A Very Unusual Party
By the time that October came around, Luna had gone back to her usual if somewhat dreamy self. She wasn’t going around barefoot anymore, and it helped that she actually had some friends. If the first years still thought, she was a bit ‘loony’ they didn’t say it to her face anymore because they were worried about getting hexed by Luna's new friends.
Luna and the second year Ravenclaws were eating dinner after a long Saturday in the library. They were eating large portions of beef casserole whilst discussing different hexes and jinxes they had been reading about. They had had enough of how little they were learning from Lockhart the group had decided to try and figure out how to defend themselves!
Anthony and Irwin were in the middle of discussing the jelly legs jinx when a very wet and muddy Harry flopped down at their table.
“Hello Harry!” said Luna dreamily.
“Hi Luna,” replied Harry as he sat down.
“And what has happened to our usual cheery Harry today?” asked Lisa.
Harry merely scowled at her.
“Yeah why aren’t you bouncing off the walls?” asked Terry.
“And why are so muddy?” added Michael.
“It's Wood!” he admitted serving casserole on to his plate. “He has gone crazy! We are practising every single day, he is obsessed with beating Slytherin!”
“I thought you wanted to beat Slytherin too? You know show Malfoy who’s the better seeker?” asked Padma.
“Yeah you’re right, but Wood got us up at five o’clock, we practised for about ten hours today and it's chucking it down with rain! I want to beat Malfoy but I don’t want to get ill dong it?”
“Oh Harry, you’re not ill are you?” asked Anne
“No I’m fine just starving, to top it all not only did I have ten hours of practice but I then ran into Filch!”
The Ravenclaws groaned.
“What the hell did he want this time?” asked Anthony.
“he tried to give me detention for ‘befouling the castle,’” moaned Harry as he shovelled food into his mouth. “He would have gotten away with it to if it hadn’t been for Nick!”
“Oh, that’s nice, did you know its nearly his 500th death day?” asked Anne.
“Ahh!” Harry screamed, “I just remembered I promised I’d go to that thing! It’s a bloody shame it’s on the same day as the Halloween feast!”
“Don’t worry its ok, Anne and I are going too,” said Irwin. “The Grey Lady invited us, apparently Nick wants a few students there to make himself look better in front of the headless hunt or something.”
“I’m quite looking forward to it,” muttered Anne, “a death day party could be quite fascinating!”
“Yeah well I’d much rather be at the feast!” replied Harry.
“Do you boys ever think about anything apart from food?” asked Mandy.
“No!” replied Terry, Michael and Harry spraying food everywhere.
The day of Halloween arrived, and Harry was still groaning about the party.
“Dumbledore’s apparently booked some really good entertainment! And the food is amazing!”
“You promised!” rebuked Hermione.
“But the food!” muttered Harry and Ron.
“Still moaning, are you?” asked Irwin.
“Nah not really,” replied Harry.
“I’ll tell you what,” said Anne, “if you’re really that hungry we can go get some food from the kitchens after the party.”
“Thanks, Anne! You’re brilliant you know that?” said Harry beaming.
Anne blushed.
They had now reached the room where the party was being held. They went through the door and Anne nearly gagged. She had been hit by the smell of rotting food, there was a table in the middle of the room covered in mouldy and rotting food including a putrid fish.
“Hello!” called Nick, “Thank you all for coming!”
“That’s alright,” said Harry, “anything for a friend!”
Anne was still attempting to hide her gagging behind her hands.
“Hello, Anne, dear,” said the Grey Lady as she came gliding over, “sorry I forgot to warn you about the food!” she muttered so that Nick couldn’t hear.
“Oh, don’t worry that’s alright, I’ll just try and keep away from the table!”
“Oh good,” Helena beamed, “now why don’t I introduce you all to some of my friends?”
Nick was still busy talking to Harry Ron and Hermione, so Helena led Anne and Irwin to a small group of other ghosts.
“This is the Fat Friar, he is the Hufflepuff ghost,” Helena said beckoning to a short fat ghost wearing monks’ robes.
“It is a pleasure to meet you!” said the friar. “Are you by any chance a Scamander?”
Irwin nodded.
“Ah, then you must be Irwin! Your brother Rolf has told me many good things about you!” continued the friar, “incidentally you look remarkably like your grandfather!”
“And so this,” he said turning towards Anne, “must be Anne Potter? Helena has told me many great things about you and Irwin, she misses you greatly when you go home for the holidays”
If it was possible for a ghost to blush, the Grey Lady was now blushing.
Anne and Irwin talked to the friar for a while, he had a lot of stories about what Newt had got up to at school! They were soon joined by Harry Ron and Hermione and the group were listening to the Friar telling them all about a time that Newt had managed to sneak a niffler into the Hufflepuff Common Room only for it go around stealing peoples things when they were rudely interrupted.
They looked up to find that they were being pelted with mouldy nuts.
“Oh look! Its Potter wee Potter!” cackled Peeves pelting them all with nuts.
“Peeves, please leave us alone!” said the Friar gently.
Peeves shut up but only so that he could stick out his tongue.
A ghost who was much younger than the others and was covered in pimples came drifting over to the group.
“Hello Myrtle!” greeted Hermione.
“Hello,” mumbled Myrtle.
“Is there something wrong dear?” asked the friar kindly.
Myrtle said nothing but merely glared at Peeves.
“Ah,” said Helena, “Peeves have you been bullying Myrtle again?”
“So, what if I have?” cackled Peeves, “she only Moaning Myrtle!”
Myrtle looked like she was about to start crying.
“And she is covered in spots! Spotty!” said Peeves now pelting Myrtle with the nuts. Peeves chased Myrtle around the room throwing nuts and insults at her.
“That poltergeist, I sometimes wish we could expel him” muttered the Grey Lady.
“Now now Helena, everyone deserves a second chance” interrupted the Friar.
“He’s had countless chances!”
But the two ghosts were interrupted from their argument over Peeves. Half a dozen ghosts had just come charging through the wall on horseback screaming at the top of their lungs.
“Oh, here we go again,” said the Friar.
“The Headless Hunt!” finished the Grey Lady.
“Oh yeah that’s right!” exclaimed Harry, “I’m supposed to be talking Nick up to that lot!”
Harry Ron and Hermione started to head over to Nick and the Headless Hunt.
“Poor Nick,” said the Friar shaking his head.
“He’s so desperate to join them but they just won’t let him!” said Helena.
“He’s better off without them in my opinion!” said Irwin, “they look like a bunch of prats!” The Headless Hunt had just started playing head hockey interrupting Nick’s speech.
“You’re right young Irwin, he’s far too kind!” agreed the Friar.
After talking to the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw ghosts for a while longer Harry Ron and Hermione came over.
“I’m starving!” complained Ron.
“Yeah can we go get some food now?” asked Harry.
“Oh alright then, it's just along here,” said Irwin, “Come on Anne!”
“Goodbye Helena, Friar!” said Anne waving at the guests as she followed the others out the room.
“We’re already in the dungeons it’s just along here,” said Irwin leading them towards the kitchens.
They were heading along the passage when Harry stopped in his tracks.
“Can you guys hear something?” asked Harry.
“You’re probably just imagining things!” said Hermione.
“Yeah hallucinating from lack of food!” laughed Ron.
Harry though turned around and started heading away from the dungeons.
“Harry? Harry what’s going on!” panicked Anne for Harry was now pressing his ear to the wall and then running up the stairs.
“Following the voice! It’s going to kill someone!” shouted Harry not stopping his running.
Ron Hermione Irwin and Anne followed Harry out of the dungeons. But he didn’t stop in the Great Hall where they were just finishing dinner but kept running up to the first floor.
“Harry calm down mate!” shouted Ron as he sprinted to catch up with Harry.
“Come back!” called Anne struggling to keep up with him.
Harry came to a sudden stop however when he reached a deserted passageway on the first floor which was lit with torches.
“Harry!” called Ron breathlessly “what the hell was that about!” as the others caught up with Harry.
“We couldn’t hear anything!” said Irwin.
Anne, however, was pointing to something shinning on the wall, however.
The others turned to look. At the end of the corridor in foot-high letters shining in the torchlight was written.
The Chamber of Secrets has been opened. Enemies of the Heir beware.
“What the…” muttered Ron.
“What’s that?” asked Hermione nervously pointing to something hanging by the writing
They walked towards the sign and found Mrs Norris stiff as a board and hanging from a torch bracket.
‘Um guys” faltered Irwin, “that’s not written in ink, that’s blood,” he said pointing towards the message.
Anne was starting to feel dizzy again, she wasn’t sure if it was from lack of food or panic. Probably a combination of the two.
“Let's get out of here!” called Ron.
As Irwin started to steer the shocked Anne away from the scene however, they began to hear the chatter and bustle of the crowds of students coming back from dinner.
“Bugger!” muttered Harry, as they were surrounded by students.
“Ok Anne, now you can panic!” whispered Irwin.