Wonderland Waltz 2026 Spring Ball

✥──────── Chapter 3: Part 2 ────────✥

The Mad Hatter stood still at the centre of the gazebo's stage, watching the chaos unfold in front of him. The face paint was too heavy to see their expression. The rain poured on everyone fairly, except for the ones standing under the ceiling of the white marble gazebo, and the honour of not being drenched would soon be granted to the Spring Royalty winners. The Mad Hatter grinned innocently, smoothed down their suit jacket, and coughed with their skippy voice, gathering the attention of the distressed people. There seemed to be some umbrella effect over the stage, because his blazer still seemed dry even in its ruffled state.

“Good day, good day.” They glanced around and looked ridiculously surprised at what had happened to the courtyard. “Wow, what fine weather we have! At least the fire’s out, am I right?” They then waved their hand toward the direction of the sky. Nothing happened, but they were jolly. Pulling out a party popper from their jacket, they pulled the string, and then a loud pop, the popper shot out colourful streamers. “Let’s try to cheer up! Aren’t you excited for the Spring Royalty results?” They gestured for the crowd to clap louder with their hands. If the crowd only stared silently, save for a few awkward cheers, the man would sigh dramatically. “What a tough crowd… Shame, shame–” Swivelling around, they took off their ridiculous, giant hat and showed the empty inside to the crowd. “In here, this hat, lies the names of our Spring Royalty! Now just give it one second…” The Mad Hatter chuckled as he riffled through his hat. Out he pulled: A chicken – “Whoops.” – An endless line of rainbow towels – “Always rainbows after the rain!” Finally, a golden, shimmering envelope appeared in the man’s hand, and he turned towards the crowd.

“HERE WE GO!”

At his declaration, grand ceremonial music filled the Courtyard. The richness of the organ and the elegant hum of strings tugged the mood back into one of anticipation.
Wiggling his fingers, the Mad Hatter peeled back the seal. An out-of-place drum roll began…

Dr-r-r-r-r-r-rum…

^{✥──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────✥}

“THIS SEASON’S SENIOR COURT SPRING ROYALTY IS–”

“@DEALLA PRINCE”

The flora adorning the left side of the stage bloomed into a brilliant aquamarine in recognition of their first senior winner.

“@ALY SALINGER”

Celadon green blooms blended seamlessly with its aquamarine counterpart around the stage, coiling up to the stage.

A huge stream of butterflies fluttered up from the centre of the sheltered gazebo stage, carrying glimmering golden and silver crowns, and flower-adorned, maroon sashes with them. As the Senior Court greets their chosen Spring Royals atop the stage, gentle butterflies kiss their temples and lightly crown these winners in their regalia; Aly in silver, Dealla in gold. The Mad Hatter would playfully toss them a bouquet of glittery bouquets as they shared their moment in victory, before the two would be asked to step towards the back.

“THIS SEASON’S JUNIOR COURT SPRING ROYALTY IS–”

The odd drum roll sounded once more for the final announcement.

Dr-r-r-r-r-r-rum…

“@CASSIE JIANG”

Azure flourished in place of aquamarine, flower stems stretching out as if beckoning their junior Spring Queen.

“@LILIYA STARKOVA”

Cerulean blue intertwined with azure blooms, a bright contrast to the gloomy grey weather caused by the storm.

As the butterflies scattered outwards into the Courtyard beneath the shelter of the trees and within the bushes, melodious coos of doves descended from the skies. From snow white doves to vibrant purple barred cuckoo-doves, they circled above the junior court royals. They gently crowned them with two shimmering golden crowns and navy blue sashes from their beaks. Similar to the previous pair, Mad Hatter would do a whimsical spin as he plopped another two glittery bouquets into their arms.

Ushering all four winners to the centre of the gazebo, the man will stretch out his arms to the audience.

“THIS YEAR’S SPRING ROYALTY, EVERYONE!”

^{✥──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────✥}

Wiping away imaginary sweat with his impossibly long rainbow handkerchief rope, the Mad Hatter would huff, “That’s all, folks. I’m late to my morning tea!” With an energetic tune, the host pranced away, clicking his heels and leaving the attendees the rest of the night to enjoy themselves... in the rain!

OOC NOTES

Reducio

To our 2026 Spring Royals, congratulations! Please feel free to RP and celebrate your crowning victory up on the gazebo's stage. Your crown was well-deserved and yours to keep

To all of our Spring Royalty candidates, thank you for campaigning, and we hope you enjoyed the process as much as we did hosting it for you guys.

For our valued attendees, if you have made it this far into the ball, thank you so much for joining us and staying for the chaos. The Spring Ball Planning Committee loves you all so much!

The Spring Ball Planning Committee will continue moderating until the end of May(mainly by the lovely Rosaline Everhart). Even after that, everyone is free to continue RPing in this thread!

Lots of love,
Spring Ball Planning Committee 2026

"Allegedly..." Was his response to Skylar as he detected the suspicion in her voice. "I promise, it's clean, no crime committed." Which translated to he tried, struggled, failed, and then sent SOS to his mom before making a fool of himself. He was glad when Skylar let it go and looked satisfied with that answer, or at least willing to let it go, which was more than he deserved.

They all finally focused on the food but not without Skylar reacting, or more like stuttering, to his offered dance. He almost laugh at her reaction but realized it might be rude. He may be joking but for them to full experience this, a dance might be in order tonight which he didn't mind even though he's not that good in dancing. How bad would it be anyway? Hearing her answer, he accepted it without putting too much color in it. "Cool, later then." He didn't hear Harumi's response so he assumed she's not interested so he didn't push it and just respected her preference.

When they all reached the table, Zephyr's attention was solely on which table to ransack and decided on a few things to try. When he asked them if they wanted to try any of the available boardgames, Skylar expressed she's not into wizard chess but she didn't mind poker. Harumi on the other hand told them he could play chess but not that confident in it. She would rather have them play as a group. "We'll decide later after eating." He gladly munched the potato croquettes first just as the music slowed down and someone dressed as a Mad Hatter took centerstage and grabbed everyone's attention. Whoever that was, was not easy to recognize as the face was covered in pain. He welcomed everyone and shared that they would be announcing who won the Spring Royalty.

But, deity of all bad news, before the Mad Hatter character could announce the winner, something unexpected happened in domino effect. It started with cracking sound followed by glass breaking then the light from the chandeliers flickered. He just bit into sweet pepper poppers when it happen, halting his movement. "What's happening?" He completely forgot his mouth was still full when he asked his friends about it so it sounded muffled. His eyes narrowed as the chandelier was dangerous shaking he thought it would fall, and it really did that he almost jumped from where he's standing. It was closely followed by orange liquid in vials fallen to the ground as well which caused explosion. "Woaaahh!" The piece that he was trying to bite fell on the ground in his surprise. That explosion was what started the chaotic actions that followed. Fires everywhere erupted. Yikes!

It might be due to shock, or he was not really thinking at all, instead of helping the others extinguish the fire, he grabbed his glass and drink all the content while watching the commotion from the corner of his eye. It didn't even register to him what Harumi reacted about them just eating and not helping. Didn't know they serve nice lemonade here! He realized despite the chaos around him. Once done drinking, He took another sweet pepper poppers and ate with urgency and left the glass beside where Harumi was sitting who, he noticed just now, was also eating just like he was. When he looked at Skylar, the girl seemed to be doing the same. Seeing that, he found humor in it and burst out laughing. "Funny how we're all just eating here." Not that that's a bad thing, he really like the sweet pepper poppers and potato croquettes. Harumi warned them she would blame them if they die in the middle of this chaos for not doing anything. "I'll send flowers." He teased her and grabbed another potato croquettes. All this time, Rosalyn was hugging Felix, seeing that, he only shook his head, unsure how to react to his childhood best friend.

Max helped the others and all he did was watch everyone do their thing, they're all impressive. Someone (Michora) called his name from afar but he couldn't tell who the person was in the middle of this chaotic mess. Who's that? Before he could tell who, his jaw dropped just as thunderstorm appeared followed by heavy downpour. "Uh..." He looked at his soaked plate and clothes. So much for the party...but the party usually always go on right? Despite the circumstances? The next thing he knew, the Mad Hatter character announced the winners in one go, ignoring the fact the venue was now soaked and the party ruined..Or was it really ruined? He's having fun actually. A small grin appeared as that realization set in. He put his plate on the table next to Harumi and clapped as the winners were announced. "Woohooo!!! Congrats!"

Action: Picking his jaw up off the floor in shock at the chaos around him.

<sub>Well it turns out the swings were extinguished just fine, even better the swings weren't so burnt due to quick action. Angel saw a group of people who still seemed winded by what happened. The weather kept everyone "cool" it was raining. Covering her head she went up to them, recognized a boy, Erast Yan. He was one of the event planners and the one of the people overseeing the Red Queen's Labyrinth groups. Quite a busy man she'd say herself so she would do nothing more than just do a quick hi. The others who were with him seemed like acquaintances to him or even more than that, friends. Walking up to him she tapped his shoulder and stepped back a bit to give him space.

"Hello Sir! I was wondering if everything is alright with your party? I hope none of them got hurt!" she asked with a bit of worry she did not want any casualties in this fine event such a this

"Oh apologies! That's rude of me to just go up to someone! My name's Angel!" she said with a courtesy a bit elegant but this was second nature not a act or performance

Angel looked over and Aamon seemed to have casted a spell. Good for him unfortunately he'll have to wait a bit longer for her to return she haven't moved to another place in the courtyard up until now. Somehow everyone seemed strong willed and has not really been shaken by what happened before. Angel clearing her throat decided to say one more thing before she flew.

"Now don't worry I will be on my way! I'm just checking up on people right now." she added with a warm smile</sub>

April 19, 2026

English - Thoughts

@Joseph Sims

Wonderland Waltz, Evening

XXXAs Joseph accepted the iced tea, Eonaria stared at the person in the green owl outfit, more than a little concerned. Perhaps all Spring Balls had to have someone-- glass shattered across the cobbled stones and she automatically hopped away with a yelp. There went her drink, deliciousness turned to dangerous pieces of glitter. "Oh no, it's alright," she started, though the surrounding music began to slow to a stop. She momentarily forgot about the mess at her feet when one of the staff, dressed in a colourful suit and giant hat, swept to the center of the gazebo. Their enchanted voice boomed with a welcome and announcement of the Spring Royalty results. Excitement stirred in many of the surrounding students. Oh, I hope Cassie has won! But the feeling was short lived, cut off by the ominous sound of creaking glass and wrought metal. The lights flickered, and the chandeliers dropped as their magic gave way to the power of gravity.

XXXOh, and then the ground decided to explode. Just wonderful. Eonaria screamed, a very high-pitched sound, one unfortunately fueled by all those hours spent increasing her range. She ducked away from the falling chandeliers, even if they weren't actually close enough to fall on her. Somewhere nearby, she heard Joseph muttering in another language, curses, no doubt, but all she could think about was getting away from the fires billowing up all around them.

XXXWas this what Akari had experienced last year?

XXXEonaria tried to scrabble for her own wand, which she had very recently put away, actually, but couldn't get a good grasp on it in her panic. Joseph tugged her away, a calm anchor, although he attempted to throw pumpkin soup at the flames rather than using his wand. Why? She had no idea. Other students were shouting the Extinguishing Charm, and others were-- turning into canaries? Eonaria looked at them, bewildered, only to be distracted by the aforementioned soup splattering onto Joseph's shoes. Although she had thankfully avoided the soup's radius, she could feel the phantom sensation of warm soup in her socks, which was not pleasant at all. She grimaced in pity for Joseph.

XXXAll around, some of the fires were thankfully dying down due to the combined efforts of other students, but that was only the beginning. A crackle of thunder erupted from the sky, and she would have flinched in anticipation of lightning-- hey, who knew?-- if not for the pouring rain coming down. "Pluvia Velo!" Eonaria called out, finally managing to snatch her wand from her pocket and hold it properly, pointing it towards the sky. It wouldn't be enough to get rid of the rain already pattering down on them, but at least it might prevent them from getting fully soaked, standing there exposed to the open sky. And hopefully it would cover Joseph, too.

XXXUp on the gazebo, the Mad Hatter didn't seem fazed by the fires or downpour, simply proposing a few jokes and moving on with the announcement. For once, Eonaria felt the urge to hex someone, but refrained. Music filled the Courtyard again as flowers bloomed and butterflies and doves soared. She scowled slightly, trying to fix her hair. "How rude it is to summon butterflies in the pouring rain where their wings could get damaged!" she whispered to Joseph. Damage to butterfly wings was permanent! The Mad Hatter merely pranced away merrily, making no attempt to help the students. How can they be late to their morning tea if it's almost nighttime??

.・-: ✧☾♩♪♩♬　. 。・゜✭・.・✫゜・。.　♬♩♪♩☽✧ :-・.

POSTS | 1 | 2 | ACTION | casting Pluvia Velo

Interaction: @Cassie Jiang, @Mikaela Hendricks, @Angel Dayes
Mentioning: @Eonaria Kabukimono, @Colin McCoire and @Aemon Athanatos' coolest masterpiece!
Action: Casting Pluvia Velo; talking to those who extinguished the swing fire; asking the girls to tie a streamer around his wrist.

"W-we... we did it?" Exhaled Paul, when he saw there was no fire anywhere near the swings anymore. His eyes were wide, his cheeks red still, from the heat of the fire. Whoa... no flames anywhere! Yes! We did it! "Guys, it's done... yay! We extinguished it!" Exclaimed the boy after a short pause, towards Cassie, Mikaela and Angel who all joined him at the swings.

His joy and cheerfulness were more than clear, especially when he began to perform one of the victorious dances, similar to the Floss dance.

But it wouldn't be Paul if he did the same thing for a longer time. His infamous restlessness forced him to come up with another idea, which was to celebrate his victory with those who joined him. To do that, the boy chose to approach them, fisting his palm and offering it to each one of them for a fist bump.

"Natural firefighters, aren't we?" Did the boy grin. "We could do it as a part-time job. A side gig to earn some Galleons!" Paul joked, giggling.

It wasn't until then that he noticed the downpour of rain. He shivered with cold, as his wet shirt and pants were sticking to his flesh. His hair was becoming more and more soaking, that was why he shook his head to dry it at least a little, or get rid of some of the raindrops (despite it being pointless with the amount of rainwater), like a dog that's trying to get their fur drier. As he wasn't standing alone but among his new friends, those standing closest to him might have received some extra 2.0 Turner shower addition to the original 1.0 shower provided by Colin and Gideon.

"Pluvia Velo!" Drunk with the success of his Extinguo and Verdimillious, Paul pointed his wand above his head and ordered it to come up with the Umbrella Charm. He already noticed some people performing it, Eonaria, for instance, and even before.

As the Mad Hatter spoke, Paul turned around to look at him with a smirk on his face.

'At least the fire’s out, am I right?'

"Yay! That deserves applause!" Exclaimed Paul with his palms around his mouth, so that his shouting were heard in the largest possible area. Then, he started clapping in hopes he'd motivate more people to do so.

One of the party popper's products landed near him, so he bowed down to take it from the ground. He fiddled with it for a moment, apparently wishing to tie it to his wrist. "Uh... could... could you, guys, tie it for me, please? It's surprisingly hard to tie stuff while you're holding a wand with one hand." Did he ask the girls in his surroundings.

If they were asked whether they weren't excited for the results, Paul called and clapped again.

Paul whistled on his fingers when the guy announced the winners, calling: "Bravo!" He then started stretching his legs, his eyes flicking to the food. "Hm... I dunno how you, guys, but I'm starving!" The guy who said that salad wasn't enough, was right. What's he up to, anyway? Paul turned to look for the blond guy. It seemed he and the guy who was the source of the rain, cooperated to extinguish the fire. Cool. Gotta learn that weather changing thing too one day! Thought the boy appreciatively.
[/size]

Interacting with: @Paul Turner

OC Note: I am very sorry for my delayed posting. The site had a few elements that required my attention. I am looking to invite you to a real story.

It was a bait, an action that was intended to elicit an 'over-reaction' by his victim, a one Paul Turner. Paul, a younger, obviously feeble-minded boy did not react in the way he had intended. In a world where one is frequently the center of the universe, what was his and obviously not Paul's should have been obvious. Paul's failure to cede before Gideon had even arrived the girl, yes at the moment the annoying girl was just that, "the girl." And his failure to shout, make a scene, beckon the Hogwarts staff to intervene and react to the squeaky wheel.

But he did not shout.

"Dude, what the hell?"

Confusion.

Gideon prodded again - How unfortunate. An accident, something was was utterly unavoidable. Paul was after all so very clumsy. He should have walked where his betters were going.

"Unfortunate? Ya kidding me?!"

Paul's voice was raised, but not enough. Gideon failed to goad the Gryffindor into the fight he so desired. An excuse to break whatever game Taylor was playing. But rather, with barely concealed frustration tugging at the features of his fine face, he watched the ruined jacket settle over the cup with feigned mild interest. His pale eyes lowered briefly to the stained fabric as though assessing whether the gesture had been intended as retaliation or theatre and a heat could be felt in his chest and neck.

Probably both.

Paul spoke with the strained confidence of someone trying very hard not to look uncertain in front of a girl. His girl. Admirable, in a way. Fragile, certainly.

Gideon's expression did not change at the word "prick," though he had undoubtedly heard it in the silence between breaths.

Then came the dreaded invitation. "Would you like to dance, princess?" The title alone nearly made Gideon smile. Nearly. "This boy had no idea what he was getting himself into," he confided to his inner narrator. "What he is asking on the dancefloor," not that she would ever accept he assured himself.

Instead, he looked at Taylor, not Paul, as if the boy had ceased to exist the moment the stupid question left his stupid mouth. Calm. Measuring. Entirely unbothered in a way that felt significantly more insulting than anger would have, even if his chest and throat still burned. Even if the cup in his hand that served as a coat hook for but a moment snapped in his hand. He didn't notice the cracking noise, nor the sharp pain in his hand. A lateral laceration obfuscated by the lion's already ruined jacket. Just another shade of red.

After Taylor answered, with words that Gideon never wanted to hear. Then, and only then, his gaze returned to Paul. "You're very brave," Gideon said softly. The words were not mocking. It was something worse, a promise that his alleged Gryffindor nature would be soon called upon. Gideon stepped closer, not enough to crowd, just enough to force awareness of the height difference, the composure, the practiced illusion of absence of emotional urgency. "You think this is a moment," Giddy continued evenly. "A story where you embarrassed the unpleasant older boy and won a dance with the pretty girl afterward." A faint pause, "that's a very comforting interpretation."

That was a threat if Paul ever heard one. But his target, Gideon should have thought better of. His gaze drifted briefly toward Taylor again, then back. "Because if she says yes," Gideon said, voice lowering slightly, "you'll spend the entire dance wondering whether you've upset me." He was not talking about Paul, the boy whose jacket was barely worth his shoelaces. "No, Taylor would forget about him," he stubbornly consoled himself but the worst parts of him were uncertain.

Assuming they walk away, Gideon would step on the felled jacket and grind his heel. The heat would find his cheeks and the rest of his face. The indignity of it all, it was then that he saw his bloodied hand and he made a fist. A trickle of blood would flow, before the pressure of his tight fist stymied the flow. "Well," he consoled, "maybe it was time to have a drink with his aunties."

Interacting with: @Paul Turner

OC Note: I am very sorry for my delayed posting. The site had a few elements that required my attention. I am looking to invite you to a real story.

She wanted there to be a scene. When she saw Gideon stride across the courtyard, she knew his intentions because they were exactly what she intended to elicit. Taylor watched the exchange unfold with wide blue eyes and carefully measured silence. She had crafted Gideon's spiraling reaction, unaware that all she really needed to do was leave the Hufflepuff in @Matthew Campbell's hands.

On the surface, she looked startled by it all: the Gryffindor's ruined jacket, the sharpness in Gideon's voice, the way the tension seemed to gather around her cousin like storm clouds collecting over dark water. Her fingers remained lightly clasped at her waist, delicate posture drawn just a little tighter as though she were embarrassed to be standing in the middle of such a scene. A scene that could have been easily avoided.

Inside, she was listening. Watching. When Paul hung the stained jacket over Gideon's ruined cup with suicidal recklessness, Taylor nearly smiled for real. "Oh, that was interesting."

Not because of the insult. Gideon had endured worse and there was a thread of masochism that ran in their bloodline. No, what interested her was that the boy had done it publicly and he failed to respond the way both Gideon and she had expected. Not that Paul's reaction was her end goal, it was merely an intended catalyst. Someone to draw more eyes on the unstable not-quite heir. But rather, he dealt with the insult casual, like Gideon Athanatos was merely another irritating older student instead of the sort of person one was taught to step around.

It was either bravery or stupidity. Something Gryffindor's possessed in rich abundance. In her family, those things often died the same way.

"Would you like to dance, princess?" The title made her blink. Then Taylor's pale lips parted slightly in surprise before curling into something warmer, perhaps a little shy. The act developed on the spot in an attempt to look genuine.

Her gaze flicked briefly toward Gideon. Her cousin looked calm initially. Composed, which was always when he was most dangerous. But, much like her, the composure was mostly an act. The sharp crack of the shattered glass made Taylor's eyes lower briefly toward Giddy's obscured hand. Not because she was concerned for him, but rather blood did what it always did - it drew the attention of predators.

Taylor did not miss the crimson that mingled with the wine-like stain. Nor did she miss the way Gideon looked at her afterward, not at Paul. Another change to egg him on, to shatter his resolve and whatever reputation he had developed. She was well aware of Gideon's game, the 'small' game he used to play where he took advantage of his elder's sympathies and their paternal instinct. But as he entered his formative years, something changed in him about a year ago. He started to wish to be seen as a man rather than a boy. She needed no man.

Gideon looked at her like the answer mattered more than the humiliation. As expected - that, too, was useful. A small breath escaped her before she looked back to Paul, her expression softening with something almost apologetic. "You ask very brave question," the blonde said lightly, thick Russian accent curling warmly around the words. "Maybe too brave, da?" There was a teasing quality to her words. Practiced civility and banter in her late father's tongue. Was Gideon aware that she knew who ordered her father's death? That she was well aware that her uncle was even more of a monster than imagination had offered.

Then, after just enough hesitation to make it matter, she placed her small, pale hand carefully into Paul. "I think…" she started softly, eyes flickering once more toward Gideon’s retreating figure, "perhaps yes." Not because she wanted to dance, but because Gideon had wanted her to say "no." Taylor Athanatos had been raised by women who understood the importance of denying hungry things exactly what they wanted.

As Paul led her toward the dance floor, Taylor leaned slightly closer to him, voice lowering conspiratorially. "You should maybe run after this," she informed him sweetly. "Very fast." She knew Gideon was not the type to chase, he was the type to [Trigger Warning: Animal Harm] nail his pet to a tree. Then she smiled, it was a small, lovely expression that was a bit eerie at the edges. "I am joking," she said.

Behind them, Gideon disappeared into the crowd and a small part of her wondered if he was about to repeat Vladimir's error. Taylor watched him go for only a moment too long.

Of course she would not go far, disaster as all balls seemed to experience, interrupted whatever impression they could have left on Gideon. She wondered if someone was hurt, not because she intended to help them. but rather to scratch a morbidly curious itch. Paul had run off, one could suppose he had played his white knight role. So Taylor would so what she did best - she observed and hoped...

The scrambling chaos was entertaining in a remedial way. No real lasting consequence. A little bit of fire, something that wizards drank in like water. That was until his blasted cousin decided to rip the skies asunder. Water started to drizzle down, a faint mist that turned to a steady stream. Water that soon turned to a torrential downpour by an act beyond Aamon's scope, saturating the blonde to the core. Her fine hair plastered to her head. Her jeweled headband, ruined. The fabric of her dress darkened, became cold and the set of her jaw tightened. What sort of idiot..."

Code by Fawkes Chaos

WC: 305 words Interactions: Skylar Blue April 19th, 2026:DATE Night :TIME

x

Outfits:

xxxOoc note:

Mentions:

Reducio

Reducio

Reducio @Skylar Blue

"Oh, no, of course we're not—" I felt a drop of water on my forehead. I frowned. Water? The sky was pretty clear this afternoon. No hint of the slightest grey cloud in there. Why water now?

Another one. Then another one. I researched in my mind and in my memories, trying to remember reading or listening about a...

A weather spell! They were casting a weather spell! And now the rain was pouring down on us. I scoffed.

"Great. Amazing. Perfect." I muttered in a bitter tone as I topk off my hat and put it over Skylar's head. I could be mad at her all that I wanted, but I wouldn't let her catch a flu. It was horrible, something I wouldn't wish even to my worst enemies.

I dragged us to the white marble gazebo, where at least the fire had disappeared and there was a ceiling. And the the other Mad Hatter walked in and finally announced the results.

I held my breath slightly and...

Oh, no. Sky lost. I bit my lip, closing my eyes, and turned slowly towards her. I would need to have a very serious talk with my Saints later. I asked them to bless her! What kind of blessing is that!?

After some polite claps, and the whispers and conversations coming back to their usual course, I glanced at her.

"Well... Do you want some tea? It's getting cold..." I offered, completely forgetting I was mad at her earlier.

Aamon had felt that @Nabi Park might have been staring daggers at him. That if she had the power to manifest a series of psychic blades, that he would have been skewered where he stood. Was it the truth or was it all in his head? It really did not matter, in Aamon's paranoid squirrel-mind, if he was not active in trouble, he was about to be. He had found another pretty girl (@Angel Dayes), this one seemed to at least smile but she ran off to perform heroics as soon as the world went to crap. "Women, if they are not destroying the world, they are trying to save it."

Aamon had recklessly chose to cast Metelojinx, a spell that would envelop the courtyard in a storm. The sky would darken and rain would begin to fall. A cool, refreshing rain. It was not a torrential downpour but that water-damage was far from his first concern. He should have been concerned about the lightning, but for once luck was on his side. In fact, another, older student he vaguely recognized from the Slytherin common area, @Colin McCoireempowered his spell.

Sheets of rain crashed downward with biblical enthusiasm, obliterating the lingering fire almost instantly. Steam hissed violently from drenched curtains and blackened stone while (assumed) students shrieked as their carefully curated appearances dissolved in real time. That was probably the most horrifying aspect of it all: the mascara that ran, big hair that collapsed and expensive fabrics clung to bodies with all the dignity of a drowning peacock.

"Man, girls are a lot less pretty when they are soaking wet," Aamon said to himself using his outside voice rather than his inside one. Oops. Not that it mattered, Aamon stood directly in the middle of the rain. His dark hair plastered immediately to his forehead and temples, soaked through within seconds. His collared shirt clung uncomfortably to his frame, sleeves heavy with rainwater while droplets slid down the bridge of his nose in deeply personal betrayal that reminded him of aggressively runny boogers. For one suspended moment, he simply stood there blinking through the downpour like a cat that had accidentally discovered weather.

"…Right," he muttered faintly. The flames were gone. The courtyard, however, now resembled the aftermath of a maritime disaster. Some of the students scrambled for cover while the rains persisted. @Paul Turner looked like he was having some sort of seizure (he flossed like it was muggle 2017?)

Then he noticed Colin in the aftermath. Ah, there it/he was - the amplification. Aamon stared for half a second too long as realization settled over him with the slow horror of academic accountability. "Oh," Aamon said intoned as he approached. Rainwater dripped off his chin. He extended his moist hand to Colin, "you helped." Aamon stood there awkwardly a bit too long before he added, "You... um. Thank you." He stopped again for both their sakes. "That sounded less awkward in my head." It had not.

Aamon pushed soaked hair back from his face, attempting to recover some measure of composure despite looking like he’d been personally cursed by the North Sea. "You," no "it worked," he added quickly, because silence felt dangerous. "Excessively, perhaps, but effectively. Which I suppose is preferable to… fire."

<sub>Truth be told this probably made her become more disoriented the rain was brushing hard, waterproof makeup definitely came in a clutch, though at what cost? This made her looked the odd one out but perhaps she already was. Aamon was attending to the others and again made a glimpse towards another girl he knew. Allies and Partnerships are hard to keep track though she can only assume so much. Angel unfortunately had her attention placed again. Blast! She really did not want to move one bit the dress was alright but she was soaking and had to cover, somehow a umbrella that was with her as a prop came to aid as well. Was this day any ridiculous as it is now? Grabbing and rolling her eyes to the situation, Angel would not have been so happy with how "prepared" she was. Definitely Alice, the odd one with a bunch of mad hatters. Speaking of girls, Angel had recalled the time she saw the Pinky lady. Looked pleasant and kind too. While Erast did not respond, probably still pondering with what just happened. At this point she wished she was too, but it was in her nature to be so pragmatic it hurts.

"Hey! Sorry I have to go! I need to check on others, mostly my friends! Stay covered!" she waved while she yelled

Walking, more like brisk walking she went towards Aamon with no breath heard from her lips. Little did she know she might as well be walking in thin ice, heels obeyed but what was to come did not. Seeing eyes transferred to her was what was to be expected. This time she used her umbrella to cover her face. Why must it be so awkward! Finally she made it to Aamon who was lost in thought.

"Was he always like this? Maybe so."

The Spring Royalties were Cassie Jiang and Liliya Starkova for junior court. Dealla Prince and Aly Salinger for senior. Pretty girls she did understand why most would be in favour to those four, although she really was not focused to much on that she really was not the type to be so fixated on title roles like those. A quiet clap came from her dainty hands when they were just announced. Turning back to Aamon he seemed very tense. Oi vey, he really is something. Tapping his back to bring him back from the clouds. Angel lowered her umbrella backward slightly to see better. Her whole outfit wasn't drenched and pheraps her whole look did not look washed.

"Don't say it, I know I look silly prepared but I don't want any comments regarding my whole attire now." she said with a rasp in the word now

"You seem so scattered despite being in present with helping a person right now!" she laughed, Aamon should smile so she thought

Angel again, gathering her past knowledge decided to ask him a question though it was a bit blurry and rusty

"Hey? Whose those Athanatos people the public here had been whispering phrases about? Especially that other girl you keep checking? Know any of them perchance?" she asked while covering one side of her face for him to hear better.

Well either he freaks or just nonchalantly answers.

"Just curious nothing more." she added</sub>