Again, force of habit. I was on AlternateHistory way before I arrived here.

And I know I can write anytime I want without being a bad Jew. Hell, I'm not all that religious. It was more of a vague goal, really. I do have to put together an Official Outline and start writing the Chapters.

Got it: don't force cliches.

Fair enough on the nickname. All I wanted was to make it a bit easier to remember that one's the Harry Potter we all know and love(?). I am open to suggestions on what Canon (Happy?) Harry should be called.

Speaking of which, here's the current list of Nicknames:

Girl/Marauder Harry: Harriet, since I personally think of Harry's sister when I think a Fanon character named "Rose."

Slytherin Harry: Evans, which he came up with years before the story, to spite Purebloods and their tradition of always using last names.

Crazy Harry: Boy, since what else would he be called after years of abuse from the Dursleys? If you value you your life, I would not suggest calling him "Freak."

Azkaban Harry: 24601, since he had an ironic prisoner number.

Death Eater Harry: Not sure yet. Anyone have a good "Evil Right Hand" names?

WBWL Harry: I am stumped on this one. Although I briefly considered leaving him "Harry" since he is technically the "Canon Harry," I immediately dismissed it since it would be unfair and make it confusing. Any suggestions what to call him?

And, of course, I do appreciate Story suggestions I can use as Springboards for their characters.

 

...Why would a clever Slytherin Harry call himself Evans just to piss off potential allies?

 

That is true. And in retrospect, it isn't really the best one anyway.

Maybe something related to snakes? Any ideas on him?

 

Don't know what to post so, I can't wait to see what you manage to do with this.

 

See, this is one of my problems with it, lol. I certainly understand the need for nicknames like that, seeing as how there is going to be a few Harry's running around, and you need to be able to differentiate between them. But no Slytherin Harry is going to call himself anything beyond Harry, or perhaps Potter. People outgrow those things. I mean, yeah, I have a few friends who go by nicknames, but it's in the vein of shortening Michael to Mike, or going by their middle names if that's what they prefer. The same goes for any other Harry. Now, I could see a Slytherin Harry going by Harold or Harrison. It's slightly more dignified sounding, even if it is a little cliche.

I do kind of like the idea of an Azkaban Harry going by his prisoner number though. Especially if he's been in Azkaban for a long period of time, and being slightly unhinged by the Dementors. My only issue with that is that it's kind of long. Nobody is going to take the time to say a 5 or 6 digit series of numbers every time they talk to him, so I'd shorten it down to his cell number or something.

The other thing I wanted to bring up is to be careful when picking a name for Death Eater Harry. The only reason why Riddle started going by Voldemort was to 'shed' his muggle name. Harry Potter isn't a muggle name. There really isn't a reason to change his name, unless he's not publicly aligned with the Dark Lord. All the other Death Eaters use their own names, after all. But since needing a nickname is a given, keep it simple. Don't over think it and use something completely over the top. Like Voldemort.

I wish I actually had advice to give you beyond just bagging on the nickname thing. But my main point is, good lord, do not give a Slytherin a nickname relating to snakes. The point is to avoid cliches.

 

Whatif. Solid Snake.

Espionage!Slytherin!Harry.

 

That is certainly a legitimate complaint. However, as you yourself said, I am giving them all different name/nicknames to avoid confusion. There are seven different Harry Potters walking around, after all. And while they are a little old to really use nicknames, it should be pretty obvious to both sides they should go by different names.

And besides, some of them are already there. Take Crazy Harry, for example. He was abused for virtually his entire life by the Dursleys, who here only ever call him "Boy," with the occasional Freak thrown in. In the end, it is all he ever responds to.

For Girl Harry, meanwhile, it makes sense for her to be Harriet. I can't exactly name her Harry.

Azkaban Harry should be a Number, even if 24601 is too long. 84, perhaps?

Slytherin Harry would go by something more dignified than "Harry." Harrison does sound like a good one.

I would think Death Eater Harry would want to avoid all connections with Potter, especially if I have him raised by Snape. Although I must admit, I feel like this one should be easy but I'm forgetting something.

Which leaves OTL Harry and WBWL Harry, who would not likely change their names (unless I decide to give WBWL Harry a shit load of lordships he inexplicably inherited).

So while I get your hatred of them, they are a necessary evil, and maybe not even all that real.

 

I'm imagining a hilarious scene:

anyone- "Boy, do I love quidditch man!"

Boy- 'How the fuck would I know? I'll just say no.'

"No, you hate it. You despise it with every fiber of your being. It is night and you are day. I'm surprised you've forgotten your nemesis so soon."

 

A coworker of mine goes by the name of Hal, which is a medieval diminutive form of Harry according to a baby name website I just looked at. Not sure what other people associate that name with or if it's too American-sounding, though.

WBWL Harry could shorten his name to that to avoid being known by the name given to him by his hated parents. Or he could just change it altogether for the same reason, I suppose.

 

Oh, well shit. If the Death Eater one is being raised by Snape, just change his name completely and have him go by that. You could hand wave it away by saying that Snape wanted to throw one last 'fuck you' at James Potter by giving James's son the name of Snape.

And yeah, my issue wasn't so much with the crazy Harry or the girl Harry or whatever. Those are actually understandable. The point I was trying to make is that there is no reason for a Slytherin Harry or a Death Eater Harry, or really, any relatively normal Harry to go by anything other than their actual name. Obviously a girl can't be called Harry, and it makes sense for an abused Harry to go by whatever he was referred to.

 

Terrence Fulgewood, do it OP

 

Canon Harry= "I'm just... Harry."

WBWL = the Summoner, your host

Death Eater = Heinrich

Azkaban = XΨ919 (a few hundred higher than Sirius' XΨ390) pronounced 'Ex-upsilon-nine-nineteen; Nineteen for short'. Or you could be obvious and call him Riddick.

Crazy Harry = Boy or Callahan

Girl!Harry = depends on her appearance; Rose is for Lily clones, Harriet for Harry missing the Y-chromosome, Harley if she's Tonks-like, Ivy if she was left in the US to be adopted by some rich dark-haired guy with a secret and Violet if she's completely broken from abuse.

 

I get the more normal Harrys wouldn't really refer to themselves as something Not Harry. But, again, I consider it inevitable they would call each other something to tell them all apart. Even in-Universe, it would be confusing when characters who look exactly identical go by the exact same name, never mind Readers trying to keep track of which Harry just did what.

If you can come up with a way for the Characters and the Readers to reasonably tell which Harry is which without giving them all their own nicknames, please let me know.

---------- Post automerged at 01:13 AM ---------- Previous post was at 01:05 AM ----------

"... you're weird."

I have to be honest, the WBWL one sounds like a bad magician or worse comic book character.

Death Eater Harry, on the other hand, is perfect. Well done, good ser.

I don't know a lot about Riddick, but I do know it doesn't really fit: he spends very little time actually imprisoned. And the the Greek symbols make it confusing. 84 is better, especially when you realize it's a 1984 reference.

Yeah, Boy is quite established.

I have to admit, I was thinking Harriet for quite some time (especially since she is at least by looks Harry without the Y Chromosone). But considering the new Marauder Girl Harry, Harley is a whole lot better.

That Ivy one happened? Do I even want to know who made such a story?

 

Oh good; you noticed.

Whether it's Tony Stark, Bruce Wayne or Dr. Strange... yeah, I've seen it.

 

I am more concerned about the Death Eater Harry's background. You need to make it more realistic. Just because he was raised by Snape/Bellatrix and they say that he needs to follow voldemort, he would never be fanatically loyal. For him to fanatically loyal, he either needs to be mad or voldemort must have done something which make him so that he doesn't even care who killed his parents.

There's a plot bunny in my mind about a good death eater harry. I have thought a lot about this. I finally decided on Fem!Voldemort who raises harry on her own, after rescuing him from severe abuse at age 5 from the Dursleys who are actually being mindcontrolled by voldemort from the start so that she can sculpt the perfect heir with lots of hate towards muggles.

PS: I choose Fem!Voldy over male because she would be better at looking like she cares about Harry more than anyone in the world.

 

His background is quite simple: Voldemort, instead of killing Harry, takes him to raise as his heir. He was raised from birth to be loyal to Voldemort. He was practically taught that James and Lily got themselves killed for serving Dumbledore. Snape takes care of him on a day-to-day basis, Bellatrix is essentially his mother, Draco his brother, and so on.

Does that all make sense to explain how he became a Death Eater?

 

Imma let you finish, but are those greek letters? Because if they are, you are pronouncing wrong letters. There is no 'ex' letter in the greek alphabet. The closest thing is 'xee', Ξ. And the 'upsilon' is this one Υ. The letters present, Χ and Ψ, are 'hi' as in 'hipster' and 'psee' as in 'pseudo'.

If they're not supposed to be greek, ignore this, but I'm pretty sure they are.

 

I bow to obvious expertise- my reference was the PoA wanted poster for Sirius Black, and I never studied Greek. So... chi-psi-nine-nineteen?

All I was aiming for was a more believable prisoner ID than old Jean Valjean's. After all, this Azkaban Harry isn't meant to be a heroic figure hiding his identity from the pursuit of obsessive lawmen.

 

Here are the Names as they stand at the moment:

1. Girl Harry: Harley, since she is both Marauder-Raised and a girl.

2. Slytherin Harry: Harrison, because he would go with the more formal name.

3. WBWL Harry: Hephaestus: the Greek God who was cast down by his own parents, was really smart, had his chance for vengeance against those who spite him.

4. Death Eater Harry: Heinrich, since he is Voldemort's right hand, and spent his early years hidden in Germany.

5. Azkaban Harry: 42, his cell number and the "Answer to The Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything."

6. Crazy Harry: Boy, since that was all he was ever called.

7. Canon Harry: "Er, everyone only ever called me Harry, with the occasional Potter thrown in."

Unless someone has serious issues with any of the names, this is how it stands.

And remember: please suggest Stories involving these characters I can use as inspiration. Thank you to those who already have.

 

1. Girl Harry: Harley, since she is both Marauder-Raised and a girl.

Only if its appropriated; 'Harriet Oleander was awful, so...'. Else go with the familiar Harriet or the twice-cursed Holly.

2. Slytherin Harry: Harrison, because he would go with the more formal name.

Wouldn't that be Jameson? The formal of Harry is Henry, thus your Death Eater named Heinrich. In Slytherin your family is paramount, so he might go by 'Potter' or the more pretentious 'Peverell'. Best references would be On the way to greatness and Path of Decision.

3. WBWL Harry: Hephaestus: the Greek God who was cast down by his own parents, was really smart, had his chance for vengeance against those who spite him.

And you thought 'your host, the Summoner' was cartoonish?

This is your primary character to define; he's the cause of all the trouble. Best for him to be arrogant if he's not smart enough to solve whatever the problem is on his own, but he'd better be a strong manipulator or really desperate, or he'll never make this work.

5. Azkaban Harry: 42, his cell number and the "Answer to The Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything."

This sets the tone of the character as being frivolous. If you want a sinister feel, go with 'Number 6'. I'd refer back to the links for Betrayed, or perhaps Griffon Reborn at least at the start.

6. Crazy Harry: Boy, since that was all he was ever called.

I know there are others, but the only one I have to recommend is Brutal Harry.

7. Canon Harry: "Er, everyone only ever called me Harry, with the occasional Potter thrown in."

I assume you have the books. You might want to reread them to make sure you know who canon Harry really is.


Before you jump too deep, I suggest you plot out where you're going- how is this going to end? How will they each get back home (or die trying)? What problem was the summoning Harry trying to solve and why was this the best solution? It's those things that will drive the narrative; not the difference in characters.