Second best only to Christmas! on Pecari Commons

The Party Planner ... aka Jade Owen

October 28, 2013 5:18 PM

Happy Hallowe'en! by The Party Planner ... aka Jade Owen

Pecari House held a whole bunch of great people: Mellie and Sully, the Anns and Rup, Little W, several members of the Horse Lovers’ Club, and the entire sixth year contingency. In short, just about everyone worth inviting to a party already had access to the Pecari commons, so Jade didn’t feel too bad about leaving out the few others she might otherwise have invited. Besides, events organising was hardly her forte (if only Josephine were still at Sonora, she’d have loved the hassle of party planning), but Jade thought she could manage to gather together a few faces who might have been in the commons, anyway.

The Hallowe’en party was not a statement in any way (and if it were, it wouldn’t be anything so redundant as proving that those not in society were equally capable of holding events; Jade didn’t care about such vapid notions), but simply an excuse to let loose for a short while. Last year had been too crazy, with fundraising, and CATS, and the fair booth, and Jade was hoping to avoid any major responsibilities this year as best she could. Dressing up, ridiculous decorations, and junk food in the commons seemed the ideal antidote.

Yet even with the promise of frivolity right around the corner, the sixth year was still uncertain about the pains she had taken to achieve her desired costume. 'This is fun' Jade reminded herself as she looked at her reflection in the mirror. “Girls, how do I look?” Jade invited the comments and criticisms of her roommates, but barely heard any replies that were offered as she stared at the bizarre and unusual reflection of someone who looked an awful lot like her, but was altogether unrecognisable.

The most striking aspect of her ensemble was its glowing co-ordination; Jade rarely wore outfits, per se, selecting instead the first garments that her hands fell upon as she fumbled for them in the semi-consciousness of early morning, but on this special occasion she had made a concerted effort to dress entirely in one hue: she was as gold as a new Galleon. The dress (yes, good Merlin, she was wearing a dress) had been rescued from a thrift store. It was vintage, but nobody with taste would call it fashionable, and it had been in poor condition before Jade had restored it to its current glory. The bodice was fitted, creating a far more feminine silhouette that the Pecari was used to (and drawing far too much attention to the fact that she would never - thank her lucky stars - fill a bodice the way Josephine could), and its taffeta skirt flared out from the waist to her knees, its metallic sheen doing its best to camouflage her athletic legs. Her over-sized feet were concealed in gold ballet pumps, and some gold-coloured plastic beads were fastened around her neck.

Despite the unfamiliarity of her attire, it wasn’t necessarily her clothes that contributed the most bizarre difference to the norm; Jade’s hair had undergone treatment from a serum solution, tightening her dark brown curls into neat ringlets which hung prettily around her shoulders. Her manic eyebrows had been tweezed and teased into something more closely resembling what one would expect from a pair of eyebrows, and her eyes themselves had been adorned in some gold glittery stuff that Jade couldn’t name even if she’d wanted to. She had asked her roomies for help, and she wasn’t sure whether she was impressed or horrified with their efforts. Whichever way she was swayed, she couldn’t deny that this one was of her best Hallowe’en costumes to date.

“Okay, here we go.” Fixing a smile in place, Jade descended the staircase from their dormitory to join the earlier guests who had already arrived in the commonroom below. Pecari had been decorated in fake spider webs and adorned with floating candles, while the black-clothed table held an assortment of sweet treats and naughty nibbles. The prairie elves had been as keen as ever to assist a student in need of their help, and the sixth year was delighted with their efforts. “Happy Hallowe-en everyone,” Jade greeted loudly, and she wound up the gramophone, filling the room with a recording of a variety of creaks and groans, which would later give way to more melodious music.

Then, smiling as her gathering began to unfold, Jade made her way to the buffet table and helped herself to a cup of lemonade. “I’m the Gold Witch,” she explained to the first person who came up to her, just in case her costume wasn’t obvious. The legendary witch, whose portrait hung in the history section of the library, had eventually been arrested in the middle of the last century for Muggle-baiting, having made a living out of cursing Muggles who paid her to bestow upon them The Midas Touch.

Subthreads:

Yes, happy 'let's frighten the kids' day. by Jorge Garcia with Jade, Jorge

Second best only to Christmas! by Waverly Canterbury with Liliana Bannister, Waverly, Adam Spencer

0 The Party Planner ... aka Jade Owen Happy Hallowe'en! 0 The Party Planner ... aka Jade Owen 1 5

Jorge Garcia

October 29, 2013 10:09 PM

Yes, happy 'let's frighten the kids' day. by Jorge Garcia

Jorge had seen the notice on the board one morning when he had been looking up the new password. He was a little surprised that it was a Pecari only party since the last costume party had been school-wide and success, but Jorge figured something for only Pecari wouldn’t really damper anything. Pecaris were thought of as rowdy, attention deficient, trouble makers, so having a party just to celebrate them seemed pretty appropriate. Even though it seemed to require a costume. Jorge didn’t really want to put in the effort of a costume. He didn’t think it would really be all that difficult, he just didn’t want to.

But the notice was pushed to the back of his mind for a brief moment in time as he worked his way through the Advance Course work overload. He had no idea why he had decided to keep up with so many of these classes. The only one that he had dropped had been Care of Magical Creatures. He felt like that would probably have been his easiest class and he regretted dropping the break. He just felt like the other classes would help him better outside of school than knowing creatures. But with the heavier course load, Jorge was writing essay after essay after essay and having to start projects. It was a never ending flow of work. He thought this year would be easier than last, but even without the CATS exams looming over him, the amount of work and the difficulty of the lessons was a real downer.

Jorge had almost completely forgotten about the party until he came back from wailing on the drums to find the Prairie Elves decorating the common room. He could really use the break and it would be nice to see what sort of outfits everyone picked out for the evening. Feeling somewhat rejuvenated, Jorge had gone to his dorm room to shower and decide on what to do about a costume.

When he made his way down wearing a t-shirt and pair of jeans, the common room looked nifty with the decorations and table of snack foods. The prairie elves had done alright. He wasn’t sure who arranged the party, but it seemed to be going on pretty smoothly. Deciding to eat first since he skipped dinner, Jorge went for the refreshment table only to be told that the girl in Gold was the Gold Witch.” Jorge, who was looking over the food and not at the girl, grinned, “Oh, that’s funny, I’m a Muggle. Try not to curse me tonight.” He commented before looking over at the girl and then did a double take when the face sunk in.

“Jade?” Jorge said in surprise, taking in her dress, hair, and makeup. She looked, well, she looked like a girl. “You’re in a dress.” He commented, his surprise evident. “Huh, you look good.” He gave her a grin before turning back to the food in front of him. “This was a nice idea. I could use the break.”

6 Jorge Garcia Yes, happy 'let's frighten the kids' day. 220 Jorge Garcia 0 5

Waverly Canterbury

October 30, 2013 6:01 PM

Second best only to Christmas! by Waverly Canterbury

Since Waverly had seen the notice up on the bulletin board just a few weeks ago, she had been looking forward to the Pecari-only party in their common room. She loved her house and the people in it and she thought it would be nice to have an exclusive party for them. Halloween was one of her favorite holidays because of the candy and because she could dress up. Seriously, if she didn't go and run around in the MARS sports room at least three times a week she would get really fat. Maybe she should take up swimming if the MARS water room turned into a pool enough.

Waverly had been working on her costume for awhile and on the day of the party it was finally done. She was going to be a ballerina. She hadn't dressed up like a ballerina or a princess in ages and the costume was a little different now that she was older. She had even made it herself with the help of a lot of magic. She tied her brown hair into a tight bun, making sure there were no bangs in her face. There was a little tiara on her head so she could look like the swan princess or something. She had put on a little makeup to accentuate her features, especially her vibrant green eyes, and was wearing a pink corset-like top with thin straps and a light purple tutu that stuck straight out around her like a real ballerina. She was wearing pink-tinged tights as well as real ballerina shoes on her feet. Waverly had never taken ballet lessons in her life, but she knew how to strike the poses and thought she could be graceful enough to pass for one.

While Waverly was putting her makeup on, Jade asked for comments and she turned to look at her. Her eyes widened. She had seen Jade getting dressed as Waverly had gotten dressed into her costume as well, but seeing the whole ensemble made Jade look like a gold queen. "You look so pretty!" Waverly gushed. "Seriously, you look so pretty." If Jade took care of her appearance more by just wearing more feminine clothes and taking care of her hair, Waverly thought her roommate could attract the eye of all the boys in school. Jade was naturally pretty and Waverly wished her roommate would use that to her advantage simply in being more aware of her appearance. But anyway, that was up to her and Waverly would love her as her friend regardless.

"I'll see you down there," she called as Jade left and Waverly swiped lipgloss over her lips before putting it away. "Done." The gloss would probably go away soon enough with the snacks, but Waverly didn't think she'd need to reapply it. She didn't like wearing lipstick or gloss for too long anyway and didn't see the point of reapplying it. She was the last one to leave their room, having hurried back from preparing things for the Baking Club for next week and coming right when the party was going to start.

When she went down, the music was already going loud and clear and Waverly was glad to see people there. She saw Jade and Jorge talking at the refreshment table and, as Waverly had a private idea that they might get together, she let them be on their own. She approached someone instead, deciding to mingle before going to get some refreshments and then dance because, well, that's what you were supposed to do at a party. She would have to find Wendy later and see what her younger sister had finally decided on her costume. "Hey, your costume looks great!" she raved enthusiastically. "Did you make it yourself?"

19 Waverly Canterbury Second best only to Christmas! 218 Waverly Canterbury 0 5

Jade

November 01, 2013 5:32 PM

Don't forget scamming for candy. by Jade

Jade couldn't resist appreciating the irony of the same person who had, on at least a couple of previous occasions, mocked her eating habits, passing her over in favour of finding food. She didn't chuckle outright, but it would have brought a smile to her lips if there hadn't been one there already. "I make no promises," she replied lightly; even the stipulated curse of making everything Jorge touched turn to Leprechaun gold would be funny, but Jade wouldn't feel restricted by that spell alone. If he'd really dressed as a Muggle then she hoped he'd left his wand in his room. She could have immense fun without the fear of vindictive repercussions.

When he seemed to actually take on board who he was talking to, Jade wouldn't have been surprised if Jorge's eyes had popped from his sockets. He commented that she was in a dress, as if she weren't already aware of the fact. She genuinely didn't understand the fascination with the object: she was nowhere near so comfortable as in her usual jeans, both physically and mentally. She could have done as Jorge had opted and come in a far less elaborate costume, of course, but dressing up was at least half the fun. "You look good," he told her and Jade rolled her eyes.

"I think you mean terrifying," she sighed, although without any genuine dismay. People seemed to be enjoying her party even in its infancy, and that was enough to keep her content. She couldn't even comment on Jorge's costume - if it could even be called that - because it was lame. Maybe if he'd dressed as a specific Muggle it would have been more interesting, and so acceptable, but she got the feeling he was trying to get away with as little effort as possible. On the one hand, she could respect that, having lived that way in most areas of her life (especially classwork), but on the other hand, she might have to make a big deal later about his poor excuse for an outfit.

"This was a nice idea. I could use the break," Jorge said, turning back to the buffet. Jade tried to remember whether or not she'd told him that she was organising the party, and decided that no, she had only told her roommates. Considering the spread herself, Jade eyed up the sour salamanders, wiggling slightly in their bowl, but they were made with gelatin, and so not part of her diet any more. She spotted jam tarts, and reached over Jorge to take up one of those, instead, in the hand not already occupied by her cup of lemonade.

"I am full of great ideas," she said, in the tone of someone with no discernible modesty. "I haven't thrown a party since I was about seven, so I decided it was time to try again," she grinned before taking a bite of her jam tart.

0 Jade Don't forget scamming for candy. 0 Jade 0 5

Liliana Bannister

November 04, 2013 3:47 PM

I second that! by Liliana Bannister

Liliana had been nervous about going to the Halloween party. She hadn't really made any solid friendships yet so there was no one for her to go with but she had realized that if she didn't at least try to make friends then there was no saying that she wouldn't. So, when she saw the posting in the common room that said there would be a Pecari-only party, she thought it would be a good opportunity for her to meet some of her classmates. She'd given some thought into her costume, and had at first wanted to take it easy and wear one of the leotards and simple skirts that she wore during the ballet lessons her grandmother had signed her up for that she'd brought to practice a dance so that when she returned home for Christmas (her real home, not Connecticut but the cosy, country estate her maternal grandparents lived in in England) she could give her grandmother a surprise Christmas performance. However, she thought that costume would look too lazy and perhaps not really a costume at all as she knew her dormmate at the least had seen her in it and probably also a few other members of her house as she had worn the comfortable ensemble around the common room and her dorm room as a comfortable study outfit. She'd also considered wearing it to class under her robes but had opted not to as her classrooms were too cold for that kind of outfit.

So instead, she went to the Labyrinth Gardens and found some sprigs that she thought were pretty and sent them home asking her mother for a pair of white ballet slippers, some silver thread and also to see if she knew a spell on how to make them look silvery and frost-bitten and if she could please preform it on the sprigs for her. She'd then picked out a white leotard and a thin, light blue filmy dance skirt. She then cut out little snowflakes from some of her parchment and arranged and pinned them on the skirt with some of the thread she had brought to mend her ballet costumes should they rip while she was there. When her mother returned her owl, Liliana happily set to work when she had spare time sewing the paper snowflakes on with the silver thread and attached a few more to the white ballet slippers.

On the day of the party, Liliana raced home from school and dressed herself in in the leotard, skirt, and slippers. She put her hair in two braids and coiled them around her head pulling bits and strands out to fall around her face. She then put the decorative, silvery sprigs in her hair and checked herself in the mirror. She didn't have any make-up so there wasn't much that she'd be able to do to her face. Now that she thought about it she should have asked her mother for some sparkles and some blue so that she could match her face to her outfit but it was too late for that so, with one last look in the mirror, she went downstairs to meet with the rest of the party-goers. She was surprised to see that it was Jade, the girl had come off as a little surly during Quidditch try-outs, but perhaps, Liliana thought, she was just having a bad day. She was just about to head to the refreshment table to grab one of the yummy looking snacks and also something to drink because goodness, she was thirsty!, when a voice that she recognized said something to her. She whirled around, slightly surprised that someone would single her out like that, especially someone she'd already met because she thought that she hadn't made the good of an impression on people yet. She saw that it was the bubbly, older girl from the Welcoming Feast, and she put on a large smile. She'd felt a little bad about being a little testy then and hadn't known how to apologize but figured that now was as good a chance as any.

"Thanks," she said shyly, slightly in awe of the nice make-up job and costume the older girl had (now Lilia was especially glad she hadn't worn just her ballet costume as Waverly would have outshone her times a million) and a little sad that she didn't have the same look. "You look wonderful too." She paused for a moment before saying what she'd meant to say ever since her first flying class when her mood had been officially turned around. "Hey, um, about the Welcoming Feast..." She trailed off, frowning, not really knowing how to apologize as she'd never had to before. "Well it's just that I didn't really want to come here so I'm sorry if I was rude, I was just upset." She hoped that counted as an apology, it was honestly the closest thing to an apology that she'd ever come to saying as generally it was her cousins that had to apologize to her. And if she wronged her grandmother then, after a stern talking to, all was forgiven in a nice, big hug.

10 Liliana Bannister I second that! 274 Liliana Bannister 0 5

Waverly

November 06, 2013 4:50 PM

We're destined to be friends, it's decided by Waverly

"Thanks! That's nice of you to say." Waverly replied with a smile. Liliana was adorable just like all the first-years were every year. She hadn't been the nicest, but Waverly wasn't hurt very easily when it came to interacting with mean firsties. Her feelings were more vulnerable when it came to her peers especially the ones who knew her. That was why Liliana's next comment surprised her, but she just waited patiently for Liliana to finish her statement. It sounded like an apology and Waverly just shook her head and smiled. "It's no big deal. I can understand. Moving really far from home to a brand new school is really scary and upsetting, I'm sure!" Waverly had just had the luck to stay in the same state and be relatively close to her parents. Whenever she needed them they were only one business day away via mail.

"I'm glad to see you here," she added. For any first-year to come to a party like this on their own was a little scary. Waverly, as extroverted as she was, probably would have been a little nervous as an eleven-year-old to go to a party all by herself. She probably would've stuck close to Jade, but now Jade was the one throwing the parties. It was fun to see how far they had all come in the past six years as crazy as it was now to be sixteen and so much older than the youngest students. "How's your first month or so at Sonora been?"

Waverly really enjoyed talking with the younger students and being a resource to them whenever they needed anything. While some people wanted to be a Prefect for the title and scholastic responsibilities, she had wanted to be Prefect to be a resource for the students. She loved interacting with them and helping them around the school not to mention letting them know what the rules of the school were. It went along with her big sister mentality towards everyone. There weren't many people Waverly knew who didn't enjoy being the oldest sometimes, but Waverly really liked having a younger sister. If she could have it her way, she would've had at least three other younger siblings, but it wasn't exactly up to her. She hoped Liliana would feel comfortable enough to be open with her and not intimidated by Waverly's sometimes overly-friendly nature.

Once Liliana had told her as much as she wanted to about her time at Sonora till now, Waverly asked, "Have you gone to the refreshment table yet? There's some good-looking snacks there. I want to try one of those spider-looking cookies. They look really good even though they look like spiders." She made a face. "I don't like spiders, but I guess I don't mind them too much when they're in cookie form." She smiled at Liliana. "Do you usually dress up for Halloween?" she asked, ready to lead the way to the table if Liliana agreed to go check it out.

0 Waverly We're destined to be friends, it's decided 0 Waverly 0 5

Liliana Bannister

November 13, 2013 3:41 AM

Friends with a 6th year? My do I feel special! by Liliana Bannister

Liliana nodded. "It wasn't the most fun, I have a rather large family back home and they're all in the same house at Hogwarts." She frowned but had now come to the realization that it was probably a good thing she hadn't gone to Hogwarts. Her whole family had been in Ravenclaw and she knew she wasn't that bright. It probably had to do with the fact that she could never sit still long enough to concentrate and learn the material at hand. She always got really antsy. If she had gone to Hogwarts she wouldn't have ended up in Ravenclaw and she didn't think she could ever forgive herself for breaking family tradition in that way. It was different now that she was in Pecari at Sonora, no one could say it was her fault that she wasn't in Ravenclaw and that suited Liliana just fine.

"I'm surprised to see me here, honestly," Liliana replied to Waverly in all seriousness. "But I thought that I should come, I haven't really made many friends here yet." She said it nonchalantly because she didn't want Waverly to feel sorry for her. She honestly didn't mind, she was a little lonely at times but then again, no one could replace her cousins. "My first month has been interesting," she said. "I haven't been doing too well in classes but I expected that." Normally Liliana would have been on herself like crazy until she perfected the spells but she had so much stuff coming in from all angles that she had decided to focus on one thing at a time. She started with Transfiguration, the one she was having the most trouble with and moved on to the others, having one night a week where she focused solely on that subject. It had helped a little bit and her grades had started to improve but she still wasn't performing to the level she had in her lessons with her tutors. Granted these were magic classes while those had been route memorization and those sorts of things that she'd been able to come up with rhymes and songs to help her remember the information but she had never been too smart which was an odd mixture with a perfectionist personality and she had just had to deal with it. "I tried out for Quidditch," Liliana added thoughtfully. "I made Keeper so that should be fun. I am worried that I'll fall further behind in classes but I can't help it, I love flying too much."

She followed Waverly's eyes to the treat table and smiled. "Yes, cookies sound delightful. Personally I don't mind spiders in real life," growing up with a load of boy cousins had prepared her against any sort of fear of creepy crawlies, "but it does kind of weird me out when food looks like them." She followed Waverly to the table as she answered her next question. "Not particularly, my family just has a Halloween Ball, so we don't do costumes, just fancy clothes. What about you?"

10 Liliana Bannister Friends with a 6th year? My do I feel special! 274 Liliana Bannister 0 5

Adam Spencer

November 14, 2013 12:35 PM

Joining the festivities. by Adam Spencer

The moment Adam had seen the flyer for the Hallowe’en Party, he knew he’d been sorted right. Pecari was the best house out of the four, though he was a tad biased. But really, who threw holiday parties during the school term for house members only? There was little thought to give concerning his costume. Dressing up for All Hallows’ Eve was foreign to him, having never done so before, but he did enjoy dressing up to an extent. He had sent home for a costume, already having the perfect idea for it.

The costume had come made by an American brand, and so was altered from what Adam was used to seeing back in London. Nevertheless, he donned on the white robe with the sign of the bone and a wand crossed on it. The symbol was the same in England, but the colour of the robe was not. However, it was of little consequence as he assumed the Americans would be able to tell what he was supposed to be.

He combed his brown hair to the side and made sure he looked polished from head to toe, his black Oxford shoes included. A healer couldn’t have a speck of dirt on him. His dad had been miffed to know that Adam hadn’t chosen to portray a mediwizard, which was his father’s new occupation, but it was a costume, not a career choice. Adam had never really been interested in working at a hospital to begin with.

Once his costume was on, Adam made his way down to the party. His third year here and he still delighted in the rambunctious lot he had been cast with. He made his way to the buffet table and enjoyed the noise with a cauldron cake. Once the cake was finished and the crumbs brushed off, he looked for people he knew.

He recognised from a distance one of the witches he had been meaning to approach since the Quidditch try-outs earlier that term. All he could remember was she was a Bannister from London. Adam was also from London and was from the family of Spencers which, if she had done extensive studies of the pure-blood families, she would know. The Spencers were better known in the Muggle world than the magical, but they were still respectable pure-bloods. Sparse now, but still well-regarded in society in their few numbers. He knew of her family and he didn’t doubt that, if she didn’t know of his family, that she knew of the Princetons. His maternal cousins, however, lived in the country and made very few trips to the city.

Bannister was a first year and Adam thought it prudent to make himself known to her as a fellow Londoner, but currently she was with Waverly Canterbury. Adam had never spoken to Waverly before, really, though he knew she was the sixth year Prefect and the founder of the Baking Club. Rupert had joined it and always came back with something sweet to share. The witches were wearing similar outfits with their ballet shoes, though they still looked different. Waverly certainly looked older and Bannister seemed like a child in comparison. Not that he blamed her; Adam as sure anyone coming into school for the first time would be in awe of or intimidated by their older house-mates. Adam waited a few minutes to allow them to finish their vis-à-vis and he hoped he wouldn’t interrupt anything by joining. After a suitable amount of time, he made to approach them, but was pleasantly surprised when they approached the buffet table. “Might I recommend the cauldron cake? It’s quite good,” he said in lieu of an awkward hello. Once he had their attention, he smiled. “You both have lovely costumes. I’m Adam Spencer, of the London Spencers.

“I’ve seen you around all three years I’ve been here and I’ve yet to make your acquaintance,” said Adam first to Waverly with a grin. He then turned to Bannister. “And I recognise you from the Quidditch try-out. Congratulations on making Keeper. You’re from London as well, aren’t you? I know it was difficult my first year leaving England having never stepped on American soil before. How has the transition been? Have you been able to tell her about the delights of Sonora yet?” he asked, turning back to Waverly with the last bit. The art of conversation was one skill that Adam did not lack. He had received the tongue and Charlotte the artistic skill set. It was arguable which was better, but it worked for both of them in making different sorts of mates.

40 Adam Spencer Joining the festivities. 257 Adam Spencer 0 5

Waverly

November 17, 2013 7:53 PM

More potential friends! by Waverly

Waverly remembered her first year and how friendless she had felt. She had gotten close with her roommate Jade, however, and had made lots more friends through her volunteer work at the library and through the club she had started and those she had joined. "I'm sure you'll get better as the term goes on," Waverly said concerning her classes. "It's a rough transition at first. I know I wasn't used to writing so many essays!" Coming from elementary school where the tests they had were on spelling or easy mathematics, this had totally gone over Waverly's head. She was still terrible at Potions, but she was a lot better than she had been her first year. She was a lot better at her classes in general now.

"So don't worry; it'll definitely get better! I'm glad you joined Quidditch. You'll meet a lot of cool people there. My roommate Jade is the Seeker and she's a lot nicer than she seems to be at first. My friend Clara's on it too, but I don't know what position she has this year. Rupert Princeton's also from England, but I don't know which part. I think he's the beater. So yeah, lots of cool people! For classes, you could always ask your professors to tutor you and I'm sure they'd love to. But if you ever want extra help I can give you a few tips and pointers." Waverly didn't want to promise that she would be available for tutoring on top of everything else she did, but she would be around to help her with a question or a problem or something not needing quite as much commitment.

It was surprising that Liliana didn't mind spiders, but pleasantly so. "You're killing all the ones I see in the common room then," Waverly said, only half-teasingly. If it came down to it Waverly would probably ask Liliana to get rid of it before trying to do so herself. "A Halloween Ball sounds fun. When I was younger I used to go trick-or-treating every year with my parents and my sister. I stopped trick-or-treating and dressing up once I came to Sonora. I'm not sure if most people even know what trick-or-treating is here, but it's a fun time." There were some muggle traditions that were lost on the magical folk, but she didn't really mind that much. The magical world had their own way of celebrating the holiday and at least it was still celebrated here. She just missed the dressing up part.

A younger boy approached them and Waverly smiled. Waverly couldn't remember what year he was in, but he was definitely younger than her and older than Liliana. He was pretty friendly and definitely British which Waverly hoped would make Liliana a little more comfortable knowing that there were people from the same country here like her. "Thanks!" she said with a smile. "I'm Waverly Canterbury."

Adam continued talking and he seemed pretty friendly. Apparently he was a third-year which explained why Waverly had only seen him around the common room and not in any of her classes. She smiled in response before he engaged Liliana in conversation. And then her again. Adam seemed to like talking just like Waverly did and that was fine for her. "No, I haven't yet," she said with a smile at Liliana. "Have you found any of the delights of Sonora yet? I guess the Quidditch team could count as one."

0 Waverly More potential friends! 0 Waverly 0 5

Liliana Bannister

November 18, 2013 1:00 AM

I feel so popular! by Liliana Bannister

Liliana nodded when Waverly talked about the essays. She had already been assigned what seemed like hundreds to do- in Charms alone she had to write two a week. It was difficult for her to do but she had managed so far, scrapping by with decently good grades. "Writing isn't exactly my forte," she replied. "But then again, neither is much else. I prefer the active stiff and the things that don't need concentrating." She frowned as she realized that covered pretty much every school subject there was. "I'm not a squib, mind you," she clarified. "I just sometimes have difficulties staying focused long enough to actually get any work done." That was part of the reason she had joined Quidditch, her mother had approved wholeheartedly, writing that perhaps the extra outlet for her energy would help her to focus.

"Clara's reserve I believe," Liliana replied, hoping that she hadn't kicked Waverly's friend out of a spot. "And you're right about Rupert Princeton." Liliana had realized that the American wizarding world was a little more formal than what she was used to back in England, and so had been having difficulties on how to address people properly as well as proper ways of conducting herself. When she had written home to her grandmother about it, the response had been only to reassure her and say that so long as she was polite it didn't matter too much. "That would be nice," Liliana said shyly, trying her hardest to remember her manners. "I'll need all the help I can get!" Liliana didn't expect a full time tutor, she figured that's what professors were for anyhow, but she thought it would be nice to have someone older around to ask questions while doing homework in addition to the peers she had already in her classes.

She raised her eyebrows when Waverly mentioned killing all the spiders in the common room. "If you don't mind," she replied, "I'd much rather put them outside or take them out of the room. They trap nasty flies and mosquitoes, you know and are quite useful. A particular potion that my cousins always used to taunt me with used spider webs and venom. I'm not sure if they were making that part up or not though." They probably were, come to think of it, and Liliana felt rather stupid mentioning it now.

Liliana's ears perked up when the familiar looking boy came over and mention cauldron cakes. Those were her absolute favorite, especially the way that her grandmother's best house elf, Holly, made them all crumbly and butter-y and melt-in-your-mouth-y. She scanned the table for them and grabbed one remembering at the last second to also take a napkin and to eat it slowly and not as though she hadn't seen a meal in a few months. Her grandmother would probably shame her if she found out Liliana had been rude in front of another pureblood family like the Spencers. They were related to the Princetons and both were rather prominent. "Thank you," she replied when he congratulated her on the position of Keeper. She had been a bit surprised that she'd made it especially because she was sure that Brandon Carey would have before her.

"And yes, Liliana Bannister of the London Bannisters." She had written home and her mother had said to keep it London as that was where their family was based and also because the move was probably only temporary as her father was planning on moving his younger brother to the American branch now that his son, Allan, was graduated and married. At the time a new head was needed to the American branch of the company, Allan had still been at Hogwarts and Liliana not yet in school so it had made sense to have the older brother move to America while the younger one took over in England just for the sake of the kids' schooling. "The transition's been okay, I suppose. My mother and I moved here a year ago to Connecticut to join my father." She didn't add that it was actually her father who was supposed to do the moving- back to England, but that stupid Allan'd had to go and get engaged so that his parents wanted to stay in close proximity his first year of marriage.

When Waverly and Adam both asked her about the "delights of Sonora," she really hadn't known what to say. "Um, I guess? Quidditch and flying lessons are definitely my favorite," she replied. "There really isn't anything else here yet that quite excite me like they do. I have gone to the MARS room to practice ballet a little- a Christmas surprise for my grandmother when I go home for the break." She put a lot of happiness into the word home, thinking of the nice English winters she had at home. She felt bad about lying, but she also wasn't sure how to explain how though her family was Jewish, they still had Christmas balls and celebrated Christmas if only for the sake of the other witches and wizards around them. Her grandmother loved a good ball and would give excuse to host one which meant, of course, that they also held Hanukkah and Purim balls among others. "And I went to the gardens for these," she gestured to the sprigs adorning her hair. "Are there other places you recommend?"

10 Liliana Bannister I feel so popular! 274 Liliana Bannister 0 5

Jorge

November 18, 2013 10:00 PM

Or enjoy a few tricks by Jorge

Jorge frowned internally as Jade responded to his compliment. He will never understand girls. They couldn’t just accept a compliment for what it was and move on from it. Was she purposely throwing it off in hopes of more or did she genuinely just not see it as that she looked nice? It was a hard thing to figure out and although he grew up with two sisters and a whole lot of aunts, Jorge was at a loss to that gender. He decided to just go along with it, “Okay, terrifying then if that’s what you were going for.” Jorge said without malice or anything, he was rather quite indifferent about it really.

Having had a look at everything on the table, Jorge finally selected a pastry from one of the trays and was about to take a bite of it when Jade made a comment that had him hesitate. She was the one who set this all up? That could not be good. Jorge slowly placed the pastry back down onto the table. “I’m not really that hungry.” He said despite the fact that he was starved and knew eventually he would have to eat something. He could wait a little while though to see if any of the guests suddenly turned into canaries or whatever. Jorge did not trust that Jade had done absolutely nothing to the food, punch, or well, entire common room. She was notorious for pranking people or places and somehow Jorge was always seen as guilty by association.

“Right, well, I’d rather not be the victim of your prank tonight, so I am just going to walk slowly and quietly away and hope that tomorrow morning the entire Pecari house doesn’t think I had anything to do with whatever it is that you are planning.” Jorge stated, already backing away from Jade with his hands up in the ‘I surrender’ pose. Such a shame, he would have really liked to have just sat around and watched everyone mingle and pretend to care about the others in the room. If nothing else, looking at the costume efforts (which he had none and was quite pleased by this) of the others would have been amusing enough.

Before he got too far away though, Jorge lowered his hands and prepared himself to have to run, “You know, I get that you don’t like dresses, but you should wear them more often. You have nice legs.” And with that, he turned to take off quickly, mostly in fear that she would hex him for saying anything remotely kind about her body.

6 Jorge Or enjoy a few tricks 0 Jorge 0 5

Jade

November 26, 2013 3:39 PM

Tis the time for Trick or Treating by Jade

When Jorge declined the food, Jade was momentarily thrown. He'd been so interested in it only moments ago that he'd almost ignored her completely; why the quixotic attitude? Of course he soon explained away his apparently absurd behaviour by citing her propensity for pranks as the cause for his leaving the party practically as soon as it had begun. Jade wasn't sure whether to be proud of her infamy (at least within her circle of friends; it still counted for something) or insulted that he thought she would bother to go to all the trouble of organising a party just so she could mess it up, and probably take the wrap for it, too. Admittedly the elaborate prank scenario had its allures, but Jade was far too lazy to engage in something so diabolical.

"I'm not planning anything," she said, with a sigh of acceptance; she guessed it was her own fault that her six years of playing pranks on Jorge (they'd only been gentle and mild, she was sure he didn't really hold it against her), but her companion still seemed to be backing away.

"You know, I get that you don’t like dresses, but you should wear them more often," Jorge said, putting yet more distance between them, causing Jade to raise a questioning eyebrow as she finished chewing the remainder of her jam tart. "You have nice legs."

Jorge turned as if to run, and, practically on instinct, Jade grabbed one of the sour salamanders from the bowl on the table and flung it in the general direction of Jorge's head. She would never participate in a food fight, as she strongly disagreed with wasting all that delicious food, but the occasional candy used as a weapon was an acceptable sacrifice. It was only after she'd hurled the projectile that she considered this might not have been the most apt action to take if she wanted Jorge to stay at the party... which she did, of course; he was practically the number one person on her list of people she was hoping would show up. She would be lying if she hadn't had Jorge's likely comments at the back of her mind when she'd been planning the finer details of her costume.

Before he could leave entirely, Jade searched for something witty to say to make him stay. The first thought that came to mind was 'All the better to kick you with,' but no, that wouldn't help matters. The best she could muster under the circumstances was, "You have nice legs too, but I don't make a big deal out of it." Then, because that was almost a compliment and it felt weird to say so, she added, more quietly, "And I don't try to get you to wear a dress more often."

0 Jade Tis the time for Trick or Treating 0 Jade 0 5

Adam Spencer

November 27, 2013 1:47 PM

Lucky you. by Adam Spencer

Adam couldn’t imagine his family moving out to America. His father had travelled all over the world for the hospital and only now was he really settling back into London. Moving the family to a different country was something he knew his mother never would have consented to. She being from a more prominent family than he, his mum would have opted to stay close to home and raise her children alone with their house-elf than pack up and live in a foreign country for her husband’s sake. “What does your father do?” he asked curiously. It wasn’t a rude question that Adam knew of, but he hoped he didn’t offend.

When she mentioned flying, Adam smiled. “There really isn’t another thrill to compare to flying,” he agreed. Adam had not planned to join the Quidditch team initially. He was not very competitive and he enjoyed playing recreationally more than anything, but some persuading from his older cousin had convinced Adam to sign up and now he enjoyed it very much. “You dance ballet? One my friends, Ginny Bellrose, is a ballet dancer as well. You ought to meet her. She’s in Crotalus and the founder of the Dance Club. I’ll have to introduce you two, perhaps if you stop by one of the Dance Club meetings.”

He smiled. “The gardens are lovely as well. I enjoy taking walks out there when the weather’s nice. It makes me miss the gardens back in London. Have you ever been to London, Miss Canterbury?” The formality seemed out of place at a school party, but it had rolled off his tongue before he could take it back. If both Waverly and Lilliana now thought him a pretentious snob, he would be embarrassed.

Adam was glad to see that Lilliana had taken his advice about the cake. “How’re you enjoying the cauldron cake?” he asked before he momentarily excused himself to pour some pumpkin juice. On normal circumstances he would have offered to bring them refreshments, but seeing as they were conversing right next to the buffet table it could seem more pretentious than polite. He rejoined their party. “Where are you from?” he asked Waverly, not wanting to include ‘Miss Canterbury’ again and potentially embarrass himself.

40 Adam Spencer Lucky you. 257 Adam Spencer 0 5