Yenta Livery Company Challenge
By Ladyofthemasque
Yenta Livery Company Challenge (YLC Challenge)
Ending Date: 2005, December 31st
Challenge issued by Ladyofthemasque
There's a lot of MLC (Marriage Law Challenge) stories out there. While these stories are well-written in general, I find I personally cannot fathom any modern society putting up with such nonsense when the government enforcing it is not a totalitarian dictatorship...and even then, there'd be a serious rebellion against such a thing. No one should be *forced* to get married; not if the government in question expects to stay in power for very long.
Thus I wrote a story, "Matrimony", which I posted at RestrictedSection.org and at Ashwinder, as a sort of counter-response to the MLC idea. [Here's the Ashwinder link so that you can read it to get an idea of what the challenge is about:
http://ashwinder.sycophanthex.com/viewstory.php?sid=8640 . Your stories may be vastly different, of course; this is just a starting point.]
So. Here is my own challenge, based on that story, which is something I picture as a little bit more realistic.
In this Alternate Universe (AU), marriages are not mandatory between anyone, but the Ministry of Magic decreed long ago that, in order to prevent inbreeding and reduce the divorce rate and the birthrate for Squibs, wizards and witches have to consult a government-approved Geneamorological Agency before being allowed to marry. In this universe, Geneamorology is the magical study of matchmaking, psychology, romance and geneology. If the prospective bride or groom does not consult an approved agency--which includes marrying Muggles as well as wizarding-kind--the wizard or witch who marries without Geneamorological approval will soon find themselves cast out of wizarding society with their wands snapped, and forced to live like Muggles (horror of horrors).
In Great Britain, the most famous and reliable of these agencies is the Yenta Livery Company, which has been in operation since 416 B.C. It has offices in London, Bath, Norfolk, Carlisle, and Leeds (among other cities, at the author's discretion), and its motto on its letterhead is: "Your Best Match For Your Best Money, Guaranteed". The price of Geneamorological testing by the YLC runs roughly 150 Galleons per person, and is good for three months' worth of services. Other agencies are available at the author's discretion, and may be cheaper in cost, but they'll be cheaper and less reliable in results, too. The YLC is simply the best and most accurate agency available.
Rules:
1. This is a Severus Snape/Hermione Granger fic. Other characters may also be involved, get tested, get married, etc., but the main pair who ends up getting tested and marrying must be Severus/Hermione; they must be central to the story.
2. One or both of them may get tested, either jointly or seperately, with or without knowing about the other's testing--the results of the tests are NOT dependent on both parties being registered with a particular agency, unlike Muggle dating services. However, the results of that testing determine their future marital/lifestyle status:
a. If they use the YLC, the YLC declares them as highly compatible, whatever anyone else says.
b. If they use another agency, they can be declared compatible or incompatible, at the author's discretion. (This is so that those who want to write a "let's elope and run away to Pago Pago" story can do so.)
3. Hermione MUST be 18 years or older (Severus, too, for that matter) when tested for compatibility, as must all who are tested for Geneamorological compatibility. It is up to the author to determine whether this means the physical age of someone being tested (Hermione's age including the time added by the Time Turner from her third year at Hogwarts), or their chronological age (counting only the number of birthdays, and not the actual number of days lived). This minimum age limit is also required for getting married--only Muggles in Scotland can get married as young as 16, but those are Muggles, not wizarding-kind.
4. The rating may be any level, from G to NC-17.
5. There should be a valid, hopefully plot-driven reason for the testing/marriage to take place. Here are a few examples: Hermione and Severus are already in love but are nervous about whether or not they're compatible; an inheritance on one side or the other is at stake and marital status is a factor; marriage is necessary to safeguard one or the other; the marriage is meant to deceive or distract the enemy somehow; Hermione is pregnant (the author may decide who the father is); one of the two owes the other a serious debt, perhaps even a life-debt, and marriage is the price being demanded in payment; one of them is marrying the other for revenge (if this option is taken, and if the compatibility rating is deemed favorable, then getting married for revenge should backfire on the vengeance-seeker and the pair fall in love); some form of ancient, ritual magic is required by the Order, and it requires a marriage to be consummated (most common ritual ploy is the gathering of the blood of a virgin bride), and so on and so forth.
6. The story can take place before, during, or after the fall of Voldemort. If it takes place before or during the downfall of the Dark Lord, the question of Voldemort's reaction to their marriage must be addressed: the marriage must somehow be kept a secret; or it's part of some nefarious plot assigned by the Dark Lord; Severus has been outed as a spy and can now do whatever he pleases with his life; or whatever reason the author can suitably justify.
7. As this is an Alternate Universe (AU) challenge to begin with, Sirius Black and other characters whom have perished or vanished according to canon may be dead OR alive, at the author's discretion.
8. The nature of the testing is up to the author, whether it's a multiple-choice test or some fancy form of Divination, but it should include a format for testing one's compatibility with a specific person, and for a broad-based search, with questions for the witch or wizard being tested to indicate what sort of mate they're looking for. Examples include questions about whether they're looking for a Muggleborn, a Pureblooded, or Does Not Matter; whether Fertility is Important (they definitely want children), Fertility is Unimportant (they could take or leave children), or No Children (they don't want children, duh); and Region To Be Searched. In this latter option, any searching done within Great Britain would be presumed covered in the initial testing price; anything outside of Great Britain would probably come with an extra service charge, but testing for a mate in Europe would be far cheaper than searching for one in Australia, due to the distances involved.
9. Authors: In order to conserve space on WIKTT, the powers that be have asked me to ask you the following favour: if you are planning on uploading your response to an offlist archive such as FF.net, Whispers, SnitchFiction, FanDomination, etc; rather than uploading it into the challenge folder as well, please upload a linking file that will direct readers to the offlist location. This is not a requirement - please don't deprive us of your work because you're concerned about space - only comply with the request if you are planning to post offlist. Thank you!
10. That's it! Have fun, and remember to post your challenges before the end of the year--the sooner, the better! ~Lotm
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