"Uh..." Xenophilius Lovegood opened his mouth, as though he had recalled something. A flicker of embarrassment crossed his face. "It... really does seem to be that way..."
"See?" Rita Skeeter raised a hand and gestured toward Xenophilius, using him as a ready-made example. "This is a very common situation."
"In fact, another situation is just as common: when these people learn that there really are quite a few good people among 'werewolf wizards'..."
"They might feel a little guilty because of it." Her gaze sharpened and her speech slowed. "But very quickly! That guilt gets quietly buried, turning into even stronger resistance!"
"Of course! I'm sure Editor-in-Chief Lovegood..." Catching Xenophilius hesitating to speak, she grinned and added before he could, "You definitely aren't one of those people!"
"But we can't rule out the existence of people like that." Her smile faded, and her tone turned sharp. "Just as I said earlier... admitting that you were wrong, that you had the wrong idea, is harder than anything!"
"Some people are very good at making excuses. They always find it easier to 'recall' the occasional scum within a group, like Fenrir Greyback, and then say with relief, 'See? I told you they were dangerous!'"
"Some people are very good at making excuses for themselves. They deliberately bring up individual scum among 'werewolf wizards,' like Fenrir Greyback..."
"Then they proclaim with relief..." A trace of mockery entered her voice. "'See? I told you they were dangerous! I can't possibly be wrong!'"
She sighed, adjusting her emotions as her tone returned to normal. "It reminds me of my experiences gathering material for Armando Dippet: Master or Fool?..."
"When I found neighbors who had lived alongside Armando Dippet and asked them what they thought of him, their attitudes were very interesting."
"Although Armando Dippet was