Magical Masquerade: The entrance

Interacting: @Aly Salinger, @Rebecca Lark, mentioning THE BEES - (Open) to interactions

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	While Peri failed to find a friend first, one fortunately found him. As Aly brushed by, he glanced up in time to her greeting, lips quirking into a questioning frown until recognition set in. He knew those wild curls and that voice, pinning it the instant he met a pair of distinct emerald eyes. His own widened beneath the veil of starry fabric, voice warm with sentiment as he sighed "Aly" in realization. That frown instantly lifted into a lopsided smile. Pericles couldn't recall seeing his fellow Ravenclaw at a ball since a certain Fall Ball, where she'd had the courtesy to wake him up after he dozed off on the sidelines, exhausted from running a competitive gauntlet. The time since had passed strangely, somehow feeling like a long while and no time at all. "Bright and constant as any constellation," Pericles complimented in his sphinxlike way, appraising her gown; its cut was a classy blend of elegance and eccentricity. He sounded impressed as he added, "That's quite a dress. Is the pattern... astronomically accurate?" Aesthetic and based in fact. The wizard could appreciate that. What was more, she hadn't come alone. Aly was accompanied by another nocturnal creature, a little moth whose eyeballs he was uniquely familiar with. His smile split into a grin come her compliment, and he bounced it back, fondly replying "Hullo Becca. I like your antennae, too." The smirk lingered on as she immersed herself in a pearlbush, though the duellist was soon distracted, his selective hearing picking up the shouts of incantations again. Bees had stirred from the foliage a ways away, yet their targets had come up with inventive solutions which blessedly didn't involve fire. Birds to eat them and bubbles to trap them. Pericles had instinctively touched his right fingertips to his left wrist, ready to draw his wand, only for his arms to fall to his sides again as the miniature crisis passed. He was reminded of a Spring Ball he'd helped plan, one with a flowery theme that wound up swarmed by mosps. At least these seemed like mundane insects. With a concerned frown, he glanced back to Bex, warning "Careful. It looks like there's less friendly bugs around." On a more casual note, he asked Aly: "Are you two working together to get into the ball? I'll admit, I'm slacking today. I think I'll watch the rest of you work." The last line was playfully lazy, but beneath it, he hoped she was watching out for the first-year.
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Action: just socializing, waiting for others to open the gates

Reducio

﴾ Stamina - 10 | Evasion - 12 | Strength - 4 | Wisdom - 12 | ArcPower - 10 | Accuracy - 14 ﴿
+10% temporary HP from Aly's Paragon of Health (1,100/1000)
Perfectionist 1 + 2, Keen Eye, Spell Spread, Animagus
Inventory: Potions, wand, Fit
Posts: 1 - you are here

interacting: @Quinn Root
English | Parseltongue
outfit: dramatically different than she usually looks, will not be recognized by most

Reducio

"So no date to the ball, either?"

Della looked up. Another girl was at her side and was speaking to her. Even though the rose bushes were a flurry of student activity, the world seemed to go quiet for just one second. Della didn't recognize this girl—with her face adorned with fresh greenery and her extravagant, short-cropped dress—more a wood nymph than a student.

And she felt a familiar feeling. It had only happened to her once or twice. She immediately thought of dancing with Ming during her first year or the kiss with the blue-haired girl at summer camp. Her face was growing hot—at least her mask would cover her blushes. Della had considered her fist kiss to be a bit of fluke. She didn't expect that she would spend much crushing on other girls, or even boys for that matter. After the kiss and the subsequent ghosting, Della had mentally declared that relationships and crushes weren't for her.

But the throes of puberty were a rollercoaster. Here she was again. Maybe she did like girls? That question and its answers would have to be explored at a later date. She still needed to answer the girl.

"No, I'm here alone. It seems like the clues are a little easy, huh?" She almost told the girl her name, her life story, everything tumbling out in a nervous batch. But she stopped herself. Tonight, she didn't have to be Della Barfield, broom racing captain, awkward loner, overgrown teenager—tonight she could be anyone. Someone cool, confident, someone this girl might like.

"We could look together? I doubt we'll be the ones to find the key at this rate, but we can follow the crowd." Della gestured to the students, who had now dispersed from the roses, finding yet more clues—was time moving in slow motion? A few students were not gunning for the lilies. Della headed that way, hoping the girl would follow.

Action: searching the lilies
stamina 6 | evasion 13 | strength 3 | wisdom 9 | arcane power 5 | accuracy 10
Parselmouth [speaks the language & has an advantage with snakes] & Evasive Maneuvers

banner made by ernest baird

a series of unfortunate shenanigans
@Raizel Voltrouz • @Zach Zaphiere • @Piérre Marchonné as Romeo Marchonné

What would've been a terrifying hoard of black-and-yellow bandits turned into the most graceful and beautiful white doves. Alyssea readjusted her hold on Rusty, making sure to hide her wand behind the feline. The few bees that hadn't been turned into doves were encased in bubbles, which calmed Alyssea down slightly. At least they weren't much of a threat now.

Turning to the whole group, she bowed her head slightly. "Sorry to barge in, I didn't mean to bother you all. I should've kept an eye on my cat." Rusty reverted to his anti-social behaviour, tucking his head behind her cape as Alyssea playfully rolled her eyes.

The Hufflepuff then faced the man with a bear mask. "I... I think you're the right person." She paused for a short moment and quickly whispered, 'I don't know his name'. Stammering, she continued, "I just wanted to say thank you for saving me at the last ball. From the grindylows, if you still remember."

The fall ball had been a long time ago, now, and the nightmares had long subsided. She still avoided the Great Lake like a plague, but she could stare at it and enjoy the view. Six months. Had it really been six months already? Everyone had moved on, so there was some pressure to think she should've moved on by now, too.

Alyssea snapped back to the present after her cat gently bit her arm. She quickly cleared her throat. "That's all I wanted to talk to you for, to be honest... So, I'll be going back to my friends now."

With a quick check to see if her friends were still in the same place, she turned around and set off.

outfit of the ball Reducio

action: thanking romeo, returning to rai and zach unless stopped stats: sta 6 | eva 7 | str 6 | wis 8 | arc 6 | acc 8 abilities: prod. transfiguration | evasive maneuvers (10% auto-dodge)

Slowly seconds turned to minutes and minutes turned into a half hour. Ernest stayed relatively in the same spot, near the edge of the big group, hoping he was easy to spot. He started to feel nervous, what if she didn’t come? What if he stood alone the entire time? He raked a hand through his hair, before panicking and quickly patting it back down.

He glanced around and spotted people he knew, the blonde hair of Elisa unmistakable. He figured if his secret penpal didn’t show he could easily force his company on her.

After a while, he got discouraged and deemed himself stood up and decided he was going to go back to his dorm. No one could embarrass him there, he figured, he could just get into some pajamas and get back in- He turned and came masked face to masked face with a girl. Was this his penpal?

She was stunningly beautiful from what he could see, her face covered but her fire-red hair out for anyone to gaze upon. She was dressed in a lace-covered dress, but Ernest was mostly looking at the color. Green. “My invisible friend?” He asked, a small smile covering his face.

Biometrics Age 12, Slytherin first year Height 4"4 [1.3m] | Weight 80 lbs [36.2kg] ─────────────────────────── Important physical characteristics Pointed eyes, longer fingers, slightly yellowed skin under bright light ─────────────────────────── Fluent Languages Key "English." | "gobbledygook" He understands slight French

Stats Stam 4 | Eva 5 | Str 4 Wis 6 | Acc 6 | Arc 5 ─────────────────────────── Special Race Goblin ─────────────────────────── Action Talking to @Willow Byrne Open to interaction

Willow felt a tiny bead of sweat run down her back, but she ignored the nerves. She ran a hand down her lacy green dress and smiled, though she wasn't sure he could even tell.

"Yes, that's me." She answered quietly, her tone light but slightly laced with uncertainty. "You're 'whoever this may be,' I presume." It felt strange to put a presence to the words that had found her on paper. His attire was indeed a dark green suit, and a nice one at that. She felt comforted to know that everyone else had also tried hard to look nice- standing out was one of Willow's greatest fears.

"It's nice to finally meet you," She told the boy, and it was true. "I think that we're supposed to be looking for a key?" Her eyes skated over him again and wavered a little bit. She couldn't see him well, but it made her nervous to be near a boy. How silly.

But what if he didn't like her in person? Or what if he thought she was boring? Oh, dear. Only one way to find out, she supposed. Enjoy the ball with her letter-writing friend. What would come would come, and she would know when it did. For now, there seemed to be a key to be found.

April 13, 2024
WC: 219
Mentions: @Ernest Baird
Stats:
Stamina: 4
Evasion: 7
Strength: 3
Wisdom: 10
ArcPower: 4
Accuracy: 7
Action: Entering ball and talking to @Ernest Baird
Open to interactions

☽ •----------------------------------------• ☾

speech • #427c9a thoughts • italics others • #ffffff

april 13th, 2024 • date quidditch training pitch • location spring ball • thread

Ophelia grinned as Topaz walked up to her and Quinn. Her Slytherin friend had finally joined their group. Topaz looked beautiful in a white dress and a black mask. Her entire outfit was glittery, something that Ophelia would usually find ugly, though she thought that it looked good on her friend.

Topaz began apologising for her late arrival, which Ophelia waved off. There were still some people who had yet to make an appearance, so Topaz was definitely not the last one. "It's alright. Come on, let's search the pearlbushes. You came just in time to-"

She never did get to finish that sentence because the next clue was found by someone and the howler that held the next poem opened. Everyone grew quiet at once, straining their ears to find out where they were to look next. Ophelia blinked, trying to process it. It's the last clue! We can finally start the actual ball. She felt relieved. Though it had been a novel idea, it hadn't worked out quite so well for Ophelia, as she wasn't in the proper outfit to dig through bushes.

Fleur-de-lis? The words made no sense to the young Ravenclaw, who'd never really spoken any language other than her mother tongue, English. Maybe if she'd spoken Spanish or French, or even some Irish like the other Irish students, she'd have been able to figure it out. But she didn't, and so she was stumped.

Looking around, she saw that many of the other ball guests were heading towards the lily plants. The flowers were pretty and it made Ophelia sad to know that everyone was about to go digging through them. She started to crouch, beckoning her friends over. "Come on, let's find this key." If this was the last clue, then she was sure that Quinn wouldn't have any reservations about taking part in the activity as well.

interactions • @Quinn Brook @Topaz November mentions • @ stats • sta 6 | eva 5 | str 6 | wis 7 | arc 6 | acc 5

294 • word count xxx • outfit perfectionist • abilities

action • looking through some lilies

☽ •----------------------------------------• ☾

Open to Interactions

Uri checked himself in the mirror one last time. He felt like he looked okay but then again he always doubted how good he looked. He put the mask on and looked himself up and down. He thought the effect of his costume was pretty good. He still hadn't made many friends and he felt like not many people knew much about him, so he decided he wanted a costume for the masquerade ball that played into the air of mystery he felt surrounded him already. He was pleased with everything: he felt the black (which was the primary color) played into the effect he was trying to convey, and the little gold there was really popped against the black of his outfit. He finally decided to put the mask on and looked at himself again. There was something missing, he thought, and then it hit him: he looked in the mirror and screwed his eyes up in focus. It took a couple of tries, but eventually he managed to shift his eyes to be the same color as the accents of his mask, "Perfect," he said to himself and turned to walk away but then stopped. He looked over at Séamus' black fez and figured what the hell, if he couldn't find anyone to talk to, at least he could feed Séamus some bits and bobs. He took the fez and carefully turned it over, trying not to disturb his rabbit as he did so. He looked in the mirror and adjusted the fez a couple more times until he felt it was perfect. Satisfied, he turned and headed down to the common room, ready to make his way to the ball.

He'd been walking for about five minutes when he'd made his way to the training pitch. The transformation was stark and, in Uri's opinion, stunning. The trees and shrubs were beautiful and he thought the chirping of the birds really put the feeling of string over the top. He thought everyone had done a fantastic job of getting it better. It was only then that he saw the fairies that lit the entrance. The further in he got he realized that there appeared to be some sort of bottleneck. Then he realized that it appeared people were searching for a key so they could get into the actual ball. He was not overjoyed at this fact and quickly decided he would let someone else find the key while he scoped everything else out, hoping to find someone to talk to.

Action: Arriving fashionably late.

STA 5 | EVA 3 | STR 3 | WIS 7 | ARC 7 | ACC 5
Metamorphmagus

Mentioning: @Reginald Drake, @Avery Leveret

Click HERE for Ency

Outfit:

Reducio

Valentin, the natural tryhard, put far too much love into his bouquet spell. As the intended blossoms erupted with bees and excess pollen, the starlight-haired boy grimaced. How could he fail such a rudimentary spell after so much study and consistent top-flight performance in class? Thinking back to quidditch, Val recalled how he tended to fail at competitive technique when he amped himself up too much. It wasn’t even about being in a flow state, but rather not getting too jittery and overenthusiastic. Shaking his head, Valentin scolded himself for continuing to fail to learn the same old lessons. Looking up at Greta and Romeo with a half-bit pouting lip, Valentin hoped they would forgive him despite not saying a word. He knew his body language said it all.

Luckily, some other students were on the ball and spared Val from taking care of the bees. The girl whose cat came to nudge Romeo’s leg transformed a cluster of them to doves, while Greta quarantined the others inside of impenetrable magical bubbles. Looking down, Val’s eyes grew big as he got an intense, even existentially-overwhelming impulse to pour affection down upon the feline that had just appeared at Romeo’s feet. Yet, while the cat fanatic’s eye twitched as he yearned to scoop up the little fluffball and cuddle it to high heaven, and even as his every muscle tensed, he forced himself to stand still. No, when someone wanted something with Romeo, Val had to give that situation his fullest attention. There was no way could he afford to float off into kitty snoogums land when some lovely girl was about to capture Romeo’s attention.

Quietly Valentin stood, shifting the bite of his lip into a slow chew. It seemed she only wanted to thank him for rescuing her during the previous ball. Still, the seeker’s eyes followed her, taking in every idiosyncrasy and facial expression he could pick up, until she turned to leave. Romeo really is an everyday hero, isn’t he? This kind of thing… he does this everywhere he goes as naturally as breathing—not just at these balls. It does feel better having him around, with the healing skills and the… Valentin’s eyes flicked back to observe the towering athletic powerhouse that was his co-captain. He keeps people safe, and yet, not everyone thanks him. It’s good that she came over. He needs to know that people value him… need him…

If Romeo caught Val inspecting him, the seeker would stop chewing his lip and look him back in the eye. Then, through a blushing veil of guilt, Val’s gaze glowed as warm as embers with pride in his co-captain. You deserve the praise, they seemed to say. More, even.

"AaCHOO!" sneezed Greta.

Ah yes, the pollen... thought Valentin, his trance-like stare broken as he turned to face her.

“I’m sorry, Neuntöter,*” Val finally apologized. “That wasn’t quite what I had in mind, or rather, I… in my visualization the fragrance was just so intense that… ah…” Sighing, Valentin shook his head, sank his hands into his hair, and glanced at Romeo. While tempted to take the boy’s hand to give a proper heartfelt apology, Val instead jerked his head away with an even more aggressive bite of his lip. “You really give such wonderful hugs, Gretalina. Who is this creature that seems especially interested in you, mm? I find it hard to believe that very many people here wouldn’t love to ask you to dance but are simply too intimidated.” Looking back to the seemingly gem-encrusted hummingbird in Greta’s hair, Val’s eyes narrowed with amusement. “Can I trust you to make sure that such suitors treat our little Valkyrie with only the highest respect, uccellino— Italian for ‘little bird’ —or should I say, Piérre...?” Surely Valentin and Romeo both had made it crystal clear by now that Greta was one of their dear treasures, to be cared for without a shred of neglect. A smile reclaimed Valya’s face as his eyes began to sparkle once more. He knew Piérre was fundamentally like his brother where it counted. It was less a question of trust and more of a dramatically embellished request.

“Are you to be meeting this person now, Gretalina?” Valentin asked with a wry tone. “I suppose we could permit it, but you might make a stronger impression if we dropped you off from your throne up high. It would only befit a Valkyrie, after all.” Valentin nodded to Romeo to signal that they could still raise her up to the top of Durmstrang’s moving tower if Greta so chose. If she responded with any guff about wearing a dress, he would give her his characteristic niffler puppy-dog eyes to indicate that surely there was some way to make it work. It was all fair play, wasn’t it? A pout for a pout.

Scanning the ball, Valentin tried to pick out who might try to take Greta’s hand tonight, hoping to Stribog that it wasn’t Theo. Of course he remembered Theo. Romance was always and forever Valentin’s top concern, be it his or that of his dear ones. He remembered very well times like when Greta came back to their Horntail Horde tent, yammering about some handsome Gregorio boy Boe from Castelobruxo and how their romantic evening was ruined by a now-infamous Koldovstoretz. Valentin memorized every detail of Greta’s love life that ever came his way, and he wasn’t keen on any of the options she’d been interested in so far. Amethyst eyes flicked from person to person until they happened upon another boy from Durmstrang. This one surely had nothing to do with Greta’s pursuits (or else Val would have probably heard about it), but Valentin was still curious about the interests of Nikolai Volkov himself.

While their words were muffled at a distance through the crowd, Valentin’s keen eyes still took in the nuanced interactions between Nikolai and another fine boy, apparently a Hogwart. Extending his hand to take the other’s with a devilish smile, Nikolai said something to the other that left him a bit confused. Shortly thereafter a girl approached, and whatever the relationships were between the three, the situation left Nikolai clearly blushing. Knowing what he did from their first meeting, Valentin surmised the gist of it. Like with Greta, Valentin intended to keep an eye on how the evening progressed for Nikolai. If the other ended up looking back Valentin’s way, the champion would wave, raise his brows with a tilt of his head towards the other boy, and indicate with his hands that they were welcome to come converse with Val’s group if interested. Physical language was the way Valentin had always preferred to communicate, and after considerable practice for quidditch, it was likely that anyone could understand such a message with little trouble. Still, even if Valentin had caught the other’s attention, he would not press further as he let them carry on as they pleased. While Hogwarts balls were notorious for going wrong, it would take a much more concerning turn of events for Valentin to intervene.

Turning back to Greta, Romeo, and Piérre, Valentin smiled softly.

“It’s not the wand’s fault, Romushka,” started Val again, staring at Romeo’s calloused hand. “I got carried away. Caelum Muto…” With a gesture to invoke the Atmospheric Charm, Val attempted to summon a gentle breeze to carry the excessive pollen off into a high wind veering off in the direction of the Great Lake.

Basic Stats: STA 8 - EVA 20 - STR 3 - WIS 16 [18] - ARC 1 - ACC 16
Abilities:
Keen Eye / Charmer / Evasive Maneuvers / Fearless / Comprehend Languages: Parseltongue
All dialogue in Russian unless specified otherwise.
Inventory (being worn): A golden locket, a silver earring from the Horntail Horde piercing excursion, and a golden ring from Yefim. The niffler is never seen without this bling.
Ency/Trunk: viewtopic.php?f=314&t=17006#p269554
Godmods of Valentin are consensual throughout this and other threads for Romeo, Greta, Mikael, and everyone else playing a Durmstrang character.

Action: Attempting to cast the atmospheric charm to summon a breeze to rid the air of pollen
Free Action: Gesturing to Nikolai that he (and his party) are welcome to come interact with others in their Durmstrang group.

Mentioning: Romeo Marchonné (@Piérre Marchonné), Greta Fransson (@Evelynn Decipio), @Alyssea Brown, Nikolai Volkov (@Matthew Campbell)
*Neuntöter: One of Val’s many nicknames for Greta; German for “shrike” and literally translating to “nine-killer.”

Open to Interaction

Sereia's Calming Presence is in effect
Allies are Dusana Sabo and Mateo Sáez

To say she would've had a heart attack right then and there would be an understatement. Not only was there a snake that was nearly double her size on Dusana's shoulders, but two snakes that were nearly double her size on Dusana and Mateo's shoulders. Sereia had to admit, though, that she felt like the odd one out with the next words Mateo said. What language were they speaking? It was bad enough that she was monolingual, her French and Te Reo not fluent enough to hold a solid conversation.

Before she could reply, the sudden shout of a Howler caught her ear. She relaxed a bit knowing this might be the last clue before they could get the key to go in. Not that anybody was waiting too long, though; the kids were pretty speedy with their finds. Sereia was surprised with the amount of them heading towards the lily bushes, however.

Briefly returning to the conversation, Sereia said, "Your suit and mask looks stunning as well, Mr. Sáez, as does your own snake."

While 'fleur-de-lis' could be translated as 'flower of the lily' (the only French she could confidently translate), a lily flower didn't look quite the same as the symbol itself. Looking around at the other bushes, there was a bush of purple flowers that resembled more like the fleur-de-lis than any other. At the centre of the flowers was a full bulb while a few hung off to the side, almost as if they were wilting. She didn't know the name off the top of her head, but she had a deep feeling those were meant to be the flowers the key was hidden in.

Turning back to the other staff, Sereia hummed. "I think the main ball should be opening soon. Depending on if they get this last clue, of course."

@Dusana Sabo | @Mateo Sáez

ACTION subtly (not so subtly) checking the irises for a key, will properly look for it if no one else will
STATS sta 7 | eva 15 | str 10 | wis 15 | arc 10 | acc 13
ABILITIES sixth sense | keen eye | wandmaker (white river monster spine core) | calming presence | cat's grace | blindvision | legilimency

Full Moderation Details Below:

Reducio

Sixth Sense | +2 to awareness rolls. If a player attempts to enter a thread that Sereia is already in, there is a 25% chance that she will automatically detect them on entry. She is immune to Charmers and will not suffer their -1 to ACC.

Keen Eye | There is a 25% chance of automatically finding something (if there is anything that can be found) not someone. A search attempt can only be used once in a moderated event.

Wandmaker (White River Monster Spine core) | +1 accuracy with charms, -2 wisdom DC (WDC) requirement for all wisdom checks when casting a charm.

Calming Presence | An aura of calm. Allies (Dusana Sabo and Mateo Sáez) gain a 10% chance to auto-hit their chosen target. This does not stack.

's Grace | Sereia has a 25% chance to enter threads successfully hidden from other users. This can be countered by those with Sixth Sense. On any stealth checks, Sereia has a +2 to stealth (average of wisdom and evasion).

Blindvision | Sereia can see in magical and in non-magical darkness. Immune to various blinding spells such as Fumos, Obscuro, Nebulus, etc.

Legilimency | Sereia has learned the spell Legilimens and can delve into a person's mind so long as she is casting the spell.