The Masquerade Ball Event Closed

Interactions: @Christopher Madson
Meantions:@Kaegen Deathmote and those involved, @Kyle DeRook

Illowy didn't feel quite as much self restraint as her housemate, who only allowed himself to keep his piece; echoing her thoughts exactly. When Deathmote made him futile attack, the girl did pull her wand from the tulle folds of her dress, taking a step or two in their direction before holding herself back. She had to know better in this situation. The teachers were on top of it, and she had to trust in them that they didn't need an inexperienced second year getting involved.

Pressing her lips in a tight line as the situation was resolved and disbanded, the child reluctantly returned her wand to the safekeeping of her pocket. Turning back to her housemate in silence. How could someone just call another student out in such a cold and unfeeling way? Sure, she didn't know the kid very well, but he was just that; a kid. Just like the rest of them, here to learn and grow, and he had just as much of a right to it as the girl barking at him.

She heard Chris speaking, voicing what she hoped was the shared opinion of everyone else in the room, though she was barely processing his words. Illowy swallowed hard, tugging up her gloves a bit and smoothing out her skirt... practically doing anything to keep her nervous hands from being idle, "Its a pity..." she spoke, "This school is full of more races and creatures then anyone would like to admit. Its 2019, for Merlin's sake. What does it matter anymore where someone came from, what happened to them, who their parents are, what their blood status is... none of that shite matters anymore as long as the proper measures are there to keep everyone safe." the girl kept her eyes low, picking up her drink from the table once more, "Its exhausting and not very helpful witch hunting those who are different from the perfect, pure blooded wizarding families." her voice dripped with sarcasm when describing the pure blood families.

Her mind went to her cousin. They came from a pure blooded wizarding family at least Illowy believed she was a pure blood, and she saw no shame in taking pride in it. However, she also saw no point in believe it somehow made her better or stronger. She also thought of her cousin, who while was just as pure as she, he was now polluted with lycanthropy. It wasn't his fault, he didn't ask for it, and it didn't make him a terrible, evil monster that ought to be run out of the school... this scene made her fear for him though; and she was visibly shaken about it.

For a moment, the thought crossed her mind to just leave the party. That little scene had nearly shot the girl's already fragile nervous about being here in the first place, and she feared for a worse scene to come about. How much long did they have before another fire broke out? Or a fight or some other disaster that would erupt chaos and fill the hospital wing? Truthfully, she didn't want to leave; she wanted to enjoy herself and have fun and feel like a normal student for once.

Interacting with @Serena Towers

“Have you found anything to drink?” Serena had asked her as Adlai looked over cups. What Adlai assumes was punch looked rather strange, and since hearing the rumors of what happened at the last dance Adlai suddenly wasn’t thirsty anymore.

“No, I don’t think I want anything after all.” She told Serena. “I think I’m just gonna go over there,”
Adlai pointed to an empty table near the edge of the dance floor. “You could meet me there if you want after your done getting food if you want.” She suggested before walking over to the table and sitting down.

Who knew parties could be so exhausting. Adlai had only been on her feet for a few minutes and they were already in pain from the heels she was wearing. Perhaps she shouldn’t have them.
Sighing Adlai stretched her arms and observed the room.

Everyone looked so amazing, so happy to be there in the moment. It was at times like this that Adlai wished she had her family with her, so share this with. But she knew for a fact that, that wish would never come true.
Her parents would go insane if they knew she was taking classes about defending yourself from dark magic anyway.

[font=PT Serif]Interacting with @Dorothy Shafiq. Mentions @Eris Fawley and @Adam Harringtom.[/font]

Role-playing as Bridget Collins || Interacting with @Thora Larkston || Mentions the Kaegan-Aurelia situation || Open to Interactions!

Bridget stopped with Thora at the snack bar. It was a brilliant spot to relocate at, what with it being away from the fracas and that it also provided them with something to do other than observe the party in silence. Still, the brunette was a bit worried about drinking the provided beverages, but she had to assume some bit of confidence that the Professors had enough sense about them to prevent the same things that had occurred at the last ball to happen at this one. Thora seemed to think it was safe enough to try anyways.

Delicately collecting one of the cups, Bridget took a swig. Instantly, she was filled with happy memories of winter evenings in the Collins home. The liquid turned out to be her mother's specialty hot cocoa, infused with peppermint, that always spread warmness through her body, all of which made no sense as the cup didn't give off any heat to her hands and peering into it, it looked just like punch. Brow furrowed, Bridget began to wonder what exactly this most likely magical thing was.

When Thora said hers was apple cider, the small girl's suspicions were confirmed. The drink must've been some sort of potion, and considering for Bridget it had been her favorite beverage and the redhead next to her had a blissful expression, perhaps the potion tasted like one's preferred concoction.

"It tastes like my mum's hot cocoa to me," she answered. Her curiosity certainly was sparked--later she'd have to look around the library for this sort of potion. Of course, she'd have to find time around all her homework and Quidditch practice; the second year supposed she might've gotten in a bit over her head with responsibilities this year, but she didn't regret it.

Snapping herself out of her potion fantasy realm and back into the real world, she smiled at Thora. "I love magic. Looking back, I can't believe how boring the Muggle world really was…" It was true, although she missed her friends. But for now, she had Thora Larkston, and tonight they were going to have fun together, just like friends were supposed to. Just like she used to with Lizzy and Jemima.

Interacting with @Adlai Rod, @Reid Kovacs and @Adam Harringtom

Serena furrowed her eyebrows a little, wondering what happened to Adlai, who appeared to suddenly change her mind. Perhaps she did not like punch. Deciding not to press on the matter, she nodded. The Hufflepuff turned back to the food table as her company left and grabbed some more pieces to stuff into her face. Everything was so tasty. She was oddly surprised that she liked it, given that a lot of things had more vegetables or looked healthier than pizza. They were delicious nonetheless though. She found a mushroom dish that looked weird but actually tasted incredible.

The Hufflepuff ate like a handful of it. Of all of the dishes that she tried, there was only one or two that she was not a huge fan of. Everything else was good. Especially the mushroom dish. Serena never knew she actually liked mushroom till now...

She looked around and spotted a couple of people nearby. Cringing slightly, she stepped away from the buffet table. Her mother always told her that it was not 'ladylike' to stuff your face at a party. You had to eat or drink 'appropriately'. Every act had to be delicate. You lifted the tiniest piece of food with grace. Not stuffing as many as you could in your face, so you were unable to talk. But she was hungry...

Serena wiped her mouth on a tissue, brushing off any crumbs that should not have been there before wiping her hands. Tossing the tissue away in the black bag near the table, she turned to the dance floor. A few people had started to cheer and - wait... She knew them, instantly recognising Reid and Adam. The Hufflepuff rushed back to Adlai, gently shook her arm, "Let's go dance!" She announced to the girl before rushing into the crowd to join this forming mosh pit.

Of course, she had absolutely no idea what a mosh pit or moshing was but nonetheless, she quickly found her way to her friends, Reid and Adam (and whoever else was there), "Hey guys!" She joined into the growing moshpit, dancing along to this odd music that she did not really get but they seemed to be enjoying. She had no idea if Adlai was behind her but she kind of hoped she was. For today, it was decided, this would be a fun event.

OOC: Tad bit lost in the sea of replies. I think Reid & Adam are together, moshing. Apologies if I've missed anyone else that's there too.

Serena's outfit

Interacting with @Jane Victoria. Open to interactions

Nico was afraid. Hiding in a corner where the Ball cast a shadow seemed the best option to gather your thoughts. The weird choice of music didn't as loud in here...

She sighed softly, rubbing the single tears from her cheeks with the back of her hands. Maybe... she shouldn't have come. Maybe these events didn't have a spot for her. The redhead would only walk in the way of other joy. That's how it was... right?

Just as she figured she could survive the night sitting here, someone approached her. Nico never saw it coming. Who would want to approach... a monster? Still sniffing, Nico gently blew her nose, before carefully looking up at the stranger. The light wasn't the best, it was hard to make out how they looked like. Was it someone she knew?

Their voice sounded familiar. Nico was certain she heard it before. But alas... the masks prevented her from putting the pieces together.

Their mask looked like the one of Zorro. The bandit she saw on TV with her dad.

'Zorro...'

The words came without much thought. Her once pretty smooth social skills had faded quite abit and now she seemed to have forgotten her manners all the way.

She heard them speak, it all seeped in. The dhampir needed time to process their words. Crazy masquerade. You can say that again. Was.. she crazy because of what she was? The words of Aurelia kept echoing in her head. No need to dwell on that. She could atleast give this kind stranger some of her attention.

Their birthday. 'H-Happy Birthday..' She mustered and pulled a soft smile on her face. What a place to celebrate ones birthday. 'A crush?' Must be nice, Nico thought. 'I'm sorry they rejected you...' That must hurt. The little dhampir tried to push away the memories of the Blossom Ball that were engraved in her mind so deeply. The big event would remind her of it every time. She felt sorry for this person that this Ball would to the same to them.

They offered their hand, asking her to dance. She wasn't sure if she was in the right mood for it. Not to mention a random stranger asked her. Was there a way she could politely refuse?

Her legs refused to work, they were exhausted. However, she didn't want to make this persons night worse... But coming out on the dancefloor, making a fool of herself... She wouldn't be able to bare it.

'I-I'm sorry... I'm flattered that you'd ask me to dance with you... But..' Her eyes rest on her knees with a slight guilt. 'My legs... they're tired and.. I'd rather catch me breath for a little while. M-My apologies.'

Mentions: @Quinn Healy, @Reid Kovacs, @Rosie Parker, @Kyle DeRook, @Hugh Lowe, @Kaegen Deathmote, @Professor Alaric Equinox, @Eris Fawley, @Max Avery, @Paracelsus Alger Myth, @Santario Martin, @Nico Shymane, @Alexander Cloverfield, @Thomas Lestrange.

Interacting with: @Jack Warren and @Leah Isbell

The plan was simple, find them and break them. Her primary concern was Quinn Healy, he wielded greater social power than she could have ever imagined. Allied with other giants such as Hugh Lowe and supported by Prefects such as Reid Kovacs and Rosie. Even if Quinn was not being directly protected by this vast, branching network she was slowly discovering, his allies were under the protection of still others such as Kyle DeRook. She wondered how deep and how far this corruption went, likely all the way to the headmaster and down to the house elves her increasingly paranoid mind determined. 

Some of them were easier to find, people such as Quinn. The boy stood out like a vegan in a deli. He had a date, some girl in a copper dress and pink mask with a metallic sheen. She looked a bit familiar, not that Erin knew it but she had punched the girl before. She would find out about the tiny, weak-appearing girl and get to Quinn through her she determined.

Others seemed to blend into the crowd, such as Max Avery and Reid Kovacs, they were basically pretty boys wearing masks. There was nothing particularly distinguishing about either of them. Kyle's get-up was attention grabbing, he was noticed as was his date whoever she was (Santario Martin). She thought she might have seen the dress or the girl or both in the Slytherin common room but she could not be certain. She could probably take her too. 

The crones were right of course when they warned her to trust none, including one could suppose Kaegen Deathmote - the feral boy in the garb of a vagabond. She saw a former Prefect approach him, she was too far and the music too loud to know if he was being rebuked or confessed to. Not until she saw the interaction devolve into a fray, there were students and teachers involved. She was drawn to the violence and wrath like a moth to a flame, in time to see the boy's teeth clamp down on Professor Equinox's arm. She felt the blood leave her own body, drained and replaced with cold. She was of course untouched, unscathed as she was an innocent, external party to this fracas. It was the psychosomatic manifestation of her revelation that they -- Eris and Max lied. Kaegen was not a midget giant ally of Healy in the least, he was some sort of... vampire? Dhampir? She did not know, she was familiar with the terms but not really the difference. She just knew that he was not what she thought he was. 

There were two things of note here -- first Professor Equinox was against Deathmote. An enemy?Probably. But wasn't Kaegen also an enemy? The enemy of her enemy should be her friend if she recalled the saying correctly. Still, her assumption that Kaegen was an enemy was based on the information that Eris and Max had given and confirmed to her after announcing that they were death witches. Kaegen was no midget giant, they don't have bitey teeth like that.

She considered aiding the maddened youth, helping him flee to safety. Well, safety from them and whatever feud was ongoing, but not from her as she extracted a straight answer from the secretive youth once and for all. 

That was until the self-admitted death witch Eris embraced the boy who had spiraled out of control. His enemy if she was to believe his warning those months earlier that shaped and ultimately distorted her reality. The poor idiotic boy was friends with a death witch. He was dead, but Erin was not going to kill him. Eris was. 

The latticework of this belief structure inside Erin's mind was getting more and more complex as time went on. There was such irony in the fact that she was closer to the truth than chance should have allowed, her maddened fears manifest. She simply had the wrong targets and the worst choice in mentors. Elena Jones was threatening the crowd. Her periphery became dim as she focused on those that interceded. Nico Shymane, Alex Cloverfield's girlfriend was somehow involved. "He would have to find a chick that..." her mind started to complain when her attention was diverted. She would know him anywhere, Paracelsus (Jack Warren) Alger Myth, the hottest boy at the dance. Parce had not planned on attending, she knew because she of course expected him to come with her to the dance. He was her trophy man, a pureblood of the same year... wizard... Parce's attentions were diverted elsewhere for the evening, not that she knew where, she did not fight it because she had other matters (such as the part-giant menace) to attend to. Had she known it was to cavort around with some floozy, she would have put up a fight. 

Erin was infamous for her strength and her willingness to use it. Myth likely knew the truth, that Erin was the school bully but she had convinced herself that he was oblivious to her violence and her crusade. She saw herself as a hero in a way, as defending herself and her needs/wants in another. While she would hesitate to admit it, despite her independent streak, Erin was incredibly lonesome. She could count her friends on a single hand and still have fingers remaining. That was why she was going to destroy Quinn Healy, she believed he (or one of his kind) was responsible for the disappearance of Thomas LeStrange, her only friend besides Alexander Cloverfield. Alex was too busy with girls after he discovered he liked them. His free time had been dedicated to Nico Shymane who had an unknown role in this giant-death witch - vampire conspiracy. It was hopeless to draw Alex away from her, she knew it. It was hoes before bros, don't believe anyone that says otherwise. She would have to look into it more later and if it was bad deal with Nico, making sure in her case to make it look like an accident. 

Parce was only with her out of obligation and she knew it. He had no interest attending social gatherings with her. He only spent time with her when he fell asleep in a common area and she dragged him along. Whatever she felt for him, whatever affection there was... was not reciprocated and she knew it. It was his assertion that he had gotten her pregnant (she was not pregnant, they are both incredibly stupid and there is no pure-blood health class) 11 months ago was the only thing keeping him around. Nobody had told her otherwise, that she was not pregnant so to this day she has remained blissfully unaware and wondered how long until she 'gets fat.' She would be heartbroken to know the truth, unlike him she was excited over the prospect of having a pure-blooded heir/heiress at such a young age to ensure her family's legacy. To have something that might love her. To have something she could love. 

So yes, she hid the parts of her as obvious as they were to everyone, likely Parce included that she was an asshole. She "studied" a lot those days (which were pretty much every) she was in detention. Surprisingly she was getting fine grades, she actually tried academically even if her grades were not perfect with the occasional T. She did not get into fights in front of Parce, she even held her tongue most of the time. There was some affection there, otherwise why hide the truth? Beyond what she felt of course there was also a sense of ownership, that being the most relevant at this moment as she saw him having a dialogue with some girl.

Part of her lip curled up into a sneer and her body tensed as she felt a heat within her flair up. The opposite of the chill and the emptiness she felt when she realized that Kaegen was a vampire. That liar. That cheat! Erin would make her way across the dance floor, ignoring the crowd of onlookers that were witnessing the bizarre mess that surrounded Deathmote, she would push her way through. Players can elect to RP she pushed them back, knocked them over, etc. [Strength 15] She needed to mark her territory and her territory was Paracelsus. As she made her way closer to the duo -- Jack Warren and Leah Isbell, there was no questioning that she was coming for them if they looked in her direction. Erin was sizing Leah up, what did this girl have that the half Veela lacked! S-she was normal, average really. Pretty she guessed if your fetish was standard girl number six. 

"Dear?" There was a sharpness to her voice as she addressed Warren. "I ...did not think you were coming to the ball." She would attempt to pull off his mask (Jack's call) and attempt to kiss to poor, likely unprepared boy. Erin was marking her territory with her lips. There was a mixture of confusion and annoyance in her voice, she did not like to be misled and now she was feeling this bundle of jealousy in her gut start to grow. If he evaded her face attack or not, she would say the same thing after she missed or the unnecessarily long kiss ended. "A-and now I see you here with--" she points at Leah "whoever this is." Her hand shook a bit as she pointed at the poor little girl that was just now finding herself in the midst of a domestic dispute. "Why her?" She actually wanted a reason. "She can't possibly have a better pedigree than me," the pure-blood complained.

No-- Her Parce would never do this. What did she do? She was absolutely lying to herself. She let out a huff of hair. "No, I am fucking perfect," her ego was showing and it was not as pretty as her face. She looked at Leah, "the hell did you do to my man?" Love potion. Blackmail. Trickery. Parce was a very smart, very handsome boy (OC: yes he is an idiot but she does not know that), but this harridan here... How in the world did this succubus get her claws into him? It did not matter, she was here now and she was going to pry this vixen off of him if it was the last thing Parce every experienced. 

OC: I am so sorry girl, Jack has the same avatar as my IC boyfriend Paracelsus Alger Myth. 

Erin pulled off her mask, she could care less if she got detention for this. She had every day already scheduled in detention until after the winter solstice. They could -try- to give her double detention she supposed, it would still be worth it in her eyes. She tossed her mask to the side, her face prettier than her expression it was a strange contrast truly as she balled her small but incredibly mighty (Strength 15) hand into a fist. 

She would attempt to sucker punch Leah Isbell.

Interacting w/ @Erin Ryan & @Leah Isbell

The ball had turned out to be more interesting than he thought. However, he was rather thankful that he was just a bystander tonight. He wanted to make a scene, but this place was like a bad soap opera. That isn't the story that he wanted to be apart of. Jack never really fell for any of the 'That wasn't me! That was my evil twin brother,' storylines. For some reason, his mother rather enjoyed them though. It all felt rather far fetched to the Hufflepuff. But the conversation was pleasant with potato girl, which still made him laugh, and the show was just starting. The only thing to poor boy didn't know was about to be standing center stage.

Now Jack was aware of the feeling that somebody was watching him, but he only assumed that it was somebody that he had managed to piss off. He did just pull up his mask, exposing his identity to everybody nearby. There was a slight satisfaction that he had managed to pull at least some attention to himself. Yet the feeling of foreboding dread slowly began to pick around in his stomach. It was the same feeling he would get right before he got in a fight with an older kid back home in Dublin. Something was coming. Something terrible was coming.

Whether or not it was a good thing, Jack didn't fear the impending dread. Turning his head to glance around the room, Jack didn't see much...before he saw her. The bright green material of her dress caught his eye, but he could certainly say for a fact that he had never seen this girl before in his life. Why was she walking towards me like that? Have I managed to make an enemy without even trying? All he could do was prepare himself for the oncoming storm.

Wait a freaking second! What had she just called him? Dear? "I'm sorry, I don't thi-" Before his words could escape his own lips, he had found that a second pair of lips had joined in on the party. Several moments passed as it took the young Hufflepuff's brain to actually process what in the actual hell was happening. Did I just get my first kiss? Am I still in the process of my first kiss? Why is there a completely random girl kissing me? His entire body was shocked into complete paralysis and he did not have the wherewithal to actually push away. There were no sparks nor fireworks. All it was just a nose mashing face battle. It wasn't terribly unpleasant, but he had expected his first kiss to be much more......mutual.

After what seemed like an unnecessarily long kiss, Jack was pulled out of his state of stupor. "Wh-Why her? I don't think I follow..." He was immediately cut off once again. This time by the older girls accusatory finger-pointing, then followed by the rather rude self-congratulatory statement. It was at this point, Jack found that the thing he most expected to happen was in the works. A punch. Yet it wasn't directed at him? That's curious. He didn't even have the chance to step in. The combination of the kiss alongside with the sudden accusations that had put him off severely.

[font="Monotype Corsiva"]

Interactions: @Rosie Parker, @Marissa North, @Erin Ryan
Mentions: @Leah Isbell, @Santario Martin

Quinn listened and presumably followed Rosie along with Marissa not realizing that Dymphna already left. It was around that time that the Half-Giant looked around the room to notice the familiar form of Santario waving to him. He quite jovially waved back to her flashing a quick smirk. He purposefully ignored the other drama that had happened around. Wasn't his problem at the moment.

This was however before something in his periphery caught his attention. The strange hair, but very familiar face. His head swiveled to the direction of the person in question. "Erin...Ryan....Rosie. Marissa. Forgive me but I need to attend to this." Hate filled his voice as it grew visceral and deep. His attention was further brought to her strange actions and he couldn't see what they were saying but he sure as hell saw the kiss that the boy looked like he didn't want. Followed by..."Oh shit..."

Without any hesitation he left Rosie and the group before bulldozing his way through the crowd. One person having his sole focus. Large hands pushing people aside muttled apologies being uttered with every person he pushed. He needed to hurry and luckily the lengthy strides of his long legs allowed for that. It took him less then 30 seconds to travel the distance. His knuckles were white from being bawled so tight anger full in his expression.

Without another thought he reached his hand out palm open wide to catch the punch Erin was in the process of throwing. He didn't know if he would block it but it was right in front of Leah's face. Hate filled eyes glowering down menacingly at the paranoid Slytherin.

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Interacting as approved dNPC Iris Fields | @Teiki Laurent | Open to Interactions

Iris stood by the table drinking the butterbeer. She was confused as to why there was so much pandemonium going on. So much for a "normal" ball. She sighed and almost screamed as someone bit another person. And was that a werewolf? She hastily back up and almost ran into someone @Teiki Laurent. The first year introduced herself as Teiki.

"Hi, I'm Iris. One of the exchange students. I'm third year." Iris smiled. "Wanna go over there?" Iris tossed her head in the direction of a quieter corner.

Iris started in that direction not waiting to see if Teiki would follow. Teiki's mask was simple and quite beautiful and sophisticated to be honest. Her dress was a deep sea blue that matched her mask impeccably. Iris stole a glance at her own purple dress and wished it were fancier.

Iris almost ran into a girl she didn't recognize that was crying @Nico Shymane. Iris gave her a sideways look and continued past her. The party seemed to be revolving into chaos. Her head was spinning from the loud noise and heat built up inside the room. Iris steadied herself against the wall and waited for Tieki.

She took a long sip of the butterbeer and smashed the empty cup in her hand. She quickly threw the cup in a trash nearby and smiled as it fell in perfectly. The room was becoming really warm and uncomfortable but Iris didn't let it get to her.