Quidditch Stands || Secret Blossom Ball Event

Interacting with: @Saskia Nicholson & @Elspeth Gollens

Serena wanted to hug the small first year. If she was anywhere else, at any other time, she would have hugged her and told her that it would be okay. But there was no time for that. Not right now. She mounted up, gave her a moment to climb on, "Hold on tight," The Hufflepuff instructed. It was okay if the other girl couldn't fly. Serena could. That was enough. She could do this. At least, that was what she told herself over and over as she kicked off the ground and quickly lifted them both. "Just follow my instructions, you'll be fine," She continued, now in the air, "If I lean, you copy. Got it?" As long as the other girl held on and followed, they could do this.

They made their way to Saskia, a purple bug coming up towards them. Serena was honestly in two minds. She needed to stay and help Saskia. She needed to help them all. Nico, Quinn were still down there. So many of her friends were. She had no idea who entered but they would all be struggling. That much was clear. But... she looked over her shoulder. The frightened face of the first year sharing her broom told her what she had to do. It was not much but Serena knew she had to get the younger one out of here. This was likely the first experience of danger she was having. Serena had had her fair share by now. "Watch yourself out there!" She yelled back to Saskia with a firm nod.

She hated leaving her friends behind but she had to. She had to get the young Ravenclaw out of danger. One hand gripping the broom, the other gripping her wand that was maintaining a lumos so they could actually see a little. The terrified look on her face was not something Serena was willing to ignore, "Hold on, let's go!" She instructed, leaning forward and attempting to fly out of the stadium - the heck away from all of the mosps that were fast approaching them.

ACTION: Maintain Lumos, attempting to escape with Elspeth Gollens

Interacting With: @Serena Towers Actions: Mimicking Serena's moves on the broom to help keep it in motion

Health: Full Status: Terrified, but magically unaffected

(Sprite Bar Idea Completely Copied from Saskia)

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

The glass flew from Cecily's hand in a beeline towards the hard, concrete floor of the pitch. An unfamiliar feeling came over Cecily as she watched the delicate, glass goblet make contact with the ground with a crash, and shatter. Hundreds, thousands of glittering shards of ex-mosp flew across the concrete, away from the blast site, catching and refracting the light of Celynne's Lumos Maxima. On another occasion, it may have been beautiful. At this moment, though, all Cecily felt was a deep and thorough sense of accomplishment. She had defeated a mosp! Sure, Dmitri had transfigured the epic owls, and they couldn't have done any of without Celynne, but Cecily was able to claim the kill. Her hand slapped against Cel's as she returned the girl's proffered high-five.

The trio's triumph, however, was short lived. The screech of the owls attacking yet another victim rang out and yanked Cecily back to the presence. They may have defeated one bug, but there were still an immeasurable amount left. For all they knew, there were hundreds of these still left. Cecily raced over to the railing, clutching it in her hands as she peered over the edge, but all she could see was the glowing, red light of fire. So much fire. She swore under her breath. Of course it was fire. Of course it was. She briefly thought of Adam, although she knew he was a formidable spellcaster. He would be fine, she was sure.

Cecily pulled away from the railing as Celynne began moving towards the owls-- into the smoke. Cecily sighed, knowing she was about to do something stupid and brilliant at the same time, and followed her into the dark. She pulled the sleeve of her cardigan over her mouth and nose as she dove into the thick, black smoke. She had no idea who cast it, or who they were even moving to help, but whoever it was had messed up. Their intentions were surely in the right place, but the overall effect was just incredibly counterproductive. Celynne's dark gown seemed to blend in to the smoke as they moved deeper into the darkness, her eyes starting to water. She kept her breathing to a minimum. Cecily had no idea what would happen if she inhaled too much smoke, but it couldn't be anything good.

Celynne called her name, and Cecily barely had time to locate the direction of her voice before she heard the girl yell something else. An incantation. Cecily couldn't quite place what it did, but it was surely something useful.

Should Celynne's spell work, Cecily would watch the smoke dissipate, nearly in an instant. In its place hovered several small, glittering knives. Cecily would, for a moment, be shocked at what Celynne had chosen to do, as well as question the wisdom of teaching such a spell in a place such as the Hogwarts Disaster Zone, but would shake the thoughts out of her head as a sharp instruction fell out of Celynne's mouth. She had never thrown knives before, and frankly questioned the sanity of this entire plan, but if Celynne trusted her to not accidentally kill one of them-- or worse, one of the owls-- then that counted for something. Cecily would frantically catch the knives as they fell from the sky and transfer them all to one hand. Holy shit, this was dangerous. An untrained thirteen-year-old chaotically chucking knives at a somewhat small, moving target? Nope, no way this could go poorly at all. If this fell on the head of some poor student below, Cecily was going to have it out for Celynne. Stupid but brilliant, her ass. This was just plain idiotic.

But, frankly, Cecily didn't have a better idea, and not much time to think of one. So, selecting a knife by the hilt, she would bring it behind her ear, close one eye, and bring it forward with a flick of her wrist. She would watch as it flew, hilt over blade, on a path towards the mosp. She really, really, really hoped this didn't go poorly. Killing a mosp was an accomplishment. Killing a student? Shit, that would take more than a little therapy to get over.

action: apparently, throw a knife at mosp #20 (yeah, this seems like a bad idea)

Action: Attempting to leave smoke-filled area with Lamik

Interacting with @Pericles Dralt and @Xailah Alptraum
Mentioning @Margo White @Ruby Cazares and @Meenauh Silmataurea
Health: 325/400
Stamina 4 | Evasion 4 | Strength 3 | Wisdom 9 | Arc Power 6 | Accuracy 9

Breana's plan worked to an extent, as the deadly bug turned its attention towards her instead. She wasn't expecting the mosp to go for her so quickly, but it's better than it going for her two schoolmates. She winced and exclaimed a cry of pain as she took an awful blow right on her flank, making her jut around for a moment before regaining stability of her broom's course again. The feeling of relief washed over the girl as she saw another fellow student step in and finish off the bug once and for all. The Ravenclaw winced as she watched the bug turn into a think blast of yellow goo. Better dead than attacking them at least.

She slowly tilted her broom towards the two, hoping that Xailah can still manage the broom the two are in. "Are you two okay?" She asked, the adrenaline in her veins ignoring the cut that she received from the bug. She turned to Xailah, with a bit of hesitation in her eyes. Her spout between her and Pericles was not a pretty sight, so it was no surprise that Breana felt a tinge of unease when she's talking to the older girl upfront. "I... er, are you alright? Can you still... uh, I-i mean... yeah... you good?" She stammered. It wasn't the best remark, but Breana's just hoping they can survive this chaos without any mal intent towards each other. They just met, after all.

The girl looked over at where the others in the group were, waving her wand that's still casting Lumos as if to tell the other girls their location. "There's prolly still some bugs going around and going for other students..." She turned her head back at Pericles and Xailah. Breana was about to open her mouth, ready to spitball another plan, but then her eyes darted over to Xailah for a moment, retreating her possible statement. "Uh... but, I mean if you guys think it's better to, like, go for a safer route, I... just... well..." She continued to stutter like a broken record, her wand's light mimicking her hesitation and flickering into a lesser light every now and then. She might feel as if she's walking on eggshells, but better for her to hold herself back than to let the two of them blow up into a fight the second time.

ACTION: Sustaining Lumos and conversing with Pericles and Xailah.

Action: Exit the thread by flying to the castle with Arc unless stopped by some malevolent force. (Looks at Moderator)

Permission granted by @Arc Perscivious to godmod his character

Interacting with @Cecily Quinn @Celynne Gray

If it wasn't the cacophonous, high-pitched explosion of glass and debris from a transfigured Mosp that snapped Dmitri out of his trance, then it was the urgent shaking of his shoulders he got from the quickly-retreating Celynne Gray.

Things happened too quickly for the boy to process. Because for him, one minute he was flying full-speed at an ugly insect, feeling his claws sink into its soft body, and the next, he was on the floor, screams and yells echoing around him, and the faint smell of fire and... burning permeating the air in the general vicinity. Disoriented, Dmitri stood up shakily, managing to get his legs under him after a few seconds of trying to recover his bearings. Having two different presences invade your head out of nowhere and then getting them expelled quite violently the next moment isn't the most pleasant thing to experience. But by then, the only things he could think to himself were thank the gods I am free and holy shit things are really fucking getting down.

Swiveling his head quickly back and forth, the boy took stock of the situation and was aghast at the degree of chaos that was going down. Below, in the main area, there were flames consuming gods know what--tables, chairs, maybe even students--hell, all the screaming's making the Slytherin think some kid might probably be actually dying. The boy shook his head. Whatever is happening down there is not his business... yet. He'll take things one at a time, and the main priority here is him not dying. By the state of him, Dmitri's doing a pretty lame job as of the moment.

Shaking off his worry, the boy turned to follow in the general direction his two peers ran towards.

As he trotted off, he noted that the owls' presence in his mind still existed, but this time was different. The feeling wasn't as all-encompassing as it was before. Yes, he could still distantly feel the predatory instinct running through his mind, giving his strides an extra grit to it that he normally wouldn't be exhibiting, but all in all, he wasn't losing himself.

Maybe it was finally getting the thrill of the hunt and letting out their pent-up frustrations on the insect, or the desperate shaking he received from Celynne, but whatever it is, their thoughts didn't seem to be as pervasive. Whatever happens next, he has his full faculties up and running.

Dmitri would watch, impressed as Ms. Gray transforms a column of smoke into daggers as she runs into it, transfiguring them perfectly into weapons that drop into the hands of the other Ravenclaw--Quinn, Cecily Quinn she said her name was. At that moment, the boy would know what they were trying to do as he stares intently while Cecily lines her shot at a Mosp hovering above them. Looking up, he'd see his giant owls circling them, and not willing to risk the transfigured creatures getting impaled if, god forbid, Quinn's shot missed, he sent them a thought--merely a suggestion--to stand by, away from the foray.

Afterwards, with a flick of his wand, he would attempt to levitate two of the daggers Cecily held in her hands, aiming to shoot it at the same mosp she was targeting. "Let me borrow some of that. Wingardium Leviosa!"He didn't run the risk of the daggers falling down into the main area below and impaling some poor, unfortunate soul as the said weapons still would be in midair even if he missed.

STATS AND ABILITIES

Reducio

ACTIONS

Dmitri: Cast Wingardium Leviosa to impale Mosp #20 with two levitating daggers [Spell Spread Activated]
Owls: On standby

Mod Note

(Hello all! I wanted to apologize for the late moderation, I was whisked away on an impromptu trip early Saturday morning and just back a couple of hours ago. I have a completed outline written up which should be smoothed out and ready to go some time in the next 14 hours. I'll be taking posts right up until the second I hit submit, so if you haven't posted yet, you have a little window left! Thank you all for your patience.)

Moderation Post

(Vampyr Mosp cake by Corinna Mcguire)

Professors Vernatis, Karr, and Lian have flown overhead and entered the pitch.

@Quinn Healy parted ways with @Nico Shymane, who he bid to be his eyes in the sky. Nico, perhaps due to the size of her heart, her obligation as a prefect, or an amalgamation of the two, saw the scene of utter chaos in the pitch and chose to help. Nothing would prevent her from sweeping down from the stands and joining the main fray. Quinn could handle himself, but there were many lost souls down in the pitch. Having moved to aid @Noah Page, the half-giant effortlessly pulled the boy to his feet. Noah, riddled with panic, was appropriately anxious about his first catastrophic Hogwarts boogaloo. Although unsure as to what he should do, he had done the right thing by calling out for help, thus garnering the guidance of a seasoned student. They were not alone however.

The purple mosp had also answered his cries, giving up on pursuing Saskia- whose broom was far too fast for it, and drifting down in search of snacks. It was descending towards Quinn's back when @Meenauh Silmataurea intervened from some ways away. The girl had just finished off a mosp of the red variety, and this aimless beastie was next on her list, her aim striking true despite the darkness. While she felt a pang of compassion for the creature she had slain, the prefect's responsibility to her peers won out. She quickly crossed the stands and cast cast her Diffindo in the dark. A rather foul, acrid yellow goo oozed from the mosp where it was sliced. It splattered the stands, causing its proboscis to flail in agony, then its wings gave an angry buzz. The creature diverted from its sniffing about, abandoning Quinn and Noah to dart off towards Meenauh. In its sudden swell of rage, darting stinger-out, it missed her very narrowly. She would feel a residual breeze from its bulk buzzing by tousle her hair.

Mosp 2
• Mosp took 180 damage from Meenauh's Diffindo. Left Quinn and Noah to attack her.
• Nico, not interacting with a mosp, transitioned to the Pitch.

@Alexander Varellion had witnessed @Aida Mòrsgor-Ama Ellwood's benevolent endeavor of securing and saving the mosp. Yet her hand was sliced by a stinger, and before he could rush to her aid, the girl was swallowed up by another student's smokescreen. He cried out her name, voice joining the mix of panicked shouts in the night. Despite the disorientation and claustrophobia, he succeeded in casting Lumos, the light at least affording him a hazy view of the stairs he was stepping on. Aida had passively committed her surroundings to memory. Although the smoke closed in from all sides, her other senses compensated for lack of sight, taking in the sounds of movement and telltale reverberations in the wood. She overlooked the pain of venom throbbing through her hand, managing to calm her voice while using it to guide Alexander. Aida attempted to soothe him with assurances of escape and promises of future fun. The light at the end of his wand pierced the smoke, and once reunited, they managed to carefully navigate out of the fixed cloud. They were in the clear, though the mosp thudded pitifully down the wooden steps, blindly flinching its stingers all the while.

Mosp 4
• Mosp lost 260 HP total, alive but in a very bad way, remains bound.
• Aida and Alexander have escaped the smokescreen.

@Lamik Fillestar and @Elena Jangleton, caught in the heart of that swirling smokescreen, heard the sounds of (disturbingly close) cries and beating wings. The smokescreen had been an inventive attempt at downing the vampyr mosps, and while it had robbed them of their vision, Fumos served the unique purpose of providing cover for means of escape. The mosp was busy being chased in blind circles and would not pursue. Moving both in smoke and darkness, let alone on stairs, would prove to be a daunting task. Yet they managed all the same, crossing over to the next section of stands and into clear air.

Behind them, @Celynne Gray followed the owls, charging across the stands and delving into the smokescreen. Her cast of Fumus Lamina had an instant effect: like a vacuum, it sucked the smoke in towards her wand, the haze twisting and swirling speedily. Her mind's eye acted as an anvil and hammer, forging five matte black knives. Smoke was made solid. They tumbled towards the stands, yet no clattering would come. Two were caught midair by @Dmitri Jones' dual Wingardium Leviosa, thrown point-out with a flick of his wrist. Three were seized by @Cecily Quinn, who had sped to Celynne's side, and with one eye fixed firm on her target, she took aim. It was a wild plan, but one which proved shockingly efficient, as all three daggers- despite the darkness the thing hovered in- met their mark. The mosp, all of the sudden free of the smoke, buzzed around in a stupid circle as it tried to comprehend where its target human or owl assailants had gone. One grazed the edge of its fat torso, the next hit the opposite side, leaving angry gashes in its round body. The last lodged itself right under a blobby arm, causing the little limbs to flail in panicked pain. It tumbled back, looking as though it may fall, only to erupt with infuriated buzzing. It veered up only to dive down again. Dmitri was dishing out half as much as he was taking tonight. Perhaps his excess efforts resulted in excess attention (or perhaps the dice have it out for you, I rolled for targets both times, honest). Whatever the case, the mosp wasn't going out without landing a hit, and this time it carved a frightfully deep cut across his cheek. The stinger dragged like a dagger, leaving venom and a split in his skin. It burned as it bled, a blinding disorienting pain, the sort which puts off one's aim. At least only the mosp was mortally wounded. It circled around behind him, wobbling weirdly in the air, seeking another target for its final stand.

Mosp 20
• Fumos smoke was successfully converted into knives
• Mosp took 62 + 101 + 72 = 235 damage, is rapidly bleeding out
• Dmitri took 111 damage (447/600)

@Annie Morgan called out for @Saskia Nicholson to flee the catastrophic ball, insisting she seek safety far from the chaos. She attempted to distract the mosp, which was clearly seeking something (or someone) to latch onto, performing a quick cast of Incendio. While the witch was competent, it may have been that her wand was on the fritz. Walnut wood wands were said to be difficult to dominate. A burp of sparks were emitted, and nothing more. Saskia, glad to see a familiar face, wasn't willing to let her take the ornery creature on alone. She remained, joining the fray with Flipendo, landing a successful cast and hit. The mosp tumbled back, pummeled by the abrupt force. Although conflicted by the urge to help her friends, @Serena Towers elected to take the less reckless route, renown Hufflepuff compassion compelling her to save at least one person. The young @Elspeth Gollens wasn't a seasoned combatant: she needed to get off the battlefield before it sucked her in. By the light of Serena's Lumos, with Annie and Saskia covering their escape, the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw were able to exit the stands. They dashed through the sky without attracting insect interception or pursuit.

However, Serena took her light with her. The combating witch duo were plunged into darkness, and it was from the darkness that the infuriated mosp emerged. That wretched hybrid dove for Saskia, swinging the bottom of its body out to the side so as to slash with its stingers without colliding. It cut an angry wound into her left leg, one which did not bleed too badly, but certainly burned from a burst of fiery venom. The pain was distracting enough to put off her aim, if only slightly, though the darkness certainly didn't help.

Mosp 24
• Mosp took 160 Flipendo damage and is still trucking.
• Serena and Elspeth have successfully exited.
• Saskia took 76 damage (824/900)

@Xailah Alptraum, safe in the stands on the back of a broom, took a moment to compose herself after the brush with death. She pointed out the fire in the stands to those nearby. As @Breana Oliveire rejoined them, the light of her Lumos joining that of @Ruby Cazares and illuminated those around them, creating a pocket of visibility. The Ravenclaw tentatively implied her willingness to fight or flee, though acknowledged others were still at risk. No one was safe. Would they be willing to remain in the den of madness, helping who they could, or flee before things became any more out of hand? One among them had already made up her mind: Meenauh, who took off to aid another set of students further away in their section of the stands.

@Raine sage, currently the keeper of @Arc Perscivious, managed to maneuver her petrified friend onto a broom and out of the ball. The scene beneath them was wild, chaotic, yet beneath the chaos the number of mosps was rapidly dwindling all around. She may have passed professors on her way out: three had joined the fray in the pitch and were working swiftly to save the students.

First Mosp Dead (Took 411 damage)

Second Mosp Attacking Meenauh (Took 180 damage)

Third Mosp Dead (Smashed goblet)

Fourth Mosp Being dragged (Extinguished, bound)

Twentieth Mosp Attacking Dmitri (Took 235 damage)

Twenty-Fourth Mosp Attacking Saskia (Took 160 damage)

(Post 1: lights out) - (Post 2: mosp faq) - (Post 3: first strike)
(Post 4: general chaos) (Post 5: killing blows)

If your character is interacting with a mosp, leaving the Stands is written as an attempt.
Mosps are numbered by their arrival at the ball as a whole (counting all scenes)
The next mod post will take place on 6/14

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

"Fine! We're both mad!"

There was something to be said for mad acts. While Pericles seemed a sleepy sort of oddball, his average "spacing out" session was the resulting daze of overthinking. When all was still, his mind was free to roam, distracted by outlandish contemplations and dazzled by the potential found in each and every day. His thoughts often overlapped into a din akin to mania, and these were the times in which he would seek to soothe himself with puzzles or the odd experiment. There was no denying that the Blossom Ball was all madness. Grappling a mosp, catching a person on broomback with minimal flying experience, these were both mad acts. Yet there was something to it all which satiated Pericles' tendency for excess thought. Being surrounded by chaos, he had more than enough situations to spread his attention to, and a bizarre sensation of clarity came to him. The situation had mapped itself out like a puzzle. Keen as his propensity for stratagem may have been in that moment, his emotions were a mess.

“That's not fragility. She cares, Pericles. There's a time for practicality and a time for kindness, but being nice doesn't help when you're being attacked.”

Nor does unkindness, he wanted to rebuke Ruby. Strength isn't threatening to leave forever.
While Pericles could not bring himself to be outright angry at Xailah, he was feeling hurt, cross, agitated, protective, confused. He had intended to invite Breana onto his broom, particularly with a sense of defensiveness for her riled up, though the jumble of complex and utterly unfamiliar emotions fell into the darkness with Xailah. In that moment there was only the blinding white-hot fear of her falling. Frustration had given way to purpose, then that too was overwhelmed by an incredible rush of elation. What she had said was practically forgotten the moment he knew she wasn't about to be lost to the forces of fate... and gravity. Xailah's voice resonated in his head, managing to permeate the barrier of uncertainty, urging him to control the broom rather than allowing it to determine their flight. It inspired a sense of command, the authoritative tone riling some formative memory that insisted he ought to act. They arrived at the stands, but not before he saw Breana beelining- pun intended- towards the pursuing mosp.

It came again, that cold feeling of fear that he was on the verge of a loss. Pericles did not handle loss well at all, and the idea of losing sunny Breana- the poor girl, heckled into an act of self-sacrifice- was a grim notion indeed. What followed happened in but a blur. The mosp had landed a hit, yet so too did Meenauh, and her strike was far more finite. The mosp was falling and Breana was rising. He registered Xailah's reassurance, and for what felt like the first time since he dove over the railing, the young wizard was able to breathe. Shifting to check on his passenger, Peri only managed a brief blurt of "Xail-" He had turned to find her hiding behind her hand, his elation so high and her sorrow so suppressed that he had not sensed what was happening until he saw it for himself. Like a deer in the headlights, the boy froze, eyes wide. "Xailah?" He repeated on a softer note. She had never struck him as the hugging type, and Pericles wasn't a particularly touchy person either. He settled for reaching out to tenderly take her bicep, giving it a sympathetic squeeze. Chin ducked and tone turned tranquil as he tried to pacify her, murmuring, "You're alright. It's going to be okay. We'll make it be okay, yeah?" He would maintain his hold for a moment before dismounting, letting the broom hover in midair before purposefully placing his hand on the shaft. "Take this," he urged. Whether she took it to battle or took it to safety was entirely up to the metamorph, though Pericles explained, "I don't think I could cast and fly very well, if I'm being honest."

The Ravenclaw had dismounted in time to see his housemate join them. Relief flooded his features, and when she asked if they were okay, he answered certainly "Yes," before, more importantly, "are you alright? Your leg...." With a quick look to those around Peri asked, "Does anyone know the bandaging spell?" It didn't matter that Breana was stumbling over her words. It was clear to him that she still wanted to help, not because he had asked her to keep close, but because people were in danger. He didn't take the time to point it out; instead the boy mustered an encouraging expression.

"Uh... but, I mean if you guys think it's better to, like, go for a safer route, I... just... well..."

Pericles shook his head and looked to the witches around him. "I could use your light, if you're coming. I need t'stay. I heard about this ball early on, then I didn't try to stop it. I trust you to know yourselves better than anyone- if you need to leave or need to fight. I'm truly grateful you all agreed to the stands. But it isn't your ship to go down with." With a tense smile he seemed to say, it's mine. "If the one person you save from the stadium tonight is yourself, or each other, I'll be grateful. I can't leave until this is over." There was one face no longer among them, one who was running, taking off across the stands. Meenauh. His stare rounded before darting ahead of her, spotting her target, and the next urge to act overcame him. Pericles gave chase, following after the older prefect with wand at the ready. Long legs and a quick pace carried him in lengthy strides, only ending once he came into range, seeing the mosp blow by Meenauh and back towards himself. The aspen wand whipped forth: "Flipendo!"

Action: Casting Flipendo at Mosp 2