Hallowe'en at The Bower

[teaandsympathy]

Molly and Charlie had been busy. The cottage had been what Muggles call a fixer-upper to begin with, and it had taken time, work, and more than a little magic to turn it into a place that not only suited them, but felt like home. It was the sort of project that could have - and likely would, if Molly guessed right - continue for months and months. But it was often easier to work with a particular deadline in mind, and a Hallowe'en feast had seemed a good one to work toward.

They'd let everyone they knew know there would be a housewarming on Hallowe'en - some in person, others by the telephone Molly still wasn't all that comfortable using - and that the more, the merrier. Even Draco had been invited, although Molly doubted he would come.

When the holiday arrived, The Bower was ready for their guests. A fire crackled in the fireplace, and Molly had put Charlie in charged of decorations while she bustled about the kitchen where a half dozen things were going on at once: pumpkin stew being ladled into a giant pumpkin, carrot cake in the oven baking, dishes were washing themselves as quickly as Molly used them, and she was busy chopping vegetables to roast.

Various snacks were already set out on one end of the farmhouse table, and there was a bowl of candy by the door, although with the Muggle-repelling charms, they didn't expect trick-or-treaters who wouldn't be coming anyway.

Still, a bit of candy never hurt, did it?

~*~*~

Charlie, with a touch of whimsy, charmed several, small, floating pumpkins to hang about, guiding guests through the living room and into the kitchen. Each pumpkin bears a charming grin and a glimmering candle within; he's also cast a charm so that their home smells like the woods surrounding them, with a pinch of cinnamon and caramel apples tossed in for good measure. He's purchased some Muggle decorations of cut-out cats, skeletons, and, yes, witches, to place upon the walls, charming them to blink and smile as each guest passes through the house. Not an over abundance, but enough to emphasize the cozy nature of the place.

Of course, he jokingly brought up a chair into the air, as a reminder to the duel he'd had with Bill back at the Burrow, but one look from Molly was enough for him to cease those antics with a sheepish grin, even as he eyed the Muggle candy by the door with a look of distaste. What he wouldn't give for Honeydukes to magically appear one day.

Comments

[dragonsandquidditch]

"Unfortunately, yes. But such is the way of the world, sometimes," Charlie says. "Besides, I've had to feed worse to bigger dragons. They're quite fond of chickens and brandy. Not a fun combination, let me tell you."

"I can buy them at one of the local pet shops," Charlie answers. "Or I can catch them from outside, if I'm feeling particularly lazy and not wanting to go into town."

[ghost_holder]

"Yes, I can see it's a bit relative, isn't it?" Aggie says. If the dragons are as big as he says, she can barely fathom the sheer quantity of chickens needed to keep one dragon fed daily, much less more than one.

"After that, crickets must seem like nothing."

[dragonsandquidditch]

"Yeah, they're a bit jumpy, but otherwise, they give me no trouble," he nods. "And what about you? Do you have any pets?"

[ghost_holder]

"Mmmhm. A cat, named Goblin," Aggie says, grinning as she holds her hands far apart to indicate how massive her cat is. "He's twenty-five pounds of muscle and then fluffy on top of that."

[dragonsandquidditch]

"Goblin," Charlie repeats, thinking then of the goblins his brother works with. He grins as she widens her hands to the size of her pet. "Sounds like an impressive cat."

[ghost_holder]

Aggie laughs, nodding when she sees the change in his expression. "His face is a bit...funny. Kind of flat, you know? I take him out on a leash sometimes."