❝ THIS MIGHT BE THE FIRST YEAR SINCE SHACKLEBOLT'S RESIGNATION that the ministr gala has managed to avoid being overshadowed by a truly terrible event in the weeks preceeding it. minister karkaroff was asked late last month whether he was excited to share the work that his ministry has done over the past year with the public but remained characteristically tight lipped about what we could expect to see ! instead, he praised the organisational team - overseen this year by his own wife, mrs eulalia karkaroff - for their hard work starting in late june and the department volunteers for putting together a truly comprehensive schedule of presentations for the night. an anonymous ministry official has informed us that with this years reduced auror presence, funding for the event was able to be increased dramatically, ensuring world class cuisine, even more expensive bars and the presence of one of the most distinguished orchestras in london. say what you will about the guestlist ( and one rita skeeter certainly will ), but one thing is for certain : the ninth ministry gala is set to be one of the best we've ever had ! ❞
WHO, WHAT, WHEN, WHERE :
nine years ago, the annual ministry gala was envisioned by kingsley shacklebolt and his closest advisors as being a way to showcase the many ways in which they had improved on the ministry of magic itself, following not only lord voldemort's rule but a string of poor ministers. the general public needed something like the gala, in the months following the end of the second wixen war. their trust in the government and the people in running their country was almost non-existent and it was important to show them that there were real changes being made and that they, in turn, were all for the better. over a few years the gala managed to carve out a very specific place for itself within society - tickets for the event held on the first weekend every august are in hot demand with everyone hoping for the opportunity to see, firsthand, the changes made across departments since the end of the war.
an automatic invite is issued on heavy parchment paper to ministry officials and those that fought in the battle of hogwarts every year, allowing them to bring a plus one, if they so desire. the remainder of the seats are randomly allocated to 150 members of the british wixen community, with those invites arriving no later than two weeks before the gala itself, by owl. this year, french wixen chefs have been hired from overseas to cater the event - the four course meal is, as always, to die for, and will be served early in the evening so that the tables and chairs can be banished to make room for the atrium level dancefloor where guests will be able to slow dance ( or sway ) to the tune of orchestral music. there is never any shortage of alcohol to be found at the several tended bars, but servers dressed in beautiful blue robes with golden trim are at hand to provide drinks to anyone who can't find the time between conversation to head on over to one of them. department heads ( of every level except the department of mysteries which remains closed to the public ) are expected - as they are each year - to rehearse ten minute long presentations for interested guests to enjoy, making themselves free at the end of the five they must perform over the course of the night to answer any question thrown their way. of course, said presentations have been heavily edited in advance to make sure that each department is putting their absolute best foot forward - without making the minister of magic look anything other than the best.
though the year before last saw the famous dumbledore's army delegated to the far corner of the atrium and last year saw them disinvited altogether, this is the year where it becomes most apparent that things have changed underneath antonin karkaroff. before now, it could have been construed as budget cuts or even a simple change, for the better, for how the young heroes were presented to the public. most civilians assumed that minister karkaroff, like his most vocal opponent, flavia scrimgeour, disliked the idea of placing anyone onto a pedastal, false idols and all that. before his appointment, the members of the da who took voldemort's life and brought an end to the second war were treated like celebrities - vip lanyards, pride of place at the head table with the minister of magic, private tours of the ministry... they shone, on a night like this. last year it could still be seen, not well, but in a way that made sense. this year their total exclusion is sure to have tongues wagging throughout the night.
OUT OF CHARACTER :
it's time ! the ninth annual ministry gala is upon us and sees a very important continuation from last years most intentional snub. it's actually a fairly big deal that dumbledore's army have now been left off of the guest list two years in a row, and i don't want to understate it - they mightn't be here tonight, at least depending on how their preparations for this inevitability went, but they are still ... wix of honor, in their own way. it's up to you whether your non-da affiliated characters are simply happy to be here & enjoying the event or whether that enjoyment is coming with a healthy dose of gossip on the side.
the event officially begins on friday the 18th of august at 12:00am gmt. click here to see what that equates to for your tiemzone !
it’ll last for two weeks, but i’m not going to request the pausing of current threads provided that event threads are appropriately tagged and differentiated from them.
all event related starters can be tagged with nox.event036 ! the location is the ministry of magic, but feel free to specify what level your character is on ( while keeping in mind that the main level - where meals are served and the orchestra plays - is the atrium, while the department of mysteries is locked and strictly off limits ). you can post outfits into the channel on the main discord !
much like last year, the only publicly known members of the da who received an invite were the ones who would have ( believably ) been issued an invite due to being seen as an important figure in the wix world in their own right. the only other option for them remains being the plus one of another character, and once again, i will ask you guys to take that snub and use it for your writing ! it is an intentional slight and the loophole shouldn't be exploited ! membrs of the da that attend will not receive the sort of special treatment they would have received under the shacklebolt cabinet and will find most high ranking ministry officials to be kind of distant.
if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to message the main with them ! please comment your ( current ) favorite tv show on this post to show you’ve read it !
𝙿𝚁𝙾𝙼𝙿𝚃 : sometimes the only thing a bully understands is a punch in the mouth.
𝚁𝙴𝚀𝚄𝙴𝚂𝚃𝙴𝙳 𝙱𝚈 : @hoggleswart / seamus finnigan !𝙻𝙾𝙲𝙰𝚃𝙸𝙾𝙽 : the ministry of magic ( atrium level ), london !
" piss off, seamus, " and honestly, she doesn't MEAN to sound so abrasive - she's aiming for the sort of lighthearted banter that they're both used to right up until the words actually leave her painted lips & come to hang heavy between them. there is something defensive about her to be found, now, where previously there was not. a straightening of her spine / the slight jut of her chin / even the downturn to the corners of her mouth where moments before was a friendly smile. ginny isn't SURPRISED by his words, but she thought they'd come much later. in her experience, people were always braver after a few glasses of the expensive alcohol served at these things & while she had expected to field curious questions in that easy way she always did ( oh, no, it's purely platonic- if even. no one else could stick it & i wanted to be here, so...- ), she had figured it would take awhile before anyone really got into it. seamus, of course, catches her OFF GUARD. ginny responds to that in kind, but a brief moment of reflection is enough to have her tack on, half heartedly, " if you're going to take a swing at my date, would you mind waiting until after the prophet pictures ? it'd suck if a fresh shiner distracted the people from my gatecrashing. "
it’s supposed to be a tale as old as time. ⸺ cinderella shall go to the ball and meet her prince. that’s what andie thought when a smooth - talking ministry worker invited her to be their plus one, but as the evening goes on, the realization she might’ve been blinded by the possibility of a grand evening is sinking in, because date is suddenly looking more like the frog you kiss before prince charming, rather than prince charming themself. hand swirls the drink she’s been nursing a solid hour, while eyes blink away the boredom at watching said date flirt with the THIRD guest of the evening server right in front of her. " congratulations, macnair, you’ve done it again. " words are muttered more to herself than anyone in particular, rubbing two fingers against temple. how does this always happen to her? turning away from the show, she heaves a sigh, throwing back champagne. " you wouldn’t happen to know where the nearest exit is, would you? " this time, she does speak to the person standing closest, not even attempting to hide her utter disdain for this evening. " i don’t think i can wait until midnight before i turn back into a pumpkin. "
location: the ministry gala
with: dennis creevey @bombardos
"make sure you get my good side!" she calls as a means of greeting, doing a mock pose before coming to stand beside dennis. she, herself, is bored to tears and she'd been able to have a drink. she couldn't think of anything worse than having to work this event. she glances at his camera, before cracking a grin. "there's been quite a few drunken scenes tonight, you managed to snap any yet?"
location: the ministry gala
with: dudley dursley @rebuildeds
compared to the other ministry gala's cho had attended, the atmosphere this year was positively frosty. therefore, it came as a relief to cho when she saw a familar name on the tiny placard on the seat next to her. "how many glasses of champagne before this becomes bearable do we think?" she murmurs, straining her ears to see if anybody at their table was talking about anything even remotely interesting. "i think i may have made a horrendous mistake in attending."
location: the ministry gala
participants: neville longbottom & hermione granger (@grangxrdanger )
"i'm a little surprised they let me in," neville's voice dropped to a whisper, a wide smile spread across his face. "they must still think i'm an employee," he laughed. either way, he was likely to be under surveillance for the rest of the evening. meaning he should be on his utmost behavior. "come on, let's go check out the food."
location: the ministry gala
participants: kasper madsen & niko karkaroff ( @monstrovs ) or luca moltisanti ( @woesbegone )
"so, what did you do to score such a prime seat?" kasper's question was astonishingly stupid, not that he seemed to mind. he was much too preoccupied stuffing his face with the various appetizers or he might have recognized his companion. or maybe, he just didn't care that he was seated next to such an important guest. either scenario being just as likely.
𝙻𝙾𝙲𝙰𝚃𝙸𝙾𝙽 : the ministry of magic ( atrium level ), london !
"sorry-" and just in case that isn't enough to draw attention towards her, astoria reaches out to place a gentle hand upon their shoulder for good measure. "i hate to ask, but would you mind switching chairs with me?" she doesn't actually have a PROBLEM making that request, but she at least has the good grace to look sheepish about it. the placeholder held between the index and thumb of her free hand shines under the light of the chandelier as she twists it this way and that and, with more shame injected into her voice than she truly feels, she tells them, "i just broke up with my ex, like, two days ago, and i guess he must've rsvp'd or something cause for some reason he's sitting directly to my right tonight and that is just not a vibe."
