(no subject)

[a_t_rain]

So, what does everybody think Snape's Patronus is? Answers that amuse me may get used in Mordant.

Also, do you think Patroni can talk? If not, how the heck does the Order use them to communicate? I don't think the spelling-out-words-in-the-air method I used in "On the Joyous Science" would work for a lengthy message...

:: kicks self because I have just written a long and snarky firechat between Sirius and Snape on the night of the DoM battle, and then realized that duh, Dumbledore specifically said that isn't how Snape got in touch. Do not want to cut this bit of dialogue, so all suggestions are welcome.

Comments

[tunxeh.livejournal.com]

A raven?

[a-t-rain.livejournal.com]

Hmm, that's interesting. Why a raven?

:: tries to suppress random image of Snape's Patronus sitting on a pallid bust of Pallas, croaking "Nevermore! Nevermore!" :: Actually, something like that would probably fit right in at Grimmauld Place, wouldn't it?

[tabby-abby.livejournal.com]

A bat!! He's a vampire, duh! :)

Is Sirius the only who's snarky? Because if Snape is snarky too, you could have it be a dream scene (if that's not too much like a soap opera or fandom cliche).

[tunxeh.livejournal.com]

Actually, that sort of image was what I had in mind. Also, it's a greasy black bird with a big beak, quite clever in its own way. And sort of sinister but not outright evil.

[mafdet.livejournal.com]

A vulture. (I love vultures, btw. Without them we'd be knee-deep in roadkill.)

[captainjames.livejournal.com]

Re: Snape's Patronus
I'll be watching this entry to read what people think about this (read: James is clueless and doesn't have the faintest idea).

Re: Deleting a scene you like
I find it very hard to get rid of anything I've written if it's longer than a couple of hundred words long, even if I don't liek it much. Usually I find a way to rewrite it to fit the story so that I can keep it, and sometimes I save it in another document to look at later and see if it inspires another story :).

[gunderpants.livejournal.com]

His patronus is a wereflamingo.

[a-t-rain.livejournal.com]

No, it's the scene where Snape alerts the rest of the Order that Harry's gone to the DoM, so it has to be quite real.

[a-t-rain.livejournal.com]

And I would assume ravens can actually talk, unless Poe had gotten into the laudanum when he wrote that poem. (Well, OK, he probably had, come to think of it.) Which might be a way to do a talking Patronus that isn't all cheesy and cartoon-animal-ish. Thanks!

[a-t-rain.livejournal.com]

Well, duh. Why didn't I see it before?

[a-t-rain.livejournal.com]

Ooh, I like that idea, too! I can totally see Snape as a vulture. (Of course, there's the little problem that most Patroni seem to represent somebody else, but I'm not sure this is consistent across the board.)

[gioiamia.livejournal.com]

I'll vote with the raven or vulture. Or a hawk. I always imagined Snape with some sinister looking bird of prey. Something startlingly grim for an object as joyous as a patronus.

As for the communication, I always imagined that when a patronus is created with joyful thoughts in a dementor attack, it is driving the dementor away by projecting those joyful feelings and memories. So if it's being used to deliver messages, might it somehow telephatically project the thoughts/messages of its creator to the recipient?

[mafdet.livejournal.com]

most Patroni seem to represent somebody else,

A Narcissus then! *giggles* Or a Prince of the classical, handsome, storybook kind that ol' Snapey probably wishes he was.

[a-t-rain.livejournal.com]

Heh, I've seen it seriously suggested that his Patronus might be a lily. (How, exactly, a lily is supposed to chase down dementors is beyond me.)

I like the image of a classically handsome prince lounging around 12 GP, looking haughty and delivering Snape's lines with far more panache than the original Snape could pull off :) Of course, I do think I'll probably have to stick with an animal, realistically.

[a-t-rain.livejournal.com]

Could be, but telepathy isn't much fun to write from the perspective of a third-party observer, so I'm not quite sure it'll work for this story. Ravens are starting to look better and better. (I looked them up, and they can indeed talk. Yay.)

[heartsncraftslb.livejournal.com]

I think it should be a werewolf. That'd be the height of irony. Weak, indeed, O Master of Self-Loathing. (Plus, all those RL/SS smutfic writers would be over the moon, pun most decidedly not intended, in ANY sense.)

Seriously, though, JKR's said that Snape's Patronus and his boggart will both be revealed, and that their forms are important. I was thinking of a few ideas, many of which were downright stupid (the fluffy kitten with a bow around its neck, just because I am a silly sadist, and the Crumple-Horned Snorkack, whee), but perhaps a thestral? Think of the added security: It's a Patronus that not everyone can see. ;)

As for Patronus communications, I wonder if they carry an echo of the message. (I've just sparked my very own plot bunny. Don't mind me.) Maybe they "speak", with the sender's voice echoing to the intended recipient(s); it might be a trick of Dumbledore's own invention. Eh, maybe.

Defunct firechat: Keep it and screw canon? (No, wait, that's the Harmonians' job.) Maybe a variation on the two-way mirror? One at Hogwarts, one at Headquarters? That way, you can keep Sirius and Snape sniping at one another, which is always fun.

Just a few thoughts...Take 'em or leave 'em. ;) Looking forward to reading the next installment of Mordant, as it's been great fun thus far. - LB

[mafdet.livejournal.com]

I have it! Snape's patronus is - ALAN RICKMAN!

[moonys-autumn.livejournal.com]

I think maybe you can just sort of hear a patronus in your mind.

[a-t-rain.livejournal.com]

Seriously, though, JKR's said that Snape's Patronus and his boggart will both be revealed, and that their forms are important.

Yeah, I know. That's precisely what worries me; none of the forms I have in mind are particularly Symbolic or Revealing, so in a sense, they're just as non-canon as a firechat would be.

I like the idea of dodging the entire question by using some variant on the two-way mirror, though I do think JKR's answer to the FAQ poll question implies that the Order's usual mode of communication is by Patronus. (Which raises the question -- what does Mrs. Figg do?)

[sprite6.livejournal.com]

I'm not sure Patroni necessarily represent someone else - Harry's and Tonks's do, but Cho's is a swan, which struck me as representative of her (lovely, graceful, able to fly) and Hermione's is an otter because that's JKR's favorite animal.

I imagine Snape's Patronus as a Lethifold. Deadly because of its stealth, a Lethifold is difficult to defend against or even to detect. Stealth has helped Snape survive two wars, so it seems to fit his personality and reflect what protects him.

[heartsncraftslb.livejournal.com]

Mrs. Figg uses the two-way mirror, of course! It could be that the mirror's a Top Secret Order of the Phoenix Thing About Which Children Must Not Know, by Order of Molly Weasley. ;D

GL -- I rather like the raven, BTW. Don't they pick at carrion? - LB

[bribitribbit.livejournal.com]

A bat.

Oh, yes, the easy-out answer.

But my first thought was, for some strange reason, a gorrilla.

[sprite6.livejournal.com]

Snape's Patronus and his boggart will both be revealed, and that their forms are important.

Yes, but we don't know how they'll be important. Most people think it will reveal his character in some way (which seems likely) but I sometimes wonder whether the real significance is to the plot - say if Snape sends his Patronus to tell Harry something, but Harry doesn't realize it's Snape's until later. If Jo told us the form ahead of time, it would ruin the surprise.

[sparkly-stuff.livejournal.com]

Snape's Patronus...a cow. Or something equally stubborn and unimpressive. Oh no wait, that would probably be MY patronus. Moooo!

Also, do you think Patroni can talk? If not, how the heck does the Order use them to communicate?
That's what I've always wanted to know! JKR made it sound like it's so obvious, but really I don't get it. We never see the Patronii (Patronuses?) speak or make any kind of noise in canon. I guess you just hear them in your head, like moonys_autumn suggested. But then how do you send a message? Do you think the message in your head and then do the Patronus charm? JKR needs to explain this better. And this comment is like, completely unhelpful.

[gioiamia.livejournal.com]

Hehe... I'm getting a kick out of imagining Snape's voice coming from a Raven's beak. And the evil looks Ravens give certainly do match Snape's!