Lovely story! I really liked how you wrote young Remus and his family, it was very good. I thought Dumbledore was very in character as well. I had never thought about him going out to seek a werewolf child, but assumed that he already knew the Lupins and their situation and accepted Remus anyway. But your reasoning was good, and this line: "Dumbledore firmly believed in the practise of telling people only what they needed to know. Nothing more. Nothing less." was great! Very nice job, I enjoyed reading it and would really enjoy reading another chapter - perhaps Dumbledore's meeting with the Lupins and Remus's reaction? ~Gina :)

Author's Response: Thank you! Most people figure that Dumbledore knew of the Lupin's situation first, but my thoughts are obviously different, and I'm glad that they made sense. I'm happy that you thought Dumbledore was in character. :) Thanks, but the story is supposed to stand on its own. It's about "why Dumbledore chose Remus," and not about what happened afterwards.

I told you I'd come by for a review - sorry it took me so long! Good chapter, and I love cliffhangers! I think the dialogue here is really good - very natural and snappy, teasing and fun. You've given Lily a really nice, warm character and paired her with Lupin very naturally (which I think I might have said before.) I like reading stories like this because it makes me wonder and anticipate all sorts of things: will Remus tell her about being a werewolf? Or will she find out some other way? How will she react? And what about James?? You obviously don't have to answer those questions but a good story gets the readers asking them. :) Good luck as you continue with these two lusty lovebirds! ~Gina :)

Author's Response: Thanks for your review! I'm glad it has got you asking questions! I'm not letting them get bedsores though - there's going to be a mix of types of fun and angst in their future...And James...too bad I can't do what I'd like and just eviscerate him in the courtyard...but he's going to have a decent moment here and there... Thanks for the good wishes!

That was so sweet and romantic, I'm grinning broadly! And I'd like a hot, good-listening Australian surfer of my own, please. ;) Seriously, when he appeared I though "OH NO" but he was lovely. I felt bad for him by the time Hermione was telling him everything about Ron! What a nice guy-good job not making him unlikeable. And lovely job with the ending. I could not only feel Ron's nervousness, but I could totally picture them running toward one another, stopping, and then that kiss. YAYAYAY! So, so nice. I'm glad they've resolved things. Can't wait to see how it wraps up. Nice job!! ~Gina :)

Author's Response: Thank you :) I realise the Australian surfer was a bit of a cliche, but I needed someone a little bit too good to be true to make Hermione realise exactly what she wanted (and you know, he was totally fun to write). I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter - hopefully the last one will be up within a week. ~Hannah

Hi Hannah! Lovely start. I could totally see Ron going to Harry for advice and proposing at the castle totally makes sense. Way to go, Ron! This was very sweet and I look forward to reading more, even if it takes me a few days to catch up. I'm glad you've come back to it - writing is fun, isn't it? Good luck! ~Gina :)

Awww, that's very sad for Ron! You write him very well, and I particularly liked his talk with George. The bit with Hermione at work was also really clever and a good twist on the trio coasting through life rather easily after the war. Nice job, Hannah!
~Gina :)

Nice start, very original! I like that it's not a pureblood marriage law, like most fics seem to be (although I have never read a marriage law fic myself) You made this very plausible with a great explanation. And I already wonder what Percy's secret is and who will be matched with who if they are deemed acceptable. Good luck as you continue! ~Gina :)

Author's Response: Oh, Gina! *hugs* I haven't touched this account in ages and I see I missed lots of reviews in the process. Actually, this story was written and completed in 2006, my first year here and I just haven't finished reposting. I guess I miss my VA status! LOL!

Oh, and I think the idea of continuing it could really work. It doesn't have to be a long chaptered story, just a bit more. Maybe we could see Astoria and Hermione meet up for a few playdates and swap stories, and then when their husbands find out it falls apart. Just an idea! But I totally understand keeping it as a one shot too, it's a nice look into the future. ~Gina :)

Author's Response: Mmm, actually I do like the idea of 'playdates' and the like. I think Hermione would relish the freedom of not being a 'Weasley'. They're a lovely family but must be overwhelming at times.

Thank you for your comments, Gina. It is appreciated. Carole xxx

That was really well-done! Congrats on first place. You've done a great job with Dumbledore's character, and wrote a perfect interaction between him and McGonagall. What was really neat was that I was trying to figure out what it might be a prologue for, and then at the end when McGonagall says "Just get the Potters to safety." it clicked - how original! I was thinking it was after OotP and yet it was really set long before that - which goes to show how similar the two wars with Voldemort were. Nice writing to be able to throw that twist at the end. This would be a great prologue to a story about getting the Potters to safety that year. Nice job! ~Gina :)

Author's Response: Thank you so much, Gina. What a lovely review. :)

Congrats on winning the challenge! I don't know what the prompt was, but this was a nice idea, to show how so many different characters reacted to the reopening of Hogwarts. You set it up well and got our 7th years to return in a very believable way. It was great to see Hagrid and Slughorn as HOH, Hermione as Head Girl, Neville as Head Boy, Draco and so many others - even a great line from Snape! I particularly liked how you introduced Astoria Greengrass. I'm curious why, in your opinion, Harry and Ron didn't return?

The idea of sewing up tensions between the houses with the Slug Club and common room receptions was neat, too. And the way the castle repaired itself - of course it would! Brilliant!

There were some places where the narrative became somewhat confusing and could use some more breaks to make it clearer. At the beginning it was about Hagrid and all of a sudden without any break it switched to Slughorn. I had to reread it a few times to figure it out. It happened a few other times where the POV jumped around as well. The story worked fine with multiple viewpoints but only needed more breaks - a line or asterisks - to separate those shifts better for the reader.

I also thought the dialogue was a bit stiff at times - the big thing that jumped out at me was the lack on contractions. Hagrid was great, but I would suggest loosening up the rest of the dialogue and not being afraid to use contractions - these kids weren't so formal, after all! :)

Again - congratulations! ~Gina :)

Fantastic poem! Congrats on winning the QSQ! I love how you've written something so affirming interspersed with something rather dark from the book. Great connection and interplay. Love your word choice, all perfect for what Harry must have felt then. Great job! ~Gina :)

Author's Response: Oh Gina thank you! I forgot to reply to this review. Sorry! I still grin like a mad woman every time I think about the QSQ. It was such a lovely surprise! Thanks for reading and reviewing.