love for the beats , open

[freddie hill]

[classy=greyness]If you love it like I love it
And you feel what I feel inside
If you want it like I want it
Then baby let's get it tonight [/classy]

ah, the annual masquerade ball. this was freddie hill's second favorite ball to chaperone, next to halloween of course, because it was the closest one could get to dressing up in costume without it actually being halloween yet. it was like a halloween preview. freddie left his office feeling quite proud with the outfit he had put together, although he looked absolutely ridiculous, as usual. of course the ball was a formal event, and freddie decided to dress as formal as it gets. he had a full out tuxedo adorning his tall and lanky frame, complete with an unnecessarily extravagant white silk scarf, an unusually tall top hat, and a needless fancy cane. he was decked out to the nines rather comically, and, well, that had always been his way. maybe he would make professor benson crack up at the sight of him, and that had always brought a smile to his face. he was almost grinning now already at the thought.

freddie left his office and made his way towards the entrance hall with a spring to his step. as he began to descend the stairs he could already hear the music coming from the giant double doors to the great hall. as he approached, there was a group of ravenclaw students standing near the doors. evening ladies! he chirped, raising his cane in the air as he passed them. they giggled uncontrollably at the outrageous nature of his ensemble. as he entered the great hall he was quite pleased with the extravagant decorations. he had helped out in decorating the great hall for the masquerade ball, but hadn't seen it finished until now. the dance floor was packed with students, and at the end of the hall, where he and the other professors usually shared their meals, there was a massive stage set up with a live band blaring. freddie didn't recognize the musicians, probably some sort of music all the kids were listening to these days.

it was nice to see all of the students thrown together in the mix, from gryffindors to slytherins, but freddie knew that sooner or later tensions might build with so many different personalities sharing the same space, so he first and foremost had to be a watchful professor. across the hall he could see james potter, remus lupin, sirius black, and peter pettigrew all laughing together. he knew at once they must be up to trouble, and seeing them potentially causing mischief always made him miss his school days. he instinctively waltzed over to the punch and waved his wand over the punch bowl. he was pleased to find it hadn't been messed with... yet. he'd have to keep an eye out for all potential pranks. as much as he loved to be the immature and irresponsible professor, he didn't want to be at odds with headmaster dumbledore after he had been working so hard over the past weeks to have his dragon themed lesson plan approved. so tonight he would be on his best professorly behavior, but that didn't mean he couldn't have a little fun. he spotted another professor on the dance floor standing stiff with their arms folded, looking very stern and keeping a watchful eye over all the students. freddie waltzed over to them and began doing ridiculous and goofy dance moves circling the professor. occasionally he would incorporate his cane in some kind of bizarre tap dance move. the rest of the outfit didn't help either, he looked absolutely mad.

[classy=greyness]OUTFIT; click WORDS; 582 NOTES; open to anyone![/classy]

MADE BY ME! (ALTHOUGH YES, I AM AWARE ITS NOTHING SPECIAL)

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[celeste trista aurelia]

[classy=celtext4][classy=celicon4][/classy]Masquerades! They were definitely the greatest, in her opinion; whoever came up with the idea of masked balls should have been given an award or something. This night was a night full of mystery, intrigue, romance (not like she was particular ly interested in the latter). She even found herself thinking of the muggle story of Cendrillion, where a servant girl found her Prince Charming at a ball not unlike this one. (Celeste had never personally put much stock in tales such as that one, but she knew the idea definitely attracted some of her female students.) Even now, she saw groups of female students giggling and flirting with guys all around the Great Hall. A particularly shy student -- a fifth year, if she remembered properly -- seemed to be nearly petrified in terror as her friends pointed toward a student from a different house. Clearly, the boy was just as shy as the girl was; he had been stealing glances at her since the night began. The woman chuckled, then walked over and leaned down to whisper in the girl's ear. "Don't be shy, darling -- just go." With an elegant sweep of her hand, Celeste gently pushed her forward.

The girl stumbled in surprise, but Celeste didn't allow her to turn back. Once the professor was fairly certain that the two of them had struck up a conversation, she swiftly retreated to a side of the hall. Being matchmaker on a night such as this was certainly oodles of fun. The brunette's eyes began to wander once more; it was a pity that she had to chaperone these students and make sure none of them had smuggled in any, say, firewhiskey. (And partially to make sure that the infamous group of Gryffindors didn't end up blowing the Hall to kingdom come or whatever it was they had planned for tonight.) Celeste secretly approved of their pranks -- had she been their classmates, there was no doubt in her mind that she would have been there beside them, spiking the punch bowl and causing rain to fall from the enchanted ceiling -- but she was a professor, and professors were supposed to be professional.

Kind of.

She saw a fellow educator pull out his strange, albeit interesting dance moves in front of one of the more stern members of the Hogwarts staff. "Freddie!" she called out, delighted. The woman made her way to his side, laughing. "Sometimes, I wonder how you ever come up with these dances." The woman waved pleasantly at the other professor, who was giving them both the 'stop fooling around' glare. "Lighten up, dear," the woman sighed. "Why not have as much fun as is possible tonight?" Celeste turned and smiled at Freddie. "So. Has anything particularly interesting occured yet?" she asked. If the answer was no, perhaps she would be forced to play matchmaker a few more times -- or, if bringing couples together got boring, she could always tear them apart.

ooc: for freddie and others! I jumped in here, I hope you don't mind the lack of coherency.[/classy][newclass=celtext4]font-size: 10px; width: 350px; text-align: justify[/newclass][newclass=celtext4 b]font-weight: bold; color: #777777[/newclass][newclass=celicon4]float: left; margin: 5 8 1 0; border: 3px solid #777777;[/newclass]

[joanna nolan]

The damn bloody masquerade ball. Just another tradition engraved in the walls and hearts of Hogwarts. Tradition, from the Latin, tradere; to transmit, to hand over, to give for safekeeping, or rather…doing something because that’s what you’ve always done. There had always been a masquerade ball to commemorate the start of a new year, and there always would be. Of course, Joanna understood the logic behind such an event—give the students a break, force interhouse collaboration and coexistence, remind students that such identities didn’t matter—hide behind masks, painted faces, because when you cut down to the bone we’re really not so different after all. Imagine that Gryffindor’s surprise when he realized the girl whose company he so enjoyed was actually from Slytherin! Yes. Many benefits behind such an affair, the philosophical concepts of encouraging people to hide behind masks and become one overarching identity quite interesting really… and yet, what student, what faculty member, for that matter, truly understood the implications behind this soiree? Just a dance, after all. Just a dance.

Joanna hated dances(ing).

Crossing her arms, she leaned back against the wall, fingers drumming along the line of her forearm; no beat, no rhythm, just in time with irritation. She did nothing. She said nothing. She saw nothing. Here, as a required, in physical presence only; though should some break of the rules catch in her periphery she would be bound to address the disruption. Other than such disturbances, she found very little interest in the on-goings around her; girls giggling, boys bumbling, dirty dancing—she could be in the midst of some very challenging runes sent to her from a curse breaking team in Malaysia; dissecting the lines piece by piece & putting them back together again. Doing SOMETHING instead of doing NOTHING. Because that’s what this was. N o t h i n g. Just another obligation; so many, obligations with teaching, as if the mere education of students was no longer enough—no, no, you must show school support and spirit, must attend quidditch games, chaperone events, dine in the great hall for evening meals, supervise detentions, and on and on and on—lesson plans? What are those?

Caught up in her own thoughts, Joanna didn't realize until it was too late that one Freddie Hill had trapped her in a barrage of eccentric movements, circling around her, waving a—was that a cane? – cane, yes, cane, around wildly. Almost fascinating, really, to witness homo sapiens at their … peak. Quirking an eyebrow, she remained completely still, as if to balance his continual motion. His movements disconnected, disjointed—muscles moving of their own accord without any regard for the tendons, ligaments, joints in between—as if his body were not one entity but separate parts entirely. “Professor Hill,” she said flatly. Quite a scene and he did know how to make a scene. “…Are you having a seizure? It appears you have lost any and all forms of self control. Lack of oxygen to the brain will do that, you know.” Joanna paused, continuing to watch, demeanor blank and unimpressed. Mouth opened to go on, “Damnit, Freddie, you’re going to hurt someone I—“ when Celeste Aurelia decided to walk down the road to hell along with them. “…Professor Aurelia,” an edge to her tone, eyes narrowing. Lighten up. A silly phrase, as if one could lighten in any way, shape, or form through sheer force of will. “Always throwing in your two knuts. Please take your wishes back to the well.” And drown them.

If wishes were fishes~

[freddie hill]

[classy=greyness]If you love it like I love it
And you feel what I feel inside
If you want it like I want it
Then baby let's get it tonight [/classy]

Freddie was instantly pleased with Professor Nolan's reactions. They were exactly what he had expected. He had hoped to make her smile, maybe get it out of her this one time, but annoying her could be just as satisfying. A seizure?! no! he exclaimed, not breaking his dance form (and completely misunderstanding that joanna's question was rhetorical). It seems as though my dancing aspirations are just too big for the restraints of my body! he said observantly in a merry tone. It's too bad I couldn't lend you some, then maybe you'd be having a better time Jo-Jo, he added. He had never referred to any of his colleagues as "Professor so-and-so" he had always called them by their first name, or nicknames he impulsively gave them on the spot.

Freddie suddenly heard his name called from behind him. He immediately stopped dancing. Was he in trouble? He turned around nervously. Maybe he had actually poked someone's eye out with his dance moves without noticing it... No! It was just Celeste, the Astronomy Professor. Oi! Celeste, join us! Oh no, but don't you see? One has to be born with moves like these! he explained, giving his bottom one last shake. Freddie turned back to Joanna when she greeted Celeste rather hostilely. Hmm... perhaps there was some tension there that he wasn't aware of? Well, he would have to get rid of that as soon as possible. Freddie never really took sides in disagreements. He was always a fence sitter, incredibly indecisive. But on top of that he rather see everyone getting along with each other. Life was just too short for daily quabbles in his opinion. Camon Jo-Jo, let's all play nicely together. Enough talk about Celeste's knuts... Freddie said cheerfully. He wrapped each of his arms around the two ladies and began to lead them towards the punch bowl and sweets table.

Not yet, my dear star gazer, but I've been keeping my eye on the punch bowl and those four gryffindor pranksters... It's always the punch bowl isn't it? he contemplated. He removed his arms from around his two co-workers and rubbed his hands together excitedly. It's quite brilliant really, he said with a cheeky smile. Freddie eyed the sweets table and wiggled his fingers in indecision as to what he would be delighted to snack on. He picked up a massive pumpkin pasty and began stuffing his face with it. Everyone is going to drink from it at some point, its easy to enchant, you could make it taste delicious, when really we could all be drinking troll bogies or firewhiskey! he elaborated with the pasty still in his mouth making everything sound like mumbles. It was evident in his tone (if it could be heard through his indiscreet chewing) that Freddie almost wished he could pull his own pranks at this ball, but of course that would be inappropriate and he was already in loads of trouble with Albus.

Or! Freddie exclaimed pointing his finger. Maybe they've enchanted the sweets! He took a napkin from the sweets table and attempted to wipe what little remained of the pumpkin pasty off his tongue. Blehk... Ugh, I think its too late ladies, I've eaten too much... Freddie held his arms out in front of him, turning to his fellow professors. Well, Celeste? Jo-Jo? Have they bewitched the sweets, those sly devils? he asked cringing. Is anything strange happening to me? Freddie didn't realize the ironic nature of this question, for he was always behaving strangely and one could argue he was always the victim of bewitched treats.




ooc; omg its too easy to find a matt smith gif for every situaiton

[classy=greyness]OUTFIT; click WORDS; 600 NOTES; professor shenanigans![/classy]

MADE BY ME! (ALTHOUGH YES, I AM AWARE ITS NOTHING SPECIAL)

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[celeste trista aurelia]

[classy=celtext4][classy=celicon4][/classy]Celeste grinned brightly at the runes professor's frosty greeting, clearly unfazed. It was too amusing to antagonize Joanna; it were as if the two professors were on opposite sides of the 'teachers at Hogwarts' spectrum, with Joanna occupying the side where all of the goody-goody try-hards were (clearly, Celeste's section was with all of the awesome people who knew how to party). "I wonder, darling. Do you always have a very long, very pointy pole up your --"

She was cut off by an arm around her shoulder, and abruptly cut off. The woman shot Joanna another dazzling smile, then followed Freddie's lead to the punch bowl. The woman chuckled. Of course the punch bowl would be the first target of those students; it was such a classic example, who could resist? It was such a pity that she was a professor. If she didn't have her 'obligations' as a 'responsible adult,' there wasn't a doubt in her mind that she would have ended up spiking the punch bowl and just cause general mayhem. The woman laughed as Freddie spoke and stuffed his face at the same time (quite a feat, if you asked her). "Indeed," she agreed. Again, she wished she wasn't a professor -- the two of them would have made such a dynamic duo. They could terrorize all of the little first-years and cause headaches for all of the professors.

The woman folded her arms and regarded Freddie with more than a bit of amusement. "You've only just realized?" she asked, rolling her eyes. "Never eat something at a party such as this, dear." Wasn't it prankster law? Don't touch anything unless you know exactly what had gone into it. She still gave the man a once-over, however. Celeste shook her head. "Otherwise, you seem perfectly normal." As normal as he would ever be, in any case. Even Celeste had to admit that the man could be a bit ... eccentric at times. He was loveable, to be sure, but he set his own pace. Then the professor glanced at Joanna.

"What about you, Jo-Jo?" She repeated the woman's nickname with a slightly mocking tone. "Have you anything else to say?" The brunette paused. No, Joanna almost certainly had a lot of things to say. (Not like Celeste actually wanted to hear any of it.) "Anything worthwhile, rather," Celeste amended.

ooc: for freddie and joanna! I'm sorry about the length (or lack thereof). "orz[/classy][newclass=celtext4]font-size: 10px; width: 350px; text-align: justify[/newclass][newclass=celtext4 b]font-weight: bold; color: #777777[/newclass][newclass=celicon4]float: left; margin: 5 8 1 0; border: 3px solid #777777;[/newclass]

[joanna nolan]

Jojo was (wo)man who thought (s)he was a loner~

“I don’t dance.” She replied flatly. O b v i o u s l y. Every bone welded together, no joints in between, squeaksqueak(!)—oil, anyone? The statement, not entirely true. Under certain influences (primarily the intoxicating—no pun intended—muggle alcohol tequila) she had been known to jump around, arms in the air like we just don't care. Not like she had NEVER danced, after all, she had, but not anymore, not today, not now—neveragain. Perhaps it was that she just couldn’t LET GO enough to enjoy just moving in conjunction with the music, always something on her mind, always aware of every movement, always averting from wandering eyes. Not one to make a spectacle of herself, that Joanna. Biting down on her lip, she refrained from responding to his…nickname for her—to respond would be to give it power, give him power, power over her, and it was best to just ignore it. Protesting would only give him more ammunition, and he had plenty of that. And it would change nothing anyway. Wasted. Energy.

But (s)he knew it wouldn’t last~

“Oh, I do believe you were born with something,” genetic, most likely—something in the genes, a twist of the DNA, a missing G or A, an extra T or C, chromosomes just not quite right. Not that she really thought that. Yes. Freddie Hill was … odd. Who wasn’t, really? But he was just that: Freddie. Nothing less and nothing more. Tone laden with sarcasm, but no real malice behind the letters; just words, only words. “Oh you know what they say, or you probably don’t, speak softly and carry a big stick—“ the better to W h A c K you with my dear, she started, eyes narrowing at Celeste, interrupted as he threw an arm around her and the other professor, pulling them towards the refreshments. “Let’s not play at all.” Shoulders stiffened at his touch, and she almost stumbled forward, feet unwilling to move, a physical protest to this declaration of socialization. As they reached the punch bowl, Joann attempted to shrug Freddie’s arm off, taking a step away from the two—space, please. Don’t you know, everyone knows, three feet is the proper distance for standard socialization.

Get back, get back to where you once belonged~

Always the punch bowl. Joanna eyed the punch, surveyed the treats, kept her hands at her side. “That’s why we’re here, isn’t it? Policing for pranks, punches, and pelvic thrusting,” she commented, words hanging in the air, dry. “And the punch, apparently.” How… juvenile; pranks. No point, no point at all, except to prove you slipped the system. Always trying to dismantle the system; a system (society) they would once be apart of—just more parts to throw a wrench in. “What was that, Freddie? I couldn’t understand you with all those words in between your food,” grimacing, nose wrinkled up on her face in distaste, even more so as Freddie began to wipe his tongue. “Don’t choke.” As he stepped back, she watched, listening as Celeste assured him that he was, indeed, quite normal, quite, quite, positively put the O in Ordinary.

Get b a a a c k.

Tapping a finger on her cheek, she pretended to examine him, even taking a step forward, leaning closer, looking from side to side. “I don’t know,” she said slowly, “I think something might be off.” Eyes swept over the half eaten pastry, the orange coated napkin. “We’d best be sure. Let’s see. I think a check for cognitive and coordination changes is in order. Can you stand on one foot, clap your hands, and recite the alphabet backwards?” Taking the used napkin by the very corner, she lifted it and quickly disposed of the cloth in the nearby wastebasket, not wishing to leave the mix of pastry and saliva lingering around the rest of the refreshments; unappetizing, really. “That,” she turned her attention to Celeste, letting the word fall firmly between them, “is a difficult question to answer. You see, Professor Aurelia, what you find worthwhile, and what I find worthwhile, is fundamentally different. I fear that I would have to lower my standards, should I attempt to say anything you would find… worthwhile.” Pause. “But please feel free to continue educating us on the do’s and don’ts of parties…such as these. It appears you are the expert, after all.” If only lighting would hit her now. Please. And she never said please.

Get back Jo~

note: D: she doesn't play well with others. but freddie is cracking me up and celeste is so perfectly coolly indifferent xD loving the dynamics here. <3

[freddie hill]

[classy=greyness]If you love it like I love it
And you feel what I feel inside
If you want it like I want it
Then baby let's get it tonight [/classy]

Freddie's green eyes looked from one professor to the other, you could cut the tension between them with a knife. He looked at Professor Aurelia and frowned when she repeated the nickname he created for Joanna in a mocking tone. Freddie was incredibly annoying and teasing with his nicknames, but he never meant them cruelly. He never said them in a way that intended to hurt anyone's feelings. It was all in good fun to him, but that was not the case with Celeste's tone. He turned back to joanna when she suggested something might be wrong with him from the sweets. Oh no! Is my hair turning green?! he said abruptly, dropping his cane and knocking off his top hat, running his hands through his hair in every direction, turning it into a mess atop his head.

Or my tongue! My tongue's going to start swelling isn't it?! he said pulling his tongue out of his mouth with two fingers and looking down at it. Potter pulled that one on me before in class once, he said in a mumbled voice while still hanging onto his tongue. He let go of it realizing he couldn't be understood. And I thought the boy had brought me some pumpkin juice just because I was his favorite professor! Fell for that one didn't I, my tongue was swollen for days, couldn't enjoy any of my food... it's pumpkin everything I can't resist it! It's the perfect blend of tartness and sweetness! You could probably kill me as long as the poison was concealed in anything pumpkin... He paused. Hm, probably shouldn't have told you that...

He stopped rambling to listen to Joanna's advice now. Right! Cognitive and coordination changes are the first to go! Freddie stood on one foot in all seriousness clapping his hands. Z! Y! X! W! V-- he stopped clapping and hopping mid sentence. Oh, I see what you're up to Jojo, you naughty devil you, he said smiling and waving a finger at her. You've made me look foolish! Well the joke's on you my comrade, because I have no shame in anything, in case you haven't noticed by now, he grinned, but no one had been paying attention to him since he stopped hopping about. Now the ladies were exchanging some sour words.

Who wants to hear MY party do's and don't's Freddie interrupted the conversation, getting in between the two of them. Party don't: argue with your fellow professors when you could be tearing up the dance floor! Party do: tear up the dance floor with your fellow professors! Camon ladies, let's try and have some fun before the night is over! Besides, I see some inappropriate gyrating over there it is our duty to interrupt. Freddie moved over to the dance floor now and tried to push the two students off each other. it was a comical failure as neither of the students even acknowledged his existence. Oh camon, make this a little easier for me, he told the students. He tried prying the guy off of the girl, but he had the strength of an eight month old and there was no result, they just kept dancing like he wasn't there.

A little help? Celeste? Jojo? he called over to them.

[classy=greyness]OUTFIT; click WORDS; 547 NOTES; yes! bfflz4life haha[/classy]

MADE BY ME! (ALTHOUGH YES, I AM AWARE ITS NOTHING SPECIAL)

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[celeste trista aurelia]

[classy=celtext4][classy=celicon4][/classy]Celeste let out a peal of laughter at Joanna's suggestion -- and at the fact that Freddie was all-too-willing to follow her instructions. (What did you know? Maybe this woman was even capable of smiling without breaking the muscles her face.) Then she went into a tirade about what was (and wasn't) worthwhile, and Celeste quickly cut the idea. Nope. For all intents and purposes, Joanna Nolan was nothing short of a party pooper. Celeste mentally told herself to never invite the woman anywhere -- as if she would even deign to attend. The stench of a party pooper was difficult to get rid of.

She rolled her eyes at the professor's words. Lowering standards? (She wondered what gave the woman her 'holier-than-thou' attitude.) They were all only human, anyway. It was like being a mile below the ocean's surface -- a few feet up or down didn't make much of a difference at that point. At the end of it, Celeste did a poor job of concealing her yawn. "I am sure there are some gnomes somewhere willing to listen to your lecturing, darling," she yawned. (Not very intelligent ones, but who could fault them? She was sure they didn't know any better.) "Don't you worry."

Then Freddie interrupted once again, and Celeste took up the idea with quite a bit of enthusiasm. "Well, it is a ball. Dancing is certainly a must." Then she followed Freddie, chuckling at his attempts to pry two students off of each other. As ineffective as it was, she couldn't help but slightly appreciate the couple's tenacity. She raised an eyebrow at the man's plea for help and sighed. "This is how you do it, darling." With a smirk, the woman drove her fingers into the sides of the students. The two of them broke apart with exclamations of pain. "Party's over, dear," she hummed, deftly pushing the two of them apart. "This sort of behavior is hardly appropriate, don't you think?" Sure, Celeste was all for the passions of youth and whatever it was hormonal teenagers did, but she had certain standards of class.

And vulgar teenagers on a dance floor were not classy.

The woman waved them off, a dangerous glint in her eyes. "Don't do it again, darlings." Or else. It was annoying enough that she couldn't spike the punch herself -- having to deal with horny teenagers didn't help matters. The professor watched the couple slink away, sighing. "Freddie, you need to be more firm with students." She looked at him with something akin to pity in her eyes. "You're a professor, are you not?" (It wasn't like she particularly cared about him or his image, really -- but if students thought all professors were like the Care of Magical Creatures professor ... well, things would get annoying.)

Celeste sighed. "In any case, shall we dance?"

ooc: for freddie and joanna! these three professors are so different from each other, it's great.[/classy]

[joanna nolan]

Joanna leaned down and picked up the top hat, brushing it off thoughtlessly as she watched Freddie continue to obsess over the possible horrors that might have befallen him. Not surprising, of course, that the students felt it fitting to prank him—he probably didn’t even give the Potter boy detention, just complimented him on his… creativity. Respect not only had to be EARNED but also ENFORCED. After all, NO ONE would ever play a prank on McGonagall; now THAT was a woman with respect ( R E S P E C and don’t forget the T). “Better watch your pumpkin juice, then,” she rolled her eyes. Put him in a pumpkin shell—everyone here just trying to hop the enchanted carriage before it turned back into a pumpkin at the end (midnight, of course, midnight). Of course, even without the glass slipper and the horses, Freddie would always just be Freddie.

“Impressive,” she remarked coolly, though her lips pulled into a crooked half grin despite herself—in truth, she believed Freddie knew exactly what she was ‘up to,’ – but he played along anyway. Always good for a laugh, wasn’t he? Even Celeste was amused by his antics. As much as she hated to admit it (and she never would aloud) there was something infectious about Freddie Hill. Sort of like a disease. Cough, cough, HACK. He even managed to keep herself and Celeste within five feet of each other for more than five seconds. S p r e a d i n g . Now THAT was saying something. “The joke is on me then.” Ha. Ha. Ha.

Everyone hated gnomes. Though, truthfully, Joanna didn’t see why. Gnomes didn’t bother her, not really. Bit snappy, though, weren’t they? Gnashing gnome gnashers. Demeanor flattened as she merely stared at Celeste for a moment, deciding it best not to respond—though the company of gnomes would be much preferable to her current… surroundings. Hat still in hand, she watched as Freddie (unsuccessfully) attempted to part teenagers currently engaged in something akin to the third ‘P.’ Not quite enough force, behind it—not like the way Celeste bullied her way over and then physically forced them apart, offering threats&warnings in that d r a w l of hers. Always had to be the center of attention—always had to make a scene—center stage, where was that light, hurry and shine the light! “Excellent demonstration,” she replied, sarcasm lacing through the letters of her words. Taking charge, as if she could do anything else.

Jaw squared and shoulders straightened as Joanna watched Celeste chide Freddie with that certain SOMETHING in her eyes—a certain something that made the acid wash along the lining of her stomach, something she had seen before: pity. Joanna did not pity Freddie—though she DID think he was a right idiot who needed to sharpen up before the world swallowed him whole. “Thanks for the lesson on authority, Headmaster Aurelia,” she snapped, stepping forward and extending the dropped hat back to Freddie. Defensive? “Here. Put it back on. Your hair is a wreck. And maybe a little green. That, and you don’t look quite mad enough without it.” Authority—no one way to show it, not really—Celeste using hers like fists—bare and blunt and raw, but with the certain finesse of a right hook (dictator, salute!). Freddie more of a dagger—there, definitely there, but you just didn’t always know it—hidden, the element of surprise. And Joanna? Arrows, steady and paced, sharp at the point.

Stepping back at the suggestion of dancing, she retreated towards the refreshment table (though she did heed SOME of the Celeste’s warnings and did not touch the food or punch. Waiting to see just what ailed Freddie first). A dance between the graceful Celeste and the er, enthusiastic Freddie. Sure to be a show. Curtains, curtains! Ought to be interesting. Smoothing her own robes, she inhaled deeply, trying to focus, trying not to think about the complex and intriguing runes waiting for her at her desk; about how many of her brain cells were d y i n g from the lack of intellect and oxygen in this room. “Dance away, try not to break anything, unless it’s a bone or six,” she waved them on. There was no way in hell SHE was going to dance though. No. Way. At. All.

[freddie hill]

[classy=greyness]If you love it like I love it
And you feel what I feel inside
If you want it like I want it
Then baby let's get it tonight [/classy]

Freddie watched Professor Aurelia jab the students forcing them to wince and separate then hurry away. In a way he admired Celeste for her ability to get the students to do what she wanted. Merlin knew they could be unbearably uncooperative at times. But on the other hands, Freddie didn't really see the logic in punishing his students. They were going to do what they wanted anyways... he always had while he was at Hogwarts. He had always been more concerned with being their friend than their disciplinarian, but he didn't think that made him any less of a professor than Celeste. He frowned at Celeste and folded his arms across his chest like an impotent child. Then Joanna had joined them again, applauding Celeste's efforts, but he words laced thickly with sarcasm.

Yeah, Headmaster Aurelia... Freddie chimed in, resting his elbow on Joanna's shoulder like they were apart of some bad-ass gang. Freddie posed with his best mean face. although it was still undeniably playful. The Care of Magical Creatures Professor didn't have a single aggressive bone in his body. He looked excitedly down at his hat which Joanna now extended to him. Ooo... he said wiggling his fingers about. He took the hat and returned it to the mess of dirty blonde hair atop his head. He grinned happily at her comment. He much enjoyed being referred to as mad, wasn't everyone a little? He was just quite open with his madness. Well that's fine then, I was thinking of charming some green highlights into my hair anyways, matches my eyes! he said proudly.

I like her better, she brought me this fetching hat! Freddie said turning to Professor Aurelia and pointing to the top hat on his head. He ignored the fact that this was, in fact, the same hat he had entered the ball wearing. He was amused to be playing off the apparent fight going on between these two witches. The whole thing was incredibly meaningless in Freddie's eyes. Life was too short to engage in these sort of squabbles with one another. Especially among Professors, after all, these people had to spend an entire school year in each other's company. Might as well make the best of it! Celeste suggested dancing and Freddie was relieved. Dancing wouldn't involve anymore hateful comments between the two witches (right?).

I thought you'd never ask Celeste! Freddie smiled, apparently he was on her side of the fight now because Professor Nolan had disappeared to the sweets table, and well, Professor Aurelia offered dancing! Freddie began shaking his tail all over the place. His bizarre movements and dance moves coming to full fruition once again on the dance floor. Freddie swung an arm out unexpectedly and knocked a student's drink out of their hand. "Hey!" the student reacted, annoyed. Freddie didn't even turn around to notice he had done anything, he just kept flailing around. He was in the zone. Suddenly though he became exhausted. The strength of an eight month old, remember? All the dancing was starting to tire him out. He retreated to some simpler dance moves, just bobbing about slightly back and forth so that now Celeste could calmly keep up with him.

So... Celeste... he started, catching his breath. What's the deal with you and Jojo? I'm sensing some unresolved tension... He eyed her curiously, waiting for an explanation of some kind as to why a rift was driven between these two witches. Or maybe they just really didn't like each other? Conflicting personalities, he supposed. Although plenty of Freddie's colleagues couldn't stand his own personality, he never accepted their neglect of interacting with him and he usually forced his friendship upon them, whereas these two seemed to have a mutual understanding for their dislike of each other.

He stopped Celeste mid-sentence, WAIT! He flung his arms out straight. He knew what this lost friendship between Celeste and Jojo needed! More time spent forcing them to interact! His disillusioned opinion was put into practice when Freddie went marching off the dance floor towards the sweets table. You! he said dramatically pointing at Joanna with a bright smile on his face. He must have looked terrifying. Camon, I will not have you left out a moment longer! Freddie grabbed both of Joanna's hands and dragged her towards the dance floor. Stop your complaining! You will dance! And you will like it! When Freddie had reunited the two professors, he remained his grip on Joanna and started to move her arms back and forth like a puppet, forcing her to dance across from him.

He could feel her misery, she was dying to get away from this situation which she had been thrust. Freddie could sense her trying to make an escape! He pulled her close to him and wrapped one arm around Joanna's waist, the other holding her hand up like proper ballroom form. So... Jojo... what's with you and Celeste over there? he said, not even trying to be subtle. Celeste could clearly hear the entire conversation. You ladies have got to stop all this hostility, I can't bear it a moment longer! he said letting go of Joanna and dramatically raising the back of his hand to his forehead. He took one of Celeste's hands and one of Joanna's. Cece... Jojo... I think it's time we all became friends again, he said being dramatic again. It's not like these three were ever the best of friends, but he had made it sound like they had this life long friendship that had to be reconciled.

[classy=greyness]OUTFIT; click WORDS; 940 NOTES; [/classy]

MADE BY ME! (ALTHOUGH YES, I AM AWARE ITS NOTHING SPECIAL)

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