(no subject)

[caustique.livejournal.com]

I am very sorry for the way the "prank" blew up. It was supposed to be all in good fun, but obviously some people didn't take it that way... and I do admit that my timing could have been a tad bit lot better (we really wanted it posted before Christmas, if that helps the matter any... -_-)

It's no Gryffindor fault but my own. I didn't share what was going on at the Officials Community with any members of my common room (unless they happen to be on my f-list), so no one knew that Nika and I had had a bit of a tiff. It seems like the Slytherins might have known though since someone commented on it; and I guess that makes some of the tempers justifiable, since they might have thought it to be a stab at their Prefect.

It wasn't though, not at all. Regardless of what Nika may think of me, she is very good at what she does. I might not agree with her often, or at all, but I respect her for knowing what she's doing; so this was not meant to hurt her in any way. We had this planned out and started since at least September, when everything was fine and dandy and there was no fighting. I didn't feel like calling it off when maybe I should have... I really didn't feel that it was fair to all of the people who helped make pictures and plan the events. I didn't feel that it was fair to my friends, and I figure that's something everyone can understand.


Someone said it could have been taken as a stab at Slytherin in general, since Slytherin is always being picked on. In actuality, I didn't pick the Slytherin house to prank because it would have been "the easiest" or because "everyone else does it." I picked you lot because I figured you'd be the ones to pass it on and keep it going. I wanted this whole pranking business to be something interesting that we could do on the side when there were no in-house contests to participate in, and when participation seemed to drag. That is my "job," you know, thinking of things like that. I guess I didn't expect these consequences, because in general, the members here take all the stereotypes of their houses very well. I didn't expect anyone to be offended by what I hoped would be "good fun."


Thank you Kat, and everyone else that said something, for standing up for me... but it seems my judgment is a lot poorer that what I expected.


I hope it was fun for some of you at least, because it really was fun for us (or me at least) - planning it, making it, and carrying it out. That's all it was meant to be.


You guys can take your badges off now, if you want. The prank is over.


- Caitlyn

Comments

¬,¬

[foreverquatre.livejournal.com]

What? It was hilarious... I wish that Hufflepuff was a more "popular" house so a prank like that could be done in turn... I don't think it'd work if Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff tried to pull a similar prank... ~__~() Honestly, I don't see why anyone would actually get upset over your pranky post... Some people are just... overly sensitive, I suppose... I mean, come on, Draco with the Simba on his shoulder= priceless!

~Grifflet of Hufflepuff

[kimnext.livejournal.com]

:\

*sigh*

You know, at times I wonder if everyone takes the whole House thing too seriously. This is, afterall, just sorting.

When I first saw the prank post, I laughed at the mini-FanFic and then nearly fell off my chair giggling at the simba doll on Draco's shoulder. Afterall, I consider myself to be a pretty accepting person (even though some people may not be able to get over House prejudices enough to realise that). But when I scrolled down, I saw the shirts... and as much as I tried to laugh those off, it felt a bit harsh.

Slytherins are not charicatures, afterall. We aren't one-dimensional characters that one simply pulls out of a book.

Eh. I admit that I am somewhat upset, and a rather large part of me wants to continue the "pranking" because I DO have House pride, and that's nothing to be ashamed about. But that would be immature and simply rude. I don't know about the others in the House, but I don't see the need for me, as a Slytherin to retaliate in such a manner. HiH is all in fun... Or at least, it's supposed to be.

I won't hold grudges, but I am vastly disappointed. If this was meant to be a "fun" thing, it should have been discussed with the Houses... not simply sprung upon a single House, because that feels like an attack, not a joke.

But, regardless, I hope this clears up soon so everyone else can get back to being a community

Terra Veice, of House Slytherin

Some snakes take few things laying down..

[akavertigo.livejournal.com]

Pardon my saying so, but what kind of consequences were you expecting? No matter how "well natured" the joke, a prank basic chemistry relies on igniting tempers and Slytherin tempers are seldom sweet. While I share your surprise as the strength of some people’s reactions, I find your lack of foresight disappointing.

Your courage in apologizing, however, is truly admirable and well befitting a Gryffindor.

[tytaniaherself.livejournal.com]

I didn't feel like calling it off when maybe I should have... I really didn't feel that it was fair to all of the people who helped make pictures and plan the events. I didn't feel that it was fair to my friends, and I figure that's something everyone can understand.

In other words, you decided to do something that probably was not a very nice thing to do. Other people decided that not being very nice is cute and fun and they wanted to join in. It occurred to you that you might cause hurt feelings and ruin everyone's day, but you were afraid to point it out to your friends because they might be upset with you.

Pardon me for saying so, but that's not very Gryffindor-like at all. I had always understood that you lot were the brave ones. You know, the ones who weren't afraid to stand up for what's right. Are you sure that you and your friends weren't sorted incorrectly? This sort of thing really should be coming from Slytherin, and yet for some reason it isn't.

Slytherin would certainly keep it going, but it doesn't seem to be going in a pleasant direction. Mean-spirited and funny don't mix.

-Tytania, Slytherin

[kimnext.livejournal.com]

*shrugs*

We're Slytherin. We're ambitious, not vindictive.

There's a difference. I was sorted into Slytherin, but I don't go around randomly hurting people just because I can or because I think it's funny. And I think that pretty much applies for most in our House.

[pixiepain.livejournal.com]

It's not "just because". If we got them back it would be because they made the first move. Step on a snakes tail and it's going to turn around and bite you, whether you meant it to or not.

Thanks, and No Harm Done. No, Really.

[livesinthewalls.livejournal.com]

I always figure, if you're ever going to apologize for anything, you might as well do it right. So thank you for your gracious (and artfully self-depracating) post. A marvelous work of endearment, and the sentiment is well taken. By me, at least.

And don't worry, we will probably try to keep it going. Now that the outrage of the moment is dust in the wind, the potential for some amusing serial pranking beckons. Unless, of course, the rest of this fair community would rather avoid the shrapnel...

Catherine//Slytherin

[shakiracrazy.livejournal.com]

It was not your fault at all. Any one of us could have easily said that it was taking things too far, but we didn't. We all (ALL of us) over-estimated the strength of the Gryffindor-Slytherin relationship.

You weren't wrong in keeping it going- whatever was going on between you and Nika should have stayed private and not spilled out into the common rooms. Somehow, I suppose it did. I bet if the rest of us Gryffindors knew about it, we would have all decided to postpone it for a better time, but you didn't want a personal thing to affect us. Thank you for putting your fellow Gryffindors before yourself.

I still hold my stand that the prank would have been sensational if it had been pulled on us, but maybe I'm wrong *shrugs*

Don't kick yourself about this Cat, all Gryffindors should take the blame for it, if there is any. We all adore you so much, and that's why we stood up for you :)

<*/lecture>

[judasdaughter.livejournal.com]

All the Slytherins also adore Our Prefect too. Maybe that's why we were so offended. When I saw how upset it made her, It made me upset also.

But Thanks for the apology anyways.

[judasdaughter.livejournal.com]

[limeyo.livejournal.com]

Uh.

Okay, I really don't understand what the big deal is. Maybe I'm just "blinded" by the fact that I'm in the house that started this mess, but I really don't understand why everyone is so upset.

It was supposed to be all in good fun; we pull a prank, people pull one back, other houses join in...I don't see the harm. We're not a perfect community. We're not going to be all rainbows and sunshine and hugs; what's wrong with friendly competition? We made certain that the prank was not physically harmful or anything that could be deemed mean or cruel -- it all came down to a few badges, T-shirts, and a Simba plushie.

This was not a personal attack by any means. We as a House came together to...have fun. I don't think we had fun with the reaction, but pulling together and thinking of ideas and such was rather entertaining, and we expected the Slytherin house to retaliate in a similar fashion. But whatever, it happened and so it goes.

Lime, Gryffindor

[caustique.livejournal.com]

I don't think it was screened, but there was a comment made by the Slytherin prefect, Nika, which caused a whole slew of other comments. Also, a lot of Slytherins said things outside of that one slew of comments, and a lot of Gryffindors were a little too loud with their house pride. I think all the major ones were frozen, so you can't reply to them any longer... I guess they must have been screened also.

[caustique.livejournal.com]

Oh man.

In no way were we the only house allowed to do it... we just happened to be the ones to get to it first. Even as I was talking to Bunny about the prank, and even when I showed her my rough draft, she TOLD me that every house would have to have an oppertunity to do this, and I agreed. That's what I wanted, for everyone to participate and have fun with it. It wasn't meant to go like this, and it definitely wasn't meant for Gryffindor alone.

I know a lot of the planning was blocked off to you, so you can't see the comments... but it was meant for everyone.

[much-reality.livejournal.com]

With the greatest respect, the situation appears to be as follows:

1) A previous *prank* at the expense of another house started a flamewar and lead to the instigator being disciplined.

2) The perpetrator of this prank decided to post this the day after having a nasty spat with the Slythie mod.

3) The chief differences are that this time, both parties were mods. And last time, both parties were equally disciplined.

It is a tad hard to comprehend how the consequences of this joke can be a surprise. It's also confusing that it never crossed your mind to pull back on the plan after having a fight with the primary target, given the inferences that could be drawn. If you're aware of a small fire, you don't generally throw on kerosene. I appreciate that you're very young, and judgement is something that increases with age, but really, you did select an unfortunate moment/target.

I'm sure it was all very innocently done, as you say, but the appearances really are most unfortunate.

[shallowthoughts.livejournal.com]

I'm a Gryffindor here, I wasn't involved with the prank because I wasn't sure how it would turn out, but I thought it would be fun to watch it from the sidelines.

Inter house unity has a big plot behind this prank. You gotta stick together, and if you're insulted, you have your own people to back you up, you know? I don't know what else to say because people might take it the wrong way.

- Jenny

[holy-whatever.livejournal.com]

I agree, kinda. I mean, bear in mind I'm an impartial Ravenclaw, but...see, if we did something like this out of the blue, it's be construed as starting trouble. (I'm not even going down the road of what'd happen if Slytherin did.) Gryffs, as much as I love you all and your courage and your sense of humor and your rambunctiousness...you get away with a lot. So that point I'll grant.

However, let's not forget that now that the Gryffindors have opened this door for us, the pranking can commence from all sides. Slytherins, let's see some of that subtle, dry humor you're known for. Hey, for that matter, I'd love to see something fun like this from Ravenclaw or Hufflepuff too. Show everyone that those lions aren't the only ones with a wicked sense of humor.

(And, just in case I'm way out of line here...I don't really know what's been going on to make the timing so bad...but let's not forget what OTHER time it is. As far as I'm concerned, the fact it's Christmas overrides everything else. But remember, I've no idea what's going on.)

- Erin, Ravenclaw

(Also, very nice apology, even if it wasn't directed at me or my house.)

[soleil-luna.livejournal.com]

It would be fun for Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw to get in on the pranking. It would.

I can understand what the Slytherins (who've replied here) mean. I get it. At first I was like..ok it's a joke and it still is. But I know where you're coming from with the randomness of it. I think we were all slightly surprised. I don't believe Gryffindor was trying to hurt anyone's feelings. I think it was just to create a fun thing for all houses to get involved in.

However, I think it would have been better if the houses knew. But what's done is done. Now we know, and it can be fixed.

I hope this gets solved and we continue with the pranking, but with less...mixed results. :D

Happy Holidays.
-Mo//Hufflepuff

[intotheheart.livejournal.com]

We definitely encourage pranking! That's what the whole thing was about, to get some stuff going in the community. Your Ravenclaw wit I'm sure will come up with some excellent prank-tastic things :) I think there ARE going to be rules coming up about regulations on pranking, we'll let you know!

[flimsy.livejournal.com]

Regardless of what Nika may think of me

I was very angry when I wrote my first comment to the prank, and I, too, would like to apologise.
I said some things that I shouldn't have said, because I was feeling that you had posted the prank now
because you wanted to 'take revenge' or something.
I'm really sorry. I don't think you're a bad Prefect - you may be a bit inconsiderate, but you have good ideas, so let that old woman (aka: me) talk and just do what you feel is right.

Second:

mydocuments said: "Why add fuel to the fire, and then get pissed when it explodes?"

I think, that was the main reason why I was so pissed off - things between Slytherin and Gryffindor aren't all that rosy - and I thought that it was clear that it wasn't necessarily a wise action to pull a prank on the Slytherins.

It was a series of misunderstandings that created that drama - and it wasn't your fault alone, because I was the one who made the bitchy comment and thus started a drama.

Again, I'm sorry.

I do hope, though, that we can try to get along from now on, seeing what disagreements between the Officials lead to.

[boley.livejournal.com]

Good GOD. This is all IMAGINARY. We are NOT really Slytherins, Gryffindors, Hufflepuffs, Ravenclaws, or wizards and witches, for that matter.

Amen! hehehehehe.

[longleggedgit.livejournal.com]

THANK you. *shakes head*

[much-reality.livejournal.com]

Oh, agreed, but it isn't about that. If you have a fight with someone and then post what can be regarded as a swipe at them, you can't really gasp in shock if they react badly. That's the bottom line.

The apology makes it clear it wasn't intended as flamebait. But it sure as hell looked like it.

[longleggedgit.livejournal.com]

I'm still a bit flabbergasted by the response. I guess I just don't understand how people took it so seriously. But if they were really and truly offended, well, I guess apologies are in order.

[much-reality.livejournal.com]

Well, I can only speak for myself, but I really didn't give a monkeys about the actual joke. I didn't find it funny really, but I didn't find it in any way offensive. It was the history behind it that I found less than lovely.

Anyway, hope you had a good Christmas!

[longleggedgit.livejournal.com]

I definitely didn't find it offensive. But I suppose it's time to let bygones be bygones. I had a very good Christmas, hope you did as well. =)

[longleggedgit.livejournal.com]

Well, it all seems silly to me, but if it's going to make things worse I'll delete it. Sorry if it offended you.

[intotheheart.livejournal.com]

no, didn't offend me :) it is getting very silly! i'm just trying to make sure out gryffs don't make it more silly, especially during the holidays!

Happy holidays :)

[longleggedgit.livejournal.com]

Ah yes. Well I can understand that. Happy holidays to you too! =)

[caustique.livejournal.com]

Calm down sweetie, we don't want to lose any more points, and I'm so sick of the fighting.

[longleggedgit.livejournal.com]

I'm sorry, I don't want to offend anyone. I just thought it was ludicrous.

[bewareofsadness.livejournal.com]

Don't fret, Cat,
You've done an excellent job being our leader through all this, despite what anyone else may think.

[anodein82.livejournal.com]

Each and Every Gryffindor had a chance to say their feelings about the subject, those who disagreed with it didn't have to participate. What We, as a house, did was meant to bring a little holiday cheer to the community. I certainly accept part of the blame.

I stand behind Caitlyn, on this matter.

[hxcpunkchick.livejournal.com]

I'm going to have to disagree with you dear Lori.
Pranking does not equal holiday cheer. Holiday times are rather stressful for some, and well, that means things get blown even more out of proportion. I would have saved it for April 1st.
As accepting part of the blame...does that mean you made one of those t-shirts? =)

[anodein82.livejournal.com]

didn't make a shirt. I was in on the planning

[caustique.livejournal.com]

You might want to screen this.

That's not what al; the tempers were all about, and I think that even though you don't necessarily know that, it might set the Slytherins off again.

It was meant to be like that, but the reason everything blew up isn't that simple.

[caustique.livejournal.com]

Ack, it was meant to be that simple is what I mean. I guess you figured that though, but just to clarify since it seems like everything is liable to set someone off now-a-days.

[ragettizepirate.livejournal.com]

lol, alright, dont want to set anyone off..

[malaikah-roy.livejournal.com]

It was very mature and courageous of you to apologize

But it was unnecessary. Pulling a prank and playing jokes is not something to be taken seriously. If it was, everyone would hate Fred and George (never seen an App where someone says they don't like them).

[vagabondlivvy.livejournal.com]

First off, I'm not going to bother reading the other comments because I will not take part in the negativity that others feel inclined to share with the community.

Let me just say that you never should have apologized for your actions. Also, you should not feel the least bit guilty for what was a greatly amusing post.

It baffles me that some people take such things so seriously. The fandom is meant to be fun and entertaining. The world of Harry Potter is fake, yet some people have become so wrapped up in it that they forget.

The Slytherin house was purposely written by Rowling as an antagonistic house with certain less than admirable characteristics. She wrote the Gryffindor house as their foes.

This sorting community revolves around the world that she created and the characters and characteristics that she did. To be true to her creation, a true Slytherin would have passed the prank on, not bitched, moaned, and complained about something that many other members found to be good fun.

Your judgment is not poor! For the few people that griped, there were more that actually applauded the creativity involved in your endeavor.

I hope that you do something like this again because, I for one, enjoyed it immensely.

[tocada.livejournal.com]

People just fail to realize that they are not really in Hogwarts, that what you might do or say has zero effect upon their dignity or pride as person, which counts also for the fact that this is sheer fantasy and whatever happens here doesn't apply to real life. I'm not a member of this community, though I think there isn't need of a membership to realize all this. I enjoyed it, and if you ever plan to write fanfiction please tell me, because I'm sure I will like it.

[foresthouse.livejournal.com]

Now, now. Don't take all the blame. We went along with it and I for one had no idea people might take it the wrong way. I mean, I am not a longtime resident of HiH but it seemed like everyone here was pretty good humored.

Anyway, it is too bad that some people were offended - I know we didn't intend that.

And, prank or no, I made the badges and I like them so I think I may keep using mine! :)

*Don't anyone go and get offended please*