The exercise:
Write about: alterations.
This morning was cooler than I was expecting, but the afternoon made up for that. Was definitely wilting towards the end there, and was feeling very grateful for the air conditioning at the office I was cleaning for the last hour of my shift.
One more day before my weekend commences.
Mine:
"Sir?"
"Yes, BH28?"
"The alterations are complete."
"I don't feel any different."
"There will be an adjustment period. There always is with this sort of procedure."
"How long?"
"It varies for each person, sir."
"How. Long."
"It is impossible to predict with any ac-"
"Give me a proper answer or I will launch you out of the escape hatch - without the pod."
"This is extremely unfair, sir."
"No, what this is, BH28, is your last chance."
"... the alterations to your body will be accessible to you when you wake tomorrow morning."
"Excellent. See? That wasn't so hard."
"Indeed, sir. Sleep long and sleep well, sir."
"I shall!"
"I will be here when you wake."
"... why wouldn't you be?"
"Indeed, sir. Good night."
Air conditioning is wonderful stuff, isn't it? I'm looking forward to moving to Kiev and not needing it year-round :)
ReplyDeleteHmm, I have a suspicion that Henri has finally solved his problem with unreliable staff by hiring robots instead, but even now he seems to having trouble with them. I like the banter and the robot's reluctance to commit to anything -- a very un-computer-like thing to do!
Alterations
Several Snipe, the Defiant Dark Arts teacher was perched on his desk at the front of the room like a giant bird and, true to his name, was skipping between topics like a child with ADD, highly-coloured orange juice, and pixie sticks.
"Who can tell me the name of the mage-prison?" he asked. Most of the class looked stunned: his previous question had been what flavour cupcake centaurs preferred most. Only two students raised a hand, and slightly surprisingly they were sat together. In front of them, smiling like he could see a happy future, was Harry Potter.
"Mr. Weasel?" said Several Snipe. "You've had family members incarcerated there, haven't you?"
Ronnie turned white and started shaking. "Alcatraz," he said, though the word seemed to take an effort.
"No," said Several Snipe, looking surprised. Before he could comment further though there was a soft chime in the air.
"Yes!" Ronnie punched the air. "Most wrong answers in a single day! That's my trophy!"
"20 Mouse-points deducted," said Several Snape, licking his lips. "Tasty, tasty mouse... points." There was another chime and Ronnie looked astonished.
"Most number of mouse-points lost in one day," he said. The chime sounded again. "And worst student in a year! I'm racking up those trophies now."
"Miss Mangey," said Several Snape. "You still have your hand up. Do you want to go to the bathroom? Or perhaps obliviate Mr. Weasel?"
"Sting-sting," said Hermione. She pursed her lips. "The wizard prison is called Sting-sting and is guarded by giant hornets that are kept magically enraged. Only three people have ever escaped from there, although if you look through the published records it seems likely that only three people have been reported as escaping. I can't see why 85% of the prison population haven't escaped or are escaping."
"Perhaps," said Several Snape quietly, his attention suddenly focused, "there were alterations made to the prison records?"
Hermione tapped her pen against her teeth. "Novocalligraphy?" she said. "It would take a fine touch, and there's the question of why. What end would it serve...?"
"That will be your homework-"
"Ah! You escaped, of course! And it's long been suspected that you had help from Professor Fumblebee, so this is probably an elaborate and strategic plan to lure Mouldybones into thinking he can break loyal followers out without difficulty."
"Miss Mangey," said Several Snape sounding tired, "you are a most difficult student and a security risk. Report to Fumblebee's office. Oh, and take the Weasel with you: a student that useless shouldn't be a student."
Greg - yes, it is. Now if only my work truck had A/C...
ReplyDeleteLove the descriptions and characterizations of Snape. And the rest of the Harry Potter alternative world plays their roles perfectly too. So, so enjoy these takes you do in this world. Unquestionably fun to read and, I strongly suspect, write.