James loosened his bow tie as he paused at the bar, breathing out a sigh of relief now that the thing no longer felt quite so confining, and he ordered himself a glass of firewhiskey. He hadn’t known what to expect when he had first been told about the fundraiser, he himself had very little experience when it came to Ball Etiquette; the only thing he’d attended that had any semblance to one had been a New Years party his parents had hosted, but even then he had only been ten years old and was sent to bed by 8pm. He had thought the whole notion seemed a little archaic, but he had to admit (silently, to himself, not out loud), he was rather reluctantly enjoying himself so far. It would have been better had it been socially acceptable for him to show up in his jeans and a t-shirt, but his poor mother had nearly died when James suggested it. Once he received his drink, he brought it to his lips and took a sip, turning to speak to the person beside him. “You’d think this lot would be a bit fed up of Balls by now, wouldn’t you?” He commented rhetorically, “I suggest the next fundraiser be something far more fun, like a dragon racing event. You reckon the Minister would go for it?”
Poppy adored public events, if only for the aspect of people-watching and hiding like a wallflower behind candles. It made her feel so particularly fetching, to touch velvet drapes as she danced around the room and conversations that lacked substance. These events were for publicity only, and as her parents made clear, Poppy should be grateful to have received an invitation and an opportunity for advertisement. The shy Gryffindor disliked large crowds, a feeling much like chaos with no end, a live wire with each sound that pricked at her nerves.
Plentiful champagne helped calm her to a point of tolerance, on her second flute of the hour. She’d chatted with a few people, some who were regulars of her bakery, and some who’d never heard of it. It was good publicity, she agreed reluctantly, as she finally managed to relax into her pointed white heels. Poppy felt lucky in that moment to be wearing her bright, yellow dress that made her seem hopeful, with eye shadow like honey dripping from her lids as she felt someone tap at her shoulder.
Alastor sighed, walking quickly towards his office. He got official word earlier in the day that he had gotten the Head Auror position. That meant meetings, meetings that were making him run late to the fundraiser that he was explicitly told to be at. His current task was supposed to be a simple one: Go to headquarters, drop some files off on his desk to be looked over in the morning, head straight to the ball. But, nothing ever end up being simple and as he opened the door to his office he immediately noticed something askew. Things had been moved around and while interns and other personnel sometimes had to come in his office, he could sense something was off. His eyes landed on a piece of parchment that he was sure hadn't been on his desk before. He reached for it, eyes widening as he scanned the message;
Certain members of a pureblood idealist group are planning to poison the champagne at the fundraiser. They are working under orders from the self-proclaimed, ‘Dark Lord’. I hope you get this message in time to stop it.
Panic coursed through his veins. It could be an idle threat, but he suspected it wasn't. Whomever had sent it didn't realize he would stuck in meetings before he went to the fundraiser. Plus, something deep within him told him he was not having a prank pulled on him. He quickly cast a patronus, placing a messenger spell on it to be sent directly to St. Mungo's. "Possible mass poisoning. Send as many healers and antidotes as you can spare." He closed his eyes, focusing on the destination he was supposed to have been at.
Pop.
The warning had not been a prank. Screams filled Alastor's ears as soon as he apparated into the ball. People were running around, some were lying on the ground, sounds of choking escaped from others.
Someone had indeed poisoned guests at the ball.
Poisoned Attendees
Mary MacDonald
Lily Evans
Alice Longbottom
Andromeda Tonks
Gabrielle Parkinson
Elsie Shacklebolt
Tarquin McTavish
Remus Lupin
( We used a randomizer to be as fair as possible! )
Admin Notes
No playable characters are going to die from the poison.
Although the Death Eaters did it, they still very much do not want people to know who they are and would’ve not told anyone about the champagne that was not a Death Eater. They would have immediately pretended to panic and been in hysterics over what was happening.
No specific individuals will be taking credit for the poisoning at this moment in time. (All the of the Death Eaters did this but they would not want ANYONE to know so that they can continue on with their normal lives.)
Antidotes will be given to poisoned members but some will still have effects that last for several days. These could range between fatigue to being stuck at St. Mungo’s (we will be using a randomizer to decide the severity of each persons symptoms that was poisoned and will message them about it).
Give this a like so we know if you have seen it. If you do not feel comfortable participating, please let us know!
Rodolphus knew what the trial would bring. It was only the Lestrange familial wealth that had him free of the holding cells at the Ministry. But all the gold in his vault was not going to be able to keep him free for too much longer. He was going to Azkaban.
Bellatrix believed The Dark Lord would return, but he was less optimistic. They'd thrown in their lot with the losing side... and defeated in this war, all was lost. Rodolphus did not regret it. He believed in the duty and responsibility of the pureblood families to wizarding society. He believed in all they had fought for. The likes of the Lestranges, Malfoys, and Blacks--they were to be paragons in defense of tradition.
The world was changing for the worse, but he wouldn't be around to see it. Before he was shipped off to a cell, though, he had this opportunity to say goodbye. The wizard arrived with that distinct pop of apparition. Stepping forward, Rodolphus drug long fingers through his dark hair. "Let's have a minute, love." His greeting carried a deeply masculine gruff edge. Rodolphus wasn't the kindest of men, even--or perhaps especially--with his lovers. Not that he ever expected to be in any sort of relationship with the person before him.
As you all know, we recently did a poll to decide what kind of AU week you would like to see and future week won! This is just a small post to give you a few more details about the event.
- Admin Team
When: Today, Monday the 27th of April at 5pm EST / 10pm GMT+1 until Monday the 4th of May at 5pm EST / 10pm GMT+1
About: This week is just a fun few days to explore your character’s future. As you can see this is an AU week so if your character dies, or you just haven’t got a solid future for them yet, this does not have to be canon, nor do you have to stick with it. For example, Lily and James could have five kids and live until they’re 100 years old. There’s no real rules for what you can and can’t do, because this is just supposed to be a bit of fun.
You can play your characters when they’re older or even their children. So if you have a ship, you could each play one of their kids, or you could have children and parents/aunts/cousins interacting, whatever you desire!
You can do any time in the future, whatever you’d like. Or you could not get involved at all, this is not a mandatory event.
Details: Please put the date in all your starters so that other people know when it is. Please tag all starters with ‘bellofuture’, and don’t forget to put them in the starters channel on discord.
Throughout the past few weeks the Ministry of Magic has quietly been keeping an eye on the wizardly world in Britain. With an increasing number of random attacks and robberies, they had decided to put more focus on the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. They are aiming to increase the number of trainee aurors that enter their classes each year, while also giving more hours to the existing members of staff. To do this they need help from the rest of the wizarding world:
YOU ARE CORDIALLY INVITED TO A FUNDRAISING BALL AT THE WHIMSBORNE HOTEL BY THE MINISTER OF MAGIC, HAROLD MINCHUM
The ball will begin at 8pm this Friday night.
There will be a live band, as well as various performers throughout the
night to encourage you to donate as much as you can.
There will be a raffle with prizes kindly donated by many of the best loved
businesses around, as well spot prizes throughout the night.
We encourage you to come out and show your full support to The Department
Of Magical Law Enforcement, to ensure they can keep your streets safe.
OOC details: It’s time for our first little event! To have a little fun we have decided that there will be a ball this weekend that every character is invited to. Of course, there is no obligation for your character to attend but it is highly encouraged to just explore something different, and maybe chat with characters that wouldn’t normally have the chance to interact.
This event will run from Friday the 20th until Sunday the 22nd of March. In the meantime, you are more than welcome to post your characters talking about the event or even show us what outfit they will be wearing.
This is just a chance to have a little fun and to give our characters something to have fun with!
We have some exciting news! We are going to be holding an AU week event from Monday the 27th ( starting at 12 PM EST ) until the following Monday! We want your help to pick out AU Event, though!
The poll will be placed in the discord chat and will be open for voting from tonight until Sunday at 5 pm EST. Now, is the perfect time to join as the next acceptances are tomorrow evening and would give you the chance to vote!
Below is a small description of how each AU event would take place!
Past Week - These can be any time in your character’s past. If you want the chance to experience your character at Hogwarts, this is it!
Future Week - These threads can take place anytime in the future! You can also rp from your future children’s point of view during this AU! They can be a year in advance to 50 years in advance, just make sure to post a date in the title portion of your threads!
Role-Swap Week - Ever wonder what your Death Eater would have been like as an Order member? Or vice-versa? Think your neutral character should have picked a side? This AU will give you the chance to explore that option!
The enchantments may be lifted as soon as you’re ready.
James knew he should be happy, he should be happy that he and his wife would no longer be confined to the cottage in which they lived, and in which had been feeling more like a prison cell than a home lately. He adored his little family and he would have remained in hiding for the rest of his life if it meant they would be safe, but he could not deny that it had been frustrating. He was sure Lily must have felt it too.
But finding out that their freedom had come at the cost of one of their best friends lives had made the whole thing horribly bittersweet, and James felt sick.
He hadn’t even realised he’d been crying until he felt the tell-tale shake of his shoulders. As he lifted his hand to wipe his eyes underneath his glasses, Harry’s incoherent babbling pulled him back to the present. Harry… safe Harry… so innocent, so blissfully unaware to what was going on, and James would have given every last galleon in his Gringotts vault if his son could stay that way forever. He leaned down to scoop Harry up, the boy letting out a giggle and instantly wrapping a chubby fist around the arm of his glasses, and James’ lips twitched ever-so-slightly despite the dire situation.
Glancing over to his wife, James reached an arm out to wrap around her shoulders and pull her in for a hug. Pressing his lips to her temple as he held Harry close, he gave her a squeeze; his heart was broken but he would be strong for her he had to be. “Here, take Harry, I’ll go and put the kettle on.”
