I'm back from Kyiv, which means I might be moving tomorrow as well! Or maybe Sunday since I'm not feeling the moving vibe at the moment and I have to sign a contract and get keys first. But still, I hope your move is smooth and easy and by the end of the four-day weekend you're feeling at home in the new place!
Four At five o'clock, just as the various clocks in the Entrance Hall started competing to see who could out-ring the others, Hermione stalked in carrying the permission slips. As she'd expected Professor Catcall had demurred a little at first, but then given in. Hermione suspected that Professor Catcall was just relieved to have her out of the school for the weekend, but there was always a nagging feeling that the Professor was a little bit cleverer than Hermione and might be up to something too. She looked around, expecting to be disappointed, but there was Ronnie holding Harry up. Harry looked like he'd been on an all-night bender and Hermione's mostly-unused conscience twinged a little. But not enough to provoke her to do anything. "We're going by train, right?" said Ronnie. He was wearing a heavy green overcoat that made him look like he'd been abandoned as a child by a sailor and the coat was his only connection to his past. It was rather too big for him, being a hand-me-down, and it smelled faintly of roses. "No," said Hermione. "I thought about it, but the idea of having to make small-talk with the small-folk irritated me. So we're using the Four Network." "That's Ministry-restricted," said Ronnie. His father worked in the Ministry of Magic in the MuddledScience division and occasionally told Ronnie stories about what happened when Magic and Science mixed. They were always gory and sometimes gave Ronnie nightmares. "I have my ways," said Hermione, tapping her fingers against her wand-holster. Ronnie cringed and she sighed. "I got a key from a Boggart," she said. "It was breaking-and-entering so it would have given me anything not to get handed over to the OKRA." The OKRA was the police force of the wizarding world and was brutally effective. "That sounds... unethical," said Ronnie weakly. "Are you sure that a Boggart's key will be good for the Four Network?" "Yes," said Hermione. "I've been using it for weeks now." She strode to the grandfather clock that stood near the entrance door and pulled a key made of light and rainbows out of her pocket. The Four Network was a way of stepping magically into a grandfather clock in one place and stepping out of another one in another place the next instant. It only narrowly avoided violating a lot of physical laws about moving faster than the speed of light, but wizards liked it despite the hints of danger. The grandfather clock opened its doors and Hermione gestured at Harry. "Push him in first," she said. "I've preset it for the Ramshackle." "Oh good," said Ronnie giving Harry a firm shove in the small of his back.
2 comments:
I'm back from Kyiv, which means I might be moving tomorrow as well! Or maybe Sunday since I'm not feeling the moving vibe at the moment and I have to sign a contract and get keys first. But still, I hope your move is smooth and easy and by the end of the four-day weekend you're feeling at home in the new place!
Four
At five o'clock, just as the various clocks in the Entrance Hall started competing to see who could out-ring the others, Hermione stalked in carrying the permission slips. As she'd expected Professor Catcall had demurred a little at first, but then given in. Hermione suspected that Professor Catcall was just relieved to have her out of the school for the weekend, but there was always a nagging feeling that the Professor was a little bit cleverer than Hermione and might be up to something too. She looked around, expecting to be disappointed, but there was Ronnie holding Harry up. Harry looked like he'd been on an all-night bender and Hermione's mostly-unused conscience twinged a little. But not enough to provoke her to do anything.
"We're going by train, right?" said Ronnie. He was wearing a heavy green overcoat that made him look like he'd been abandoned as a child by a sailor and the coat was his only connection to his past. It was rather too big for him, being a hand-me-down, and it smelled faintly of roses.
"No," said Hermione. "I thought about it, but the idea of having to make small-talk with the small-folk irritated me. So we're using the Four Network."
"That's Ministry-restricted," said Ronnie. His father worked in the Ministry of Magic in the MuddledScience division and occasionally told Ronnie stories about what happened when Magic and Science mixed. They were always gory and sometimes gave Ronnie nightmares.
"I have my ways," said Hermione, tapping her fingers against her wand-holster. Ronnie cringed and she sighed. "I got a key from a Boggart," she said. "It was breaking-and-entering so it would have given me anything not to get handed over to the OKRA." The OKRA was the police force of the wizarding world and was brutally effective.
"That sounds... unethical," said Ronnie weakly. "Are you sure that a Boggart's key will be good for the Four Network?"
"Yes," said Hermione. "I've been using it for weeks now."
She strode to the grandfather clock that stood near the entrance door and pulled a key made of light and rainbows out of her pocket. The Four Network was a way of stepping magically into a grandfather clock in one place and stepping out of another one in another place the next instant. It only narrowly avoided violating a lot of physical laws about moving faster than the speed of light, but wizards liked it despite the hints of danger. The grandfather clock opened its doors and Hermione gestured at Harry.
"Push him in first," she said. "I've preset it for the Ramshackle."
"Oh good," said Ronnie giving Harry a firm shove in the small of his back.
Greg - thank you, we're getting there. Still one more day to go before I have to start commuting to work.
And... well, I'm sure there will be no issue with Harry having to go first. Hermione had very valid reasons for not going first, I'm quite certain.
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