[TOPIC] Owls and Owl Post
REMINDER: All non-canon ideas mentioned in this post and the subsequent comments are the property of their authors. Canon material of course belongs to JK Rowling. The appearance and discussion of fanon ideas in no way implies permission to borrow these ideas unless permission is granted by the author. Courtesy first and foremost in fandom.Note:
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Comments 16
Idea belongs to: TromboneBorges.
Idea found in: A Suitable Preparation" [H/D PG]
Permission? Not sought. Consider this a rec to a good story.
Name: BootesIn "A Suitable Preparation," TromboneBorges names Draco's owl Bootes. I don't know why he made this choice, but it has always seemed to me that the name is part and parcel of the story's delicate endeavour to humanise Draco from canonical pasteboard bully, childish ideologue, and stereotypically arrogant aristocrat to a boy who must grow up to be more and must do it NOW. In this context, it seems appropriate that Draco Malfoy's owl does not have a classical or exotic name, but is merely Bootes. I don't know if the name has a specific literary pre-cursor (if it does, my guess is that it was the tagname of somebody's butler or footman), but it also points vaguely in the direction of Muggledom by resonating with fairytales and Christmas panto (Puss N Boots) and to high-street commerce (Boots the Chemist). [Somebody poke TromboneBorges and get him to ( ... )
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Idea belongs to: TromboneBorges.
Idea found in: A Suitable Preparation" [H/D PG]
Permission? Not sought. Consider this a rec to a good story.
The Owlery. Described by TB this way: "Draco fumbled and drew the frozen rodent from his shirt pocket and started the climb up the tall ziggurat stairs that circled the room to the baroque perch that formed the centerpiece of the room. ... He was passing through a corridor of owls, all of whom turned to stare as he picked his way through the maze of owl pellets. The windows in the walls, paneless, admitted entry and exit of the owls but not of the elements. They cast a warm blue moonlight into the room, freckled with the silhouette of the heavy, falling snow. The snow beat in vain against the charmed windows, collecting slightly on the sills but never passing into the chamber proper."
Protective spells keep the Owlery's open windows from being a weak point in the Castle's defenses and keep the weather at bay, as we see when Draco removes the spells to ( ... )
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Whose Idea: uh, mine *sheepish*
Permission: granted ( ... )
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*really embarrassed now*
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Ideas belong to: The 1st two ideas are already widely dispersed in fanon, so I'd say they are common property, though I'll provide one link to a fic.
Ideas found in: The 1st two ideas crop up in a fair few stories; the corrollaries exist only in my head so far as I'm aware.
Permission: With one exception (noted below) for a particular application of the device, I really think the basic ideas are in general circulation, so there's no one to ask permission if you riff on them; "Mortuary Post" is, I believe, my term, but you are welcome to use it.
Okay. We know about Howlers. They are red, and when opened, they yell their message at the recipient; if not opened, they explode (and yell their message anyway).
Idea One: Mortuary Post I've read several fics (and could only find one I had never read before when I went back to see if I could find an example) in which students receive letters delivered by black owls on black-wrapped parchments or black-tied parchments (or in black envelopes, but that seems to ( ... )
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Ideas belong to: The basic idea is already widely dispersed in fanon, so I'd say it's common property.
Ideas found in: The following ideas are mine and have not been used anywhere.
Permission: This set of ideas is completely up for grabs: my ideas are your ideas (in this case).
Idea Three: Other Official Communications One could imagine that certain Ministry offices might have distinctive post (either because delivered by a unique bird or because of the parchment colour/presentation). Like Howlers, Commendations for Brave and Audacious Service, would probably be both colourful and LOUD. Warrants of Arrest or Subpoenas might also be delivered by post and involve scene-interrupting volume and spectacular visuals. (An arrest warrant would presumably grab hold of the miscreant and cart her off. Perhaps this innovation will be one of the law enforcement "improvements" instituted by the next Minister for Magic.)
Idea Four: Other Extraordinary Post. Contest Prizes, Over-draught Notices from Gringotts, Party ( ... )
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