Fall Ball 2021 Samhain Festival

Banner by Winnie Harper

@Marshal Mozor | Interactions
@Evelynn Decipio, @Mathias Pride & @Winnie Harper | Mentions
black tux | Outfit
Closed to interactions except above

A single blink made space for a violent crashing of events, a disaster to carve wounds to be later filled with prayer and regret, bubbling as one. Sure, everything was beautiful, should your eyes glide over the grisly battle taking place mere meters from where the makeshift couple had entered. Chaos bottled had begun to drip over the neck, and from there, spread in a flood. Dresses twirled in Levi’s peripheral vision, royalty dancing over the would-be graves of children, and at midnight it would not be corpses found scattered about the grounds but rather the occasional stiletto half-buried in loose soil, perhaps a few canines stowed in its sole. Any music accompanying their rhythm was overshadowed by a cried incantation, or several layered over one another in a messy splash of uncoordinated efforts.

Several silhouettes waved their wrists erratically, misfired and cleverly evaded spells igniting the area into a thickening fiery fog. In the very center were two students, unidentifiable by Levi but centers of gravity, and bystanders were gradually being sucked into the fray by moral magnets rooted deep within their hearts, mirrored by those at war in their formal clothes. By an instinct—a rehearsed one—his left and dominant hand had fallen to graze the cold handle of his wand, though it would not be drawn from his side before Evelynn’s voice cut through the noise.

"Get yourself to safety. Find a professor if you can. I know they're here somewhere. I don't want to have to worry about protecting you as well."

A commanding pierce accentuated her words, the sound wave itself mighty prickly, and had she bothered to glance back at his expression before throwing herself at the feet of the assailants, perhaps she’d have recognized annoyance bleeding from his mouth and eye sockets. No, the girl had a purpose, and only lingered by his side to ensure something else would wrap him to his place, tether him to the nearest adult like a child on a backpack leash. Although a delayed reaction as her outline fell in with the crimson sea, Levi fully intended to call out to her, then to thrash into its gooey waves like the man he was to prove himself to be. It took just one more heartbeat to make room for a hand on his shoulder, unfamiliar fingers buried deep in his collar, whirling him around to meet once kind eyes doing their damndest to burn a fever.

Their grip loosened and pulled away the moment the two faced one another, leaving only a violet ghostly pressure. A step forward, met by Levi’s chin tilting up to glare confidently into the furor of his assailant. Swords met, clashed in the mere inches between them, and the sounds of this metal came to overshadow the ruckus that had launched them into this series of unfortunate events. Yes, he knew it was bad, that was apparent from their first connection, but a certain glint in his visage rose conspicuously to the surface: amusement. The complexity behind this posture change, this lump in his throat like he was stifling a laugh and a sneaking grin, it may be lost on Marshal. It wasn’t born of doubt, of distrust in the threat he posed, yet how distinguishable would that be from what it was, a mien brewed by a hollow part of his soul filled?

“I’d be right delighted.”

"Evelynn really is a saint. Evidently, she thinks she can exorcise the demons in your soul. But somehow I don't believe she'll have to."

An interesting choice of words, each phrase mentally carved into his bone to be scribbled messily into the logs in the dead of night. Only then would it get thorough attention, as in this second, as time to defend himself leaked from between them, the only thought he had was my my, this is an excellent time to discard the hat. Levi raised his brows at Marshal’s cards, yet called his bluff when breaking eye contact and tossing the abomination into the mass of people. “Feel free to play fetch.”

"I know what you did to Winnie. And it's not going to happen again. You look at either of them the wrong way again, and you'll forget why it was all worth it. But you're a standup guy, right? I'm sure you'll treat Evelynn better than you treated Winnie."

How sweetly morbid, such an innocent face shaping its mouth into such dastardly accusations. For a moment, he questioned if it knew the weight of its words, if there was any recognized level of understanding for what truly happened to Winnie. She was tragic, yes, but the sugary princess had gone looking for that deep, love-filled slumber. She dreamed of a world so much more sublime than theirs, fantasies of nirvana that were dangerously challenging for her to distinguish from the harsh tint of reality. In some ways, it was a gift to bottle her naivety. But it was not his hands wrapped around that liquid gold, so an action he must oppose regardless.

“Now, now,” He spoke, only loud enough for Marshal to hear, running his hand through his hair and smoothening any creations of that damned hat. He’d then reach out, an effort to drag his hand along Marshal’s jaw before letting it fall gracefully into the air between them. If this were avoided, Levi would scoff lightly and smile as though looking a pitiful, abandoned pet. “A violently jealous boyfriend, save the boyfriend part. She yours? Then, damn, darling, why aren’t you the one strolling around in that hat, praising her creativity? One of you is much more invested in your relationship than the other, and it isn’t her.”

“And—for the record—I’m not sure what you think I did to Winnie. Take that back, I am. Tell you what, the truth doesn’t matter to me anymore. You’re too blinded by your self-important chivalry to listen to me now. What does matter, is that whatever it may or may not be,” He took a breath, so dramatically timed, an actor in his element. “I could do worse.” Vague. Let the boy’s imagination handle the rest.

“Won’t be long before people realize why the angelic Ravenclaw is unreasonably drawn to a Slytherin that’s gone from stripping at the last ball to pepper spraying an innocent, and only they know what he does when I can’t watch him,” There was a bizarre emphasis on the word they, as though not implying a group, but rather something it was disrespectful to call by name. “At that point, I’ll be owed a lot of apologies I won’t get. You’ll be one of them, and I’d forgive you if you earned it." An untimely wink. "'Til then, recommend you get the hell out of my face or do something other than spill empty threats.”

He hadn’t intended to ramble, and there’d be a cost on this rant that he’d pay much later. Yet, something about this crime he’d be hung for, this debt for karma to collect from the perspective of the irrelevant Marshal Mozor, it left not a single centimeter for his composure. He’d give what he owed back to the world, any purity he stole from its darkest crevices, but he would not go down solely for the overrated, misplaced corruptions of Mathias “Percematt” Pride.

Action Regrettably, being himself. [Nothing mod-wise]
Stats Sta: 7 | Eva: 8 | Str: 4 | Wis: 6 | Arc Power: 5 | Acc: 6
Abilities Metamorphmagus, Charmer
Carrying Wand, wound pocket watch

| Outfit | Brouche |

Action: Attempting to punch Victor in the mouth.

Interacting with: @Ileen Knight
Mentioning: @Victor Moore, @Bridget Collins, @Thomas Lestrange, @Marion Davenport, @Santario Martin

Stats:

Reducio

- Abilities -

Foulplay
Lovely Creature
Beast Master

- Statistics -

| Stamina 6 | Evasion 6 | Strength 9 | Wisdom 8 | Arcane Power 8 | Accuracy 9 |

Interacting with | @Dancelos Grey ★──────────★─────────★─────────★─────────★ @ | Mentioning English | Russian | Yiddish

★ Date | 29/10/2021 ★ Outfit | x ★ Ency | accio ★

==The arrival of his date was much appreciated. It was windy, chilly, and Fyodor didn't know how much longer he could be left standing there in the cold. Still, it was likely no fault of Dancelos'. It looked like the Hogwarts students were already leaving their marks in true Hogwarts fashion, starting fights and getting into tussles at an event intended for unity. It was disgusting, really, and a complete insult to the integrity of the event. The white dress was a slight surprise, the way it seemed to be far less dressy than the other girls at the event, but Fyodor liked it just fine. Contrasted well with the black and gold of his own outfit, which billowed around him slightly.

"It is okay. You look very pretty today," Fedya complimented easily, ducking his head to her and offering his arm. While not quite a stud, or anything akin to it, Fedya was doing his very best to be gentlemanly. Treat her with kindness and respect for the event. It was the least he could do. "I brought you this," an afterthought, added when Fedya remembered the corsage corsage here so delicately held aloft in his hands. Lucky him, he'd chosen white with gold trim. Gold to match his suit and white for contrast. Perfect. Smiling softly, Fyodor handed the corsage over to Dancelos. Was this correct? Commonplace at balls? "I have never been to a ball before, I hope this is right," he admitted, shrugging and holding out an arm for Dancelos to take.

Then, with a spring in his step, he gestured towards the actual ball itself. "We go in now, do you think?" After all, the festival was really just the gateway to the ball as a whole.

Action (For Moderation Purposes):
Leaving to the Fall Ball

Interacting with: @Liana Kerr @Avery Chen @Vale Ashwood @Maggie Hawkins @Matthew Gray

Action: Leaving thread with group

“Carrie?!” Enrico blasted in surprise, a hint of shock spiralling through his crickety cracked voice of utter disbelief. He knew plenty of Carries. There was aunty Carrie who he once pushed down the stairs accidentally, Carrie from finance who was father’s personal assistant and mum’s biggest rival, Carrie the neighbour next door back in Bibury, and Carrie the classmate. Which Carrie was this girl dressed up as, he didn’t know, but he sure felt saddened by the news.
“Damn, Carrie died? Poor thing, always had it coming that lass,” his lips mushed into a frown, his cheeks bubbled up in a sense of sympathy.

Then he shrugged every crushing wave of a miserable thought away, catching the scent of delicious sweets from a few steps away, red-head Liana had shown him who was handing out the good stuff, but the group had already been suggesting to start moving before Enrico could even make a run for it. The boy was usually fast, but he knew that if he tried running with his costume still on, he’d take a second fall. Why wouldn’t he just take it off, one might ask? That’s a good question, he just didn’t have a proper answer for it.

“Ravenclaw? Oh no,” he chuckled, indicating that Ravenclaw was an obvious no-go for him. “Got into Hufflepuff, dunno what it means but I like yellow. It’s a cheerful colour. Once a painter ate so much yellow paint that he became happy. That’s why I lick the yellow carpets in the common room. But I bet none of y’all knew that.” There was, once again, a clear hint of pride in the way he spoke. There was no shame in licking carpets. He intended on defying Liana’s response to his scientific theory, but he was cut off by further enthusiasm to move along. Luckily for them, he understood why, seeing as things were quite heated up. Had he not, he’d be throwing himself on the floor throwing a tantrum. He didn’t know these people a great deal, but he was willing to starve himself for them.

The boy addressed to as Avery (it took a while for Rico to figure out the names and learn who was who), kind of took away Enrico’s freedom of choosing where he wanted to go, not that it mattered though, he was still sticking with the lot of them until the night came to an end. Or so he hoped at the very least. He had no idea what everyone was talking about. Booth? What booth? He didn’t like wearing boots, they slowed him down most of the time. It sounded electrifying however, he liked playing with fire and matches caused exactly that!

Best part was that he wasn’t the only one hyped up. Daredevil Vale was just as pumped, and her running off to wherever the wind took her almost made him do the exact same thing. He hated to pick favourites (he didn’t) but just from first impressions, she seemed to be the most adventurous, and Enrico liked his friends to be just as willing to venture.

Alas, he followed them. For all he knew they were planning to tie him around a tree and leave him there for the rest of the night, and honestly, he wouldn’t want to spend spooky Halloween any other way.

Action: Trying to help Howard kill the slug.
Inventory: Wand & Repellent for Slugs
Attire: Something not plaid or fancy looking. And a Copper Kettle Helmet.
Interacts with: Mentioned in post above. .

OUTFIT: Reducio

MENTIONING: @Santario Martin | @Tuesday Jeremiah Irons @Nigel Read | @Kelsey Brumby

INTERACTIONS: @Selim Faust | @Erin Ryan @Henry Knight | @Jack Burnett

A pale boy wearing a rabbit mask approached Orion. He recognized him as a Selim Faust, a third year Slytherin. His interesting choice in fashion had caught the professor's attention earlier on in the year. The boy would attempt to bring him up to date, which is what Orion had asked for, but what he had told him was not what he was expecting. This was not a simple case of a young girl being bullied or attacked, it seemed that she had been cursed to turn into a hag. His brows furrowed as Selim continued, and he silently searched his memory for the information Santario Martin had given him the night she had paid him a distressed visit.

Erin Ryan. A changeling. Marion Davenport. A full-on hag. News of the children's attempts to follow the creature caused Orion to pale, his heart pounding against his chest as adrenaline rushed through his veins. He was presented with a choice; follow the children or save Erin Ryan. Tough calls were not something he was new to, with several transforming themselves into phantoms that continued to haunt his nightmares to this day. He refused to allow this night would be entered into the seemingly unending list of trauma. His pale blue eyes stared directly in the direction of the disheveled looking fifth year. "Go." He responded, his eyes flickering back towards the bunny masked boy. "Find Professor Irons, Read, and Nurse Brumby. They're at the ball, in the tent--..." Just as he was explaining their location to the boy, he heard a large creaking sound as the tent in the distance seemed to fold over itself. "Shit." He growled through clenched teeth. He wasn't worried about Mardi, the man knew how to defend himself, but he was worried about the children now caught beneath the tent. Priorities were important, however, they had three adults to help and an army of houselves. "The castle." He quickly told Selim, "Find another professor, please hurry." If Selim could make it in time, he could help hold off the Erin situation and then ran after the other students once help arrived.

Too many things were happening at once, Hess had been knocked down, unfortunate but necessary if they were to get him away from Ryan. A slug had somehow been expelled from Ryan, the method would make him wince regardless, and said slug would then attack another fifth year girl, Serena Towers. Then, Henry Knight was in his ear. At Santario's name, he had gained the professor's attention. She had chased after the hag? Of course she had... He would expect nothing less, given who her parents were. Still that did not stop the pang that hit him square in the chest when he realized she was in danger. "I'm going to stop you right there, Mr. Knight. You are aware of how dangerous both situations are, I assume. If you desire to help your friends, I suggest you find more professors and lead them in the direction the group ran off to. I will be following them as soon as I've handled Miss Ryan." He did not need a child trying to guilt him into making a decision he had already made. He knew Santario and her group were capable enough to hold off Marion for at least a few minutes before he arrived. So long as Marion did not harm San, he would deal with the hag the same way he had dealt with other criminals; quickly.

"Everyone take a step back, now." He commanded the group of students with a low growl. It might have been a shock to those who were used to his cheerful disposition. "Burnett. Get the off the girl before you get attacked too." Too late. That was unacceptable. He wouldn't let another one die. Erin Ryan's screams would not intermingle with those of his younger sister's. The Slytherin might have been in rough shape, but he could fix that when she was not at risk of being turned into a hag. Gone was his glare when he fixed his eyes back down onto the ground, to where Erin lay, replaced instead with a gentle expression, one of empathy. "My apologies, Miss Ryan, I'm afraid this won't be pleasant. Slugulus Eructo!" He would cast the spell, aiming it directly at her head, regardless of whether or not Burnett had gotten off of her.

• Creatures of the Lake •

Sylvie had practically been frozen in place as Jürgen's attempted murder suddenly became a bit more... Hashy and slashy, for lack of a better word. Would it be her fault? She'd frozen the girl moments prior. If the girl got stabbed, it would be her fault. She would be an accidental accomplice. Luckily for her, Galton, Xaliah, and Thomas' quick thinking would prevent a bloodier disaster as the blade of the knife missed its intended target. Despite that, now more people were injured, and their evening would get even worse.

The mix of fluids spewing from Erin's body was... unholy, to say the least. She looked possessed, writhing as if the spell cast by Serena was said by some sort of priest. A horrified gasp escaped from Sylvie's lips as a slug unlike that of which she'd ever seen was expelled whence it came. "Oh, my god." Her hand shot to grip Thomas' hand, pulling him behind her. She held his hand almost too tightly, as if he wouldn't be looking at the same terrible sight. It was clear the girl was afraid, but that wouldn't stop her from trying to keep the demonic leeches away from her best friend. Whatever they were... This was turning into a nightmare.

Rain came in a downpour, foretold by the darkened skies. It shocked Sylvie out of her panic, the rain re-drenching her clothes. It was overwhelming her, the sensation of cold droplets against her skin, the wind making them feel like bullets. As lightning streaked across the sky, illuminating the hellish creature attacking Serena, she flinched violently. Her hands shook as she gripped her wand. Was there anything else chewing away at the insides of Erin Ryan? As the single professor present in the nightmarish hellscape that was the festival cast another slug vomiting spell at the wounded girl, Sylvie couldn't help but stay where she was, eyes locked on the thrashing soon-to-be hag as she spewed "poison" from her mouth and nose. This would leave irreversible psychological damage!

Action: Freezing up, but standing in front of @Thomas Baines protectively
Interactions & Mentions: Thomas Baines, @Erin Ryan and co.

#1462c8

Xeno, just like everyone else had been eager to get to the ball. He walked down the path that would eventually lead him to the famous Samhain festival. The leaves crunched beneath his feet, the sound so familiar from the times he had taken long walks in the woods, dried up leaves and sticks making music around him. It wasn't too soon after he had found peace in the odd silence of the path, the sound of quick treading footsteps. He hadn't even flinched, all he had done was continue to walk just at a slower pace. The one and only Winter Wolfhartz pulled up by his side in no time, wearing her hound costume to match his fox one. Two childhood friends dressing as the animals of their favorite childhood show, the fox and the hound.

The masks were that of luxurious masquerade ones, with tails to match though they lit up from within the mesh outer layer. Of course, Xeno hadn't been on point, his friend referring to him as a pokemon rather than what he was intended to be, after all, he had not one nor two tails but instead nine. Sure it wasn't the original plan but he cared nothing about that, it was for pure attraction of his costume, besides he looked absolutely stunning. Before having entered the festival, he stopped to fix up his hair and place the mask over his face, his bright blue eyes showing well against the gold-flaked eyepiece.

The beautiful orange and yellow leaves fit perfectly with the decorations of the festival. Xenos's gaze had wandered as he scanned his surrounding for anything interesting that may have caught his eye and curiosity. Sure the idea of watching a game of quidditch sounded fun, but so did catching some eels with his dhampir buddy or doing some sort of 'gardening?'. From what it seemed so far that was all there was to do at the moment. He had been the same as his friend, a terrible decision-maker, yet still, he decided to ask since he himself could not come up with an answer of what to do. "so, what do you want to do while we're here? y'know before we head to the grand tent" after having an answer, he drug his friend around to see more of the festival sights, stumbling upon others with wonderful costumes as well as what seemed to be a fight about to take place. Xeno scattered from that area not wanting to be near any drama since today was supposed to be a fun, eventful in a good way kind of day.

After spending a bit of time in the festival surroundings, Xeno had checked out the activities, coming to an agreement with Winter to skip the side events and head to the main, to the wonderful grand tent where there was sure to be more things to do (including look for his beloved Charles).

WC: 493
Action(s): Entering, checking out the festival and leaving
Interactions: none (winter//me)
Mentioning: Charles @Henry knight

#ffffff

Winter had been running a bit late to the festival, her beloved friend Xeno Darkaz already being on his way there. She quickly got herself ready and headed out, eventually seeing Xeno walk along the beautiful fall-colored path as she ran to catch up with him, loud thumping following behind her as her feet planted and arose from the ground with each individual step. Now walking beside him, she greeted her foxy friend before 'complimenting' his costume as well as joking how it sort of reminded her of ninetails from the well-known series, pokemon. They continued walking together up until the entrance of the festival was in eyes length before coming to a stop to second check themselves and make sure their costumes were on point. "we look fabulous!" Winter exclaimed before being yanked through the entrance by Xeno.

Just as her friend had, she admired her surroundings being sure to take everything in, a smile plastered to her face. With a deep inhale the lovely, sweet scent of cinnamon came through her nose, pine trees always had a wonderful smell as such when this season had sprung around. Winter, hoping to see something eventful at this small festival had looked around getting sidetracked by practically everything she found. She complimented many people on their outfits and costumes as the two began to walk around, seeing what all the side events were about.

Her friend asked her the question she is forever unable to answer "Uhm..- I guess we should just explore a bit and if we get tired of being here we can join the others in the grand ten, sound good?" she smiled as he agreed with her idea, the two doing just as they spoke of. it hadn't been long before, yep, a fight was going to sprout from the drama-free happy-go-lucky festival. Winter watched out of curiosity before being drug away from the area by the overprotective Xeno not wanting her to see such violence.

They spend a bit more time there before finally deciding not to bother with the few activities and head to the grand tent where there had to be better things to do, and more people to see!

WC: 318
Action(s): Entering, checking out the festival, and leaving
Interactions: none (Xeno//me)
Mentioning: none