Haunted Houses and Happy Birthdays (Toy Boys&Girls etc)

[Kat Samuels]

She knew Kelly was going to murder her for this, but whats a birthday without a little danger and adventure after all? So much had been going on lately but Kat wasn't about to let Kelly Evans' birthday pass without a big bash. She'd known the woman for ten years now after all! They would normally be having this kind of party at the Hogs Head or Three Broomsticks, but she wanted something a little more adventurous to pass this year, and there was nothing quite like breaking into the Shrieking Shack to encourage such adventure. The young witch had sent out invitations earlier that day with just one thing written on it: the address and time. She knew her friends well enough to know they would know what to do from there. They were Toy Boys and Girls after all!

Kat had scouted the site out a few days ago, the Shrieking Shack had been undergoing the worlds slowest reconstruction for the past few years but she had never once seen anyone actually working on it. The only sign of activity was from the scaffolding that made its way up and down around the shack. In her scouting mission she'd pried off one of the boards covering the back bottom window, leaking in a small ray of light. Of course it was dark now, but that patch was still lit up by the moon. Ah crap. The moon. Was it full? She probably should have checked that before inviting everyone to meet her in the -haunted by werewolves shack-. Bugger. Too late to change that now anyway. Maybe it wasn't full. That bit hidden behind the cloud could be not full? Right? Kat shook her head at her own ignorance and scuffled further into the room. Muttering lumos her wand came to light and she surveyed her surroundings. Not too shabby.

She was standing at the bottom of some creaky old stairs that hadn't gotten renovated yet, and she knew from experience that the third from the bottom was a trick step, almost having had fallen through to the basement the other day. Before climbing the stairs, Kat pulled the backpack she had been carting around off her back and pulled out a dozen gold candles. With a wave, a swish and a flick of her wand, Kat set them alight with 'incendio' and wingardium leviosa'd them up to the ceiling, ala Great Hall style, lighting the dark staircase in a befitting matter. With a nod of her head she ascended the stairs, hoping her partner in crime had done his share of the work upstairs.

At the top of the stairs she surveyed the main room with a grin on her face. More candles hung in clustered lighting the room in a magical glow, and the room had been transfigured to look like the inside of the Gryffindor Common Room. Old red leather couches, a roaring fireplace, and she knew that the two doors leading off to either side would lead to rooms filled with four poster beds created to look like the ones in the dorms. It was amazing what you could by in Knockturn Alley - these were small enough to fit into your pocket until you transfigured them bigger. For those house proud witches and wizards out there. They'd cost a pretty penny, but Kat had that small fortune collecting dust and this was a special occasion.

There was butter beer and fire whisky galore, and she'd even struck a deal with the house elves of Hogwarts to send some food over to them, which was waiting for everyone to arrive. Tonight was a throwback party of the best kind, Kat even had her old uniform on to properly set the mood. Now all she had to do was wait for everyone to arrive and hope her partner in crime was ready for phase two.

[Straw Buckett]

“I know what I’m doing!” came the confident tones of Straw Buckett who sat straddling the rooftop of the Shrieking Shack waiting for Queety, who stood with her arms crossed not looking terribly impressed with him. “You’re a witch, I’m a wizard, we can do this. Now chuck them up!” Straw smiled as he braced himself to start levitating his children up to the top of the two-storey house. “Kat said the entrance is hidden, it makes sense that it’s in the chimney! I don’t see how else we can get into the shake without breaking into Hogwarts and going through the tunnels. Come on, if we levitate them at the same time there’s no way we’ll drop them. Who wants to be levitated first?” Straw smiled looking down at his excited four-year-old children whom were all staring up at him with great excitement of entering a house via the chimney. They were all dressed in mini versions of Hogwarts uniforms. Scarlet was dressed as a Slytherin, Josh as a Gryffindor and Spaiden in pink wanting to be just like his aunty Queety in Mihael robes. Straw was dressed in his old Gryffindor Quidditch uniformed with a golden ‘C’ pinned on his chest and his broomstick sitting next to him on the roof carefully.

Straw loved birthday, in fact birthday’s very his favourite time of year event. He never understood why people hide their birthdays, it was about celebrating another year of life and what a better way to do it then with a big party. Plus really who honestly didn’t think it was a great excuse to have a big party.

After consulting with Kat in regards to the pending birthday of Kelly Evans, Straw jumped into costume design for himself and the triplets. He was proud of his efforts and slightly impressed that Spaiden wanted to follow in Aunt Quety’s footsteps. It actually made perfect sense for him to be in that house, always quiet, always thinking and always the brains behind their most creative games.

“Once they’re safe down the chimney I’ll come get you on my broom,” he winked.

[Charlie Hamilton]

Charlie crept around the Shrieking Shack as the twilight deepened, keeping a watchful eye out for anything stealing around in the shadows. He approached the building from the rear, and so couldn't see Straw perched on the second storey roof; unknowingly, Charlie was following Kat's earlier footsteps, and as he stopped at the scaffolding, he noticed that one of the boards had been pried away, revealing a window empty of glass. Dressed in his best version of a Hogwarts Quidditch player, Charlie glanced once over his shoulder and heaved himself through the window, dropping lightly to his feet once inside. He looked around for any sign of humanity and his eyes widened slightly at the set up; hundreds of candles were suspended in the air, and which led the way to a rickety staircase that did not look in any way, shape or form fit for use.

He made his way over and walked quickly up the stairs, taking them two at a time, unknowingly missing the trick step as he went. As he reached the top his awe at the work and effort Kat had gone to only grew. Charlie had not attended Hogwarts, and so didn't have the same fond memories of his time at school like the others, but the vision before his eyes made him want to go back and join in. A few steps away from the top of the staircase, Charlie beheld Kat, and he smiled. The two of them had a long and warm history, and while he no longer had romantic feelings for the witch, Charlie was happy to see her. He tapped her smartly on the shoulder and was pleased to see her jump in slight alarm. "You sure know how to make a broken-down shack look good, Samuels," he said with a grin on his face. "I would say I'm sorry to alarm you, but you kind of brought it upon yourself, hosting a party in a haunted house."

[Queety White]

She had known him for nearly 10 years, but there were still times when Straw managed to surprise Queety with some crazy scheme of his. She was convinced there had to be a different way into the shrieking shack than through the chimney. Kat would definitely have thought of a way that did not involve them getting soot all over their outfits. But Straw was already convinced of his idea and the kids were already excited to be levitated up two stories and dropped down a chimney. They definitely inherited their parents' adventurous attitudes. Queety knew that there was no arguing this one and she was just going to have to go with the flow. Never a dull moment with the Buckett clan, that was for sure. 

"I can't believe I'm actually going along with this," she muttered as she pulled her wand out of her purse. "Kids, let it be known that this was your father's idea, not mine." Josh stepped forward first, eager to experience floating in the air. After surrounding the kids in a charm to protect them from fire in the event that Kat had decided to use the fireplace attached to the chimney, Queety and Straw both swished and flicked their wands together, shouting the incantation Wingardium Leviosa and Josh's feet were off the ground. Queety kept her focus strong as they managed to get him airborne and floating up gracefully to the rooftop. Josh waved to his siblings before he floated down the chimney into the house. Queety couldn't help but giggle at the thought of what Kat would say when her eldest son suddenly appeared in the fireplace. When she received the signal from Straw that Josh had successfully made it down to the bottom of the chimney safely, they began to do the same with Spaiden. Scarlett was a little more hesitant, not wanting to get her outfit messed up. Queety promised her that she would clean her up as soon as they all go into the shack and Scarlett finally agreed to the levitating journey. She squealed with delight as she flew through the air.  

"Okay, now it's my turn," Queety grinned, looking up at Straw. "I need you come down here and sweep me off my feet, Prince Charming." 

For this particular party, Queety was torn between house loyalties, being a former Mihael but also former Head of Gryffindor. She decided to go with full on Centaur pride with her pink jeans, a black t-shirt with a centaur on it, and her old Mihael robes.  To add to her outfit, she had her pointed hat on and her hair in a long braid. The robes had gotten a little small and Queety realized that it had been at least 7 years since she last worn them. A little bit of sewing and rehemming made her robes fit properly but it was then she realized how long it had really been since she had been a student herself. The nostalgia factor was strong.

[Professor Carina Erikson]

Dropping the note from Kat on the table, Carina rolled her eyes. Leave it to her to come up with this crazy idea. It took her a couple hours to find the box she was looking for. Finally she found it, shoved in the back of the closet in her quarters. Clothing flew through the air as skirts and button up white shirts were discarded. She had spent seven years wearing that stupid uniform; she was not going to wear it to a party. At the bottom of the box, a pair of black pants and a green and silver uniform shirt, complete with a golden “c” and a snitch. She had been both Captain and Seeker. On an afterthought, she grabbed a fluffy green and silver bow for Scarlett.

Bow and broom stuffed in the messenger bag, same one she had carried around since she was eleven, she walked down the path to the shack. Carina actually loved birthday parties, especially if it wasn’t hers. Her birthday had slipped by quietly, spent with Shadow and Ambra, the cat who lived. She stopped short when she had nearly made it to the shack, seeing small children floating from the ground to the roof of the shack. Carina squinted against the dark, trying to see better, but they looked like dark little shadow people. But there was only one family it could be.

Shaking her head with a grin on her lips, Carina continued down the dirt path to the shack. She could have gone down the chimney, but she thought the front door would be the better choice. Pushing the door open, she slipped through it, admiring Kat’s handiwork. She headed up the stairs, cursing loudly as she hit the trick stair, nearly falling through. Always forgot about that thing. Finally picking herself up, she carefully made her way upstairs. Kat was there, along with someone she vaguely knew as Charlie. “Samuels, next time, can we pick somewhere that doesn’t try and kill me every time I walk in?”

[Kat Samuels]

She could have kicked herself for jumping, but a tap on the shoulder in a haunted house? Kinda self explanatory. Even the bravest Gryffindors get scared every now and then. Kat even let out a sigh of relief as she heard Charlie's voice behind her and not some disembodied creature. With a relieved grin she pulled his cheeky face in for a hug, pushing him off her after a moment. "Now now Hamilton, that's enough of that. Feel free to go claim a bed if you so choose" she suggested with a flick of her wrist in the direction of the two doors.

As if on queue her wrist started burning, or rather the small tattoo of the bucket had lit up in a burning red, with a crackling pain to match. She had charmed it years ago, not unlike the dark mark, however this tattoo showed her if any of her children or the larger Buckett were in danger. It had gone off more than once over the years with Straw's antics, but this was the first time it had burned so painfully and she knew immediately it was more than one of them at risk. "Goddamn it Buckett, what are you doing to my children?" Kat closed her mind off to distraction and watched as the small tattoo transformed, inky smoke bellowing from the bucket's lid and small flames licking the side to it. He had to be kidding. Rushing towards the fireplace, wand outstretched Kat breathed out a quick extinguishing spell and in a moment the fire disappeared in on itself, smoke included. The burning on her wrist disappeared with it and Kat relaxed slightly, turning back to Charlie to see a slightly disgruntled but amused Carina entering the room behind him.

"Come on 'Rina, where would the fun be in that? It's not my fault you can't remember which step is the trick one -" she didn't share the fact it had got her caught a few days previously '- I just wanted us to be as close to Hogwarts as we are legally allowed to be. Who knows if they ever actually boarded up the secret entrance on the grounds." She was rambling of course, but her heart was still racing as a thump came behind her and she turned to see Josh climbing out of the fire place, his white teeth lit up around his soot covered face. "Mum! I flew!" were the only words out of his mouth before he ran towards her, then around her, holding out his fist to Charlie for a fist bump. Kat rolled her eyes, long gone were the days when she was the most interest person in her kids life. "That was your dad's idea I bet", she said with a shake of her head, "any normal person would find the entrance on the ground floor, but not Straw..." Spaiden arrived next, followed shortly by Scarlett, and her heart swelled at the sight of them in their little school uniforms. It was like projecting ten years into the future as she was almost certain this would be how they would one day be sorted. It seemed like Straw had the same idea. "Spaiden, get your sister away from there and come say hello to everyone. No doubt your father will make a big entrance next and we don't want anyone getting hurt in the meantime." Spaiden nodded and took his sisters hand, bringing her over towards the small group with a shy smile. Nothing like a little Buckett dramatics to start the evening off.

[Straw Buckett]

“That’s the spirit!” cheered Straw as he pointed his wand back down at his waiting family. With the quick incantation of Wingardium Leviosa he began to levitate Joshua. The boy flapped his arms like wings as he flew carefully into the air towards his father. “Hey you!” Straw smiled gleefully, “I didn’t know you could fly? Since when?”
Josh giggled in return, “I’m Superman daddy!” and stretched out his hands like the flying capped crusader. As Straw was about to lower the child into the chimney, he noticed it was smoking (Straw hadn’t really thought this through surprise, surprise). However as quickly as the problem arose it solved itself instantaneously and the smoke coming out the chimney quickly dissipated. With a shrug Straw began to lower Josh down the chimney and hopefully into the waiting arms of his mother. Spaiden was next who, like this brother, also flapped his arms like wings, “I’m an owl daddy!” he squealed followed by two adorable hoots. It was Scarlett however who made Straw question his entire approach altogether.

She looked absolutely terrified. With each meter she rose Straw could see the colour drain from her face. Straw was quickly reminded of Kat and her fear of heights. He could see Scarlett’s lip begin to quiver and Straw’s stomach dropped. Making his daughter cry was the last thing he wanted. “Scar, sweetie look at Daddy” he instructed giving her a warm smile.
“I don’t like this anymore Daddy!”
“It’s ok baby, almost there. Close your eyes Scar and don’t open them till I tell you ok?”
And without reply, the little blonde girl curled her arms around her head, encasing herself in a cacoon. Straw levitated her towards him and slowly lowered her down the chimney with a heavy heart. “I want you to count to ten and by the time you finish you can open your eyes”. Scarlett slowly disappeared. There was a brief pause where Straw found himself holding his breath and then ever so faintly a little voice call up the chimney, “I’m down Daddy!”

Straw sighed with relief and let his head fall back as he relaxed again. “If I ever try to do that again… please stop me?! Worst idea ever!” he called back as he began to readjust himself to mount his broom and collect Queety. In a seamless motion, Straw kicked off the roof of the Shrieking Shake and zoomed down to meet his lady lover. Straw stopped to hover a meter off the ground and smiled at cheekily Queety. He reached his hand out and winked at her, “Do you trust me?” he said in his best Aladdin impersonation, “Do you trust me?”

[Queety White]

Queety pursed her lips feeling guilty that she had so quickly agreed to this levitation plan, especially when Scarlett looked so terrified once she was high enough the air. Queety made a mental note to apologize to her niece thoroughly once the two of them got in there. She looked up at Straw whom she could tell also regretted this decision. Well at least the kids were inside. Now all was left was for them to join. 

"Even if said anything to stop you, I'm sure you wouldn't have listened," she informed him. "You always think your ideas are good ideas. I've long since given up trying to convince you otherwise." She crossed her arms over her chest as she waited for him to come down to pick her up. She was hoping he was planning to use his broom to do so rather than magic her up because she was not about to trust him to do that to herself. She was used to being off the ground only when she was holding onto a broomstick. 

When he came down, she could not help but let the grin she was holding back form on her face. Sometimes he was so cute that she would forget all the shenanigans he just put her through and just get lost in his charming smile. Now that he was really trying to be her prince charming, she fell into the role of the princess. She tilted her chin up, looking sophisticated, and raised one eyebrow as if she wanted to trust him but still questioned it. "Yes..." she said softly, as she reached up to grab his hand and get pulled up onto his broomstick. She sat behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist, resting her chin on his back. 

"You're not gonna start singing cheesy Disney songs to me now, are you?" she asked with a laugh. "Come on, let's go join the kiddos. I wanna get this party started."

[Straw Buckett]

“Would I do that?” he grinned mischievously as she mounted the broom behind him. He felt her circle her arms around his torso, the feelings of having her holding him tight and close gave the man goose bumps. Straw wasn’t clingy but he loved to be held by Queety. “That doesn’t sound like something I’d do,” he began as he kicked off the ground ever so gently. “Cossss I can show you the world!” he started to sing as they rose quickly into the night’s sky. “Shining shimmering splendid!” It was spectacular, there was a no breeze, the cloud cover was light and the moon was pregnant shiny pearl capturing the night in a mysterious glow. “Tell me princess, now when did you last let your heart decide? I can open your eyes! Take you wonder by wonder, over sides way and under on a magical broomstick ride. A whole new world!!! A new fantastic point of view, no one to tell us no or that they wont go to bed or say they wont eat their dinnerrrrr!” he grinned cheekily turning to meet her gaze momentarily.

“The party can wait, how often do I get to take my girl for a quick fly around town?” And they hadn’t, this was the first time either had flown together since Straw had saved Queety from falling that fateful day at training. Nothing made Straw’s heart sore more than flying, Queety and his children so to combined two of his three loves was simply mementos to him. The feeling of her pressed into his back mixed with her warm breath faint on his neck simply made his heart swell. Straw took them soaring over the lake and dipped low enough so that their toes almost scraped along the water. The lake shimmered in the full moons reflection, it made the whole forest glow around them; creating a romantic backdrop for the two to share as they sored around the edge of Hogwarts and Hogsmeade.

Straw pulled the broom up and they were suddenly soaring again into the spring sky. He paused and allowed the broom to just however as they gazed out at the silhouette of the castle. A sudden urge came over Straw and he turned ever so gently to look back at Queety. “I love you!” he whispered and kissed her, hips lips only just touching her own as he tried to turn himself slightly around. “I don’t know what I’d ever do without you. You make me so happy” Straw could never find the right words to express how he felt about Queety. She was his everything and he wanted to give her the world twice over. “Thank you” and kissed her again.

[Queety White]

She should know better. She really should know better. Of course was gonna start singing cheesy Disney songs to her because whether or not it was planned, the fact that she made any sort of comment suggesting that it was a crazy idea, he had to do it. She laughed as Straw serenaded her, still enjoying it anyway. Her arms, around his waist, held on tighter as they flew up high. It had been so long since she had seen all of Hogsmeade and as they flew closer to the castle, Hogwarts as well. She missed that place so much, the place she had called home for so many years. And while she did not regret her decision to leave this place and move in with Straw and his family, she still felt pangs of desire to return back there, the first place she had ever called home. 

When Straw finished his verse (albeit with some alterations) it was silent for a moment. Queety then realized that meant it was her turn to sing. She raised her eyebrows wondering if he was seriously going to wait for her to sing along. But then she groaned, knowing that she would just have to face the inevitable and humor him. She brushed his hair away from his ear and sung softly "A whole new world, a dazzling place I never knew. But when I'm way up here, it's crystal clear that now I'm in a whole new world with you." She finished by giving him a kiss on the cheek. The atmosphere was so romantic and she could not help but get swept up in it. There was something about being with Straw that always put her at ease, made it so a wide smile was permanently etched on her face, and made her feel like every decision she had ever made in life was worth it, because it lead her to him. How did she ever get so lucky to be his girl to hear him say that he loves her? Some days she was still convinced that she was dreaming. 

Especially when he had his lips against hers. Every time, felt like the first, causing her heart to race and for her to momentarily forget to breathe. "And I love you," she responded. "I always have and I always will." Forgetting that they were floating several hundred meters in the air, she tangled her fingers in his hair and kissed him harder. Again she forgot to breathe, forgot where she was, forgot why she was there, forgot how to remain balanced on a broomstick. She leaned closer to Straw until they both were tilting to one side. Thankfully, they both caught themselves before they flipped upside down. Queety grinned sheepishly. "Sorry..." she muttered, trying to look innocent. 

"Come on," she said. "We should probably head back. We don't want the kids worrying too much, wondering why it's taking us so long to come down the chimney." She glanced back toward the Shrieking Shack. She could see a figure making their way toward the abandoned building. While she did not know who it was, she could clearly see that they did not attempt to go through the chimney or any sort of secret passage. Rather, they just walked through the front door like a normal person. Queety slowly turned back to Straw, eyebrows raised practically off her forehead. "'The entrance has to be the chimney,' huh? This is the last time I follow one of your hair-brained ideas!"