[Great Hall] The Tournament Ball (For All)

[Amadeus Ragni]

((>_>; since it took me waaaaaaaaaay too long to type out Rakki's attire, Amadeus is dressed in elegant dressrobes))

Amadeus rolled his eyes and tried not to sigh. "Yes, you have to dance. I don't think they call it a ball for people to just stand around." His eyes flicked over to the band playing on stage. He shook his head before looking around for someone he knew. He'd rather the girl to loosen up before he took her to the dance floor. His eyes (barely) lit up when he saw Andie. "Come along, ragazza piccola," Amadeus carefully took the smaller girl's arm in his and led her over to his friend. "I see you're having fun, il mio amico." Amadeus purred, a small smirk on his face.

[Ian Gray]

Ian tugged impatiently on his deep blue dress robes, wrinkling his nose as they caused an uncomfortable itch to surround his shoulder blades. The embroidery made him feel strangely out of place, as did his carefully-kept hair.

Watching a few others enter the hall curiously, he finally smoothed down his robes and walked up to the table littered with refreshments.

"Hmm..." grabbing something that looked chocolate, he dragged his fingers along the cloth and walked over to the slightly populated tables. He wondered if anyone he knew was hanging around, and cast a quick glance at the far end of the hall.

"Hey!" He finally called with a grin, loosening up his tie just a bit as his robes fell back around his wrists. Dax was ordering drinks, and Ian was relieved to see a somewhat familiar, though perhaps not too cheery, face.

"Feel as out of place as I do, mate?" He asked, running a hand messily through his hair.

[aly]

Aly strutted confidently into the ball, head held high and a dazzling smile gracing her face. she was wearing a burgundy silk spaghetti- strap dress that had a slit going up her right leg that ended at mid-thigh It had laces crisscrossing down the sides and was backless, her blond hair was twisted into an elegant chignon and had rubies entwined in it. she was wearing a small platinum tiara with diamonds and rubies. Aly was also wearing an onyx necklace that also had a few rubies with it and ruby earrings. she strolled across the hall in search of her sister, she finally found her with who else but Amadeus. "Hey." she greeted them both with a smile

[crash]

Adair entered the Hall a bit apprehensively, not entirely excited for the large social event. Tapping his newly polished shoes on the floor, he crossed his arms over his chest. He knew his father wouldn't appreciate him missing such an important event.

His own robes were immaculate. A mellow-like emerald colour, along with hints of silver at the ties, that were prepared especially for the occasion. He was a tad of a perfectionist.

Brushing them carefully, he walked down a few tables, his dark eyes scanning the room. Finally, they caught sight of Layla and hardly paid attention to her stunning dress as he slipped into the seat next to her, cutting into the conversation.

"You must be ecstatic," he said dryly, reaching over for the pitcher of water. "Beauxbaton Queen gets to have her elaborate party." He sent her a raised eyebrow, before taking a long sip.

[layla]

Layla was slightly taken aback that anyone in this school would care what Beaxbatons was like, they all seemed to live in their own little world in this school, but she was thrilled to have the chance to brag on her old school. She smiled broadly as she began, "Oh it's much different. For one, there aren't so many boys," she tilted her head as yet two more young men entered the ball. She chuckled slightly, "Whenever we have parties there Sorcierere Academy to host us--they're an all boys boarding school... and soo sophistique," she grinned dreamily, as if staring off into another world. She missed Beaxbatons so much, she couldn't wait until this year was over...
She finally remembered, however, that she had company and smiled at the Ravenclaw girl, "Was there anything specific about Beaxbatons you were curious about?" she asked, eyes glittering at the prospect of anyone taking an interest.

She couldn't help but sigh as an ever too familiar pair of shoes blinded herfrom across the room. Though she had to admit, to herself at least, he didn't look half bad in his dress robes.
She raised an eyebrow as he sat down beside her, "If you hadn't noticed, it's not for me. Otherwise the decorations wouldn't be such loud colors..." she looked around at the royal blue, ruby red, sunshine yellow, and emerald green banners hanging on the walls. "I'm surprised your not wearing your duly deserved tiara for being so dramatic, though... here, I can help with that," she flicked her wand at him and a simple emerald and silver crown graced his head. She tutted, "Aww, it came out more masculine than I'd been hoping. I suppose that's what I get for not practicing my metalworking spells," she shrugged.

[crash]

"I had no idea you thought of me as royalty, LeMoine." Adair said without expression, the crown slipping down his forehead and finally falling over his eyes. Letting out an exasperated sound, he pushed it back up with a finger before finally taking in the girl's appearance.

"Of course, you'd decorate the hall with that monotonous shade of blue, wouldn't you?" He motioned to her dress, not exactly the best with compliments, as he drummed his fingers against his glass.

"I hear this is a ball for the quadwizard tournament." Adair suddenly looked morbidly excited as he leaned in closer to the Gryffindor, waiting for the other girls at the table to look away. "Imagine how much influence we'll have if we can get the winner on our side."

The crown slid down his forehead once more, making him look a bit foolish and less sinister, as he finished.

[rileybabe]

Andie smiled. "Well I want to know everything about it. I tend to be really curious about this sort of thing, what were the classes like? Did you have alot of friends? Any enemies?" she stopped so the girl wouldn't think she was some psychotic freak. And besides, a Slytherin boy had just walked up. Andie nodded in greeting, she had made it a rule to not judge someone by what house they were in, but by their personality, and so far she didn't know this boy well enough to like or dislike him. "Hi, I'm Andrea Riley." she greeted the boy with a small almost unnoticeable smile

((Salut! Je M'apelle Kristine, et toi?
yeah I'm taking french in school...))

[layla]

She smiled, "The classes were wonderful! We had the most amazing teachers, always so helpful and kind... I had a ton of friends, I was even in line to be Fleur de Beaxbatons at the next cotillion..." she smiled, remembering the last cotillion, it had been beautiful... except for that one girl. "I had a few enemies. Some people are just too jealous," she gave as humble a look as she ever did, then smiled. "Not much you can do, is there? Can't please everyone."

"If nothing else you're a royal pain, Telbor," she said drily, though she couldn't help smirking as the crown slipped over his eyes. She looked around the Great Hall, a designer's gleam coming to her eyes, "I don't know... I think it would look good draped in silver and gold... with some cornflower, hyacinths, and maybe tulips to bring some extra color in..." she smiled to herself. "This place could actually have some potential... if, in fact, it did."

She listened to his idea with a smirk, "You know, that's not a half shabby plan... Single out the leader of the pack and the herd follows," she nodded. "Only problem is... deciding which one of these champions de perdants, is the one we want to put our time and effort into..."

[Je suis Lena. Êtes-vous surpris ?
Ha ha, French is fun.]

[Sophie Hargreaves]

Dressed simply for the occasion to the untrained eye, Sophie was in fact dressed rather flirtaciously, just to annoy Will, though she had pondered over whether that might have just egged him on further. Deciding on an elegant red with gold trimmings Sophie was of course decked out in the Gryffindor colours to cheer on her champion to victory, but not just at the dance, which she was sure Jac would shine in, but also the entire competition. Gliding into the room with her friends surrounding her, she quickly disengaged herself and singled out Dax as her first port of call, though she did in no way mean to torment him, she only desired his amiable company.
Throughout the night she was quite determined with herself that she would not dance with Will, in fact if no opportunity arose she wouldn't even speak to him. Seeing Dax was already busy chatting to Ian and buying the drinks she changed her direction passing a Gryffindor she knew only vaguely from glimpses across the common room. Though already she had the impression she was entirely unsatisfied with the school, rumours told her she was a transfer from Beauxbatons, smiling and nodding graciously, resisting the urge to curtsy she continued onwards hearing a snippet of their conversation as she passed so closely by; a rather rude and uncouth young Ravenclaw forcing Sophie to so nearly collide with the elegant Gryffindor she aplogised immediately
"oh sorry". Beginning to continue walking past she wasn't sure whether to appear rude by moving swiflty on, or stay and seem like she were listening in on their conversation; quite a dilemna...

[Loren Hayes]

Loren had been sat outside for some time. She was sat on a stone bench between two archways, unicorn hair wires with small orbs filled with fairies entwined around the columns. The sound of music and banter drifted out through the doors along with the heat of the castle, and Loren rubbed her upper arms energetically, realising she could no longer feel her skin.

Is Dax already there? He's probably already there... but what if he isn't? I could go back up to my room... should I see him? I really should... or I could leave him hanging. That would be much easier. Merlin...

It was time to stop battling with herself and face the music (figuratively speaking of course), and so she stood up swiftly from the bench and placed a cold hand on her forehead, trying to cool the only place on her body that was prickled with sweat. As she walked back through the doors and toward the Great Hall she realised that she had picked a dress that was much too heavy, sharply kicking it in annoyance as she walked. Who knew fairy silk was so bloody heavy? Dax better appreciate it or so help him!

'Wow...' Loren gasped as she entered the hall, taken back for a moment by the decor and lighting. Hogwarts had certainly out done themselves this year! Loren drifted distractedly through the twirling couples as she stared up at the ceiling and along the walls, for a moment forgetting her flushed cheeks, impractical dress and straightened hair that was already beginning to spring back into its silly coils.

It was then that she spotted Ian and Dax standing together at the edge of the room, looking out across the crowd as they talked with amused expressions. Sighing heavily, Loren donned a happy smile and walked over to them. 'Hello you two!' she greeted them the same with a brief hug, deciding she would deal with Dax when they were on their own later on.

[Mozess Mirari]

'Why did I agree to this again?' Mozess asked herself mentally, walking a bit stiffly as she paced the halls before heading down to the ball. 'Because he's your friend, that's why.' She crossed her arms, 'Who says he's my friend, huh?' She sighed and let her arms drop to her sides, 'I say he's my friend... damn it!' she scowled as she caught her reflection in a mirror at the end of the hallway, her ex[ressions changing as her thoughts shifted. A third year going down the stairs shot her a look as if she were crazy. Mozess stuck her tongue out, then hurried over to the mirror...

Her undone hair hung loosely around her shoulders; she knew her uncooperative curls wouldn't stay long in an updo, so why fret over it as the evening progressed? She took a deep breath, "Ok... here we go..." she told herself, but her feet wouldn't move. "Come on, it's not that big a deal... If anyone makes fun of me--or him--I'll jinx them into next millenium." She nodded, reassuring herself that this would be fine, then turned away from the mirror and started walking...

She took the stairs down two at a step, quite glad she'd gotten comfortable shoes to wear for the occasion, she couldn't imagine how other girls could stand to wear pointy-toed stilletos for things like this. She herself wore a pair of green slingback wedges, finding that they helped her look taller without her feet having blisters the next day. She also wore a floor-length, silver satin, toga-style dress that flowed gracefully behind her. The only jewelry she wore was a serpentine emerald brooch on the lone, single strap of her gown.

Okay, so she'd dressed up a little. It wasn't a big deal. She was supporting Slytherin! That was a perfectly fine and noble thing for her to do! Probably the most noble thing she'd done all year! It was absoloutly no big deal... so why did it feel like one? 'Because of all the people...' she thought with a grimace. She didn't like people. But, this wasn't about her, so she tried to cheer up a bit. If she was this nervous and she was just a filler for the ceremony she could only imagine how ancy he was...

She reached the entrance hall and looked around. She didn't see him anywhere right off-hand. She shrugged, "He had better show up soon..." she thought, seriously thinking about jetting back to the girls dorms to avoid having to be seen wearing such girly attire...

[spidermonkey]

Deianira walked slowly into the ball room. She didn't know anyone or have a date and didn't really care. She could always just go over and sit by the refreshment table and watch everyone else. Her dress had been her mothers when she had gone to her ball. It was out of style, to say the least, and barely fitted her; her shoes didn't match her dress, and she hadn't thought of anything to do with her hair except brush it and hope it didn't stick out around her ears. As she trudged over to the refreshment table, she felt awkward taller then most other girls, as usual. Sitting down she watched slightly disinterested and alone.

[Dax Simmons]

Dax was about to pick up the mug’s full of butter beer when he heard a familiar voice. Looking round he saw Ian approaching, looking just as unhappy about the whole thing as he was. A true smile filled Dax’s face and found he hard to reframe a laugh.

“Is it that easy to tell? Well I suppose I seem to be the only one not jumping around hugging people.”
Dax looked over his shoulder and looked at Girty spinning around in her yellow dress with Bog. Shaking his head he looked back at Ian with a sigh.
“The one looking like a Lemon Meringue cake is my date. I was forced at wand point by my head of house.”

Dax let out a small laugh but his gaze was taken by the person who just entered the hall. Swearing under his breath, Dax could not help but spill the drinks as his hands began to shake. Placing them back on the counter and wiping his hands dry on his trousers, he could not help put notice that Loren seemed to be gliding into the hall, her dress trailing behind her. She continued to get closer and before Dax could even stop his nervous taking over Loren was in front of him talking. Opening his mouth to answer his throat went bone dry and his mouth hung open. He could not take his eyes off Loren, she was like an angel.

Suddenly finding his voice Dax managed to muster a very, very weak smile, which looked more like he was in pain.
“Well…I…must dash. Got to take the drinks over to my…date.”

With that Dax turned to the bar, quickly picked up the drinks, spilling most of the contents and made his way back over to the other Hufflepuff’s.

[Henry Boggleworth]

As the hall began to gradually fill up, a buzz of excitement and anticipation had settled throughout the hall, soon the dancing would be underway, though most people didn't look too happy about that aprt of the evening. Grinning he laughed as Girty's excitement increased tenfold, it was clear this entire event meant the world to her. Grinning he commented
"yes my dear Girty, your dress is without doubt the best here, and no it isn't too revealing, no it isn't to long," he laughed heartily answering her feverish questions truthfully. Moving closer to whisper into her ear he chuckled "but the lady over there" he said with a head gesture, thinking it rude to point "will give you a run for your money," he teased with a boom of a laugh unsettling some nearby Ravenclaws who clutched their glasses like their lives depended upon it; perhaps they believed keeping their hands otherwise occupied would stop girls asking them to dance.
"A reliable informant tells me she goes by the name of Soph, presumably short for Sophie I suppose," he said grinning "perhaps I shall introduce myself shortly. I wonder if she's taken for?" He teased laughing wryly.
Just as Boggleworth was going to comment further Dax arrived with the drinks, most of the precious liquid sloshing of the sides, he had to smartly whisk Girty off her feet and away; otherwise Brother Hubbles would definitely have murdered Dax there and then.
"Cor Dax, that was a close one, on a hurry?" He asked setting Girty once more upon solid ground. But then Boggleworth noticed the reason for Dax's uneasiness and return to them
"no wonder I've no drink," he commented laughing as he waved at Loren.
"well, cheer up Dax, I've no worries about a lack of drink, as long as I'm not paying," he laughed but seeing the total uneasiness of Dax, he looked concernedly upon his friend with a quizzical expression; Dax was most assuredly deep in love presumed Boggleworth chuckling, but believing he might have to impart some 'wisdom' to his fellow Hufflepuff, "a friend in need is a friend indeed" murmered Boggleworth.

[Girty Hubbles]

Girty could not contain herself, she danced around Bog and could not help put laugh as he answered her questions. Finally managing to compose herself and look out for the Gryffindor who Bog was pointing out.
“Her?? She may look nice on the outside but isn’t she the one that Dax…”

As soon as Girty mentioned his name the very person appeared, however Girty was unable to get a clear look at him and Boggleworth pulled her away from the over flowing butter beer. As soon as Girty was on her feet she glared daggers at Dax.
“You….you could have stained my dress. If that had hit me then it would have taken ages to get it out of this material.”

After her anger had passed she noticed that Dax seemed even more uncomfortable then he was before he got the drinks. Standing on her tip toes Girty looked over Boggleworth’s shoulder towards the drinks counter. There was the Ravenclaw she had heard so much about. Taking a sip from her drink Girty continued to peer at the girl. With a small giggle Girty stood normally once more and looked over at Bog.

“If I had to worry about any competition she would be the one. I think she has already bewitched my date. It looks like you will have to take over….well until Grace gets here.”

With one final look at Dax, Girty could not help put giggle at his pink cheeks and the small beads of sweat running down his forehead.