Eirene had taken over an entire table in the back part of the library, where she hunched over books titled ‘Sassy Sewing Spells’ and ‘Create an outfit in three minutes or less!’. No, she wasn’t studying to be the next Project Roadkill winner (or whatever the show was called). She wanted to make her Halloween costume out of her lightweight, sky blue wizarding robe that was meant to be worn for nice occasions. And she wanted her Halloween costume to be like the dress Wendy wore in that phonograph they’d listened to during a Muggle Club meeting- Peter Pan!

She couldn’t ask her parents for the dress. Oh, no. Eirene had no idea how to explain it, and she couldn’t muster up the gumption to outright lie to them. They didn’t know about the muggle club, or muggle friends, or Chemistry, and certainly not Peter Pan. The last time she had written them about her friend Pax, they’d expressed disappointment that she hadn’t endeavored to get closer to the richer families. The pureblood families. No way would they accept all the muggle-ish things she’d been doing!

So, Eirene had decided she’d make the dress on her own. It couldn’t be that hard! If there was a book on the topic, she could learn how to do it! Eirene was definitely enthusiastic and intelligent, but one of her biggest problems in class (and elsewhere), was that she took on way too much at once, and got extremely frustrated when she couldn’t succeed right away. Succeed perfectly. Succeed the first few tries.

Eirene looked up from her book, frowning in concentration. All her materials were neatly laid out on the table- blue robe, needles, thread, measuring tape, and scissors. The first step in the book told her to measure and pin the fabric, so she could cut it to the appropriate length. Eirene was clumsy with the scissors at first, because she’d never used them before, but she had enough common sense to avoid spells that involved cutting and slashing.

She winced a bit as she cut up her beautiful blue robe. Her parents would not be happy about this, no they wouldn’t. However, it would be a long time before they discovered she’d transformed her robe into a Halloween costume. If she asked for a specific dress, they’d be mad at her right now. So Eirene kept cutting the fabric.

When she was done with that, the robe was about knee-length, with shorter sleeves. Eirene checked the next step in the book, and set about pinning the edges of the fabric so she could make hems.

She stepped back and admired what she had done so far. Now, was the exciting part. The part where she got to sew!

Eirene ran her finger along the words in the book and murmured them out loud. The next step read:

Put the thread through the needle, and cast a simple levitation spell (Wingardium Leviosa will do), so it is aligned properly with the fabric. Then, cast ‘Consuturo’, and the needle and thread should create a fine straight stitch on your fabric. Keep your wand steady. Small, carefully controlled movements are necessary for this to work.

Warning: Do not attempt this spell without first-

Except, Eirene didn’t look closely at the warning. Though it took her a few attempts, she cast Wingardium Leviosa on the needle, and then, “Consuturo!” Her voice was hushed and excited. Eirene stared at the needle and thread, willing it to begin the stitch…

The needle did a funny little wobble. Then it jumped- much too high, about a foot off the table! Eirene let out a shriek, covering her head. The needle didn’t stop there. It bounced off the table like a rubber ball, and started hopping away from Eirene, dragging along the thread as it went!

“No!” she whined, brandishing her wand uselessly. How did she get it to stop! It could poke someone’s eye out! She grabbed the book and trotted after the needle, which was bouncing through the long library corridor with surprising speed.

“Stop! Stop that needle!” Eirene cried, flipping through the pages in the book and trying desperately to find a solution.

It was quiet in the library, but then, it always was. Kinda peaceful, Hannah supposed, but she could see it getting annoying quickly. No loud talking, no spells, no... yelling? At Eirene's (loud) cry, her tousled blond head immediately snapped up. Well, that was a change.

Wide-eyed, she watched as the dark-haired girl chased a... needle? Was that really a needle? Weird, but with all the crying out and hurriedly flipping the pages in a book, the girl looked like she'd trip and fall at any minute. And that needle was definitely getting away. Hannah rushed forward, and right as the bizarrely moving sewing utensil went by she stomped down hard on the thread trailing it. The needle jerked to a stop. "Finite Incantatum!" she said, flicking her wand, and it stopped skittering around on the end of its "leash" and dropped harmlessly to the carpet.

Quickly, Hannah stooped to pick it up, darting looks in all directions as she did so. Still not seeing her brother anywhere, she turned curiously to meet Eirene with the needle in one hand and her wand in the other. 

Eirene skidded to a stop right in front of Hannah Harper, who held the sewing utensils with a curious expression. She’d been smart enough to stomp on the thread trailing after the needle, and had also just managed an impressive bit of magic, so Eirene was both jealous and grateful for her actions.

“Thank Merlin!” she exclaimed, putting a hand over her heart like she’d often seen her nanny do. “Thank you! How did you do that? We haven’t learned that spell in class yet, have we?”

She took a deep breath, and noticed the girl was still holding the needle. “May I have that back, please?” She said formally, cautiously. It had been her experience that Gryffindors (like Keegan and Mairead) would love nothing more than to start a game of ‘monkey in the middle’. However, Hannah seemed nicer than that, and she was from a Pureblood family, after all, so she had better manners.

Eirene simply hadn’t spoken to her much because of the Gyffindor bit. She held out her hand and hoped the girl would give her back her things without comment. She didn’t know how to explain the Wendy costume dilemma, and would be embarrassed if she had to.

Outfit

Evelyn Pascal wouldn’t normally be found in the library on a Saturday.  Unfortunately she decided she would need to do a little extra research for a potions essay.  Dressed unusually bright for her normal wardrobe, she grabbed one of her many purses and headed down to the library wing. But upon getting there, she heard a shriek of a young girl.  Evie looked around trying to figure out what was going on. Had someone let an imp loose in the library?

Upon her look around the library, she saw a young girl chasing something.  Evie couldn’t help but let out a small laugh when she saw that it was a needle the girl was chasing.  It made Evie remember the first time she tried sewing with magic. Of course, her mother was helping her, so she wasn’t chasing needles around. Perhaps the potions research should wait, and she could help this young girl. 

Evie then walked over to where the blonde haired girl was holding the needle out to the darker haired girl.

“Hello there. Everything all right?” Evie asked.  “Anything I could help with?”

Evie actually really wanted to help the younger girl.  Sewing was something that was her favorite things to do.  Sharing that love for sewing would make her quite happy, too. So if this girl wanted help, Evie would of course do what she could.

"Um- no, we haven't," Hannah told Eirene, smiling proudly but trying to hide it by biting her lip. "But my mum taught me how." Hannah wasn't the type to brag, but sometimes it was really lucky being the youngest in the family. She could bother her brothers to teach her upper-year magicks (even if she couldn't always perform them), and her mother was just scornful enough of the no-magic-outside-of-school ban to teach her some of the basics. After all, everyone wanted Hannah to do well at Hogwarts. This worked out very well for Hannah.

She gave the needle back immediately, but paused with her hand resting on Eirene's to lean in and say, mock-sternly, "Be quieter, though, or the librarian will scold you." She ruined the effect by grinning afterward and laughing, "And then I'd have to rescue you!" And so it was then that another girl felt called to come over, and, glancing up, Hannah found to her surprise she actually knew her. "Evie... right?" she asked, her face upturned towards the older girl's. "From the Owlery." She had to think harder about this than she had to remember Eirene's name, who was, after all, in Hannah's year, even if not her house. But it would have taken a lot for Hannah to forget Evie's fashion sense- or her owl.

“Oh,” Eirene replied, looking slightly annoyed. How unfair. Why hadn’t her mother taught her that spell? Most of what Eirene had learned before coming to Hogwarts, she’d practiced on her own, or had badgered her tutor into helping her. Her mother was of the belief that the rules were there for a reason, so she’d only showed her the simplest, most basic charms.

Eirene was relieved to have the needle back in her hand though, and raised her eyebrows in surprise when the girl playfully scolded her. She didn’t understand the joke, and didn’t realize that Hannah was related to Mr. Morgan.

“What are you talking about?” she said with an uncertain smile, glancing up as an older girl appeared beside them. The fifth-year appeared unperturbed about the commotion, which was a good sign.

Evie? Something clicked. “Oh, you’re a Pascal!” Eirene announced happily, as if it was very important.  And to her, it was.

Glancing over at the table in the back, where her blue robe lay, Eirene hesitated before answering. She did need help. Perhaps Evie would help her without asking too many questions about why she needed it.

“Well, I’m making a dress. I’ve never sewn before, but it didn’t look that hard when I started!” Eirene explained in a pompous tone of voice, trying to cover up her insecurity. “I was doing well, too. Until the needle, literally, ran away from me!”

She looked down at the offending needle and frowned at it for disobeying her like that.

Evie smiled at being recognized by the young Gryffindor girl. Of course, it would be pretty difficult to forget someone such as Evie.  She though of herself as someone that sticks out. Not sticking out such as Beatrix Dark, though Evie was rather brightly dressed today.  But in a fashionable way, and because Evie did think of herself as quite pretty. But even though the younger girl had remembered her, it had taken a moment before the Slytherin had remembered the younger girl’s name. 

“Yes, and it’s good to see you again, Hannah. Been up to see Athena recently? I’m afraid I’ve been neglecting her again.” She gave a small smile to the Gryffindor, and then turned her attention to the Ravenclaw. “Yes, I am a Pascal, Evie is my name. It’s nice to meet you.”

She then watched Eireen look over towards a table and saw some fabric. Evie smiled and listened as the girl explained her situation. 

“Well, I actually happen to be an experienced sewer. If you would like, I could help you out or supervise.  Give you some tips.”

If any of the other 5th year Slytherin girls had been around, Evie probably wouldn’t have offered. Actually, she probably wouldn’t have gone over to talk to the first years. But lately, Evie was enjoying going off on her own and talking with different people.  Of course, those people had mainly been younger students. It was liberating in a way. Perhaps soon she’d be able to control her mind and stand up to the “plastics” as everyone else called them.  But for now, she would keep doing her own thing at times.

“What are you talking about?”

Hannah didn't have time to answer before Evie came over, and of course, once she'd recognized her friend from the Owlery, she forgot any previous confusion. And the announcement that Evie was a Pascal- well, Hannah hadn't known that. She blinked up at Evie with renewed interest. Like Eirene, Hannah knew her purebloods, and she was very pleased that Evie remembered her. "Actually, I haven't been going to see her much either," the first year said slowly, referring to Athena. She frowned. "I will, though."

Eirene's pompous and slightly annoyed tone made her smile. She knew well enough to swallow that smile when Eirene looked over at her, though, instead looking sympathetic to Eirene's sewing failures. Hannah was glad to hear Evie speak up, though- she didn't know how to sew either. Looking over at the table that Eirene had claimed for her project, she could only think one thing: what a mess.

"What kind of dress are you trying to make?"

Eirene introduced herself to the older girl and looked thrilled when Evie offered to help her. She knew how to sew!

“Really?” Eirene breathed, pausing for a moment and then making her way towards the table.  She looked over her shoulder as if to make sure Evie was following. Not many older students were so helpful, except for Sasha, she thought.

Hannah seemed interested in the project as well, and though Eirene was concerned that Hannah’s dorm-mates would hear about this at the end of the day, she couldn’t resist talking about what she was doing. Or trying to do.

“Well, it’s supposed to look like it comes from the 1950s. Like the-” Eirene clammed up. She’d almost said like the Disney film. “And the sleeves should be puffed up, a bit. Which I don’t know how to do. And there should be a ribbon around the middle, right underneath the bust,” Eirene giggled at the word. She couldn’t help it.

“It’s for Halloween,” she finally admitted, looking between the girls. “What are you two dressing up as”   

The interest from the younger girls after realizing Evie was a Pascal amused her. Her family’s bloodline was well known, though Evie didn’t always care about it.  I had helped her make some useful friends in the past, though.  But now she was glad that it might be what helped her to gain this young girl’s trust to help someone else now.  Eirene looked like she was going to need Evie’s help and expertise too.

“That’s all right, Hannah. I’m sure she’s also made some friends with the school owls as well.” Evie gave her a friendly smile.

She then followed Eirene over to the table, where Evie looked over the blue robe.  It was definitely workable. The fabric was also a very pretty color that would compliment the girl’s skin and hair.  She pulled out a small sketchbook from her bag, as well as a pencil.  Evie then made a quick sketch of a dress that she hoped was close to what the younger girl wanted. When she was done, she showed it to Eirene.

“How does this look? I love the 1950’s look for dresses, and I think it’ll be perfect with this fabric.  It’ll look very pretty on you.” Evie smiled and then answered the girl’s question. “I’m not quite sure yet, but I might be going as a unicorn. Though it’ll be more of what I think a unicorn would look like in human form. I hope it works out. What about you, Hannah?”

Evie had acquired a beautiful floor length flowing gown from her mother, that she thought would be perfect for her idea.  It just also depended on the creation of a horn. She didn’t want it to be too big, but just a nice accessory to compliment her dress.  But something she was most looking forward to was seeing what everyone else had come up with.

 It was a good thing Eirene had cut herself off. All she would have earned from Hannah at the word "Disney" was a long, blank stare. As it was, Hannah leaned curiously over Evie's shoulder as the older girl sketched out her idea of Eirene's dress.

Then Evie announced that she was going to be a unicorn for Halloween. Immediately, the only thing Hannah could think of was pretty Evie swanning around the Halloween ball with a gigantic horn sticking out of the middle of her forehead. She was so struck by this simultaneously horrifying and fascinating idea that it took a moment to realize Evie had directed a question at her.

"Um," Hannah said, looking exactly like a deer caught in the headlights. She tried to banish the thought of Evie accidentally impaling the overhead decorations by saying quickly, "I dunno- I mean, I don't know yet. I haven't really thought about it."

Eirene couldn’t help but look over Evie’s shoulder as she sketched, admiring the clean, confident lines and the way she made the drawing seem so realistic. She was often fascinated by people who were good at artistic things, and wished she could make pictures. Whenever she tried, Eirene would draw a line, erase it, draw a line, erase it, making absolutely no progress and getting upset because it didn’t look perfect.

Sasha liked to draw too. Sometimes she saw him sketching in the common room. One day he’d caught her hovering over his shoulder, and she’d been so embarrassed, she’d run off to the dorms before he could say more than ‘hello’. Bearing that in mind, Eirene remembered her manners and stepped back a bit to give Evie room.

When Evie was finished, she showed Eirene the sketch and wondered how she liked it. “Ooooo!” Eirene squealed, then glanced around in case she’d disturbed anyone. “It’s perfect!” She exclaimed, quieter this time.

A unicorn. Eirene opened her mouth, excited about the idea, but shut it when Hannah spoke. It was hard not to talk at the moment, and Eirene got a bit impatient when Hannah fumbled over her words and said she didn’t know what she wanted to be.

“That’s such a good idea,” Eirene told Evie quickly, nearly cutting off the end of Hannah’s sentence. “What will it look like? Will you wear white? What will you do about the horn?”

She imagined a tiny little horn on Evie’s head, like a crown. A baby unicorn instead of a full grown one.

“Hannah,” she turned towards her suddenly, speaking before thinking things though. “Maybe we could do the Peter Pan theme together!” Eirene would love it if another first year dressed up with her.

“There are… hmmm.” Wendy was the best female costume, of course, and Eirene wasn’t about to give that up. There weren’t very many female characters in Peter Pan. “There’s… mermaids! And a fairy. And Tiger Lily…” Eirene trailed off, looking embarrassed as she realized that Hannah probably had no idea what she was talking about.

Evie nodded when Hannah said she didn’t know what she wanted to be. Evie had also taken quite a while to decide, herself. Her first year, Evie went as a princess. Not particularly creative. Then again, it was just an easy thing to do, as her mother loved sending her dresses that were reminiscent of a princess.

“That’s okay. I’m sure you’ll come up with something! I’ll help you too if you would like me too.” Evie said. Then she turned her attention back to where Eirene was now talking. She really seemed to like the sketch.

“I’m glad you like it! And I’ve got a lovely white gown from my mother. The horn, I’m not quite sure what I’ll be doing yet. My mother is keeping an eye out for something that can be used as well.”

Evie was not exactly sure these characters that Eirene was talking about, but guessed they were from some muggle movie. She had nothing against muggle movies, just had never really seen any.  Perhaps she would venture out and try to see one sometime. Of course, she didn’t really think anyone she knew would go with her. Trying to imagine Neely in a muggle movie theatre was a funny thought.  Maybe in the summer she would visit one of these younger girls and they could see one. Evie thought they would enjoy it.

“Now, watch what I do here. I find that sewing by hand is sometimes a bit relaxing,” Evie said, as she started sewing so that Eirene could see. “It’s not quite as difficult as it seems. Just try keeping a straight line. That might be the harder part.”

After sewing a little, she took a step aside and looked Eirene. “Would you like to try?”