Promises Mistaken

The Alternate Unbroken Universe.

Introduction and Warning:

            Almost all stories begin with the question of "What If?"  Promises Unbroken, which began the Unbroken Universe, is a classic example of this question.  Promises Mistaken is what happens when an author faces a choice, and both roads are equally promising.  Chapter 10 of Promises Unbroken was such a choice for me. 

Some of you may remember the short scene in Chapter 10 ("To Thine Own Self Be True") when Arabella and James argue about who is going to infiltrate Azkaban. Arabella, as we all know, wins—but for a long while, I was going to let James go. Promises Mistaken expounds upon that.

If you haven't read Promises Unbroken, this story will make very little sense to you.  You will not understand how James and Lily Potter live, how Lord Voldemort has come to own Azkaban, or how Albus Dumbledore is the Minister of Magic.  If you are entirely unfamiliar with the Unbroken Universe, I suggest that you read, at the very least, the first ten chapters of Promises Unbroken.  The UU, however, expands far beyond that, including stories by several authors, three of which form "The SARS entity" that is responsible for Promises Mistaken.  If you're extraordinarily curious about us, please check out our profile, or the UU Yahoo!Group at .

            And now, without further ado, Robin4, Telepwen, and Sailor Sol present:

Part One: A Matter of Method

"I'll do it, James," Arabella said quietly, and watched her former student's hazel eyes widen in surprise.  Sunlight was pouring through the nearby window, and it was a welcome sight; they had both, after all, been at work since dawn, especially considering the raids that were planned for that evening.  The light made James look younger than he was, almost like he'd been when she'd first met him over thirteen years ago, but it didn't hide his unhappiness.  Before the Auror's self control could reassert itself, his mouth managed to drop open, and James stared at her as if she'd grown a second head.  A moment passed before he began to speak, but she cut him off.  After all, she knew exactly what he was going to say.

"You, of all people, certainly cannot do this," the head of Magical Law Enforcement said sternly.  "You know that, James."

"Why not?" he managed, still staring at her.

She was sitting casually on his desk in a way that most women her age wouldn't be caught doing.  Arabella had initially come to hear out the finalized version of James' Azkaban Plan—codenamed ICEBREAKER—but hadn't been surprised at all when he'd volunteered himself.  She knew him better than that, and knew the risks far better than he did.  Maybe it was simply an advantage of age.  "Well, aside from the fact that Lily would kill me, there's the fact of who you are."

He opened his mouth to argue, but she overrode him easily—and gently.

"People need heroes, James.  Face the fact that you are one to the Wizarding world.  We can't afford to lose you; not now."  She began to continue, but James cut her off.

"It's my plan, 'Bella.  My crazy idea."  He looked her in the eye, and she saw a determination that that couldn't be denied.  "I can't ask anyone to do something that I won't do first…"

Arabella swallowed hard.  "And if you fail?"

"Then I die.  It's a risk that I'm willing to take."  James' voice was far colder than she'd expected it to be, and Arabella's arguments melted to ash in her mouth.  He did know the risks, and he faced them anyway.  She swallowed hard.

"I can't talk you out of this, can I?"

"No."  Her onetime student smiled grimly.   "We can argue about it all you want, but in the end, the result will be the same.  I have to go, 'Bella.  I can't ask anyone else to do this.  I just can't."