Cassie!

Oh, dear. This was such an intriguing tale right from the beginning till the end, and kept me hooked throughout. For quite some time, I was left wondering who the protagonist was, and for a person like me who can be very impatient about such things, I'm so glad I waited and read it all. Really, a marvellous character to choose, and how remarkably the premise ties in with it all! Absolutely brilliant.

Throughout the story, the emotions just flow so freely. They're uninhibited, and in the entire thought process that I saw right till the end, they remain the strongest aspect of the story. Andromeda almost shows a sort of hate towards the child in the beginning-- a feeling that shows right through, especially in this line: She is not a woman, but an appendage to the life of another. I hated that at first, but then again, I could justify it with reasons that you've mentioned. A little cowardly sounding for Andromeda, definitely, but at some level, I could sympathise-- after all, she had lost her own people in the war, and the child was indeed a reminder of their being; day and night it reminded her of the pain she had undergone. Oh, and the dark side of Andromeda, where she totally seemed to be the person who has changed due to reasons probably connected to the war, is brought out really well here: She has become the woman she spent her whole life trying not to be.

I somehow really enjoyed the role Hagrid plays in the plot. Interesting dynamic that has been introduced, and really, one of the rare stories where Hagrid is portrayed without Magical Creatures involved. And how his presence brings about a sudden change in Andromeda. It felt a little abrupt to me, but after that, we could so clearly see Andromeda's conflict, and how she changes her mind. Really, a simple thing to bring about such a humongous change in her flow of thought.

The tenderness that is in the latter half of the story-- that was really commendable work. I loved how changed her mind is; how her perspective has changed from that of hating the boy to actually liking him, and realising his beauty. The contrast between the first and the latter half is something really significantly projected-- and it almost makes the first half seem as an irrational decision taken in the spur of the moment.

Also, a recurring error I noticed throughout is that 'bassinet' is spelled with a single 's'. I do not know if it is one of the many differences between Americanism and Briticism, but I'm used to reading it with a double 's', so I thought I would point that out. =)

Overall though, a really wonderful read.

Gigi! =]

I must admit, when I read fiction, I can usually broadly classify it into two categories-- one which is written for the purpose of entertainment, and another, which more or less deals with a moral. More often than not, I find that each category I mentioned above tends to be written within its own territory. In fanfiction, I see very few of the latter, or more correctly put, very few that are written well. It probably goes with the genre, I suppose, as the series wasn't written with the aim of spreading a message. This piece of utterly brilliant fanfiction, however, was a cut above all. It was entertaining to read, and there really was a message that you got across to me -- something that was so intricately woven in, yet so visible.

I liked the fact that you chose Charity for the role of the protagonist, as we know literally nothing about her but her name and her occupation. It was almost like you were building a character from scratch, fitting her into the mould of her occupation-- that of a Muggle Studies teacher. Really, I thought you did an great job in most aspects, though there might be just a one or two odd characteristics that I thought didn't fit right in there. I saw a vibrant and dynamic character in Charity Burbage- one that is bubbling with enthusiasm and curiousity. She really was a young idealist, as the title beautifully puts it. The fact that she thought outside the box was something that led to my liking towards the character portrayed. She doesn't feel bound by the rigid structure in the wizarding world, and is open to adapting to new things. One of the most obvious examples of that, of course, would be the fact that she lived in the Muggle world for a year without using magic.

When I read the part about Charity's interview, I was captivated by your characterisation of Dumbledore. It's so canonically accurate, and he still seems to have this mysterious and all-knowledgeable charm attached to him - something that I find difficult to capture in words. Hats off to you for getting his characterisation down on paper so brilliantly. Charity's nervousness and excitement was visible too, and the entire conversation just deserves a lot of praise. Her answer to his last question was something that just blew me off my feet, and I must quote: "I want to be a teacher because I believe every child can learn and grow. As a teacher I’m not a giver of knowledge but facilitator of learning. I want to inspire young people to want to learn and give them the tools and strategies they need to acquire knowledge. More specifically, I believe that witches and wizards – especially in these times – need to take an interest in learning who Muggles really are. The more they understand about the non-magical population, the better off our world will be." ♥ ♥

Also, as a fan of descriptive writing, I loved the attention that you paid to detail. More than that, though, I loved how each and every element described added to the plot. For example, I liked the way you roped in the description of the queer elements in Dumbledore's office to the conversation between Dumbledore and Charity, and how those tiny little instruments put across a clear message to Charity, as well as the reader.

Throughout the one-shot, the plot just flows so well. We see the evolution of Charity as a character-- from a nervous new wannabe attending her first interview, to her thoughts as a teacher. There is a change from nervousness and anxiety to excitement and a spirit of adventure. There is a a method to the madness somewhere within all of the excitement. We see her thoughts focussing on immediate goals, and then the fantasising about field trips to the Muggle world. We can see her wanting to be a professor making a difference, and what she intends to do about it. There's character growth in there, definitely.

A small thing that popped out to me while reading the one shot, that I must include here, is the contrast that you brought about the contrast between the ideology of Charity Burbage and Mr. Baumgartner. Just by changing the lettering on the wall, you put across a huge point there, and it was something that attracted me when I first read the story. A wonderful way of bringing about contrast, I felt.

Coming back to the characterisation, which is brought to focus again in the second half of the story, we can see Charity's involvement and dedication to her profession. We do see a little of her dedication in the form of examples in the first half, but the second half is what actually puts across that trait so strongly. Right from her rigourous planning of class schedules and her efforts to be 'different' in her methods of providing knowledge, to her wanting to involve the students and her modernistic thoughts which broke away from the normal mould, we see her sweating it out. She is so involved with her profession, and there's this love and passion that she carries, which comes across clearly to the reader. I loved how she was so intent on learning all about her students and involving them in the class.

The only thing that really didn't sit down well with me was the fact that she seemed too much like Hermione at certain points. You do justify it by mentioning that she wasn't really the normal child with normal views, but was more or less over and above such things, but then again, that sort of led me to believe in her as someone who isn't human; more superhuman. That probably was the only defect that I found.

Overall, though, there was something about this fic that set it a class apart. Maybe it has to do with the fact that this is one of the few really good fics that I read which contained a strong message, but certainly, I must admit that it has been a pleasure reading this wonderful one-shot. I hope to read more fics such as this one!

AWESOME song! Loved it a lot!!

All the best!!

Author's Response: Thanks, H.J.! You were a good cheerleader throughout my effort in writing the song. I appreciate your support! *hugs* ~GG

Extremely well written, the plot simply blew me off my feet. The characterisation of Remus in the first half has been developed upon well, and the serious/Sirius joke wasn't out of place, as I'd expected it to have been.

The questionnaire was well-prepared, and extremely James-y. Good characterisation again.

Okay, I have a doubt now. Is the spell 'volaris retro' meant to return the parchment back to James? Or is its function something else? Please clarify.

The article written was written well, weighing the pros and cons carefully, a very well thought out one.

I have a few tiny nitpicks which I picked out while reading through:

'Her friends had waited at the end of the corridor and now huddled around her, without a doubt wanting to question what James Potter had wanted.'

I think the word 'were' has been missed out in the above sentence.

You could always prepare a kind of questionnaire and hand it out. This way you can ask more questions, and get back a variety of answers and opinions.

The first sentence is in past tense, whereas the second is in present. I think the use of the word 'that' at the beginning of the second sentence would sound better. It isn't a major mistake, but I thought I'd point it out.

‘you can hand them out personally in the common room or maybe during meals’ time in the Great Hall.'

meals' time should be replaced by meal times.

Below there are going to be several question.

Firstly, you've missed out on a 's' in question. Secondly, I think the flow of the sentence is better like this: There are several questions given below. or Given below are several questions.

‘Oi, Prongs!’ Sirius greeted them then, having just noticed their entrances.
Here, Sirius just acknowledges James, though I think he should have called out Moony too, as you say that he greeted both of them. Also, an entrance can be made by two people,so you don't need to use entrances, though it isn't wrong.

Whoever said changes are not men’s best friend is mistaken
That should be man's best friend. In this sentence, you are referring to a proverb, so you need to use just man, as in human beings at large.

Professor Albus Dumbledore, (Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorcerer, Chief Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, and member of the International Confederation of Wizards)
I somehow do not think that Dumbledore earned all of his titles before or during the Marauders' days. In the memory scene in the GoF, during the prosecution of Barty Crouch Jr., Barty Crouch Senior was the Chief Warlock. This incident occured after James and Lily died, so I think Dumbledore became the Chief Warlock after the war and not during the Marauders' school days. I also think that he gained a few more of his titles after the First war.

To leisurely walk through the village on a beautiful day with friends, visit the Three Broomsticks to homely sit and drink warm, house-made Butterbeer, chat with the lovely barmaid, Madame Rosmerta, and in the evening return with bags full of colourful and varied-tasted sweets – this all makes a perfect trip to Hogsmeade.

Two small corrections: There should be a comma after the word 'evening' and "all this" sounds better than 'this all' in the sentence.

Draco Dormiens Tunquam Titillandus
The original motto is Draco Dormiens Nunquam Titillandus

He swears that dragons are loveable, harmless creatures that are vastly misunderstood.
Lovable is misspelled in the above sentence.

Once again, dear fellow students, think about changes in your life. They don’t have to be big or world-shaking; it’s the odds and ends, the details that can make the difference.

I completely love this sentence. It's so true, little changes can lead to world-shattering ones. The whole synopsis of the article is truly reflected by this sentence. Utterly marvellous, if I may say so.

I can't wait for Remus' column...... Please please update soon!

Author's Response: Are you sure you're not in SPEW, HJ? lol That review has a lot of SPEW qualities in it. Just a tip though: you can use the html-formatting for reviews also, getting parts written in italics, underlined or bold. It's then easier to keep an overview over these long reviews, especially if you italicise the mistake-sentences from the story.

But anyway, thanks for this great review. *hugs* It's good to know that my characterisation is done well, and that you liked the story.

Yes, 'volaris retro' means that the paper should come back to James. I completely forgot to put that into the chapter notes or wherever as an explanation. <.< I shall do that when I go over to edit the mistakes you spotted. Thanks for those, too.

Now to the sadder part: I haven't written anything serious for this story in quite some weeks. Sorry. The update will take some time I'm afraid. But I hope you'll come back when I someday get round to write the other chapters.

Once again thanks for reading and reviewing. *hugs*

~Bine