October thirty-first, the eve of Halloween.
George had only just reached the castle hall that morning when he smelled the sweet, tempting scent of roasted pumpkin.
Breakfast that day was basically all pumpkin-related; Hagrid had probably provided quite a lot of ingredients.
But honestly, the House-elves' cooking really was good. No wonder Tonks had always said she missed the food at Hogwarts.
Even someone like him, who did not particularly like western food, occasionally felt pleasantly surprised by it.
If he had the chance, he planned to see whether he could get one in the future and use it as a butler.
When the last class of the afternoon ended, the young wizards headed toward the Great Hall in groups. As the Slytherin Star, George was naturally surrounded by his classmates as they went over together.
"Have you heard? Dumbledore specially invited the Skeleton Dance Troupe to this Halloween feast!"
"Wow, the dance troupe made entirely of skeletons?"
Amid the young wizards' excited discussion, George stepped into the Great Hall.
At this moment, the Great Hall had already been decorated in dazzling colors. A thousand live bats flapped about along the walls and ceiling, while another thousand, like clusters of low dark clouds, circled and swooped above the dining tables.
Huge jack-o'-lanterns floated in the air over the Great Hall, each one big enough to fit two or three young wizards inside.
They had been made from pumpkins specially enlarged by Hagrid with the Engorgement Charm. George had been there at the time too.
Only, he was not interested in pumpkins. What he was interested in was the Engorgement Charm.
The Engorgement Charm was a spell that could make a person swell rapidly and float up like a balloon. It had the same effect on objects as well, but one