alt_charlie | Order Only: Weird devices & George McCalman

So, Tonks and I went out this morning to check up on the weirdness from the device thing. We went for the methodical approach -- flying all about at calculated distances in various directions, approaching the line of the disturbance from all sorts of directions, trying to quantify what we were feeling, that sort of thing.

It's definitely related to the whatsis. We started out plotting the line we thought we felt, and it went along with what Sirius and Tonks felt the other day: northwest to southeast, along the coastline. Then we tried flying out at odd angles and crossing back over where the line should be, waiting to see when things got weird again, and it was the same line.

Once we'd established that, we were planning to fly up it and see where it led to, but by that point my broom had bucked me off four times and refused to take off again until I moved further away twice, Tonks kept getting so dizzy she could barely see, both of us were feeling incredibly drained like we'd been using immense amounts of magic, and the problems kept coming and going in waves as we flew along, in no pattern we could figure out except that it got a little worse every time we got hit. So we decided it would be better for us to leave it for a bit until we could recover some.

Second part of the day was up to Armitage to see if we could pick up George McCalman. I'm sorry to say that didn't go well enough either. George is at Moddey now, at least, but his parents weren't very interested in hearing us out. Mrs McCalman was bad enough, arguing that the Protectorate was looking out for them and we had no business being there when "the wizardfolk" would know what to do with their baby for the good of everyone, but then Mr McCalman came back from his work detail and flipped his lid about us talking treason and his wife cheating on him because no child of his would have turned out that way and their baby being sent to poison the work of this great nation... you get the picture.

It was rough. We Obliviated them both before Mr McCalman could turn more violent and faked a cot death, but now I'm worried Mr McCalman will take that out on his wife, too.

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You got bucked off your broom four times? I never would have believed such a thing.

You're sure you're all right, both of you? Don't suppose Poppy could check you over, but Frank and Alice hopefully did while you were at Moddey?

Oh, and there's the obvious: could whatever-you-ran-into have been doing something to your brooms? They've been checked too, I hope?

Well, I'm glad that George McCalman's at Moddey Dhoo, anyway. The more babies, the more attitudes we'll encounter, I guess. (We do seem to be getting a bit less consumed with second-guessing and guilt when these situations come up where the parents are hostile. I'm not sure it's entirely a good thing, but I still think taking the kid's the right decision.)

We're all right, we checked each other over well enough. I was starting to get a bit worried after the umpteenth bout of the dizzies -- Tonks had it much worse than I did, but I got hit a bit, too -- but it cleared up soon enough after we got out of the range of the whatever-it-was. We took an extra long lunch to make sure the effects had time to wear off, and food helped, too.

I checked the broom over pretty carefully after the first time it went all wonky on me. The Cloud of Doom didn't seem to be messing with the enchantments on it, or if it was, it wasn't in a way I could spot with all the diagnostic charms I know. We're going to have to be very careful when we check it out further -- it'll have to be expert flyers only, I think. If I'd been one pinch less experienced with keeping my seat in the midst of anything and everything, things would've ended much worse.

Our best guess was that the Cloud of Doom is messing with our magic, on some sort of innate level we can barely even feel, much less measure. Tonks was experiencing some disruption with her metamorph abilities, even -- said it felt like slogging through mud to shift.

And yeah. No doubt in my mind that taking George was the right thing to do. Merlin alone knows what would've happened to him if we'd left him.

Yeah, that's what it felt like. I was honestly concerned about shifting to Padfoot, as well.

But good on you for your virgin camp mission - and it sounds like it was quite the trying one.

Too right about the flying. Frank, love: this one isn't a job for you!

ta, you.

We could have used you in the camp, though. You've got the touch sometimes when I can't imagine what to say next. I mean, no one's better set to tell parents how their children will be taken care of.

I don't know if that would have made the difference today or not. This one was really dead set against our traitorous plans. And he was so... I don't understand how someone in his position could think the things he did. Or said he did. But he really seemed to believe all the rubbish he was shoveling. I mean, it didn't seem like the performance someone might give if they thought they were being loyalty tested.

He was really trying to call the guards in on us. So, really, in the end, there wasn't much choice but to stun him. And then, well, no going back from that, really. So then we were at Obliviation. Confunding them and taking the baby was the least of it, see?

people will do strange things sometimes to defend the life they're living. makes it easier to bear, maybe.

maybe he was more comforted by what he knew.

I hope to merlin we can get enough people listening to the radio out of aldrich. give them something else they can pin their hopes on and find comfort in.

remember what it was like before.

I hope so.

I thought going in today that we might add a button contact at Armitage. There were loads of people out in the fresh air when we got there. It was a nice autumn day up there--which was nice after we had steady cold rain all over Norfolk.

But I don't know what to think about our chances in Armitage now. I doubt the McCalmans are the only ones who think like that, and if that's true, I wouldn't want to trust the wrong person with a button.

Anywiz, in the end, we just got out as quickly as we could.

might check with fawcett, see if he knows anyone there who'd be useful.

our list of dogstar operatives doesn't include armitage, though.

You did the right thing for sure. As for what would have happened to him, I'm so glad he'll never have to know.

It wasn't an easy choice at all. And if the father hadn't shown up when he did, I'd have left the baby there with its mum until we could persuade her to see things differently.

But he was...

In the end, I couldn't quarrel with the decision.

You really would have left him there with her if it hadn't been for the father going mental on us like that?

I don't know if I could have done that. I really don't.

We could have come back and tried again with her. Confunded her if necessary so we could start fresh the next time. Sometimes you just get off on the wrong foot and need to make a fresh start. And sometimes you learn something partway through working with someone that shows you where their soft spots are or their sore points, so then you've got a better idea how to manage them on a second go.

I'd definitely have given it another round if I could have. If it had only been her.

But it wasn't.

Order Only: Weird devices & George McCalman

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