Wednesday, June 11th, 2008 at 10:27pm

((Elle approved me godmodding her. Pam (and Elle, too haha) if you have any problems with what I've written, let me know and I'll change it.))

Mysti took a moment to glance at her watch. It was 10:27pm and she was still out.  Of course, it was all for fun.  She looked over at her friends, and allowed some more streamers to shoot out of her wand.  Those streamers flew gently and neatly onto a suit of armor in a hallway on the seventh floor.  Most of the statues and suits of armor were decorated in the same bright fashion.  They may not have quite appreciated it, but the three girls certainly did.

Mystique Ketteridge, Darcy Bloxham, and Fauna Blake were on a mission to make Hogwarts more beautiful.  Or at least more colorful.  They also thought it would be a fun way to let out some stress during finals week.  Only a few more tests and the girls would be separated for the summer.  Of course, they would most likely take some time to meet up and share stories of what had happened so far.  But until then, they decided they needed to make the most out of the time that they had left.  And what better way to spend it than “beautifying” the school’s statues? Quite a brilliant idea they had though. And quite lucky that they hadn’t had any trouble... yet.

Because then at that very moment, Mysti heard a noise down the hallway.  Ears perking up, she could hear the faint ’tap tap tap’ of footsteps on the floors of the castle.  A look of fear spread across her face as she looked over at the other two girls.  They were still laughing lightly and shooting streamers out of their wands.  Making sure she was indeed hearing the footsteps, she whispered warnings to her friends.

“Guys... I hear footsteps!”

Watching as the two others stopped what they were doing, Mysti’s ears perked up once more.  Now she could hear faint voices.  Afraid to get caught, she decided the best choice was to run for it.

“Run!” She said, not too loud, but loud enough for the other two girls to hear her.

Heading in the opposite direction as the voices and footsteps, Mysti started running as fast as she could.  Knowing that Fauna could at least run well from their encounter with Nifflers, she hoped that Darcy could also keep up.  She figured she could as the girl was also in pretty good shape from quidditch.  Hearing the other girls behind her, Mysti wished that they had some place safe to hide.  If only there were a nice big room in which they were able to blend in or hide!

If she had been paying attention, Mysti would have seen the big door appear out of nowhere.  But she hadn’t been able to witness that part. Then Mysti saw the door on the side of the corridor.  She hadn’t remembered seeing it on their way up there, but hoped that it would serve well enough as a hiding place.  

“Quick! In here!” She told Fauna and Darcy as she opened the door.

Inside of this room were massive amounts of items.  Mysti was in awe once she stepped inside and nearly froze on the spot.  The two other girls nearly ran into her as she stopped.  Coming back into her mind, Mysti closed the door and stepped further inside the massive room.  Some areas seemed burnt from something, but there were many items still intact. Turning towards the two other girls, she mouth that had probably been gaping.

“Where are we? I don’t think I’ve ever seen this room before. I didn’t even know there was such a place here!” Mysti said, still quite in awe. “Have either of you been here before or heard of this place?”

Still looking around, Mysti waited to see what her friends thought. What a way to close out the year! Adventures were definitely the way to go. Especially when you came across such a find!  There must have been millions of items in the room!

Fauna cheeks were pink, but not from embarrassment. She had a case of the giggles and it seemed the more she tried to be quiet, the more laughter crept up on her! It wasn’t too unexpected, considering she was with some of her favorite people, Mysti and Darcy. They never failed to bring in the good times and make her forget her worries. Exams were almost over and the end of the school year was so close she could feel it! Fauna had been antsy, sad, and excited all at once this week. It was after a long, dreary day of studying in the common room that the three Hufflepuffs had decided they needed a bit of stress relief. What could be better than giving makeovers to Hogwart’s most stalwart guardians? Sure, the suits of armor were shiny, but they could always use more pizzazz.

For the past hour or so the girls had taken the seventh floor by storm, decking out the various statues, suits of armor, and paintings in their finest. Fauna’s definition of “finest” looked like paintballs of every color had exploded in the corridors, but it was the spirit of the task that mattered. They draped scarves, hats, glasses, clothes, and cheap jewelry over the various animated denizens of the castle, who sadly had no way of defending themselves. The protests of the portraits fell on deaf ears, and the sighs of the armor went unnoticed. Fauna, oblivious to the armor’s eye-roll, stuck a straw hat over his helmet and stepped back to admire her work. He looked like a tin man had collided with a scarecrow, with the flannel shirt draped over his chest, his arms stretched out sideways, and the straw heaped at his feet.

Just as another giggle bubbled up inside her, Mysti announced that they were not alone! Fauna gathered up her tools of mayhem and ran alongside the two girls, laughing breathlessly. It wouldn't be so horrible if they got caught, she supposed. She wasn’t doing anything bad (like snogging someone on the grounds), but it was fun to imagine they were trying to escape an awful fate, like another horde of nifflers or an ambush of flying paintballs.

Mysti pulled her into a room that she hadn’t noticed before, and as the door shut behind them she stared at the place, so surprised her giggles dissipated. The room smelled like burnt ash, smoke, and what she suspected was dragon droppings. The large space was full of a strange assortment of items- strange, even for Hogwarts!- and things were piled on top of each other in a mess that reminded her of her kitchen at home, after her grandmother had tried to cook a meal.

Thinking that perhaps it was used for storage, Fauna frowned when Mysti wondered if either of them had seen anything like this before. She shook her head. She hoped the smell didn’t mean a dragon was actually living in there! As outrageous as that worry might seem, she was no longer as trusting of what people hid in storage rooms after that ghoul incident with Vienna.

“I… I don’t know,” she admitted, stepping over a toilet seat, a dishtowel, and what appeared to be the remnants of a dung bomb.

Fauna glanced at the hats in her arms and wished she had a good place to set them down. She usually charmed her hats to hang from the dorm ceiling, but she’d always wanted a nice, big wardrobe, perhaps, or a walk-in-closet. At home, she had to share space with her older sister, who dominated their closet with shoes and trendy outfits.

She walked around a collection of enchanted snitches, which fluttered at her presence and kept knocking themselves out against the glass of their container, when suddenly, a wardrobe appeared in front of her eyes. Fauna blinked, trying to think if that had been there before. “Oh… look!” She called out to her friends and opened the delicate wooden doors, hoping she’d find something fun and bright…

Dresses and cloaks and yet more hats! The inside of the wardrobe seemed to stretch on and on, the space inside expanded to hold everything that it needed to. Fauna could step into it, if she wanted. She set her hats on an empty shelf, conveniently within in her reach and just big enough to hold her possessions.

“Wow! What are the chances… of finding something like this in here?” she exclaimed, continuing to lean in until she lost her balance and fell.

To her surprise, a pillow appeared before her knees and cushioned her fall. She looked back at the girls, impressed.

“Thanks! That was…” That was fast. And the two other hufflepuffs looked just as confused as she did!

Although she had promised Lizzy time and time again that she would follow school rules and study and be the greatest student and beater that Hogwarts had ever seen, Darcy could never give up her most favorite past-time in the entire world:  late-night adventuring.  The moment curfew set in, it seemed the walls vibrated with a kind of danger and excitement matched only by Quidditch, and even then it surpassed the game by a hair.  Darcy was still a little shaky from her Charms exam.  She was sure she did well, but not so certain that she passed with flying colors.  She still had trouble with her wandwork.  Her wrist never wanted to stay straight, she was always hooking it this way or that.  No matter, what was done was done, and Darcy needed to get her confidence back.  What better way to do so than to do something for others, like beautify the hallways?  Their majesty would inspire greatness in others, and make the walk feel less like a march to execution. 

She was still a little shaky, taking a moment longer than usual to settle the floating chapeau above her beloved knight's head.  The streamers already gave him long locks that made him seem quite celebratory.  The paper hat with a matching streamer veil fitted him well.  She was certain he would be smiling if it were possible.  "Looks great, guys!" she whispered to her two cohorts, Mysti and Fauna.  They were two of her best friends and Darcy treasured their company like no other.  Their laughter was what made the walls vibrate and her nerves tingle with excitement, the fun of scheming with friends and coming up with fun adventures.  That Mysti was a teammate on the Quidditch team made it even better.

A giggle broke through her lips as she looked her knight over once more. She didn't even hear the footsteps approaching until Mysti's hissed whisper.  Darcy immediately froze, her eyes going wide before she burst back into actions, turning away from the staircase and scampering down the hall after Mysti and Fauna.  The only thought in her mind was RUN! and her feet eagerly obeyed.  Just a few feet behind Fauna, Darcy was glad to see a door open up and eagerly ducked in after the older girl.  She shut the door behind her, leaning back against it with a sigh as she let her heart catch up with the rest of her.  It was only then that she realized just what kind of room they had walked into.

It was a treasure trove, straight from Ali Baba.  Darcy's smiles grew to see the various objects, they mostly dingy and in disrepair, and her mind began swirling with the possibilities.  "I've never heard of this place before," Darcy answered, although to be honest she was more concerned with the long intricate pipe she found than why it was there in the first place.  "Maybe this is Hogwarts' attic?" she supposed, running her fingers down the length of the enchanted glass.  She rubbed the dust off, smiling to see her reflection picking its nose.  Darcy vaguely pondered the bogeys lying hidden in her own nose and whether she was due for a later cleaning before turning back to her friends. 

Fauna had made her own discovery, and Darcy let out a small squeal at the sight of so many clothes and hats and fabrics and feathers and SHINY THINGS!  She scurried over, landing on a similarly magical appearance of fluff.  "Ooooh, this is nice, though," she murmured, eager to dig through their find but also in awe of its wonder.  It seemed almost blasphemous to lay her fingers on such wondrous materials, but Darcy's excitement was more than its match.

“Wow! What are the chances… of finding something like this in here?”

“I have no idea... This is amazing though!” Mysti said as she started wandering even more among the items of the room.

"Ooooh, this is nice, though."

Mysti looked over and smiled at Darcy, who was getting distracted by shiny things. She then watched as Fauna toppled over and a pillow magically appeared.  Slightly confused, she found herself laughing at the happening.  A moment of paranoia swept over her and she took a look at the door.  Reassured, Mysti started wandering around even more.  Aisles upon aisles of items hidden in this room, all for her and her friends to explore!

Looking through an aisle of books, there were some dark magic books, and then some more racy books.  Mysti wandered even further and came across some more wardrobes like Fauna had come across.  She opened one of them and found a bunch of really old fashioned robes.  Dress robes, as well as house robes had somehow made their way into this dresser.  Pulling out an outrageous neon pink and lilac purple robe, she put it on. Laughing at her reflection, she was about to make her way back over to the other two girls when she found a hat to go with it.  When Mysti thought that the hat would go perfectly with the robe, she meant it in the way that it was also quite horrendous.  Colored orange and green, it topped off the outfit that she was wearing.

So clad in green, orange, neon pink and lilac purple, Mysti went over to her friends.  Laughing as she walked, she nearly tripped a few times because of the length of the robe.  Now Mysti was a tall girl, but it seemed as though this robe belonged to half giant.  Or perhaps a very flamboyant guy.  Then again, fashions from back in the 70’s tended to be a bit crazy.

“So, what do you think? Seems like something that Neely and her group would just love to have.” Mysti said, laughing.  She did some kind of a twirl to show it off and stumbled yet again. This time she was unable to catch herself and tripped on the hem and fell over. “Ooooh!”

Then, just as had happened to Fauna, a magical pillow had appeared where she was about to fall.  With a poof, she fell and started laughing uncontrollably.  The hat fell down over her head and she tried looking up at her friends.  Of course, this was made difficult from under the huge brim of the hat. But she managed to look up, still laughing.

Hogwarts’ attic… it made sense. Fauna never wanted to leave! Well, she could do without the stench of dungbombs and the especially hyper quill scrawling obsenities all over the walls, but other than that, this was heaven!

When Mysti began shuffling towards them and made a comment about Neely, Fauna burst out laughing. Her outfit! She clapped her hands over her mouth, but it didn’t help, only making her more hysterical as Mysti tripped over her feet like Nico whenever he didn’t get his daily dose of bananas. Right before Mysti hit the ground, a pillow appeared out of thin air to cushion her bum! Fauna stopped giggling long enough to glance at Darcy in shock. Neither of them had cast a cushioning spell, and come to think of it, Fauna realized that the same thing had happened when she’d taken a tumble earlier!

She studied the room with a touch more caution. Was another student hiding there? Or maybe a spirit? Whoever it was seemed benevolent, at least. It had better not be a ghoul! Fauna froze and scanned the wardrobes again. They looked normal. No chains were wrapped around them (or broken on the floor), so she thought they should be safe.

Perhaps the room was enchanted. Yes, maybe it was charmed just for people like her, Mysti and Darcy! Three Clumsy Hufflepuffs in need of bum cushions!

Fauna half expected the walls to be padded and let out another peal of laughter.

“Neely would haaaaate it!” she exclaimed, shaking her head at Mysti’s robes. “I love it, though! You know!” She paused, giddy. “I think… sometimes I think I should have grown up in the seventies. You know, like… like the hippies.” Fauna grinned at both of them. “But my sister insists that it should be the eighties. Something about me wearing entirely too much… flannel.” She remembered the flannel shirt that she’d draped over the suit of armor outside and nodded thoughtfully. Maybe her sister was right.

Regardless, Fauna wanted to inspect their wardrobe more thoroughly. She stepped inside it again and gently rummaged through the rows of hanging clothes. There was a dress with a large, vertical stripe along the side of it, a poufy, flowery skirt, and- sneakers! Converse shoes in every style and color! Fauna peered down at the footwear in awe. It was amazing how this wardrobe catered to her exact tastes, including her preference for clashing bright colors and zany patterns.

“Darcy!” She exclaimed suddenly, pointing at something peeking out on the top shelf. Fauna plucked the powder blue hat from the wardrobe and plopped it on her friend’s head. She took one look at her and had to purse her lips together to keep the giggles in. Signaling for Darcy to wait just a second, Fauna darted out of the closet and grabbed the first mirror she could find. There happened to be one right by the suicide-bomber snitches! How convenient.

Shrugging, she held it up so that Darcy could admire her reflection.

“Mysti, you have to see this!” Fauna called out. “She… she looks like one of those Bow-Bottom girls! The ones… well… they go to that school in France! Bellbottoms…?” She questioned, her subconscious influenced by her recent ramblings about the 1970s.

“Whatever it is… Darcy, you look… hmmm… dashing!”


The Hat! (It's the fourth hat in the first row)

The variety of fabrics, hats, dressers and mirrors seemed to explode from every corner of the room.  There enough baubles to keep Darcy entertained for days.  It was almost beyond her imagination, a physical manifestation of her creative drive.  It was truly magical!  The grin on her face kept  growing, especially at the sight of Mystique's couture outfit.  "You look smashing, love!," Darcy cooed, clapping her hands in delight.  A splash of color caught Darcy's eye, and she turned to investigate as the room broke her friend's fall with a magical pillow.  It was a beautiful rainbow tutu, just her size!  A high-pitched squeal filled the room as Darcy pounced, stepping into the tutu and pulling it on over her jeans.

“Neely would haaaaate it!  I love it, though! You know!  I think… sometimes I think I should have grown up in the seventies. You know, like… like the hippies. But my sister insists that it should be the eighties. Something about me wearing entirely too much… flannel.”

"Neely would die if she ever saw us!," Darcy chimed in before executing a far from perfect pirouette.  Losing her balance, Dary flopped onto a soft cushion near her friends.  "My moms are hippies, but they really go crazy over tie-dye.  We dye everything," she groaned, rolling her eyes.  She loved her moms, but sometimes they went a little overboard.  Last year they sent her to Hogwarts with her hands still freshly-stained. 

“Darcy!”

"Fauna!" She squeaked back.  Following her friend's finger, Darcy was delighted to see a beautiful powder blue hat in its path.  "Oooo," she squealed, delighted as Fauna perched the hat atop her head.  Darcy stood shakily, trying to gain her balance on the cushy pillow. 

“Mysti, you have to see this!  She… she looks like one of those Bow-Bottom girls! The ones… well… they go to that school in France! Bellbottoms…?”

Darcy giggled at the comparison, affecting an exaggerated aristocratic posture.  Nose in the air, chest out, butt out, Darcy held one long finger under her nose and left her other hand firmly on her hip.  "Oooh la la!" she exclaimed, swishing her bottom.  "Ze hommes du Hogwarts ce tres..."  she paused momentarily in her snooty voice, only to blow a raspberry at the ceiling.  Unable to contain her laughter anymore, Darcy abandoned the act, wiping her mouth of saliva before collapsing back onto the pillow.   "Your turn!," she cried, taking the hat on flopping into Mystique's lap.


*Tutu
(I sincerely apologize to any who are offended by Darcy's impression.  Her actions are completely independent of the writer's personal beliefs.)

"Oooh la la!" she exclaimed, swishing her bottom.  "Ze hommes du Hogwarts ce tres..." she paused momentarily in her snooty voice, only to blow a raspberry at the ceiling. 

When Darcy started doing her French impression, Mysti lost it and started laughing again.  Fauna had done a very good job of dressing both herself and Darcy up.  Mysti especially liked the tutu that Darcy was wearing. So colorful! And very fun!  The Hufflepuff girl couldn’t help laughing at her friend’s outfits, just as they laughed at hers.

"Your turn!," she cried, taking the hat on flopping into Mystique's lap.

“Okay! But I get to dress up Fauna now!” Mysti said with a laugh before going into another wardrobe.

Inside, were many many more rows of clothes, hats, and shoes even! Mysti had an idea to create the best Hufflepuff pride outfit she could!  Suddenly, it was like this bright yellow coat was practically jumping out at her!  After pulling it off of a rack, she giggled at the sight of the enormous yellow bow thing at the collar. It was actually kind of cute! She put it over her arm and continued looking.  Soon, she found this neat twisty kind of shiny black belt. Putting that with the dress, she looked for a hat.

Next, Mysti knew she would need to find a hat, and probably some shoes if they would fit Fauna.  After looking in a few boxes, she found the perfect hat! It was this silly looking bright yellow hat that had a very big floppy rim.  Then, Mysti nearly tripped over a shoebox on the ground. Peeking inside, she saw the cutest yellow and black animal print shoes!

With her fun clothes in hand she went back and pulled Fauna over towards a mirror and had her put on the jacket.  It fit so well! Mysti then plopped the hat on Fauna’s head and had her try on the shoes. Mysti was so excited when they fit as well! She started giggling and helped Fauna up after putting on the shoes.

“You, madame, are the epitome of a Hufflepuff right now!” She said before laughing yet again. Fauna was just so brightly colored!  And equipped in the Hufflepuff yellow and black!


Outfit for Fauna!

Darcy’s impression of a French schoolgirl had Fauna and Mysti in stitches! The tutu looked fabulous on Darcy, too. It was very colorful and from what Darcy had said about her two moms, they would heartily approve! Fauna certainly did.

When Mysti announced that it was time for her to dress up Fauna, Fauna grinned, knowing she’d pick out something amazing. While Mysti chose the items out of the wardrobe, Fauna meandered around the room to avoid seeing the outfit before it was all put together. Soon, she felt a tug on her arm, turned to see her friend holding a blundle of bright yellow clothing, and then followed her to the mirror. The color was perfect! Fauna excitedly threw on the jacket and belted it, donned the hat, but had to sit down and ask Mysti for help with the shoes. The extremely high, animal print heels would likely be the death of her, but at least she’d die happy!

“You, madame, are the epitome of a Hufflepuff right now!” Mysti said before laughing yet again.

Fauna giggled right back. “I love it! Thank you!” Standing was the easy part. The walking, however, was completely different! Fauna tottered forward, swaying. She held her arms out to help her balance, resembling a drunk tightrope walker, if there ever was such a thing. When she made it a few yards, Fauna looked over her shoulder and blew a kiss at the two girls. Really hamming it up now, she clomped purposefully over to a vase of flowers, took off her hat, and bowed at it. Then she bent, sticking her butt out, and sniffed the flowers, which suddenly squirted water at her.

“Eeeep!” she squealed, teetering backward and laughing.

As her laughter subsided, Fauna heard a sharp clang from outside of the room. Still in a goofy state of mind, she click-clacked her way over to the wall and cupped her hands against it.

“Helloooooo!” She called out through the wall. “Helga Hufflepuff, at your service!” But she remembered too late that they were out after curfew! So Fauna hobbled as fast as she could to the door to lock it.

Except… there was no door.

“Wha… where did the door go?” It was perhaps the stupidest question she had ever asked, and Fauna turned to the two girls, flabbergasted. Giggles bubbled up inside her again but she held them in, waiting until someone pointed out what was probably right in front of her eyes! The door had to be there, right? It couldn’t just disappear!