St Mungo's Charity Christmas Ball, 2016

Amber was becoming slightly overwhelmed, but thankfully she had prepared herself for being bombarded. She had returned after not seeing her friends in some time, and she knew that although Artemis had also once attended Hogwarts, the other girl wasn’t quite as sociable as Amber was. When Ryder approached her, she smiled once again, hugging him tightly before taking a step back and shaking hands with Daniella. “I’ve heard so much about you, Daniella,” she said kindly, before looking at Ryder, “and thank you. You’ve scrubbed up wonderfully yourself.”

Amber knew that her French companions would have been able to hear what Ryder had whispered without a doubt, and she thought that Arabella might have too, but she trusted her friends and knew they wouldn’t share something that was meant as words for Amber alone. She was about to do the introductions when Mackenzie Riddle approached and spoke to Ryder. She heard the words clearly, even though she didn’t stand as close as Daniella did, and she resisted the urge to go after the Slytherin girl for very different reasons to Daniella’s. She took a deep breath through her nose, specifically picking out Baldwin’s scent and allowing it to calm her. She would have preferred to take his hand instead, but it would not be particularly appropriate. “What’s her problem?” she said, forcing a chuckle and rolling her eyes.

Dinah hadn't been planning on coming but when she heard Jace would be there and substantially his new mate well...Dinah had to go. She hadn't had the chance to meet this mate of his and she was curious as all could be. Of course, she wasn't nearly as important to the cause as some of the other families but she walked in with the same amount of dignity, smiling at the hostess she gave a slight curtsy before moving on her way, instantly spotting and smelling Jace as soon as she walked in. Her hair was done up slightly with the help of one of her only friends in her house, Carly and she was grateful for the older girls help. Getting to Jace and Lyra she smiled.

"So this is the infamous Lyra, it's nice to meet you finally. Even if I did have to drag myself out here for this" She chuckled softly and held her hand out for the other girl, after she watched her set a glass down. "I'm Dinah, Dinah Siren. Cause I'm sure Jace failed to mention me" She laughed smiling at the other girl kindly but also studying her, trying to get a grasp on who this girl was really, plus she just wanted to make sure Jace wouldn't get hurt somehow by this girl.

Mackenzie made it outside the building and sat on a bench and just stared up at the sky. She blinked back her tears and tried to regain her control as she waited for her carriage to arrive. How could Ryder just abandon her like that? She was his little sister. He was supposed to always be there for her, not throw her aside for some girl hes fucking. She sighed and ripped the barettes from her hair letting them scatter to the ground and her hair fall down around her shoulders, hiding her face from all to see.

Cameron had originally intended to stay at school and help take care of the students who were not attending the ball. The headmistress and his head of house both insisted that he attend, and assured him that they would do just find keeping track of the students who had remained. So, he had taken a carriage to the event and wandered around inside for a while, before deciding he needed some fresh air. He knew a lot of people, and nodded in greeting to many of them in passing, but he didn’t stop to talk to anyone until he was outside. He saw a girl sitting down looking rather upset and he couldn’t help but approach her.

Continued...

As the young man took the glass from her tray with a smile, Lyra started to wonder how on earth the hospital afforded to put on such a huge event. She didn’t quite understand how it all worked, but she thought that it might have something to do with the rich people who attended, and then donated money because they had such a good time. Or something equally ridiculous. She was mulling on the topic of philanthropy when she felt a breath on her ear and hear a familiar voice. A smile spread over her lips as she turned to face him, careful not to lose control of the tray of drinks. “You came,” she said quietly at first, before laughing with a shake of her head, “I had to help my mother, even if she told me not to. Our compromise was that I would help out for the first hour then enjoy the night. So of course we will dance. My hour’s up, so once this tray is empty, I’ll be all yours.”

Before she could even comprehend what was happening, there was a girl rushing toward them and making excited sounds as she spoke rapidly to Jace. The girl seemed to not notice Lyra and first, but when she did she politely excused herself. The Ravenclaw didn’t say anything because she hardly had the chance to, but she did smile and nod her understanding. The girl was from her year, and after a moment of thought she realised that they shared a last name. “You’re most welcome,” Lyra said, though it wasn’t really her who had invited anyone. The event was for everybody in the community, and her mother had invited everyone within it. “It was nice to meet you,” she called after the girl, who ran off once again almost as quickly as she’d approached.

“Wow,” Lyra said, “she’s something else..” The Ravenclaw took a small step forward, placing the last glass down on the nearby table, and was about to ask for the promised dance, when another girl approached. This girl, unlike the last, seemed to know a lot about her. But she wasn’t sure in the slightest who the pretty stranger was. Lyra blushed lightly, glancing at Jace in panic and then back at the girl. Jace had failed to mention her, and Lyra was feeling worse about it by the moment. “Um,” she said, “I’m sure he’s mentioned you.. just we talk about so much. I’m sorry. It’s lovely to meet you.”

Dinah smiled laughing ever so slightly, she was calmer now then before this Lyra girl seemed nice enough. Dinah shook her head waving off the other girls worries. ”Don’t worry about it. Honestly I’m very forgettable and not to important so I’m not surprised he didn’t mention me” She shrugged smiling at the older girl but who held herself as if she was younger almost. ”I know him from school I’m just an aquintance but he’s mentioned you so I wanted to come over and say hi. Your just as beautiful as he says. Then again words never do justice to actual apperences.” she laughed softly grinning at the other girl.

Dinah walked around and got close to Lyra smiling warmly at her, a smile normally reserved only for Jace and her family. Reaching back Dinah undid the clips in her own hair and slowly put them in Lyra, braiding the girls hair a tad enough so it was one strand and clipped it so her hair was out of her face. Speaking softly as she did this ”Someone as beautiful as you shouldn’t hide her face, here, these will look better in your hair then mine anyway” she commented undoing the second clip and finishing the little style she ended up making. Slowly backing away she smiled and set a hand on Lyra shoulder gently, ”Take care of him? Okay? Sometimes even though he’ll never admit he needs sometime to watch out for him.” she whispered softly before turning around, her hair now having fallen apart basically as she picked up a drink and took a sip smiling and just standing back.

Jacob knew that the wait would be worth it. He understood that Helena was a bit older and more confident than she had been at sixteen when she’d given birth to Jace, but she was still a bit self conscious. She didn’t say so, but he knew. So when she finally came out, he was just as stunned as he had anticipated. “Wow..” he breathed as he moved closer to his wife, placing his hands on her hips, “you’re so beautiful. Can’t we just stay here while Jace is at the party and Charlie is with my parents?”

Stephan had had no luck finding Octavia, but he knew that she would come to him when she arrived. He was definitely looking forward to the night, as for once there was no obligation what-so-ever for him to behave. Other than the fact that his parents were there. And he didn’t need to make sure anyone else behaved- or at least didn’t get caught- either, because he wasn’t a prefect when he wasn’t at Hogwarts. That was why he’d swiped a glass of bourbon from a passing waitress. He was still keeping an eye out when a pair of slim, warm arms wrapped themselves around his waist, and he smiled happily as her turned. “You’re-” his voice trailed off as he took her in; she was stunning and the dress was absolutely breathtaking, “… wow. I just.. you made that? You’re so talented.”

Theo’s eyes continued to search, but so far he couldn’t see the object of his curiosity. She was different, but she hadn’t been at school very much recently. In fact, he was certain she only showed up when she could be bothered, and maybe wasn’t even living there all the time. And every time he thought of her, the questions filled is mind. But, instead of seeing Lily Potter, he was bumped in to by a Malfoy, and that was almost as good. “It’s no worries, mate,” he said to his housemate, raising an eyebrow at the look on the other boy’s face before raising his glass slightly, “no harm done. Do you want a drink?”

Atticus entered the ball room wearing a gray suit that made his already bright blue eyes even more striking than usual. He knew his brother Theodore was already there, but he did not know if Alayna had arrived yet or not. He looked around the room for her and picked up a glass of champagne to drink as he searched

Benji had already finished his third glass of whiskey when a small girl practically tackled him, his laugh booming loudly when he noticed it was Kira clinging to him. "Why of course, little princess!" He said, placing her so her feet were on top of his and began dancing around the room, unable to stop smiling. "You look beautiful, Princess. I do hope you have been keeping out of trouble." He teased her.

Kira smiled as Benji lifted her and she danced with her Uncle, a huge smile on her face "Ive been really good, Uncle Benji. I got an A on my potions exam the other day." She said proud of her good grade and knew her Uncle would be just as proud if not more. "Who is the girl with Jace? It wasnt Dinah so I was surprised Jace was near another girl. And she was a human. Jace hates humans."

Harlow was watching a larger man dance with a girl, a smile upon her lips that she hid behind her glass of wine when Darren approached her, trying not to sigh. "Thank you, Darren. You cleaned up nicely too." She commented before Hope came into view and Harlow had to contain her tears at the fact Hope had grown so much. "Oh sweetie, you're so beautiful," She sniffed and kissed her forehead, inspecting the beautiful hair pieces. "Ooo, Peter, huh?" She winked and then sobered up, gesturing towards Darren whilst looking around the room for Peter. "Say Hello to your father, princess. Doesn't she look gorgeous, Darren?" Suddenly, someone she hadn't expected to see entered her view and she rested a hand against her heart, remembering the time when Hope told her both Blake and Darren were nowhere to be found. "Oh, Blake," She breathed and pulled the young boy into a tight hug. "What did I say about calling me that?" She said sternly, but made it clear she was only messing around.

Baldwin's smile couldn't have seemed to go any wider but the moment Amber threw her arms around him, his face looked like it was going to crack with happiness. He stood close to her, his hand resting on the small of her back so he looked more like a bodyguard but in that moment, with another male so close, his instincts screamed at him to look after her. "We wouldn't of missed it. After all, the De Clermonts are the largest donors for St Mungos so even if we didn't care for you greatly, we would still be obligated to attend." He said before realising that didn't sound as romantic as he wanted and he scolded himself, visibly looking ashamed of himself and even Artemis rolled her eyes. "Great Job, brother." She said, turning to Edward Lupin with a smile. "Pleasure to see you again, Edward." Artemis stated, always refusing to call people by nicknames unless they were family members, or her leading lady, Amber. Artemis herself clapped her hands in delight at the idea of Arabella joining them in France and she could't think of a better idea.

Soon enough, Baldwin was getting annoyed at the fast amount of people crowding around Amber and due to all the hugs, his hand was no longer on Amber's back causing him to feel lost. His head however tilted at the whisper, having heard every word and he shared a glance with Artemis in slight intrigue. Finally, the group began to dwindle due to issues that didn't concern him, Artemis or, thankfully, Amber and his hand returned to the small of her back, picking out her scent to soothe him.

Jace's heart seemed to scream at the fact she was happy at his arrival and whilst on the outside he was holding his composure, on the inside, he was emotionally going insane. Hearing the compromise, he found himself growing with excitement because there wasn't that many glasses left on the tray and he was counting down the seconds for their promised dance.

Watching Kira run off to find Benji, he smiled apologetically and couldn't help but feel embarrassed when Dinah appeared. He didn't speak much of his friendships, only having really spoken about his family on their first meeting and when the two of them spoke to each other, he rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. "Sorry Dinah, you know you mean a lot to me." He said, nudging the blonde and was amazed t how friendly she was being, causing him to promise to give her her favourite food when they had their 1-1 time. "Sorry about her and about the fact I never mentioned her. She's truly one of my best friends but shes just trying to play coy as usual. But she's definitely right about your hair. You shouldn't hide such a beautiful face." He said quite boldly, thankful for the confidence boost Dinah had given her for stating she was beautiful as it allowed him to express the same sentiment.

Blake smiled sheepishly at Harlow and chuckled softly "Of course. Sorry, Mama Harlow." He said using the name he always called the woman he saw as a mother. He frowned a bit when the name Peter was brought up. Who was Peter? Then he remembered Hope saying she had a boyfriend and figured that must be who Peter was. 

Darren smiled when he saw his daughter "Shes is beautiful as ever. Takes after her mother." He of course knew that Hope was not biologically theirs, but none of that mattered. "I do hope you can save me a dance Harlow." He said as he saw a certain blonde woman enter the ball "As for now, excuse me." He said kissing his daughters cheek to go and greet his friend

Skylar only decided to come to the ball for Darren. The two friends had recently reconnected and she wanted to see him. She wore a blood red floor length gown and ruby red ear rings and a matching necklace. SHe had her hair up on top of her head and her pale skin stood out next to her red lips. She smiled as she saw Darren approach and the two friends hugged

dress:

As the carriage Lacey was riding in pulled to a stop, the Ravenclaw hesitated. At first the idea of going to a party at St. Mungo's was a fun thought. Even her Head of House thought so... One of the librarians even bought her a simple outfit for the occasion. The only real comfort she had was knowing that many of the staff from the hospital would be there, many of whom she had started to build relationships with due to her particular handicap. After much convincing, Lacey decided to attend. She even got help with a bow tie for Shinra. Still... She sat in the still carriage, mulling over whether this really was a good idea.

As the door opened, Lacey felt her heart start to race. "Miss, are you coming out?" a gentle, masculine voice asked her. Swallowing hard, she nearly shook her head with the intention of returning to the castle, but Shinra gave a small, encouraging nudge to her leg as if to say, 'Come on. I'm right here.' Putting a hand on the Shepard's head, Lacey sighed and nodded. Shinra leapt from the carriage as Lacey fumbled in finding the man's offered hand. Gripping it tightly, the blonde carefully stepped from the carriage and released his hand once she had a firm grip on her dog. "Thank you..." she said softly, attempting a smile. "You are most welcome. Have a good time," he replied back.

"Guess it's now or never..." Lacey muttered to Shinra, who took that to be his cue to lead his girl I to the party. Carefully he guided her with exquisite care and perfection until the reached the entrance. Tightening her grip as he stopped and looked to see what was wrong with his girl, Lacey felt a small flicker of panic ignite in the pit of her stomach. The room was filed with music and tons of voices, meaning lots of people. Sensing his girl's unease, Shinra sat as close to her as he could, blocking her front as her protector. He knew this position helped to ease her, and so he would adopt this position until she was ready to move. What was I thinking....

Harlow instantly felt better as Blake called her 'Mama Harlow'. Whilst he was the first one to start calling her that, back within the Hybrid Clan that Larunda had established from the moment she became the first Hybrid, many new born hybrid's called her Mama Harlow as she nurtured them and gave them the love that parents of the Hybrids neglected to give them due to being something so strange. Most of them didn't even have families and Harlow and Larunda wanted to give them that due to how old the pair of them were. "I find she is even more beautiful than I ever could be." She mused, resting her hand on Hope's cheek in pure adoration and motherly love.

Hearing Darren ask for a dance, she had to resist the urge to grimace unsure if that was a good idea and she refused to answer, only following him as he greeted a blonde that looked strangely familiar but as quickly as the thought came, it disappeared and she smiled brightly at Blake, patting his cheek. "You've grown up so much, sweetie. I hardly recognise you!" She said, almost teary eyed.

Blake smiled and nodded "Being gone for four years will do that. Plus eating fruits and vegetables and such. Hope made sure I was eating by sending food to my house when dad didnt do the shopping. So I owe her big time." He said looking at the blonde next to them "How have you been, Mama? I heard youre doing better since Darren left. I feel horrible having been gone and not being there for moral support." He has been gone when his other family needed him and he hated himself for it. That showed on his face, disgust and dissapointment

Harlow sighed at the memory of Hope realising Blake was gone, and whilst the Hybrid would never admit, she was saddened by this. He was her daughter's friend and his leaving truly messed with her but in the end, Hope and Harlow bonded more over it. "I did raise my daughter right." She said proudly, in reference to Hope sending food and she smiled brightly. "I'm doing fantastic. When Hope gets back to school, I am planning on going away again. They found new wizarding artifacts in Egypt and I have been sent to examine them. I may even get to take them home!" She practically squealed in delight before shaking her head at his comments about moral support. "You were young, Blake. Don't beat yourself up about it. It was my thing to go through with Hope and it's made her a stronger woman. I'm just lucky to have Darren still around to keep the family appearance up. I'm happier on my own. It's just a shame because I know his feelings still remain..." She admitted, not really talking about it much.

"Im glad to have her as a friend. Even though I royally screwed up. I did try and contact her. But my dad always got in the way. Said magic was the reason Brenton died." He said frowning, he missed his twin brother and his dad "Did Hope tell you my dad passed? Im gonna be staying at school over the breaks. But once summer comes... I dont know what to do. Im only 15, I really dont wanna go to the foster home they put me in. I hate it there." Something was chewing at the back of Blakes mind and he leaned close to Harlow and whispered in her ear to where only she could hear him "Do you know who Peter is? If he hurts her can I kill him, Mama? I promise to keep it neat and not get caught." He frowned a bit when she mentioned how it was not his repsonsibility to take care of her "But I feel like it is. You guys are my other family and I wasnt there when you needed me. When Hope needed me."

Harlow's heart broke at his story and she didn't hesitate to give him a hug. "She hadn't. I've always told her a young age that if it's a story about someone else, it's never her story to tell. It builds a sense of loyalty between the two people, even if the person doesn't know that Hope hasn't said anything." She stated, staring down at him with a sweet smile before it brightened as a thought appeared. "I have many people staying with me so why don't you stay over as well? I'll be back from my trip a week into the summer and Hope will be there so you won't be alone." She suggested. At the mention of Peter, her expression softened and she shook her head, refusing to divulge any information. "She'll have to be the one who tells you, Blake. But you're here now, that's all that matters."

Macey had slowly begun to regret that she had even come to this ball. She didn't really know anyone here and everyone around her seemed to have at least some kind of fun. The girl just eats there some snacks. She needed to find herself soon some other activity. She can't stay forever near the snack table. She could try to talk with people but basically, everyone seemed to talk with someone and she didn't really wanna walk in the middle of a conversation and then stand there awkwardly not knowing what is going on or what they even did talk about. So she even things about leaving this ball way too early.

BLake nodded in understanding, "I understand that. Im just surprised she didnt tell you." He said pushing his bangs out of his eyes. He was bit shocked when she offered to let him stay with them over the summer, but at the same time he kind of expected it from her. "Thank you. I would love to." He said before frowning at the final words "It doesnt matter if Im back, I lost her. I love her... and I lost her because I was afraid to disobey my father."

Harlow understood he would be surprised but it wasn't the kind of person Hope was to spill something about others. She had raised her well enough for that, even through the roughness of her childhood. "That's excellent then. I'll tell the servants to tidy up your room before your arrival." She promised and looked towards her daughter who looked so grown up it hurt. "It does matter. Hope's father disappeared the same time as you and it was awful for us. But he came back, our relationship ruined and even though Hope doesn't mention it, I know it pains her that she doesn't have the perfect family but what she can have is the perfect friendship with you staying by her side now." She said bluntly but with a soft smile, to reassure him and gestured for him to at least spend time with Hope.