"The Deatheaters by fear and Slytherin by power." Ethan repeated and made a few adjustments to the list.

"We are talking about Fear and Power as motivators, please pay attention." Truebridge raised one eyebrow at the Gryffindor prefect when he'd finished speaking. It wasn't that he was wrong it was just that he clearly hadn't been paying attention.

"So Bellatrix Lestrange was motivated by both? Very well." Ethan added that to the list.

"That's all very well and good, Abby but just like Chris, the motivators that we are supposed to be talking about are fear and power." Ethan moved on, expressionless.

"The Lestranges, and Dolohov by power and fear." Ethan added that to the list.

"Power. And. Fear." Ethan repeated loudly, though his voice remained a monotone.

"Excellent point. Not just fear of Voldemort, there are many different kinds of fair if you look closer. And Morgan Le Fay for Power." Truebridge added to the list.

Truebridge listened carefully and took the list from Raiden.
"I'll just add these to the list, then shall I? Did you want to elaborate on some of your reasoning behind these?"

Ethan nodded along at the 'both' comments.

"Ah. Power for Regulus Black. I think that is some good reasoning." Truebridge nodded.

"I like to hear generalisations justified." Truebridge nodded in appreciation and added the suggested answers to the list.


"Any thoughts on the Gaunt Family? On Merwyn the Malicious? Any up there that you don't agree with? We're almost done here and most of you are doing well. At least... those of you that are paying attention." Ethan shook his head once and tapped the chalk against the board.

Kiri put aside her quill and flexed her aching hand. She'd been scribbling at top speed to get everything down. Not an easy feat, considering she was sitting on a squashy pillow on the floor with no table to put her parchment down upon. In the end, she had settled for placing it, supported by her notebook, on her lap. The quill had tickled her face as she wrote.

Now she could finally do something else, even if it meant having to do thinking that was up to Professor Truebridge's standards. She raised her hand. "There's not much known about Merwyn the Malicious," she told the professor. At least I don't know much about him, she added silently. "But as he's said to have invented Dark hexes and jinxes, I think it looks as if he was more motivated by power than fear. He wanted to control his enemies' fear, though, by making up all that Dark magic."

Kiri scratched her head, trying to remember what she'd read about the Gaunts. She longed to uncross her legs, too, her feet were numb. "Er... Marvolo Gaunt, I'd say he was doing it for power as well. I mean, he was really proud to be Pureblood, even if it meant living in poverty. His son," she continued, ticking them off on her fingers, "I'd say power as well, but mainly because he was taught by his father. That's why he hated Muggles and non-Purebloods. Maybe there was an element of fear, too, though," she added as an afterthought, "seeing as he usually attacked Muggles who couldn't defend themselves against magic. And er, Merope..." Kiri gave a shrug. "I think she doesn't fit into this pattern of fear and power. She wasn't a Dark witch, anyway."

"Couldn't part of that link back to fear though?" Reid asked Abby. "I mean you say he was desperate and put suspected Death Eaters into Azkaban without a trial so couldn't that be because he was afraid of what would happen to his career if he didn't sentence them to Azkaban, especially after his son was named a Death Eater. He could have been afraid that he would be suspected of being sympathetic towards Voldemort if he didn't place them in Azkaban." Reid theorized. Really if you looked at it nearly everything could be linked back to fear.

Adrienne listened to one of the Hufflepuffs speak about the Gaunt family, then raised her hand again. "I'd have to say, in a way, both Marvolo and Morfin seemed to be motivated by their power to instill fear in others. As Abby said, Marvolo found power in intimidating his children, but also other wizards. He saw way more power in what he saw as Salazar Slytherin's crest on his ring than almost was necessary, especially since we all know it wasn't Slytherin's crest on his ring at all. And Morfin liked tormenting pretty much everyone, just because he could. Except for his father.

And Merope, I don't think, really saw it as power she was being motivated by when she sought out to get Tom Riddle for her own. She did fear her father, so yes, part of her motivation could be said to be fear. But then, can love potions, in general, be considered as Dark magic? Since that's really all we've talked about her doing. I mean, I think love potions definitely would be misguided magic, but Dark?" She honestly wasn't sure.

LouAnn took a deep breath and blew it out in a quiet huff, causing a few pieces of her bangs to blow straight up in the process. History of Magic was turning out to be far more difficult than LouAnn imagined. It would help if she paid closer attention, though. "Right, sir. Power and fear. Got it," she half-mumbled.

She supposed she should tackle the Gaunt Family question now, seeing as she had no clue who Merwyn the Whatever was. Slowly---inch by inch by inch by inch---she raised her hand into the air once again. "Alrighty, let's go with power for the Gaunt Family. They're heirs of Salazar Slytherin's, so the need for more and more power has probably been handed down to their family from generation to generation," she said. That answer was a little too broad, though, so maybe she should break it down person by person.

"Marvolo Gaunt...let's see---power and fear. I say power, because he once attacked people from the Ministry of Magic who tried to arrest Morfin. I think that shows he thought he family was more powerful than the average and could defeat the law," she said. "I say fear, because he was known to have had a snake nailed to the front door of his home, probably as a means to show his heritage---Salazar Slytherin, I mean---and to instill fear in anyone coming to his doorstep."

"Erm, his wife, Merope---power, definitely. She used a love potion to trick this muggle, Tom Riddle, into marrying her. I think that shows that she thought she could control others by using various means---love potion, in that instance," she continued. "I think she had a hint of goodness in her, though, because she loved a muggle, which is something her ancestors were against, and she allowed the love potion she'd given Tom Riddle to eventually wear off."

"Okay, so who do we have left here? Morfin Gaunt---ummm, power, but only because he's known for hexing a man. Tom Riddle, even. I think that shows that to some extent, he sought ways to defeat others," she suggested. "Maybe even fear, too, since he's a Parselmouth. Parselmouth's control snakes, and maybe he used that talent to make people afraid of him, too."

"Merwyn for fear, Gaunts for power?" Ethan asked and gave Kiri an encouraging little nod.

"It's quite alright Abby. Sounds like we want to divide the Gaunt family up." Ethan seperated them on the list. "Marvolo-Power, Merope - power and fear."

"We'll go with power by your reasoning, I think." Ethan answered, offering Copernicus a wink.

"So Power and Fear for Crouch Sr? You make an excellent point, Abby, as do you Reid."

"They often are dark magic. Messing with the free will of others is generall considered an act of dark magic. With Merope, it is more that she is a product of dark magic than a Dark Witch herself. However, that contrast is interesting enough that I am going to leave her on the list." Ethan nodded at the bright young Ravenclaw.

"Possibly Slytherin believed he had already obtained power and therefore he was motivated out of fear of losing it." Ethan answered, nodding at the logic and switching it on the board.

"Some more interesting and contrasting Logic." Ethan answered with a nod. Hmmm." He made a few adjustments to the board.

"Strangely," Though Ethan's tone indicated he didn't think of it as strange in the slightest, "All the Dark Artists listed here seem to be motivated by power and fear, sometimes in a higher degree in one than the other and sometimes the evidence in history only provides us with support of one though circumstance indicates the other. Some of them mastered fear and in the mastering of it gained power, others aimed for power and were so desperate to get it at any cost, that their desperation became fear."

He nodded around the classroom, meeting the eyes of each student who contributed to the discussions and activities.

"There are many different ways to link power and fear, much of it is a matter of opinion, but I am hoping that you are all growing to learn that your opinion is something that I value.

I am aware that the lesson has not been the easiest one, so I am thankful that you all acted in a mature and respectful manner of one another. I am aware we only touched very lightly on the 'Elitism' aspect of the class, but it is enough to tie in to your next lesson."

Ethan tapped the board.

"Your homework comes in two parts and you get to choose which witch or wizard on this list you wish to focus on."

"Any questions, feel free to stay behind. Thank you everyone."