Thanks for making it long!
Enjoyed it very much, still reading. :)
Author's Response: So glad you like the long chapters. This next one kept me having to do quite a few rewrites to trim every extra word so I could squeeze everything in.
I'm so glad you updated!! Fantastic! This chapter had me ticked off and heart achy all at the same time!!
Author's Response: I absolutely love how you described your reaction to this chapter! It’s exactly like I imagine Harry must be feeling at this point in the story. Makes me feel like I’m doing something right!
Ah, our Harry manages to do things in Spades -- including being conflicted. :-}
That was quite a row he & Ginny had....
So Harry's back in Merry Old England -- and needs to choose course appropriately... :-)
Well done!
Author's Response: I always suspected Ginny inherited her mother’s feistiness – and Harry’s temper is well-documented in canon from the fifth book especially. With that in mind, smooth sailing for those two is just too unrealistic. Next chapter will recount Harry’s adjustments as he integrates himself into the London world and tries to catch up with the last year of schooling that he missed.
It appears that I've been remiss in providing a review (or at least a few comments) about this chapter: my apologies.
I enjoyed the chapter immensely: in particular, you've depicted Sirius admirably -- and with a fine attention to detail. The other (adult, at least) characters are also well-drawn.
Thank you!
Author's Response: Please accept my apologies; I was certain I’d responded to your review a month ago! Don’t tell me the computer is eating my words now that I’ve trained the dogs… That being said, I’m glad you enjoyed Andromeda’s turn at the wheel. I find JKR’s adult characters so well realized that stepping into their shoes turned out to be so much easier than I ever supposed. As for Sirius, despite his youthful reputation as a scoundrel, he really has a sentimental streak a mile wide. Once I latched onto that, the rest was easy.
Amazingly awesome as always!!!!
Author's Response: Thanks. Keep your fingers crossed about the next installment...
Yes, I suppose that, even though it's been a while since those skills were last used, Molly would be rather likely to recall how to burp an infant -- among other child-minding activities. :-}
And the retrospective of Tonks & Moony t(and Sirius) hrough Andromeda's eyes was quite well done. Made me miss Sirius, Moony, & Tonks all over again. :-{
[Nice re-wording in previous chapter, btw.]
Author's Response: It's a right shame JKR was so determined to off her adult characters. They were by far the most interesting. I suppose I should be thankful that my keyboard had a time-turner app. There's a key that links to the astral plane as well...Something to look forward to in later chapters.
As always EXCELLENT!!!
Author's Response: Thanks. Hope to have the next installment posted very soon. It’s a hefty chapter (with sinuous segues) that will fill in some events hinted at but not previously fleshed out. Time we moved away from Harry’s POV, too.
Kingsley seems to be remarkably perceptive -- as well as being good at expressing himself.
Lexxie's comment about Harry not having had much opportunity to play well with others may have some truth, but it seems a bit over-generalized: he did play Quidditch on the house team, for example. I suspect Harry's a bit more selective about those with whom he "plays well" than most -- but then, that could be a survival attribute, given what he's gone through. :-} [And I'm quibbling, so please don't read too much into that.]
Interesting story about Nellie. And I suspect that were it a mutually exclusive choice between the higher pension vs. the award, the former would do the most good: a body needs to eat, after all.
Very nice (as usual!). :-)
Author's Response: Your point is very well taken. In my efforts to have Lexxie remind Harry not to take himself so seriously, I only focused on their discussions of the things that were most troubling Harry (principally during the past year). But as you so aptly pointed out, it’s entirely likely that they discussed matters much more far-reaching as Harry started facing stressful situation from his first encounter with Vapormort in PS/SS. Classic forest/trees dilemma on my part.Thanks for pointing that out to me. I’ve gone back and edited it to read “The past year hasn't exactly given you much opportunity to play well with others,” she sympathized in her inimitable way. "And your struggles were enough to rattle even the hardiest snake." // Harry laughed at the lame pun. “I suppose that’s accurate enough.”
P.S. I love the smaller, less epic heroes. Like Neville and Luna, for instance.
Hmmmmmm! I hadn't considered dawlish very much until now! Great job! Love this story!! Is Dumbledore still listening from the portrait?
Author's Response: Yes, Dumbledore is still looking on. Good catch, that! I divided two extra long chapters into three and my reference to D. ended up in the second part. So pleased that you’re reading so carefully. Keeps me on my toes. (Will have to get the torturous pink shoes out of the attic.)As far as Dawlish goes, he’s one of those minor characters who keeps popping up when you least expect it so he begged to be fleshed out. Hopefully, he’ll turn out to be more three dimensional than we initially supposed. As a matter of fact, there’s more on him in the next chapter which will post within the next day or so.
Interesting set of perspectives offered by Percy, there; he seems to have matured a bit.
Good interactions among Harry, Ginny, and Neville, as well.
Nicely done.
Author's Response: Glad you liked. I find Neville a great character who got underused in canon, in my opinion. Perhaps if we had read of his tribulations with the DA under the Carrows’ regime. Certainly would’ve helped to break up those dreary camping scenes in DH.Percy has better role models at the Ministry now. He might have let his ambitions cloud his judgment in the past, but I don’t think his reunion with the rest of his family was any less heartfelt.
The merpeople was awesome!! Very cool! You get more in depth with each chapter!! Thanks for posting!! I've enjoyed all yours stories and I can't wait to see where you this one goes next!!!
Author's Response: Thanks. The merpeople were so much fun to envision. I’m thrilled that you’ve read all the other stories as it makes this one fit into context. (You’ll see what I mean when we get to the end.)As for where it’s heading…just think of this as the mortar between the bricks of DH and in that extra long crack that allowed me to reinsert Mad-Eye. (After all, the man is a long-lost relative of my husband’s ancestors in Scotland.) There’s a lot of ground to cover between the Final Battle’s aftermath in DH -- which is bittersweet, at best -- and the happy families we see in the Epilogue. While I don’t intend to fill in the full nineteen years, I hope to address the significant turning points. In the process, I’m injecting some entertaining, and unexpected. twists and turns. After all, a writer is not bound by the laws of nature -- and that’s as far as I can elaborate without spoilers.
Heh -- that was fun! :-) It's often good to get to see different perspectives on events. (And I tended to read a lot of Mythology when I was younger.)
And it seems that Ron has had a bit of an epiphany; good thing he's getting the support he needs.
Author's Response: I confess to just following JKR’s footsteps by tweaking mythological themes. Seems to fit in well with how wizards have hidden secrets about their world within tales that are remembered by Muggles, yet discounted as imaginary. That alone is perhaps what makes the entire construct of the HP universe so utterly believable. So when in Greece….It’s taken me a while to feel that I can adequately make the Hermione-Ron connection work, so I’m glad you approve. (Snape’s snarkiness comes so much more readily to me, I’m afraid.)
Sneak peek: an actual journey into mythological realms in upcoming chapters.
Greatly enjoyed. Please keep them coming! I've been waiting for this for months!
Author's Response: Thanks for letting me know you enjoyed. Sorry this chapter took me so long to post, real life had me in a whirlwind. Promise to have next installment posted within the next day or so.
As always your writing is amazing! Deep! I love it!!
Author's Response: Glad you liked all the details I put in. I knew everyone would be curious about the goings on at Hogwarts even though Harry (and the main plotline) is elsewhere.
I see that Hermione has become quite the ... raconteuse .... :-}
And it seems to me that Harry's getting pretty well adjusted. He certainly comes across as being better-adjusted now than he was at any point since he learned to talk. :-}
Author's Response: It seemed logical that once chosen as Head Girl, Hermione’s inherent bossiness would rear its head once more. Since Molly is a take charge sort of woman herself, I felt that Ron would not be put off by that, though. Harry’s definitely matured a lot in the past few weeks, but the road is never straight and true, I’m afraid.
I rather enjoyed the chapter; I particularly appreciated the comment about laying blame on Mother Nature.
And Harry seems to have become quite the correspondent!
Well done.
Author's Response: Particularly pleased that you liked this chapter. I enjoyed fleshing out a lot of the action during those climactic moments. Still, it was a challenge to capture Luna’s unique blend of whimsy and wisdom. She certainly has her own brand of logic. I very much wanted to encapsulate Harry’s instant kinship with Luna and just knew that he, more than anyone else, would take the trouble to address each of her fanciful questions in a matter-of-fact manner.
Very much enjoyed your story thanks
Author's Response: Thankd for letting me know that you're savoring the story. Hopefully, I will have the next chapter posted soon. Have been having computer problems so everything's hit a snag.
LOL! And Vernon would *so* deserve it!
Good to see that Dudley has been doing something fairly productive (unlike his parents).
And yeah, putting the entire islet under a Fidelius Charm was a rather brilliant stroke.
All in all, an excellent chapter.
Author's Response: Ah, revenge is sweet! I can just imagine Vernon’s eyes bulging and his face turning a very intense, indescribable color. Thanks for letting me know you enjoyed.
Your way of story telling always leaves me saying WOW! Brilliant!
Author's Response: I’m so thrilled you liked this chapter! Luna’s such an odd mixture of Ravenclaw intellect and blithe eccentricity. It took a lot of tweaking to make her sound right. Thanks for the vote of confidence.
Great!!!
Author's Response: Thanks! Next chapter should be up soon. It's taking me longer than expected as the tone is rather tricky and I want to make sure I get it right.