A Ball to Remember (Delia)

Guest

A ball. In Germany. A ball. In Germany. How in the world did he get himself into a situation where he would be attending a ball - a Pureblood one at that - in Germany? When his sister heard of it, she'd laughed for five minutes straight, stomach-clutching, tears-inducing, out-of-breath laughing. He'd simply shook his head and smiled, telling her the whole story of Delia once she'd calmed down enough. But that had just set her off on another laughing spree.

Sighing a little, Elleon adjusted his tie, looking at his reflection in the mirror. He'd gone with a simple two piece suit, the only suit he had in his posssession. Delia had approved of it so he knew that it was acceptable. He'd combed his hair as neatly as he could, sweeping it to one side and trying to make it stay down. His efforts paid off except for one stray lock that kept floppping over his eyes. Oh, well.

He glanced at the clock, seeing that it was ten minutes to four, the time that Delia said she would come to pick him up. He was very nervous. He had no idea how Pureblood functions worked, what they would think and say of him when they found out he was Deaf, what he was supposed to do, how he was supposed to behave. Why in Merlin's name did he agree to this!

His phone dinged, and he picked it up, seeing that it was a message from Delia, telling him that she would meet him in the Great Hall. He could do this. He just had to smile and be polite. He had a lot of experience with stuck up people who trodded all over him just because he couldn't hear. He knew what it was like to be bullied and made fun off. This time, it would just be adults instead of kids that did it. But something told him that Delia wouldn't tolerate that kind of behaviour.

Making sure he had everything, he headed towards the Great Hall, sitting down on one of the benches and sending a text to Delia to let her know he was ready and waiting.

Guest

Truth be told, Delia had absolutely no idea what she had just gotten herself into. Not for a single moment had Delia actually expected Elleon to agree to her preposterous invite, although she was pleased that he had accepted -- in a way. While she was stoked, she had a few different problems that needed to be worked out. The first was the most glaringly obvious -- he wasn't Pureblooded. Still, a few moments of thinking had brought up a simple solution, and with as angelic a face as she could manage she approached her dad, inquiring as to whether his offer from years ago still stood and she was allowed to invite friends. He had said yes, and she had gone on to spin a tale that, while not exactly true, was believable enough for him to give in.

Elleon, she had explained, was one of her closest friends in Hogwarts and had been from the start. Whereas everyone else had ignored her as the new girl or only treated her nicely for her last name (she had neglected to tell him she went by 'Delia Foster'), he had been genuinely nice to her for who she was. He was, she had gone on to explain, typically ostracised because he was Deaf -- which was a stupid reason because he had no say over it, much like poor muggleborns. "I would," she had concluded, after expounding at length how nice he was to her and how badly he was treated by everyone else, "Really like to invite him to the ball we're hosting and spoil him a little. You know, the best food, the best music, the best drinks... Please? May I?"

That was all it took, and without another word from her, Elleon's invitation was secured. All she needed to do, then, was to tell him not to tell anyone what she had shared with him -- "Elleon told me in confidence, father; I would hate to have broken it." -- and it was all settled.

The next issue was his Deafness. Most of the time, it wouldn't be a problem. This, however, was no normal situation. Purebloods could be high-class, looking down at everything and everyone that wasn't like them -- Delia included. To bring someone -- a halfblood, at that -- into a Pureblood society and ball would be... difficult. Still, she wasn't so much worried about what they would say (as her friend, and with her being who she was, they wouldn't say anything to his face) but rather how they would treat him. If they would talk with him at all or give allowances for him to read their lips, or give him the time of day to read what he wrote on his phone or paper was... well, debatable.

She didn't want to offend him by hiring a interpreter, but she didn't want him to be left to his own devices, either. Finally, she decided on contacting a halfblood Interpreter, asking him to be on standby; if he were needed, he would be contacted and expected to arrive at once. If he wasn't, he would receive a small token sum as a thank you, anyway. If Elleon did need one, there was one available. If he said no, then he'd never need to know she had one prepared.

Everything mostly prepared, Delia settled into the day as normally as she could -- which is to say she fretted over what dress to wear. Eventually, she settled on a rather ... loud one, despite being black and white. When the time neared, Delia shot a quick text to Elleon, waiting for a reply before motioning to one of her house elves to apparate. Not held or bound by the same laws, he got straight into Hogwarts, where she moved the few feet to the Great Hall, smiling at Elleon as she did.

The first thing she did was hand him a piece of paper, on which she'd written: I may have stretched the truth a little with father. If he thanks you, just accept it, k? I told him you're one of my closest friends. She chose to leave out the other parts, mostly because she figured Elleon would be uncomfortable with lying like that. The second part of it read: Do you think you'll need an interpreter? Most Purebloods aren't willing to give you leeway to write or text, unfortunately. Just nod or shake your head, and then I'll destroy this. Don't want father seeing it. xD

Guest

Elleon fretted with the phone in his hand, the device that, on more than one occasion, helped him bridge the gap between the Hearing and Deaf world with it's many many apps. As he waited for Delia, he could feel the nervousness rising in him, manifested in the rhythmic tapping of his foot against the floor.

He didn't know why he was feeling so nervous. Maybe it was because he had no idea what to expect. He always liked knowing what he was going into just so he could sort of prepare himself for what was coming. Maybe because he didn't know Delia all that well and anything could happen at this ball. He'd be stuck in Germany then with nobody he knew.

Delia appearing in front of him didn't give him enough time to figure everything out. He stood up, a smile on his face as he took in her attire. She looked somewhat like a candy cane, except with black stripes instead of red stripes. Still, there was no denying her evident beauty.

Taking the paper that was handed to him, he read it, his grin widening a little at the first part. The question about the interpreter made him pause for a bit. He hadn't expected Delia to give him the courtesy of asking whether he needed one. A lot of Hearing people just assumed that Deaf people would need an interpreter and hired one anyway without asking them.

Smiling, he shook his head in response to the question. While some Deafies needed one and felt better with one, he didn't need an interpreter. He'd gone without one for so long and he knew how to interact with Hearing people. Besides being one of the core classes at his old school, his entire life was based on helping people who could hear, understand him - and of course, getting his point across to them as efficiently as he could.

Sure, he might have a tougher time at the ball - because judging from her note, Purebloods lived up to their snobbish reputation - but he had enough experience with ignorant and unkind people. Merlin knew he'd been on the receiving end of pranks, jokes, and bullying enough times to grow a thick skin to it all. Besides, he would already be the freak who couldn't hear. He didn't need to be the freak who had someone tailing him the whole night.

He gave the note back to Delia for her to destroy wondering what story she'd told her father to justify his presence at the function. It must've taken some creativity for her to spin one up that was believeable enough. He smiled at her and nodded, letting her know that he was ready to go.

Guest

The shake of the head had been, while what Delia mostly expected, a slight disappointment. It would've been much easier -- for every party -- if he'd just said yes. Now she would have one more thing to concern herself with, aside from the usual mingling, recollection of names, polite small talk... She usually only put in that much effort for friends; was Elleon one? She couldn't say for sure. He was different, sure, but differences weren't enough to get her to like someone. Still, there was something about him that intrigued her, as if she knew somehow that she was meant to befriend him. Fate was... non-existent, in her mind -- "I make my own f***ing destiny," she would often tell her friends -- but whatever it was, she didn't quite mind the trouble Elleon was causing. It had, after all, been at her own invitation.

As soon as she was given the paper back, she took out her wand and put the tip against the edge of the paper. Concentrating just a little, there was a tiny spark and, soon, the paper was alight. She let it fall to the floor, watching it burn to ashes, before quickly muttering a cleaning spell and getting rid of the ashes. It was the most efficient way of getting rid of it, without any traces; if she'd ripped it up, a repairing spell could've undone it. Of course, the other efficient way was to eat it, like she'd done in class once when the Professor caught her passing notes -- stuffed it into her mouth, chewed, and swallowed. That was, however, a last-resort thing, and she would much rather burn paper than eat it.

At his second nod, she indicated his arm, placing hers in his as she would've with any other male. It gave the impression he was in the lead, although he wasn't; might as well pretend from the get-go that he knew some social norms. Turning to the house elf, she gave the instruction, and within seconds, they apparated to her father's house.

As arranged, they were in the receiving room, a proper place to be in. It was public, so not a bedroom where it would've been improper for Delia to be alone with a male, but it had a resemblance of privacy, with nobody else there but the house elf and another servant. That way, none of the guests would see Elleon's arrival in case he didn't take well to apparation, but there was absolutely no way anyone could've said they were up to anything before they joined the main hall. It was almost ironic, how well Delia played Prim and Proper, when she was so vocal and active about sexual things with her friends.

Once she made sure Elleon was stable and alright -- a journey that far in a single apparation was difficult, especially the first time -- she nodded to the servant and he opened the door. Slowly, she led Elleon out, making sure it seemed like he was the one actually leading. Moving together, she entered the main hall, glancing around as they did. There weren't many people yet -- about ten or so from the hundred she knew were on the list -- but it would get crowded soon.

"You okay?" she mouted to Elleon, making sure to look directly at him as she did.

Guest

Delia got rid of the note efficiently and Elleon smiled; she'd thought of everything. It felt weird when she placed her hand in his arm. While he was used to physical contact - it was rather necessary when one was Deaf - it had never been in the context of a ball or function. It increased the pressure on him to behave properly and in accordance with whatever social rules the Purebloods had at these things.

The apparation left him slightly nauseated and woozy but he recovered quickly, catching his breath and his balance in the relatively quiet room they landed in. When he felt better, he followed Delia's lead to the main room. He'd expected it to be teeming with people dressed splendidly and chatting politely, rubbing shoulders with other equally wealthy people to further their own wealth and social status.

In contrast, there were only about ten people in the room. It was tastefully decorated, showing obvious affluence, but not too over-the-top or gaudy. He supposed they were still early - or most likely, everybody else was 'fashionably late'. He doubted that these balls had any less than a hundred people, unless it was a private party thing.

Feeling Delia's eyes on him, he turned his head and caught her words, nodding and smiling in response. "I'm fine," he mouthed back. Whipping out the small notebook and pen he carried in his inner breastpocket, he scribled the words: Go mingle if you need to. No need to babysit me. I'll be fine

Guest

Glancing at the notebook, she let out a laugh. Taking the pen from him, she quickly scribbled a reply.

Didn't invite you if I thought I'd have to! Ur a friend, n the most interesting person here, tbh. I'll do some rounds l8er, when more ppl are here. For now, let me show u d food table. IDK how much u know of five-star crusine. xD

She flashed him a smile as she handed it back, winking a little as she did. Truth be told, despite the fears still lingering at the back of her mind, she was glad Elleon was there. He was a familiar face among many others, but he was different. Not because he was Deaf, and not because he wasn't a Pureblood, but rather because he was so relaxed about everything. It wasn't often she got to be herself at these balls, and while she didn't expect to not be Cordelia for a few minutes here and there, having a friend there was relaxing, almost.

Gesturing, she started towards the food table, trusting him to follow. She already knew what was on display, and she'd given a quick heads up to the kitchen staff. To her pleasure, she noted that they had done exactly as she asked, and by each dish there was a tiny placecard with a name -- much like she'd seen at buffets. Elleon would never need know this was not the norm; he'd never hear otherwise, either.

Reaching back out, she took the notebook and pen back again.

Dinner officially starts now but nobody eats till at least half the guests r here. So maybe 10 mins? I'll let u know when we can eat. Idk abt u but I'm STARVING lol.

Guest

Elleon saw her laughter and he smiled in response, waiting as she wrote out a reply to him. He seriously doubted that he was "the most interesting person" there, but everyone was entitled to their opinion. There was no need to enlighten Delia as to how boring he could be.

He followed after her as she led the way to the food table. It was a splendid thing, laid out with dish after dish of food that looked amazing. He noted that each dish had a label with the name of the food. Some were famliar, albeit a fancier version of it, and others he'd never heard of before. He couldn't wait to try those out.

She wrote another noted out to him and he grinned, pointing at himself and mouthing, "Me too!" Knowing that it was a Pureblood ball, he'd brought a good appetite with him. He might never have the chance to attend one of these things again so he might as well make the most of it.

He watched as the place began to fill up, keeping an eye on Delia to see when he could start eating. A few people shot glances his way but he supposed that was because he was a new face and they had no clue who he was. He did't think that any of them were expecting a Halfblood to be in attendance. If this followed the 1800s, he'd have to wait for Delia to do the introductions.

[[OOC: Sorry this is to short :/ ugh]]

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