Closed Fall Ball 2023 Lanterns and Boat Rides

Date and Time: October 6th 2023 7pm

Interacting with: @Alyssea Brown,@Helena Rose,@Landon Matthews and@Rodney Hughes

Outfit: Dress Shoes Hairstyle

As Everyone seemed to get up and have a look at what was going on, the boats began to shake. Soon, Madison felt herself fall into the icy waters with Alyssea, Landon, Helena and Rodney. Whilst trying to get her bearings after gasping for breath, Madison felt something grab her ankle and soon felt herself get further away from the surface, with only a little time to take another big breath. Oh heck no, this is not how and when I'm going to die. My first ever ball is not ending like this Madison thinks to herself.

She could see her other friends being dragged under too, she only hoped that Helena was safe since she couldn't see her anywhere under the water, though Madison couldn't see much with how murky the water was. Madison, who was surprisingly strong for her age, starts kicking at whatever was holding her, hoping it would give her enough time to get back up to the surface.

As Madison was kicking and fighting with all her might, she knew she had her wand with her but wasn't sure if she should use it, so whilst she was deciding, she kept kicking whatever was pulling her down. She thought of her boyfriend, her brother, her dad, her kitten Clover and her mother. She thought of the new friends she's made and her amazing Quidditch team-mates. Madison had to keep fighting whatever creature was holding her, she couldn't give up.

Action: Attempting to break free from the Grindylows
Word Count: 244 words, not counting the coding

IC Date: October 6, 2023
Time: evening
Interacting with @Renelle Dalton
Astra speaking: #136323
Renelle speaking: #00002b
Thoughts: Italics
Others: Bold

With one last mighty kick, Astra felt the fingers slip off her ankle. She swam to the surface with urgency, face pointed up and legs kicking like a motor.

GASP. She sucked in a mouthful of air, coughing as it mixed with the water in her lungs. Floundering over to the boat, she hooked her arm over the edge. She beat her fist against her collar as she continued coughing violently, water coming up as well as the strangled air.

She reached out and clamped a hand on her friend's shoulder, forcing Renelle to look at her. "Don't you dare blame yourself," she croaked. Astra knew her favorite eagle would be hard on herself because of this incident. Heck, she would be the same way if she was in Renelle's shoes. "And don't you dare think I will ever even consider leaving you because of this, because of anything. You are not getting rid of me that easy."

A few final coughs and heavy inhales, then Astra fumbled with her skirt. Underneath the flowy and now very soaked material, she wore running shorts, and tucked into the elastic band of those shorts was her trusty wand. She didn't know the Red Sparks Charm had already been cast, but she saw bubbles coming up from the water. And a head, belonging to a blonde girl who she knew as "The Scaredy Puff." Poor girl was the only person to resurface out of her boat, it seemed, judging from the disturbances around her.

Astra stuck her hand straight up into the air, wand clenched in tense fingers, and cast "Periculum" in a hoarse voice. And then her hand fell, landing with a thump on the boat seat as the redhead closed her eyes and let out a sigh.

Cracking her eyes open, she looked to Renelle. "Thank you. For trying to save me. I... I don't know what I'd do without you. Really."

Action: Attempting to cast Periculum

Just as Valentin was reaching the area of the overturned boats, it seemed that the girl he was originally planning to help (@Estelle Nyx) broke away from the grasp of a lurking grindylow. Nearby, it seemed that Piérre and a girl Val didn’t know were also succumbing to attacks, along with several new victims. Wincing at the difficulty of having to make a snap decision, Valentin took a deep breath.

I know Piérre. He’s a funny duck, but he’s a Marchonné. He can hold on, and maybe even help that girl there. I have to help someone younger and more inexperienced… right? He won’t just die if I leave him alone for a little bit, like… Alexander, who’s probably just… busy… right? Shaking his head to try to dislodge his worries and swelling guilt, Valentin tried to focus. They can both hold on… but that girl, isn’t that Bennett, from the Puff team? She… If no one goes for her, maybe it’ll be the end.

“Hang on, I’m coming for you!” Valentin yelled at the struggling blonde girl. It wasn’t just because she reminded him of another blonde hufflepuff, nor was it because of the girl’s role in quidditch and her father’s clout, right? No, she was just the one who needed Val’s help the most… right?

STOP THINKING, Frost! Val yelled inside his head. What’s with you today?! Just ACT!

“Petrificus totalus!” called Valentin, aiming for the grindylow trying to drag Madison away to the depths of the lake.

Open to interaction
STA 8 ✧ EVA 20 ✧ STR 3 ✧ WIS 16 [18] ✧ ARC 1 ✧ ACC 15
Keen Eye ✦ Charmer ✦ Evasive Manoeuvres ✦ Fearless ✦ Comprehend Parseltongue
Inventory: a new wand, a very old Turkish dagger

Action: Trying to free @Madison Bennett from the grindylow’s grasp by casting Full Body-Bind Curse on it.
Free Action: Enjoying his bubblehead charm

@Alexander Harland

Dialogue: #03733b

@Landon Matthews

@Madison Bennett

@Alyssea Brown

@Helena Rose

Friday, October the 6th, 2023

I released my lantern and watched it rise to the sky, along with the other lanterns that were released. Little did I know, my lantern-watching would be interrupted shortly, one way or another. First, some people fell from their boats and into the water. Shoot, hopefully they knew how to swim. I did, so if I wanted to, I could go and try to rescue one of them. Alyssea decided to call for help by casting Periculum out of her wand. A red jet of light came out, but as Alyssea cast her spell, she rocked our boat enough to start a chain reaction that would send everyone in it into the water.

At least I knew how to swim, and my endurance was good as well, so getting to land wouldn’t be much of a problem. Or so it seemed. You see, a few seconds after I was plunged into the water, I felt something grab my foot, something alive. I tried to swim up, but tbe creature that was holding me down wouldn’t let me. If I had my wand with me, things would be so much easier since I could just unleash a Flipendo upon the poor creature that decided that grabbing my foot was a good idea. Alas, I would have to unleash that Flipendo manually.

I pulled my leg towards me and grabbed the thing that was pulling me, before beginning to punch it with my dominant hand. I wasn’t one who particularly liked violence, but in this case, it was either life or death, and I definitely didn’t want the latter. Not yet. Considering how much of a burden this creature was on my leg, I had no choice but to get this thing off of me, and as far as I was concerned, violence was my only option. I punched the creature three or four times, but it didn’t seem to want to let go. In fact, it began hurting me back, so it seemed that I would have to unleash an Incendio instead.

What I did to that creature next, was very definitely an Incendio. Both of us seemed badly injured, with my leg being the biggest victim of it all in my opinion. It was possibly the most brutal thing that I had done, which wasn’t surprising considering that it had now become a fight to the death, but I was willing to give this creature one more chance to make the right decision. “I’m only going to say this once. Let go of my leg.” The creature pulling on my leg probably had no clue what I just said, but considering how badly it had hurt me by now, I wasn’t afraid to cast an unforgivable curse. Maybe those curses would actually do something, maybe they wouldn’t, but I wasn’t going to die without giving it my all.

Action: Trying to get the Grindylow to let go me, or trying to escape the Grindylow if you want to call it that. Definetly NOT using my martial arts ability to punch the Grindylow or do anything else to him. That is just for the story.

october 6th 2023; interacting with @Rodney Hughes, @Landon Matthews, @Madison Bennett, and @Helena Rose

Outfit Reducio

The red sparks successfully formed and shot into the sky. Alyssea could only watch as the sparks dissipated into a small firework before a shockingly cold blanket cradled her. She was quick to take aa breath as the temperature quickly changed and the water took her.

At least people will know we're in danger, Alyssea thought. It was good to know D.A.D.A spells were useful not just for self-defence, but for situations like this, too.

Then something took her arm and jumped, seeing the creature's beady eyes. Oh god, they were certainly terrifying for a twelve-year-old child to see. What were they? Alyssea could only take a wild guess as it swiftly dragged her down. She quickly raised her wand.

Flipendo, she thought, but as she opened her mouth, a flood of water rushed in and she quickly closed it. Not a fantastic idea. Alyssea gripped onto her wand, hoping not to lose it in the commotion or else the trip to Ollivander's would be somewhat expensive. She would just have to make do with kicking.

Kick and kick as she would, she only hoped that silver-haired senior from earlier would make a start on the rescue operation. She didn't quite expect herself to be underwater.

action: fighting off the grindylow

The Entrance ~ Lookout ~ Expedition ~ Gondolier ~ Seahawk
Capsized ~ Gambit ~ Instinct ~ Landfall ~ Lashback ~ Envenomed

@Marietta Griffis, @Pericles Dralt & Valentin Schnell
@Aida Mòrsgor-Ama Ellwood

Calming Presence in Effect;
All Student Entrees & Beast Master Familiars Affected

Cloak of Hyumming

The boy grinned as he waved towards Pericles with unadulterated exuberance. "HALLO!" He laughed aloud towards the pale Ravenclaw boy, holding the large branch in hand and unaware of the fact that the boat beneath his feet was wobbling more and more with the additional weight and the slightly flimsy nature of the boat itself... or maybe it was something else entirely that caused the boat to tip and throw both the boy and his companion into the cold water of the lake itself.

With a sucking of air through his teeth and a widening of his green eyes, Piérre felt a flash of cold terror resonate through his chest as he saw the chilling blackness of the water below and then felt the full-bodied frigidness of the lakewater as it was completely surrounded by it. Air violently expelled itself from his lungs with the shock of the hitting the surface compounded by the icy grip of cold that gripped him thereafter.

Almost immediately, Piérre's limbs locked up and he felt his chest tighten entirely. He couldn't move, couldn't even begin to thrash any limb or ligament. It was only by sheer luck with the weight of the feather cape and the remaining buoying oxygen in his lungs that the child managed to bob to the surface for a short time, just long enough to suck down a final breath of air with a panicked "hE-HeLp!" before something took hold of him from beneath and pulled him under. There was a sharp bark of a cry as gargled bubbles popped and burbled for less than a second, and then no more.

The boy famously did not know how to swim. He had almost drowned not once but twice before in the past. The fact that he was being grasped by something he could not kick away easily did not make this any easier, and as he looked overhead just long enough to see the light pulling further and further away from a hand desperately reaching for it in an attempt to pull out and away, more bubbles escaped his lips, reducing his oxygen reserve into the critical range in a way that caused his lungs to ache and burn with the want to inhale. Indeed, he did breathe in without a thought, feeling water flood his respiration tract and induce nothing but choking and further panic. Green eyes foggily peered around, trying to seek for others, for what was happening in the midst of fear and the reality of the situation that the boy was finding himself in. There was the girl... she was caught too...

With a sudden thrust, Piérre tried to break free and make his way to her. He had to reach her, to get to her in time, the one that he had tried so hard to protect and that he had promised would come to no harm under his sights. It was happening again, it was all happening all over again as if history truly did repeat itself so magnificently and cruelly. Another one that had trusted him, another one that had been his friend... another one would be taken, another one would vanish. The ill fortune that he brought with him, the omen that he was, now again was it acting on the world and the people around him. With an assertive yank, however, Piérre felt more bubbles leave him with a hum of complaint and he was dragged further down.

'I can't scream, I can't scream, I can't swim... Oh God, please help me, I can't swim...' He felt himself slightly contorting as his body craved for available air. He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to ignore the sucking in his lungs that indicated a lack of fullness of breath that should be there. 'Dio, ti prego, aiutami. Ti prego, ti prego, aiutami... God, please help me. Please, please, help me...' His heart was starting to pound harder and faster in need of more viable blood, rising into his throat. 'Mi aiuti, per piacere... Prego... Prego... Please help me... please... please...'

Green eyes turning jade opened again, watching a flicker of white pass nearby. With a sluggish movement, Piérre's fingers extended after it only to realize that it was passing by too quickly; someone who did know how to swim... someone he knew. Valentin. Valentin... Confusing thoughts swirled around in the Britalian's head, as he blinked and tried to follow the Frost Captain. It took a moment before he realized that the boy was going after another younger student. Even in his distressed state, Piérre was slightly relieved. Good. Good, another student was being helped. Someone younger than him, someone who wasn't as capable and would likely need the help.

'Go, Val... don't get caught, please. Get them out of there. Get them out of here.' He thought to himself, still trying to feebly kick his feet and shake off whatever it was that was trying to drag him down as shadows danced and undulated on the sides of his vision.

Another slash of pain made itself known in his chest, and the boy looked up in slight pain as he tried to believe that he could somehow siphon oxygen out of the water around him as his chestnut hair floated before his eyes and the feathered cloak billowed as if he were suspended in molasses. There, against the light of a red sky that flickered once and then faded, there was a fragment of something odd. Something that drifted close and yet was so far away as the boy weakly tried to reach for it as if it could somehow save him. 'Help...' He heard his own voice ring in his mind, so distant and echoing. His mind was racing, yet it was slowing at the same time in the fear and the adrenaline that was forcing his body to waste all resources too quickly.

As if in reply, the pale and flickering waterborne phantasm of his own mind's frantic fragmentations seemed to draw close, a hand extending from the various burial-like wraps that were cinched about its form. Its face was shadowed and unknown, its exposed hand reaching for the trailing finger of the boy's like that of a young man's. Fingers thin and clever, as if created for the shuffling of cards and accustomed to the art of the slight. Flicking in and out of sight, Piérre pleaded as best he could with this thing... this... this being that he by now did recognize only by shape by the experience of meetings in dreams. 'Non lo so chi sei... ma per favore, aiutami. Dimostrami che non sei solo un'invenzione della follia... I don't know who you are... but please, help me. Prove to me that you're not just a figment of madness...' He silently begged, kicking once more at the thing dragging him down. He had to get out if he was going to even so much as try to reach the surface. Before he could flounder in attempts to swim, he had to get out of this grasp.

The thin fingers reached... reached for Piérre's own as the sound of his own heartbeat thundered in both ears. Get out of here, get out of this place so that he could save the girl, so that he could save others that were floating and being drug down around him. From the messenger bag at his side, the playing cards floated away and out of reach, soaking fully and being scattered to the depths in a way that would make them forever irretrievable. Something lost to the depths forever... perhaps just as much as he himself would soon be.

Fingers, incorporeal, passed through Piérre's own with a pop of light behind the boy's eyes; a faint and fleeting voice that pierced through the rushing water. So familiar, and so indecipherable in the same turn.. 'P-r se--r- U--ell-no...'

The fleeting bubbles left the boy's lips as he reached for the apparition so close and so far away, his heart raced and pumped the blood that would soon grow stale in his veins should he be unable to breathe in a lungful of air once more. They carried up and buoyed upon them a certain few green-backed cards all the way up to the surface of the Great Lake, taking the air that the boy so desperately needed at this very moment. Flipping and turning over themselves in the blissful blue, the lovely Italian-style playing cards would finally bob to the surface and float upon the slightly rippling surface near the capsized boat: the ace of spades, the ace of clubs, the eight of spades, the eight of clubs...

and the Joker.

Attempting to Break Out of the Grindylow's Hold
Piérre does NOT know how to Swim

date: 6th october time: 7pm location: great lake

mentions: Reducio @Delilah Chapman @Piérre Marchonné

languages english: #490085 spanish: #0b0085 thoughts: italics

★ ☆ ✦ ✩ ✫ ✬ ✭ ✮ ✯

Estelle silently cheered as her foot connected with the creature, causing it to loosen its hold on her ankle. She twisted her body and her ankle slid through the creature's grasp. She immediately swam upwards, kicking off her heels as she went. They were good defensive weapons but not particularly effective for swimming. Neither was her dress, but she didn't wand to take that off - it was probably the only thing standing between her and hypothermia. Estelle reached the surface, taking in a big lungful of oxygen, before swimming back down. There had been a boy near her who was clearly panicking. Es, never one to leave someone behind, swam back down into the murky water to try to help the boy. She reached him. He was still trapped in the creature's hold. Not the creature - the Grindylow. Now Es could see it more clearly, she could identify it - she'd read Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them enough times to know. In order to free the boy, she needed a spell that could work underwater. Spells like incendio might not work, but she knew a spell that could. Jaculor, the shooting spell. Estelle pulled her wand out from a pocket in her dress and prepared to cast it. Action: Casting Jaculor at the Grindylow that has trapped Piérre

★ ☆ ✦ ✩ ✫ ✬ ✭ ✮ ✯

★ ☆ ✦ ✩ ✫ ✬ ✭ ✮ ✯ ✮ ✭ ✬ ✫ ✩ ✦ ☆ ★

Interacting with @Eun-ji Lee Hunt & @Piérre Marchonné. Mentioning Alyssea, Marietta

“Peri! Let me help if that’s what you are going to do. The students are young and probably don’t know the Revulsion Jinx yet. If more fall in, it will be a terrible mess.”
Hearing his name turned Peri around. Relief was clear on his freckled face once he laid eyes on Eun-Ji: sure, he would have been happy to see any Ravenclaw duellist, but her particular skillset would be a blessing in this scenario. He answered with a grim nod of affirmation, adding "And if they start casting spells into the water, they might strike other students. We'll need to act fast. Aspira!" With his aspen wand held up between them, Pericles honed his will in an attempt to split the spell, trying to conjure breathable bubbles around their heads. He hesitated for only a moment more, complimenting quickly, "That's a lovely dress. I would hate to see it ruined, but I'm glad to have the team healer with me. Good luck."

Someone (@Alyssea Brown) had the good sense to cast Periculum, illuminating the lake in an alarming shade of red. At one point in Peri's time at Hogwarts, he would have been relieved, knowing that surely meant adults were on their way. But he was older now. There was no waiting for grown-ups to come save students when experienced upperclassmen were around. "HALLOOO! PERI! WHAT'S GOING ON, FRIEND?!" Piérre might have been a jester, but he would always be a reliable face in the crowd. Peri cupped his mouth, hollering back: "Students in the water. Keep the younger years safe."

This was going to sting. In an effort to avoid shock, Pericles began breathing quicker, hastening his pulse, bracing himself for the icy plunge. Just as his knees bent he heard it: "hE-HeLp!" The eagle's head jerked in the direction of the familiar voice, narrow eyes scanning the water's surface. Where before a jovial Gryffindor once waved were only bubbles. The girl he'd arrived with was missing, too, leaving behind an empty boat. A sensation icier than the autumn loch filled Pericles' chest. Not a moment was wasted reconsidering his trajectory: he could have dismissed bias by saying that in saving a fellow fifth-year, he was freeing up an equal, so that they could work together in helping the others. He could have claimed that. But in that particular moment, in spite of all the logistics and strategy usually churning around in the Ravenclaw's mind, all he was thinking about was getting to his friend as quickly as his limbs could cut through water.

Action: Spell-spreading the Bubble-Head Charm, Aspira, to himself & Eun-ji (with player's consent)
Whether successful or not, swimming towards Piérre Marchonné and Marietta Griffis

Reducio

﴾ Stamina - 10 | Evasion - 12 | Strength - 4 | Wisdom - 11 | ArcPower - 10 | Accuracy - 14 ﴿
Perfectionist, Keen Eye, Perfectionist II, Spell Spread, Animagus

Blue in English, Red in Korean

Hoping Hiro would take her advice and not follow her this time, Eun-ji quickly joined her classmate at the docks. Thankfully, she was right and Peri was indeed planning to go on a rescue mission himself. In all honesty, she was glad to have someone as dependable as Peri joining her efforts. Being a daughter of a healer and a muggle surgeon, she always jumped in to help other students whenever incidents like these occurred but she always did it alone. Today, for the first time, she actually wouldn’t have to. “Yeah…the young ones have a tendency to panic like that.” She agreed with Peri’s grim assessment. They always meant well of course but it usually only made things worse.

“Thank you but it’s honestly fine. I can always fix them or buy a new ones.” The witch shrugged at his comment as she stripped off her fancy outer robe, leaving her with nothing but the light simple dress underneath. It was clear she wasn’t all that concerned about the garment. After all, if she should be concerned about something, it would be the freezing water they were about to jump in. That being said, Eun-ji was quite lucky in that regard. It’s not that she had some kind of special resistance against cold but since she was quite familiar with crisis situations, she knew how to overcome those things for as long as necessary. Her brain tended to be hyper focused on the task of rescuing, whoever needed to be rescued, her own discomfort and injuries completely forgotten. It was not exactly a healthy way to function but it generally worked well for her so why change it?

Assessing the situation one last time, she noticed more kids falling in while the first two girls managed to escape safely. Among the falling students, there was a boy, who was previously calling out to Peri. Eun-ji could only assume they knew each other. “Good luck to you too.” There was no hesitation on Eun-ji’s part before jumping to the lake. She heard Peri cast the bubble-head charm at the two of them as she did so. It was a very good idea to try and she was grateful but she’d jump in even if he didn’t succeed. So cold… The water was indeed freezing and yet the Ravenclaw knew she couldn’t afford to waste any time thinking about it. There were too many kids trapped underwater. Luckily, Eun-ji was a pretty good swimmer, so she wasn’t too worried. She didn’t swim professionally or anything like that but she went swimming a lot during summer and as a ballerina, she had an excellently trained muscles and endurance. Of course, she couldn’t have known if she’d make it to her target safely, considering the dangers lurking underneath but she was definitely intending to try.

As she swam, Eun-ji also kept an eye on her rescue partner, now pretty sure her initial assumption of him and the loud boy being friends confirmed, considering he dove into his direction immediately. The boy, was his name Piérre?, was a fellow fifth year. The Ravenclaw was pretty sure she saw him in classes so realistically, it would be better to go for someone less capable of helping themselves but Eun-ji couldn’t really blame her fellow duellist. She would have done the same. That being said, the girl that fell into the water with Piérre, looked very young. Eun-ji didn’t know her but her brain immediately selected her as her first target. Hopefully some other older kids would soon join and try to help as well. She wondered briefly if Hana was still around yet caught herself hoping he wasn't. Somehow, the thought of him jumping in the lake as well didn't appeal to her even if he was capable of helping. It was an unreasonable reaction of course and she would later blame the freezing water for influencing her rational train of thought.

Action: If she reaches Marietta safely, Eunji casts the Revulsion Jinx at the Grindylow pulling her down.

Stats: STA: 9 ✦ EVA: 10 ✦ STR: 4 ✦ WIS: 12 ✦ ARC: 11 ✦ ACC: 13
Abilities: Healing Sage I & II ✦ Perfectionist ✦ Death Defiance ✦ Spell Spread
Interacting with: @Pericles Dralt
Mentioning: @Piérre Marchonné, @Marietta Griffis @Renelle Dalton and @Astra Norrick and @Kim Sato as Hiro Bakugo and @Hanako Tone