Willing to Compromise

[Drew Thornton]

Drew came back for that, not to goad the woman, but to face his accuser. He stood in the doorway, not entering and allowing her to slam the door in his face if she felt the need.

"I'm sorry, Professor, but I don't think I was rude at all," he argued softly as she fussed with the books on the shelf. He was 17 and too old to be verbally abused and just take it. "I came here to apologize and still got attacked, so I defended myself as calmly and rationally as I could. If you saw that as rudeness, I'm sorry about that too. But maybe just coming here was rude. Do what you feel you have to. I can't change your thinking about the person I am so I suppose the points will come off no matter what."

He waited for an answer, but would leave if he didn't get one.

[viola]

Her back was to him, yet she could still hear the pleading in his voice. By taking the points away, she'd be thought of as a pushover, a coward, or worse.....someone easily swade. It wasn't about to happen. Yet if she gave him the points then he'd still think the same of her as he already did...Annemarie wasn't in the mood to argue with him, nor was she in the mood to have him now want to explain himself to her. She was annoyed and very much did think he was rude, for his comments on blood and....Annemarie quickly turned around and narrowed her gaze as she crossed her arms.

"I'm not taking back what I've done," she said just as softly as the boy had spoken just moments before. "But you cannot come into a professor's office, or at least my office, and not even listen or try to understand as I tried to do with you. I gave an opportunity for you to explain your feelings of respect and such, and you threw it in my face with your comments about what you would or would not know as a pureblood in a very rude manner, Mr. Thornton."

Annemarie paused, and her expressions softened. She didn't want to be mad with this young man, yet she could only see him as a child that must be taught. Maybe that was her downfall, but Annemarie wouldn't be able to see it at this time. "You came in here to apologize, thank you, and I accept your apology, but now, my dear boy, it's time for you to leave. Maybe another time we can try again, but I think at this moment, neither one of us will be able to alter our opinions without doing a bit of growing in needed areas. Have a good day, Mr. Thornton."

[Drew Thornton]

"I don't believe I asked you to take anything back," Drew answered, not expecting for a second that she'd recind the punishment. "And again, I beg to differ. You did not give me any sort of opportunity to do anything. You judged me even before I had spoken. You didn't even accept my apology until just now."

"My parents pulled me out of Muggle Studies because I grew up with in a Muggle neighborhood, went to Muggle school all my life before coming here. I took the class for an easy O and they knew it. It's pointless for me to sit for a lesson about plugs and switches because I've lived around them all my life. And my Nana is a bigoted crackpot whose prejudices extend even to her only grandson. I answered your question the way I did because I could tell, even by you asking it, that you expected me not to know that a body in motion remains in motion and a body at rest remains at rest unless an outside force acts upon it. I was just playing into your judgement of me is all."

He sighed, feeling like he had given the woman a lot of informatin, most of which she probably didn't need.

"Again, I'm sorry for the other day and I'm sorry I uspet you now. I'd be willing to do a detention to earn some of those points back if you're agreeable to that. Like I said, I'm pretty good with the Muggle stuff."

With another shrug, he left, feeling like he had probably done enough damage for one day.

[viola]

Well, at least he was educated in what she taught but that still wasn't the point of the matter. The way that he had introduced the bit of information he had given to her was rude. Plain and simple. He had made it sound as if she were asking him why he would know anything about muggles because he was pureblood. As if she knew he was pureblood. She gave him credit for thinking her that intelligent to do all of her research on all of the students of Hogwarts, but sadly, she wasn't that studious. Maybe she should have been.

"I gave you an opportunity to tell me what you thought respect and tolerance was, which did play into factor with all of this Mr. Thornton, whether you believe it or not. I believe that it does have a big factor. Maybe I should not asked of you information before accepting your apology, and I am truthfully regreting that decision, but that doesn't even begin to bring out the way you stated what you knew about muggles to me. How was I supposed to know all of that?" Annemarie paused for a bit.

"The way you said it made it very unclear, and made it seem very derogatory as if I was supposed to know your blood heritage....I did not, and did not care to know it. Some of my brightest students are purebloods, Mr. Thornton, and I do not judge them as you seem to think I am doing to you. For that, I am sorry, I did not mean to make you think that way."

Annemarie swung around her desk and leaned on it so that she was almost sitting on it, looking forward at Drew. It was clear of how tired she was of this from her face, but still he proceeded with continueing. "I'm glad you are so educated in the muggle world, and understand a lot about them. However, I don't think a detention will be necessary for what is done is done. I'm only sorry that it had to be pushed that far in order for us to finally talk, and explain to one another briefly an obvious communication lapse there was."

And with that, he shrugged and left. Annemarie wasn't too sure about the whole endevor, nor did she really think it helped either of them. What was the message in what was supposed to be dealt with? One of respect...but then....was it a respect that differed with generation? And if it was....how was Annemarie supposed to find the necessary tools to bridge the gap? She didn't know, and as she stood there, leaning against her desk in her office, she only felt more lost than ever.

[Drew Thornton]

Drew would never leave with something as rude as a mere shrug after being spoken to in such a manner. That would imply that what she had said didn't matter and even if it hadn't, he wasn't about to make matters worse by implying it with nothing more than a shrug. The lecture didn't surprise him, nor did the fact that she didn't accept his offer of detention. She spoke of tollerance and respect but seemed to have very little herself. There was nothing he could do about that, especially since all she saw when she looked at him was a silly boy.

Before he left for good, he replied with a "Thank you for your time Professor," deciding it was best not to get into anything she had said. He doubted he'd be speaking to her again, so it didn't really matter.