Welcome Back Ball :: {everyone}

[ϟ ADMIN ADRIENNE]

It had taken four long months, but Hogwarts had finally been restored to its former glory. The castle had been fully repaired, and was more beautiful than ever. It had taken a lot of hard work, but it was all worth it. And now the students had returned to Hogwarts. The castle finally felt alive again; the students breathed life back into it.

The Headmistress felt that this year, a start of year feast just wasn't enough of a celebration. They needed something more, something to show that they had come through the worst, and come out stronger on the other side. Hogwarts was like a phoenix rising from the ashes. They needed to show unity, and school pride. And so a ball was organised, a few weeks after the start of term. Give the students time to settle in, she thought, and then give them something they will never forget. Something that will really start the new Hogwarts off on the right foot.

The entrance hall had been decorated exquisitely. Everything had been gilded in gold for the special occasion. There were candles everywhere, and a golden light bathed the whole hall. It was a beautiful entrance for the ball

And the Great Hall... well, if it was possible, they had outdone themselves with the Great Hall. It looked even more beautiful than it had at the Yule Ball. There were tables with elaborate centre pieces, and light, flowing fabric draped from the ceiling. It was unrecognisable. The clear starry sky outside, reflected in the enchanted ceiling, gave the whole room an open feel. And there was a beautiful dance floor, bathed in a colour changing light.

Anyone who looked closely enough would notice that all of the house colours were incorporated with the decorations; scarlet red for Gryffindor, sapphire blue for Ravenclaw, golden yellow for Hufflepuff, and emerald green for Slytherin. The décor was the perfect show of school unity.

A band was playing slow, beautiful music, which would turn into something the students could really dance to as the night progressed. Everything was perfect, and the Headmistress beamed with pride, as the students began to arrive...

[ginny]

Ginny's Dress

Ginny walked into the Great Hall, and felt for a moment speechless.
Everything was so beautiful. It looked nothing like the hall she had eaten breakfast in just that morning. Ginny felt excitement well up inside her as she looked around. The lighting was soft, and the music was perfect. With a setting like this, it was bound to be a great night. One they would remember. One everyone really needed right now.

Although they had won the war, it had been hard to find things to celebrate recently. Sure, people celebrated Voldemort's defeat, but most people were mourning lost loved ones, in no mood for celebration. And then there had been so many pieces to pick up. The world, it seemed, was in tatters, and needed to be mended.

So to finally have something to celebrate made Ginny feel as though she had begun to come through the other side. Like maybe the time for sadness and grief had passed, and the time for being happy had arrived. Still, Ginny couldn't help letting her mind flit momentarily to her lost brother, Fred. If he was here right now, he and George (for the two went everywhere together) would be laughing and joking, probably planning some harmless prank that would put everyone in good spirits. But thinking about Fred made her sad, so she pushed the thoughts away, as she always did these days. She may be in a beautiful dress, her long flaming red hair cascading down her back in curls, but she was still Ginny Weasley.

Ginny looked around, searching for a familiar face in the students pouring into the hall.

[SIVE BRANNAGH PARRY]

Sive's Dress

Sive stood in the Entrance Hall, slightly off to one side and away from the other students heading towards the Great Hall,, leaning against the bannister and looking out over the newly decorated hall. Everything looked beautiful. Sive wanted to take it all in; but she also wanted a moment to herself, before going inside.

Sive's dress was simple and elegant; it was long and black, and her front was mostly covered. But her back was another matter. The dress was almost entirely backless, with just a thin strap at the top holding it up. It made Sive feel oddly exposed and vulnerable, but also invigorated, and she looked amazing. The black of the dress contrasted beautifully with her pale skin, and her dark hair was sleek. But even so, even though Sive knew she looked good and felt happy about that, she just wasn't ready to walk into the Great Hall just yet.

Everything had changed so much. Yes, the castle had been decorated for the Ball, and those weren't real changes just temporary ones, but even without the decorations the castle was changed. The battle had seen to that. Parts of the castle had been destroyed, and now they had been rebuilt. And although seeing the new castle and moving on was a good thing, it was hard to mentally let go of the Hogwarts at war. Sive looked down at the steps leading down to the castle doors; she had stood on those very steps, using the height to her advantage, as she had fought (and in some cases killed) Death Eaters. For Sive, no amount of pretty decorations would erase that memory.

For one maddening moment, her mind flitted to Archer Grayson, the Slytherin Quidditch Captain who seemed to really hate her guts. Grayson seemed furiously obsessed with what Sive had done during that battle, and the Death Eaters she had killed. And in a masochistic way she found herself drawn to that; some part of her felt as though she deserved his hate and anger. He was refusing to let go of the past, and Sive didn't know if she was ready to yet either.

But now wasn't the time to think about those sorts of things. It was a point of pride with Sive that she remained strong, and wallowing while she was supposed to be having a good time at a beautiful ball was definitely being weak. So she would be happy and enjoy herself, and head into the Great Hall and join her classmates... but not just yet. For a few more minutes she would stay here in the quiet, and soak it all in.

[THEODORE JACOB NOTT]

Theo in his suit

Theo hadn't made it five minutes after he'd put his suit on and he was already tugging off his ridiculous bow tie. It had definitely added a touch of class, but he couldn’t stand the bloody thing. So, as he walked through the halls, he carried the bow tie in his mouth and began unbuttoning the top two buttons of his shirt. Yes, it was a ball. Yes, he was dressed for the occasion. But Merlin’s arse suits were constricting as hell, and for someone who was usually shirtless, they were practically suffocating. He walked past a few first years who were running around shouting about one thing or another as he made his way up from the dungeons and placed his bow tie in his pocket, his black suit in pristine condition over his now partially undone light pink dress shirt. His shiny black shoes completed his ensemble, and he smiled at the thought as he continued through the halls.

His normally extremely messy brown hair was pushed back somewhat, his attempt at ‘taming the beast.’ It usually wasn’t too hectic, but tonight he took special care in trying to keep it nice looking. He was likely already on some sort of negative list in the new Hogwarts because of his association with not one, but two known Death Eaters. It wasn’t like he was a death eater himself, yet, but his real father was, and so was his fake father. Fake was such a perfect word for what Theodore Nott Sr. was; a completely spineless fake. He clenched his jaw slightly at the memory of events past and pushed them aside, reminding himself that they let him back into Hogwarts. They didn’t hold him responsible for the act the Death Eaters committed, and they assumed that he had no plans to commit any other such rash acts in the future. They obviously didn’t know him very well, but he’d keep his mouth shut if it meant he wasn’t going to be hauled off to Azkaban. He was thankful, really, to be able to come back to Hogwarts. They could have tried him as an adult, and didn’t, and Theo wasn’t stupid enough to recognize a kindness of such measures.

The ball was being held to celebrate the rebuilding of the school, which was completely decked out for the party. He grinned as his eyes settled on the entrance hall, which had been completely covered in gold. It was a sight to behold, that was for certain. He stopped in his path, admiring the handiwork of the wizards who’d done it, even if this whole ball was a little silly. He didn’t really want to celebrate the rebuilding of Hogwarts. To him it felt like they were celebrating his loss, and everyone knows how much all Slytherins hate losing, especially Slytherins who favor the Dark Arts. His eyes landed on Sive, who Theo had almost never spoken to, but everyone knew the actions she took against the Death Eaters. He resisted the urge to glare at her before giving her a short nod of his head hello and continuing on his way into the Great Hall. He’d spend his night at this ball, even if it was only to keep up appearances in front of the professors and the ever-so-wonderful McGonagall, and he’d hate every second of it.

He walked into the Great Hall and was surprised once more, as the teachers had outdone themselves once more. It was hard to think that it was usually just four tables and a bunch of food. He looked around the room and didn’t quite see anyone he was particularly fond of. His eyes spotted Ginny Weasley, which immediately left a sour taste in his mouth. She fought against them, and dated Potter to boot. Nauseating really. So, instead, Theo did what he did best, and wandered over a table and sat by himself to observe a few of the other students that had come in. There was music playing, a group of girls Theo thought were in Hufflepuff were dancing on the floor already, and Theo smirked at them, his eyes sweeping the room. There were glasses on the table filled with water and Theo took a sip of his own, hoping someone he could actually tolerate would show up.

[STEPHANIE BROOK MCCARTHY]

Stephanie's Outfit.

Carefully Stephanie McCarthy applied the last of her mascara, trying her best not to poke herself in the eye. That would definitely be a disaster and then she’d have to go to the bathroom and wash every last bit of make-up off and reapply everything. Honestly, she didn’t have time to redo all of her make-up. The blonde had decided to go for a more natural look rather than slap layers and layers of make-up on and look like a wotsit. A lot of girls were wearing large ball gowns, while Steph decided to wear something that brought out all her best assets. Tonight she’d be wearing a strapless short black dress, with gorgeous embroidery across the waist. It hugged her curvy figure quite well and showed off her slender legs. The dress was beautiful and she really couldn’t of picked a better dress to show off her perfect figure. Quickly she had a think to make sure she hadn’t missed anything, she had all the essentials in her clutch bag including her wand and she didn’t have any smudges in her make-up.

Standing in front of the full length mirror she smoothed her dress over, but it really couldn’t get any smoother than it already was. Nodding to herself she collected her clutch bag and ran her fingers through her blonde hair and made her way into the common room. There was a lot of people hanging around in the common room, bunches of giggling girls and handsome young men trying to pull themselves a lady for the evening. Although Steph was quite happy to go on her own, she really didn’t need a guy around her to make her have a goodtime! Of course if anyone wanted to dance with her or talk to her they were more than welcome, especially if they were cute. The young blonde wondered if anyone she knew would already be down there, and if they weren’t they’d probably still be getting ready.

Nearly everyone was wearing long dresses and she was starting to question her choice of a short black dress, but she knew it was right for her figure. Steph had never been a fan of long dresses anyway, she liked to have her legs on display rather than keep then tucked away. As she made her way into the great hall she was astonished at how beautiful the place was. It could definitely be agreed by many that the headmistress had out done herself with all the decorations and everything. Quite a few people were there but no one she knew. She wasn’t going to go dance on her own so she decided to pour herself a glass of punch while she waited for someone she knew to turn up, or for someone to keep her entertained. Making her way over to the punch table she poured herself some punch and turned around doing a final scan of the hall to see if she could find anyone she knew.

[susanbones]

Susan's Outfit www.polyvore.com/dressing_to_impress/set?id=54224229

Susan was bustling around the Hufflepuff girls’ dormitory trying to get ready. She kept tripping on the heels she had already owned so she decided not to use them and to go with the white ballet flats. She honestly had but most of her time into the dress, accessories and her hair more so than her shoes. She found that shoes were the least important since people would be looking at her dress and face not her feet. She didn’t put any makeup on, she personally hated makeup.

When she had made her way to the Great Hall she began to wonder what it would look like. She hoped that she wasn’t undressed or overdressed. She hated being the one person who stood out. She liked just being average in the crowd, well, most of the time. She hoped she’d see someone she knew so she wasn’t walking around like a lost soul.

She was completely stunned when she saw the Great Hall. She couldn’t even find the words to describe how amazing it was. She had never seen the Great Hall look so beautiful. She couldn’t even believe this was the Great Hall anymore. She was excited to just get this ball going.

Peering around the room she didn’t see any other Hufflepuffs or anyone she knew closely. That didn’t matter much since she knew more people would be arriving soon. She was glad to have a social life or least feel like she had one. Then it came to her to walk up to a random person and just start talking to them but she didn’t want to talk to the wrong person and end up in a less the pleasant situation.

[desiree]

Desi in her outfit

Desiree had never been one to conform to norms, and the ball was no exception. She was definitely going to go. Like she'd miss what could be the biggest school event this year. Oh, she would definitely be there, but she wasn't going to dress in some big fancy dress, even though she had plenty in her closet. But she just wasn't feelin' it. She sighed, staring through her closet trying to figure out what in Merlin's name she was going to wear. There were so many choices! She had her yellow and green dress, her blue sequin dress, her black sequin dress, her black strapless, her black dress with straps, and the list went on and on. But she wasn't in the mood to wear any of them. She'd worn them all before to the Slytherin parties, so she wanted to wear something different. But what? She moved the dresses to the left of her closet and started looking at her skirts. Her eyes fell across her black leather skirt with gold beads embroidered on it, and her eyes lit up. That she could work with. She pulled it out of her closet and started looking through her shirts, finding a black shirt with gold accents. She grinned, pulling on the skirt and tucking the shirt in, making it look as much like a dress as she could.

What she wore over it was a different story. It might be cold in the ball room. With so many students they'd have to have the air on, and Desi was always cold. Always. She walked over to her closet again, growing a bit tired of the pacing. She pulled out a grey and black plaid thermal and her jean jacket, deciding to layer it. It was a simple enough outfit, and with a few touches of make up, and the addition of jewelery, she slipped on her black heels (which made her at least three or four inches taller, so she actually felt normal height for once) and headed out the door. Her hair was left straight until the end, where large curls rested. It wasn't anything fancy, but thought it worked well enough. You could probably tell she threw herself together in a matter of minutes, but didn't matter much to her. Let them judge her.

She loved the sound of her heels hitting the floor as she made her way through the Entrance Hall. It was a truly beautiful sight to see, even though she'd never want to admit that McGonagall was capable of doing anything good for Hogwarts... this she seemed to have gotten right. The amount of gold that covered the stairs and the floor was breathtaking, and Desiree smiled as she made her way through the entrance hall, noticing a Gryffindor lingering by the stairs. She'd almost opened her mouth to say something, but decided against it and made her way into the Great Hall. When she caught sight of the other girls dresses she grinned. They really were beautiful, but Desi was happy with her choice of comfortable attire, and she was thankful she'd worn layers, as a sweeping chill crept up her as she made her way further into the hall. Yep, they had the air on. Silly cooling charms.

She surveyed the hall momentarily, her eyes finding a few people she recognized. Ginny Weasley, who had almost been killed by Bellatrix Lestrange at the Battle for Hogwarts. Theo Nott, her older brother's best mate. And last but not least her eyes landed on Astoria Greengrass, her older brother's other best mate. Desi let out a laugh. AJ looked miserable! She shook her head slightly before making a beeline straight for her, the smile never dropping from her face.

"Why don't you look a little more upset," Desi said giggling, leaning against the wall next to AJ to get a better look at the rest of the Ball. There was a good amount of people in attendance, so that in itself was interesting. "None of us really want to be here, but do try and make the best of it. Nobody likes a wet blanket."

Desi wondered if McGonagall would give some sort of welcome back, I'm so glad we won the war speech and she mentally gagged at the thought. She'd rather not hear all about how good triumphed over evil and that the wizarding world was safe again. She saw people die, she got hurt, and while those physical wounds healed, her mental wounds were still present, and the trauma of that day still haunted her. She hated thinking about the battle, but she hated thinking about the fact that they lost even more.

TAG: AJ!

[summer]

Summer’s Ensemble

Miss Cresswell stood at the top of the stairs leading toward the Great Hall. It was going to be a long night. A long night full of more work than play, she thought with a smile. She was glad that she had opted for a larger bag tonight because she had been able to stuff some spare parchment and an ink-less quill into the purse so that she could keep up with what she was observing. That was one thing that she did not understand about purses...they often made them so small that it was impossible to fit anything of importance in them. Perhaps she would use that to form a fashion column in the next issue of The Underground. Then again, as she looked down at the outfit that had been completely planned by the other girls of her house and not her, she decided that she knew nothing about the world of fashion and should probably leave it to someone more experienced.

Summer wasn’t one for big parties and lots of people, in fact, she would have rather avoided the Welcome Back Ball all together...but unfortunately, the life of a reporter demanded that she go and have a good time while still managing to get the scoop on anything big that happened that night. So she waltz into the Great Hall all dolled up (as best she could manage...she wasn’t one to be overly interested in her appearance) and the night began. She had to admit that she was a little surprised as to how beautiful they had transformed the Great Hall. The Headmistress had definitely outdone herself this time. She took a mental note to remember to write about the corresponding house colors that decorated the large dance floor in the middle of the room.

Her eyes skimmed over the Slytherins that were hanging near the door, wondering just how much alcohol they had managed to sneak into the ball tonight. She knew the Headmistress wouldn’t be happy about that one. She was tempted to get out her quill right then and start writing away, but she couldn’t risk anyone seeing her. She would just have to wait until she found a quiet place where no one would bother her. She shook her head, trying to shake the feeling that one of the older Slytherins was watching her with his dark eyes.

Summer carefully tucked a piece of her untamed hair behind her ear as she walked forward and away from the Slyther-freaks, seeking out someone...anyone familiar. It wasn’t until she saw the familiar sight of red hair that she managed to relax into the evening a little bit, ”Gin-and-Tonic!”

[/b] She said with a grin as she bounded toward Ginny, ”Thank Merlin you’re here. Dunno what I would’ve done if I’d been stuck with that lot of tossers over there.”[/b] She nodded toward the group that she had left behind and then smiled, ”Good party so far?”[/b] She peered over her friends shoulder, looking for more familiar faces.[/blockquote]

TAG;;[/b] Gin-And-Tonic! <3

[ginny]

”Gin-and-Tonic!”

Ginny breathed a sigh of relief as she heard the familiar nickname, and turned to see her friend, Summer, walking towards her. Summer looked beautiful, in a golden gown that shone like her name. Ginny's nickname for Summer was 'Sunshine', and it was an apt one. But Ginny was sure that Summer hadn't picked out the dress herself. Summer wasn't interested in fashion, and didn't like putting together an ensemble for a big party. Ginny thought that the other girls in her house had probably helped her out. Summer wouldn't be too interested in going to a Ball.

Which made Ginny wonder, why was Summer here at all? But then she spotted the rather large bag, which she was sure Summer's more fashionable room-mates would not have picked to go with the elegant dress, and realised that Summer must have decided to report on the Ball. Well, that only made sense. The first edition of The Underground had been a huge success, and everyone was eager for more. There was sure to be a lot to report on from the Ball tonight. Everyone was in high spirits, and at least one person always managed to get a little too out of hand. But there wouldn't be much Quidditch going on, so Ginny wouldn't have to be 'on duty'. Not unless a Slytherin team player tried to take out a Gryffindor player, or something. That would fall into Ginny's reporting domain, right?

Ginny was relieved that Summer had showed up, because she was starting to feel very awkward standing there on her own. "Sunshine!" She said, grinning. She didn't bother to compliment Summer on her outfit, because she knew Summer didn't really care.

"Its not much of a party yet," she said "but they look like they have other ideas." She too looked at the Slytherins. Astoria Greengrass in particular looked like she wanted some trouble. Ginny rolled her eyes. Astoria had the mental age of a pre-teen, and had about the same idea of what was 'cool'. And the same desperation to attain it. Her friend Desiree was talking to her, which was good. Desiree had a slightly better head on her shoulders. At least the older Greengrass hadn't shown up yet, that Ginny could see; the two sisters would get into a fight, or desperately try to out do the other, which could lead to trouble.

"I just want a nice night," she said, looking away from the Slytherins, "I'm tired of still feeling like we're in a war."

[archer]

Arch’s Tux

[/color][/center]

If it wasn’t for the fact that his mother had always made sure that he had the proper dress robes for every occasion, Archer Grayson was convinced that he wouldn’t have gone to the ball. Sure, his appearance wasn’t of much consequence to him, but he wanted to at least look presentable. And so, in his italian-made tuxedo with bow-tie, he felt like he was ready to take on the world - or at least the entire school - at the Welcome Back Ball. He stood near the door to the Great Hall, leaning against a wall with one foot kicked up like he was extremely bored of the entire situation, which wasn’t far from the truth. There was absolutely no one that he wanted to talk to here.

His eyes scanned the crowd. Astoria was around...he could tolerate her for shorter periods of time if they were both obnoxiously drunk. Desiree was hovering nearby too, looking just as eccentric as she always did, but he wouldn’t approach her: the little sister of his mate Eli was off-limits. His eyes scanned the room again and then finally landed on Theodore. Quiddich mate. There, he could run with that one. Arch pushed off the wall and began slowly sauntering off in his direction. But that’s when he saw her.

Normally, he wouldn’t have given a Gryffindor mudblood a second look, but Sive Parry looked...well she looked beyond stunning. She was in some sort of backless gown - how it stayed on her body, he had no idea - but she looked flawless. Like one of those women that you would see in a movie ad. He immediately altered his course away from Theo, flashing his mate a smirk and then headed in the direction that took him toward Sive. It also took him past the drink table, from which he grabbed two goblets of punch.

“Parry-” He greeted cooly when he finally reached her. He held out the goblet, fully expecting her to take it. It wasn’t really a question in his mind. She was going to take it and she was going to drink it and then they were going to dance together, “Enjoying the soirée? Or thinking to yourself how much you wished a certain Slytherin Quidditch Captain would show up and seek you out?” He asked, his eyes still searching out the room for other friends and foes, his hand still extended with the cup within it, ”I left my broom on the pitch. Did you happen to pick it up?” He inquired.

[SIVE BRANNAGH PARRY]

“Enjoying the soirée? Or thinking to yourself how much you wished a certain Slytherin Quidditch Captain would show up and seek you out?”

Sive should have guessed that Archer would seek her out. The phrase was 'speak of the devil', but apparently thinking of the devil worked just as well. She had let her thoughts turn to Grayson only momentarily, and she was paying the price. She sighed, and turned around.

He looked good; he was wearing a black tux, and it suited him. Hit fitted his tall frame perfectly. He looked impressive, but she knew that she did too. She was pretty confident in her dress. And the look on Archer's face told her that he appreciated it. Sive almost smiled, but then stopped herself. She was not allowed to feel happy that Archer Grayson approved of how she looked. She didn't get dressed for him.

"You wish, Grayson," she said. But she took the drink from him anyway; she wanted a drink, and she wasn't going to be stubborn and deny herself. She took a sip, keeping her eyes on Archer; he was like a dangerous animal you didn't turn your back to.

She shook her head as he mentioned his broom and bag. Yes, she had picked them up, but only to bring them as far as the Slytherin changing rooms. But he didn't need to know that. "Maybe someone stole them." she said, with a slight smirk. Wow, she was really going to have to spend less time with the Quidditch captain. This was only their second conversation, and she was already picking up Slytherin traits.

Her mind went to their last conversation, which had turned into anything but. She suppressed a shiver, and looked away from him, gazing back out over the entrance hall. She leaned on the bannisters again, with her back- her very exposed back- to the great hall. Archer was standing next to her, and she felt a slight thrill at how vulnerable she was to him. The danger was scary, but exciting.

"I didn't expect to see you here," she said.

[daphne]

Daphne Greengrass at the Ball

Fashionably late was always her forte, Daphne thought as she drug her hand along the side of the wall. Her heels gave the familiar - and strangely comforting - click against the tiled floor as she traveled down the dungeon hallway. Maybe if she was lucky then she wouldn’t have to see her sister. Or Vivian tonight. She would rather like to enjoy her evening instead of being forced to compete with everyone. Although, she had to admit to herself, the competition was part of the fun. She loved the feeling of being on top...in more ways that one. Her lips parted slightly and a laugh escaped, one that was slightly malicious in intent.

She climbed the flight of stairs that dumped her in the middle of all the hustle and bustle of the Great Hall and she could immediately feel the energy radiating from the crowd. Everyone was excited to be there, everyone was buzzing. This was the energy that she thrived on. The energy that made her tick. She loved being around people and she could feel every inch of her body crawling with anticipation. Her head turned to the left and she found herself almost face to face with a boy in the Ravenclaw house.

“Dance?” He offered his arm to her and then nodded toward the door into the Great Hall. She raised one eyebrow and then touched his cheek.

”Way out of your league, book-worm-”

[/b] She said, patronizingly patting his cheek. She could instantly feel his expression wavier for a moment. Had he actually expected her to say yes to his little offer? Did he have any idea with whom he was dealing? She rolled her eyes and then walked away from him, making sure not to give any sign that she was going to turn around and take him up on his offer. But then she had a wonderful idea, one that could quite possibly ruin her little sister’s evening, ”Try Astoria Greengrass. I heard she’s into nerds,”[/b] She threw back over her shoulder, following her statement with a wink, and then glanced in her sister’s direction. AJ was going to hate her for sending the bookish Ravenclaw her way, but she just couldn’t help it. The night wouldn’t be any fun without a few little games played here and there.

The night was supposed to be about unity and the rebuilding of something great, but Daphne felt like it was just a big show. They could all sit around and pretend that they had forgiven each other, but she knew that in the end, there were still people - on both sides of the line - that were harboring ill feelings toward each other. That was something that a pretty ball, loud music, and provocative dancing couldn’t fix. It was something that she didn’t think could be fixed. It was like trying to cover up a broken bone with a bandaid...or telling a paraplegic that they could walk again if they just believed. Sickening really...The false hope that they were giving everyone made her feel rather sick to her stomach. This couldn’t just be fixed overnight. Daph had never picked sides in the war, but she was beginning to think that the winning side might have been doing the rebuilding all wrong. Trying to clear her head from the barrage of politics that seemed to be raging through her brain, Daphne stopped in front of one of the tables and leaned across to pick up a glass of water before continuing on her trek across the Great Hall.

She reached into her clutch and pulled out a flask which she opened with her teeth. She eyed the glass of water carefully, then poured it out on the shoes of a nearby girl. She flashed her an innocent grin, but kept walking, emptying the flask into the now-empty cup. She capped the flask and threw it back into her purse. She paused only for a moment to take a drink and winced as it went down - the deadly mixture that had been in the flask would cut some of the edge of the boring party this evening. It was then that she saw him, looking all tall dark and handsome across the dance floor. She immediately headed in that direction.

When she reached him, she jumped up on a chair and then carefully stepped on top of Theodore Nott’s table, ”Theo Theo Theo-”[/b] She said, eyeing him from her position of power, glass of Liquid Death dangling dangerously in her hand, ”I didn’t expect you to show up here. Wasn’t sure that parties were your thing.”[/b] She leaned down and offered him a hand.[/blockquote]

TAG ;;[/b] DEOOOOOO

[THEODORE JACOB NOTT]

Theo felt like he’d been sitting there, sipping on his water for ages before he finally saw a few faces he recognized. The first of which was AJ Greengrass. Fantastic he thought sarcastically as she seemed to make a beeline for the wall. She seemed annoyed and unhappy, how like her. He smirked at his thoughts before deciding he wouldn’t bother with her tonight. He was here to enjoy himself, not deal with a moody teen bent on having a bad time. Not that Theo knew that was true at all, it was just what he figured the inside of AJ’s head felt like. The next familiar face to enter the ball was Desiree, Elliot’s little sister. The girl was fine in his opinion, perhaps a bit too whiney for his tastes, but it was Elliot’s sibling and as Eli’s best friend he was obligated to try and get along with his siblings. The next face in was Archer, and Archer looked like he was headed straight for him. That he could deal with. Archer was his captain, and one of his good friends. He didn’t know much about the guy, but he was definitely the kind of guy Theo could laugh about this joke of a ball with.

However, at the last minute, Archer seemed to change directions and head toward… Sive Parry? Theo’s eyes narrowed in suspicion and confusion. But Archer thought the same things about… her kinds of people that he did. Or, at least that’s what he thought. His mother had been a Death Eater after all, and word in the Underground was that he’d kept in contact with her, too. Parry was a mudblood. What was he doing with the likes of her? Theo’s eyes remained narrowed at his friends judgment until he heard a shriek of protest.

“These shoes are new!” a girl screeched, and Theo smirked at the sound before turning toward the sound, and that’s when his eyes found her. A satisfied grin fell across his face as his eyes swept over Daphne Greengrass. She was stunning as ever, and she was heading his way. What luck. His eyes found the girl who was now shaking her foot to rid it of the water which Theo could only presume was dumped on her by Daphne, whose glass held a dark liquid that Theo knew was anything about what was allowed at such a… formal event to celebrate such a… wonderful occasion. Pffft.

Daphne was so… devious. She was a Slytherin through and through, and Theo’s grin only grew that much wider as she walked up, got up on a chair, and stood on his table. She greeted him in her usual condescending tone, but he was used to it by now.

“What and disappoint all of my adoring fans? I think not,” Theo let out a laugh, a cheeky grin across his face, as she offered him a hand. He glanced from her, to the table she was now standing on, immediately deciding that there was no way that table was going to support both of their weight. So he reached up and grabbed her hand in his, yanking her off the table and catching her in his arms. All the while the only thing he worried about was her drink spilling, and with a wordless incantation the contents of the glass remained completely intact. He wasn’t worried about Daphne. He knew he’d catch her. He made sure she was firmly on her feet before releasing her, a grin on his face.

“What about you, Princess? Care to share a bit of your royal party mix?” he grinned, picking up his cup of water which was now practically empty, finishing the rest before holding his glass up in front of her face, shaking it with a grin.

[archer]

Archer watched bemusedly as Sive looked him up and down. He had no doubt that he looked as good as he felt. It was the Italian Tux, it had to be. There was something about finer-made things in life that gave you an entirely new appearance. He didn’t miss the slight smile that came and went on her face faster than he could fly on his broom. She was definitely interested, he thought with a grin, which meant that his little seduce and betray plan was working perfectly. He felt the smile that was playing on his lips grow a little wider than it should have - His grin was a little more malicious than happy though, something that would most likely put Sive on edge - So he toned it down, instead letting just a bit of smile appear at the edges of his lips, giving him a much softer demeanor.

”I didn’t put anything in it, if that’s what you’re after.” Archer commented when she finally took the drink. Not even a thank-you. He wasn’t all that surprised, really. What would he expect from someone like her? The untamed little mudblood with no respect for her place in life. He mentally scoffed at her and her attitude. She had no right to be the way that she was. And yet, as much as he hated her and everything that she stood for, he found that he couldn’t walk away. He had approached her for a reason and now he had to stick with it, that was the way that his mind operated.

“Maybe someone stole them.”

[/i]

”What?” Archer immediately felt his brows contort and he looked at her with a frown. She hadn’t picked them up? Well he hadn’t been expecting that one, that was for sure. It seemed like Sive Parry was all full of surprises tonight. Here he was thinking that she was going to fall for his little bait and then come running back to him like some sort of love-sick puppy dog. He guessed that had been an extremely ignorant move to leave him stuff there and then expect that she would offer him the kindness of returning it to him, ”I can’t believe that you just left it out there, you inconsiderate-” Archer immediately stopped himself, realizing that he was beginning to raise his voice at her. Patience, Arch, he reminded himself as he took a deep breath. If he was going to win her trust he was going to have to be a lot more than just the typical Slytherin. He just shook his head, he wouldn’t worry about the whereabouts of his broom and Quidditch supplies now. There would be time for that later.

”I didn’t expect to be here ether. However, there are only so many places a man has occasion to wear his tux and I’d rather not waste any of said occasions.” He said, leaning back against the wall and propping his foot up like he had earlier. His eyes scanned the room, but he didn’t really look at any of the faces. He didn’t have need to scope out who was here. He had already acquired his target for the next couple of hours, ”I have to admit, though. Goody-two-shoes balls don’t really seem like your thing either, Little Lion.” He turned to look at her, raising his glass slightly as if in a toast.[/blockquote]

[SIVE BRANNAGH PARRY]

Sive drank some of the punch, and found that Archer had been truthful; he hadn't spiked it. She was slightly surprised. Didn't all Slytherins drink, all the time? At least, that was the oh-so-cool image they aimed to project. Like drinking made you cool. Like drinking so much you couldn't handle it made you cool. That was one mentality she couldn't stand. She knew how to handle her alcohol.

"I wouldn't have minded if you did," she said, "we're both of age here, after all." In fact, they were well past being of age; both of them were eighteen, and should have left Hogwarts by now. But, thanks to the war, their magical education had been delayed.

”I can’t believe that you just left it out there, you inconsiderate-”


Sive raised an eyebrow as Archer started to get worked up. He tried to cover it, but she saw. "Temper temper," she said, coolly, taking another drink. Not that his temper put her off much. She had seen it before, up close. She knew who Archer Grayson was. She knew all the reasons she should stay away from him. She obviously didn't care. "Relax," she said "I put them in the Slytherin changing rooms. Of course, one of your fellow Slythies may have stolen them. I wouldn't put it past them."

She smiled when he said that the Ball didn't seem much like her thing. "You think inter-house unity isn't my thing?" she asked, suggestively, looking up at him. But then she caught herself, and looked away. Merlin, what was she trying to do, exactly?

"I'm like you," she said, "needed an excuse to wear my dress." She straightened up, so she could show her dress off to full effect. It was slinky to say the least, and clung to every curve. It had taken a spell or two to stick it to her so it would stay up; backless dresses could be that way. Her eyes met his, and she frowned slightly, trying to decide what to make of him. The memory of their kiss flashed, unbidden, into her mind, and she had to look away to avoid blushing.

"I don't see what makes a Ball 'goody two shoes', either," she said, resisting the urge to tell him that the term 'goody two shoes' had come from the Witch trials; Sive was intelligent, and sometimes when she was nervous she relied on that. "Surely it depends on the people in attendance."