Afternoon, 2:30ish

So being "in charge" of SAWS was now a thing in Sophie's life, sort of. It wasn't an official school sanctioned club so leadership tended to fall on whoever wanted to take up the spot. With so many of their members graduating at the end of last year their numbers were bare and Sophie felt with Ollie back on campus the club needed to change gears just a little. She had had all summer with Ollie, they had all but lived together except during the full moons. She had seen the before and after effects of the change and it worried her. It also worried her that since Olls had basically announced at the meeting with Madame Zephyr she had attacked Sasha word would spread like wildfire and they had to get a handle on the gossip situation.

Sophie knew better than to think she could keep tongues from wagging, or people from being outright cruel to Ollie (or the new little first year for that matter), but she also didn't sell her peers so short that she believed the situation hopeless. The key was education and generating interest in that education. For the last year the club had had a bit of a reputation for being just a little too idealistic about the reality of Werewolves. Well, no one could accuse Sophie of that anymore. She was aware of the dangers and she knew they needed to be addressed. She felt full transparency was probably the best way to go at this point. If she'd had her druthers the first meeting would have been held the 31st, in the hopes of getting all their ducks in a row straight off.

Unfortunately there hadn't been time until now to devote to planning the first meeting. She felt Ollie needed to be there and needed to be in some sort of healthy form. Post full moon was better than pre, simply because there was less chance of some weird misconception she would transform and attack people - or that was how Sophie's reasoning went anyway. Today's meeting was open to anyone who had happened upon the flyers and leaflets. She wasn't so worried about recruitment today, she fully planned on setting up a booth for that the same as any other club. Still, new faces and opinions mixing with the old would be good. They may have gotten a foot in the door with Ollie being back on campus but she felt they still had a long way to go, and getting there would take some serious planning.

Without a chance to talk to Tulojow, the tiny Gryffindor had opted instead for one of the empty classrooms. It lacked the homey feel of the Hospital Hut (and also the hot chocolate) but Sophie was improving the best she could. Perched on the old rickety desk at the head of the room she watched the door with nervous glances as she tried to remember all her talking points. She wanted this to go well, she needed it to. In her inner circle it wasn't much of a secret that Soph felt she had a lot to prove this year, and getting SAWS back off the ground was a big part of that. She didn't want to see it crumble in her care, with Dion and Fauna gone. Chewing her thumbnail she bounced the heel of her foot against the creaking wood and tried not to have a full blown panic attack.

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Colton had spent a lot of time the last week with Sophie. She'd talked to him a lot about SAWS, and he thought that it was a great and noble task. Even though he wasn't from Hogwarts, he'd asked Sophie if he could come along to the first meeting. He wanted to see what they had going, and maybe offer some help- being from another country, and one so concerned with human rights, Colton felt like maybe he might have a unique point of view.

Mostly, though, Colton was trying to support his friend. This was something very important to her, and he couldn't imagine being in her shoes. After what had happened to her mother, and Sophie still be able to support such a cause- that said a lot about the kind of person the girl was. It was something that he liked about her, and something that deserved praise.

"Don't fret, Miss Sophie," Colton said quietly, offering her an encouraging smile. He reached out and squeezed her hand. "Things will be just fine, I promise," he said. Colt let go of her hand and took a seat in an empty chair near the front desk where Sophie was perched. He angled his seat so he could see the door, and still keep an eye on his friend. He was curious to see the sort of people from Hogwarts who would show up. Colton was also curious to see whether or not the friends from Salem he had invited would turn up, and who would show their support from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang (though he had a feeling that those schools wouldn't care much for the group).

Taking another deep breath, Lexi headed down the hallway to where she would find her first SAWS meeting. Slowly, she opened the door and hoped that his was where she was supposed to be. There were only a few others in the room. She assumed that the girl up front was Sophie, the leader of the group. She walked in, "This is SAWS right? I just don't want to be in the wrong room, because that would be embarrasing."

Lexi smiled, a first impression was important and she didn't want to come off odd or anything bad like that. She wondered if it would be appropriate to let Sophie know that she was the first-year werewolf. It's an important thing to bring up right? "Oh, and I figure you'd like to know this... seeing as you're the leader of the group and all... Anyways, I'm the first-year werewolf everybody seems to know about already." Lexi said with confidence. From around school, she had caught snippets of gossip and such from the other students. They all seemed to know about a new werewolf, but they didn't know who she was.

That was one of the reasons that Lexi was joining SAWS, it would hopefully give her support and help with what she wanted to do. All she wanted was a helping hand every now and then. She had seen the biast everywhere against werewolves, and she prayed that she wouldn't be a victim. But deep down, she knew it would happen eventually. Lexi just didn't know when.

Do it for Lexi, do it for Lexi, do it for Lexi. Anni walked down the hallway to the first meeting. Even though Annette was never a really social person she joined SAWS because of her friend. Nette was there in the days after she was newly turned, and she would be there until... forever, if they were friends for that long.

She hadn't talked to Lexi about it. She thought maybe she would surprise her friend and show up. Getting closer to the door she heard voice coming from the inside, this must be it. Annette knocked on the door and came in. A small group of people had gathered, including Nette's special ginger.

"Hi Lex" Anni whispered from behind, ready to brace herself for whatever Lexi pushed at her. Annette would leave if Lexi didn't want her to be there, but would gladly stay if her friend welcomed it.

Charles had been thinking all day about the SAWS meeting, and was increasingly nervous. He hadn't told his older brother, wanting to surprise him. This necessarily meant that he made his way to the meeting alone, so he had no-one to talk to for reassurance.

Entering, he saw that Sophie Flitwick was already here, as well as Lexi and a hufflepuff he'd seen around, he thought she was a firstie. He also saw there was a Salem student, he didn't know who though. "Hi Lexi" he said, smiling quickly at the frst-year. he was a little disappointed not to see his brother, but then again,  itn would make Josh's reaction all the better. (he was also secretly hoping someone brought a muggle camera to catch his brother's expression. why muggle? so the actual expression would be captured)

The unofficial organization of SAWS had been the center of controversy all last year. It wasn't until her muggle father was attacked by a werewolf that Serenity became curious about the group. Werewolf segregation wasn't just a school issue; it was world-wide! The entire magical community was racist against werewolves. Her mother had married a muggle and purists thought that was pretty bad. But to have her dad changed into a werewolf? It would lead to more problems between her immediate family and her grandmother and grandfather's purist relatives. Serenity, unfortunately, went to school with most of those distant relatives and they weren't exactly nice towards her elder siblings. With Alex gone, she was forced to rely upon Garrett and Elle to defend the family's honor.

What brought her to this SAWS meeting were the leaflets. They had been passed around the school and she, naturally curious and hoping to be able to do something to help her dad, decided to take a look around. Serenity Lee didn't know much about werewolves since her class had not yet studied them in any of her classes and her schedule was not yet open enough for her to visit the library to research them. Therefore, she had to rely on what other students could tell her. The more she knew, the more she could help her dad.

Nervously, the second year approached an older student who seemed to be in charge of this SAWS meeting. About the time she approached, however, a first year came right out and introduced herself as a werewolf. Serenity stopped in her tracks and stared at the girl. How could someone so small be a werewolf? Did she look like a puppy? More importantly, was it...safe to be around her? That was silly! Was she afraid of her dad? Absolutely not. Why, then, should she be afraid of any other werewolf? If she could see past her dad's condition, why not others'? Still a bit hesitant, Serenity gave the first year a wary glance as she stepped up towards the pretty sixth year girl and the assisting boy.

"Umm... I-I'd like to know more about werewolves."

As much as she loved her father, she wasn't quite sure she was ready for Hogwarts to know her family's secret. It wasn't that she was ashamed of him; there was nothing to be ashamed of. But she didn't want all the questions, the sympathetic looks... Serenity was only in her second year, after all. She knew she couldn't handle the judgment, pity, and, worst of all, her friends distancing themselves from her. While the petit Ravenclaw considered that she might be over-imagining everything, she still wasn't ready to tell the public her story.

Ligeia was, as she sometimes was, a visage of nothing but ivory. Only her sable lined lips were a break from the sheer white out of her whole person. SAWS would be the kind of group you would think Ligeia would get behind but she was never one to rush into any arrangement. Recent politics had renewed her interests, so when SAWS was holding the first new meeting she had to stop by and see what it was about.

She entered right behind a gaggle of first and second years. They were starting them young. "Hello, I've brought treats!" A welcoming gesture. She placed her basket on a desk and unfolded the cloth covering the top.

One girl mentioned being the first year werewolf. Ligeia smiled at her. "So it is you. Gryffindor? I figured it wasn't someone new in Ravenclaw, nobody was missing the other night." Already a full moon the first week back. Ligeia had heard that the Hogwarts Express was whisking the werewolf students to their off site safe rooms. Seemed a bit excessive. Why not use a portkey? But then portkeys and Tri-or-Tetra Wizard Torunaments never got along too well.

Ligeia selected a cookie from her basket, though 'cookie' was a generous label from a blindfolded man. It looked like she was holding an oversized mummified finger.[1] It was not all that it seemed for the faux pas cadaverous digit was just grey colored shortbread. It crunched and flaked in all the right ways for a baked good.

"Who wants a ladyfinger? Lovely buttery taste."

1.	the 'butterfingers'

Following the trio of first and second years into the classroom, Migs couldn't help but feel like he was walking a few steps in Taryn's shoes.  They were all so small and made him feel - was saying giant politically correct?  He'd have to remember to ask Taryn sometime though by the time he saw her, again, he probably would have forgotten about this whole moment.  Whether or not saying 'he felt like a giant' was appropriate, he did feel a little awkward following the little tykes into the classroom.  Given the obvious age difference, he was also starting to wonder if he'd somehow managed to end up at the wrong meeting. 

Luckily, another older girl slipped in right ahead of him.  But, it wasn't until he'd slipped in behind them and noticed Colton with the Hogwarts student that, as he understood from his aunt, had taken the helm of the group.  One of the small people in front of him had also helped clarify the situation.  Migs crossed the room to his schoolmate and Sophie and nodded in greeting to Colton as he extended a hand to Sophie.  They'd crossed paths before in a couple shared classes but a proper introduction seemed in order. 

"Migs Nagde," he offered with a grin.  "And, no, I'm not just here because my Aunt would have my head if I weren't.  Looking forward to getting involved." 

He perched himself on an open desktop next to Colton, watching, quietly, as one of the first years identified herself as one of the resident wolves, but stopped short of providing her name.  He offered the girls a smile and a nod, and extended a hand in greeting to the young man in the Gryffindor robes. 

He continued to watch as others arrived, curious to see what direction this group would take. 

Ayla kicked the door to the empty classroom open, though it hadn't fully closed behind Migs. Normally she wouldn't have given such a grand entrance but she literally had her hands full. A large silver serving tray - that looked as though it had been taken directly from the house tables during dinner - in one hand held a pile of baked good, all made by Ayla herself (her signature gesture for the SAWs meetings) while the other held a similar tray with a large steaming jug of cocoa and cups stacked amoungst each other.

"What's a SAWs meeting without cocoa right?" Ayla smiled at Sophie and manoeuvred around the younger students to place both trays on the desk next to where Sophie was nervously perched. Ayla had been a member of SAWs since the beginning but was really looking forward to being involved this year and not just with providing refreshments. She had lost contact with Lexus over the summer - her initial reason for joining the group - and was desperate to find out anything she could about her werewolf cousin while also providing those around her with the support they needed.

With the trays properly deposited Ayla's green gold eyes swept the room and realized that almost everyone there was a new face. She recognized some of the younger years simply because they were friends or friendly with the twins and who could possibly miss the white Spectre of Ravenclaw? The two Salem boys however she had not met yet, "I'm Ayla."

Zoe was excited for the first SAWS meeting of the year. She had been waiting for one now that Olivia was back. She still had no idea what had happened during the meeting that took place over the summer while she was away in Egypt, and really wanted to find out. So, of course, when she had seen the flyers around the castle she had set aside time to go to it.

Arriving amongest the first few, Zoe walked into the old classroom with Snowy by her side. Zoe hoped no one minded that she brought her cat, it would be unfair of the Ravenclaw to leave the white and grey cat in her dorm again after the week of school. Noticing a few other people, she immediately recognized Sophie She knew Sophie had taken the role of leader, which the young witch admired. It must had taken a lot of bravery to decide that, and probably even more hard work from that point.

"Hi Sophie, sorry I didn't bring anything." Ayla always brought treats and Zoe at times felt compelled to bring something as well for the club. Oh well, maybe next time. "But I think it's really great of you to take over SAWS." Judging by Sophie's look of unease, she added, "I'm sure you'll do fine."

Quickly more people arrived. Several she saw get sorted that or the previous year, a few from her own house that she knew from the common room, and a couple she didn't recognize at all. Those were probably the foreign students. Zoe didn't really speak up until her own friend Ayla entered the room. "Ayla!" The young witch went over to help the Hufflepuff with the trays, but she seemed to have everything under control. Graciously taking a cup and filling it with cocoa, she gave the fourth year a one-arm hug as a sign of appreciation.

Deciding she should introduce herself after a few sips of cocoa, she put the cup down and picked up Snowy. "Hi everyone, I'm Zoe Torret, and this here's Snowy." The white and grey cat gave no responce and Zoe put her down, taking the cup back into her hand.

Heinrich entered quietly, saying nothing. He'd missed Lexi's announcement.  He surveyed the small crowd and his eyes lingered on the two Salem boys for a moment, as if he was sizing the up.  His gaze lingered a moment longer on Sophie and Ligeia, staying a few seconds longer on Ligeia than on anyone else.  He saw the cat and the corners of his mouth twitched upwards slightly.

"It's a good thing I left the Hollenhund in my room," he said.  "I suspect your cat might have died.  Not because Holly would have done anything but because she'd likely have gotten stuck in your cat's throat like a giant hairball."  He held his hands apart, giving an approximate size of his dog.  "She's rather small."

He'd come to the meeting because he was curious.  The Faust estate included a large chunk of the Black Forest and there had long been rumours of a werewolf pack making their home in the dark shadows of that ancient forest.  He'd grown up aware but not afraid of werewolves.  He'd long suspected a few family friends of being infected but he'd never had proof.  Sometimes the old wives tales weren't completely reliable.

"My name is Heinrich Vladimir Johannes Faust," he said, a definite note of pride in his voice.  "Durmstrang.  Oberteil.  Sixth year."   He laid the last words out smoothly, almost as if they were an open challenge.  Four of the people in this room were likely going to be putting their names into the Goblet of Fire as challengers in the Terta-wizard Tournament.  He wanted them to know that he was well aware of that fact and perfectly willing to weigh wands against them here and now.  He didn't expect things to escalate particularly far; this was a meeting unrelated to the tournament.  Still, there were Americans involved and they were never predictable.  It was likely to make things very interesting when it came down to the brass tacks of the tournament itself.

"Is that real cocoa?" he asked. 

As Heinrich stood in front of the doorway, grandly introducing himself and asking about drinks, Tracy was suddenly there behind him, a towering figure that beamed sheepishly at the room at large. At a 6’6” he was now the tallest kid in the room, and his abrupt entrance made him stand out like a sore thumb behind the frail-looking Obertiel’s back.

He was also painfully aware that his lateness was another mark against him, too, and shot Colton an apologetic grimace of a smile. Being Senior class president meant he had duties and obligations and he knew that, but it was still no excuse to let down a good friend. Or any friend, really. That New Orleans drawl lowered politely, “ ‘Scuse me, man,” Tracy absentmindedly clapped the other boy’s shoulder and let his hand drop, quickly and carefully easing his way to the front. He didn’t want to cut the guy off from everyone else any longer than he had to. “I jus’… need t’ get through…”

Not wanting to waste any more time on himself, the tall youth hurried over to where his friends sat, introducing himself (“Tracy Jones!”) with a wide, toothy smile at everyone in particular along the way. There were a lot of open, friendly faces in the room, and it was only right an’ proper that he greeted them just the same.

Heinrich stepped aside to allow the very large boy past.  The Salem senior's size didn't bother him.  One of Heinrich's brothers was equally tall, if nowhere near as broad through the shoulders.  Still, he wouldn't want to try and wrestle with Tracey Jones.  He'd have stood no chance in a physical contest.  It was a good thing the tournament was going to be a far more cerebral exercise, not that he was going to judge the boy's intellect by his physical appearance.  He seemed kind and polite but Heinrich suspected that he was not one to make angry.  It would likely be difficult to do but then getting him to cool off once started would likely be equally difficult.  A good friend and a bad enemy.

He chose a seat, trying to get a feel for each of the other students in the room.

Sophie gave a grateful look to Colt, brown eyes lingering on his hand as it squeezed her fingers reassuringly. It was nice to have something that mattered so much to her matter to him as well. There were people in your life that you just knew you could count on; Colton was quickly becoming that for her. Of course before the moment had a chance to get good and thoroughly sappy people began arriving and she was counting heads and trying to keep introductions straight. She wasn't surprised to see Lexi, Ollie had told her a little bit about the first year already - she was slightly surprised and mildly alarmed when the first year just volunteered her Werewolf status.

On one hand Sophie wanted the group to feel like a safe haven for Ollie and Lex, a support system for them to rely on. On the other hand stating I'm a Werewolf could be like shouting FIRE in the Quidditch stands. She didn't want the young girl to feel she couldn't express herself but there was a certain level of discretion that needed to be involved as well. Luckily Sophie was saved from having to say anything off the cuff because they were quickly joined by another first year Sophie didn't know, then Charles, Serenity, and Ligeia... who promptly brought attention back to the fact Lex was, indeed, the notorious first year. Clearing her throat she gave Canterbury a meaningful look to little avail.

"Ah, right, we can address that in a bit Lex, if that's alright with you? I'd like to give a few others a chance to arrive before we start proper introduction-" she was cut short by Migs arrival followed by the bursting in of Ayla. Food was a good distraction and she gave the fourth year a grateful smile as she hopped down from the desk to make more room for the two trays. She smiled at the younger girl and gave her a brief one armed hug, "What would I do without you, Miss Collins? Smells wonderful," then Zoe arrived and Sophie offered another friendly smile, a slight flush coming to her cheeks, "It's sweet of you to say Zo', but I haven't really done anything yet but put up some fliers".

She was about to say something else when Heinrich waltzed through the door, the sense of unease growing in her stomach as he introduced himself. She had not expected many from Durmstrang or Beauxbatons - not that they weren't welcome but she felt suddenly more protective of Ollie and Lex than she had moments before. It was the air of superiority he carried himself with, antagonistic, as though he were issuing a challenge on the spot. It didn't sit well with the petite Gryffindor but before she could react Tracy entered the room and somehow defused whatever tension Sophie had been feeling. It was for the best, how would it look if she lost her temper  before the meeting even started.

Clasping her hands together, Soph checked her watch and then glanced at the door again, "Right so. Before we get too far into new business, I want to give stragglers a big of time to show up. For those of you who don't know, I'm Sophie Flickwick, Gryffindor sixth year. At the moment I am acting leader of SAWS, but we encourage all members to take leadership initiative if there is something you really want to see happening that we're not currently working on, the power of SAWS, like any other social movement is dependent upon it's members", expression serious as she continued "Tolerance through education is one of our mission statements for this year and it starts today, with all of you".

Friendly Reminder: while there is no strict posting order,
to be courteous and give everyone a chance to be involved
there should be more than one post between each of your replies.

Colton was glad to see Migs and to see Tracy come along in support of the group. Especially Tracy. It was nice to know that his class president cared enough about his invitation to accept it, and it didn't bother Colt in the least that his friend was a little late to the meeting. Nothing had gotten officially underway yet. But a lot had seemed to happen anyway. The first year werewolf was a surprise, and Colton immediately felt bad for the little girl. He couldn't imagine being so young and having to deal with that. He hoped that she had some good friends to help her through the year- she was going to need them.

Like others- Colton was surprised to see the arrival of a Durmstrang student. He felt that this was no place for students of that institution, because they seemed to go against everything good that Sophie had told him SAWS stood for. But maybe there was a good apple among the bunch. Colton liked to believe the best in people, so he decided he would go with that interpretation of the arrival of a Durmstrang student rather than a less positive one. Better to not pick a fight with a foreign kid, especially since he was here to represent the best that Salem had to offer.

Colton did not partake of any of the food or drink that was brought to the group, and instead remained in his seat, keeping a watchful eye on Sophie and on the Durmstrang kid- just to make sure there was no funny business. Though he had the urge to introduce himself- there were so many faces he didn't recognize- Colton remained quiet, simply listening as others gave their names and greeted Sophie. He'd talk to those who wanted to talk after the meeting was over, rather than prolong the start by striking up any conversation now.

He liked what she had to say, though, about how the group was dependent on the members. And liked the sound of one of their mission statements. Tolerance through education sounded a lot like some stuff he had learned when he was in school as a kid, especially when they learned about the Civil Rights movement. This seemed to be a lot like that.