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Amidst the swirling mix of chaos and anticipation, October quietly flipped to its final page.
Hogwarts Castle felt as though it had been submerged in a bubbling, warm cauldron of pure festive spirit. The air in every corridor was thick with the scent of baked pumpkin, melting caramel, rich spices, and just the right amount of spooky ambiance.
Paper bats fluttered near the ceilings, while phantom lanterns drifted by, emitting faint, echoing giggles. The suits of armor had been dressed up as ridiculous knights or swashbuckling pirates.
Peeves the Poltergeist was entirely in his element. Dressed in a neon, mismatched clown suit that he clearly thought was terrifying, he zoomed around the castle, carpet-bombing students with sticky, multicolored glitter and foul-smelling smoke bombs.
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### The Pokédex Craze Reaches a Peak
The hype surrounding the Pokédex hit a fever pitch right before Halloween.
After nearly two weeks of relentless interaction and care, a small, highly dedicated fraction of students had successfully crossed the initial Affinity threshold. They had unlocked the ability to briefly summon their virtual partners into the real world.
While the summoning time was severely limited and the magical drain was heavy, it was more than enough to trigger a massive wave of absolute envy across the school.
It became common to see students walking the halls with meticulously dressed magical companions trotting beside them.
There was a Bowtruckle sporting a miniature pirate hat, an eyepatch, and a tiny hook strapped to its claw. A Pixie flew around wrapped in a tiny bat cape, the tips of its wings dusted with silver powder. One first-year even had a Puffskein dressed up as a little floating ghost, drawing choruses of "Aww!" wherever it drifted.
Unsurprisingly, Fred and George's partners—the Niffler and the Caipora—were already superstar-status celebrities around the castle.
Tonight, the two little troublemakers were dressed to the nines. The Niffler wore an obnoxiously large black bowtie and a pair of tiny, white lace gloves. The Caipora, meanwhile, had been magically infused with glowing orange and purple motes of light by Fred, making the misty spirit look like a floating, luminescent cloud of Halloween candy.
The twins were currently posted up by the Great Hall entrance, acting like demonic ambassadors of joy. They tossed handfuls of custom-made Halloween prank candies from Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes into the passing crowds—sweets that temporarily dyed tongues bizarre colors or made the eater speak in weird, echoing voices, sparking bursts of good-natured laughter and frantic chasing.
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### The Feast
Outside, the Scottish Highlands weather was doing its best to add to the spooky atmosphere. Howling winds and freezing rain lashed violently against the stained-glass windows, and the sky looked like a heavy rag completely soaked in black ink.
But the storm couldn't touch the blazing joy inside.
The house-elves had outdone themselves, transforming the Great Hall into the ultimate haunted house party. Thousands of live bats swooped and circled beneath the enchanted, stormy ceiling. Jack-o'-lanterns of every shape and size grinned wickedly, candle flames dancing inside their hollow skulls.
Hagrid's legendary, cabin-sized pumpkins had been carved into a mix of terrifying and hilarious faces, anchoring the four corners of the room. The largest one sat directly in front of the High Table, casting a warm, orange glow over the entire hall.
Even the professors had relaxed their usual strict demeanors to help decorate.
Professor Flitwick was using his wand to conduct a swarm of tiny silver bells, arranging them into dancing skeleton formations in mid-air. Professor Sprout had brought in clusters of glowing, phosphorescent magical fungi to act as centerpieces for the House tables.
Even Professor Snape had contributed. With a perpetually dark scowl, he had enchanted strips of black silk to slither up the stone pillars like slowly writhing snakes. Professor McGonagall still looked strict, but a tiny, barely noticeable smile played on her lips as she meticulously inspected the decorations.
Naturally, Viktor and Tom weren't going to miss out.
They arrived in matching, impeccably tailored, high-end vampire costumes. But the real showstopper was Viktor's "specialty dessert": meticulously crafted Blood Nougats.
Served on silver platters shaped like coffins, the dark red candies were translucent, revealing thin, thread-like sugar veins running through them. They tasted like a rich, tart explosion of cherry and raspberry, finishing with a crisp hit of mint. It tricked the tastebuds into feeling like they were biting into something visceral, but the flavor was dangerously addictive.
The students crowded around Viktor, hesitating for a split second before popping the candies into their mouths and erupting into cheers.
"These are wicked, Professor Scamander!"
"They taste brilliant! Are there any more?"
Perched nearby, Tom puffed out his chest, looking incredibly smug as if he had cooked the candy himself. Every so often, he'd reach out with a white-gloved paw, "steal" a piece from the tray, and pop it into his mouth, making the crowd laugh even harder.
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### The Deathday Party
Amidst the boiling sea of joy, one tiny corner of the Gryffindor table felt completely out of place.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione sat staring at their empty plates. Surrounded by classmates excitedly gossiping about the upcoming performance by the Skeleton Dance Troupe, the trio looked utterly miserable.
"I never should've promised Nick," Harry muttered, his eyes darting longingly toward the massive spread of Halloween treats. "Look at this place. It's brilliant. I bet you anything the Deathday Party is just going to have moldy cake and... Merlin knows what else."
"At least it won't be actual ghost food, right?" Ron said, though he sounded entirely unconvinced. He was staring mournfully at the twins throwing candy across the room. "I mean, Nick and the others are ghosts, but the food... they've gotta serve something for the living, right?"
"According to A Study of the Hogwarts Ghost Community," Hermione said, trying to arm herself with logic, though she sounded just as depressed, "a Deathday Party usually features food the ghosts missed most in life, or things with a smell strong enough for them to 'taste' it in death. That usually means things that have been left out for a very, very long time to develop a... unique flavor."
She glanced down at the Pokédex strapped to her wrist. On the screen, her Prismatic Book-Butterfly was resting peacefully on a virtual tome, the glowing text on its wings shifting slowly, entirely unfazed by the noise of the Great Hall. Sighing, she tapped the screen off.
Seven o'clock arrived far too quickly.
When Dumbledore's booming voice officially kicked off the feast, introducing the highly anticipated Skeleton Dance Troupe, the Great Hall erupted.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione reluctantly stood up. Fighting against the tide of students rushing toward the center of the room to watch the show, they slipped out the doors and headed for the dungeons. Passing through the Entrance Hall, they caught one last glimpse of Fred and George demonstrating the "proper" way to eat a prank candy to a group of awestruck first-years.
The laughter washed over them like a warm wave, making their footsteps feel that much heavier.
The further down they went, the faster the warmth and noise of the castle faded away.
The stone walls turned damp and freezing. The bright torches were replaced by flickering, sickly blue ghost-flames. The lively chatter died out, replaced by a hollow, echoing silence broken only by the gurgling of water in the pipes and strange, unidentifiable rustling sounds.
It was so cold their breath plumed into thick white clouds.
Finally, they reached a long, deserted corridor lined with those blue, heatless candles. At the very end, a pearlescent white figure was floating in the gloom.
"Ah! My dear friends!"
Nearly Headless Nick drifted eagerly toward them. His head wobbled precariously on his neck, the gruesome executioner's cut glowing vividly in the blue light. He was dressed in a flamboyant, ancient knee-length coat and an elaborate ruff, clearly trying to look his absolute best.
"I am so thrilled you could make it! The grandest Deathday Party in five centuries is about to begin! Right this way, right this way!"
He ushered them through a doorway draped in heavy black velvet.
From inside came the horrific sound of "music"—a screeching assault of off-key violins, shrill flutes, and muffled drums—layered under a massive, buzzing noise that sounded like a thousand people whispering in their ears all at once.
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### The Rockstar
While the trio stepped into the freezing, bizarre world of the ghosts, the Great Hall had reached maximum velocity.
The Skeleton Dance Troupe was living up to the hype. Their polished, bone-white frames gleamed under the magical spotlights. They played ribcage xylophones with femurs, blew haunting melodies through empty skull flutes, and plucked away at a massive upright bass made entirely of a spinal column.
The dancing was mesmerizing. The skeletons moved with a fluid, yet jerky precision, their joints clicking and clacking in perfect time with the beat, creating a strange, macabre beauty.
The students were completely spellbound. The cheers, whistles, and applause were so loud they threatened to shatter the enchanted sky above.
Up at the High Table, Dumbledore was happily tapping his fork against his goblet in time with the music. Even Professor McGonagall was nodding along in approval at some of the more complex skeletal pirouettes.
But when the band transitioned into a high-energy, swinging jazz number, Tom could no longer suppress the performer in his soul.
With a sharp "Meow!" the cat leaped off Viktor's shoulder, bounding across the room and springing onto the makeshift stage. He hit the floor to the beat, shimmying his shoulders before casually strolling up to the skeleton furiously slapping the spine-bass.
With a quick swipe of his paw, Tom gracefully "borrowed" the instrument.
The crowd went dead silent for exactly one second. Then, the Great Hall exploded.
Standing entirely on his hind legs, Tom gripped the oversized spinal column. His fluffy tail whipped back and forth like a metronome. His paws flew across the bone-strings in a furious, flawless baseline while he swayed his little tuxedo-clad hips to the groove. The plastic vampire fangs in his mouth bobbed with his movements, and his emerald eyes sparkled under the stage lights, absolutely thriving in the spotlight.
The skeletons froze for a moment, clearly caught off guard. But realizing this "vampire cat" was laying down a lethal groove, they immediately adjusted their tempo and jumped right back in.
The clattering bones, the hollow flutes, the deep thrum of the spine-bass, and Tom's perfectly timed, rhythmic "Meow!" backing vocals blended together into an insanely catchy, unbelievably joyful masterpiece.
"LET'S GO, TOM!"
"BOSS TOM FOR THE WIN!"
The students lost their minds. Kids leaped out of their seats, clapping and stomping the stone floor. Even a few of the older students started mimicking Tom's hip-swaying dance moves. The Great Hall had completely devolved into a massive, chaotic dance floor.
Leaning back in his chair at the High Table, Viktor watched his cat jam out with a group of skeletons like they'd been playing together for decades. A massive, brilliant smile stretched across his face.
He popped another Blood Nougat into his mouth, letting the tart flavor melt on his tongue as he scanned the room.
Students had let their fully dressed-up virtual partners out to join the party. A Crup in a tricorn hat was spinning in circles chasing its tail. Two Kneazle kittens were playfully batting at each other's fake bat wings. Even Draco Malfoy was sitting at the Slytherin table, trying to look bored while letting his Occamy hatchling coil proudly around his neck. The little beast's silver scales had been meticulously painted with dark gold, cryptic runes that glimmered in the candlelight, drawing plenty of envious stares.
Great food, incredible music, wild dancing, laughter, and a room full of magical companions.
To Viktor, this was the absolute perfect Halloween. A profound sense of satisfaction settled over him. It felt as though all his grueling work over the past month had finally paid off in the sweetest way imaginable.
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### Wrapping Up
Time flew by in a blur of celebration.
Before anyone realized it, the magical clock on the wall was inching toward a quarter to ten.
The Skeleton Band was still going strong, and Tom was still tirelessly playing the role of the ultimate guest star. But after hours of gorging on sweets and screaming their lungs out, the students were finally starting to crash.
Forks were set down. Satisfied burps echoed across the tables. Kids slumped against each other, chatting sleepily or lazily scratching the ears of their equally exhausted magical partners.
Finally, the band shifted into a cheerful, folksy Scottish melody. Tom handed the bass back, bounded over to the drummer, and took over the bone-kit.
Using his surprisingly raspy, highly infectious "cat voice," he led the skeleton band in the final song of the night. It was an ancient, catchy tavern tune about the harvest, friendly ghosts, and good company.
Tom poured his soul into it, his vocals rising and falling, expertly layering in heavy, rhythmic purrs as backing harmony.
The students, whether they knew the lyrics or not, swayed gently in their seats, humming along to the beat. A warm, lazy, deeply satisfying post-party haze blanketed the Great Hall.
As the final note echoed out, Tom stepped out from behind the drums and delivered a flawless, elegant bow.
Thunderous applause erupted, lasting for several long minutes.
Dumbledore stood up, smiling broadly as he applauded the band and their furry frontman.
"A massive thank you to our incredibly talented guests, and to our equally talented Tom, for providing us with such a spectacular evening!" Dumbledore's voice boomed cheerfully. "And with that, I officially declare this year's Halloween Feast concluded! Prefects, please guide your houses back to your common rooms. Goodnight to you all, sweet dreams... and perhaps, a few fun little frights!"
Amidst a chorus of sleepy sighs and cheerful goodbyes, the students shuffled out of the Great Hall, following their prefects into the quiet castle, thoroughly satisfied.
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