Fall Ball 2021 Fall Ball

It was nice to have a good reason to attend the upcoming ball. For once Xailah wouldn't have to scrounge up a lie, to convince herself that she did not have a problem. She had a real reason (without ulterior motives this time) to be here, and honestly, it had her feeling pretty okay for the most part. Frog Choir had been invited to perform at the Fall festival- which had been rapidly encroaching. The invitation left the small Glee Club sparking with excitement, and eager to take part in spooky festivities. They practiced; made sure everything would be just right for their first official performance. Despite choosing not to sing this performance; Xailah was still very excited for it.

Xailah would be a stand-out at the ball, which was no surprise at all. She always stuck out in some way or another- that was the consequence of being odd by nature. There was never a place to fit in. Only this time she was very clearly going against the dress code which was something along the lines of... Picnic Blanket and Kilt themed. Or something. Xailah had not yet familiarized herself with the word flannel. Xailah opted to stick to her Victorian roots, and tailored a bustle dress for herself (cue My Immortal dress up sequence, because... goffik. Better buckle up guys), along with what would be her very first corset- All of which would be covered by her cultic Frog Choir robes for the time being. The bodice on her corset bore some resemblance to the fine porcelain one would find on a china tea set. It was also lined in gold filigree made to reflect a skeletal ribcage. She wore sheer stockings, which were mostly covered by the ruffles of her dress, or the fancy spats that crept to her knee. On her back draped a cape, and on her face a mask was mounted. The mask looked to be a cat's skull. What fun was there in attending an All Hallows Eve themed (or Samhain as it was called in this case) event without a mask? It was the one time in the whole year where you could pretend to be something that you weren't. On her hands she wore gloves, as always, and a set of sharpened finger armor. They were accessories to be wary of. Clearly she wasn't attending the ball to hold hands with anyone. Hidden beneath her layers of clothes, she had with her, a small vial attached to some jewelry chain containing a black liquid. While the vials contents had yet to show any sign of being dangerous, she did not want to take the chance and leave it in her dormitory with Schrödinger. The last cursed object she had in her possession had come to life while she was away at- funnily enough- the last fall ball. If something were to happen with the liquid, she was a least going to be present for it. All in all, the one thing to take away from her costume was that she was a cat. But also, secretly a moth. The cape she wore mimicked the patterning on the wings of a Death's-head Hawkmoth; her entire getup mirrored the moths appearance, from the skull to the corset, and the carefully selected colors of fabric. She wouldn't know how important those stupid insects were in her story; or all the symbolism they held in their death-clad exoskeletons. To her, they were simply bugs that she liked- bugs personal to her. Precious little beacons. Whispers.

The sight of the large tent blanketing the Quidditch Pitch brought a bitter taste to the back of Xailah's tender pallette. It was one of those lingering flavors. Nasty, and dry, but never actually there. Funny how the mind could make up things to torture the senses. Her stomach flopped, churning the hot acid that swam inside. The flesh balloon felt like it was plummeting, as if it were an elevator freed from the cables meant to support it. She briefly made note of the other structures that stood erect on the grounds, mainly the funny red house with the fence (she had never seen a farm before, and the name had escaped her). School sanctioned events were always a source of anxiety for many; and depending on where the events were held, that feeling either settled, or rocketed through the roof. The Quidditch Pitch did not have positive connotations- for Xailah. She tolerated it's presence during the day- when it was serving it's one real purpose as a place for games to be played. But the moment it was used for something say, like a ball... Let's just keep it simple and say, Xailah wasn't too keen on any of it. That tent was very probably, bad news. Bad juju. But was she going to go inside anyway? Yes. Yes she was.

A minute was needed to shake off the pre-ball Doom and Gloom. Xailah stopped outside of the tents entrance, to gather herself. She inhaled deeply; the scent of dry hay, passerby cologne, and assorted autumnal aromas filled her nose. She blinked hard, clearing her vision, and her head. Her senses were going wild; but the second taken to regather bearings, seemed to help satiate them a little- calmed the prickly buzz that had been reverberating in the deepest crevices of her skull. Exhaling, she brushed her hair back; made sure it was still all pinned; secured her bone mask, before striding off to join her fellow choirsters beyond the foreboding canvas flaps.

The interior, much to the Gryffindors surprise, was actually quite pleasant. It was the perfect place for a darkling like herself to thrive. The little lights that floated about like wandering stars were absolutely enchanting. This was pure bliss for a child of the night, who sought refuge in twilights black veil, but still wanted to be among light. The setting- all of it- resonated with Xailah deeply. It reminded her of her own home in a way. Her cold, dark home- ever lonely, but always calming. Xailah had no problem navigating her surroundings, despite the thin grey mist, and dim light. Her choir members were found easily. With them were their amphibious partners, and two pitchers each filled with drink. The group gathered, knitting close together.

Glasses were raised in a toast. To their first official performance. What a momentous occasion. Xailah had never imagined her first ever toast to be at one of the school's balls. She brought her glass up like how she had seen the posh adults do at the dinner parties her family hosted. She could remember that as a child, she wanted to be involved with the party goers so badly. So whenever they did a toast she would, from the top of staircase she had been confined to, raise her own tiny teacup from her childhood tea set, in a distant, unseen salute; just so she could feel included in something. Here, amongst the Frog Choir, we didn't have to do that. She was included. Xailah did not drink from her cup when the tribute had finished. Instead she tipped it to the side, while no one was looking in her direction, and poured out it's contents. Rule of thumb, if it was served at a ball, don't consume it. The drink of course was most likely fine, but the Gryffindor didn't want to take any chances.

Pericles had stirred some alarm when he downed his beverage. He didn't drink what the others had, and now he was rapidly turning orange. The warm hue replaced his cold pallor quickly, like ink in water. Xailahs thoughts immediately went to, oh god he's choking. Alas, there was nothing to worry about. People never turn orange when they are choking. Pericles chilled features were suddenly replaced with a round, grinning pumpkin. The only thing he would have to watch out for now, was someone on the hunt for their runaway Jack-o'-lantern decor.

Xailah wished each passing singer a quick: good luck, before they went on stage, and all were advised to not break their legs. Xailah never understood the classic pre-performance well wishing of, break a leg. Why would anyone wish broken legs upon a person? Unless of course they were disliked- which in that case it made perfect sense. Was it meant for people you hated? Why did sayings have to be so tricky? Oh bother. She could figure it out while she waited for the second part of the choir show. She peeked as much as she could, while still staying out of view, hoping to catch some snippets of the first performance.

Kels had somewhat fallen in to becoming the conductor for the frog choir. At first, he had only just known the choir existed, and had the brilliant idea to sign Fromage (his frog) up for it so that she would have a chance to make some frog friends and maybe enjoy some singing. Kels had always loved music, and even played guitar himself, like any self-respecting millennial slacker. He was glad to see Fromage take to it too, lending her out to any student that didn't have one and attending the practices like a proud dad in the corner. After being around long enough, he just sort've became part of the collective. It was a good bunch of kids, he kinda loved the little group.

Not to mention the obvious: that frog were cool and singing frogs were even better. Kels would wave to the crowd indolently, bundled up in a bunch of old clothes that could have easily been repaired by magic if he ever got around to it. As the conductor it wasn't his job to actually teach any of the kids or train them, that had been the club leader Peri. All he was going was keeping the beat and pointing to the kids when their solo was up. Also, it wasn't bad to have an adult around in case one of their sparks charms when horribly wrong.

He hadn't planned anything in particular for after the performance, but he was most likely to just leave. He was an extrovert, certainly, but without something to grab his attention, he didn't fancy floating around looking for something to do. Especially with all the things he already had on his massive list of things to do. He'd have to see if anything came up.

Emily looked around, at the students entering the ball, she was still very excited and even nervous. She looked at the other students, meeting their dates, and remembered that she did not have one, she knew she would meet up with friends, but she felt like it still was not the same. Altho she knew that even without a date, she would still quite enjoy herself. She hoped that Juniper would arrive soon, she had not seen her in a while and quite missed her as well. She wondered what she had been up to all those days.

Suddenly she head a "Emmy" being shouted from the other side. And so she knew that Simon had arrived. She turned around to find him, and then there he stood. Hello, you came!She said and took his hand, which he suggested. As they were walking around, she looked at the beautiful decoration. Isn't it beautiful, i always loved autumn, but this just makes it look 10 times better!She said and looked at him. Spoken about beauty, where is your girlfriend, i haven't seen her yet, would you introduce me? I would be trilled to get to meet her!" She said exciting.

She heard the music in the background and realised that it was time for their first dance."Oh and ofcourse i cannot forget" She said, stook out her hand and bowed a tiny tiny bit. "Simon, may i have the honor to have this dance with you?" She asked him, and giggled a bit, waiting for his responce.

Wordcount: 260
Intercating with: Simon Kincaid
Stats: |Stamina: 7 | Evasion: 7 | Strength: 3 | Wisdom: 6 | Arcane Power: 5 | Accuracy: 7

Interacting: @Juniper Kelly | Frog Choir
Mentioning: @Hui Ming
Outfit

Della and the other handlers had safely moved the frogs to the quidditch pitch where the tent was set up. (The tent itself was grandiose and everything Della had expected from witches and wizards celebrating Halloween. She was glad they got to walk in early, so she had plenty of time to gawk at the decor before the ball started.) The frogs had been wonderful distractions: they made sure they were fed, happy, and ready to sing. Della loved spending time with them and learning all their personality quirks.

Now backstage, Della had her arms crossed across her robes, wringing her hands, head spinning. So far, life at Hogwarts had been quite dramatic, in addition to learning the chaos that is magic, she was in a six-way duel, she had fought demonic pumpkins and geese, and encountered a giant squid. Yet, nothing prepared her for this. The ball.

What lay ahead was a new sort of chaos.

1) Della was going to perform a spell in front of the whole school, including the upperclassman in the frog choir who still intimidated her, even after a month of rehearsals together.

2) Della was wearing a dress. It was not her usual thing. It had been quite an ordeal to obtain. She had to write home to her mother, by owl, hope her mother read it and could get a dress in time, and desperately hope her mother could the owl to bring it to Hogwarts. Of course, it was a success, after quite a few of days of panic and anxiety. Her dress, express ordered from Shein, fit nicely. It was currently under her choir cloak. It was supposed to be knee-length—it turned out to be shorter on Della, but it looked good all the same.

3) And Della had a date with a boy. She hoped the hastily ordered dress would live up to Ming's high regard to formality. She hoped she would live up to it. After puzzling over the Slytherin boy's owled invitation for a few hours, Della said yes. Ming was handsome, and he had only been kind to her so far. Did this mean he liked her? Or were they just friends? Wait, were they friends at all? Or was it all a prank?

Della took some calming breaths. She heard her fellow handler, Juniper, exclaim to the singers that they'd do great. Della nodded along eagerly with her, trying to be supportive. From her position backstage, she could just see Pericles don his squash appearance, and the show had started! She could only see a small portion of the audience, and so far, she hadn't seen Ming. Hopefully, he would still be meeting her after the performance.

Action: Entering the ball, watching the performance from the wings

It was incredible to see what the Quidditch pitch had been transformed into. Haley marvelled as she saw all the lights and spun around once as she surveyed the location. For minutes she couldn't stop being in awe and was all the happier that she wasn't holed up in her dorm today.

As she slowly entered the field, her nervousness was forgotten for a moment. Her long dress fit like a glove, it had a slit at the leg which made it easier for her to walk and while her favourite colour was green, she had deliberately chosen a different colour this time. The dress had a soft pinkish nude tone, the upper part was distorted and decorated and looked like flower tendrils that had grown along the dress. Her long red hair was wavy, as it always was. She had braided part of it back and a few strands framed her face.

While Haley was momentarily captivated by the decorations and all the pretty lights, reality quickly caught up with her. The uncomfortable feeling in the pit of her stomach when she spotted Simon with someone else. She couldn't and wouldn't deny it, it was clearly jealousy as she watched the two of them dance together. But at the same moment, it was a smile that graced her face as she watched the two of them. Simon was happy, he was having fun and that was exactly what he deserved. And if Haley wasn't the one, maybe she was.

Tears formed in her eyes at the thought, which she tried to blink away quickly. She turned away from what was happening, today she would not cry. She breathed in and out slowly a few times, tried to catch herself again, but she couldn't get rid of the thought that maybe it would be better if she left.

Action: Entering the Fall Ball

Mentioning: @Simon Kincaid @Emily R. Brewer

Interactions:@Quinn Healy

STA: 13
EVA: 13
STR: 6
WIS: 6
ARC: 9
ACC: 9

Special Abilities: The Muggle Condition!

Reducio

description of clothes that will come soon-ish

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Despite being pretty good at looking like he’s okay when he’s not, Hanako couldn’t shake off the nervous feeling in his stomach. Perhaps Katherine’s stupid date assignment was something worth fighting against. Maybe he wasn’t actually ready to pretend to make this poor kid fall for him. With what foundation does he have to be confident that he could? Mason paid more attention to Hana’s snake. S n a K e.

As adorable as she is, that did something to Hana’s ego. He had to take a deep breath. ‘Chill' he told himself. 'Even if you do fail, the worst thing she’ll do to you is burn your clothes - if not you first. And if Percival ever sees you, it’s not like you’re doing anything wrong. Anddddd if you happen to be called a boyfriend stealer because you’re stealing Wyatt’s boyfriend, oh- wait that’s not actually that concerning..’. With his thoughts slightly scrambled, he turned back to his date and gave him a serious look.

“Right then. Business starts now. Remember all those rules we talked about. I cannot stress enough how I need to pass this. Don’t stray too far away. Expect physical contact from me. And the last thing. You remember right? Right?” he asked as gently as he could. Sounding stressed would only make his date more stressed.

The last one was supposed to be a romantic goodbye. Something in front of Kath that will make her nod in approval. It was absolutely crucial for a fake-forced-date. The ribbon that tied the present together. Soon, all their memories from today will be stored in that present box and cast away into the nearest river in Hana’s imagination. Although he had a mission tonight, the memories that came with it didn’t need to stay for long. Alec’s cute face can stay. But that’s it.

With the sudden croaking and singing, Hanako had no choice but to turn towards where the frog choir was happening. With unusual silence from the boy, he listened on to the music with curious interest. “How cute~” he complimented, although it seemed like it was only intended to be heard by Alec. “ Sets the Halloween tone much more doesn’t it? I mean, not saying the decorations didn’t do a good job already. Music is.. Nice” it wasn’t the best way to describe music, but it did certainly ease Hana’s heart like nothing else. What is more soothing than nice music as background music? All he needed right now was some good tea. “Oh, tea. Right. Are you a bit parched or hungry?” Rule 14 of going on dates, a good way to a man’s heart, is through his stomach. You cannot woo a hungry date. “ Or perhaps there's something else you’d like to do? Someone you want to see? I’m only here for you, Mason. So please don’t ask me the same question. I’ll follow you even if you want to dance with that skeleton over there”

Hanako pointed to the pumpkin headed fake skeleton under the dancing charm with a joyful grin on his face. “ Oh, but I won’t tolerate any running away. No leaving early. The ball had just begun afterall~”.
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Interacting: @Alec Mason

Slightly Mentioning: @Percival Rainwood@Katherine Labrouder @Wyatt Starkey @Dancing pumpking head skeleton & @Frog Choir

Interacting with: @Henry Knight
Closed to Interactions

This was it; the long awaited fall ball was finally here again. Only this year, it was a little different - Starlee would be performing with the rest of the frog choir at the beginning of the event! After joining last year, she honestly couldn't wait for their first performance. She was quite used to performing, with a classically trained background in piano and many performances as such, but playing a piece solo seemed like a completely different beast than singing in a choir - with the addition of a cute little toad as well to boot!

Starlee ran backstage, throwing the dark choir robes over her extremely poofy dress. While the robe was somewhat heavy, it still didn't manage to smush down the protruding tulle, causing her midsection to fluff outward strangely, almost like a high hoop skirt. Starlee didn't mind, she had wanted to go on-theme, while still in somewhat of a costume, so autumn fairy seemed like a good fit, and this was what her mother had managed to throw together on limited time. Unusually, her typically pin straight blonde hair was now thrown in a tight sock bun, with a decorative leaf attached to the side. She felt cute and ready to perform! All that was left now, was her singing partner.

She grabbed one of the pillows, and went over to the bins to collect her little Bubbles, the adorable black toad. He croaked happily when he saw her, and she smiled back at him. She plopped him down on the pillow and leaned down to whisper, "Are you ready Bubbles? It's our time to shine!" She would head back to the rest of the group, down a glass of water, and chat with Henry before they left for the stage. "I mean, I must live up to my name!" she bantered back. "Good luck, Henry!" she would say before they all headed on stage.

It was amazing. Everything that she had ever hoped. So much of the school, even some of the professors, had come to see the choir perform, and it warmed Starlee's heart. Not just that, but Bubbles seemed to be his usual peppy self, croaking along to the song. All to soon, it seemed it was time for Starlee's solo.

"In this school, don't we love it now?
Everybody's waiting for the next surprise!"

She bobbed back and forth slightly, her frog bobbing in alternating directions. She couldn't help but hold the widest grin for the rest of the song. As they finished, she fake skeleton danced, and Starlee was both happy, yet sad that the event was almost over. She would have to rock the next song out of the park!

Action: Entering & Performing

For Moderation:
Stats: Stamina: 7 | Evasion: 8 | Strength: 6 | Wisdom: 8 | Arcane Power: 6 | Accuracy: 6
Abilities: Healing Sage | Comprehend Language (Parseltongue)

There he was. His second ball at Hogwarts, the second chance he gave this place. Or rather, the professors? Either way, it was a second chance to make better memories and while his visit had been very successful so far, which Cash had also been a big influence on, this was now the crucial evening. Would he leave this place laughing today or really never visit this place again? Would he be poisoned with the drinks again or be able to enjoy simple punch like a normal person. Whichever way it came, he would soon find out. Still, he would wait and watch enough others to see how they would react to the drinks and food.

After Nate had entered the location, the first thing he did was a quick but attentive glance around, which only told him that Cassandra was not there yet. In the meantime, he adjusted his suit, making sure everything was where it should be. He carefully fixed his hair and then took in the surroundings. Even though it was hard for him to admit it, that was what was truly magical about Hogwarts. The decorations of the Great Hall on special days or festivities and so was this ball today. The actual Quidditch pitch was barely recognisable. Many warm lights lit up the night, there was a wooden dance floor in the middle and when he caught sight of it he had to grin.

He had never spoken to Cash about whether them could dance. Which in his opinion was perhaps a strange topic of conversation but Nate knew at least a little of the environment Cash had grown up in and assumed that they hadn't been spared that either. But Nate was no different, his father placed a lot of emphasis on a good upbringing and traditions and so he and his brother had to learn to dance as well as many formal things. What turned out to be one of the most annoying lessons by Nate and his brothers opinion, it turned out to be more than helpful in such moments.

After looking around the whole location, Nate stood on the side and waited for Cash to come through the entrance. As he stood tall, his Russian pride evident, there was a familiar expressionless look on his face. Some might take it as evil, but Nate had simply relaxed his face. There were no intentions behind it, but often outsiders who didn't know him thought he was rude. But quite the opposite, even though he could be introverted at first, he had a huge heart and once he warmed up to a person, he could spend hours laughing with them. But all that was inside him and at such moments it was difficult for others to see.

But that didn't bother him, especially now, because he wasn't here to be spoken to by anyone. He was here waiting for Cassandra Ironwoods and as soon as they stepped through the entrance to the ball and he caught sight of them, a broad smile would form on his so far expressionless face.

Action: Entering the Fall Ball

Mentioning: @Cassandra Ironwoods

"I uh, I'm not sure if she's coming," Simon began. With everything that had gone on with he and Haley over the last few months and everything she had to deal with personally - and then recall it all - he wasn't sure a silly school dance was something she'd even want to come to anymore, especially if he was going to be her date. The two had been in a rocky place and while she finally told him what was wrong there just might have been too much damage, too much distance. "I sent a note reminding her and...I hope she comes," he said. His last words sort of filtered into a whisper. He didn't like showing vulnerability and if he said them at normal volume, perhaps his voice would have shaken a little.

He was grateful when Emily asked if he would like to dance and he smiled, glad she wasn't apprehensive at all. She had done wonderfully at their dance lessons and he knew she had no reason to think twice on the matter. "I would love to share a dance, Miss Brewer," he said, giving her a bow to try and be all gentleman-like before taking her by the hand and leading her over where the others were already dancing.

It was a slow dance and that was good! Emily could get adjusted to it easily. Slow dancing was easier in some aspects. Simon slipped his other hand to her waist and tapped his forehead against hers playfully and began to move. She picked up immediately with him, effortlessly.

"You know, Emmy...you picked up on this really fast. Must be the Ravenclaw in you. That, or you're simply terrible at dancing but somehow you've managed to trick me using your Ravenclaw abilities," he teased, smiling to her. They did some turns and spins and it was too soon before that song slowly came to an end. It was a nice first dance, and he figured Emily would too probably think so.

"Come on, let's grab a drink," he said and he tucked Emily's arm in his again as they made their way over closer towards the refreshment table and thus, over towards where Haley would be but he hadn't seen her yet. "You and I, we're pretty great together, don't you think?" he smiled to Emily. They made a good friendship team, they made a good student a pupil, they made a good dancing couple. "I'm proud of you, Emmy," he whispered to her. The wind blew just then, brushing some of her hair a bit askew, and he brought his hand, slowly through it to guide it back into place.

"Might I get you anything to drink, my lady?" he asked, playing around like she was some sort of princess and he just a lowly servant. He turned to the table and thusly, almost collided right into Haley. "Oh! Haley... Sorry!" he paused. He hadn't expected to see her, especially just there. Why hadn't she approached him if she was there?

He glanced to Emily and then over to Haley, remembering that Emily had wanted to be introduced. "Uh, Em, this is Haley Rose and Haley this is Emily Brewer," he said, making the most basic introduction he could. "Would...either of you two like a drink?" and he gave a small, nervous smile. He had enjoyed his dance with Emily and just because Haley was there it felt wrong to dump her and go off with someone else, but then again, what was Haley thinking right now of this situation? He felt like he got himself into a tight situation.