Equality Private Re-Opened

One moment, Dee was getting to her feet, ready to follow the half-giant - it was the sensible option, really, sticking to someone who reacted calmly when faced with fire and bursting glass windows, who seemed to know what to do and where to go. Plus, Professor Mulrain's way of speaking had made her feel at ease so far - if she was to follow any of the gathered people, it would be him.

The next moment, a hand closed around her arm like a vice, dragging her from the table, and Dee's first instinct was to scream. It didn't come out as much more than a yelp, though, when she realised who had grabbed her, and she relaxed for a moment.

The wild-haired man hadn't shown much interest in her earlier, had seemed focused on Nico, mostly, so Dee was too surprised for a moment to react to being pulled along with him. His words made sense, too - leaving, running, when people were tossing fire at them. The fear of getting blamed for the chaos and destruction. She'd forgotten his name, really, until Professor Mulrain reminded her - and then she finally realised where Claude was headed towards.

Not towards the backdoor, like the half-giant and half-goblin were, along with Maria and Nico, no. Towards the broken window, the flames, and, by extension, the angry mob who had thrown that bottle through the window in the first place, and suddenly, the instinct to scream was back.

His hand around her arm was surprisingly strong, much stronger than she would have expected from the way he looked, but she struggled against it, anyway, first just lightly, then more the closer they got to the window. "What are you doing!" she yelled at him. "Why would you go there!"

All her senses were straining towards the back door, where she could see the other girls heading, and if she managed to tug free, that's where she would go, too.

Action | Trying to escape towards the back door

OOC: Not sure how Claude would react and Dee is a twig with very little strength, so... If it comes down to a strength check or something, feel free to auto-fail it, I don't mind.

First Year Stats
Sta 4 | Eva 7 | Str 3 | Wis 8 | Arc 6 | Acc 7
Evasive Maneuvers

Within the chaos of the brick flying through the window, the fuzzy boy talked about... certain people could make... unwanted people dissapear? There was an ominous tone on that last word, making Nico's eyes grow wide. She didn't want to find out. Actually she would've pressed the boy into telling her more but there was no time. They had to get out of there.

Still sticking close to the giant, Nico felt the fabric of his clothing. A part of it, atleast. It felt kind of heavy. For a short moment it kinda made sense to her. A big man needed big clothes... Big clothing means more fabric, right? That must be why it's heavy. Why in Merlins name was she thinking about this while they should be focused on a plan to get out of here unscathed?

A scream from within the growing smoke caught her attention, her gaze snapping to the front. One of the girls was being dragged by Claude. Towards the fire? That must be a mistake right? Nico hesitated to run after her. The fear in Deallas voice was concerning and rubbed something inside the Prefect. But the fire... What if she got burned on the way there? The sun wasn't as bad but fire? And what kind of fire was this? It looked different. Magical... Or it was super flammable or it was... something worse...

As they came outside the backdoor, still sticking close to the Half-Giant, Nico yanked onto the Professors jacket. The fresh air that fell on her face made her realise that the air within had gotten thick, coughing intensely. 'W-What about Dealla?' The young Prefect whimpered as the whole ordeal was quite disorienting to her. What was front, what was back? 'I-Is she going to be okey? C-Can't you get her back?'

The crowd outside was one she didn't expect. Not so soon, atleast. Her eyes darted over the many unknown faces. Were the culprits here aswell? Not sure what to do, the dhampir decided to stay close with the Professor again. He did seem to be the kind of guy that could defend himself with ease. Would Dealla be okey?

@Marion Davenport| @Nico Shymane|@Dealla Prince

In Maria’s later recollection, the moment between escaping from the library and going out the back door would be a hazy scene in her mind. Those were moments where her brain was simply devoid of most thoughts except the ones concerned with self-preservation. Like an out of body experience she followed the half-giant professor out the door, barely taking notice that the mortician followed behind. She especially didn’t notice Dealla not behind them.

But it seemed that the only escaped one stressful situation to end up in another one. Now they were surrounded by a crowd. Whether these people were simply nosy onlookers or part of the attack she wasn’t sure of but she was still on edge - pupils blown wide, eyes darting around, deep heavy breaths, and her pulse going about as fast as a Firebolt. She was probably shaking too. A few breaths grounded her somewhat, enough to bring her back to look at their small group. The professor was with them, as was the mortician as she now noticed and Nico was clutching there, clutching on to the larger man. But where did Dee and Marion go? The other halfling’s absence didn’t go unnoticed as well.

True to her Hufflepuff nature she began scanning the crowd for them as well. She did not notice that the blonde ran in the opposite direction nor that Claude had entirely different escape plans and planned to ring Dealla with him. It made even more alarm bells ring in her mind. This was all so very wrong and it was going south very fast. She hear Nico mention their missing companion.

“Marion’s gone as well, d-did you seewhere they went?” She stammered out. “What is going on here?” ” Her voiced was raised now, the question mostly aimed at their two older companions with the telltale crack of an incoming sob mixed in. Partially it was aimed at the universe. It seemed to have a penchant for giving magical students a hard time.

ACTION: Analyzing the crowd for anything or anyone dangerous.

Stats:
Stamina [7] | Evasion [6] | Strength [5] | Wisdom [4] | Arcane Power [6] | Accuracy [7]
Abilities:
Sixth Sense

They were all trying to escape but there was a distinct lack of organization. One, the young man with the wild hair chose to head towards the crowd. "They know we are here, we will be seen. We have nothing to hide!" He declared, but he was wrong. they had plenty to hide, they just did not do anything wrong. The problem is, for every moderate dedicated to a cause, there is a handful of extremists, vocal members of a minority that push their agenda with threats and with actual violence. Those who chose the extreme end of the spectrum, through their antics as well as their vocalizations often defined a movement.

They were terrorists, even if they were in this moment victims. The glitter and the slogans might have been all that they had done. Their stubborn presence. Their insistence and their education placed them alongside those that were dangerous, those that wanted not their fair share but all of it. Recompense perhaps for the tribulations of their predecessors, to compensate for a generational lack of wealth, health and opportunity. Something that they would demand with their words, bullying some and with dangerous plans come to life with others. The building was on fire, a fire that they might be blamed for even if they lacked the magic to spark a fire and had no incendiary device. It did not matter. They were an easy target for the blame.

@Dealla Prince would break away. She was not being kidnapped, she was being rescued. He would break free of the building alone, the girl would rush out the other side with half-giant and part goblin. A breath of fresh air, cool and crisp. She would hear them as would the others, @Nico Shymane and @Maria Dee. The muffled, angry shouts and jeers from the crowd the other side. Dealla had narrowly missed a tragedy.



The breaking of glass. Some screams, protests. That was Claude's voice. "My name is Claude! I am a squib!" His voice was shaking. "I have done nothing wrong."

The crowd thought otherwise.

"We have a right to live and to be!" GHis rallying cry but there, distant from his allies - the giant and the goblin squib as well as the girls, he was alone. It was not a we but an I in truth.

"Don't help him, he is about to be arrested for arson," Professor Mathias Mulrain warned them. [color-navy]"He is making a scene on purpose so we can survive,"[/color] he announced. It sounded a bit dramatic but he did not seem like the sort to exaggerate.

"Witnesses," the part-goblin explained further.

“Evil turned out not to be a grand thing. Not sneering Emperors with their world-conquering designs. Not cackling demons plotting in the darkness beyond the world. It was small men with their small acts and their small reasons. It was selfishness and carelessness and waste. It was bad luck, incompetence, and stupidity. It was violence divorced from conscience or consequence. It was high ideals, even, and low methods. Or so, that is what they will wish to say." the Professor concluded. Another quote, his literary safety blanket salving his aching heart and mind.

He clasped his shoulder on the next poster. "He needs a witness and to draw attention from us, if he enters a shadow unseen, it will be the last we see them. Quickly, while their attention is drawn... we need to run!"

As for Marion, what was her fate. She was not with the girls nor was she with Claude. She had chosen her own path. Perhaps she was still in the shop. Doubtful, while she seemed a bit slow, she was resourceful enough as to be paired with these three men.

@Marion Davenport | @Nico Shymane | @Maria Dee

Smoke was filling the room, making the scene hazy. Dee's yelling choked off with a cough, her lungs rebelling against the smoke inhalation. Claude's declaration only filled her with fear. There was an angry mob throwing fire at them, right where he was headed, did he think they'd care that they had nothing to hide? Absurdly, the comparison that sprang to her mind was pretty much the opposite of what was happening here, but the situation seemed disturbingly similar: During the witch hunts, no one had cared for innocence and guilt, either.

Maybe it was that rush of fear, filling her veins with ice, that gave her the sudden conviction to tear herself loose, or maybe the man's grip had never been as tight and strong as it had felt to her. He didn't insist on dragging her with him, and as soon as she was free, Dee ran into the opposite direction, towards where she had seen the others disappear through the smoke. She was coughing when she burst out of the door into the alley, sucking in clear air greedily only to have it ripped from her in the next attack of harsh coughs, hurting her throat, her eyes tearing up. She bent down gasping, trying to steady herself, hadn't even taken the time to take note of who else was standing next to her.

When her coughs let up, only occasionally returning, softer than before, her throat and eyes were burning, but Professor Mulrain's words pulled her attention towards the half-giant. Nico and Maria were also there, good, as was the part-goblin, chiming in with a one-word explanation. Mary wasn't, but Dee didn't have the mind to worry about her, not now.

She didn't have the focus to comprehend the Professor's grand words, either, shaking and jittery, but nodded at the conclusion. Running, yes, if she could make her trembling legs do so. She didn't trust her voice to speak, afraid that the coughs would return, breathing alone making her throat feel uncomfortable and scratchy. The thought that Claude had been sacrificing himself to give them the opportunity to escape made her feel guilty for a half-second, but why had he been trying to drag her with him, then? This wasn't even her fight, was her next thought, selfish and unbidden, she'd just been dragged into this for no reason. Had he been meaning to sacrifice her, too, provide a bigger distraction?

She'd be hoping he'd made it out, later, Mary as well, when she was (hopefully) safe, had some time to calm down. But for now - running.

First Year Stats
Sta 4 | Eva 7 | Str 3 | Wis 8 | Arc 6 | Acc 7
Evasive Maneuvers

OOC: Terribly sorry for how ridiculously late this is, it just slipped my mind. Hope we can still finish this~

It is mostly finishing anyways. What you're intended to learn you have seen which is very relevant if pieced together. Waits for the others o.o

@Marion Davenport| @Dealla Prince| @Nico Shymane

Still on edge but having sort of gathered herself, Maria’s senses came back. Instead of an incessant ringing and the rush of blood in her ears, she could now make out the cries of the crowd. Their words were full of hate, mostly directed at the squib who had gone the other direction. Why was he so hated? What could he have possibly done to deserve any of that? None of it made sense to her. They seemed like good people, though at this point Maria had yet to learn that looks could be all to deceiving. She did not know these people, and their few moments of speaking were definitely not enough to make a whole judge of character. But she still felt all the hatred that the crowd spewed out. It radiated in waves, and it was almost sickening to her.

Then, it all seemed to click. All the things that the older men and Marion were talking about, she couldn’t quite grasp it, but it somehow made sense. These men weren’t exactly accepted in normal society… or even in the magical one. She had no idea of which the crowd was from, but from the perspective Maria was seeing those people were angry at the men… for talking about who they were? Again, the young witch did not exactly understand it, but it felt not right – to have nowhere to belong to, to be treated this way when they couldn’t change who they were.

The flurry of ideas ran through Maria’s mind as the professor monologued and everything else happened around them. It was confusing for her, to say the least.

Dealla’s coughing made her presence known. Well at least that was one question answered. But they were still not safe. They were still smack dab in the middle of chaos and at that moment really had no idea what to do next. Fortunately for them the adults with them had enough sense to tell them to run. So for the second time that day, without a clear sense of whether or not they were going to be safe, only to get to anywhere that wasn’t there, Maria ran.

Stats:
Stamina [7] | Evasion [6] | Strength [5] | Wisdom [4] | Arcane Power [6] | Accuracy [7]
Abilities:
Sixth Sense

Just compiling relevant information for this group since it has been a long time.

• Marion has ties to S.C.A.R.
• She led the three of you to a meeting of S.C.A.R.
• The people there appeared to be well-mannered, intelligent but offered strong reasons for being disgruntled.
• They were attacked, the S.C.A.R. members fled.
• A member is purposefully making a scene, so the rest can 'survive.'

You would be able to escape and flee the scene in the chaos and return to the Quidditch stadium,