RP: Could this be done? Date: May 21, 2006 Characters: Theodore Nott Location: Nott Manor Private/Public: Private Rating: G Warnings: None Summary: Pondering on birthdays that can't be celebrated openly, Theo gets an idea.
It was Tracey's birthday today, and as usual Theo had prepared the present well in advance. And yet, here it sat, on his desk, unsent, because something had happened to make Draco close down his manor, making it impossible for anything other than owls to get through (he'd already tried to send Samsy but the wards wouldn't even let the house elves inside).
There was little word, if any, coming from Malfoy manor, yet Theo knew there could only be one reason – and one alone – for Draco to close down so completely. Somehow, some way, Rodolphus must have caught on. Which was why Theo's gift lay unsent on the desk.
He had pondered options of course, but if Rodolphus was after Draco, he might very well be keeping an eye on his correspondence. Athena was well known to Rodolphus, and therefore not an option, yet if Rodolphus was keeping an eye on Draco, Zephyr was even less of an option.
Rodolphus was no stranger to intercepting mail – and if he intercepted Zephyr – well Theo had his reasons for not wanting Rodolphus to know about him.
What he needed was an anonymous owl, something like a barn owl, something that even intercepted would not point to him. Something like a post owl – yet out of Umbridge's real of power. After all, with the utter disinterest she had shown in the Death Eaters so far, Theo would not be surprised to find she worked for or with them – or at least supported their cause. Which meant any owl under her watchful eye was impossible to use.
Theo sighed, getting up and picking up Nathaniel from the floor as he pulled Orthus' ears. Orthus was a big dog, after all, and one should not try his patience for too long.
'So how do I get an anonymous owl without anyone's knowledge?' he asked Nathaniel out loud, receiving a coo in return. A coo that for some reason made him think one step further – anonymous owls would not only be his wish from now on. With Umbridge's newest decree, people would more than ever try to find other ways of sending notes, yet not everyone had house elves that could deliver, and of course, sometimes, like today, house elves didn't do the trick.
A small smirk spread on his face as he turned over the plan in his head. He'd need to get owls of course – and see if there was any way to fake the tagging process to make sure the owls looked tagged and legal. Then he'd be able to charge people for sending their secret messages – offering complete discretion of course (while still trying to look at the messages, naturally, but that was another matter all together). It would keep messages from Umbridge, at best provide him with useable information and as worst give him money.
Nathaniel cooed again, and Theo smiled at him, feeling rather pleased with himself. After all, if he could arrange to start building a bank, he could surely arrange for a black market post office to open up. He would need to put some more thought into this.