11 - Contact
Chapter Eleven
Contact
As the entire hall stared at the group in silence, Sunset couldn’t help her smile. Celestia’s delivery had been perfect. After a few seconds, a few wizards here and there began to smirk, especially at seeing the confused faces around them. One of them, evidently, had had a few too many confused faces around them as she soon heard a single witch start to laugh. She was quickly followed by several more, only causing more confusion.
When Dumbledore finally began chuckling, Sunset couldn’t stop herself any longer and began giggling as well. Soon, as muggleborn and a few halfbloods here and there began explaining the reference, more and more wizards and witches began to join in. Laughs, chuckles, giggles and chortles were soon filling the atrium with a sound it had rarely heard in such abundance over the centuries it had seen.
Still, between the merriment someone had apparently gotten word out as it only took a minute before an elevator rattled into place on the far end of the hall and four people came out of it. Sunset had only personally met Madam Bones, but she had seen enough pictures to also recognize Minister Fudge and Barty Crouch. The woman wearing the pink abomination rounding out the group could only be Undersecretary Umbridge.
The laughter died down a bit as the group approached them. Dumbledore smiled idly. “It would seem our leaders have already arrived.”
His comment startled another wave of laughter from the gathered wizards, garnering a raised eyebrow each from Bones and Crouch, a confused smile from Fudge and no response at all from Umbridge.
Finally, the two groups came face to face and Fudge spoke up. “Princess Celestia, welcome to our Ministry of Magic. It’s an honor.”
Celestia smiled gently and nodded. “Since your world continues to be of interest, I’ve decided that proper diplomatic first contact should be made.” She looked at the group before pointedly glancing at the aurors around the room. “I see you are prepared.”
“So are you,” Madam Bones pointed out, glancing at the two royal guards beside their group.
Celestia giggled lightly. “I know. My Royal Guard always get so nervous when I go somewhere without an escort. It’s almost like they think I can’t take care of myself.”
Sunset snickered a bit at that, glancing towards the guards to see if they had reacted at all. Celestia and her had once nearly made a game of trying to catch the subtle shifts of their faces and bodies, only stopping when it had become clear it was making at least one of the throne room guards a bit embarrassed.
She didn’t see anything this time, but perhaps that was because of the situation. No matter how subtle, such a small thing might be perceived by some as a sign of weakness, and she knew the Royal Guard prided themselves on their stoicism.
She returned her attention to the Minister as she heard him speaking once more. “We’re glad you have decided to open a dialogue. From what Dumbledore has told me, there is a great deal both our communities can learn from each other, and that it is our Ministry that you have chosen to contact is both an honor and a privilege.”
“I must admit, some of that honor falls to my former pupil, Sunset Shimmer here, who was the one that helped make it possible for this meeting of worlds to even take place.” Celestia remarked, causing Sunset to blush just a bit.
“Yes, I have been made aware of what this young witch’s contributions have been. I daresay that, after today, there will be many people watching you with great interest, Miss Shimmer.”
Something about the way Minister Fudge said that had Sunset feeling a little uncomfortable. Still, she schooled her expression and affected a polite smile. “I know,” she said firmly, "but I already knew that when we decided to stop hiding Philomena’s true nature.”
There was quite a bit of muttering in the crowd as the phoenix in question spread her wings and trilled proudly.
Minister Fudge nodded and turned towards several Wizards off to the side that had just hurried into the atrium and started making their way through the crowd. When he waved for them to come closer, they rushed over and brought out cameras. Sunset relaxed and let a small smile on her face, still concealing most of her mirth. The press, it seemed, had arrived.
For the next few minutes, pictures were taken with the lot of them, both with Fudge’s group and Dumbledore, and without, and a few of them tried to ask questions. Princess Celestia had been prepared for that, of course. She gave friendly but vague answers, noting that this meeting was mostly meant to make contact official and see about future opportunities. She made a point of mentioning that at current, the only way to travel between their two worlds was with the help of the two Phoenixes that were with them.
This, of course, brought attention back to Philomena and Fawkes, both of whom preened and let out quite the smug trills to the members of the press.
After getting a promise to have copies of the pictures taken forwarded to her via Dumbledore, the Equestrian party followed after Minister Fudge and his entourage. Small talk quickly picked up between Fudge and Celestia as he started telling her a bit more about the Ministry. Celestia nodded politely, even though Sunset knew that she had likely heard most of this already from Professor Dumbledore and Mr. Weasley.
Speaking of which … Sunset noticed that the former had fallen into step beside her, and decided now was as good of a moment to sate her curiosity.
“Headmaster,” she began in a hushed tone, “What exactly did the Minister mean by ‘people watching me with great interest?’”
The twinkle of amusement in Dumbledore’s eyes didn’t reassure her much as he gave a little hum. After a moment, he smiled and simply said “Oh, nothing major … just that you might find some of the more powerful and influential families trying to arrange a marriage for you.”
Sunset’s eyes widened for a second, then narrowed dangerously. “They’re welcome to try,” she said quietly and had to suppress a giggle when she saw Dumbledore raise a brow at the flames dancing around her fingers.
The rest of the walk to the conference room was rather uneventful. The initial discussions were quite interesting though, especially as it seemed that the Minister was growing quite excited about … well, everything. If the amused look on Dumbledore’s face was any indication, this was perhaps the most animated that he had seen the Minister.
Everything from talk of potentially establishing an embassy office here in the Ministry and what it might need, talk of what goods the Princess thought Equestrians might be interested in, to even a small exchange between Celestia and Madam Bones about possible cooperation of the Royal and Night Guard with the Aurors seemed to excite the Minister. Crouch also seemed most interested at that bit, but for the most part seemed to be keeping quiet… whether it was because he was observing like her, or was there simply because he was the head of his Department, she couldn’t say. Perhaps he would become more active in follow up meetings when Fudge wasn’t present.
It seemed quite clear to Sunset, who spent the entire time simply listening to the exchange while watching the expressions of the other wizards and witches, that the fact this was going to make history was driving that excitement. The Minister to establish relations with another world of magic users? His name would doubtlessly be something you’d read about in Hogwarts history classes. Unless those classes remained focused on goblin revolts, of course.
However, Fudge’s excitement was not shared by all. Or rather, by one. Namely, in the form of the very woman they had been warned about.
The toady woman was wearing that kind of fake smile that Celestia had helped Sunset learn to see through very early on when it came to her lessons about politics. Her eyes had a cold fire to them as she sat and listened, every so often nodding to something the Minister would say to her.
The fact that he seemed to be talking with everyone else more than with her was only adding to the irritation she was working quite hard to keep contained.
It was only when a moment of inspiration struck the Minister that her limit seemed to finally be struck. As Minister Fudge was making the offer of seeing if any of the Unspeakables would be willing to volunteer and study the mirror that had first allowed the connection, with the idea of trying to find an easier way for the two worlds to interact, she let out a loud, artificially sweet cough that drew everyone’s attention to her.
The smile on her face widened a bit, and somehow, managed to be even more disgusting in just how obviously fake it was.
“Minister, as happy as I am to see you this ... excited over what is truly a historic moment for the wizarding world, I’m afraid that I need to put a bit of a damper on your enthusiasm.” She looked to the other wizards, purposely ignoring Princess Celestia and the Equestrians' gazes as she continued.
“But it seems that all of you are missing the elephant in the room. Or, to be more precise, the equines in the room.”
Princess Celestia’s smile was just as sweet as Umbridge’s, though a lot more convincing. “Ah yes, Madam Umbridge, I was warned of your … misinformed bias.”
Sunset had to admit that this woman was quite skilled at controlling her emotions, because she was rather certain she was nearly ready to explode as she asked, “Misinformed bias? And what, pray tell, does that mean?”
Fudge’s look of excitement quickly morphed into one of concern, yet he seemed unwilling to say anything as he looked at his undersecretary. Madam Bones simply rested her face in her palm and rubbed her temples. Dumbledore was watching with quiet interest, doubtlessly curious as to just what Celestia might say. Crouch seemed more amused than anything, his eyes flicking from the Princess to Umbridge herself. It was a bit surprising to Sunset, but perhaps he simply enjoyed watching the political maneuvering.
“Well, it’s no surprise when some things haven’t been communicated as properly as they perhaps could have been. For example, while yes, we are Equines back in our own homeworld, we are just as human as you are while we are here. If you, in turn, were to visit Equestria you wouldn’t be anymore human there than we are. So as you can see, while we are not human in the strictest technical sense, we are your local equivalent in our own world and so long as we remain in the same world, there is no difference of any kind between us. And while, with practice, it is possible to assume the natural shape of the respective other world at will, that form is always secondary.”
Umbridge didn’t seem to be swayed by that, but Celestia continued before she could even offer a retort. “On top of that, from what my former pupil has shared with me, those who visited our world and took on a form native to ours have had their magical strength improved or made more flexible … or in some cases were given advantages they would not have had previously. One of her schoolmates has begun to easily master wandless magic by growing more used to channeling magic in her unicorn form, something I have been told is rare amongst most wizards.”
Now Celestia’s smile became more sincere. “So, this meeting of our worlds, provides our world with a fascinating new one to explore and new friends to make… and while it does the same for your people, it also offers something much more tangible. Something that I’m sure you can see the benefit of.”
“Indeed, I myself have seen evidence of this firsthand at Hogwarts.” Dumbledore interjected. “And what Equestrian magic Miss Shimmer has already shared has also made her fellow students more adept at learning our own. I daresay that if this spreads to the rest of the students in her year alone, Hogwarts would have one of the most advanced and skilled classes of wizards and witches that we’ve seen in a few generations.”
Umbridge now looked somewhat torn, the smile having faded from her face, lips pulled into a thin line as she mulled over what was being told to her. Madam Bones, who was now giving the Princess her full attention, had an almost predatory glint in her eyes as she joined in.
“The Princess makes a good point, several actually, and we’d be fools to let something like the laws on magical creatures be what stops all of Wizarding Britain from benefiting from this. Just imagine what the Ministry could do with so many talented young wizards and witches coming into our ranks. I’m sure with the right words said here, a few whispers there, that even many of the older families wouldn’t raise a fuss over the ‘technicalities’.”
“As the Former Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement,” Crouch chimed in, the look on his face suggesting, at least to Sunset’s trained eyes, that he was enjoying this. “I must say that you should know Madam Umbridge that there are times when some laws need to be taken less seriously… or stretched a bit to fit an unprecedented situation. I don’t think the laws regarding non-humans ever expected something like this.”
Sunset was again having to contain her mirth. It now looked like Umbridge had bitten into a sour apple, but she had yet to say anything else. And she was not surprised when Celestia decided to offer the repugnant woman a way out.
“I would however, like to commend you Madam Umbridge, for bringing this up now. Doing so lets us clear the air and remove a major hurdle to cooperation between our two governments, and shows that you are thinking ahead for what issues could arise as our worlds conduct more business with each other. It is good that Minister Fudge has someone like you to watch out for these sorts of things lest they cause trouble later.”
That brought the excited smile back to Minister Fudge. He turned and beamed at Umbridge as he said “Quite right, quite right indeed! Thank you so much for bringing it up so that we could conduct this and future meetings without that hanging over our heads.”
Umbridge blinked a bit, caught by surprise, it seemed, for the praise she was receiving from the Minister and Princess on this matter. She adapted quickly however as a… well, maybe not nicer but a more polite smile came to her face. It seemed she was smart enough to realize when she had been outmaneuvered and was backing down… for now.
“But of course, I was merely looking out for the Ministry after all, and having this historic moment be overshadowed by political outcry without being prepared could have been disastrous.”
Fudge, it seemed, had not really thought about that in the excitement. His smile thinned a bit, but he quickly regained it as he said “And speaking of future meetings… Barty, how quickly do you think we could arrange a temporary Embassy for the Equestrians?”
Crouch frowned a bit, thinking. “That depends, Minister, on whether you want us to convert a few older, unused offices into one, or want something that will be the beginning of something more permanent.”
“I have no particular preference.” Fancy Pants said, having chimed in only a few times during the course of the meeting. “There is no rush, after all. We weren’t really expecting things to happen overnight.”
“Not to mention that I suspect you’ll be heading back home for the moment Mr. Fancy Pants, so I suspect we have time to figure things out.” Madam Bones remarked, earning a nod from the man.
“Yes, without a Phoenix of my own or an easier means of transportation, I admit that at first it will mostly be short visits where I borrow Fawkes or Philomena.”
Fudge grinned at that. “All the more reason then for me to send any volunteers from the Unspeakables back to Equestria with you! If, of course, you do not mind your Majesty.”
Celestia smiled. “I think that would be a marvelous idea. Headmaster Dumbledore told me a bit about some of the things they do, and I think they’ll find the experience of travelling to another dimension in of itself quite fascinating.” She turned to Fancy Pants and added, “And do not worry … I will be looking into seeing if we can find another phoenix who might be agreeable to helping us.”
That earned raised eyebrows from all of the others save Dumbledore, who gave them a serene smile as he said “It seems we have laid the groundwork here. I don’t think there is much more to discuss here at this time.”
“True that … for once I’m going to actually be doing something more worthwhile than approving cauldron measurement standards.” Crouch snorted, earning an amused look from the Headmaster and Madam Bones.
“We will need to convene the Wizengamot and inform them of everything.” Umbridge chimed in, giving the minister and Dumbledore a smile as she added “I suspect we are going to be in for a long night as word of this gets out from more… reputable sources.”
Dumbledore smiled. “Indeed, I suspect there may be another multi-day session in our future. We haven’t had one since shortly after the end of the war, have we? Though might I suggest,” he added thoughtfully, “leaving this matter for the regular monthly session? I believe I might end up tied up in dealing with the Confederation’s response to this unprecedented situation.”
As Sunset, Celestia, Fancy Pants and the two guards returned to the Grangers’ home where they’d prepared this morning, Sunset couldn’t help a smirk. “We just turned their world upside down, didn’t we?”
Celestia smiled in response. “I suspect so, yes. You might want to see about getting a subscription to one of the local wizarding newspapers. The fallout should prove quite entertaining.”
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One error to correct - the Unspeakables were called Unthinkables in one instance.
Why the long face Dolores?
Its like you take Umbridge at everything.
Celestia is going to have to keep a close eye on the Equestrian Phooenix population. Dragons would love to make horde from them as a way of enslaving them, according to Flim Flam Interdimentional Transport?
nice work
Question, how do wizards see homosexual unions at this point in time? I bet that's bound to find at least commentary from Sunset once the proposals start coming in.
Hello, Palpatine. You’re in the wrong franchise.
Tries to contain it, but ends up laughing maniacally
This is getting good
9934397
During the previous story the author already confirmed that romance was off the table for now, at least for the preteens that the story is centered on (Sunset, Lyra, and Twilight included)
I don't know about you, but I am looking forward to lots of fire in a manner befitting someone like Blueblood. *cackles madly*
There's a ton of unique story elements and questions to work with already, I'd rather not overwhelm the author with more topics while potentially stepping in front of the ones that literally took a whole story to setup - there's only so much narrative to go around if you want to do proper justice to everything before things start to drag in a bad way.
I personally am looking forward to what happens when muggles start becoming wizards. Oh the chaos
Dolores umbridge seems to be the type that likes to suck up to power so it's kind of surprising to me that she didn't try to suck up to princess Celestia somehow. on the other hand princess Celestia would have realized which umbridge was doing in the first place if she did try to suck up. On the other other hand we do know that she's sent tends to dislike non-humans so I really shouldn't be surprised
I patiently await the day when Delores meets Blueblood... It will be glorious!
9934680
Oh I'm not taking about romance, only Sunset's reaction to only receiving proposals for make bethroals. It's most likely going to be at least a little weird for her if equestria's more open on that front.
9934868
Umbridge is a blood purist and a
humanwizard supremacist, so her not cozying up to Celestia makes sense at the moment. If Umbridge were to somehow find herself in Equestria and kind of stuck there, once she got over not being human anymore, she'd quickly adapt.9935168
Such things would also depend on how pairings and such work in Equestria. Monogamous, Polyamory, Herds/no herds, etc.
9934587
No it was not but it will provide some excellent entertainment.
9934982
Those trying to out do eachother.
Hilarious
TAKE THAT UMBRIDGE YOU B*TCH. Sorry about that outburst but i reeeeaaallly hate Umbridge. Ok i'm calm anyway i love this story so far, i'm curious to see what other plot points the author plans to solve from the rest of the Harry Potter series before they're brought into the series. Also go Sunset don't ever let yourself become a trophy wife or forced to be married for your power, burn all those who only want you for your power and influence you have. Make sure it is 100% your choice. I know there is no romance for sunset because of her age but i still want her on her guard right now and in the future.
9937636
I imagine it would depend on whether the trade off balances out as a net positive or a net negative. Either that or a mutualistic relationship to which the host as an unintended negative reaction. There are only three kinds of documented symbiosis, and I'm not sure any real symbiote has such a complex relationship with its host.
If someone created a fictional symbiote that had such a relationship with a host, they'd have room to define a fourth kind of symbiosis within the context of their story, but how do you do that without the notion ultimately becoming twisted on the internet and after a time being mistakenly thought of as a real word and put in the dictionary?
9937696
But I mean, why send more ponies to Hogwarts in general? And if it's for a reason, why Lyra of all ponies? I mean, this just seems more like fan service in the fact that it's human-obsessed Lyra. There's no reason for it as far as I can see and I honestly don't approve.
Not just Umbridge, but all the blood supremacists are going to have a serious problem with a thousand+ year veteran of the political realm turning their
early unicorntribalistwizard-centric views back at them. Princess Celestia's seen this all before.9937704
Because it's genuinely a good way to not just learn wizard magic but also make friends for little Lyra? And sending a filly like Lyra, small and cute and curious as she is, makes a better impression than a grizzled warhorse? Celestia will send other ponies, for no reasons other than curiosity. That's even before the whole "know thy friends/enemies" thing that introducing a nation that produced someone actually worse than wizard Hitler to ponies might entail.
Most excellent.
You can say that again, I almost feel sorry or her. 'Almost' being the key word there of course.
9934334
Is it an error? Or are you mistaking a a feature for a mistake? Perhaps the Unthinkables are an even more secretive department in the Ministry; the ones who even the Unspeakables can only speculate about?
This is now head canon.
9941455
The Unspeakables, the Unthinkables, the Unknowables, the Unbreakables, and the Untouchables.
9962080
Nothing but unconfirmed rumor.
I can think of at least one person who would benefit from these laws being changed
all I can say is
I better not miss a damn thing
Oh we all know for a fact that the fallout will be fun to read/watch.
Heh, gotta admit, even with some obvious forewarning, I'm surprised things didn't get a bit (or a lot) more tense than that.
10262248
I really hope so, would cover all the drama and commedy you could wish for, HuH?
9934982
LMAO!! What a pleasant thought!