From 0e3b2ad27a270c5e7090ea328b399b34734e8136 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Julian Blake Kongslie Date: Tue, 30 Jul 2013 22:28:27 -0700 Subject: Reflowing text, minor edits in chp 1, lots of work and renaming chp 2. --- novellas/contingency/01-plans.mdwn | 38 +++---- novellas/contingency/02-escape.mdwn | 196 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ novellas/contingency/02-rescue.mdwn | 34 ------- 3 files changed, 216 insertions(+), 52 deletions(-) create mode 100644 novellas/contingency/02-escape.mdwn delete mode 100644 novellas/contingency/02-rescue.mdwn (limited to 'novellas') diff --git a/novellas/contingency/01-plans.mdwn b/novellas/contingency/01-plans.mdwn index 7e3f79e..d7ce429 100644 --- a/novellas/contingency/01-plans.mdwn +++ b/novellas/contingency/01-plans.mdwn @@ -1,14 +1,14 @@ -[[!meta title="Chapter 1: Plans"]] +[[!meta title="Introduction: Plans"]] Hermione was scared. -Ron had abandoned them, they had *no idea* where the remaining horcruxes were or -how to destroy them, snatchers and death eaters were just *everywhere*, and -*everything just kept getting worse.* +Ron had abandoned them, they had *no idea* where the remaining horcruxes were +or how to destroy them, snatchers and death eaters were just *everywhere*, +and *everything just kept getting worse.* -Frankly, it seemed like failure was the most likely outcome. Almost certain, in -fact. But Voldemort couldn't be allowed to win! If they were going to die, she'd -just have to do something about it. +Frankly, it seemed like failure was the most likely outcome. Almost certain, +in fact. But Voldemort couldn't be allowed to win! If they were going to die, +she'd just have to do something about it. "Harry, there's something I need to do." @@ -45,11 +45,12 @@ like batteries collecting magic. We're going to borrow some of that magic." promise it's safe, and after we do this you can just forget all about it. It's just something I need to do for us." -"I trust you, Hermione. OK, let's get everything packed up and we can head out." +"I trust you, Hermione. OK, let's get everything packed up and we can head +out."
-"...seventh year, so we draw from the point seven degrees deiseil of Jupiter, +"...seventh month, so we draw from the point seven degrees deiseil of Jupiter, and orient towards the moon. There, done!" "Done?" @@ -78,8 +79,9 @@ Hermione had pieced together this ritual from bits and pieces she'd found looking for ways to help in the fight against Voldemort. Nothing like it had ever been tried, as best as she could tell. That was one reason she'd constructed the ritual circle in the Ring of Brodgar; the ancient stones held -protections that should safely ground any dangerous magics if her ritual failed. -If the ritual succeeded... best not to think of it. Just a contingency plan. +protections that should safely ground any dangerous magics if her ritual +failed. If the ritual succeeded... best not to think of it. Just a contingency +plan. Harry took a few minutes to enjoy the stars. He trusted Hermione to know what she was doing; if she wasn't telling him what the ritual was for, there must be @@ -95,8 +97,8 @@ flashed red, then darkened and returned to its mundane state. Harry looked over at Hermione. "Was that it? Did it work?" -"Yes, Harry, it worked. Now forget about it. Help me erase these runes and clean -up, will you?" +"Yes, Harry, it worked. Now forget about it. Help me erase these runes and +clean up, will you?" "OK, Hermione. Hey, that thing you drew on my chest is gone!" @@ -106,11 +108,11 @@ up, will you?" Plans. His whole life had just been other peoples' plans. -Dumbledore's *stupid* plans to ruin his childhood and make him sacrifice himself -to defeat Voldemort. The Ministry's plans to parade him around as a figurehead -and political tool to keep the same old politicians in power. Molly Weasley's -plans for One Big Weasley Family and her damnable willingness to help her -children along with love potions. +Dumbledore's *stupid* plans to ruin his childhood and make him sacrifice +himself to defeat Voldemort. The Ministry's plans to parade him around as a +figurehead and political tool to keep the same old politicians in power. Molly +Weasley's plans for One Big Weasley Family and her damnable willingness to +help her children along with love potions. Those love potions had shattered what was left of Hermione's independence and motivation. Marrying Ron had destroyed all her plans for the future. diff --git a/novellas/contingency/02-escape.mdwn b/novellas/contingency/02-escape.mdwn new file mode 100644 index 0000000..e641873 --- /dev/null +++ b/novellas/contingency/02-escape.mdwn @@ -0,0 +1,196 @@ +[[!meta title="Chapter 1: Escape"]] + +Harry awoke to darkness, discomfort, and impossibility. + +He was in the cupboard. Impossible. He and Hermione had personally flattened +this entire house shortly after the war. The Weasleys had disapproved, saying +Harry should forgive his relatives, but this was before the love potions had +kicked in again and removed his free will. + +How could he be in the cupboard? + +And why was he *small?* + +Harry began to hyperventilate. Nothing was making sense, this couldn't be +happening— + +"TIME TO GET UP, FREAK! WHY DON'T I SMELL BREAKFAST COOKING?" + +The tiny door was wrenched open, and Harry saw a dead man silhouetted against +the morning light. + +"DON'T MAKE ME DRAG YOU OUT OF THERE, BOY! GET UP!" + +Harry started moving on automatic. Even after nearly 150 years of adult life, +he would never forget the rules and demands of the Dursley household. He +rushed out of the cupboard and hurried to begin preparing his captors' meal. + +As he slaved away in the kitchen, Harry tried to reason through his situation. +A stolen glance at his uncle's newspaper confirmed the date — July 31st, 1987. +Seven years old. How was he seven years old again? + +He was pretty sure he could still feel his magic, but to be certain he'd need +to reestablish his Occlumency, and with the damage Snape had done there was no +way he could manage that in this emotional climate. + +An accidental glance at his reflection on a spoon was another shock. His scar +was *wrong.* After Voldemort's defeat, the scar had rapidly weakened and +eventually healed over. Now it looked like it was just beginning that process. +Whatever had caused him to return to 1987 must have destroyed the horcrux as +well. + +Harry struggled through the day, barely paying attention to his surroundings. +He had to escape, had to get in touch... with whom, exactly? Harry didn't +trust anybody in power in this year. If only he had Hermione to help him make +sense of this situation. + +By the end of the day, he'd managed to calm down enough to begin to cope with +the situation. Locked in his cupboard, in the dark, he meditated and put +together the barest underpinning of Occlumency. It was enough to give him some +rudimentary access to his wandless magic. + +And so, Harry wandlessly and silently unlocked the cupboard and sneaked out of +4 Privet Drive. His plan was to beg his way into his trust vault at Gringotts, +and then buy a plane ticket out of the country and hopefully into a real life. +In a few years maybe he'd find some way to introduce himself to and rescue +Hermione. + +Plans, in general, had never gone well for Harry Potter. + +She was waiting for him at the bus stop one block away. "Hello Harry," she +casually remarked, "sorry for the time travel. I was wondering when you'd +manage to get out of that house. My parents are waiting in the car just over +there, if you'd like a ride?" + +"Hermione?" + +
+ +"Wake up, Hermione, you need to get ready for school! And happy birthday, +dear! We'll have a cake and presents for you when you get home!" + +"Mom? But you're dead! And it's not my... oh no, it worked. But that means... +why am I at home? I must have gotten the time travel wrong! What year is it?" + +Hermione, let it be known, had always been a very intelligent young girl. Dan +and Emma Granger had soon gotten used to her breathlessly working through +problems out loud, and tried to do their best to stay caught up with her +reasoning and supportive of her curiosity. This was not to say that Emma was +prepared for this particular line of thought, especially not early in the +morning. + +"Darling, time travel? What are you talking about? Are you feeling okay?" + +"No. What year, please, mother?" + +"1986. September 19th, your birthday. Darling?" + +"My birthday. My seventh birthday. I must have miscalculated, it was supposed +to be seven months before the ritual, but it was seven years after my birth +instead. It was only supposed to be if Harry or I died unhappily... but I +suppose that makes sense," Hermione was muttering to herself while her mother +looked more and more distraught. Noticing this suddenly, Hermione interrupted +herself, "Can you go fetch Dad? We need to talk about something as a family. +And it might be best if both of you cancel your appointments today." + +"Hermione? What's going on?" + +"Please, Mom. It'll be easier with both of you." + +"OK, darling. I'll be right back with your father." + +"Thanks." As Emma turned to leave the room, Hermione added, "I love you, Mom. +I promise, it's happy news." + +Now alone in her room, Hermione immediately began checking the state of her +mind and her magic. Occlumency needed repair, but that was to be expected and +Hermione had always been skilled at the mental arts. Her magic felt strong, +stronger than it should for her young age; she had her adult power available. +First things first, practice basic control. + +When Dan and Emma Granger walked back into their daughter's room, they could +find no words to speak. Hermione was sitting calmly on her bed, with a dozen +books orbited around her, flying a complicated dance to some unheard tune. + +Hermione smiled at them. "Mom, Dad, look! Magic is real, and I'm a witch!" + +
+ +"Just so I can make sure I have this all right, let me summarize." + +"Go ahead, Dad." + +"Magic is real. You can use magic." + +"That's right." + +"You're a time traveler, from the future." + +"From December of 2124, yes." + +"But you *are* our daughter?" + +"Yes, Dad, I am your daughter Hermione." + +"And you fought in a war at age 17, along with your best friend Harry." + +"A war we nearly lost, yes." + +"And so because you were worried that you would lose, you arranged for you +both to be sent back to the beginning of that war in the case of either of +your deaths, so you could try to warn people?" + +"That's right. It was a contingency, in case things went wrong." + +"But you didn't die. And you won the war." + +"Well, the purebloods were still in charge. But I suppose technically we won +the war, yes." + +"And then Harry and you had unhappy lives because of these purebloods." + +"Very unhappy." + +"And then you died?" + +"I don't remember dieing, although I'm not sure if I would. The magic would +trigger if either Harry or I died unhappily. We were both old, and I'm sure we +were both unhappy enough. I know I was." + +"And then you came back, but not to the beginning of the war?" + +"I miscalculated when I setup the magic. It was supposed to be seven months +before the ritual, but time travel is not well-studied magic, and I must have +set the target for seventh year after birth instead." + +"So... what do we do? Should we be finding some wizard to warn?" + +"NO! All the wizards in power here in Britain are evil! I think this country +is doomed, frankly; at least the magical side is. We have a few years before +they'll take notice of me, and I think it may be best if we just leave." + +"Leave Britain? Just like that?" + +"Well, not just like that. Harry won't be coming back for almost 11 months. +He's my best friend, we have to rescue him too. But we should prepare, because +rescuing Harry will probably make someone in power notice us." + +"So we need to make a plan?" + +"Yes, we need a plan." + +
+ +"Hermione?" + +"Yes, Harry, it's me." + +"Why are we in 1987?" + +"Remember the ritual we performed at the Ring of Brodgar?" + +"That was time travel?" + +"Of a sort. I'll explain in the car." + +"OK. I trust you, Hermione." diff --git a/novellas/contingency/02-rescue.mdwn b/novellas/contingency/02-rescue.mdwn deleted file mode 100644 index 8cdf2a6..0000000 --- a/novellas/contingency/02-rescue.mdwn +++ /dev/null @@ -1,34 +0,0 @@ -[[!meta title="Chapter 2: Rescue"]] - -Harry awoke to darkness, discomfort, and impossibility. - -He was in the cupboard. Impossible. He and Hermione had personally flattened -this entire house shortly after the war. The Weasleys had disapproved, saying -Harry should forgive his relatives, but this was before the love potions had -kicked in again and removed his free will. - -How could he be in the cupboard? - -And why was he *small?* - -Harry began to hyperventilate. Nothing was making sense, this couldn't be -happening— - -"TIME TO GET UP, FREAK! WHY DON'T I SMELL BREAKFAST COOKING?" - -The tiny door was wrenched open, and Harry saw a dead man silhouetted against -the morning light. - -"DON'T MAKE ME DRAG YOU OUT OF THERE, BOY! GET UP!" - -Harry started moving on automatic. Even after nearly 150 years of adult life, he -would never forget the rules and demands of the Dursley household. He rushed out -of the cupboard and hurried to begin preparing his captors' meal. - -As he slaved away in the kitchen, Harry tried to reason through his situation. A -stolen glance at his uncle's newspaper confirmed the date — July 31st, 1987. -Seven years old. How was he seven years old? - -He was pretty sure he could still feel his magic, but to be certain he'd need to -reestablish his Occlumency, and with the damage Snape had done there was no way -he could manage that in this emotional climate. -- cgit v1.2.3