Harry Potter: Veil

8/25/2005 (according to the document modification date)

<begin lecture>

Veiled Archway
Department of Mysteries
Ministry of Magic

Very little is known about the ancient archway, whose opening is covered by a veil, that sits in a chamber in the department of mysteries. There are times when the veil covering the archway flaps, as thought blown by wind, and voices can be heard beyond it. It is believed that the archway is kept in the department of mysteries as a tool for studying death. Beyond that, nothing else if mentioned about the archway. It seems as though the power of the archway is common knowledge in the wizarding world, but that is not known to be a fact.

</end lecture>

You remember that discussion we were having concerning bringing people back to life. Andrea mentioned using the archway or a twin to the archway the brought people back instead of killing them. I’ve seen a fan-fiction that has done this before. It wasn’t very well written but they did use the idea.

For some reason, I was thinking about that today and I came up with an interesting idea. As far as I can tell, no one really knows what the archway does. For some reason, perhaps written history or writing on the archway itself, they believe it to be associated with death. The information we are given about the archway in the fifth book is actually very limited (so much so people debate on whether Bellatrix killed Sirius or falling though the archway killed him). We do know it’s very, very, very old. Perhaps so old that its real use and knowledge of it has been lost in time (extremely possible).

So here is my idea...

What if there was an inscription, on the archway or near where it was found, that gave a warning. Death and suffering to all who path though the veil. Or something like that. But what if passing though the veil didn’t actually kill people, but just made them as good as dead. Trapped somewhere, not in our world (dimension), that they couldn’t of their own will leave. This is where the other archway would come in. The archway in the ministry would be an entrance. The other archway would be the the exit (kind of).

Why I say “kind of” concerning the exit is because trapped people can’t choose to leave though the exit. They must be summed though it by someone on the other side. By summed I’m thinking that the summoner must throw an object belonging to the person they want though the veil and say a certain incantation. They wouldn’t be able to call people who had really died, just people who had passed through the other veil.

The world beyond the veil would not be a nice place. It would be on the negative side of “like death”. It would not be a place people would want to go. I haven’t worked out the details of that though. I do believe that time would pass like it did in our world. There might even be things that grew there (they have to eat something perhaps). Beyond that, I don’t know yet. I was thinking that it might be a cross between the prison world SG-1 got sent to where they found the destroyer of worlds (whose name I can’t spell) and the dark island in Voyage of the Dawn Treader.

Now you might ask, why would anyone create something like this? My answer would be that it was the ancient form of Azkaban. I place to banish dark wizards or those who committed crimes. It could be both a permanent form of punishment or a temporary form of punishment (hence the way to summon people out).

I figure that by the time of the fifth book, people would have forgotten all this. Perhaps the people who created it died out in ancient times and someone found the veil without knowing what it did, brought it back to their own land, and myth grew out of its use there. The history of the archway in that land might be the history people know.

Anyway, it’s just an idea. I thought it was an interesting one.

HP FICTION: The Problem with Words

Title: The Problem with Words
Timeframe: MWPP Era
Genre: General, Comedy (my version at least)
Summary: James, Peter, and Remus take a trip to the library.

Disclaimer: The Marauders, Hogwarts, and the rest of the Wizarding World belong to J.K. Rowlings. I should limit my comments to that lest I get myself in trouble :)

Note: I never posted this on fanfiction.net. I wrote this after reading lots of MWPP Era fan-fictions and hearing many "Sirius/Serious" jokes. It's possible it only makes sense to me :)

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“Ow! Peter that was my foot!” --James
“Sorry” -- Peter
“Sh, quiet... I thought I heard something.” --Remus
“Stop worrying, we’re not gonna get caught.” --James
“Easy for you to say, you’ve already got detention this week” --Remus
“Now who’s the one talking” --James
“grrrrr” --Remus
several minuets pass with only the sound of shoes on stone.
“You’re sure Sirius isn’t going to wake up?” --Remus
“Positive” --James
“He won’t like it if he finds we went out without him.” --Remus
“If no one tells him, he won’t find out.” --James
silence
“Why are we doing this again?” --Peter
“We’ve been over this. It’s for the good of the school” --James
“For the good of the school? I thought it was because you’re tired of... did you hear that?” --Remus
“Hear what? Your imagining things. Look...we’re almost there.” --James
“For your information, I have good hearing.” --Remus
“Um...I can’t get the door open guys. Do they lock it at night?” --Peter
“Lock the door to the Library? Why would they do that?” --James
“Maybe because they’re tired of books disappearing in the middle of the night?” --Remus
James glares at Remus who can’t see him in the dark.
“How do we get in?” --Peter
“If both of you will just stand aside.” --Remus
“Alohomora” --Remus
“I know there was a reason we brought you.” --James
“I still don’t understand. Why don’t we just do this in the morning?” --Peter
“Because then Sirius will be with us.” --James
“Why does it matter?” --Peter
“I’d feel like an idiot?” --James
“And of course detention is much better the feeling like an idiot, so...” --Remus
James glares at Remus who doesn’t appear to be paying attention.
“I think it would be in this section.” --Remus
“Is it that one?” --Peter
“Yah, this is it.” --Remus
“What does it say.” --James
“I wouldn’t know, I haven’t opened the book yet.” --Remus
“Well hurry up, we don’t have all night.” --James
“Patience, I have to find the right section.” --Remus
“Is it in alphabeticall order?” --Peter
“Of course.” --Remus
small amount of time passes.
“Found it yet.” --James
Remus glares at James.
“It wouldn’t be taking so long if I had enought light, but someone insisted...” --Remus
“Alright, alright, will you just find the information.” --James
“Okay here...um...this might be harder then we thought.” --Remus
“What is it?” --Peter
“Look at this list” --Remus
“Well, we’ll just have to try each of them. Do you have parchment with you?” --James
“And a quill?” --Peter
“Why would I?” --Remus
“Because that’s your job!” --James
“We’ll just have to take the book back with us.” --Remus
“But He’ll see it!” --James
“Quiet! It’s just a risk we’ll have to take.” --Remus
“Ok, fine. But if he finds out, I’m blaiming it all on you.” --James
“Fine.” --Remus
“Are we going now? I thought I heard something” --Peter
“Not you too!?” --James
“Oh come on!” --Remus
“Don’t forget to relock the door.” --James
“Ow, Peter will you please watch where you’re going.” --Remus
“Sorry, but it’s so dark.” --Peter

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Sirius Black woke the next morning and found his friend’s beds empty. He wondered where they were. They usually didn’t get up any earlier than him. Getting dressed and wandering down to the common room he found them. They were over at one of the corner tables, asleep. A large book was open on the table in front of them and he could see James’ invisibility cloak draped across the back of his chair. Careful not to disturbed them, Sirius looked to see what they were reading...

Lily Evens was just coming into the common room when Sirius rushed past her, almost knocking her over. She looked back, confused, ‘What was that about’. Her confusion only increased when she heard laughter coming from the boy’s dormitory. Determined to find out what this was all about, she walked over to the remaining Marauders, who were still asleep. Just as Sirius before her, she looked down to read from the open book on the table and had to stifle a laugh. What she saw was this...

Thomas’ All-Purpose Thesaurus (for wizards and witches of all ages)
  SERIOUS (adj.)
   Can mean:
    grave (adj.) and has synonyms:
     grave
     solemn
     somber
     stern
     grim
     severe
     staid
     sober 
     unsmiling
     humorless
    important (adj.) and has synonyms:
     important
     momentous
     significant
     crucial
     vital
     critical
     considerable
     major
     fundamental
    acute (adj.) and has synonyms:
     acute
     life-threatening
     dangerous
     critical
    earnest (adj.) and has synonyms:
     earnest
     sincere
     genuine
     honest
     resolute
     decided
     determined
    thought-provoking (adj.) and has synonyms:
     thought-provoking
     meaningful
     intense
     deep
     profound
     powerful
    Antonyms and has synonyms:
     funny
     trivial
     minor
     flippant

THE END