Post by ALECTO CARROW on Dec 9, 2012 21:07:19 GMT -5
The candles were beginning to burn low, it was getting late in the evening, and it felt to Alecto like she had spent an eternity marking these dratted papers. That was the trouble with making Muggle Studies compulsory for all students - there was a horrific amount of paperwork to accompany such a large volume of lessons. That and the fact that teaching, along with the administration that accompanied being Deputy Headmistress, now took up a huge amount of Alecto's time. In truth, she much preferred the discipline aspect of school life. The rush that came with punishing someone, really hurting them, was almost impossible to beat - and there was always the excitement of thinking of new ways to torment and 'correct' a student's behaviour. Everyone had a breaking point and pushing someone to it was always such a pleasure.
Though she might gripe about the working hours, teaching was an honour. After all, she was essentially in charge of indoctrinating a whole generation of witches and wizards with a Death Eater mentality – and let no-one doubt the importance of this role in this war! Not all students would be converted, of course, but Alecto hoped that even some of the most steadfast Muggle lovers would come to doubt their beliefs, or at least pay for them. Those that outright refused to bend to her will would pay the price in their blood, Alecto would see to that.
The bonus of making Muggle Studies compulsory was that she had contact time with all of the students at Hogwarts. It was easy to pick out the rising Death Eaters and, similarly, ear-mark those that might cause her trouble in the future. At this point Alecto was still putting faces to names but it was only a matter of time before it would be almost impossible for a student to fly completely beneath her radar. After all, Alecto was very interested in seeing her students progress. They were really very fortunate to have a teacher so interested in their advancement, don't you think?
Alecto paused in her marking, setting down her quill to crack her knuckles and then lean back in her well-cushioned chair. She rather wished that the Muggle Studies classroom could be in the dungeons, with the gloomy atmosphere she so dearly adored. The feeling of darkness and dreariness seemed to instil a sense of hopelessness amongst the more sensitive students – which could only help to break them down and make them more open to suggestion. Oh well, at least Alecto was able to bring students to a room in the dungeons for punishment.
Leaning forward, Alecto continued on with her marking. In red ink she circled, underlined and crossed out to her heart's content, often annotating the margins with barbed comments or suggestions on how to improve. Funny how you could tell so much about a student from what they wrote in their essays. The general assignment this week had been to write on how Muggles and Muggleborns were inherently inferior to witches and wizards. Many students had simply regurgitated their notes from class, a clever manoeuvre that kept them from divulging their personal views, whilst a handful had voiced assertively their own beliefs about Muggle inferiority. It pleased Alecto to read such work and it was with little surprise that she noted such pieces came from Slytherin students. Slytherin, the most superior of all the houses at Hogwarts.
A particular paragraph in the next roll of parchment caught Alecto's attention, for the wrong reasons. It was only a few lines in what was otherwise a very carefully written piece that said little of the writer's own views. Basically it explored the ideas put forward by Alecto in class but it neither condemned nor condoned them. Sneaky indeed. But the writer must have had a lapse of concentration at one point because, right there, was an assertion that Alecto very much disapproved of:
It is foolish to claim that any undesirable attribute is applicable only to Muggles and/or Muggleborns. The reality is that, regardless of blood or magical status, we are all undeniably human. As a result, such shortcomings apply to humanity as a whole rather than to one particular group...
Alecto frowned and clenched her jaw, a vein rising on her forehead. This was exactly the sort of view she was trying to stamp out at Hogwarts! She noted that the writing was in a legible, relaxed, cursive style. It belonged to a boy for sure, it clearly lacked the roundness and frills that often accompanied a female's scrawl. Scanning over the document one last time, a crooked smile on her face, Alecto's eyes landed on the name and details carefully scribed at the top: Tristan O'Sullivan, Hufflepuff, Seventh Year.
“O'Sullivan, eh?” Alecto murmured, trying the sound of his name on her lips and finding that she had an instant dislike for this boy and, at the same time, a great feeling of anticipation.
Tristan O'Sullivan, what a horribly stoic name - presumably Irish too. Did they not have their own magical schools in Ireland? What made this boy think he had a right to study here? And trust a Hufflepuff to hold such a terribly misplaced, sentimental view of Muggles and Muggleborns. This boy had shamelessly tried to assert that the weakness of Muggle scum applied to those with magical blood - purebloods included! The passiveness of the rest of his essay did not detract from this realisation. Besides, it was a solid fact that Muggles were inherently stupid, weak and greedy. What did this boy know about anything? Clearly he was in sore need of an education and that was something Alecto would be able to provide him with. The wicked smile was gone now, a sneer and expression of cold fury had replaced it.
With great deliberation, Alecto marked a red star in the top right corner of Tristan's parchment. There were two piles of paper on the floor, all of which had been marked, but one pile was only for papers bearing the ominous red star. Tristan's essay found its home here. Oh yes, this was one character that might require some reining in. If it turned out that O'Sullivan required some encouragement, what would the boy's breaking point prove to be? Alecto was eager to find out.
Though she might gripe about the working hours, teaching was an honour. After all, she was essentially in charge of indoctrinating a whole generation of witches and wizards with a Death Eater mentality – and let no-one doubt the importance of this role in this war! Not all students would be converted, of course, but Alecto hoped that even some of the most steadfast Muggle lovers would come to doubt their beliefs, or at least pay for them. Those that outright refused to bend to her will would pay the price in their blood, Alecto would see to that.
The bonus of making Muggle Studies compulsory was that she had contact time with all of the students at Hogwarts. It was easy to pick out the rising Death Eaters and, similarly, ear-mark those that might cause her trouble in the future. At this point Alecto was still putting faces to names but it was only a matter of time before it would be almost impossible for a student to fly completely beneath her radar. After all, Alecto was very interested in seeing her students progress. They were really very fortunate to have a teacher so interested in their advancement, don't you think?
Alecto paused in her marking, setting down her quill to crack her knuckles and then lean back in her well-cushioned chair. She rather wished that the Muggle Studies classroom could be in the dungeons, with the gloomy atmosphere she so dearly adored. The feeling of darkness and dreariness seemed to instil a sense of hopelessness amongst the more sensitive students – which could only help to break them down and make them more open to suggestion. Oh well, at least Alecto was able to bring students to a room in the dungeons for punishment.
Leaning forward, Alecto continued on with her marking. In red ink she circled, underlined and crossed out to her heart's content, often annotating the margins with barbed comments or suggestions on how to improve. Funny how you could tell so much about a student from what they wrote in their essays. The general assignment this week had been to write on how Muggles and Muggleborns were inherently inferior to witches and wizards. Many students had simply regurgitated their notes from class, a clever manoeuvre that kept them from divulging their personal views, whilst a handful had voiced assertively their own beliefs about Muggle inferiority. It pleased Alecto to read such work and it was with little surprise that she noted such pieces came from Slytherin students. Slytherin, the most superior of all the houses at Hogwarts.
A particular paragraph in the next roll of parchment caught Alecto's attention, for the wrong reasons. It was only a few lines in what was otherwise a very carefully written piece that said little of the writer's own views. Basically it explored the ideas put forward by Alecto in class but it neither condemned nor condoned them. Sneaky indeed. But the writer must have had a lapse of concentration at one point because, right there, was an assertion that Alecto very much disapproved of:
It is foolish to claim that any undesirable attribute is applicable only to Muggles and/or Muggleborns. The reality is that, regardless of blood or magical status, we are all undeniably human. As a result, such shortcomings apply to humanity as a whole rather than to one particular group...
Alecto frowned and clenched her jaw, a vein rising on her forehead. This was exactly the sort of view she was trying to stamp out at Hogwarts! She noted that the writing was in a legible, relaxed, cursive style. It belonged to a boy for sure, it clearly lacked the roundness and frills that often accompanied a female's scrawl. Scanning over the document one last time, a crooked smile on her face, Alecto's eyes landed on the name and details carefully scribed at the top: Tristan O'Sullivan, Hufflepuff, Seventh Year.
“O'Sullivan, eh?” Alecto murmured, trying the sound of his name on her lips and finding that she had an instant dislike for this boy and, at the same time, a great feeling of anticipation.
Tristan O'Sullivan, what a horribly stoic name - presumably Irish too. Did they not have their own magical schools in Ireland? What made this boy think he had a right to study here? And trust a Hufflepuff to hold such a terribly misplaced, sentimental view of Muggles and Muggleborns. This boy had shamelessly tried to assert that the weakness of Muggle scum applied to those with magical blood - purebloods included! The passiveness of the rest of his essay did not detract from this realisation. Besides, it was a solid fact that Muggles were inherently stupid, weak and greedy. What did this boy know about anything? Clearly he was in sore need of an education and that was something Alecto would be able to provide him with. The wicked smile was gone now, a sneer and expression of cold fury had replaced it.
With great deliberation, Alecto marked a red star in the top right corner of Tristan's parchment. There were two piles of paper on the floor, all of which had been marked, but one pile was only for papers bearing the ominous red star. Tristan's essay found its home here. Oh yes, this was one character that might require some reining in. If it turned out that O'Sullivan required some encouragement, what would the boy's breaking point prove to be? Alecto was eager to find out.
