Name: Felpata_Lupin (Signed) · Date: 01 Feb 2020 11:42 PM · For: these first few desperate hours

Here I am again! ;)

Poor Sirius, having to read over and over about Mildred and her ghoul :P It's hard to be a parent... :P

But as I already said in a previous review today, baby Harry is just so adorable! but then Harry decided what he really wanted was a hug, and for that hug to continue forever. Sirius felt that the feeling of a toddler nestled against his chest (warm, safe, full of love) was definitely a fair trade for the use of both his arms. If that isn't the most heartwarming, adorable thing ever... I just really, really loved seeing Harry playing and discovering the world and being cuddling in this chapter! He's so lovely and precious and deserves all the love in the world! (Which is why I'm so glad he has people who actually care around...)

Speaking of which, I love to see Sirius "antagonize" Dumbledore again. Well, maybe antagonize is a bit of a strong word, but Dumbledore is not this perfect, infallible person and I love that Sirius doesn't just trust him blindly like maybe he used to when he was younger. I love that Sirius beat him in building a cover, too :P

The Cloak!!! :O Why does Dumbledore still want to keep it? Doesn't he already know everything he needs to know? But I guess he will return it eventually.

The emotions currently warring in him about Remus' declaration of trust were too complicated, so he put a lid on them and decided to ignore them, possibly forever. Oh, my Merlin! This is powerful! I'm not sure what stage their friendship is at the moment, but I hope it'll all work out for the best (I mean, I know it will eventually... but everything seems so complicated right now...) I really want them to learn to live in peacetime soon, too! They deserve some happiness after everthing they've faced...

I'm absolutely in love with your worldbuilding! I love all the attention you put in the "scientific" part of magic, if that makes sense, and all the details about how they actually extended Hagrid's hut to accomodate them. It looks like they did such a great job, and I can't wait how they'll settle down and then Harry growing up and just how their lives will move on!

I know I've told you already, but this story is just so good and I really need more so... update sometime soon? Maybe? <3 <3 <3

Snowball hug,

Chiara

Name: Felpata_Lupin (Signed) · Date: 01 Feb 2020 10:47 PM · For: people say friends don't destroy one another

Of course Sirius would need marshmallows to take pills! :P Poor Madam Pomfrey, they drove her crazy, didn't they? :P

Bless Hagrid, rushing in like that screaming "He's back!" I can't blame Sirius for panicking, I would've feared the worst too... I think Sirius' reaction was perfect and it just shows so well how hard life during the war would have been...

I can't say I'm surprised by Remus attacking Sirius like that, but it was also a bit scary... at least he listened when Sirius told him about the switch and checked with Dumbledore. Glad Sirius managed to tell him before too much damage was done. It's even more scary to think about what would have happened if the roles were reversed... There had been slightly more blood involved in his plan, which had mostly starred knives. Sirius, that's just creepy, you know?

I really, really loved their discussion. Remus is just so Remus, with his guilt and self-consciousness... of course he wouldn't want to live off Sirius, or with a child he could potentially hurt... I'm glad Sirius managed to convince him in the end. Sirius does need the help, and Remus does need a place to stay, and they both just need a friend. I really wish they both were a bit less stubborn, though.

Btw, You could get sent to Azkaban for being an illegal Animagus. Trust Moony to always consider the worst case scenario...

The scene in the Hospital Wing was just so good, too! I loved that there was a little hint of humour there, among all the angst... it was well needed, honestly... :P also, I really want to hug Remus, because he needs it...

Guess I'll do one more chapter and then I'll be off to bed... :P

Love you!!!

Snowball hug,

Chiara

Name: Felpata_Lupin (Signed) · Date: 01 Feb 2020 07:39 PM · For: a mobius strip

Baby Harry is so adorable! He's just the sweetest child! I mean, he's sort of devilish, but he's still precious! <3

I was so rooting for Sirius here! Dumbledore has no right to decide for Harry, ignore his parents' will and send him to a family that would abuse him for all his childhood! I do see the reasoning there, but with Sirius available it would be just unfair... it would be unfair in any case, but I'm so glad Sirius isn't taking any of it! I bet it's strange to contest Dumbledore like that, but I'm so glad Sirius did!

How long has he slept, exactly? He needed it, I suppose. It killed me a bit the way he woke up almost happy only to be hit by everything that had happened again... the little moment with McGonagall was so good! I love McGonagall, she's so strict but you can tell that she cares, and that's exactly the vibe I got here! Your characterization is so good!

Poor Sirius, finding himself completely alone all of a sudden, and with the responsibility of a child to raise... and of a cat, too (irrelevant, but still one more thing to adjust to... it's not going to be easy, is it?) His thoughts about Remus made me so sad as well... I hate that they didn't trust each other... except as the months went on, it devolved to a stony silence and the house falling to pieces around them How is this so painful? :(

Hagrid's dog is called Snuffles? Is that where canon Sirius took his later nickname from? I love it! And she liked Peter best... I mean, I'm not surprised, Peter was much quieter so she might've appreciated that... but I can see why Sirius would find the thought disturbing... (I'm not going to comment further about my mixed feelings for Peter. It's totally unrelevant to your story and this review anyway)

Harry really is a natural when it comes to flying, isn't he? I love that he basically rolled his eyes when Sirius asked if he needed help, that was hilarious! :P (I suppose it wasn't what happened, but the fact that it looked like that to Sirius is enough! :P Or maybe that's exactly what happened! Children can be surprising!)

I'll go for now! Hopefully I'll manage to leave a couple more reviews after dinner! <3

Huge snowball hug,

Chiara

Name: Felpata_Lupin (Signed) · Date: 01 Feb 2020 06:07 PM · For: on the day that i forget you (i hope my heart explodes)

I'm back!

So, this chapter is even more heartbreaking that the last one? The memory of the switch in particular... the idea that he thought they would be safer if Peter was Secret Keeper, when it was the exact opposite. And then that "I'll see you next week, yeah?" when we all know it's not going to happen (and you had to go and say that explicitly, too... but we all know that your mission in life is making ma cry, so...)

But let's go back to the beginning...

It must have been such a rollercoaster for poor Sirius... it's a really long journey to Hogwarts (I love how Sirius thought that Muggles would probably talk about UFOs the following morning...) and he still has so much to process... the contrast you created when he met the students who rejoiced about Voldemort's fall was a punch in the gut. Also, the idea that some of the kids recognized him was such a shock, too. They've been out of Hogwarts only for 3 years... how's that even possible? How have I never thought about it? (I mean, I've always known they were young, but somehow I never considered that at the end of the war there would be people still in Hogwarts who'd met them during their school days... and it's shocking!)

Another thing I love that you pointed out is how umprepared Sirius feels about raising Harry... how does he know if his behaviour is normal or if he should be worried? and Lily would have known what to do... I can totally see him having all those doubts, on top of everything else. Honestly, I'm not sure how he didn't collapse earlier...

And when he does, my heart breaks for him (or it would have if it wasn't broken already) That he wanted to be sixteen again... can I hug him? Pretty please?

I had forgot that particular spin to their bromance. It's a very interesting take, and I really love it! I also really love that James is a hugger :D I think it's later in this story that you mention how James was the one to teach both Sirius and Remus how to hug? I've always loved that concept, it's just 100% how it worked!

The scene when he meets Dumbledore is just perfection! (Also, side note: Professor Flitwick said, panting slightly with the effort of taking three steps for every one Hagrid took. This is perfection, too. Have I ever told you that I love your details?) Of course Dumbledore would accuse him immediately (in his convoluted way) and I loved the confusion both Sirius and Hagrid felt. And Sirius' reaction when Dumbledore pointed his wand at him. I do wonder what Dumbledore was thinking... he must've thought that if Sirius was the spy, his behaviour didn't make sense. Right? Well, he got his answer with the Legilimens, in any case. I really liked the way you described the effects of the spell, btw.

See you again on the next one! ;)

Love,

Chiara

Name: Felpata_Lupin (Signed) · Date: 01 Feb 2020 04:53 PM · For: nowhere else to go

Emma!!! <3 <3 <3

Hello, my love! I'm here for CMDC round 2! And to dig into this wonderful story again! :D (Btw, how is it I never left a review before? About time I rectify that, I guess... :P)

Oh, Sirius... :( It's so sad to see him so lonely and depressed... you captured the effects of the first war so well, and I hate how ruined the friendship among the Marauders is at this point... especially with Remus... if only they had trusted each other... but we know how that worked, sadly... :(

I could really feel Sirius' panic when he stepped into Peter's house and found it empty. I loved all the details you included, the abandoned mug, the things scattered around... your description is just so good in this (well, it is in everything you write) And, oh my, seeing Sirius flying to Potters, telling himself that surely he was overreacting, that everything would be alright, that Peter had only wanted to escape his confinement for a little while... and then the Dark Mark... why are you doing this to me???

It's so terrible to see the Potters' house blown up through Sirius' eyes, and once again you wrote every detail way too perfectly. I also really, really loved how he realized what Peter had done (I hate you, Peter Sebastian Pettigrew, just so you know) only when Hagrid was hugging him, because everything was just too confused and senseless before. He heard him mutter something about Sirius being white as a sheet and him being sorry and best friends and he just tuned it out and focused on the physical sensations of the hug because otherwise he was going to fall apart. I love this line! It's so painful but just so good!

The surprise in realizing that Harry was still alive, and then the refusal to let Hagrid take him to Dumbledore, were so good, too! Why didn't things go like this in canon? And I so agree with Sirius, Dumbledore has no right to decide of Harry's life, no matter he is Dumbledore!

Ah, I love that you included Minnie the cat! And that Lily only referred to her as Minnie when (she thought) no one listened! :P All these little memories about the Potters are so delighful and so heartbreaking at the same time... I really love every single word of this! <3

I'll move to chapter 2 now! See you in a bit!

Snowball hug,

Chiara

Name: MuggleMaybe (Signed) · Date: 26 Jan 2020 07:18 AM · For: nowhere else to go

Ahh Emma!! I'm here for round one of the review event. but ahhh!

 

I'm so excited for this! I cannot wait to read about harry growing up with a loving parental figure <3

 

Fun fact, when I read the opening paragraph I was like, "huh I wonder why emma decided to include halloween in this story?" and then 2 paragraphs later i was like, "oh, right. that." 

 

I might be a bit tired.

 

Trying to outrun anxiety by shagging random dudes is a very in character way for sirius to behave, i must say.  i can't really fault him - dancing and etc. are very distracting activities, especially when combined with alcohol. But I guess his instincts knew tonight was not the night to be distracted.

 

The way you describe Peter's flat and the whole set up of him being under protection because he's the secret keeper felt very real. I felt Sirius' rising anxiety as he realized peter was gone so acutely. How did you do that?

 

And then the feeling of embarrassment that you might be over reacting, and the gut punch of realizing you weren't. Ugh. So palpable. (I mean I haven't ever discovered that a magician had ravaged my friend's home but even so, the emotions are easy to connect with.) When he saw the dark mark i had to gasp, even though i knew it was coming. And then the fact that he was still far away made it even worse, that was painful.

 

I thought Sirius might accuse Hagrid of having committed the attack. it would have been reasonable, since he was at the scene. I'm glad he didn't do that. I do wonder how this AU will play out in that regard though. I really hope Sirius is too busy snuggling with baby harry to try to murder peter and therefore does not get arrested. 

 

on that note, I'm so happy sirius took harry! He's right, he really did know james and lily in a way few others did. And certainly like 1000 times better than vernon dursley, ugh. (I have complicated petunia stances but she was horribly abusive in canon too so yeah. also her.) Also, I think Sirius will be a pretty good parent. The was that, evem in that horrific moment, he calmly packs up all Harry's necessities and napies and toys was so sweet and parental. I loved that.

 

I am Very Pleased that he also brought Minnie with!

 

How will this effect Harry's safety, I wonder? I mean obviously he'll be much safer because he won't be living with abusers, but i meant in terms of the protection spell. I'm curious to see how you address (or ignore) that. And also I'm curious to see if Remus and Sirius happens because please? and if peter is caught.

 

oooh this AU presents so many tantalizing options, I need to read more.

 

All your stories are excellent but I think this is my favorite work of yours I've read, I really am excited about it!

 

xoxo Renee

Name: potionspartner (Signed) · Date: 17 Apr 2019 01:33 AM · For: these first few desperate hours

Hi Emma. I’m here for the What If Challenge review, chapters 4 and 5.

I’m so excited that you decided to continue this story. This story was actually one of the first I ever reviewed on HPFT (11 months ago, way back in May 2018 when I was still a lowly first year) and I remember distinctly reviewing it because of the unique title.

You have a great talent in picking the perfect one liners that either make the reader or a character smile, laugh or cringe like poor Hagrid accidently setting Sirius on the road to a heart attack with the announcement “he’s back.” It was some very cute comic relief and great characterization of Hagrid’s sweet yet bumbling ways.  SIRIUS’S BIG BOY PILLS, I was cracking up. Why am I not surprised something as small as taking pills is a roadblock for the guy.

Remus’ face was twisted into an expression Sirius had only ever seen on him once before -I’m curious, what was the other time? Was it after the werewolf prank on Snape?

And I learned a new vocabulary word: Panadol. (In US it’s referred to as Tylenol.)

Remus was completely justified in his reaction to Sirius as Sirius himself pointed out. I’m surprised Black didn’t show more anger toward Pettigrew. He mentioned several times of how he upset he was but I expected some more. Remus having to hold him back, him breaking something while thinking ab out the rat, etc. Regardless, it will be interesting to see Pettigrew’s reaction when he comes to Hogwarts with Percy in a few years.

Remus’s characterization was also spot on. Mr. “I’m going to ruin everything because I have a problems 12 hours of the month, so I shouldn’t be around civilized people for the rest of my life.”  The self-pity party was about to go into full swing when Black says just one sentence, “Please. I’m afraid of doing this alone” that really exemplifies his need for Remus’s friendship and his fears of being a parent.

Dumbledore seems to be very accepting of all this including Sirius ruining his plans, moving into Hogwarts etc. I hope he’s being the benevolent old man but this is Dumbledore who knows what he is planning.

The expansion of Hagrid’s Hut was cute. It was nice to see two friends working together in tandem on a big project--gave you a glimpse of how they pulled of such crazy and complicated things while still students.

 

Thank you for entering in the challenge. I’ll have the results up soon.

Name: poppunkpadfoot (Signed) · Date: 20 Jan 2019 07:37 PM · For: on the day that i forget you (i hope my heart explodes)

UGH, Emma. UGH. There are so many moments in this chapter that I love, but they're all just so heartwrenching. You have this amazing way of writing these devastating scenes without overstating them or being melodramatic. That scene with Sirius and Harry both crying in McGonagall's office? UGH. DEVASTATING, EMMA. I can't.

 

I go back and forth - like a LOT - on how I feel about Sirius/James, but here you made it so nostalgic and natural that it definitely made me feel a bit warm and fuzzy.

 

"Dumbledore looked like he had eaten in the past fifteen hours. He looked like he had even napped. Sirius loathed him" What A Huge Mood.

 

I know I'm always on and on in these reviews about details that I loved, but I'm about to do it again so I hope you don't mind?

 

-Sirius feeling like he doesn't know how to/can't control the volume of his voice while he's trying to convince James and Lily to use Peter

 

-"You can't kill yourself" PLEASE my heart, I know this line is being tinted with the implications of my own headcanons but even without that it HURTS

 

-JAMES'S TIGHT NON-BACKSLAPPING HUG, so good, I love that character detail and this might sound weird to say but I'm glad Sirius at least got a nice hug off of James the last time he saw him.

 

-The last line is cruel and unusual, I am SAD.

 

Brilliant work, Emma! Even though I'm a little weepy now. I can't even be mad at you cause this is all just so well done.

 

TTFN!

 

-Kayla

Name: poppunkpadfoot (Signed) · Date: 20 Jan 2019 06:17 PM · For: nowhere else to go

Hiii Emma, here for the Menagerie!

 

Okay, so the first time I read this I discovered that it is incredibly easy to hook me on a story by simply starting off with "Sirius was just at a Muggle gay club", because then I will go, "oh, this person knows what's UP" and I will continue reading. Which in this case was definitely a GREAT decision because you definitely DO know what's up. You're so, so good at writing Sirius, seriously. (Heh.)

 

Ugh this first chapter is crushing. I've pretty much lost count of how many times I've read it at this point, but the moment when Sirius discovers James's body still gets to me the same way every time. You've really done a great job capturing his shock in a "show, don't tell" sort of way, with the way that his thoughts are kind of sluggish and he's taking a moment to put two and two together and he's not quite keeping up with what's going on around him.

 

I love the moment with Lily, the care that Sirius shows her (or, well, shows her body, I guess?). A lot of people write Sirius as having this weird ambivalence towards/lack of care for Lily and I just can't see that being accurate. And this is such a tender little moment that imo really rounded out your characterization of Sirius.

 

One thing that's really interesting about this story is that often when you read a raising-Harry AU where Sirius didn't go to Azkaban and Harry didn't go to the Dursleys, something explicitly canon-divergent happens in the story that stops Sirius from rushing off to kill Peter - like Remus talks him out of it or something. But in this story, Sirius simply makes a different call. That almost makes this harder to read, because the whole time I'm thinking how canon could have gone so differently :(

 

Also, the little details in this, like how Harry loves to pull Sirius's hair and how Lily kept labelled containers of James's food in the fridge, when Sirius transfigured Lily's least favourite garden gnome (the fact that Sirius knew which one was Lily's least favourite garden gnome) - you've just really rounded everything out so well and painted such a vivid picture, it's basically impossible for me to not get sucked in.

 

I know you know I think this is absolutely fantastic, but I'm going to say "Fantastic job, Emma!" anyway!

 

TTFN!

 

-Kayla

Name: Crimson Quill (Signed) · Date: 18 Jan 2019 04:24 PM · For: nowhere else to go

 

Hey Emma!

 

I thought I would check out this story because I was really interested by the blurb.

 

It thought it was really cool to see this whole situation through Sirius' eyes. He obviously has good instincts because he knew something was wrong when it goes to Peter's like he knew it before then.

 

I thought the next section when he arrived at the Potters was amazing. You have some beautiful descriptive language in this section which is so effective especially in such an emotional scene. my favourite is probably 'the new outline looking like an open wound, jagged and dangerous'. I think that makes it feel so raw, very emotional imagery that you've used. I think it works well to really pack a punch. 

 

Sirius' walk around the scene is really effective. I thought you really captured the reaction when he sees James' body perfectly. Sirius and James have always had such a strong friendship so that moment was powerful. I thought it was very poignant that he knows what a dead body looks like because the war has changed him. He knows too much for being so young, I think it's easy to forget they were twenty when they died. 

 

I had always wondered about confrontation that might have happened at the house. We know from canon that Sirius was there shortly after the event. I really like your re-imaging of the scene. I love that he isn't willing to give Harry up. Sirius always had fight in him, it shows here. 

 

I think this is very promising set up for the story. I am very interested to see where you are going to take this story.

 

- Abbi xo

 

For: Magical Menagerie/ RvG

 

Name: poppunkpadfoot (Signed) · Date: 14 Jan 2019 04:59 PM · For: a mobius strip

*takes deep breath in*

 

AAAAAAAAAAAAAA

 

....Hello. I'm very calm. And I'm here for the Menagerie event, but also because, as I know you know, I'm obsessed with this story and I screamed when I saw an update on twitter :')

 

I'm so obsessed with the scene at the beginning of this chapter where Sirius gets all heated about Dumbledore wanting to send Harry to Petunia. It's SO, SO well characterized, I just adore it. It would be really easy for some people to cave in that moment and just be so exhausted and defeated and bowled over by loss that Dumbledore could just totally steamroller over them. I definitely don't think Sirius would be one of those people.

 

(Also, I have to say, I felt really smug over Harry messing with Dumbledore's things. It definitely felt like poetic justice hahaha.)

 

This is a theme throughout the whole entire chapter. It would be SO easy for Sirius to get overwhelmed and completely shut down/give up. He even spirals for a moment there, thinking about how he doesn't know what to do and he's not prepared for this, and all this stuff - and at other points in the chapter he's wondering how James and Lily were so much better than him at all the baby stuff - but not once does he think "this is too hard, maybe I should let Dumbledore give him to Petunia, I can just visit". In fact when he wakes up one of his very first thoughts is that he has to check that Dumbledore hasn't done so. So yeah, my point is - really excellent characterization throughout, I adore it.

 

I also gotta say how much I adored the scene with McGonagall and Sirius. We see these moments with her in the books too, where she sort of lets her stern "mask" (I don't want to call it a mask but I can't think how else to phrase it lol) slip and shows some emotions. I think it was really powerfully done here tbh and I loved the moment where he calls her Minevra.

 

Oh, and I have to say too - Hagrid is the best! Immediately offering to take in Sirius and Harry without missing a beat, babysitting so that Sirus can get some rest - he's so selfless and wonderful tbh, ugh I love him so much.

 

Anyway this story is the BEST and I'm so happy that you've posted another chapter <3 Post the next one soon! (Or else I'll keep nagging you, muahahaha)

 

TTFN!

 

-Kayla

Name: VaguelyCreativeName (Signed) · Date: 01 Jul 2018 11:37 AM · For: nowhere else to go

I've been meaning to review this for a while, but I somehow never got round to it, hence I've probably read it about three or four times, each time intending that this was going to be the one I'll leave a review, and every time it's such a powerful, heartwrenching read... So I guess fifth time's the charm?

 This is so incredibly well-written! I truly love how you convey Sirius's stream of consciousness, it flows so well and the hurt and anxiety strongly seep through, and I just.. I mean, losing your friends like that is possibly the most harrowing experience anyone could ever undergo, and the horror in this really felt tangible. Especially the scene when Sirius has just arrived at the Potters' is so well-crafted, and everything from the disbelief to the vomiting feels incredibly real; that double take on James feels like an extra stab in the gut. I was also impressed with the comparison of the house to a physical wound, it just shows strikingly clearly how Sirius feels, mentally and physically.

Also, all the little details and memories are worked in so well, like James naming the cat Minerva, and the fact that Sirius chooses to transfigure Lily's least favourite garden gnome (that of itself made me so emotional), and they just really hit home, every time. 

So overall, if it isn't obvious by now, I am really, really impressed by your writing!

 

Lots of Love,

Julia

Name: justawillowtree (Signed) · Date: 21 May 2018 12:07 AM · For: nowhere else to go

Hi Emma! In celebration of this story getting posted, I wanted to leave a review on this one for our review swap hehe. At first I was a little surprised because the total word count was so short but then I was like, “Duh, Eva, she’s not going to post the whole freaking 22k words in the first chapter. You stupid.”

 

Anyway! Moving on.

 

I’ve already told you a general summary of my thoughts, but since you’ve split it up into smaller pieces here, I can go into a bit more detail! I thought the beginning was so good, with Sirius trying to distract himself in a Muggle gay bar (about as far from the war as you can reach, I’d imagine) and then going to Peter’s flat and discovering that something went very, very wrong. I could practically feel Sirius’s fears and anxious feelings as he rushed over to the Potters’ house, and my heart pretty much broke alongside his when the Dark Mark showed up in the story.

 

Your descriptions of the way the house looked were really good, too! Especially the bit about the ‘sickly green glow’ and how foreign the house looked. It really made me grieve Jily all over again tbh, like, those two died such tragic deaths, and this only reminded me of that. (Thanks for that, by the way. :P)

 

I’m pretty sure I didn’t mention this before -- I thought your depiction of Dumbledore through Sirius’s eyes was really interesting. Because, to Sirius, what respect does he owe the old wizard? Dumbledore has been shown through the books to be vague, generally unhelpful in times of crisis, and manipulative in many ways, and so it makes complete sense that Sirius would distrust letting Dumbledore handle the situation. (I’d probably distrust Dumbledore, too. Like. What right does he have to take Harry away from people who love him? ALSO. That justification that Dumbledore gave to the Dursleys near the end of the series made me so mad! Like, putting Harry with the Dursleys ‘saved’ him from the treatment that Dudley got? Excuse me, Dumbledore, but I think you’ve got your rights and wrongs mixed up.) Anyway, the point of this giant paragraph is to tell you that I think your characterization of Dumbledore is insightful and super thought-provoking, and I like that you did this instead of having him generally worshipped.

 

Ahh the fact that Sirius had to close Lily’s eyes, even though he was unable to stomach the thought of doing the same to James, hurt my heart so much. I am. very sad. And I’ve mentioned before that I love your depiction of Baby Harry, and the fact that he normally pulls at Sirius’s hair makes me want to simultaneously laugh and cry, like how freaking cute but how tragic at the same time. Everything about Jily’s deaths makes me so sad omg.

 

(And this is a really minor detail but I love the cat. I love that they named the cat Minerva, and that Lily called her Minnie at times despite initially saying that naming the cat after their Transfiguration professor was disrespectful. And once again, my heart. Everything about this first chapter makes my heart hurt so much.)

 

This was a really good start to a story that I know I will enjoy a lot! I hope you can get the next chapters up quickly. <3

 

~Eva

Name: potionspartner (Signed) · Date: 19 May 2018 08:38 PM · For: nowhere else to go

Great description especially of the house itself. I can really seen the range of emotions running through Sirius from concern to dread to horror to shock (of Harry's survival) to suspicion (of Dumbledore.) I feel like we're missing some emotion from Hagrid. He's always been rather demonstrative with his emotions but here he's rather calm. Perhaps it is because the shock hasn't worn off yet.

It will be interesting to see how you present Dumbledore. I've seen several stories lately that portray him as a manipulative Machiavelli. Sirius hinted to this possible side of him. (Afterall, JKR's protagonist's flaws are always interesting to explore.)

I'm also interested in the title. I looked up the lyrics to Song for the Julian Calendar. Are you basing this on particular lyrics from the song? (ie "darkness climbing up the house.") If so, are the firecrackers important?

Coming through the window ledge

Author's Response:

Aaaah, thank you for this lovely review!!! I totally agree and will have a look at Hagrid, particularly in the next few chapters, thank you for pointing it out! 

 

I won't lie, I strongly dislike Dumbledore. I don't think he had anything to do with Halloween 1981, as Sirius was theorising, but he....is absolutely going to be a manipulative Machiavelli. I mean, he doesn't play a major role, but the spin Sirius puts on his canonical actions isn't going to be flattering.

 

I am so glad you're interested in the title, I wanted an excuse to tell someone about it. :P I'm not basing it off the lyrics really, no -- the "julian calendar" is more like a metaphor for the way this is a One Small Change AU (i.e., Sirius takes Harry and doesn't attack Peter), just like the Julian and Gregorian calendars are very similar but not the same. The way the protagonist of the song is lost ("wondered what it was I'd bargained for") and the darkness seemed appropriate, given Sirius has been thrust into this new life with no warning. I feel like the song is one of the more...difficult tmg songs to understand, and I don't really know what's going on in it, so it's more just the vibe, honestly.

 

You're a legend for the review, thank you!