Politics of Fear open slytherin table closed

Venus had never given much attention to the wizarding news. Before Hogwarts, her parents did not have a subscription to the Daily Prophet as her father deemed it "an unnecessary expense," given that their mansion was far isolated from the rest of wizarding society. He would rather spend his money on academic journals for muggle scientists, specifically ones concerning space and the stars. Her mother simply didn't care for politics. She had given up her career in the Ministry upon having children and never returned. According to her, she knew and trusted those making the decisions, so, therefore, she did not have to spend her energy worrying about what those decisions were. They were purebloods, after all. An issue affecting them negatively would be incredibly unlikely due to the biases of wizarding politics.

Venus carried that attitude with her to Hogwarts. At breakfast each morning, she noticed many students reading newspapers around her. The Daily Prophet, along with additional external papers were prevalent. However, the Hogwarts Headliner made up for at least 75% of the total read each morning. It was most likely a budgeting matter for the students, given that the Headliner was free and the others were not. Personally, rather than reading the news, Venus spent breakfast quickly consuming her food in order to have time for conversing with those around her about assignments and the goings-on at Hogwarts.

On this particular morning, the Slytherin girl's usual seat was found to be occupied by someone who she had never seen before. Although tempting, it would be quite rude to tell her to move. Instead, Venus continued walking along the Slytherin table until she found a seat at the other end. Her old routine was getting quite repetitive, anyway. Perhaps even breakfast could pose an adventure! The thought put a smile on her face as she took a seat and scanned the breakfast in front of her.

Toast and eggs again. How many times in a row would there be eggs? Venus typically did not consider herself a picky eater but eggs were the exception. Who could possibly like them? They were slimy in the white part and don't even get her started about the yolk... It felt like chalk on her tongue except worse.

Venus pushed the breakfast around on her plate, forming a tower of egg bits on one side and toast on the other. Once the toast was successfully decontaminated, she picked it up and took a bite, chewing it thoughtfully. This must be where all the quieter Slytherins sat.

A boy sitting diagonally across from her broke the silence. The first-year turned her head to look at him, slightly confused. She tilted her head in confusion as she took another bite of toast.

"What's S.C.A.R.A.B?" Her curiosity prompted her to ask.

Rebecca met the girl's curious gaze and matched her cocked head with a charming smile. "Ah, sorry. I'm guessing your folks aren't much for talking about the news? Here," he offered, pushing his copy of the paper towards the girl before he tapped the page he'd been reading.

"It stands for 'Stump's Coalition Advocating Rights for All Beings.' It's a civil rights group," he explained. "Started up about four years ago, right around the same time as that big murder case with Harry Potter."

He knew for certain that anyone who had grown up in a wizarding family would remember the scandal that had come about when the darling 'boy who lived' was arrested for the murder of his former teacher.

"You know how pureblood families get about squibs? Locking them up, pretending they don't exist, making them disappear." Rebecca looked sheepishly for a moment and remembered who he was talking to. "Er... not saying all of them are necessarily like that. No offense."

For all he knew, he could be describing this girl's own family's treatment of squibs. In which case... actually, full offense intended. But judging by her reaction to his rant, Rebecca doubted she would support that sort of behavior. Regardless, he was eager to brush past any awkwardness and keep talking.

"Anyways, there was this group of squibs who decided to start telling those purebloods where they could stick it. Started calling themselves the 'Squib Committee Advocating Revolution'-- incredibly wicked sounding, right?" Rebecca couldn't hold back a boyish grin, eyes glittering with excitement.

"S.C.A.R... proper cool," he shook his head in wonder, "but they expanded it later to stand with other groups as well. Werewolves and halfbreeds too, y'know?"

Rebecca hesitated a second as he considered how to address the next point. Not to put too fine a point on it, but he was truly trying to give as impartial a description as he could. It was difficult, considering how strongly he felt about everything. He wasn't trying to tell her what to think, he just wanted her to make her own opinions given all the information he'd gathered... but a lot of that information was from a newspaper Rebecca didn't trust as far as he could throw it.

He chose his next few words carefully. "Thing is, the Ministry reckons they're a terrorist group. There's been some attacks, some people getting hurt. Some killed. A lot of people say that S.C.A.R.A.B. is behind it all."

His brow furrowed a little in frustration. "But I think something's off! Some of the stuff the Daily Prophet's putting on them, there's no evidence for it. And even if they were, a lot of things just couldn't be done without using magic! Like brewing up enough potions to spike drinks in the Leaky Cauldron, or getting onto a moving train without being caught."

Rebecca shrugged and raised his eyebrows. "Someone who can't use a wand wouldn't be able to pull it off. It doesn't line up with what the Prophet wants us to think." It was self-evident to anyone looking at him in that moment that he showed absolutely zero respect for anything that newspaper had to say.

@Venus Adair

♡

Navigating the subject of blood purity has always been a delicate matter within the Selwyn household.

With a lineage that boasted pure-blood supremacy for as far back as records existed, it was no secret that their stance on muggles wielding magic was less than friendly. After all, power was something no one wanted to share; especially not for those who fed from the grandeur along with it.

But a change had been brewing within the family, a new generation of Selwyns adhering to the forward march of time. At the forefront was Maeve's mother, the youngest daughter before giving birth herself. Her constant curiosity about Muggle culture had set her on a path towards enlightenment, one that challenged the very core of her family's beliefs in the process. The notion of blood purity, once held as an unshakable truth, was now seen as nothing more than a delusion; the idea of hatred that it had fostered something she could no longer abide by.

Gone were the days when the family name was tarnished by the noxious stain of prejudice and cruelty. In its place stood an ethos of acceptance, ironically something that could damage their reputation even more.

For Maeve however, the most she could be concerned with was if she was going to make it to the Great Hall on time.

Breakfast was a rather mundane affair for the first year, notorious for being anything but a morning person. It was a time to sit, and sit she would. Little interest was there to talk at such an early hour; the likelihood of her being able to form a sentence not something she was willing to bet on. Thankfully, most students shared a mutual regard for the dawn, their conversations hardly groundbreaking. Except for today it seemed, with the Hogwarts Headliner dropped promptly in front of the students.

"What do you think about S.C.A.R.A.B.?"

The question caught her attention immediately, eyes looking up from her golden plate to decipher who it had come from. Despite not being addressed to her, she noticed a girl just across from her answer the boy's question. Maeve's own opinion on S.C.A.R.A.B. wasn't much, but it was something her mother would be truly fascinated with. The idea of them being terrorists, however.. No, it didn't make much sense at all.

"Anyone who possibly believes that rubbish is missing a few screws." Her comment was said aloud, possibly even unwanted, but the blonde couldn't help but meddle.

@Rebecca Loops · @Venus Adair

*.·:·.☽✧ ✦ ✧☾.·:·.*

Ruby had chosen a random seat at the Slytherin table that morning, arriving early like she usually did and hoping to eat quickly and get out soon after the owls’ arrival. As she reached the upper years of Hogwarts, she found she had less and less patience for tolerating the crowds of loud, obnoxious younger years who hadn’t yet learned how to control themselves, and she would much rather be reading a book in peace or practicing for duelling. At least it seemed the area where she had chosen to sit today was slightly quieter, but there was no promise it would remain that way. She was paying little attention to the others as she ate, sitting with her back straight, chin tilted slightly upwards, a certain subtle elegance and confidence present in her movements.

She was soon forced to listen to her neighbors at the table, although it wasn’t entirely a bad thing, as there was an interesting question from a boy nearby. What do you think about S.C.A.R.A.B.? Instantly, he had her attention, although she would not move or give any indication that she had heard, eyes still on the food that she was getting close to finishing. She took a silent sip of her pumpkin juice, listening to the others’ replies—one from a girl who didn’t know what it was, an explanation from the original boy, and a reply from another girl in resounding favor of S.C.A.R.A.B. Another silent, measured sip before she spoke. “The group isn’t solely composed of squibs, it’s also halfbreeds and supporters who can perform magic. That would be far from impossible.” She performed a cursory look at the boy, wondering if he had really thought this through.

Overall, she was somewhat in support of S.C.A.R.A.B.’s mission. There were plenty of halfbreed/mixed-race students at Hogwarts who she had grown attached to, and she didn’t believe they had any less value as people when compared to fully human wizards. But she was well-accustomed to rumors and news—both on the side of reading it as well as crafting it as a member of the Hogwarts Headliner—and she knew that S.C.A.R.A.B. had been painted as the “bad guys”. To fight that, their supporters would need clear logic and organized support, rather than heated statements or claiming that the opponents’ logic was impossible when, really, it wasn’t—at least not for the reason that the boy was claiming.

“I’m not against you. But if you want to defend them, you’ll need a better argument than just stating that no one from their organization can cast magic, which just isn’t true. Flaws in your logic that are so easy to notice make you lose credibility.” Cold eyes looked directly at the boy. While it seemed he was passionate for a good cause, which was always pleasant to see, especially in the younger students yet untainted by the danger at Hogwarts, she couldn’t help but find him foolish. He was talking about these things so openly, almost as if he was looking to start a fight. And while he may have thought it an innocent discussion of politics, she, wary and jaded, thought it dangerous. He was starting a potential argument over something that was being painted as a terrorist organization, right in the open, in a school that had been full of dangers both past and present. Perhaps she was just paranoid, but she thought she had good reason to be cautious. Eyes wandered back to her food as she took another sip of her drink, mulling the topic over.

*.·:·.☽✧ ✦ ✧☾.·:·.*

Rebecca gave an encouraging smile as another nearby Slytherin first year piped up. "That's exactly what I'm saying!" he nodded emphatically towards the blonde girl who'd spoken.

Then, Rebecca nearly jumped out of his skin as a fifth year spoke up from just across the table. “The group isn’t solely composed of squibs, it’s also halfbreeds and supporters who can perform magic. That would be far from impossible.”

Ruby Cazares, infamous duelling champion, was looking at him as if he were a particularly unpleasant potions ingredient that she was being forced to slice. He tried to quickly smooth over his surprise, and just barely managed to match her unimpressed look without flinching. Christ, even her perfect posture made him subconciously want to straighten up from his casual slouch.

He felt like a bug underneath a microscope. In fact, it was probably well within her capabilities to turn him into a bug.

"I know it's not impossible," he blushed a faint pink at the embarrassment of being caught slipping so easily, "but I can't see what they're standing to gain from any of it. If anything, things have only gotten more backwards since the Ministry's using them as an excuse to put even harsher restrictions on everyone."

He fiddled at the sleeve of his sweater, but met her eyes earnestly nonetheless. "Do you really think that S.C.A.R.A.B. would be making those kinds of attacks?"

Her frigid gaze didn't grow any warmer, but perhaps his determination struck a chord. Mercifully, she didn't hex him for impertinence or anything.

“I’m not against you. But if you want to defend them, you’ll need a better argument than just stating that no one from their organization can cast magic, which just isn’t true. Flaws in your logic that are so easy to notice make you lose credibility,” she chided.

Rebecca's eyes glittered with youthful mischief. "I'll just have to get better at arguing, then!" he declared. "I'll keep practicing until I've got the logic figured out, and then I'm going to argue with everyone until they all know I'm right! And if they don't like it, I'll put a jinx on them or something."

He grinned, sharp and determined.

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Reducio

Qrow | #064107 | Qrow's Thoughts | #11a513

Qrow had been rather late for breakfast, or at least much later than usual, and when they arrived, they were rather confused to hear such a passionate conversation about current politics.
Of course, this was the Slytherin table, a house that was rather fond of claiming purebloods, so it really shouldn’t have come as a surprise, and it hadn’t really until the redhead had heard a boy begin arguing in favour of S.C.A.R.A.B.
It was certainly odd for someone in their own house to be arguing in favour of the ostracised and the minorities of the wizarding world, let alone to be doing it so openly.

It was one of those things that Qrow didn’t hear often, and while the Beithir family made it a habit to avoid mentioning where their loyalties lay in terms of blood purity and politics, Qrow was also a metamorphmagus, and whether from a pure-blood family or not, most people weren’t fond of those who had the ability to possibly steal an identity. The Slytherin had faced their own form of bigotry for their ability in the past.

Now, don’t get them wrong; there was absolutely no way that the child could possibly support terrorists. However, with everything that they had heard about the organisation, they couldn’t help but think that some things just didn’t add up.
For one, why would an organisation that wished to protect those who were ostracised by magical society target muggleborns and half-bloods? Surely their targets would be the purebloods that rallied against them and were desperately trying to push them further from the magical community?

"I know it's not impossible," said a boy not far from where Qrow was sitting.
"But I can't see what they're standing to gain from any of it. If anything, things have only gotten more backwards since the Ministry's using them as an excuse to put even harsher restrictions on everyone."

Qrow could definitely agree with all that, but as they watched him as he fiddled at the sleeve of his sweater, meeting the eyes of the older student he was conversing with, they couldn’t help but think that his argument was lacking. Perhaps it was just his obvious nervousness towards the older student; after all, the redhead had been raised with the teaching that a good argument was only as powerful as the speaker themselves.

"Do you really think that S.C.A.R.A.B. would be making those kinds of attacks?"

"I’m not against you. But if you want to defend them, you’ll need a better argument than just stating that no one from their organisation can cast magic, which just isn’t true. Flaws in your logic that are so easy to notice make you lose credibility," she chided.

The boy's eyes glittered with youthful mischief.
"I'll just have to get better at arguing, then!" he declared.
"I'll keep practising until I've got the logic figured out, and then I'm going to argue with everyone until they all know I'm right! And if they don't like it, I'll put a jinx on them or something."

"I hate to break it to you, but I highly doubt that would do anything good." Qrow interrupted with a frown.
"The jinxing part, that is. My father is involved in politics at the ministry, and while he doesn’t tell me much, it's fairly obvious that those in power are using S.C.A.R.A.B. as scapegoats. I mean, think about it: why would an organisation that openly stands against the beliefs of pureblood supremacists be involved in targeted attacks against muggleborns and half-bloods? I mean, clearly, something isn’t adding up."

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Thoughts | Speech

Mellani watched silently as another first year from the Slytherin table yelled at an owl, desperately trying not to laugh, more out of kindness than anything else. Mellani watched as an owl came and gave her the Hogwarts Headliner. At least all owls weren't like the other kid's owl. She opened the newspaper and started reading through everything, her face remaining neutral through it all.

Mellani looked at the other boy as he asked for opinions on S.C.A.R.A.B. She seen him around in classes and was pretty sure he had a name that started with 'R'. Mellani racked her brains and then finally realized. Rebecca. That was his name. It was kind of feminine but Mellani wasn't the kind that judged others. She respected the fact that he actually seemed proud of the name.

Mellani didn't have much of an opinion towards S.C.A.R.A.B. It seemed to her that the Ministry of Magic was just trying to blame them for everything for the sake of "blood purity" and "bad fate" and what not. Mellani herself was a muggle-born. She didn't understand what problem the blood purists had. Like how the hell does your blood matter? And if someone turns out to be a squib, it's fine. Like let them live a life the way they want. You don't need to pester them with rude comments and what-nots.

Mellani smiled as she heard Rebecca speak. Finally someone who had the same opinion as she did. He seemed to think that something was off too. Mellani didn't take the Daily Prophet, what with it being paid and all, so she didn't really know much of the news or the Ministry's opinion. However, as the boy kept talking, she understood, little by little, just how fishy all of this was. He had a point in thinking that S.C.A.R.A.B. couldn't have done this. Mellani agreed with him.

The fact that he was so open about his opinion made Mellani respect him. You didn't find many people like that these days. Mellani almost laughed when the other girl (Maeve) made her comment. She settled for an amused smile. She wondered if she should say something on the matter too but decided against it. For now, at least.

Mellani cocked her head as yet another girl (Ruby) spoke. At first Mellani felt that Ruby was against S.C.A.R.A.B. but as she made her next comment, Mellani realized that she wasn't against them but just thought that Rebecca's argument wasn't strong enough. The girl looked older and even slightly intimidating. She looked at Rebecca, wondering how he would react to the comment.

As he replied, Mellani had to admit he was good at arguing. His last comment actually managed to get her to laugh. She watched as yet another person (Qrow) spoke. She finally got the courage to speak up herself, if only a small sentence. More of a rhetoric question, really. "That's the point, isn't it?", she said, wondering if she was making a grave mistake by getting involved.

Interacting with: @Rebecca Loops, @Venus Adair, @Maeve Selwyn, @Ruby Cazares, @Qrow Beithir

*.·:·.☽✧ ✦ ✧☾.·:·.*

The boy hadn’t seemed to expect her to respond, given his initially surprised look, and while upper years sometimes preferred to stay away from first years, it wasn’t guaranteed. He was in such a public place, too—if he wanted to start something, he should be prepared to finish it through and get a range of responses. His apparent nervousness—the blushing, the fidgeting—indicated he wasn’t, in fact, prepared for this. “Learn to be more careful before you get yourself in too deep.” Her tone and expression were stern. Luckily for him, they were just at breakfast, and it didn’t seem that too many people were listening—not the dangerous type, anyway—but he should still be more cautious. Hell, she could ruin what reputation he had over this if she so desired. It would certainly teach him a lesson. But today, she was detached, not spiteful. Perhaps he dodged a bullet with that one. Although, if he reacted too poorly throughout the conversation, nothing was off the table...

He spoke passionately about how he would keep defending S.C.A.R.A.B.—which perhaps he should, part-humans needed all the support they could get. But he wanted to jinx everyone who disagreed. A redhead spoke up, saying that that wouldn’t do any good, and Ruby nodded. “Defending a group that’s been painted as a terrorist organization by committing more acts of violence? That’s a good idea,” she commented sarcastically. “Listen, you want to defend them, fine. But you have to act based on your goals and be aware of how your actions will be perceived in the wider context of things. If you commit violent acts in their name, you’ll be worsening things for them and completely contradicting your goal of proving them to be nonviolent. Violence is good for getting people to fear you and obey. Not to prove that your group is made up of the "good guys". Collect your thoughts and choose a better strategy for approaching this.”

This wasn’t about an older student scolding him. This was her trying to verbally shake some sense into him before his actions had worse consequences than people thinking he was foolish. The adults who led S.C.A.R.A.B. could handle themselves without an eleven or twelve year old’s help. His association with them could only serve to hurt him and others if he didn’t know what he was doing. Anyone with half a braincell who wasn’t blinded by hatred could see that some of the attacks didn’t make sense to have been by S.C.A.R.A.B.—if all these first years could see it, responsible adults could too. But it didn’t change that, currently, the organization’s reputation was struggling. While it could definitely use more people striving to defend it, this child was not what it needed.

*.·:·.☽✧ ✦ ✧☾.·:·.*

Attire: Usual weekend kit: Slytherin pride, kilt, no shoes, wolf fang necklace, feathers in his braid.

Reducio

"OWOOOOOOOOOO!!!" Colin charged full speed through the small hall, fresh in from a morning run! A quick scourgify had cleared the twigs and leaves from his hair, but somehow he had managed to get a sprig of ivy stuck into his characteristically misbuttoned shirt. He was looking forward to finding some friends to eat breakfast with, and he skidded into the doorway of the great hall.

"Wotcha laddie!" he playfully scolded a first year Ravenclaw who had decided at just that same moment to come wandering into the hall, his face buried in a book. Disaster averted, Colin jogged along the Slytherin table, looking for a likely spot to sit. He smiled. A small knot of students centered around his mate Rebecca Loops. There was a newspaper on the table between them.

He snuck up behind Loops and tacklehugged him. "Coo! Bacon!" he said as he snagged a piece from Rebecca's plate, then stood up on the heavy wooden bench. One of the group, an older girl, was talking to Loops about something. Violence and fear!? What was going on here, he wondered! Colin settled down next to Rebecca as the older girl told them to choose a strategy.

"Mmm! Egg and toast! My favourite!" Colin scooped egg and bacon onto his plate. He wondered if all this was about Scarab. He'd talked a little about it with Rebecca before, but still wasn't quite sure what the excitement was about. He poked his mate in the ribs. "Ye're not on about hexing people again, are you?" He looked over towards Qrow and Mellani, and then the older girl, Ruby. "Are we talking about what I think we're talking about? Is this about Scarabs?" Colin hoped it was; he didn't know much about them, apart from what Loops and he had talked about. Maybe he could find out more!

@Rebecca Loops | @Venus Adair | @Maeve Selwyn | @Ruby Cazares | @Qrow Beithir | @Mellani Miller