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Training Daze, A Crossover Fanfic of the Dresden Files

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azoicennead said:
The most important trait for using magic in the Dresdenverse isn't power, it's skill. That's why Ivy is such a terrifying opponent, despite having average-at-best power to back her spells.
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The opposite, actually. The first time she and Dresden met, Ivy tripped all of Harry's "something wicked this way comes" wards just walking up to the apartment. The Archive is Power with a capital P. However, Ivy is still a little girl and has neither the life experience nor skill to fully make use of her power. Having the collective written memory of mankind gives her a boost way above average, but she is nothing compared to what she could be with practice.

If you want an example of skill trumping power, look at the Merlin. Dresden is among the most powerful wizards of his generation, a match for anyone on the Council, but he lacks the skill that comes from centuries of dedication to the art.

EDIT: I also have this amusing mental scenario of Ivy showing up because she is a huge Buffy fan. Kincaid tries to convince her that its not a good idea but Ivy refuses to miss the chance to (indirectly) meet her favorite character from the show.
 
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Wait, he's now Willow.

And Allyson Hannigan exists on his Earth.

At least he has an option of a viable career as a celebrity impersonator now.
 
If, as I suspect, this is right before Proven Guilty, he might find himself going to class with Molly. I mean, he could always not go to school, but his body is 15 or 16 right now - there might be some problems if he's going to be operating in the public eye. His fake ID would need to be really, really good.

Also, he has a daughter. If this is after Dead Beat, since Luccio is in her new body, Maggie has probably been born.

. . . You know, none of his enemies are going to recognize him. Sure, he should reestablish his identity with the White Council, but it might behoove him to lay low. Be interesting to see him go through Warden boot camp again, since he needs to retrain his abilities anyways (much like Luccio.)
 
Interregnum said:
The opposite, actually. The first time she and Dresden met, Ivy tripped all of Harry's "something wicked this way comes" wards just walking up to the apartment. The Archive is Power with a capital P. However, Ivy is still a little girl and has neither the life experience nor skill to fully make use of her power. Having the collective written memory of mankind gives her a boost way above average, but she is nothing compared to what she could be with practice.

If you want an example of skill trumping power, look at the Merlin. Dresden is among the most powerful wizards of his generation, a match for anyone on the Council, but he lacks the skill that comes from centuries of dedication to the art.

EDIT: I also have this amusing mental scenario of Ivy showing up because she is a huge Buffy fan. Kincaid tries to convince her that its not a good idea but Ivy refuses to miss the chance to (indirectly) meet her favorite character from the show.
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Yes, she triggered his wards, like you would expect from an ancient repository of knowledge.
Remember that Ivy is both a little girl and an ancient, mystical collection of knowledge. There is a lot of power invested in her.
However, when we see her actually fight (in White Night), she barely uses any power as she takes out multiple Denarians.
 
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Snippet 14: Councilmen.
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    • Not quite as long as last time, but I like the ending point:


    Judging from the polka memorabilia, I had a sneaking suspicion that somehow I ended up at Butters's house. I was even fairly certain why I had been brought here as opposed to somewhere else. Butters lived close to the morgue, knew Ramirez, and no one wanted to get caught by my wards while carrying an unconscious me. Without someone who knew how to deactivate them, my wards would fry most anyone who tried to enter, at least if they had supernatural power. Thieves would just get a sharp jolt, enough to deter them.

    So I had been brought to Butters's place, and he'd taken care to magic-proof his electronics beforehand. Sitting up, I suppressed a yawn and looked down at myself. I wasn't wearing my duster, and I was swimming in my long-sleeved shirt. Somehow my pants had been removed, but I still had some dignity in that I had my boxers, which were loose as well. My feet and legs were bare, feminine, and if those legs had been on someone other than me, I'd probably be giving them second and third looks.

    Hey, I'm… I was a guy.

    Sitting up had me realize one more thing. Something that was remarkably pressing despite my situation. I'd have to deal with it before dealing with anything else.

    I had to pee. Damnit.

    I stood up, and I looked for where the bathroom would be. The hallway looked promising, and as I turned to go down, I nearly bumped into Butters, who was wearing his glasses. Backing away slightly to avoid a collision, I noticed the height difference between us was significantly smaller.

    "Oh… Harry… You're awake…" Butters commented, quite obviously looking toward my face but not my eyes.

    "You recognize me?" I asked, a little confused.

    "Oh good, you are Harry…" Butters breathed a sigh of relief. "Carlos was pretty certain you'd still be you, but after the changes…"

    "Right… the changes…" I trailed off, looking down at myself.

    "Warden Chase and Yoshimo did the changing. Carlos, Bill and I were preparing the food. They didn't fully change you out of things, but Warden Chase said she'd be back with some clothes for when you woke up." Butters said, his face turning slightly red.

    "Right. I uh… need to… bathroom." I motioned down the hall.

    "Second door on the right." Butters replied quickly before heading into the living room. I followed his instructions and entered into the bathroom. Ignoring my normal habitual ways, I flicked on the light in there. Butters's bathroom was decorated much as his living room had been. He had matching accordion towels, drum-shaped soap containers, and even some sheet music wallpaper.

    Without going into too much detail, let's just say that a girl or woman is different than I was used to. Messier too. I cleaned myself up and stood to wash my hands, looking into the mirror over the sink. Now I don't really have any mirrors in my house; they're not exactly safe to keep around for someone in my profession. Mirrors can be used as portals for some nasty things to come out of the Nevernever. Most people don't have these sorts of issues, but I did.

    I looked… different. Well, of course I looked different, I was a girl now, but while I hadn't gotten a very good look at what Willow looked like over in Sunnydale, the person reflected back in the mirror was not Willow Rosenberg. She could easily have been a relation to the girl, but Willow's hair was not black with red streaks, nor was she as tall as I appeared to be. Willow had been about Butters's height, and I clearly had a head on him. Additionally, I could pick out familiar shapes in my reflection. My jawline and eyes remained the same, though my lips curled up into a slight pout. I remained lithe, retaining a runner's build, but I couldn't say that the woman in the mirror was unattractive. Woman was also accurate, as I clearly wasn't a sixteen-year-old girl. No, I was closer in age to Wardens Chase and Yoshimo than Willow Rosenberg if I'd had to guess. Perhaps the slightest bit younger.

    I got knocked out of my examination by a knocking on the bathroom door. "Harry, are you okay in there?"

    "Fine, Butters." I called back.

    "Good, it's just that… the Wardens are back. They've got some clothing for you to choose from." Butters said.

    "I'll be right out." I didn't want to pick from clothes bought by Warden Chase. I wanted my clothes. It might have been a little unreasonable, perhaps even selfish, but I bought those clothes. My coat was a gift to me from Susan. They were mine.

    "All right, I'll let them know." Butters stepped away from the door. All right, this was it, Dresden. They knew it was me, and I'd pretty much blown any chance I had of pretending otherwise. Anyway, they probably managed to keep me alive if I'd collapsed under that external magic influence… Whatever spell transformed me and sent me to Sunnydale… I owed it to them.

    Opening the bathroom door, I made my way back toward the living room, and I paused at the entryway. Wardens Chase, Yoshimo, Ramirez, and Meyers were standing there in their grey cloaks, swords and knives remained sheathed. In front of Warden Chase were several shopping bags from stores that I really didn't recognize the names of. Standing to the right of them was a young woman with a sweet pretty face, curly brown hair, and a smile that dimpled up so nicely that it was almost too perfect. Anastasia Luccio, Commander of the Wardens of the White Council had acquired that body earlier this year when a necromancer had forcibly switched bodies with her in order to attempt to have us kill her.

    To her left was a man of innocuous height, a bit taller than I was now. His dark hair was plaited in a long braid, and age seamed his features, warm and worn. He had dark eyes, wore eagle feathers in his braid, bits of bone in a necklace around his throat, and he had a beaded bracelet around a forearm, in which he held a simple uncarved staff. Wizard Joseph Listens-to-Wind, a member of the Senior Council had arrived. Normally I called him Injun Joe, but normally I was taller than him.

    To his left, I could see that Injun Joe wasn't the final person. The man standing there was someone I knew quite well. His bald head gleamed in the overhead light of Butters's living room fan. Despite his being dressed in a simple coat over a black shirt and denim overalls, I knew how powerful he was. His beard looked like it had been trimmed lately. This man was my mentor, the one who had taken me in and taught me the 'why' of magic. This man had taken me in when my fate had been assured to be death, and he had helped a young man become what I am today. This man was also a fraud. He was the White Council's assassin, able to break the Laws of Magic freely, using the title of "Blackstaff". He'd caused the Tunguska Explosion, the New Madrid Earthquake, and Krakatoa. He'd even brought down a Soviet satellite on the Red Court… This man taught me things he didn't even practice, and he too, was on the Senior Council.

    Ebenezar McCoy, my mentor looked to me and said, "Hello, Hoss."
     
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    • Oh boy, Ebenezar's gotta be weirded out that his grandson is now his granddaughter... BWA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA!!!
     
    Ellf said:
    An upcoming line: "Damnit, Maggie!"
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    Really? My first thought when I saw that comment actually was, "What does Dresden's daughter got to do with him turning female?"
    Nice chapter by the way. Works out better for Dresden this way I suppose rather then them believing that he was some creature that stole the body.

    Wasn't there some Dresden fan fiction a long time ago where Dresden somehow ended up in Summer Lady Aurora's body at the end of Summer Knight and nobody believed that he was Harry?

    Well, that being said, the White Council already knowing about him can only turn out... for the better?
     
    Pridakarbiter said:
    Really? My first thought when I saw that comment actually was, "What does Dresden's daughter got to do with him turning female?"
    Nice chapter by the way. Works out better for Dresden this way I suppose rather then them believing that he was some creature that stole the body.

    Wasn't there some Dresden fan fiction a long time ago where Dresden somehow ended up in Summer Lady Aurora's body at the end of Summer Knight and nobody believed that he was Harry?

    Well, that being said, the White Council already knowing about him can only turn out... for the better?
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    Consider why each of them might be here. Also, do remember who Dresden's daughter was named after.
     
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