Event Midspring Celebration

Ultimatums were best reserved for political conflict; they were better death knells than buoys in a floundering relationship. A profession after abandonment was not going to get far, not if it was confessed by either in such a sorry, incensed sate. "Four... Four months. You looked for me for less than two," he reminded her. He did leave, disappeared for a reason that even now he was not willing to profess. A reason that of course existed, even she knew that. She just stopped looking, moved on and found someone else. It was Valentines Day that he sent that coded letter. If she was clever, she got his message on February 14, if not then perhaps a few days or weeks later. It was possible that she did not crack it but she was the one that brought up the coded letter. So, yeah she knew...

Frustration filled him, met his core. In those two months that followed, she followed, she found, she grew close to, and then something happened. "You then fell for my supposed assailant? My alleged ex?" It did not sound like grief, it sounded like vengeance in his mind, in his heart like betrayal, but perhaps it was actual affection between them. In fact, there being something... something that had occurred naturally was even worse, it validated just how baseless and shallow their relationship actually was. That he was simply delusional to think... to expect.

What the hell did he want from her?

"Nothing," he wanted nothing. He needed nothing. He could barter, trade, trick or buy whatever he wanted. Whatever he wanted. Like her. It was a lie. A pretty convenient one. If the story is told well enough, he might even start to believe the farce. He had once, he could again. "I can do this on my own," he stubbornly announced. He was if nothing else, incredibly pig-headed. "Just go," at least then Levi's night was ruined also he thought bitterly.

He could not even look at her. It made him feel sick. It was hard to breathe. It hurt. His stomach was doing somersaults, threatening to give the ballroom a repeat showing of the kebobs he had gorged himself on earlier. She would walk away, she said he would. A part of him really did not think she actually would, but when conditions are announced in the way that they were, her departure was assured. Hope, another delusion. Like affection or even love, other foolish beliefs that she was enamored with him. "I don't like him, I can't stand him! Does it look like we are friends? That we were ever friends!" He called out uselessly to her back.

He resented her in that moment. It was not a fair sentiment, this anger he projected onto her after he had abandoned her first. After she abandoned him in return. After she moved on quicker than he had. It was a foolish, boyish fantasy, this belief that she would 'wait' for him. Was it anger at her or at the person he thought she was? The one that he had decided she ought to be. The person he would make her into perhaps.

There were enough memory charms and potions on the market for the truly ambitious. He needed to get himself together and...

Lazarus Plott had come upon the goblet of fire and the Champions were being called. Name after name. The goblet chose who it was told to choose. The goblet chose who it believed in. Not who believed in themselves, who others believed in, or even who was best fitted for the role. The goblet was a fallible object that can be manipulated. His uncle had ensured that it would be his name, it was not a prophecy or divine luck, some of the red strings of fate were truly self-made. He knew it would be his name drawn and he needed to look the part in a room of chaotic, screaming teens. So, he had to put himself together. It would be well worth it in a few moments. He would have the position. He would reacquire everything that he lost. He ran a hand though his hair ad straightened his collar. He was far from presentable but neither was a good portion of the wreck of a student body here in the Great Hall.

His name was called and a cocky smile would eclipse his face, this was the moment he had waited for. The moment he had endured these past months for. The moment that would have made all these other unpleasant moments worthwhile. He would be the Champion, he would win and he would solidify his uncle's eventual elevation to Minister of Magic. But then the wrong name would be announced, his name should have been followed by he ill-fated, alleged former paramour that even Winnie thought he had lingering affections for in spite of his obvious revulsion. Levi was supposed to be his special person.

Merlin, I think I am going to be sick...

And sick he was. BLERGH! The awful contents of his stomach were evacuated as if under high pressure. A projectile weapon perhaps. BLERGH! A second round in fact, he would let out a cough and a shudder would run through him as he gripped the back of a rogue chair. "No, not," he let out a cough as his eyes darted about the space nearby. "He," he would stagger and attempt to grab Aryaan Shamsi (played by Hui Ming) by the collar, "him, it was his lot... not mine!" A lie of course, not that it mattered as long as the Champion title was diverted to him somehow. Disqualification was as good of a reason as any.

They were not taking her.

Action: Attempt to grab Aryaan by the collar and blame him (lie).

(Interacting with @Samantha Salwis and @Eun-Ji Lee Hunt)
Delphinia shook her head nervously. "Of course not! You look beautiful!" She blushed, picking up a tissue and wiping Samantha's tears. "Hey, why are you crying? Is everything okay?" She asked before turning to Eun-Ji. "You must be a friend of hers? I'm Delphinia!" She smiled, but then looked down and turned pink. What if it was Samantha's crush? Or even her... Girlfriend?! No, Delphinia wouldn't jump to conclusions. It was probably just a friend. But then why was she at the ball with her? Delphinia contemplated for a moment, mentally flipped a coin, then looked back up at Eun-Ji. "Or perhaps a love interest? Forgive me if I'm incorrect, I really don't mean to make either of you uncomfortable." Then she looked at Sam. "Hey, so, a friend recently taught me how to ride a broom. I'm doing okay in it. If you want, I was thinking we could go out and view the lake sometime together?" She turned pink. "Not as like, a date. More like, uh, an outing?" Then she realized, wait a minute... I COULD BE ASKING SOMEONE OUT RIGHT NOW!! And, like, NOT having a panic attack. Delphinia continued, "Or, like, if you want it to be a date, it could be."

Well. This wasn’t what Marcel expected at all.
He wanted to dance, to find a pretty lad or lady and dance the night away. Instead, there was yelling, blood, and his home cooked dish scattered on the floor. He felt like crying. But he wasn’t going to. No, he’d find fun to this evening! He had to spot some familiar faces somewhere…
After all, the Great Hall is a big place, and that combined with the festival area meant that there would be many people he could make friends with.
For now, though… he began to gravitate towards the dance floor. He may be alone for now, but perhaps some wonderful person would step in. But, for now, he swayed along to the music, looking at the wonderful flowers decorating the Hall.
He pondered the champions as he swayed, only just a bit awkwardly.
He didn’t recognize most of the names or faces of the champions of the Tournament. However, maybe he would be able to, at some point. They seem like good people, after all.
He sighed. Merlin, was he lonely. He wanted to talk about all of this to someone, but everyone seemed rather busy…
Oh, how he wished he had the words to talk to people.

• ᴠᴀᴅɪᴍɪʀ ᴍᴀʀᴋᴏᴠɪᴄʜ ᴠᴏʟᴋᴏᴠ •
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Great Hall - 2nd April 2022
Dialogue: "English" | "Russian"

Post Tracker: This is Vadimir's entrance post
His Outfit:

Reducio

(Thanks to Liana Kerr for the image)

Vadimir wasn't one for large crowds or celebrations, really. He always felt uncomfortable, mainly because it was excessive extravagance that he saw as wasteful, likely due to his upbringing in Russia. As it was, he wore very nice clothing, which weren't his own - Vadimir had had them provided by some benefactor for the occasion - and he would promptly return them, in favor of his school uniform. It was practical and resilient, like a Russian.

I wonder if Darya is around? Vadimir thought as he searched for his friend. He craned his neck to see, ignoring basically everyone that wasn't her, simply because the Russian had no interest in conversation with others. Is that... there, yes, that's her.

The tall 11 year old pushed through the crowd, no real care about who he caused to stumble - if anyone - and made his way over. As Vadimir got closer, he caught a better sight of Tarja, and his eyebrows raised when he saw her; she was in an orange dress, her blonde hair partially pulled back, and she looked... perturbed.

"Darya, did I miss much? You look very... uh, different. It suits you, too, like your school uniform, though."

Across the way, Vadimir saw Edward Smith - the American who attended Koldovstoretz - who was in the process of coughing up slugs or something. There was no real want to know why, Vadimir didn't care, he just shook his head and returned his attention to the upcoming announcement.

I don't even want to know what Smith did.

Deep down, the Russian knew he wouldn't be champion, but that still didn't mean there wasn't a chance. So, when the headmaster of one of the schools began to speak, Vadimir listened, though his interested dulled when another was called for the position, Rodion Makarovich...

"Well, I guess that's that," Vadimir said amid the crowd that had gathered for the announcement, a sneer on his face as he tried to ignore the claps and cheers. He just wanted to be done with it all, perhaps speak to the champion for the Russian school, and see who was going to make the cut. "What of our chances of making it onto the team, for this event? High, low?"

With a glance around, Vadimir thought about the shameful American transfer - or whatever he was - student, Edward Smith and couldn't help but sniff with indignation.

"I swear, if that dolt Smith gets onto the team and we don't... we are Russian born and bred, we are literal representatives of both our country and school. It would be an outrage, yes?"

Vadimir had to admit, everything else aside, he was disappointed to not be the champion. He would have relished the chance to make his school, country and parents proud by holding that position...

Actions (Free): Moving to Great Hall, meeting up with Tarja

Interacting with:
Tarja Akimovna Blavatsky (@Liana Kerr)

Mentioning:
Edward Smith (@Noah Jupe)

Interacting with @Howard White & Kamila (@Marina Oriel)
Mentions @Serena Towers & @Erin Ryan

Bloom was completely in the zone. The music was keeping her soul, body and mind at ease, releasing any tensions she had been feeling. There was something about dancing that just relinquished all negativity and welcomed euphoria. Even better, she was dancing next to Howard, uncaring of how she looked with her hands up in the air and her hips swaying from side to side. At times, she would look up to smile at her partner, but most of the time, Bloom's eyes were closed, feeling the music of the room.

It wasn't until she opened her eyes to smile at Howard playfully when she heard a young girl speak to them. With so many people around them, Bloom was unsure if it was someone speaking to them or someone else. Though, the voice was oddly familiar with the sound of their accent. She couldn't see who it was until Bloom looked around some more.

As Bloom looked, she could not help but to find Erin Ryan and Serena Towers looking their way. Bloom's stomach dropped. Serena perhaps knew there was something up and Bloom wouldn't put it past Erin to feed her unfavorable perspectives of what they were seeing. Granted, it was true. Bloom knew that Serena had feelings for Howard, and yet, here she was dancing alongside him playfully. Staring long enough, Bloom may or may not have locked eyes with Serena. If she did, she would have looked away quickly, reminding herself to scan the room of the familiar voice.

She saw a hint of the blue dress that she complimented earlier. It was the young girl that she spoke to prior to Howard taking her on the dance floor. What does she want? Bloom thought, wondering why on earth the girl would interrupt their moment for. She gave the girl a small smile, welcoming her to their group, but also wished that she wasn't there to begin with.

Luckily, it was not long before the music had stopped and an announcement had begun at the front of the Great Hall. Bloom's attention was away from the girl for it was time. The moment everyone had been waiting for. Bloom looked at the announcer, who was Illvermorny's Headmaster, and slowly, but surely, grabbed Howard's cold, pale hand. She knew he had put his name in the cup. If she could guess, him and a bunch of others were probably holding their breath at who were the champions were; hoping that it was themselves.

Up first was Hogwarts. It was a blink of an eye, but immediately, Howard's name escaped from Headmaster Plott's lips. Bloom squealed in excitement for Howard. If she would have guessed, this was something he truly would have wanted. Her large smile towards him began to fade when the special person was shared. Falentra Black? What did that mean? Why was her name not in it and why was Falentra's? Wasn't he over her? Did he not consider her a special person? Am I not special to Howard? Bloom unlocked her hand with his in thought.

"Excuse me," she said, a small smile tried hard to form on her face. "I need something to eat," she said, walking towards the food. It could be that Bloom deserved this for how much of a bitch she was to be with Howard, knowing full well how Serena would feel. It felt like it was her turn by means of karma. As Bloom walked to the food, she realized that the smells of all the different food aromas were getting to her. Nothing smelled right for her to want to be around.

Bloom began to head for the Great Hall doors, exiting the Great Hall. She looked back to Howard, in hopes that he would stop her. If he did, she would not exit the celebration, however, if he did not, she would run out, her eyes swelling up with tears, heading towards the Ravenclaw Common Room.

ACTION: Exiting the celebration/Great Hall unless stopped

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Emma looked around, wishing she had a watch, but she was terrible about actually wearing them so hadn’t bothered to bring one to Hogwarts with her. Which admittedly made things more difficult, but on the plus side it also meant she would be forced to make some sort of effort to converse, at least enough to ask the time. She was sure it was getting close to the time that she would need to go get changed and go out to the grounds to start the Flying Torch tag. Looking at the ceiling that reflected the outside, she could tell it certainly had grown dark enough, and decided that she’d leave shortly, after she got a chance to pet Mei.

Blushing slightly as she realized Mandy had talked to her. “No, I ran out of time and admittedly I’m not very talented in the kitchen. Oh! But I definitely should have because hello, helped to organize.” Emma stopped speaking, frustrated that she hadn’t brought anything, though admittedly the decorations and setting everything up had taken some time. But still she could have.

Emma worked on finishing her plate as Mandy and Trix conversed. She was feeling a bit third-wheely but she would be leaving shortly anyway so Emma didn’t really mind as much as she normally would. Finishing the food, she slightly regretted it as she was quite full and that wasn’t working well with the butterflies that seemed to have taken residence in her stomach.

Taking a quick drink of her punch, she heard Flying Torch Tag, and looked back at Mandy and Trix. “Oh, yes, it must be almost time. I need to go change.” Looking down at her dress, she frowned and looked around, figuring she’d just run, grab her bag and find an empty room nearby before heading down to the grounds.

Emma laughed, and answered Mandy’s question honestly. “Not at all, entirely harmless. Honestly, I’m more likely to just fall off my broom or run into someone.” Now that those thoughts were in her brain, and she added “Ummmm…I’m going to go change. Meet you at the grounds?” Meanwhile, she was reminding herself she wasn’t alone and she could always ask for help if she needed it or some of the other students got out of hand and wouldn’t listen. Or injuries. Why had she not given more thought to that before?
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ignore the banner, roro's hair is now short, shoulder length. I'm too lazy to make a new banner

Her hair is dark brown with pink highlights

Banner made by Winnie Harper

Mentioning nono

Interacting with @Nicholas McCowan

Did they just… officially become official in the middle of the ball?

Sure they did. After on and off fights, misunderstandings because of their underdeveloped brains, fate put them back together at last. It has been a while for her to see that smile on his face. Most of her memories lately were filled by his grim expression, either he was mad or constipated, she didn’t know. But at that moment, that sweet happiness lightened up the whole room, woken up the butterflies, slowly fluttering in her stomach, as well as those little fishes that created the ‘gulu gulu’ feelings. It silenced the clock, as dramatic as it might have seemed, she felt like the great hall was only filled by the two of them. Screw everyone else, their fancy outfits, and their overly glittery aura. They did not matter. He was finally admitting his hidden feelings, letting him appear vulnerable, he was being himself. No more facade, no more defences. And Aurora was excited for what the future holds. Until the champions were announced.

Rodion Makarovich, the champion of Koldovstoretz and Anastasia something that she never heard of. Why would he put himself in a dangerous situation? Was it glory he sought? No, he was too down to earth to be seeking such a thing. Was he… bored, perhaps? Did someone put his name without his permission? She knew from the way he acted back in the chess combat, recklessness was in his DNA, but he couldn’t be this reckless, right?

She was not the type of person who would make a fuss about who entered and who didn’t. She knew what was at stake here. Hexwizard Tournament, this was no pageant, or noodle eating contest. The level of danger, judging from what happened in Hogwarts in the last two years, was not something people need to take with a grain of salt. But the moment a familiar name rang in her ears, the name of someone she quite adored, the name of a family, she couldn’t focus. The face of Nicholas McCowan slowly got closer, probably puckered his lips a bit, clearly wanting another kiss, but Aurora was torn. She didn’t want to lose another family. “H-he- wh-why- he shouldn’t- I-”

Sta - 5 | Eva - 10 | Str - 5 Wis - 8 | Arc - 4 | Acc - 10 Terrible Presence Evasive Maneuvers

Action accidentally trying to dodge lol, If nick’s kiss is a success, can you please roll for d10 hahah for the kiss rating lol bye Outfit Reducio I'm lazy to redraw this, but it's like that, the difference is that her hair is now short with pink highlights

Interacting @Illowy Magnard

Noticing that Illowy probably wanted her to ask less questions Marina decided to refrain from saying anything more. For a moment. Marina then noticed that it was time for the champions to be announced. "Hey, Illowy!" Marina exclaimed, "Look they're announcing the champions!" Marina stood up straight and fixed all her attention on The Headmaster of Ilvermorny who was announcing the champions today. Finally she heard him start to announce the Hogwarts champion.

"Good luck Illowy," Marina whispered. Then she heard that The Headmaster of Ilvermorny was about say "The champion for Hogwarts is," please be Illowy. Please say Illowy Magnard is the Hogwarts champion. Please. She closed her eyes as if it would somehow telepathically let the goblet know what she was thinking. "Howard White," Marina was not surprised that Illowy was not the champion because there was so many applicants for Hogwarts but she was still disappointed anyways.

"Sorry it wasn't you," Marina said looking towards Illowy. "Maybe they will do this again another year and pick you." Marina barely payed attention to any of the champions for the other school being announced and instead went back to watching the attendees of the ball's reactions. When the whole thing was over with Marina asked Illowy, "Do you see anything interesting happening right now?"

Dialogue: English - #1b087d | Russian - #8f0000 | Finnish - #00804f

Interacting with: Vadimir Markovich Volkov (@Aurelius Leeds)
Mentioning: Edward Smith (@Noah Jupe) | Fyodor Adrikovich Sapozhnik (@Maggie Hawkins) | Irina Onisimovna Afanasyeva | Rodion Stepanov Makarovich | Mathias Pride

Post tracker: [1] | [2]

It should have been a relief that Smith's spell backfired instead of hitting some innocent bystander, but Tarja was still suffering second-hand embarrassment. She looked away from the disgusting scene. Seeing the slugs fall out of the American's mouth didn't bother her too much - in a different situation, the effects of that spell would have made her morbidly curious. What forced her to avert her eyes was the unwillingness to continue witnessing the foolishness that was making her school look bad. It was an odd feeling to dislike someone; the list of people she couldn't see as her friends was a short one. Smith was definitely on it, though.

Thankfully, Vadimir's arrival took her mind off of it for a while. "You missed some squabbling, and someone destroyed a food table. Nothing unusual for a Hogwarts Ball," she filled him in. "And these westerners think we're the backward village people... I never saw any good dishes go to waste back at home, but here they're doing it for fun." She suspected that her friend was going to despise such wastefulness even more than she did.

The boy proceeded to compliment her appearance, making Tarja grin. "Thanks, my grandmother made this dress for me to wear at just such events." And this was probably the last time she would don it, too, because she was growing out of a whole lot of her clothes this year. "You look great, too, Dima - I could almost take you for a Hogwarts student," she teased. Well, not really - his clothing was not as needlessly posh as that of most other males present. She preferred Vadimir's look, however - he definitely needed less time to get dressed than others, and it didn't seem like his clothes restricted his movement too much, while still looking acceptable.

She followed his disapproving stare and found he was looking at Smith. "Oh yeah, you missed that, too. He tried casting at someone, I didn't see who, and hit himself instead." Tarja was known to enjoy a good mischief, but uncalled-for jinxes in the middle of an event, where they were supposed to represent Koldvostoretz and behave their best, looked unsavoury to her.

The announcement of the champions caused a brief excitement in her, followed by a surge of disappointment. Neither her nor any of her friends was the champion - not Dima, or Fedya, or Irina. Instead, it was someone she only knew by sight, a barely familiar name. She hoped he would pick a strong team and do well in the challenges.

"I'm not sure about our chances, he'll likely prioritize people from his own circle." Tarja wouldn't have had any trouble approaching someone she didn't know and making a friend out of them, but doing so now would make it look like she only did it because of his newfound fame, hoping to get into his team. She felt conflicted about that. One the one hand, she still wanted to partake in the Hexwizard Tournament. On the other hand, self-respect had to be preserved. Sucking up was not the Russian way. "Let's see if we get a chance to meet him. I imagine he'll be extremely popular now," she shrugged.

As their conversation continued, she bobbed her head at Vadimir's comment. "Well, if they're friends, the American boy might be picked," she said, somehow doubting if Smith could befriend any true Russian with the way he behaved. "True, it wouldn't look good to choose someone who's not even our countryman to represent us. Not that it matters, it seems. Just look at who's championing Mahoutokoro," she inclined her head towards the ginger boy who was barfing and throwing a tantrum at his name being announced. "Does he look even remotely Japanese to you?" she asked.

Some people having started to exit the Great Hall, she realized something. "Hey, I signed up for a game earlier, I think it has to do something about capturing flags while flying on brooms. It might be starting soon - should we head outside?" With that, she began moving towards the exit.

Stats: STA: 8 | EVA: 7 | STR: 8 | WIS: 3 | ARC: 1 | ACC: 8
Ability: Muggle Condition (+3 accuracy roll on non-magical attacks and actions)

Actions (Free): Chatting with Vadimir, then exiting to go to the Flying Torch Tag game.

Tarja has left the thread.

Hiro was glad that his boomerang came back to him without hitting anyone in the process.

How such a miracle occurred was beyond him.

But he wasn't looking a 'gift horse in the mouth' so to speak. Hiro was just happy that no damage had been caused on his part to anyone. Now, he just needed to make sure Aryaan wouldn't murder him, for accidentally letting his boomerang loose inside an enclosed space. Thankfully, a bunch of things exploded nearby, covering people in some kind of chocolate-like powder and then the potluck table was quickly destroyed by his roommate's Flipendo.

What on earth was happening? He'd left them alone, thinking they'd work out their issues. Or at least leave peacefully but apparently he'd been wrong about this. Perhaps he shouldn't have let Akira drag him away from them? No, at the time he'd needed to change out of the ripped pink dress, and he wasn't sure if his presence had made anything worse. Who knew what might have happened if he'd stayed with them. A sigh escaped him as he gazed at them.

He let his eyes flicker from Winnie to Mathias.

Winnie looked hurt.

As in physically hurt. Either from a spell or from crashing into something, or having something crash into her. But it was nothing the healer's tent wouldn't be able to cure.

She seemed to have come to a sort of decision, which Hiro applauded. Winnie deserved better than Mathias. If Mathias wasn't going to admit his feelings towards her, he should get over her. And Winnie should get over him. It was fine if his roommate didn't have feelings for her anymore. But he shouldn't try to hold onto her, while rejecting her at the same time. People's feelings could change with time. Mathias might have simply fallen out of love with the girl.

It wasn't something he'd thought would happen, but maybe he'd been wrong.

Winnie turned on her heel and seemed as if she intended on leaving the Great Hall now.

The boy's attention returned to the destroyed potluck table.

Hiro made a face. Well, that ruined his chances of getting to taste that cullen sink or whatever it was called. He'd wanted to try it too. Maybe there was still some somewhere still left in the pot. After all, just because all the food had fallen off the table didn't mean everything had emptied itself out onto the floor. But right now the champions would be announced, so Hiro didn't move. As the champions were announced, Hiro clapped with everyone else, smiling.

Mathias seemed annoyed about something but Hiro couldn't quite tell what the reason was. It made him curious but he was also curious about the Goblet, so chose not to speak right now. The words Mathias said, after Winnie's retreating back, made Hiro raise a brow. Who was he talking about? Some guy that both of them knew? So, Mathias was into both genders. Ah, it made more sense now. That Winnie would wonder if Hiro and Mathias were together.

Or at least interested in eachother.

Not that it was true.

If Hiro was to go after another boy, it would have been someone like Akira. Or maybe Aryaan.

When Mathias's name was called out as the champion, Hiro cheered, happy that his roommate had gotten the honor. However, the look on the male's face made him tilt his head to the side. Was something wrong with the name he'd put down? It looked as if he was freaking out inside. Did he not mean to put down his ex-girlfriend's name? As Mathias suddenly started to vomit, Hiro quickly backed away, reaching out to grab Bailey's hand too.

Hiro pulled her aside, so she wouldn't get barf all over her dress, as he assumed she probably wouldn't like that. Unless he was mistaken. And that was when Mathias did something strange. He ended up grabbed Aryaan by the collar and saying that the Goblet had chosen him and not Mathias. What was he saying? Hiro's brow furrowed and he glanced from Mathias to Aryaan, over to Winnie and then back at Mathias again. And he looked at Bailey.

Right.

He was still holding her hand.

Hiro released Bailey's hand and smiled at her. "Sorry about that, I just thought you might not want to get vomit all over your pretty dress." He told her.