Nice. It looked like a crack line at first but you managed to make a serious story out of it.

 

The above challenge hasn't been answered despite being issued a fair while ago. Does anyone have a problem with me trying my hand at it?

 

No, go ahead.

 

Go for it, mate.

 

Necessities of War​

OoOoO​

Dolohov rasped for breath as his lungs filled with fluid. He would have grabbed at his throat but his hands were stuck to the arms of the chair. His panicked eyes darted around the room, seeking help but finding only the unsympathetic eyes of his torturers. ​

“Now, Severus, what have I said about using too much of the Draught?” Dumbledore chided. “We want him to slowly drown, for it to be drawn out over a period of time so his terror can build, so that when we administer the antidote he will be thankful. If it happens too quickly then the event is overwhelming, he will feel fear but not the terror that we seek to inspire. Administer the antidote and we shall start again,” he ordered. ​

Snape stepped forward and grabbed Dolohov’s jaw in a vice-like grip to still his moving head before pouring a vial of potion down his throat. As the fluid disappeared from his lungs the death eater sucked in large breaths of air. ​

“Now Mr Dolohov, surely you can see the hopelessness of your situation,” Dumbledore said. His voice was kind, at odds with the situation. ​

Dolohov bared his teeth in a defiant gesture. Years in Azkaban without access to a wand or hygiene products had left his teeth broken and rotting. “I won’t betray my master,” he said, the first words, aside from vulgarities, that he had uttered since being captured. ​

Dumbledore shook his head, the very picture of disappointment. “I’m afraid that your loyalty to Lord Voldemort is not returned by him. However, you will find that I can be quite loyal to those who help me. Just ask Severus.”​

Dolohov spat at him. Dumbledore cleaned his robes with a look of distaste. With a flick of his wand he yanked Dolohov from his chair and suspended him in the air. His arms were stretched behind him, not quite far enough to pull them from their sockets but far enough to make the position uncomfortable, especially when combined with the slight pressure that had been placed on his back. In time the discomfort would become pain and then the pain would become agony. It was possible to speed up the process though. ​

“Three seconds Severus,” Dumbledore instructed.​

“Crucio!” Dolohov didn’t scream, he was well inured to the cruciatus curse. It hurt him though. It hurt everyone, even if they didn’t show it.​

When Snape ended the curse Dolohov’s body was aching and the discomfort that his position produced had become agonising. The full body aches from the cruciatius curse would disappear in a few hours, it was only a short dose after all, but all the while the pressure on his arms would be growing more painful.​

Dumbledore swept his wand through the air and hit Dolohov with a spell that was one part mind magic, two parts glamour and all nastiness. When Dolohov began to scream and shout useless incantations Dumbledore silenced him.​

“Nightmare Curse?” Snape asked conversationally. ​

“Just a little something that I’ve been working on,” Dumbledore replied. “It delves into his psyche and recreates his worst memories. I patterned it after the effect of a Dementor. If you wish, I will teach it to you when we are done here. Tea?”​

“Coffee, please.”​

In a flash of blue light two cups appeared, floating in midair in front of the two wizards. The rich aroma of coffee filled the dungeon, overwhelming the scent of Dumbledore’s tea. ​

The wizards were silent for long minutes, sipping their beverages as they watched Dolohov writhe in silent terror, his mouth open to scream but no sound came out. ​

“He won’t break,” Snape said, breaking the silence. ​

Dumbledore gave him an amused glance. “I forget how inexperienced you are in these matters Severus. Everyone, everyone, breaks under torture given enough time and a willingness to inflict enough pain upon them. People like Dolohov and yourself just have much higher breaking points then the average person.” ​

Snape carefully hid his disbelief. He had been tortured by Voldemort before, he had not broken. What he failed to recognise was the difference between being tortured as a punishment for failure and tortured for information. He was also blinded by his own sense of superiority. ​

“Be quiet for a moment Severus,” Dumbledore ordered, ending the nightmare curse and removing the silencing charm from Dolohov. ​

Dolohov was panting heavily, his eyes wild and his expression flushed with adrenaline. He regained control of himself with impressive speed before fixing Dumbledore with a cold eyed stare. “I have survived the Dementors. Your cheap imitations will not break me.”​

“Imitations? Perhaps the curse is not as potent as I believed it to be. Something to work on then. Tell me Mr Dolohov, what Quidditch team do you follow?” Get them comfortable talking and then ask the important questions. A Ministry interrogator had taught Dumbledore that during the Second World War. ​

Dolohov started at the apparent non sequitur. “I used to be an Arrows fan,” he said after a moment, seeing no harm in answering, “but I lost track of them in Azkaban. The paper delivery is rather sporadic and the wireless reception is terrible. It makes it difficult to keep track of scores you understand.” His voice was strained from pain and raspy from screaming but other than that he showed no sign of weakening. ​

“You will be happy to hear that the Arrows are doing quite well this season,” Dumbledore replied. “They have a marvellous young Beater, with a solid old hand backing him up, and a strong Chaser line up, though their Seeker is rather mediocre. I imagine that he will be replaced before the season is out. Why young Roberts, that’s the Beater, has been compared to Ludo Bagman in his prime. High praise in Quidditch circles.” ​

“Perhaps I’ll see a game when my Lord kills you and takes over the Ministry. After he breaks me out of Azkaban of course.” ​

“Stranger things have happened,” Dumbledore replied. “Does Azkaban scare you Antonin? You do not mind if I call you Antonin, do you? If you wish, you may call me Albus.”​

“I can survive Azkaban Albus.”​

“That was not my question.” ​

Dolohov didn’t answer and Dumbledore smiled. He made a show of checking his pocket watch and said, “Severus and I have an appointment but we shall be back in a few hours. While we are gone, consider this; you will not be going free but that does not necessarily mean that you will be going to Azkaban. There are many foreign prisons in which you might be housed. It is within my power to do so. I’m only trying to help you Antonin.” ​

 

That is an awesome Dumbledore. I'd love to see that sort of guy mentoring Harry.

 

Very nice. The only criticism I can offer atm is you're lack of commas in appropriate places.

 

You've got a nice dynamic flow going on here between the three of them, and for the first time in a long while, this was a refreshing read. Definitely take this further.

 

It's solid, but a touch off. I'd like to see a little more good cop/bad cop with Dumbledore and Snape. Snape is the heavy, the guy breaking fingers and practicing his curses. Dumbledore should be the constant, quiet voice of reason, who never participates, regrets completely the necessity of inflicting pain, but never lifts a finger to stop it.

You found the proper voice right there at the end, but never really build the helplessness of Dolohov's situation, which is what torture is really all about. Also, the sidebar with the Arrows choked off the flow. I'd move it closer to the beginning, say after Snape's been cutting on him for a while. Have it be the first thing Dumbledore says, then move onto the drowning potion, the application of which again lets Dumbledore step in and "save" Dolohov.

 

While I agree with you in principle (esp. about the Arrows), I think it's refreshing and original to have kindly old Dumbledore being the latter in a "bad cop, worse cop" scenario.

If done correctly, that situation could be an even more powerful mind-fuck to whoever's in Dolohov's position. Think about it: you already know that Snape is Snape - whether you trust him or not you know he's a cold motherfucker. But upon finding yourself at the mercy of him and Dumbledore, anyone would assume that old Dumbles would be not only the voice of reason, but also the one allowing torture most reluctantly.

But in this case, Dumbledore is not only a participant, he's using it as a teachable moment for Snape, and has put enough thought into the process to invent his own curses. *That* would be a scary proposition for most Death Eaters, especially those who know or suspect that even Voldemort is wary of facing the old man.

But yeah, the non-sequitor about Quidditch just seemed missplaced more than something to throw Dolohov off his game.

 

Except that sitting aside popping lemon drops and chatting about Quidditch while someone is being brutally tortured is infinitely more sinister than actually participating in the torture yourself. Dumbledore IS the worse cop, not by virtue of what he does, but by who he is and what his presence means. It's a firm and loud declaration that the "Light" side is no such thing, and that he, as it's leader, is the darkest of them all. The kind words and gentle actions are a lie, and everyone in the room knows it. That's what makes it scary.

 

Thanks for the criticism, I'm looking at extending this into a one-shot and it helps to have feedback. And I agree that what I tried to achieve with the Arrows dialogue fell flat, I'm working on it though.

 

Random challenge that just occurred, and the line should be fairly obvious for what its referencing.

A New Challenger Has Appeared: ???

Length: 750 - 1200 words

Line: "They drilled to deeply in the depths of Gringotts, the early goblins did. Unearthed something they could not contain, were not ready for, until it was too late."

 

Mine.

Gonna start now but my girl is gonna spark the L shortly so give me til 10 pm ET.

 

We'd best be seeing a Balrog here, or I'm going to be very upset. LotR fusions <3.

 

I can't believe I've never read anything like this before. It seems so obvious now that I think about it.

 

I could use a challenge. I've been so bored of late. Also I just reread Something Grim This Way Comes and Masters of Death by Ruskbyte and am wishing for something like a melding of the two fics. More serious than Something Grim and less... yeah. Also it reminded me how much I adored that cartoon.

Anyway I'd love for someone to toss me a challenge.

 

:facepalm:facepalm:facepalm

nvm.

 

Excuse the mini-modding, but I'll assume that was a challenge.

You have to answer a challenge before you can set one. Lurk a little moar.

 

Are there any free challenges left?