#nox.event029

[impuriities]

𝙻𝙾𝙲𝙰𝚃𝙸𝙾𝙽  :  the ministry of magic ( atrium level ), london  !

“excuse me-” worried that she may have snuck up on them under the cover of the orchestral music, hande not only announces her presence behind them but gives their shoulder a gentle tap to draw their attention, a sheepish smile already tugging at her lips. “are you going to finish those?” she motions towards the serving platter still overladen with fresh strawberries at the center of their table and raises the empty dessert plate she clutches in one hand a little higher. she can’t wait for the overworked servers to come back around again when there’s a platter of them taunting her from the next table over, and she doesn’t even have it in her to feel mortified for what she might’ve considered a bold request a few months before, adding, hopefully, “would you mind if i took some?”

[dolorsarchived]

𝙻𝙾𝙲𝙰𝚃𝙸𝙾𝙽          :          ministry     of     magic,     atrium     level. 𝚂𝚃𝙰𝚃𝚄𝚂     :          open.          (          @startertms​          )

❛          salazar     have     mercy.          ❜          on     anyone     else,     outward          (          if     muffled          )     display     of     exasperation     might     not     pass     but     there’s     a     retained,     practised     arrogance     to     lucius’     behaviour     that     makes     it     seem     perfectly     natural.     if     the     offending     department     head     has     overheard     him,     they’ve     got     the     GOOD     GRACE     not     to     notice          &          instead     press     𝚏𝚘𝚛𝚝𝚑     with     their     presentation          ;          it     doesn’t     stop     him     from     snagging     another     glass     of     red          &          muttering     under     merlot     -     sweet     breath     to     the     𝐏𝐎𝐎𝐑     soul     that     lingers     near     his     elbow.          ❛          were     you     aware     that     they’d     made     such          .     .     .          awe     -     inspiring     advances     in     ergonomic     cauldrons          ?          ❜          there’s     mirth     somewhere     in     that     frigid     glance,     but     it’s     not     aimed     at     the     weary     speaker          !          ❛          just          ──          riveting     material          .     .     .          ❜

[blvdgers]

𝙻𝙾𝙲𝙰𝚃𝙸𝙾𝙽  :  the ministry of magic ( undecided level ), london  !

if the ministry gala is teaching him anything, it’s that even if he had been born with magic, he never would have been cut out for ministry work. the various presentations that he’s listened in on are interesting enough ( sometimes in a way where he can tell that no one else in the room is as invested as he is, which is impressive, because even when he’s hanging onto every word, a large majority fly right over his head ), and he can appreciate the importance of it all, but... well, he’s never had to find his way out of such a maze, before. he walks past the same potted plant at least three times before he finally gives up - retracing his steps until he finds the closest occupied space to hover awkwardly in the doorway of, clearing his throat to draw their attention. “’sorry-” for interrupting, for being a bother... it was a blanket apology, said more to be polite than anything, “do you happen to know how to get back to the atrium, from here? i think i got a bit turned around.”

[executiioners]

location: the ministry of magic participants: ian borgin & open ( @startertms )

"hold the door,” ian's words were clearly slurred as he dashed forward to stick his foot in the elevator door, essentially negating the need for his prior request. but when one considered just had much he’d had to drink, he might be forgiven for redundancy. though that was in itself, unlikely. it was clear he was in a bad state as he entered the elevator, using his arm to steady himself as he stared at the reflections in the door. “merlin this thing is slow,” he muttered as he jammed his finger into one of the buttons - which one, he wasn’t entirely sure.

[noxtms]

MINISTER ANTONIN KARKAROFF has remained tight lipped regarding this years ministry gala following the tutshill derby attack and hospitalisation of his only son, with many assuming that these extenuating circumstances would lead to it being pushed - for the first time since conception - into september at the very earliest. as a mark of strength ( and some would say, in true karkaroff fashion ) however, the minister of magic has today confirmed that the annual gala will go ahead as normal on the first sunday of august, with the dedicated organisational team working around the clock to ensure another successful evening ! 

❝   the dedicated team usually starts working on the event in early june, and volunteer employees are pulled from every department and given strict instruction on what they should focus on in the planning of their presentations and talks. of course minister karkaroff felt it wasteful to throw out the hard work of so many individuals, but the more important thing has been showing the death eaters who attacked innocent individuals at the derby that we remain strong & uncowed in the face of their adversary. in addition to the heavy auror presence, the minister has paid for private security out of his own pocket to ensure that our honored guests feel most secure over the course of the night - and one has to wonder how we possibly couldn’t, knowing as we do now that he himself is perfectly capable of protecting guests en masse in the worst case scenario !  ❞

WHO, WHAT, WHEN, WHERE :  

kingsley shacklebolt was the mastermind behind the ANNUAL MINISTRY GALA, with he & his cabinet organising the very first one following the end of the second wixen war as a way to show off their new and improved ministry of magic to the public. it has become an extremely important event in wixen society, and tickets are highly sought after by members of the public, even now - for a single night on the first weekend of august, ‘outsiders’ are given the opportunity to see the the changes implemented across departments since the end of the war and the steps taken to ensure that they do not return to what they were, before it. 

ministry workers and those who fought in the battle of hogwarts have, in the past, received an automatic invite along with the option to bring along a plus one. the rest of the guest list has always been bulked out by the random allocation of 150 tickets to members of the british wixen community, who receive their invites by owl post two weeks before the gala itself. the greatest wixen chefs known across britain prepare an incredible four course meal that is served early in the evening before the beautifully decorated tables are vanished and a ballroom dancefloor is conjured at the centre of the atrium, all the better for guests to enjoy a slow dance to the orchestral music that plays all night. several open bars can be found dotted throughout the space, and flutes of champagne or glasses of wine can be brought along to the presentations from all ( but one, since the dept of mysteries remains closed ) of the departments on what they’re currently focusing time & effort on. department heads give rehearsed TEN MINUTE talks to any interested guests, and they’re free to answer any well worded question that is thrown their way, though cautioned to remain tight lipped when it comes to their personal opinions. 

this year, one of the topics they should remain silent on is one that is bound to be hottest amongst guests as all of the most recognizable members of dumbledore’s army are snubbed from the guestlist. the members of the da who took voldemort’s life and brought about the end of the war were, in the past, treated as celebrities - they received vip lanyards that gave them access to off limits areas of the ministry, private and guided tours, a spot at the head table with the minister of magic at their side and, in general, special treatment in comparison to everyone else. it seems that minister karkaroff - the newly minted hero of the tutshill derby attack - has finally gotten his wish, and for the first time in eight years, the da have not just had their perks taken unceremoniously from them, but been excluded almost in entirety from the event as a whole. 

OUT OF CHARACTER : 

the eighth annual ministry gala is the third version of this event that has hit the nox dash since we opened, and this year, we have officially come full circle. the da have always had pride of place at this event as the heroes of the second war, shown to us through the special treatment that was heaped on them at the sixth gala ( the first one we ever wrote ). at the seventh, they were taken off that vip list and sent to the back of the atrium following their breaking in to the department of mysteries in christmas, 2020. now, they have been excluded entirely. it WILL NOT go unnoticed, but how much people allow themselves to care about this widely deemed minor snub is for you to decide ! 

the event officially begins on sunday the 21st of august at 12:00am gmt. click here to see what that equates to for your tiemzone ! 

it’ll last for two weeks, but i’m not going to request the pausing of current threads provided that event threads are appropriately tagged and differentiated from them. 

all event related starters can be tagged with nox.event029 ! the location is the ministry of magic, but feel free to specify what level your character is on ( while keeping in mind that the main level - where meals are served and the orchestra plays - is the atrium, while the department of mysteries is locked and strictly off limits ). 

the only publicly known members of dumbledore’s army to receive an invite are those who would believably have been issued an invite due to being seen as an important figure in the wix world, in their own right, with the only other option available to them being the possibility of being the plus one of a named & played character. this snub is on purpose - ie, while a loophole does exist, i don’t want you guys to exploit it ! the very, very few who attend will receive no special treatment, and may find the vibe from high ranking officials to be uniquely cold. please keep that in mind ! 

if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to message the main with them ! please comment your current favorite song on this post to show you’ve read it !

[hoggleswart]

𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐍𝐓:    the  eighth  annual  ministry  gala 𝐅𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐆:   @kxbellem​​

‘     Finnigan?     —     Talk  about  scraping  the  barrel,   Bellamy.     ’      It’s  an  interesting  approach     :     the  way  they  appear  at  her  side,   two  champagne  flutes  already  in  hand  and  actively  insulting  the  company  she’s  chosen  to  keep.   Arm  extends  immediately  after  to  offer  drink,   as  if  the  free  liquor  might  soften  the  blow.   Far  easier  though,   Marcus  decides,   than  admitting  he’s  relieved  to  see  her.   Knox  is  one  of  the  few  people  they  can  stand  to  be  around  and,   in  turn,   she  puts  up  with  him   (   or  rather,  his  flare  for  DRAMATICS   )     —     albeit  it  somewhat  begrudgingly  at  times.      ‘     Surely  you  had  other  suitors.   Preferably  ones  that  don’t  belch  loudly  during  the  presentations.     ’           Not  that  they  cared  much  about  the  interruption.   If  anything,   it  was  very  much  appreciated,   the  dulcet  tones  of  a  Ministry  worker  practically  sending  them  to  sleep,   but  still.   Any  opportunity  to  sneak  in  another  dig.   Call  it  his  distraction,   a  brief   (   far  too  brief   )   escape  from  behaving  themself.           ‘     Or  did  you  bring  him  for  profitable  purposes?   Are  you  taking  bets  I  haven’t  heard  about?     ’

[kxbellem]

location:  the  eighth  annual  ministry  gala

status: open ( @startertms​ )

“no bets this time around. my business is closed for the time being. tonight i’ve come to enjoy the festivities that await.” knox can’t help but smirk amusingly as she grabbed a drink from a server as they passed. it was both surprising and amusing how her betting games had managed to give her quite the reputation. a reputation that she could be prideful of, instead of the one her mother and devilish family left behind for her. it felt like a rebellion of sorts. and knox couldn’t help but bask in all of it. she merely spared the other a glance before returning to watching the nicely dressed guests roaming about. “that is, unless you have something interesting for me. perhaps to liven up this...party.”

[wandmaking]

location: the ministry of magic participants: hayashi kenji & lorcan d’eath ( @lmortem​ )

“i can’t believe it’s only been a year since our first gala,” kenji couldn’t help but laugh as they turned towards their date. “it feels like a lifetime has passed,” they smiled, this time reaching for lorcan’s hand and giving it a gentle squeeze. “i look forward to attending many more,” they added, "what would you like to do first?”

[tiimetvrners]

location: the ministry of magic participants: theodore budak & millicent bulstrode ( @hoggleswart​​ )

“i’m so glad you convinced me to come to this,” theodore remarked as he lowered his glass, only for a few seconds before he once again raised it to his lips. he’d lost track of what number he was on, but rest assured he still had control of his faculties. “theres nothing i love more than dancing and listening to the heads of departments talk about their success,” he continued, his words heavy with sarcasm.

[witchbiitches]

𝙻𝙾𝙲𝙰𝚃𝙸𝙾𝙽  :  the ministry of magic ( atrium level ), london  ! 𝙵𝙴𝙰𝚃𝚄𝚁𝙸𝙽𝙶  :  @taciiturns​​  !

 “excuse me-” she says, sharply, as yet another of the barmen that she has been trying to wave over for the past five minutes of leaning against marble topped bar does his level best to ignore her entirely. rather than serve her another drink, he preoccupies himself with some bottles at the other end - the very action of which draws an unpleasant twist of pansy’s lips and a string of muttered insults, aimed mainly at him but also at his coworkers, all bustling about fulfilling orders and unbeknownst to her, keeping the promise of cutting her off. mikaela just happens to sidle up after she has swayed back from off of her tip toes and started to dig in her handbag, as if the offering of a galleon or several will undermine a decision made in her own best interest. “i wouldn’t get my hopes up,” she warns, sparing only a glance to the other before returning her focus to her bag, her purse now extracted, “the service here is shit.” 

[impuriities]

𝙻𝙾𝙲𝙰𝚃𝙸𝙾𝙽  :  the ministry of magic ( atrium level ), london  ! 𝙵𝙴𝙰𝚃𝚄𝚁𝙸𝙽𝙶  :  @tiimetvrners or @executiioners​  !

this part of the evening was always the toughest. hande had grown up mingling with the upper echelon, but she had always had the crutch of her grandparents to fall back on when there came a painful lull in proper conversation. their disinterest in the gala ( an event denounced as frivolous as one and ostentatious by the other ) meant that hande was really on her own, a position even more literal when ismene and the few others that had gathered between courses to discuss unspecific matters had abandoned her alone with the other. she picked at one of the flowers embroidered on her dress for quite a while in total silence, hoping that they would say something - anything, at a certain point - to break it up and admitting defeat only when she could take it no longer. “so... what does your work entail?” she asked, surprised that she managed to keep the note of desperation that she felt out of her voice. 

[stcysmom]

𝙻𝙾𝙲𝙰𝚃𝙸𝙾𝙽  :  the  ministry  of  magic  (  atrium  level  ),  london  ! 𝙵𝙴𝙰𝚃𝚄𝚁𝙸𝙽𝙶  :  @hvllcwedground​​  !

"  mrs  karkaroff.  ”  she  hasn’t  had  to  work  herself  up  for  this  moment.  that’s  one  of  the  few  perks  of  youthful  disownment,  she’d  wager  ;  by  being  gone  for  so  long,  eliza  hasn’t  been  updated  on  who’s  who  of  the  wix  community  this  side  of  the  atlantic  in  a  long,  long  time.  she  had  heard  of  antonin  karkaroff’s  ascension  to  minister  of  magic  two  weeks  after  it  had  happened,  and  she  hadn’t  known  his  wife’s  name  until  she  had  already  settled  into  her  new  home  -  but  eulalia  was  the  one  of  interest,  possibly  of  use,  to  her,  not  her  husband.  she  could  get  a  ministry  job  tomorrow  if  she  so  chose,  just  by  virtue  of  knowing  people  &  pulling  strings,  but  other  things,  like  dinner  parties  and  certain  brands  of  book  club...  those  would  remain  entirely  cut  off  from  her,  unles  she  made  a  good  impression  with  the  people  who  really  mattered.  no  doubt  eulalia  would  see  right  through  her  a  mile  away,  but  when  eliza  flashes  a  friendly  smile  and  holds  out  her  hand  to  the  other,  she  does  it  with  the  knowledge  that  even  if  she  DOES,  she  only  has  to  be  confident  enough  for  it  to  be  charming.  “  we  haven’t  had  the  honor,  yet.  my  name  is  eliza  fawley  ;  my  husband  and  i  have  only  recently  moved  back  to  london.  ”

[blvdgers]

𝙻𝙾𝙲𝙰𝚃𝙸𝙾𝙽  :  the ministry of magic ( atrium level ), london  ! 𝙵𝙴𝙰𝚃𝚄𝚁𝙸𝙽𝙶  :  @graciieux​  !

“so, i don’t really know my champagnes-” he admits, sheepishly, doing his level best to keep the four flutes ( two to each hand ) that he has chosen to take back to their table in one trip entirely steady. he’s amazed that he’s made it back at all given just how many times the soles of his new shoes scuffed along the marble floor of the atrium and threatened to trip him, and he’s weirdly chuffed about how little of the various drinks he’s left behind him. a few drops here & there surely won’t hurt anybody ( he hopes, at least, and he’s choosing not to glance behind him ), and he has four almost completely full glasses to set down before gracie, proudly. “i didn’t know which you’d rather. there’s dom pérignon, moët and chandon, mercier-” he taps each glass as he parrots back the unfamiliar names, eyebrows knitting together as he realises he’s gone wrong, “or maybe... this one is mercier, and that one is the ruinart... ? i’m actually-... not so sure anymore. shit. i’m sorry, grace.” 

[hoggleswart]

𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐍𝐓:    the  eighth  annual  ministry  gala,   department  of  magical  artefacts  curator  presentation. 𝐅𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐆:   @kibirliisms​​   (  but not limited to  )

‘     Pssst.      ’          Boney  elbow  unceremoniously  nudges  the  person  beside  him,   overexcitement    (    &   possibly too much merlot    )    getting  the  better  of  Seamus  as  an  idea  springs  to  mind.   Truly  genius  of  him,   he’ll say  now,   but  no  doubt  his  biggest  regret  tomorrow  morning.   A  real  gamechanger  in  turning  this  night  around     —     Or  perhaps  that’s  just  the  wine – induced  confidence  currently  flowing  through  his  bloodstream,   temporarily  soothing  any  irritation  the  snubbed    (    attempted  at  least,   however  you  can’t  keep  a  Finnigan  down  for  long!    )    Gryffindor  was  previously  feeling  upon  arrival.   It’ll  no  doubt  ease  back  sooner  or  later,   flame  simmering  rather  than  put  out  completely,   but  for  now,   humour  him.          ‘     New  drinking  game  activated.     ’          Shae  elaborates  once  certain  he  has  their  attention.   Hooded  eyes  suggest  this  isn’t  the  first  game  he’s  come  up  with  tonight.          ‘     Gotta  drink  every  time  the  speaker  says  the  word  curate.     ’         Chest  puffs  out  and  head  nods  firm,   pride  in  his  plan  evident.           ‘     Or  every  time  they  say  artefact.  Or!     ’           Voice  gradually  gets  louder  with  each  new  suggestion.           ‘      We  do  both.   I  like  both.     ’

[tiimetvrners]

location: the ministry of magic participants: theodore budak & grace moody ( @graciieux )

"i’m sorry,” the words sounded strange coming from theodore, “but this hiding spot is taken,” but not nearly as weird as the laugh that followed the rest of his statement as he made a point of making room for her to sit. “are you avoiding anyone in particular? or are you just bored?” he asked, an eyebrow arched as he watched his friend. “or maybe you’re simply resting your feet?” 

[impuriities]

𝙻𝙾𝙲𝙰𝚃𝙸𝙾𝙽  :  the  ministry  of  magic  (  atrium  level  ),  london  ! 𝙵𝙴𝙰𝚃𝚄𝚁𝙸𝙽𝙶  :  @hoggleswart​  !

"  is  this  seat  taken  ?  ”  she  asks  first  because  it’s  the  polite  thing  to  do,  but  she  doesn’t  actually  wait  for  their  answer  before  she  slides  onto  it,  gratefully.  hande  wastes  no  time  in  undoing  the  finicky  little  buckle  of  both  shoes,  slipping  them  off  &  pushing  them  beneath  the  table  (  and  completely  out  sight  )  with  a  sigh  of  relief.  “  i’ve  never  broken  them  in,  ”  she  explains,  overly  conscious  of  the  swollen  ankles  that  throw  that  story  into  doubt,  finding  only  minimal  comfort  in  the  fact  that  wix,  in  her  experience,  are  rarely  as  perceptive  as  she  fears,  “  i  forgot  how  much  walking  the  gala  entails.  i  hope  you  don’t  mind  my  company  for  a  minute  or  two.  ”