Professor's Office IC

"Howard it is," Méabh nodded and wrapped her fingers around her own mug. "You can call me Méabh, if you'd like." There didn't seem to be much reason to insist on formality with the older students, the ones that would be adults themselves in a few short months. If she had to rely on being called Professor Regan to get their respect, she was doing something wrong, she figured; even more since this turned out to be a private conversation more than a professional one.

It seemed that her concerns regarding the media attention hadn't been entirely off mark, and the doubts only intensified when Howard admitted to feeling overwhelmed with the focus, and the pressure that must come with it. Not for the first time, Méabh wondered who had thought it a good idea to bring this tournament back, especially now with political tensions running as high as they were. Carrying out those conflicts on the backs of children couldn't be the answer.

She'd lifted her shoulders in a half-shrug, then smiled when Howard included her in the people like him. "No presumption there, I'm not very secretive about what I am." It was one of the few things she'd learned from her father; she carried no shame for her abilities. Her fingers tapped against her cup, nails clinking softly against the porcelain. "It's not a great situation," she admitted. "I'm not going to lie to you. I have it comparatively easy, I'd say. I can stay... incognito if I want to, that's a privilege, even if I've always been open with my talents." Her eyes flashed from green to blue back to her usual brown, although they would slowly fade back to green when her attention moved away from the demonstration. "I can stay away from the conflicts. You..." Her eyes drifted from Howard's pale skin to his red eyes, "might not have it that easy." She smiled briefly. "Of course, I'm also by far not as famous as you are."

She paused, thinking. "It's not necessarily a bad thing, at least not entirely. You'll have vocal supporters. Same as you do here." She'd read passionate articles defending him in the school newspaper, after all. "You should still be safe while you're here at Hogwarts. After that... depending on how the situation develops in the next two years... attention will likely stay on you. Conflict might come to you even if you don't want it. People might try to use you for their own goals." As they were already doing right now. It shouldn't be on this kid. Méabh fell silent for a moment, then focused her eyes on Howard again, the expression questioning. "I don't want you to think you don't have a choice in this at all, though. It's not fair that you're thrown into the middle of a fight you didn't pick. You could leave, go somewhere else, where people don't read the Prophet, live your life there in peace." She waved her hand in a vague gesture. "Might not be easy, either, but it's a choice."

OFFICE OPEN