Second Year Graduation Party PV2nd Year+Profs C

Interactions: @Hengist Warbeck || Mentions: Marissa North & Alexx Séverin
Open To Interactions

Emma hadn't been to a party, more or less a ball, in a very long time. She often avoided the drama that took place throughout each event and relied on her ears to retrieve the latest gossip that she hadn't witnessed; she wasn't completely innocent. And while it wasn't the most promising way of acquiring information, it was better than nothing. Hogwarts experienced an addiction to drama and it would have been a lie to say she despised it. Every school did have its gossip, after all. Sure enough, she had heard of the fire and the disturbance caused at the Ball only to remind her why she didn't partake in school-wide events like such. It wasn't every first year's fault, and second years did have quite the effect on, yet here she was anyway, entirely outside of her comfort zone. 

Walking into the ballroom, she stood at the entrance for a bit and scanned her environment. Not many people had entered yet, but she didn't mind. There were a few familiar faces in the bunch, all of which she felt comfortable talking with usually. Everyone looked incredible it was as if they were strangers with faces she all recognized. The only thing hindering her from talking was the setting of the ballroom that seemed to decrease her usual confidence. 

There wasn't much to do after classes had ended. She always preferred reading up on the books she got from the library, but that got boring very quickly. Needless to say, she was thankful for the student that put all of this together. She would have chosen talking and dancing with her friends to sitting in bed and reading any day and today was no exception even though the invitation mentioned ceremonious attire. 

Her hands were unusually placed in front of her, attempting to create the illusion of poise and elegance. With a dress that scraped the floor of the ballroom, she continually had to remind herself not to trip on the way down the staircase or take wide strides once she got down the stairs, provoking her to step on the dress. It was going to be a constant thought in her mind tonight, especially with her gilded heels that raised her height by three inches. She had almost persuaded herself to wear sneakers along with the dress, there was no point in wearing elegant shoes. Her feet weren't even going to be exposed due to the length of her gown. Besides, it would make dancing and walking around the ballroom a lot easier. It was going to be a long evening, but she was looking forward to it; formal or nonformal. 

After noticing she'd been standing at the entrance for a while now, she began to walk around without anyone particular in mind. Her eyes glanced from side to side for familiar people to talk to. There was Marissa by the table of food in a majestic blue dress that easily hid and outshone in the crowds. There was also Alexx, but she looked a bit busy with her company and she didn't want to interrupt anything between them, that is if there was something. Finally, she'd settled her mind and decided to socialize with her teammate.

Don't fall down, don't fall down, the brunette thought to herself swinging her arms side to side. She began to walk in his direction, looking back at the bouquets of flowers, all beautiful and unique in their own way. Only did she look up until two feet was all that separated them. Tonight was about fun, not competition, at least not now.

"Hey Hengist. Wow, you look great." She said with a genuine smile, gesturing at his outfit before raising an eyebrow and allowing her usual pestering to resurface. "What are you doing back here, away from everyone? C'mon, it's one day that no one will remember in a few days. Well, except for me, maybe." She added, shifting the weight on her heels uncomfortably. Her feet were already aching; it wasn't going to be long before she gave out and called it a night.

Emma's Outfit

OPEN FOR INTERACTIONS

@Marissa North @Hjørdis Jensen
Briefly mentions Headmaster Lear and Professor Browne

The Blossomfest Ball was yet again hectic and Dymphna was glad that she didn’t attend. Hogwarts wasn’t a safe haven afterall. It was no wonder why some families wanted to pull their children out. She frowned at the thought, not liking the idea of going back to a strictly muggle form of education. Even being homeschooled in the magical arts wouldn’t come close to being at Hogwarts.

Still, she couldn’t deny how unsafe it felt at times. What with The Whomping Willow, a forest full of Merlin knows what, and trigger happy students on the loose. Not to mention the Masked Figure and the one and only Headmaster Lear who she was growing more wary of as of late. She wished that she realized sooner that destruction seemed to follow him, before she was hurt in the library.

The bruises dotting her arms from where the heavy books toppled on top of her had yellowed to an almost sickly green against her pale skin. It clashed with the blues and golds in her dress. Dressing a tad over the top for the second year graduation event would hopefully have more people focused on her beauty than the bruises, which is something she would normally hate but others were worse off and couldn’t have it all magicked away so then why should she?

There were a few familiar faces already. Her cousin, for one, which she avoided in hopes that she wouldn’t see the injuries. Dymphna didn’t write home about them, despite informing her family about the BlossomBall two years in a row. Professor Browne seemed to be keeping her occupied so she steered herself away from where they stood near the food and back towards Marissa.

She couldn’t remember a time where they interacted but Dymphna saw her around, knew her name and that was enough. “I like your dress,” she complimented. There was a little awkwardness there as she was reminded of Claryssa, someone she worked with on the newspaper during their first year. She hadn’t attended the funeral, so out of the loop that she hadn’t known what happened until it was over but now wasn’t the time to express her condolences.

“Did you do all of this yourself?” The flowers were her favorite part of the decor. If only she could get to the food table without Hjørdis seeing her. Free food was one of the perks of events and the chocolate covered strawberries were calling her name. “This year has flown by. It seems like yesterday we were home for Christmas and now we’re about to be in our third year.”

{ Interacting with Caradoc Browne, mentions Dymphna Teague }

Taking a sip of her punch, Hjørdis nodded as he spoke. "That's always good to hear." She replied. No complaints was always a good thing in her book. People complained far too often and too much. Without a doubt, she fit herself into that category. She liked a good moan every now and then. However, she was one of the people who often tried to fix the issue that she was complaining about. Recently, she had complaints about someone's behaviour and so, she spoke to him about it. She privately explained the issues and made an attempt to solve them. Life was always happier when there were no complaints, however. There was nothing to solve and she could just relax, enjoy life and more importantly, focus her mind on things that actually mattered or made her happy. It was pleasant.

Hjørdis gave another nod of her head, "It's rather nicely done," She admitted, quite pleased to see that a second year had gone to so much effort of making it look like this way. The food and drinks seemed appropriate, the decor was lovely and the people were piling in. It was done nicely, indeed. Her eyes fell onto a familiar face. Dymphna Teague. A small smile tugged at the end of her lips, her expression softening a little as she saw her. From the distance, there was no way she could see the injuries. They were too far away from each other. But Hjørdis could see the cute long-sleeve dress that she wore.

Without a doubt, it was a good thing that the Slytherin Professor could not see the bruises that Dymphna sported. Raising her eyebrow a little at her colleague's words, she tore her eyes away from the room and glanced at the punch. It was... just punch. Non-alcoholic punch. She definitely would have preferred an alcoholic beverage but alas, she was working and such drinks around children did not seem smart. She made no comment about the punch, however. At least, not until he turned the topic onto her. Hjørdis glanced at him with an expression that kind of said 'hmm?'. They were around the same height with her heels.

Hjørdis had already commented on the set up of the party, agreeing with him by this point. So she opted for another response, "It seems to be going well. That's all that matters, right?" She concluded, rather hoping it ended swiftly and without any injuries. By 'well', she meant the safety of the children but she did not clarify this. She was more than happy for Caradoc to think she meant well in terms of people arriving or the fact that the attendees look like they are having fun so far. There was no need for her to clarify what she meant.

She was already looking forward to leaving the venue, just as quickly as she entered it and going straight back home. Her house, in Hogsmeade, was close enough for her to stop off at the Three Broomsticks. As she stood there, she was already planning it. Of course, this was all assuming that she was not forced to staying in the castle today. Accidents and injuries caused her enough worry to force her to stay.

Outfit of the day

The old badger eyed his glass of punch as he listened to the few words Jensen would choose to utter. She was reserved, he'd gather. Perhaps just as much as he was reserved from taking yet another sip from the lacking drink in his hands. Judging from her non-verbal reaction, Caradoc gathered the slytherin professor would have preferred a more stiff drink as well. Maintaining his happy demeanour however, he'd smile pleasantly to anyone that would approach the table or pass them both in taking a glass for themselves.

He had trouble thinking of a reason for him being here. Of course there was Marissa'a request to pass by. But he had just done exactly that. He had passed by. And now the moment had passed. He had no intention in spending his evening in a ballroom filled to the brim with twelve-year olds whose hormones would call upon them to either burst out of pride or shrivel in shame. In fact all these children did, were reminding him of where he was not. His daughter. He'd wiggle his nose a little as he seemed to be thinking hard on how to escape without making things too awkward. After all, he did just engage into conversation with the Slytherin Head of House.

Not that he minded her company. She seemed to have her mind straight. Not something he could say of all the professors who wandered this castle. He'd think of the professor of flying for example. She'd proven to be a real piece of work. Although he figured it would take a bit of time to really get anything out of Jensen. By now he would have managed to dispose the glass he was holding somewhere on the table. In between the passing students and the talking. It should have been relatively subtle. His eyes would frequently look over at the exit. Still not sure when to make it for the door or when the conversation would give him an opening to maybe head out to Hogsmeade and grab a professor down the hall for a drink.

"So ehh..." Some students would come walking in by the door. "I can see you've got things under control here." He could not help but smirk a little as he was walking backwards towards the exit. "I think maybe good old Zahid still had something for me. Maybe I should go check up on him first" And there he was. Second lie of the evening. He could already smell the Three Broomsticks' interior.

[font="Monotype Corsiva"]

Interactions -> @Alexx Séverin and @Caradoc Browne
Mentions -> @Hjørdis Jensen, @Marissa North, and everyone else
Open for Interactions

It's quite refreshing to be able to talk to his good friend like this. It was true she was a great fun despite the somewhat short time he knew her. It would be no exaggeration to say that Alexx is one of the reasons why he was able to get out of his...slump if he's putting what happened to him lightly. He would forever be grateful to her for that.

"Aye that sounds like a right good idea ma friend. We can even go pester our heads of house and make a little show of it. No sense having this party be dead before it starts so it's time to add a bit of ma irish magic to liven up this place!" It was time for Quinn to act a bit crazier then he usually did. He felt justified in acting a bit crazier than normal and letting loose a bit. Not in a violent way mind you but letting loose none the less. Was it a bit out of character for him...maybe? But this was a party and it can't really be considered not acting your normal self if you constantly hide it and restrain yourself right?

"Anyway grabbing a drink sounds good. No sense standing around like some gobsmacked eijits." He laughed softly. "Hafta admit this place looks pretty nifty if ya asked me. Marissa did quite the job organizing this....should see if I can join her in making the next one." He wondered aloud as he also glanced around the whole ballroom seeing all who had already come. It looked a little dead still to him. He should do something about that.

With that said, he sauntered over to the punch table where the two professors were chatting from he could notice. He had never really met the head of Slytherin before but she seemed quite composed, pretty intimidating if you asked him, and carrying a certain air of...what was the word...elegance? Yeah that sounded right. The of course there was his own head house well the new one anyway. He seemed in all honesty from Quinn could tell bored. He didn't mean to stare too much he just enjoyed observing people it fascinated him how everyone could be different in some capacity or another.

Instead of going over right to the punch he went up to Caradoc. "Dia Duit Professor Browne." He extended his hand for the professor to greet a warm and welcoming grin on his face. Of course he had something else in his mind but that could be said after he finished his greeting. It was nothing too crazy or problematic. Maybe a bit too informal but it could be fun none the less. "Would ye be interested in a bit of an arm wrestling match?" He asked innocently. The request was a bit out of the blue and childish. But again he was still a child after all what could possibly hurt?

Quinn's outfit

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{ Interacting with Caradoc Browne, Mentions Quinn Healy }

Silence fell on the pair. It was actually one of the more refreshing moments of the evening. Hjørdis made a lot of unnecessary small talk throughout her day. She did not mind it but she was used to working alone. Years of working alone made you a rather quiet person on the job. And yet, people often forced her to keep talking. It was nice not to have to force any conversation. At least, from her perspective. The Slytherin still needed to get used to having colleagues. It had slowly worn her down, over the months but she spent more of her time getting used to working with children. That was her priority.

Her left eyebrow rose slowly as she caught a glance at the Head of Hufflepuff's face and the expression on it. He wiggled his nose a little. Perhaps out of awkwardness? He may not enjoy the silence as much as she did. But she was here to work, not chitchat. Despite that, she could not help but smirk a little at the sight of his expression. Hjørdis lifted her glass of punch, covering the slight look of amusement playing on her lips as she took a couple of sips when he had turned to leave his glass somewhere. She fought the urge to laugh, remaining quiet and composed as she waited for him to speak again.

Hjørdis glanced over to him, as he started to speak once more. He took some steps backwards, as though trying to flee from the awkward scene. Oh how she was tempted to tease him. The urge to be like, 'oh no, you handle it. I have a meeting with the Headmaster' was real. She could easily have said it and walked out before waiting for a response. Unlike him, she was unafraid of looking rude and impolite. But she had no intention of leaving so soon. If she wanted to leave, she would not have attended it. She ought to stay for a bit longer to make sure everything ran smoothly.

"Oh?" She replied, as though she totally believed the excuse. She did not. There was enough of a vagueness in his words that it seemed like nothing but an excuse. "Of course, Professor Browne," She continued with a nod, accepting his excuse as she brushed the loose hair off her face. A part of her regretted not spending time plaiting it for the occasion but it will do for now. Hjørdis did not engage in further conversation, allowing him to make his exit without a further word if he wanted to.

The Slytherin Head merely observed the newcomers entering the room. In general, everything looked good - for once. A student approached them and spoke to Caradoc. Her eyebrow quirked slightly as she heard Irish being spoken. She did not hear many people speaking Irish these days, especially not children. It was good to see that the language was not completely lost. Her own cousin often spoke Irish to her but she always thought Dymphna was an exception. It was nice to know that other families taught their children to speak their mother tongue too. The young child further pulled her attention at his request. He challenged the tall man near her to arm wrestle. Well, if nothing else, that was surprising. Most definitely a random challenge but it was rather entertaining nonetheless.

A small smirk tugged on the edges of her lips as she looked at Caradoc. The Professor was trying to flee from the event, and here he was being challenged by a child. Hjørdis was definitely in a good mood now. Her worries were easing with every moment. She was pleased that the event was not full of fire, which seemed to be the go to move. The temptation to tease Caradoc was incredibly real right now. Oh how she wanted to say that he could not handle such a challenge. It was probably not the best first impression of her, however. She remained silently. The expression on her lips, however, spoke louder than her words ever would. His plans to run were being challenged. 

She had no idea who this child was. But he was instantly growing on her.

Outfit of the day

They had to be kidding...
The Head of Hufflepuff would have been mid-turn towards the door as young master Healy called out for him. Caradoc would close his eyes and wish it to just be some instinctive sound his mind had projected. Sadly, he could instantly hear the thick irish accent of Quinn behind his back. Not that he hated Mr. Healy. In fact he did not hate anyone at all. Especially his badgers. But that sweet butterbeer... would have to wait.

Did that twelve year old whippersnapper just challenge him? He'd turn around in almost a singular rotation on the heel of his foot, both of his arms resting on his hips. He'd wiggle his nose again as he seemed to be thinking on what had just transpired. And he could have sworn he saw the head of Slytherin smirk just then. He'd chuckle in her direction as he could not contain himself from grinning surprised.

"Dia duit, máistir Healy" His Irish accent would suddenly pop out without warning. Up til now he had been fairly succesful in maintaining a neutral english accent. Which he primarily contained for clearer pronunctiation of both spells and dialogue. "Ye tink ye can handle a wee challenge, broc cróga?" There was no way an Irishman was going to turn his back to a arm wrestling match. He'd have preferred a stiff drink along with it. But the lad's spirit and the lady's attention would have to do.

With a firm step forward he launched himself back towards the table where Jensen would still be standing and retrieved his glass. No matter how unpleasant the drink would be in comparison to what he could have had in his hands by now, he'd down it in one go and bring the glass down to the decorated wood. He'd briefly wink at the slytherin professor as he nodded over to the young Hufflepuff. "Alrite then Healy." His voice would sound a little lower and rough around the edges with his accent. "We'll pick a table and settle dis." He ruffled the ginger's hair and nodded over to an empty table. "Perhaps professor Jensen would like to be our referee?" He ask as he slowly continued walking backwards towards the table. Bot arms open wide as his shoulders shurgged up to extend his invitation.

Oh how his daughter would have laughed to see him like this. She would not have stopped giggling up to the point she had to fall asleep of exhaustion. Her old man finally being set straight by a boy not even a handful of years older than her. The mere thought of her smile would have Caradoc laughing under his breath. It would be too obvious to see he could not stop smiling while thinking about her. Silently he'd roll up his sleeves. Rather carefully and neatly folded on top of each other. He still had to look the part. Whether she had joined him or not, his colleague would be watching no doubt. He had definitely seen a smile on those curved lips. And he would never pass a chance to make anyone smile.

He'd rest one elbow on the wood and have his hand ready to grasp Quinn's. Of course he was stronger than the boy. He had no doubt the boy had the heart to beat him, but those arms would still need a bit more fluff on them. Nevertheless, he knew what to do. "Are we ready?"

@Marissa North @Erin Ryan

The blondes eyebrows furrowed in concern for the Hufflepuff. When Marissa smiled, she relaxed and smiled back. Dymphna wanted to ask what was wrong but it didn’t seem to be the right time — she didn’t want to ruin the party, especially not for the host herself.

It seemed that Marissa was a shy type, not used to talking with almost strangers or was there something more to it? Dymphna briefly wondered if it had anything to do with her sister whom she worked with on the newspaper during their first year. It came as a shock to her to hear about the funeral. Before a frown could make its way onto her face, she gave her another smile.

“Are you excited for Divination? I can’t wait to see if I have any talent for it. Interesting subject, that.” She wondered if Professor Benoit would be around tonight but looking around, there weren’t many people there. Quinn seemed to be trying to fight Professor Browne? Maybe Hjørdis would referee.

Then there was Erin. The Ravenclaw refrained from rolling her eyes when she was approached. They had gotten off on the wrong foot a few times - in classes when the Slytherin disrespected Professors and again when she made comments to Serena after she received a Howler from her family. What a birthday present that had been.

Dymphna was raised with manners so when she spoke, she put on a false smile and tried to be polite, even if she did take a step back for personal space. Maybe Erin had changed since the year before. If how wrecked the library was then probably not but shouldn’t she give her a chance, the benefit of the doubt? “Why not one of the boys?”

There weren’t many boys there in the first place, Dymphna observed again as she made her way out onto the ballroom floor. Small talk was something she enjoyed but she could count on one hand how many words she had said to the girl in the past. Not many at all, preferring to ignore her than give her leverage to use against her. “So, what’s the catch? There has to be some reason you approached me.”