Chapter 19 – Halloween


HG


It was the day of Halloween, the corridors and the great hall were decorated with webs, pumpkins and other muggle and magical Halloween decorations alike. Hermione wasn't really a fan of the holiday, but the decorations at Hogwarts were out of this world. Hagrid was hanging the last streamers for the dance tonight in the great hall. The dance started at eight that night, so dinner was going to start early, so the festivities could begin on time.

Hermione had just waved Katie goodbye after potions as she made her way down to the library before dinner. The classes ended early that day, so it was only 3 in the afternoon when classes were over. Oliver found this a good idea to shove in another practice, since they had their first match in a week. So once again, Hermione was left to her devices as she wandered the corridors. She entered the library and without thinking about it twice, she walked to the back of the library. It was no surprise to her to see the lonely Slytherin at the table. She smiled as she approached the boy.

"Happy Halloween, Blaise."

"Happy Halloween." He said when he looked up from his paper. "So, are you sad you can't go to the dance?"

"Sad? No. Disappointed, a little." She smiled. "It's just, most of my friends get to go."

"At least you have Katie to keep you company."

"That's true. What are you doing tonight?"

"There is a small party in our common room tonight for the first and second years, but I'm not going."

"Why not?" Hermione inquired carefully. Although she had gotten to know him better over the last few weeks, it wasn't like she knew him like she knows her friends. He didn't talk much about his time with the Slytherins. She was too afraid to ask Harry or Ron about it, since they share some of the classes, afraid what they might think of her. But at least she never heard them talk about him, they mostly complained about Draco, his two bodyguards and a pigged-faced girl named Pansy.

The boy in front of her shrugged. "Draco and his minions will be there."

"Ah." She nodded. "But they can't all be bad."

"They are Slytherins." He stated.

"So are you." Hermione laughed softly. "And you're hanging out with me."

"Well, yeah. I don't care about blood status." He said firmly. Hermione looked surprised at him, her mouth hanging slightly open.

"So, you know... I'm a -"

"Muggle born? Yes. The loud whispers of the others Slytherins made me figure it out quickly."

"Oh." She said quietly looking down at her book. "What do they say about me?"

"Nothing worth repeating, believe me. And I don't agree with any of it."

"How is it you got sorted into Slytherin?" Hermione let out a dry chuckle.

"My whole family has been in Slytherin, for generations actually. The sorting hat actually considered putting me in Ravenclaw."

"I could see that." Hermione's smile returned. Hermione turned her head when she heard footsteps come closer to the hiding spot. Hermione and Blaise simultaneously let out a breath of relief when they saw it was Cedric who rounded the corner. "Hey, Digs. Happy Halloween."

"Happy Halloween, Mi." He smiled as he rummaged his bag. He stopped when he saw Blaise next to her. "Happy Halloween, Zabini."

"Same to you, Diggory." He gave short nod.

"Uhm, can I join?" He asked looking between the two. Hermione and Cedric looked at Blaise for a moment, when he gave nod, Cedric waved his wand over an old book and transfigured it into a chair for himself and placed himself next to Hermione. "I got you something." He said with a lopsided smile as he took out a small pumpkin shaped cupcake out of his bag.

"Thank you." She smiled brightly at the boy next to her, ignoring the smirk that Blaise send her. He winked at her before he pulled another one out of the bag and handed it to Blaise.

"I had a feeling you would be here." He said as he handed over the second pumpkin.

"Thanks." Blaise whispered with a look of surprise on his face as he accepted the cupcake.

"So, who's your date tonight?" Hermione nudged him playfully.

"Oaklee." Hermione frowned as girls popped up in her head, but she couldn't place the girl for the life of her. Cedric seemed to notice her thoughts. "She's a third year Ravenclaw."

"Oh, that makes sense." Hermione said with a nod, but the boys looked confused at her, so she elaborated. "That I don't know her. I know every girl's name from my house, I know most of yours." She pointed to Cedric. "And no offence Blaise, but I don't see Cedric taking out a girl from Slytherin."

Blaise shrugged. "Non taken. Most of the girls in our house look..." He didn't finish the sentence, but his face said it all, making Hermione and Cedric fall into a laughing fit.

"Oh." Cedric said as he stopped laughing but the smile still plastered on his face. "The twins asked me to give you this." He said as he took an envelope out of his coat.

Hermione accepted it cautiously, afraid it would explode or do something. When it didn't do anything, she tried to open it.

"No can do, love." Cedric said with a smirk he adopted from the twins. "It will open in..." He looked at his watch. "About four hours, just make sure you're still dressed."

Hermione looked up from the envelope. "You know what this is about?"

"I might have an inkling." He shrugged.

Hermione started to jab his side. "You better tell me, Cedric Diggory or else!"

"Or else what?" He teased. His grin faltered a bit when she took out her wand. Blaise leaned back in his chair, a smile on his lips as he enjoyed the show. "Mi, you know the twins, you know me. It's nothing bad, I promise."

Hermione still had her wand pointed at his chest. He saw it in her eyes when she gave in. "Alright, but if you're lying."

"You'll hex me and the twins, believe me, we know."

Hermione happy with that statement, pocketed her wand and leaned back in her chair, a smile on her face.

They didn't study or worked on school essays that afternoon, they talked a bit about the dance and about the upcoming match between Gryffindor and Slytherin. Blaise wasn't really into quidditch, so it didn't matter to him which team should win. The conversations went flowingly. It was the first time Cedric and Blaise had a real conversation, but you wouldn't know that if you saw them talking together. It was nearing six o'clock when they left the library. Blaise went out first before Hermione and Cedric walked out the library together.

"So, how do you feel about Gavin going with Alicia tonight?" Hermione asked as they walked through the corridors.

Cedric shrugged. "I don't mind. I had one date with Alicia and like I expected it didn't go anywhere."

"Like you expected?"

"When she asked me last month, I just said yes because she came out of nowhere. I didn't expect her to ask me so bluntly, she took me by surprise, and I blurted out an okay."

"Why didn't you tell her afterwards?"

"She's one of your friends." He said as they rounded a corner. "I didn't want to hurt one of your friends. So, I thought one date couldn't hurt."

"You're a good guy." She smiled as she bumped him. "At least you have a date of your own choosing tonight."

"Hm, that's true." He said as they stopped in front of the great hall. "Have great time tonight." He winked as he strode away.

"Just tell me!" She called after him. Cedric looked over his shoulder with a grin. "A hint, one hint?" But Cedric just waved at her before he turned back. "Prick." Hermione grumbled with a smile.


HG


Hermione and Katie were sitting in the common room, still fully dressed as they waited for the others to arrive downstairs. The boys came down first, all in clean muggle attire. The three of them wore dark jeans with a vest on top. Fred and George both wore a colourful vest with fireworks on them. It was going to be hard for the girls to see who is who tonight, but maybe (probably) they did that on purpose. Lee, who looked a bit nervous, wore a navy-blue vest that suited him perfectly. Hermione jumped up from her seat and walked over to the boys, putting her attention on Lee first.

"You look handsome." She said as she adjusted his collar. "Lena is one lucky girl."

"Thanks, Granger." Lee pulled her in a hug. "I better get down there, I'm supposed to meet her in front of the Hufflepuff common room in ten minutes."

"Alright, have fun." She smiled as he walked nervously out the common room. She turned back to the identical dressed twins. "You two!" The twins looked away from the portrait hole and down at her. "Are you really going down dressed like this?"

"You don't like it?" Fred asked, eyebrows high before the two of them twirled in front of her, showing of their outfit.

"No, I like it. I suites you to a t." She shook her head with a smile. "But dressing the same? Most of whole Hogwarts can't tell you apart on a normal day."

"But for some reason you can." George bopped her nose. "Or can you?" He asked daring.

"I can, I always can Georgie." She grinned wickedly at him.

"How?" George whined to his brother.

"One day we'll know." Fred stated. "I'm glad to see you're still dressed." He said as he looked from her to Katie, who was talking to a few gloomily looking second years as they watched the older students walk out to the dance.

"We are. Care to tell me why we needed to be dressed."

"You'll see." Fred grinned.

"In about twenty minutes."

Hermione huffed as she crossed her arms over her chest. "I hate you two."

"You love us." They chimed with a grin.

"But we better get going." George said patting her head.

"Going on the prowl." Fred snickered. Hermione and George rolled their eyes at him.

"Have fun tonight." George called over his shoulder as they walked to the portrait hole.

Hermione pursed her lips at the boys who disappeared behind the portrait.


HG


She was just about to head back to the couch when Angelina and Alicia appeared on the staircase. Katie had walked away from the kids she was talking to and stepped up next to Hermione. Both of their mouths had dropped open at the sight of the two girls.

"You two look amazing." Hermione exclaimed.

"Thanks." Alicia said, twirling around in her pink knee length dress with puff sleeves. Katie's eyes were locked on Angelina though as she swallowed thickly. Angelina wore a navy-blue knee length dress with a lace boat neck.

"You look-" Katie choked out, Angelina's eyes firmly on her the moment she stepped down in the common room. Katie never got to finish her sentence as Angelina's date appeared next to her.

"Ready to go?" He asked as he offered his arm. Angelina tore her eyes away from Katie to look at Oscar.

"Uhm- yeah. Let's go." Angelina locked her arm with his and with one last look to Katie, she disappeared from view. Alicia followed them out as she agreed to meet Gavin at the great hall.

"Hey, are you okay?" Hermione whispered to Katie as she gently touched her arm. Katie snapped out of her gaze and looked at Hermione with large eyes.

"I-" She started but was interrupted again when the letter from the twins flew out of her coat and started talking, it looked like a howler, she had seen the twins receive once, but instead of shouting it talked quietly in the twins' voices.

"Miss Granger, miss Bell." George voice started talking.

"We would like to invite you to a party."

"We know that you're not allowed to join us in the great hall but-"

"We made plans for you, you two are invited to join the badgers in their house tonight." Fred voice said in a very official way, a way neither of them heard the twins talk before.

"For a little Halloween party for you youngsters."

"Just walk to the corridor where the kitchens are and stop in front of the three stacked barrels.

"Tap each barrel in the rhythm of our Hogwarts song and the door will open."

"Have fun you two." Cedric's voice ended the letter.

The letter vanished with a pop and Hermione and Katie looked at each other in surprise, both eyes wide.

"Alright, I didn't expect that." Hermione laughed as she pointed at the place the letter had vanished.

"Me neither." Katie smiled. "But let's get to our own party, shall we?" Katie turned and offered Hermione her arm. Once linked they both walked out of the common room and made their way to the badger's den.