[Exposition for how Elland's Halloween night was going. No actual interactions, just a transition.]
It has been a rather eventful evening for Elland. First, he had to make sure that William was back to the party safe and sound. His friend calmed down a bit but insisted on looking for Montrose, which was bound to lead to more tears. Elland excused himself.
Second, his own Polyjuice transformation proved to be a surprise: Elland had no idea how Sebastian's hairs were commandeered for the swap but Elland was likely to be the only "Sebastian" at the party. And as such, the amount of dancing requests kept piling up. Elland knew that Sebastian wouldn't do anything he didn't want to do, but the Hufflepuff underneath felt rather bad about denying people.
That, and Elland liked dancing. He wasn't as used to it as William or as passionate as his brother (if Cy's dancing could even be called that), but there was a special kind of bond shared in the space between two dancing partners. Perhaps he could get to know some of those people better once he is back to being himself.
He felt bad pretending to be somebody else when it came to the questions of the heart, which clearly some of those people were interested in beyond just dancing with the handsome Slytherin. And so he hinted at not being the real deal, which some took with a tint of sadness, others — with hissy tantrums. Everyone knew about the potions swap that night. Perhaps he wasn't in the right to break the illusion?
William certainly was under no illusion. He's seen Elland dance plenty of times over the years, not to mention that—
"Sebastian? My dorm mate Sebastian, asking me to dance? Whoever you are, handsome prince, I see right through you!" the prefect said, his beak proudly up in the air. And then, accepting Elland's hand: "Shall we?"
As they danced, Elland finally relaxed while Will babbled on about what little things had given Els away and how Will would've portrayed the other Slytherin. The little sna— niffler shared some rumours regarding today's event as well (not that Elland believed rumours, especially not knowing who was who tonight). Who pranked who (Asani was levitating frogs into people's hair) and who snogged who ("Merlin, Will, I don't need to know who my brother is snogging!")
And also how whoever got Felix in the swap was an unhinged lunatic! Asking people to duel was just the tip of the iceberg — apparently they escaped the designated area and were seen flying on a tree trunk around the castle and waving into Ravenclaw windows! In all his frustration, Will was rather intrigued: was "Felix" able to land on the Ravenclaw roof even if they were not really a Ravenclaw?
At some point, Elland swirled past Cassandra and got nearly burned by the anger in her eyes. "Don't worry, Elland," he told himself, chuckling nervously at whatever Will was saying, "It's not about you!" But for the rest of his time as "Sebastian" he danced in the opposite corner of the ballroom.
Elland danced, ate tasty food and enjoyed the company of his friends, but it saddened him that not everyone was able to celebrate Halloween with them. He thought back on last year's party and sighed. There was one person in particular who he rather enjoyed dancing with and sharing a conversation. Elland sighed and decided to take a break, politely sending Fred away, promising to ask him to dance once the potion's effects wore off.
Still wearing his "Sebastian" skin, Elland comes up to the snack table to grab some water, and that's when he sees HER.
[Written in collaboration with @adallegra 🎃 Slytherin dorms, right after the Polyjuice Potion mishap but before all the other rps.]
Allegra is sitting in her dorm room, for once free from all the hustle and bustle of the Halloween activity and social interactions, when suddenly there is a knock on the door and a quiet couple of honks that sound suspiciously like somebody honking out her name. The knocking itself is also rather familiar to her: the rhythm is the one William insists on using whenever he is about to enter the girls' room. "In emergencies as a prefect, of course," he'd say, and then often sneak in for some gossip that can't wait for any other kind of meeting.
“I told you, Will, I’m not going,” Allegra calls out.
Did Will come with Nosy in hand to try and convince her to join again? Didn't Allegra make it clear to him very early on that she is not interested in drinking any Polyjuice potions and that Will should just go enjoy the evening? Didn't Will begrudgingly but agree, promising to share all the latest news when Halloween is over?
Allegra glances at the clock on her desk. It hasn’t even been that long, but trust Will to keep trying even if she already said no. She steels herself against the combination of Will and Nosy's pleading expressions. One of them, she can still firmly refuse to, but both? She reaches for the pouch of premium niffler treats she keeps in her desk drawer, ready to distract Nosy if it comes to it.
Before she could reply to more knocks, she hears sad honk sounds from the other side of the door, and then a sniffle. And then a few more as the knock repeats itself, weakly as if the dying man is standing on the other side. Merlin, is Will pretending to cry in his last-ditch attempt at convincing her? He hasn’t done that since… actually it hasn’t been that long ago. Allegra’s mind flits to a certain sticky toffee pudding she never got to finish.
Time to dance around the issue for a little bit and send Will back on his merry way to the party: surely he doesn't want to miss a chance to prefect around when somebody inevitably starts playing pranks on people?
She grabs her wand from the table and flicks it at the door which opens to reveal, not Will and Nosy, but Will and Nosy. Her jaw drops. Immediately, she presses a hand to her mouth because it’s clear to her that William is distraught. But her shoulders shake in uncontrollable silent laughter at the Will-Nosy hybrid standing in her doorway. Allegra stands, snatches the bag of treats off her desk and holds it out to her friend but instantly doubles over, laughing in earnest.
Wiping tears from her eyes, she manages, "At least you're not a dugbog, right?"
William starts crying even louder.
She takes a deep, calming breath, and goes to pull William into a hug, keeping the comment about how soft his fur is to herself.
“Silver linings and all, perhaps you’ll have a better grasp of niffler parenting techniques after this?"
Through the tears and sobs, a honk of a snort sounds from somewhere around her shoulder. And then — a crunch of the bag with treats.
[William had to come back to the Slytherin dorms to change right after the incident. Elland hadn't taken the potion just yet and he was worried, so he accompanied Will to the entrance and ended up waiting outside to see Will to the Medical Wing later, too. As a muggle-born, Els didn't find the situation funny at all, not with Will barely holding back the tears.
It's a good thing the ballroom was in the dungeons. Will needed to let go a little, so he stopped by Allegra's room where he knew nobody else would be at this time. Her laughing did actually make him feel better, surprisingly. Firstly, it was great to hear Allegra laugh that much and so earnestly. Will felt a bit proud of that! And secondly, it helped him loosen up. Yes, he cried and cried, but if Allegra found it funny, then it must be. Too bad Will couldn't really speak properly at that moment.
It didn't help that for a while Will felt like Allegra was slowly slipping away from him. Will is busy with classes, homework, prefect duties, Quidditch, and splitting his time between Allegra and Monty. He should find more opportunities to hang out with her. Monty is likely to be staying with Will and his family after they graduate, but Allegra? They definitely need more time before graduation. When else is he going to hear her laugh like that? Oh, what's that? He's eating niffler treats? Hah, honk, good one, Allegra, surely he hasn't lost him min— HONK HONK???
When he left the dorms, he felt much better. Good enough to ease Elland's worry and for Will to presentably make it to the Hospital Wing. Of course, he cried again when Mrs. Blainey told him that he just needed to wait it out naturally for a week or two. The speaking spell was cast, and Elland spent another 10 minutes calming Will down. He would have to come back the next day to properly learn the incantation to help Will whenever the spell wears off. Els ended up keeping an eye on William for the rest of the evening after his own Polyjuice wore off.]
Nilliam more or less came back to his normal state half way through the evening. It didn't take much, past the reassurances from his friends that he'd make a really nice niffler and that the teal colour really brough out his eyes. It almost made up for how uncomfortably warm he felt most of the time, but who knew, perhaps he wouldn't be freezing as much outside on the windy autumn days?
A few strict remarks towards Asani and Cyrus (they better not be doing anything funny if they don't want a detention again), letting Fred out of the cupboard he was locked into twice (Fred, honestly, this is more pathetic than usual), having a verbal confrontation with Cassandra over whose costume is better (Will's, of course, it looks so natural) — all of it got the prefect's spirits high enough to enjoy himself despite his predicament. And then he spotted him.
The prettiest boy in the room. The best hair, the smoothest skin, the impeccable smile. Looking smart, acting smart, being smart — there is only one student who inhabits all of those qualities, and it's him — William Abbott. Nilliam honks in surprise at how good he apparently looks from a distance. Albeit, this one was somewhat a little shy... Why, they only needed some pointers on how to reach perfection, that was the truth of the matter!
Nilliam strolled down to whoever was lucky enough to drink the Polyjuice potion with his ginger hair.
"If I may, my dear sir, I look best if you part my hair just like this," he pointed out and started rearraging "William"'s hair with practiced ease. "You charm it just so, enough that it stays in place and doesn't curl as much. And straighen out! You'll seem and feel taller than you actually are! It would've worked better if your shoes had a slight heel to them,like mine do, see? And also, …"
Whoever took on the role of the prettiest prefect tonight, didn't protest, and Will liked that. What a good student, they must show that there is pride in being a Slytherin, and that William Abbott is as good as they get! Perhaps a little less stuttering, my friend... Oh, you need a parchment to write this all down? How studious!
"I'm glad you don't seem as shocked as when I first addressed you! Now, now, less scrambling and more dignity! I wonder if my calligraphy skills and muscle memory were transferred onto you as well."
The student did indeed get some confidence with Will's helpful lecturing as they started reaching out towards Nilliam to— Oh. Oh, of course they wanted to touch his hair, didn't they. What is it with the Hogwarts student population? They see something fluffy and they just have to— Oh, no? No petting my hair? Hmpf. Alright. Not good niffler etiquette, to touch without asking? Perhaps, perhaps. That's right, this "William" has prefect duties to attend to! Not time for... pat patting. Not even a little. Sigh.
[To whomever pulled Andrew Montrose in the Polyjuice Swap]
"Monty, thank Merlin!"
The prefect in his teal attire and with a very much real niffler beak finally spots his boyfriend by the snack table. His "Andrew" looks somewhat lost. Oh, perhaps he also has been looking for William but couldn't find him because William is no longer William. He is Nilliam.
"Baby, it's me! Something horrible has happened!"
Will practically runs into "Andrew" for a hug, and it's only by some miracle that the bright orange cupcake in Ravenclaw's hand doesn't get smudged on William's hair.
"The potion backfired!" Will starts to unload his niffler story onto "Monty" with periodic hiccups and breaks to wipe the annoying tears away.
At some point William looks up at "Andrew", demanding a kiss, but the aforementioned half-eaten cupcake grabs his attention instead. The prefect takes it from the Ravenclaw's hand with a whiny "Thank you" and starts eating. It seems to calm him down until he looks at the icing. Orange… So ginger… Just like his hair used to be…
Will starts crying again.
[William's scream after drinking the Polyjuice Potion and looking in the mirror. Note: he was actually honking the words out, because, you know, niffler beak.]
[William drank the wrong Polyjuice Potion: is there any doubt whose fur got into his vial?
Context: some Polyjuice Potions (sponsored by an organisation wishing to remain anonymous) have been specially produced for this Halloween party. They are meant to be swapped between students in secret to allow for fun interactions and "who are you"s. The rule of fun for bending the rules is allowed: long duration, change of clothes, transformations that are not normally possible with Polyjuice, and so on.]
William was really excited about this event as he was one of the people in charge of it, just like the year prior (as much as Cassandra claims it to be her idea). Potions allowing the user to change into some spooky creatures in spirit of the Halloween were a success back then, especially for those who didn't have a costume. Everyone from sandy mummies to cats with pretty bows roamed the ballroom (and some — wreaked havoc).
Changing into their classmates was not the aspect they'd considered until this year, and the permission to do it officially took Will a lot of time and effort. The prefects had to make sure that no transformed student left the designated area, that only the 7th-years took the polyjuice vials, and that the potions themselves were acquired from a reputable source.
William expected some cheating to occur, but not that it would affect him personally. And yet.
He took the vial he was given with excitement. Who would he become! Who else is participating! What is the pool of students he's picking from! William spent a few days looking through his archives, trying to recall his friends' mannerisms and speech patterns, obvious ticks and smaller details, typical topics of conversations, and so on. He was so prepared to play his role that—
— that when he watched in horror as teal fur started growing all over his face, as he felt the same hairy needles spread over the rest of his body, as sharp claws replaced his carefully manicured fingers (at least it didn't spread to his feet?), and as his lips— Merlin, he no longer had the lips, he had a beak! When all of that looked back at him in the mirror, all hope for a fun evening was lost.
"The king of kings, the teal of teals, the handsomest niffler of all!" The 5th year with fluffy hair begins, a pet brush in one hand and treats in another. "Let me brush thy teal fur! It'll save me, your loyal subject, from the worst fate of all — boredom!"
That, and she's got some plans for the fur that'll be left on the brush. But the little niffler doesn't need to know that.
Nosy paused from his current fixation - stuffing another sock that clearly wasn't his own into his belly pouch - and gave the girl a side-eye, suspicious but intrigued. The sight of treats always had a way of softening the Niffler's guard. He tilted his head in mock consideration, as if weighing her offer.
Brushing? Him? The Teal King? Nosy had to admit, the praise was well-deserved. And "The King of Kings" had a nice ring to it. Perhaps a little grooming session wasn't such a bad idea, especially with the promise of snacks so generously offered.
Strutting over with his tail flicking confidently, Nosy gave the girl a regal look, as if to say, You may proceed. With a small honk, he plopped himself down in front of her, sealing the deal. Of course, he kept one eye on the treats the whole time, as per usual - those were what truly mattered.
As the fifth-year began brushing his fur, Nosy sat in regal silence, thoroughly enjoying the attention and the soothing feeling of being combed, making his teal coat shimmer with every stroke. From time to time, the little Niffler glanced up at the girl with an unruly mop of hair, silently pleased with her work.
Occasionally, he would even lift a paw, signalling his approval, or nudge her hand towards the treats she still held. A king must be rewarded for his cooperation, after all. And though the girl grinned mischievously, hiding her true motives behind that playful expression, Nosy couldn't care less in that moment. As far as the little menace was concerned, he was simply enjoying the treatment he naturally deserved.
When the brushing session finally came to an end, Nosy snatched up his treats with a smug look, his fur now gleaming and fluffed to perfection.
He strutted away, proud and satisfied, completely unaware that he had just donated a part of his luxurious teal coat to her mysterious schemes. The Teal King had been pampered, and all was right in his world - for now.
Asani has been working hard on not working hard. It's fun to provide yourself with entertainment but it's more fun when it is gifted to you after the smallest of nudges.
A Halloween Polyjuice Swap event? Don't mind if she does! She just has to... Drop some fur into her phial instead of her precious fluffy hair. And watch the unfortunate soul who randomly drinks the concoction.
