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Ana felt a little... odd. She had never been in this kind of situation before. She was about to buy an actual ballgown! The Ravenclaw usually kept to practical clothes: denim blouses, jeans or checked shorts, a rucksack and, in summer, a ragged straw hat. Items in which she could run, climb and move about. 
Yet the drastic change of outfit she was about to make fascinated and excited her. Ana's eyes glazed over as she imagined herself in a beautiful ballgown, with an enormous sweeping tulle skirt, decorated all over. For the birthday of her mother, which was in spring, she had once embellished a cake with a vast amount of colourful fondant flowers. Maybe her dress could have a similar decoration? After all, the secret event she was going to attend was called the Blossom Ball. 
When Ana had heard the rumours that had circulated around the castle before the beginning of the Easter holidays, the young witch had been determined to go to the secret Blossom Ball. Even though tha castle had become very dear to her now, she still didn't really mind breaking school rules - especially not for something as lovely as a secret ball. 
The first-year only regretted that she would not be able to go there with Laila. The Irish redhead whom Ana had a passionate crush on would love this kind of pompous event. She'd be ecstatic upon hearing of its secrecy and would find joy in choosing a dress with Ana. Tears formed in her eyes as she remembered she would never be allowed to tell a Muggle about any of this. Anything magical.
She thought of the wand tucked into her robes, of the vast castle she had learned to call home, of the spells and potions she learnt. The abilities that would forever separate Ana from her parents and her friends in Dublin. The painful transformation she had to go through at every full moon. Delving into the wizarding world had been a blessing and a curse for her. 
Ana blinked, shaking off the thoughts. This was certainly not the moment for the thoughts that made her sad.
The smile she forced onto her face quickly became genuine as the Ravenclaw thought of the ball. "Excuse me, where do you have the ballgowns?", she asked the witch at the counter. The sound of the bell above the shop door made her turn around, however. A number of students filed in, Ana recognized some of their faces from the corridors of Hogwarts or from her classes. Most of them were girls, yet there was also a number of males amidst the crowd. Ana assumed that they had also come to shop ball gowns and elegant suits for the Blossom Ball.

Word Count | 486 

                                                                              @Ana Fox

Grace was one of the many Hogwarts students coming to shop, she move out of the crowds and bumped into Ana Fox, a girl from her house, “Oh! Sorry!” she said, blushing, “Your ummmm, Ana, right? I’m Grace, we’re in the same house!” Grace said a bit quietly. Grace turned to find the ball gowns but there were just robes, Grace looked at the store owner “Where are the ball gowns?” she asked quietly, and the store owner pointed to a wall, there were varieties of dresses there, Grace smiled, and looked out the door, wondering what her family was doing right now, her mother was probably waiting for her with her brother, and her other brothers were probably at home with her dad and her cousin. Grace sighed and looked at Ana, who looked like she was thinking about something “You excited for the ball?” Grace asked her, smiling, Grace was excited too, although nobody asked the small Ravenclaw, she always loved dancing, when she was younger she would dance all the way to school. “So, which dress are you gonna buy?”Grace asked, looking at the dresses, Grace grabbed a dress and headed to the dressing room, putting it on, it was poofy, she never wore a dress like this, Grace came out of the room and looked in a mirror, she loved it.

Rosalyn was astounded at all of the beautiful dresses on the wall of the store. She had been eagerly anticipating the arrival of the Blossom Ball.
It was going to be one of the biggest secret social gatherings of the year. Rosalyn walked up to the wall filled with gowns and instantly fell in love with one. It was a full length, satin gown with an off the shoulder décolleté. It was a royal blue color and the skirt had decorative, white lace that blended in perfectly with the rest of the gown. Rosalyn quickly tried it on and went to glance in the mirror inside the shop. It made her look like a princess.

While walking back to the dressing room, Rosalyn bumped into a wall. Next to that wall where a group of girls that she had never seen before, but decided that this would be a good time to try and make some friends.

“Hello! I’m Rosalyn. Sorry for bumping into you, are you going to the ball as well?”

She wondered if these girls were going to the Blossom Ball. If she was, she may have a new friend or two there. Rosalyn gave a small grin and waited for an answer.

Earlier that day, Ginevra had dived into her wardrobe in the Hufflepuff dorm to check whether she had anything "presentable" to attend the secret Blossom Ball she had heard about two days ago. However, the only fancy party dress she owned was rather short, and she was not sure that it fit for the ball.

And her vain side did not want to be caught wearing the plain white knee-length gown she wore to Professor Bercegeay's Valentine tea party. The flying professor herself thought the dress was old fashioned!

So Ginevra decided to spend the monthly allowance she still had on a glamorous, semi-formal dress to wear to the Blossom Ball.

That Saturday morning, she visited Madam Malkin's shop in Diagon Alley, trying on the most beautiful, within-her-budget dresses she could find. Ginevra even found shoes, clutches, and other cute accessories to match each one! However, her budget could only buy one gown, so soon the first-year student decided to stop joking around and start searching for a dress that could match the accessories she already had.

Finally - there it was!



Ginevra took her dream dress to the fitting room and decided that she truly liked it, because it she felt that it made her look like a glamorous Muggle's Academy Award nominee.

After purchasing it, however, she caught a glimpse of three girls whispering to each other. The blonde recognised them as fellow first-years she sometimes passed by in the Hogwarts corridors or Great Hall, and now her sharp ears caught the word ball.

"Well, well!" she thought. "So the 'secret' Blossom Ball is not actually that secret."

Deciding to join them, Ginevra approached the three students and quietly asked, "Are you girls here for a ball gown as well?"

@Ana Fox @Grace Mint @Rosalyn Adler @Ginevra Tsuchiya

[font=Segoe Print]It was a lovely day in Diagon Alley, fluffy white clouds painting the afternoon skies and birds tittering cheerfully about in the air as gentle rays of golden sunlight fell mercifully upon the bustling masses, the marketplace awake and alive with hungry shoppers eager for material gain. It seemed as if the skies had finally taken a break from her cursed crying, mother nature’s April Gloom instead replaced with a lively sort of energy, the sort that seemed to infect one’s bones and leave one reeling for adventure. The breeze called for action, the air reeking of opportunity – the very smell that left the young Quidditch Captain teetering on the edge of his seat, eyes wide and heart thumping in excited anticipation, awaiting the manifold surprises circumstance withheld just around each corner.

It wasn’t for just any reason that the boy found himself walking about such busy pavilions on days such as this – no, typically, he’d be out practicing Quidditch, or studying in the courtyard, or perhaps even swimming in the lake with another rebellious student, much to the chagrin of the school’s teachers and prefects. However, he supposed circumstance he hadn’t had much of a choice. After all, the Secret Ball was only mere days away – and, as hilarious as concept as it was to imagine, the child was sorely out of dress apparel. It wasn’t like he could attend the event in a hoodie, as much as he wanted to. And, embarrassingly enough, he wanted to impress his date, as well as provoke jealously withing a few boys attending the event.

[Flash and Lydia’s Boyfriend could jump off a cliff.]

There wouldn’t be any other reason for a child such as himself to tread through the busy streets of Diagon Alley, head bowed and hood up – he was donning a gray hoodie, with a puffy, dark blue coat over top – a medical mask resting over his mouth. It wasn’t like he was about to take chances, after all. It was a bit strange, finding himself in such a demanding place after so many months of being marooned in the confines of a magic school – he could hardly remember the last time he’d seen so many adults in one place. However, there was something oddly comforting about the environment, something about the crescendoing voices, huddled bodies, dusty pathways, that reminded the child of his years in Argentina, the years in which he’d truly grown the most. The very thought of such a lovely memory brought a smile to his features, if not gentle, his eyes trained on his grass-stained shoes as he walked. Oh, how he longed for those days.

It wasn’t long before his traveler’s instinct had led him to his final destination – Madam Malkin’s. He could barely contain his curiosity as he pushed the door open, wide eyes taking in the manifold sights of the shop, must stirring though the air and floating through his nostrils in comforting waves, the environment exuding a homey feel if he’d ever felt one. It was a right lovely shop, that much was obviously – however, he’d unfortunately only been once before, at the beginning of the year. His opinions hadn’t changed, but he wished he could have visited the shop more often.
Right off the bat, his eyes caught caught a small group of children, looking to be about his age or close. Which certainly piqued his curiosity – Hogwarts students? Well, there was only one way to find out. Without much tact, he’d stepped forward, making his presence known to the pair, an easy smile slipping onto his face as he considered his company. “Hey,” he beamed, his words smooth, though his Hispanic accent thick. “Hope I’m not intruding on anything – you wouldn’t be here regarding any illegal activities? Specifically of the Blossom Ball sort?” Then, without waiting for an answer, he held out his hand for shaking, to the first one to accept it. “I’m Rafa. It’s nice to meet you all.” A bridge of friendship, extended outwards towards his fellow acquaintances. Perhaps he could make allies out of the lot. [/font]

@Rafael D'Spacito @Rosalyn Adler @Grace Mint @Ana Fox 

"Hope I'm not intruding on anything - you wouldn't be here regarding any illegal activities? Specifically of the Blossom Ball sort?" asked the dark-haired boy who seemed to pop out of nowhere (for Ginevra).

Now really! she shouted, but only in her head so no one could hear it but herself. Really, there's nothing secret about that Blossom Ball, after all.

The boy held out his hand, clearly for a handshake, so Ginevra took it and gave him a friendly handshake. "I'm Rafa. It's nice to meet you all," he said.

"My name's Ginevra," replied the girl. "Ginny for short. Nice to meet you too; I remember you from Professor Bercegeay's Valentine tea party."

Ginevra gave him a warm smile, but behind the smile, she was actually kind of... scared. Rafa had mentioned that the Blossom Ball was "illegal"; did he really mean it? Or was he merely joking?

And if he did mean it... did this mean Ginevra would be in trouble with the professor? Would she get a detention which would leave a mark on her clear record?

Trying to hide this fear, as well as hoping that it would not reflect in her brown eyes, Ginevra let out a little laugh. "Why would it be illegal, Rafa? Isn't it just an ordinary harmless social gathering for teens?" she asked.

@Ana Fox @Rafael D'Spacito @Ginevra Tsuchiya @Grace Mint @Rosalyn Adler

Ivy's mother said she looked good in blue. She also said she should always get custom-made clothes, because there was the danger of another girl having the same dress. So when Ivy stepped into Madam Malkin's, she wasn't here to buy a dress, but rather to select a fabric and a design for one. It appeared that a number of classmates were here as well - although no one else seemed to have the same idea of getting theirs custom-made yet. One particular conversation going on near the dressing room between four girls particularly interested her, and she listened in on it as she ran a hand over a bolt of dark blue fabric. Blossom Ball shopping as well?

"I like the quality of this fabric," she said thoughtfully to the shop assistant, "But is there anything that's a lighter in colour?" Ivy drew a hard bargain. She would not settle for something that was half-perfect or something she knew could be better. The shop assistant said there was indeed lighter shades, and brought out a card full of different shades of blue. Ivy watched the other girls out of the corner of her eye, half-listening to the shop assistant's speech about which blue would bring out her eyes, half-listening to her classmates' conversation. A boy had jumped into the conversation, introducing himself as Rafa and joking about illegal activities. This garnered a soft laugh from Ivy - illegal, hm?

One of the girls - Ginevra, was it? - replied with a nervous laugh and a question as to why the Blossom Ball would be illegal. Ivy smirked slightly as she pointed to the lightest grey-blue square on the card. "Can I see this one, please?" As the shop assistant hurried around to the back to find it, Ivy made her way over to the group. "Hi, I couldn't help but overhear your conversation. You guys are here to shop for clothing, right?" Some of the girls were hugging dresses to their chests, dresses that would surely be bought by many other girls. Ivy tore her gaze away from the dresses and decided not to mention it. Now that she saw them up close, she recognised some of them - the boy was Quidditch Captain and she had seen one of the girls (Grace) at the mandrakes activity. "I'm Ivy."

Sabrina happens to walk into Madam Malkin's shop while other people were there, Don't look at my eyes, don't look at my eyes, don't look at my eyes, she prays she can get passed the students before they notice the Slytherin with weird eyes. She looks at the ground as she passes them accidentally bumping into a Gryffindor with brown hair, " I'm sorry, please forgive me." she barely glances up to look at the girl then hurries to find a dress she likes, Don't worry, no one knows you... She finds a frilly ball gown, with roses on it. She hurries to dressing room with two different sizes, after finding the perfect fit she walks swiftly to Madam Malkin, who tells her that she should probably get dress shoes and an accessory. She smiles quickly and goes back to shopping, Please don't look at my eyes, please don't look at my eyes, please don't look at my eyes, she begs as she passes the group once more. She looks through items feverishly, trying to find just the right thing, No... No... No... Definitely Not... she carefully sets jewelry down when someone speaks to her... Crap...



@Ana Fox @Rafael D'Spacito @Ginevra Tsuchiya @Grace Mint @Rosalyn Adler

The rate at which rumours spread always amazed the ex-journalist. Not too recently, Aurelia had heard about the cancelling of the blossom ball and subsequently, the rumours about a secret ball organised by a few first years whose name's she was unfamiliar with. That being said, it was not an official event and one hosted probably to the chagrin fo the professors. If the Gryffindor was to attend this event, it would mean breaking the rules. Normally, it was not of the girl to break the school codes given that she was an ex-prefect, but then again, S.W.A.G itself was a violation of the rules. Moreover, she could not possibly pass up the chance to hunt down some monsters, after all, she had still some issues to settle with Deathmote and a handful of other monsters. Without the supervision of professors, this was the prefect chance for the monster hunter to check somethings of her list.

The aristocratic pureblood was familiar with balls, fancy galas and dinner parties. And she knew that there was always a dress code. A dress. The last ball she had owled her mother who had shipped a decent dress for her. However, given that she would meet her mother's disapproval if the odler woman knew that the ball was an 'illegal' one, Aurelia made the decision to get one herself. Besides, she needed a dress that was practical rather than another frivolous one if she intended to interact with monsters.

The fourteen-year-old spent nearly half an hour fitting into the dress before strutting out to admire herself in the mirror outside. There was nothing colourful about the dress she had chosen, it was dark and mature, not quite her tastes but Aurelia could not help but feel drawn to its design... although it would definitely pull a frown upon her parents' faces if they saw the piece on her. Despite the lace, the outfit was quite revealing, the slit along the skirt of her dress brandishing a decent length of the slender leg which her parents would surely deem scandalous. But the piece fo apparel was lightweight and allowed easy access to her knife which was usually strapped securely to her thigh. It was perfect for the occasion maybe not for the blossom ball exactly but rather an occasion for the monster hunter to do some 'hunting'.

It seemed that many more Hogwarts students had the same idea in mind. Most of them holding on to big colourful dresses, some which seemed far too large for the first years to manage. Her eyes fell on a familiar face among a clique of students at a corner of the shop: Rafael D'Spacito. To say the least, Aurelia was not on good terms with him... the first year knew too much, too many of her secrets. Her body tilted subtly turning her back against the Gryffindor quidditch captain who already had a handful of girls surrounding him exchanging pleasantries. The dark seductive dress contrasting to the bright colours and modest gowns in the shop or her lovely face for that matter did not help with staying inconspicuous at all. Nevertheless, all she needed was to find a pair of shoes to match and she could make her jolly way out of the shop. Any other interaction aside from the shop attendants were unnecessary.

@Sabrina Fullen @Aurelia Notrésvace @Ginevra Tsuchiya @Rafael D'Spacito @Ana Fox @Rosalyn Adler @Grace Mint

As Ivy stood with the group, someone bumped into her before quickly offering a bashful apology. The Gryffindor turned around, about to say that it was fine when she realised that whoever it was - if the person had not been a figment of her imagination - had disappeared. She blinked the empty spot, trying to work it out when someone walked out of the dressing room in a black dress. Ivy usually did not stare at random people, but there was something unpleasantly familiar about this person. Who-

Ivy gasped with realisation and quickly spun around again, trying to avoid any chance of interacting with the girl, who was now admiring herself in the mirror. It was none other than Owl-Girl - the first time they met, she had turned her sandwich into a dove before feeding it to her owl. From that day forth, Ivy had been more than a little intimidated by her. Off the others' questioning looks, she hastily explained in a low tone, "It's that girl in the black dress over there. I, um... well..." She did not exactly know how to describe her relationship with Owl Girl without admitting that she was scared of her. "She turned a sandwich into a dove and fed it to her owl in front of me. It was a little more than just gruesome," she finally settled on.

Ivy didn't want to come off as gossipy and judgemental, so she changed the topic, throwing a nervous look over her shoulder at Owl-Girl and moving subtly so her back wasn't to her. "That's a nice dress you've got there," she said to Ginevra offishly, motioning towards the dress she was holding. It wasn't really her style - too pink and a little babyish - but it was quite cute, although the tulle skirt without embellishments made it look cheaper than it probably was. She scrutinized the other ball gowns in the other girls' arms. There was a full-length one made of blue satin, and one that looked like a wedding gown. Ivy had been taught by her parents - well, her mother - that satin was hard to pull off by itself without it being too shiny and slippery, and to never wear anything that resembled a wedding gown to a ball.

The shop assistant reappeared, holding a bolt of grey-blue fabric. Sadly, she was standing next to Owl-Girl and Ivy had no choice but to excuse herself from the group with an apologetic and reluctant, "Sorry, I'll be back," if Owl-Girl doesn't kill me like she killed the dove. "This fabric colour's perfect," Ivy remarked to the shop assistant, trying to ignore the fact that Owl-Girl was standing right next to her. "Can I have a look at some lace? You know, for embellishments. Here's my design." Ivy brought out a sketch from the pocket of her coat - she was a good artist, she knew, and all that was needed was her measurements. The shop assistant rushed back into the storeroom to find some white lace, and Ivy was left alone with Owl-Girl. She turned to face her a little nervously. "Um... hi?" the first-year squeaked. Ivy hated being nervous - and it was a feeling she rarely experienced as she was usually so confident. Something about that girl in the black dress just unnerved her.

Reducio

If you haven't worked it out by now, 'Owl-Girl' is Aurelia... it's a long story.