Pragma // s.b.

16

****

"Amber, too close to my scalp!", I cried, the searing hot tip of Amber's wand getting dangerously close to my skin. "Oh, sorry!", she said, pulling it away. Despite my protests, Amber insisted she straighten my hair, doing my makeup, and picking me out a "totally hot outfit for the bonfire", which was tonight. After our conversation with Potter, Liv had basically sprinted back to the common room, rounded up all our friends and yelled at the top of her lungs that we were all invited to the Gryffindor's bonfire. Let's just say everyone was just as excited as she was.

Our dormitory was an absolute wreck. It looked like it had been hit by a tornado. Clothes littered the ground and the smell of powder and hairspray filled the room. It was already 9:15, and the bonfire started at 9:30, and panic was starting to set in as girls rushed around trying to finish their looks. I snorted as Skye sprinted past, tripping over a pair of shoes she had thrown down less than 5 minutes previously. "Turn your head to the left", Amber ordered, and I obliged.

When I told her the girls was just planning on wearing one of my oversized sweaters and a pair of leggings, they all just about had an aneurysm. Apparently I was insane and was ignoring a perfectly good excuse to look really hot. I didn't really see the point in dressing up, it was going to be dark out and no one would even be able to see what I looked like, right? But, here I was, sitting cross legged in front of Amber's bed as she used her new found skill of performing haircare spells. I glanced at my reflection in the mirror under Liv's outstretched arm, which was applying dark red lipstick to her plump lips.

My face was covered in a thick layer of makeup, much more than I usually wore. I couldn't lie though, it did look really good. Amber had given my cheeks a sharp contour, making my cheekbones look higher and my face slimmer. She had also applied a dark smokey eye look around my hazel eyes. It made them look bigger and greener, which I liked. My lips were a glossy nude color, I had insisted that she didn't make me do red because I planned on eating and didn't feel like stressing out about whether my lipstick had smudged all night.

"All done", Amber said, running her hands through my hair, which now fell down my back in a shiny sheet. I stood up, stretching. "I laid out your outfit on your bed", she hopped up, her shiny top catching the light. I sighed, "You sure I can't just wear my Hufflepuff sweater?". She shot me a look that let me know if I fought her on this, she would win and I would possibly wind up dead. "Fine", I grumbled, moving across the room. I stepped over Poppy, who was jumping around a pile of discarded dresses.

Neatly laid out on the yellow quilt was a pair of ripped high waisted jeans and a dark grey crop top with a deep v neck. I bit my lip. Well, it wasn't really my style, but it wasn't the worst. I stripped out of my robes and pulled on the jeans and shirt. Bending down I grabbed the pair of black ankle boots left at the foot of my bed and pulled them onto my feet. "You look so good!", squealed Maggie, her lilac hair falling in loose curls around her elfish face. "Not as good as you do", I grinned.

"Wait!", Amber yelled, "You're not ready yet". She bent down and began to dig through her trunk, clothes spilling out in every direction. I looked around in confusion and Skye shrugged. A moment later, she let out a loud, "Found it!", and yanked something out of the bottom of the trunk. In her hands she clutched a dark black leather jacket. "The final touch", she winked, throwing it at me. I reached up and caught it. "No way", I set it down on my bed, "I would look so stupid in that". "No!", she called running over to Skye and pulling her up so she could see me, "Wouldn't Bri look so hot in this?". Skye pulled pulled her sleek ponytail so it was tighter against her head and slung her arm around her twin, "You'd look pretty bomb, Bri".

I sighed and looked down at it. I would have never picked anything like this for myself to wear. I would feel like I was trying to hard or like I wasn't cool enough to pull it off. I bent over and pulled it off my bed. Well, I guess this year was all about getting out of my comfort zone. "Fine, you win", I rolled my eyes playfully.

I turned to face myself in the mirror and pulled on it on. I let out a laugh, "Wow, I look very different". "You look sexy", Liv walked by, smacking my butt. I shook my head and turned away from the mirror. My mind drifted, and thoughts that had been filling my head all day began to fill my head. I was excited about the bonfire, don't get me wrong, but I was nervous for some reason. I couldn't seem to put my finger on why I had such a sense of anticipation that was causing my stomach to have an uncomfortable feeling that I had never experienced before. 

"Alright, ladies!", Amber called, pulling on her boots, "The boys are waiting!". Maggie grabbed her purse off the bed and walked hand in hand with Skye down the stairs to the common room, Amber trotting behind them. Liv looked at me through the mirror, rubbing a spot of lipstick off her teeth. "Let yourself have fun tonight, Bri. You deserve it", she smiled knowingly. I couldn't help but grin. She was right, I just needed to relax and enjoy myself. "Ready?', she said, turning towards me. "More than ready", and we were off.

****

    The smell of smoke billowing off the large bonfire filled the crisp Autumn night air. It was situated in the middle of the large crowd of people dancing and laughing and drinking spiked Butterbeer or Firewhiskey. I pulled the leather jacket tight around me to warm myself, glad I had been peer pressured into wearing it. My eyes scanned the crowd for any signs or Remus or Sirius, for some reason I felt a little bit giddy at the fact that I would get to see them.

    "Lily!", Maggie called out, spotting her across the way and basically sprinting over. Skye was off with Lewis grabbing some marshmallows and graham crackers and Amber and Liv were...preoccupied with their boyfriends. My eyes flitted through the crowd, praying I found someone to talk to before I stood here like a loner for too long.

Someone grabbed my shoulders suddenly from behind and I jumped, spinning around. "Seriously, Potter?", I clutched my chest, "I almost just had a heart attack". He lifted his cup to his lips and winked. Peter and Remus stood a few feet away, waving when they saw me. "You look great, Bri", James grinned, reaching up and ruffling my hair. "Don't let Amber see you do that", I snorted, "She would have a mental breakdown if her masterpiece was ruined", I gestured to my hair, makeup, and then down to my outfit.

"There you are, Prongs!", a gruff voice called. I looked over to the side where it was coming from. Sirius sauntered over, an excited almost reckless air about him. A cigarette hung out of his mouth and he clutched a cup in his hand. "Hi, Sirius", I said slowly, "I see you didn't waste any time getting drunk". He stopped dead in his tracks, staring at me. I waited for him to say something, anything, but he just stared at me. I let out a slight laugh and looked over at James who shrugged.

Suddenly, Sirius seemed to realize something. He quickly pulled the cigarette out of his mouth and threw it on the ground, stomping it out. I looked at him quizzically. "Hi, Briony", he breathed very quietly, and then suddenly was gone. I let out a laugh and turned to James. "He's weird when he's drunk", I said through another laugh. "I don't think that's why he was acting like that", James said slowly. What was that supposed to mean? I felt a small knot form in my stomach and a feeling started to rise in my chest. It was almost like...disappointment. I didn't know what I expected. Sirius was very popular, of course he wasn't going to hang out with me tonight.

I turned to James and did my best to smile. James looked over at me and his eyebrows drew closer together, a mischievous look spreading across his face.  "Come on Remus, Peter! Let's give Carter a taste of what it's like to be a Gryffindor". He grabbed my hand and pulled me towards the large table of drinks and the crackling bonfire, bright gold and scarlet sparks exploding into glorious formations, as only one made by a magical student could. I looked over my shoulder to see Remus and Peter laughing loudly not far behind us.

Maggie waved from across the bonfire, dancing to the loud music with Lily and a few other girls. All around me students were chatting and drinking and having a good time. The tension that I hadn't even realized was there started to slowly leave my shoulders and I shook my head so my hair blew behind me in the wind, "So, which one of you boys is gonna get me some Firewhiskey?".