Dandelions

PARTY IN A BOTTLE

The air in the dormitories was beginning to feel a little toasty as everyone began turning on the wood burning stoves in their rooms, leaving the air filled with embers and warmth for any Gryffindor walking around. Autumn had finally creeped its approach onto Hogwarts' grounds without so much as an announcement, leaving a chill in the air for anyone without their robe on to feel sink into their bones.

But there were much more pressing matters for the students to think about.

"Dressing up is not stupid," Maggie flatly stated, rolling her eyes when Fred and George opened their mouths to disagree. "We're, like, twelve. We're still kids."

"I'll have you know, Rory and Lee are thirteen," George said matter of factly, waving his finger around, "And we're close enough--that's too old for dressing up."

"Rubbish," she dismissed, "I'm dressing up as a fairy, and I'll have Rory dress up too."

"You gonna stand for that?" Fred asked Rory, nudging him with his elbow, "She's deciding things for you!"

"Honestly, she knows best," he mumbled, holding his hands up in defeat.

"Ugh, I forgot, he's completely whipped," the redhead groaned, covering his eyes with his hands. "Where are you even going, Maggie? You don't do parties."

"I'll have you know I was invited to one," she replied haughtily, crossing her arms over her chest.

"What?" George bit out, "How, where?"

"One of the seventh years is throwing one in her dorm," she rolled her eyes, "And I'm invited."

"Get us in," Lee pleaded quickly, leaning forward eagerly, "We'll do anything."

"Anything?" Maggie echoed in shock, "Just to get into some bedroom party?"

"We really have no other invites," George confessed, "And we refuse to be losers hanging out in our bedroom on Halloween, y'know?"

"Do us a solid, Church," Fred begged, "A favor from each of us, anything you need."

"Mm," Rory watched as Maggie hummed with satisfaction. It seemed she really enjoyed having all the boys wrapped around her finger in a matter of seconds, and he couldn't help but scoff out a quiet laugh. "I'll see what I can do."

"I see why you obey her every whim," Lee muttered, "She's terrifying."

"In a good way," Rory quietly agreed, a warm smile present on his face.

Even with an invite to a party, Rory still had no costume. Hallow's Eve was in less than a day, and he was still floundering around in shallow waters, desperately hoping to latch onto some half-baked idea. Maggie wasn't much help, only offering the same cat costume he'd somehow thought was a good idea last year.

The entire day before the holiday, he'd quietly deliberated on what he could do--some sort of closet costume that was easily within reach. Once again, though, he found his wardrobe to be hideously small in range. Nothing would suit any sort of costume. Rory really had given up hope, that his childhood was behind him, now he was a teenager that didn't dress up for Halloween any more.

Until just a few hours before the party, when Fred had said something really, really stupid.

"Just go as a vampire if you're going to whine so much," he'd huffed out, tossing a ball at the ceiling before catching it again. "You're already sucking the fun out of everything."

"That's brilliant," Rory gasped, "How can I charm my teeth, isn't there a spell for that?"

"There's a spell for everything, Rory," George quickly said, eyes glittering with mischief. The redheaded boy opened his charms textbook for probably the first time that week, flipping through the pages for anything that seemed relevant.