The famous Halloween feast was finally here and my loudly grumbling stomach was appreciative.

A handful of students came plodding in, half in fancy dress. Wearing their grandmothers floppy, pointed hats that went out of style decades ago. Wearing bold coloured tights, homemade paper mâché hats and accessories that complimented their themed outfits. Some girls (and even a number of boys) wore big netted skirts, struggling to be concealed under their house robe; and others stuck by the rule of wearing uniform to all meals. Strictly...though the teachers didn't seem too bothered tonight.

The enchantment of the halls ceiling formed a thick fog above our heads, with the occasional fake bat swooping down, swinging from their strings and focused on scaring the first years. All squealing and getting a kick out of it. In the thick of the mist, still glowed the floating candles. Each one looking further away and harder to concentrate on than ever before. Tiny little fires appearing through the escaping mist as the bats swooped down on their prey.

It was all truly marvellous. The decoration, the mixture of costumes with uniforms, the grand meal of themed foods.

Pumpkin pie and juice served in goblets that charmed the drink mysteriously a bright green.
Red velvet cupcakes, filled with a cherry sauce that looked like blood.
The usual main meats and vegetables were served in realistic looking giant spider skulls (fake of course, Peter thoroughly checked and observed it was a plastic moulding).

Before I knew it the feast was over, and I couldn't wait until I could live in the moment all over again next year.

*
"What are you dressing as?" I asked Remus on the walk back to the common room. The others all immersed in trying to figure out the spell that made the orange pumpkin juice, green. For their own experiments I presume.

"Now that'll just spoil the surprise, wouldn't it?" He smirked.

"What if I don't recognise you?" I asked, a smile on my face but a genuine worry kicking in. I wanted to avoid as many awkward scenarios I could possibly find myself in as possible.

"That's the fun of Halloween, Arty! Fortunately for you though, I'm not covering my face"

"Fortunately? I'd rather if you did" I joked and he laughed and pretended to be hurt.

"Wow, who made you James all of a sudden?" He said. Spiking James' attention.

"Nothing personal Rem, a man can only get so erect. Hiding your handsomeness is just easier on us both." he winked. Sirius bashed into James' side.

"Look Potter, stay in your lane!" Sirius warned. Remus was chuckling as he picked up his pace to meet Peter, ignoring his other two friends.

"I'd definitely go gay for Remus. In a heartbeat." James said almost too seriously.

"Oh really?" I laughed,

"Look at his arse, Art. He's more perfectly toned than a new piano. Look, just look at him go! Fantastic specimen" He motioned towards the tall boy that was ahead. I felt a blush creep onto my face, even though I knew he was joking around.

"I'm not gonna look at his...I don't want to do that!" I couldn't even finish the sentence out of embarrassment.

"Oh yeah you do. I'll make sure he wears his extra tight trousers tonight for you. You can have a look when everyone's distracted!" James winked at me and walked off before I could protest.

"And for me too I hope, tight trousers are never a bad thing. Ever." Sirius said. I laughed at his comment, as we all finally departed to two different dorm rooms.

The process to the party beginning.

*
Alice emerged from the small dorm bathroom, making a dramatic entrance.

"Ta da! Made it myself!" She beamed with pride.

Alice spun around giving us a full look at her outfit. She wore a dusty blue coloured cropped vest, that was cropped herself. The scissor ripping on the bottom of the vest adding to the overall outfit. With it she wore black flares that she decorated with shiny fake scales. Patched on perfectly and all reflecting any light to the best of their ability and when she stood with her feet together, looked like a tail. She wore her long dark hair behind her back in a fishtail braid and pinned some springs that were decorated in dark green material at the crown of her head. Like seaweed floating above, entangled in her hair.

"A mermaid!" Gasped Marlene in awe.

"Not just any mermaid, the black lakes mermaids! From the DADA books! Right Al?" Lily beamed. Alice looked thrilled someone recognised where her inspiration came from.

"Oh guys you all look amazing!" Alice squealed in excitement and joy over the whole dressing up business.

Lily was dressed in a shiny blue lycra jumpsuit, with a puffy short blue skirt over the top. Her hair was pulled into two high pigtails and she had dusted the contours of her face with a light blue powder. A Cornish pixie was born in the creation.

I had put on the outfit James had suggested. White tights, and a faded navy blue dress with puffy sleeves and a frilled white apron. The skirt of the dress was heavily padded with layers upon layers of nettling to help round it out and Lily insisted i wore a black ribbon neatly tied in my hair. I hadn't asked yet who the outfit was based upon but it was quite nice. Not too costume like, just looked like an old babydoll type of dress that children would wear in traditional family photographs. Compared to Lily and Alice, James was right that this choice wouldn't gain as much attention as anything else would.

Marlene surprised me though, I had presumed she'd dress up extravagantly and yet here she was in a baggy pair of trousers that were rolled up at the ankles. Showing a pair of pulled up white socks. A comfy looking oversized jumper and trainers. She had dressed down if anything.

"Aren't you dressing up?" I asked her. She smirked.

"I'm almost done. I'll be back!" She strode towards the door and left it ajar. I suddenly heard the familiar sound of Remus laughing loudly across the staircase and then Marlene returned. This time with her wild hair scruffy pulled up in a constructed way for it to look short and Remus' denim jacket (looking far too big) on.

"I've been given the 'ok' for the final part." She spoke to us all as we watched her imitate a familiar walk over to the mirror. She grabbed a brown eyeliner and drew a faint line across her face. A scar.

"I'm Remus Lupin, highest IQ of the bunch. I spend my free time silently judging everyone, crying at happy parts in books like a large baby and fitting in 'its a curse to know everything, being smart is so hard. You wouldn't understand' into every conversation with Marlene McKinnon that I can!" Marlene perfectly imitated Remus' body language. Stuffing her hands into the jacket pockets and rested her body weight on her two feet that now were inverted inwards and balancing on the sides, never placed flat on the ground and perfectly mirroring his half slanted smile and slightly raised eyebrows when he speaks.

We all wandered downstairs, the common room already full of Gryffindor students. Ravenclaws starting to flood in too. In a blink of an eye chaos exploded into the common room, everyone piling in at once and instantly sorting out music and party games into different sections of the room.

Frank jumped up behind us all and screamed like a baby. Making us all jump out of our skin. We turned to face him. He was dressed as a mandrake, with a baby's bonnet on for comedic affect.

Alice and Frank went off to the Apple bobbing station that was set up by a hufflepuff girl dressed as a bumblebee. Hand in hand, a mermaid and mandrake baby.

Lily grabbed Marlene's hand and forced her to dance. Suddenly James came up behind her, in a bizarre costume.

"Always clinging onto Remus, aren't you Lily?" He joked at the fact Marlene was dressed up as his friend.

"James, what on earth are you wearing? Why?" Lily started uncontrollably giggling, a snort here and there. Like James loves.

"What are you?" I asked confused.

"He's a dentist!" Lily said through giggles, pushing James arm playfully.

"A what?" Both Peter and I said at the same time, him and Sirius appearing behind me. Peter was dressed as a pirate and Sirius was perhaps dressed as a pumpkin. I wasn't sure.

"A dentist. Sounds like a terrifying thing in the muggle world, they pull out your teeth and you thank them for it! Really strange!" James said looking amused with the idea.

"What are you, a poor attempt at a carrot?" Marlene piped up and signalled towards Sirius and his orange T-shirt, trousers and...my fluffy orange socks that had disappeared from my trunk. I let it slide.

"No. I'm the colour orange. Terrifying. It doesn't go with any other colour no matter how hard you try and then there's that saying that it doesn't rhyme with anything. It's just the worst colour." He said seeming passionate about it. He came as a colour.

"Who are you dressed as Arty?" Peter smiled at me, but before I could finally ask Lily. A deep voice vibrated behind me.

"Alice." Remus said. I turned around and took in his outfit.

He had two small curved twigs attached on top of his head, similar to how Alice did her springy seaweed crown. They couldn't have been picked randomly from the grounds, they were wonderfully shaped and mirrored each other almost identically. He had hung fake moss slightly off of them. He had painted a black nose and animal prints across his face...beautifully painted like a stag. He looked otherworldly, like a forgotten forest god.

"Uh, I think Alice went to catch apples" I mumbled, still in awe over how wonderful he looked, in still such a simple way. All he had done was make antlers and lightly painted some of his face.

"No" he laughed "Alice in wonderland, I love that story. It was one of my favourites growing up!" he smiled warmly down at me. I suddenly looked towards James who was smirking. He set this up, he knew what he was doing.

Telling me to wear the costume of Remus' favourite storybook character from when he was a child. He knew not many people would recognise it, but Remus would.

"In truth I haven't read it" I felt slightly ashamed that I hadn't, like I wanted to impress him and sit and discuss our outfits in great detail but didn't know the material well enough (or at all).

"I'll have to give it to you to read some time" he said casually and started to focus his attention on Marlene, to joke around with her about her outfit. I couldn't help but stare at him though.

His chestnut coloured hair seemed curlier than its usual wave, and danced upon his forehead worn more like a fringe than how he messily shakes it away from his eyes. Little tuffs stuck out, in curled flicks behind his ears and I had the strange compulsion to run my fingers through the waves of his short layers like Lily had done at the last party thrown. I felt jealous of her thinking about it, thinking about how she so freely twirled her fingers around his brown hair, creating ringlets with her fingers. So casually like it was no big deal. I felt jealous, like James had implied I did.

He wasn't caked in makeup but it was just enough for it to hide some of the features I'd usually pay attention to. You couldn't see the freckles that lightly were speckled across his nose and half of his big scar was covered by the paint. He had painted his top lip black, but left the bottom bare. It emphasised his Cupid's bow, making his lips look fuller. The scar that he frequently reopened was left on full display on his bottom lip, getting a slight tint of black from the makeup every time he opened and closed his mouth to speak. The colour slightly transferring.

"You look beautiful" I accidentally blurted out, still gawking in his direction. He looked a little shocked.

James pulled a wide eyed Lily away, over to get a drink. But he kept his eyes on me. Embarrassingly wiggling his eyebrows.

Peter had already slipped off somewhere without me noticing until now.

Marlene tried to motion for Sirius to leave but he lingered. Frozen to the spot. Eventually she dragged him away, over to Alice and Frank.

"Sorry? It's loud in here I think I misheard" Remus cleared his throat. A pink flushing into the parts of his face that wasn't covered.

"Uh, you're a deer right? The makeup is great!" I tried to save myself some embarrassment.

"I'm prong- I mean, I think you mean a stag. Deer don't have these bad boys!" He pointed at the fake antlers. I tried to laugh, or at least I did in my head but nothing came out.

"You look beautiful" I said again, on purpose this time.