For much of the night, rest eluded Damian as his thoughts raced. He was torn on whether or not to attend the ball, given the fact that it seemed every soul would be there in their elegant and handsome clothing, something he had little interest in. He regularly preferred the comfort of loose clothing, only succumbing to the school uniform out of respect for the rules. Attendance of the ball would probably merit some friends to hang out with as well and while he had his club partners, he hadn't made a dent in the social standings, they likely had. Fiona was rather friendly, but he figured she would be better spending the night with her own group of friends. It'd be rather awkward for the older freshman to tag along with her and he hardly knew her really.
The decision was made in the morning, and he expected to spend the night meditating when Daniel left. It mildly amused him, he had arrived to Arclight Academy with the mission of not being a complete misplaced outcast. He has strangely enough fit in very well, and yet he was prioritizing on self-improvement for him and the club. Though not pushed aside, his social and academic status held less importance to him as of late.

Johnathan, like the few select he could count on his fingers, decided to bypass the ball. He wasn't a big fan of events like this in previous years before he arrived here. He was laying on his back, looking up at the ceiling, just listening to the sound of his breathing. Academically, he still didn't need to try as it all came naturally to him. However, lately he found his social and spiritual life tie together closer and closer with every passing moment. He was didn't want to accept it, but his social life was the archive club. Staying motionless for a couple of minutes, he bolted upright.

This was boring.

He still wasn't attending the ball, but what he was planning couldn't take place in his room. Leaving, he took off for the s****.

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According to Grayson, Lloyd was entering his arrogant phase. Of course he didn't care. How could he? The whole night hopefully would go perfect and Lloyd wouldn't have wished it any other way. Paolo and the rest of his posse already started towards the ball, but Lloyd had insisted to stay and perfect his outfit. Even now, he had double checked his suit 8 times already. He was in one of his custom tailored suits. It was cut to fit his body frame, done in black and light gray fabrics that blended together almost perfectly, along with his tie. It came with a vest and had two buttons on the jacket. Atop all of this was a dab of cologne. Not too much to force people to throw up, but just enough to get the point across. Deciding it was enough, he headed towards Alice's door.

On the way, he caught sight of one of the underclassmen. It would be awkward if he didn't say anything. What was his name...? "Johnny?" He said, half confident, going off on what he remembered.

"Oh, you're that new guy. Lloyd." He matched Lloyd's tone, but it wasn't phrased into a question like his.

It was obvious he wasn't attending the ball. "Why aren't you going?"

Johnny shook his head. "I'm not the type usually to attend those things. I'm on my way to the s****." He was probably thinking Lloyd was interrogating him.

"Oh. Well good luck with whatever you're doing." With that, the two walked away to their respective destinations.

Phora and Alice talked among themselves as they waited for Lloyd.

"I know what you like about Lloyd," Phora began. "You see a warrior in him. But I don't think he respects you as much as he should."

Alice avoided Phora's eyes. The creature was very perceptive, and her words, in many ways, always at least partially reflected Alice's feelings.

"Tonight is a good opportunity," Phora continued. "You could crush him. You know this. Maybe tonight, you should show him who wears the pants in this relationship. Even if you failed, it wouldn't do any harm to you. You know what I mean. It would be good to resolve this now, before he gets delusional, and we have to hurt him."

Alice remained silent as she heard footsteps approaching. Lloyd turned the corner, and she waved and smiled.

"Nice suit! Let's get going!" She said.

Lloyd smiled earnestly. "Sure! You look elegant tonight as always by the way. That red looks very aesthetic on you." Then again what didn't. He looked her dead in her eyes, then he quickly opened the door and allowed Alice to walk through first. Once he was outside he gingerly took her by the arm and started walking.

Once they arrived, Lloyd took a moment to gaze around to admire. He took note of who had arrived thus far. "Wow, they really know how to decorate. But they should have enlisted me for my unique and personal touch." He added very over dramatically, hoping to amuse her. "Would you like me to get you something to drink or eat?" He said as he tried to make up his own mind by looking at their selection.

OCC: TIRED OF WAITING ON DECITON

Lotus spent a long time standing in the room awkwardly before leaving and hiding in her room till the dance. On the night of the dance Lotus ran around her room as she gathered her various beauty supplies. She finally got ready and prepared to depart. On her way out she decided to look herself over in her mirror. Lotus had a white strapless dress. Over her dress she wore a black scarf and a black bow in her hair. After some small adjustments she began to wait for Daniel. They hadn't spoken about where they would meet, but Lotus would not show up at the dance by herself. She knew if they did talk about it she would have insisted that he stop by and escort her. If she only talked to him. Truth be told she had been to embarrassed to speak to Daniel. So there she sat in her room with her gown on waiting for a knock at her door.

Alice giggled at Lloyd's boasting. They walked, arm in arm, to the ballroom, taking in all the decorations.

"Would you like me to get you something to drink or eat?" Lloyd asked.

"Hmm..." Alice replied. "Punch is fine!" She smiled at him.

Suddenly, Lloyd felt Phora tug on his sleeve. "Where's Grayson?" The totem asked.



Daniel was beside himself with anxiety. Why hadn't she answered yet? Did something happen? These questions nagged at him as he remembered how Carter managed to get sucked into hell. He used his sixth sense and was led to her dorm room. Nervously, he knocked on her door.

As Logan walked into the foyer, he took in the surroundings. The decorations glinted in the hall’s lighting, producing an atmosphere of great beauty, but with a hint of danger, not unlike winter itself. The junior stopped to wonder when he had become so poetic, then hurriedly turned his attention elsewhere. He scanned the crowd that had gathered so far, noticing that several of the archive club members had yet to arrive, including Maximilian. Perhaps his teasing had put his classmate off from the event entirely, though he hoped that was not the case. The night was still young, after all.

The weight on Logan’s arm quickly cut off his thoughts of decor or his other peers, reminding him where his attention should be right now. He looked to the girl at his side, a soft smile forming on his face. Bernice looked absolutely stunning. He counted himself extremely lucky that she had agreed to accompany him tonight. The Scot’s already ruddy complexion flushed further, and he broke his gaze before his date had the opportunity to meet his eye and see him grinning like an idiot. He resisted the urge to run his free hand through his hair, which he had painstakingly slicked back just for this occasion.

Logan prepared to speak, but it dawned on him that he wasn’t sure what to ask. He realized with horror that he didn’t even know what Bernice enjoyed besides reading. For the first time in a while, he felt completely out of his depth. He hadn’t expected to become so flustered so easily. As a well-dressed gentleman approached and offered to take his jacket, he gladly obliged, shedding his dark coat to reveal a pale green dress shirt underneath. The diversion gave the junior the time he needed to collect himself, and by the time he turned back to Bernice, he had regained his composure somewhat.

“So… Um, what would you like to do first?” Logan inquired, smiling sheepishly.

A sharp knocking on his bedroom door broke Damian from his trance. Opening the door he looked down and saw Fiona standing in front of him. Her hair was curled, and she wore a mink jacket over a lavender dress. For the first time ever, Damian saw a very displeased look on the girl's face as she tapped her high-heeled shoes impatiently. Without an invite into the boy's room she pushed past him and made her way to his closet, rummaging through clothes he could wear.

"I waited all week!" she said while throwing his clothes behind her into the air "I really thought you were going to ask me, you know." She found a suit that would be appropriate for the ball, "Maybe even surprise me on the day of the Winter Ball, I even rejected Stanley when he asked me to the ball." She found a shirt to pair with the jacket, and then took a lavender tie from her pocket matching her dress.
"Then I thought to myself, it's the 21st century Fiona. Girls can ask guys out too!" she pushed all the articles of clothing into his arms "So get dressed, we're going to the ball!" she walked out of the room and closed it behind her.


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Surprisingly, the door was unlocked and Maximilian shortly found himself in Miss Rachel's office. It was odd being in the room, the curtains closed, and the desk with everything in its place. That is, everything except for a single leather-bound notebook resting on the desk. It stood out quite starkly, almost as if Miss Rachel knew that someone was going to enter her room to go snooping. It was almost as if she wanted someone to go snooping. An eerie sense of being watched chilled Maximilian's spirit, but he continued onwards, his curiosity getting the better of him and began to read its contents.

October 20th

I woke up again feeling greatly disturbed. Never in my life have I felt such a great darkness in Darren and I honestly don't know what to do. I've asked for some reinforcements, and I think they're sending Dawn. She's great! She's incredibly powerful, if not a bit odd, but I'm glad to have one of my old classmates around. As powerful as she is though, I can't help but worry about the kids; they're getting in over their heads. I'm really proud of them, they've all come so far, and the new recruits this year are doing great! I don't want anything to happen to them, I would be able to live with myself. I've got to be careful.


January 8th

Things have been going great! Alice has pretty much mastered her transformation with Phora. She's incredibly formidable. Julian has also shown incredible talent in his manipulation of the earth. Never before have I seen a Terra Naturae with such skill. Once Byron and Maria graduate, they can rest assured that the club will be in capable hands once these two become the co-presidents. The Order still hasn't gotten back to me about Rachel. They said that she was in Africa hunting down a voodoo witch. Fortunately, things have quieted down, and the kids have been doing very well taking out the spirits that do show up in the city.

February 27th

Jamie and Monica have been working in secret lately. I think they're trying to build an arcane golem. Man, these kids are great. They seem a lot more powerful than I was when I was a kid. I could barely control my ability to knock out all electrical devices in my vicinity until second year. Meanwhile Li, is beginning to grasp the concept of levitation. Really, it's great, but something Jung told me makes me second guess all of this progress. He said that Omnivident children are more powerful and more common before an era of darkness. That son of a gun is always so cryptic, I guess it comes with his trade.

March 6th

I did something I told myself I'd never do. I couldn't help it. I just feel such a great sense of foreboding. Maria has always been quite good at looking ahead, she spends a very long time looking into her glass orb. I had to know that everything was going to be alright. That dream...I don't even want to think about it. And yet, when she looked into it, she saw nothing. Only a cloud of smoke. What does that even mean? I've been sensing an odd energy within Adi lately as well, his holy presence seems to be growing. I don't ever recall that happening in an Angelorum.

March 17th

I received a few letters regarding the arrivals of first year students in September. Of course, Mr. St. Augustine promptly notified me of his youngest daughter arriving. She's a Spiritorum like myself, so I'm sure she'll appreciate my experience in the arte. Interestingly, there will be two Naturae students, which I find mildly odd as they have usually been quite rare. Thankfully, I'll have Julian to reign them both in. I still haven't heard anything from Rachel, I should probably try to contact her personally. The Order tends to take its time with these matters.

March 31st

Ms. Ignianus visited me last night. She's quite unnerving, almost in the same way that Rachel is, though laced with danger. She told me that trouble was brewing in South Darren. I asked her what sort of trouble, but she could not say, "lest she bring him to my door". That, among her various "friends" she carries about her chilled me to the bones. On the plus side, I did hear back from Rachel. We actually managed to speak on the phone. She sounded tired. And I would be too, if I were to prevent a dimensional gate from being opened in Sub-Saharan Africa. I'm glad she's alright though. She tends to overexert herself due to her abilities. She did say that she would make her way here though, and I am grateful for that.

April 19th

Mark has given Basil yet another tattoo. I worry about those two sometimes, they always make rash decisions. I expect that from Mark, considering he is Crystallorum, but Basil has been giving off an aura of potent magic. In fact, some of the students in the school have been giving off that vibe as well, I'd look into it, but I've been so busy lately. Somehow, Southern Darren has become a mess. There are very dark forces lurking in the streets, even I wouldn't go there alone. I think I'll book a sweep with the kids and Rachel near the end of the school year.

April 25th

Clarissa has been having horrible nightmares lately. She came to me in confidence, not sure of what to do. She's been very in tune with the emotions of everyone for a little while, but I feel like she's picking up on the suffering of someone...something else. I've begun to share my thoughts with Maria and Byron. Maria says that she has been sensing dark activity, her acute Vitri senses agree with mine. They agree that we need to go to the source and destroy it before it has even more time to gain power.

May 7th

Things have been progressively getting worse every day. Last week, someone was almost killed after they were nearly struck by a speeding truck. The woman said that she saw a stroller rolling onto the road, but there was no sign of it. The other day, a man who had been complaining of hearing whispers killed his girlfriend and himself. Worst of all, there have been reports of homeless people being killed, and having their heart removed. This all points to some very serious demonic activity.

May 29th

The students have been training diligently since I told them of the circumstances that we face. Unfortunately, I had to send Idelia away. Byron has been trying to curb her behaviour, but she is quite powerful in her own right. I cannot keep her here any longer, her recklessness could get us killed in action or put innocent people at risk. There is no room for mistakes, and no more time to waste. I can no longer wait for Rachel.

June 7th

Well, today is the day. I've chartered a bus for a trip downtown, we'll be heading to an old apartment complex where a significant amount of dark energy has been gathering. Unfortunately, a few of the students are unable to attend, but there is quite a lot of us, so we should be fine. Truly, I am so proud of these students. We've come very far from the beginning of the year, many of the first year students have proven themselves to be quite powerful, and the upper year students have refined their skill to a level greatly surpassing what's expected of them. It reminds me of something my uncle once said "When darkness rears its head, Arclight shines defiantly"


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Alone in the s****, Johnny could feel the presence of another spirit in the room. Assuming it was Sir William, he turned to face the spirit that he knew was watching him. Had he been Spiritorum, he would have been privy of the foreign nature of the spirit. For when he turned around he saw a young woman staring at him silently. She wore the Arclight Academy uniform and a pair of thick-rimmed black glasses, her light brown hair was in a ponytail, and a gentle breeze seemed to blow at her despite there being any such movement of air in the s****.

"I've found it! I've found you!" she said sounding a bit deranged.

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Before Bernice could answer Logan, murmurings began to spread through the crowd. Within moments, Fiona, having dragged Damian to the Winter Ball, approached their group. Having been closer to the commotion, she and Damian knew why everyone was suddenly whispering excitedly.

"It's Alice!" she said excitedly "She looks like a movie star tonight!" Everyone was floored by Alice's beauty, which was even more than she usually was, dressed up for the formal occassion. Paolo saw Lloyd with Alice on his arm, giving him a thumbs up and grinning widely as they passed each other. Amy ran to her best friend and hugged her, snapping the crowd out of their stupor.

"You look amazing, girl!" exclaimed Amy cheerfully, "I knew that dress was going to be a show stopper when we saw it in the store!" She said, referring to one of the trips they had taken to the mall in the week prior. Robby, her date for the night, joined their group and handed each of them a glass of sparkling wine.

"You look great, Alice," he said with a sincere smile.

"Ahem" the music in the hall began to quieten as headmaster Doctor Julius Berkham stood at the microphone on the stage. "Good evening students and faculty of Arclight Academy" he said formally, "It is my pleasure to have you here for the Annual Winter Ball. As you are all aware, we suffered greatly at the loss of our colleagues last June in a terrible accident. Nevertheless, Arclight Academy has continued to thrive as an educational institution. I commend you all for upholding the name of Arclight Academy, and preserving the integrity of our school's name." He paused as the room filled with applause, continuing once it had died down.

"I also thank our fair city's mayor, the honourable Steve Johnson, for graciously hosting one of our finest Winter Balls in Arclight Academy's history!" Again, he paused as the room filled with applause, whistles and cheering. Headmaster Berkham raised his hand for the students to settle down before he continued further.

"I wish you all a pleasant and safe night, and I will see you all in the New Year. Now, without further ado, I present to you, Mayor Johnson" The room filled with applause as the mayor walked onto the stage.

"Greetings students, faculty, and the highly esteemed Headmaster Berkham," said the mayor cordially "I am honoured to have such talented youths in my presence, for you, are the future. I wish you all a sincere Happy Holidays, and I hope that you continue on your paths of excellence. Be safe, and enjoy the rest of the night!" he turned to the dj and yelled excitedly: "Hit it!"

The music began to play a rousing pop song to get the party started, bringing the dance floor to life as the students resumed their festivities.


OOC: For Clarity's sake, Deci's characters are also at the Winter Ball. Wizz, feel free to use Derrek as your date (? - I wasn't sure if I read that taking place or not)

Also, everyone aside from Maximilian, and Johnny are present at the ball right now, and have witnessed the speeches taking place, as well as Alice's arrival.

As the music started, Alice looked at Lloyd sternly. "If you try to make me dance to this, I'll break your arm," She said. "This is a ballroom, not the high school gymnasium!"

She made sure to keep her senses as in tune as possible, as an example to him. "Just remember that being Omnivident is a full time job. We must make sure nothing is amiss." Out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of Lotus, and almost did a double take as she saw who the girl was locking arms with. "What the?! Hold this!" She handed her wine glass to Lloyd and walked over to where she could lock eyes with Lotus, and, with one finger, gestured for her to come to her.


Daniel took in the lights and sounds. He'd never see anything like this in his hometown. He felt grateful that he had a chance to attend a school like this. When he felt Alice's presence in the room the feeling was instantly lost, and he wanted to cry out. Without realizing, he placed his other hand on Lotus's arm. "Don't... Don't let her get in your head!"

Lloyd felt like he was caught redhanded. His had to keep his senses high and in tune on different reasons. One was because he was nervous as a normal person. One slip and he could mess everything up. And also with what Alice said, anything could pop out at anytime. No room for slacking. Being Omnivident definitely had its pros and cons.

"What the?! Hold this!" Alice handed her glass to him and marched off towards Lotus and Daniel. He followed, but stayed a bit behind her to avoid getting caught in the potential crossfire. He took a sip out of his own wine glass and kept a straight face.

Grayson appeared, but had a bored look on his face. Mortal festivities. The totem was initially against Lloyd going, but his master had insisted on going. Go figure. He turned to Phora. "You called?"
-----
Johnathan half jumped when he saw her. She looked unfamiliar, had the uniform and didn't seem like a threat thus far, but kept on guard nonetheless. "Uhhh, do I know you?" He spoke in a very polite manner to prevent upsetting her. He had a vigilant look upon his face.

Oc: Deciton Just said that he had a plan so I was waiting for a post.
Lotus was shocked at how many people were in the ball room. She loved the pastel decor that laid about the room. As she stood in the ball room she could tell something was wrong with Daniel. Then she saw it...Alice. Lotus emitted a low growl that couldn't be heard over the music. Daniel spoke to Lotus his voice was oddly calming. "I won't let her in my mind, just my mouth." As she started towards Alice she realized what she said. She quickly turned towards Daniel "I meant like I would bite her not that I'm....I mean there's nothing wrong with being...um..I'm going to stop talking now." Lotus turned and walked over to Alice. "Yes?"

Id showed up to the dance dateless. She didn't want a date she didn't need one. She wore a dress that barely obeyed the dress code to the dance. Id walked over behind the punch table and began to enjoy some punch with her 'special' ingredient.

Alice was dumbfounded. Did Lotus even know about Daniel's transgressions? "You realize that you're dancing with a mage, right?" She began. "I specifically ordered you to bring him to me." Suddenly she let out a laugh. In a way, Lotus had obeyed her command. "Well, good job I suppose. Get him somewhere where nobody can see him, then signal with this-" She handed her a laser pointer. "-and then I'll eliminate him." She winked before walking back towards Lloyd. "I had business with her. Let's go find something to do."

Daniel was watching from behind a couple who were getting showy with a public display of affection. When Alice walked away, he approached Lotus nervously. "Are you going to kill me?" He asked with fear in his eyes.

Phora took one look at Grayson and knew what had to be done. "Bored?" She asked. "Let's make this more fun. Just watch." She flew over to the buffet table and landed next to a platter of croissants. She turned around and began to flap her wings gently, and the hallucinogenic dust they secret drifted onto all the food and drinks. She laughed and returned to Grayson. "Now it's a party," She said with a grin.

It was all quite a blur, the way he'd made it here. Now that he thought over it, he felt rather guilty just seeing her dissapointment and briefly considered she'd be mildly upset with him the rest of the night. Then again, she didn't seem the type to hold grudges. Regardless, lesson learned, better to ask and be shot down than to not ask at all.

His clothing wasn't something he'd ponder about as it was really decent enough for something he hadn't chosen. In his rush however, he inexplicably brought along his bauble in his pocket. As of now, that seemed a stupid idea, yet he couldn't help but feel safer with it.

He'd been lost in thought throughout most of the speeches but managed to wake up and look present for Berkham's words. As soon as the music hit, he turned his gaze to Fiona, only now being taken aback by Fiona's appearance, a difficult feat after Alice. "Should I embarrass us now on the dance floor or would you rather save it for later?" He asked with a cheery smile.

Lotus refused to let Alice ruin this for her no matter who she was with. After Alice left Lotus acknowledged Daniel "Kill you? No, I'm not hungry...yet." With that she let out a sigh. Ever since she arrived she had always tried to obey Alice and for the first time she was purposely wanting to ignore her. The thought of it made Lotus chuckle.
"Look I don't know what Miss Bossy wants but if we're going to enjoy ourselves her we need to trust each other." With that she held out her hand to hand Daniel the laser pointer. "If you want to signal Alice go ahead. I could care less what Alice wants. I want to have a good time."

Maximilian was quite interested in the notebook and its contents but he was also especially interested in who the author of these specific entries was. Sadly the notebook didn't appear to lend any information towards the anonymous author so for now Maximilian needed to decide whether or not he would leave the notebook here or to take it with him when he left. Surely Miss Rachel wouldn't notice a single missing document and even if she did there was little chance she'd ever figure out he was the one who took it.

Maximilian grabbed the bounded notebook and pushed it into the back portion of his dress pants, he then untucked his shirt and allowed it to hang over the notebook so that it would be completely hidden. Next Maximilian moved around Miss Rachel's desk and began snooping for more 'sensitive information' in her desk and drawers. This time Maximilian was searching for information about his club mates, as well as any other information the school might have been hiding from him. In particular, Maximilian was interested in the senior most omnivident. He wanted to know what they were capable of and what exactly they've been doing the past few years, if Maximilian were especially lucky he figured he might even find some information about past omnivident who attended the school.