Negotiations
Aurora walks into her quarters after breakfast and tries to sleep. Running through her mind is the magical trip she took to the moon, her mind full of the views of the different stars and planets. Along with the possibility of visiting those planets. She was, no is, quite prepared to sign a marriage contract to get whatever it is she needs. She's also not too humble to think that she's one of the driving forces behind Astronomy still been taught at Hogwarts. She eventually falls into a restless sleep filled with dreams of Saturn's rings.
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For Harry and Hermione, Potions, Charms, and Transfiguration all pass as expected, even down to the fact that Professor Snape is abrasive and picky. For Harry his day is a little uncomfortable for a couple of reasons. He is still feeling constrained by being in a female frame, but he knows that he will have plenty of time to relax in a different frame over the weekend. In addition, he keeps second guessing his own feelings as he wonders if he's ignoring Wisp.
In the afternoon, before Transfiguration, Hermione confronts him.
"Harry, what's going on? You've been off all morning."
"I'm, getting uncomfortable in a female frame. I didn't think it would get this bad, but this is the first time I've not been able to just change. Also, last night Wisp was, reluctant, to go into the Arsenal. Oh, yeah, I transferred Harrow Prime to you last night, I wanted to have you transfer out of your Titania to Harrow so that we could see what she can do without you present. We kind of got side tracked."
Hermione looks doubtful, so Titania sends her a feeling of reassurance.
"Ok, but why did you send me Harrow?"
"When I was looking for parts for the Prime Titania and Octavia, I happened to come across them and got lucky."
"I'm really not sure about that."
"I understand, I really do. You'll need to cross the gender divide at some point."
"It's not that, I've read about Harrow, and. I don't think I can get behind the philosophy in his design. I was talking to Kitty, and her Nezha is a frame that I think would balance me. I, I don't know, well I didn't anyway, know how to relax and have fun."
Harry shakes his head, "Hermione, I know you've been better with not going with what you read. However, you can't judge a frame by their description. Can you imagine being without your Titania?" – Hermione shakes her head vehemently – "Be honest with yourself, would you have ever picked her as your frame in September?"
"I, no, I don't think so."
"I, acquired a Harrow when I freed Rell from his self-imposed guard against the Man in the wall. I had to kill him in the end, because he gave up everything, his body and his sanity, to hold the man at bay. When I put him back together, there still wasn't enough to make a full person, and he'd wrapped himself up in his own chains. It was hard, I have memories of him, but I was only a few years old and they were fleeting moments. The other children, they kicked him out for being different. Then Margulis did the same thing. I love her, my first mother Margulis that is, but she wasn't a good person. Though, I think she was a good Orokin, and they killed her for that."
"Oh, Harry. Have you ever spoken to anyone about this stuff. I don't mean like we're talking about it, or you talk to your mother. Rather, spoken to a psychologist or councillor?"
Harry laughs, "Don't need to, neither will you. It's another 'gift' the Orokin gave us. We literally can't lay down traumatic memories, can't have flashbacks, can't have anything that might endanger us if we remembered it at the wrong time. How many times have you died now?"
"Loads, and it hurts, oh god does it hurt, every single time."
"And when you think about the times you died?"
Hermione sounds confused, "It's like it happened to someone else. What the hell?"
"As I said. I'm sure that's why they were so bad. They cut so much of themselves away that the majority of them lost their conscience."
"Harry, I think that despite the implants you can still have issues you need to resolve. I'm only 14, but even I can see that your childhood is something that keeps coming up, time and time again. Maybe talk to my mum or dad, and they can give you a healthy human adults view on things. But I think that stuff with school has brought up memories and feelings that weren't ever resolved.
"Changing the subject, as the Orokin built the Prime Warframes, would it be possible to build them here?"
Harry shakes his head, "No, not without the right equipment. We'd need to find a surviving Orokin research tower and then generate a blueprint for the computers and machinery they used. There were hundreds of thousands of towers, and only a few handfuls of research towers. It's either that or design our own Warframes, even there we don't have the knowledge they had to make them as good as the Prime Warframes. Look at Caliban. He was one of the early experiments the Sentients did on converting people. We found him on Earth, insane from pain and unable to die or live. We Tenno, and my mother, were able to convert him to a Warframe so that our presence could soothe his pain and allow his mind rest. He's not the first person we've had to save like that, but he was the first that we had to convert to a Warframe ourselves. But he doesn't have that extra something that the Prime Frames do that sets them apart."
"How could. No, I don't want to know."
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The rest of the day passed quickly, and Harry was only mildly surprised to find Aurora camped out in the common room just before curfew for the lower years. Between her feet is a large carpet bag, and she is wearing an outfit that screams 'Mary Poppins'. In her hand she holds a scroll, that she passes from hand to hand occasionally. As Curfew arrives, and the prefects start herding the first years up to the dorms, Aurora looks over to Harry and Hermione hopefully. Much to the consternation of the upper year students, who are hoping to be able to have some fun, she doesn't leave.
Harry and Hermione choose to finish their homework rather than pander to Aurora's hopes and expectations. Once it's finished, they take it up to their respective dorms and store it in their trunks. On the way back down, they pass a dejected looking Aurora, and Hermione is just passing through the portrait hole when she turns back and says, "We're leaving if you're coming."
In a manner unbecoming of a pure-blood witch of her breeding, Aurora hurries after the two Warframes as they make their way downstairs.
Once they've docked with the Railjack, Aurora is far too nervous to pay attention to anything beyond watching the grey tunnel that they seem to be travelling through. Harry and Hermione, on the other hand, made their way down to the modified arsenal, where there are currently 5 Warframes in storage, as well as one spare pad.
Hermione looks at the empty space with no small amount of terror. Faced with the reality of changing frames, she discovers, is vastly different from reading about it. Intellectually, she knows that it will be just like customising the flows and components of Titania. However, this has been her body for the last 3 years. She can't imagine it not being her body.
"It's easier if you just do it." Harry's voice makes her startle, "I've mentioned it before, but I never had my memory wiped. The others, they didn't know any different. For me, it was like this. You need to just trust that you will still be there, you're just changing your clothes, in a manner of speaking."
Reaching out hesitantly her hand hovers over the control panel, then it nudges forward and she finds herself looking down at Titania. Even in the future, she'll never be able to state for definite if it was her that activated the panel. She hesitantly activates the option to change warframe, and selects the harrow. As the frame appears in her view, she doesn't feel any different, so she exits the arsenal and stumbles. Her body feels off, like it's not right in some indefinable way. Turning her head, she sees Titania floating where she left her, Harry, out of his warframe, looking between them expectantly.
She says, "I'm here."
"How is it?"
"Everything feels, off."
"That could be your synchronisation level. It's a new warframe to you, so it's going to feel off. When we get home, take him out to earth a few times, it should start feeling more comfortable after that." – Harry turns back to Titania – "Titania, if you can understand me, and are able to act on your own. Can you raise your hand?"
Both of them watch, and Harry is about to find his implants when, slowly one of Titania's hands lifts. Hermione squeals and leaps forward to pull Titania into a hug, "I knew you were there, I just knew it."
"Hermione, you need to let her go. Remember, she doesn't have the experiences of being independent."
Reluctantly she pulls back, "But she does, she remembers overriding her operator."
Harry shakes his head, "I think that she remembers the original doing that. She's obviously not the same as the original, as she'd have been able to do it when you first joined her."
"Harry, why does this feel like my body?"
Harry shakes his head, "Because it is. If you took your wand and cast Lumos it would, work, the, same...", he trails off as Titania turns the hand that holds Hermione's wand over slowly. She then takes the wand and says "Lumos" before then holding the glowing tip of the wand up to her face.
"Harry."
"Yes Hermione, I'm seeing the same thing."
"I was going to say that this is a little beyond the stories of what they're supposed to be able to do."
"That too. Titania, is it easier to understand us if we talk like this?"
Titania takes a moment, then shakes her head slowly before pointing at Hermione, "Want...back.".
Harry glances back at his Wisp with some trepidation, will she feel the same way? By the time he turns back Hermione has already switched back into Titania, and is muttering to herself, well probably to Titania.
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Once they arrive at Lua, a 5 minute walk to the living quarters takes 30 minutes as Aurora keeps looking around at everything she sees. When they do arrive, Harry is bowled over by an Octavia, her beatbox trailing behind her.
"Harry, I missed you. Good news, I now know everything I need to start work, so I'll be coming with you."
Hermione looks over at her parents, who are wearing tabards to preserve their modesty. They're floating in place with parts growing out of their backs, slowly forming into their main chassis. Her pause is only momentary, but they flinch none the less.
"Mum, Dad, it's not the appearance. I was just trying to work out how to hug you without hurting you. Does it hurt?"
Danjell shakes his head, "No, it's just weird. Like I've got a dead leg, arm and weirdly, head."
"Is it ok to hug you? I'm not going to damage anything am I?"
Amelia flies over and pulls her daughter into a Hug, "As long as you're gentle you'll be fine. We're still squishy at the moment."
Aurora stares at Danjell and Amelia, her mouth agape, and then over at Natah. After a few moments her expression firms up and becomes full of resolve. Deciding to stay quiet rather than make more of a fool of herself than she already has, she conjures herself a seat. Unknowingly drawing the attention of Natah at the same time.
Recovering his footing, Harry looks up at the Octavia, "Hey Kitty. Octavia?"
"We've been watching the films that Emma brought, so I've tried to reproduce some of the music. I've also been practice me English."
"I think it's 'my English' but well done'"
"Thanking you."
Harry laughs, "Almost. This is weird, I've never thought about a relationship before, but now I feel happy to see you."
"I'm glad. It means that it could work. I've seen enough people having relationships to know that much anyway. Who's the lady?"
"Oh, we should speak English as she doesn't know our language yet."
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"Mum, this is Aurora. Aurora, this is my mother Natah."
Aurora starts slightly at being addressed after the reunions, but swiftly gets to her feet and goes into a deep curtsy, "It is a pleasure to meet you Mrs Natah."
Natah looks down at her curiously, "Aurora, what are you doing?"
"It's a curtsy Madam."
"Why are you doing it?"
"It's a woman's sign of respect, especially to one higher socially than you are. A man would bow instead."
"Stand up, that can't be comfortable. Dan, Emma, do you know anything about this?"
Amelia nods, "It's a bit old fashioned, and something you'd expect to see people doing when they meet the Queen. Even then, I wouldn't have ever imagined seeing such a deep curtsy outside a show."
"Why have I never seen Pandora do this?"
Aurora ventures, "If I may Madam?"
Natah looks a little confused, "Me?" – Aurora nods – "Just use my name, or if you must be formal, call me The Lotus. Also, you don't need to ask for permission to speak."
Aurora looks a little nonplussed, "If you are talking about Madam Lovegood, then it is probably due to her social ostracization for marrying into the Lovegood family."
"Ostracization?"
Danjell says, "Excluding from a group or country by general consent of the other members."
"Why would they do that?"
Aurora grimaces as she tries to explain the fear of a family line being infected by their blessing, "It's... hard to explain without going into the importance of families, bloodlines, and how the blessing could affect a family. The Weasley family has a similar issue, as historically they have only given birth to boys over the last 5 generations. Though it's less severe. Please would you give me the same Elixir that you gave Madam McGonagall, I have here a pre-signed and sealed Marriage Certificate if you need it." – She holds out the scroll.
Natah takes the scroll and opens it, her systems scan and translate it in milliseconds as she stops pretending to be human due to the shock of what she read. She comes back to human speeds in her subframe while her main chassis continues to go over the implications of what's written, and the fact that the signature is written in blood.
"Cephalon's Cy, Suda, Ordis, and even you Sark, I can feel you skulking around in the background. If even a whisper of this conversation makes it out into the wider solar system, I will hunt each of you down, and ensure that the one that let it slip wished they had been trapped in their Oubliette, do you understand me? Don't think that the anthem will protect you either, I wrote it."
"Cy/Suda/Ordis/Sark understands."
"Sorry about that, I need to know, what are the implications of this contract for you?"
Aurora shrugs, "Depending on the clauses you add, I could be one step removed from a slave, and my own magic would enforce it."
Everyone that understands the conversation just stares at her in disbelief.
Kitty whispers, "What's going on?"
Harry says softly, "Aurora has just given Mum a blank debt bond that can't be bought out, traded, or expire. The implication being that the same thing could be done to anyone."
Kitty transfers out of her Octavia and grabs Aurora by the lapels "Are you insane? Do you know how many have freed from debt bond. You willing put in non free bond? You lucky Natah not Corpus."
Natah takes Kitty's arm and gently, but irresistibly, pulls her away from Aurora, "Kitty, please. She comes from a world where they've never had the Corpus or Orokin. Aurora, I think that I will keep hold of this and teach you our language. You can then visit Venus with a few Tenno and talk to the people there. If, after meeting them and talking to them about their lives and what's happened to them, you still want to use this scroll we will talk about it."
Aurora nods and is led off to learn the language in a pod.