***Find the whole and revised version of the story in my portfolio here***
Albus Dumbledore learned of Parvati and Padma Patil, the twins who had great potential to learn to use their magical powers at Hogwarts. He felt it necessary to go straight to their palace in India to persuade their father, the king, to let them come with him. He had also heard of the stories of Lord Brahma and his creations, Lord Shiva and his wife Parvati, and Lord Vishnu and his wife Lakshmi (who is also referred to as Padma, which means lotus). When he learned there was a set of twins named Parvati and Padma, he knew there was something special going on. So, he began his journey through the Forbidden Forest and the huge lake that stood between Hogwarts and the King's palace. When he got to the palace, King Daksha Patil was surprised to see Professor Dumbledore, the headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, standing before him. Nevertheless, he greeted him gracefully and pondered what the meaning of this meeting was.
"Professor, I am rather intrigued by your visit. What can I do for you?"
"I want your daughters, Parvati and Padma, to come with me to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. They have great powers that will be able to help me journey back to the school as well as help others once they arrive at the school, which is guarded by monstrous creatures."
Dumbledore was so straightforward with his answer and King Daksha was so surprised at it that he almost fell out of his throne.
"Excuse me-- you want what?"
"Your daughters have a great potential for magic; I have been able to sense their powers and ask your permission to let them come with me and allow them to explore this world they are attracted to."
"But they're just children! At only eleven years old, how will they go away and live without their family in an unknown land?! I'll send anyone else with you, anyone. My eldest nephews and nieces would probably be more than happy to accompany you."
At this, Dumbledore argued, "If you cannot send Parvati and Padma, I don't want anybody. I'll go back alone."
Dumbledore was rather upset, but he could see that he could not get Daksha to change his mind so easily. He began to retreat from the palace. Meanwhile, Parvati and Padma had been upstairs in their room, but they happened to hear everything. They quickly came running down.
"Professor! Please wait!" they cried out. "Father, Father! Please let us go join this man! He seems very knowledgeable and we can learn so much about these powers we have been wondering about!"
After several minutes of begging and negotiating, King Daksha realized he could never deny his daughters the opportunity to grow. He finally agreed.
Dumbledore and the Patil sisters were all very excited for their journey, although Parvati and Padma had no idea what was to come or what they were capable of.
They began their journey through the lake that Dumbledore had crossed earlier. While the twins were busy steering the boat in the direction Dumbledore had indicated, the professor exclaimed, "Oh, treacherous waters! How full of life they used to be, now stained with the darkness and evil that lives within!"
At this, the twin sisters were a bit confused. "What is so special about these waters?" Parvati asked. "What do you mean by fulfilled by the good and the evil?" asked Padma.
Dumbledore had his story ready. "Well, long ago, there was a wizard called Lord Voldemort that seized rule over these waters. He convinced all the half-mermaid, half-human (merpeople, as I like to call them) inhabitants in the lake that his rule would bring them more wealth, so of course they followed him. He killed everyone in the surrounding villages until there was only one boy left. When he attempted to kill the last remaining human alive, he somehow failed and the boy's unknown power repelled the evil Lord. The merpeople, still loyal to Lord Voldemort, have now taken over parts of the lake and its inhabitants and eat anyone that swims in the water. Some parts of the lake are so bad that even touching the water can poison travelers. After this incident, I had a dream in which I heard a prophecy which stated that the boy would never grow up to realize his powers and get rid of the merpeople and their evil deeds, but only his children could defeat the merpeople once and for all. That boy grew up to be your father, and you two girls are the only people who can touch these waters without being poisoned."
After hearing this, Parvati and Padma were indeed stunned, but were able to pick up the courage to ask Dumbledore how they could help. Just as they asked, the merpeople swam to the surface of the lake and were about to attack their boat when Parvati and Padma both threw out her hands as if defending themselves. Bolts of piercing light came out of their hands and hit the merpeople straight in the chest. The sisters stared at their hands, mesmerized but also terrified, waiting for Dumbledore to say something.
"Ah, finally! Oh wondrous children! You have finally given the animals in the lake and the people around it hope and life! Bless you, bless you both. Now, as we are almost to land, we will walk through the Forbidden Forest until we arrive at Hogwarts. More stories to come along the way!"
Bibliography: Narayan's Ramayana, p. 1-53.
Author's Note:
This story is the one about Vishwamitra. He goes to King Dasharatha and asks if Rama can come with him. Dasharatha is reluctant at first and tells Vishwamitra that Rama will not go anywhere without his brother Lakshmana. Vishwamitra states that he will look after both sons, as long as Rama is there. He goes on with the journey and along the way, tells them the story of Thataka, Ganga, and Ahalya along the way. He also takes him to Janaka's palace where Ram breaks Shiva's bow and marries Sita (which I have not gotten to yet). I decided to place this story in India and Hogwarts (connecting the two with only a lake and a forest). I replaced King Dasharatha with King Daksha (which is Sati's father; Sati is another name for Parvati), Vishwamitra with Albus Dumbledore because they were both mentor-like characters, and Ram and Lakshman with Parvati and Padma. When I was writing about Lord Voldemort and the merpeople, I was thinking about the Goblet of Fire, where the merpeople are in the lake in one of the tournament challenges. I replaced the Death Eaters with the merpeople because it made more sense with the story of the lake.
Albus Dumbledore learned of Parvati and Padma Patil, the twins who had great potential to learn to use their magical powers at Hogwarts. He felt it necessary to go straight to their palace in India to persuade their father, the king, to let them come with him. He had also heard of the stories of Lord Brahma and his creations, Lord Shiva and his wife Parvati, and Lord Vishnu and his wife Lakshmi (who is also referred to as Padma, which means lotus). When he learned there was a set of twins named Parvati and Padma, he knew there was something special going on. So, he began his journey through the Forbidden Forest and the huge lake that stood between Hogwarts and the King's palace. When he got to the palace, King Daksha Patil was surprised to see Professor Dumbledore, the headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, standing before him. Nevertheless, he greeted him gracefully and pondered what the meaning of this meeting was.
"Professor, I am rather intrigued by your visit. What can I do for you?"
"I want your daughters, Parvati and Padma, to come with me to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. They have great powers that will be able to help me journey back to the school as well as help others once they arrive at the school, which is guarded by monstrous creatures."
Dumbledore was so straightforward with his answer and King Daksha was so surprised at it that he almost fell out of his throne.
"Excuse me-- you want what?"
"Your daughters have a great potential for magic; I have been able to sense their powers and ask your permission to let them come with me and allow them to explore this world they are attracted to."
"But they're just children! At only eleven years old, how will they go away and live without their family in an unknown land?! I'll send anyone else with you, anyone. My eldest nephews and nieces would probably be more than happy to accompany you."
At this, Dumbledore argued, "If you cannot send Parvati and Padma, I don't want anybody. I'll go back alone."
Dumbledore was rather upset, but he could see that he could not get Daksha to change his mind so easily. He began to retreat from the palace. Meanwhile, Parvati and Padma had been upstairs in their room, but they happened to hear everything. They quickly came running down.
"Professor! Please wait!" they cried out. "Father, Father! Please let us go join this man! He seems very knowledgeable and we can learn so much about these powers we have been wondering about!"
After several minutes of begging and negotiating, King Daksha realized he could never deny his daughters the opportunity to grow. He finally agreed.
Dumbledore and the Patil sisters were all very excited for their journey, although Parvati and Padma had no idea what was to come or what they were capable of.
They began their journey through the lake that Dumbledore had crossed earlier. While the twins were busy steering the boat in the direction Dumbledore had indicated, the professor exclaimed, "Oh, treacherous waters! How full of life they used to be, now stained with the darkness and evil that lives within!"
At this, the twin sisters were a bit confused. "What is so special about these waters?" Parvati asked. "What do you mean by fulfilled by the good and the evil?" asked Padma.
Dumbledore had his story ready. "Well, long ago, there was a wizard called Lord Voldemort that seized rule over these waters. He convinced all the half-mermaid, half-human (merpeople, as I like to call them) inhabitants in the lake that his rule would bring them more wealth, so of course they followed him. He killed everyone in the surrounding villages until there was only one boy left. When he attempted to kill the last remaining human alive, he somehow failed and the boy's unknown power repelled the evil Lord. The merpeople, still loyal to Lord Voldemort, have now taken over parts of the lake and its inhabitants and eat anyone that swims in the water. Some parts of the lake are so bad that even touching the water can poison travelers. After this incident, I had a dream in which I heard a prophecy which stated that the boy would never grow up to realize his powers and get rid of the merpeople and their evil deeds, but only his children could defeat the merpeople once and for all. That boy grew up to be your father, and you two girls are the only people who can touch these waters without being poisoned."
After hearing this, Parvati and Padma were indeed stunned, but were able to pick up the courage to ask Dumbledore how they could help. Just as they asked, the merpeople swam to the surface of the lake and were about to attack their boat when Parvati and Padma both threw out her hands as if defending themselves. Bolts of piercing light came out of their hands and hit the merpeople straight in the chest. The sisters stared at their hands, mesmerized but also terrified, waiting for Dumbledore to say something.
"Ah, finally! Oh wondrous children! You have finally given the animals in the lake and the people around it hope and life! Bless you, bless you both. Now, as we are almost to land, we will walk through the Forbidden Forest until we arrive at Hogwarts. More stories to come along the way!"
Source: An animated version of Parvati and Padma.
Author's Note:
This story is the one about Vishwamitra. He goes to King Dasharatha and asks if Rama can come with him. Dasharatha is reluctant at first and tells Vishwamitra that Rama will not go anywhere without his brother Lakshmana. Vishwamitra states that he will look after both sons, as long as Rama is there. He goes on with the journey and along the way, tells them the story of Thataka, Ganga, and Ahalya along the way. He also takes him to Janaka's palace where Ram breaks Shiva's bow and marries Sita (which I have not gotten to yet). I decided to place this story in India and Hogwarts (connecting the two with only a lake and a forest). I replaced King Dasharatha with King Daksha (which is Sati's father; Sati is another name for Parvati), Vishwamitra with Albus Dumbledore because they were both mentor-like characters, and Ram and Lakshman with Parvati and Padma. When I was writing about Lord Voldemort and the merpeople, I was thinking about the Goblet of Fire, where the merpeople are in the lake in one of the tournament challenges. I replaced the Death Eaters with the merpeople because it made more sense with the story of the lake.
Hi Akriti!
ReplyDeleteThis was a great story. I was scared that king Daksha would not let his daughters Padma and Parvati Patil go with Albus Dumbledore to Hogwarts. As I read on, it was nice to know they were taken to the school for learning by boats. I wonder how Dumbledore got to figure out the potential powers of the Patil sisters, was it just from reading or there was also a magical creature that told him about them? What if Hogwarts and the palace was not just separated by water and forest, but by magical train station that only wizards knew about. That would change up the story a little bit and it could resemble the actual Harry Potter too. I could feel the vibe of Goblet of Fire as well, when Lord Voldemort returned for the first time. Overall, I though this was a really good story and I can't wait to read more of your stories!
Hi Akriti!
ReplyDeleteI love the way you interwove aspects of Harry Potter and the Ramayana. You plucked bits and pieces from each in a way that let you weave them into a new an unique whole. I thought it was wonderful! I saw that this is one of the stories that you chose to put in your portfolio, but I wanted to read the original first. I thought it was really great. Your writing is very smooth and has a nice flow to it. Can't wait to read more!