Yay for a happy ending!

Whew!  That worked out nicely.

He'd better ignore her wishes and go after her!

Feeling very sorry for all parties at the moment.

Oh dear, this is becoming tangled!

Wow, how confused Severus must be.  And an interesting turn of events between him and Lily.  I'm a little afraid to see the fallout from this misinterpreted conversation with Lily.

It seemed like a wonderful dream, in bed with Hermione.  Then it seemed like a nightmare having James and Lily in the picture.  Is this all in his head?  Is this the afterlife?  Poor guy must be so confused!

What an intriguing start!  Must go find out more ...

I confess.  I looked.  I had to look.  I couldn't bear it if this was to end sadly. I remember the movie of the same name and I absolutely hated it.  It was one of the worst movies I've ever seen. I saw it on New Years eve. My husband and I went out with friends for a movie. Our kids were just old enough that we left them alone and called every hour. I told everyone, "I don't do sad movies!" I can't remember what else was playing and what I wanted to see instead, but the other couple wanted to see this one. We never went to the movies with them again.  I told them I hated it and it had been the worst movie I'd ever seen. God's that had to be, I checked; only 1998!  It feels like a lifetime ago. So much in my life has changed in 14 measly years and most of it sucks! I read the recap in Wikkipeida and I still say the movie was totally fucked up. I hated Robin Williams from then on as well. ...Now I'm scared to keep reading.  What to do? What to do!  I'll let you know when I decide.

If only this was what really happened to dear Severus. If this is heaven, he has earned by his sacrafice all of these things. He has especially earned the joy of being free from loveing someone who did not love him in return. ...I wonder if I should skip to the end to check and make sure this isn't just some wonderful dream and that when he next wakes, he'll still be on the floor of the shrieking shack, dying. You know what they say about things that sound too good to be true.

Wonderful story.  I loved the "glimpse" of what his life could have been, and while I was really annoyed with him that he messed it up so bad, I thought it was great that you didn't make his other life the exact opposite of his canon life.  The way his life turned out was just the right mix of both happiness and tragedy.  Thanks!

Just getting around to reviewing again--excellent epilogue!  Your writing pulls me into the storyline, truly gets me invested in the characters--which is wonderful, other than the fact I feel almost abandoned when the story is over!  Great job, and I look forward to reading more of your work :)PS:  so what *are* their kids and grandkids named? ;)

Really enjoyed your fic! It flowed very easily...a little OOC for a few of the characters...but heck...this is fanfic and love makes us all a little crazy.So...it was actually quite beliveable about Hermione's jumping to conclusions with Sev/Lily. Been there myself with my hubby and an old friend- not nice at the time but you feel stupid for reaching the wrong conclusion afterwards...no matter what you think happened!You live and learn.Course ..to any woman who does find her man with someone else...it's always handy to have a lot of spare fryingpans around!..either that or a cricket bat!

yes!  i want everything!  would that albus actually was that considerate.  but that was beautifully written.  thanks so much and i look forward to the epilogue

Terrific story.  But please no (great)grandchildren.

Oh, it all makes sense now. Very interesting yet agonizing plot. lol.

YEAH!!!!  Thank you for putting it right in the end - you have done such a great job with this - thanks for all the twists and turns on the way - really appreciate all of your hard work!!

Oh, my gosh, that last line was the best!  Albus really is a meddlesome old coot, isn't he?  Did he really doubt Severus' ability to be selfless?  Does the man not know him at all?  Anyway, I'm glad that all worked out.  Lovely chapter... really!  I'm not sure if I care too much about their great-grandchildren, but I hate to see this story end!  It's been wonderful.

I'm glad that Severus found his way back to Hermione. He's proven to himself that he truly loves her. Very romantic. I'm looking forward to the epilogue.

Good ending. Nothing like a second change to get it right and be happy. It will be an even happier life because of what he had to go through to have it.Livvy

This has been fun. I am looking forward to the epilogue.

Do you really want to know the names and occupations of their great-grandchildren?   Are you kidding me?  Of course I do!  I want to know everything!  Everything!  Well, as much as you and your muse can bring yourselves to write.Having read this latest chapter, I can tell you that "the penny dropped" for me.  This is such a unique story, and I've loved every word.  Not only are you a very talented writer, but I appreciate the time you've taken to answer the questions I asked in my reviews.  I know you forewarned us that Severus and Hermione would be together, but not in the way we imagined.  Boy! were you right.  I didn't see this coming at all!  Well done, Rhiannon, well done!  I'm looking forward to the epilogue.A Thousand Points to Your House!  Beth

What a pleasant surprise.  I had braced myself for more bad stuff to happen to her.

I swear!  Sometimes men are so clueless!  Severus' friendship with Lily was spectacularly manipulated by Lily herself... making all those faces at him to get his attention right when he and Hermione were taking their wedding vows... bitch!  And Severus deserves to feel like a fool for not seeing what he was doing to Hermione... sometimes men are so clueless!  He should have sat Lily down and given her a talking to when she kept on trying to be the center of attention of his life.  Bitch!Now that he has seen what his thoughtlessness has done, and read Hermione's goodbye letter, I hope he can screw his courage to the sticking place and go find her... tell her what a fool he has been, and plead for forgiveness from her and let her know that he has forgiven her.  I don't like Lily, and I think your description of her as an "attention whore" is apt.  I've known people like this, and they are a constant cause of hurt feelings to everyone around them.  James must be made of stern stuff.  Either that or he is willing to put up with a lot to keep her in his life.I'm sure that Harry is humiliated and aghast at his mother's behavior.  What will become of him and Ginny?  *sigh*Now where is our Hermione, and what is she doing?  Her letter to Severus completely broke my heart:  "I have loved you as much as I could, and I will continue to do so until I die. I’m sorry that it wasn’t enough. Maybe in some parallel universe, you and Lily are happy together. I’m sorry that couldn’t be the case in this one. I hope that you can at least look back on these last years fondly. They were the best of my entire life. I love you, Severus. But more than that, I only want you to be happy. If I cannot make you happy, I will remove myself from the scenario in hopes that if I’m gone, you’ll be free to find the love and happiness that you so richly deserve."Please make it all better.  What a fabulous story this is!Beth

Wow - my heart is just breaking for them!!  You have made them so empathic!!!  Thanks for your hard work and I can't wait to see this resolved!!