Halloween 1993

-Chapter One-

Getting ready

"Students, settle down, settle down," said McGonagall. "Mr. Weasley that was quite unnecessary." She continued trying to settle the students down. Why they were doing this was she had no idea. When Dumbledore said at the beginning of the year that it would be "fun" if the students did some of the muggle traditions she had no idea that it would involve them to dress up and go door to door collecting candy. She thought that this was quite rude, but Dumbledore assured her that muggles did this once every year. So for the last two months they had been making preparations for the night of October 31^st. The students were told at the start of the year feast that they were going to participate in some muggle activities threw out the year but did not find out what Dumbledore meant till exactly one month before the date. So on September 30^th Dumbledore announced during super that in the next month...

"Everyone will be participating in this great event. I am pretty sure a couple of the muggle-born will remember that one month from now is Halloween. I would like you all to find a costume, make one if you want, so that on October 31^st we can all go out trick or treating... During this time I will allow student to go off in groups of five or MORE, due to safety reasons, to collect your treats. Your head of house will explain the rest on a later date . . . So without further ado, dig in."

The house elves had work extra hard for this "feast" as it was not normally on the agenda. The second Dumbledore finished his speech, the hall (exception from the Slytherins) burst into loud cheers. Most of those who had grown up in a wizard home had no idea what Trick or Treating was and were confused as to what all the fuss was about. Until they're muggle-born friends explained it to them.

After the feast the students made it back to their respective common rooms still talking about how much fun the next month was going to be. Back in the common rooms, Ron sat down still puzzled by the evening events.

"...So let me get this straight, we are going to be aloud to go out into the muggle world dressed up as whatever we want, go door to door and ask for candy?"

"Ron, what's not to get. That exactly what we are going to do. It's going to be so much fun. I haven't been trick or treating in - Oh! Has it only been two years? Well I was ten anyway. I went out as a witch actually," said Hermione mater-o-factly.

"You went out as a witch and didn't get caught?" said Ron sounding amazed.

"Number one, yes I did, because at the time I didn't know I was a witch . . . two, people go out as witches all the time. Because, well, they're muggles and to them the wizarding world doesn't exist. They go out as vampires, witches and wizards, pumpkins, devils, Scream (it a character from a movie, Ron), angels, and a whole bunch of things."

Ron just sat there and stared at Hermione while Harry sat down next to them and said, "Well, I personally have never been Trick or Treating, but I remember Dudley used to come home with pillow cases full, and of course I was never aloud to have any of it. He used to be gone for hours and his parents would get so worried then they would blame me when he didn't return by 8. I had supposedly scared him away . . . " He was drowned out by Ron laughing at what he had just said.

"Well, if Dumbledore thinks its safe enough for us to go then we best start deciding what kind of costume we are gonna wear," said Hermione

"Why don't we just wear our School clothes? You said it yourself 'Mione. The muggles don't care on this special occasion," Ron finished, seeming proud of himself for finding a solution so quickly.

"Nah. What would be the point of that? Oh, Hermione, you could go as a cat. We could just brew a Polyjuice potion and add some cat hairs, " said Harry giggling before Hermione slapped him upside the head.

"Ow!"

"Serves you right. Anyway we have a whole month to decide and I suggest we start looking. Making a costume will take quite some time."

The next morning, the trio went down for breakfast. Harry glanced at Hermione and saw that she was wolfing down her breakfast faster then normal.

She noticed him and said, "I wanted to go down to the library for a bit." "Want to come?" she added.

"Er . . . Sure but what is it we are looking for," he asked.

"Costume ideas!"

"You guys' can go, I have to finish Snape's homework assignment," Ron added before going back to his meal.

In the library, Harry was having no luck. Hermione obviously was because she kept shouting out costumes that she could use or that would be easy to make.

"Oh here's one, I could go out as a dead house maid." Harry's head snapped up.

"Why on earth would you want to do that?" She continued looking.

They spent the next two days in the library looking threw books and still hadn't found anything. A week later, Hermione had finally decided that she wanted to be a 50's girl. Harry was still having trouble deciding when Hermione suggested that he could go as a pirate. Since he had noting else he thought, 'why not it was better then noting...' Ron had been putting it off all week and still had no idea what he wanted to be...

A couple days previous, Jenna Malfoy had approached the trio and asked what they thought of her costume.

"You've made it already?" they all asked. "How?"

"Easy! I decided I wanted to be a Cheerleader right after the feast and I made it over the weekend." "It wasn't that hard, there are a bunch of patterns and stuff in the library," she added at the look on their faces.

"I don't even know what I want to be yet!" said Ron astonished.

"You'd better hurry up you know there is less then a month left. Oh and if you need any help, don't hesitate to ask," she said smiling before turning round and heading towards the library.

"That was odd coming from a Malfoy," Ron said staring at the place that Jenna had been seconds before.

"I swear she can't be a Malfoy, I don't care what anyone says," said Hermione.

"Maybe she was adopted," added Harry.

As Halloween drew closer Harry and Hermione set to work on their costumes. Dumbledore and a couple of the professors had gone into the muggle London and got a bunch of fabric so that the students would be able to make their own costumes. Dumbledore rearranged the library so that there was more room for students by removing the tables and chairs, so it was now impossible to read or study in there and the students had to resort to working in their common rooms. Ron on the other hand wasn't having much luck. He still had no idea what he wanted to be despite the millions of suggestions he had gotten from Harry, Hermione and Jenna.