Devil-May-Care Attitude High Houses Group B

@Madhup Hexum | @Pericles Dralt

It was a rather recent development that the international schools had begun to reciprocate Hogwarts' frequent invitations to the school's events, and Dee had very much enjoyed the opportunity to visit the other schools and their countries so far. There had been the Valentine's event in Beauxbatons, where Dee's personal highlight had been setting a guy on fire... even if that had turned out to be a misunderstanding. They were also invited to Koldovstoretz in February, apparently for some sort of ... magical Olympics? Dee was intrigued. And now, currently, they were staying in Tenusa's enchanted jungle, with festivals, foods, and camping trips.

From the reactions of the foreign students whenever something at Hogwarts had gone, well, wrong, Dee had always assumed that the other schools were safer. That hags and murderous shadows and attacks by flora and fauna were something exclusive to their school, and that everyone else went through their school years well-protected and uneventful. But either she'd been mistaken, or the Hogwarts crew had brought their cursed luck with them to the magical isles.

Their previous day had been spent exploring the island with some of her favourite people in the world and trying all the food she could possibly fit into her stomach, and Dee had fallen asleep late and exhausted, but with a smile on her lips. When she woke up, it was dark, and something was trying to wrap around her bare leg, something else creeping over her arm - something that was distinctly not her boyfriend's arm, inching closer to cuddle. No scream but just a silent gasp, she was scrambling away before she was fully awake, accidentally elbowing Madhup in the stomach as she went; while she was not aware enough to realise what was happening, she'd been in enough bad scrapes over the years that her instincts had her on her feet before she could make sense of what was going on. Around her, the rest of the room was coming alive - her friends waking up just as she had, but she'd alert them just to be sure. A sharp whistle should do the trick, with an added "Time to get up, folks!" for good measure. Everyone seemed to be on their feet within moments of herself, which left her free to focus on the situation they were facing.

The sprawling nest of vines across their previously cozy space was clearly an unwelcome sight, but, oddly, had Dee exhaling and almost (not quite) relaxing. Vines, even oddly aware ones that tried to strangle her? She'd faced those during her first year at Hogwarts. They'd dealt with much worse since. If anything, she was miffed that they'd woken her up. Wouldn't an attack a few hours later have worked just as well?

Sniffing slightly, Dee leaned forward to inspect the vines more closely. "What do we think, Devil's Snare?" she asked, the question mainly directed at Peri, who had been her companion on most of their unfortunate forest adventures. "Do those even grow in this climate? Maybe a distant relative? I should have some Weedosoros somewhere..." Although she wasn't sure that rather obscure potion would mean anything to her friends. Either way, they could probably use a bit more light to figure out what exactly they were dealing with, so she supposed she might as well make herself useful. Her wand was never far even while she was sleeping, and it had found its way into her hand immediately when she'd been woken so rudely. The spell was familiar, even though it had been a while since she'd last used it to chase away shadows. "Lumos Solem."

Action | Casting Lumos Solem

Sta 7 | Eva 16 | Str 4 | Wis 18 | Arc 10 | Acc 22
Evasive Maneuvers | Charmer | Perfectionist I + II
Spell Spread | Restricted Potions | Apparition

The first day in the jungle of the island had not turned out to be too shabby, with fun ranging from meeting a handsome not-so-stranger under the sun on the beach to introducing the Tenūsan populace to the deliciousness that was the humble pumpkin pasty, and of course there had been the comforting familiarity of settling into a temporary housing situation with some of her best mates. The group was smaller this year, just the core four really - the Ravenclaw trio who were already used to rooming together, plus Eve. And Madhup had even joined them, Aly making teasing remarks about him stealing her bunkmate. A solid group of five, then, making late-night chatter and adventures much easier than having to wrangle a large group of eight - and best of all, they were all seventh-years. Legal adults, able to make whatever mistakes choices they deemed appropriate.

Aly had barely been able to fall asleep late last night, her mind still racing from the previous day's wild events. She could hardly believe she had finally met Kavi, and had regaled her mates with the wild story of accidentally scaring him right off his surfboard before even realising who he was. There had even been certain details about his handsome looks thrown into the tale. She had been up late, dipping her toes into the steaming little pool of clear green-tinged water by the window and staring out into the night sky and network of tree houses just on the other side of the glass. The moon was full, bright and lovely as it hung in the sky, and in a most cliché burst of hopeless teenage romanticism, she couldn't help but wonder if @Kavi Kattimani was staring at it too - before dismissing the notion as foolish. She was on his home campus. Clearly, he probably had enough times to gaze at this particular view when she wasn't around; the chances that he would even care about the moon were slim, though for all his poetic nature, she hoped he maybe might.

Still, in the end the Ravenclaw had managed to retire to her bed and drift off to a deep, if somewhat restless, slumber. Her sleep had always been anything but peaceful, the tickles at the bottom of her bare foot surely just the edge of the blanket as she tossed and turned and wrapped herself up in its fuzzy warmth, its cold and smooth round edge...

Dee's cry was what jolted her straight out of her dreams, shooting upright into a sitting position and jerking her feet back out of reflex. Sure enough, the vine that had been beginning to wrap itself around her foot was ever-so-narrowly avoided, her best mate having saved her from some unknown grasp with her call. Aly scrambled for her wand on the bedside table, just barely managing to find it in the dark, as Dee mused on about perhaps it being some sort of Devil's Snare. Oh, it just bloody figures! We can't go a bedamned trip without something happening. I suppose Tenūsa's no different. Her mind rolling back to their Herbology lesson on the plant from earlier this year, she remembered: light, heat. These were what would best drive away the plant, whether this was truly Devil's Snare or some strange different-hemisphere variant of it. Aly didn't feel particularly like getting strangled or suffocated today, so she just followed Dee's example; she still held trauma from the last time she'd cast Incendio, so light would have to do just as well.

"Lumos Maxima!"

Action: casting Lumos Maxima on the vines
Jan. 3, 2026 | pajamas | #C47DDB | @Dealla Prince, @Madhup Hexum, @Pericles Dralt, @Evelynn Decipio
lovely & charmer affect everyone | sta 10, eva 14, str 5, wis 19, arc 7, acc 17

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	Tenūsa's warmth and humidity contrasted the Scottish Highlands brutally. While his visit was a pleasant one, Pericles was restless, everything about this unfamiliar atmosphere- the bed, sounds, and air itself- too far beyond normality's comfort to let down his guard come sundown. When the merciful nothing of sleep finally took him, it wouldn't keep him all too long. @Dealla Prince's whistle jolted the wizard awake. Blearily, moving on muscle memory in those first critical seconds, he scooped the wand from beneath his pillow as he rolled out of bed. His bare foot landed on something undeniably alive. A dream-fogged section of his brain likened it to stepping on a cat's tail: it was thin, rope-like, and wriggled fruitlessly. Pericles jerked back a pace, moving to stand atop his mattress while taking in the dark vines throughout the domicile. He'd really hoped that being elevated gave them an edge on safety. But there was no time to lament their misfortune, as the grasping things were winding up his bedframe and crawling towards his friends. Dee's observation earned a quick report as Pear snapped into an offensive stance. "The mundane variation of datura stramonium grows all throughout Southeast Asia. This could be a darker variant of what we're accustomed to." Light was worth a try, and was vastly preferable to throwing fire around in a wooden, plant-riddled high house. He followed a similar course to she and Aly, incanting a level "Lumos Duo" with the intention of slicing through the advancing vines with a concentrated beam.
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| Action: Casting Lumos Duo (beam of light) at the vines |
caveat (if allowed) - will spell-spread to the first person to fail their roll, if any

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	Madhup's objectives for his Tenūsa visit were as straightforward as the Chaser himself: learn to surf, spend as much time in Dee's bubble as possible, and befriend her friends. Needless to say, several of these interests overlapped while Aly was regaling them with stories of @Kavi Kattimani. Madhup lit up at the fellow Sanskrit name, shifting from a relaxed lounge to an attentive lean-in. "Is he good?" he'd prompted with bright eyes. "Did he fall from his board because he cannot surf, or because you are so pretty?" Aly was the easiest to get on with. Mad found a kindred spirit in her charming nature and love of good times, while their dedication to Dee sealed the deal. That last factor may have won him points with Pericles, but the brutal combat training they endured fostered a natural rivalry between the young men. Spider boy also seemed to derive some freakish joy in creeping him out. He hadn't wholly moved past Pear's willingness to magically scalp him in a practice duel, though he supposed punching him in the face hadn't made the most elegant impression either. Evelynn was an enigma to him: she didn't reciprocate his play-flirt attempts to schmooze his way into her good graces, and in some ways, the effort felt like trying to befriend a professor. She had the bearings of one too intelligent and too busy for his shenanigans. None of this was a deterrent, however. By the time the sun set, he was satisfied with his efforts in the water and around the dinner table. Madhup contentedly curled around Dee, settling in for beauty sleep alongside his equally beautiful girlfriend, drifting off to plans on how he might conquer the second day. Tenūsa had other plans. A prod to his side made him snort in his sleep. Without opening his eyes, he unwittingly back-handed a vine away, mumbling Russian into Dee's hair. "Mmh, net... ne shchekochi menya." "No... don't tickle me." He would have woken up in a chokehold if not for her elbow inserting itself in his abdomen. Madhup's spooning came to an end with an "oof," one hand grabbing the first object he could find while the other rubbed his stomach. He rolled into position alongside Dee and brandished his pillow while she and Pear tried to identify their attacker. "Who cares? Kill it!" Mad may have been magically inept, but he wasn't about to embarrass himself by having a pillow-fight with Devil's Snare. Hearing several light spells firing at once, he used it to shield his face, scanning the surrounding floor for any vines attempting to sneak up on the duo.
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Action: trying not to be blinded. Will Kick any tendrils near himself and Dee
Calming Presence: @Dealla Prince, @Aly Salinger, @Evelynn Decipio and Pear

FINAL MODERATION OF PART ONE
Standing in for Lawrence in this moderation round to end part 1 of the event!

This quintet of seventh-years sure showed these vines what a Hogwarts (and Durmstrang) education can do. Four spells pierced the air, light threefold and a good old slice, from the Brits in the room, whereas the lone student from the Bulgarian academy chose to resort to a solid kick instead and protecting his beloved eyesight. Still, all five were successful in their chosen defensive mechanisms: @Evelynn Decipio with Diffindo, @Pericles Dralt/@Aly Salinger/@Dealla Prince with various forms of Lumos, and @Madhup Hexum with the aforementioned Muggle-esque attack.

But then - tragedy. As if the vines could sense that one of the residents was a future fifth wheel, vines seized around Aly's ankle. She had slept closest to the balcony, and it was this that would be the Ravenclaw's downfall. She was yanked completely out of the open-air window and down into the jungle before any of the other four could react, gone into the leaves with only her scream still hanging in the air as proof she had ever been there.

All four of the surviving teenagers were free to leave as they wished, though, because as if satisfied with their kidnapped charge, the vines shrunk back into nothingness and vanished seemingly into thin air. Perhaps those still standing could proceed to part two and meet up with the other residents of the High Houses...

Rolls:

Reducio

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	The High House crew banished their intruder with varying degrees of efficiency. Both Pericles and Evelynn sliced through their encroaching vines, which severed under Diffindo and shriveled under the beam of Lumos Duo. Unsurprisingly, Hexum took a mundane approach, miraculously managing not to be dragged off by an ankle. Agility was his strength: he knew how to strike with the flat of his foot and recoil at serpentine speeds, effectively slapping the plant away. Far more thorough, however, was the magic Dee and Aly conjured up. Dee's Lumos Solem created an enormous orb of pure sunlight, basking their room in the golden glow of dawn. Aly's Lumos Maxima accompanied it, shocking the area with a white flash, momentarily making the treehouse look like a lighthouse from outside. Persistent as they had been, the mass of foliage retreated, writhing down into the dark beyond the reach of their blaze. Slowly stepping down from his mattress, Pear kept his wand aloft. Stern looks were swapped among the seventh-years. "I haven't known Devil's Snare to hunt," he belatedly agreed with Eve's descriptor of "invasive". Only, the team couldn't have braced for how quickly the vines would be replaced. They couldn't know how massive the invasion was until distant screams lured them to the windows, and just as they beheld the monstrous overgrowth, fresh tendrils dove in and dragged off- "ALY!" Pericles wasn't one to raise his voice, yet his fury and fear resonated against the walls of their high-house. Madhup made a fruitless dive in her direction, tackling only ledge. He shouted as an eagle launched itself overhead. Without hesitation, the animagus had dove from the window to give chase. Durmstrang's Chaser followed suit, barreling back to his bedside, seizing his broom in one hand and slamming the door ajar with the other. The commotion was short-lived but had only just begun.
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| Exiting thread - moving to Pt 2 |