Quidditch Stands || Secret Blossom Ball Event

She too was shocked. "Don't ever raise your voice at me like that ever again. I am not sssome animal that needs disciplining. So do not address me like one." She clenched her jaw. So there really was something fiery underneath his dreamlike exterior. You just needed to push all the right buttons to see it. "You're ssshocked because I sssay the things no one else will? I'm the cruel one now? Because I'm trying my best to keep this group sssafe, and bring problems to their attention? That makes me cruel? You have not seen cruel yet." She brought a spidery finger up, jabbing it in his direction. This conflict went much further than 'I don't like that girl because ____.' No, the girl was actually an issue. An issue that evidently no one else was seeing. "No Pericles, you don't understand, I couldn't care less if you invited her- but the thing that I can not ssstomach, is the fact that she knowingly made herself a burden to the group. She purposely made herself something that would need sssaving, if she were to trip- mind you she is the only person I've seen here, wearing a floor-length ballgown, and ballet slippers. Tell me I'm wrong."

Xailah was well aware that neither clothing items were practical, or made for being outside to run in- let alone fight in. The girl knew that she would be in a group- and must have known that her chosen attire was not ideal. The girl was hiding behind her her smiles and her jokes, all while she 'unknowingly' put not only herself, but four other people at risk. The fact that the kid did what she did with presumably no knowledge of doing so, was mildly disturbing. How could someone be that careless? The lioness opened her hand, palm facing Pericles, as if that would stop her eagle friend from talking. "And then she wants to sssplit the group up and go ssseparate directions-" Xailah did not like the use of 'sitting ducks'. This group had something, that the children at the Masquerade, and the party-goers below, did not get the luxury to have. Free reign. There were no walls- no doors obstructing their escape. They could be a group without worrying about getting picked off, because there was somewhere to run. They were far from being sitting ducks. "-That, is what I can not stomach. I can not respect someone who is so dismissive of safety. How am I the only one that finds this concerning- the only one who is seeing this?" She was frustrated, out of all the people in the group, she thought Pericles would be the one that would understand her concerns the most. But he didn't, because he was... just a child.

They were all just children. He most likely didn't understand the ugliness of the world yet, and in truth, neither did she. Not completely anyways. She cast her eyes away, disinterested in continuing the conversation. We can't be friends, she decided. She didn't understand that arguments, and disputes were one of the many things, that came with growing relationships. She never fought like this with Meenauh. Pericles implication that she should leave, bothered her little, but was a little shocking. Her dark locks retracted, flinching away from her pale face; as the unspoken words pushed themselves into her brain, like a hot knife through butter. "I can what? I can leave? Don't worry Pericles. I will leave once this is over- that is, if we even make it out of this alive. And I will do so with great pleasure. Consider this conversation over." She didn't dare look at him.

The Gryffindor would grow quiet, returning her attention to the situation at hand. Ruby, bless her, would be the one to make sense of words that had been spat out of concern and anger. Ruby must have understood to some degree. But why? Why did the Slytherin prefect understand, but not everyone else? What hurt you, Ruby? "Thank you Ruby." Somehow the Slytherin had managed to better translate what the Gryffindor had been thinking. Xailah never once implied, or stated that anyone should leave. Sure, a few mean things were said. Some unnecessary words were thrown about- but that was to get a point across. People like Breanna didn't listen to people like Xailah. If you wanted to drill something into their thick skulls, you had to be stern, and you had to be harsh. In the end it was for the best. Hopefully. There were holes in Xailahs plan. There were bound to be some- after all, this whole event was all sorts of holy, and not in the good way. The metamorph glanced at Margo.

"Well, sssetting the flowerpots on fire is always an option. But then you're faced with the issue of keeping the fire controlled. Fire is not the ideal method-" Thats what she said- what she had tried to say. It all came out in a hurried blurb, as the Gryffindor leapt off her broom, and bounded past the snake. The lioness was unhinged. It was only a matter of time until something caused her to snap. It was how these events went- it all starts off swimmingly, and then a fight breaks out, and then a fire starts, eventually the kids start to snap, and seek something threatening to attack. It was all a big, messed up circle of fights, and fires, and death. As the lion collided with the ground, sharp metal would meet something soft, and warm- flesh, and a thin exoskeleton. Her target was not happy about the attack, so it attempted to hit her back. The insect flew up, and behind the lion. The prefect whipped around just in time to see its double-stinger going for her thigh, and something else. Someone else- a silhouette illuminated by the hazy, bluish, light Pericles was sustaining.

Meenauh. No. Why was Meenauh here? She was supposed to be up in the dormitory, where it was safe! Not down here. Meenauh would make for one more person to worry about. The sight of her dear friend, would distract the metamorph long enough for the Mosp to get a swipe in. Its stingers were like razors. They probed at the black fabric of her skirt, ripping through the thin cloth. The little needles drug across the surface of her ghostly, white, skin; leaving behind a thin trail of red beads. And then came the burning sensation, as the venom seeped into her flesh. It hurt. A lot. A low hiss, like the deflating of a tire, escaped from clenched teeth. Now would have been the time to back away, but no. The attack only made the Gryffindor angrier, whilst the venom did its work. She would lash out again, but not to hit it this time- she lashed out to grab it. Would she succeed in latching onto the creature? Or would her attempts end in more painful attacks from the insect? Did she grab it before the Flipendo was cast? After? During? Who knew anymore.

Mentions: @Aida Mòrsgor-Ama Ellwood

Alexander was focused intently on his casting of the fire-making spell. He had to be focused. If he was not then there would be a not insignificant chance of the stands themselves going up in flame. But he needed to protect himself and Aida.

Just before finishing Alexander saw a brief flash of white hair and face before something slammed into it. But Alexander stood strong and steady. His determination and posture making it so that he remained stable and focused. Then he finished the wand movement and saw how the small bout of fire hit the Mosp and started burning it's skin. Alexander could not help a small grin of satisfaction, though he remained cautious as the mosp was now even more aggressive than before.

Then the smile of satisfaction as he heard a familiar person cry out in despair. He looked around and now saw that the person who had tackled him was Aida. And that she was crying in despair ?

He was confused for a moment and then saw where Aida was looking, at the Mosp. Was she angry that he had hurt it ? But it had been coming for them. Probaply going to attack them ?

Then he saw how Aida removed her riding jacket and Alexander cried out. "AIDA WAIT !!! That thing will stab you." Then Aida asked him to help. For a moment Alexander was torn.

It would be safer if he eliminated the creature. But as he saw the hurt look in Aida's eyes and saw that there was no real choice.

He looked around and saw that the lasso Aida had made had been dropped. Maybe out of confusion or despair for the mosp. Following Aida's former position he saw that she had left her now lasso lying on the ground. So Alexander rushed towards it and thought for a moment.

He did not have time to both tie the rope around the creature and against something to keep it stuck. So he had to prioritize one of them.

So Alexander made a quick choice and ran towards Aida and the mosp.

Actions: Binding one end of the lasso/rope around the mosp; and stuck if he attached the other end of the rope to an anchor. As a side-effect. The rope can bind both the riding jacket of Aida and the Mosp together. Perhaps blinding it.
Abilities: Evasive Maneuvers

-

interacting | @Dmitri Jones, @Cecily Quinn

mentioning | N/A

Welp, someone didn't have amazing aim. Or shaking hands because of the situation, also known as a giant insect buzzing in your face, but that wasn't important. At least he actually hit something. Cel lunged to catch him before he fell, but she was light and short, barely able to keep his head from knocking hard into the seat above him. The fluttering of feathers distracted her then, but her spell had hit—two great screech owls had formed from his shoes, gigantic and definitely very hungry. She grinned. This guy had a brain she could respect.

Unfortunately, those mosps didn't seem to like the idea as much as she did. The owls still managed to save him, blocking the mosp's attack, but that stinger... she drew in a quick breath as it punctured one of the owls' feathers, going through the feathers and drawing blood sickeningly. Mmm... that wasn't awesome. Yep, she didn't want to get hit by those things. Good thing they had two owl guardians to protect them.

But that would turn into one if that insect kept this up. She watched the owl turn around and go right back to attacking—that must have been Dmitri. A soulless animal like one that was transformed would only be controlled by instinct, and instinct now meant that the owl would've fled. Cel glanced at Dmitri's entranced form—hopefully that was what he was doing. When she'd practiced the spell, she hadn't been that out of it, and neither had anyone else, but then, this was a third year who cast two spells at once in an extremely dangerous situation where the birds' instinctual alarms would definitely be ringing—the impact must have been heightened.

As one of them dove back in for another shot, Cel leveled her wand, narrowing her eyes for a better view. Momentarily, she hesitated. The spell she planned on using might not be wise. After all, these were transformed birds. They had to carry iotas too. And if what the professor said was true, then the spell she'd chosen would undo those, too, right? But she shook her head—right, that wasn't how it worked. As long as she concentrated hard enough, the spell would only do what she wanted it to do—that was how Untransfiguration spells worked. Moving her wand again, she thrust it forward at the injured owl just before it charged back into the fray. "Reparifors."

Even if her spell worked, though, she couldn't be certain that it would guarantee victory. Those stingers did a lot of damage. They needed more help. And she had a glimmer of a good idea, but those feathers were getting in the way of the insect's exoskeleton every other second—it looked like a blur to her. "Cecily," she called, pointing at the bug. If Cecily was good at anything, it was Quidditch—and that meant she had impeccable aim. She almost never missed. "Freeze it!"

STAMINA 5
EVASION 8
STRENGTH 2
WISDOM 11
ARCPOWER 10

ACCURACY 9
ABILITIES Prodigial DADA and Perfectionist I

ACTION attempt to cast the Reparifors Spell on Reeeeeeeah (injured owl).

-

"They look like some sort wasp or something. I don't remember covering them in any of our classes so far." She said wide-eyed to Lamik as the winged devils descended upon the stands. "Where did they come from anyways?" She watched as the jet of light flew from her wand striking the mosp squarely in the chest leaving it without the ability to move. A spout of fire from next her caused to flinch a bit as the mosp already immobilized erupted into a buring ball of flame. Harsh but necessary." The girl thought poking her head out from underneath their precarious position beneath the bleachers. "This a good hiding spot but we can't stay here forver. If that swarm decides to set it's sights on us, we are pretty much good as dead."

The discussion of next steps however came to an erupt end as the rain of flowers showered over them. "Oh, for Merlin's sake, what is it now?!" For a brief moment, she lost her cool composed composure her ears picking up the buzzing as a mosp followed the flowers to them. She was tired, tired of having to deal with something new everytime. There was no end to the chaos despite all their efforts and it was starting to rub off on her just a tad bit. "I don't think we're done yet." She said eyeing the mosp as it pursued the crowd of flowers which seemed to draw a direct course to them. That would not do.

"They seem rather interested in the flowers than us. So, really, we just have to distract it." A bright idea popped into her as she secretely thanked her professors for the one spell she never thought she would learn. "Orchideous." Waving her wand, she attempted the Flower Conjuring Spell, if succesfull, she would scoop up a handful of flowers and chuck them to a lower area of the stands in order to divert the mosps flight pattern. Better than burning everything in sight.

Action: Casting Orchideous to distract Mosp #20 by throwing some of the flowers away from Elena and Lamik's spot.

Abilities: Advanced Casting

MENTIONS: @Elena Jangleton

Lamik shuddered at the mention of wasps. Those creatures were like tiny demons. While most insects had an obvious role in the ecosystem, the only thing lamik knew that wasps liked to do was hurt things. A lot. If these things were like wasps, then they were all about to die a horrible, painful, humiliating death. As the boy tried deciding what he wanted written on his tombstone, something happened. Something... soft. Some wicked spirit had already decided to mourn him, as a bunch of flowers descended from the black sky and onto his head. Of course, Lamik didn't know they were flowers at first, so when he felt something brush up against his cheek his first reaction was yelping.

After the brief shock of facing death by botany, Lamik was faced with another surprise: one of the creatures had decided to come to visit him and his friend-date(?). There was some luck on the boy's side, however, as instead of being paralyzed by fear both mentally and physically, an idea formed in his head. Wasps were... bee-like. Bees were paralyzed by smoke. Maybe.... ok, so it wasnt a GREAT idea, but it was something that could potentially work. Raising his wand once again, Lamik moved his arm in the shape of a spiral and spoke. "Fumos!"

ACTION: CASTING FUMOS AT MOSP #20 (in hopes that it functioned like a wasp, which hopefully functions like a bee.)

@Breana Oliveire, @Ruby Cazares, @Xailah Alptraum, @Margo White, @Meenauh Silmataurea

Breana's stammering attempts at remaining civil in spite of the onslaught were like a candle flickering in an icy breeze. Ruby's observation, gentle though it may be, had Pericles shaking his head. "She didn't need to," he murmured tensely. Xailah had done far more than simply tell Breana to leave. It was clear that she resented his defense, and her scathing chastisement made his face burn, his eyes sting with hurt. But her ire was echoed in him. "Then don't behave as one! Your insults aren't 'helpful' to anyone, they're beastly."

There was a guilt in him, an embarrassment; he had asked Breana to come along, and here Xailah was berating her for merely existing, accusing her of being an intentional victim. Xailah spat at the girl as though she were a pebble in a shoe, not a living, breathing, feeling young witch whom had come to a ball with the innocent dream of dancing. He was ashamed that she was suffering this spontaneous belittling, because he had asked her to stay with them. The boy had hinged on a fantasy, the delusional dream of those he liked meshing automatically. Precariously sustaining a brave face, he rebuked the metamorph's deduction with a stern tone. "I do not determine my friends by how practical they are to me. I decide them by their kindness." It didn't matter if Breana was a tactical master or a bumbling novice; she was his friend, whether or not Xailah was willing to share that title. Her decision to avoid him certainly sounded final enough. Lifting his chin in a forced attempt at appearing unwavering, the Ravenclaw closed on a strained statement. "I didn't think your friendship would be so fragile."

There wasn't enough time for talk- by then, continuing would entail shouting over the combat, and he hardly had the focus for that. The droning of mosps, screams of students, and cracks of spells splitting the stadium air made for a most distracting cacophony. Pericles tried to focus, though his ears still burned and throat felt tight from trying to stave off Xailah's vitriol. Margo's query concerning the flowers had his mind racing, fumbling, tripping over solutions which simply refused to add up. The planners hadn't made a contingency plan for getting rid of the flowers... how could they do so in a pinch, or would depriving the mosps of their attraction only aggravate them? The flurry of thoughts was interrupted as Breana asked to team up. It took a moment for Pericles to register her words, wide eyes out of focus when first they flicked her way, then he assured "That was why I'd asked- yes, let's." The ripping of her skirt summoned a short sorry smile from under his tense expression. It was a shame that this had become a necessity, knowing the sentimentality of the attire, yet at least she wasn't the type to fuss over clothes. He supposed now was not the time to tell her he was rubbish on a broom.

Before Breana could join him however, Xailah had turned her unpredictable animosity upon the approaching mosp. She physically flung at it, causing him to cry out, and Pericles struggled not to kneejerk cast in the thing's direction. His Lumos was the sole source of light for their circle. So he could only watch, mortified, as both bug and witch tried to tear at one another. Meenauh's appearance into their circle of light was an unexpected but not unwelcome sight. Still, her Flipendo burst forth, causing a cringe in him. Regardless of his spat with Xailah, it wasn't as though he wished her any harm. The risk of striking her, and the light he sustained, prevented him from trying. Standing simply would not do. Every instinct cried out for action, neurons firing for a fight or flight response, and ultimately impulse insisted upon both. Swinging his leg over the school broom- wobbly, bottom-tier thing that it was- he quickly kicked off from the stand and hugged close to the shaft, rocketing towards the scuffle.

Action: If the Flipendo misses or hits the mosp, battering it away with end of broom.
If Flipendo strikes Xailah, attempting a catch.
Sustaining lumos, holding wand against broom.

Interacting with: @Nico Shymane, @Quinn Healy & @Saskia Nicholson

Serena nodded in response to Saskia, handing her the broom and relying on her to cast the flare. For now, all she could do was maintain her light and try and keep Nico and Marissa safe. In all honesty, she was terrified. These creatures, whatever they were, what if they were attracted to the light? It might keep the shadows away but other things could definitely be attracted to light - like bugs. And these sounded like bugs. But they needed to see what they were dealing with if they were going to have a chance of surviving. As much as she would love to see in the dark, she could not. Apparently she had not eaten enough carrots in her lifetime yet.

She heard Quinn's familiar voice calling out for Nico. Phew, that was one less worry. Her eyes moved up to the sky, where Saskia's periculum launched into the air. A small sense of hope filled her. Someone had to see that, surely? Anyone who was out patrolling the grounds would see it, surely. It was as high as they were going to get, it could be spotted from any of the windows facing out in this direction or from the grounds itself. Serena silently just prayed that professors would stop it and realise the danger they were in. As she was looking around, trying to make sense of everything, Serena was mostly ignoring the conversation between Nico and Quinn, silently panicking to herself as she was trying to figure out how to get out of here or defend against the creatures. Her breathing was audible, though likely drowned out by the sounds around them.

Hearing Nico's voice as she called her name out with panic in her voice suddenly. Big bugs, what? Her gaze followed the direction Nico was looking in. Giant... bugs. That was literally the description. Serena could not say she recognised what they were - mosquitoes? But... a ton bigger? She did enjoy Care of Magical Creatures but she did not actually know what they were. They had not learned about them yet, had they? Did someone engorgio mosquitoes?

"I dunno what they are but we do need to get out of here. Use your broom," She instructed, encouraging Nico to fly the heck out of there. They could easily fit two people to a broom, she could take Quinn with her. Saskia could take Marissa. That left Serena to find another broom... which she could do. Her hand moved to her bag. She had her invisibility cloak in it, she could sneak past the bugs if they relied on sight or she could make a run towards a broom closet. There had to be some around, surely.

Her eyes scanned the area, trying to spot for something resembling a broom. Nico's panicked voice echoed in her ears. Glancing over, she put on the bravest smile she could muster up, "You'll be fine, Nico. Stay with Quinn, you'll be fine... They'll come. They have to..." Serena said as confidently as she could, though she was not entirely sure she believed it. But... Lear had saved her, right? He had found her in the forest that day. If it was not for her former Head of House, she likely would not have been here. She clutched her wand, they would come. They had to. Nico, Quinn, Saskia, Marissa... Everyone here would be okay... They had to be... She looked at Quinn. Yeah. He could definitely tank a hit or two and use himself as a shield. Nico was almost half his height, and a lot smaller. She could easily hide behind him. And she knew Quinn well enough to know he had been through his fair share of life threatening situations. At the very least, Serena was confident in the badgers abilities and experience. They had been through hell and they were still standing strong.

The bugs did not seem to be attracted to them. Perhaps the light did not matter to them... She needed to find more brooms though. Her eyes hit the sight of one of the bugs on fire. Oh lord. This could end in a disaster and quickly. They needed to get up in the air and faster. "Anyone seen spare brooms? We need to get them to everyone!" She decided, it was faster easier to fly than to run from flying creatures. Serena was, at the very least, confident in her quidditch abilities. The people around them... there were were quidditch players. Nico, Quinn, Saskia and Serena alone could take another four people if they had enough brooms. The four of them could out-fly the bugs, surely.

ACTION: Maintain Lumos, looking for the spare brooms

dress: Reducio

shoes: Reducio none

| sta: 6 | eva: 7 | str: 6 | wis: 8 | arcp: 4 | acc: 10 |
race: metamorphmagus iiii abilities: sixth sense

mentions: N/A | interacting with: @Celynne Gray @Dmitri Jones

To be honest, Cecily wasn't one hundred percent sure that the whole plan was going to work. She very much hoped that it would, of course, but as with any plan, there was so much that could go wrong. If Dmitri didn't nail his cast, their battle with the mosps would be over as soon as it started, with a clear winner that wouldn't be the young children. Their endeavor could easily grind to a painful end with half-transfigured owls-- or, rather, an armband with claws and a flying book. Plus, who was to say that Cecily's and Celynne's spells would even enlarge the owls enough to take on bugs of unusual size? Sure, the boy's idea it seemed great in theory, but hey, so did Communism. And everyone knew how that worked out.

So, with not particularly high hopes in the first place, Cecily's spirits plummeted further as the light that shot from Dmitri's wand hit not his targets, but...his boots? The Ravenclaw was momentarily shocked at the boy's epic failure. Perhaps he simply had poor aim, but his targets were point blank. One would think he'd at least be able to hit a textbook that's right at his feet. Instead of, you know, hit feet.

But regardless of the boy's ability, this is what they were stuck with now, whether they could work with it or not. For a moment, Cecily was prepared to look away if the owls ended up transfigured around Dmitri's feet-- that could get real gory real quick-- but thankfully, the majestic birds detached themselves from the feet they once belonged to and took to the sky. Both of the Ravenclaws' follow-up spells seemed to work without a hitch, for which Cecily was grateful. Now, the two mighty creatures rose high above the trio, en route to the threatening mosp as Dmitri stared, glassy-eyed, into space.

They had gotten off to a rocky start, that was undeniable. But they did indeed have owls, and that was a start. With piercing screeches, the two birds flew directly towards their prey. but one was not quite so lucky. The bug's massive stinger ripped through the feathers and flesh of one of the owls. A pitiful cry ripped through the air as the mosp's stinger drove deep into the bird. Cecily winced, feeling the pain of the bird, but not nearly as much as Dmitri had to have been. The boy was mentally linked with the birds, thinking their thoughts, feeling their anguish. She could only imagine what was going through his head as the battle raged above their heads, the owls continuing their noble fight as avian bodyguards for the trio.

Now Celynne, always prepared, was quick to take up the now-open role of quick thinker, with Dmitri now out of commission. Cecily, not being much of a leader herself, preferring to fall into the role of aloof outsider, was happy to follow her fellow Ravenclaw's lead. The other girl moved to cast a healing spell on the injured owl before yelling a suggestion-- more of a command, really-- at Cecily. Cecily, catching her drift, raised her wand, feeling slightly more confident now that her past casts had not gone terribly. Aiming at the mosp, Cecily paused for a moment, timing her spell to avoid the owls. It would be incredibly counter-productive if Cecily missed her target and ended up freezing one of their owl protectors, leaving it open for attack from the massive bug. And so, when Cecily was sure the massive birds were out of the fine of fire, she pointed her wand and yelled. "Immobulus!" With any luck, this cast would go just as swimmingly as the rest-- well, except for Dmitri's new owl boots.

action: cast immobulus at mosp #3

Elspeth had no intention of attending the Blossom Ball. She was mostly opposed to large school gatherings as it was, getting overwhelmed at loud sounds and the potential for people to come up and talk to her. Moreso than that she was deeply afraid of getting detention and going to a secret dance seemed like an excellent way to spend the rest of her weekends of the school year trapped in some dungeon scrubbing stones or chopping up beetles for the potion storeroom. Neither of those options seemed appealing, and so she'd decided far ahead of time that she didn't want to get involved in all the excitement everyone else seemed to be wrapped up in.

That night she was sitting out on the grounds, reading a book and watching the sky. It had been a long week of classes for her and she wanted to relax with some time to herself. Most students were either at the Ball or were in the dorms getting ready to go to the ball, so she'd found a spot up on a hill where she could people watch as folks processed to the Quidditch Field, while being far away enough that there wasn't much of a chance of anyone happening upon her. The weather that night couldn't have been nicer for an outdoor party. The air was warm with the slightest breeze that would rustle the trees in the forest just so. The grass along the hill waved like an ocean in a strong gust. Elspeth was laying on her blanket listening to it all and watching as the faintest first signs of stars became visible. This was perfect.

That is, it was perfect. Off in the distance she could hear shouts coming from the pitch and, despite her hopes, she could swear she smelled smoke. She immediately closed her book and put it into her bag. But as she stood up, she froze. A strong part of her instinctually wanted to run away into the castle for safety from whatever was happening down there. But a very tiny part of her knew that wasn't the right thing to do. She'd seen some lovely students go in there. There was no good reason not to go in and try and help them. Against all of her better judgement, Elspeth walked down the hill and around the path into the stands.

Through the main gate she could see the most of the fire appeared to be coming from the pitch itself. All over the field and stands students were casting spells at - well wait, what was that? Elspeth squinted for a moment to try and get a better look. It appeared to be some kind of giant flying bug, but in this light and from this distance she couldn't make the creature out well enough to know exactly what it was. Oh no. Oh crap. Oh crap. Elspeth wrang her hands together, squeezing the skin until it turned paper white before releasing again. Whatever was going on looked very serious. She turned around to look back toward the castle, but she couldn't see any adults or professors walking around. At this hour she wasn't sure where to reach anyone either. There weren't any adults that she could immediately defer the problem too, and she did not feel ready to take on anything of this enormity.

Her heart was pounding so hard she thought other might see its indentation in her skin. She could barely feel her fingertips. Tears were coming to her eyes. It was that thing happening again. I'm having a panic attack. She remembered back to a few weeks ago in the abandoned bathroom... Her nostrils flared as she worked to keep her breathing smooth. In and out. In and out. Not today. Not now. As her body felt heavier, and more grounded, Elspeth took a look back at the situation.

What was happening on the ground seemed entirely too frightening for her to deal with, so she turned to her right and took the steps up to the stands. She stopped on a landing midway up to catch her breath from the nerves and the running. From this close to everything she could begin to hear the voices of students shouting at each other and calling for help. Her body froze up again. It wasn't a panic attack this time. It was something in her head, this feeling she'd never felt before, like she was an animal. A very small animal in immediate danger. She crouched down in a corner of the stairs, her hands over her head as she looked up and saw silhouettes of the students fending for themselves.

This had been a mistake. She was not the person to charge in and fix anything or save anyone. It was only her first year, and she'd barely passed through as it was. What had she expected she'd be able to do to help these kids? Was she going to throw one of her notebooks at a bug? All she'd done was put herself in danger and possibly getting in the way of genuine help. What could she possibly do to make the situation better. Think... THINK. Her brained was like white noise, just electric shocks of fear and adrenaline pulsating and fuzzing out any other connection she could try to make. Ideas kept slipping from her like so much water in her hands. Did she think she could stay safe if she just hid there?

Tilting her head up, Elspeth tried to get a better look at what was happening in her immediate surroundings. It looked like some kids were getting ready to hop on some brooms to get out of there while another few were aiming their wands at the giant bugs. She'd left her wand back up in her dorm room on her walk down here, so she couldn't offer magical support to anyone. What could she possibly do to help.

That's when she heard one of them call out, "Anyone seen spare brooms? We need to get them to everyone!". Elspeth looked just ahead of her where a closet door was. She opened it up and found a handful of school brooms leaning beside some derelict practice equipment. Grabbing three brooms (she could barely hold on to those and so, sadly, left the fourth behind for another trip) she worked her way up the stairs, trying to muster what little courage rattled in the depths of her bones. "I'm coming! I've, uh, I've got three brooms!" She tried to shout, though her naturally quiet voice meant that it may have been impossible for anyone to hear here.

She made it to the top of the landing, where the stands opened up and looked out across everything as she was now standing in the middle of it. The older girl who'd been shouting for brooms looked like she was about fifteen feet away, and Elspeth wasn't sure if she could make it between all of the seats with three brooms in her hand very quickly without tripping. She tried calling out again, "Who was looking for broomsticks!?"

Interacting with: @Serena Towers

Actions: Trying to get the brooms over to Serena.

@Ruby Cazares, @Xailah Alptraum, @Pericles Dralt and @Breana Oliveire

Before the Blossom Ball, Margo hadn’t thought it was possible to feel awkward whilst being attacked. It was safe to say she had been proven wrong. Cool as Xailah was, her treatment of the girl in the gown was starting to appear more than merely overdramatic. Merlin, the poor girl had implied that she was learning to sew and had the guts to say so in the dark whilst being attacked by giant stinging insects. If that didn’t put her in a good light then Margo didn’t know what would. So was it wrong of her to assume that Xailah held high standards for anyone wishing to become her friend? Margo thought not. It looked as if she might have to up her game to win herself a place in Xailah’s good books.

Unfortunately, a Quidditch stadium full of panicking students wasn’t the place to display her charm to the world... just her courage. Xailah seemed to be handling most of the impulsive bravery for the group, though, and Margo couldn’t help but scowl at the brave girl’s back. How dare she put herself in jeopardy! How dare she build her castle of greatness so high that a mere mortal like Margo couldn’t even hope of climbing it! The girl was foolish too. The respect Margo felt for her was distracting her from what she needed to do. And she had a nice little plan, too.

Margo stopped gripping Ruby’s hand like a vice and directed her wand towards Xailah and the Mosp. ”Spongify.” She said clearly, aiming for the Mosp’s armoured back. Was the softening charm an offensive spell? No. But that was the point, wasn’t it? If she hit Xailah, she didn’t want to injure the girl. The Mosp, on the other hand... hopefully it’s protective armour would soften and Xailah could slice it to ribbons. But then there was the complication of the newcomer down below, and, more importantly, her Flipendo. Margo felt a spark of irritancy at the new girl’s carelessness. A spell like that could send Xailah flying, and Margo knew all too well that flying was something to be avoided, regardless of any broomsticks in the equation. But when she slid her gaze onto Xailah’s possible saviour’s face, she couldn’t bring herself to be annoyed anymore. In fact, every sliver of annoyance in her body somehow dissipated. For the girl’s face wasn’t clueless. She didn’t even look impulsive. No, this was the face of a friend.

It was what Margo would have done for Ruby, and for the smallest amount of a second, she imagined what it would have been like it it had been her friend clawing the Mosp instead. She shivered. Selfish though it may be, she couldn’t help but be thankful that Ruby was standing next to her unharmed. However, perhaps there could be a benefit to being emotionally detached from the girl with the metal claws — she would listen to what the girl had said.

”Look, Xailah wanted us to go.” She said, alternating her stare between Pericles’s and the gown girl’s gazes. ”And I’m not saying we leave her, but we should get in the sky already and find a broom for Xailah to use once she’s free of the disgusting beast over there. We can probably defend her from a better angle up there anyway.” Margo couldn’t help but try to picture Ruby’s lips forming her words instead. Not only was she being uncharacteristically logical, but she was attempting to be noble as well. Safe to say she thought Ruby’s seemingly unshakable aura was rubbing off on her.

She leaned towards the girl in question to murmur in her ear. Surely she deserved a small rant after her sacrifice. ”Merlin, and I’m the one persuading them to mount brooms. After this I’ll seriously be considering researching some memory alteration spells... with your help of course.”

She didn’t know if Ruby realised, but Margo was making herself a promise. She would do whatever it took to make sure the both of them made it out unscathed.

Action: Casting Spongify at Mosp #1