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christiwhitson · 2 years ago

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Just a snippet of what might be the first chapter of my next Outlander fic (after Brave New World). But I want to gauge interest before committing to this plot bunny, since I write one fic at a time. So if you like it, please comment and say so!

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Title TBD:

This was a mistake. I knew it with the first breath of Highland air, while the sound of my apparition still reverberated off the standing stones.

In less than a second, my blood was humming with energy, and magic pulsed through the circle in visible waves of silver and white, as though my mere presence had ignited a firestorm. It ebbed and flowed in a dizzying pattern of currents and eddies, pushing and pulling at my body like an angry sea.

I could neither take a step nor stand completely still, and I attempted to brace myself against the nearest stone—standing alone in the very center.

That was a mistake too.

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As the haze of unconsciousness receded, it was the pain that reached me first, urging me to open my eyes and find the source of it. I had fallen at some point, for the earth was at my back and the trees danced in the wind overhead. Wincing, I took stock of my body and struggled to sit up. The solid presence of a wand in my hand was an immense relief, and the pain was already leaving me, making it easier to focus on my surroundings.

The hurricane of magic that had sprung to life only moments before had vanished, and that in itself was bewildering. I’d heard of chaotic magic being unpredictable near some ley lines, particularly in places where they converged—places like Craigh na Dun. But I’d never read anything about it being so volatile. A magical backlash strong enough to knock me out was the last thing I’d been expecting on this mission.

I rose unsteadily to my feet and resisted the compulsion to touch the stone again, instead moving several paces away. I lifted my wand to perform a quick scan of the environment, and the results were even more baffling. It was as though nothing had happened. The magic levels were low enough to be classified as dormant, which made absolutely no sense. Whatever magical phenomenon I had walked into, it seemed the show was over.

I huffed in exasperation and scowled at the tallest stone. Whoever had set the apparition coordinates to land me almost in the center of the circle was a bloody idiot, and I was already looking forward to giving them a good rollicking. We were Unspeakables, for Merlin’s sake, and that sort of miscalculation was a rookie move.

Concerned that I might have somehow drawn the wrong sort of attention to myself, I surveyed the area for any indication that someone else might have witnessed the incident. The last thing I needed right then was to run into a muggle. They were at war just as we were, and they were likely to be highly suspicious of me—an oddly dressed woman who’d simply popped into existence atop a faerie hill. It was just the sort of folktale the Scots would turn into some parody of actual magic.

Not that encountering an unfamiliar wizard was an altogether safe bet either. Grindelwald’s war seemed to have reached boiling point, and the Department had been researching possible options for ritual magic to strengthen Britain’s defenses, utilizing particular ley lines. The nexus of lines at Craigh na Dun had been assigned to me.

Fortunately, it seemed I was alone. I glanced upward in search of the sun, but the Highland sky was as clouded as ever. I cast a quick tempus and frowned at the results. I couldn’t possibly have been unconscious for ten hours. Modifying the spell slightly to check the date, I produced a wispy set of numbers beneath the ghostly clock face that hovered in the air and nearly dropped my wand in shock.

May 2, 1743.

#outlander fanfic #I need feedback #Claire is a witch #Wizarding world setting

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classicfilmblr · 4 months ago

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