[Setting: A sunny afternoon on a café terrace in Montpellier, southern France. Léa and Julien, two longtime friends in their early 30s, are sipping coffee. Nearby, a sleek black cat lounges under a table, licking its paw.]
Léa: (grinning and tossing a bit of croissant to the cat) There you go, mon petit matagot. Enjoy! You’ll bring me good luck today, I can feel it.
Julien: (raising an eyebrow) Léa, seriously? You’re still feeding random black cats for luck?
Léa: Not just random black cats — matagots! There’s a difference, mon cher. Everyone knows in southern France, feeding a black cat brings good fortune. My grandmother swore by it. And look — since I started, I haven’t had a flat tire once!
Julien: (laughing) You also bought new tires last month.
Léa: Coincidence! It’s the cat, I tell you.
Julien: Léa, you know I love you, but come on. It’s just a cat. No magical powers, no hidden ability to influence your life. That’s just an old folk belief.
Léa: Oh, here we go — the scientist speaks. Tell me, Monsieur Rational, have you never felt something you couldn’t explain?
Julien: Sure. Like why people put their faith in black cats instead of, I don’t know, properly maintaining their car or planning ahead.
Léa: That’s no fun! Look, it’s harmless. And besides, my neighbor fed a matagot every day last year — she won 200 euros in the lottery.
Julien: And how many people feed black cats and don’t win the lottery? You only hear about the hits, not the misses. That’s called confirmation bias.
Léa: Pfff, you sound like Wikipedia. You’re missing the point. It’s not about statistics — it’s about tradition, connection, a little magic in daily life. Not everything needs to be measured or proven.
Julien: But don’t you think it matters to ask why we believe things? Look, if I told you stroking a green lizard every morning would make you rich, would you do it?
Léa: Hmm… depends — how cute is the lizard?
Julien: (laughing) You’re impossible!
Léa: Julien, look around. Life’s stressful. Bills, work, climate change. If feeding a black cat gives me five minutes of joy and a little hope, where’s the harm?
Julien: I get that. And you’re right — there’s comfort in rituals. But when people start depending on luck instead of making good decisions, that’s when it gets messy. You remember Éric from work? He kept buying those ‘lucky’ scratch cards every payday and ended up broke by the end of the month.
Léa: Poor Éric. Okay, fair point. But I’m not gambling my savings, I’m just sharing my croissant with a cat.
Julien: True. And honestly, this one’s probably the luckiest cat in town.
Léa: See! Even you admit it.
Julien: I admit he’s well-fed, not magical. Big difference.
Léa: (teasing) Admit it, you’re just jealous because my matagot will help me find true love before you.
Julien: Ah yes, the romantic matchmaking cat. Next you’ll tell me it’s opening a Tinder profile for you.
Léa: Don’t be ridiculous — cats use MeowMatch.
Julien: (chuckling) Okay, okay, you win. Tell you what: you feed the black cats, I’ll stick to logic, and we’ll see who’s happier in the end.
Léa: Deal. But don’t come running to me when you need some of my good luck.
Julien: Fair enough. Just save me a bit of croissant next time — the cat’s getting all the best bites!
[They both laugh, and the black cat flicks its tail contentedly, as if enjoying being at the center of the debate.]
Science Vs Superstition 
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