Arrivals

[Administrator]

The Great Hall has been decorated in Venetian style in preparation for the Valentine's Day Ball. Students and Professors alike have been working busily all day to prepare the room in shades of red and crimson.

The Hall had been charmed to show an arched ceiling, rather than reflecting the sky, and red roses adorn the arches above, along with red paper lanterns in the shape of hearts than flicker and glow, casting a warm redness over the room.

Deep red drapes adorn the walls in their velvety softness, and candles hover along them in clusters, lighting the room.

The house tables have been replaced with round tables that seat around ten per table, and everything from the table clothes to the napkins to the coasters, glasses, plates and vases of roses are all in shades of red to match the theme of the evening.

A large dance floor space has been left open towards the back of the room, and where there was once the Professors table, there is now a stage, where a live band entertains the night with traditional Venetian music and dance.

Be prepared for a fun filled night, of dancing, dining, and delights as the masks stay on, and identities prepare to be revealed as the clock strikes midnight...

Post your arrivals to the Masquerade Ball here, and then continue into your own threads to play out your night of adventure and romance. Will you be kindling a burning flame or sparking a new match of romance and mystery? Only time will tell.

[granton]

The day felt like it had dragged on forever. It had been a long time since he'd got up at six that morning, and most of the day had been spent in the Great Hall trying to organize this stupid bloody ball thing. Who's mad idea was all of this stuff anyway? Had the prefects really come up with all of this madness?

Well now they'd come up with it, it was up to them to set it all up too. Of course, lazy as most of them were, half of them hadn't even bothered to turn up to help. This was one thing that Granton would happily take house points for and give out detention slips. He'd made it quite clear that all prefects were to attend and help with the preparations. Those who hadn't were disobeying a direct order, and Granton didn't like being ignored.

The Professors had helped out a bit - such as changing the charms in the ceiling and removing the tables, summoning new ones, and putting in the stage at the front. All the rest of it - the decorating and such - had been left up to the prefects under minimal supervision. It had all come together quite nicely in the end, leaving enough time for them to go back to their room, grab a quick shower, and get ready for the night to really begin. Of course a lot of the girls complained that they didn't have enough time, but he'd just told them to blame that on their fellow prefects who hadn't bothered to show up. They would have had in done in half the time if everyone had shown up.

Heading into the Great Hall it was almost hard to believe that it was the same room as where he'd spent most of his day. Packed with students and the live band already playing, it felt like stepping into a whole different place. He had to admit though, the place did look pretty damn good.

Granton secured his mask a little tighter and headed in. There were a few faces he wanted to find tonight...

[Abigail 'Tay' Frazier]

Millie had vanished a while ago, and so had her other room mates, leaving Tay alone debating on whether or not to actually leave her room at all. Tay and dresses didn't go together at all - in fact, Tay couldn't even remember the last time she'd worn a dress. Not only did she feel like a freak wearing on, but the dress itself was pretty awful, and Tay only felt worse after seeing what her friends were wearing. 'Note to self, never trust your brother to buy you clothes...' It was much more medieval that Venetian and looked so out of place.

Sighing, Tay eventually resigned herself and realized that she really couldn't hide out here all night. No matter how stupid she looked or how self conscious she felt, Tay wanted to see Lachie, and she couldn't do that hiding out in here. Thankfully she was alone, because the first thing she did was pull of the horrendous heels that Millie had lent her, and pulled out her favorite pair of sneakers from under her bed, slipping her feet into them. The dress was long enough to hide them, and at least she wouldn't wobble or feel like she was a risk of falling all the way down the stairs...

One other thing, actually... Tay grabbed a pair of shorts from her dresser and slipped them on under her dress. And the stupid hair pin thing? That had to go. She pulled that out too. There... at least she was feeling a little bit human again... even if she was still wearing a dress.

She had a bit of help with getting down the stairs, and Ash had a right old chuckly when he noticed her sturdy trainers appearing from underneath her dress all the way down the steps. She had a good laugh too when she realized who it was, and what he was wearing.

All around her people were wearing fancy, elegant looking dresses, and Tay felt more out of place than ever. The only thing that made her feel even slightly better was the fact that due to the mask, it was hard to tell who she actually was... Thought he feathers were no doubt getting a bit of attention...

It was only as Tay stepped into the Great Hall that she really realized her dilemma. She wanted to find Lachie but... every one was in masks, and she didn't even know what he would he was wearing.

[bellatrix]

The evening was meant to be one of excitement and glamour but Bellatrix knew she'd be able to spot filthy mudbloods a mile away, especially the poorer ones. It was a shame really that Hogwarts allowed the mudbloods to mingle with the pure but that was how things went under the rule of an eccentric headmaster, still there was a lot that could be done, quite few to be annoyed and hexed and maybe even a few dances to be had.

Finalising the look to her outfit Bellatrix looked at herself in the mirror before heading out of her dorm, a couple of the girls were left behind while some had made their way to the dance already, no doubt the great hall was going to be pink and red as far as the eye could see but Bella wasn't phased by the sickening thought, she was going to be all in black and set apart from the lovesick children this dance was meant for, Bella was only attending because ... well who was she trying to kid? She was wanting a dance and a good time.

Making her way up from the dungeons and into the great hall was a task all in itself, the crowd steadily got thicker the closer she got the the entrance hall what with students waiting for their friends and dates though wasn't the whole point of a masquerade ball to not know who everyone was? Why bother meeting up? Bella managed to make her way into the great hall and looked around, it was as sickening as she had suspected though less pink and more red than she had thought, on the bright side of this whole potentially disastrous evening of not knowing who was a mudblood and who was not, she could end up, by accident, dancing with some filth and taking them off into the grounds for a little game of torture the filth 'til it screams and goes crazy. Admittedly not a catchy sort of title but certainly one of Bella's favourite games to play.

[dorcas]

Dorcas was excited! This wasn't usually the sort of dress she'd go for but she just feel in love with the design the second she had seen it and it fit her so perfectly too that how could a girl not be excited about the night ahead of her?

Dorcas, like many other girls, had spent the majority of the day preparing for the night ahead, why Dorcas felt so excited was beyond her and she could only put it down to the dress, it was the only thing different for her, most other dances she just looked forward to a little bit, this dance however seemed almost special and she figured it was because she was wearing a dress that wasn't her yet completely was all at the same time.

After getting her hair ready and putting on her make-up, Dorcas carefully slid into her dress. She used her wand magically to tie it up at the back before she looked herself over in the mirror. One, two, three. Dorcas took three deep breaths before she nodded at her reflection, she didn't care if she looked like an idiot in front of her dorm mates, they all knew she was a little barmy sometimes anyway.

Heading to the great hall with her face in the mask, Dorcas watched as beauty after beauty passed her by. All the girls looked amazingly stunning and she couldn't tell who was who, the sense of potentially knowing that one of these bodies was a friend of hers and yet not recognising added to the thrill of the evening.

Entering through into the great hall Dorcas was amazed at the great hall. Was this really where they came three times a day to eat? The place as magnificent! The prefects and professors had truly outdone themselves this time around.

[aliali]

Regulus wasn't really much of a party person, and he usually wasn't one to want to celebrate something as stupid as Valentines Day, but this was a Ball, and pretty much the whole school would be going. It was a social event, nothing more, and Reg's parents had regularly taught him the importance of attending such functions. Besides, if news got back to his mother that he hadn't shown up she'd probably sent him a howler or something.

He left it as late as possible before leaving the common room. The place was pretty much cleared out by the time he left. There were a few younger students milling around but anyone he'd know were already at the dance. Reg meandered his way up slowly and made his way through the crowd. A masquerade ball and people were waiting for their partners to show up? What was the point in that? Wasn't the whole point of a masquerade to find the other person before the masks came off? Bloody muggle borns, no doubt...

Walking into the great hall Reg was blinded by the amount of red in the room. Everything... everywhere... it was all red. Well, that was kind of the point of 'venetian' - pick a color and use it to excess but...this was just extreme. The place looked nothing like it usually did.

At the back of the room he could just make out a drinks table being manned by who he was pretty sure where most of the professors in the school. Looked like the didn't want a repeat of Halloween... Thank god. Reg headed in that direction. There was no one he was looking for tonight and nothing he really needed to do but be here, so he might as well get a drink and a feel for the night before he really decided what to do with the night ahead.

[James Potter]

James probably spent longer trying to get his hair to lie flat that he did anything else. He'd got hold of some of the muggle hair gel stuff thinking that it might work better than the spell he usually tried but... Well... he'd get most of it to lie flat and then one bit would stick up. Then in the process of getting that to lie flat another bit would pop up and so on and so on... and it was bloody infuriating! How much hassle could a bit of hair be?

Then there was the fun bit - getting his mask on without knocking his hair back out of place. He'd already used pretty much the full tub of gel, and quite frankly, he thought his hair felt gross. But, it was too late to try and wash it out now. It'd have to do. Besides, gelled slick back he looked nothing like himself, and the mask on only disguised him more. He thought he'd be easy to spot since the mask only really covered his eyes, but it was surprising how much difference a bit of gel could make. He looked nothing like himself.

Now... maybe if he could just find Lily out in the crowd tonight he'd be able to convince her to dance with him. Hopefully, he looked enough unlike himself that she wouldn't notice him... maybe if he didn't talk much he'd be okay? It was worth a shot.

It was only when he reached the entrance hall that James realized just how much of a challenge finding Lily was going to be. He couldn't tell who anyone was behind the masks and the exuberant costumes and, it only got harder when he stepped into the great hall itself. There was a deep red glow cast over everything from the lanterns above, and it only added to the confusion of faces.

Well... so long as he found her before midnight? Okay... there was time... But where did he start?

[lani]

Celeste drifted down the stairs towards the Great Hall. It wasn't very often that she mingled with so many students at once because there was always so many images flashing through her mind. Little glimpse and peeks at events - past, present and future. There was no telling sometimes. Tonight though, was the night for love and romance, and she had a feeling that she should be there, just to pick up those vibes and help the lost and lonely.

Even before she reached the first floor a dozen things were already flashing through her mind in quick glimpses, and they would only grow stronger. A smile spread over the young professors face as she saw all the students milling in the entrance hall. Oh, didn't they look divine?

That poor girl though... the one in the yellow. Hadn't she noticed the boy for which she was waiting had just slipped through the doors with another damsel? Poor child... if only she knew. Celeste thought perhaps it better she didn't tell...

Surrounded by red and music and dancing, Celeste took a deep breath and closed her eyes, focusing on everything racing through her mind. So many students... so many thoughts... so many futures... Where to begin? Hands wrapped around her waist and, rather than stopping them, Celeste allowed herself to be swept off into the crowd of dancers in the arms of a masked male.

[peterpettigrew]

Peter headed down the stairs feeling a bit unsteady. He could see the edges of the mask in his peripheral vision and he couldn't stop himself from looking at it. It made his eyes sting and feel weird and blurry, and he didn't know how he was going to manage to keep it on until midnight. It was the hat part that did it - it unbalanced the whole thing and made it heavy and unsteady wear.

All Peter wanted was this one night to pretend to be someone he wasn't, and to have a dance or two with some he didn't know, and who didn't know him. He could be anyone in this get-up, but even that didn't seem to be going to plan. If it wasn't for the mask... if he'd just had a simpler one or something, then maybe he'd be okay. But he was sure that all he'd be thinking off all night was how it felt like it was going to fall off, and how the material on his collar made his neck itchy.

[ash]

A Leary never turned down a dare - ever. He'd gone through with his on Halloween, and he'd go through with it again tonight. It was a masquerade. He could do this. His dress (how freaking weird did that sound?) was a fancy thing that he'd found, and he ended up getting more than just a few funny looks of the woman in the shop when he went up to the counter with it. He hadn't even denied that he was getting it for himself, which only made her think him more peculiar. But, a dare was a dare.

Ash was going to show them how far he would go with this dare too. The dress was completely open backed, just straps over the shoulders and the skirt bottom from around his hips. It felt weird as hell to be getting into a dress like this, which was a big part of the reason he waited until all his roommates were ready and had already left before he started getting changed.

Did he feel a bit self conscious heading out of his room wearing a dress? Heck yes! Was he going to back out of this? Hell no! He'd go down there, keep his mask on, see what happened, and try not to talk... then he'd watch the surprised faces at midnight... and try to laugh and not come across like a complete weirdo. First though, he had to try and handle the stairs in these shoes... They were heels or anything so dangerous, but the weren't the kind of thing he was used to walking in either, so he felt a bit off balance.

He bumped into Tay on her way down the stairs, looking a bit reluctant. The dawning realization that spread across her face when he spoke to her... god that was brilliant! He hadn't but his mask on at that point, but with his hair sprayed gold and wearing a dress? He didn't quite look like himself. She cracked up laughing and ended up clinging onto the railing for a few minutes. As soon as they started walking again Ash spotted her trainers peeking out from under her dress and he started to laugh too. The both of them had tears streaming down their faces by time they reached the bottom.

Ash walked with Tay most of the way down to the Entrance Hall and the laughed most of the way. She'd seemed reluctant when he saw her on the stairs, but she'd relaxed a little on the walk down. There were a few occasions when he had to reach out and grab her arm to stop her tripping over the hem of her dress, and he actually made her stop walking altogether while he put his mask on before they headed onto the first floor. She found that rather amusing too, though she didn't try and protest or anything, just kept her feet planted firmly in place.

Inside the doors of the Great Hall, Ash muttered his goodbyes and slipped into the crowd with the intention of dancing with as many guys as possible and gathering as much attention as he could. He was going to make the most of this night no matter what, and use it as a 'screw you' sign to his brother that even this dare wouldn't stop Ash Leary when his mind was set.

[Emily Prescott]

Emily was extremely excited. She'd been looking forward to this ball all week, spending her free moments adding the finishing touches to her dress, which although she felt was perfect, still needed a few extra touch ups to make it extra perfect. It wasn't often she got to indulge in dressing up this much, in all honesty this was the first chance she'd ever gotten to wear such an extravagant dress.

She'd purposefully not allowed Chase or any of her friends to peak at the original design to add a bit more mystery to the night. In all honesty she believed tonight would be the best ball by far, purely because of all the mystery surrounding everyone. By some miracle her and her dorm mates had avoided seeing each others dresses, and by time she finished adding the last minute touches to her make up, everyone was headed down to the great hall, all adorning their masks, hiding their real identity from those surrounding them.

As she neared the great hall, Emily smoothed her hands over the corset bodice of her dress, and the top of the skirt, feeling somewhat like royalty. Of course every masked person, male and female that she laid eyes upon looked spectacular. Tonight was definitely going to be one for the history books, at least in Emily's mind.

Stopping at the Great Hall, Emily looked around in wonderment. Tonight was all about mystery and creating a sense of enchantment and the prefects and heads, well they'd truly gone all out this year, the decorations looked incredible. Taking a breath Emily smiled, made sure her mask was fixed firmly in place and stepped into the crowd.

[elenahaworth]

Elena was feeling out of her comfort zone in more ways than just one. Her emerald green dress was stunning, hand picked out by her Mother of course but was far from being something Elena would've ever seen herself in. Add to that they were all required to wear masks, and she was feeling way out of her depth. Something about not knowing who the people where surrounding you set her a little on edge, with perfect reason considering the troubling things going on around them.

Though after 2 glasses of firewhiskey she was finally dressed and ready, her nerves steady. If one knew Elena well enough they'd know there was more on mind than just the ball. She was still feeling slightly on edge, waiting for Georgina to do whatever the hell she had planned was getting to her. Elena knew that girl well enough to know that Georgina was planning something, she didn't threaten someone and leave it at that, Georgina always came through. Elena just hoped Granton was smart enough to avoid her.

Adding the last few curls to her hair, Elena fixed her mask firmly into place and blew out a breath. The corset part of her dress pushed her bust up in a way that made Elena smile. Spinning on her heel she made her way down to the Great Hall. She paid no attention the people she passed but couldn't deny they all looked incredible. When she stopped in front of the Great Hall she took a moment to admire the decorations feeling the need to applaud the prefects and the Heads, Granton included for a job well done. Taking a breath she eyed the crowd, "Let the games begin she whispered, before disappearing into the bustling crowd.

[aliice]

For once, Georgina actually decided to stay in school on a Saturday night. Normally she'd go out but for the sake of the Valentines Ball, she decided to stay in and find her amusements another way. She was pretty sure she could find something to keep her amused. One thing was for sure though, she wasn't dressing up by their stupid rules. Oh sure, she'd wear her mask, but that was it.

She strutted into the hall with a confidence to rival many, and she saw the looks on people's faces as she passed. Most recognized her instantly, whereas others just looked at her cautiously. She stood out in her super short/super low-cut, plain black dress, and that was exactly how she liked it. She'd been drinking and smoking before she came in here seeing as the school was so pathetic that they didn't even allow alcohol, but what was a party without a twist?

She kept a small flask with her and used a spell that would automatically refill it after each time she took a drink, so she was in pretty good supply tonight. Now she just had to wait for the real fun to start.

She looked around to see if she could spot anyone she recognized, and her eye caught on a head of platinum blonde curls. Could it be who she thought it was? Georgina followed at a distance, trying to judge if she was, in fact, who she thought.

[Millie Croft]

This was going to a perfect, magical, somewhat enchanting night. Finally a night where she didn't have to be alone in hiding herself. Everyone at the ball tonight was going to be hiding their true selves, just the same as she did everyday tonight she would just be another body among the masked dancers tonight, tonight she'd be free of the burdens that lay heavy on her shoulders.

Twirling around on her beautiful heels Millie laughed softly, feeling lighter than she had in a while. Though deep down she knew it was thanks to more than just the theme of the ball. A certain blonde Hufflepuff had been on Millie's mind, Charity...one small moment in her presence somehow made everything right in the world, even if only for a little while. They were friends, and like most of her crushes Millie knew it would never go any further than that but it didn't matter, she could take friendship.

Dancing her way out of the dorm room, she swept down the stairs, her dress making it appear as though she was floating as she walked. Already she could hear the music from the ball and the excitement inside of her grew. She did hope she caught up with Tay at some point, the two of them had seen each others dresses so there'd be no problem in spotting her friend, but tonight they were all playing the part of not knowing each other and Millie was happy with that, it added to the mystery.

"Oh my..." she gasped, coming to a sweeping stop outside the Great Hall, staring in complete and total awe at how magestic it looked. "Beautiful..." she whispered, laughing softly before taking that first step in to join her peers.

[Olivia Knightly]

Olivia stepped into the Great Hall a huge smile spread across her pretty face. There was a glint in her eyes signifying her excitement. To say she'd been counting down the days to this ball wouldn't have been a lie, her and Charity had been talking about nothing else. They'd spent the entire day together pampering themselves, and doing their hair and make up, making sure they looked stunning. It'd always been a tradition of theirs to get ready together and it was one Olivia couldn't see changing anytime soon.

Dancing her way through the crowd Olivia made her way to the punch bowl. Confident it hadn't been spiked due to Professor Dupree stood keeping an eye on things. The professor did look incredible but gave off a great sadness. Sighing quietly, Olivia smiled kindly at the pretty Professor, took the drink and turned to face the rest of the crowd, scanning the moving bodies to see if she could spot anyone she knew.

"Here's to a magical night...." she sang to herself, laughing softly before taking a long sip of the pink punch and moving her way back into the crowd.