Name: Oregonian (Signed) · Date: 19 Oct 2021 04:01 AM · For: Chapter 1

Hi, Chiara.  Since I'm a fan of archaeology and old stuff, I decided to go back to the earliest days of your AP to admire once more the stories you posted when these archives first opened.

 

I really like this little story because you pack so much into  a relatively few words, beginning with the title.  It could mean "Christmas in the Household of the Black Family," or it could mean "A Grim, Unpleasant Christmas Dinner."  Both of those titles would fit!

 

You have twelve characters in this little story, counting the baby (who even has a line of dialogue!), but you skillfully manage to characterize each member of your large cast by words and actions that are the very essence of each of them.  Sirius is resistant to his parents' values, Regulus is the pesky but goody-goody litlle brother, Walburga is harsh and critical, Orion is trying to play the host role, but he's not very successful, Cissy just wants to see her long-absent older sister, Bellatrix is venomous, as usual, Cygnus stands on his dignity, Ted tries to offend no one, Andromeda is certain she can handle it but cuts her losses quickly when the dinner turns sour...

 

It's pretty funny because this train-wreck of a dinner turns out just as you could have predicted, and the humor is sprinkled all through it.  My favorite line is where Orion asks if Ted's father is a goblin.  That really shows how isolated the wizards at the top of the magical social ladder are, if they think that all bankers are goblins.

 

This delightful little story is a good example of how much can be packed into a relatively few words if every line does its duty, so that we hop from one power-packed line to the next, and then the next...  Like a chocolate bon-bon that's small in size but full of flavor and just right!  

 

A very nice job.  Thank you for writing it.

 

Vicki

Author's Response:

Hey, Vicki!

Here trying to catch up a little with my unanswered reviews... thank you so much for this one! Yes, sometimes it's fun to go back to the old, forgotten stories... ;)

When I titled this (this was the very first fic I posted, back on HPFF, 8 years ago... can you believe it?) that's what I was going for. I actually thought as the opposite of a White Christmas, but with Black also referencing to the family name, of course :P

I'm so glad you felt I characterized each one of the diners well (including baby Nymphadora, lol :P) and that everyone felt recognizable and in character through their words and (re)actions! :D I'm also glad that you enjoyed the humour and the quick (and disastrous) progression :D

The bit about goblins was hilarious, I agree! It's my favourite, too... (although Reg asking about Dora's hair is a close second... :P)

So glad you enjoyed this, and that it worked even if it was quite short/compressed! Thank you so much for the lovely review! <3

Snowball hug,

Chiara

Name: prideofprewett (Signed) · Date: 13 Sep 2020 12:11 PM · For: Chapter 1

Poor Dromeda and Ted! I'm curious as to why she thought they might be received any other way by her family. Maybe in like a "it's the spirit of the holiday," sort of thing? I know holidays can be a point in time where people set aside their differences. 

I also think Narcissa still being on good terms with her might have something to do with it. I often wonder about their relationship during this time and then again Post-Second Wizarding War. I feel like there's a lot to explore there. 

I absolutely loved your characterization of Sirius in this! His snark is so on point, and the divide between him and Regulus shows the veering off point for them. 

And the bit about the Blacks thinking Teds father is a goblin made for a great detail to provide additional tension. Of course, they'd think even less of him, even though it's not true. And Sirius' discrete snort at this was gold!

And little Regulus so blissfully unaware. He is a total kid who just wants to enjoy the simplicity of the holiday. 

A really well done one shot! Thanks for writing!

Author's Response:

Hi, Courtney! Thank you so much for stopping by! :D

I have no idea what Andromeda was thinking... :P I suppose that, yes, she hoped her family would be more welcoming, if only for a holiday spirit sort of thing? But of course that's not the case...

I've always thought that Narcissa and Andromeda must've been close, and that Narcissa would always put family before ideology, so seeing her big sister after a long time apart would make her happy! And I totally headcanon them making up again after the second war, although it probably took some time... <3 but yes, a lot to explore there, definitely!

I'm so glad you liked Sirius and his snark! :D Poor kid, though... :/

The goblin bit was meant to be just a silly detail, but I guess it did increase the tension even more... glad you liked that, anyway! ;)

I love little Regulus! :P I was totally going for innocent vibes there! Glad you liked that, too! <3

Thank you so much for the lovely review!

Snowball hug,

Chiara

Name: DanyFire (Signed) · Date: 09 Jun 2019 06:07 PM · For: Chapter 1

Hello for a third time!!!

DanyFire here for a third time! I had to read this one to find out about the goblin thing. I have to say that this story had me chuckling at the point the goblin thing was started. I love how you can weave humor into a serious moment. It was a well written moment and it intrigues me to see moments like these in stories. I especially loves how the concern for Regulus and Sirius was opening the presents. It made them have a sense of normalcy. Very good stiory. I hope to read even more of your work.

DanyFire (AKA Meg H.)

Author's Response:

And hello once more! ;)

Ah, yes, the goblin thing! Glad you found that funny! :P

Regulus and Sirius are just children here, so of course their main concern would be the presents! I love writing their early relationship, I've always thought they would be pretty close in the beginning...

Thank you so much!

Chiara

Name: shadowkat678 (Signed) · Date: 22 May 2019 02:43 PM · For: Chapter 1

Hi, I'm here for our swap. Sorry it's so late. I actually thought I had already done yours but obviously I didn't.

 

This was an interesting oneshot that showed a bit into the Black family. They seemed, besides the bigoted views, a lot more normal than I would have thought. Of course, you've read my Sirius stories and know a bit how I write them, so maybe I'm just a lot harsher with how they act than some others who write them would be. (They hurt Sirius. They deserve to be seen badly, in my humble opinion. :P )

 

I thought it was funny how Orion was actually trying to make peace, even though he was being horribly awkward at it. Andy was sweet, and Narcessa's interaction with her was great. It's a shame their families couldn't look past Ted being muggleborn.

 

The interaction between Reg and Sirius seemed very believably sibling like. 

 

This was a good read, and thanks again for the swap!

Author's Response:

Hi, Kat! Thank you for swapping and sorry for the late reply!

Oh, I think they could be pretty horrible... especially Walburga (hate that woman...) but I also think that they would try to keep a certain decorum at formal reunions like this one. Sirius would probably have it much worse when there weren't guests around (although, maybe not as bad as you picture it in some of your stories... yes, probably my take on the Blacks is a little more generous...)

I like to think that Orion was a bit more tolerant than his wife. Still pretty awkward, yes. :P Glad you liked Andromeda and Narcissa, I like to think that the sisters used to be close. I've always thought Narcissa cared much more about family than ideology.

I absolutely adore Regulus and Sirius' sibling relationship! They are precious! <3

Thank you for the swap, glad you enjoyed this little piece! :)

Name: juls (Signed) · Date: 16 Sep 2018 01:12 AM · For: Chapter 1

Just as fabulous as the first (or, actually the second, as this one was the first.)

Baby Tonks made me smile with Narcissa and Andromeda just being regular sisters in that moment. I enjoyed their closeness. There was always something to me about Narcissa and how she wasn't as bigoted as the other Blacks towards Muggleborns. (I've even written her that way, so it was heartening to see it in your story, too.)

Thanks for the great read!

juls

Author's Response:

Aww, thank you so much! I'm so happy you decided to check out this one as well! :)

Baby Tonks is just adorable, isn't she? And yes, I agree that Narcissa wasn't as bigoted as the rest of the family... or at least, I've always thought that she valued family bonds more than she valued Pureblood ideology and that she would still feel affection for her sister, despite her marrying someone "unworthy".

Glad you enjoyed this too! Thank you for another lovely review!

Chiara

Name: Nix (Signed) · Date: 19 Apr 2018 08:54 PM · For: Chapter 1

Hi! Here for our review swap! 

 

I loved this! I love how Andromeda wanted to see her family for Christmas, even though she must have know they disapproved of her and her choice in husband. I loved the mother/son spat between Sirius and Walburga and the "brotherly love" between Sirius and Regulus. The way they all act towards each other is very realistic without being too over the top. And in my head, the Blacks are always over the top, lol.

 

I'm so happy Orion did let Andromeda and Ted inside, and was at least civil with Ted. He was the only one who gave the poor man the time of day, curious to know more about muggles and what they do since they don't have magic or goblins. I loved Narcissa's reaction to seeing her sister and her baby neice. I love that she didn't seem to care about her sister marrying a muggleborn and was just really happy to see her. That totally goes with my headcanon and made me smile when I read that. 

 

Cygnus and Bellatrix were super rude. Especially Cygnus for making his family leave in the middle of dinner. It's his own daughter he's disgusted with (and her husband and child) and instead of being happy to see her, he won't even speak to her. And what about Druella? Was she happy to see her middle daughter or was she as disgusted as her husband? I'm very curious to know more on the inner workings of the Black family. 

 

I also enjoyed the ending with Walburga about to let into her husband and the thought of Sirius and Regulus sneaking off to open their Christmas presents while their parents fight. This was such a cute little one-shot! Thanks so much for doing the review swap with me! I found a few other stories on your page I'm interested in reading so you may hear from me again at some point.

 

xxNix

Author's Response:

Hey, there, Nix! :)

I'm glad you enjoyed this little story. I'm glad you liked the idea of Andromeda wanting to see her family for Christmas and all the dynamics in the Black family. Yes, they are always over the top... :D

For some reason, I like to imagine Orion as slightly more tolerant than other members of the family. I had fun imagining him being curious about Muggles in a Arthur sort of way, but with that Pureblood disgust and sense of superiority... he is an interesting man. :P As for Cissy, I've always believed that all she truly cared about was her family and not ideology so much, so I truly think that she would be happy to see her sister again, despite her disresputable marriage. :P

Cygnus and Bellatrix are the worst. As for Druella, I think she would be somewhere in the middle? Like, she would still care about her daughter, but she wouldn't try to reconnect because... what would people think? Druella is all about keeping appearences. And she would never go against her husband, because that would be so improper. (Of course, all this is my personal interpretation).

I love children Sirius and Regulus. I'm so glad you found cute how they sneaked off to open presents while their parents fought. :P

Thank you so much for swapping and for leaving such a nice review! :D

Lots of love,

Chiara

Name: pookha (Signed) · Date: 29 Sep 2017 11:10 PM · For: Chapter 1

I've read this before and almost reviewed it then, and I'm not sure why I didn't. So I'm going to review it no for our review swap. Going to start off by saying tha I quite like the younger Regulus and Sirius, and the way they aren't quite oblivious to what's happening around them with the breakup of the family and tensions, but that Regulus has a different objective, the opening of presents.

Andromeda's characterization as someone who's trying to reconnect rang very true to what we know aobut her from the books and Ted's defense of the confusion about his parents was terrific. I think this is very much how that meeting would have gone, with Bella being belligerent, Narcissa being happy to see her niece (but keeping her opinions about Ted quiet for at least a night), and Andromeda trying reconciliation. 

What really drove this piece was the characterizations; you make them all believable and show their motivations through their actions and words. 

 

I really enjoyed reading this (or re-reading this, really).

Author's Response:

Hi, Pookha! Thank you for the swap! :)

I'm glad you liked Sirius and Regulus, I do love writing them as children. Why would Reg care about family drama when there are presents waiting for him under the Christmas tree? :P Glad you liked that, I thought it would be fun! :D

I'm glad you liked Andromeda trying to reconcile with her family and found her in character. And that you liked everyone else's characterization as well.

Thank you so much for the lovely review and for the swap, it's always so nice!

Love,

Chiara

Name: victoria_anne (Signed) · Date: 03 Nov 2016 03:12 AM · For: Chapter 1

Hey Chi!

 

I'm just transferring reviews :)

Okay one more then I'll go to bed, I promise! :P But I found this little Black one tucked away, it called to me. I couldn't say no!

 

Bianca... Read me...

 

I luuurve the Black family (as I'm sure you well know *ahem*) and I think your characterisation of ALL of them was perfect! I must say though, that was pretty brave of Andromeda to turn up! And poor Ted must have been so nervous! Omg Regulus is so cute, pretending he knows what a metamorphmagus is when he doesn't! Ha ha! I love how Narcissa was instantly taken by baby Dora, I feel like she's one of those girls who just completely cooed over babies and wanted nothing more than to be a mother herself ♥

 

Ha ha and that last line! You should write Regulus more! Oh Chi this was such a great piece, I bet every family get together at the Black house went this way! Their bickering and judging was spot on, but the whole story was still quite lighthearted, I loved it!

 

Love B ♥

Author's Response:

Thank you, B!

Love thee!

Name: Crumple-Horned Snorkack (Anonymous) · Date: 02 Nov 2016 07:29 PM · For: Chapter 1

Greetings, Chiara. I am the Crumple-Horned Snorkack, and while I commonly dwell hidden in the forest far away from human eyes (particularly the Lovegoods), I have taken this day to venture out and read some fanfiction instead!

What a dysfunctional family Christmas! I can relate, as my family Christmases tend to involve all of us Snorkacks hiding from one another, so I can never tell who's even there at all because we all camouflage with the trees. But this one, with the Black Family, is about as messy as you can get. I did wonder how that would go over, with Andromeda bringing her Muggle-born husband to dinner with her uptight purist relatives, and I can't say I was surprised.

I like your characterisation of Sirius and Regulus in particular, how they kind of annoy each other just to be annoying - as any brother would do. One thing I also really liked was Narcissa - I LOVE the idea that she was really close with Andromeda (at least when they were growing up) and that scene when Narcissa was so happy to meet baby Nymphadora was just the cutest.

Walburga was much nicer than I expected she'd be, after all, she's most known for screeching about horrible Mudbloods from her picture frame in Grimmauld Place, but here was upset at Orion for driving Andromeda away in the end. I guess being proper and having fine etiquette was most important to her when she was alive, but by the time was just a dead portrait she didn't care anymore :p

I really enjoyed reading this one-shot! Lovely work! And now, I must depart to meet my best friend the Loch Ness Monster for tea.

Author's Response:

Hello, Snorkack! It's so lovely to see you around here too!

Thank you so much for the lovely review, I'm glad you enjoyed reading this story. Give Nessie my greetings. :D

Lots of love!!!