"Take a chance and roll the dice"

Maeve couldn't say that she loved Halloween- though she liked the tradition of Samhain. She'd read about it, she did like reading about the old pagan ways of witches and wizards, before things like the Ministry and Hogwarts. When magic was freer, wilder, more instinctive. Now, Halloween was just another commercialised, stupid holiday which people used as an excuse to behave childishly and get wasted. Not that there was an issue with either of those things, but if you were going to do it, own up to doing it because you want. Don't chalk it up to some holiday that has nothing to do with it, both ruining the celebration and hiding your true intentions. Still- apparently her American friend had managed to convince her to dress up for the school ball. Maeve didn't even know why they celebrated it, it wasn't as if it was such a big thing in England. Not in muggle Britain, at least, so if they were going to do something on this date... there was Samhain. She was still stuck on that. Why did they not go back to that? It would be amazing, fascinating. Not like this cheap whatever it was. She didn't even know what they were dressed up as, Mal had picked their costumes. She thought this one was more than a little weird, but she went along with it. The things she did for this stupid eagle.

"Are you sure about this? We could've just snuck off somewhere and spent time by ourselves. Where's the fun in this?" Maeve scowled at @malena, looking sideways at her as she uneasily tugged her dress further down. This was just too much purple. The only comfort in the costume was that mum always told her she should never wear this shade of purple because it clashed with her hair. She always did love disobeying her mother. Mal was dressed more comfortably, though she had heels while Maeve had point blank refused to wear any. That was something, at least. Something Mal took into consideration. As far as she knew, they were just going to sit in a corner with their own drinks while ignoring everyone. That's what she wanted to do, at any rate. Maybe they would talk to @maya or @beathan, but she wasn't really holding her breath. She and Mal weren't very known for being overly sociable and she didn't think that anybody minded. Everybody had their own friends, after all. 

Upon entering the Great Hall, Mal immediately pulled her along to the food and drink table. Which, Maeve had called it already. So, with a roll of her eyes, she followed along.

she's Daphne - the flats

@ in the text

ψ

Dominic really loved Halloween; it was one of his favourite holidays. Well, that long side Christmas, Easter, Valentine’s Day. St David’s Day, his own birthday, the birthdays of his friends and family, May Day, New Year’s Day, Boxing Day, Guy Fawkes, Merlin’s Birthday, in fact, anything that could be conceivably considered to be a holiday or celebration was Dominic’s favourite. He even loved the days that didn’t have some kind of holiday that he knew of attached to them and made up days to celebrate. Including having a clean of socks day, hug your neighbour day, enjoy your pie day and say hello to everyone you see day.

The second year had spent a long time trying to come up with a costume for the Halloween dance, sure he could have worn something cliched like a vampire outfit or come dressed as a clown, but the Gryffindor boy wanted to be something more special, something more unique, more original. The blonde-haired youngster wanted to stand out from the crowd and for people to notice him and say. ‘Hey, there is Dominic, he is one cool and altogether guy, I really want to have a coke with him and hang out. What an awesome dude he must be’ he was quite confident that what he was wearing would certainly get attention.

He wasn’t going as anything in particular, not even as one of the many of the incredible creatures that existed inside his own imagination. Instead, the 12-year-old lad wore a red suit with a white front on it. The costume also had long, rainbow coloured wings that were obviously enchanted to be bright and vibrant to try and attract attention. He had a mask over his face with a long blue beak and on top of his head, he had lime green floppy bunny ears that were facing backwards. The bottom half of his outfit was some purple feathery trousers and, oddly, a pair of ordinary trainers on his feet. Almost as if he had forgotten the footing of his costume

The small Welsh wizard entered the Great Hall grinning from ear to ear, trying to see if any of his friends were around the Hall. It was such a difficult task to find anyone he knew there, they all tended to be in costume, and they were all so outstanding. The young lion could not find Henry James Blanchet or @lizzy anywhere at all if they were there, they were well disguised. Dommie looked a bit despondent at this. He didn’t want to be alone for Halloween, that would not be fun at all. The youngster supposed he could talk to some random person and hope for the best, but he noticed Amy speaking in Welsh to someone out of the corner of his eye. He supposed that it was Donnie that she was speaking to, that would make the most sense. The cousin of the Westwood’s wandered over to them. If anything, Halloween was a time for family after all, right? Well, unless Henry and/or Liz made an appearance, he would then chill with them. 

Halloween Ball

Zoe honestly had not pictured that she was going to be nervous. She honestly can not recall a time she ever stood in front of a mirror for that long trying to make sure the whole ensemble went together. She was excited. That was what happened every time she went to one of these school dance things. But her excitement was different this time around. She was asked by someone to go to the ball who was not a bad option to go with.

Her and Dima were . . . More than friends? She can not recall if they had actually used any words more than that but it did not seem to matter in her head. She had told him that he was hers now. That was all she needed right now. Any sort of labels could come later. 

Seeing Dima dressed as a greaser honestly was the greatest thing about the whole night. The costume suited him well and his hair totally helped. It was clear that the two were meant to be put together. At least that was as long as 
She laughed to herself seeing him scrunch up his nose. Her response was to simply stick her tongue out at him. Zoe took the cup and held it with both hands. She couldn't help but grin at the idea of their Quidditch teams. Surely the Gryffindor boys would enjoy wearing a nice pair of leggings. "I don't know about that one. No one can pull it off as well as we can." She smiled as she took a sip of her drink.

tags: @dima
word count: 263
notes: Outfit | I apologize for whatever that was

✦

[googlefont="Roboto:300"]

Halloween Ball

La Castanyada

something is not quite the same

Luna wasn’t sure that this was going to be anything like the parties that happened in Barcelona. She hadn’t been to one since she was eleven, but she knew that that was going to change. One day she would go back. One day she would go home. This was Anglaterra Or, well, this was technically Escocia. And she didn’t like it all that much. Luna had made no secret of that though. And it hadn’t seemed to make all that much of a difference. Whatever the case was, she didn’t think that there was any reason to get all that attached. She wouldn’t be here forever. She had already decided that. That she wasn’t going to stay. There was no reason to. This was not her home. This was not where she wanted to be. If there was a quick way out of here, she was going to find it. But tonight, she was stuck here. And they were all stuck here. The fronteres were closed.

She thought that that was partially Papi’s doing. That he would have had some sort of say in that. But she figured that it was something even more political than that. There had to be other people making decisions. If it were just Papi she was going to worry. Because he was only one man after all. He had enough to worry about. Luna’s loyalty to her pare only went so far though. She was loyal to Papi, and she was loyal to Mami, and to be loyal to both, to serve two masters, meant that there were plenty of times that she was not truly truthful with either one. And that was just how it was going to be. She was a result of everything that had happened.

The youngest. She was the one that saw it play out in Graciela, how she wasn’t really either one of them. And then Dario… He was Papi. He was the one that was going to make it out of this. That was going to still be himself in a way. And she could respect that. Because she was Mami. And she knew it. Out of the set of them, it was Luna that was the most like Mami. And yet, she had Papi wrapped around her dit petit. Of course, once upon a time, Mami had too. They were spiders in that way. Casting their webs, drawing them in. That was exactly what she had done tonight too. Or what she planned to do.

Luna had taken the time to really think about her outfit. To think about what it was that she wanted, and the best way to get it. This had been the result. Pulling her hair up into fixed curls, Luna put her hat on at the last moment before she had stepped into the hall. She was sure that @dario and @magdalene were here somewhere, but she didn’t really want to bother her germà. She just wanted to find him in the crowd, catch his eye, and then find @miranda.

The other girl was the closest thing that Luna had to a friend in this place, and it was because she had suffered through her broken Anglès a little better than everyone else had. Seeing her, she headed in that direction, letting her full skirts sweep around her, as she kept her eye out for the reason that she had chosen such an elaborate costume in the first place. But @angus was nowhere to be seen. At least not yet.

Grabbing a drink, she came up next to Miranda and nodded to @karel. She didn’t really like the other boy, but she didn’t really like anyone, so that was nothing new. “Hola Miranda.” There was a smile on her face that didn’t carry over to the boy that she ignored other than a nod of greeting. “Is your germana, here?” She had gone to help her younger sister get dressed, and that had been when they had last parted ways, after all.

@ partygoers • 671 • luna's outfit

MADE BY VEL OF GS + ADOX 2.0

Karel loved to annoy @miranda , far more than he’d admit. Seeing how easily she got riled up filled him with glee; maybe it was because she was so small? Her height and her temper combined together provided much amusement, she was fiery and never took his remarks lying down, most people wouldn’t argue with him, but she did and he respected her for it. She wasn’t a sheep. He wasn’t thrilled that she was dressed up, he had hoped that at least Miranda would be too mature for dressing up, but alas, he was mistaken. Despite that though, a smirk crept across his lips as he watched her become slightly more murderous when she spotted that he was helping her and doing things she was capable of doing herself. ”I know you do, but what sort of person would I be to not be a gentleman, ljubica?” He asked with a wicked grin.

Karel glanced down at the girl beside Miranda and he offered the younger girl a genuine smile, what people didn’t realise about Karel was he was never this cold to younger people. He wasn’t that cruel; children twelve and under? He’d never torment them, he wasn’t that bad. ”Aren’t you a pretty awesome lion?” Karel said to the girl his tone of voice almost kind – almost. He glanced at the drink in his hand and handed it to the first year. He’d get another one when he was actually thirsty and not just looking to piss of Miranda. Glancing over his shoulder Karel spotted Oralie Slughorn come in and he offered the witch a smile and nod in greeting when she walked past him before turning back to Miranda, ”Anyway, I was wondering if you wanted to dance?” He asked, the wicked smile creeping onto his lips once again. The outcome would likely be one of two things, she’d get even more angry at her and start an argument, or she’d agree so as not to give him the glee of annoying her. It made him laugh though, because what Miranda wouldn’t know, was either response would be a win-win for him.

Unfortunately for the wizard, he didn’t get a chance to hear Miranda’s response because they were joined by another Slytherin; Karel looked away with a scowl, his fun had been cut short and he wasn’t happy at all. When @luna settled beside them, he turned to the witch and nodded politely in response, his expression hardened and he turned to Miranda, his eyes glinting dangerously. He would be lying if he said it was because he wanted to keep annoying her and couldn’t, but that wasn’t the case so instead he just rolled his shoulders and turned to Miranda, ”I’ll get that dance later, ljubica.” He said, shooting Luna a filthy look then turning to the younger girl, ”Again, nice costume kid. Enjoy the ball.” He said before turning and walking off, making a beeline for Oralie.

Oralie Slughorn wasn’t exactly the best of friends with Karel, she probably didn’t even consider him as a ‘friend’ the same as he, but she was the closest thing to it, so he was more than happy to spend time with her and not cause trouble. He filled a new cup with punch and leaned against the table beside the witch, glancing sideways at her. ”Not a bad costume, Lie.” He greeted, looking her over and offering her a small smile, ”Who are you trying to impress?” He asked with the tiniest trace of playfulness as he sipped his drink.

In this town, don't we love it now?
Everybody's waiting for the next surprise

    Octi had come to a realisation lately. He was far more emotionally vulnerable than he had previously thought. It was a result of always having been emotionally stable, never particularly dramatic, but always... close. Always so free with his affection, always expecting it to be returned just as he gave it. That wasn't healthy and it definitely wasn't safe, it only resulted in him being hurt and trying to hide it because he didn't want anyone worrying for him. Because he didn't think he was allowed to feel at all upset, not wanting to bother anyone with worrying about him. After all, he was a cheerful person, that was what people expected and desired of him. Untroubled, peaceful, fun company. Nothing dramatic or sad or anything like that. Combine those two and he ended up how he had. Having fleeting encounters in which he cared too much about the other person- not romantically, but still rather personally when intimacies were regular. Then, of course, whoever his partner was would end up falling in love with someone else, would end up not wanting anymore, and he would be hurt. Then, knowing that it was foolish to be hurt since he'd never had any desires for anything more than a casual shag in the first place, he would suppress that hurt until it showed up in other ways. It had all come to a conclusion in his crush on Hal. It was... Hal was a lovely person, he was sweet and intelligent and kind. He was also rather handsome. However, he and Octi... they didn't enjoy the same things. That was perfectly alright, except for the fact that he had been hypersensitive at the time due to all the perceived rejections. It made things rather... volatile in his head. Which wasn't like him at all. He felt horribly guilty that his crush on Hal had only been a direct result of his emotional turmoil, it was like latching onto the first person that seemed even remotely eligible- at least, nothing had happened. That meant that he could keep being friends with Hal without having ruined anything. That was good. 
    This had all revealed itself to him during one of his smoking sessions on an alcove on the seventh floor. Of course, he hadn't been very high at the time, that would make any thoughts on the matter promptly be forgotten. No, it had been a very thin one, light, just to relax himself. He'd been needing relaxing, lately, a lot of it. Alis kept telling him that it was a bad idea to rely on it all when he was having a bad time and Octi knew that he was right, but- well, with his mum in the hospital and then all of this going on, he'd just needed to clear his head for a bit. It would be fine- and it had been. The whole revelation felt freeing. He felt a million pounds lighter already and he thought that it would allow him to enjoy himself a bit more. So he had picked a costume with @clio and gotten dressed, then come down to the great hall. He knew that @dario and @magdalene would be going together, probably as something adorable but which he would still not be able to handle sober. The good thing was that even if Alis had decided to not drink or smoke tonight -Merlin knew fucking why- Octi had made no such promise, so he had all his supples in a pouch on his toga. Great. Hopefully Helenus Caolán Fawley would be around too, maybe @hal  , or Athazaz Acanthus Bones . Any of his friends, really. Maybe an older student to hook up with, or at least make out with. Hopefully. He thought it was rather ironic that he and Clio were dressed up as greek gods when there was a whole group of them at school- but hey, he liked the joke. Also, he was only planning on being there for an hour before taking off.
    So, arriving, he stood at the door for a second and looked around. Already, he wanted to take out his flask. Instead, he decided to scout out the other students present. Preferably, he wanted to make note of any bloke that checked out his legs because that meant opportunity. 

but the toga is tied right | tags: in the text | Note

template by punki of adoxography

Halloween Ball

Over the years, the Halloween Ball had grown very dear to Sir Nicholas. There was something delightful about seeing all the students dressed up so extravagantly. There were the cases where he could almost believe himself back in his human days, there were the ones who looked like always, and there was the third category, his favourite. The what-in-the-name-of-Merlin-and-the-King-do-they-want-to-imitate type of costumes. Guessing what they might be amused him endlessly even though once he asked, it often proved he was wrong. The Head of his House for example, what was that supposed to be? Had there really once been a period in human history when such a dress had been normal? Her husband looked more like something he had already seen a few centuries ago. There were many costumes like that, where he was left wandering whether this was supposed to be historical or just some phantasy.

There were costumes which didn’t require much thinking. He could spy several Ravenclaws in what he thought were a normal, if festive, clothes — normal in the sense of the present era, not his own, sadly. Realising what was currently being worn was not that hard. He sometimes mixed things up, but usually he saw enough students walk around casually to know what was considered casual right now. He could spot two of his Gryffindors dressed up as Greek gods. That he also recognized. He had had a very solid classical education back in his time. It was his second favourite way of costume after dressing in fifteenth century attire. This just gave him a singularly cozy feeling, even if the students missed the mark here and there. But most amused he was with the costumes that meant absolutely nothing to him. The main difficulty was that for some reason Muggle fairy tales had become very popular over the last few years. He remembered when Beedle published his tale collection, and for several years, dressing as the Hopping Pot or Sir Luckless had been universal. Nowadays though, they had lost very much in popularity, and he was left guessing — which was a lot of fun. There was a student dressed as a girl with a red hood. He had seen that one before, it seemed to be very popular. He had asked several times who it was again supposed to be, but of course he forgot. He’d have to ask again. There was a couple in green, which he also guessed had to have some Muggle origins. And what had that little girl done with her hair? It made the Bloody Baron’s chains look like cord in comparison. These were the most obvious ones, but there were many more where he wondered if it was based on some Muggle story. It was a calming observation in these times. The Magbobs’ influence could not be denied, no matter how hard some may try.

He looked above to see the Grey Lady floating over everybody else. She wasn’t one for merriment, never had been. If such curiosity were not below him, he’d wonder what had happened to her in life. She was still so young! But he’d go and find the Fat Friar to play a game of what-could-that-costume-be. It would be a pleasant way to spend the first few hours of the evening.

Halloween Ball

No costume out of conviction

It wasn’t as bad as last year. That was about the most positive that Arthur was willing to admit about this evening. Think positive. Their Headmaster hadn’t dismembered anybody in one and a half year, that wasn’t too bad. His new-found clemency was most likely only due to the students being more careful, but he was trying to think positive today, wasn’t he? Well, no, not really. The Headmaster was still a monster, and no optimism in the world could cover it up. His mother might be fine — at least on the surface and apparently that was all that he and his sister were allowed to see — but that didn’t make undone what he knew had happened — still was happening. It was childish, cruel, to do as that man told them while so many of their friends were still excluded. And the majority of the students — not just those who were just as corrupt as the Headmaster — seemed perfectly fine with this. If such festivities did anything, then it was remind him of this. So, if there was a ball, he was in a bad mood. Maybe they didn’t have to attend the balls to anymore? If someone else had agreed, he might have staid in the common room, but now here he was, not knowing what he should do with himself.

But he hadn’t put on a costume. He hadn’t put on anything special. He had thought about coming in his pyjamas for a while, just to make it clear how little he thought of the whole farce, but that felt a little too… he didn’t feel completely comfortable with the idea. Common Muggle jeans and shirt would hopefully get the message across just as clearly, and if a teacher didn’t like it, the worst they could do was sending him back to the common room. Hopefully.

He wasn’t sure what his sister was thinking, dressing as Demeter (he had to ask first, but at least he knew who the goddess was, thanks to Mum), but he guessed that was also supposed to be some message to the Headmaster, just more subliminal than his. Whatever… he’d check on her now and then try to figure out how he might survive the evening. He squeezed his way through the crowd, the good mood only reminding him once more how out of place he thought it was. Finally, he spotted Violet Gertrude Stroud. “Here you a—” he started to say when he saw who she was talking to. @clio. The friend of hers that for some reason had decided that she couldn’t stand him. “Hi…” he said before looking quickly away and turning red. She had legs. Not that he hadn’t known she had legs, everybody had, but not legs like… legs. Normally there weren’t any legs visible under their robes, and he sort of hadn’t expected legs… now. Hopefully she hadn’t noticed. She disliked him enough without thinking that he ogled at her. “Er…” he continued to Vi, trying to remember what he had wanted to say. “Are you… if you need me, I’ll be…”

Halloween Ball of 2018

And He Dressed To Impress

Somewhere along the line he'd been talked into this... and honestly, he wasn't hating it half as much as his mood had depicted he would have earlier. It was... strange, really, looking down and seeing far bigger muscles than he'd ever tried to achieve - 'Thanks for that, Marcus'- and then tugging Tornadoes kit over them and strapping in his wrist guards. Would that it had stopped there. Sure, he might have gone so far as to have polyjuiced himself into his brother if he weren't... well... adversed to-

No he wasn't getting into that. No. 

So he'd darkened his hair well enough, shortened it a little to suit Marcus' standards... and left his morning stubble to colour as well since his brother never really took the initiative to go clean shaven. Last had been his eye colouring spell and merlin had that been a trippy experience and a half. Brown eyes. Brown eyes. He looked alien even to himself let alone anyone else- he would floo over later to show his brother if he caught him at the penthouse. All in the name of fun and festivity. Given, it was pretty hilarious to dress up as his little brother and all... and maybe the extra muscles had given him an idea or two (especially since that bloody VEXED issue saying he had a dad bod... like... wow) in the long run. 

The ball was in full swing now and he'd gotten used to his costume for the most part. Weaving through the crowd of students and having a laugh at a few of their costumes. He was blatantly ignoring @kit 's costume, from the flash that he'd seen of him and his counterpart, all in the spirit of Halloween as well. A point of development in his own mind, one could say. If they didn't want to be on the receiving end of one of his looks, that was. Carrying a broom with him had gotten tedious until he was free and apart from the mass and was able to hold it over his shoulder casually, strolling around the room and looking for @odelia and @melanie. The latter hadn't taken long, really, once he'd done his rounds. Sebastian still enjoyed her company immensely regardless of the fact things hadn't gone anywhere particular with them. In the end he'd scored another friend. Someone else to rely on. Someone else to help him with the task of educating their entire student populous - of the appropriate ages - with their sexual health and knowledge. His cupboard-crashing expeditions had considerably decreased since the beginning of the new term and so he was in a fairly good mood overall where the school was concerned. 

Looking sidelong at the witch with a smile in place - the biggest opposite to his brother ever - he contentedly took in the crowd and turned to look at the punch bowl with a suspicious eye... then turned back to her. "Well... everyone else seems to be enjoying themselves immensely, I'd say. Hopefully this one will go without a hitch, hm?" Sebastian drawled quietly, turning his gaze to her fully, "It's entertaining to see what they chose for their costumes... I daresay I saw a tiny Dumbledore on the way in. No accounting for taste... I suppose."

TAG:  @melanie , @anne , Carin(a) Rowan Flint | WORDS: 544  Outfit: He is his brother. He's buffed up, he's darkened his hair and facial hair. He's borrowed a set of Tornadoes Robes. And he's got a spell that's changed his eyes to brown. Enjoy.

MEL @ ADOXOGRAPHY

The Eve of Samhain

Ball 2018

A show of solidarity in the face of the school's celebrations; On the night of Samhain where the barrier between the dead and the living thinned and paled from what the mortals generally imagined. The singular evening per anum where ghosts and poltergeists from all parts could congregate together without the tethers of their mortal coils or soul's residence per their demise. For most, that was the night in full. A night for fear of what would come through the veil. The closest the Baron ever came to a smile in spite of irony for the living resided with ghosts yet still chose to wear masks and guises to ward off evil. What was evil, in this day and this age? What constituted as horrific and unbearable in ways that they must be warded off? It was also @sirnicholas 's deathday. A night where The Baron deigned to join in celebrations of a kind by showing his presence, in a show of friendship for his friend. The closest thing the spector had ever had to a friend since that night, at least. 

A jester might have crowed at his malevolent, damnable vision... but in truth there was little he had to control how he looked, and little he cared to as well. On this night, perhaps, the ghosts looked more human and more defined... but the Baron never gave attention to rumour. His fellow phantoms looked the same as always to him. Perhaps The Lady looked a little less pale, a little more tangible... the Slytherin Ghost did what he could not to let his eyes stray to her visage. Tonight was not about past wrongs. It was about the celebration for Sir Nicholas's passing - or at least, would be once the students retired and the mourning began in earnest in the bowels of the school-  and for the students and governing body to... apparently amuse themselves with gaudy baubles and costumes. It was the one time of year that he walked among them rather than allow himself to glide along, knowing to do so would lift him... and there was One whom he would not bother by entering the same space. She held the room above as her plateau and he would be lesser, as always. 

His chains rattled, the links clanking against themselves as he moved slowly around the room. It is hard to say whether he noticed the wide berth that was given him as the crowd pulled away or not, or whether or not it bothered him. Perhaps it did for his black, glittering eyes widened a little further, the brim of his hat pushed back with the flat of his forever gloved hand to reveal the room at large... his expression tightening in its eternally menacing scowl. Yet still he walked. Tipping a head to the Headmaster, @sebastian , and his companion, @melanie , to the others who dared even attempt to acknowledge him. Not many did. There had been a few in recent turns who hadn't shunned him as such... his eyes glided past faceless heads to the ones he recognised. Lady Oralie Slughorn  was one such soul who did not shy from his approach in a corridor not so long ago. There had once been a Lady North. A Seppanen. Others, names that bled together, faces that did not quite stick.

Peeves had been warned within scarce words not to approach the hall, tonight. Not to disturb its occupants nor the guests who would soon congregate in the ballroom beneath their feet. There would be no raucous from the dead nor the never-living, tonight, all chances and destinies already carved within the future outwith their hands. Whatever happened tonight would not matter to them, for it would pass. It would all pass. So long as the Slytherin students were not put in harm's way on this Eve, his watch would go without intervention. There had been a time, a few annuals ago, where a great fyre had torn through this hall and marred many a person without cause nor resistance. It would not happen, again.

TAG: The Grey Lady , @sirnicholas , @anyonewhowantstotalktohim| WORDS: --| Outfit: Bloodstained robes, plumed hat, and many great chains.

MEL @ ADOXOGRAPHY