBBUUuuurrrrGGGhharrr!" Bryce sputtered, struggling to get away. But the girl held him steady.
"I really am very curious to know who you are."
"HHHHaaaaRRRRHhhhhaaaafggmmm!"
"Well then, I'll just call you Har, can that be short for HHHHaaaaRRRRHhhhhaaaafggmmm?"
"Guuur..."
"Okay, let's keep dancing, shall we?"
The girl's friends giggled as she danced with the struggling Zombie. Mac and Brynn waltzed (literally, waltzing) by, noses high in the air, acting very superior.
"Mac and Brynn..." The girl sniffed. "Do you know them?"
"BBByyyrrgghhandddkkkallll"
"Okay... I'll take that as a maybe. Brynn really is quite unpleasant. I have a feeling she despises me greatly."
"Hrrrr..."
"Well, shall we go for a walk.. The floor is rather crammed..."
"AAaaaagggrrrtttlllee."
"This way."
The table of girls giggled even more as she led him out a door, towards the gardens. The Zombie personality controlling Bryce didn't know what to make of all this, except that he should like it. The girl smiled behind her mask, her face not visible.
"It can't be bad... After all, this is what you wanted..." The girl said to herself in her mind. "Get the mask off... Maybe he'll communicate normally... Magical costumes these days..."
Her eyes were deep brown, the only facial feature that could be seen. They darted up and down, scanning the Zombie once more. She stepped closer to the frightened creature (Bryce), and wrapped her arms around his neck. She found the spot where the mask ended, and pulled it off his face.
"Damn!" was the first thing Bryce said. "It's possessed! That costume had control over me! I had no opinion whatsoever in my own actions... Who are you?"
The girl gasped. Bryce hadn't been who she expected to be under the mask. He was her enemy's brother! He was however, very handsome...
"I shall keep that a secret, and oh yes, You're very welcome for me freeing you of the possessed mask."
"Oh... Thanks." Bryce said, shuffling his feet. He looked at the girl. He wanted to see who was behind the mask. From what he gathered, she was good-looking. She was about his height, which wasn't saying much, because Bryce wasn't very tall. "I still don't know who you are."
"I'll tell you... eventually..." said the girl, her eyes darting around once more.
"You like being mysterious? Tell me though, are you always like this?"
"Perhaps... I really can't decide for myself who I am..."
"Torn between two paths? I know how you feel..."
"Yes, but it's not quite like you'd expect. I'm different from the impression people usually get...."
"Go on..."
"Your voice doesn't sound familiar."
"It's not my voice. Mine is quite different. I like the way this one is smooth. It's supposed to match the costume."
"Oh, but it did. Very well might I add."
"Thank you... I liked your costume..."
"You like Zombies then? Prefer men not capable of speaking properly?"
"No, no, no... It was so real looking. I wanted to see the intelligent person behind it, capable f creating such a costume."
"Ahh... I didn't make it. Found it in Ethan's attic. Loads of interesting things there."
"I see what you mean... Ethan is who again?"
"The one in that revolting dinosaur costume. Pugnare... Ethan Pugnare. He's my nephew actually...That's how messed up my family story is..."
They both laughed aloud. Bryce smiled, looking at the girl once more. He still had no clue who she was. There was applause in the Great Hall, he supposed the costume awards had started. He wondered if he won anything.
"I'll tell you what." the girl said suddenly. "I'll meet you here tomorrow, at 9:30 sharp. But please don't tell your friends. I like
secrets. Things are more fun that way."
"Will I get to see your face?"
"Yes... That is if you come."
"I will. Wouldn't miss it!"
"Okay, I'll see you tomorrow evening then?"
"Of course. Goodbye!"
"Wait... One more thing. Close you eyes... Tight."
The mysterious girl pulled the mask up, and kissed Bryce softly. No one opened their eyes while kissing anyways. Bryce didn't see her, he wanted to keep things a surprise again. But he put his hands on her face. Her skin was soft, but that wasn't a lot of help. After a few seconds more though, she pulled the mask back over her face, waved, and walked off.
"Bryce Black... What are you doing?" Bryce sighed. He ran his fingers through his hair and couldn't help but smile... He liked this girl... She was capable of holding an intelligent conversation, unlike his French date from the last party...
The girl sighed to herself as well, as she walked the halls. She sighted her group of friends, and hurried to tell them what she had saw. The group was smaller now, down to but two girls. The both had their masks off now, and giggled furiously and smiled.
"Well, who was it?" The blonde one asked.
"You did find out who it was, right?" the one with red hair added.
"Of course..." the girl in white said. She still had her mask on.
"Well?!" both girls said loudly.
"Promise me, Marian, Terri... That you won't tell anyone... You're my best friends... Don't wreck this for me..."
"We swear... Come on... We reeeeaaally want to know!"
"Okay.,. Well I was right. He was very good looking." the girl smiled to herself. "He had nice eyes... nice hair... Nice face... Nice body... Great kisser..."
"You kissed him? OOOoOooO... Who was it?"
"I'm not sure if I should tell you... I mean..."
"JUST DO IT!" both girls screeched.
"Fine..." The girl in white took a long pause, and a deep breath, and blurted it was about to speak...
"Hurry it up already!" The blonde sighed.
"Bryce Black."
The blonde and the redhead (Marian and Terri) looked at each other and smiled ear-to-ear. They jumped up and down and squealed in delight.
"What are you two, 10 years old?" the girl in white hissed. "Grow up..."
"She's right Marian," the blonde said. "He is nice looking... But he's in Gryffindor! That's..."
"Forbidden. I know, I know... But still, I do like him..."
"You always were the daring one... Rather strange... I was eyeing up Bryce a few days ago... When you battled wits with Brynn." Marian said.
"Mair's got another point... Brynn... That's Bryce's twin sister!" Terri continued. "Does he know who you are yet?"
"No... I told him not to mention it to anyone. If we keep everything secret, Brynn'll never know."
"Well, good luck... Are you seeing him again?"
"Yes, tomorrow. At 9:30..."
"Well, you need your beauty sleep, let's get you to bed..."
"For most evil costume the winner is... Malicia Flagnare." Professor McGonagall announced.
Malicia stepped up and claimed her small plaque. She showed it off to the Slytherin table and took her seat by Felicity once again. Professor McGonagall read on...
"Most annoying... The person in the Dinosaur costume, since we can't figure out who you are..."
A few people pushed Ethan up to accept his award. He didn't know what was going on, really, but started to sing the alphabet once again...
"Voted by the students... The costume you would least like to see next year... Brynn Black and Irvin McKenzie... In their erm... Royal costumes..."
Brynn and Mac accepted their award as if it were something to be proud of. They demanded that Dumbledore (who had been cleverly disguised as a popular wizarding singer) leave his high chair, and McGonagall give up hers, so they had better places to sit.
"Best Monster costume... The Zombie... Excuse me, is he present?" McGonagall waited for a few minutes, but Bryce was at that point, outside with the girl in white. "Well, I'll just save this for our special Zombie friend..."
The hall laughed slightly... McGonagall didn't sound like her usual self tonight. "Overall best costumes... The one we have all been anticipating... Goes to... The Quidditch erm... Quaffle, Snitch, Bludger, and Beating Stick, please come and accept your award... We couldn't decide who was best... So all of you get an award... Congratulations..."
Crystal grinned. Felicity still hadn't confronted her, though she had figured out who she was. She laughed aloud. She had beaten Felicity again, but Felicity hadn't tried to win this contest... She didn't care about costumes at all...
Felicity glared. She was seated next to Malicia, who was even beginning to scare her. It seemed as if she really was a vampiress. Felicity folded her hands together and grinned... Any second now...
A purple mist filled the hall. At once, everyone began to scream. Felicity, Malicia, Ariana, and Blick sat calmly at their table and smiled. The mist was a sort of curse; everyone saw their greatest fear. Several people had fainted, or wet themselves. Crystal was freaking out, and clinging to Brian, who was also having a spazz attack.
This alone was priceless to Felicity, seeing Crystal scared. Then something grabbed her by the scruff of her neck. Tapping her foot, glaring and all, was Cate. Bellum stood behind her; little Jack (cute as a button!) dressed as a small pumpkin. Felicity smiled weakly, and sighed.
"I hope you're happy now..." Cate said, releasing her grip completely. "You'll never learn will you?"
Bellum tapped Cate on the shoulder. They were dressed as... Well... They were dressed as themselves basically. The way they looked when they first met. He handed her Jack, and rolled up his sleeves...
He cupped his hands, shooting a look at Felicity, and a green mist formed, spreading, and taking over the purple one. Everyone stopped screaming at once. Felicity looked disappointed, and sat back in her seat. Several girls cooed at how cute the baby was, and Cate smiled, which was something she really didn't do too often.
"Everyone to sleep!" she commanded, turning with her husband to go off to their large dormitory.
Well, of course not everyone went to sleep. Princess Brynn and Prince Mac were trying to find a place grand enough for them. The path they chose however, led to the gardens.
"No one's out here... 'Tis lovely though..." Brynn said, cut off by Mac, who started to kiss her.
"Mmmm Hmm..."
"But outside?"
"Why not, darling? We have rights to be anywhere in the school. We are, after all, Royalty."
Brynn didn't have another chance to reply, for she was caught up in another kiss. The characters of the costumes were still in possession of their bodies. They didn't have control over what they were doing...
"Mac!"
"Brynn!"
"What are you doing?" They said at once, both snapping out of the curse of the costumes. It was a good thing too; Brynn's dress was halfway off, and Mac's shirt was unbuttoned.
"The costumes, Brynn... That wasn't me..."
"They were controlling us both..."
"Well, don't zip that back up! It'll be in control of you again!"
"Do you purpose I walk around like this then?"
"Go for it... We need to find Ethan and Bryce now..."
"I think I saw Bryce go back to the common room."
"Ethan is probably running around..."
"Let's find him before he causes greater embarrassment to himself..."
Ethan was still in the Great Hall. He was the only one there too, which was rather lucky. "ETHAN!" Mac shouted, but Ethan paid no attention. He was still convinced he was Barney. Brynn shook her head and walked right up to her nephew and pulled off the head.
"Whoa... That was scary… Remind me NEVER to do that again..." Ethan said, something out his hair and shaking his head fearfully. "That thing was possessed!"
"Well spotted. That took real brains to figure out…" Brynn said.
"Shut up… I wasn't asking you anyways."
"Oh, we hail you great annoying costume…"
"Well I see you had no problem getting your costumes off…."
"That was low… Very low…" Brynn said, shoving Ethan off to the side, into the wall.
"Did I actually win a battle against the Almighty Brynn?"
"No… you were in pain for a brief amount of time… I win. You lose. Too bad."
Bryce was sitting, yes, sitting… In the common room. He didn't sit very often. He was usually in the center of all the noise, causing it. "I met a girl… I met a girl… Wait- - I met a girl that likes me! I met a girl I like! I met a girl I like! I wish I could tell someone… But she said not to… I think… I'm keeping my promise… Wow, I really do like this girl! I can't wait for tomorrow! 9:30…"
~*~
The next day rolled along slowly, for Bryce, and the girl as well. She could watch him between classes, but he still did not know who she was. He got to the Invisibility Cloak before Mac and Brynn did, and set off before they did too. He was in the gardens by 9:10.
"She's not early… She's not late… Will she come? Wait—I'm way too early. She'll show up… I wonder what she looks like… She has nice eyes… A nice body… She's intelligent… She can't be ugly!"
Bryce talked to himself quite often. Sometimes the voices answered back. This was not one of the special occasions. Then he heard footsteps. Then he saw the person who was making the footsteps. It was a girl of course. She was early too. She was still in her school robes. She was slim, and had very tan skin. Her hair was black, and fell to her mid back. The top of her hair was straight, and then it started to wave softly at the ends. She had the same deep brown chocolate eyes, and she smiled at him.
"Hello Bryce." She said softly. Her voice was different this day, just as she said. She had only changed it for the one night so no one knew her. This time, her real voice, was accented. With a soft Spanish accent.
"Hello Reina…" Bryce said. He recognized her now. She was very pretty indeed. She was the prettiest girl at Hogwarts in his opinion. But she was a Fourth Year Slytherin. Emphasize the word Slytherin.
"Do you hate me now?"
"Why would I? Just because you don't get along well with Brynn doesn't mean I don't like you…"
"I was letting the whole enemy thing get to my head… And the Gryffindor/Slytherin rule too. This is kind of… Forbidden."
"Yeah…"
"But that makes it better. It's more romantic that way."
"Ahh.. I see."
"Yes.
"Have a seat. I want to get to know you. You seem very interesting to me..."
Bryce told his life story, of his siblings, his life, his hobbies, and all stuff he found uninteresting. Reina however, loved it all. Bryce liked Reina's story better. Her family was from Spain, but she had been born in Britain with her older brother, and the rest of the family.
They sat and talked the entire time, about little things. For someone from Gryffindor, and someone from Slytherin, they clicked very well.
"Bryce... Still don't tell anyone. I don't think it's a good thing."
"In fact... We can pretend like we never met. Or else someone will ruin it. Let's meet here every night, unless we say something otherwise..."
"Okay... I can come every night but Fridays... We have card games in the common room. I win a lot.. Good way to earn a name for yourself when people fear to play you... not a half bad way to earn money either..."
Bryce laughed. "I think I'm always out of Quidditch by 9:30... We'd better make it 10:00 though... Cate's pretty strict. I don't see any way she'll change her plans either... Just because I have a date..."
"Okay, so if you don't show up, I'll know why?"
"Yup." Bryce checked his watch. "Well, Ethan's probably lonely. Brynn and Mac are probably out. I bet he jumps when I return. I have to stop at the Kitchens and tell him I was out for Food..."
He kissed Reina softly, and pulled her off the bench. They parted at the kitchens after a short kiss. Their relationship was opposite Brynn and Mac's. Brynn and Mac had a very physical relationship, while Bryce and Reina talked to each other most of the time they spent together.
"Where were you?" Ethan said, just as Bryce had predicted.
"Kitchens. Want a crumpet?"
"At the kitchens? For an hour and a half? And don't even tell me you got lost.. You know your way around better than anyone here in the entire school."
"Erm..."
"Yes?" Ethan suddenly grinned. "Is this what I think it is? Bryce... Did you meet a girl?" He added eagerly.
"Shhh! Yes, all right, but don't tell anyone. Please... Ethan, you're my best friend. Can you please keep this quiet? It's supposed to be secret..."
"Yes.. I can keep a secret Bryce... But who is it?"
"That is one thing I cannot tell you though. If I tell you, then I'd have to kill you."
"Ha. Ha. Ha. Fine... This is nice... What's she like?"
"She's wonderful... She's"
"What does she look like?"
"She's gorgeous..."
"More details? Please?"
"Nope, sorry mate. Can't tell you that either."
"Then how do I know you aren't making her up?"
"Damn... That's what I was hoping you were thinking. I really don't care what anyone thinks, just keep it a secret, Eath."
"Okay, I get you. I won't tell anyone."