A Cursed Wedding

Welcome
Greetings and welcome, honored guests! We are so honored to have you present to help us celebrate the wedding of Claudian Slughorn to his long time fiancée, Aryanna (aka Xana) Venefica.The bride and groom have chosen an Atlantis theme for their wedding. We've got a sinking feeling that this might have been a bad omen for their event, but more on that later...

The wedding ceremony is being held at a palatial seaside resort near the Cornish coast remote from muggle eyes. Please, enter into our imaginations and see it:

The Location
You enter into the courtyard through an archway flanked by two sand coloured stone pillars adorned with fairy lights and tropical flowers. The outdoor ceremony is being held on a beautiful, warm day late in the summer. The fickle English weather is merciful - bright blue skies with a smattering of puffy white clouds give the area an open, airy feel. As you enter the courtyard your nose may detect a mixture of the salty smell of the ocean air, the fragrance of the vast quantity of tropical flowers in huge arrangements that emulate the look of coral reefs, and the delicious aromas of various nibbles at the banquet tables.

Just past the staircase to the main hall is the courtyard where guests may mingle and relax before they take their seats. Roving waitstaff are on hand to deliver bright tropical beverages, fruity concoctions served with tiny umbrellas in hollowed pineapples or in tall, elegant stemware decorated with exotic flowers on the stems.

Yes, it looks like a dream wedding set to take place in the heyday of the Mythical Kingdom of Atlantis; a Caribbean utopia where nothing could possibly go wrong. However, not is all as it appears...

Characters

Bridal Party
Claudian O. Slughorn (Groom)- SlytherinSistah
Aryanna Venefica (Bride) - XanaSnape
Ovid Slughorn (Father of the Groom) - SlytherinSistah
Calliope Slughorn (Mother of the Groom) - SlytherinSistah
Diabolica Vlakh - Maid of Honor - DeathEater24601
Marco Denver - Best Man - Jenster
Excelsior Black - Attendant - SlytherinFox
Ellie Bluebell - Attendant/Flower Girl - Raquelin
Hawken Terrell- Yori De’Aster, the Russian wedding planner


The Story So Far:
Post #1: The groom and bride are in their respective rooms, getting ready for the service. Please feel free to come into the reception hall and mingle. There are roving waiters with cocktails and banquet tables filled with appetizers to suit all tastes; please help yourselves! Mr. Ovid Slughorn, father of the groom, is greeting guests. Please sign the guestbook if you would like to do so, and soon the events shall begin...

Post #91: RUNAWAY PANTS! It seems that the best man's pants have a mind of their own...

Post #166: THE OFFICIATE IS DEAD? And where is the ring?

Post #185: The ring has been located, the bride's 'Something Borrowed' has been established, and the groom and bride appear to be ready to commence the ceremony... Here's hoping the officiate is on his way!
OCC Note
Please feel free to RP your character arriving and mingling in the courtyard, enjoying beverages and nibbles, and conversing before the ceremony.

This is a structured rp with a more developed plot that will involve the participation of many of our guests. We can best describe it as a mixture between Murder Mystery Dinner Theatre and virtual hot potato. Clues will be supplanted throughout the rp story, keep a weather eye for posts made by XanaSnape & SlytherinSistah. If you know anyone who would like to be involved, please let them know to send us a PM.

A fatly-rotund a balding old man stood near a guest book on the other side of the archway. Upon entering the courtyard his corpulent frame is immediately recognized. That man is Ovid Slughorn, he is the father of the groom and he is quite acidic. But on this day, he puts on congeniality and waits with ergonomically designed quill nib for the guests to use in signing the wedding guest book.

A loud snap was heard and Jaimine stepped forward with a box and envelope in one hand and a big smile on her face. She gathered her dress in hand making sure that it didn’t drag and made her way toward the guest signin book manned by a man who looked like her reason for being there hat day, well one of her reasons at least. Clutch under her arm Jai gave the man a bright smile after smacking her glossed lips together. "You must be Claudians father." She stated knowing she had to be right, Claudian was the younger version.

Jai gracefully reached for the quill and signed the book. "You must be very happy for your son, Xana is beautiful and very smart." she said putting the quill back in its place. "Well I guess I'm the first."

Dress>>-http://www.edressme.com/cko6d756.html

Moments later, a second loud snap is heard, and just behind Jaimine appears her date, Billium Q. Jones... he smelled of the sea, his robes drenched hip-high. He looked to his fiancee and blushed furiously. "Sorry, Jaimine... I overshot the target. There's dolphins and sharks out there, in case you should wonder." He cocked his head toward the direction of the ocean. "Oh, do we sign in, then?" he said, heading for the book. "I do hope there's nibbles before the show starts. I missed lunch." he commented in a low voice to Jai as he signed, then nodded in greetin to Ovid. "Will Jones... Pleased to meet you, sir, are you the father of the bride?"

Jai walked up behind Billium holding back a truck load of giggles. She withdrew her wand and performed a drying spell on him. "Sharks huh." She said rubbing his shoulder fondly. Thank Merlin I had the gift... she thought with a smile and held Will's free hand.

Will squeezed her hand and kissed her cheek, pleased. He loved it when she took care of him like that. "Mm-hmm.. Thank you, love." he murmured before turning his attention back to Mr. Baldish Roundish Guy.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jai

A loud snap was heard and Jaimine stepped forward with a box and envelope in one hand and a big smile on her face. She gathered her dress in hand making sure that it didn’t drag and made her way toward the guest signin book manned by a man who looked like her reason for being there hat day, well one of her reasons at least. Clutch under her arm Jai gave the man a bright smile after smacking her glossed lips together. "You must be Claudians father." She stated knowing she had to be right, Claudian was the younger version.

Jai gracefully reached for the quill and signed the book. "You must be very happy for your son, Xana is beautiful and very smart." she said putting the quill back in its place. "Well I guess I'm the first."

Dress>>-http://www.edressme.com/cko6d756.html

The fat man nodded, a rather large smile hinted to the fact that Jaimine's hunch was right. "I am, indeed. Are you a friend of his from school?" He said, spinning the guest book on it's rotating stand to get a look at her name after she'd signed it. "Jai...Jaimine is it?". He recognized her name seeing it written as she'd made it into Claudian's letters home once or twice that he recalled. "He spoke highly of you, Jaimine. We're glad to see that you could make it." He said giving a nod. "She is quite lovely. Quite a gem! I was surprised my son was able to catch such a witch." He shrugged. "Sometimes, he gets lucky."

Quote:

Originally Posted by Billykins

Moments later, a second loud snap is heard, and just behind Jaimine appears her date, Billium Q. Jones... he smelled of the sea, his robes drenched hip-high. He looked to his fiancee and blushed furiously. "Sorry, Jaimine... I overshot the target. There's dolphins and sharks out there, in case you should wonder." He cocked his head toward the direction of the ocean. "Oh, do we sign in, then?" he said, heading for the book. "I do hope there's nibbles before the show starts. I missed lunch." he commented in a low voice to Jai as he signed, then nodded in greetin to Ovid. "Will Jones... Pleased to meet you, sir, are you the father of the bride?"

"Yup!" Was Mr. Slughorn's short answer to Billium. It wasn't that he was annoyed, despite the boys soaked trousers, so much as he didn't feel like an elaboration was necessary. "I am the father of the..." He sighed somewhere between languid and and urge for self-control. "The groom. Ovid Slughorn. Pleased to meet you, Will Jones. Go ahead and make yourselves comfortable. There are drinks and snacks in the back. Enjoy yourselves."

Jai smiled "Oh yes, how rude of me. Jaimine, or Jai." she answered "I wouldn't miss it, Claudian is like my brother, if you don't mind me in the family." She joked. "I don't think luck had anything to do with it, Claudian is very charmng." She rubbed her thumb across the back of Wills hand. "It's a pleasure meeting you Mr. Slughorn."

Will grinned. "Yes, sir." he said respectfully, smiling as Jai did the speaking for them. She was so eloquent and poised. Claudian got lucky? Well, he wasn't the only one. He squeezed Jai's hand again, feeling like a million galleons as he led his pretty lady into the reception area where the nibbles were. "Holy harpies, lookit the spread!" he said happily to Jai, leading her to the Meat Table. Wonder of wonders that it was. "Hungry?" he asked her, getting them each a plate.

Ahh... weddings. They seemed to be quite popular these days. How many had Sarah gone to within the month? Three? What an overwhelming number. She, herself, found it hard to believe. But she didn't mind weddings... Despite the constant slap-in-the-face reminder that she was alone. But it was all good. She had worked quite hard enough over the past few weeks and a wedding might cool her off.

Sarah smiled gently to herself as she glanced around the courtyard. It was still quite empty and she saw no sign of her recent acquaintance, Claudian, who was the groom of the wedding. At first she was quite taken aback, that she would be invited to such a big event as his wedding, but she did consider Claudian as a friend type of person.

After another moment, Sarah's eyes were immediately drawn to a man that stood in front of the archway. Something about him made him stand out and seem rather important. And the book next to him proved it. Believing that it must be the guest book, Sarah walked on over to the archway with a smile on her face. "Hello sir!" she said, cheerfully as she picked up the quill and jotted her name down in the guest book.

Jai shook her head "Not very, I supposed I'll eat a little though." she smiled following him "Oh I forgot to ask where to put the gifts." she patted the box in her hand. "Have you signed the card?" she asked squinting at him, she remember telling him to.

Will nodded, helping himself to some meat satays and getting some for Jai as well. He took a bite and offered one to her. "Mm, this is awesome. And yeah-- Back at your house, I signed. I think the gifts probably go over there--" he pointed at an empty table in the corner. "Seems like a good place, anyway."

Jai accepted the meat and nodded "Mmhm" she swallowed, "It is good." She shrugged "Maybe I'll wait a while to see, it's beautiful here." Jai looked around and smiled, "They're a wonderful couple." , soon this would be her and Billiums wedding, well soon enough anyways.

"Hello there!" The little balding man robustly greeted the young witch who just entered. "Welcome to the wedding. Make yourself at home. There's butterbeers in the back." He said, imparting only the most important information, of course.

Ahhh beautiful BEAUTIFUL weddings.

Darla Lala Puff was invited to one and she just HAD to come really because... wedding had food you see. Wedding had FOOD. Very serious business she was getting herself in, she supposed. Errr who's wedding was it? Someone... someone she obviously met before... right? WELL THERE WAS FOOOOOOD. She had dressed all purple for the occasion because she much liked purple food and she was even willing enough to not have breakfast so most of her appetite could go over here.

The 40 year old woman was walking very haughtily, but... WOW. Even a woman of her wealthiness hadn't seen such a beautiful place. Which easily meant... better place = better food. So SIMPLE! And BOYSSSS. THERE WERE BOYZZZ in the wedding obviously.

Laik how HAWWWT was the groom, eh? She had to find out. SHE HAD TO FIND OUUUT!

As she walked and walked towards the courtyard, OH HER NOSE SMELLED AN ASSORTMENT OF THINGS. Was she in heaven? Yes? Was she? No, Darla did not want to leave at all. And the aromas of... food just... made her want to eat like a pig. She eyed that guest-book paper and noticed a bald man, a bit plumpy. She walked even more haughtily over that direction, as though she had made the best entrance so far *SCOFF* eying the man so fliiirtiiily.

Sure he was just a tad bit older than her--maybe, but PFFT he was a man, A MAAAAN.

"Why why why hello, sir," she said so flirty-like and added her name to the list, making her name very large so many of the coming guests would see her name and once she was done, eyed the bald man and smoothed out her clothes and said in a sooooothing voice, "caaall me."

And then she started looking around, looking for food of course.

Apparition was the best way to travel and even better when she could manage it do it so quietly now. Kayla, smoothed down her dress and made her way to the courtyard.

The spot that Xana and Claudian had picked out for their wedding was absolutely beautiful. Kayla, couldn't keep the grin off her face as she got closer to courtyard. It had been too long since she had seen her two friends. She had been a mere child when they had graduated and now she was a grown woman, with a child of her own. How time flies.

She stopped by an elderly and rather round gentleman and even at a glance you immediately knew that this was Claudian's father. "Hello Mr Slughorn. What a perfect day for a wedding." Kayla, gave the portly man a huge smile as she stood by the guest book.

As she walked up towards the courtyard, Hermy was glad to find that it was a beautiful warm day along the coast. She would admit that she didn't wear dresses all that often, preferring to be comfortable for her line of work, and although she fell in love with this one as soon as she saw it and was grateful to have to occassion to wear it to, she had been worried she was going a get a tad chilly. It would have also been a serious wardrobe malfunction if there was any more than the gentle breeze, what with the light skirt the flowed beautifully whilst moving or dancing but could potentially be embarassingly revealing in a gale.

With her dress, Hermy was wearing flat sandals (she didn't want to be sinking into the sand!) and a mixture of handcrafted jewellery made from a variety of beads, shells, wire and other small trinkets. If there was single word to describe Hermy, it would have been eclectic. She had that arty and bohemian charm with a fun loving and relaxed attitude that revealed the quiet self confidence she had developed since leaving Hogwarts. She rarely wore make up, prefering the natural 'fresh faced' look, but today had a hint of eye shadow - and she'd even made the effort to remove the majority of paint from under her nails. Afterall, amongst catching up with all friends and faces, there could be future clientele around.

Noting she was one of the first, Hermy smiled as she walked towards the small group gathered by what appeared to be a guest book. She recognised several faces from school, and could tell the older man they were with was Claudian's father. "Beautiful location for a wedding," she commented as she reached them, gazing around.

Oh crap he was late again. Well he thought he was late. He woke up from his little nap. He glanced around the room. Hmmm this wasn't the church. Where was he? Had he really been drinking that much last night? No he couldn't have done. He saw Claudian dressing himself in his weird fashion. Everything had to be straight with Claudian. Marco on the other hand was currently in a slightly crumpled shirt and his boxers. Not quite the best man look, but it was good enough to nap in.

He blinked again as he began to wake up properly. "Claudian, don't we have to get moving soon?" he asked. And he still had to put his trousers on. If he could find them.

A small pop was heard not far from the venue where Emily arrived via side along apparition with her older brother on one arm and a small box wrapped in green paper complete with silver ribbon in the other, charmed to hold more than the small size implied. Her graceful look created by her two sisters in laws, Irish and Ireland was spoiled rather by the look she currently wearing on her face. She wasn't happy; because, A) The wedding was in Cornwall and she'd had little excuse not to visit home while she was here, and B) Her father insisted on Elijah dropping her off even though she could apparate just fine on her own! The lack of licence bothered him even when Emily tried to sweet talk him with the knowledge that she would be getting one at school this year and that she was more than capable. Pfft. Sometimes he was too stubborn for his own good.

She said her (abrupt) goodbyes to Elijah and smoothed out her dress as well as her face before she headed in the direction of the courtyard where some guests were currently gathering. She almost walked straight past the balding man on her way into the courtyard but stopped just in time. “Hello, sir.” She said politely with a small bow of the head. She subtly looked him up and down - same girth.. same face.. this man could only be one of Slughorn's relations. Unless, of course, the years hadn't been kind to Slughorn since he left school. hmmm... “Um... Are you a relative of Slug..." D'oh! "I mean, Claudian's?” She gave him a sweet smile to cover her error.

Just as she'd gotten close enough to take in the beauty of the location, Anna Newell immediately began to realize that she'd, somehow, lost her husband amidst all the chaos of leaving the house and apparating to the wedding. She took a few moments to glance around, hoping maybe he'd pop up right beside her, then finally gave up and continued past the staircase and into the main hall.

She didn't get too far before she noticed a man, a relative of Claudian's she'd guess, offering a quill so that guests could sign a wedding book. "Good day, sir. I'm Anna Newell, a friend of both the bride and the groom," she greeted. "May I, please?" With a nod, she indicated that she'd like to have the quill to sign the wedding book. It would have been nice for she and Cale to sign together, but seeing as she currently couldn't find him, that was a little on the impossible side. Merlin, she hoped he hadn't apparated into the water...

The man seemed to be a cheerful lot, representing a good amount of Claudian-like attitude. Were the two possibly related? A brother? But that couldn't be it for the man was far too old to be a brother. Bald spots were appearing, even! Then possibly a father? That could be it.

As Sarah debated on whether or not the man was a brother or father of Claudian's, the man explained what she could do before the wedding. Smiling, the young woman nodded her head. "Thank you very much, sir. Um... where's Claudian? I'd like to wish him luck and congratulations before the wedding ceremony," she said, her hands clumped right against long white dress.

Though she normally felt self-conscious in dresses, it wasn't too bad at the moment. The weather was so nice. Sunny with bright skies and a gentle wind. The salty scent of the ocean. It made all the things better. What could possibly go wrong at such a heavenly wedding?

Camira eyed the location with pleasure as she apparated in. It was definitely beautiful. She wore a simple, yet elegant dress. It had taken her a while to decide on what to wear, but she’d finally decided that it wouldn’t do to outshine the bride, so she stood now, in a long tourquoise dress, with simple diamond studs, and her hair twisted up, held in place by a butterfly clip. She was glad she’d remembered to go. Being an intern was as far from enjoyable as one could get, and she’d almost forgotten about the invitation that had flown through her window.

She approached cautiously, noting that a fair few people had already arrived. She wasn’t sure if she recognized any of them, but then again, it had been some time since she’d been at Hogwarts. Hopefully, she’d be able to find Claudian. He was the reason she was here, after all. It would be good to see him. Most definitely. There was also the fact that she didn’t yet know how things worked. Did they have assigned seating? Could they stand and chatter? Ah well. Hopefully she would find out soon enough.

Ariel arrived with two boxed under her arm. Both were narrow, and long. Wrapped with white and silver paper and a beautiful bow that was charmed to hum 'here comes the bride.' She walked to where the rest of the guest were and tried to mingle, or talk... but nothing.

Xana fidgeted nervously, checking her reflection in the mirror for the 84934832023th time. Her hair and makeup were done. Her stomach was filled with fluttery butterflies, and her hands were trembling just a little bit as she finished putting on her mermaid-style weddng dress and it performed a self-lacing charm on the corset-like ties at the back of the dress, cinching the bodice snugly.

"I am so nervous." she confessed for the hundredth time to her best friend and maid of honor, Diabolica. "How do I look?" She looked pleadingly at her friend, hoping she would reassure her. Not that she was one bit unsure about marrying Claudian, but still... She wanted the day to be perfect, and it was a bit daunting-- she would remember every moment of this day for the rest of forever!

She looked in the mirror again, fussing with her long, dark red curls that were swept partially up. She wanted it to be perfect. She wanted to be perfect for him.

ooc: Her dress:

A small pop near the entrance to the courtyard and a dreamy eyed man appeared. Miles Oliver Emerson walked casually inside, smoothing down his jacket. Russet colored hair fell in front of his chocolate brown eyes as he looked around at the place. He really needed a hair cut, but haven't gotten around to letting his sister trim it. The place really was a sight to see with all the tropical flowers and the smell of the ocean in the distance.

It really was a nice day to have a wedding. He was actually a little surprised on getting an invite, having not seen the groom in some time. Stepping around a couple of people who were chatting, he glanced around to see if he recognized anybody, or if he could spot his old friend Claudian. Miles hasn't seen good old Slughorn in awhile. He wondered if he would recognize him in this crowed. Then again, how could he forget the man?