Bats fluttered around the ceiling and giant jack-o-lanterns were placed strategically around the great all. Different expressions were carved into each pumpkin, some happy, some scary. The Halloween Ball. Students came in wearing costumes galore. Some wore elaborate gowns but it seemed that most were decked out in charmed costumes that moved, changed color, the whole nine yards. So of course, Olympia Rosewood had to join in on the fun. The blonde professor was dressed as a pirate. Black pants clung to her legs and knee high pirate boots covered her feet. A white peasants blouse was cinched at the waist with a decorative black and silver corset and a long, knee length coat hung on her shoulders. Blonde hair was pinned back out of her face with a matching bandana.

The charms professor lifted a mug of butterbeer to her lips, green eyes scanning the crowd of students mingling, dancing and flirting. So far harmless enough, boys and girls keeping their distance under the watchful eyes of the professors chaperoning. A pale hand reached up to push her blonde hair from her face as she leaned on the wall, bobbing her head to the music that floated through the Great Hall. Ollie always loved a good ball, a good party. She enjoyed the companions she met at the party and the new friends she tended to make. Of course that was bit hard to do at a school sanctioned event. She knew nearly all of the teachers and had befriended a good portion of them. Though there were probably still a few she hadn't befriended yet.

Students were still trickling in as it was early in the evening. There were probably some teachers who hadn't made it yet. As a Head of House she had been there before the party started. Her Gryffindors wouldn't dare do anything out of line with her around, she wouldn't stand for it. The butterbeer was lifted to her lips once more as she took another swig, looking around the room at the dancing students. Maybe she would join in soon and dance. Ollie would most likely wait until later in the night though, wait until she had a dance partner so she wasn't dancing alone, though she didn't always mind. Green eyes glanced to the door for a moment as she took another swig of her butterbeer. When would some of her friends filter in and give her more companionship than the students who were generally ignoring her.

Anton Popova adjusted his costume's green hat one more time before entering into the ballroom. Popova walked into the ballroom dressed as one of his favorite super heroes, Green Arrow. His green sleeveless hooded shirt covered his brown color hair. Anton's green tights clung to his leg as his dark green boots. A quiver of green arrows on his back and a green plastic bow in hand. Professor Popova adjusted the black mask over his eyes. The spell he used to hold it on his face was falling loose. Stupid charm spells never turned out to work right when the Russian man tried them. Anton wished he had use the make up glue he had from comic con a few years back. Pulling off the mask at the end of the night would hurt, but at least he wouldn't have to worry about the mask falling off of his face sometime during the night.

Popova looked around the ballroom to find someplace inconspicuous to stand and make sure non of the kids get into trouble, or maybe just make sure that no fights break out. Either way he dreaded this evening. Anton never learned how to dance and he never really new what he was suppose to do at these things. Green gloves adjusted his mask once again and looked around. Plus, he could never recognize people when they were in costume. Eventually he saw Ollie on the other side of the room and made his way across the great hall to her. He had nothing better to do then talk to the other teachers. He doubt that anything exciting was going to happen tonight, so he might as well talk to his fellow teachers and try to enjoy himself.

Anton moved to beside Ollie and smiled. "Arrrrrrrr you having a good time," Professor Popova asked trying to be witty about her costume making eye contact. Realizing that was probably the lamest hello ever, "Sorry, that came out vay more lame then vhat I meant it too, but seriously are you having a good time?" Popova looked around trying to make sure that nothing had gone terrible wrong when he turned his back on the crowd of students.

Green eyes moved from the crowd to the tall man beside her. She was silent for a moment before laughter fell from her lips at the corny joke he told. Her smile grew as she looked at him, lowering her drink. Happy gaze took in his costume, ignoring the throngs of students mingling near by. Blonde curls bounced slightly as she nodded, still giggling. "Yes, I'm having a great time, better now that I have company." She said smiling to him. Her eyes scanned him quickly before settling back on his face, tilting her head back slightly to look at him.

"Nice costume." Ollie said, reaching out to finger one of the arrows. She glanced to him with her trademark smile before withdrawing her hand and taking another swig of butterbeer. Green eyes slid back to the students before her, dancing and having fun. Ollie did love a good party, of course one she could enjoy. Being a pair of watchful eyes in the corner wasn't always fun, but now that Anton had joined her maybe that would change. Who knew, maybe she could get him out on the dance floor with her.

"What about you? Are you enjoying yourself?" Ollie questioned, head cocking slightly to the side in question. The blonde charms professor leaned against the wall behind her, pushing the coat out of the way to hook her thumb in the pocket of her pants. One foot moved to rest against the wall behind her, the tall boots tightening around her knee at the movement. Green eyes moved back to Anton with curiosity, watching the students out of the corner of her eye. The mug of butterbeer was drained in a final swig and she set it down, watching as the mug was refilled magically. Oh how she loved magic.

Anton Popova smiled at the fact that Olympia enjoy his joke despite how corny it was. Professor Popova stood up properly like his father taught him to do as Ollie commented on her time here at the dance. Anton did a quick one over the dance before he turned back towards her. Letting her touch the arrows in his quiver, he smiled at her waiting for her to get done. At least now Popova had someone to spend the dance with and talk too. Anton just dared to hope that she wouldn't want him to dance with her since that was the one thing he probably couldn't do here.

Professor Popova blushed at the complement at his costume turning back out towards the students, "Thank you, Made it myself a few years ago for Comic-con. Best vacation ever." Anton grab a cup of Butterbeer and sipped on it some. The only thing he could think of was how it needed some vodka in it. Unfortunately, Anton couldn't carry in a flask or bottle of vodka with his costume, so the professor had to make due with what they were serving at the ball. Popova turned back towards Ollie when she asked him how he was enjoying the dance. The quick turn caused his mask to fall loose and off of his face. Letting out a small swear in Russian swear word when the mask did fall off.

Anton Popova bent over picked up the black mask quickly and turned his brown eyes back to Ollie. "I vould be doing pretty vell if I could get this darn mask to stay on right. I used make up glue at comic-con to keep the moogles from getting suspicious, but I didn't have the time to learn the charm properly before tonight." the Russian ramble on trying to get it placed right over his eyes. Popova ramble around trying to hold the mask with one hand while trying to pull his wand out of his quiver failing quite miserably. Giving up he turned back toward Ollie, "Vould you mind fixing it for me?"

Ollie chuckled and shook her head slightly, pulling her wand out from a pocket in her coat. "You should have come to me to begin with." She chastised in a humor filled voice. Her lips were turned up in a smile as she mumbled the spell, nodding in approval after the mask stuck nicely to his face. Charms always came so easily to her that she sometimes forgot others could have harder times with it. "There you go." Green eyes examined him for a moment before she glanced back to the students. She watched in silence for a moment before turning back to him quickly.

"Would you like to dance?" She questioned him in an excited voice. Ollie loved dancing but didn't like doing it by herself. Plus she wasn't very good at it. "I've got some liquid courage if you need it." The charms professor grinned mischievously, pulling a flask from another pocket in her coat. Ollie almost always brought some liquor with her to these events. She would sip on it through out the night to make the boring chore bearable. Well fun. The firewhiskey she normally drank made it fun. She would get out and dance and socialize a with her coworkers a bit louder than normal.

With a wink, Ollie unscrewed the cap of the flask and took a small swig of the firewhiskey, smiling brightly as the liquid fire slid down her throat and warmed her chest. Green eyes glanced to the students to make sure they weren't paying attention as she offered the flask to Anton, head cocking to the side in silent question. It wasn't that she thought her students were naive enough to think she didn't ever drink, she just didn't want them to think that they could get away with murder tonight. Her drinking wouldn't affect her ability to give out detentions for those students acting up.

Professor Anton Popova's face expressed an emotion of joy as a smile crept upon his face from having his mask fix. The Professor felt around the mask to make sure it was sticking properly. Smirking Anton's lips began, "Thanks for that Ollie, you made that look vay too easy compare to my millennium of practice trying to get that spell down." Popova looked back towards the mob of wizard students. The professor could have sworn he saw a kid pull out a flask and pour something into his drink, but Popova lost him in the crowd. He squinted at the dance floor seeing if he could spot the kid.

Anton barely heard the question of Ollie asking him to dance. Popova tried to hide his face from going pale when he turned back to the charms professor. His worse fear had just come true, well, his worse fear that had the highest probability of accruing at a school dance that is. Popova notice the shaking of the small flask and then looked back at her like she was crazy. In a joking tone he mention, "You are avare I am Russian. Unless that is a bevitch decanter, It is going to take a lot more then that little flask to give me enough courage to get me to dance to this music." Looking back out to the dance floor shaking his head, "But I tell you vhat. Since you are dress so dazzling tonight, I will slow dance with you the next time the opportunity comes up."

No sooner then when he finished the last statement the song ended and 'Always and Forever' started to play. Popova turned to the musicians and if looks could set things on fire, that one would have. Anton was hoping that it would be at least an hour before a slow dance song played so he could work his courage up before hand, but somebody upstairs clearly hated Popova that night. The muggle studies professor turned back towards Ollie and gave a cracked smile. "Just a fair varning," he said, "I have never dance before in my life, so if I trip and hurt you. You have no one to blame besides yourself." Popova held out his hand for Ollie to take this way she would have the opportunity to turn him down if she change her mind.

Joy filled her as the same expression slid over his face. She smiled kindly at him and shrugged. "Charms has always come easily to me. I can help you with it if you need." She smiled once more and put her wand back in coat. Green eyes moved back to look at Anton, her smile still in place. A hand reached up to push her blond locks from her hair as she glanced to the students. A girlish giggle fell from her lips at his words and she shook her head, taking another quick swig of fire whiskey. A soft pink blush covered her cheeks at his compliment but she didn't acknowledge it. In fact, Ollie never acknowledged compliments. She looked to him silently, a smile playing on her lips and happiness dancing in her eyes.

He promised her a slow dance. That was not what she was expecting. She blinked, her smile falling momentarily. This wouldn't be romantic, just a dance. Nothing had to come of it, but the thought still made her heart pound. Her last relationship hadn't ended well. Her eyes glanced down momentarily as she thought. It had been almost ten years since her divorce, why hadn't she tried to go out again? Maybe it was time. Shaking her head slightly and smiling at him once more, she removed the thoughts from her mind. Then wasn't the time to dwell on it.

The slow music wrapped around her and she looked to Anton. "I'm sure you'll be fine." She smiled to him, placing her hand in his. The blonde Charms professor looked up to him and wrapped her long fingers around his, leading him to the dance floor. Students parted so the two professors could get through and once out on the dance floor, Ollie turned to Anton. "It's easy." She said, reaching up to wrap her arms around the tall man. Green eyes looked up to him as she ignored the students around her. She wasn't exactly the best dancer in the world either so she sincerely hoped that she wouldn't hurt him with her clumsy feet.

The Professor felt his stomach do a turnover when Ollie took his hand. Unsure of the fact that holding her hand made him nervous or going to dance for the first time in his life. Popova never got to dance, in the literal sense, his first go around at Hogwarts. Anton's lack of English skills made communication with other students difficult enough that most people avoided talking to him till around the fifth year and by then most students left him alone assuming that he was a loner from a lack of friends. Popova thought to himself that he wasn't a teenager at prom night and now was not the time to act like one either. Anton mentally manned himself up as the professors walked out on the floor.

Anton manage to steady himself once Ollie got her arms around him. Popova manage to find a appropriate place to put his hands to give off the illustration that he was trying to just be friends. His gloves kept his sweaty palms from being apparent as they begun to dance. Anton made eye contact once with Ollie before turning his eyes to his feet hoping not to crush her feet in the dance. Popova's eyes would cover his fear with a mask a confidence. He had a certain amount of height and weight on the Charms Professor and breaking somebodies toe would ruin the night for her. "I vouldn't call this easy Ollie," confidiately mention, "I have been in street fights easier then this."

Anton moved a natural grace from the long years he spent training his body from stress. Once he got the flow of it, he moved much easier then before. All he could think about about was how thankful he was to his Aunt Varvara for teaching him Tai Chi with its graceful slow movements.

OCC: Sorry, I should have mention I was going to be going on vacation.

The charms professor smiled at him as they danced together. It was a nice moment and one she hadn't had since her divorce. There was nothing romantic about it, she was sure, but that didn't keep the butterflies from fluttering about in her stomach. Ollie put up a confident front when it came to men. She brushed off flirting without a second thought and acted like it was nothing, but she never allowed herself into a vulnerable position with men. She never gave them access to her heart.

"Tell me more about yourself. What are you likes, dislikes, everything." She said as the danced, green eyes watching him. He was different than most of the men she had met, but she was still closed off. Still worried about what could happen. Her eyes cast down to her feet in thought. "You've told me about your past, now I want to know what makes you tick." Ollie smiled to him as she cast her gaze back to him, determined to rid her mind of her no good ex-husband.

Green eyes studied him for a moment before she spoke again. "I know, tell me how you came to have Snowball." Ollie said. The big fluffy dog was very cute and loveable and stories of how people came to be united with their furry, or not so furry, companions brought her great interest. Her own story of how she met Athena was interesting in it's own right.

OOC: You're good. I've been rather busy as of late.