Decorating Dreams PV Nova

@Kahira Valerian / July 9th, 2026 / outfit
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The Valerian estate was a familiar place, one Nova had to say was one of the few that rivaled the beauty and status of her own home. The youngest Vancourt found she couldn't remember a time that she didn't know this place, and the friendship of her parents with the Valerian potioneers seemed to predate her own existence.

Though, naturally, the best part of being here wasn't the opulence, the wealth, or the familiarity, but the young redhead whose bed she was now sitting on. As opposed to the objectively boring conversation downstairs, Nova and Kahira had escaped to much more important matters. The pair had been talking and dreaming of Hogwarts for the longest time, their passions only intensified by the succeeding attendance of their brothers to the institution. Talk of their dorm and what they would learn and how awesome they would be was no uncommon topic of conversation between the young socialites, but now that the reality of Hogwarts was approaching, it seemed to be all Nova could think about. Only fifty-four days (not that Nova was counting) stood between the pair and the beginning of their magical education, and with that came countless other exciting things. For one, the decoration of their dormitory.

The young brunette shuddered at Kahira's mention of the Cannons and rolled her eyes at her latter comment. "The matches will speak for themselves," she sang after the curly-haired girl as she excitedly disappeared into her closet. Nova wasn't the most enthusiastic Quidditch fan. Of course, being near her hometown, the Appelby Arrows were often the subject of her highest praise and support when it came to the violent sport on broomsticks, but the biggest reason that she supported them in the most recent few years was for civil arguments with Kahira. But something in the realm of Quidditch they could agree on was their shared distaste for the Chudley Cannons. Nova couldn't even fathom why they still had supporters. Firstly, they had no significant success in over a hundred years. Secondly, and far more importantly, their uniforms were ghastly. Orange and black? Really? How was anyone with a mind supposed to cheer for anyone looking like that?

Perhaps it was their parallel upbringings, or the fact that they had been friends for so long, but the two had a lot in common. For one, their shared ambition to follow in their brothers' footsteps (and their parents, grandparents, and so on) in the wonderful house of Slytherin.

Nova's blue eyes watched Kahira's closet, waiting for her return, before the girl jumped back out with enthusiasm to show her newly pilfered Slytherin jumper. She smiled, their future shining clearly in front of her as Kahira sported their favorite house. "He obviously didn't need it," Nova shrugged, quickly willing to support Kahira's thievery, especially when it came to her brother. Another similarity between the young girls were their brothers, though Nova had a certain respect for hers and a desire to be recognized by him, while Kahira found hers simply despicable. The girls didn't agree on everything, as evidenced by their Quidditch alliances, but Nova found it only logical to be on her friend's side for matters such as this. Also, he was a dhampir. The young witch had no real grasp on the truth of what that meant, but she knew at the very least that it made her insides squirm when she thought about it.

"Plus, it suits you," the brunette added. It was true- dark and bold colors looked good on Kahira, perhaps because of the high contrast in her features. Nova always enjoyed more muted or soft colors, and she supposed their preferences in saturation also reflected their tendencies, Nova's inner ice and Kahira's inner fire. This made even more sense when considering their zodiac signs, only adding to Nova's strong love for and trust in the stars.

A small feeling of doubt started to grow in her chest. What would happen to them if they weren't in Slytherin? Their families wouldn't disown them or anything, but so much of their dreams would change.

It didn't matter, Nova decided, because they were going to be in the cunning house of snakes. She stamped down her fears, pondering what else would look good in their dorm room of green and silver. "I suppose we should bring mirrors for makeup and such," she mused. "Do you think they'll have a rug? I hope it doesn't get too cold," she said, pulling her soft hair over one shoulder. "And I hope we can bring candles, since I don't think there will be any natural light. I mean, it is in the dungeons." Nova personally found the repurpose of dungeons into the home of the best house in the school to be quite redemptive. Like a phoenix rising out of the ashes or something. Salazar Slytherin was likely the only one to see the potential in such a space, and clearly the only one brave enough to turn it into something beautiful. "And we should get something matching," Nova added to her growing list of ideas. "Some kind of decor or something. That way, it'll be clear we're friends." And (though she didn't say this part out loud) so that everyone would be jealous of their friendship.

The brunette sighed. "Do you think it'll be fun sharing with other students? I hope our dormmates are at least tolerable," she said. "Though I suppose we won't have to deal with... certain kinds of people if we are in Slytherin." The sorting hat was never wrong. At least, that's what she had heard, and if that was the case, then everyone in Slytherin had to be almost as cool as them. Then, she quickly amended, "When we are in Slytherin."

@Kahira Valerian / July 9th, 2026 / outfit
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Most children her age would wince at the casual mention of the slur used for muggleborns, but Nova giggled instead. She had quite the narrative in her head of such magic wielders, thinking them practically brainless people nearly devoid of magical skill or prowess. Without decades of magical lineage in their families, how were they supposed to even utilize the volatile thing? Surely their decreased magic would lead to subpar power as well as control over their abilities. Of course, there was evidence against this belief, including objectively intelligent wizards or witches such as Hermione Granger, but Nova found them so few and far between that it must be some kind of fluke.

Thus, to her, Kahira's cruel comment was received with a laugh as the young girl imagined students startled by the snake. Nova stood from her friend's bed as she was handed the jumper and she held it up to her baby blue dress with doubt in her eyes. The emerald green signature of Slytherin house did not match very well with her current dinner party outfit at all, but the girl pulled it over her head anyway. Fixing her hair, she continued to listen to her friend as she continued, pointing out their need for sorting out their color palletes. "Pink does go well with green," the brunette agreed, nodding at her friend's suggestions. She didn't think she would want to wear black and gold to save her life. Nova had never been a moody type, and found dark colors often didn't suit her. Plus, she was sure she could still be intimidating in pastels. "I still wish you'd wear more blue," she said on the topic of wardrobes, a sentiment she had expressed before. "I know it's not Slytherin colors, but a deep blue would look just as good with your hair. Besides, Ravenclaw is inferior, but at least tolerable." Blues, pinks, and purples were Nova's favorite colors, perhaps because they reminded her so much of twilight, and it had always been of her opinion that Kahira should join her in wearing blue.

Kahira had been confident she would look good in the jumper, but once it was on Nova had to add, "Perhaps not with this under. I'll have to plan more outfits with green." The girl gave a little sway, appreciating the feel of the sweater and the meaning that came with its crest, before carefully pulling her arms out of the sleeves and taking it off.

Nova folded the jumper in half and let it hang over her arm, smoothing it out. She continued to hold it, not wanting any house pride of Kahira's to fall to the floor, and followed Kahira to her desk. Leaning against it, Nova watched as a list grew of their dormitory essentials. "Naturally," she said in response to the crystals. Evil would certainly be a bad thing to have in their new home, and plus, they were pretty.

Kahira's last note made her smirk. She didn't even have to be upfront about her intentions of sparking envy for the redhead to read her mind. Nova didn't always notice when it happened, but it was always so satisfying when the two girls' minds seemed to synchronize. It made sense logically, of course; the two had so many shared experiences, not just in their countless hours spent together but also in their upbringing.

She pushed off the desk, sitting back down on Kahira's bed, a much comfier place to sit while Kahira surveyed her keepsake wall. She was glad to see so many pictures of herself on that wall, though she had to admit there were a few she would be embarrassed to show many others. It was one thing to say that Kahira was her best friend, but another to see herself such a confidently permanent part of the redhead's life and positive memories. Nova nodded her approval of Kahira's selection. "That was a good night. We stayed up far too late. And I can't believe we convinced Kassian that gentleman was a werewolf," she giggled. "We can always get more made. I suppose we'll have to find friends willing to photograph us." She shrugged. "Or simply pay people."

The latter was, she supposed, not a preferred option, but it would do in order to have recent photos of Nova and Kahira in their Slytherin pride. That would remind them, if they should ever need it, who they were to themselves and each other. They had come this far- what was to stop them from anything they wanted to do? Also, the young witch greatly doubted that she would have to be frugal with her money in the slightest at Hogwarts, knowing her parents could just send her some if she needed it. There were great benefits to generational wealth, and Nova harbored no guilt exploiting it.

Like we've always dreamt. Nova smiled. "Of course." How foolish of her to doubt for a second where they belonged. Kahira was right, and Nova was once again grateful for her friend to bring her back to herself. "Do you think you'll be a natural at potions?" she pondered, playing with the ends of her hair with one hand as she leaned back on the other. Kahira's family was practically famous for their potioneering prowess, and Nova was sure it ran in her blood. Nova's parents both worked at the ministry, which corresponded much less directly to all of the subjects taught at Hogwarts, but she was sure that her status and her parents' own skills would serve her well.

@Kahira Valerian / July 9th, 2026 / outfit
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Concern flashed on Nova's face, the young brunette not needing to say anything to decline her friend's offer. Kahira doing a makeover for Nova's closet? The girls may have shared some preferences and a certain scorn for the usual modern outfits of their generation, but Nova often found that Kahira was drawn to more bold clothes than the brunette was. She could hardly imagine wearing dark green all the time- it was just too much for her. She found light colors carried a certain clean, refined look that suited her so well. Kahira could dress as moody and dark as she wanted, but Nova would stick with her frills.

Kahira carried on her disapproval of all the inferior houses, and Nova joined her in rolling her eyes. Nova didn't mind a library, but she couldn't imagine being exactly excited for one. The young girl raised a hand to inspect her nails as her friend went on. In recent years, she learned more and more about how to take care of her appearance, and while there was magic to help in a lot of areas, it gave her a sense of satisfaction to find products she liked. Her nails were one of those areas she liked caring for, and while they weren't always polished, they were always clean, shaped, and taken care of. The brunette added her self-care supplies to her mental list of all the things she would want to bring to Hogwarts.

The redhead made valid points, of course, and Nova lowered her hand to her lap, nodding. "I don't want to imagine," Nova said, disgust rolling through her. How embarrassing it would be for one's family and one's house to fail to align. She could almost hear the stress in her mother's voice now thinking about how everyone would talk. Nova's mother knew that in their society, people would always talk about them. There was simply no way around being the topic of gossip, and there was no use in refraining from it yourself. But what they talked about when you did come up, she always said, that you could decide. Thus the consistent checking of outfits, the corrections, the constant tidbits of advice. All to uphold the spotless image of their family. Pureblood connections were what gave them their superiority, and to lose that was to lose how they lived.

"At least he's good for a laugh," Nova said. Her brother was good for all kinds of things that he was praised for in their family. But Nova often felt she had shallow acquaintances she was closer with. Perhaps if he decided to act like she existed, he could have given her all kinds of tips about Hogwarts life, but the young witch had to collect that advice elsewhere, and she resented him greatly for it. Wasn't he supposed to be, as her brother, a protective and helpful figure in her life? What made him think he was all too good to even be seen talking to her?

While the "werewolf" had simply been a slightly intimidating looking man, Kahira was right that there was a guest of practically every event she attended that was... not quite human. Her nose crinkled up. "I still think it's deranged what happened," she said, her voice dropping. The status of Kahira's brother was no secret between the people currently in the manor, but Nova couldn't help but act all hushed about it. There was nobody listening to them, but it just felt like the kind of thing one should be quiet about. "And that your parents still let him leave the manor." Nova couldn't even imagine having a sibling that was practically a vampire. Even thinking about or sharing a table with the young Valerian heir gave her the chills.

Nova grinned at her friend's confidence. "Now who's bookish?" she teased, smirking. "I've always loved astronomy," she said in response to her friend's question. "It'll be fun learning more about the stars, and staying up for night classes. But I think all the spell-casting classes will be among my favorites. Not quite as boring as history with all those stories about goblins I hear we have to memorize, but not quite so dirty as herbology," she said. To Nova, potions was along a similar vein in its potential to be messy, but not if the potioneer was skilled enough. However, her current expectation of herbology class was honestly just plants and dirt, and Nova had to admit she was not excited for that. "I don't really think any of the classes will be that hard. Perhaps that's just because we're magically predisposed."

She turned to look her friend in the eye, and small smile rested on her face. "We'll show them, Kahira," Nova said, decisively. It was hard not to be confident about their futures when she was with her best friend. Kahira was always so sure of herself, always so determined to show everyone who she was and become who she decided she would be. And something Kahira seemed equally sure of was Nova herself. "We'll show them all."