Light I Can see. [open]

[irritus]

The party celebrating the years most empty and listless night fell on Irritus without a shred of hope. His two years of waiting for that one female he'd be able to know as family was thus far in failure. He knew well that he was only pulling strings in waiting here, there was no telling that she was actually here. The only thing he knew of her was that she was a metamorphmagus with a voice that rivaled the Blade of Carmen's song. To Irritus he had only one real lasting goal and it was to find her, but he allowed that thought to slip from his focus. It had been rough in school, as there was nothing proper to slash open on the grounds. If it had not been for the chance encounter with the two boys in the stairs recently he would surely be in a bad mood. Yet, tonight Irritus was in a cheery and pleasant mood.

The tall, dark and imposing figure of the beast, Irritus Arcanum, entered the ball with a lighter step then normal. His eyes glistened with a light flicker of joy as he took in a breath at the door. It wasn't so bad being around people, though, only when he was feeling nice. The cursed scythe lay dormant under his robes and he wasn't infected by the whispering song. His gloomy attitude was relatively light and the dark demeanor he was always coated with had dropped considerably. Irritus had truly been sated with a good fight and was now an appeased beast. N less lethal, but not as ready to pounce. He glanced around the place in search of something to do, as it was a dance, he may as well join in. there was no reason to be completely unpleasant.

As Irritus stepped out into the middle of the floor in search of a partner to steal some who recognized him backed away. A few females eyed him in suspicion or in affection, it seemed his mysterious darkness wasn't so hard to see. Irritus could see the faces now as well as feel the intent behind them, some had stronger desire then others. He was used to the random assortment of hate, attraction, and other such things that rushed his animalistic empath senses. Though, it was easy to zone in on the girls that seemed to like the darker dangerous types. Irritus was good at telling who liked him, it was all in the eyes and movement, and made easy since people often reacted in one of two extremes when he was concerned.

Irritus found a pretty one dancing with her date off in the distance of the crowd. She was a lovely sight to him, jet black hair and dark eyes as well as snow white skin. Irritus had a taste in women that looked like the mother he'd never seen. The girl he'd selected to steal away had yet to see him and he made his way over. His approach was noticed by her date quickly and Irritus was met with a suspicious glare. Irritus had no emotion on his face, but it was the glint in his dark and consuming eyes that showed his intention. The boy seemed to have an edge to him as well as a fair amount of mass. Irritus did not recognize the boy as a member of his house and approached without hesitation. Tapping the girl on the shoulder and apparently ignoring her date Irritus spoke naturally.

"Can I steal you for a dance?"[/color]

She looked up at him and simply seemed to be curious, and she looked back to her date. The look was as if to await the boy's permission, or perhaps his reaction. Irritus figured that she wanted him to say something, but it was unlikely. Irritus gaze the boy a penetrating stare and shifted his body into the predatory stance that was his alone. As one man to another, this show was a full battle, and Irritus won without a blink. With a muttered curse The boy looked at Irritus in loathing and sighed in defeat.

"Whatever man, do what you want."

He sauntered off and Irritus pulled the captivated female to him forcefully and moved. His perception in this case had been on target, she enjoyed his dominating attitude. The dance was short and Irritus left her with a name and went off to watch the dancers from the wall. His eyes scoping the room wondering what he may be able to get into. his need to bully and break was starting to push into his mind. He had been polite thus far, but a bit of destruction was always a necessity to the predator. Maybe he['d meet someone to talk to that could at least entertain him long enough to change his state of mind. the two he fought before were good enough, a good opponent should easily make a good conversation...though, just about anyone would do. He wanted to have fun today, not waste the party.

[Katherine Knightswood]

Katherine finally got tired of circulating and trying to play the social games. It was grating on her nerves, which were a bit strung tight tonight anyway. The young Ravenclaw wondered at her jitters and her sour stomach. Dinner had been excellent tonight, Beef Wellington in fact, one of her favorites. And the punch wasn’t spiked, as far as she could tell. But she felt almost claustrophobic in the ball room, as if her nerves were being rubbed raw and then salted for good measure.

Katherine wandered over to one side of the room, not really paying attention to who was sitting there. She all but collapsed into a chair, a small sigh escaping her. The blue velvet of her dress felt soothing as she smoothed out the fabric to avoid wrinkling it. Katherine sat ramrod straight in her chair, her posture near perfect, the way she’d been trained. She took a sip of her punch to try to settle her stomach, but it only seemed to make things worse. What could be wrong with her?

Or maybe it wasn’t her? She’d had these kinds of reactions when she’d been around unhappy people before. Her Maman had always remarked that she was sensitive to people’s moods. It was why she could still work a party, despite her shyness. Katherine squared her shoulders, and looked about, scanning the room. When she finally looked around at the people near her, she started. The young man next to her! How could she not have noticed him? He was unusually tall, very dark and had the look of a wolf about him. Something beautiful and dangerous lurked behind his eyes, something powerful. And there was a strange feel to him that Katherine couldn’t put into words.

Katherine summoned up her courage, and inclined her head to the young man politely. “Good evening, sir. My name is Katherine Marie Knightswood, and I am a first year student. I do not believe that we have met?” Unconsciously, she offered her hand in the old-fashioned style, palm down, with the fingers held loosely, as if she expected him to kiss the back of her hand after taking it. She held her breath, waiting to see just what kind of man lay behind that so very unusual face.

[irritus]

Irritus looked about and caught sight of the female he'd danced with earlier. He watched her dance with multiple partners and wondered why she was so fascinating to him. His eyes, unfathomable and consuming, traveled along the dancing couples with nothing less then interest. The stoic look on his face betrayed no emotion, even as his eyes glimmered and blinked. He was relaxed against the wall, his heavy sanguine robes fell carelessly, touching the floor. His hair fell in a stylized mess that he never had to fix on his own. His raged but clean appearance wasn't as foreboding when he was as chipper as he was today. The interesting female danced along and out of sight, he hadn't heard her voice, and if he had e might have noticed something he was currently missing.

Irritus hadn't noticed the little aristocrat near him in the slightest as his watchful eyes scanned the room over and over. his mind on nothing and his body unmoving as he let himself simply fade into the wall. He smelled a the many perfumes in the room and it was a bother that he was only able to tolerate due to the event. The loud music was taking taking a toll on his patience as well, if he wasn't entertained soon he would consider this evening a waste and an unneeded session of torment. He had the senses of and animal, and it was a bother for him to be bombarded unnecessarily by so much air and sound pollution. He was unsure if he had been mistaken when he heard a female voice cut through the music and laughter but was pleased to see he had not been when he looked down.

Seeing the extended hand that followed such an innocent greeting he pressed a calm smile onto his face. It had been a long time since the lessons he'd been beaten into learning and it was still his normal reflex to react. Without a moments hesitation Irritus reacted as he had been taught and dropped to one knee before the young lady. He took her hand gently in his own, touching her only with his fingertips as if she would break. With the cool smile and his black gaze set to her face her bent his head and lightly pressed his lips to the back of her hand with a light bow. Then he returned her hand as her own possession and straightened his posture before swiftly and sharply rising to his original height. He spoke as he rose, after all, he was first a servant member of the house Arcanum.

"I am in my fifth year , I'm called Irritus Nox Arcanum. It is surely our first meeting, and a pleasant one I'm sure."

deep down Irritus felt a slight disgust for his near unthought of reaction to her greeting. He had so become accustomed to simply glaring and nodding that he'd near forgotten the traditional introduction. It was a bother to be physically programed with manners one normally didn't have. He looked at her with an almost kind look in his eye. his face betrayed not another smile however and his cool and calmingly dark speech was not at all anywhere near a show of feeling. He seemed to be apathetic to a point aside from his eyes.

"Are you alone?"

[Katherine Knightswood]

Katherine was surprised by the young man’s dramatic response to her extended hand. Good gracious, why ever had she reacted like this to him? She wasn’t at a Ministry function or some sort. This was just a school party, wasn’t it? But good manners took over and she dipped him a proper and polite courtesy after his introduction. “A pleasure to meet you then, Mr. Arcanum. I hope I’m addressing you correctly.” Katherine gave him a wry smile.

Katherine was puzzled by the young man’s lack of overt emotion. He was a handsome gentleman, if a bit aloof, but that wasn’t that unusual for Pureblood sons. Most of them kept up a façade of bored indifference on a daily basis, with the effort it took to breathe. “I am alone in that I was neither asked to the Ball nor did I ask someone,” she admitted. “I’m afraid that outside my parents’ social circles I am woefully unprepared for things.”

Katherine had reclaimed her seat, although her nerves were still bothering her. That feeling of something wrong was annoying the hells out of her. So was the fact that she couldn’t pin down what it was that was making her jumpy. Maybe it was just the start of the term? Or the party itself? She didn’t like meeting lots of new people at once. It was so much harder to learn about them that way. “It seems that you are not enjoying this excuse for a get-together either?” She cast a wistful smile in his direction. “Although the evening is not wasted, having made your acquaintance.”

[irritus]

Irritus' presence seemed to be putting the girl on edge, and Irritus noticed that straight away. It was only right that he tell when people were nervous around him, he saw it far too often to overlook. He wanted to shout at her for being so pathetic but it wouldn't really serve a purpose. Instead he pushed a second soothingly disturbing smile from his cold face. The flash of malice in his eyes directly contradicting to the smile was an unintentional scare in the picture. He wasn't so practiced in speech, but he knew that speaking to a noble was nearly scripted. Every response was a given and every word was a lie. Flattery and falsity plagued the common nobility and Irritus felt like a liar by simply attempting to hold conversation with many of the pure-blood aristocracy.

"I am actually enjoying this night, though I'm curious. Have you come across a young girl named Carmen in your time here?"

He didn't know if this person was an adequate informant but it wouldn't help but ask. If his sister was here and under the name she was born to then he would be able to find her by asking. though, he had no idea his sister was under a different name altogether. Irritus seemed to be asking out of plain innocent curiosity and held no sign of the desperate need to find the girl. He instead leaned on the wall and and looked at her. after a moment he decided it better not to ask this girl and avoid getting into details he didn't know.

"No.. never mind that last. It would be simply rude to speak of an absent and uninvolved party before a lady. It would be much more appropriate to speak on you. How do you find your new home away from home?"

Irritus wanted to kill his manners at the moment but at least he was entertained a bit. The role play of royalty was somewhat interesting when you were truly bored. Acting as if one cared nothing of the world as you discussed nothing important. the way of the rich was a droll existence but for some reason it was a lasting way.

[fallensiren]

Siren gazed around the ballroom floor from the outer edges, clearly sulking. Almost above anything else, she hated formalities; she hated balls; for Christ's sake, she hated dancing. Anything that involved dressing up and whirling around like a fairy was beneath her, in her astute opinion. It was difficult, though, to fight the surge of loneliness that leaped up within her at the sight of all those couples. All those beautiful people, whirling and sparkling together. It made her throw up a little bit in the back of her mouth, but it also made her heart keen, in an irritating sort of way.

With a huff, she tossed her wild chestnut hair from her face and continued to survey the dancers. Her bright eyes - an exotic mixture of rainy gray, and glacier blue, and jade green - watched the room for some sign of company. Those eyes snagged on one couple, two who obviously didn't know one another that well. They were making the small talk required of new acquaintances, and probably loathing every minute of it. Or was it just she that loathed small talk so much?

For a moment, she considered cutting in. For old times' sake, just to try out her old brassy, occasional confidence of old. At the last moment, though, she settled back against the wall, keeping her head down. If anyone was interested, they would come to her. She was done forcing her company upon people that would only eventually tire of it. It was maddening, but true - she wore even herself out, not just other people.

Her eyes bright, she continued to watch the two, wondering if the guy would catch her eye.

[Katherine Knightswood]

Katherine frowned a bit at the conflicting information that assailed her. Her eyes told her that the man in front of her was holding a polite conversation. But other senses, honed by her family and by many a social function, told her a different story. What was it with this person? He wasn’t someone Katherine wanted to flirt with – as if she even had any idea how. Besides, she was just a simple young first year student! She was just trying to be polite, and apparently failing miserably.

Then again . . .Katherine groaned inwardly. She was actually a bit overdressed for the party. And she was acting on her old habits. Maybe she’d come off as a snobbish noble instead of a friendly noble? Oh, bother! That wasn’t what she’d been aiming for! Many people fell into stilted speech and habitual responses around Wizarding nobility. And however minor a noble she was, Katherine had seen it happen to her at parties before. It was part of why she often abhorred going to social functions.

When Irritus asked her about the young lady, Katherine jumped at the chance to save the conversation. “Oh, no, that’s all right, honestly. I don’t mind your asking. But no. I haven’t met anyone named Carmen, but then I’ve only been here for part of a year, it being my first year.” Gods, she was babbling! “And there’s no need to speak of me exclusively; that would be rude of me.” Katherine frowned up into Irritus’ face. “I do rather like it here at Hogwarts, especially the classes. How about you?”

As Katherine finished asking, her glance wandered over the people hugging the walls. She was startled to recognize a fellow Ravenclaw, who looked just as lost as Katherine felt. The young woman glanced her way, and then looked elsewhere. Maybe Katherine has imagined it, but did the other Ravenclaw want to come over and talk? Katherine sighed. What was it with her today? She couldn’t even hold a decent conversation!

[tasha]

Tasha had spent her evening so far trying to figure out how to make her dress fit properly. The ball had already started and it was becoming a bother that no matter what she did it seemed that her small body was unable to make the dress fit the way she wanted it. Tasha had simply stood above her dress as it lay atop the bed and pondered what to do. Her annoyance was a first, but it was common that she get frustrated when it came to clothes. The dress was of a style she normally didn't wear but she wanted to wear it and it wasn't working. No matter how she attempted to pin it the dress wouldn't hold her frame right and she seemed to be so childish. The rest of the girls left ahead of her and now she stood in her undergarments in front of the dress.

The first year sighed and took out her little guide book with a flourish that was becoming customary. She looked down at blank pages and sighed thinking hard as she flipped back and forth through pages. What exactly should she ask? If she asked the wrong way the book would simply tease her as it had become accustomed to. there was an odd silence in her books response recently, as if it was nearing the end of it's use.

"How do I make my Dress fit? How do I make my dress fit? How do I make my dress fit? How do I ma... hmm..."

The answer sprawled out across the page and surprised her to the fullest. It was an answer she should have easily found herself.

Grow into it.

Tasha perked up quickly with a smile as she bounced on the ball of her feet. She once again but on the dress without the benefit of a brassiere this time. Standing in front of the mirror, Tasha imagined how she wanted to look in the dress. She imagined each curve and the way her body was held in the fabric. It was actually a simple image, she thought of her own image in a year or three. Tasha closed her eyes and as usual the effects of her focus took hold of her appearance from top to bottom. Her red curled hair turned black and straightened out. Her bust increased, adding a better curve under the fabric. Her hips were unaffected as she already had the basics of a curved frame. She grew about four inches taller and her hair grew from it's usual length at her lower back to falling past her bottom.

With her appearance changed she opened her eyes and watched the blue in her eyes chased around the iris by black. Her eyes now black and her body matured she looked upon her new fit. The feeling of the thick fabric over her chest was strange as there was much more tissue there then normally. Her softly curved frame was made more glorious by the form of the dress. The detached sleeves revealing a slight bit of the snow white flesh of her upper arms and shoulders. Her delicate legs extending beneath the trendy skirt and her hips held by the fabric almost perfectly. Tasha grinned at her success and was greatly pleased with herself. She was still almost easily recognizable, though it would be hard as she'd grown and changed.

The gleeful girl donned her boots and marched off into the ball without a second thought. Her hair sweeping behind her and her cares little. she was dancing freely with whomever asked when suddenly a tall older boy with a strangely dark but alluring feel to him approached and asked to "steal her" for a dance. He seemed to scare off her current partner and she freely gave him her hand. After a breathtaking few minutes the boy departed through the crowd and left Tasha to dance alone. Watching the walls as she passed, Tasha searched for the boy who said he was called Irritus as she was swept through the dances. Her feet began to hurt after a while and she made way to the wall.

On the wall she saw the boy and he was talking to another girl. A slight hint of jealousy smacked Tasha's recently developed chest and made her sit. The girl beside her was gazing over there too and Tasha noticed with a grin. it was rude to interrupt a conversation, but not to join in. Smiling, Tasha grabbed smiled at the girl next to her(Siren) and tapped her on the shoulder.

"Hey there... I'm Tasha. He's cute.. wanna go over there with me? It's boring to stay over here alone."

Tasha was as straight forward as usual and without restraint. She wanted to break into the conversation and with help it didn't seem so scary. She was innocent in her want for the most part, merely wanting to talk to him again. The guy had a strange charm a was for some reason very interesting. The soft cooing of her voice wasn't so small that it wasn't heard over the music as she spoke, but she repeated herself just in case.

"Hey.. come with me. Oh.. and I'm Tasha. Nice to meet you."

She nodded over toward the awkward pair they had both been looking at when she said there in order to give the point fully. She was strangely convincing about going over, it was as if she had already know the girl.

[fallensiren]

Siren raised her eyebrows at the girl who was so enthusiastically suggesting they go talk to the pair she'd recently been watching. She brushed a hand over her simple, rain-colored dress - all folds of delicate silk, with tiny beaded gems encrusted across the bodice; one of her favorites - and shrugged. "Sure, why not?" she murmured. "Tasha, you said? I'm Siren."

She glanced back at the couple. The boy was cute, though he was probably a year younger than she. It wouldn't hurt to go over and just make polite talk. No, that wouldn't hurt anyone at all. And the girl he was dancing with didn't seem like she'd mind an interruption, either. She shrugged again, her bare shoulders moving only slightly, and then set off with Tasha to meet the pair.

As she approached them, the wind of their dancing gently blew past her, breathing into her skin. Well, she hated dancing, anyway. Nothing wrong with that. But sometimes, others made it look so elegant; she wondered if she could ever whirl and twirl so gracefully. Clearing her throat - and her thoughts - she made the last steps to the couple, drawing on those occasions when she had exhibited brassy confidence in approaching me.

"Hey," she said, her voice casual. "I'm Siren. How are you two liking the ball so far?"

[irritus]

Irritus had no real interest in the petty conversation that had begun to develop and was getting ready to depart. The thing that kept him was the response he received from the girl. He was pleased that she was able to become a bit loose in her responses. Her original stiffness seemed to evaporate lightly after his words had passed through her. It was pleasant to hear her speak away from the overly standard speech of the nobility. Even though she had no information about his long lost sister she had at last found the break in common conversation. He was more then aware of her slightly rambling speech but it was better then the short cut words of those trying to get to know each other without telling too much.

He looked up a moment and saw two girls, one that he remembered from his dance. He was surprised to see her so close and so soon. He had a strange attraction to her and he wondered what it might have been caused by. She had skin of snowy white and long black hair that seemed to be unnaturally buoyant and straight. He looked to his associate, whom was now known to be a first year. He wasn't sure exactly how to converse with people anyway, he was more withdrawn usually. She seemed to notice the first girl, but as the two began to speak he was focused on the first year before him again.

"Well this school is interesting, though it can be just as boring as it can be fun. I'm a fifth year, I haven't been here that long though myself."

He responded calmly and looked up again to see the two girls heading toward him and the Katherine. He offered just as much facial acceptance of there approach as he had in his speech. There was no real sign of his thoughts in his face, but a twinkle of curiosity struck his eye. He saw the older one move first followed by the curious girl he'd danced with. The two of them together seemed an odd pair, but what was normal about this school? The girl that seemed a bit older spoke first, her overall appearance not so different than the other. The freckles was the main discerning factor now that he had a better look. One also seemed to be more bouncy and pleased with the world in general.

"It's a nice little affair. The music's a little loud. I'm Irritus and this is a new acquaintance of mine..."

He introduced himself and left Katherine an opening to introduce herself. He hadn't felt that his relationship with her was good enough to introduce her just yet.

[fallensiren]

Siren nodded, smiling slightly. "Pleased to meet you, Irritus. That's a fascinating name." Oh, the old confidence felt good coursing through her again. In the midst of formalities, she couldn't help but feel proud of herself. She stood straight, making her silky rain-gray dress appear even more beautiful as it fell over her skin; as she spoke, she moved her head just right so that the simple, bright gems dangling from her ears caught the light and sparkled.

She looked at Irritus. His dark eyes fascinated her. She'd never seen anyone with eyes so intently smoke-blue. He was much taller than her as well, just over six foot to her five-six, his hair darker, his physique well-wrought. She felt small and insignificant in comparison.

"Well, it is a dance," she responded to his remark. "Typically the music does get a little loud, but then again...I'd prefer not to be here at all. Still...something compelled me." She glanced back towards the wall where she'd been standing previously.

"Anyway," she continued, "we're not interrupting your dance, are we? I wouldn't want to rob this girl of her partner." She smiled at the girl that Irritus had been dancing with, who looked to be a Ravenclaw like herself. "That wouldn't be polite at all." She turned her slight smile back towards Irritus, waiting for one of them to speak.

[Katherine Knightswood]

Katherine smiled over at the two girls. “Hello, I’m Katherine, Katherine Knightswood. Pleased to make your acquaintance.” Her smile was bright and welcoming. “No you’re not butting in at all. Irritus and I were just discussing Hogwarts and the dance.” She gave her fellow Ravenclaw a wry grin. “You’re right; it is rather noisy, isn’t it?” Katherine gestured to two empty chairs. “Would you rather sit this insanity out? I haven’t danced much tonight and I honestly don’t care if I sit most of the evening out." She looked over at Irritus with a shrug.

Katherine noted the dress Siren was wearing with admiration. It was obviously classy and expensive, and fit the older girl beautifully. The younger girl was familiar somehow, but Katherine couldn’t put a finger on it. This girl was dressed elegantly as well, and Katherine gave her a smile. “I don’t think we’ve met, although you are familiar somehow. My apologies if we’ve met before; I’m still trying to recall names from before Christmas break!”

Katherine sat back down in her chair and smoothed out the velvet of her dress. She snagged a glass of something red and fruity from a tray going around and sipped at it. “So, what classes are you all in this term? I think I did something stupid and very Ravenclaw and signed up for everything. I’m going to be completely knackered by the time summer rolls around. That is if I survive all that reading and my quill hand doesn’t break from writing all those parchments.” Katherine grinned, inviting the three other students to tease her for her folly. She was trying to calm her nerves, but unfortunately she was slipping into her typical way of handling that by babbling away.

[fallensiren]

"I haven't signed up for classes quite yet," Siren replied to Katherine's question, also smiling, and sat down elegantly beside the younger Ravenclaw. "But I'm sure I'll do the same as you and try to carry more of them than I'll rightly be able to handle." She laughed softly at Katherine's babbling, knowing that it was probably to cover nerves. Well, were she a first year amongst this crowd, she'd have been nervous, too.

She snagged a drink from a tray as well and sipped at it; it was red and fruity, light, richly satisfying for the slight thirst she'd had. "I'd be more than happy sitting the rest of this evening out," she added with a sigh. "Unless some young, suave gentleman decides to come sweep me off my feet. I'm not one much for dancing. I'd rather be buried in books or daydreaming." She smiled at the small crowd of people whose company she had joined.

As she fell quiet again, she admired Katherine's blue velvet dress; it fit the younger girl well, giving her an air of elegance. "Dotell me," she continued, "where did you get that dress? It's really beautiful. I've never been able to pull off velvet, myself..." She grimaced. "I always crush it the wrong way. But it looks marvelous on you."

[tasha]

Tasha followed the older girl Katherine to the area inhabited by the two strangers without hesitation. She wore the same charmingly innocent smile she always had and moved gracefully. Taking her mind from everything that had been happening in the school and instead on herself, it was a wonderful night. The carefree atmosphere was a delicate and harmonious one, not too common for the young girl who seemed to draw awkward moments. Tasha pranced along without as much bounce as she did wistful grace. Her long pitch black hair flowed in an enchanting still wave behind her. The best thing about ones ability to manipulate appearance was that bad hair days didn't exist. Tasha's hair had the luscious shine and subtle flowing nature one found hard to accomplish normally.

The dress she was wearing this night didn't billow about as much and as such made her feel lighter. Her snow white skin was showing in a more entrancing and slightly seductive way then she'd intended as well. Her legs and arms were relatively lightly covered as apposed to her usually fully covered way of dress. After she reached the place were the strange boy stood she more or less froze and stared. Her eyes ran over him and she was interested in just about everything about him. It was a strange thing, his eyes were enthralling and his physique was wonderful. Tasha wondered if it was love at first sight and blushed heavily at the thought. The magically developed first year looked at the boy's shoes to hide her blush for the moment.

The conversation and introductions went on without her and Tasha didn't mind all too much. Instead she tried her best to get rid of her blush and come back to herself before she started changing on accident. Tasha had learned to control herself enough to handle her metamorphmagus ability slightly, but she couldn't hold a form if she was this nervous. With a deep breath and a smile Tasha looked up again and saw that she was in the company of rather relaxed and interesting people. Her eyes wondered over the two other girls, her admiration of each dress was apparent in her gleaming eyes. Then, she settled her eyes on Irritus again with a smile and she decided to introduce herself.

"Hello Irritus.. My name is Tasha."

Her melodious voice had a mildly fuller pitch but all the same charismatic carefree intent behind it. She was seemingly speaking only to Irritus, though not intentionally. She more or less grinned up at him and then turned her attention to Katherine.

"Hello Katherine. It's nice to meet you... You wanna dance with me?"

Tasha smiled and reached out to take the girls hand happily. Dancing was dancing after all. To Tasha it was fun to frolic with whomever was there, and at that thought she turned to Siren as well.

"You should come and dance too."

[Katherine Knightswood]

Katherine blushed prettily. “Thank you , Siren. My Nana is a master with clothes, and she made this for me. She used to have a robe and dress shop in Paris, but since she’s retired she enjoys making me things.” She grinned, deciding to let the older girl in on her secret. “And it’s no grace on my part. Nana put a charm on the fabric. It wouldn’t crush if a hippogriff wore it.” She laughed at the comparison, her blue eyes twinkling.

Katherine took a quick glance around the room, and sighed. Slow dancing. Yuck. Katherine wasn’t the least bit interested in having a boyfriend yet. Boys were for playing Quidditch with and studying with! But she did want to dance, just a little. The first year girl sighed, wishing the music would change. Some crazy fast dancing would be fun. And this music certainly wasn’t right for the kind of formal dances she knew. Katherine pouted a bit, and turned her attention back to her companions.

The dark–haired girl that had come over with Siren introduced herself. "Hello Katherine,” she said. “It's nice to meet you... You wanna dance with me?" Tasha grabbed her hand and invited her out to the dance floor. The music had changed and gotten faster. Apparently, there weren’t going to be slow dances for a bit. Why not? It could be fun. Katherine stood up and brushed off her dress. She put her empty glass on a nearby tray and nodded at Tasha. “Sure, let’s go dance for a bit. I could use some fun.” She heard Tasha ask Siren to join them, and looked over at Irritus. “Hey, you want to join the three of us? Come on, it’ll be fun!”